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While there is a broad range of Arabic language media outlets reporting stories from and about the Middle East, there is currently no affordable and reliable means for English speakers to gain access to this content. As a result, many English speaking businesspersons, students, journalists and others who have an interest in the affairs of the region are largely unaware of what the Middle East media is covering and how they are covering these stories.

Mideastwire.com aims to close this gap by offering a daily menu of translations covering some of the key political, cultural, economic and opinion pieces appearing in the media of the 22 Arab countries and the Arab Diaspora. Through this effort, we hope to address at least one aspect of a global disconnect that continues to threaten a wide spectrum of socio-political and economic relationships, both here in the region and beyond.

It is also important to note that, since our founding in 2005, Mideastwire.com is wholly funded by the content license fees paid by individuals and organizations. As such, there is no government, commercial or non-profit support, an aspect that we believe provides a relatively independent platform for better understanding.

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TODAY’S DAILY BRIEFING

01-Apr-2016

Algeria

Politics

"Terrorist from Al-Qaeda reveals attempts to Afghanize Algeria..." (Newspaper, Middle East)

Arab Diplomacy - Terrorism

On March 28, the daily Echourouk el-Youmi reported: "A booklet recently published on the internet came as a real shock about Morocco's involvement in exploiting terrorism to twist Algeria's arm and put pressure on it because of its position regarding the Moroccan occupation of Western Sahara. In addition to Sudan turning at some stage into a base from which Bin-Laden's groups headed for Algeria, and where plots used to be hatched to provide the GIA with fighters and equipment, jihadist sites and blogs have recently circulated a booklet entitled "Letters from the notebook of a mujahid: Sheikh Usama and the story of his support for jihad in Algeria," by an author who called himself Abu-Akram Hisham. The author relates the story of Bin-Ladin's interest in Algeria in a chronological order. The most interest-worthy part in it may be Morocco's attempt to exploit Algeria's situation to blackmail it with regard to the Western Sahara issue. The booklet says that Morocco, "one of the countries where mujahidin found a breathing space either domestically or abroad, since the Moroccan regime used to turn a blind eye on them because of the Western Sahara issue in order to put pressure on the Algerian regime"… (Read More)

"...Algerian rejects a military solution imposed on Libya from abroad" (El-Khabar, Algeria)

Military and Security

On March 23, the daily El-Khabar reported: "Algeria has called for expediting the building of new institutions in Libya to enable the expected new government to face the biggest challenge to Libya and the countries of the region, namely terrorism, and expressed its categorical rejection of a military intervention from abroad to settle the situation in Libya. In an address he delivered in Tunis on the convening of the 8th session of the meeting of Libya's neighbouring countries, the minister of Maghreb affairs, African Union and Arab League, Abdelkader Messahel, said: "Algeria has not stopped its utmost efforts to help Libyan brothers to achieve rapprochement and understanding and it is determined now and in the future to stand by them and to be with the National Unity [as published] Government when it is appointed and to help it overcome the difficulties of building new Libyan institutions and to confront all the obstacles by combating terrorism which has become a threat to the entity of this brotherly country and the security and stability of neighbouring countries."… (Read More)

"Terrorist plan to blow up oil installations in the south foiled..." (Newspaper, Middle East)

Terrorism

On March 20, the daily Echourouk el-Youmi reported: "Preliminary investigations which were initiated by specialist security teams with terrorists who were detained after the attack on the gas complex at Khrechba revealed that the terrorist group planned to blow up other installations with a view to inflicting enormous losses to the national economy, bearing in mind that the gas complex which was attacked on Friday employed about 1,000 Algerian workers and a large number of foreign workers. Preliminary investigations indicated that the terrorist group which carried out the Khrechba operation was linked to the most dangerous terrorist elements active in the Sahel countries who had been pursued by the army elements for a while; it became clear that there was a link between the terrorist group and the terrorist cell which carried out the Tiguentourine explosion a few years ago. The investigations established that there were close ties between this terrorist group and a number of suspects in southern provinces who had attempted to help the criminals in the execution of their plan with their expert knowledge of desert hideouts and paths and the location of companies working in the heart of the desert… (Read More)

Egypt

Politics

“Shukri to Okaz: No dialogue with Tehran and no disputes over Arab force...” (Okaz, Saudi Arabia)

