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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

19-Feb-2018

Egypt

Opinion

“Stability and the Egyptian presidency” (Al-Watan Syria, Syria)

Democracy and Party Politics

On February 19, the pro-Assad Al-Watan daily newspaper carried the following piece by Abdul Menhem Ali Issa: “In the past seven years, Egypt changed three presidents…and seven governments, knowing that it had required 59 years to reach this same number [of modifications] between the years 1952 and 2011. We are not hereby promoting the idea that one of these two phases is positive and the other is negative and we are not saying that the presidents in the earlier phase were better at dealing with the reality so they succeeded in imposing stability while their three grandchildren failed this mission and thus brought chaos. The main question rather is: what happened that brought all this? After that, let anyone with a vision look and determine which was better for Egypt and the Egyptian Street… (Read More)

“Is Es-Sisi right?” (Al-Mesryoon, Egypt)

Democracy and Party Politics

On February 18, the independent Al-Mesryoon newspaper carried the following opinion piece by Executive Chief Editor Mahmoud Sultan: “The Muslim Brotherhood’s reaction to the arrest of Anan, Geneina and Abou al-Foutouh, constituted a real test for the group’s ability to reconcile with the national forces, and placed observers before a question linked to the “adequacy” of the stringent official position towards the reconciliation calls, i.e. before the question: Is Es-Sisi right? There is a real and unprecedented crisis between the authority, the democratic forces and the reformist movement in general. And this crisis ended with what we are currently witnessing in terms of unparalleled audacity, practiced for unknown reasons, in exiting the political customs in the management of “hatred,” and excessive roughness in shutting down a party, which symbolizes the end of underground work… (Read More)

Politics

“Meals for Egyptians stuck at security barricades in Al-Arish carry Dahlan’s picture” (Newspaper, Middle East)

Democracy and Party Politics - Military and Security

On February 16, the Qatari-owned London-based Al-Araby al-Jadeed newspaper, which was founded by Azmi Bishara, carried the following report from Cairo: “Groups affiliated with Mohammad Dahlan, the expelled leader from the Palestinian Fatah Movement, distributed meals carrying his picture to those stuck at the security barricades due to the military operations launched by Egypt in North Sinai on Friday, which generated controversy surrounding the role played by Dahlan. Indeed, many wondered about the nature of Dahlan’s role, who was allowed to undertake such a task at a time when the Egyptian state apparatuses abstained from playing their natural role at this level. The command of the Second Field Army, which is leading the operations in Sinai, had stopped all the ferries carrying merchandise from the various regions to Sinai, ever since the beginning of the military operations early last week… (Read More)

Iraq

Politics

“Elements from ISIL running in Iraqi elections” (Website, Middle East)

Democracy and Party Politics - Terrorism

On February 18, the Arabic page of the official Russian Sputnik News Agency carried the following report: “Head of Al-Anbar Salvation Council [a gathering of Anbar tribes] Sheikh Hameed Al-Hayes revealed in exclusive statements to Sputnik’s correspondent in Iraq today on Sunday that elements from the terrorist ISIL organization were running in the elections that should be held in May. Al-Hayes added: “We have detected the candidacies of 6 to 8 figures in the parliamentary elections, who were affiliated with ISIL organization. Some of them supported the organization in Al-Anbar,” in western Iraq, assuring: “We are going over the candidates’ names and preparing to confront those ISIL elements, whose names will be provided to the Federal Government… (Read More)

Kuwait

Politics

“Kuwaiti representative, Security Council chairman: Palestine will remain Arabs’ primary cause…” (Al-Quds al-Arabi, United Kingdom)

Arab Diplomacy - Peace Process - United Nations

On February 19, the Qatari-owned Al-Quds al-Arabi daily carried the following report from New York by its correspondent Abdul Hamid Siam: “In an exclusive interview with six Arab journalists at the United Nations, including Al-Quds al-Arabi’s correspondent, Kuwaiti Ambassador and Chairman of the Security Council for the month of February Mansour al-Otaibi spoke about the preoccupations of his country, which represents the Arab Group at the Security Council. He said: “Before assuming the chairmanship of the Security Council, and ever since the Asian Group elected it as Egypt’s successor in the Arab seat, Kuwait has promised itself to represent the Arabs’ causes with all its capabilities and relations, at the head of which is the Palestinian cause, which is at the heart of the Arab-Israeli conflict… The second main cause is the suffering of the Syrian people… (Read More)

Lebanon

Politics

“Saudi Arabia might pull out from Lebanon…” (Ad-Diyyar, Lebanon)

Democracy and Party Politics

On February 19, the Ad-Diyyar daily carried the following report by Simon Abou Fadel: “The political scene and positions spotted at the celebration organized by PM Sa’d al-Hariri to commemorate the anniversary of his father’s death reflect the choice that he made regarding his performance, which he had started to establish since the governmental crisis that he suffered from. Al-Hariri’s entourage is indicating that his positions reflect the fact that he is now a “new” man, different from the one who lived under the bets and who suffered the defeats of his regional political axis such as the toppling of his cabinet without any reaction on the part of Washington and Al-Riyadh knowing that these two are now seeking to induce tension at the level of the Lebanese arena with the aim of settling scores with Hezbollah… (Read More)

“Meaningless elections” - Part one (Al-Akhbar Lebanon, Lebanon)

