Untitled - orsam

MIDDLE EAST BULLETIN
23 MARCH 2012
NO: 1354
1. IRAQ ..................................................................................................................................... 3
Baghdad Operations Command denies Hashemi claims about bodyguard dying under torture 3
Ministry probes into death of Hashimi’s guard while in detention .............................................4
Arab Parliament Speaker to participate in Baghdad summit .......................................................5
Iraq in talks over proposed highway to Turkey and Syria ............................................................6
Jaafari asserts the intimate alliance of Arab, Kurds, Turkmen, Assyrians ....................................6
Kitab: holding the Summit in Baghdad, a triumph for Iraq, not only the government ................7
Sunni lawmakers accuse Iraq government of torture ..................................................................7
2. IRAN ..................................................................................................................................... 8
Tehran Voices Support for Political Solution to Disputes in Syria ............................................. 10
Iran will respond to any attack at ‘same level’: Leader ............................................................. 12
Ahmadinejad, Sultan Qaboos discuss regional issues on phone ............................................... 14
Tehran dismisses Yemeni claims of Iranian interference .......................................................... 14
‘Iran supports peace plans for Syria but with conditions’ ......................................................... 15
3. ISRAEL - PALESTINE .............................................................................................................. 16
West Bank farmers frightened away from water springs by Israeli settlers ............................. 16
Israel, U.S. disagree on Iran timetable: official ......................................................................... 18
U.N. rights council orders 1st probe of Israeli settlements; Netanyahu slams resolution ....... 19
Liberman considering withdrawing ambassador from UNHRC ................................................. 21
4. AFRICA and EGYPT ............................................................................................................... 25
Morocco to tackle rent-based economy ................................................................................... 25
Mauritania may extradite Senussi to Libya ............................................................................... 26
Algerian officials favour unity with Morocco ............................................................................ 28
Tunisia’s secular opposition unites against Islamists ................................................................ 30
South Sudan invites ‘brother’ Bashir to summit ....................................................................... 32
Sudan and South Sudan: Completing the Separation ............................................................... 34
5. JORDAN and LEBANON ......................................................................................................... 37
Charbel: Border incidents ‘not politically-motivated’ ............................................................... 37
De Freige: ‘Military channels’ in Beirut port should be controlled ........................................... 37
Mikati to present alternative solution for electricity problem ................................................. 38
6. SYRIA ................................................................................................................................... 39
Fear enters Damascus as conflict nears .................................................................................... 39
Annan’s Plan: Avoiding Another Veto ....................................................................................... 41
Bogdanov: No draft resolutions on Syria at Security Council agenda ....................................... 47
7. ARABIAN PENINSULA AND THE GULF OF BASRA .................................................................... 48
Gunmen open fire on Saudi policemen in Shia east ................................................................. 48
Council pledges to rebuild damaged shrine .............................................................................. 49
Saudi sends military equipment to Syria rebels: diplomat ....................................................... 50
Sayfa 1

8. AFGHANISTAN - PAKISTAN ................................................................................................... 52
Avalanche buries village in northeast Afghanistan, 50 dead .................................................... 52
Avalanche claims 18 lives in NE. Afghan province .................................................................... 53
Blast rocks Afghan Kandahar city .............................................................................................. 54
NATO soldier dies in Afghanistan .............................................................................................. 54
British Watchdog Group Urges Scrutiny On Aid To Afghanistan ............................................... 54
Karzai repeats call for halting night raid operations ................................................................. 55
Sayfa 2

1. IRAQ
Baghdad Operations Command
denies Hashemi claims about
bodyguard dying under torture
Baghdad Operations Command denied, on
Thursday, claims about torturing to death
one of the imprisoned bodyguards of Iraqi
Vice-President Tarek Al Hashemi stressing
that he died of renal failure. Forensic
Medicine reports and legal reviews will be
revealed to the public as soon as legal
consent is obtained, the command
revealed.
“Tarek Al Hashemi’s claims that his
bodyguard Amer Al Batawi died because
of torture are not true,” Baghdad
Operations Command arguedin a
statement which Alsumarianews received
a copy of. “Batawi died of chronic renal
failure,” the command assured.
“Batawi was transported to hospital, on
March 7, where he died on March 15,”
Baghdad Operations Command said
adding that Batawi’s family received the
corpse on Tuesday March 20. “Forensic
medicine reports and medical reviews
proving Batawi was sick will be displayed
in public as soon as legal consent is
obtained,” the command explained.
One of the detained bodyguards in Tarek
Al Hashemi’s case died under torture in
prison, 3 months after his arrest, Hashemi
revealed while displaying tragic photos of
torture marks on Batawi’s body.
International community has to act fast,
send a neutral committee to examine the
body and determine death causes,
Hashemi called.
Dealing incorrectly with Tarek Al
Hashemi’s case could affect all Iraq,
Kurdistan leader Masoud Al Barzani
warned in a press conference held, in
Erbil, with Head of Islamic Supreme
Council Ammar Al Hakim.
Hashemi’s issue concerns all Iraq not
Kurdistan only, Barzani noted. Barzani had
assured, on March 15, that Kurdistan will
not hand Hashemi especially that Kurdish
ethics forbid so. Hashemi is still the Vice-
President of Iraq and when he came to
Kurdistan, it was in order to meet with
him before the issue was raised, Barazani
added, a source told Alsumaria.
Sayfa 3

Iraqi Higher Judicial Council had
announced, on February 21, that Tarek Al
Hashemi’s case was transferred to central
criminal court in Al Karkh reminding that
the trial in absentia will be taking place, on
May 3. We have no clue about the verdict.
It is left for the court, the council stressed.
Vice President Tariq al-Hashimi who
allegedly died due to torture.
Iraqi Vice-President Tarek Al Hashemi is
staying in Kurdistan following accusations
for terrorism against him. These
accusations were based on the
confessions, displayed by Iraqi Interior
Ministry, of a number of his bodyguards
about committing violent actions
following Hashemi’s orders. Tarek Al
Hashemi, for his part, insisted that he is
innocent and blamed the Central
Government for accusing him of crimes
committed by unknown parties.
http://www.alsumaria.tv/news/53955/ba
ghdad-operations-command-denieshashemi-claims-a
Ministry probes into death of
Hashimi’s guard while in detention
BAGHDAD, March 23 (AKnews) – Iraq’s
Human Rights ministry is probing into the
death of one of the detained guards of
Tarq HashmiHashimi’s guards were
detained in November last year on
charges of carrying out 150 attacks on
Iraqi security forces and government
employees. An arrest warrant was also
issued against Hashimi for involvement in
the attacks.
The arrest warrant against Hashimi was
based on confessions of his guards whose
videos were displayed on state run al-
Iraqiya TV. Hashimi rejected the
allegations and said his guards were
tortured to confess.
Spokesperson for the Ministry of Human
Rights Kamil Amin told AKnews that “we
are looking into the death of one of
Hashimi’s guards.. We will take our
procedures in all cases relating to death of
Sayfa 4

detainees or inmates” Hashimi blamed in
a letter the death of his guard on Baghdad
authorities and said “it will complicate
efforts for national reconciliation” He also
warned that it could spark sectarian
conflicts again.
CAIRO, March 22 (AKnews) - The Speaker
of the Arab Parliament Ali al-Daqbasi said
today that he will take part in the
upcoming Arab summit in Baghdad later
this month to discuss a permanent Arab
parliament.
Baghdad Operations Command, which
reports directly to Shiite Prime Minister
Nouri al-Maliki, rejected the allegation
and said he had died of a kidney illness. It
also pledged to show all the medical
documents that prove so.
Al-Daqbasi said he will head a delegation
of four members of the Arab Parliament
to come to the summit, which is “one of
the most important summits in particular
as it follows the Arab nations' uprisings
against oppression”.
Mr Amin said the Ministry of Human
Rights is expecting to receive the results of
an autopsy from the forensic department
to find out whether the guard was
tortured.
He said, though, that initial reports
indicate the man had kidney issues. “We
will announce the results as soon as they
are out”
http://www.aknews.com/en/aknews/4/29
7374/
Arab Parliament Speaker to
participate in Baghdad summit
The delegation will seek “a decision by the
Arab leaders to make the Arab Parliament
permanent so that it can practice its right
to legislate unified Arab laws”.
“But we don't want a permanent
parliament to be just another organization
to be added to other Arab institutions. We
want it to be making decisions that are
mandatory on all [concerned]," added Al-
Daqbasi.
“We find it necessary for the Arab League
to be restructured in a way that protects
people and represents them as well
instead of representing only the rulers.”
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The Arab summit is expected to be held
on March 29.
of engineering, environmental science and
economics.
http://www.aknews.com/en/aknews/4/29
7286/
http://www.aknews.com/en/aknews/2/29
7308/
Iraq in talks over proposed highway
to Turkey and Syria
Jaafari asserts the intimate alliance of
Arab, Kurds, Turkmen, Assyrians
ERBIL, March 22 (AKnews) - The Iraqi
government has agreed to hold talks with
China’s Poly Technologies on a plan to
build a highway linking the country with
Turkey and Syria, reports Bloomberg.
Iraq’s minister of construction and
housing will discuss the design of the
project with Denmark’s COWI Holding A/S,
said government spokesman Ali al-
Dabbagh in a statement.
Baghdad (NINA) – Chairman of the
Parliamentary bloc of the National
Alliance, Ibrahim Al Jaafari, asserted ‘the
intimate alliance that comprised Iraqi
people with its components of Arab,
Kurds, Turkmen, and Assyrians who
sacrificed to topple the dictatorship.”
He said in a press statement “I
congratulate our people in Kurdistan on
the occasion of Nowruz celebrations.”
"[The highway] will help raise the income
of Iraqi citizens by easing land transport
and trade between Iraq and countries in
the east and in Europe, because it would
be the only land route linking the east
with Europe and the west,” said al-
Dabbagh.
COWI is an international consulting firm
which provides services within the fields
He stressed the importance of making
“Nowruz a step stone to stress the
importance of maintaining the Iraqi
variety as part of its strength elements
and to make Nowruz a reason to enhance
brotherhood and loving bonds among
Iraqi components from its far north to its
far south.”
http://www.ninanews.com/english/News
_Details.asp?ar95_VQ=FKIHEF
Sayfa 6

