Latest news with #Khairallah
Memri
06-08-2025
- Politics
- Memri
Lebanese Writer: Syria's President Al-Sharaa Must Protect The Minorities – Not Blame Israel For The Sectarian Violence In The Country
Under the shadow of the bloody events in the Druze stronghold of southern Syria, that began July 13, 2025 and involved Druze factions and Bedouin tribes backed by Syria's Al-Sharaa regime, and in which over 1,000 Druze were massacred, Lebanese columnist Khairallah Khairallah called in his July 21, 2025 column in the London-based UAE daily Al-Arab for Syrian President Ahmed Al-Sharaa to prove that he is the president of all Syrians "in deeds and not words." Stressing that the broad international and regional legitimacy enjoyed by his administration does not exempt him from reconciliation with all Syrians, including the Druze, he added that it also does not mean that he need not learn lessons from the harm that has been done to Syria's minorities since he took power. In his column, Khairallah rejected the Syrian regime's depiction of Israel as responsible for the sectarian tensions in the country. He wrote that Israel's support for the Druze in Syria is more than natural, given that they are part of the Israeli social fabric and serve in the Israeli military, and that Israel has not intervened in other cases of harm to Syrian minorities such as the Alawites or the Christians. The Syrian people under a cloud of violence (Source: Al-Arab, London, July 17, 2025) The following is the translation of Khairallah's column: "...The events in the Syrian province of Al-Suwayda, which has experienced and continues to experience crimes and atrocities against the Druze community, are an opportunity for the new Syrian regime, led by Ahmed Al-Sharaa, to reinvent itself – instead of settling for accusing Israel [of fanning the violence] or turning a blind eye to the attack on the Druze, committed by so-called Bedouin tribes, [if we believe the regime's] claims, which are unsubstantiated, to say the least! "This is an opportunity for Al-Shara to prove, in deeds and not words, that he is the president of all of Syria and of all the Syrians – and not the leader of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham [HTS] and its supporters. He can do so by proving that the [new] Syrian state, which has been in existence for just seven months, can be different from the Alawite regime that had existed from 1966... "There is no way out of the profound crisis in which Syria finds itself unless this young regime takes charge of protecting the Druze, who are first and foremost Syrian citizens. In this realm, Ahmed Al-Sharaa and his aides can learn from recent past experience, and avoid what happened to the Alawites and Christians. "Last March [2025], the Alawites were slaughtered in the Syrian coastal region, after armed militias suppressed a move they had made to bring up what could be called 'the Alawite issue,' based on the assumption that the world takes an interest in their fate. But it turned out that the Alawites were the world's least concern, and that no one, including Israel, was willing to embrace the cause of a minority that had ruled Syria with an iron fist and with fire for some six decades. The Alawites are now paying the price for the crimes of Hafez and Bashar Al-Assad and other members of their family, who considered Syria nothing more than the ruling family's [private] ranch. "Israel did not interfere in events in Syria, particularly when they concerned the Alawites and then the Christians. It was clear that the Christians in Syria were the least concern of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his government, even though they were massacred by an ISIS fighter inside a church in one of the Damascus neighborhoods.[1] The Syrian officials treated the Christians somewhat contemptuously, considering that they were a minority that played an important role in shaping Syria's history... "The Christians were the victims of the Egypt-Syria union [i.e., the United Arab Republic, a union of Egypt and Syria that existed in 1958-1961], and later they were the victims of the Ba'ath Party because of its dearth of political thought and its wickedness. [They were also] one of the victims of the Alawite regime, which handed the Golan over to Israel in June 1967 in order to ensure Hafez Al-Assad a monopoly on power after [the 1967 War] and also to ensure that Syria would be inherited by his son Bashar in 2000. "Ahmed Al-Sharaa received strong American and Western support, for example, meeting with President Donald Trump in Riyadh and visiting Paris. He played the card of the relations with Israel wisely, and at all times hinted at a return to the 1974 [Israeli-Syrian] separation of forces agreement. [2] He disregarded all Israeli attacks aimed at specific Syrian military sites. Moreover, he has established close ties with influential Arab countries, led by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. He maintained the special relationship with Turkey and did not for one moment take lightly the issue of the Iranian presence in Syria. He took care to emphasize that this presence had ended permanently and that Syria would never again serve as a bridge between the Islamic Republic and its proxy Hizbullah in Lebanon. This great achievement, historic in nature, cannot be spent on marginal battles in which the Druze are required to be the victims. "Everything that Ahmed Al-Sharaa has done is good. But this does not mean that there is no need for reconciliation with the Syrians – all Syrians, including the