Jewish Hospital at Home in Iran

-        Many were surprised last week when the President Hassan Rouhani donated $400,000 to the Dr. Sapir Hospital

-        We Jews are a part of Iran’s history. What is important is that Mr. Rouhani makes big news out of supporting us. He is showing that we as a religious minority are part of this country too. – Dr. Morsadegh

-        They might have a different religion but they are fellow Iranians. I do not see why I should not go to the Jewish hospital. – A Muslim Student

-        The hospital started out as a clinic where all Iranians could come for medical care at vastly reduced rates.

-        For more than 50 years it has been a meeting point for Iranian Jews and Muslims and the most prominent Jewish charity in the capital

-        About 96% of patients are Muslim, like most of the hospital’s employees. But what mattered most was the message that here all people can come, no matter what religion color or race

-        Religious minorities – Jews, Christian Armenians, Assyrians, Chaldeans, and Zoroastrians

-        Dr. Morsadegh said former President Mhmoud Ahmadinejad’s repeated Holocaust denials left physiological scars as well. Look all Jews believe in the Holocaust, It would have been much better if the former president had not raised that issue.

Iraqi Tribes to Take Lead in Falluja Fight, U.S. Says

-        The Iraqi army is planning to cordon off a key Sunni city now occupies by Jihadists so that Sunni tribes can secure it one neighborhood at a time

-        The Iraqi plan reflects a recognition that having the Shiite dominated Iraqi Army mount a frontal assault on a Sunni city that has long been wary of outsiders could lead to an especially violent round of urban warfare and fan sectarian tensions

-        ISIS captured about a dozen Iraqi soldiers near Falluja paraded the through the city in a truck flying the black flag of Al Qaeda, then videotaped their execution the next day

-        The ISIS militants drove into Falluja and the nearby city of Ramadi in as many as 100 trucks equipped with heavy machine guns and antiaircraft guns

-        The Obama administration has not offered to assist the Iraqi forces that are preparing to retake Falluja with American-operated drones or airstrikes

-        The U.S. plans to lease six Apaches in the late summer or early fall, the Iraqi government is buying 24 more but the delivery time can be as long as three years

-        The group took three villages in a northern province, Salahuddin, and it also continued its attacks in Baghdad

Spy Chief Says Assad Has Strengthened Hold on Power in Syria

-        The country’s top intelligence official said President Bashar al-Assad’s hold on power in Syria had “strengthened” over the past year, and that he has benefited from a deal to abandon his chemical weapons arsenal

-        Syrian activists reported that government helicopters dumped barrel bombs onto neighborhoods in Aleppo suspected of housing insurgents

-        Concern has been mounting in both Congress and in the Obama administration that the policy toward Syria is faltering on several fronts.

-        Assad government has delayed taking its most dangerous chemicals to the port of Latakia so they could be shipped out of the country for destruction under the terms agreement that calls for Syria to give up its arsenal of poison gas

-        They have also blocked shipments of medicine and food to besieged areas.

-        No one in this administration (Obama) thinks we are doing enough until the humanitarian crisis has been solved and the civil war ended.

-        Critics say such talks are unlikely to succeed unless Mr. Assad is weakened militarily and has some incentive to negotiate

-        The C.I.A warned that the chaos in Syria had become fertile ground for militant groups to stage attacks outside the country

-        Syrian government’s explanations for the missed deadlines are that security dangers posed by the Syrian civil war had created problems in transporting the chemicals to the port of Latakia. Western officials have suggested this is merely an excuse

-        Four percent of the dangerous chemicals have been sent to the port for removal

Eight Killed in Attack on Sufi Gathering

-        Gunman threw grenades at a Sufi Islamic religious gathering and then opened fire on the people assembled to offer prayers

-        Four gunman three grenades at the building then raked it with automatic fire

-        Pakistan is 95% Muslim

-        Suspicion is placed on the Pakistani Taliban of their affiliated sectarian groups

-        Karachi is a fast growing city in southern Pakistan, it has often been plagued by political, religious, and sectarian violence

Iran Agrees to Provide Data on its Detonators

-        Iran’s government committed to providing information on detonators for the first as a part of a new series of confidence building measures it agreed to with the U.N. nuclear watchdog

-        Measures include additional inspections and clarification of previously asked questions

-        They will provide more access and information about uranium mines

-        Data on Iran’s development of a trigger using a technology called “exploding bridge wire” will provided.

