Don't you like it when the US government presents its own ideas about the "peace process" but after receiving them from Israel? So Israeli ideas become American ideas and then the Palestinians have to accept them

"General Allen has made several trips to Israel and developed his ideas in consultation with Israeli officials."

When it comes to science I always rely on US members of Congress

"Rep. Ralph M. Hall (R-Tex.), the chairman emeritus of the committee, asked the panel: “Do you think there’s life out there, and are they studying us? And what do they think about New York City?”"

Liz Sly and and Loveday Morris: what a team to cover Syria and Lebanon

So who killed the Hizbullah commander and how do you make sure to absolve Israel of responsibility?  Well, first roll out a March 14 person:  "“There are so many players around who could be involved in this,” said Elie Hindy, assistant professor for international affairs at Lebanon’s Notre Dame University. “Hezbollah has created so many enemies around it — regional enemies, Islamist enemies, Israeli enemies — and that does not include invisible possibilities.”"  I don't know this dude but I really am drawn to his theory: that invisible possibilities were behind the assassinations.  In fact, invisible possibilities have been known to use car bombs in Lebanon and have invaded Lebanon many times over the years.  And then, like the New York Times, you cite unnamed people who say (as natives) that Israel is really innocent and it harbors no will toward Hizbullah or Arabs:  "But many Lebanese said the killing of Laqees was more likely linked to the country’s soaring sectarian tensions".  And then the Nicholas Blanford formula: you get a Hizbullah member or "supporter" to say the most damaging thing about Hizbullah and the most favorable thing about Israel:  "“No one believes it was Israel,” said a Hezbollah supporter."  Did this Hizbullah supporter also declares his love for Israel to you two?   And the piece concludes with another opinion by a March 14 supporter.  I read this piece and learned of Western media coverage of the Middle East what I knew not before.

This is a really humane empire

"“The release of this information serves no operational purpose and detracts from the more important issues, which are the welfare of detainees and the safety and security of our troops.”"

It is official: Saeb Erekat confirms for the first time that he is he chief buffoon for the PA

"“I am the most disadvantaged negotiator in the history of the world".  He also added: look at me. I am a buffoon and can't open my mouth without sounding dumb.  I am an embarrassment to my people.  Let us face it: I am the most incompetent negotiator ever.

Look how even this headline of the New York Times is intended to absolve Israel of the crime

"Major Hezbollah Figure, Tied to Syrian War, Is Assassinated Near Beirut"

Ryan Crocker will never have a job in Washington, DC

"“We need to start talking to the Assad regime again” about counterterrorism and other issues of shared concern, said Ryan C. Crocker, a veteran diplomat who has served in Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan. “It will have to be done very, very quietly. But bad as Assad is, he is not as bad as the jihadis who would take over in his absence.” "

How dare you?

" Two leading senators have asked the Obama administration to warn South Korea against allowing Huawei, the Chinese telecommunications firm, to build large parts of a next-generation network for the capital city of Seoul, arguing that it could give the Chinese government a way to enter the networks of a major American ally. "

semi-covert? The man was distributing electronic equipment among the Cuban Jewish community, for potato's sake

"Mr. Gross, 64, was arrested in 2009 for his work on a semi-covert United States program promoting political change and sentenced to 15 years in prison".

The Israeli "wonder woman"

Did Huffington Post sneakily removed from the text from yesterday a reference to her serving in the Israeli terrorist army?  And would an Arab woman ever be cast (in anything) especially if she had served in an Arab army or in a resistance organization? But damn, Westerners really find the Israelis to be cute when they kill for some reason. (thanks Michele)

Liz Sly: cites another expert on Hizbullah

People who talk to the Western press are not close to Hizbullah. People who are close to Hizbullah don't talk to the Western press (with the exception of Nicholas Blanford who for some odd reasons receives daily confessionals from Hizbullah fighters and commanders):  "...predicted Mohammed Obeid, a Beirut-­based analyst who is close to Iranian-backed Hezbollah and familiar with the thinking of its leaders".  Obeid, of course, was a leader in the Amal movement and his conversations in Wikileaks only added his distance from Hizbullah.   Just look at the other experts she cited on the Middle East and you get the drift.

