Wednesday, April 27, 2011
RADIO FREE EUROPE / RADIO LIBERTY: The 2,400 kilometers or so separating Cairo from Tehran might have been enough to keep relations at arm's length. But for the past three decades, the realities of geography dividing Egypt and Iran have been stretched into a yawning chasm by the shadow of one Khalid Islambouli.The Islamist army officer who assassinated Egyptian President Anwar Sadat in 1981 in revenge for signing the Camp David Accords with Israel has long stood as a symbol of the political and ideological divide between the two countries. Executed along with three co-conspirators for the crime the following year, Islambouli acquired pariah status in Egypt -- an embodiment of the perils lurking behind Islamic radicalism.
In Iran, by contrast, he is renowned as a hero and a martyr, a privilege reflected in a massive mural painting in central Tehran. One of the capital's most prestigious streets also bears his name, in what Egyptian officials have regarded as a provocation and a block to restoring long-severed diplomatic ties.
Now, however, the ghost of Islambouli is close to being laid to rest.
'Expansion Of Ties'
In what may be a blow to the interests of Israel and the United States, Egypt has declared itself ready to re-establish links with Tehran in the wake of February's overthrow of former President Hosni Mubarak, who saw Iran's Islamic regime as a bitter foe.
The new Egyptian foreign minister, Nabil Al-Arabi, signaled a thaw on March 30 when he voiced hopes for an "expansion of ties" with Iran. His comments came a month after Egypt -- in the wake of Mubarak's departure -- set Western alarm bells ringing by allowing Iranian naval ships to sail through the Suez Canal for the first time in 30 years.
Reasons to be wary were compounded this month by the Egyptian Foreign Ministry's spokesman, Mehna Bakhoum, who declared: "We are prepared to take a different view of Iran. The former regime used to see Iran as an enemy, but we don't."
The warm words have been reciprocated by Tehran, where the Foreign Ministry has confirmed it is preparing to appoint its first ambassador to Cairo since links were cut in 1979.
The contrast could hardly be greater with the tone set by Mubarak who, according to a U.S. diplomatic cable released by WikiLeaks, told Senator John Kerry that the Iranians "are big fat liars and justify their lies because they believe it is for a higher purpose." » | Robert Tait | Wednesday, April 27, 2011
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Chiefs or representatives of 61 Libyan tribes from across the country called for an end to Col Muammar Gaddafi's rule, in a joint statement released by French writer Bernard-Henri Levy."Faced with the threats weighing on the unity of our country, faced with the manoeuvres and propaganda of the dictator and his family, we solemnly declare: Nothing will divide us," said the text, drawn up in Benghazi on April 12.
"We share the same ideal of a free, democratic and united Libya," it said.
The African Union meanwhile urged an end to military actions targeting senior Libyan officials and key infrastructure, a statement said on Wednesday.
"Council urges all involved to refrain from actions, including military operations targeting Libyan senior officials and socio-economic infrastructure, that would further compound the situation and make it more difficult to achieve international consensus on the best way forward," the AU said.
The Pan-African body stressed the need for all the parties involved in the implementation of UN resolution 1973 on Libya "to act in a manner fully consistent with international legality and the resolution's provisions, whose objective is solely to ensure the protection of the civilian population." » | Wednesday, April 27, 2011
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: The royal wedding is a “legitimate target” for a terrorist attack because of Britain’s foreign policy and the invasion of Iraq and Afghanistan, a radical Islamic group has claimed.Muslims Against Crusades, which had its application to protest on Friday turned down by police, yesterday urged Muslims to stay away from central London when Prince William marries Kate Middleton and to avoid all means of public transport due to the heightened risk of an attack.
Assad Ullah, leader of the extremist campaign group, insisted that it had no “inside knowledge” but was simply repeating security fears that have already been widely reported.
“There is a legitimate Islam opinion that those who have been attacked have the right to retaliate,” he said.
“British foreign policy is causing this kind of feeling and increasing the instability in this country. We do not advocate violence but can see how they made themselves a legitimate target for others.”
Announcing that the group had abandoned its plans to protest against the wedding, group spokesman Abu Abbas said: “We urge all Muslims to stay away from the royal wedding, not only because of the drinking, drug taking and sexual promiscuity but because of the likelihood of an attack by the Mujahideen.
"We urge all Muslims to stay away from public places and all public transport, trains, buses and tubes around central London.” » | Victoria Ward | Wednesday, April 27, 2011
THE NEW YORK TIMES: TRIPOLI, Libya — Aisha el-Qaddafi, the daughter of Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi of Libya, likes to tell her three young children bedtime stories about the afterlife. Now, she says, they are especially appropriate.“To make them ready,” she said, “because in a time of war you never know when a rocket or a bomb might hit you, and that will be the end.”
In a rare interview at her charitable foundation here, Ms. Qaddafi, 36, a Libyan-trained lawyer who once worked on Saddam Hussein’s legal defense team, offered a glimpse into the fatalistic mind-set of the increasingly isolated family at the core of the battle for Libya, the bloodiest arena in the democratic uprising that is sweeping the region.
