JEDDAH: Kuwaitis voted in parliamentary elections on Saturday for the first time since Sheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah became emir in September.

More than 300 candidates, including 29 women, contested 50 seats in the Gulf’s oldest and most outspoken assembly with legislative powers. Results are expected on Sunday.

Campaigning took place mostly on social media and local TV channels because of COVID-19 restrictions. Voters wore masks and gloves, and had their temperature taken before entering polling stations where election officials stood behind glass barriers.

Waiting areas with chairs at least 2 meters apart were set up in the playgrounds of some schools serving as polling stations, the Interior Ministry said.

Prime Minister Sheikh Sabah Al-Sabah toured polling stations and said he was happy with voter turnout and health measures.

He cautioned Kuwaitis against gathering to celebrate when the results are announced.

The main campaign themes included promises to fight corruption and address youth employment, along with debates over freedom of expression, housing, education and the issue of the stateless “bidoon” minority.

“Kuwait needs development. The streets are broken and there is no development and no economy … and coronavirus has affected everything in every way,” said Ibrahim, a government employee, after voting in Kuwait City.

Hoda Al-Hassan, who voted in the Al-Rawda area of the city, said: “We want change, new blood, to encourage the youth. I also hope that the parliament will resolve the issue of the bidoon and that of the demographic imbalance.”

Yousef Ahmed Safar, who voted in Al-Nazha, also hoped for reform.

“We want to improve our situation, including in employment and housing, as well as the issue of combatting corruption,” he said.

Kuwait’s economy, which is worth nearly $140 billion, is facing a deficit of $46 billion this year. A government priority is to overcome parliamentary gridlock on legislation that would allow Kuwait to tap international debt markets.

Kuwaiti analyst Mohammed Al-Dawsari said the emirate may witness a struggle between the new national assembly and the government over economic legislation.

“The people were not satisfied with the performance of the previous parliament, and there are many who are calling for a comprehensive reconciliation between the government and the opposition,” he said.

RAMALLAH: Hundreds of Palestinians attended the funeral on Saturday of a teenager killed in clashes with the Israeli army, defying a curfew imposed on the occupied West Bank to stem the coronavirus.
Ali Ayman Nasr Abu Aliya, 13, died on Friday after he was “shot with live rounds in the stomach” during clashes in the village of Mughayir, north of Ramallah, the Palestinian Health Ministry said.
The boy, whose death drew Palestinian condemnation and was deplored by the UN and the EU, was hit during a protest against the construction of a Jewish settlement.
A funeral cortege joined by hundreds of mourners took the body from a hospital in Ramallah to Mughayir where Abu Aliya was buried.
His body, draped in the Palestinian flag and a traditional keffiyeh headscarf, was carried shoulder high by mourners, who also waved yellow flags of the Fatah movement of President Mahmoud Abbas.
The mourners defied a weekend curfew imposed by Palestinian authorities to stem the rise in coronavirus cases to pay their respects.
The West Bank has recorded 71,703 Covid-19 infections, including 678 deaths, since the first cases emerged earlier this year.
The EU delegation to the Palestinians on Saturday denounced the “shocking” killing of Abu Aliya in a tweet.
“This shocking incident must be swiftly and fully investigated by the Israeli authorities in order to bring the perpetrators to justice,” it said.
“How many more Palestinian children will be subject to the excessive use of lethal force by the Israeli security forces?”
UN Middle East envoy Nickolay Mladenov said on Friday he was “appalled by the killing” and also called on Israel to investigate the death of Abu Aliya calling it an “unacceptable incident.”
The Israeli army denied live rounds were used during Friday’s protest and clashes, but said dozens of protesters had thrown rocks at security forces.
The Palestinian Authority condemned “the cold-blooded murder” describing it as “the latest episode in Israel’s crimes against the Palestinian people.”
The Palestinian foreign ministry said on Friday it will file legal proceedings against Israel at the International Criminal Court over Abu Alya’s fatal shooting, the Palestinians’ WAFA news agency said.
Israel has occupied the West Bank since 1967. Excluding annexed east Jerusalem, more than 450,000 Israelis live in settlements in the territory, which is home to more than 2.8 million Palestinians.

LONDON: COVID-19’s impact on governance, multilateralism and the rules-based global order topped the agenda on day one of the 16th annual Manama Dialogue in Bahrain, organized by the UK-based International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS).

Although the conference, running from Dec. 4-6, is exploring the broader themes of Middle East conflict and security, the strategic and geo-economic implications of the COVID-19 pandemic predictably dominated Saturday’s discussions.

“This year we bore witness to a cooperation deficit in international affairs,” said John Chipman, IISS director-general and chief executive, opening the conference, whose focus this year is on the themes of war, power and rules.

“We now swing perilously on the hinge between an old rules-based order that seems poorly maintained for contemporary purposes, and a new order that is yet to be well engineered and strategically designed.”

