Portugal in Crisis after Prime Minister Resigns over Austerity Measures
THE GUARDIAN: • EU bailout closer after José Sócrates loses crucial vote
 • Political limbo will put pressure on Portuguese bonds

Portuguese prime minister José Sócrates has said he has submitted his resignation to the president after parliament rejected his minority Socialist government's latest austerity measures.

The loss of the vote "has taken away from the government all conditions to govern," Sócrates said. It brings the country closer to needing a bailout.

Sócrates is said he tendered his resignation to President Aníbal Cavaco Silva tonight, leaving the country in a political limbo that would place further pressure on Portugal's record-level bond yields.

Sócrates had said before the vote that he would resign if the measures to cut spending and increase taxes – designed to see off a bailout similar to those taken by Greece and Ireland – were rejected.

The measures had aroused the fury of trade unions, and railway engineers walked off the job in the morning, causing widespread travel disruption. » | Giles Tremlett in Madrid | Wednesday, March 23, 2011

THE GUARDIAN: Portugal bailout 'could cost UK £3bn': Bailout request seen as 'inevitable' following prime minister's resignation in wake of failure to push through austerity measures » | Graeme Wearden | Thursday, March 24, 2011

People & Power: Interrogating a Torturer
In the past decade torture has never been very far from the headlines but the recent outbreak of protests across the Middle East has put the issue right back in the spotlight. 
Activists from Egypt to Libya, and Bahrain to Yemen have all included torture among the list of crimes allegedly committed by security forces. Understandably they want the perpetrators brought to justice.
But as our story this week demonstrates, while legal sanctions can sometimes be applied, the physical and mental scars from torture take a very long time to heal.
In the mid 1970s a coup brought a military junta to power in Argentina. Its leader General Jorge Videla was a fanatical anti-Communist who fought a five-year dirty war against opponents. More than 30,000 people were imprisoned, tortured and murdered by the army and secret police.
Though Videla was eventually convicted of crimes against humanity -- and he and other junta leaders are now back in court facing further charges, only one of the people who did the actual torturing has ever been confronted with the human cost of his crimes.
We first showed this film by Rodrigo Vazquez in 2009, but its themes are as relevant today as they were then. Some of the images are disturbing

Saudis Raise Pay and Plan Polls, but Woes Linger
THE WALL STREET JOURNAL: A host of new benefits promised recently by Saudi King Abdullah will boost the income of many Saudi citizens and may help the kingdom avoid the regime-shaking unrest that has roiled neighboring Arab countries.

But the estimated $93 billion of government handouts doesn't address one of the kingdom's most destabilizing problems: the persistently high level of unemployment among Saudi youth, some analysts, employers and job seekers say.

The monarchy has taken a number of steps to pre-empt outbursts of public dissent. It said this week it will hold long-delayed municipal elections on April 23—though elected representatives have little power and share municipal councils with government appointees.

On Friday, the king announced the creation of 60,000 new public-sector jobs, higher salaries for government employees and an allowance for the unemployed. That came on top of pledges made in February, when King Abdullah returned home from a three-month medical absence shortly after Saudi ally Hosni Mubarak was driven from power in Egypt.

The world's largest oil exporter hasn't seen large-scale antigovernment protests, although hundreds of Shiites have demonstrated in the country's oil-rich Eastern province seeking equal treatment and the release of political prisoners.

A high rate of youth unemployment was one of the factors that spurred mass demonstrations in other Arab countries, and with hundreds of thousands of young Saudis entering the labor market every year, Saudi authorities have long viewed unemployment as a problem that could provoke dissatisfaction with the government and push young people toward radical politics. » | Angus McDowall in Dubai and Summer Said in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia | Thursday, March 24, 2011

Turkish Kurds Call for Protest
THE WALL STREET JOURNAL: Turkey's main ethnic Kurdish Peace and Democracy Party indicated that it wanted to spread the pro-democracy ferment roiling the Middle East to Eastern Turkey, the scene of a nearly 30-year-old conflict in which tens of thousands have died.

At a televised news conference in the regional capital Dyarbikir Wednesday, party leader Selahattin Demirtas said people had run out of patience with "stalling" by Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan's government over initiatives to resolve the Kurdish question politically, and would follow Egypt's model of civil disobedience. As of noon Thursday, he said, Kurds would begin sit-in protests in city centers and would not stop until their demands were met. » | Marc Champion and Erkan Oz | Thursday, March 24, 2011

Inside Story - Syria's 40-Year Rule Challenged
Protests which rocked the Arab world in recent months are now hitting Syria - a country ruled with an iron grip on security.
 Emergency laws, in place since 1963, ban all forms of demonstrations.

 But the protesters are not backing down.
 Bashar al Assad, whose family has ruled the country for 40 years, is facing challenges like never before.
 So what sparked the protests in Syria and why did they start off in Daraa? 
Inside Story presenter Laura Kyle is joined by guests: Ghias Al-jundi, a Syrian author and human rights activist, Samir Ai-ta, Chief Editor of the Arab edition of Le Monde Diplomatique and Jawad Al An-ani, a political analyst for the Jordanian based think-tank Al-baseera

Europe Divided Over Libya Mission
More and more European warplanes are joining the operations against Libya. But EU leaders meeting in Brussels are divided over the mission. France is already declaring the campaign a success, which has saved the people of Benghazi from a bloodbath. But others say they're only willing to commit under a NATO umbrella. Al Jazeera's Laurence Lee reports

Benghazi Family Victims of Libya Conflict
The opposition stronghold of Benghazi in eastern Libya has been the scene of intense fighting as forces loyal to Muammar Gaddafi have battled to take back the city. Many civilians have been caught in the violence. Al Jazeera's Tony Birtley met a young boy who suffered a bullet wound to the chest and lungs as he and his parents tried to escape Gadaffi's forces when they entered Benghazi last Saturday. His young brother was wounded in the leg and his father died in hospital a day later. His mother remains critically ill

Syrian Regime Launches Crackdown by Shooting 15 Activists Dead
THE GUARDIAN: Some were killed when security forces opened fire on protesters surrounding the Omari mosque; others were shot at a funeral

Violence escalated in the southern Syrian city of Deraa as protests entered a sixth day. At least 15 protesters are known to have been shot dead on Wednesday and scores more injured.

In a sign that the Syrian regime is using a brutal crackdown rather than concessions to quell protests, security forces opened fire on people in three separate incidents, according to human rights activists.

