Arab Leaders Warned of 'Revolution'
AL JAZEERA ENGLISH: Head of Arab League warns regional leaders that recent political upheaval is linked to deteriorating economic situation.

Hosni Mubarak, the Egyptian president, made no reference to the Tunisian revolt in his opening speech [EPA]. Photo: Al Jazeera English
The head of the Arab League has told the region's leaders that the recent upheaval in Tunisia is linked to deteriorating economic conditions throughout the Arab world, warning them that their people's anger has reached unprecedented heights.

Amr Moussa told an Arab economic summit in Egypt that "the Arab soul is broken by poverty, unemployment and general recession."

"This is in the mind of all of us," Moussa said in his opening address to the 20 Arab leaders and other representatives of Arab League members gathered in the Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh.

The summit is the first top level Arab meeting since protests fuelled by joblessness and other economic woes in Tunisia forced Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, the president, to flee, bringing an end to his 23-year rule of the country.

The unrest has helped inspire similar protests around the Arab world and calls for political change, though activists face vast security forces heavily vested in the status quo backing hardline regimes ready to crack down on challenges to their rule.

"The Tunisian revolution is not far from us," Moussa warned. "The Arab citizen entered an unprecedented state of anger and frustration."

He called for an Arab "renaissance" to lift people from their frustration. >>> Source: Agencies | Wednesday, January 18, 2011

These OSTRICHES are forgetting MANY OTHER FACTORS: the GREED of their LEADERS; the CORRUPTION of their LEADERS; the INEQUALITY of the OWNERSHIP of WEALTH and the MEANS of MAKING MONEY; the FACT that their country was run as a PRIVATE BUSINESS, just as ROMANIA had been before the FALL of the Ceauşescus; the STEALING of the PEOPLE’S MONEY by the RULING CLASS; the LUXURY and EXTRAVAGANT LIVES of their RULERS whilst the ORDINARY FOLK GO WITHOUT. Then there is the SUPPRESSION of the PEOPLE by the SECRET POLICE and MACHINERY OF STATE; the LACK of FREEDOM and DEMOCRACY; the LACK of FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION. The list goes on and on and on. So these TWERPS are not going to SAFEGUARD THEIR POSITIONS by limiting their FOCUS only on JOBLESSNESS and OTHER ECONOMIC WOES. This REVOLUTION was caused by far more than that; and the REVOLUTION will spread to OTHER ARAB COUNTRIES if the PEOPLE'S PLIGHT is not addressed FUNDAMENTALLY. – © Mark

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Al-Qaeda Supports the Events in Tunisia and Algeria
ENNAHAR ONLINE ENGLISH: Al-Qaeda in Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) has called on demonstrators to extend their movements in Tunisia and Algeria to overthrow the governments in place and institute Sharia law, reported Thursday the U.S. service monitoring Islamist websites SITE.

In a 13-minute video, the leader of AQIM, Abu Musab Abdul Wadud, suggests to Tunisian dissidents, who have been demonstrating for a month: "send us your son so that they receive military training", SITE reported.

"We offer our support and our comfort and our help in your distress and your uprising," said Islamist leader.

Abu Musab Abdul Wadud called Tunisians to rise throughout the country against "the corrupt, criminal and tyrannical" in place in Tunis and establish Islamic law, (Sharia).

"But we will sooner or later retaliate against your torturers and their masters," he threatened. >>> ennahar | Friday, January 14, 2011

Arab Despots Should Heed Events in Tunisia
THE OBSERVER – EDITORIAL: Presidents-for-life offering bogus protection against phantom terrorists are not reliable friends

…the US and Europe have propped up blinkered, failing Arab regimes, judging them to be bulwarks against Islamist radicalism. It is a terribly misguided strategy, not least because it conforms to the jihadi narrative of a west hostile to the interests of ordinary Muslims. – The Editor
The fall from power of Tunisian president Zine al-Abidine ben Ali is one of those widely unpredicted turns of events that hindsight quickly labels inevitable.

