Somali rebels call for foreign reinforcements

Wednesday September 16, 2009
By Mohamed Ahmed

MOGADISHU (Reuters) - Somalia's al Shabaab insurgents called on Wednesday for more foreign militants to join them in the failed Horn of Africa state after U.S. forces killed one of the region's most wanted al Qaeda suspects.

The U.S. commando operation that killed Kenyan-born Saleh Ali Saleh Nabhan, 28, in remote southern Somalia on Monday has triggered an angry response from Islamist rebels fighting the nation's U.N.-backed government.

The raid likely gained Washington valuable counter-terrorism intelligence, but it risked further inflaming anti-Western opinion in a country of growing concern to the West.

Nabhan, wanted over a 2002 truck bombing that killed 15 people at an Israeli-owned beach hotel in Kenya and a simultaneous failed missile attack on an Israeli airliner as it left nearby Mombasa, was allied with al Shabaab.

Washington says al Shabaab is al Qaeda's proxy in Somalia.

"We call for all Muslim fighters in the world to come to Somalia," Sheikh Mahad Abdikarim, commander of al Shabaab forces in Bay and Bakol regions, told a news conference in Baidoa town.

He also referred to an African Union peacekeeping mission that is backing President Sheikh Sharif Ahmed's administration.

"If Burundians and Ugandans, who are not Muslims, are allowed to stay in Somalia, who can refuse our Muslim brothers to join us in the struggle?" Abdikarim asked.

Nabhan's mother, Aisha Abdalla said her son was innocent of the accusations made against him.

"We categorically deny that my son was an Al-Qaeda leader or involved himself in terrorist activities. I gave birth to him,"

Speaking at a northern Mombasa suburb where Nabhan spent his childhood, she demand his body be handed to the family, if indeed he had been killed as reported.

CHANGE IN TACTICS

Monday's raid marked an apparent change in tactics for the U.S. military, which has previously targeted wanted militants in Somalia using missiles, as opposed to helicopter-borne troops.

Western security agencies say the country, where fighting has killed more than 18,000 civilians since the start of 2007, has become a safe haven for militants, including foreign jihadists, who use it to plot attacks in the region and beyond.

The U.S. military has launched several airstrikes inside Somalia in the past against individuals including those blamed for the U.S. embassy bombings in Kenya and Tanzania in 1998.

In May last year, U.S. war planes killed the then-leader of al Shabaab and al Qaeda's top man in the country, Afghan-trained Aden Hashi Ayro, in an attack on the central town of Dusamareb.

Under Ayro, al Shabaab had adopted Iraq-style tactics, including assassinations, roadside bombs and suicide bombings.

Abdikarim, the al Shabaab commander, denounced Washington.

"Anybody who believes that America has a veto ... is an infidel with no faith. We must prepare to liberate Afghanistan, Palestine and the al Aqsa mosque," he told reporters.

Violence has killed more than 18,000 Somalis since the start of 2007 and driven another 1.5 million from their homes.

That has triggered one of the world's worst aid emergencies, with the number of people needing help leaping 17.5 percent in a year to 3.76 million or half the population.

Source: The Star.
Link: http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2009/9/17/worldupdates/2009-09-16T231639Z_01_NOOTR_RTRMDNC_0_-424917-3&sec=Worldupdates.

Facebook faces Arab boycott for putting the Golan Heights in Israel

Syria is reportedly planning to block access to Facebook after the social networking website agreed to list occupied parts of the Golan Heights as part of Israel.

Facebook incensed the Syrian government after it succumbed to a campaign of pressure mounted by Jewish settlers in the Golan and a pro-Israel lobby group to change the designation of the contested region.

Israel seized the Golan Heights from Syria during the Six-Day War of 1967 and has continued to occupy two-thirds of the strategically important territory ever since.

Until last week, Facebook followed the lead of the United Nations, Britain, the United States and the European Union, which all regard the Golan Heights as occupied territory.

As a result, Facebook members in Israeli-controlled parts of the Golan found that they were automatically designated as residents of Syria when they submitted biographical details to their profiles.

That automatic designation angered Jewish settlers in the region who use the website and they set up a protest group entitled "Facebook, Golan residents live in Israel, not Syria," which attracted over 2,500 members.

The protest was spearheaded by Honest Reporting, a watchdog which monitors the media for what it considers to be biased reporting against Israel.

The campaign proved a success and since last week residents of the largely Jewish settlements and towns of the Golan are now automatically designated as residents of Israel.

According to al-Quds al-Arabi, an Arabic-language newspaper based in London, Syria has launched a campaign calling for a boycott of Facebook because of the decision.

Access to the website will also be restricted in Damascus as a result of the move.

Syria has blocked access to popular websites such as Youtube in the past.

Full, uncertified Afghan vote: Karzai with 54 pct

By HEIDI VOGT, Associated Press Writer

KABUL – Afghanistan's election commission released preliminary vote totals Wednesday showing President Hamid Karzai with 54.6 percent of the vote in the first full results to be released since the country's Aug. 20 election.

The election still has not been certified as final, though. A U.N.-backed complaints commission is examining thousands of potentially fraudulent ballots. If the commission invalidates enough votes, Karzai's returns could drop below 50 percent, forcing him into a two-man runoff with top challenger Abdullah Abdullah, who has 27.7 percent of the vote.

Fraud accusations have tainted the election. A U.N.-backed group investigating fraud has ordered a massive audit and recount of about 10 percent of the country's voting stations.

A European Union monitoring team, meanwhile, said Wednesday that about 1.5 million ballots of the 5.6 million cast have indications of fraud, using indicators such as overly high turnout or a preponderance of votes for one candidate.

Final, certified results cannot be released until all investigations, audits and recounts are finished, meaning results from the fraud-tainted election are likely weeks away. The longer the count takes, the more likely it becomes that any potential runoff will be delayed until spring; winter snows, due in November, often block roads and isolate villages in the mountainous country, making an election logistically difficult.

Full preliminary numbers from Afghanistan's Independent Election Commission show turnout was about 38 percent, a much lower figure than the 70 percent turnout in the country's first direct presidential election in 2004.

U.S. and U.N. election observers say a runoff must take place before winter sets in or else the process would be delayed until spring, leaving the country with a monthslong power vacuum as the Taliban increases its attacks.

Certified results originally were to have been released this week.

A spokesman for Abdullah said the former foreign minister would speak with reporters Thursday.

Waheed Omar, a spokesman for Karzai's campaign, said the president was "clearly leading in the elections and we have bypassed the 50 percent benchmark that is required for someone to win the first round. We hope that when the certified results are announced we will win the election in the first round."

Outside monitors have accused the Afghan election commission, which is run by Karzai appointees, of loosening its own fraud-identification measures part way through the counting.

The deputy head of the U.N. mission here said the Independent Election Commission had voted 6-1 for a formula to root out corrupt ballots, only to reverse itself the next day, claiming it had no legal way to enforce those standards. The official, Peter Galbraith, left Afghanistan this weekend after a dispute with his boss, Kai Eide, over the U.N.'s best approach to the allegations of fraud.

Noor said results from more than 600 polling stations were not being included in Wednesday's expected release because of suspicious vote tallies.

Separately, Grant Kippen, the Canadian head of the Electoral Complaints Commission, has said more than 2,500 of the 26,300 polling stations open on Aug. 20 need to be recounted because of potential fraud. The complaints panel has already thrown out ballots from 83 polling stations because of fraud allegations, all in areas with high support for Karzai.

Thousands of fake ballots were submitted across the country, and returns showed Karzai winning 100 percent of the vote in some districts. The most serious complaints were lodged in southern Afghanistan, where Karzai's fellow ethnic Pashtuns predominate, though Kippen said all provinces were affected by the recount order.

Analysis: Al-Qaida death a blow to terror group

By LOLITA C. BALDOR, Associated Press Writer

WASHINGTON – The death of a key al-Qaida leader in a daring helicopter assault in Somalia caps more than a decade-long hunt by U.S. authorities and strikes a blow to the terror group's operation there, but it could also trigger a new spate of attacks on Western targets.

Senior U.S. officials and other experts said the commando raid Monday afternoon left six dead, including Saleh Ali Saleh Nabhan, one of the most wanted al-Qaida operatives in the region. Saleh's body and those of at least three other foreign fighters were taken away by U.S. special operations forces for forensic testing, after the raid in a southern village near Barawe, the officials said.

American authorities have been tightlipped about the daylight commando attack launched from U.S. warships off the Somali coast, and the officials would speak about it only on condition of anonymity. But others hailed it as both a military and psychological success.