She dismissed the rebels as “terrorists” but suggested that some former Qaddafi officials who are now in the opposition’s governing council still “keep in touch with us.” She pleaded for dialogue and talked about democratic reforms. But she dismissed the rebels as unfit for such talks because of their use of violence, hurled personal barbs at President Obama and Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton and, at one point, appeared to disparage the basic idea of electoral democracy.
After arranging the interview last week, Ms. Qaddafi spoke for more than an hour late Sunday afternoon, just hours before NATO escalated its airstrikes with an attack that disrupted state television and another on the Libyan leader’s compound in Tripoli. Ms. Qaddafi, one of the many unofficial and sometimes rivalrous Qaddafi family power brokers who dominate Libya’s economic and political life, said the crisis had pulled the family together “like one hand.” » | David D. Kirkpatrick | Tuesday, April 26, 2011
THE NEW YORK TIMES: President Obama on Wednesday posted online a copy of his “long-form” birth certificate from the state of Hawaii, hoping to finally end a long-simmering conspiracy theory among some conservatives who asserted that he was not born in the United States and was not a legitimate president.The birth certificate, which is posted on the White House Web site, shows that Mr. Obama was born in Honolulu, Hawaii, and is signed by state officials and his mother.
“The President believed the distraction over his birth certificate wasn’t good for the country,” Dan Pfeiffer, the White House communications director, wrote on the Web site Wednesday morning. Mr. Pfeiffer said on the site that Mr. Obama had authorized officials in Hawaii to release the document broadly.
In a statement to the news media Wednesday morning, Mr. Obama said he decided to release the document in an effort to end the “silliness” about his birth that threatened to distract from the serious issues facing the country. » | Michael D. Shear | Wednesday, April 27, 2011
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Donald Trump 'proud' of Obama birth certificate publication: Businessman and potential Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump takes the credit for forcing Barack Obama to release a copy of his birth certificate. » | Wednesday, April 27, 2011
Mattar Ibrahim Mattar, a former member of parliament for Wefaq, the country's leading opposition group, told Al Jazeera that the families of medical staff who have been providing treatment to injured protesters were being arrested.
Human rights groups have accused Bahrain of arresting patients and medical staff suspected of taking part in protests, and sacking hundreds of public workers. Bahrain says it targets only those who committed crimes during the unrest in March.
On Monday the Syrian army advanced into the southern city of Deraa. In a statement the government said troops had been deployed on the request of citizens who were worried about "armed extremists".
Inside Story presenter Dareen Abughaida discusses with guests: Najib Ghadbian, a professor of Political Science at the University of Arkinsas; Hassan Nafaa, a professor of Political Science at Cairo University; and Ian Black, Middle East editor of The Guardian newspaper.
This episode of Inside Story aired on Tuesday, April 26, 2011.
Fury Erupts over Brown and Blair’s Wedding Invitation Snub »
THE INDEPENDENT: Rules on free movement within Europe in doubt after crisis caused by influx of refugees from North African unrest
The leaders of France and Italy yesterday called for an overhaul of the system of passport-free travel across 25 European nations following alarm in Paris over the effect of a wave of migrants fleeing conflict in North Africa.
The Italian premier, Silvio Berlusconi, and French President, Nicolas Sarkozy, said they wanted new border restrictions in a notable watering down of the aims of the 1995 Schengen deal for free movement of people across most of continental Europe.
The pair issued their demand at a summit in Rome designed to repair relations between the two countries that had been damaged by the dispute over the fate of many of the 28,000 people who have fled political turmoil in North Africa. Most of those landed first on the Italian island of Lampedusa, creating a humanitarian and political crisis that the Italian authorities attempted to solve by diverting many to France, prompting a furious response from its north-western neighbour. Mr Berlusconi yesterday acknowledged the greater burden faced by France after the exodus triggered by the revolt in Tunisia, the first nation to topple its leader in the wave of unrest sweeping the Arab world. In another sop to France, Italy hours earlier also agreed to play a role in bombing Gaddafi forces in the French-inspired Libyan campaign.
The leaders detailed their demands in a joint letter to the EU, and said they were working on proposals to change Schengen. Both Mr Berlusconi and Mr Sarkozy – who faces a presidential election in a year's time – are under pressure from right-wing parties to adopt a tough line on immigration.
"We want Schengen to survive, but to survive Schengen must be reformed," Mr Sarkozy told reporters after the meeting. "We believe in free circulation but we believe in a state of law and a certain number of rules." » | Michael Day | Wednesday, April 27, 2011
THE INDEPENDENT: Brutal security forces move in as government refuses to be cowed by warning of international sanctionsSyria's feared secret police raided hundreds of homes yesterday as authorities stepped up attempts to crush the pro-reform movement amid tentative signs of coordinated action by world leaders against the regime.
Forces were reportedly massing outside the north-western city of Baniyas last night amid fears that the government was planning an assault on a second rebellious city, where two weeks ago soldiers tried to quell protests against President Bashar al-Assad.
Thousands of army troops and tanks stormed the southern city of Deraa on Monday, killing at least 20 people in what appeared to be pre-emptive action against opposition to Assad rather than a response to demonstrations.
