Recent Appearances...

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Recent Appearances...

Europe

Watch: Macron's Wife Filmed Pushing Him in the Face During Vietnam Trip

2025-05-27

[Breitbart] In subsequent images, Macron and his wife, wearing a red jacket, appeared at the top of the stairs. He offered an arm but she didn’t take it. They walked down the carpeted stairs side by side.

Video via youtube.com

Could not pick up the embed code...sorry.

Link

Europe

Sweden to Investigate 'Islamist Infiltration' After Muslim Brotherhood Report [from France]

2025-05-25

[Breitbart] The Swedish government has announced an investigation into the “Islamist infiltration” in the country following the publication of the bombshell French report claiming that the Muslim Brotherhood has waged a decades-long campaign to penetrate European institutions with the aim of subverting the West and imposing Sharia law.

A French intelligence report published this week by the Ministry of Interior warned of Islamist fifth columns embedded across Europe, with EU institutions, Muslim associations, and migrant communities all falling prey to a vast network of sworn Muslim Brotherhood members operating in plain sight, often using Western liberal values to veil their nefarious aims in a shroud of legitimacy.

While the report focused heavily on the Brotherhood’s activities in France and the EU, the Paris intel identified numerous other countries throughout Europe, including Austria, Belgium, Germany, and the United Kingdom.

The report also said that “evidence collected attests to the active presence of the movement” in Northern European countries like Denmark, the Netherlands, and Sweden.

Following its publication, Swedish Minister for Integration Mats Persson said: “I will convene an expert group to get a picture of the situation of Islamist infiltration in Sweden. This is against the background of what has emerged in France.”

“Sweden is mentioned in the French report and in many respects has similar challenges to France in terms of integration and counteracting parallel social structures that challenge liberal democracy,” he added.

Persson went on to say that the government will “strangle foreign funding of religious communities, where states fund radical mosques” to push back against “these Islamist and undemocratic forces.”

According to the French report, Sweden “hosts an active branch of the movement which, in addition to its small size, is characterised by its influence on European movement structures.”

The Muslim Brotherhood’s operation in Sweden accomplished this influence with the backing of money from Qatar, Paris claimed.

Additionally, Sweden appears to have been an easy target for the Islamist movement given the Nordic nation’s “great tolerance of multiculturalism,” the report found.

The French government investigation also alleged that the Muslim Brotherhood took advantage of “good relations” with local political parties, particularly the Swedish Social Democratic Party, the traditional party of government in Stockholm, which oversaw the vast majority of recent mass migration into the country.

Social Democrats Party Secretary Tobias Baudin said that the report “does not elaborate” on the alleged ties between his left-wing party and the Muslim Brotherhood, but said: “We have zero tolerance for association with extremist organisations. That line is crystal clear in our party.”

However, some have noted that just last year, the leftist party was forced to expel one of its members of parliament, Jamal El-Haj, over his alleged ties to Hamas and for reportedly attempting to lobby the Swedish Migration Agency on behalf of a Muslim Brotherhood-linked Imam to remain in the country.

“Jamal El-Haj is no longer a member of our party. It is because we are clear: There should be no interaction with extremist organisations,” Baudin said.

Link

Europe

French Report Warns Of Islamist / Muslim Brotherhood 'Entryism' As Risk To National Cohesion

2025-05-23

[BBC] Islamists are infiltrating France's republican institutions and are a threat to national cohesion, according to a report presented to President Emmanuel Macron on Wednesday.

It’s only been going on for two generations, but still — congratulations on noticing.

The report, drawn up by two senior civil servants, claims to find evidence for a policy of "entryism" by the Muslim Brotherhood into public bodies like schools and local government.

The French do like their philosophical jargon.

After a meeting of his security cabinet, Macron asked the government to come up with "new proposals" by early next month in light of the seriousness of the report's conclusions.

Secularism is a core tenet of France's national identity.

According to an Élysée official speaking off the record, there is a "new phenomenon - entryism - which is different from separatism".

While separatism implied Muslims living in a parallel society in France, "entryism means getting involved in republican infrastructure… in order to change it from the inside. It requires dissimulation… and it works from the bottom up," the official said.

