Al-Darb Diya

Meshaal, Abbas, and The Doha Agreement

2012-02-22T10:54:00.000+02:00

Monday, February 13, 2012
written by: Sheila Quinn
Source: A New Era

Within the last few days Meshaal, as the leader of Hamas, signed an agreement which is both illegal and unethical. I have read a number of articles about him and this agreement. My initial response was one of anger. I wanted to speak out against him ,but decided against it because I thought of it as an internal Hamas issue and a Palestinian issue.

But the more I read about it and the more I learn about it, the more angry I became. I have come to the conclusion that I was wrong. This agreement is not just an internal Hamas issue, nor an internal Palestinian issue-but an issue of The Islamic Nation. It is an issue that ALL Muslims have a right to speak on!

Why do I say this? Because, Palestine is a territory of The Islamic Nation. It's borders are between the ocean and The Jordan River. The Israeli State is an illegal state that has absolutely no legitimacy whatsoever. The U.N. partition of Palestine was conditioned upon the The Palestinians accepting it. They rejected such a partition. Only with their acceptance of the partition will The Israeli State become "legally" legitimate. The second reason is because Al- Aqsa Masjid (Al Aqsa Mosque)is in Palestine. Al-Aqsa has been-and is continuing to be- threatened with destruction.

For the last few weeks I have been reading different articles about Meshaal. Meshaal is from The West Bank. Meshaal is calling for a change in strategy. He is calling for adopting non-violent protests as a replacement for armed resistance. (Non-violent protests have proven to be ineffective with The Zionists. Fatah has used such strategy in The West Bank and the results are the loss of land and lives. Armed resistance is the only way to stop the aggression of The Zionists. Any other way has been proven to be impractical.) Hamas officials in Gaza have both the right-and the responsibility- to reject the agreement. They have every right in the world to refuse cooperation in its implementation. Since the agreement involves Gaza, the cooperation of the officials of Gaza are vital to it's implementation.

Hamas should continue to work for the liberation of all of Palestine through armed resistance. Any other way has been proven to be totally ineffective.

As for Abbas, he has proven himself to be a puppet of those who want to destroy Al-Aqsa Masjid (Al-Aqsa Mosque). He has proven himself to be a puppet of the global oligarchy- which includes the leadership of both The U.S. and The European Union. It is clear that the global oligarchy wants Al-Aqsa Masjid to be destroyed. It is clear that Abbas is their puppet. Others in the "interim government" may be technocrats, but Abbas is not! The Zionists are in the process of: stealing all of the West Bank; evicting all Muslims from Jerusalem, and destroying Al-Aqsa Masjid. Abbas and the leaders of Arab countries want peace with The Zionists??? All of them-including King Abdullah of Jordan- are puppets of the global oligarchy!

Until now Gaza has been a stronghold of Palestinian resistance-unlike The West Bank. Does Meshaal want to open up Gaza to The Zionists -like The West bank?

Here are some quotes from articles that I have read:

"Meshaal might be able to put down the unprecedented rebellion against him, but would need the good will and cooperation of Hamas leaders in Gaza to make the agreement work." ("Public rift as Hamas strongman in Gaza rejects unity deal")

"On Sunday, the head of the bloc of Hamas legislators in Gaza, Ismail al-Ashkar, alleged that Fatah has not carried out promised confidence building measures, such as releasing Hamas loyalists held in the West Bank." ("Public rift as Hamas strongman in Gaza rejects unity deal")

"MPs of the Hamas majority in the Palestinian parliament called on Thursday for the scrapping of a reconciliation accord with Fatah on constitutional grounds.

"After examining the question of Mahmud Abbas taking on the premiership as well as the presidency" and consultation with judicial experts, such a scenario was found to be contrary to the Basic Law, 31 MPs said in a statement." ("Hamas MP's call for scrapping of Fatah Deal")

"Meshaal has been based in Damascus since 2001, fearing for his safety and hoping to avoid the restrictions on his movement in Gaza. He has been the chief leader of Hamas' political wing since 2004." ("Hamas political chief to step down")

Some References:

"Public rift as Hamas strongman in Gaza rejects unity deal" written by: Mohammed Daraghmeh, published by "The Daily Star" on February 13, 2012. Link: http://www.dailystar.com.lb/News/Middle-East/2012/Feb-13/163004-public-rift-as-hamas-strongman-in-gaza-rejects-unity-deal.ashx.

"Hamas MPs call for scrapping of Fatah deal" written by: Mahmud Hams, Published on:AFP – Wed, Feb 8, 2012 Source: Yahoo News Maktoob

"Hamas political chief to step down" Published on: Jan 21, 2012 By: AlJazeera Source: Yahoo News Maktoob

"The Association of Palestinian Scholars issues plea to Muslims to protect al-Aqsa" Published on: 13 February 2012 By: Middle East Monitor Link: http://www.middleeastmonitor.org.uk/news/middle-east/3420-the-association-of-palestinian-scholars-issues-plea-to-muslims-to-protect-al-aqsa.

Source: A New Era.
Link: http://truthseeker-anewera.blogspot.com/2012/02/meshall-abbas-and-doha-agreement.html.

Polls open in Yemen with sole US-backed pres. candidate

2012-02-21T19:09:00.000+02:00

Tue Feb 21, 2012

Voting has begun in Yemen’s presidential election with only one candidate on the ballot amid the opposition’s call for the downfall of the entire regime.

The polls opened Tuesday, with 12 million eligible voters, and the sole candidate Vice President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi.

The election is to put an end to Yemen’s Ali Abdullah Saleh’s 33-year rule and formally transfer power to his assistant, Hadi.

However, the country’s major opposition groups, including the Southern Movement and the Southern Shia group have boycotted the election, demanding the removal of the regime that abounds with Saleh-era officials.

Meanwhile, US President Barack Obama has thrown Washington’s weight behind Yemen’s election, offering his support to Hadi.

In a letter to the Yemeni vice president, Obama said Yemen could be an example of the peaceful transition of power in the Middle East.

This is while demonstrations are expected to continue in Yemen as protesters say their revolution will not end until Saleh and all corrupt government officials are put behind bars.

On Monday, several polling stations were the target of bomb attacks prior to the beginning of the polls in the southern province of Aden and the southern port city of al-Makla, with no reports of casualties. The protesters also blocked roads leading to five villages in Daleh province, making it impossible for poll organizers to send ballot boxes there.

