Excerpts: Palestinian attacks continue in Jerusalem. Jordan's options open
on Al Aqsa. Russian intervention meant to rescue Assad October 08, 2015
+++SOURCE: Al Arabiya News 8 Oct/’15:”Syria extends offensive to retake
territory in the west”,By Reuters
SUBJECT:Syria re retaking territory in the west
QUOTE:”Russian warship sailing in the Caspian Sea”
FULL TEXT: Troops and allied militia backed by Russian air strikes and
cruise missiles fired from warships attacked rebels forces on Thursday[8
Oct.] as the government extended a major offensive to recapture territory in
the west of the country.
Rebel advances in western Syria earlier this year had threatened the coastal
region vital to President Bashar al-Assad’s control of the area and prompted
Russia’s intervention on his side last week.
In a further show of force, the Russian defence ministry said missiles fired
from its ships in the Caspian Sea hit weapons factories, arms dumps, command
centers and training camps supporting Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS)
forces.
Ground forces loyal to the government targeted insurgents in the Ghab Plain
area of western Syria, with heavy barrages of surface-to-surface missiles as
Russian warplanes bombed from above, according to the British-based Syrian
Observatory for Human Rights and a rebel fighting there.
It said rebels had shot down a helicopter in Hama province in western Syria.
It was unclear if it was Syrian or Russian.
Syria said a major military operation was under way.
Its armed forces “have launched wide-ranging attacks to deal with the
terrorist groups, and to liberate the areas which had suffered from the
terrorist rule and crimes,” the army Chief of Staff, Lt. Gen. Ali Abdullah
Ayoub, was quoted as saying by state media.
Ayoub did not say which areas were being targeted. He said new fighting
units, including one called the Fourth Assault Corps, had been set up to
wage the campaign and the army now held the military initiative.
The Observatory’s head, Rami Abdulrahman, said an assault launched by the
army and its foreign allies on Wednesday in nearby areas of Hama province
had so far failed to make significant gains, however.
“At least 13 regime forces were killed ... The clashes also killed 11
(rebel) fighters,” he said in a statement, and the numbers were expected to
rise as more casualties were confirmed.
Around 15 army tanks and armored vehicles had been destroyed or immobilized
by rebel missile strikes, Abdulrahman and an opposition activist on the
ground said.
Wednesday’s operation in Hama appeared to be the first major assault
coordinated between Syrian troops and militia on the ground, and Russian
warplanes and naval ships.
The Ghab Plain, also in Hama, lies next to a mountain range that forms the
heartland of Assad’s Alawite sect.
Coastal heartlands
Recapturing it from the alliance of rebel groups, including al-Qaeda’s Nusra
Front which thrust into the area in late July, would help secure Assad’s
coastal heartlands and could provide a platform to drive the rebels back
from other areas.
A fighter from the Ajnad al-Sham insurgent group who uses the name Abu
al-Baraa al-Hamawi told Reuters that Russian jets had been bombing since
dawn. It was not the first time the Russians had bombed the area, but this
was their most ferocious attack, he said, speaking via an Internet messaging
service.
“There is an attempt by the regime to advance but the situation is under our
control,” he said.
“God willing we will repeat the massacre of the north Hama countryside as
happened yesterday,” Hamawi added, referring to the strikes on the tanks.
“We have faced more violent attacks than this in the past.”
Russian air strikes started last week and have mostly focused in areas of
western Syria where Assad has sought to shore up his control after losing
swathes of the rest of the country to insurgents including ISIS.
Russia says it is fighting ISIS in Syria. But while the group has been the
target of some of its air strikes, it has no foothold in the areas of
western Syria targeted in the attacks on Wednesday and Thursday.
Neighboring Turkey has been angered by violations of its air space by
Russian warplanes and NATO said it was prepared to send troops to Turkey to
defend its ally.
“NATO is ready and able to defend all allies, including Turkey against any
threats,” NATO’s Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg told reporters as he
arrived for a meeting in Brussels of the alliance’s defence ministers which
is likely to be dominated by the war in Syria.
“NATO has already responded by increasing our capacity, our ability, our
preparedness to deploy forces including to the south, including in Turkey,”
he said, adding that Russia’s air and cruise missile strikes were “reasons
for concern.”
