Arab Spring Winter
• The Jerusalem Post reports more injured Syrian nationals being treated in Israel.
• I don’t believe the Fiji Times intended it, but this headline left me feeling a little icky . . .
• A lot of Arabs are gullible for conspiracy theories, but the Egyptian street’s taking it to a new level. I think they’re connoisseurs of elaborate conspiracy theories, and Mordechai Kedar says its bouncing back at the Muslim Brotherhood:
The second problem that Mursi is confronted with is a piece of information that is spreading all throughout Egypt, which is that the candidate who really won a majority of Egyptian votes in the elections for the presidency was not Mursi, but Shafiq, the competing candidate, but because of demands made by Barack Obama, the president of the United States, General Tantawi, then head of the Supreme Military Council, was pressured into falsifying the results of the elections in favor of the Muslim Brotherhood.
This information has spread throughout Egypt, and many Egyptian citizens believe that it is true, since it fits very well with the conspiracy theory claiming that foreign forces are controlling Egypt for their own gain, and that this is the source of the country’s troubles. People believe this because it correlates with the belief that President Obama is energetically promoting the Muslim Brotherhood as the sort of Islam that the United States can live with.
• AP: Ahead of nationwide anti-government protests, Egyptian security forces cracked down hard on Gaza’s smuggling tunnels. The price of fuel and construction goods have skyrocketed in the strip, but politics is forcing Hamas to keep its head down and mouth shut:
The Egyptian military is known to be wary of Morsi’s close ties to Hamas, viewing it as a threat to Egypt’s public security. The military is bound to play a pivotal role in the current showdown between Morsi and his opponents, with both camps trying to ensure its support. Hamas would undermine Morsi by demanding an end to the Sinai crackdown now.
Rest O’ the Roundup
• Aliyah on hold as Foreign Ministry strike expands
According to Jewish Agency director of aliya Yehuda Sharf, potentially “hundreds” of prospective immigrants worldwide have been told that they must put their travel plans on hold, as Israeli consulates are no longer issuing aliya visas necessary for obtaining citizenship.
• With the Saudis struggle to contain the mysterious MERS virus, international health officials are raising major concerns with this year’s hajj, which falls in October. AFP writes:
Even so, for any respiratory virus the mass gathering of the hajj provides a perfect opportunity to first spread at the two holiest Muslim shrines in the cities of Mecca and Medina, and then travel around the globe at jet speed as pilgrims return home.
• The Wall St. Journal picks up on the newest Iranian sanctions taking effect on Monday.
(Image of Mecca via Flickr/Al Jazeera English)
For more, see Thursday’s Israel Daily News Stream.
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