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Tuesday, March 8, 2011

Saudi 'Day of Rage' protests postponed

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia, March 7 (UPI) -- Protesters in Saudi Arabia rescheduled planned "Day of Rage" protests after a smaller-than-expected number of demonstrators turned out Monday, organizers said.

Demonstrations against the government were planned in several locations throughout the country, to demand an end to the royal family's monopoly over policymaking, Debkafile.com, a military intelligence Web site based in Jerusalem, reported Monday.

The protests initially had been scheduled for Friday. An Interior Ministry ban on demonstrations was backed Sunday by the Council of Senior Clerics -- who said demonstrations violate Islamic law and signing reform petitions "violates what God ordered."

Organizers had planned four days of protests leading up to this Friday in towns with anti-monarchical traditions, the Web site said. The plan was to build momentum and mount protests in the capital, Riyadh, Friday that would get the rest of Saudi Arabia on board with the protesters.

BBC Arabic reported March 1 that unrest in Saudi Arabia was growing. After the broadcast, Saudi security and intelligence forces raised their alert to the highest level, perceiving the broadcast as a coded call to opposition groups to try to oust 88-year-old King Abdallah, Debkafile.com reported.

After the BBC broadcast, government officials blocked some Web sites to cut down participation in the demonstrations, the intelligence Web site said.

Source: United Press International (UPI).
Link: http://www.upi.com/Top_News/World-News/2011/03/07/Saudi-Day-of-Rage-protests-postponed/UPI-86891299508589/.

Iranian opposition appeals to U.N.

TEHRAN, March 7 (UPI) -- The detention of Iranian opposition leaders is in contrast to international and Iranian law, an opposition movement said in a letter to the United Nations.

There has been no word from Iranian opposition leaders Mir Hossein Mousavi and Mehdi Karroubi since Feb. 14 when they, along with their wives, were taken by Iranian security forces.

A coordinating council for the opposition movement in a letter to U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said the detention "violated the Iranian Constitution and civil law as well as the international provisions of human rights."

The letter claims the opposition leaders are being held without access to the public or their families and their whereabouts are unknown, reports Dutch broadcaster Radio Zamenah.

The opposition council requests the United Nations "use their good offices" to put an end to the "flagrant violation of the rights of these national leaders and free them without delay."

Both opposition leaders were arrested shortly after issuing requests to Tehran to hold public demonstrations. Mousavi was the top challenger to Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, whose re-election in 2009 sparked violent protests in Iran.

Iranian lawmakers accused Karroubi and Mousavi of treason and earlier called for their execution.

Source: United Press International (UPI).
Link: http://www.upi.com/Top_News/Special/2011/03/07/Iranian-opposition-appeals-to-UN/UPI-75351299516201/.

Somaliland, Puntland clash in northern Somalia

The clash comes one day after anti-Somaliland protests by residents in the town of Las Anod that resulted in injuries to about a score of the demonstrators.

Abdi Hajji Hussein
Las Anod, Sool, Somalia
March 7, 2011 12:00

Heavy clashes between military forces loyal to the break away republic of Somaliland and Puntland troops broke out in a village in the Sool region that lies in northern Somalia, officials said Monday.

The confrontation, which lasted for several hours, erupted after soldiers loyal to Somalia’s semi-autonomous state of Puntland attacked the village of Ganbara about 20 kilometers from the town of Las Anod in the Sool region where Somaliland military forces are based.

“The confrontation started at 2 p.m. local time after we had come under attack from Puntland forces armed [with] heavy and light guns and flanked by more than 20 military vehicles,” said Osman Abdullahi, a spokesman for the Somaliland military, adding that they repulsed them.

He stressed that Somaliland forces captured two of the military wagons and a number of prisoners. He didn’t specify the number of the captives, but he said they inflicted irretrievable losses on Puntland troops.

The clash comes one day after anti-Somaliland protests by residents in the town of Las Anod that resulted in injuries to about a score of the demonstrators. Somaliland security forces reportedly apprehended dozens of people including women after dispersing the protesters, according to local residents.

Earlier, Ahmed Ali Askar, the Puntland minister of information, accused the breakaway administration of Hargeisa of creating new conflict between the two neighboring administrations, claiming that Somaliland is trying muzzle the residents of Sool, Sanaag and Eyn, which disputed regions between Somaliland and Puntland.

He said that live ammunition was used to disperse the demonstrators.

The Puntland official condemned a statement from the United Kingdom that it will provide more aid for Somaliland, charging that the breakaway republic will use the aid to stoke the conflict of Sool, Sanaag and Eyn.

On March 1, UK aid allocations to help build peace and stability in Somalia could rise from the current level of £26 million to £80 million per year over the next three years, depending on the results achieved by 2013/14, according to a statement from the British government.

UK Secretary of State Andrew Mitchell visited Hargeisa on Jan. 31, where he explained that 40 percent of UK’s aid to Somalia will go to Somaliland. Somaliland has shown that greater democracy and stable government are possible.

Somaliland and Puntland had been the most peaceful regions in Somalia for the last 20 years.

Source: All Headline News (AHN).
Link: http://www.allheadlinenews.com/articles/7024312447?Somaliland,%20Puntland%20clash%20in%20northern%20Somalia.

Hamas rejects proposal by PM-designate for unity gov't

GAZA, March 7 (Xinhua) -- The Islamic Hamas movement on Monday rejected an initiative by Prime Minister-designate Salam Fayyad to form a Palestinian unity government.

"Fayyad is not a component of the Palestinian national work, so he should not suggest such issues," Sami Abu Zuhri, a Hamas spokesman, told Xinhua.

In an interview with Xinhua on Sunday, Fayyad suggested the formation of a unity government to rule the West Bank and the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip, and added that he does not necessarily lead that government.

Abu Zuhri said the internal political matter "can be discussed between the main powers in the Palestinian political spectrum," referring to the Hamas and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas' Fatah party.

Fayyad is not a Fatah member, and he ran in the 2006 parliamentary elections under the Third Way party, winning only two seats of the 132-seat Palestinian Legislative Council. The Hamas won 76 seats.

Fayyad suggested keeping the security ideology the Hamas implements in Gaza but letting one government rule the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.

The Hamas has been seeking to enforce ceasefire with Israel since it took over Gaza by force in 2007.

Source: Xinhua.
Link: http://news.xinhuanet.com/english2010/world/2011-03/07/c_13765678.htm.

1455 Pakistanis evacuated from Libya till Monday: FO

ISLAMABAD, March 7 (APP): The operation to evacuate Pakistani expatriates from Libya is proceeding smoothly. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs in coordination with Pakistan Missions in Turkey, Egypt, Tunisia and Algeria have been able to successfully evacuate 1455 Pakistanis till Monday.According to a Foreign Office press release issued here on Monday, in addition, arrangements have been made for the repatriation of 176 Pakistanis from Antalya, Turkey. A special chartered aircraft with 176 Pakistanis on board will arrive in Islamabad around 2300 hrs tonight. Earlier, these Pakistanis were airlifted from Saba (Libya) by a chartered flight and brought to Antalya.

On Monday morning, a special chartered flight brought 251 Pakistanis from Tunisian Island of Jirba. Another, 260 Pakistanis arrived at Islamabad from Cairo by a chartered PIA flight. The PIA would operate another sortie on March 8 to bring remaining 199 Pakistanis from Cairo.

A chartered PIA aircraft was sent to Tripoli on Monday to evacuate the Pakistanis from Libya. The plane is expected to bring home 460 Pakistani nationals from Tripoli in the early hours of March 8.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs in coordination with Ministry of Interior, FIA and Overseas Pakistanis Foundation has made arrangements for receiving Pakistani nationals returning from Libya at the airports in Karachi and Islamabad.

Source: Associated Press of Pakistan (APP).
Link: http://app.com.pk/en_/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=132949&Itemid=2.

