Sunday, February 06, 2011
YNET NEWS: Op-ed: President Obama must demand Palestinian democracy, just like he’s doing with Egypt
The Obama Administration quickly turned its back on President Hosni Mubarak when it started talking about “an orderly transition to lasting democracy.” Yet as is the case in Egypt, Palestinian society is also struggling with a corrupt, undemocratic, authoritarian, and divisive PA leadership with a long record of human rights violations and an economy artificially resuscitated by handouts from foreign donors.
Hence, Israel’s government should not agree to negotiate for the establishment of a Palestinian state in the strategic hills of the West Bank until the Palestinian people first have a chance to cleanse its leadership and move towards lasting democracy, as Obama has demanded from Egypt. Israel needs to know who will be the ultimate true representative of the Palestinian people before giving away strategic assets.
It is quite dangerous for Israel - and hypocritical of Obama - to ask the Jewish State to agree to the establishment of a state that eventually through free elections or a military coup may be taken over by an Islamic, pro-Iranian terrorist organization. After all, Hamas’ stated goal is the destruction of the Jewish state and global Islamic rule. >>> Shoula Romano Horing | Friday, February 04, 2011
YNET NEWS: Cooking shows ordered to shun Italian, French dishes, highlight Iran's achievements instead
After ridding Iranian universities of "Western subjects," authorities in Tehran are making sure that local cooking shows also adhere to the spirit of the Ayatollah regime.
On Sunday, Iran's broadcasting authority forbade television channels in the country to air cooking shows featuring "Western" dishes. As it turns out, the doze[n]s of official TV stations in Iran currently feature shows that offer their viewers recipes for Italian and French dishes, an apparently grave sin in the Islamic republic.
"Television should show viewers abroad and Persian speakers the great and important achievements of the Islamic revolution," the broadcasting authority's deputy director, Ali Darabi, was quoted as saying as he explained the move. The decision was taken ahead of "Islamic Revolution Day," which will mark the 32nd anniversary of the Persian shah's downfall. >>> Dudi Cohen | Sunday, February 06, 2011
SUNDAY EXPRESS: BRITAIN’S top cancer specialist predicts that new medical miracles will end the death toll of most cancers within a generation.
Professor Karol Sikora, former cancer adviser to the World Health Organisation, says death from the world’s most feared disease will be rare by 2025.
Speaking exclusively to the Sunday Express, he said an emerging revolution of drugs and technology will change the killer disease into “a stable chronic condition like diabetes that people can live with but not die of”. >>> Lucy Johnston | Sunday, February 06, 2011
THE INDEPENDENT ON SUNDAY: Britain’s bankers are celebrating bumper bonuses. Whatever happened to the Government’s pledge to tackle them?After umpteen calls for restraint by ministers, weighing the public relations impact, and consulting colleagues and advisers, Barclays chief executive Bob Diamond has made his most difficult decision. The multi-millionaire is set to accept a £9m bonus, one of the largest in the world, and will be followed by the bosses of the other major banks. This shows that they are all in something together, even if it's not what the rest of us are in.
Mr Diamond canvassed close City friends before deciding to take the bumper bonus which he fears will reignite the row over bankers pay. Sources close to him said: "Bob's been in a real dilemma as he can't stand this country's culture of banker-bashing and finds our attitude to bonuses extraordinary. But he is also aware of public opinion, so sounded out people about whether he should turn down his bonus again for the third year, take less or give some to charity."
Despite rising public anger about the scale of City payouts, David Cameron insisted last night that he was not interested in "headlines satisfying people today and tomorrow that I've given the banks a good kick in the pants. Can we do more on bonuses, particularly on those banks we own? Yes we can, and yes we will," he told The Sunday Telegraph. "But look, we've just been talking about growth. I don't believe actually in the long run, you can deliver the enterprise-growth agenda while having a running war with the British banking industry at the same time."