Kitab: holding the Summit in
Baghdad, a triumph for Iraq, not only
the government
http://www.ninanews.com/english/News
_Details.asp?ar95_VQ=FKIHDL
Sunni lawmakers accuse Iraq
government of torture
Baghdad (NINA) – Secretary general of the
National Democratic Labor Party, Shakir
Kitab, said holding the Arab Summit in
Baghdad is a political success for Iraq
generally, not only for the government.
He explained in a statement to NINA
“holding the Summit in Baghdad with all
its opportunities to restore the leading
role of Iraq in its Arab surroundings is a
success to all Iraqi political powers, not
the government only.”
He went on saying “and that represents
the patriotic and moral duty that obliges
all political powers to cooperate to make
the Summit a success and to deal with it in
high patriotic spirit and historical
responsibility.”
BAGHDAD (AP) — Iraqi lawmakers from
the Sunni-dominated block are accusing
the country's Shiite government of
torturing to death a jailed bodyguard who
worked for the fugitive Sunni vice
president.
The guard was held on suspicion of
terrorism. Authorities say he died of
kidney failure on March 15.
A Sunni lawmaker from Iraqiya, Salman al-
Jumaili, demanded an investigation on
Thursday. He says human rights
organizations should look into the case.
Vice President Tariq al-Hashemi — Iraq's
the highest-ranking Sunni official — has
been accused of running death squads
against Shiite pilgrims, government
officials and security forces.
He has denied the charges and has fled to
the semi-autonomous Kurdish region to
avoid an arrest warrant issued in
December.
Sayfa 7

http://www.asharqe.com/news.asp?section=1&id=28949
2. IRAN
Indian Minister: Western Sanctions Not to
Affect India's Trade with Iran
TEHRAN (FNA)- India's Minister of External
Affairs said that Somanahalli Mallaiah
Krishna said that New Delhi is studying the
impacts of the Western sanctions against
Iran on India, but at the same time
stressed that the sanctions will not affect
the country's trade with Iran.
The announcement was made by Krishna
on Thursday in a written letter to the
upper house of Indian parliament.
In January, India's Finance Minister Pranab
Mukherjee underlined New Delhi's resolve
to continue oil imports from Iran despite
the sanctions imposed on Iranian oil by
the US and the European Union.
"It is not possible for India to take any
decision to reduce the imports from Iran
drastically, because among the countries
which can provide the requirement of the
emerging economies, Iran is an important
one," Mukherjee told reporters in Chicago
at the end of a two-day visit.
Also, media reports said in February that
Iran's crude exports to India have
increased to 550,000 barrels a day in
January which shows a 37.5% growth
compared with the same period last year.
"The government is studying the impact
on India of the problems that have arisen
due to imposition of sanctions against
Iran," he said, adding that the US and the
European Union sanctions will not affect
trade with Iran.
India, the world's fourth-largest
petroleum consumer, is Iran's second
largest oil customer after China and
purchases around $12 billion worth of
Iranian crude every year, about 12 percent
of its consumption.
The Indian official added that the New
Delhi that it is working to continue crude
oil purchase from Iran.
http://english.farsnews.com/newstext.ph
p?nn=9012152937
Sayfa 8

Pakistani FM: Islamabad Not to Succumb
to Pressures over Gas Pipeline
its gas pipeline project with Iran despite
the US pressures and warnings.
TEHRAN (FNA)- Pakistan's Foreign Minister
Hina Rabbani Khar underlined the
country's need for energy resources, and
voiced Islamabad's determination to move
ahead on the pipeline due to transfer
Iran's gas to the energy-hungry country.
Speaking at the Air University in the
Pakistani province of Multan, Pakistani
Prime Minister Yusuf Raza Gilani said
Islamabad will not give in to foreign
pressures to abandon its joint gas pipeline
project with Iran.
Islamabad will make the decisions
regarding the Iran-Pakistan gas pipeline
based on its own interests, Gilani added.
The 2700-kilometer long pipeline was to
supply gas for Pakistan and India which
Hina Rabbani Khar has said that no
pressure regarding the Pakistan-Iran gas
pipeline project would be tolerated.
The foreign minister made the remark in
an exclusive interview with Geo television
in Islamabad on Thursday.
She said Pakistan needs energy and will
pursue Iran gas pipeline and other
projects to meet requirements, the Islamic
republic news agency reported.
are suffering a lack of energy sources, but
India has evaded talks. Last year Iran and
Pakistan declared they would finalize the
agreement bilaterally if India continued to
be absent in the meetings.
According to the project proposal, the
pipeline will begin from Iran's Assalouyeh
Energy Zone in the south and stretch over
1,100 km through Iran. In Pakistan, it will
pass through Baluchistan and Sindh but
officials now say the route may be
changed if China agrees to the project.
Earlier this month, Islamabad officials
reiterated Pakistan's resolve to expedite
Sayfa 9

The gas will be supplied from the South
Pars field. The initial capacity of the
pipeline will be 22 billion cubic meters of
natural gas per annum, which is expected
to be later raised to 55 billion cubic
meters. It is expected to cost $7.4 billion.
http://english.farsnews.com/newstext.ph
p?nn=9012152929
Tehran Voices Support for Political
Solution to Disputes in Syria
TEHRAN (FNA)- Iran once again said that it
opposes foreign meddling in the Syrian
internal affairs and supports any plan
which seeks political solution to current
standoff in the East Mediterranean
country.
be solved through a political solution away
from hastiness and foreign intervention.
"The Islamic Republic of Iran will agree to
any initiative which will guarantee the
Syrian nation's demands, facilitate reforms
announced by the Syrian President
(Bashar al-Assad)…, lead to stability and
peace in the country, and pave the way
for a national dialogue," Mehman-Parast
stressed.
The remarks by the Iranian spokesman
came after the United Nations Security
Council extended its support for the sixpoint
peace plan proposed by the UN-
Arab League envoy, Kofi Annan, for a UNsupervised
halt to the current fighting in
Syria.
In a statement on Wednesday, the council
called on the Syrian government to
"immediately" carry out the peace plan
proposed by Annan.
Reacting to a recent Security Council
statement on Syria which was adopted on
Wednesday, Iranian Foreign Ministry
Spokesman Ramin Mehman-Parast noted
on Thursday that the crisis in Syria should
Annan's six-point plan calls for a UNsupervised
halt to fighting, a daily twohour
humanitarian pause to hostilities,
withdrawal of government troops and
heavy weapons from crisis-hit cities and
access to all areas affected by the fighting.
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started a reform initiative in the country,
Annan will return to Syria soon for further
talks with Syrian officials.
During his last visit earlier this month, the
former UN chief called for a peaceful
solution to end the year-long unrest in the
country.
but Israel, the US and its Arab allies are
seeking hard to bring the country into
chaos through any possible means. Tel
Aviv, Washington and some Arab capitals
have been staging various plots in the
hope of stirring unrests in Syria once
again.
The Syrian president has said that he is
ready for any honest effort to resolve the
situation in the country.
Syria has been experiencing unrest since
mid-March with organized attacks by wellarmed
gangs against Syrian police forces
and border guards being reported across
the country.
Hundreds of people, including members of
the security forces, have been killed, when
some protest rallies turned into armed
clashes.
The government blames outlaws,
saboteurs, and armed terrorist groups for
the deaths, stressing that the unrest is
being orchestrated from abroad.
In October, calm was eventually restored
in the Arab state after President Assad
This is while Assad has done a lot in recent
months to reform laws and conditions in
his country. The Syrian president
announced the end to the state of
emergency, granted citizenship to many
Syrian Kurds and promised parliamentary
elections later this year. In January, he
issued the latest of thousands of
amnesties for those detained since the
uprising began.
Syria also in February held a referendum
on the country's new constitution. More
than 14 million Syrians over 18 could vote
and almost 90 percent of the voters
approved a new constitution in the
referendum.
Under the new charter, freedom is 'a
sacred right' and 'the people will govern
the people' in a multi-party democratic
system based on Islamic law.
Sayfa 11

Ayatollah Khamenei said that the Western
The document allows multiple political
parties to compete in elections for the
legislature, sets a limit of two seven-year
terms on the president, and eliminates a
clause that guarantees political supremacy
to Assad's Ba'ath Party.
http://english.farsnews.com/newstext.ph
p?nn=9012152917
Iran will respond to any attack at
‘same level’: Leader
powers’ extreme pressure on the Islamic
Republic is not due to Tehran’s nuclear
program, but rather it is because Iran is
“standing against them like a lion.”
The Leader added that the arrogant
powers have “acknowledged” that Iran is
not seeking to produce nuclear weapons,
but all the sanctions are mainly meant to
bring Iran, as a unique country in terms of
oil and gas riches, under their control.
MASHHAD, March 20 (MNA) - Supreme
Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah
Seyyed Ali Khamenei said on Tuesday that
Iran will respond to any military attack by
the U.S. or the Zionist regime with the
“same level” of power.
“We do not have nuclear weapons, and
we do not intend to produce them. But in
the face of aggression, either by the U.S.
or the Zionist regime, we will attack them
at the same level that they attack us,” the
Leader told tens of thousands of people at
the mausoleum of Imam Reza (AS) in
Mashhad on the first day of the new
Iranian calendar year.
“If Iran was ready to surrender to them
like certain countries in the region, they
would not have any hostility toward Iran,”
he noted.
It is only Iran that has the fourth largest oil
reserves and the second largest gas
reserves in the world and the West wants
such a country to be easily at its control
and Iran’s nuclear program is just a
pretext, the Leader explained.
Ayatollah Khamenei went on to say that
oil riches in many countries will be
exhausted in the near future and the
capitalist world is very worried about this,
and therefore it has intensified pressure
Sayfa 12

on Iran under the illusion that Iran, with
such abundant energy resources, will fall
in their arms.
He stated that Western governments are
also keeping their people in dark about
the “catastrophe” that is awaiting them in
regard to energy depletion.
He added that the United States and other
Western powers are mistaken if they
imagine that they can force Iran to submit
to their pressure and called on them to
treat Iranian people “respectfully.”
technological and scientific progress and
this has been acknowledged by reliable
international centers and they have
described that the pace of scientific
advancement in Iran as the “fastest” in
the world.
Ayatollah Khamenei added, “The degree
of the country’s progress is much higher
than what has been announced to the
public so far.”
Success in producing fuel plates ‘surprised
enemies’
Iranian experts see sanctions as
opportunity
Elsewhere in his speech, the Leader
commented on his visit to an exhibition
displaying the latest achievements of
Iran’s oil industry in Tehran on March 12,
saying the oil industry experts have “high
self-confidence” and see sanctions as an
“opportunity”.
Iran’s technological progress greater than
announced
The Leader went on to say that despite
harsh sanctions, Iran has made great
The Leader also stated that the Western
powers have admitted that while they
have inflicted “crippling sanctions” on
Iran, the country has been making
unprecedented technological progress.
For example, he said, Iran’s success in
enriching uranium to 20 percent and
turning it into fuel plates to operate the
Tehran research reactor “surprised the
enemies.”
In another part of his speech, the Leader
praised the achievements made in the
country in Iranian calendar year of 1390,
which ended on March 19.
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Ayatollah Khamenei said that the
implementation of the subsidy reform
plan was an important step when the
country was under tough sanctions.
The reform plan was a “necessity” and this
came true through the efforts of the
government and the Majlis and led to “fair
distribution of subsidies” which positively
affected the lives of the poor, the Leader
explained.
He added that the subsidy reform plan put
a brake on the extravagant consumption
of gasoline to the extent that if the
subsidy reform had not been introduced,
the gasoline consumption would have
increased by two times in comparison to
the current level of consumption.
http://www.mehrnews.com/en/newsdeta
il.aspx?NewsID=1562963
Ahmadinejad, Sultan Qaboos discuss
regional issues on phone
TEHRAN, March 22 (MNA) - In a telephone
conversation on Wednesday, Iranian
President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and
Sultan Qaboos of Oman discussed the
latest developments in the region.
Ahmadinejad said that efforts should be
made to expand relations between the
two countries in all areas.
Sultan Qaboos congratulated
Ahmadinejad on Noruz (Iranian New Year)
and stated that enhanced relations
between the two countries benefit the
region.
http://www.mehrnews.com/en/newsdeta
il.aspx?NewsID=1563437
Tehran dismisses Yemeni claims of
Iranian interference
TEHRAN, March 22 (MNA) - Iranian
Deputy Foreign Minister for Arab and
African Affairs Hossein Amir-Abdollahian
on Thursday dismissed as “baseless” the
recent claim by Yemeni foreign minister
Abu Bakr al-Qirbi that Tehran is interfering
in Yemen’s internal affairs.
Amir-Abdollahian advised the Yemeni
foreign minister to take the measures
necessary to fulfill the demands of the
people instead of making efforts to divert
attention from the issues facing the
country.
Sayfa 14

