WHY THEY HAVE SUPER INFLATION

Turkey’s intelligence agency MIT secures a whopping 126 pct budget increase for 2024

December 31, 2023

Abdullah Bozkurt/Stockholm

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s government granted a staggering 125.7 percent increase in this year’s budget for Turkey’s National Intelligence Organization (Milli İstihbarat Teşkilatı, MIT), a key entity it has relied upon heavily over the last decade to govern the nation of 85 million with an iron fist.

The government’s proposal to allocate 17.4 billion Turkish lira to MIT in the central budget, a significant increase from the 2023 budget of TL 7.7 billion, was rubber-stamped by the parliament without modification in late December.

The increase in funding is yet another indication that President Erdogan intends to persist in relying on intelligence to maintain his hold on power, suppress opposition and perpetuate a climate of fear for critics and opponents.

Since 2020 the government has ceased publishing MIT’s spending and asset reports — which were audited annually by the Court of Accounts (Sayıştay) on behalf of the legislature, which has oversight power to review government expenditures — as a means of concealing MIT’s financial resources and assets.

Currently led by İbrahim Kalın, Erdogan’s former advisor and spokesperson, the agency’s primary focus is to bolster Erdogan’s repressive regime rather than to safeguard the country’s democracy or address national security challenges on behalf of the nation. It has become preoccupied with false flags and psychological and influence operations to promote the Erdogan government and has been implicated in extrajudicial murders, kidnappings and torture.

The official budget figure only reveals the partial story regarding the extent of funding allocated to the spy agency for supporting clandestine organizations. The 2020 audit report showed that the agency controlled assets amounting to 32.7 billion Turkish lira. The current value is unknown due to the government’s discontinuing the publication of the audit reports, but it is anticipated to have more than doubled since then.

The 2024 budget proposal for Turkish intelligence agency MIT reveals some insights into the agency’s spending:   PDF Page 1 / 1

The data sheet submitted to parliament as a component of the budget proposal by the Presidential Office revealed that the agency intends to allocate 10.7 billion Turkish lira for personnel in 2024, indicating a substantial expansion of its human resources. The official figures provide valuable insight into the agency’s growth in manpower as it seeks to safeguard benefits for its employees, including social security and pension funds. While the agency can finance clandestine operations outside the official budget, the official registration is necessary for funding agents’ salaries.

The total manpower of MIT is not officially disclosed, but estimates suggest it to be around 20,000, more than double the figure from a decade ago. Additionally, when factoring in a widespread network of assets and informants both in Turkey and abroad, the agency is believed to have engaged well over 50,000 individuals in various capacities.

In addition to the allocated TL 17.4 billion from the central budget, MIT has access to other funding sources that are challenging and, in some cases, impossible to trace and identify. The agency secures its own share from illicit activities such as arms and drug trafficking, obtains assets through unlawful seizures from government critics and earns commissions from money laundering activities associated with organized crime networks.

İbrahim Kalın, Turkey’s new intelligence chief who had served as presidential spokesman and chief aide to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) estimates that between 2 and 5 percent of the global GDP is laundered annually, amounting to a staggering $800 billion to $2 trillion. While the specific share of Turkey in this money laundering scheme is undisclosed, it is estimated to be in the tens of billions of dollars, reflecting the deeply rooted mafia structure within the political establishment.

According to the main opposition party, Turkey has emerged as a leader in Europe in money laundering, particularly from the proceeds of illegal schemes such as drug and human trafficking. This trend is attributed to the permissive environment tolerated by the Erdogan government, as stated by the opposition.

MIT has also been able to access funds from the Defense Industry Support Fund (SSDF), an extra-budgetary resource for defense managed by the Presidency of the Defense Industry (SSB), formerly known as the Undersecretariat for the Defense Industry (SSM).

In a legislative amendment in 2014, Erdogan facilitated MIT’s access to the SSDF for its expenditures. This change exempted MIT from adhering to SSDF regulations governing tenders. Consequently, the agency was no longer obliged to disclose information regarding the purpose of the funds, and it could conduct arms procurement tenders according to its own regulations, with the SSDF providing the funds without specified limitations.

Turkish intelligence agency MIT headquarters in Ankara.

Unfortunately, without access to the audit report, the specific amount that MIT has spent from the SSDF fund, currently valued at 162.6 billion Turkish lira, is not publicly available. The lack of transparency in financial reporting makes it challenging to ascertain the exact utilization of these funds by the agency.

MIT also accesses public funds through the discretionary fund allocated to President Erdogan, which allows him to spend for various purposes without disclosing details. In the first 11 months of 2023, the expenditure from the discretionary fund amounted to TL 5.7 billion, indicating a noteworthy increase of 63 percent compared to the same period in the previous year.

The prevailing culture within the agency is characterized by a blend of political Islam and far-right ideologies. The senior leadership positions are occupied by individuals with affiliations to political Islam, far-right nationalism and neo-nationalism, sharing a common stance marked by a strong aversion to the West and NATO allies. Since December 2013, when President Erdogan was implicated in corruption probes involving a money laundering scheme for Iran, the government has conducted purges, removing hundreds of agents from service due to their critical views of the Erdogan government.

Erdogan insists that Canada lift embargo on drone equipment used by his son-in-law in exchange for Sweden’s NATO membership

December 22, 2023

Levent Kenez/Stockholm

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan reportedly told pro-government journalists on the plane back from Hungary on December 19 that US President Joe Biden had implied a resolution to the reluctance of Congress to sell F-16 fighter jets to Turkey in exchange for the Turkish parliament’s approving Sweden’s NATO membership. However, Erdogan also mentioned that in order to gain parliamentary approval, the products banned by Canada for sale to Turkey needed to be released, including the optical equipment used by his son-in-law’s military drone company.

