الذنيبات يخالف ويشارك بأعيان الأردن

26/11/2010 م

محمد النجار-عمان

اعتبرت جماعة الإخوان المسلمين بالأردن مشاركة المراقب الأسبق للجماعة عبد المجيد الذنيبات في مجلس الأعيان –الغرفة الثانية للبرلمان الأردني- "مخالفة" لقرارات الجماعة بمقاطعة المجلس.

وقال أمين سر الجماعة وعضو المكتب التنفيذي جميل أبو بكر للجزيرة نت إن مشاركة الذنيبات "مخالفة لقرار اتخذه اجتماع مشترك للمكتبين التنفيذيين للإخوان وحزب جبهة العمل الإسلامي بمقاطعة مجلس الأعيان انسجاما مع قرار مقاطعة الإخوان لانتخابات مجلس النواب".

وحسب جميل أبو بكر فإن هذه المخالفة ستبحث في اجتماع للمكتب التنفيذي للجماعة مطلع الأسبوع المقبل، وأكد أن القرار "اتخذ بالأغلبية".

وحسب مصادر إخوانية فإن المكتب التنفيذي سيطلب من الذنيبات الالتزام بقرار مقاطعة مجلس الأعيان والاعتذار عن المشاركة فيه وفي حال رفضه فإن المكتب سيتخذ القرار المناسب.

واعتبر مصدر إخواني رفيع للجزيرة نت أن الذنيبات سيواجه "الفصل" من الجماعة إذا أصر على مخالفة قراراتها واستمر في عضوية مجلس الأعيان.

وبحسب المصدر فإن المكتب التنفيذي مطالب بإحالة الذنيبات للمحكمة الإخوانية المختصة التي أحيل إليها أعضاء الإخوان الذين خالفوا قرار الجماعة بمقاطعة الانتخابات البرلمانية وشاركوا في هذه الانتخابات.

وكانت المحكمة الإخوانية العليا قد قررت فصل خمسة من الإخوان الذين شاركوا في الانتخابات التي جرت في 9/11/2010.

ويرى مراقبون أن قضية مشاركة الذنيبات قد تفتح الباب أمام خلافات جديدة بين تياري الصقور والحمائم في الجماعة.

وقال المحلل السياسي الدكتور محمد أبو رمان إن الذنيبات يستند في مشاركته لعضويته في مكتب الإرشاد الدولي للإخوان الذي لا يعارض المشاركة في البرلمانات، بل إنه خاطب جماعة الإخوان الأردنية عام 2007 للسماح بمشاركة الذنيبات في مجلس الأعيان وعدم مطالبته بالاستقالة منه.

وبين للجزيرة نت أن هناك توافقا بين تياري الحمائم والصقور على ضرورة مقاطعة المشاركة بمجلسي النواب والأعيان، وزاد "هذا التوافق قد يسهل التعامل مع موضوع مشاركة الذنيبات".

ولكنه اعتبر أن حديث بعض قيادات الصقور عن ضرورة فصل الذنيبات من عضوية الجماعة أسوة بما حدث مع الإخوان المخالفين لقرار المشاركة في انتخابات مجلس النواب "قد يفتح الباب لخلافات جديدة بين الصقور والحمائم".

وكان العاهل الأردني أعلن ليل الخميس التشكيلة الجديدة لمجلس الأعيان برئاسة رئيس الوزراء الأسبق طاهر المصري من 60 عضوا وهو نصف عدد أعضاء مجلس النواب.

ويتم تعيين أعضاء مجلس الأعيان من قبل الملك في الأردن بتنسيب من الحكومة.

التشكيلة الجديدة

يذكر أنه قد عاد للتشكيلة الجديدة 28 عضوا من أعضاء المجلس السابق، وكان أبرز الخارجين منه ثلاثة رؤساء وزراء سابقين هم علي أبو الراغب وعدنان بدران ونادر الذهبي وجميعهم شكلوا حكومات في عهد الملك عبد الله الثاني.