“The Islamic Republic of Iran supports
legitimate demands of Muslim people of
Yemen and emphasizes that national
dialogue is the best political solution to
the current situation in Yemen,” he stated.
Amir-Abdollahian added, “We are certain
that Muslim people, scholars, and all
political groups in Yemen will safeguard
their revolution with full vigilance and will
not allow enemies of the region to
interfere in their country’s internal
affairs.”
http://www.mehrnews.com/en/newsdeta
il.aspx?NewsID=1563538
‘Iran supports peace plans for Syria
but with conditions’
TEHRAN, March 22 (MNA) - Iran supports
any initiative that would help resolve the
Syrian crisis through diplomatic channels
without violating the country’s
sovereignty, Iranian Foreign Ministry
spokesperson Ramin Mehmanparast said
on Thursday.
Mehmanparast made the remarks in
reference to the statement that the
United Nations Security Council approved
on Wednesday, which supports former
secretary general Kofi Annan’s peacemaking
efforts in Syria and the delivery of
aid for victims of the violence.
In the statement, the Security Council
called on both the government and the
opposition to work “in good faith” with
Annan, who met with Syrian President
Bashar al-Assad in Damascus this month in
his role as a special envoy for the UN and
the Arab League, according to Los Angeles
Times.
Mehmanparast said, “The Islamic Republic
of Iran once again emphasizes that the
current situation in Syria should be
resolved through diplomatic means and
any hasty and interventionist measure
should be avoided and announces that it
will cooperate in carrying out any plan
which does not violate the country’s
sovereignty, takes into account demands
of the Syrian people and the
implementation of the announced reform
process by the president and officials of
the Syrian government, helps restore
stability and peace in the country, and
paves the way for national dialogue in the
country.”
Sayfa 15

http://www.mehrnews.com/en/newsdeta
il.aspx?NewsID=1563535
3. ISRAEL - PALESTINE
West Bank farmers frightened away
from water springs by Israeli settlers
Mazloum added that they smashed his car
and told him that both the spring and the
land are theirs.
“This is not the first time they’ve done
that. They always come at the end of the
week and they are always armed.”
Constant attacks by Israeli settlers have
made a large portion of West Bank
farmers unable to irrigate their land from
springs around their villages amid
concerns over the increased control
exercised by the occupation on the water
resources in the Palestinian territories.
Settlers, Mazloum pointed out, are now
partially controlling the spring and have
started coming to bathe in it on regular
basis.
“Very soon they will have full control on
it.”
The increased infringement of settlers on
Palestinian water rights forebodes an
imminent crisis that might leave land
owned and cultivated by West Bank
farmers in a state of drought, said Ayman
Jarar of the Palestinian Water Authority.
“I was attacked by dozens of settlers while
getting water from a spring next to a land I
rented,” Amjad Mazloum, from the village
of al-Janiya in west Ramallah, told Al
Arabiya.
“Israel is waging an unprecedented war on
water resources in the Palestinian
territories,” he told Al Arabiya.
Jarar added that since 1995, Israel has not
permitted Palestinians to get the amounts
of water they need even from territories
Sayfa 16

under the full control of the Palestinian
Authority.
standards while an Israeli settler gets a lot
more.
“Eventually this will lead to the
desertification of Palestinian land.”
Israel, Jarar noted, has already seized 350
artesian wells and is preventing
Palestinians from using other available
resources.
“They are not allowing us to use the water
of the Dead Sea and the Jordan River.”
Added to this, said Jarar, many of the
wells under Palestinian control have dried
out.
“This means that our share of water is
diminishing drastically.”
Jarar explained that the water share of
each Palestinian individual is estimated at
70 liters per day compared to 320 for each
Israeli settler and 230 for each Israeli
citizen.
“This means that a settler gets four times
and half more than a Palestinian.”
Jarar stated that the water one Palestinian
gets is a lot less than international
“According to the World Health
Organization, the amount of water an
individual requires to satisfy all daily
needs is estimated at 150 liters.”
According to Jarar, Palestinians get only 15
percent of renewable water sources in
Palestine and which is estimated at 2,600
million liters in total.
“Half of this 15 percent we get from wells
under our control and the other half we
buy from Israel,” he concluded.
According to a report issued by the U.N.
Office for the Coordination of
Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), Israel
controls 30 out of 56 water springs
located near the West Bank settlements
while the rest are threatened with seizure
by Israeli settlers who keep scaring
Palestinian farmers away with constant
armed attacks.
Settlers, the report added, have started
renovating the areas around those springs
in preparation for turning them into
national parks for their own use despite
the fact that Israel itself admits that 84
Sayfa 17

percent of the seized wells are owned by
Palestinians.
before taking a decision on assembling
atomic bombs.
The report called for putting settlers on
trial for infringement on Palestinian water
rights, construction work without permit,
and the terrorization of peaceful civilians.
Those acts, the report explained, are not
only criminalized by international law but
also by Israeli law.
Israel “cannot afford” to wait in such a
situation, Barak told Israel Radio.
Israeli authorities, however, have not
responded to those demands and no
measures have so far been taken against
the settlers.
http://english.alarabiya.net/articles/2012/
03/22/202435.html
Israel, U.S. disagree on Iran timetable:
official
Israel and the U.S. disagree on what would
be a realistic timetable for stopping Iran
from obtaining nuclear weapons, Israel’s
defense minister said Thursday, but
stopped short of threatening unilateral
Israeli action.
Ehud Barak reiterated concerns that Iran is
trying to make its suspected nuclear
weapons program immune from attack
However, several more months can be
given to allow sanctions and negotiations
to work, he said. During this period, it
would become clear “if the Iranians intend
or don't intent to stop their nuclear
weapons program.”
In the interview, Barak argued that
superior U.S. military capabilities and
America’s position as a world power lead
to its different stance on the subject of
Iranian nuclear threats.
Israel feels directly threatened by a
nuclear Iran, Barak stressed.
In a separate interview with German
television, Barak said that 2012 is a “highly
Sayfa 18

important” year for a possible strike and
speculated that a “surgical intervention” -
a precision hit on Iranian targets - is not a
matter of weeks, but also not a matter of
years.
Iran denies it is trying to develop nuclear
weapons, and insists its nuclear program
is meant for peaceful uses such as
generating electricity.
may be infringing on the rights of the
Palestinians.
The resolution was adopted with 36 votes
in favor and 10 abstentions. Only the
United States voted against it.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin
Netanyahu, meanwhile, slammed the
resolution as “hypocritical.”
Barak said Israel and the U.S. agree on the
final objective of preventing Iran from
building nuclear weapons, but that “the
difference between us and the U.S. is the
perspective on timetables.”
“America has more abilities than Israel,”
Barak said. “You can think of a time when
Israel would be very limited in its ability to
act.”
http://english.alarabiya.net/articles/2012/
03/22/202402.html
U.N. rights council orders 1st probe of
Israeli settlements; Netanyahu slams
resolution
The U.N. Human Rights Council on
Thursday passed a resolution ordering a
first probe into how Israeli settlements
“This council has an automatic majority
hostile to Israel and is hypocritical,”
Netanyahu was quoted as saying in a
statement released by his office.
The Israeli premier added that the U.N.
Human Rights Council “should be
ashamed of itself.”
“Until today, the council has made 91
decisions, 39 of which dealt with Israel,
three with Syria and one with Iran,”
Netanyahu said.
Sayfa 19

“One only had to hear the Syrian
representative speak today about human
rights in order to understand how
detached from reality the council is,” he
added in the statement.
But the Palestinians welcomed the
resolution as a “new victory.”
“The new international decision is a new
victory for the Palestinian cause,” said
Nabil Abu Rudeina, the spokesman of
president Mahmoud Abbas.
“This position sends a message from the
international community to Israel that
settlements are illegal and must totally
stop,” he told AFP.
Presenting the resolution, a Pakistani
envoy criticized Israel for insisting on
building more settlements in the occupied
territories, saying that they are “in
violation of international humanitarian
and human rights laws.”
“This resolution seeks to respond to the
humanitarian and human rights challenges
this illegal Israeli practice has created in
the occupied territories,” he said.
Beyond ordering an investigation into the
implications of settlements, the resolution
also calls on Israel to “take and implement
serious measures” such as confiscating
arms to prevent acts of violence by Israeli
settlers.
Condemning Israel’s announcements of
new settlement homes, it demanded a
reversal of the policy.
But the United States spoke up against the
move, saying it was “deeply troubled by
this Council’s bias against Israel.”
“Steps like this do nothing to promote a
just and lasting peace,” said a U.S. envoy,
adding that they only serve to “push
parties apart.”
Israel’s envoy also challenged the
resolution, one of several against the
country.
“Many of the speakers today and in many
other occasions in this room repeatedly
emphasize the ideals of non-partiality,
non-selectivity, non-politicization,” said
the envoy.
Sayfa 20

