Quote of the day…

Israel carried out drone attack on Iranian defense facility

The alleged strike comes while talks between Jerusalem and Washington are aimed at finding new ways to counter Tehran’s nuclear program

By The Time of Israel

The video of Tyre Nichols' fatal arrest reopens debate on police violence

The 29-year-old African-American man was beaten by Memphis police officers after being pulled over in a traffic stop. He died three days later. Video footage of his beating was released on Friday night.

By Le Monde

Russia’s new meddling in the Caucasus

Peace between Armenia and Azerbaijan is possible — but a Russia-backed oligarch is trying to stop it.

By POLITICO EU

Italy signs $8B gas deal with Libya

European countries have sought to replace Russian gas with energy supplies from North Africa and other sources.

By POLITICO EU

Cooperate with objective and ethical thinking…

What is Artificial Intelligency?

Artificial intelligence (AI) is the ability of a computer or a robot controlled by a computer to do tasks that are usually done by humans because they require human intelligence and discernment. Although there are no AIs that can perform the wide variety of tasks an ordinary human can do, some AIs can match humans in specific tasks.

ISRAELI TV: SITE WAS SHAHED-136 DRONE PRODUCTION FACILITY

Report: Israel carried out drone attack on Iranian defense facility

The alleged strike comes while talks between Jerusalem and Washington are aimed at finding new ways to counter Tehran’s nuclear program

By TOI STAFF, 29 January 2023

Screen grab from an unverified video circulating on social media said to show explosion at a defense facility in Iran's Isfahan after an alleged drone strike, January 28, 2023. (Used in accordance with Clause 27a of the Copyright Law)

Israel was behind a Saturday night drone attack that struck a defense facility in the Iranian city of Isfahan, according to a Sunday report.

The Wall Street Journal cited US officials and people familiar with the matter to say Jerusalem directed the strike. The report could not be independently confirmed.

Israel’s Channel 12 news reported Sunday that the site was a weapons production facility for Iran’s killer Shahed-136 drones and that the attack drones in operation were launched from an area near the site by “highly-skilled” operators who knew their target well. The unsourced report said the attack incorporated high-quality intelligence and technological ability.

Iran has been selling Shahed-136 drones to Russia for its use in the nearly year-long war on Ukraine. The “kamikaze” drones have been deployed to attack Ukrainian civilian sites and critical infrastructure facilities since September.

Iran has claimed air defenses were able to intercept some of the attacking drones, while others caused only minor damage. Some news reports, including in Israeli media, indicated the damage was more severe. Video allegedly from the scene showed large blasts.

While official reports in Iran pointed to one blast resulting from the strike, opposition Iranian news outlet Iran International cited eyewitnesses as saying that they saw three or four explosions.

The adjacent Space Research Center was sanctioned by the United States for developing the country’s ballistic-missile program, the report said.

The WSJ report noted the timing of the reported strike, coming at the same time that talks between Jerusalem and Washington are aimed at finding new ways to counter Tehran’s nuclear program.

Iran condemned the attack, calling it “cowardly,” and accused Iran’s enemies of trying to sow insecurity in the Islamic Republic.

“This cowardly act was carried out today as part of the efforts made by enemies of the Iranian nation in recent months to make the Islamic Republic insecure,” Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian said Sunday at a press conference with his visiting Qatari counterpart, Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani.

“Such measures cannot affect the will and intention of our specialists for peaceful nuclear developments,” he added.

The US recently indicated that it would be taking a more aggressive approach toward Tehran, including on its drone supply program to Russia.

The Biden administration has also signaled that it had abandoned the possibility of reviving a deal with Iran over its nuclear program, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, which then-US president Donald Trump withdrew from in 2018. Trump then instituted a “maximum pressure” sanctions regime, targeting various Iranian sectors, leading Tehran to respond by expanding its nuclear program in violation of the JCPOA.

Iran’s cooperation with Russia in the latter’s invasion of Ukraine and the anti-regime protests that have swept Iran since mid-September and have led Tehran to respond with a violent crackdown on protesters have also played a role in Washington’s more assertive approach.

Last week, Israel and the US kicked off a large-scale joint exercise in Israel and over the eastern Mediterranean Sea, reportedly aimed at showing adversaries, such as Iran, that Washington is not too distracted by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and threats from China to mobilize a large military force.

Netanyahu, who during his last term as premier ordered numerous strikes on Iranian targets in Syria and operations on Iranian soil, has been open about his intention to oppose Tehran’s nuclear aspirations at any cost, as Israel generally considers an Iranian nuclear bomb as a near existential threat.

In November, a longtime ally of Netanyahu said in an interview that he believed the prime minister would order a strike on Iran’s nuclear facilities if the US does not secure a new nuclear deal with Tehran and fails to take action itself in the near future.

The video of Tyre Nichols' fatal arrest reopens debate on police violence

The 29-year-old African-American man was beaten by Memphis police officers after being pulled over in a traffic stop. He died three days later. Video footage of his beating was released on Friday night.