People braved sniper fire yesterday to pull the bullet-riddled bodies of the dead from the streets. More than 400 people have died during the uprising against the 11-year rule of Assad. » | Khalid Ali in Damascus and Rupert Cornwell in Washington | Wednesday, April 27, 2011
THE INDEPENDENT: If the dead soldiers are victims of revenge killings, it means the opposition is prepared to use force
Every night, Syrian state television is a horror show. Naked corpses with multiple bullet wounds, backs of heads sliced off. All Syrian soldiers, the television insists, murdered by "the treacherous armed criminal gangs" near Deraa.
One of the bodies – of a young officer in his twenties – has had his eyes gouged out. "Knives and sharp tools" appear to have been used on the soldiers, the commentary tells us. There seems no doubt that the bodies are real and little doubt that they are indeed members of the Syrian "security" forces – the word security needs to be placed in inverted commas these days – nor that the weeping, distraught parents in the background are indeed their families. » | Robert Fisk | Wednesday, April 27, 2011
Tuesday, April 26, 2011
Bahrain's authorities have cancelled the scholarships of several students who have demonstrated against the government in Britain.
Students in the UK now face the prospect of having to return home at the end of the summer, once they are unable to pay tuition fees for the next academic year.
The Bahraini Embassy in London says the decisions are not final and affect a relatively small number of students, but Bahraini opposition groups in the UK say they know of at least 35 students who have been affected and expect many more to come forward.
Charlie Angela reports
Preparations for the wedding between Prince William and Kate Middleton are in their final stages.
The couple tie the knot on Friday, and it is expected to attract the biggest television audience of any royal wedding to date.
Some 600,000 people are also expected to descend on London, the capital, for the big day.
Emma Hayward reports.
Observers do not believe Morocco will be another Egypt, Tunisia or Libya. But demonstrations are growing, and the next few months could be crucial for the country's future.
Inside Story presenter Emike Umolu discusses with guests: Lahcen Haddad, professor at Mohamed the Fifth University in Rabat; Stefan Sie-manowitz, a journalist specialising on North Africa; and Hilana Rizki, a member of the February 20 protest movement.
This episode of Inside Story aired on Monday, April 25, 2011
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: This week's disclosures from WikiLeaks confirm that Britain was a breeding ground for Islamist terrorism. But, 10 years after 9/11, we still pander to extremism, says Andrew Gilligan
The East London Mosque, the largest in Britain, hosted a "live telephone Q&A" with the world's most dangerous al-Qaeda preacher, advertised with a poster showing Manhattan in flames. At the North London Mosque, equally important and well-known, one of the trustees is a supporter, and former leader, of a terrorist organisation. According to the BBC, he "is said to have masterminded much of [its] political and military strategy" from his perch in London.
Over the last few days, the Guantanamo Bay files leaked to this newspaper have shown in compelling detail how Britain became a global hub of terror, with at least 35 inmates of the detention camp radicalised here in the years before 9/11. Yet the two examples I give do not come from the leaked files. They are much more recent. The people who run those two mosques have been in no way troubled by the authorities. In fact, they have been helped by them. At the North London Mosque, the radical activist was actually installed by the police – and remains a trustee. And in the financial year to 2010, the year after it hosted that session with the fundamentalist preacher, the East London Mosque received £660,000 of taxpayers' money – some of it from a Home Office fund for "preventing violent extremism".
There is a reason why Britain, in the words of one French official, is and remains the "Pakistan of the West", an incubator, entrepot and exporter of Islamic radicalism. There is a reason why, according to MI6, we face a "unique" threat from home-grown extremists. There is a reason why Britain is the only country in the Western world to have been subjected to a successful suicide terror attack by its own citizens. These things have happened, in part, because the last government, and Britain's security establishment, got its policy just about as wrong as it was possible to get. We were harsh where we should have been liberal – and liberal where we should have been harsh.
Control orders, the push for three months' detention without charge, random and blanket stop-and-search, and Britain's complicity in torture did little or nothing to restrain terrorism. But they undermined the rule of law for which we are fighting, angered middle-of-the-road Muslims and gave the extremists priceless fuel for their favourite narrative, "Islam under attack". » | Andrew Gilligan | Tuesday, April 16, 2011
TOWNSVILLE BULLETIN (AU): WHILE the Obamas, Nicolas Sarkozy and Carla Bruni and Sarah Ferguson will not be there, there will be places of honour for some interesting invitees.
Prince William, as an active member of a charity caring for the homeless, has set aside seats for homeless people from the greater London area.
He has also made seats available for soldiers injured during service in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Of course if you're the local publican, postie or butcher in the village of Bucklebury - the village where Prince William's soon-to-be wife Catherine Middleton's family live - you already have your invitations.
While thousands will attend the formal ceremony, only 600 chosen guests will attend a lunchtime buffet at Buckingham Palace.
The lunch extravaganza will be replete with champagne, canapes, and heavy hors d'oeuvres - including smoked salmon, pate, mini-sausage rolls - followed by petit[s] fours, mini-eclairs, trifle, and chocolate and lemon mousse.
