Kucinich plans to force vote on US withdrawal from Afghanistan

For congressman Dennis Kucinich (D-OH), Afghan President Hamid Karzai's announcement Tuesday that his country would need the US's military support for another 10 or 15 years seems to have been the last straw.

The outspoken House representative says it was Karzai's statement that prompted him to draft a resolution calling for a House vote on the withdrawal of US troops from Afghanistan and Pakistan.

"We shouldn't be there another 15 to 20 months, let alone 15 to 20 years," Kucinich told the Cleveland Plain Dealer. "When I'm in my district talking to people, nobody has come up to me and said we need to be in Afghanistan for the next 15 to 20 years. They do say we need jobs, we need to protect our basic industry, we need education, we need to protect retirement security. I'd like to see us start taking care of things here at home."

Kucinich is circulating a letter (PDF) among congressional colleagues asking them to co-sponsor his resolution.

My bills, which would trigger a timeline for a timely withdrawal of US troops from Afghanistan and Pakistan, invoke the War Powers Resolution of 1973 and are intended to secure the Constitutional role of Congress, as directly elected representatives of the people, under Article I, Section 8 of the Constitution, to decide whether or not America enters into war, continues a war, or otherwise introduces armed rorces or material into combat zones.

Despite the president's assertion that previous congressional action gives him the authority to respond to the attacks of September 11, 2001, a careful reading of the Authorization of Use of Military Force (AUMF) makes cleat that the AUMF did not supersede "any requirement of the War Powers Resolution" and therefore did not undermine Congress' ability to revisit the constitutional question of war powers at a later date.

“We cannot afford these wars. We cannot afford the loss of lives. We cannot afford the cost to taxpayers. We cannot afford to fail to exercise our constitutional right to end the wars," Kucinich said in a statement circulated among reporters on Wednesday.

Kucinich told the Plain Dealer he expects his resolution to land at the House International Relations Committee early next year. If the resolution is voted down, he will ask to have it moved back to the floor of the House -- a maneuver that earlier this year allowed him to debate the impeachment of former Vice President Dick Cheney on the House floor, the Plain Dealer notes.

During a visit by Defense Secretary Robert Gates to Kabul on Tuesday, President Karzai told the Pentagon chief that Afghanistan would need the US's help in security matters for 10 or 15 years going forward. President Obama's plan to start withdrawing troops in July 2011 has sparked concern in Afghanistan and neighboring Pakistan that the Taliban could sit out the surge and attack a pared down force in 18 months' time.

"For 15 to 20 years, Afghanistan will not be able to sustain a force of that nature and capability with its own resources," Karzai told a news conference. "We hope that the international community and the United States, as our first ally, will help Afghanistan reach the ability to sustain a force."

Source: RAW Story.
Link: http://rawstory.com/2009/12/kucinich-vote-withdrawal-afghanistan/.

US Cutting Gaza Lifeline

Making an American 'Impenetrable Underground Wall' the Laughing Stock of the World—Leave It to the People of Gaza

By Ann Wright

December 10, 2009 "Information Clearing House" -- No doubt at the instigation of the Israeli government, the Obama administration has authorized the United States Army Corps of Engineers to design a vertical underground wall under the border between Egypt and Gaza.

In March, 2009 the United States provided the government of Egypt with $32 million in March, 2009 for electronic surveillance and other security devices to prevent the movement of food, merchandise and weapons into Gaza. Now details are emerging about an underground steel wall that wil be 6-7 miles long and extend 55 feet straight down into the desert sand.

The steel wall will be made of super-strength steel put together in a jigsaw puzzle fashion. It will be bomb proof and can not be cut or melted. It will be "impenetrable," and reportedly will take 18 months to construct. (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/8405020.stm)

The steel wall is intended to cut the tunnels that go between Gaza and Egypt.

The tunnels are the lifelines for Gaza since the international community agreed to a blockade of Gaza to collectively punish the citizens of Gaza for their having elected in Parliamentary elections in 2006 sufficient Hamas Parliamentarians that Hamas became the government of Gaza. The United States and other western countries have placed Hamas on the list of terrorist organizations.

The underground steel wall is intended to strengthen international governmental efforts to imprison and starve the people of Gaza into submission so they will throw out the Hamas government.

Just as the steel walls of the US Army Corps of Engineers at the base of the levees of New Orleans were unable to contain Hurricane Katrina, the US Army Corps of Engineers' underground steel walls that will attempt to build an underground cage of Gaza will not be able to contain the survival spirit of the people of Gaza.

America's super technology will again be laughed at by the world, as young men dedicated to the survival of their people, will again outwit technology by digging deeper, and most likely penetrating the "impenetrable" in some novel, simple, low-tech way.

I have been to Gaza 3 times this year following the 22-day Israeli military attack on Gaza that killed 1,440, wounded 5,000, left 50,000 homeless and destroyed much of the infrastructure of Gaza. The disproportionate use of force and targeting of the civilian population by the Israeli military is considered by international law and human rights experts as as violations of the Geneva conventions.

When our governments participate in illegal actions, it is up to the citizens of the world to take action. On December 31, 2009, 1,400 international citizens from 42 countries will march in Gaza with 50,000 Gazans in the Gaza Freedom March to end the siege of Gaza. They will take back to their countries the stories of spirit and survival of the pople of Gaza and will return home committed to force their governments to stop these inhuman actions against the people of Gaza.

Just as American smart bombs in Afghanistan and Iraq have not conquered the spirit of Aghans and Iraqis, America's underground walls in Gaza will never conquer the courage of those who are fighting for the survival of their families.

One more time, the American government and the Obama administration has been an active participant in the continued inhumane treatment of the people of Gaza and should be held accountable, along with Israel and Egypt for violations of human rights of the people of Gaza.

Iran's Fuel for Conflict

Barack Obama created the hope of a diplomatic breakthrough between the US and Iran after 30 years of enmity. Now talks between the West and Iran over nuclear issues have stalled and each side wants to claim a political victory rather than solve the problem

By Gareth Porter

December 10, 2009 " Le Monde diplomatique" -- Talks between Tehran and the West were stalled for months over the question of uranium enrichment: Iran was allowed to do this under the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NNPT) but forbidden to do so by UN Security Council resolutions. Then a possible solution emerged from an unexpected quarter. More than 40 years ago, the US had built a nuclear reactor in Tehran to produce radioisotopes for medical research. After the 1979 revolution and the severance of diplomatic relations with Washington, Iran had to look elsewhere for the supply of uranium enriched to 20% that it needed to operate this reactor. It obtained 23 kilograms from Argentina under an agreement signed in 1988, enough to feed the reactor until 2010.

With this date approaching, Iran’s foreign minister, Manouchehr Mottaki, sent a letter to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) in June 2009, asking for help in purchasing fuel, which would be allowed under the provisions of the NNPT but would require that international sanctions against Iran’s nuclear program be lifted.

