Manal Kortam | منال قرطام

Passionate about #Development #EqualRights #Opportunities #HumanRightsforAll •Development Expert •Campaigner •Mediator. Views expressed here are my own.

[Mario Nawfal @MarioNawfal]

Lebanon signed a deal with Israel yesterday and Fmr Israel Peace Negotiator Daniel Levy couldn't believe what he was reading

The Iranian MOU already required unconditional Israeli withdrawal from Lebanon, and then the Lebanese government turned around and signed a separate deal making that withdrawal conditional on disarming Hezbollah

Daniel's line: Iran negotiated better terms for Lebanon than Lebanon did for itself

An Israeli military commentator went on Channel 13 the same night and called it a win-win, either Israel stays in Lebanon or Lebanon is forced into civil war with Hezbollah

Why did Lebanon do it? Daniel says they don't have leverage, they over-internalized their weakness, and they handed away what little bargaining power the MOU had given them

Collaborating with Israel doesn't get you dignity, it gets you humiliated in front of your own people

Has the Lebanese government just signed its own death warrant?

[asad abukhalil أسعد أبو خليل @asadabukhalil]

هذه الجملة يجب ان تُكتب بالخطّ العربي التقليدي وتُعلَّق على مداخل مقار الحكومة لأنها تعبّر عن معنى السيادة التي تنشدها السلطة الحاليّة:

"نتنياهو: سنسمح للجيش اللبناني بالانتشار والسيطرة على مناطق معينة بالجنوب"

[Ghassan Abu Sitta, Chair of Conflict Medicine AUB @GhassanAbuSitt1]

Netanyahu's entire career for decades was based on finding an American president who would fight Iran on his behalf.

And he did.

And they both lost.

[Ghassan Abu Sitta, Chair of Conflict Medicine AUB @GhassanAbuSitt1]

بيننا وبينهم جبالُ جثث،
وأنهار حقد،

ومقل مفقوعة،
وأطراف مبتوره،
وأطفال ميتمة،
وعوائل أبيدت،
وقرى هجرت،
وبحار من الدموع،
ومجرات تملأها الآهات،
وضحكات أطفال أطفأت
وحزن وحزن وحزن يكفي لعدة أعمار

ودمٌ ودمٌ ودم، وثأر طويل...

[DW Politics @dw_politics]

Germany has failed to win a non-permanent seat on the UN Security Council.
Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul (CDU) secured 104 votes in the General Assembly, falling 23 short of the required two-thirds majority. It is the first time Germany has missed out on a rotating seat.

[Maha Yahya @mahamyahya]

#Lebanon #Israel ceasefire agreement. A Deja Vu moment Again a unilateral agreement that allows Israel to bomb when it sees fit. No mention of withdrawal from occupied zones & asks #Lebanese government to demonstrate their ability to ensure sovereignty!!

https://t.co/ipes3tdoLg

[Craig Mokhiber @CraigMokhiber]

Beyond the many bombings and invasions, the US-Israel Axis has worked for decades to ensure that the Lebanese state was weak, its army feeble and non-credible, its development stifled, and its economy captured, controlled and fragile, in order to ensure the hegemony of the Axis. Now in the midst of yet another brutal invasion and occupation, supported and funded by the US and carried out by the genocidal Israeli apartheid regime, some Lebanese are urging collaboration with their Axis oppressors. This is reminiscent of the tensions between Vichy supporters and the French resistance under Nazi aggression and occupation. Under such terrifying circumstances, every Lebanese has a right to make his/her own difficult choice. But it is one thing to surrender. It is quite another to demand that others- including the resistance - surrender as well. And surely collaboration with the enemy in such circumstances can never be morally justifiable.

[Al Jazeera English @AJEnglish]

"The US is not at all a credible host or mediator, and this has been seen all over the region."

Political analyst Rami Khouri says the US is not a reliable mediator as Lebanon and Israel hold first direct talks in decades amid intensifying Israeli attacks in southern Lebanon.

[Patricia Marins @pati_marins64]

The Blockade Boomerang: Iran’s Escape Routes and America’s Impulsive Moves

When Donald Trump announced the blockade on Iran, he believed it would be a powerful measure capable of increasing pressure on the regime, cutting off its revenues and economically strangling it.

What he failed to consider is that the ships leaving the strait are not Iranian, they are Pakistani, Iraqis, Indian, and above all, Chinese.

How exactly does Trump plan to intercept these vessels? He can impose a blockade on Iran, but seizing legally operating ships in international waters simply because they are trading with an adversary of the United States is far more complicated.

And even if such a move were somehow executed, it would only remove more oil from the global market and drive prices even higher.