An evening "event" will finish the day in a more intimate manner with 300 invited guests. » | Sue-Belinda Meehan | Monday, April 25, 2011
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Donald Trump, the billionaire property mogul who is considering running for US president, has picked a fight with Robert De Niro after the Oscar-winning star compared him to a "car salesman."
Mr Trump, who also hosts the US version of "The Apprentice," responded in typically robust fashion, suggesting that the tough guy actor was "not the brightest bulb on the planet" and "not Albert Einstein."
The public feud began after Mr Trump recently questioned where President Barack Obama was born, allying himself to the so-called "birther" movement which is demanding to see the president's original birth certificate.
Mr Obama was born in the state of Hawaii in 1961. Conspiracy theorists allege that he was actually born in Kenya, which would make him ineligible to serve as president.
De Niro, 67, the star of "Raging Bull" and "Goodfellas," and a Democrat supporter, was asked about the issue during a public interview at the Tribeca Film Festival in New York.
He said: "I won't mention names, but certain people in the news the last couple weeks, just, what are they doing? It's crazy. They're making statements about people that they don't even back up. Go get the facts before you start saying things about people."
The actor, who confirmed he was talking about Mr Trump, added: "It's like a big hustle. It's like being a car salesman. Don't go out there and say things unless you can back them up. How dare you? That's awful to do.
"To just go out and speak and say these terrible things? Unless you just want to get over and get the job. It's crazy." » | Nick Allen, Los Angeles | Tuesday, April 26, 2011
FRANKFURTER ALLGEMEINE: Im elften Jahr seiner Herrschaft sieht sich Baschar al Assad vom „Arabischen Frühling“ herausgefordert; er reagiert äußerst brutal auf die Proteste. Als junger Mensch hatte er noch gehofft, als Augenarzt praktizieren und sich aus dem politischen Geschäft heraushalten zu können.Der 21. Januar 1994 war ein Schicksalstag für Syrien: Basil al Assad, ältester Sohn des Staatspräsidenten Hafez al Assad, raste mit seiner Limousine dem Flughafen von Damaskus entgegen, weil er ein Flugzeug erreichen musste. Er verlor die Kontrolle über sein Fahrzeug und prallte gegen eine Absperrung aus Beton, das Auto überschlug sich. Der Fahrer war sofort tot. Basil al Assad war schon seit vielen Jahren als der sozusagen natürliche Nachfolger seines Vaters vorgesehen gewesen; er hatte sich darauf vorbereitet, und alle Syrer hatten diese Art der dynastischen Nachfolge verinnerlicht.
Doch nun musste alles anders kommen. Zwar blieb es bei der Assad-Dynastie, aber Basils jüngerer Bruder Baschar musste in die Bresche springen. Baschar, Jahrgang 1965, lebte damals in London. Und er lebte dort, wie man hörte, nicht ungern. Nach dem Studium der Augenheilkunde hoffte er, in seiner syrischen Heimat praktizieren und sich aus dem politischen Geschäft, so weit das überhaupt möglich war, heraushalten zu können. Jetzt aber, nach dem Tod des zwei Jahre älteren Bruders, waren diese Träume ausgeträumt: Baschar wurde politisch aufgebaut und erbte den Damaszener Thron, als sein Vater Hafez im Jahre 2000 starb - nach dreißig Jahren Machtausübung. » | Von Wolfgang Günter Lerch | Dienstag, 26. April 2011
TRIBUNE DE GENÈVE: La force internationale de l’OTAN en Afghanistan (ISAF) a affirmé mardi avoir tué son «ennemi public» numéro deux en Afghanistan, dans un bombardement à la mi-avril. Cet homme est un Saoudien membre d’Al-Qaïda.
L’ISAF indique dans un communiqué que «la deuxième de ses cibles les plus recherchées en Afghanistan a été tuée le 13 avril lors d’un bombardement» dans la province de Kunar» (est), un «fait marquant» dans la lutte contre Al-Qaïda.
L’homme, Abu Hafs al-Najdi, également connu sous le nom d’Abdul Ghani, un «haut responsable d’Al Qaïda» de nationalité saoudienne, avait selon la force coordonné «de nombreuses et importantes attaques» rebelles en Afghanistan.
Abu Hafs al-Najdi fait partie de la liste des 85 personnes les plus recherchées par gouvernement saoudien, selon le site internet du ministère de l’Intérieur. » | AFP | Mardi 26 Avril 2011
RUSSIA TODAY: Nothing sounds better than Sergey Rachmaninov to the British people. A poll with over 180,000 respondents has revealed that Rachmaninov's Concerto No 2 for piano with orchestra is Britain's favorite work of classical music, The Daily Telegraph reports.The Russian composer's Piano Concerto No 2 has been voted the nation's favorite in the annual poll held by Classic FM radio station. This work of the Russian genius became the soundtrack to the 1945 romance drama Brief Encounter by the then leading British filmmaker David Lean.