At 1am on Wednesday morning, at least six people were killed when security forces opened fire on protesters surrounding the Omari mosque, after cutting electricity and communications to the site that has become the focus of demonstrations. During the day, several were reported shot as they attended funerals of victims of the mosque shooting. Syrian security forces later opened fire on scores of young people from surrounding towns as they marched towards Deraa, offering support to the protests, activists said.

"The government promised it would consider its citizens' demands, and then it decided to attack them," said Mohammed al-Abdullah, a prominent activist in exile in the US who is in close contact with the Deraa protesters. "These were fully prepared and full-scale attacks." » | Katherine Marsh | Thursday, March 24, 2011

Libya: Gaddafi Compound Attacked after Air Force 'Destroyed'
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Col Muammar Gaddafi's Tripoli compound was targeted by coalition air strikes on Wednesday night as a senior British commander said the Libyan air force had been destroyed.


Five loud blasts were reported at Gaddafi’s Bab al-Aziziya compound, where he had made an address on Tuesday night and which had been first attacked on Sunday night.

There were eight further large explosions heard in the east of the capital and at a military base in Tajura, 20 miles to the east of the city.

State television reported “a large number of civilians” had been killed.

In the eastern city of Misurata, rebels have been besieged by Gaddafi’s forces for weeks, but said allied air strikes had offered much-needed respite.

RAF Air Vice-Marshal Greg Bagwell disclosed that allied forces had all but wiped out the Libyan air force and were attacking ground troops wherever they threatened the civilian population. “We are now applying sustained and unrelenting pressure on the Libyan armed forces,” he said, during a visit to the RAF base at Gioia del Colle in southern Italy. “Effectively, their air force no longer exists as a fighting force and their integrated air defence system and command and control networks are severely degraded to the point that we can operate with near impunity across Libya.” » | Victoria Ward, Alex Spillius and Nick Squires aboard the USS Kearsarg | Wednesday, March 23, 2011

What Is All the Buzz about Japan?
Accurate reporting on Japan becomes more difficult as buzzwords inundate the news and set the narrative
Watch the programme Listening Post here

Syria Unrest Continues
France has condemned what it calls the 'excessive use of force' against protesters in Syria. 
Early Wednesday security forces killed six people after storming a mosque in the southern city of Daraa.
 People there say heavy gunfire and tear gas were used shortly after midnight.

 Some reports have put the death toll since the unrest began on Friday at more than 13.
 Omar al Saleh reports

Gaddafi Defiant Despite Coalition Action

Muammar Gaddafi Scoffs as Killing Continues
THE AUSTRALIAN: MUAMMAR Gaddafi has declared Libyans were "laughing at the little rockets" being fired by the multinational coalition as at least 40 people, including children, were killed yesterday when his forces shelled the city of Misratah.

"We are laughing at your rockets," a defiant Gaddafi said from the balcony of his compound in the capital, Tripoli. "They are like fireworks, little rockets. We will be victorious in the end."

He said the US-led air attacks were carried out "by a bunch of fascists who will end up in the dustbin of history".

The Gaddafi speech - the first since the Western bombing of Libyan military targets began - came as US President Barack Obama and British Prime Minister David Cameron said "substantial progress" had been made in imposing a no-fly zone.

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said "people close to him" might be trying to find an exit strategy for Gaddafi.

Mrs Clinton said there were suggestions one of Gaddafi's sons may have been killed, but these reports were not substantiated.

As international forces engaged in their fourth consecutive night of bombing Libya, explosions and anti-aircraft fire were heard in Tripoli.

The worst fighting was in the coastal town of Misratah, where Gaddafi forces, including snipers, surrounded the rebels with tanks and shelled for much of the day. More than 40 civilians and rebel fighters were reported killed and 130 injured.

A doctor there said tanks had opened fire on a peaceful demonstration on Monday, Libyan time.

He told Associated Press: "The number of dead are too many for our hospital to handle." » | John Lyons, Middle East correspondent | The Australian | Thursday, March 24, 2011

Related »

Riots over Housing in Algeria
Mar 23 - Riots over housing erupt in Algeria as attempts to create a nationwide opposition movement appear to have lost momentum. Deborah Lutterbeck reports

Portugal Government in Vote Crisis
Mar 23 - Portugal's PM is threatening to resign if austerity measures are rejected in Wednesday's vote, potentially forcing the country's hand to seek an international bailout. Ciara Sutton reports

Related »

U.S. Housing Slump Deepens
Mar 23 - Summary of business headlines: New home sales plunge to record low in the U.S.; Japan quake could be costliest natural disaster; Goldman Sachs CEO takes witness stand at insider trading trial. Conway G. Gittens reports

Israel Passes New Nakba Law
AHRAM ONLINE: Knesset passes new Nakba Law to punish public institutions for any reference to the Israeli occupation of Palestine in 1948 as a catastrophe or 'nakba'

Israel's parliament passed a measure on Tuesday enabling the denial of state funding to institutions that question the country's existence as a Jewish state, in a move criticised as targetting an Arab minority.

The so-called Nakba Law, using the Arabic word for "catastrophe" which is how many Palestinians regard the founding of Israel, passed by a vote of 37 to 25 after an angry debate among right and left-wing lawmakers.

Civil rights groups have denounced the measure as an effort to restrict freedom of expression to Arabs, who make up about a fifth of Israel's predominantly Jewish population.

The law would enable the withholding of funds to public institutions deemed to be involved in publicly challenging the founding of Israel as a Jewish state or any activity "denying the existence of Israel as a Jewish and democratic state." » | Reuters | Wednesday, March 23, 2011

Bahrain Airlines Stop Iran, Iraq, Lebanon Flights
AHRAM ONLINE: Bahrain cancels flights to countries critical to their repression of uprising

Bahraini airlines have suspended flights to Iran, Iraq and Lebanon, where Shiite communities have criticised the kingdom's response to Shiite-led protests in the Gulf state, the airlines said Wednesday.

On Friday, Bahrain carried out a bloody crackdown on pro-democracy activists demonstrating since February 14 in the tiny Shiite-majority, Sunni-ruled kingdom.

Iran condemned last week's intervention of troops from neighbouring Gulf states in support of Manama, while Lebanon's powerful Shiite movement Hezbollah has offered unspecified support for the Shiite-led Bahraini opposition.

