In this mailing:
- Khaled Abu Toameh: Is the Palestinian Authority Losing Control in the West Bank?
- Peter Martino: The U.S. Politics of the Eurocrisis
- Baris Pehlivan: Letter from Imprisoned Journalist Baris Pehlivan
Is the Palestinian Authority Losing Control in the West Bank?
by Khaled Abu
Toameh
June 18, 2012 at 5:00 am
June 18, 2012 at 5:00 am
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The
security crackdown in the West Bank has nothing to do with combating terrorism.
The arrests and confiscations of weapons are part of an effort by the
Palestinian Authority to fight crime and dissension within its own ranks.
In recent weeks, the Palestinian Authority
security forces have been launching a massive crackdown on anarchy and
lawlessness in various parts of the West Bank.
The crackdown was ordered by Abbas after he
discovered what many Palestinians have known for a long time: that his security
forces and Fatah loyalists are responsible for the chaos and anarchy.
Palestinians say this is the biggest operation
to be carried out by the Western-funded security forces since Mahmoud Abbas was
elected to succeed Yasser Arafat as president of the Palestinian Authority in
2005,
Dozens of Palestinian security officers, some
of them holding very high ranks, have thus far been rounded up and transferred
to a Palestinian prison in Jericho.
The officers, who were trained and armed by US
and EU security experts over the past years, are suspected of involvement in
various types of crime, including extortion, armed robbery, kidnappings,
physical assaults and fraud. Some of them, according to Palestinian sources in
the West Bank, are also suspected of involvement in trafficking weapons and
drugs, The clampdown was ordered by Abbas following a series of incidents in
Jenin, which reached their peak when unidentified gunmen opened tried to
assassinate the Palestinian governor of the city, Kadoura Musa, who was not
hurt in the assassination bid, but died a few hours later of a massive heart
attack.
Jenin residents said that the assassination
attempt provided further evidence that the Palestinian Authority has lost
control over their city. They said that for the past few years, Jenin has been
under the control of local gangs whose members consisted mostly of former Fatah
militiamen and security officers.
The ongoing security crackdown has also
resulted in the arrest of scores of Fatah gunmen who were part of the faction's
armed wing, Aqsa Martyrs Brigades.
These security officers and Fatah gunmen have
been imposing a reign of terror and intimidation on Palestinians not only in
Jenin, but in other parts of the West Bank, including Nablus, the largest
Palestinian city, and its nearby Balatta refugee camp.
Palestinian security sources say that the
crackdown has also resulted in the confiscation of dozens of rifles and
pistols, as well as large amounts of ammunition, that were found in the
possession of clans, armed gangs and unruly security officers.
But while many Palestinians have expressed
satisfaction with the decision to restore law and order, others have,
meanwhile, criticized Abbas for acting in a "hysterical" manner.
Abbas's critics complain that the weapons that
his security forces have confiscated were being kept for use against Israel.
In Balatta refugee camp last week, dozens of
Palestinians took to the streets, chanting slogans against Abbas and his
security forces. The protest drew a harsh response from Abbas, who instructed
his security personnel to expand the crackdown inside the camp.
In the short term, the Palestinian Authority
may succeed in restoring law and order to areas under its control in the West
Bank. But in the long term, the clampdown will increase bitterness and
frustration among a large number of Fatah gunmen and security officers who feel
betrayed by Abbas.
Abbas loyalists argue that their president if
facing an "international conspiracy" aimed at undermining and
isolating him because of his refusal to resume peace talks with Israel.
According to these loyalists, Abbas's enemies have been arming and funding
disillusioned Fatah gunmen and security officers in a bid to spread anarchy and
lawlessness in the West Bank.
Sources close to Abbas have identified the
primary enemies as Mohammed Rashid, a former aide to Yasser Arafat, and
Mohammed Dahlan, a former Fatah security chief. Both Rashid and Dahlan are
currently waging a smear campaign against Abbas and his two businessmen sons,
Tarek and Yasser, accusing them of financial corruption and abuse of power.