Tunisia dissolves secret agency as Algeria police take to the streets

Monday, March 7 2011

Tunisia's interim government has announced it is dissolving the country's secret police service.

The agency had been widely accused of committing human rights abuses during the rule of President Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali, who was ousted on January 14.

Interim Prime Minister Caid Essebsi has also announced a new government, which includes 22 ministers.

The interim government is running Tunisia until elections scheduled to take place on July 24.

In Algeria, thousands of community policemen rallied on Monday to demand a pay raise, breaking through heavy security to reach parliament in a rare mass show of dissent in the tightly controlled country.

Security units

The protesters, estimated by organizers to number more than 10,000, braved a ban on demonstrations in the capital and pushed through several police cordons to move from Martyrs Square to the National Assembly.

They were quickly surrounded by regular police dispatched to the scene of the protest.

Algeria's community policemen, a force numbering about 94,000, provide police services in the country's villages in a program set up in 1994 when the government was battling Islamist rebel groups.

Source: Africa Review.
Link: http://www.africareview.com/News/Tunisia+dissolves+secret+police+agency/-/979180/1120598/-/8mrvhoz/-/.

Disgruntled police stage protest rally in Algeria

ALGIERS, March 7 (Reuters) - More than 2,000 members of a security body that had helped fight an Islamist insurgency in Algeria staged a protest rally on Monday, presenting a new challenge to a government fearing Egypt-style unrest.

Municipal guards held the rally at Martyrs' Square in the center of Algiers and then marched to the parliament building to submit demands including wage rises and early retirement.

Their body was set up as an auxiliary police force in the early 1990s when Islamist militants launched a rebellion in which about 200,000 people were killed. The violence eased after authorities cracked down on insurgents and offered an amnesty.

The government has considered dissolving the municipal police by redeploying its officers to other bodies including the army. But officers have rejected that, demanding a salary rise with retroactive effect as of 2008 or early retirement.

The government mobilized a huge number of riot police to contain Monday's protest.

Weekly protests by opposition supporters have taking place in Algiers to demand more political freedom and better living standards, but the demonstrators have failed to strike a chord with most ordinary people.

The government has taken steps to appease tension, including lifting a 19-year-old state of emergency and other measures aimed at reducing unemployment and easing an acute housing shortage. (Reporting by Maghreb newsroom; Editing by Louise Ireland)

Source: Reuters.
Link: http://af.reuters.com/article/libyaNews/idAFAHM74909920110307.

Subway Runs Past McDonald's Chain

MARCH 8, 2011

By JULIE JARGON

It's official: the Subway sandwich chain has surpassed McDonald's Corp. as the world's largest restaurant chain, in terms of units.

At the end of last year, Subway had 33,749 restaurants worldwide, compared to McDonald's 32,737. The burger giant disclosed its year-end store count in a Securities and Exchange Commission filing late last month.

The race for global dominance is an important one for an industry that's mostly saturated in the U.S. High unemployment and economic uncertainty have battered the restaurant industry in the U.S., and chains are increasingly looking overseas for growth, particularly in Asia.

Starbucks Corp. recently said it plans to triple its number of outlets in China, for example. Dunkin' Brands Inc., parent of Dunkin' Donuts and Baskin-Robbins, plans to open thousands of new outlets in China in coming years as well as its first stores in Vietnam in the next 18 months. Subway just opened its 1,000th location in Asia, including its first in Vietnam.

Subway, which opened its first international restaurant in 1984, in Bahrain, expects its number of international restaurants to exceed its domestic ones by 2020, says Don Fertman, Subway's Chief Development Officer. The chain currently has just over 24,000 restaurants in the U.S., where it generated $10.5 billion of its $15.2 billion in revenue last year.

The closely held company, owned by Doctor's Associates Inc., does not disclose its profits.

McDonald's is still the leader when it comes to sales. The burger chain reported $24 billion in revenue last year. "We remain focused on listening to and serving our customers, and are committed to being better, not just bigger," a McDonald's spokeswoman says.

Subway, which surpassed the number of McDonald's in the U.S. about nine years ago, expects China to eventually become one of its largest markets. The sandwich shop only has 199 restaurants in China now, but expects to have more than 500 by 2015.

Subway has achieved its rapid growth, in part, by opening outlets in non-traditional locations such as an automobile showroom in California, an appliance store in Brazil, a ferry terminal in Seattle, a riverboat in Germany, a zoo in Taiwan, a Goodwill store in South Carolina, a high school in Detroit and a church in Buffalo, New York.

"We're continually looking at just about any opportunity for someone to buy a sandwich, wherever that might be. The closer we can get to the customer, the better," Mr. Fertman says, explaining that it now has almost 8,000 Subways in unusual locations. "The non-traditional is becoming traditional."

The company has some concerns about the economies of certain international markets, such as Germany and the United Kingdom. The company is trying to develop more affordable offerings in those countries, similar to the $5 foot-long sandwiches that have been successful in the U.S.

"Finding that kind of value proposition in those countries is essential," Mr. Fertman says.

Source: The Wall Street Journal.
Link: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703386704576186432177464052.html?mod=e2tw.

Somalia: Al Shabaab - Get Ready for War Against Ethiopian Military

6 March 2011

Mogadishu — The spokesman of Al shabaab fighters , Sheikh Ali Mohmoud Rage better known as Ali Dhere called for the movement's to get major war against Ethiopian military forces.

Rage said that Ethiopians entered inside Somalia, adding that they reached at some of Somali towns in south and center of the nation.

"They (Ethiopia military) will no longer stay at Somalia and will not raise their flag inside our soil" Ali Dhere was quoted as saying.

Separately, the group has executed two Somali men. They accused one of the slain man of committing more murders, and other one was charged with of working with Somali government.

Source: allAfrica.
Link: http://allafrica.com/stories/201103070002.html.

Somalia: India Reopens Its Embassy in Country After 20 Years

6 March 2011

Mogadishu — After he was appointed as India's ambassador to Somalia, Sibabrata Tripathi has on Sunday reached at the Somalia capital Mogadishu.

The president of Somalia, Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed had accepted the ambassadorial documents from the Indian envoy to the republic of Somalia.

In a joint press conference held in Mogadishu, Mohammed Abdullahi Omars, Somalia's minister of foreign affairs said that Indian government has send the ambassador to reopen its embassy in Mogadishu.

The minister said that Mr. Sibabrata Tripathi has experience in working African nations as he worked countries like, Egypt, Kenya and Finland.

Sibabrata Tripathia, the Indian envoy said that he is happy to come in Mogadishu and ready to start his ambassadorial duties.

He said he will work how to strengthen the bilateral relations between Somalia and India.

Source: allAfrica.
Link: http://allafrica.com/stories/201103070057.html.

4 New Species of Zombifying Ant Fungus Found

By Danielle Venton
March 3, 2011

Four new species of brain-manipulating fungi that turn ants into "zombies" have been discovered in the Brazilian rain forest.

These fungi control ant behavior with mind-altering chemicals, then kill them. They're part of a large family of fungi that create chemicals that mess with animal nervous systems.

Usually scientists study these fungi as specimens preserved in a lab, said entomologist David Hughes of Pennsylvania State University, co-author of a study March 3 PLoS ONE. "By going into the forest to watch them, we found new micro-structures and behaviors."

Once infected by spores, the worker ants, normally dedicated to serving the colony, leave the nest, find a small shrub and start climbing. The fungi directs all ants to the same kind of leaf: about 25 centimeters above the ground and at a precise angle to the sun (though the favored angle varies between fungi). How the fungi do this is a mystery.

"It's related to the fungus that LSD comes from," Hughes said. "Obviously they are producing lots of interesting chemicals."

Before dying, ants anchor themselves to the leaf, clamping their jaws on the edge or a vein on the underside. The fungi then takes over, turning the ant's body into a spore-producing factory. It lives off the ant carcass, using it as a platform to launch spores, for up to a year.

