U.S.-ISRAEL JOINT EXERCISES TO BE HELD THIS MONTH
On October 21st Israel and the U.S. will engage in what will be the two countries’ largest shared military exercise. Lasting just under three weeks, “Austere Challenge 2012” will focus on improving missile defense cooperation between the two countries. The military drill will effectively simulate a war with Iran and Hezbollah, testing Israel’s Iron Dome air defense system as well as US Patriot and Aegis antimissile system capabilities. (Al-Jazeera, October 18, 2012)
EGYPT FEARS SINAI-BASED ATTACK ON ISRAEL
Islamist militants occupying mountainous parts of Sinai disappeared last week, raising fears that an attack against Israeli targets was forthcoming. According to Egyptian security sources a retaliatory strike is likely to be carried out after two popular Palestinian jihadists were killed in Gaza. The missing militant group has been identified as a sleeper cell which resided in Sinai caves. Egyptian authorities are unsure whether the group will attack Israelis vacationing along the Red Sea or strike Israel itself. Despite their diminutive stature in comparison to other jihadists around the Middle East, the Sinai-based militants have plagued Egypt for several years in a region where Egyptian government enjoys little authority. (Asharq Al-Aswat, October 18, 2012)
SAUDI RELIGIOUS POLICE TO GET FEMALE OFFICERS
Saudi Arabia’s head of religious police Sheik Abdul Latif al-Sheikh is seeking women to join the controversial force, a move sure to stir controversy in the Sunni kingdom. Saudi Arabia’s Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice is tasked with enforcing Sharia law throughout the kingdom. Only last week al-Sheikh tightened his grip on his country’s morality police, rescinding the force’s power to interrogate or arrest citizens. The introduction of women into the religious police’s ranks would instantly boost the presence of women in day-to-day life in Saudi Arabia, where they are often not allowed to travel unaccompanied. Al-Sheikh told Saudi newspapers last week that he hopes to start recruiting women from around the country very soon. (BBC News, October 18, 2012)
SYRIA BLOCKING ACCESS TO WESTERN MEDIA
Syria is blocking access to western media television and radio broadcasts throughout the Middle East, according to the BBC and Voice of America. French satellite company Eutelsat, which provides and services the affected media feeds, said that it had tracked a jamming signal back to Syria. The jamming is “deliberate and intermittent,” said the spokeswoman from Eutelsat. According to Deutsche Welle, a German state broadcaster, Iran has jammed its signals before and is providing assistance to Syria. Eutelsat is one of many satellite companies that recently stopped relaying Iranian state television due to the European Union’s new stricter sanctions against the Islamic Republic. (Voice of America, October 19, 2012) A POTENTIALLY HUGE ENERGY FIND IN TAJIKISTAN
Tajikistan may have discovered huge amounts of oil and natural gas under its own soil, a finding that if true, could change the geopolitical landscape in Central Asia for years to come. Tethys Petroleum, the country’s longtime partner in oil exploration, estimated that over 27 million barrels of oil are spread across Tajikistan’s southwestern region. Tethys’ CEO David Robson has declared that Tajikistan has “super-giant potential,” but the Tajik government has yet to publicly comment on the find. Abdugani Mamadazimov, chairman of Tajikistan’s National Association of Political Scientists, believes the government’s silence to be a political calculation: “It’s a geopolitical question—the Kremlin is in control of our energy imports.” Tajikistan recently approved the renewal of a Russian military base for security purposes, granting Russia access to the removal of light oil products from the former Soviet republic. (Eurasianet, October 17, 2012) |