Monday, February 21, 2011
REUTERS: A coalition of Libyan Islamic leaders has issued a fatwa telling all Muslims it is their duty to rebel against the Libyan leadership and demanding the release of all jailed protesters.
The group also demanded the release of fellow Islamic scholar Sadiq al-Ghriani, who was arrested after criticizing the government, and "all imprisoned demonstrators, including many of our young students."
Calling itself the Network of Free Ulema of Libya, the group of over 50 Muslim scholars said the government and its supporters "have demonstrated total arrogant impunity and continued, and even intensified, their bloody crimes against humanity.
"They have thereby demonstrated total infidelity to the guidance of God and his beloved Prophet (peace be upon him)," said the undated statement obtained by Reuters on Monday. >>> Edited: David Stamp | Monday, February 21, 2011
REUTERS: Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi's four-decade-old rule appeared in increasing jeopardy Monday as anti-government protests reached the capital for the first time, leaving dozens dead at the hands of the security forces.Several cities in the east appeared to be in the hands of the opposition as protests spread from Benghazi, cradle of a popular uprising that has rattled one of the Arab world's most entrenched governments.
One of Gaddafi's sons said the veteran leader would fight the revolt until "the last man standing."
Protesters rallied in Tripoli's streets, tribal and religious leaders spoke out against Gaddafi, and army units defected to the opposition in a revolt that has cost the lives of more than 200 people.
Protesters said they had taken control of Benghazi and other cities, with some analysts suggesting the country was heading for civil war.
"Libya is the most likely candidate for civil war because the government has lost control over part of its own territory," said Shadi Hamid, director of research at the Brookings Doha Center in Qatar. >>> Tripoli | Monday, February 21, 2011
REUTERS: Warplanes bombing locations in Tripoli – resident >>> London | Monday, February 21, 2011
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi may be heading to Venezuela, British Foreign Secretary William Hague said Monday, citing "information that suggests he is on his way."Hague told reporters in Brussels that he had no information on reports that Gaddafi was in Venezuela, but he added: "I have seen information that suggests he is on his way."
The British minister spoke to reporters after a meeting of EU foreign ministers focused on the revolts sweeping across Libya and other countries in North African and the Middle East.
Several media had also reported rumors that Gaddafi was headed to Venezuela. Chavez and Gaddafi have visited each other and enjoy warm political relations.
But a senior source in the Venezuelan government denied on Monday reports that Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi was traveling to the South American oil-producing nation led by his ally President Hugo Chavez.
A source told Reuters that the Caracas government "denies such information".
Protesters have taken control of several Libyan cities, sacking symbols of Muammar Gaddafi's hardline ruler and forcing pro-regime figures to leave the country. >>> | Monday, February 21, 2011
REUTERS: Venezuela denies Libya's Gaddafi en route >>> Reuters, Caracas | Monday, February 12, 2011
THE GUARDIAN: Anti-Gaddafi demonstrations spread to capital from Benghazi as some soldiers reportedly switch sides to aid activists
Protesters in Libya's capital are reported to have set fire to government buildings and attacked the headquarters of state television as the anti-Gaddafi demonstrations that began in the east of the country threaten to engulf the regime.
Hundreds of demonstrators took to the streets overnight clashing with police and shouting anti-Gaddafi slogans as tribal leaders demanded an end to the violent government crackdown. There were also reports that some soldiers in the east had defected to the opposition, in a revolt that has killed more than 230 people.
Witnesses said that the brutal crackdown, that began in the country's second city of Benghazi, has spread to the capital overnight with reports of automatic gunfire and teargas in Tripoli for the first time since the unrest began.
The government building where the general people's congress, or parliament, meets was reported to be on fire and there were separate reports that protesters had attacked the headquarters of the state television network.
"I can see the People's Hall is on fire, there are firefighters there trying to put it out," a Reuters reporter said.
A hotel worker told the Guardian: "The mood is very tense here. We have heard that government buildings are on fire and locals are scared to leave their homes. Most foreigners are trying to leave." >>> Ian Black and Matthew Taylor | Monday, February 21, 2011
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: BP, the oil giant, has said today that it is suspending operations in Libya and evacuating expatriate staff and their families amid the escalating violence.The British company said 40 expat staff and their families, mostly based in the capital, Tripoli, are being evacuated as it temporarily shuts down work on preparations to drill in the Libyan desert.
The move halts operations in the North African county just four years after it returned from a 30-year hiatus.
BP signed a deal worth at least 900 million US dollars (£550 million) in 2007 to explore in Libya.