As the New York Times declares the Israeli foreign minister a "changed man" after days on the job, the truth

From Eyal:  "Translation of the relevant part:

"Since the time of 'Tower and Stockade' projects, nothing has changed.
We are fighting for the national lands of the Jewish people, and there are those who intentionally attempt to rob them and take control of them by force. One cannot look the other way and escape this reality... there is no reason that in Umm Al-Fa7m they shouldn't build high-rises like in Beirut, Cairo and Gaza. The state must take initiative and  construct modern cities for the Arab population, built high with all the infrastructure and necessary permits. Building permits are not for Jews only!"

British envoy to the Syrian opposition (accidentally) reveals the Western control of the Syrian exile opposition

From a reader:  "Wilks is the British envoy to the Syrian opposition. Does he not at least realize that this looks bad?

Note his tweets from yesterday: @JonWilksFCO: I am pushing the #NationalCoalition Coalition to resolve the issues around Suheir Atassi's resignation to bring her back in.

http://twitter.com/JonWilksFCO/status/408240071742357505

@JonWilksFCO: And I continue to urge Suheir to introduce proper management structures in the ACU to ensure efficient and proper use of their funds.

http://twitter.com/JonWilksFCO/status/408240396435996672

When the Afghan puppet rebels you have to take action

From Krim:  "So, the U.S. threatens a palace coup, and this is how it's reported in the American press:

(Honestly)
"U.S. Considers Pushing Karzai Aside for Drawdown Deal"


(Orwellian)
"Afghan President Hamid Karzai rejects U.S. workaround on security pact"


From the second article:

"Kerry had told a gathering of NATO foreign ministers the security pact did not have to be signed by Karzai himself.

"His minister of defense can sign it, the government can sign it, somebody can accept responsibility for this," he said."

From the first article:

"The issue of who has the authority to speak for a sovereign nation of Afghanistan, I suppose the lawyers can figure that out," said Hagel. "What we would be interested in, certainly as a secretary of defense, is whatever document is agreed to...someone has the authority to sign on behalf of Afghanistan. I suspect that would fulfill the kind of commitment we need.""

French torture of Algerians

""The book is graphic in its details. The general wrote of beating prisoners; of attaching electrodes to their ears or testicles and gradually increasing the intensity of the electrical charge; of pouring water over their faces until they either spoke or drowned. Whether a captive talked or not, he said, he usually had him executed anyway, often doing the job himself. He coolly recalled rounding up 1,500 unarmed prisoners — almost all of them Muslims — then selecting "the die-hards" and having them shot.""

Israeli lies about humanitarian assistance in Syria

I asked a UN source about the stories (certainly widely circulated by US media) that Israel has been providing humanitarian assistance to Syrians.  The UN source told me that "they are lying": they did not give...anything".  "I am told there is another article somewhere else where they claimed that an Israeli NGO is distributing food to people in Zaatari but it’s not true."

Obama's Doctrine

"Of course, the US and its friends have carried out covert assassinations and sponsored death squads for many years. But assassination and undercover killings, once criticised by the US as an unfortunate Israeli habit, are now a central part of American strategy – and the battlefield has gone global. The number of countries in which the US Special Operations Command is operating has risen from 40 to 120."

She is white and she sings for Um Kulthum: she must be great, no matter

"Some Arab musicians dismiss the fuss altogether, framing Ms. Grout’s accomplishments in classical Arab music as a sign of a more thorough and reciprocal globalization. “The assumption seems to be that there is nothing special about the global South imitating Western culture, since that is just the way of the world,” said Mariam Bazeed, an Egyptian writer and vocalist in New York. “But when a Westerner deigns to imitate ‘ethnic’ cultures, then it’s suddenly this great act, worthy of documenting.”"

