| US jail to hold Guantanamo inmates | ||||
A number of inmates from the Guantanamo Bay military prison in Cuba are set to be transferred to a jail in the US state of Illinois. Barack Obama, the US president, ordered the acquisition of the currently near-empty high security facility in the rural town of Thomson on Tuesday. The Obama administration sought to assure Americans that none of the detainees previously held at Guantanamo would be released into the US, even after the conclusion of any trials. Republicans and several others were quick to criticise Obama's decision to transfer the prisoners to the US for civilians trials. "The administration has failed to explain how transferring terrorists to Gitmo North will make Americans safer than keeping these terrorists off of our shores in the secure facility in Cuba," he said. But Democrats, who control both houses of Congress, have indicated they are willing to lift that restriction if the administration comes up with an acceptable plan for dealing with the prisoners. "Once on US soil, whether detained in a prison or awaiting trial, Gitmo terrorists can argue for additional rights under the constitution that may make it harder for prosecutors to obtain a conviction," Smith said in a statement.
The letter from the Obama administration, which was addressed to Pat Quinn, the governor of Illinois, said that the decision would help solve the country's prison shortage problem as well as the problem of what to do about the controversial Guantanamo facility. Quinn and Dick Durbin, the Illinois senator, said that the prison had been sitting empty for eight years and the government acquisition would create 3,000 jobs. "This is an opportunity to dramatically reduce unemployment, create thousands of good-paying jobs and breathe new economic life into this part of downstate Illinois," they said in a statement. | ||||
|
Tuesday, 15 December 2009
US jail to hold Guantanamo inmates
Deadly bombing hits Pakistani town
| Deadly bombing hits Pakistani town | |||
At least 33 people have been killed and 70 injured in a car bomb blast in the town of Dera Ghazi Khan in Pakistan's Punjab province, local officials have said. The blast on Tuesday occurred in a market, close to the house of Zulfiqar Khosa, an adviser to the chief minister of Pakistan's Punjab province. The house was damaged in the blast but he was not among the injured, officials said. "It was a terrorist activity, similar to those being carried out in other parts of the country." "The hospital in the town has been crowded by people looking for their relatives. Rescue efforts are still going on," he said. "Muharram is a very holy month for the Shia community here in Pakistan. Ever since Muharram started, Shia community leaders have been saying that [they] need to have more security around holy sites. "Shia leaders had said that Dera Ghazi Khan was one of the targeted areas and should be more secure." More than 500 people have been killed in bomb blasts in Pakistan since October, in violence blamed on pro-Taliban fighters who are battling an army offensive in the country's northwest. The US government has called on Islamabad to step up its efforts against Taliban- and al-Qaeda-linked fighters who cross over into Afghanistan. However, Pakistan has said that it has to focus on a rising domestic insurgency which has killed more than 2,680 people in the last two-and-a-half years. | |||
|
Iraq bombings leave several dead
| Iraq bombings leave several dead | |||||||||||
At least four people have been killed and several others injured in a series of car bombs in central Baghdad. Three explosions went off in separate locations across the city on Tuesday, an Iraqi interior ministry official said. A police source said the first explosion occurred near the Iranian embassy and the other two near the foreign and immigration ministries. Ahmed Rushdi, a journalist in Baghdad, told Al Jazeera: "The third [blast] was near a restaurant that is attended by officers from the police and the Iraqi army for breakfast in the early morning. "It's just outside the Green Zone, which is a big challenge for the security [officials] who are inside the Green Zone and inside the parliament." The heavily protected Green Zone houses key offices of the Iraqi government as well as the US and British embassies. Mosul blasts Soon afterwards, four people were killed in separate attacks in the northern city of Mosul, where bombers targeted two churches. At least 40 people were injured, among them schoolchildren, police and medics said.