In a copy of the report published in Le Figaro newspaper, the authors identified the Federation of Muslims in France (FMF)

…is that a name variant for the Muslims of France (Musulmans de France) or, like here, does France have a number branches of the Muslim Brotherhood in France?

as the main French emanation of the historic Muslim Brotherhood, which was founded 100 years ago to promote a return to core Islamic values.

…one of those core values is the conquest of the non-Muslim world (Dar al Harb) for Islam. Though the Brotherhooders are modern enough to prefer infiltration and colonization and the soft jihad of the law to the hard jihad of the sword until they’ve establish governance of the new territory.

They said the FMF controlled 139 places of worship in France, with a further 68 affiliated – in all around 7% of the total. The organisation also ran some 280 associations, in sports, education, charity and other fields, as well as 21 schools.

In accordance with the MB tradition — seduce ‘em with charity and lifestyle stuff, making religion secondary for the targets.

The aim of the movement was to set up "ecosystems at local level" to "structure the lives of Muslims from birth till death".

"[The movement's] officials, who are hardened activists, enter into a relationship with the local authority… Social norms – the veil, beards, dress, fasting - are gradually imposed as the ecosystem solidifies," the authors write.

"What happens is that religious practice become stricter, with a high level of girls wearing the abaya (long robe) and a massive and visible increase in the number of young girls wearing Islamic headscarves. Some are as young as five or six."

The Federation angrily rejected "any allegation that associates us with a foreign political programme, or with a strategy of 'entryism'".

"Confusing Islam with political Islamism and radicality is not only dangerous, but counter-productive for the Republic itself," the FMF said. "Behind these unfounded accusations there is a plan to stigmatise Islam and Muslims."

Yeah, yeah.

The report has been seized on by proponents of a strict enforcement of France's secular laws, which are meant to exclude all religion from public life.

Interior minister Bruno Retailleau, who on Sunday was elected leader of the conservative Les Républicains party, warned on Tuesday of "below-the-radar Islamism trying to infiltrate institutions, whose ultimate aim is to tip the whole of French society under sharia law".

Municipal elections are due in France next year, and Retailleau - who has won a reputation as a hardliner - has said he is concerned about the possibility of Islamic lists of candidates.

Far-left leader Jean-Luc Mélenchon warned that "Islamophobia has crossed a line", accusing the president's security cabinet of adopting the "delusional theories" of both Retailleau and far-right National Rally leader Marine Le Pen.

The report's authors, who visited 10 different regions of France and four other European countries, concluded that the Muslim Brotherhood was losing influence in the Middle East and North Africa, and so was targeting Europe, backed by money from Turkey and Qatar.

"Having given a Western look to the ideology in order to implant themselves in Europe, (the Muslim Brotherhood) tries to lay down the roots of a Middle Eastern tradition while concealing a subversive fundamentalism," they wrote.

Link

Europe

France looks to ban children from wearing Muslim headscarf as government tackles 'political Islamism'

2025-05-21

[Daily Mail, where America gets its news] French President Emmanuel Macron's political party has announced that it wants to ban minors under 15 from wearing the Muslim headscarf in public.

It comes as his government held a security meeting on Wednesday to discuss the spread of 'political Islamism' in France.

The meeting, which included the head of government and key ministers, addressed a report which sounds the alarm about the Muslim Brotherhood and the rising influence of the Islamist movement - which it said poses 'a threat to national cohesion' in France.

After the meeting, the Elysee Palace said measures will be taken, 'some of which will be announced' while others will remain classified.

The report into the movement, which was founded in Egypt in 1928, was commissioned by the government and prepared by two senior civil servants.

It 'clearly establishes the anti-republican and subversive nature of the Muslim Brotherhood' and 'proposes ways to address this threat', said the Elysee Palace.

It comes as Macron's Renaissance party said it would forbid 'minors under 15 from wearing the veil in public spaces,' phrasing that generally means places outside the home like the street, cafes, parks and stores.

It added the hijab 'seriously undermines gender equality and the protection of children'.

The party, led by former prime minister Gabriel Attal, also wants to introduce a 'criminal offence for coercion against parents who force their underage daughters to wear the veil'.

Renaissance is a minority force in the French parliament and works in a minority government alongside a traditional right-wing party.

Critics see the headscarf worn by some Muslim women as a symbol of creeping Islamisation after deadly jihadist attacks in France, while others say they are just practising their religion and should wear what they want.