“Another complicating factor in the parliamentary process relates to the negative attitudes of Canada and some allies in defense procurement. … These are all interconnected. I believe the positive developments we are expecting, both regarding America’s F-16 issues and Canada’s fulfillment of promises, will accelerate our parliament’s positive outlook on the matter,” Erdogan told the journalists.

The Turkish president is seen signing a Bayraktar Akinci armed drone manufactured by his son-in-law’s company, Baykar, in cooperation with the Presidency of the Defense Industry in August 2021.

In 2021 the Canadian government imposed an arms embargo on Turkey due to the role of Turkish-made military drones in the conflict between Azerbaijan and Armenia in the Nagorno-Karabakh region in 2020.

After the imposition of the embargo, Canada decided to halt the export of more than 30 products, including the WESCAM MX-15D EO/IR type FLIR system. This embargo included the electro-optical equipment produced by Canadian company Wescam, crucial as the visual apparatus for the Bayraktar TB2 Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV). Selçuk Bayraktar, Erdogan’s son-in-law, is the owner of Baykar Makina, which produces Bayraktar TB2 military drones.

It was reported in the Turkish press in July that Canada had lifted the embargo imposed on Turkey. However, according to Mélanie Joly, the Canadian Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson, claims suggesting Canada had lifted its arms embargo on Turkey were false. In a recent statement Joly said, “It is not true that the arms embargo against Turkey has been lifted. Export controls against Turkey continue.” The controversy surrounding the arms embargo arose following a meeting between Turkish President Erdogan and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau during a recent NATO summit. However, Trudeau’s office did not deny reports claiming there is a deal to open talks about the arms ban.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan met with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on July 11 at the NATO summit in Vilnius.

Returning from Athens on December 9, Erdogan criticized Canada in his statement, objecting to Canada’s condition of requiring Sweden’s NATO membership approval for the sales of the desired optical equipment. “If we are two allied countries within NATO, then we should act in solidarity – you do your part, and our parliament will make the necessary decisions,” Erdogan told journalists.

It was previously reported in the Canadian media that Canada was willing to lift the embargo on Turkey but was awaiting the approval of Sweden’s membership.

Selçuk Bayraktar (L) and Recep Tayyip Erdogan

Meanwhile, state-owned defense contractor Aselsan’s general manager, Ahmet Akyol, provided information to the media in October about the company’s ASELFLIR-500 optical system, claiming it was rendering “unjustly imposed embargoes on Turkey” ineffective. According to Akyol, the system can detect humans from a distance of 20 kilometers and identify tanks from 80 kilometers, performing with the same efficiency even at night.

In 2021 Selçuk Bayraktar, in response to Canada’s embargo, emphasized that Bayraktar TB2 drones were developed with an entirely domestic and original design, highlighting that all critical components were produced locally. He claimed that Canada’s decision not to sell optical systems, due to a better version being domestically produced in Turkey, would not pose any problem for the company. He mentioned that Turkey’s refraining from selling UAVs to Canada in the future could potentially become a serious issue for them.

However, military experts contacted by Nordic Monitor said the domestically produced alternatives currently do not perform at the same level as the systems from the Canadian company. They claim that Erdogan’s insistence on lifting the embargo is based on this performance gap between the domestically produced systems and those made by the Canadian company.

Turkish agents spied on German NGO in Frankfurt, secret intelligence report reveals

December 28, 2023

Abdullah Bozkurt/Stockholm

Turkish intelligence services have conducted surveillance on an umbrella organization that promotes interfaith and intercultural dialogue in Germany, as revealed by confidential documents recently acquired by Nordic Monitor.

The focus of Turkish intelligence operatives is a Frankfurt-based nongovernmental organization known as the Bund Deutscher Dialog Institutionen (Federation of German Dialogue Institutions, BDDI) which comprises 15 NGOs situated in various cities across Germany.

The organization conducts workshops on outreach and dialogue activities among diverse faiths and cultures, bestows awards on prominent figures who have made significant contributions to the field and sponsors events aimed at fostering intercultural engagement within German society.

According to a document stamped “Secret” and dated November 7, 2023, an intelligence service referred to only as “Institution V” compiled a report detailing the organization and the individuals associated with it. The report was subsequently transmitted to other Turkish agencies for further action.

Institution V is believed to be a code name for the Foreign Ministry Security and Research Directorate (otherwise known as the intelligence section, or Araştırma ve Güvenlik İşleri Genel Müdürlüğü in Turkish), a secretive spy section of the Turkish Foreign Ministry.

The section is run by Fatma Ceren Yazgan, a longtime operative of Turkish intelligence agency MIT who played a pivotal role in profiling Turkish ambassadors and diplomats, ultimately leading to the removal of one-third of Turkish diplomats from the foreign service. Hakan Fidan, a former spymaster, appointed Yazgan to head the section after assuming the role of foreign minister in the summer of 2023.

The intelligence document triggered a sequence of actions against individuals associated with BDDI, including secret investigations initiated by the Turkish police based on fabricated criminal charges.

The intelligence document does not explicitly specify the number of individuals listed subjected to surveillance. However, the partial sharing of information with the police in Ankara revealed the names of 10 people, several of whom had no prior investigations in Turkey. Given that the intelligence was disseminated to six provincial police departments, it suggests a broader focus by Turkish intelligence on individuals based in Germany.

The intelligence document was accompanied by a cover letter from the Security General Directorate (Emniyet), signed by deputy department head Oğuz Keyfçi.

