Saudi-led airstrikes targeting Houthi strongholds destroyed historic houses in the Old City of Sana’a, a UNESCO world heritage site. At least five civilians were killed and others buried under the rubble, medical officials and witnesses said. The Old City has been inhabited for nearly 2,500 years and has a high density of unique ochre and white, mud-brick, tower houses, labyrinthine souqs, mosques and hammams. UNESCO condemned the bombing, noting that historical buildings, monuments, museums and archaeological sites across the country had all suffered since the start of the conflict. “I am profoundly distressed by the loss of human lives as well as by the damage inflicted on one of the world’s oldest jewels of Islamic urban landscape,” UNESCO’s Director General Irina Bokova, said in a statement on the agency’s website. [AP, Reuters, 6/12/2015]
EGYPT | LIBYA & THE MAGHREB | SYRIA & ITS NEIGHBORS | YEMEN & THE GULF | ECONOMICS
UK, US, EU condemn terrorist attack in Luxor
The European Union, United States, and United Kingdom condemned a Wednesday suicide bombing near Karnak temple of Luxor Wednesday, expressing their support to Egypt against “terrorism.” UK Minister for North Africa Tobias Ellwood said in a statement on Wednesday, “The UK continues to stand with the Egyptian government and people in their fight against terrorist violence.” The US embassy in Cairo also commended the police officers and citizens who managed to foil the attack. “We also condemn the attack on the Multinational Force and Observers mission (MFO) base in North Sinai. The United States continues to stand with the Egyptian government and people in the ongoing fight against terrorism.” The EU joined in the condemnations, also asserting their support of the country’s efforts to combat ‘violent extremism,’ according to an EU statement. [Ahram Online, Cairo Post, DNE, 6/12/2015]
Police officer sentenced to fifteen years for death of activist Sabbagh; Witnesses face retrial
An Egyptian court has sentenced a police officer to fifteen years in prison for the killing of a protester during a peaceful demonstration in Cairo in January. Cairo’s criminal court found police lieutenant Yassin Hatem Salahedeen guilty of manslaughter in the death of activist Shaimaa al-Sabbagh. Salahedeen addressed the court before the verdict was handed down, denying responsibility for Sabbagh’s killing and saying he had no ammunition in his weapon. A lawyer representing the slain woman said the ruling was fair. The sentence can be appealed before the country’s highest appeal court. Meanwhile, an Egyptian court is also set to hear an appeal on Saturday of the acquittal of seventeen witnesses who went on trial after providing testimony on Sabbagh’s death. They had been charged for violating the protest law. [Ahram Online, DNE, Reuters, AP, Aswat Masriya, Mada Masr, 6/12/2015]
Interior Ministry says 3,977 arrested in 2015 for alleged Muslim Brotherhood membership
Nearly 3,977 were arrested in 2015 on charges of belonging to the banned Muslim Brotherhood group, according to official reports from the Ministry of Interior. Daily News Egypt aggregated the reports published by the ministry from January 2 through May 31, 2015 on those arrested upon suspicion of belonging to the Brotherhood. The arrested were mainly categorized as middle rank Brotherhood leaders, members of specialized committees, or people wanted pending court sentences. In the wake of a cabinet reshuffle that saw that Minister of Interior replace, the numbers of arrests announced during March alone ranked the highest, up to 1,359, greatly exceeding the sum of arrests of January and February together, which amounted to 276. In the following months, the numbers remained high amounting to 1,188 in April, and 1,154 in May. [DNE, 6/11/2015]
Mahlab establishes high council for digital community
Prime Minister Ibrahim Mahlab has ordered the establishment of a high council for the digital community. The council, headed by the Prime Minister, includes the ministers of defense, communications and information technology, local development, planning, interior, justice, the head prosecutor, and the head of the General Intelligence Service. The council will be tasked with developing an integrated system to establish the rules for a national entity for the digital society, and with drafting its policies and priorities. The council, which may seek the assistance of experts and security services, will submit a monthly report to the President with the results of its work. [Egypt Independent, 6/11/2015]
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Libya’s Parliament Rejects Pressure to accept UN deal
The spokesman for Libya’s internationally recognized parliament on Thursday declined pressure by the West and the United Nations on lawmakers to accept a peace deal that stipulates power-sharing with rival Islamists. Faraj Abu-Hashim, spokesman for the parliament based in Libya’s eastern city of Tobruk, told reporters that lawmakers will not accept “pressures” and attempts to “legitimize militias”- a reference to the militia-backed General National Congress based in Tripoli. [AP, 6/12/2015]
Messahel speaks on the urgency of finding a solution for Libya’s Government
