Zionist Terrorist Attack on Aqaba

by Ammaar ibn Walid
The Star Trail Lines Writer

The 6th of August 2010, Friday
The 26th of Sha'ban 1431

In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful...

On the 2nd of August 2010, Monday a Grad Missile from outside of Jordan landed in Aqaba, which is the only sea port in Jordan. The result was six injuries, with one of those injured becoming a martyr. The martyr had serious injuries and so he is at peace with Allah now insha' Allah. The Zionist police claimed that the missile was from Sinai, which is the peninsula that is part of Egypt. At first a senior Egyptian official denied it being from Sinai. The Jordanian Authorities are still investigating into the matter. In my opinion, I accuse three sides of the terrorist attack on Aqaba.

The three sides are: The Zionists of Occupied Palestine, the Egyptian Government and the U.S., whether it is government or intelligence or both. Some time after the Egyptian official denied it being from Sinai, the Egyptians changed their position and mentioned that it was from Sinai. They also falsely accused some Palestinian faction from Gaza of it. At first they denied it was from Sinai, and some time afterward they not only "confirmed" it from Sinai, but also unjustly accused a side that is innocent of it. There is obvious contradiction from the Egyptian side, and why is that?

Is there the possibility that the Egyptian Government was pressured to change their story? If so, who pressured them? In my opinion the Egyptian Government was most likely pressured to change their story. As for who pressured them, it was obviously the U.S. and the Zionists without doubt. When Egypt denied it was from Sinai at first, they also mentioned strong security presence along the border with Gaza and occupied Palestine. All of a sudden there was no mention of the strong security presence afterward, as if it has vanished into thin air. The missile attack on Aqaba was the second missile attack on it.

There were injuries from the attack on Aqaba, yet the deceiving attack on a port in occupied Palestine had no injuries. In my view, that is a little bit suspicious. The Palestinian Authority and the U.N. both condemned the attack on Aqaba, but the U.S. mentioned that it was a "regrettable act"! What kind of a response is that?! Shouldn't it have been more liked "terrorist act"? Is that evidence of guilt? Or of U.S. involvement in the attack against one of its allies in the Middle East? The timing of such an attack should be noticed and observed as well. Just a few months before the Zionists committed an act of piracy.

It was an act of piracy in International Waters where the Zionists martyred nine Turkish activists in cold blood. It was a time when the Palestinians of Gaza had sympathy from peoples of different nations. It also put the spotlight on Gaza and the illegal blockade on it. It rightfully put the Zionists in hot water. There was no condemnation of the attack on Aqaba from the Zionists, and just a day afterward the Zionists unjustly went after some trees on Lebanese land, which sparked a skirmish between the Zionist and Lebanese armies. It was the first time the Lebanese army had a fight with the Zionists.

It is important to mention that Hizbullah stayed out of the skirmish. The Zionist Prime Minister unjustly and falsely accused the Palestinian Government of the attack on Aqaba, with the Palestinian Government being Hamas in Gaza. That is illogical. It wouldn't be in Hamas' interest to do such a thing. That's one thing. Another thing is that moving missiles from Gaza into Sinai wouldn't be an easy job. The Egyptian security forces would soon discover such weapons and confiscate them.

If the Egyptian security forces had a strong presence on the border, there wouldn't have been any chance or possibility for any Palestinian faction to do such an act without being discovered. It is obvious that the Egyptian Government cooperated with the Zionists and the U.S. in attacking Aqaba. The Egyptian security forces let the Zionists in easily with their weapons. As such, the Egyptian Government is responsible as much as the Zionists are. Such attacks on Aqaba not only show the vulnerability of the sea port, but it also shows that the Zionists idea of a Greater Israel hasn't vanished.

A Greater Israel that would consume Jordan. I have learned that there are some Jordanian journalists who falsely suggested a group related to al-Qaeda was behind it. There is no such evidence of that for one thing. For another thing that is illogical. The Zionists have the most interest in doing such an attack on Jordan, however covertly it might be. The Zionists have time and time again tried to provoke Jordan into a war against it. Such attacks on Jordanian territory is strong provocation.

The Zionist Prime Minister falsely accusing Hamas is like saying that the assassination attempt on the Iranian President succeeded. The Zionists mention "provocations" against it, like flotillas and ships trying to break the naval blockade on Gaza, yet what about the numerous Zionist provocations against Jordan, whether it involves al-Quds (East Jerusalem) and al-Aqsa or other stuff? It is interesting that the Zionists are going after trees near the Lebanese border, especially a day after their terrorist attack on Aqaba. Afterward the Zionist Air Force increased its illusionary "raids" on South Lebanon.

First it was at medium altitudes and then at a wider larger scale at lower altitudes. There were more wide targets the Zionist Air Force raided illusionary in South Lebanon. It seems to me that the Zionists are getting impatient about there being no war, especially since their terrorist atrocities against Gaza almost two years ago. The main target of the terrorist attack was Aqaba. The attack on the sea port on occupied Palestine was just a diversion, just to unjustly accuse those innocent of it. It's kind of silly that the Zionists of Occupied Palestine attacked one of their sea ports to turn attention away from them.

Accusing the Egyptian Government is a strong accusation and some might say it would divide the Arabs because of it. What I say is that the Egyptian Government is already dividing the Arabs and it deserves to be accused of it without any hesitation. I would request that those from the Jordanian side investigating it to make bold announcements, and to have bright and open minds. I also request that they shrug off any pressure to change or manipulate the truth behind the attack. There is propaganda and falsehood that the Egyptians announce and mention to some media sources.

I would request the Jordanian media and news to ignore such propaganda and falsehood. Last, but not least, I would request the Jordanian Leadership and Government to forge closer ties with Hamas to have better relations and better intelligence.

Source: The Star Trail Lines.
Link: http://startrailines.blogspot.com/2010/08/zionist-terrorist-attack-on-aqaba.html.

Excellent Sudan-Malaysia Ties Despite North-south Separation

By R. Ravichandran

KUALA LUMPUR, May 9 (Bernama) -- Despite Southern Sudan seceding from the North, its relations with Malaysia continue to be excellent, both at the economic and political level, as well as people-to-people relations.

Little wonder why Sudan's Ambassador to Malaysia Nadir Yousif Eltayeb describes the Khartoum-Kuala Lumpur relations as a "strategic relationship".

He expressed satisfaction with the political and economic ties which bind the two countries.

"Our relations continue to be strategic and good even after the separation of South...strategic because we have very close relations in the last 20 years," he told reporters when asked about the current bilateral relations after the North and South separation.

