US-Russia Relations Undergo Slow Thaw

Syrian Refugees’ Woes Under Lebanese Crisis

Saudi Arabia Boosts Banking Industry

A Weekly Political News Magazine

A Weekly Political News Magazine

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Kais Saied: From an “Ordinary Man” to a “Savior”

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US-Russia Relations Undergo Slow Thaw

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Editorial A Weekly Political News Magazine

www.majalla.com/eng Despite tensions straining relations between the United States and Russia over various issues ranging from the Ukraine crisis and Russian involvement in many regions of American interest, to US accusations of Russian meddling in the forthcoming American legislative elections, US-Russian talks on arms control have witnessed a promising move this week. Following the landmark summit between Putin and Biden in Geneva last June, the two sides held “closed door” talks on July 28, during which they “discussed ways in which they can reduce the threat of a nuclear war or any form of an armed conflict”. In this week’s cover story, Maia Otarashvili writes about the prospects of thawing the previouslyfrozen relationship between the two major powers, based on the steps they are taking towards an agreement on the most significant issue of nuclear arms control.

As if the burden of a decade-long civil war and displacement was not enough for Syrian refugees who fled to Lebanon for their lives, the economic repercussions that befell their host country have excaerbated their affliction. Jiwan Soz reveals how life has become for Syrian Refugees in Lebanon, as %90 of them fell below extreme poverty, according to the UNHCR officer in Beirut. The official spoke to Majalla about the agency’s efforts to provide aid to the poor refugees settled in Lebanon, in addition to help for some of them to return to Syria.

Read these articles and more on our website eng. majalla.com. As always, we welcome and value our readers’ feedback and we invite you to take the opportunity to leave your comments on our website.

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A Weekly Political News Magazine

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A Weekly Political News Magazine

Freelance Musicians Found New

40 Passions During the Pandemic

Issue 1863- July- 30/07/2021

A Taliban Victory Is Not Inevi-

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The Underexplored Dangers of

22 Antisemitism in Europe

Inspirational Stories That Grabbed

50 Hearts Throughout History of Olympics

Man’s Best Friend -- and

54 Medicine’s Too

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Over Muslims

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Supporters of Tunisia’s President Kais Saied gather on the streets after he dismissed the government People celebrate in the street after Tunisian President Kais Saied announced the dissolution of parliament and Prime Minister Hichem Mechichi’s government in Tunis on July 25, 2021, after a day of nationwide protest. - Tunisian President Kais Saied announced the suspension of the country’s parliament and the dismissal of Prime Minister Hichem Mechichi following a day of protests against the ruling party )AFP Photos(

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Hedaya Wahba of Egypt celebrates winging Bronze Medal in Taekwondo Hedaya Wahba of Egypt celebrates after defeating Paige McPherson of the United States in their bout during the Women’s -67kg Bronze Medal Contest during the Taekwondo events of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at the Makuhari Messe convention centre in Chiba, Japan, 26 July 2021 )EPA Photos(

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US-Russia Relations Undergo Slow Thaw

Despite Tensions, Talks on Nuclear Arms Issue Promise Solution

By Maia Otarashvili It’s been years now since the US-Russia relationship began to deteriorate and has kept reaching new lows. It all started after the Clinton-Obama era attempt at yet another “reset”, ending in spectacular failure as Russia annexed Ukraine’s Crimea peninsula in 2014

and fueled the outbreak of still ongoing civil war in the Donbas region. Things reached an all-time low during the Trump presidency as the last pieces of US-Russia cooperation began to fall apart – even the nuclear arms control treaties in place since the Soviet era could not withstand the ever-deteriorating security environment. In August 2019 the Intermediate

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US President Joe Biden (L) and Russian President Vladimir Putin (R) pose for press ahead of the US-Russia summit at the Villa La Grange, in Geneva on June 16, 2021. (Photo by Brendan Smialowski / AFP)

Range Nuclear Forces (INF) treaty officially ended. This was an arms control treaty signed

by Ronald Reagan and Mikhail Gorbachev in 1987. It imposed reductions of nuclear arsenals on the US and the USSR – later Russia and prevented an arms race in Europe. The treaty eliminated some 2700 short- and long-range nuclear missiles and held for over three decades allowing the two superpowers to focus on other security concerns. But the Obama administration discovered issues with Russia’s compliance with the treaty’s terms. Moscow made the same accusations, and the two parties agreed to keep working on resolving those issues. But the Trump administration ended up choosing to withdraw from the treaty entirely. Trump’s national security adviser at the time, John Bolton, argued that Russia was already violating the treaty anyway, and the US was being prevented from developing additional warheads and thus competing with other nuclear power rivals like China. Trump explained his decision to withdraw from the INF treaty by saying: “Unless Russia comes to us and China comes to us and they all come to us and they say, ‘Let’s all of us get smart and let’s none of us develop those weapons,’ but if Russia’s doing it and if China’s doing it and we’re adhering to the agreement, that’s unacceptable. So we have a tremendous amount of money to play with our military.”

Death of the INF treaty spread mass panic among the US national security expert community. The US is extremely unlikely to deploy intermediate-range weapons, but Russia can keep developing previously illegal weapons and deploy them in Europe if it so pleases.

In recent years Kremlin has been extremely adamant about its willingness to respond to any perceived threats coming from NATO, which suspended its cooperation with Russia on ballistic missile systems defense back in 2014 as a response to the latter’s annexation of Crimea.

The New START treaty was another major arms control treaty between the US and Russia and ended up on the chopping block once President Trump killed the INF treaty. New

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One of Biden’s first acts in the White House was to extend the New START treaty until February 2026 ,5. But the INF treaty remains dead, and tensions between the United States and Russia are still significant.

START is the successor of SORT – a treaty signed by George W Bush and Vladimir Putin back in 2002. Per the treaty, the United States and Russia reduced their strategic arsenals to 2,200-1,700 warheads each. The warhead limit took effect and expired on the same day, Dec. 2012 ,31 and was replaced by the New START treaty which was signed in 2010. The agreement that each side to 1,550 strategic nuclear warheads deployed on 700 strategic delivery systems (ICBMs, SLBMs and heavy bombers) and limits deployed and nondeployed launchers to 800. According to the Arms Control Association “Measures under the treaty include on-site inspections and exhibitions, data exchanges and notifications related to strategic offensive arms and facilities covered by the treaty, and provisions to facilitate the use of national technical means for treaty monitoring. The treaty also provides for the continued exchange of telemetry (missile flight-test data on up to five tests per year) and does not meaningfully limit missile defenses or long-range conventional strike capabilities.”

The New START treaty was due to expire in 2021, and Donald Trump’s possible reelection in November 2020 would imply that much like the INF treaty, New START too would not be renewed. In February 2021, as one of his first acts in the White House, President Biden agreed to extend the treaty until February 2026 ,5.

But the INF treaty remains dead, and tensions between the United States and Russia are still significant.

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President Biden made it clear, after his June 2021 summit with Vladimir Putin, that the United States would actively look for areas of cooperation with Russia going forward in order to achieve a stable and predictable relationship. Biden pointed out strategic stability, arms control measures, and ways to prevent unintended conflict as one of those areas. He announced that the United States and Russia would be launching a bilateral strategic stability dialogue to work on these issues. He remarked:

It appears that arms control – previously an anxiety-inducing issue for Russia-watchers – has become the spark that promises to slowly thaw the previously frozen US-Russia relations.

“I’m pleased that he agreed today to launch a bilateral strategic stability dialogue — diplomatic speak for saying, get our military experts and our — our diplomats together to work on a mechanism that can lead to control of new and dangerous and sophisticated weapons that are coming on the scene now that reduce the times of response, that raise the prospects of accidental war. And we went into some detail of what those weapons systems were.”

It appears that arms control – previously an anxiety-inducing issue for Russia-watchers – has become the spark that promises to slowly thaw the previously frozen US-Russia relations.

On July 28th the two sides held their first closed door talks. US Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman and Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov discussed ways in which they can reduce the threat of a nuclear war or any form of an armed conflict. The two sides agreed to meet again, informally, in September.

Many Russia watchers consider Biden’s Russia policy underwhelming so far. Moscow continues to gain ground over the US in places where it has made significant long-

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U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman and Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov greet each other at the start of their meeting in Geneva, Switzerland on Wednesday July 28, 2021. (US Mission Geneva via AP)

US President Ronald Reagan and Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev signing the arms control agreement banning the use of intermediaterange nuclear missiles, the Intermediate Nuclear Forces Reduction Treaty, Washington DC, 8th December 1987.

(Getty Images)

term investments in the recent years. We have been expecting the US to become more deeply involved in resolving the conflicts and achieving stability in Ukraine, Belarus, Georgia, more closely engaging in the Caucasus and the Black Sea regions, and implementing a tougher, clearer Russia policy.

Very little has happened on most of those fronts and the region remains marred by chaos to Russia’s strategic advantage. But a clearer, tougher Russia policy should not preclude the US from working with Russia on issues that simply cannot be resolved without Russia’s buy-in, and nuclear arms control is just that unique area. The Sherman-Ryabkov meeting comes just days after significant tensions between Russia and NATO military forces over the Sea Breeze exercises in the Black Sea. Moscow is getting ready for its September 2021 Zapad exercises in and near the Baltic Sea, it has de facto control of the waters surrounding Ukraine’s Crimea Peninsula in the Black Sea, it is militarily backing the Assad regime in Syria and has recently placed additional military “peace keeping” forces in the South Caucasus – this time in Nagorno Karabakh. Now more than ever areas of accidental or unintentional

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Many Russia watchers consider Biden’s Russia policy underwhelming so far. Moscow continues to gain ground over the US in places where it has made significant long-term investments in the recent years. armed conflict between Russia and the US, European, and NATO forces are plenty. Thus any form of a dialogue between Washington and Moscow comes as promising news.

Maia Otarashvili is a Research Fellow and Deputy Director of the Eurasia Program.

Maia also serves as the Deputy Director of Research at FPRI. Her research interests include geopolitics and security of the Black Sea-Caucasus region, Russian foreign policy, and the post-Soviet “frozen” conflicts.

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Syrian Refugees’ Woes Under Lebanese Crisis

%90 of Syrian Refugees in Lebanon Live in Extreme Poverty – UN Official in Beirut

By Jiwan Soz – Beirut In various places in the Lebanese capital Beirut, you can come across Syrian refugees who work in many sectors such as tourism, construc-

tion, and other professions. Some of them also resume their studies in Lebanese universities or schools. In fact, the majority of them are looking for alternative places, just like Lebanese citizens are, after the Lebanese crisis reached a deadlock

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and especially after the designate prime minister Saad Hariri stepped down over differences with President Aoun.

There are about 1.5 million Syrian refugees in Lebanon. According to official estimates obtained by Majalla from the UN Bureau in Beirut, as of March 31, 2021, only 855,172 Syrian refugees were registered at the UN Refugee Agency in Lebanon.