"This is completely different from what we see in temperate zones where, if an insect dies from a fungal infection, the game's over in a few days," Hughes said. "The fungi rots the body of the insect and releases massive amounts of spores over two or three days. But in the tropics, where humidity and temperature are more stable, the fungi has this strategy for long-term release."

Of the four new species, two grow long, arrow-like spores which eject like missiles from the fungus, seeking to land on a passing ant. The other fungi propel shorter spores, which change shape in mid-air to become like boomerangs and land nearby. If these fail to land on an ant, the spores sprout stalks that can snag ants walking over them. Upon infecting the new ant, the cycle starts again.

Chemicals from this global group of fungi, known as Cordyceps, have been a part of traditional medicine for thousands years, and part of Western medicine for the last 50.

Organ transplant patients, for example, receive ciclosporin — a drug that suppresses the immune system, reducing the chance the body will reject the new tissue. Chemicals from this same fungal group are also used for antibiotic, antimalarial and anticancer drugs.

The fungi help the forest by keeping ant populations in check. "All of the problems with global ant infestations, for example the Argentine fire ant," Hughes said, "is because the ants have escaped their natural enemies. Then they become a pest."

These fungi need a precise level of humidity to survive. As global temperature changes, the forests where they live are drying. Hughes and his colleagues are now studying the decline these fungi.

"We're worried we'll see the extinction of a species we've only just managed to describe."

Source: Wired.
Link: http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2011/03/zombifying-ant-fungus/?pid=1060&pageid=52998&viewall=true.

Iran Sends New Envoy to SESAME

2011-03-06

TEHRAN (FNA)- Iran's nuclear scientist Mahmoud Reza Aqamiri was introduced to the Synchrotron-light for Experimental Science and Applications in the Middle East to represent Tehran in SESAME.

The SESAME Project is constructing the Middle-East's first major international research center as a cooperative venture by the scientists and governments of the region. It is being developed under the umbrella of UNESCO, which formally approved the recommendation that the Center be set up under its auspices at a meeting of the UNESCO Executive Board on May 30 2002.

SESAME is located in Allaan, Jordan (30 km from Amman and 30 km from the King Hussein/Allenby Bridge crossing of the Jordan River). Jordan was selected as the site in a competition among seven countries from the region. A building to house the facility is nearing completion on this site with funds provided by Jordan.

Iran's measure came a year after martyrdom of one of Iranian representatives to the council Dr. Massoud Ali Mohammadi and three months after martyrdom of another scientist Majid Shahriari who served as one of advisers of the Islamic Republic of Iran to the international organization.

The new figure, Mahmoud Reza Aqamiri, is a nuclear physics expert and a faculty member of prestigious Shahid Beheshti University.

Born in 1961 in Tehran, he holds BA in physics and MA and PhD in nuclear physics.

Any SESAME member state has two representatives and two advisers in the council.

Source: FARS News Agency.
Link: http://english.farsnews.com/newstext.php?nn=8912150567.

Egypt releases 12 Palestinian prisoners but families reserve comment until they are in Gaza

Saturday, 05 March 2011

The Egyptian authorities are releasing 12 Palestinians from Akrab Prison in Cairo. The freed prisoners are, it is claimed, now on their way to Gaza.

According to Emad El Sayed, a spokesman for the families of the Palestinian detainees, the Egyptian authorities notified the 12 in Akrab that they would be released and taken by prison van straight to the Gaza Strip. "However," said Mr. El Sayed, "we cannot confirm the news before we see them in Gaza. We don't trust the Egyptian authorities as they may take the men back to prison, which has happened before." The Egyptian authorities announced more than a week ago that they had released 14 Palestinians but the decision was reversed at the last minute.

There are more than 20 Palestinian detainees in Akrab Prison and they went on hunger strike two weeks ago in protest at their detention and the conditions in the jail. Egypt continues to hold 44 Palestinians in Egyptian prisons; some have been held for several years despite court rulings ordering their release. It has been reported that 8 Palestinian prisoners escaped and fled to Gaza during the Egyptian popular revolution.

Source: Middle East Monitor.
Link: http://www.middleeastmonitor.org.uk/news/middle-east/2107-egypt-releases-12-palestinian-prisoners-but-families-reserve-comment-until-they-are-in-gaza.

Israel has detained over 80 children from Jerusalem in the past two months

Saturday, 05 March 2011

A human rights center has revealed that the Israeli occupation authorities have detained more than 80 Jerusalemite children in the past two months. The Research and Documentation Unit in the Jerusalem Center for Social and Economic Studies claims that "most of these children and minors are from Silwan, Ras El Amoud, Eisasaweyya, and Sha'fat Camp in Jerusalem's suburbs, as well as the Old City". They were, it is claimed, subjected to arrest and detention. More than 40 of these minors come from Silwan alone.

The center emphasized that the Israelis have been harassing and imposing house arrest on minors in Jerusalem in addition to arresting them, deporting them from their homes and making frequent raids on Palestinian houses and neighborhoods in the Holy City.

The latest report mentions that undercover units abducted 9 children from Silwan and subjected them to beating, torture and intimidation. They were also "mistreated during investigation and detention" and on their release "were put under house arrest".

The children were taken into detention for "throwing stones at Israeli soldiers and [armed, illegal] settlers". The report added that Jewish settlers and their guards take part in detaining children and minors, especially in Silwan.

Source: Middle East Monitor.
Link: http://www.middleeastmonitor.org.uk/news/middle-east/2108-israel-has-detained-over-80-children-from-jerusalem-in-the-past-two-months.

Asia to Gaza march will continue until Palestine is free: Mithiborwala

By Leila Saleh, Gold and Glitz's Blog
Mar 06, 2011

Three years in the making finally paid off- in early January 2011, the Asia to Gaza aid caravan successfully penetrated the illegal siege of Gaza, against the will of Israel. People from all over Asia, including Malaysians, Pakistanis, Indians, Iranians, Indonesians, New Zealanders, Kuwaitis and UAE, battled the Israeli “defense” forces in order to give much needed aid to innocent Gazan men, women and children. I had a chance to interview the head of the Asia to Gaza convoy, Feroze Mithiborwala, who has been actively campaigning for Palestinian rights since the 1980′s. He, along with countless other activists, showed no restraint to resist oppression and to make the Palestinian story come alive.

Although, it was not as easy as it seems. It was a war between simple human beings and a monstrous Israeli regime. With the massacre of nine Turkish activists aboard the Freedom Flotilla ship “Mavi Marmara” still fresh on the minds of Palestinian activists everywhere, you might think that traveling to Gaza would become a lost cause. But that definitely was not the case for determined Asia To Gaza activists. Though the Israeli army drew threats and tracked activists, the determination was still there and it wasn’t going anywhere.

First, a quick walkthrough of Gaza. Gaza has been made victim of an illegal siege for over 3 years after the resistance group Hamas drew out Israeli occupiers and settlers from the strip. Since then, Israel has imposed a crippling blockade, prohibiting the simplest of items from entering Gaza including clean water and medical supplies. 1.8 million people strive to live day by day from supplies grown within the strip, which are scarce, and items smuggled through tunnels built underneath the Egypt-Gaza border. Gazans spend thousands of dollars building these tunnels and depend on them greatly. Israel claims Palestinians use these much needed tunnels for weaponry to attack Israeli citizens, so they are often a target of air raids. Egypt, who has made peace with Israel in 1979, is threatening to build a steel wall underneath the shared border putting the lives of Gazans at risk.

In a war that started in December 2008 and led into the new year of 2009, Israel brutally attacked densely populated areas in Gaza killing 1,400 civilians, mostly women and children. Israel committed illegal acts on Gazans, the most startling being the use of white phosphorous in civilian populated areas. After the war, nearly 80 percent of Gaza’s population was left underneath the poverty line and majority of it’s children suffering from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and Depression. Until this day, civilians are still unable to rebuild homes destroyed by Israeli air strikes because of the inhuman siege prohibiting imports of building material into the Gaza strip.

