Israeli military kills 10 on aid flotilla
An Israeli naval security boat, center, secures the entrance to the port of Ashdod in the Mediterranean Sea, southern Israel, Monday, May 31, 2010. The Israeli military says more than 10 pro-Palestinian activists have been killed after attacking naval commandos who were halting an aid flotilla heading toward the blockaded Gaza Strip. The army says dozens of people were wounded, both soldiers and activists, and it is evacuating the casualties from the Mediterranean by helicopter. (AP)
By ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published: May 31, 2010 10:35 Updated: May 31, 2010 16:45
JERUSALEM: Israeli commandos on Monday stormed six ships carrying hundreds of pro-Palestinian activists on an aid mission to the blockaded Gaza Strip, killing at least 10 people and wounding dozens after encountering unexpected resistance as the forces boarded the vessels.
The operation in international waters off the Gaza coast was a nightmare scenario for Israel that looked certain to further damage its international standing, strain already tense relations with Turkey and draw unwanted attention to Gaza's plight.
The two sides offered conflicting accounts of what happened.
A reporter on one of the boats said the Israelis fired at the vessel before boarding it, and the Israelis said they only opened fire after being attacked by activists with sticks, knives and live fire.
Israeli security forces were on alert across the country.
The activists were headed to Gaza on a mission meant to draw attention to a 3-year-old Israeli blockade of the coastal territory. Israel imposed the blockade after Hamas militants took power there.
"It's disgusting that they have come on board and attacked civilians. We are civilians," said Greta Berlin, a spokeswoman for the Free Gaza movement, which organized the flotilla.
Speaking from the east Mediterranean island of Cyprus, she said she had lost contact with the flotilla at about 3:30 a.m. (0030 GMT).
Israel had declared it would not allow the ships to reach Gaza and had offered to transfer the aid to Gaza from an Israeli port. Israeli naval commandos raided the ships while they were in international waters after ordering them to stop about 80 miles (130 kilometers) from Gaza's coast, according to a pro-Palestinian activist in Greece involved in the aid mission.
A Turkish website showed video of pandemonium on board one of the ships, with activists in orange life jackets running around as some tried to help an activist apparently unconscious on the deck. The site also showed video of an Israeli helicopter flying overhead and Israeli warships nearby.
Turkey's NTV showed activists beating one Israeli soldier with sticks as he rappelled from a helicopter onto one of the boats.
The Al-Jazeera satellite channel reported by telephone from the Turkish ship leading the flotilla that Israeli navy forces fired at the ship and boarded it, wounding the captain.
"These savages are killing people here, please help," a Turkish television reporter said.
The broadcast ended with a voice shouting in Hebrew, "Everybody shut up!" The Israeli military said troops only opened fire after encountering unexpected resistance from the activists.
Activists attacked troops with knives and iron rods, and one activist wrested a serviceman's weapon.
A total of four soldiers were wounded, including at least one hit by live fire, the army said. Two of the dead activists had fired at soldiers with pistols, the army said.
"They planned this attack," said Israeli military spokeswoman Lt. Col. Avital Leibovitch. "Our soldiers were injured from these knives and sharp metal objects ... as well as from live fire." The ships were being towed to the Israeli port of Ashdod, and the wounded were evacuated by helicopter to Israeli hospitals, officials said. Sporadic clashes were still going on at midmorning.
There were no details on the identities of the casualties, or on the conditions of some of the more prominent people on board, including 1976 Nobel Peace Prize laureate Mairead Corrigan Maguire of Northern Ireland, European legislators and Holocaust survivor Hedy Epstein, 85.
Satellite phones on board the ships were turned off, and communication with a small group of reporters embedded with the Israeli military was blocked.
The Free Gaza Movement is an international group of pro-Palestinian activists that claims the blockade, imposed three years ago after the militant Islamic Hamas group overran Gaza, is unjust and a violation of international law.
Organizers included people affiliated with the International Solidarity Movement, a pro-Palestinian group that often sends international activists into battle zones, and the IHH, a Turkish aid group that Israel accuses of having terrorist links.
News of the attack sparked violent protests in Turkey, which had unofficially supported the aid mission and has been vocally critical of Israeli military operations against Palestinians in Gaza.
Police blocked dozens of stone-throwing protesters who tried to storm the Israeli consulate in Istanbul. The CNN-Turk and NTV televisions showed dozens of angry protesters scuffling with Turkish police and shouting, "Damn Israel." The Turkish Foreign Ministry condemned the Israeli raid and said it was summoning the Israeli ambassador for an "urgent explanation." It says Israel violated international law and will suffer consequences.
The flotilla of three cargo ships and three passenger ships carrying 10,000 tons of aid and 700 activists was carrying items that Israel bars from reaching Gaza, like cement and other building materials. The activists said they also were carrying hundreds of electric-powered wheelchairs, prefabricated homes and water purifiers to the territory's 1.5 million residents.
"We did not want to see confrontation," said Mark Regev, a spokesman for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who was in Ontario at the time of the raid.
"We made repeated offers to the boats that they come to the (Israeli) port of Ashdod unload the humanitarian cargo, and we guaranteed to pass all humanitarian items through the crossings to the Gaza Strip. Unfortunately, they rejected our offers and chose the path of confrontation." The head of the Gaza Hamas government, Ismail Haniyeh, condemned the "brutal" Israeli attack.
"We call on the secretary-general of the UN, Ban Ki-moon, to shoulder his responsibilities to protect the safety of the solidarity groups who were on board these ships and to secure their way to Gaza," Haniyeh told The Associated Press.
The violent takeover threatened to deal yet another blow to Israel's international image, already tarnished by war crimes accusations in Gaza and its three-year-old blockade of the impoverished Palestinian territory.
The flotilla began the journey from international waters off the coast of Cyprus on Sunday afternoon after two days of delays.
After nightfall Sunday, three Israeli navy missile boats left their base in Haifa, steaming out to sea to confront the ships. Two hours later, Israel Radio broadcast a recording of one of the missile boats warning the flotilla not to approach Gaza.
"If you ignore this order and enter the blockaded area, the Israeli navy will be forced to take all the necessary measures in order to enforce this blockade," the radio message continued.
This is the ninth time that the Free Gaza movement has tried to ship in humanitarian aid to Gaza since August 2008.
Israel has allowed ships through five times, but has blocked them from entering Gaza waters since a three-week military offensive against Gaza's Hamas rulers in January 2009.
The latest flotilla was the largest to date.
Monday, May 31, 2010
Israel faces child-abuse claims - Middle East - Al Jazeera English
An international children's rights charity has said it has evidence that Palestinian children held in Israeli custody have been subjected to sexual abuse in an effort to extract confessions from them.
The Geneva-based Defence for Children International (DCI) has collected 100 sworn affadavits from Palestinian children who said they were mistreated by their Israeli captors.
Fourteen of the statements say they were sexually abused or threatened with sexual assault to pressure them into confessions.
Read More:
UK-based TV slammed over sacrilege
UK-based TV slammed over sacrilege
The Somali armed group al-Shabab has suspended all relations with the London-based Universal TV for showing sacrilegious cartoons disrespecting Islam's Prophet Mohammad (PBUH). Spokesman for the group Sheikh Ali Mohamoud Raghe criticized Universal TV on Monday for deliberately showing insulting material targeting Islam's prophet, a Press TV correspondent reported. The measure taken by the UK-based channel is part of a campaign against Islam, the al-Shabab spokesman explained about the Somali language broadcaster which is viewed across Somalia by satellite. According to Raghe, the Information Section of al-Shabab has made a decision to cease cooperation with the Somali-language television. The al-Shabab official went on to call on the broadcaster to apologize for the insult. Somalia has been lacking a functioning central government since warlords toppled President Siad Barre in 1991. Al-Shabab fighters control large parts of the capital, Mogadishu and have been fighting over the control of southern regions including the port city of Kismayo. |
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SECRETARY-GENERAL 'SHOCKED' BY DEADLY RAID ON GAZA AID FLOTILLA
SECRETARY-GENERAL 'SHOCKED' BY DEADLY RAID ON GAZA AID FLOTILLA
New York, May 31 2010 12:10PM
Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today expressed his shock at the deadly raid on boats loaded with relief supplies headed for Gaza, calling on Israel to fully explain its actions.
According to media reports, early this morning in international waters, Israeli forces raided the six-ship aid convoy, also carrying hundreds of activists, with more than ten people having been killed.
"I condemn this violence," Mr. Ban <"http://www.un.org/apps/sg/offthecuff.asp?nid=1433">said from Kampala, Uganda, where he presided over the first review conference of the International Criminal Court (<"http://www.icc-cpi.int/Menus/ICC?lan=en-GB">ICC).
"It is vital that there is a full investigation to determine exactly how this bloodshed took place," he said. "I believe Israel must urgently provide a full explanation."
The Security Council is scheduled to meet this afternoon to discuss the incident, and Mr. B
an said that the League of Arab States could also be holding an urgent session on the matter.
Last week, his spokesperson's office strongly urged that "all involved act with a sense of care and responsibility and work for a satisfactory resolution" on the issue of the aid convoy.
The United Nations has repeatedly spoken out against the closure of Gaza and raised concern over the insufficient flow of material into the area to meet basic needs and spur reconstruction. Mr. Ban cautioned in a recent meeting that the closure "creates unacceptable suffering, hurts forces of moderation and empowers extremists."
Also speaking out against today's raid was UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay, who <"http://www.ohchr.org/EN/NewsEvents/Pages/media.aspx?IsMediaPage=true">emphasized that "nothing can justify the appalling outcome of this operation."
Calling for a probe into the incident, she underscored the need for accountability.
"I unequivocally condemn what appears to be
disproportionate use of force, resulting in the killing and wounding of so many people attempting to bring much-needed aid to the people of Gaza, who have now been enduring a blockade for more than three years," Ms. Pillay said.
She called on the Israeli Government to heed the "almost unanimous international view that the continued blockade of Gaza is both inhumane and illegal."
The blockade, the High Commissioner pointed out, "lies at the heart of so many of the problems plaguing the Israel-Palestine situation, as does the impression that the Israeli Government treats international law with perpetual disdain."
Without the blockade, she noted, "there would be no need for flotillas like this."
For his part, Richard Falk, Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the occupied Palestinian territory, <"http://www.ohchr.org/EN/NewsEvents/Pages/DisplayNews.aspx?NewsID=10080&LangID=E">said that "Israel is guilty of shocking behavior by using deadly weapons against unarme
d civilians on ships that were situated in the high seas where freedom of navigation exists, according to the law of the seas."
He echoed the calls by the Secretary-General and the High Commissioner for an investigation into today's incident, stressing that it is "essential that those Israelis responsible for this lawless and murderous behavior, including political leaders who issued the orders, be held criminally accountable for their wrongful acts."
Mr. Falk characterized the blockade of Gaza as a "massive form of collective punishment" that is tantamount to a crime against humanity.
"Unless prompt and decisive action is taken to challenge the Israeli approach to Gaza all of us will be complicit in criminal policies that are challenging the survival of an entire beleaguered community," he said.
May 31 2010 12:10PM
New York, May 31 2010 12:10PM
Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today expressed his shock at the deadly raid on boats loaded with relief supplies headed for Gaza, calling on Israel to fully explain its actions.
According to media reports, early this morning in international waters, Israeli forces raided the six-ship aid convoy, also carrying hundreds of activists, with more than ten people having been killed.
"I condemn this violence," Mr. Ban <"http://www.un.org/apps/sg/offthecuff.asp?nid=1433">said from Kampala, Uganda, where he presided over the first review conference of the International Criminal Court (<"http://www.icc-cpi.int/Menus/ICC?lan=en-GB">ICC).
"It is vital that there is a full investigation to determine exactly how this bloodshed took place," he said. "I believe Israel must urgently provide a full explanation."
The Security Council is scheduled to meet this afternoon to discuss the incident, and Mr. B
an said that the League of Arab States could also be holding an urgent session on the matter.
Last week, his spokesperson's office strongly urged that "all involved act with a sense of care and responsibility and work for a satisfactory resolution" on the issue of the aid convoy.
