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Media Summary

Israel-Jordan lease agreement ends

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BBC News and Reuters report that King Abdullah II of Jordan has announced the end of a 25 year lease agreement created in the 1994 Israel-Jordan peace treaty enabling Israeli farmers to cultivate land in Naharayim and Tzofar – known as Baqura and Ghamr in Arabic.

BBC News, the Independent and Sky News report that Iranian President Hassan Rouhani has confirmed that a new oil field that would increase Iran’s proven reserves by about a third has been discovered. The field, in the south-western province of Khuzestan and about 2,400 sq km (926 sq miles) in area, contains 53 billion barrels of crude.

The Guardian reports that the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Mark A. Milley has confirmed that approximately 500 to 600 US troops will remain in Syria to counter IS. President Donald Trump recently approved an expanded US military mission to secure oil fields across eastern Syria, contradicting his own pledge to bring them home.

Reuters reports that eight people have been killed in a bombing in north-east Syria. The Turkish defence ministry said the bombing, which it blamed on the Kurdish YPG militia, took place southeast of Tel Abyad.

The Guardian reports that an ambulance on its way to rescue people wounded in a Turkish airstrike has been damaged in a bombing, in the latest of what Kurdish groups say is a pattern of attacks against medical staff in north-eastern Syria.

The Guardian reports that Syrian Democratic Council President Ilham Ahmed has accused the UK of being invisible in its condemnation of the Turkish invasion in Syria, saying it appeared unwilling to offend Ankara because it feared isolation after Brexit.

The Times reports that the UN has accused Iraq of creating a climate of fear as it breaks up protest sit-ins across the country using live ammunition. Police and other security forces including Iran-backed militias operating have been attempting to close down weeks of protest.

Reuters reports that the US has called on the Iraqi government to stop using violence against protesters, reform its electoral system and hold early elections, after weeks of unrest in which security forces have killed nearly 300 protesters. Reuters reports that Iraqi forces have killed three anti-government protesters in the southern city of Nassiriya on Sunday.

In the Independent, Patrick Cockburn explains “how Tehran-backed forces are taking over in Iraq”: “Protests represent the biggest threat to the Iraqi political establishment since Isis was advancing on Baghdad”.

The Independent reports that experts have warned that the Trump administration’s maximum pressure campaign against Iran will fail.  “Iranian leaders have calculated that gradual withdrawal from the terms of the JCPOA will force Europe to come to Tehran’s rescue with sanctions relief,” says Nader Hashemi, director of the Centre for Middle East Studies at the University of Denver.

Reuters reports that Iran has rejected reports that the International Atomic Energy Agency found traces of uranium at an Iranian site that Israel called a “secret atomic warehouse”.

Reuters reports that the UAE has called on Iran to come to the negotiating table with world powers and Gulf countries to seek a new deal that would deescalate regional tensions and revive its economy.

BBC News, the Guardian, Times, FT and Reuters report that Saudi Aramco has published details about its planned stock market flotation. The company’s long-awaited prospectus said individual retail investors will have a chance to buy shares as well as big institutions. But the 600-page prospectus did not say how much of the Saudi firm would be sold, nor the date of the listing.

Reuters reports that US National Security Adviser Robert O’Brien has stated that US is “very upset” about Turkey’s purchase of Russian missile defence systems and could impose sanctions on Ankara if it does not “get rid” of them.

The Times reports that a senior British officer has been dismissed as military adviser to Jordan because he had become “too close” to King Abdullah II and had too much political influence. Brigadier Alex Macintosh has returned to the UK after five years in Amman.

An FT investigation reveals Russia is an important destination for the Syrian regime’s money: “Assad, his cousins and a Moscow skyscraper”.

Reuters reports that Iran has stated that the location of former FBI agent Robert Levinson, missing since visiting Iran’s Kish Island in 2007, remain unknown, and it denied a report that Tehran had opened a criminal case against him.

In the Guardian, Oliver Holmes and Sufian Taha examine Jerusalem’s “love neighbourhood”: “a refuge for star-crossed Palestinians”.

In the Independent, Ahmed Aboudouh maintains that “as Saudi Arabia grows desperate, this could be the beginning of the end of the war in Yemen”.

In the Independent, Abdel Bari Atwan argues that “the assassination of Bin Laden was fatal for al-Qaeda, but Baghdadi’s death could breathe new life into Isis”.

In the Independent, Richard Hall writes that “in Lebanon, a woman’s place is leading the revolution”: “In a political system where women are chronically underrepresented, women are making themselves heard in the streets”.

The Daily Mail reports that Razzouk Tattoo in Jerusalem is the oldest tattoo shop in the world, having been tattooing Christian pilgrims since 1300.

In Sky News, Deborah Haynes contends that “NATO is under strain, but it is not ‘brain dead’”.

In Sky News, Mark Stone reports that a new “mini caliphate” has formed at a Syrian holding camp: “As refugees who fled the group now live alongside IS women, the camp is the perfect incubator for the reformation of the group”.

Netanyahu and Rabin family spar during memorial ceremonies: All the Israeli media report that Yitzhak Rabin’s grandson and Benjamin Netanyahu exchanged public barbs during state memorial ceremonies marking 24 years since Rabin’s assassination. Yonatan Ben Arzi, speaking for the Rabin family, said in a speech on Mount Herzl: “The many years in power have made you forget what it means to be human….If you have been blemished—move aside, step down from your position. Go home and deal with the personal allegations against you. If cleared—you can come back, as Yitzhak Rabin did.” Ben Arzi, continuing to allude to Netanyahu, adding: “If you continue to cling to separatism over unity, and to drag us deep into another election campaign of hatred, incitement and destroying democracy, the citizens of Israel will punish you.” Netanyahu appeared visibly angry during the speech and, later in the day during a Knesset speech, responded: “Unfortunately, this year too, there were those who decided to exploit the memorial on Mt. Herzl in order to lash out politically in a callous and embarrassing manner, which above all demeans the memory of Yitzhak Rabin.”

Polls show limited support for minority government: A poll commissioned by Israel Army Radio showed that 59 per cent of the Israeli public oppose the formation of a government with the support of the Joint (Arab) List. Even amongst Blue and White voters, only 52 percent supported such a move (with 44 percent opposed). 82 per cent of right-wing voters opposed the move, with 62 per cent of centre-left voters supportive.

Security forces injured during riot at Yitzhar settlement: Six Israeli police officers sustained light injuries after being attacked by settlers near the Yitzhar settlement in the northern West Bank yesterday, Kan Radio reported. Police and Border Police forces were at the site to arrest a local activist for violating a restraining order to stay away from the settlement. The activist chained himself to a heavy piece of metal. As the officers worked to release him, dozens of activists threw stones and bottles at the security forces. This was only the latest violent incident against police and soldiers by Yitzhar settlers over the past two months. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called for an immediate halt to the violence against the security forces and for the law to be respected. “IDF soldiers and Border Police forces, which guard us all, must be allowed to carry out their work” he said.