وضمت التشكيلة رئيس مجلس النواب السابق عبد الهادي المجالي، كما ارتفع عدد النساء الممثلات بالمجلس إلى تسع بعد أن كان في التشكيلة السابقة سبع نسوة.

ودخل المجلس محافظ البنك المركزي الأردني أمية طوقان الذي استقال الخميس، وصدر قرار من العاهل الأردني بتعيين الشريف فارس شرف محافظا جديدا للبنك لمدة خمس سنوات.

ويفتتح عبد الله الثاني الأحد المقبل الدورة العادية الأولى لمجلس النواب، ويلقي "خطاب العرش"، قبل أن يتجه النواب إلى عقد جلستهم الأولى التي سينتخبون فيها رئيس المجلس وأعضاء المكتب الدائم.

وأصبح رئيس الوزراء الأسبق فيصل الفايز المرشح الوحيد لرئاسة المجلس بعد أن أعلن كل من النائبين عبد الكريم الدغمي ومفلح الرحيمي انسحابهما من المعركة.

وكانت مصادر سياسية قد أكدت قبل أشهر من انتخابات مجلس النواب أن الفايز يترشح للانتخابات بناء على "ضوء أخضر" من مرجعيات عليا في الدولة له برئاسة مجلس النواب الجديد، لاسيما بعد قرار الرئيس السابق للبرلمان عبد الهادي المجالي عدم الترشح للانتخابات بناء على توصية من تلك المرجعيات، وفقا للمصادر ذاتها.

وفي حال تولي الفايز رئاسة النواب فإن جناحي البرلمان سيكونان تحت قيادة رئيسي الوزراء السابقين طاهر المصري الذي تعود أصوله إلى مدينة نابلس الفلسطينية، وفيصل الفايز الذي ينتمي إلى عشائر بني صخر العريقة بالأردن.

المصدر: الجزيرة.
الرابط: http://www.aljazeera.net/NR/EXERES/B6F07641-A248-465D-AAFC-EE04F807C24C.htm.

اتهام المقدسي بالإرهاب ودعم طالبان

26/11/2010 م

محمد النجار-عمان

وجه المدعي العام لمحكمة أمن الدولة بالأردن تهما جديدة بالإرهاب لمنظر التيار السلفي الجهادي عصام البرقاوي الشهير بأبي محمد المقدسي الذي سيمثل للمرة الرابعة أمام المحكمة العسكرية الأردنية منذ عام 1994.

فقد أكد وكيل الدفاع عن المقدسي المحامي ماجد اللفتاوي للجزيرة نت أن المدعي العام لأمن الدولة وجه موكله تهمتي القيام بأعمال لم تجزها الحكومة من شأنها أن تعرض المملكة لخطر أعمال عدائية وتعكر صلاتها بدولة أجنبية، وجمع أموال لمنظمة وجماعات إرهابية لغرض استخدامها في أعمال إرهابية.

وحسب اللفتاوي فإن المحققين في دائرة المخابرات الأردنية حققوا مع المقدسي الذي اعتقلوه منذ 16/9/2010 بشأن مبلغ قليل من المال اتهموه بأنه كان يريد تحويله لحركة طالبان الأفغانية.

لائحة المتهمين

وضمت لائحة المتهمين إلى جانب المقدسي الأستاذ الجامعي الدكتور إياد القنيبي المعتقل منذ 23/9/2010، إضافة إلى شخص ثالث هو أيمن أبو الرُّب.

ونقل المقدسي -وفقا لما ذكره اللفتاوي- من سجن المخابرات العامة إلى سجن الجويدة جنوب العاصمة عمان حيث وضع في زنزانة انفرادية ومنع من الاختلاط بأي نزلاء هناك، كما نقل القنيبي وأبو الرُّب إلى السجن نفسه بعد احتجازهما نحو شهرين لدى المخابرات.