Arab Diplomacy

On March 31, the pro-monarchy Okaz newspaper carried the following interview with Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shukri by its correspondent in Cairo Rabih Shahin… (Read More)

Iran

Opinion

"Non-partisan messages of 26 February election" (Iran, Iran)

Democracy and Party Politics

On March 16, a commentary by Davud Mohammadi in the conservative Iran said: "The deeply rooted tradition of election competitions in Iran conveys a "partisan assumption" about the message that lies in the votes of the people, particularly by the winning party. They take their election victory unconditional confirmation by voters. The failed party usually takes shelter in making justifications instead of "criticizing itself." They do this by identifying and then finding a remedy for why they were not welcomed by the people. And they imply that, due to various reasons, they were victims of their rival's tricks, which made people deluded and turned them away from their party, rather than because of the faults and mistakes of their own party. Concurrence of these two extreme assumptions by winners and losers leads to a chaotic atmosphere in which the "non-partisan messages" of voters are not heard. In addition, the autopsy of the atmosphere of the! elections is also neglected. The 07 Esfand 94 elections were not exempt from this general rule either, and their non-partisan messages have not attracted the required attention. Therefore, it is noteworthy to briefly point out a number of issues… (Read More)

"Rouhani's serious contender in next year's presidential election cannot be found amongst the principle-ists" (Website, Middle East)

Democracy and Party Politics

On March 29, an editorial by Mohammad Mohajeri on the website Khabaronline said: "A principle-ist journalist predicts that Hassan Rouhani will not have a serious contender amongst the reformists or the principle-ists in next year's election. Khabar Online reports that Mohammad Mohajeri, the editor-in-chief of Khabar Online News Agency, has in an article published in Mehrnameh Nowruz special edition predicted activities of the factions ahead of next year's presidential election. Mohajeri has in a part of this article written: "In a section of the principle-ist current some have been trying for a while to suggest that Hassan Rouhani is going to be a one term president and therefore the 12th president has to be found. Those who say such things are not taken seriously in the principle-ist camp, although they might be able to create commotion in the media."… (Read More)

"Why did we lose?" - on the recent elections (Newspaper, Middle East)

Democracy and Party Politics

On March 12, Amir Mohebbian wrote in the reformist Arman-e Emruz: "Analysing the 25 February (7 Esfand) elections is possible through various methods. Some people have offered analyses based on a sociological approach, others based on an economic and development outlook, and some based on a psychological and historical approach. The principle-ists' situation in Tehran is different to the principle-ists' situation in other parts of the country. In other words, the election outcome throughout the country, except for Tehran, was an acceptable and rational outcome. This is because when a new government comes to power and has a more dominant dialogue, general public opinion enables them to create a situation whereby their dialogue will be the victorious one. We have observed that a fragile majority of those elected to the 10th Majlis belongs to the principle-ists, and from certain aspects and compared with the reformists and the pro-government forces, the principle-ists outnumber the others. The point however is why did this not happen in Tehran? The defeat of the 30 principle-ists in Tehran can be attributed to a variety of factors. To put it briefly, the principle-ists did not lose to the reformists in Tehran, but rather they lost to their own internal outlook, which devalued the principle-ists' shares in Tehran's political stock market. The negative values of the Steadfastness Front, which was branded on the public mind, discredited the principle-ists' positive values… (Read More)

Politics

“Iranian sources: political crisis in Tehran between the Guide and the president” (Asharq al-Awsat, United Kingdom)

On March 31, the Saudi-owned, London-based Asharq al-Awsat daily carried the following report: “Well-informed Iranian and Iraqi political sources connected to the Shi’i parties and powers in Iraq revealed to Asharq al-Awsat that “Iran is now facing a ruling crisis following the last elections that favored the reformists. This led to a severe crisis between the Iranian Supreme Guide, Ali Khamenei, President Hassan Rouhani and his Foreign Minister Mohammad Jawad Zarif… (Read More)

Iraq

Politics

“Names featured in formation of government of “technocrats” presented by Al-Abadi...” (Website, Middle East)

