LCCC
ENGLISH DAILY NEWS BULLETIN
January 29/09
Bible Reading of the
day.
Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Mark 4,1-20. On another occasion
he began to teach by the sea. A very large crowd gathered around him so that he
got into a boat on the sea and sat down. And the whole crowd was beside the sea
on land. And he taught them at length in parables, and in the course of his
instruction he said to them, Hear this! A sower went out to sow. And as he
sowed, some seed fell on the path, and the birds came and ate it up. Other seed
fell on rocky ground where it had little soil. It sprang up at once because the
soil was not deep. And when the sun rose, it was scorched and it withered for
lack of roots. Some seed fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked it
and it produced no grain. And some seed fell on rich soil and produced fruit. It
came up and grew and yielded thirty, sixty, and a hundredfold." He added,
"Whoever has ears to hear ought to hear." And when he was alone, those present
along with the Twelve questioned him about the parables. He answered them, "The
mystery of the kingdom of God has been granted to you. But to those outside
everything comes in parables, so that 'they may look and see but not perceive,
and hear and listen but not understand, in order that they may not be converted
and be forgiven.'" Jesus said to them, "Do you not understand this parable? Then
how will you understand any of the parables? The sower sows the word. These are
the ones on the path where the word is sown. As soon as they hear, Satan comes
at once and takes away the word sown in them. And these are the ones sown on
rocky ground who, when they hear the word, receive it at once with joy. But they
have no root; they last only for a time. Then when tribulation or persecution
comes because of the word, they quickly fall away. Those sown among thorns are
another sort. They are the people who hear the word, but worldly anxiety, the
lure of riches, and the craving for other things intrude and choke the word, and
it bears no fruit. But those sown on rich soil are the ones who hear the word
and accept it and bear fruit thirty and sixty and a hundredfold."
Blessed Guerric
of Igny (c.1080-1157, Cistercian abbot
5th sermon for Christmas (trans. SC 166, p.227f.; and Cistercian Fathers series)
"Those sown on rich soil are the ones who hear the word and accept it and bear
fruit"
Truly it is «a trustworthy word and deserving of every welcome» (1Thes 1,15),
your almighty Word, Lord, which in such deep silence made its way down from the
Father's royal throne (Wis 18,14f.) into the mangers of animals and meanwhile
speaks to us better by its silence. «Let him who has ears to hear, hear» what
this loving and mysterious silence of the eternal Word speaks to us... For what
recommends the discipline of silence with such weight and such authority, what
checks the evil of restless tongues and the storms of words, as the Word of God
silent in the midst of men. «There is no word on my tongue» (Ps 139[138],4), the
almighty Word seems to confess while he is subject to his mother. What madness
then will prompt us to say: "With our tongues we can do great things; our lips
are good friends to us; we own no master" (Ps 11,5). If I were allowed I would
gladly be dumb and be brought low, and be silent even from good things,21 that I
might be able the more attentively and diligently to apply my ear to the secret
utterances and sacred meaning of this divine silence, learning in silence in the
school of the Word if only for as long as the Word himself was silent under the
instruction of his mother... «The Word was made flesh and dwelt amongst us» (Jn
1,14). With complete devotion, then, let us think of Christ in the swaddling
clothes with which his mother wrapped him, so that with eternal happiness we may
see the glory and beauty with which his Father has clothed him.
Free Opinions, Releases, letters &
Special Reports
Dancing Among Landmines—The
Obama Al-Arabiya Interview.
Meet Mrs. Ahmedinejad and Co.
Report: Iran could build nuclear
bomb by 2010-Israel News 28/01/09
Report: UNRWA pays terrorists.
By: Yitzhak Benhorin
28/01/09
Latest News Reports From
Miscellaneous Sources for January 28/09
France to Withdraw Warships Serving UNIFIL-Naharnet
Moscow Backs Lebanon's
Defense Strategy-Naharnet
U.S. Trains Lebanese Army
on Medical Air Evacuation-Naharnet
Egypt Hammers Hizbullah,
Hamas, Qatar-Naharnet
Cedar-Shaped Island off Damour Coast-Naharnet
Iran arms ship released by U.S.
Navy now 'sailing to Syria'-Haaretz
Israel expels Venezuela embassy
staff, cuts ties with Caracas-Haaretz
Obama envoy tells Mubarak:
Extending Gaza truce is 'critical'-Haaretz
Israel strikes Gaza tunnels- Israel
News
Report: Turkish FM Urges
Hamas to Give up Arms-Naharnet
Attack on Lebanese
Musicians in Jordan Linked to al-Qaida-Naharnet
Assad to Meet Murr-Naharnet
Tashnak Seeking Murr-Aoun
Reconciliation-Naharnet
Baroud: Cabinet to Address Prison Issue in Special Session-Naharnet
Assad: There is No Link
Between Improved Ties With Lebanon and Exchange of Ambassadors-Naharnet
Lebanese-French Program to
Strengthen Airport Security-Naharnet
Lebanese
Kidnapped-Released in Nigeria-Naharnet
Netanyahu: We have to
Eliminate Hizbullah and Hamas Threats-Naharnet
Suleiman Urges Cabinet to
Handle Palestinian Bases-Naharnet
Security Directorate
Denies Bugging Charge-Naharnet
Syria Approves First
Lebanese Ambassador to Damascus-Naharnet
France for Role in Middle
East Peace and Lebanon Stability-Naharnet
Violence Spreads to
Armenian Community-Naharnet
Hamas Wants Thorough
Approach to Issue of Palestinian Bases in Lebanon-Naharnet
Berri: It is Difficult For
Any One Group to Control Border-Naharnet
Realities of the UN in Lebanon-Washington
Institute for Near East Policy
Tough Choices on Hamas Prompt Arab Disarray-Washington
Institute for Near East Policy
IRAN: Tehran offers to help rebuild Gaza-Los
Angeles Times
France demands Syria to aid in releasing Shalit-International
Middle East Media Center
Obama Signals New Tone in Relations With Islamic World-New
York Times
Attack on Lebanese Musicians in Jordan Linked to al-Qaida
Naharnet/Jordanian authorities revealed a link between the attack on Lebanese
musicians performing in downtown Amman last July and the terrorist group
al-Qaida.
