French Court Rules for Release of Lebanese Activist Georges Ibrahim Abdallah
The former head of the Lebanese Armed Revolutionary Brigade (LARB) was sentenced to life in 1987 for his role in the 1982 murders in Paris of US military attaché Charles Ray and Israeli diplomat Yacov Barsimantov, and the attempted murder of US Consul General Robert Homme in Strasbourg in 1984.
Officials at the French appeals court did not immediately reply for a comment on the situation.
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Arab News
2 hours ago
- Arab News
How global unity can end Israel's Gaza genocide
The consequences of the Israeli genocide in Gaza will be dire. An event of this barbarity, sustained by an international conspiracy of moral inertia and silence, will not be relegated to history as just another conflict or a mere tragedy. The Gaza genocide will be a catalyst for major events to come. Israel and its benefactors are acutely aware of this reality. This is why Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is in a race against time, desperately trying to ensure his country remains relevant, if not standing, in the coming era. He is pursuing this through territorial expansion in Syria, relentless aggression against Lebanon and, of course, the desire to annex all the Palestinian territories it occupies. But history cannot be controlled with such precision. However clever he may think he is, Netanyahu has already lost the ability to influence the outcome. He has been unable to set a clear agenda in Gaza, let alone achieve any strategic goals in a 365 sq. km expanse of destroyed concrete and ashes. The Gazans have proven that their collective 'sumud' (steadfastness) can defeat one of the world's best-equipped armies. History has taught us that changes of great magnitude are inevitable. The true heartbreak is that such change is not happening fast enough to save a starving population in Gaza and that the growing pro-Palestinian sentiment is not expanding at the rate needed to achieve a decisive political outcome. Our confidence in this inevitable change is rooted in history. The First World War was not just a 'Great War' but a cataclysmic event that shattered the geopolitical order of its time. Four empires were fundamentally reshuffled; some, like the Austro-Hungarian and Ottoman, were erased from existence. However clever he may think he is, Netanyahu has already lost the ability to influence the outcome. Dr. Ramzy Baroud The new world order resulting from the First World War was short-lived. The international system we have today is a direct outcome of the Second World War. This includes the UN and all the Western-centric economic, legal and political institutions that were forged at Bretton Woods in 1944, such as the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund and, ultimately, NATO, thus sowing the seeds of yet more global conflict. The fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989 was heralded as the event that would resolve the lingering conflicts of the post-Second World War geopolitical struggle. It supposedly ushered in a new and permanent global realignment — or, to some, the 'end of history.' History, however, had other plans. Not even the horrific Sept. 11, 2001, attacks and the subsequent US-led wars could reinvent the global order in a way that was consistent with US-Western interests and priorities. Gaza is infinitely small when judged by its geography, economic worth or political import. Yet, it has proven to be the most significant global event in terms of defining this generation's political consciousness. The fact that the self-proclaimed guardians of the post-Second World War order are the very entities that are violently and brazenly violating every international and humanitarian law is enough to fundamentally alter our relationship with the 'rules-based order' championed by the West. This may not seem significant now, but it will have profound, long-term consequences. It has largely compromised and, in fact, delegitimized the moral authority imposed, often through violence, by the West over the rest of the world for decades, especially in the Global South. Gaza has proven to be the most significant global event in terms of defining this generation's political consciousness. Dr. Ramzy Baroud This self-imposed delegitimization will also impact the very idea of democracy, which has been under siege in many countries, including in the West. This is only natural, considering that most of the planet feels strongly that Israel must end its genocide and that its leaders must be held accountable. Yet, little to no action has been taken. The shift in Western public opinion in favor of Palestinians is astounding when considered against the backdrop of the media's dehumanization of the Palestinian people and various governments' blind allegiance to Israel. More shocking is that this shift is largely the result of the work of ordinary people on social media, activists mobilizing in the streets and independent journalists, mostly in Gaza, working under extreme duress and with minimal resources. The left is problematic in its own way. While not a monolith and while many on the left have championed the global protests against the genocide, others remain splintered and unable to form a unified front, even temporarily. Some leftists are still chasing their own tail, crippled by the worry that being anti-Zionist will earn them the label of being antisemitic. For this group, self-policing and self-censorship are preventing them from taking decisive action. History does not take its cues from Israel or the Western powers. Gaza will result in the kind of global shifts that will affect us all, far beyond the Middle East. For now, however, it is most urgent that we use our collective will and actions to influence a single historical event: ending the genocide and famine in Gaza. The rest will be left to history and to those who wish to be relevant when the world changes again. • Dr. Ramzy Baroud is a journalist, author and the editor of The Palestine Chronicle. His latest book, 'Before the Flood,' will be published by Seven Stories Press. His website is X: @RamzyBaroud
Arab News
3 hours ago
- Arab News
Factions pour fuel on the fire of regional maps