Dalal Harb, UNHCR Communication Officer for Lebanon, told Majalla that the agency stopped registering Syrian refugees in Lebanon in 2015 at the request of the Lebanese government.

“The economic downturn, steep inflation, COVID-19 and the Beirut blast have pushed vulnerable communities in Lebanon - including Syrian refugees - to the brink, with thousands of families sinking further into poverty and vulnerability,” Harb said.

She also expressed the UNHCR’s deep concern about the increasing level of despair of refugees due to the precarious economic situation.

“Years of displacement and lack of solutions, a deep economic crisis in Lebanon compounded with the devastating impact of the COVID crisis have pushed refugees deeper into poverty and despair,” she added.

Food distribution in Syrian refugee from Uk charity Proactive Support in informal settlements in Makni refugee camp on August 21 2020 , Lebanon (Photo

by Vassilis Poularikas/ NurPhoto via Getty Images)

The UNHCR officer referred to one of the most concerning indicators of how the compounded crises impacted Syrian refugees in Lebanon which is “the sharp increase in the proportion of households living under the extreme poverty line.”

“Today, close to 90% of Syrian refugees in Lebanon live below the extreme poverty line, up from 55% last year, according to the 2020 Vulnerability Assessment of Syrian Refugees (VaSyR),” she explained. “Nine out of 10 Syrian refugees live in extreme poverty, on less than LBP 308,728 per person per month – less than half the minimum wage. “ She revealed that Syrian refugee families are struggling to make ends meet, “Most tell us that they don’t know how they will survive another day in this situation.”

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“The economic downturn, steep inflation, COVID19and the Beirut blast have pushed vulnerable communities in Lebanon including Syrian refugees - to the brink, with thousands of families sinking further into poverty and vulnerability.”

“Fewer possibilities to earn a stable income, coupled with monthly payments of rent, food, medicine and other basic expenses, has depleted any savings refugees carried with them as they fled to Lebanon. Instead, most have built up hefty debts to landlords, shop keepers, relatives and people in the community who have been kind enough to lend some money. The 2020 VaSyR also shows increased levels of debt per household,” Harb stated, as she counted the burdens of the refugees.

“The increasing challenges to parents to provide for their children is leading to unimaginable additional burdens on refugees. Thousands of refugee families are finding it hard to manage all these challenges with no end in sight.”

Reflecting on the consequences of the crises which the refugees are facing, Harb said, “Despair is leading to serious mental health issues and increasing stress to their already stretched out abilities to cope with years of displacement.

In the past few months, UNHCR call center has witnessed a notable increase in the reporting intents of suicide and self-harm.”

UNHCR SUPPORT Harb gave us an account of the forms of assistance provided by the UNHCR to the refugees saying, “(The agency) assists the most vulner-

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able refugees through a multi-purpose cash assistance program aiming to reduce families’ use of harmful coping strategies, such as skipping meals, restricting food consumption, forgoing health care and education for children, incurring debt, or delaying rent payments. In line with other cash assistance programs in Lebanon, UNHCR cash assistance programs are currently disbursed to beneficiaries in LBP.”

compensate for the steep inflation, but this remains insufficient by far, to cover even their most essential needs including food, medicine, and rent.”

RETURNING HOME On the issue of refugees returning home, Harb said that the agency “started tracking refugees returning from Lebanon since 2016 and the number of returns has been increasing (except for 2020 due to COVID-19 restrictions).”

With the funding currently available for humanitarian assistance, Harb says that the UNHCR is able to reach 57 per cent (as of July 2021 – 171,100 Syrian refugee households) with month- She explained that “voluntary repatriation rely cash assistance (LBP 400,000 LBP per family mains the preferred solution for refugees themper month). selves, and UNHCR,” suggesting that that refugees should be “able to make an informed “In total, together with WFP’s monthly cash and decision.” food assistance program, UNHCR and WFP are able to reach 80 per cent (as of July 2021) of Harb pointed out that “to help refugees gain conthe total Syrian refugee population with monthly fidence and realize this overall desire to return, cash or food assistance, or both,” she added. the findings of return intentions surveys conducted by UNHCR suggest that national and internaThe UN official confirmed that “humanitarian tional actors should continue to help equip refuagencies, including UNHCR, have stretched the gees with the information, tools and experience safety net as much as possible to cover more needed to rebuild their lives and future in Syria.” families as extreme poverty has increased, and She gave an example on how to help achieve to increase the amount of assistance to partially this, by “continuing to support education and vocational training, as well as access to health services and civil documentation.”

Most refugees hope to return to Syria, but they tell the Refugee Agency that they “remain concerned about a combination of factors, including safety and security, housing, access to essential services such hospitals, schools, and livelihoods.”

A number of Syrian refugees in Lebanon have already made the decision to return home. Thus, “when possible, UNHCR staff meet with refugees before their return to ensure they possess the proper documentation such as birth and school certificates and provide support as needed.”

Various factors influence the decision of Syrian refugees to return home. Harb explained that most refugees hope to return to Syria, but they tell the Refugee Agency that they “remain concerned about a combination of factors, including safety and security, housing, access to essential services such hospitals, schools, and livelihoods.”

Meantime, she confirmed that in Syria, “the

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Syrian refugees wave from on board a bus in the Beirut suburb of Burj Hammoud, north of the capital on August 2019 ,29, as they prepare to return home to neighbouring Syria.

(ANWAR AMRO/AFP via Getty Images)

humanitarian community, including UNHCR, support refugee returnees through ongoing humanitarian programs,” adding that “UNHCR is stepping up its activities in return areas in Syria, including shelter interventions to help Syrians whose homes were damaged.”

SYRIAN YOUTH IN LEBANON The deepening economic crisis in Lebanon has led to a decline in the income of Syrian refugees working in Lebanon, as their wages has not been adequately adjusted to keep up with foreign exchange rates.

“I have been in Lebanon since the start of the Syrian crisis and I work here to support my family,” a Syrian young man working in a coffee shop in downtown Beirut told Majalla. “My fi-

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nancial resources had been acceptable, but after the recent crisis, everything has changed.”

Some Syrian refugees have started leaving Lebanon as its economic situation deteriorated. However, number of refugees returning home is still limited. According to dozens of Syrian young men who spoke to Majalla, mandatory military service imposed by the Syrian government on people above 18 years prevents them from returning home, because they refuse to join the ongoing war in Syria which broke out more than a decade ago.

A Lebanese public security source told Majalla that most of people who leave Lebanon to return to Syria are the elderly, women, and kids, noting that their number doesn’t exceed one thousand refugees every few months.

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The Underexplored Dangers of Antisemitism in Europe Solution Shouldn’t Be the Emigration of European Jews to Israel

By Hagar Elnahas The violence that erupted in Gaza during the Israeli military campaign ‘Operation Guardian of the Walls,’ a consequence of escalating tensions in Je-

rusalem and subsequent rocket attacks by Hamas, was followed by a rise in anti-Semitic sentiment and attacks in Europe. Unfortunately, antisemitism, already an increasingly worsening issue in Europe, fails to garner sufficient public recogni-

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tion and discourse.

This is not the first time that an Israeli-Palestinian military confrontation has provoked anti-Semitic abuse in Europe. It is a sequence of events observed in past instances of conflict and instability. The question is why? Arguably a majority of those critical of Israel’s policies in relation to the Palestinians also attest to the importance of distinguishing the actions of the Israeli government and Zionist expansionists from Judaism and Jews.

‘Anti-Zionism is not anti-Semitism’ is a phrase often touted by Israel’s critics and supporters of the Palestinian cause, and rightly so. State policies that are in violation of the rights of a particular people ought to be condemned in the absence of accusations of bigotry. It nonetheless fails to explain why we see attacks being perpetrated against ordinary Jews residing in countries far removed from sites of conflict in Israel and Palestine. Is it the case that people are struggling to distinguish between anti-Zionism and anti-Semitism after all, that the line separating the two is not as clear-cut as it would appear? Deploring the actions of the only Jewish state in existence without allowing those sentiments to alter one’s perceptions of the Jewish people is admittedly a balancing act. It’s also plausible that anti-Semites are exploiting the recurrent tragedies in Gaza to act on their prejudices under the guise of human rights advocacy.

Participants of a vigil against anti-Semitism gather in front of the Synagogue in Kreuzberg, Berlin, Germany, 16 May 2021. An initiative against anti-Semitism in Berlin has called for the vigil to show solidarity with the Jewish community.

On 14 May, German Chancellor Angela Merkel condemned antiSemitic incidents against synagogues in Germany motivated by the current violence in Israel and Gaza. (EPA)

Regardless, in order to truly grasp why it is that Jews are being targeted in Europe, and why community leaders and politicians are failing or at least reluctant to address the rise in anti-Semitic attacks, it is important to explore the meaning of anti-Semitism and the distinct characteristics that separate it from other forms of discrimination.

Antisemitism relates to an animosity toward or prejudice against Jews. An ancient hatred, it became embedded in European life once Christianity became the dominant religion on the continent.

Early Christians believed that the Jews were to blame for the death of Christ and were consequently vilified to deplorable heights. Jews have been blamed for a host of societal ills and calamities, from the Black Plague, to the slave trade, to 9/11, to the 2008 economic crash. Herein lies the key aspect of antisemitism that sets it apart from other forms of discrimination. It explains in part

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Arguably a majority of those critical of Israel’s policies in relation to the Palestinians also attest to the importance of distinguishing the actions of the Israeli government and Zionist expansionists from Judaism and Jews. why anti-Semitism continues to be regarded as a more ‘acceptable’ form of prejudice. Jews have long been portrayed as being secretly powerful.

Enduring depictions of Jews as wealthy capitalists, greedy financiers who run the global banking system and covet world domination, continue to occupy the global imagination. Not enough people call out antisemitism because they are led to believe that Jews are powerful, and powerful people cannot be oppressed. Portrayals of Jews as sources of corruption as well as social and financial woes were generously propagated by the Nazi regime.

In Europe, centuries of persecution, ostracization, and pogroms culminated in the near-extermination of the Jews in the Holocaust. Since the end of second world war, Europe has attempted to atone for its sins and anti-Semitism is no longer tolerated.

At least, that is the official narrative. The reality is anti-Semitism never really left Europe. Jews living in France, Austria, Germany, and Britain are regularly targeted in the form of racial slurs, harassment, death threats, violent assaults, murder, and the desecration of Jewish cemeteries and synagogues. Those most vulnerable to antiSemitic abuse are ‘visible’ Jews, such as rabbis and ultraorthodox Jews. In periods of heightened insecurity, Jews have advised one another to avoid wearing religious attire or symbols in public so as not to attract attention. Many Jews feel that there are fewer and fewer safe spaces for them to exist in Europe. Many have immigrated to Israel due to this sense of insecurity and lack of belonging.

Yet the solution to anti-Semitism should not be

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the emigration of European Jews to Israel. That would be an admission of defeat on Europe’s part in that they failed to protect one of their oldest communities. It also plays into the Zionist argument that the only place Jews will ever be allowed to live in peace is in Israel. That is precisely what happened after Israel’s establishment in 1948.

