Libya and Britain: The New Special Relationship
“Libya has genuinely become an important international partner for the UK on many levels. For example, Libya is now a vital partner for the UK in guaranteeing a secure energy future for the UK and is also a key partner in the fight against terrorism.

While I recognise that this will be of little comfort to you, it is vital for the UK’s present and future security that this continues.” – Rammell at the Foreign Office to Ganesh on BP’s investment in Libya, November 2008

THE SUNDAY TIMES: At 7.01pm on February 9, 1996, a huge lorry bomb exploded at South Quay in London’s Docklands, killing two people and injuring more than 100 others. The blast ripped a 32ft crater and caused £85m of damage.

Jonathan Ganesh, 37, a security guard from east London, was buried alive in the rubble. His two friends, Inam Bashir and John Jeffries, were killed in the news kiosk where they worked.

For Ganesh, the blame for the attack lies not only with the IRA, which planted the bomb, but also with Libya, which is suspected of supplying the Semtex plastic explosive used in it. He is among the bomb victims and their families who want compensation from Tripoli.

“The government has let the Libyans off scot-free,” he said. “The money doesn’t bother me. But I can’t let my friends die like that. They were blown to pieces. They couldn’t even be identified.”

The compensation campaign involving 200 British victims has been frustrated to date by the government’s reluctance to support the case — even though Libya agreed to pay a small number of Americans who were victims of IRA terror attacks.

Ministerial letters obtained by The Sunday Times reveal this reluctance is partly explained by fears of jeopardising relations with the newly rehabilitated regime of Colonel Muammar Gadaffi. In a letter to the victims’ lawyers dated October 7, 2008, Gordon Brown wrote: “Libya would not support or be prepared to discuss a bilateral settlement of these cases and doing so would entail substantial risks.”

Another letter from Bill Rammell, then a Foreign Office minister, dated November 6, 2008, also says the government will not intervene in negotiations, explaining that Libya is a vital partner for a “secure energy future” and in the fight against terrorism.

The letters provide new damning evidence of the government’s eagerness to maintain good relations with Libya, in which trade appears to weigh more heavily on ministers’ minds than the plight of British victims of terrorism. >>> | Sunday, September 06, 2009

BNP Gets a Slot on BBC's Question Time
THE SUNDAY TIMES: THE BBC has provoked controversy by giving the British National party a platform for the first time on Question Time, its top current affairs programme.

Nick Griffin, the BNP leader who was elected to the European parliament in June, is expected to be on the show in October. The corporation has decided that the far-right party deserves more airtime because it has demonstrated “electoral support at a national level”.

The move has caused consternation among politicians, with some Labour MPs and at least one cabinet minister pledging to boycott Question Time. They fear the BNP will use the publicity to promote a racist agenda.

The change in policy has also triggered dissent within the BBC. One senior correspondent, who did not want to be named, said: “It’s barmy ... Public servants can be sacked for membership of the BNP and yet the BBC wants to give them airtime with the main political parties.”

The BBC changed its position after the party won two seats at the European elections. Its share of the national vote at that poll was 6.2%. “They got across a threshold that has given them national representation and that fact will be reflected in the level of coverage they will be given,” said Ric Bailey, the BBC’s chief adviser on politics. “This is not a policy about the BNP. It’s a policy about impartiality.” >>> Marie Woolf, Whitehall Editor | Sunday, September 06, 2009

Gordon Brown Vetoes Libyan Payout to IRA Victims
Time to go, Gordon. The British don’t want you leading them any longer. You have brought enough shame on us already. We can’t take anymore. You were never elected to lead us, anyway. Oh, and by the way, it is seventy years now that the long-suffering Brits had to put up with Chamberlain. He went, eventually; and has a special place in world history – as the great appeaser. You, too, Gordon, will have a special place in world history. You’ll be known as the unelected Prime Minister who traded oil for justice, let down 270 innocent victims of the Lockerbie disaster, did shady deals with a tinpot dictator, and chose a ‘special relationship’ with Libya over our staunch friend and ally, the United States of America. – © Mark

THE SUNDAY TIMES: GORDON BROWN personally vetoed an attempt to force Colonel Muammar Gadaffi to compensate IRA bomb victims because it might have jeopardised British oil deals with Libya.

Documents passed to The Sunday Times reveal how the prime minister took a close interest in a campaign to secure payouts for the 2,500 families of those blown up by the Libyan-supplied Semtex explosive used by republican bombers.

However, Brown refused to help the victims because of government concerns that putting pressure on Gadaffi might lead to Libya withdrawing co-operation over trade and the war against Islamic terrorism.

The documents will cause embarrassment for Brown as he faces new questions over the early release of the convicted Lockerbie bomber Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed al-Megrahi.

In a further damaging twist, Jack Straw, the justice secretary, was last night accused by the Tories of misleading the public over the prime minister’s role in talks about the decision to free the terminally ill Libyan terrorist.

The Sunday Times has established that Straw wrote to Brown warning the Libyans might block a multi-million-pound BP oil deal unless the bomber was released. The disclosure contradicts remarks Straw made in a newspaper interview published yesterday in which he insisted there had been “no paper trail” to No 10.

Campaigners claim the official letters about IRA compensation highlight the government’s preoccupation with trading relations with Libya at the expense of bomb victims. >>> Jonathan Oliver, David Leppard and Hala Jaber in Tripoli | Sunday, September 06, 2009

In the Megrahi Affair, the More We Learn, the Worse It Gets
This sordid tale makes me feel ashamed to call myself British. I always knew that the British establishment stank; now, it is clear to me that it stinks to high heaven! – © Mark

THE TELEGRAPH: Telegraph view: The way the Lockerbie bomber gained his release brings shame upon Britain.

Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed al-Megrahi is the only person to have been convicted of planting the bomb that destroyed Pan Am Flight 103 over Lockerbie. Megrahi murdered 270 people, including 51 British citizens. His release from a Scottish jail has caused fresh pain to many of the relatives of those he killed. It has tarnished Britain's reputation abroad, because in spite of the fact that the Scottish Executive has insisted that it took the decision to free Megrahi on its own, there is increasing evidence, including the story we publish today, that the British Government had, at the very least, a powerfully influential role in the decision.

Across the world, there is little doubt that the British Government is perceived as responsible for the Megrahi affair. Diplomatic relations with America have been strained, because Britain has broken a promise given to the US government that the Libyan would not be released before he had served his minimum tariff of 20 years. Worse, Britain is now identified with a policy of preferring money to justice, and being prepared to sell criminals in exchange for trade deals and concessions. That sets an ominous precedent.

The Government is now making the case for Megrahi's release by insisting that contracts with Libya – including BP's £545 million deal involving exploration for new oil reserves in that country – depended on it: not in the sense that there was a formal agreement with Libya stating "we free Megrahi and you give us the oil deal", but in the sense of an informal understanding that the one gesture would be reciprocated by the other. Jack Straw has stated that Megrahi's release was also important to the war on terrorism: Libya's co-operation on intelligence matters required it.

The Government's argument has been greeted with horror in some quarters, on the grounds that justice should never be compromised, no matter how great the costs of holding rigorously to it. We do not accept that principle. There can be cases in which it is reasonable, when the national interest clashes with justice, to prefer protecting the former. The Government has dismally failed, however, to provide a persuasive argument that the release of Megrahi is one of those cases. The Libyan was responsible for one of the worst terrorist outrages perpetrated in peace-time. His guilt has been upheld by the numerous Scottish judges who examined the evidence. He was certainly not solely responsible. But the fact that he had accomplices, and that others ordered the explosion, does not lessen his culpability for it.

Even if it were true that the future of BP's contracts in Libya depended on Megrahi's repatriation, the heinousness of his crime would make most people pause before concluding that that was the correct path to take. The logic of the Government's case seems to be that £545 million, or whatever sum shall eventually be gained from the deals with Libya, covers the murder of 270 people: the money is enough to forgive and forget the crime. >>> Telegraph view | Saturday, September 05, 2009

Revealed: Libya Paid for Medical Advice that Helped Lockerbie Bomber's Release
“It showed the relations between Britain and Libya are strong and deep. We in Libya appreciate this and Britain will find it is rewarded.” – Abdul Majeed al-Dursi, chief spokesman for the régime

THE TELEGRAPH: The British, Scottish and Libyan governments connived to free Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed al-Megrahi on compassionate grounds The Sunday Telegraph can disclose.

Gordon Brown meets Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi. Photo: The Telegraph
Medical evidence that helped Megrahi, 57, to be released was paid for by the Libyan government, which encouraged three doctors to say he had only three months to live.

The life expectancy of Megrahi was crucial because, under Scottish rules, prisoners can be freed on compassionate grounds only if they are considered to have this amount of time, or less, to live.

Megrahi is suffering from terminal prostate cancer. Two of the three doctors commissioned by the Libyans provided the required three-month estimates, while the third also indicated that the prisoner had a short time to live.

This contrasted with findings of doctors in June and July who had concluded that Megrahi had up to 10 months to live, which would have prevented his release.