واعتبر أن التهم الموجهة إلى موكله "لا تستند لأي وقائع"، وأوضح أن "القضية تعود لكون الدكتور القنيبي أعطى المقدسي مبلغا صغيرا من المال في رمضان يرجح أن يكون من أموال الزكاة وطلب منه تحويله للفقراء في أفغانستان".

التهمة الثانية

وعن تهمة "تعكير صفو العلاقات"، قال اللفتاوي إنها تعود لمداخلة رد فيها المقدسي على شيخ سعودي هاجم في إحدى الفضائيات كتاب المقدسي القديم "ملة إبراهيم" الذي يحمل انتقادات لمنظمة المؤتمر الإسلامي والقائمين عليها وانتقادات أخرى اعتبرت موجهة للسعودية.

وقال إن لديه قرارا من محكمة التمييز –أعلى مرجعية قضائية في الأردن- يفيد إبطال هذه التهمة التي يستعملها المدعون العامون لأمن الدولة في لوائح الدعوى الصادرة عنهم في مثل هذه القضايا.

وحسب رأيه فإن قرار الاتهام يهدف إلى إضفاء شرعية قانونية على اعتقال المقدسي والقنيبي خاصة بعد أن بدأت عائلاتهما ونشطاء حقوقيون تنظيم احتجاجات على استمرار اعتقالهما أكثر من شهرين.

تاريخ الاعتقالات

ويعود تاريخ المقدسي مع محكمة أمن الدولة إلى عام 1994 عندما أدين مع الزعيم السابق لتنظيم القاعدة بالعراق أبو مصعب الزرقاوي –الذي قتل بغارة أميركية في العراق عام 2006- بتشكيل "تنظيم بيعة الإمام" وحكم عليهما بالسجن 15 عاما، قبل أن يخرجا عام 1999 بعفو أصدره الملك عبد الله الثاني بداية عهده في الحكم.

وعاد المقدسي للمثول أمام أمن الدولة عام 2000 فيما عرف بتنظيم "الألفية"، وقضت المحكمة ببراءته بعد عام من المحاكمة.

ومثل المقدسي مجددا أمام المحكمة فيما عرف بـ"تنظيم المفرق" الذي اتهم فيه مع عدد من الشبان بالتخطيط لمهاجمة قوات أميركية في الأردن قرب الحدود مع العراق، لكن المحكمة برأته مجددا.

وعادت المخابرات الأردنية إلى اعتقال المقدسي مجددا عام 2005 بعد ساعات من إجرائه مقابلة مع قناة الجزيرة ليمكث في السجن أكثر من ثلاث سنوات دون محاكمة.

وخلال العامين الماضيين تم اعتقال المقدسي مرتين، وأكد للجزيرة نت التي زارته في منزله خلال تلقيه العزاء بنجله الذي قتل في العراق في يونيو/حزيران الماضي أنه خاضع لمراقبة مشددة من الأجهزة الأمنية وأنه ممنوع من الحديث لوسائل الإعلام.

المصدر: الجزيرة.
الرابط: http://www.aljazeera.net/NR/EXERES/9E4093C7-0D99-4272-8AC5-4468FFE75C17.htm.

Israel allows Gaza flowers, strawberries export

GAZA, Nov. 25 (Xinhua) -- Palestinian farmers in the Gaza Strip could ship flowers and strawberries to Europe though Israel starting from Sunday, Palestinian officials said Thursday.

Gazans would be allowed to export their produce, by far only flowers and strawberries, through a commercial crossing between the Hamas-controlled territory and Israel, said Mahmoud Khalil, a representative of the farmers.

It is the second year that Israel allows Gaza flowers and strawberries to be sold overseas since it imposed a nearly total blockade on Gaza in June 2007.

The first shipment of strawberry would make its way to Holland, said Khalil, adding that the Dutch embassy in Israel has intervened to allow the export.

In total, 800 tons of strawberry and 300 million roses are expected to be exported in the season "if Israel meets its promise and keeps the crossing open," said Khalil.

