Syria: H1N1 Vaccines “available in December”

Syria reported its first confirmed case of swine influenza or A-H1N1 on July 4, according to the Voice of America. Syrian health officials said that the case was detected in a Syrian woman who flew to the country from Australia.

The first death from H1N1 was confirmed on August 26. Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) quoted the Health Ministry as saying a Syrian man had died of the strain.

Useful, but no Drug replacement: Street Cleaning in Aleppo, Syria

Syrian News Station, a news website frequently quoted by international newspapers, reports that vaccines should be available in Syria in December. Syrian health minister cited safety reasons for not starting large-scale vaccinations earlier. The country recorded 122 infections by October 20.

According to Taiwan Today (quoting the China Times), Taiwanese drug manufacturer Adimmune was approached by Southeast Asian and Middle Eastern countries which were unable to purchase H1N1 vaccines from other nations, but the company’s ceo Ignatius Wei said that Adimmune’s main concern was the welfare of Taiwan’s citizens.

Adimmune did not specify which countries were among its Middle Eastern contacts. While Syria’s infection numbers have risen since June, it may still be in a more comfortable situation than most of its neighbours if the trends have remained the same. As of June this year, Syria’s number of confirmed infections was much smaller than those of most of its neighbours.

Vrouw Antje comes to Aleppo

When people talk about Historische Alepposeife, they mean HISTORICAL Aleppo soap, which means that it is very old and traditional.

But now that Vrouw Antje has arrived in Aleppo…

Vrouw Antje comes to Aleppo

… things are becoming messy… 

Vrouw Antje: You can look, but you better not touch

And when I say messy, I mean REAL messy:

Something's rotten in the souq

Actually, even worse…

Aleppo spacecakes

It’s THAT messy now!

So mind the Dutch, next time you come to Aleppo. Recent excavations suggest that Antje’s been here for a long time:

Aleppo Ancient Boobmonsta Excavation Site

And when I say for a long time, I mean for a REAL long time!

Related:
(Not) the Queen Diana of the Orient, September 12, 2009
En nu… zit Jesper zelf op de Trekker, June 13, 2008

The Will of the People is no Policy

“Anatolian Eagle”, a military exercise scheduled for last week between Israel, the US, NATO as an organisation, Turkey and Italy, was cancelled a week ago. The schedule faltered when Turkey’s government disinvited Israel’s military, and was then cancelled altogether because of American disappointment with Ankara’s rejection of Israel’s participation.

At the beginning, Ankara’s motivation was unclear. Technical problems were given as reasons, then delays and malfunctions in Israeli military supplies of ten Heron drones, until prime minister Erdogan released the cat from the bag: “in accordance with the will of the people”, no Israeli fighter pilots would be allowed on Turkish soil. And Turkey’s foreign minister Ahmet Davutoglu added that in times where there were no efforts for peace, Turkey couldn’t afford to be regarded as Israel’s military partner.

Martyrs, Everywhere - Aleppo's Armenian Quarter

To base ones policy on “the will of the people” is populism, and there is reason to believe that Ankara’s main motivation is that it wants to become more influential in the Middle East, and arguably in Central Asia, too. You got to make them love you, and some Israel-bashing should work fine to this end.

But opportunism in politics usually only leads to short-term benefits. Syria might profit from Turkey’s new policy – if it really is one -, but Syria’s Armenians will watch Ankara’s moral plateau boots with astonishment, if not with disgust. If the 2009 Gaza War is a reason to lock Israel out of the traditional alliance, the Armenian genocide – and Ankara’s denial of it – would be reason enough to cancel any cooperation with Ankara, military or otherwise.

Besides, if Turkey ceases to mediate between Syria and Israel – and Israel has reasons now to reject further Turkish efforts in this field – it is hard to see how Turkey could play a positive role for Syria.

OK – Israel’s policies on Palestine aren’t smarter than Turkey’s on Israel and the Middle East. The settlements in the West Bank don’t serve Israel’s security at all. One can argue about, and possibly buy the need for the Gaza war, but the government’s refusal to rein in on the West Bank settlers is opportunistic. And its opportunism costs, not only in Israel’s relations with Turkey.

But Ankara’s big words against Israel’s army are unsavoury. No angry statement about Hamas and its rocket attacks on Israel, which actually triggered the ensuing Israeli “war crimes”. The Ummah is a cartel of perfect silence, when it comes to “holy wars” and their crimes.

Syria Hurts Maliki’s Pride

Damascus might find itself in the role of a broker between the Iraqi Ba’ath Party – once Saddam Hussein’s party in Iraq, and still Bashar al-Assad’s political vehicle in Syria.

Aleppo Baghdad Station: Staying Connected

An American military delegation led by Major General Michael Moeller of US Central Command had two days of talks in Syria – in Baghdad however, a lot of people aren’t pleased with the first indicators of a possible thaw between Washington and Damascus. Nuri al-Maliki announced a trip of his own to Syria for the next week – “It is not the duty of the American delegation to negotiate on behalf of Iraq,” his spokesman is quoted as saying. As the American troops withdrew from the Iraqi streets and cities on July 1, and Maliki announced on the occasion that it was the national united government [which] had succeeded in putting down the sectarian war that was threatening the unity and the sovereignty of Iraq, he will now be very sensitive about any possible loss of face.

Syria will be interested in bringing Saddam Hussein’s former deputy, Izzat Ibrahim al-Douri (who has lived in Damascus since 2003), back into the game in Iraq. He is said to have been behind guerilla campaigns against the American occupation – and here lies a bone of contention between Damascus and Washington, as the U.S. demand the arrest of about a dozen of high-ranking supporters – or facilitators – of those campaigns.

The Iraqi Ba’ath Party is still seems to be sound and to be taking orders. Its cadres have received orders to resume political activity, writes The Telegraph.

If the new (or old) Ba’ath Party establishes itself in Iraq as a palladium of national resistance and gets legalised, and if it facilitates a rapprochement between Baghdad and Damascus, Iran might find its influence on Iraq further reduced – most Iraqis are Shia, just like most Iranians. But most Iraqis also see their country as Arabic, rather than as easy Iranian proxy. Saudi Arabia’s worries about a handover of Iraq to Iran could turn out to be unjustified.

And America may have restored an old business friend in Baghdad – not in control as it was during Rummy’s and Saddam Hussein’s happiest days, but still a substantial one. And Syria may get shopping options beyond Russia again. That said, its need for arms of a defensive character won’t be unlimited.