Professor Karol Sikora, one of the examining doctors and the medical director of CancerPartnersUK in London, told The Sunday Telegraph: “The figure of three months was suggested as being helpful [by the Libyans].

“To start with I said it was impossible to do that [give a three-month life expectancy estimate] but, when I looked at it, it looked as though it could be done – you could actually say that.” He said that he and a second doctor, a Libyan, had legitimately then estimated Megrahi’s life expectancy as “about three months”. A third doctor would say only that he had a short time to live.

This weekend it was reported that Megrahi was moved out of an emergency care unit in Tripoli.

The prognosis from the three doctors – two from Britain – was used as part of the evidence by Kenny MacAskill, the Scottish Justice Secretary, last month when he concluded that Megrahi should be released on compassionate grounds. Our investigation also reveals that:

Mousa Kousa, a senior Libyan politician who was expelled from Britain in 1980 for boasting of a plot to kill Libyan dissidents in London, played a key role in the talks to free Megrahi, and threatened serious consequences if the prisoner died in jail. Mr Kousa, now the Libyan foreign minister, was once implicated in planning the Lockerbie bombing – a claim he vehemently denies. According to the minutes of a meeting on Jan 22 between Libyan and Scottish officials: “Mr Kousa stated that Mr al-Megrahi’s death in Scotland would not be viewed well by the Muslims or Arabs. Nor would it be good for relations.” >>> Andrew Alderson, Chief Reporter, Robert Mendick and Damien McElroy in Tripoli, with additional reporting by Leonard Doyle in Washington | Saturday, September 05, 2009

Anti-fascists Clash with Right-wing Protesters in Birmingham
MAIL ONLINE: There were angry clashes in a city centre today as right-wing protesters fought with anti-fascist campaigners in a busy shopping street.

A planned demonstration by The English Defence League in central Birmingham descended into violence as the group charged along New Street, close to the city's main train station.

More than 20 men have been arrested.

'There were about 250 people in total, fighting and throwing bottles at each other,' one onlooker said.

The disorder spilled onto the adjoining Bennetts Hill, a street lined with a number of pubs, popular with shoppers.

Dozens of riot police worked to contain the disturbance and a police helicopter hovered overhead.

A police spokeswoman said there had been 'pockets' of trouble. West Midlands Police said it would deal with anti-social behaviour or criminal activity connected to the protests 'robustly' after a demonstration last month turned violent. >>> | Saturday, September 05, 2009

Binyamin Netanyahu Pushes Barack Obama into a Corner with Settlement Plan
TIMES ONLINE: Israel’s plans to have one last burst of settlement building in the West Bank before agreeing to a temporary, partial freeze is a slap in the face to the Obama Administration and a warning to the Palestinians that it intends to fight for every inch of land.

Binyamin Netanyahu’s refusal to include east Jerusalem — captured in the Six Day War — in any future settlement freeze suggests that Israel is trying to push the Palestinians into a checkmate situation.

The Palestinians demand east Jerusalem, still predominantly populated by Palestinians, as their future capital. An expansion of settlements ringing the city could cut it off from the Palestinian hinterland and slice the West Bank in two.

From the outset relations between the Netanyahu and Obama administrations have been testy. The new Israeli Government was at first shocked by Washington’s insistence on a total settlement freeze — something that has never happened in 16 years of peace negotiations, during which the Jewish communities in the West Bank have grown inexorably.

Israel has tried to persuade Washington to allow “natural growth” in the settlements, where about 300,000 people live in neat, red-tiled villas perched on strategic hilltops across the West Bank, known to Israelis as Judea and Samaria. When that failed it tried to rebrand “natural growth” as “normal life” but the Americans still refused. The latest announcement puts Washington in a difficult position — >>> James Hider: Analysis | Saturday, September 05, 2009

Die Schweiz am Gängelband Gadhafis
DIE PRESSE: Libyens Diktator treibt seit Juli 2008 ein böses Spiel mit der Schweiz und hält zwei Geschäftsleute seit mittlerweile 414 Tagen als Geiseln fest. Der Zorn der Eidgenossen über die Demütigungen wächst.

Seit mittlerweile 414 Tagen sitzen zwei Schweizer Geschäftsleute in Libyen fest. Und nichts deutet darauf hin, dass sich der bizarre Wüstendiktator Muammar al-Gadhafi dazu erweichen lassen könnte, seine beiden Geiseln zurück in ihre Heimat zu lassen. Im Gegenteil: Gadhafi spielt weiter Katz und Maus mit der Schweiz, er beleidigt die Eidgenossen als „Weltmafia“ oder „Verbrecherkartell“ und will vor der UNO gar die Auflösung der Schweiz erreichen.

Dort aber werden Wut und Zorn über die ständigen Demütigungen aus Tripolis immer größer. Die rechte Partei „Liga der Tessiner“ forderte jetzt gar, Libyen den Krieg zu erklären und die festgehaltenen Landsleute mit Waffengewalt zu befreien. Und in Genf fanden am Freitag die ersten Solidaritätskundgebungen für die beiden Schweizer Geschäftsleute statt.

Am Ufer des Genfer Sees. Dort, in Genf, hat Anfang Juli 2008 alles begonnen. Im Luxushotel „President Wilson“ stiegen illustre Gäste ab: der Sohn von Libyens Staatschef Gadhafi, Hannibal, seine hochschwangere Frau Aline, der dreijährige Sohn samt Gefolge. Die Familie belegte mehrere Suiten in der Nobelherberge direkt am Ufer des Genfer Sees, um dort die Zeit bis zur Geburt des Kindes zu verbringen. Wenige Tage später erhielt die Genfer Polizei einen verzweifelten Telefonanruf aus dem Hotel: Zwei Hausangestellte der Gadhafis berichteten von schweren Misshandlungen durch ihre Dienstgeber. Sie seien geschlagen, getreten und mit heißem Wasser verbrüht worden.

Kurz darauf stürmten rund 20 Polizisten mit vorgehaltener Waffe die Luxussuite des Ehepaars Gadhafi. Hannibal wurde in Handschellen abgeführt, seine schwangere Frau unter Polizeischutz ins Spital gebracht. Das Ehepaar bestreitet die Misshandlungsvorwürfe vehement und behauptet, die Bediensteten hätten die Übergriffe erfunden, um in der Schweiz Asyl zu erhalten.

„Aug und Aug, Zahn um Zahn“. Doch die Genfer Justiz erließ einen Haftbefehl gegen die Gadhafis. Erst nach der Bezahlung einer Kaution von einer halben Million Schweizer Franken wurden Hannibal und Aline freigelassen. Schwer gekränkt, schworen die Gadhafis Rache: Und zwar „Aug um Aug, Zahn um Zahn“, drohte Hannibals Schwester Aischa, bevor die Familie die Schweiz – wohl für immer – verließ.

Was dieser biblische Ausspruch einer in ihrer Ehre verletzten arabischen Herrscherfamilie bedeutet, muss die Schweiz seither bitter erfahren. Gadhafi ließ Büros Schweizer Firmen in Libyen schließen und die Swiss nicht mehr nach Tripolis fliegen. Später stoppte er die Öllieferungen in die Schweiz und transferierte sein auf helvetischen Konten liegendes Milliardenvermögen ins Ausland. >>> Von Carola Schneider | Samstag, 05. September 2009

Schweiz: Rechte Partei will Libyen Krieg erklären
DIE PRESSE: Ein 22-jähriger Abgeordneter des Tessiner Großrates verlangt einen Angriff, um zwei inhaftierte Geschäftsleute zu befreien. Damit würden die Rechte und die Ehre der Schweiz gewahrt.

Im Konflikt zwischen der Schweiz und Libyen ist jetzt die rechte Partei Lega dei Ticinesi (Liga der Tessiner) so weit gegangen, einen Krieg zu fordern. Die Schweiz solle Libyen den Krieg erklären. Die seit über einem Jahr in Tripolis festgehaltenen Schweizer Geschäftsleute müssten mit Waffengewalt befreit werden, erklärte der Lega-Politiker Boris Bignasca, Mitglied des Tessiner Großrates (Kantonsparlament), in einer Resolution.

Bignasca, der 22-jährige Sohn des Lega-Parteichefs Giuliano Bignasca, verlangt von den Tessiner Behörden, dass sie sich vor der aus beiden Parlamentskammern bestehende Bundesversammlung für diese "außergewöhnliche, aber unausweichliche Initiative" stark machen. Die Schweizer müssten die Risiken und Opfer eines bewaffneten Konflikts mit Entschlossenheit angehen. Schweizer Soldaten könnten in einer Blitzaktion die festgehaltenen Geiseln befreien. Damit würden die Rechte, Interessen und nicht zuletzt auch die Ehre der Schweiz gewahrt.