Earlier, Nadir called on Senate president Tan Sri Abu Zahar Ujang at the latter's office in the Parliament building here today.

More than 98 per cent of Southern Sudanese voted to secede from the North, in a referendum held from Jan 9 to 15. The split will make Southern Sudan as the world's newest country on July 9.

South Sudan has been chosen as the name, but this will require approval by the Southern Sudan parliament.

On the political level, Nadir said, the leadership of the two countries engaged in close contact.

He said the countries also enjoyed good coordination on various issues at international fora, such as the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) and the Organization of Islamic Conference (OIC), where they were members.

Nadir said that on the economic level, despite the separation, Malaysian national oil company Petronas, which had been operating successfully in the African country for the last 15 years, continued to involve in the oil and gas sector.

He said Petronas was involved in new discoveries in about three states in the North.

On the people-to-people relationship, Nadir said Sudan's community in Malaysia now numbered more than 3,000, mostly students, and the numbers were increasing.

"They chose Malaysia because it is a good hub for education...because of the quality of the education. The hospitality of the people and also the environment which is very good and also relatively cheap," he said.

He said the number of Sudanese tourists visiting Malaysia was also on the rise, with some 11,000 visiting in 2009.

Nadir also said that Sudanese participating under the Malaysia, My Second Home program was also on the increase.

"All these reflect Malaysia's very special relations with Sudan, in terms of people-to-people, as well as government-to-government relations," he said.

Nadir also said that Khartoum had welcomed and recognized the referendum results, and would cooperate with the government of the South in the interest of the peoples of both sides.

"We will help the South...the new state. We will be very close to them because we believe that we want to make sure that peace and stability prevail for the benefit of the peoples of the North and South," he said

Meanwhile, Abu Zahar said that both of them had friendly discussions on general issues, adding that Sudan and Malaysia enjoyed a good bilateral relationship.

He said, being representative of the Malaysian Government, he looked forward to further enhancement of the relationship between Malaysia and Sudan in all aspects.

He noted it was also important for Sudanese students intending to pursue their studies here to check the education institutions with the relevant agencies here, as well as with the embassy.

-- BERNAMA

Source: Bernama.
Link: http://www.bernama.com/bernama/v5/newsindex.php?id=585047.

OIC's proposed HR Commission on Kashmir welcomed

'Pakistan Times' Jammu & Kashmir Desk

SRINAGAR (IHK): In occupied Kashmir, the pro-freedom leaders have welcomed the proposed constitution of a Commission by Organization of Islamic Conference (OIC) to probe human rights violations by the authorities, reports KMS.

Veteran Kashmiri Hurriyet leader Syed in a statement in Srinagar welcoming the OIC decision, said: “It is a good sign and should have happened earlier.”

APHC senior leader, Shabbir Ahmad Shah in his statement, while welcoming the move, said that India should allow OIC and international human rights bodies to visit the occupied territory if it was serious in resolving the Kashmir dispute.

“If India seriously wants to solve the problem, it should let outsiders visit. This will bring out the human rights violations committed against the people of Kashmir.” Shah said.

The Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF) Chairman, Mohammad Yasin Malik in a statement issued in Srinagar said that instead of just making announcements, the OIC should do something practical.

Source: Pakistan Times.
Link: http://www.pakistantimes.net/pt/detail.php?newsId=21404.

Thousands demand reform in Morocco rallies

* Government reforms aim to forestall possibility of revolt
* Protesters rally against violence after Marrakesh attack
* Protesters march in Marrakesh and Casablanca (Updates with Casablanca march)

By Souhail Karam

MARRAKESH, Morocco, May 8 (Reuters) - Thousands of protesters marched in Morocco on Sunday demanding reform in the Arab world's longest-serving dynasty and opposing militant violence after a deadly bomb attack.

The rallies in Marrakesh and Casablanca were the latest in a series organized by the February 20 youth movement and presented a challenge to the government of King Mohammed, wary the protests could build into an Egypt-style revolt.

In Marrakesh, marchers passed a cafe where 17 people, including eight French nationals, died in a bomb attack on April 28. Authorities last week arrested three suspects and said the ringleader was loyal to al-Qaeda.

The group's north African wing, Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb, said on Saturday it was not responsible for the bombing, the first such attack since 2003.

A government official said up to 3,000 people marched in Marrakesh while other independent reports estimated the turnout at around 8,000.

"I took part in every protest and this one is by far the biggest," said Zakaria Lemdaoui, 18, in Marrakesh.

Protesters held signs marked with the slogans "We are for freedom and security" and " We oppose terrorism and intimidation." Other banners attacked corruption.

Up to 40 chanting protesters, many with their faces masked, called for the downfall of the government and monarchy. Most Moroccans support the monarchy.

"We want this regime with all its institutions to be brought down. We need a constituent assembly to pave the way for real elections and a regime that draws its legitimacy from the people," one marcher told Reuters, declining to give his name.

CASABLANCA RALLY

The uniformed security presence at the rally was light with security forces parked on side streets, but plain-clothes officers could be seen taking notes and speaking into cell phones, a Reuters witness said.

Witnesses said around 8,000 people took part in an evening march through the old town in the country's biggest city, Casablanca.

Some marchers called on the king to dismiss two close allies -- Fouad Ali Himma, the founder of what has quickly become Morocco's largest opposition party, and Mohamed Mounir Majidi, the king's private secretary.

Protests in Tunisia that toppled veteran leader Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali gathered momentum when trade unions put their weight behind them but Moroccan unions did not join Sunday's marches.

The government announced in April it would increase public sector salaries and raise the minimum wage in the latest of a series of handouts aimed at preventing any spillover from revolt in other Arab countries.

It also appointed a committee to reform the constitution in order to cede more powers, promised to make justice independent and freed some political prisoners. (Writing by Matthew Bigg; Editing by Andrew Heavens)

Source: Alertnet.
Link: http://www.trust.org/alertnet/news/thousands-demand-reform-in-morocco-rallies.

Jordan says it is working to release 20 Jordanians in Syria

May 8, 2011

AMMAN, Jordan — Jordan says it is trying to secure the release of 20 Jordanians detained by Syrian security forces.

The announcement comes as authorities in Syria have stepped up a campaign of violence and arrests as a seven-week-old uprising against President Bashar Assad's regime has spread nationwide.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Mohammed Kayed said Sunday that it appears the 20 Jordanians were not arrested as one group, but separately. He said the reasons behind the arrests, the location and timing are unclear.

Kayed said his ministry has been working over the past four days through the Jordanian Embassy in Damascus to uncover information about the arrests and to free those detained. However, he said Syria has so far not responded.