Can a country, no matter how large, contain two armies, two authorities and two 'states?' Is obligatory coexistence just a form of truce until one army succeeds in defeating the other? Is a clash between the two armies, two authorities and two states inevitable because the factions are impeding countries from heading toward a time of stability and investment? Have the countries grown weary of factions and decided to return to a time of normal states after paying a heavy price during the time of militias? The time of the factions did not succeed in deterring the savagery of Benjamin Netanyahu's army. It all began during a meeting at a Beirut apartment between Iranian and Lebanese activists in the wake of the success of Ayatollah Khomeini's revolution. The focus was on how to fortify the regime of the revolution against potential dangers. The gatherers believed that the ouster of Mohammed Mosaddegh's government in 1953 was a strong example of why regular armies should not be trusted. They believed that such armies tended to pounce whenever they sensed an impending revolution or whiff of change. They also believed that armies were a possible source of danger because they could be infiltrated by Western intelligence services. The gatherers were therefore in agreement on the need to come up with a force that would prevent a segment of the Iranian army from rising up against the Khomeinist revolution. Anis Al-Naqqash claimed that he was the first to propose the idea of forming the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps. The Iranian model would be replicated in other countries in the region as part of the 'Axis of Resistance' project. Following the Israeli invasion of Lebanon in 1982, and with then-Syrian President Hafez Assad's approval, Khomeini formed Hezbollah in Lebanon as the first tangible implementation of Iran's policy of 'exporting the revolution' that is enshrined in its constitution. Iran would go on to transform southern Lebanon into an Iranian-Israeli front, when it had previously served as a Palestinian-Israeli one. As it clashed with Israel over the years, Hezbollah gained a halo of sorts, transforming into its own army and statelet. Despite Lebanon's diverse composition, Hezbollah became the country's sole decision-maker that had the final say over presidents and governments. Khomeini formed Hezbollah in Lebanon as the first tangible implementation of Iran's policy of 'exporting the revolution.' Ghassan Charbel It even took away from the government one of its most important powers: the decision of war and peace. Hezbollah never consulted anyone when it embarked on its mission to save Bashar Assad's regime with Iran and Russia's backing. It never consulted anyone when it opened its 'support front' in solidarity with Gaza following the Oct. 7, 2023, Al-Aqsa Flood Operation. The Syrian army, meanwhile, overestimated its own strength before realizing it would be unable to save the Assad regime. So, it turned to pro-Iran militias and Russian air power. Iran would also reap another success, this time in Iraq, where Gen. Qassem Soleimani would turn Grand Ayatollah Ali Al-Sistani's fatwa to take part in the fight against Daesh into an opportunity to form a parallel army called the Popular Mobilization Forces. Of course, we cannot deny the role of the PMF in fighting Daesh, but recent developments in Iraq are demonstrating the difficulty of having two armies coexisting in one map. We can add to the above the Houthi coup in Yemen, which completed the Axis of Resistance, marking an unprecedented success for Iran. It managed to not only surround Israel, but also some other countries in the region. It established a group of armies to serve as its proxies and keep danger away from its own territory. Iran possessed decisive cards in four countries that it could leverage in any serious negotiations with the US. Building the Axis of Resistance demanded billions of dollars and meddling in the internal affairs of other countries. It built massive tunnel networks, set up weapons smuggling routes and carried out attacks, bombings and assassinations. With the axis all set up, Iran appeared to be the Middle East's most powerful player. However, the axis would eventually break apart due to three factors: Israel's military superiority on various fronts, the assassination of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, and the toppling of the Assad regime in Syria. Recent developments in Iraq are demonstrating the difficulty of having two armies coexisting in one map. Ghassan Charbel Iran has so far refused to acknowledge the new reality in the region, even after the war reached its own skies and claimed the lives of its generals and scientists. It is having a hard time admitting that Yahya Sinwar's Al-Aqsa Flood Operation turned into a calamity for the Axis of Resistance. The axis lost Syria — its most significant link — and Hezbollah, with its ability to fight or deter Israel. Iran lost its ability to attack Israel from the territory of its Arab neighbors. To add to that, the governments in Baghdad, Damascus and Beirut are all demanding that the state has a monopoly over arms, while demanding roadmaps that are safeguarded by constitutions and regular armies, not the factions. Given its past experiences, Baghdad has concluded that it cannot speak of stability, prosperity and investment if drones operated by the 'private sector' can attack radars or oil fields or if members of the PMF can 'punish' the state's own security forces. The parliament's confusion over how to deal with the PMF law does not stem just from the US' opposition to it. Meanwhile, remarks by an adviser to the Iranian supreme leader, Ali Akbar Velayati, reflect just how much Tehran refuses to acknowledge and work with the changes that have taken place in the region. He rejected the Lebanese government's decision to disarm all factions, including Hezbollah, disregarding Lebanon's drive toward wanting to once again become a normal state that makes its own decisions through its institutions. Velayati also said the PMF in Iraq was playing the same role Hezbollah played in Lebanon. In a remarkable development that reflects the extent of the changes in the region, the Lebanese Foreign Ministry condemned Velayati's statements as blatant interference in Lebanese internal affairs. The Iraqi, Syrian and Lebanese people are dreaming of the establishment of their own normal states. The factions are not the sole cause of instability in the region, but their presence is preventing countries from consolidating their institutions, fighting corruption and carrying out development plans. Armed factions weaken states and waste the most important revolution any country can possess — that of stability under the rule of law. The factions' insistence on holding on to their arsenals means that difficult days are ahead. Rejecting a normal state means the factions will pour fuel on the fire of regional maps. • Ghassan Charbel is editor-in-chief of Asharq Al-Awsat newspaper. X: @GhasanCharbel This article first appeared in Asharq Al-Awsat.
