The Prospects of EU Sanctions on Lebanese Politicians

Still Missing in ISIS Prisons

Egypt’s AntiCoronavirus Robot

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The Prospects of EU Sanctions on Lebanese Politicians www.majalla.com

Editorial

A Weekly Political News Magazine

www.majalla.com/eng France and the European Union are starting the process of imposing sanctions against Lebanese politicians who are hindering the formation of a rescue government which was aimed at preventing further collapse of the country following the devastating port explosion in 2020. In this week’s cover story, Hanin Ghaddar explores the prospects of European sanctions and the long time the bureaucratic procedures would take, and addresses the feasibility of sanctioning Hezbollah’s allies while the party is reaching out to the Lebanese savings to survive until its Iranian sponsor is re-lieved of US sanctions.

Although a complete defeat of ISIS was announced years ago, thousands of Syrians kidnapped by the extremist group are still missing. Brutal atrocities of the group have kept families of missing people concerned about the fate of their children who have been held since 2014, upon travelling across northern cities that was controlled by ISIS at the time. Jiwan Soz writes about the calls for intervention by international coalition and Syrian Democratic Forces to find those people or even to reveal their fate.

Women can always prove their unique capabilities in face of challenges and difficulties. Syrian women who arrived in Egypt escaping the woes of war are no exception. Salma Adham meets with prominent examples of Syrian women who invested in their culinary culture and capitalized on the distinctive taste of Syrian cuisine by setting food and cooking projects that appealed to their cus-tomers and provided their compatriots with financial resources away from home.

Read these articles and more on our website eng. majalla.com. As always, we welcome and value our readers’ feedback and we invite you to take the opportunity to leave your comments on our website.

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A Weekly Political News Magazine

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A Weekly Political News Magazine

22 Israel’s Shadow War With Iran

Issue 1849- April- 23/04/2021

26 Biden’s American Duty

30 The Drumbeat of Cyberwarfare

48 When Hairy Met Scaly...

42 US Papers Debate How and When

to End Afghanistan War

Ramadan Lantern…Historic Symbol 50 that Lights Up Nights of Holy Month 5

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54 When Nerves Need Verve

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Visitors enjoy viewing azalea flowers in Tokyo People enjoy azalea flowers at Nedu/Nezu Shrine garden in Tokyo, Japan, 19 April 2021. Azalea Flowers bloomed 10-14 days ahead of the usual date this year, experts claim climate change is the reason. Tokyo, Japan )EPA Photos(

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Sudan Nature Animal Cranes fly over pelicans feeding in the water at sunset at the “Ain AlShams” a seasonal lake within the Dinder National Park, about 400 kms southeast of the Sudanese capital, on April 6, 2021. - Spread over more than 10,000 square kilometres (3,800 square miles), Dinder National Park is Sudan’s biggest and abuts Ethiopia’s Alatash National Park. It boasts the country’s most diverse wildlife, but rangers face a daily battle to protect it as human encroachment mounts. Sudan )AFP Photos(

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A WEEK IN THE MIDDLE EAST SAUDI ARABIA Saudi Arabia reiterated this week its call for Iran to engage in the ongoing negotiations over the 2015 nuclear agreement, avoid escalation, and not expose the region’s security and stability to more tension, the Cabinet said in a statement, according to the state news agency, SPA. The Cabinet added that the international community needs to “reach an agreement with stronger and long-lasting determinants with the implementation of monitoring and control measures to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon and from developing the necessary capabilities for that,” SPA said.

Talks between Iran and world powers have been taking place this week in Vienna to save the 2015 accord. They will resume next week.

SYRIA Syrian President Bashar al-Assad on Wednesday submitted documents to run for a fourth term in an election scheduled for May 26, parliament’s speaker said on state media.

Parliament announced the election on Sunday. Washington and the Syrian opposition have denounced it as a farce designed to cement Assad’s authoritarian rule.

Assad’s family and his Baath party have ruled Syria for five decades with the help of the security forces and the army, where his Alawite minority dominate.

EGYPT Civilian flights between Tripoli and Cairo re-started today after a suspension of more than six years and the Egyptian embassy will re-open soon, Libyan Prime Minister Abdulhamid Dbeibeh said, according to Reuters.

“We bring you the good news that we have agreed with the Egyptian side that starting tomorrow Libyan planes will touch down in Cairo International Airport,” Dbeibeh said in a press conference in Tripoli on Tuesday with Egyptian Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly.

Egypt closed its Tripoli embassy and halted flights in 2014 as the conflict that saw rival governments set up in Tripoli and in the east of Libya intensified.

YEMEN Iran’s support for Yemen’s Houthi movement is “quite significant and it’s lethal,” U.S. special envoy on Yemen Tim Lenderking said on Wednesday, as he called a battle for Yemen’s gas-rich Marib region the single biggest threat to peace efforts.

Lenderking told U.S. lawmakers that Iran supports the Houthis in several ways including through training, providing lethal support and helping them “fine tune” their drone and missile programs.

“Unfortunately all of this is working to very strong effects as we see more and more attacks on the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia - and potentially other countries - more accuracy and more lethality. So this is a great concern to us,” Lenderking told a House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee hearing.

“Iran’s support to the Houthis is quite significant, and it’s lethal,” Lenderking said.

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JORDAN Jordan released on Thursday 16 people linked to a rift in the royal family that rattled the country, but a member of the royal family and a former adviser to the king remained in detention.

Security sources said those released were mostly personal aides to former heir Prince Hamza, King Abdullah's half-brother, who had said in an April video he was banned from leaving his home and accused the country's rulers of corruption.

The two royals last week made their first joint appearance since the feud earlier this month. With mediation by the royal family, Hamza had pledged allegiance to the king, days after the military ordered him to stop actions that it said undermined Jordan's security.

UAE

The United Arab Emirates has warned it could impose restrictions on people who have not been vaccinated against COVID-19 as the region's business and tourism hub pushes its immunisation campaign.

The country of some 9 million, which has widened the campaign to those aged 16 and above, has vaccinated about 65% of the eligible population, the National Emergency Crisis and Disasters Management Authority (NCEMA) said on Tuesday.

"Strict measures are being considered to restrict the movement of unvaccinated individuals and to implement preventive measures such as forbidding entry to some places and having access to some services," NCEMA spokesman Saif Al Dhaheri said.

"Your hesitation today is an obstacle to our goals, it puts your family, loved ones and community at risk," he added.

The Gulf Arab state on Tuesday recorded 1,903 new infections to bring its total to 500,860 cases with 1,559 deaths.

QATAR Senior Muslim cleric Sheikh Youssef al-Qaradawi, who is based in Qatar and is a spiritual leader for the Muslim Brotherhood, has contracted COVID-19, his official Twitter account said.

The tweet on Saturday said the cleric, who is in his 90s, was receiving medical care and doing well.

Qaradawi, an Egyptian scholar who has Qatari citizenship, was sentenced to death by an Egyptian court in absentia in 2015 along with other Egyptians affiliated with the Muslim Brotherhood in a case relating to a 2011 mass jail break.

Qaradawi had rejected the ruling and denied any involvement.

ISRAEL Israel and Greece have signed their biggest ever defense procurement deal, which Israel said Sunday would strengthen political and economic ties between the two countries as their air forces launched a joint exercise.

The agreement includes a $1.65 billion contract for the establishment and operation of a training center for the Hellenic Air Force by Israeli defense contractor Elbit Systems over 22 years, Israel's defense ministry said.

The training center will be modeled on Israel's flight academy and will be equipped with 10 M-346 training aircraft produced by Italy's Leonardo, the ministry said.

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A WEEK ACROSS THE WORLD

UK

European s project lay six English the project join Italian controvers reported.

After a sto managers a threats of b game's Euro bodies UEFA and FIFA, the English clubs capitulated under pressur Manchester City were the first to back out of the venture and the Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur and Chelsea announced they w

RUSSIA Russian President Vladimir Putin has warned the West not to cross a "red line" with Russia, saying such a move would trigger an "asymmetrical, rapid and harsh" response.

The warning came in his annual state of the nation address, amid heightened tension with the West over Ukraine and jailed Putin critic Alexei Navalny.

Mr Putin said Western powers were constantly trying to "pick on" Russia.

Police have detained nearly 100 Navalny supporters rallying in several cities.

U.S. Former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin was convicted on Tuesday of murdering George Floyd, a milestone in the fraught racial history of the United States and a rebuke of law enforcement’s treatment of Black Americans, Reuters reported.

A 12-member jury found Chauvin, 45, guilty of all three charges of second-degree murder, third-degree murder and manslaughter after considering three weeks of testimony from 45 witnesses, including bystanders, police officials and medical experts. Deliberations began on Monday and lasted just over 10 hours.

In a confrontation captured on video, Chauvin, a white veteran of the police force, pushed his knee into the neck of Floyd, a 46-year-old Black man in handcuffs, for more than nine minutes on May 25, 2020. Chauvin and three fellow officers were attempting to arrest Floyd, accused of using a fake $20 bill to buy cigarettes at a grocery store.

AFGHANISTAN A Washington-backed Afghan peace conference in Turkey has been postponed due to the Taliban's non-participation, three sources told Reuters on Tuesday.

The meeting was scheduled for April 24 to fast-track an agreement between Taliban insurgents and the Afghan government following Washington's announcement that foreign troops would leave Afghanistan by Sept. 11.

"The Istanbul meeting is not happening on the given date because the Taliban refused to attend," a senior Afghan government official told Reuters.

The postponement was confirmed by two other sources, including one official whose country is involved in the planning process. There was no immediate revised date.

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UKRAINE

Russia will soon have more than 120,000 troops on Minister Dmytro Kuleba said on Tuesday, calling for n deter Moscow from "further escalation", Reuters rep Washington and NATO have been alarmed by the la Ukraine and in Crimea, the peninsula that Moscow a Western officials say the concentration of forces is n annexation. The figure given by Kuleba is higher than 80,000 Russian troops, of which 50,000 were new de "Russian troops continue to arrive in close proximity the east and in the south. In about a week, they are e of over 120,000 troops," Kuleba told an online news

soccer’s breakaway Super League in tatters on Tuesday after the Premier League clubs involved in t quit 48 hours after agreeing to and Spanish teams in the sial elite competition, Reuters

orm of protests from fans, players, and governments, alongside bans and sanctions from the ropean and world governing re and threw in the towel. en Arsenal, Manchester United, were following suit.

Ukraine's border, Ukrainian Foreign new Western economic sanctions to ported. arge build-up of Russian troops near annexed from Ukraine in 2014. now larger than during that n Ukraine's previous estimate of eployments. y to our borders in the northeast, in expected to reach a combined force s conference.

GERMANY Police clashed with protesters in Berlin on Wednesday as they tried to disperse a rally against the coronavirus lockdown while parliament debated a law to give the national government more powers to fight a third wave of the pandemic.

Chancellor Angela Merkel drew up the law after some of Germany's 16 federal states refused to impose tough measures despite a surge in cases.