Source: Xinhua.
Link: http://news.xinhuanet.com/english2010/world/2010-11/25/c_13622564.htm.

Jordan's king names new senate

AMMAN, Nov 25, 2010 (Xinhua via COMTEX) -- King Abdullah II of Jordan Thursday appointed a new senate in accordance with a Royal Decree issued the same day.

Taher al-Masri was reappointed as president of the 60-member upper house of Parliament.

Born in the West Bank city of Nablus in 1942, al-Masri served as the kingdom's foreign minister from 1984 until 1988 and served as the country's ambassador in several countries including Spain and France. He also served as former prime minister from June to November of the year 1991.

The appointment of the new senate occurred ahead of the opening session of the newly-elected lower house whose opening session is scheduled for Sunday.

Jordanians elected the new 120-member lower house on Nov. 9.

About 53 percent of eligible voters participated in the elections which was boycotted by Jordan's Islamic Action Front, the largest opposition party.

Source: TMCnet.
Link: http://www.tmcnet.com/usubmit/2010/11/25/5159132.htm.

'Road to Hope' aid convoy enters Gaza

Fri Nov 26, 2010

A humanitarian aid convoy carrying aid supplies for the people of the besieged Gaza Strip has entered Gaza through Egypt's Rafah border crossing.

The convoy, known as "Road to Hope", left London on October 10 and arrived in Gaza on Thursday. It comprises of 30 vehicles and 101 humanitarian aid workers that include eight survivors of the Israeli attack on the Freedom Flotilla in May that killed nine people onboard.

The Egyptian negotiators first allowed three members of the convoy, including its leader, to enter the territory, Press TV correspondent, who was present at the Rafah border crossing, reported late Thursday.

The convoy leader told Press TV that the aid fleet crossed France, Spain, Morocco, Tunisia, Algeria, and Libya on its way to Gaza. In Libya, he said, "we were supposed to take delivery of the 'Al-Quds Five' part of the convoy, but, unfortunately, it was not ready".

Moreover, Libya failed to grant permission for the transit of the aid convoy through Egypt by land, leaving it stranded for nine days at the Libya-Egypt border.

"Then, because we were not able to go by road, we hired a Greek ship to go to El Arish port in Egypt", he said.

Greek commandos boarded the ship after the captain brought the group against their will to the port of Piraeus. "The captain 'kidnapped' the aid workers, accusing them of being illegal immigrants", he said. The aid workers later said that they were treated like terror suspects by the Greeks.

The convoy leader also said that the aid content included roughly USD 1 million worth of vehicles, medical aid, equipment for handicapped schools, educational material, blankets as well as toys for children.

Speaking from London, convoy spokeswoman Leyla-Rubaina Hyda said that only 37 members of the convoy had been allowed to enter the Gaza Strip.

Source: PressTV.
Link: http://www.presstv.ir/detail/152675.html.

قافلة الأمل تدخل غزة

26/11/2010 م

دخلت سفينة الأمل الأوروبية إلى قطاع غزة أمس الخميس عبر معبر رفح البري، وكان في استقبالها عدد من الشخصيات البارزة في الحكومة الفلسطينية المقالة.

وتضم السفينة -القادمة من ليبيا- 35 متضامنا من جنسيات مختلفة، وتتكون من 35 مركبة محملة بالمساعدات الإنسانية.

وكانت سفينة الأمل قد رست بميناء العريش المصري فجر الخميس بعد ثلاثة أيام أمضتها في غاطس الميناء.

وقال مدير ميناء العريش البحري اللواء جمال عبد المقصود إن برج المراقبة في الميناء كان قد فوجئ بالسفينة وهي تتجه صوب الميناء دون ترتيب مسبق.

وذكر مصدر أمني مصري لوكالة الأنباء الألمانية أن الموافقة المصرية على دخول السفينة إلى رصيف الميناء جاءت بعد عدة اتصالات مكثفة بين كبار المسؤولين في ليبيا ومصر.

