U.S. disbands Scorpion police force

TEHRAN- A controversial U.S. special policing force unit has been disbanded as angry protests continue after officers brutally murdered another innocent black American.

Among the five officers who killed Tyre Nichols over an alleged traffic violation, some had been members of the Scorpion, a faction of the country’s specialized policing units.

Steve Mulroy, the District Attorney for Shelby County, Tennessee, confirmed on Thursday that the "Scorpion unit (which has now been permanently deactivated)
was involved."

The Scorpion unit in Memphis, where Nichols was assaulted by police, was established to reduce violent crime, but the attorney for the Nichols family said it and other specialized police units across the U.S. target the "most vulnerable" and should be disbanded.

A former member of the unit told American media that police officers appointed to the force enjoyed the powers to "do what they can to arrest people."

"These are suppression units," he said. "And what they do is they wind up oppressing the people that we care about the most – our children, our young sons and daughters who are Black and brown."

Following a record number of homicides in 2021 for a second consecutive year in the southwestern Tennessee city of Memphis, the Police Department established the Scorpion Unit to tackle the rising murder rate. 

But Chelsea Glass, a community organizer in Memphis who is an advocate for criminal justice reform, described Scorpion as a street crime-fighting team relying on traffic stops for excuses to find violent criminals and weapons.

"They harass everyday residents, and they're calling this high-level policing," he said.

"But it's really just stop-and-frisk on wheels. It doesn't matter what name you slap on it."

The acronym stands for the Street Crimes Operation to Restore Peace In Our Neighborhoods. Yet these so-called specialized police units were responsible for the assault on Nichols during a traffic stop.

And these are the same specialized police units in the U.S. that are supposed to reduce crime, not increase it.

The Reverend Al Sharpton pointed out that if these units were set up to combat violent crimes, "Why are you dealing with an alleged traffic violation in the first place?"

Under heavy public pressure and anger, the chief of police Cerelyn Davis, described the officer’s attack on Nichols as "heinous, reckless and inhumane", and later announced after "listening intently" to Nichols' relatives, community leaders and uninvolved officers, she felt "it is in the best interest of all to permanently deactivate the Scorpion unit."

Mark LeSure is a former high-ranking official with the Memphis police and says he had witnessed a large number of inexperienced officers being put on specialized units with other members of the force quitting.

He says that these specialized units do not have enough senior staff members training the new members. 

LeSure added that his former colleagues who were still at the department before its breakup had told him that the Scorpion unit was known for having a "zero tolerance" policy - which he said meant the officers "do what they can to arrest people".

Police initially said Nichols had been stopped for reckless driving on 7 January and that a "confrontation" occurred in an effort to detain him.

But officials are now saying that following a review of the murder incident, they cannot "substantiate" the reckless driving claim.

A protest has been organized by the Justice for Tyre ROC Coalition. The coalition is advocating for a systemic change in policing across the country, saying that Nichols is the new Daniel Prude.

“Unnecessary. It was unnecessary. For someone to be beaten up like that with no cause? Unnecessary,” Rochester resident Reginald Jones said. “If someone is doing a crime, there is still no reason for them to be beaten like that. There is a reason why we have a judicial system […] Now, the trust in the community that we’re trying to build, it’s gonna make it that more fractured now."

Demonstrators said that a candlelight vigil would be held on Wednesday for Nichols at MLK Park.

Angry protests have also been taking place in at least nine cities across the U.S., including Memphis. Thousands of people marched on Sunday in Oakland.

"I think we're looking at some of the old days' protests. I think we're expecting several thousand folks on the street," said Cat Brooks, executive director of the Anti-Police Terror Project.

"I know Black people are tired, but I think white folks who are allies too are like this is too much. It's too much. And it's gotta stop … The issue is about a culture in the police departments of this nation." Brooks said.

Angry crowds have also gathered outside a Memphis Police Department precinct.

Protestors also staged a rally in Oakland, California, on Sunday night to rally for the end of police brutality and march for Nichols. 

Numerous community members and advocates spoke during the rally, which was organized by the Anti Police-Terror Project.

Nichols died three days after a traffic stop, in which police beat him in what has been described as a savage attack. 

It is the latest case in a long list of deadly police brutality against black Americans.

The disturbing footage of the arrest is a sickening indictment of the U.S. police brutality.