Democracy and Party Politics - Governmental Reform

On April 1, the Turkish Anadolu News Agency carried the following report by its correspondent in Baghdad Ibrahim Saleh: “A knowledgeable Iraqi political source revealed to Anadolu the names featured in the formation of the government of “technocrats,” presented earlier on Thursday by Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi to parliament to earn its vote of confidence, in an attempt to contain the protests calling for the fighting of corruption... The new ministerial formation included 16 ministers, whose names Al-Abadi surrendered in a closed envelope to Parliament Speaker Salim al-Jabouri. The knowledgeable political source said to Anadolu that this formation “featured the name of Sharif Ali Bin al-Hussein, one of the relatives of the king of Iraq who was toppled by the army in the 50s of last century, and that he was nominated to hold the post of foreign minister… (Read More)

Lebanon

Politics

“Concerns over ‘security detonation’ in Palestinian Ain el Helweh camp in South Lebanon” (Asharq al-Awsat, United Kingdom)

Unrest

On April 1, the Saudi-owned, London-based Asharq al-Awsat daily newspaper carried the following report: “Calm is being gradually restored to the Ain el Helweh Palestinian refugees camp in the city of Saida in the south of the country following the security tension seen there as a result of the two dead victims that fell early this week as part of the ongoing conflict between the Fatah movement and the radical Muslim Youths faction. Despite the continuous efforts of the Palestinian factions to control the situation in the camp that hosts 120,000 individuals living in one square kilometer, the loose weapons there – as is the case in most of the other camps on the Lebanese lands – are leaping to the frontline after every security incident thus reminding of the fragility of the security situation in Lebanon, which is oscillating on the rhythm of the fiery developments in the region… (Read More)

“Al-Assiri’s position: Burning Franjieh or mere pressure?” (Website, Middle East)

Arab Diplomacy - Democracy and Party Politics

On March 31, the electronic Al-Modon newspaper carried the following report: “After the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s vague silence regarding the initiative of [former] PM Sa’d al-Hariri to nominate MP Suleiman Franjieh for president, the Saudi ambassador to Lebanon, Ali Awad Assiri, made an interesting statement where he said that Saudi Arabia did not support MP Franjieh’s nomination but rather supported an initiative that gave way to believe in the presence of a consensus, which turned out to be non-existent… (Read More)

Libya

Opinion

“As-Sarraj in Tripoli: Will Libya recover?” (Al-Quds al-Arabi, United Kingdom)

Democracy and Party Politics - Unrest - USA Europe

On April 1, the Qatari-owned Al-Quds al-Arabi daily carried the following lead editorial: “A sea trip from the Tunisian Sfax Port led Prime Minister of the Libyan Concord Government Fayez as-Sarraj to the Libyan capital Tripoli with the members of the Libyan presidential council, while probably carrying the hopes of the majority of the Libyans, who wish to see a happy, stable, thriving and secure country... This trip was courageous, as As-Sarraj and the members of the council chose to come to the capital instead of staying in an Arab or Western capital, because the building of the new Libya cannot be done from abroad. Moreover, heading to Tripoli while armed with the approvals of more than half the members of parliament in Tobruk, i.e. the city whose government and parliament presented themselves as legitimate alternatives for the ones in Tripoli, symbolizes the refusal to divide the country… (Read More)

Middle East

Opinion

“The real face” (Al-Khaleej, United Arab Emirates)

USA Europe

On April 1, the Al-Khaleej daily carried the following editorial: “The West is employing two faces with the Arabs: one fake face wearing the mask of Human Rights, democracy, and peace seeking; and another face launching wars according to its own interests, supporting oppression and helping the occupation. For decades, the successive American administrations worked on imposing themselves as peace sponsors in our region. At the same time, they were shielding the Zionist entity against accountability for all the Human Rights’ violations in Palestine. They were opening their treasuries and their military arsenals to support the Zionist entity in launching its wars and proceeding with is occupation of the Arab land… (Read More)

Palestine

Opinion

“For Abbas to offer his condolences to the Israeli war criminals is a disgrace…” (Website, Middle East)

Peace Process

On March 31, the electronic Rai al-Youm daily carried the following editorial: “President Mahmoud Abbas, the president of the [Palestinian] Authority is “a man who knows his duties” as per the saying of our people in Palestine. For this reason, he did not hesitate to dispatch an official delegation to replace him led by Mr. Mohammad al-Madani, the member of the Fatah movement’s central committee, in order to offer his condolences to the family of the Israeli army officer, Gen. Munir Ammar, in his village, the Druze Julis, in Upper Galilee… (Read More)

