Cooking for the male protesters

"She points out that Syrian women have been "providing logistical work for protest activity.""  Oh, spare me the fake attempt to attribute feminist motives to a movement that is led by the polygamous leaders of the Muslim Brotherhood.  Yes, early on there were secular trends but they were marginalized by regime repression and by Ikhwan and Salafites who hijacked the uprising.  Providing logistical work?  Yes, that means preparing the meals.  The protests in Syria have become increasingly segregated and increasingly male chauvinist.  

Robert Worth on Iranian hypocrisy

The point of the article by Robert Worth is a point that Jeffrey Feltman makes in every appearance he makes in the Arab media.  So Iran is indeed hypocritical and inconsistent for supporting all Arab uprisings except the uprising in Syria.  But: is the US less hypocritical and less inconsistent when it supports the uprising in Syria and Iran but opposes them in Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Bahrain, Morocco, Tunisia (until Bin Ali fled) and Egypt (until Mubarak stepped down), and Algeria? I mean, Worth did not notice that Iran is not alone in this hypocrisy?  

He is "a translator for Mr. Daniel Pipes (The famous American historian)"

So the LA Times said:  "According to blogger Omar Dakhane, he's neither -- and probably not a soldier, either.  "Don't believe everything you see on the Internet," he wrote on his blog. Showing the full picture from which the soldier was cropped, Dakhane says it was taken in Bahrain during a street theater performance in 2009.  Dakhane's post on the picture being fake has been widely quoted in Israeli media. "I'm glad that my blog's mission to fight hate and lies is finally having an effect," he wrote in response."  So who is this "Dkhane" guy?  Well, he introduces himself here in Arabic as "language expert" for Daniel Pipes and in English he says that he is: "a translator for Mr. Daniel Pipes (The famous American historian)."  Enough said.

PS If you find an Arab who has heard of this blogger, I will make you Hummus.

Interview

"Palestine is Still the Issue | Interview – The Angry Arab on Zionism, Syria, and more."

Sultan Qaboos speaks for Israel

"Asked about reports that Israel was allegedly weighing a military strike to degrade and delay Iran’s nuclear program, Qaboos replied that while he understood that “Israel must be looking at all the options and keeping all of them open,” he hoped that the situation would not “deteriorate to the point that Israel feels compelled to take drastic measures.”" (thanks Don)

Zionism is racism, always: a "Jews only" parking lot

"Armenian residents of Jerusalem's Old City are protesting a municipal decision to designate a parking lot in the area solely for Jews, although part of it stands on land belonging to the Armenian Patriarchate."

Cicero speaks to Hariri rag

So Cicero speaks to Hariri rag, Al-Mustaqbal.  He expressed "salutations" to Sa`d Hariri for his political stance vis-a-vis Syria and said that the Syrian National Council does not receive funds from Hariri.  And people expect progressives to follow those types?  You want to throw the label of "revolutionary" on such characters?

Subhi Tufayli

Of course, Western media don't bother with those details. March 14 and its Saudi sponsors have been searching for alternatives to Hizbullah in Lebanon among Shi`ites.  They produce and funds alternatives every other week.  Every time they are promised results, they get hit on the face.  The US/Saudi/Hariri choice as an alternative to Hizbullah among Shi`ites in the last parliamentary election, Ahmad Al-As`ad, received a whopping 1% of Shi`ite votes in the last election.  Kid you not.  Now they have a new one and his name appeared a few times in Wikileaks.  He is none other than Subhi Tufayli: he was the leader of Hizbullah during its years of hijacking, kidnapping, assassinations, bombings, and extreme religious fanaticism.  He was even rolled out on the right-wing, racist, MTV early this week.  This stooge of Iran who never ever disagreed with an Iranian order now criticizes Hizbullah for its loyalty to Iran.  This is like Salam Fayyad, the stooge of occupation, giving lessons in resistance.

200,000

"About 200,000 missiles are aimed at Israel at any given time, a top Israel Defense Forces officer said on Thursday, adding that Iran's ability to obtain nuclear weapons was solely dependent on the will of Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei."

