Courcy’s Intelligence Brief

*** Ethiopia and Sudan struggle with returnees from Saudi Arabia.  On 4 November a deadline expired in Saudi Arabia for the formalization of the status of migrant workers.  On 13 November, the first group of Ethiopians returned home from Saudi Arabia following clashes with security personnel over the weekend of 9-10 November.

On 14 November, Ethiopia’s opposition Blue Party called for “a nationwide protest against the abuse, torture, and murder” of Ethiopians in Saudi Arabia.

On 15 November, it was reported that 10,000 Sudanese had returned home from Saudi Arabia following the expiration of the 4 November deadline.  Apparently as many as 300,000 Sudanese had failed to formalize their status.

*** China’s lack of charity.  Much has been made of the paltry amount of money donated by China to the Philippines following Typhoon Haiyan.  Its initial response was to donate $200,000, which was then increased to $1.64m in the form of blankets, tents, and other goods.  This, it was pointed out, was still substantially less than the $2.7m donated by the Swedish furniture chain Ikea.

The paucity of China’s response, however, is not just a reflection of government policy, it is also a reflection of popular opinion.  An online survey conducted on 14 November found that 84% of respondents were against providing assistance to the Philippines.  The US and Japan respectively offered immediate aid of $20m and $10m.

*** Israeli opinion on Iran.  According to an opinion poll published on 15 November, over half of Israelis (52.1%) support Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu in his disagreements with the US over Iran, and 65% believe that Israel should oppose a deal which would ease sanctions in return for a reduction in its nuclear capabilities.  Only 16.1% support such a move.  Netanyahu’s approval rating stands at 41.5% against opposition leader Shelly Yachimovich’s 10%.