The United Nations has repeatedly spoken out against the closure of Gaza and raised concern over the insufficient flow of material into the area to meet basic needs and spur reconstruction. Mr. Ban cautioned in a recent meeting that the closure "creates unacceptable suffering, hurts forces of moderation and empowers extremists."
Also speaking out against today's raid was UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay, who <"http://www.ohchr.org/EN/NewsEvents/Pages/media.aspx?IsMediaPage=true">emphasized that "nothing can justify the appalling outcome of this operation."
Calling for a probe into the incident, she underscored the need for accountability.
"I unequivocally condemn what appears to be
disproportionate use of force, resulting in the killing and wounding of so many people attempting to bring much-needed aid to the people of Gaza, who have now been enduring a blockade for more than three years," Ms. Pillay said.
She called on the Israeli Government to heed the "almost unanimous international view that the continued blockade of Gaza is both inhumane and illegal."
The blockade, the High Commissioner pointed out, "lies at the heart of so many of the problems plaguing the Israel-Palestine situation, as does the impression that the Israeli Government treats international law with perpetual disdain."
Without the blockade, she noted, "there would be no need for flotillas like this."
For his part, Richard Falk, Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the occupied Palestinian territory, <"http://www.ohchr.org/EN/NewsEvents/Pages/DisplayNews.aspx?NewsID=10080&LangID=E">said that "Israel is guilty of shocking behavior by using deadly weapons against unarme
d civilians on ships that were situated in the high seas where freedom of navigation exists, according to the law of the seas."
He echoed the calls by the Secretary-General and the High Commissioner for an investigation into today's incident, stressing that it is "essential that those Israelis responsible for this lawless and murderous behavior, including political leaders who issued the orders, be held criminally accountable for their wrongful acts."
Mr. Falk characterized the blockade of Gaza as a "massive form of collective punishment" that is tantamount to a crime against humanity.
"Unless prompt and decisive action is taken to challenge the Israeli approach to Gaza all of us will be complicit in criminal policies that are challenging the survival of an entire beleaguered community," he said.
May 31 2010 12:10PM
Sunday, May 30, 2010
Mental disorders climb in US Army
Mental disorders climb in US Army
New figures released by the Pentagon show a significant spike in the number of US soldiers diagnosed with and treated for serious mental disorders.
For the first time, more US soldiers are hospitalized for serious mental disorders from their military service than for injuries and battlefield wounds, according to new medical data released by the Pentagon.
In 2009, there were 17,538 US soldiers put into hospitals for mental health problems compared to 17,354 for battle wounds and injuries sustained during military service.
The revelation cast a harsh spotlight on the problems that have been simmering for years in Washington since the invasion of Iraq and Afghanistan that have left numbers of soldiers frustrated. Many of them, who are now veterans of two wars, have found themselves incapable of even leading a normal life when they come home.
Numbers head back -- not only with physical injuries from Afghanistan and Iraq but also with psychological problems, including post-traumatic stress syndrome, drug abuse, depression, anxiety and difficulty readjusting to civilian life, Press TV reported.
Meanwhile , both the Pentagon and the US Department of Veterans' Affairs have voiced grave concerns over the operating costs of treating those suffering from mental disabilities. The treatment appears to have busted the Pentagon budget with Pentagon chief Robert Gates saying: "it is costing way too much."
The US Secretary of Defense also admits that the healthcare costs are 'eating the Defense Department alive,' and much of it involves expensive military psychiatrists and psychologists, who have had to be hired to deal with it.
Multiple deployments of the troops and heavy pressure upon the forces in places, in which the population is not very friendly, are all contributing to the spike in mental health disorders, according to the Pentagon medical report.
"People don't want to concentrate on the stress, this shows the logical result of that years-long policy", Carl Osgood of the Executive Intelligence Review told Press TV correspondent Mike Kellerman in Washington.
Pentagon figures also indicate that one out of every 10 US Marines is hospitalized for mental disorders with similar numbers in the Navy and Air Force.
Ten percent of those returning soldiers will end up in medical treatment centers for mental problems; those are the lucky ones that don't kill themselves.
"There will be more soldiers this year to commit suicide than did last year, and last year was the worst year since the Army started tracking the statistics, so that is just the most serious marker of the overall decline of the mental health situation." Carl Osgood added.
The US Army, which has undertaken the bulk of the ground missions in Afghanistan and now has nearly 140, 000 of its troops in Afghanistan and Iraq , had 10,222 mental health hospitalizations last year, which added up to 90 percent of all army hospitalizations.
The rising number of mentally unstable former soldiers is playing havoc with their social life when they come home.
"This has been the reason for the number of murders committed by veterans, because they basically went off the deep end" said Mr. Osgood.
The latest suicide rate figures in the US military are the highest since the closing days of the Vietnam War in the mid 1970s.
Mental health care accounted for 40 percent of all the days spent in hospitals last year by members of the US military and 5 percent of those stays lasted more than a month.
The US military has recently complained about the $ 3000 a day cost to treat a mentally wounded soldier.
The Pentagon hospital bill has mushroomed to a level never seen before.
HA/TG/MB
Tue, 18 May 2010 07:55:59 GMT
New figures released by the Pentagon show a significant spike in the number of US soldiers diagnosed with and treated for serious mental disorders.
For the first time, more US soldiers are hospitalized for serious mental disorders from their military service than for injuries and battlefield wounds, according to new medical data released by the Pentagon.
In 2009, there were 17,538 US soldiers put into hospitals for mental health problems compared to 17,354 for battle wounds and injuries sustained during military service.
The revelation cast a harsh spotlight on the problems that have been simmering for years in Washington since the invasion of Iraq and Afghanistan that have left numbers of soldiers frustrated. Many of them, who are now veterans of two wars, have found themselves incapable of even leading a normal life when they come home.
Numbers head back -- not only with physical injuries from Afghanistan and Iraq but also with psychological problems, including post-traumatic stress syndrome, drug abuse, depression, anxiety and difficulty readjusting to civilian life, Press TV reported.
Meanwhile , both the Pentagon and the US Department of Veterans' Affairs have voiced grave concerns over the operating costs of treating those suffering from mental disabilities. The treatment appears to have busted the Pentagon budget with Pentagon chief Robert Gates saying: "it is costing way too much."
The US Secretary of Defense also admits that the healthcare costs are 'eating the Defense Department alive,' and much of it involves expensive military psychiatrists and psychologists, who have had to be hired to deal with it.
Multiple deployments of the troops and heavy pressure upon the forces in places, in which the population is not very friendly, are all contributing to the spike in mental health disorders, according to the Pentagon medical report.
"People don't want to concentrate on the stress, this shows the logical result of that years-long policy", Carl Osgood of the Executive Intelligence Review told Press TV correspondent Mike Kellerman in Washington.
Pentagon figures also indicate that one out of every 10 US Marines is hospitalized for mental disorders with similar numbers in the Navy and Air Force.
Ten percent of those returning soldiers will end up in medical treatment centers for mental problems; those are the lucky ones that don't kill themselves.
"There will be more soldiers this year to commit suicide than did last year, and last year was the worst year since the Army started tracking the statistics, so that is just the most serious marker of the overall decline of the mental health situation." Carl Osgood added.
The US Army, which has undertaken the bulk of the ground missions in Afghanistan and now has nearly 140, 000 of its troops in Afghanistan and Iraq , had 10,222 mental health hospitalizations last year, which added up to 90 percent of all army hospitalizations.
The rising number of mentally unstable former soldiers is playing havoc with their social life when they come home.
"This has been the reason for the number of murders committed by veterans, because they basically went off the deep end" said Mr. Osgood.
The latest suicide rate figures in the US military are the highest since the closing days of the Vietnam War in the mid 1970s.
Mental health care accounted for 40 percent of all the days spent in hospitals last year by members of the US military and 5 percent of those stays lasted more than a month.
The US military has recently complained about the $ 3000 a day cost to treat a mentally wounded soldier.
The Pentagon hospital bill has mushroomed to a level never seen before.
HA/TG/MB
Saudi officer in World Cup terror 'plot'
Saudi officer in World Cup terror 'plot'
Mon, 17 May 2010 17:19:26 GMT
F
 |
Baghdad security spokesman Major General Qassem Atta holds up an image of Abdullah al-Qahtani. |
A high-ranking army officer from Saudi Arabia has been accused of planning an attack during the upcoming FIFA World Cup in South Africa, an Iraqi official says.
Baghdad security spokesman Major General Qassim Atta said Monday Colonel Abdullah al-Qahtani participated in the planning of a terrorist act in South Africa.
Iraqi police arrested Qahtani two weeks ago. He was also in charge of security for the terror network in Baghdad, General Atta said.
He declined to give more details on the plot, AFP reported.
The Saudi national entered Iraq in 2004 and was involved in militant operations in the northern towns of al-Qaim and Husayba.
In 2007, Qahtani was detained by the US military under the false name Muzawar al-Shammari and was released last year.
He also took part in the planning of a series of attacks on Baghdad hotels in January, which killed 36 people, and in the organization of blasts in December that killed 127 people in the Iraqi capital, the report added.
AGB/MD/MMN
Baghdad security spokesman Major General Qassim Atta said Monday Colonel Abdullah al-Qahtani participated in the planning of a terrorist act in South Africa.
Iraqi police arrested Qahtani two weeks ago. He was also in charge of security for the terror network in Baghdad, General Atta said.
He declined to give more details on the plot, AFP reported.
The Saudi national entered Iraq in 2004 and was involved in militant operations in the northern towns of al-Qaim and Husayba.
In 2007, Qahtani was detained by the US military under the false name Muzawar al-Shammari and was released last year.
He also took part in the planning of a series of attacks on Baghdad hotels in January, which killed 36 people, and in the organization of blasts in December that killed 127 people in the Iraqi capital, the report added.
AGB/MD/MMN
West is unfair to Iran: Erdogan
West is unfair to Iran: Erdogan
Sun, 30 May 2010 02:01:46 GMT
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Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan (r) and Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad |
Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan says that the approach the West has taken over the Tehran declaration is not fair and sincere.
Speaking to the Anatolia news agency on the sidelines of the UN Alliance of Civilizations Forum in Rio de Janeiro on Saturday, Erdogan criticized Western leaders for backpedalling from conditions they had set for Iran after Turkey and Brazil secured those terms in the accord and for their silence about the undeclared nuclear arsenal of Israel.
Erdogan said he and Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva would maintain diplomatic efforts to gather support for the nuclear fuel swap declaration.
He went on to say that he would most probably discuss the issue with US President Barack Obama during the G-20 summit in Canada next month.
Erdogan hit back at US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, who said on Thursday that the Brazilian-Turkish mediation effort's effect of "buying time for Iran… makes the world more dangerous, not less."
"The step that we took is not one that puts the world in danger. On the contrary, it is a step to prevent attempts to put the world in danger," AFP quoted Erdogan as saying.
"We have said it from the very beginning — we do not want nuclear weapons in our region," he added.
The foreign ministers of Iran, Turkey, and Brazil signed a declaration in the Iranian capital on May 17 that commits Tehran to deposit 1,200 kilograms (2,640 pounds) of its low-enriched uranium in Turkey that would be exchanged for 120 kilograms of 20 percent enriched nuclear fuel for the Tehran research reactor, which produces radioisotopes for cancer treatment.
Iran, which is a signatory to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, says its nuclear activities are totally peaceful and International Atomic Energy Agency inspectors have never found any evidence of diversion in Iran's nuclear program.
And Tehran has always emphasized that access to civilian nuclear technology is the inalienable right of all IAEA members and all NPT signatories.
AS/MTM/HGL
Speaking to the Anatolia news agency on the sidelines of the UN Alliance of Civilizations Forum in Rio de Janeiro on Saturday, Erdogan criticized Western leaders for backpedalling from conditions they had set for Iran after Turkey and Brazil secured those terms in the accord and for their silence about the undeclared nuclear arsenal of Israel.
Erdogan said he and Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva would maintain diplomatic efforts to gather support for the nuclear fuel swap declaration.
He went on to say that he would most probably discuss the issue with US President Barack Obama during the G-20 summit in Canada next month.
Erdogan hit back at US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, who said on Thursday that the Brazilian-Turkish mediation effort's effect of "buying time for Iran… makes the world more dangerous, not less."