“Why are these principles no longer
relevant when it comes to” resolutions
concerning Israel?”
Israel’s foreign ministry said the resolution
“is yet another surrealistic decision from
the workshop of a council that is
instrumentalized as a tool to push for onesided
politicized moves instead of
promoting human rights.”
“While all over the Middle East, human
rights are violated in an unprecedented
scale, the HRC ridicules itself by dedicating
its time and resources to establish a
superfluous and extravagant body whose
sole purpose is to satisfy the Palestinians’
whims.”
Israel’s move to expand settlements has
been criticized by the international
community, which deems the action
illegal.
Nevertheless, in late February, an Israeli
committee legalized an unauthorized
settler outpost in the northern West Bank
and approved a plan for 500 new homes
there.
The move was condemned as
“deplorable” by the U.N.’s Middle East
envoy Robert Serry, who said it “moves us
further away from the goal of a two-state
solution.”
This week, U.N. rights chief Navi Pillay said
the expansion of Israeli settlements is
deeply linked to problems including
violence in the Occupied Palestinian
Territory.
More than 310,000 Israelis live in
settlements in the occupied West Bank
and the number is growing.
Another 200,000 live in a dozen
settlement neighborhoods in east
Jerusalem, which was captured by Israel in
1967 and annexed in a move never
recognized by the international
community.
http://english.alarabiya.net/articles/2012/
03/22/202508.html
Liberman considering withdrawing
ambassador from UNHRC
FM weighs severing ties with UN council
after 36 to 1 vote to create fact-finding
mission investigating effects of
Sayfa 21

settlements on Palestinian human rights;
PM says council "hypocritical" and "should
be ashamed."
Foreign Minister Avigdor Liberman said
Friday that he was considering
withdrawing the Israeli ambassador to the
UN Human Rights Council and severing
ties with the body, following its
establishment of a fact-finding mission to
probe the effects of settlements on
Palestinian human rights.
Liberman added that he will convene a
meeting in the foreign ministry to discuss
the possibility that Israel will not
cooperate with the council in their
investigation.
Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu
reacted to the decision on Thursday,
saying the council is “hypocritical” and
should be “ashamed of itself.”
It is the first such fact-finding mission by
the council. The council, which met in
Geneva, also approved four other
resolutions against Israel, including one
opposing its actions on the Golan Heights.
By a vote of 36 to 1, with 10 abstentions,
the council decided to dispatch the factfinding
mission to “investigate the
implications” of the settlements on “the
Palestinian people throughout the
Occupied Palestinian Territory, including
east Jerusalem.”
Only the US called the resolution biased
and voted against it.
It also rejected the other four resolutions.
Europe was divided on the fact-finding
During a meeting with President of
Singapore Tony Tan Keng Yam, the foreign
minster also said that he will try to
persuade countries such as the United
States to quit the council too.
mission, with Norway, Switzerland,
Belgium, Austria and Russia voting for the
measure, and Italy, Spain, the Czech
Republic, Hungary, Poland, Romania and
Moldova abstaining.
Sayfa 22

Hamas is an organization whose ideology
Among other countries with whom Israel
has good ties who voted for the measure
were Angola, Nigeria, Uganda, China,
India, the Philippines, Thailand, Chile,
Mexico, Peru and Uruguay.
The other countries that abstained were
Guatemala, Costa Rica and Cameroon.
“This is a hypocritical council with an
automatic majority against Israel,”
Netanyahu said in response.
“This council ought to be ashamed of
itself,” he said. “Until today, the council
has made 91 decisions, 39 of which dealt
with Israel, three with Syria and one with
Iran.”
“One only had to listen to the Syrian
representative speak about human rights
at the council on Thursday to understand
how detached from reality it is,” he said.
Another proof of its distance from reality,
Netanyahu added, was the fact that this
week it facilitated the lecture of an activist
from Hamas at an NGO side event in its
building.
is based on “the murder of innocents,” he
said.
The Foreign Ministry released a statement
saying that the resolution was “yet
another surrealistic decision” from the
council that is more interested in
promoting a one-sided political agenda
than in human rights.
“While all over the Middle East human
rights are violated in an unprecedented
scale, the HRC ridicules itself by dedicating
its time and resources to establish a
superfluous and extravagant body whose
sole purpose is to satisfy the Palestinians’
whims and to harm future chances to
reach an agreement through peaceful
means,” the statement said. “The
Palestinians must understand that they
cannot have it both ways: they cannot
enjoy cooperation with Israel and at the
same time initiate political clashes in
international forums.”
The statement said that had the
Palestinians truly been interested in
solving the settlement issue, they would
immediately resume negotiations on all
the core issues. “Their deliberate choice to
Sayfa 23

foster confrontation and provocation
rather than compromise and
reconciliation is nothing but a destructive
strategy that the international community
should firmly reject,” the statement read.
The Goldstone Commission following
2009’s Operation Cast Lead in Gaza that
accused Israel of war crimes originated
through a similar type of decision by the
Human Rights Council. Israel did not
cooperate with that committee.
will not help redress an overall scenario
which advocates for, absolutely advocates
for, serious negotiations and a clear
political will to carry them on,” they said.
The Czech Republic made a similar
statement.
Austria, however, supported the measure
even though it felt that the proposal was
not flexible enough and that other
alternatives might have been sought.
A government official said Israel would not
“cooperate with a kangaroo court.” The
official added, “We are not going to make
something illegitimate legitimate.”
Still, Austria said it agreed in principle that
settlements were illegal, present an
obstacle to peace and threaten a twostate
solution.
US representative to the council Charles
Blaha warned it that a fact-finding mission
would sap resources and time as well as
push the Israelis and Palestinians further
apart.
Italy and Spain issued a statement to the
council in which they said they believed
that settlements were illegal under
international law.
“Austria and the EU and the international
community have repeatedly called on the
government of Israel to end all settlement
activity,” it said.
A PA spokesman said he hopes the
decision will send a message to Israel.
http://www.jpost.com/DiplomacyAndPolit
ics/Article.aspx?id=263112
“However, a fact-finding mission would be
a duplication of existing mechanisms. It
Sayfa 24

4. AFRICA and EGYPT
Morocco to tackle rent-based
economy
The Moroccan government has made the
first step to follow through on its promise
to combat graft.
In a move to halt corruption, the new
Moroccan government disclosed a list of
beneficiaries of transportation licences.
The step stems from the new provisions of
the constitution that guarantee the right
of citizens to access information, the
minister explained. Other lists relating to
other sectors will be published in due
course, according to Rebbah.
The Abdelilah Benkirane-led government
vowed to crack down on nepotism and
corruption, and some view the measure as
the first step toward that goal.
The list, revealed by Public Works Minister
Abdelaziz Rebbah on March 1st, includes
athletes, politicians and artists who
benefited from transport grants.
The publication of the list of more than
4,000 transport permit-holders is an act of
political bravery as this was a demand
made by civil-society campaigners and
members of the public who had called for
transparency in the way this matter is
handled, said political analyst Magid
Ibrahimi.
The move, however, will achieve nothing
unless concrete measures are taken to
change the situation, he cautioned.
"Future issues of permits will involve calls
for tenders. A new approach will be taken
with regard to permits that have already
been awarded, which must be managed
by companies that will make profits for
the state," Rebbah said.
Bank employee Charif Senhaji said it is
time to wipe out the corruption and votecatching
that are characteristic of the
rent-based economy. Permits must earn
Sayfa 25

profits for the state, which can use them
to benefit society.
"This matter must be analysed in depth,"
Senhaji said. "The rent-based economy
covers not only transport, but also the
operation of sand quarries and deep-sea
fishing permits. It is the latter two that are
the most coveted."
Professionals are taking a more cautious
approach.
Abdelilah Hifdi, head of the Transport
Federation at the General Confederation
of Moroccan Business (CGEM), described
the move as counterproductive which will
stir up public condemnation of permitholders.
He said that it is time to reform
the sector.
"What the government has done is
fruitless and pointless," said former MP
and preacher Abdelbari Zemzemi.
"Permits are rented for 20,000 dirhams,
an amount that is barely enough to
support a big family. The minister earns a
salary that is treble this amount. If the
government wants to be fair, ministers
should share their salaries with the
people."
Zemzemi also alleged that the publication
of this information impinged on personal
freedoms.
Analyst Magidi, however, reminded that
the award of permits is a measure taken
by the state, and the government has the
right to publish the list of beneficiaries as
a first step toward change and
transparency.
http://www.magharebia.com/cocoon/awi
/xhtml1/en_GB/features/awi/features/20
12/03/22/feature-02
Mauritania may extradite Senussi to
Libya
Conflicting claims are emerging over the
fate of Moamer Kadhafi's former
spymaster, now jailed in Mauritania.
Libyan officials remained in Nouakchott on
Wednesday (March 21st) awaiting a
decision on their extradition request for
former Kadhafi spy chief Abdullah Senussi.
"We respect the judicial procedures in
Mauritania which will take time to finish,
but it is simply a question of time," Libyan
Sayfa 26

government spokesman Nasser al-Manaa
said.
Deputy Libyan Prime Minister Mustafa
Abu Shagur claimed Tuesday (March 20th)
that Mauritania was ready to extradite
former Kadhafi spy chief Abdullah Senussi
to Libya, despite a lack of confirmation
from Mauritanian authorities.
deputy Libyan premier was in Nouakchott
meeting with Mauritanian President
Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz and other
officials as part of an attempt to secure
Senussi's extradition to Libya.
"The Libyan delegation discussed Senussi's
extradition to Libya so that he may have a
fair trial as per international standards. As
a result of these talks, the Mauritanian
state confirmed its willingness to extradite
him once the necessary procedures have
been completed," al-Manaa said, denying
the Kadhafi official would be sent
anywhere else.
Al-Manaa noted that Senussi was visited
The 62-year-old fugitive, arrested last
Friday night at Nouakchott airport, is
wanted in several countries for crimes
allegedly committed during his tenure as
Kadhafi's chief of intelligence. He was
indicted by the International Criminal
Court (ICC) last year for crimes against
humanity over his role in countering the
Libyan revolution.
Abu Shagur made the announcement via
Twitter, a statement later confirmed by
Libyan government spokesman Nasser al-
Manaa in Tripoli on Wednesday. The
by delegation members in order to verify
his identity.
"We hope that he'll be in Libya soon to be
tried there," the spokesman said, adding
that Senussi was in good health.
Libyan leader Mustafa Abdel Jalil said in
Tripoli on Wednesday that a decision by
Nouakchott to send Senussi back to Libya
would lead to an enhancement of ties
between the two countries.
Sayfa 27

However, Mauritanian sources told AFP
that no decision had yet been made
regarding extradition.
Republic in giving us a positive
commitment in this area," the deputy
Libyan prime minister said.
The Libyan government had used the
Nouakchott trip to exert pressure for
extradition. Following Abu Shagur's
meeting with Mauritanian President Ould
Abdel Aziz on Tuesday, the Libyan official
praised the president "for the courageous
position he had taken regarding Abdullah
Senussi's arrest".
In France, the Elysée Palace issued a
statement saying the French president
was "delighted at the arrest by the
Mauritanian authorities of Abdullah
Senussi". British officials had similar praise
for the capture, calling on Mauritania to
hand over the Kadhafi spymaster to the
ICC for trial on terror chargers.
"In reality this is a historic position which
the Libyan people will never forget,
because that man was the second in
command in Kadhafi's regime," Abu
Shagur said in Nouakchott.
He added that: "The meeting covered the
significance of this step and examined
ways in which relations between Libya and
Mauritania could be strengthened, along
with the Libyan government and people's
concern that this man should be
extradited to Libya, because he is a Libyan
citizen who must face due legal process in
his own country."
"Senussi's trial will turn the page on a dark
period in Libya's history," UK Foreign
Secretary William Hague said.
http://www.magharebia.com/cocoon/awi
/xhtml1/en_GB/features/awi/features/20
12/03/22/feature-01
Algerian officials favour unity with
Morocco
According to economists, a Maghreb
economic community could provide its
five members with "annual added value of
around 10 billion dollars".
"We fully appreciate the stance adopted
by His Excellency the President of the
Algerian Foreign Minister Mourad Medelci
has called for greater unity across the
Maghreb.
Sayfa 28

eassurance that "the opening of the
"What matters to our immediate regional
environment is integration, and I think we
have started along the right route to put
things in place," he said in an interview
with Arabies, published March 15th.
Medelci continued by saying that cohesion
was a fundamental objective "which
needs to be seen as a priority. What
matters to our immediate regional
environment is integration, and I think we
have started along the right route to put
things in place."
His words come against the backdrop of
signs of a rapprochement between Algeria
and Morocco.
borders is a must". Especially, he added,
since "we are two neighbouring countries
obliged to get along together, given the
things which unite us, such as language,
religion, common traditions, and our
shared history and future."
These converging positions are joined on
the economic front by an increase in trade
between the two countries. A report
published by Algerian customs shows that
trade between Algeria and the other
countries in the Arab Maghreb Union
(UMA) saw an improvement of 18.14% in
2011.
Country-by-country, Morocco remained
Algeria's top trade partner over the past
year, with trade worth $936 million
compared with $713.3 million in 2010.
Algeria's exports and imports to and from
UMA countries have increased 15.46%
On March 14th it was Algerian Prime
Minister Ahmed Ouyahia's turn to come
back with positive views on bilateral
relations with Morocco.
and 24.5% respectively. These positive
figures, according to economist Mohamed
El Bani, put economic integration between
the countries of the Maghreb firmly back
on the agenda.
Quoted in the columns of the Algerian
newspaper El Khabar, Ouyahia gave a
Sayfa 29