And thousands of protesters have turned out in Iraq in shows of support for Bahraini Shiites. » | AFP | Wednesday, March 23, 2011

Bahrain: Powder Keg of the Gulf?
Reporters - The smallest kingdom in the Arab world is seeing protests against authorities go from strength to strength. The Shiite majority is demonstrating against the Sunni Al Khalifa dynasty, which has ruled Bahrain with an iron fist for two centuries. Shiites say they are victims of social and political discrimination

THE TIMES: Bahrain: Fate of first woman to die in crackdown: Thousands of mourners gathered in Bahrain yesterday to lay to rest the first woman to die during weeks of violence in the tiny Gulf kingdom. She was killed in an incident that her family insist is the subject of a cover-up. Bahia al-Aradi, 51, was shot dead last Wednesday at an army checkpoint… » | Hugh Tomlinson, Manama | Wednesday, March 23, 2011 [£]

Libya: Hillary Clinton Says Col Gaddafi Is Exploring Options for Exile
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Hillary Clinton, the US secretary of state, has said that Col Gaddafi may be exploring options for leaving Libya.

Mrs Clinton told ABC News that it was unclear if the Libyan leader would seriously contemplate stepping aside, but that US officials were aware of people reaching out "allegedly on Gaddafi's behalf" to assess exile options.

"Some of it is theatre," she said. "A lot of it is just the way he behaves. It's somewhat unpredictable. But some of it, we think, is exploring. You know, what are my options, where could I go, what could I do. And we would encourage that."

The secretary of state also said that the US government had received unconfirmed reports that at least one of Col Gaddafi's sons may have been killed in air strikes.

It was reported earlier this week that Khamis Gaddafi, 27, had been killed by an air force pilot who undertook a "kamikaze" mission on the Libyan leader's compound.

The reports said that head of the Khamis Brigade had died of burns in hospital following the attack, but were derided as a "nonsensical piece of news'" by the regime. » | Wednesday, March 23, 2011

Portugal Braces for Government Collapse
THE WALL STREET JOURNAL: LISBON, Portugal—Portugal's government could collapse Wednesday after opposition parties withdrew their support for another round of austerity policies aimed at averting a financial bailout.

The expected defeat of the minority government's latest spending plans in a parliamentary vote will likely force its resignation and could stall national and European efforts to deal with the continent's protracted debt crisis.

The vote comes on the eve of a two-day European Union summit where policy makers are hoping to take new steps to restore investor faith in the fiscal soundness of the 17-nation euro zone, including Portugal.

Last year, both Greece and Ireland had to accept massive rescue packages after markets lost faith in their governments' efforts to deal with their debt burdens.

The political tension fueled a rise in Portugal's borrowing rates, just as it is trying to cut spending. The yield on the country's 10-year bond, for example, was up to 7.57%Tuesday—just shy of its euro-era record level. The interest rate has been above 7% for several weeks despite the government's earlier austerity measures that, its political rivals say, failed to quell investor fears.

As in Greece, the austerity policies—including tax hikes and pay cuts—have prompted an outcry from trade unions and numerous demonstrations and strikes. Train engineers walked off the job during the morning commute Wednesday, causing widespread travel disruption.

By most measures, Portugal is one of the euro zone's smallest and feeblest economies but its financial collapse would likely trigger a fresh bout of nerves over other debt-heavy—and bigger—euro countries such as Spain, Belgium and Italy.

"Portugal seems very likely to become the third … eurozone country to need a bailout," Emilie Gay, European economist at Capital Economics, said. » | Associated Press | Wednesday, March 23, 2011

AM Report: Gadhafi: West to the "Dustbin of History"
Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi says the West will be in the 'dustbin of history' as the allies enter day 5 of the No-Fly Zone patrol. Also, WSJ's Peter Landers reports plans to revamp cooling Japanese nuclear plants did not include existing plants

Hollywood Legend Elizabeth Taylor Dies at 79
Legendary actress Elizabeth Taylor died early Wednesday morning, according to a statement from her publicist. Video courtesy of Fox News and photo courtesy of AP

Actress Elizabeth Taylor Dies at Age 79
Mar 23 - Legendary actress Elizabeth Taylor died of congestive heart failure at Cedars-Sinai Hospital in Los Angeles. Alicia Powell reports

Dame Elizabeth Taylor Dies, Aged 79

THE TIMES: Elizabeth Taylor dies at 79 » | Rhys Blakely, Los Angeles | Wednesday, March 23, 2011 [£]

THE DAILY TELEGRAPH – OBITUARY: Dame Elizabeth Taylor: Dame Elizabeth Taylor, who died on March 23 aged 79, made more than 50 films, won two Oscars, was a grandmother at 39 and was married eight times to seven men. » | Wednesday, March 23, 2011

BBC: In Pictures: Elizabeth Taylor »

REUTERS: La France pleure Elizabeth Taylor, "la dernière star" : PARIS - Le monde de la politique et du cinéma français a rendu mercredi un vibrant hommage à Elizabeth Taylor, star américaine disparue à l'âge de 79 ans.
Du ministre de la Culture, Frédéric Mitterrand, au président du festival de Cannes, Gilles Jacob, en passant par le Premier ministre, François Fillon, tous ont rendu hommage à sa beauté, à son talent et à son action dans la lutte contre le sida. » | Elizabeth Pineau, avec Thierry Chiarello | Mercredi 23 Mars 2011

WELT ONLINE: Königin und Schlampe – Elizabeth Taylor war beides: Über alle Affären und Eskapaden Liz Taylors darf nicht vergessen werden: Es gab nicht viele, die dieser Schauspielerin gewachsen waren. » | Uwe Schmitt | Mittwoch 23 März 2011

Gaddafi beschimpft Allierte

So bedankte sich Guttenberg bei seinen Fans

"Aujourd'hui dans Benghazi, on entend Viva Sarkozy !"
LE POINT: Des membres du Comité de transition national (CNT) libyen sont à Paris pour évoquer la Libye de demain et le sort de Kadhafi. Rencontre.

On découvre enfin les visages de la Libye de demain, ceux qui espèrent succéder au colonel Kadhafi, présider aux destinées du pays pour en faire, selon ces mots maintes fois prononcés par eux, "une démocratie laïque". Pleinement engagé dans l'affaire libyenne, le philosophe Bernard-Henri Lévy organisait mardi soir une rencontre avec deux opposants au régime kadhafiste, membres du Comité de transition national (CNT), dans un salon de l'hôtel parisien Raphaël. Tout ce que la capitale compte d'intellectuels et d'écrivains militants des droits de l'homme était présent : Pascal Bruckner, André Glucksmann, Romain Goupil, Yann Moix, Christine Angot... Des politiques étaient également au rendez-vous - Jack Lang, Bernard Kouchner et l'ancien ministre de la Défense Paul Quilés - ainsi que des amis de Bernard-Henri Lévy, dont Pierre Bergé et Claire Chazal. À quoi ressemblent donc ces opposants libyens reconnus par la France comme seule autorité représentative du pays ? » | Saïd Mahrane | Mercredi 23 Mars 2011

La France demande à la Syrie de "renoncer à l'usage excessif de la force"
LE POINT: Le Quai d'Orsay condamne "les violences qui ont fait des morts et des blessés".