Turkish intelligence report on German NGO Bund Deutscher Dialog Institutionen:

PDF Page 1 / 1

Expressing apparent concern over a possible leak of the document and its potential repercussions on the bilateral relations between Turkey and Germany, a NATO ally country, Keyfçi emphasized in bold font that the intelligence must be handled with the utmost secrecy. He cautioned recipients not to share the original documents but rather to use the content discreetly in their own communications. He underscored that the intelligence should be treated on a “need-to-know” basis and explicitly stated that it was “not to be shared with unauthorized people/institutions.”

Over the last decade, Germany, home to approximately 3 million Turks, has become the focus of an aggressive and heightened Turkish intelligence campaign. This campaign primarily targets critics and opponents of the government led by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. The Turkish government also employs intelligence activities as a means of exerting influence on both foreign and domestic policies pursued by Germany.

A report released by the German federal government in July 2023 identified Turkey as the sole NATO ally that conducts espionage and intelligence activities on German soil, deemed a threat to Germany’s constitutional order and social cohesion and raising significant concerns about national security and the relationship between the two countries.

The 380-page report issued in July by the Federal Ministry of the Interior and Community (Bundesministerium des Innern und für Heimat, BMI) listed Turkey along with Russia, China, North Korea and Iran as “the main actors in espionage targeting Germany, cyber attacks directed by intelligence services, [arms] proliferation and influence operations.”

Fatma Ceren Yazgan, long-time Turkish intelligence operative who currently runs the spy section at the Foreign Ministry.

According to the report Turkey and others use their intelligence services to acquire information, exert influence, monitor their critics or pursue other interests, mainly because of Germany’s role in the EU, NATO and other international organizations.

In the view of the German interior ministry, the Turkish intelligence service and security authorities are integral parts of the Turkish government apparatus. They are seen as playing a crucial role in assisting President Erdogan and his ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) in implementing their policy decisions.

The German interior ministry believes the large Turkish community in Germany presents unique opportunities for Turkish intelligence to gather information. It also underlined that the substantial diplomatic presence maintained by Turkey is another opportunity to obtain information in Germany. Nordic Monitor previously published secret Turkish government documents that revealed how the Turkish embassy and consulates were involved in spying activities in Germany with a primary focus on Erdogan government critics.

German authorities have responded to the intensified spying activities conducted on behalf of the Turkish intelligence services by taking action against operatives associated with the Erdogan government. This included legal measures against individuals such as a former advisor to President Erdogan.

Secret letter by the Security General Directorate (Emniyet) on the German NGO: PDF Page 1 / 2

A Turkish national was convicted by the Düsseldorf Higher Regional Court on July 14, 2022 for acting as a intelligence agent and illegally acquiring and possessing ammunition. Similarly, the conviction of a German national on November 10, 2022 who acted as an informant for the Turkish intelligence service was another instance in which the Erdogan government was exposed for illegal spying activities on German soil.

In 2015 Germany’s federal attorney general charged Muhammet Taha Gergerlioğlu, a close advisor of Erdogan and a MIT operative, with espionage because he and two of his associates collected information on people of Turkish origin living in Germany who were critical of the Turkish government. Gergerlioğlu was later released as part of a political bargain between Turkey and Germany.

The BDDI’s advocacy for interfaith dialogue and outreach initiatives seems to have unsettled the Erdogan government, which has expressed opposition to such endeavors. President Erdogan has openly criticized interfaith dialogue efforts in the past, asserting that there cannot be a dialogue between Islam and Christianity. This sentiment was conveyed in a xenophobic speech he delivered to lawmakers in the Pakistani parliament in November 2016 during an official visit to the country.

Turkish authorities took additional measures, compiling reports on each individual named in the spying document. (Redactions were made by Nordic Monitor to remove identifying information such as names and other details.)   PDF Page 1 / 2

At times, public prosecutors have cited engagement in interfaith dialogue with Jews and Christians as criminal evidence when levying accusations against critics of the government. An illustrative instance is found in an indictment submitted to a high criminal court in Istanbul on March 2, 2022. In this case, prosecutors alleged that the Gülen movement, a group opposed to the Erdogan government, had established dialogue with Jewish and Christian organizations globally rather than engaging with Muslim and Turkish entities.

The accusations were included in the indictment by Istanbul deputy chief prosecutors Bülent Başar and Zafer Koç as part of a government-led campaign to crack down on individuals suspected of being affiliated with the Gülen group.

Despite the absence of a legal provision in the Turkish Penal Code defining such activities as criminal, prosecutors persist in citing interfaith dialogue as evidence of alleged crimes. An example of this is seen in a 2015 indictment filed against Fethullah Gülen, the Turkish Muslim scholar residing in the US who inspired the movement. The indictment listed Gülen’s 1998 meeting with the pope at the Vatican as criminal evidence.

The BDDI is also associated with the Gülen movement.

Turkey prevents UN visit to hide its use of mercenaries in armed conflicts

January 3, 2024

Abdullah Bozkurt/Stockholm

Turkey has refused to permit the visit of the UN watchdog group on the use of mercenaries since November 2015, when the international body initially submitted a request to visit the country on a fact-finding mission.

Behind Turkey’s prolonged lack of response to the UN request lies the concern of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s government over revealing Turkey’s involvement in using proxy fighter groups to intervene in conflicts beyond its borders.

According to information available on the website of the UN Working Group on the Use of Mercenaries as a Means of Violating Human Rights and Impeding the Exercise of the Right of Peoples to Self-Determination, Turkey was initially informed of the UN’s request to visit the country on November 12, 2015.