Her government has come under fire for its chaotic handling of lockdowns and slow vaccination campaign.

CHAD Chad's President Idriss Deby, who ruled his country for more than 30 years and was an important Western ally in the fight against Islamist militants in Africa, has been killed on the frontline against rebels in the north, according to Reuters.

Deby's son, Mahamat Kaka, was named interim president by a transitional council of military officers, spokesman Azem Bermendao Agouna said in a broadcast on state television.

Deby, 68, came to power in a rebellion in 1990 and was one of Africa's longest-ruling leaders, surviving numerous coup attempts and rebellions.

His death was announced the day after he was declared the winner of a presidential election that would have given him a sixth term in office. Most of the opposition, which had long complained of his repressive rule, boycotted the vote.

MYANMAR A spokesman for Myanmar’s military has confirmed that junta leader Senior General Min Aung Hlaing will attend a meeting of Southeast Asian leaders at the weekend, Nikkei Asia reported on Wednesday.

Spokesman Zaw Min Tun said the military commander would attend the Jakarta meeting on Saturday of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), Nikkei Asia reported.

Zaw Min Tun did not answer calls from Reuters seeking confirmation of the report.

MARS NASA's miniature robot helicopter Ingenuity performed a successful takeoff and landing on Mars early on Monday, achieving the first powered, controlled flight by an aircraft over the surface of another planet, the U.S. space agency said.

The solar-powered whirligig's debut on the Red Planet marked a 21st-century Wright Brothers moment for NASA, which said success could pave the way for new modes of exploration on Mars and other destinations in the solar system, such as Venus and Saturn's moon Titan.

Mission managers at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) near Los Angeles burst into applause and cheers as engineering data beamed back from Mars confirmed that the 4-pound (1.8-kg) twin-rotor helicopter had performed its maiden 40-second flight as planned about three hours earlier.

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The Prospects of EU Sanctions on Lebanese Politicians Are They Enough to Curb Hezbollah?

Hanin Ghaddar During a meeting of EU Foreign Ministers in Brussels earlier this week, the French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian called for the

EU to start the process of imposing sanctions on Lebanese officials who are hindering the resolution to the Lebanese crisis, and the Fresh Initiative that was kicked-off by French President Emmanuel Macron a few months

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ago. This is a major shift in the French Lebanon policy and a significant move from diplomacy to pressure.

Macron has been trying to reason with Lebanese officials to form a rescue government to implement reforms and manage aid programs to lift Lebanon from its current tragedy. However, Hezbollah does not seem to have the same goal – the group wants more control, not less, and the French initiative would certainly take away from their power.

France grew tired of Lebanese officials prolonging the government formation process and decided to move to a harsher position, and start the process of preparing sanctions. In a statement to Sky News Arabia, the French Foreign Ministry said that France “will not hesitate to act against Lebanese officials who have abandoned the public interest for their personal interests.” Additional measures could also be implemented, such as a travel ban on Lebanese politicians, in addition to freezing their foreign assets.

French President Emmanuel Macron gives the opening speech of a video international donor conference for Lebanon at the Elysee presidential Palace in Paris on December 2, 2020. (Getty)

This shift is indeed significant, however it is not easy to implement. France decided to go through the EU instead of imposing direct French sanctions, which could be a more effective tool, but it will take more time – due to EU’s bureaucracy, and also needs the approval of the twenty-seven state members – which will add a serious layer of complications to the process.

Meanwhile, Lebanon does not have the luxury of time.

IMMINENT RISKS According to media reports emerging from Lebanon, the Central Bank’s reserves will dry out in a month and the state will be forced to stop subsidizing essential items. This means there will be more unemployment, inflation, and more people under the poverty lines – already more than fifty percent of the Lebanese are under the poverty line. The Lebanese pound has sunk by 90 percent and endangered key imports as dollars grow scarce. According

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The only way to pressure Hezbollah is to double-down, not compromise. The French president understood this, and sanctions might come sooner or later; however, sanctions will no longer be enough to contain Hezbollah in Lebanon or Iran in the region. to the World Bank, Lebanon’s economy faces an “arduous and prolonged depression,” with real GPD projected to plunge by nearly %20.

What is more worrisome is that Hezbollah will not allow the Central Bank to stop subsidizing essential items, mainly fuel, medicine, and food, because these items are the main items the group smuggles from Lebanon to Syria.

Hezbollah buys them at cheap prices in Lebanon – as they are subsidized – and then sell them at higher prices outside Lebanon, and thereby make much needed money, in the form of US Dollars.

However, when the Central Bank’s reserves dry out, Hezbollah has another plan. They will pressure the Central Bank to dig in the bank accounts in private banks. Eventually, the Lebanese people will be funding Hezbollah’s smuggling operations with money from their own savings – which they have lost access to since October 2019. Accordingly, Hezbollah will be able to sustain itself – to a certain extent – for another year or so, probably an ample time for the US-Iran nuclear negotiations to bear fruits.

With all these dynamics developing fast in Lebanon, Lebanon might not have the time for France to move the European sanctions through bureaucratic channels and waiting for everyone to get on the same page. It is already

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late for that, as Hezbollah has already taken over major state institutions and resources, and now they are after people’s money.

At the end of the day, the main problem in Lebanon is Hezbollah, and eventually Iran.

Accordingly, Europe needs to look at the roots of the problem, not its branches.

MAIN PROBLEM IS HEZBOLLAH Even if sanctions were passed immediately, they will punish Hezbollah’s allies, as much as the US Magnitsky sanctions did in the past two years, but even those did not stop Hezbollah from moving forward with its takeover of Lebanon, its state institutions, and its resources. The only positive outcome is the repercussions from the US sanctions on Iran, which prohibited Hezbollah from accessing hard currency that used to come directly from Iran. Therefore, many of its programs were put on hold, and its support base shrunk. However, none of its main operations – military and financial – stopped.

Macron has probably realized this gradually over the past few months, after he announced his French Initiative in Beirut, during his visit after the Beirut Port explosion that destroyed half of Beirut and killed around two hundred people. He then met with everyone, including

France grew tired of Lebanese officials prolonging the government formation process and decided to move to a harsher position, and start the process of preparing sanctions.

representatives and officials from Hezbollah.

When asked about it he responded by saying that Hezbollah represents a big portion of the Lebanese people and cannot be excluded.

However, this was mainly because the French still believed that Hezbollah could be part of the solution, not the problem.

But as things moved forward the formation of a rescue government and hit a brick wall, the French started to realize that Hezbollah not only part of the problem, but the main problem. Back in September 2020, Macron told Hezbollah that they will have to choose between staying a terrorist organization or become a Lebanese political party,

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Members of Shiite movement Hezbollah hold a military parade in the town of Riyaq in Lebanon’s Bekaa Valley on February 13, 2021, marking the annual anniversary of martyred « leaders « )Getty(

represented in the parliament. Hezbollah has obviously decided to be both - act as a terrorist organization, without having to surrender its political status within state institutions.

Eventually, without accountability, why would Hezbollah be pressured to choose?

Hezbollah is an Iranian organization – not Lebanese and certainly not bothered by any Lebanese-French dynamics. The only way to pressure Hezbollah is to double-down, not compromise. The French president understood this, and sanctions might come sooner or later; however, sanctions will no longer be enough to contain Hezbollah in Lebanon or Iran in the region. Without a

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clear policy – coordinated fully between the US and Europe – and aimed at containing Hezbollah, Lebanon will officially be an Iranian colony.

This is not impossible, as long as the nuclear talks between the US and Iran include – and in details – Iran’s regional operations, including Hezbollah in Lebanon. No sanctions relief should be offered without targeting this regional concern.

Hanin Ghaddar is the Friedmann Fellow at The Washington Institute’s Geduld Program on Arab Politics, where she focuses on Shia politics throughout the Levant.

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Still Missing in ISIS Prisons Families of Kidnapped Syrians Urge International coalition and SDF to Find Their Children ian and Iraqi lands. Numerous international institutions and advocacy groups, including Still unknown is the fate of Syrian citizens Human Rights Watch, have been calling for who were abducted by the Islamic State in efforts to uncover their fate.

Iraq and Syria (ISIS) many years ago when Thousands of Syrians, Iraqis, and other Arab the group held control of large swaths of Syr- and foreign nationals are still held in ISIS Jiwan Soz – Qamishli

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prisons. Farhad Hamo, a Kurdish reporter at Rudaw channel, was among journalists kidnapped by ISIS in late 2014, in addition to Lebanese photographer Samir Kassab who was held by the group in mid-October 2013.

Aras Hamo, brother of the Kurdish reporter, stressed that his family has been following up with officials of Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), who announced that they had completely eradicated ISIS in Syria in late March, 2019, with assistance of the US- led coalition fighting the terrorist group in Syria and Iraq.

Mother of reporter Farhad Hamo looking at a photo of her son who was kidnapped

by ISIS several years ago. (Facebook)

“There are no tangible or real developments in the case of my brother and other kidnapped civilians so far, although ISIS collapsed two years ago,” Hamo told Majalla.

The journalist’s brother demanded local and world agencies to determine his brother’s fate along with other people, who have not been heard from since they were kidnapped

by ISIS fighters between 2013 and 2015. He stressed that it is necessary that “all local and international parties work more seriously to reveal what happened to those people.”

“The US-led coalition against ISIS should also help in solving this humanitarian case by cooperating with the Syrian Democratic Forces, particularly since there are thousands of ISIS elements held in SDF prisons who may have information about our kidnapped people,” Hamo added.

Similar to the family of the Kurdish journalist, thousands of families live in the same misery and have been waiting for their children either to return back or at least for some news about them since the defeat of the extremist group in its previously controlled cities.

Dozens of kidnapped civilians were executed by the terrorist group, as confirmed by footage revealing their fate. One video showed four Kurds who were shot dead in 2019 by teenagers described by ISIS as “Ashbal AlKhilafah” (the Cubs of the Caliphate).

A family member of a Kurdish Syrian citizen who was executed by ISIS said, “We were waiting for his return but, when we watched

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“ISIS expansion in Syria was accompanied by horrifying public atrocities, the most prevalent of which were wide-range detention and kidnapping with thousands kidnapped from their homes or cars at ISIS checkpoints most of whom have been missing since.” what befell him in the footage released by ISIS, we stopped waiting.”

He told Majalla, “We found his body after the group was driven out of Syria but so far we don’t know what happened to his son who was kidnapped with him.”

According to families of kidnapped Syrians, most of them came from Kobani (Ayn al-Arab), Al-Hasakah and Qamishli, and were kidnapped while crossing cities which were controlled by ISIS, such as Manbij and Raqqa.

Many others came from Raqqa and rural areas of Al-Hasakah and Deir Ez-Zor Governorates and were kidnapped there when ISIS had control of these territories.

Although Syrian Democratic Forces discovered dozens of mass graves in cities that were controlled by ISIS for years, only few families could recognize their members among the dead bodies, according to statistics by local and international agencies.