On hearing of this request, the Obama administration decided on a strategy that would force Iran to divest itself of its stock of low-enriched uranium (LEU), then estimated at 1,500 kilograms. During a visit to Moscow in July 2009, Gary Samore, President Obama’s chief adviser on the Iranian issue, put forward a proposal that he had formulated with Bruce Reidel for the Brookings Institution in December 2008. This would require Iran to send most of its stock of LEU to Russia to be enriched to 20%, which would set Iran’s nuclear program back at least 12 months.

Then, just one week after agreeing to talks with the G5+1 (the US, France, the UK, Russia and China + Germany), Tehran informed the IAEA that it was building a second uranium enrichment facility near Qom, in addition to the plant at Natanz. The US, Britain and France denounced this action, suggesting that Iran had only informed the IAEA because it knew that western intelligence services were about to reveal the plant’s existence.

Tehran said it had complied with the NNPT’s time limits for informing the IAEA and insisted that the site was intended as a backup in the event of an Israeli air strike on the Natanz site, threats that Tel Aviv regularly makes and which Washington uses to exert pressure on Tehran. (Samore has advocated making use of these threats in his arm-wrestling matches with Iran.) And on 6 July 2009, in an interview with ABC, Vice-President Joseph Biden declared: “Israel can determine for itself, it’s a sovereign nation, what’s in their interest and what they decide to do relative to Iran.” Many observers saw this as a green light for an Israeli strike.

‘Confidence-building measure’

Whatever the truth may be, the revelations about the Qom site, which Iran allowed the IAEA inspectors to visit, encouraged the Obama administration to take a tough line at the G5+1 talks in Geneva on 1 October. This resulted in a proposal that Iran should send 80% of its LEU to Russia, after which it would go to France to be turned into fuel rods for the research reactor in Tehran. Presented as a “confidence-building measure”, the offer was intended to deprive Iran of most of its uranium reserves immediately, for 12 months or so, which would delay any technological breakthrough. Obama would have been able to claim an agreement as a diplomatic victory.

Washington suggested that this timeframe would allow the two sides to reach a broader agreement that would eliminate the possibility of Iran developing a bomb. But the logic behind this offer was faulty: the US continues to deny Iran the right to enrich uranium (which would allow it to develop nuclear weapons), yet Iran insists that its right to enrich uranium is not negotiable. And the issue would have to be addressed again in a year’s time, when Iran would once more have accumulated a large quantity of LEU.

Yet the Iranian negotiators did not reject the western proposal outright: they were under orders to be cooperative, to avoid a breakdown that might lead to fresh economic sanctions. But then Assistant Secretary of State William Burns, the senior US representative in Geneva, told reporters that the secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, Saeed Jalili, had agreed that Iran would send 1,200 kilograms of depleted uranium overseas. An empty promise: an Iranian negotiator, who asked to remain anonymous, told Reuters on 16 October that Iran had not agreed to the western plan, or even to its premises. Nor were the Iranian negotiators authorized to accept such a plan at the second round of talks scheduled for 19-21 October in Vienna, during a meeting of the IAEA.

The second round of talks revolved around a draft agreement prepared by the outgoing IAEA director general, Mohamed El Baradei, for 80% of Iran’s uranium stocks to be sent to Russia. A French diplomat confided to the Washington Post that this proposal was “not far” from the West’s ideal solution. On 21 October, the final day of the talks, the media claimed that Iran had agreed to the El Baradei plan. Iran’s IAEA representative, Ali Asghar Soltanieh, said the draft was “on the right track” but that his country would have to study the text carefully. El Baradei admitted it was necessary to wait for an answer from Tehran, where a public discussion swiftly began.
Cheaper to buy from abroad

The former nuclear negotiator Ali Larijani, who is now the speaker of the parliament, and Alaeddin Boroujerdi, head of the parliamentary committee on national security and foreign affairs, both insisted that it would be far cheaper for Iran to buy enriched uranium from abroad. They also explained that producing the 116 kilograms required for the medical research reactor would only require 750 kilograms of depleted uranium, not 1,500 kilograms as stated in the agreement.

There were more fundamental objections. Mir Hossein Mousavi, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s rival in the June presidential elections and a principal opponent since then, said that, if the conditions demanded by the El Baradei plan were met, the efforts of thousands of scientists would “go up in smoke”. Conservative parliamentarian Hesmatollah Falahatpisheh felt that any deal should be conditional on the lifting of economic sanctions, particularly those on raw uranium imports. And Mohsen Rezai, the conservative secretary of the Expediency Discernment Council, declared that Iran should retain 1,100 of its 1,500 kilograms of LEU.

Beyond their often violent differences, all Iran’s political factions are against the western proposal. They all believe that the El Baradei plan would deprive Iran of the leverage it has gained over the last few years.

Senior national security officials under the presidencies of Ali Akbar Rafsanjani (1989-97), Mohammed Khatami (1997-2005) and Ahmedinejad admit that the object of accumulating LEU was always to force the US to engage in serious and comprehensive talks on matters of common interest. They point out that before the enrichment program began, the US showed no interest in talks. The accumulation of LEU put Iran in a stronger position to negotiate. How could Iran give up this trump card without getting something in return?

Larijani and Boroujerdi’s positions have been widely misinterpreted as evidence of divisions within the Iranian leadership. The New York Times suggested that the Obama administration had scored a political point by dividing Iran’s political class. But this analysis rests on the assumption that Ahmedinejad had accepted the El Baradei plan, when he was mainly concerned with preventing a breakdown in the negotiations.

Call for guarantees

Behind the scenes, a new consensus was being formed between the government and the opposition. Mousavi’s denunciation of the western plan came on 29 October, the same day that Iran published its counterproposal that the uranium should be sent abroad in batches, the second only being shipped when the first was returned. The state news agency IRNA called the “simultaneous exchange” feature of the counterproposal a “red line” in the negotiating position, Iran fearing that any uranium it sent abroad would never be returned. This matches Boroujerdi’s insistence on 26 October that the LEU should be sent to Russia in batches and call for “guarantees” that it would be returned.

Ambassador Soltanieh confirmed, in an interview given to Press TV on 18 November, that Iran wanted a “100% guarantee” that the enriched uranium would be returned, pointing out that Iran had paid for fuel before the 1979 revolution. But after the revolution it had received neither the fuel nor a refund. Iran also insisted that part of the uranium for the medical research reactor should be obtained through commercial transactions. Rafsanjani, a powerful opposition figure, suggests that Iran could enrich uranium to 20% if the LEU sent abroad was not returned.

Although the Iranian counterproposal eliminated everything about the El Baradei plan that made it attractive to the Obama administration and its allies, the Iranian negotiators carefully avoided rejecting the plan outright. They reportedly expressed a “positive attitude” and a willingness to discuss it further. To avoid a breakdown in the talks, Ahmedinejad made yet another offer: to leave roughly a quarter of its LEU under IAEA seals on Iranian soil until the uranium for its medical research reactor is delivered. But Obama’s warning on 15 November that time for negotiations was running out suggests that a new cycle of sanctions is about to begin.

