Friday, April 01, 2011
THE GUARDIAN: Foreign Office says people should get out of Yemen while commercial airlines are still flyingAll British nationals have been urged to leave Yemen in the run-up to protests planned for Friday which could result in violent clashes.
The Foreign Office said that, "in light of the rapid deterioration in the security situation", people should get out while commercial airlines were still flying.
It said it was highly unlikely that it would be able to evacuate British nationals in the event of increased disorder.
A statement read: "In light of the rapid deterioration in the security situation in Yemen and likely protests on Friday 1 April which might result in violent clashes, we strongly urge all British nationals to leave the country now while commercial airlines are still flying. » | Press Association | Friday, April 01, 2011
ASIA TIMES ONLINE: You invade Bahrain. We take out Muammar Gaddafi in Libya. This, in short, is the essence of a deal struck between the Barack Obama administration and the House of Saud. Two diplomatic sources at the United Nations independently confirmed that Washington, via Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, gave the go-ahead for Saudi Arabia to invade Bahrain and crush the pro-democracy movement in their neighbor in exchange for a "yes" vote by the Arab League for a no-fly zone over Libya - the main rationale that led to United Nations Security Council resolution 1973.
The revelation came from two different diplomats, a European and a member of the BRIC group, and was made separately to a US scholar and Asia Times Online. According to diplomatic protocol, their names cannot be disclosed. One of the diplomats said, "This is the reason why we could not support resolution 1973. We were arguing that Libya, Bahrain and Yemen were similar cases, and calling for a fact-finding mission. We maintain our official position that the resolution is not clear, and may be interpreted in a belligerent manner." » | Pepe Escobar | Saturday, April 02, 2011
REUTERS AFRICA: DUBAI - Bahrain released a prominent blogger but detained several people, including a pro-opposition doctor, the latest in a series of arrests since the kingdom's crackdown on street protests, opposition sources said on Friday.
The tiny island's Sunni rulers have stepped up arrests of cyber activists and Shi'ites, with more than 300 detained and dozens missing since the crackdown on pro-democracy protests earlier this month.
It imposed martial law and called in troops from fellow Sunni-ruled neighbours, including Saudi Arabia, to quell the protest movement led mostly by the state's Shi'ite majority.
More than 60 percent of Bahrainis are Shi'ites and most want a constitutional monarchy.
Mattar Ibrahim Mattar, a member of Bahrain's largest Shi'ite opposition group, Wefaq, said the party's official arrest count was 329 by Thursday, but that the real number was likely to be over 400.
He said at least 20 people had been detained on Thursday and 31 were missing. It was unclear if those people were in hiding or had been abducted. » | Writing by Erika Solomon; Editing by Nick Macfie | Friday, April 01, 2011
PEOPLE’S DAILY ONLINE: Bahrain's blogfather released: Bahrain's blogfather Mahmood Al Yousif was released Thursday night after he was arrested by Bahraini authorities a day earlier. » | Source: Xinhua | Friday, April 01, 2011
PEOPLE’S DAILY ONLINE: Iran's Majlis (Parliament) National Security and Foreign Policy Commission on Thursday called on Saudi Arabia to pull its forces out of Bahrain, the official IRNA News agency reported.
In a statement issued on Thursday, the lawmakers warned Saudi Arabia "not to play with fire" in the Persian Gulf and asked Saudis to pull their forces out of Bahrain, the report said.
The statement urged Saudi Arabia not to follow "the wrong polices of the U.S. in the region," consider its own interests as well as the interests of the Muslim world and help restore tranquility and security to the region, according to the report. » | Source: Xinhua | Friday, April 01, 2011
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: David Cameron was under pressure last night to ensure that the Libyan defector who arrived in Britain earlier this week co-operates with authorities investigating the Lockerbie bombing, the murder of Pc Yvonne Fletcher and potential war crimes.
Moussa Koussa, the Libyan foreign minister, who fled to Britain on Wednesday, is described as having "electrifying" information on Col Muammar Gaddafi's role in terrorist atrocities across Europe.
Yesterday the Prime Minister said he would not block any attempts by the police to question Mr Koussa.