Rachmaninov's piano concerto, composed between the fall of 1900 and April 1901, significantly contributed to securing the reputation of the Russian composer in the UK and the rest of the West. This work became a symbol of Rachmaninov's comeback after a long depression he dove into after the failure of his First Symphony. Along with Concerto No 3, Piano Concerto No 2 is considered one of Rachmaninov's greatest works and also one of the most significant works of late romanticism in music as a whole. » | Tuesday, April 26, 2011
TELEGRAPH BLOGS – ED WEST: London was the global headquarters of Islamic terrorism in the years before and after 9/11. This fact wasn’t exactly a closely guarded secret, but the WikiLeaks Guantánamo Bay files shed interesting new light on the American perspective. (I especially like the detail that the US government suspected the BBC of being a “possible propaganda media network” for al-Qaeda after a BBC phone number was found on a terrorist. What do they mean “possible”? Have they not listened to Radio 4?)
London became the world terrorist hub partly because the country had a long tradition of shielding dissenters of all stripes; because it had a very unintrusive state compared to its European neighbours (no ID cards); and because of Britain’s historic links with many Arab countries. But there was another reason, and this is central to the reason why Europe has an Islamist problem and the United States doesn’t – the welfare state. Welfare is intimately linked to the failure of western European countries to integrate their Muslim populations, and explains why Britain has such a problem with Islamism.
Look at the two figures named by US intelligence as responsible for recruiting dozens of terrorists, Abu Qatada and Abu Hamza. Qatada, a Jordanian preacher and advisor to shoe bomber Richard Reid and Zacarias Moussaoui, the 9/11 plotter, was expelled from Kuwait for supporting the Iraqi invasion, then claimed asylum in Britain on the grounds of religious persecution. We granted it, naturally. Come in! Read on and comment » | Ed West | Tuesday, April 26, 2011
THE INDEPENDENT: Foreign Secretary William Hague warned Cabinet colleagues today that Britain and its allies must prepare for the long haul in Libya as weeks of air strikes show little sign of unseating Muammar Gaddafi.
Mr Hague was updating Cabinet as Defence Secretary Liam Fox flew to the US for talks on the best way of stepping up pressure on the Libyan dictator's forces.
The Foreign Secretary insisted that there were "grounds for optimism", 38 days after international military action was launched to enforce United Nations (UN) Security Council resolution 1973.
Summarising Mr Hague's comments to Cabinet, a Downing Street spokeswoman said: "The general tone was that there were grounds for optimism, good progress was being made, the alliance was holding up very well, but clearly we need to turn up the pressure.
"The mission is going in the right direction but we need to prepare for the long haul." » | Andrew Woodcock, PA | Tuesday, April 26, 2011
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: A language war has broken out amid the normally placid lakes and mountains of Italy's German-speaking South Tyrol region.Italian-speakers are furious at the number of footpath signs which have been erected in only German in the Dolomites, an area that is renowned for its extensive hiking trails and spectacular scenery.
Hikers who speak only Italian have been left bamboozled when confronted with signs pointing to an Archaologischer wanderweg [sic] [Wanderweg] (archaeological trail) or a wasserfall [sic] [Wasserfall] (waterfall - which in Italian would be the vastly different “cascata”).
The region, which was part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire until it was ceded to Italy at the end of the First World War, is supposed to be bilingual, a dual identity reflected in its name - Alto Adige in Italian and Sud [sic] Tirol [Südtirol] in German.
Road signs are rendered in both Italian and German - the regional capital of Bolzano, for instance, is Bozen in German while the town of Bressanone is also known as Brixen - but up in the mountains, particularly in areas close to the Austrian border, German increasingly predominates.
Heaped with snow in winter and baked by the sun in summer, the timber signs do not last forever. » | Nick Squires, Rome | Tuesday, April 26, 2011
THE GUARDIAN: Bonus payouts shrank by 8% over last 12 months at the same time as permanent 7% rise in basic salaries in Square Mile
Workers in the City of London who have seen contentious bonus payouts shrink by 8% over the last 12 months have more than made up for their loss through a permanent 7% rise in basic salaries, according to a study published today.
Bonuses paid to City workers fell from £7.3bn to £6.7bn for the year to April, the Centre for Economics and Business Research (CEBR) says, but these purported performance-linked payouts remain a step above levels recorded in 2009, when the worst banking crisis since the 1930s saw the City's bonus pool dip to £5.3bn.
However, more than offsetting the impact of shrinking City bonuses, basic salaries in the Square Mile – which still make up the lion's share of pay deals for most City workers – jumped 7%, according to CEBR's analysis of official data from the Office for National Statistics.
Lord Oakeshott, the Liberal Democrat peer who resigned as a party spokesman in protest at what he saw as the coalition's failure to curb banking industry excesses, said: "Real incomes are now being seriously squeezed in the rest of Britain but City pay just sails merrily on." » | Simon Bowers | Tuesday, April 26, 2011
THE GUARDIAN: Ben Bernanke, chairman of Federal Reserve, expected to maintain loose monetary policyThe US dollar has fallen to new lows against other major currencies, undermined by predictions that the US would continue to resist pressure to raise interest rates.