If the talks do break down, it will be because of the logic behind the proposals put forward by Washington. Russia and China have been ambiguous in their support. As Samore suggests, Washington wants an agreement that it can present as a diplomatic victory over Iran. Samore believed that the administration would have done better to try a broader discussion that took account of Iran’s political and economic interests. In the end, the Obama administration seems to have adopted a position that makes it impossible to achieve an agreement acceptable to Tehran and move towards a global settlement with the US. If this is the case, the US may have started down the long, dark corridor to confrontation.

Philippines lifts martial law in southern province

By OLIVER TEVES, Associated Press Writer

MANILA, Philippines – President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo lifted martial law Saturday in a southern Philippine province where 57 people were massacred last month in the country's worst political violence, her spokesman said.

Arroyo signed the proclamation lifting martial law and ending the suspension of the writ of habeas corpus in Maguindanao province before late Saturday, eight days after taking the controversial step in order to move against a powerful clan blamed for killings, Press Secretary Cerge Remonde said.

It was the first time that martial law had been declared since late dictator Ferdinand Marcos imposed it nationwide more than 30 years ago and ruled by decree until he was toppled in 1986.

The edict allowed security forces to make arrests without court warrants and to move against the Ampatuan clan blamed for the Nov. 23 killings of members of a rival clan and 30 journalists, and accused of fomenting a rebellion to prevent authorities from arresting members of the family.

The Ampatuans have ruled Maguindanao for years and are allies of Arroyo, but the ruling party expelled them days after the killings. The Ampatuans have denied involvement in the massacre.

Elsewhere in the south, authorities sought the help of a tribal chieftain to persuade government-armed former militiamen to release 47 hostages, even as police prepared a rescue operation.

The massacre and the abduction have underscored the lawlessness in a volatile region plagued by bandits, Muslim and communist insurgents and private armies.

Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita, a senior Cabinet member, said a state of emergency declared a day after the massacre that allows security forces to set up road checkpoints and seize firearms from civilians will remain in force in Maguindanao and nearby Sultan Kudarat province.

The decision to lift martial law was made upon the recommendation of Cabinet security officials during a meeting of the National Security Council early Saturday, Ermita said.

"The local government is back and functioning. We can say rebellion has been addressed and the purpose for which it was called has been achieved," he said.

He said 24 people, including clan patriarch Andal Ampatuan Sr., have been charged with rebellion and 638 others have been referred to the Justice Department for investigation. Three others, including Ampatuan's son, Andal Jr., have been charged with multiple counts of murder and 247 others face similar charges.

The military has seized hundreds of assorted firearms, including mortars and machine guns, and hundreds of thousands of rounds of ammunition hidden or buried in and near properties owned by the Ampatuans.

On Thursday, the military said troops were moving in on strongholds of some 4,000 government-armed militiamen loyal to the Ampatuan clan but no clashes have been reported.

Human rights groups and lawyers — mindful of rights abuses during the Marcos years — had questioned the constitutionality of Arroyo's imposition of martial law with the Supreme Court. They said that actual rebellion and invasion — the grounds for martial law — did not exist. Opposition legislators had accused Arroyo of preparing the grounds for imposing it nationwide.

Jejomar Binay, mayor of the financial district of Makati and an opposition vice presidential candidate in May 2010 elections, said the lifting of martial law "is a face saving move" by the Arroyo government.

"They failed to convince even some of their allies in congress that the factual and constitutional bases for the declaration were present. So rather than risk a rejection in congress and later in the Supreme Court, (the administration) opted to cut its losses," he said.

Meanwhile, in southern Agusan del Sur province, 47 hostages remained in the hands of gunmen who abducted them on Thursday.

The 15 gunmen, former government-armed militiamen who police say have turned to banditry, are wanted on murder charges.

Vice Gov. Santiago Cane, a member of a crisis management committee, said he met with a well-respected leader from the same Manobo tribe as the gunmen to help convince them to free their captives. Chieftain Datu Bagtikan "seems very receptive" to the government's appeal for help, Cane said.

Provincial police operations chief Senior Superintendent Nestor Fajura said they are preparing a rescue plan while negotiations are under way.

Cane said he spoke with the gunmen's leader, Joebert Perez, early Saturday, warning them of the "possible consequences of using force."

Perez has told reporters that the murder charges against his group were fabricated and originate from a bloody feud with the rival Tubay family that has left about 10 dead since last year.

The crisis committee expects a "peaceful resolution" of the standoff after the head of the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples, which handles issues concerning minority tribes in the Philippines, said a law covering indigenous communities could be invoked to suspend the criminal cases and warrants against the Perez group, said committee spokesman Alfredo Plaza.

The Tubay group, also wanted on murder charges, is expected to surrender to provincial authorities to pave the way for Perez and his men to also turn themselves in and release the hostages, Plaza said.

Landmines continue to injure thousands in Chechnya

Years of armed conflict in Russia's Republic of Chechnya has left a deadly legacy that threatens the lives of people living there today. The region has one of the highest concentrations of landmines in the world.

Although the Emergencies Ministry has been working to clear the area, little progress has been made, prompting thousands of Chechens to call for more to be done.

More than 3,000 people were injured or killed by landmines following the two anti-terror campaigns in Chechnya – around 500 of whom are women.

Fatima cannot walk. Like many other women injured by landmines, she lost both legs while collecting berries in the woods. Now she says her entire life is ruined.

Israel set to make Aqsa museum a synagogue

Mohammed Mar’i | Arab News

RAMALLAH: The head of the northern branch of the Islamic Movement in Israel, has claimed there are Israeli plans to empty the museum of Al-Aqsa Mosque and turn it into a synagogue.

“The museum is one of the mihrabs (niches) of the Al-Aqsa Mosque and an integral part of it, and has a religious value akin to the Dome of the Rock mosque in Islam,” Sheikh Ra’ed Salah said in a statement on Thursday.

The Al-Aqsa Foundation for Endowment and Heritage also revealed Thursday that Israeli authorities are conducting a series of excavations in the area containing the Umayyad palaces, adjacent to the southern wall of the holy mosque.

The foundation said that these excavations, covered with tents and plastic sheets, take place at night, especially in one of the water wells in the area that extends under the Al-Aqsa Mosque.

It warned of the impact of such diggings on the foundations of the holy mosque, noting that similar excavations carried out in the past led to cracks and fissures in the southern wall.

It claimed that these excavations are part of an Israeli scheme to increase the influence of Judaism in the vicinity of the Al-Aqsa Mosque from all sides.

Control over the city has been seen as the most sensitive and thorniest issue in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Palestinians hope to make East Jerusalem the capital of their future state but Israel says the entire city remains its eternal capital.

World Cup 2010: Algeria Book Serbia Warm-Up

The Algerians will lock horns with Serbia in the build-up to next year's World Cup...

Dec 10, 2009

Algeria have scheduled a friendly with Serbia for early next year in the hopes that it will give them an advantage when they face Group C opponents Slovenia at the 2010 World Cup.

"Serbia are a similar kind of team to Slovenia, who we will play against in the World Cup," said Algeria coach Rabah Saadane to local reporters.

The international friendly has been organized for March 3 and will be contested at the Stade du 5 Juillet in Algiers. The 2010 World Cup will start some three months later, with the opening game being played on June 11.