The war left civilians trapped and unable to leave making Gaza the center of attention and on the tongues of human rights activists all over the globe. Quickly, activists stood up to rightfully defend Gaza and supply it’s people with crucial aid. Through air, through water, through land…nothing was going to stop faithful activists from giving much needed supplies to the besieged Palestinian people who had just witnessed a 22 day long massacre.

I asked Mithoborwala a few questions about how he came to be a Palestinian activist, who his inspirations were and if he will ever visit the Gaza strip again.

When did you decide that you needed to go and help the Palestinians in the Gaza strip?
Firstly, we were not there to ‘help’ the Palestinians. Ours is a movement of ‘solidarity’ with the people’s resistance for the liberation of Palestine. I have been involved in the Palestinian question since 1987 and even before the First Intifada. As for the current initiative to ‘End the Siege of Gaza’ and challenge the Israeli blockade, the process started after the siege was imposed. I was amongst the few Indians who was involved with the Palestinian questions and maybe the only one from my generation. As destiny to have it, I also started my own political activities in 1987. I come from the Gandhian, Left, Phule-Ambedakarite (the struggle of the oppressed lower and untouchable castes) and the stream of Liberation Theology. So, especially since 2008, I have been trying to organize a ship or a land caravan from India. I was and am also the National Coordinator for the Free Gaza in India. It was finally after the attack on the Mavi Marmara (31st May, 2010) that the process gained momentum. I also happened to be in Iran during that period. It was thus my Indian friend, Shahid Pradhan studying in Qom, who put me in touch with Roohulla Rezvi & Salim Ghafoori. And then the process began to gather steam.

What was your first reaction when you entered the strip?
The first reaction, was a feeling of accomplishment and the fulfillment of a dream, a dream of having reached the ‘Holy Land’. The emotions were high and I thanked and prayed to God for having heard my plea.

Did anyone condemn you for wanting to make this trip?
Not really, the support was very good. Some people did refer to the problem of Kashmir though. But since I have been working on the Palestinian question for more than two decades, people did understand my initiative.

Who was your biggest inspiration? And who could you not have completed this trip without?
My biggest inspiration comes from the Palestinian people and the love that I have for the Holy Land, especially for Jerusalem. I have a deep spiritual connection to the land.

I also was inspired by the initiatives of the Free Gaza and the Viva Palestina movements. I would say to myself that it is time for the Asian people to take the initiative and stand united for the cause of Palestine.

Will you ever go again?
Yes, we will continue to march until Palestine is free. We will continue to sail until Palestine is free. Today we have begin our march to Gaza, but tomorrow we will march to Jerusalem.

The land of our Prophets and Saints will be liberated and of this I am convinced. It pains my heart and my spirit to see that today Hebron lies divided, Bethlehem surrounded by the apartheid wall and Jerusalem and the Haram-i-Sharif are being destroyed. But I have a vision, a vision and the belief that the Holy Land will be free. I see a time when Palestine will be liberated as one Holy Land for the Muslims, Christians and Jews and as the common spiritual heritage of all of humanity. I see a time when millions of people from across the world will march to Jerusalem and redeem the Holy Land of Palestine. That will also be the time of a spiritual revolution and evolution amongst all of humanity, that will draw humanity closer to God.

That is how critical the battle for Jerusalem is. It is for the very soul of humanity and for our freedom. Thus the battle for Palestine, will determine the very future of humanity.

Source: The Milli Gazette.
Link: http://www.milligazette.com/news/538-asia-to-gaza-march-will-continue-until-palestine-is-free-mithiborwala.

Fearing God Not Gaddafi: Libya's New Mujahideen

Abigail Hauslohner / Ajdabiyah
Sunday, Mar. 06, 2011

Noon prayer at the Ajdabiyah checkpoint is ominous. Thick white rain clouds and the whipped yellow swirls of a sandstorm move across the face of the shrub-studded desert. But no one here is praying. The rumble of what many believe is an enemy warplane somewhere overhead mingles with the thunder of the impending rainstorm. The rebels shout to one another across a landscape littered with bullet casings and debris, then let loose with round after round of anti-aircraft fire. A fighter 100 feet away launches a surface-to-air missile at the invisible target above. As everyone waits for death or a distant boom, the rain starts to fall.

The storm sweeps away the threat, until the next time it appears in the sky or up the road.

For most of the men on the ever shifting front line in Libya's revolution turned civil war, it's their first taste of war. They are low-ranking soldiers, technically mutineers from the military of Muammar Gaddafi, and volunteer fighters wearing mismatched army fatigues, their heads and faces wrapped in checkered red or yellow kaffiyehs. Light of experience, they nevertheless man the heavy weapons that the revolutionary army has seeded along the main highway that traces Libya's coastline and links the rebel capital of Benghazi to Tripoli, Gaddafi's capital in the west.

At rebel checkpoints along that road, the mood shifts erratically from confidence to jubilation to utter panic. The newly armed and barely experienced force fires off bullets and rocket-propelled grenades (RPGs) constantly, and at random. "There is a relatively large number of casualties from friendly fire," says a doctor in Brega, the petroleum-refinery center captured by the rebels last week; one person died after his RPG misfired. In a week, the rebels managed to advance westward from Ajdabiyah, which is 100 miles south of Benghazi, taking Brega, then the oil town of Ras Lanuf.

But almost as soon as Ras Lanuf was captured and celebrations broke out, the rebels were repulsed when they pushed into Bin Jawad, a town 50 miles west on the road. On March 6, regime forces bombarded them with tank shells, RPGs, gunfire and air strikes from planes and helicopters, sending the disorderly force fleeing eastward, back to Ras Lanuf. Gaddafi's air force followed the rebels. A lack of leadership and general anarchy are still the defining characteristics of eastern Libya's fledgling military.

The towns Ajdabiyah, Brega and Ras Lanuf may turn out to be small triumphs for a force that consists largely of a disorganized mass of oil workers, day laborers and schoolteachers and that is facing off against a well-armed military. The next major mark on the map, which stands between the rebels and Gaddafi's capital, is the regime stronghold of Sert, Gaddafi's hometown — and his government has made it clear it has no intention of letting the rebels go there. Behind rebel lines, talk of an impending battle for Sert makes opposition leaders nervous. "The difficulty is that Sert is well armed, and the revolutionaries have only light weapons," says Colonel Lamin Abdel Wahab, a member of the rebels' military council in Benghazi. It will most likely be the first real test of the rebels' skill and drive.

The provisional government in Benghazi says it needs time and reinforcements but insists that it is making progress nonetheless. To oversee the ramshackle force, the newly formed National Council appointed a Defense Minister, Omar Hariri, a former general who led an unsuccessful revolt against Gaddafi in 1975. Military officers in Benghazi says Hariri's appointment will signal a shift to a more organized fighting force.

For the moment, the motley army has an overwhelming, undisciplined spirit in the place of military organization. The young men whoop and yell and set off celebratory gunfire with the slightest excuse. At a checkpoint in Brega on March 4, a blast of heavy machine-gun fire shattered the desert silence even as some men tried to restrain the exuberance of their younger compatriots. Wanis Kilani, an engineer turned volunteer fighter, shakes his head at the chaos. "So much 'Blah blah blah,' " he says. "You know, we can't prevent them from coming here because they all want to help — even the crazy, the young, even sick people want to help." He explains, mostly to himself, that it's a people's army coming together. "We are not rebels," he says. "We are mujahedin."

The word is a loaded one for Westerners, a reminder of the holy warriors of Afghanistan who turned from fighting the Soviet Union to aiding Osama bin Laden. But it bears weight in liberated east Libya as well. Islamic scholars here have said that pious Muslim men in particular were persecuted under Gaddafi, and they may yet be a vocal and determined force in the fight to bring down the dictator. "He tried to stop people from going to dawn prayer because people who do this are very devout," says Sheik Abdel Hamid Ma'toub, a religious leader in Benghazi. "He knows that the most dangerous people in Libya are those who go to dawn prayers." That's because, he says, the men who pray fear God, not Gaddafi.