Headlining Saturday’s morning session, Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan called 2020 an “unprecedented” year, with “challenges posed by a pandemic that is leaving a lasting mark both of state resilience and multilateral cooperation.”

It has also been a year of positive lessons, however, as “through collective action we have shown how the international community can come together during times of crisis,” he said.

Prince Faisal outlined Riyadh’s “whole-of-government approach” to tackling the pandemic, including an allocation of SR 47 billion ($12.53 billion) for bolstering the Saudi health system; heavy investment in mass testing and contact tracing; and economic interventions to reduce interest rates, protect private-sector financing and banking liquidity, and ease tax burdens.

He also highlighted the role Saudi Arabia has played through its presidency of the G20 international forum, which has committed $11 trillion in economic stimulus, pledged over $21 billion to the fight against the pandemic, and offered debt relief to developing countries totaling $14 billion.

“Given the multiple prospects of an effective vaccine, the Kingdom seeks to work with international partners towards ensuring a fair and speedy distribution of the vaccine globally, and especially to countries most in need,” he said.

Seconding Prince Faisal’s view, Kang Kyung-wha, South Korea’s foreign minister, identified the pressing need for closer cooperation as the coronavirus pandemic’s key lesson.

“Global governance was already at a low point when COVID-19 struck, with trust in multilateralism and the rules-based international order already greatly eroded,” she said.

“COVID-19 is indeed a humble reminder of our interconnectedness and our shared vulnerability, and thus the critical importance of global solidarity and international cooperation.”

Kang urged countries to support each other in strengthening emergency health capabilities and guaranteeing equitable access to supplies, treatments and vaccines. More specifically, she cited the need for strengthening the global health architecture centered around the World Health Organization (WHO), upgrading health regulations, and motivating the UN to streamline efforts against future pandemics.

This must go hand in hand with economic cooperation ranging from expansionary budgets and stimulus packages to normalization of cross-border movement of peoples, Kang said.

Echoing the sentiments of his fellow panelists, Miguel Berger, Germany’s state secretary for the federal foreign office, described COVID-19 as the “biggest test of our generation” and “the most serious challenge” for the multilateral system.

“The erosion of global governance started even before the COVID-19 crisis,” he said. “The reason is not that multilateralism is failing but that some of us are failing to support multilateralism.”

Berger said he is especially proud of Germany’s role in the quest to find a vaccine, hailing the achievements of BioNTech, which worked alongside the American pharmaceutical giant Pfizer to create the world’s first licensed shot.

“The hope is that we are going to have very effective vaccines soon available as a very important first step,” said Berger. “Now we must arrange a fair and even distribution. … This will be a crucial test in our view for multilateralism.”

Berger commended Saudi Arabia “for leading the G20 countries through this very difficult crisis with strong commitment and leadership.”

“The Riyadh summit has taken very important decisions in order to counter the effects of this crisis,” he said, referring to the virtual leaders’ conference held last month.

One of the most interesting questions that emerged during the discussion was the widespread hesitance surrounding the vaccine candidates, including in the Middle East, which potentially makes the case for compulsory immunization.

“I think it is always better to give the choice to the people but you then need to provide the facts and the evidence that enables that choice,” said Kang, highlighting the role of trust in crisis management.

Referring to the phenomenon of facts, rumors and fears mixing and dispersing, she said: “Infodemics are much more dangerous than pandemics. Because in infodemics, when you lose the importance of facts and evidence, you don’t have any anchor to decide which direction to go.”

“Fake news, misinformation, disinformation … are something that responsible leaders really need to get our minds wrapped around.”

Kang added that with people so wrapped up in their own “misinformed universes,” it becomes very difficult to build consensus.

The Manama Dialogue is taking place against a backdrop not only of the pandemic but also tectonic shifts in the power and diplomatic balance of the Middle East and the prospect of significant changes when the new administration of Democrat Joe Biden assumes office.

Central to these shifts are the Abraham Accords, which saw the UAE, Bahrain and Sudan normalize relations with Israel in September — only the third, fourth and fifth Arab countries to do so since Egypt and Jordan decades earlier. This in turn has given new impetus to resolving the Israel-Palestine conflict.

“Regarding Palestine and Israel and also whether we will at some point join the Abraham Accords,” Prince Faisal said in his remarks, “for Saudi (Arabia), it is critical to get the Israelis and the Palestinians back to the negotiating table. That is the only way to bring about lasting regional peace.”

Delegates are curious as to how Joe Biden, one of the architects of the Obama-era Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), would handle future relations with Iran.

The Trump administration has pursued a campaign of “maximum pressure” to force Iran to abandon its nuclear and ballistic missile programs and to stop its geopolitical muscle-flexing. Many worry Biden intends to turn back the clock.

“We learned the lessons from the prior administration’s appeasement. Sending pallets of cash didn’t change Iran’s behavior; rather, it funded and supercharged their terror campaigns,” Mike Pompeo, the US secretary of state, told delegates via video link on Friday evening.