Some of those whom Mr Diamond – or his advisers – have consulted counselled him to show restraint. But the American decided that when he is offered the pay package – somewhere between £7m and £10m – he is minded to take it. >>> Margareta Pagano, Business Editor | Sunday, February 06, 2011
Why don’t they jail these SOBs? Then they would show some restraint! – © Mark
THE SUNDAY TIMES: Dominic Lawson: The Rich List can’t touch these guys: As Hosni Mubarak and Zine Ben Ali — and a host of other despots — have proved, there’s no business like kleptocracy >>> Dominic Lawson | Sunday, February 06, 2011 [£}
THE SUNDAY TIMES: Banks to hand out £6bn bonuses: A bonanza for British lenders will embarrass the chancellor as he tries to agree pay curbs and lending targets >>> Iain Dey | Sunday, February 06, 2011 [£]
THE NEW YORK TIMES: WASHINGTON — In 1985, as a teenager in Kenya, I was an adamant member of the Muslim Brotherhood. Seventeen years later, in 2002, I took part in a political campaign to win votes for the conservative party in the Netherlands.
Those two experiences gave me some insights that I think are relevant to the current crisis in Egypt. They lead me to believe it is highly likely but not inevitable that the Muslim Brotherhood will win the elections to be held in Egypt this coming September.
As a participant in an election campaign, I learned a few basic lessons:
• The party must have a political program all members commit to with a vision of how to govern the country until the next election. Dissent within the party is a sure way of losing elections.
• Candidates must articulate not only what they will do for the country but also why the other party’s program will be catastrophic for the nation.
• The party has to be embedded in as many communities as possible, regardless of social class, religion or even political views.
• Candidates must constantly remind potential voters of their party’s successes and the opponent’s failures.
The secular democratic and human-rights groups in Egypt and in the rest of the Arab world show little sign of understanding these facts of political life. The Muslim Brotherhood, on the other hand, gets at least three out of four.
True, they have never been in office. But they have a political program and a vision not only until the next elections, but, in their view, until the Hereafter. And they are very good at reminding Egyptians of why the other party’s policies will be ungodly and therefore catastrophic for Egypt. Above all, they have succeeded in embedding themselves in Egyptian society in ways that could prove crucial. >>> Ayaan Hirsi Ali | Thursday, February 03, 2011
HT: Always On Watch >>>
NZZ ONLINE: Rund 10'000 Personen haben sich in Mailand an einer Protestkundgebung gegen den italienischen Premierminister Silvio Berlusconi beteiligt. Aus ganz Italien strömten Demonstranten zur Kundgebung, die von der Oppositionsbewegung «Freiheit und Gerechtigkeit» organisiert wurde.An der Kundgebung gegen Berlusconi in einer grossen Mailänder Sport-Arena nahmen unter anderen der ehemalige Staatspräsident Oscar Luigi Scalfaro, Oppositionspolitiker, Intellektuelle, Künstler und Schriftsteller, wie die Star-Autoren Umberto Eco und Roberto Saviano, teil. «Berlusconi, trete zurück!», lautete die Losung der Demonstranten. >>> sda/apa | Samstag, 05. Februar 2011
MAIL ON SUNDAY: Former U.S. President George W. Bush has cancelled a visit to Switzerland over fears he could have been arrested on torture charges.Mr Bush was due to be the keynote speaker at a Jewish charity gala in Geneva on February 12.
But pressure has been building on the Swiss government to arrest him and open a criminal investigation if he enters the country.
Criminal complaints against Mr Bush alleging torture have been lodged in Geneva, court officials said.
Human rights groups said they had intended to submit a 2,500-page case against him in the Swiss city tomorrow for alleged mistreatment of suspected militants at Guantanamo Bay.
Left-wing groups have also called for a protest on the day of his visit, leading organisers at Keren Hayesod's annual dinner to cancel Mr Bush's participation on security grounds.
The New York-based Human Rights Watch and International Federation of Human Rights (FIDH) said the cancellation was linked to growing moves told him accountable for the use of torture, including waterboarding.
He had admitted in his memoirs and TV interviews to ordering the use of the interrogation technique which simulates drowning.