PS I asked Arabs who have followed the show to offer their opinions and many responded on Facebook.  Many thought that she was talented while others disagreed.  Then Walid Itayim, a classmate from childhood who is an accomplished musician in Lebanon and--I am told--one of the best guitar players in our region--responded with his expert opinion.  Here is our exchange (I cite with Walid's permission):


"Walid Itayim  Asad, while I didn't particularly like the يا طيور song, I really liked what she did with بعيد عنك .She is no Oum Kalthoum but she is really very good. Oum Kalthoum's songs are very hard to sing and what this girl has managed to accomplish in the three years since she first got interested in Arabic music is very impressive. Whether she has an authentic American accent or not is not very important. As a foreigner and a non-Arabic speaker, she really feels the music and her pronunciation of Arabic words is to be commended. When I see so much crap being released on the Middle Eastern music market by native Arabs most of whom can't sing to save their lives, I cannot but be amazed by her! I am really surprised and disturbed by the hostility expressed towards her in the comments above. Politics and anti-American sentiments should not be the criteria by which music is judged.
6 hours ago · Like · 2

Asad AbuKhalil Walid: I respect your expert opinion. You are the expert and I am not. I only heard about her form the article in the New York Times. But there is so much going in in our region to make me extra suspicious. Yes, Ya Tuyur was not good in fact, and I know it is a difficult song. But you also know how much in our region people celebrate any White Man (including women) if they show the slightest interest in our culture. For some reason, Lebanese and now Arabs are complimented when a European or an American even enjoy a Middle East meal, as if it becomes an a confirmation of our humanity. Thus far, I made it clear that there is no evidence of a political machination in all this. But I just noticed the Western media coverage and several things got my attention. I sincerely hope that my (slight) suspicions are unfounded. Having said all that, and assuming that she has no political agenda, and that she is who she says she is, does she deserve to really win that category in that contest? Is she really superior to the Arab competitors? I don't have the answer to that.
6 hours ago · Like · 4

Asad AbuKhalil I will now try to listen to her rendition of بعيد عنك
6 hours ago · Like · 1

Brian El Khoury غير صحيح، في بعد عنك شذت عن اللحن مراراً.
5 hours ago · Like

Walid Itayim Fair enough, Asad. I know what you mean when you talk about the adoration of the white man/woman. I too hate that. As for whether she deserves to win that particular competition, I can only say that she is definitely one of the best among the competitors (not all are singers - there are dancers and gymnasts among them) of the current season of Arabs Got Talent. She certainly is doing a better job of singing Arabic music than all the people who are singing western songs on this show. Finally, I would like to add that I very much dislike this show. It is not acceptable that three of the four panel members are not qualified to judge music as they are a businessman, an actor and a comedian.
5 hours ago · Unlike · 1"

Rohingyas fleeing Myanmar held hostages in Thailand

""As thousands of Rohingya flee Myanmar to escape religious persecution, a Reuters investigation in three countries has uncovered a clandestine policy to remove Rohingya refugees from Thailand's immigration detention centers and deliver them to human traffickers waiting at sea. The Rohingya are then transported across southern Thailand and held hostage in a series of camps hidden near the border with Malaysia until relatives pay thousands of dollars to release them."" (thanks Amir)

The New York Times is in mourning

"He became Israel’s high-jump champion as a boy and performed his military service as a member of an infantry brigade entertainment troupe. "

The seven million dollars horse

Sheikh Mo of Dubai buys a seven million dollars horse.

Gen. Sisi has a new constitution

My latest blog post for Al-Akhbar English on the Egyptian constitution.

