Category: Israel

Greece should bet on Turkish semi-democracy rather than Egyptian dictatorship

I was planning to write a follow up to the latest article I wrote about Turkish-Greek cultural cooperation, which I learned had been translated and published on a number of Greek websites. However, the recent cool winds blowing in the Mediterranean changed the focus of this article.

The discovery of gas in the Mediterranean had raised hopes that diplomatic work to find a solution to the Cyprus problem could be sped up. Unfortunately, it has become an additional obstruction for settlement efforts.

Following attempts to start drilling in 2011 and 2013, both of which triggered a reaction from Turkey, Greek Cyprus once more decided to try its luck in late October, by starting exploration activities just as talks were continuing between the two communities.

It is hard to imagine that the Greek Cypriot leadership was not expecting a reaction from Ankara. Indeed, Turkey sent the Barbaros Hayrettin Paşa scientific ship to carry out seismic surveys around the same area, which was declared an exclusive economic zone (EEZ) by Greek Cyprus, disputed by Turkey and Turkish Cyprus.

Antonis Samaras of Greece and Nicos Anastasiades of South Cyprus

Greek Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades then announced that he would not attend the peace talks.

I would not be surprised if many Turkish decision-makers are convinced that the exploration activities were authorized by Anastasiades, specifically at this time, in order to trigger a reaction from Ankara that would give him an alibi to quit the negotiations, which Turks believe he was not incredibly enthusiastic about anyway.

Meanwhile, just as third party players, like the U.N. Secretary General’s representative, were trying to find a way out from the impasse, the leaders of Greece, Greek Cyprus and Egypt recently met in Cairo to pledge greater energy cooperation in the Middle East.

Ankara refrained from making an official statement about the summit, but let their naval forces commander made an announcement that there were more assertive rules of engagement in the Mediterranean.

Now we learn that the trilateral meeting in Cairo will be followed by a new trilateral meeting between Greek Cyprus, Greece and Israel. The time of that meeting is not yet set, but Anastasiades is due to visit Israel on Dec. 2. This visit was preceded by a visit to Nicosia last week of Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman, who lambasted Turkey for intruding on Greek Cyprus’ EEZ.

So the picture that comes around is like this: On the one side is Turkey, whose international standing is not exactly brilliant, and on the other an alliance of Israel, Egypt and Greek Cyprus, each of which have, for the time being at least, very hostile relations with Turkey.

As someone who has been highly critical of Turkey’s foreign policy course in the past, you might think I will talk about how the government’s erroneous policies have landed Turkey in such a situation in the East Mediterranean.

Nicos Anastasiade, Antonis Samaras and Abdel Fatah el-Sisi

Indeed, Turkey is partly responsible for the picture in which you can see Egypt’s former military leader, now President Abdel Fatah el-Sisi standing between Greek Prime Minister Antonis Samaras and Anastasiades.

I can understand Greek Cyprus’ futile effort to forge an alliance with Egypt and Israel up to a certain point, but Greece? Tension in the Aegean has never served Athens. The last decade is a testament to how Greece has benefited from engaging with Turkey.

Let’s suppose Turkey’s policy on the issue is totally wrong. Even so, is it the right course for Greece to go and pose together with a coup leader just to support Greek Cypriots? Does the Greek government seriously think an alliance with Israel and Egypt will frighten and deter Turkey? Couldn’t Greece surprise us and work as a silent mediator to defuse the tension?

Greece has more to benefit from cooperating with a semi-democracy like Turkey than a dictatorship like Egypt, or Israel, which is increasingly being isolated by the European Union.

In addition, Turkey may have temporary strains in its relations with Israel and Egypt, but the moment is there for normalization; both Tel Aviv and Cario have ties with Ankara that will always outweigh those with Greece and Greek Cyprus, as was rightly underlined in a comment published yesterday in the Cyprus Mail titled “Realism needed on the power of regional agreement.”

I am still optimistic that the Turkish-Greek reconciliation will stand strong against this new wave of tension.