The security crackdown in the West Bank has
nothing to do with combating terrorism. The arrests and confiscation of weapons
are part of an effort by the Palestinian Authority to fight crime and
dissension within its own ranks.
The clampdown could last for weeks or months.
Abbas is fighting to regain control over refugee camps and other Palestinian
communities that have fallen into the hands of gangsters and thugs.
In the last week, Abbas has renewed his threat
to go back to the UN to ask for recognition of a Palestinian state if Israel
does not comply with his demand for a freeze of settlement construction and
acceptance of the pre-1967 lines as the future borders of the state. But before
he heads back to New York, Abbas will have to prove that he has not lost
control over certain parts of the territories which are supposed to be under
his jurisdiction.
Related Topics: Khaled Abu
Toameh
The U.S. Politics of the Eurocrisis
by Peter Martino
June 18, 2012 at 4:00 am
June 18, 2012 at 4:00 am
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The problem
is, however, that that even if Britain and the United States join in, European
economies such as Greece and Spain keep contracting, making it ever more
difficult for them to overcome their debt problems. Consequently they will keep
on needing one bailout after another.
The eurocrisis has been festering for well over
two years. What initially looked like a small problem, involving relatively
small peripheral countries such as Greece, Portugal and Ireland, is now
dragging the entire European economy into a recession.
During his first three and a half years in the
White House, Europe was not high on Barack Obama's priorities. Belatedly,
however, Obama seems to have realized that his own reelection next November
might be in jeopardy if the eurocrisis leads to worldwide financial instability
and global economic depression. Europe is the world's largest trading bloc.
Thousands of American jobs depend on trade with Europe. Obama's chances of
reelection are bound to diminish as soon as Americans start to lose jobs as a
result of a eurocrisis spun out of control.
Nicolas Sarkozy, the former President of
France, hoped that he would be reelected by the time that the eurocrisis would
begin to affect France. He was wrong. France was hit sooner and deeper than
Sarkozy expected, and he lost the elections. Similarly, Obama hopes that the
eurocrisis will not begin to affect America before November. Play for time is
the only thing he can do. And playing for time means the same for Obama as it
meant for Sarkozy: He needs to persuade Germany to buy time by bailing out the
bankrupt economies in Southern Europe.
During the past weeks, Obama has spent many
hours on the phone with European leaders – and in particular with German
Chancellor Angela Merkel -- to find a way to contain the eurocrisis. At this
week's G-20 summit in Los Cabos, Mexico, more pressure was exerted on Frau
Merkel.
Germany, Europe's economic powerhouse, is the
only country in Europe capable of bailing out insolvent countries such as
Greece and providing enough financial backing to prop up Spain's collapsing
banks.
The problem is, however, that even if Britain
and the United States join in, the European economies along the Mediterranean
such as Greece and Spain keep contracting, making it ever more difficult for
them to overcome their debt problems. Consequently, they will keep on needing
one bailout after another, without the prospect of improvement in the
foreseeable future. In 2010, Greece received a first bailout of €110bn. Germany
provided the bulk of the money. Earlier this year, Athens received a second
bailout of an even more staggering €130bn. Again, Germany provided the bulk of
the money. This summer, Greece will need a third bailout. Meanwhile, last week,
the eurozone countries decided to give Spain €100bn to bail out its banks. As
usual, Germany will have to pay most of the money. But analysts say that another
€200bn might be needed to save the Spanish banking sector.
As long as the Germans believe that it is in
their interest to save the euro, the common European currency which ties
Germany to countries such as Greece and Spain, they are prepared to keep paying
the euro's rising price tag. But the German people are becoming exasperated and
angry.
A growing number of Germans is losing faith in
the eurozone. Others feel betrayed. Even ten years ago, when the euro was
introduced as the common currency of several European countries, a majority of
Germans was reluctant to give up the D-mark for the euro. They were reassured,
however, by their politicians' promise that there would be no bailouts.