Algeria will also play England and the United States in the group phase of the competition while Serbia, who are in Group D, will face Germany, Ghana and Australia.

Nevsky Express - a new stage in the Russia-Caucasus war

(WARNING): Article contains propaganda!

* * * * *

The statement by the Caucasian Mujahideen which was posted on the website Kavkaz-Center on December 2 claiming responsibility for the Nevsky Express train crash does not look particularly convincing. While there can be little doubt that the Caucasian underground is well able to plan and carry out an attack of this kind, the absence of any detail from the text does not suggest that the operation was masterminded by a group from the Caucasus Emirate. When Shamil Basayev thought it necessary to declare his authorship of a terrorist attack he usually described the preparations in minute detail, naming names and providing video footage. The Emirate has continued this tradition, as evidenced by the Internet video of the August 17 bomb attack on the Nazran police department. In the present instance there has been nothing similar.

To those who do not usually enter deeply into the logic of events in the North Caucasus, the Kavkaz Center statement will seem like an empty declaration which aims to present the underground as a powerful underground terrorist organization with enormous resources - indeed, the sort of assessment that was heard yesterday from some Chechen and Russian officials and experts. While there may be grounds for such conclusions, the attempts of a group of Russian Muslims who have sworn allegiance to Dokka Umarov to take the credit for the blast at the Sayan-Shushenskaya hydroelectric power plant looked absurd, even though in that case there was an attempt to back the claim with concrete proof. The unbiased experts who analyzed the cause of the accident in detail completely ruled out the possibility that it was a terrorist attack, and the validity of their arguments was obvious even to the uninitiated.

But the Neva Express disaster is completely different. Security officers and explosives experts are unanimous in insisting that the train was blown up. They reject all other theories as untenable, including the ones that have circulated on the Internet. I am not going to examine here all the conspiracy theories that accuse the security forces of organizing the blast or of simulating it. If we are to believe the authorities, what took place was a terrorist attack. In that case, a natural question arises: is there in Russia a paramilitary organization with an ideological platform that can morally justify the need for the mass death of civilians? There is such an organization, and there is only one. It is the Caucasus Emirate, whose leader Dokka Umarov declared the resumption of terrorist activities last spring. That his words were not an empty threat became abundantly clear this summer. Explosion followed explosion, while the rebel underground engaged in a wide variety of terrorist activity: the attempt on the life of Ingushetia's president, the explosion in the centre of Grozny which killed several high-ranking MVD officers, the assassination of Dagestan's Minister of Internal Affairs, the attack on the Nazran police department, as well as a series of actions carried out by lone suicide bombers. In a single summer the Caucasus Emirate has mastered almost every form of sabotage and terrorism. Replying to the accusations of those who have blamed him for the deaths of civilians, Umarov explained that he thinks Russia's citizens, whose taxes go to the upkeep of the country's security agencies and the state machinery that unleashed the war in Chechnya, are responsible for what is happening. And in fact these same arguments are also present in yesterday's Emirate statement.

Perhaps it will be argued that Russia has radical nationalist organizations which also consider acts of terrorism acceptable. Indeed, there has appeared on the Internet a statement by an anonymous, semi-mythical group calling for the murder of security agents. But the calls have remained theoretical and are phrased in a none too elegant, semi-literate style. It is unlikely that any police officer or FSB official has suffered at the hands of the authors of those lines. Moreover, the nationalists would find it extremely hard to justify the inflicting of mass civilian casualties. It would be impossible to arrange the bombing of a civilian target like a passenger train in such a way that the deadly force of the explosion bypassed the ethnic Russians whose interests the nationalists purport to defend. So we shall leave the nationalists alone, as they are morally unprepared to carry out operations of this type on such a scale.

The North Caucasian Mujahideen are quite another matter. They are waging a war on Russia, and every day some of them are killed in the course of the fighting. Their psychological and moral readiness to sacrifice their lives, either in combat or in terrorist attacks, is absolute. Indeed, they make no distinction between these two kinds of death, as Dokka Umarov has clarified and demonstrated in detail.

As for the clumsily written and extremely unconvincing statement claiming responsibility for the rail blast, its explanation is not hard to find. The North Caucasian underground is an organization profoundly wrapped in conspiracy and restricted in its choice of available means of communication. Therefore the evidence of its involvement will either appear later on the Kavkaz Center site or, more probably, will not appear at all because the terrorists have not been able to film the operation or provide the public with a detailed description of the preparations for the attack. Most likely it is far more important for them to remain anonymous, as there are still plenty of other targets in Russia for their forces to engage. In a small organization like the Caucasus Emirate that is pursued day and night by the authorities, those who are worth their weight in gold are not the young men ready to blow themselves up for the cause in some Chechen village but rather the professionals who have conspiratorial skills, are able to get lost in the crowd, plant a bomb and escape from the scene unharmed. Even though according to official sources the North Caucasus underground is only a few hundred men strong, it is still the largest illegal organization in Russia. Umarov, who is known for his practical sense, is not likely to let such people go to waste. Since any information about a terrorist act may lead to the prosecution of those who performed it, it is better for the terrorists if the public's curiosity remains partly unsatisfied.

Umarov has carried the war out of the North Caucasus and into the heart of Russia. It will not be the kind of war that was waged by Basayev. Basayev saw terror as an instrument by means of which he could compel Russia's leadership to meet his political demands concerning the future of a separate Chechen state (whether secular or Islamic). When after Beslan he realized that terror was no longer effective, he simply closed the terrorist project down. Today's Mujahideen have new, more ambitious goals. For them, terror is a weapon in a battle for justice whose rules are dictated by heaven. Its purpose is not immediate political or military success. Instead, it aspires to reduce Russia to ashes and then sooner or later (perhaps only in a hundred years' time) establish Islamic rule first over the North Caucasus and ultimately over the whole world, which is now ruled by infidels.

Andrei Babitsky
Source: Prague Watchdog

Kavkaz Center
Publication time: 3 December 2009

Blackwater Predator missile-load contract ending

By PAMELA HESS and ADAM GOLDMAN, Associated Press Writers

WASHINGTON – CIA Director Leon Panetta has canceled a contract with the former Blackwater security firm that allowed the company's operatives to load missiles on Predator drones in Pakistan.

Panetta canceled the contract earlier this year and the work is being shifted to government personnel, a person familiar with the contract said Friday. The person spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the classified program.

Blackwater is now known as Xe Services. A spokesman was not immediately available for comment on the contract cancellation. The New York Times first reported the contract's existence in August.

The CIA's Predator program targets senior al-Qaida operatives and Taliban in Pakistan's tribal area along the border with Afghanistan, but the agency has never publicly confirmed its role in the operation.

Since Jan. 28, 2008, there have been at least 67 suspected U.S. missile strikes into Pakistan, according to Pakistani intelligence officials and witnesses interviewed by The Associated Press after each strike.

There was a fresh strike Tuesday, according to Pakistani officials. The target of that attack was identified Friday by a U.S government official as Saleh al-Somali, a senior al-Qaida operations planner.