Saleh is currently in the US for medical treatment. He left Yemen in mid-January, shortly after the country’s parliament passed a law which grants him full immunity from prosecution.

Source: PressTV.
Link: http://www.presstv.ir/detail/227790.html.

Saudi Arabia threatens anti-regime protesters with iron fist

2012-02-21T19:08:00.002+02:00

Tue Feb 21, 2012

Saudi Arabia’s interior ministry has defended the regime forces’ ruthless repression of anti-government protests and threatened to use an “iron fist” against protesters.

“It is the state's right to confront those that confront it first... and the Saudi Arabian security forces will confront such situations ... with determination and force and with an iron first," the ministry said in a statement on Monday.

An interior ministry spokesman said the statement was released in reaction to a last week sermon delivered in the Qatif region in the Eastern Province, which took a swipe at the Saudi government’s handling of the protests.

Saudi authorities claim that the regime does not practice discrimination against the Shia minority, pointing a finger of blame at protesters.

Earlier on Thursday, several anti-regime protesters in the kingdom’s eastern province of Safwa were abducted.

Since February 2011, Saudi protesters have held demonstrations on an almost regular basis in the oil-rich Eastern Province, mainly in Qatif and the town of Awamiyah, calling for the release of all political prisoners, freedom of expression and assembly, and an end to widespread discrimination.

Saudi protesters also want an end to economic and religious discrimination against the oil-rich region. Several demonstrators have been killed and scores of activists have been arrested since the beginning of protests in the region.

Riyadh has intensified its crackdown on protesters since the beginning of 2012.

Source: PressTV.
Link: http://www.presstv.ir/detail/227806.html.

MPs of Turkey's pro-Kurdish BDP party begin hunger strike

2012-02-21T19:07:00.003+02:00

Mon Feb 20, 2012

MPs of Turkey’s pro-Kurdish Peace and Democracy Party (BDP) have begun a two-day hunger strike to protest recent detentions, Press TV reports.

BDP co-chairman Gulten Kisanak announced the decision at a press conference in Ankara on Monday.

“Over 6,000 people have been arrested because of their thoughts and political activities. Over 60 of our friends, including our lawmaker from Sirnak (province), Selma Irmak, and another Sirnak lawmaker, Faysal Sariyildiz, are regularly on hunger strike to protest the intensification of political and military operations. The demands of our friends are clear. In order to support the resistance of our friends, we, as the BDP bloc, begin a two-day hunger strike today.”

Turkey recently arrested dozens of people across the country in operations against the Union of Kurdish Communities (KCK) -- the alleged urban wing of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), an armed group that is listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey, Iran, the United States, and the European Union.

The Turkish government believes the KCK paves the way for the implementation of PKK plots against the country and views the operations against the KCK as a parallel campaign with the military operations against the PKK in the mountains of southeastern Turkey and northern Iraq.

Source: PressTV.
Link: http://www.presstv.ir/detail/227756.html.

Palestinians stage demos in support of hunger strike activist

2012-02-21T19:07:00.000+02:00

Tue Feb 21, 2012

Palestinians have held protest rallies across the West Bank and the Gaza Strip in support of Palestinian activist Khader Adnan, who has been on hunger strike for 65 days in an Israeli jail.

“People are trying to express their anger at what is happening to Khader Adnan and all Palestinian prisoners. The Israelis have no right to hold him or any of them, especially over 300 administrative detainees,” said Osama Wahaidi, a former prisoner and spokesman for the Palestinian Detainees’ and Ex-detainees’ Association.

Wahaidi reiterated that “administrative detentions” can be extended for years without evidence or trials and detainees have no idea when they will be freed.

Court officials and Adnan's lawyers said on Monday that Israel’s Supreme Court scheduled a hearing on Tuesday for an appeal for the 33-year-old Palestinian activist.

The hearing had initially been scheduled for Thursday, but his lawyers and human rights groups called for a speedy hearing on Adnan’s case due to his worrying health condition.

The Palestinian activist was arrested on December 17, 2011 and later sentenced to four months of “administrative detention.”

Father of two small girls, Adnan went on hunger strike one day after his arrest, demanding an immediate release. He has not been charged with a crime.

Both the European Union and the United Nations have said they are following the case closely and have urged Israel to give Adnan an open trial.

Source: PressTV.
Link: http://www.presstv.ir/detail/227792.html.

Russian officials feed pelicans in frozen Caspian

2012-02-21T19:06:00.002+02:00

February 21, 2012 — MAKHACHKALA, Russia (AP) — Authorities are scrambling to save hundreds of starving and endangered Dalmatian pelicans after the Caspian Sea froze for the first time in years.

Hundreds of the gray-white birds with distinctive curly feathers at their napes are jostling one another in a rare patch of unfrozen water at a shipyard near the city of Makhachkala, the capital of the southern Russian province of Dagestan.

About 20 birds have died of hunger despite hundreds of kilograms (pounds) of fish that his ministry and a local lawmaker are purchasing daily to feed them, Dagestan's Nature Protection Ministry spokesman Arslan Dydymov said Tuesday.

Fewer than 1,400 Dalmatian pelicans, the world's largest, live in southern Russia. The birds are getting sprats from the local market because fresh fish from the iced-over Caspian is not available. "Yesterday it seemed they ate more than enough," said Kurban Kuniev of the Dagestan nature reserve.

The birds flew to Makhachkala last week from the frozen deltas of the Volga and Terek rivers up north. Local residents were so excited by the arrival that the guards at the Makhachkala shipyard had to stop hundreds from entering with bread and other unsuitable foods.

"We did not let them in for the sake of the pelicans," chief guard Magomed Eldarov said.

'US-Taliban talks reveal America's failure in Afghanistan'

2012-02-21T19:04:00.002+02:00

WARNING: Article contains propaganda!

* * * * *

Mon Feb 20, 2012

A top Pakistani leader of the Taliban says the United States seeks to engage in talks with the Taliban in Afghanistan as its mission in the war-battered country has failed, Press TV reports.

Pakistan's Tehrik-i-Taliban's leader Waliur-Rehman Mehsud told Press TV that Washington has sought to launch peace talks with the Afghan Taliban over the US failure in Afghanistan.

Mehsud added that the US-led invasion of Afghanistan was initially aimed at eliminating the Taliban militants or making them surrender.

However, he said, the foreign forces' failure to do so has forced Washington into a negotiating position.

