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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.

Our Corrections Policy: We adhere to an honest and open corrections policy. Please email info@mideastwire.com if you notice any typo or if you disagree with our translation choices. Since we do not produce our own content, we only will consider corrections that highlight typos or dispute our translations, not the veracity or accuracy of the original content. Accepted corrections are applied directly to the relevant translations as soon as they are approved by the editor and our database is updated accordingly for all subscribers.

TODAY’S DAILY BRIEFING

21-Jul-2016

Algeria

Politics

"The court defers the case of Al-Watan TV channel until 20 September..." (El-Khabar, Algeria)

Judicial Affairs - Media

On July 12, the daily El-Khabar reported: "The Cheraga Court in Algiers yesterday morning deferred until 20 September the case of photographing and completing an audio-visual production broadcast by Al-Watan TV channel without permission. The head of the channel Djaafer Cheli was charged in connection with the case after leaving prison following his acquittal in another case. The Ministry of Communication was a civil party in the case and asked the governor of Algiers to close down the TV channel following a threat to the president from the leader of the dissolved Salvation Army, Madani Mezrag, during an interview with him. A case was filed for the removal of the seal on Al-Watan headquarters and after more than four sessions the decision to seal the headquarters and the contents including documents and equipment was upheld and the procedure was carried out by the police last year. The decision to seal the headquarters of the TV channel came from the minister of communication and was implemented by the governor of Algiers… (Read More)

Egypt

Politics

“...US training sessions behind military coups” (Al-Mesryoon, Egypt)

Military and Security - USA Europe

On July 21, the independent Al-Mesryoon newspaper carried the following report by its correspondents Abdullah Muftah, Hassan Allam and Amr Mustafa: “Fingers are starting to be pointed at the US, accusing it of standing behind the failed coup attempt staged in Turkey on Friday, in light of the strong support tools it enjoys, and its training centers which experts say are playing a role in preparing the leaders of the coups. At this level, Dr. Yusri Hamad, the deputy head of the Salafi Al-Watan Party, said on the party’s official Facebook page that “the right elements in all the armies are being recruited and sponsored, to be used when need be.” Hamad thus quoted an American official as saying while talking about budgetary issues: “The budget for training officers from outside of America should not be touched, as it has greatly helped us entice elements who have cooperated with us… (Read More)

Iran

Opinion

"Continuation of Americans' dissatisfaction with JCPOA..." - on the sale of Boeing planes (E'temad, Iran)

USA Europe

On July 9, a commentary by Ahmad Khorram in the reformist E'temad said: "The recent measure by the US House of Representatives to stop the sale of aircraft to Iran indicates more than anything that part of the US ruling order is not happy about the outcome of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA). The Americans did not expect the Iranian negotiating team to win the negotiation game; a victory that not only made the Iranian people happy but also led to the Supreme Leader's praise of our country's diplomats. The US House of Representatives has approved a measure, based on which, it will not be possible to sell passenger aircraft to Iran. This decision means that Iran is being subject to pressure by the Americans because they have come to the conclusion that sanctions on Iran have been effective and they intend to continue with this approach. A major section of US political officials have a negative stance regarding the realisation of the JCPOA and they wish to see an increase in tension between the two countries. This is despite the fact that it was made clear during the nuclear negotiations that Iran pursues peaceful objectives and there have been no efforts in the country's nuclear programme to obtain nuclear weapons… (Read More)

Politics

“Saudi Arabia started to implement an Iranian strategy” (An-Nahar, Lebanon)

Religion - Unrest

On July 21, the An-Nahar daily newspaper carried the following report by Sarkis Naoum: “The Islamic Republic of Iran was not concerned following the military operations that some Iranian Kurds have been launching in their regions. It also did not feel concern when the Sunni Balochs tried to act against targets representing the Iranian regime in their regions knowing that this movement started years ago. It also felt no concern over the emergence of a public political opposition against the Iranian regime, one that might turn into a military opposition among the Arabs living in the Iranian Ahvaz region. The recent conference held in Paris by the Mujahedeen-e-Khalq, a Shi’i opposition movement…, represented a clue indicating that the movement has started to mobilize an important international and Arab support… (Read More)

Lebanon

Politics

“Will ISIL set off from Ain el-Helweh to reach the sea?” (Ad-Diyyar, Lebanon)