Twelve Jordanians of Palestinian origin went on trial Tuesday on charges that
included shooting members of Saint-Esprit University's (USEK) choir in downtown
Amman last July. Six tourists, including four Lebanese musicians, were wounded
after a gunman opened fire on their bus.
The 12 men stood quietly in the dock to hear the charges against them. In
addition to shooting Lebanese musicians, the men faced charges of carrying out
what the Jordanian military court described as terrorist attacks on a Christian
church, a cemetery in the Arab country.
They were also accused of making Molotov cocktails they hurled at the cemetery
and church as well as the illegal possession of weapons.
The indictment sheet said the prime suspect and the group's mastermind, Shaker
al-Khatib, was trained in Lebanon by an alleged al-Qaida member to join the
insurgents in Iraq. But al-Khatib, 28, instead returned to Jordan to form a
militant cell there. He is originally from Gaza but has lived most of his life
in Jordan's Palestinian refugee camp in northern Irbid. The indictment does not
charge al-Khatib with belonging to al-Qaida, which is banned in Jordan, although
it says al-Khatib recruited others for the terror network through the Internet
and at mosque gatherings. The charge sheet said the group decided to attack
Christians in Jordan after allegedly discovering that a young Christian boy was
sending cell phone messages mocking Islam's Prophet Mohammed and the Qoran.
It said the group first attacked a cemetery near Irbid last July, throwing
Molotov cocktails inside it, and later attacked a church in the city in the same
manner. The suspects were all arrested later in July. In a separate attack last
July, another suspect opened fire on the group of Lebanese musicians from USEK
performing in downtown Amman. He wounded six people, none of them seriously,
before shooting himself in the head.
The suspect, identified previously by police as Thaer al-Weheidi, later died in
custody. He was not part of the 12 on trial, although the attack was among the
charges against al-Khatib and his group. The 12 did not enter pleas Tuesday as
most did not yet have defense attorneys. If the defendants fail to appoint
lawyers before the next hearing, the court will appoint attorneys for them to
enable them to plead. The trial was then adjourned until Feb. 3.
If convicted, the men could be sentenced to death. Jordan has foiled several
terrorist plots by Muslim militants over the last two decades, and has
apprehended dozens of suspects who were later convicted and sentenced either to
death or to jail terms. In 2002, Jordan's military court sentenced several
al-Qaida militants to death for the killing in Amman of U.S. diplomat Laurence
Foley. In Nov. 2005, the same court sentenced to death an Iraqi al-Qaida-linked
female suicide bomber and her associates in the triple hotel attacks in the
Jordanian capital that killed more that 60 people.(AP-Naharnet) Beirut, 28 Jan
09, 08:34
Tashnag Seeking Murr-Aoun Reconciliation
Naharnet/The Tashnag party is reportedly seeking to reconcile MP Michel Murr
with Free Patriotic Movement leader Michel Aoun. The daily As Safir quoted
well-informed sources as saying that they expect Tashnag's efforts to show
positive results after mid February. The paper said the Armenian party was
waiting for the outcome of Defense Minister Elias Murr's visit to Syria on
Wednesday in order to resume its reconciliation efforts or change the work
method. Tashnag explained that if Murr's Damascus visit was a success and
resulted in more than the formal task of military cooperation, the party would
arrange a meeting between Michel Murr and Aoun. However, if the results of the
defense minister's trip remained confined to the formal aspect, then Tashnag,
according to As Safir, would seek to avoid embarrassment by convincing Aoun to
draw up an "open" list such as keeping at least one Greek Orthodox seat vacant
to keep MP Murr "comfortable" with the election competition. As Safir said
Tashnag had been trying for the past two months to bridge the gap between Murr
and Aoun, adding that it had succeeded in holding more than a meeting between
Minister Murr and FPM's Telecommunications Minister Jebran Bassil after exchange
of verbal attacks made a reunion between the two Michels impossible. On the
election battle, As Safir said Tashnag decided to mobilize Armenian immigrants
in cities across the globe. Beirut, 28 Jan 09, 11:07
Assad to Meet Murr
Naharnet/Defense Minister Elias Murr will head to Damascus on Wednesday for a
meeting with Syrian officials on ways to strengthen military cooperation between
the two neighboring countries. Press reports said Murr will meet Syrian
President Bashar al-Assad during his one-day visit to Damascus. They said Syrian
Defense Minister Lt. Gen. Hassan Ali Turkmani will attend the meeting. The daily
As-Safir said Murr will receive a formal Syrian welcome after which he is
expected to visit the headquarters of the Defense Ministry. A government source
quoted a high-ranking Syrian official as saying Damascus hailed Murr's agenda
that includes a request for Syrian military assistance. Beirut, 28 Jan 09, 09:13
Lebanese-French Program to Strengthen Airport Security
Naharnet/Lebanon and France are working on a project that aims at strengthening
security and safety measures at Beirut's Rafik Hariri International Airport.