يذكر أن عدة سفن وقوافل أوروبية وعربية حملت مساعدات إنسانية إلى القطاع المحاصر منذ أكثر من ثلاث سنوات، بينها "شريان الحياة" و"أسطول الحرية" الذي تعرض لهجوم إسرائيلي دموي في نهاية مايو/أيار الماضي في المياه الإقليمية.

المصدر: الجزيرة.
الرابط: http://www.aljazeera.net/NR/EXERES/CCE90DAF-0B29-4277-B662-9A88A1CD4C02.htm.

Construction begins on Gaza wastewater treatment plant

25/11/2010

GAZA CITY (Ma'an) -- The first concrete was poured Thursday morning in the Western-funded construction of a new wastewater treatment plant in Beit Lahiya, in the northern Gaza Strip.

French Consul General Frederic Desagneaux participated in the ceremony along with representatives of the other donors, which include the World Bank, the European Union, Belgium, and Sweden.

The long-obsolete old Beit Lahiya treatment plant has been in need of replacement for several years. In March 2007 a massive sewage cesspit burst its banks, killing at least five people in the ensuing deluge.

According to the French Consulate in Jerusalem, the project was planed in two stages. The first one, completed in summer 2010, consisted in the construction of a pumping station to transfer the sewage to 9 infiltration basins in order to prevent human, environmental and health risks.

The second stage of the project, scheduled for a duration of three years, aims at building a new biological treatment plant with a capacity of 35,600 cubic meters a day in order to meet the needs of the entire population of the North of Gaza, estimated at 250,000 inhabitants, and to protect groundwater.

France donated 16 million euros to this project, a third of its total cost of 48 million euros.

Source: Ma'an News Agency.
Link: http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=336054.

Arrests in Afghan poll fraud probe

Election officials among four people arrested as part of investigation into alleged fraud in September vote.

26 Nov 2010

Afghan authorities have arrested at least four people as part of an investigation into fraud in the country's September parliamentary vote.

The Afghan attorney-general's office announced the arrests on Thursday, saying that two of those detained were employees of the Independent Election Commission. The other two were working in the money transfer business, the office said.

Rahmatullah Nazari, the deputy attorney-general, said prosecutors were investigating at least five cases of election bribery involving sums ranging from $80,000 to $220,000.

Candidates claiming they were victims of phony vote tallies have taken to the streets across the country to protest after final vote results for 33 of Afghanistan's 34 provinces were announced on Wednesday.

Urging calm

While not yet publicly endorsing the results, Hamid Karzai, the president, has urged protesters to refrain from violence.

"The president... calls on unhappy candidates and their supporters to avoid violence and disorder and take their complaints to the legal authorities to be addressed in the light of the law," a statement from his office said.

Final results have not yet been released for Ghazni province in the east where a myriad of problems clouded the ballot.

Abdullah Ahmadzai, a member of the election commission, says the panel had to decide between certifying and announcing the current results in Ghazni or ordering a revote for the province, where many polling stations were closed, others were excluded because of fraud and turnout was almost nonexistent in some districts.

As a result, no candidates from the majority Pashtun ethnic group won seats - a potentially inflammatory result in an already volatile province.

Instead, preliminary results showed that all 11 winning candidates are Hazaras, members of an ethnic minority group.

Election authorities have invalidated about 1.3 million of the 5.6 million votes cast after receiving more than 5,000 complaints of fraud in the wake of the poll. Of those, 2,500 complaints were classed as "serious".

Pashtun leaders have said the Taliban, centered largely in the Pashtun-dominated south and east, prevented them from voting.

Karzai, himself a Pashtun, has said he would be in favor of a re-run in Ghazni "for the sake of our national unity".

Source: Al-Jazeera.
Link: http://english.aljazeera.net/news/asia/2010/11/2010112522395634861.html.

