Latest News Reports From Miscellaneous Sources for August 20/12
Pope to visit Lebanon despite tensions: spokesman
DEBKAfile/Cairo uses illicit Sinai tanks to bargain for massive US aid
As Meqdads warn diplomacy's chances receding, Turkish hostage falls ill
Fresh kidnappings of Syrians in Lebanon
Suspects in Lebanon bank robbery detained
U.N. monitors pull out of Syria
Jordan's government protests Syrian shelling
US, Israel view Iran threat with different 'clocks': general
Peres urges unity in fight against violence
Germany helping Syria rebels with spy ship intel'
The Free Syrian Army (FSA) in possession of Stinger missiles – Report
Syria's Assad makes rare public appearance
Iraqis helping Iran skirt sanctions - NY Times

US, Israel view Iran threat with different 'clocks': general
AFP – The United States and Israel have different interpretations of the same intelligence reports on Iran's nuclear programme, the US military's top general said.
General Martin Dempsey, at the start of a trip to Afghanistan and Iraq, said late Sunday that Israel viewed the threat posed by Tehran's atomic ambitions with more urgency, as a nuclear-armed Iran could endanger Israel's very existence. Dempsey, the chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, said he conferred with his Israeli counterpart Benny Gantz on a regular, "bi-weekly" basis.
"We compare intelligence, we discuss regional implications. And we've admitted to each other that our clocks are turning at different rates," he said.
"They are living with an existential concern that we are not living with."
Amid intense speculation in the Israeli press that Israel soon may launch a unilateral strike against Iran's nuclear sites, Dempsey said the US military felt no pressure from Israel to back possible bombing raids.
Speaking to reporters aboard his plane before landing Sunday night at Bagram air base in Afghanistan, Dempsey reiterated his view that any air strikes by Israel would delay but not destroy Iran's disputed nuclear project. Similar remarks by the general last week were widely analysed in the Israeli media but Dempsey said his comments were not designed with an Israeli audience in mind.
"You can take two countries and interpret the same intelligence and come out with two different conclusions. I'd suggest to you that's what's really happening here," he said.
The four-star general also struck a cautious note on any possible US military action against the Syrian regime.
Asked about the possibility of the United States backing a no-fly zone over Syria, Dempsey hinted that such a move might draw away military resources needed to deter Iran in the Gulf.
"I am helping shape the discussion (on potential military options for Syria)," he said.
"And I'll tell you we have to clearly define our national interest. What you do in one place, whether it's Syria or the Strait of Hormuz, there are trade offs."It's a conversation that we should proceed with cautiously."

Pope to visit Lebanon despite tensions: spokesman
August 20, 2012/Daily Star
VATICAN CITY: Pope Benedict XVI's visit to Lebanon next month will go ahead as scheduled, the Vatican said on Monday, despite tensions in the country linked to the raging conflict in Syria.
"The preparations for the visit are going ahead without any uncertainty on the part of the Vatican," Vatican spokesman Federico Lombardi told reporters.
Lombardi cited as evidence the September 14-16 trip would go ahead the fact that the pope's special car -- the "popemobile" -- was on its way to Beirut.
Lebanon has been battling to contain an eruption of violence triggered by events in neighboring Syria, including a spate of mass kidnappings that recalled the dark days of the country's own civil war.
Several oil-rich Gulf countries have ordered their nationals to leave the country in the face of threats, particularly against Saudis and Qataris whose governments are staunch opponents of the Syrian regime.
Turkey and the United States have also warned of possible attacks against their citizens.
Pope Benedict XVI is expected to bring a message of peace for the Middle East on his three-day trip.
The 85-year-old German pontiff is set to meet with various religious leaders in multi-faith Lebanon and emphasize in particular the need for peaceful coexistence between Christian and Muslim communities in the Middle East.

Fresh kidnappings of Syrians in Lebanon
August 20, 2012/The Daily Star /BEIRUT: Two Syrian nationals have been kidnapped and two more are missing and believed to be kidnapped, with the incidents having taken place in various parts of Lebanon. Security sources said Rahaf Hasan Mashhadani informed police in Baalbek that masked men snatched her husband, Mohammad Mashhadani, after midnight as he stood outside their home in Bidnayel, east Lebanon. Rafah said four men were involved in the kidnapping of her 30-year-old husband, who hails from the city of Idlib, northwest Syria.
Security forces have launched an investigation to determine the motive behind the kidnapping.