Reed Brody, a lawyer for Human Rights Watch, said: 'He's avoiding the handcuffs.' >>> | Sunday, February 06, 2011
MAIL ON SUNDAY: A major row over Islamic extremism erupted last night after Labour accused David Cameron of being a far-Right ‘propagandist’.Sadiq Khan made the incendiary remark in response to an outspoken speech by the Prime Minister attacking ‘state multiculturalism’, calling for a stronger British identity and signalling a crackdown on Muslim groups.
Mr Khan, the Shadow Justice Secretary, infuriated Downing Street by claiming that Mr Cameron was ‘writing propaganda for the English Defence League’. The EDL is an anti-Islamist street protest movement that numbers BNP supporters among its members.
Labour MPs then weighed in by accusing Mr Cameron of inflammatory timing for making his speech on the day when the EDL was marching in Luton.
But Tory Chairman Baroness Warsi described Mr Khan’s remarks as an attempt to ‘smear’ the Prime Minister as a Right-wing extremist.
‘This is outrageous and irresponsible,’ she said.
‘David Cameron has made it clear he wants to unite Britain around our common values, and he has done so in measured language.
'It is right that we make it clear: extremism and Islam are not the same thing. Mr Khan ran Ed Miliband’s leadership campaign. He must apologise and Mr Miliband needs to disown his colleague’s baseless accusation.’ Fury as Labour ‘smears’ David Cameron after he attacks multiculturalism >>> Glen Owen | Sunday, February 06, 2011
leJDD.fr: L’administration Obama et les chefs de l’armée égyptienne offrent une retraite dorée au vieux président.
C'est en faveur d’une "sortie honorable" d’Hosni Moubarak que l’administration Obama œuvre depuis plusieurs jours, multipliant les contacts avec les responsables égyptiens, politiques et militaires. Le président égyptien "doit prêter attention à ce que réclament les gens et prendre une décision ordonnée, constructive et sérieuse", déclarait, vendredi, Barack Obama, avant de confirmer que des "discussions" étaient engagées sur la transition politique… mais en se gardant bien de demander clairement le départ du raïs de 82 ans. >>> Alexandra Geneste, correspondance à New York, Le Journal du Dimanche | Dimanche 06 Février 2011
NZZ ONLINE: Im Nordwesten Tunesiens hat die Polizei auf eine aufgebrachte Menge geschossen. Dabei wurden nach Angaben des Innenministeriums zwei Menschen getötet und 17 weitere verletzt. Nach Angaben von Augenzeugen und Gewerkschaftsvertretern starben zwei weitere Menschen auf dem Weg ins Spital.
Der amtlichen tunesischen Nachrichtenagentur zufolge hatten rund 1000 Menschen die Polizeiwache in der Stadt Kef angegriffen, nachdem sich der Polizeichef einer Person gegenüber ungebührlich verhalten habe. Augenzeugen sagten dem staatlichen Fernsehen, der Polizeichef habe eine Frau geschlagen. >>> sda/dapd/afp/Reuters | Sonntag, 06. Februar 2011
REUTERS AFRICA: RIYADH - Saudi Arabia's top Islamic scholar condemned anti-government protests in Egypt, Tunisia and elsewhere as a plot by enemies of Islam to spread instability, Saudi newspapers said on Saturday. Hundreds of thousands of Egyptians marched peacefully in Cairo on Friday to demand an end to President Hosni Mubarak's 30-year rule, but no end to the confrontation was in sight as the unrest entered its 12th day.
Top oil exporter Saudi Arabia has said it is worried that the unrest might lead to instability in Egypt, its main Arab ally. King Abdullah called Mubarak to express his support, Saudi state media said on Jan. 29. >>> Reporting by Ulf Laessing, editing by Tim Pearce | Saturday, February 05, 2011
Diese Leute sehen in allen Ecken Gespenster! – Mark
ASHARQ ALAWSAT: Jeddah – A Saudi Arabian Airlines official informed Asharq Al-Awsat that a total of 21,000 Saudi citizens had left Egypt, returning to Saudi Arabia on a total of 75 airplanes since the start of the unrest in Egypt. The official also revealed that the last batch of Saudi Arabian returnees had departed from Egypt on a fleet of 8 airplanes on Wednesday. A Saudi citizen who spoke to Asharq Al-Awsat on the condition of anonymity claimed that 5 Saudi Arabian families had paid for these tickets. >>> Badr Al-Qahtani | Thursday, February 03, 2011
NZZ am SONNTAG: Auch in Saudi-Arabien hat sich der Unmut über die Regierung in Protesten entladen: Etwa 40 Frauen haben vor dem Innenministerium die Freilassung von Gefangenen gefordert und Web-Aktivisten fordern politische Reformen. In dem Land ist öffentlicher Widerspruch verboten.
