Analysis, Side Feature

Views on the News – 13 Aug 2016

Headlines:

  • Russia Intensifies Conflict in Ukraine with American Blessing
  • America Orchestrates Bombing of Aleppo to Deny Breaking of Siege
  • US Drone Kills IS group leader in Afghanistan, Pakistan
  • Labour Party Leader Threatened by Court Verdict
  • Hijab-wearing Muslim Women Passed over for Jobs in UK
  • Egypt and IMF agree $12bn Loan in Bid to Restore Confidence in Economy
  • Pakistan to Deport Blacklisted American Who Returned

Russia Intensifies Conflict in Ukraine with American Blessing

It seems that America has offered Putin full control of Crimea in exchange for full cooperation in Syria. Russia has taken steps to intensify the conflict in Ukraine with Reuters reporting, “Russia has deployed its advanced S-400 air defence missile system to annexed Crimea” according to a Russian Defence Ministry statement.

Putin is taking these steps not to engage in war in Ukraine but to strengthen his bargaining position there. Crimea is a vital strategic asset for Russian naval control of the Black Sea. Russia requires its annexation of Crimea to be secured through legitimising it, which cannot be done without American blessing.

According to another Reuters report, ‘US Vice President Joe Biden spoke by phone on Friday with Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko and urged him “to do his part” to avoid escalating tensions with Russia’.

 

America Orchestrates Bombing of Aleppo to Deny Breaking of Siege

After the surprise break of the regime siege of eastern Aleppo on 6 August 2016, Russia and the Syrian regime have been conducting very heavy bombing of the area in order to deny any form of relief to the area to pass through the newly opened corridor.

Following negotiations between America and Russia for joint operations in Syria, it has now become increasingly obvious that whatever Russia does in Syria is in fact sanctioned and supported by the American government.

The breaking of the siege is a very serious threat to the Syrian regime that could lead to the loss of the whole of Aleppo. The city has the potential to be an alternate Syrian capital, undermining the viability of the Assad regime before even entering Damascus.

Meanwhile, Reuters is reporting that “U.S.-backed forces have seized full control of the northern Syrian city of Manbij near the Turkish border”. This will bring the supply line for the revolutionaries under greater American control.

America fears entering the Syrian war directly but continues to orchestrate all elements of this war from afar. The question is how long will American allies sacrifice themselves for America.

 

US Drone Kills IS group leader in Afghanistan, Pakistan

A US Defence Department spokesman confirmed on Friday that a US drone strike killed Hafiz Saeed Khan, the leader of the IS branch in Afghanistan and Pakistan, on 26 July 2016, as reported by Reuters. Hafiz Saeed Khan was a former leader of TTP (Tehrik Taliban Pakistan) that is fighting the Pakistan state.

It is the second strike in Afghanistan’s Nangarhar province bordering on Pakistan. On 9 July 2016, a US drone strike had killed Omar Mansoor, head of the Tariq Gidar Group faction of the TTP.

Pakistan has been repeatedly asking America to eliminate such leaders from Afghanistan.

These two strikes follow the visit of John McCain to Pakistan at the beginning of July 2016, during which the Pakistan Army took him to North Waziristan, adjoining the Afghan border to prove to him the work that Pakistan Army is undertaking against so-called militants there. McCain returned to America and praised the Pakistani efforts.

The Pakistan Army leadership cannot think beyond sacrificing Pakistani forces to please their American masters and begging them for whatever they need.

 

Labour Party Leader Threatened by Court Verdict

British courts have backed Labour party rules that will exclude thousands of new members from the forthcoming Labour party leadership election making it more difficult for Jeremy Corbyn to be re-elected as leader.

It is well-known that the political party system in Western countries, particularly US and UK, are designed so that the elite can maintain control over the system. It is not possible for anyone to be elected President or Prime Minister unless their party first nominates them. And parties are free to determine their own rules and procedures regarding how they choose their candidates.

Jeremy Corbyn, the present leader of the Labour party, has been an exception to the rule. He is a long-standing anti-establishment politician who was able to became Labour leader last year when some members of the parliamentary party nominated him only for the purposes of providing diversity in the election contest. They didn’t actually think he would win. But voting is by the party membership generally, not just the parliamentary members, and Corbyn appealed greatly to the anti-establishment feeling that presently dominates Western countries including Britain.

Nevertheless the elite have many techniques for maintaining control of major parties and they are sure to find one way or another to dispose of Mr. Corbyn.

