EgyptAir to resume flights to Iraq after 21-year gap

Sun Jun 12, 2011

CAIRO (Reuters) - Egypt's national carrier EgyptAir will resume flights to Iraq in mid-July after they were halted following Iraq's invasion of Kuwait in 1990, an top official said on Sunday.

EgyptAir, one of Africa's largest airlines, will operate four weekly flights to Baghdad and three flights to north Iraq's Erbil area as of July 15, 2011, said Hussein Massoud, chairman of the EgyptAir holding company.

He said flights to the Iraqi capital will be operated on Mondays, Wednesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays with a 145-seat Airbus A320 aircraft.

Source: Reuters.
Link: http://af.reuters.com/article/investingNews/idAFJOE75B06020110612.

Iraq citizens plan to sue George W. Bush

BAGHDAD, June 16 (UPI) -- An unknown number of Iraqis have decided to sue former U.S. President George W. Bush over relatives who were killed in the war, officials said.

Aswat al-Iraq reported Thursday the suits are to be based on U.S. military operations in west Iraq's Anbar Province during the years that followed Iraq's occupation in 2003.

"I have lost five of my sons in the first and second battles in 2004 … what was the guilt of my sons, who were killed by the American Army," said Najim al-Mohammady, 53. "There isn't a single house in Anbar whose family had not lost a martyr or two.

"Hundreds of relatives of martyrs, who lost their sons, have decided to raise a judicial case against the former American president, and we shall assign a number of lawyers to revenge for part of the sacrifices made by Iraqis and to account the occupier for his acts," Mohammady said.

One man said two of his sons were killed inside his home in an attack by U.S. troops.

Shawla Taha, 32, said U.S. soldiers killed her brother.

"The Iraqi political blocs and parties are after gains and raise red papers to expel those who they don't wish from the Parliament, but we shall act according to the law to restore the rights of our sons from the American Army, who killed them and to account those who were in power in the Iraqi government and supported them," Taha said.

Mohammady didn't say when or where the lawsuits would be filed.

Source: United Press International (UPI).
Link: http://www.upi.com/Top_News/World-News/2011/06/16/Iraq-citizens-plan-to-sue-George-W-Bush/UPI-45711308230207/.

China confirms extradited Uighur facing terror charges

Tue Jun 14, 2011

(Reuters) - China on Tuesday confirmed that an ethnic Uighur schoolteacher faces terror charges after being extradited from Kazakhstan where he had won refugee status.

Human rights advocates criticized Kazakhstan's decision to deport Ershidin Israil, saying he could suffer harsh treatment and even torture in China, which says its far west Xinjiang region faces threats from militants seeking independence for the heavily Muslim Uighur minority.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei confirmed that Israil was now in Chinese custody.

"The person in question has been wanted by Chinese police as major terror suspect, and was also a target of a red-alert wanted notice from Interpol," Hong told a news conference.

"I understanding that this person has been extradited back to China, and now the case is being tried according to the law."

Hong did not say what specific accusations Israil faces.

Chinese President Hu Jintao has been visiting Kazakhstan and Beijing has sealed a currency swap deal worth $1 billion with its Central Asian neighbor and agreed to a $1.5 billion loan to a copper miner, highlighting China's growing economic pull in the region.

Israil, who holds a Chinese passport, was arrested in Kazakhstan's financial capital Almaty on June 24 last year on terrorism charges, following a request from Interpol, the Kazakh Foreign Ministry said last week.

The exiled World Uighur Congress said Israil fled Xinjiang in 2009 after providing information to Radio Free Asia about the death of another Uighur man.

The Turkic-speaking Muslim Uighur people are native to Xinjiang, strategically located on the borders of Central Asia. Many of Xinjiang's 8 million Uighurs resent the growing presence and economic grip of the majority Han Chinese.

In 2009, Uighurs rioted against Han Chinese residents in Xinjiang's regional capital, Urumqi, killing at least 197 people, mostly Han.

Israil had applied for refugee status in Kazakhstan in June 2010. At the time, he held a refugee mandate issued by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). But after studying Israil's case, the UNHCR annulled on May 3 its refugee mandate issued to Israil, a Kazakh official said.

(Reporting by Chris Buckley)

Source: Reuters.
Link: http://in.reuters.com/article/2011/06/14/idINIndia-57688420110614.