It said it would monitor the situation on a daily basis and could not confirm when work would start again, but stressed that offshore operations in the region were still open and the closure would not impact oil production. Read on and comment >>> | MOonday, Februar 21, 2011
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: The violent actions undertaken by the regime of Colonel Muammar Gaddafi of Libya were “completely appalling”, David Cameron said on Monday.
The Prime Minister urged a “reform not repression” response from the regime to popular uprisings, as forces battled protesters in the capital Tripoli.
Amid a wave of protests across the region, Mr Cameron condemned the "completely appalling" violence which has reportedly left up to 200 dead and scores more injured in Libya.
"Our message, as it has been throughout this – I think we have been extremely consistent in saying that the response to the aspirations people are showing on the streets of these countries must be one of reform not repression,” Mr Cameron told reporters on Monday during an official visit to Egypt.
"We can see what is happening in Libya which completely appalling and unacceptable as the regime is using the most vicious forms of repression against people who want to see that country – which is one of the most closed and one of the most autocratic – make progress.
"The response they have shown has been quite appalling.” >>> James Kirkup, in Cairo and Andrew Hough | Monday, February 21, 2011
WELT ONLINE: Das Köngreich Saudi-Arabien stehe "mit all seinen Fähigkeiten" hinter der Herrscherfamilie in Bahrain, ließ Innenminister Prinz Najef erklären.Saudi-Arabien betrachtet die Unruhen in Bahrain offenbar mit wachsender Besorgnis. Der große Nachbar versicherte der Herrscherfamilie Bereitschaft, ihr „mit all seinen Fähigkeiten“ Rückendeckung zu geben.
Das sunnitisch geführte Saudi-Arabien stützt die ebenfalls sunnitische Al-Chalifa-Famiie finanziell und bemüht sich schon lange zu verhindern, dass der kleine Golfstaat mit seiner mehrheitlich schiitischen Bevölkerung in den Einflussbereich des Irans entgleitet. Bahrain mit seinen schwindenden Ölreserven ist finanziell und sicherheitspolitisch stark von Saudi-Arabien abhängig. >>> dapd/ks | Montag, 21. Februar 2011
WELT ONLINE: Mit Libyen und Bahrain hat die Umsturzwelle besonders skrupellose Regime erfasst. Es soll zahlreiche Tote und Entführte geben.
Seit dem Morgen um kurz nach eins gibt es in Libyen kein Internet mehr, die Seite des Internet-Netzwerkes Facebook war schon zuvor nicht mehr zu erreichen gewesen. Anrufversuche bei Mobiltelefonen im Osten des Landes gehen schon länger ins Leere, die meisten Sendefrequenzen des arabischen Nachrichtensender al-Dschasira hat die Regierung blockiert. War es vorher schon schwer, über den Volksaufstand gegen den seit 41 Jahren regierenden Muammar al-Gaddafi zu berichten, so wurde es nun nahezu unmöglich.
Selbst der arabische Nachrichtensender al-Dschasira, dem es bei den Kundgebungen in Ägypten in den vergangenen Wochen trotz aller Verbote und Einschüchterungs-versuche der Regierung gelang, pausenlos Livebilder vom Tahrir-Platz zu senden, muss bei seiner Libyen-Berichterstattung auf Amateuraufnahmen zurückgreifen, die einige Mutige auf elektronischem Wege außer Landes geschmuggelt haben.
Ausländische Journalisten gibt es in dem nordafrikanischen Land so gut wie gar nicht, die lokale Presse wird streng zensiert. Es ist deshalb schwer, das wahre Ausmaß der Demonstrationen zu erfassen. >>> Autor: Michael Borgstede | Samstag, 19. Februar 2011
WELT ONLINE: Unruhen in Tripolis: Zahlreiche Häuser brennen, über 60 Menschen sind gestorben. Außenminister Westerwelle fordert alle Deutschen auf, Libyen zu verlassen.
LIVE – 13.59 Uhr: Libysche Medien melden unter Berufung auf Augenzeugen, Aufständische hätten das Gebäudes des Olympischen Komitees in Tripolis angezündet. Das Komitee wird von Gaddafis Sohn geleitet. Oppositionelle behaupten, auch in mehreren Städten des Südens hätten sich Bürger der „Revolution gegen den Tyrannen Gaddafi“ angeschlossen. >>> | Montag, 21. Februar 2011
LE FIGARO: Alors que les manifestations se poursuivent dans les rues de Sanaa, Al-Qaida dans la péninsule arabique (Aqpa) prépare, avec discrétion, une nouvelle stratégie.