The blasts came a week after suicide bombers targeted government buildings in Baghdad on December 8 and killed 127 people. Nouri al-Maliki, the Iraqi prime minister, faced questions in parliament last week over those attacks. He blamed the recent bombings on political discord, saying that disputes between political groups were putting the nation's security at risk. He also criticised legislators for failing to provide enough money for security. Parliamentarians instead pointed to a lack of co-ordination between ministries. Tuesday's Baghdad bombings were the fourth wave of co-ordinated attacks in four months to target official buildings in the Iraqi capital despite the security measures in place. On October 25, the justice ministry and a provincial office were attacked, with blasts killing 153 people and injuring more than 500. On August 19, more than 100 people were killed and hundreds injured at the foreign and finance ministries. | |||||||||||
| |||||||||||
Pacific nation recognises Abkhazia
| Pacific nation recognises Abkhazia | |||
The South Pacific island nation of Nauru has acknowledged Abkhazia declaration of independence, becoming the fourth nation to recognise the breakaway Georgian region. Kristian Dzhaniya, spokesman for Abkhazia's separatist government said an agreement to establish diplomatic ties with Nauru was signed in Sukhumi, Abkhazia's capital on Tuesday. Russia recognised the region's indepedence after its August 2008 war with Georgia, with Venezuela and Nicaragua following suit. Nauru is one of the world's smallest states with a population of about 10,000 people and an area of some 21 square kilometres. But Sergei Bagapsh, Abkhazia's president, said the "size and number of population doesn't matter," according to the RIA news agency. "Nauru is a member of the United Nations," he said. Kommersant, a Russian daily newspaper, reported that Nauru had requested $50m in economic aid from Moscow ahead of the agreement. But it has not been confirmed whether Russia, the main ally and sponsor of the breakaway region, would reward Nauru for the move. The Kremlin agreed lucrative arms and energy deals with Venezuela and Nicaragua following their recognition of Abkhazia's independence. Nauruan representatives also visited another breakaway region, South Ossetia, over the weekend and promised to consider recognising it as independent, the Associated Press news agency reported. Abkhazia rejected Georgia's rule soon after the break-up of the Soviet Union in 1991, and broke away from Tbilisi in 1993 after a 13-month war. | |||
|
Two killed at pro-Kurdish protest
| Two killed at pro-Kurdish protest | |||
A shopkeeper has been arrested by Turkish police after two people were shot dead and six others wounded during a protest in support of a banned Kurdish political party. Ziya Akkaya, the mayor of Bulanik, said that the situation there on Tuesday was "very tense". The court's decision led to a wave of protests across Turkey and threatens to derail peace efforts between the ruling Justice and Development Party and Kurdish leaders. Television footage showed police firing tear gas to disperse the protesters, who hurled stones at a police armoured personnel carrier in the town, located about 350km west of Turkey's border with Iran. DTP politicians announced on Monday that they planned to resign soon from parliament in a move that could lead to early elections in dozens of parliamentary districts. The party also plans to appeal against the disbandment order at the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg, France. Iraqi Kurds condemned the court's ban on the DTP on Tuesday. "The president's office expresses its anger at the Turkish constitutional court's outlawing of the Democratic Society Party," said a statement released by the office of Massoud Barzani, the president of Iraq's autonomous Kurdish region. "But at the same time it welcomes the policy of opening up adopted by the Justice and Development Party government," the document said. "It hopes that the constitutional court verdict will not halt that process and calls on all Turkish factions to commit themselves to a policy of reconciliation so that it can be a success." The 25-year-old conflict between the government in Ankara and Kurdish fighters seeking autonomy from Turkey has claimed tens of thousands of lives. | |||
| |||
Attacker apologises to Italian PM
| Attacker apologises to Italian PM | |||||
The man arrested over the attack that left Silvio Berlusconi with a broken nose and two broken teeth has apologised to the Italian prime minister. "I don't recognise myself," Tartaglia, who is reported to have a history of mental illness, said. Berlusconi has been advised to cancel all public activities until after Chritsmas as he recovers from the attack. "Physically, he is eating normally, but with a bit of difficulty," Zangrillo said.