In early trading, the dollar dropped to its weakest level ever against the Swiss franc, having touched a record low against the Australian dollar overnight. It also hit a four-week low against the yen, while the dollar index, which measures it against a basket of rival currencies, was close to its lowest level since August 2008.
The fall came a few hours ahead of the start of the Federal Reserve's monthly two-day meeting to set monetary policy.
City experts believe that this will be a defining week for the dollar. Ben Bernanke, chairman of the Fed, will for the first time hold a press conference on Wednesday evening immediately after the Federal open market committee has voted. Traders expect no change to the Fed's current loose monetary position. » | Graeme Wearden | Tuesday, April 26, 2011
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: William Hague has condemned the bloody crackdown on protests in Syria and call [sic] for an end to violent repression.
Mr Hague confirmed that Britain is working with partners in the United Nations Security Council, the European Union and the Middle East region to send a "strong signal" to Bashar Assad, the Syrian president, that he must halt violence against civilians.
The UK has joined France, Germany and Portugal in drawing up a draft statement on Syria which is being circulated at the UN, according to Government sources.
The move comes amid growing concern over the brutal tactics being employed by the Syrian regime to quell unrest and silence calls for President Assad to go.
At least 11 people were killed yesterday in an escalation of the crackdown on the city of Daraa, where the uprising began last month.
In a statement issued by the Foreign Office in London today, Mr Hague said: "I condemn utterly any violence and killings perpetrated by the Syrian security forces against civilians who are expressing their views in peaceful protests. This violent repression must stop." » | Tuesday, April 26, 2011
ARAB NEWS – EDITORIAL: It is estimated that there are two million working in homes in the Kingdom
Reports about maids all too regularly hit the headlines in this paper and others in the Kingdom. There are stories about maids who are abused, maids who are kept locked up or unpaid for months, even years. There are stories about maids who run away, or who have tricked or cheated their employers. Likewise, there are complaints about the costs of bringing a maid into the country. There are reports, too, of other countries being whipped up into a frenzy of concern about the treatment of maids in Saudi Arabia and their threats to stop them coming in future or imposing conditions about their employment contracts, including demands to know details about the families they are going to, their financial position, a description of the house, the number of rooms, photos of the wife and husband. Regularly, too, there are reports about new sources of maids — from Cambodia, Vietnam, indeed anywhere they can be found. The fact is that Saudi Arabia has become over-reliant on maids. » | Editorial | Tuesday, April 26, 2011
CNN: France's Islamic veil ban spurs passionate reaction worldwide » | Michael Saba, CNN | Monday, April 25, 2011
DETROIT FREE PRESS: The Rev. Terry Jones is to file an appeal today in Wayne County Circuit Court over a Dearborn court's decision against him last week that thwarted his plans to protest outside the Islamic Center of America in Dearborn, an attorney said Monday.
"It was a clear violation of the First Amendment's right to free speech," said Richard Thompson, president and chief counsel for the Ann Arbor-based Thomas More Law Center, which is representing Jones.
Jones, the Florida pastor who ordered the burning of a Quran last month, was to protest Friday outside the mosque in Dearborn, but Wayne County prosecutors filed an unusual complaint against him, saying he would breach the peace if he rallied. » | Niraj Warikoo, Detroit Free Press Staff Writer | Tuesday, April 26, 2011
THE REPUBLIC: RICHMOND, Va. — A federal court has denied a Muslim inmate's lawsuit claiming the Virginia prison system violated his religious rights by refusing to allow him to grow a 1/8-inch beard.
William Couch challenged the Department of Corrections' grooming policy that bans long hair or beards.
A federal court in Harrisonburg sided with the department Thursday. Read on and comment » | Dena Potter | Associated Press | Monday, April 25, 2011
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: France and Italy will on Tuesday present Brussels with an ultimatum to tear up the free travel European border rules that has been the EU's signature accomplishment for 16 years.
Nicolas Sarkozy is holding emergency talks in Rome with Silvio Berlusconi after a row over Tunisian refugees threatened to spiral out of control and lead to the reintroduction of French border controls.
The Italian prime minister called the meeting after his decision to give more than 25,000 Tunisian refugees residence permits caused the worst border crisis since the EU's 1995 Schengen Treaty.
The French president, who will face a challenge from the anti-immigrant far-Right during elections next year, has responded furiously and criticised "flawed" EU rules that have let the migrants into France. The French sparked a major diplomatic incident last week after closing the rail border with Italy at Ventimiglia, citing risks of disturbances to public order to refuse entry to trains carrying Tunisian migrants.
France has accused Italy of violating the EU's "Schengen" free movement rules by giving the Arab migrants, who are mainly French-speaking, permits and encouraging them to travel to France.
Periodic border checks with Italy have been reinstated and several hundred Tunisians, bearing the residence permits, have been sent back to Italy. » | Bruno Waterfield, Brussels | Monday, April 25, 2011
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: When Finsbury Park mosque opened nearly 20 years ago it was intended to be a centre for peaceful worship, feted by the Prince of Wales and seen as an emblem of multi-cultural Britain.But the Guantánamo files disclose that by the late 1990s the mosque in north London had become a “haven” for extremism where disaffected young men from around the world were radicalised before being sent to al-Qaeda training camps in Afghanistan.