À Sanaa
Depuis son sanctuaire yéménite, al-Qaida dans la péninsule arabique (Aqpa) n'a pas formulé le moindre commentaire sur les manifestations contre le président Saleh, qui combat la mouvance terroriste avec le concours des forces spéciales américaines. «Cela ne doit pas surprendre, explique un ancien djihadiste yéménite. Comme en Égypte avec Moubarak, al-Qaida ne veut pas donner l'impression de donner des arguments à Saleh, pour qu'il agite le spectre du chaos, si jamais il devait quitter le pouvoir.» Continuez à lire et réagir à cet article >>> Par Georges Malbrunot | Vendredi 18 Février 2011
THE GUARDIAN: Following are highlights from an address on state TV by Saif al-Islam Gaddafi, son of the Libyan leader, Muammar Gaddafi
"Our spirits are high and the leader, Muammar Gaddafi, is leading the battle in Tripoli and we are behind him, as is the Libyan army.
We will keep fighting until the last man standing, even to the last woman standing ... We will not leave Libya to the Italians or to the Turks ... Our spirits are high.
"Muammar Gaddafi is not Zine al-Abidine or Mubarak. [He is not] a traditional ... leader.
"There are tens of thousands of Libyans who are flocking to Tripoli from all over Libya to defend Tripoli, Libya and Muammar Gaddafi. This is no secret. It is known that there are buses on all coastal roads coming from all Libyan cities.
"There is also the army ... The army is still well and capable. The army now will play a key role to enforce security and restore things back to order ... A firm stance is required. The Libyan army is not the Egyptian or the Tunisian army.
"Our army will be in Libya, and Muammar Gaddafi will be in it until the last moment ... We will eradicate them [enemies] all." >>> Reuters | Monday, February 21, 2011
Watch Guardian video: Saif al-Islam Gaddafi warns of civil war in Libya >>>
TIME: The news suspended forks on their way to mouths, and sent supermarkets rushing to pull goods from shelves. Last month, the website Débat Halal claimed it had evidence that a popular brand of halal-certified poultry sausages marketed in France by a giant international food producer actually contain pork, rendering them forbidden — or haram — to Muslims. The accusation led many French Muslims to question how they can be sure that any of the halal food they buy meets certification standards — only to discover that no single set of standards exists for determining which products are halal and which aren't. Now, some observers are hoping that the haram hubbub may finally push France's Muslim leaders to agree upon a united code for the halal food sector — one of the biggest-booming niche markets in the nation.The stir began when Débat Halal published a Jan. 16 report saying that tests had detected pork — a substance forbidden under both halal and kosher rules — within halal-branded poultry sausages produced by Herta, a unit of global food giant Nestlé. Counter-tests revealed by Herta a week later found no traces of pork in their Knacki Halal poultry sausages. Nevertheless, on Feb. 1, one of France's largest supermarket chains, Casino, removed the sausages from its stores to run its own test to "guarantee the strictest respect of halal certification." Still, the entire episode led Muslim consumers to wonder about the reliability of all the halal food they buy. >>> Bruce Crumley, Paris | Sunday, February 13, 2011
THE NEW YORK TIMES: CAIRO — A five-day-old uprising in Libya took control of its second-largest city of Benghazi and spread for the first time to the capital of Tripoli late on Sunday as the heir-apparent son of its strongman, Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi, warned Libyans in a televised speech that their oil-rich country would fall into civil war and even renewed Western “colonization” if they threw off his father’s 40-year-long rule.In a rambling, disjointed address delivered about 1 a.m. on Monday, the son, Seif al-Islam el-Qaddafi, played down the uprising sweeping the country, which witnesses and rights activists say has left more than 200 people dead and hundreds wounded from gunfire by security forces. He repeated several times that “Libya is not Tunisia or Egypt” — the neighbors to the east and west that both overthrew their veteran autocrats in the space of the last six weeks.
The revolt shaking Libya is the latest and most violent turn in the rebellion across the Arab world that seemed unthinkable just two months ago and now poses the greatest threat in four decades to Colonel Qaddafi’s autocratic power. The United States condemned the Qaddafi government’s lethal use of force. >>> DAVID D. KIRKPATRICK and MONA EL-NAGGAR | Sunday, February 20, 2011
REUTERS: Oil prices charged to a fresh 2-1/2 year high on Monday as traders eyed increasing violence in major producer Libya, feeding fears about rising inflation and restraining gains in equities.