In a similar incident, Syrian national Aisha Abdel-Razzaq informed police that unknown individuals in a four-wheel drive kidnapped her husband, Ibrahim Ahmad al-Yehya, 27, from the Beirut southern suburb of Mraijeh Sunday afternoon. She said the kidnappers took Ibrahim to an unknown destination after threatening his life.
Police also received a report that two Syrian men – Jumaa al-Hajij and Mohammad Masoud – went missing in Hay al-Seryan, in the Ashrafieh district of Beirut, Sunday.
Security sources told The Daily Star Monday the two are feared to have been kidnapped by unidentified men in a four-wheel drive.
The fresh abductions could not immediately be linked to the Meqdad clan, which recently announced it had suspended its revenge kidnappings to give diplomacy a chance.
The Meqdads claim that they are holding more than 20 Syrian nationals in addition to a Turkish citizen in an effort to swap them for kinsman Hassan Meqdad.
The Free Syrian Army kidnapped Hassan in Damascus last week.
Several abductions of Syrians and others have taken place in Lebanon recently, fueling fears that the conflict in Syria is spilling over into Lebanon.

Suspects in Lebanon bank robbery detained
August 20, 2012/The Daily Star /BEIRUT: The Lebanese Army said Monday it had detained four men in the southern coastal city of Sidon, some of whom it believes to have been involved in the Aug. 9 robbery of BLOM bank in Elissar, northeast of Beirut. A military communiqué said the suspects were detained at an army checkpoint in Sidon Sunday night. It said the arrests were made in coordination with the Internal Security Forces’ (ISF) Information Branch. The ISF’s Information Branch said in a statement that one of the suspects has the last name Zeiater. The military communiqué said several guns, ammunition, a quantity of drugs and cellular phones were seized from the suspects. The detainees were handed over to the relevant security authorities for further investigation, according to the statement. Lebanese Army officer Zayyan al-Jurdi, who intervened during the Aug. 9 robbery in a bid to thwart the armed robbers, was shot and seriously wounded.The robbers made off with $200,000 and LL120 million in cash. Jurdi remains in serious condition in the intensive care unit at the American University of Beirut – Medical Center, sources told The Daily Star Monday.

Cairo uses illicit Sinai tanks to bargain for massive US aid
DEBKAfile Exclusive Report August 20, 2012/Israel’s deployment of an Iron Dome anti-missile battery in Eilat Sunday, Aug. 19, came five days after two Grad missiles were launched against its southernmost town. They exploded harmlessly. debkafile’s military sources report they were primarily a warning to Egypt from al-Qaeda-linked Islamist terrorists to hold off even its minimal raids and arrests of suspected terrorists in northern Sinai.
The Egyptians have meanwhile moved a battalion of 19 Egyptian M60A-3 tanks into the peninsula, using the Islamist attacks on Egyptian and Israeli military targets of Aug. 8 as their pretext for violating the Egyptian-Israeli peace treaty’s military protocols. Fearing the tanks are there to stay, Israel has asked the White House, the Pentagon and the State Department in Washington to intervene with Cairo and get them withdrawn.
Cairo never requested or received Israel’s permission to bring the tanks over.
Only when Jerusalem complained to Washington did Egyptian liaison officers contact IDF officers. They did not ask directly for permission only skirted around the tank issue by consulting IDF officers on the effectiveness of a tank offensive on the armed Islamists’ mountain strongholds, which Cairo shows no other sign of seriously contemplating. For now, Egypt is counting on Israel not making too much of a fuss so as not to be accused of obstructing efforts to fight terrorists.
On the diplomatic front, Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi and new Defense Minister Gen. Abdel Fattah El-Sissi filed a complaint of their own in Washington. They accused Israel of frequently breaching the same military protocols over the years, each time the IDF used tanks around the Philadelphi pocket, Rafah and the Kerem Shalom crossing to fight off Palestinian terrorist attacks and rocket fire from the Gaza Strip.
Those enclaves are marked D in the peace accords and barred to heavy weapons, like Area C in North Sinai on the Egyptian side of the border.
Israel is concerned that the Egyptians intend keeping the tanks on the Israeli border permanently or even adding some more as part of the ruling Muslim Brotherhood’s tactics for eroding the military clauses of the peace treaty with Israel until they are meaningless.
