Report: Shalit Abductors Will Become Gaza Policemen

(IsraelNN.com) The Army of Islam, the Al-Qaeda-related terrorist group which helped Hamas kidnap Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit in 2006, has accepted an offer by Hamas to join the Gaza security force, according to the "Voice of Palestine" website, which is identified with the Fatah faction. The acceptance is based on Army of Islam leader Mumtaz Dormush and three other senior members of the faction receiving military rank.

The Army of Islam has had confrontations with the Popular Resistance Committees, which also took part in the Shalit abduction. Islamic Jihad declined the offer.

Ahmadinejad tells of plans for OIC economic summit

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad says Muslim countries should design a “foreign exchange basket” to avoid the consequences of the global economic crisis.

Offering ways out of the Western-initiated global financial meltdown, Ahmadinejad said on Sunday that "two series of measures need to be taken — short-term and long-term."

Well-coordinated economic cooperation among Islamic nations is "a short-term measure to confront the problems of the capitalist economic system," Ahmadinejad added, just before departing Tehran to attend an economic summit of the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) in Turkey.

The Iranian president said that relying on capitalism cannot solve any of the financial problems in the world.

"Once a foreign exchange basket is designed, in the long term, we should develop 'Islamic Finance' theories and take due course of action to implement them," Ahmadinejad said.

The Iranian president concluded that during his trip he would hold separate talks with “some leaders of the OIC member states to discuss bilateral and regional issues.”

Syrian filmfest awards Iran's 'Twenty'

The 17th edition of the Damascus International Film Festival has awarded an Iranian feature-length production directed by Abdolreza Kahani.

Twenty won the festival's silver award during a ceremony held at the Damascus Culture and Art Center.

The 88-minute film is about a reception hall's staff, who fear for their jobs after the owner decides to sell the place in twenty days.

The psychological drama made its international debut at the 2009 Karlovy Vary International Film Festival after participating in numerous national festivals and being awarded at Iran's third International Urban Film Festival.

Abdolreza Kahani began his film career at the age of 15 and made his first short film, The Smile in 1988.

Empty Hands, Dance with the Moon, Adam and Over There are Kahani's other productions. Over There has received the Golden Alexander award of the Thessaloniki festival.

The 2009 Damascus film festival granted its gold and bronze awards to South Korea's Treeless Mountain and Morocco's Black House respectively.

Former US Embassy hostage handed Iran post

The United States has appointed veteran diplomat John Limbert, who was held hostage at the US embassy in Tehran in 1979, as its senior Iran official at the State Department.

According to several officials at the State Department and White House, Limbert will serve as Deputy Assistant Secretary for Iran in the Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs, replacing Dennis Ross who has been moved to the US National Security Council to become a special assistant to the US president focusing on Iran.

Department sources also said that Limbert would play an active role in negotiations with Iran, working with Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs William Burns.

As the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Iran in the Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs, Limbert will report to Assistant Secretary for Near Eastern Affairs Jeffrey Feltman.

One of the sources at the State Department said, "He will be the most senior official at State who deals exclusively with Iran," adding that in more than two decades at the Department, "we've never had a DAS for Iran."

Limbert also serves on the advisory board of the National Iranian American Council (NIAC), which is a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization 'dedicated to advancing the interests of the Iranian-American community.'

The Council opposes sanctions on the Islamic Republic and calls for 'patience' in dealing with Iran's stance toward its nuclear program. The organization is also a bitter opponent of any military attack on Iran.

The NIAC has called for the discontinuation of congressional funding for anti-Islamic Republic news channels, including the Washington-based Voice of America Persian service and Radio Farda.

Former ambassador to Mauritania and former chargé d'affaires of the US Embassy in Khartoum, Sudan, Limbert can speak fluent Persian and has worked as an English instructor at Shiraz University in central Iran from 1969 to 1972.

Limbert also worked at the American Embassy in Iran when it was taken over by students in November 4, 1979 and was held for fourteen months.

The former US diplomat is expected to provide strategic advice and perspective on the region, offer assessments and also act to ensure effective policy integration throughout the region.

The appointment comes as US President Barack Obama has chosen to oversee US policy on Iran and has pledged to untangle 30 years of enmity toward Tehran by engaging the country diplomatically over its long-disputed nuclear case.

Meanwhile, Iranian officials say the US approach toward Iran has been in contradiction with the slogan of bringing 'change' to its policy.

"They chant the slogan of change but no change is seen in practice," Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei said earlier. "We haven't seen any change."

'Many Iranians suffer from vitamin D deficiency'

Iranian health officials claim some 40 to 80 percent of the country's population suffers from vitamin D deficiency, placing them at an increased risk of different health problems.

Vitamin D deficiency, commonly reported in many countries across the globe, is associated with weak bones, osteoporosis, higher vulnerability to infections, diabetes and some cancers.

"Different levels of vitamin D deficiency can be detected in 60 to 70 percent of Iranian women and 40 to 50 percent of Iranian men," said head of the Research Institute for Endocrine Sciences Fereydoon Azizi.

Low physical activity, malnutrition and spending insufficient time outdoors are the main factors contributing to vitamin D deficiency and subsequently osteoporosis in Iran.

Osteoporosis and its complications particularly fractures are responsible for the loss of 36,000 years of life in Iran; preventing the condition can therefore reduce the heavy burden imposed on society by the disease, Azizi said.

The head of the Research Institute for Endocrine Sciences added that the fortification of milk with vitamin D plays a critical role in improving overall vitamin D levels in the country, stressing that food products account for one-third of the body's need for this vitamin.

Azizi urged authorities to provide school children with monthly vitamin D supplements, stressing that drinking one glass of fortified milk per day is not enough to overcome the needs of most children.

Iran warns Russia over S-300 delivery

A senior Iranian lawmaker warns that any attempt by Moscow to back down on a deal to the deliver S-300 air defense system to Iran 'would run counter to Russia's interests'.

"The S-300 case, which is an old case, marks a new chapter in Russia's failure to keep its end of the deal," Iran's Parliament (Majlis) National Security and Foreign Policy Committee Chief Alaeddin Boroujerdi told reporters on Sunday.

Boroujerdi was referring to a contract signed between the Tehran government and the Kremlin in 2007.

"Given the extensive bilateral cooperation between the two countries, it would run counter to Russia's interests if negotiations fail to bear fruit in this matter," the influential lawmaker added.

Iran has opted to acquire the sophisticated S-300 defense system in reaction to Israeli rhetoric against Tehran. The missile defense system, according to Western experts, would shield Iranian nuclear sites against any Israeli airstrike.

"If Tehran obtained the S-300, it would be a game-changer in military thinking for tackling Iran," says long-time Pentagon advisor Dan Goure.

The S-300 surface-to-air missile system can track targets and fire at aircraft 120 kilometers (75 miles) away. The system features high jamming immunity and is able to simultaneously engage up to 100 targets.

The Israeli officials have on numerous occasions expressed concern over the possibility of the system being delivered to Iran.

"The S-300 is a Russian-made surface-to-air missile system that is very advanced, with long ranges and many capabilities," Israeli Air Force (IAF) commander, Major General Ido Nehushtan said in September.

"We need to make every effort to stop this system from getting to places where the IAF needs to operate or may need to operate in the future," he added.

While Russia's Federal Service for Military and Technical Cooperation said in October that Moscow would fulfill its commitment according to its 'international obligations', there has been interminable confusion reigning over the delivery of the defense system.

Boroujerdi warned that should Russia fail to fulfill its promises regarding the S-300 missile system, 'a negative point in the two states' relations would emerge'.

West Africa's last giraffes make surprise comeback

By TODD PITMAN, Associated Press Writer

KOURE, Niger – A crisp African dawn is breaking overhead, and Zibo Mounkaila is on the back of a pickup truck bounding across a sparse landscape of rocky orange soil.

The tallest animals on earth are here, the guide says, somewhere amid the scant green bush on one side, and the thatched dome villages on the other.

They're here, but by all accounts, they shouldn't be.

A hundred years ago, West Africa's last giraffes numbered in the thousands and their habitat stretched from Senegal's Atlantic Ocean coast to Chad, in the heart of the continent. By the dawn of the 21st century, their world had shrunk to a tiny zone southeast of the capital, Niamey, stretching barely 150 miles (240 kilometers) long.

The numbers of the Western subspecies dwindled so low that in 1996, they numbered a mere 50.

Instead of disappearing as many feared, though, the giraffes have bounced miraculously back from the brink of extinction, swelling to more than 200 today.

It's an unlikely boon experts credit to a combination of concerned conservationists, a government keen for revenue, and a rare harmony with villagers who have accepted their presence — for now.

___

There are nine subspecies of giraffes in Africa, each distinguished by geographic location and the color, pattern and shape of their spotted coats.