Jordan Bardella, leader of France's far-right National Rally (RN), accused Attal of making a 'U-turn' on the issue, sharing a video on his social media from a 2022 debate in which the former prime minister warned against the potential persecution of veiled women under a Marine Le Pen presidency.

During her unsuccessful 2022 presidential campaign, Le Pen had evoked banning the wearing of the hijab by everyone in all public spaces in France.

Under current French legislation, civil servants, teachers and pupils cannot wear any obvious religious symbols such as a Christian cross, Jewish kippa, Sikh turban or Muslim hijab in government buildings, which includes public schools.

The government is also pushing for a new law to ban the headscarf in domestic sports competitions, a move critics of the law argue would be just the latest rule discriminating against visibly Muslim women.

Responding to the news and the new government report, critics have condemned what they call the rise of Islamophobia in France.

'Islamophobia has crossed a line,' hard-left firebrand Jean-Luc Melenchon said on X.

He accused the Defence Council meeting chaired by Macron of endorsing 'the delusional theories' of Le Pen and France's hardline Interior Minister, Bruno Retailleau

France's authorities are eager to prevent any spread of extremist Islamist ideas in a country that has been rocked by a string of deadly jihadist attacks.

Religious radicalisation has become a hot-button issue as the far-right is becoming increasingly popular in France, with the new government report sparking heated reactions.

Le Pen accused the government of inaction, saying on X that she has long proposed measures to 'eradicate Islamist fundamentalism'.

Bardella meanwhile said on France Inter radio: 'If we come to power tomorrow, we will ban the Muslim Brotherhood.'

The report, a copy of which was obtained by AFP, pointed to the spread of Islamism 'from the bottom up', adding the phenomenon constituted 'a threat in the short to medium term'.

At the same time, the presidency stressed, 'we are all perfectly aligned in saying that we must not lump all Muslims together'.

'We are fighting against Islamism and its radical excesses.'

The report zeroed in on the role of Muslims of France (Musulmans de France), which it identified as 'the national branch of the Muslim Brotherhood in France.'

Link

Caucasus/Russia/Central Asia

Six residents of Karachay-Cherkessia accused of involvement in 'At Takfir wal-Hijra'

2025-05-20

Direct Translation via Google Translate. Edited.
[KavkazUzel] The prosecution considers Khasin Kabardaev, a resident of the Adyge-Khablsky district, to be the organizer of the extremist cell; five more local residents will appear in court as its participants.

As the "Caucasian Knot" wrote, in May 2024, a court in Cherkessk placed six residents of Karachay-Cherkessia under arrest, suspected of organizing and participating in the activities of the extremist organization "At Takfir wal-Hijra". "At Takfir wal-Hijra" is not popular among residents of the North Caucasus and has not claimed responsibility for terrorist attacks in Russia, analysts interviewed by the "Caucasian Knot" indicated at the time.

The organization "At-Takfir wal-Hijra" (accusation of unbelief and hijra) appeared in Egypt and spread in the North Caucasus, especially in Kabardino-Balkaria in 1997-1998. Supporters of the organization belong to the Salafi movement in Islam and are distinguished by strict demands on co-religionists, according to the "Caucasian Knot" article " Kabardino-Balkaria: On the Path to Disaster. Prerequisites for the Armed Revolt in Nalchik on October 13-14, 2005."

They called themselves Jama'at al-Muslimin (Society of Muslims), but their Egyptian neighbours mockingly called them Excommunication and Exile. Cult-like, they require members to cut off all contact with their families. The introverted Takfir Wal Hijra faction split off from the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt in the 1960s. The extroverted “moderate” faction followed Ayman Al-Zawahiri into Al Qaeda. Takfir Wal Hijra consists of loosely affiliated cells which have committed acts of terror as far afield as Morocco and Holland.

The Adyge-Khabl District Court of Karachay-Cherkessia has accepted for consideration the case of six residents of the republic who were detained in May 2024 on charges of involvement in an extremist religious organization.

The prosecution believes that the organizer of the At Takfir wal-Hijra* cell was Khasin Kabardaev: according to the investigation, he used his knowledge of the Islamic religion and Sharia, as well as his “leadership skills” and authority among members of the Muslim community of Karachay-Cherkessia, to create a division of the banned organization in the republic.