Terrorism - USA Europe

On July 21, the Ad-Diyyar daily newspaper carried the following report by Iskandar Shahin: “It is not new for the Ain el-Helweh camp to be the maker of the security sensations ever since the ousting of the Palestinian revolution in the 1980s following Lebanon’s invasion by the Israeli enemy. The revolution left behind hundreds of fighters in the diaspora who turned into unemployed individuals when the salaries they used to receive from the many factions such as Fatah, the Popular Front, and others…that united under the cloak of the liberation of Palestine… (Read More)

“Birri to Aoun: I will not vote for you, unless… [ellipses as published] (Al-Akhbar Lebanon, Lebanon)

Democracy and Party Politics

On July 21, the Al-Akhbar daily newspaper carried the following report by Maysam Rizk: “…It seems that Speaker Nabih Birri is the man who is most able to torch the dreams of the head of the Change and Reform Bloc, MP Michel Aoun, in reaching the post of president… Deep down inside, Birri knows that regardless of how exaggerated his positions regarding Aoun are, the General’s dream lays in his hand and that he possesses the keys to Baabda… (Read More)

Middle East

Opinion

“In short: the summit of peace and talk” (Newspaper, Middle East)

Arab Diplomacy

On July 21, the Omani Al-Watan daily carried the following piece by Zuhair Majed: “In a few days, an Arab Summit will be held in an Arab country that had been forgotten until 1960: Mauritania. This summit will be a space to exchange sorrows if the Arabs who cannot attend ultimately manage to do so. There are countries that are busy with their wars. Some others are busy being silent about the wars. Others did not like the idea of the summit but will eventually attend it… (Read More)

Politics

“Jihadist Salafism and Erdogan’s sedition” (Website, Middle East)

Democracy and Party Politics - Military and Security

On July 21, the electronic Al-Modon daily carried the following report by Akil Hussein: “For the second time in a short while, the Salafist Jihadist movement has found itself in a difficult position concerning one of the most important and most complicated issues in the eyes of this movement: Democracy. This has exposed the the movement to an unprecedented criticism. The movement opposed the coup staged by the Egyptian army against the government of former President Mohammad Morsi back in 2013, which is quite a strange position since the movement rejects the democracy that brought the Muslim Brothers to power in Egypt. Then, the failed coup attempt in Turkey and the position of the Salafist Jihadism brought back the questions to the surface… (Read More)

Palestine

Opinion

“The black box in Gaza” - on the fate of Israeli soldier Shaul Aron (Filistin, Palestine)

Military and Security

On July 20, the pro-Hamas Filistin newspaper carried the following opinion piece by Iyad al-Qarra: “Two years after the kidnapping of Israeli soldier Shaul Aron, questions continue to surround his fate. Indeed, he is the only soldier which Al-Qassam Brigade announced it was holding, without saying whether he was dead or alive. Another question was added to that, raised by one of Al-Qassam’s leaders regarding the soldier’s fate, saying: “Did the soldier evaporate in Gaza? Why were no clues found as to his fate?” Al-Qassam is fueling the mystery surrounding the fate of soldier Aron and his three colleagues who have disappeared in Gaza, while remaining silent towards what the occupation said was an Israeli who disappeared in Gaza this month. And this further adds secrets to the black box, which is not expected to be opened until the occupation pays the price to learn about [its soldiers’] fate, then another to get them back… (Read More)

Syria

Politics

“Is An-Nusra Front seeking exit from Yarmouk Camp in Damascus?” (Al-Quds al-Arabi, United Kingdom)

Military and Security

On July 21, the Qatari-owned Al-Quds al-Arabi daily carried the following report by its correspondent in Damascus Abdullah al-Omari: “A source close to An-Nusra Front in Al-Yarmouk Camp in southern Damascus denied the reports circulated by local media outlets and websites, surrounding the existence of negotiations with representatives of the Syrian government to seal a deal by which An-Nusra Front would exit southern Damascus in exchange for its release of the regime’s prisoners in Al-Qalamoun. Anas ash-Shami, who is known for his close ties with An-Nusra Front in southern Damascus, thus said that this “counter-propaganda,” as he called it, “has been ongoing for three months. And it is being reiterated every once and a while though it is not true,” explaining to Al-Quds al-Arabi: “There was an action undertaken by a former Free Army officer called Lieutenant Muhammad… (Read More)