The 73-year-old will spend a third night in hospital on Tuesday. The attack had already forced the cancellation of some of Berlusconi's plans, including a meeting with Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the Turkish prime minister, on Wednesday. Berlusconi's participation at the UN climate summit in Copenhagen is also unlikely. His popularity recently plummeted after accusations of sexual encounters with escorts, a separation from his wife, the loss of immunity prosecution and the restart of two corruption trials. The prime minister faces allegations that he paid his British former tax lawyer, David Mills, $600,000 to give false evidence in two trials in the 1990s. Earlier this month, about 350,000 Italians called for his resignation in what they dubbed the "No Berlusconi Day". In 2004, an Italian bricklayer hurled a camera tripod at Berlusconi, injuring him slightly on the head. | |||||
|
Deaths as Cyclone Mick batters Fiji
| Deaths as Cyclone Mick batters Fiji | |||
At least three people have been killed and thousands of others made homeless after Cyclone Mick caused flooding and power outages across Fiji, authorities have said. The cyclone ripped through the most populated island of Viti Levu on Monday night before heading towards Tonga, which has been placed on alert. Speaking from the capital Suva, Tim Sutton, of the UN Children's Fund (Unicef), said Mick was a "very vicious" cyclone with gale force winds that struck up to six hours earlier than expected. "There's a lot of damage. Lots of trees down, power lines down everywhere, all the roads around Viti Levu are still closed with flooding and landslides," he told New Zealand's National Radio. Police said that the dead included a 19-year-old man who was reportedly swept away while crossing a river in northern Viti Levu, a 23-year-old man drowned in the southwest and a student hit by a tree in the northwestern highlands region. Around 3,000 people sought shelter before the deadly winds and torrential rains hit, but by late Tuesday most had returned to their homes, officials said. Fiji's meteorological service said winds gusting up to 150km an hour were recorded close to the Category Two cyclone's epicentre. Fiji is an archipelago of more than 320 islands. | |||
|
UN chief urges unity at Copenhagen
| UN chief urges unity at Copenhagen | |||||||
Ban Ki-moon, the UN secretary general, has told nations involved in climate change talks they must "stop pointing fingers" and increase their pledges to cut greenhouse gas emissions. "Time is running out ... There is no time for posturing or blaming," the UN chief told the Associated Press news agency before heading to the Danish capital on Tuesday. "If everything is left to leaders to resolve at the last minute, we risk having a weak deal or no deal at all. And this would be a failure of potentially catastrophic consequence." His comments also come a day after a number of developing countries temporarily boycotted talks, demanding deeper emission cuts by industrial nations be brought to the forefront of discussions. Negotiations resumed, but deep divisions remain between rich and poor countries over emissions targets and financing for developing countries to deal with global warming.
"What happens in the next 48 hours amongst the ministerial delegations is crucial and that isn't lost on anybody," he said. "There were always going to be deep divisions between developed and developing countries. "On one hand, you have big, industrial, rich countries that stand to lose an enormous amount in terms of the emission cuts they'll have to make that will affect their economies and also the money contributions that are being looked for from them. "On the other hand, you have the poorer countries and some of them are looking at the destruction of their entire way of life. Some nations will simply sink into the sea. They're not worried about their economies, they're worried about their very existence.
"There could be breakdown on many issues. We still don't have great clarity on how the next few days are going to evolve." More than 110 world leaders are expected at the climax of the talks, including Barack Obama, the US president, and Wen Jiabao, the Chinese prime minister. Robert Mugabe, Zimbabwe's president, was among the first heads of state to arrive in the Danish capital on Tuesday, avoiding a travel ban imposed by Western nations. Gordon Brown, the British prime minister, is due to arrive later in the day, two days earlier than expected in an attempt to help push the talks forward. Leaders are aiming for a political agreement rather than a legally binding treaty, focusing on individual targets on emissions cuts and financing for developing countries. Scientists say global warming will create rising sea levels, increasing drought, more extreme weather and the extinction of some species. |
Deaths as blast hits Afghan capital
| Deaths as blast hits Afghan capital | |||||
At least eight people have been killed and 40 injured in a suicide bomb attack in Kabul, the Afghan capital, the country's interior ministry has said. The blast occurred on Tuesday outside the Heetal hotel in Wazir Akbar Khan, the diplomatic district of Kabul, said Ahmed Bilal, a national security directorate officer at the scene. "Eight people have been killed. Four are women. Four others are male and 40 other people have been wounded. It was a suicide bombing," Zamarai Bashary, an Afghan interior ministry spokesman, told AFP news agency. Steve Chao, Al Jazeera's correspondent in Kabul, said: "This has happened in an area that has a lot of foreign offices - it is near the US embassy. "We understand that, at the time of the blast, Afghanistan's former vice-president Ahmad Zia Massoud, was also in the area. We understand that he survived the attack." Former leader 'targeted' Shah Asmat, an aide to the former vice-president, said he believed that the bomber had intended to attack Massoud's home. "Of course we were the target," Asmat said.
