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HTS to ‘shrink the state’ through privatization and civil servant sackings

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Syria’s new Islamist leaders are embarking on a radical overhaul of the country’s economy, including plans to sack a third of public sector workers and privatize state-owned companies that dominated under the Baath Party and the Assad’s.

The first sackings began just weeks after the ouster of Bashar al-Assad on December 8, while the pace of the announced crackdown “against waste and corruption” has triggered protests by government employees, including fears of a “sectarian purge of jobs,” Reuters reported by Riham Alkousaa.

Reuters spoke to five ministers in the interim government formed by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), all of whom described the broad scope of plans to “downsize the state.” They said this included the elimination of a large number of “ghost employees” (people who allegedly received salaries for doing little or nothing under Assad).

Reuters lends support to the sectarian narrative, arguing that under Hafez and Bashar al-Assad, Syria was organized as a “militarized, state-led economy that favored an inner circle of allies and family members, with members of the Alawite sect of the family heavily represented in the public sector.”

107 state-owned companies to be divested

HTS’s economy minister, 40-year-old former energy engineer Basil Abdel Hanan, told Reuters that there was a major shift towards a “competitive free market economy.”

The government under “interim president” Abu Mohammed al-Jolani (Ahmed al-Shara) will work to privatize state-owned industrial companies, which Hanan said total 107, most of which are loss-making.

Hanan promised to keep “strategic” energy and transport assets in public hands but did not name the companies to be sold. Syria’s main industries include oil, cement, and steel.

Finance Minister Mohammad Abazeed said in an interview that some state-owned companies existed only to embezzle funds and would be closed down. Abazeed said, “We expected corruption, but not this much.”

Half of the civil servants may be sacked

Abazeed said that based on a preliminary examination, only 900,000 of the 1.3 million people on the state payroll actually showed up for work.

“That means there are 400,000 ghost names. Eliminating them would save considerable resources,” Mr. Abazeed said.

Administrative Development Minister Mohammad Alskaf, who oversees public sector staffing, went further, telling Reuters that the state would need between 550,000 and 600,000 employees, less than half the current number.

Abazeed said that the reforms, which also aim to grant amnesty for penalties and simplify the tax system, aim to remove obstacles and encourage investors to return to Syria.

HTS’s goal is familiar: Reduce bureaucracy, boost exports

“So factories inside the country can serve as a launching pad for global exports,” said Abazeed, who was an economist at Al-Shamal private university before serving as a treasury official in the HTS stronghold of Idlib in 2023.

Since 2017, HTS has been attracting investment and the private sector in Idlib “with less bureaucracy and pressure on hardline religious groups,” according to Reuters.

The new government hopes for a nationwide increase in foreign and domestic investment to create new jobs as Syria rebuilds after 14 years of conflict, three ministers told Reuters.

However, for HTS to replicate the “Idlib model,” it will have to overcome a wide range of challenges, notably international sanctions that severely hamper foreign trade.

The question of the legitimacy of al-Jolani’s government could be raised

Maha Katta, Resilience and Crisis Response Specialist for Arab Countries at the International Labour Organisation, said the economy is currently not in a position to create enough private jobs.

Katta said, “I’m not sure it’s really a wise decision,” adding that restructuring the public sector “makes sense” but questioning whether it should be a top priority for a government that needs to revive the economy first.

While recognizing the imperative for interim leaders to act quickly to get the country under control, some critics see the scale and pace of the planned changes as overreaching.

Aron Lund of the Middle East-focused think tank Century International said, “They talk about a transition, but they are making decisions as if they were a legitimately constituted government.”

Islamist government to administer neoliberal ‘shock therapy’

Economy Minister Hanan said economic policy would be designed to manage the consequences of rapid market reforms to avoid the chaos of recession and unemployment that followed the “shock therapy” imposed on post-Soviet countries in Europe in the 1990s.

Mr. Hanan said, “The aim is to balance private sector growth with support for the most vulnerable.”

The government has announced a 400% increase in civil servant salaries, currently around $25 a month, starting in February. It is also mitigating the impact of layoffs through severance pay or by asking some workers to stay at home while needs are assessed.

Hussein El Khatib, Director of Health Facilities at the Ministry of Health said, “We are saying to the employees who are hired just to get a salary: please take your salary and sit at home, but let us do our job.”

Discontent Among Public Laborers Grows

But discontent among workers is growing. Workers have been showing Reuters lists circulating in the labor and trade ministries, which have scaled back Assad-era employment programs for former soldiers who fought alongside the government in the war.

One of these veterans, Mohammed, told Reuters he was dismissed from his data entry job at the labor ministry on January 23 and given three months’ paid leave. Mohammed said 80 other former fighters had received the same notice, which he shared with Reuters.

