On Friday, King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa of Bahrain officially agreed to recognize the State of Israel in a trilateral phone conversation with US President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
“The EU welcomes the announced establishment of diplomatic relations between the Kingdom of Bahrain and Israel,” the statement, released by the European Council, read.
Brussels acknowledged the role of the United States in facilitating this and a similar landmark agreement between Israel and the United Arab Emirates, describing it as a “positive contribution to peace and stability in the Middle East.”
“The EU recalls its Declaration of 15 August 2020 and its longstanding position that a comprehensive settlement of the Arab-Israeli conflict requires a regional inclusive approach and engagement with both parties. In this regard, the EU remains firm in its commitment to a negotiated and viable two-state solution built upon the internationally agreed parameters,” the statement added.
The European Union reasserted its readiness to support Israel and Palestine in their efforts to resume “meaningful negotiations on all final status issues.”
Bahrain became the fourth Arab country to recognize Israel. The first two were Egypt in 1979 and Jordan in 1994.
On 13 August, Israel and the United Arab Emirates agreed to normalize ties, which among other things entailed Israel giving up its annexation plans in the West Bank. The two countries are planning to sign a variety of agreements for cooperation in investments, tourism, security and other areas in the coming weeks. The US expects other countries of the region to follow the lead.
Palestine has called on fellow Arab nations to reconsider recognizing Israel, which, in turn, has not recognized the Palestinian state.
The United Nations stands by the so-called two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, which means a peaceful coexistence of two sovereign states within mutually acceptable borders.
PARIS — The UN secretary general urged European Union members on Saturday to take in thousands of migrants and asylum seekers who have been left homeless and destitute in Greece after a devastating blaze at a camp.
The Moria facility on the Greek island of Lesbos, which previously housed up to 12,000 people, was destroyed overnight on Tuesday after an apparent arson attack by migrants who have long complained about conditions there.
“It’s an immense tragedy,” UN chief Antonio Guterres told French channel TV5monde in an interview broadcast on Saturday. “In my opinion the only solution is transferring these refugees to the continent and I hope there will be European solidarity.”
The former Portuguese prime minister continued: “You can’t expect the country [Greece] on the frontline to resolve everything. There needs to be shared responsibility within the European Union.”
Tensions rose on Lesbos on Saturday after hundreds of asylum seekers protested after a third night of sleeping rough in doorways and by roads.
Police fired teargas when some of them began throwing stones, an AFP reporter at the scene said.
Efforts in the past to create a quota system for refugees in the EU, which would have seen all members agree to take in migrants from frontline countries such as Greece and Italy, have foundered due to divisions.
Right-wing governments in many member states, particularly in Poland and Hungary, refused to sign up to the scheme.
Ten European Union member states have agreed to take in a total of 400 unaccompanied minors from Lesbos, but rights groups say the response so far has been insufficient.
Guterres welcomed a Franco-German initiative to distribute the minors, but said “we need to go further.”
Stephen Spielberg plans to craft a new version of “West Side Story”
*Editor’s Note: This column originally appeared in the September 9 edition of the Irish Voice newspaper, sister publication to IrishCentral.
By December, you might finally decide to sit in a movie theater and watch a new version of West Side Story, directed by Hollywood heavyweight Steven Spielberg.
At this point, I’m not sure what sounds more depressing: sitting masked and far away from the seven or so other people allowed into this dark movie theater, wondering why the floor is somehow still sticky, struggling to eat popcorn or Goobers. (Damn this mask!)
Or, watching those not-very-scary Sharks and Jets snap their fingers and hop about Manhattan, in a day and age when the streets are teeming with fire, rage, and bros with itchy fingers on automatic weapon triggers.
True, West Side Story wags will tell you that Spielberg is updating this classic. Which means that, at best, this will be a 73-year-old man’s version of what teenage love and gang warfare looks like.
The presidential election is already forcing us to see the world through the eyes of 70-something year-old men. I’m not sure we need a new version of West Side Story along with that.
If Hollywood folks really want to give us a new spin on this old classic, they should go back to the original source material. No, I don’t mean Shakespeare, even though West Side Story is a kind of urban Romeo and Juliet.
I mean the original musical idea. East Side Story. With the star-struck boy as an Irish kid from the Lower East Side.
A new book reminds us that before the Sharks were Puerto Rican and the Jets a motley melting pot of Ellis Island offspring, this musical was going to have very different characters.
Director Jerome Robbins was “the single most essential person in the entire saga of West Side Story,” writes Richard Barrios in the new book West Side Story: The Jets, the Sharks and the Making of a Classic.