Jewish communities that had lived in Muslimmajority lands in the Middle East for generations disappeared overnight once Arab governments made the decision to expel them. Many of those Jews went to Israel. Today, over half of Israel’s Jewish population is made up of Mizrahi Jews,

Many Jews feel that there are fewer and fewer safe spaces for them to exist in Europe. Many have immigrated to Israel due to this sense of insecurity and lack of belonging.

Jews that originate from the Middle East and North Africa. I expect many Arabs regret the loss of such communities. But too many have co-opted the old European Christian tradition of blaming Jews and seeing them as power-hungry orchestrators of chaos.

Surveys shows that the Middle East has by far the most negative perception of Jews of any region of the world. Muslim or Arab antisemitism is an issue that ought to be explored in its own right, as it has increasing implications on anti-Semitism overall in Europe. But part of the problem with anti-Semitism, and this has always been the case, is that Jews are seen as an ‘other,’ as not belonging and more dangerously, that their allegiances lie elsewhere. This is what triggered Arab fears of Jews living in their lands after 1948. Many stopped seeing them as Egyptians, Iraqis, Iranians, or Yemenis who just happened to be Jewish. They saw them as first and foremost Jewish and by default loyal to Israel.

The way to tackle anti-Semitism in Europe is to remind those who regard European Jews with suspicion that a French Jew is as proud to be French as anyone else. It is why despite everything, he or she chose to remain in France.

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Ceremony to commemorate the Vel›d›Hiv raid, in front of the stele marking the site of the old synagogue destroyed in 1940 by the Nazis. This is a national day of remembrance of the victims of the racist and anti-Semitic crimes of the French state and of homage to the Righteous of France. July 18, 2021, in Strasbourg Northeastern France. ) Photo by Nicolas Roses/ ABACAPRESS.COM via TNS)

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A Taliban Victory Is Not Inevitable

U.S. Must Support Afghan Forces To Secure Country Against Terrorists

By Seth G. Jones The withdrawal of U.S. military forces from Afghanistan has unleashed a fresh wave of violence. Taliban forces have stepped up attacks across the country and overrun a growing number of districts. They have positioned soldiers and materiel around major cities for eventual sieges.

Iran and Russia have ramped up their covert support to the Taliban and other antigovernment groups. In June, General Scott Miller, the top U.S. military commander in Afghanistan, admitted that the security situation was dire, saying, “Civil war is certainly a path that can be visualized if this continues on the trajectory it’s on right now.”

U.S. President Joe Biden’s decision to withdraw all U.S. forces was a mistake. A far better choice would have been

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In this May 2, 2021 file photo, a U.S. flag is lowered as American and Afghan soldiers attend a handover ceremony from the U.S. Army to the Afghan National Army, at Camp Anthonic, in Helmand province, southern Afghanistan. (Afghan Ministry of Defense Press Office via AP, File)

to keep roughly 2,000 U.S. forces in Afghanistan— as well as a small number of aircraft and helicopters at major bases—to provide training and other aid to Afghan forces. But that ship has sailed, and now an increasingly violent civil war in Afghanistan presents U.S. policymakers with a difficult choice: Should the United States remain engaged and, if so, how?

Preventing catastrophe—a complete Taliban military victory and the reestablishment of terrorist safe havens—depends on what the United States does now. Without overt U.S. military forces on the ground, the next best way to avoid the worst outcomes in Afghanistan and minimize the downsides of a withdrawal is through a strategy focused on supporting Afghan security forces and striking terrorists. This approach would entail funding and arming the Afghan government and other anti-Taliban forces, deploying small numbers of CIA paramilitary units and U.S. special operations forces, and striking targets from the air.

Such a strategy will not prevent the Taliban from overrunning Afghan cities. But it may be enough to minimize the likelihood of a terrorist sanctuary, prevent the Taliban from controlling all of Afghanistan, limit a humanitarian crisis, and stop other powers from filling the vacuum. After 20 years of direct U.S. involvement in a war that many Americans have grown tired of fighting, this is the most practical way forward.

WHAT’S AT STAKE U.S. interests in Afghanistan are not what they were right after 9/11. The United States has rightly shifted its focus to competition with China and Russia. Still, Washington has at least three national security interests in Afghanistan and the broader region.

The first is preventing Afghanistan from again becoming a sanctuary for terrorists who threaten the United States and its partners. Taliban leaders continue to enjoy close relations with al Qaeda. As the Taliban make additional gains on the battlefield, al Qaeda will likely attempt to rebuild its ranks. The local affiliate of the Islamic State (or ISIS) boasts between 1,000 and 2,000 fighters in Afghanistan and Pakistan. Its leaders have already vowed to use the escalating war as an opportunity to resurge.

Another U.S. interest is to limit Russian, Chinese, and Iranian meddling in Afghanistan. Iran’s Quds

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The next best way to avoid the worst outcomes in Afghanistan and minimize the downsides of a withdrawal is through a strategy focused on supporting Afghan security forces and striking terrorists.

Force—the irregular warfare branch of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps—is already expanding its clandestine presence in the country. If that growth continues, Tehran will eventually have a 2,000-mile land bridge extending from Lebanon to Syria to Iraq to Afghanistan, where it would support a range of militias and government officials to further its political, security, and economic interests. Russia has also aided the Taliban, offering them small arms and money to protect their southern flank. China, too, is likely to get more involved to safeguard its economic interests in Afghanistan—including Chinese-owned copper mines—and increase arms sales.

A final U.S. interest is minimizing the possibility of a humanitarian crisis. The Taliban have a well-documented record of repression, intolerance, and human rights abuses against women, foreigners, ethnic minorities, and journalists. Afghanistan could become a humanitarian nightmare if civil war were to engulf the entire country, swelling the ranks of refugees.

At 2.7 million, the number of people who have been displaced from the country is surpassed only by the number who have left Syria and Venezuela, and Afghanistan’s refugee numbers will likely balloon as violence escalates.

THE SPEED OF COLLAPSE With U.S. and NATO military forces leaving and peace talks in disarray, the military balance of power has shifted dramatically in favor of the Taliban and their backers—Pakistan, Iran, and Russia. Now, the Taliban are free to pursue their longtime goal of reestablishing an Islamic emirate through military force.

As they battle the Afghan army and police, the Taliban will likely draw on a mix of conventional opera-

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tions and guerrilla tactics such as ambushes, raids, and suicide bombings. Taliban leaders may increasingly focus their operations on urban centers in such strategically important provinces as Helmand, Kandahar, Kunduz, and Kabul—and then attempt to create a domino effect in cities around the country.

Yet it is not a given that the Taliban’s advances will move quickly; their speed depends on several factors.

One is whether the United States and other countries continue to provide military, financial, and other aid to the Afghan government and anti-Taliban groups.

In the six months following the Soviet withdrawal in 1989, for example, Moscow flew nearly 4,000 planeloads of weapons and supplies into Afghanistan to help the government fight the mujahideen. This assistance prevented an immediate collapse of the government of Mohammad Najibullah, the country’s

U.S. interests in Afghanistan are not what they were right after 11/9. Still, Washington has at least three national security interests in Afghanistan and the broader region.

pro-Soviet president.

Another factor is the degree of fragmentation of the Afghan security forces. Afghan army, police, and intelligence units could fracture along ethnic and patronage lines, defecting to the Taliban or splintering into local militias. The faster Afghan government units disintegrate, the faster the Taliban can seize and hold territory. Some high-end government units, such as the Afghan National Army Commando Corps, are well trained and highly capable and may be able to motivate some Afghan forces to keep fighting. But they need outside support to sustain their operations.

Yet another factor is whether the Taliban face a serious challenge from other groups, such as the Islamic State Khorasan, which would force them to divert resources away from fighting Afghan army, police, and intelligence units. A final factor that could affect the speed of a Taliban takeover is the ability of the Afghan government to remain legitimate in the eyes of its population. The more Afghans view the current government as weak, ineffective, corrupt, and illegitimate, the more its days are numbered.

Even if all these factors tilt in the Taliban’s favor, the group will have a hard time controlling all of Afghanistan. The Taliban’s ideology is too extreme for many Afghans—particularly those in urban areas—who adhere to a much less conservative form of Islam that permits modern technology, television, music, participation in democratic politics, and some women’s rights. The Taliban’s brutal tactics, including suicide attacks, have alienated much of the population. All

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Afghan security officials inspect the scene of a road side bomb blast that killed six civilians on the outskirts of Jalalabad, Afghanistan, 21 July 2021. (EPA/ GHULAMULLAH HABIBI)

In this file photo taken on Tuesday, May 2019 ,28, Russian presidential envoy to Afghanistan Zamir Kabulov, left, speaks to Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, the Taliban group’s top political leader, third left, Sher Mohammad Abbas Stanikzai, the Taliban’s chief negotiator, third right, and other members of the Taliban delegation prior to their talks in Moscow, Russia.

(AP Photo/Alexander Zemlianichenko, File)

these deficiencies give Washington an opening to prevent the group from achieving a complete takeover of Afghanistan.

THE LEAST BAD OPTION Washington has several options to deal with the complex and rapidly evolving war, although none of them are particularly good. After withdrawing its forces from the country, Moscow phased out its aid to the Afghan government and, in 1991, terminated all of it. That is one path the United States could choose. But doing so would virtually guarantee the collapse of the Afghan government, a Taliban battlefield victory, the reconstitution of Afghanistan as a safe haven for terrorist groups, and a major humanitarian catastrophe.

A second option would be to continue providing money and equipment to Afghan security forces but to stop all training and operations—both from the air and from CIA and special operations forces on the ground. Yet this decision would hamstring the United States if terrorist groups such as al Qaeda and ISIS regained strength. The United States would have to outsource military operations to other countries in the region—say, India or Pakistan——but that would be a big political gamble if there ended up being a terrorist attack against Americans.

The best alternative is to continue providing military assistance from the air and covert forces on the

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The best alternative is to continue providing military assistance from the air and covert forces on the ground through a strategy of what is known in military circles as “armed overwatch.” ground through a strategy of what is known in military circles as “armed overwatch.” Since 2001, the United States has used various combinations of CIA and special operations forces, airpower, and aid to security forces to weaken terrorist groups linked to al Qaeda and ISIS. This approach has been used in Iraq, Libya, Pakistan, Somalia, and Syria, and it should be adopted in Afghanistan. The goals would be modest: prevent Afghanistan from once again becoming a terrorist safe haven, thwart the Taliban from controlling the entire country, reduce the possibility of a humanitarian crisis, and blunt the expansion of Iran, Russia, and China.

What would “armed overwatch” look like in practice? First, the United States and its international partners would continue to provide funding to the Afghan government and its panoply of military, po-

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lice, and intelligence units. No Afghan government in over a century has operated without significant outside support. During the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, the British and Russians bankrolled successive Afghan governments. The United States and the Soviet Union propped up successive Afghan governments during the Cold War. After 9/11, the United States provided support to the governments of Hamid Karzai and then Ashraf Ghani. That imperative will remain.