Global stocks were slightly higher with emerging markets down and European shares flat. U.S. markets were closed for a national holiday.
Protests broke out in the Libyan capital Tripoli for the first time following days of unrest in the city of Benghazi and some army units defected to the opposition in what has become one of the bloodiest revolts to convulse the Arab world.
Financial markets are particularly sensitive to the violence in Libya because it exports around 1.1 million barrels per day of crude.
Brent oil was up $1.90 a barrel at $104.44 having earlier risen to a new high of $104.60. >>> Jeremy Gaunt, European Investment Correspondent, London | Monday, February 21, 2011
REUTERS: Swiss franc, Treasuries gain on Mideast tensions: The safe-haven Swiss franc and U.S. government bonds rallied on Thursday, while crude oil prices rose as unrest in the Middle East and tensions between Israel and Iran escalated. >>> Wanfeng Zhou, New York | Thursday, February 17, 2011
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Troops loyal to Colonel Muammar Gaddafi of Libya will "fight until the last man standing" to defend his regime, his son, Saif al-Islam Gaddafi, said as forces battled protesters in the capital Tripoli.
Col Gaddafi's second son and heir apparent appeared on television late in the evening to say there would be "rivers of blood" and that Libya was on the brink of a civil war that would burn its oil wealth.
"Our spirits are high and the leader Muammar Gaddafi is leading the battle in Tripoli, and we are behind him as is the Libyan army," he said. "We will keep fighting until the last man standing, even to the last woman standing...We will not leave Libya to the Italians or the Turks."
But he admitted that "civilians are driving tanks in Benghazi" and though he said only 84 people had died showed he was aware of the extent of the uprising.
"This is an opposition movement, a separatist movement which threatens the unity of Libya," he said. "We will take up arms, we will fight to the last bullet. We will destroy seditious elements. If everybody is armed, it is civil war, we will kill each other."
Opponents of the Gaddafi regime were in control of parts of Libya's second city Benghazi having driven back security forces who fired on them with high-velocity sniper rifles, machine guns and even anti-aircraft artillery.
There were less violent clashes in Tripoli, though there were also reports of gunfire and tear gas there as demonstrators gathered near Green Square and hurled stones at police. One protester told the al-Jazeera network they were chanting at the leader: "Where are you? Where are you? Come out if you're a man."
Human Rights Watch says that at least 233 people have died since last week in the unrest, which has spread from the eastern provinces. It said at least 60 people died in Benghazi yesterday, 50 deaths having been recorded at Al-Jalaa Hospital and ten more at 7 October Hospital.
The city was described to diplomats as a "war zone" by a senior regime official. >>> Richard Spencer, Middle East Correspondent Nabila Ramdani in Cairo | Monday, February 21, 2011
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Saif al-Islam Gaddafi: a profile – Saif al-Islam Gaddafi, son of Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi, had long been seen as the successor to his father before the wave of protests that has shaken the north African country. >>> | Monday, February 21, 2011
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: The Libyan people are finally rebelling against their despised ruler and his corrupt regime. But Gaddafi's strength in the Arab world was shamefully bolstered by his oil pact with Tony Blair, says Ian Birrell.As I stood on a hilltop overlooking al-Bayda less than a fortnight ago, the prosperity of the city was plain to see. It was fringed with new blocks of flats, cranes bristled on the skyline and the copper dome of the former king's palace, now a university, glistened in the winter sun.
Once, this busy city in the east of Libya was the home of King Idris. More recently, it benefited as the birthplace of Muammar Gaddafi's second wife, Safiya, a nurse who treated him after he suffered severe injuries in a car accident. Rumour has it the despot fell for her after she rejected a bribe to poison him. Now she is at the heart of the corruption that so blights this oil-rich nation, with much of the money ending up in her home town. So when the ''day of rage'' erupted here last week, with protesters burning municipal buildings and ripping down a ludicrous statue of the Green Book [Gaddafi's political testament], it was clear that Gaddafi was facing a genuine threat to his 41-year rule.
Today, al-Bayda is described as looking like a war zone, with blood on the streets, smoke rising from buildings and the authorities thought to have lost control. In nearby Benghazi, where I chatted to traders and dissidents over coffee, there are reports of massacres with hundreds of bodies turning up at hospitals and morgues. Young men are throwing home-made bombs against soldiers using heavy-calibre weapons, while airport runways are sabotaged to prevent the arrival of more troops.
