Wednesday, September 12, 2018

9/12/18

25 years ago this week, Mideast peace seemed inevitable. Now it's further away than ever. I thought the 1993 Oslo Accords would put the Middle East on an irreversible path to peace.

OIC Jerusalem Speech: Turkey's President Erdogan speaks on Jerusalem Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan tells the OIC summit on Jerusalem that Israel is an occupying and terror state "We call on the international community to recognise East Jerusalem as the capital of Palestine".

Exclusive: Turkey boosts arms to Syrian rebels as Idlib attack looms - rebel sources Turkey has stepped up arms supplies to Syrian rebels to help them stave off an expected offensive by the Syrian army and its Russian and Iran-backed allies in the northwest near the Turkish frontier, rebel sources told Reuters.

Juncker: EU will send additional 10,000 guards to borders The EU plans to send 10,000 more border guards to tackle unlawful immigration by 2020, the European Commission's president Jean-Claude Juncker said in his annual state of the union address.

The big question: Has the European Union been a success? Europe's ambitious postwar project is considered by some to have been a triumph, ensuring peace and steadying economies across the continent - yet it is decried by others as a bureaucratic nightmare.

Fox: U.N. Bloc may push for recognition of Palestinian State "Don't blame us for cutting aid," UN ambassador Nikki Haley said.

Has the Palestinians' Relevance in End-of-Days Process Expired? The Palestinian Authority is boycotting the White House which has responded by cutting off massive amounts of funding and shutting down the PLO Mission in Washington.

Pope summons bishops for February abuse prevention summit Pope Francis is summoning the presidents of every bishops conference around the world for a February summit to discuss preventing clergy sex abuse and protecting children -evidence that he realizes the scandal is global and that inaction threatens to undermine his legacy.

Turkey's Latest Power Grab a Naval Base in Cyprus? The possibility of a Turkish naval base on Cyprus does not bode well for the chances of a Cyprus reunification deal, particularly after the breakdown of the July 2017 peace talks.

Post-war Syria destined to be sanctions-busting hub, the Russian-Iranian-Turkish summit decides Shared mechanisms for beating US sanctions against Iran may be built into Syria's massive post-war reconstruction program, DEBKAfile's exclusive sources report.