The victim in the shocking police bodycam footage appears to be the only person trying to calm the situation, as police officers quickly escalate the situation to extreme violence.

News media analysis of the footage show police officers had issued a wave of commands that were confusing, conflicting, and sometimes even impossible to obey by Nichols or anyone else for that matter.

According to an analysis by the Times, when Nichols could not comply — and even when he managed to — the officers responded with more force against him.

A review of the available footage found that officers shouted at least 71 commands during the roughly 13-minute period before they reported over the radio that he was officially in custody.

Worse yet, Tyre received no treatment until an ambulance arrived after more than 20 minutes. 

With his condition worsening, he slumped sideways to the ground. This was a man dying under police watch, and yet, all the officers around him just stood by and did nothing.

Instead, one of the police officers who inflicted the fatal injuries is heard celebrating and others can be seen fist bumping each other.

For decades, police brutality against the black American community has been under severe scrutiny. 

The murder of George Floyd led to nationwide and international protests after a white officer pinned Floyd to the ground with his knee on the victim's neck for 9 minutes and 29 seconds, 

Floyd had been accused of allegedly passing a counterfeit $20 bill at a convenience store. 

Nichols allegedly violated a traffic stop.

These are not crimes that deserve a death, unless you are black and residing in the United States of America.

But critics say only cases that are captured on camera or published under pressure from police body cameras attract media attention. They argue that many deadly incidents because of police brutality against black Americans pass without any awareness.

Nichols was ruthlessly punched, kicked, tasered, beaten with a baton, and had pepper spray used on him during the violent arrest by the same force that are supposed to have been protecting him.

That night in Memphis that led to his death feels like the city has not moved on from the 1960’s, when racism and treatment of black Americans as second-class citizens supposedly ended.

Lawyers for Tyre's family say it reflects a police culture embedded in racism and the abuse of power. The problem lies in a learned expectation of immunity and impunity that the police forces enjoy.

The father-of-one died three days after his brutal ordeal.

TAGS

• U.S.
 
• Tyre Nichols
 
• US police

Paris Multi-Party Meeting on Lebanon: A Step Forward or Political Show?

Alwaght- The several-month political stalemate in Lebanon for election of a successor to President Michel Aoun to complete the process of forming a new government, the big economic challenges in recent years that led to national currency value slump, and a 70-percent poverty rate have all paved the way for interference of foreign actors in home affairs under the cover of supporting the country. For example, last week, a European judicial delegation visited Beirut to probe corruption cases and port explosion, a move that left the Lebanese judicial officials unhappy with the brazen Europeans disregard of Lebanon’s national sovereignty and isolation of the country’s judiciary from two most important cases of recent years. 

As part of its interventions, later last week, and after many hemmings and hawings, France announced that in the first week of February, it will revive the mechanism known as the Paris conference on Lebanon with the participation of countries such as Saudi Arabia, the US, Qatar, and possibly Egypt. 

Diplomatic sources announced on Friday that the international conference on the future of Lebanon will be held on Monday, February 6, in Paris. 

The last Paris conference was held in August 2021. According to reports, at that meeting, the participants collected about $370 million in humanitarian aids for Lebanon. The French government has announced that it is trying to focus on service and humanitarian affairs in the new meeting in association with the above-mentioned countries. According to Al-Akhbar newspaper, the Paris meeting commits to the Taif Agreement and international resolutions, and emphasizes the election of a president and the formation of a government that enjoys the trust of the international community and commits to implementation of economic reforms. 

One of the cases that Paris is working on is facilitation of power exports from Jordan and gas from Egypt. Lebanese media said that Jordan would be likely invited to the conference. 

In the meantime, political sources and Lebanese media outlets such as Al-Akhbar have reported that hopeful expectations about the five-party meeting in Paris are “exaggerated”. 

One of the reasons for this skepticism is that the level of participants is not high-ranking. It is expected that in this meeting Barbara Leaf, US Assistant Secretary of State for Middle East Affairs, Nizar Al Alullah, advisor to the royal court of Saudi Arabia, Mohammed bin Abdulaziz Al-Khalifi, the aide to the foreign minister of Qatar, and Patrick Dorrell, the Elysee Palace’s advisor for Arab world who is a member of the Lebanese Crisis Group, would represent their countries. 