According to the daily As-Safir on Wednesday, the 36-month project, worth 1.5
million Euros, focuses on strengthening operational and technical capabilities
of all airport apparatuses, and responding to emergencies. The program also
includes a special training center that works on developing security skills. The
center, which opened on January 5, offers its training services to personnel
from customs, internal and general security forces, civil aviation and the
Lebanese army. Airport sectors will also be equipped with new and advanced
computers and x-ray machines. Beirut, 28 Jan 09, 09:54
Security Directorate Denies Bugging Charge
Naharnet/The General Directorate for General Security on Tuesday denied
assigning an officer to the ministry of telecommunications to bug telephone
calls. The directorate, in a statement, said charges made by Progressive
Socialist Party leader Walid Jumblat in this respect are "baseless." Minister of
Communications Jebran Bassil on Monday also denied Jumblat's charge. Beirut, 27
Jan 09, 22:04
Berri: It is Difficult For Any One Group to Control Border
Naharnet/Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri described the firing of rockets from
south Lebanon into Israel during the recent Gaza war as "suspicious," adding
that it is difficult for any Lebanese party to control the border. In an
interview with the Kuwaiti daily al-Dar on Tuesday, Berri said: "We call these
rockets Mais-Mais because they were launched from the vicinity of Mais al-Jabal
village to fall in the same village." Berri went on to add: "It would be very
difficult for any Lebanese party such as Hizbullah or Amal movement to control
the border region." He pointed to the presence of 30,000 Lebanese armed forces
and United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) members in the region.
Everyone was in agreement at the time that any intervention from Lebanon would
not benefit Gaza, Berri said.
"The March 8 forces demonstrated their adherence to protecting south Lebanon.
They do not like uncalculated adventures, although they retain the right to
defend Lebanon and its territory," he said. The Speaker pointed to the recent
Arab Economic Summit in Kuwait, saying: "The reconciliation that took place was
good and the process should be continued in placing a roadmap for regaining Arab
confidence." A reconciliation meeting was held during the Kuwait summit last
week between Egypt, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Syria. Berri called on the Arab
media to travel to Gaza and report the facts "so that Israeli crimes there won't
die away."
Berri described Arabs who refuse to talk to Hamas as "silly." Beirut, 27 Jan 09,
13:48
France for Role in Middle East Peace and Lebanon Stability
Naharnet/French Presidential Envoy Philippe Marini on Tuesday said his visit to
Lebanon aims at following up topics related to Middle East peace and
Lebanese-Syrian relations. Marini said France is keen on "Lebanon's national
unity, pluralist character and preparations for the forthcoming parliamentary
elections." The French envoy, talking to reporters after meeting Premier Fouad
Saniora, said he hopes Lebanon "would be able to express itself freely and
honestly through its constitutional institutions." Lebanon's relations with
France are "very distinguished," Marini said. He said President Nicolas Sarkozy
has assigned him to discuss all topics "within the framework of the impact of a
new U.S. Administration and what France can do to facilitate the peace process
in the Middle East." Beirut, 27 Jan 09, 21:42
Lebanese Kidnapped-Released in Nigeria
Naharnet/Gunmen on Tuesday seized and later freed a Lebanese construction worker
in southwestern Nigeria's oil-rich state of Delta, the military said. "He was
abducted by unknown gunmen at the company construction site in Ekpan, Warri,"
Colonel Rabe Abubakar, the military spokesman said.
The Lebanese worked for Niger Cat Construction, the military said. "Two
kidnappers were arrested in connection with the incident... and the victim was
subsequently released with no ransom," said Abubakar in a statement. There has
been a surge in violent attacks on Nigeria's oil industry and kidnappings of
both local and foreign oil workers, as well as relatives of prominent
politicians since January 2006. The kidnappings are often blamed on criminal
gangs seeking a ransom, but sometimes also for political ends. The unrest has
reduced the country's oil output by more than one quarter and production
currently stands around two million barrels a day against 2.6 million barrels
three years ago. Beirut, 27 Jan 09, 22:54
Assad: There is No Link Between Improved Ties With Lebanon
and Exchange of Ambassadors
Naharnet/Syria is awaiting improvement of relations with the West, particularly
the U.S., before naming its ambassador to Beirut, pan-Arab daily al-Hayat quoted
Arab diplomatic sources as saying. Well-informed sources also stressed this does
not mean that Damascus will soon name its ambassador to Beirut.
The sources denied that Syria's ambassador to Madrid Makram Obeid and author
Colette Khoury are among the most likely candidates for the top post in Beirut.
Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has reportedly told visitors last week that
good relations with Lebanon are not linked to the appointment of an ambassador
to Beirut.
Assad cited the example of the United States, as relations were not that warm
over the past few years despite the presence of an ambassador in Washington, al-Hayat
reported. Assad hoped that bilateral relations with the U.S. would improve under
the Obama administration. He also stressed his willingness to hold dialogue with
the United States. Informed sources told al-Hayat that Syria would appoint a
career diplomat to head its embassy in Beirut. However, this would take some
time as the diplomat is awaiting the end of his term abroad. The daily An-Nahar
reported on Wednesday that Syria officially informed the Lebanese cabinet
through Foreign Minister Fawzi Salloukh that it accepted Lebanon's nomination of
Michel Khoury as ambassador to Damascus. Cabinet sources told An-Nahar that the
Syrian approval came within the 40-day limit as per the Vienna convention
governing the exchange of ambassadors. Beirut, 28 Jan 09, 11:50
Baroud: Cabinet to Address Prison Issue in Special Session
Naharnet/Interior Minister Ziad Baroud said the Cabinet will hold a special
session to address the pressing issue of prison reforms.
The daily An Nahar on Wednesday said Baroud submitted a written report to the
Cabinet during its Tuesday meeting that included "documents, figures and
practical suggestions."Baroud told An Nahar that there is an urgent need to set
up a specialized Department of Prisons to be attached to the Ministry of
Justice. He said the other part of his report covered the budget needed for
parliamentary elections set for June 7. Baroud said the proposed LL 30 billion
budget for the election process had been reduced to LL 22 billion, thanks to
donations received by the ministry. He did not say where the donations came
from, but uncovered that the contributions had so far reached $10 million.