The goal of the cell is said to be the propaganda and dissemination of radical views and ideas of the ideologists of "At Takfir wal-Hijra"* among the Muslims of the republic. According to investigators, the voluntary members of the association were Arsen Aichepshev, Murat Kabardaev, Nazir Koshev, Murat Mulazhev and Mikhail Smadich, who supported the religious views of Khasin Kabardaev, the United Press Service of the Courts of Karachay-Cherkessia reported today on its Telegram channel.

The hearing on the case is scheduled for May 21. The "Caucasian Knot" does not yet have any comments from the accused or their lawyers regarding the prosecution's version of events.

Link

Britain

Radiohead’s Jonny Greenwood, Israeli singer Dudu Tassa on cancellation of UK gigs: ‘Censorship and silencing’

2025-05-07

[IsraelTimes] Musicians Jonny Greenwood and Dudu Tassa, along with their ensemble, post a lengthy response on social media to a decision to cancel their June 23 and June 25 shows in Bristol and London.

The Boycott, Divest and Sanctions movement had claimed the cancellations as a victory, while Greenwood and Tassa say that they canceled the shows due to credible threats against their performance venues and audiences.

The musicians say that the organizers of the BDS campaign who claim that stopping the concerts isn’t censorship “can’t have it both ways.”

“Forcing musicians not to perform and denying people who want to hear them an opportunity to do so is self-evidently a method of censorship and silencing,” write Tassa and Greenwood. “Intimidating venues into pulling our shows won’t help achieve the peace and justice everyone in the Middle East deserves.”

The duo point out that their latest tour features singers from Syria, Lebanon, Kuwait and Iraq, who have ancestral and musical roots from across the Middle East, including Yemen and Turkey, and a shared love of Arabic song.

Greenwood, who is married to Israeli artist Sharona Katan, has often partnered with Tassa, along with artists throughout the Middle East.

Tassa and Greenwood add that art exists above and beyond politics, and art that seeks to establish a common identity of musicians across borders should be encouraged, not decried.

“This project has always had a difficult, narrow channel to navigate,” they write. “We find ourselves in the odd position of being condemned by both ends of the political spectrum.”

The artists also refer to Irish hip-hop band Kneecap, which received support from fellow artists amid an ongoing police investigation. Some of the band’s shows were canceled following provocative statements made by band members that supported the Hamas and Hezbollah terror groups and called for the murder of Conservative Party lawmakers.

“We have no judgement to pass on Kneecap but note how sad it is that those supporting their freedom of expression are the same ones most determined to restrict ours,” they write.

“We agree completely with people who ask: ‘how can this be more important than what’s happening in Gaza and Israel?’ They’re right — it isn’t. How could it be? What, in anyone’s upcoming cultural life, is?” write Greenwood and Tassa.

They express admiration for the performers in the band, particularly the Arab musicians and singers, for showing “amazing bravery and conviction in contributing to their first record and touring with them.”

Link

Syria-Lebanon-Iran

PFLP-GC terror group says leader Talal Naji was arrested by Syrian authorities

2025-05-04

[IsraelTimes] Small terrorist faction, which was allied with ousted Assad regime, says it reached out to PA’s Mahmoud Abbas and Hamas leader Khaled Mashaal ‘to request their urgent intervention’

Why on earth would the conquering Al Qaeda government listen to the PA unbelievers and inadequately pious Palestinian Muslim Brotherhooders about a bunch of PLO Communists who spent the last generation supporting the Baathist (Arab national socialist) Assad government?

Officials of a small Paleostinian terrorist group that was close to the ousted Syrian president, Bashir Pencilneck al-Assad
Supressor of the Damascenes...
, said their leader was arrested Saturday by the country’s new Islamist-led authorities.

Link

Israel-Palestine-Jordan

Ship Carrying Aid to Gaza Sinks After Israeli Drone Attack

2025-05-03

Direct Translation via Google Translate. Edited.
[Regnum] A ship of the Freedom Flotilla

…a project of Turkey’s IHH Humanitarian Relief Foundation, a semi-official "charity" branch of the Erdogan government that links the government, the Turkish branch of the Muslim Brotherhood, and pet jihadi groups like ISIS in Syria, among others. IHH puts together a Freedom Flotilla every few years. Except for the first one in 2010, which was raided by the IDF on the high seas, none of the rest have made it across the Mediterranean, as I recall. I was not even aware they’d put together another one…

coalition with humanitarian aid for Gaza was attacked by an Israeli drone. This was reported on May 2 by the CNN channel.

