News and Analysis 2/13/23

“The ethnic minorities and refugees leading the community response in Turkey already knew not to rely on the government” …

• Turkey’s Earthquake Response Is as Political as the Conditions that Increased the Devastation (New Yorker)

… which “has provided periodic ‘construction amnesties’ – effectively legal exemptions for the payment of a fee, for structures built without the required safety certificates” …

• Turkey Earthquake: Why Did So Many Buildings Collapse? (BBC)

… and observers note the threat to Erdogan in parallels today to the 2002 election that brought him to power that include not only “the aftermath of a massive earthquake” but “a financial crisis that was punishing its economy”:

• Earthquake Compounds Turkish Leader’s Woes as Election Nears (AP)

Eight of the 44 Palestinians killed by Israel so far are minors …

• Israeli Soldiers Kill Five Palestinians in Jericho (IMEMC / Israel-Palestine News)
• Israeli Army Kills A Palestinian Youth In Nablus – Shot in the Face (IMEMC / Israel-Palestine News)
• Explosions Rock Gaza After Israeli Air Strikes (Aljazeera)

… and the settler murder spree continues as Israel legalized more oif the outposts in  violation of international law:

• Palestinian Killed by Jewish Settler in West Bank, Palestinians Say (Reuters)
• Israel Legalises Nine Settler Outposts in Occupied West Bank (Aljazeera)

“[T]housands of Iranians are also gaining experience standing up to authorities and navigating the prison system, which could become a grim asset for the decentralized movement”:

• Iran Protesters Released from Prison Wrestle with Fear and Trauma (Washington Post)

The “policy change … allows departing detainees to take their work with them”:

• Pentagon Lifts Trump-Era Ban on Release of Guantánamo Prisoners’ Art (NY Times)

Congress looks to promote a once-designated terrorist “despised and hated by Iranians across the political spectrum”:

• Amid Ongoing Iran Protests, Congress Boosts Cultish MEK Exile Group (The Intercept)

Israeli authorities locked up so many “Arabs between the ages of 16 and 55” that the number of Palestinian non-combatant detainees ‘far exceeded’ those of Arab soldiers in regular armies or bona fide POWs”:

• Israel’s Little-known Concentration and Labor Camps (1948-1955) (Al-Awda)

“So far, India, like China, has benefited from Muslim-majority states emphasizing national interests rather than communal and identity concerns. However, that may prove to be a fragile proposition”:

• India Could Be This Decade’s China (Middle East Soccer)

ImadadDean