Beirut, 28 Jan 09, 10:12
Report: Turkish FM Urges Hamas to Give up Arms
Naharnet/Turkish Foreign Minister Ali Babacan has urged the Palestinian movement
Hamas to lay down its arms and engage in peaceful politics, in newspaper
interviews published Tuesday. "Hamas should make a decision: is it going to be
an armed organization or a political movement? We advise them to be part of the
political process," Babacan told the popular Milliyet daily. The minister spoke
amid criticism at home that Ankara acted as a supporter of Hamas -- considered a
terrorist group by the West -- during the Israeli offensive on the Gaza Strip,
dealing a blow to its ties with the Jewish state, a key regional ally.
"We cannot approve of what Hamas is doing, but peace cannot be achieved by
ignoring Hamas," Babacan said in further remarks, published in the liberal
Radikal.
"A mid-way formula should be found... Hamas is a reality in Gaza," he said. The
criticism has been directed mostly at Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who
lashed out vehemently at Israel almost daily during the 22-day offensive,
pinning the blame for the conflict on Tel Aviv. A senior aide to Erdogan,
meanwhile, acted as a mediator between Hamas leaders based in Syria and Egyptian
officials seeking to hammer out a ceasefire deal in Cairo. Predominantly Muslim
non-Arab Turkey has been Israel's main regional ally since 1996 when the two
signed a military cooperation agreement. Turkey at the same time has maintained
close relations with the Palestinians and supports their cause for statehood.
Ankara's criticism of Israel has become more vocal since Erdogan's
Islamist-rooted Justice and Development Party came to power in 2002.(AP) Beirut,
27 Jan 09, 16:36
Israeli Warplanes Hit Smuggling Tunnels on Egypt-Gaza
Border
Naharnet/Israeli warplanes pounded smuggling tunnels under the Gaza-Egypt border
early Wednesday, a day after a Palestinian bomb killed an Israeli soldier and
the Israeli military vowed to respond harshly to any further attacks. The border
flare-up came 10 days into an informal cease. The soldier was killed on Israel's
frontier with the Gaza Strip by a roadside bomb planted on the Gaza side and set
off by remote control, the military said. Three other members of the Israeli
squad patrolling the border were injured. Israel responded swiftly, sending
tanks and bulldozers into northern Gaza to plow up the attack site and launching
an airstrike that wounded a Hamas militant "who was prominent in the
organization accountable for the attack," according to a military statement.
Hamas said the Israeli strike injured one of its men as he rode a motorcycle in
the southern Gaza town of Khan Younis.
The border violence was the worst since the sides separately declared
cease-fires on Jan. 18 to end a three-week Israeli offensive.
Since withdrawing its troops, Israel has threatened to retaliate hard for any
violations of the informal truce.
One of its main targets is the network of tunnels used to smuggle arms, money
and people into Gaza from Egypt but despite hundreds of strikes during the war
smugglers resumed work after the cease-fire. There was no claim of
responsibility for Tuesday's bombing, but Ramattan, a Palestinian news agency,
released a video of the roadside bombing allegedly filmed by militants it did
not identify. The images showed a large explosion next to a jeep moving on the
Israeli side of the border fence. A huge plume of smoke emerges as the jeep
stops. Two Israeli soldiers are then seen running toward the jeep and gunfire is
directed at them before a secondary blast hits them, too. The Israeli military
said it "sees Hamas as accountable for preserving the peace in Israel's southern
villages and will respond harshly to any attempt of undermining it."(AP) Beirut,
28 Jan 09, 11:24
Report: Israeli Settlement Construction Jumps 60 % in 2008
Naharnet/Construction in Israeli settlements on the occupied West Bank jumped 60
percent in 2008 in the wake of the re-launching of the Middle East peace process
at a U.S. conference, the Peace Now watchdog group said on Wednesday. At least
1,257 new structures were built in settlements over the course of 2008, compared
to 800 erected the previous year, a report said. The ground was also prepared
for 63 new structures. Building in wildcat outposts -- settlements not
authorised by the government -- saw a 2.5-fold increase, with 261 new structures
built in 2008 compared with 98 the previous year, Peace Now said. "Expansion
continues -- the settlers do not need to wait for Bibi," it said, referring to
right-wing opposition leader Benjamin Netanyahu widely predicted by the polls to
become the nation's next prime minister after February 10 elections.
Construction also boomed in annexed east Jerusalem and heated up especially
after the international conference in Annapolis in November 2007 that saw
Israelis and Palestinians formally relaunch their sputtering peace talks.
Tenders were issued to build 1,184 housing units in east Jerusalem in 2008,
compared with 793 issued in 2007. A staggering 94 percent of the 2007 tenders
were issued in December, right after the Annapolis conference.
In addition, plans to construct 2,730 housing units in east Jerusalem received
final approval in 2008, compared with 391 units in 2007.
