The Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS) published a report apparently showing photos of twenty-one Coptic Egyptians recently kidnapped by militants in Libya. ISIS claimed they captured the migrant workers to “avenge the kidnapping of Muslim women by the Egyptian Coptic Church.”
ISIS published the report in the current issue of its online English publication Dabiq, calling the captives “Coptic crusaders.” Egypt’s Foreign Ministry is investigating the authenticity of the pictures. A committee tasked with securing the return of the kidnapped nationals is “following the matter minute-by-minute, making extensive and ongoing contacts with official and non-official concerned Libyan parties in order to clarify the situation and learn the truth,” read a statement by the office of President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi on Thursday. Meanwhile, families of the kidnapped Egyptians demonstrated outside the journalists’ syndicate in downtown Cairo on Friday demanding their release. The families called upon Sisi to take swift measures to verify news of their relatives’ death, and repatriate their bodies if their death is confirmed. [Ahram Online, DNE, Mada Masr, Libya Herald, 2/13/2015]
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Al Jazeera journalists walk out of Egyptian prison
Two Al Jazeera journalists have been released on bail and reunited with their families after nearly fourteen months in an Egyptian prison. On Thursday, a court in Cairo ordered the release of Mohamed Fahmy, a Canadian citizen, and Baher Mohamed, an Egyptian, who are facing retrial on charges of supporting the blacklisted Muslim Brotherhood. Photos on Facebook and video aired by Al Jazeera showed Mohamed, wearing clothes with the tag “Free Press,” hugging and playing with his children, one of whom was born during his detention. Fahmy tweeted a photo with his fiancée Marwa Omara. Meanwhile, Canada welcomed Fahmy’s release, but decried as “unacceptable” putting him through a retrial. [Ahram Online, AP, The Guardian, 2/13/2015]
Major electoral alliances near merger ahead of March parliament polls
The liberal Wafd party are in talks with For the Love of Egypt alliance over a merger ahead of the parliamentary elections slated for March 22. Wafd leads an alliance composed of the Egyptian Social Democratic Party along with other lower-profile parties, while For the Love of Egypt is an electoral group led by retired army general and security expert Sameh Seif al-Yazal. Wafd sent the names of sixty of its nominees who could join FLE’s electoral list. A chairman of the Conservative Party, a member of the FLE list, noted that efforts to unite the electoral fronts came in response to President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi urging political parties to avoid splits ahead of the elections. Meanwhile, two Wafd members in Matrouh resigned after learning of the merger, and because of what they described as an unsatisfactory electoral list that included former NDP figures. [Egypt Independent, 2/12/2015]
Police captain killed, eight injured in Cairo bomb blast; Eight militants killed in Sinai raid
A roadside bomb in Cairo killed Police Captain Mostafa Shamis and wounded eight other people on Friday, the interior ministry said. A homemade bomb targeting a security patrol exploded in the area between the Gesr al-Suez and Ain Shams neighborhoods, injuring Shamis, seven police recruits and one civilian bystander. The militant group Ajnad Misr said on its Twitter account that its members targeted the security force as they were heading to the nearby Alf Maskan district—a flashpoint for near weekly clashes between security forces and Islamist demonstrators. Police forcibly dispersed subsequent protests in the district. Later, Egyptian warplanes killed eight suspected Islamist militants in Sinai, according to security. It was not clear if the airstrikes were in retaliation for the blast. [Reuters, Aswat Masriya, Mada Masr, AP, 2/13/2015]
France’s Hollande says Egypt to buy Rafale fighters, frigate
French President Francois Hollande said Egypt would order twenty-four Rafale fighter jets, a naval frigate and related military equipment in a deal to be signed in Cairo on Monday worth more than 5 billion euros ($5.70 billion). The contract would make Egypt, aiming to upgrade its military hardware amid fears the crisis in neighboring Libya could spill over, the first export customer for the warplane, built by Dassault Aviation. France’s defense minister plans to travel to Cairo on Monday to sign a deal with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi on the sale, a defense ministry source said on Thursday. [Reuters, AP, 2/12/2015]
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ISIS publishes photos of Coptic Egyptians kidnapped in Libya
The Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS) published a report apparently showing photos of twenty-one Coptic Egyptians recently kidnapped by militants in Libya. ISIS claimed they captured the migrant workers to “avenge the kidnapping of Muslim women by the Egyptian Coptic Church.” ISIS published the report in the current issue of its online English publication Dabiq, calling the captives “Coptic crusaders.” Egypt’s Foreign Ministry is investigating the authenticity of the pictures. A committee tasked with securing the return of the kidnapped nationals is “following the matter minute-by-minute, making extensive and ongoing contacts with official and non-official concerned Libyan parties in order to clarify the situation and learn the truth,” read a statement by the office of President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi on Thursday. Meanwhile, families of the kidnapped Egyptians demonstrated outside the journalists’ syndicate in downtown Cairo on Friday demanding their release. The families called upon Sisi to take swift measures to verify news of their relatives’ death, and repatriate their bodies if their death is confirmed. [Ahram Online, DNE, Mada Masr, Libya Herald, 2/13/2015]
