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Wednesday, December 21, 2011

Iraq's weak 'partners' deal of Green Zone government crumbles

2011-12-18

By Salam Faraj – BAGHDAD

Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki called on lawmakers on Sunday to withdraw confidence from one of his deputies, as the country's political crisis deepened as US forces completed their withdrawal.

Maliki's push for the ouster of Saleh al-Mutlak, a Sunni Arab who described him on television as "worse than Saddam Hussein", came a day after the deputy prime minister's Iraqiya bloc said it was boycotting parliament in protest at the premier's alleged centralization of power.

The latest moves come with the US military having completed its withdrawal from Iraq on Sunday morning, nearly nine years after the 2003 invasion that ousted Saddam from power.

"The prime minister sent an official letter to parliament, asking it to withdraw its confidence in Saleh al-Mutlak after his recent statements," Ali Mussawi, media adviser to Maliki, said.

Mutlak, who had been accused of being a supporter of Saddam's outlawed Baath party in the run-up to March 2010 elections that he was barred from standing in, told CNN on Tuesday that Washington was leaving Iraq "with a dictator".

And in a separate interview with his own Babiliyah satellite television channel, Mutlak charged: "Maliki is worse than Saddam Hussein, because the latter was a builder, but Maliki has done absolutely nothing."

Meanwhile, security officials said at least two guards of Vice President Tareq al-Hashemi, also a Sunni Arab and an Iraqiya member, were arrested in connection with a November 28 attack on parliament.

Local Iraqi news outlets reported that an arrest warrant had also been issued for Hashemi himself, but judicial and police officials declined to comment.

On Saturday, Iraqiya, which emerged as the largest bloc in March 2010 elections and has 82 lawmakers in the 325-seat parliament, issued a statement saying it was suspending its participation in parliament to protest what it said was Maliki's centralization of decision-making.

"We can no longer remain silent about the way the state is being administered, as it is plunging the country into the unknown," it said.

Iraqiya, which garnered most of its support from Iraq's Sunni Arab minority, was out-maneuvered for the premiership by Maliki, who, after finishing second in the elections, struck a deal with another grouping to broaden his power base and lead the government.

The bloc, which controls nine ministerial posts, has not pulled out of Iraq's national unity government, however.

Iraqiya said the government's actions, which it claimed included stationing tanks and armored vehicles outside the houses of its leaders in the heavily-fortified Green Zone, "drives people to want to rid themselves of the strong arm of central power as far as the constitution allows them to."

Provincial authorities in three Sunni-majority provinces north and west of Baghdad have all moved take up the option of similar autonomy to that enjoyed by Kurds in north Iraq, drawing an angry response from Maliki.

Key political issues such as reform of the mostly state-run economy and a law to regulate and organize the lucrative energy sector also remain unresolved, to say nothing of an explosive territorial dispute between Arabs and Kurds centered around the northern oil hub of Kirkuk.

Source: Middle East Online.
Link: http://www.middle-east-online.com/english/?id=49557.

Qatar embraces Wahhabism to strengthen regional influence

2011-12-18

DOHA - Qatari Emir Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani inaugurated on Friday the “ Imam Muhammad Ibn Abdul Wahhab” Mosque in Doha.

During the opening, Sheikh Hamad reaffirmed his commitment to spare no efforts to carry the message and spread the teachings of Islam in the whole world, noting that the Muslim nation is now in need of renewal and inspiration of the experience of Wahhab’s da’wah (call) while keeping pace with the era and its developments.

The inauguration started with a recitation of verses from the Holy Qur’an followed by the screening of a documentary on the mosque.

Ibn Abdul Wahab (1703-1792) preached a return to "pure Islam" and called for purging Islam of what he considered "impurities and negative innovations."

In his teachings, he urged Muslims to uphold only "the original principles of Islam as typified by the Salaf" and to reject "corruptions introduced by bidah (negative innovations and heresy). The scholar emphasized that there could be no intercession between God and worshipers.

Located in the Jubailat district of Doha the newly-built State Mosque will be formally opened for prayers on Friday.

Situated on the northern side in the central part of Doha city, it overlooks the Qatar Sports Club.

The mosque covers a total area of 175,164 sq.m. As many as 11,000 men can offer prayers in the air-conditioned central hall of the mosque and the adjacent special enclosure is spacious enough for 1200 women.

Ideologically, in recent years Qatar, which like Saudi Arabia is Wahhabi, has assisted Islamic movements in the Arab world.

Islamists, of course, have proved to be major players so far, and with influential clerics such as Sheikh Yusuf Qaradawi theologising for years on al-Jazeera's screens, Qatar has since long had a direct channel to most Islamist parties in the region.

Rather than imposing an Islamist agenda on the region, as some have accused it, Qatar is taking advantage of the clout it has built with them over the years to position itself as a leading interlocutor.

Equally at ease with Islamist and secular parties, with liberals and conservatives, Qatar is reaping what it sowed and patiently nurtured years ago, giving it enough political capital on top of its formidable wealth to influence the region.

Source: Middle East Online.
Link: http://www.middle-east-online.com/english/?id=49555.

Deadly clashes rock Cairo as Islamists rejoice in election lead

2011-12-19

By Samer al-Atrush - CAIRO

Muslim Brotherhood's Freedom, Justice party says it won 39 percent of votes, while Salafis claim more than 30 percent of votes.

Deadly clashes pitting troops and police against protesters rocked Cairo's political center for a third straight day on Sunday, overshadowing the count in the first post-revolution vote which shows Islamists in the lead.

At least 10 people were killed in the violence that also destroyed a historic library housing priceless archives.

The violence marred the count in the second round of a multi-stage election which saw a 67 percent turnout and in which the largest Islamist parties claimed victory.

The Muslim Brotherhood's Freedom and Justice party (FJP) said it won 39 percent of votes in the party lists, while the Al-Nur party, which represents the more hardline brand of Salafi Islam, claimed more than 30 percent of votes in the lists.

The ruling military, which took power when Hosni Mubarak was ousted in February, has decided on a complex election system in which voters cast ballots for party lists, which will comprise two thirds of the lower house of parliament, and for individual candidates for the remaining third.

"The FJP is definitely number one, we have come second," Al-Nur spokesman Mohammed Nur said.

In central Cairo, armed forces detained over 180 people including minors, the prosecutor's office said, as street battles raged outside parliament and government offices where protesters are demanding an end to military rule.

The clashes were the deadliest in weeks and have sparked a furious debate over the army's role during the transition.

Some argue that the protesters are sabotaging the elections, while others say the army is stalling in ceding power to a civilian authority.

Much remains unclear about how the new parliament will function and how much power it will be given by the Supreme Council of Armed Forces (SCAF), headed by Mubarak’s former defense minister Field Marshal Hussein Tantawi.

Demonstrators hurled stones and pieces of metal over a concrete wall erected by troops on a wide avenue leading from Tahrir Square to the seat of government, journalists reported.

By afternoon, troops retreated and riot police faced off with the protesters, who used metal sheets as barricades.

Men in civilian clothes on the roof of a building threw stones at protesters, who shot fireworks back.

Outrage flared as furious protesters brandished the front page of a local paper showing military police clubbing a veiled woman after having ripped her clothes to reveal her bra.

In the picture and YouTube footage of the incident, the woman is sprawled on the ground, helmeted troops towering over her. One is seen kicking her, and later she appears unconscious, her stomach bared and her bra showing.

Other pictures circulating on social media networks that have enraged protesters include one of a military policeman looming over a sobbing elderly woman with his truncheon.

More footage showed army troops beating two protesters, a man and woman, before leaving their motionless bodies on the ground.

The health ministry said late Saturday that 10 people had been killed and at least 500 wounded since Friday.

The clashes also left the Institute of Egypt in flames.

The center for the advancement of scientific research was founded in 1798 during Napoleon Bonaparte's expedition to Egypt, and contained more than 200,000 precious documents and manuscripts.

On Sunday, a group entered the premises to recover manuscripts, some of which were burned, correspondents said.

"We are trying to save whatever we can of these historic documents. The building can collapse any minute," said Olfa, clutching a bag of partly burned papers.

Culture Minister Shaker Abdel Hamid called the fire "a catastrophe for science."

"The building contained important manuscripts and rare books which have no parallel in the world," he said on state television late on Saturday.

The authorities have blamed the protesters for the deadly unrest.

The military council late on Saturday posted footage on its Facebook page and on YouTube of protesters ransacking a government office on Friday.

"Is it not our right to protect the people's property?" said a brief message.

Prime Minister Kamal al-Ganzuri raised tensions on Saturday by accusing the protesters of being counter-revolutionaries and denying security forces had opened fire on them.

"Those who are in Tahrir Square are not the youth of the revolution," he told reporters.

"This is not a revolution, but a counter-revolution," added Ganzuri, who also served as premier under Mubarak.

His appointment last month by the SCAF had prompted protesters to launch a sit-in outside the cabinet offices.

The demonstrators want the SCAF to hand over full powers to a civilian administration.

The military has said it will step down only once a president has been elected by the end of June in the final stage of a protracted transition.

The clashes pushed stocks down 3.46 percent on Sunday, with the main EGX-30 index plummeting to 3,782.74 points, the lowest since Mubarak was toppled.

More than 40 people were killed in similar clashes between protesters and security forces just before the election's first round in November.

Source: Middle East Online.
Link: http://www.middle-east-online.com/english/?id=49570.

North Korean leader Kim Jong-Il dead, youngest son hailed as heir

2011-12-19

By Jung Ha-Won – SEOUL

North Korean leader Kim Jong-Il has died aged 69 of a heart attack, state media announced Monday, plunging the nuclear-armed, famine-ridden and deeply isolated nation into a second dynastic succession.

Pyongyang urged people to rally behind Kim's youngest son Jong-Un, describing him as "great successor" to the leader who presided over the deaths of hundreds of thousands from hunger but still built an atomic arms arsenal.

