Friday, January 12, 2018

Vienna police charge 3 men for waving Israeli flag at rally  - Benjamin Weinthal (Jerusalem Post) After a Vienna demonstration against Trump’s Jerusalem declaration where protesters shouted “Jews, remember Khaybar, the army of Muhammad is returning” and “death to Israel,” Austrian police are now pursuing charges against three Israel activists who waved an Israeli flag.

Iran Spends $16 Billion Annually to Support Terrorists and Rogue Regimes - David Adesnik (Foundation for Defense of Democracies) Supporting the Assad regime in Syria is estimated to cost $15 billion per year, including the costs of deploying thousands of Revolutionary Guards and 20,000 Shiite militiamen.  Bankrolling Iraqi security forces, including pro-Iranian militias, may have cost $1 billion per year.  Support for Lebanese Hizbullah is believed to be $800 million, while Iran spends a combined $100 million per year supporting Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad in Gaza.


Palestinian Textbooks are increasingly more radical. A study by the Institute for Monitoring Peace and Cultural Tolerance in School Education (IMPACT-se), found that Palestinian textbooks “groom young Palestinians to sacrifice themselves to martyrdom,” promote the idea of a mass “return” to Israel and “feature a radical Islamist, and occasionally, a Salafi worldview.” The study noted that—as with previous Palestinian textbooks—the newer ones include maps that erase Israel, depicting all of the land as “Palestinian.”
Palestinians Destroy Archaeological Sites in West Bank - Judith Abramson (Jerusalemonline.com)  Palestinian tractors and bulldozers arrived at an archaeological site where the ancient city of Archelaus once stood. The Palestinians  completely leveled the compound in order to locate hidden archaeological treasures to sell in the antiquities market. "Just as ISIS destroyed sites in Iran and Syria that were thousands of years old, the same situation is occurring here" 
Thousands in Gaza Protest Against Palestinian Leadership - Dov Lieber  (Times of Israel) Thousands of Palestinians protested Thursday against both the Palestinian Authority and Hamas over deteriorating humanitarian and economic conditions in Gaza, local media reported. 

Saudi-Led Coalition Turns the Tide in Yemen Conflict - Alexandra Gutowski (Long War Journal)   The Saudi-led coalition is finally making progress on the ground against Yemen's Houthi rebels.

Dancing to Russia’s Tune in Syria - Colum Lynch (Foreign Policy) As the United States stands back, the Saudis and even the U.N. special envoy are now open to a greater Russian diplomatic role in shaping the future of Syria.
 
Turkey Building Walls on Iranian, Syrian Borders - Orhan Coskun and Tuvan Gumrukcu (Reuters)
Turkish Base in Sudan a Problem for Saudi Arabia, Egypt - Sami Moubayed (Gulf News-Dubai) Iran presently controls the strategic Al Hodeida port of Yemen, via its proxy Al Houthi militia, posing a direct threat to Saudi Arabia.
    Last October, Turkey established a military base in Somalia, months after deploying nearly 5,000 troops in Qatar - which is being used by Iran to pressure Saudi Arabia.
    Last week, Ankara was given full rights to rehabilitate the port island/town of Suakin in northeastern Sudan, with a naval dock for both civilian and military vessels on the Red Sea.
    The former Ottoman port served as a transit point for pilgrims crossing the Red Sea to Mecca in Saudi Arabia.
    The Saudis are concerned that the Iranians will use the new Turkish base in Sudan to send more arms and equipment to the Houthis, while the Egyptians see it as a base for further Turkish meddling in the affairs of Egypt through the outlawed Muslim Brotherhood, which remains firmly allied to Ankara.
    See also Why Is Sudan's Suakin Island Important for Turkey? - Ali Topchi (TRT World-Turkey)

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