Die Schweiz dürfe sich nicht gefallen lassen, dass der "Tyrann Gaddafi" die Aufteilung der Schweiz an die Nachbarländer Deutschland, Frankreich und Italien fordere und somit die Souveränität des Landes angreife. Bignasca hofft, dass das Tessiner Kantonsparlament die Resolution noch im September behandeln wird, wie er am Freitagabend gegenüber dem Lokalsender "TeleTicino" sagte. Nervenkrieg um Geschäftsleute >>> Ag. | Samstag, 05. September 2009

Hotel President Wilson >>>

Frankreich: Morddrohung an Sarkozy – Elf Personen verhaftet
WELT ONLINE: Nach anonymen Todesdrohungen gegen Staatspräsident Nicolas Sarkozy und andere französische Politiker sind im Süden Frankreichs elf Verdächtige festgenommen worden. Die Drohbriefe mit Gewehrkugeln waren in den vergangenen Monaten aus der Nähe von Montpellier abgeschickt worden.

Frankreichs Präsident Nicolas Sarkozy. Bild: Welt Online
Die französische Polizei hat Justizkreisen zufolge elf Personen wegen Morddrohungen an Frankreichs Präsidenten Nicolas Sarkozy verhaftet. Es handelt sich um Ladenbesitzer, Ex-Soldaten und Mitglieder eines Schützenvereins in der Nähe von Montpellier im Südwesten des Landes. Wie ein Justizsprecher bestätigte, wurden die Personen im Département Hérault im Süden des Landes aufgegriffen.

Neben Sarkozy erhielten zwei Minister, der Bürgermeister von Bordeaux und andere Mitte-Rechts-Politiker erstmals im März Briefe mit Kugeln. Seitdem tauchten sporadisch weitere Morddrohungen in den Posträumen von Politikern auf. Der letzte an Sarkozy adressierte Brief wurde im August von einem Postbeamten in Montpellier abgefangen. Bei Durchsuchungen der Wohnungen der Verdächtigen sind Polizeikreisen zufolge aber zunächst keine belastbaren Beweise sichergestellt worden. >>> Reuters/AP/AFP/fas | Freitag, 04. September 2009

Sarkozy et Abbas dénoncent la colonisation israélienne
Nicolas Sarkozy, qui considère une relance rapide des pourparlers de paix comme l'une de ses priorités diplomatiques, s'est entretenu avec son homologue palestinien, vendredi à l'Élysée. Crédits photo : Le Figaro
LE FIGARO: Le rendez-vous entre le président de l'Autorité palestinienne et Nicolas Sarkozy, vendredi à l'Élysée, s'est déroulé sous la pression des dernières déclarations israéliennes.

C'est peu dire que la rencontre entre Mahmoud Abbas et Nicolas Sarkozy, vendredi à l'Élysée, s'est déroulée dans un contexte de pessimisme. L'annonce, le jour même, par les Israéliens de leur intention de donner un coup d'accélérateur à la colonisation en Cisjordanie avant tout gel partiel touche en effet le problème crucial sur la route d'une improbable relance de pourparlers de paix israélo-palestiniens. «Ce n'est pas acceptable. Nous voulons un gel de la colonisation et également le lancement des négociations de la phase finale», a réagi Mahmoud Abbas à l'issue de sa discussion d'environ une heure avec le président de la République. Cette étape parisienne, souhaitée par le président palestinien, s'inscrivait dans les préparatifs de l'Assemblée générale de l'ONU qui débutera dans quelques jours. À cette occasion, il serait question d'une rencontre organisée à New York entre le dirigeant palestinien et le premier ministre israélien. Mais vendredi, Mahmoud Abbas a été clair en indiquant qu'une éventuelle rencontre «dépendra des pas, des mesures qui l'auront précédée concernant le gel de la colonisation». Le principal négociateur palestinien Saëb Erakat a, pour sa part, jugé «totalement inacceptable» le projet israélien d'extension des colonies juives. «La seule chose qui sera suspendue après ces annonces, c'est le processus de paix», a-t-il ajouté.

Paris a également condamné «sans aucune ambiguïté» l'accélération de la colonisation israélienne. Lors de l'entretien avec son homologue palestinien, Nicolas Sarkozy a «souligné qu'il était déterminant, pour permettre la reprise du processus de paix, que cessent les activités de colonisation ainsi que le demande l'ensemble de la communauté internationale», selon un communiqué de l'Élysée. Obama attendu à l'ONU >>> Alain Barluet | Vendredi 04 Septembre 2009

Libyan Foreign Minister, Musa Kasa, Defends UK Government Over Lockerbie
So, the day has come when Libya now has to defend the United Kingdom against its American critics!

Gordon Brown and his merry band of crooks have severed our once glorious special relationship with the US and traded it in for a ‘special relationship’ with a tinpot dictator! Why? Because there’s money to be made. Oil money. Big money.

Not only is this as absurd as it is dangerous, but it also signifies a significant shift towards the realisation of Eurabia. Remember this: Gaddafi has made no secret of the fact that he wants Islam to take over Europe. Alas, we have got into bed with vipers! And Gordon Brown and his profiteering cronies have fallen for the ruse hook, line, and sinker! – © Mark

TIMES ONLINE: A top Libyan official once expelled from Britain for plotting the deaths of exiled dissidents rode to the defence of the British Government over Lockerbie yesterday.

In one of the few interviews he has given, Musa Kusa, the Libyan Foreign Minister and long-time member of Colonel Muammar Gaddafi’s inner circle, told The Times that he was astonished by the controversy over the release of Abdul Baset Ali al-Megrahi, the Lockerbie bomber.

“Where is the human rights, the compassion and mercy? The man is on the verge of death,” Mr Kusa said in a midnight conversation in his plush, chilled office in the centre of baking Tripoli.

He flatly denied any link between al-Megrahi’s release and British commercial interests in his oil-rich state and said that Libya was grateful to the British and Scottish governments for their humanity. “You should not do an injustice to the British Government. It was nothing to do with trade,” he said. “If we wished to bargain we would have done it a long time ago.”

Mr Musa, likewise, said that the row over al-Megrahi’s rapturous reception at Tripoli airport was the result of a cultural misunderstanding: such greetings were a Libyan custom. “I can’t say to [al-Megrahi’s] friends and tribe, ‘Don’t go there’,” he said. Not one Libyan official went to the airport, he added, and the reception was, by Libyan standards, “low key”.

He emphasised that Libya was eager to strengthen its relationship with Britain despite the present friction.

Mr Kusa, the Libyan foreign intelligence chief for 15 years before becoming Foreign Minister, is the embodiment of his country’s transition from rogue state to something approaching international respectability.

In 1980, when he was head of the Libyan diplomatic mission in London, he was expelled from Britain for allegedly organising the killing of exiled opponents of Colonel Gaddafi’s regime. In later years he was accused of complicity in the 1998 Lockerbie bombing, the destruction of a French airliner over Niger in 1989, the Berlin disco bombing that led to the US bombing of Tripoli in 1986 and much else besides. He was high on the British and US terrorism blacklists.

Today Mr Kusa is received at the highest levels in London and Washington. He negotiated the conditions of Libya’s $2.7 billion compensation payment to families of the Lockerbie victims. In the refined surroundings of the Travellers Club in Pall Mall, he negotiated the dismantling of Libyan weapons of mass destruction. He co-operates with British and American intelligence agencies in their fight against a mutual enemy — Islamic terrorism. >>> Martin Fletcher in Tripoli | Saturday, September 05, 2009

Schweiz auf mögliche Schmährede Ghadhafis vorbereitet: Uno-Botschafter Maurer kennt Inhalt des libyschen Briefs
NZZ ONLINE: «Wir wissen, was in dem Schreiben steht.» Dies sagt der Schweizer Uno-Botschafter Peter Maurer zum inzwischen abgeschmetterten Vorstoss Ghadhafis zur Auflösung der Schweiz. Sollte Ghadhafi in seiner Rede vor der Uno trotzdem zum Schlag gegen die Schweiz ausholen, wisse die Schweiz, was zu tun ist.

Der Schweizer Uno-Botschafter in New York hat die Existenz eines Briefes an die Uno, in dem Libyen die Auflösung der Schweiz fordert, bestätigt. Wir wissen, dass es ein Schreiben gibt und wir wissen, was der Inhalt ist, sagte Peter Maurer der Nachrichtenagentur SDA am Freitag in New York. Das Dokument orientiere sich an der Muammar Ghadhafis Rede vom Juli am G-8-Gipfel im italienischen L'Aquila und bringe keine neue Begründung des Vorstosses.

Ghadhafi hatte gemäss Angaben der libyschen Nachrichtenagentur Jana beim Gipfel in L'Aquila und beim Blockfreientreffen in Sharm as-Sheik die Schweiz scharf angegriffen: Sie sei kein Staat, sondern eine Terroristen-Finanziererin. Um das Land an seinem Tun zu hindern, müsse es deshalb unter den drei grossen Nachbarn Deutschland, Frankreich und Italien aufgeteilt werden.

Schreiben ging an Ban

Laut Maurer richtet ein Land, das ein Traktandum in die Generalversammlung einbringen will, die Bitte um Aufnahme des Vorschlages an den Generalsekretär. Dieser leitet ihn nach einer Prüfung an das Komitee zur Programmplanung weiter.