Israeli settlement in Palestinian territory is one of the thorniest issues at
the heart of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The report was published as new
U.S. peace envoy George Mitchell arrived in the region to push for peace
negotiations.(AFP) Beirut, 28 Jan 09, 12:37
Israeli aircraft attack tunnels
along Gaza-Egypt border
Israel News
Israeli air force strikes tunnels used for smuggling weapons along Philadelphi
Route early Wednesday in response to Hamas' attack on Israeli forces Tuesday
that left one soldier dead. Locals reported fleeing their homes in panic
Reuters Published: 01.28.09, 07:35 / Israel News
Israeli aircraft struck at tunnels used for smuggling goods and weapons on the
border between the Gaza Strip and Egypt on Wednesday, hours before a US peace
envoy was due to arrive in the Jewish state. Residents of the Gaza town of Rafah
and Hamas security officials said some people began to flee their homes in panic
as the aircraft struck three times before dawn. There was no initial word of
casualties. An Israeli army spokesman confirmed that Israel had carried out air
strikes on smuggling tunnels in the town of Rafah. The strike came as a response
to Tuesday's attack by Gaza militants on an Israeli military vehicle that was
hit by a roadside bomb while patrolling the Gaza border, killing one soldier and
wounding three others, the army spokesman said. An air strike shortly afterwards
killed one Palestinian on a motorcycle whom the spokesman identified as the
planner of the roadside bomb attack. The exchanges were the first major military
developments since Hamas and Israel declared separate ceasefires earlier this
month after Israel's offensive against the Gaza Strip. Israeli Prime Minister
Ehud Olmert said late on Tuesday that the killing of the man on the motorcycle
was only an initial reaction and that Israel's full response was still to come.
Mitchell coming to region
Israel and Hamas are negotiating through Egyptian mediators on a longer-term
truce. Hamas wants Israel to lift its blockade of the Gaza Strip. Israel wants
guarantees that Hamas will not again fire rockets at Israeli towns. Later on
Wednesday, US Middle East envoy George Mitchell arrives in Israel to take the
first steps towards reviving the Israeli-Palestinian peace process. A former US
senator and experienced mediator who helped end the Northern Ireland conflict,
Mitchell began his regional tour in Cairo on Tuesday bearing a message from US
President Barack Obama that the "moment is ripe" for peace talks. He will meet
Israeli leaders on Wednesday afternoon and visit the West Bank on Thursday to
talk to Palestinian leaders, but Western diplomats said he would not meet Hamas
officials.
Report: Iran could build nuclear bomb by 2010
Iran will amass enough low-enriched uranium in 2009 to have the ability to build
nuclear bomb by end of 2010, International Institute for Strategic Studies
reports
Ynet Published: 01.28.09, 11:30 / Israel News
Iran could cross the vital technological threshold needed to produce a nuclear
bomb by the year 2010, the British Daily Telegraph reported on Wednesday.
According to the report, based on a study by the International Institute for
Strategic Studies, from the moment the threshold is crossed Iran will be able to
produce its first nuclear bomb within one-year's time.
Nuclear Threat
Envoy: US wants direct talks with Iran on atom work / Reuters
'Dialogue and diplomacy must go hand-in-hand with a very firm message that Iran
needs to meet its obligations as defined by the Security Council,' Ambassador
Rice says after talks with Secretary-General Ban
It should be noted that this report supports estimates made by Israeli
intelligence officials several years ago that were considered by international
bodies to be "exaggerated" for a long time.
Mark Fitzpatrick, the senior fellow for non-proliferation at the IISS, said,
"This year, it's very likely that Iran will have produced enough low-enriched
uranium which, if further enriched, could constitute enough fissile material for
one nuclear weapon, if that is the route Iran so desires."
Further enrichment to produce weapons-grade uranium would take at least 12
months after the threshold that Iran is likely to reach at the end of this year.
Iran's scientists will have to overcome numerous technical hurdles and fully
master the enrichment of uranium before this can happen.
The process of enriching low-grade uranium to weapons-grade uranium is a
technological complex process, and even more so as the Iranians have been met
with a number of hurdles in operating their gas centrifuges.
Another problem facing Iran is the decreasing amount of unrefined uranium at its
disposal. The London Times reported four days ago that the international
community was focusing its efforts preventing Iran form obtaining more uranium
and urging uranium exporters not to do business with the Islamic Republic.
The International Atomic Energy Agency's latest report said that Iran was
running 3,820 centrifuges to enrich uranium to four percent purity. So far,
630kg of low-enriched uranium had been produced.
Uranium enriched at this purity level can be used to run nuclear power stations,
which is Iran's officially stated sole intention.
However, if enriched to 87.5% or more, the uranium will become the essential
material needed for military use.
During the enrichment process, Iran will have to expel the IAEA inspectors from
its facilities, which would give the international community some warning time
before Iran reaches its nuclear bomb.
Meanwhile, Iran is working to create a nuclear warhead that could be installed
on a long-range ballistic missile. At present, Iran has Shahab-3 missiles with a
range of about 1,250 miles, and the IAEA claims the country is working
vigorously towards converting these to carry nuclear warheads.
Documents in the hands of the IAEA suggest Iranian scientists have studied how
to convert these weapons to carry nuclear warheads.
Dancing Among Landmines—The Obama Al-Arabiya Interview
Support Pajamas Media;
January 27th, 2009 8:40 pm
President Barack Obama is being praised for choosing an Arabic TV network for
his first formal television interview on the Dubai-based, Saudi-owned Al-Arabiya
news channel. I think we can all appreciate the thinking behind such bold
outreach, given that the media at home has chortled to the world that our new
guy’s unusual background, in sort of Zen-fashion, has befuddled the radical
Islamic movement.
The subtext of our satisfaction has been that Obama—African-American, son of a
Muslim father, erstwhile resident of Muslim Indochina, with Hussein as his
middle name—makes it far harder for the Arab Islamic world to typecast America
unfairly as the Great Satan than would be true in the case of an evangelical,
Texas-drawling, hard-core conservative Chief Executive like good ‘ole boy George
Bush.
True enough, no doubt.