The animals in Niger are known as Giraffa camelopardalis peralta, the most endangered subspecies in Africa. They have large orange-brown spots that fade into pale white legs.

Ten years ago, an estimated 140,000 giraffes inhabited Africa, according to Julian Fennessy, a Nairobi, Kenya-based conservation expert. Today, giraffes number less than 100,000, devastated by poaching, war, advancing deserts and exploding human populations that have destroyed and fragmented their habitats. Around half the giraffes live outside game parks in the wild, where they are more difficult to monitor and protect, Fennessy said.

Giraffe hunting is prohibited in many countries. And some, like Kenya, have taken giraffe meat off the menu of tourist restaurants that once served them up on huge skewers. Even so, Fennessy said the plight of giraffes has largely been overlooked in conservation circles.

"We're trying to increase awareness, educate people, help governments put conservation practices in place," said Fennessy, who founded the Giraffe Conservation Foundation to draw attention to the animals' plight. "If we don't, giraffe numbers are going to continue to drop."

___

The first time the trucks came for them in Koure was more than a decade ago, during the reign of an army colonel who seized power in a 1996 coup.

Col. Ibrahim Bare Mainassara was adamant they would make a good gift for the president of neighboring Burkina Faso and he ordered several captured, said Omer Kodjo Dovi of the Niamey-based Association to Safeguard the Giraffes of Niger.

But "the giraffes went into a panic," Dovi said. "They couldn't outrun the trucks."

The animals weigh up to 2,200 pounds (1,000 kilograms) and can run at speeds up to 35 miles per hour (55 kilometers per hour). But if they fall, they can have difficulty getting up and die.

Dovi said five were captured. Three died on the spot; two were believed shipped to Burkina Faso. Nobody knows if they ever made it.

By 1998, Niger's government — pressed by conservation groups — began to realize the herds were about to disappear forever.

Authorities drafted new laws banning hunting and poaching. Killing a giraffe became punishable by five-year jail terms and fines amounting to hundreds of times the yearly income of farmers.

The changes had a startling effect: by 2004, the herds had nearly doubled in size.

The government "realized they had an invaluable biological and tourism resource: the last population left in West Africa," said Jean-Patrick Suraud, a French scientist with the Association to Safeguard the Giraffes of Niger.

In 2004, though, the trucks came again — this time on a mission for President Mamadou Tandja, who ordered a pair captured for the dictator of neighboring Togo.

Four vehicles barreled down the two-lane highway toward the giraffe zone. Inside them were Togolese soldiers, government forestry rangers and three local guides, according to the independent local newspaper Le Republicain, which reported the incident and published photographs.

"They did it like cowboys," said Suraud, who began working in Niger in 2005. "These are big animals, fragile. They can easily die of stress."

The giraffes were tied up, blindfolded, tranquilized and hauled onto the back of open-back trucks bound for the Togo border.

They died en route.

___

In Africa, giraffe skin is used for drums, watertight bowls, even shoes. Their bones are employed as grinders and some believe they can help bring rain. Mounkaila, the guide, said some villagers believe the hair on giraffe coats can induce fertility.

The villagers living around Koure, though, think giraffes are mostly useless, Suraud said. They aren't domesticated, and they can't be hunted for food. So the Association to Safeguard the Giraffes of Niger tries to teach people it's in their interest to keep them around.

"We tell them, 'if you are pro-giraffe, we can support you, give you loans,'" Suraud said. "But there is a quid pro quo. 'We also want you to stop chopping down their bushes and plant trees.'"

With 10 staff and help from private European zoos and the Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation, the Giraffe Association has built wells, planted trees and educated guides like Mounkaila who make a living escorting visitors through "the giraffe zone" — the fenceless region the animals trek through.

Niger's herds bring in a modest amount of tourist money for the government, too, paid in small sums through $10 fees distributed partly to the local district.

The Giraffe Association has focused especially on loans.

One of the beneficiaries, a 55-year-old Adiza Yamba, bought a small lamb for $50. The mother of eight fed it, then sold it for twice the price after it grew, paying back the money and pocketing the profit — a huge amount in one of the world's poorest countries.

"We don't mind them," Yamba said, echoing the stated view of most farmers. "Sometimes they try to eat the beans or mangos from our fields, but they never bother us."

Truer sentiments, perhaps, were evident last year when a pair of giraffes was killed by a truck as they crossed the highway: villagers swiftly moved in and divvied up huge chunks of red meat from the roadkill.

___

Since 1996, Niger's giraffe population has expanded by 12 percent per year — three times their average growth rate on the rest of the continent, Suraud said.

One reason: they face no natural predators. Poachers around Koure long ago wiped out the region's lions and leopards — which can claim 50 to 70 percent of young giraffes before they reach their first year.

The giraffes had also stumbled upon a peaceful region with enough food to sustain them, and a population that mostly left them alone. Today, they crisscross the land in harmony with turbaned nomads in worn flip-flops shepherding camels and sheep.

Drawn to freshly growing vegetation that sprouts during the rainy season, the giraffes can be seen in herds of 10 or 15, wrapping 18-inch black tongues (45-centimeter black tongues) around thorny acacia trees and combretum bush.

They graze within eyesight of farmers living in thatched dome huts, sometimes crossing through their bean and millet fields.

They are so used to humans, tourists can walk virtually right up to them.

"It's quite special in Niger how habituated they've become," Fennessy said. "You don't normally find giraffes living so close to villagers."

__

As the herds grow, some question how much the land can support.

The animals have been exploring new zones close to the border with Mali. In 2007, two crossed into Nigeria, and never returned.

"When they go away from this zone, it's a big risk, they can be hunted easily," said Suraud. "The population may be growing, but they're still very threatened."

The biggest hazard: habitat loss.

On a recent day, Salifou Mamoudou, an Environment Ministry official, spotted a turbaned man raking away vegetation from a dirt field. He told the man he was breaking the law; the man said he was only plowing a family plot — legally.

Mamoudou shrugged, and moved on.

Villagers relentlessly cut down dead wood to sell, he said. And, in an effort to make way for crops, they cut down vegetation the giraffes feed on. That's technically illegal, but there is almost no authority around to stop them.

"If we let them, they'll cut trees all the way up to the road," Mamadou said, waving a hand toward the highway, several miles (kilometers) away. "If there is no habitat, there will be no giraffes."

___

In the early morning dusk, a family of five giraffes is feeding on bubbles of vegetation freshened by recent rain.

It is a peaceful, primordial scene.

Mounkaila, the guide, takes a drag off a cigarette and walks casually toward them. He is just a few yards (meters) away, dwarfed by animals nearly three times his height.

Mounkaila rattles off some facts, not bothering to keep his voice down. The gentle creatures eye him, but don't seem to mind. A step closer, and they will slowly walk away.

They can grow up 20 feet tall (six meters tall), he says. They can eat 65 to 85 pounds (30 to 40 kilograms) per day, live an average of 25 years, and are able to go without water for weeks, needing less than camels.

Amid a clutch of treetops in the opposite direction, the heads of another pair poke out.

Mounkaila sweeps his shriveled hand across the landscape, toward a red and white cell phone tower rising not far away above the greenery.

"It wasn't always like this," the 50-year-old says, digging his flip flops into the orange soil. "When I was a boy, the giraffes were far more numerous, but they were harder to see."

There used to be enough vegetation to conceal them, he said, but the bush and forests are disappearing. And with nowhere to hide, the animals are forced to come out in search of food.

"They're easier to spot," Mounkaila said. "But that's good for us, not them."

Japan eyes solar station in space as new energy source

KARYN POUPEE
November 8, 2009

It may sound like a sci-fi vision, but Japan's space agency is dead serious: by 2030 it wants to collect solar power in space and zap it down to Earth, using laser beams or microwaves.

The government has just picked a group of companies and a team of researchers tasked with turning the ambitious, multi-billion-dollar dream of unlimited clean energy into reality in coming decades.

With few energy resources of its own and heavily reliant on oil imports, Japan has long been a leader in solar and other renewable energies and this year set ambitious greenhouse gas reduction targets.

But Japan's boldest plan to date is the Space Solar Power System (SSPS), in which arrays of photovoltaic dishes several square kilometres (square miles) in size would hover in geostationary orbit outside the Earth's atmosphere.

"Since solar power is a clean and inexhaustible energy source, we believe that this system will be able to help solve the problems of energy shortage and global warming," researchers at Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, one of the project participants, wrote in a report.

"The sun's rays abound in space."

The solar cells would capture the solar energy, which is at least five times stronger in space than on Earth, and beam it down to the ground through clusters of lasers or microwaves.

These would be collected by gigantic parabolic antennae, likely to be located in restricted areas at sea or on dam reservoirs, said Tadashige Takiya, a spokesman at the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA).