-        We have problems with the U.S.A. over dozens of issues (Palestine issue, Middle East related issues, Syrian issues, human rights…)all these are still there nothing has changed. The U.S.A. is still the Great Satan in our view. –Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi

Pakistani Side Fails to Show Up at Taliban Peace Talks

-        Pakistani government representatives failed to appear on Tuesday for the scheduled start of peace talks with the Taliban

-        The Taliban named five public figures, including the opposition politician Imran Khan to represent them in the talks

-        It would have been better if the government side had met us. It is a God-sent opportunity that we are acting as a bridge between the government and the Tliban

-        Both sides have strong wish lists but they don’t have any methodology to achieve their wishes

-        There is a strong sympathy there for talks and the religious leader’s fee that a solution can be worked out through dialogue

-        If the talks eventually fail which is highly likely Nawaz will be left with no option but to support a military action

U.S. Penalties Over Violations of Iran Sanctions

-        The Obama administration penalized nearly three dozen companies and individuals in eight countries on Thursday, accusing them of evading Iranian sanctions

-        These actions should leave no doubt that those who seek to evade our sanctions, support Iran’s nuclear program or assist in Iran’s promotion of international terrorism will continue to be called to account

-        Joint Plan of Action- temporary agreement was devised to allow more time to negotiate a permanent accord

-        Iran froze much of its uranium enrichment activities will provide more access to United Nations nuclear inspectors

-        The Treasury said the network had helped supply money to Al Qaeda and affiliates, including the Nusra Front in Syria, which is among the groups fighting to topple President Bashar al-Assad and Iranian ally

U.N. Report Details Abuse of Children in Syria War

-        Children in Syria have been sexually abused in government detention, recruited to fight the opposition, tortured and used as civilian shields

-        The report was quietly presented to the Security Council last week

-        Estimated that at least 10,000 children had been killed and that “grave violations against children” had been committed by “all parties to the conflict” since it began in March 2011

-        The government denies it detains children.

-        The Syrian government told the U.N. investigators that at least 130 children had been killed by opposition forces

-        The leadership of the moderate armed opposition has repeatedly affirmed its commitment to upholding international human rights standards

Iran Delivers Surprise Money to Jewish Hospital

-        The brother of Iran’s president, delivered a surprise donation and message that the Health Ministry would give more attention to hospitals that traditionally serve Christian Jewish Iranians

-        Our government intends to unite all ethnic groups and religions so we decided to assist you.

-        The gift to the hospital comes after the president’s social media team wished Jews around the world a happy Rosh Hashanah in September

-        Iran is the home to  the largest population of Jews in the Middle East after Israel

-        Some interpret Mr. Rouhani’s gentler approach toward Israel as a policy change

-        President Hassan Rouhani’s approach toward Jews differs that of his predecessor

Israel Orders Airstrike Against Gaza Militant

-        The Israeli military carried out an airstrike Sunday against a Palestinian militant in Gaza responsible for firing rockets into Israel

-        The target was critically wounded and a bystander was hurt

-        The airstrike is a practice known as “targeted killing”

-        The target was a senior member of the Popular Resistance Committee

-        Popular Resistance Committee- made up of fighters who left other organizations like Hamas, Fatah, and Islamic Jihad

-        “Our resolute policy against terrorism may be summed up in a single principle: Whoever attacks us or plans to attack us will bear the consequences” – Prime Minister Netanyahu

-        Gaza militants have launched 33 rockets at Israel since the beginning of this year

-        The target was accused of firing rockets from the Egyptian territory into southern Israel

-        Israeli military officials say that Hamas appears to be having trouble controlling some of their smaller militant groups

A Breakdown in Government Wafts Uphill

-          Local village downwind from Lebanon’s largest landfill is commonly filled with coughs, infections, and concerns of cancer

-          Mr. Ayyash and other residents blocked the road to the Naimeh landfill shutting down garbage collection in much of Lebanon causing trash to pile up in the fancies neighborhoods in the capital

-          The government resigned ten months ago, and Parliament has scarcely convened, no major laws have been passed the caretaker cabinet has lacked the political clout to set any important policies

-          Party leaders act as political bosses for their communities dispensing jobs and patronage while striking deals with other leaders to serve their common interests.

-          The formation of government in Lebanon is less significant than it is in other societies

-          The lack of an oppressive police state exempted Lebanon from an Arab Spring uprising and makes it a fertile environment for entrepreneurs, thinkers, and artists

-          Fails to provide services considered standard in other countries, leaving citizens to fend for themselves

-          People must buy filtered water and generators to sustain themselves

-          The landfill was created in 1997 as a temporary measure

-          The most powerful politician in the area promised the dump will close next year

-          Nearby residents have threatened to protest again if the landfill is not closed

Syrian Opposition's Calm at Talks Suprises as Officials Falter

-          The Syrian government officials were expected to present themselves as the grown-ups at the peace conference, but instead they took offense easily