"Union between the five countries in the
region could be the first step to the
construction of a significant economic
block, especially since Maghreb soil hides
inestimable natural riches," El Bani said.
A Maghreb economic community could
provide its five members with "annual
added value of around 10 billion dollars".
That is the equivalent of 5% of their total
gross domestic product, according to Sari.
His view is shared by Camille Sari, an
economist and author of the book Algeria
and Morocco.
"At the present time, Maghreb markets
are limited, and they need to create new
synergies and complementarities, seeking
economies of scale in order to reduce
their dependency upon the dominant
economies and to increase their
negotiating power in international
relations," he said in an interview
published by Maghreb Emergent on
March 10th.
Sari thinks that closing the Algerian-
Moroccan borders has encouraged
unregulated trade, drugs trafficking and
money for mafia groups on both sides of
the border.
"Those profiting from these illicit activities
have much to gain from the status quo
lasting as long as possible," he said.
The Algerian public keeps a close eye on
Algerian-Moroccan relations, hoping for a
speedy resolution of remaining problems,
particularly over the opening of borders.
"We need a strong AMU now, more than
ever before. The stability of the region
depends on it," Aymed Belhimer, 34, a
civil servant, told Magharebia.
Souhila Semari, a student of politics at
university, pointed out that there has
been "positive talk on both sides. So the
political will exists, we simply need the
courage to take that step."
http://www.magharebia.com/cocoon/awi
/xhtml1/en_GB/features/awi/features/20
12/03/22/feature-03
Tunisia’s secular opposition unites
against Islamists
Five months after polls swept an Islamistled
coalition to power in post-revolution
Tunisia, the country’s kaleidoscopic
Sayfa 30

opposition is striving to unite and fight for
a secular state.
The myriad opposition parties in Tunisia’s
constituent assembly are merging into
bigger blocs, hoping to mount a stiffer
challenge to the dominant Islamist party
Ennahda.
The secular movement may also have
found a natural leader with former prime
minister Beji Caid Essebsi, the politician
who steered last year’s transitional period
and is staging a comeback at age 85.
Ennahda and its governing partners, the
Congress for the Republic and Ettakatol,
snapped up most of the votes in the
October 23 election that capped dictator
Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali’s ouster nine
months earlier.
“We’re sliding towards a theocratic
regime, so now the opposition wants to
regroup to balance two main forces: the
Islamists who wants to implement Sharia
and the liberals who defend a democratic,
modern and secular state,” political
analyst Mounir Charfi told AFP.
“The Islamists – with Ennahda, Hizb
Ettahrir (a non-registered party
advocating the return of the caliphate)
and the Salafist movement – are already a
well-structured and disciplined force. A
parallel force therefore needs to be
created,” he said.
Several leftist and liberal groups have
already announced they were planning to
merge, such as the Ettajdid (Renewal)
movement, the Labour Party and the
Democratic Modernist Pole.
The other parties were left to lick their
wounds but a leftist and a centrist bloc are
emerging, while a third current that
includes former members of Ben Ali’s
ruling party is also uniting behind the
legacy of Habib Bourguiba, the father of
Tunisia’s independence.
Another merger is in the works to bring
together the Progressive Democratic
Party, the center-right liberal party Afek
Tounes and the Republic Party.
A coalition of 11 small political parties
created in the aftermath of last year’s
January 14 revolution also called for
Sayfa 31

uniting all “Destourians”, a word that
stems from the Arabic for constitution.
parties it could become an effective
electoral platform,” Manai said.
Those parties claim to embody the legacy
of Bourguiba’s Destourian Socialist Party
and include several former members of its
successor, Ben Ali’s now dissolved
Constitutional Democratic Rally.
He argued Essebsi was one of the few who
could raise enough funds to compete with
Ennahda, a party that enjoys the support,
at least political, of countries such as
Qatar and Turkey.
“These parties’ failure at the constituent
assembly polls, the disappearance of some
of them and the rise to power of an
Ennahda-dominated government... have
led to this streamlining,” Ahmed Manai,
another analyst, said.
He said the fledgling government’s
“average performance” so far in a country
riddled with unemployment was another
factor encouraging the opposition to
structure.
He argued the most significant force to
emerge from a revamped opposition
camp could be a group led by Beji Caid
Essebsi because “it transcends ideological
divisions.”
“It still lacks soul and leadership, but by
federating a constellation of Destourian
Essebsi had launched an appeal in January
for groups to unite around secular values
and offer Tunisians an alternative to the
Islamists.
On Saturday, the veteran politician is
organizing a conference in Monastir –
Bourguiba’s hometown – that is expected
to bring 52 political groups together and
could be a defining moment for Tunisia’s
opposition.
https://mail.google.com/mail/?shva=1#in
box
South Sudan invites ‘brother’ Bashir
to summit
South Sudan on Thursday formally invited
its “brother,” Sudanese President Omar al-
Bashir, to a summit in April aimed at
resolving outstanding issues which have
pushed them to the brink of war.
Sayfa 32

each other's citizens and demarcating the
“We delivered the message to President
Bashir and he welcomed it. He expressed
his readiness to visit Juba,” the South’s
top negotiator, Pagan Amum, said in a
statement to reporters at the cabinet
offices in Sudan’s capital.
Amum, who arrived with a delegation of
ministers, said the South’s leader Salva Kiir
had invited his “brother president” to the
April 3 summit “with the aim of solving
the pending issues between the two
states.”
oil-rich border.
When South Sudan gained its
independence it took about threequarters
of Sudanese oil production but it
has no facilities of its own to export the
crude.
It would be Bashir’s first visit to the South
since it separated in July last year
following an overwhelming vote at the
end of Africa's longest war.
At the heart of their dispute has been
disagreement over how much Juba should
pay to use the northern pipeline and port.
After months of failed negotiations, a
dispute over oil fees, and mutual
accusations of backing rebels on each
other’s territory, Amum last week said
relations had turned positive after the
latest African Union-led talks in Addis
Ababa, Ethiopia.
At those meetings the two sides reached
agreements on safeguarding the status of
The new nation shut crude production in
late January after accusing Sudan of
“stealing” its oil.
But Amum said last week that Sudan has
agreed to pay back oil it had taken, while
South Sudan would hand over months of
unpaid transit fees, although further
negotiations were still needed.
Sayfa 33

U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon had
warned the crisis between Sudan and
South Sudan was a major threat to
regional peace and security.
Tensions peaked in late February and early
March when Khartoum threatened
retaliation after accusing the South of
backing a rebel attack in the disputed
border area of Jau.
http://english.alarabiya.net/articles/2012/
03/22/202498.html
Sudan and South Sudan: Completing
the Separation
A new agreement which covers the rights
of Sudanese and South Sudanese residing
on the wrong side of recently created
borders is threatened by fears of war.
Air strikes followed on an oil field in the
South’s Unity State, an attack Juba blamed
on Khartoum’s forces.
“They really came to the brink of war...
but they realized that the international
community would not support them,” an
analyst who asked not to be named told
AFP.
The U.N.’s Ban welcomed the planned
summit and said the agreements on
borders and citizenship were “an
important step forward and an
encouraging manifestation of both parties’
spirit of cooperation and partnership.”
Amum spoke in Khartoum before the two
delegations headed into meetings aimed
largely at preparation for the summit.
Citizens of South Sudan residing in Sudan
are watching and waiting to see what is
going to happen as April 8 approaches.
This date was set by the Sudanese
government as a deadline for the “illegal”
presence of South Sudanese in Sudan.
This is despite the fact that the two
countries signed the Four Freedoms
Agreement in the Ethiopian capital Addis
Ababa last week. The framework
agreement allows citizens of both
Sayfa 34

countries the freedom to move between
the two nations, as well as reside, work,
and own property in accordance with the
laws and procedures in the two states.
According to a high-ranking government
official in Khartoum who spoke with Al-
Akhbar, the agreement “has nothing to do
with giving the South Sudanese full rights
in Sudan. He outlined instead the
procedural steps that will be taken vis a
vis citizens of both countries residing in
the north and in the south.”
The Just Peace Forum (JPF) headed by the
Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir’s
uncle, al-Tayyib Mustafa, considered the
agreement a “humiliating concession”
calling for an immediate end to this
“government prostration.”
To express their fierce opposition to the
agreement with South Sudan, the JPF
raised banners in Khartoum’s main streets
warning against the “new Trojan Horse”
embodied in the four freedoms approved
in the last agreement.
Regarding the approaching April 8 date,
the Sudanese official said that every South
Sudanese living in Sudan will be treated as
a foreigner if he does not legalize his
status. He added: “Granting the right to
own property, move, live, and work does
not mean giving full citizenship rights.” He
pointed out that the agreement signed
with South Sudan “is similar to that signed
with Egypt for example.”
This clarification coincided with fears in
Khartoum that the agreement signed with
Juba might be aborted as the deal
received sharp criticism in Sudan.
Many observers believe the the JPF will be
able to rekindle the war between Sudan
and South Sudan. This party is able,
according to many observers, to open an
internal front against any South Sudanese
presence in Sudan and to take the country
back to a state of war.
Deputy President of the JPF Lieutenant
General Ibrahim al-Rashid denied to Al-
Akhbar that their rejection of the Four
Freedoms Agreement means a return to a
state of war. He said: “Giving southerners
the four freedoms does not mean
stopping the war. They enjoyed all their
freedoms with us and it did not stop the
war.”
Sayfa 35

signed serving as key issues that will pave
Al-Rashid described the agreement on the
four freedoms as a “great disaster” that
will lead to infiltration deep into Sudan
threatening the country’s strategic
security. He pointed out that with this
agreement, the war will return through
intelligence cells that carry South
Sudanese passports and that will threaten
the security and stability of Sudan.
On the other hand, some see the
agreement as a clear breakthrough in the
relationship between the two countries
and argue that those opposing it are an
“ineffective minority in the north.”
the way to resolving other more
complicated issues such as the question of
oil.
Some observers doubt the agreement will
succeed if the cessation of hostilities
agreement signed between the two
countries last month is not put into effect.
According to the spokesperson of the
Sudanese People's Liberation Army of
South Sudan (SPLA) Colonel Philip Aguer,
the movement of Sudanese armed forces
along the border between the two
countries has continued.
According to political analyst, al-Tayyib
Zain al-Abidin, the views of the JPF are
sensationalist and tend toward racism,
adding that the party does not mind
igniting the flames of war again.
As cautious optimism regarding the future
of negotiations between Khartoum and
Juba prevails, a presidential summit is set
to take place between Sudanese President
Omar al-Bashir and his South Sudanese
counterpart Salva Kiir Mayardit in Juba at
the end of this month. During this summit,
border and citizenship agreements will be
He told Al-Akhbar: “We still see
movement of Sudanese military supplies
and vehicles along the border.” He
cautioned that “if these movements do
not stop then what was signed in Addis
Ababa will be worthless as the actual
implementation of agreements takes
place on the ground.”
http://english.alakhbar.com/content/sudan-and-southsudan-completing-separation
Sayfa 36