The United States should provide at least $3 billion per year in aid to Afghan security agencies to fight the Taliban—the rough amount it is paying today and what will be needed in the future to sustain the

The goals would be modest: prevent Afghanistan from becoming a terrorist safe haven, thwart the Taliban from controlling the entire country, reduce the possibility of a humanitarian crisis, and blunt the expansion of Iran, Russia, and China.

Afghan forces’ infrastructure, equipment, transportation, training, and operations. Among the most important security forces to assist are the Afghan government’s high-end army, air force, and police units, which have fought effectively against the Taliban, al Qaeda, and ISIS. Keeping them up and running is essential to preventing the Taliban from controlling the entire country.

Second, the United States should fly regular missions for the purpose of striking targets and gathering intelligence. Finding a nearby staging area will not be easy. Although it would be helpful to station U.S. aircraft in Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, or Kyrgyzstan, Russian leaders have already stated that they will forbid these countries from hosting U.S. military bases in their Central Asian sphere of influence. The United States could fly some missions from aircraft carriers in the Indian Ocean, but the U.S. Navy would likely prefer to use those ships for missions aimed at countering China in East Asia. This leaves countries in the Arabian Gulf such as Qatar, which is over 1,000 nautical miles from Afghanistan.

Given the mission requirements for Afghanistan, the best aircraft for the job is the unmanned MQ-9 Reaper. One of the newest versions of the drone could, after subtracting the 12-hour round trip from Qatar, spend roughly 26 hours flying over Afghanistan, conducting surveillance and striking targets. The United States could complement its drones with manned aircraft, including F-15E strike fighters, F-16 fighter bombers, A-10 ground attack jets, and B-52 strategic

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Afghan internally displaced families are pictured upon their arrival from the outskirts Kandahar, who fled due to the ongoing battle between Taliban fighters and Afghan security forces, at a refugee camp in Kandahar on July ,27 2021. (Photo by JAVED TANVEER / AFP)

In this July 2021 ,17 file photo, masked Afghan Army Special Forces attend their graduation ceremony after a threemonth training program at the Kabul Military Training Center, in Kabul, Afghanistan. (AP Photo/Rahmat Gul, File)

bombers. These aircraft could assist Afghan forces by offering close air support—missions that would prove particularly useful when the Taliban start to mass their forces and conduct large conventional operations. Since the Taliban do not yet possess significant surface-to-air missile capabilities or an air force, the United States would continue to enjoy air superiority.

Third, special operations forces from the CIA and the U.S. military should train and equip Afghan forces, as well as allied militias in Afghanistan. The Biden administration’s decision to withdraw U.S. military forces does not preclude the United States from using CIA paramilitary units from the Special Activities Center or U.S. special operations forces operating under Title 50 of the United States Code, a federal law that allows U.S. military forces to conduct covert actions in support of the CIA. CIA and U.S. military forces could also train Afghan army, police, intelligence, and air force units outside Afghanistan, in Uzbekistan, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, or the United Arab Emirates.

There is a great deal of value in letting the CIA and U.S. special operations forces maintain their relationships with Afghan forces, ties that go back decades. During the 1990s, the CIA provided money and equipment to anti-Taliban groups such as the Northern Alliance. After 9/11, these relationships proved critical when the United States invaded Afghanistan. If a future U.S. administration decided to deploy U.S. military forces to the country once

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With U.S. and NATO military forces leaving and peace talks in disarray, the military balance of power has shifted dramatically in favor of the Taliban and their backers— Pakistan, Iran, and Russia. again—as the Obama administration did in Iraq in 2014 after withdrawing them in 2011—a continued intelligence and special operations relationship would be helpful.

Armed overwatch in Afghanistan will not be a panacea. In all likelihood, it will not be sufficient to prevent the Taliban from seizing and holding some cities. But it may be able to minimize the likelihood that Afghanistan will again become a terrorist sanctuary, prevent the Taliban from controlling the entire country, and counter Russian, Iranian, and Chinese influence. It may be, in other words, good enough.

Jiwan Soz is a researcher and journalist who focuses on Turkish affairs and minorities in the Middle East. He is also a member of Syndicat National des Journalistes (National Syndicate of Journalists [SNJ]).

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Saudi Arabia Boosts Banking Industry

Licensing More Regional and Intl Banks is Part of Financial Sector Development Program

By Motasem Al Felou - Jeddah Standard Chartered Bank, a British banking and financial services company founded in 1969, started operation of its first branch in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, around the middle of last May.

The Saudi authorities have approved a license for the National Bank of Iraq (NBA), an Iraqi bank established in 1995, to open a branch last May. The approval came one month after Banque Misr was licensed to start operations in the Kingdom for the first time.

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Bank of China, which was granted a license in May 2020, has joined Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) as the second Chinese bank to operate in Saudi Arabia.

In the first half of 2020, three banks have been licensed, and more bank branches are expected to launch their operation in a country with the highest GDP in the Arab world, whose economy is expected to grow by 2.4 percent according to the latest International Monetary Fund reports published on July 2021 ,8.

Why is Saudi Arabia welcoming more foreign banks? What role can they play to boost the banking industry?

MAP OF FOREIGN BANKS

Saudi Finance Minister Mohammed al-Jadaan speaks during the Financial Sector Conference held in Saudi Arabia›s capital Riyadh on April 24, 2019. The event was organized by the government bodies overseeing the implementation of the Financial Sector Development Program. (FAYEZ NURELDINE/AFP via Getty Images)

According to the Central Bank of Saudi Arabia, there are 19 licensed foreign bank branches currently operating or preparing their branches to open soon. Nine of them belong to Arab banks, and the others include four European banks, two Chinese, one Turkish, one American, one Pakistani and one Japanese. They are added to 11 local banks and 2 digital banks (licensed but have not started yet).

The Saudi administration launched the Financial Sector Development Program in 2017, which is part of the executive program belonging to the Kingdom Vision 2030, to enable financial institutions to support the growth of the Saudi private sector, develop an advanced capital market, and boost financial planning.

“The market is hungry for more local and foreign banks. For example, Bahrain, which has smaller economy and population than Saudi Arabia, hosts more than 40 local, regional and international banks.

The Saudi market is really big and has the potential to accommodate more banks,” Abdulrahman Al-Ahmed, a financial and accounting expert, told Majalla.

HEATING UP COMPETITION With every new foreign bank branch being opened or expected to open, the first word that comes to mind is “competition.” Besides that, new job opportunities are created, more clients expect better services, and a new banking player appears.

“The most important role expected from foreign banks coming to Saudi Arabia is to provide high quality services for both individuals and the

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The Saudi administration launched the Financial Sector Development Program in 2017, which is part of the executive program belonging to the Kingdom Vision 2030, to enable financial institutions to support the growth of the Saudi private sector, develop an advanced capital market, and boost financial planning. private sector. This includes competitive personal, residential, and automobile loans, as well as financing SME’s and big companies to grow and prosper, especially now with more governmental spending on mega projects,” commented expert AlAhmed when asked about the potential of the Saudi market for foreign banks.

“The Saudi market is very attractive. More foreign banks mean more competition, this with undoubtedly improve the Saudi banking environment,” he added.

WHAT ABOUT CUSTOMERS ?

Omar, a key account manager at a local company, told me that foreign banks, especially the GCC one, have developed a different customer experience to attract more clients, adding that this is normal for newcomers, as they go the extra mile.

“This keeps local banks and new foreign banks on their toes, looking for new ways to keep customers happy and bring in new ones. They know that the more they are welcoming and service-oriented, the bigger their share of customers,” he added.

Asma’a, a -29year-old private sector employee, said that she trusts her local Saudi bank, and is less likely to try a new bank, be it local, Arab, Asian, or international. However, her colleague, Loai, disagrees. He believes that he will go for the lowest loan cost if he ever wants to lease a car, regardless of the nationality of the bank he deals with!

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A Safety Net for the Green Economy

Governments Should Mitigate the Impact of Climate Policies

By Simone Tagliapietra In a dramatic move for global efforts to combat climate change, the European Union couple of weeks ago laid out an ambitious proposal to transition away from fossil fuels. Brussels’ announcement marks the latest step in a rapidly accelerating green revolution. Driven by a stunning reduction in the cost of renewable energy systems and an unprecedented drive for carbon neutrality, the world finally

has a real chance to tackle climate change. But even though decarbonization is essential to humanity’s survival, the transition will have profound economic effects—as the EU proposal acknowledges. Although it will be a net benefit for the world, the transformation will create winners and losers.

Moving from fossil fuels to renewable energy will inevitably displace long-established industries, cost millions of workers their jobs, and disrupt communities that rely on the coal, oil, and natural gas industries.

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Policymakers have been here before. Mitigating the impact of climate change might ultimately resemble the effects of globalization and trade liberalization in the latter half of the twentieth century. Gains from those transformations were real, but as leaders failed to expand social safety nets, they also led to rising inequality and a chronic shortage of good jobs. These failures not only hurt workers but also produced a sharp political backlash that fueled right-wing populism for decades to come.

Governments can’t make the same mistake when it comes to dealing with climate change. They must acknowledge that the actions necessary to stave off environmental disaster will lead to job losses and business closures that hurt the poor more than the rich. Absent an adequate safety net for the people and communities who stand to lose out, even the most well-intentioned climate policies could produce an intense political backlash.

FOLLOW THE EMISSIONS

Thousands of yellow vests (Gilets Jaunes) protests in Paris calling for lower fuel taxes, reintroduction of the solidarity tax on wealth, a minimum wage increase, and Emmanuel Macron›s resignation as President of France, 09 February 2019. (Norbu Gyachung/Wikimedia commons)

The world is in the midst of a climate emergency. Global temperatures are already one degree Celsius above preindustrial levels. That’s just one-half degree less than the level at which climate scientists calculate that dramatic environmental change will begin to set in. Annual global greenhouse gas emissions, moreover, are rising steadily and show no sign of peaking: in 2019, they were 62 percent higher than in 1990, when the first Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) urged coordinated action, and four percent higher than in 2015, when 174 countries and the European Union signed the Paris climate accord. Although 2020 saw an unprecedented drop in carbon emissions owing to COVID19- lockdowns, rates have already begun to rebound sharply in 2021.

According to the IPCC, governments now have only 30 years left to radically slash global emissions before the planet faces a series of dangerous tipping points. The Amazon basin could soon morph from tropical forest to savanna, and billions of tons of carbon will begin to leach from Siberia’s permafrost. Some regions—eastern Brazil, Southeast Asia, the Mediterranean, and central China, among many others—will inevitably face multiple climate calamities at once, including drought, heat waves, cyclones, wildfires, and flooding.

This compressed time frame means that any successful climate policy must be intrusive. States will need to rapidly overhaul their energy, transport, residential, and agricultural sectors— sparking difficult questions about who should shoulder the enormous costs.