Citing these sources, Al-Akhbar reported that “the problem is that the participants have different interests and conditions, especially Saudi Arabia, which refuses any agreement against its goals and interests.” 

In the past months, the Saudis have put a lot of pressure on the groups close to them in the March 14 Alliance, especially the Lebanese Forces party led by Samir Geagea, to maintain their disagreement with Hezbollah and its Christian ally, the Free Patriotic Movement (FPM), over the political process. 

Some resources held that France is specifically interested to circumvent the Saudi considerations and guide the participants to the political issues related to president election. However, seeking to maintain the pressures against Hezbollah and its allies through putting the skids under election of president, the US and Saudi Arabia, are pursuing economic reforms to draw a border between Hezbollah and new government. However, everybody is well aware that no coalition can form a government without Hezbollah. Thus, the American and Saudi insistence on the road map, dubbed Kuwait initiative, will only perpetuate the political impasse. 

It is noteworthy that when in 2022 comments by Lebanon’s Information Minister George Kordahi on Yemen war drew Saudi anger and the (Persian) Gulf Cooperation Council states recalled their ambassadors from Lebanon, the Kuwaiti Foreign Minister Ahmad Naser Al-Sabah presented a 12-point condition list to settle the crisis. However, it soon became clear that the so-called initiative was actually a set of interventionist conditions to humiliate Lebanon. 

The conditions included calls for Lebanon commitment to all terms of Taif Agreement and also commitment to a policy of neutrality in regional issues in words and action, and also setting a timetable for implementation of the UN’s 1559 resolution that calls for Hezbollah disarmament. However, the Lebanese rejected the initiative, arguing that it was in violation of their national sovereignty and independence. But Saudi Arabia is still insisting on its revival. 

Another reason the Lebanese people and the political observers are not optimistic about the outcomes of Paris meeting for easing the political and economic crises is the opposition of some Lebanese political parties to the domineering approach of these countries to election of president. Despite quitting his bid for presidency, Gebran Bassil, the former PM and the current head of FPM, still resists foreign imposition of presidential candidates on the parliament. He has support of Hezbollah and its allies that make a strong barrier ahead of foreign agenda. 

There is no doubt that none of the presidential candidates can promise commitment to foreign demand for removal of Hezbollah from political life and its exclusion from the government, and therefore, Saudi Arabia’s role in the Paris conference will only increase the challenges of this meeting that looks for a tangible achievement.

Definitely, Hezbollah’s power and determining role is not something even its enemies can ignore. There is an idea that one of the cases of discussion in Tehran of the Qatari foreign minister some days before Paris conference was attraction of Iranian and Hezbollah cooperation to avoid Paris meeting failure. Certainly, the countries going to Paris meeting have realized that without an agreement with Hezbollah, they cannot develop a plan to work out a comprehensive solution to the situation in Lebanon, and this is what Qatar has undertaken to achieve a consensus among the participants. 

An evidence of Qatar’s role and coordination with the US is the signing of participation contract for oil and gas exploration in Block 4 and Block 9 in Lebanese waters between Qatar Petroleum and the French and Italian companies of Total and Eni, something usually not happening without international coverage, especially given the sensitivity of the US-mediated Israeli-Lebanese sea border agreement for Washington which was achieved after years of tensions. 

U.S. worried its international status to be replaced by China

 By Zahra Mirzafarjouyan

TEHRAN – Professor Hongda Fan believes that Washington is worried that the United States' international status will be replaced by China and thus adopts a confrontational stance against Beijing.

Tensions between the US and China over the self-ruled island of Taiwan intensified following a provocative visit there in August by Nancy Pelosi, speaker of the US House of Representatives. It prompted large-scale Chinese military drills around the island territory as well as a declaration by US President Joe Biden to defend Taiwan.

Her visit infuriated China, which has sovereignty over the self-ruled Chinese Taipei and has publicly stated that it may take it by force one day, if necessary.

Under the “one China” policy, nearly all countries across the globe, the US included, recognize Beijing’s sovereignty over Chinese Taipei. 

Washington, however, engaged in direct contact with the secessionist government in Taipei, in violation of its own stated policy. The US also supplies Taipei with massive amounts of armaments.

Recently, General Mike Minihan, head of Air Mobility Command, sent a memo to the officers he commands that predicts the United States will be at war with China in two years and tells them to get ready by firing "a clip" at a target, and "aim for the head".