Im Falle des Antrages aus Libyen brauche man aber keine lange diplomatische Ausbildung um zu erkennen, dass ein solcher Vorstoss keine Chance habe, sagte der Schweizer Diplomat. Vorschläge könne man an der Uno auf viele Arten einbringen, am Schluss müsse man aber immer eine Mehrheit finden.

Der Sprecher des Generalsekretärs, Farhan Haq, hatte gegenüber der SDA schon am Donnerstag deutlich gemacht, dass der libysche Vorschlag der Uno-Charta völlig widerspreche und deshalb weder zirkuliert noch veröffentlicht werde. Kein Uno-Mitglied dürfe in seiner Existenz bedroht werden. >>> sda | Samstag, 05. September 2009

«Montrer que la Suisse n’est pas dupe»
LE TEMPS: Luis Martinez, directeur de recherche au Centre d’études et de recherches internationales (CERI) de Sciences Po à Paris, est l’un des spécialistes les plus respectés de la Libye. Il porte un regard acéré sur la crise qui oppose Berne à Tripoli. Il a publié The Libyan Paradox*.

Le Temps: Comment appréciez-vous la manière dont les autorités suisses ont géré cette crise avec la Libye?

Luis Martinez: En observateur extérieur, j’avais été étonné, dans l’affaire de l’arrestation d’Hannibal Kadhafi et de sa femme, par la volonté d’être aussi formel vis-à-vis de l’enfant d’un chef d’Etat comme le colonel Kadhafi dans le contexte actuel de la Libye. Le même événement ne m’aurait absolument pas choqué il y a dix ans à Genève, Oslo ou Madrid. La Libye aurait rappelé Hannibal et aurait dit: «Ce n’est pas le moment de faire des bêtises, on a assez de problèmes avec le Conseil de sécurité.»

Mais avec la Libye d’aujourd’hui, qui depuis 2003 revient sur la scène et affiche clairement ses prétentions, j’ai trouvé que cette arrestation avait un côté peut-être courageux mais aussi très risqué. Même s’il est tout à fait respectable de venir en aide à deux employés maltraités, dans le contexte actuel, les autorités ont manqué de tact et surtout de débriefing: la Libye d’aujourd’hui n’est pas la Libye d’avant.

– Mais comment comprendre que la Libye se soit sentie à ce point humiliée?

– Ce point est très important. Ce petit monde des enfants de pétro-Etats autoritaires est un peu comme celui des acteurs de Holly­wood. Tout le monde se connaît, on fréquente les mêmes villes, les mêmes palaces. Les Libyens font leur retour dans ces endroits depuis 2003, et vis-à-vis des autres grandes familles, il est vraiment gênant d’apparaître comme ceux que l’on maltraite, au même titre que des Soudanais ou des Syriens. Deux employés marocains arrivent à faire arrêter le fils de Kadhafi: dans ce petit monde-là, cela veut dire que Kadhafi ne vaut rien. La réaction libyenne est proportionnelle à son humiliation. Il s’agit de faire comprendre que cela coûte très cher d’agir ainsi avec un enfant Kadhafi. >>> Angélique Mounier-Kuhn | Samedi 05 Septembre 2009

*The Libyan Paradox (Columbia/Hurst) (Hardcover) >>>

Unadulterated Dhimmitude! Boris Johnson Calls for a Day of Fasting to 'Help Understand Muslims'
You fast if you want to; this gentleman’s not for fasting! – Mark

MAIL ONLINE: London Mayor Boris Johnson today encouraged people to undergo a day of fasting to help them gain a better understanding of their 'Muslim neighbour'.

Speaking during a visit to the East London Mosque and London Muslim Centre he said Muslims in the capital were 'challenging traditional stereotypes' to show they wanted to be part of the mainstream.

Mr Johnson's visit coincided with the holy period of Ramadan in which participating Muslims fast from dawn until sunset.

He said: 'Whether it's in theatre, comedy, sports, music or politics, Muslims are challenging the traditional stereotypes and showing that they are, and want to be, a part of the mainstream community.

'That's why I urge people, particularly during Ramadan, to find out more about Islam, increase your understanding and learning, even fast for a day with your Muslim neighbour and break your fast at the local mosque.

'I would be very surprised if you didn't find that you share more in common than you thought.'

He added: 'Muslims are at the heart of every aspect of society. Their contribution is something that all Londoners benefit from.

'Muslim police officers, doctors, scientists and teachers are an essential part of the fabric of London.

'Islamic finance is contributing to the economy by changing the way Londoners invest, save, borrow and spend. >>> | Friday, September 04, 2009

Jack Straw Admits Lockerbie Bomber's Release Was Linked to Oil
THE TELEGRAPH: Jack Straw has reignited the row over the release of the Lockerbie bomber by admitting for the first time that trade and oil were an essential part of the Government’s decision to include him in a prisoner transfer deal with Libya.

The Justice Secretary said he was unapologetic about including Abdelbaset al Megrahi in the agreement, citing a multi-million-pound oil deal signed by BP and Libya six weeks later.

The admission directly contradicts Gordon Brown's insistence only days ago that oil deals were not a factor in the prisoner's release.

In an interview with The Daily Telegraph, Mr Straw also suggested that Kenny MacAskill, the Scottish justice minister, released the terminally-ill bomber on compassionate grounds earlier than the British Government would have done.

Mr Brown has been accused of putting Britain’s trade interests before justice for the Lockerbie victims.

Earlier this week, the outcry forced him to say: “There was no conspiracy, no cover-up, no double dealing, no deal on oil, no attempt to instruct Scottish ministers, no private assurances.” >>> Mary Riddell, Simon Johnson and Andrew Porter | Friday, September 04, 2009

NEW YORK DAILY NEWS:
Brown the Betrayer: Britain’s Sellout Prime Minister Has Broken Faith and Ties with the U.S. >>> Editorial | Wednesday, September 02, 2009

War Declaration on Nazis Recalled
BBC: The moment Britain finally declared war on Nazi Germany exactly 70 years ago is being remembered.

Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain made his sombre radio broadcast at 11.15am on 3 September 1939, two days after German forces attacked Poland.

France followed suit hours after the historic address at 10 Downing Street.

There are no official events to mark the anniversary, but war-related re-unions and debates are being held in northern England and London.

A group of land girls who worked together on farms in Lincolnshire during the war will be reunited in Grimsby - some for the first time in 70 years. >>> | Thursday, September 03, 2009

Prime Minister Chamberlain Declares War
BBC: With Hitler's invasion of Poland on 1 September the British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain's policy of appeasement had clearly failed.

In the face of a revolt from members of his Cabinet and a growing feeling in the country that Hitler must be tackled, he had little choice but to declare war.

At a little after 1100 on 3 September he made this broadcast.

I am speaking to you from the Cabinet Room at 10 Downing Street.

This morning the British Ambassador in Berlin handed the German Government a final note stating that, unless we hear from them by 11 o'clock that they were prepared at once to withdraw their troops from Poland, a state of war would exist between us. I have to tell you now that no such undertaking has been received, and that consequently this country is at war with Germany.

You can imagine what a bitter blow it is to me that all my long struggle to win peace has failed. Yet I cannot believe that there is anything more or anything different that I could have done and that would have been more successful.

Up to the very last it would have been quite possible to have arranged a peaceful and honourable settlement between Germany and Poland, but Hitler would not have it. He had evidently made up his mind to attack Poland, whatever happened, and although he now says he put forward reasonable proposals which were rejected by the Poles, that is not a true statement.

The proposals were never shown to the Poles, nor to us, and though they were announced in a German broadcast on Thursday night, Hitler did not wait to hear comments on them but ordered his troops to cross the Polish frontier the next morning.

His action shows convincingly that there is no chance of expecting that this man will ever give up his practice of using force to gain his will. He can only be stopped by force.

We and France are today, in fulfilment of our obligations, going to the aid of Poland, who is so bravely resisting this wicked and unprovoked attack upon her people. We have a clear conscience - we have done all that any country could do to establish peace.

The situation in which no word given by Germany's ruler could be trusted, and no people or country could feel itself safe, has become intolerable. And now that we have resolved to finish it I know that you will play your part with calmness and courage.
At such a moment as this the assurances of support which we have received from the empire are a source of profound encouragement to us.

When I have finished speaking, certain detailed announcements will be made on behalf of the government. Give these your closest attention. The government have made plans under which it will be possible to carry on work of the nation in the days of stress and strain that may be ahead...

Now may God bless you all. May He defend the right. For it is evil things that we shall be fighting against - brute force, bad faith, injustice, oppression and persecution - and against them I am certain that right will prevail. [Source: BBC] | Wednesday, September 01, 1999

Hitler's Address to the Reichstag
BBC: At dawn on 1 September, German troops invaded Poland, unleashing Blitzkrieg or 'lightning war' on the world for the first time.