By Piotr Smolar (Washington (United States) correspondent)

Published on January 28, 2023

Le Monde

"Mom, Mom, Mom," Tyre Nichols called out in a desperate, high-pitched rattle. The 29-year-old African-American father was viciously beaten by police officers in Memphis, Tennessee, on the evening of January 7 as he drove home. He died three days later in hospital as a result of his injuries.

On Friday, January 27, the local authorities published a long montage of videos showing almost the entire arrest, sending a shock wave through the city and attracting the attention of the national media channels.

Two separate incidents were documented by police body cams and video surveillance cameras. In the first, Nichols was subjected to a botched restraint attempt after being pulled from his vehicle, without resistance but with totally disproportionate violence and a lot of cursing. "I'm just trying to get home." Scared, he managed to escape on foot.

He was found in a second location, a deserted street, at around 8:30 p.m. Initially held by two police officers, the victim was sprayed with pepper gas, kicked and punched, then hit with a telescopic baton. He was picked up to be hit in the head. Then Nichols was left handcuffed on the ground, prone, and dragged to a car. The minutes ticked by. Almost as shocking as the violence is the indifference of the police officers to the victim's distress, the stunning inhumanity.

Impunity of some police forces

Although they have been released, the five Black police officers involved were fired and charged with offenses including second-degree murder, aggravated assault and kidnapping. "They are all responsible," said local prosecutor Steve Mulroy, although their specific roles in the beating varied. "Where was their humanity? They beat my son like a piñata," his grieving mother said on CNN. Nichols was an avid skateboarder and loved photography.

Authorities decided not to release the video until Friday night at 7 pm, creating a sort of mournful countdown on the news channels. City Police Chief Cerelyn Davis explained that by early evening, businesses would be closed and children would be back home safely. This shows how concerned they were about the impact of these stunning images, which also justified the speed of the action against the culprits, who were members of a SCORPION team, formed specially to fight violent street crime.

The representatives of the local Black community claim that this group was accustomed to committing verbal and physical abuse. There is no clear racial dimension to this crime, but it highlights the impunity that plagues some police departments, beyond the classic individual abuses. "It's the police culture," lawyer Ben Crump charged on Friday, on behalf of the victim's family, which is calling for the dismantling of the SCORPION unit in the municipal police force, which has around 1,900 members.

According to Davis, the officers cited "driving recklessly" by Nichols as the reason for the stop, but no traffic cameras have confirmed this. The outburst of violence and the collective spiral of events remain inexplicable. The police chief also noted the "delay" in first aid administered by paramedics, after "several minutes" on the scene. Two firefighters have been suspended.

Fear of an explosion of popular anger

"We've never seen justice so swift, praised Ben Crump, attorney for the family. "We have the model for the future. (...) You can't tell us anymore that we have to wait six months or a year." The speed of the local authorities' action is explained by the fear of an explosion of popular anger in urban riots like those which followed the death of George Floyd, killed by a white police officer in Minneapolis (Minnesota) in August 2020.

The shadow of Rodney King also hangs over this case. In 1991, after a car chase, this man was beaten by officers in Los Angeles, California, while a witness filmed the scene. Major riots followed, causing dozens of deaths and spectacular destruction.

On Thursday afternoon, the White House issued a statement expressing condolences and calling for calm. "Outrage is understandable, but violence is never acceptable. Violence is destructive and against the law. It has no place in peaceful protests seeking justice." Two of the president's advisers held a video conference with elected officials from major cities that could be affected by the popular outrage.

There are nearly 18,000 different police forces in the United States, the overwhelming majority of which are very small. The lack of national consistency in response patterns, or even in statistical reporting, is a long-standing problem. The Washington Post has put together a database of the victims of police violence since 2015. A total of 1,110 people have been shot in just the last 12 months.

The qualified immunity doctrine protects police officers

Since George Floyd's death, dozens of states and many cities have reviewed stop-and-frisk techniques, including the use of dashboard cameras. At the federal level, the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act remains stalled in Congress. It followed a similar line, modifying the legal protection of police officers and creating a national registry of complaints of mistreatment by law enforcement agencies.

"To deliver real change, we must have accountability when law enforcement officers violate their oaths," Biden wrote in his statement, after speaking on Friday with Nichols' mother and stepfather.

In October 2021, the Supreme Court ruled in favor of accused police officers in two cases of violence, upholding the doctrine of qualified immunity, which protects police from most legal claims. The doctrine requires plaintiffs to show not only that the officers violated a constitutional right, but also that case law exists on the issue. Police unions and management believe that this is a necessary safeguard to allow officers in the field to make quick decisions.

Russia’s new meddling in the Caucasus

Peace between Armenia and Azerbaijan is possible — but a Russia-backed oligarch is trying to stop it.

By Maurizio Geri

January 30, 2023

POLITICO EU

Maurizio Geri is a former analyst on the Middle East and North Africa at the NATO Allied Command. He was also previously an analyst for the Italian Defence General Staff.

Throughout history, European powers have often descended upon the Prague Castle in the Czech Republic to sign peace treaties and end conflicts. It is where the German Brothers’ War was settled in the 19th century, and where the Peace of Prague pathed the way for an end to the Thirty Years’ War — perhaps the most destructive conflict in Europe’s long and bloody history.