"The step that we took is not one that puts the world in danger. On the contrary, it is a step to prevent attempts to put the world in danger," AFP quoted Erdogan as saying.
"We have said it from the very beginning — we do not want nuclear weapons in our region," he added.
The foreign ministers of Iran, Turkey, and Brazil signed a declaration in the Iranian capital on May 17 that commits Tehran to deposit 1,200 kilograms (2,640 pounds) of its low-enriched uranium in Turkey that would be exchanged for 120 kilograms of 20 percent enriched nuclear fuel for the Tehran research reactor, which produces radioisotopes for cancer treatment.
Iran, which is a signatory to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, says its nuclear activities are totally peaceful and International Atomic Energy Agency inspectors have never found any evidence of diversion in Iran's nuclear program.
And Tehran has always emphasized that access to civilian nuclear technology is the inalienable right of all IAEA members and all NPT signatories.
AS/MTM/HGL
Pakistan's Facebook ban drives minister to Twitter
Pakistan's Facebook ban drives minister to Twitter
Pakistani protesters in Hyderabad on Wednesday burn US, Israeli and Danish flags during a rally to condemn a page on social networking website Facebook that encourages users to post images of Islam's Prophet Muhammad. Pakistan will restore access to YouTube but will block videos offensive to Muslims that are posted on the video-sharing site, the government said Wednesday. (AP)
By CHRIS ALLBRITTON | REUTERS
Published: May 26, 2010 21:22 Updated: May 26, 2010 21:23
ISLAMABAD: After Pakistan banned Facebook in a bid to stop it hosting "blasphemous" pictures of Prophet Mohammad, the country's interior minister found a new way to get his online fix. He jumped on Twitter.
Interior Minister Rehman Malik said his son told him that if he couldn't get on Facebook, where he has his own page which hosts pictures of dignitaries and has 691 fans, he should Tweet.
"Only a few days back I came in (as a Twitter user). I like it," Malik told Reuters in an interview on Tuesday. "There are lot of questions, are you real, are you fake?"
Malik already has more than 270 followers, according to his page (including this correspondent), far less than the "countless" ones he said he had after only a few days. Many people writing to him question if indeed the account is real (it is) or complain that he should be governing instead of tweeting. Malik's tweets give no hint the digital hecklers bother him. He calls for unity in the face of violence in Karachi and comments on how nice it is to meet so many women parliamentarians from around Asia. He also freely engages with his followers, an unusual practice in Pakistan's stratified political culture.
"Thank you for your appreciation," Malik wrote to one well-wisher. "I will hunt the terrorists to their demise."
"I do not devise economic or monetary policy," he replied to another, questioning an increase in fees and taxes.
While he declined to criticize the decision to ban Facebook and other websites, he said he hoped that a solution could be worked out soon that pleased most people.
"I think we should be open-minded," he said.
Pakistan last week blocked the popular social networking site Facebook indefinitely because of an online competition to draw Islam's prophet. Any representation of the Prophet Mohammad is deemed un-Islamic and blasphemous by Muslims. YouTube and about 1,000 other sites have been blocked for the same reason.
The publications of cartoons of the prophet in Danish newspapers in 2005 sparked deadly protests in Muslim countries. About 50 people were killed during violent protests in Muslim countries in 2006 over the cartoons, five of them in Pakistan.
Al Qaeda claimed responsibility for a suicide attack on the Danish embassy in Islamabad in 2008, killing six people, saying it was in revenge for publication of the caricatures.
Pakistani protesters in Hyderabad on Wednesday burn US, Israeli and Danish flags during a rally to condemn a page on social networking website Facebook that encourages users to post images of Islam's Prophet Muhammad. Pakistan will restore access to YouTube but will block videos offensive to Muslims that are posted on the video-sharing site, the government said Wednesday. (AP)
By CHRIS ALLBRITTON | REUTERS
Published: May 26, 2010 21:22 Updated: May 26, 2010 21:23
ISLAMABAD: After Pakistan banned Facebook in a bid to stop it hosting "blasphemous" pictures of Prophet Mohammad, the country's interior minister found a new way to get his online fix. He jumped on Twitter.
Interior Minister Rehman Malik said his son told him that if he couldn't get on Facebook, where he has his own page which hosts pictures of dignitaries and has 691 fans, he should Tweet.
"Only a few days back I came in (as a Twitter user). I like it," Malik told Reuters in an interview on Tuesday. "There are lot of questions, are you real, are you fake?"
Malik already has more than 270 followers, according to his page (including this correspondent), far less than the "countless" ones he said he had after only a few days. Many people writing to him question if indeed the account is real (it is) or complain that he should be governing instead of tweeting. Malik's tweets give no hint the digital hecklers bother him. He calls for unity in the face of violence in Karachi and comments on how nice it is to meet so many women parliamentarians from around Asia. He also freely engages with his followers, an unusual practice in Pakistan's stratified political culture.
"Thank you for your appreciation," Malik wrote to one well-wisher. "I will hunt the terrorists to their demise."
"I do not devise economic or monetary policy," he replied to another, questioning an increase in fees and taxes.
While he declined to criticize the decision to ban Facebook and other websites, he said he hoped that a solution could be worked out soon that pleased most people.
"I think we should be open-minded," he said.
Pakistan last week blocked the popular social networking site Facebook indefinitely because of an online competition to draw Islam's prophet. Any representation of the Prophet Mohammad is deemed un-Islamic and blasphemous by Muslims. YouTube and about 1,000 other sites have been blocked for the same reason.
The publications of cartoons of the prophet in Danish newspapers in 2005 sparked deadly protests in Muslim countries. About 50 people were killed during violent protests in Muslim countries in 2006 over the cartoons, five of them in Pakistan.
Al Qaeda claimed responsibility for a suicide attack on the Danish embassy in Islamabad in 2008, killing six people, saying it was in revenge for publication of the caricatures.
History is in the hands of our future
History is in the hands of our future
The Qur'anic text in the above painting reads: "O ye who believe! Obey Allah and obey the Messenger and those charged with authority among you..." (Surat Al-Nisa: 59)
1 of 2
By MARRIAM MOSSALLI, MARRIAM.MOSSALLI@ARABNEWS.COM
Published: May 26, 2010 19:05 Updated: May 26, 2010 19:05
Tajammul Hussain is not just an artist; he is an illuminator, in all sense of the word. While his masterpieces shed light on the sacred words of the Holy Qur'an, he sheds light on the academic significance of art in our history and future.
"The difference between history, legend and myth is historical evidence," reveals Tajammul. "If you wipe out this evidence, then you wipe out history. Consequently, history becomes legend and legend turns into myth."
Tajammul stresses that the Islamic world needs to look ahead and realize the importance of conserving our history. "It is the same way that Ibn Muqla in the 10th century systemized calligraphy based on the 'sacred geometry,'" explains Tajammul. "He was far-sighted." Ibn Muqla saw that over years, the script could potentially be manipulated to the point where the words could be misread and thus misinterpreted. Therefore, rules were needed to ensure uniform understanding and consistent respect to the subject.
Tajammul's techniques are of the old masters, yet his juxtaposition of styles is anything but. "My work is timeless because it is rooted in tradition, yet it is very contemporary," he adds. "It is an act of devotion and glorification of the sacred word."
Tajammul hopes that his work will inspire the youth of today and inject the Holy Qur'an into our daily lives. "My work is to be meditated on. There is a reason behind each color and each symbol. It's not just aesthetics; there is a scholarly purpose behind them."
For example, his painting, "Iqra" (which means "read") depicts the four Arabic letters painted in blood-red with shell gold leaf mountains in the background. "The moment Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) saw the apparition of Gabriel was not a calm or pleasant one," explains Tajammul. "According to the Qur'an, (Surat Al-Qalam), the Prophet thought he was going mad. So I depicted this moment through the illumination of the words and the colors and symbols used."
The Middle East needs incentives that educate individuals on the traditional techniques as well as the historical purpose behind each symbol and color. "Incentives in this traditional school of illumination are needed, as it reveals so much of our history and heritage," states Tajammul.
The Barakat Trust, a UK registered non-profit organization, is one example. Since 1987, the Barakat Trust has been providing financial support to individuals so they may pursue the study and research of both material and visual cultures of the Islamic world. This assistance is granted to enable students and scholars to continue to add to the body of Islamic scholarship while enhancing the possibilities of cross-cultural understanding and tolerance.
"Unfortunately, the majority of knowledge on Islamic art is held by Western specialists, and sometimes, they make mistakes because they are not of this tradition," reveals Tajammul. "Western institutions, including auction houses, are telling the world what they should like or not like. And, quite often, Arabs look to the West for validation, when this shouldn't be the case since Westerners are promoting commercialized and 'Westernized' Arab art."
The Arab world needs to increase its patronage of traditional art. It is a way of keeping our history and passing it onto future generations. Some of the world's biggest financial institutions own some of the most elaborate art collections, yet the Arab world — except for perhaps Qatar — have yet to catch onto this trend. Even Qatar spends millions of US dollars on contemporary art that the Western world has labeled valuable, often ignoring the Islamic artists who specialize in traditional modes of expression.
There are only a handful of experts from the Islamic world, and Tajammul hopes the new emerging generation continues to inquire about and research its artistic heritage and history. "I hope they will pick up the torch from where we have left off," states Tajammul. "We all have a responsibility."
Tajammul will be discussing how illumination is a language and not merely a decoration in his one-hour lecture titled "Language of Illumination through the Centuries of the Qur'an" on May 29 at Athr Gallery at 11 a.m. He will be speaking on the usage of pattern, color and design to reaffirm and illustrate the complexity and depth of the Qur'anic Verses. The lecture will also highlight key symbols like the shamsah, shujairah, five, six and eight-pointed stars and their meanings, development and usage from the Othmanic codices in 650 A.D. to modern times.
For more information:
Contact Athr Gallery on 02-2845009 or 056-8658888
or e-mail them at info@athrart.com
The Qur'anic text in the above painting reads: "O ye who believe! Obey Allah and obey the Messenger and those charged with authority among you..." (Surat Al-Nisa: 59)
1 of 2
By MARRIAM MOSSALLI, MARRIAM.MOSSALLI@ARABNEWS.COM
Published: May 26, 2010 19:05 Updated: May 26, 2010 19:05
Tajammul Hussain is not just an artist; he is an illuminator, in all sense of the word. While his masterpieces shed light on the sacred words of the Holy Qur'an, he sheds light on the academic significance of art in our history and future.
"The difference between history, legend and myth is historical evidence," reveals Tajammul. "If you wipe out this evidence, then you wipe out history. Consequently, history becomes legend and legend turns into myth."
Tajammul stresses that the Islamic world needs to look ahead and realize the importance of conserving our history. "It is the same way that Ibn Muqla in the 10th century systemized calligraphy based on the 'sacred geometry,'" explains Tajammul. "He was far-sighted." Ibn Muqla saw that over years, the script could potentially be manipulated to the point where the words could be misread and thus misinterpreted. Therefore, rules were needed to ensure uniform understanding and consistent respect to the subject.
Tajammul's techniques are of the old masters, yet his juxtaposition of styles is anything but. "My work is timeless because it is rooted in tradition, yet it is very contemporary," he adds. "It is an act of devotion and glorification of the sacred word."
Tajammul hopes that his work will inspire the youth of today and inject the Holy Qur'an into our daily lives. "My work is to be meditated on. There is a reason behind each color and each symbol. It's not just aesthetics; there is a scholarly purpose behind them."
For example, his painting, "Iqra" (which means "read") depicts the four Arabic letters painted in blood-red with shell gold leaf mountains in the background. "The moment Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) saw the apparition of Gabriel was not a calm or pleasant one," explains Tajammul. "According to the Qur'an, (Surat Al-Qalam), the Prophet thought he was going mad. So I depicted this moment through the illumination of the words and the colors and symbols used."
The Middle East needs incentives that educate individuals on the traditional techniques as well as the historical purpose behind each symbol and color. "Incentives in this traditional school of illumination are needed, as it reveals so much of our history and heritage," states Tajammul.
The Barakat Trust, a UK registered non-profit organization, is one example. Since 1987, the Barakat Trust has been providing financial support to individuals so they may pursue the study and research of both material and visual cultures of the Islamic world. This assistance is granted to enable students and scholars to continue to add to the body of Islamic scholarship while enhancing the possibilities of cross-cultural understanding and tolerance.