"Before, the Taliban killed [Ahmad Shah] Massoud. Now, they tried to kill his brother." Reports say that the blast was heard by government officials, politicians and foreign representatives gathered in another part of the city for an anti-corruption conference hosted by Hamid Karzai, the Afghan president. The three-day meeting, Karzai's first official act since he was sworn in as president for a second term, is a response to calls from his Western backers to make the country's government more transparent. "Hamid Karzai stressed at the conference that he is committed to cleaning up government. He said that he will make every Afghan employee accountable, in terms of their earnings and their properties," Chao reported. "Over the next year, there will be investigations of Afghan employees since 2001, in terms of how much they earn and what property they have." US and members of the Nato military alliance, which both have thousands of troops in Afghanistan, have welcomed the conference, but have also expressed doubts as to what will be achieved. "We think the conference is certainly a step in the right direction in that it's important to see the government of Afghanistan addressing corruption issues," John Groch, a US embassy spokesman, said. "At the same time, however, we're eager to see the government move forward with action." Crackdown urged Karzai has come under growing international pressure to take a tough line against government officials suspected of corruption, particularly in the wake of the fraud-tainted presidential poll that took place in August. Karzai was declared the winner by default when Abdullah Abdullah, his main challenger, pulled out, citing irregularities. Kai Eide, the senior United Nations representative in Afghanistan, had said earlier in October that there had been "widespread fraud" during the elections. The calls for the Afghan government to crack down on corruption comes as thousands more US troops prepare to deploy to the country to battle fighters loyal to the Taliban and al-Qaeda. Barack Obama, the US president, last week ordered 30,000 more soldiers to be sent to the country, following a request by the senior commander of US and Nato forces for more boots on the ground. Taliban fight The US's senior military officer said on Monday he was increasingly concerned about the threat posed by Taliban and al-Qaeda fighters sheltering on the Pakistani side of the Afghan border. Admiral Mike Mullen, chairman of the US joint chiefs of staff, said during a visit to Afghanistan that violence across the country was likely to become more severe in the coming months, with fighters holding the upper hand across about a third of Afghan provinces. "I remain deeply concerned by the growing level of collusion between the Afghan Taliban and al-Qaeda and other extremist groups taking refuge across the border in Pakistan," Mullen said. "Getting at this network, which is now more entrenched, will be a far more difficult task than it was just one year ago. "The insurgency has grown more violent, more pervasive, more sophisticated," he said. |
National Identity Debate Irks France Muslims
December 15, 2009 - 07:17
 CAIRO – A French debate on defining the values constituting national identity is sparking controversy in the western European country, amid warnings that the discussions are particularly targeting the Muslim presence. "When they define the shared values that make France's national identity, they always focus on secularism, and integrating immigrants,” Myriam Belmehdi, 19, told the Los Angeles Times on Monday, December 14. “And we know that means that they are talking about Muslims." France is home to nearly seven million Muslims, the biggest Muslim minority in Europe. "Muslims are the largest community here who are still very religious,” said Belmehdi, of North African origin. “So does that mean that if Muslims don't feel so strongly about secularism, that they're not part of France's identity?" The French government started early November a three-month debate on French national identity. But the debate, championed by President Nicolas Sarkozy, has sparked controversy across the country. "What will I say to my colleagues [in foreign countries] who ask about this debate?” asked historian Jean-Yves Mollier during a public discussion last week. “I will be ashamed. Ashamed of living in this country," he added, warning the debate would stigmatize those who don’t fall into France’s native caste. He also cautioned that the debate is opening "a Pandora's box" and awakening right-wing, anti-immigrant sentiments. Xenophobia Analysts echo similar concerns, warning that the debate is offering a platform for xenophobic views. (With the debate), we added flames to the fire,” said Jerome Fourquet, assistant director for the French Ffop polling service. A mosque was attacked Sunday in southern city of Castres, with assailants scrawling Nazi graffiti and hanging pig feet on the mosque walls. Fourquet said the national identity discussions have triggered a debate about Islam’s presence in France, especially since Switzerland’s minaret ban. "The visibility of Islam, whether it was the burka on the streets or the minarets, already posed a problem to the French," he