The researchers are targeting a one gigawatt system, equivalent to a medium-sized atomic power plant, that would produce electricity at eight yen (cents) per kilowatt-hour, six times cheaper than its current cost in Japan.

The challenge -- including transporting the components to space -- may appear gigantic, but Japan has been pursuing the project since 1998, with some 130 researchers studying it under JAXA's oversight.

Last month Japan's Economy and Trade Ministry and the Science Ministry took another step toward making the project a reality, by selecting several Japanese high-tech giants as participants in the project.

The consortium, named the Institute for Unmanned Space Experiment Free Flyer, also includes Mitsubishi Electric, NEC, Fujitsu and Sharp.

The project's roadmap outlined several steps that would need to be taken before a full-blown launch in 2030.

Within several years, "a satellite designed to test the transmission by microwave should be put into low orbit with a Japanese rocket," said Tatsuhito Fujita, one of the JAXA researchers heading the project.

The next step, expected around 2020, would be to launch and test a large flexible photovoltaic structure with 10 megawatt power capacity, to be followed by a 250 megawatt prototype.

This would help evaluate the project's financial viability, say officials. The final aim is to produce electricity cheap enough to compete with other alternative energy sources.

JAXA says the transmission technology would be safe but concedes it would have to convince the public, which may harbor images of laser beams shooting down from the sky, roasting birds or slicing up aircraft in mid-air.

According to a 2004 study by JAXA, the words 'laser' and 'microwave' caused the most concern among the 1,000 people questioned.

Turkey, Malaysia agree to lead efforts for global halal standards in OIC

The move can pave the way for the Organization of Islamic Conference countries to tap the growing halal market which currently is dominated by non-Muslim countries.

Turkey and Malaysia have agreed to lead OIC members in developing uniform halal global standards, Bernama news agency said.

The move can pave the way for the Organization of Islamic Conference (OIC) countries to tap the growing halal market which currently is dominated by non-Muslim countries.

The report quoted Deputy Minister for International Trade and Industry Datuk Mukhriz Mahathir as saying "this consensus was reached by trade ministers at the end of the ministerial meeting of the Standing Committee for Economic and Commercial Cooperation (COMCEC) Saturday.

"We have proposed to lead member countries in developing uniform halal standards and this has been supported by a few influential member countries like Saudi Arabia," he told the report.

"After much deliberations between member countries, they have decided to let Malaysia and Turkey work together by leveraging on their experiences to develop uniform halal standards for OIC countries," he told Malaysian reporters after the COMCEC ministerial meeting in Istanbul.

The ministerial meeting is being held prior to the inaugural COMCEC Economic Summit on Monday which is being held in conjunction with the 25th Anniversary of COMCEC and the 40th anniversary of the OIC.

Mukhriz said with the outbreak of H1N1, there has been an increasing awareness about how halal food products are hygienically processed, thereby boosting demand for halal products from non-Muslim countries.

"OIC member countries realize there is a vast potential to venture into the global halal food industry and that they will be left out if they are not fast enough to implement global uniform halal standards," he said.

Halal foods currently account for 17 percent of the global food market and the global halal food market is expected to increase to US$642 billion in 2010.

Mukhriz said the global halal industry was not only for halal foods but includes cosmetics, logistics as well as Islamic banking and financial services.

"We hope to come out with some kind of framework of the standards at the COMCEC meeting next year, which likely will be the first draft that will outline a timeframe," he said.

Muhyiddin, who arrived early Sunday morning, is expected to deliver a statement on the achievement of COMCEC, the enhancement of intra-OIC trade and investment, promotion of Halal standards as well as provide a review of the world financial system and role of Islamic Finance at the summit.

Diplomats said they were hoping for the implementation of the Trade Preferential System Among the OIC (TPS-OIC), which could further increase intra-trade among OIC countries by 2015.

Source: World Bulletin.
Link: http://www.worldbulletin.net/news_detail.php?id=49650.

US military fuel tankers set on fire in Afghanistan

Sun Nov 8, 2009

Taliban militants have set fire to a convoy of US military fuel tankers in the eastern province of Nangarhar, eyewitnesses say.

Eyewitnesses in the eastern Afghan province of Nangarhar say that a group of Taliban militants attacked a convoy of US military tankers around the provincial capital of Jalal Abad on Sunday, torching three out of the five tankers around a local tunnel on the road to Kabul, a Press TV correspondent reported.

The attack disrupted the road for some time before security forces arrived at the scene.

There have been no reports of casualties.

The Taliban militants have on various occasions targeted fuel supplies in the east and south of country in an effort to interrupt military operations of international forces in the war-torn country.

The United States launched the war against the ruling Taliban in 2001 in the wake of the 9/11 terrorist attack on the US.

The eight-year war has claimed the lives of thousands of civilians and wounded and displaced many more.

Source: PressTV.
Link: http://edition.presstv.ir/detail/110748.html.

Kashmir, Ladakh recieve snowfall

Srinagar, Nov 8 (PTI) Icy winds swept Kashmir as the high altitude areas including the famous ski resort of Gulmarg experienced snowfall today.

Reports of snowfall were received from higher reaches, mostly in North-west of Kashmir and parts of frontier Ladakh region.

Gulmarg, 55 kms from here in North Kashmir, witnessed a mild snowfall but its peripheral areas including Aferwath and Sunshine peak received two to three inches of snow during the day.

Farkian Gali, Sadna Top, Razdan pass, Tulail and Gurez along the Line of Control also experienced mild to heavy snowfall, MET office said, adding, snowfall was also reported in the mountains surrounding Uri sector.

Gumri and Matian near Zojilla Pass in Kargil and Khardungla in Leh were lashed by the snow.

Afghan Taliban Says Holding Bodies Of 2 Foreign Troops

November 6, 2009

HERAT, Afghanistan (Reuters) - Two members of the NATO-led force in Afghanistan were reported missing Friday and the Taliban said they were holding the bodies of two drowned foreign soldiers.

The Islamist militants' spokesman Qare Yousuf told Reuters by telephone from an undisclosed location that they had recovered the bodies of the drowned soldiers Wednesday in the western Badghis province.

The province's police chief, Abdul Jabar, said the two service-members were Americans, who drowned in a river after arriving in the area during a gunbattle Wednesday.

Earlier the NATO-led force in Afghanistan said two of its members were reported missing during a routine resupply mission in the west of the country Wednesday.

"We continue exhaustive search and rescue operations to locate our missing service members. We are doing everything we can to find them," said U.S. Navy Captain Jane Campbell, a press officer for the NATO-led force.

"The families of these service members have been notified about their loved ones' status, and we will continue to keep them informed as information becomes available."

The force did not identify the nationality of the missing service members. Troops from more than 40 nations are members of the nearly 110,000-strong NATO-led force, two-thirds of them American. The biggest contingents operating in the west of the country are from the United States and Italy.

Reports of missing troops in Afghanistan are extremely rare. A U.S. soldier has been missing in the south since late June. Insurgents say they are holding him, and U.S. forces in the area launched a massive manhunt.

Source: Uruknet.
Link: http://www.uruknet.de/?s1=1&p=59789&s2=07.

Spain works to free 33 crew held by Somali pirates

BERMEO, Spain (AP) — Spain said Saturday it is working to free 33 crewmembers of a fishing vessel held by Somali pirates as thousands of friends and relatives rallied for their release.

Foreign Minister Miguel Angel Moratinos said he planed to meet Somali leader Ali Sharmarke Abdirashid Omar in Kenya.

In the northern Spanish port of Bermeo — the home base for the kidnapped crew of the vessel Alakrana — thousands braved pouring rain and hail to unfurl a banner reading "Freedom for our fishermen."

The fishing port's siren sounded, then the crowd held a 15-minute silence in honor of the men aboard the hijacked ship.

On Thursday the skipper of the vessel, Ricardo Blach, said heavily armed pirates had taken three of his crewmembers off the ship to the mainland. He said the pirates were threatening to kill them if two pirates captured by Spain were not freed.

Moratinos announced Friday that the three crewmembers had returned safely to the ship.

The two Somali men were captured and brought to Madrid for their alleged role in the hijacking of the Alakrana on Oct. 2 in tuna-rich waters of the Indian Ocean. The two suspects are due to face trial in Spain for kidnapping and other charges.

Deputy Defense Minister Constantino Mendez said the charges facing the two Somali men were not negotiable. But he kept open the possibility of transferring them to a court in another country, as Spain did in a similar case in May.

In that instance Spanish naval forces caught seven young pirates trying to hijack a Panamanian-flagged ship in the Gulf of Aden.

Spanish courts initially considered bringing them to face justice in Madrid but ultimately delivered them for trial in Kenya, which has signed an anti-piracy agreement with the European Union.