U.S. intelligence has concluded that al-Somali was responsible for the terror group's operations outside the Afghanistan-Pakistan region, reaching into activities in Africa, the official said, and is suspected of being involved in plotting attacks against the United States and Europe. The official spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss covert operations.

News of the cancellation of the contract came on the heels of published reports late Thursday that Blackwater security operatives joined CIA agents in "snatch and grab" raids that took place regularly between 2004 and 2006, when violence from the insurgency in Iraq was escalating.

A U.S. official confirmed to AP on Thursday that Blackwater provided security and traveled with CIA teams on missions in war zones, but emphasized they were not hired to directly participate in sensitive CIA missions.

CIA Director Leon Panetta ordered a review several months ago of the company's contracts to be sure its guards only perform security-related work, the official said. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to comment publicly.

Separately, CIA spokesman George Little said Friday that "at this time, Blackwater is not involved in any CIA operations other than in a security or support role."

Xe Services said Friday that Blackwater was not under contract for involvement in the secret raids.

"Blackwater USA was never under contract to participate in covert raids with CIA or Special Operations personnel in Iraq, Afghanistan or anywhere else. Any allegation to the contrary by any news organization would be false," Xe spokesman Mark Corallo said in an e-mailed statement.

The firm, based in Moyock, N.C., changed its corporate name this year after a series of use-of-force controversies, including a September 2007 shooting in Baghdad by five company security guards that left 17 civilians dead.

The CIA's paramilitary forces are small, and often borrow from U.S. military special forces to fill out their ranks. They rely on companies like Blackwater to provide drivers, convoy security, and perimeter protection on sensitive CIA operations.

The central question, according to the reports in The New York Times and The Washington Post, was whether private security guards crossed the line into direct participation in the CIA operations. Blackwater's role in providing security to CIA missions in war zones is already known on Capitol Hill.

"As is customary when intelligence community-related issues arise in the press, committee staff has contacted the CIA for additional details and clarification of these recent news stories," said Courtney Littig, a spokeswoman for the House Intelligence Committee.

If true, the company's involvement would point to a much deeper connection between the company and the spy agency than has been previously disclosed. And it would raise concerns over the legalities of involving contractors in the most sensitive intelligence operations conducted by the U.S. government.

One former CIA officer stationed in Baghdad in 2004 said that during his tenure in Iraq, Blackwater employees did not accompany CIA officials when they conducted insurgent raids, which were led by Delta Force or the Navy Seals. The former officer confirmed that during that period Blackwater protected the agency's office and chief of station.

The former intelligence officer said special operations forces carried out the captures, with CIA officers gathering intelligence at the scene afterward. He spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss Blackwater's role.

The House Intelligence Committee is still probing at least five incidents in which Congress believes it may have been deliberately misled or kept in the dark about significant intelligence programs.

One of those included a contract with Blackwater founder Erik Prince to target al-Qaida figures, a program the CIA says never became operational. Panetta informed Congress about the program in June, a day after terminating the eight-year on-again, off-again effort.

Rep. Jan Schakowsky, D-Ill., an outspoken critic of Blackwater, is heading one part of the committee's probe.

"I have long opposed the outsourcing of inherently governmental responsibilities to for-profit companies who are outside the official chain of command, especially Blackwater (Xe)," she said. "What appears to be a deep relationship between Blackwater and the CIA should cause all Americans to take pause. It is extremely dangerous for the U.S. to become dependent on private contractors for military or intelligence operations."

As of August 2008, more than a quarter of the U.S. intelligence agencies' employees were outside contractors, hired to fill in gaps in the military and civilian work force.

Algeria launches first Amazigh Theatre Festival

Algerian actors and playwrights gathered on Thursday (December 11th) at the renovated Batna theater for the first National Festival of Amazigh Theatre, APS reported. The opening ceremony honored actors Said Hilmi of Tizi Ouzou, Salim Souhali of Batna and Ali Bouras of Ghardaia for their contributions to Amazigh theatre.

Tunis hosts Arab police, security forum

The 33rd conference of Arab nations' police and security officials began on Wednesday in Tunis, TAP reported on Thursday (December 10th). The two-day event focused on the development of an Arab strategy to combat electronic crimes. Speaking at the opening session, Tunisian Interior and Local Development Minister Rafik Belhaj Kacem said that compliance with human rights law "remains the essential objective of law and order". Discussions also addressed the image of police officers and the role of the media.

Algerians divided on 2010 pay rise for legislators

Public opinion is divided on the operating budget of the Algerian Parliament for 2010, which stands at nearly 5 billion dinars for the lower chamber alone.

By Fidet Mansour for Magharebia in Algiers – 10/12/09

Algerian MPs are increasing their burden on the public purse. The 4.7 billion-dinar 2010 operating budget for the National Popular Assembly, the lower chamber of Parliament, is almost 1 billion dinars more than last year.

An official document obtained early this month by Magharebia shows that 2010 will bring specific pay hikes for members of Parliament, including an increase from 130,000 dinars to 290,000 dinars, under a decree signed by President Abdelaziz Bouteflika in 2008.

During his term, an Algerian MP receives this base salary, known as the main allowance, to which other provisions can be added based on special responsibilities and vehicle usage.

For automobile purchases, MPs are granted access to interest-free five-year loans of up to 100,000 dinars. The state also covers any housing expenses and pays a portion of telephone bills.

In the 2010 budget, signed October 19th, 178 million dinars are set aside for accommodation, 30 million for international activities (visits by delegations and fees to international organizations), 82 million for eating out, 79 million for the car fleet, and 10 million for clothing.

While the state has proved itself "generous", in the words of Abderrahmane Saidi, Islamist MP representing the Movement of Society for Peace, it remains intransigent on the issue of diplomatic passports.

"I can't understand why the authorities refuse to issue diplomatic passports to those elected to Parliament, despite the many requests placed before them," he said. Saidi said it was "inconceivable that an MP representing his country during his travels should be treated in the same way – and sometimes worse – than the public at international airports".

While elected representatives unanimously support the issuance of diplomatic passports, they are divided on the question of pay.

The Labor Party in particular opposes the increase in MPs' salaries. In a recent statement, the party called it "inconceivable that allowances should be revised upwards when more than 20% of the population is living below the poverty line".

The year-on-year increase in parliamentary expenditure is viewed differently by the public and by specialists.

Ahmed Anwar, a specialist in parliamentary law, noted that Algerian MPs are among the lowest-paid legislators in the world. "It's worth pointing out," he said, "that a white-collar worker in an international telecommunications company is better paid than an MP."

Anwar said that representatives should also be afforded a certain "status". "I feel it's important that an MP, as a legislator, should be properly remunerated," he said.

The public often takes a different view. "It's not right for MPs to receive 40 times the pay of an average Algerian," said Ilham, 25. "As the people's elected representatives, I feel they should be close to the people. I'd rather they demanded an increase in pay for the average citizen than ask for their own salaries and expenses to be increased."

Algeria considers legal status of 'mountain children'

Children born of terrorists living in hiding from authorities during Algeria's black decade may soon benefit from measures to give them legal identities.