State television, which delivered the shock news in a tearful announcement from a female news reader, aired footage from Pyongyang of hysterical North Koreans, young and old alike, pounding the ground in a display of abject grief.

South Korea put its military on emergency alert but urged its people to stay calm, and swiftly closed ranks with its close ally the United States. Analysts said there would likely be little turbulence in the North -- at least for now.

The leader "passed away from a great mental and physical strain" at 8:30 am on Saturday (2330 GMT Friday), while traveling by train on one of his field trips, the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said.

It urged people to support the Swiss-educated Kim Jong-Un, who is in his late 20s and was last year made a four-star general and given top ruling party posts despite having had no public profile.

"All party members, military men and the public should faithfully follow the leadership of comrade Kim Jong-Un and protect and further strengthen the unified front of the party, military and the public," the female announcer, clad in black, said on television.

KCNA said Kim died of a "severe myocardial infarction along with a heart attack". He suffered a stroke in August 2008 which triggered an acceleration in the succession plans.

Kim's funeral will be held on December 28 in Pyongyang but no foreign delegations will be invited, KCNA said. National mourning was declared from December 17 to 29.

"We must hold high the flag of songun (military-first) policy, strengthen military power a hundred times and firmly defend our socialist system and achievement of revolution," it said.

At the North Korean embassy in Beijing, the capital of its main ally China, the national flag was flying at half mast. China offered its "deep condolences".

North Korea's propaganda machine has rolled into action to build up the same personality cult for Jong-Un that surrounded his father and late grandfather Kim Il-Sung, the founder and "eternal leader" of North Korea who died in 1994.

"The North's top guys have already sorted out everything and the regime seems to be stable under the new leadership," said Paik Hak-Soon of Seoul's Sejong Institute.

"I don't expect any major turbulence or power struggle within the regime in the foreseeable future.

"The Kim Jong-Un era has already started."

Kim Jong-Il's only sister Kim Kyong-Hui and her husband Jang Song-Thaek, the country's unofficial number-two leader, are expected to act as the younger Kim's mentors and throw their weight behind the son's leadership.

Analysts stressed that North Korea was entering an uncertain period, although its senior figures were likely to stick closely together for now.

"The North Korean elite has a vested interest in maintaining the system and will assess Jong-Un's ability to protect its interests," said Bruce Klingner, a Northeast Asia expert at Washington's Heritage Foundation.

South Korea summoned a meeting of the National Security Council and President Lee Myung-Bak called an emergency cabinet meeting.

The Joint Chiefs of Staff said it had increased monitoring along the border along with US forces in the country but no unusual activity had been observed.

North and South Korea have remained technically at war since their three-year conflict ended only in an armistice in 1953. The United States stations 28,500 troops in the South.

Lee had a phone conversation with US President Barack Obama about two hours after Kim's death was announced at noon (0300 GMT), officials said.

"The president reaffirmed the United States' strong commitment to the stability of the Korean peninsula and the security of our close ally, the Republic of Korea," the White House said in a statement.

Japan, which has no diplomatic relations with North Korea, offered its condolences over the death but also called an emergency security meeting while Britain raised hope for a "turning point" in the hermit nation.

The news shocked South Koreans and some expressed fears of renewed conflict.

"I'm worried there will be a war. I thought it wasn't true at first," said student Song Bo-Na, 22.

KCNA, quoting a statement from the national funeral committee headed by Jong-Un, said Kim Jong-Il's body would lie in state in Kumsusan palace where his father's embalmed body is on display.

It said mourners would be allowed to visit from December 20 to 27.

Following the funeral, another event to mourn the leader would be held on December 29. Mourning shots are to be fired and three minutes of silence would be observed. All trains and ships will sound their horns.

Kim took over after his father and founding president Kim Il-Sung died in 1994, coming to power with a reputation as a playboy with a taste for the high life.

But in the mid- to late-1990s he presided over a famine which killed hundreds of thousands of his people. Severe food shortages continue and the UN children's fund estimates one-third of children are stunted by malnutrition.

Kim still found the resources to continue a nuclear weapons program which culminated in tests in October 2006 and May 2009. The country is believed to have a plutonium stockpile big enough for six to eight weapons.

Source: Middle East Online.
Link: http://www.middle-east-online.com/english/?id=49571.

Jordan's corruption hunt fails to satisfy 'skeptical' Islamists

2011-12-17

By Randa Habib – AMMAN

Jordan's King Abdullah II is spearheading an anti-corruption drive against figures once seen as "untouchable," but is failing to satisfy the powerful Islamist opposition's demands for sweeping reform.

The arrest on Tuesday of former Amman mayor Omar Maani on fraud charges, and a court's refusal to grant bail to a man once close to the monarch and Queen Rania are seen as evidence that the anti-graft campaign is serious.

The detention of Maani, who was mayor from 2006 until earlier this year, came after the king met with senior officials, MPs and members of the country's Anti-Corruption Commission to demand swift action.

"Citizens can no longer tolerate corruption. They want the corrupt who steal public funds punished. No one is above the law," the king told the meeting.

Pro-reform demonstrations, which the country has been witnessing since January, have not spared the king himself.

The palace recently issued a statement saying 4,827 dunums (each equivalent to 1,000 square meters) of state land were "registered to the king's name between 2000 and 2003," adding that "none of them has been sold."

Parliament then formed a committee to inquire into "records of public land registered to the names of influential people."

"The king's involvement demonstrates political will and Jordanians will be stunned by the way corruption will be tackled," Senate President Taher Masri said.

"The popular protests have been calling for months for corruption to be rooted out, and at one point, people felt the state was not serious about that. But things will change dramatically."

Prosecutors have summoned several former senior officials, including three prime ministers and a royal court chief, to testify in a corruption case, according to the government-owned Arabic daily Al-Rai.

Also, a travel ban has been imposed on dozens of prominent businessmen, said Anti-Corruption Commission chief Samih Bino.

The businessmen are reportedly suspected of involvement in the embezzlement of hundreds of millions of dollars of public funds.

But the measures taken have so far failed to satisfy the opposition Islamic Action Front (IAF), the political arm of Jordan's Muslim Brotherhood.

"Preliminary steps are being taken to tackle corruption, but they are not enough at all," Zaki Bani Rsheid, head of the IAF's political bureau, said.

"Fighting corruption requires genuine and serious political will, which is not available now," he added, warning against "attempts to thwart people's demands for real reform."

Bani Rsheid said: "Corruption files that have led to Jordan's political and economic crises have not been investigated yet.

"Corruption in Jordan is deeply rooted and enjoys the protection of parts of the regime," he added.

Jordan's external debt amounts to $18 billion, more than 65% of gross domestic product. It was $7 billion in 1999, when King Abdullah took the throne.

"These are bubbles here and there. There is no real strategy," said Mohammad Masri, a researcher at the University of Jordan's Center for Strategic Studies.

"A clear anti-corruption law should have preceded this campaign to help to restore people's trust in court decisions and refute claims that these measures are part of a witch-hunt."

Source: Middle East Online.
Link: http://www.middle-east-online.com/english/?id=49550.

Mujahideen eliminate death squads 'Black Hawks' ringleader in Kabardino-Balkarian capital

19 December 2011

Sources of the website ImamTv and IslamDin reported that a 36-year-old member of the invaders' gang "The Center E", or "The Center for Combating Extremism", of the main administration of the Russian police in the "North Caucasus federal district", colonel Lieutenant Vadim Sultanov, that had been eliminated in the village Khasanya on December 17, was also the ringleader of the notorious death squad of "people's avengers" - the "Black Hawks", which was actively promoted by Russian media and the FSB.

It is to be recalled that the "Black Hawks" project was launched by invaders to murder relatives of the Mujahideen, to terrorize Muslims and to carry out assassinations of Muslims, who were later proclaimed as "supporters of the militants".

In an interview to a reporter of Moscow REN TV, the "Black Hawks" repeatedly stated that they would kill family members of the Mujahideen. And Vadim Sultanov appears there on REN TV. There are other statements of the Black Hawks on the Internet.

It is to be recalled that back in March 2011 the Kavkaz Center published data of its own investigation into the appearance of the so-called "Black Hawks" on Russian television screens, which featured a fake "people's avenger" Vadim Sultanov...

Department of Monitoring
Kavkaz Center

Source: Kavkaz Center.
Link: http://kavkazcenter.com/eng/content/2011/12/19/15519.shtml.

Kim's death viewed with wary optimism

December 19, 2011 — BERLIN (AP) — North Korea's closest neighbors responded to the news of leader Kim Jong Il's death by bracing for possible destabilization in the region, while across the globe, other nations expressed cautious optimism that the change of leadership could provide an opportunity to usher in reforms.

North Korea's past erratic behavior made it difficult to predict the course that its newly named leader, Kim's 20-something son Kim Jong Un, would choose during the transition. Japan and South Korea quickly held emergency meetings, while China, a key North Korean ally, pledged continued support.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Ma Zhaoxu called the late Kim a "great leader" and said Beijing would continue to support its neighbor and make "active contributions to peace and stability on the Korean peninsula and in this region."

Kim's death was announced Monday by North Korean state television, two days after he died at age 69 of a heart attack. During his 17 years in power, Kim's pursuit of nuclear weapons and his military's repeated threats to South Korea and the U.S. stoked fears of military conflict or that North Korea might provide weapons of mass destruction to terrorist movements.

South Korea put its military on "high alert" and President Lee Myung-bak convened a national security council meeting. The Korean peninsula remains technically in a state of war more than 50 years after the Cold War-era armed conflict there ended in a cease-fire.

Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda held an emergency national security council with top Cabinet members soon after hearing the news. He expressed condolences and said Japan hoped Kim's death would not affect the region adversely.