Stark disparities in the level of carbon that different countries emit make these questions particularly difficult to resolve.

According to Oxfam and the Stockholm Environment Institute, between 1990 and 2015, the wealthiest ten percent of the world’s population accounted for over half of global greenhouse gas emissions. The richest one percent alone was responsible for 15 percent of emissions during the same time

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Moving from fossil fuels to renewable energy will inevitably displace longestablished industries, cost millions of workers their jobs, and disrupt communities that rely on the coal, oil, and natural gas industries. frame—more than twice that of the poorest half of humanity.

That latter group, however, is far more likely to suffer the worst effects of climate change, including floods, drought, disease, or economic dislocation. Comparatively poor communities will bear the brunt of a crisis they did little to cause.

But although developing countries might suffer the worst environmental harms of unchecked climate change, workingand middle-class people in developed states will inevitably face the jarring economic effects of efforts to prevent climate disaster. And that will have profound political implications.

Take, for example, the so-called yellow vest movement that started in France in 2018. The protests, which eventually turned violent, began as a response to a fuel tax increase that the French government had proposed. Although the tax was vital to reducing France’s emissions, the policy would have immediately translated into higher gasoline prices—a particular hardship for rural and suburban citizens. Many residents outside urban centers faced stagnating incomes and already lacked the public transit options enjoyed by their metropolitan counterparts.

Had the proposed carbon tax included a mechanism to cushion the economic blow, the government might have avoided a backlash. Instead, an energized populist movement managed to roll back a central element of France’s efforts to combat climate change; President Emmanuel Macron suspended the tax just three weeks after the protests began.

DIVIDEND AND CONQUER The yellow vests phenomenon served as a warning—and many took note. In 2019, a group of economists—among them 28 Nobel laureates and four former U.S. Federal Reserve chairs (including Janet Yellen, who now serves as U.S. Treasury secretary)—called for a tax on carbon emissions in the United States, with revenues returned directly to citizens through equal lump-sum payments. Under this proposed system, ordinary consumers—including the most vulnerable—would receive more in so-called carbon dividends than they would pay in increased energy prices. The new EU plan includes a similar proposal—the so-called Social Climate Fund—

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designed to divert a portion of new carbon tax revenues to those most affected by rising energy prices.

Such carbon dividends represent the building blocks for a future climate safety net. By returning money to citizens, dividends ensure that policies meant to protect the environment don’t worsen existing inequalities or create new classes of economic “losers.”

Some inspiring examples of this system already exist on both sides of the Atlantic. In Switzerland, for instance, the government uses carbon tax revenues to reimburse lowincome households through a health insurance rebate. Since 2008, the Canadian province of British Columbia has returned money to citizens using income tax reductions and offered tax credits to assist rural and climate-vulnerable homeowners.

The European Union, for its part, has thus far taken a narrower approach to the problem. As part of its 2019 European Green

Some regions—eastern Brazil, Southeast Asia, the Mediterranean, and central China, among many others—will inevitably face multiple climate calamities at once, including drought, heat waves, cyclones, wildfires, and flooding.

Deal, the EU focused on helping specific regions transition away from carbon-intensive industries—especially coal production. Instead of nationwide reimbursements, these “just transition” policies seek to diversify local economies and help workers adapt to a changing labor market. In Poland’s coalmining regions, for instance, EU funding supports retraining programs, infrastructure investment, and assistance for workers who would otherwise be left behind in the transition to renewable energy.

The first half of 2021 saw a record-breaking spike in the prices Europeans pay for electricity, owing to a rally in natural gas prices and a record-breaking spike in the cost of European carbon emissions. Although energy companies initially pay these high rates, they ultimately pass the increase on to consumers. This put the idea of a broader EU carbon dividend back in the spotlight. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen declared in May 2021 that the EU would need to compensate lower-income Europeans. “Additional costs for CO2 savings have to be borne by those with stronger shoulders,” she noted.

The United States’ historical approach to decarbonization mirrors the EU’s—with a relatively narrow focus on alleviating economic pain in specific regions. President Barack Obama’s Partnerships for Opportunity and Workforce and Economic Revitalization, for example, provided federal funding to help communities affected by energy-related job losses, especially in the coal-dependent Appalachia region.

President Donald Trump scaled back Obama’s initiatives, but President Joe Biden has reversed course, broadening his administration’s ambitions to include the concept of “environmental justice,” alongside more conventional programs meant to assist regions reliant on coal, oil, and natural gas. An environmental justice framework acknowledges that

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Special Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry and Italian Minister for Ecological Transition Roberto Cingolani pose during a photo opportunity at Palazzo Reale in Naples, Italy, Friday, July 23, 2021, where a G20 meeting on environment, climate and energy is under way (AP Photo)

A man carries goods on his bicycle as he walks out of the the Yubei Agricultural and Aquatic Products World in Xinxiang in central China›s Henan Province, Monday, July 26, 2021. Record rain in Xinxiang last week left the produce and seafood market soaked in water. Dozens of people died in the floods that immersed large swaths of central China›s Henan province in water. (AP Photo)

climate change and ecological degradation often have the greatest impact on people of color, tribal lands, and lowincome communities.

As part of these efforts, the Biden administration recently announced its Justice40 Initiative—designed to direct 40 percent of government climate investment toward disadvantaged communities. Biden’s 2$ trillion infrastructure proposal, the American Jobs Plan, incorporates this initiative and addresses several separate environmental justice issues, including the impact of pollution on low-income communities. Among other projects, the plan includes proposals to modernize transportation systems, water and electricity infrastructure, and parts of the manufacturing sector—especially in rural and vulnerable regions.

START YOUR ENGINES Biden’s policies are a good start. But leaders in Washington and other capitals need to go much further if they want to establish an effective climate safety net. The Biden administration’s plans, for example, do not yet officially include a federal-level carbon-pricing system—a centerpiece of European efforts to reduce emissions and the starting point for a true carbon dividend. According to U.S. Special Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry, however, Biden apparently believes that Washington will need to implement a similar system at some point in the future.

Congress is also active on this front. In April 2021, Representative Ted Deutch, Democrat of Florida, reintroduced the Energy Innovation and Carbon Dividend Act of 2019, a bill that would establish a carbon price and evenly distribute its revenue to Americans as monthly payments. In June, Senator Sheldon Whitehouse, Democrat of Rhode Island, and Senator

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The United States’ historical approach to decarbonization mirrors the EU’s—with a relatively narrow focus on alleviating economic pain in specific regions.

Brian Schatz, Democrat of Hawaii, introduced the Save Our Future Act, which would tax major emitters and redistribute the dividends to consumers, workers, and communities.

Although it is too early to say whether such proposals will succeed, their focus on carbon dividends is a step in the right direction. If passed, they could help the United States reach its goal of net-zero emissions by 2050, improve air quality, and return billions of dollars to Americans in need.

As more governments begin to take dramatic action on climate change, they must keep an eye out for the social implications of their policies. If they fail to take the needs of their most vulnerable citizens into account, leaders’ best intentions may come to naught. Ultimately, the path to carbon neutrality depends on governments’ ability to turn decarbonization into an opportunity. If implemented correctly, a climate safety net can help make that a reality through good jobs and a more inclusive economy for all.

This article was originally published by Foreign Affairs

A Weekly Political News Magazine

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Kais Saied: From an “Ordinary Man” to a “Savior” www.majalla.com

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Freelance Musicians Found New Passions During the Pandemic

Some Aren’t Going Back

By Jeremy Reynolds America’s classical music organizations fell silent for a year, but many are in decent financial shape thanks to individual donors, foundations, administrative furloughs, salary cuts for musicians and federal funding like the Payment Protection Program.

While organizations like the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra and Pittsburgh Opera have come through in one piece,

however, independent musicians at smaller regional orchestras and groups took the brunt of the impact. Smaller ensembles could not continue employing them through the pandemic.

“All of my performance income dried up just like that,” said trumpet player Micah Holt, a 33-year-old South Side resident who performs in several regional orchestras including the Erie Philharmonic and the West Virginia Symphony and teaches trumpet at Slippery Rock University.

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The life of a contract musician follows the typical feast-orfamine patterns of the gig economy, so it isn’t unusual for these players to pick up side work. A few years ago, Holt began working part time at the climbing gym ASCEND in the South Side. As a route setter, he designs the paths up the climbing wall; the routes regularly shift and evolve to stay fresh and challenging for regular climbers.

“We’re like the chefs of the rock climbing gym,” Holt said.

During the pandemic, he increased his hours at the gym to offset lost performance income, sometimes working more than 20 hours a week there. He intends to keep or increase those hours while possibly cutting back on his trumpet gigs.

He isn’t alone. Dozens of musicians in the Pittsburgh area and around the country are either adjusting their careers to include more stable side hustles in the aftermath of the pandemic or hanging up their instruments for good.

DAVID AND GOLIATH

Ian Evans, a former jazz drummer turned bonsai tree grower, poses for a portrait in his back yard garden with a dwarf alberta spruce he has nicknamed “Big Suze” on Friday, July ,16 2021, in Upper St. Clair, Pennsylvania. (Andrew Rush/Pittsburgh PostGazette/TNS)

Independent musicians and the groups many work for are tiny compared to America’s largest orchestras, which have budgets of millions or tens of millions of dollars. Full-time, salaried musicians employed by such orchestras generally kept all or most of their salaries during the pandemic, agreeing to concessions as needed. In April 2020, musicians at the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra and some staff saw their base salaries cut 10%, then 20% in July and finally 25% for the 2020-21 season. Full base salary for musicians was $101,180.

Paul Austin, president of the International Conference of Symphony and Opera Musicians and a horn player with the Grand Rapids Symphony in Michigan, said industry experts were concerned about the financial fallout for arts groups, reminiscent of the 2008 economic downturn, in the beginning of the pandemic. The big losses did not materialize thanks to public and private support and drastically reduced costs; putting on concerts is the largest expense most ensembles face.

“The difference between the pandemic and the economic downturn of 2008 was that in 2008 our donors took huge hits to their portfolios,” Austin said. “But that didn’t happen this time. I look at my retirement accounts every day and they don’t seem to be going down the tubes.”

Regional orchestras and opera companies, which generally employ singers and instrumentalists on a contract basis, were not able to continue paying their artists. Individuals felt the squeeze, though there was some relief. Many contract musicians applied for and received small individual grants or loans or pandemic unemployment compensation.

Sebastian Vera, principal trombonist at Pittsburgh Opera and other regional ensembles, said that many of his col-

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Regional orchestras and opera companies, which generally employ singers and instrumentalists on a contract basis, were not able to continue paying their artists.

Individuals felt the squeeze, though there was some relief. leagues received unemployment. “A lot of musicians were actually earning more on unemployment than they did typically.”

Vera, 38, teaches at both Slippery Rock and Duquesne universities, which helped offset lost performance income. He also threw himself into co-creating a podcast interviewing professional trombonists around the country about their careers. After one year, the popular podcast “The Trombone Retreat” has been downloaded more than 27,000 times in 80 countries.