By Walid Ramzi for Magharebia in Algiers – 10/12/09

Algeria is inching towards formalizing the legal status of hundreds of so-called "mountain children" born into the families of terrorists living outside the law during the 1990s.

"[A]ll children born in the mountains must be registered in the civil status registers and given a family name so they can integrate into society," Algerian Minister of National Solidarity Jamal Ould Abbass told Magharebia on Monday (December 7th).

According to Mustapha Khayati, head of the Algerian Organization for Health, Development and Research, around 500 children were born in the mountains during the black decade, including 300 in the eastern provinces and around 50 in the central Medea region.

"The file of children born in the mountains was started in 2001 ... to settle the issue once and for all", said Abbass, whose portfolio also covers family issues. "The government is striving to eliminate all obstacles hindering the integration of that category of people into society."

"The ministry has handled 45 cases of children born in the mountains," said Abbass. "The files were referred to the Justice Department, which, in turn, affirmed the identity of those children by virtue of court orders."

The minister added, however, that the cases handled to date posed fewer legal problems because the fathers were known.

In cases where the father's identity is unknown, Abbass said authorities were proposing a draft law "making it possible to resort to DNA testing to ascertain the identity of illegitimate children, including those born in the mountains".

That way, according to the ministry, the children will be recognized and given their real family names, without forcing their biological parents to get married. "The purpose is not to make those marriages legal, but to give children identities so as to make it easier for them to integrate into Algerian society," added the minister.

Abbass said the project was still being studied by the government. He admitted that various obstacles face the enactment of such a law, given the opposition of some Muslim scholars to DNA testing. "As such, religious sensitivities ought to be taken into consideration," said Abbass.

In recent months, calls to help the mountain children have come from many sides.

Algeria needs a "special legal mechanism" to address the issue, the head of the legal assistance unit charged with implementing the National Peace and Reconciliation Charter, Marwan Azzi, told reporters at a November 20th press conference to mark the 20th anniversary of the Convention on the Rights of the Child.

Azzi said that DNA testing, investigation and other forms of verification were needed to prove the identity of the children. He added that his unit had already settled many children's cases by legalizing undocumented marriages, but that obstacles remained in situations where the parents were dead or witnesses were missing.

The legal expert revealed that the mountain children's plight is part of a larger problem: Authorities find nearly 4,000 children with no identity each year. Parents abandon the children for a number of reasons, though in 80% of cases the motivating factor seems to be an unwanted birth out of wedlock.

But even with this larger problem looming, the case of the mountain children is receiving particular attention.

"Children born in the mountains ... are victims of the national tragedy," Dr. Thoraya Tidjani, a professor of sociology at the University of Algiers, said in a press statement. "It's imperative for the state to shelter those children and ensure their integration into society, since that is a key stage in the process of national reconciliation."

Tidjani added that "failing to morally and financially support these children, and to integrate them into society, will have an adverse impact on them, since society's rejection of these children will cause them to feel antagonistic".

Rights activists draft strategy to stop violence against Arab women

Women in the Arab world face violence in the home, in the community, in institutions and as a result of armed conflicts, according to activist leaders who met in Tunis this week to strategise.

By Jamel Arfaoui for Magharebia in Tunis – 11/12/09

Women's rights activists this week drafted a strategy to prevent violence against women in the Arab world that promotes legislative and awareness-raising campaigns, training, and wider dissemination of data and research.

The strategy was drawn up by participants in a Tunis workshop aimed at sharing experiences in the field of fighting violence against Arab women. The three-day event kicked off on December 6th and was organized by the Arab Women Organization (AWO).

"The strategy ... stress[es] the need to protect women from violence and to prevent it through laws, legislation, awareness, training, dissemination of the women's rights culture, the culture of non-violence, and provision of national data, research and statistics on the phenomenon," AWO member and secretary-general of Jordan's National Council for Family Affairs, Haifa Abu Ghazala, said on Tuesday at the event.

Participants examined a range of themes and ways to prevent violence against Arab women. They also shared experiences and experiments in the field of strategies, policies, programs and methods of intervention on the national level.

Experts at the event said that Arab women suffer from four forms of violence: domestic violence, community violence, institutional violence and violence in armed conflicts.

According to AWO Secretary-General Waduda Badran, the forms of violence against women in Arab countries "differ according to environments, regions, social classes, and cultural and age categories. As a result, the confrontation mechanisms also vary."

Badran added that the Arab world's current situation "requires ... comprehensive strategies that include short, medium and long-term measures based on an in-depth and comprehensive vision of the nature of societies and nature of women's standing therein".

For her part, the head of Morocco's Department of Women, Family and Children's Affairs, Saida Idrissi, said that Tunisia's presidency of the AWO would "give renewed momentum to joint Arab action through supporting and activating the commitments of Arab countries, foremost among which is the drafting of an Arab strategy for combating violence against women".

"The main aim of this workshop is to share experiences and experiments, and to draft a unified Arab strategy with guidance from several successful experiences, such as those of Tunisia and Morocco, especially in the field of activating women's participation in public and political life," added Idrissi.

At the close of the workshop, participants issued a statement urging AWO "member states to issue periodic national reports on the reality of violence against women, and to draft an Arab pilot law in the field of protecting women from violence".

Hajeera Ait Ahmed, a women's affairs official in Algeria, said in a speech during the workshop that her country in 1979 "ratified the UN Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, which constituted a main reference point for reviewing some laws, especially the Family Law, Nationality Law, Prisons Organization and Social Re-Integration of Prisoners Law, Health Protection and Promotion Law, and the Labour and Social Security Law".

Ahmed said the review also prompted a 2008 constitutional amendment that encourages women's political participation through a quota system for representation.

"Civil society has to communicate with all women, without any discrimination, because this shouldn't be restricted to the salons of intellectuals," the head of the Egyptian Centre for Women's Rights, Nehad Abul Qumsan, said in a statement to Magharebia. "They have to go to female workers and farmers."

Mohammed Zuabi, director of the Family Protection Department in Jordan, said the workshop "shows each country how advanced it is in the field of fighting violence against women, as compared to other countries".

Iran FM says ready for uranium-fuel swap

By BARBARA SURK, Associated Press Writer

MANAMA, Bahrain – Iran is ready to exchange the bulk of its stockpile of enriched uranium for nuclear fuel rods — as proposed by the U.N. — but according to its own mechanisms and timetable, the foreign minister said Saturday.

Speaking to reporters at a regional security conference in Bahrain, Manochehr Mottaki said Iran agreed with a U.N. deal proposed in October in which up to 2,600 pounds (1,200 kilograms) of its uranium would be exchanged for fuel rods to power its research reactor.

"We accepted the proposal in principle," he said through a translator. "We suggested in the first phase we give you 400 kilograms of 3.5 percent enriched uranium and you give us the equivalent in 20 percent uranium."

Iran has about 3,300 pounds (1,500 kilograms) of low-enriched uranium and needs to refine to 20 percent to operate a research reactor that produces medical isotopes.

