DAILY SCOPE: Houthi to Yemenis: Be Patient and Get Ready
NEWSPAPERS HEADLINES:
AS-SAFIR
Hadi Government from Riyadh: We Reject Iranian Initiative
Increasing Calls for Solutions, Houthi Slams Saudi Arabia
AL-AKHBAR
Houthi to Yemenis: Be Patient and Get Ready
Al-Nusra Front: Our Suicide-Bombers are Coming
AL-BINAA
Houthi: We Will Not Yield to US-"Israeli" -Saudi War, All Options Open
DAILY STAR
Lebanon Resumes Hostage Talks with ISIS
Newspapers on Monday revealed that Lebanon is expected to witness a new wave of terrorist attacks at the time the country still lingers in presidential void. Also, the Saudi-US war on Yemen is still in the spot light, with papers tackling it from the different angles.
New Wave of Extremist Attacks? --- Al-Akhbar
Sources warned to al-Akhbar newspaper that Lebanon is expected to witness a new wave of security attacks by terrorist groups. The sources said that a prominent member of the al-Qaeda-affiliated al-Nusra Front had recently arrived in the country to lead these attacks.
Known as al-Ashaath and aged around 35, the terrorist arrived in Lebanon to head an extremist group aimed at carrying out or coordinating terrorist attacks in the country. Moreover, the sources added that the previous waves of attacks had relied on suicide bombers and booby-trapped vehicles, but the new stage will witness "a radical change" in tactics.
Furthermore, the sources explained "The attackers will not abandon suicide missions, but they will focus more on explosives and 'immersive' operations, because they have a greater impact," adding "there are no restrictions to what can be targeted."
Terror groups had in recent months carried out attacks inside Lebanon, using booby-trapped cars that were smuggled through the Syrian-Lebanese borders. They had also targeted army checkpoints in various regions in the country.
Talks over Swap Deal with ISIS Resumes --- The Daily Star
Negotiations between the Lebanese government and the so-called ISIS militants over the release of captive Lebanese servicemen have resumed after a prolonged stalemate, the families of the hostages said after meeting with Progressive Socialist Party leader Walid Jumblatt and Health Minister Wael Abu Faour over the weekend.
"Abu Faour confirmed that communication with ISIS had resumed after the group appointed a new head in the Qalamoun [region]," Hussein Youssef, spokesman for the families of the captives told The Daily Star after the meeting.
Negotiations between the Lebanese government and ISIS, who are holding at least nine Lebanese servicemen hostage, have been suspended since February, when the leader of an ISIS brigade in Qalamoun was shot dead by a senior official of his own group.
During Saturday's meeting, Abu Faour also said that negotiations with the Nusra Front have progressed the furthest since the soldiers and policemen were captured, Youssef added.
Abu Faour said that "positive developments are expected very soon," in reference to negotiations with the Nusra Front.
The Nusra Front and ISIS have been holding 25 Lebanese soldiers and policemen hostage on the outskirts of the town of Arsal since last August.
US Arms Sales to Gulf Countries Flares Up Yemen Attack--- As-Safir
As-Safr newspaper shed light on the New York Times report, saying that "To wage war in Yemen, Saudi Arabia is using F-15 fighter jets bought from Boeing. Pilots from the United Arab Emirates are flying Lockheed Martin's F-16 to bomb both Yemen and Syria. Soon, the Emirates are expected to complete a deal with General Atomics for a fleet of Predator drones to run spying missions in their neighborhood."
The report had noted that t of the war in Yemen, and taking advantage of that, the result is a boom for American defense contractors looking for foreign business in an era of shrinking Pentagon budgets - but also the prospect of a dangerous new arms race in a region where the map of alliances has been sharply redrawn.
Six Arrested Traveling from US to fight in Syria ---The Guardian
Six arrests have been made in a terrorism investigation into youths who have travelled or tried to travel to Syria to fight with militants, including the so-called Islamic State group, federal authorities told The Guardian.
A spokesman for the US attorney's office said the arrests were made on Sunday in Minneapolis and San Diego and there was no threat to public safety. Spokesman Ben Petok did not give details about the charges. Kyle Loven, spokesman for the Minneapolis office of the FBI, said six people were arrested but gave no further details. An FBI spokesman in San Diego referred questions to Loven.
Authorities said a handful of Minnesota residents have gone to Syria to fight with militants within the last year. At least one has died while fighting for the Islamic State group.
Stances & Positions
Saudi Money Can Buy Countries, UN, but Not Hizbullah --- Hizbullah Media Relations
The deputy head of Hizbullah's Executive Council, Sheikh Nabil Qaouk said that "Saudi money" can buy "countries, the UN Security Council, presidents, princes and ministers" but "cannot purchase Hizbullah's silence."
"Those who are waging an aggression against Yemen today have also mistaken their calculations and approach towards Hizbullah," he said, adding "They were betting on our silence and on neutralizing us, but they failed to realize that we do not fear threats and that we cannot be sold or bought."
Qaouq went on to say "Saudi Arabia can threaten figures, dignitaries, scholars and Arab countries, but it cannot threaten the resistance," reiterating "Their problem with us is that we cannot be bought or sold and we do not fear intimidation. It also lies in the growing role, status and influence of Hizbullah in the region's equations."
Houthi: US Sponsoring War on Yemen --- Agencies
Leader of the revolutionary Ansarullah, Abdul-Malik al-Houthi, condemned Saudi Arabia's military aggression against Yemen, saying that the US is "sponsoring and directing" the attacks on the impoverished country.
"The US is sponsoring the attacks. The US is directing the attacks against Yemen," the Houthi leader said. Houthi described Saudi Arabia's move to target the Yemeni people as "silly and unacceptable," emphasizing that the aggressors, Saudi Arabia, the US and Israel, are killing innocent Yemeni people and are targeting Yemen's infrastructure by destroying mosques, schools, markets, and other places.
"The claims that the attacks are for the sake of the Yemeni people is silly and illogical, the attacks are a justification for killing innocent people."
Source:al-Ahed news