Responding to questions from Reuters, the labor ministry said that “due to administrative inefficiencies and implicit unemployment” some employees had been placed on three months’ paid leave to assess their work situation, after which their status would be reviewed.

The plans sparked protests in January in cities such as Daraa in southern Syria and Latakia on the coast.

Daraa Health Directorate employees carried banners reading “No to arbitrary and unjust dismissals” during a demonstration attended by dozens of people.

Demonstrator Adham Abu Al-Alaya said he fears losing his job. He says he supports the elimination of ghost labor but rejects the allegation that he or his colleagues are being paid for doing nothing. He was hired in 2016 to manage records and pay bills.

Abu Al-Alaya said, “My salary helps me meet my basic needs, such as bread and yogurt,” adding that he also works another job to make ends meet.

He said, “If this decision is implemented, unemployment will increase across society, which is something we cannot afford.”

Middle East

Houthis respond to Israel’s ‘Black Flag’ operation with missile and UAV attacks

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The Ansar Allah movement (Houthis) in Yemen announced that it has launched a series of “precision” missile and unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) attacks in response to Israel’s intensive overnight airstrikes across the country, codenamed “Operation Black Flag.”

A statement released by the Houthis declared, “In response to these attacks and as part of our support for the oppressed Palestinian people, the Missile Force and Air Force carried out a joint military operation using a total of 11 missiles and UAVs.”

The statement specified that ballistic missiles targeted Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv, the Port of Ashdod, and a power plant in Ashkelon, while the Port of Eilat was struck by eight UAVs.

The Houthis also reported that they engaged Israeli warplanes with domestically produced air defense systems, “forcing some enemy warplanes to withdraw from Yemeni airspace before they could carry out their attacks.”

Following the Israeli strikes, the Houthis announced early in the morning that they had entered a state of “the highest level of military readiness.” The announcement included the following remarks:

“The Yemeni Armed Forces assure our people and the free people of our nation: We are fully prepared to confront the aggressors with all our might. These attacks will neither intimidate us nor weaken our military capabilities. Our support operations for Gaza and Palestine will continue at full speed, and we will protect our country and our people, with God’s permission.”

Approximately two hours later, the Israeli military claimed that two ballistic missiles had been launched from Yemen. It was reported that an interception attempt was made and the results are still “under review.” So far, there has been no official statement regarding casualties or damage. Israel did not acknowledge any other claims regarding missiles or UAVs.

Israel launches ‘Operation Black Flag’

Shortly before the attacks, Israeli jets issued evacuation warnings for Yemen’s Ras Isa, Hodeidah, and Salif ports, as well as the Hodeidah power plant. Subsequently, the Israeli military announced that it had carried out attacks on these areas, with 20 fighter jets dropping more than 50 bombs.

The Israeli government stated that the attack marked the beginning of a new military operation against Yemen, which it has named “Operation Black Flag.”

Israel also announced that it had targeted the vessel Galaxy Leader, which was seized by the Houthis in November 2023. The Israeli military alleged that the Houthis had installed a radar system on the ship to monitor maritime traffic in the region, using it for the “activities of the terrorist Houthi regime.”

Attack on a ship in the Red Sea

Hours before the strikes, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) reported that a Liberian-flagged, Greek-owned merchant vessel named Magic Seas was attacked in the Red Sea. No group has claimed responsibility for the attack.

Although Yemen has not conducted attacks affecting international shipping in recent months, it has intensified its ballistic missile strikes against Israel.

The Tel Aviv administration had hardened its rhetoric toward Yemen in recent weeks. Following the downing of a missile launched from Yemen by Israel on July 1, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz stated, “Yemen will now be treated like Tehran. Whoever raises a hand against Israel, that hand will be cut off.”

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Seymour Hersh claims US attack on Iran was misrepresented by media

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Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative journalist Seymour Hersh has alleged that the US airstrike on Iran’s nuclear facilities on June 22 was successful, setting back Tehran’s nuclear ambitions for years, contrary to initial media reports.

Hersh stated that the portrayal of the attack as a failure was based on an incomplete report leaked to media organizations driven by animosity toward President Donald Trump.

He noted that outlets such as CNN and MSNBC based their reports, which claimed the strike failed to achieve its primary objective, on an analysis purportedly from the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA).

However, Hersh clarified that there was no complete DIA analysis. The leaked document was, in fact, an initial “after-action report” prepared by the US Central Command (CENTCOM) following the operation.

‘Media reports were politically motivated leaks’

Citing a US official involved in planning the attack, Hersh wrote that this initial report was summarized and leaked for “political purposes” with the aim of immediately casting doubt on the operation’s success.

“The first reports even suggested that Iran’s nuclear program was unaffected by the attack,” Hersh commented.