Uranium enriched at low levels can be used as fuel for nuclear energy, but when enriched to 90 percent and above, it can be used as material for a weapon. The United States and five other world powers have been trying to win Iran's acceptance of a deal under which Tehran would ship most of its low-enriched uranium stockpile abroad to be processed into fuel rods, which can't be enriched further.

The deal would leave Iran — at least temporarily — without enough enriched uranium to produce a bomb. However, after signaling in October that it would accept the proposal, Iran has since balked, giving mixed signals over the deal, including several statements from lawmakers rejecting it outright.

Mottaki maintained, however, that a clear proposal had been given involving the simultaneous exchange of uranium for fuel rods in stages.

"We gave a clear answer and we responded and our answer was we accepted in principle but there were differences in the mechanism," he said, suggesting the exchange take place on Iran's Kish island, in the Persian Gulf.

It is not clear, however, if the low-enriched uranium would then remain on the island or could be shipped out of the country — a necessary condition to any deal from the standpoint of the international community.

The world powers are also unlikely to accept a long drawn out exchange in stages, as it would allow Iran to maintain enough enriched uranium inside the country to possibly build a weapon.

Iran, meanwhile, wants to receive the fuel rods immediately in exchange for its uranium for fear that France or Russia could renege deal.

Last month, the 35-nation board of the International Atomic Energy Agency endorsed a resolution from the six powers — the U.S., Russia, China, Britain, France and Germany — criticizing Iran for defying a U.N. Security Council ban on uranium enrichment and continuing to expand its operations.

It also censured Iran for secretly building a second facility and demanded that it immediately suspend further construction.

British Prime Minister Gordon Brown said last month that the U.N. offer has been "comprehensively rejected" by Iran. A diplomat from one of the six powers said Wednesday that America's Western allies were waiting for Washington to formally declare the wait for an Iranian response over, probably by the end of this month.

The six countries are expected to meet next week to discuss what action to take over Iran.

EU leaders said they would support further U.N. sanctions unless Tehran starts cooperating over its nuclear program.

Pakistan PM says South Waziristan offensive over

(WARNING): Article contains propaganda!

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By MUNIR AHMAD, Associated Press Writer

ISLAMABAD – The Pakistani army has finished its offensive against the Taliban in South Waziristan, but may soon pursue militants in another part of the lawless tribal belt along the Afghan border, the prime minister said Saturday.

Yousuf Raza Gilani's suggestion of an operation in Orakzai tribal region is another sign that Pakistan did not deal the death blow it had intended against the Taliban by taking them on in their main base.

It also illustrates the intractable nature of the extremist challenge facing this nuclear-armed nation: Even as troops flood one militant stronghold, the insurgents can regroup in another stretch of the rugged, barely governed tribal districts.

The conundrum comes amid U.S. pressure on Pakistan to crack down on militants on its territory, although to Washington's chagrin Islamabad has focused on the groups that threaten its citizens rather U.S. and NATO forces across the border in Afghanistan.

"The operation in South Waziristan is over. Now there are talks about Orakzai," Gilani told reporters in televised remarks from the eastern city of Lahore. He did not give a timeframe or any other details.

Pakistan's army launched a ground offensive against the Taliban in South Waziristan in mid-October, saying it was determined to terminate its No. 1 internal enemy from its most forbidding stronghold.

But the operation prompted a slew of retaliatory suicide and other bombings nationwide that have killed more than 500 people, attacks that have continued even as the military's battlefield activities have slowed down in South Waziristan.

Many of the Taliban fighters in South Waziristan are believed to have fled to North Waziristan and Orakzai. The latter has been the home base for Pakistani Taliban chief Hakimullah Mehsud.

In recent weeks, the military has launched several airstrikes against militant targets in Orakzai. Such airstrikes could be a prelude to a ground offensive, just as they were in South Waziristan.

Some 40,000 people are estimated to have fled Orakzai in the weeks since the South Waziristan offensive began, the U.N. said in a statement Friday.

Spokesmen for Pakistan's powerful military did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the prime minister's statement.

In the past, the military officials have been hesitant to put a time frame on how long troops will stay in South Waziristan even after major operations end. That region also has witnessed a civilian exodus.

Orakzai is a smaller tribal region, covering roughly 600 square miles (1,538 square kilometers). It is sandwiched between the Khyber and Kurram tribal region and does not directly border Afghanistan.

Although the U.S. has applauded Pakistan's pursuit of the Pakistani Taliban, American officials have also expressed hope that Islamabad will also pursue other militant groups who are more directly focused on attacking Western troops stationed in Afghanistan.

Pakistan has reached peace agreements with some of those groups — including a major one led by Hafiz Gul Bahadur in North Waziristan — so that it can attack the Pakistani Taliban fighters without interference. It shows no sign of making any moves against militants whose top priority is battling the U.S. and NATO.

Lebanon parliament backs unity government

By Ferry Biedermann in Beirut

Lebanon’s parliament overwhelmingly approved the country’s new national unity government on Thursday night, headed by the leader of the pro-western majority, Saad Hariri.

Before he received the confidence of parliament, the prime minister reached out to the country’s big neighbor, Syria, with which relations had been strained during the past five years.

”We especially look forward to Lebanese and Syrian relations founded on brotherly ties ... based on respecting the sovereignty of both countries,” said Mr Hariri.

The country’s media have speculated that he will visit Damascus soon to emphasise the improved ties.

Mr Hariri has headed an anti-Syrian coalition since 2005, when his father, the former prime minister Rafiq Hariri, was assassinated in what many Lebanese regarded as a Syrian-backed plot. Damascus has always denied any connection to the murder.

Parliament approved the cabinet’s policy statement, which includes a clause that recognizes the Hizbollah movement as the national resistance and allows it to keep its arms, in spite of UN resolutions demanding that it disarms.

The vote of confidence came six months after the pro-western bloc of Mr Hariri defeated a coalition including the pro-Syrian Hizbollah movement in parliamentary elections. It followed one month of deliberations over the controversial policy statement since Mr Hariri formed his cabinet.

The statement follows similar lines to earlier ones and demonstrates the continuing power of Hizbollah and its allies.

During the debate in parliament preceding the confidence vote, some of Mr Hariri’s close allies were sharply critical of the clause allowing Hizbollah to keep its arms. Sami Gemmayel of the Christian Phalange party called the clause illegal and told Hizbollah: “You can’t impose your ideas on us.”

The new cabinet includes two ministers from Hizbollah, as well as another eight from its allies. The pro-western bloc holds 15 seats while the country’s president, Michel Suleiman, nominated another five. This formula is meant to preserve a balance between the political and sectarian groups.

As a national unity government, the cabinet could count on overwhelming support in parliament. Out of a total of 128 MPs, 122 voted for the government, one abstained and one voted against, while four were absent.

The government will have to address some urgent economic and social issues, including a mounting debt of $50bn, slow economic reform and a crumbling infrastructure.

UN chief appoints Spanish general to lead peacekeeping operation in Lebanon

UNITED NATIONS, Dec. 10 (Xinhua) -- UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon Thursday announced the appointment of a Spanish Major General as Force Commander of the UN peacekeeping operation in Lebanon.