Russia’s involvement had only served to make the conflict more dangerous,
British defence minister Michael Fallon said, and he urged Russia to use its
influence to stop the Assad government from bombing civilians.
Reacting to the Russian air space violations, Turkey meanwhile told Russia
there were other places it could obtain natural gas and other countries that
could build its first nuclear plant.
“We can’t accept the current situation. Russia’s explanations on the air
space violations are not convincing,” President Tayyip Erdogan told Turkish
newspapers.
+++SOURCE: Naharnet (LebSUBJECT:anon) 8 Oct.’15:”New Stabbing Hits Jerusalem
as Israel Reels from Violence”P,Agence France Presse
SUBJECT: Palestinian attacks continue in Jerusalem
QUOTE: “Suspects often are young Palestinians believed to be acting on their
own”
FULL TEXT: A Palestinian stabbed a Jewish man in Jerusalem on Thursday[8
Oct] in the latest in a spate of knife attacks, defying Israeli attempts to
contain escalating violence.
The stabbings have deeply unnerved Israelis and authorities have struggled
to prevent them, with the suspects often young Palestinians believed to be
acting on their own.
Police said the victim of Thursday's[8 Oct] attack was a 25-year-old Jewish
man who was in a serious condition after being stabbed in the neck near one
of Jerusalem's main thoroughfares.
The attack took place near a tramway station close to the national police
headquarters, police said.
The 19-year-old suspect, said to be from Shuafat refugee camp in annexed
east Jerusalem, later assaulted a tramway guard and tried to take his gun
before fleeing.
"He was arrested by police special forces who were in the area," police
spokeswoman Luba Samri said.
At least four knife attacks have occurred in Jerusalem and six overall since
Saturday, when a Palestinian killed two Israelis in the Old City, helping
prompt an Israeli security crackdown.
Rioting in east Jerusalem and the occupied West Bank has seen youths
throwing stones and firebombs face off against security forces firing rubber
bullets, tear gas and stun grenades.
Further clashes broke out at the Bet El checkpoint outside the West Bank
city of Ramallah on Thursday.[8 Oct]
Over the past week, four Israelis have been killed and five Palestinians,
three of them after alleged attacks on Israelis.
The unrest has sparked fears of a broader uprising, even a third intifada.
Israeli authorities have wrestled with how to respond, with far-right
politicians calling for forceful action and security officials, Prime
Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas seeking
to avoid an escalation.
An incident on Wednesday[7 Oct] seemed to offer a rare glimpse of an Israeli
undercover operation when masked infiltrators among a group of Palestinian
stone-throwers suddenly pulled out pistols and opened fire as rocks flew
towards them.
The incident, captured on video by an Agence France Presse journalist, saw
three Palestinians wounded, including one critically from a gunshot wound to
the back of the head.
"Israeli civilians are at the forefront of a war against terrorism and must
also be on maximum alert," Netanyahu said on Wednesday[7 Oct] after visiting
a Jerusalem police headquarters.
Some Israeli mayors, including the mayor of Jerusalem, went as far as to
encourage residents who own guns to carry them around with them.
- Al-Aqsa ban -
While Abbas has spoken of wanting to avoid any escalation of the violence,
many Palestinian youths are frustrated with his leadership as well as
Israel's right-wing government.
Netanyahu postponed a visit to Germany that had been scheduled for
Thursday[8 Oct] to tackle the violence.
Israeli and Palestinian officials reportedly met for security talks in the
West Bank on Tuesday[6 Oct] evening, and there have been international
calls for calm.
Two knife attacks that struck in the heart of Israel on Wednesday]7 Oct]
have sparked deep concern in the Jewish state.
In the central town of Kiryat Gat, police shot dead a Palestinian man after
he allegedly wounded a soldier with a knife and took his gun, authorities
said.
In Petah Tikva, near Tel Aviv, a Jewish man was wounded in a knife attack
outside a shopping center, police said. The attacker was overpowered by
passers-by and arrested.
Also on Wednesday[7 Oct] in Jerusalem's Old City, not far from the highly
sensitive Al-Aqsa mosque compound, police said an 18-year-old Palestinian
woman stabbed a 35-year-old Jewish man in the back and lightly wounded him.