CAREER INTERMISSION Many independent musicians took on additional teaching responsibilities to boost their income, either privately or through university positions. Some produced and streamed house concerts, started podcasts or created other digital content, while others launched music-adjacent projects to bring in some money.

“I’m now in charge of a band of 12-year-olds,” said operatic soprano Leah Crocetto, 37, a former resident artist at Pittsburgh Opera and rising star in the opera world. She’s currently based in West Virginia, where she teaches a girls’ rock camp.

Crocetto was in the middle of rehearsals at Virginia Opera when everyone was sent home last year. She increased her teaching load to 20-25 students per week, lowering her usual rates to acknowledge the limitations of a Zoom lesson.

“I try to be a realist, not a pessimist,” she said. “But right now I don’t see a reality where I’d be able to subsist on singing alone.”

Local bass player Jesica Sharp Crewe, 37, had a side gig assisting with real estate transactions prior to the pandemic and began taking Alexander technique courses in the summer of 2020. The Alexander technique develops improved

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movement and posture and has grown popular as a form of physical therapy among musicians. It takes three years to become a certified teacher, and she sees the certification as “another piece of the puzzle” in her career portfolio.

Some orchestras continued to employ small numbers of musicians for streaming performances and recordings. Violist Maija Anstine, 32, said that she performed once every three or four weeks during the pandemic, masked and distanced in a small group of fellow players.

“I felt very lucky, but the weirdest thing about this was having to stand to receive applause when there was no one in the room,” she said. “It was dystopian.”

Anstine also works as a manager at Five Points Artisan

Many independent musicians took on additional teaching responsibilities to boost their income, either privately or through university positions.

Some produced and streamed house concerts, started podcasts or created other digital content.

Bake Shop in Squirrel Hill and significantly increased her hours during the pandemic to make up for lost income. She said she’ll scale back as needed now that her gigs with local orchestras and ensembles are returning.

CURTAINS FOR NOW Some musicians are cutting back on performing, either from economic pressure or discovering a new passion. Ian Evans, 40, of Peters, had a multi-decade career as a jazz drummer. He’s found a new outlet to satisfy his artistic cravings: growing and selling bonsai trees.

“I pretty much gigged right up until the pandemic, but then everything was just wiped out,” he recalled.

Evans began growing bonsai in 2018. In 2021, his wife created Bebop Bonsai to begin selling equipment and trees on consignment at local farmers markets and greenhouses like Chapon’s Greenhouse in Baldwin Borough. He aims to grow the business into a full-time endeavor.

“I see connections between bonsai and music,” Evans said.

“I can improvise fluidly on the drums, and a bonsai tree presents similar challenges in that it’s a puzzle, like improvising within the bounds of what’s possible given the species of tree.”

He’s seeing increasing demand, which he attributes in part to the popular show “Cobra Kai.” In it, a grown-up Daniel (the villain of the 1984 movie “Karate Kid”) hands out bonsai trees with car purchases from his dealership.

“It’s having a bit of a cultural moment,” he said. “There’s also a bit of a Bob Ross element... Who doesn’t like a happy tree?”

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Micah Holt, of the South Side Slopes, at his job as a route setter Monday, July 2021 ,19, at Ascend climbing gym on Pittsburgh’s South Side. Holt is also a professional trumpet player. (Pittsburgh PostGazette/TNS)

Micah Holt, of the South Side Slopes, at his job as a route setter Monday, July 2021 ,19, at Ascend climbing gym on Pittsburgh’s South Side.

Holt is also a professional trumpet player. (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette/TNS)

Other musicians learned to code. Violinist Stefani Schore said that she knows many musicians who transitioned into coding due to the creativity involved. She decided to attend the Tech Elevator coding boot camp in December, graduated in April and walked into a full-time position at PNC Bank a week later.

She intends to continue to play professionally, but having a stable full-time role will allow her to be more selective in choosing her opportunities, she said. Many freelancers feel pressure to say “yes” to every offer that comes their way due to financial pressures. Schore, who is engaged to Holt, recalled having rehearsals, performances and lessons in three different states in the same day.

“This isn’t a change of career, it’s a change of identity,” she said. “My career aspiration was to be a full-time musician and I achieved that, but I enjoy being in software development now.”

Violinist Juan Jamarillo, a Venezuelan native who performs with Pittsburgh’s opera and ballet orchestras, said he applied for many pandemic assistance grants for individual musicians through organizations like the Greater Pittsburgh Arts Council after performance opportunities dried up.

Then over a beer with a neighbor, Jamarillo stumbled into an opportunity with New York Life Insurance Co., focusing on retirement planning and investment protections. He became an agent in December and has expanded the company’s footprint with Pittsburgh’s Latin community.

“The income is definitely better than music. I must say. I’d been thinking about this for a while, and it was time to come to terms with reality.”

Jamarillo said he’ll continue to perform but anticipates cut-

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ting back.

“It’s disappointing not doing what I love to do full time, of course,” he said. “There are pros and cons, just like there are pros and cons in a musical career. I’m looking forward to seeing where this new opportunity takes me.”

ONCE A MUSICIAN Thanks to the pandemic, many musicians are rebalancing their career portfolios with nonmusical side hustles or even secondary careers. This isn’t new; it’s long been common for performing artists to work multiple jobs in different fields to make ends meet. But the pandemic has cast the instability of the field into sharp relief.

Some have chosen to walk away, especially after a taste of consistent income outside of music or even through unemployment compensation. Music schools continue to churn out more professional-level musicians than the current landscape can support. Perhaps the pandemic will begin balancing those scales.

Either way, the discipline and skill involved in becoming a professional musician readily translates to many other fields and endeavors.

“Classical musicians are not to be underestimated,” said Austin, the musician from Michigan. “You give us 15 months off work with no pay and we’ll find something to do. We’re resourceful people.”

This article was originally published by the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

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Kais Saied: From an “Ordinary Man” to a “Savior”

By Majalla Illustration by Ali Mandalawi Kais Saied described his victory in the Tunisian elections in 2019 as a “new revolution”, but he seemed to be shackled by the constitution, which did not hide his desire to amend it to expand his powers.

For about two years, Kais Saied, who has a calm and patient character, sat on the presidential chair in Tunisia, and it seemed to observers as if he was sitting on a barrel full of gunpowder that could explode suddenly, in a country suffering from poverty, unemployment — especially among the youth — economic stagnation, and spiraling debt.

Moreover, the chaotic launch of 29 drop-in vaccination centers last week prompted the sacking of the health minister, and President Kais Saied put the military in charge of the pandemic response — foreshadowing his broader moves at the weekend.

But it seems that the Tunisian president did not accept that his country should bear more pressure on its joints and not more popular anger. With a sequence of events which suggest it was carefully chosen, Kais Saied came out - after a long wait for a spontaneous breakthrough – with the decision that Tunisia will no longer return to the conditions that prevailed before.

The Man of Law and the Constitution resorted to Article 80, which gives him, as the president of the country, the powers to

impose exceptional measures if there is an imminent danger threatening the state.

Saied said that he only implemented the constitution, which requires the president to take responsibility and take the necessary decisions to protect the country. According to the constitution, Kais Saied suspended the work of Parliament, dismissed the Prime Minister and the Ministers of Defense, Interior and Justice, and imposed a night curfew in the country for a month.

These bold and decisive decisions came under a legal umbrella well known to a law professor who has taught his students for decades – the Ennahda Movement (or Moderate Islamist Ennahda), which is an Islamist and a self-defined “Muslim democratic” political party in Tunisia, claiming that his actions “constitute a coup.”

While, the Parliament Speaker Rached Ghannouchi, head of the moderate Islamist Ennahda, was a major party to the confusion that has plagued the political scene since the Tunisian revolution in 2011, Saied entered the political arena as a relatively new face in 2019. Saied presented himself in the electoral campaign as an ordinary man seeking to reform a corrupt system. He ran in the elections without spending money with a limited team of advisors and volunteers, and at that time got the support of leftists, Islamists and youth alike.

He managed to win the elections by obtaining 72.71% of the votes, as he was elected

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President of the Republic for a period of 5 years in free and direct elections in the second round of the presidential elections on October 13, 2019, and assumed his duties as President of Tunisia on October 23, 2019.

Kais Saied was born on February 22, 1958 in Tunis. His family is of rather modest origin, but belongs to the intellectual middle class. His paternal uncle, Hicham Saied, was the first pediatric surgeon in Tunisia known worldwide for having separated two conjoined twins in the 1970s. Kais Saied completed his secondary studies at Sadiki College.

A jurist by formation, he is a specialist in constitutional law, and secretary-general of the Tunisian Association of Constitutional Law between 1990 and 1995 then vicepresident of the association since 1995.

He was Director of the public law department at the University of Sousse between 1994 and 1999, then at the Faculty of Juridical, Political and Social Sciences of Tunis of the University of Carthage from 1999 to 2018. He was a member of the group of experts of the General Secretariat of the Arab League between 1989 and 1990, expert at the Arab Institute for Human Rights from 1993 to 1995 and member of the committee of experts responsible for revising the draft Tunisian Constitution in 2014.

President Kais Saied also holds to his credit many scientific works in the fields of law and constitutional law in particular.

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“Lift like a Girl”: Documenting the Journey of an Egyptian Weightlifter When Male Support is the Reason Weightlifting Girls Achieve Their Dream

By Salma Adham When storytellers decide to document a story, they should have something to say through it. The rule also says: If you do not have something to tell, do not make the movie! Many people can have the skills of

shooting, writing, directing and other filmmaking techniques, but the most important thing that people forget is why I am making the film? Why do I want to tell this story in specific? If you have the answer that convinces you, start the journey!

In the current scene of cinema industry around the

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The real stories have a strong standing because, amid all tales that make us sail in the world of imagination, people want to see and interact with human stories that brings them chapters of other people’s lives!

Zebiba (Asmaa Ramadan) standing after winning an African Competition in a scene from “Lift Like a Girl”. (Supplied)

Zebiba (Asmaa Ramadan) participating in a weightlifting competition in a scene from “Lift Like a Girl”.

(Supplied)

world, the real stories have a strong standing because, amid all tales that make us sail in the world of imagination and novels and even the expected future, people want to see and interact with human stories that brings them chapters of other people’s lives!

You can live more than one life if you read a book or watch a movie, but when the story is challenging and full of truth, you believe it and realize that life surprises us with its abstract events more than an imaginary script. ““Lift like a Girl”” documentary is this kind of simple film which depend on recording the real events that happened to a certain character in a specific timeline. It was done by the young director Mayye Zayed documenting the diaries of a weightlifter, Asmaa Ramadan (Zebiba), a girl from Alexandria, from the age of 14 until she reached 18, her training and the tournaments she participated in.

The Netflix platform recently announced its screening as the first Egyptian documentary film to be presented on this international platform.

“Lift like a Girl” participated in Toronto International Film Festival in Canada in its world premiere, and was also shown at the Duke New York Festival, “the largest documentary film festival in the United States of America”.