Arab News
4 hours ago
- Arab News
West Bank killing captured in new footage
TEL AVIV: New video footage appears to show the moment a Palestinian activist was killed as an Israeli settler fired toward him during a confrontation with unarmed Palestinians in the occupied West Bank last month. The video released on Sunday by B'Tselem, an Israeli human rights group, shows Israeli settler Yinon Levi firing a gun toward the person filming. The footage cuts, but the camera keeps rolling as the person moans in pain. B'Tselem says it obtained the video from the family of Awdah Hathaleen, 31, an activist, English teacher, and father of three who was shot dead on July 28, and who they said had filmed it. Levi, who was shown firing his gun twice in a video shot by another witness and obtained by The Associated Press, was briefly detained and then released from house arrest by an Israeli court, which cited a lack of evidence. The shooting occurred in Umm Al-Khair, a village that has long weathered settler violence in an area profiled in the Oscar-winning film 'No Other Land.' Settler attacks on Palestinians have spiked since the outbreak of the Israel-Hamas war. 'Awdah's killing is another horrific example of how Palestinians, both in Gaza and in the West Bank, are currently living without any sort of protection, fully exposed to Israeli violence, while Israeli soldiers or settlers can kill them in broad daylight and enjoy full impunity while the world watches,' said Sarit Michaeli, the international outreach director for B'Tselem. Levi was previously under US sanctions, which the US administration has since lifted. Both videos appear to show the same confrontation between Levi and a group of Palestinians. The earlier video showed him firing two shots from a pistol, but did not show where the bullets struck. Several witnesses told the AP they saw Levi shoot Hathaleen. Avichai Hajjbi, a lawyer representing Levi, said that Levi acted in self-defense — without specifying what his actions were. Hajjbi pointed to a court's decision earlier this month that released Levi from house arrest, citing insufficient evidence. The judge said Levi did not pose a danger justifying continued house arrest, but barred him from contact with the villagers for a month. B'Tselem said Levi was with a crew that brought an excavator from a nearby settlement into Umm Al-Khair. Residents, fearing it would cut the village's main water line, gathered on a dirt road to try to block its path, and at least one individual threw a stone at the vehicle's front window. Levi then confronted the crowd while waving a handgun. The new video shows Levi arguing heatedly with three men before firing the gun in the direction of the person filming. Hathaleen was standing at the village community center about 40 meters from the confrontation, said B'Tselem. The bullet hit him in the chest, and he collapsed on the spot, it said. Eitan Peleg, a lawyer for Hathaleen's family, said they told him Hathaleen had shot the footage on his phone. He said the police asked him for the video, which they had not seen. Peleg said he was urging the district court to investigate Levi for more serious crimes. Levi helped establish a settler outpost near Umm Al-Khair that anti-settlement activists say is a bastion for violent settlers who have displaced hundreds since the start of the war. Palestinians and rights groups have long accused Israeli authorities of turning a blind eye to settler violence. In a 2024 interview, Levi told the AP he was protecting his land and denied using violence. After Hathaleen's killing, Israel's army initially refused to return his body for burial unless conditions were met for the funeral, including limiting the number of people and the location. After an agreement was made with the police about a week later, Hathaleen's body was returned and buried. Hathaleen had written and spoken out against settler violence and had helped produce the Oscar-winning film. Supporters have erected murals in his honor in Rome, held vigils in New York, and have held signs bearing his name at anti-war protests in Tel Aviv.