Corrupt authoritarian regimes are generally brittle and Mr Ben Ali's was no exception. But few anticipated how quickly a spate of angry demonstrations could become a regime-changing rebellion. Other governments across the region, with populations hardly less repressed than Tunisia's, will look on in fear.

Mr Ben Ali was considered by western diplomats to be a relatively reliable fixture. Under his 23-year rule, the country had the status of a minor player in North Africa – avoiding involvement in wider Middle East disputes and carving out an economic niche as a Mediterranean holiday destination.

Meanwhile, the president, his wife and their extended family built a lucrative commercial empire. Political dissent has been crushed and media stifled. In a dispatch sent in July 2009 – one of the secret cables published earlier this year by WikiLeaks – the US ambassador to Tunis described rising frustration among ordinary Tunisians as a result of "First Family corruption, high unemployment and regional inequities". He also noted that major change would "have to wait for Ben Ali's departure".

Tunisians clearly shared that view. >>> Editor | Sunday, January 16, 2011

ÉMEUTES - En Algérie et en Tunisie, la jeunesse s'enflamme
LE POINT: Au Maghreb, les jeunes manifestent violemment contre une situation économique insupportable dans un contexte politique en crise.

Les émeutes de vendredi à Alger, dans le quartier populaire de Belouizdad, à Belcourt. Photo : Le Point
Le Maghreb s'enflamme. Les moins de 30 ans (70 % de la population) sont dans la rue et veulent tout casser pour se faire entendre. Surtout en Algérie, où les manifestations ont un air de déjà-vu. En octobre 1988, les émeutes d'Alger, commencées par une manipulation politique et poursuivies par le soulèvement d'une population excédée par des conditions de vie difficiles, un chômage énorme et le mépris d'une classe politique sclérosée dominée par le FLN, avaient débouché sur un éphémère "printemps d'Alger". En 1991, des élections pluripartistes avaient montré que le FIS, le principal parti islamiste, risquait d'emporter la majorité au Parlement. L'armée avait alors annulé le second tour du scrutin, prenant le risque d'une guerre civile qui a fait plus de 100.000 morts. La situation politique est différente. Mais les causes du mécontentement social sont les mêmes. >>> Par Mireille Duteil | Samedi 08 Janvier 2011

WikiLeaks : le mandat de M. Sarkozy débute par un "affront" au roi du Maroc
En juillet 2007, Abdelaziz Bouteflika recevait Nicolas Sarkozy à Alger. Photo : Le Monde
LE MONDE: Nicolas Sarkozy tout juste élu président de la République, il réserve au Maghreb son premier déplacement hors d'Europe, comme avant lui Jacques Chirac. Mais l'ordre de visite est inversé. Cette fois, le premier pays visité ne sera pas le Maroc. L'Algérie passera avant le royaume chérifien.

Pourquoi ce changement ? Paris a beau expliquer à ses interlocuteurs marocains que le roi Mohammed VI a tout à gagner à ce que la visite se termine à Rabat, et qu'ainsi il aura "le dernier mot". Rien n'y fait. Les Marocains s'estiment trahis et annulent la visite à Rabat du président français en avançant des "considérations d'agenda, un prétexte vide à la mesure de l'affront subi", peut-on lire dans un télégramme du département d'Etat américain obtenu par WikiLeaks et révélé par Le Monde. >>> Jean-Pierre Tuquoi | Samedi 04 Décembre 2010

Le terrorisme islamiste au cœur de l'agenda des pays africains
LE MONDE: Simple coïncidence de l'actualité ou symptôme d'une "islamisation" du continent africain ? Au moment même où était annoncée, dimanche 25 juillet, l'exécution de l'otage français Michel Germaneau enlevé le 19 avril au Niger par "Al-Qaida au Maghreb islamique" (AQMI), une trentaine de chefs d'Etat de l'Union africaine (UA) étaient réunis à Kampala (Ouganda) pour préparer la riposte après les attentats revendiqués par les Shabab, des islamistes agissant en Somalie qui, le 11 juillet, ont causé la mort de 76 personnes dans la capitale ougandaise.