5. JORDAN and LEBANON
Charbel: Border incidents ‘not
politically-motivated’
Interior Minister Marwan Charbel said in
remarks published on Friday that the
Syrian firing on Lebanese border villages
had no political motivations.
“There are no political motivations for
what is happening [on the Lebanese-
Syrian] border from time to time,” Charbel
told Saudi As Sharq al-Awsat newspaper.
“When shooting, or clashes erupt inside
Syrian areas [located near Lebanese-
Syrian border], some rounds land in
Lebanese border villages, but [Lebanon
and Syria have no scores to settle with
each other].”
A number of families fled the threat near
the Lebanese-Syrian border and headed to
other areas, such as Wadi Khaled.
Thousands of Syrians have fled the unrest
in their country, which according to the
Syrian Observatory for Human Rights has
left over 9,100 people killed since protests
erupted in strife-stricken Syria in mid-
March 2011.
http://www.nowlebanon.com/NewsArticl
eDetails.aspx?ID=379239
De Freige: ‘Military channels’ in Beirut
port should be controlled
Future bloc MP Nabil De Freige said on
Friday that uncontrolled “military
channels” through the Beirut sport should
be put on the spot.
“[Lebanon] will [be kept away] from
dangers, because all [groups] want
stability for Lebanon.”
Syrian forces on Wednesday night fired
across their country’s border into Bani
Sakher village in the Al-Boqaya area of
North Lebanon.
“It is necessary to follow up on the issue
of the [uncontrolled] military channels
that exist in the port of Beirut under the
cover of the Resistance,” De Freige said in
remarks published by Al-Mustaqbal
newspaper.
The MP also called on the state to
“impose its authority… to curb the
corruption in place,” adding those
Sayfa 37

violating food safety should not be treated
leniently.
Lebanese authorities have recently
cracked down on warehouses storing
rotten food being distributed to local
markets and restaurants.
http://www.nowlebanon.com/NewsArticl
eDetails.aspx?ID=379232
Mikati to present alternative solution
for electricity problem
Mikati added that the document will
clarify the reasons why he has been
expressing reservations on the powergenerating
ships which Energy Minister
Gebran Bassil intends to rent.
Mikati also responded to Speaker Nabih
Berri, who said last week that he would
call for an accountability parliament
session “in case the government did not
fulfill its promises to take a number of
steps to [carry out] the oil exploration
file.”
Prime Minister Najib Mikati said in
remarks published on Friday that he will
suggest “an alternative solution” for
Lebanon’s electricity problem.
“If it weren’t Speaker Berri who said this, I
would have understood [his remarks], but
[Berri] knows [what’s happening] through
and through.”
Mikati told As-Safir newspaper that he
was finalizing a report including possible
alternatives to the electricity problem that
will be presented to the cabinet
Bassil said in remarks published on
Tuesday that he did not understand what
Mikati wanted regarding the issue of
power-generating ships.
“I do not seek to impose my opinion on
anyone,” Mikati said.
The Prime Minister told As-Safir that the
report will be among the items which will
be discussed during next week’s cabinet
session.
In January 2012, the Energy Minister
suggested that Lebanon’s regular
electricity cuts be resolved by renting
power-generating ships. However, Mikati
has expressed reservations over Bassil’s
project.
Sayfa 38

http://www.nowlebanon.com/NewsArticl
eDetails.aspx?ID=379199
by activists on their Facebook page, The
Syrian Revolution 2011.
6. SYRIA
Fear enters Damascus as conflict
nears
“My nerves are shattered. Every day
people say the security forces are coming
to carry out a raid,” said Hafiza, a cleaner
who lives just outside Damascus.
Hafiza, like most people in and around the
Syrian capital, lives in fear that security
forces will raid her home and arrest her
sons.
The deadly uprising that has gripped Syria
for over a year has largely spared
Damascus but in past weeks the
bloodshed has also made its entry into
Damascus.
Last Sunday, security forces and troops
stormed the district of Artuz, southwest of
Damascus, Hafiza said.
“There were tanks and artillery. A tank
was posted on every street. They arrested
600 men, even 14-year-olds,” she said,
voicing fear they would come one day for
her own sons, aged 18 and 23.
Ammar, a writer who lives in the Barzeh
area of northern Damascus, is also
terrified by the unrest that has reached
the city.
“Nowadays as soon as it gets dark I head
home. My wife and I watch films every
night to shut out the violence,” he said.
“Damascus, here we come” was the
rallying cry on Friday for anti-regime
demonstrations across the country on the
day of weekly Muslim prayers, as posted
“But at midnight, gunfire breaks out and
there are explosions until dawn.”
Sayfa 39

He said protesters fill the streets of the old
part of Barzeh every night to demonstrate
against the regime.
Officials said three army deserters were
killed in the fighting, while 18 soldiers
were wounded.
A year after the start of a popular uprising
against the regime of Syrian President
Bashar al-Assad, fear is everywhere in
Damascus. Deadly car bombings have
rocked the capital and clashes are on the
rise.
Each day pro-democracy activists report
anti-regime protests in the center of
Damascus, where demonstrators take to
the streets despite the deployment of
hundreds of security forces.
YouTube videos show youths chanting
anti-regime slogans in districts like Midan,
Kfar Soussa, Barzeh, Bab Srijeh, Mazzeh,
Doummar and Qdsaya, and calling for the
arming of the rebel Free Syrian Army
(FSA).
The rebels appear determined to bring the
conflict to the capital.
On Thursday, an FSA spokesman said the
group had set up a military council to
coordinate hit-and-run strikes around
Damascus.
“I, Colonel Khaled Mohammed al-
Hammud, announce the creation of the
military council for Damascus and the
region that will be in charge of FSA
operations in this area,” the officer who
deserted from the army said in an online
video.
He invited other “noble officers still in the
ranks of Bashar’s army” to join the rebel
force.
For the first time, several hours of deadly
clashes erupted last Monday in the
upscale and heavily guarded
neighborhood of Mazzeh, barely one
kilometer (less than a mile) from the
presidential palace.
Some like Hussam, a merchant who sells
curtains, fear that Damascus will be the
scene of “the final battle” between the
regime and the armed opposition.
Hussam was badly shaken last week when
two killer blasts ripped through Damascus
Sayfa 40

killing at least 27 people, wounding
dozens and causing massive damage to
residential buildings and cars.
“I can still hear the sound of the blast,”
said Hussam.
He had just driven his children to school in
the Qasaa neighborhood last Saturday
when the explosions hit, lifting his car and
slamming it down three meters (10 feet)
away.
According to monitors, more than 9,000
people have been killed in the regime’s
brutal crackdown on dissent since March
2011.
http://english.alarabiya.net/articles/2012/
03/23/202591.html
Annan’s Plan: Avoiding Another Veto
“It was really frightening,” said Hussam.
His brother, who lives in the upmarket
neighborhood of Abu Rummaneh, said the
security forces have set up “several road
blocks around government buildings.”
“I have never seen anything like it.
“Restaurants and shops are not busy like
they were a few months ago. People stay
home at night,” he said.
Syrian authorities say they are battling
“armed terrorist gangs” -- not opposition
activists -- to restore order in the country.
Official Syrian sources tell Al-Akhbar that
although Kofi Annan’s six-point plan has
not been fully worked out yet, they are
comfortable with the UN statement issued
on Wednesday endorsing his efforts.
“The positive outweighs the negative,” is
perhaps the phrase that best expresses
the official Syrian position on the United
Nations presidential statement issued on
Wednesday.
The statement backs a plan proposed by
UN-Arab League envoy Kofi Annan to
Sayfa 41

esolve the crisis in Syria, including such
steps as a ceasefire, the facilitation of
humanitarian aid, and a political
settlement through talks between the
regime and the opposition.
But from the Syrian government’s point of
view, the statement is still nothing but
“empty words” even though it represents
a face-saving way out for anyone who
wants to back away from their previous
hard-line positions against the Syrian
regime.
The Syrian position seems to highly value
Russian efforts at the UN Security Council
(UNSC), especially Moscow’s insistence to
all concerned parties that its acceptance
of this non-binding compromise does not
mean a change in its principled position
on the crisis in Syria.
Syrian official sources say that “there is a
clear direction now toward a political
solution led by Syria and sponsored by the
international community.”
The source adds, “The question of
President Bashar Assad stepping
down...has been thrown in the trash bin.
The only option offered by the
international resolution is a dialogue
within the framework of a political process
led by Damascus.”
The sources explains that “the consensus
behind this statement demanding a
solution under Syrian and not foreign
leadership is the best proof that the
international community supports this
view.”
They point out that “there would no
longer be a predetermined result to the
dialogue which is what previous Arab
decisions had demanded when Qatar,
Saudi Arabia, and Morocco wanted a
dialogue with set limits and a
predetermined outcome, namely Assad’s
departure.”
These sources indicate that as far as
Damascus is concerned “the mechanisms
of the solution have become clear to
everyone. The first step is to calm down
the situation and provide emergency
humanitarian aid, to be followed by a
dialogue involving all those that have
weight on the ground, after armed groups
lay down their weapons.”
Sayfa 42