The regime, for its part, has accused the revolutionaries in the east of wanting an Islamic emirate and of belonging to al-Qaeda. Indeed, Gaddafi has warned of an extremist-driven civil war. The oil workers and bankers who have taken up arms say the colonel is being ridiculous. "They think we are Taliban or al-Qaeda because they want to fool the Americans. But we are just religious. That's all," says Hamid Gabayli, a ground engineer and volunteer fighter at a desert checkpoint. Many others echo him. "We don't like bin Laden, and we don't like al-Qaeda," says Idriss, at the Ajdabiyah checkpoint. The men around him nod.

Islamist extremism does, however, have roots in Libya. The town of Darnah, up the road going east from Benghazi, was the site of a failed Islamist uprising against Gaddafi in the 1990s. Later, it became known for the young men who left it to join the insurgency in Iraq. "If you asked any of the mujahedin from Libya in Iraq where they're from, they said Darnah," says Mohamed el-Tahawy, a banker who drove from the eastern city of Tobruk to join the battle in Ras Lanuf. He adds that Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, the fearsome leader of al-Qaeda in Iraq who was killed in 2006, once said, "I will go to Darnah to see what is this city that is sending so many."

But in the current conflict, few people have Iraq fighting experience, el-Tahawy says. Most of those veterans are dead. Furthermore, the tone in this battle is different. "There is a big difference between Libya and Iraq," he explains. "In Iraq, they were fighting an occupation." He doesn't think foreign fighters will flock to the North African nation the way they poured into Iraq. "Maybe Egyptian doctors will come to help," he says. "But if you told me that the Egyptian army was coming in — no, we won't accept that. This is our problem. We can handle it ourselves." A spokesman for the National Council reiterated the opposition's call for no interference in its war. "We request a no-fly zone, and we are requesting help to stop the flow of mercenaries into the country," says Abdel Hafidh Ghoga. "However, we still insist unequivocally that we don't need any troops on Libyan soil."

To the rebel fighters in the desert, that applies to foreign Muslims and Arabs too, even if they could use war veterans as they inch closer to Sert. The men of eastern Libya say they will do it alone. At the Brega checkpoint, Kilani reflects on the use of the word mujahedin. "We are mujahedin in Libya only," he says. "We don't have any interest outside Libya." Then he pauses. "Actually, don't use the word mujahedin," he says. "Use revolutionaries." A sandstorm whips dust through the checkpoint. Trucks full of fighters pass. The men in them fire their guns into the air, shouting, "God is great."

Source: TIME.
Link: http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,2057455,00.html.

Heavy deployment of Algerian army at border with Libya: Daily

Algiers, March 6 (IANS) The Algerian army has heavily deployed its troops along its border with Libya, a local daily reported Sunday.

Libya has been witnessing protests since Feb 14 against Muammar Gaddafi's 41-year rule.

A military field medical unit has also been sent to the border, Xinhua quoted el-Khabar newspaper as stating in a report Sunday.

The army has plans to heavily monitor air traffic over the Algerian cities near the border to prevent arms smuggling, it added.

A number of foreigners fleeing from the turmoil in Libya have begun arriving in Algeria after reports that pro-Gaddafi forces have started to guard exit routes to Tunisia and Egypt.

Source: Sify.
Link: http://www.sify.com/news/heavy-deploymnet-of-algerian-army-at-border-with-libya-daily-news-international-ldgtafhicce.html.

Discovery leaves space station for the last time

By MARCIA DUNN, AP Aerospace Writer – Mon Mar 7

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – Discovery, the world's most traveled spaceship, left the International Space Station on Monday for the last time, getting a dramatic send-off by the dozen orbiting astronauts as well as "Star Trek's" original Capt. Kirk.

Station skipper Scott Kelly rang his ship's bell in true naval tradition, as the shuttle backed away on the final leg of its final journey.

"Discovery departing," he called out.

Discovery is due back on Earth on Wednesday. It's being retired after touchdown and sent to the Smithsonian Institution for display. NASA's two other shuttles will join Discovery in retirement, following their upcoming missions.

Discovery's astronauts got a special greeting in advance of their space station departure.

Actor William Shatner, who played Capt. James Kirk on the original "Star Trek" TV series, paid tribute to Discovery's voyages over the decades.

"Space, the final frontier," Shatner said in a prerecorded message. "These have been the voyages of the space shuttle Discovery. Her 30-year mission: to seek out new science, to build new outposts, to bring nations together on the final frontier, to boldly go and do what no spacecraft has done before."

Shatner's words were followed by Monday morning's wake-up music, "Theme from Star Trek." It was the runner-up in a pick-the-wake-up-music contest sponsored by NASA. The No. 1 vote-getter will be beamed up Tuesday.

Discovery will have racked up nearly 150 million miles by trip's end, accumulated over 39 missions and nearly 27 years, and spent 365 days total in space. It flew to the space station 13 times.

Immediately after undocking high above the Pacific, Discovery performed a victory lap around the orbiting outpost, where it spent the past nine days. The two crews beamed down pictures of each other's vessel, with the blue cloud-specked planet 220 miles below as the backdrop.

Close-up shots showed most, if not all, of the individual compartments of the bigger-than-ever station. Live NASA TV footage showed Discovery as it flew over the Atlantic and the Sahara, and in a matter of a few minutes, over the Mediterranean and northern Italy.

"It looks beautiful," Kelly said of Discovery. He wished the six shuttle passengers a safe ride home.

The two crews paid their own special tribute to Discovery, NASA's oldest surviving shuttle, during a joint farewell ceremony Sunday.

Discovery and its crew delivered a new storage compartment, as well as an equipment platform and the first humanoid robot in space. Both of the large items were successfully installed, and the shuttle astronauts even did some extra chores during their two extra days at the station. It ended up being a 13-day mission for Discovery.

R2 the robot, short for Robonaut 2, has yet to be unpacked. The space station residents hope to get to it in the next week or two.

The addition of the 21-foot-long, 15-foot wide storage compartment left the space station 97 percent complete. The complex now has a mass of nearly 1 million pounds.

On the next shuttle flight, by Endeavor next month, a huge science experiment will be installed on the outside of the space station, wrapping up the U.S. contributions. Atlantis will blast off with supplies on the final shuttle mission at the end of June.

NASA is under presidential direction to focus more on outer space, beginning with expeditions to asteroids and then Mars.

American astronauts will continue hitching rides to the space station on Russian Soyuz spacecraft, at great expense. The intent is for private U.S. companies to take over those ferry operations within a few years.

Mission Control, meanwhile, monitored a piece of space junk — an old rocket part — that possibly was going to stray too close to the space station on Wednesday. Experts wanted to wait until after the shuttle's undocking, before deciding whether the complex needed to move out of harm's way. But it was looking less likely that it would pose a concern, officials said Monday.

Jordanian journalists stage protest

Tue Mar 8, 2011

Hundreds of Jordanian journalists have staged a daring protest at the government-imposed gag on the country's media outlets.

The rallies held on Monday were attended by employees of major newspapers, news websites, state television and radio, Reuters reported.

"The press needs cleansing," said the protesters. "We want an end to government tutelage and we want to fight corruption,” they cried.

"No to government and security hegemony over the press," read a placard held up by the demonstrators.

"The government's control over media institutions is total and not just in some papers or the state television. We want to raise the ceiling of freedoms," said Sameer Hayari, the publisher of Ammonnews.net, the country's leading news website.

Popular protests have been bubbling up in Jordan since January against what the masses have denounced as Amman's trampling on their rights.

The opposition has warned of a popular uprising similar to the Egyptian revolution, which in February ended the 30-year-long rule of President Hosni Mubarak.

Reports, meanwhile, say Amman has softened up on its crackdown of the anti-government movements to prevent further blows to its reputation.