The man, who was armed, managed to draw his gun, shooting and seriously
wounding his attacker, police said.
In a bid to calm tensions, Netanyahu has barred members of parliament and
ministers from visiting the Al-Aqsa compound, which has seen repeated
clashes between Israeli police and Palestinian youths in recent weeks.
Provocative visits by Israeli Agriculture Minister Uri Ariel as well as by
Israeli Arab lawmakers have added to the volatility.
Israeli Arab lawmakers have vowed to defy the order and visit the compound
on Friday[9 Oct], when many Muslims attend prayers at Al-Aqsa.
The Al-Aqsa compound is the third-holiest site in Islam and the most sacred
for Jews, who refer to it as the Temple Mount.
Muslims fear Israel will seek to change rules governing the site, which
allow Jews to visit but not pray to avoid provoking tensions. Netanyahu has
said repeatedly he is committed to the status quo.
An increase in visits by Jews during a series of Jewish holidays in recent
weeks has added to tensions.
SourceAgence France Presse
+++SOURCE: Jordan Times 8 Oct.’15:”Jordan’s options open on Al
Aqsa, King tells Muslim Council of Elders”
SUBJECT:Jordan’s options open on Al Aqsa
QUOTE: “King said:” We are performing our duties towards Jerusalem in all
possible ways’ ”
FULL TEXT:AMMAN — His Majesty King Abdullah on Wednesday[8 Oct.] said in the
event of continued Israeli violations against Al Aqsa Mosque and Al Haram Al
Sharif, Jordan maintains legal and diplomatic options, according to a Royal
Court statement.
FULL TEXT:At a meeting with members of the Muslim Council of Elders and in
the presence of HRH Prince Ghazi, the King’s personal envoy and adviser for
religious and cultural affairs, the King said: "We are performing our duties
towards Jerusalem in all possible ways and we will not be dissuaded from
doing so by regional problems and crises."
Established during Ramadan in 2014, the Muslim Council of Elders works to
promote peace within Muslim communities.
The King highlighted several challenges and methods to deal with extremists,
terrorism and radicals. He also emphasised the need for a comprehensive
strategy and intensive coordination mechanisms among the various concerned
entities to combat the dangerous phenomenon of radicalisation and to arrive
at a solution to the Syrian refugee issue.
The Monarch noted that the challenges facing the Middle East today are
globalised and necessitate cooperative work at the security, military and
economic levels to confront them. He stressed the need to build an
international strategy against terrorism and radicalisation, safeguard Islam
and address the rising trend of Islamophobia.
His Majesty told the council members that in order to achieve these goals,
it is important that everyone defends the true teachings of Islam and
counters “khawarej”, Islam’s religious outlaws.
The council members thanked the King for his work on boosting global and
regional efforts, stressing their “respect for Al al-Bayt”, the relatives of
the Prophet Mohammad and their decendants. They also thanked him for his
endeavours to protect Al Aqsa Mosque and Al Haram Al Sharif, stressing the
need for a unified Arab stand to confront the various challenges facing the
Ummah.
The meeting addressed various ways to boost the role of the council in
dealing with regional issues and challenges facing the institution from West
Africa to South East Asia, where it is involved in a mission to confront
terrorism and build societies on proper ideological grounds.
At the meeting, Grand Imam of Al Azhar Al Sharif Sheikh Ahmad Al Tayyib
underscored the role of religious institutions in clarifying the true tenets
of Islam.
He expressed his great appreciation of the King’s efforts in defending Islam
and in countering those who try to distort its teachings.
The council comprises Muslim scholars, experts and dignitaries known for
their being a voice of reason, sense of justice, independence and
moderation, working together to promote peace, discourage infighting and
address sources of conflict, divisiveness and fragmentation within Muslim
communities.
+++SOURCE: Jordan Times 8 Oct.’15:”Russian intervention in Syria only meant
to rescue Assad
SUBJECT:Russian intervention meant to rescue Assad
QUOTE: “The Russians are intervening here to keep a client from collapsing”
FULL TEXT: AMMAN – The Russian intervention in Syria is only meant to rescue
Bashar Assad’s regime from collapse and not to fight terrorists, said US
Special Envoy for the Global Coalition to Counter Daesh General John Allen.