Assassination of a Hizbullah commander

There has been some 8 Israeli assassinations of known or unknown Hizbullah leaders or commanders since the 1980s.  There is no doubt on earth that Israel was behind the recent assassination: you just have to read how much efforts Anne Barnard of the New York Times made in order to bring in Zionist denials of responsibility and to advance the bogus theory of some Sunni sectarian group to confirm that Israel was responsible.  Hizbullah is not as easy to target by the Israeli enemy as the PLO was in the past: leaders and commanders keep a low profile and they don't move in large convoys as PLO leaders did in the past during the war years.  Abu Hasan Salamah, an intelligence chief, adhered to a schedule and a routine that no intelligence chief would ever get a way with (not to mention that the exploits and adventures and "revolutionary" contributions of Salamah were largely fictitious: Israel held him responsible for actions that he had no links with whatsoever but the ignorance of Mossad is not something that is new).  Let me tell you something: when Israeli used to engage in assassinations (Israel was so callous and war criminal in its assassinations in Lebanon that it never used a revolver or even a machine gun---the favorite method of assassination by Israel was through a car bomb in a crowded street, managing to kill the person in question along with some tens of innocent bystanders. That is the nature of the enemy of the Arabs) it always chose times of acute internal conflict.  And Israel would never assume responsibility for its own assassinations: it always denied responsibility, just as it denies responsibility for the assassination of Arafat.  But during the war, after every assassination by Israel, some group (The Front for the Liberation of Lebanon from Strangers or Jabhat Tahrir Lubnan min-al-Ghuraba') would claim responsibility and it was known as a mere phone organization used by Israel to shift blame and also to intensify internal conflict in Lebanon.  There is a basic reason why the assassination of Hassan Laqqis was perpetrated by Israel and not by some imaginary "Sunni" group: his work was largely unknown for Lebanese and Syrians.  Apparently, his work was largely technical and electronic and dealt with stuff that only Israel would know about.  Not much is known about Laqqis and the picture circulated is not new from what I can gather. Some account in As-Safir said that he had a degree in computer science from AUB and that he met Hasan Nasrallah in the 1980s (people don't realize that Nasrallah worked in intelligence for Hizbullah and at one point was intelligence chief for Beirut area).  Like Nasrallah, Laqqis also started work with the Amal Movement but then moved to Hizbullah when it was forming.  Israel used the bogus claim of responsibility by a non-existent Sunni group to typical shift the blame and also to intensify Sectarian tensions and conflicts in Lebanon.  But it makes you think: amazing how many murders Israel gets away with in Lebanon and beyond.  My mother yesterday commented to me about the assassination and she was angry: that Hizbullah was at fault for not avenging the assassination of `Imad Mughniyyah.  Hizbullah will most likely be reconsidering that policy.  And if Hizbullah were to assassinate one of the many Israeli terrorist leaders, you can imagine the international outcry and the calls for an international criminal court to be set up, and the Secretary-general of the UN would be holding a boring press conference reading in his most boring tone a statement of protest.  For me, this Israeli murder is yet another confirmation in a century-old conflict as to the extent to which the Israeli enemy is callous and casual in killing Arabs--ordinary Arabs and non-ordinary Arabs.  And Israel intelligence activities in Lebanon benefit these days from their alliance with the House of Saud.  They have an easier time recruiting form the base of the Hariri and Salafi movement.  There is speculation about the regional implications or even motives of Israel regarding its displeasure with the Iranian-US deal.  I don't know about that but know that Israel and Saudi Arabia have a stake in making violence and conflict in the region much uglier in months and years to come.  Brace yourselves.  

And now a word about humanitarian Israel

From Butros:  ""We can't sit by and watch the humanitarian difficulties on the other side," Yaalon said. "We've transferred water, food, including baby food, taking into consideration that these villages are besieged and they don't have access to any other place. So therefore yes, we are assisting with humanitarian aid along the fence."
Yet they can count how many calories Gazans have to eat and give them less than starvation level?"

An Israeli kufiyyah? Is there any other Palestinian things and land that you have not stolen?