The protests continue as anti-regime rallies are spreading across Bahrain, Oman, Saudi Arabia and Yemen.

Source: PressTV.
Link: http://www.presstv.ir/detail/168763.html.

PROFILE: Khatib, the UN's special envoy to Libya

Mon, 07 Mar 2011

Amman - Abdul Ilah Khatib, the United Nations' new special envoy to Libya, is a 58-year-old Jordanian politician and economist known for his balanced thinking and outstanding negotiating abilities, people who know him say.

Khatib served twice as foreign minister, between 1998 and 2002 and again between 2005 and 2007, wielding Jordan's pro-Western foreign policy under the direction of the late King Hussein and then under King Abdullah II.

He is currently a member of the Senate, which is referred to in Jordan as the king's council, since its members are selected by the monarch from people with distinguished records in the public life.

A veteran diplomat, Khatib has gained valuable insights into the complications of Arab politics and the Arab-Israeli conflict - he was close to the Jordanian team of negotiators that concluded the peace treaty with Israel, in 1994.

Such experience is bound to help him perform his duties in his new international role.

Khatib began his cabinet career in 1995, when he was appointed Minister of Tourism and Antiquities.

In recent years, he has worked as chairman of the Economic and Social Council, which oversees the country's economic and social development.

Khatib holds a master's degree in International Economics from Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland, and a master's degree in International Communications from the American University in Washington, D.C.

Source: Earth Times.
Link: http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/news/370604,uns-special-envoy-libya.html.

Egypt's military rulers keen on good ties with Jordan

Mon, 07 Mar 2011

Amman - Egypt's military rulers have told Jordan's King Abdullah II they wish to preserve the traditional good ties between the two countries, according to a royal court statement Monday.

In a message, the Chairman of the Supreme Council of the Egyptian Armed Forces, Field Marshall Hussein Tantawi, said Egypt wanted to develop such ties "on all levels."

Tantawi also pledged that Egypt would "continue to work actively in all its foreign policy domains during the transitional six-month period and until the conduction of the parliamentary and presidential elections".

It was the highest-level contact between the two countries since the downfall of former Egyptian president Hosny Mubarak, on February 11.

Jordan and Egypt are the only two Arab states to have concluded official peace treaties with Israel.

Source: Earth Times.
Link: http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/news/370656,keen-good-ties-jordan.html.

Jordan's king accords unlimited powers to anti-corruption panel

Mon, 07 Mar 2011

Amman - Jordan's King Abdullah II on Monday told the country's anti-corruption watchdog that it would have a free hand in ridding all the government's institutions from corruption, including the royal court.

"There are no red lines for the panel's work, because no corruption should be entitled to protection in this homeland," the monarch said during a meeting with head and members of the Anti- Corruption Department.

"All the country's institutions, including the royal court, should be subject to the scrutiny of the department, and those found guilty should be sent to the courts," he added.

King Abdullah also reiterated that no official should hide behind him and say that he was working in accordance with "orders from above."

The monarch's remarks were the latest assurance that he was bent on carrying out "real and swift" political and economic reforms in the country.

A series of demonstrations, taking inspiration from recent uprisings in Tunisia and Egypt, has prompted the king to shuffle his government and its workings.

Source: Earth Times.
Link: http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/news/370659,unlimited-powers-anti-corruption-panel.html.

Leaders of Jordan, Chile discuss Mideast peace, bilateral ties

Sun, 06 Mar 2011

Amman - Jordan's King Abdullah II on Sunday discussed the latest efforts to reinvigorate the Middle East peace process during talks with Chilean President Sebastian Pinera, who arrived in Amman in the course of a regional tour.

Pinera briefed the monarch on the outcome of his talks with Israeli and Palestinian leaders before arriving in Jordan, according to a royal court statement.

"King Abdullah highly appreciated Chile's support for peace efforts in the region," the statement said.

The Jordanian leader also made it clear that the "entrance to the process of building comprehensive and just peace in the region lies in finding a just solution to the Palestinian question that ensures the setting up of an independent state on the Palestinian soil," it added.

The two leaders also discussed means of boosting bilateral cooperation in the spheres of renewable energy, industry, water and agriculture.

"The Chilean president emphasized his country's desire in strengthening bilateral ties with Jordan, particularly in the economic and commercial fields," the royal court statement said.

The discussion between the two leaders also covered efforts under way to sign a free trade agreement between Jordan and the Mercosur economic bloc, which comprises a number of Latin American countries, including Chile.

Source: Earth Times.
Link: http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/news/370513,mideast-peace-bilateral-ties.html.

Kuwait braces for PM ouster mass rally

Tue Mar 8, 2011

Kuwaiti youth groups plan to hit the streets on Tuesday to demand the removal of the incumbent prime minister and push for political reforms in the Persian Gulf state.

The anti-government protests aim to drive Prime Minister Sheikh Nasser al-Mohammad al-Sabah out of office and add pressure for greater political freedom in the country, Reuters reported.

The protest organizers, the Kafi (Enough) and al-Soor al-Khames (Fifth Fence) groups, maintain that they will not budge on their demands for the departure of Sheikh Nasser, and have called for a premier from outside the ruling al-Sabah family.

"We will distribute watermelons to lawmakers as they enter the parliament on Tuesday, as a symbol of chaos and discontent with their performance," Mubarak Alhaza, a member of the Kafi youth movement said.

Tuesday's protests will present a challenge to the Kuwaiti government, which bans demonstrations without prior permission.

The demonstrations come on the crest of a recent tidal wave of anti-government protests that has raced across the Middle East, originating with revolutions in Tunisia and Egypt, which have swept longstanding autocratic rulers from power.

The Kuwaiti premier, a nephew of the ruler Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad al-Sabah, was appointed in early 2006. He has fought parliamentary opposition since his appointment.

Five of his six cabinets have been forced to resign, while the parliament has been dissolved three times.

Source: PressTV.
Link: http://www.presstv.ir/detail/168796.html.

Tunisia disbands secret police agencies

Mon Mar 7, 2011

The Tunisian interim authorities have dissolved the political police and the state security apparatus due to its close association with the former regime.

The Interior Ministry said in a statement that the two bodies were notorious for human rights abuse under ousted President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali.

"These practical measures are in harmony with the values of the revolution, in the wish to respect the law, in word and deed, and in consecrating the climate of confidence and transparency in the relationship between the security services and the citizen," the statement read.

The developments came hours after interim Prime Minister Beji Caid Essebsi announced a new government free of any remnants of the Ben Ali regime.

The new 22-member interim government -- called the public authority -- includes five new ministers and two women.

The removal of Ben Ali regime figures was a key demand of protesters whose rallies continued even after the fall of the authoritarian leader in January.

Protesters fear that their revolution may be hijacked by those still loyal to the former president's oppressive policies.

The revolution that ousted Ben Ali after 23 years in power has sparked off other popular uprisings in North African and Middle Eastern countries -- one of which led to the downfall of long-time Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak.

Source: PressTV.
Link: http://www.presstv.ir/detail/168726.html.

Egypt's MB opens dialog to avoid split

Tue Mar 8, 2011

Egypt's largest opposition group, the Muslim Brotherhood, has suggested negotiations with a faction of young members in an attempt to bridge an internal schism.

On Monday, senior members of the Muslim Brotherhood called on Mohamed Kamal Farag, the coordinator of a youth wing of the group, to meet and create a plan to resolve existing conflicts and restore unity, the official Arabic website of the Muslim Brotherhood, Islamonline reported.

The announcement was made after some 2,000 young members of the Muslim Brotherhood said they were planning to stage a “revolt” against its governing body, the Guidance Bureau and Shura Council, on March 17 to demand its dissolution.

Young members say there is no reason why the group refuses to make a strong showing after the January revolution, which led to the ouster of Egypt's longstanding ruler Hosni Mubarak.

