MESOP – MESOPOTAMIA – KURDISTAN DAILY NEWS SAMPLER
Mezopotamian Development Society (Registered) GERMANY – FRANKFURT
THE MOST REQUESTED DAILY & ONLY INDEPENDENT NEWSSERVICE ON KURDISTAN FOR THE HIGHLY INVOLVED PEOPLE – Watch our website : www.mesop.de / mesop@mesop.de
MESOP TODAYS BACKGROUNDER: By ABDULLAH BOZKURT
Islamists risk rupture in Turkey’s ties with Germany
The main challenge the Islamists in the Turkish government and their ringmaster President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan have in recent years brought upon bilateral ties with Germany — the powerhouse of the European Union and Turkey’s largest trading partner — is their promotion through state-sponsored activities of a hostile brand of political Islamist ideology amid the Turkish and Muslim diaspora. (..) These international relations grew rocky after Islamists secretly launched a project to turn the diaspora into a bastion of Islamist support to encourage Erdoğan’s dream of leading all Muslims in Europe, reportedly part of his undeclared goal of becoming a caliph in his self-perceived image to appeal to all the world’s Muslims. He has used taxpayers’ money to finance the establishment of a European network for his ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP). Read all: http://www.mesop.de/?p=63948
MESOP : OBAMA’S WHITEWASHERS – Pentagon Accused of Skewing Intel on War Against ISIS
By Mark Mazzetti and Matt Apuzzo – New York Times – Posted 2015-08-26 17:45 GMT
WASHINGTON — The Pentagon’s inspector general is investigating allegations that military officials have skewed intelligence assessments about the United States-led campaign in Iraq against the Islamic State to provide a more optimistic account of progress, according to several officials familiar with the inquiry.The investigation began after at least one civilian Defense Intelligence Agency analyst told the authorities that he had evidence that officials at United States Central Command — the military headquarters overseeing the American bombing campaign and other efforts against the Islamic State — were improperly reworking the conclusions of intelligence assessments prepared for policy makers, including President Obama, the government officials said. Read all: http://www.mesop.de/?p=63944
MESOP : KURDISH PROGRESS INCL. “GREAT BUSINESS” STARTS & GROWS IN CAPITALIST LONDON – NOT IN DIYARBAKIR OR ERBIL
WORLD CENTRE FOR KURDISH PROGRESS LONDON – GREAT BUSINESS !
Hello MESOP,
An exciting new initiative that will see a collaborative work community established in the heart of London for Kurdish entrepreneurs and charities, is starting from September 1. – Once accepted for membership, people have access to an amazing network of entrepreneurs with a wide variety of skills, experience, and knowledge. This is both within the richness of the London Kurdish community and within the international community of hundreds of social and environmental entrepreneurs and their support network. There are benefits from working alongside one another. Weekly collaborative meetings (sharing ideas, resources, logistics, supply chains etc.) and great business training (including business planning and support towards finance pitching) are also organised. People develop their own ideas, and contribute to those of others. Put simply, people pay the normal membership rates but they get a whole lot of extras on top for being part of Kurdish House London. They also have access to over 70 business hubs all over the world, including in Istanbul and Dubai. Read all: http://www.mesop.de/?p=63928
NORTH KURDISTAN (TURKEY)
ERDOGAN’S DOWNFALL COMING SOON – Diligent on election security, HDP eyes 20 pct vote in upcoming early election
ANKARA – Hurriyet – 27 Aug 2015 – The Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP), which argues preventing their party from passing the 10 percent threshold needed to get seats in parliament in the upcoming early election is a main motive for the Justice and Development Party (AKP), has ambitiously set 20 percent as their new target. HDP co-chair Figen Yüksekdağ also underlined that providing election security was a key factor in their decision to take part in an interim government led by incumbent Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu.“We are not making a coalition with the AKP. We are not making a coalition with any party. We are fulfilling a responsibility and duty towards all peoples of Turkey,” Yüksekdağ told reporters on Aug. 26. “We have undertaken the responsibility to take part in the interim election government to have the elections held in security and in an environment which is softened by a peaceful political climate. This is a priority for us,” she said. Read all: http://www.mesop.de/?p=63926
MESOP Analysis: Why Turkey’s AKP failed to make a comeback in polls
Ahmet Hakan – ISTANBUL – 27 Aug 2015 – Özer Sencar, owner of polling company MetroPoll, explains to daily Hürriyet readers why the Justice and Development Party (AKP) failed to make a comeback as seen in its latest conducted poll