New delivery of Ilyushin-73 cargo transporter to LNA
The Libyan Air Force, allied with the Tobruk-based government of Abdullah al-Thinni, announced that it received a new Russian Ilyushin cargo transporter. The airplane appears to be a replacement for the previously destroyed Ilyushin cargo plane at Mitiga airport at the end of January. The Libyan Air Force announced the new plane would provide much needed support in the battle against Libya Dawn and extremist groups in Libya. [Libya Herald, 2/13/2015]
Tripoli says local councils will get more powers; Tobruk cabinet discusses 2015 budget
The Tripoli-based government has agreed to a proposal that will devolve more power to local councils, and will pass decisions to that effect soon. The government identified the sources of revenue directly collected by local councils and these councils will be granted the authority to spend such money. Prime Minister of the rival Tobruk-based government Abdullah al-Thinni led a cabinet meeting regarding the 2015 budget and the low price of oil’s impact on it. The cabinet members also discussed finding funds to provide more medical supplies to hospitals, which have been operating with minimal supplies for several months. [Libya Monitor (subscription), 2/13/2015]
Means to restart cooperation between EU and Tunisia reviewed
President Beji Caid Essebsi received the European Union (EU) High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and European Commission Vice President Federica Mogherini, along with the EU Ambassador to Tunisia Laura Baeza and EU Commission member Michael Curtis. The meeting was an opportunity to look into restarting cooperation between the EU and Tunisia that would focus on social and economic development. [All Africa, 2/13/2015]
Twenty people charged in terrorist operations in Tunisia
The Tunisian ministry of interior announced that it arrested twenty individuals and charged them with involvement with a terrorist group called Abu Meriem Katibet, which specializes in recruiting and financing terrorism. The ministry of interior said that they were conspiring to assist in the kidnapping and beheading of victims. [L’Economiste Maghrebin (French), 2/12/2015]
Syrian rebel leader vows guerrilla war in south
Syrian rebel commander Abu Osama al-Jolani vowed to wage guerrilla war against Hezbollah and Syrian government forces, which have launched a major offensive against insurgents in the sensitive southern border region near Israel and Jordan. “The battle could be lengthy. It will be hit and run—this is the system we are going to use in battle,” said Jolani. The leader of the Syrian National Council Khaled Khoja called Thursday on world leaders to take “immediate action” to end regime attacks on rebel-held areas in the south. The offensive that got under way this week is focused in the area south of Damascus in Deraa and Quneitra province, that is the last notable foothold of the mainstream armed opposition. [Reuters, 2/13/2015]
Assad “part of the solution” says UN envoy
The UN envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura said on Friday that President Bashar al-Assad must be part of the solution for easing violence in Syria, and he would continue discussions with him after talks in Damascus, which took place earlier this week. De Mistura said the government still controlled a large part of Syria and that Assad was “part of the solution for the reduction of the violence,” stressing that he was not talking about a final solution. In a survey published Thursday, fifty-three percent of residents in opposition-held areas of Syria’s Aleppo favor the UN’s proposal of a freeze in fighting, but are skeptical that a truce will hold. [AFP, Reuters, 2/13/2015]
ISIS attack Iraqi town near US base
Militants from the Islamic State (ISIS or ISIL) launched an attack on the town of al-Baghdadi in Iraq’s Anbar province on Thursday, three miles from the Ain al-Asad air base that is home to about 320 US marines who are training members of the Iraqi 7th Division. Militants attacked from two directions and then advanced on the town. According to intelligence sources, another group of ISIS insurgents then attacked the Ain al-Asad air base but were repelled by Iraqi security forces and tribal forces backed by coalition airstrikes. [BBC, Reuters, Al-Jazeera English, 2/13/2015]
UN adopts resolution to crack down on ISIS financing
The UN Security Council has unanimously adopted a resolution aimed at choking off millions of dollars in earnings to ISIS from oil smuggling, antiquities trafficking, and ransom payments. The resolution urges all countries of the UN to take “appropriate steps” to prevent the trade in cultural property from Iraq and Syria, and reminds governments worldwide that they must “prevent terrorists from benefiting directly or indirectly from ransom payments or political concessions” to secure the release of hostages. US Ambassador Samantha Power said the resolution is part of “a comprehensive strategy to degrade and ultimately destroy [ISIS].” She said the strategy also includes coordinated military operations, pointing to attacks that have knocked out oil fields, refineries, and other infrastructure and the recapture of the Syrian town of Kobani. Syria’s UN Ambassador Bashar Ja’afari said the resolution is the most comprehensive in addressing the issue of terrorism. [AP, WSJ, The National, 2/13/2015]