Nach den Demonstrationen in Tunesien und Ägypten regt sich auch in Saudi-Arabien Widerstand - wo Proteste gegen die Regierung äusserst selten sind. In der Hauptstadt Riad forderten am Samstag etwa 40 Frauen vor dem Innenministerium die Freilassung von Gefangenen.
Die Häftlinge würden ohne Gerichtsverfahren festgehalten, sagten Aktivisten. Den Frauen standen zahlreiche Polizisten gegenüber, die aber nicht eingriffen.
Amnesty International und andere Menschenrechtsgruppen werfen Saudi-Arabien seit langem vor, tausende Reform-Aktivisten unter dem Deckmantel einer Kampagne gegen die Extremisten der Kaida festzuhalten. Riad bestreitet dies. In Saudi-Arabien ist öffentlicher Widerspruch verboten. >>> sda/Reuters | Sonntag, 06. Februar 2011
HT: Baron Bodissey of Gates of Vienna >>>
20 MINUTES ONLINE: Des milliers d’extrêmistes de droite défilent: Plusieurs milliers de partisans d'extrême droite ont manifesté à l'appel de l'organisation de la Ligue de défense anglaise (EDL) samedi à Luton. >>> ats/afp | Samedi 05 Février 2011
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: A disturbing video of a man and woman being executed by the Taliban has been released by Afghan security forces.
THE GUARDIAN: Omar Suleiman's call for orderly reform wins backing of Hillary Clinton on day senior members of ruling NDP resign
America yesterday swung its support behind Egypt's vice-president, Omar Suleiman, and the political transition he is leading, calling for a process of orderly reform. The policy, made clear by Hillary Clinton at the Munich Security Conference, was the latest sign of steps by the US and senior members of the Egyptian military to nudge President Hosni Mubarak aside and contain the potential for street violence.
The move came as senior members of the leadership of the ruling National Democratic party resigned from the party in response to the protests. They included Mubarak's powerful son, Gamal, long expected to succeed his father. A relative liberal, Hossam Badrawi, was appointed the party's new secretary general.
The mass, announced yesterday afternoon, resignation is likely to be seen as a further sign of Mubarak's weakness and will only strengthen the demands of protesters determined to topple him. It appeared to be part of a strategy agreed with the US to manage the transition, with or without Mubarak, as power shifts to Egypt's vice-president, who is backed by the Americans to head the political transition. >>> Julian Borger in Munich and Chris McGreal in Cairo | Sunday, February 06, 2011
THE SUNDAY TELEGRAPH: David Cameron is standing by his decision to attack multiculturalism and hit back at Labour claims that he was helping the far Right.An angry row broke out after Sadiq Khan, Labour's shadow justice secretary, accused the Prime Minister of "writing propaganda" for the nationalist English Defence League by calling on Britons to be more robust in rejecting Islamist extremism.
Ministers demanded that Mr Khan apologise for "smearing" the Prime Minister by linking him with the EDL, whose members demonstrated on the streets of Luton on Saturday, chanting "Muslim bombers off our streets" and holding banners aloft, some of which read "No more mosques".
Baroness Warsi, the Conservative party Chairman, said: "For Sadiq Khan to smear the Prime Minister as a Right-wing extremist is outrageous and irresponsible.
"Mr Khan is Labour's shadow justice secretary and ran Ed Miliband's leadership campaign. He must apologise, and Mr Miliband needs urgently to disown his colleague's baseless accusation."
The Prime Minister was also criticised by Muslim groups for pronouncing that multiculturalism had failed in Britain because it had led to segregation.