At least 35 Guantánamo detainees passed through Finsbury Park and a network of other centres used by extremists in Britain, including Regent’s Park mosque, East London mosque and a rented room above the Four Feathers Youth Club near Baker Street.
The mosques became recruitment centres for an al-Qaeda cell led by Abu Hamza, the radical imam formerly based in Finsbury Park, who is serving a seven-year sentence at Belmarsh high security prison, and Abu Qatada, a fanatical Muslim cleric described by British intelligence as “Osama bin Laden’s ambassador to Europe”.
Together, they turned London into a hub of global terrorism, taking in impressionable immigrants by the dozen and churning them out as killers-in-waiting.
As well as the men who passed through mosques in London, another 10 were radicalised outside the capital, mainly in Birmingham. For many of the Guantánamo detainees who passed through London, their journey to extremism began with hopes of a better life. » | Steven Swinford | Monday, April 25, 2011
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Real estate mogul Donald Trump suggested in an interview on Monday that President Barack Obama had been a poor student who did not deserve to be admitted to the Ivy League universities he attended.Mr Trump, who is mulling a bid for the Republican presidential nomination, offered no proof for his claim but said he would continue to press the matter as he has the legitimacy of the president's birth certificate.
"I heard he was a terrible student, terrible. How does a bad student go to Columbia and then to Harvard?" Mr Trump said in an interview with The Associated Press. "I'm thinking about it, I'm certainly looking into it. Let him show his records."
Mr Obama graduated from Columbia University in New York in 1983 with a degree in political science after transferring from Occidental College in California. He went on to Harvard Law School, where he graduated magna cum laude 1991 and was the first black president of the Harvard Law Review.
Mr Obama's 2008 campaign did not release his college transcripts, and in his bestselling memoir, "Dreams From My Father," Mr Obama indicated he hadn't always been an academic star. Mr Trump told the AP that Mr Obama's refusal to release his college grades were part of a pattern of concealing information about himself.
"I have friends who have smart sons with great marks, great boards, great everything and they can't get into Harvard," Mr Trump said. "We don't know a thing about this guy. There are a lot of questions that are unanswered about our president." » | Tuesday, April 26, 2011
Monday, April 25, 2011
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: At least 35 terrorists incarcerated at Guantánamo Bay were sent to fight against the West after being indoctrinated by extremist preachers in Britain, secret files obtained by The Daily Telegraph disclose.Abu Qatada and Abu Hamza, two preachers who lived off state benefits after claiming asylum, are identified by the American authorities as the key recruiters responsible for sending dozens of extremists from throughout the world to Pakistan and Afghanistan via London mosques.
The leaked documents, written by senior US military commanders at Guantánamo Bay, illustrate how, for two decades, Britain effectively became a crucible of terrorism, with dozens of extremists, home-grown and from abroad, radicalised here.
Finsbury Park mosque, in north London, is described as a “haven” for extremists. United States intelligence officials concluded the mosque served as “an attack planning and propaganda production base”.
The files will raise questions over why the Government and security services failed to take action sooner to tackle the capital’s reputation as a staging post for terrorism, which became so established that the city was termed “Londonistan”.
The documents show that at least 35 detainees at Guantánamo had passed through Britain before being sent to fight against Allied forces in Afghanistan. This is thought to be more than from any other Western nation. » | Robert Winnett, Christopher Hope, Steven Swinford and Holly Watt | Monday, April 25, 2011
REUTERS: An authoritarian Arab ruler unleashes his security forces and irregular militia gunmen to crush peaceful pro-democracy protests, killing hundreds of people including women and children.
Does the West a) issue statements condemning the excessive use of force; b) seek U.N. sanctions and an International Criminal Court investigation; c) provide practical support for pro-democracy protesters, d) intervene militarily?
The answer, to many human rights campaigners, seems to vary unacceptably depending on the state concerned.
Western powers which took up arms against Muammar Gaddafi in Libya, citing the United Nations principle of the responsibility to protect civilians, have confined themselves so far to verbal outrage at the killing of some 350 people in Syria.
The balance of Western economic and security interests and humanitarian values is different in each case but the perceived double standard is causing anger in the Middle East and among Western publics.
"After Friday's carnage, it is no longer enough to condemn the violence," Joe Stork, deputy Middle East director at pressure group Human Rights Watch, said in a statement.
"Faced with the Syrian authorities' 'shoot to kill' strategy, the international community needs to impose sanctions on those ordering the shooting of protesters."
When the Gulf Arab kingdom of Bahrain called in Saudi troops last month to help quash a pro-democracy movement led mostly by the Shi'ite Muslim majority, the United States and Europe uttered a few pro-forma words of disapproval, then fell silent. » | Paul Taylor | PARIS | Monday, April 25, 2011
SPIEGEL ONLINE INTERNATIONAL: Guido Westerwelle's image as foreign minister isn't just eroding abroad, but also at home. Inside the Foreign Ministry, German diplomats are hoping they will soon have a new boss. Chancellor Angela Merkel is also reportedly disappointed in the top diplomat, who doesn't seem to have grown into his role.
