Middle East Experience

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo stressed the need for Libya’s warring parties to cease hostilities during a phone call with Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed, the deputy supreme commander of the United Arab Emirates Armed Forces, which backs Libyan warlord Khalifa Hifter.
Source: Al Monitor
Full Article: Intel: Pompeo discusses Libya truce with Abu Dhabi's crown prince

The petition states that Penn State should expel Milligan immediately, noting that "this act of antisemitism and hatred towards the Jewish community cannot and will not be tolerated."
Source: Jerusalem Post
Full Article: Petition calls for expulsion of Penn State student over antisemitic photo

The first phase of the tender for building the 5G wireless network in Israel has passed its deadline, with Chinese bidders apparently left out.
Source: Al Monitor
Full Article: China apparently left out of Israel's 5G network tender

Recent reports signal conditions going from bad to worse.
Source: Al Monitor
Full Article: COVID-19 compounds economic crises in Yemen, Jordan, Palestine

The accounts were linked to the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan and targeted its rival, the Kurdistan Democratic Party.
Source: Al Monitor
Full Article: Facebook closes accounts linked to Kurdish intelligence in Iraq

Up to 80 percent of people might not be susceptible to the COVID-19 coronavirus, according to the world-renowned neuroscientist Professor Karl Friston in an interview with UnHerd’s Lockdown TV, casting doubt on the current approach to containing the virus.Until recently, scientists have assumed that the majority of the population is susceptible to catching COVID-19, but a lack of research and the fact that the virus often shows no symptoms has made it difficult to confirm. Based on this risk of widespread contamination, governments have put in place economically damaging lockdown measures aimed at limiting the spread of coronavirus to protect healthcare systems from being overwhelmed.But according to Professor Friston, who was recently ranked the world’s most influential neuroscientist by Science magazine, the majority of the population likely had some sort of “prior immunity” to COVID-19 – and therefore would not have caught it in the first place.For all the latest headlines follow our Google News channel online or via the app.Friston’s claims build on a growing shift toward a consensus that some people are not susceptible to coronavirus, following Michael Levitt’s argument in early May that mathematical data models did not show an exponential growth in coronavirus.Instead, Friston said that he expects ongoing research to reveal that the majority of the population in the UK, his home country, are not susceptible to the disease.“I suspect, once this has been done, it will look like the effective non-susceptible portion of the population will be about 80 percent. I think that’s what’s going to happen,” he told UnHerd’s Freddie Sayers in an interview published on Friday.As a neuroscientist famous for inventing the “statistical parametric mapping” brain imaging technique, Friston is not an epidemiologist or disease specialist and instead bases his claims on applying a modelling analysis to COVID-19 data.Friston does not claim to have identified the actual antibody that could make people immune to the virus. Instead, he argues that the data suggests that a vast number of people have some sort of “immunological dark matter” – a form of resistance to infection that we have not yet identified.As UnHerd's Sayers noted, this does not mean that that the non-susceptible portion of the population is technically immune to the virus, but instead that they are unlikely to contract it “under normal circumstances,” without being exposed to a high viral load in a hospital, for example.Read more:Coronavirus: Death rate is only 0.05, epidemic is on its way out, says Oxford expertCoronavirus is less deadly than we thought, says German expertCoronavirus lockdowns unproven, politically dangerous and hard to exit: ExpertImplications for policyFriston’s claims have wide-reaching implications for governments as they attempt to deal with the coronavirus pandemic.According to Friston’s model, government policy is not the main explanation for varying death rates from country to country. Instead, he argues that the percentage of the population that is susceptible to COVID-19 has the strongest influence on a country’s death rate.“Solving that — understanding that source of variation in terms of this non-susceptibility — is going to be the key to understanding the enormous variation between countries,” Friston told UnHerd.For example, Friston said that Germany has a far lower death rate than the UK not primarily because of testing or lockdown policies, but instead because the “susceptible population” in Germany is much smaller.While Friston acknowledged that we need more research, the implications of his modelling are vast.Read more: Coronavirus: What counts as a death from COVID-19?If correct, governments would be able to completely reconsider their approach to lifting lockdowns.If it is true that 80 percent of the population cannot catch COVID-19, then social distancing measures may not need to be put in place in a post-lockdown scenario – public transport could restart, entertainment and hospitality venues could reopen, and sport could resume, all without any major risk of a second spike.Friston added to UnHerd TV that incorporating “sensible behavior” into the model, such as people who do catch COVID-19 likely staying in bed when they are sick, then lockdown measures have a negligible impact at most.On reflection, this would mean that governments have made vast economic sacrifices by imposing lockdowns – with the IMF predicting the worst global recession in a century – without them having any real affect on the spread of the virus. It would also mean that fears that coronavirus might destroy industries such as hospitality might be misplaced.However, research on the coronavirus remains ongoing, and the scientific community continues to disagree over almost all of the key questions.Read the latest coronavirus updates in our dedicated section.
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: Coronavirus: Up to 80 percent of people can’t catch COVID-19, says leading scientist