Gen. Minihan said, “I hope I am wrong. My gut tells me will fight in 2025.”

To shed light on the issue, we reached out to Hongda Fan, a professor at the Middle East Studies Institute of Shanghai International Studies University.

Following is the full text of the interview with him:

Don't you think that this is just the tip of the iceberg and the US has planned much more for China?

Frankly speaking, the relationship between the United States and China has been difficult since the Trump administration. In recent years, these two countries with the most international influence are in a relatively obvious confrontation. Therefore, I believe Washington has quite a few plans for China.

We already see that the US policy in Ukraine has cost so much for the world economy and people, especially in poor countries. Can such a stance towards a big economy and military power like China even leave a much more negative effect on people of the world? 

There is no doubt that if the United States takes major offensive actions against China, it will have serious negative effects on the entire world. The people of the world, including Americans, will suffer as a result. After all, a confrontation between the world's two largest economies will inevitably affect many countries.

From time to time, we hear about possible beginning of WWIII, do you see any possibility for it?

As a pacifist, I absolutely hate war. I don't think World War III is imminent if the decision-makers of the world powers put the interests of their people first. There are indeed many contradictions in the current international community, but there are also many factors that restrict the outbreak of war.

It seems that the US has chosen confrontation instead of rivalry with its major rivals. Don't you think so? If yes, how destructive is such a policy for world security and stability?

From the perspective of world history and the history of international relations, competition is the normal state of relations between world powers. To a large extent, healthy competition among world powers is one of the factors for world progress. Since becoming the number one power in the world, the United States believes that it has not encountered the challenge of a country as powerful as China. Washington is worried that the United States' international status will be replaced by China and thus adopts a confrontational stance against China. As the past few years have demonstrated, a U.S.-China confrontation can have serious negative repercussions for the international community. The United States should look at the development of other countries more rationally. Instead of worrying about its international status being replaced, it is better to do more things that benefit the people of its own country and the world. Such a country is more likely to be recognized and praised by the international community. 

TAGS

• Hongda Fan
 
• U.S.
 
• China
 
• Chinese Taipei
 
• Taiwan

First tanks and now jets divide NATO

TEHRAN- After intense pressure from Western allies, Germany finally agreed to send advanced tanks to Ukraine. Now the issue of sending warplanes has divided NATO even further.

Some NATO leaders have said that they are open to the idea, while others have refused to entertain any more escalation.

Berlin has once again rejected any such delivery while implying that some parties in NATO are trying to provide more advanced weapon systems than others.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has toughened up his government’s rejection of any demands by Kyiv to supply Ukraine with fighter jets following the fiasco that ended up with Berlin’s agreement to deliver its Leopard battle tanks. 

President Joe Biden has also said the United States would not provide F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine.

Speaking to reporters at the White House, Biden said he was opposed to supplying American fighter jets to Ukraine, as Kyiv expands its list of weaponry.

"No," he said when asked if he was in favor of sending F-16s or others. His refusal to send F-16 fighters come as the U.S., Germany and other countries have agreed to boost the Ukrainian arsenal by providing heavy battle tanks.

There isn’t just a split in the NATO military alliance, but also in the U.S. foreign policy elite.

Analysts have pointed out that key advisors to the Pentagon have come out saying that it is in America’s interests that the war be stopped sooner than later so that the United States can concentrate on its next area of conflict, which is of much greater interest, that is containing China.

Victoria Nuland, the U.S. Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs, made it quite clear in her remarks to Congress during a testimony a couple of days ago that her department understands the fragility of the Ukrainian military position.

Other statements made by Nuland and others have been seen by analysts as U.S. foreign policy makers are at odds with each other on how to move forward with the crisis instigated by Washington.

The ouster of Ukrainian officials over corruption scandals has renewed questions about how the government in Kyiv is addressing concerns about U.S. military aid, which has been shipped to the tune of tens of billions of dollars.

Analysts believe that the war may be gearing up for a significant escalation in the coming months and NATO warplanes would increase Kyiv's power, with its own air force significantly depleted after nearly a year of war.

In an interview with a German daily newspaper, Chancellor Olaf Scholz said “the question of combat aircraft does not arise at all … I can only advise against entering into a constant competition to outbid each other when it comes to weapons systems.”