"Unfortunately, the majority of knowledge on Islamic art is held by Western specialists, and sometimes, they make mistakes because they are not of this tradition," reveals Tajammul. "Western institutions, including auction houses, are telling the world what they should like or not like. And, quite often, Arabs look to the West for validation, when this shouldn't be the case since Westerners are promoting commercialized and 'Westernized' Arab art."
The Arab world needs to increase its patronage of traditional art. It is a way of keeping our history and passing it onto future generations. Some of the world's biggest financial institutions own some of the most elaborate art collections, yet the Arab world — except for perhaps Qatar — have yet to catch onto this trend. Even Qatar spends millions of US dollars on contemporary art that the Western world has labeled valuable, often ignoring the Islamic artists who specialize in traditional modes of expression.
There are only a handful of experts from the Islamic world, and Tajammul hopes the new emerging generation continues to inquire about and research its artistic heritage and history. "I hope they will pick up the torch from where we have left off," states Tajammul. "We all have a responsibility."
Tajammul will be discussing how illumination is a language and not merely a decoration in his one-hour lecture titled "Language of Illumination through the Centuries of the Qur'an" on May 29 at Athr Gallery at 11 a.m. He will be speaking on the usage of pattern, color and design to reaffirm and illustrate the complexity and depth of the Qur'anic Verses. The lecture will also highlight key symbols like the shamsah, shujairah, five, six and eight-pointed stars and their meanings, development and usage from the Othmanic codices in 650 A.D. to modern times.
For more information:
Contact Athr Gallery on 02-2845009 or 056-8658888
or e-mail them at info@athrart.com
Kingdom-born foreigners demand citizenship
Kingdom-born foreigners demand citizenship
By MUHAMMAD AL-SULAMI | ARAB NEWS
JEDDAH: A group of non-Saudi nationals who were born in the Kingdom have come together to launch a new Internet site to demand citizenship or permanent iqamas and express their love and loyalty to the Kingdom.
"Our commitment to the Kingdom is eternal. We have become part of the Saudi social fabric," say the founders of www.Mawaleed.net.
The youngsters say they consider themselves "an integral part of Saudi society," speak fluent Arabic and have adopted local culture and customs. "What ties us to the Kingdom is more stronger than what ties us to our original homes from which our fathers and grandfathers came," said the founders in a statement on the site.
The founders describe their forum as "a tree" under which they meet to express their love and commitment to Saudi Arabia, the country where they were born, grew up in and studied.
"The forum was established in response to calls by a number of foreigners born in the Kingdom to present their case and talk about their concerns," the statement said, adding that foreigners born in the Kingdom represent a huge chunk of Saudi society and are very Saudi in their attitude and behavior.
"Our wish to remain in the Kingdom goes beyond the tenure of the iqama. Though we do not have citizenship papers, we feel like real citizens of this great country. We believe that citizenship is a feeling of belonging and not confined to identity papers," the statement said.
The site has been established through private efforts and does not receive any financial support from anywhere. The founders also called on members to firmly commit themselves to Saudi laws.
By MUHAMMAD AL-SULAMI | ARAB NEWS
JEDDAH: A group of non-Saudi nationals who were born in the Kingdom have come together to launch a new Internet site to demand citizenship or permanent iqamas and express their love and loyalty to the Kingdom.
"Our commitment to the Kingdom is eternal. We have become part of the Saudi social fabric," say the founders of www.Mawaleed.net.
The youngsters say they consider themselves "an integral part of Saudi society," speak fluent Arabic and have adopted local culture and customs. "What ties us to the Kingdom is more stronger than what ties us to our original homes from which our fathers and grandfathers came," said the founders in a statement on the site.
The founders describe their forum as "a tree" under which they meet to express their love and commitment to Saudi Arabia, the country where they were born, grew up in and studied.
"The forum was established in response to calls by a number of foreigners born in the Kingdom to present their case and talk about their concerns," the statement said, adding that foreigners born in the Kingdom represent a huge chunk of Saudi society and are very Saudi in their attitude and behavior.
"Our wish to remain in the Kingdom goes beyond the tenure of the iqama. Though we do not have citizenship papers, we feel like real citizens of this great country. We believe that citizenship is a feeling of belonging and not confined to identity papers," the statement said.
The site has been established through private efforts and does not receive any financial support from anywhere. The founders also called on members to firmly commit themselves to Saudi laws.
AZERBAIJAN: UN RIGHTS EXPERT ON DISPLACED PERSONS URGES PROGRESS IN PEACE PROCESS
AZERBAIJAN: UN RIGHTS EXPERT ON DISPLACED PERSONS URGES PROGRESS IN PEACE PROCESS
New York, May 28 2010 3:10PM
Progress is needed in the ongoing peace negotiations between Armenia and Azerbaijan over the Nagorno-Karabakh region so that internally displaced persons (IDPs) can find a durable solution to their predicament, an independent United Nations human rights expert has said.
Nagorno-Karabakh, which was an autonomous region during Soviet times, has been at the centre of a dispute between the neighbouring countries since they became independent in the early 1990s.
"Despite efforts to improve conditions, internal displacement in Azerbaijan has lasted too long," Walter Kälin, the Secretary-General's Representative on the Human Rights of IDPs, said in a statement issued on Tuesday in the capital, Baku. "It is necessary to come to a peace agreement to restore the human rights of internally displaced persons.
"I urge the international community to actively renew and strengthen their efforts to facilitate the speedy adoption of a peace agreement, and to ensure that in this process the human rights of internally displaced persons are addressed, in particular their right to voluntary return in safety and dignity," he said after wrapping up an official visit to Azerbaijan – his first to the Caucasus country since 2007.
"This protracted displacement of more than 18 years that has now affected several generations – and, which despite Government efforts, is continuing to cause much human suffering – has no place in Europe," the Secretary-General's Representative stressed.
During his visit to Azerbaijan Mr. Kälin met with President Ilham Aliyev as well as a series of senior Government ministers, the national ombudsperson, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and representatives of the international community. He also visited locations where IDPs are living, such as Baku, Beylagan and the Lachin winter grounds in Aghjabedi.
Mr. Kälin said Azerbaijan had made important achievements in housing for IDPs, the construction of educational facilities for them and improving their access to health care in rural areas.
"I commend the authorities for their commitment and encourage them to continue and reinforce their efforts, with particular focus on improving the very difficult living conditions in urban collective centres."
Mr. Kälin also noted that the Azerbaijani Government was moving to build new apartments in urban areas for IDPs.
However, he added that he was concerned about the risk of future evictions in urban areas, particularly as a result of privatization or public construction works.
"It is key that internally displaced persons be provided with adequate notice, housing alternatives and assistance in such situations."
In addition, Mr. Kälin emphasized the need for appropriate assistance to vulnerable groups, such as female-headed households, the elderly and the disabled, and for greater job opportunities for IDPs.
May 28 2010 3:10PM
_____________________________
New York, May 28 2010 3:10PM
Progress is needed in the ongoing peace negotiations between Armenia and Azerbaijan over the Nagorno-Karabakh region so that internally displaced persons (IDPs) can find a durable solution to their predicament, an independent United Nations human rights expert has said.
Nagorno-Karabakh, which was an autonomous region during Soviet times, has been at the centre of a dispute between the neighbouring countries since they became independent in the early 1990s.
"Despite efforts to improve conditions, internal displacement in Azerbaijan has lasted too long," Walter Kälin, the Secretary-General's Representative on the Human Rights of IDPs, said in a statement issued on Tuesday in the capital, Baku. "It is necessary to come to a peace agreement to restore the human rights of internally displaced persons.
"I urge the international community to actively renew and strengthen their efforts to facilitate the speedy adoption of a peace agreement, and to ensure that in this process the human rights of internally displaced persons are addressed, in particular their right to voluntary return in safety and dignity," he said after wrapping up an official visit to Azerbaijan – his first to the Caucasus country since 2007.
"This protracted displacement of more than 18 years that has now affected several generations – and, which despite Government efforts, is continuing to cause much human suffering – has no place in Europe," the Secretary-General's Representative stressed.
During his visit to Azerbaijan Mr. Kälin met with President Ilham Aliyev as well as a series of senior Government ministers, the national ombudsperson, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and representatives of the international community. He also visited locations where IDPs are living, such as Baku, Beylagan and the Lachin winter grounds in Aghjabedi.
Mr. Kälin said Azerbaijan had made important achievements in housing for IDPs, the construction of educational facilities for them and improving their access to health care in rural areas.
"I commend the authorities for their commitment and encourage them to continue and reinforce their efforts, with particular focus on improving the very difficult living conditions in urban collective centres."
Mr. Kälin also noted that the Azerbaijani Government was moving to build new apartments in urban areas for IDPs.
However, he added that he was concerned about the risk of future evictions in urban areas, particularly as a result of privatization or public construction works.
"It is key that internally displaced persons be provided with adequate notice, housing alternatives and assistance in such situations."
In addition, Mr. Kälin emphasized the need for appropriate assistance to vulnerable groups, such as female-headed households, the elderly and the disabled, and for greater job opportunities for IDPs.
May 28 2010 3:10PM
_____________________________
Friday, May 28, 2010
Israeli antics fail to stop Gaza ‘Freedom Flotilla’
Israeli antics fail to stop Gaza 'Freedom Flotilla'
Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad visits a family in Ramallah, West Bank, on Thursday, during a house-to-house campaign to combat products made by Israeli settlers. (Reuters)
ASHDOD, Israel: Pro-Palestinian activists vowed on Thursday to steam on to Hamas-run Gaza and bust the blockade with their aid-laden flotilla as Israel again warned it would intercept the ships.
"We have the right to sail from international waters into the waters of Gaza," said Greta Berlin, one of the flotilla's organizers.
"The only illegal presence in the area is Israel," she told AFP, adding the "Freedom Flotilla" was on schedule to arrive in the Palestinian enclave on Saturday with more than 10,000 tons of building and other supplies.
But Israel insisted it would prevent the three cargo ships and five passenger boats from reaching the Gaza Strip, calling the blockade busting bid a "cheap political stunt." The Foreign Ministry said it summoned the ambassadors of Turkey, Greece, Cyprus, Sweden and Ireland — the countries from which the ships set sail — and warned them Israel "issued warrants that prohibit the entrance of the vessels to Gaza."
Israel has vowed to divert the ships to the southern Israeli port of Ashdod, where it will detain the activists before deporting them. Part of the port has been cordoned off and prepared to deal with the activists. Chemical toilets have been set up as well as large tents housing immigration booths and areas for people to be searched.
Containers blocked off what appeared to be a holding area, which was covered by tarpaulins to provide shade.
Gal suggested the organizers should voluntarily head to Ashdod to unload the supplies so Israel or humanitarian agencies can deliver them to Gaza overland.
Flotilla organizers rejected the offer. "We are taking 10,000 tons of material that Israel refuses to allow into Gaza," Berlin said, adding the cargo includes water filtration units, pre-fabricated homes and crayons for children.
"This mission is not about delivering humanitarian supplies, it's about breaking Israel's siege on 1.5 million Palestinians," she said.
Irishman Fintan Lane echoed the sentiments. "We are determined to break Israel's blockade and will not be intimidated," said Lane, one of 750 activists from around the world, including dozens of public officials from European and Arab countries that organizers say are heading toward Gaza.
"The people of Gaza have a right to access to the outside world and the right to determine their own future," said Lane.
Hamas on Thursday said Israel's threats to intercept the flotilla amounted to "Zionist piracy." "The occupation's threat to prevent the Freedom Flotilla from arriving in the besieged Gaza Strip is Zionist piracy and a violation of international law," senior Hamas leader Ismail Radwan said in a statement.
"The occupation is concerned about these ships... because they grant legitimacy to engagement with the Palestinian government and confirm that the attempts to isolate Hamas have failed," he added.
The boats would converge at a meeting point in international waters east of Cyprus, probably late on Friday, and then head across the eastern end of the Mediterranean Sea toward Gaza, Berlin told said.
Israeli naval commandos have held drills in preparation for boarding and searching the convoy.