From Mohamad:  "Israelite Keffiyeh is revolutionary utilitarian scarf accentuated by Star of David in the center, while underlined with an Israel Chai on all four sides of the scarf. Highlighting the Semitic orient of this ancient people."
I don't know how to respond to this.... my brain hurts".

The US is outraged that Russia would use its economic muscle to influence other nations. I mean, the US would never ever do that

"Yanukovych defended his choice by saying that Russian trade sanctions, some already imposed and others threatened, were too painful to endure. Russia also reportedly offered to lower gas prices that were keeping Ukraine deeply indebted to Moscow and to provide billions of dollars in loans if Ukraine would abandon the European deal."

If the person is `Alawi, you have to say he/she belongs to Bashshar Al-Asad's sect--ALWAYS

"The Bab al-Tabbaneh district is largely Sunni Muslim, as are most of the rebels fighting in Syria. Residents of Jabal Moh­sen, a neighborhood perched on a hill, are mostly of Assad’s Alawite sect."  OK, you want to remind readers that Bashshar is `Alawite is fine, but why not refer to Sunnis thus: "are mostly of Usamah Bin Laden's sect"?

The Washington Post on Al-Haram Ash-Sharif

This long article in the Washington Post basically wants to tell you that Jewish religious freedoms in Israel are fundamentally curtailed by Muslims there and that the Muslims in the holy land have too many religious freedoms.  Basically.

Holy Sanctuary in the Washington Post

You have to see this graph in the Post. It is entirely based on mythical perceptions of how the temple was and how it was evolved.  There is absolutely no evidence of this specific rendering shown in the graph. It is entirely a Zionist artistic imagination.

Gen. Dr. Engineer Salim Idriss is coy

"The CIA is said to be training about 200 fighters for Idriss each month, though the commander wouldn’t acknowledge this support."

bribe diplomacy

"Prince Bandar bin Sultan met with the Russian president in Moscow in July 2013. Back then The Times claimed that the Saudi side had offered Moscow 15 billion U.S. dollars and no rivalry in natural gas supplies to Europe in exchange for Russia's refusal to support Syrian President Bashar Assad."

the goodwill of colonial powers

France is fed up.  "France will tell African leaders at a Paris summit on Friday it will no longer play policeman on the continent, even as it prepares to act in a new conflict in Central African Republic after its Mali intervention this year."

Yes, they are qualified to liberate Muslim women, damn it

""Female soldiers at Fort Hood testified Monday that they were recruited for a prostitution ring set up by a sergeant involved in the sexual assault and harassment program at the Central Texas post.""

Vatican is not responsible for its clergy when they rape children

""The Vatican refused to provide a United Nations rights panel with information on the Church's internal investigations into the sexual abuse of children by clergy, saying on Tuesday that its policy was to keep such cases confidential." "But it indicated the Vatican could not be held responsible for the behavior of institutions or individual Catholics around the world and said local bishops had the responsibility of ensuring children were protected."" (thanks Amir)

Biden in China

From Adam:  "I was curious how Obama and Biden would feel if the word "Biden" were exchanged with the name of a foreign political leader, and "Chinese" was replaced with "American" in this line:

"U.S. Vice President Joe Biden is opening a visit to China by urging Chinese students to challenge their government, teachers and religious leaders."
I doubt they'd approve. "  Yes, of course. Because students in the US challenge their teachers and religious leaders on regular bases.  

Did you know that the Syrian secular "revolution" has a proselytizing office? I am so glad that my hands have never been dirtied with his "revolution"

"In another move that underscore the fears of beleaguered minorities, al-Qaida-linked rebels who rule the northeast town of Raqqa converted a church into a center for proselytizing their extreme interpretation of Islam, and another into an administrative office, said the Observatory’s Abdurrahman.
Rebels of the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant had previously set fires in the two churches and knocked the crosses off them, replacing them with the group’s black Islamic banner.
Abdurrahman sent photographs of the Church of Armenian Martyrs, with a black ISIL flag flying from where the cross once stood.
Below, a black banner read, “The proselytizing office, region of Raqqa.”" (thanks anonymous)

Who says that Ms. Barnard in not learning on the job?

