Egypt detains Brotherhood supporters before vote

Sat Nov 20, 2010

CAIRO (Reuters) - Egyptian security forces detained more than 100 supporters of the banned Muslim Brotherhood group in different cities on Friday, police and Brotherhood sources said.

The crackdown, a little more than a week ahead of Egypt's parliamentary election due on November 28, followed a series of arrests since October after the Brotherhood, Egypt's biggest opposition group, announced it would participate in the vote.

Hamdy Hassan, spokesman for the Brotherhood's parliamentary bloc, said that "certainly over 100 Brotherhood supporters were detained on Friday, and from different cities".

"What happened today are not just assaults, it was more like war. Police fired at the crowds... Some people were injured," Hassan said, adding that he had witnessed clashes in Alexandria.

According to police sources, about 200 people were detained in Nile Delta cities and places near Cairo while 24 more were detained in the coastal town of Alexandria, north of Cairo.

Egypt's official state news agency MENA said about 30 were detained in Alexandria.

All those detained were engaged in public gatherings or were hanging election posters, police sources and MENA said.

Police sources and MENA said some people in the crowds threw rocks at security men and a few were injured.

The Brotherhood officially is banned but skirts the law by running candidates as independents. It controls a fifth of seats in parliament and has said it expects authorities to prevent it from securing an equivalent number in the November poll.

The group, and political analysts, have said the ruling party's candidates are again expected to take a majority.

The vote will be closely watched to see how much space the government of President Hosni Mubarak, 82, who has been in power since 1981, allows to the opposition.

Brotherhood members and supporters frequently are detained, often for long periods and without charge. Amnesty International called on Egypt last month to release or charge members of the group who were recently detained.

The United States on Monday said Egypt should allow peaceful political gatherings, open media coverage and international observers in the run up to the parliamentary vote.

Source: Reuters.
Link: http://af.reuters.com/article/topNews/idAFJOE6AJ00D20101120?sp=true.

Egypt's Mubarak to visit Saudi

By AFP
Saturday, November 20 2010

RIYADH

Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak was to hold talks in Saudi Arabia with King Abdullah on Saturday, Egyptian state-owned media reported.

Mubarak was to "visit Saudi Arabia for a few hours for talks with King Abdullah on regional issues," the leading government-owned daily Al-Ahram said without elaborating.

It recalled that King Abdullah has insisted he is "in good health" after suffering a slipped disc.

According to a statement carried by the official Saudi Press Agency on Friday, King Abdullah underwent tests in the morning at the King Faisal hospital in Riyadh after a new outbreak of pain in his back.

"It appears that the herniated disc, accompanied by an accumulation of blood, is putting pressure on the nerves," the royal court statement said.

"The medical team has recommended to the king that he rests," it added.

Source: Daily Nation.
Link: http://www.nation.co.ke/News/africa/-/1066/1057026/-/121qbqk/-/.

Halal industrial park opens in Tatarstan

Nov 20, 2010

Russia's first halal industrial park opened on Friday in Tatarstan.

According to the press service of the Spiritual Administration of Muslims of that republic.

"Halal" in Arabic translates as "tolerated", that is, products manufactured strictly according to the canons of Shari.

It is not just about the finished product, but also the raw materials, meat, flour, spices and fabrics.

In the industrial park they only produce halal foods, including meat.

Russia is the home to 20 million Muslims, and there are over 1.5 billion consumers of halal products in the world.

Source: Voice of Russia.
Link: http://english.ruvr.ru/2010/11/20/35316843.html.

Russia's space agency to launch own website by year end

Nov 19, 2010

Russia's space agency plans to launch its own website by the end of the year, the agency’s representative Valery Zaichko said Friday.

The agency will publish satellite data, charts, maps, digital models of Earth relief on this website the, he said.

He also said that the agency plans to set up the federal remote Earth sensing data base.

Source: Voice of Russia.
Link: http://english.ruvr.ru/2010/11/19/35292527.html.

Canada's MDA To Build Lunar Rover Prototypes

Fri, 19 November, 2010

By Peter B. de Seldin

PARIS — Canada’s MDA Corp. will design and build two lunar rover prototypes for yet-undetermined missions under a contract with the Canadian Space Agency valued at 11.5 million Canadian dollars ($11.3 million) and announced Nov. 18.

The contract, part of the agency’s Exploration Surface Mobility Program, calls for the rovers to be ready for field testing in late 2012 along with other robotic technologies Canada is developing to prepare for a future international space exploration effort.

Richmond, B.C.-based MDA had won an earlier contract, valued at 6 million Canadian dollars, to design a prototype Mars rover under the same program.

The Exploration Surface Mobility Program, along with work on a next-generation Canadarm, is part of Canada’s Economic Action Plan. The government is investing 110 million Canadian dollars over three years, through 2012, to position Canadian industry for future space missions in which robotics will play a central role.

Source: Space News.
Link: http://www.spacenews.com/civil/101119-mda-build-lunar-rover-prototypes.html.