The Syrian Democratic Forces, which is composed primarily of the Kurdish People’s Protection Units, fighters of Syrian Arab tribes as well as Assyrian and Armenian armed groups, usually find mass graves in areas previously held by ISIS. Most of such graves found by the SDF and

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International Coalition forces are located in rural areas of Raqqa, which was an ISIS stronghold in Syria years ago.

So far no accurate numbers of the people kidnapped by ISIS have been reported, but local agencies said “they amount to 8,540 people.”

According to the Violations Documentation Center in Syria, 450 out of 8,540 people came from the Kurdish-Syrian city of Kobani.

“There is serious negligence in these civilians’ case,” a local official said.

The official who works at the center observing ISIS crimes in Northern Syria added, “ISIS expansion in Syria was accompanied by horrifying public atrocities, the most prevalent of which were wide-range detention and kidnapping with thousands kidnapped from their homes or cars at ISIS checkpoints most of whom have been missing since.”

HOW WERE THESE PEOPLE ?KIDNAPPED On May 29, 2014, ISIS hoodlums detained 205 students aging 14-16 while they were

The Syrian Democratic Forces, which is composed primarily of the Kurdish People’s Protection Units, fighters of Syrian Arab tribes as well as Assyrian and Armenian armed groups, usually find mass graves in areas previously held by ISIS.

returning home to Kobani from Aleppo after sitting for their preparatory exams.

Although the group released them later, thousands of other people are missing with their fates unknown. The students testified that they were subject to brutal torture and beating by electric cords. They were also forced to watch videos of beheadings.

Since May 7, 2014, contact has been lost with 16 teachers from Kobani after they were kidnapped by ISIS at a group-held crossing

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Special forces of the Syrian Democratic Forces keep watch on March 30, 2021 in the vicinity of al-Hol camp, the larger of two Kurdish-run displacement camps for relatives of Islamic State jihadists in Syria’s northeast.

(Getty)

on their return from Aleppo.

On February 18, 2014, ISIS held 150 Kurdish Syrian passengers who were travelling to the Iraqi region of Kurdistan to work or study, in addition to further thousands whose capture was not documented.

The official at Violations Documentation Center explained that “some organizations exert a huge effort in these cases through coordinating with the families of those missing, especially after the announcement of a newly

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discovered mass grave. However, nothing was achieved.”

He added, “many meetings were held between these families and local officials of the Autonomous Administration. Moreover, files of missing people were shared with the UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry on Syria in order to gain international support.” Describing what happened as “genocide against Syrians, particularly the Kurds,” the official stressed that “it requires international acknowledgement.”

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Israel’s Shadow War With Iran Should It Strain Relations With the U.S.? tion by Israel’s Mossad, but no party has officially taken responsibility, and Washington has explicitly On April 10, an explosion rocked the Natanz nu- denied playing any role. clear facility in Iran—the most recent salvo in a The functional damage to Iran’s nuclear program long-running shadow war between the Islamic Re- appears to be significant—but Iran’s nuclear ampublic and the forces seeking to prevent it from bitions have hit a speed bump, not a brick wall. reaching the military nuclear threshold. Foreign Its nuclear program has suffered a far less decisive media sources attributed the blast to a covert opera- blow than Iraq’s did when Israel struck the Osirak

By Amos Yadlin

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reactor in 1981 or than Syria’s did in 2007. The attack on Natanz, however, promises to affect the nuclear diplomacy now underway between Iran and the United States. How each side interprets the blast will be as critical a factor as the damage to the facility itself. At stake is not just the future of Iran’s nuclear ambitions but the ability of the United States and Israel to contend with them in concert.

URGENCY AND LEVERAGE When U.S. President Donald Trump came into office in 2017, his administration concluded that the 2015 Iran nuclear deal was deeply flawed and would ultimately facilitate Iran’s becoming a nuclear threshold state by 2030. Washington withdrew from the agreement in 2018 and pursued a policy of “maximum pressure” on Iran’s economy and its leadership, with the expectation that the United States would rejoin the deal and lift sanctions only after the agreement’s loopholes had been closed.

Men view the covers of local newspapers laid out at a stall in the Shemiran district of Iran’s capital Tehran on April ,14 2021. (Getty)

Iran initially held off on retaliating, waiting instead to assess the economic impact of the sanctions.

By 2019, sanctions had clearly dealt a devastating blow to Iran’s economy, in particular, the regime’s oil exports. At that point, Tehran adopted a more active strategy in which it sought to impose costs on the United States and its regional allies without provoking a full-blown conflict. Iran gradually escalated its nuclear violations while attacking U.S. forces and Middle Eastern partners through conventional and plausibly deniable means: for instance, Tehran backed Houthi forces in Yemen as they initiated almost daily attacks with advanced missiles and drones against critical infrastructure in Saudi Arabia.

The regional and nuclear tracks of Iranian foreign policy might appear to be separate, but in fact they are part and parcel of a unified strategy. Iran aims to project conventional power in order to protect its nuclear program. Nuclear weapons capability, once achieved, will ensure the regime’s survival, whereupon Iran can use its conventional forces to subvert regional states under the cover of a nuclear umbrella. Despite diverging threat perceptions, Washington and Jerusalem are in agreement on the

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Tehran has shortened its breakout window since the initiation of Trump’s maximum pressure campaign by breaching the nuclear deal, the administration of U.S. President Joe Biden views a return to compliance with the agreement as an important first step in defusing a potential crisis. importance of maximizing the distance between Iran’s regime and a nuclear weapon. Yet they seem to differ over the most effective method for doing so.

Washington would ideally have sought to both return to and improve upon the nuclear deal in a single step, but Tehran’s counterpressure has led the White House to adopt a two-stage approach.

Because Tehran has shortened its breakout window since the initiation of Trump’s maximum pressure campaign by breaching the nuclear deal, the administration of U.S. President Joe Biden views a return to compliance with the agreement as an important first step in defusing a potential crisis. Next, Washington aims to build a “stronger and longer” deal through follow-on agreements that close some of the deal’s loopholes by extending sunset clauses, allowing for inspections anytime and anywhere, limiting Iran’s ballistic missile program, compelling Iran to come clean regarding the previous military dimensions of its nuclear program, and further restricting nuclear research and development.

But the White House will likely find that it is not so easy to continue diplomacy after returning to the 2015 agreement. Once the nuclear deal has been reinstated, the United States may lack the necessary economic and political leverage over Iran to negotiate additional pacts. Even now, as the United States and Iran pursue indirect talks about returning to the deal, Tehran is escalating its violations and

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advancing toward the nuclear threshold, so as to heighten Washington’s sense of urgency and desperation to reinstate the agreement. The sabotage of Iran’s nuclear facilities in Natanz disrupted that dynamic by functionally damaging the program and setting it back considerably.

A SHARED APPROACH The Iran nuclear issue has been a sore point between the United States and Israel for nearly a decade, despite the very deep and enduring security partnership between the countries and their shared aim of preventing Iran from going nuclear. The United States kept talks with Iran a secret from Israel in 2012, and subsequently Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu took a publicly defiant stance against U.S. President Barack Obama’s Iran policy in 2015. Given this history, the two countries may be inclined to view each other’s diplomatic or covert actions on this issue with suspicion. But the two dimensions could be complementary—rather, they must be, because either without the other will almost certainly fail to prevent Iran from going nu- not be a signatory to a future agreement, but it unclear over the long term. derstands that pushing Iran further from the nuclear threshold will reduce Washington’s haste to return It does not take an expert negotiator to understand to the deal while Tehran still remains desperate for that whichever party is more desperate for a deal sanctions relief. Alternatively, in the event that a can expect the terms of such an agreement to fa- nuclear deal cannot be reached or revived, Netanvor the other party. Israel has no formal role in the yahu would be all too happy to return to the Trump negotiations over Iran’s nuclear program and will administration’s maximum pressure approach in an effort to turn the Iran nuclear program into a toxic issue for the Iranian leadership by inflicting tremendous economic pain on the country as well as perpetrating numerous humbling incidents of sabotage.

The attack on Natanz, however, promises to affect the nuclear diplomacy now underway between Iran and the United States. How each side interprets the blast will be as critical a factor as the damage to the facility itself.

The White House has not yet made clear how it views the latest covert operation against Iran’s nuclear program, but the attack could create friction between the United States and Israel. If the operation was not coordinated in advance on the bilateral level, the Biden administration might look askance on it as an effort to disrupt indirect nuclear talks between the United States and Iran in Vienna. Washington might even hold Israel responsible for Iran’s ensuing decision to increase

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In this handout provided by the EU Delegation in Vienna, Representatives of the European Union, Iran and others attend the Iran nuclear talks at the Grand Hotel on April 15, 2021 in Vienna, Austria. Representatives from the United States, Iran, the European Union, Russia, China and other participants from the original Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) are meeting directly and indirectly over possibly reviving the plan. (Getty)

If Israel intends to continue its covert campaign against Iran’s nuclear program, it ought to do so within the framework of a joint strategy with the United States. work to reach an understanding of their common aims and design plans of action to achieve them.

This shared approach will prove especially critical in two highly possible scenarios: if negotiations to return to the 2015 deal collapse or if the talks succeed but attempts to reach a stronger and longer agreement stall.

enrichment to 60 percent.

If Israel intends to continue its covert campaign against Iran’s nuclear program, it ought to do so within the framework of a joint strategy with the United States. Such bilateral cooperation and coordination will enable Israel to set back Iran’s nuclear development while minimizing the risk of escalating tensions vis-à-vis Iran or poisoning its relationship with the United States. The idea that Washington might negotiate with Iran about its nuclear program while greenlighting efforts to degrade that very program may seem absurd—but consider that Iran is doing the exact opposite of that by expanding its program while negotiating.

And if Iran continues ratcheting up its nuclear activity during talks, the United States may find that its leverage has evaporated when it feels compelled to reach whatever agreement is on offer to avert a major nuclear crisis.

The framework for such coordination ought to be a U.S.-Israeli agreement to prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons. The two sides would

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The pact should delineate agreed upon nuclear redlines for Iran, formulas for calculating Tehran’s distance from the bomb, contingency plans for a wide range of possible scenarios, a division of labor in the event of a last resort military option, and joint exercises to ensure that the military option remains credible. The agreement should also include a clause that limits how long the United States will remain a party to the revived nuclear deal while seeking a stronger and longer agreement—perhaps one year or 18 months—after which time Washington would withdraw and reinstate sanctions if no follow-on agreements with Iran are forthcoming.

Focus on the nuclear issue should not allow Iran a free pass in the region. Given that the Islamic Republic’s subversive regional activities cannot realistically be contained through an agreement, the United States and its Middle Eastern allies should instead contest them in a regional constellation that operates simultaneously with the nuclear track. A parallel U.S.-Israeli agreement on the Iran nuclear program may not only be the best bet for preventing Tehran from getting the bomb but also essential to preventing the Iran nuclear issue from becoming radioactive for the relationship between Israel and the United States.

