Ex-Palestinian Chief Justice expresses solidarity with ‘Free Iran’ gathering

Palestine Chief Justice, Sheikh Taysir al-Tamimi

Former Palestine Chief Justice, Sheikh Taysir al-Tamimi sent a video message of solidarity to the upcoming Grand Gathering of “Free Iran” which will be held in Paris on July 9.
In his message, broadcasted by the Iranian opposition satellite channel Simaye Azadi, Sheikh al-Tamimi condemned the mullahs’ regime in Iran for mass executions and in particular for its export of terrorism and complicity with Bashar al-Assad in the mass killing of Syrian people.
In his message Sheikh al-Tamimi said:
'As we know, tens of thousands of people in Iran have been tortured, imprisoned and killed by the Velayat-e Faqih (clerical) regime. Assad and the mullahs' regime have agreed to suppress and kill their people in autarchy. Yet, the people of Iran and Syria are united as brothers against the oppression by the mullahs' and Assad's regime, and by God's will these autocratic regimes will collapse and the people of Iran and Syria will celebrate their victory.”
“The mullahs' regime believes that its survival is dependent on the survival of Assad's regime and equally that the destruction of Assad's regime would mean its destruction as well. Therefore, the mullahs’ regime kills their people and spreads war to the entire region. They want to impose their tyranny and oppression while they are afraid of justice and democracy. They believe if the people score a victory, their regime will definitely collapse.”
“I say that the meeting to be held in Paris will demonstrate the readiness of the Iranian's Resistance, the People's Mujahedin of Iran (PMOI or MEK), to overthrow the mullahs' regime. The Iranian people, themselves must rule their country with liberty and democracy. As I heard Maryam Rajavi 's speech about the massive rise of Iranian people outside of Iran in solidarity with the people of the world. I am certain that she supports women’s rights by citing the verses of the Quran and quotes of the Prophet Muhammad. As she mentioned, the God Almighty emphasizes in the Quran that women are the counterpart of men and this is what Maryam Rajavi has promoted while on the other hand the Velayat-e Faqih relies on terrorism, murder and fundamentalism, and the fundamentalist groups that kill people everywhere have their roots in the regime of the Velayat-e Faqih,' he added.

Gum and Roses: Syrian refugee children in sales, not schools

Rula has not had a three-month holiday from school, because she has not attended school for the last three years. With her broken shoes and dirty clothes, she begs for money on the streets of Beirut. Occasionally, she sells chewing gum or roses. She is one of hundreds of Syrian kids walking the streets of Lebanon’s capital.
Late at night, these children can be seen in Hamra and Mar Mikhael Street, nightlife spots where bars have popped up since 2012. Not yet teenagers, they sometimes stay up until 2 or 3am. They take care of each other, but occasionally fight. Many have barely grown in the last three years, an example of the lack of care and adequate food for their age.
There are more than a million Syrian refugees in Lebanon, half of them under the age of 18. Many more have not registered with the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), or could not do so after an order from the Lebanese government enforced in May.

Public schools

The government and humanitarian agencies have struggled to provide schooling for all child refugees. Last year, just 106,000 Syrian kids - out of more than 200,000 - attended primary education after the Ministry of Education limited the number of places available to revaluate the schooling system.
This year, the goal is to offer primary education to 200,000 Syrian. If the objective is reached, the figure will almost match the number of Lebanese children who attend public primary education - less than 30 percent of local children - an example of the massive burden on Lebanon and aid agencies.

Two Syrian brothers Bashar, 12, and Rasem, 14, who fled their home from Hassakeh, try to sell flowers to make a living in Beirut“The bulk of the money is now available” says UNICEF Lebanon representative Tanya Chapuisat, dismissing lack of funds as a barrier to enrolling Syrian kids in public school. However, in other sectors lack of money is a problem. The aid program for Syrian refugees in the region, known as 3RP - Regional Refugee and Resilience Plan - has collected from its donors only 41 percent of the total expected for the current year.
If the goal is reached, it will be the first time since the crisis that most kids of primary schooling age are enrolled. Chapuisat says the problem is larger than paying tuition fees: “There are issues such as children bringing income to the family, because parents have out-of-date residence permit, so they feel insecure to circulate” in public spaces.
Other issues preventing children going to school are families not having the money to pay for transport, or parents being “afraid of letting their daughter walk back from school in the dark in winter. Most of the kids who don’t attend either formal or informal education spend the days “not doing anything.”