The Egyptian tank issue weighing on Cairo, Washington and Jerusalem has become additionally entangled in several broader issues: the war on terror, Cairo’s bid for lavish economic aid, President Barack Obama’s outlook on the Muslim Brotherhood’s grab for power in Cairo and signs that Egypt's new rulers are considering cozying up to Tehran.
1. Egypt keeps on avoiding its promised major counter-terror offensive in Sinai even after losing 16 troops in a terrorist attack. Its actions are limited to small police raids on suspects, a couple of arrests here and there and impounding computers. Confrontations with armed gunmen and operations against their command posts are systematically avoided.
Indeed the armed Salafist gangs felt safe enough last Wednesday to raise their heads again and fire two Grad missiles against Israeli southernmost town of Eilat. According to debkafile’s exclusive, counter-terror sources, Cairo got the message: Even minor police raids must stop or else the Islamists would seriously target Eilat and other parts of southern Israel, further complicating Egypt’s relations with the US and Israel.
The warning was taken seriously by the IDF high command, which Sunday night, Aug. 19, moved an Iron Dome missile defense battery over to Eilat.
2. Washington for its part is quietly pushing President Morsi to make good on his promise of a military operation to root out al Qaeda affiliates from central Sinai. debkafile’s Washington sources report that the Egyptians don’t say this outright, but are hinting that they are waiting for President Barack Obama to order the release of substantial aid funds before embarking on this counter-terror offensive or withdrawing their tanks from Sinai. They are very clear about the amounts that would satisfy them: A grant of half a billion dollars from the United States and a US guarantee for an International Monetary Fund loan of $4.6 billion.
Our sources report that the Muslim Brotherhood regime needs an urgent influx of cash to pay public sector wages on Sept. 1.
3. President Morsi is holding another move in abeyance pending the Obama administration’s response to his urgent financial needs. He has not yet replied to Tehran’s official invitation for him to represent Egypt at the non-aligned summit of Muslim nations taking place in the Iranian capital on Aug. 30. The inference is that if Washington meets Cairo’s economic aid requests, Morsi with refuse Iran’s invitation; but if it falls short, the Muslim Brotherhood will start a process of rapprochement with Iran, the first since Islamist revolutionaries seized control of Tehran in1979-80.

New UN Peace Envoy To Syria Is No Peacemaker
Joseph A. Klein Sunday, August 19, 2012
Canada Free Press
Brahimi, who is 78 years old, is expected to assume his duties following the expiration of Annan’s mandate on August 31, 2012. “I might very well fail but we sometimes are lucky and we can get a breakthrough,” Brahimi told the BBC in an interview.
Describing the violence in Syria as “absolutely terrible,” Brahimi told Reuters he urgently needed to clarify what support the United Nations can give him and said it was too soon to say whether Assad should step down.
The Syrian government welcomed Brahimi’s appointment. The opposition to the regime has doubts, however, whether it will mean anything. A Syrian opposition leader, Haitham al-Malehhas, predicted that Brahimi will be no more successful than Annan was in finding a way to quell the violence. “The same way the Syrian regime caused the Arab monitors mission, international monitors delegation and Kofi Annan’s initiative to fail, they will cause the failure of Lakhdar Brahimi,” he said.
Brahimi has received high marks from the United Nations in the past for his mediation work in various hotspots, including helping to negotiate the end of Lebanon’s civil war, which his backers, including the Obama administration, hope will be repeated in Syria. He has served the United Nations in various high-level roles over in the past two decades, including heading the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) and serving In Iraq during the post-Saddam Hussein transition period. As an Algerian diplomat and foreign minister, Brahimi also served with the League of Arab States from 1984 to 1991.
The New York Times described Brahimi as a “widely respected statesman.” However, as impressive as some of Brahimi’s diplomatic accomplishments might appear on paper, a closer examination reveals some disturbing facts about his record.
From 1956 to 1961, during Algeria’s independence struggle against France, Brahimi started out his political career as the socialist National Liberation Front (FLN) representative in South-East Asia, resident in Jakarta, Indonesia. It is estimated that at least 70,000 Muslim civilians were killed or abducted and presumed killed by the FLN during the war for independence and more than 30,000 pro-French Muslims were allegedly killed in Algeria by the FLN in post-war reprisals. Brahimi remained a member of the FLN following Algeria’s independence and began his rise through the diplomatic ranks.