This article was originally published on ForeignAffairs.com.

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Biden’s American Duty Restoring the ‘Soul of the Nation’ Means Taking in Refugees

By Adam Serwer One of the Trump administration’s early priorities was engineering a whiter America through immigration restrictions. We know this because it told us so.

“U.S. demographics have been changing rapidly—

and undesirably in the eyes of top Trump aides, including his chief strategist, Stephen K. Bannon, and domestic policy advisor Stephen Miller,” the Los Angeles Times reported in February 2017.

The travel ban targeting Muslim nations was the first step in an agenda “to reshape American demographics for the long term and keep out

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One morally righteous and uncomplicated action that the United States can take to help those suffering under repressive governments, violent extremists, or climate catastrophes is allowing them to live here and contribute to American society. in the racial backgrounds of these immigrants, rather than their individual capabilities.

U.S. President Joe Biden speaks as Vice President Kamala Harris listens in the Cross Hall of the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., on Tuesday, April 20, 2021.

(Getty)

people who Trump and senior aides believe will not assimilate.”

The key phrase there is will not assimilate.

Nothing is inherently wrong with nations adopting immigration policies best adapted to their economic needs. But Miller, Bannon, and Trump used immigrants who will not assimilate as code for immigrants who are not white and Christian.

Miller privately praised racist immigration restrictions targeting Eastern and Southern Europeans, Jews, Africans, and Asians that the United States adopted in the early 20th century.

Bannon famously lamented the presence of South Asian tech workers in Silicon Valley. And Trump himself complained about African, Latin American, and Caribbean immigrants as being from “shithole countries,” an assessment rooted

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The L.A. Times also cited an anonymous senior administration official, who told the paper that “we don’t want a situation where, 20 to 30 years from now, it’s just like a given thing that on a fairly regular basis there is domestic terror strikes, stores are shut up or that airports have explosive devices planted, or people are mowed down in the street by cars and automobiles and things of that nature.” Later that year, a white supremacist in Charlottesville, Virginia, part of a crowd that had shouted “Jews will not replace us!” the night before, used a car to mow down anti-racist protesters. Trump memorably equated the two groups, insisting that there were “fine people on both sides.”

Two weeks later, the future president, Joe Biden, wrote in The Atlantic that the murder of Heather Heyer, the growing confidence of whitenationalist groups, and Trump’s defense of them had deeply affected him.

“We have an American president who has emboldened white supremacists with messages of comfort and support,” Biden wrote. “If it wasn’t clear before, it’s clear now: We are living through a battle for the soul of this nation.”

Biden returned to a battle for the soul of this nation as a campaign theme in 2020—successfully, as it turned out. Which raises the mystery of why

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President Biden is quietly maintaining one of the Trump era’s most discriminatory policies and a key element of Trump advisers’ broader agenda of making America white again: the throttling of refugee admissions. (The limits the Trump administration placed on refugee admissions are distinct from its attack on the asylum process, which was undertaken with similar intentions.)

In 2020, only about 12,000 refugees were admitted to the United States—a steep decline from 2016, the last year of the Obama administration, when about 85,000 were admitted. This year, despite having vowed to reverse Trump’s discriminatory immigration policies, the Biden administration is on track to admit even fewer refugees, having allowed in only about 2,000 so far, according to a report from the International Rescue Committee.

The Trump-era restrictions, the report notes, “have amounted to a de facto ban on many Muslim refugees. These policies, in the sordid tradition of the Muslim and Africa Ban, have undeniably discriminatory impacts along lines of nationality and religion.”

America’s military misadventures over the past few decades have shown the folly of attempting

Nothing is inherently wrong with nations adopting immigration policies best adapted to their economic needs. But Miller, Bannon, and Trump used immigrants who will not assimilate as code for immigrants who are not white and Christian.

to remake the world through force. But one morally righteous and uncomplicated action that the United States can take to help those suffering under repressive governments, violent extremists, or climate catastrophes is allowing them to live here and contribute to American society, as generations of refugees have done before them. In some cases, these refugees are fleeing circumstances created or exacerbated by American foreign policy, and admitting them is the least the United States can do.

The Washington Post columnist Catherine Rampell, who has been covering this story for weeks, notes that the Biden administration’s failure to sign its own paperwork has left some 700 refugees, already screened under the Trump-era security process but excluded by its discriminatory criteria, in limbo and unable

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Protesters holding a banner reading A PATH TO CITIZENSHIP FOR ALL at the silent protest. Members of the activist group Rise and Resist gathered at the plaza outside the Staten Island Ferry in Manhattan to continue their weekly Immigration Vigils demanding that the Biden administration permanently stop detaining and deporting immigrants, to dismantle CBP (Customs and Border Patrol) and ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement), and to create a path to citizenship for all. (Getty)

to travel to the United States. “The only thing preventing their entry is Biden—who refuses to do the right thing and sign a simple document,” Rampell writes.

I asked the White House to explain what logistical barriers might prevent the refugee cap from being lifted, and why hundreds of already vetted refugees are being blocked from resettlement.

Instead of offering specifics, an administration spokesperson reiterated prior public statements about the Trump administration breaking the refugee-admissions process and Biden officials’ promises to fix it. Officials told CNN that Biden fears the “optics” of accepting refugees while the administration faces dubious accusations of being responsible for an influx of migrants at the border.

Restoring “the soul of the nation” cannot mean simply unseating Trump. It also has to mean

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reversing the policies his administration put in place in an attempt to codify into law his racial and sectarian conception of American citizenship.

If Biden cannot do that, then he has restored little more than Democratic control of the presidency.

And should he fail to rescind these policies simply because he fears criticism of those who enabled Trump’s cruelty to begin with, it will be nothing short of cowardice.

“My faith teaches me that we should be a nation that once again welcomes the stranger and shows a preferential option for the poor, remembering how so many of us and our ancestors came here in a similar way,” Biden wrote in 2019. “It’s not enough to just wish the world were better. It’s our duty to make it so.”

This was originally published on The Atlantic Online

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The Drumbeat of Cyberwarfare

The SolarWinds Hack Is Just the Beginning

By Ben Buchanan Hackers serving the interests of a hostile foreign government penetrate important U.S. government computer networks, compromise key nodes, and steal sensitive information. U.S investigators uncover the broad contours of the hacking operation but question whether they can ever determine its

full scope. In the absence of good options or full information, the U.S. government must decide how to respond to a seemingly unprecedented situation.

A version of this story is unfolding now, as worrying new details emerge about Russia’s recent hack of the information technology company SolarWinds and many other U.S. public- and pri-

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(L-R) FireEye CEO Kevin Mandia, SolarWinds CEO Sudhakar Ramakrishna and Microsoft President Brad Smith testify during a Senate Intelligence Committee hearing on Capitol Hill on February 23, 2021 in Washington, DC. The hearing focused on the 2020 cyberattack that resulted in a series of data breaches within several agencies and departments in the U.S. federal government.

(Getty)

vate-sector organizations. But other versions have played out in the past. Moscow gained access to White House computer systems during President Barack Obama’s administration; it penetrated the U.S. military’s classified networks in 2008 via malware known as Agent.BTZ; it stole reams of U.S. government data in the late 1990s through an extensive cyber-espionage campaign known as Moonlight Maze; and even before the collapse of the Soviet Union, it acquired valuable secrets pried from hundreds of hacked U.S. government computers as far back as 1986. Each intrusion was more ambitious and likely more damaging to the United States than the last—a one-way ratchet showing what hackers can do.

And Russia is not the only villain in this story.

China has carried out bold cyber-espionage campaigns, including an enormous hacking effort just this year against companies running Microsoft Exchange, a widely popular email service. In recent decades, hackers aligned with Beijing have acquired sensitive information on U.S. government employees, valuable intellectual property from major U.S. companies, and vast troves of data—including medical, travel, and financial records—on many millions of U.S. citizens.

After each new breach, U.S. policymakers wonder how the United States fell victim once again. They devise new strategies to meet the threat of foreign hacking, each more ambitious than the last—but all of which inevitably fail. Yet these failures say less about the limitations of U.S. cybersecurity strategy than about the new cyber-reality. Nothing the United States (or any other country, for that matter) can do will prevent cyber-espionage entirely. Effective, deniable, and attractive to authoritarian and democratic leaders alike, this type of technological intrusion is now an integral part of statecraft. As a result, the United States should assume that the alarming drumbeat of hacking campaigns will only accelerate.

THE SECURITY TRIAD Broadly speaking, the United States has three major overlapping strategies for securing U.S. computer networks from foreign spying: defense, deterrence, and disruption. The first has always been difficult to achieve. Sophisticated intruders can use an array of technical methods to evade

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In a world where defense is necessary but insufficient to the task of protecting sensitive networks, the second cybersecurity strategy, deterrence, holds a special allure. But deterrence depends on credibility, which is surprisingly elusive. defenses and gain unauthorized entry, often aided by unwitting users. Security-conscious engineering, well-crafted defensive tools, and high-quality threat intelligence can help protect networks, but there is no silver bullet. Cybersecurity measures themselves, such as software updates and centralized management of information technology (IT) infrastructure, can occasionally be exploited by intruders, as occurred in both the SolarWinds and Microsoft Exchange hacks. Defenders of even the most secure networks must therefore assume that intruders will sometimes break in.

In a world where defense is necessary but insufficient to the task of protecting sensitive networks, the second cybersecurity strategy, deterrence, holds a special allure. But deterrence depends on credibility, which is surprisingly elusive. While the United States can plausibly promise military retaliation for a cyberattack that plunges U.S. cities into darkness or causes planes to crash, it has a harder time meting out appropriate and meaningful punishments for cyber-espionage. It has responded with sanctions and indictments of foreign hackers and officials, including a raft of new punitive measures against Russian officials and entities announced this week. But there is little public evidence that these measures deter the ever-increasing and ever-expanding foreign hacking efforts that steal American secrets. On the contrary, the United States’ competitors have grown more aggressive, perhaps increasingly confident that the retaliation they once feared is not forthcoming.

Disruption, the third cybersecurity strategy, has been the United States’ answer to increased ag-

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gression. General Paul Nakasone, head of United States Cyber Command, and Michael Sulmeyer, then an adviser to Nakasone and now a White House official, described this new approach in an article in Foreign Affairs last August: “We learned that we cannot afford to wait for cyberattacks to affect our military networks. We learned that defending our military networks requires executing operations outside our military networks.”

In other words, the United States has sought to counter cyber-espionage by actively interfering in competitors’ operations, degrading their hacking infrastructure and limiting their ability to execute attacks. To disrupt its competitors’ campaigns, the U.S. government relies on its own prodigious hacking capabilities, bolstered by billions of dollars of investment in the National Security Agency and United States Cyber Command. According to the latter, this strategy helped protect the U.S. elections in 2018 and 2020 and has stopped a range of other malicious hacking activities. However, it is too early to say how well the strategy works overall.