-          The Syrians sent mixed messages, ignored meeting agenda and time limits for speeches, and in some  ways embarrassing their Russian allies

-          Russian officials have long said they are not committed to Mr. Assad personally but see no alternative that could stabilize Syria

-          A more immediate goal for the coalition is to increase support within the broader opposition

-          The regime delegation seems unorganized and fractured when that was what people expected from the coalition

-          Foreign Ministry delegates pledged to discuss a transitional government only to be contradicted by Mr. Assad’s advisers

-          Officials were under scrutiny from hard-liners in Damascus and feared retribution should a too-conciliatory phrase slip. It is also possibly they assumed the conference would never happen

-          “For the first time the regime had to sit down and hear the demands of the people,” said a coalition spokeswoman

-          The government also gained some support for its argument that its opponents are Western puppets; opposition delegates met daily with Western diplomats and submitted documents in English not Arabic

Rebels in Syria Claim Control of Resources

-          Islamist rebels and extremist groups have seized control of most of Syria’s oil and gas resources

-          The Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) is selling fuel to the Assad government

-          Although there is no clear evidence of direct tactical coordination between the group and Mr. Assad, American officials say that his government has facilitated the group’s rise.

-          The scramble for Syria’s oil is describes as a war within the broader civil war turning in the source of income into a conflict tearing the country apart

-          Syria was once an important supplier of oil to Europe and attracted international oil companies

-          The oil industry production is down from 400,000 (2011) barrels to 80,000 (2013)barrels a day

-          Violence has damaged pipelines and other infrastructure

-          Mr. Assad’s government not only purchased crude from the ISIS but in return has refrained from bombing the group’s headquarters in Raqqa and elsewhere although their locations are well known and clearly marked

-          While rebel oil revenues are small by world market standards they can help groups exercise local power as well as finance their operations

-          Recently most of the area’s rebel brigades have left the administration of the well to an Islamic legal commission set up to run local affairs

Palestinian Leader Says He Can Accept Israeli Military in West Bank for 3 Years

-          President Mahmoud Abbas (Palestinian Authority) said he is willing to accept an Israeli military presence in the West Bank for a three-year transition period as part of a peace deal

-          Israel has said it can only depend on its own soldiers not international force

-          Palestinian officials have said they could not tolerate a single Israeli soldier but do acknowledge the requirement for a transition period

-          Palestine says that a transition period would not exceed three years during which  Israel will withdraw gradually, but willing to allow a third party to take Israel’s place (NATO was suggested) to soothe our concerns and Israel’s

-          Many Israeli leaders and outside analysts have questioned whether the Palestinian President is strong enough to deliver a peace deal

-          Mr. Abbas said creating a Palestinian state roughly along the 1967 lines with East Jerusalem as its capital would be an acceptable lasting and legitimate solution, he also said Hamas had signed an agreement with him supporting the negotiations process and is not a problem.

-          Under the 2002 Arab Peace Initiative, Israel could earn recognition and diplomatic relations with 57 Arab and Muslim countries if it resolved the Palestinian conflict

Egypt Locks Morsi in Soundproof Cage During Trial

-          Muhamed Morsi the deposed Eqyptian president appeared at his trial in a glass soundproof cage

-          It was the largest courtroom debate saying it deprived the defendant of hearing and participating in the own trial

-          The former president consistently declares he is the President of Egypt and also declared he did not recognize the court’s authority to try him, in part since it was outside the constitutional procedures for impeaching a president

-          The judge replied saying I am the president of Egypt’s criminal court

-          Mr. Morsi and the other defendants are now accused of conspiring with foreign militant movements to break themselves out.

-          In the afternoon when Mr. Morsi was allowed to speak he said I have the utmost appreciation for judges and I say to them: Stay away from politics

-          Security forces have killed more than a thousand people at protests against the take over and jailed thousands more.

-          The Sinai-based militant group Ansar Beit al-Maqdis has claimed responsibility for most of the major attacks which have recently occurred

New's of Congress's Approval of Aid to Rebels Disrupts Syria Talks

- Syria’s information minister Mr. Zoubi said the American aid to the revels now with explicit congressional approval contradicted the United States role as a sponsor of the peace talks
- The U.S. representative in Geneva said the Assad regime is a magnet for terrorists. The regime’s brutality is the source of violent extremism in Syria today.
- The U.N. mediator said the negotiations were not easy before and will not be easy in the coming days but no one is willing to leave
- The U.N. has trucks loaded with food for up to 2,500 people waiting for authorization to proceed
- They are also prepared to supply specialized nutrition for children presumed to be suffering from acute malnutrition and stunted growth
- Western diplomats have said that if progress is not made soon they may take the impasse to the Security Council where Russia will be less likely to use its veto due to the upcoming Olympic Games