Morocco to complete rural electrification project

2010-11-25

The Islamic Development Bank is helping to expand Morocco's electricity grid, MAP reported on Wednesday (November 24th). Under the agreement signed Tuesday in Rabat by Moroccan Finance Minister Salaheddine Mezouar and IDB chief Ahmed Mohamed Ali, the bank will finance the last stage of Morocco's rural electrification project.

Source: Magharebia.com.
Link: http://www.magharebia.com/cocoon/awi/xhtml1/en_GB/features/awi/newsbriefs/general/2010/11/25/newsbrief-04.

Algeria to launch national AIDS prevention campaign

2010-11-25

A year-long national AIDS awareness campaign will get under way in Algeria next month, El Moudjahid reported on Wednesday (November 24th). The initiative aims to promote education about sexual health. Up to 12,000 Algerian women are infected with the HIV virus, Dr. Skander Abdelkader Soufi said Tuesday at an Algiers forum held to discuss the initiative. Soufi, who runs a national AIDS awareness NGO, said that some 600 new cases have been reported in Algeria in 2010.

Source: Magharebia.com.
Link: http://www.magharebia.com/cocoon/awi/xhtml1/en_GB/features/awi/newsbriefs/general/2010/11/25/newsbrief-02.

Algeria eyes cinema revival

A bill aimed at rescuing Algeria's struggling film industry is stirring mixed reactions from MPs.

By Mouna Sadek for Magharebia in Algiers – 25/11/10

Dilapidated cinema halls, a low level of filmmaking activity and a massive exodus of movie-goers; the Algerian Ministry of Culture hopes to confront it all with a new bill introduced to the National Assembly on Monday (November 22nd).

The proposed law calls for the renovation of 300 cinemas, with a tax of 1% on advertising revenues. The money will be allocated to the Fund to Support Film Production (FDATIC) and grant tax breaks to Algerian and foreign investors seeking to get involved in film projects.

The collapse of the Algerian film industry has hit movie theaters the hardest. There were 473 theaters when the country achieved independence, but a 1967 law transferred their ownership to local authorities. Now most are closed or have been turned into restaurants or village halls.

In addition to restoring theaters, the law adopts the principle of state aid for local production, distribution, screening and broadcasting companies. The government will also help fund training in cinema-related professions and offer incentives to trainees, Culture Minister Khalida Toumi said.

The announcement of the reforms has boosted the hopes of Algerian directors and producers. Director Lamine Merbah believes that the goal of the bill is not only to regulate movie-making activity, but to promote cinema as a vehicle for Algerian identity, culture and history.

"Films inform people and also educate them, which is why the state has a duty to take responsibility," he commented, insisting that the government open the door to investors by granting incentives such as tax breaks on imported film-making resources.

It may take more than a new law to revive the Algerian film industry, cautioned Boualem Ziani of Sora Productions.

"It's a sector on the verge of death. The level of film-making is very low in proportion to the country's size and potential," Ziani contended.

According to producer and director Bachir Derrais, it is high time for the authorities to support a sector that has been neglected for more than twenty years.

"The lack of a cinema industry and television channels, the gradual disappearance of cinemas and DVD piracy all make a law essential for this mess to be resolved," he told Magharebia.

Not everyone shares his optimism. Some MPs launched a heated debate over what they see as a hidden agenda behind the bill. Athmane Mazouz, a deputy representing the Rally for Culture and Democracy (RCD), said during a speech to parliament that the main aim of the law is to strengthen the grip of the culture ministry on the sector rather than to facilitate a true renaissance of Algerian filmmaking.

"When the bill was presented, there was no evidence of any real desire to foster the emergence of a dynamic and competitive national movie industry," he said.

Meanwhile, only 10-15 films are made in Algeria each year, according to the Ministry of Culture. Film production is still reliant on state aid for special occasions. During the 2007 event "Algiers, Arab Cultural Capital", no fewer than 84 films were shot. The Ministry is planning to launch 60 new films in preparation for another event, "Tlemcen, Capital of Islamic Culture".