Counterterrorism chief says Houthi takeover surprised US intelligence
Nick Rasmussen, who directs the National Counterterrorism Center, told the Senate intelligence committee that Yemen’s US-funded army failed to oppose advancing Houthi rebels in the same way the US-supported Iraqi military refused to fight the Islamic State (ISIS or ISIL) militants last year. What happened in Iraq with the onslaught of ISIS “happened in Yemen” on “a somewhat smaller scale,” he said. “As the Houthi advances toward Sanaa took place … they weren’t opposed in many places. …The situation deteriorated far more rapidly than we expected.” [AP, 2/12/2015]
More embassies close in Yemen
Saudi Arabia, Italy, and Germany have announced the temporary closure of their embassies in Yemen due to recent violence in the country following similar moves by France, Britain and the United States. The Houthi rebels that have taken control in Yemen’s capital accused Western powers on Thursday of trying to exert pressure by closing their embassies, criticizing the hasty exit of diplomatic staff as “unjustified.” In an interview on Wednesday, Saleh Ali al-Sammad, the senior Houthi leader in Sana’a, depicted his movement as eager to share power with its rivals and to reach out to the country’s traditional allies, including the United States and Saudi Arabia. [AFP, AP, Reuters, Al Masdar (Arabic), 2/13/2015]
UN drafting resolution to address Yemen crisis
The UN envoy to Yemen warned Thursday that the country is at a crossroads between “civil war and disintegration” and a successful political transition, while Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said the state is “collapsing before our eyes.” Efforts were underway on a draft Security Council resolution to address the crisis. Britain and Jordan were working on a resolution that British Ambassador Mark Lyall Grant said would be ready “in the next few days.” A separate draft resolution by the Gulf Coordination Council (GCC) strongly condemns the Houthis and their seizure of power and demands that they “immediately and unconditionally withdraw their forces from government institutions and from all regions under their control.” [AP, Reuters, 2/13/2015]
Saudi releases women’s rights activists from prison
Two Saudi women detained since early December for challenging the conservative kingdom’s ban on female drivers announced on Thursday that they had been released after seventy-three days. Loujain al-Hathloul and Maysaa al-Amoudi, who both have valid driver’s licenses from the United Arab Emirates, may still be prosecuted. Activists behind the latest campaign to challenge the driving ban, the only prohibition of its kind in the world, wrote on Twitter that it was unclear if the case against the two women had been closed or if they still might face trial. [NYT, AFP, WSJ (subscription), 2/12/2015]
Kuwaiti court reverses decision to suspend newspaper
A court in Kuwait has reversed a decision by the commerce and industry ministry to suspend the publication of Al Watan, allowing the daily to appear in the local stands on Thursday. The paper had its license revoked last month by the ministry because its capital had dwindled to below the levels allowed by the new company law. Before the paper’s license was revoked, it and another newspaper had defied a prosecutor-ordered media blackout of a secret probe into allegations of a coup plot to overthrow the Gulf monarchy’s government. [Gulf News, Khaleej Times, 2/12/2015]
Iraqis must be patient on economy
Iraq’s prime minister called on Thursday for “patience” while the government implements economic reforms that include restructuring of many state-owned companies, saying the plan would deliver growth and development. Iraq is struggling to attract foreign investment and diversify its revenue sources away from oil, the price of which plunged in the second half of last year. Defense alone is expected to take up 20 percent of 2015 spending in a budget passed by parliament last month, which includes a deficit of 25 trillion dinars ($22 billion) to be financed through borrowing. [Reuters, 2/12/2015]
First oil tanker docks at Libya’s Hariga since strike
According to port officials, an oil tanker has docked at Libya’s port of Hariga for the first time since security guards ended a strike this week and a storm passed. Authorities managed earlier this week to persuade security guards to end a strike over delayed salary payments, keeping Libya’s only functional onshore oil export port open. A storm then further delayed the terminal’s reopening. Oil production has fallen to around 350,000 barrels a day, a fraction of the 1.6 million bpd Libya used to pump before 2011. [Reuters, 2/12/2015]
Algeria has sufficient financial flexibility to face falling oil prices
According to the Director of the Middle East and Central Asia Department of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the great financial flexibility, accumulated by Algeria over the past years owing to the surge in the oil prices during that period, enables it to face the current falling oil prices. However, in order to transition to the new reality of low oil prices he added that Algeria should undertake reforms for the financial, economic, and fiscal consolidation as well as for the diversification of its economy. [AllAfrica, 2/12/2015]
Yemen LNG exports ongoing normally, one production train in maintenance
According to the CEO of France’s Total, Yemeni exports of liquefied natural gas (LNG) are running normally despite one production plant, or train, undergoing planned maintenance. Total lifted a two-week force majeure last month, which had been announced amid deteriorating security following the collapse of the government. [Reuters, 2/13/2015]