When the Algerian military staged a coup in January 1992, Brahimi was Algeria’s foreign minister. The FLN party, fearing the loss of power to a democratically elected Islamic party, cancelled the elections after the first round. In his role as foreign minister, Brahimi sought to rationalize to the outside world the reasons for the coup, glossing over the atrocities during the civil war that followed the suspension of democracy in the country. Human rights organizations, such as Amnesty International, reported frequent government use of torture and holding of suspects without charge or trial. More than 100,000 lives were lost during the civil war, which Brahimi’s FLN instigated, with the backing of the military, by cancelling the elections.
Is this really the kind of experience that instills confidence in Brahimi’s ability to broker a peace accord in Syria and its transition to democracy?
Brahimi’s supporters point to his diplomatic efforts in Lebanon, where he was given credit for helping to broker the end of the decades-long Lebanese civil war.
Brahimi boasted in September 1989 that “we clinched a cease-fire,” leading to the Taif Agreement (also known as the “National Reconciliation Accord”) that supposedly ended the 15-year conflict. “These kinds of satisfactions are the things that one works for,” Brahimi declared.
The only problem with this rosy picture of peace in Lebanon is that the Taif Agreement in actuality planted the seeds for more serious problems to come in that troubled country. Most notably, the agreement ended up ratifying Syria’s occupation of parts of Syria for a period of time and called for the disarming of all militia except Hezbollah, which was accorded a waiver on the grounds that it was a “resistance force” against Israel. Hezbollah today is a dominant force in the Lebanese government and a key supporter of the Assad regime.
This isn’t the first time that Brahimi has served as the United Nations special representative to a hotspot with questionable results. He served in that capacity in Iraq during the formation of the Interim Iraqi Government, which was established in June 2004 after extensive negotiations. He sympathized with the insurgents in Iraq, who were killing innocent civilians as well as targeting American troops.
“I think it’s a little bit too easy to call everybody a terrorist,” he explained. Alluding to the role of the U.S. administrator in Iraq at the time, Paul Bremer, Brahimi called him a “dictator.” Brahimi ended up resigning his post in frustration, much as his mentor Kofi Annan just did with respect to the position that Brahimi is now taking over for Syria.
Aside from these disturbing details regarding Brahimi’s supposedly illustrious diplomatic career, he has made some alarming remarks about terrorism and Israel.
During a 2005 interview at Berkley, Brahimi said:
“If you are talking about terrorism, you need to sit down and understand what is making these people put dynamite around their waists and blow themselves up. Because they are Muslims, because they are stupid, because they want to go to paradise? Maybe some do, but I think most of them have other motivations.”
One such motivation appears to be what Brahimi called the “Israeli policy of domination and the suffering imposed on the Palestinians,” which Brahimi told French radio in 2004 was “the great poison in the region.” He went on to condemn “the equally unjust support…of the United States for this policy.”
Brahimi amplified his attack on Israel in an ABC television interview with George Stephanopoulos a few days later: “I think there is unanimity in the Arab world, and indeed in much of the rest of the world, that the Israeli policy is wrong, that the Israeli policy is brutal, repressive, and that they are not interested in peace no matter what you seem to believe in America.”
The feckless Kofi Annan was bad enough as the joint UN-Arab League peace envoy in Syria. Lakhdar Brahimi, his successor, is even worse. He brings to the table a checkered career in which he rationalized the kind of brutal repression in his own country of Algeria that Assad is displaying in Syria, and in which he enabled Syria and Hezbollah to strengthen their stranglehold in Lebanon under the phony National Reconciliation Accord that he helped mediate.
In sum, Brahimi is not a man of peace or true reconciliation, as further evidenced by his ambivalence about terrorism and his incendiary rhetoric against Israel. Yet - no surprise - the Obama administration supports Brahimi 100 percent for his new position.

The Free Syrian Army (FSA) in possession of Stinger missiles – Report
By Asharq Al-Awsat
Beirut, Asharq Al-Awsat – Western reports have claimed that the Free Syrian Army [FSA] is in possession of anti-aircraft Stinger missiles capable of changing the balance of power on the ground in Syria between the al-Assad regime and opposing rebel forces. Al-Arabiya quoted a Syrian opposition source who confirmed that 14 Stinger missiles had been delivered to the FSA at the Iskenderun area along the border with Turkey. He added that both Turkey and the United States were aware of the arms delivery. Al-Arabiya also quoted a second US-based opposition source, who asserted that the FSA have yet to use these arms, saying “there is no indication that the Free Syrian Army has used the Stinger missiles yet.” As for the Syrian fighter jet reportedly downed by the FSA last Monday, the source said this was shut down by anti-aircraft guns.