Minister of Maghreb Affairs for the African Union and Arab League AbdelKader Messahel highlighted the urgency of finding a solution for governmental unity in Libya. Messahel stated, “It is necessary for all the present players to be guided, in their search for this solution, by the spirit of dialogue, fraternity and reconciliation since the cause of peace, unity of Libya, the cohesion of its people and the future of its children require sacrifices and concessions.” Messahel also spoke about the role of neighboring countries such as Algeria in supporting UN mediation in Libya and encouraging a political solution. [All Africa, 6/12/2015]
Nine killed in clashes between ISIS and other militants in eastern Libya
At least nine fighters were killed in clashes on Friday between Islamic State (ISIS or ISIL) and an Islamist force in Derna. Fighting first erupted on Tuesday after a leader in the Islamist umbrella group Majlis al-Shura was killed. New clashes broke out again on Friday. [Reuters, 6/12/2015]
Tunisia and Morocco discuss bilateral agreements
Morocco’s Prime Minister Abdelilah Benkirane is currently in Tunisia for a two-day meeting to participate in the 18th Session of the Tunisian-Moroccan High Joint Committee. Benkirane also met with President Beji Caid Essebsi on Friday. The two leaders discussed opportunities for bilateral agreements and relations. [AllAfrica, 6/12/2015]
Hezbollah and Syrian army press offensive in Qalamoun
Hezbollah and the Syrian army forces continued their advance Friday on the outskirts of the Qalamoun region. The fighters continued their advance towards Shoumais al-Hosan hilltop, southwest of al-Jarajeer’s outskirts. With the Nusra Front almost defeated in the area, a major battle is expected between Hezbollah and the Islamic State (ISIS or ISIL). A member of the Nusra Front was arrested by army intelligence Friday in the Lebanese border town of Arsal for having links to various bombings in Lebanon in recent months. Ahmed al-Atrash, also known as Nisr Arsal, is accused of transporting explosives-rigged cars that were used in bombings in Beirut’s southern suburbs of Dahieh and the Bekaa area of al-Hermel, both Hezbollah targets. [Naharnet, 6/12/2015]
Syrian army regains control of southern airbase
Syrian army troops, reportedly with the help of members of the Druze minority, regained full control of Thaala airbase in southern Sweida province on Friday, a day after rebels overran large parts of it. Rebels from the Southern Front alliance withdrew from the base under heavy regime fire. Syria’s Deputy Foreign Minister said Friday that the Syrian government has weathered worse spells in the conflict than the current advances by insurgents across the country and it is confident its army can hit back with the help of its allies. [AFP, Reuters, 6/12/2015]
Syrian Druze reconsider alliances after deadly attack
The Nusra Front’s killing of twenty Druze villagers and the rebel Southern Front alliance’s recent gains in Druze-majority territory in Deraa and Sweida have set off debates among Druze leaders about how to best protect their interests. The Druze could either remain close to the government, reach out to Sunni insurgents, or stand alone to defend themselves. The region’s preeminent Druze leader and Lebanese Parliament member Walid Jumblatt declared that Druze should give up on the government and reconcile with the Sunni community in southern Syria. [NYT, 6/11/2015]
Operation to liberate Mosul from ISIS begins
Iraqi military official Gen. Najim al-Jubouri declared Friday that the operation to liberate Mosul from ISIS has started, with airstrikes targeting the militants a year after they seized the northern Iraqi city. The head of Nineveh Operations Command also said on Thursday that military units have been deployed in Baiji, located on the main road to Mosul, to retake the city from ISIS. The body of Tariq Aziz, Saddam Hussein’s former top aide who died last week in prison in Iraq, went missing on Thursday at Baghdad International Airport en route to Amman. [Al Arabiya, 6/12/2015]
Turkey prepares to limit Syrian refugee influx
Turkey said on Thursday that it was taking measures to limit the flow of Syrian refugees into its territory after fighting between Kurdish and ISIS fighters in northern Syria has led to an influx of thousands into Turkey. Under an “open door” policy championed by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Turkey has taken in 1.8 million Syrian refugees since the conflict in Syria erupted in 2011. [AFP, 6/12/2015]
GCC set to continue anti-Houthi mission should Geneva talks fail
The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) said it would continue targeting Houthi rebels in Yemen if the Geneva talks failed to implement UN resolution 2216 that stipulates restoring President Abdrabbo Mansour Hadi to power. Presiding over a meeting of the GCC foreign ministers in Riyadh on Thursday, Qatari Foreign Minister Khalid Bin Mohammed al-Attiyah warned that the GCC would take necessary steps to maintain the national security of its member states if the UN-sponsored talks between the Yemeni government and the Houthi rebels failed to resolve the crisis in Yemen. All GCC members except Oman are part of the military campaign. Attiyah said the coalition would continue its operations in Yemen unless Houthi militants and forces loyal to ex-President Ali Abdullah Saleh ended their power grab in compliance with the UN resolution. [Asharq al-Awsat, Al Masdar (Arabic), 6/12/2015]
Saudi-led air strike targets power plant in Aden, killing two and cutting power