Mehsud added that the US and its allies are trying to hide their defeat in Afghanistan under the guise of advocating dialogue.

In an interview with the Wall Street Journal on Thursday, Afghan President Hamed Karzai admitted that the peace talks had taken place among the United States, the Afghan government, and Taliban over the past month.

Elsewhere in his remarks, Mehsud rejected reports that Tehrik-i-Taliban commander Hakimullah Mehsud was killed in a US assassination drone strike. He said that Hakimullah is alive and well.

Source: PressTV.
Link: http://www.presstv.ir/detail/227625.html.

Afghan police shoot dead 2 Albanian soldiers

2012-02-21T19:03:00.003+02:00

Tue Feb 21, 2012

An Afghan police attack on US-led troops in southern Afghanistan has left two Albanian soldiers dead and two other foreign troopers injured, Press TV reported.

The incident occurred in the southern district of Spin Boldak in Kandahar province, where the troops were reportedly participating in the inauguration of two schools. The occurrence marks Albania's first fatal casualties in Afghanistan.

According to the Albanian defense ministry, 11 Afghan policemen have been detained in the village of Robat where the incident took place.

Another Albanian soldier as well as an American trooper have been wounded in the shooting.

No further details have thus far emerged about the motive behind the incident.

Albania has dispatched 260 troops to Afghanistan as part of the NATO-led mission in the war-ravaged Asian country.

Source: PressTV.
Link: http://www.presstv.ir/detail/227781.html.

Afghans rally in Kabul to slam Qur'an burning by US-led forces

2012-02-21T19:03:00.000+02:00

Tue Feb 21, 2012

Large numbers of people have turned up for angry demonstrations in Afghanistan after US-led forces in the war-wracked country burned copies of the Holy Qur’an, Press TV reports.

The angry protesters on Tuesday held protest rallies in Kabul as well as outside the US Bagram Airbase and chanted anti-US slogans, demanding the trial of the perpetrators of the desecrating act.

At least one Afghan protester was injured after US troops opened fire to disperse the angry demonstrators near the airbase, about 60 kilometers north of Kabul.

The protests came after reports emerged saying that foreign troops had burned “a large number of Islamic religious materials which included Qur’ans" at the Bagram Airbase.

Mohammad Nabi, a protester who said he was an employee at the base, told reporters that US troops killed two Afghan employees and fired five more after they protested the burning of the copies of the Holy Qur'an inside the military base.

Meanwhile, similar protests were held in other parts of the capital and several other Afghan cities.

The US commander of NATO troops in Afghanistan in a statement apologized over the insulting move and ordered a full investigation into the incident.

"When we learned of these actions, we immediately intervened and stopped them," said General John R. Allen.

"The materials recovered will be properly handled by appropriate religious authorities," he added.

"We are thoroughly investigating the incident and we are taking steps to ensure this does not ever happen again. I assure you… I promise you … this was not intentional in any way," he further said.

The US general also expressed his “sincere apologies for any offense this may have caused, to the president of Afghanistan, the government of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, and most importantly, to the noble people of Afghanistan.”

In April 2011, at least ten people were killed and several others injured in successive days of protests in Afghanistan over the burning of the Holy Qur’an in the US.

Source: PressTV.
Link: http://www.presstv.ir/detail/227801.html.

China Now Has 500 Protests Daily: Party Scholar

2012-02-21T19:02:00.000+02:00

By Gisela Sommer
February 20, 2012

China now experiences 500 protests on a daily basis; that’s over 180,000 a year, a troubling situation, with the psychology of the masses becoming easily unbalanced and public order is easily upset, according to a Chinese cadre.

While the Wukan protests in Guangdong Province late last year drew worldwide attention, an average of 500 such mass protests occurred daily in China during 2011, according to Niu Wenyuan, a member of the National Chinese People’s Political Consultative Committee.

“This phenomenon indicates that today public order is easily upset, and the psychology of the masses can quickly become unbalanced. We cadres, must continually assess [our] efficiency and fairness and adjust accordingly,” Niu said in a speech to fellow party cadres during the inaugural ceremony of the tenth Guangzhou Municipal Meeting on Feb. 8, reported on by New Express Daily and cited by Sound of Hope (SOH) Radio.

Pressing Issues in Growing Urban Centers

According to the SOH article, Niu is also a Chinese State Department counselor and a chief scientist and research head at the Sustained Military Strategy Division of the Chinese Academy of Sciences. He has been part of a new research and development city-planning group in China. The group publishes the Chinese City New Urban Planning Annual Report, which evaluates the progress of fifty cities.

In an interview with Nanfang Daily, Niu commented on China’s challenges with urbanization. He said China’s cities have to face seven “issues” in their development: sustainable wealth growth; population pressure; employment pressure; land, energy and water resource development strain; [need for] environmental improvement; infrastructure; and a social safety net.”

Niu’s statements reflect the Chinese communist regime’s anxiety over social unrest.

According to statistics from the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, in 2007 the number of mass protests rose to over 80,000, a 33 percent jump compared with 60,000 in 2006. The regime subsequently stopped publishing this statistic, SOH said.

Landless Farmers

A large percentage of mass unrest in China is about forced land confiscation, as was the case in Wukan. Land confiscation is also directly related to urbanization. For many years, farmers all across China have been pushed off their land and forced to live in towns. Often they end up without any means to make a living.

Urbanization has been touted by the regime as the engine behind China’s future economic development. According to a recent announcement by China’s Bureau of Statistics, China’s urban population has now surpassed the number of people living in the countryside.

Professor Patrick Chovanec at Tsinghua University School of Economics and Management told VOA on Jan. 17, “Mainland China’s policy makers have used urbanization as an excuse to build many buildings, but didn’t think about how to turn all that into an economic advantage for sustainable development.”

Housing Bubble

In a Feb. 16 report, Bloomberg quoted Grantham, Mayo, Van Otterloo & Co. saying, “China’s housing market is experiencing the “mother” of all bubbles.”

Peter Chiappinelli, a portfolio strategist for asset allocation at Boston-based GMO, said at the Bloomberg Link Portfolio Manager Mash-Up Conference in New York that they are very concerned about China’s economy. GMO, which oversees $97 billion in assets, is betting that shares of Chinese real estate developers, construction companies and cement producers will decline, Chiappinelli said, according to the Bloomberg report.