La France a appelé mercredi la Syrie à "renoncer à tout usage excessif de la force" contre les manifestants et condamné "les violences qui ont fait des morts et des blessés" dans la nuit de mardi à mercredi à Deraa, dans une déclaration du ministère des Affaires étrangères. "La France condamne les violences qui ont fait des morts et des blessés parmi les manifestants la nuit dernière à Deraa", a déclaré lors d'un point de presse le porte-parole du ministère Bernard Valero. » | Source AFP | Mercredi 23 Mars 2011

Inside Story – Is a Civil War Looming in Yemen?
There have been mixed messages from President Ali Abdullah Saleh. On the one hand, he has offered to step down by the start of next year, on the other, he's warning of "grave repercussions" over any dissent. He has dispatched his foreign minister to Saudi Arabia to seek mediation, but the demonstrators still out in the capital Sanaa and across the country remain defiant and galvanised with military generals offering them protection. 
But the defense minister has declared the army is sticking by the president and tanks have manouvered to guard the presidential palace. 
Inside Story presenter Laura Kyle is joined by guests: Mohamed Qubaty, a former adviser to the Yemeni prime minister; Joseph Kechichian, columnist for Gulf News newspaper and Bernard Haykel, a professor of Near Eastern Studies at Princeton University

US Fighter Pilot Talks to Al Jazeera
As objections mount against the bombing of Libyan sites, allegations of "mission creep" in the operation are rising.
Former US fighter jet pilot Jay Stout tells Al Jazeera that the military involvement in Libya has reached beyond what is usually expected in enforcing a no-fly zone

Libyan Council Forms Government
The Benghazi-based National Transitional Council has taken the step of declaring a government, to be headed by former foreign envoy Mahmoud Jibril. Nisan Gouriani, spokesman for the council, speaks to Al Jazeera's James Bays about the political development

Syrian Forces 'Shoot at Protesters'
Reports from Syria say security forces have killed six people after storming a mosque in the southern city of Deraa. Locals say heavy gunfire and tear gas was used shortly after midnight, but the government says that its security forces only moved in to prevent an "armed gang" from attacking. It's the worst violence in a week of anti-government protests in the city, and represents the strongest challenge yet to President Bashar al-Assad's rule. Al Jazeera's Omar al Saleh reports

Related »

Bahrain Protest Crackdown Defended by European Union Envoy
THE GUARDIAN: EU foreign policy adviser Robert Cooper downplays violence against pro-democracy protesters saying 'accidents happen'

The European Union has defended Bahrain's violent repression of pro-democracy protesters, with the EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton's right-hand man downplaying the crackdown with the comment "accidents happen".

Twenty-one people have been killed and up to 100 others are still missing after King Hamad ibn Isa Al Khalifa unleashed his security forces last week, putting an end to two months of growing protests that had threatened the legitimacy of Bahrain's monarchy and stoked sectarian tensions throughout the Gulf.

The UN high commissioner for human rights, Navi Pillay, has denounced the beating of medical personnel and the takeover of hospitals by security forces.

But Robert Cooper, one of the EU's highest-ranking diplomats and councillor to Ashton on the Middle East and the Balkans, told MEPs: "I'm not sure if the police have had to deal with these public order questions before. It's not easy dealing with large demonstrations in which there may be violence. It's a difficult task for policemen. It's not something that we always get right in the best western countries and accidents happen." » | Leigh Phillips | Wednesday, March 23, 2011

Bomb Explodes Near Bus in Jerusalem
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: An explosion on or near a bus in Jerusalem on Wednesday caused dozens of casualties, police said.

Scores of ambulances converged on the area, near the central bus station and a city conference hall in a Jewish neighbourhood of downtown Jerusalem.

Around 20 people had been wounded, according to medical sources, some of them seriously.

The explosion appears to be the first bus bombing in several years and comes amid rising tensions between Hamas militants and Israel.

Bombings have been rare in Jerusalem in the past several years. Palestinians carried out dozens of bombings in the city at the height of an uprising that began in 2000.

Witnesses said people could be seen lying on the floor covered in blood, and many cars and buses had shattered windows. » | Wednesday, March 23, 2011

Former Israeli President Breaks Down as He Is Sentenced
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Israel's former president, Moshe Katsav, broke down in tears as he was jailed for seven years following a rape trial.

The sentence, much harsher than expected, brought to an end the most unedifying of a series of scandals that has badly tarnished the image of Israel's political elite.

Katsav, who served as head of state from 2000 to 2007, was convicted last December of twice raping a female employee at Israel's tourism ministry and sexually harassing a subordinate who worked at the presidential residence.

A three-judge panel at Tel Aviv's district court told the former president, a 65-year-old immigrant from Iran, that he could expect no leniency given the severity of his crimes.

"The defendant committed the crime and like every other person, he must bear the consequences," the judges said, according to a[n] official transcript of the closed-door hearing. "No man is above the law."

Katsav lost control of himself and began to harangue the judges, shouting: "You are mistaken, ma'am, you are mistaken! You have committed an injustice! You allowed lies to emerge victorious." » | Adrian Blomfield, Jerusalem | Tuesday, March 22, 2011

Verbunden »

Revelations from Ministry Archives: Gadhafi Wanted West Germany to Allow Hits on Libyan Exiles
SPIEGEL ONLINE INTERNATIONAL: In 1980, Moammar Gadhafi tried to pressure the West German government to extradite Libyan dissidents or allow them to be killed on German soil, according to German Foreign Ministry documents that have recently come to light. Chancellor Helmut Schmidt refused the demand.

In 1980, Libyan dictator Moammar Gadhafi demanded that the West German government extradite opponents of his regime living in Germany, or allow him to have them liquidated, according to German Foreign Ministry documents from the period.

Gadhafi threatened that if then-Chancellor Helmut Schmidt refused, he would take revenge by ordering "countermeasures" against German citizens living in Libya.