Copyright © 2011 The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.

Russia Seeks China's Support on Libya Crisis

May 08, 2011
Vladimir Socor

On May 6 in Moscow, President Dmitry Medvedev and Foreign Affairs Minister Sergei Lavrov each received Lavrov’s Chinese counterpart, Yang Jiechi. According to Lavrov at the concluding news conference, Russia and China would “coordinate their actions” in the UN Security Council and beyond to support the “soonest possible stabilization of the situation” in North Africa and the Middle East.

Lavrov spoke more abundantly and aggressively than Yang during this event. Reasserting Russia’s known objections to NATO’s intervention in Libya, Lavrov added for the first time negative comments about Arab states and organizations that support that intervention in one way or another.

Utmost among Moscow’s concerns is the retention of its veto power, via the UN Security Council, over NATO or US operations. It was Medvedev who started the litany of complaints that NATO’s operation was exceeding the mandate of Security Council resolution no. 1973 on Libya. The Russian president used his visit to China on April 14 to air those complaints, hoping to draw support from the Chinese hosts in the first place. Moscow insists that any military measures that, in its view, overstep the UN mandate must first be submitted to the Security Council for Russian consent.

As Lavrov indicated again during Yang’s Moscow visit, Russia does not rule out its consent. It simply hints that its consent via a new resolution is subject to negotiation. Moscow professes concern that NATO countries may be planning a military operation on the ground in Libya. The Kremlin does not necessarily oppose a ground operation in principle. It does oppose NATO/US actions undertaken without prior negotiations in the Security Council with Russia, implying strategic trade-offs. Consequently, Medvedev and Lavrov are warning against “usurpation of the Security Council’s authority” – by NATO in this case.

Moscow’s next concern is to rehabilitate its own interpretation of state sovereignty and noninterference in the internal affairs of states. Russia and China are traditionally on common ground with this principle, although applying it differently. While Beijing accepts the self-restraint this principle implies, Moscow seeks to use it as a restraint on the West. In Libya’s case, Moscow criticizes those “taking sides” in favor of the Benghazi rebels and against Colonel Muammar Gaddafi, the two parties to a civil war. While stopping short of defending Gaddafi’s legitimacy, Russia objects to the calls for his removal from power. As Lavrov insisted during Yang’s visit, the UN mandate does not authorize Gaddafi’s removal or any regime change through “interference from the outside.”

In this context, Lavrov specifically criticized the Libya Contact Group’s May 5 decisions. The Contact Group’s meeting called for Gaddafi and his close circle to give up their power, decided to finance the Benghazi civilian authorities, and approved shifting funds from the Tripoli government’s frozen accounts abroad to the Benghazi authorities.

Such complaints can put Russia at odds with some influential Arab states on this issue. The Libya Contact Group includes, in one way or another, the Arab League, the Gulf Cooperation Council, the Islamic Conference Organization, and the African Union, alongside the UN, the US, NATO, and the EU. While the Western participants pushed through the Contact Group’s May 5 decisions, and although the Arab countries’ views are far from uniform on this issue, many Arab and other Muslim countries supported the Contact Group’s May 5 decisions. Lavrov cautioned the Contact Group against trying to substitute the UN Security Council or taking sides in this civil war.

Yang agreed with Medvedev’s and Lavrov’s calls for an immediate ceasefire and political negotiations between the Libyan sides, “without external interference.” Beijing is careful to endorse Libya’s territorial unity, unlike Moscow which remains ambiguous on this point.

China, like Russia, had abstained in the UN Security Council’s April 17 vote that authorized a limited military operation to protect Libya’s civilian population. On May 2, China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs expressed concern over the operation’s escalation and a growing number of civilian casualties. It stated Beijing’s objections to any action not authorized by the UN Security Council, and it expressed hope for an undelayed ceasefire and negotiations.

Moscow and Beijing share an interest in protecting their UN Security Council veto powers from any erosion. Their common interests do not go far beyond this issue in the Libya crisis. Russia seeks to exploit the crisis against NATO. China, however, does not appear to be pursuing any such objectives.

Source: Georgian Daily.
Link: http://georgiandaily.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=21436&Itemid=132.

Libya Tribal Appeal to Rebels Falls Flat

MAY 9, 2011
By RICHARD BOUDREAUX

TRIPOLI, Libya—Col. Moammar Gadhafi has turned to Libya's tribal leaders in a new effort to erode a Western-backed insurgency, but the initiative, including the promise of an amnesty, is having no immediate impact on the stalemated conflict.

The rebel leadership dismissed an appeal by hundreds of tribal elders to engage in peace talks. And the tribal chiefs, who held a nationally televised conference in Tripoli, stopped short of pledging armed followers to back up the Libyan leader's military campaign.

Government forces attacked isolated rebel strongholds in western Libya over the weekend, striking a fuel terminal in rebel-held Misrata with ground-to-ground rockets and igniting a fire that threatened the besieged port city's fuel supply.

The rebel-held mountain towns of Zintan and Wazin also came under rocket fire, forcing many inhabitants to flee across the border into Tunisia. About 80 shells fell on Tunisia's soil, prompting a protest by its government Sunday to Libyan authorities, the Tunisian state news agency reported.

Since the uprising began in mid-February, Libyan authorities have enlisted local tribal leaders and offered amnesties in some towns recaptured from the rebels. The latest amnesty plan, announced Saturday by Prime Minister Baghdadi Mahmoudi, would cover all of Libya, including the rebels' eastern strongholds.

The Justice Ministry is drafting an amnesty law, Mr. Mahmoudi told a news conference, and a nationwide committee of tribal leaders will be entrusted to present it to counterparts in rebel-controlled areas in an effort at reconciliation.

The tone of the prime minister's remarks was plaintive, reflecting frustration over Libya's division and deadlock. At one point, he addressed defectors from his government who now work for the rebels' Transitional National Council, calling them "my brothers" and urging them to "say no to bloodshed."

"If there were mistakes or wrongs" in governing Libya, he said, "then the mistakes belong to all of us."

Abed Abu Hamada, a leader of the Mergharbah tribe from the eastern city of Ajdabiya, struck a similar note at the tribal conference, appealing to "our brothers in the eastern regions—the armed ones, the misled ones." The two-day conference ended late Friday with a denunciation of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization's aerial attacks and support for an amnesty and peaceful dialogue.

Mansour el-Kikhia, an adviser to the rebel leadership, said the tribal leaders' message would have no impact in eastern Libya, where rebel forces shielded by NATO airstrikes have a solid hold on Benghazi, seat of their leadership council, and other coastal cities.