Druze, who throughout the state's modern history have played an important and central role on the national level, starting with their rejection of the idea that Syria would include several states, including a Druze state. The Druze had a role in strengthening the Syrian national unity that Hafez Al-Assad, and later his son, tore to shreds, by gambling on an alliance of minorities led by the Alawites in order to confront the Sunni [majority]. The most dangerous thing that the elder and younger Assads did was to use the Islamic Republic of Iran to create a new demographic reality in Syria, and to change the political balance [of power] in Lebanon. "Yes, Ahmed Al-Sharaa has a chance to prove that he is the president of all of Syria and of all Syrians, without discrimination or distinction. It is easy to blame Israel [for the sectarian violence in the country], but it is difficult to block its interference in Syria's domestic affairs in a sensitive region like Al-Suwayda province. Israel's support for the Druze of Al-Suwayda is more than natural, given that Israeli Druze serve in the Israeli military and given the Druze community's historical role in the Israeli sphere. "To put it more clearly, Ahmed Al-Sharaa has no choice but to play the role of the historic head of state who leads the people and is not led by them. More important than anything else is the new Syrian president's duty to prove that he is Ahmed Al-Sharaa and not Abu Muhammad Al-Joulani [the name by which he was once known].[3] This requires both great courage and political maturity. Additionally, there is a need to play the role of the national leader who reconciles first with the Sunni moderates, and [then] also with the Druze, Christians, Alawites, and Kurds, of course."[4]
Memri
16-06-2025
- Politics
- Memri
Writer On Saudi Website: Israel's War On Iran Is A Great Service To Humanity; We Are Grateful To It
In an article on the Saudi website Elaph titled "The Israeli Defense Forces – Mankind's Defense against the Forces of Darkness," Muhmmad Sa'd Khairallah, an Egyptian writer and political analyst who resides in Sweden, expressed unreserved support for the Israeli military operation against Iran and its nuclear facilities, and slammed all those in the Arab world who condemn this operation. He argued that, by coming out against the Iranian regime, which is responsible for immense bloodshed in the many Arab countries and for grave crimes against the Iranian people themselves, Israel is doing a great service to the region and the world at large. Furthermore, he said, by attacking Iran's nuclear facilities Israel is ridding humanity of an existential threat. "Israel is not just defending itself but waging a campaign on behalf of the [entire] free world against the Iran-led forces of darkness," he wrote. Stressing that the moral Israeli army focuses its attacks on military targets and avoids harming civilians, whereas Iran deliberately targets innocent people, Khairallah stated that Iran must be held accountable for its crimes, including the crime of orchestrating Hamas' October 7 attack against Israel. He concluded by calling on the Iranian people to take advantage of this "historic opportunity" to topple their regime, and by thanking Israel "for defending itself [along with] the future of our children and grandchildren… and the values of freedom, dignity and the right to live." The following are translated excerpts from his article:[1] "Amid the ongoing confrontation between Israel and the Iranian ayatollahs, there is another aspect that should be mentioned beyond the direct military discussion or the discourse about [Israel's] unprecedented scientific and technological advancement, especially its use of artificial intelligence (AI) in the Middle East arena. This is an astonishing advancement by the Israeli military, worthy of a series of analytical articles by experts. However, today I wish to focus on a deeper truth: the justice enacted by Israel in the face of the Iranian machine of destruction. "Looking at the horrific devastation Iran has wrought in Iraq, Syria, Yemen, Lebanon and Gaza, we cannot be anything but astonished by those who attack Israel while ignoring the mounting destruction [caused by Iran in those countries]. The Arab victims killed by the Iranian militias and their proxies far outnumber the victims in all the wars between Israel and the Arab countries over the years. [There have been] millions of refugees and missing persons, as well as countless wounded and dead... "This is in addition to the ongoing crimes [of the Iranian regime] against the Iranian people themselves: the suppression of protests, the murder of nonviolent demonstrators, and the silencing of any voice that demands freedom and a civil state instead of the blood-soaked rule of the clerics. One of the tools of this criminal machine is Iran's Houthi puppet, as it has come to be known, namely that gang that threatens the security and stability of the Gulf under direct orders from Tehran just because the peoples of the Gulf have chosen the path of construction and peace over the hollow slogans of war. "The precise strikes carried out by the Israel Defense Forces [IDF] against Iranian military sites and facilities early Friday morning were the epitome of justice, and proclaimed loud and clear that the [Iranian] machine of destruction must pay a price for its crimes. With this legitimate act, Israel is not just defending itself but waging a campaign on behalf of the [entire] free world against the Iran-led forces of darkness, those forces that sanctify death