Threats to unity in Sudan

Galal Nassar

November 6, 2009

Five important challenges threaten the future of Sudan. For the country to retain its cultural, political and strategic unity, it is now more important than ever that Sudan's different forces unite behind a national strategy, writes Galal Nassar

Such is the interest of the Arab media in the Arab- Israeli conflict as it unfolds in occupied Palestine, Lebanon and Syria that journalists are often accused of giving scant interest to the conflict in Somalia as well as the ongoing insurgencies in Sudan's south, west and east. Yet, Sudan is drifting along an uncertain and dangerous course. A host of domestic, regional and international influences, some threatening, seem to have taken hold of that country.

Most recently, reports coming out of south Sudan last weekend indicated that the South Sudanese President Salva Kiir, leader of the southern-based Sudan People's Liberation Movement (SPLM), had called on southerners to vote to secede from Sudan during a speech intended to launch his party's election campaign for the 2010 elections and 2011 national referendum.

This is despite the fact that both the SPLM and the northern National Congress Party (NCP), the ruling party in the national capital Khartoum, had agreed to make national unity a priority when they signed the 2005 Comprehensive Peace Agreement, or Naivasha Agreement, that established a federal system in the country and ended the civil war.

The Naivasha Agreement casts a long shadow over the political, economic, social and security conditions in the country. Along with other factors, such as the Darfur crisis, the deteriorating conditions in three regions, the economic and diplomatic blockade, and the worsening living and social conditions in the country, the agreement is shaping the future of Sudan. Foreign pressures, and outright blackmail, have also contributed to the current scene in Sudan.

The Naivasha Agreement enabled the south to have 34 per cent representation in all executive, legislative and judiciary departments of government at the central level, as well as a say in various civil and military agencies. The agreement thus piled up gains for the south at the expense of the north. It also denied the president of the republic any authority in south Sudan, and made his authority in the north subject to approval by his Southern vice-president. Without the approval of the latter, the president cannot impose a state of emergency, declare war, or appoint and dismiss ministers and top-level officials.

The agreement also gave the south the right to create a government with executive, legislative and judicial powers that are completely independent of the central government. The southern government can also have an independent army, and this was deployed in the south after the withdrawal of the forces of the central government. Meanwhile, six military units from the south continue to be deployed in the north, even in Khartoum.

Recent years have seen major efforts being made, with the assistance of US companies, to enhance and reinforce the capabilities of the southern government's army. An air force has been created in the south, complete with dozens of fighter planes and trained pilots. An armored corps and an artillery corps have also been formed, and new military vehicles, as well as stockpiles of weapons, have been bought into the south. Currently, the southern government has diplomatic representation in 20 countries in Africa, Europe and the Western hemisphere.

The independence of the southern government and its full and undiminished sovereignty over the south rests on the unambiguous provisions of the Naivasha Agreement. Moreover, the new Sudanese constitution, written after the signing of the said agreement in 2005, provides for the independence and sovereignty of the south. Articles 2, 25, 26, 51 and 58/2 of the constitution acknowledge the full independence and sovereignty of the southern government and allow it to exercise various powers. As mentioned earlier, the decisions of the president are now subject to the approval of his southern vice-president.

The current situation in Sudan, assessed from an objective examination of its political, economic, social and security aspects, calls for the urgent adoption of a new course based on national solidarity, and the country should place unity over division and the collective over individual. Only this will prepare Sudan for a national revival and start a tangible drive for development.

***

The first challenge facing today's Sudan is ideological. The so-called "New Sudan" scheme, dividing the country into various parts, is closely linked to the global plans of messianic US politicians and champions of the Project for the New American Century, drawn up under former US president George W Bush. The scheme aims to change the identity of Sudan, erasing its history and sapping the power of its people.

The implementation of this scheme in Sudan would promote goals that transcend Sudanese geographical borders and national territories. Eliminating Arab and Islamic culture in Sudan is only one of the declared goals of this scheme. The aim of the New Sudan project is to reshape conditions in Sudan in a way that benefits only pro-Africa, pro- Christianity and pro-American groups. Once Sudan is severed from its Arab fabric, Egypt's southern flank would be exposed, Red Sea security would be compromised and Sudan would become a thorn in the side of the Arab world.

The New Sudan scheme aims to undermine the essence of Arab national security through four main points, which include weakening the national security of Egypt and Libya by depriving them of the strategic depth Sudan now offers; threatening the security of Red Sea littoral countries; eliminating the function of Sudan as a strategic source for Arab food security; ending the role of Sudan as a bridge between Arab and African areas, and terminating cultural exchange between the Arab world and sub-Saharan Africa.

The second challenge facing Sudan is external. This external challenge has grown with the rise of the US as the world's sole superpower, a development that has given a boost to a global project spearheaded by the forces of Zionism and evangelical Christianity and their allies in Africa. The nature of the external challenge has changed over the past 20 years or so. At times, foreign threats have taken the shape of an economic, military and diplomatic blockade. At other times, foreign powers have interfered in favor of local players on the political scene, and neighboring countries have been used as instruments of pressure and blackmail.

This external challenge was evident in the manner in which the Abuja and Asmara agreements were concluded. Initially, 10,000 international troops were deployed in Sudan in accordance with Chapter 7 of the UN Charter and the Naivasha Agreement. These were followed by the deployment of 26,000 mixed troops in Darfur, also according to Chapter 7. European Union forces, acting on a mandate derived from Chapter 7 of the UN Charter, are currently stationed in eastern Chad and the northeast of Central Africa.

The current international military presence in Sudan is the largest in the history of the UN and the African Union. Given the negative repercussions of this presence on Sudan's sovereignty, culture and national customs, there is a need for an exceptional national effort to confront it. Unfortunately, international forces are not in the habit of leaving a country once they have been deployed.

The most recent instance of foreign interference in Sudanese affairs has come in the action taken by the International Criminal Court (ICC) against Sudanese President Omar Al-Bashir. The ICC has accused Al-Bashir of war crimes, and since then major countries have been trying to blackmail Sudan, offering a reprieve from an international trial in return for a change in Sudanese policies. This leaves one in no doubt that the ICC allegations are motivated more by politics than by justice.

The involvement of the ICC -- which has no jurisdiction in Sudan, for the latter country, along with most Arab countries, has not ratified it -- is further proof that the ICC is a political instrument rather than a mechanism for international justice. With justice absent from the region for nearly 60 years, one can only be sceptical about the sudden desire of the ICC for what it calls justice in Sudan.

The ICC's actions are likely to worsen tensions in Sudan, something that will only benefit Israel. Remarks made by Israel's Security Minister Avi Dichter in a lecture at the Israeli Security Institute on 4 September 2008 indicated that Israel's security thinking has, since Ben-Gurion's time, seen Sudan and Iraq as part of a geographical cordon surrounding the Zionist entity. Israel has therefore long made a point of infiltrating Sudan and Iraq through local stooges or international allies.

In his lecture, the Israeli minister said that Israel's allies have performed well in Sudan's south, as well as in the western and eastern parts of Sudan. The destabilization of Sudan is a strategic aim for Israel, since a stable and strong Sudan would strengthen the Arabs and their national security.

Noting the immense material and human capabilities of Sudan, its strategic position and its role in the Arab-Israeli conflict, Dichter said that Sudan had the potential of a regional power, even more than Egypt and Saudi Arabia. Israel and its allies, he added, had destroyed the pan-Arab role of Iraq after the US-led occupation in 2003. Eliminating the Sudanese role could be achieved through the continuing crisis in Darfur, now that the south had been taken care of, Dichter stated.

It is therefore clear that the external and internal aspects of the Sudanese crisis are not geared to undermining a particular regime, but are rather aimed at undermining a pan-Arab Sudan that has a clear identity and role.

A third challenge facing Sudan comes from the country's peripheries, in other words from the areas bordering north Sudan which, by virtue of their culture, religion, history and geography, are nevertheless integral parts of the country. The first of these peripheral zones in Sudan's north is Darfur.

Situated in the west of Sudan, close to the borders with Egypt, Libya, Chad and the Central African Republic, Darfur is rich in natural resources and covers the same area as Iraq. Its inhabitants are Muslim and Arabic-speaking (65 per cent of them are ethnic Arabs). It is the historical site of many Islamic sultanates, including the Fur Sultanate that survived until 1916.

Due to its rich resources and intermediate location between North Africa and sub-Saharan Africa, Darfur has been drawn, through imperialist and Zionist designs, into turbulent fighting and sedition over the past five years. This turbulence has led to harsh humanitarian conditions, as well as a new political reality that has upset the equilibrium the region has long maintained. The social, political and economic map of Darfur has changed dramatically, and there is every indication that, unless action is taken, these changes may persist. There is thus a need for unified national action to set things aright. There is also a need to alter the course of the "constructive chaos" that has resulted from UN Resolution 1769 and the international and regional pressures on Sudan.