Two people were killed in an air strike carried out on the Khormaksar electricity power station in Aden province, an official source at Ministry of Electricity said Wednesday. The power station was seriously damaged, resulting in the power being cut off in the Crater, Mualla, Tawahi, Khormakser, and Qaloah. [SABA, 6/11/2015]
UNICEF reports that 80 percent of Yemenis now in need
Eighty percent of Yemen’s population, or more than 20 million people, need some form of humanitarian assistance UNICEF said on Thursday. The figure is up by almost 5 million people since the organization’s latest report last week. “20.4 million people are now estimated to be in need of some form of humanitarian assistance, of whom 9.3 million are children,” Deputy Representative of UNICEF Jeremy Hopkins reported from Sana’a on Thursday. According to a local medical official, dozens of people have died in the city in recent weeks due to a sudden uptick in dengue fever and malaria brought on by the shortage of water and lack of rubbish collection as temperatures soar. [Al Arabiya, Reuters, 6/12/2015]
UNESCO heritage site destroyed in Sana’a
Saudi-led airstrikes targeting Houthi strongholds destroyed historic houses in the Old City of Sana’a, a UNESCO world heritage site. At least five civilians were killed and others buried under the rubble, medical officials and witnesses said. The Old City has been inhabited for nearly 2,500 years and has a high density of unique ochre and white, mud-brick, tower houses, labyrinthine souqs, mosques and hammams. UNESCO condemned the bombing, noting that historical buildings, monuments, museums and archaeological sites across the country had all suffered since the start of the conflict. “I am profoundly distressed by the loss of human lives as well as by the damage inflicted on one of the world’s oldest jewels of Islamic urban landscape,” UNESCO’s Director General Irina Bokova, said in a statement on the agency’s website. [AP, Reuters, 6/12/2015]
World Bank summary of Global Economic Prospects for MENA
After an easing in tensions in early 2014, the Middle East and North Africa region is again experiencing major—and increasing—security challenges. In addition, since mid-2014, it is also adjusting to the oil price drop. This is a particular challenge for oil-exporting countries, many of which also face severe security issues. For oil-importing countries, the potential positive effect of lower oil prices is partially offset by spillovers from within the region, including through lower remittances and security problems, and by long-standing constraints on growth potential. Growth is expected to average about 2.2 percent in the developing countries of the region in 2015, and to pick up modestly in 2016-17. Risks remain tilted to the downside, more so than in other regions. Policy makers face the challenges of adjusting to lower oil prices and coping with security risks in the short-run, and bolstering growth, employment, and fiscal positions in the long-run. [Global Economic Prospects (Report), 6/11/2015]
Egypt approves proposal to set up sovereign investment fund
The Egyptian government has approved a proposal to set up a sovereign investment fund to support economic development through returns on the state’s assets and resources. The fund, called Amlak, will be state-owned through the National Investment Bank. It will act as the state’s investment arm and aims to encourage diversification and support sustainable economic and social development. A statement by the cabinet said that the state would not manage investments directly. “The aim is to set up a highly effective investment fund that is able to participate with financial institutions and sovereign Arab and international funds in mega-projects,” Planning Minister Ashraf al-Araby said. He did not give details on when the fund would be created or how much money it would manage. [Reuters, 6/11/2015]
Libyan town opposing Tripoli waits for fuel from state oil firm
The western town of Zintan, allied with Libya’s internationally recognized government in Tobruk, has not yet received any fuel from the Tripoli-based National Oil Corporation (NOC), according to a local official. Ending a fuel blockage lasting more than eight months would improve ties between the NOC and Zintan, whose residents have blocked pipelines to the El Sharara and El Feel oilfields. Last week, the NOC said thirty-one trucks were delivering more than 1 million liters of petrol products to all cities in the western Nafusa Mountains. Mayor of Zintan Mustafa al-Barouni said the Zawiya refinery east of Tripoli had supplied all areas in the mountains except his and another town. [Reuters, 6/11/2015]
Tunisian Prime Minister highlights investment at annual forum
Tunisia remains the favorite destination for foreign investors, Prime Minister Habib Essid said Thursday at the official opening of the 2015 Tunis Investment Forum. Essid said that there are currently over 3,000 foreign companies in Tunisia with over 300,000 employees. Foreign direct investment (FDI) for the first quarter of 2015 is estimated at 771 million dinars, which marks an 83 percent increase from the same period in 2014. Essid emphasized the importance of increasing FDI flow in order to spur economic growth, saying it is the best way to achieve an effective partnership with Mediterranean countries. [TAP/All Africa, 6/11/2015],