said, adding that the Swiss minaret ban has "resurfaced" the debate on Islam again. "These are very sensitive questions." Sarkozy himself has given a mixed message to the Muslim minority in the country. "I address my Muslim countrymen to say I will do everything to make them feel they are citizens like any other, enjoying the same rights as all the others to live their faith and practice their religion with the same liberty and dignity," he said in statement published by Le Monde last week. "I will combat any form of discrimination. "But I also want to tell them that in our country, where Christian civilization has left such a deep trace, where republican values are an integral part of our national identity, everything that could be taken as a challenge to this heritage and its values would condemn to failure the necessary inauguration of a French Islam." |
GCC leaders support Saudi over Yemen fight
December 15, 2009 - 07:17
 Kuwait's emir on Monday opened a Gulf leaders' summit by voicing full support for Saudi Arabia in its fight against Yemeni rebels and calling on Iran to comply with international legitimacy. "We renew our strong condemnation of these aggressions (against Saudi Arabia) and declare full support for whatever actions Saudi Arabia takes to defend its territory," Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad al-Sabah said in his speech. "Any harm to the security and stability of Saudi Arabia is harm to the collective security of the member states" of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), he added. Since early November Saudi forces have been fighting Yemeni Shiite Zaidi rebels, also known as Huthis, in the border area after a group of militants killed a Saudi border guard and occupied two Saudi villages. Sheikh Sabah also said the GCC wanted the standoff over Iran's nuclear programme resolved through dialogue, and urged Tehran to "comply with international legitimacy in order to reach a peaceful solution." Sheikh Sabah said the energy-rich nations are determined to forge ahead with further economic achievements, including the launch of a common power grid and rail network. During the two-day gathering, GCC leaders will explore ways to boost and integrate their economies, which have suffered a knock-on effect from Dubai's debt crisis. Kuwait's Finance Minister Mustafa al-Shamali on Sunday urged his counterparts to work together to contain the ongoing fallout from the financial crisis, although he made no explicit reference to Dubai. The economies of the GCC nations, which boast 45 percent of the world's proven oil reserves and a quarter of global gas resources, have been hit hard by the sharp drop in oil revenues after years of major cash flow. The GCC groups Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the UAE. A number of key economic integration projects will be launched at the summit. The leaders are expected to officially launch a monetary union pact, approve a multi-billion-dollar railway network and commission the start of a common power grid project. Kuwait's foreign ministry undersecretary Khaled al-Jarallah, quoted by the KUNA news agency, said on Monday that GCC foreign ministers had agreed on a time-frame for the Gulf single currency without providing details. The agreement stipulates setting up a monetary council next year in Riyadh. This will later become a central bank which will issue the single currency. Only four of the six GCC members have signed and ratified the monetary pact. Oman withdrew because it was unable to meet the conditions and the UAE withdrew after Riyadh was selected to host the central bank. Later on Monday, the GCC leaders are expected to commission the first phase of a 1.6-billion-dollar Gulf power grid project. The head of the power grid authority, Yussef Janahi, told a news conference the project would reduce the need for new generation capacity in GCC states next year by 5,000 megawatts. It will be completed in 2012, he said. Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Bahrain have all been linked to the system, he said. The GCC leaders will also discuss the fighting in Yemen and Iran's nuclear ambitions. Kuwaiti Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammad al-Sabah told a foreign ministers meeting that GCC states were surrounded by "grave security developments and serious economic implications." His Yemeni counterpart Abu Bakr al-Kurbi secured assurances of "economic and security" support from the GCC when he delivered a letter from President Ali Abdullah Saleh to the Kuwaiti ruler. |
UK Arrest Warrant for Livni for Gaza Crimes
December 15, 2009 - 07:17