In a major speech tackling the threat posed by Islamic extremists, the Prime Minister warned that "hands-off tolerance" of unacceptable practices by minority communities had only served to encourage extremism.
He called for a "muscular" defence of British values.
Speaking to a conference in Munich, Mr Cameron said that the threat of terrorism must be confronted not only though intelligence and surveillance, but by taking on the ideology of Islamist extremism at home.
"Frankly, we need a lot less of the passive tolerance of recent years and much more active, muscular liberalism," the Prime Minister said.
While a "passively tolerant" society allows its citizens to do what they like, so long as they do not break the law, a genuinely liberal country "believes in certain values and actively promotes them", Mr Cameron said.
"Freedom of speech. Freedom of worship. Democracy. The rule of law. Equal rights, regardless of race, sex or sexuality. It says to its citizens: This is what defines us as a society. To belong here is to believe these things.
"Each of us in our own countries must be unambiguous and hard-nosed about this defence of our liberty." Read on and comment >>> Melissa Kite, Deputy Political Editor | Saturday, February 05, 2011
My comment on Mr. Cameron's speech:
Cameron's speech is indeed encouraging. At last, a public figure has shown some courage when speaking about extremist 'religious' ideologies. But he needs to find some more courage. He needs to recognise, and articulate, that almost all terrorism these days is linked to Islam. Further, he has convinced me that he doesn't truly understand the nature of Islam. He continues to articulate the canard that "Islamist extremism" has nothing to do with Islam. WRONG, Mr. Cameron! WRONG! Islamism is a term made up by the infidel for the infidel. To a practising Muslim, it is a meaningless term. A true Muslim would only recognise one belief system: Islam. And we shall have to learn to face the fact that Islamism is merely the practice of Islam in its fundamental form. Islamists are people who want to practise Islam as the prophet Muhammad envisioned. To say anything different is to distort the truth.
But I must applaud Mr. Cameron for taking a bold step forward, for taking a bold step to help open up the debate. This debate is sorely needed. But I’m sorry to say that Mr. Cameron has some homework to do if he truly wants to come to terms with, and get a grip on, the real danger facing the UK and the West today. – © Mark
This comment also appears here
THE GUARDIAN: David Cameron sparks fury from critics who say attack on multiculturalism has boosted English Defence League: • Prime minister is accused of handing PR coup to the far right • Jack Straw calls David Cameron's comments 'ill-judged' >>> Toby Helm, Matthew Taylor and Rowenna Davis | Saturday, February 05, 2011
"Activists, some wearing balaclavas and others waving English flags, chanted "Muslim bombers off our streets" and "Allah, Allah, who the fuck is Allah". EDL supporters from Newcastle, Scotland, London, West Yorkshire and Sheffield joined Luton-based supporters. There were also flags representing German, Dutch and Swedish Defence Leagues." [Source: The Guardian]
Saturday, February 05, 2011
MAIL ONLINE: 'Al-Qaeda-linked terror groups may be behind pipeline blast / Gas company boss says explosion and fire were due to leak, not terrorism / Reports of 'Organised attack' on vice president Omar Suleiman / Mubarak's son Gamal also resigns from National Democratic Party President Hosni Mubarak has resigned as the head of Egypt ruling party, according to State television.
It comes as the country was on the verge of descending into chaos as newly appointed vice president Omar Suleiman reportedly survived an assassination attempt and saboteurs allegedly attacked an oil pipeline.
The balance of power hung precariously as demonstrations against president Mubarak entered their 12th day - and the army was beginning to reassert control on the streets.
The resignation comes just days after Mubarak said he would not resign immediately – because he feared there would be ‘chaos’.
White House press secretary Robert Gibbs refused to confirm the alarming reports of an 'organised attack' on Omar Suleiman. Two of his bodyguards were said to have been killed in the incident several days ago.
The pipeline attack has been linked to Islamist militants and, along with the apparent assassination attempt, represents a frightening new element in the popular uprising that has seen one of the U.S.'s greatest Middle Eastern allies descend into chaos.