"First of all we hope that this sudden development would not give adverse impact on the peace and stability of the Korean Peninsula," he said. The White House said it was in constant contact with South Korea and Japan, but offered no substantive comment on the implications of Kim's death, saying only that President Barack Obama "reaffirmed the United States' strong commitment to the stability of the Korean peninsula and the security of our close ally, the Republic of Korea."

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon is extended his sympathy to the people of North Korea, U.N. deputy spokesman Farhan Haq said. He added that Ban "reaffirms his commitment to peace and security on the Korean peninsula" and is closely following events.

China has long sought to convince North Korea of the need for economic reform, and Kim's death raises hopes that Pyongyang might now take heed of such advice, said Korea expert Lu Chao at China's Academy of Social Sciences in Liaoning province, which borders North Korea.

"There will definitely be change, good and positive change," Lu said. "North Korea will work more closely with the global community toward the peace and stability of the Korean Peninsula." China is also expected to take a strong behind-the-scenes role to help retain its influence, which is seen as important no matter which direction North Korea takes, said U.S. Naval Academy China scholar Yu Maochun.

"If North Korea continues to be an international pariah, China will continue to benefit from its current leverage," Yu said. "If North Korea becomes less intransigent and slightly more open, then China will be greatly worried about the possible warming-up, or even reunification, between North and South Koreas."

The news jolted financial markets in Asia, raising the specter of more instability. But after Asian indexes closed lower, European stocks recovered their poise. Germany's DAX rose 0.8 percent to 5,747 and Paris' CAC 40 index rose 1 percent to 3,001. Britain's FTSE was flat at 5,388. Wall Street opened higher, with the Dow up 0.2 percent.

Moscow said it hoped for continued good relations with Pyongyang. "We have friendly relations with North Korea," Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said, according to the RIA Novosti news agency. "We hope that this loss that the Korean people have suffered will not have a negative impact on the development of our relations."

Australia's Foreign Minister Kevin Rudd said Kim's death brings the situation to "one of those critical junctures" and "an exceptionally difficult period of transition." "It is critical that everybody exercises appropriate calm and restraint in what is a important development in terms of the overall stability of the region and the security of us all," Rudd said.

Britain's Foreign Secretary William Hague expressed his condolences, but added "this could be a turning point for North Korea." "We hope that their new leadership will recognize that engagement with the international community offers the best prospect of improving the lives of ordinary North Korean people," Hague said in a statement, encouraging the country to resume international talks on its nuclear capabilities.

Germany's Foreign Ministry said it viewed the new leadership as an opportunity for change, spokesman Dirk Augustin told reporters. "We have clear demands to North Korea: It must abandon its nuclear program; the catastrophic situation of the people must improve; and political and economical reforms must be implemented," Augustin said.

Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez expressed condolences and "his sincerest sorrow" at Kim's death, his government said in a statement. Chavez has maintained friendly ties with North Korea. The Venezuelan government said it stands in solidarity with the North Korean people at "the loss of their leader, while having complete confidence in the ability of Koreans to guide their own future toward prosperity and peace."

With so many questions in the air at the moment, most countries are waiting to see what comes next. "The death of a dictator is always a period of uncertainty for a dictatorship," said Swedish Foreign Minister Carl Bildt on Twitter. "And North Korea is the hardest dictatorship in our time."

Associated Press Writer David Rising and other writers around the world contributed to this report.

Wukan Villagers Step Up Protest in Face of Police Blockade

By Tang Ming
December 15, 2011

Chinese from Wukan Village, a hamlet of 20,000 that is now surrounded by paramilitary forces, have stepped up their protests, calling for a gathering in Beijing and holding a rally against corruption.

The Wukan Village in southern China that has been taking care of itself since Monday after it kicked out Communist Party representatives was besieged by police on Dec. 14. Now villagers and the authorities are in a standoff. The latter has set up a blockade, allowing neither entry nor exit for supplies, food, and water. The tensions that led to the current impasse have been simmering for three months.

Wukan residents who currently study and work in other places in China have announced plans to launch an appeal, or protest, in Beijing on Dec. 21, according to Mr. Chen, a village resident reached by telephone, in an interview with The Epoch Times.

“The 20,000 Wukan people that are contained by police are facing a crisis of survival. I represent all the villagers and call for people across all of society to gather in Beijing on December 21,” Chen said. “I hope all Chinese will join in this righteous act, in helping support the Wukan villagers!”

Over 30 people have already arrived in Beijing for that purpose, he said.

Further, on the afternoon of Dec. 15 villagers held a rally, yelling slogans including, “Down with corruption!” and “Blood debts must be paid with blood!”

Chen said that while Chinese media has come to the village, its reports have not been honest. Instead it has served to spread Chinese regime propaganda related to the standoff and the official violence associated with it. He said that villagers have felt a sense of helplessness, seeing the false information circulated across China.

The beginnings of the current dispute can be traced back to September, when villagers became frustrated by land grabs orchestrated by local officials. Protests by residents led to crackdowns by police, which then met with a robust counterresponse, including police cars being overturned and Communist Party buildings being ransacked.

After driving out communist operatives, villagers set up their own groups: a “Villagers’ Provisional Council” and a “Women’s Representative Union,” to safeguard their rights and coordinate mediation with the Party.

On Nov. 21, several thousand villagers marched to the Lufeng City government for a sit-in demonstration with banners reading among other things, “Anti-dictatorship.”

The situation escalated about a week ago. On Dec. 9, Lufeng City authorities determined that all the organizations established by the villagers were “illegal,” and arrested five representatives.

In the early hours of the morning on Dec. 11, more than a thousand fully armed policemen prepared for another round of arrests—and were again met with angry villagers wielding makeshift weapons.

That night, one of the villager’s five representatives who had been arrested, Xue Jinbo, died in police custody. He, along with the others captured, were tortured, according to villagers.

Some were forced to sign “confession” documents admitting to working with “foreign forces” to “incite” local residents, a propaganda line frequently deployed by Communist Party authorities in similar circumstances, in an attempt to delegitimize popular discontent.

On Dec. 14, the regime announced autopsy results from the Zhongshan University forensic center claiming, “No signs of external injuries were found” on the body of Xue Jinbo.

However, when the man’s family went to the hospital to claim his body on the evening of Dec. 12, they found that he had widespread bruising, his head was misshapen, his face swollen, his fingernails had been removed, and that a number of his bones had been fractured. Family members were not permitted to take his body home or take pictures.

Xue’s death further infuriated locals, who established a funeral hall and began mourning. They attempted to leave the village to protest, but were blocked by police.

One resident uploaded a video to Sina Weibo showing over 10,000 villagers yelling, “blood for blood,” and “give back the body.” Some wept, while others tugged on the clothing of a reporter, asking for help.

Local communist authorities announced on Dec. 14 that the relevant CCP secretary will be investigated. But the standoff continues: A large number of riot police, with armored vehicle support, are assembled on the outskirts of the village, awaiting Communist Party orders.

It is yet unclear what will happen next, but the historical precedent does not bode well. Less than an hour’s travel from Wukan lays the village of Dongzhou. In late 2005 a protest there was violently suppressed by authorities, who opened fire on villagers, killing dozens of them. Police are reported to have approached unarmed people who were lying on the ground after being wounded by police gunfire, and shooting them dead. They are also reported to have burned some of the bodies to destroy evidence. A campaign of pro-Communist Party saturation propaganda followed.

Kuwait frees detainees in return for vow not to protest again

2011-12-18

KUWAIT CITY - Kuwait authorities on Sunday released 20 stateless people arrested two days earlier during a protest that was forcefully dispersed by riot police, a judicial source said.

The release came as another group of the so-called bidoon went on trial in connection with similar protests earlier this year and were charged with illegal assembly with the intent to commit crimes.

The men who were freed had been arrested on Friday when hundreds of stateless people, known as bidoon, demonstrated in Jahra area northwest of Kuwait City demanding citizenship and other basic rights.

Two teenagers were among those freed after they were made to pledge that they will not take part in protests in the future, the source said on condition of anonymity.

The 17 bidoons denied any wrongdoing at the start of their trial, during which they were also charged with assaulting security forces.

They are among a group of 52 stateless people facing trial on similar charges in Kuwait.

A first group of 31 stateless people were charged last Monday with illegal assembly and assaulting police during demonstrations earlier this year to demand citizenship and other basic rights.

Mubarak al-Shemmari, one of several lawyers who volunteered to defend them, said last week that the defendants face between three to five years in jail if the charges were proven.

He however described the whole case as "politically motivated" because no crime was committed and authorities could not provide any substantial evidence.

A trial for four others started on Wednesday.

All of the defendants are free on bail.

Under Kuwaiti law, only citizens have the right to hold public gatherings.

A number of Kuwaiti political groups and activists called for a gathering in Jahra on Monday in support of stateless people.

The interior ministry threatened that it will not allow such demonstrations to proceed anywhere in the kingdom.

Former MPs and political groups have warned the government against what they called "repressive" measures against bidoons and urged a peaceful and humanitarian solution to their problem.

Kuwait launched a crackdown on the estimated 100,000 bidoons in 2000, depriving them of health care, education and jobs.

The stateless claim they are Kuwaiti citizens who have been denied nationality. The Kuwaiti government meanwhile insists that a large number of them hold nationalities of other countries.

The wealthy Gulf state, which considers bidoons illegal residents, has said that it is studying the issue of the stateless carefully and is prepared to grant citizenship to those deemed deserving.

Source: Middle East Online.
Link: http://www.middle-east-online.com/english/?id=49568.

Mayhem erupts in Egypt as ruling military crushes protests

2011-12-18

By Christophe de Roquefeuil - CAIRO

New clashes erupt, overshadowing count in second phase of first general election since Mubarak's ouster.

Violence raged in the administrative heart of Egypt's capital on Saturday as troops and police deployed in force after clashes with protesters against continued military rule left nine people dead.