 CAIRO – Former Israeli foreign minister Tzipi Livni cancelled on Monday, December 14, a scheduled visit to Britain after an arrest warrant was reportedly issued for war over war crimes committed in the Gaza Strip. "We declined the invitation to the annual Jewish National Fund conference two weeks ago," Livni’s office said in a statement cited by Yediot Aharonot. "Livni is proud of all the decisions she made regarding Operation Cast Lead." An arrest warrant was reportedly issued by a British court against the former foreign minister for war crimes during the Gaza war last year. Livni, the leader of the centrist Kadima party, was scheduled to visit London to address the JNF conference. Livni was a foreign minister when Israel launched three-week deadly war on the Gaza Strip last year, killing more than 1,400 People and wounding thousands. The Israeli onslaught also wrecked havoc on the infrastructure of the densely-populated Gaza enclave, leaving some 20,000 homes and thousands other buildings in ruins. Former UN investigator Richard Goldstone has accused Israel of committing war crimes during the Gaza war. During a visit to the US in January, Livni was condemned by journalists as terrorist and murderer of Palestinian children. The Israeli Haaretz daily has published testimonies by Israeli soldiers in which they admitted killing innocent Palestinians in cold blood and ransacking their properties during the war. War Criminals The arrest warrant against Livni has drawn praise from the Palestinians. “It is a major step by the international community to hold Israel responsible for breaching international law and violating Palestinian rights,” Ghassan Al-Khatib, director of the Government Media Center, told Al-Jazeera television. “It is a sign on the rising international awareness of the gravity of Israel’s war crimes and violations of international laws and human rights.” Last September, Israeli Defense Minister faced an arrest warrant for war crimes in Gaza during a visit to London. In October, Strategic Affairs Minister Moshe Ya’alon was advised to scrap a visit to London for fears of arrest for war crimes. In 2005, Major General (res.) Doron Almog declined to leave his plane in London for fears of being arrested for war crimes. Former army chief of staff Moshe Yaalon scrapped a visit to Britain over fears of arrest. Following the Gaza war, Israeli ministers have been advised not to visit Britain, Spain, Belgium and Norway for fears of being arrested for war crimes. |
Muslim total hits 2.4 million as they say: UK's nicest to us
December 15, 2009 - 07:17
 There are 1.1million Muslim immigrants and 1.3million UK-born Muslims – mostly the children of newcomers. Muslims quizzed said there was less open hostility to Islam in Britain than other EU countries and that the Government is sympathetic to them. But critics seized on the f indings as confirmation that Labour’s multicultural policies are pandering to Islam. Sir Andrew Green, of the pressure group Migrationwatch, warned the Muslim population in Britain was likely to be even higher than research showed. He said: “The rapid rise in the Muslim population is just one way in which mass immigration promoted, even encouraged, by this Government has affected the whole nature of our society.” Muslim illegal immigrants were unlikely to respond to Government-linked surveys, he added. The population research is to be published next month in a new “faith map” of the UK drawn up by the Institute for Public Policy Research, a think-tank with close links to 10 Downing Street. Even the authors admit the increasing numbers of immigrants of different religions will be “challenging” for social cohesion in the UK. The report found in the past decade a rise of 275,000 in the number of Muslims who were born in Pakistan or Bangladesh living in Britain. The increase is equivalent to twice the population of Oxford. And the number of Somali-born UK residents had also risen sharply – from fewer than 40,000 in 1999 to 106,700 this year. Many of the newcomers had migrated to Britain from other parts of the European Union. They claimed to prefer the UK because of “latent Islamaphobia” abroad, the report said. The “faith map” showed that 4.5million immigrants living in Britain had a religious affiliation. Of those, around a quarter were Muslim and more than half Christian. Polish Catholics and African Pentecostals also were also among the fastest-growing religious communities in the UK. The findings were based on previously unpublished results of the Labour Force Survey, which quizzes 200,000 people each year. Researchers said traditional church attendance had declined over the last decade but evangelical Christianity was growing. The report, called Faith, Migration and Integration in the UK, says: “A challenging change is that brought about by the arrival of migrants with an established faith organisation whose traditions and beliefs differ from that of the UK-born population.” A separate report found British Muslims are the most patriotic in Europe. Seventy-eight per cent think of themselves as British, says the Open Society Institute. In Germany it was 23 per cent. |
Obama, Sleiman discuss Mideast issues
December 15, 2009 - 07:17