“There is now a hole in the ship and it is sinking,” coalition press attaché Yasemin Akar told the TV channel by telephone.

According to the Maltese government, there were 16 people on board the ship - 12 crew members and four passengers, while according to the Freedom Flotilla, there were 30 people on board.

Akar noted that the ship was attacked twice off the coast of Malta in international waters and is currently anchored 17 km from the shore and sending out SOS signals.

The Freedom Flotilla advocates for an end to the Israeli blockade of Gaza.

The Times of Israel’s take on the story:

A ship carrying humanitarian aid

and activists bound for Gazoo
...Hellhole adjunct to Israel and Egypt's Sinai Peninsula, inhabited by Gazooks. The place was acquired in the wake of the 1967 War and then presented to Paleostinian control in 2006 by Ariel Sharon, who had entered his dotage. It is currently ruled with a rusty iron fist by Hamas with about the living conditions you'd expect. It periodically attacks the Hated Zionist Entity whenever Iran needs a ruckus created or the hard boyz get bored, getting thumped by the IDF in return. The ruling turbans then wave the bloody shirt and holler loudly about oppression and disproportionate response...
was bombed by drones while in international waters off Malta overnight Thursday-Friday, the Freedom Flotilla Coalition, a pro-Paleostinian activist group, said.

The Saudi Al Arabiya news channel, citing a Western security source, reported that the convoy was organized by Hamas
Hamas

..always the voice of sweet reason...
and that those onboard planned to engage with IDF troops as they approached the Gaza shore.

Engage the army? An interesting choice. Just as well they were stopped before they got there.

The group uploaded video footage on social media ostensibly showing a fire on one of its ships. The footage could not be independently verified.

"The Freedom Flotilla Coalition had been organizing a non~~violent~~ mostly peaceful action under a media blackout [sic] to avoid any potential sabotage," the group said in an official statement on its website.

That does explain why we weren’t aware that a new flotilla was in the offing.

"Volunteers from over 21 countries travelled to Malta to board the mission to Gaza, including prominent figures."

The statement said the vessel was struck twice by armed drones 17 nautical miles (31.5 kilometers) east of Malta, "causing a fire and a substantial breach in the hull," and that, as of the last communication with the boat, the drones were still circling the ship.

The ship immediately issued an SOS distress call, to which Cyprus responded by dispatching a vessel, the group said.

"The dronezap appears to have deliberately targeted the ship’s generator, leaving the crew without power and placing the vessel at great risk of sinking," the statement said.

The group also accused Malta of violating customary international law by not sending assistance to the boat. The Maltese government rejected the claim, saying in a statement that a tugboat was sent to the area and brought the fire under control.

The government statement added that there were no casualties from the strike and that the ship’s 16 passengers refused to be taken ashore.

"The tug arrived on scene and began firefighting operations. By 1:28 a.m. (23:28 GMT Thursday), the fire was reported to be under control. An Armed Forces of Malta patrol vessel was also dispatched to provide further assistance," Malta said.

"By 2:13 a.m., all crew were confirmed safe but refused to board the tug... The ship remains outside territorial waters and is being monitored by the competent authorities," the statement concluded.

The Freedom Flotilla Coalition blamed Israel for the strike, saying in its statement: "Israeli ambassadors must be summoned and answer to violations of international law, including the ongoing blockade and the bombing of our civilian vessel in international waters."

The group did not provide any evidence for its claim.

While Israel did not officially comment on the allegations, an unsourced report claimed Friday morning that the ship is affiliated with Hamas. "Some define the ship attacked next to Malta as Hamas-affiliated, and say that it was a sophisticated aerial attack," Yedioth Ahronoth military correspondent Yossi Yehoshua wrote on X.

Link

Britain

British police probing Irish band Kneecap over videos praising Hamas, Hezbollah

2025-05-02

[IsraelTimes] London police say a counter-terrorism probe has been opened into online videos of Irish-language rappers Kneecap in response to claims the band supported Hamas and Hezbollah and incited violence against politicians.

The capital’s Metropolitan Police says two videos had been “referred to the Counter Terrorism Internet Referral Unit for assessment by specialist officers, who have determined there are grounds for further investigation into potential offenses linked to both videos.”

The band denies the allegations.