“If, as soon as a decision has been made, the next debate starts in Germany, this does not look very serious and shakes the confidence of the citizens in government decisions,” Scholz told Tagesspiegel. “Such debates should not be conducted for reasons of domestic political profiling. It is important to me now that all those who have announced their intention to supply battle tanks to Ukraine do so,” he added.

French President Emmanuel Macron has said Paris would not rule out providing fighter jets to Ukraine but has warned against the risk of escalation in the conflict.

Following talks with Holland’s Prime Minister Mark Rutte, Macron declared that "nothing is excluded in principle."

Rutte, for his part, has said he is also open to the idea of sending U.S.-made Dutch F-16s to Ukraine.

"There is no taboo but it would be a big step," said Rutte.

Any arms delivery "must not weaken the capacity of the French armed forces," Macron pointed out, adding that France would have to be confident that the weapons would not be used to strike inside Russia, which would significantly escalate the war.

At the same time, NATO members are wary of sending further advanced weapons to Ukraine at the risk of entering into a direct confrontation with Russia.

Many say this is what left Germany dithering over sending its battle tanks to the warzone as it did not want to appear as the warmonger in the conflict.

Mykhailo Podolyak, an adviser to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, has said that Kyiv was in talks with allies about the delivery of warplanes, but revealed that some NATO members have a “conservative” attitude on arms deliveries.

Advocates of a peaceful resolution to the war have slammed the delivery of tens of billions of dollars’ worth of weapons to prolong the war in eastern Ukrainian territories.

Fighting has continued at key points along the long front as Russian forces sought to expand their hold on territory in the Donetsk region.

These are the same eastern regions that have witnessed deadly fighting between armed ethnic Russians and the Ukrainian military since 2014, killing some 14,000 people before the war began in February 2022.

With the failure of the Minsk agreements to end the fighting and the U.S.-led NATO military alliance expanding on Russian borders, Moscow dispatched troops into the ongoing battle in what the Kremlin described as a “special military operation”.

Many have also highlighted NATO and the U.S.’s failure to address Moscow’s security guarantees in the months leading up to the war which erupted on 24 February 2022.

With Ukraine's supplies of artillery munitions heavily depleted, France and Australia announced on Monday a deal to jointly produce 155 mm shells for Kyiv's forces.

"Several thousand 155 mm shells will be manufactured jointly," French Defense Minister Sebastien Lecornu said.

Meanwhile, while in Seoul, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg called on South Korea to "step up" military support for Ukraine, calling on the country to reconsider its policy of not exporting weapons to countries in conflict.

There is an "urgent need for more ammunition," Stoltenberg said.

NATO’s call for more military support for Ukraine comes despite Moscow calling Western shipments of arms to the country a blatant provocation. Russia says the move is extremely dangerous and will escalate the conflict and suffering of Ukrainians.

Analysts say Western governments and mainstream media are lying when they claim the world is united against Russia.  

From the 193 countries in the world, about 30 have imposed sanctions on Russia or send military hardware to Ukraine.

This essentially means the vast majority of the world is opposed to the West’s position on Russia when it comes to the Ukraine war.

NATO not only has asked South Korea but also some countries in Latin America.

This suggests that NATO members are running short of weapons. Experts say countries like Canada, the UK, France and Germany have almost emptied their own stockpiles, which is why NATO is calling on South Korea and certain Latin American countries to send weapons.

The other question is whether the NATO chief has the authority to demand from other sovereign countries to become a party to the war.

NATO has no right whatsoever to call on other countries to get involved or send weapons to a warzone.

Some NATO critics say Ukraine is set to lose the war and Stoltenberg is making attempts to reshape international approach toward the conflict by turning global opinion against Moscow.

Polls in European countries have indicated more people want an end to the war as they foot the bill for their government spending on a conflict that has seen inflation hit record levels on the continent. 

TAGS

• NATO
 
• Germany
 
• Ukraine
 
• Russia
 
• U.S.
 
• Ukraine War

Hegmataneh ensemble one step closer to being World Heritage

TEHRAN – Iran has recently submitted an all-inclusive dossier on Hegmataneh ensemble and historical core of Hamedan to the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization amid hopes to win a UNESCO status for the summer residence for Achaemenid kings, the deputy tourism minister has said. 

In addition to Hegmetaneh, the dossier includes the historical bazaar of Hamedan, the mausoleum of Bu-Ali Sina (Avicenna), and other historical streets in this region, CHTN quoted Ali Darabi as saying on Tuesday. 