It’s good to know that just as the foreign ministers of Greece, Greek Cyprus and Egypt were meeting in Nicosia to prepare for the Cairo summit, the Greeks were attending a Turkish film week in Athens. Meanwhile, just as the two countries’ naval officers issued statements over the weekend about new rules of engagement in the Mediterranean, Turks were attending the Athens marathon on Nov. 9. In addition, the Turkish economy minister and the Greek development minister will be attending a business forum this week in İzmir; while as Israel prepares to welcome Anastasiades on Dec. 2, Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu is set to visit Athens on Dec. 4.

November/11/2014

BARÇIN YİNANÇ

[email protected]

Kufi Seydali

November 11, 2014
AND SO PASSES A WOMAN’S LIFE IN TURKEY

Serena Shim (1984-19 October 2014)

I never met her. I wish I had. But I knew she was a reporter, a good reporter telling of bad wars, and telling all the sides. And this one in Kobani (Ayn al-Arab) has many more sides than two, all of them bloody, all of them reeking of criminality. This carnage in Syria is perhaps the most corrupt, criminal, imperial assault in modern history. There are no “good guys” in this slaughter on the rapidly crumbling edge of Turkey. It’s all lies, deceit and power politics. Call it murder. Call it the ultimate man’s tough-guy game—bombardment, siege, street-fighting, and always the stupidity.

The dogs of war run wild and ignorantly. For what? For a nothing town destroyed by chaos. She was telling as much as she could. The Turks there, the intelligence guys, the cops, the Turkish army, all the government “watchers” watched her and her partner, Judy Irish. She was called a spy. Watch out, they said. Maybe you’ll even be arrested, they mumbled. And the word got around. Not an easy assignment. She confessed that she was worried. Who wouldn’t be?

Note the eyes. They would tell exactly what they saw, wouldn’t they? She had two children, this beautiful Lebanese-American woman. She was 30 years-old, hard-working and dedicated. Perhaps it was Napoleon who spoke about his Marshalls “marching towards the sound of the guns.” She didn’t need the advice. She followed the danger instinctively. Maybe she could make sense of it all in Iraq, Lebanon, the Ukraine, and lastly, Turkey? Maybe? Maybe not? She told of the ISIS killers being smuggled into Syria in trucks with NGO labels like World Food Organization. Turkey has been at this double-dealing game for years. But this kind of truth hurts and it did not endear her to the Turkish “watchers” and “handlers” and “muscle-guys.”

On the way back to the hotel in a town called Suruç a cement-mixer truck, massive and deadly accurate, somehow, some way, intervened to crush her car and her. It all had the stink of bad fish. Based on the historic violence visited upon journalists and other dissenters in Turkey such a first impression of foul play is logical.

The governor of that area immediately said that “Turkey is a democratic state of law. The allegations are completely untrue.” What is completely untrue is exactly what he said. Democracy and the rule of law have both been crushed by the cement-mixer truck known as the Turkish government. And Serena confirmed that in her reportage. And so passes a brave young woman’s life in Turkey. And so continues the war.

James (Cem) Ryan

Istanbul

21 October 2013

Brightening Glance http://www.brighteningglance.org/

October 22, 2014
UK Parliament votes to recognise Palestine

October 13, 2014

Media Release

Today (13 October 2014), MPs in Westminster voted for a motion, tabled by Grahame Morris MP, calling for recognition of a Palestinian state. 274 voted for the motion; 12 against.

MPs on all sides of the House supported the call for Palestinian statehood, including many Conservatives.

In the event, the ‘no’ campaign attempted to avoid a vote by not putting forward tellers for their side, so Palestine supporting MPs had to act as tellers for the ‘no’ lobby, so that a division could be taken. As Jeremy Corbyn who explained he and Mike Wood (who both supported the motion) acted as tellers to “ensure that democracy could take place and a vote could take place.” Reflecting the strong public interest in the debate, he said this was so constituents could see how their MPs had voted.

Ahead of the vote, more than 57,500 people emailed their MPs, via the PSC email tool, to ask them to vote ‘yes’ for Palestinian recognition. Many MPs received close to 1,000 emails each, including Rushanara Ali, Mike Gapes, Jack Straw, Stephen Timms and Jim Fitzpatrick.