According to pollster Metropoll’s latest survey, the AKP stands at 41.7 percent of the votes, showing that, since the June 7 election, the AKP was unable to increase its votes significantly.According to Sencar, three outcomes derive from the numbers. First, the AKP still falls short of the votes needed to form a single-party government in a snap election on Nov. 1. Secondly, while there is an increase in the votes to the Republican People’s Party (CHP), there is a decrease in those of the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP). Lastly, the number of Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) votes increase significantly. Though this increase does not affect the alignment of the parties, it nevertheless establishes the HDP as the party with the third largest number of representatives in the parliament. Read all: http://www.mesop.de/?p=63950
MESOP : NEXT COUP AHEAD – Erdogan is seeking to exclude HDP from parliament: analysts
Analysts believe Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is seeking to repeat June 7 parliament election in the state in hope of preventing pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) from entering into the parliament and he would change the state’s parliamentary system into presidency after his Justice and Development (AKP) could win majority in parliament. Read all: http://www.mesop.de/?p=63934
MESOP NEWS : KCK Calls On People Of North Kurdistan To Ignore Curfew, Remain On Streets
A statement released by the co-presidency of the KCK has called on the people of North Kurdistan to ignore the curfews imposed by the Turkish state and to remain on the streets, according to a report from ANF. The statement read:
Our people who have declared self-government, everywhere and in particular in Gever (Yüksekova) should not head the [Turkish State’s] curfew nor leave the streets and squares to the forces of occupation. The right of the people to proclaim self-government and to govern themselves is their most natural right. Our people are claiming this legitimate and natural right. No power has the right to attack this right. Our people’s democratic resistance and will for self-government will certainly prevail. The fascist, authoritarian, hegemonic and culturally genocidal colonialism of the AKP government will be defeated. More: www.mesop.de
EAST KURDISTAN (IRAN)
MESOP : GIVE SHIA ISLAM THE LEAD IN MIDDLE EAST – Australia would consult with Iran over Syria air strikes: Julie Bishop
August 27, 2015 – David Wroe – Sydney Morning Herald – Australia would consult with Iran over possible plans to expand RAAF air strikes to Syria, underscoring Foreign Affairs Minister Julie Bishop’s push for more co-ordination with the Shiite regional power in the fight against Islamic State. Read all: http://www.mesop.de/?p=63920
MESOP : KHAMENEI – “JCPOA” WAS GOOD JOB – TO CONTINUE DESTROYING US & ISRAEL
US, Israel enmity toward Iran never waned: Leader
Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei says the enmity of the US and the Israeli regime toward Iran has never subsided.“Since the beginning of the [1979] Revolution to this day, the enmity of the Zionists and the Americans has not waned; and this reality should never slip the minds of [Iranian] authorities,” Ayatollah Khamenei said in a Wednesday meeting with President Hassan Rouhani and Cabinet members. Read all: http://www.mesop.de/?p=63936
MESOP : UNFORTUNATELY ONLY A SYMBOLIC CALL – PJAK calls upon Kurds to step up struggle against Iranian regime
Wednesday, August 26, 2015 at 3:15 PM – NEWS DESK – ANF – The Party of Free Life of Kurdistan (Partiya Jiyana Azad a Kurdistanê or PJAK) has released a statement condemning the Iranian regime for the execution of Kurdish political prisoner Behrouz Alkhani in Orumiyeh city of Rojhilat (East) Kurdistan this morning. PJAK also warned the regime not to play with the sensitivities of the Kurdish people. Read more: www.mesop.de
WEST KURDISTAN SYRIA
MESOP : PUTIN ON THE LEAD – A CLEAR “NO” TO INDEPENDENT KURDISTAN IN IRAQ – SYRIA – TURKEY
Russia is against Iraq’s division: Lavrov – Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has slammed U.S. Vice President Joe Biden’s remarks regarding the partitioning of Iraq. The top diplomat called the comments “highly irresponsible,” and that Moscow would never agree to such “state structure manipulation.” Read all: http://www.mesop.de/?p=63932
MESOP : RUSSIA LEADS IN MIDDLE EAST – Middle East Leaders Head to Moscow to Sign Arms Deals, Discuss Plan to End Syrian War / MISSILES FOR IRAN
Russian President Vladimir Putin to float initiative that would bring Syrian regime into anti-ISIS coalition. – Haaretz 25.08.2015 22:05 Updated: 10:06 PM – Russian President Vladimir Putin is taking advantage of a military exhibition in Moscow to discuss an Iranian-Russian initiative for ending the civil war in Syria with visiting Middle Eastern leaders. Jordan’s King Abdullah and Crown Prince Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed al-Nahyan of the United Arab Emirates arrived in Moscow on Monday, followed Tuesday by Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sissi. Delegations from several other Arab states are expected, as well as an Iranian delegation that will sign a deal to buy S-300 surface-to-air missiles. Read all: http://www.mesop.de/?p=63922