The accusations first surfaced after the band projected “Fuck Israel, Free Palestine” on stage while performing at Coachella last month.

Link

Israel-Palestine-Jordan

Jordan Declares War on Muslim Brotherhood

2025-04-25

Direct Translation via Google Translate. Edited.
by Leonid Tsukanov

[REGNUM] Jordan's political landscape is rapidly changing. Following the revelation of a secret "missile factory" by the security services, the kingdom's authorities have decided to completely ban the activities of the Muslim Brotherhood* group.

The decision was made almost instantly - literally a few days after the publication of details of the defeat of the failed underground missilemen. Most of the country's residents did not question the harsh reaction to the conspiracy.

At the same time, there is a high probability that, in addition to issues of national security, the foreign policy ambitions of official Amman played a role in the final defeat of the Brotherhood.

"BROTHERS" IN JORDAN
The Muslim Brotherhood has been active in Jordan for over eighty years, from the mid-1940s until recently, and was considered a serious political force.

The group had hidden influence over the country's civilian and military elites and even attempted several times to overthrow King Abdullah II.

The royal court responded in kind, with searches and arrests, as well as the temporary closure of individual offices of the group, and tightened control over its financial flows and political course.

However, for most of the time, both forces existed in a state of "cold peace".

Clouds began to gather over the group on April 21, when attacks against the Muslim Brotherhood began to be heard from the rostrum of the Jordanian parliament one after another.

Representatives of various political forces, both those close to the court and those who consider themselves part of the moderate opposition, accused the group of trying to sow discord and plunge Jordanian society into civil war, and to create a new “terrorist enclave” on the territory of the kingdom.

POLITICAL STORM
The accusations were prompted by reports from Jordanian security forces about the arrest in mid-April of a large group of underground fighters affiliated with the Brotherhood.

At an abandoned facility in the northwest of the country (dubbed the "rocket factory"), the conspirators manufactured homemade missiles and UAVs, and stockpiled weapons and explosives, all of which they allegedly intended to use against the authorities soon.

The deputies, clearly impressed by the scale of the secret arsenals, called on the Islamic Action Front (considered the political wing of the Brotherhood) sitting in parliament to publicly condemn the group's activities and even renounce them. Otherwise, the entire faction (31 deputies) risked losing their mandates in one fell swoop "for assisting the conspirators."

And although the speaker of parliament, Ahmad al-Safaadi, tried to soften the emotional attacks of some of his colleagues, the mistrust of the Front did not diminish, even taking into account the fact that some deputies complied with the demands and condemned the course of the Muslim Brotherhood.

The public defeat of the Brotherhood was completed by the Kingdom's Interior Minister Mazen Faraya. At a special briefing on April 23, he announced that due to the attempted anti-government conspiracy, the movement's activities in Jordan were completely banned. Any public support for the group - including online campaigning for it - would henceforth be prosecuted.

The Muslim Brotherhood’s attempts to defuse the crisis and present the activities of the detained underground fighters as “purely independent” and “separated” from all official structures have led to nothing.

THE PALESTINIAN INCIDENT
The Jordanian authorities not only dissolved the organization, but also confiscated its property and closed all its offices in the country.

At least five activists of the movement were detained "pending clarification of the circumstances." However, they were quickly released without any new charges.

It was not only the Muslim Brotherhood that came under attack from official Amman.

In parallel with the closure of the group's offices, Jordanian law enforcement officials began an operation against the Palestinian Hamas.

At least three mid-level Palestinian officials who were in the country legally were arrested in the past 24 hours and taken to al-Jandaweel prison, which has a reputation for being political.

It is also noteworthy that several days before this, several Palestinians from the Islamic Jihad faction were arrested in neighboring Syria.

The arrest was carried out by the authorities under the pretext of the Palestinians' cooperation with "anti-government forces," which shocked them quite a bit: "Islamic Jihad" and other factions felt quite comfortable in Syria not only during the Assad dynasty, but also after its overthrow, and they showed no intention of conflicting with the new Damascus.

PREPARING THE SOIL
Outside observers tend to link the two episodes together and interpret them as preparing the ground for the launch of negotiations on normalizing relations between Syria and Israel in the spirit of the Abraham Accords.

And Jordan, as one of Israel's oldest Arab "friends," is quite capable of playing the role of mediator and providing channels of communication between Damascus and Tel Aviv. Especially since interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa has declared his readiness for détente with the Israelis at least several times.

