Why Is Valentine's Day Banned In Iran?
Plus: Leaks on new IS leader, Deutsche Welle fired journalists for criticizing Israel, five UN workers kidnapped in Yemen, and much more.
Hello readers. Welcome back to Inshallah, your newsletter about news from the Middle East delivered to your inbox every week.
I am Dario Sabaghi, ready to handpick for you the most newsworthy stories of the week. Subscribe to be up to date about the latest development in the Middle East. It's free.
Who will fill Saad Hariri's void in Lebanon?
Before we start jumping into the news of the week, I suggest reading my latest story from Lebanon published on The New Arab. My analysis focuses on how former Prime Minister Saad Hariri's departure from Lebanese politics has left a vacuum within the Sunni political landscape.
ISIS
Although the next leader of the Islamic State group has yet to be announced, New Lines has obtained detailed information about the likeliest candidate to replace Abu Ibrahim al-Qurashi, who blew himself up on Feb. 3 to evade U.S. Special Forces as they raided his house in northern Syria. That person is Bashar Khattab Ghazal al-Sumaidai. New Lines warned that this information should be taken with a grain of salt. However, there are indisputable facts about Sumaidai, his role within the organization, and his credentials. Learn more about al-Sumaidai by reading the full exclusive reporting by Hassan Hassan on New Lines.
Iran
Although Iran banned Valentine's Day over ten years ago, Iranians hugely celebrated the event. The Islamic Republic has officially banned Valentine's Day since 2010, considering it a decadent celebration of love that promotes "degenerate" Western culture and illegitimate relationships. Valentine's Day also coincides with another celebration: the anniversary of the Islamic Revolution in Iran. However, Valentine's Day remains hugely celebrated in Iran, perhaps even more so than in the West. The Islamic Republic's inability to push back against Western influences is particularly evident when parts of Iran's religious constituency themselves celebrate Valentine's Day. Read the story by Kasra Aarabi and Jemima Shelley on New Lines.
Opinions on Israel: criticism or antisemitism?
German public state-owned international broadcaster Deutsche Welle - Arabic service suspended in Dec. 2021, and then fired in Feb. 2022, five employees on charges of alleged antisemitism due to criticism of Israel to prejudice and hatred of Jewish people.
The five employees, Basil al-Aridi, Murhaf Mahmoud, Maram Salem, Farah Maraqa, and Dawood Ibrahim, were investigated after an article published by Sudduetche Zeitung last November "exposed" social media posts and articles they had written for outside publications that allegedly expressed antisemitism and anti-Israeli views. This story highlights how criticism against Israeli policy towards Palestinians is often equated to antisemitism. Read the full reporting by Linah Alsaafin on Al-Jazeera.
Updates: DW-Arabic service fired a further two journalists – Palestinians Yasser Abumuailek and Zahi Alawi – bringing the total to 7 fired in the fallout of DW's antisemitism investigation.
Palestine
Israeli soldiers killed 19-year-old Nehad Amin Barghouti shooting him in the abdomen during confrontations in Nabi Saeleh near Ramallah. Fights broke between Palestinians and Israeli forces at the entrance of Nabi Saleh, where Israeli troops fired live rounds and tear gas canisters towards the crowds. Read more on Al-Jazeera.
Yemen
Suspected al-Qaida militants have kidnapped five UN workers in southern Yemen, Yemeni officials said on Saturday, Feb. 12. The officials said the workers were abducted on Friday, Feb. 11, and taken to an unknown location. They include four Yemenis and a foreigner, they said. Russell Geekie, a spokesperson for the top UN official in Yemen, said: "The United Nations is in close contact with the authorities to secure their release." Tribal leaders said they were negotiating with the abductors to secure the workers' release. They said the abductors demanded a ransom and the release of some militants imprisoned by the internationally recognized government. Read more on The Guardian.
Lebanon-Israel's maritime dispute
Lebanon and Israel are considering a resource swap to divide offshore reserves equitably between the two countries into disputed areas. Following a visit by US Energy Envoy Amos Hochstein to Beirut, a well-informed Lebanese source with knowledge of the negotiations told The New Arab that the current talks are now moving to discuss a resource swap deal than geographical lines to demarcate the contested areas. Lebanon and Israel have been engaged in a maritime dispute for over a decade, with no fixed border between the two countries. Despite on-and-off-again negotiations, no solution has been reached to establish an accepted maritime border between the two, which remain technically in a state of war. Read the full reporting by William Christou on The New Arab.
Syria
Following the Feb. 3 US Special Forces operation that led to the death of Islamic State (IS) leader Abu Ibrahim al-Hashimi al-Qurayshi, jihadis raised questions on the role of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) in Qurayshi's killing. HTS is an active Sunni Islamist militant group involved in the Syrian Civil War. The controversy escalated among jihadis in light of HTS' comments on the raid. Furthermore, they are concerned about the possible coordination between the United States and HTS, which controls Idlib. However, HTS said it did not know that Qurayshi lived in the safe house in the town of Atmeh before his death. Read the story by Khaled al-Khateb on Al-Monitor.
Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia transferred an $80 billion stake in Aramco to the kingdom's sovereign wealth fund, boosting its assets ahead of plans to tap debt markets for the first time. The Aramco deal, which essentially transfers an asset from one government's pocket to another, is the latest move taken to bolster the fund's assets.
Aramco is the world's biggest oil company and is helping finance de facto ruler Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman's plan to transform and diversify the Saudi economy. The crown prince, also chaired by the wealth fund, has outlined a plan to grow its assets under management to about $1.1 trillion by 2025 while investing $40 billion annually into the local economy. Read more on Bloomberg.
Israel-Iran's "toxic relationship"
On Monday, Feb. 14, the Israeli army released a Valentine's Day tweet comparing Iran to a "toxic" partner and warning followers not to enter into toxic relationships.
"Iran takes money from its people and uses it to fund terrorist organizations such as Hezbollah, Hamas, the Palestinian Islamic Jihad and the Houthis," the army wrote on its official Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) account, parodying a list of signs indicating a toxic relationship. "The Iranian regime is toxic to the Middle East." However, the tweet sparked mockery and backlash on Twitter. Read more on The New Arab.
That's all for this week. Thanks for reading Inshallah. Share this article and subscribe to be up to date about news from the Middle East every week. It's free.
About me
My name is Dario Sabaghi, a freelance journalist. I am interested in human rights and international news focusing on the MENA region.
Check out my work at dariosabaghi.com.
You can follow me on Twitter: @DarioSabaghi
Did I miss any important news from the Middle East? DM me on Twitter.
Cover photo: Somayeh Malekian for ABC News