Turkey

Opinion

“How can a “failed coup” distribute gains to neighboring states?” (Newspaper, Middle East)

On July 21, the privately-owned Al-Joumhouria newspaper carried the following report by George Chahin: “Surprisingly, the failed Turkish coup, which imposed itself on the priorities of the neighboring states and the world, prompted talk about gains in most of these states, each for its own reasons. But how can such a coup, which remained incomplete, distribute gains to these states? Is it true that the Turkish Erdogani command is the only loser? How is that?... Before the failure of the coup was confirmed, some regimes and states welcomed Erdogan’s toppling, even if just for a few hours, while directed media outlets started inventing fictive negotiations held by the Turkish president, with Russian President Vladimir Putin at times, and German Chancellor Angela Merkel at others, to request political asylum… (Read More)

“The theatrical coup” (Al-Watan Syria, Syria)

Military and Security - Peace Process - Unrest - USA Europe

On July 21, the pro-Syrian regime Al-Watan daily, carried the following piece by Layoun Zaki: “The “coup” launched by a part of the Turkish army against President Recep Tayyip Erdogan added some new epithets to his person to be added to the many names that he gained through his blatant intervention in the Syrian war such as the thug and the Aleppo’s thief. The new epithets concern his role as a proficient actor in front of the local and foreign public, and a good scenarist who played his role very proficiently. But at the same time, he is the bad director of a farce that carried his own signature… (Read More)

Politics

“Former Syrian Turkmen Assembly Chief: “Parallel entity” was obstructing Turkey’s support for us” (Website, Middle East)

Democracy and Party Politics - Unrest

On July 21, the official Turkish Anadolu News Agency carried the following report by its correspondents in Istanbul Tasnim an-Nakhili and Omar Shagaleh: “On Wednesday night, Syrian associations on Taksim Square in the center of Istanbul City stood in solidarity with the Turkish popular action condemning the failed military coup attempt carried out on Friday by a limited group from the army, loyal to the terrorist parallel entity. The participating associations included the Syrian Turmen Association, the Bayirbucak Association, the Syrian Economic Forum and the Arab Academics Forum. Former President of the Syrian Turkmen Assembly Samir Hafez said during the event: “Turkey is constantly trying to support Syria’s Turkmen. But those affiliated with the (terrorist) parallel entity have always tried to obstruct these attempts… (Read More)

United States

Opinion

“Baghdad and Baton Rouge: Marriage between occupation and racism” (Al-Quds al-Arabi, United Kingdom)

Terrorism

On July 21, the Qatari-owned Al-Quds al-Arabi daily carried the following lead editorial: “An armed black man carried out yet another attack in the town of Baton Rouge in the southern US state of Louisiana, killing three police officers and injuring others, before he was shot down by the police. The attack was similar to another, carried out by an armed black man a short while ago in the city of Dallas in the state of Texas, shooting at the time five police officers and injuring many others. The two incidents reveal a pattern..., seeing how both men previously served in the US Army, particularly in Afghanistan in the case of the Dallas armed man, and in Iraq as a Marines sergeant between 2008 and 2009 in the case of the Baton Rouge armed man, who had been awarded a number of medals. Moreover, both were anti-black racism activists, and were affected by the killing of a black man by the Dallas police… (Read More)

Yemen

Politics

"Yemen's Presidency: Ould Cheikh Seeks To Correct His Mistakes By Asking To Meet Hadi..." (Asharq al-Awsat, United Kingdom)

Arab Diplomacy - Peace Process

On July 12, the Saudi Daily Asharq al-Awsat reported: "Yemeni sources close to the presidency have revealed to Al-Sharq al-Awsat that Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed, the UN envoy to Yemen, asked to meet with President Abd Rabuh Masur Hadi in an attempt to save the Yemeni-Yemeni peace talks following Hadi's statements and hints of not returning to Kuwait. An adviser in the presidency told Asharq al-Awsat that Ould Cheikh's attempt to meet Hadi is considered an effort to correct his mistakes. Yasin Makkawi, an adviser to the Yemeni president and a member of the Yemeni peace talks delegation in Kuwait, said that the mistake Ould Cheikh got into is that he "touched on the issue of a road map that has not been agreed to, or even presented to the government delegation, because he pointed to a national unity government, which means an attempt to legitimise the coup. This sets a dangerous precedent with regard to legitimising coups in the world."… (Read More)

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