Notably, all three strategies failed to stop the SolarWinds and Microsoft Exchange breaches. As these two incidents demonstrate, competition in cyberspace is both fierce and routine—two conditions that make it hard to thwart cyber-intrusions.

Fierce competition pushes up adversaries’ tolerance for risk, making defense and deterrence difficult. Routine competition, meanwhile, makes it nearly impossible to disrupt all of an adversary’s operations, since they can come from anywhere at any time.

These failures say less about the limitations of U.S. cybersecurity strategy than about the new cyberreality. Nothing the United States (or any other country, for that matter) can do will prevent cyber-espionage entirely.

THE BEAT GOES ON The fact that large-scale cyber-espionage will inevitably continue does not mean that the United States should abandon its efforts to make such intrusions less frequent and costly. On the contrary, the United States should upgrade both public- and private-sector cyberdefenses, in particular by increasing centralization of IT infrastructure, replacing outdated systems, and recruiting more talented cybersecurity professionals. Meanwhile, Washington should bolster its deterrence by retaliating against perpetrators in ways that instill more fear in U.S. adversaries. The new sanctions against Russia are a step in the right direction, but the United States might also consider interfering in the systems that authoritarian countries use to surveil their own populations. Such measures would impose meaningful costs on offending governments without unduly risking escalation. And finally, where possible, the United States should continue to disrupt adversaries’ cyber-espionage

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The SolarWinds Corp. logo is seen at the headquarters in Austin, Texas on April 2021 ,15 in Austin, Texas. (Getty)

Despite its history of major breaches, the United States remains an able competitor in the arena of cyberespionage. Its agencies and military units benefit from ample investment and extraordinary amounts of talent.

operations.

But even an improved triad of defense, deterrence, and disruption will sometimes fall short.

The United States must therefore shift its thinking about cyber-espionage from a problem to be solved to a condition to be forever managed.

Some combination of the whack-a-mole approach of counterterrorism and the all-of-government scope of cold war military competition will likely be required. But so will humility. Although the United States is a leading cyberpower, it can expect adversaries to outsmart it from time to time.

Practically, this means the United States should assume that its secrets are harder to keep than ever before. While many sensitive corporate and government documents no doubt remain secure, too many do not. Even some of the United States’ most powerful and most secret hacking tools have ended up online as a result of a 2016 breach, known as the Shadow Brokers case, that remains shrouded in mystery. Foreign governments and

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criminals have since repurposed them.

While the United States will of course continue to have classified programs, policymakers should consider being more careful about which technologies, including cyber-capabilities, they invent and deploy. Jason Matheny, who previously directed the Intelligence Advanced Research Projects Activity and is now a White House official, has devised a series of questions to guide policymakers’ thinking in this area, including “If the technology is leaked, stolen, or copied, would we regret having developed it?” Questions such as this one are essential in a world in which cybercompetition is as fierce and routine as it is today.

Despite its history of major breaches, the United States remains an able competitor in the arena of cyber-espionage. Its agencies and military units benefit from ample investment and extraordinary amounts of talent. With such capabilities, the United States can and should do better to defend, deter, and disrupt the intrusive hacking efforts of other nations, pushing back on their increasingly aggressive behavior. But sooner or later—and probably sooner—the familiar story will play out once again: foreign intruders will compromise important U.S. computer networks, exposing government and corporate secrets and prompting an investigation. Calls for a response will follow, despite the lack of good options, as will calls for a strategic shift that enables greater cyber-competitiveness—even though such a shift is destined to sometimes fail. And so the drumbeat of cyberespionage will continue, beating ever faster as it does.

This article was originally published on ForeignAffairs.com.

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A New Emerging Player with Feminine, Stylish Designs

Chinese Carmakers Eye Saudi Market, Lure Women as Potential Customers Motasem Al Felou - Jeddah “Saudi working women are wise when it comes to finances. However, this is not the only decisive factor behind the rising presence of Chinese cars in the

automobile market. The colors, designs and sizes of Chinese cars address the feminine senses,” Osama, a long-time expert in the Saudi car retail market, told Majalla.

Chinese car agencies are mushrooming. Over the past 5

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years, the presence of car brands that are manufactured in China has made them the latest resilient player in a market that imported cars worth USD 12 bn in 2019, namely, the Saudi market.

We will go beyond numbers on a short journey to explore why Chinese cars are gaining ground where the competition is heating up between automakers to attract more sophisticated customers. Those customers are the ones with good purchasing power, who look for value, beautiful designs, convenience as well as a good customer journey and experience. American, Japanese, German and Koreans are facing an emerging player – the Chinese car maker.

FEMININE INSPIRATIONS

GWM Haval car at Auto Expo 2020, on February 5, 2020, in Greater Noida, India. Chinese GWM Cars have recently established presence in Saudi Arabia. (Getty)

Even though affordability is key, there are other decisive factors that are equally important.

“What do you think of a yellow car with a black rooftop? The colors of Chinese cars resemble a makeup kit full of colors and hues. Those cars come in yellow, blue, bicolor, dark red, orange, turquoise, and many unconventional colors. Females associate with colors.

This is a good win for Chinese cars. Saudi females look for elegant, petite and soft inspirations to express themselves. Colors are the best ones,” explained Osama about Saudi female customer behavior.

“Sharp edges and angles do not exist in Chinese cars.

It is all smooth and full of curves with a modern Asian touch. They suit the feminine tastes,” he added.

AFFORDABILTY Chinese cars are now the most affordable in the Saudi market. One can lease a car at an affordable price as low as SR 750 (USD 200) in monthly installments for 5 years.

“In general working Saudi and expat women are more financially aware than men. For men, cars express a social status, that is why they choose Japanese, American and Korean cars if they belong to middle class. For upper middle class and above, men prefer luxury European cars. A small percent of Saudi women, namely the wealthy ones, choose luxury car brands,” said Abdulrahman, a Jeddah-based sales supervisor at a Chinese car showroom.

Nisreen, a -30year-old Saudi marketing specialist, told me she bought a Chinese SUV after she got her driving license. She is delighted with her USD 21,500 SUV that looks modern and stylish. “This amount of money would not get me an SUV with a sunroof and digital dashboard. This would be impossible, especially after the VAT was raised from %5 to %15 last July!” she explained.

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Huge budgets for marketing and advertising are coming in large quantities from the mother companies in China. This is making it possible for agents and retailers to sell thousands of cars. According to sources from the industry, some car models get sold out fast.

FEARS Chinese cars entered the Saudi market extensively only a few years ago. They don’t have the infrastructure that is owned and operated by their European, American, Japanese and Korean peers.

“They still need to enhance their maintenance and spare parts facilities. Some are advancing fast, but others need to speed up their geographical expansion,” said Abdul Aziz, who is freelance car trader.

POTENTIAL TARGET “Saudi men have been using cars for over a hundred years.

Saudi women are the catalyst and potential customers for all carmakers, not the Chinese manufacturers only. Those women are more practical. They look for cars that satisfy their needs. When feminine designs and affordability get together, they will have a better opportunity to be an attractive choice on the table,” said Osama, who believes that with more modern technologies at affordable prices, any automaker can get a good share in the local car market.

Huge budgets for marketing and advertising are coming in large quantities from the mother companies in China.

This is making it possible for agents and retailers to sell thousands of cars. According to sources from the industry, some car models get sold out fast.

Chinese car manufacturers offer a wide range of cars and trucks, ranging from as low as USD 10k to as high as USD 60k for more luxurious vehicles. This is the cash price.

Abed, a full-time accountant, bought a Chinese SUV. He told me his wife and mother like his car more than he does and it is not costing him a fortune!

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US Papers Debate How and When to End Afghanistan War “The Washington Post” vs. “The New York Times” Mohammad Ali Salih – Washington Last week, as President Joe Biden officially announced that the US troops will leave Afghanistan by September 11, 20 years after the terrorist attack on the US that ignited the Global War

on Terrorism (GWOT) that was announced then by former President George W. Bush, a “war” of comments, analysis and reckoning started in the US. Two editorials by the two leading daily newspapers in the US, “The Washington Post” and

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The Washington Post Co. headquarters stands in Washington, D.C., U.S., on Monday, Aug. 2013 ,5. (Getty)

“The New York Times,” illustrated the US polarization about the longest war in its history, and were, also, reckonings of the start of the GWOT when the two newspapers, also, illustrated the American mood at that time.

That mood was positive, and the two newspapers enthusiastically supported Bush’s GWOT, as detailed in a 2006 book: “Bush’s War: Media Bias and Justification for War in a Terrorist Age,”

by Jim Kuypers, a communications professor at Virginia Tech University.

The two liberal newspapers, “The Post” and “The Times,” also enthusiastically supported the 2003 US-led invasion of Iraq, although, later, both apologized for their inaccurate, and pro-Bush, reporting of the events that led to the invasion.

But there has been no apology for the initial support of Bush’s GWOT and the invasion of Afghanistan.

Now, after 20 years of occupation, as a result of that invasion, the two newspapers disagreed on how, and when, to end the occupation: On one side, an editorial in “The Post” warned of Biden’s decision to withdraw from Afghanistan, with a title, “The Likely Result is Disaster.”

On the other side, “The Times” saw no disaster, and suggested, in an earlier editorial’s headline: “A Regional Effort to Stabilize Afghanistan.”

The importance of these editorials, as different from opinions by each newspaper’s columnists, and by outside contributors, is illustrated by each newspaper’s claim that these editorials were separate from their news coverage: “The Post” declared that “The separation of news columns from the editorial pages is solemn and complete. This separation is intended to serve the reader, who is entitled to the facts in the news columns and to opinions on the editorial and ‘oped’ pages.”

For “The Times,” “The editorial board is a group of opinion journalists whose views are informed by expertise, research, debate and certain longstanding values. It is separate from the newsroom.”

Here are excerpts from the two opposing editorials:

“THE WASHINGTON POST”: “Biden Takes the Easy Way out of Afghanistan.

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Two editorials by the two leading daily newspapers in the US, “The Washington Post” and “The New York Times,” illustrated the US polarization about the longest war in its history, and were, also, reckonings of the start of the GWOT when they illustrated the American mood at that time.

The Likely Result is Disaster”: “ … Mr. Biden’s choice was to leave U.S. forces in place, risking renewed conflict with the Taliban, or go forward with the pullout — even though it could lead to the collapse of the Afghan army and government …

The bargain struck by the Trump administration with the Taliban required it to: (A) Break all ties with al-Qaeda and other terrorist groups. According to U.N. and U.S. military officials, it has not done so.

(B) Nor has it been willing to negotiate seriously with the Afghan government about a peaceful settlement.

(C) It rejected a Biden administration proposal for a conference in Turkey to jump-start those talks, and it ridiculed U.S. proposals for a power-sharing arrangement with the government, as well as for new elections.