They are calling for the formation of a transitional committee, headed by the group's former Secretary General, Mohamed Mahdi Akef, until a new board is elected.

The young members also expect organizational "change" to take place within the Muslim Brotherhood by April 2011, when they would begin taking steps to "modernize" the group and its scopes of activities.

Meanwhile, Farag has welcomed the recent move by the veterans of the Muslim Brotherhood.

“Opening dialogue with us is a good sign,” he pointed out.

He also underlined that the planned March 17 revolt could be postponed if the party leadership heeds their demands.

Source: PressTV.
Link: http://www.presstv.ir/detail/168787.html.

Two major Libyan oil ports closed

Tue Mar 8, 2011

Ras Lanuf and Brega, two major oil ports in eastern Libya, have been closed as pro-regime forces intensify attacks on the revolutionary forces.

Embattled Libyan ruler Muammar Gaddafi's warplanes have launched fresh airstrikes on anti-regime positions around the port city of Ras Lanuf, Reuters reported late Monday.

Reports say at least three people have been killed in the attacks. The violence resulted in the closure of two oil ports of Ras Lanuf and Brega.

"Ras Lanuf is not operating. It's the same in Brega," an official in a shipping company in Ras Lanuf said.

The revolutionary forces have begun pulling back from Ras Lanuf and the nearby city of Ben Jawad after the regime resorted to heavy use of air attacks.

According to an anti-government official, beleaguered Gaddafi could attack oilfields like a "wounded wolf."

Meanwhile, reports say fighting erupted in the Libyan city of Zawiyah as forces loyal to the incumbent ruler launched a renewed attempt to capture the city.

Three of the revolutionary forces and over 30 pro-Gaddafi soldiers lost their lives in the clashes.

Earlier on Sunday, Gaddafi's tanks shelled the civilian population in the western city of Misratah. According to medics, at least 21 people, most of them unarmed civilians, were killed in the clashes.

Source: PressTV.
Link: http://www.presstv.ir/detail/168784.html.

Egypt's new cabinet promises security

Tue Mar 8, 2011

Egyptian newly appointed Interior Minister Major General Mansour Esawy has promised to reinstate security and stability in the North African country, pledging to restore public confidence in the police.

Esawy promised Monday to make "every effort in the coming period to restore security and stability in the Egyptian streets," AFP reported.

The news comes a few days after anti-government protesters stormed several state security buildings, taking confidential documents.

The authorities urged the return of documents, citing "national security" concerns.

Egypt's new interim Prime Minister Essam Sharaf named Esawy, a former security chief, as the country's interior minister on Monday in an attempt to meet protesters' demand.

In Egypt the Interior Ministry is in charge of the security forces.

Esawy further promised that he would take "all necessary measures to restore confidence between citizens and the police."

Sharaf and his new cabinet were sworn in by Egypt's military rulers on Monday. The interim cabinet includes only three ministers who served under the previous regime.

Sharaf was appointed the country's interim prime minister on Thursday after widespread protests against the then premier Ahmad Shafiq.

Shafiq was appointed by ousted Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak during the final days of his regime. Mubarak was ousted on February 11 after 18 days of demonstrations across the North African nation.

Source: PressTV.
Link: http://www.presstv.ir/detail/168778.html.

Turkey religious minority stages protest

Tue Mar 8, 2011

Members of a major religious community in Turkey have staged a demonstration in a show of protest against what they call unequal treatment.

Tens of thousands of Alevis gathered in the western city of Izmir in a demonstration of unprecedented scale, calling for broader rights and freedoms, a Press TV correspondent reported.

“This is so important. Today, is the resurrection of Alevi society,” said former lawmaker and renowned Alevi folk musician Arif Sag, addressing the protest, which he called historic.

Turkey's second-largest religious community after the Sunnis Muslims, Alevis comprise 25 percent of the population. The faith group, which adheres to a branch of Shia Islam, say the acceptance of Sunni Islam as the country's official religion has prevented them from enjoying the full gamut of their rights.

The demonstrators called for legalization of cemevi -- Alevis places of worship.

Dogan Bermek from the Federation of Alevi Foundation said as there were not recognized places of worship for the Alevis, “then we don't get the same equal treatment for those services that we have to pay...taxes, we pay for the services, we pay for the electricity and things like that.”

In November, Abdullah Gul became the first Turkish president to visit a cem house -- a place for the performance of cem or the central Alevi corporate worship service.

Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has also promised to recognize the cem houses and grant equal rights to minorities.

Source: PressTV.
Link: http://www.presstv.ir/detail/168761.html.

Yemen Shias continue anti-govt. rally

Tue Mar 8, 2011

Tens of thousands of the Shia Muslims based in the northern Yemen have repeated their protests against the government, braving prospects of government-ordered bloodshed.

The demonstrators took to the streets of several cities including Sa'ada, the capital city of a northern province of the same name, where the faith group is concentrated.

The minority, which has recently joined nationwide anti-government demonstrations, has for long complained about efforts by the Yemeni leadership and neighboring Saudi Arabia to socially, economically, and religiously marginalize the community.

The Shias have been subjected to numerous Sana'a-authorized armed offensives -- many carried out by Saudi forces and some reportedly by the United States.

The protesters on Monday voiced solidarity with the outraged public, who have been demanding the ouster of President Ali Abdullah Saleh's regime since January.

Saleh has already been in office for 33 years, with several opposition members arguing that his long-promised reforms have not materialized.

The country's opposition and religious figures have envisioned a roadmap for the ruler's departure before the end of this year.

The head of state has, however, said he would stay in power until the end of his term in 2013.

Dozens of people have been killed and hundreds more have been injured in Sana'a's crackdown on anti-regime protests.

Speaking on condition of anonymity, a Houthi leader said that two protesters were killed and nine others were wounded during armed attacks by the government forces on the Shias' rallies on Friday.

Source: PressTV.
Link: http://www.presstv.ir/detail/168771.html.

2,000 Yemeni inmates join uprising

Tue Mar 8, 2011

Nearly 2,000 Yemeni inmates have revolted at a prison in the capital, taken a dozen guards hostage and called on President Ali Abdullah Saleh to step down.

The unrest broke out in the Sana'a prison late on Monday when prisoners set their mattresses ablaze and occupied the facility's courtyard, AP quoted a security official said on Tuesday.

He said the guards fired tear gas and gunshots into the air but were not able to force the prisoners to give in.

The official said that additional troops have stationed to tighten security outside the prison.

He also said a number of inmates were hurt in the unrest.

Yemen has witnessed weeks of protests against President Saleh, who has vowed not to leave office until the end of his term in 2013.

Source: PressTV.
Link: http://www.presstv.ir/detail/168864.html.

Sulaymanieh scene of cheers, protests

Tue Mar 8, 2011

Iraqi Kurds celebrate the anniversary of their liberation from Saddam Hussein's rule while protests against the regional government continue in Iraq's Kurdistan.

On Monday, the streets surrounding the headquarters of the ruling Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) in Sulaymanieh was the scene of flag-waving people marking the 20th anniversary of the Kurdish uprising against Iraq's executed dictator Saddam Hussein, a Press TV correspondent reported.

“This day is very important for the people of Sulaymanieh,” PUK spokesman, Azad Jondyani, said on the occasion of March 7.

“Since this day until now, the Ba'ath regime has been removed from this region and there is freedom. This is important for all Kurdish people,” he pointed out.

Many people in the northern Iraqi city cheered in anticipation of the arrival of Iraqi president and PUK leader, Jalal Talabani, who pointed out the significance of the day of uprising while addressing the crowd.

The PUK leader's speech came as anti-government protests continued on the 16th consecutive day, with demonstrators calling for stronger actions, greater government reform and an end to corruption.

Talabani, however, said the ruling parties are not afraid of protests and that it is everyone's right to express their demands to their government, noting that the PUK had submitted 17 points to parliament in line with the demonstrators' demands.