He also expressed hope that the global registration of Hegmataneh will be completed as soon as possible with the participation of all Hamadan residents and local officials.

Last May Hamedan’s tourism chief announced that a working group has been formed to identify, investigate and solve potential problems in the path of possible registration of Hegmataneh in the UNESCO World Heritage list.

Moreover, Hamedan authorities are ready to take preliminary measures to pave the way for the global registration of Hegmataneh and prepare it to be assessed by UNESCO evaluators, he said.

Last year, a traffic fellow related to a nearby steel marketplace was declared as one of the major barriers faced with the possible registration based on UNESCO criteria.

Known in classical times as Ecbatana, the ensemble, which partly overlaps with modern Hamedan, was once one of the world’s greatest cities of ancient times. Pitifully little remains from antiquity, but significant parts of the city center are given over to excavations, and there’s a scattering of historical curiosities. 

Ecbatana is widely believed to be once a mysterious capital of Medes. According to ancient Greek writers, the city was founded in about 678 BC by Deioces, who was the first king of the Medes.

French Assyriologist Charles Fossey (1869 – 1946) directed the first excavation in Tepe Hegmateneh for six months in 1913. Erich Friedrich Schmidt (1897 – 1964), who was a German and American-naturalized archaeologist, took some aerial photos from Hamedan between 1935 and 1937.

According to the Greek historian Xenophon of Athens (c.430-c.355), Ecbatana became the summer residence of the Achaemenid kings. Their palace is described by the Greek historian Polybius of Megalopolis. He writes that the city was richer and more beautiful than all other cities in the world; although it had no wall, the palace, built on an artificial terrace, according to Livius, a website on ancient history written and maintained since 1996 by the Dutch historian Jona Lendering.

Furthermore, an inscription unearthed in 2000 indicates that Achaemenid king Artaxerxes II Mnemon (404-358) built a terrace with columns in Ecbatana. Some twelve kilometers southwest of Hamedan is Ganjnameh, where Darius I and his son Xerxes had inscriptions cut into the rock.

Polybius, a Greek historian of the Hellenistic period noted for his work The Histories, tells that the builders used cedar and cypress wood, which was covered with silver and gold. The roof tiles, columns, and ceilings were plated with silver and gold. He adds that the palace was stripped of its precious metals in the invasion of the Macedonian king Alexander the Great and that the rest was seized during the reigns of Antigonus and Seleucus. Later, Ecbatana was one of the capitals of the Seleucid and the Parthian Empires, sometimes called Epiphaneia.

Around 1220 Hamedan was destroyed by the Mongol invaders. In 1386 it was sacked by Timur (Tamerlane), a Turkic conqueror, and the inhabitants were massacred. It was partly restored in the 17th century and subsequently changed hands often between Iranian ruling houses and the Ottomans.

TAGS

• Hegmataneh ensemble
 
• UNESCO World Heritage
 
• UNESCO status

Tehran to host first G5 blood transfusion organizations meeting

TEHRAN - The first meeting of the blood transfusion organization of G5 countries, namely Iran, Afghanistan, Iraq, and Pakistan plus the World Health Organization, will be held in Tehran on February 14-15.

In this line, a coordination session was held on Monday with the participation of representatives of the blood transfusion organizations of Iraq, Pakistan, and Afghanistan, the ambassadors of the mentioned countries, and the representative of the World Health Organization in Iran.

During the meeting, Jaffar Hussain, the World Health Organization representative to Iran, said: “In my meeting with Dr. Tedros [Adhanom Ghebreyesus], the director-general of the World Health Organization, he encouraged the group of five to boost cooperation and called other countries to follow this model of cooperation in different regions.”

This cooperation program is very effective at border points and controls the spread of disease from one country to another, he added.

Regional health plans

Health Minister Bahram Einollahi said in October 2022 that considering specialized and experienced human resources, advanced medical facilities, and equipment, Iran can cooperate with the member countries of the World Health Organization to implement regional health plans.گرش

He made the remarks on the sidelines of the 69th session of the Regional Committee for the Eastern Mediterranean in Cairo, Egypt on October 10-13.

Ensuring health and controlling pandemics requires the cooperation of all countries, especially neighboring countries, and if any country wants to provide its own health without considering this necessity, it will not be successful, Einollahi stated.