(D) The group’s leaders project the conviction that they will easily rout the government militarily once the United States leaves, and restore a harsh “Islamic emirate” such as the one they fashioned in the 1990s …

(S)ome officials say hopefully, the Taliban will moderate its denial of women’s rights and other repressive policies to preserve international aid, without which Afghanistan’s economy would implode.

If that assessment proves wrong, Mr. Biden’s decision to remove U.S. forces by the symbolic date of Sept. 11, 2021, may simply result in the

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restoration of the 2001 status quo, including terrorist bases that could force a renewed U.S. intervention …

At a minimum, it will mean an abandonment of those Afghans who believed in building a democracy that guaranteed basic human rights — and the nullification of the sacrifices of the American servicemen who were killed or wounded in that mission. Mr. Biden has chosen the easy way out of Afghanistan, but the consequences are likely to be ugly.”

”THE NEW YORK TIMES“ “How to End a Forever War. The Biden administration should support a regional effort to stabilize Afghanistan.”: “For years, the stalemate in Afghanistan has left American officials torn between two bad options: (A) Prop up a corrupt, hopelessly divided Afghan government indefinitely or, (B) Admit defeat and go home, leaving the country to its fate …

The U.S.-led effort in Afghanistan is already the longest war in American history. A consensus has been forming that it is time for U.S. troops to come home …

Mr. Biden opposed the Obama-era surge in Afghanistan and wrote in the spring *2020) in “Foreign Affairs” magazine that “it is past time to end the forever wars.”

But an American withdrawal does not have to mean ending financial support for the Afghan people or leaving the region in chaos.

The United States has a moral obligation to work with regional partners to try to clean up the mess we are leaving behind.

The United States would benefit from having a strategic vision for the region that was bigger than “no Al Qaeda.”

The Biden administration is better positioned to test the limits of regional diplomacy. While it is far from clear that Afghan talks can negotiate a political settlement that will end the war between the Taliban and the Afghan government, a coordinated regional approach is more likely to produce success than a rapid unilateral American withdrawal.

American soldiers should not be held hostage to a peace agreement that might never come. But with U.S. troops down to 2,500 soldiers, some portion of which is needed as a security umbrella for the embassy, the costs of the U.S. effort in Afghanistan have fallen sharply …”

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The New York Times building is seen on June 2020 ,30 in New York City. (Getty)

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Syrian Refugee Kitchens in Egypt Highlight Women›s Power A Way to Live and Feel at Home By: Salma Adham The Syrian war which broke out a decade ago displaced thousands of Syrians who fled their wartorn country to settle elsewhere – and a large number made Egypt their home. In a bid to earn a living, many Syrian men opened restaurants and the kitchens

for these eateries were managed by Syrian women who recreated original and authentic Syrian flavors for diners.

What helped the Syrian restaurants to provide the refugees with a steady income is the distinctive taste of Syrian cuisine. It also gave the Syrian women an opportunity to become financially independent and

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continue the culinary culture of their homeland.

Here are some authentic Syrian restaurants in Egypt and the stories behind them.

Zeit Zeitoun KITCHEN

Different kinds of Syrian food on table prepared by the Zeit Zaytoun kitchen. (Zeit Zaytoun FB page)

«One of the most beautiful comments I heard from my guests is “I felt like I am in Syria!»

This is because we preserve our Syrian food heritage. We cook as our ancestors used to do, for example, I strictly follow the recipes of my mother and grandmother,» Kassah said.

This project is run by Syrian Lina Shaker Kassah, age 46. The idea of the project started when Lina was the director of the Syrian Women›s Association Center in Al-Obour region in Egypt. The association conducted several income-generating activities, including the kitchen, the aim of which was to provide an income for the Syrian families.

«We opened the kitchen in 2016, and the team consists of six women now and meets certain standards to ensure the quality of food,” Lina Kassah the founder of Zeit Zeitoun project told Majalla. “Before the COVID19- pandemic, the team grew to 15 and the majority of the workers are Syrians and we have an stated.

Egyptian driver because he knows places well,».

The prices of food at Zeit Zeitoun are average «We provide food to Syrians, Egyptians, Lebanese and because they depend on the quality of food. Kassah other nationalities as well,» Kassah added. «Popular told Majallah that she is more particular about the items include stuffed grape leaves, vegetarian food, quality and the freshness of the food rather than the kabsa, kobeba, pies and pastries.» demand and number of plates sold.

The project presents Syrian and Damascus cuisine «If I make Sambousek for example, I am interested in only and it provides food for events in places such producing four excellent pieces better than producing as the Contemporary Picture Center and Goethe a hundred medium ones,» Kassah said.

Institute, embassies, weddings, and other gatherings. The project is the revenue-stream for six women and Working during Ramadan is a great their families, and the most beautiful thing challenge for Zeit Zeitoun says Lina is that it is becoming project. Members of the team increasingly popular in Egypt take orders a week earlier and is generating positive to avoid work pressure. feedback and excellent «The pandemic word-of-mouth affected us badly publicity. in the past year.

«One of the most Embassies and beautiful comments institutes closed I heard from my and there were guests is “I felt no events and like I am in Syria!» even after the This is because we places started to preserve our Syrian open, there are few food heritage. We numbers of people cook as our ancestors working and attending used to do, for example, I events. All this affects our strictly follow the recipes of work and I had to also reduce my mother and grandmother,» the number of women who work Kassah said. because of infection and social Syrian dish consists of Kobeba, Spinach pies, Zait Zaytoun also offers distancing precautions,» Kassah Cheese pies and chicken )Musakhan( classic Syrian sweets such as

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Mudlaqa with cream, Kunafa Nablusia, and Halawat Al-Jeben.

Kassah hopes to expand further in Egypt, and reach all homes and get back to the original level of busy kitchen traffic of the pre-pandemic times.

We cooperate with Egyptian companies regarding distribution and marketing, but we want to distribute more and reach Cairo without middleman companies

«We provide food to Syrians, Egyptians, Lebanese and other nationalities as well,» Kassah added. «Popular items include stuffed grape leaves, vegetarian food, kabsa, kobeba, pies and pastries.»

because the profit they take affects the team’s income.

We also hope to hire a place in Cairo because it is the capital and the work will be better.”

The project has a Facebook page highlighting the food, menu and offers. They try to be present on social media for feedback and to receivie requests.

MN BEITI L BEITAK )from my home to yours( Mervat Ayman Ghanem, 38, who has been living in Egypt for eight years now, has been providing homecooked Syrian food mainly for university students with the help of her mother. Her project ‘Mn Beiti l Beitak’ started three years ago.

«I have a WhatsApp group and when I started I sent the link to international student groups, whether Syrians, Jordanians, Palestinians or Iraqis,» Mervat told Majalla, «I worked in many places when I came to Egypt, but I decided to open this project because we as Syrians are good in making food, for example, we make Syrian kobeba, Fereek, Borek and pastries.

There were not many resources available either.

My mother and I also work on our own, and I am

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Syrian Kobeba before entering the oven )Mn Beiti l Beitak kitchen(

Syrian famous pastries )Manakeesh( )Zeit Zaytoun( )FB page(

responsible for all orders, bills, and cooking.»

It was not that easy to start a project on one’s own without facilities or a big team, she says. But she has built her reputation for wholesome food now and is popular especially with students.

The prices of the meals ranges from fifty to eighty pounds for a meal for two.

«I am looking forward to seeing that the project grow and making my own special place,» Mervat said.

Women prove in all times, places, and under any circumstances that they can face difficulties and find appropriate opportunities to flourish, grow and continue their lives.

Stuffed vine leaves with yogurt )Zeit Zaytoun FB page(

A Weekly Political News Magazine

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The Ramadan Singer: Mohamed Abdel-Muttalib www.majalla.com

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When Hairy Met Scaly...

‘Godzilla vs. Kong’ Review Michael Phillips These guys. You just want to see them happy.

It’s hard to be so alone, and angry, caught up in an ancient Hatfield-and-McCoy grudge up on Earth’s inhospitable surface. Nothing comes easily up there, among the nattering human species, when you just want to go home to Hollow Earth, where (as Robert Frost said) they have to take you in, and you settle your differences with a jaw snap or a skull-crack. No exposition,

no explanations.

Well into “Godzilla vs. Kong,” a solid roundhouse punch and the fourth film in the current run of Legendary Entertainment’s “MonsterVerse” franchise, we travel to the wondrous ecosystem at Earth’s core, where gravity goes flooey and Kong finally comes to know the green, green grass of home. It’s not exactly a lyric interlude; it’s just a minute or so of peace before it’s killing time again.

Ever since the fine, somber 2014 “Godzilla” directed

by Gareth Edwards, which took its time and had the

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Godzilla battles Kong in Warner Bros.

Pictures’ and Legendary Pictures’ action adventure “Godzilla vs. Kong.” (TNS(

nerve not to overexploit its main character, the MonsterVerse movies have focused more and more on pure action. Sometimes it’s driven by the radioactive city-crushing lizard (“Godzilla, King of the Monsters,” co-starring Mothra, Rodan and King Ghidorah). Sometimes it’s Kong-centric (“Kong: Skull Island”). These galoots have been eyeing each other since “King Kong vs. Godzilla” back in 1962, courtesy of Toho Studios.

The digital effects age was the stuff of evil scientists then.

But this is now. I really went for “Godzilla” and “Kong: Skull Island” (2017) and had a pretty good time with “Godzilla: King of the Monsters” (2019). After the perpetual rain and dim lighting of that one, though, the open-air panoramas of “Godzilla vs. Kong” are most welcome, even if the human storylines struggle for attention against the title characters’ idea of abrupt urban redevelopment.

Both Godzilla and Kong have a hold on our collective sympathies. It’s no spoiler (it’s in the trailer) to point out that eventually these two must set aside their differences, in Hong Kong, to combat a common humanmade enemy: Mechagodzilla. The script comes from Eric Pearson and Max Borenstein. Rebecca Hall, a tiny bit better (ahem) than her material, plays an anthropological linguist overseeing Kong’s “Truman Show”-like existence under human surveillance on Skull Island. Her adopted daughter, Jia (Kaylee Hottle), has a special bond with Kong, as the nominal male lead — the geologist and well-meaning doof played by Alexander Skarsgard — soon learns.

The weaselly billionaire head of Apex Cybernetics (Demian Bichir) sends his shark-like daughter (Eiza Gonzalez) to manipulate the activities of the do-gooders played by Hall and Skarsgard. Meantime, the daughter (Millie Bobby Brown) of a Monarch scientist (Kyle Chandler, perpetually on the outskirts) pokes around the Apex laboratory with a corporate whistleblower and underground podcaster (Brian Tyree Henry) and a fellow Godzilla nerd (Julian Dennison). Their scenes strain for laughs and tend to restate the same question: Why is Godzilla, humankind’s frenemy par excellence, in such a bad, destructive mood all of a sudden?

The big scenes make the movie, as if that even needed typing. Director Adam Wingard sets them up efficiently.