and that murder the future in the name of a distorted past and false slogans that have brought [people] nothing but misery... "Here lies the true test of our shared humanity: [deciding] to which camp we belong – the camp of life, liberty and dignity, or the camp of darkness...? Israel, in its humanity, repeatedly demonstrates that it does not target innocent Iranian civilians, but directs its strikes precisely at [Iran's] military commanders, nuclear facilities and military facilities, in order to save itself, the region and the world from an impending disaster. Iran, on the other hand, deliberately targets civilians, and launches missiles at Israeli cities in order to cause casualties among innocent people. What a vast difference between values that protect human life and forces that can breathe only the scent of blood. "It is disheartening to see that some people condemn Israel for defending itself and the region from a nuclear threat that endangers all of mankind. Is there a greater injustice than shielding a criminal from punishment while condemning the victim for defending his existence? Is it not justice that Iran should bear the consequences for orchestrating the October 7, 2023 terror [attack]? Is it not reasonable to hold it to account for its crimes against the peoples of the Middle East? "In this context, we must remember, with both pride and pain, the names enshrined forever in the annals of the resistance against the ayatollah regime – foremost among them Mahsa Amini, the young Kurdish-Iranian woman who was killed by the [Iranian] morality police in September 2022 simply because her hijab did not meet the standards of the oppressors. Her martyrdom sparked a sweeping popular uprising inside Iran and beyond that embraced the slogan 'Woman, Life, Freedom.' [Another martyr is] Neda Agha-Soltan, who was shot to death by the oppressive [regime] forces during the 2009 Green Movement protests[2] for demanding a simple right: freedom and dignity for her people. In addition to these two there are hundreds of women and young girls who paid for their courage with their lives or their freedom. Many of them are incarcerated to this day in the prisons of the Rule of the Jurisprudent [i.e., the Iranian regime]. After all that has been said above – can anyone truly condemn those who come out against this criminal regime? "With this legitimate [act of] defense, Israel is doing an immense service to the region and to the world. If it manages to destroy or paralyze Iran's nuclear program, it will effectively prevent a regime that harms other nations in the most abhorrent way from possessing deadly nuclear weapons… "To the honorable Iranian people, [I say]: this is your historic opportunity to rid yourselves of the nightmare of the ayatollah regime. The entire world is watching as the masks of the clerics fall. The time has come to unite your will for the sake of a new Iran, one that belongs to its noble culture, not to the crimes of the ayatollahs committed in the name of religion. "I end my article with a heartfelt expression of gratitude to the IDF, which has proven itself to be a moral army, deeply aware of the value of military honor, and has demonstrated that the ayatollahs' terror cannot go unpunished. Many thanks to Israel for defending itself [along with] the future of our children and grandchildren and the right of future generations to live in a humane Middle East where everyone lives in peace. [Israel is defending] the values of freedom, dignity and the right to live. [May] the forces of liberty and humanity prevail over the forces of oppression and bloodshed."
Daily Tribune
11-02-2025
- Sport
- Daily Tribune
Bahrain U17 Women Humbled Against Ruthless Jordan
TDT | Manama The Bahrain U17 Women's National Team faced a challenging evening in Saudi Arabia, suffering a 5-0 defeat at the hands of a dominant Jordan side in the 5th West Asian Football Federation (WAFF) U17 Women's Championship. Played at Prince Saud bin Jalawi Stadium, the clash on Monday highlighted the stark contrast in attacking efficiency and tactical execution between the two teams. Jordan in control from the start From the opening whistle, Jordan set the tempo with relentless pressure and quick attacking transitions. Bahrain found themselves pinned back for much of the game, struggling to disrupt Jordan's fluid movement and incisive passing. The Jordanians made their dominance count, converting their chances with clinical precision to build an unassailable lead. Bahrain's fight, but little reward Despite the scoreline, Bahrain showed flashes of resilience. The closest Bahrain came to a breakthrough came when Hala Alrawajeh struck a stunning free kick from long range, rattling the crossbar in what could have been a spectacular goal. Regrouping for the next battle Reflecting on the defeat, Khairallah acknowledged the challenge, stating, 'It was a tough result, but we're going to keep moving forward, focusing on our training, and InshAllah, we'll win our next were very strong physically, and we lacked in our tactics.' Her teammate Noura AbdelAal echoed the sentiment, adding, 'The match was very difficult, but I think we all performed well. Hopefully, we do better against Saudi Arabia. We have to improve our attitude because we were fighting with each other a lot on the pitch.' With a crucial fixture against Saudi Arabia on the horizon, Bahrain will be eager to regroup and sharpen their tactical approach. Defensive solidity and attacking cohesion will be the key focus areas as they look to turn their fortunes around in the tournament.