Immigrants and satellite stations

Somebody should do a study: how did the rise of global satellite stations in the 1990s affect the integration of immigrants in European countries and US?  To what extent, for example, does the availability, nay the popularity, of Arab channels in the US affect the integration of Arab immigrants?  Do those channels not strengthen their bonds with the countries of origin at the expense of the new adopted countries?  Take it at the political level: Lebanese in the US are so intimately involved with Lebanese politics on daily bases (sometimes watching two different news broadcasts from Lebanon) while disregarding American politics?  I wonder.  

suspicious and dangerous religion

" The New York Police Department recommended increasing surveillance of thousands of Shiite Muslims and their mosques, based solely on their religion, as a way to sweep the Northeast for signs of Iranian terrorists, according to interviews and a newly obtained secret police document.  The document offers a rare glimpse into the thinking of NYPD intelligence officers and how, when looking for potential threats, they focused their spying efforts on mosques and Muslims. Police analysts listed a dozen mosques from central Connecticut to the Philadelphia suburbs. None has been linked to terrorism, either in the document or publicly by federal agencies.    The Associated Press has reported for months that the NYPD infiltrated mosques, eavesdropped in cafes and monitored Muslim neighborhoods with plainclothes officers. Its spying operations were begun after the 2001 terror attacks with help from the CIA in a highly unusual partnership.   The May 2006 NYPD intelligence report, entitled "US-Iran Conflict: The Threat to New York City," made a series of recommendations, including: "Expand and focus intelligence collections at Shi'a mosques."   The NYPD is prohibited under its own guidelines and city law from basing its investigations on religion. Under FBI guidelines, which the NYPD says it follows, many of the recommendations in the police document would be prohibited.   The report, drawn largely from information available in newspapers or sites like Wikipedia, was prepared for Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly. It was written at a time of great tension between the U.S. and Iran. That tension over Iran's nuclear ambition has increased again recently.  Police estimated the New York area Shiite population to be about 35,000, with Iranians making up about 8,500. The document also calls for canvassing the Palestinian community because there might be terrorists there.  "The Palestinian community, although not Shi'a, should also be assessed due to presence of Hamas members and sympathizers and the group's relationship with the Iranian government," analysts wrote.  The secret document stands in contrast to statements by Mayor Michael Bloomberg, who said the NYPD never considers religion in its policing. Kelly has said police go only where investigative leads take them, but the document described no leads to justify expanded surveillance at Shiite mosques".

Thanks, NATO, for liberating Libya for us. Great job, as usual.

"Rival militias fought a two-hour gunbattle over a luxury beach house being used as a barracks in the Libyan capital Wednesday, underscoring how volatile the country is following the overthrow of Muammar Gaddafi.
A Reuters reporter heard exchanges of both heavy and light weapons coming from the Tripoli district of El-Saadi beach, a stretch of Mediterranean coast overlooked by office skyscrapers and the Marriott Hotel.
Militias have carved up Tripoli and the rest of Libya into competing fiefdoms, each holding out for the share of power they say they are owed." 

Journalism standards of the New York Times

"There is no way to corroborate much of Mr. Omar’s account of his journey to becoming an enforcer for the Assad government."  But what the hell: we will supply our readers with a whole article over two pages based on his account.  Who is counting here, damn it.  


PS Do you think that the New York Times would lionize an Israeli occupation soldiers who defects or he refuses orders, and would publish his account of massacres without having verification for every little detail from 3794430 sources?  

With shoes

The families of Palestinian prisoners in Gaza met Ban Ki-Moon with old shoes.  I need footage, please.

King Hamzah of Jordan

In a couple of years, I predict that Prince Hamzah becomes King of Jordan but with less powers.  If the monarchy survives, that is.  

