


Alberto Hernandez, MPP
2.6K posts

@AHernandez_SAC
Husband | Gov't Relations @ SAC | HKS/MIT Alum 🎓 | Bridging MENA insights w/ US policymakers | Tech consultant for pol. campaigns | Advocacy | RT not Endorseme




@1962Wren @RanaKabbani54 Yes, but there should also be nationwide efforts. International NGOs cannot forever fill all the gaps in Syria’s destroyed healthcare system. At some point it’s the government that must step it up and define their priorities. Just my humble opinion as a non-Syrian. @sahloul


#Syria: a solar plant was inaugurated today in Qadmous countryside (#Tartus province). The project, funded by the Aga Khan Foundation, will benefit around 300 families.




#Syria: the newly-appointed Director of Education, a professor (pic 1), has been abducted by a commander belonging to Hijri's National Guard. The commander, Mohanad Mazhar, is a well-known warlord involved in widespread criminal activities in #Suwayda province, incl. drug trafficking. He previously led an armed group affiliated with Assad's Military Security. syriadirect.org/is-damascus-re… Before the assault, he posted on his profile "everyone appointed by Damascus is a sellout".




#Syria: the Interior Ministry announced that it will begin accepting applications for citizenship for Kurdish residents at dedicated centers starting Monday.


Post-#Assad #Syria has pitched itself as a more direct, effective & profitable corridor to international trade. The fact that #Syria is currently more stable than at any point in 15yrs, **amid regional war,** has boosted that pitch. My latest -- en.majalla.com/node/330375/bu…




#Syria: the closure of the Strait of Hormuz has highlighted Syria's strategic position as a regional energy corridor. A total of 299 tankers carrying Iraqi oil were sent to Baniyas as first shipment, where the cargo will be loaded onto ships for export to its final destination. The Walid border crossing with Iraq was reopened yesterday as an emergency measure to bypass the Hormuz closure - enabling Iraq to continue oil exports while allowing Syria to generate additional revenue with transit fees.


#Syria: Iraqi oil tankers are now en route to Baniyas Refinery after the Walid border crossing was reopened earlier today, following more than a decade of closure.


My statement re Prohibiting the Latin Patriarch of entering Church of Holy Sepulcher on Palm Sunday: While all Holy sites in the Old City are closed due to safety concerns for mass gatherings including the Western Wall, Church of the Holy Sepulcher and Al Aqsa Mosque, the action today by the Israel Nat'l Police to deny Latin Patriarch Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa and 3 other priests from entering the Church to offer a blessing on Palm Sunday is an unfortunate overreach already having major repercussions around the world. Home Front Command Guidelines restrict any gatherings to 50 people or less. The 4 representatives of the Catholic Church were well below that restriction. Statements from the Gov't of Israel indicate the action to prohibit Cardinal Pizzaballa entry to the Church of the Holy Sepulcher were for safety reasons, but churches, synagogues, and mosques throughout Jerusalem have met with the restrictions of 50 or less. For the Patriarch to be barred from entry to the Church on Palm Sunday for a private ceremony is difficult to understand or justify. Israel has indicated it will work with the Patriarch to accommodate a safe means of carrying out Holy Week activities.

"المشكلة انتهت.. وكلنا نسعى للاستقرار".. رجال دين في مدينة السقيلبية ووجهاء من أبناء منطقة سهل الغاب بريف حماة يؤكدون وقوفهم ضد أي محاولات لبث الفتنة وسعيهم لعودة الهدوء بعد حادثة الشجار #الإخبارية_السورية