The written demand was handed to the then-German ambassador to Libya, Günter Held, in Tripoli on May 27, 1980, according to the documents, which have now been published by the Munich-based Institute of Contemporary History on behalf of the Foreign Ministry.

The West German government should decide, Gadhafi's note said, whether it wanted "to cooperate with traitors or with the Libyan people." It added that the request applied only to "a relatively small number of people." » | cro/SPIEGEL | Tuesday, March 22, 2011

Cross-burning in Prosperous US Town
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: An 11-foot (3.3-meter) cross was stolen from a church and set on fire next to the home of a black family, igniting anger and disbelief in a prosperous, mostly white Central California community that hasn't seen a hate crime in nearly a decade.

Police assigned extra patrols to the neighbourhood in Arroyo Grande and rewards were offered for information leading to an arrest. Church leaders were urged to mention the family in their prayers.

"I was horrified," said the Rev. Stephanie Raphael, president of the San Luis Obispo Ministerial Association. "We live in a paradise, and I think the first thought was, this can't really be real."

The cross was stolen from a garden at Saint John's Lutheran Church weeks ago and set ablaze on Friday in a lot behind the house where the family lived, police Cmdr. John Hough said.

A 19-year-old woman awoke about 12:30am and saw the flaming cross from her bedroom window. Arriving officers doused burning pieces of wood with a garden hose.

Police declined to release the names of the family members because the incident was considered a hate crime – the first since 2002 in the city of 17,000 people in mostly rural San Luis Obispo County, a region of vast farms, picturesque small towns and a state university campus.

More than 30 clergy members signed a letter to the editor of the San Luis Obispo Tribune urging that the crime be taken seriously. » | Wednesday, March 23, 2011

THE SAN LUIS OBISPO TRIBUNE: Cross burning brings outraged residents to Arroyo Grande City Council meeting » | Cynthia Lambert | Wednesday, March 23, 2011

Kadhafi sort brièvement de son silence
LE FIGARO: Le colonel s'est montré quelques minutes à la télévision mardi soir pour assurer que son pays était «prêt pour la bataille, qu'elle soit longue ou courte».

«Nous serons au bout du compte victorieux !» La voix éraillée et le regard vif, Mouammar Kadhafi est finalement réapparu, tardivement mardi soir, sur le petit écran libyen. Sa brève allocution de trois minutes - présentée, par la télévision d'État, comme une intervention en direct - s'est faite devant une foule rassemblée dans sa caserne de Bab el-Azizia. Tout un symbole : ce camp ultra-protégé a été la cible, les deux précédents soirs, de frappes de la coalition. Depuis son dernier «message au peuple», diffusé dimanche sur la télévision d'État, et dans lequel il jurait de transformer la Méditerranée en «champs de bataille», le guide libyen avait littéralement disparu.

Même son porte-parole de fils, le très loquace Seïf al-Islam, s'était évaporé des écrans télé. Après sa courte interview téléphonique avec la chaîne ABC, juste après les premières frappes de samedi soir, il a, lui aussi, renoncé à s'exprimer. Quant aux ministre et vice-ministre des Affaires étrangères, qui avaient pris l'habitude de se relayer pour alimenter des «points presse» quotidiens destinés aux journalistes étrangers, ils ont, eux aussi, fini par adopter le mutisme le plus total. » | Par Delphine Minoui | Mercredi 23 Mars 2011

TRIBUNE DE GENÈVE: Kadhafi à la TV libyenne: «Nous allons gagner cette bataille!»: Le dirigeant libyen Mouammar Kadhafi a fait mardi soir une apparition en public dans sa résidence de Bab el-Aziziya à Tripoli, a rapporté la télévision nationale libyenne. » | ATS | Mercredi 23 Mars 2011

Vidéo en relation avec l’article »

Moroccan FM Warns ‘Arab Spring’ Can Quickly End
FORBES: NEW YORK -- Morocco's foreign minister is warning that the current "Arab spring" can quickly end if the transitions in Egypt and Tunisia don't lead to real democracy.

Taieb Fassi-Fihri says he plans to tell U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton at a meeting Wednesday in Washington that the Group of Eight major industrialized countries should launch a new initiative to ensure that democratic principles and institutions are entrenched in Tunisia and Egypt. » | Associated Press | Tuesday, March 22, 2011

Mallory Factor: Nicole Gelinas

Syrian Forces Kill Mosque Protesters as Violence Escalates
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Syrian security forces killed at least six people during an attack at a mosque in the southern city of Deraa, in the deadliest crackdown yet on recent protests challenging President Bashar al-Assad's rule.

Residents said that before the attack on the Omari mosque in the city's old quarter late on Tuesday, electricity was cut off in the area and telephone services were severed.

Deraa has been the focal point of recent demonstrations against the repressive rule of Assad. Cries of "Allahu Akbar (God is the greatest)" erupted across neighbourhoods in Deraa when the shooting began.

The attack brought to 10 the number of civilians killed by Syrian forces during six days of demonstrations calling for political freedoms and an end to corruption in the country of 20 million people.

The ruling Ba’ath party has banned opposition and enforced emergency laws since 1963.

Assad's government, which is facing the biggest challenge to his rule since succeeding his father Hafez al-Assad in 2000, blamed an "armed gang" for the violence.

Those killed included Ali Ghassab al-Mahamid, a doctor from a prominent Deraa family, who went to the mosque to help victims of the attack. » | Wednesday, March 23, 2011

Related »

Nicolas Sarkozy Makes Populist Play for Welfare in Country that Still Cares
THE GUARDIAN: Cross-party commitment to welfare means France is a good place to be old, young, sick, jobless or female

The future of social care, President Nicolas Sarkozy declared, "is a matter of such importance and gravity that ideology has no place". His opponents scoff, among them Martine Aubry, one of the frontrunners to be the Socialist party's candidate against him in the presidential elections due in 2012.

Viewed from the British side of the Channel, Sarkozy has made a striking promise to create a "new branch of the welfare state" to provide care for old people and those with disabilities. France has 1.1 million dependent old people, their numbers expected to grow by 1%-2% to the middle of the century, when the over‑85s could number 5 million.

Alarmist voices have sounded, but France has heard little of the partisan hysteria audible in Britain, where spending on care for old people has been proportionately higher than in France. Sarkozy promises to lay out a plan by this summer, in good time to give him a populist theme for the presidential campaign. (By then we ought to have sight of proposals to come from Andrew Dilnot, the Oxford economist commissioned by the Cameron government to rethink social care; they will make for a fascinating comparison.)