By 1948, Barrios adds, Robbins wanted to make a new version of Romeo and Juliet. “The feuding Montagues and Capulets, for example, could have an equivalent in something as timely as the ongoing conflict between Jews and Catholics living on the East Side of Manhattan,” he wrote.
That’s the movie we need right now!
Sure, it might sound a little dated. Barrios himself notes that Robbins, lyricist Stephen Sondheim, and author Arthur Laurents, ran into artistic roadblocks when they realized this material had been mined once or 1,000 times, most famously in the celebrated musical Abie’s Irish Rose.
Still, I think a movie about Catholic and Jewish toughs would hit a whole bunch of key demographics.
First, it would aggravate both liberals and conservatives. For example, it’s a source of great comfort to Fox News viewers that Irish Catholic guys named Hannity get along so swimmingly with Jewish Trump sidekicks like Stephen Miller or Jared Kushner. Let’s see how they feel when they rumble Belfast style!
Meanwhile, liberals would be flummoxed by all these white folks snapping at and stabbing each other. How will they know who to root against?
Finally, think of how uncomfortable this could all get, all of the stereotypes you would either have to avoid, or try to reverse.
The opening scene might have a pub owner named, um, Abraham. And he’s chatting with the beat cop, Yankel, who is over the moon because he just sent his daughter Rebecca to Notre Dame.
But look! Here come those troublemakers Kevin and Patrick, the pickle briners from O’Halloran’s Delicatessen.
Once the pints and knishes start flying, and Patrick and Yankel face off in a fight that is Riverdance-meets-Hava Nagila, this stuff writes itself!
On a separate note, a lot of people in 2020 America could stand a reminder that, unfortunately, racial and ethnic tensions are not exactly new, and not too long ago, immigrants from Ireland and Eastern Europe were the ones packed into poor cities, struggling to make ends meet, fighting each other, griping about ill-treatment at the hands of the police.
The more things change…
One thing — why did the Irish automatically make this an “East Side” story? Ain’t none of these people ever heard of the Westies?
Iranian Ambassador to Brussels Ghoamhossein Dehghani submitted his credentials to the President of the European Council Charles Michel on Saturday.
He had presented his credentials to the President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen three weeks ago.
During the meeting, both sides conferred on various fields including the latest development regarding JCPOA and the necessity to preserve and implement the Nuclear Deal by the Security Council and the JCPOA participants, countering US illegal actions, regional developments, the role of the Islamic Republic in the fight against terrorism, Iran’s readiness to cooperate with regional countries and the EU, and expanding bilateral economic relations.
Charles Michel further emphasized preserving and implementing the Nuclear Deal and stressed the importance of relations between Iran and the EU, noting that friendly regionals ties can ensure peace and security which is also beneficial for the European Union.
THE Anambra State Government in partnership with EU/WHO organised a stakeholders workshop on Public Finance Management Reform, PFMR, guidelines and scoping assessment finding agenda.
The objective of the workshop is to engage the ministry of health and the stakeholders to come up with regular communication and exchange in PFMR activities.
It was also to update on the current PFMR situation in the state ministry of health and consensus on the PFMR situation, including current budget process, capacity building and the electronic systems to adopt.
Vincent Okpala, commissioner for health, said the workshop was aimed at ensuring that stakeholders understood Public Finance Management Reforms for effective healthcare delivery.
“The objective of the PFMR is to strengthen and to improve the efficiency of public health financing in the state through Public Finance Management Reforms, including Programme Based Budgeting, PBB.’’
The idea of the workshop, which was held in Awka was to create a replicable model of PFMR in the health sector and strengthen the existing public finance management system in a more coordinated manner to meet the fiscal and financial policy challenges.
Okpala noted that in 2017, the state government established State Health Insurance Agency, which had been adjudged the best in Nigeria and the efforts are geared toward achieving Universal Health Coverage for people of the state.
He noted that the State Health Financing was one of the six building blocks of the Health System Strengthening, HSS, project and had many areas of which PFMR was the key priority area.
“In 2015, the President signed Memorandum of Understanding, MoU, with EU to be implemented by WHO and to strengthen the health system under the HSS project, which is part of the effort to achieve Universal Health Coverage,’’ he said.
According to him, Nigeria is currently not on track in achieving Universal Health Coverage, UHC.
“The sub-optimal performance of Nigeria’s Health System can be attributed to poor financing of the required investment for delivery and management of health sector.
“EU/WHO, through the State Ministry of Health has started the implementation and the alignment of the Public Finance Management Reform for health in the state.
“A Desk review has been conducted on this by the consultant appointed by WHO of which stakeholders here has been part of the review,’’ he added.