BROAD COALITION THE BEST OPTION FOR GOVERNMENT IN IRAQ – UN ENVOY
BROAD COALITION THE BEST OPTION FOR GOVERNMENT IN IRAQ – UN ENVOY
New York, May 25 2010 4:10PM
A broad-based coalition Government in Iraq is a better alternative for the people of that country who are eager to see a stable administration, the United Nations top envoy to Iraq told the Security Council today, adding that that the political leadership also recognizes the need for constitutional transition following elections in March.
"At this juncture, Iraq would probably be better served by a broadly inclusive Government as a radical alternative to exclusion and disenfranchisement that many communities have experienced in the past," Ad Melkert, Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Iraq, told the Council.
He said the UN Assistance Mission for Iraq (<"http://www.uniraq.org/">UNAMI) was constantly encouraging parties that won seats in parliament in the 7 March elections to come to an agreement on the formation of a government guided by three principles – a governing coalition inclusive of all major winning parties; a government based on power-sharing; and a government formation process within an agreed timeframe.
Iraq's political blocs are still discussing the formation of a new government.
Mr. Melkert described the elections as a turning point for Iraq, but drew the Council's attention to the fact that violence incidents in the country had left 2,000 Iraqis dead and 5,000 others injured so far this year.
"It is imperative that the international community condemns and isolates the perpetrators. This would be to the benefit of an orderly transit towards a new Government as a critical moment for creating a political environment conducive to meaningful dialogue and power-sharing," Mr. Melkert said.
Just yesterday, a newly-elected member of Parliament, Bashar Al-Ouqeidi, was gunned down in the volatile northern city of Mosul.
Mr. Melkert condemned the assassination in the strongest terms and urged Iraq authorities to pursue and bring to justice the perpetrators of what he described as a "despicable act."
The Special Representative said the Iraqi Government faces the challenge of responding to the people's high expectations that political and security progress will translate into economic growth, the creation of jobs and lead to an improvement in living conditions.
"Failure by the next government to address the needs and aspirations of the population will predictably be a source of increasing instability and undermine the gains of the democratic process so far," Mr. Melkert said.
He said that UNAMI's impartial outreach to try to foster reconciliation between different Iraqi communities and interests in Ninewa province had generated positive results. The province has a history of disputes and political divisions between its Arab and Kurdish inhabitants.
Turning to the regional dimension of situation in Iraq, Mr. Melkert urged neighbouring countries to capitalize on the region's strengths to boost security and economic growth.
"Constructive engagement, rather than interference, would be of great benefit to all," Mr. Melkert said.
In remarks to the media following the session on the situation in Iraq, the President of the Security Council and the Representative of Lebanon, Nawaf Salam, said the Council had commended Iraq's electoral commission on the successful manual recount of ballots and the announcement of the outcome in the Baghdad governorate, and looked forward to the ratification of overall election results by the federal Supreme Court.
The Council also called for the quick formation of an inclusive government that reflected the will of the Iraqi people and condemned all acts of violence, Mr. Salam said.
Addressing the Council, Iraq's Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Hamid al-Bayati repeated his Government's demand that sanctions imposed on Iraq in respect of weapons of mass destruction be lifted, saying that the Director-General of the UN International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) had written to Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon stating that the agency was receiving "excellent cooperation" from Iraq in the implementation of the comprehensive nuclear safeguards agreement.
May 25 2010 4:10PM
New York, May 25 2010 4:10PM
A broad-based coalition Government in Iraq is a better alternative for the people of that country who are eager to see a stable administration, the United Nations top envoy to Iraq told the Security Council today, adding that that the political leadership also recognizes the need for constitutional transition following elections in March.
"At this juncture, Iraq would probably be better served by a broadly inclusive Government as a radical alternative to exclusion and disenfranchisement that many communities have experienced in the past," Ad Melkert, Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Iraq, told the Council.
He said the UN Assistance Mission for Iraq (<"http://www.uniraq.org/">UNAMI) was constantly encouraging parties that won seats in parliament in the 7 March elections to come to an agreement on the formation of a government guided by three principles – a governing coalition inclusive of all major winning parties; a government based on power-sharing; and a government formation process within an agreed timeframe.
Iraq's political blocs are still discussing the formation of a new government.
Mr. Melkert described the elections as a turning point for Iraq, but drew the Council's attention to the fact that violence incidents in the country had left 2,000 Iraqis dead and 5,000 others injured so far this year.
"It is imperative that the international community condemns and isolates the perpetrators. This would be to the benefit of an orderly transit towards a new Government as a critical moment for creating a political environment conducive to meaningful dialogue and power-sharing," Mr. Melkert said.
Just yesterday, a newly-elected member of Parliament, Bashar Al-Ouqeidi, was gunned down in the volatile northern city of Mosul.
Mr. Melkert condemned the assassination in the strongest terms and urged Iraq authorities to pursue and bring to justice the perpetrators of what he described as a "despicable act."
The Special Representative said the Iraqi Government faces the challenge of responding to the people's high expectations that political and security progress will translate into economic growth, the creation of jobs and lead to an improvement in living conditions.
"Failure by the next government to address the needs and aspirations of the population will predictably be a source of increasing instability and undermine the gains of the democratic process so far," Mr. Melkert said.
He said that UNAMI's impartial outreach to try to foster reconciliation between different Iraqi communities and interests in Ninewa province had generated positive results. The province has a history of disputes and political divisions between its Arab and Kurdish inhabitants.
Turning to the regional dimension of situation in Iraq, Mr. Melkert urged neighbouring countries to capitalize on the region's strengths to boost security and economic growth.
"Constructive engagement, rather than interference, would be of great benefit to all," Mr. Melkert said.
In remarks to the media following the session on the situation in Iraq, the President of the Security Council and the Representative of Lebanon, Nawaf Salam, said the Council had commended Iraq's electoral commission on the successful manual recount of ballots and the announcement of the outcome in the Baghdad governorate, and looked forward to the ratification of overall election results by the federal Supreme Court.
The Council also called for the quick formation of an inclusive government that reflected the will of the Iraqi people and condemned all acts of violence, Mr. Salam said.
Addressing the Council, Iraq's Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Hamid al-Bayati repeated his Government's demand that sanctions imposed on Iraq in respect of weapons of mass destruction be lifted, saying that the Director-General of the UN International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) had written to Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon stating that the agency was receiving "excellent cooperation" from Iraq in the implementation of the comprehensive nuclear safeguards agreement.
May 25 2010 4:10PM
Tuesday, May 25, 2010
Yasmin Alibhai-Brown: We won't forgive and forget Iraq
Yasmin Alibhai-Brown: We won't forgive and forget Iraq
Ed Balls and the Miliband duo, and Cameron too, seem to believe their past stains will wash off easily and that they can present themselves to the nation all fresh and pristine
Not so fast Ed Balls. And you too, Ed Miliband. To these clever Oxbridge chaps, citizens are bozos, credulous and callow, easy to turn this way and that. Part of the New Labour circus, they were in the troupe of illusionists who made and unmade reality. The tent fell in and they have crawled out, dusty, chastened, of course pledging more honesty and candour as they vie for the leadership of their party.
Balls says he accepts the Iraq invasion was a costly mistake. Too little, too late for the dead, maimed, gas-poisoned Iraqi victims of our savage adventure, too presumptuous. The affable Ed Miliband wants to "talk about the gap between the rich and the poor", an issue nowhere in his line of sight when his government was collectively "relaxed about the filthy rich". He just found his conscience from somewhere in the bottom of his discarded, soiled values. Now he says he realises there was a "catastrophic loss of trust over Iraq". And old father Kinnock anoints him.
Brother David was already up, bright and early and away, ahead of the other contenders. No more pin-striped solemnity – he is now in blue denim, smiling innocently, inviting in our trust. I like him a lot personally, but cannot ever forgive his ruthless political expediency. Having voted strongly for the war in Iraq, he now claims we '"wouldn't have invaded Iraq had we known then what we know now. Obviously no such decision would have been made if we'd known Saddam Hussein did not have weapons of mass destruction". His master Blair told Chilcot the invasion would have gone ahead whatever the evidence of weapons. A short pause here, should any of you need time to throw up.
Next, DM enthusiastically supported the most illiberal anti-terrorism measures and was against any investigation into the Iraq war (Note: William Hague's voting record on identity cards and investigation into the war shows him to be more liberal). The Blairite minister denied our complicity in torture and rendition, fought the courts when they demanded more transparency and was forced to apologise to the House of Commons for some of this treacherous obfuscation. Though a critic of the Israeli assault on the Lebanon, once he became the Foreign Secretary he wordlessly acquiesced to the disproportionate violence used by the Israeli government against Palestinians, and sought to protect those responsible from international justice.
All three top runners seem to believe their past stains will wash off easily with modern detergents and they can present themselves to the nation all fresh and pristine. But political memory, like personal memory, lingers for a very long time, can swell and fester, inspire or incite generations, change the course of history.
Writing in The Social Research Journal (spring 2008), in which various essayists explore the subject, political scientist Professor W James Booth wrote: "Democracy itself remains, and deeply so, a community of memory. That is, its identity and its sense of its own coherence as a responsible agent across time rest squarely on the work of collective memory. Looking at the protean and volatile character of the politics of memory, we are reminded that in our world (or perhaps it always and everywhere was so), memory is intertwined with power, interest, and resistance precisely because it is so vital and fundamental to what we are as citizens." And that in turn, argues Booth, determines social and community commitment to justice.
The new Tories too are go-forwarders, impatient with people who will not let go of the past. Their election strategy was to erase the damaging images of Thatcherism, but for countless voters, including this one, that proved impossible. I am sure Cameron would have got his thumping majority if only his smart team could have found a way of inducing amnesia about that hateful period. One female blogger, for example, remembered being taken as a child to a demo outside Downing Street when P W Botha, at the height of his power, was visiting Thatcher. It helped her to understand "the regime did not exist in isolation. I have never voted Tory because they supported apartheid". Recall of long bygone policies directed that vote. And many more.
Tories were rousing champions of the war in Iraq and so share the blame with Blair and Brown. Their long, close ties with Lord Ashcroft still irk and worry Britons. Not mentioning the problem will not make it go away. And the appointment of Dame Pauline Neville-Jones as Minister of State for Security is surely the most wicked exemplar of political interring in unmarked sites. This Dame was the security adviser to Douglas Hurd when he was Foreign Secretary. They watched while Serbians massacred innocent Bosnian Muslims, claiming that it ensured a "level playing field".
They then joined NatWest Markets which made a fortune when Milosevic gave the company rights to privatise Telecom Serbia. Since then Neville-Jones has repeatedly suggested actions to fight terrorism that would please Donald Rumsfeld. When four British residents held uncharged for years at Guantanamo Bay were due to be released, she expressed grave concerns that they would return to the UK. By appointing her, Cameron shows he doesn't care about the collective punishment heaped on Muslim men around the world. He will rue the unwise choice. I am shocked that Clegg and Co, who stood up for human rights, have accepted the appointment. They are also now tarnished as a result.
In international politics, too, memories roam and fuel conduct. Take the very moving film about a white farming family in Zimbabwe this week. What was the back-story, the historical decisions and power grabs that created the civil enmities? We Ugandan Asians were cruelly dispossessed by Idi Amin in Uganda, but we too must ask why so many Africans ended up hating us – our racism and economic greed consumed them and they then behaved abominably. And the British need to acknowledge their role in the making of leviathans like Mugabe and Amin.
Hastily buried history avenges itself. And will on Balls and the Miliband duo and Cameron, too. They must reflect on what happened, apologise for the unstable world they helped make, past political chicanery. Without that that there can be no redemption, no moving on. Even in these times of blissful coalition governance we will not, cannot forget.
y.alibhai-brown@independent.co.uk
http://www.independent.co.uk/opinion/commentators/yasmin-alibhai-brown/yasmin-alibhaibrown-we-wont-forgive-and-forget-iraq-1981153.html
Ed Balls and the Miliband duo, and Cameron too, seem to believe their past stains will wash off easily and that they can present themselves to the nation all fresh and pristine
Not so fast Ed Balls. And you too, Ed Miliband. To these clever Oxbridge chaps, citizens are bozos, credulous and callow, easy to turn this way and that. Part of the New Labour circus, they were in the troupe of illusionists who made and unmade reality. The tent fell in and they have crawled out, dusty, chastened, of course pledging more honesty and candour as they vie for the leadership of their party.