Tahar Belabes: Algerian youths need motivation

An Algerian labor rights defender calls on authorities to heed young people's demands and take bold measures to curb unemployment.

Interview by Fidet Mansour for Magharebia in Algiers – 17/06/11

A young jobless man's suicide in Ouargla last week sparked a wave of protests and brought to the fore the persistent problem of unemployment in the southern Algerian town. Despite the abundance of natural resources, the city is unable to put educated youths to work. To address the paradox, Magharebia sat down with Tahar Belabes, a spokesman of the National Committee for the Rights of the Unemployed (CNDDC).

Magharebia: Can you tell us about your organization and the reasons why it was created?

Tahar Belabes: The CNDDC fights for unemployed people's moral and material rights. The committee, set up on February 4th, 2011, is an autonomous and democratic forum, open to all people, male and female, who support our plans and demands.

Our main demands include decent work, unemployment benefits worth 50% of the national minimum wage, total transparency in the advertising of jobs, plus an end to military service for 25-year-olds and the reduction of military service to a period of 6 months.

Magharebia: Over recent days, life in Ouargla has been dominated by youth protests pressing for work and a decent living. What is the situation in the region like now?

Belabes: It is very tense; the authorities have deployed a lot of security forces out on the streets. The city is on lockdown, in response to the anger of young people who took to the streets and organized rallies and sit-ins. The authorities have done nothing to calm these angry people. The doors to dialogue were shut, just as the news of the first suicide attempts started leaking through on the streets of Ouargla.

On Thursday (June 9th), a young man aged 30 hanged himself inside his own home. On March 16th, a young man aged 20 took his life in the same way in Hassi Messaoud. Meanwhile, activists from the CNDDC are being harassed and prosecuted. We deplore this attitude, which only exacerbates the situation.

Magharebia: Despite a vast number of energy companies, the city suffers from a high unemployment rate. How do you explain this?

Belabes: This is exactly what we oppose. We find it difficult to understand the reasons behind this exclusion. These companies, whether Algerian or foreign-owned, recruit from a very closed circle. In particular, it's closed to young people from the region, under the false pretext of skills. I assure you that more than 50% of the protesters have degrees, but they have been struggling to find work in the oil companies, who prefer to recruit graduates from other wilayas in the north. We're not regionalist, not at all. We are simply demanding our right to work.

Magharebia: Perhaps these companies need technicians in highly specialized areas such as petrochemicals, whereas your wilaya doesn't have an institute or training center that focuses on this sector.

Belabes: For the past seven years, we have constantly been calling for the creation of a petrochemicals institute in Ouargla, but unfortunately the authorities have turned a deaf ear to our continued requests. Every year, nearly 45,000 paid jobs are created in the wilaya, mainly in the oil companies. It might seem like a huge number, but in reality it doesn't benefit young people in Ouargla. Moreover, some of these jobs don't require a university education. Why not give young people a chance?

Magharebia: Have you been in contact with local authorities?

Belabes: We have presented a raft of demands to the officials. But once the riot police were deployed, all contact was broken. We fear the worst, and we're turning to the highest powers in the country to react and listen to youths who aspire to a decent life and a bright future. Unemployment is leading our young people into exile through illegal emigration. Algeria needs to hold on to its skills base by guaranteeing people the minimum, namely a job and a decent income.

Magharebia: Does the committee have any control over the protesters?

Belabes: For now yes, but the truth is that everything will depend on what the authorities do.

Source: Magharebia.
Link: http://www.magharebia.com/cocoon/awi/xhtml1/en_GB/features/awi/features/2011/06/17/feature-02.

Tunisian army offers recruitment bonus

Unemployed graduates can now earn additional income by joining the Tunisian army.

By Monia Ghanmi for Magharebia in Tunis – 16/06/11

Military recruits in Tunisia are about to make more money. Effective this July, the Tunisian defense ministry will provide a monthly grant of 200 dinars (100 euros) for recruits with a degree and 100 dinars for those without. It will disperse the money throughout the time served, not exceeding two years.

The grant aims to further encourage young Tunisians to join the military to perform their national duty in order to reinforce and strengthen the ranks of the Tunisian army, Brigadier-General Mokhtar Ben Naceur told Magharebia.