MESOP BACKGROUND : US ENVOY ON THE ROAD TO FIND OUT WHATS GOING ON
Recently-appointed U.S. envoy for Syria Michael Ratney is departing for a trip to Moscow, Riyadh, and Geneva to discuss the prospects for a diplomatic resolution to the Syrian civil war. – Read all http://www.mesop.de/?p=63952
MESOP FLASH : UNICEF Warns of Water Use ‘for Military and Political Gains’ in Syria
ARA News – 27 Aug 2015 – Geneva — Amid the unremitting brutality of the war in Syria and a scorching summer heat wave, there is increasing evidence that parties to the conflict are using water to achieve military and political gains, warned the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF).”Clean water is both a basic need and a fundamental right, in Syria as it is anywhere else,” reminded Dr. Peter Salama, UNICEF Regional Director for the Middle East and North Africa in a press release. “Denying civilians access to water is a flagrant violation of the laws of war and must end.”In recent months, up to five million people living in cities and communities across the country indeed have suffered the consequences of long and sometimes deliberate interruptions to their water supplies. That includes 2.3 million in Aleppo, 2.5 million in Damascus and 250,000 in Dera’a. Read all: http://www.mesop.de/?p=63940
MESOP SPECIAL : LOOKING EASTWARDS
Islamists in the Middle East and North Africa / THE GERMAN MARSHALL FUND
August 25, 2015 – Sarah Wolff
The Arab uprisings have reminded U.S. and EU diplomats that they need to communicate with Islamist actors in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA). Western diplomacy has undergone a modest yet nonetheless significant “religious turn” as a result, acknowledging the relevance of religion in foreign policy, particularly in this key region. While the United States has had a long history of both promoting religious freedom internationally and accommodating the political influence of domestic faith-based groups, the European Union has only recently started to account for religion in its external relations. This paper investigates the origins, evolution, and future prospects of this new approach within the context of the Middle East and North Africa, with a particular emphasis on engagement with Islamist religious and political actors.- See more at: http://www.gmfus.org/publications/us-and-eu-engagement-islamists-middle-east-and-north-africa#sthash.wEIsGT6X.dpuf
MESOP POLICY BRIEF : US – Turkey – Israel & other actors / Europe Wavers as the Mediterranean Looks East
August 26, 2015 – By Joshua W. Walker – Non-Resident Transatlantic Fellow – The German Marshal Fund –
Introduction – This emerging role of Asia within the Mediterranean was a central theme at GMF’s 11th Mediterranean Strategy Group, held in Florence. Participants from China, Japan, India, and Russia joined members from Europe, the Middle East, North Africa, and the United States. Geostrategic discussions of the “Arab Uprisings” quickly gave way to conversations regarding the demographic and economic imbalances between northern and southern Mediterranean countries that compete for Asia’s attention. Israel’s explicit pivot to Asia in the form of new trade partnerships with India and Japan versus Egypt’s further reliance on the Gulf in international affairs at a time of continued uncertainty shows contrasting approaches to how Asia figures in a diverse Mediterranean market. Read all: http://www.mesop.de/?p=63924
MESOP BACKGROUNDER RESEARCH BY DANA SCHUSTER
27 Aug 2015 – The Other Foreign Fighters: An Open-Source Investigation into American Volunteers Fighting the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria” (bellIngcat)
“The foreign fighter phenomenon as it relates to the ongoing conflict in Iraq and Syria has been well documented by governments, the media, and the academic literature. Estimates vary, but the general consensus is that between 20,000 and 30,000 foreigners from more than 100 countries have traveled to Syria to fight with various Sunni jihadist groups. Of those, roughly 150 to 200 are American citizens. Read all: http://www.mesop.de/?p=63954
SOUTH KURDISTAN (IRAQ)
Crisis over Iraq’s Kurdistan Presidency favors Barzani / By Joel Wing
Iraq’s Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) is facing a political crisis over what to do with President Massoud Barzani. His term ended on August 20, 2015, but he remains in office. His Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) is pushing for a political deal between party bosses to extend his term for a second time, while the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) and the Change list wants to limit the president’s powers and change the KRG to a parliamentary system. The two sides refuse to budge from their positions leading to a deadlock, which work’s to Barzani’s advantage.The KDP, PUK and Change List are at loggerheads over President Barzani. Even though his term expired the KDP insists that he is still the president, especially now as the region faces the dual threat of the Islamic State and a financial crisis. Read all: http://www.mesop.de/?p=63930
MESOP : THE EXTINCTION CHRISTIANITY ? NO PROBLLEM FOR THE WEST!