"It reinforces the resolve that we have as a country and sends a message to young jihadists and anybody who might be thinking about taking up the cause ... that we have a long reach and a long memory," said Jack Cloonan, a counterterrorism expert who was a member of the FBI's Osama bin Laden unit.

That stark memory reaches back 11 years, to the 1998 bombings at U.S. embassies in Kenya and Tanzania that killed more than 250 people.

With Saleh's death, two al-Qaida leaders in Somalia linked to the bombing have now been killed.

One more primary U.S. target, Fazul Abdullah Mohammed, is still believed to be in Somalia, with a $5 million bounty on his head. Mohammed was indicted for the 1998 bombings and has been on the FBI's list of most-wanted terrorists since its inception. Mohammed has repeatedly eluded authorities' efforts to kill or capture him and is reported to be al-Qaida's leading figure in East Africa.

But with Saleh's killing, "a very high level al-Qaida guy in Somalia has been taken out," said Rep. Adam Smith, D-Wash., chairman of the House Armed Services subcommittee on terrorism. "We've had concerns about the degree to which al-Qaida was trying to do training and maybe plan operations out of Somalia and this will unquestionably undermine their efforts to do that."

U.S. officials have become increasingly concerned that battle-hardened al-Qaida insurgents are moving out of safe havens along the Pakistan-Afghanistan border and into places such as Somalia, where the vast ungoverned spaces allow them to train and mobilize recruits without interference.

Bin Laden has urged Somalis to overthrow their new moderate Islamist president and to support their jihadist brothers in Afghanistan, Pakistan, Palestine and Iraq. And U.S. officials worry that the Somalia-based al-Shabab — a powerful Islamist insurgent group that the State Department has designated a terror organization — has growing ties to al-Qaida.

Al-Shabab, which seeks to impose a strict form of Islam in Somalia, vowed retaliation for Monday's attack. "They will taste the bitterness of our response," a senior al-Shabab commander told The Associated Press, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to talk publicly.

The Obama administration, meanwhile, has said it wants to bolster efforts to support Somalia's embattled government by providing additional money for weapons and helping the military in neighboring Djibouti train Somali forces.

Interest in Saleh, a 30-year-old Kenyan, intensified in 2002, when he was linked to the attempted downing of an Israeli airliner and the nearly simultaneous car bombing at a beach resort in Kenya. The missile missed the plane, but ten Kenyans and three Israelis were killed in the hotel blast.

Several attempts targeting Saleh failed, including one in March 2008, when the U.S. Navy fired two Tomahawk missiles from a submarine into a southern Somali town.

Saleh's death, while an intelligence and logistical coup, still leaves a stubborn insurgency in Somalia that has threatened to target U.S. and other Western interests, and raised new warnings of vengeance in the wake of Saleh's killing.

"In the overall scheme of things, this guy being taken out doesn't necessarily lessen the impact of what al-Qaida might be doing in the Horn of Africa," said Cloonan, who helped investigate the embassy bombings. But, he added, "with him being on the most wanted list for all these years, it gives a lot of (U.S.) people a sense of a job well done that he's been taken out."

In the coming days, U.S. authorities will also watch closely to see if the attack triggers anti-American sentiment in an ungoverned country still haunted by the disastrous Black Hawk debacle of 1993. Two helicopters were felled and American peacekeepers were pinned down under fire from militants and briefly overrun, leading to the deaths of 18 U.S. troops. The body of one of the servicemen was dragged through the streets, prompting the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Somalia and hastening the end of a U.N. peacekeeping operation.

The use of a helicopter attack rather than a missile strike from the sea or an unmanned Predator drone suggests that the U.S. wanted to both prevent any civilian deaths and minimize local anger. At the same time, it allowed the military to collect the bodies as evidence — a move that could further enrage insurgents deprived of the ability to complete their sacred charge and bury their dead.

U.S. officials on Tuesday described a long, patient wait for the right opportunity to hit Saleh this time. When the moment came, it involved Army and Navy forces, including elite SEALs in Army assault helicopters.

Facebook makes money, tops 300 million users

By Alexei Oreskovic

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) – Facebook is making enough money to cover its costs and now has 300 million users, the world's largest social networking site said on Tuesday, proving the Internet's newest star industry can be a viable business.

Facebook is now generating enough cash to cover its operating expenses, as well as the capital spending needed to maintain its fast-growing service.

Analysts said this shows the financial viability of Facebook, which has faced questions about its underlying business model, despite its popularity, and was a good sign for a potential initial public offering.

"It's certainly meaningful to show that this is absolutely the real deal," said Broadpoint Amtech analyst Ben Schachter. "They are executing. People are spending money on the site."

Since its creation in a Harvard dorm room five years ago, Facebook has emerged as one of the Internet's most popular destinations and is increasingly challenging the Web's established powerhouses like Yahoo Inc and Google Inc.

Facebook unveiled a revamped search engine last month and is currently testing an online payment system. Facebook users have tripled from about 100 million a year ago.

Facebook Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg said in a blog post on the company site on Tuesday that Facebook reached its goal of being free cash flow positive in its most recently ended quarter. The company had previously projected reaching the target sometime in 2010.

"This is important to us because it sets Facebook up to be a strong independent service for the long term," said Zuckerberg in the blog post.

Facebook spokesperson Larry Yu said the free cash flow metric does not include any cash from private investment.

In May, Facebook announced a $200 million investment from Russian investment firm Digital Sky Technologies in a deal that valued the company's preferred shares at $10 billion.

DST valued Facebook's common shares at $6.5 billion in a subsequent deal to purchase shares from Facebook employees.

Facebook's becoming cash flow positive ahead of schedule provides another nugget of data to back up the lofty valuations, and according to one analyst, makes Facebook a more attractive candidate for a potential public offering.

"They can command higher confidence from investors now," said Collins Stewart analyst Sandeep Aggarwal, who noted that he believes Facebook could go public in the second half of 2010, or in 2011.

Zuckerberg said in May that any IPO is "a few years out."

Facebook did not provide any other financial details on Tuesday. The company has previously said its revenue was on track to grow 70 percent this year.

Facebook board member Mark Andreesen told Reuters earlier this year that the company will surpass $500 million in revenue this year.

Zuckerberg said in his post that the company is exploring ways to make the service perform faster and more efficiently as the number of Facebook users continues to grow.

Syria to block Facebook over Golan

JERUSALEM (JTA) -- Syria reportedly plans to block Facebook after the site began allowing users to designate some Golan Heights communities as being in Israel.

The Arabic newspaper Al Kuds Al Arabi reported Wednesday that Internet surfers in Syria now cannot enter the social networking site, according to the Israeli business daily Globes. The paper also reported that Facebook was closed to prevent Israelis and Syrians from communicating.

Facebook changed its personal information settings to allow Golan residents to register themselves as living in Israel. Residents of some Golan towns previously had only been given the option of listing Syria in the Hometown section.

YouTube has been officially blocked for some time, Globes reported.

Hamas rejects delivering gifts to captive Shalit

A Hamas official said Wednesday that delivering presents to kidnapped Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit is "a matter of fancy" and can never be accepted anyway.

Salah al-Bardaweel made the remarks as Israeli supporters of Shalit and families of Palestinian prisoners will hold a join rally Thursday at both sides of the border between Gaza and Israel, during which the two sides will exchange gifts to be sent to the Palestinian prisoners and the captive Israeli soldier.

Al-Bardaweel said Shalit is being held in a secret place and Hamas' political leaders do not know the place.

"It is clear that the suggestion to send the gifts aims at collecting information about the place and the circumstances in which Shalit is held," he added.

Hamas captured Shalit in a cross-border raid in 2006. Since then, Hamas and Israel have been holding indirect talks on exchanging Shalit for more than 1,000 Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails.

US ambassador walks streets of Kabul

By JASON STRAZIUSO, Associated Press Writer

KABUL – The U.S. ambassador to Afghanistan strolled the streets of Kabul on Wednesday, chatting with schoolchildren and visiting a mosque during an impromptu city tour.

Though insurgent attacks have skyrocketed across Afghanistan this year, Ambassador Karl Eikenberry's 15-minute stroll — while wearing a business suit and with no visible body armor — underscores the fact that the Afghan capital remains relatively safe.

An American ambassador in Iraq would never have taken an unplanned stroll down a busy city street during the deadliest years of the war there because of the extreme dangers he would have faced.

After his walk, the U.S. ambassador told The Associated Press that getting out and meeting people was "extremely valuable" and that he often takes short walks around the city.