In addition, Jordan has significant strategic autonomy in organizing the negotiations and has no claims against either the Syrian or Israeli side, and is less focused on the interests of its neighbors. The same Saudi Arabia and Qatar are not in a hurry to get involved in mediation, fearing to cause discontent in Iran and Turkey.

The success of the new “Abrahamic” negotiations will not only raise Jordan’s prestige in the eyes of the US and Israel, but will also open up vast opportunities for the kingdom to strengthen its presence in the Syrian market – primarily in the energy sector, where the Turks currently hold virtually undivided sway.

However, for the successful implementation of such a combination, official Amman needs to keep all internal forces under complete control. In order to quickly extinguish any discontent with the change in the political balance.

And the Muslim Brotherhood, which is under conditional control, as well as the Islamic Action Front affiliated with them (which is also one of the largest consolidated political forces in parliament) could seriously stir up the public. And in a tactical alliance with Hamas, they could also turn the Palestinian communities living in the country against the throne.

Amman does not want to risk the stability of the dynasty for the sake of dubious political benefits, and therefore chose to solve the problem effectively, taking the confrontation with the “Brothers” beyond the political in advance.

Link

Syria-Lebanon-Iran

Jamaa Islamiya commander killed in Israeli strike near Damour — Naharnet

2025-04-23

[NAHARNET] A leader from Hamas
Hamas

..not a terrorist organization, even though it kidnaps people, holds hostages, and tries to negotiate by executing them,...
-aligned Jamaa Islamiya was killed Tuesday in an Israeli strike near Damour, the Lebanese Islamist group and Israel's military said.

Israel has continued to carry out regular strikes on Leb
...Formerly inhabited by hardy Phoenecian traders, its official language is now Arabic, with the usual unpleasant side effects....
despite a November truce with Hezbollah that sought to halt more than a year of hostilities between the foes including two months of all-out war.

Lebanon's civil defense said "an Israeli drone targeted a car" near the coastal town of Damour, about 20 kilometers (12 miles) south of Beirut, and rescuers recovered a man's body.

Jamaa Islamiya in a statement announced the death of Hussein Atwi, calling him "an academic leader and university professor" and saying an Israeli dronezap "targeted his car as he was traveling to his workplace in Beirut."

The Israeli army said the air force had "eliminated" Atwi, calling him "a significant terrorist in the Jamaa Islamiya terrorist organization."

A Lebanese security official, who spoke to AFP on condition of anonymity, said Atwi was a leader of Jamaa Islamiya's armed wing, the al-Fajr Forces.

The official said Israel had previously targeted Atwi during its recent war with Hezbollah.

An AFP photographer saw the charred wreckage of a car at the scene. The Lebanese Army had cordoned off the area and forensic teams were conducting an inspection.

Jamaa Islamiya, closely linked to both Paleostinian Death Eater group Hamas and Lebanon's Hezbollah, grabbed credit for multiple attacks against Israel before the November 27 ceasefire.

The Israeli military said Atwi had been "involved in planning and advancing terrorist activity from Lebanon into Israeli territory" and had operated "in coordination with Hamas in Lebanon."

It said he had "carried out rocket attacks, coordinated terrorist infrastructure... and advanced attempts to infiltrate into Israeli territory."

Under the truce, Hezbollah was to pull its fighters north of Lebanon's Litani River and dismantle any remaining military infrastructure in the south.

Israel was to withdraw all its forces from south Lebanon, but troops remain in five positions that it deems "strategic".

Israel on Sunday said it had killed two senior Hezbollah members in strikes on Lebanon.

Lebanese authorities have said Israeli fire has killed some 190 people since the ceasefire.

After unclaimed rocket fire against Israel in late March, Lebanon's army said last week it had arrested several Lebanese and Paleostinian suspects, while a security official said they included three Hamas members.

The Times of Israel adds:

According to the Israel Defense Forces, the strike in the Lebanese coastal town of Haret en-Naameh, just south of Beirut, targeted Hussein Izzat Mohammad Atwi, a member of the al-Jama’a al-Islamiyya (Islamic Group) organization, which is affiliated with the Muslim Brotherhood in Lebanon.