Christian Hacke has already passed judgment on Guido Westerwelle's role in history. Hacke is one of Germany's leading political scientists. He is the director of the political science department at the University of Bonn and has written a standard work on German foreign policy. But Hacke now has nothing but cold disdain for Germany's current foreign minister.
"Look at Germany's foreign ministers, from Konrad Adenauer and Heinrich von Brentano to Joschka Fischer and Frank-Walter Steinmeier," he says. "These were solid, well-informed men, who mastered the core principles of diplomacy: enhancing Germany's image and representing its interests in the world."
By contrast, the professor contends that Westerwelle -- who was a protege of former Foreign Minister Hans-Dietrich Genscher -- has embraced a "neo-German Wilhelminism," which he displayed in particular when he abstained from the United Nations Security Council resolution on an establishing a no-fly zone over Libya. Hacke says that Westerwelle engages in self-righteous grandstanding while, at the same time, cowardly running for cover. "He is the vainest, most narrow-minded and stubborn foreign minister since von Ribbentrop."
It is a monstrous allegation. Joachim von Ribbentrop was Hitler's foreign minister from 1938 to 1945. In Hacke's opinion, the consequences are perfectly clear: "Westerwelle must go because he can no longer properly represent German interests -- and because we have to feel ashamed of him." Westerwelle Widely Viewed as Failure » | Ralf Neukirch | Monday, April 25, 2011
SPIEGEL ONLINE INTERNATIONAL: The success of the True Finns in last week's Finnish elections has shocked Brussels. They are just one of a number of right-wing populist parties currently flourishing in Europe. Their rise could threaten the euro bailout. By SPIEGEL Staff.
Timo Soini, 48, is standing in front of "Hesburger," a fast food restaurant in the western part of Helsinki. It is shortly before 10 a.m., and he is waiting patiently for the restaurant to finally open its doors. Soini, the chairman of the right-wing populist Perussuomalaiset, or "True Finns" party, has been giving interviews for almost three hours. There are more than 250 new text messages on his mobile phone. Now he's hungry.
It is the morning after an election that brought what the papers have called a "revolution" to Finland. Almost one in five voters voted for Soini's party on Sunday, April 17, and now it looks like it is about to become part of the new government. A political earthquake is happening in Helsinki, one that could have reverberations throughout Europe.
Until now, the small country in the far northeastern corner of the continent was seen as a model member of the European Union. It was known for its successful export-oriented companies, liberal social policies and the best-performing school students in the Western industrialized world. It is ironic that it is here in Finland -- a part of Europe that always seemed eminently European -- that a movement is now coming to power that inveighs against immigrants and abortions, considers Brussels to be the "heart of darkness" and rejects all financial assistance for what it calls "wasteful countries," like Greece, Ireland and Portugal. "We were too soft on Europe," says Soini, adding that Finland should not be made to "pay for the mistakes of others."
The election result from Europe's far north has alarmed the political establishment in Brussels. If Soini's party becomes part of the new government, there will be more at stake than Helsinki's traditional pro-European stance. The entire program to rescue the euro could be in jeopardy, because it has to be approved unanimously by the entire European Union. That includes both the anticipated aid for Portugal, the additional billions for the euro bailout fund and the planned reform of the fund. Swedish Foreign Minister Carl Bildt calls the Finnish election results a "reason for concern," while Hans-Dietrich Genscher, the former head of Germany's pro-business Free Democratic Party (FDP) and former German foreign minister, warns: "The outcome of the elections is a warning sign." Gaining Ground Across the EU » | Spiegel Staff | Monday, April 25, 2011
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: The Crown Prince of Bahrain, who refused an invitation to the royal wedding, has been politically sidelined by a hardline trio of senior royal advisers.Although his invitation was criticised as rewarding a "tyrant", Crown Prince Salman bin Hamad al-Khalifa was seen until recently as a reformist.
He had won key battles for influence over his father King Hamad over a conservative faction at court that vehemently opposed to political reform.
But last month the powerful prime minister, Sheikh Khalifa bin Salman, along with the two powerful brothers who run the military and the royal court's apparatus insisted on a crackdown backed by neighbouring Saudi Arabia.
"The Crown Prince should not be seen as someone who is representative of ongoing events in Bahrain today," said Theodore Karasik, of the Institute for Near East and Gulf Military Analysis.
"The Crown Prince was trying to broker a deal between the ruling family and the opposition and a lot of the reason the Saudis came in was to try to resolve disputes within the al-Khalifa family itself over this attempt by the Crown Prince." » | Richard Spencer, Middle East Correspondent | Monday, April 25, 2011
TRADE ARABIA: Bahrain Crown Prince declines royal wedding invite: His Royal Highness Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, Crown Prince and Deputy Supreme Commander, has decided not to attend the marriage of Prince William, son of Prince Charles of Wales, in London on Friday. » | TradeArabia News Service | Monday, April 25, 2011
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