"The mission here is to secure the people, secure the community," Eikenberry said. "You've got to be out here getting a sense of what the people are thinking in order to do that."

Outside a woodworking shop, Eikenberry talked with 37-year-old Sayed Hassan Barwazi, a community leader. Barwazi thanked the ambassador for coming out from behind the embassy's blast-proof walls and asked the U.S. to "pay attention to schools and parks."

While the two spoke, a crowd of about 100 gathered on the street, including several police carrying AK-47 rifles. A NATO convoy cruised by, and an Afghan man with a trained monkey on a leash walked past.

Throughout the walk, Eikenberry asked schoolchildren about their favorite subjects in school.

A former three-star general who was the top U.S. military commander in the country from 2005 to early 2007, Eikenberry has traveled all over the country and is regarded as well-versed in Afghanistan's history and complex politics.

Thousands of U.S. and other foreign citizens live in Kabul, including aid workers and diplomats. Many are driven around in well-protected SUVs and with armed guards, though others ride bikes and walk short distances. Doing that can be dangerous, though; foreigners have been attacked and kidnapped in Kabul while walking and driving.

The reason for Wednesday's trip was to visit an old madrassa — an Islamic religious school — whose walls and roof were torn apart by bullet holes and mortar fire from the country's civil war in the mid-1990s. The U.S. is giving $120,000 to help restore the structure, which will house classrooms for more than 300 students when complete.

"It is our hope that this madrassa will educate young Afghans to help advance peace, progress, justice and prosperity in your country," Eikenberry said during a short ceremony.

Eikenberry had several body guards watching him during his short walk, though when he asked Afghan officials if he could walk to the nearby madrassa — about 100 yards (meters) away — he said quietly that he knew his security team would not like his impromptu plan.

This year has been the deadliest of the eight-year war for U.S. troops, but a tight security cordon around Kabul has helped keep the capital relatively peaceful.

A U.S. spokesman for NATO forces, Col. Wayne Shanks, said Wednesday that three U.S. service members were killed after their vehicle hit a roadside bomb in southern Afghanistan on Tuesday. He did not release any other details.

Violence has risen across Afghanistan in the last three years as the resurgent Taliban regained control of large swaths of countryside. August was the deadliest for U.S. forces since the war with the Taliban began in 2001.

Fighting has been particularly harsh this summer in the south, where thousands of U.S. troops have deployed to bolster the Canadian and British-led operations in the Taliban heartland.

Soccer & Ramadan Clash in Algeria

Written by Adam Gonn

Religious leaders in Algeria are furious over followers cutting their prayers short to watch soccer.

When it came to choosing between watching a soccer match or attending Ramadan prayers, Islamic clerics in Algeria are increasingly furious with their congregants’ choice.

Earlier this month, Algerian men started cutting short their mosque prayers or skipping them altogether in order to watch the national soccer team Zambia in a qualifying match for next year’s World Cup in South Africa.

"There are no legitimate excuses for not attending prayers," Sheikh Abdul Rahman Saiban, a leading Algerian scholar, was quoted as saying in the London-based Arabic daily Asharq al Awsat.

Saiban’s statement came in response to a decision by an imam in a mosque in Algiers to cut short prayers due to pressure from his congregants who wanted to watch a soccer match. As it was, the mosque was much less full on the night of the game.

Saiban further noted that Islam is the official religion of Algeria and that all n ational institutes are obliged to align their activities according to the religious calendar.

As it happened, Algeria did win the match 1-nil and appears poised to qualify for next year’s tournament. Soccer fever is running high since this victory meant that Algeria will be represented in the world’s biggest sporting event for the first time since 1986.

Algeria is not the only country where soccer has collided with Ramadan.

In Egypt, which competes in the same groups as Algeria, members of the national team have benefited from a fatwa, or religious decree, from the country’s most important religious institution that allows them to abstain from fasting ahead of its decisive qualifying match against Rwanda. This has reportedly also caused an outcry from the religiously observant.

After several religious institutions condemned the fatwa, the players reportedly did not apply it and ended up fasting.

"This is a stupid fatwa, why would football players break their fast to play 90 minutes match, while Egyptians fought Israelis and crossed the Suez Canal as they fasted during the 1973 war?" one local supporter was quoted as saying.

Egypt, which is the reining African champions, won the game and will now have to beat Algeria in a November match in order to qualify. Not all are confident Egypt will be able to carry one its mantel.

"The consensus here is that if the current team under its current coaching staff doesn't make it to the World Cup this time," Sarah El-Sirangy, Deputy Editor of the Daily News Egypt and a vivid soccer supporter. "(Our generation) won't live to see Egypt play in the World Cup. And you know how much we value football here in Egypt."

Ramadan is the ninth month of the Muslim lunar calendar during which healthy adult Muslims are obligated to fast every day from dawn to dusk, refraining from eating, drinking, smoking and sexual relations. Ramadan is also a time of reflection, charity giving and social gatherings.

The importance and holiness of Ramadan, the only month mentioned in the Quran, lies in the tradition that during this month the Quran, the book most holy to Muslims, was revealed to the prophet Muhammad in the seventh century.

Trade and industry generally come to a standstill during Ramadan, especially when it falls during the hotter months.

Jammu and Kashmir to encourage Kashmiri Pandits to return to their homes

Srinagar, Sep 16 : A high-level apex committee has been constituted by the Jammu and Kashmir Government to monitor the return of Kashmiri Pandit migrants to the Kashmir valley.

The 37-member committee, headed by the Minister for Revenue, Raman Bhalla will also oversee effective implementation of the Rs 1,618 crore Prime Minister’s package, already announced for their return.

The committee will have members from almost all migrant organizations, besides the ministers and top senior government officials.

An official spokesman said here late last night that Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, in his package has announced Rs 7.5 lakh financial assistance to any family which would undertake renovation or reconstruction of their houses, located in the valley.

They will be given accommodation by the government till they complete their re-construction of their houses.

In case, any family would like to stay in their chosen rented accommodation, the rent will be reimbursed by the government.

For families who have sold their houses to farm cooperative societies, each member of the family in the society would be given financial assistance of Rs 7.5 lakh for purchase of land and construction of their house.

The Prime Minister, in his package has also announced 6,000 government jobs for Kashmiri pandits in the valley, 3000 of which would be given by the state government out of available vacancies.

Salaries of other 3,000 jobs would be be borne by the Central government initially.

All Kashmiri pandit migrants who return to the valley, would continue to get the relief for two years as per already announced package.

Their children would also be given a monthly stipend.

The package also provides relief for those migrant pandits who have horticulture and agriculture lands and desire to revive the same. They would be given Rs 1.50 lakh for the purpose.

Those migrants who have raised loans prior to 1989, would be given interest waiver facility.

The transit accommodation has already been identified for migrant Kashmiri pandits who would desire to return to the valley in Anantnag, Kulgam and Baramulla.

Two transit accommodations have already been built up in Sheikhpora (Budgam) and Mattan in Anantnag districts.

The committee would monitor implementation of all these schemes and would also take appropriate measures in this direction.

The committee, after deliberations would also put forward further suggestions and recommendations which it would deem fit for the smooth return of Kashmiri pandits to the valley.

Gaddafi’s heir leaves clue to his world vision in his Phd

Buried away on the dusty shelves of a London library is a student’s vision for a new world order.

Doctoral dissertations are usually of little interest outside the world of academic research but this book casts an intriguing light on the beliefs of one of the Middle East’s most influential figures.

The publication by Saif al-Islam Gaddafi, the eldest son of the Libyan leader Colonel Muammar Gaddafi and his second wife, is set to fuel the debate about the pace of democratic and economic reform in his homeland.

Perhaps because it is published under the surname Alqadhafi, the blue cover of the PhD thesis appears to have been little read since it was filed at the Senate House library of the University of London last autumn. Over 428 pages, the man seen as heir apparent to the socialist dictator who has ruled Libya for 40 years calls for democracy and greater influence for business in his vision of the world’s governing institutions.

Dr Gaddafi has become an increasingly powerful voice in the oil-rich country, which has influence in both the Muslim world and the African Union. Although dismissed by critics as a playboy prince for his frequent international travel and attendance at celebrity parties, Dr Gaddafi spent four years researching his thesis at the London School of Economics.

While other doctoral students struggled to survive with occasional lecturing, the multimillionaire Libyan was also negotiating the release of the Lockerbie bomber and $1.5billion compensation for his victims, opening up his country’s oil and gas fields to international businesses and restoring diplomatic links with the US.

Dr Gaddafi, 37, introduces his work by writing: “I shall be primarily concerned with what I argue is the central failing of the current system of global governance in the new global environment: that it is highly undemocratic.”