"The east is feeling so free, so removed from Gadhafi, that none of this is going to make any difference," he said.

Moussa Ibrahim, a Libyan government spokesman, said about 200 elders from the rebel-held east took part in the conference and would exert their influence back home. But in interviews, two of those elders said they had fled the region weeks ago, after the rebel takeover, and didn't plan to return anytime soon.

Tribal loyalties and influence have diminished in recent decades as Libya's population has become more mobile and urban, social scientists say. Tens of thousands of members of the predominately western tribes that form the core of Col. Gadhafi's support now live in Benghazi and in March staged a demonstration there calling on their western cousins to join the revolt.

The government gave extraordinary publicity to the tribal conference and opened it to foreign journalists. "You can't get more representative than this," said Mr. Ibrahim, who listed 851 tribal groups present. "It sends a powerful message to the country."

George Joffe, a Cambridge University professor who has studied Libya's tribal politics, said the gathering may have been staged more for audiences in the West "in the hope of creating the impression that Col. Gadhafi enjoys widespread support." Even that support was limited. Two weeks after government officials suggested that armed tribal groups might take up the siege of Misrata, there was no mention of such action at the conference.

Instead, the gathering's final declaration called for peaceful marches to rebel-held "hijacked towns" to try to "liberate" them. But no marches were immediately planned. "NATO must stop bombing first," said Mansour Khalaf, leader of the Warfalla tribe. "Then Libyans will stop fighting each other."

In Misrata on Sunday, fires were still blazing from fuel depots a day after being struck by Col. Gadhafi's forces. Rebel spokesman Mohammed Alzawwam said the attack had diminished gasoline supplies for rebel vehicles.

It was the second pinpoint attack on Misrata by government forces in recent days. Rebels were working to clear antitank mines that had been dropped by parachute across the port area late Thursday from rockets that open in midflight.

In Benghazi, Abdul Hafidh Ghoga, spokeman for the rebels' governing council, said it planned to use money from a fund pledged for humanitarian and reconstruction needs to buy weapons from the Italian government. Maurizio Massari, an Italian Foreign Ministry spokesman, denied that Rome planned to supply weapons to the rebels. He said the fund, set up by 22 NATO and Arab countries last week, could not be used for weapons purchases from any source.

—Stacy Meichtry in Rome and Muneef Halawa in Benghazi contributed to this article.

Source: The Wall Street Journal.
Link: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704681904576311492781200746.html.

Italy rescues 500 Libya refugees in 'miracle' operation

By Dario Thuburn (AFP) – May 8, 2011

ROME — Italian coast guards and local fisherman saved all 528 refugees on a boat from Libya early Sunday after their vessel hit rocks off the island of Lampedusa, an operation one rescuer described as a "miracle".

Refugees threw themselves into the water in the night, with some clinging to ropes strung between the rusty fishing boat and the shoreline by rescuers, as officers and local residents dived in to help along the rocky coast.

"There were about 500 people on board. It was a difficult situation. Our patrol boats couldn't come close because of the shallow water and the undertow was very strong," said Antonio Morana, a coast guard spokesman.

Coast guards later said 528 had been on board, including 24 pregnant women.

Many refugees were later seen wrapped in thermal blankets on the rocks and in temporary housing in the port in footage released by coast guards.

"The sea was rough and it was pushing the boat towards the coast," said one coast guard, Davide Miserendino.

"When the first immigrants jumped into the water, we immediately dived in to try and rescue as many as possible," he added.

"When we finished, to be honest, we burst out crying and embracing. We all thought about those children in the sea. It was incredible. It was a real miracle that we managed to rescue everyone," he said.

Local residents brought food and clothes for the survivors and a Ghanaian woman with a baby called Wisdom was given diapers and toys.

A few of the refugees suffered slight injuries and have been hospitalized.

President Giorgio Napolitano later expressed "since admiration" for the rescuers and said: "Italy is showing solidarity and a spirit of hospitality."

Most of those on board were migrant workers from sub-Saharan Africa and Asia who have been living in Libya. Thousands of refugees fleeing Libya have been arriving in Lampedusa in recent weeks as the conflict there has escalated.

"The bombs forced us to flee. Right now the situation in Libya doesn't leave us any choice," a Pakistani refugee was quoted by ANSA news agency as saying.

Lampedusa, which measures 20 square kilometers (eight square miles), is Italy's southernmost point and is closer to North Africa than to the mainland.

Morana said an investigation was underway into what had gone wrong but he believed there had been "a malfunctioning of the rudder" on the vessel.

Also Sunday, another boat carrying 800 refugees from Libya arrived in Lampedusa, a day after two boats with 842 refugees including 101 women and 22 children also fleeing the North African state landed there.

Lampedusa, which has a population of only around 5,000 has been overrun by more than 30,000 migrant and refugee arrivals since the start of the year. Almost all have since been transferred to the mainland or sent back.

Almost all have been Tunisians in search of a better life in Europe amid continued upheaval in their homeland in the wake of a revolt in January.

Some 150 refugees fleeing Libya are believed to have died on April 6 after their boat capsized in stormy weather in the middle of the Mediterranean. Italian coast guards managed to pluck 53 survivors from the sea.

A week later, two women died and another person was reported missing after their overcrowded boat hit rocks on the Italian island of Pantelleria.

Copyright © 2011 AFP. All rights reserved.

Egypt may reopen consulate in Gaza, official says

Sunday 08/05/2011

RAFAH, Gaza Strip (Ma'an) -- Gaza's caretaker Minister of Foreign Affairs and Planning Mohammad Awad told Ma'an on Sunday that Egypt's transitional leadership was seriously considering opening a consulate in Gaza City to facilitate communication with Gaza officials.

Awad said an office in the coastal enclave would help smooth communications between Palestinian leaders and factions in Gaza. It was being considered following the recent signing of unity accords between rival factions Hamas and Fatah, accords Egypt has pledged to oversee as the agreement is implemented.

Speaking to reporters in Rafah on mechanisms being discussed to facilitate the opening of the Egypt-Gaza border crossing in the city, Awad said the decision to open an Egyptian office in Gaza would have little effect on the opening of the crossing.

"Egypt is not a party to the 2005 agreement," he said, referring to a set of procedures negotiated between Europe, the Palestinian Authority and Israel six years earlier, which he said was being looked at for re-implementation.

The agreement laid out plans for the EU to monitor the crossing, which would be under PA administration. It was essentially shelved in 2006, though an EU mission for the crossing has been renewed each year in the hopes for an opening.