The head of Egypt's natural gas company, Magdy Toufik, said today that the explosion and fire at a gas terminal in the northern Sinai Peninsula was caused by a gas leak.
There were no reported casualties from the fire, but officials had to shut off the flow of gas to neighbouring Jordan and Israel to contain the blaze. Mubarak quits as party leader after 12 days of bloodshed and riots in Egypt >>> Daily Mail Reporter | Saturday, February 05, 2011
SKY NEWS: 'Top Figures In Egypt's Ruling Party Resign' >>> Stuart Ramsay, in Cairo, and Gary Mitchell | Saturday, February 05, 2011
THE GUARDIAN: PM says those who don't hold 'British' values will be shunned by governmentDavid Cameron will today signal a sea-change in the government fight against home-grown terrorism, saying the state must confront, and not consort with, the non-violent Muslim groups that are ambiguous about British values such as equality between sexes, democracy and integration.
To belong in Britain is to believe in these values, he will say. Claiming the previous government had been the victim of fear and muddled thinking by backing a state-sponsored form of multiculturalism, the prime minister will state that his government "will no longer fund or share platforms with organisations that, while non-violent, are certainly in some cases part of the problem".
In a major speech to a security conference in Munich, he will demand: "We need a lot less of the passive tolerance of recent years and much more active, muscular liberalism."
He will say that "some organisations that seek to present themselves as a gateway to the Muslim community are showered with public money while doing little to combat extremism. This is like turning to a rightwing fascist party to fight a violent white supremacist movement."
Cameron's aides, aware the speech may prove highly controversial, refused to identify the organisations in his sights, but it is clear one target is the Muslim Council of Britain.
Last night some Muslim groups criticised the prime minister for making the speech on the same day that the English Defence League is holding its biggest ever demonstration, in Luton. >>> Patrick Wintour | Saturday, February 05, 2011
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Far right activists have clashed with anti-fascist demonstrators at a rally by the English Defence League.
Thousands of supporters from the English Defence League gathered in Luton on Saturday for the rally.
Campaigners from Unite Against Fascism are also planning to conduct a demonstration in the town and more than 1500 police are on duty to police the event.
Confrontations flared as early as 10am, however, as supporters of the English Defence League arrived at the train station in Luton and were confronted by dozens of protesters from Unite Against Fascism who attempted to block their exit.
Both sides hurled insults as tensions rose and the English Defence League supporters had to be escorted through a back exit by police.
Up to 7,000 EDL supporters are expected to gather in Luton St George's Square on Saturday.
The rally is expected to be the biggest in the EDL's 20-month history. The group was originally formed in Luton in 2009 and has staged more than 30 protests since. >>> Rebecca Lefort | Saturday, February 05, 2011
THE GUARDIAN: Stephen Lennon says police have urged him to leave his home before English Defence League's anti-Islamist protest in LutonThe founder of the English Defence League claims he has been warned that his life is in danger if he leads a protest in Luton.
Stephen Lennon, 28, said senior police officers were urging him to leave his home town ahead of the anticipated arrival of thousands of EDL supporters.
The militant anti-Islamist campaigner said he was under police protection. He claimed Bedfordshire police had issued him with an "Osman warning", which are given by the police to advise individuals that they are at serious risk of being killed by someone who appears to have the capability to make good their threat. >>> Press Association | Friday, February 04, 2011
WELT ONLINE: Steht New York ein neuer Anschlag bevor? US-Ermittler befürchten nach Hinweisen einen Angriff auf das Herz des Kapitalismus, die Wall Street.Sicherheitsbehörden in den USA haben die Banken an der Wall Street und deren Spitzenpersonal vor möglichen Anschlägen des Terrornetzwerks al-Qaida gewarnt. Entsprechende Drohungen kämen von der Gruppe al-Qaida auf der Arabischen Halbinsel, sagte ein Sicherheitsvertreter der Nachrichtenagentur AFP in Washington. "Wir sind wachsam und haben Warnungen angesichts dieser gewalttätigen Pläne herausgegeben“, sagte er weiter. Er bestätigte damit einen Bericht des US-Senders NBC. >>> AFP/mac | Mittwoch, 02. Februar 2011
THE GUARDIAN: Egyptian president has cash in British and Swiss banks plus UK and US property
President Hosni Mubarak's family fortune could be as much as $70bn (£43.5bn) according to analysis by Middle East experts, with much of his wealth in British and Swiss banks or tied up in real estate in London, New York, Los Angeles and along expensive tracts of the Red Sea coast.