Democracy and Party Politics

On February 19, Ibrahim al-Amin wrote the following piece in Al-Akhbar daily: “The Lebanese will be going to the next parliamentary elections with no tool in hand for inducing change. The electoral law that has been passed is not a good enough recipe to fight the deadly disease of political sectarianism in Lebanon’s body. Although the flabbiness called for modifying the medicine, but this was like replacing one painkiller with another. This is just like the case of An-Nahhar newspaper, whose people are the people of the regime itself, and who tricked themselves rather than the public by moving [the newspaper] to a different bed, under the false illusion that this will heal a coma waiting for a merciful death… (Read More)

“What did the American diplomacy chief truly want from Hezbollah?” (Website, Middle East)

Arab Diplomacy - Energy - USA Europe

On February 17, the Lebanese privately-owned En-Nashra news website carried the following exclusive report by Hassan Moghrabi: “Lebanese political and parliamentary sources that followed the visit of US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson to Beirut up-close, believed that at least for now, Washington did not think there was a risk of seeing military actions between Lebanon and Israel… And in regard to the fears surrounding the land and maritime border, they said that the negotiations were ongoing, that Beirut showed leniency in this regard, but that President of the Republic Michel Aoun, Parliament Speaker Nabih Birri and Prime Minister Sa’d al-Hariri assured that Lebanon will not relinquish an inch of its soil or a cup of its water. On the other hand, the sources continued that the Lebanese position convinced the United States and Israel that the threats to use force were no longer useful… (Read More)

“Will Al-Hariri let Putin down…?” (Al-Akhbar Lebanon, Lebanon)

Military and Security - USA Europe

On February 19, the Al-Akhbar daily newspaper carried the following report by Feras al-Shoufi: “Five months have elapsed since the visit of PM Sa’d al-Hariri to Moscow where he met with Russian President Vladimir Putin. However, his promises to sign military agreements with Russia have not been realized. Much words were said by the Prime Minister, Sa’d al-Hariri, in Moscow last September on the desire to step into a commercial and military cooperation between the two countries knowing that the features of the military cooperation agreement was sketched on the margins of the participation of Lebanese Defense Minister, Yaacoub al-Sarrraf, in the Russian army’s forum in Moscow this last August. Al-Sarraf’s and the army command’s efforts were followed by military meetings in Beirut between Russian and Lebanese experts to agree on the joint texts. Al-Sarraf then sent them to the government to obtain an approval for signing them while the Russians completed the agreement’s text and the required signatures… (Read More)

“Birri to Satterfield: Take it or leave it” (Al-Akhbar Lebanon, Lebanon)

Energy - USA Europe

On February 19, the Al-Akhbar daily newspaper carried the following report by Mayssam Rizk: “…The talks held by the US Secretary of State, Rex Tillerson, in Beirut with the President of the Republic, Gen. Michel Aoun, the Speaker, Nabih Birri, and the Prime Minister Sa’d al-Hariri, left no room for analysis on the nature of the biased US position towards the Israeli entity. The man wore no gloves as he spoke about the land conflict (the Israeli wall along the border blue line with Lebanon) and the marine one (as Israel is claiming that it owns around 300 square kilometers in blocs 8 and 9)… (Read More)

Middle East

Opinion

“Can the region tolerate the repercussions of war between Israel and Iran?” (Al-Quds al-Arabi, United Kingdom)

Military and Security - USA Europe

On February 19, the Qatari-owned Al-Quds al-Arabi daily carried the following lead editorial: “Yesterday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu raised the tone of his threat to Iran, thus saying that if need be, his forces will move against Iran, not just its agents, in clear reference to the Lebanese Hezbollah. This Israeli threat came after important military (and political) transformations in Syria, namely the downing of a Russian plane and the death of its pilot, the strike which targeted Russian and Iranian militias and led to the death of hundreds, the downing of an Iranian drone in the Palestinian airspace, and the downing of an Israeli fighter jet. And all these developments were followed by two waves of Israeli raids on Syrian airports and air defence bases, as well as on Iranian targets, which pointed to unprecedented tensions that led to the violation of all the previous, unannounced red lines between the sides involved in the conflict on the Syrian scene… (Read More)

Saudi Arabia

Politics

“News regarding concern of Saudi Monarch, King Salman, over deteriorating relations…” (Website, Middle East)

Arab Diplomacy

On February 18, the electronic Rai al-Youm daily carried the following report: “Diplomatic and Arab circles are speaking about a rise in the level of concern felt by Saudi Monarch, King Salman Bin Abdulaziz, these days over the deteriorating relations of the Kingdom with the Arab royal regimes in Jordan, Morocco, Kuwait and the Sultanate of Oman; adding that he has started to intervene in the management of this file, which used to be overseen by Crown Prince Mohammad Bin Salman… (Read More)

Syria

Politics

“Kurdish source to Rai al-Youm: Syrian army enters Afrin on Monday…” (Website, Middle East)

Military and Security

On February 18, the electronic Rai al-Youm daily newspaper carried the following report: “The People’s Protection Units and the Syrian government reached an agreement on Sunday evening that will be carried out today, Monday, as per sources who spoke to Rai al-Youm. According to a Kurdish source in Afrin who spoke to Rai al-Youm, the agreement calls for establishing a base for the Syrian army in Afrin and deploying on a number of border points… (Read More)

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