Bloomberg also quoted Lisa Emsbo-Mattingly, the director of research in the global asset allocation division of Fidelity Asset Management, saying they are “very concerned about China,” and it is “very difficult” to have an optimistic view on China because the housing price drop will afflict China’s banks. Furthermore China’s export market has been cooling because of the European debt crisis.

All of this spells trouble for China’s social stability.

According to China analyst Huang Hebian, the Wukan protests have had the effect of waking the masses across China, and this foreshadows increased tensions between the regime and workers and peasants. Huang told The Epoch Times for an earlier report he believes that more protests will take place in March during the National People’s Congress.

Source: The Epoch Times.
Link: http://www.theepochtimes.com/n2/china-news/china-now-has-500-protests-daily-party-scholar-193241.html.

Germany to vote on new president March 18

2012-02-21T18:59:00.003+02:00

February 20, 2012 — BERLIN (AP) — Germany's speaker of parliament says a special assembly will vote March 18 on a successor to ex-President Christian Wulff, who resigned abruptly on Friday over growing allegations that he had received favors from friends.

Speaker Norbert Lammert announced the vote Monday. It's widely seen a formality because Germany's governing parties and major opposition have agreed to jointly nominate former East German human rights activist Joachim Gauck.

The 72-year-old Gauck is a former Lutheran priest who opposed the former East Germany's communist regime. Wulff, 52, stepped down from the largely ceremonial post after two months of allegations that he received favors such as a favorable loan and hotel stays from friends when he was state governor of Lower Saxony.

Yemenis elect successor to Saleh

2012-02-21T18:59:00.000+02:00

Tuesday, February 21, 2012

Yemen sealed President Ali Abdullah Saleh's exit from power today by electing his deputy to shepherd the country away from the brink of civil war.

Vice president Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi, the sole, consensus candidate, billed the vote as a way to move on after months of protests against Mr Saleh's 33-year rule, but the president's sons and nephews still command key army units and security agencies.

"Elections are the only exit route from the crisis which has buffeted Yemen for the past year," Mr Hadi said at a polling station after casting his vote.

The vote will make Mr Saleh, now in the United States for more treatment of burns suffered in an assassination attempt last June, the fourth Arab autocrat in a year to be forced from power after revolutions in Tunisia, Egypt and Libya.

At stake is an economy left in shambles, where 42 per cent of the population of 24 million lives on less than $2 per day and rampant inflation is driving up food and fuel prices.

Long queues formed early in the morning outside polling stations in the capital Sanaa amid tight security, after an explosion ripped through a voting center in the southern port city of Aden on the eve of the vote.

"We are now declaring the end of the Ali Abdullah Saleh era and will build a new Yemen," Yemeni Nobel Peace Prize winner Tawakul Karman said as she waited to cast her ballot outside a university faculty in the capital Sanaa.

Voters dipped their thumbs in ink and stamped their print on a ballot paper bearing a picture of Mr Hadi and a map of Yemen in the colors of the rainbow.

A high turnout was crucial to give Mr Hadi the legitimacy he needs to carry out changes outlined in a power transfer deal brokered by Yemen's Gulf neighbors, including the drafting of a new constitution, restructuring of armed forces in which Mr Saleh's relatives hold key positions, and multi-party elections.

An official from the election security committee estimated a turnout of 80 per cent, although final results will not be known for two to three days. The vote was backed by the United States and Yemen's rich neighbors led by Saudi Arabia, who - alarmed at signs of al Qaeda exploiting the disorder wracking the country to strengthen its regional foothold - sponsored the peace deal signed in November providing for Mr Saleh to hand power to Mr Hadi.

A pickup truck mounted with anti-aircraft guns and full of soldiers stood by another Sanaa University department as hundreds of men lined up to vote.

"The regime may not have changed but the people have. It's the first step towards real change," said Samir Radwan, a 43-year-old doctor.

"Saleh was taking us to hell. We stopped him and we are now starting to build a new Yemen."

The election leaves unresolved a military standoff between Mr Saleh's relatives, a mutinous general and gunmen loyal to tribal notables. There is an armed revolt in the north of the country and a secessionist movement in the south where Islamists accused of links to al Qaeda have also made advances.

It was not clear who was behind Monday's violence.

Source: Irish Times.
Link: http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/breaking/2012/0221/breaking3.html.

NASA Spacecraft Reveals Recent Geological Activity on the Moon

2012-02-21T18:58:00.000+02:00

by Nancy Neal-Jones for Goddard Space Flight Center
Greenbelt, MD (SPX)
Feb 21, 2012

New images from NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) spacecraft show the moon's crust is being stretched, forming minute valleys in a few small areas on the lunar surface. Scientists propose this geologic activity occurred less than 50 million years ago, which is considered recent compared to the moon's age of more than 4.5 billion years.

A team of researchers analyzing high-resolution images obtained by the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Camera (LROC) show small, narrow trenches typically much longer than they are wide. This indicates the lunar crust is being pulled apart at these locations.

These linear valleys, known as graben, form when the moon's crust stretches, breaks and drops down along two bounding faults. A handful of these graben systems have been found across the lunar surface.

"We think the moon is in a general state of global contraction because of cooling of a still hot interior," said Thomas Watters of the Center for Earth and Planetary Studies at the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum in Washington, and lead author of a paper on this research appearing in the March issue of the journal Nature Geoscience.

"The graben tell us forces acting to shrink the moon were overcome in places by forces acting to pull it apart. This means the contractional forces shrinking the moon cannot be large, or the small graben might never form."

The weak contraction suggests that the moon, unlike the terrestrial planets, did not completely melt in the very early stages of its evolution. Rather, observations support an alternative view that only the moon's exterior initially melted forming an ocean of molten rock.

In August 2010, the team used LROC images to identify physical signs of contraction on the lunar surface, in the form of lobe-shaped cliffs known as lobate scarps.

The scarps are evidence the moon shrank globally in the geologically recent past and might still be shrinking today. The team saw these scarps widely distributed across the moon and concluded it was shrinking as the interior slowly cooled.

Based on the size of the scarps, it is estimated that the distance between the moon's center and its surface shank by approximately 300 feet. The graben were an unexpected discovery and the images provide contradictory evidence that the regions of the lunar crust are also being pulled apart.

"This pulling apart tells us the moon is still active," said Richard Vondrak, LRO Project Scientist at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md. "LRO gives us a detailed look at that process."

As the LRO mission progresses and coverage increases, scientists will have a better picture of how common these young graben are and what other types of tectonic features are nearby. The graben systems the team finds may help scientists refine the state of stress in the lunar crust.