Smoke billowed over Tahrir Square, the iconic focus of the protest movement that overthrew veteran president Hosni Mubarak in February, after two nearby government offices caught fire, a correspondent said.

Demonstrators pelted security forces with rocks and petrol bombs as they fought running battles in the streets around the square and an adjacent bridge across the River Nile.

Prime Minister Kamal al-Ganzuri raised tensions by accusing the protesters of being counter-revolutionaries and denying security forces had opened fire as they broke up a sit-in against his nomination last month outside the cabinet office.

Troops and police moved to retake control of the area around the office early on Saturday, erecting razor-wire barriers.

But after several hours of calm, new clashes erupted, overshadowing the count in the second phase of the first general election since Mubarak's ouster.

And in the evening several thousand people gathered by a wall of concrete blocks near Tahrir Square erected by the security forces.

Small groups of youths lobbed stones over the wall and security forces retaliated by throwing stones and firecrackers at the protesters, correspondents said.

Seventeen people arrested in connection with the unrest were remanded in custody for four days.

Also on Saturday, 11 members of a civilian council set up in November to advise the military after anti-army demonstrations resigned in protest at the casualties, the vice president of the 30-member body said.

"We made recommendations yesterday (Friday) but today we were surprised that not only were they not implemented, but there were further casualties," said Abul Ela Madi, who also heads the moderate Islamist Wasat party.

After the resignations the military rulers expressed "regret," the official MENA news agency reported.

Friday's fighting, which raged from dawn well into the night, was the bloodiest since five days of protests in November killed more than 40 people just before the first round of the phased parliamentary election.

Health Minister Fuad al-Nawawi said nine people were killed in the latest violence and 361 wounded, MENA reported on Saturday.

One of the dead was Emad Effat, a senior cleric in the government-run Dar al-Ifta, the official interpreter of Islamic law, the institution said in a statement published by MENA.

Footage posted on YouTube showed the bloodied cleric lying on the street before protesters carried him away.

"The people demand the execution of the field marshal," the demonstrators chanted in reference to Hussein Tantawi, head of the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF), which took over following Mubarak's ouster.

State television reported that Tantawi, in a gesture apparently aimed at mollifying protesters, ordered that wounded civilians be treated at military hospitals which are better equipped.

Pictures of a military policeman grabbing a woman by her hair and of another looming over a sobbing elderly lady with his truncheon quickly circulated on social networking site Twitter, enraging activists.

But at a news conference on Saturday, Ganzuri accused the protesters of being counter-revolutionaries and denied that security forces had opened fire.

"Those who are in Tahrir Square are not the youth of the revolution," he said.

"This is not a revolution, but a counter-revolution," added Ganzuri, who also served as premier under Mubarak.

He said 18 people had been wounded by gunfire on Friday and, without elaborating, blamed "infiltrators" who he said "do not want the best for Egypt."

It was the SCAF's nomination of Ganzuri as premier on November 27 that prompted the protesters to launch their sit-in outside the cabinet offices. They continued it after his interim government was sworn in on December 7.

The demonstrators want the military to hand power immediately to a civilian administration with full powers.

France on Saturday denounced the use of force against protesters.

"France is worried about the violent incidents that have taken place on Tahrir Square in Cairo," a foreign ministry statement said, adding that Paris "denounces the violence and excessive use of force against protesters."

The military has said it will step down only once a president has been elected by the end of June in the final stage of a protracted transition.

The count continued on Saturday in the second stage of elections for the lower house of parliament. A third stage next month will be followed by a similar three-phase election to the upper house before the presidential vote.

As in the first phase last month, Islamist parties had a commanding lead over the liberals in the second stage, according to initial results cited by state media.

The Muslim Brotherhood's Freedom and Justice Party condemned "the assault on protesters and the attempt to disperse them."

Leading secularist Mohamed ElBaradei, the former UN nuclear watchdog chief turned dissident and presidential candidate, condemned what he called a "savage" attempt to disperse the sit-in.

Source: Middle East Online.
Link: http://www.middle-east-online.com/english/?id=49553.

Beastly puppet regime in Kazakhstan slaughters peaceful oil workers

18 December 2011

At least 14 people killed since the puppet regime in Kazakhstan started violence on Friday against peaceful protesters on Friday. The local dictator declared the state of emergency.

The violence started after the protesting oil workers toppled a Christmas tree and sound equipment

Police in Kazakhstan's central city of Shetpe have opened fire and killing one person, raising the death toll since violence erupted on Friday to 14.

A statement from the illegal "prosecutor general's office" said on Sunday the violence occurred on Saturday in Shetpe, in the same region as the city of Zhanaozen where 13 workers were killed by police two days earlier.

Zhanaozen has been the site of a sit-in by oil workers seeking higher wages. Many of those workers were fired over the summer.

The prosecutor general said a group of people in Shetpe, a train station about 100km from the regional center Aktau on the Caspian sea, stopped a train with 300 passengers and called for support of mass protests.

Police opened fire, wounding 12 people, the statement said. The total number wounded since the violence began is estimated to be around 100.

Nursultan Nazarbayev, the bloody Kazakh dictator, has declared a 20-day state of emergency in Zhanaozen. The thug tolerates little dissent and puts stability of his illegal regime before Democratic freedoms.

On Sunday morning, around 500 angry protesters gathered near Concord Square of Aktau, a city of 160,000 people on the Caspian sea, some 2,600km southwest of the capital Astana.

Braving biting frost, they faced a large force of black-clad riot police holding shields, a Reuters correspondent reported from the scene. Some policemen were armed with automatic rifles. "Take the troops out of Mangistau!" read a long banner in Kazakh held by a dozen protesters.

One protester, Sarsekesh Bairbekov, said he had been fired by oil firm Karazhanbasmunai (KBM) in May. "I worked there for 20 years. I was a welder and lost an eye," the 58-year-old said.

His wage was $ 810 before he was fired. KBM is jointly owned by London-listed KazMunaiGas Exploration Production and CITIC, China's biggest state investment company.

"We want them to take away the troops," Bairbekov said, referring to the state of emergency imposed in Zhanaozen after the riots. "They killed local people," he added, still wearing maroon-and-blue KBM overalls.

Many protesters called into question the official death toll announced after the riots in Zhanaozen.

One oil worker, who declined to be named, said he had just visited a blood donor center in Aktau. "It is working round-the-clock. If only 10 people were killed, why is it working round-the-clock?" he asked, referring to the initial death toll.

Nurlan Mukhanov, deputy chief doctor at the Mangistau regional hospital in Aktau, said the "majority" of victims had "gunshot wounds". "We should be ready for any situation," he said.

The clashes have soured national celebrations marking the 20th anniversary of independence from Russia and unnerved a government focused on stability of its bloody regime.

Source: Agencies

Kavkaz Center

Source: Kavkaz Center.
Link: http://kavkazcenter.com/eng/content/2011/12/18/15518.shtml.

Cairo erupts in second day of junta violence

17 December 2011

Egyptian puppet soldiers with batons charged into Tahrir Square, beating peaceful protesters and burning tents on the second day of military junta violence against anti-military demonstrations in the capital.

The renewed slaughter in Cairo on Saturday came as Egypt's health ministry reported nine peaceful protesters were murdered and more than 350 others injured since Friday when soldiers stormed an anti-military protest camp outside the parliament building, a short distance from Tahrir.

Soldiers stormed into Tahrir Square on Saturday and cleared the area as thick black smoke filled the skies following the eruption of a fire in the area around Egypt's upper house of parliament.

These are very nasty and such ugly scenes that we have witnessed for ourselves in downtown Cairo, local witnesses say.

"This is real violence that we have seen against the protesters, unarmed protesters being beaten by the military police and the soldiers."

The situation had calmed down over the last few hours: "Those protesters that had left the main square after the storming by the military are now dispersing and are not trying anymore to get back in the square.

"We have a situation where the military police and the military soldiers are securing Tahrir Square themselves. Also on the periphery, they are trying to make sure that no one who wants to get back in gets back in. That seems to be their main objective right now, to get people out and to make sure that the whole area does not become re-occupied, as they put it," a witness added.

The violence highlights tensions in Egypt 10 months after a popular revolt toppled bloody dictator and Mossad agent Hosni Mubarak. The army generals who replaced him have angered Egyptians by reluctance to give up power.

The protests began after images were published online of the badly bruised face of an activist, who said he had been detained by military police at a sit-in outside cabinet the previous day and beaten.

The news infuriated protesters, who set military cars alight and threw stones at puppet security forces.

Security forces responded by storming the camp, beating demonstrators with sticks and hurling chunks of concrete from the roof of the parliament building.

"Very ugly scenes witnessed here throughout the day, including scenes of men in uniform perched on the rooftops of buildings, throwing whatever they can lay their hands on on peaceful protesters, including sheets of glass, bottles, rocks and at one point even furniture", correspondents reported on Friday.

Protesters have been occupying the area in front of the cabinet office for more than two weeks, preventing puppet cabinet from meeting there. They are demanding that the country's "supreme council of the armed forces (SCAF)" immediately cede authority to a civilian government.

The junta used tear gas and live ammunition against peaceful protesters.
Source: Agencies

Kavkaz Center

Source: Kavkaz Center.
Link: http://kavkazcenter.com/eng/content/2011/12/17/15510.shtml.

South Korean military on alert after Kim's death

Dec 19, 2011

Seoul - The South Korean military went on emergency alert Monday after the death of North Korean leader Kim Jong Il was announced by state television, a news report said.

South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff ordered all military units on emergency alert after news was released about the death Saturday of the leader of its neighbor and foe, South Korea's Yonhap News Agency reported.

The two Koreas remain technically at war after the 1950-53 Korean War ended with an armistice and not a peace treaty.

Relations have been tense over the North's nuclear program, its bombardment in November 2010 of a South Korean border island and the sinking of a South Korean warship in March 2010 that Seoul blamed on Pyongyang. It denied the accusations.