Nevertheless, Turkey disregarded the UN group’s initial letter, leading to a second communication on February 24, 2016 as a reminder to Turkish authorities of the international body’s interest in visiting Turkey for information gathering. Unfortunately, the second letter also received no response from the Turkish side. The UN watchdog group persisted in renewing the request on March 31, 2022, indicating its intention to visit Turkey in 2023. Once again, Turkey ignored the UN communication.

The UN working group, established in July 2015 by the Human Rights Council, comprises independent experts, and its resolutions are routinely adopted by the UN General Assembly. Conducting fact-finding missions necessitates the host country’s permission. Turkey has thus far impeded such visits by failing to respond to UN requests.

UN letter to Turkey addressing the deployment of mercenaries to support Azerbaijan’s offensive in Nagorno-Karabakh:   PDF Page 1 / 8

The working group’s interest in visiting Turkey arose in response to credible reports of the increased use of mercenaries, military contractors and foreign fighters by the Islamist Erdogan government in Syria, Libya and Azerbaijan.

In recent years the UN group has sent numerous inquiries to Turkey, seeking additional information about the Erdogan government’s involvement in the recruitment, financing, transportation and deployment of foreign fighters to Libya and Azerbaijan.

The role of Turkish paramilitary contractor SADAT, led by President Erdogan’s former chief military advisor Adnan Tanrıverdi, was also questioned by UN officials in their letters to the Turkish government. SADAT, an abbreviation for Uluslararası Savunma Danışmanlık İnşaat Sanayi ve Ticaret Anonim Şirketi, a for-profit company, was implicated in the training of fighters in Libya and Syria.

An Armenian soldier looks through binoculars at the checkpoint near the line of demarcation outside Askeran on November 21, 2020 

(Photo by Andrey BORODULIN / AFP)

In a letter addressed to Turkey on November 6, 2020, the UN group stated that it had acquired information indicating Turkey’s involvement in recruiting individuals through armed groups primarily affiliated with the Turkey-backed Syrian National Army (SNA). These people were recruited for deployment to Azerbaijan in support of military operations in and around the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict zone. The fighters were allegedly promised a monthly salary of up to $2,500 along with additional compensation, including Turkish citizenship for their family members in the event of their death.

Their deployment, training and logistics were allegedly facilitated by contractors operating under the guidance of the Turkish security service. According to the letter, during the period between September 20 and 25, 2020, an estimated 1,500 to 2,000 fighters were believed to have been deployed to Azerbaijan, with thousands more in the process of recruitment. The government of Armenia submitted a detailed report, presenting evidence of such deployments to Nagorno-Karabakh supporting the Azerbaijani military offensive.

A special team from the Turkish military was deployed in March 2021 to Nagorno Karabakh to clear land mines planted by Armenian forces.

The UN group emphasized that it was “gravely concerned about the recruitment and transfer of fighters from Syria to Azerbaijan,” noting that such actions contravene international humanitarian law and international human rights law. “We remain concerned that those deployed to Azerbaijan are affiliated with armed groups and individuals that, in some cases, have been accused of war crimes and serious human rights abuses during the conflict in Syria, thus seemingly perpetuating a cycle of impunity and risking further abuses of international law,” the letter stated.

Turkey responded to the UN letter, saying that all the allegations were fake news, fabrications or black propaganda.

Turkish response to allegations on deployment of mercenaries to Azerbaijan:
PDF Page 1 / 3

Similarly, the UN highlighted a comparable practice by Turkey in deploying Syrian fighters to Libya in a letter sent on June 10, 2020. The letter indicated that in December 2019, Turkish authorities organized meetings with armed factions affiliated with the SNA to deploy their fighters to Tripoli in support of the Libyan Government of National Accord (GNA). Fighters were promised up to $200 as monthly compensation, and SADAT was believed to have been involved in the selection of fighters.

Some of these factions that were enlisted for deployment had allegedly committed war crimes and serious human rights abuses, including the recruitment of children, severe restrictions on women’s rights in areas controlled by some of the groups and instances of extrajudicial killings.

UN letter to Turkey addressing deployment of mercenaries to support armed factions in Libya:    PDF Page 1 / 9

Turkey responded to the UN’s Libya letter on September 17, 2020, accusing the UN group of bias and labeling the allegations as unfounded. When the UN group sent the letter regarding Azerbaijan, it noted that Turkey “did not substantively address the allegations raised” regarding the deployment of Syrian fighters to Libya.

A report to Congress by the lead inspector general for East Africa and North and West Africa counterterrorism operations at the US Department of Defense said Turkey had dispatched between 3,500 and 3,800 paid Syrian fighters to Libya in the first three months of the year. This deployment occurred two months before a series of Turkish-backed victories by the Tripoli forces. Furthermore, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights claimed that the total number of Syrian mercenaries in Libya had reached 16,500 by the end of July 2020.

Turkish response to allegations of deployment of mercenaries to Libya:

PDF Page 1 / 2

Until Erdogan came to power in November 2002, the country had limited military engagements beyond its borders. The arming of proxy groups to promote Turkish interests was observed in northern Iraq, where the Turkish army had been engaged in a decades-long conflict against the separatist Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) since the early 1980s. Similar instances occurred in northern Cyprus, where Turkish Cypriot militias were trained and armed by Turkey against Greek Cypriots in the 1960s and 1970s, and to a limited extent in Bosnia during the Bosnian War in the 1990s.

With the current government’s dominant Islamist ideology serving as a driving force in foreign policy, Turkey has expanded its proxy engagement in Africa, the Middle East and the Caucasus. This expansion involves providing arms, logistics, training and intelligence to countries and groups in order to advance the Erdogan government’s regional and global vision. Syria, Iraq, Azerbaijan and Libya have emerged as the most active theaters where Turkey-backed proxy groups have been deployed in recent years.