"It was a big surprise when I spotted graben in the far side highlands," said co-author Mark Robinson of the School of Earth and Space Exploration at Arizona State University, principal investigator of LROC.

"I immediately targeted the area for high-resolution stereo images so we could create a three-dimensional view of the graben. It's exciting when you discover something totally unexpected and only about half the lunar surface has been imaged in high resolution. There is much more of the moon to be explored."

Source: Moon Daily.
Link: http://www.moondaily.com/reports/NASA_Spacecraft_Reveals_Recent_Geological_Activity_on_the_Moon_999.html.

'Printed' solar cells a low-cost solution?

2012-02-21T18:54:00.003+02:00

West Lafayette, Ind. (UPI)
Feb 20, 2012

Solar cells manufactured using special ink printed onto sheets of a supporting material could lead to new low-cost solar cells, U.S. chemical engineers say.

Solar cells produced with the ink printing process, mass-produced at low cost and not limited by the availability of materials, could economically compete with other energy technologies, researchers at Purdue University said.

"To date, none of the photovoltaic technologies simultaneously meets all these constraints," researcher Rakesh Agrawal said.

Agrawal's lab created nanocrystals of a material called copper zinc tin sulfide, which enabled creation of a light-absorbing ink, a university release reported.

"The concept is that, once you have an ink you can print photovoltaic cells very fast, so they become very inexpensive to manufacture," Agrawal said.

Researchers say to be competitive with other energy technologies solar cells must be capable of generating terawatts, or trillions of watts, of electricity at a cost of 50 cents per peak watt.

"These goals can only be met with a truly transformational technology," Agrawal said.

Source: Solar Daily.
Link: http://www.solardaily.com/reports/Printed_solar_cells_a_low-cost_solution_999.html.

Broadband internet for everyone

2012-02-21T18:54:00.000+02:00

Augustin, Germany (SPX)
Feb 21, 2012

In the developing world, 96 percent of all households have no internet access. Even in Germany, many regions are still without broadband connectivity. But in future, a revolutionary new technology for wireless networks will allow the gaps in rural internet provision to be closed at significantly less cost.

John just loves playing soccer, and he's really looking forward to the weekend game, which he's agreed to organize. First, he needs to tell his teammates and friends about it, then he must rustle up an opposing team and find a referee - all of which will take him a considerable amount of time.

In order to contact everyone, he'll have to send countless SMS messages; he'll have to make all the arrangements on his cell phone because he lives in a rural area in Zambia, and has no internet access.

But that's about to change, for John's village is set to acquire an eKiosk with a number of PCs, and its inhabitants will then have access to services such as email, chat, web browsing and internet telephony.

This new internet connectivity is being made possible by WiBACK Wireless Backhaul Technology, which has been developed by the Fraunhofer Institute for Open Communication Systems FOKUS in Berlin.

Researchers at the institute have succeeded in significantly reducing both the capital expenditure and the operating costs involved, meaning it is now possible to set up tailor-made IT infrastructures and communications networks away from the major towns and cities of developing and emerging countries and to connect even those in rural areas to the World Wide Web.

WiBACK is a wireless network that uses existing technologies to build a far-reaching network of radio links using inexpensive WiBACK routers. Naturally, the system is designed to support all existing wireless technologies.

The demands that will be made on the WiBACK network in the developing world are huge. "Our technology has to be reasonably priced, low maintenance, auto-configuring and robust. It also has to bridge massive distances of several hundred kilometers.

Should a router fail, data must divert automatically. And should an operating error occur, the system must be able to restore itself to normal operation. WiBACK fulfills all these requirements," says Prof. Karl Jonas, project leader at FOKUS.

Routers are installed on water towers, purpose-built masts or other similar high-lying points. Since the equipment has GSM and UMTS interfaces, the network is also suitable for mobile communications. And this extremely energy-efficient technology is powered by solar cells.

WiBACK wireless networks are due to be rolled out to several countries in sub-Saharan Africa in summer 2012. Jonas is happy to report that "even schools and hospitals in sparsely populated areas will then be able to access the internet." He and his team are assisted by ICT management consulting company Detecon, which is responsible for drawing up the business plan.

In the meantime, FOKUS researchers have already embarked upon their next project, to ensure that infrastructure-poor regions within Germany will also benefit from these inexpensive developments for wireless broadband internet. The first pilot network is currently being built on the fringes of the Westerwald and will be used to test just how reliable the network will be when it is in continuous operation. For example, what will happen when a network hub fails, perhaps because of a power cut?

As Jonas points out, "We won't be installing solar cells in Germany, since the electricity network covers almost the entire country." Initially, he and his team are providing a remote farm in Hennef-Theishohn with mobile communications and broadband internet.

To do this, they have set up a 21-kilometer radio link between the Fraun-hofer-Gesellschaft's existing fiber optic connection in Birlinghoven and the farm, using a local substation operated by energy supplier RWE as a relay point. WiBACK technology can also be employed during major events such as soccer games to increase the overall capacity of the mobile communications network for a set period of time.

In this connection, the researchers are keen to draw attention to the system's energy consumption: "WiBACK will automatically register if a soccer stadium is full to bursting and increase the number of available network hubs accordingly," says Jonas.

He and his team will be demonstrating precisely how this works at CeBIT in Hannover from March 6-10, where they will be installing a WiBACK network incorporating several activate-on-demand routers on a simulated soccer pitch (Hall 9, Booth E08).

Source: Space Mart.
Link: http://www.spacemart.com/reports/Broadband_internet_for_everyone_999.html.

Mars rocks indicate relatively recent quakes, volcanism, on Red Planet

2012-02-21T18:53:00.000+02:00

Washington DC (SPX)
Feb 21, 2012

Images of a martian landscape offer evidence that the Red Planet's surface not only can shake like the surface of Earth, but has done so relatively recently. If marsquakes do indeed take place, said the scientists who analyzed the high-resolution images, our nearest planetary neighbor may still have active volcanism, which could help create conditions for liquid water.

With High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) imagery, the research team examined boulders along a fault system known as Cerberus Fossae, which cuts across a very young (few million years old) lava surface on Mars.

By analyzing boulders that toppled from a martian cliff, some of which left trails in the coarse-grained soils, and comparing the patterns of dislodged rocks to such patterns caused by quakes on Earth, the scientists determined the rocks fell because of seismic activity. The martian patterns were not consistent with how boulders would scatter if they were deposited as ice melted, another means by which rocks are dispersed on Mars.