Balls says he accepts the Iraq invasion was a costly mistake. Too little, too late for the dead, maimed, gas-poisoned Iraqi victims of our savage adventure, too presumptuous. The affable Ed Miliband wants to "talk about the gap between the rich and the poor", an issue nowhere in his line of sight when his government was collectively "relaxed about the filthy rich". He just found his conscience from somewhere in the bottom of his discarded, soiled values. Now he says he realises there was a "catastrophic loss of trust over Iraq". And old father Kinnock anoints him.
Brother David was already up, bright and early and away, ahead of the other contenders. No more pin-striped solemnity – he is now in blue denim, smiling innocently, inviting in our trust. I like him a lot personally, but cannot ever forgive his ruthless political expediency. Having voted strongly for the war in Iraq, he now claims we '"wouldn't have invaded Iraq had we known then what we know now. Obviously no such decision would have been made if we'd known Saddam Hussein did not have weapons of mass destruction". His master Blair told Chilcot the invasion would have gone ahead whatever the evidence of weapons. A short pause here, should any of you need time to throw up.
Next, DM enthusiastically supported the most illiberal anti-terrorism measures and was against any investigation into the Iraq war (Note: William Hague's voting record on identity cards and investigation into the war shows him to be more liberal). The Blairite minister denied our complicity in torture and rendition, fought the courts when they demanded more transparency and was forced to apologise to the House of Commons for some of this treacherous obfuscation. Though a critic of the Israeli assault on the Lebanon, once he became the Foreign Secretary he wordlessly acquiesced to the disproportionate violence used by the Israeli government against Palestinians, and sought to protect those responsible from international justice.
All three top runners seem to believe their past stains will wash off easily with modern detergents and they can present themselves to the nation all fresh and pristine. But political memory, like personal memory, lingers for a very long time, can swell and fester, inspire or incite generations, change the course of history.
Writing in The Social Research Journal (spring 2008), in which various essayists explore the subject, political scientist Professor W James Booth wrote: "Democracy itself remains, and deeply so, a community of memory. That is, its identity and its sense of its own coherence as a responsible agent across time rest squarely on the work of collective memory. Looking at the protean and volatile character of the politics of memory, we are reminded that in our world (or perhaps it always and everywhere was so), memory is intertwined with power, interest, and resistance precisely because it is so vital and fundamental to what we are as citizens." And that in turn, argues Booth, determines social and community commitment to justice.
The new Tories too are go-forwarders, impatient with people who will not let go of the past. Their election strategy was to erase the damaging images of Thatcherism, but for countless voters, including this one, that proved impossible. I am sure Cameron would have got his thumping majority if only his smart team could have found a way of inducing amnesia about that hateful period. One female blogger, for example, remembered being taken as a child to a demo outside Downing Street when P W Botha, at the height of his power, was visiting Thatcher. It helped her to understand "the regime did not exist in isolation. I have never voted Tory because they supported apartheid". Recall of long bygone policies directed that vote. And many more.
Tories were rousing champions of the war in Iraq and so share the blame with Blair and Brown. Their long, close ties with Lord Ashcroft still irk and worry Britons. Not mentioning the problem will not make it go away. And the appointment of Dame Pauline Neville-Jones as Minister of State for Security is surely the most wicked exemplar of political interring in unmarked sites. This Dame was the security adviser to Douglas Hurd when he was Foreign Secretary. They watched while Serbians massacred innocent Bosnian Muslims, claiming that it ensured a "level playing field".
They then joined NatWest Markets which made a fortune when Milosevic gave the company rights to privatise Telecom Serbia. Since then Neville-Jones has repeatedly suggested actions to fight terrorism that would please Donald Rumsfeld. When four British residents held uncharged for years at Guantanamo Bay were due to be released, she expressed grave concerns that they would return to the UK. By appointing her, Cameron shows he doesn't care about the collective punishment heaped on Muslim men around the world. He will rue the unwise choice. I am shocked that Clegg and Co, who stood up for human rights, have accepted the appointment. They are also now tarnished as a result.
In international politics, too, memories roam and fuel conduct. Take the very moving film about a white farming family in Zimbabwe this week. What was the back-story, the historical decisions and power grabs that created the civil enmities? We Ugandan Asians were cruelly dispossessed by Idi Amin in Uganda, but we too must ask why so many Africans ended up hating us – our racism and economic greed consumed them and they then behaved abominably. And the British need to acknowledge their role in the making of leviathans like Mugabe and Amin.
Hastily buried history avenges itself. And will on Balls and the Miliband duo and Cameron, too. They must reflect on what happened, apologise for the unstable world they helped make, past political chicanery. Without that that there can be no redemption, no moving on. Even in these times of blissful coalition governance we will not, cannot forget.
y.alibhai-brown@independent.co.uk
http://www.independent.co.uk/opinion/commentators/yasmin-alibhai-brown/yasmin-alibhaibrown-we-wont-forgive-and-forget-iraq-1981153.html
Israel’s dirty secret is out
Israel's dirty secret is out
By LINDA HEARD | ARAB NEWS
Cast your mind back to South Africa circa 1975 when the segregation of white and non-white citizens was official government policy.
This was a time when mixed marriages were prohibited and one million black South Africans were stripped of their nationality before being sent to reserves known as "homelands." Certain jobs were restricted to whites only, while government buildings, public transport, parks and shops had separate entrances for different racial categories. Drinking fountains, public toilets and even graveyards were segregated.
Families were pulled apart when certain members were subjected to racial tests; children whose skin was darker than their parents or whose hair was more curly were sometimes abandoned. Those who raised their voices in protest were tortured, imprisoned or killed; their leaders were made to disappear under a system of detention without trial. Spearheading this ugliness and brutality was P.W. Botha, who together with his massive security apparatus was blamed by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission for many of the horrors of white rule.
At a time when the US and Britain had discontinued weapons trading with South Africa — and when the UN General Assembly had requested its members to sever their political, educational, cultural, sporting and transportation links with what had come to be seen as a pariah state — Israel was keen to supply this evil white supremacist regime with nuclear weapons.
In recent days, a top secret 1975 military agreement signed by the person who is today Israel's President Shimon Peres and P.W. Botha — then the South African Defense Secretary — has been declassified in response to a request by American academic and author Sasha Polakow-Suransky.
Code-named "Chalet" the deal centers on the delivery to South Africa of nuclear-capable Jericho missiles. Minutes of a meeting disclose Botha's stipulation that the "correct payload" should also be made available in "three sizes" — believed to be a euphemism or nuclear and chemical weapons besides the conventional type. The documents confirm an earlier admission by a former South African naval commander, Dieter Gerhardt, who following the collapse of apartheid disclosed Israel's intention to equip South Africa with eight nuclear missiles and warheads.
'Nuclear ambiguity'
It's unsurprising the Israeli authorities did their best to prevent the South African government from releasing the agreement and memos, which not only blow a hole in Israel's carefully contrived so-called policy of "Nuclear Ambiguity" but also show that Israel has no compunction about selling such weapons of mass destruction to despised regimes.
Particularly damning is a declassified letter dated Nov. 22, 1974 from Shimon Peres to the then South African Information Secretary Dr. E.M. Rhoodie thanking him for facilitating cooperation between their two countries "based not only on common interests and on the determination to resist equally our enemies, but also on the unshakeable foundations of our common hatred of injustice and our refusal to submit to it."
Our common hatred of injustice!! That, coming from the representative of a country known for its brutal occupation and segregation of its citizens to one that existed upon racial lines sounds like a sick joke. It seems that Peres would say anything to get his country into bed with South Africa whereas, today, Israeli politicians bristle at any outside comparison between South Africa under apartheid and the Jewish state.
The documents vindicate Oxford University students who harangued Peres as a war criminal as he attempted to deliver a lecture at Balliol College in 2008. In an unsuccessful attempt to get the lecture canceled, South African academics and anti-apartheid veterans had written to the College to remind its Master of Peres' role in assisting apartheid South Africa procure weapons at the time it was subject to an international weapons embargo.
In fact, Israel supplied South Africa with six or more warships, patrol boats, military electronics and computers, missiles, warplanes, rockets, radar bases, weapons technology and tanks that were used to murder non-white South Africans.
Israel's embarrassment is compounded by the fact that the individual who signed the "Chalet" agreement is today its president. However, despite the clear evidence, the president's office has chosen to deny the claims that were first reported in Britain's Guardian newspaper. "There is no truth to the Guardian report," said a spokesperson for the presidential office Ayelet Frisch without elaborating further or condemning the agreement and supporting documentation as forgeries.
For Israel, the timing of these revelations couldn't be worse. It comes when President Barack Obama has embraced the concept of a nuclear-free Middle East and makes a mockery of US attempts to ignore Israel's nuclear arsenal on the basis that Israel is a moral and responsible democracy that would never sell to rogue entities. The disclosure also provides grist for the mill of Arab states that have long been pressing the international community to ensure Israel comes clean on its WMD status and signs up to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.
Enough is enough
With Israel's ethical credibility in tatters, it remains to be seen whether it will be supported by the international community for much longer. This week, Australia has taken a leaf out of Britain's book by expelling an Israeli diplomat in connection with the Mossad's alleged cloning of British, Australian and European passports for use by their hit squads.
Israel's democratic rights of free speech have also been challenged in recent weeks when it was found that Anat Kam, an Israeli journalist, had been secretly placed under house arrest for alleged treason, while another Uri Blau is hiding out in London following his expose of Israel's murder of a Palestinian.
The fact that the Israeli nuclear whistleblower Mordechai Vanunu has been thrown back into jail for "the crime" of chatting with a Norwegian woman exposes Israel's lack of free speech and has spurred Amnesty International to give him the designation "Prisoner of Conscience." Israel's free speech credentials were also challenged last week when the respected US academic Noam Chomsky was refused entry to the West Bank to speak to the students of Ramallah's Bir Zeit University on the grounds that Israel doesn't like what he says.
One by one, Israel's fabricated ethical pillars are being toppled. When stripped of its façade what remains is a nuclear-armed occupier that is has proved itself willing to sell its WMD to corrupt regimes. Moreover, it is holding the 1.5 million residents of Gaza under siege while threatening its neighbor Iran with military strikes as well as saber-rattling against Lebanon and Syria. This is a country that pays only lip service to the concept of free speech and is prepared to track down and assassinate its enemies wherever it finds them in violation of international law.
When, oh when, will Washington and its allies have the courage to say enough is enough… and mean it!
Sunday, May 23, 2010
As-Sunnah Newsletter: Issue 1
Assalamu 'alaykum wa rahmatullahe wa barakatu, alhamdulillah I have attached the first issue of our newsletter. I was hoping that you guys could print some off in your are and distribute it in the masjid and bookshop. Help us at Masjid as-Sunnah spread the Haqq and your reward lies with Allah, if you wish I will send you the issue every month bi'idnillah so that you can help us promote and benefit the ummah. BaarakAllahu feek
Bismillah ar Rahmaan ar Raheem
Asalamu alaykum,
Alhamdulilah some brothers and sisters from West London have put together a small 12 page newsletter aimed at providing authentic Salafi Da'wah to the "average Jaahil Muslim".
The intention is to provided basic fundamental information on topics including Aqeedah, Manhaj, Fiqh, Akhlaaq etc..
We have tried to make the information easy to digested, non-threatening and interesting. There are sections for all types of people, young, old, men and women so all are included.
You can aid us in this endeavour in the following ways
1 - Spread this via email internet, printing or however else possible (Attached are both single page and double spread (for printing) formats)
2 - Dua. that Allah aids us and guides us and the general Muslims, towards Tawheed and Sunnah and away from Shirk and Bidah.
3 - Donations are welcome and greatly needed. The Magazine costs 30p per issue to print in Black and White via professional printers in A4 size. We aim to print 500-1000 per month which will cost us £150 - £300 and distribute them to shops Masaajid and restaurants in the local area's. You can either donate one off, monthly or even have your business (non Da'wah related) sponsor us (we will put your sponsorship and business logo on the back page if you wish)
4 - Alhamdulilah we have senior brothers and sisters checking over the articles (most of which are just copied from authentic sources) but we are still open to advice and correction if you feel it is needed and we ask that Allah makes us all sincere in both advising and listening to it.