The Joint Chiefs of Staff said monitoring of the Korean border had been stepped up by South Korean and US forces. Officials told Yonhap that no unusual activity had been observed.

Source: Monsters and Critics.
Link: http://www.monstersandcritics.com/news/asiapacific/news/article_1681560.php/South-Korean-military-on-alert-after-Kim-s-death.

Kim's funeral to be held next week in Pyongyang

Dec 19, 2011

Seoul - The funeral of North Korean leader Kim Jong Il is to be held December 28 in Pyongyang, the state news agency reported Monday.

A period of mourning was also declared through December 29 for the 'Dear Leader,' who ruled his country with an iron fist and who, according to the Korean Central News Agency, died Saturday of a heart attack brought on by 'great mental and physical strain.'

Source: Monsters and Critics.
Link: http://www.monstersandcritics.com/news/asiapacific/news/article_1681562.php/Kim-s-funeral-to-be-held-next-week-in-Pyongyang.

Turnout reaches 67 per cent in Egyptian second round voting

Dec 18, 2011

Cairo - Turnout in the second round of voting in Egypt's parliamentary elections reached 67 per cent, with most constituencies expecting run-off votes, elections officials said Sunday.

More than 12 million citizens cast their ballots on Wednesday and Thursday in nine of the country's 27 provinces.

The turnout was higher than that of the first round, in November, estimated by the High Elections Commission at 60 per cent. A final round, with the remaining nine provinces, has been set for January.

The head of the commission, Abdel Moez Ibrahim, said that there were fewer irregularities than in the first round.

'The negative aspects declined, which means we are moving forward,' Ibrahim told a press conference in Cairo.

The three-stage vote is Egypt's first since former president Hosny Mubarak was deposed in February.

There will be a run-off in most of the constituencies next Wednesday, as very few candidates got over 51 per cent of the votes.

Voters will choose between the two candidates who got the highest number of votes in the first round.

Two-thirds of the new parliament's 498 seats are allocated to parties, with the remainder earmarked for independent candidates.

Official results of the party lists were postponed until the end of voting.

However, preliminary results showed that Islamist parties were leading the vote count in the second round.

As in the first round, the Freedom and Justice Party, the political arm of the influential Muslim Brotherhood, was ahead in most of the nine province.

The runner-up is Al-Nour, a hardline Salafist party, the state-run Al-Ahram newspaper reported, without giving figures.

The two parties have made big gains over a liberal alliance known as the Egyptian Bloc.

Full results from all three rounds are due to be announced by mid-January.

Three other rounds from late January until March will be held to elect the less powerful upper house of parliament.

Source: Monsters and Critics.
Link: http://www.monstersandcritics.com/news/middleeast/news/article_1681513.php/Turnout-reaches-67-per-cent-in-Egyptian-second-round-voting.

Israel completes second stage of prisoner swap with Hamas

Dec 18, 2011

Tel Aviv - The second stage of an Israel-Hamas prisoner swap was completed Sunday, as Israel released 550 Palestinian prisoners into the Palestinian territories and Jordan.

The prisoners began crossing over from Israel at 2000 GMT.

Hundreds of supporters and relatives, singing, dancing and waving Palestinian flags, were waiting at Palestinian Authority headquarters in Ramallah, where the vast majority of the prisoners were to be dropped off. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas was not scheduled to make any address, because he had left for Jordan.

A bus carrying 41 prisoners made its way from the Kerem Shalom crossing point into Gaza City.

Two other prisoners from Jordan were to cross the border with Israel's eastern neighbor via the Allenby Bridge over the River Jordan. Another two were being released in East Jerusalem.

A spokesman for the Hamas armed wing told a news conference in Gaza City that Sunday's release completed the prisoner exchange, whereby Israel freed a total of 1,027 Palestinian prisoners in return for a soldier held captive in Gaza for more than five years.

Hours before the release got underway, hundreds of Palestinians clashed with Israeli soldiers at a central West Bank checkpoint. They were among the crowd gathered at Beitunia, south-west of Ramallah, anxiously awaiting their relatives who were being freed.

Tempers ran high, and, when youths began pushing the nearby security fence and throwing rocks, soldiers fired tear gas and stun grenades, witnesses said. An Israeli military spokeswoman said some of the protesters lobbed firebombs.

Several people were injured after inhaling tear gas.

Israel Prison Service (IPS) spokeswoman Sivan Weizman said that 55 of those to be freed Sunday were minors, ages 14-17, having apparently been held for up to 18 months for throwing stones and firebombs.

The prisoners included six women, the IPS said.

None of the prisoners released Sunday was serving a life term. Most are members of the armed wing of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas' Fatah movement.

Many were sentenced for attacks that caused no major casualties. Palestinian Prisoner Affairs Minister Issa Karakeh expressed disappointment that Israel picked prisoners for the second stage who had only a few months left to serve.

'Hamas should have paid attention to the second group like the first, and should not have left it up to Israel to decide who to release,' he said.

A count carried out by dpa from the list published by Israel found that around half the prisoners freed Sunday were scheduled to have been released by the first half of 2012.

In the first stage, carried out on October 18, Israel released 477 Palestinian militants, many serving multiple life sentences, in return for Gilad Shalit, an Israeli soldier held hostage for more than five years by the Islamist movement, which rules Gaza.

Under the Egyptian-mediated deal, Hamas hand-picked many of the names freed in the first stage, while Israel decided who to release in the second round. Ahead of the exchange, all 550 prisoners had been moved Thursday to two central facilities, one near Tel Aviv and another at a military base outside Ramallah.

Because of the late hour of the release, no immediate mass celebrations were planned in the West Bank and Gaza.

Hamas had welcomed the first wave with a huge reception in a Gaza City park; the second wave includes no members of the Islamist movement, residents said.

Families had driven to Ramallah from other cities across the West Bank, waiting anxiously for the arrival of their relatives.

Israel's High Court of Justice late Saturday rejected petitions against the release, filed by relatives of Israelis killed in attacks by Palestinian militants, Israel Radio reported.

The court ruled that the issue had political and security ramifications and therefore was a government decision in which it would not intervene.

A military spokeswoman, asked by dpa, said 330 Palestinians had been arrested on security-related charges since October 18, but roughly as many had gone free.

Some 4,250 Palestinians in Israeli prisons for security-related offenses, the IPS said. That is down from almost 5,300 before the Shalit deal.

Source: Monsters and Critics.
Link: http://www.monstersandcritics.com/news/middleeast/news/article_1681532.php/Israel-completes-second-stage-of-prisoner-swap-with-Hamas.

Prisoners cross into Palestinian territory

Dec 18, 2011

Ramallah - Buses carrying Palestinian prisoners crossed into freedom through a West Bank checkpoint Sunday night, as Israel implemented the second phase of an exchange with the Islamist movement Hamas.

Source: Monsters and Critics.
Link: http://www.monstersandcritics.com/news/middleeast/news/article_1681529.php/Prisoners-cross-into-Palestinian-territory.

Education strike to hit Algeria

2011-12-18

Algeria's National Union of Education Workers (SNTE) plans to mount a one-week strike on Monday (December 19th), El Watan quoted the union's national co-ordinator, Ben Medour Nadjib, as saying. The union told members to prepare for a prolonged campaign, including hunger strikes, and will continue the action if the education ministry fails to meet their demands. The union's demands include a variety of increases in compensation, benefits, and working conditions.

Source: Magharebia.
Link: http://www.magharebia.com/cocoon/awi/xhtml1/en_GB/features/awi/newsbriefs/general/2011/12/18/newsbrief-04.

Tunisia marks revolution anniversary

2011-12-18

Tunisia commemorated on Saturday (December 17th) the anniversary of the death of Mohamed Bouazizi that ignited the revolution, TAP reported. A statue was raised in Sidi Bouzid, where the 26-year-old street vendor set himself ablaze after a row with a policewoman, to protest abuses under the regime of president Zine El Abidine Ben Ali – sparking a revolt that ousted the strongman less than a month later.

"Thank you to this land, which has been marginalized for centuries, for bringing dignity to the entire Tunisian people," said newly-elected President Moncef Marzouki before tens of thousands of people gathered in Sidi Bouzid.

During his visit, Marzouki met representatives of a group of unemployed graduates in the region to hear their proposed solutions to the region's labor problems.

Source: Magharebia.
Link: http://www.magharebia.com/cocoon/awi/xhtml1/en_GB/features/awi/newsbriefs/general/2011/12/18/newsbrief-03.

Nations unfreeze Libyan assets

2011-12-18

The UN Security Council on Friday (December 16th) lifted sanctions on Libya's central bank and related Libyan Foreign Bank, in order to help the country deal with a cash crisis, Tripoli Post reported. The bank's assets were frozen as part of sanctions imposed by the UN on Moamer Kadhafi's regime in February.

"Libya's government will now have full access to the significant funds needed to help rebuild the country, to underpin stability and to ensure that Libyans can make the transactions that are essential to everyday life," UK foreign secretary William Hague said, adding that Britain would release $10 billion in assets frozen there.

Source: Magharebia.
Link: http://www.magharebia.com/cocoon/awi/xhtml1/en_GB/features/awi/newsbriefs/general/2011/12/18/newsbrief-01.

Morocco government talks in final stages

Morocco is only hours away from announcing a new government but the prime minister remains tight-lipped over who will assume key posts.

By Siham Ali for Magharebia in Rabat – 18/12/11

Morocco's ruling party is about to name new ministers. The Justice and Development Party (PJD) held a national council on Saturday (December 17th) where the nomination process took off.

While party leaders declined to comment on the make-up of the new government, Prime Minister Abdelilah Benkirane assured that merit would be the only criterion.

"I will never favor a member of my party over an independent politician who is more capable than he is," Benkirane said. "This is our culture within the PJD."