It's true that Sarkozy, after grandstanding on social care when he was elected in 2007, has vacillated. His latest line is that social care won't be a formal "fifth branch" of the French welfare state. Its four pillars are family benefits, health, coverage for accidents at work, and pensions. They offer relatively generous statutory entitlements, funded by insurance schemes paid for by statutory employer and employee contributions, topped up by general taxation. Instead, Sarkozy's extension of social care is to come from private insurance, some tax funding or even (this came from Laurent Hénart, the president of the national agency for personal services and a pro-Sarkozy MP) the proceeds of French workers giving up a day's leave each year. But the state will organise and underpin it.

How unlike Britain: in France, cross-party commitment to welfare runs deep, as does belief in the necessity and benignity of "l'état". Politicians on the right and the left use the word solidarité with sincerity (the National Front is statist, too, though its definitions exclude "immigrants" from the national compact). Perhaps solidarity is the modern expression of the 1789 cry for "fraternity". The Sarkozy government has a minister for solidarity and maintains the solidarity tax, only one of several payments by general taxpayers and employers levied in the name of strengthening social cohesion. On the annual journée de solidarité employees' pay is earmarked for old people's charities. Continue reading and comment » | Polly Toynbee | Tuesday, March 22, 2011

Gaddafi Warns 'New Crusaders' of Long Battle as Air Strikes Continue

In Tripoli, Fear and Despair Mount
THE WALL STREET JOURNAL: TRIPOLI, Libya—Four days into foreign strikes against Col. Moammar Gadhafi's military, some residents of Libya's largest city expressed fear and a weary exasperation, with some venturing to say their leader must go.

"The regime must be bad if it brought us to this stage," said one Tripoli resident, Mohammed, referring to the airstrikes. "If we have gotten this far, then there is no going back."

Aside from demonstrators at the noisy pro-Gadhafi rallies that have become a staple of the Gadhafi government's daily tours for visiting journalists, residents of Libya's capital are circumspect about discussing with outsiders their aspirations for their country. As the government strikes out at signs of dissent in this city of two million people, most of those who agreed to be interviewed Tuesday did so on the condition that their names and personal details be withheld.

Tripoli residents appeared to be divided: There were those who wanted Col. Gadhafi, their leader of more than four decades, to stay in power—either because they say they support him, or because they fear the vacuum his ouster could bring. Others express a hope the government would be sufficiently weakened by strikes to embolden people to rise up once more.

A taxi driver, who has a day job as a clerk in a government institution, said he and many colleagues have largely stopped going to work. He fretted about a future without Col. Gadhafi and whether the country could be held together given the deepening rift between Tripoli in the west, and the rebel-held east.

"The big question is who will come after Gadhafi," he said. » | Sam Dagher | Wednesday, March 23, 2011

Erfolg der Alliierten im Libyen-Krieg
Die Hälfte der libyschen Abwehr ist laut westlichen Militär-Angaben zerstört. Je heftiger die Angriffe der Koalition-Streitkräfte, desto enger scheinen die Truppen des libyschen Staatschefs Muammar al-Gaddafi aber zusammenzurücken. Einschätzungen von Kurt Pelda, freier Journalist in Benghasi

Abdur Raheem Green - My Parents Don't Talk to Me after I Embraced Islam, What to Do

Radiation Fears Over Japanese Food
Radiation is still leaking from the Fukushima nuclear site in Japan and spreading to other areas.
 In Tokyo, the capital, radiation levels are now reportedly 10 times higher than on Monday.
The World Health Organisation has urged authorities to stop the sale of any contaminated food. Andrew Thomas reports from Tanohata village in northern Japan

Last Friday’s Decrees
Saudiwoman’s Banner: Saudiwoman’s Weblog
SAUDIWOMAN’S WEBLOG: Last Friday, the King made a three minute pre-recorded speech thanking Saudis for their loyalty in an obvious reference to no one coming out to demonstrate on the Friday before. After the speech, two tv presenters took turns announcing a number of royal decrees. The night before the king’s speech and announcements were made, all newspaper editors were told not to use the term “royal generosity” or anything similar to refer to financial packages. These little things are evidence that up high they really are listening to what we down here are saying.

Last Friday’s royal decrees were surprising in their traditionalism while we were anticipating the opposite. Retrospectively though, anyone who would have stepped back and looked at the big picture would have been able to foresee these decrees.

Besides the fun and bribe-like two month salary that almost every Saudi employee and university student is getting, the rest of the decrees are pretty much same old same old. A commission to fight corruption being set up, more interior ministry officers and a lot of money promised to infrastructure; where have I heard that before? The commission that was set up a couple years ago to examine the corruption behind the loss of millions assigned to Jeddah’s municipality has yet to name a culprit. We’ve all read about the millions poured into projects that never see the light of day like this outline prepared by fellow blogger Trad Al Asmari in which three different construction companies take turns being paid to build a ministry for education at a total cost of about 350 million US dollars. Continue reading and comment » | Eman Fahad Al Nafjan | Sunday, March 20, 2011

Vague de contestation sans précédent en Syrie
CYBERPRESSE: Après la Tunisie, l'Égypte et la Libye, des protestations sans précédent secouent la Syrie, pays gouverné d'une main de fer depuis 40 ans par le régime baassiste où la moindre velléité démocratique est immédiatement réprimée.

«La Syrie ne peut rester loin du mouvement. Nous vivons dans un nouveau climat», affirme Bourhane Ghalioune, directeur du Centre des études arabes à la Sorbonne à Paris.

«Les gens refusent désormais d'être sous tension, ils s'élèvent contre l'irrespect, la mauvaise gouvernance, le contrôle des services de sécurité», estime-t-il.

«Le régime se trompe s'il pense régler les problèmes par la répression. Les méthodes des services de renseignement ne feront que jeter de l'huile sur le feu», selon M. Ghalioune pour qui le mouvement est irréversible.

Un mouvement de contestation a débuté le 15 mars dans le pays à la suite d'un appel d'une page Facebook, intitulée «la révolution syrienne contre Bachar al-Assad 2011», à des manifestations pour «une Syrie sans tyrannie, sans loi d'urgence (depuis 1963) ni tribunaux d'exception».

De petites manifestations appelant à des réformes politiques ont été dispersées depuis le 15 mars dans la capitale.