Despite Decades of Enmity, Israel Quietly Aids Syrian Civilians

-          Medics arrived to a scene in Syria to find an 8-year old was critically wounded after seeing (and remembering) his 10-year brother being decapitated by a rocket explosion

-          The mother was told if she wanted her son to live she should take him to Israel

-          The mother believes the older sibling was shielding the younger brother when the  explosion occurred

-          The internal conflict between Israel and Syria have killed nearly 130,000 people

-          Syrians fear the President Assad’s forces more than the Israeli soldiers who helped the wounded patients and their relatives

-          Nearly 200 Syrians have been treated at the Israeli hospital since March 2013

-          More than230 have been taken to a Hospital in Galilee

-          The costs are dived three ways between Israel’s Military Defense, Ministry of Health, and the hospitals

-          Israel’s defense minister said Israel can no longer remain indifferent and has been providing food and winter clothing to Syrian villages across the border fence

-           One Syrian whose 5-year old grand-daughter received aid in Israel said, “When there is peace, I will raise an Israeli flag on the roof of my house.”

Movement Seen in Talks Over Syria, Despite Gap

-          The United Nations mediator said he did not foresee any movement from the current deadlock in the peace talks

-          The UN mediator was pleased about their willingness to talk to each other but admits there is still a large gap between them.

-          He believes the next round of talks will be more productive

-          The Syrian government did agree to negotiate the formation of a transitional government with full executive powers

-          Mr. Moallem originally believed at the beginning of the talks that the focus should be on ending what he called the terrorism practiced by the Syrian opposition

-          Each side accuses the other of actions in the conflict  which has left an estimated 130,000 people dead and millions displaced

-          While no resolutions were made for issues, there was also no prisoner exchange or aid supplies to be delivered arranged

-          Diplomats at the UN are quietly discussing  the possibility of a Security Council resolution to force the warring parties in Syria to allow humanitarian relief

-          This decision will force Russia to make an active decision on the issue

Tension Builds in Israeli Coalition at a Critical Juncture in Peace Talks

-          Naftali Bennett, the leader of the religious-nationalist Jewish Home party delivered accusations over the past few days of a suggestion by the prime minister’s office that some Jews in far-flung settlements might live under Palestinian sovereignty in a future peace deal

-          The prime minister’s office issued an ultimatum for Mr. Bennett to apologize or he could lose his cabinet seat

-          He did not apologize but stood by his statements saying he supported or criticized the prime minister as needed.

-          The coalitions partners have strong disagreements about establishing Palestine as a state and where the future of Jerusalem lies

-          Mr. Bennett will quit the coalition if East Jerusalem is Palestine’s capital (Part of John Kerry’s initiative) while two other partners will leave the government if Israel does not support the initiative.

-          The prime minister stated Israel does not have to agree with everything America presents them.

-          The prime minister is trying to show he has options, but his main problem was and is with the Likud

-          The Likud - Right-wing party

-           Mr. Bennet was once a top aid to the prime minister

-          The prime minister was forced to include the Jewish Home party because Mr. Bennett partnered with Mr. Lapid the centrist finance minister

-          Conflict escalated when the prime minister’s office floated the idea of Jewish Settlers’ becoming minority citizens in a future Palestinian state

-          Center-left politicians say this is a loss of a moral compass and continued saying “ Our forefathers and ancestors and our descendants will never forgive an Israeli leader who gives away our land and divides our capital

20 Al Jazeera Journalists Face Charges in Egypt

• 
  
• By the military-backed government that ousted President Mohamed Morsi of the Muslim Brotherhood
• The Brotherhood has  been outlawed and declared a terrorist organization
• Al Jazeera is the only major Arabic-language news outlet available in Egypt sympathetic to the Brotherhood and critical of the government
• It has been the target of a campaign by the government
• Accused of manipulating video footage to produce unreal scenes to suggest the country is in a civil war
• Broadcast the images to assist the terrorist group in achieving its purpose of influencing international public opinion.
• 16 of the 20 are Egyptians charged with joining a terrorist group with the purpose of damaging national security and social peace
• The other four were comprised of two British, one Australian, and one Dutch charged with collaborating with the Egyptian defendants by providing money equipment, and information.
• All were charged with possession of documents and recordings promoting the group
• If convicted several years in prison will be served
• Eight are in custody the others are fugitives
• “The world knows these allegations against our journalists are absurd, baseless and false.” – Al Jazeera
• The State Department spokeswoman said, Egypt should reconsider the prosecution, “The governments targeting of journalists and others on spurious claims is wrong and demonstrates egregious disregard for the protection of basic rights and freedoms