The Nazi invasion of Poland was entirely unprovoked and the German dictator, Adolf Hitler, gave no ultimatum or declaration of war to the Polish government.

Instead the Nazi leader simply issued a proclamation to the army saying that Poland had refused the "peaceful settlement" desired by him, but which in reality he had never worked for.

Later that morning the German High Command issued the order: "Soldiers of the German Army - after all other means have failed - weapons must decide."

Hitler addressed the German Parliament, the Reichstag, later that day.

Here are some extracts from his speech which have been translated from the original German.

For months we have been suffering under the torture of a problem which the Versailles 'Diktat' created. A problem which has deteriorated until it has become intolerable for us.

Danzig was and is a German city . The [Polish] Corridor was and is German. Danzig was separated from us. The corridor was annexed by Poland. As in other German territories [outside Germany] the east German minorities have been ill-treated in the most distressing manner... I attempted to bring about, by making proposals for revisions, an alteration in this intolerable position.

It is a lie when the outside world says that we only tried to carry our revisions through by pressure. I have, not once but several times, made proposals for the revision of intolerable conditions.

All these proposals have been rejected... In the same way I have also tried to solve the problem of Danzig, the Corridor etc... by proposing peaceful discussion... I then formulated at last the German proposals, and I must repeat that there is nothing more modest and loyal than these proposals.

These answers have been refused. Not only were they answered first with mobilisation, but with increased terror against our German compatriots and with a slow strangling of the Free City of Danzig - economically, politically, and in recent weeks by military and transport means.

I made one more final effort to accept a proposal for mediation on the part of the British Government. They proposed, not that they themselves should carry on the negotiations, but rather that Poland and Germany should come into direct contact and once more pursue negotiations.

I accepted this proposal and worked out a basis for those negotiations which are known to you. For two whole days I sat with my government and waited to see if it was convenient for the Polish Government to send a plenipotentiary or not. Last night they did not send us a plenipotentiary, but instead informed us through their ambassador that they were still considering whether and to what extent they were in a position to go into the British proposals...

If the German Government and its leader patiently endured such treatment Germany would deserve only to disappear from the political stage. I therefore, decided late last night, and informed the British Government that, in these circumstances I can no longer find any willingness on the part of the Polish Government to conduct serious negotiations with us...

When statesmen in the West declare that this affects their interests, I can only regret such a declaration. We ask nothing of these Western states and will never ask anything. I have declared that the frontier between France and Germany is a final one. I have repeatedly offered friendship and the closest co-operation to Britain, but this cannot be offered from one side only...

I will not make war against women and children. I have ordered my airforce to restrict itself to attacks on military objectives. If, however, the enemy thinks he can from that draw 'carte blanche' on his side to fight by other methods he will receive an answer that will deprive him of hearing and sight. [Source: BBC] | Friday, September 03, 1999]

Clinic for Internet Addicts Opens in US
THE GUARDIAN: reSTART offers counseling and psychotherapy – and up to 45 days 'cold turkey' away from the web

If you have to take a quick break from reading this article to check your Blackberry, send a text or reboot your Xbox 360 before you reach the end of this paragraph, then the good news is that help is at hand.

reSTART has been opened outside Seattle, the rain-soaked north-western town where high-tech companies are as common as cattle are in Texas. It claims to be America's first residential detox centre for internet addicts.

For a little over $14,000, up to six people at a time can spend 45 days sweating out their insatiable urge to be umbilically connected to cyberspace. Think cold turkey as experienced by heroin junkies, and you get the general idea.

Residents are given counselling and psychotherapy, as well as encouraged to bond as a group in activities such as household chores, walks in the grounds and exercising.

The centre, in five acres about 30 miles out of Seattle, is the brainchild of Hilarie Cash, a therapist who had until this summer been treating patients with presumed internet addiction but only on a day-by-day basis.

She recorded her first case in 1994, with a patient so glued to video games that he forfeited his marriage and two jobs. >>> Ed Pilkington | Friday, September 04, 2009

Schweizer in Libyen müssen vor Gericht
WELT ONLINE: Der diplomatische Streit zwischen Libyen und der Schweiz geht weiter: Weil sie Einreise-Bestimmungen verletzt hätten, werden die beiden festgehaltenen Schweizer in Libyen vor Gericht gestellt. Gestern hatte der libyschen Diktator Gaddafi bei der UN gefordert, die Schweiz aufzulösen. Der Antrag wurde abgelehnt.

Die beiden in Libyen festgehaltenen Schweizer werden in Libyen vor Gericht gestellt. Das erklärte der libysche Außenminister Musa Kusa einem Journalisten der britischen „Times“, wie das Schweizer Fernsehen berichtete.

Sie hätten unter anderem libysche Einreise-Bestimmungen verletzt. „Dem libyschen Rechtssystem kann niemand etwas vorschreiben. Es entscheidet frei“, sagte der Minister in dem ausgestrahlten Telefoninterview. Er ließ offen, wann das Verfahren stattfindet.

Unterdessen teilte nach Schweizer Medienberichten ein UN-Sprecher in New York mit, der Antrag des libyschen Revolutionsführers Muammar al-Gaddafi an die Vereinten Nationen, die Schweiz aufzulösen, sei schon vor Wochen abgelehnt worden. Am 15. September übernimmt Libyen turnusgemäß für ein Jahr den Vorsitz der UN-Vollversammlung. >>> dpa/dcs | Freitag, 04. September 2009

Benedict Brogan: Should We Bang Up Some Bankers?
THE TELEGRAPH: Gillian Tett, the FT whizz whose book Fool’s Gold is the best explanation so far of the financial crisis, has a fascinating piece today which considers why we have not seen some of the bankers responsible for the mess put behind bars. She points out that in the wake of the Savings & Loan scandal in the US, 1,852 S&L officials were prosecuted and 1,072 of them served time. A further 2,558 bankers were also sent to prison.

So far there is no sign of a campaign of retributive justice on the same scale to deal with those who led the system to collapse. Is that a good thing? Locking up the casino boys may satisfy public hunger for revenge, but it does nothing to repair global finance.

Gillian Tett argues: “But if there is no retribution against financiers, it will be difficult to force a real change in behaviour. After all, no amount of twiddling with Basel rules or pious statements about bonuses will ever scare a financier as much as the thought of jail. Moreover, without some retribution it will also be hard to persuade voters that finance is really being reformed, or has any credibility or moral authority. That is bad for politicians and regulators. However, it is also bad for bankers too.” She reckons we should keep an eye out for signs of legal cases against bankers. And presumably prison sentences too? [Source: The Telegraph] Comment here | Benedict Brogan | Friday, September 04, 2009

Five Die in Urumqi Protests


WALL STREET JOURNAL:
Read article >>> Gordon Fairclough | Friday, September 04, 2009

Press War Fuels Row In Italy
THE WALL STREET JOURNAL: ROME -- An influential Roman Catholic newspaper editor who questioned the lifestyle of Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi resigned his post Thursday -- a casualty of a bruising newspaper war that has opened a rift between the Vatican and the premier.

Dino Boffo stepped down as editor in chief of Avvenire, the official newspaper of the Italian Bishops Conference, following a weeklong barrage of coverage -- led by Il Giornale, a national newspaper owned by Mr. Berlusconi's brother Paolo -- alleging that Mr. Boffo was involved in a homosexual affair that led to a 2002 harassment case. The existence of a plea bargain in the case couldn't be independently verified. >>> Stacy Meichtry | Friday, September 04, 2009

Adolf Hitler Sex Video Condemned by Aids Charities
THE TELEGRAPH: An Aids-awareness advert depicting Adolf Hitler having unprotected sex has been condemned by mainstream health charities for stigmatising people infected with the virus.

Adolf Hitler sex video condemned by Aids charities
The provocative commercial, which ends with the tag-line "AIDS is a mass murder", aims to scare young people into using condoms by associating the deadly disease with the German dictator.

In the highly-sexualised clip which can only be shown after the watershed, a couple undress and begin to make love in a dimly-lit bedroom.

But what appears to be a typical, if steamy, advert for perfume or underwear takes a macabre twist when the camera pans to man's face at the moment of climax - revealing him to be Adolf Hitler.

The commercial has been released to coincide with 2009 World Aids Day, but established HIV/Aids charities have distanced themselves from its message, saying that it could make life more difficult for sufferers. >>> Matthew Moore | Friday, September 04, 2009

Aids Is a Mass Murderer >>>

L’humiliation, nerf de la guerre que livre la Libye à la Suisse
TRIBUNE DE GENÈVE: CRISE DIPLOMATIQUE | De l’arrestation d’Hannibal Kadhafi à Genève aux appels à disloquer la Suisse: le ressort du contentieux entre Berne et Tripoli est un sentiment de perte d’honneur.