Yes, the blockade increases pressure on Iran, but it also fuels global inflationary pressure, and especially in the United States, where rising fuel prices quickly erode any president’s popularity.

At this point, I believe Trump’s popularity is deteriorating at a much faster rate than the Iranian economy is collapsing.
The economic strangulation Trump is now facing is exposing the fragility of the team he assembled for the White House, a war marked by a series of poorly planned actions.

Strangling the Iranian economy is not a simple task.

This year Iran is expected to conduct approximately $7 billion in trade via the Iran-Asia railway, with a cargo volume exceeding 5 million tons. Via the Caspian Sea, the volume is projected to reach 1.2 million tons, with the capacity to handle significantly more cargo and sustain the country for extended periods if necessary.

Another key point is that a country holding 8–10% of the planet’s natural resources finds itself in a position where the survival of the regime enjoys near-unanimous domestic support.

This makes it much easier for Iran to secure lines of credit from major Asian banks, especially Chinese ones. Obviously, this further extends the Iranian economy’s resilience.

This war is not about the number of ships, aircraft, or the quantity of missiles and bombs dropped. It is about the strategic position in which Iran finds itself.

The country withstood 40 days of intense bombing with multiple daily waves in US-Israeli operations that, from an aerial standpoint, had remarkably few errors.

These are two highly professional air forces facing a scenario of strategic impotence.

Full article:
https://t.co/3Tbvt3BMjb

[InternationalLawBlog @IntlLawBlog]

Stop EU trade with war criminals
https://t.co/K2HjfmFqX1

[The Hind Rajab Foundation @HindRFoundation]

🚨🇮🇹 Following legal action by the #HindRajabFoundation, Israeli war criminal Ofer Winter has cancelled his trip and did not travel to Italy out of fear of arrest. This is now confirmed.

We consider this a concrete win for the HRF and our allies in Italy. When suspected war criminals are forced to alter their movements that is a form of accountability.

Full accountability, however, must lead to arrest and prosecution. We will continue pursuing that objective.
More info on this suspect ⬇️
https://t.co/S5FNJL6iIq

[B'Tselem בצלם بتسيلم @btselem]

“Close to 10,000 Palestinians are being held right now, when we're talking, in these detention centers, each and every one of them are going through abuse.”

Watch our Executive Director, Yuli Novak spoke with @CNN's @amanpour about the Israeli new legislation for executing Palestinians.

Since October 2023, Israel has killed at least 72,000 Palestinians in the Gaza Strip and at least 1,050 in the West Bank. During this time, more than 80 Palestinian prisoners have died in Israeli custody —facilities that have effectively become a network of torture camps.

The new legislation institutionalises the execution of Palestinians. This law adds another official killing mechanism to existing practices of systemic oppression and lethal force.

https://t.co/hch8OUT7Tx

[Manal Kortam | منال قرطام @manalkortam]

@mhdksafa

[Manal Kortam | منال قرطام @manalkortam]

@mhdksafa please help us spread the petition

https://t.co/vk20MIcDlR

[Manal Kortam | منال قرطام @manalkortam]

sign this petition for Lebanon and for saving our humanity

https://t.co/vk20MIcDlR

[eveline hitti @EvelineHitti]

Israel’s war on civilians measured in Pediatric casualty rates:
14% in Lebanon
30% in Gaza

By comparison:
Ukraine is at less than 1%.

With precision weapons and technology at it ISrL disposal, these numbers reflect a military strategy, NOT glitches.

[UN Human Rights @UNHumanRights]

The scale of the killing & destruction in #Lebanon today is nothing short of horrific. @volker_turk condemns deadly wave of #Israeli strikes, as hundreds – incl. civilians – are killed and injured in carnage.  Civilians & civilian infrastructure must be protected.
The int'l community must act quickly to help bring an end to this nightmare.

https://t.co/FnrtnImiGp

[Craig Mokhiber @CraigMokhiber]

For those who still do not know the difference between Zionism and Judaism, the US-Israel Axis (Zionist) has bombed the Rafi-Nia synagogue (Jewish) in Iran, reducing it to rubble. That should clear things up for you. #ResistZionism

https://t.co/arDcqhDjy5

[Craig Mokhiber @CraigMokhiber]

After 80 years of mass murder, and today aggression in Iran, ethnic cleansing in Lebanon, genocide in Palestine, corruption of governments across the West, and the fielding of racist proxies to harass human rights defenders everywhere, no, Israel does not have “a right to exist” and does not have “a right to defend itself” anymore than Nazi Germany did. It must be isolated, weakened, defeated, and dismantled. The peace of the world and the rights of millions depend upon it.

[Joe Kent @joekent16jan19]

To ensure the ceasefire is successful we must first ensure that we restrain the Israelis.