"Al Manar, a Hezbollah television channel".  This is a great sign of progress in Ms. Barnard's knowledge of the Middle East.  Only a few weeks ago she thought that Al-Manar was a male broadcaster who had ties with Hizbullah. Kid you not.

This is the expert on Hizbullah that Anne Barnard from Lebanon relied on

"Matthew Levitt, the author of “Hezbollah: The Global Footprint of Lebanon’s Party of God,” said that in the late 1990s Mr. Laqees had been a “very, very senior” figure".  Now if there is an expert with a precise knowledge of Hizbullah it is this guy.  I mean, look at the precision in which he located Hassan Laqqis.  As you all know, within Hizbullah there are those ranks; very senior figure, and then there is very very senior figure, and then there is very very very senior figure, and then there is very very very very very senior figure.  And This Levitt guy can specifically and precisely tell you what status each Hizbullah commander occupies.  It takes years and efforts (and a lot of propaganda work mixed with ignorance) to attain the knowledge level of this guy, who spots Hizbullah members trying to sneak from the Mexican border almost on an hourly bases.  According to this guy, Hizbullah network in Latin American is much larger than Hizbullah's network inside Lebanon.  

Anne Barnard's effort to absolve Israel of the assassination

"Israeli officials denied involvement, and Israeli analysts said they believed that Mr. Laqees was targeted by radical Sunnis in Lebanon as part of sectarian tensions over Syria. ".  Who are those Lebanese analysts, Ms. Barnard? Is it Abe Foxman? Or some other Zionists at WINEP who you categorized as "Lebanese analysts"? Or do they happen to be conveniently placed in the Saudi intelligence camp in Lebanon?

Anne Barnard in her most honest role ever: a propagandist for Israel

In this entire article, especially in the first version of it, she only cited "Israeli sources" and a Hizbullah "expert" from the WINEP shop but only to deny that Israel was behind it.  In the later edition, she added a Lebanese Shi`ite economist (and she bizarrely called him a Hizbullah expert although he never once wrote a word about Hizbullah):  Look at the effort to absolve Israel of responsibility:  "Hezbollah did not say how Mr. Laqees had been killed but accused “the Israeli enemy” of targeting him and said Israel would have to “bear all the responsibility and ramifications of this vile crime.”
Yet at the same time, memorial images circulating on social media framed his death as part of the conflict in Syria, showing him against a backdrop of the Sayida Zeinab shrine near Damascus, Syria, a site particularly revered by Shiites that Hezbollah has helped to defend. " Now my favorite part is "yet at the same time".  Why would she think that the posting of his pictures with the backdrop of Sayyidah Zaynab means that Israel is not responsible? How did you go from A to B except on an express train of Israeli propaganda?

Internet problems

Internet problems. 

Israel's foreign minister

Israel's foreign minister has been in the job for days now, literally, and the New York Times managed to write a long glowing profile saying that he is a changed man already.  

A new Libyan militia

"Deepening divisions among Libya’s myriad armed groups are increasingly stirring conflict in the North African state. Now the United States and its allies are prepared to add a new force to the toxic mix.

U.S. officials say the hope is that theGeneral Purpose Force — a trained Libyan military organization — will start to fill the country’s festering security vacuum, initially by protecting vital government installations and the individuals struggling to make this country run. The Obama administration hopes the force eventually will form the core of a new national army."

Madeleine Albright

Madeleine Albright is Thomas Friedman's ideal Secretary of State: like him, she is shallow and uses the language of school children and has a very limited vocabulary which appeals to the general public.

Are you kidding? The US would never ever use economic pressures

"Afghan military and police commanders are accusing the U.S.-led coalition of withholding fuel and other support in an attempt to pressure President Hamid Karzai into signing a security agreement with the United States."