Meanwhile, hundreds of PUK supporters hung the ruling party's flags from their cars and marched through the streets of Sulaymanieh in support of the leaders who freed them from Saddam Hussein's cruel dictatorship.

Having a mixed air of celebration and continued protests, many are concerned that Sulaymanieh -- located 260 kilometers (160 miles) northeast of Baghdad -- is becoming divided. Extra security forces have been put on standby in case of conflict.

Source: PressTV.
Link: http://www.presstv.ir/detail/168849.html.

30 protesters detained in Kurdish Iraq

Mon Mar 7, 2011

At least 30 anti-government protesters have been arrested after armed men attacked demonstrators camping out in a square in Sulaymanieh in Iraq's autonomous Kurdish region.

“Protesters were attacked by armed and masked gunmen at around 02:30 am (2330 GMT). Tents were burned, personal equipment destroyed or stolen and around 30 arrested,” a Press TV correspondent in Sulaymanieh reported early Monday.

The anti-government demonstrators were determined to continue their protest despite the fact that security forces had issued an alert that "they would not be responsible if anything happened to those who remained in the town square at night.”

Although the protesters were forced to leave Sara Square, neither the attacks nor the cold night air were able to deter hundreds of demonstrators from camping out in the city.

The anti-government demonstrators hope that their protests will finally convince the government to listen to their demands for better living conditions and ending food and electricity shortages.

The recent government crackdown on protests in the Iraqi Kurdistan region has angered the people of Sulaymanieh.

Over the past two weeks, seven people have been killed and more than 200 injured during clashes between police forces and protesters, while 220 more have been arrested.

The crackdown has also led many Kurds to reject the call from the region's President Massoud Barzani for early elections.

Following the announcement on Friday, thousands flocked to the town square to continue their daily protests, reflecting their lack of faith in Barzani's words.

Source: PressTV.
Link: http://www.presstv.ir/detail/168618.html.

Egypt group to unveil secret files

Mon Mar 7, 2011

Egyptian revolutionaries say they are set to disclose information incriminating senior officials over their involvement in the violent crackdown on anti-regime protests.

A number of “documents will soon be declassified, showing some senior Egyptian officials' connections with the country's Security Organization in the repression of people and protesters,” Ahmed al-Dowma, a member of Egypt's Youths Coalition of Revolution Rage, told Iran's Arabic-language news channel Al-Alam on Sunday.

He said that the group has already published some records of the country's security organization which was “the main arm in the suppression, slaughter and torture of Egyptians” under the regime of the deposed President Hosni Mubarak.

Dowma said that the revolutionary forces discovered instruments of torture and graves of those who lost their lives under the regime's brutal inquisition during a raid on the security organization offices.

Reports indicate that thousands of protesters stormed buildings belonging to Egypt's internal security forces over the weekend, seizing what protesters described as a treasure trove of documents related to the regime of the ousted ruler.

Crowds of people broke into three Interior Ministry buildings on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, including the Cairo headquarters for Amn al-Dowla, the agency responsible for domestic security. Some of the buildings were set afire.

protesters clashed with army troops on Sunday as they tried to enter an Amn al-Dowla building in downtown Cairo. Troops fired shots into the air to disperse the protesters.

Egypt's military government did not respond to a request for comments.

According to human-rights activists, Amn al-Dowla was the main tool of repression used by Mubarak's regime during his decades-long grip on power. Under Egypt's emergency law, it routinely arrested citizens and tortured them. Since Mubarak's ouster, the security forces are still running but have kept out of the public eye.

Activists said they entered the buildings because security officials from the former regime had been engaged in destroying documents -- potentially eliminating evidence that could be used to prosecute former officials for crimes, including torture.

Source: PressTV.
Link: http://www.presstv.ir/detail/168626.html.

Moroccan protests demand reforms

Mon Mar 7, 2011

Hundreds of pro-democracy protesters have held a rally outside Morocco's parliament building, calling for political reforms in the northwest African kingdom.

Human rights activists and the capital city's youths participated in the peaceful protest that began in the center of Rabat on Sunday.

Demonstrations were also held in Morocco's biggest city Casablanca and the northern port of Tangiers, AFP reported.

In Casablanca, the protesters carried placards reading "Dignity" and "Social Justice." They denounced the concentration of money and power. Last weekend, nearly a thousand people rallied in Casablanca despite a heavy police presence.

The protesters have been demanding limited powers of the monarchy and the establishment of social justice. They have also called for the dismissal of the government and a clampdown on state corruption.

Thousands of Moroccans took to the streets on February 20 in the first major demonstration the country has witnessed since the uprisings across the region.

King Mohammed VI told union leaders last week that he favored reforms, without elaborating on the type of reforms and a time frame for their introduction.

Source: PressTV.
Link: http://www.presstv.ir/detail/168613.html.

Iraqi skydiver does jump over Kabul for peace

Tue, 08 Mar 2011

Kabul - Fareed Lafta was scared to go out in war-torn Afghanistan, but that did not stop him from free falling in the sky over Kabul Tuesday.

The 31-year-old Iraqi extreme sports athlete jumped from a helicopter at an altitude of 2,100 meters in what he claimed was the first-ever civilian skydiving jump over the capital since the 2001 US-led invasion of Afghanistan.

Lafta spiraled in the air before landing at Ghazi Stadium in front of an audience.

Afterward, he said he did the "peace jump" as a call for unity and harmony in Afghanistan.

In 2009, Lafta did a similar peace jump over Baghdad at the invitation of Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki.

"Some jumps are for fun, some for training, others for records, but this one is for peace," said Lafta, who participated in the 2008 record-breaking jump of more than 9,100 meters above Mount Everest.

"That is why Baghdad and Kabul will remain special to me," he said. "The peace jump over war-stricken Kabul is a great opportunity to say that we should all strive for peace.

"This is symbolic. I want to give hope to Afghans and especially the younger generation to strive for something better."

Sport once again sent a message of unity, event co-organizer Skateistan said in a statement. The Afghan co-educational school trains displaced youths in skateboarding as well as providing academic classes.

Hailed as an Iraqi idol, Lafta said he believes sport can help bring peace. The first Iraqi to become a qualified cosmonaut, he has been a role model for the youth of the Middle East.

Lafta, who lives in Dubai, has several other achievements under his belt, including scuba diving instructor, motorcycle racer and Muay Thai fighter.

"I always tell myself I would not do crazy stuff to put myself on the line, but I always end up doing them," he said.

Lafta said his appetite for the extreme and adventure has taken him around the world and allowed him do what he wants to do.

An adventurer from an early age, Lafta also went through troubled times during the 2003 US-led invasion of Iraq. His brother was kidnapped by a criminal gang and held for ransom while Lafta was shot in the leg.

"I have seen the violence right in front of me, so I know the price of freedom and the need for democracy," Lafta said.

Source: Earth Times.
Link: http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/news/370745,does-jump-kabul-peace.html.

Germany welcomes nomination of UN special envoy to Libya

Mon, 07 Mar 2011

Berlin - German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle on Monday welcomed the UN's nomination of former Jordanian foreign minister Abdul Ilah Khatib as a special envoy for Libya.

Westerwelle praised Khatib as an "experienced politician from the region" who would give a "face and voice" to the international political and humanitarian efforts in Libya.

Germany previously campaigned for the UN to appoint somebody to lead consultations with the authorities in Tripoli and governments in the region.

At the same time, the minister called for states to place greater pressure on Libya, and said the issue should be raised again in the UN Security Council, of which Germany is a non-permanent member.

"Further targeted sanctions, such as an end to all payments to the Gaddafi regime, urgently belong onto the agenda of the EU and United Nations," Westerwelle said.

At the same time, the minister warned that any measure that went beyond sanctions - such as the enforcement of a no-fly zone over Libya - would have to be authorized by the UN Security Council and approved by partners in the region.

Source: Earth Times.
Link: http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/news/370602,nomination-un%C2%A0special-envoy-libya.html.