More on the corruption in Jordan

Here is an article about the intersection between corruption of the Mukhabrat and Jordanian participation in the US "war on terrorism." (thanks anonymous)

Wanted man in Saudi Arabia

Shaykh Nimr An-Nimr is a wanted man in Saudi Arabia but he appeared in Awamiyyah in Qatif just yesterday.  (thanks anonymous)

Compare and contrast: the New York Times and LA Times on Egyptian Ultras

In the New York Times:  "“Apolitical before last year’s uprising, the fans, or ultras, were known for their rowdy behavior, obscene chants and apparently endless enthusiasm for clashes with the often-brutal Egyptian police. “"


In the LA Times: "Security officials feared the riot could provoke retaliation by die-hard Ahly fans, known as Ultras. The group, a mix of university students, workers and democracy advocates, helped defend Tahrir Square against Mubarak loyalists last February, and was involved in the attack on the Israeli Embassy in Cairo in September. Its members also have been on the front lines in the recent deadly clashes between antigovernment protesters and riot police and soldiers."

As Kanaan Makiyya once said: thank you America for bringing democracy to Iraq

"Iraq has executed 17 convicted criminals in one day, the justice ministry said on Wednesday, bringing to 51 the number of people executed so far this year." (thanks Steve)

Racism, sexism, and classism on MTV

The right-wing, racist, sexist, classist, and sectarian Christian MTV station in Lebanon is notorious for its record of bigotry.  Of course, the right-wing agenda attracted the attention of the US and the US ambassador in Lebanon even visited the station to show American gratitude for its political agenda.  Here is a most disgusting video that aired on the station which mocks foreign domestic servants in Lebanon. (thanks Laure)

Fisk gone to the far end

"Indeed, a Lebanese peace force in Syria – where all of Lebanon's communities (Sunni, Shia, Christian Maronite, Orthodox, Druze, Armenian) are represented – might just be one way of damping down the civil conflict there. A supreme irony, perhaps, after the 1976-2005 Syrian army's presence in Lebanon."  Do those ideas come to you naturally, or do you experience visions enhanced by certain stimulants?  I really want to know.  Just curious.   (thanks Nir)

Robert Fisk, the poet

"Strike down Baathist Syria and its Alawi-Shia President, and you cut deep into the soul of Iran itself."  What on earth does this sentence mean?  Please, advise us, Mr. Fisk and take the gold watch and retire in Arwad island off the coast of Lebanon.

Robert Fisk: please retire, I am sick and tired of exposing your errors and mistakes

Here, Robert Fisk shows off his Arabic (although he does not know Arabic):  "For Syria – the "Um al-Arabia wahida", the Mother of One Arab People."  Of course, his driver, Abed, translates for him when they travel, on those days when Fisk feels like leaving his area in West Beirut.  Here, Mr. Fisk must have heard the famous Ba`thist slogan "Ummah `Arabiyyah Wahida".  Fisk, confuses the word "um" (mother) with "ummah" (nation or more like volk in German), so he shares it with the reader.  Please, retire, Mr. Fisk.  You are not doing us or yourself a favor by continuing to produce such low quality of journalism.

What is happening in Jordan

Again and again, Western media still are not covering the turmoil in Jordan.  Things are tense there now, according to people there.  Here is a report in Al-Quds Al-`Arabi.  (thanks Yusuf)

The poems of Nizar Qabbani

The lousy Syrian ambassador at the UN invoked the poems of Nizar Qabbani in his defense of the Syrian regime.  Rana Qabbani (the niece of the poet) protested.  Qabbani was banned from Syria for years and his Iraqi wife (who worked at the Iraqi embassy in Beirut) died in a massive car bomb planted by the Syrian regime.  

Crude and vulgar sectarianism in Ash-Sharq Al-Awsat

Look at the headline and this article by Tariq Al-Humayyid (a long-time propagandist for the sons of Prince Salman and the editor of his mouthpiece, Ash-Sharq Al-Awsat).  They don't even try to disguise their sectarian hatred while pretending (in English) that they are "liberals".  Liberals in the House of Saud camp?  This Humayyid once described liberal reformers in Saudi Arabia as "an Iranian lobby inside Saudi Arabia".