Commenting on this report, FSA spokesman Louai Miqdad told Asharq Al-Awsat that “we cannot confirm or deny this" however he did reveal that "the type of arms possessed by the FSA has evolved over the past two weeks." Miqdad attributed this development to two major reasons, "Firstly, due to the ability of the FSA to liberate a number of regions where there were weapon repositories belonging to the regime’s forces, including air defense systems. Secondly, Syria is a country that geographically shares broad borders with the surrounding countries, including borders with Iraq and Turkey, totalling more than 800 km, and nobody can stop the thriving black market arms trade.”
Miqdad also stressed that “none of the countries, whether the US, Saudi Arabia or Qatar, has provided us with arms, at least until today" adding "as for what will happen tomorrow, nobody knows.”
The FSA spokesman told Asharq Al-Awsat “I do not deny that these countries, particularly Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Qatar, are providing us with humanitarian and material aid and assistance, and even political support.”
He stressed that “the FSA has become organizationally stronger, and if we have anti-aircraft missiles capable of bringing down MiG and Sukhoi fighter jets, we have not utilized them.”
He added that the MiG fighter jet that was downed last week was not shot down by a surface-to-air missile but by a 23.5 caliber anti-aircraft gun. He stressed that the fighter jet was flying at low altitude, which is how the rebels were able to shoot it down. Miqdad said that the same applies to the regime helicopters shot down by the FSA, stressing that, as of yet, no surface-to-air missiles have been fired by the Syrian rebels.
The presence of Stinger missiles in the hands of the FSA would represent a major military development on the ground in Syria, as this could change the balance of power in the confrontation taking place between the regime’s forces and the FSA, largely neutralizing the regime’s advantage in terms of aerial superiority. This would also represent a major political shift, as it is unlikely that such weapons could be delivered to the FSA without the knowledge of Turkey and the US, particularly as Washington must approve any sale of US-made arms to third parties.
For his part, an Al-Arabiya source claimed that the American government had been keen to ensure that the Stinger missiles were delivered to known FSA units, rather than jihadist organizations operating in Syria.

Al-Shara: Following in Hijab and Tlass’s footsteps
By Abdul Rahman Al-Rashed/Asharq Alawsat
If Syrian Vice President Farouq al-Shara manages to cross the border into neighboring Jordan, it will represent a new –but not decisive – blow for the Syrian regime. Al-Shara is from Daraa, the region that spawned the revolution against Bashar al-Assad after a group of children were arrested and tortured for writing anti-regime slogans. Daraa is an important passageway for dissidents and arms smugglers since it is located south of the capital Damascus, about an hour’s drive away. It is the gateway to Jordan, and this is why al-Assad’s forces have conducted a continuous spree of killings and bombings there for seventeen months, but as yet they have failed to quell the uprising.
Al-Shara’s significance lies in the fact that he is an integral part of the regime; he has known its darkest secrets for decades, unlike former Prime Minister Riad Hijab, who defected just forty days after being assigned to the post.
The Syrian regime is being hurt directly by the defection of its military and security leadership. This has happened on several occasions over the past two months; most recently with Yaarab al-Shara, Farouq’s cousin and a security official in Damascus, and prior to that with the defection of Manaf Tlass. The importance of these dissident leaders and officers lies in their support for the Free Syrian Army (FSA), and their ability to support the rebels. The explosion that targeted a military command office last week, along with the attack on the national security building several weeks ago, appear to be the result of military defectors infiltrating and collaborating with staff on the premises.
The defection of a figure as important as Farouq al-Shara, the Vice President of the Republic, and the assignment of Lakhdar Brahimi as a U.N. envoy to Syria to discuss a peaceful end for the Assad regime, are two important events, but they will still not change anything in Damascus because of Russia’s determination to protect the regime at all levels. What will change the situation, topple the regime and end this tragedy, is if we pay attention to the split in the military: We must supply the FSA and its fighters with weapons and intelligence information. The Syrian revolution has completed the basic stages of change; it highlighted that the regime’s downfall is the desire of the majority of the Syrian people, gained international support, and then transformed into an armed confrontation as a result of the regime’s violence. It is now certain that the majority of the regime’s senior officials are willing to flee and that numerous members of the security and military forces are also willing to defect, but it will not be easy for them.
