MUST-READS

• Paris Attack
  Al Qaeda claims French attack, derides Paris rally

  Al Qaeda in Yemen claimed responsibility for the attack on French satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo, saying it was ordered by the Islamist militant group's leadership for insulting the Prophet Mohammad, according to a video posted on YouTube.

  • CNN - AQAP claims responsibility for Charlie Hebdo attack
  • AP - France extends airstrikes in Iraq on Islamic State group
  • USA Today - First 'Charlie Hebdo' issue since Paris attacks appears to sell out
  • Guardian - Muslim leaders appeal for calm as Charlie Hebdo special hits the streets
  • Al-Arabiya - Al-Qaeda’s Zawahiri ‘ordered’ Paris attack
• SWPF
  Investors look to capitalize on increased Saudi water, power needs

  Rapidly growing population growth and a sustained development boom in Saudi Arabia have resulted in unprecedented demand for effective and efficient power and water supply. With new power stations and desalination plants in high demand, operators in the Kingdom enjoy some of the highest annual growth rates in the world, with strong profit margins for efficient companies.

  • Saudi Gazette - SWPF to tackle challenges in water and power sectors
• Hizballah
  Israeli Infiltration Suggests Hizballah Is Having a Mid-Life Crisis

  For five years, Hizballah has vowed in fiery speeches to exact revenge for Israel’s assassination of its top military strategist in 2010. Each anniversary passed with Hizballah’s threatened attacks mysteriously foiled: operatives rolled up in Bangkok and Cyprus, and another mastermind murdered near his home in Beirut.

• Jobs for Saudis
  Fakeih: The Government plans to create 300,000 jobs for Saudis

  Economy and Planning, Finance and Labor Ministries would launch 36 initiatives as part of the scheme.

• U.S. Anti-Daesh Strategy
  Allen: Degrading and Defeating ISIL

  Of course, we cannot hope to defeat ISIL through military action alone. Coalition partners are now in leading roles to stop the flow of foreign terrorist fighters, to limit ISIL's financing, and to defeat ISIL where it can do incredible harm: in the virtual space and marketplace of ideas. Nations as diverse as Morocco, Germany and Kuwait have helped to steer these efforts. And when millions of men, women and children have been displaced by ISIL's barbarism, dozens of nations have stepped up to make significant humanitarian contributions, and will continue to need to do so, in order for the region to regain stability and for innocent civilians affected by conflict to regain hope for the future.

• Iraq
  No Way Out for Iraqis Who Helped U.S. in War

  One Iraqi begged a retired Marine general he had gotten to know during the war: “Come quickly or we’re all dead.”

• Egypt-Qatar
  Egypt and Qatar accept King Abdullah’s reconciliation initiative

  Egypt and Qatar have responded positively to the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah's initiative to end their rifts and normalize their bilateral relations.

• OPEC
  Opec takes a big bet by holding output

  For Opec, the US shale boom evokes memories of the 1980s North Sea surge. The rise in US production has been offset until now by outages in places such as Libya and Iraq. But with supply coming back and a worse than expected demand slowdown in Asia and Europe, the cartel’s members are again having to confront a big new source of non-Opec supply.

  • Fuel Fix - Why U.S. oil output rises as prices plunge
  • Foreign Policy - Why Would the Saudis Deliberately Crash the Oil Markets?
• U.S. - Saudi Military Cooperation
  US-Saudi Military Relations Expected To Persist Under King Salman

  Saudi Arabia is expected to spend more than $56 billion on defense in 2015, according to data compiled by the firm Avascent. Of that, the kingdom is expected to spend nearly $17 billion on new weapons.

  • Washington Post - New Saudi king ascends to the throne as terrorism threat grows
  • NYT (paywall) - Saudis Expand Regional Power as Others Falter
• State of the Union
  State of the Union: Obama heralds end of wars, even as troops return to Mideast

  “Instead of getting dragged into another ground war in the Middle East, we are leading a broad coalition, including Arab nations, to degrade and ultimately destroy this terrorist group.” President Obama heralded the end of the two “long and costly wars” that he inherited, even as he sends U.S. troops to fight new battles in the Middle East.

  • Defense News - SOTU Analysis: Obama Doubles Down
  • Washington Post - Obama, in 2015 State of the Union, says crisis has passed and takes credit
  • The Hill - Obama Pledges Veto on New Iran Sanctions
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