They stress that “the last point is
significant because it is the first time that
the UNSC has recognized the presence of
armed groups inside Syria.”
Saudi Arabia, and Qatar that its
acceptance of the statement does not
mean that there has been a change in its
principled position on the Syrian crisis.”
The sources confirm that “Syria is
committed to positive engagement. Now
the opposition, along with Qatar, Saudi
Arabia, and Morocco, should do the same.
If that were to happen then it will be the
beginning of the end of the crisis.”
Syrian official sources say that “there is a
clear direction now toward a political
solution led by Syria and sponsored by the
international community.”The sources say
that “Annan’s team, which is on the
ground in Syria, is discussing with
authorities there the details of the
ceasefire and the emergency assistance in
terms of quality, size, and the mechanisms
of delivery to areas in need,” pointing out
that the team visited Hama, Latakia, and
Idlib.
Sources close to the Syrian regime note
that a “colossal efforts” was made by the
Russians to get to this statement, pointing
out that “Moscow exerted tremendous
pressure and was keen to inform all
concerned parties from the US to Turkey,
According to these sources, the UN
statement “represents a change in many
previous positions. It indicates for the first
time that both sides of the conflict in Syria
are armed, and are using weapons and
calls for an end to violence in all its forms
and from all sides.”
The sources add that “there is also a
confirmation that the Syrian government
will work on achieving a sustainable
cessation to violence in coordination with
Annan. This implies a recognition that the
Syrian government should have a
monopoly on the possession and use of
arms.”
The sources point out that the statement
also confirms the willingness of Syrian
authorities to provide humanitarian
assistance to all areas affected by the
fighting but “at the right time,” meaning it
will be up to the Syrian government to
determine if it is possible to do so based
on the situation on the ground.
Sayfa 43

The same sources maintain that the
question of humanitarian assistance is not
a simple one. It requires defining a clear
mechanism for delivering aid after it gets
inspected.
“There is a basic question at stake,
namely, who guarantees that aid items
won’t include weapons especially since
civilians in many conflict areas have fled,
leaving only the fighters who know how to
fend for themselves. So why is there this
insistence on delivering materials to these
places?” they wonder.
And the same applies to the question of
the daily two-hour pause in hostilities.
That too will be subject to the appropriate
time and circumstances, in other words,
to the Syrian government’s authority.
Even though the sources point out that
the statement is not binding, they
emphasize that “there was a need to get
something from the UNSC that would
serve as a face-saving and honorable way
out for any party wishing to back away
from former radical positions on Syria.”
When asked about the Syrian
government’s position on this statement,
the sources confirm that “for Syria, the
outline is clear and that is: reject anything
having to do with the Arab League and
welcome anything related to the
humanitarian situation based on
conditions on the ground.”
“The Russians cannot defend you this way
unless you are strong. They would not
have been able to do the same thing had
you been defeated."They also point out
that the six points of the UNSC statement
correspond to the terms that Annan
proposed in Damascus, which in turn
closely resemble the Arab initiative that
led to the Arab observer mission in Syria.
These sources confirm that the UN
statement is a reflection of the Syrian
authorities success in controlling the
situation on the ground.
They say: “the Russians cannot defend you
this way unless you are strong. They
would not have been able to do the same
thing had you been defeated. Incidentally,
every time you hear about an attack or
explosion in Damascus or Aleppo, know
that armed groups are responding to a
setback they suffered somewhere else in
Syria.”
Sayfa 44

touring flashpoint areas and are still
These sources are keen to confirm that
“the whole story with Annan and his
initiative is, until this moment, nothing but
dust in the wind.”
exploring the situation on the ground.”
This article is an edited translation from
the Arabic Edition.
He came to Damascus and held talks
offering what is called in diplomatic
language a “non-paper,” and we replied in
kind. We welcomed his effort without a
paper. He left. He told us I will send a
team to discuss the details and we
welcomed that step too.
“In the end,” they say, “we welcome any
effort that contributes to finding a Syrian
solution to the crisis without undermining
Syrian sovereignty. But until now, there is
no agreement with Annan and no
agreement on his initiative.”
The sources add that the UN envoy “sent a
delegation of observers to Syria to discuss
matters on the ground. But you know,
observer missions are flexible.”
“The Arab observers,” they add, “came
here to carry out a specific mission and
ended up working on delivering assistance
to troubled areas. The same thing
happened with Annan’s team. They are
United Nations Presidential Statement on
the Joint Special Envoy on Syria
The Security Council recalls its Presidential
Statement of 3 August 2011 and its Press
Statement of 1 March 2012.
The Security Council expresses its gravest
concern at the deteriorating situation in
Syria which has resulted in a serious
human rights crisis and a deplorable
humanitarian situation. The Security
Council expresses its profound regret at
the death of many thousands of people in
Syria.
The Security Council reaffirms its strong
commitment to the sovereignty,
independence, unity and territorial
integrity of Syria, and to the purposes and
principles of the United Nations Charter.
The Security Council welcomes the
appointment of Joint Special Envoy for the
United Nations and the League of Arab
Sayfa 45

States, Kofi Annan, following the General
Assembly resolution A/RES/66/253 of 16
February 2012 and relevant resolutions of
the League of Arab States.
The Security Council expresses its full
support for the efforts of the Envoy to
bring an immediate end to all violence and
human rights violations, secure
humanitarian access, and facilitate a
Syrian-led political transition to a
democratic, plural political system, in
which citizens are equal regardless of their
affiliations or ethnicities or beliefs,
including through commencing a
comprehensive political dialogue between
the Syrian government and the whole
spectrum of the Syrian opposition.
To this aim, the Security Council fully
supports the initial six-point proposal
submitted to the Syrian authorities, as
outlined by the Envoy to the Security
Council on 16 March 2012, to:
1) commit to work with the Envoy in an
inclusive Syrian-led political process to
address the legitimate aspirations and
concerns of the Syrian people, and, to this
end, commit to appoint an empowered
interlocutor when invited to do so by the
Envoy;
2) commit to stop the fighting and achieve
urgently an effective United Nations
supervised cessation of armed violence in
all its forms by all parties to protect
civilians and stabilise the country.
To this end, the Syrian government should
immediately cease troop movements
towards, and end the use of heavy
weapons in, population centres, and begin
pullback of military concentrations in and
around population centres.
As these actions are being taken on the
ground, the Syrian government should
work with the Envoy to bring about a
sustained cessation of armed violence in
all its forms by all parties with an effective
United Nations supervision mechanism.
Similar commitments would be sought by
the Envoy from the opposition and all
relevant elements to stop the fighting and
work with him to bring about a sustained
cessation of armed violence in all its forms
by all parties with an effective United
Nations supervision mechanism;
Sayfa 46

3) ensure timely provision of humanitarian
assistance to all areas affected by the
fighting, and to this end, as immediate
steps, to accept and implement a daily
two hour humanitarian pause and to
coordinate exact time and modalities of
the daily pause through an efficient
mechanism, including at local level.
4) intensify the pace and scale of release
of arbitrarily detained persons, including
especially vulnerable categories of
persons, and persons involved in peaceful
political activities, provide without delay
through appropriate channels a list of all
places in which such persons are being
detained, immediately begin organising
access to such locations and through
appropriate channels respond promptly to
all written requests for information,
access or release regarding such persons;
5) ensure freedom of movement
throughout the country for journalists and
a non-discriminatory visa policy for them;
6) respect freedom of association and the
right to demonstrate peacefully as legally
guaranteed.
The Security Council calls upon the Syrian
government and opposition to work in
good faith with the Envoy towards a
peaceful settlement of the Syrian crisis
and to implement fully and immediately
his initial six-point proposal.
The Security Council requests the Envoy to
update the Council regularly and in a
timely manner on the progress of his
mission. In the light of these reports, the
Security Council will consider further steps
as appropriate.
http://english.al-
akhbar.com/content/annan%E2%80%99s-
plan-avoiding-another-veto
Bogdanov: No draft resolutions on
Syria at Security Council agenda
MOSCOW– Russian President's Special
Representative for Middle East Affairs,
Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail
Bogdanov, announced on Thursday that
the UN Security Council is currently
focusing on discussing the mission of the
UN Special Envoy, Kofi Annan, to Syria,
adding that there are no draft resolutions
on Syria at this time.
Sayfa 47

In a statement, Bogdanov said that all
sides are waiting for the outcome of
Annan's mission, pointing out that Annan
will visit Moscow within the coming two
days to hold consultations on the Syrian
issue.
Russia's permanent representative to the
EU Vladimir Chekov announced that the
economic sanctions imposed on Syria, Iran
and Belarus aim at changing regimes in
these counties at last.
Margelov: Russia satisfied that UN
Security members' listened to its voice
The Russian Special representative to
Africa Mikhail Margelov announced today
that Russia is satisfied over the UN
Security members' listening to its voice
regarding the crisis in Syria.
"I believe that the final target of those
sanctions is changing regimes, but the
sanctions by themselves didn't change
regimes," Chekov said during an interview
with Vesti 24 TV channel.
http://www.champress.net/index.php?q=
en/Article/view/11605
" We are satisfied over listening to our
correct viewpoint because we support the
UNSC statement on Syria," Margelov, also
Chairman of the International Relations at
the Russian Federation Council, said in a
statement to journalists.
He added that Russia continues its
contacts with the Syrian opposition and it
is ready to be a linking among sides of the
crisis in Syria.
Chekov: Economic sanctions on Syria, Iran
and Belarus aim at changing regimes in
these states
7. ARABIAN PENINSULA AND THE
GULF OF BASRA
Gunmen open fire on Saudi
policemen in Shia east
Gunmen on Thursday shot and wounded
three Saudi policemen who were on patrol
duty in the eastern Shia province of Qatif,
the state news agency SPA reported.
The agency, quoting a police official, said
the patrol "was hit by heavy gunfire in the
evening in the town of Al-Awamiya" in the
province of Qatif.
Sayfa 48

"Three policemen were wounded and
rushed to hospital," the agency said.
An investigation was opened into the
shooting, SPA added.
Most of Saudi Arabia's estimated two
million Shia live in the province, where the
vast majority of the OPEC kingpin's huge
oil reserves lie. They complain of
marginalization in the kingdom.
At the end of February a Saudi Interior
Ministry official described as "new
terrorism" troubles that had erupted in
Qatif, and said the authorities would
"confront it the same way they did" with
Al-Qaeda.
The official said those behind the incidents
are a "minority that is being manipulated
from abroad."
Earlier in February, Saudi police
exchanged fire with "masked gunmen" at
a protest in the Shia-populated east,
killing one of them. It was the second fatal
clash in the oil-rich region in 24 hours.
Al-Amawiya has also witnessed several
demonstrations in recent months which
were dispersed by force by the
authorities. Activists said protesters called
for reform in the ultra-conservative Sunni
Muslim kingdom.
The initial trigger for protests among Saudi
Shia was a Saudi-led military intervention
in neighboring Bahrain to help its Sunni
rulers crush Shia-led pro-democracy
demonstrations last March.
In January, Saudi authorities published a
list of 23 men wanted on suspicion of
involvement in the disturbances.
http://www.nowlebanon.com/NewsArticl
eDetails.aspx?ID=379125
Council pledges to rebuild damaged
shrine
Bahrain's Supreme Council for Islamic
Affairs has condemned acts of vandalism
on the shrine of Shaikh Sasaa Bin Sohan, in
the south east of Bahrain
Manama: Bahrain's Supreme Council for
Islamic Affairs has condemned acts of
vandalism on the shrine of Shaikh Sasaa
Bin Sohan, in the south east of Bahrain.
Sayfa 49