Iraqi Authorities Document Christian Persecution for the First Time
By Carey Lodge – Hundreds of thousands of Christians are believed to have fled Iraq due to persecution.Christian persecution in Iraq is being officially documented for the first time under orders of the country’s government.Prime Minister Haydar al-Abadi has authorised the establishment of a committee that will work to end the ongoing abuses against Christians that have escalated since the rise of Islamic State. Read all: http://www.mesop.de/?p=63942
MESOP EXTRA : Israel Journal of Foreign Affairs, 04 Feb 2015.
Nazis, Islamists, and the Making of the Modern Middle East – BY BARRY RUBIN & WOLFGANG G. SCHWANITZ, reviewed · By Matthias Küntzel
Few topics are a source of such controversy among historians of the Middle East as the question of the extent of the wartime relationship between the Nazis and the Mufti of Jerusalem, Haj Amin el-Husaini, and of the significance of those ties to the evolution of developments in the Middle East from 1945 to the present day.Some view the collaboration between Nazi and Arab leaders as a mere footnote to history. Others consider this period crucial to understanding the current antisemitism in the region and the ongoing escalation of the Middle East conflict.The very title of this book indicates the position taken by the distinguished German Middle East historian Wolfgang G. Schwanitz and the prolific Israeli Middle East expert Barry Rubin, who died prematurely in 2014. For them, the ongoing influence of the Nazi period on the Middle East of today is an established fact. However, what distinguishes Nazis, Islamists, and the Making of the Modern Middle East from other books on this topic is the long historical period examined by the authors, ranging from the early days of the German Empire to the present time. Read all: http://www.mesop.de/?p=63956
MESOP Q-and-A: Küntzel on roots and development of the Iranian regime’s anti-Semitism
by Karmel Melamed ( Anti-Semitism in the Middle East expert and German political scientist, Dr. Matthias Küntzel.)
Dr. Matthias Küntzel is perhaps one of the world’s leading scholars and political scientists who has extensively researched and written about the origins of anti-Semitism in the Islamic world and in particular in Iran. His work has also focused on the German involvement with Islamic nations as far as the impact on hatred for Jews in the Middle East. Recently I had the very special opportunity to interview Küntzel about the origins of the Iranian regime’s hatred for Jews, their influence of Nazi ideology on Iran’s current radical Islamic leaders and how anti-Semitism has transformed and been kept alive by the Iranian regime’s various leaders over the past 36 years. Read all: http://www.mesop.de/?p=63958
THE GERMAN KURDISH CHAPTER
DAVOTUGLU INVITES KURDSH HDP PARTY FOR TAKING PART IN GOVERNMENT
Davutoglu lädt Politiker der Kurdenpartei in Regierung ein
27 Aug 2015 – MESOP – In der Türkei steht womöglich zum ersten Mal in der Geschichte des Landes die Regierungsbeteiligung einer Kurdenpartei bevor. Ministerpräsident Ahmet Davutoglu schickte am Mittwoch offizielle Schreiben an drei Abgeordnete der Kurdenpartei HDP und bat sie um Beteiligung an der Übergangsregierung, die das Land bis zu den Neuwahlen am 1. November regieren soll. Volltext : http://www.mesop.de/?p=63960