The coalition partners on Friday signed a charter, which sets out their commitment to the new constitution with regard to civil liberties and rights. They also vowed to uphold the homogeneity of the government team. A committee will be created to co-ordinate the work of ministers and a parliamentary body will be in charge of the activities of the governing coalition.

The final structure of the government will be made public after King Mohammed VI approves the nominees proposed by Benkirane.

It will include no more than 30 ministries, Benkirane said at a December 12th press briefing in Rabat. The only confirmed nomination is that of the president of the Chamber of Representatives. Outgoing Public Works Minister Abdelkarim Ghellab was picked for the post; a vote on his nomination will take place on December 19th.

The prime minister has repeatedly stated that he wants the coalition partners to pick young and competent people.

According to well-placed sources, however, the new government formation will not be entirely different from the old one.

Some ministries will be merged, such as Culture and Communication. Others will be split, including the Ministry of Agriculture and Marine Fishing. It will be divided into three portfolios: fishing, agriculture and rural development. The interior ministry will be split into two departments: local development and the interior.

Some speculate that Popular Movement General-Secretary Mohand Laenser is a possible candidate for the post of the interior minister. The party hopes to take control of five ministries, according to Mohamed Fadili, a member of its political bureau. It particularly seeks portfolios that will give it control over rural affairs.

Istiqlal General-Secretary and outgoing Prime Minister Abbas El Fassi said that his party hoped to obtain seven or eight ministerial portfolios, including public works.

"But everything will depend on the structure of the government," he commented.

Meanwhile, the Party of Progress and Socialism (PPS) hopes to secure ministries that will put them in contact with citizens, General-Secretary Nabil Ben Abdellah said. The PPS now only seeks posts of a political nature.

Source: Magharebia.
Link: http://www.magharebia.com/cocoon/awi/xhtml1/en_GB/features/awi/features/2011/12/18/feature-01.

Renewable Energy to be Fastest Growing Market in Malaysia

Hartford CT (SPX)
Dec 19, 2011

Global Information (GII) presents "Global Solar Power Market" by Frost and Sullivan. The implementation of feed-in-tariff (FiT) policy will bring the required momentum to accelerate solar PV market growth in Malaysia. Malaysia aims to become the second largest producer in solar manufacturing by 2020 and is emerging as the favored country for new PV manufacturing units.

Investments in solar PV power projects for 2012 is estimated at US$72 million, a 194% growth over 2011 and close to 12 MW of solar PV power is to be added in 2012, a massive year-on-year increase of 242.9%.

According to Ravi Krishnaswamy, Vice President of Energy and Power Systems, Frost and Sullivan Asia Pacific, banks are actively considering large-scale solar power projects as the next wave of investment option as they are well-equipped to understand risks better now.

Government support through a subsidy rationalization program that gradually removes subsidies from items such as fuel, gas, electricity and tolls bring their rates close to market rate, making solar power look less expensive in the long term.

"Falling global prices for PV modules could also aid the growth of grid connected solar market in Malaysia," he said.

Conventional Power and Utility will remain the Largest Market
The shortage of gas will continue till Q3 2012 and is expected to get better after the commissioning of Malaccas regasification project.

Krishnaswamy commented, "However the recently agreed cost sharing mechanism between TNB, Petronas and the Malaysian government, will alleviate TNBs position. TNB will be looking to diversify its source of power in order to overcome supply challenges with any one fuel source."

"Approval for tariff hikes in tandem with gas price increase will help TNB to strengthen its financial performance and thus focus on investments in other areas of value chain including transmission and distribution," he continued.

The market for electrical equipment will remain strong with the transformers and switchgears segment alone representing a US$520 million market in Malaysia for 2012.

Malaysian companies including GLCs and private ones will actively look for investment opportunities in power sector in Southeast Asia and South Asia.

Source: Solar Daily.
Link: http://www.solardaily.com/reports/Renewable_Energy_to_be_Fastest_Growing_Market_in_Malaysia_999.html.

Solar power development in US Southwest could threaten wildlife

Washington DC (SPX)
Dec 19, 2011

Government agencies are considering scores of applications to develop utility-scale solar power installations in the desert Southwest of the United States, but too little is known to judge their likely effects on wildlife, according to an article published in the December 2011 issue of BioScience.

Although solar power is often seen as a "green" energy technology, available information suggests a worrisome range of possible impacts. These concern wildlife biologists because the region is a hotspot of biodiversity and includes many endangered or protected species, notably Agassiz's desert tortoise. It and another tortoise, Morafka's, dig burrows that shelter many other organisms.

The article, by Jeffrey E. Lovich and Joshua R. Ennen of the US Geological Survey's Southwest Biological Science Center, notes that solar energy facilities are poised for rapid development and could cover hundreds of thousands of hectares.

Assessments of their effects should count both onsite and offsite effects and include construction and decommissioning as well as the operational phase, the authors point out. Yet there are to date almost no peer-reviewed studies on the impacts of solar installations specifically.

The authors' initial attempt to catalog the foreseeable effects draws attention to habitat fragmentation caused by roads and power lines, which could restrict gene flow, as well as the production of large amounts of dust through ground-disturbance.

Solar plants are also expected to release pollutants such as dust suppressants, rust suppressants, and antifreeze, both in routine operation as well as through spills. They will predictably generate heat, electromagnetic fields, noise, polarized light, and possibly ignite fires.

Evaporative ponds, which concentrate toxins, may be used and are a recognized hazard to wildlife. Because wet-cooled turbines need to be supplied with large amounts of water, developers are leaning toward using dry-cooled turbines, but these have a larger "footprint" than wet-cooled ones.

The dearth of reliable information indicates an urgent need for careful, controlled, pre- and post-construction studies of the effects of solar power plants in the Southwest, Lovich and Ennen argue.

Such studies could attempt to determine information useful for optimally siting the plants, such as whether damage is minimized if they are concentrated in a few places or dispersed, as well as suggest preferred locations and mitigation possibilities...

Source: Solar Daily.
Link: http://www.solardaily.com/reports/Solar_power_development_in_US_Southwest_could_threaten_wildlife_999.html.

US Solar Energy Industry Sets Record for Installations

Washington DC (SPX)
Dec 19, 2011

The U.S. solar energy industry achieved a new record for installations and growth in the third quarter of 2011 thanks to utility-scale project completions, a strong residential market, effective policies and the plummeting price of solar panels, according to a new report released by GTM Research and the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA).

Through the third quarter of 2011, the U.S. solar market has installed more than 1,000 megawatts (MW) of solar capacity on the year, already surpassing the 2010 annual total of 887 MW, according to the U.S. Solar Market Insight: 3rd Quarter 2011 report.

This includes 449 MW installed in the third quarter alone - a record for quarterly installations and more new solar electric capacity than was added in all of 2009. This also represents 140 percent growth over the same quarter last year.

Much of this growth is due to the Department of Treasury's 1603 program, which is set to expire on Dec. 31 unless Congress extends it.

In the absence of an extension of the program, the report predicts that there will be a tax equity bottleneck for projects in 2012, leading to a possible slowdown in installations in late 2012 and into 2013.

"The U.S. solar industry is on a roll, with unprecedented growth in 2011," said Rhone Resch, President and CEO of SEIA.

"Solar is now an economic force in dozens of states, creating jobs across America. But our industry needs stable policy on which to make business decisions, and unfortunately an underlying mechanism for financing solar projects is scheduled to expire on December 31.

"To keep the industry growing and creating jobs in the U.S. we need Congress to extend the 1603 program. The 1603 program has done more to expand the use of renewable energy than any other policy in U.S. history.

"Our country is not in a position to have Congress turn their back on American industries, and it is critical that Congress extend the 1603 program in the few days left before the end of the year."

The U.S. Solar Market Insight: 3rd Quarter 2011 report is the most detailed and timely research available on the continuing growth and opportunity in the U.S. The report includes analysis of PV, concentrating solar power (CSP) and concentrating photovoltaics (CPV) technologies, exposing the key metrics that will help solar decision-makers navigate the market's current and forecasted trajectory.

Highlights from the third quarter report include:

+ Grid-connected PV installations in Q3 2011 grew 39 percent over Q2 2011 and 140 percent over Q3 2010.

+ The utility PV market installed over 200 MW in Q3 2011, a greater than 400 percent increase in installations over Q2 2011.

+ The residential PV market grew 21 percent over Q2 2011 to reach nearly 75 MW.

California regained a substantial share of overall PV installation in Q3 2011 with 44 percent; the next six largest state markets combined comprised 45 percent of quarterly installations.

While domestic solar markets are booming more than ever, the report also finds that U.S. solar is facing more uncertainty than at any point in recent history. On one hand, solar module prices are falling precipitously and system prices have never been lower; on the other hand, the market faces substantial risks in the form of legislative, financing, political, and market barriers.

"U.S. solar is entering 2012 with a sense of cautious optimism," said Shayle Kann, Managing Director of the solar practice at GTM Research.

"There are three questions on the mind of everyone in the market: one, what would be the impact of the 1603 Treasury Program's expiration; two, can emerging commercial markets like Massachusetts, Colorado, Ohio, Tennessee, and Hawaii ramp up as major markets like California, New Jersey and Pennsylvania trend downward; and finally, how will the trade petition against Chinese solar imports impact market dynamics, both in the immediate term and if duties are ultimately levied?"

With the 1603 Treasury Program scheduled to expire at the end of this year, solar project developers will be scrambling to either complete, or safe harbor, projects in the fourth quarter of 2011 in order to qualify for the program's grant. This will undoubtedly produce robust installation numbers through the end of 2011.

However, the uncertainty surrounding the program's extension threatens the market's growth in 2012 and beyond.

Source: Solar Daily.
Link: http://www.solardaily.com/reports/US_Solar_Energy_Industry_Sets_Record_for_Installations_999.html.