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It won the Golden Yamama Award for Best Film in the German Film Competition at the Dok Leipzig Festival in Germany and the Best Director Award at the Seoul International Children’s Film Festival in South Korea. In addition to that, it won three awards from the Cairo Film Festival, namely the Bronze Pyramid Award, the Isis Award and the Youssef Sherif Rizkallah Audience Award. “Lift like a Girl” continued gaining awards by receiving the Best Documentary Award at the Critics’ Awards for Arab Films organized by the Arab Cinema Center at the Cannes Film Festival 2021, where 160 critics from 63 countries voted for it.

The film follows the daily life of the weightlifter Asmaa Ramadan or Zebiba for 4 years. Zebiba and her colleagues were training in an empty land without any capabilities or care in the Wardiyan area in Alexandria and under the supervision of Captain Ramadan, who tried hard to provide space and an atmosphere that would push the girls to complete their training and reach the highest levels.

Asmaa Ramadan tries to pursue her dream of becoming a weightlifting champion as she is one of the many weightlifters that Captain Ramadan has coached all his life and won many competitions.

What is interesting and surprising is that despite the lack and weakness of the capabilities, Zebiba succeeded, with the insistence of Captain Ramadan, to obtain championships at the level of Alexandria Governorate, as well as at the level of the Republic and the continent of Africa, in lifting weights to prove that will, encouragement, continuous work and training are the basis of any success even in a poor environment.

Captain Ramadan Abdel Moati, Asma’s coach and the father of the heroine Nahla Ramadan, the former weightlifting champion, spent more than 20 years

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training and qualifying girls for weightlifting in the streets of Alexandria and died in 2017 while shooting the film but he left his soul in the girls to continue and complete despite their sadness in losing him, their great supporter and father. His strong belief in supporting and qualifying girls to become champions in a sport that until recently was seen as maleonly was such a great loss for them. We saw his sincerity at work, being happy with their success, and his childlike joy when winning a competition.

Captain Ramadan is the epitome of a strict and lov-

The film honestly highlighted the spirit of Egyptian girls who are immersed in the sport of weightlifting, and that courage and beautiful spirit of enthusiasm they enjoy, to announce generations of girls who can challenge and find themselves.

ing captain at the same time. The one who pushes the trainees, he is also hard at times for their good, and they love him and are close to him, in a relationship shaped by support and criticism, which is one of the most important reasons for the success of these girls.

The belief of the person in himself is often strengthened and supported by the faith and trust of others in him, this is what happened with Captain Ramadan and his girls.

Their belief in achieving more, even if it initially appeared that it was impossible, was supported by the confidence of Captain Ramadan in them and the idea that nothing is impossible and there is no difference between a man and a woman.

The documentary is talking about the world of weightlifting sport which means loss and victory, a lot of emotions, support, stressful atmosphere and continuous training. But we are watching a movie that talks to us also about our strength, body, and physical moves.

It is about our feeling of falling, colliding and jumping. The camera succeeds in conveying the feeling of the body to make us feel what its heroes feel and know what is happening in this world.

In the world of weightlifting as you will know, “The most important need is weight!” Eating too much means gaining weight. Eating less than neces-

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Zebiba (Asmaa Ramadan) sitting with her captain Ramadan in a scene from “Lift Like a Girl”. (Supplied)

Zebiba (Asmaa Ramadan) and her captain Ramadan in a scene from “Lift Like a Girl”.

(Supplied)

sary affects your energy. The body in the movie is very sensitive, weighed in grams.

The documentary has a big amount of hugs, kisses, congratulations, pats on the back, scolding with tingling in the shoulder and physical communication that the characters made spontaneously to express themselves and their relations with others.

What I noticed also is highlighting the concept of seeing beauty anywhere and in everything. The poverty of the place did not make Captain Ramadan not pay attention to its beauty and enjoy it. On the contrary, he was keen to plant it with water, adding an aesthetic element to a place full of energy and intimacy, and this was reflected on the girls’ mood positively. We saw Zebiba continuing to water the plants in a scene after Captain Ramdan’s loss.

The movie did not use any musical background, tricks, or effects. The story is the hero of the movie.

The story of Zebiba, Captain Ramadan, the weightlifting girls, their mothers with their constant encouragement, the streets of Alexandria and the desire for victory.

And how beautiful it is to be.

The film honestly highlighted the spirit of Egyptian girls who are immersed in the sport of weightlifting, and that courage and beautiful spirit of enthusiasm that they enjoy, to announce generations of girls

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It is about our feeling of falling, colliding and jumping. The camera succeeds in conveying the feeling of the body to make us feel what its heroes feel and know what is happening in this world. who can challenge and find themselves.

We do not find ourselves by chance, - nobody brings up a chance simply for us but by working to develop, by learning and continuous training, by making an effort on them and by contemplating the world around us (the opportunity is created).

This is what the movie confirmed. Nothing comes easily in life and the courageous person is the one who never slips in strength while searching for himself. This is what Zebiba is still striving for.

She keeps training until this moment to fulfill her dream (herself) of being the world champion in weightlifting.

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Inspirational Stories That Grabbed Hearts Throughout History of Olympics Olympic Games Are Full of Incredible Stories; Some of Them Put a Smile on Your Face or a Tear in Your Eye

By Sarah Gamal Too often, people only see the hurdles. But those who are determined and willing see only the possibilities.

It is easy to attribute your failure in achieving a definite goal to the surrounding and external conditions, physical disability, or other several justifications. However, your destiny may put you before challenges that assess your stamina and patience with affliction, so you will become stronger receiving the praise of the world and being famous as a glowing model of success, determination and will, under the slogan “never ever give up.”

Natalia Partyka, the one-armed table tennis player, is continuing to challenge herself on both the Para and able-bodied circuits.

She showed her best at Olympic Games in London 2012, where she was competing in

her second Olympics but it was her skill and not her disability that attracted the world’s attention. It was also the first time she competed in the singles competition.

Partyka is among the few who participate in the Olympics and Paralympics in table tennis. The Pole, who was born without a right hand and forearm, did not give up nor did this prevent her from showing her talent, proving herself and flying high in the sky of sports.

Partyka is no stranger to breaking records at the Paralympics inasmuch as she won her first world title at the Paralympic Games at the age of 10 and became the youngest Paralympic player in the world after participating in Sydney 2000.

Partyka has many medals in table tennis, perhaps the most prominent of which are two golds in the World Cadet Championship,

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Natalia Partyka of Poland in action against Dina Meshref of Egypt during the Table Tennis women›s singles second round in the Table Tennis events of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at the Tokyo Metropolitan Gymnasium arena in Tokyo, Japan, 25 July 2021. (EPA/ HEDAYATULLAH AMID)

which was open to normal people. She beat everyone and got the gold, setting a great example of will and determination, and proved that disability is only in the souls of bullies, haters, and those stalking success, not a physical disability. “I can show people that nothing is impossible. Maybe being disabled makes things more difficult than for able-bodied people, and maybe we have to work a little harder. But we can do anything we want to do if we just try. Maybe someone will see me and realize their own disability is not the end of the world, that they can achieve bigger dreams than they imagined,” Partyka said.

Human memory bows in respect and glorification of inspiring heroic stances that achieved the supreme meaning of sport by blending competition, ethics, heroism, high spirit, determination and upholding the Olympic values.

Natalia Partyka was not the only inspiring story in the history of the Olympic Games, but there are many stories of a large number of champions, including Oksana Aleksandrovna Chusovitina, the Olympic gymnast who has competed for the Soviet Union, Uzbekistan, and Germany, and the oldest player to participate in the Tokyo 2020 Games, at which she competed after turning 46 years old a few weeks ago.

She is the only female gymnast ever to compete in eight Olympic Games, and is one of only two female gymnasts to compete at the Olympics under three different national teams: the Unified Team in 1992; Uzbekistan in 2016 ,2004 ,2000 ,1996 and 2020; and, Germany in 2008 and 2012.

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Oksana began her sports career in gymnastics

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by representing the Soviet Union until the end of the eighties and won more than one medal during the world championships, before participating in the 1992 Olympics in Barcelona as part of the independent teams.

In 2002, Oksana›s life changed after discovering that her only three-year-old

Natalia Partyka, the one-armed table tennis player, is continuing to challenge herself on both the Para and able-bodied circuits, while Oksana Aleksandrovna returned on public demand, to become the oldest player to participate in the Tokyo Games.

son had leukemia, which required large sums of money to treat him. At the time, she was forced to accept a German offer to represent the country in the Olympics, and she succeeded in achieving a number of precious medals in the name of Germany.

Oksana was able to secure treatment for her son at the University Hospital of Cologne from the financial prizes she earned in gymnastics competitions and with great help from members of the international gymnastics community. After the decision to retire in 2009, Oksana returned again to participate in gymnastics competitions, based on public demand, to become the oldest player to participate in the Tokyo Games.

She is determined to enjoy one final dance at Tokyo Games, as she said, “I thought I should finish my career at the Tokyo Games, and now I am not going to change my plans. That means another season more at the gym.” It is difficult to foresee what the unstoppable Oksana Chusovitina can achieve in Tokyo. The living legend has

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Uzbekistan›s Oksana Chusovitina poses after competing in the artistic gymnastics vault event of the women›s qualification during the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at the Ariake Gymnastics Centre in Tokyo on July 2021 ,25.

(Photo by Loic VENANCE / AFP)

Gold medalist Matthias Steiner of Germany poses with a picture of his late wife Susann during the medal ceremony for the men›s 105+ kg weightlifting event of the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games in Beijing on August 2008 ,19. (Alvin Chan/REUTERS)

proven time and again she is able to erase the ‘im’ from ‘impossible’.

“More than just a medal” is what the Austrian and German weightlifter Matthias Steiner said after winning the gold medal at Beijing 2008 in the +105 kg category of men’s weightlifting, fulfilling a golden promise to his late wife.

Steiner is an Austrian and German weightlifter, born on August 1982 ,25, in Vienna, Austria. Due to the amateurism of the Austrian Weightlifting Federation, Steiner felt he would be better able to fulfil his potential in Germany, which was one of the top weightlifting nations. He applied for German citizenship, which coincided with his falling in love with and marrying Susann. But in July 2007 Susann died in a car crash, after which Steiner did not train for three weeks. On his return he vowed to win a gold medal for her at Beijing 2008.

Despite the tragic death of his wife, he continued his career in weightlifting in Germany, and rose from his sorrows like a

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wounded lion who roars in everyone›s face and engraved a history of gold in his name by achieving a number of medals, making him the most prominent weightlifting star in the world.

Steiner produced one of the most inspirational Olympic moments in Beijing 2008, giving hope to everyone to overcome pressures and human crises in life to move forward and make personal achievements.

Currently, he is a singer, author and motivational speaker after approaching his post-Olympic career with the same dedication that saw him overcome tragedy en route to the gold medal in China.