''The military is shooting at all the protesters with live bullets, I've seen it happen with my own eyes,'' said a woman doctor in Benghazi yesterday. ''There was an eight-year-old boy who died from a gunshot to the head – what did he do to deserve this?" Similar horror stories are emerging from other towns and cities. Read on and comment >>> | Monday, February 21, 2011
THE WASHINGTON TIMES: British and European leaders are questioning Tony Blair‘s role as Middle East peace envoy following reports about the former British prime minister’s business links to Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi and the Middle East.Some have criticized Mr. Blair‘s past consulting deals in the Middle East, such as with Kuwait, and with the South Korean oil company UI Energy Corp., as cashing in on his connections as prime minister.
And two recent articles in London’s Daily Mail and the Telegraph have suggested Mr. Blair has business interests in Libya, indirectly linking him to a tourism company with multimillion-dollar deals in Tripoli and to the Gadhafi regime.
While these reports have not been substantiated, they are enough to cause some disquiet among members of the European Parliament, according to Scottish member Struan Stevenson.
Mr. Blair “has certainly been riding two horses,” Mr. Stevenson said, mentioning his role as peace envoy and his business-advising deals, including those with Tesco and JPMorgan. “And he’s earning a lot in the meantime.”
According to published reports, Mr. Blair has amassed a fortune of $30 million since leaving office in 2007. >>> Michelle Phillips, The Washington Times | Wednesday, June 09, 2010
THE WASHINGTON POST: The United States is “gravely concerned” about the widespread violence in Libya, as reports Sunday said the country’s second-largest city, Benghazi, was in the hands of rebel soldiers and anti-government protesters who had occupied the official residence of dictator Moammar Gadhafi.
“In Benghazi and in the coastal areas, we are very concerned about reports of security forces firing on peaceful protesters,” said U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Susan E. Rice.
“We’ve condemned that violence,” she told NBC‘s “Meet the Press.” “Our view is that in Libya, as throughout the region, the peaceful protests need to be respected.”
A statement from the U.S. State Department later Sunday added that officials are “gravely concerned with disturbing reports and images coming out of Libya,” where human-rights groups say as many as 200 protesters have been killed in clashes with security forces in recent days. >>> Shaun Waterman, The Washington Times, Sunday, February 20, 2011
THE WASHINGTON TIMES – EDITORIAL: Administration coddles dictatorship in Tehran
The people flooding into the streets of Iran to seek regime change find no support from the U.S. government. President Obama, who hectored Egypt‘s President Hosni Mubarak to transfer power “right now,” suddenly doesn’t want to get involved when it comes to the dictators running the Islamic republic.
The administration argues that taking a firm stand on regime change would hand Tehran a pretext for cracking down on pro-democracy protesters. It took the same approach during the 2009 protests, and the result was that Tehran’s thugs ruthlessly suppressed demonstrators and blamed the United States for instigating them. Iran‘s leaders will do the same again no matter what Mr. Obama says. The president has nothing to lose by standing up for freedom, especially because the Iranian regime really needs changing. >>> The Washington Times | Friday, February 18, 2011
Sunday, February 20, 2011
Anti-government protesters in the eastern Libyan city of Benghazi have reportedly seized army vehicles and weapons amid worsening turmoil in the African nation.
A local witness said that a section of the troops had joined the protesters on Sunday as chaos swept the streets of the city, worst hit by the uprising against Muammar Gaddafi's 42-year old rule.
Local residents told Al Jazeera that at least 200 people had died in Benghazi alone. The New York-based Human Rights Watch on Sunday put the countrywide death toll at 173. The rights group said its figure was "conservative".
News of the death toll came as residents of Benghazi reported renewed gunfire from security forces in the city. Witnesses also told Al Jazeera that a police academy in the city had been set ablaze.
Meanwhile in the capital, Tripoli, supporters of the government took to the streets in large numbers, as security forces prevented others from mounting large demonstrations against Gaddafi.
This came as witnesses told Al Jazeera that anti-government protesters were heading to Gaddafi's compound in the city of Al-Zawia near Tripoli, with the intention of burning the building down. Benghazi 'a war zone' >>> Source: Al Jazeera and agencies | Sunday, February 20, 2011
BBC: The government is to press for the European Court of Human Rights to be reformed, says the justice secretary.
Ken Clarke said the government would press for changes to the way the court operated when the UK takes over the chairmanship of the Council of Europe.
Speaking on the Andrew Marr show, he said the European Convention of Human Rights would continue to be adhered to.
Last week it was announced that a commission would be set up to examine a possible British Bill of Rights.