After 30 years as president and many more as a senior military official, Mubarak has had access to investment deals that have generated hundreds of millions of pounds in profits. Most of those gains have been taken offshore and deposited in secret bank accounts or invested in upmarket homes and hotels.
According to a report last year in the Arabic newspaper Al Khabar, Mubarak has properties in Manhattan and exclusive Beverly Hills addresses on Rodeo Drive.
His sons, Gamal and Alaa, are also billionaires. A protest outside Gamal's ostentatious home at 28 Wilton Place in Belgravia, central London, highlighted the family's appetite for western trophy assets.
Amaney Jamal, a political science professor at Princeton University, said the estimate of $40bn-70bn was comparable with the vast wealth of leaders in other Gulf countries.
"The business ventures from his military and government service accumulated to his personal wealth," she told ABC news. "There was a lot of corruption in this regime and stifling of public resources for personal gain. >>> Phillip Inman | Friday, February 04, 2011
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: For decades, Saudi Arabia's powerful clerics have waged a bitter battle against pagan faiths, idol worship, heresy, alcohol – and archaeology.News that David Kennedy, an Australian scholar, has succeeded in identifying almost 2,000 unexplored archaeological sites using Google Earth has focused attention on the wages of that battle: the destruction of Saudi Arabia's own heritage More than 90 per cent of the archaeological treasures of the holy cities of Mecca and Medina, experts estimate, have been demolished to make way for hotels, apartment blocks and parking facilities.
The $13 billion project that led to a wave of demolitions in the middle of the last decade was part of an effort to modernise infrastructure in the ancient cities, where millions of pilgrims gather for the Hajj each year.
Sami Angawi, an expert on Arabian architecture, lamented that history had been " bulldozed for a parking lot". "We are witnessing now the last few moments of the history of Mecca,", he said.
The Kingdom's ultraconservative clerics believe that the veneration of ancient sites associated with the Prophet Mohammad and his family is heretical, and want potential shrines obliterated.
In October last year, a Saudi clerical body was reported to have renewed long-standing calls for the demolition of several historic Islamic sites – including the birthplace of the Prophet Muhammad and the grave of his mother. >>> Praveen Swami | Friday, February 04, 2011
Friday, February 04, 2011
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: British Muslims must subscribe to mainstream values of freedom and equality, David Cameron will say as he declares that the doctrine of multiculturalism has “failed” and will be abandoned.
Entering the debate on national identity and religious tolerance, the Prime Minister will declare an end to “passive tolerance” of divided communities, and say that members of all faiths must integrate into wider society and accept core values.
To be British is to believe in freedom of speech and religion, democracy and equal rights regardless of race, sex or sexuality, he will say. Proclaiming a doctrine of “muscular liberalism”, he will say that everyone, from ministers to ordinary voters, should actively confront those who hold extremist views.
He will also warn that groups that fail to promote British values will no longer receive public money or be able to engage with the state.
His speech, to an international security conference in Munich, comes after The Daily Telegraph disclosed the extent to which the British intelligence community fears the “unique threat” of terrorist attacks by radicalised British Muslims.
Mr Cameron will promise a new willingness to argue against and “defeat” extremist ideologies that lead some to engage in terrorism.
That means abandoning the notion that different communities should be able to live according to their own values and traditions as long as they stay within the law. “Under the doctrine of state multiculturalism, we have encouraged different cultures to live separate lives, apart from each other and the mainstream,” Mr Cameron will say. “We have failed to provide a vision of society to which they feel they want to belong.” >>> James Kirkup, Political Correspondent | Friday, February 04, 2011
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: The Telegraph reports from Tahrir Square in Cairo where, despite the violence this week, Egyptian demonstrators are determined to continue their protest until they see the back of President Hosni Mubarak.