More than twenty UK wind farm sites adopt Natural Power's ForeSite wind forecasting service

Castle Douglas, UK (SPX)
Dec 19, 2011

In the last six months more than twenty wind farms in the UK have moved to leading renewable energy consultancy group, Natural Power, to provide their wind farm production forecasting service, ForeSite for energy trading or grid notification purposes.

The sites total more than 1GW of wind power capacity across the UK.

ForeSite is a powerful and accurate wind generation forecasting service which provides forecasts of wind generation at half hourly intervals up to six days ahead, applying statistical probability to the forecast to assist decision making.

ForeSite is the fusion of a global weather forecast model, provided by leading independent meteorological forecaster meteoblue, with historical wind farm production data, wind modelling and Natural Power's industry leading wind analysis and operational management expertise.

Energy traders require wind power generation forecasts for each wind farm location to plan a day ahead of production when trading power in the GB electricity market. Inaccurate power forecasts can lead to over or under-production, which needs to be compensated through increased or reduced output from conventional generation within the traders own portfolio.

If this is not possible, the commitment is bought out on the short term electricity market at significant financial risk. Accurate forecasts are therefore a business imperative for energy traders as the smallest increase in forecast accuracy can result in significant additional revenue.

ForeSite is also utilized for grid notification under Balancing Mechanism (BM) regulations, where operators are required to provide accurate Production Notifications (PN) predicting expected generation levels at each half hour interval days in advance up to gate closure 1.5 hours from real time.

Recent grid management events in the UK have highlighted the need for greater visibility and precision in wind generation forecasts and generators are now being challenged on the accuracy of their PN with curtailment instructions being issued by National Grid to reduce wind farm output in line with submitted PN levels.

The loss of revenue from such events can be significant. Alternatively, failure to make a reasonable attempt to forecast production, constantly submitting a PN at the maximum generation level, can ultimately result in the right to generate power being removed through non compliance with the grid code.

Oisin Brady, Director for R and D at Natural Power commented: "Since ForeSite's release earlier in the year there has been an increasing demand from wind farm operators resulting in more than 25 sites now benefiting from our accurate, high quality forecasts.

"We have successfully validated forecasts against recorded power production, and can share this analysis with all future users - our clients can therefore be confident in ForeSite's performance and ability to add value to their operations."

Source: Wind Daily.
Link: http://www.winddaily.com/reports/More_than_twenty_UK_wind_farm_sites_adopt_Natural_Power_ForeSite_wind_forecasting_service_999.html.

Meteorite Shock Waves Trigger Dust Avalanches on Mars

Tucson AZ (SPX)
Dec 19, 2011

When a meteorite careens toward the dusty surface of the Red Planet, it kicks up dust and can cause avalanching even before the rock from outer space hits the ground, a research team led by an undergraduate student at the University of Arizona has discovered.

"We expected that some of the streaks of dust that we see on slopes are caused by seismic shaking during impact," said Kaylan Burleigh, who led the research project. "We were surprised to find that it rather looks like shock waves in the air trigger the avalanches even before the impact."

Because of Mars' thin atmosphere, which is 100 times less dense than Earth's, even small rocks that would burn up or break up before they could hit the ground here on Earth crash into the Martian surface relatively unimpeded.

Each year, about 20 fresh craters between 1 and 50 meters (3 to 165 feet) show up in images taken by the HiRISE camera on board NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter.

The High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment, or HiRISE, is operated by the UA's Lunar and Planetary Laboratory and has been photographing the Martian surface since 2006, revealing features down to less than 1 meter in size.

For this study, the team zoomed in on a cluster of five large craters, which all formed in one impact event close to Mars' equator, about 825 kilometers (512 miles) south of the boundary scarp of Olympus Mons, the tallest mountain in the solar system.

Previous observations by the Mars Global Surveyor orbiter, which imaged Mars for nine years until 2006, showed that this cluster was blasted into the dusty surface between May 2004 and February 2006.

The results of the research, which Burleigh first took on as a freshman under former UA Regents Professor H. Jay Melosh, are published in the planetary science journal Icarus.

Previous studies had looked at dark or light streaks on the Martian landscape interpreted as landslides, but none had tied such a large number of them to impacts.

The authors interpret the thousands of downhill-trending dark streaks on the flanks of ridges covering the area as dust avalanches caused by the impact. The largest crater in the cluster measures 22 meters, or 72 feet, across and occupies roughly the area of a basketball court.

Most likely, the cluster of craters formed as the meteorite broke up in the atmosphere, and the fragments hit the ground like a shotgun blast.

Narrow, relatively dark streaks varying from a few meters to about 50 meters in length scour the slopes around the impact site.

"The dark streaks represent the material exposed by the avalanches, as induced by the airblast from the impact," Burleigh said. "I counted more than 100,000 avalanches and, after repeated counts and deleting duplicates, arrived at 64,948."

When Burleigh looked at the distribution of avalanches around the impact site, he realized their number decreased with distance in every direction, consistent with the idea that they were related to the impact event.

But it wasn't until he noticed a pair of peculiar surface features resembling a curved dagger, described as scimitars, extending from the central impact crater, that the way in which the impact caused the avalanches became evident.

"Those scimitars tipped us off that something other than seismic shaking must be causing the dust avalanches," Burleigh said.

As a meteor screams through the atmosphere at several times the speed of sound, it creates shock waves in the air. Simulating the shock waves generated by impacts on Martian soil with computer models, the team observed the exact pattern of scimitars they saw on their impact site.

"We think the interference among different pressure waves lifts up the dust and sets avalanches in motion. These interference regions, and the avalanches, occur in a reproducible pattern," Burleigh said.

"We checked other impact sites and realized that when we see avalanches, we usually see two scimitars, not just one, and they both tend to be at a certain angle to each other. This pattern would be difficult to explain by seismic shaking."

In the absence of plate tectonic processes and water-caused erosion, the authors conclude that small impacts might be more important in shaping the Martian surface than previously thought.

"This is one part of a larger story about current surface activity on Mars, which we are realizing is very different than previously believed," said Alfred McEwen, principal investigator of the HiRISE project and one of the co-authors of the study.

"We must understand how Mars works today before we can correctly interpret what may have happened when the climate was different, and before we can draw comparisons to Earth."

Source: Mars Daily.
Link: http://www.marsdaily.com/reports/Meteorite_Shock_Waves_Trigger_Dust_Avalanches_on_Mars_999.html.

NASA Takes Next Step In Developing Commercial Crew Program

Washington DC (SPX)
Dec 19, 2011

NASA has announced a modified competitive procurement strategy to keep on track the agency's plan to have U.S. companies transport American astronauts into space instead of outsourcing this work to foreign governments.

Instead of awarding contracts for the next phase of the Commercial Crew Program, the agency plans to use multiple, competitively awarded Space Act Agreements.

Using competitive Space Act Agreements instead of contracts will allow NASA to maintain a larger number of partners during this phase of the program, with the flexibility to adjust technical direction, milestones and funding.

This flexibility is important during a period of high budget uncertainty when NASA is receiving less funding than President Obama requested for the agency's commercial space program.

"NASA is committed to ensuring that U.S. companies are sending American astronauts into space," NASA Administrator Charles Bolden said.

"This new acquisition strategy will allow us to preserve competition as we maintain our momentum to provide a U.S.-based commercial crew launch capability at the earliest possible time."

This competitive Space Act solicitation is separate from the work being carried out under existing Space Act Agreements. The new competition will focus on an overall system design rather than single technology activities. Details on the new competition will be available in January.

The announcement for proposals is expected in the first quarter of 2012. These competitively awarded Space Acts will be followed by a competitively awarded contract for the certification phase.

The certification phase will ensure that the designs fully meet the safety and performance requirements for NASA utilization.

Source: Space-Travel.
Link: http://www.space-travel.com/reports/NASA_Takes_Next_Step_In_Developing_Commercial_Crew_Program_999.html.

China celebrates success of space docking mission

Beijing (XNA)
Dec 19, 2011

China held a rally on Friday to celebrate the success of the country's first space docking mission between the target orbiter Tiangong-1 and the Shenzhou-8 spacecraft.

President Hu Jintao, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, gave a speech at the meeting.

Members of the Standing Committee of the CPC Central Committee Political Bureau Wu Bangguo, Wen Jiabao, Jia Qinglin, Li Changchun, Xi Jinping, Li Keqiang, He Guoqiang and Zhou Yongkang also attended the meeting.

After the Nov. 1 lift-off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, Shenzhou-8 successfully rendezvoused and docked twice with the Tiangong-1 space lab module, which was launched from the same site on Sept. 29.

President Hu Jintao described the success of the space docking mission as a milestone in China's manned space program and a remarkable contribution to mankind's exploration of space.

Hu commended Chinese space scientists and engineers for having achieved a number of breakthroughs in unmanned space tests, manned space missions, extravehicular activities and space docking over the past 19 years.

"The glorious achievement of China's manned space program has strengthened national cohesion and the confidence of all Chinese people," Hu said.

"It has also strengthened Chinese people's will to continue the opening-up drive and reform, and pursue the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation on the path of socialism with Chinese characteristics," Hu said.

Hu said the CPC leadership and the socialist system provided a "political advantage" for the progress of the country's manned space program.

Despite progress made in the country's space program, President Hu also said that China's overall level of scientific technologies, especially indigenous innovation capabilities, lagged far behind world-leading standards.

"We must have a sense of urgency and crisis," Hu said, adding that there is a long way to go for China to build up an innovation-oriented country.

"We must improve our capabilities for original innovation, integrated innovation and re-innovation through digesting introduced technologies to transform to an innovation-driven economy and society," Hu said.

Thanks to an economic boom that has continued since the end of the 1970s, the Standing Committee of the CPC Central Committee Political Bureau officially approved China's three-step manned space program on Sept. 21, 1992.