Iran has specialized and experienced human resources, advanced medical facilities and equipment, medicines, and efficient universities, and while preparing to cooperate with the member countries of the World Health Organization, it can implement many plans of the G5.

Ahmed al-Mandhari, the World Health Organization director for Eastern Mediterranean Region, also expressed hope that the cooperation of this group will be expanded and accelerated, especially from the border points.

He announced the readiness of the Eastern Mediterranean Regional Office for technical support to Group Five in the field of health and requested to use the experiences of this group.

Aamer Ikram, the Executive Director of the National Institute of Health Pakistan, also mentioned the cooperation of the G5 should become a suitable model for the Eastern Mediterranean countries.

There are many capacities in the member countries of the group of five, especially Iran, and these countries should use each other's capacity, he stated.

Iran initiated the establishment of the G5 in 2005 to promote subregional cooperation in health among the group of four countries – Afghanistan, the Islamic Republic of Iran, Iraq, and Pakistan – plus the World Health Organization as the fifth member of this group to provide technical support in improving this collaboration.

Several activities have already been taken under this initiative, with the Islamic Republic of Iran taking responsibility for serving as its secretariat.

In June 2021, Ahmed al-Mandhari, the World Health Organization director for Eastern Mediterranean Region, said the Islamic Republic of Iran is a role model for primary health care.

For the past four decades, its PHC network has aimed to ensure that people have timely access to affordable, accessible, and acceptable essential health services, he explained.

Blood transfusion achievements

According to the reports provided by the World Health Organization, Iran competes with Europe and the U.S. in blood donation indices, even outpacing them in one or two cases.

Meanwhile, Iran is among the countries of the Eastern Mediterranean region as a reference in the field of blood donation activities.

While blood donation in 70 countries still depends on replacement or paid donors, Iran is the first country in the region that has enjoyed voluntary blood donation by 100 percent since 2007.

More than 85 percent of all donated blood worldwide is used to produce blood products, while the rate is 65 percent in Eastern Mediterranean countries. Iran ranks among the highest-income countries in terms of converting more than 97 percent of the blood donated by people to plasma-derived medicinal products (PDMP).

Only 55 of 171 countries produce PDMP through the fractionation of plasma collected in the reporting country. A total of 90 countries reported that all PDMPs are imported, 16 countries reported that no PDMP was used during the reporting period, and 10 countries did not respond to the question, according to WHO.

Iran currently has the highest blood donation rate in the Eastern Mediterranean region, so out of 9.9 million blood donation units in this region, more than two million belongs to Iran.

Also, the index of blood donation is 25 per 1,000 populations, while in the member states of the Eastern Mediterranean region, this number is 14.9 per 1000. Over 2.1 million Iranians donate blood annually.

TAGS

• Iran
 
• Tehran
 
• blood transfusion

EU’s Anti-Russian Security Mission in Karabakh

Alwaght- Armenia-Azerbaijan tensions in recent months over the mountainous region of Nargo-Karabakh and Baku’s blockade of Lachin Corridor have brought the foreign powers in this tense region. Although regional countries have repeatedly said that meddling of other actors would not contribute to solution of the decades-long crisis, the European Union is seizing the opportunity to fish in troubled waters. In recent days, the EU announced that it would resume its civilian mission on the border of Armenia to increase boost its awareness of the current situation and help stabilize the two countries’ borders. 

The mission, as European leaders have claimed, is meant to promote stability in the border areas of Armenia and try to normalize relations between the two neighbors. The focus of this mission in Armenia is trust building, monitoring and security for the people, informed sources said. The new mission , officially called the EU Mission in Armenia (EUMA), consists of 100 troops, mainly police officers, sent by EU countries. This operational mission is scheduled to be two-year-long and is to be coordinated by February 20. 

The EU observation mission officially covers the entire territory of Armenia, but diplomats say the focus should clearly be on the border region. This decision was taken at the meeting of the European Union last week and after the end of the two-month mission period of the previous peace unit. 

The troop deployment comes at the behest of Yerevan officials, who believe that they are alone against Baku and need European allies to claim their rights and maintain territorial integrity against Azerbaijan. This new EU border monitoring mission is largely based on an initiative presented by France, which is trying to play a more active role in the contentious region. 