Gerald Roberts, an earthquake geologist with Birkbeck, an institution of the University of London, who led the study, said that the images of Mars included boulders that ranged from two to 20 meters (6.5 to 65 feet) in diameter, which had fallen in avalanches from cliffs.

The size and number of boulders decreased over a radius of 100 kilometers (62 miles) centered at a point along the Cerberus Fossae faults. "This is consistent with the hypothesis that boulders had been mobilized by ground-shaking, and that the severity of the ground-shaking decreased away from the epicenters of marsquakes," Roberts said.

The study, by Roberts and his colleagues, will be published Thursday in the Journal of Geophysical Research-Planets, a publication of the American Geophysical Union (AGU).

The team compared the pattern of boulder falls, and faulting of the martian surface, with those seen after a 2009 earthquake near L'Aquila, in central Italy. In that event, boulder falls occurred up to approximately 50 km (31 miles) from the epicenter. Because the area of displaced boulders in the marsscape stretched across an area approximately 200 km124-miles) long, the quakes were likely to have had a magnitude greater than 7, the researchers estimated.

By looking at the tracks that the falling boulders had left on the dust-covered martian surface, the team determined that the marsquakes were relatively recent - and certainly within the last few percent of the planet's history - because martian winds had not yet erased the boulder tracks.

Trails on Mars can quickly disappear - for instance, tracks left by NASA robotic rovers are erased within a few years by martian winds, whereas other, sheltered tracks stick around longer. It is possible, the scientists concluded, that large-magnitude quake activity is still occurring on Mars.

The existence of marsquakes could be significant in the ongoing search for life on Mars, the researchers stated. If the faults along the Cerberus Fossae region are active, and the quakes are driven by movements of magma related to the nearby volcano, Elysium Mons, the energy provided in the form of heat from the volcanic activity under the surface of Mars could be able to melt ice. The resulting liquid water, they noted, could provide habitats friendly to life.

Source: Mars Daily.
Link: http://www.marsdaily.com/reports/Mars_rocks_indicate_relatively_recent_quakes_volcanism_on_Red_Planet_999.html.

Iran boosts nuclear site defenses, warns EU on oil

2012-02-21T18:52:00.000+02:00

Tehran (AFP)
Feb 20, 2012

Iran deployed warplanes and missiles Monday in an "exercise" to protect nuclear sites threatened by possible Israeli attacks and warned it could cut oil exports to more EU nations unless sanctions were lifted.

The European Union said it could cope with any halt in Iranian supplies.

Tehran's stance marked a hardening of its defiance in an international standoff over its nuclear program -- and suggested it was readying for any eventual confrontation.

The moves came the same day as officials from the UN nuclear watchdog agency arrived in Tehran for a second round of talks they said were focused on "the possible military dimensions of Iran's nuclear program."

Iran, while holding out hope of reviving collapsed negotiations with world powers, has underlined it will not give up its nuclear ambitions, which it insists are purely peaceful.

Much of the West and Israel, though, fear Iran's activities include research for atomic weapons.

The United States and Europe have ramped up economic sanctions against Iran's vital oil sector, while Israel has fueled speculation it could be on the brink of carrying out air strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities.

Iran's military said on Monday that it has launched four days of maneuvers in the south aimed at boosting anti-air defenses to protect nuclear sites.

Missiles, anti-aircraft artillery, radars and warplanes were deployed in the exercise dubbed "Sarollah," a word borrowed from the Arabic meaning "God's vengeance."

At the same time, the deputy oil minister, who also runs the National Iranian Oil Company, warned that a cut in Iranian oil exports announced on Sunday against France and Britain could be expanded to other EU nations.

"Certainly if the hostile actions of some European countries continue, the export of oil to these countries will be cut," said Ahmad Qalebani, pointing the finger at Spain, Greece, Italy, Portugal, Germany and the Netherlands, Mehr news agency reported.

Iran exports about 20 percent of its crude -- some 600,000 barrels per day (bpd) -- to the European Union, mostly to Italy, Spain and Greece.

The EU reacted by saying it could cope.

"In terms of immediate security of stocks, the EU is well stocked with oil and petroleum products to face a potential disruption of supplies," said a spokesman for EU policy chief Catherine Ashton.

In Rome, French Foreign Minister Alain Juppe dismissed Tehran's move.

"Undoubtedly, Iran is very imaginative with regards to provocation. It is not Iran that decided to cut off its deliveries, we are the ones who decided to terminate our orders," he told reporters.

"It makes one smile," Juppe added.

Although the export halt for France and Britain was largely symbolic -- neither country imports much Iranian oil -- prices on world markets hit nine-month highs.

The Brent and New York contracts reached $121.15 and $105.44 a barrel in early trading -- the highest levels since May 5, 2011.

In late London deals, Brent North Sea crude for delivery in April stood at $120.14 a barrel, up 56 cents from Friday's close.

Iran's defiance included another pointed military deployment: two warships state television said had docked in Syria to help train its ally's sailors.

Israel said it "will closely follow the movement of the two ships to confirm that they do not approach the Israeli coast."

Iran has also flaunted "major" nuclear progress, declaring it was adding thousands more centrifuges to its uranium enrichment activities and producing what it said was 20-percent enriched nuclear fuel.

The UN nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency, in November issued a report voicing strong suspicions that Iran was researching an atomic weapon and missile warheads.

Last month it confirmed that a new, fortified uranium enrichment plant outside Iran's holy city of Qom had been activated.

The West has ratcheted up its sanctions to try to force Iran to stop enrichment, so far without success.

Meanwhile, the assassinations of three Iranian nuclear scientists and attempted bomb attacks against Israeli diplomats in several countries have pointed to a possible covert war between the two Middle East arch-foes.

But for all its flexing and posturing, Iran has also formally agreed to an EU overture to revive talks with world powers that collapsed a year ago.

However, the head of Iran's Atomic Energy Organization, Fereydoon Abbasi Davani, told Al-Alam television that the powers -- the so-called P5+1 group consisting of the five permanent UN Security Council members plus Germany -- should ease the pressure.

"They would do better to change their method, because what they've used in the past hasn't met with success," he said.

Source: Space War.
Link: http://www.spacewar.com/reports/Iran_boosts_nuclear_site_defences_warns_EU_on_oil_999.html.