Thus far, Darfur has been the opening act in a scheme that aims to weaken north Sudan and pave the way for the creation of a New Sudan. The warning signs are many, and they include former US president George W Bush's invitation to Salva Kiir, southern Sudanese leader and leader of the SPLM, and Minni Arko Manawi, leader of the Sudan Liberation Movement (SLM) in Darfur, to a meeting at the White House in June 2006. According to the White House, the aim was for the two movements to coordinate their efforts and thus ensure success for the New Sudan scheme.

Another faction of the SLM led by Abdel-Wahid Nour has recently opened offices in Tel Aviv. The SLM is backed by Israel, which shares Washington's interest in the creation of a New Middle East, of which New Sudan is to be a part. Israel has also for the first time received non-Jews as immigrants and has processed several thousand citizens of Darfur for political asylum. Many Darfur inhabitants have tried to enter Israel across Egyptian borders. Some have succeeded, while others have been caught and deported.

A second northern periphery presenting a challenge to the country as a whole is South Kordofan. Situated east of Darfur, South Kordofan is rich in natural resources, and the population is largely Muslim of Arab origin. South Kordofan is also the historic site of the Kingdom of Takali, which became part of the Islamic Kingdom of Sennar that controlled large swathes of northern Sudan until 1821. The area includes the Abyei region and the Nuba Mountains.

The Abyei region covers the south-western tip of Kordofan. Rich in oil and natural resources, the region was populated with Arab tribes prior to the arrival of the Dinka people in south Sudan from central Africa. Throughout history, the Abyei region has remained home to Arab tribes and grazing land for their cattle. Because it is situated close to south Sudan, a certain degree of tribal mingling has taken place, and Arab tribes invited Dinka leaders to live in their areas in 1905.

However, conflict erupted due to the SPLM's desire to append Abyei to south Sudan, and this conflict was discussed during the Naivasha talks. The two sides eventually agreed to a proposal from US Senator John Danforth that included controversial clauses, such as the suggestion that discussions be held in the region over its possible integration into south Sudan. Abyei could thus turn into an administrative and political part of south Sudan. Should this happen, the Arab tribes that inhabit the area would become a minority.

Abyei has been experiencing a crisis due to differences between the NCP and the SPLM over the implementation of the Naivasha Agreement. Other reasons for the crisis include the military build-up by the southern government in the region, the appointment by the SPLM of a Dinka official as political supervisor of the region, and the arrival of a large number of Dinka people in the region, a move believed to be related to SPLM plans for the possible annexation of the region to the south.

Thanks to the wording of the Naivasha Agreement, and the US's desire to control Abyei's oil resources, the area now faces an uncertain future. It cannot be ruled out that Abyei may turn into a problem as thorny as that of Kashmir, Karku and the Romeila oil field on the Iraqi-Kuwaiti border. Renewed negotiations between the NCP and the SPLM have resulted in a decision to resort to international arbitration, but until the International Court of Justice decides on the dispute, the SPLM will administer the region.

Another disputed area in the South Kordofan periphery is the Nuba Mountains, once home to the Islamic Kingdom of Takali. The mountains are inhabited by a mix of mostly ethnic Muslim Arabs and Africans who have been influenced by Arab and Islamic culture. The area is rich in history, as well as natural resources, including uranium. The Nuba Mountains stretch across the southern reaches of dominantly Arab Kordofan, and they give access to various parts of south Sudan. The area has been impervious to the insurgency led by the SPLM for nearly 22 years.

However, the Nuba Mountains have remained, both before and after the Naivasha Agreement, a target for SPLM intervention, and Naivasha gave the SPLM through peace what it could not achieve through war, namely the opportunity to share the region on a fifty-fifty basis with the NCP. A similar arrangement has been implemented in the Blue Nile region, but half the Nuba Mountains remain the exclusive domain of the SPLM. Consequently, those inhabitants who do not belong to the SPLM fear for their welfare and cultural identity.

One consequence of the Naivasha Agreement is that the future of the Nuba Mountains will be decided through discussions over whether it should become part of the south or remain part of northern Sudan, to which it historically belongs.

A third disputed region is the Blue Nile area, which covers the southeast reaches of northern Sudan. It is through this region that the Blue Nile flows, bringing 85 per cent of the water of the River Nile. The region is rich in natural resources and was once home to the Funj Sultanate (1504-1821), one of the most powerful Islamic kingdoms in Sudan. Throughout history, this area has provided cultural inspiration to Sudan as a whole.

The champions of the New Sudan project have taken considerable interest in the Blue Nile not only because of its wealth and history, but also because of other reasons that include the strategic position of the area, situated to the southeast of northern Sudan, which borders Ethiopia and parts of southern Sudan, and the fact that the Blue Nile flows through it -- the Rosseires Dam, built on the Blue Nile, is the second most important source of electricity in Sudan next to the new Merowe Dam.

All these areas form integral parts of the history, geography and social and cultural fabric of northern Sudan. They are all home to ancient Muslim kingdoms and have been instrumental in spreading Arab culture and language. But they all suffer from development-related problems as a result of colonial policies, as well as neglect by all national governments so far.

The current situation in Darfur, Abyei, the Nuba Mountains and the Blue Nile valley constitutes a major threat to Sudan and its central government. Events taking place in these areas have the potential to undermine the state and its standing, as well as the history, culture, identity and customs of Sudan.

Those who want to carve out parts of Sudan hope to create an ethnically-based New Sudan. A major challenge facing these peripheries is embedded in the discussions, or "popular consultations", that the Naivasha Agreement envisions for the future of the Blue Nile, the Nuba Mountains and Abyei. This process of discussions, or consultations, could end up severing these areas from their historical background and cultural fabric. Indeed, things are already moving in this direction, which leaves northern Sudan in danger of fragmentation, partitioning and cultural restructuring.

The fourth challenge facing Sudan is economic and social. Sudan has recently undergone an economic boom generated by its oil revenues and the inflow of capital from China, India, France, Qatar, the UAE and other Arab countries. But living conditions are still harsh for many of its people, a matter that calls for additional efforts on the internal and regional levels to raise the standard of living in the country. Economic integration between Sudan and the rest of the Arab world may help propel the region forward towards food sufficiency.

All this underlines the need for a national project in Sudan and for comprehensive and well-balanced economic and social development in all parts of the country, especially the underprivileged areas. Oil revenues can and should be used to kick-start a comprehensive agricultural revival and one that can outlive the oil boom.

To initiate such a full-scale economic revival, Sudan needs to continue its current efforts to update infrastructure, stimulate industry and embrace new technology. Along with the drive to improve economic conditions, efforts must be made to combat poverty, increase employment, and reduce tribal rivalries, ethnic prejudice and other forms of negative behaviour. In particular, substantial efforts must be made to launch programmes for social justice and to put together a cultural, social and political project that enhances the spirit of national and pan-Arab belonging. This is the only way to alleviate tribal and ethnic rivalries.

The fifth challenge facing Sudan is political. While the four above-mentioned challenges constitute the most important for the Sudanese national scene, there is also a political challenge that requires the Sudanese to lay the foundations for a secular state. This state should have institutions that are legitimate and are inspired by science and faith. The state should aspire to promote freedom, democracy and human rights. The government should work for the cause of progress, peace, security and social and political harmony, and efforts to rehabilitate the political scene should be made through a new political map drawn up to promote national and strategic objectives. Matters of power should be put aside, in order to preserve the identity of the country and enhance its pan- Arab and regional role.

***

These five challenges are especially important in the light of the upcoming elections in Sudan. These may be the most important political task at present, for it is through the elections that the country will edge closer to democracy. But political groups, including national, Islamic and pan-Arab parties, must approach the elections with a full awareness of the national challenges facing the country and its people, history, identity and pan-Arab role.

The upcoming elections will be the first to be held after the Naivasha Agreement, and some want them to be a stepping stone to the New Sudan project. Therefore, Sudanese political groups must keep in mind that the SPLM has said that it will contest the upcoming elections on a platform of the New Sudan. It has also promised to reinforce its current alliances with the so-called marginalized forces of Sudan, many of which are known for their racist tendencies and cynical attitudes.

Moreover, the SPLM now holds the south in a firm grip, preventing all other parties from engaging in political work in the south. Therefore, the SPLM is likely to win, using all possible means, every constituency in the south. It will also make considerable gains in the Blue Nile and South Kordofan regions. Its allies are likely to make a strong showing in Darfur. The SPLM will achieve some success in Khartoum and other cities because of the presence of voters who have been influenced by racist discourse, as well as others who are discontented by the harsh living conditions in the country, or who oppose the long-serving NCP.

It is also the case that the elections will take place under different local, regional and international circumstances. The so-called international community will likely not confine itself to monitoring the elections, but will act to support the SPLM, which is expected to facilitate the implementation of the New Sudan project. If they decide to contest the elections on separate platforms, the old parties of Sudan, including the pan-Islamic and pan-Arab parties, will make it easier for their adversaries (the groups supporting the New Sudan project) to achieve their political aims. Rivalries in the ranks of Sudan's established political groups may lead to their defeat in the elections.