The comments will be read with interest in Libya, where his father has ruled since a military coup in 1969 and where opponents are still ruthlessly suppressed. Dr Gaddafi says that his dissertation “analyses the problem of how to create more just and democratic global governing institutions”, focusing on the importance of the role of “civil society”.

“Citizens in undemocratic states emphasise that they are not represented in the decision-making process of the IGO [intergovernmental organisation],” he writes. “Even if their governments are represented in some capacity, because their governments are authoritarian, abusive and unrepresentative of their people’s real interests. Others emphasise that even democratic states fail to consult adequately with their own citizens regarding their positions in international negotiations.”

He argues that the introduction of elected representatives of nongovernmental organisations (NGOs) creates a more democratic global government and features a case study on the World Trade Organisation.

Dr Gaddafi says that there are “strong moral reasons” to explore reform of the World Trade Organisation because power is currently concentrated among a few northern states. Lord Mandelson, the Business Secretary, supported Libya’s entry to the WTO last year while he was the EU Trade Commissioner.

At home Dr Gaddafi, seen by many commentators as the favourite son of Colonel Gaddafi, has portrayed himself as a reformer. In 2006 the Libyan authorities suddenly announced that he was leaving the country after a two-hour speech to 15,000 youth activists that contained critical public comments of the regime.

Despite helping to end diplomatic hostilities with the United States during the final months of the Bush Administration, Dr Gaddafi is scathing of his impact on the former President.

He refers to the United States as the “new Leviathan” and writes that the “behaviour of the Bush Administration does not invalidate the liberal view that we can build meaningful international rule by law and institutions based on expectations and reciprocal obligations”.

Dr Gaddafi commissioned consultants to carry out a survey of leaders in NGOs, which provided the data used in his thesis, The Role of Civil Society in the Democratisation of Global Governance Institutions: From Soft Power to Collective Decision Making?

The survey found that 91 per cent of respondents believed that there is a “democratic deficit” in intergovernmental institutions. Eighty-eight per cent believed that participation by NGOs would lead to better decision-making.

Dr Gaddafi concludes: “I believe that the evidence presented in this thesis suggests that the collective decision-making approach has real potential and deserves further examination.”

He was clearly satisfied with his experience at the LSE because in July the Gaddafi International Charity and Development Foundation donated £1.5 million to the college’s work on global governance.

Syrian President meets Jordanian King on bilateral relations

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and his wife on Tuesday met with Jordanian King Abdullah II and Queen Rania al-Abdullah who paid a short visit to Syria, the Syrian official news agency SANA reported.

During the meeting, President al-Assad and King Abdullah II discussed bilateral relations, highlighting that deepening mutual cooperation of the two neighbors serve the interests of two countries and their peoples, said the report.

Talks between the two leaders also dealt with the latest developments of regional and international issues of mutual concern.

According to the report, President al-Assad and King Abdullah also stressed their commitments to strengthen coordination and consultation between the two countries on different issues in the interests of the two countries and the Arabs.

President al-Assad and his wife held an Iftar banquet in honor of King Abdullah II and his wife.

Iftar is a rich evening meal for breaking the dawn-to-sunset fast.

King Abdullah II visited Damascus last May and discussed with President al-Assad on bilateral ties.

Jordanian Prime Minister Nader al-Dhabi also visited Damascus in November 2008 to discuss trade relations between the two countries with senior Syrian officials.

Bomber kills herself, injures six in Russia's Chechnya

GROZNY, Russia (Reuters) – A suicide bomber blew herself up beside a police car in the capital of Russia's southern region of Chechnya on Wednesday, wounding six people.

Russia has fought two wars against Chechen separatists since the early 1990s. A series of attacks by Islamist militants on security forces and local leaders over recent months has shattered several years of relative calm and raised questions about Kremlin control of the north Caucasus region.

Russian news agencies carried conflicting reports on the number of people who suffered in the blast, but local officials said there were no fatalities.

"I officially declare there were no victims in the explosion," Chechen Interior Minister Ruslan Alkhanov said at the scene of the blast. "Two Chechen policemen and four civilians were wounded."

An eyewitness told Reuters a young woman had approached the police car and blew herself up. Others said there had been three policemen in the car at the moment of the explosion.

Interfax news agency said the woman's head had been found.

A mangled, burned-out carcass was all that remained of the police car at an intersection in Grozny's usually bustling center, a Reuters reporter said.

A passenger minibus with shattered windows was seen nearby.

Leaders from across the North Caucasus warned Russian President Dmitry Medvedev last month that they were struggling to contain an Islamic insurgency they said had permeated all spheres of society.

Nigeria militants extend truce by 1 month

ABUJA, Nigeria – Militants in Nigeria announced Wednesday they will extend a cease-fire that expired overnight by one month, holding off on attacks on oil installations and kidnapping foreigners, but warned that the government must address its grievances.

The militants are pressing the government to send federal oil revenues to the impoverished southern Delta region, where the oil came from, and wants the government to withdraw troops and help people return to homes they had fled.

In July, the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta called a two-month halt to its violent campaign, saying it hoped the truce would help foster talks with the government. The group said Wednesday the government should use the truce extension "to do the right thing instead of pretending to talk peace while arming the military for a war it cannot win."

In August, the government offered amnesty to militants. One MEND militant leader, Ebikabowei Victor Ben, surrendered with 1,000 fighters and handed over weapons.

However the group said in a statement Wednesday that it does not recognize the amnesty offer and criticized the government for not making "any provision for meaningful dialogue."

The government has acknowledged the grievances of many in the Niger Delta, but denounces the militants as criminals who steal crude oil from Nigeria's wells and pipelines and profit by selling it overseas.

The unrest has cut Nigeria's production by a million barrels a day, allowing Angola to overtake it as Africa's top oil producer.

Israel rejects independent inquiry into Gaza war

By AMY TEIBEL, Associated Press Writer

JERUSALEM – Israel said Wednesday it would not appoint an independent inquiry into its conduct in the Gaza Strip war, rejecting a key recommendation from an explosive U.N. report that accused the Jewish state of war crimes.

The report by U.N.-appointed investigators said Israel used disproportionate firepower and disregarded the likelihood of civilian deaths in last winter's offensive, which killed hundreds of people and caused widespread damage to Gaza.

The report, released Tuesday, also urged Israel to conduct an independent investigation into its war conduct or face the prospect of referring the case to international war crimes prosecutors.

Israeli officials refused to cooperate with the investigation and vehemently rejected its findings, saying it was ordered by a U.N. body with a clear anti-Israeli bias. Israel's military has conducted its own inquiry and others remain pending, but so far has cleared itself of any systematic wrongdoing.

Government spokesman Mark Regev said Israel would not heed the call for an independent investigation, noting that army probes can be appealed in court.

"This report was conceived in sin and is the product of a union between propaganda and bias," Regev said. "Israel is a country with a fiercely independent judiciary ... Everything done by the military in Israel is open to judicial review by the independent judiciary."

Human rights groups in Israel and abroad have tarred the military probes as a "whitewash" and have also called for an independent inquiry.

The U.N. team, headed by former South African judge Richard Goldstone, concluded that both Israel and Gaza's Islamic Hamas rulers committed war crimes and possible crimes against humanity. Israel launched the three-week war in late December to quash Palestinian militants in Gaza who had bombarded southern Israel for years with rocket and mortar fire.

While harshly critical of Israel, the report also faulted Hamas for firing rockets into southern Israel without distinguishing between military targets and the civilian population.

Hamas officials welcomed its harsh condemnation of Israel and brushed off criticism of the Palestinian militants.

"The Palestinian people and the Palestinian resistance were in a position of self-defense and not of attack. One cannot compare the simple capabilities of the resistance with the great strength of the occupation," said Hamas' prime minister, Ismail Haniyeh.

Some 1,400 Palestinians were killed in the conflict, including hundreds of civilians. Thirteen Israelis also died, including four civilians.

The U.N. investigators recommended the Security Council require both sides to launch their own, credible probes into the conflict within three months, and to follow that up with action in their courts. If either side refuses, the U.N. should refer the evidence for prosecution by the International Criminal Court, a permanent war crimes tribunal, within six months.

It's unclear whether the Council would take such action — but the report itself could damage Israel's public image, with people linking the state of Israel and war crimes no matter what happens in the legal arena.

Israel says the Human Rights Council that ordered the probe is biased by its 47-nation membership, dominated by Arab and developing nations. Israel took specific exception to the presence of Christine Chinkin, a professor of international law at the London School of Economics, on the commission. Before her appointment, Chinkin stated in an open letter in the Sunday Times of London that Israel committed war crimes.