But triangulation is a touchy art and it takes the genius of a Dick Morris cum
soulless Bill Clinton to pull off such disingenuousness. In less experienced
hands it can be explosive and turn on its user. And Obama will soon learn the
dangerous game he is playing. Consider:
1) When abroad it is not wise to criticize your own country and praise the
antithetical world view of another—especially if yours is a democratic republic
and the alternative is a theocratic monarchy that has a less than liberal record
on human rights, treatment of women and homosexuals, and tolerance for religious
plurality.
But here’s what Obama said:
“… All too often the United States starts by dictating…in the past on some of
these issues…and we don’t always know all the factors that are involved. So
let’s listen…Well, here’s what I think is important. Look at the proposal that
was put forth by King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia…I might not agree with every
aspect of the proposal, but it took great courage…to put forward something that
is as significant as that. I think that there are ideas across the region of how
we might pursue peace.”
The end, if unintended, result is that the Saudi King comes across as
courageous, while the U.S. President and State Department (e.g., “the United
States”) are portrayed as dictatorial-like (“dictating”) in the region.
2) An unspoken rule of American statesmanship is not to be overtly partisan
abroad. And in Obama’s case it is high time to arrest the campaign mode, cease
the implied “Bush did it” (which ipso facto has a short shelf life), and begin
dealing with the world as it is, rather than the world you feel was unfairly
presented to you by someone more blameworthy in the past. But again consider:
“But if you look at the track record, as you say, America was not born as a
colonial power, and that the same respect and partnership that America had with
the Muslim world as recently as 20 or 30 years ago, there’s no reason why we
can’t restore that. And that I think is going to be an important task… And so
what we want to do is to listen, set aside some of the preconceptions that have
existed and have built up over the last several years. And I think if we do
that, then there’s a possibility at least of achieving some breakthroughs… but I
think that what you’ll see is somebody who is listening, who is respectful, and
who is trying to promote the interests not just of the United States, but also
ordinary people who right now are suffering from poverty and a lack of
opportunity. I want to make sure that I’m speaking to them, as well.”
Perhaps. But once again, the impression comes across as ‘past America bad
/present and future America good.’ (Even the senior George Bush learned that
lesson at home with his serial “kinder, gentler nation” [e.g., kinder than
what?]). And nothing is offered here (other than our lack of a colonial past)
about the actual impressive record: amazing American good will in saving Kuwait,
objecting to the Kuwaiti deportations of thousands of Palestinians, speaking out
against Russia on behalf of the Chechens, trying to save the Somalis, bombing a
Christian European Serbia to save the Kosovar and Bosnian Muslims, helping the
Afghans against the Soviets, removing the Taliban and Saddam Hussein and trying
to invest a $1 trillion in fostering democracy in their places, billions in
disease relief for black (and often Muslim) Africa, timely help to the Muslim
victims of the tsunami, and liberal immigration laws that welcome in millions of
Arabs and/or Muslims. I could go on but you get the picture left out that
America, far better than China, Russia, or Europe, has been quite friendly to
the Muslim world.
Instead the supposition is that somehow the culpability is largely ours—and
therefore ours to rectify. In fact, the widespread hatred in the Islamic world,
manifested, and sometime applauded, on September 11, was largely a result of the
failures of indigenous autocracy—whether in the past Pan-Arabist, Baathist,
theocratic and Islamic, Nasserite, or pro-Soviet statism.
Such repression and failed economic policies, coupled with the sudden ability of
a long-suffering populace in a globalized world to fathom that things were bad
in the Middle East but no so bad elsewhere, led to growing anger and
frustration. That state megaphones (in a devil’s bargain with radical Islamists)
preached that the real culprit of general Muslim misery was neither Islamic
terrorism nor state dictators nor gender apartheid nor religious intolerance nor
state-run economies, but solely the fault of America and the Jews hardly helped.
We should also remember that the Bush record was often quite good: we have not
been hit in over seven years; Pakistan’s nuclear proliferation was stopped;
Libya gave up its nuclear program; Syria is out of Lebanon; Hamas and Hezbollah
have suffered a great deal of damage as a result of their aggressions; there are
constitutional governments at work in place of the Taliban and Saddam; the
leadership of al Qaeda is scattered and depleted and its brand is diminished in
Iraq. The fact that Middle East authoritarian governments might not like all of
that; or that radical Muslims find this disturbing; or even that the spokesmen
for the unfree populations of the Arab world object—simply does not change the
truth. I wish President Obama better appreciated that simple fact, because he
surely is a beneficiary of it.
3). Beware of the dangerous two-step. For nearly two years the unspoken rule of
the campaign (ask former Senator Bob Kerry or Hillary Clinton herself or
talk-show host Bill Cunningham) was that mentioning Obama’s Muslim ancestry was
taboo. It was illiberal to evoke his Muslim-sounding name or his Indonesian
ancestry, as if one were deliberately trying to suggest his multicultural fides
made him less appealing to the square majority in America. But Obama apparently
himself is immune to such prohibitions—at least abroad. If he appreciates the
off-limits landscape at home, overseas it is suddenly to be showcased to
reemphasize his global, multicultural and less parochial credentials. E.g., it
comes off as something like: ‘between you and me—typical Americans could not
relate to you the way I can—even though back in America to even suggest that I
am not typical is sometimes the greatest of sins—albeit in the manner I
adjudicate.’ Consider again:
“Now, my job is to communicate the fact that the United States has a stake in
the well-being of the Muslim world, that the language we use has to be a
language of respect. I have Muslim members of my family. I have lived in Muslim
countries…The largest one, Indonesia. And so what I want to communicate is the
fact that in all my travels throughout the Muslim world, what I’ve come to
understand is that regardless of your faith — and America is a country of
Muslims, Jews, Christians, non-believers — regardless of your faith, people all
have certain common hopes and common dreams.”