Mais c'est surtout à Deraa, à 100 km au sud de Damas, à partir de vendredi que le mouvement a pris de l'ampleur, après l'arrestation de 15 élèves qui avaient écrit sur des murs des slogans appelant à la chute du régime. » | Agence France-Presse | Damas | Mardi 22 Mars 2011

As Allies Squabble over Control in Libya, New Attacks on Civilians Reported
THE GLOBE AND MAIL: The United States insisted on Tuesday it will hand control of Libyan military operations to its allies within days despite disagreements over NATO’s role in the air campaign against Moammar Gadhafi’s forces.

Once the initial U.S.-led bombardment of the Libyan leader’s air defenses is complete, military planners still intend to pass on leadership of the UN-mandated mission, said Defense Secretary Robert Gates.

“I don’t want to get out in front of the diplomacy that’s been going on but I still think that a transfer within a few days is likely,” Mr. Gates told reporters on a visit to Russia. “This command and control business is complicated. We haven’t done something like this. We were kind of on-the-fly before.”

His statement came as on-scene commanders of the international coalition confirmed that civilians are under attack by government forces in Misrata, Libya’s third largest city.

U.S. Navy Adm. Samuel J. Locklear told Pentagon reporters that the coalition is “considering all options” in light of the attacks, but did not elaborate.

As U.S. military officials play down concerns about who will lead the next phase, President Barack Obama has been trying to shore up faltering international backing for the operation by calling leaders in Europe and the Middle East.

Mr. Obama, wary of getting bogged down in another Muslim country as he tries to wind down wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, said on Monday that NATO would have a coordinating role once the first heavy phase of military action was complete. » | The Associated Press, Paris | Tuesday, March 22, 2011

Oil Interests Muted Bahrain Criticism: Analysts
VANCOUVER SUN: BAGHDAD - Saudi Arabia's massive oil wealth and Sunni solidarity against Shiite Iran is the main reason Arab states remained muted over repression in Bahrain, while loudly protesting over the crushing of a popular revolt in Libya, analysts say.

"Riyadh has traded Bahrain for Libya, because what happens at its borders is vital for the kingdom," said Burhan Ghalioun, director of the Centre for Contemporary Oriental Studies at the Sorbonne in Paris.

He said "the allied military intervention in Libya is secondary for Gulf countries, because their relations are very bad with Moamer Gadhafi," the Libyan leader facing a revolt at home and air strikes by an international coalition to prevent his brutal crackdown on civilians.

On March 14, Saudi Arabia sent 1,000 troops across the causeway into Bahrain, and two days later police cracked down on protesters who had been camped in the centre of Manama for a month, killing three demonstrators.

"Nobody is interested in showing hostility to Saudi Arabia and the Gulf countries. Westerners and Arab states alike need their oil and huge financial resources," Ghalioun added.

Nearly half of the world's oil reserves are owned by the Gulf monarchies, which since 1984 have been linked through the "Peninsula Shield" defence pact.

It has been conflict between Sunnis and Shiites, and the looming shadow of Iran, that has been instrumental in coalescing support behind King Hamad, the Sunni monarch who rules over a Bahrain population that is 70 per cent Shiite. » | Agence France-Presse | Tuesday, March 22, 2011

Gunfire Overnight in Tripoli

Yémen: 13 membres d’Al-Qaïda tués dans des accrochages avec l’armée
TRIBUNE DE GENÈVE: Treize activistes d’Al-Qaïda ont été tués dans des affrontements mardi avec des soldats yéménites dans la province d’Abyane (sud), un bastion du réseau, a indiqué un responsable local.

Ces violences surviennent alors que le secrétaire américain à la Défense, Robert Gates, a souligné plus tôt que l’instabilité au Yémen pourrait entraîner un relâchement de la lutte contre Al-Qaïda dans ce pays.

"Treize activistes d’Al-Qaïda ont été tués dans des affrontements qui se poursuivent avec l’armée dans la localité de Loder", a déclaré le responsable yéménite.

Un responsable de la sécurité avait fait état auparavant de la mort de deux membres d’Al-Qaïda lors d’une bataille rangée dans la province d’Abyane et de cinq blessés parmi les soldats ainsi qu’un membre d’Al-Qaïda. » | AFP | Mardi 22 Mars 2011

Nicolas Sarkozy and François Fillon Split Over How to Handle National Front
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: An embarrassing split between President Nicolas Sarkozy and his prime minister, François Fillon, emerged on Tuesday over how to deal with the threat from France's far-Right National Front.

Marine Le Pen's National Front (FN) made historic gains in the first round of local elections on Sunday, only trailing Mr Sarkozy's UMP party by two percentage points on 15 per cent.

The Socialists, who came top on 25 per cent, are calling for a "Republic front" against the FN in next Sunday's second round, where the far-Right is present in almost 400 "cantons" in the country's 100 departments. The Left is urging its supporters to vote UMP in cantons where it is an also-ran to keep the FN out.

Several UMP moderates called on its electorate to vote tactically. But Mr Sarkozy refused to explicitly urge his supporters to vote for the Left in the 200 or so cantons where the race is between Socialists and the FN. He told party leaders that a call to vote Socialist "would be tantamount to sending a signal of collusion between the UMP and Socialist Party".

However, on Monday night, prime minister Fillon, who has reportedly been ill at ease with attempts by Mr Sarkozy to veer Right to attract FN support, caused confusion by telling UMP members: "You must vote against the National Front". » | Henry Samuel, Paris | Tuesday, March 22, 2011

Tighter Rules for UK Student Visas
BBC: The rules for student visas into the UK are to be much tougher - after fears that this route of entry is being used dishonestly.

Home Secretary Theresa May said student visas were being abused and "too many were here to work and not to study".

She announced plans to cut the number of student visas by up to 80,000 - about a quarter of the current numbers.

Shadow Home Secretary Yvette Cooper warned that rules must not damage an industry worth £5bn a year.

Mrs May told the House of Commons that the misuse of student visas had become a "symbol of a broken and abused immigration system". » | Tuesday, March 22, 2011

Frau vergewaltigt – Israel: Ex-Päsident Katzav muss ins Gefängnis
KRONE.AT: Israels Ex-Präsident Moshe Katzav muss wegen Vergewaltigung ins Gefängnis: Das Tel Aviver Bezirksgericht hat ihn am Dienstag zu sieben Jahren Haft und zwei Jahren Bewährung verurteilt.