The commission, which will be jointly chaired by Mr Clarke and Deputy Leader Nick Clegg, will look at whether the UK Bill of Rights could overrule the European Convention of Human Rights.
"The government's policy is to investigate a case for a British Bill of Rights and whether that could improve the relationship between Strasbourg and here," said Mr Clarke. >>> | Sunday, February 20, 2011
BBC: Opposition groups and anti-government protesters in Bahrain say their demands must be met before they will enter into talks with the Gulf state's monarchy.
They want the government to resign, political prisoners to be released and the deaths of protesters investigated.
Six people were killed and many wounded in the last week as security forces used deadly force to quell protests.
Demonstrators have re-established a protest camp in Manama's central Pearl Square after security forces withdrew.
Hundreds of people spent the night in the square, the focal point of the week's unrest.
A protest camp had been cleared on Thursday with the deaths of four people, but protesters flocked to the square on Saturday after the military left.
They were met by police who fired volleys of tear gas and shotgun rounds, wounding dozens of people, before suddenly withdrawing and leaving the square to the jubilant protesters. (+ video) >>> | Sunday, February 20, 2011
THE SUNDAY TELEGRAPH: Hotels that only accept homosexuals are being investigated by a government-funded watchdog for discriminating against heterosexual couples.
The Equality and Human Rights Commission is examining whether "gay-only" guesthouses breach new laws designed to prevent people being treated unfairly in the provision of goods or services.
Last month, Christian owners of a guesthouse in Cornwall became the first to be found guilty of discrimination under equality laws after they refused to let a homosexual couple stay in a double room, in a legal action supported by the EHRC.
Now, the watchdog says it must establish an "objective balance" by considering if gays-only accommodation also defies the legislation.
Its lawyers are now investigating the issue and the EHRC says it has not ruled out taking legal action against "gay-only" hotels if they are deemed to be discriminating against heterosexuals.
However, it admits that it has not received a single complaint from the public about such establishments. >>> Jonathan Wynne-Jones, Religious Affairs Correspondent | Sunday, February 20, 2011
UPI: PARIS -- French President Nicolas Sarkozy says he wants to launch a national debate on the role and influence in France of Islam, the country's second-largest religion.Last week Sarkozy joined British Prime Minister David Cameron and German Chancellor Angela Merkel in announcing "multiculturalism is not working" and setting out to formalize the relationship between Islam and the fiercely secular state of France, France24 reported Friday.
Sarkozy's call for the debate is viewed as a move to woo voters from the far-right National Front party.
"It is out of the question that French society should be influenced by Islam," Sarkozy said. "This is a secular country." >>> | Friday, February 18, 2011
HT: Pastorius >>>
FRANCE 24: Following last year’s controversial ban on the full Islamic veil in public places, French President Nicolas Sarkozy now wants to formalise the relationship between Islam and France's fiercely secular state.
French President Nicolas Sarkozy has set his sights on the role of Islam in a secular France, which looks set to become a major theme ahead of the 2012 presidential elections.
Sarkozy said Tuesday that he wants to launch a debate in April on the role and influence of the country’s second-biggest religion.
The call for a discussion on Islam follows comments Sarkozy made last week that “multiculturalism is not working” and is seen as a bid to win back voters from the far-right National Front party.
“There is a growing gulf between the media portrayal of Islam and the preoccupations of the French people,” Sarkozy told members of his conservative Union for a Popular Movement (UMP) party at a dinner he hosted this week.
And while it remains unclear whether the president would look to encode the debate’s findings in a new law, one unnamed UMP lawmaker told right-wing daily Le Figaro, “The role of Islam in France is going to be a central issue in the 2012 presidential campaign.” ‘This is a secular country’ >>> Tony Todd | Saturday, February 19, 2011
LE POINT: Les rues de la ville seraient aux mains de dizaines de milliers d'opposants au régime de Kadhafi.
Des centaines de milliers de personnes se sont rassemblées dimanche à Benghazi, deuxième ville de Libye, pour porter en terre les manifestants tués par les forces de sécurité, ont rapporté des témoins. Les violences de la nuit de samedi à dimanche ont porté à 173 le nombre de personnes tuées en quatre jours d'affrontements, centrés sur Benghazi et les villes avoisinantes, selon un bilan établi par l'organisation de défense des droits de l'homme Human Rights Watch (HRW), dont le siège est à New York.