He said turnout doubled after the issuance of the monthly grant on May 25th. According to the general, those seeking to join numbered between 2,500 and 3,000 during the period from June 1st through June 9th.

Authorities hope the bonus will encourage Tunisian youth, especially those who are unemployed, to come to military institutions to do their national duty to help guarantee the country's security. Observers have said that the revolution and recent regional turmoil revealed that the number of military personnel was insufficient to protect Tunisians.

Tunisia's conscription law specifies 20 years as the legal age for military service, but a number of young people below the legal age have expressed desire to take advantage of training provided by the military. Young people who aren't old enough to serve may join with permission from their guardian and the defense minister.

Ben Naceur noted that the government received several applications that do not meet the legal requirements, particularly with regard to the age. The general added that these applications would be considered along with fulfilling the desires of applicants to join the military. The army was held in high regard in the days after the revolution for refusing to fire on protesters and for safeguarding citizens.

Ayoub Louati plans to enlist after completing his studies. He said he rejected military service in previous years but now hopes that training will enhance his job prospects.

"It is something encouraging and positive that will enable many young Tunisians, especially those holding degrees, to receive useful training and respectable material compensation that will get them out of the unemployment situation, especially after the decline in employment opportunities," Louati added.

Military service has become one of the basic standards in the employment process, according to Akrem Sahloul. He explained that many institutions and private companies require military experience for young people wishing to get a job because of its positive impact on the rest of their career.

"The Tunisian army today needs us – the young educated," Sahloul said. "And with provision of these sources of encouragement and financial incentives, we will not find anything better than joining this noble institution, because military service ultimately aims to prepare young people to defend the homeland and to take responsibility and contribute to peace in the world."

Source: Magharebia.
Link: http://www.magharebia.com/cocoon/awi/xhtml1/en_GB/features/awi/features/2011/06/16/feature-03.

Algeria passes budget law as public anger grows

ALGIERS — Algeria's parliament on Wednesday approved a budget law covering a raft of subsidies aimed at defusing mounting public discontent over jobs and high prices, a local report said.

An overwhelming majority of lawmakers voted in favor of the Complementary Financial Act 2011 in a session boycotted by the opposition Workers' Party, the APS news agency reported.

The act includes subsidies for buying consumer goods, boosting investment, job creation as well as tax reductions for small businesses.

The revised law hiked the operating budget by 25 percent to 4.3 billion Algerian dinars (43 billion euros, 61 billion dollars) from a draft bill.

It also increased capital investment by another 25 percent to 3.9 billion Algerian dinars.

Algeria has been rocked by protests and strikes over unemployment and soaring prices. The biggest riot so far claimed five lives and left at least 800 people wounded in mid-January.

President Abdelaziz Bouteflika in April pledged reforms before the end of the year including modifying the constitution and revising electoral law, as popular uprisings sweep through the Arab world against authoritarian regimes.

Nearly two-thirds of the assembly's 389 seats are filled with members of parties allied with the president. The Workers' Party counts just 26 seats.

Bahrain jails woman, 20, for reading poem

MANAMA, Bahrain, June 12 (UPI) -- Bahrain sentenced a young female poet to a year in prison Sunday for speaking at a protest rally.

Ayat al-Qormozi, 20, was convicted of reading a poem at a banned demonstration in February at the Pearl Roundabout in Manama, CNN reported.

"Freedom of speech in this country has its boundaries and cannot touch on the leadership, and cannot call for the overthrow of the government," said Sheik Abdul-Aziz bin Mubarak of the Information Ministry.

Al-Qormozi's poem "caused incitement and hatred to his majesty the king and to the prime minister" with lines such as "We are the people who will kill humiliation and assassinate misery," he said.

Amnesty International condemned the verdict.

Al-Qormozi was arrested March 30 after police threatened to kill her brothers if the family did not surrender her, relatives said. They say she has been tortured.

Meanwhile, authorities Sunday charged two former opposition legislators, Matar Matar and Jawad Fairooz, with "spreading malicious lies in an attempt to overthrow the government," Mubarak told CNN.

The men, who quit Parliament along with fellow opposition members to protest repression, pleaded not guilty and will be kept in jail until their next hearing.

Thousands attended a protest rally called by their party Saturday.