Last autumn, the castle’s medieval halls served as a crucial backdrop once more, this time for the first ever summit of the European Political Community. And one of the main items on the agenda were talks aimed at ushering in a peace deal between Armenia and Azerbaijan to finally bring the three-decades-long dispute over Nagorno-Karabakh to a lasting resolution.

At the summit, peace seemed more attainable than ever, as Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev confirmed they would recognize each other’s territorial integrity and sovereignty, adopting the United Nations’ Alma Ata 1991 Declaration as the basis for border delimitation discussions.

This is significant, as up until that point, Armenia’s leadership had never recognized Karabakh as the sovereign territory of Azerbaijan. But despite such crucial progress, reality has, of course, proven more complicated. And though peace between Armenia and Azerbaijan is still possible, there’s now a new obstacle standing in the way — and it’s backed by Russia.

Before reclaiming much of its lost territory in a rapid, six week-long war in 2020, Azerbaijan was cut off from Karabakh for 24 years, as an Armenian military presence turned the region into a parastate backed by Yerevan. And since the end of hostilities, Baku has moved quickly to reintegrate the region, with vast sums invested into a massive mine-removal operation, and so far, the first 200 families from among the 600,000 Azeris internally displaced from the first war have already begun returning.

Bringing closure to the Azeris, who were victims of the First Nagorno-Karabakh conflict in the 1990s is a priority for Baku — however, there’s also a need to accommodate and integrate the region’s large ethnic Armenian population, as there can otherwise be no lasting peace.

Karabakh may be Azerbaijani territory, but a significant majority of its current residents identify as Armenian, and today, they are living in a unilaterally declared independent exclave within Karabakh, which illegally seceded from Azerbaijan in the early 1990s. This breakaway state has never been recognized by a single member of the international community — including Armenia itself. But after three decades of self-rule, Karabakh’s Armenians are now worried about their future status as an ethnic minority in Azerbaijan.

Assuaging these concerns and guaranteeing the rights, security and religious and cultural freedoms of ethnic Armenians was a key aim of the Prague talks — and significant advancements were made. But then, just a month later, the mood changed dramatically following an intervention by Russian-Armenian oligarch Ruben Vardanyan.

Born in Yerevan, Vardanyan made his riches in Russia during the decade of gangster capitalism following the collapse of the Soviet Union. Described as the “father of the Russian stock market,” he cut his teeth in investment banking before going on to sit on the boards of some of Russia’s biggest companies, many of which now find themselves on Western sanction lists.

Departing his birthplace in 1985, Vardanyan lived in Moscow for many years before suddenly renouncing his Russian citizenship last November and relocating to Karabakh, becoming the region’s de-facto state minister. The oligarch showed scant interest in Karabakh before this point, but he’d clearly spotted an opportunity to earn a profit: Two long-dormant gold mines reopened mere weeks after his arrival.

Indeed, the timing of Vardanyan’s arrival was peculiar. He came just as Azerbaijan was set to begin talks with the region’s Armenian leadership, who had sent signals to Baku’s negotiators that they recognized their future lay as a protected minority inside Azerbaijan. But now, with Vardanyan as leader, their stance has become obstructionist — the oligarch and the government in Yerevan are publicly opposing each other.

The worry is that Vardanyan will now use this influence to turn public opinion among Karabakh’s Armenian community against peace, which would be disastrous for the interests of both Baku and Yerevan.

It raises the question: How did Vardanyan suddenly become so influential in Karabakh, and who helped him get to this position?

The two main regional powers active in the South Caucasus are Turkey and Russia. The former is a firm ally of Azerbaijan, and while the latter has traditionally backed Armenia, Pashinyan has been public in his criticisms of the Russia-led Collective Security Treaty Organization for failing to provide his country with sufficient support — a move that can be read as an indirect criticism of the Kremlin.

Italy signs $8B gas deal with Libya

European countries have sought to replace Russian gas with energy supplies from North Africa and other sources.

By Jones Hayden

January 28, 2023

POLITICO EU

Italy signed an $8 billion gas deal with Libya on Saturday as Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni visited the North African country for talks on energy and migration.

Since Russian President Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine almost a year ago, Italy and other European countries have sought to replace Russian gas with energy supplies from North Africa and other sources.

Saturday's agreement was signed by Libya's National Oil Corp. and Italy's Eni. The two companies said they will invest $8 billion in gas development, as well as in solar power and carbon capture, Reuters reported.

The natural-gas deal between the two countries is the largest single investment in Libya’s energy sector in more than two decades, the Associated Press reported.

Eni Chief Executive Claudio Descalzi has been a vocal backer of Europe turning to Africa to help address its energy supply needs.

Earlier this week, Meloni visited Algeria, Italy’s main gas supplier, where Eni and Algerian state-owned energy firm Sonatrach signed a new collaboration agreement aimed at shoring up energy security and boosting efforts to cut carbon emissions. Algeria last year became one of Italy’s top strategic partners after it replaced Russia as the European country's largest energy provider.