4) At some point, soaring rhetoric makes banality the harder to accept. For all
the talking about path- breaking new/old envoy George Mitchell, and the new
President’s background, and the novel sensitivity, Obama offered nothing new on
the Middle East and Iran, because (1) there is very little new to be offered;
and (2) George Bush, apart from the caricatures, was by 2004 about as
multilateral as one can be; consider the Quartet, the EU3, the UN efforts at
international disarmament with Iran, the use of NATO forces in Afghanistan, the
Coalition in Iraq, the efforts to promote constitutional government in the
Middle East, and on and on.
There is a danger here that Obama’s hope and change on the Middle East will
start to resemble his hope and change on new governance in Washington: utopian
promises about absolutely new ethics, followed by the same old, same old as
exemplified by the ethical problems encountered by Geithner, Holder, Lynn,
Richardson—and by extension Blago, Dodd, Frank, and Rangel. Again, saintly
rhetoric only highlights earthly behavior.
I am glad Obama confounds the radical and hostile Islamic world, if it is in
fact true that he does. But we are witnessing a delicate balancing act in which
he seems to be saying to us “I am best representing you by distancing myself
from you and your past”.
Again, that may well work, but also in time may prove not to be what Americans
thought they were voting for. So a final Neanderthal thought: some of us would
like our President in calm, polite and diplomatic tones to emphasize the past
positive Middle East work of his predecessor Presidents Ford, Carter, Reagan,
Bush, Clinton and Bush. He should make the case that the United States has tried
hard and will try hard again to promote peace in the Middle East, but that
certain fundamental facts make that awfully difficult, and often are beyond our
control, resting largely in the decisions that others make for themselves—and
the inevitable reactions that will follow from a liberal democracy like our own,
faced with clear signs of religious intolerance, illiberality, violent
aggression, and complicity in the promotion of terror as a political means. In
other words, I think Syria, Iran, Hamas, Hezbollah, Pakistan—and to a lesser
extent Saudi Arabia, Yemen, and others—know exactly what are they doing and thus
the problems that arise between us transcend occasional and unfortunate smoke
‘em out/bring ‘em on lingo.
Just a modest thought.
Meet Mrs. Ahmedinejad and Co.
The rise of vociferous female conservatives in Iran.
January 28, 2009 - by Meir Javedanfar
Pajamas Media;
Since becoming president in 2005, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has become one of the most
widely known Iranian politicians. In direct contrast, his wife has been one of
the most discreet spouses in Iranian political history. The world got its first
glimpse of her in 2005, after she accompanied her husband on a trip to Malaysia.
However, she did not speak any words and has hardly ever appeared in front of
cameras since then. What was even more mysterious was her identity. She was only
referred to as Mrs. Ahmadinejad in the very few reports which mentioned her. Her
real identity was strongly protected.
But on January 18, 2009, the world suddenly met Azam Al Sadat Farahi, who until
that day was known as Mrs. Ahmadinejad. The encounter was brought about by a
letter she wrote on behalf of Gazans to Suzanne Mubarak, the wife of Egyptian
President Hosni Mubarak. In it she wrote:
The people of Gaza have been subjected to aerial, ground and sea attacks and
have been living under siege for a long time. Witnessing the bombardment of
mosques, hospitals and houses and the mutilation of women and children brings
pain to the heart of any human being. …I ask you to do whatever is in your
capacity to help the people of Gaza and to help them from the oppression that
they are suffering from, so that your name is placed alongside the name of
worthy and peace seeking women.
One could doubt whether Mrs. Ahmadinejad’s letter would have any impact, because
these days Egypt is trying its best to isolate Iran. This was seen by the fact
that Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei on several
occasions asked for Mubarak’s help. Nothing ever came of it.
Nevertheless, the symbolic value of the letter should not be ignored. Many
people around the world believe that Iranian women, especially conservative
ones, are confined to the boundaries of the kitchen. This may be true about
wives of conservative clergy. However when it comes to non-clergy conservatives,
the opposite is true. Quite a few are very vociferous in their political
thinking and beliefs.
One of the most notable is Fatemeh Rajabi, the journalist wife of Gholam Hossein
Elham, a government spokesman and one of Ahmadinejad’s most trusted confidants.
Rajabi sometimes appears in the press more often than her husband. Furthermore,
she has openly attacked Rafsanjani’s allies for being corrupt and Ayatollah
Khatami for being too liberal and friendly toward the West. She even called for
the defrocking of Khatami. Although many male members of Iran’s political elite
have done the same, Rajabi is the first female critic in Iran’s post-revolution
history to go so far in her criticism of senior politicians. This has earned her
several nicknames. One is “Fatti Arreh,” meaning “Fatemeh the hacksaw.” The
other is “Shamsi Pahlevoon,” a nickname given to physically rough women in Iran.
Despite the fact that Ahmadinejad’s wife has been camera shy until recently, she
too has had a strong influence on her husband. Although the president of Iran is
no feminist, compared to other conservatives in Iran he has championed more
rights for women. One of them was his public call to allow women to attend
soccer matches as spectators. Soon after, he was subjected to fierce criticism
from senior clergy from the city of Qom because they saw it as un-Islamic.
Ahmadinejad did not back down until he was forced to by Iran’s supreme leader.
Furthermore, during his tenure as mayor of Tehran, Ahmadinejad opened many
leisure areas for women, including parks and libraries. Although segregation of
men and women is frowned upon in the West and by many Iranians, it must be noted
that some women in Iran welcome segregation in buses and parks due to problems
such as unwanted physical contact and approach by strangers. Right-wing
movements have also increased their recruitment of women for their campaigning
and demonstrations. A great number of Baseej (people’s militia) who demonstrated
against Israel and Egypt were women.