The regime has lost dozens of key figures, ministers, and security and military chiefs, but the stubborn head, Bashar al-Assad, still remains. He has displayed levels of ferocity and brutality that are unprecedented in our modern history. The calculated crimes he has committed against civilians over the past months have gone way beyond the cruelty of his father Hafez al-Assad, and even beyond the harshest dictators in the region such as Saddam Hussein and Muammar Gaddafi.

Lebanon: the temporary state
By Hussein Shobokshi/Asharq Alawsat
The Lebanese scene is surreal, but nevertheless we have become accustomed to it and have grown bored. Over and over again a group suddenly emerges, whether it is a party, militia, clan or sect, daring to raise its voice and launching an assault on the state and the people. In turn, this threatens and disrupts people’s lives and cripples the entire country without any deterrent or penalty from the official authorities. The latest scene in Lebanon caused a state of panic when a group decided to "avenge" the kidnapping of one of its affiliates in Syria, hence randomly abducting a number of Syrians in Lebanon, as well as a Saudi and a Turk, according to different accounts. This same group also blocked the sole road to Beirut Airport (the only airport in Lebanon), hence paralyzing the entire country. This is not a sign or a symptom of a feeble or fragile state; rather it is a sign of a temporary state.
Lebanon, theoretically, gained independence from France in 1940s, yet in practice it has continued to operate under the same intellect and mindset of a "susceptibility to colonialism", as described by the late genius Malek Bennabi. Lebanon, through its political subconscious, seeks to be "led" by others; sometimes by compassionate and motherly France, and sometimes by sisterly Syria. We must also not neglect the fact that a large portion of Lebanese society is unconvinced by the idea of the Lebanese state itself, believing that it is an entity stolen from the Syrian motherland, to which it must return. Advocates of this view consider Lebanon to be a temporary idea, and therefore they have little respect or reverence towards the Lebanese state apparatus. Other factions believe that Lebanon should be a state with a Franco-European-Mediterranean frame of reference and a pure Phoenician history, and that the country in its current guise is a geographical mistake that must be rectified both culturally and politically. There is also a new and significant school of thought that seriously believes Lebanon should be part of the Islamic Republic of Iran, with Tehran being its principal frame of reference. All these examples display a lack of confidence in the idea of the "Lebanese state" as an entity, which further consolidates the mentality of colonialism regardless of outward signs of civilization and modernity, or chants and slogans about the Lebanese homeland.
In Lebanon, when people describe the state of affairs as a phenomenon of “Lebanonization”, they are in fact describing a situation far more profound than mere civil conflicts between sects, factions, ideologies and parties. They are referring to a unique situation whereby a group, individual, party, militia or family is considered more important than the state, its leader and all its apparatuses. This causes the prevalence of corruption, bribery and favoritism, the disobedience of laws, the ineffectiveness of state bodies, and an overall lack of discipline. This is the hallmark of a temporary state that expects and anticipates others to swallow it up, relieve its suffering, and steer it to safer shores, or any direction in this case.
The crippled Lebanese state has stood by helpless amidst the endless threats and insolence of various groups and trends. Attempts at good governance and patience have produced only one result: a decline in the prestige and a severe lack of trust in the Lebanese state, and a reliance upon other parties to accomplish what is required. Lebanon is a state that has been abused by its own politicians; a dreadful blight upon such a beautiful country. Lebanon’s politicians, by persisting with their unique mentality, will only succeed in restoring "colonialism" to Lebanon, and we will see this in the coming days.
Yet I can also confirm that the majority of the Arabs are fed up and bored with these Lebanese leaders who are nothing but tools for exploitation and blackmail. After all, those who show no concern for their own country cannot expect others to care.

New Voices of Arabia
By Amir Taheri/Asharq Alawsat
London, Asharq Al-Awsat- For the past half a century at least, Arab poetry has found its principal abodes in Iraq, Egypt and Lebanon. Anyone interested in contemporary Arab poetry would know the names of at least one poet from one of those three nations. Now, however, a fourth nation may be claiming a place in that galaxy: Saudi Arabia.
That Saudis should be interested in poetry is no surprise. The peninsula has been the home of one of the oldest poetical traditions in the world, dating back to the pre-Islamic era. In my frequent visits to Saudi Arabia over the past four decades I have attended many poetry recitals drawing decent crowds even in sparsely populated and remote areas. In almost every case, however, the fare on offer consisted of exercises in classical forms, especially the ageless qasidah.
The anthology presented by Saad Al-Bazei, an Emeritus Professor of English in Riyadh, has the distinction of introducing the kingdom’s modern poetry. Yes; you heard right: modern poetry.