Ahead of the motion, many MPs had declared their support by holding a ‘recognise Palestine’ flag. Impassioned speeches from MPs from across the parties highlighted Israel’s crimes against Palestinians, the shock of seeing Palestinian children in chains at military courts, and the damage done to Britain’s reputation by being seen as a state which is allowing components to be sold which are then used in Israeli weaponry to kill Palestinians. A number of MPs made reference to the strong support for Palestinian rights from their constituents. Images and quotes from the debate were tweeted out via @pscupdates

Hugh Lanning, PSC Chair, said:

‘MPs have been deluged with pressure from their constituents to take action for Palestine. More than 57,500 people used just one of PSC’s e-tools to send a message to their MP, asking them to recognise Palestine. There is overwhelming, and growing, support in Britain for Palestinian rights. Today, British MPs took an important step towards standing up for justice, freedom, and rights for the Palestinian people.

Hugh Lanning continued: ‘Recognising Palestine is an important first step to take to start rectifying Britain’s historic responsibility for Palestinian suffering and dispossession. Palestinian sovereignty is a right, not a bargaining chip to be negotiated with at some stage in the future.

‘Britain does not need the permission of Israel – a state which serially abuses human rights and violates international law – to recognise Palestine. Israel illegally occupies Palestine, has built illegal settlements under cover of negotiations, massacred over 2000 Palestinians this summer and continues to impose a lethal blockade on Gaza. Britain has a historic responsibility, which continues to this current day, for the dispossession and suffering of Palestinians. The vote for Palestine today was a significant first step in addressing this injustice.’

palestinecampaign.org/prrecognisepalestine

October 14, 2014
A massacre against the Türkmen by this terrorist organization ISIL in Emirli is imminent

A massacre against the Türkmen by this terrorist organization ISIL in Emirli is imminent

Sadly the Kurdish policy/regime toward the Türkmen people is no different from that of the Arabisation policy that was carried out against the Türkmen during Saddam Hussein’s reign.

Following the fall of Saddam Hussein’s government in 2003 and the control of Northern Iraq by the Kurdish Regional Government, the Iraqi Türkmen’s situation has deteriorated dramatically. At that time the Türkmen expected to see justice, equality and human rights but tragically the reverse has been happening. The lands of the Türkmen people have been confiscated and at times destroyed; many Türkmen have been kidnapped, arrested and assassinated. The Türkmen people have been subjected to tremendous pressure from the Kurdish party militias, to disregard their Türkmen identity and they are been forced to blend Kurdish society.

The current disregard of the Türkmen people’s situation is unacceptable in Türkmeneli. The Türkmen people are again been subjected to a most brutal campaign by a terrorist Islamic State in Iraq, the Levant (ISIL) militants, thousands of Türkmen were forced to flee the Türkmen District of Telafer, when jihadists overran the area.

The Türkmen people in the sub-district of Taze Khormatu, Tuz Khormatu and specifically the sub_district of Emirli has been under siege by the terrorist organization ISIL for the last two months. Their water, electricity, medical and food supply has been cut off and they have been living in horrific conditions. A massacre against the Türkmen by this terrorist organization ISIL in Emirli is imminent and tragically avoidable.

When thousands of the Yazidis religious minority were forced to flee Sinjar as the jihadists overran their area, this prompted an international aid operation and helped to trigger the US air strikes.

Türkmens are questioning why Britain, Germany, France, Italy, Canada, and the Czech Republic do not show this same solidarity/urgency towards the Iraqi Türkmen people. As over 100,000 Türkmen people have sought refuge as thousands of Türkmen are executed by the terrorist Islamic State (IS) militants.

Türkmen are also questioning why Germany, France, the Czech Republic, Italy, Canada, and Britain are not showing the same solidarity toward the Iraqi Türkmen in Emirli, who have been under siege for the past two months? Türkmens believe that the humanitarian aid should be distributed equally and fairly to all the Iraqi people who are fleeing Islamic militants in Northern Iraq.