The State Coordinator of WHO, Chukwumuanya Igboekwu, said the workshop was geared toward achieving Universal Health Coverage.
Igboekwu said that the EU/WHO partnership had started to yield positive results.
He assured that the EU/WHO would continue to support the state through the HSS project.
The participants included the Secretary to the State Government, SSG, Prof. Solo Chukwulobelu, the Commissioner for Economic Planning, Mark Okoye, and the Special Adviser to the Governor on Health, Simeon Onyemaechi.
MANCHESTER, England (CNS) — Only a small minority of British Catholics said they would not return to worship in church when the coronavirus pandemic is fully over, according to a new survey.
Just 4% of people interviewed in the study, conducted between May 19 and July 26, said they would abandon going to church when restrictions are finally lifted.
The findings of the poll of 2,500 people by Catholic Voices, a group set up in the U.K. in 2010 to improve communications between the church and the media, contradict the predictions of some Catholics that the COVID-19 crisis would irrevocably accelerate the decline of collective worship among the faithful.
Brenden Thompson, CEO of Catholic Voices, said he was “pleasantly surprised by many of the findings.”
“Catholics miss their parishes and church buildings and seem eager to return, not just content with ‘virtual church,'” he said in a statement.
“Many, it seems, by and large, have backed the bishops, been grateful for the efforts of clergy to livestream, and many have even felt at times closer to God and been more prayerful than usual,” he said.
“That said, the challenges ahead are real, so if we want to capitalize on this goodwill, we need to start thinking seriously about the conversations that need to happen as more and more begin returning to parishes,” he added.
The British study revealed that 93% of those interviewed worshipped by watching Mass online during lockdown via streams provided largely by dioceses and parish churches, and that 66% appreciated the virtual services.
But 61% of those interviewed said they wished to revert to regular Mass attendance when the churches fully reopened, with 35% saying they would worship online only occasionally at that point — if the service remained available.
“It seems that virtual worship during the lockdown has been generally well received,” said the study, published Sept. 9.
“While it may remain something that some people might dip into in the future, few would stop attending church altogether,” it said.
In a statement, Catholic Voices said the study, called “Coronavirus, Church & You,” was intended to explore the experience of the lockdown of both clergy and laity.
It found that 61% agreed that the temporary closure of churches was right. Results showed 80% agreed church buildings were essential to “faith witness” and 84% disagreed with the statement that church buildings were an unnecessary burden and expense.
A total of 53% said they believe the Catholic Church had responded well to the crisis, compared to just 22% who offered the same opinion for the performance of the government.
Nearly two-thirds of Catholics had some contact with clergy during lockdown, the survey found, while exactly half of those interviewed said the crisis made them feel closer to God. More than 50% said the lockdown made them more prayerful.
The survey was carried out by Francis Davis of the University of Birmingham, Andrew Village of York St. John University and Leslie Francis of the University of Warwick.
The draft legislation, currently before the Swiss Parliament, expands the definition of terrorism and no longer requires the prospect of any crime at all, they said, in a plea for a last-minute reversal by legislators.
Citing international standards, the experts defined terrorism as the intimidation or coercion of populations or governments through violence that causes death or serious injury, or the taking of hostages.
Under the bill, “terrorist activity” may encompass even lawful acts aimed at influencing or modifying the constitutional order, such as legitimate activities of journalists, civil society and political activists.
“Expanding the definition of terrorism to any non-violent campaign involving the spreading of fear goes far beyond current Swiss domestic law and violates international standards”, said the experts, all of whom were appointed by the UN Human Rights Council.
“This excessively expansive definition sets a dangerous precedent and risks serving as a model for authoritarian governments seeking to suppress political dissent including through torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.”
Other sections of the draft law have also raised concerns, such as those giving the federal police extensive authority to designate “potential terrorists” and to decide preventive measures against them.
Expertise declined
The rights experts had earlier written to the Swiss authorities, expressing their concerns about the incompatibility of the bill with human rights and international best practices in counter-terrorism. However, no changes were implemented.
“While we recognize the serious security risks posed by terrorism, we very much regret that the Swiss authorities have declined this opportunity to benefit from our technical assistance and expertise on how to combine effective preventive measures with respect for human rights”, they said.
The experts called on Swiss parliamentarians to keep in mind their country’s traditionally strong commitment to human rights, urging them to reject a law which “is bound to become a serious stain on Switzerland’s otherwise strong human rights legacy.”
Role of UN Special Rapporteurs
The five experts are all UN Special Rapporteurs who are mandated to monitor specific country human rights situations or thematic issues in all parts of the world.
They are not UN staff, nor are they paid by the Organization.