IRAN'S WAR ON KURDISTAN

In Major Escalation, Drones Target Key Kurdish Power Base Near Irbil

January 02, 2024 8:43 PM
Dilshad Anwar
Rikar Hussein

 Iraqi-Kurdish Peshmerga officers in Irbil, the capital of Iraq's northern autonomous Kurdish region. Officials confirmed that two "suicide drone" attacks by suspected Iran-backed Shiite militants late Saturday hit the key headquarters of Peshmerga forces in Irbil.

In a significant escalation of aggression toward the Kurdistan Regional Government of Iraq, local officials confirmed that two "suicide drone" attacks by suspected Iran-backed Shiite militants late Saturday hit the key headquarters of Peshmerga forces in Pirmam, Irbil.

The district is the de facto stronghold of the ruling Masoud Barzani family and the Kurdistan Democratic Party.

Several sources familiar with the strikes, who spoke to VOA on the condition of anonymity, said the attack was aimed at the headquarters of Gulan special forces, less than 5 kilometers from the "Barzani Headquarters," where the former Kurdish president resides.

No Kurdish official was willing to comment on the proximity of the attack to the headquarters, but Irbil's governor called the attack "a dangerous development."

"Previously, the militias claimed to target only the coalition forces. But it turns out that they are also targeting the Peshmerga, Irbil and the Kurdistan Region," Governor Omed Khoshnaw told VOA via phone on Tuesday.

"The attack on the Peshmerga is a dangerous development, and we expect the Iraqi government to take a decisive stance. The Kurdistan Regional Government will not stand inert," he said.

Attacks since October

Suspected Shiite militants have staged dozens of drone attacks against targets in Irbil since the Israel-Hamas war began in October. Most of the attacks have been claimed by militias calling themselves "the Islamic Resistance in Iraq."

On Tuesday, Kurdistan's Counter-Terrorism Group, a government agency, said an armed drone fired by "illegal militia" against the Irbil airport was shot down at 9:52 a.m. local time. The statement said the drone was directed at the U.S.-led international coalition forces military base near the airport.

Reactions from Kurdish officials to the Saturday attack in Pirmam were particularly strong.

The Kurdistan Regional Government's spokesperson, Peshawa Hawramani, called it a "terrorist act" that "pushes for war."

In a statement, the Kurdistan Region's Peshmerga Ministry said, "The Peshmerga forces have the right to retaliate to protect our land and nation."

On Sunday, the Iraqi Security Media Cell said Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani has directed the security agencies to open a "comprehensive investigation into the criminal attack."

However, Kurdish officials remain skeptical of the Iraqi state's commitment to stopping such attacks and the ability of al-Sudani to contain the pro-Iran militants.

Speaking to VOA on Tuesday, Babakir Zebari, the military adviser for the Kurdistan Regional president, said al-Sudani "dislikes from his heart" the attacks on Irbil but cannot stop the militants.

"The groups attacking Irbil belong to the Popular Mobilization Forces," Zebari said. "These groups are extremists and do not obey the government, and they have previously attacked the house of the former Iraqi prime minister. Not all of the Popular Mobilization Forces are involved in the attacks, only some of the radical groups within it are responsible."

Khoshnaw said the Iraqi government still had the responsibility to act, because "those groups attacking Irbil get their financing and equipment from Iraq."

This story originated in VOA's Kurdish Service.

Justice Dept. accuses 2 political operatives of hiding foreign lobbying during Trump administration

NOT NAMED IVANKA OR JARED


Attorney General Merrick Garland speaks with reporters during a news conference at the Department of Justice, Wednesday, Dec. 6, 2023, in Washington, as Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas, left, and FBI Director Christopher Wray, looks on. 

(AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)

BY ERIC TUCKER AND ALAN SUDERMAN
 January 2, 2024


WASHINGTON (AP) — Two well-connected political consultants provided false information about lobbying work on behalf of a wealthy Persian Gulf country during the Trump administration, according to Justice Department court records unsealed Tuesday.

Charging documents filed in federal court in Washington allege that Barry P. Bennett, an adviser to Donald Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign, spearheaded a covert and lucrative lobbying campaign aimed at advancing the interests of a foreign country, including by denigrating a rival nation.

The country for whom the work was done is not named in the documents but it matches the description of Qatar, which in 2017 paid Bennett’s company $2.1 million for lobbying work, and was identified in a 2020 Justice Department subpoena that was earlier obtained by The Associated Press and that sought records related to Bennett’s foreign lobbying.

Federal prosecutors filed two criminal counts against Bennett in a charging document known as an information, which is typically filed only with a defendant’s consent and generally signals that the parties have reached a resolution. Prosecutors said the case will be dismissed after he complies with the terms of a deferred prosecution agreement, including the payment of a $100,000 fine.

The Justice Department also reached a similar agreement with Douglas Watts, a New Jersey political consultant who prosecutors say worked alongside Bennett and failed to register under the Foreign Agents Registration Act.

The law, enacted in 1938 to unmask Nazi propaganda in the United States, requires people to disclose to the Justice Department when they advocate, lobby or perform public relations work in the U.S. on behalf of a foreign government or political entity.

A lawyer for Bennett did not immediately return messages sent to his law firm. Justin Dillon, a lawyer for Watts, declined to comment Tuesday evening. An email to the Qatari embassy was not immediately returned.

According to the Justice Department, Bennett signed a contract in 2017 for his company, Avenue Strategies, to perform lobbying work on behalf of the Qatari embassy. He also registered with the Justice Department that year to lobby for the embassy.

