NATO Backs Turkish Intervention at Emergency Meeting

“We stand in strong solidarity with our ally Turkey…to address instability on Turkey’s doorstep and on NATO’s border,” NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg told an emergency meeting of the alliance today. The meeting was convened by Turkey, which cited Article 4 of the NATO charter in calling for consultations with regard to its recent escalation in Syria and crackdown on the Kurdish Workers’ Party (PKK). “At the moment, Turkey has come under attack and is exercising its right to defend itself and will exercise this right until the end,” Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said, “but what we’re saying is that there could be a duty for NATO, and we ask NATO to be prepared for this.” Though NATO reaffirmed its commitment to Turkey’s national security, the European Commission urged Erdogan “to keep the settlement process with the Kurdish people on track.”

Erdogan also spoke on Sunday by phone with Russian President Vladimir Putin about Turkey’s intervention in Syria in advance of the NATO meeting. According to a Kremlin statement, they discussed ways to better cooperate in fighting the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria.

Gaddafi Regime Figures Sentenced in Tripoli Court

Saif al-Islam Gaddafi, son of Muammar Gaddafi, was sentenced to death by firing squad along with eight others in a court in Tripoli, Libya; another 23 former regime officials were sentenced to prison terms. Saif al-Islam appeared at the trial by video link because he is being held by a faction in Zintan that does not recognize the Tripoli government. It is unclear if the sentence will be carried out soon as a result of the political divisions in the country.

Headlines

• Secretaries Kerry, Moniz, and Lew will testify before the House Foreign Affairs Committee this morning to defend the Iran nuclear deal; Secretary Moniz recently said that it would likely take until 2016 before Iran has fulfilled its obligations to implement the agreement.

• An announced humanitarian pause in Yemen’s civil war failed to take hold as violence continued across the country.

• Two Bahraini police officers were killed in a bomb attack in the Shia town of Sitra.

• A new flurry of rumors and political moves within the Palestinian Authority have fueled speculation that President Mahmoud Abbas is considering stepping down this year.

• The Arab League will convene a ministerial-level meeting next month to discuss Israel’s policies with regard to the al-Aqsa mosque, where clashes took place this weekend.

Arguments and Analysis

“The Nuclear Agreement with Iran: Reflections and Forecasts” (Avner Golov and Owen Alterman, editors, Institute for National Strategic Studies)

“The agreement between the world powers and Iran is a very problematic document — a bad agreement for Israel. However it contains some short term achievements: the deal rolls back Iran’s nuclear program so that it is a year away from the bomb, reduces the program’s scope, and imposes an inspection regime that is much more intrusive than the current one, including entrance into military facilities. For at least the next 10 years, the threat of nuclear weapons in Iranian hands has been reduced. Iran has committed itself not to develop nuclear arms even 15 years from now, although given Iran’s past conduct the extent of trust in this commitment is fairly limited. In the mid and long term ranges, the picture is much bleaker.”

“Libya: Flawed Trial of Gaddafi Officials” (Human Rights Watch)

“The trial began in March 2014 and concluded in May 2015. Independent observation of the trial was limited, but information available to Human Rights Watch — including observation notes made available by the United Nations Support Mission to Libya (UNSMIL), which mostly followed the trial remotely, as well as recent discussions with the chief prosecutor, defense lawyers, journalists, family members, and others — strongly suggests that the accused were not afforded meaningful legal representation during the trial. Several defense lawyers told the court that they had been unable to meet with their clients in private while counsel for some of the defendants, including Sanussi and Dorda, changed over the course of the trial. Dorda alleged in court that two lawyers resigned from his defense due to threats, and that a third was prevented by unknown people from representing him. One lawyer representing Sanussi resigned citing medical issues and another undisclosed reason.”

-J. Dana Stuster

STR/AFP/Getty Images