Politics

"HAMAS Returns to Egypt To Tell its Authorities That it Accepts Their Demands" (Asharq al-Awsat, United Kingdom)

Arab Diplomacy

On March 27, the Saudi owned Asharq al-Awsat reported: "Officials in the Hamas Movement said that the movement's delegation will return to Egypt to inform the Egyptian authorities of the movement's position towards the demands which Egyptian intelligence officials presented during the sessions that were held earlier this month. Mahmud al-Zahhar, a leader in the movement and one of the delegation's members, said that Hamas will reply positively to the Egyptian demands. He, however, did not explain the nature of these demands although he hinted at some of them. This confirms what "Asharq al-Awsat" has published previously regarding Egypt's demand from Hamas on disengagement with the Muslim Brotherhood and controlling border and the Salafis' movement from and to the Gaza Strip… (Read More)

Society

“Controversy on Palestinian street over difference between Moshe Eliyahu... and Leila Murad” (Al-Quds al-Arabi, United Kingdom)

On April 1, the Qatari-owned Al-Quds al-Arabi daily carried the following report by its correspondent in Ramallah Fadi Abu Saada: “As it is usually the case with every minor incident, the Palestinian street became preoccupied with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas’ statements before a delegation of Jews of Arab origins, who visited Ramallah a few days ago and met with him at the presidential headquarters. The Palestinian president stated there was a lot in common between the Palestinians and the Arab Jews who lived in the Arab states..., as the children of the Arab nation who share the same history, culture, music, arts and Arabic language... He added that one of the singers he listened to and favored was Jewish Arab singer Moshe Eliyahu, born in Syrian Aleppo before moving to the occupation state in the 50s of last century, to live in the Palestinian city of Haifa that was occupied in 1948… (Read More)

Syria

Politics

“European sources expect “tough and complicated” talks in Geneva in ten days” (Asharq al-Awsat, United Kingdom)

Peace Process - USA Europe

On April 1, the Saudi-owned, London-based Asharq al-Awsat daily carried the following report: “European diplomatic sources that are closely following up on the developments of the Syrian file expect a “tough and complicated” round of inter-Syrian talks in Geneva under the mediation of the international envoy, Staffan de Mistura, which is expected to be re-launched… (Read More)

“Following announcement of “Western Kurdistan” federation, Kurdish units blackmail Arabs...” (Al-Quds al-Arabi, United Kingdom)

Human Rights

On April 1, the Qatari-owned Al-Quds al-Arabi daily carried the following report by its correspondent in Tel Abiad Abdullah al-Omari: “Arab inhabitants under the new Kurdish administration in the Western Kurdistan federation complained about what they dubbed the “imposition of the administration’s new decisions on them,” and the assignment of their implementation to the People’s Protection Units, which are intentionally violating their rights and harassing them to force them to leave their regions. And the last among these decisions was the law related to the reconstruction of Ain Arab (Kobani). Abdul Karim al-Musa, a field activist in Tel Abiad on the border with Turkey, said to Al-Quds al-Arabi at this level: “In all the areas under their control, from Rabia to Afrin, the Kurdish units are engaged in intolerable practices against the Arabs… (Read More)

Tunisia

Politics

“Leaders in opposition: Beji can no longer tolerate us” (Newspaper, Middle East)

Democracy and Party Politics

On March 31, the independent Tunisian Attounissia newspaper carried the following report: “Zouhair Hamdi, a leader in the Popular Front, assured in response to the president’s statements in which he said that the opposition and the Popular Front were practicing intellectual terrorism against the government, that what Essebsi voiced reflected his culture, and a mentality of one opinion and one party, continuing that Essebsi could no longer tolerate the other opinion, and that his statements were some sort of instigation and a continuation of the methodical slander campaign against the Popular Front, which had previously led to assassinations and a difficult stage in Tunisia. Hamdi added to Attounissia that Essebsi recognized yesterday that he had failed, without presenting solutions, assuring that this recognition rendered his stay in power unjustified… (Read More)

Co-Founder: Nicholas Noe

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