Brett McGurk, ‘Biden’s Strong Man’ in Concluding Hostage Swap Deal

Brett McGurk (left) during a meeting with former US President Barack Obama and retired General John Allen, Special Presidential Envoy for the Global Coalition to Combat ISIS, in the Oval Office, September 2014. (The White House)
Brett McGurk (left) during a meeting with former US President Barack Obama and retired General John Allen, Special Presidential Envoy for the Global Coalition to Combat ISIS, in the Oval Office, September 2014. (The White House)
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Brett McGurk, ‘Biden’s Strong Man’ in Concluding Hostage Swap Deal

Brett McGurk (left) during a meeting with former US President Barack Obama and retired General John Allen, Special Presidential Envoy for the Global Coalition to Combat ISIS, in the Oval Office, September 2014. (The White House)
Brett McGurk (left) during a meeting with former US President Barack Obama and retired General John Allen, Special Presidential Envoy for the Global Coalition to Combat ISIS, in the Oval Office, September 2014. (The White House)

Several political circles were optimistic about the possibility of concluding an imminent hostage swap deal, under which a large number of American and dual-national hostages would be released, in exchange for providing fuel to Gaza’s hospitals, increasing the number of humanitarian aid trucks, and opening the Rafah crossing for the stranded.

According to Axios, an American news website, Israeli and US officials pointed to the potential release of 80 women and children detained by Hamas, in exchange for Israel freeing Palestinian women and children held in Israeli prisons.

This news comes in line with statements made by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday to NBC News, in which he said that a deal with Hamas might be imminent.

Meanwhile, observers are awaiting the visit of Brett McGurk - a senior advisor to US President Joe Biden - to Israel, Saudi Arabia, Jordan and Qatar, which aims at achieving three decisive goals: first, to secure the completion of the hostage release deal; second, to pave the way for a longer humanitarian truce in Gaza, and third, to prevent the outbreak of a regional war.

McGurk is seen as Biden’s strong man on difficult issues in the Middle East. He is a well-known figure in American political circles, and he participated with US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan during the past weeks in efforts to release the hostages held by Hamas. He was also present within the US National Security team in every call Biden made with Israeli, Egyptian, and Qatari officials.

McGurk has been involved in politics since the era of former US President George Bush, and also during the eight years of President Barack Obama and the tenure of President Donald Trump. Under Biden, he assumed the position of Coordinator for Middle East and North Africa Affairs in the National Security Council.

His close relationship with Biden began during Obama’s tenure, when he was in charge of the Iraqi file. He assumed the position of US ambassador to Baghdad from 2012 to 2015, then became the special presidential envoy for the US-led global coalition to confront ISIS.

In this “sensitive” position, McGurk made dozens of trips to countries in the region, especially to Syria, Iraq, and the Gulf states. He was responsible for coordinating the joint effort against ISIS and directing some intelligence operations.

The US diplomat strongly supported the opinion in favor of maintaining an American military presence in the region, especially in Syria and Iraq, to confront the potential re-emergence of ISIS and also to counter the growing Iranian influence. He also supported the idea of an alliance between the American and Kurdish forces, despite Ankara’s anger at this rapprochement.

McGurk’s role was clearly demonstrated in managing the US administration’s relations with Middle Eastern countries, especially in the discussions and deliberations that took place in preparation for Biden’s visit to Saudi Arabia last year, and in bringing viewpoints closer and restoring warmth to relations between the two countries.



Bangladesh Protest Leaders Taken from Hospital by Police

People take part in a song march to protest against the indiscriminate killings and mass arrest in Dhaka on July 26, 2024. (AFP)
People take part in a song march to protest against the indiscriminate killings and mass arrest in Dhaka on July 26, 2024. (AFP)
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Bangladesh Protest Leaders Taken from Hospital by Police

People take part in a song march to protest against the indiscriminate killings and mass arrest in Dhaka on July 26, 2024. (AFP)
People take part in a song march to protest against the indiscriminate killings and mass arrest in Dhaka on July 26, 2024. (AFP)

Bangladeshi police detectives on Friday forced the discharge from hospital of three student protest leaders blamed for deadly unrest, taking them to an unknown location, staff told AFP.

Nahid Islam, Asif Mahmud and Abu Baker Majumder are all members of Students Against Discrimination, the group responsible for organizing this month's street rallies against civil service hiring rules.

At least 195 people were killed in the ensuing police crackdown and clashes, according to an AFP count of victims reported by police and hospitals, in some of the worst unrest of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's tenure.

All three were patients at a hospital in the capital Dhaka, and at least two of them said their injuries were caused by torture in earlier police custody.

"They took them from us," Gonoshasthaya hospital supervisor Anwara Begum Lucky told AFP. "The men were from the Detective Branch."

She added that she had not wanted to discharge the student leaders but police had pressured the hospital chief to do so.

Islam's elder sister Fatema Tasnim told AFP from the hospital that six plainclothes detectives had taken all three men.

The trio's student group had suspended fresh protests at the start of this week, saying they had wanted the reform of government job quotas but not "at the expense of so much blood".

The pause was due to expire earlier on Friday but the group had given no indication of its future course of action.

Islam, 26, the chief coordinator of Students Against Discrimination, told AFP from his hospital bed on Monday that he feared for his life.

He said that two days beforehand, a group of people identifying themselves as police detectives blindfolded and handcuffed him and took him to an unknown location.

Islam added that he had come to his senses the following morning on a roadside in Dhaka.

Mahmud earlier told AFP that he had also been detained by police and beaten at the height of last week's unrest.

Three senior police officers in Dhaka all denied that the trio had been taken from the hospital and into custody on Friday.

- Garment tycoon arrested -

Police told AFP on Thursday that they had arrested at least 4,000 people since the unrest began last week, including 2,500 in Dhaka.

On Friday police said they had arrested David Hasanat, the founder and chief executive of one of Bangladesh's biggest garment factory enterprises.

His Viyellatex Group employs more than 15,000 people according to its website, and its annual turnover was estimated at $400 million by the Daily Star newspaper last year.

Dhaka Metropolitan Police inspector Abu Sayed Miah said Hasanat and several others were suspected of financing the "anarchy, arson and vandalism" of last week.

Bangladesh makes around $50 billion in annual export earnings from the textile trade, which services leading global brands including H&M, Gap and others.

Student protests began this month after the reintroduction in June of a scheme reserving more than half of government jobs for certain candidates.

With around 18 million young people in Bangladesh out of work, according to government figures, the move deeply upset graduates facing an acute jobs crisis.

Critics say the quota is used to stack public jobs with loyalists to Hasina's Awami League.

- 'Call to the nation' -

The Supreme Court cut the number of reserved jobs on Sunday but fell short of protesters' demands to scrap the quotas entirely.

Hasina has ruled Bangladesh since 2009 and won her fourth consecutive election in January after a vote without genuine opposition.

Her government is also accused by rights groups of misusing state institutions to entrench its hold on power and stamp out dissent, including the extrajudicial killing of opposition activists.

Hasina continued a tour of government buildings that had been ransacked by protesters, on Friday visiting state broadcaster Bangladesh Television, which was partly set ablaze last week.

"Find those who were involved in this," she said, according to state news agency BSS.

"Cooperate with us to ensure their punishment. I am making this call to the nation."