The Türkmen and Christian people are left defenceless, after the occupation of the city of Mosul by the terrorist Islamic State militants and the retreat of the Iraqi army from Mosul and Kerkuk. The Kurdish armed forces, instead of fighting and stopping the State militants from occupying Türkmen villages around the city of Kerkuk, have used the sectarian chaos in Iraq to expand their autonomous territory to include Kerkuk.

Kerkuk sits on vast oil deposits, that could make the Kurdish region an independent state that many dream of in Iraq’s mountainous north and beyond, more viable. Türkmen question why Germany, France, the Czech Republic, Italy, Canada, and Britain did not stop the Kurdish Peshmerga from occupying the Türkmen city of Kerkuk without question their objective?

While the Islamic State militants have swept across northern Iraq, pushing back Kurdish regional forces, threatening the Kurdish regional Capital of Erbil and driving tens of thousands of Christians and members of the Yazidis religious minority from their homes, Germany, France, Czechs Republic and Britain have shown great empathy towards the Kurdish people.

Funnelling arms to the Kurdish Peshmerga forces by Britain, the United States and some European countries can start to change the dynamics in the region. The U.S. and EU’s provision of arms support for the Kurds is a good and positive step against the terrorist organization ISIL. However, this help should not only be given to the Kurdish people, the Türkmen people should also be given arms support. If the support is only limited to the Kurds, it could be an indication that there are other plans/incentives behind the decision of establishing a Kurdish state.

The U.S. and EU’s stance on supporting the Kurds could be motivated by plans to divide Iraq into three parts that consist of a Shiite region in the south, a strengthened Kurdish region in the north and a Sunni region in the central Iraq. This action would be totally rejected by the Türkmen people and civil war will be imminent if this plan is implemented by the U.S. and EU’s countries. In the view of many Türkmen, an independent Kurdish state would further destabilize the region and create new tensions, possibly also within the states neighbouring Iraq.

In the view of many Türkmen, ignoring the plight of the Türkmen could be seen to be part of a plan for creating a special region for Christians and Yazidis on the Nineveh plane. The Türkmen would be the biggest losers from the implementation of such a plan. The Türkmen have suffered a lot during and after the fall of the Saddam Hussein regime. Iraqi Türkmen, the third largest ethnic group affected by the violence in Iraq, should also be equally armed by Britain to fight the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant.

The Türkmen people totally disapprove of sending weapons only to the Kurdish Peshmerga as these weapons could later be used by the Kurdish Peshmerga, to suppress the other ethnic groups in Northern Iraq. The Türkmen, Christian and Yazidis were betrayed by the Kurdish Peshmerga when they retreated from the Türkmen district of Telafer and sub- district of Beshir, Kusteppa, Biravchi, Makhmur and Sinjar.

The Kurdish Peshmerga left the Türkmen, Christian and Yazidis under the mercy of the terrorist organization ISIL. The Kurdish Peshmerga is fighting to protect their own state, not for the Iraqi people as is believed. The Türkmen are worried about the formation of an independent Kurdish state, as this would risk further destabilizing the region.

The Türkmen people of Iraq are extremely anxious to see the US and the West take action against the terrorist organization ISIL. However, the US, England, France, Italy, Canada, and Germany should show the same equality and empathy towards the Türkmen people. Iraqi Türkmen people are asking for arms/help/support from the West, asking for equal treatment to fight the terrorist organization ISIL.

Mofak Salman Kerkuklu

Türkmen Liberation Front

August 30, 2014
Syrian rebel commander says he collaborated with Israel

Syrian rebel commander says he collaborated with Israel

Syrian opposition commander Sharif As-Safouri confesses to collaborating with Israel (photo credit: YouTube screen capture)

Sharif as-Safouri, abducted by Al-Nusra Front in July, confesses to receiving antitank weapons in return for protecting the border

By Elhanan Miller
A Free Syrian Army commander, arrested last month by the Islamist militia Al-Nusra Front, told his captors he collaborated with Israel in return for medical and military support, in a video released this week.