Previous elections may also provide some indication of what the future may hold.

The achievements made by some of Sudan's old parties during their terms in office may not prove much help at the ballot box, though the failures of the NCP are not a guarantee of substantial victory for the opposition. Some parties think that because their rivals are unprepared, winning the elections will be easy. Such logic is flawed and dangerous for those parties, as well as for the country as a whole.

To conclude, it is now more vital than ever that all Sudan's political groups that believe in a common cultural background unite. It is only through their unity that Sudan may be able, with help from Arab and Muslim countries, to confront the New Sudan project. From the Gulf to the Ocean, Arab and Muslim nations should give united Sudan all the political and moral backing they can muster.

Source: Uruknet.
Link: http://www.uruknet.de/?s1=1&p=59812&s2=08.

Jordan, Turkey to sign free trade deal before year end

(MENAFN - Jordan Times) Jordan and Turkey agreed on Saturday to sign a stalled Free Trade Agreement (FTA) before the end of the year.

The two sides also decided to reciprocally cancel visa fees, among other deals meant to boost bilateral ties, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported from Istanbul.

During talks between Prime Minister Nader Dahabi and his Turkish counterpart, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the two sides agreed to wrap up the FTA deal so that it goes into effect before the end of the year.

Petra said that the agreement was made possible by a Turkish decision to accept modifications requested by the Jordanian side, without elaborating on the nature of requests.

The FTA between the two countries has been on the table for years, but after several rounds of talks since 2002, there was still disagreement over issues related to customs, lists of exempted goods, rules of origin as well as rules related to bilateral protection.

The two sides also agreed that a joint "strategic council" will be meeting in Turkey and Jordan alternatively twice a year, and will be co-chaired by the two prime ministers.

Ministers representing both parties will meet before the end of the year to discuss matters related to the council, the agency reported.

Meanwhile, Dahabi and Erdogan discussed bilateral cooperation within a regional context in the fields of water, energy, railroads, electricity interconnectivity and natural gas.

Turkey is already part of regional megaprojects such as the Egyptian gas pipeline that is planned to pass through Turkey to Europe.

On regional politics, the two sides saw eye to eye on Mideast peace, with the Turkish side voicing support for Jordan's position on Jerusalem. Amman is drumming up international support to stop Israeli unilateral measures in East Jerusalem aimed at distorting the Arab Islamic identity of the holy city, including continuous settlement activity, eviction of Palestinian families and aggression on Muslim and Christian holy sites.

Both sides renewed support for the Palestinians in their pursuit of national rights, especially a sovereign state.

Dahabi is in Istanbul to participate in the economic summit of the Standing Committee for Economic and Commercial Cooperation of the Organization of Islamic Conference, which will convene on Monday.

At the summit, Dahabi will deliver Jordan's address in which he will emphasize the importance of economic and commercial cooperation among OIC member states, according to Petra.

Ida becomes hurricane a 2nd time off Mexico coast

By CATHERINE E. SHOICHET, Associated Press Writer

CANCUN, Mexico – Ida grew into a hurricane for a second time as it roared over the Caribbean on a path that could take it between Mexico's resort-studded Yucatan Peninsula and Cuba before heading for the southern United States.

Tour operators and fishermen along Mexico's Caribbean coast, including Cancun, pulled their boats out of the water Saturday in anticipation of rains and winds from Ida's outer bands. But the hurricane appeared unlikely to make direct hits on either Mexico or Cuba, with its forecast track passing over the Yucatan Channel that separates the countries on Sunday.

Cancun's beaches were empty on Saturday as rain began pelting down, but tourists walked the streets under umbrellas or improvised rain ponchos. Most appeared unconcerned.

"We're not too worried. I'll get some good pictures," said Steve Rydgren, a 30-year-old photographer from Seattle, as he arrived in Cancun for a one-year anniversary vacation with his 29-year-old wife Stacy.

The U.S. National Hurricane Center in Miami said Ida's winds had picked up to 90 mph (150 kph), making it a Category 1 storm. Ida plowed into Nicaragua's Atlantic coast on Thursday as a Category 1 hurricane, laying waste to 500 homes and damaging bridges, power lines, roads and public buildings, before weakening into a tropical storm.

Forecasters predicted Ida would weaken over the Gulf of Mexico to tropical storm strength and possibly brush the U.S. Gulf Coast next week. The hurricane center forecast that Ida could strengthen to Category 2 later Sunday.

Realtor Beth Conway, 41, from Sacramento, California, said she was happy just to be in Cancun.

"We don't really care if it's rainy or sunny," Conway said as she gathered her luggage at the Cancun airport. "We were just hoping they weren't going to cancel our flight."

Mexico issued a hurricane warning for parts of the Yucatan Peninsula, from Playa del Carmen to Cabo Catoche, including Cancun and Cozumel. meaning that hurricane conditions are expected within 24 hours.

Tropical-storm warnings remain in effect for the Yucatan Peninsula from Punta Allen northward to San Felipe, and western Cuba and Grand Cayman Island.

Authorities started up a reporting system used to locate tourists and plan potential evacuations or shelters. Quintana Roo state Tourism Director Sara Latife Ruiz said there were about 36,000 foreign and Mexican tourists in Cancun.

"We can locate them and if necessary, take them to some temporary shelter," said Latife Ruiz. "Right now, no flights have been canceled ... and there has been no evacuation of tourists."

Early Sunday, Ida was centered about 85 miles (135 kilometers) east of Cozumel and moving northwest at about 12 mph (19 kph).

Juan Granados, assistant director of civil defense, said seven storm shelters were being readied on Cozumel, five on Isla Mujeres and seven on Holbox, an island north of the peninsula. Statewide, dozens more were being readied for use if needed.

Authorities suspended fishing along part of the coast and told tour operators who offer reef snorkeling and diving excursions to stay in port, Granados added.

"We'll get some wind and rain, but that's about it," said James Watts, 34, part of a family from British Columbia, Canada that runs The Summer Place Inn and a real estate firm on the island of Cozumel, near Cancun. Employees at the inn weren't taping up or boarding over windows, but Watts said small boats would be pulled ashore.

Popular Mayan sites such as the seaside ruins of Tulum were to remain open, but employees worked to clean up debris that could become a hazard in high winds, Mexico's National Institute of Anthropology and History said in a statement.

John Cangialosi, a specialist at the Hurricane Center, said that as Ida heads north across the Gulf of Mexico, it is expected to meet a cold front that is moving south — making longer-term forecasts complicated for now.

Regardless of how the cold front affects the tropical system, Cangialosi said residents on the north Gulf Coast can expect lots of wind and heavy rain.

Cuba's national Meteorological Center said it did not expect any direct impact from the storm, but noted it could cause heavy rains in the western province of Pinar del Rio.

Peres calls Abbas 'colleague', asks him to stay

Israeli President Shimon Peres has urged acting Palestinian Authority Chief Mahmoud Abbas to reconsider his decision to step down.

Speaking at a public commemoration for Yitzhak Rabin, the former Israeli prime minister, Peres noted that along with Rabin, he and Abbas were among the signatories to the 1993 Oslo peace accord.

“We both signed the Oslo agreement,” The New York Times quoted Peres as saying on Saturday. “I turn to you as a colleague, don't let go.”

Abbas on Thursday announced that he would not seek another term in an election scheduled for January.

The Oslo accord is considered as the first face-to-face agreement between Israel and political representatives of the Palestinian people.

It was intended to develop a framework for future negotiations between Israel and Palestinians.

Iran: ElBaradei's Turkey plan was rejected before

Iran has again turned down an offer by the UN nuclear watchdog requiring the country to ship its enriched uranium to neighboring Turkey.

"This proposal which was made by the chief of International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) a long time ago was rejected by Iranian authorities at the time," a well-informed source told ISNA on Sunday.

The source talking on condition of anonymity said that, "It seems the IAEA chief is trying to take advantage of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's visit to Turkey to gain media coverage on a closed issue."

The UN nuclear watchdog has suggested Turkey as the third country in a draft deal that would provide Iran with fuel for its Tehran research reactor.

The outgoing head of IAEA Mohamed ElBaradei said on Friday that Turkey could enter the proposal as the third-country destination, According to Bloomberg website.

"It should work." ElBaradei had said on Public Broadcasting's Charlie Rose television show. “Iran has a lot of trust in Turkey."

ElBaradei said that the US government would also agree to the suggestion since the Obama administration is "very comfortable with Turkey."

ElBaradei added that though he has not yet presented the idea to Turkey, he was confident that Ankara would accept the idea to hold the material in IAEA custody.