U.N. signs off on Ivorian elections

2012-02-21T18:51:00.000+02:00

ABIDJAN, Ivory Coast, Feb. 20 (UPI) -- All of the conditions for a free and fair election were met during the Ivorian vote for legislation assembly last year, a U.N. envoy said.

Ivorians voted for members of the legislative assembly in December, close to a year after rival claims to the presidency pushed the country to the brink of civil war. Turnout was low compared to 2010 presidential elections.

Bert Koenders, U.N. special representative to Ivory Coast, said "all the conditions" for a free and fair election were met in 193 of the 204 constituencies that had elections in December.

"I welcome the fact that, after last year's crisis, the Ivorian people, in their majority, were able to exercise their right to vote in calm and in a peaceful environment," he said in a statement.

Laurent Gbagbo refused to step down after the international community recognized Alassane Ouattara as the winner of a presidential election meant to unite an Ivory Coast divided by civil war in 2003. Thousands of people were killed and many more were displaced in the conflict, which ended with Gbagbo's arrest in April.

Koenders said the results from the 11 other constituencies were annulled because of irregularities. The seats there were awarded in a later by-election.

Source: United Press International (UPI).
Link: http://www.upi.com/Top_News/Special/2012/02/20/UN-signs-off-on-Ivorian-elections/UPI-85131329754908/.

Somalia looks to end of transition

2012-02-21T18:50:00.002+02:00

MOGADISHU, Somalia, Feb. 20 (UPI) -- A constitutional conference in Somalia is an important step to ending the government's transitional period, the U.N. secretary-general said.

Members of the Somali transitional government met with parliamentary leaders and representatives from the self-declared autonomous regions for a constitutional summit.

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, in a statement issued through his spokesman's office, said a political agreement reached during the summit laid out the path for ending the transitional administrative period.

"The secretary-general applauds the spirit of unity and commitment demonstrated by the road map signatories as well as representatives from the areas recently recovered from al-Shabaab who participated," the statement read.

Somalia hasn't had a functioning central government since the 1990s. Al-Shabaab, an al-Qaida affiliate, controls parts of the country.

Somali authorities are implementing steps needed to end the interim administration's tenure by August.

London is the site of an international conference on Somalia starting Thursday. The British government claims the international policy toward Somalia isn't working.

"After 20 years of sliding backward, Somalia needs a step-change in effort -- both from the international community but also Somalia's political leaders," the government said.

Source: United Press International (UPI).
Link: http://www.upi.com/Top_News/Special/2012/02/20/Somalia-looks-to-end-of-transition/UPI-50781329755080/.

China's New Marriage Law Favors Men Over Women

2012-02-21T15:40:00.002+02:00

By Fang Xiao
August 26, 2011

China’s Supreme Court issued a new judicial proviso pertaining to marriage law applications on Aug. 12. The proviso became effective on Aug.13 and immediately triggered widespread argument and criticism.

Marriage law in China previously stated that married couples share joint ownership of property. However, the new proviso stipulates that in the event of a divorce, a house by law belongs to the individual who made the down payment, or in the case where parents purchased the house, it belongs to them, whereas the other spouse is awarded nothing.

In the many cases where women will not have made the down payment on property, even though the women may have made a significant contribution in mortgage payments, in the event of divorce, the new stipulation states that the spouse should receive compensation for mortgage payments, based on the market value of the house.

Internet and media commentaries concede that the amended law unjustly favors men, who already dominate the institution of marriage, and deals a low blow to women, by not promoting equality between the sexes and not affording women protection by law.

Mainland media reported that Ms. Zhu from Nanjing was the first casualty of the new stipulation.

When the court opened session on Aug. 8, Zhu’s attorney proposed that she claim ownership of half of the house she and her husband had shared. One week later, after the new stipulation had just gone into effect, Zhu could no longer lay any claim to house, and evidence that her husband had even had two extramarital affairs carried no weight.

An attorney interviewed by The Epoch Times said many people are dissatisfied with the new stipulation. The people that make the laws are men, he said.

Mr. Zhang from Jiangsu Province told Epoch Times that the old marriage law which said that couples co-own all property after marriage “was very reasonable and shouldn’t have been changed.”

He also said in jest that the new law seeks only to protect Chinese Communist Party officials who often keep mistresses.

“Of course, it is not explicitly stated, but people see the innuendo behind it.”

Mr. Hong from Zhejiang Province said that the new law’s oversight is that it lacks compensation for women when their husbands have extramarital affairs.

“The bottom line is, under an unfair system, the law is just for decorative purposes only,” he said.

Radio Free Asia reported that Professor Xie Jiaye, president of the Sino-U.S. Science and Technology Cultural Exchange Association, said that couples who have doubts can sign prenuptial agreements; it does not have to be incorporated into the marriage law.

He said the new stipulation has a negative effect on the value and significance of marriage, and implies, “I’ve married you, but I can divorce easily; when I leave, you won’t get anything.”

The change elicited other points of view from some female bloggers. Comments such as “men are not reliable,” “women should be independent” and “women should buy their own houses” resonated with many of them.

Source: The Epoch Times.
Link: http://www.theepochtimes.com/n2/china-news/chinas-new-marriage-law-favors-men-over-women-60830.html.

Mauritania postpones elections

2012-02-21T15:35:00.002+02:00

2011-08-26

Mauritania on Thursday (August 25th) postponed the October 16th municipal and legislative elections, ANI reported. The new poll date will reportedly be discussed at the next cabinet meeting. On Tuesday, eleven Mauritanian political parties issued a joint statement calling for the delay.

Source: Magharebia.
Link: http://www.magharebia.com/cocoon/awi/xhtml1/en_GB/features/awi/newsbriefs/general/2011/08/26/newsbrief-08.

UN frees frozen Libya assets

2012-02-21T15:34:00.003+02:00

2011-08-26

The United Nations Security Council on Thursday (August 25th) agreed to release $1.5 billion in frozen Libyan assets to assist immediate humanitarian needs.

Italy also decided to immediately unfreeze 350 million euros of frozen Libyan assets, ANSA reported. Speaking in Milan after meeting with Transitional National Council (TNC) foreign emissary Mahmoud Jibril on Thursday, Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi said Italy was prepared to train Libyan security officers and assist education and health initiatives.

Italian oil giant Eni will also sign an accord in Benghazi next Monday that provides "enormous quantities of gas and oil to meet the needs of the people", Berlusconi said.