 WASHINGTON - US President Barack Obama on Monday asked Lebanese President Michel Sleiman in White House talks to take action against arms smuggling into Lebanon which he said threatened Israeli security. Despite vowing support for Lebanese democracy, Obama said there were some issues on which he and Sleiman would not agree, and noted they discussed the implementation of the UN resolution on ending the 2006 war in Lebanon. "I want to be clear, I emphasized to him our concerns about the extensive arms that are smuggled into Lebanon that potentially serve as a threat to Israel. "President Sleiman and I are not going to agree on every issue with respect to... Israel, Lebanon, the Palestinians and Syria." "What we do agree on is we can resolve these issues through dialogue and negotiations, rather than through violence." Sleiman said he had brought up Israel with Obama. "We also discussed the Israeli threats against Lebanon which are taking place and place obstacles to the economic growth of the country," Sleiman said. "We asked President Obama and the US to exert further pressure on Israel to implement Resolution 1701." Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu last week denounced the resolution, saying it had proven to be a failure, despite ending the war between Israel and the Shiite Hezbollah militia. In November, Israel intercepted a ship that it said was carrying hundreds of tonnes of weapons from Iran destined for Hezbollah. Obama told reporters that Lebanon was a "critical country, in a critical region," and praised Sleiman for managing the swift-moving political currents threatening stability in his country. "We want to do everything we can to encourage a strong, independent and democratic Lebanon," Obama said, noting that Washington was especially keen to strengthen Lebanese armed forces. Sleiman praised Obama's landmark speech to the Muslim world in Cairo in June and the award of the Nobel Peace Prize to the US leader last week. He also called on the United States to push for the resumption of the stalled Middle East peace process, which has so far defied Obama's attempts to forge sweeping progress. Resolution 1701 ended the Israeli-Hezbollah war, which killed more than 1,200 Lebanese, mostly civilians, and more than 160 Israelis, mostly soldiers, but it has not led to a permanent ceasefire. It bans supplying arms to Lebanese militias while affirming the Beirut government's sovereignty over the entire country. Israel says Hezbollah has tightened its military hold on southern Lebanon since the conflict, despite a reinforced UN peacekeeping force, and equipped itself with tens of thousands of rockets, smuggled mainly from Syria. Sleiman, who earlier met House of Representatives speaker Nancy Pelosi, also held in depth talks with Vice President Joe Biden. Biden "stressed that our efforts to achieve our goals in the Middle East will not come at Lebanon’s expense," his office said in a statement. |
Hamas vows to continue resistance
December 15, 2009 - 07:17
 Ismail Haniya, the de facto Hamas prime minister in Gaza, has vowed to continue his movement's "resistance and struggle" against Israel, as Hamas marked its 22nd anniversary. Speaking to tens of thousands of supporters at a rally in Gaza City on Monday, Haniya said that Middle East peace talks had "failed". "Negotiations have failed, and the negotiators said after 18 years that the result is zero," he told the crowd, who were dressed in the party's green and waving flags. "We say today in the name of the Palestinian people ... Hamas will not go back on its line of resistance and struggle until it achieves for our people their freedom and independence, God willing." A male singing troupe dressed in military camouflage shouted: "Gaza is free. Gaza is steadfast," as they marched in procession. Popularity Hamas took full control of the Gaza Strip two years ago after forcing out security forces loyal to Mahmoud Abbas, the Palestinian president and leader of the rival Fatah faction. Organisers said the celebrations revelead growing popularity for the political movement. "The Palestinian people's trust in the Islamic Resistance Movement, Hamas, increases day by day," Abu Talha, head of popular activities in Hamas, told the Reuters news agency. Al Jazeera's Sherine Tadros, reporting from Gaza, said it was "incredibly important" for Hamas that significant numbers turn up at the rally, with ongoing hardships in the strip threatening to affect the movement's popularity. "People have come here today and they are still supporting Hamas' control over Gaza," she said. Gaza is continuing to struggle with poverty amid an ongoing blockade, while also recovering from Israel's war on the territory earlier in the year. Hamas has been unable to rebuild homes, sewage lines and water pipes destroyed in the offensive because Israel and Egypt continue to enforce a border blockade. Basic goods, such as food and some medicines are allowed into Gaza, but construction materials are not. Gaza blockade Israel first sealed Gaza's borders in June 2006 after fighters captured Gilad Shalit, an Israeli soldier. It was tightened a year later, when Hamas took control of the coastal strip, ousting forces loyal to Western-backed Mahmoud Abbas, the Palestinian president. Hamas, an offshoot of the Muslim Brotherhood, was formed in 1987 at the beginning of the first intifada against Israel's occupation in the West Bank and Gaza. The group, which has carried out dozens of suicide bombings since the 1990s, is considered a terrorist group by Israel, the US and European Union. The group aims to establish an Islamic state in the region and does not recognise Israel's right to exist. It has also opposed plans by Mahmoud Abbas, the Palestinian president, to seek a permanent deal with Israel. http://english.aljazeera |
Pakistan to Brainwash Taliban Militants