Fishing for success – Algeria expanding domestic production

Friday, 19 November 2010

With a view to expanding domestic production and reducing Algeria’s dependence on imports, the government has set ambitious goals for the industry over the next four years. These include estimating available fish stocks, conserving resources, modernizing the fishing fleet, adapting to climate change, preserving artisanal fisheries and improving training methods, reports Global Arab Network according to OBG.

Administrators, professionals, scientists and associations recently gathered at a national conference on fisheries and fishery resources in Algiers in mid-October to assess the sector’s performance over and explore strategies for future development. Speaking at the conference, Abdullah Khanafou, minister of fishing and fishing resources, called for a bigger national role for the sector.

According to Khanafou, the country’s fishing resources remain underutilized, with only 145,000 tonnes caught annually from an available stock of 222,000 tonnes. He said Algeria’s annual quota for tuna – set at 1100 tonnes by the International Commission for the Conservation of Tuna – had not been reached.

The national fishing industry has access to 1,280 kilometers of coastline, and boasts 30 fishing ports and a fleet of around 4,500 fishing boats. As such, it holds significant potential for the economy. Its development, however, remains dependent on the government’s ability to protect fish stocks and improve technical expertise.

In order to modernize the sector, the Ministry of Fishing and Fishing Resources (Ministère de la Pêche et des Ressources Halieutiques, MPRH) has outlined plans to repair fishing boats, acquire modern fishing equipment and set up pilot fish farms. The government has also promised to build 13 wholesale markets. At the conference, it was announced that three such markets were nearing completion. The objective of this program is to monitor fish quality, collect production data and organize the market.

The sector has already benefited from state funds, having received AD26bn (€248.3m) for the purchase of new fishing vessels. As a result of these new additions, the average age of an Algerian fishing boat has declined from 20 to 12 years. However, because the government believes that the boat capacity is now sufficient to meet the sector’s needs, this program has been suspended.

The government has also considered banning the export of certain fish to increase domestic supply and reduce prices. In an appearance on National Radio, Khanafou voiced his intention to ban exports of certain species, including sardines. He did qualify, however, that “the export of high value species may be retained and compensated by the import of mass consumption species.”

Algeria has also turned to aquaculture – the farming of fish and seafood – to increase local supply. To encourage private sector investment in aquaculture production, the MRPH is carrying out market surveys to identify suitable sites (450 have been identified so far) and granting subsidies within the framework of the national fund for fishing and aquaculture development. Although 12 state-funded aquaculture projects have been launched, their viability has been threatened by the high cost of feed that farm operators must import. In response, the government has plans to reduce customs duties and the VAT rate for imports of fish feed, as specified in the draft budget law for 2011. In addition, the MPRH is conducting a pilot project for the manufacture of fish feed.

Another obstacle to domestic consumption is the excessive price of fish, often a result of smuggling, illegal fishing and transactions made by middle-men between producers and consumers. Combating these phenomena, the government expects, will place downward pressure on prices. In response, the government has set up 13 wholesale fish markets to monitor the quantity of fish caught and called on the coastguard to crack down on illegal fishing.

At a time when the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) has stressed the importance of aquaculture – in October it referred to the industry as the “fastest growing food sector in the world”, Algeria’s attempt to boost its fishing sector are timely. However, the government needs to maintain financial and legislative support to ensure that the industry’s continued growth.

Global Arab Network

Source: Global Arab Network.
Link: http://www.english.globalarabnetwork.com/201011198091/Economics/fishing-for-success-algeria-expanding-domestic-production.html.

End of Hajj: Algerian Hajjis prepare to return home

19 November, 2010

Algiers- The direction of programming at Air Algeria Company has scheduled 17 flights to transport 63,000 Hadjis from Jeddah airport, Saudi Arabia to five airports in Algeria.

The first group of Algerian Hadjis will arrive tonight at the airport of Constantine, the second at Oran airport and the third at Houari Boumediene International Airport.

According to the director of programming at Air Algeria, Rabah Midou, in an interview with Ennahar, the transaction involves the transport of 63,000 Hadjis for the 2010 season, spread over 17 flights and this, during 12 days, beginning Saturday November 20.

The first group of Hadjis will arrive early Saturday evening at 9 pm at the airport of Constantine where the last group will arrive on December 10th at 4:51 p.m.

Houari Boumediene International Airport will host the largest number of flights from the airport of Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, with 92 flights, followed by Oran airport with 81 flights, then Constantine 41 flights, Annaba and Ouargla with five flights each.

According to our interlocutor, the scenario of the month of Ramadhan will not be repeated because Air Algeria has increased its staff with sending 100 staff in the Holy Land in order to ensure a smooth return of Hadjis. Material resources have also been established and dozens of aircraft, including five Airbus 330 with 250 seats and three Boeings 767, with 250 seats are made available. Two planes, including one from Portugal, were leased; a Boeing 767 and an Airbus 340.

Ennahar / Habiba Mahmoudi

Source: Ennahar.
Link: http://www.ennaharonline.com/en/news/5222.html.