"Cent mille manifestants se rendent actuellement au cimetière pour les obsèques de dizaines de martyrs. Nous craignons un nouveau massacre car la route menant au cimetière est proche des casernes des forces de sécurité", a dit un habitant de la capitale de la Cyrénaïque. "Nous ne céderons pas tant que le régime ne sera pas tombé. Nous appelons les Nations unies à intervenir tout de suite pour arrêter ce massacre", a dit cet homme. Un autre témoin a indiqué que des centaines de milliers de personnes, dont des femmes et des enfants, s'étaient réunies pour prier devant 60 corps, exposés près d'un tribunal du nord de Benghazi, qui compte 700.000 habitants. "Un massacre a été commis ici hier soir", a déclaré dimanche un habitant qui a requis l'anonymat. Les forces de sécurité ont eu recours à des armes lourdes et, a-t-il ajouté, "nombre de soldats et de policiers sont passés dans le camp des manifestants". >>> SOURCE REUTERS | Dimanche 20 Février 2011
LE POINT: Plusieurs milliers de personnes ont défilé à Rabat pour demander au roi de renoncer à certains de ses pouvoirs.
Plusieurs milliers de personnes se sont rassemblées dimanche à Rabat pour exiger du roi Mohamed VI qu'il transfère une partie de ses prérogatives à un gouvernement élu et prenne des mesures énergiques contre la corruption. Sous une pluie battante, des manifestants agitaient des drapeaux tunisiens et égyptiens, référence aux révolutions qui viennent de chasser du pouvoir les présidents Zine ben Ali et Hosni Moubarak. Un organisateur a évoqué la présence de plus de 5.000 participants, une estimation révisée à moins de 3.000 par un responsable des forces de l'ordre. La présence policière est restée discrète.
Des agents en uniforme se tenaient à distance du lieu initial de rassemblement, dans le quartier de Bab el Ahad, mais des policiers en civil étaient mêlés aux manifestants, carnet de notes à la main. "Le peuple rejette une Constitution faite pour des esclaves!", "A bas l'autocratie!", scandaient les protestataires qui demandent également pour certains le départ du Premier ministre, Abbas el Fassi. Aucune attaque directe contre le roi n'a, en revanche, été relevée dans les slogans ou sur les banderoles des manifestants. >>> SOURCE REUTERS | Dimanche 20 Février 2011
NZZ ONLINE: Der Funke der Volksaufstände im arabischen Raum ist jetzt sogar nach China übergesprungen. Nach einem Aufruf im Internet kam es vereinzelt zu Demonstrationen. Das kommunistische Regime reagierte sofort mit massiver Polizeipräsenz, scharfer Zensur, Festnahmen und Hausarrest.
Ermutigt von den Volksaufständen in Ägypten und anderen arabischen Ländern haben erstmals auch in China Hunderte Menschen in verschiedenen Städten demonstriert. Ein Grossaufgebot der Polizei löste Menschenansammlungen in Peking und Shanghai innerhalb von nur einer Stunde auf. >>> sda/dpa | Sonntag, 20. Februar 2011
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Greedy MPs and rapacious bankers are just as dishonest as welfare fraudsters and freeloaders, says Jenny McCartney.
David Cameron, at the launch of the Welfare Reform Bill last week, made a rousing plea for the restoration of our ethics. In his speech, he bemoaned the end of “a collective culture of responsibility”, of an age when people’s self-image was measured by “whether they did the decent thing”. In such an era, he said, “fiddling the system would have brought not just public outcry but private shame”.
Mr Cameron was speaking with specific regard to our welfare system, and much of what he said is true. We are all familiar with those lurid tales of enterprising gentlemen who have claimed disability allowance while giving disco-dancing lessons on the side, or ladies whose complicated housing scams trawl in the annual GDP of a small Baltic country.