A Syrian Democratic Forces operation dubbed "Deterring Terrorism" nets 17 Islamic State suspects in Syria's Deir ez-Zor province.
Source: Al Monitor
Full Article: Syria’s Kurdish-led alliance sweeps Deir ez-Zor for Islamic State sleeper cells

Emmanuel Macron made the comments on the one-year anniversary of Fariba Adelkah's imprisonment.
Source: Al Monitor
Full Article: French president demands Iran release anthropologist dual citizen

Qatar’s former Emir Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani expressed Doha’s support for and revealed its close ties with Libya and the Syrian regime in a leaked audio recording that reportedly captured a conversation between him, the late Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi, and Qatar’s former Prime Minister Sheikh Hamad bin Jassem.“As you know, as a small country we used to be ostracized by the big countries. But thank God there [are countries] like Libya standing with us, Oman, Syria recently,” Sheikh Hamad can be heard saying.In the recording, the former Qatari emir also expressed his support for the Syrian regime, saying “I mean, to be honest, I am happy that Syria is beginning to think about how to rely on itself.”“And in terms of coordination, thank God, there is great economic and political coordination between us and them, and affairs are moving forward in a satisfying way. There is almost constant communication,” the former prime minister then replies.The audio recordings were reportedly secretly recorded by the late Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi and were posted on social media by Qatari opposition activist Khalid al-Hail.Al Arabiya English could not independently verify the authenticity of the recording.Read more:Obama called ‘slave’ by Qatar’s ex Emir Hamad bin Khalifa in leaked Gaddafi recordingQatar’s former emir, PM assure Gaddafi Al Jazeera won’t host anti-Libya guests: AudioQatar assured Gaddafi Al Jazeera will not stop negative Saudi coverage: Audio leaksAl-Hail released the recording after the former prime minister tweeted his support for the UN-recognized Government of National Accord (GNA) led by Fayez al-Sarraj.The Libyan National Army (LNA) led by Khalifa Haftar had on Thursday said it was withdrawing from Tripoli districts, according to a military source, while forces fighting for Libya’s UN-recognized government said they had regained control over Tripoli.Al-Hail has in recent weeks released several audio recordings involving Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim and Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa, including one in which the former emir can be heard calling former US president Barack Obama a “slave” during a conversation with Gaddafi.A similar recording between former emir of Qatar and Gaddafi was released in 2017, in which the two leaders attacked Saudi Arabia and the ruling family.In another recording leaked from the same year, Gaddafi and the former prime minister can reportedly be heard discussing plans to carve up Saudi Arabia.Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim did not deny the recording and said that the issue was discussed to appease Gaddafi.In 2013, Sheikh Hamad handed over power to his son, current Emir Sheikh Tamim al-Thani. Hamad bin Jassim stepped down from his positions in government at the time and reportedly has strained relations with the current emir.
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: Qatar’s former emir reveals close ties with Libya, Syrian regime: Audio leaks

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi announced Cairo's plan for a ceasefire in Libya, beginning June 8, after meeting with Libyan National Army (LNA) Gen. Khalifa Haftar on Saturday.Libya's security is an extension of Egypt's security, said al-Sisi.The LNA is fighting against the UN-recognized, Tripol-based Government of National Accord (GNA) for control of Libya.Al-Sisi said that the political initiative, which he called the “Cairo initiative” would pave the way for a return to normal life in Libya and warned against using military tactics to resolve the crisis.A political solution is the only way to resolve the crisis in Libya, he added.The “Cairo Initiative” will address all previous international initiatives and decision that have been made in regards to bringing unity to Libya.All Libyan parties have been asked to partake in the ceasefire, al-Sisi said.Under the guidelines of the ceasefire, all foreign fighters must withdraw from Libya, he added.LNA Chief Gen. Haftar and the eastern parliament head Aguila Saleh are committed to protecting the Libyan people’s best interests, al-Sisi saidDeveloping.
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: Egypt's President al-Sisi announces peace initiative in Libya with General Haftar