Bailouts between European countries are, in fact, prohibited by the European
treaties. Nevertheless, Europe's politicians have found legal loopholes to
impose them anyhow. Reluctantly, national parliaments have consented to the
bailouts out of fear that the bankruptcy of one eurozone country would drag the
entire monetary union down.
A poll last week suggested that 69% of the
Germans want Greece to leave the euro and return to the drachma, and 29% of the
Germans want Germany to leave the euro and return to the D-mark. Either event –
a Greek exit or a German exit – is expected to have enormous repercussions and
dramatic consequences, not just for Europe but for the entire global economy.
The cost would be enormous, but some Germans reckon that ultimately the price
tag for Germany might be less than the price of continuing with the present
policies of seemingly endless bailouts.
To secure his own reelection, Obama has to
persuade Merkel to keep footing the euro bill at least until his own reelection
is assured in November. Obama is fortunate that Merkel is a staunch believer in
European integration and seems prepared to continue the present policies, even
in disregard of her own rising unpopularity among the German electorate.
Last Thursday, however, Merkel
warned that Germany is not strong enough to prop up the rest of Europe.
"Germany's strength is not infinite. Its powers are not unlimited,"
she said in a speech delivered in the Bundestag, the German Parliament, but
meant for her colleagues of the G-20 and especially for Barack Obama. Merkel
wants the G-20 to help the Germans prop up the collapsing economies of the
European periphery. "It is a herculean task, but it is unavoidable,"
she said, but hinted that Germany cannot continue to do it on its own.
Consequently, if Obama and other world leaders
want Merkel to keep propping up the euro with German taxpayers' money, they
will have to share some of the burden. Soon, the world will have to come to the
rescue of Europe, and help to bail out the eurozone. Merkel knows that Obama
needs reelection in November and that, if she wants to be successful in her
effort to persuade America to assist her in her euro rescue effort, she needs
to do it now. Until November, the euro's problems are Obama's problems, too.
Related Topics: Peter Martino
Letter from Imprisoned Journalist Baris Pehlivan
by Baris Pehlivan
June 18, 2012 at 3:00 am
June 18, 2012 at 3:00 am
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"I
have been sitting in prison for 17 months without any final verdict. The
foundation of the case is based on fraudulent digital documents proven to have
been planted on our computers by hackers. Nevertheless, my detention
continues."
My dear colleagues,
I have been imprisoned for 17 months with the
Odatv case, the clearest proof of the pressure on the freedoms of press and
expression in Turkey. Hidden behind the prevarication of a "terror
organization," journalism itself is being tried. Indeed: in the 134-page
indictment, the word "news" appears 361 times; the word
"book," 280 times; the words "column/editorial " 53 times;
the word "interview," 26 times, and the word "article," 5
times. These are the most common words used to accuse the detained journalists
in the Odatv indictment.
Along with these, in the 134-page indictment,
the words "Fethullah Gülen" and "Cemaat"[1] were used 111
times. These figures clarify the essence of the indictment. News reports, books,
and articles have been presented as "criminal evidence."
The foundation of the Odatv case is based on
fraudulent digital documents proven to have been planted on our computers by
hackers. Three Turkish universities (Yıldız Technical University, Middle East
Technical University, and Bosphorus University) and one USA-based IT company
have verified that these digital data did not belong to us and were uploaded by
viruses.
Nevertheless, my detention continues.
My dear colleagues,
In conclusion, due to my activities as a
journalist, I am unfortunately deprived unlawfully of freedom in my own
country. I have been sitting in prison for 17 months without any final verdict.
Journalism is a universal profession. Wherever a journalist is arrested and
thrown into prison for doing his or her job, all of the world's journalists are
under threat. Within this context, I hope the sensitivity you have shown
against the trial of journalism in Turkey will continue until the end.
Thank you very much for your attention and support.
Sincerely,
Baris Pehlivan
Odatv.com Editor in Chief
Odatv.com Editor in Chief
[1] "Cemaat' is an Arabic word, used in
Turkish, which translates to "community." It is the word used to
describe the followers and supporters of Fethullah Gülen, a very controvesial
figure in Turkish society.
Related Topics: Turkey
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