The anthology, in a beautiful edition, is published by I.B. Tauris, one of the best publishing houses specializing in the Middle East. The standards of editing and production maintained by I.B. Tauris are a credit to British publishing which has been in steady decline since the 1970s.
Presented are forty-one poets, and poetesses, working in different styles, from neo-classical to surrealist. These poems clearly show that, at least as far as this branch of literature is concerned, Saudi Arabia is very much a part of the modern world. This modernity is not confined to form, although that is the feature that immediately catches the eye of the reader. The real modernity of these poems could be found in their themes. They reflect many of the anxieties, hopes and fears of contemporary humanity plus, on a more individual level, such preoccupations as the meaning of love in an uncertain world, the crisis of identity, and the rites of passage in multiple, and at times contradictory, cultural contexts.
What is interesting is that all these universal themes are evoked in distinctly Arabian voices. And that voice is further reinforced with the presence of colloquial Saudi expressions and terms of reference related to aspects of life in the kingdom.
Although these poets have their roots in the cultural topos of the kingdom, their poetry is never parochial. Their experience could resonate with readers from anywhere in the world. Many of the poets included have a direct experience of the outside world either because they studied in the west or thanks to frequent visits to the Middle East, Europe, North America and Asia.
Thus, they could receive a muse in Houston, Texas or Paris, France as warmly as they would in Bureida or Dhahran.
In a short review such as this it is hard to do justice to all the fine poets and poetesses included. One has to be content with mentioning just a few. Among them would have to be Ibrahim Al-Wafi whose poem “Fever!” is a veritable tour de force. I also liked Ashjan Hendi, especially for her gentle humour, and Mohammad Khithr whose poem “Freedom” is a perfect synthesis of form and content. Then there is Abdullah Al-Washmi’s string of haikus that, taken together produce a qasida. I must also admit that I feel moved by Huda Al-Daghfag’s poems dealing with the status of women and their quest for greater freedom and equality. I also enjoyed Hamid bin Aqeel’s “Conflagration” and tis twin “A field for a blue conflagration”.
As far as themes and tones are concerned, modern Saudi poetry is overwhelmingly urban. It leaves the desert, the mythical barra, with images of sand dunes and prancing camels to traditional poets to concern itself with life in congested, fast, and constantly challenging new cities and town in the kingdom and beyond. Love remains an important theme, although its expression differs from traditional poetry. Here, the lover does not shed bitter tears over a beloved who remains eternally beyond reach. The more frequent concern is that love might fail to deliver its promise and that time and life might marginalize or even totally eliminate it.
Yet another popular theme is the rejection of rules for restricting individual freedoms in the name of traditional cultural values. Ahmad Al-Wasil’s “Oil condolences for the women of the Gulf”, Abdullah Saikahn’s “A Myth”, and Hussain Sarhan’s “An Idea” are arrows shot into the heart of prejudice.
Lampooning the nouveau-riche penchant for ostentation is another popular theme. One excellent example is Ahmad Kattua’s poem “Aimless”.
Contrary to many of their contemporaries in other Arab countries, Saudi poets are free of nostalgia, the opiate of the defeated in history. Nor are they interested in easy and cost-free “heroism” associated with regional and international conflicts. Free of political demagoguery, most Saudi poets can deal with the deeper issues of human existence.
Dr. Al-Bazei opens the anthology with an essay introducing the new voices that he traces back to the period from the 1930s to the 1950s when classical and romantic traditions developed side by side. According to him the current modernist trend started with Muhammad Al-Ali in the 1970s when a distinctly Saudi voice began to take shape. That was when younger Saudi poets learned Western languages and came to know the works of modern European and American poets including T.S. Eliot.
With few exceptions, the translations are simply excellent. Some manage to provide meter and rhyme while others are content with a prose rendition. For shortage of space, one cannot name all the translators here. But big thanks are due to them all.
“New Voices of Arabia” offers a mere pip into the rich world of modern poetry produced by a new generation of Saudis. At least half a dozen of the poets presented in this volume deserve fuller introduction to the English-speaking world. Al-Bazei back to work, again!