About 45 minutes in, Kong squares up against Godzilla underneath, and atop, aircraft carriers at sea. (Loss of life, undetermined.) After the Hollow Earth excursion, which recalls “Fantastic Voyage” at slightly higher speeds, the Hong Kong climax sets up a two-against-one

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The global COVID pandemic has accelerated the Hollywood studios’ rush to send everything down their streaming platforms at the expense of a traditional theatrical release. bout, and it’s a rouser.

Wingard’s work up until now has ranged, on low budgets, from “Autoerotic” (co-directed by Joe Swanberg) to “You’re Next” to “The Guest.” The creature realizations, the work of hundreds, are all that money can buy.

The battles are exciting, reasonably brutal but not sadistic. Neither Kong nor Godzilla constitutes a bad guy in any sense; they’re just misunderstood. The relationship between Jia and Kong offers the film’s only real grace notes, at once shameless and touching (literally, fingerto-finger at one point).

Besides Mechagodzilla, “Godzilla vs. Kong” has an additional unwanted adversary. The global COVID pandemic has accelerated the Hollywood studios’ rush to send everything down their streaming platforms at the expense of a traditional theatrical release. Wingard’s film premiered last week in theaters, where available, and also on HBO Max. Go out? Stay home? I’m sympathetic to both options, just as I’m sympathetic to both monsters.

Either way: Even if “Godzilla vs. Kong” feels more a tad more mecha than human, it satisfies nonetheless. The MonsterVerse remains a better-than-average franchise, pulling enough variations on its theme of Titans, clashing, to keep on keepin’ on.

’GODZILLA VS. KONG‘ 3 stars (out of 4) MPAA rating: PG-13 (intense sequences of creature violence/destruction and brief language) Running time: 1 hour, 53 minutes Where to watch: Now playing in theaters and on HBO Max through April 30.

This article was originally published on the Chicago Tribune.

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The Ramadan Singer: Mohamed Abdel-Muttalib

By Majalla Illustration by Ali Mandalawi More than half a century ago, the late popular singer Mohamed Abdel Muttalib sang his eternal masterpiece “Ramadan Ganaa (Ramadan Has Come!)”, which became an official announcement of the advent of the holy fasting month of Ramadan.

The song was written by the great poet, the late Hussein Tantawi, composed by the late musician Mahmoud al-Sharif, and it was sung for the first time by Abdel-Muttalib in 1965.

The song created with its words, melody and the pure voice of the late Abdul-Muttalib an unprecedented spiritual memory that has struck a chord with successive generations since then and has become like an official anthem heralding the coming of the month of Ramadan.

Mohamed Abdul-Muttalib Abdul-Aziz AlAhmar was born on Monday, August 13, 1910, in Shoubrakhit, Beheira Governorate.

In his childhood, Abdul-Muttalib was ac-

customed to hearing the holy Quran, religious songs as well as songs of the beginning of the twentieth century in Egypt. He also memorized the Qur’an and was familiar with the style of the famous recitation voices of those days.

Abdul-Muttalib used to greet his audience with a serious, not fawning and cheerful smile. He also had a popular greeting through a constant smile, lowering of the head and remarkable delivery of greetings to the band and to the audience.

He mastered the principles of the musical performance as he used to go to chanting concerts and listen to voices that were famous in the Arab world such as Sayed Darwish, Zakaria Ahmed, Saleh Abdel Hay, Badi’a Masabni and Muhammad Abdel Wahab. Abdel-Muttalib also worked in the band choir of the late composer, singer and actor Mohamed Abdel-Wahhab.

Abdul Muttalib’s songs also appeared in the cinema. The Egyptian cinema had paid early attention to the necessity of introducing songs into the cinematic story, with the aim of explaining and influencing the development of events. Thus, Abdul Muttalib’s songs spread throughout the radio, then cinema, then television, and he became a singer for extended generations, and not limited to one generation.

Abdul Muttalib’s special talent was not hidden for long. The first song Abdul Muttalib became famous for was in the early thirties. The song was “Betsalini bahbek leh (You Ask Me Why I Love You)”.

Despite being present in an artistic environment that was teeming with great voices, Abdul Muttalib was able to create for himself a distinct musical personality. He loved singing and loved his audience as they saluted and greeted him with a lot of respect and love

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Abdul-Muttalib passed away on Thursday, August 21, 1980, after a life that lasted seventy years and one week, but he left songs like lanterns that illuminate the path of his original art.

He also left to Ramadan’s lyrical heritage the eternal “Ramadan Ganaa” song that Arab Muslims remember in all countries, as if it is the anthem that goes into play whenever the crescent of Ramadan appears.

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Ramadan Lantern…Historic Symbol that Lights Up Nights of Holy Month Lanterns Vary Between Popular Customs, Economic Competition Mohammed Khalil – Cairo The holy month of Ramadan has started, bringing with it breezes of faith and joyful nights. Each year people celebrate this month by decorating the streets, hanging lanterns and singing Ramadan

songs, all of which have become part of the history, culture and folklore.

There are many stories about the origin of the lantern which is associated with the holy month. The most famous one states that the Fatimid Caliph used to go out on the night before Ramadan along with

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children, each of them carrying a lantern to light the way as they sang in celebration for the holy month.

According to Egyptian archeologist Dr. Abdel-Rahim Rayhan, the lantern has been associated with Egyptians since the 15th of Ramadan in the year 368 AH (972 AD) when the Caliph of the Fatimid Dynasty al-Muizz li-Dinillah entered Cairo, which he later made the capital of his state. Back then, Egyptians came out to greet the Caliph at the Giza desert carrying torches and lanterns and chanting greetings, most notably “Wahawi ya wahawi, Iyyahah.” The word “Iyyahah” is related to the moon in Ancient Egyptian, and the phrase became a special greeting to Ramadan’s crescent.

The song is Pharaonic in origin and its original text is “Qah Wi Wah Wi Aha,” which means “you have emerged, oh moon, you have emerged.” It also bears another welcome meaning “how beautiful is your appearance, moon,” as the moon was called “Aha” by the Pharaohs, according to the Professor of Archeology and Islamic Arts at the Faculty of Archeology at Cairo University, Dr. Ali Ahmed alTayish.

Tayish confirmed that after the Fatimids entered Egypt and the phenomenon of lanterns spread throughout the country, the song became associated with Ramadan only, although it was later linked to all lunar nights.

People shop from a stall selling Ramadan lanterns along a main street in the in the northern suburb of Shubra of Egypt’s capital Cairo on April 12, 2021, at the start of the Muslim holy fasting month of Ramadan )Getty(

The most famous story states that the Fatimid Caliph used to go out on the night before Ramadan along with children, each of them carrying a lantern to light the way as they sang in celebration for the holy month. ple to wake up for the suhoor meal (last evening meal before fasting).

LANTERN MANUFACTURING WORKSHOPS

The manufacturing of tinplate lanterns began in small workshops in several areas in Cairo, the most famous of which was the branching quarter of Bab al-Khalq Square, followed by other places in several governorates such as Beheira and Faiyum. The use of lanterns later began to be implemented in other cities in the region, especially Damascus, Aleppo, Jerusalem, the Gaza Strip and most Arab countries, becoming a ritual in the holy month. Lanterns were RAMADAN’S LANTERN FOR also created from tin and glass, in which craftsmen ENTERTAINMENT excelled in their manufacturing process by adding During the era of the Fatimid state, the lantern stained glass and forming them in multiple shapes. shifted from a night-lighting source for the streets As the use of plastic developed over time, China bein Ramadan to an entertainment device. Back then, came the largest exporter of lanterns after incorpothe Fatimid Caliph ordered the imams of mosques rating into them Ramadan-related audios and songs. to hang lanterns in the streets at night during the China also created lanterns in the form of dolls holy month. However, nowadays children roam the of famous figures, such as a lantern of Mohamed streets at night, asking for gifts and sweets such as Salah, the Egyptian professional football player in England, Bogy and Tamtam and other figures. kunafa, qatayef, and Eid cakes.

This year, lanterns created in the form of a RamaAccording to Dr. Rayhan, women during that era dan cannon and an illuminated T-shirt were sold in were forbidden from going out at night except dur- all of the country’s markets and have become very ing Ramadan to travel to mosques, provided that a popular. However, the old traditional lantern topped young boy carried a lit lantern in his hand so that the sales after the government issued Decisions No. passers-by would know that there are women and to 9, 34 and 92 that banned the import of lanterns and clear the way for them. It is also said that the origin children’s toys except to foreign factories registered of the lantern was associated with the presence of in Egypt. the mesaharati, who roamed the streets before dawn Lantern manufacturing is an active industry with young boys carrying lanterns, calling on peo- throughout the year despite its close association

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with Ramadan. Lantern factories are spread over Cairo, which has the most famous lantern-making workshops, including the over 50-year old Umm Ibrahim workshop in Al-Sayyida Zaynab, which is located in the Wardani neighborhood near the famous fish market. Dozens of people work in this workshop, where the number of orders sees a hike several months before Ramadan.

Lantern-making workshops are also spread in the Bab al-Luq area, and the centers and cities of the Beheira governorate, the most famous of which is Uncle Abdo’s workshop in al-Mahmoudiya, where various shapes of lantern are created, including a triangle, ball, cup and a jewel.

The small lantern takes about two hours to make, while the large lantern, which contains four small lanterns, takes about 10 hours. There are also workshops in the old Saifiyah area, which is one of the popular neighborhoods in Faiyum city. The most famous of the workshops there is Ahmed Founia’s workshop, which was founded 60 years ago. Wooden lantern workshops also opened in Damietta governorate, the most famous of which is the Mohammed al-Kafrawi workshop.

The small lantern takes about two hours to make, while the large lantern, which contains four small lanterns, takes about 10 hours. There are also workshops in the old Saifiyah area, which is one of the popular neighborhoods in Faiyum city.

LANTERN IMPORT BILL Reports about the worth of Egypt’s import bill for Ramadan lanterns varied this year. According to Ahmed Abu Gabal, head of the school supplies and children’s toys division at the Cairo Chamber of Commerce, the import bill for Ramadan lanterns amounted to about $10 million. Importers in the Federation of Chambers of Commerce, for their part, affirmed that Egypt imported lanterns from China with a cost exceeding $30 million despite the high shipping rates. This led merchants to raise the prices by 30 percent compared to 2020.

However, official data released by the Federation of Egyptian Chambers of Commerce indicated that all the lanterns offered for sale in Egyptian markets in Ramadan 2020 were 100 percent homemade, ruling out imported lanterns. More than four million lanterns were locally manufactured during the pandemic, said Barakat Safa, head of the stationary division at the Cairo Chamber of Commerce.

Ahmed Shiha, head of the Importers’ Division in the Cairo Chamber, affirmed that the availability of Ramadan lanterns was not affected by the low imports from China. This year’s Chinese lantern is different in shape and design compared to last year, he said, which made it the best seller despite its high prices that ranged between EGP100 and 400, depending on the material.