Sport carries its competitive potential, exerting effort, striving to win, avoiding defeat, crowning championships and writing history. However, human memory bows in respect and glorification of inspiring heroic stances that achieved the supreme meaning of sport by blending competition, ethics, heroism, high spirit, determination and upholding the Olympic values.

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Man’s Best Friend -- and Medicine’s Too Scientists Investigate Dogs’ Ability to Sniff Out Diseases

Harvard Health Letter Dogs may one day help identify certain health conditions early.

For as long as dogs have been domesticated,

humans have relied on them for companionship and their remarkable sense of smell. Dogs and their super sniffers help humans hunt; track criminals; and detect guns, drugs, or explosives in airports. Now scientists are investigating

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whether dogs can also help sniff out diseases before humans know they have them.

SCENTS AND SCENT-ABILITY A dog›s keen sense of smell outranks ours many times over. For example, dogs› brains devote more real estate to analyzing scents than ours, their noses have 60 times the number of scent receptors as ours (about 300 million versus our five million), and their smell accuracy is far more precise than ours. «Dogs have exquisitely sensitive noses and can detect molecules in the parts-per-trillion range. Humans, in contrast, typically detect odors in the parts-per-million range,» says Dr. Sophia Koo, an infectious disease specialist at Harvard-affiliated DanaFarber Cancer Institute.

In theory, then, dogs should be well-suited to picking up odors generated by bacteria or diseased human cells. These organisms and cells produce molecules with distinct and often subtle scents that come out in our breath, body fluids, skin, or bowel movements. As the molecules evaporate in air, they become detectable.

A Dog sniffing out samples in a laboratory.

(Courtesy of MDD_ Bex Arts via TNS)

For example: «We know there are molecules associated with prostate cancer that can seep into urine, and presumably they should be detectable with sensitive enough techniques,» says Dr. Paul L. Nguyen, a radiation oncologist at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.

DOG OWNERSHIP: JUST WHAT THE DOCTOR ORDERED Owning a dog has many health benefits.

Studies have shown that, compared with people who don›t own dogs, dog owners walk more, have lower blood pressure and stress levels, eat more healthfully, and have more success losing weight -- in part, because of the activity necessary to walk the dog.

The unconditional love and companionship dogs provide also works wonders for our emotional health, helping to stave off loneliness (which is associated with an increased risk for chronic disease and even an early death) and offer an

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In theory, dogs should be wellsuited to picking up odors generated by bacteria or diseased human cells, which produce molecules with distinct and often subtle scents that come out in our breath, body fluids, or skin. additional sense of purpose in life: to return the love your dog so freely gives you.

TEACHING DOGS NEW TRICKS For decades now, scientists have been studying whether dogs might be able to detect many types of illnesses, using their superior sense of smell.

Cancer. Dogs have been studied for their ability to detect lung, skin, breast, and bladder cancer, with mixed results. Scientists are now looking at whether the animals can sniff out colorectal and prostate cancer -- with promising results.

«Some of the dog studies about prostate cancer have been extremely impressive, with -%90 plus accuracy,» Dr. Nguyen says.

Infection. In small studies, dogs have had some success identifying urinary tract infections in people of all ages, and malaria in children.

Dogs have correctly identified the dangerous diarrheal infection Clostridioides difficile in many studies.

Also exciting are current efforts around the world to see if dogs can smell COVID19- in humans.

In one small randomized trial, published online July 2020 ,23, by BMC Infectious Diseases, dogs were able to discriminate between samples from infected and uninfected people with high accuracy: the dogs identified about %83 of positive cases and %96 of negative cases. (The

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COVID virus in the test samples was killed before the detection dogs were exposed to them.)

Other diseases. Dogs are also being studied for their potential ability to smell Parkinson›s disease as well as narcolepsy (sudden episodes of deep sleep). And pooches are already being used as service animals to alert people with diabetes to high or low blood sugar levels.

However, using dogs for this purpose has been controversial because of an unregulated industry and claims of fraudulent dog trainers.

IS IT REALLY PAW-SSIBLE? Even though studies of medical detection dogs have been encouraging, the reality of using the animals beyond lab settings has big obstacles.

One is that it›s hard to get solid evidence about accuracy. «Dogs have an outstanding ability to detect disease odors, but it requires intensive training of even a single dog to discriminate disease from non-disease well. Even between dogs, there is variability in how well they can ultimately distinguish states of disease,» Dr. Koo says. «There are also confounders, as dogs can easily be distracted and falsely call a signal or miss a signal when distracted.»

Also, using medical detection dogs in the

Even though studies of medical detection dogs have been encouraging, the reality of using the animals beyond lab settings has big obstacles.

real world may be unrealistic. «The concept of massive numbers of dogs professionally screening urine [or other types of] samples just doesn›t pass the sniff test; it›s impractical and instead will need to be done with laboratory devices to make it scalable and acceptable,» Dr. Nguyen says.

Accordingly, scientists -- including Dr. Koo --

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The unconditional love and companionship dogs provide also works wonders for our emotional health.

(Dreamstime/TNS)

are testing machines that may be able to detect disease scents. «I think sophisticated scent detectors will come into use for the diagnosis of certain diseases and that this is not just a flash in the pan,» says Dr. Koo. «There is a lot of potential in this area; this is why a lot of the research in my own laboratory is dedicated to identifying the molecules that reveal different

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types of lung infections, so that we can build machines to detect them.»

And researchers know such technology has a lot to live up to. «We still have a way to go,» Dr. Nguyen says, «before we can replicate what nature has done so elegantly with the canine sense of smell.»

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When China and Japan Fought Over Muslims A Book on Imperial Japan’s Attempt to Win Muslims’ Support

By Mohammad Ali Salih - Washington A few months ago, Kelly Hammond , Assistant Professor of East Asian history at the University of Arkansas, published a book, “China Muslims and Japan’s Empire,” that coincides with the current world-wide news about Chinese Muslims in Xingjian in western China, and the world-wide pressure on the Communist government of China to end its suppression of those Muslims and stop the establishment of concentration camps for them as well as the cruel brain-washing to which they have been subjected in an effort to convert them from Islam to Communism.

Hammond has been interested in the Chinese Muslims since her undergraduate years which were followed by her Ph.D. in history from Georgetown University in Washington, DC. Thanks to her interest in both Chinese and Japanese histories, and the languages of the two nations, the book handles the problem of the Chinese Muslims from a different prospective: the two countries’ historical fight over them. Not only was she faced with the complicated nonwestern languages of the two countries, but, also with each country’s interpretation of the others’ language, in addition to translations of the two languages from Western, Arabic and Turkish

sources.

These are some of the book’s contents: - Islam and Japan’s Conquest for Empire.

- From Meiji to Manchukuo.

- Japan’s Interest in China’s Muslims.

- On a Bamboo Fence: China Muslims in Between.

- Japanese occupation of China.

- China and Japan Exploiting Islam.

- Fascist Entanglements.

- Fascist Legacy of the Cold War. The book contains a few historical photos such as: Chinese Muslims in Japan, 1935; Girls of Islamic school in Tokyo praying for the Japanese and German alliance against Communist Russia, 1936; Anti-Communist slogans in Chinese and Arabic produced by Japanese Muslims, 1939; Book: “China Muslims and Japan’s Empire: Centering Islam in World War II “ Author: Kelly Hammond Publisher, University of North Carolina Press Print Pages: 314 Price: $21.44

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The book reveals the little-known story of the Japanese interest in Islam during its occupation of China, and how they were able to defeat the Chinese in winning the hearts and minds of “the vital minority” of China’s Muslims.

Book Cover

Pilipino Muslim students, studying in Japan, 1941; and, Japan-sponsored Hajj delegation, 1938.

In the book’s introduction, the author says that “scholarship in English has not yet explored this dimension of Japanese imperialism, yet it is clear that the Japanese Empire made concentrated and coordinated efforts to win the support of Muslims from China, in order foster broad and far-reaching connections to Muslims, from Damascus to Detroit.”

The book reveals the little-known story of the Japanese interest in Islam during its occupation of China, and how they were able to defeat the Chinese in winning the hearts and minds of “the vital minority” of China’s Muslims.

Interestingly enough, the Japanese presented themselves as protectors of Islam, and for more than one reason: First, to exploit Muslims for the purpose of expanding its empire.

Second, to create new Muslim consumer markets

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for Japanese products.

Third, to subvert the Western capitalism’s world dominance.

Fourth, to destabilize the Soviet Union by gaining the support of its Muslim republics in Central Asia.

Connecting the past with the present, the book details how Japan’s efforts, although short in duration, helped the establishment of the ethno-religious identity of the Chinese Muslims and their connections to the outside world, particularly to the global Islamic network. The present-day unrest of the Chinese Muslims has been one of those efforts by Japan, or, rather, by Japanese and Chinese competition over them.

The Sino-Japanese War (1945–1937) marked the beginning of World War II in Asia, although the conflict started in 1931 when Japan invaded and occupied Manchuria. Ironically, both Russia and the US sent help to the Chinese, because of earlier wars between Russia and Japan, and because of the Japanese attack on the American military base in Pearl Harbor that started a heavy armed and strongly determined military campaign against Japan until its surrender in 1945.

The Chinese-Japanese war was the largest Asian war in the 20th century, with between 10 and 25 million Chinese civilians and over 4 million Chinese and Japanese military personnel missing or dying, causing some historians to call it “the Asian Holocaust” The book contains a 1940 Chinese document that warned about “Japan’s Near East Conspiracy” to win the support of Muslims around the world.

What was called Japanese propaganda claimed that “Japan is the sun and Islam is the moon.

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Both emanate brightness to shine from East Asia throughout the entire world.”

The book added that the Japanese goal was to “create a cadre of Muslims who supported their anti-Western and anti-Communist agenda, and who were loyal to the Japanese Empire.”

Ironically, while Japan used the Chinese

The book shows that the cruel treatment by both Imperial Japan and Communist China have not been able to beak the faith and the will of the Chinese Muslims.

Muslims to strengthen its relations with other Muslims, particularly in the Middle East, Japan suppressed, arrested and killed thousands of the Chinese Muslims. It used what was referred to as a “killing policy” in addition to destroying what some sources said were about 220 mosques. Then there was the “humiliating policy” of smearing mosques with pork fat, forcing Muslim butchers to slaughter pigs to feed the Japanese soldiers, and recruiting Muslim girls to supposedly train them as geishas and singers but in fact make them serve as sex slaves.

The book shows that the cruel treatment by both Imperial Japan and Communist China have not been able to beak the faith and the will of the Chinese Muslims and confirmed that the Chinese Muslims “who had been in China for hundreds of years, are influenced by Chinese culture, yet, they maintain distinct religious and cultural practices with their Islamic religious believes.”

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Chiang Kai-shek, leader of China, on the right, meets with the Muslim Generals Ma Bufang (second from left), and Ma Buqing (first from left) at residence .1942 in Xining August Credit: Kuomintang( party, Republic of China government, Public )domain