Goldstone is a veteran prosecutor of war crimes in Rwanda and former Yugoslavia. Goldstone, who is Jewish and has close ties to Israel, told Israel's Channel 1 TV earlier this year that Chinkin has "a completely open mind and will not exhibit any bias."

Goldstone agreed to head up the probe only after he won agreement to look at Palestinian actions as well.

Regev said Israel didn't make a mistake in not cooperating with the commission.

"The mandate was biased from the beginning and it would have been a mistake to give credibility to a mission that has more in common with a kangaroo court than it does with a serious investigation," Regev said.

Astronomers find rocky planet outside solar system

By SETH BORENSTEIN, AP Science Writer

WASHINGTON – Astronomers have finally found a place outside our solar system where there's a firm place to stand — if only it weren't so broiling hot.

As scientists search the skies for life elsewhere, they have found more than 300 planets outside our solar system. But they all have been gas balls or can't be proven to be solid. Now a team of European astronomers has confirmed the first rocky extrasolar planet.

Scientists have long figured that if life begins on a planet, it needs a solid surface to rest on, so finding one elsewhere is a big deal.

"We basically live on a rock ourselves," said co-discoverer Artie Hartzes, director of the Thuringer observatory in Germany. "It's as close to something like the Earth that we've found so far. It's just a little too close to its sun."

So close that its surface temperature is more than 3,600 degrees Fahrenheit, too toasty to sustain life. It circles its star in just 20 hours, zipping around at 466,000 mph. By comparison, Mercury, the planet nearest our sun, completes its solar orbit in 88 days.

"It's hot, they're calling it the lava planet," Hartzes said.

This is a major discovery in the field of trying to find life elsewhere in the universe, said outside expert Alan Boss of the Carnegie Institution. It was the buzz of a conference on finding an Earth-like planet outside our solar system, held in Barcelona, Spain, where the discovery was presented Wednesday morning. The find is also being published in the journal Astronomy and Astrophysics.

The planet is called Corot-7b. It was first discovered earlier this year. European scientists then watched it dozens of times to measure its density to prove that it is rocky like Earth. It's in our general neighborhood, circling a star in the winter sky about 500 light-years away. Each light-year is about 6 trillion miles.

Four planets in our solar system are rocky: Mercury, Venus, Earth and Mars.

In addition, the planet is about as close to Earth in size as any other planet found outside our solar system. Its radius is only one-and-a-half times bigger than Earth's and it has a mass about five times the Earth's.

Now that another rocky planet has been found so close to its own star, it gives scientists more confidence that they'll find more Earth-like planets farther away, where the conditions could be more favorable to life, Boss said.

"The evidence is becoming overwhelming that we live in a crowded universe," Boss said.

Venezuela ready to share information on Russian arms deal with South American states

BUENOS-AIRES | The Venezuelan government is ready to provide South American states with full information on its arms deal with Russia, Vice President Ramîn Carrizàlez has said according to Russia's press agency RIA Novosti.

Defense officials from states that comprise the UNASUR group of South American nations met on Tuesday in Ecuador's capital Quito for discussions on how to avoid a possible arms race in the region.

"Nothing prevents us from showing the treaty with Russia, from providing UNASUR with all information in details, because trust begins with transparency," Carrizàlez said.

Venezuela plans to increase its defense capability over a possible increase in U.S. military personnel in neighboring Colombia and alleged U.S. plans to invade Venezuela and seize its oil fields.

Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez announced plans on Sunday to create a multi-layered air defense network that will comprise Russian-made S-300, Buk-M2 and Pechora air defense systems to ensure the protection of Venezuelan air space and key infrastructure from various ranges, with the help of a Russian $2.2 bln loan secured last week.

The deal with Russia, struck during a visit to Moscow by Chavez last week, also includes the purchase of 92 T-72 main battle tanks and an undisclosed number of Smerch multiple launch rocket systems (MLRS).

Between 2005 and 2007, Moscow and Caracas signed 12 contracts worth more than $4.4 billion to supply arms to Venezuela, including fighter jets, helicopters and Kalashnikov assault rifles.

Hungary to accept Guantanamo detainee

By PABLO GORONDI, Associated Press Writer

BUDAPEST, Hungary – Hungary will accept a prisoner from the Guantanamo Bay U.S. military detention center, which President Barack Obama has pledged to close, Prime Minister Gordon Bajnai said Wednesday.

Bajnai said Hungary would choose from a short list of Guantanamo prisoners in the coming days and that he would participate in an 18-month integration program.

"According to our current expectations ... the chosen candidate will be a Palestinian man who will be able to start a new life in Hungary," Bajnai told reporters.

"I ask my fellow citizens to consider the difficult circumstances in which the detainee spent his latest years and help his future integration."

Bajnai said he had called U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Tuesday to inform her of Hungary's decision.

Daniel Fried, the U.S. government's envoy in charge of closing the Guantanamo prison, thanked Hungary and said all detainees who had been included as candidates for resettlement have been cleared of "any residual security questions which may remain."

"We are very grateful for Hungary's decision," Fried told reporters, adding that so far France, Portugal, Ireland, Spain, Italy and Belgium were among other European countries that had either accepted detainees or announced their willingness to do so.

Within the European Union, which long argued for the prison's closure, Portugal, France and Ireland have committed to taking specific prisoners.

"Closing the Guantanamo detention camp in a way that advances the security of the United States and of our allies as well as advances our values is one of President Obama's great priorities," Fried said.

Before the start of the war in Iraq, Hungary hosted a U.S. military training camp for Iraqi exiles and sent 300 noncombat troops to Iraq who carried out mainly transportation duties. The troops were withdrawn at the end of 2006.

Russian President Medvedev Hints At U-Turn Over Iran Sanctions

Dmitry Medvedev gave the first hint Tuesday that Russia is prepared to perform a major policy U-turn and support U.S. moves for sanctions against Iran.

Speaking in Moscow, the Russian President went out of his way to be more conciliatory with the West ahead of his visit to the U.S. later this month where he will attend the United Nations General Assembly Meeting in New York and the G20 summit of economic powers in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

A key issue on the agenda will be efforts by America, Britain and France to impose economic sanctions against Tehran, if the regime does not agree to curb its controversial nuclear program. It is widely expected that President Ahmadinejad of Iran, who will also be in New York, will reject any pressure from the international community.

So far Russia has dug in its heels and refused to join the move to sanctions on Iran, not least because it enjoys strong trade relations with the country.

But, Tuesday, Medvedev said: “Sanctions are not very effective on the whole, but sometimes you have to embark on sanctions and they can be right.”

His remarks contradicted his own Foreign Minister, Sergei Lavrov, who only last week ruled out sanctions. The possibility of a Russian U-turn will come as a huge relief to Western diplomats who had largely given up on Russia supporting them.

The trade sanctions against Iran would need the support of all five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council - the U.S., Britain, China, France and Russia. If Russia joined the Western nations Beijing would be expected to drop its objections.

Reaching an international consensus on Iran is seen by many as the only way to force the regime into serious negotiations and avoid the threat of Israeli unilateral military strike against Iranian nuclear facilities before the country can build its first atomic bomb.

Medvedev appeared relaxed and certainly more confident about his leadership when he met journalists and academics of the Valdai Discussion Club at Moscow’s famous GUM department store next to the Kremlin.

At the same meeting last year - in the aftermath of Russian war with Georgia - he seemed far more tense and edgy particularly when asked who was really running Russia, him or Vladimir Putin, the Prime Minister.

Last week Medvedev set out a hugely ambitious program of reforms that he hopes to initiate in Russia with the aim of stamping out corruption, breaking the country’s dependency on energy exports and modernizing a country which is still overshadowed by the legacy of Soviet rule.

The Russian leader admitted that other reformers before him had tried and failed but that he was confident that the country was ready to be dragged into the 21st century. Corruption arguably remains the biggest challenge.

“One major problem is that corrupted officials run Russia,” he said. ”I don’t think we can achieve tangible results in one or two years. We could get results in 15 years.” He went on to liken the campaign to the eradication of illiteracy in Russia one of the great achievements of Communist rule.

The reference to such a long project suggested strongly that Medvedev would like to stay on as president for another term when his mandate expires in 2012.

However that could bring him into direct conflict with Putin who hinted only last week that he would like to return to the Kremlin as president possibly for two terms of six years until 2024.

The relationship between the two leaders is a constant source of debate for modern Kremlinologists. It is widely accepted that Putin remains in charge of the day-to-day running of Russia even though he holds the number two job.