"Such deplorable acts are strongly
rejected and will not be tolerated," the
council said in a statement on Thursday.
"The council will, upon the request of its
president Shaikh Abdullah Bin Khalid Al
Khalifa, cover the expenses for its repairs
and will take responsibility for expediting
them."
Shaikh Abdullah expressed "deep regrets"
for the "disgraceful and cowardly"
vandalism of the shrine of Shaikh Sasaa, a
highly respected religious figure in early
Islam buried in Bahrain, saying that "the
damage was an attack on all Muslims".
Bahrain's authorities have embarked on a
programme to help rebuild several of the
places of worship demolished after the
events that hit the country in February
and March 2011.
http://gulfnews.com/news/gulf/bahrain/c
ouncil-pledges-to-rebuild-damagedshrine-1.998442
Saudi sends military equipment to
Syria rebels: diplomat
Saudi Arabia is delivering military
equipment to Syrian rebels, says diplomat
Article continues below
"Bahrain has always been proud of its
Islamic and cultural heritage and home to
landmarks of the Islamic Civilization."
Shaikh Abdullah called upon all religious
leaders and figures to help combat
extremism and acts of sabotage".
"Religious institutions and figures have a
highly significant role in instilling positive
values in people to help build a conscious
and coherent society," he said.
DUBAI: Saudi Arabia is delivering military
equipment to Syrian rebels in an effort to
stop bloodshed by President Bashar al-
Assad's regime, a top Arab diplomat said
on Saturday.
Sayfa 50

"Saudi military equipment is on its way to
Jordan to arm the Free Syrian Army," the
diplomat told AFP on condition of
anonymity.
"This is a Saudi initiative to stop the
massacres in Syria," he added saying
further "details will follow at a later time."
The announcement came two days after
the kingdom said it had shut down its
embassy in Syria and withdrawn all its
staff.
Riyadh has taken a strong stance against
the escalating bloodshed and, along with
its five Gulf Cooperation Council partners,
expelled Syrian envoys last month and
withdrew their own over the "mass
slaughter" of civilians.
Earlier this month, Saudi Foreign Minister
Prince Saud al-Faisal publicly defended the
right of the Syrian opposition to arm itself.
Article continues below
"It is the right of the Syrians to arm
themselves in order to defend themselves.
Weapons used to target homes are used
in wars with enemies," he said.
King Abdullah had also previously called
for "critical measures" to be taken on
Syria, warning of an impending
"humanitarian disaster."
Last week, Syrian Information Minister
Adnan Mahmoud told AFP Saudi Arabia
and Qatar were backing "armed terrorist
gangs" operating in the country and are
therefore responsible for the resulting
bloodshed.
"Some of the countries backing armed
terrorist gangs, such as Saudi Arabia and
Qatar, are accomplices to the terrorism
targeting the Syrian people ... and bear
responsibility for the bloodletting," he
said.
Those charges were renewed on Syrian
state television on Saturday after two
huge bomb blasts killed at least 27 people
and wounded almost 100 in central
Damascus.
"Saudi Arabia is sending us terrorists," a
resident of the devastated areas said on
television.
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"These are the friends ... of the Istanbul
council," said another, referring to the
opposition Syrian National Council set up
in the Turkish city last August.
At least 9,100 people, most of them
civilians, have been killed since the
uprising against Syria's President Bashar
al-Assad began in March 2011, according
to the Syrian Observatory for Human
Rights.
http://gulfnews.com/news/gulf/saudi-
arabia/saudi-sends-military-equipment-to-
syria-rebels-diplomat-1.995918
8. AFGHANISTAN - PAKISTAN
Avalanche buries village in northeast
Afghanistan, 50 dead
Press TV
March 22, 2012
Jordan denial
There was no official reaction to the
statement from the Saudi capital, but
Jordan flatly rejected the report.
"Jordan categorically denies the report,"
government spokesman and information
minister Rakan Majali told AFP.
"This is completely baseless. Jordan has
not discussed this issue with any parties or
brought it up at all," he said without
elaborating, while adding that an official
statement would be issued later on
Saturday.
At least fifty people have been confirmed
dead after an avalanche struck a remote
village in Afghanistan’s northeastern
province of Badakhshan.
Rescuers shoveled through deep snow on
Wednesday and searched for victims of
the avalanche that slammed into the
mountainous province, located some 315
kilometers (195 miles) northeast of the
Afghan capital Kabul, and buried dozens of
homes late on Sunday night.
Sultanhamid, an employee of the Genevabased
Aga Khan Foundation who hiked to
the site, said that only seven people are
known to have survived the avalanche.
He added that four of the survivors were
injured in Dasty village in the Darzab area,
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while three others - including two women
and one child - were away from the village
collecting water when mounds of snow
came crashing down.
Sultanhamid noted that the fatalities
included 18 children and two teachers,
who were in a mosque when the
avalanche it. The bodies were found were
buried under two meters (six feet) of
snow.
People from a nearby village were the first
to reach the site. On Tuesday, they were
joined by rescue workers from the Darwaz
district, who had walked for two days to
reach the far-flung area.
Shams Ul Rahman, the deputy provincial
governor, expressed hope that some
people might be recovered alive from
under the snow.
Afghanistan's mountainous northern areas
see heavy snowfall and avalanches every
winter.
At least 171 people were killed in February
2010, when an avalanche happened near
the Salang Pass, which is the major
mountain route connecting northern
Afghanistan to Kabul, according to the
Associated Press.
http://www.aopnews.com/today.html
Avalanche claims 18 lives in NE.
Afghan province
FAIZABAD, Afghanistan, March 22 (Xinhua)
-- Eighteen people lost their lives as an
avalanche struck a village in Wakhan
district of Badakhshan province, 315 km
northeast of capital city Kabul Wednesday
night, a local official said Thursday.
Afghanistan’s Defense Ministry sent two
helicopters to help with the rescue effort
on Wednesday, but they were not able to
land near the village because of the poor
weather condition.
"The tragic incident happened in Ark
village of Wakhan district late Wednesday
night during which several houses were
smashed and 18 people including women
and children were killed," Director of the
Counter-Natural Disaster Department in
Badakhshan province Sanaullah Amiri told
Xinhua.
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However, local people said 21 people have
lost their lives in the natural tragic
incident.
Meantime, Syed Piroz, the governor of
Wakhan district when approached
confirmed the incident, but he did not
give the figure, saying a rescue operation
is going on.
The mountainous Badakhsan province has
received heavy snowfalls over the past
two months. More than 100 people,
according to local officials, have lost their
lives in avalanches and freezing weather in
the far-flanged mountainous villages of
Badakhshan over the past two months.
http://www.aopnews.com/today.html
Blast rocks Afghan Kandahar city
KANDAHAR, Afghanistan, March 22
(Xinhua) -- A blast rocked Kandahar city on
Thursday, casualties feared, an official
said.
http://www.aopnews.com/today.html
NATO soldier dies in Afghanistan
KABUL, March 22 (Xinhua) -- A soldier with
the NATO-led International Security
Assistance Force died in Afghanistan on
Thursday, a press release of the alliance
issued here said.
"An International Security Assistance
Force service member died as a result of a
non-battle related injury in eastern
Afghanistan today," the press release
confirmed without giving details.
This is the second NATO soldier has lost
life in Afghanistan over the past two days.
Another NATO soldier lost his life in a
roadside bombing in the southern Afghan
region on Wednesday.
More than 80 soldiers with the NATO-led
troops have been killed in Afghanistan
since the beginning of this year.
http://www.aopnews.com/today.html
British Watchdog Group Urges
Scrutiny On Aid To Afghanistan
March 22, 2012
Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty
Sayfa 54

Britain's Independent Commission for Aid
Impact is calling on the British government
to tighten oversight of its aid program for
Afghanistan.
The watchdog organization said there
were insufficient monitoring systems in
place to prevent "the loss or diversion of
aid monies away from the intended
beneficiaries as a result of theft, fraud or
corruption."
The commission said Britain's Department
for International Development that
handles distribution of aid to Afghanistan
needs to strengthen its grip and reduce
risk by deploying people with more
financial and procurement skills.
The British government created the
Independent Commission for Aid Impact
in 2011 to ensure foreign aid money is
spent as intended.
KABUL, March 22 (Xinhua) -- Afghanistan
President Hamid Karzai once again
repeated his call for halting night raid
operations by NATO-led forces in the
militancy-plagued country on Wednesday.
"We are working to stop the night raid
operations," President Karzai said in his
speech at a graduation ceremony in the
National Military Academy here in Kabul.
He made this remarks just after couple of
weeks that the United States agreed to
hand over the control of Bagram
detention center to Afghan
administration.
Bagram detention center, 50 km north of
Afghan capital Kabul where hundreds of
suspected Taliban and al-Qaida operatives
have been held, is located in Bagram
airbase, the main U.S. military center in
Afghanistan.
Based on Reuters reporting
http://www.aopnews.com/today.html
Karzai repeats call for halting night
raid operations
After signing agreement with the United
States which occurred two weeks ago in
Kabul, no foreigners would have detention
center in Afghanistan, President Karzai
said, adding the night raid operations
would also be halted and Afghans would
Sayfa 55

take over the whole security of their
country.
transition to Afghan forces completes and
NATO-led forces leave the country.
Running detention center by U.S. military
in Afghanistan and conducting night raids
by foreign troops against suspected
Taliban insurgents in villages have been
opposed by Afghan government.
Afghan government believes that running
prison by U.S. troops is a violation of
Afghan national sovereignty and night raid
operations often harm the civilians.
President Karzai in his address to the
newly graduated officers also emphasized
for self-reliance, urging them to serve the
war- torn nation until it stands on its feet.
http://www.aopnews.com/today.html
In his address, President Karzai said that
Afghanistan would sign the strategic
partnership with the United States and
progress has been made in this regard.
However, he noted his government would
move very cautiously in inking the
proposed strategic pact to safeguard the
national interests and sovereignty of
Afghanistan.
The United States and the allied nations
contributing troops in Afghanistan have
agreed to support Afghan national
security forces with 4.1 billion U.S. dollars
for 10 years, after 2014 when the security
*This media summary is prepared by ORSAM
Middle East Research Assistants Nebahat
Tanrıverdi O and Sercan Doğan. It covers news
and commentaries as reported by the national
media sources publishing in the Middle
Eastern countries. The views expressed are not
those of ORSAM and their inclusion does not
imply factual accuracy.
*Bu bülten ORSAM Ortadoğu Uzman
Yardımcıları Nebahat Tanrıverdi O ve Sercan
Doğan tarafından hazırlanmaktadır. Bülten
Ortadoğu ülkelerinin yerel haber
kaynaklarından derlenmektedir. Belirtilen
görüşler bölge ülkelerinin haber kaynaklarına
ve ismi geçen yazarlara ait olup ORSAM’ın
görüşünü yansıtmamaktadır.
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