In a video uploaded to YouTube Monday by the Executive Sharia Council in the eastern Daraa Region, an Islamic court established by Al-Nusra in southern Syria, Sharif As-Safouri, the commander of the Free Syrian Army’s Al-Haramein Battalion, admitted to having entered Israel five times to meet with Israeli officers who later provided him with Soviet anti-tank weapons and light arms. Safouri was abducted by the al-Qaeda-affiliated Al-Nusra Front in the Quneitra area, near the Israeli border, on July 22.

“The [opposition] factions would receive support and send the injured in [to Israel] on condition that the Israeli fence area is secured. No person was allowed to come near the fence without prior coordination with Israel authorities,” Safouri said in the video.

Israel has never admitted to arming moderate Syrian rebels, who have been engaged in battle against the Assad regime and its allies since March 2011. In June, Brig. Gen. Itai Brun, head of Military Intelligence research, told the Herzliya Conference that 80 percent of Syria’s oppositionists are Islamists of various shades, indicating that Israel was reluctant to collaborate with them.

Al-Nusra Front activist wave their brigade flag atop a Syrian air force helicopter, at Taftanaz air base, captured by the rebels in Idlib province, northern Syria, January 2013 (photo credit: AP/Edlib News Network ENN, File)

Thousands of al-Qaeda-linked rebels reached southern Syria over the past month, fleeing the Islamic State which had captured large swaths of land in northern and northeastern Syria. While Al-Nusra and the Free Syrian Army have collaborated in the battlefield against the Assad regime, friction has intensified as the Islamists began to implement their stringent version of Islam in the area, establishing local Sharia courts.

In the edited confession video, in which Safouri seems physically unharmed, he says that at first he met with an Israeli officer named Ashraf at the border and was given an Israeli cellular phone. He later met with another officer named Younis and with the two men’s commander, Abu Daoud. In total, Safouri said he entered Israel five times for meetings that took place in Tiberias.

Following the meetings, Israel began providing Safouri and his men with “basic medical support and clothes” as well as weapons, which included 30 Russian [rifles], 10 RPG launchers with 47 rockets, and 48,000 5.56 millimeter bullets.

While opposition websites denied that Safouri was a collaborator, claiming his entries into Israel were for medical purposes alone, regime media celebrated Safouri’s confession as proof of the Free Syrian Army’s treachery. On August 1, dozens of demonstrators took to the streets of the village of Hayt, Safouri’s hometown near Syria’s borders with Jordan and Israel, to protest his abduction, condemning Al-Nusra Front for the act.

No Israeli comment was available at time of publication.

Elhanan Miller is the Arab affairs reporter for The Times of Israel

timesofisrael.com, August 13, 2014

August 21, 2014
Dutch Justice Ministry employee: ISIS a Zionist conspiracy

THE HAGUE, Netherlands (JTA) — A senior employee of the Dutch Justice Ministry said the jihadist group ISIS was created by Zionists seeking to give Islam a bad reputation.

Yasmina Haifi, a project leader at the ministry’s National Cyber Security Center, made the assertion Wednesday on Twitter, the De Telegraaf daily reported.

“ISIS has nothing to do with Islam. It’s part of a plan by Zionists who are deliberately trying to blacken Islam’s name,” wrote Haifi, who described herself on the social network LinkedIn as an activist for the Dutch Labor Party, or PvdA.

Haifi later removed her original message, explaining, “I realize the political sensitivity in connection with my work. That was not my intention.”

Two right-wing lawmakers, Joram van Klaveren and Louis Bontes of the VNL faction, asked the ministry how one with such views reached a prominent position in the ministry and if Haifi’s employment constituted a security risk.

A series of rallies supporting ISIS, which is considered a terrorist organization in many Western countries, were held in the Hague in July and earlier this month. Some demonstrators called for violence. The demonstrations on July 2 and 24 featured calls to kill Jews.

When anti-ISIS demonstrators tried to march through the heavily Muslim neighborhood of Schilderswijk on Aug. 10 to express their disapproval, a crowd of approximately 200 men barricaded the main street and staged an illegal counter demonstration in support of ISIS.

Some of the protesters hurled stones at police who tried to remove the obstacles. Six people were arrested

www.jta.org, August 13, 2014

August 16, 2014