Katzav war Ende Dezember der Vergewaltigung einer Mitarbeiterin in zwei Fällen, der sexuellen Belästigung in weiteren Fällen sowie der Behinderung der Justiz für schuldig befunden worden. Er muss außerdem umgerechnet 20.000 Euro Entschädigung zahlen. Katzav ist der erste Präsident in der 62- jährigen Geschichte Israels, der vor Gericht stand und eine Gefängnisstrafe antreten muss. Der Haftantritt soll jedoch mindestens einen Monat aufgeschoben werden. Er will das Urteil vor dem Obersten Gerichtshof in Jerusalem anfechten. Der Ex- Präsident beteuerte bis zuletzt seine Unschuld. (+ Video) » | Dienstag, 22. März 2011

La situation serait catastrophique dans Misrata pilonnée
REUTERS FRANCE: ALGER - Les médecins de l'hôpital de Misrata, qui est bondé de blessés, sont contraints d'opérer dans les couloirs les victimes des attaques des forces de Mouammar Kadhafi, qui auraient fait des dizaines de morts.

Selon plusieurs témoins, joints mardi par téléphone, les habitants de Misrata sont terrés chez eux, de crainte, en sortant, d'être atteints par les tireurs embusqués sur des toits ou par les chars qui sont parvenus dans le centre.

Une demi-douzaine de chars se trouveraient dans la grande artère, la rue Ramdan Souehelli, d'après certains habitants.

"La situation ici est catastrophique", a dit l'un d'eux à Reuters. "Nous demandons aux organisations humanitaires d'intervenir le plus vite possible pour apporter des vivres et une aide médicale."

Quarante personnes ont été tuées dans les attaques menées lundi par les forces fidèles à Mouammar Kadhafi contre la troisième ville de Libye, située à 200 km à l'est de Tripoli, a rapporté un autre habitant.

Il dit tenir ce bilan d'un membre du comité des insurgés chargé des soins aux blessés. Il n'a pas précisé combien, parmi les tués, étaient civils et combien des insurgés. » | © Thomson Reuters | Mardi 22 Mars 2011

Völkerrecht contra Bürgerkrieg: Die Militärintervention gegen Gaddafi ist illegitim
FRANKFURTER ALLGEMEINE: Ob man Diktatoren zum Teufel jagen soll, ist die eine Frage - selbstverständlich soll man das, so gut es geht. Man muss sich aber auch dem trostlosen Befund aussetzen: Die Intervention der Alliierten in Libyen steht auf brüchigem normativem Boden.

Die Resolution 1973 des UN-Sicherheitsrats vom 17. März, die den Weg zur militärischen Intervention in Libyen freigab, und Maß und Ziel dieser Intervention selbst überschreiten die Grenzen des Rechts. Nicht einfach nur die Grenzen positiver Normen – das geschieht im Völkerrecht oft und gehört zum Motor seiner Entwicklung. Sondern die seiner Fundamente: der Prinzipien, auf denen jedes Recht zwischen den Staaten beruht. Die Entscheidung der Bundesregierung, der Resolution nicht zuzustimmen, war richtig. Die empörte Kritik daran ist so kurzsichtig und fahrlässig wie die Entscheidung des Sicherheitsrats und die Art der Intervention selbst: kurzsichtig im Ausblenden wesentlicher Voraussetzungen der Situation in Libyen, fahrlässig im Hinblick auf die Folgen dieses Kriegs für die Normenordnung der Welt.

Strenger als es der Sicherheitsrat getan hat, müssen zwei denkbare Ziele der Intervention unterschieden werden: die Verhinderung schwerer völkerrechtlicher Verbrechen und die gewaltsame Parteinahme zur Entscheidung eines Bürgerkriegs. Beides unterliegt höchst unterschiedlichen Möglichkeiten der Rechtfertigung. An eine dritte Unterscheidung sei vorsichtshalber erinnert: Ob man Gewalttaten unterbinden oder Diktatoren zum Teufel jagen soll, ist die eine Frage – selbstverständlich soll man das, so gut es geht. Eine ganz andere ist es aber, ob man zu diesem Zweck einen Krieg führen darf, dessen Folgen politisch wie normativ schwer abzusehen sind. » | Von Reinhard Merkel | Dienstag, 22. März 2011

Fear Barrier Crumbles in Syrian "Kingdom of Silence"
REUTERS: The preacher of the Saladin Mosque was reflecting on the joys of Mother's Day, his sermon straying far from dramatic protests now gripping Syria, when a young man jumped up to the pulpit and grabbed the microphone.

"Why are you talking about this in these circumstances? Tell us about the political situation!" shouted the youth, before secret police arrested him and hurried him away.

The scene at the mosque in the lower income Damascus district of Ruknaldin, recounted to Reuters by worshippers who witnessed it on Friday, was striking in a country where pliant citizens have endured government-dictated sermons for decades.

In Damascus, as in the provinces, a barrier of fear which had blocked dissent is breaking down. Uprisings across the Arab world have not stopped at the door of one of its most hardline administrations.

For the first time, placards other than those glorifying Syria's ruling elite and the "historic achievements" of the Baath Party are being raised in the towns of the strategic Hauran plain south of Damascus.

A single word is etched on them -- "Freedom." » | Khaled Yacoub Oweis | DAMASCUS | Tuesday, March 22, 2011

Egypt, Moussa Back Bahrain Steps to Restore Order, Mena Says
BLOOMBERG: Egypt signaled support for Bahraini government measures to restore order in the kingdom, and the Arab League stressed the importance of stability in a country gripped by protests for more than a month.

Egypt’s Foreign Minister Nabil El-Arabi, who met his Bahraini counterpart Sheikh Khalid bin Ahmed Al-Khalifa in Cairo today, said Egypt “supports what the government of Bahrain is doing politically and supports the steps that it has taken,” Egypt’s official Middle East News Agency said today.

Arab League Secretary-General Amre Moussa, who also met with Sheikh Khalid, said Arab countries stress the importance of preserving the stability and “Arabism” of Bahrain, Mena said. The League has communicated this position through contacts with countries including Iran, Moussa told reporters. » | Mariam Fam | Tuesday, March 22, 2011

Malaysia Supports Saudi Arabia, GCC Peace Actions in Bahrain
PEOPLE’S DAILY ONLINE: Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak said on Tuesday that Malaysia supports the initiatives taken by Saudi Arabia and other Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries towards achieving peace, reconciliation and long-term stability in Bahrain.

Najib said in a statement issued through Malaysia's national news agency that the Malaysian government fully backs all sovereign decisions taken by the GCC allies, which aim at safeguarding stability and security in the region to ensure harmony and peace.

The prime minister also stressed that Malaysia denounces any terrorist-linked group that undermines the stability and security of Bahrain. » | Source: Xinhua | Tuesday, March 22, 2011