Iran would then get fuel for its research reactor in Tehran from Russia, he added.

The mid-October nuclear draft discussed in Vienna envisages Iran shipping out some portions of its low-enriched uranium (LEU) to be converted into metal fuel rods and returned to the country for the Tehran medical research reactor.

Tehran says that modifications must be made to the draft deal to safeguard the country's interests.

Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki reiterated in a televised program late Thursday that Iran's 'economic and technical' concerns should be taken into consideration.

"The Islamic Republic examines all the proposals. We have examined this proposal; we have some technical and economic considerations (which need to be addressed)," he said.

Swiss Muslims ask fellow citizens to stop minaret ban

Muslims have invited the public into mosques amid an initiative to ban the construction of minarets in Switzerland.

The open day was held on Saturday in 12 cantons, including Geneva, Vaud and Freiburg. "We hope these meetings will build a dialogue and better understanding," said Hisham Maizar, a senior Muslim representative in Switzerland.

An emotional debate over the role of Islam in Switzerland is heating up as the Swiss will cast their votes on November 29 over a referendum that would ban the construction of minarets on mosques. The initiative was promoted by the right-wing Swiss People's Party, who argue that a minaret is a symbol of Muslim political power. Opinion polls suggest the proposed ban will be rejected by voters.

The debate comes in a country that has prided itself on integrating its large immigrant population and has largely avoided the clashes over the rights of Muslim minorities seen elsewhere in Europe. Swiss business and political interests are especially worried about a possible backlash from the Muslim world.

At a joint media conference on Thursday, representatives of national Muslim umbrella organizations explained the position of their communities towards the anti-minaret initiative which comes to a popular vote on November 29.

"Muslims in Switzerland identify with Switzerland as their home, whose constitution and laws guarantee them protection, freedom and security," said Farhad Afshar on behalf of the Coordination of Islamic Organizations of Switzerland.

Afshar accused the initiators of the anti-minaret campaign of attacking Islam and the freedom of religious practice under the cover of attacking minarets.

He pointed out that all religious buildings have their own specific characteristics which are part of the identity of the religion involved. It is up to members of whichever religion to decide what they want to build, within the general framework of the law.

Afshar warned that both Switzerland's excellent image in the Muslim world and the hopes that many Muslims placed in the country could be damaged by the 'senseless' campaign.

Switzerland is home to 400,000 Muslims, who have about 200 places of worship. Only four have a minaret.

Larijani meets with senior Iraqi clerics

Iranian Parliament Speaker Ali Larijani has met with senior Iraqi religious leaders to discuss major regional and international developments.

The Iranian official held talks with Iraq's most revered Shia cleric Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani in the holy city of Najaf on Saturday afternoon.

The Grand Ayatollah welcomed the Iranian delegation and made remarks over Muslims in the region and the world.

Larijani, for his part, underlined the importance of religious authorities' viewpoints in resolving various issues among Muslims.

The top Iranian lawmaker also met with Ayatollah Bahr Al-Uloum in Najaf on the same day.

Ayatollah Bahr Al-Uloum described the situation in Iraq as tough and vulnerable.

"Iran is the only country which has supported the new Iraq among the neighboring countries," Ayatollah Bahr Al-Uloum stressed.

The Ayatollah also emphasized on the role of religious authorities in order to obtain unity among Shia and Sunni Muslims across the world.

Meanwhile, Larijani referred to widespread relations between Iran and Iraq.

"Iran has good cooperation with Iraq in the fields of electricity, energy and building schools and hospitals," he said.

Larijani's visit to Iraq at the head of a parliamentary delegation started on Wednesday at the invitation of Iraqi Parliament Speaker Iyad al-Samarrai.

Iranian Student Dares To Criticize Ayatollah Ali Khamenei To His Face

He may be the bravest student in Iran or an unwitting stooge of the Islamic regime - or both. Either way, Mahmoud Vahidnia has gained instant fame after breaking a taboo by criticizing the supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, to his face.

The 25-year-old mathematics student has been lauded by opposition websites after reportedly telling Khamenei that he had been turned into a "grand idol" who was above criticism. But in a twist demonstrating the inscrutable nature of Iranian politics, the incident has been used by Khamenei's supporters to show how he embraces criticism. Vahidnia has remained unmolested since his 10-minute critique, which condemned the recent brutal post-election crackdown and denounced the state broadcaster, IRIB, for biased coverage. But his most remarkable comments were reserved for Khamenei himself.

"I don't know why in this country it's not allowed to make any kind of criticism of you," he told Iran's most powerful cleric, who has the final say in all state matters. "In the past three to five years that I have been reading newspapers, I have seen no criticism of you, not even by the assembly of experts (a clerical body with the theoretical power to sack the leader). I feel that if this doesn't happen this situation will lead to discord and grudge."

Vahidnia, who achieved nationwide recognition two years ago by winning Iran's annual mathematics Olympiad, made his remarks at a meeting between Khamenei and the country's scientific elite. They came after the supreme leader asked at the end of a question-and-answer session if anyone else wanted to speak. He chose Vahidnia after seeing him being pushed down by officials when he stood to ask a question.

Referring to the post-election crackdown sanctioned by Khamenei, he asked: "Wouldn't our system have a better chance of preserving itself if we were using more satisfactory methods and limited the use of violence only to essential circumstances?"

Although state TV cameras were present, the criticisms only came to light when they were highlighted on Khamenei's own website and by Alef, a fundamentalist site. Both carried accounts showing Khamenei responding calmly.

"Don't think that I'll be unhappy to hear such statements. No, I would be unhappy if such statements are not made," he said. "About lack of criticism of the leader, you go and tell them to criticize. We have not said that no one should criticize us … I welcome criticism. There is criticism and there is a lot of it. And I receive it and I understand the criticism."

The exchange has been seized on by pro-regime media as a demonstration of the leader's tolerance. The hard-line Keyhan newspaper, whose editor-in-chief is appointed by Khamenei, reported it under a headline reading, The Revolutionary Leader's Fatherly Response to Critical Youth.

Some opposition websites suggested that Vahidnia had been arrested by intelligence agents while other reports asked whether he had been a plant set up by regime officials. Vahidnia scotched both suggestions in an interview with Alef, in which he asked "society and elites not to spread rumors".

Under Iranian law comments deemed insulting to the supreme leader carry possible prison sentences, although in practice critics are often not arrested immediately. Ahmad Zeidabadi, the head of Iran's leading student movement, Tahkim-e Vahdat, published an open letter critical of Khamenei in 2007 but was only arrested in the round-ups that followed last June's disputed presidential election.

PLO issues report on Israeli violations of Road Map

Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) has published a report about Israeli violations of the Road Map, a US-backed plan for Middle-East peace.

The Negotiations Affairs Department of the PLO declared in its report that Israel has carried out more than 2,500 attacks on the Palestinian residential areas in five month, from June 1 to October 31 2009.

Israeli forces have killed 29 Palestinians and wounded 135 others during the period. About 960 Palestinians were also arrested during the period.

Israel has also demolished 156 homes and other buildings in the occupied Palestinian territories, during the 5-month period.

In addition, Israel has allocated $500 million for expansion of its settlements in the occupied Palestinian lands over the next two years.

Israel's expansionist policies and its aggression against Palestinians are considered the main hindrance to the Middle East peace process.

Peshawar attack kills 11, wounds dozens

Sun Nov 8, 2009

At least eleven people, including a local mayor, have been killed and 30 others wounded after a bomb blast in Pakistan's restive northwestern city of Peshawar, security officials say.

The officials said that a bomber blew himself up in a livestock market in Matni area of Adizai in south Peshawar on Sunday.

Local mayor Nazim Abdul Malik, who was in the market, has lost his life in the bomb blast, the news reported.

Pakistani militants have recently stepped up anti-government campaigns in the aftermath of the country's offensive on their mountainous sanctuaries in the South Waziristan province.

The militants seek to demoralize and weaken security forces and civilian resistance in the urban areas of northwest Pakistan in an attempt to destabilize Pakistan cities overlooking the tribal regions where militia groups operate, authorities say.

Meanwhile, in his Friday speech to a number of parliamentarians, Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari warned against complacency in the war against the country's militants and said, "The fight against militancy ... is a long and tough battle as we have to not only fight the extremists, but also the extremist mindset."

On the other side of the conflict, some Pakistani tribal leaders have called for the discontinuation of raids against the militants, which they concur happens 'with the consent of America.'

The militants have killed over 300 police officers and civilians and also maimed hundreds of others over the past several weeks in retaliation for the ongoing government raid on their positions.

Source: PressTV.
Link: http://edition.presstv.ir/detail/110727.html.