Tuesday Medvedev tried to play down talk of differences in the partnership. “We are a good team. We speak the same language. That is what matters. We have our differences but that is normal,” he said.

EU observers say 1.5 mln Afghan votes 'suspicious'

(KABUL) - European Union election observers said Wednesday that around 1.5 million votes cast in Afghanistan's troubled elections last month could be fraudulent.

"We have calculated 1.5 million suspicious votes," said Dimitra Ioannou, the deputy head of the EU Election Observation Mission to Afghanistan.

She told reporters 1.1 million votes cast for the incumbent Hamid Karzai were suspicious and 300,000 for his main rival Abdullah Abdullah. The remainder of the suspicious votes were cast for other candidates.

The August 20 election has been overshadowed by allegations of widespread fraud that are threatening to undermine the final result.

Preliminary results are due to be released Wednesday, although the final declaration of a winner is not likely for some weeks yet, officials say.

Hatoyama Japan's prime minister, names Cabinet

By ERIC TALMADGE, Associated Press Writer

TOKYO – Longtime opposition leader Yukio Hatoyama was elected prime minister and installed his new Cabinet Wednesday, promising to reinvigorate Japan's economy and shake up government with his left-of-center party after more than 50 years of nearly unbroken rule by conservatives.

Hatoyama's victory marks a major turning point for Japan, which is facing its worst economic slowdown since World War II, with unemployment at record highs and deflation intensifying. But concerns ran deep over whether the largely untested government would be able to deliver.

Hatoyama has vowed to cut government waste, rein in the national bureaucracy and restart the economy by putting a freeze on planned tax hikes, removing tolls on highways and focusing policies on consumers, not big business.

He has also pledged to improve Tokyo's often bumpy ties with its Asian neighbors and forge a foreign policy that is more independent from Washington.

"I am excited by the prospect of changing history," Hatoyama said early Wednesday. "The battle starts now."

Parliament convened in a special session to formally select Hatoyama, whose Democratic Party of Japan won a landslide in parliamentary elections last month to take control of the body's lower house, which chooses the prime minister.

Hatoyama's party won 308 of the 480 seats in the lower chamber to oust Prime Minister Taro Aso's Liberal Democratic Party, which is conservative and staunchly pro-U.S.

In Wednesday's parliamentary vote to choose the prime minister, Hatoyama won 327 of the 480 votes in the lower house. He needed a simple majority of 241 votes.

Quickly after his election, Hatoyama named Katsuya Okada as his foreign minister and Hirohisa Fujii as his finance minister. Though Okada has never held a Cabinet post, Fujii was finance minister under a coalition government in 1993-94, the only time in its 55-year history that the Liberal Democrats had previously been ousted from power.

Hatoyama, who has a Ph.D from Stanford University and is the grandson of a conservative prime minister, had a limited pool of seasoned politicians to choose from. His party, created a decade ago, has never held power, and nearly half of the Democrats' members of the lower house will be serving in their first terms in parliament.

But Hatoyama and his party, a mix of defectors from the conservative party and social progressives, face huge tasks that they must deal with quickly.

Although it has recently shown some signs of improvement, Japan's economy remains deeply shaken by the global financial crisis and unemployment is at a record high of 5.7 percent. The rapid aging of its population also threatens to be a drag on public coffers as the number of taxpayers decreases and pension responsibilities swell.

"The economy is in very difficult shape, so we must work hard to improve it," said Mieko Tanaka, one of the Democratic Party's new lawmakers.

Voters expressed hope for change and an upturn for the economy.

"I think it is good that now we are trying something new to change the stagnation," said Osamu Yamamoto, a 49-year-old company employee.

Experts said they had doubts about how effective the new government will be.

"People and employment problems — these are urgent needs," said Yoshinobu Yamamoto, a professor of international relations at Tokyo's private Aoyama Gakuin University. "The new government needs to decide on its priorities."

Hatoyama will also be tested quickly on the diplomatic front. He has said he wants to attend the General Assembly in the United Nations in New York next week and possibly meet with President Barack Obama.

Hatoyama has said he wants to build a foreign policy that will put Tokyo on a more equal footing with Washington, while keeping the U.S. as the "cornerstone" of Japan's diplomacy. He is also seeking closer ties with Japan's Asian neighbors, particularly China.

Some members of Hatoyama's party have said they want to overhaul the U.S.-Japan security alliance under which 50,000 troops are deployed throughout Japan. That idea has met with strong opposition from Washington, although plans are already under way for 8,000 Marines to be relocated from the southern island of Okinawa to the U.S. territory of Guam.

Venezuela seeking to join N-club

CARACAS, Venezuela — Hugo Chavez wants to join the nuclear-energy club and is looking to Russia for help in getting started.

The Venezuelan leader is already dismissing critics' concerns over his nuclear ambitions, offering assurances his aims are peaceful and that Venezuela will simply be following in the footsteps of other South American nations using atomic energy.

Yet his project remains in its planning stages and still faces a host of practical hurdles, likely requiring billions of dollars, as well as technology and expertise that Venezuela lacks.

Russia has offered to help bridge that gap, and Chavez has announced that the two countries have created an atomic energy commission.

"I say it before the world: Venezuela is going to start the process of developing nuclear energy, but we're not going to make an atomic bomb, so don't be bothering us afterward . . . (with) something like what they have against Iran," Chavez said Sunday.

The socialist president is closely allied with Iran and defends its nuclear program while the U.S. and other countries accuse Tehran of having a secret nuclear-weapons program.

U.S. State Department spokesman Ian Kelly on Monday expressed misgivings about Venezuela's nuclear ambitions.

Responding to a reporter's question about whether the United States would be worried about nuclear transfers between Iran and Venezuela, Kelly said: "The short answer is, to that, yes, we do have concerns."

Some of Chavez's critics among American lawmakers are alarmed. U.S. Rep. Connie Mack, R-Fla., urged the U.S. and allies to "unite to prevent Chavez from gaining access to new nuclear technology."

Foundation's effort a 'jihad'

KUALA LUMPUR: Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin has paid tribute to the Al-Bukhary Foundation for helping poor students attain education up to the highest level and called on other bodies to emulate the good deed.

Describing the foundation's effort as a jihad (holy war) in Islam, Muhyiddin, who is also education minister, said the aid helped to bridge the gap in education between those in urban and rural areas besides providing access to quality education.

"I wish to congratulate the Al-Bukhary Foundation for improving Muslims' standard of education," he said at a breaking of fast with 312 students of the International Islamic University at the Islamic Arts Museum here on Monday.

Muhyiddin's wife, Puan Sri Norainee Abd Rahman, and foundation chairman Tan Sri Syed Mokhtar Al-Bukhary were present at the function sponsored by the foundation.

Jordan Requests Rocket System From U.S.

WASHINGTON [MENL] -- Jordan has requested an advanced tactical rocket systems from the United States.

The administration of President Barack Obama has notified Congress of Jordan's request for the High Mobility Artillery Rocket System, produced by Lockheed Martin. Jordan has sought to acquire 12 M-142 HIMARS launchers as well as multiple-rocket launch systems in a $220 million deal.

Fadlallah voices fears of delays in cabinet formation

BEIRUT: Senior Shiite cleric Sayyed Mohammad Hussein Fadlallah voiced fears Tuesday that the cabinet formation process would drag on. “The formation of a government is not impossible but will take some time,” Fadlallah said, adding that foreign and Arab intelligence apparatuses have always been present in Lebanon and that foreign interference in Lebanese political issues “has always been the trend.”

Saudi education lags behind new high-tech university as result of clerical influence

Ulf Laessing

Reuters

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia: Saudi Arabia is launching its first co-educational high-tech university, but unless clerical influence is removed the state education system will not move into the modern age, analysts say.

Saudi King Abdullah has invited heads of state, business leaders and Nobel laureates next week to the opening of a technology university which has attracted top scientists and is meant to produce Saudi scientists and engineers.

Faced with a rapidly growing young population the university is part of plans to better qualify Saudis for the private-sector job market and lower the conservative Gulf Arab state’s dependence on millions of expatriate workers and oil revenue.

The King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) is the first institute in one of the world’s biggest oil exporters outside the reach of the Education Ministry, where clerics opposing cutting religious content have a strong say.

And men and women will be able to mingle, a stark contrast to otherwise strict gender segregation in the Islamic kingdom.

Analysts and diplomats say the KAUST launch is a step in the right direction, but state education will remain inefficient unless the government starts a radical overhaul.