As well as such criminal fraudsters, however, there are the opportunistic freeloaders who trigger public ire without actually breaking the law. The latter are open in their intention to have large families that will be wholly supported by a groaning state. It was reported last week that the anti-social antics of the family of Tom O’Leary and Tanya Walsh (two adults, 12 children) had caused distress to the neighbours of their £1.2 million council-funded abode in Muswell Hill. Miss Walsh wrote on her Bebo site recently that her hobbies were “eating chocolate and having children”: the only people cheering her on were the makers of confectionery and Pampers. Read on and comment >>> Jenny McCartney | Saturday, February 19, 2011
My comment:
At last, a refreshing bit of common sense! Thank you for this extremely sensible article, Jenny McCartney. It is very tiresome to listen to the fraudsters at the top always going on about the people at the bottom milking the system. Who milks the system more than the greedy bankers and fraudulent MPs? And I write as a disinterested observer. Cameron had better start looking sideways before he looks down. He should get his chums to lead by example. – © Mark
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NZZ ONLINE: Offenbar wieder Schüsse auf libysche Demonstranten: Arzt berichtet von bisher 200 Toten - Proteste auch in Marokko >>> ddp/sda/dpa | Sonntag, 20. Februar 2011
SCHWEIZER FERNSEHEN: Am ersten Jahrestreffen des umstrittenen Islamischen Zentralrats (IZRS) in Biel hat Präsident Nicolas Blancho die muslimische Gemeinschaft zu mehr Selbstkritik angehalten. Er kritisierte die Mehrheit der islamischen Länder als rückständig und forderte eine Besserstellung der Frauen.Die islamische Gemeinschaft könne an Stärke und Macht gewinnen, wenn sie den Frauen mehr Platz einräume, sagte Blancho vor gut gefüllten Rängen im Kongresszentrum in Biel [D / E] .
Kritik an Ehrenmorden und Zwangsheiraten
Er kritisierte in diesem Sinne auch Ehrenmorde und Zwangsheiraten. Es gelte, mit den Reflexen der Vergangenheit zu brechen, sagte Blancho in deutsch und arabisch am Samstag vor 1500 bis 2000 muslimischen Mitgliedern und Interessierten aus der Schweiz und dem Ausland. Die Weisheit finde sich bei den Jungen.
Flankiert von zwei Bodygards rief der Gründer des IZRS die islamische Gemeinschaft dazu auf, sich nicht mehr zu beklagen und den Westen nicht mehr für alle Übel verantwortlich zu machen, sondern sich zu erheben und Verantwortung zu übernehmen. Der konvertierte Bieler unterliess jegliche Hasstiraden gegen andere Religionsgemeinschaften. Die Konferenz fand unter dem Motto «Islamische Identität und Moderne» statt. >>> sda/halp | Sonntag, 20. Februar 2011
SCHWEIZER FERNSEHEN: Übertritt zum Islam: Konvertierte Schweizer im Porträt: Die meisten in der Schweiz lebenden Muslime stammen ursprünglich aus einem muslimischen Land. Es gibt aber auch Schweizer, die zum Islam übertreten. 10vor10 fragte zwei von ihnen nach ihren Beweggründen >>> | Freitag, 01. September 2011 [Zum Teil in Schwyzertüütsch]
20 MINUTES ONLINE: Des manifestants ont demandé le départ du chef de l'Etat libyen Muammar Kadhafi et de tous les dictateurs du monde arabe samedi à Genève.«Kadhafi dictateur!», «Kadhafi assassin!» ont scandé les quelque 200 manifestants réunis samedi après-midi sur la Place des Nations à Genève.
Des portraits du colonel Muammar Kadhafi ont été brûlés, a constaté une journaliste de l'ATS sur place. Les manifestants, principalement des Libyens installés en Suisse et des sympathisants arabes, ont crié leur colère en agitant des drapeaux du pays. >>> ats | Samedi 19 Février 2011
THE NEW YORK TIMES: BEIRUT, Lebanon — Libyan security forces moved against protesters Saturday in Benghazi, the country’s second-largest city and the epicenter of the most serious challenge to four decades of Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi’s rule, opposition leaders and residents said. The death toll rose to at least 104 people, most of them in Benghazi, Human Rights Watch reported.The events appeared to mark a decisive turn in four days of protests that have shaken Libya, a North African nation rich in oil. By nightfall, a deadly cycle had clearly emerged in a city where thousands have gathered in antigovernment demonstrations: Security forces fired on funeral marches, killing more protesters, creating more funerals.
The scope of the crackdown was almost impossible to verify in an isolated country that remains largely off limits to foreign journalists and, as part of the government’s efforts to squelch the protests, has been periodically cut off from the Internet. But doctors reached by Al Jazeera, an Arabic satellite channel, said dozens and perhaps hundreds were killed and wounded in the fighting, which persisted into the night. And a Benghazi resident who visited the hospital said by e-mail that 200 were dead and nearly 850 wounded; if confirmed, that would substantially raise the death toll by Human Rights Watch, which reported at least 20 people killed Saturday.
“It is too late for dialogue now,” said a Benghazi resident who has taken part in the demonstrations but refused to be named. “Too much blood has been shed. The more brutal the crackdown will be, the more determined the protesters will become.”
“We don’t trust the regime anymore,” he said in a phone interview. >>> Anthony Shadid | Saturday, February 19, 2011
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