Mr Cameron stressed that Mr Koussa had not been offered a deal in return for fleeing to Britain and had not been granted immunity from prosecution. But if the defector is arrested and charged with crimes, it may undermine attempts by Western governments to encourage others in Col Gaddafi's inner circle to flee from Libya, a key aim of current diplomatic efforts.
Mr Koussa may also be reluctant to co-operate fully with British officials if he is not given guarantees about his future.
Last night, the Scottish prosecuting authorities investigating the Lockerbie bombing formally requested access to Mr Koussa, a right-hand man to Col Gaddafi for more than 30 years.
International prosecutors investigating war crimes in Libya are also expected to seek interviews with the defector. Yesterday, the Libyan rebel leadership demanded he be returned to the country to face war-crime charges.
Mr Koussa, who was likened yesterday to Rudolf Hess by a Conservative MP, is being interrogated by MI6 at an unknown location.
It is not clear whether information obtained by MI6 will be made public.
Senior Whitehall sources indicated that Scotland Yard was unlikely to get involved "at the moment". » | Robert Winnett, Andrew Porter and Damien McElroy in Tripoli | Thursday, March 31, 2011
THE AUSTRALIAN: GERMANY'S foreign minister today said the situation in war-torn Libya could not be resolved through "military means" and called for a ceasefire.
Guido Westerwelle made the comments after meeting his Chinese counterpart Yang Jiechi in Beijing.
"There can only be a political resolution and we must get the political process underway. That should begin with a ceasefire that Gaddafi must heed to allow the peace process to begin," Westerwelle told reporters.
Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi struck a defiant stance after two high-profile defections from his regime, saying he's not the one who should go - it's the Western leaders who have decimated his military with airstrikes who should resign immediately.
Gaddafi's message last night was undercut by its delivery - a scroll across the bottom of state television as he remained out of sight. The White House said Gaddafi's inner circle was clearly crumbling with the loss of Foreign Minister Moussa Koussa, who flew from Tunisia to England on Wednesday.
Ali Abdessalam Treki, a former foreign minister and UN General Assembly president, announced his departure on several opposition websites yesterday, saying: "It is our nation's right to live in freedom and democracy and enjoy a good life." » | AFP / AP | Friday, April 01, 2011
STERN.DE: Guido Westerwelle setzt sich für einen Waffenstillstand zwischen den libyschen Truppe und den Rebellen ein. Der Bundesaußenminister betonte, dass in Libyen nur eine politische Lösung möglich sei.
Bundesaußenminister Guido Westerwelle (FDP) hat einen Waffenstillstand zwischen den Truppen des libyschen Machthabers Muammar el Gaddafi und den gegen ihn kämpfenden Rebellen gefordert. "Es wird keine militärische Lösung in Libyen geben, nur eine politische", sagte Westerwelle am Freitag nach einem Gespräch mit seinem chinesischen Kollegen Yang Jiechi vor Journalisten in Peking. … » | vim/AFP | Freitag, 01. April 2011
SKY NEWS: Libya has sent a senior aide of Colonel Muammar Gaddafi's son to London for talks with British officials, according to the Guardian newspaper. » | Friday, April 01, 2011
THE GUARDIAN: Revealed: Gaddafi envoy in Britain for secret talks – Exclusive: Contact with senior aide believed to be one of a number between Libyan officials and west amid signs regime may be looking for exit strategy » | Peter Beaumont , Nicholas Watt and Severin Carrell | Friday, April 01, 2011
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: William Hague has hailed the defection of Col Gaddafi’s foreign minister as a major blow to the Libyan leader and claimed he could be the first of many to desert the regime.
The Foreign Secretary, giving the Government’s first official reaction to the arrival in London of Moussa Koussa, said his departure from Gaddafi’s side showed the regime was fragmenting and “crumbling from within.”
Mr Hague said that Koussa, who he described as “one of the most senior members of the Gaddafi regime", was not subject to any immunity, but confirmed that he was being debriefed by government officials.
At a press conference in the Foreign Office, Mr Hague said: “He travelled here under his own free will. He said he is resigning his post. We’re discussing this with him and we will release further details.
"We encourage those around Gaddafi to abandon him and embrace the better future for Libya that allows political transition and real reform that meets the aspirations of the Libyan people."