But as part of that strategy, prosecutors said he also covertly operated another company called Yemen Crisis Watch that operated a public relations campaign to denigrate one of Qatar’s unnamed rivals — both Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates were engaged in military operations in Yemen that critics say contributed to a humanitarian crisis — and improve Qatar’s standing with the U.S. government.

That effort included lobbying Congress and Trump, as well as a social media campaign, publishing opinion articles in newspapers and producing a television documentary, according to prosecutors. Yemen Crisis Watch urged the public to contact their lawmakers and urge them to “cease supporting” the intervention in Yemen by Qatar’s unnamed rival, prosecutors said.

Robert Schuller, a prominent televangelist, and former Kansas Gov. Jeff Colyer both helped Yemen Crisis Watch’s efforts, according to earlier reporting from the Wall Street Journal and the Topeka Capital-Journal. Neither man has been charged with any wrongdoing and messages sent to them were not immediately returned.

Prosecutors say Bennett’s consulting company did not disclose in its FARA filings the creation of Yemen Crisis Watch, and that Watts made false statements during interviews with the FBI about his knowledge of the company’s formation and its activities.

The case is among severalprobes by federal law enforcement officials related to Qatar’s aggressive influence campaign during the Trump administration, when it was the target of a blockade by Saudi Arabia and other neighbors.
___

Suderman reported from Richmond, Virginia.

ERIC TUCKER
Tucker covers national security in Washington for The Associated Press, with a focus on the FBI and Justice Department and the special counsel cases against former President Donald Trump.

END THE EMBARGO

Massachusetts federal lawmakers call on Biden to remove Cuba from list of countries protecting terrorists

Cuba was placed back on the State Sponsor of Terrorism list in 2021 after being removed by the Obama administration in 2015

 By Greg Wehner Fox News
Published January 2, 2024

Fox News senior strategic analyst Gen. Jack Keane (Ret.) joins 'Fox & Friends' to discuss China's plans to build a military facility in Cuba, just miles from the coast of Florida.

Democratic federal lawmakers from Massachusetts are calling on President Biden to remove Cuba from the State Sponsor of Terrorism (SSOT) list as quickly as possible.

In a letter addressed to the President, and signed by Reps. Ayanna Pressley, James P. McGovern, Seth Moulton, Lori Trahan and Stephen F. Lynch, as well as Senators Elizabeth Warren and Edward J. Markey, the lawmakers advised Biden that Cuba was removed from the SSOT list in 2015 by him and then President Obama after determining the designation was "without merit."

The Trump administration placed Cuba back on the list in January 2021, which according to the Democratic lawmakers, was "a vindictive action" as he was leaving office.

The lawmakers said the policy is "overdue for change," adding that Cuba and the U.S. have been working together to counter terrorism.

US DESIGNATES CUBA STATE SPONSOR OF TERRORISM

An old American car passes by the US embassy in Havana on May 26, 2023. 

 (YAMIL LAGE / AFP) (Photo by YAMIL LAGE/AFP via Getty Images)

"We believe the time to act and remove Cuba from the SSOT list is now – not months from now," the letter reads. "There is no political or other policy argument that can justify the U.S. continuing to knowingly add to the suffering of the Cuban people."

The letter explains that all sectors of Cuban society are facing unabated hardships, which have driven thousands to abandon their homes and migrate to the U.S.

"It therefore runs counter to U.S. direct interests to continue the collective economic restrictions that result from Cuba remaining on the SSOT list," the letter reads.

FORMER US AMBASSADOR ARRESTED, ACCUSED OF SECRETLY SERVING AS AGENT TO CUBA: REPORT

Colombian president Gustavo Petro speaks to the media during Colombia's regional elections in Bogota, October 29, 2023. 

 (Sebastian Barros/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

Additionally, the lawmakers reminded Biden that Colombian President Gustavo Petro asked him to remove Cuba from the list to facilitate peace negotiations between Colombia’s government and the National Liberation Army (ELN) guerrillas.

The President of Mexico also asked that Cuba’s designation be rescinded, the lawmakers noted.

"As a candidate for President, you promised to address re-engagement with Cuba and return to the policy begun during the Obama-Biden administration, and we supported you on this commitment," the letter reads. "We recognize that much has changed in Cuba and in the United States since 2018, but two and a half years into your Presidency, the overwhelming number of sanctions put in place by your predecessor, including placing Cuba back on the SSOT list, remain in effect.

President Biden was mocked on social media for appearing confused during the Veterans Day ceremony at Arlington National Ceremony this weekend. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

"We call on you now, Mr. President, to help ordinary Cubans at this critical time by acting swiftly to remove Cuba from the State Sponsor of Terrorism list. It is the only option worthy of the United States, and we stand ready to support you in this decision," the letter concluded.

In January 2021, the U.S. State Department announced the designation of Cuba as a state sponsor of terror, accusing it of providing safe harbor to malicious actors and engaging in "malign behavior" in the region.

The designation returned the Caribbean nation to a list that it was on from Ronald Reagan's administration and until that of Barack Obama. In 2016, Obama became the first U.S. president to visit Cuba since 1928.

Obama became the first U.S. president to visit Cuba since 1928.

 (Spencer Platt/Getty Images)

The Obama administration attempted to normalize relations in 2015 but encountered resistance from President Trump, whose administration recently argued that Cuba had failed to cooperate on counterterrorism.

State Department officials said Cuba refused to extradite 10 suspects wanted in Colombia for a police academy bombing that killed 22 people and injured dozens more. Authorities also accused Cuba of harboring multiple American fugitives, including Joanne Chesimard, also known as Assata Shakur. She was convicted of killing New Jersey State Trooper Werner Foerster in 1973.