Awad said the 2005 agreement was one of a number of concepts on the table to facilitate reconstruction efforts in Gaza. "We are looking at anything that will guarantee the interests of the Palestinian people," he said.

The official added that sides hammering out the details of the unity agreement are working to create an atmosphere that will encourage Egypt to permanently open their side of the Rafah crossing, a move that Egypt's transition leadership appears amenable to.

Awad said officials also hoped to increase economic cooperation between Egypt and Gaza.

Source: Ma'an News Agency.
Link: http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=385951.

Sinai Bedouins surround court, demand defendant's release

Ayman Abu Zaid
Sun, 08/05/2011

Bedouins surrounded the South Sinai Criminal Court and fired bullets in the air in order to pressure the court to release a relative named Youssef Hussein Atwa, whom the court has sentenced to seven years in prison.

A security source said that three judges and other members of the public prosecution have been trapped inside the court building since the sentence was issued at 12 noon on Sunday, and that the police and the army have only secured the building from the outside.

They added that negotiations started with the Bedouins to end their siege in preparation for releasing the defendant at a later time.

According to tribal sources, the police and the army had promised that the defendant would be acquitted.

Source: al-Masry al-Youm.
Link: http://www.almasryalyoum.com/en/node/428904.

Bahrain to lift state of emergency from June 1

By Frederik Richter
MANAMA | Sun May 8, 2011

MANAMA (Reuters) - Bahrain's king has ordered a state of emergency to be lifted from June 1, after imposing it following weeks of Shi'ite-led street protests in the Gulf Arab kingdom, the state news agency said Sunday.

Bahrain, where the Sunni king rules over a Shi'ite majority, declared emergency law in March before forcibly quelling the protests calling for greater political freedoms, a constitutional monarchy and an end to sectarian discrimination.

"The state of national safety is lifted across the kingdom of Bahrain from June 1, 2011," state news agency BNA quoted the king's decree as saying. It had been due to expire in mid-June.

As Bahrain moved to put down the protests, neighboring Sunni-led Gulf states sent troops to back its forces, in turn boosting regional tension with nearby Shi'ite rival Iran, which Bahrain accuses of helping instigate the protests.

Since then, Bahrain has targeted demonstrators. Hundreds have been arrested and dozens put on trial in special courts. Others have been fired from government jobs.

The main Shi'ite opposition group Wefaq welcomed the king's move to lift emergency law as "very good news" and said it was the first sign authorities were relaxing their grip.

"The security forces can still do their normal business but we don't have to have the army in the streets," said Jasim Husain, a Wefaq politician. "I expect more gestures from the king in coming weeks. We have to get our house in order and move on as a nation."

At least 29 people, all but six of them Shi'ites, have been killed since the protests started in February, inspired by Arab revolts against autocratic rule that toppled the rulers of Egypt and Tunisia.

The six non-Shi'ites killed were an Indian and a Bangladeshi and four policemen, several of whom were hit by cars.

TRIAL BEGINS

Bahrain put 21 opposition activists on trial in special courts Sunday, charged with trying to topple the government.

They included Shi'ite dissident Hassan Mushaimaa, leader of the opposition group Haq who has called for the overthrow of the Sunni al-Khalifa monarchy, and Ebrahim Shareef, the Sunni leader of the secular Waad group that has called for a constitutional monarchy but has not joined those seeking to oust the king.

The defendants, who also include a human rights activist who is a Danish citizen, were put on trial in a hybrid civilian-military court where military prosecutors try the case before a panel of one military and two civilian judges.

"Lawyers were called less than 24 hours before the trial started. They did not have time to prepare," Nabeel Rajab of the Bahrain Center for Human Rights said. State media said the trial was later adjourned to May 12 to give lawyers more time.

The state news agency said the men were accused of involvement in an "attempt to overthrow the government by force and in liaison with a terrorist organization working for a foreign country." Seven were being tried in absentia.

The state news agency did not say what penalty military prosecutors were seeking in the case. Rights activists say Bahrain's anti-terrorism law could make them eligible for the death penalty if convicted on the most serious counts.

In late April, a court sentenced four men to death for their role in killing two policemen during the unrest.

International rights groups have criticized the trials. U.S.-based Human Rights Watch has said it received credible reports that one of the 21 defendants, Abdulhadi al-Khawaja, was hospitalized after beatings while in custody.

Bahrain denies there is torture in its prisons and says all such accusations will be investigated.

Minister for Justice and Islamic Affairs Sheikh Khaled bin Ali al-Khalifa rejected the criticism and said all defendants would get fair trials and have the right to appeal verdicts.

"Bahrain is keen to honor its international obligations and respect human rights covenants," he said in remarks carried by pro-government media Sunday.

(Writing by Cynthia Johnston; Editing by Janet Lawrence)

Source: Reuters.
Link: http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/05/08/us-bahrain-idUSTRE7471G020110508.

Turkey hosts forum on poorest nations

May 7, 2011

ISTANBUL (AP) — The acute problems of the world's poorest countries form the agenda of a U.N.-backed conference this week in Turkey, which has sought to balance its traditional Western alliances with growing ties to Africa, the Middle East and other developing regions.

The conference of "least-developed countries" lists 48 members, including Afghanistan, where a U.S.-led coalition is fighting Taliban insurgents, and Yemen, where at least 140 protesters have died during months of demonstrations aimed at ousting the president.

Up to 10,000 delegates are expected to attend the five-day forum, which starts Monday. Among them are U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, EU Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso, Afghan President Hamid Karzai and Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, whose oil-rich country is not in the list of poorest countries.

The goal of the meeting is to promote ways to reduce poverty and hunger in impoverished countries, in coordination with international partners. Social issues such as gender equality will also be discussed.

Turkey's role as host highlights its strategic position linking the European and Asian continents, as well as its expanding regional profile and robust economic growth. Turkey donates about $1 billion a year in aid to poor nations in the Balkans, South and Central Asia and sub-Saharan Africa, a tenfold increase over the last decade, according to the Turkish government.

Turkey is paying for up to 11 delegates from each of the 48 poor nations to travel to Istanbul for the conference, which will also attract aid organizations, parliamentarians and academics. Hundreds of business executives will attend, based on the view that least-developed countries, or LDCs, offer high potential for investment despite their vulnerability to civil unrest, disease and other grave challenges.

Ban, the U.N. chief, said at an international meeting on women's issues in Istanbul on Saturday that the economies of some of the poorest countries were among the fastest-growing in the world.