The military said Atwi was also affiliated with Hamas in Lebanon, and worked alongside the Palestinian terror group to advance attacks on Israel from Lebanon, in an attempt to harm IDF troops operating on the northern border.

Atwi was behind rocket fire over the years and had also directed terror cells in Lebanon to launch attacks on Israel, including infiltrations, the IDF said.

He also worked to advance attacks against Israeli targets abroad, the military added.

Al-Jama’a al-Islamiyya, like Hamas, is a Sunni faction that forms part of the broader Muslim Brotherhood political network. The armed wing of the group, the al-Fajr Forces, repeatedly targeted Israel from Lebanon amid the war, often working in conjunction with the Shiite Hezbollah terror group.

Link

Africa North

Tunisia opposition figures get jail terms in mass trial; defense pans ‘masquerade’

2025-04-21

[IsraelTimes] Court hands out sentences of up to 66 years for 40 defendants, including prominent opponents of President Saied; French intellectual Bernard Henri-Levy said ordered jailed in absentia

A Tunisian court has handed down jail sentences of up to 66 years to multiple defendants, including prominent opposition figures, in a mass trial criticized by rights groups.

The trial, decried by a defense lawyer as a "masquerade," is of unprecedented scale with around 40 defendants including vocal critics of President Kais Saied.

A prosecutor cited on Saturday by local media announced sentences ranging from 13 to 66 years for the defendants, accused of "conspiracy against state security" and "belonging to a terrorist group."

However,
some people cause happiness wherever they go; others whenever they go...
a list communicated to AFP by several lawyers, and "subject to official confirmation," indicates minimum sentences of four years.

Among those sentenced were well-known opposition figures, lawyers and business people, with some already in prison for two years while others were in exile or still free.

Appeals are planned, defense lawyer Abdessatar Messaoudi said.

Bassam Khawaja of Human Rights Watch posted on X: "The court did not give even a semblance of a fair trial." The charges, he said, "appear unfounded and based on no credible evidence."

According to the list supplied by lawyers, those accused who are abroad, including French intellectual Bernard Henri-Levy, received 33-year jail terms.

The same penalty was handed down to feminist activist Bochra Belhaj Hmida and the former head of the presidential office, Nadia Akacha.

Issam Chebbi and Jawhar Ben Mbarek of the opposition National Salvation Front coalition, as well as lawyer Ridha Belhaj and activist Chaima Issa, were sentenced to 18 years behind bars, Messaoudi told AFP.

HARSHEST PENALTY
Activist Khayam Turki was handed a 48-year term while businessman Kamel Eltaief received the harshest penalty — 66 years in prison, the list showed.

Turki’s cousin, Hayder Turki, told AFP he was "very saddened" by the verdict, saying: "He doesn’t deserve this — he’s a great man, his crime was being involved in politics."

Two former leaders of the Islamist Ennahdha party,

...the Muslim Brotherhood in Tunisia...

which was Saied’s main rival, were also sentenced. Abdelhamid Jelassi and Noureddine Bhiri received 13 and 43 years respectively, according to the list.

Kamel Jendoubi, a rights advocate and former minister tried in absentia, decried a "judicial liquidation" by the courts.

"This is not a judiciary ruling, but a political decree executed by judges under orders, by complicit prosecutors and by a justice minister" who all serve "a paranoid autocrat," Jendoubi charged.

Since Saied launched a power grab in the summer of 2021 and assumed total control, rights advocates and opposition figures have decried a rollback of freedoms in the North African country where the 2011 Arab Spring began.

Late Friday, defense lawyers denounced the trial after the judge finished reading the accusations and began deliberation without hearing from either the prosecution or the defense.

One lawyer, Samia Abbou, told AFP there were "flagrant violations of judicial procedure" with the accused "not heard" during the "masquerade."

Friday’s hearing lasted much of the day and was held amid tight security. Media and foreign diplomats were barred from the proceedings.

Since the trial began on March 4, defense lawyers have repeatedly called for all the defendants to appear in court, including at least six who went on a hunger strike.

The lawyers denounced the case as "empty," while HRW said the trial was taking place in the context of repression with Saied "weaponizing the judicial system to target opponents and dissidents."

Analyst Hatem Nafti posted on X that any acquittal in the mass trial "would have negated the conspiratorial narrative that the regime has relied on since 2021" and "accepted by a large part of the population" relying on restricted media coverage.

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