Hannibal Kadhafi. Photo : Tribune de Genève
La Libye va-t-elle tenter de réclamer la dislocation de la Suisse devant l’assemblée générale de l’ONU qui débute le 15 septembre? Ce serait là l’humiliation ultime pour le gouvernement helvétique qui s’est déjà aplati devant Muammar Kadhafi, sans pour autant obtenir le retour de nos deux concitoyens. Si cette dernière provocation n’a bien sûr aucune chance d’aboutir (lire ci-dessous), elle montre bien que la bataille se livre avant tout sur le plan de l’honneur. Une valeur que cette société bédouine estime être bafouée par notre pays, explique Hasni Abidi, directeur à Genève du Centre d’études et de recherche sur le monde arabe (Cermam). Décryptage.

D’abord, les domestiques…



L’humiliation, c’est d’abord celle des domestiques d’Hannibal Kadhafi et de son épouse Aline El-Skaf, qui ont appelé au secours la police genevoise le 12 juillet 2008. Les deux employés, une Tunisienne et un Marocain, accusent alors leurs patrons de maltraitance. Pour prouver leur bonne foi, ils vont jusqu’à montrer leurs blessures à la presse. «Aujourd’hui encore, en Libye, les gens ne croient pas à cette version», assure Hasni Abidi. «Ils savent Hannibal capable de ce qui lui est reproché, mais ils pensent tout de même que les domestiques voulaient simplement s’installer en Suisse.

Pour cette société profondément marquée par la tradition tribale des Bédouins, la parole des employés n’a pas le même poids que celle des patrons. Et l’intervention de la police genevoise est perçue comme une violation de la sphère privée. Donc, de l’étranger qui se mêle de leurs affaires.» >>> Andrés Allemand | Vendredi 04 Septembre 2009

Polizeifotos von Hannibal Ghadhafi: «Tribune de Genève» illustriert ein «Gefühl von Entehrung»
Hannibal Ghadhafi nach der Festnahme in Genf am 15. Juli 2008, Polizeifoto. Bild: Neue Zürcher Zeitung Online
NZZ ONLINE: Die Genfer Zeitung «Tribune de Genève» hat am Freitag zwei Polizeifotos von Hannibal Ghadhafi veröffentlicht. Nach Angaben der Zeitung wurden sie anlässlich von dessen Verhaftung am 15. Juli 2008 gemacht.

Die Schwarz-Weiss-Aufnahmen zeigen das Gesicht des Sohnes des libyschen Herrschers Muammar Ghadhafi von vorne, respektive von der Seite. Die Zeitung erklärt, sie sei bereits seit mehreren Monaten im Besitz der Aufnahmen und betrachte es heute als angebracht, diese zu veröffentlichen. Sie zeugten von einem Gefühl der Entehrung, wie es von den Libyern wahrgenommen werde.

Der Leiter des Zentrums für arabische Studien in Genf, Hasni Abidi, wird mit der Aussage zitiert, es sei die Verhaftung des Sohns von Oberst Ghadhafi gewesen, die den Zorn Libyens provoziert habe. Es sei während 40 Jahren der Herrschaft das erste Mal gewesen, dass ein Angehöriger des Ghadhafi-Clans eine Nacht im Gefängnis verbracht habe. >>> (ap)/awy. | Freitag, 04. September 2009

Netanyahu veut accélérer la colonisation de la Cisjordanie
LE TEMPS: Le premier ministre israélien envisage de donner son feu vert à la construction de plusieurs centaines de logements, alors que les Etats-Unis réclament avec insistance un gel total de la colonisation.

Le Premier ministre israélien Benjamin Netanyahu veut donner un coup d’accélérateur à la colonisation en Cisjordanie occupée avant tout gel partiel, a-t-on appris vendredi auprès de la présidence du conseil à Jérusalem.

Il envisage de donner son feu vert à la construction de plusieurs centaines de logements supplémentaires dans ces colonies édifiées dans le territoire palestinien, avant de décider d’un arrêt temporaire des constructions, a indiqué un haut responsable de la présidence sous couvert de l’anonymat.

«Le Premier ministre va faire approuver ces prochains jours des projets de construction dans les implantations et ce n’est qu’ensuite qu’il pourrait accepter un moratoire de plusieurs mois», a déclaré à l’AFP une autre source gouvernementale. >>> AFP | Vendredi 04 Septembre 2009

Doppelzüngiger Netanyahu: Ankündigung von Siedlungsstopp und gleichzeitig neue Genehmigungen
NZZ ONLINE: Die USA wissen derzeit kaum, woran sie mit Israel sind. Auf der einen Seite signalisiert Ministerpräsident Netanyahu die Bereitschaft zum Siedlungsstopp. Auf der anderen Seite sollen in den nächsten Tagen noch Baugenehmigungen für Hunderte von neuen Wohnungen erteilt werden. >>> ap | Freitag, 04. September 2009

Nordkorea kurz vor der Urananreicherung: Bedrohliche Alternative zum Bau von Atomwaffen
NZZ ONLINE: Nordkorea hat nach eigenen Angaben seine Drohungen wahrgemacht und ein Programm zur Urananreicherung für den Bau von Atombomben aufgelegt. «Die Tests zur Urananreicherung waren erfolgreich und befinden sich nun in der Endphase», meldete die amtliche Nachrichtenagentur.

Nordkorea hat sein Atomprogramm allem internationalen Druck zum Trotz weiter ausgebaut und wird nach eigenen Angaben bald über zwei Möglichkeiten zum Bau von Atombomben verfügen. Wie die staatliche Nachrichtenagentur KCNA am Freitag meldete, steht die Urananreicherung kurz vor der Vollendung. Der Sicherheitsrat der Vereinten Nationen sei informiert worden, dass das Atomprogramm weiter vorangetrieben werde.

In der kurzen Meldung von KCNA hiess es, Plutonium werde waffenfähig gemacht und die Urananreicherung nähere sich ihrer Vollendung. Nordkorea hatte erst kürzlich enthüllt, dass es eine Anlage zur Urananreicherung aufbaut. Experten hatten aber schon länger vermutet, dass ein solches Programm insgeheim in Nordkorea betrieben wird. >>> ap | Freitag, 04. September 2009

Kadhafi veut humilier la Suisse à l’ONU
LE TEMPS: Rayer la Suisse de la carte et répartir ses régions linguistiques entre ses voisins: le président libyen envisage d’intervenir aux Nations unies avec cette requête absurde. Une lettre, restée sans réponse, a été envoyée à Ban Ki-moon

Il a osé. Mouammar Kadhafi a bien déposé une requête pour ­«démanteler la Suisse» auprès des Nations unies. Les menaces, il les avait déjà proférées en juillet, lors du G8 à L’Aquila (Italie). Là, le colonel a fait un pas de plus. C’est ce qu’a affirmé haut et fort Christa Markwalder (PLR/BE), vice-présidente de la Commission de politique extérieure du National, mercredi soir à l’émission 10 vor 10. En soulignant que la diplomatie suisse va devoir retrousser ses manches pour éviter un scandale. >>> Valérie de Graffenried | Vendredi 04 Septembre 2009

Fine Feathers Make Fine Birds!
The ever-colourful Colonel Gaddafi! Photo: Google Images

Ein schöner Redneck aus Alaska
TAGES ANZEIGER: Levi Johnston, der beinahe Palin-Schwiegersohn, hat einiges zu erzählen.

Ein Bild aus glücklicheren Zeiten: Levi Johnston mit seiner einstigen Freundin Bristol Palin. Bild: Tages Anzeiger
Vor Jahresfrist noch war es wie im Biedermeier, und Spitzweg hätte seine helle Freude am Motiv gehabt: Die werdende Mutter, jung und rehäugig, daneben der werdende Vater, ein muskulöser Eishockeycrack mit einem herb-hübschen Gesicht, in Liebe ineinander versunken. Das waren noch Zeiten, damals auf dem republikanischen Präsidentschaftskongress in Minneapolis, als Levi Johnston der von ihm geschwängerten Bristol Palin schöne Augen machte, derweil die Schwiegermutter in spe die republikanischen Getreuen in Verzückung versetzte und dabei sogar den Kandidaten John McCain überstrahlte.

Idylle ist implodiert

Die Idylle ist in der Zwischenzeit implodiert: Levi würde es nicht im Traum einfallen, sich auf einer Bühne mit der ehemaligen Gouverneurin von Alaska zu zeigen. Sie ihrerseits würde ihn aus dem Saal werfen lassen. Denn Levi, dieser Redneck aus Wasilla in Alaska, bewirft sie mit publizistischen Handgranaten. Im Hochglanzmagazin «Vanity Fair» packt er über Sarah Palin aus. Erst machte er sie zur Grossmutter, nun zum Gerede der Nation.