“We need to change the mindset of the teaching concept. We need to review all our educational practices … We also need to be consistent with the needs of modern education and market requirements,” said Saudi columnist Abdullah al-Alami.

Ghanem Nuseibeh, a senior analyst at Political Capital in Dubai, agreed: “The bigger problem remains primary education.”

Despite its immense financial resources, the parameters of Saudi school and university education are governed by religious strictures and many academic subjects are off-limits for women to study.

The US ally is a monarchy without a parliament where the Al-Saud family rules in alliance with clerics who apply an austere version of Sunni Islam through mosques, the judiciary and parts of education. They even have their own police force.

While KAUST enjoys almost unlimited funds, sophisticated equipment and is run by an independent board, most Saudi schools and universities have curriculums still dominated by religion, despite reform efforts begun after the September 11 attacks of 2001.

Saudi Arabia faced international pressure to reduce the influence of its puritanical religious establishment since 15 of the 19 attackers were Saudi, acting in the name of Al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden, who is also a Saudi.

Foreign and Saudi critics said that Saudi Arabia’s educational material encouraged the killing of non-Muslims and promoted the idea of cleansing Muslim countries from Western cultural influences.

“Part of the problem lies in the lack of emphasis on scientific subjects,” said James Reeve, senior economist at Saudi bank Samba Financial Group.

At secondary level, 24 percent of courses are about maths or science, less than 32 percent in Jordan or 28 percent in Iran, he said, citing figures by Booz Allen Hamilton for a 2002 study.

Education is at the heart of reform King Abdullah has promoted since taking office in 2005 as the country needs to absorb a mostly young native population of 18 million.

“Some estimates suggest Saudi Arabia will need to double its current employment level over the next decade just to satisfy the requirements of new job market entrants,” Reeve said.

But despite launching a $2.4 billion education program in 2005, results are minimal: Saudi Arabia ranked 93rd of 129 behind Albania, the Philippines, Peru and Tajikistan in UNESCO global index assessing quality of education in 2008.

In February, King Abdullah removed two hardline clerics in a Cabinet reshuffle and named the first female deputy education minister, but diplomats say he has to balance power by accommodating clerics and conservatives opposing big changes.

“Saudi Arabia has vowed to remove religious hatred passages from textbooks but they need to do a grassroot reform against the religious people which seems unlikely,” said a Western diplomat.

The KAUST inauguration comes at a time when liberals’ hopes for reforms have been repeatedly dashed: The only film festival was canceled in July after clerics voiced opposition while other cultural events were also stopped or pared down.

Interior Minister Prince Nayef, a key royal conservative who was this year promoted to second deputy prime minister, raising his chances of becoming king, backs the religious police who have been under pressure since some Saudis died in their custody or in car accidents as the morality squad pursued them.

“The [KAUST] project has caused nervousness among clerics who view this as a step toward Westernization,” said Rochdi Younsi at Eurasia Group.

“For the scientists it will be important to get the academic freedom they are used to,” added Younsi.

Some fear KAUST is destined to become an oasis of academic freedom, away from the prying eyes of the clerics in a remote area north of Jeddah, with little impact on society at large.

“While the KAUST will provide long-term prospects and greater incentives … to move into applied higher education, the KAUST may become another institution that is isolated from the rest of the Saudi educational system and society,” said Nuseibeh, a political risk analyst.

Source: Daily Star.
Link: http://www.dailystar.com.lb/News/Middle-East/Sep/16/Saudi-education-lags-behind-new-high-tech-university-as-result-of-clerical-influence.ashx.

Egypt arrests violators of dawn-to-dusk Ramadan fast

September 16, 2009
Cam McGrath

Inter Press Service

Hundreds of Egyptians are reported to have been arrested for eating, drinking or smoking in public during daylight hours as part of a police campaign against people caught breaking the Ramadan fast. “Nobody has the right to arrest someone for eating or drinking in Ramadan,” says rights activist Gamal Eid, head of the Arab Network for Human Rights Information (ANHRI). “When we hear this we wonder, is this Egypt or Afghanistan? It’s Taliban mentality.”

Local newspapers reported that over 150 Egyptians had been arrested for breaking the Muslim fast in the southern governorate of Aswan on August 30, but the motive behind the round-up could not be corroborated.

Emergency laws in force since 1981 allow police to detain individuals without charge, making it difficult to know for certain the reason for arrest.

A local police chief insisted that the press had “misinterpreted” a routine security crackdown on beggars, homeless people and drug dealers. However, reports of arrests in other governorates, and statements by security officials appear to indicate a coordinated government campaign to enforce Islam’s prohibition of eating or drinking between sunrise and sunset during the holy month of Ramadan, which began August 22.

“I’ve spoken to two who were arrested,” says Eid. “It happened [for publicly breaking the fast], and they were very afraid and angry about it.”

Arrests have been reported in many different areas. Seven youths in the Delta governorate of Dakahlia were taken into custody last week for smoking on the street during the fasting hours, and released after paying a fine of $90, Al-Arabiya news channel reported. It added that arrests were also made in Hurghada, a tourist resort on the Red Sea, where government officials ordered all cafes and restaurants shut during the fasting hours.

In an interview with Al-Sho­rouk independent newspaper published September 10, Interior Ministry spokesman Abdel-Karim Hamdy said a police campaign had been launched in various governorates to arrest people breaking the fast in public during Ramadan.

“They [the violators] have to learn modesty,” he said. “In the past, Egyptian society was very pious, and I hope this piety will be restored … I ask [opponents] to read the law well before criticizing the Interior Ministry.”

Source: The Daily Star.
Link: http://www.dailystar.com.lb/News/Middle-East/Sep/16/Egypt-arrests-violators-of-dawn-to-dusk-Ramadan-fast.ashx.

Iraqi, Syrian officials meet in Turkey to discuss tensions

September 16, 2009

Officials from Iraq and Syria met Tuesday to discuss tensions stemming from Iraqi accusations that militants based in Syria are responsible for bomb attacks in Baghdad, Turkish and Iraqi officials said. The meeting in Ankara focused “on intelligence issues on a technical level,” a Turkish government official told AFP on the condition of anonymity, adding that the talks were meant to prepare the ground for higher-level discussions between the two sides planned for Thursday in Istanbul.

Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari and Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Moallem will represent their respective countries during the Thursday meeting. Zebari was already scheduled to be in Istanbul on Thursday for separate talks between Iraq and Turkey.

Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu, who earlier this month traveled to Baghdad and Damascus as Ankara attempted to mediate in the dispute, will also attend the talks, sources told Reuters on condition of anonymity.

Iraqi government spokesman Ali al-Dabbagh said the Iraqi delegation would present evidence backing allegations that terrorist groups based in Syria orchestrated deadly bombings in Baghdad.

“The evidence includes confessions, communications, financing and logistic support by people living in Syria and who have relations with Al-Qaeda,” he said in Baghdad on Monday.

Dabbagh was referring to the August 19 truck bombings, dubbed “Bloody Wednesday,” that killed 95 people and wounded 600 at the Finance and Foreign ministries in the Iraqi capital.

Turkey has been acting as a peace broker in the crisis sparked by Iraq and Syria’s tit-for-tat recall of envoys last month, six days after the attacks in Baghdad.

The row was triggered by Baghdad alleging that Syria was harboring two Baathist leaders who plotted the Finance Ministry bombing.

The flare-up threw into disarray extensive efforts in the past year to boost ties between the countries, which had been weak under former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein and his Baathist rule but had recently been improving.

Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki has alleged that 90 percent of foreign terrorists who infiltrate Iraq do so via Syria.

Maliki has formally asked the United Nations Security Council to launch an inquiry into the bombs, which triggered a diplomatic feud between Iraq and Syria.

Syrian President Bashar Assad has dismissed allegations that his country shelters militants suspected of involvement in the August 19 attacks as “immoral” and politically motivated.

Assad is also to travel to Ankara on Wednesday.

Turkey, which in recent years has deepened ties with neighbors Iraq and Syria, is worried the feud could destabilize the region, in particular as Ankara seeks a solution to its decades-long conflict with rebels in Turkey’s mainly Kurdish southeast.

Turkey needs cooperation from Iraq and Syria to fight Kurdistan Workers’ Party guerrillas who are based along their borders.

Source: The Daily Star.
Link: http://www.dailystar.com.lb/News/Middle-East/Sep/16/Iraqi-Syrian-officials-meet-in-Turkey-to-discuss-tensions.ashx.

Boats hire guards to ward off pirates

Spanish tuna boats will be able to hire armed guards to ward off Somali pirates trying to seize them in the Indian Ocean, the Madrid government has said.