Source: Magharebia.com.
Link: http://www.magharebia.com/cocoon/awi/xhtml1/en_GB/features/awi/features/2010/11/25/feature-03.

Afghanistan announces final parliamentary election results

Wed, 24 Nov 2010

Kabul - Afghan election officials on Wednesday issued the long-delayed final results of the September 18 parliamentary elections, which were marred by widespread fraud.

More than 1.3 million votes, nearly one-fourth of total ballots cast, were ruled invalid by the election commission.

"With all the shortcomings it was a major success for us, the Afghan government, people of Afghanistan and our international friends," Fazel Ahmad Manawi, chairman of Independent Election Commission, said.

The results covered 33 of 34 provinces, and 10 seats set aside for Kuchi nomads. Officials were undecided about whether to certify results from the southern province of Ghazni or call a new election.

More than two dozen preliminary winners, among them a cousin of President Hamid Karzai, were disqualified. Manawi also said 1,153 polling sites were disqualified due to irregularities.

A UN-backed commission examining allegations of fraud had received more than 6,000 complaints from observers, voters and candidates.

More than 2,500 candidates, including over 400 women, vied for 249 lower house seats, known as Wolesi Jirga. Sixty-nine women candidates won seats in the lower house, one more than the quota guaranteed by the constitution for women.

For Karzai, the lower house is vital because it has the authority to question his policies, approve or reject his cabinet nominations, and vote on laws proposed by the executive.

But the makeup of the legislature is unclear, as Afghanistan as little experience with electoral democracy and does not have party organizations with declared policy agendas. Most candidacies ran as individuals, and much voting came down along tribal lines.

The scale of the fraud rivaled that of last year's presidential election, where one-third of votes for incumbent Karzai votes were declared void.

Western nations with 150,000 troops in Afghanistan are carefully watching the process to see if Karzai is committed to reforming his government, and his tarnished reputation.

Source: Earth Times.
Link: http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/news/354965,final-parliamentary-election-results.html.

Three Muslims slain in drive-by shooting in southern Thailand

Wed, 24 Nov 2010

Pattani, Thailand - Unidentified assailants killed three Muslims in a drive-by shooting Wednesday in the southern Thai province of Narathiwat, military sources said. The men were gunned down while driving through rubber plantations in Ru-so district, about 720 kilometers south of Bangkok, Fourth Region Army chief Lieutenant General Udomchai Thamasalorat said.

Two unidentified assailants with assault rifles attacked local imam Ukree Da-ee, 45, and district administrators Yamaruding Lohma, 46, and Sae-Ungsean Lahmu, 57.

"Our strategy for reducing violence in the region is on track," Udomchai said. "These occasional acts of violence are the results of personal conflicts, not the separatist movement."

The army is attempting to win the hearts and minds of local residents through development projects.

The three men were the latest victims of violence in southern Thailand, where an estimated 4,400 people have been killed and another 7,140 injured since 2004 in a low-intensity insurgency.

Nearly 60 per cent of the slain have been Muslims.

According to a recent survey, there have been 10,284 acts of violence in the region since January 2004, when Muslim militants raided an army arms depot and stole weapons.

Harsh army crackdowns in 2004 on the long-simmering separatist movement further antagonized the local population and gave rise to a reprisal killings, targeting both Buddhists and Muslims.

Besides a struggle for greater autonomy from the predominantly Buddhist state, the border region is also notorious for illicit trade in smuggled goods, arms and drugs.

Residents polled in a recent survey listed the drug trade as the most urgent problem in the region that borders Malaysia.

The region of 2 million inhabitants was an independent Islamic sultanate until it was conquered by Bangkok about 200 years ago. Ethnic Malay Muslims have never wholly submitted to rule by the central government.

Source: Earth Times.
Link: http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/news/354967,drive-by-shooting-southern-thailand.html.