As the Iranian presidential elections near, we are going to hear more from the
female members of Iran’s political arena. Their appearance is not solely for the
betterment of human kind. Jealousy and self-interest are also at play. It is
believed that one of the reasons why Ahmadinejad’s wife wrote to Suzanne Mubarak
is because she did not want to be outdone by Zohre Sadeghi, the wife of
Ayatollah Khatami (Ahmadinejad’s chief rival), who two days earlier had written
a similar letter to the wife of the emir of Qatar. Conservative clergy may wish
to keep Iran’s women quiet and at home. However, it looks like the conservative
non-clergy politicians who should back them are actually turning against them.
Sixty percent of Iran’s university graduates are women. It’s only a matter of
time before they can slowly claim their deserved place in the government and
society of their country.
Three Events and One Case
28/01/2009
By Dr. Bouthaina Shaaban-Asshak AlAwsat
Tuesday Jan 20, 2009 was an exceptional date by all measures as events which
preceded this date and transformations that will follow it would stand as
important lessons forever. The first event is that the world breathed a sigh of
relief with the departure of George W. Bush from the top of the Pyramid of US
authority after he had shed the blood of millions of Arab and Muslim civilians
in his unnecessary wars. He also exercised unprecedented forms of torture on
them in prisons and detention camps. He disdained the dignity, freedom and human
rights of millions of Arabs, and planted the seeds of fear and hatred worldwide.
In his inaugural speech, on Tuesday, the first thing Obama was meant to root out
the seeds of fear and plant the seeds of hope; he talked about equality and
respect that should prevail between followers of the three religions. In his
first day at the White House Obama signed an order to close Guantanamo Bay
detention camp which will remain together with Abu Ghraib prison a stain of
disgrace in the history of Bush administration.
The second event that Arab witnessed on the same day was the Arab leaders
meeting at Kuwait Summit with their eyes looking at the besieged steadfast Gaza
bravely resisting fires of war criminals. That day witnessed a first attempt to
break the ice that Bush has fabricated between “moderate Arabs” and their
brothers. All Arab leaders worked on restoring unity to the Arab line after it
was clear to everyone that their division has weakened their stand. Irrespective
of the future and the upshot of these efforts, the general feeling was that both
summits of Doha and Kuwait have restored the pulse of the entire Arab people
from the Ocean to the Gulf.
With the first moment of his inauguration as President of the US, Obama has made
a unique history as he is the first black president who enters the White House.
The hearts of all Arabs and Muslims were focused on his facial expressions in
order to know where would this young president, who very well knows the meaning
of racial persecution, stand on the agony of Arabs in Palestine living under the
worst and most sever racial persecution ever. We should not be naïves in our
optimism as we are aware of Zionists’ influence on American policies. We took a
note of the fact that Barack Obama avoided mentioning the aggression on Gaza in
his Inaugural speech despite all the shocking crimes perpetrated against women
and children. Two days later he spoke about the urgent need to open the
crossings to Gaza, but also demanded that Hamas should recognize the existence
of Israel without mentioning the right of Palestinians in establishing their
national state. He also demanded that Hamas should stop firing rockets into
Israel, while he knows that Israel used American-made weapons and prohibited
weapons for the slaughter of hundreds of Arab children in Gaza.
In this context, Arabs cannot shirk their responsibilities as Obama’s policy in
the Middle East will depend largely on the attitude of some Arabs towards
themselves, and their cause. And here we come to the third event: As soon as the
aggressive guns fell silent, and the hordes of the most heinous crimes
retreated, and with the start of the process of digging out the corpse of
children, women and civilians from the rubble of the worst destruction that have
ever occurred in the twenty first century, we saw how “civilized people” of
Western democracies procrastinated any support to the victims of the Israeli war
crimes through drafting conditions and initiatives. We witnessed the
disappearance of any Arab or international effort to document war crimes, and we
are witnessing how the Arab and international system show only a very shy sign
to prosecute war criminals and children murderers from the Israeli Air Force
pilots, officers, tanks and artillery soldiers, and paratroopers who annihilated
families, bombed houses and fired the White phosphorous shells and bombs on
homes, shelters, hospitals, schools and mosques. In exchange for all these
crimes, the Arab popular uprising erupted in support of the Arab right in
Palestine. Our generation has never witnessed such a spontaneous Arab revival at
all levels of artists, intellectuals and thinkers and here is the core of the
case as Arab people in different countries would shape their future in a very
different way from what we are witnessing today.
There are voices "Calling" for the trial of Israeli leaders and officers. Also
US journalists, in a press conference in Washington, call Israeli Minister of
Foreign Affairs "terrorist". It is the first time that Western "civilized
people", who are the advocates of human rights, lose the language of defense
regarding Israeli crimes against innocent women and children in Gaza. It is the
first time that human rights activists in Israel itself call for arresting Ehud
Olmert, Tzipni Livni, Ehud Barak, Matan Vilnai, and Avi Dichter, Ben-Eliezer,
Gabi Ashkenazi, Dan Halutz and Moshe Ya'alon, and others as war criminals
responsible for all the bloody crimes they perpetrated against civilians in
Gaza. Also, it is the first time that human rights activists from France,
Britain, Venezuela, Bolivia and many other parts of the world work hard to raise
a case to the International Court of Justice against Israeli officials, officers
and soldiers who committed the most terrifying war crimes in Gaza.
We should chronicle photos, names and stories of those martyrs on the one hand,
and the photos, names of the Israeli criminals on the other hand, and we should
make the entire world remember every year, and on every occasion, the names and
photos of the most horrid holocaust ever to occurred in history against mothers,
children and other civilians. We should never forget the thousands of wounded
who lost their eyes or arms or some of their senses in order to keep Palestine
always present in our hearts until it becomes free from the shackles of
occupation.