40 years on, Sesame Street still takes the high road - Feature

Los Angeles - It has won over 100 Emmys, been shown in more than 125 countries and on Tuesday it will celebrate a rare achievement in an age of ever-shifting tastes: Sesame Street will be 40 years old. "Sesame Street is one of the five most influential television shows of all time," says popular culture professor Bob Thompson of Syracuse University. "It had an enormous social influence as well as artistic. In fact there's nothing like it on the air to this day."

The format of the show may have changed somewhat since that first historic broadcast on November 10, 1969, which itself was the result of extensive research that aimed to find the way of blending entertainment with education.

The goal was to give children and their parents an alternative to the fun but mindless fare of children's television back then, shows that were often filled with violent episodes and were primarily designed not to teach kids, but to sell them things.

Funded by grants from the Carnegie Institute and the federal government, the Children's Television Workshop used the latest knowledge of child development, psychology and preschool education to stimulate young viewers' minds, improve their letter recognition, math and problem-solving skills, and just as importantly teach them essential life skills needed to thrive in modern America.

That goal established the new programme as one of the most progressive shows on US television.

It was determined to appeal to underprivileged urban children and to create a muppet-inhabited world that reflected the reality those kids saw each day. Sesame Street was thus set in a gritty cityscape with rubbish bins on the street and African-American actors featuring prominently in the cast.

The trick was that by using brilliant production techniques, the show taught children and their parents, without them even knowing.

Forty years on, it's not too much of a stretch to argue that the liberal and tolerant approach the show inculcated in its viewers played an important role in bringing the United States to the point where it could elect an African-American as president. So there is a sense of poignant justice that the special guest for the 40th anniversary show is none other than First Lady Michelle Obama.

Her message reflects the broadening scope of Sesame Street's agenda and its determination to move with the times. Not content with merely teaching kindergarten academics or social tolerance, the goal now is also to educate children about healthy lifestyles.

The First Lady thus plants a vegetable garden on the show, to mirror the one she planted on the White House grounds. "Veggies taste so good when they come fresh from the garden, don't they?" she says.

"If you eat all these healthy foods, you are going to grow up to be big and strong." Then she flexes her famous arms and adds: "Just like me."

Even the show's world famous Cookie Monster has taken the lesson to heart. He now confines his cookie munching to occasional treats, while using carrots and fruit as his snacking staples.

The show is remaining contemporary in other ways too. Being featured as the decoration on Google's logo may be the ultimate tech accolade, but Sesame Street's website is regarded by experts as one of the most innovative and effective children's internet destinations.

The project is also a merchandising powerhouse with everything from T-shirts to lunch boxes. But it also has been a pioneer of smart dolls and high-tech toys such as Elmo Live, which use animatronics and computer chips to give children new experiences.

"Sesame Street grew out of the civil rights movement, but it never stopped learning," says professor Thompson. "It changed segments and style but always retained its integrity and key goals."

US House passes healthcare legislation

The Democratic-controlled House of Representatives has narrowly approved a controversial US healthcare overhaul that would give insurance to millions of uninsured Americans.

Lawmakers on Saturday voted 220-215 for a 10-year, trillion-dollar plan to extend health coverage to some 36 million Americans.

Speaker Nancy Pelosi likened the legislation to the passage of Social Security in 1935 and Medicare 30 years later.

Rep. John Dingell, the longest serving Representative who has introduced national health insurance in every Congress since succeeding his father in 1955 said that "the bill provides coverage for 96 percent of Americans. It offers everyone, regardless of health or income, the peace of mind that comes from knowing they will have access to affordable health care when they need it."

The chamber's Democrats erupted in loud cheers and triumphant applause the moment the bill had the 218 votes needed for passage.

The battle now moves to the US Senate, which is working on its own version that has stalled there for weeks as Senate Democratic leader Harry Reid searches for an approach that can win the 60 votes it needs.

If, as expected, the two chambers pass rival versions of health care legislation, they will need to thrash out a compromise version and approve it in order to send it to US President Barack Obama to sign into law.

The United States is the only industrialized democracy that does not ensure all of its citizens.

'West fears Iran's energy independence'

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad says the Western powers are concerned about Tehran's steady progress in becoming energy independent rather than its alleged potential to build a nuclear bomb.

"The [Western] powers are in fact afraid of Iran's many accomplishments in nuclear technology, rather than its capability to produce a nuclear bomb," Ahmadinejad said in an interview with Turkey's TRT TV channel.

Speaking ahead of a high-level visit to Turkey, the Iranian president said the nuclear issue has been "over-politicized" in recent years.

Mindful of the West's disgruntlement about Istanbul's growing relations with Tehran, Ahmadinejad insisted that he does not intend to "come between Turkey and its Western neighbors."

"Iran has asked Turkey to strengthen ties with its eastern neighbors, but this should not be seen as a call for Turkey to break ties with Western countries," he noted.

The Iranian president made the comments as he prepares for a three-day conference of the Permanent Committee of Social and Economic Cooperation (COMSEC), which kicks off in Istanbul on Sunday.

On a different note, Ahmadinejad said he supported Turkey's bid to become a full member of the European Union, adding that it would "promote EU credibility even more."

Turkey's accession to the EU has been a subject of heated debate over the past few years. The country began full membership negotiations with European countries in 2005.

Activities halted at France's Tricastin nuclear plant

Electricite de France (EDF.FR) has been forced to suspend maintenance operations at its Tricastin nuclear plant due to technical problems.

The French utility giant stopped refueling operations at reactor two of the plant after a fuel assembly got stuck in the pressure vessel, EDF said in a statement on Friday.

"The incident took place at 2215 GMT," Reuters quoted a source at the plant as saying.

"We are very worried about this especially as this already happened just a year ago," the source added.

EDF faced a similar incident in the same reactor in September 2008. The problem was resolved in two months.

France had recently announced that of 58 nuclear reactors of the country, 15 of them are out of service.

Yemen's president: War has just started

Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh declares that the government will step up military attacks on the positions of Houthi fighters.

In a speech on Saturday, Saleh said there will be no reconciliation or truce until the military uproots Shia Houthis from the northern Sadaa province.

"The war just started two days ago, and what has been happening in the past six years was just ... training for the army units," he said.

"The war will never stop no matter how much money or martyrs it costs," AP quoted Saleh as saying.

The conflict between Houthi fighters and the Yemeni government began in 2004, but intensified last August when government forces stepped up the pressure against the fighters.

Houthi fighters say they have been defending their people against the Yemeni government that has marginalized them economically and politically.

Source: PressTV.
Link: http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=110730§ionid=351020206.

'Obama agrees to recognize Palestine's statehood'

US President Barack Obama in a secret meeting with Palestinian officials has agreed to recognize Palestine's statehood, Israeli media outlets report.

The Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Salam Fayyad has reached a secret understanding with the Obama administration over US recognition of an independent Palestinian state, Israeli news website, Haaretz, reported in Sunday.

Tel Aviv is concerned about the possibility of a unilateral Palestinian declaration of independence within the 1967 borders.

The report added that the Palestinian Authority Prime Minister is seeking a new Security Council resolution to replace Resolutions 242 and 338 in a bid to win the international community's support for the borders of a Palestinian state. The move might apply stronger pressure on Israel to withdraw from the West Bank.

Several Israeli officials told Haaretz that Fayyad had spoken to them of positive responses he had received over the plan from prominent EU member states, including the UK, France, Spain and Sweden.

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has recently asked the US administration to veto any such proposal.

Israeli sources said Netanyahu, who is expected to arrive in Washington on Sunday, earlier held talks with US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and special Mideast envoy George Mitchell to persuade the US not to support the Palestinian proposal which could potentially be recognized by the United Nations Security Council.

Congolese army attacked Hutu civilians: report

Sun Nov 8, 2009

Doctors without Borders (MSF) says thousands of Hutu civilians were targeted by the Democratic Republic of Congo's army when they visited sites set up to combat a measles epidemic.

On Friday, Doctors without Borders denounced the attacks in the eastern province of North Kivu as "an abuse of humanitarian action."

"MSF denounces this clearly unacceptable abuse of humanitarian aid for military purposes," a statement by the medical group read.

The medical charity said the attacks happened on October 17 when it was vaccinating thousands of children against measles at seven sites in the rebel-held Masisi district in the region.

The UN mission in Congo (MONUC) has been called into question because of atrocities against civilians blamed on regular troops.

However, in the eastern Congo, the Ugandan Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) and Hutu extremists of the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR) have also caused untold suffering for thousands of civilians.

The Hutu rebels have been fighting against the local Tutsi population and government troops since 1994. Some of the guerrillas even participated in the 1994 Rwanda genocide.

Congo launched an offensive in January against the militias, which have been destabilizing the Great Lakes region for years.

The eastern Congo has experienced interminable cycles of violence since the war began in 1998. The conflict has dragged on for over a decade and left over 5.4 million people dead.

Source: PressTV.
Link: http://edition.presstv.ir/detail/110715.html.