Former top Obama adviser Ben Rhodes called on the Biden administration to reverse Trump's decision in January 2021.

"The Biden Administration should not allow itself to be constrained by last minute political favors being done by an authoritarian administration that recently sought to overthrow the democratically elected U.S. government," Rhodes tweeted. "This decision should be reversed as soon as possible."

Greg Wehner is a breaking news reporter for Fox News Digital.

NK News: Nicaraguan Ambassador to N. Korea to Take up Post Soon

Written: 2024-01-03

Nicaragua appears set to open an embassy in North Korea in the near future.

According to the U.S.-based NK News, Nicaraguan Vice President Rosario Murillo said in an interview with a local media on Tuesday that the country’s new ambassador to North Korea Manuel Modesto Munguia will soon take up his post in Pyongyang.

Murillo, the wife of Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega and a government spokesperson, reportedly said that the new ambassador will soon be dispatched to perform his duties on behalf of the people of Nicaragua
Murillo said that Nicaragua plans to present the envoy’s letter of credentials to North Korean foreign minister Choe Son-hui.

When a new ambassador is appointed to North Korea, a copy of the letter of credentials is delivered to the North Korean foreign ministry, and the original is presented to the chair of the Standing Committee of the Supreme People's Assembly.

The move comes after the two countries agreed to reciprocally open embassies in July of last year.

Nicaraguan ambassador to N. Korea to take up post amid signs of Pyongyang resuming diplomacy with selected countries


Kim Seung-yeon
All News 

January 03, 2024

SEOUL, Jan. 3 (Yonhap) -- Nicaragua's new ambassador to North Korea is set to take up his position in Pyongyang soon, according to a news report and diplomatic sources Wednesday, amid signs of the North apparently resuming diplomacy with countries considered to be at odds with the United States.

The online NK News reported recently that Ambassador Manuel Modesto Mungula Martinez is set to present his credentials to North Korean Foreign Minister Choe Son-hui, citing Rosario Murillo, Nicaragua's vice president and first lady.

Having the new ambassador from the Latin American country is a follow-up step after the two countries agreed in July last year to open an embassy in Pyongyang, the news outlet said.

Diplomatic sources said the opening of the Nicaraguan Embassy in North Korea and appointment of the top envoy represent the first case of the reclusive regime allowing a new diplomatic mission of a foreign country in Pyongyang since the COVID-19 pandemic.



Officials of the Russian Embassy in Pyongyang visits the International Friendship Exhibition, a large complex in Pyongyang that houses the gifts given to former North Korean leaders by foreign dignitaries, in this photo carried by the North's Korean Central News Agency on Oct. 26, 2023.

 (For Use Only in the Republic of Korea. No Redistribution) (Yonhap)

North Korea maintained a strict border shutdown during the pandemic. Most of the diplomatic missions also closed, with the foreign diplomats stationed there leaving Pyongyang due to the closure.

The isolated state slowly reopened its borders last year, with new ambassadors coming in to rotate the positions from China and Russia in March and September.

But it has not allowed those back in from the Western countries, like Britain, Sweden and Switzerland.

Diplomatic sources said the North appears to be reshaping its diplomacy to enhance engagement with countries that it can align with more in terms of their foreign policy approach toward Washington.

Nicaragua, along with Cuba and Venezuela, is known for its hostile U.S. policy.

"There is a possibility that the North is letting in the so-called anti-imperialist independent countries first, starting with China and Russia," a source said.

North Korea has shut down its diplomatic missions in Angola, Bangladesh, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Hong Kong, Spain and a few others over the recent months, citing "diplomatic efficiency."

As of early December last year, North Korea had 46 diplomatic missions overseas, down from 53 in early 2023.

‘We Feel Helpless’: What Aid Workers, Activists Are Up Against In Gaza

For aid workers, humanitarian workers, and activists who strive to help and comfort the needy during conflicts, every day in Gaza is a day filled with despair and death

Palestinian Hudair family members on their way to Rafah hoping

 to find safer place 

Abed Zagout/Anadolu via Getty Images

RAGHAD ABU SHAMMALAH
Outlook Web Desk

UPDATED: 03 JAN 2024 

“I see bloodied faces on my phone when I open social media…I stay in bed, helpless. There isn’t much I can do except pray for the safety of my people who are being massacred by the thousands,” Rifat Kassis, activist in the West Bank.

For aid workers, humanitarian workers, and activists who strive to help and comfort the needy during conflicts, every day in Gaza is a day filled with despair and death. Israel’s mounting attacks on civilians in Gaza has left many in dire need of help. But with no food, water and medicines, aid workers are left with little to no means to do the same. They in fact, become the target.

Over 20,000 have been killed in Gaza so far. Of them, many were women, and just-borns. Humanitarian staff are often trying to work without power or communications, through mass displacement and the deaths of relatives, colleagues and friends. Activists have played a crucial role in not just decrying the violence, but also giving voice to the voiceless at a time when Gaza is under a total siege. But death has approached many of them, many times.

Khaled Abuqare, a Palestinian activist, reiterates that the war did not start on October 7, rather it escalated on October 7. “Ethnic cleansing of Palestinians by the Israelis has been going on since 1948—since the Nakba, since more than 750,000 Palestinians were expelled from their land. Hence, it was a challenge to explain our side of the story. The mainstream media has been ignoring the Palestinian narrative,” he goes on to say.

Chris Hook, who has been working with the Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF)/Doctors Without Borders since 2015, recalls how doctors in Gaza are currently facing challenges that no doctor should face – to prioritise care for some over the others, because they might have a better chance to live. Many of them die, he says.