Palin habe geheimhalten wollen, dass Bristol schwanger war, behauptet er. Sie habe das Kind selbst adoptieren wollen, damit niemand herausfinde, woher es in Wirklichkeit stammte. Überhaupt sei Palin keine gute Mutter und Hausfrau gewesen, behauptet Levi weinerlich: «Sarah hat nicht gekocht, ihr Ehemann Todd auch nicht – die Kids haben alles selber gemacht: gekocht, saubergemacht, die Wäsche gewaschen, sich für die Schule fertig gemacht.» >>> Von Martin Kilian, Washington | Freitag, 04. September 2009

Levi Johnston: Money Prompted Palin to Resign

Immoral And Incompetent
THE SPECTATOR: The Spectator on the release of Abdelbasset Ali al-Megrahi

So who to believe? Saif al-Gaddafi, son of the Libyan dictator, has said that the release of Abdelbasset Ali al-Megrahi was ‘on the table’ during trade talks with Britain. Lord Mandelson, who was holidaying with the young prince of Tripoli in Corfu a few weeks ago, says such a suggestion is not just wrong but ‘quite offensive’. David Miliband, the Foreign Secretary, insists it is a ‘slur’ even to suggest that the release of the only man convicted for the Lockerbie bombing would be raised.

As this squalid story has unfolded in the last few weeks, it is becoming all too clear that Megrahi was indeed ‘on the table’. The Libyans were told that Gordon Brown personally wished that Megrahi should not die in a Scottish prison. It is all too typical of the Prime Minister that he has not had the courage to share this view with the British public — we found out via an ambassador, a minister and a declassified document. And this is why the scandal is lasting so long: it offers wider insights into the nature of the government.

Officially, British policy is to encourage Libya to become a responsible actor on the world stage — this has been the case since Gaddafi’s decision six years ago to relinquish weapons of mass destruction that no one had known that he possessed. But the Megrahi affair demonstrates deep flaws in this strategy. If Libya was going to become a genuine partner in fighting terror it should not have been so keen for the return of a terrorist convicted on 270 counts of murder. Nor should the British government bend principles of foreign policy to suit the oil companies hungry for a slice of Libya’s offshore resources. >>> | Wednesday, September 02, 2009

BP Lobbied Jack Straw Before He Changed Mind Over Lockerbie Bomber
TIMES ONLIONE: Jack Straw was personally lobbied by BP over Britain’s prisoner transfer agreement with Libya just before he abandoned efforts to exclude the Lockerbie bomber from the deal.

The Times has learnt that the Justice Secretary took two telephone calls from Sir Mark Allen, a former M16 agent, who was by then working for BP as a consultant, on October 15 and November 9, 2007.

Having signed a $900 million oil exploration deal with Libya earlier that year, BP feared that its commercial interests could be damaged if Britain delayed the prisoner transfer agreement (PTA) through which the Gaddafi regime hoped to secure the return home of Abdul Baset Ali al-Megrahi.

For six months, talks with Libya were deadlocked as Britain — under pressure from the devolved Scottish government — vainly sought to ensure that the deal would not cover al-Megrahi.

On December 19, 2007, Mr Straw wrote to Kenny MacAskill, the Scottish Justice Minister, to say that he had been unable to secure an exclusion for al-Megrahi from the deal. “The wider negotiations with the Libyans are reaching a critical stage and in view of the overwhelming interests for the United Kingdom I have agreed that in this instance the PTA should be in the standard form and not mention any individual,” he wrote.

Britain has faced criticism from the Obama Administration for signing the transfer agreement despite a decade-old promise to the US that anyone convicted of the Lockerbie bombing would serve out the sentence in Britain.

The fresh disclosures last night may yet throw doubt over Gordon Brown’s assertion on Wednesday that there had been “no conspiracy, no cover-up, no double-dealing, no deal on oil, no attempt to to instruct Scottish ministers, no private assurances by me to Colonel Gaddafi”.

An aide to the Justice Secretary confirmed last night that Sir Mark, who had dealt often with Mr Straw when he was Foreign Secretary, “wanted to know what was happening with the PTA and get Jack’s perspective”. He added: “BP wanted to make its case because they were concerned that not making progress might have an effect on their deal with Libya.” >>> Tom Baldwin and Philip Webster | Friday, September 04, 2009

British National Party Forced to Admit Non-whites
TIMES ONLINE: The British National Party is poised to give up its whites-only membership policy after a legal challenge accusing it of racial discrimination.

Nick Griffin, leader of the far-right party, indicated yesterday that the BNP would accept members of different ethnicities for the first time, blaming Britain’s “undemocratic Orwellian equality laws”.

In a statement published on the BNP’s website, Mr Griffin said that the party would have to adapt or die, even though amending its constitution would “stick in the craw of all dedicated nationalists”. The party is considering the change in light of an injunction being sought by the Equality and Human Rights Commission, which claims that the BNP’s membership rules breach the Race Relations Act.

Any alteration to policy would mark a significant moment for the party, which since it was founded in 1982 has only accepted white members.

Mr Griffin, elected as a North West MEP in June, has a criminal conviction for distributing material likely to incite racial hatred.
His push to open up membership is likely to cause factional rows within the BNP, with the party’s most conservative elements resisting such change.

The BNP currently restricts its membership to “indigenous Caucasians”, which it defines broadly as Celts and Anglo-Saxons. The commission says that this is in breach of the Act as it discriminates on the basis of ethnicity. It issued proceedings against the party last month, seeking an injunction to ban such criteria.

The case was due to begin at Central London County Court on Wednesday but was adjourned after the BNP changed solicitors at the last minute.

In his statement, Mr Griffin said that to continue fighting the commission would bleed the party dry. He claimed that it would cost more than £1million to appeal and said would strip the party of the ability to fight the next general election. He appeared resigned to losing the case, saying that it was a matter of “evolving and living to fight another day or going down in a blaze of glory”. >>> Fiona Hamilton, London Correspondent | Friday, September 04, 2009

MAIL ONLINE:
Muslim community leader arrested for 'making up BNP kidnap story' >>> | Friday, September 04, 2009

LA Wildfires 'Were Arson'
THE TELEGRAPH: The huge wildfires burning in the foothills above Los Angeles were started by arson and will be investigated as a homicide after two firemen died tackling the blaze, according to the authorities.

A firefighter monitors a fire in the suburb of Glendale on the outskirts of Los Angeles city. Photo: The Telegraph
Investigators found evidence of arson at the point of origin for the largest of eight fires burning in the county, which has blackened an area the size of Chicago.

"Arson investigators from the US Forest Service [and other agencies] ... have concluded that the Station Fire was the result of an arson," Forest Service Commander Rita Wears told reporters at a press conference. >>> Alex Spillius, in Washington | Friday, September 04, 2009

Critique du livre : Iran : l’heure du choix – Entretiens avec Michel Taubmann

Ce livre très intéressant donne l'utilisateur un aperçu de l'Iran et sa politique intérieure.

Reza Pahlavi montre d'une grande compréhension et d'équilibre dans son approche du problème que l'Iran est pour le monde aujourd'hui.

Il est très sympathique et raisonnable. Si le peuple iranien de choisir de devenir une monarchie constitutionnelle, puis Reza Pahlavi est l'homme à être couronné.

Et si cela se produit, l'Iran aura un avenir beaucoup plus prometteur, et au Moyen-Orient deviendra un lieu beaucoup plus sûr.

Ce livre est une lecture incontournable si l'on veut être bien informés en matière de politique iranienne. – Mark

Extremism: Egypt Charges 13 with Promoting Shiism
YNET NEWS: Prosecutors accusing Shiite cleric, 12 others group of receiving funds from Iran to promote 'extremist ideas to sow unrest in Egypt'

An Egyptian official says a Shiite cleric and 12 others have been accused of receiving funds from Iran to promoting "extremist" Shiite doctrine in Sunni-dominated Egypt.

Shiites form a small minority in Egypt, where Sunni Islam is the official state religion.

The official said Thursday that prosecutors are accusing the group of insulting Sunni Islam and promoting extremist ideas to sow unrest in Egypt. >>> Associated Press | Thursday, September 03, 2009

Iranian DM: We'll Respond with Force to Israeli Attack
YNET NEWS: Moments after Islamic Republic's parliament approves president's nominee for defense minister, Ahmad Vahidi, accused of involvement in 1994 bombing of Jewish center in Argentina, new minister says Every [sic] move from the Zionist entity against Iran, will be met with powerful response'. Meanwhile, Official says willing to talk with world powers, but not about nuclear program

Iran's new Defense Minister Ahmad Vahidi, accused of involvement in the 1994 bombing of a Jewish cultural center in Argentina, used his first moments in office to send a clear message to Israel that any attack on the Islamic Republic's nuclear facilities would yield a powerful response from Iran.

Vahidi is one of five prominent Iranians sought by Argentina in the bombing, which killed 85 people. He was the commander of a special unit of Iran's Revolutionary Guard known as the Quds Force at the time of the attack.

Iran's conservative-dominated parliament approved Vahidi's appointment on Thursday.

Following the approval of his appointment, Vahidi addressed the possibility that Israel may attack his nation's nuclear facilities: "Every move from the Zionist entity against Iran, will be met with a harsh and powerful response from Iran."

He said his great success in the Thursday's Majlis vote "attests to the anti-Zionist spirit of the Iranian parliament and people".

In response to objections voiced by heads of the Argentinean Jewish community, as well as Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak, to his appointment. "The Zionist regime's propaganda always has a reverse effect on the Iranian regime," he said.