He recalled that the operation involved seven US B-2 Spirit bombers taking off from their base in Missouri, each armed with two 30,000-pound bunker-buster bombs, to target the Fordo nuclear facility, which is hidden deep inside a mountain 20 miles north of Qom.

‘The real target was Isfahan’

According to Hersh, the planning for the attack began with the knowledge that the main operational area at Fordo was located at least 260 feet below the rocky surface. The gas centrifuges operating there were enriching uranium to 60% purity, not the 90% weapons-grade level.

Hersh stated that the US Air Force planning group received intelligence before the attack, likely through Israeli sources, that more than 450 pounds of enriched gas stored at Fordo had been moved to Isfahan, 215 miles south of Tehran. He emphasized that Isfahan housed the only facility capable of converting enriched gas into highly enriched metal—a critical first step in making a bomb.

“Isfahan was a separate target in the attack on Fordo and was leveled by Tomahawk missiles fired from a US submarine operating in the Gulf of Aden off the coast of Yemen,” Hersh wrote.

The journalist underscored that even if the centrifuges at Fordo survived the attack, Iran could not produce a nuclear bomb without the Isfahan facility.

‘The glass is half full’

The American official who briefed Hersh said the planners’ first question was, “How big was the actual working area at Fordo?”

The official explained that the area was estimated to be about the size of two hockey rinks (34,000 square feet) and that the bombs carried by the B-2s were more than powerful enough to destroy it.

Referring to the bunker-buster bombs, the official stated, “The bombs made their own holes. We created a 30,000-pound steel dart.”

The official highlighted that the absence of any radioactive traces in the area after the attack was the most significant evidence that the enriched uranium had been moved to Isfahan before the operation.

The official, noting that the operation, codenamed “Midnight Hammer,” also struck another facility in Natanz, remarked, “The Air Force hit everything on the list. Even if Iran rebuilds some centrifuges, they will need Isfahan. Without it, they have no conversion capability.”

When Hersh asked, “So why isn’t the public being told about the operation’s success?” the official replied, “There will be a top-secret report on all of this, but we don’t tell people how hard we work. We tell the public what we think they want to hear.”

The official clarified that the goal of the attack was not to “completely annihilate” Iran’s nuclear program but to prevent it from building a nuclear weapon in the near term.

The official explained the situation with an analogy:

“Annihilation means the glass is full. The planning and the results show the glass is half full. For Trump’s critics, the results mean the glass is half empty. The reality is that the glass is half full. The result? A delay of several years and an uncertain future.”

Hersh concluded his article by stating, “This is about a successful US mission that became the subject of much sloppy reporting because of a despised president. It would be a landmark if someone in the mainstream press talked about the double standard that protects Israel and its nuclear umbrella, but that remains a taboo in America.”

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Middle East

Call from the the Nedaye Iranian Party: ‘Let Us Unite Against Israeli Oppression’

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The Nedaye Party, a political party from the reformist camp in Iran, issued a letter calling on more than 100 political parties and international organizations worldwide to unite in condemning Israel’s attacks.

Presenting itself as a “young, reformist, and peace-loving” political party, the Nedaye Iranian Party released a letter addressing more than 100 global political parties and international organizations across five continents, regarding Israel’s attacks on Iran and especially its war crimes committed against civilians, children, women, and peace-loving civil activists in Gaza.

The letter, signed by the Secretary-General of the party, Seyed Shahabeddin Tabatabaei, proposed the formation of a global coalition capable of taking serious measures against the spread of violence and threats to global peace.

The letter suggested that anti-war and peace-loving political parties cooperate to unite against Israel’s aggression and war crimes. The concrete proposals were listed as follows:

1- Officially, firmly and publicly condemn the recent Israeli attack on Iran.

2- Pressure your governments to stop military, intelligence and technological cooperation with this regime.

3- Support the referral of these crimes to the International Criminal Court (ICC) and the initiation of legal proceedings against its officials.

4- Demand that the competent UN bodies conduct independent, transparent and impartial investigations into these attacks.

5- Actively participate in launching international awareness campaigns to expose the dimensions of these crimes.

6- Hold partisan and international meetings to coordinate political and legal measures against the Zionist regime.

At the end of the letter, the Nedaye Party proposed the formation of an international coalition capable of taking effective and serious steps to oppose the spread of violence and threats to global peace, calling for a “shared stance.” It emphasized that organizing a joint meeting among various parties across the world would be “a first but strategic step on the path to international political solidarity.”

The letter concluded with the following words:

“This is not just a call to issue a statement; it is a call for collective action, for solidarity in defending human dignity, and to prevent the repetition of tragedies that may occur tomorrow in another corner of the world.

The memory of all the innocents lost calls us to a historic responsibility. Let us stand against warmongering and destruction at this critical moment, with unity and determination, and build a more humane world.”

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