The first phase - to send the first astronaut to space and return him safely - was fulfilled by Yang Liwei in the Shenzhou-5 mission in 2003. After another two astronauts successfully completed extravehicular activities in the Shenzhou-7 mission in 2008, China entered the second phase of its space program: space docking.

According the program, China will conduct two more docking tests on Tiangong-1 with Shenzhou-9 and Shenzhou-10 - hopefully with an astronaut on board - within about one year after the first successful test.

General Chang Wanquan, commander-in-chief of the manned space program, said at the celebratory ceremony that China conducts its space docking tests in a cost-effective way by docking a single Tiangong-1 module with multiple spacecraft.

Gen. Chang said Chinese space scientists and engineers with indigenous innovation capabilities have insured the program's success. According to him, 85 percent of the designers serving the program are under 35 years old.

If the first two steps succeed, China plans to develop and launch multiple space modules, with a goal of assembling a 60-tonne manned space station around 2020 in which Chinese astronauts will begin more research projects in space.

"We will concentrate our resources on major projects concerning national security and people's livelihood to realize a comprehensive advancement of economic, scientific and technological powers," Hu said.

The president also asked the scientific staff to better serve the country's economic constructions and people's needs, and speed up the process of turning scientific achievement into industrial productivity.

"The Chinese people are willing to walk hand-in-hand with people from around the world in exploring space in peaceful ways and strengthening international cooperation on space technologies," Hu said.

Source: Space Daily.
Link: http://www.spacedaily.com/reports/China_celebrates_success_of_space_docking_mission_999.html.

Taiwan receives two US early warning aircraft

Taipei (AFP)
Dec 18, 2011

Taiwan received two upgraded early warning aircraft from the United States Sunday, the island's airforce said, as part of an arms deal that upset China-US relations.

The arrival of the E-2K aircraft in southern Kaohsiung city brings to four the number of such planes in Taiwan's air force, it said, after they were sent to the United States last year for upgrades.

Taiwan acquired four E-2Ts in 1995 and added two E-2K, an improved version of the Grumman Hawkeye series, in 2006.

A pair of E-2Ts were transported to the United States for upgrading last month, as part of a $6.5 billion arms sale agreed with Taiwan in 2008, which also included advanced interceptor Patriot missiles, Apache attack helicopters and submarine-launched missiles.

Analysts say the E-2K -- an all-weather early warning and control system platform with an upgraded radar, software, avionics and propellers -- will further reduce warning time if China launched an air attack on the island.

Ties between Taipei and Beijing have improved markedly since Ma Ying-jeou of the China-friendly Kuomintang party came to power in 2008 promising to boost trade links and allow more Chinese tourists to visit the island.

But Beijing still sees Taiwan as part of its territory awaiting reunification, by force if necessary, even though the island has governed itself since 1949 at the end of a civil war.

China has repeatedly threatened to invade Taiwan should the island declare formal independence, prompting Taipei to seek more advanced weapons, largely from the United States.

Source: Sino Daily.
Link: http://www.sinodaily.com/reports/Taiwan_receives_two_US_early_warning_aircraft_999.html.

Iraqis joyful as US leaves but wary of leaders

Baghdad (AFP)
Dec 18, 2011

Iraqis expressed joy at the news that US forces had completed their withdrawal on Sunday, but voiced doubts their politicians could come together to rebuild the violence-wracked country.

Their lack of confidence in their leaders was highlighted by renewed political crisis as Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki sought to oust one of his deputies and the main Sunni-backed political bloc boycotted parliament, just as the final US troops crossed into Kuwait to end the nearly nine-year war.

As news of the pullout reached Baghdad, the streets of the Iraqi capital and other major cities were little changed, with heavy commuter traffic snaking through police and military checkpoints.

"I am proud -- all Iraqis should be proud, like all those whose country has been freed," 26-year-old baker Safa, who did not want to give his real name, told AFP in Baghdad's Karrada commercial district. "The Americans toppled Saddam, but our lives since then have gone backward.

"The situation will only improve if politicians work on fighting corruption and adopt reforms," he added.

Sunday's completion of the withdrawal brings to a close nearly nine years of American military involvement in Iraq, beginning with a "shock and awe" campaign in 2003 to oust Saddam, which many in Washington believed would see US forces conclude their mission in Iraq within months.

But key decisions taken at the time have since been widely criticized as fueling what became a bloody Sunni Arab insurgency, eventually sparking devastating communal violence.

"I don't think we can ever forgive the Americans for what they did to us, from killings to terrorism," said a 50-year-old mother-of-four who gave her name only as Umm Mohammed, or mother of Mohammed.

"Those people (Americans) think only about themselves, and not about the consequences of their actions."

More than 100,000 Iraqis have been reported killed in violence since the invasion, according to British NGO Iraq Body Count, and countless others were wounded.

In the mostly Sunni Arab north Baghdad neighborhood of Adhamiyah, where Saddam Hussein was last seen publicly before his capture, 60-year-old retiree Mohammed Abdelamir said he felt "freed from the occupation," referring to US troops as many Iraqis long have, as an occupying force.

"We must all cooperate and work to improve the economy, the society, and begin rebuilding, and not fight because we are seeing that some politicians have already begun putting a stick in the wheel."

He was referring to signs of unraveling in Iraq's year-old national unity government which emerged just as US forces completed their withdrawal.

On Sunday, Maliki conveyed an official message to parliament, calling on lawmakers to oust his deputy Saleh al-Mutlak, a Sunni Arab and member of the secular Sunni-backed Iraqiya bloc.

A day earlier, Iraqiya said it was boycotting parliament in protest at the premier's alleged centralization of power. It has not, however, withdrawn from the government.

Key political issues such as reform of the mostly state-run economy and a law to regulate and organize the lucrative energy sector also remain unresolved, to say nothing of an explosive territorial dispute between Arabs and Kurds centered around the northern oil hub of Kirkuk.

"Today is a historic day, and our happiness is great," said Abdul Hussein Hosh, a 59-year-old government employee in the sprawling Baghdad Shiite district of Sadr City.

"But what makes us sad is that this occasion came at a time when Iraqiya announced they were withdrawing. ... This shouldn't have happened when the occupier was leaving our country."

Some observers also fear a return to bloody sectarianism, doubt the strength of Iraq's political structures, and feel that Maliki has entrenched his power base to the detriment of the country's minorities.

"Today marks the first day of danger for Iraqis," said Roudi Slewah, a 25-year-old Christian shop owner in multi-ethnic Kirkuk. "We didn't want the Americans to stay in Iraq, but the region could explode at any time.

"The danger starts from today," he said.

Key Iraq bloc boycotts parliament as US quits
Baghdad (AFP) Dec 17, 2011 - A secular bloc which won the most seats in Iraq's March 2010 vote suspended its participation in parliament on Saturday, sparking a political crisis just days after US forces ended their mission.

The Iraqiya bloc, led by ex-premier Iyad Allawi, walked out of parliament in protest at what it charged was Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's monopolizing of decision-making.

The boycott represents one of Iraq's most serious political crises, and comes just a day after US forces handed over control of their last remaining base, with virtually all remaining American troops due out of the country in the coming days.

Iraqiya, which garnered most of its support from Iraq's minority Sunni community, was out-maneuvered for the premiership by Maliki, who despite finishing second in the elections formed a larger coalition in their aftermath.

The bloc, which controls nine ministerial posts, has not, however, pulled out of Iraq's national unity government.

"We can no longer remain silent about the way the state is being administered, as it is plunging the country into the unknown," the bloc, which holds 82 seats in the 325-member legislature, said in a statement on Saturday.

"The Iraqiya bloc is suspending its participation in parliament from Saturday and calling for the opening of a round-table to find a solution that will support democracy and civil institutions."

It continued: "Iraqiya rejects this system of policy-making that consists of ignoring other political parties, politicizing the justice system, exercising sole power and violating the law."

The bloc accused Maliki's government of "placing tanks and armored cars in front of the homes of Iraqiya leaders in the Green Zone," the heavily-fortified home to leading politicians and ministers, as well as the US and British embassies, in central Baghdad.

"This sort of behavior drives people to want to rid themselves of the strong arm of central power as far as the constitution allows them to," it said, referring to moves by majority Sunni Arab provinces to take up the option of similar autonomy to that enjoyed by the Kurds in northern Iraq.

Votes in favor of autonomy by provincial authorities in Anbar, Salaheddin and Diyala have drawn an angry response from Maliki.

When the Salaheddin provincial council voted in October to push for autonomy, Maliki retorted that it "does not have the right to announce this," citing constitutional procedures that were not followed.

Ibrahim al-Jaafari, another ex-premier and head of Maliki's pan-Shiite National Alliance bloc, criticized Iraqiya's walkout and accused unspecified Sunni parties of using federalism, which they were hostile to when the constitution was approved in 2005, "to divide the country into regions".

"We are getting bogged down in a marginal fight instead of preparing ourselves for the withdrawal of foreign forces," Jaafari said in parliament.

The bloc loyal to anti-US cleric Moqtada al-Sadr offered to undertake a mediating role to resolve the dispute.

"Taking that sort of decision a day after the end of the US occupation is going to light the fire of division and we will do all can to put it out," Baha al-Araji, the leader of the movement's parliamentary bloc, said in a statement.

An independent lawmaker from the autonomous Kurdish region, Mahmud Othman, urged Maliki "to negotiate with all political parties so that Iraqiya does not feel marginalized."

But he also criticized Deputy Prime Minister Saleh al-Mutlaq, an Iraqiya member, for his rhetoric in a recent television interview, when he compared Maliki to a dictator worse than Saddam Hussein.

"This is not the way to speak of the head of government," Othman said.

Source: Space War.
Link: http://www.spacewar.com/reports/Iraqis_joyful_as_US_leaves_but_wary_of_leaders_999.html.