Donald Rumsfeld

In his memoirs, he informs us that he always benefited from the political wisdom and insights of Sultan Qaboos.  I kid you not.  Secondly, he tells us that he attended Nasser's funeral in 1972.  Kid you not.  

What happened in Egypt

I really believe that the violence there was orchestrated by the agents of the Military Council.  The Military Council will not be permitted to surrender power: the US and Israel can't afford to leave Egypt at the mercy of its...people and their free will.  I am not saying that the US and Israel would necessarily succeed.  

Haykal on Mubarak

The new book by Haykal (serialized in Ash-Shuruq newspaper in Cairo and As-Safir in Beirut) is a very revealing look at Mubarak.  Mubarak was never exposed for being the petty and dumb person that he is.  It shows him as a Reagan-like person, very detached from the affairs of government.  I don't think that Arab readers have been provided with that view of the man before, because a great (US-led) propaganda machine helped create an image of Mubarak as a "great statesman" (all those Arabs who serve Israeli interests are called "statesmen" from King Khuuusayn to Fu'ad Sanyurah to Salam Fayyad to Husni Mubarak to Bin `Ali of Tunisia and of course, the puppet, Sadat).   Also, the book has something new about the relationship between Mubarak and his once-defense minister, `Abdul-Halim Abu Ghazalah.

Why I read the New York Times

My latest blog post for Al-Akhbar English: "Why I read the New York Times?"

Isabel Kershner assess Palestinian public opinion

Look at this hilarious opening sentence by New York Times chief Israeli propagandist:  "For many Palestinians and their international supporters, the one bright spot in an otherwise dreary political landscape has been the nation-building efforts of Salam Fayyad, the prime minister of the Palestinian Authority, who has restored law and order and encouraged economic growth in the West Bank."  I mean, this is typical.  They assign people, like Kershner, who has no clue as to Palestinian public opinion or political preferences.  She maintains that Fayyad is loved by the Palestinians and the international supporters of the Palestinians.  In my anti-Israel tour of UK colleges last month, the name of Fayyad came only once in my tour: when a Zionist audience member praised him in a question he posed to me.  The notion that pro-Palestinian activists see this man as anything but a stooge of occupation is just absurd.  Even within the Fath movement, he is hated and despised.  But don't fault Ms. Kershner.  All that she knows about the Middle East, she receives from her Israeli propaganda sources--and they really love Fayyad. 

Zionists as experts

Is there an article on the Middle East in the Western press (or lately in the Saudi press) that does not cite "experts" from the Zionist club, WINEP?

US provides evidence

"In early January, the commander of Iran’s Quds Force, Qassim Suleimani, visited Damascus, raising suspicions that Iran was advising Mr. Assad on how to quash the uprising."  Wait. So by that logic or evidence, when US military commanders visited Bahrain or Egypt (under Mubarak) they were advising those desports on how to "quash the uprising"?   But what do I expect from a reporter who concludes his article by words of "objective" wisdom from a fellow at WINEP?  Really.  

When a US official finds evidence

"At the same time, American officials said there was growing evidence that Iran was helping train and equip Syrian security forces.  “Our concerns include the fact that some of the tactics being used by the Syrian regime mirror tactics used in Iran against their own population".  You mean Syria, like Iran, shot at protesters?  Is that now what the Tunisian, Egyptian, Yemeni, Bahraini, Saudi, Libyan, Jordanian, and Omani governments have done?  These are the tactics, right?  Wait.  That can only mean one thing: that Iran also helped and trained the Tunisian, Egyptian, Yemeni, Bahraini, Saudi, Libyan, Jordanian, and Omani security forces. What a diabolical reach.  

NEIL MacFARQUHAR identifies the crux of the matter

"Fundamentally, the argument over Syria reflects a deeper divide between those who would use the Security Council to confront nations over how their governments treat civilians, versus those who consider that it has no role whatsoever in settling domestic disputes."  This is too much for me to digest, Mr. MacFarquhar, but let me try to understand.  So you are saying that the US and its allies are in favor of confronting, say, Israel, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Jordan, Morocco, and Egypt of Sadat and Mubarak--over how they treat their citizens (or non-citizens as the case may be)?  OK.  That is easy to understand.  Thanks for this helpful and moral distinction between the two camps.  I would have remained confused otherwise.