Alberto Asarta Cuevas will be heading the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), where he had been UNIFIL Sector East Commander from December 2008 to April 2009.

A statement, released here by Ban's spokesman, said that Cuevas, who is currently adviser to the Chief of Staff of the Spanish Army, will bring to his new position "extensive and wide-ranging experience, including significant command experience and prior experience with United Nations peacekeeping."

He succeeds Major General Claudio Graziano of Italy, whose tenure will end on Jan. 28, 2010.

Among his distinguished command appointments, which include up to the level of Armored Brigade Commander, he was also deputy brigade commander of the Spanish Brigade in Operation Iraqi Freedom.

Cuevas also served two terms in NATO Stabilization Force (SFOR)in 1997 and early 2000s, in addition to being a UN Military Observer in the UN Observer Group in Central America (ONUCA) in 1991.

UN Security Council Resolution 1701 ended the 34-day war between Israel and Hezbollah in 2006, which also reinforced the UNIFIL to conduct peacekeeping missions in south Lebanon.

New Lebanon Cabinet allows Hezbollah to keep arms

By BASSEM MROUE (AP)

BEIRUT — The Lebanese parliament overwhelmingly approved a national unity government Thursday that will allow Hezbollah to keep its weapons, despite strong criticism from pro-Western lawmakers angry at the militant group's refusal to disarm.

The vote in parliament was a further indication that Hezbollah will continue to defy a U.N. resolution calling for it to give up its weapons, which include rockets that can reach deep into Israel.

It was also a sign that Hezbollah will continue to wield great political influence at the expense of pro-Western rivals with whom it shares seats in the Cabinet and parliament — and it will retain the military muscle to back it up.

"Why do some Lebanese have the right to have weapons while others don't?" asked Hezbollah critic Sami Gemayel of the right-wing Christian Phalange party.

Elie Keyrouz of the right-wing Lebanese Forces group said Hezbollah's weapons "no longer have any justification" after Israel's withdrawal from southern Lebanon in May 2000, which ended 18 years of occupation.

Despite that sentiment, shared by many in parliament's pro-Western majority, the 128-member assembly approved the new Cabinet by a vote of 122 to 1 with one abstention. Only 124 lawmakers attended the session.

Hezbollah says it has thousands of rockets and missiles, some of which can hit far inside Israel, which says it is preparing to deploy a defense system to shoot down rockets from Lebanon.

A United Nations resolution that ended Hezbollah's 2006 war with Israel calls on the group to disarm, but Hezbollah says it must retain its weapons to fight off any future Israeli threat and persistent violations of Lebanon's airspace. Hezbollah says its weapons are needed until Israel fully withdraws from disputed border areas, including the Chebaa Farms.

Prime Minister Saad Hariri formed his 30-member Cabinet a month ago, and last week it permitted Hezbollah to remain armed under the new government's policy platform.

The Western-backed coalition, headed by Hariri, holds a slight majority in parliament, but was forced to form a shaky coalition government with Hezbollah, which has virtual veto power over the government.

Hezbollah legislator Nawaf al-Moussawi asked those who criticized his group's weapons, "What is the alternative and how will the government face Israeli aerial violations?"

He cited news reports that on Independence Day last month, Israeli warplanes were flying over Beirut as senior officials were attending a military parade. "The whole state was there. What is your answer?" he asked.

Israeli warplanes fly over Lebanon almost daily in violation of U.N. resolutions.

China Shares Blame for Financial Crisis

by Peter Hannaford
12/11/2009


Like the sound of one hand clapping, silence greeted the release of the annual report the other day of the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission. The “mainstream” media were too preoccupied with how Mr. and Mrs. Salahi crashed the White House dinner to notice that the Commission had concluded that China bore a lot of the blame for the global financial crisis.

The bipartisan 12-member Commission in this, its seventh annual report, wasn’t bashful about laying out its assertions. They say that while the economic crisis originated in the United States it “has its roots in massive global economic imbalances. The responsibility for these...can be placed partially on the U.S. as the world’s biggest spender and borrower and partially on China as the world’s biggest saver and lender.”

The reports says that China pursues policies that promote exports over all else by pushing increased savings, restraining domestic consumption, keeping its currency undervalued and directing subsidies and incentives to exporters. As a result, China’s booming export business means that the country now has the world’s largest foreign exchange reserves, $2.27 trillion.

The perverse effects of China’s obsession with exports are spelled out: “In response to the crisis, China introduced a fiscal stimulus package, raised rebates to exporters” and supported them with other measures. “This will only exacerbate overcapacity, aggravating the overall problem.” Indeed, production overcapacity increases pressure to push the products out in ever greater numbers, with prices kept rock-bottom in order to keep consumer interest (such as here) at a high level.

According to the Commission, China provides generous incentives to foreign manufacturers who relocate their plants to China. Labor costs are kept low because workers are not allowed to bargain collectively or join independent unions. Chinas also uses a Value Added Tax (VAT) as an export weapon. It charges 17 percent on everything that is manufactured, but rebates the proceeds to domestics companies that export, but does not do so for importers. This puts imports at an even greater disadvantage.

In the early days of China’s industrialization a joke went around to the effect that China would “buy one of everything; reverse-engineer it, then mass produce replicas at half the going price.”

That impulse still is apparent in the current industrial policy set by the Chinese government, but the Chinese are using other means to sharpen their competitiveness. Take cyber-espionage. The Commission reports, “There has been a marked increase in cyber intrusions originating in China and targeting U.S. government and defense-related computer systems. This malicious activity has the potential to destroy critical infrastructure, disrupt commerce and banking systems and compromise sensitive defense and military data.”

The number of incidents of malicious cyber activity has gone from 23,031 in 2005 to 43,880 in 2007 and 43,880 this year.

Free speech is not tolerated by the Chinese government which also monitors dissidents and others with almost paranoid intensity. The report cites one Chen Yonglin, a defector who was once a senior government official in China. He produced an internal government document that referred to “Five Poisonous Groups,” namely, the Falun Gong, Tibetans, Uighurs, Taiwanese and pro-democracy activists. Operatives were instructed to list activists, monitor them and use propaganda against them.

Carolyn Bartholoew, chairwoman of the Commission, in an Epoch Times interview, said, “Every year there is sufficient information out there to put together 300 to 400 pages of documentation of troubling things that are going on.”

The Commission's report delivers to Congress no fewer than 42 recommendations on dealing with China. Among these:

• The U.S. should use World Trade Organization trade remedies more aggressively;

• Congress should make adequate funds available for defense, law enforcement and intelligence agencies to implement sophisticated techniques to counter Chinese espionage and cyber attacks;

• Push China to draw down its military forces opposite Taiwan (including missiles) to demonstrate “its desire for improved cross-Strait relations”;

• Assess the adequacy of U.S. export control policy and make necessary changes to prevent transshipment of controlled technologies (that is, those that can be used for consumer and military purposes) through Hong Kong into China itself.

Will Congress dig into these and the other 38 recommendations? Don’t bet on it.