Christmas passed a few days ago. A holiday known for bringing cheer, joy and togetherness. But in the West Bank, the mistletoe or holly have been replaced by bombs and the chorus of carollers has been replaced by screams of dying people, says Rifat Kassis, a Christian Palestinian human rights activist, author, and speaker, who is presently living in the West Bank. Christmas passed a few days ago. Israeli strikes killed at least 70 in central Gaza’s Maghazi refugee camp on that day.

As you read this, bombs are still falling in Gaza. And these Gazans are still trying to survive. In Outlook’s issue ‘We Bear Witness’, we bring their voices to you

Israel's history of assassinating Hamas leaders

The New Arab Staff
03 January, 2024

Israel had a long history of targeted assassinations of Hamas leaders before it killed Saleh al-Arouri in Beirut on January 2 2024.

Hamas leaders Abdel Aziz al-Rantisi [L] and Sheikh Ahmad Yasin [R] were assassinated by Israel in 2004 [Getty]


On Tuesday Saleh al-Arouri, the deputy chairman of Hamas’ political bureau and a founding member of its military wing, the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades, was assassinated in a drone strike in a suburb in Beirut.

Israel has not claimed responsibility for the strike, but the government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed to assassinate Hamas leaders across the world following the surprise Hamas attack on Israel on October 7.

But Israel also has a long history of targeted assassination of Palestinian leaders.

Here The New Arab looks into the victims and circumstances of Israel’s campaign of assassination and attempted assassination of the leaders of Hamas.

Emad Akel

Born in Gaza’s Jabalia refugee camp, Akel joined Hamas in his teens and gained the nickname “The Ghost” due to his ability to use disguises to launch ambushes on Israeli forces.

The young militant was made the commander of the Qassam Brigades, where he served as a mentor to the current commander Mohamed Deif. He was also placed at the top of Israel’s Most Wanted List.

Aged just 22, he was located by Israeli intelligence through informants and shot dead by Israeli special forces outside his house in Shuja'iyya in 1993.

Yahya Ayyash

Nicknamed “The Engineer”, Ayyash was the chief bombmaker and commander of the West Bank battalion of the Al-Qassam Brigades. A graduate in electrical engineering from Birzeit University, Ayyash was responsible for pioneering explosives used in suicide bombings against Israeli forces.

He was assassinated aged 29 in an elaborate plot by Shin Bet, where they placed an explosive device in his phone and detonated remotely after he received a call from his father.

Khaled Meshaal

Meshaal, a former physics teacher, is a founding member of the Politburo of Hamas and became its second ever Chairman in 1996. In 1997, on the orders of then Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the Mossad was tasked with assassinating Meshaal.

As he went into his office one day, he was approached by a Mossad agent from behind. The agent placed an unknown device up to his left ear that transmitted a fast-acting toxin.


The agents were apprehended by Meshaal’s security and he believed he had survived an attempted assassination. He described the experience as a loud bang in his left ear followed by an electric shock-type sensation. However, a few hours later, the Hamas leader was on life support in a coma.

A history of violence: Israel's targeted assassinations

Analysis

Charlie Hoyle

King Hussein of Jordan threatened to rescind Jordan and Israel’s peace treaty if Netanyahu did not provide an antidote for the poison that was killing Meshaal.

Netanyahu refused and only relented when then US President Bill Clinton personally appealed to the Israeli PM to give up the antidote, as well as guaranteeing the release of the captured Mossad agents.

Netanyahu finally relented and a Mossad agent delivered the antidote to the hospital in Jordan where Meshaal lay dying.

He was saved and continues to live a healthy life in Doha.

Salah Shehadeh

Born in the Shati refugee camp in Gaza in 1953, Shehadeh was the leader of the Qassam Brigades during the Second Intifada. As well masterminding attacks on Israeli forces, Shehadeh was responsible for overseeing the building of Qassam rockets and smuggling in Hamas’s large arsenal of weapons.

After using intelligence to locate him, the Israeli Air Force dropped a one tonne bomb on his house in the al-Daraj neighbourhood of Gaza City. Shehadeh, aged 49, was killed along with his entire family, while 7 of his neighbours' children were killed in the attack.

Ahmed Yassin

Sheikh Ahmed Yassin was the founder of the Hamas movement and arguably the most influential figure in its history. Yassin was born in 1936 and, aged 10, his entire village just outside of Ashkelon was ethnically cleansed by the Israeli army during the Nakba.

His family fled to Gaza as refugees.

A quadriplegic, Yassin was assassinated by Hellfire missiles fired by an Israeli Apache Helicopter as he was being wheeled out of morning prayers in Gaza City in 2004, aged 67.

Adnan Al-Ghoul

Known as the “Father of the Qassam” for his work in building Hamas’ extensive rocket delivery system, working as an assistant to Yahya Ayyash. Al-Ghoul was also a pioneer of using improvised explosive devices (IEDs) against Israeli forces in Gaza.

He was assassinated in 2004, aged 41-42, when an Israeli plane tracked him and then targeted his car with two missiles.

Mahmoud al-Mabhouh

Mabhouh was the Chief Logistics Officer for Hamas and was widely seen as the man responsible for procuring much of the group’s weaponry and equipment.

In 2010, Mabhouh was assassinated in his hotel room in Dubai after being meticulously tracked by 11 Mossad agents using foreign passports.

His death initially baffled police, as his door was locked from the inside. Later on, it was discovered that he had been given a strong muscle relaxant by the assassins, electrocuted and then suffocated by a pillow.

The assassination caused a major diplomatic incident due to the use of UK and European passports by the Israeli Mossad agents, which led to several European countries launching investigations into Mossad activities and even to the arrest of one of the suspects in Poland at the behest of Germany.