Qatar foreign policy

"I was an early supporter of military intervention in Libya. I called for a no-fly zone on February 23, just 8 days after protests began."  Now we know why you are cited right and left in the Western media, and I am sure that you will call for immediately foreign military intervention the second Qatar calls for one.  (thanks Khaled)

PS If this guy (and I really don't know anything about him) or any other guy or gal calls for foreign military intervention to help Palestinians, he/she would not even be allowed to utter the words in Western media.

Israeli terrorism

"The IDF has significantly increased the number of overseas covert operations it has conducted over the past year, an indication of the growing threats Israel faces in the region, The Jerusalem Post has learned.
Most of the details about the operations are classified, including the exact number, but according to foreign reports, the IDF has operated in places such as Sudan, Lebanon and Iran."  Covert operations here refers to assassinations, car bombs, explosions, theft, smuggling, and various forms of terrorism, of course. (thanks Fred)

Cicero of Syria

Mohammed sent me this:  "Hi Just watched Cicero of al-Sham on al Jazeera English.  Is there no clearer sign of the incompetence and/or destiny for failure of this Syrian opposition group that they still have this guy speaking? I don't know much of his intellectual capabilities-- but communication should be the last thing he is in charge of.  If they can't recognize that-- how do they think they could run a country?"

Bahjat Abu Gharbiyyah died

This is a tribute to a historic Palestinian struggler, Bahjat Abu Gharbiyyah.  (thanks Mirvat)

Flash: Western sources in the mouthpiece of Prince Salman and his sons

Ash-Sharq Al-Awsat, the vulgar and crude mouthpiece of Prince Salman and his sons, cites "informed Western sources" in identifying--hold your breaths, this is big--Iran as the source of all jamming on Arab broadcasts in the region.  It is known that this propaganda sheet, like all other propaganda sheets of House of Saud, does not post information unless it is verified by...informed Western sources.

Nasser versus his imitators

Nasser resigned at the height of his popularity, while Arab despots refuse to resign at the height of their unpopularity.  

Hamad Bin Jasim

At what point did the West decide that Hamad Bin Jasim is the best representative and spokesperson on behalf of the Arab peoples?  Was I sleeping?

That impudent Iranian regime

"U.S. officials said they have seen no intelligence to indicate that Iran is actively plotting attacks on U.S. soil. But Director of National Intelligence James R. Clapper Jr. said the thwarted plot “shows that some Iranian officials — probably including Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei — have changed their calculus and are now more willing to conduct an attack in the United States in response to real or perceived U.S. actions that threaten the regime.”"  Let me get this straight: so the Iranian regime, while not plotting attacks on US currently, may consider responding to an American attack on its regime or territory?  How impudent.  Who do they think they are?  Don't they know it is against international law and decency to respond to US attacks on one's country?  It is just unbecoming.  

The folly of signing agreements--any agreements--with the Zionist entity

"The Israel Defense Forces arrested Mamun Ismyail Salame Stut, a Palestinian man who was released from Israeli prison in October as part of the Gilad Shalit prisoner exchange deal. Stut’s arrest makes him the first released prisoner to be recaptured since the prisoner swap.  According to an IDF spokesperson, Stut was arrested for being a security threat in the area of Dura near Hebron by the Golani Brigade."  For the life of me, I can't see how anyone can really sign an agreement on any matter with the lying Zionist entity?  Of course, the Zionist usurping entity is not scared of Hamas but would not dare pull this violation of the agreement with Hizbullah.  And this is not an arrest: it is a kidnapping and should be treated as such, when the other side decides to respond.

80% of Syrians and Bashshar

A well-known Syrian told me this.  He personally once discussed with Bashshar (a few years ago) the possibility of holding free elections.  Bashshar told him that he could not allow that before he rebuilds the Ba`th Party.  Otherwise, he added, the Muslim Brotherhood would win 80% of the seats in parliament.