He added: "Moussa Koussa is one of the most senior members of the Gaddafi regime, he has been my channel of communication to the regime in recent weeks ... His resignation shows that Gaddafi’s regime – which has already seen significant defections to the opposition – it is fragmented, under pressure and crumbling from within." » | Andrew Porter, Thomas Harding and Robert Winnett | Thursday, March 31, 2011
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: It is not enough for Muslims to “rub along” without breaking the law, they must be persuaded that their long-term future lies in Britain, the Security Minister has said.Baroness Neville-Jones told the Daily Telegraph that that at the same time the government need to persuade the majority of the population that the UK is a single nation.
The minister said there needed to be a new approach in which people did not simply “rub along together and as long as people obey the law that’s quite sufficient.”
“I think it’s a common experience now that we know less about each other than we used to and I think there’s a very strong feeling that we need to understand each other and we need to be working together as a nation,” Lady Neville-Jones added.
“[We are] trying to convince minorities in this country that they actually do have a long term future here and that it’s their country as much as anybody else’s,” she said in an interview.
It is also important to “convince the majority population we are a single nation,” she added.
The security minister, who is in charge of re-drawing Britain’s counter-terrorism strategy, added: “We do need to have a much more conscious framework in which to transmit that message and it isn’t something you can just assume people understand.”
The security minister was speaking ahead of a visit to Washington today in which she is expected to outline a “unity strategy” for integration in Britain which emulates the “American dream” and creates a “palpable sense of national identity.” » | Duncan Gardham, Security Correspondent | Thursday, March 31, 2011
More gobbledygook from the political class! Lady Neville-Jones clearly has no understanding of the problems we face with Islam. She needs to do some serious studying. She seems to think that one has to be a “right-wing extremist” to believe that Islam and the West are immiscible. How wrong can anyone be? To know the facts about Islam, and to understand the religion is in no way akin to being an Islamic extremist. What kind of ridiculous logic can one use to come to that conclusion?
The big mistake was to bring all these Muslims into the West, for the powers that be should have known the nature of Islam. Prophet Muhammad instructed his followers NOT TO INTEGRATE INTO THE CULTURE OF THE INFIDEL. No lady or lord can change that fact. For a fact it is indeed.
But now that the mistake has been made to allow all these people to immigrate to the West, we need to foster a Leitkultur, our culture. Because they came to us – remember? Not the other way around! And by the way, who created this fractured nation in the first place? Wasn't it the politicians? – © Mark
Thursday, March 31, 2011
THE TRIPOLI POST: Talking for the first time to the press about the defection of former Libyan Foreign Minister Mussa Kussa, to the UK, Libyan government spokesman Moussa Ibrahim said he understood that Mr Kussa had resigned.Initially, the Libyan government denied that Mr Kussa had defected, claiming he was merely on a "diplomatic mission", but now, after adnitting [sic] to Mr Kussa's resignation, the Libyan spokesman said the former FM had needed some medical treatment for a few days in Tunisia. He was given permission to do so, and he was expected back.
Moussa Ibrahim: "He (Mr Mussa) asked for sick leave because he had diabetes and high blood pressure. The government gave him permission to leave the country, because he needed to look after himself and he was in bad need of medical care. We understand now he has resigned from his position," he said.
Then he added: "He is an old man. He has serious health problems - his heart, his body, could not take the pressure and we hope that he will recover mentally, psychologically and physically and rest.
Ibrahim Moussa said: "We are expecting him to come back. This is his homeland. We are his family," adding that if Mr Kussa did decide to return to Libya, he would be welcomed with "open arms".
The Libyan leader Muammar Al Qathafi, meanwhile, has issued a warning to the West about their actions, reportedly telling the Libyan news agency, JANA: "They have started something dangerous, something they cannot control. It will be out of their control no matter what methods of destruction they have at their disposal. Continue reading and comment » | Thursday, March 31, 2011
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Spain's Crown Prince Felipe has told the Prince of Wales that a solution must be found for Gibraltar, stirring age old diplomatic tensions between the two nations.The Spanish heir to throne waded into the centuries old row over the disputed territory at the foot of the Iberian Peninsula at a gala dinner to welcome the Prince and the Duchess of Cornwall on their first official visit together to Spain.