December 15, 2009 - 07:17
 ISLAMABAD – As the country is gripped by Taliban insurgency, the Pakistani government is planning to brainwash hundreds of militants in cooperation with Saudi Arabia. “We are going to set up a special cell for the detained militants in line with Saudi Arabia, where they will be psychologically treated by senior physiatrists,” Interior Minister Rehman Malik told IslamOnline.net Monday, December 14. “We have 2000 militants in our custody. Many of them were in initial stage of training and have not been converted into hardcore militants. We will try to de-radicalize them. “We will consult the Saudi officials in this regard and will take advantage from their experiences.” A senior interior ministry official confirmed that the government has planned a two-pronged strategy to de-radicalize the Taliban militants. “The hardcore militants, including their top leadership, will be tried in military courts, comprising a brigadier and two colonels,” he told IOL on condition of anonymity. “The low-ranked militants will be sent to the proposed jail, where they will be brainwashed by senior psychologists.” Pakistan is in the grip of a fierce insurgency, with more than 2,680 people killed in attacks since July 2007. In April, the government launched an offensive into the Swat Valley to uproot Taliban militants from the region. Months later, the army launched a deadly offensive into South Waziristan, the hub of Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), a conglomerate of different Taliban groups in the northern tribal belt. Malik, the interior minister, insisted that the government would make no concessions to hardcore militants. “They are being tried. There is no concession for them,” he said. “However, there will be leniency for those who have been misguided by these criminal elements. “That is why we are going to set up an exclusive cell for those misguided youths in line with Saudi Arabia, where they will be reformed through psychological treatment.” Tough Task But psychiatrists see the effort time-consuming. “It is a good move, but we should not expect results within weeks or months,” Dr. Haider Rizvi, a veteran psychiatrist, told IOL. “It is a time-consuming process, particularly in this case, whereby the patients (detained militants) are deeply brainwashed on religious grounds.” He, however, seems unconfident that the fruit of the brainwashing process. “US authorities used psychologists to mentally torture the prisoners at Guantanamo Bay in the name of brainwashing. But actually, it was not brainwashing and it didn’t work either,” he said. “However, if this phenomenon is used in a positive way, it can produce results.” Dr. Rizvi sees some hurdles in de-radicalizing the Taliban militants. “The first and foremost hurdle will be the availability of experienced and specialist psychologists, which unfortunately are not there at the moment,” he said. “There are four or five clinical male psychologists in Pakistan, who, I am afraid, won’t be sufficient to deal with such a huge numbers.” He opines that failure to tackle the root causes of the Taliban insurgency would nip the effort to de-radicalize the militants in the bud. “Psychologists can make a difference, but cannot change the things from black to white,” he said. “For this, you have to address the root cause of the problem,” he said, in an indirect reference to US and Pakistani policies vis-à-vis war on terror. Abdul Khalique Ali, a Karachi-based analyst, agrees. “These steps are mere waste of time. I don’t know what does the government want to earn from this idea?” “Till, the war is over in the region, no such step would work, no matter how much sincere the governments of the US and Pakistan are. “The blood of innocents will continue to create more and more militants. How many will be treated by the government?” |
Zawahiri: Obama's Mideast policy 'humiliating'
December 15, 2009 - 07:18
 DUBAI - Al-Qaeda's second-in-command, Ayman al-Zawahiri slammed US President Barack Obama's Middle East policy, saying it is designed to humiliate Muslims, in an Internet audio message posted on Monday. "Obama's policy is nothing but a new stage in the Crusader and Zionist campaign that is aimed at subjugating and humiliating us, occupying our land, robbing our riches and fighting our religion," he said in the statement posted on an Islamist website. Zawahiri also slammed Arab leaders, naming in particular Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas and Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, as well as Saudi King Abdullah and Jordan's monarch Abdullah II. "Those are the Arab Zionists... (who) implement the orders of Obama who has demonstrated to the Muslims in Palestine and elsewhere his real plan to support Israel, under the guise of appealing for respect, understanding, and cooperation," he said. Zawahiri surfaced last on December 1 in a similar audio message in which he paid homage to three Indonesians who were executed on November 9 over their involvement in the Bali attacks in 2002, which killed 202 people. Obama's high-profile push to restart Middle East negotiations has so far fallen flat, damaging his broader aim to improve ties with the Arab and Muslim world. |