"By helping these next-wave economies increase their productive capacities, we can create tangible opportunities for businesses across a spectrum of industries, sectors and issues," he said.

Thirty-three of the least-developed countries are in Africa, 14 are in Asia and one — Haiti — is in the Americas. Since the United Nations introduced the category decades ago, only Botswana, Cape Verde and Maldives have developed enough to be removed from the list.

Qualification for the list includes a per-capita annual income of less than $905, and assessments of malnutrition, child mortality and education levels, as well as an "economic vulnerability" rating based on population size, remoteness and instability in exports and production. The category does not include large economies, and the populations of its members must be below 75 million.

The last such conference was hosted by the European Union in Brussels in 2001. France hosted the two previous ones in 1990 and 1981.

Copyright © 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.

Bahrain puts opposition leaders, activists on trial

08 May 2011, Sunday / REUTERS/AP, MANAMA

Bahrain put 21 mostly Shiite activists, including a prominent hard-line dissident, on trial on Sunday, charged with trying to topple the government during weeks of protests in February and March. Bahrain, a Sunni-ruled island kingdom, cracked down on the protests demanding greater political freedoms, a constitutional monarchy and an end to sectarian discrimination.

The crackdown, in which neighboring Sunni-led Gulf states sent troops to back Bahrain’s forces, has boosted regional tension with Iran, which Bahrain accuses of manipulating its Shiite co-religionists to expand its influence. Those on trial on Sunday face a hybrid civilian-military court where military prosecutors try the case before a panel of one military and two civilian judges.

Those on trial include Shiite dissident Hassan Mushaimaa, leader of the opposition group Haq who has called for the overthrow of the Sunni al-Khalifa monarchy, and Ebrahim Shareef, the Sunni leader of the secular Waad group that has called for a constitutional monarchy but has not joined those seeking to oust the king. Bahrain’s state news agency said the defendants were accused of involvement in an “attempt to overthrow the government by force and in liaison with a terrorist organization working for a foreign country.”

Rights groups said the defendants should be tried before civil courts, saying the military courts did not allow the accused to defend themselves properly. “Lawyers were called less than 24 hours before the trial started. They did not have time to prepare,” Nabeel Rajab of the Bahrain Center for Human Rights told Reuters. State media said the men were accused of organizing and managing a terrorist group bent on toppling the government and corresponding with a terrorist group abroad working for a foreign country against Bahrain, among other charges.

Source: Sunday's Zaman.
Link: http://www.sundayszaman.com/sunday/newsDetail_getNewsById.action?newsId=243239.

Assad tightens grip on Syria's restive third city

By Khaled Yacoub Oweis
Mon May 9, 2011

AMMAN (Reuters) - Government forces backed by snipers on rooftops tightened their grip on Syria's third city on Monday, rights groups said, after President Bashar al-Assad sent in tanks in a sharpening crackdown on protests against his rule.

A human rights campaigner in Homs said snipers deployed in several residential neighborhoods as the sound of gunfire died down in districts of the city that tanks stormed on Sunday.

"There are snipers visible on rooftops of private and public building in al-Adawiya, Bab Sebaa and al-Mreijah neighborhoods. Hundreds have fled from three villages just to the southwest of Homs where tanks had deployed," the campaigner said.

Homs, the hometown of Assad's Western-educated wife Asma, lies in the middle of an agricultural region on the highway between Damascus and Syria's second largest city Aleppo. One of Syria's two oil refineries is in Homs.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said three civilians were killed on Sunday in Homs, a merchant city of one million people 165 km (100 miles) north of Damascus.

Activists said the authorities had widened a shutdown of Internet and phone services.

Syrian authorities have banned foreign media from reporting from the country.

Security forces dispersed a small pro-democracy demonstration in the center of the Damascus on Monday, arresting opposition writer Ammar Mashour Dayoub and several students, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.

In the capital's district of Barzeh, 20 people were arrested in another demonstration, a resident of Barzeh said.

In the south, tanks deployed around the towns of Inkhil, Dael and Nawa, widening a sweep into the strategic region that borders Jordan and the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights. A man was killed on Sunday when security forces smashed their way into his home in the town of Tafas, a rights campaigner said.

REGIME BASE

Syria's upheaval began on March 18 when protesters, inspired by revolts across the Arab world, marched in the southern city of Deraa. Assad initially responded with vague promises of reform, and last month lifted a 48-year-old state of emergency.

But when the demonstrations persisted he sent the army to crush dissent, first in Deraa and then in other cities, making clear he would not risk losing the tight control his family has held over Syria for the past 41 years.

Assad is from the minority Alawite sect, an offshoot of Shi'ite Islam, while the majority of Syria's 20 million population is Sunni Muslim.

Alawites dominate Syria's power structure.

Hundreds of people were arrested on Monday in Homs and in Banias on the Mediterranean coast, the latest focus of Assad's escalating military swoop on protesters, as well as in other regions, the Observatory said.

A human rights campaigner said Military Intelligence agents arrested five employees at a state-owned wheat milling company in the mostly Ismaili city of Salamiya east of Hama for refusing to sign declarations promising not to demonstrate.

The Observatory said around 50 people were arrested in Salamiya on Monday, among them 70-year old former political prisoner Hassan Zahra, a leftist.

Syrian human rights organization Sawasiah said security forces have killed at least 800 civilians since demonstrations first broke out. The Syrian Observatory says 634 civilians had died by April 30.

A Western diplomat last week estimated that around 7,000 people had been detained.

Before the uprising, Assad had been emerging from a period of Western isolation imposed because of Syria's support for militant groups Hezbollah and Hamas and its informal anti-Israel alliance with Iran.

Washington announced new sanctions against Syrian figures last month while the European Union last week agreed to impose asset freezes and travel restrictions against up to 14 Syrian officials it said were responsible for the violent repression.

Syrian authorities have blamed the nearly two months of protests on "armed terrorist groups" they say killed civilians and security personnel and are operating in Deraa, Banias, Homs and other parts of the country.

(Editing by Andrew Heavens)

Source: Reuters.
Link: http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/05/09/us-syria-idUSLDE73N02P20110509.

Britain calls for Syria to be refused place on UN Human Rights Council

By Richard Spencer, Middle East Correspondent
08 May 2011

Britain and other western powers are trying to stop the United Nations awarding Syria a place on the United Nations Human Rights Council following its brutal suppression of the uprising which has left 800 people dead.

The General Assembly of the UN will vote next week to fill this year's rotating places on the council, which has come under fire before for granting membership to dictatorships with a history of violence against their people.