"I express my hope that our authorities make progress towards a solution to our historic bilateral dispute which is yet to be resolved," said the 43-year-old Prince of Asturias in a speech at the Palacio Real in Madrid.
Although he did not mention Gibraltar by name it was clear he was referring to the tiny peninsula on Spain's southwestern tip, which Madrid ceded to London under the Treaty of Utrecht in 1713.
Spain still claims sovereignty over the Rock, home to 28,000 Gibraltarians, who in a 2002 referendum overwhelmingly rejected a deal to shared sovereignty between the two nations and demanded to remain a part of Britain.
The royal couple have avoided Gibraltar during their first official joint tour of the Iberian Peninsula, skirting the inevitable controversy that a visit to the disputed territory would produce in Spain. » | Fiona Govan, Madrid | Thursday, March 31, 2011
THE GUARDIAN: Prime minister says Gaddafi's henchmen should 'come to their senses' and follow defecting foreign minister by abandoning Lybian regime
David Cameron approved the decision to allow the Libyan foreign minister, Moussa Koussa, to defect to Britain with at least one member of his family after consulting the US, Downing Street has said.
Cameron said Muammar Gaddafi's henchmen should "come to their senses" and follow Koussa by abandoning the "brutal regime".
And he reiterated that "no deal" had been made with the minister in exchange for his defection to Britain.
Koussa's defection has led to expectations that he will be questioned about his possible involvement in, or knowledge of, atrocities including the Lockerbie bombing and the murder of PC Yvonne Fletcher.
Scottish prosecutors have told the Foreign Office they want to interview him in connection with the 1988 bombing of Pan Am flight 103 over Lockerbie.
His 15-year tenure as the head of Libyan foreign intelligence covered this period, but he has always denied that Libya was involved in the bombing. (+ video) » | Nicholas Watt and Hélène Mulholland | Thursday, March 31, 2011
THE GUARDIAN: Heads of external security and military intelligence will play a significant role in shaping post-revolution Libya, experts sayIn the Libyan capital, Tripoli, international journalists have taken to playing a kind of parlour game.
They try to calculate which officials and members of Colonel Muammar Gaddafi's family are important in a regime that is so opaque at times as to be – in practical terms – impenetrable.
Of Gaddafi's sons, is it Saif al-Islam, the most visible and accessible to the world, who invited in the international media? Or Saadi, a businessman? Is it Khamis, the most active on the battlefield – and the most hardline?
It is speculation that has only increased with the defection to the UK of Moussa Koussa, Libya's foreign minister and former intelligence chief. Even before his flight to Britain questions were being asked. Had Koussa been sidelined in the last two years since taking over at the foreign ministry? And if he had been sidelined, by whom? And what does it mean?
What seems beyond doubt is that Koussa has long represented the old guard which for decades was close to Gaddafi, but which – if the Tripoli rumour mill is to be believed – has recently been pushed aside by Gaddafi's competing sons.
Others suggest that, ironically, Koussa may have become tainted in Gaddafi circles by virtue of his success in opening up contacts with western intelligence agencies, with whom he negotiated Libya's transformation from pariah status in the last decade. » | Peter Beaumont | Thursday, March 31, 2011
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Geert Wilders has stepped up his anti-Islam rhetoric by describing the Prophet Mohammed as an "insane, paedophile, rapist murderer" just two weeks before the opening of his trial on charges of inciting race hatred.The leader of hard-Right Dutch Freedom Party will be prosecuted in an Amsterdam court on April 13 for previous comparisons of Islam to Nazism.
On Thursday he fuelled the controversy surrounding his anti-Muslim politics and trial by publishing an article citing academics who accuse Islam's founder of crimes ranging from child rape to murder.
"The historical Mohammad was the savage leader of a gang of robbers from Medina. Without scruples they looted, raped and murdered," Mr Wilders claimed in the Dutch magazine HP/De Tijd.
In the article, Mr Wilders, whose Freedom Party MPs control the balance of power in the Dutch parliament, attacked fines levied on an Austrian feminist "for insulting a religion by calling Mohammad a paedophile".
"However, that is the truth," he wrote, citing the Muslim prophet's consummation of a marriage to a wife who claimed she was a child aged nine at the time. » | Bruno Waterfield | Thursday, March 31, 2011
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