European move to Russia’s south 

The new European mission comes under the guise of peace and stability but it has hidden goals behind it. After war in Ukraine began, European countries have tried to deal blows to Russia in any region, and the South Caucasus is one of these regions that Westerners have invested in for their anti-Russian agenda. As the guarantor of the 2020 agreements between Baku and Yerevan, Moscow was supposed to deploy about 5,000 peacekeepers in the Karabakh region to prevent rejuventuted tensions between the two neighbors, and at first it managed to establish relative stability, but with the start of Ukraine war and active involvement in this massive conflict, Moscow withdrew its forces and reduced its commitments in Karabakh, and this provided a good opportunity for the EU to take advantage of the security vacuum created in the Caucasus and develop its plans with the aim of dealing blows to Moscow. 

Within the format of Minsk Agreements of 1992, the EU in the past years played an important role in Caucasus developments, but as the tensions between Azerbaijan and Armenia eased, this political format was put aside and the Europeans were left devoid of a role playing in this region. But renewed tensions and then war in Karabakh and also Ukraine motivated the Europeans to push for restored role in this Karabakh case. 

The presence of European forces on Armeniaian border provides the ground for the EU to closely monitor Russia’s movements and obtain a lot of information about its actions. On the other hand, the presence of the Europeans in South Caucasus recuperates the Russian sensitivity to this region and engages part of its energy with it. Actually, inducing Russian focus on the disputed region is the scenario the US and EU are seeking, mainly with the aim of weakening the Russian on the Eastern European front lines. 

Having in mind that Armenia is unhappy with Russia and in the past months separated ways from this country, Yerevan’s attraction to the Western camp can help boost the US and EU foothold in Caucasus. As a member of the Russian-led Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), Armenia hoped that the military organization would take a firm stance against Baku and offer military assistance to Yerevan, but Armenian officials were frustrated to see CSTO’s inaction. Even with the bloc’s silence, Baku grew more audacious to advance its plans, to the extent that in a move drawing criticism, Azerbaijan blocked Lachin Corridor, the only road linking Armenia to Karabakh. Europeans are trying to build presence in Karabakh to back Armenia. 

The Europeans closeness to Armenia has proven worrisome to Azerbaijan which announced that it is monitoring the EU mission in Armenia and demanded that this mission should not be abused to damage the normalization of relations with Yerevan. Emphasizing that the European mission should not be an excuse for Armenia to renege on commitments, Baku said that the abuse of the presence of the European Union against the current dialogue mechanisms is a harmful issue that should be avoided. 

Russian anger with European moves 

Although the EU is rushing to build influence in South Caucasus exploiting the Russian involvement in Ukraine, Moscow is carefully monitoring the movements of the West in its vicinity and will not allow them to run rampant in the region. The Russian government considers the presence of EU forces in Armenia as interference in its sphere of influence. Russia has said the European Union is trying to undermine peace efforts and expand its influence at Moscow’s expense. 

In order to stop European movements in South Caucasus, Russia has announced that it is ready to send troops to Karabakh within CSTO framework. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov criticized the Armenian government’s approach to the deployment of European forces in the region, saying: “Any presence of the European Union in the region will have an opposite effect.” 

Since the beginning of the Nagorno-Karabakh crisis in 1992, Moscow has played as a mediator between Armenia and Azerbaijan and opposed foreign interventions in the South Caucasus. Moscow considers the republics of the Caucasus and Central Asia to be its backyard and deems presence of the West in these areas is a danger to its interests and security, and for this reason, it has repeatedly warned against NATO expansion eastward. Although Russia has reduced its presence in the Caucasus and is focusing more on Ukraine, it will not remain silent to the Western presence on its southern borders, just as the war on Ukraine was waged by Moscow to eliminate NATO threats from its western borders. 

The Russians argue that Karabakh problems need to be settled by the involved countries and their neighbors and there is no need for foreign actors. After all, wherever the Westerners get involved, they bring more insecurity and instability. 

The presence of European security mission in Armenia which is aimed at providing unilateral support to Yerevan can flare up Azerbaijan-Armenia tensions, since Azerbaijan leaders do not intend to walk back from their controversial plans and, indeed, in this case the foreign pressures would deliver the reverse. Additionally, Russia and Turkey as influential actors in Karabakh do not tolerate the West in the dispute region and would not stay silent to these adventures.