THE TIMES: Mubarak clings on as masses cry ‘Leave’: At least 100,000 protesters packed into Tahrir Square in central Cairo today, renewing their demands for President Mubarak’s resignation in defiance of a vicious two-day crackdown by his supporters. >>> Martin Fletcher and James Hider in Cairo, and Giles Whittell in Washington | Friday, February 04, 2011 [£]
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: David Cameron has reprimanded Baroness Ashton at a European Union summit, saying she was too soft on "state-sponsored violence" against Egyptian protesters.
The dressing down in front of a room filled with Europe's leaders was the Prime Minister's first open criticism of Lady Ashton since the Labour peer became EU foreign minister just over a year ago.
Mr Cameron was forced to make a "number of interventions" to ensure that the EU sent a tough message to Egypt because a summit declaration, drafted by Lady Ashton, was too weak.
A diplomat close to the talks said: "Cameron said Ashton's declaration did not go far enough and that there needed to be clear and strong language to show Egypt there would be consequences unless the repression stopped."
Britain's prime minister pushed for tougher EU action at a summit lunch, including a hint that sanctions would be used as Western patience runs out with President Hosni Mubarak's attempts to cling to power in Egypt.
Mr Cameron demanded that the EU threw its weight behind an American plan for Mr Mubarak to resign immediately and hand power to a military-backed interim government before speedy elections. >>> Bruno Waterfield, Brussels | Friday, February 04, 2011
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: An armchair archaeologist has identified nearly 2,000 potentially important sites in Saudi Arabia using Google Earth, despite never having visited the country.David Kennedy, a professor of classics and ancient history at the University of Western Australia, used Google Earth satellite maps to pinpoint 1,977 potential archaeological sites, including 1,082 teardrop shaped stone tombs.
"I've never been to Saudi Arabia," Dr Kennedy said. "It's not the easiest country to break into."
Dr Kennedy told New Scientist that he had verified the images showed actual archaeological sites by asking a friend working in the Kingdom to photograph the locations.
The use of aerial and satellite imaging has been used in Britain to locate Iron Age and Roman sites in Britain, as well as Nazca lines in Peru and Mayan ruins in Belize.
But few archaeologists have been given access to Saudi Arabia, which has long been hostile to the discipline. Hardline clerics in the kingdom fear that it might focus attention on the civilisations which flourished there before the rise of Islam – and thus, in the long term, undermine the state religion. Read on and comment >>> Praveen Swami | Friday, February 04, 2011
BBC: First film footage of remote Amazon rainforest tribe >>> | Thursday, February 03, 2011
AL JAZEERA ENGLISH: Iranian supreme leader urges Egyptians to follow in the footsteps of Iran's 1979 revolution.Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran's supreme leader has called the uprisings in Egypt and Tunisia an "Islamic liberation movement".
In his address, during Friday prayers at Tehran University, he said that people are witnessing the reverberations of Iran's 1979 Islamic revolution.
Khamenei said of the current unrest that "this is what was always referred to as ... Islamic awareness in connection with Iran's great Islamic Revolution."
Khamenei has urged Egypt's protesters to follow in the footsteps of the Iranian revolution which toppled a pro-US leader and called on Egyptians to unite around religion.
Referring to the events in Tunisia in Egypt, he said that it is a sign of "Islamic awareness" in the region and that these movements will spell an "irreparable defeat" for the United States.
He said that the embattled Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak is a "servant" of Israel and the United States.
"For 30 years this country (Egypt) has been in the hands of someone who is not seeking freedom and is the enemy of those seeking freedom.
"Not only he is [sic] not anti-Zionist, but he is the companion, colleague, confidant and servant of Zionists. It is a fact that Hosni Mubarak's servitude to America has been unable to take Egypt one step towards prosperity."
The spiritual leader's remarks were received by cheering crowds of worshippers who, raising their hands, chanted "Death to America! Death to Israel!" >>> Source: Al Jazeera and agencies | Friday, February 04, 2011
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