 

Hijab-wearing Muslim Women Passed over for Jobs in UK

Muslim women in Britain who wear headscarves are routinely being passed over for jobs or being side-lined in the workplace, with 71% of the women from the community more likely to be unemployed than white Christian women, a new report by British MPs warned today. The House of Commons’ Women and Equalities Committee concluded Muslim women are the most disadvantaged group in British society and a new government plan was required to tackle the inequalities before the end of the year.  The cross-party committee said many Muslim women in the UK faced a “triple penalty” impacting on their job prospects – being women, being from an ethnic minority and being Muslim.  “The impact of Islamophobia on Muslim women should not be underestimated. They are 71% more likely than white Christian women to be unemployed, even when they have the same educational level and language skills,” reads the report titled ‘Employment Opportunities for Muslims in the UK’. While 69% of British working-age women were in employment, among Muslim women it was 35%. Nationally, 5% of women were unemployed and seeking work but among Muslim women, it was 16%. Among women generally, 27% were economically inactive or unemployed and not seeking work last year. However, among Muslim women the figure was 58%. “There is a distinct level of institutional racism that is being endured by Muslim women and we must be open about that,” said Maria Miller, chair of the committee. “Everybody is subject to the same law in this country and Muslim women can choose to dress in the way that they want in the same way that other women can and shouldn’t have to suffer discrimination as a result of it. [Source: Business Standard]

UK prides itself on freedom and tolerance, but these ideals are in short supply when applied to Muslims within Britain. Overseas Britain’s attitude is the same. The mistreatment of Afghans and Iraqis at the hands of British soldiers speaks volumes about how Britain pays lip service to such ideals.

 

Egypt and IMF agree $12bn Loan in Bid to Restore Confidence in Economy

Egypt has agreed a $12bn loan with the International Monetary Fund in bid to restore confidence in its lacklustre economy and tackle severe foreign exchange shortages. The economy has been struggling since the 2011 revolution that forced Hosni Mubarak from office and foreign investors have largely shunned the country. The staff level agreement will be presented in a few weeks to the IMF board for approval. But Chris Jarvis, head of the IMF delegation, told the Financial Times that the IMF funding was contingent on Egypt securing between $5bn and $6bn in additional loans from bilateral partners — before the agreement was taken to the fund’s board. The extra financing would help provide a cushion for the country’s foreign reserves ahead of any devaluation of the Egyptian pound, he said.  ‘It is important that we secure financing assurances for the year before we go to the board,” Mr Jarvis said. “We are looking for additional finance from bilateral sources. The argument we would like to make is that if there is a moment to provide balance of payment support to Egypt, this is it.” People briefed on the talks said both Cairo and the IMF were hoping the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia would provide the additional funding. Egypt has received billions of dollars in bilateral support, mainly from the oil-rich Gulf, since President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi led a 2013 popularly backed coup that ousted an elected Islamist government.  Mr Jarvis said that if everything went as planned, the first IMF tranche of $2.5bn would be disbursed to Egypt immediately after the board meeting. He added that the government recognised the need for “quick implementation of economic reforms for Egypt to restore macroeconomic stability.” Economists say expected reforms will include a further devaluation of the pound and a reduction of fuel subsidies. The government has also recently introduced a VAT law to parliament and this week it hiked electricity prices. [Source: Financial Times]

By securing IMF loans Sisi is placing Egypt in the hands of international vultures. In the days ahead, the poor and middle class will suffer immensely under IMF’s prescription for the Egyptian economy. The sands of time are ticking against Sisi, as prospects of another revolution looks very likely.

 

Pakistan to Deport Blacklisted American Who Returned

An American who entered Pakistan last week after being expelled from the country five years earlier will be deported again after being interrogated, the interior minister said Friday. Matthew Barrett, a 33-year-old Alabama native, had spent four years in Pakistan, where he married a local woman and had two children, before being kicked out of the country in 2011 after being detained near a sensitive military installation. The U.S. and Pakistan are allies but have had fraught relations over the years. Washington has at times accused Islamabad of failing to do enough to combat terrorism. Pakistan was angered by the U.S. commando raid that killed Osama bin Laden north of Islamabad in 2011, which was carried out without its knowledge. Pakistan’s Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan said Barrett was never suspected of spying, but was involved in “wrongdoing,” without elaborating. Khan said Barrett was detained at a guest house in the capital, Islamabad, last week after he submitted incorrect information in a visa application to the Pakistani Consulate in Houston. In media reports and a letter smuggled from jail in 2011 to the Guardian newspaper, Barrett denied he was a spy and claimed to be a victim of simmering U.S.-Pakistani tensions following the bin Laden raid. He was eventually deported and blacklisted. Pakistani authorities have arrested two airport immigration staffers who cleared Barrett’s re-entry and have launched an investigation into the incident. On Friday, Barrett’s detention was extended for two weeks, according to Raja Nazeer, an attorney representing the two immigration officials. [Source: News International]

Despite the humiliation of the Raymond Davis affair, Pakistan continues to make unnecessary mistakes in permitting Americans to roam freely on Pakistani soil. The issue is not Barrett, but Pakistan’s policy of supporting American interests in the region. The flood of American spies will only stop, when Pakistan musters the strength to sever all ties, which the present leadership is incapable of doing.