Syria is one of four candidates for four vacancies due to be filled by Asian countries owing to a convention whereby UN bodies are filled by regional blocs.

Western nations including Britain are said to be vehemently opposed to the choice, made before the current wave of Arab uprisings spread to Syria, and lobbying foreign ministries across Asia and the Middle East to propose an alternative. The Daily Telegraph has learned Kuwait is the current favored option but Syria is refusing to stand aside.

The Syrian army continued its operation to mop up opposition to its rule on Sunday, with tanks moving into Tafas, a town near the Jordanian border and the city of Dera'a, the epicenter of the uprising.

Among the casualties elsewhere was a 12-year-old boy, activists said. He was killed as troops opened fire in Syria's third city, Homs. A 10-year-old boy was among 200 people arrested in Banias, a Mediterranean Sea-side town which tanks entered on Saturday at the end of a week which had seen repeated street protests attracting thousands of people.

Altogether, activists have given estimates ranging from 500 to 800 for the number of dead in the last six weeks. The government says 80 civilians have died, along with scores of soldiers and police.

Activists admit that the ferocity of the government response has succeeded in reducing the numbers prepared to take to the streets. Syria has also benefited from inter-Arab solidarity, with Bahrain, which has also cracked down heavily on opposition, the latest Western ally to offer backing.

A "message of full support" from King Hamad of Bahrain was delivered by his foreign minister, Sheikh Khalid bin Ahmed al-Khalifa, the Syrian state news agency said.

That support will make it harder for Europe to persuade an alternative Arab candidate to stand for the Human Rights Council before a vote a week on Friday.

Nepal was originally suggested, one source close to the process said, but Kuwait, which is due to join the council next year, is the current choice as another Arab state. But Syria has proved unwilling to withdraw its candidacy.

Human Rights Watch pointed out that the council, which suspended Libya's membership last month, had already passed a motion condemning the crackdown under way in Syria.

"It's outrageous that Syria can be condemned by the Human Rights Council one month and be an endorsed candidate in elections for that same body the next month," Peggy Hicks, its global advocacy director said. "Every day that passes calls further into question the credibility of those who have supported Syria's candidacy." The Foreign Office said it refused to comment on its voting intentions for UN elections. But a spokesman said: "The UK is committed to ensuring membership of the Human Rights Council is closely aligned to its founding principles and we have been working with our EU colleagues to this effect."

It also emerged on Sunday that Iran is playing an increasingly active role in helping the Syrian regime defeat the popular uprising against Mr Assad.

A western diplomat said there was a “significant” increase in the number of Iranian personnel in the country since protests began.

“Tehran has upped the level of technical support and personnel support from the Iranian Republican Guard to strengthen Syria’s ability to deal with protesters,” the senior western diplomat said.

Source: The Telegraph.
Link: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/syria/8501025/Britain-calls-for-Syria-to-be-refused-place-on-UN-Human-Rights-Council.html.

The Algiers tramway is finally into service

08 May, 2011

ALGIERS - After two years of delay, the Algiers tramway went into service Sunday on a first stretch of 7.2 km between the eastern neighborhoods, densely populated areas, thereby reducing the dense traffic but at the cost of urban landscape disfigured.

The launching started one hour later than scheduled due to a power outage, according to radio channel III, but the first tram has started to roll in mid-day.

On board the Transport Minister Amar Tou, the Algerian company staff of the Subway of Algiers (EMA) and the operator property of Urban and Suburban Transport Algiers (ETUSA) and the French Alstom, which turns on its Featured Citadis tram.

"A Tram just as powerful as that of Paris, Bordeaux, Toulouse and Reims," ​​said a spokesman for Asthom, Eric Lenoir, surrounded by a crowd of people in this area of ​​new buildings in Bordj el Kiffan.

In 2009, the commissioning of the section began between the district of Bab Ezzouar, near the airport, and Bordj el Kiffan, a former tourist area known for its barbecue and gelato now partially destroyed by the line of the tram.

Consisting of 13 stations, this section has 12 trains, which will transport daily between 10,000 and 15,000 people at a price of 20 dinars (0.2 euro cent) ticket, from six in the morning to 9 pm.

Eventually, the tram will run on 23 km to the headquarters of Hussein Dey in Dergana in the east and would cost 35 billion dinars (350 million Euros) with 38 stations.

Algiers, a city of some three million people, stretching over several hills, is served by four lifts and a bus network, estimated at 3,454 units, according to the Ministry of Transport.

The works are made by Alstom companies (France) for the system part and Todini (Italy) and ETRHB (Algeria) for civil engineering. Other tram lines are being built in Oran (west) and Constantine (east).

Source: Ennahar.
Link: http://www.ennaharonline.com/en/news/6473.html.

PA security chief optimistic on unity

02/05/2011

BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) -- Head of Palestinian military intelligence in the West Bank Nedal Abu Dukhan is optimistic over the signing of the proposed unity deal in Cairo, the official told Ma'an on Sunday.

Speaking in an interview at Ma'an's Bethlehem office, Abu Dukhan said he was optimistic about the outcome of the conciliation agreement but that he hoped it would increase international recognition of the Palestinian cause as September approached.

Caretaker officials in the Palestinian Authority have pegged September as the date that the government institutions in the West Bank would be ready for statehood. President Mahmoud Abbas has said that in September he could go to the UN seeking international recognition for a Palestinian state based on the pre-1967 borders.

While Abbas says that 130 nations have so far backed the idea of a Palestinian state by September, European and American officials have expressed reserve over the announcement of a unity deal, with officials saying they would study the terms of the reconciliation before making comment.

Hamas Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh has said he is willing to resign as leader when the technocratic government takes over. Hamas officials have also indicated that they would prefer if Fayyad were replaced.

Hamas leader Khalil Al-Haya said in a statement Sunday that the party would leave the issue of prime minister to those appointed to the unity delegations. "This issue will be solved between us and our brothers [in Fatah,]" he said.

Gaza government security forces have announced that they are prepared discuss elements of the planned overhaul of security services in both the West Bank and Gaza, per the pending unity agreement between Palestinian factions.

While details of the agreement have not yet been released the Hamas-affiliated news website Palestine Information Center said Saturday that part of the deal would be the formation of a higher council for security. The council would oversee the security forces for both factions which would be united into a single professional force.

Source: Ma'an News Agency.

Link: http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=383794.

Setif massacres, a painful page that Algeria can not turn

08 May, 2011

ALGIERS - The massacre of thousands of Algerians by French forces in three eastern cities, including Setif, exactly 66 years ago, are "a painful page that Algeria can not turn," said Sunday an Algerian minister, quoted by APS.