If you need to contact us the please email as-sunnah_newsletter@live.co.uk
We plead that Allah makes this a good deed for all those involved on the day of Account. Ameen
Please make du'a that Allah allows us to continue spreading this authentic da'wa and that He enables people to be sincere in spreading it with us. BaarakAllahu feekum!!!
Asalamu alaykum,
Alhamdulilah some brothers and sisters from West London have put together a small 12 page newsletter aimed at providing authentic Salafi Da'wah to the "average Jaahil Muslim".
The intention is to provided basic fundamental information on topics including Aqeedah, Manhaj, Fiqh, Akhlaaq etc..
We have tried to make the information easy to digested, non-threatening and interesting. There are sections for all types of people, young, old, men and women so all are included.
You can aid us in this endeavour in the following ways
1 - Spread this via email internet, printing or however else possible (Attached are both single page and double spread (for printing) formats)
2 - Dua. that Allah aids us and guides us and the general Muslims, towards Tawheed and Sunnah and away from Shirk and Bidah.
3 - Donations are welcome and greatly needed. The Magazine costs 30p per issue to print in Black and White via professional printers in A4 size. We aim to print 500-1000 per month which will cost us £150 - £300 and distribute them to shops Masaajid and restaurants in the local area's. You can either donate one off, monthly or even have your business (non Da'wah related) sponsor us (we will put your sponsorship and business logo on the back page if you wish)
4 - Alhamdulilah we have senior brothers and sisters checking over the articles (most of which are just copied from authentic sources) but we are still open to advice and correction if you feel it is needed and we ask that Allah makes us all sincere in both advising and listening to it.
If you need to contact us the please email as-sunnah_newsletter@live.co.uk
We plead that Allah makes this a good deed for all those involved on the day of Account. Ameen
Please make du'a that Allah allows us to continue spreading this authentic da'wa and that He enables people to be sincere in spreading it with us. BaarakAllahu feekum!!!
Saturday, May 22, 2010
Friday, May 21, 2010
Obituary: President Yar'Adua
Obituary: President Yar'Adua
Yar'Adua: Taciturn, down-to-earth and not to be underestimated
President Umaru Musa Yar'Adua became the first civilian leader in Nigeria to take over from another after winning controversial polls in 2007.
The former chemistry teacher was also the first Nigerian leader for 40 years to be university educated.
But his academic background appears to have done little to help him on the political stage and mid-way through his first term in office, he was saddled with the nickname "Baba-go-slow".
A reclusive Muslim ex-governor from the northern state of Katsina, he promised a long list of reforms at his inauguration - tackling corruption, reforming the inadequate power sector and the flawed electoral system.
The only point on the to-do list on which he made some progress was tackling the unrest in the oil-rich Niger Delta.
He met militant leaders and convinced them and thousands of their fighters to give up their weapons during a three-month amnesty in 2009, giving hope of peace at last for the poverty-stricken region.
'In the hands of God'
Yet the issue that occupied more column inches than anything else during his time in office was his health.
The 58-year-old had suffered from a chronic kidney condition for at least 10 years.
In the past three years he was twice flown to Germany for emergency treatment and visited hospitals in Saudi Arabia.
In November 2009 he went to a clinic in Jeddah for three months, leaving a power vacuum and intense speculation about the state of his health.
The Niger Delta was the one area in which Mr Yar'Adua made progress
His spokesman said he had pericarditis, an inflammation of the lining around the heart.
In his absence, Vice-President Goodluck Jonathan became acting leader in February 2010.
Later that month, Mr Yar'Adua was thought to have returned home from Saudi Arabia to Abuja, although there was still no word on his medical condition.
In previous interviews, the president refused to say what he suffered from and repeatedly said that his life was "in the hands of God".
Although he did not prove himself a political mover and shaker, he boasted a political pedigree that dates back to the 1960s when his father was appointed as a minister in the post-independence administration.
His late elder brother - an army general - served as deputy leader when Olusegun Obasanjo was Nigeria's military ruler during the 1970s.
The pair were later imprisoned together after they were accused of plotting a coup against late military strongman Gen Sani Abacha.
Self-confessed Marxist
Mr Yar'Adua's emergence as the ruling People's Democratic Party's (PDP) candidate in the presidential election in April 2007 rested almost exclusively on the support of Mr Obasanjo - then the elected civilian president.
Nigerian presidency sources at the time said Mr Obasanjo used a mixture of inducements and threats of investigation by the anti-graft agency to persuade 10 influential state governors to withdraw from the race and back Mr Yar'Adua.
Analysts said that by backing Mr Yar'Adua to succeed him, Mr Obasanjo had hoped to continue pulling the strings after leaving office.
But it did not turn out this way and Mr Yar'Adua proved to be his own man.
Within months of taking over, he reversed some dubious privatisations of state companies approved by Mr Obasanjo when president - and he also got rid of some key Obasanjo allies in the PDP.
As an undergraduate student in Nigeria's Ahmadu Bello University, Mr Yar'Adua was a self-confessed Marxist and criticised his elder brother's "capitalist" leanings.
During his seven years as Katsina State governor, critics said contracts had gone to companies with links to his family's vast businesses.
Yet he was one of only a few Nigerian politicians to publicly declare their assets - twice before being sworn in as governor and then again when he became president.
He was a father of nine children - five daughters and two sons with his first wife Turai, the first lady, whom he married in 1975 - and two sons with Hajiya Hauwa, whom he married in the 1990s.
He divorced Ms Hauwa in 1997 before first running for governor.
As a governor he was known to have ignored the advice of aides and bodyguards and walked alone to tobacco kiosks to buy a single cigarette.
Described by his critics as taciturn and not known for his tolerance of opposition, Mr Yar'Adua was sometimes underestimated.
As one commentator put it at the time of his election "because he's quiet, people mistake him for a weakling. But he's someone who knows his own mind".
Controversial Facebook page blocked
Controversial Facebook page blocked
By ARAB NEWS
JEDDAH: The Communications and Information Technology Commission has blocked a controversial Facebook page that lampoons the Islamic ban on depicting the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him).
Facebook as well as groups protesting the page and calling for a Facebook boycott remain accessible in the Kingdom.
The page — entitled "Everybody Draw Muhammad Day!" — is based on a cartoon by Seattle-based illustrator Molly Norris.
The cartoon (which does not depict the Prophet) called for May 20 to be a day to "water down the pool of targets" by having people draw their own images. It was a reaction to a Brooklyn-based group calling itself Revolution Muslim suggested that violence "will likely happen" against Parker and Stone and provided the address for the show's production facility in California.
For her part, Norris recently issued an apology and clarified that "a stranger to me" took her cartoon and created the controversial Facebook page.
On Thursday, the artist's webpage offered a link to the "Against Everybody Draw Muhammad Day" Facebook page, which is accessible inside the Kingdom.
US artist sorry for outrageous Facebook page; Pakistan blocks YouTube as anger boils over
US artist sorry for outrageous Facebook page; Pakistan blocks YouTube as anger boils over
Pakistani Sunni Muslim burn U.S. and Norwegian flags during a protest in Lahore . (Reuters)
By AGENCIES
Published: May 20, 2010 23:54 Updated: May 20, 2010 23:54
WASHINGTON: An American cartoonist whose work inspired the outrageous page about Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) on Facebook has condemned the effort and issued an apology to Muslims.
Molly Norris, of Seattle, drew a cartoon in April to protest the decision by the US television channel Comedy Central to cancel an episode of the popular show "South Park" over its offensive depiction of the Last Prophet.
In her cartoon, Norris satirically proposed May 20 as day to draw profane cartoons about the Prophet. The page quickly turned up on Facebook but Norris, writing on her website at mollynorris.com, said she had nothing to do with it.
She said her idea was satire but "was taken seriously, hijacked and made viral." "I never started a Facebook page; I never set up any place for people to send drawings to and I never received any drawings," she said.
"I apologize to people of Muslim faith and ask that this 'day' be called off," she said.
The outrageous page has led to Facebook being blocked in Pakistan and sparked angry protests and condemnation from the Foreign Ministry, which denounced the "publication of blasphemous caricatures of our Holy Prophet."
A rival Facebook page started to oppose the caricature page had drawn some 100,000 fans.
Meanwhile, Pakistan blocked YouTube and many other Internet sites on Thursday in a widening crackdown on online content deemed offensive to Islam, reflecting the government's sensitivities to an issue that has ignited protests in the Muslim country. Several thousand activists protested in three cities against the drawings and denounced the West in an expression of outrage that sparked comparisons with riots across the Muslim world in 2006 over drawings published in European newspapers.
"We are ready to die protecting the honor of our beloved Prophet Muhammad," said Aysha Hameed, one of 1,000 women protesters in Multan city.
Pakistan's Internet service providers' association said usage had dropped by about 25 percent since Wednesday.
"Such malicious and insulting attacks hurt the sentiments of Muslims around the world and cannot be accepted under the garb of freedom of expression," Foreign Ministry spokesman Abdul Basit said.
The telecommunications authority did not say what material on YouTube prompted it to block the site and more than 450 other unidentified pages, only citing "growing sacrilegious contents." Wahajus Siraj, the head of the Internet service providers' association, said the ban was because the Prophet's images were also cropping up on the video-sharing site.
BlackBerry service was halted for around 10 hours as efforts were made to stop mobile access to Facebook. The government acted against Facebook and YouTube after it failed to persuade the websites to remove the offensive material, the telecommunications authority said.
Sweden said Thursday it had closed its embassy in Islamabad for more than two weeks due to the security situation, refusing to say whether any direct threats had been issued against the mission.
Pakistani Sunni Muslim burn U.S. and Norwegian flags during a protest in Lahore . (Reuters)
By AGENCIES
Published: May 20, 2010 23:54 Updated: May 20, 2010 23:54
WASHINGTON: An American cartoonist whose work inspired the outrageous page about Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) on Facebook has condemned the effort and issued an apology to Muslims.
Molly Norris, of Seattle, drew a cartoon in April to protest the decision by the US television channel Comedy Central to cancel an episode of the popular show "South Park" over its offensive depiction of the Last Prophet.
In her cartoon, Norris satirically proposed May 20 as day to draw profane cartoons about the Prophet. The page quickly turned up on Facebook but Norris, writing on her website at mollynorris.com, said she had nothing to do with it.
She said her idea was satire but "was taken seriously, hijacked and made viral." "I never started a Facebook page; I never set up any place for people to send drawings to and I never received any drawings," she said.
"I apologize to people of Muslim faith and ask that this 'day' be called off," she said.
The outrageous page has led to Facebook being blocked in Pakistan and sparked angry protests and condemnation from the Foreign Ministry, which denounced the "publication of blasphemous caricatures of our Holy Prophet."
A rival Facebook page started to oppose the caricature page had drawn some 100,000 fans.
Meanwhile, Pakistan blocked YouTube and many other Internet sites on Thursday in a widening crackdown on online content deemed offensive to Islam, reflecting the government's sensitivities to an issue that has ignited protests in the Muslim country. Several thousand activists protested in three cities against the drawings and denounced the West in an expression of outrage that sparked comparisons with riots across the Muslim world in 2006 over drawings published in European newspapers.
"We are ready to die protecting the honor of our beloved Prophet Muhammad," said Aysha Hameed, one of 1,000 women protesters in Multan city.
Pakistan's Internet service providers' association said usage had dropped by about 25 percent since Wednesday.
"Such malicious and insulting attacks hurt the sentiments of Muslims around the world and cannot be accepted under the garb of freedom of expression," Foreign Ministry spokesman Abdul Basit said.
The telecommunications authority did not say what material on YouTube prompted it to block the site and more than 450 other unidentified pages, only citing "growing sacrilegious contents." Wahajus Siraj, the head of the Internet service providers' association, said the ban was because the Prophet's images were also cropping up on the video-sharing site.
BlackBerry service was halted for around 10 hours as efforts were made to stop mobile access to Facebook. The government acted against Facebook and YouTube after it failed to persuade the websites to remove the offensive material, the telecommunications authority said.