In an interview with The Jordan Times and Al Rai dailies on Monday[5 Oct],
Allen said the recently launched Russian operations in Syria would not push
the coalition to scale back its airstrikes against Daesh in Syria, calling
on Moscow to join the international community in committing itself to a
political transition in Syria as soon as possible.
"The sense that Russians have played a strategic role in the region, I think
is eclipsed by the reality that the Assad regime was in serious trouble. He
was in trouble from a whole variety of reasons and what we see here is that
the Russians are intervening to keep a client from collapsing," he said,
adding that while the Russians are saying they have intervened to fight
Daesh, the truth is they intervened to fight everyone "and that is a
problem."
Allen, who was on a visit to Amman during which he met with His Majesty King
Abdullah and top military and government officials, said what the
international community has hoped for was that Russia participates in a
process of political transition that puts the government of Syria in the
hands of the Syrian people, with Assad not included.
But as the Russian intervention in the Syrian crisis has created new
operational realities, Allen said, the US is attempting to understand these
realities and adapt accordingly.
The retired general, however, stressed the importance of not framing what is
happening in the region as a potential proxy war between the US and Russia.
"The US has been clear; the coalition has been clear that our goal is to
defeat Daesh as an entity because it is a threat to all of the region and
us. But at the same time, as we are doing that, our policy objective is
turning the government of Syria into the hands of its own people. We may
have to have a substantial conversation about the modalities of how that
transition [would] look like and I think we are all open to having such a
conversation," he added.
Political solution ‘hard to see now’ but still an objective
Asked if a political solution is still likely after the Russian military
intervention in Syria, Allen said, currently, it is hard to see a political
solution for the four-year Syrian conflict, but he said it is still an
objective because military action cannot be the solution.
"It is hard to see it right now, but it is no less an aspiration of ours
today than it was three weeks ago before the Russian intervention because
you can not fight your way out of this war. We can not solve this through
military action but there has to be a political outcome and that is why it
is important [for] the Russians [to] join the community of nations by
committing itself to a political transition in Syria as soon as possible."
Coalition would not alter air strikes in Syria to accommodate new players
The US presidential envoy for the anti-Daesh coalition said the alliance
would not scale back its air strikes in Syria, adding that Washington has
started coordinating with Moscow regarding the US-led raids on Daesh.
"The bottom line is we are going to continue our campaign. We have sought
discussions with the Russians which we called de-confliction talks and that
is primarily for the safety of flights because there is no reason why two
modern air forces, the coalition and the Russian, would not be safe in the
air," he noted.
Allen, however, said that the US is not going to support Russian operations
to prop up the Assad regime.
"Their calls for us to leave Syrian airspace make no difference to us as we
are going to continue our counter-Daesh campaign."
Iranians putting boots on the ground in Syria
Commenting on the Iranian involvement by moving ground forces to Syria for
Assad’s rescue, Allen described it as “very troubling” as Iranians would
launch operations against the Syrian people with the support of Russian air
cover.
"I think it sends a very powerful message in terms of what side the Russians
are taking: with the Assad regime, the Iranians and Hizbollah.” But Allen
said the coalition is watching that very closely and is going to be very
clear on its policy objective, which, he said, aims to de-escalate the
conflict, to reduce the violence and the suffering of the Syrian people and
to fight Daesh, because it has to be eliminated.
On supporting civilian safe zones in Syria
The coalition coordinator said such a task is a complex issue to achieve.
"It is not a matter of whether I support it or not, it is a matter of what
conditions can be created for a safe zone. It is easy to say ‘safe zones’
but ultimately the conditions that can prompt the declaration of safe zones
are complex and need to be understood," he said, explaining that first of
all, to have a safe zone, there is a need to stabilise the population living
in the area, “who have been suffering from some form of conflict”.
Second, he said, within the capacity of that region, it has to be capable of
receiving refugees. The idea is that such an area should be safe and
defendable, with stabilised population and ablility to both receive a
population and receive the kind of support necessary to ensure the
population a quality life.
"Those are complex issues. So it is one thing to say we want a safe zone,
[and] it is another thing to achieve the complex issues needed on the ground
to declare one."