"The relations of Algeria and France can not be built on good foundations and sustainable manner only when France has acknowledged her crimes in Algeria," also said minister of mujahideen, Mohamed Cherif Abbas, inaugurating the 9th International Symposium on the massacres of Guelma, one of the three affected cities.

The day before Mr. Abbas, and also the general secretary of the National Liberation Front (FLN in power) Abdelaziz Belkhadem insisted on the occasion of this anniversary, the need for France to make amends.

In the afternoon, the minister, local dignitaries and veterans should visit the various sites.

On May 8, 1945, while France was celebrating the victory of democracy over Nazism, independence demonstrations took place in Setif, Guelma and Kherrata. They were brutally suppressed by French forces leaving thousands dead.

Algerians speak of 45,000 victims, while the French estimate them from 1,500 to 20,000 deaths, including 103 Europeans.

Algeria had gained its independence from France in 1962 after a bloody war.

Algerian demands of apology and repentance are frequent; especially during the anniversary of the bloody periods of war of liberation.

During a visit to Algeria in late 2007, French President Nicolas Sarkozy has strongly condemned the colonial system "unjust by nature" but rejected any idea of ​​"repentance".

Source: Ennahar.
Link: http://www.ennaharonline.com/en/news/6474.html.

Syria Extends Crackdown on Protesters With Shootings, Wave of Arrests

By Massoud A. Derhally and Mohammed Hatem - May 9, 2011

Security forces in Syria renewed their assault on pro-democracy protesters across the country, shooting at people who joined in demonstrations and seeking to arrest their organizers.

Two people were killed in Deir Al-Zour late yesterday as security forces attacked a protest and at least 12 people died in Homs in the past two days, Mahmoud Merhi, head of the Arab Organization for Human Rights, said in a phone interview from Syria today. Six people, four of them women, were killed in Banias on May 7, he said. Some 450 people have been arrested in the coastal city in the past two days, said Ammar Qurabi, head of Syria’s National Organization for Human Rights.

The Damascus suburb of al-Muadamiya has been surrounded since 3 a.m. and phones and power cut, signaling a security sweep, Yassin Al-Haj Saleh, a Syrian writer and activist, said in a phone interview. Gunfire was heard in the suburb, Agence France-Presse reported. Security forces are conducting house-to- house raids nationwide seeking protest organizers, the Associated Press said, citing the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. The state news agency said six soldiers were killed in operations in Homs, Banias and Daraa, the southern region where protests began in mid-March.

The Syrian uprising drew initial pledges of reform from President Bashar al-Assad that haven’t been repeated in recent weeks as security forces stepped up their attacks, sending tanks into Daraa and other cities. The continuing repression of protests in Syria and Yemen comes after revolts against longtime leaders in Egypt and Tunisia helped spread unrest throughout the Middle East.

Death Toll

More than 650 people have been killed during the Syrian protests, according to Merhi. As many as 10,000 may have been detained, Qurabi said. In Daraa, a curfew is in effect and several mosques have been barred from calling people to prayers, he said.

The country’s authorities are engaged in “a full-scale assault on this uprising in an attempt to cow people into submission,” a tactic that may be modeled on Iran’s repression of protests after 2009 elections, said Chris Phillips, an analyst at the Economist Intelligence Unit in London. The use of “serious force” has spread from Daraa to other areas, he said.

Syrian Amnesty

Syria’s Interior Ministry said more than 1,000 people involved in protests have admitted their offenses and will escape punishment under an amnesty offered by the government to those who turn themselves in by May 15.

The state news agency said 10 Syrian workers were killed in Homs when their bus was ambushed. It also reported that hundreds of Syrians staged a sit-in at the U.S. embassy in Damascus yesterday to protest what they called American intervention in Syria’s internal affairs.

The U.S. has imposed sanctions on Syrian government officials because of the violent crackdown on protests.

In Yemen, three protesters were killed early today in the city of Taiz and about 80 sustained gunshot wounds as police fired at an anti-government demonstration, according to Sadek al-Shujaa, head of a field clinic there. At least 100 people have died in Yemen in protests that began in January.

Gulf Plan Spurned

Tens of thousands demonstrated yesterday in Taiz and other cities demanding the immediate ouster of President Ali Abdullah Saleh, who has been in power for three decades. Saleh would quit within a month, with elections to follow two months later, under the terms of an agreement brokered by Gulf Arab countries. Groups leading the street protests have spurned the plan, saying Saleh should quit immediately and shouldn’t be given immunity from prosecution.

Saleh and leaders of the main opposition group initially accepted the Gulf plan, though it hasn’t yet been signed. The government must sign within two days, otherwise the opposition will “halt the political process” and join the protesters in the streets, Mohammed al-Mutawakil, a senior official with the Joint Meetings Party, said in a telephone interview.

In Egypt, where the overthrow of President Hosni Mubarak by a popular revolt in February helped spur anti-government protests elsewhere in the region, authorities arrested 23 people suspected of involvement in sectarian fighting between Muslims and Christians in Cairo on May 7 that left 12 people dead. Justice Minister Mohamed El-Gendy promised yesterday to impose the rule of law with an “iron fist.”

In Bahrain, the Youth Society for Human Rights called for an investigation into the deaths and disappearances of demonstrators killed since mid-February, when mostly Shiite Muslim protesters began calling for democracy and human rights in the Sunni-ruled monarchy.

King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa yesterday said the nationwide state of emergency will be lifted on June 1. It was imposed on March 15 after Al Khalifa’s government sent security forces to attack the protesters, killing several, and invited troops from neighboring Saudi Arabia to help keep order.

Source: Bloomberg.
Link: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-05-08/security-forces-shoot-demonstrators-in-syria-yemen-egypt-clashes-kill-12.html.

Diplomats urge compromise over S. Sudan region

By ASSOCIATED PRESS
May 7, 2011

JUBA, Sudan: Diplomats visiting Southern Sudan say the north and south need to compromise to resolve the status of a flashpoint border region as the south prepares for independence.

Representatives from the US, Britain and Norway called Saturday for compromise over Abyei, where clashes have left more than 100 people dead since the south’s January independence vote.

Southern Sudan voted overwhelmingly to secede from the north and is slated to become its own country in July. The future of the Abyei region, which contains oil deposits, is still being negotiated.

Sudanese President Omar Al-Bashir recently threatened he would not recognize the new southern nation if it includes Abyei.

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon says the military standoff in Abyei is unacceptable and threatens peace.

Source: Arab News.
Link: http://arabnews.com/middleeast/article386578.ece.