Le sommet de Kampala, prévu de longue date, devait être consacrée à la lutte contre un autre fléau africain, la mortalité maternelle et infantile. Mais son ordre du jour a été bouleversé. "Ces terroristes peuvent et doivent être vaincus, a lancé dimanche le président ougandais, Yoweri Museveni. Agissons de concert pour les chasser d'Afrique. Qu'ils repartent en Asie ou au Moyen-Orient d'où certains viennent d'après ce que je comprends".

Les chefs d'Etat africains, dont la réunion doit s'achever mardi, devraient décider de renforcer l'Amisom, la Force de l'UA déployée en Somalie, contre les Shabab, qui contrôlent presque la totalité de ce pays dépourvu d'Etat depuis près de vingt ans. Les 6 000 soldats ougandais et burundais déjà présents dans la capitale, Mogadiscio, devraient recevoir 2 000 hommes en renfort. Un nouveau mandat leur permettant de passer à l'offensive devrait leur être donné. Les Occidentaux devraient fournir des hélicoptères et l'Afrique du Sud un appui naval pour assurer un blocus du port de Kismayo qui, contrôlé par les islamistes, est la principale entrée pour les armes et les munitions. Continuez à lire et écrire un commentaire >>> Philippe Bernard | Lundi 26 Juillet 2010

Sarkozy Confirms French Aid Worker Killed by Al-Qaida
THE GUARDIAN: French president condemns death of Michel Germaneau as 'a barbarous act', promising it will not go unpunished

A 78-year old French aid worker held hostage by al-Qaida's north African branch was killed by his captors at the weekend, president Nicolas Sarkozy confirmed today.

Retired engineer Michel Germaneau was "murdered in cold blood", the French leader said in a televised statement in which he warned "the crime committed will not go unpunished".

"I condemn this barbarous act, this odious act, which has just left an innocent victim," Sarkozy said of Germaneau's killing. "Far from weakening our determination, his death must reinforce it." >>> Kim Willsher in Paris | Monday, July 26, 2010

British Tourist Kidnapped by Islamic Extremists in Sahara Desert
MAIL Online: An Islamic extremist group has claimed responsibility for the kidnapping of a group of tourists in west Africa, including a Briton. According to SITE Intelligence, a US group which monitors extremist websites, the claim comes from al Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM).

The tourists - a Briton who was working in Austria, two Swiss citizens and a German woman - were seized near the border between Niger and Mali on January 22.

The group released images of some of the captives and also said it was holding two Canadian diplomats seized two months ago.

AQIM spokesman Salah Abu Muhammad made the claim in an an audio message, SITE said.

He reportedly said: "We announce to the general public that the mujahideen reserve the right to deal with the six kidnapped according to Islamic Shariah (law).

"On the other hand, the mujahideen will announce later, Allah willing, their conditions in exchange for the release of the kidnapped." >>> By Mail Foreign Service | Thursday, February 19, 2009

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Nicolas Sarkozy en visite d'Etat de 48h en Tunisie
LE POINT: Nicolas Sarkozy entame lundi en Tunisie un séjour de quarante-huit heures largement voué au développement de la relation politique et économique très étroite qui unit la France et son ancienne colonie, à peine perturbée par l'entêtante question des droits de l'Homme.

Après le Maroc et l'Algérie l'an dernier, le président, accompagné de son épouse, conclut chez son homologue tunisien Zine El Abidine Ben Ali sa première tournée des pays du Maghreb. Nicolas Sarkozy en visite d'Etat de 48h en Tunisie >>> Par Philippe ALFROY | 28. 04. 2008

LE MONDE:
Nicolas Sarkozy place sa visite à Tunis sous le signe de l'économie et de l'Union de la Méditerranée >>> | 28. 04. 2008

LE FIGARO:
Méditerranée : Sarkozy défend son projet à Tunis >>> Par Alain Barluet | 28. 04. 2008
Alain Barluet

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