New Voices of Arabia
The Poetry
An Anthology from Saudi Arabia
Edited by Saad Al-Bazei
336 pages
Published by I.B.Tauris, London, 2012

Muslim Brotherhood 'Crucifies' Opponents, Attacks Secular Media
by Raymond Ibrahim
Investigative Project on Terrorism
http://www.meforum.org/3305/muslim-brotherhood-crucifies-opponents
Last week in Egypt, when Muslim Brotherhood supporters terrorized the secular media, several Arabic websites—including Arab News, Al Khabar News, Dostor Watany, and Egypt Now—reported that people were being "crucified." The relevant excerpt follows in translation:
A Sky News Arabic correspondent in Cairo confirmed that protestors belonging to the Muslim Brotherhood crucified those opposing Egyptian President Muhammad Morsi naked on trees in front of the presidential palace while abusing others. Likewise, Muslim Brotherhood supporters locked the doors of the media production facilities of 6-October [a major media region in Cairo], where they proceeded to attack several popular journalists.
That there were attacks and violence—both in front of Egypt's presidential palace and at major media facilities—is well-documented. An August 9 report by El Balad, a widely read Egyptian website, gives the details:
Last Wednesday, August 8, "thousands of the Muslim Brotherhood's supporters" attacked 6-October's media facilities, beat Khaled Salah—chief editor of the privately-owned and secular Youm 7 newspaper—prevented Yusif al-Hassani, an On TV broadcaster, from entering the building, and generally "terrorized the employees."
El Balad adds that the supporters of Tawfik Okasha, another vocal critic of President Morsi—the one who widely disseminated the graphic video of a Muslim apostate being slaughtered to cries of "Allahu Akbar"—gathered around the presidential palace, only to be surrounded by Brotherhood supporters, who "attacked them with sticks, knives, and Molotov cocktails, crucifying some of them on trees, leading to the deaths of two and the wounding of dozens."
Far from condemning these terrorists, Al Azhar, Egypt's most authoritative Islamic institution, has just issued a fatwa calling for more violence and suppression, saying that "fighting participants in anti-Muslim Brotherhood demonstrations planned for 24 August is a religious obligation."
Most of the aforementioned Arabic sites point out that these attacks are part of the Muslim Brotherhood's campaign to intimidate and thus censor Egypt's secular media from exposing the group's Islamist agenda, which Youm 7, On TV, and Okasha do daily. [Note: the latter's channel was recently shut down, despite Morsi's previous reassurances that "no station or media will be shut down in my era."]
These threats are not new; back in April, an organization called the "Jihad Group to Cleanse the Country" threatened these media with "painful and severe punishments." Apparently now that Morsi has become master of Egypt, threats are becoming reality, just as promises are being broken.
And the threats are taking their toll. Sky News, which was first to report about the crucifixions, has taken down its original article (though the URL still appears in the address box with the Arabic words "protesters-crucified-in front of-egypt's-presidential-palace").
While one may argue that Sky News removed the article because it was found false, one can equally argue that it censored itself for fear that it would be next in the terror campaign against the media.
In reality, there is little reason to doubt this crucifixion story. Militant Muslims crucifying their opponents is a regular feature of the Islamic world—recent cases coming from the Ivory Coast, where two Christian brothers were crucified, similarly by supporters of a Muslim president who ousted a Christian; Indonesia, where Islamic separatists crucified a fellow Muslim for being a military informant; and in Iraq, where Muslim militants crucified Christian children.
Moreover, those alleged to have been crucified in Egypt certainly fit the Koran's description of who deserves to be crucified. According to Allah, "The punishment of those who wage war against Allah and His messenger and strive to make mischief in the land is only this: that they should be murdered or crucified or their hands and their feet should be cut off…" (Koran 5:33).
"Making mischief in the land" is precisely what the secular media is being accused of, by constantly exposing the Muslim Brotherhood and prompting the people to protest. Even the Jihad Group to Cleanse the Country, which threatens to "liquidate" many secular media, accuses them of "creating chaos to implement the American and Zionist agenda."
Finally, it is telling that only a few months ago, and for the first time in Egypt's modern history, an Egyptian MP proposed to institutionalize Sharia's most draconian punishments—including crucifixion.
Under the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt, the bottle has been uncorked and the Islamic Genie set loose. Expect much worse to come.
Updates:
Aug 19: Investigative reporter Patrick Poole has just send me a cache of the original Sky News Arabic report, titled "Protesters Crucified in Front of Presidential Palace in Egypt."(view here), in response to an American Thinker post citing the lack of the Sky News article as reason to doubt the veracity of the story.
*Raymond Ibrahim is a Shillman Fellow at the David Horowitz Freedom Center and an Associate Fellow at the Middle East Forum.