In April, a Basque tuna boat was hijacked off Somalia and held for six days until a reported £720,000 ransom was paid. Another Spanish trawler escaped a hijacking attempt off the Seychelles this month.

Universal reveals details of new Harry Potter park

By Travis Reed, Associated Press Writer

MIAMI — It sounds like a new book in the Harry Potter series, but "Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey" will be a high-tech ride and the marquee attraction at the "Wizarding World of Harry Potter," a new theme park area opening in spring 2010 at Universal Orlando Resort.

The "Forbidden Journey" ride was named by author J.K. Rowling and described Tuesday by Universal officials in a Web cast revealing details of what the Potter park will look like.

The ride will takes guests through scenes and rooms from the blockbuster movies inside a richly detailed remake of Hogwarts Castle made to look 700 feet tall. Hogwarts is where Harry attends a boarding school for witches and wizards.

Guests will enter the "Wizarding World" through a station archway named for Hogsmeade, the magical village near Hogwarts. A plume of steam and a train whistle will sound the arrival of the Hogwarts Express. The goal is to make the experience immersive, so nothing outside is visible after guests pass the Hogsmeade station archway.

Rowling, known for carefully guarding the Potter franchise, hasn't yet journeyed to Orlando, but the design team has made several trips to London to consult with her.

Other rides include the "Dragon Challenge," a twin high-speed roller coaster themed after the "Triwizard Tournament" and the family roller coaster "Flight of the Hippogriff," named for a creature with an eagle's head and a horse's body.

"Along those journeys they're going to be swept up into the greatest parts of the movies and the books. We've pushed every technology available to us to give guests a theme park experience unlike any they've had before," said Paul Daurio, producer of the Potter area.

The Harry Potter park will be part of Universal's Islands of Adventure.

Art and set directors from the films, including Oscar-winning production designer Stuart Craig and art director Alan Gilmore, were hired to translate the movies into the park.

Every shop and eatery is Potter-themed. Honeydukes sells chocolate frogs and "Bertie Bott's Every-Flavour Beans," Ollivander's peddles magic wands, Zonko's joke shop has Sneakoscopes, and the British restaurant Three Broomsticks pours Butterbeer.

At The Owl Post, guests can send letters with a certified Hogsmeade postmark. Magical instruments and equipment are available at Dervish and Banges, including everything needed to play Quidditch — a game like soccer played on flying broomsticks.

"The interesting thing about Harry Potter is that the stories are so rich in themselves, so deep," said Universal Creative President Mark Woodbury. "There wasn't so much difficulty of creating the look, it was, 'How do you execute at a level of authenticity that is unquestionable?'"

There could even be new footage of Potter stars shot on actual sets from "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix" and "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince." A Universal spokesman declined comment on the issue, but the company was explicitly granted those privileges in its 2007 licensing agreement with Warner Bros. Consumer Products Inc., according to the contract filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

The Potter area will be Universal's third big-ticket addition in three years. SEC filings from the company estimate the combined cost of The Simpsons Ride, Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit and Wizarding World at between $275 million and $310 million.

Simultaneously, the resort owned jointly by NBC Universal and private equity company The Blackstone Group finds itself on shaky financial footing. If it cannot find refinancing, $1 billion in long-term debt may be maturing as soon as April, the company said in SEC filings.

The Potter park is sure to prove popular not just with American fans but also with visitors from the United Kingdom, Potter's home and the largest source of international tourism to Orlando, with about 1 million arrivals a year.

"It couldn't have come at a better time," said Danielle Saba Courtenay, spokeswoman for the Orlando Convention and Visitors Bureau. "There is such an affinity for the characters, particularly in the United Kingdom, and we do expect that the pent-up demand and having such a strong name will drive traffic to the area.

"It's such a huge worldwide brand, and the only place in the world you're going to be able to experience it is in Orlando," she said.

Hamas: Abbas not authorized to negotiate alone

Hamas says that the interim chief of the Palestinian Authority, Mahmoud Abbas, is not authorized to hold dialogue with the Zionist entity until internal unity is achieved.

Izzat al-Rishiq, a member of the Political Bureau of Hamas, told the Quds Net News Agency on September 13 that Hamas does not authorize Abbas to conduct any further negotiations with the occupying regime of Israel before there is unity among the Palestinian political factions.

Peace talks without unity are worthless and would not lead to any positive outcome, he stated.

Al-Rishiq made it very clear that if Abbas were to hold any new negotiations, the outcome of the talks would not be binding on the Palestinians.

And there are concerns that the current internal divisions could lead to more concessions, especially regarding the 'right of return' of the refugees, the city of Jerusalem (al-Quds), and historic Palestine, he added.

Al-Rishiq also said that the fundamentalist government of Israel, headed by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman, has no impetus to push ahead with meaningful peace talks.

Israel has refused to negotiate with the democratically elected Hamas administration that controls the beleaguered Gaza Strip and only talks with the Abbas administration, which currently has no democratic mandate but which nominally controls the occupied West Bank.

Mahmoud Abbas' term as president came to an end in February, yet he has remained in control without a mandate and is the preferred negotiating partner of Tel Aviv and its allies.

Boy finds rare pink grasshopper

By Lori Bongiorno

Daniel Tate, an English schoolboy, was looking for grasshoppers at a wildlife event he attended with his great-grandfather last week. But the 11-year old boy and his companions at Seaton Marshes Local Nature Reserve had no idea what a huge surprise they were in for.

Tate saw something pink that he thought was a flower. But when it jumped he knew it was a grasshopper.

It turns out that it was an adult female common green grasshopper that just happened to be born pink.

Experts aren't sure what caused this mutation. Grasshoppers of different colors, including pink, are unusual but not unheard of according to experts. What makes this particular grasshopper so rare is the intensity of the pink, according to Fraser Rush, a nature reserves officer in Britain.

Grasshoppers aren't the only insects that can be pink.

Japan's PM, Cabinet resign

By ERIC TALMADGE, Associated Press Writer

TOKYO – Japan's Prime Minister Taro Aso and his Cabinet resigned Wednesday to pave the way for parliament to elect Yukio Hatoyama as the country's next leader.

The top officials resigned after holding their final Cabinet meeting early Wednesday morning, the prime minister's office said.

The resignations were a formality so that parliament's lower house, now controlled by Hatoyama's party following their landslide election victory last month, can vote him in as Japan's prime minister. Hatoyama's victory ends more than 50 years of nearly unbroken rule by Aso's Liberal Democratic Party.

Hatoyama, head of the left-of-center Democratic Party of Japan, has promised to shake up Japan's political system, cutting government waste, reinvigorating the world's second-largest economy and focusing policies on consumers, not big business.

Parliament was to convene in a special session later in the day to formally select the new prime minister. Hatoyama's party controls 308 of the 480 seats in the body's lower chamber, which selects the prime minister, virtually assuring him of the post.

"I am excited by the prospect of changing history," Hatoyama said early Wednesday. "I also feel the weight of the responsibility of making history."

He will have a tough job ahead.

His first task would be to name a Cabinet. Media reports said he had already chosen Katsuya Okada as his foreign minister and Hirohisa Fujii as his finance minister. Though Okada has never held a Cabinet post, Fujii was finance minister under a coalition government in 1993-94, the only time in its 55-year history that the Liberal Democrats had previously been ousted from power.

Hatoyama has a limited pool of seasoned politicians to choose from. His party, created a decade ago, has never held power, and nearly half of the Democrats' members of the lower house will be serving in their first terms in parliament.

Though largely untested in power, Hatoyama and his party face huge tasks that they must deal with quickly.

Japan's economy is in its worst slump since World War II, unemployment is at a record high and wages are falling. The rapid aging of its population also threatens to be a drag on public coffers as the number of taxpayers decreases and pension responsibilities swell.

"The economy is in very difficult shape, so we must work hard to improve it," said Mieko Tanaka, one of the Democratic Party's new lawmakers.

Hatoyama will also be tested quickly on the diplomatic front. He has said he wants to attend a meeting in the United Nations in New York next week and possibly meet with President Barack Obama.

Hatoyama has said he wants to build a foreign policy that will put Tokyo on a more equal footing with Washington and force closer ties with Japan's Asian neighbors, particularly China.

Some members of Hatoyama's party have said they want to overhaul the U.S.-Japan security alliance under which 50,000 troops are deployed throughout Japan. That idea has met with strong opposition from Washington, although plans are already underway for 8,000 Marines to be relocated from the southern island of Okinawa to the U.S. territory of Guam.