Regarding the West's suspicion of his involvement in the Buenos Aires bombing, he said, "Everyone knows that what was published was under pressure from the Zionist lobby."

Meanwhile, the Iranian parliament rejected in the vote the nominees for the energy, education, as well as welfare and social security ministries, two of them women.

But Marzieh Vahid Dastjerdi was approved as health minister, the Islamic Republic's first female minister since the 1979 Islamic revolution. Iran won't discuss nuclear work with powers >>> Dudi Cohen | Thursday, September 03, 2009

UK Foundation to Distribute Textbook that Lauds Muslim World's Scientific and Cultural Heritage
THE JERUSALEM POST: An educational foundation in the UK has announced plans to distribute to high schools a free book that highlights the scientific and cultural legacies of Muslim civilization.

1001 Inventions: Muslim Heritage in Our World is the creation of the Foundation for Science Technology and Civilization (FSTC), a Manchester-based organization set up to raise awareness of the contributions of the Muslim world to modern civilization.

FSTC said the contribution that Muslim and other civilizations have made to the modern world has been widely overlooked and that its team of academics has focused on debunking the myth of the so-called "Dark Ages of Civilization."

"The period between the 7th and 17th centuries - which has been erroneously labeled 'the Dark Ages' - was in fact a time of exceptional scientific and cultural advancement in China, India and the Arab world," Prof. Salim Al-Hassani, chief editor of the book, said.

"This is the period in history that gave us the first manned flight, huge advances in engineering, the development of robotics and the foundations of modern mathematics, chemistry and physics."

The foundation said it hoped to distribute 3,000 copies of the book to UK schools by October and is seeking public support for the campaign through a sponsorship scheme. >>> Jonny Paul, JPost Correspondent in London | Thursday, September 03, 2009

Indian Gets Jail, Lashes for Suicide Attempt
SAUDI GAZETTE: JEDDAH – An Indian man has been sentenced to two months’ prison and 50 lashes of the whip for attempting to commit suicide.

The case was first brought to the District Court after a member of the public informed authorities of a man’s attempt to kill himself, and upon investigation it transpired that he had made repeated attempts to end his own life, prompting the prosecutor general to seek prison and lashes for the accused.

The ruling, which is not open to appeal and received no objection from the accused, has not met with the approval of everyone, however.

“The first thing that should happen is that the man should be given psychiatric examination and treatment to help him overcome his problem,” said legal consultant Umar Al-Khouli.

“Taking him to court and then putting him in prison may only make things worse for him and maybe others as well.” – Okaz/SG [Source: Saudi Gazette] Adnan Al-Shabrawi | Thursday, September 03, 2009

Saudis 'Must Offer Shia Equality'
Qom. Photo: Google Images
BBC: A report by the Human Rights Watch pressure group has detailed what it says is systematic discrimination in Saudi Arabia against Shia Muslims.

Unfavourable treatment of minority Shia extends from education and employment to the justice system, leading to a big increase in sectarian tension, it says.

They comprise 10 to 15% of the Saudi population, and have long complained of being treated as second-class citizens.
Human Rights Watch wants a government commission to tackle the problem.

Saudi Arabia follows the puritanical form of Sunni Islam known as Wahhabism, and many Wahhabi clerics regard Shia Muslims as unbelievers.

Equal opportunities

The report focuses on an incident in February, when Shia pilgrims in the holy city of Medina clashed with religious police.
This led to Shia demonstrations in the Eastern Province followed by the arrest of a number of the protestors.

Shias want equal opportunities in government and the military as well as freedom of worship.

They want to be able to build their own mosques, have their civil courts granted more power and to print their own religious books. >>> | Thursday, September 03, 2009

Libysche Provokation: Gaddafi will die Schweiz auflösen
DIE PRESSE: Der Streit zwischen Libyen und der Schweiz wird immer skurriler: Der "Schurkenstaat" Schweiz solle unter den Nachbarländern aufgeteilt werden, fordert der libysche Revolutionsführer Muammar al-Gaddafi nun.

Der Streit zwischen Libyen und der Schweiz droht zu eskalieren - und nimmt zugleich immer skurrilere Züge an. Trotz der Zusage der libyschen Regierung, zwei seit einem Jahr festgehaltene Schweizer wieder heimreisen zu lassen, sind diese noch immer nicht frei. Und Libyens Staatschef Gaddafi legt noch eines drauf: Er will angeblich bei der UN-Vollversammlung Mitte September formell beantragen, das schweizerische Staatsterritorium auf die Nachbarländer Deutschland, Frankreich und Italien aufzuteilen.

Rein rechtlich hat der Antrag keine Chance, das Völkerrecht schützt die territoriale Unversehrtheit. Doch er zeigt, dass Gaddafi nichts auslässt, um sich an dem "Schurkenstaat" Schweiz (Zitat) für die kurzzeitige Verhaftung seines Sohns in Genf zu rächen. >>> Red. | Donnerstag, 03. September 2009

Un psychiatre français détenu en Tunisie
L’EXPRESS: Le docteur Ahmed Eleuch est incarcéré en Tunisie depuis le 30 juillet. Les autorités locales soupçonnent ce Français d'origine tunisienne de collusion avec les milieux islamistes - ce qu'il nie. En France, sa famille et ses amis s'inquiètent.

"Nous nous attendions à une fête le jour de son arrivée à l'aéroport. Le résultat vous le connaissez..." Alaa-Eddine, l'un des fils d'Ahmed Eleuch, est encore choqué par l'arrestation de son père, le 30 juillet, à Tunis. Interpellé à la douane à sa descente de l'avion en provenance de Paris, ce psychiatre de 53 ans installé depuis des années à Saint-Denis est alors placé en détention au centre pénitentiaire de Mornaguia. Une semaine plus tard, le tribunal de la capitale tunisienne le condamne à quatre ans de prison ferme et trois ans de contrôle administratif pour "atteinte à la sûreté de l'Etat". Depuis, son épouse, Afifa, restée au domicile familial du Val d'Oise avec certains de ses enfants, est rongée par l'inquiétude. "Je savais que c'était dangereux de vouloir rentrer en Tunisie, explique-t-elle, j'ai même essayé de l'empêcher de partir."

"Aucune preuve"

Ahmed Eleuch, qui avait quitté son pays en 1987 pour des raisons politiques, est qualifié par ses proches de "doux, tolérant et ouvert au dialogue". Selon eux, il mène une existence tranquille, partagée entre son cabinet de Saint-Denis et les ateliers d'aide à l'intégration qu'il organise.

De retour en Tunisie, où il voulait voir son père gravement malade, il a été rattrapé par son lointain passé de sympathisant d'un mouvement islamiste. "Le ministre de la justice tunisien a pourtant encouragé les exilés à rentrer au pays, en disant que tout était oublié", se plaint son épouse. >>> Par Benoît Puichaud | publié Mercredi 02 Septembre 2009 / mis à jour 03 Septembre 2009

Ghadhafis Vorstoss in der Uno-Bürokratie: Unsicherheitsfaktor an einer Schlüsselstelle
NZZ ONLINE: Bis es Ghadhafis Antrag zur Aufteilung der Schweiz unter die Nachbarländer bis in die Generalversammlung schafft, muss er etliche Hürden nehmen. Über die endgültige Tagesordnung entscheidet ein 27-köpfiges Komitee. Unter normalen Umständen hätte er keine Chance. Doch in diesem Jahr gibt es eine spezielle Konstellation.

Der Antrag Libyens an die Generalversammlung der Uno widerspricht allen völkerrechtlichen Gepflogenheiten. Die Schweiz, ein Uno-Mitglied auflösen zu wollen, ist per se ein Affront für die Staatengemeinschaft. Trotzdem soll der Vorstoss in der Uno-Bürokratie eingespeist worden sein, wie die Berner Nationalrätin Christa Markwalder, Vizepräsidentin der Aussenpolitischen Kommission des Nationalrates, in der Sendung «10 vor 10» des Schweizer Fernsehen sagte.

Ringen um die Agenda

Was passiert nun mit diesem Schreiben? Der Antrag wird nicht automatisch der Generalversammlung der Uno vorgelegt, die vom 15. bis 30. September in New York tagt. Was in den zwei Generaldebatten besprochen wird, ist Gegenstand eines komplizierten Auswahlprozesses. Die erste Fassung der Agenda ist bereits am 9. Februar erstellt und bis Juli mehrmals angepasst worden. Dazu gibt es noch eine Liste von ergänzenden Traktanden, die bis 20 Tage vor Eröffnung der Session eingereicht werden können.

Auf keiner dieser Listen ist der Antrag Libyens bisher zu finden. Gemäss Regel 15 des Auswahlverfahrens können Angelegenheiten von besonderer Dringlichkeit und Wichtigkeit auch noch später eingereicht werden. Ob der Brief der Ghadhafi-Regierung unter diese Kategorie zu rechnen ist, darf bezweifelt werden. >>> spi. | Donnerstag, 03. September 2009