Sweden said Thursday it had closed its embassy in Islamabad for more than two weeks due to the security situation, refusing to say whether any direct threats had been issued against the mission.
SUDAN: Key post-referendum issues
SUDAN: Key post-referendum issues
JUBA, 20 May 2010 (IRIN) - Southern Sudan will in early 2011 hold a referendum to determine whether to remain part of a united Sudan or become a separate state. The referendum was a core component of the 2005 Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) that ended decades of conflict between the Southern Sudan People's Liberation Movement (SPLM) and the Khartoum government.
Should the south choose to separate, the two sides will have to negotiate over various key issues:
Borders - Five major border areas are in dispute. The first, and perhaps most potentially explosive, is around the oil-producing region of Abyei. The region will decide in a separate referendum also in January whether to join the south or the north. The borders were outlined in a July 2009 ruling by the Permanent Court of Arbitration at The Hague, but demarcation has stalled. At the same time, the northern Misseriya community, largely drawn out of Abyei under the new borders, has denounced the ruling.
According to SPLM secretary-general, Pagan Amum, four other areas are in dispute: the northern-most border separating Renk county in Upper Nile from the north's White Nile state, the borderline running north-south between the south's Unity state and the north's Southern Kordofan (this will determine who controls the Heglig oil field), whether the Bahr al-Arab river forms the exact border between the south's Bahr el-Ghazal and Darfur in the north, and which river forms the exact western-most dividing line between Western Bahr el-Ghazal and Southern Darfur.
Oil - An estimated 82-95 percent of the oil fields are in the south (depending on where the border is drawn). Oil revenue accounts for 98 percent of Southern Sudan's government revenue, and 60 percent of the national budget (according to 2008 figures). The sole export route for the landlocked south is a pipeline running to the north to Port Sudan on the Red Sea. Under the CPA, the two sides divide proceeds from oil pumped in the south. They will have to negotiate how to share oil revenue, as well as any user fees levied against the south for using the pipeline and refineries. The two parties must also negotiate how to honour current oil contracts.
Water - Under a 1929 agreement between Egypt (which had control over Sudan) and Britain, and a 1959 agreement between Egypt and Sudan, they control up to 90 percent of the water. Will Southern Sudan recognize these old treaties, or will it work with Nile basin countries in eastern Africa to work towards a "fair" accord? If it honours the colonial pacts, as it has indicated to the Egyptians, the south must then negotiate with Khartoum over what percentage of the 18.5 cubic metres of water designated to Sudan it can claim.
Nationality - The fate of southerners living in the north and northerners living in the south has to be negotiated. Questions of citizenship and rights will have to be addressed, as well as ease of travel between the two. Egypt and Sudan have signed a "Four Freedoms" agreement, granting Egyptians and Sudanese free movement, residence, work, and ownership in either of the two countries. Could something similar be decided between the north and south?
Debts and Assets - The south's share of Sudan's sizeable national debt - estimated by the International Monetary Fund in 2008 at US$34 billion - will be another issue. Analysts say the north will want a seceding south to take on a portion of its public debt burden. SPLM officials have rejected such suggestions, often accusing the north of using that borrowed money to wage war against southerners. There is also the question of national assets and the properties of state-owned companies in the south.
Currency - After the CPA, Sudan's official currency, the dinar, was replaced with the Sudanese pound. If the south secedes, will the north and south continue under the pound? A newly independent south could choose to create its own currency, or switch for a period to an established foreign currency such as the US dollar. Analysts say a decision to maintain the Sudanese pound on both sides could bond the two economies together.
International agreements - A state enters pacts every year with other countries on a variety of matters. Southern Sudan would have to decide whether to honour international agreements reached by Sudan, or whether to transfer or scrap some.
Security - The two parties must agree on what happens to key aspects of national security. They will have to decide how to demobilize the Joint Integrated Units, what would happen to the southern portion of Sudan's national intelligence apparatus, police and special security forces.
ab/eo/mw
[END]
JUBA, 20 May 2010 (IRIN) - Southern Sudan will in early 2011 hold a referendum to determine whether to remain part of a united Sudan or become a separate state. The referendum was a core component of the 2005 Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) that ended decades of conflict between the Southern Sudan People's Liberation Movement (SPLM) and the Khartoum government.
Should the south choose to separate, the two sides will have to negotiate over various key issues:
Borders - Five major border areas are in dispute. The first, and perhaps most potentially explosive, is around the oil-producing region of Abyei. The region will decide in a separate referendum also in January whether to join the south or the north. The borders were outlined in a July 2009 ruling by the Permanent Court of Arbitration at The Hague, but demarcation has stalled. At the same time, the northern Misseriya community, largely drawn out of Abyei under the new borders, has denounced the ruling.
According to SPLM secretary-general, Pagan Amum, four other areas are in dispute: the northern-most border separating Renk county in Upper Nile from the north's White Nile state, the borderline running north-south between the south's Unity state and the north's Southern Kordofan (this will determine who controls the Heglig oil field), whether the Bahr al-Arab river forms the exact border between the south's Bahr el-Ghazal and Darfur in the north, and which river forms the exact western-most dividing line between Western Bahr el-Ghazal and Southern Darfur.
Oil - An estimated 82-95 percent of the oil fields are in the south (depending on where the border is drawn). Oil revenue accounts for 98 percent of Southern Sudan's government revenue, and 60 percent of the national budget (according to 2008 figures). The sole export route for the landlocked south is a pipeline running to the north to Port Sudan on the Red Sea. Under the CPA, the two sides divide proceeds from oil pumped in the south. They will have to negotiate how to share oil revenue, as well as any user fees levied against the south for using the pipeline and refineries. The two parties must also negotiate how to honour current oil contracts.
Water - Under a 1929 agreement between Egypt (which had control over Sudan) and Britain, and a 1959 agreement between Egypt and Sudan, they control up to 90 percent of the water. Will Southern Sudan recognize these old treaties, or will it work with Nile basin countries in eastern Africa to work towards a "fair" accord? If it honours the colonial pacts, as it has indicated to the Egyptians, the south must then negotiate with Khartoum over what percentage of the 18.5 cubic metres of water designated to Sudan it can claim.
Nationality - The fate of southerners living in the north and northerners living in the south has to be negotiated. Questions of citizenship and rights will have to be addressed, as well as ease of travel between the two. Egypt and Sudan have signed a "Four Freedoms" agreement, granting Egyptians and Sudanese free movement, residence, work, and ownership in either of the two countries. Could something similar be decided between the north and south?
Debts and Assets - The south's share of Sudan's sizeable national debt - estimated by the International Monetary Fund in 2008 at US$34 billion - will be another issue. Analysts say the north will want a seceding south to take on a portion of its public debt burden. SPLM officials have rejected such suggestions, often accusing the north of using that borrowed money to wage war against southerners. There is also the question of national assets and the properties of state-owned companies in the south.
Currency - After the CPA, Sudan's official currency, the dinar, was replaced with the Sudanese pound. If the south secedes, will the north and south continue under the pound? A newly independent south could choose to create its own currency, or switch for a period to an established foreign currency such as the US dollar. Analysts say a decision to maintain the Sudanese pound on both sides could bond the two economies together.
International agreements - A state enters pacts every year with other countries on a variety of matters. Southern Sudan would have to decide whether to honour international agreements reached by Sudan, or whether to transfer or scrap some.
Security - The two parties must agree on what happens to key aspects of national security. They will have to decide how to demobilize the Joint Integrated Units, what would happen to the southern portion of Sudan's national intelligence apparatus, police and special security forces.
ab/eo/mw
[END]
DAWLADA PAKISTAN IYO WADAMA BADAN OO MUSLIM AH AYAA MAAMNUUCAAY ISTICMAALKA FACEBOOK IYO YOUTUBE
DAWLADA PAKISTAN IYO WADAMA BADAN OO MUSLIM AH AYAA MAAMNUUCAAY ISTICMAALKA FACEBOOK IYO YOUTUBE
Sabtidii ayaa Dawlada Pakistan Gabi ahaanba aay Mamnuucadaay Isticmaalka aalada facebook, iyo youtube kadib markii la soo geliayaay nebi muxumed oo cartoon lagu sameyaay iyo sawraan, hadaba iyada aay hadana ku beegnaayd maalintaani, aay ku beegan tahaay markii la sameyaay sawir lagu aflagadeeynaayo Nebi muxumed ayaa hadana waxaa la soo dhigaay Aalada facebook iyo youtube sawiraan iyo karatoon lagu aflagadeeynaayo, nebi muxumed NN kHH, hadaba qaybta Telecommunicationka Pakistan iyo wadama badan oo Islam ah ayaa xayiraay gebi aahanba aalada facebook, iyo youtube iyaga oo aan haba yaratee shaacin Inta aay qaadanaayso Mudada aay xidhnaanayaan, Khuram Ali mehran oo wax laga wediyaay, sababata loo xidhaay facebook kana shaqeeya Telecomincation ka Pakistan ayaa wuxuu sheegaay, in la soo geliyaay sawraan lagu qoraay Magaca nebi muxumed, waana sababta loo xidhaay ayuu yidhi facebook iyo Aalada youtube.
Mr Ibraahim Hooper oo ah afhayeenka Golaha xidhiidhka islaamka ee dalka maraykanka ayaa sheegaay in Fikrada ka danbaaysaah, in facebook la soo geliyo sawraan lagu aflagadeeynaayo nabiga aay tahaay
mid islaamka lagu waxyeelaynaayo, waanu rumaaysanahaay, muhamed, moses iyo jesus ba
lakiin waxaa ka danbeeyn kara dadka caabuda Asnaamtah, hadaba dawlada Pakistan ayaa xayirtaay dhamaan isticmaalka Aaladahan, iyada oo aan la garanaayn inta aay qaadaanaaysooh, lakiinse hadii raali galin laga bixiyo waxaa laga yabaah in dib loo furo, Inkastoo Mulkilayaasha Aalada facebook aay shegeen inaay 2cisho ee aay ka xidhnaayd wadamada islaamka qaarkood oo aay Pakistan ku jirto aay ku qasareen lacag gaadhaaysaa, 2million Euro.
Mahad Nuux Muumin
Pakistan Islamabad
Wednesday, May 19, 2010
A WOMAN ripped an Islamic veil off the face of a fellow shopper
A WOMAN ripped an Islamic veil off the face of a fellow shopper in Europe's first known case of BURKA rage.
Both were arrested after the lawyer compared the Muslim woman to a DEMON and the face-off descended into a scrap at a French clothes store.
Racial tensions have been growing as France — home to 5,000,000 Muslims — prepares to introduce an outright ban on wearing the burka in public.
While in the shop on Saturday afternoon the woman said the ban couldn't come soon enough.
A police source said: "The lawyer said she was not happy seeing a fellow shopper wearing a veil and wanted the ban introduced as soon as possible."
The 26-year-old Muslim convert was in the store in Trignac, near Nantes, in the western Loire-Atlantique region, when she overheard the lawyer, 60, making snide remarks about her headwear.
The lawyer is believed to have linked her appearance to Belphegor, a demon thought to haunt the Louvre museum in Paris where he frequently hides his hideous features behind a mask.
As their shouting match descended into a full-blown brawl the lawyer's daughter joined in.
The police officer added: "The shop manager and the husband of the Muslim woman moved to break up the fighting.
"All three were arrested and taken to the local gendarmerie for questioning."
The warring parties have accused each other of offences — the Muslim of common assault and the lawyer of racial and religious assault.
It comes as the French parliament is set to consider a motion which describes burkas as an "affront to the nation's values".
The image of the burka in French society hasn't been helped by terrorists and criminals who some accuse of using the veil as a disguise.
A ban — which includes all religious forms of dress covering the face — is personally endorsed by French president Nicolas Sarkozy.
It could be brought in as early as the autumn making France the second country to do it behind Belgium.
Breaching the law could earn Muslim men, widely thought to often force their wives to wear the burka, a year in prison or a fine of up to £14,000.
Women would get a smaller fine of around £100 because they are often seen as victims with no choice in what they wear.
Read more: http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/news/2977400/First-case-of-burka-rage.html#ixzz0oL25Fh6G
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