The outbreak in Equateur Province emerged in early June and has now spread into another of its 17 health zones, bringing the total number of affected zones to 12. So far, there have been 113 cases and 48 deaths.
“The most recently affected area, Bomongo, is the second affected health zone that borders the Republic of Congo, which heightens the chances of this outbreak to spread into another country”, said WHO Spokesperson, Fadéla Chaib, underlining the need for cross-border collaboration and coordination.
The risk of the disease spreading as far as Kinshasa is also a very real concern for the UN agency. One of the affected areas, Mbandaka, is connected to the capital by a busy river route used by thousands every week.
This is the second Ebola outbreak in Equateur Province and the 11th overall in the DRC, which recently defeated the disease in its volatile eastern region after a two-year battle.
This latest western outbreak first surfaced in the city of Mbandaka, home to more than one million people, and subsequently spread to 11 health zones, with active transmission currently occurring in eight.
The health zones all border each other and cover a large and remote area often only accessible by helicopter or boat.
Managing response logistics in Equateur is difficult as communities are very scattered. Many are in deeply forested areas and reaching them requires travelling long distances.
In some areas, community resistance is also a challenge, Ms. Chaib added.
“We learned over years of working on Ebola in DRC how important it is to engage and mobilize communities. WHO is working with UNICEF in engaging religious, youth and community leaders to raise awareness about Ebola,” she said.
Health workers on strike
The situation has been further complicated by a health worker strike that has affected key response activities for nearly four weeks.
Locally based Ebola responders have been protesting against low salaries as well as non-payment since the start of the outbreak.
Although some activities have resumed, many are still on hold, making it difficult to get an accurate picture of how the epidemic is evolving and which areas need the most attention.
Response ‘grossly underfunded’
WHO and partners have been on the ground since the early days of the outbreak.
More than 90 experts are in Equateur, and additional staff have recently been deployed from the capital, including experts in epidemiology, vaccination, community engagement, infection prevention and control, laboratory and treatment.
Nearly one million travellers have been screened, which helped identify some 72 suspected Ebola cases, thus reducing further spread.
However, the UN agency warned that response is “grossly underfunded”. WHO has provided some $2.3 million in support so far, and has urged donors to back a $40 million plan by the Congolese government.
This latest Ebola outbreak is unfolding amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. As of Friday, there were more than 10,300 cases and 260 deaths across the vast African nation.
While there are several similarities in addressing the two diseases, such as the need to identify and test contacts, isolate cases, and promote effective prevention measures, Ms. Chaib stressed that without extra funding, it will be even harder to defeat Ebola.
Moria fires, COMECE urges action to protect asylum seekers
In the context of the tragedy occurred in the Moria camp (Lesvos) on Tuesday 8 September 2020, the Bishops of the European Union urge the EU institutions and all Member States to act more swiftly and firmly to finally make the relocation of asylum seekers from the Greek islands a reality. Card. Hollerich: “we need to enhance the common EU asylum policy”.
Approximately 13,000 people, including hundreds of unaccompanied minors, fled the overcrowded Moria camp on the Greek island of Lesvos as giant fires roared the area between 8-9 September 2020.
While the Greek authorities and humanitarian organisations, including Caritas Europa and the Community of St. Egidio, are racing to provide the emergency accommodation and aid to the homeless asylum seekers, the President of COMECE, H.Em. Card. Jean-Claude Hollerich SJ, reiterates his call on the EU and its Member States to enhance the common EU asylum policy and fairly relocate the asylum seekers among all EU Member States as soon as possible.
“When I met with the refugees at Moria camp – stated the Cardinal recalling his May 2019 visit together with a Papal delegation – I felt deep despair in the heart of the people. Darkness has come in their heart […]and this is due to our inaction”.
“These people came to Europe for help and we left them as refugees in camps. It is a shame for Europe. What is on fire is not only the camp of Moria, but also the identity of Europe. We cannot claim Europe’s Christian rootsif we let people in the despair”, continued the Head of EU bishops.
In the context of the final phase of the new EU Pact on Migration and Asylum, which shall address, among other issues, the contentious question of distribution of refugees among EU Member States, the Catholic Church in the EU hopes that this predictable tragedy will serve as a wake-up call.
Earlier this year, when the first cases of Covid-19 were detected in the EU, COMECE urged EU and policy-makers to act with responsibility and solidarity, especially with the most vulnerable, including the many asylum seekers residing in camps with high population density.
Built up with a capacity of 3,000 residents, in these last years the Moria camp hosted in wretched conditions between 13,000 and 20,000 people, including more than 4,000 children, pregnant women, elderly and handicapped people.