“We know our campaign is working because now the Iranians are desperately signaling their willingness to return to the negotiating table to get sanctions relief.”

Germany is one of the core signatories of the JCPOA and among several European powers that have fought to preserve the deal since the US withdrew in May 2018. In his remarks, Berger said Germany and other signatories “will be waiting to see the direction of the new US administration.”

However, as a result of Iran’s non-compliance in important areas of the JCPOA and its recent advances in nuclear research and development, signatories recognize the deal will need to be updated, he added.

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Twitter: @RobertPEdwards

BETHLEHEM: Bethlehem lit up its Christmas tree on Saturday evening but without the usual crowds, as novel coronavirus restrictions put a damper on the start of Christmas festivities in the holy city.
Palestinian authorities last week announced measures, including a night-time curfew, across the Israeli-occupied West Bank for 14 days to fight a “worrying spread” of the virus.
Locals and pilgrims traditionally gather each year for the lighting of the tree in Manger Square, near the Church of the Nativity, built on the site where Christians believe Jesus was born.
But this year, only a small crowd of journalists was present due to coronavirus restrictions, an AFP photographer said.
Carmen Ghattas, director of public relations at the Bethlehem municipality, told AFP that Palestinian prime minister Mohammed Shtayyeh had lit up the tree remotely from his office in Ramallah.
The West Bank, with a Palestinian population of more than 2.8 million, has officially recorded 71,703 coronavirus infections, including 678 deaths.
Israel has occupied the territory since 1967.

ANKARA: The refusal of Turkey’s state-run banks to extend loans to Istanbul is forcing the municipality to seek loans from abroad.

At a press conference in Istanbul on Wednesday, Ekrem Imamoglu, the mayor of Istanbul, announced that the municipality issued its first eurobond to international capital markets to fund its new infrastructure projects.

The municipality secured $580 million of financing with this eurobond for four landmark subway projects in the city.

“Our relationship with foreign financing sources will continue. This could be either another bond issue, project financing or another instrument,” Imamoglu said.

Imamoglu declared he will focus on metro projects in 2021 following the repeated calls of Istanboulites to ease the traffic jams in the second most congested city in the world.

Imamoglu emerged a powerful challenger to the authority of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) since he won two local elections last year in March, then in June to be elected the mayor of 16 million people.

The local projects he has implemented so far attracted various segments of the society as they touched on their daily needs. Imamoglu is also expected to challenge Erdogan in the next presidential elections in 2023.

Turkish state banks closed their doors to the municipality after they had supported AKP-affiliated municipalities for the past 25 years.

“It is no secret that Erdogan felt threatened by the loss of İstanbul to the opposition. He refused to accept the loss initially and demanded a rerun of the election, which – embarrassingly – Imamoglu won even more decisively. Now Imamoglu has emerged as a serious contender for 2023 and therefore has a target on his back,” said Paul T. Levin, director of the Stockholm University Institute for Turkish Studies.

“It is unsurprising that the AKP uses its sway over state banks to make governing difficult for the opposition mayor, but it is the citizens of the city who will ultimately pay for it,” he told Arab News.

Given Istanbul’s importance to the country’s economy, Levin warns that trying to punish Imamoglu may backfire and end up hurting Turkey’s rulers, especially Erdogan.

Separately, the government has not abandoned the controversial Kanal Istanbul, The $9 billion project, dubbed as Erdogan’s “crazy project,” aims to connect Black Sea and Marmara Sea through an artificial waterway. It has drawn harsh criticism from Imamoglu who has been a vocal opponent of the project on environmental and financial grounds along with the fear that it might trigger earthquakes.

The security around Istanbul mayor was recently increased following serious claims of Daesh-linked assassination plot.

According to Berk Esen, a political analyst from Sabanci University in Istanbul, the state banks’ decision to not offer loans to opposition-controlled municipalities is another sign of the increasingly authoritarian regime in Turkey.

“The AKP government has turned the state bureaucracy into its partisan machine, using public resources to favor the party base and punishing opposition voters,” he said.

“This is a deliberate move by the government to leave mayors from opposition parties without sufficient funds to service the municipality debt and undertake large-scale public projects simultaneously,” he said.

Similarly, a senior official at the Ankara municipality confirmed that public banks are refraining from extending loans to the capital as well.

In March 2019 elections, the opposition candidate, Mansur Yavas, ended 25 years of rule by the mayors affiliated to the AKP who benefited continually from the loans of state banks for strange and unpopular urban projects such as dinosar parks.

According to Esen, the AKP elites calculate that these projects could help opposition mayors draw votes from their base, thereby undermining the AKP’s political hegemony.

“State banks are a convenient tool to use for this strategy. Under the AKP rule, the state banks instead turned into cash machines for pro-government businesses who openly side with Erdogan,” he said.