Source: United Press International (UPI).
Link: http://www.upi.com/Top_News/World-News/2011/06/12/Bahrain-jails-woman-20-for-reading-poem/UPI-26941307899852/.

Syrian army infighting in restive town: refugees

June 12, 2011

GUVECCI: Infighting has erupted among Syrian soldiers, and the Damascus regime has distributed weapons to the Alawite community in the flashpoint town of Jisr al-Shugur, Syrians at the Turkish border said Sunday.

“Right now they are attacking Jisr al-Shugur (northwest Syria) with tanks, helicopters and artillery,” said 27 year-old Ali, who obtained the information from people who fled the city Sunday and arrived at the Turkish border.

The Turkish border is only 40 kilometers (25 miles) from Jisr al-Shugur, which has been under heavy Syrian army attack for days.

“Now there is infighting among the soldiers and one group is trying to protect the civilians. They blew up two bridges in Jisr al-Shugur,” he said.

Ali, who met an AFP reporter on his way to the Turkish side of the border, usually used by smugglers, was going to buy food for his family waiting on the other side in Syria.

He said that the last residents of the Syrian villages under assault by Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s forces would soon head to the border.

“Those who stayed begin to leave as the army comes close. If soldiers approach, they will cross into Turkey,” he said.

More than 5,000 refugees have arrived in Turkey so far and were settled in camps erected by the Turkish Red Crescent. Thousands more flocked to the border line, hesitating to cross.

“But it is more difficult now to come near the Turkish border. Soldiers and plainclothes police prevent refugees’ cars from passing. We must work around secretly,” said 24-year-old Mohammed, who was on the same trail used by smugglers.

“Right now the regime arms all Alawite families. They give guns to every man above the age 15,” Mohammed said, referring to the Alawite religious group, an offshoot of the Shia community. The Assad family comes from the Alawite minority.

Mohammed’s account was interrupted by a Turkish soldier, tasked with preventing refugees from crossing into Turkey without official permission.

Hostile at first, the soldier later softened his tone and allowed two Syrian kids carrying loaves of bread cross into Syria.

“If there is danger, we will allow everyone in Turkey,” the soldier said.

“But Assad will never dare to send his army over here. Here is the Turkish army,” he said.

For now the Syrian army is totally absent in the border area, he added. “In 14 months I have not seen a single soldier on the other side of the border,” he said.

Syrian troops Sunday fought violent battles with “armed gangs” in Jisr Al-Shughur, Syrian state television said.

The army entered the town “after defusing dynamite placed on the bridges and roads by the armed groups,” the report said.

Syria’s Idlib province, which encompasses Jisr al-Shughur, has long been a hotbed of hostility towards the Assad regime.

Syrian troops have been conducting military operations in the area for days, following what the authorities said was the massacre of 120 policemen by “armed gangs” in the town on Monday.

Source: DAWN.
Link: http://www.dawn.com/2011/06/12/syrian-army-infighting-in-restive-town-refugees.html.

UAE recognizes Libya's Transitional National Council

June 12, 2011

Abu Dhabi: The UAE Sunday announced that it recognizes the Libyan Transitional National Council (TNC) as the legal and sole representative of the Libyan people.

The announcement was made by UAE Foreign Minister Shaikh Abdullah Bin Zayed Al Nahyan.

"This recognition comes out of the UAE’s keenness to its good relations with the Libyan people and its Arab commitment to Libya’s territorial unity and the future of its people,” Shaikh Abdullah said.

Shaikh Abdullah said the UAE will open a representative office in Benghazi soon.

General Shaikh Mohammad Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Abu Dhabi Crown Prince and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, Sunday received Mustafa Abdul Jalil, Head of the Libyan Transitional National Council (NTC) and his delegation.

They discussed the latest developments in the Libyan arena and ways to support aspirations of the Libyan people, as well as the outcome of the third meeting of Libya Contact Group, which was held recently in Abu Dhabi.

The meeting was attended by Shaikh Hamdan Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the Ruler’s Representative in the Western Region, and Shaikh Abdullah Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Foreign Minister, and other senior officials.

Abdul Jalil thanked the UAE, under the leadership of President His Highness Shaikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, for its great efforts and unlimited support extended to the Libyan people.

Source: Gulf News.
Link: http://gulfnews.com/news/gulf/uae/government/uae-recognises-libya-s-transitional-national-council-1.820876.