RECOVERY OF HOMEMADE EGYPTIAN LANTERNS The import ban decision has contributed to the recovery of the Egyptian lantern industry and its popularity, especially in the Al-Sayyida Zaynab market in Cairo, the Mansheya market in Alexandria, and the wooden lantern market in Damietta. The prices of the homemade lanterns were lower than those imported from China.

Despite the flexibility in the lanterns’ wholesale prices, which ranged between EGP10 to 200, the

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Egyptians buy the traditional lanterns of Ramadan, on display in the Bab al-Shaariya district of Islamic Cairo, 07 December 1999 )Getty(

demand is considered moderate, Ahmed Tharwat, the lantern vender in the wholesale market in France Street in Mansheya, Alexandria, told Al Majalla. He attributed this moderate turnout to the repercussions of the second wave of the coronavirus pandemic. This prompted him to replace selling traditional lanterns with “Wahawi ya wahawi, Iyyahah” T-shirts with a luminous lantern image, which are cheaper in price, and small lantern medals, with prices ranging between EGP3 and 10 pounds, and the finest ones selling for EGP25, depending on the size and material.

The owner of a workshop that manufactures wooden lanterns in the al-Shuaraa area in Damiettan Munjid Amer told Al Majalla that the decision gave local workshops the opportunity to innovate.

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Amer noted that this year was the first time he used the art of creating furniture for manufacturing wooden lanterns in varying forms by using laser engraving machines, which led to their extensive distribution in the markets.

However, he affirmed that the metal lantern did not lose its popularity despite its relatively high price.

Manufacturing wooden lanterns also contributed to revitalizing wood and furniture factories and reducing unemployment rates, he said.

Amer further pointed out that those who buy the tin lanterns are among the people interested in preserving antiques and traditional pieces, particularly the elderly, shop owners and large commercial chains.

“For them, the lantern represents a significant anniversary,” he concluded.

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When Nerves Need Verve Mental Energy: Human Resource That Sometimes Seeks An Assist

By David Ronnlid Remember the definition of energy from high school physics? The capacity to carry out work. That is also what people mean when they talk about their own energy level.

If you tell your friend you got super-energized by taking a run while listening to a rock song, what you are actually saying is that your capacity for productive output was enhanced for some time after your run.

When you›re full of energy, life feels easy, and it›s easy to stay motivated. General health, sleep status, nutrition, and medication--all influence mental energy.

While physical energy has long been well-defined and measurable, only recently have scientists focused on mental energy. Reporting in Nutritional Neuroscience, Patrick J. O›Connor, of the University of Georgia, and colleagues identified three distinct aspects of mental energy: Cognition, or sustained attention and vigilance, choicereaction time Motivation, the determination to do mental work and enthusiasm for it Mood, or feelings of having the capacity to complete mental and physical activities, and/or the absence of feelings of fatigue

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Woman rubbing her eyes in front of laptop.

Working in home office during Covid-19 lockdown )Getty(

The three elements of mental energy are measured with cognitive tests; visual analog scales, often used to assay the intensity of moods; and sometimes even brain scans.

The visual analog scales give definition to such subjective characteristics as study participants› mood states.

Researchers also measure reaction time and accuracy of performance on cognitive tasks to assess vigilance and fatigue.

Mental energy is important in its own right, but studies show that it also triggers physical energization, fueling efforts to perform physical tasks.

There›s evidence that consuming certain natural substances can increase a person›s mental energy level. Think of the jolt you get from caffeine. The science of agents that can boost mental energy goes far beyond caffeine.

Because the neurotransmitter dopamine is associated with motivation for reward, people often think of dopamineboosting drugs when it comes to increasing motivation and energy levels pharmacologically. Caffeine, for example, is a dopaminergic drug. Dextroamphetamine, an amphetamine variant often used to treat attention deficit disorder, and modafinil, a prescription drug developed for the treatment of narcolepsy, are two stimulant agents often used by students to increase their energy level for late-night study sessions. Both drugs exert their energyboosting effects through dopamine pathways in the central nervous system.

Many stimulants people consume to increase energy are illegal in most countries, but that doesn›t keep their users from trying to get an edge. A 2016 survey of Oxford University students found that 15.6 percent had taken illicit drugs that year to improve their academic performance.

Modafinil and other stimulants do seem to enhance energy levels and motivation the day they are taken. One study found that healthy people who took 300 mg of modafinil experienced improved vigilance and motivation and less fatigue--all three aspects of mental energy--compared with healthy controls who received a placebo.

Many stimulant drugs come with potential psychological side effects that are poorly understood scientifically. For example, modafinil appears to induce overconfidence in one›s own cognitive performance in sleep-deprivation circumstances. Although the drugs may be useful and safe, there is not enough science on the long-term psychological effects to recommend their use.

Although it›s far from invariable, there›s some evidence that substances that occur naturally in foods and in the human body are safer than man-made drugs. As substances we›ve evolved in tandem with, they are likely to be handled relatively well by our system. When taken in the form of a supplement, they can boost energy levels.

Coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10) is an antioxidant naturally present in the human body and in many foods. It plays a role in cellular energy production and antioxidant defense of tissue. Studies show it particularly protects the heart and

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When you’re full of energy, life feels easy, and it’s easy to stay motivated. General health, sleep status, nutrition, and medication--all influence mental energy. blood vessels. It is found in high amounts (30mg/serving) in organ meats.

CoQ10 exists naturally in different variations, ubiquinol being the best-absorbed and most-studied form of this ergogenic substance. In daily doses of 100 mg and 150 mg for 12 weeks, it has been found effective for increasing motivation and mental energy levels compared with a placebo.

CoQ10 also significantly reduces subjective fatigue, objectively measured fatigue, and subjective sleepiness after demanding cognitive tasks. The greater the blood level of CoQ10, researchers have found, the greater the effect on maintaining mental energy and reducing mental fatigue.

Of all the micronutrients supplied by food, vitamin B12, or cobalamin, ranks as one of the most important for brain function. It takes only a tiny amount to avert a deficiency, but vegetarians and vegans are at special risk. So are the elderly, as consumption and absorption often decline with age. Studies show that neurological deficits can occur even in the presence of «normal» blood levels.

Several large-scale surveys indicate that around 3 percent of the population in developed countries is deficient in vitamin B12, but that may be an undercount as scientists are gathering evidence that current recommended blood levels for the vitamin are set too low. Even low-normal levels of vitamin B12 increase the risk for cognitive impairment, mental fatigue, neuropathy, and anemia in the elderly.

Both CoQ10 and vitamin B12 can help people safely maintain high energy levels throughout the workday.

Vitamin B12 confers its benefits primarily on those who are marginally or frankly deficient in the vitamin. CoQ10, on the other hand, appears effective for people whether or not they have a clinically diagnosable deficiency of the nutrient.

Stay tuned. The science of mental energy boosters is just getting started.

This article was originally published on Psychology Today.

David Ronnlid is a member of the Nootralize information group.

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Egypt’s AntiCoronavirus Robot Engineer Invents Robot to Reduce Patients’ Contact with Medical Staff Amid Pandemic 56

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El Komy believes that, with increasing coronavirus cases and an unknown end of the pandemic, having such robots would be of paramount importance to reduce costs and save lives. distancing between the coronavirus patients and the medical staff,” El Komy told Majalla.

El Komy believes that, with increasing coronavirus cases and an unknown end of the pandemic, having such robots would be of paramount importance to reduce costs and save lives.

“This does not only save lives, but it also saves the protective clothes and masks used by the doctors and the patients,” he added.

Egypt has spent 23 million Egyptian pounds between July and September 2020 to subsidize medical masks and add them to ration cards.

A total of 2.7 million masks were subsidized to ration card holders during this period.

Mahmoud El Komy, 27, poses for a photo besides his robot Cira03- inside his house in Tanta city, north of Cairo.

THIRD WAVE OF CORONAVIRUS

Menna A. Farouk A few months after the March 2020 lockdown in Egypt, an engineer invented a talking robot in his Tanta City house to help coronavirus patients reduce their contact with medical teams.

Mahmoud El Komy, a -27year-old mechatronics engineer, used artificial intelligence to create Cira03- which not only protects medical crews at hospitals, but also takes PCR tests from both the nose and the throat.

“The main aim of this robot is to apply social

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A health ministry spokesman said this month that Egypt has entered the third wave of the coronavirus pandemic as there is an increase in the number of infections.

According to data released by the World Health Organization (WHO), there have been 216,334 confirmed cases of COVID19- with 12,738 deaths in Egypt from January 2020 ,3 to April 2021 ,19. As of April 2021 ,13, a total of 355,104 vaccine doses have been administered.

In addition to taking PCR tests, the AI-powered talking robot can function at hospitals as well

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as in public places to count the number of people and measure their temperatures.

It also has the “gate guard” option to see

“Of course as there is now a computer in every house, in the future there will be a robot in every house. And not only in every house but in all establishments, including banks.

Robots will be everywhere in the future. They will learn from human beings,” El Komy said.

whether people are wearing masks or not.

“Your temperature is not normal. Go to the nearest analysis center,” the robot says when someone approaches it without wearing a mask.

The young engineer is able to control the robot from any place in Egypt or abroad. He is now also developing its functions to include early disease detection.

“Cira’s vision is to diagnose all diseases by taking the relevant data from doctors. Then I train the robot to recognize this data whether by way of voices, photos or x-rays. This will generally help in early disease detection,” El Komy said.

El Komy won a silver medal at the International Exhibition of Inventions Geneva 2021 for inventing Cira03-.

ROBOT IN EVERY HOME The mechatronics engineer hopes that the

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Cira03- is pictured inside the house of mechatronics engineer Mahmoud El Komy in Tanta city, north of Cairo. (Photo by Menna A. Farouk)

Mahmoud El Komy and his assistant Abdelrahman Hossam inside El-Komy’s house in Tanta city, north of Cairo

use of robotics in Egypt will be part of a global trend to rely on artificial intelligence and machine learning in carrying out various tasks and solving problems.

“Of course as there is now a computer in every house, in the future there will be a robot in every house. And not only in every house but in all establishments, including banks. Robots will be everywhere in the future. They will learn from human beings,” El Komy said.

In September last year, Elon Musk›s neuroscience startup Neuralink revealed a «dramatically simplified» design for an implant that aims to create brain-to-machine interfaces, alongside the robot that inserts it and several pigs that have the device installed.

Neuralink is developing this implant to connect human brains with computer interfaces via artificial intelligence.

According to Statista, there are 12 million

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“Cira’s vision is to diagnose all diseases by taking the relevant data from doctors.

Then I train the robot to recognize this data whether by way of voices, photos or x-rays. This will generally help in early disease detection,” El Komy said. robotic units worldwide in 2020 while global spending on military robotics is set to reach 16.5$ billion in 2025. Robotics already employs about 150,000 people worldwide in engineering and assembly jobs.