Long-term risk

The consequences on children missing education include lack of self-control, self-esteem or confidence to socialize. In the context of poverty and lack of opportunities in a region plagued by violence and instability, some point to the risk of falling prey to armed groups with financial capacity seeking to increase their ranks.
Kids in areas that are not under Syrian government control have barely attended school due to fighting, destruction of infrastructure, migration of qualified personnel, or lack of organization from the groups in control. Also, government airstrikes have regularly targeted schools, some of which have been used as bases by armed groups.
Recently, reports have emerged of families with economic problems enrolling children in an armed group in the Deir Ezzor countryside. The group is said to pay $400 a month, enough to feed a large family.

By Nicolas Lupo Sonnabend Special to Al Arabiya News 

Mr. President, please realize that your strategy isn't working

" President Obama's comments yesterday reveal the disturbing degree of self-delusion that characterizes the Administration’s campaign," McCain, who chairs the Senate Armed Services Committee, said in a statement. "None of the so-called progress that the President cited suggests that we are on a path to success, and when you are not winning in warfare, you are losing."

McCain's remarks come after Obama who was briefed by top defense officials, including Defense Secretary Ash Carter and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Martin Dempsey. Obama spoke at the Pentagon, providing an update on the U.S. and global campaign to defeat the terrorist organization. He said" This will not be quick. This is a long-term campaign. ISIL is opportunistic, and it is nimble," the president said. "Our mission to destroy ISIL and to keep our country safe will be difficult; it will take time. There will be setbacks as well as progress."

Obama did not explain about his hesitations about neither  arming the Syrian moderate opposition group ,The Syrian liberating free Army nor the national Sunnites in Iraq, but said" the United States and its partners have hit ISIS, or ISIL, with 5,000 airstrikes and killed thousands of the group's members that  means nothing  for those Arabs who have suffered and still suffering from the isis extremists and have been crushed by the  terrorist regime of Iran .

McCain suggested that the administration's current efforts won't be enough to defeat the terrorist organization, and pressed for military leaders to be "candid" with Obama.

Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) also criticized the president on Monday, suggesting that it was time for Obama to make "hard decisions" in the ISIS fight

“Just weeks after President Obama admitted we lacked a complete strategy to combat ISIS, he’s now touting his efforts against the group. But his rhetoric doesn’t match reality," he said.

Their remarks follow criticism from Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) who told John Catsimatidis on “The Cats Roundtable” on New York’s AM 970 on Sunday that Obama "doesn't' know what he's doing" in the Middle East. 

Graham, who is running for president, suggested that Obama's foreign policy has aided terrorist groups, including ISIS, in going unchecked. 

Across the Capitol, Rep. Mac Thornberry, McCain's counterpart in the House, said ahead of Obama's remarks that the president should realize that "his strategy to defeat ISIL isn't working."

"I hope that the President will acknowledge these realities, end the veto threats on bills that would enhance his ability to take the fight to ISIL, and rethink his own inadequate strategy," he added.

For conclusion the majority of the policy makers in the west and Arab countries believe that the president should realize that "his strategy to defeat terrorism isn't working, before anything because he has shacked hands with the God father of global terrorism and tries to help them in nuclear negotiations; he backs Huthimilitias in Yemen by directing the United nations and its convey of 25 ships delivering goods to them in Hodeida bay; and different kinds of hindrances on those who really need to fight against terrorism in Iran such as the PMOI and NCRI.http://www.ncr-iran.org/en/ So we should tell him Mr. President, please realize that your strategy isn't working, let us manage the problem by ourselves.