Were 'moderate rebels' left in the cold fighting both Assad and Daesh?
Allen commented that the US would always seek to support that element of the
Syrian population that can first defend itself, defend its people, and
operate against Daesh.
"As you probably have seen, we have provided significant support to certain
elements that have accomplished a great deal in defending themselves and
fighting Daesh. So we are going to continue look for those opportunities and
we are going to support such groups as much as we can."
Daesh neither winning nor losing but at stalemate?
Allen said the coalition’s operations that started over a year ago have met
success and shrunk Daesh in terms of morale and military capability as it
has lost ground in Iraq, adding that regarding a stalemate, it applies to
local conditions on the ground in Iraq where it has experienced substantial
resistance in places like Beji and around Al Ramadi.
Daesh declared itself a caliphate and they radically speak on behalf of all
members of the Islamic faith but the atrocities it has committed and the
crimes it has perpetrated against the people of the region and broadly
against the community of nations invalidates or de-legitimises the concept
of the caliphate, according to Allen.
Within the context of Daesh as an entity, he added, it has lost significant
ground in Iraq even though there are areas that are contested now. He cited
ground that Daesh had taken from the Kurds at the beginning of the conflict,
which has all been retaken. Tikrit, which Allen described as an iconic city,
has been retaken with over 100,000 of the population of town having returned
to their city and more are going back.
In Syria, Allen said the northeastern portion of Syria has been taken from
Daesh: the border from Iraq all the way to the Euphrates has been liberated,
while Tal Abyad, which is the principal crossing point from Turkey into
Syria, has been closed.
In regards to Raqqa, which is the centre of gravity for extremist militants,
the retired general said there are fighters within 45 kilometres of Raqqa
and the coalition is going to turn the heat up on the city.
"We are in a conversation with the Turks and Sunni Arab partners south of
the Turkish border to close the final 98 kilometres from Jarablus, the west
bank of the Euphrates, to Kilis in the west," he added.
"Last year, thousands of Iraqi security forces collapsed, hundreds of Iraqi
security forces had been slaughtered, horrible atrocities were occurring and
Baghdad was at risk. Mosul had fallen. So we find ourselves in a position
today [where we] have surrounded Daesh in many respects," Allen said, adding
that the coalition would begin a process of undermining the terror group’s
effect not just on the ground but also that of its message, access to the
global financial market and ability to control the flow of foreign fighters
to ultimately provide support to the beleaguered population such as
humanitarian and stabilisation support.
Fighting terror ideology
Allen described His Majesty King Abdullah as one the clearest voices in the
entire coalition on fighting extremism through ideology, adding when leaders
of the coalition gather to speak publicly on the war of ideas, they
frequently quote the King on the issue.
"King Abdullah has said in this case [that] what is essential to our
prevailing in the war of ideas is that we have both an Arab face and a
Muslim voice to speak clearly the truth about what Islam is, for the Muslim
people, what Islam is for everyone else and what Daesh is not," Allen said.
The US official said that Jordan has undertaken it own unique efforts in
regard to countering radicalisation, which gives way to violent extremism
and ultimately creates terror and can leading to the emergence of groups
like Daesh.
Support to Jordan
Jordan's leadership in the coalition as well as its leadership in the region
and its friendship with the US is extraordinarily important to Washington,
Allen said.
"I have been involved in this region for over a quarter of a century and I
have watched with great admiration Jordan over these many years. Given all
that is happening in the region right now, it would be difficult to
overstate how important Jordan is to the entire region. It is also difficult
to overstate the individual role of the leadership of the King who has shown
us a friendship and wisdom in this regard," said the retired US Marine
four-star general and former commander of the NATO International Security
Assistance Force and US Forces in Afghanistan.
The US is utterly committed to the security and stability of Jordan as it
has been evidenced at a military level, said Allen, adding that of all the
military relationships the US has across the many bilateral relationships in
the world, Jordan's relationship, in pure dollars, ranks number three.
During 2015-2017, this relationship will generate $3 billion in military and
economic support, he noted, indicating that kind of support in terms of both
of quantity and quality will continue.
"The US has been also very forthcoming in helping Jordan in another
important area that is the issue of refugees," he added.
=============
Sue Lerner – Associate, IMRA
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