Source: Magharebia.
Link: http://www.magharebia.com/cocoon/awi/xhtml1/en_GB/features/awi/newsbriefs/general/2011/08/26/newsbrief-01.

Maghreb faithful celebrate Ramadan

2012-02-21T15:34:00.000+02:00

From cultural celebrations to prayers, people across the Maghreb are commemorating the holy month.

By Fidet Mansour in Algiers and Imrane Binoual in Casablanca for Magharebia – 26/08/11

On a hot August night in the Algiers neighborhood of Bab El Oued, worshipers finish Al-Ishaa and head to Atlas Hall to see Lounis Ait Menguellet sing of Amazigh culture, love of his homeland and the hopes of an entire nation.

In 1990, opposition from extremists forced Linda de Suza to cancel a concert here. Twenty-one years later, the atmosphere for this August 13th Ramadan concert is totally different. Ait Menguellet will perform before a capacity audience. None of the spectators will be disturbed.

It is more than one show, one city or one venue. The same thing is happening all over Algeria. Ramadan evenings are once again a time for cultural activity.

To provide a broad range of recreational options, Algerian radio launched an innovative program this year: "the medina", a culture and arts village open from 9pm to 3am. The Medina boasts a 5,000-seat theater, a kheima (tent), an open-air cinema, a beach soccer pitch, a beach volleyball court, a bookshop, an art gallery, an internet area, a video games and snooker area, an ice-rink, restaurants, even toboggans and trampolines for children.

"I must say, the atmosphere in this village is overwhelming for us. There's something for everyone and especially for people of all ages," says Karim Maghni, an Algerian who returned from the US to his homeland for Ramadan. He brought his young family to see the medina.

The fun extends past Algiers. From music in Annaba's music festival to theater in Kabylie, the country is alive with cultural events.

Despite the evening fare, the days are still very long, complains teacher Kheir Eddine. "During the holy month, you're virtually forced to stay at home."

Since many Algerians struggle to while away the swelteringly hot days, state television is broadcasting special programs for Ramadan. Audiences are large, even though "the programs don't live up to our expectations", says Zohra, a student. This year, the main talking-points are Libya, Yemen and the trial of Hosni Mubarak.

After iftar, however, Algiers becomes a city that never sleeps.

Even older Algerians stay up. Under a full moon, on the terraces of the Kasbah and in living rooms, they recite short poems.

"We recite boqala until dawn around a table laden with traditional cakes and tea," says Soltana, who is in her seventies. "Our daughters and granddaughters focus on the television and internet instead of keeping up these traditions, which are part of our national heritage."

Moroccans mark Laylat al Qadr

Laawachir, the last ten days of Ramadan, is always a festive time in the Maghreb, but Friday (August 26th), is particularly special.

The eve of the 27th day of Ramadan is Laylat al Qadr (the Night of Destiny, when, according to Muslim belief, the gates of Heaven open). It is said that wishes made sincerely can be granted. This is why many men and women pray twice as much as usual on this holy night, spend as much time as they can reading the Qur'an and increase the amount of zakat (charity) they give away.

In Casablanca, people flock to mosques to recite ichae and tarawih prayers until dawn.

"To sustain worshipers during this long night, volunteers bring plates of couscous that are served during breaks. This is something I have done ever since I was young," says Haj Mohamed, who is in his sixties. "Worshipers also like to visit different mosques in order to stop fatigue setting in and gain the greatest possible ajr (reward)."

Children fasting for the first time also choose the eve of the 27th of Ramadan so that they can be spoiled by their parents. They are served a well-garnished ftour.

"The event is celebrated with one's family. For girls, we bring out nakacha to decorate the hands of young fasters with henna. They are also given pretty kaftans to wear," Malika Mrizak, who has three children, tells Magharebia.

With Eid just around the corner, housewives across the region bake cakes, family heads buy corn to give away as zakat and every kissariat (a kind of shopping area) becomes a hive of activity.

Tailors and sellers of beldi djellabas are inundated with customers who come to try on or buy clothes. The last week of Ramadan is a lucrative time for bakers and cake shops. For Eid, families must have cakes, msaman and baghrir ready for guests who come to wish them "mabrouk laawachir" (happy festival), so they need to stock up.

In the run-up to Eid, family heads gather items to give away as zakat al-fitr. Many go to agricultural markets to buy corn. Just after adan al-fajr, beggars, neighbors and local poor people ask for zakat. They bring a cart in which they take away the goods they receive. Even the nafar (a kind of town crier who wakes people up before dawn) comes knocking on doors on the Night of Destiny to receive zakat.

People also take time to remember relatives who have passed away.

They buy rose water from guerrabas to sprinkle on the tombs they visit, and lay flowers in remembrance. At cemeteries, traders see a surge in business during laawachir (the last ten days of Ramadan), selling dried figs, flowers and clay objects to decorate graves, and beggars come to benefit from the kindness of visitors.

Tolbas offer their services to those who want to read the Qur'an beside a grave. Because of the rise in demand during laawachir, tolbas come from small towns and rural areas to make money. They sleep outside cemeteries and await customers.

Sorcerers also take advantage of the last ten days of Ramadan to indulge in mystic practices many find questionable. "Some mouchaawidine bring a rotten egg that they bury in holes close to graves," one cemetery warden tells Magharebia. "Others bring photos that they wrap up in pieces of tissue and throw away in the cemetery."

Source: Magharebia.
Link: http://www.magharebia.com/cocoon/awi/xhtml1/en_GB/features/awi/reportage/2011/08/26/reportage-01.

Tripoli rappers encourage Libya revolution

2012-02-21T15:33:00.000+02:00

Young rappers from Tripoli tell their story of how music helped inspire the Libyan revolution.

Interview by Asmaa Elourfi and Maryam Alegily for Magharebia in Benghazi – 25/08/11

A Tripoli-based band, the Descendants of Omar Mukhtar Group, supported the revolution with distinctive rap music. Inside the National Theater of Benghazi, Magharebia met with the head of the group, Essam Assalini.

Essam Assalini: The band was founded in 2008 and was named King Hope. It consists of five people: Abdel Salam, Hussein, Mohamed, Ali and I. After the revolution of February 17th, it was been renamed "The Descendants of Omar Mukhtar Group" and all the songs came to support this revolution. I hope that our songs are a source of enthusiasm. We believe that art is a battlefront alongside the military front.

Magharebia: In light of the circumstances experienced by the people of Tripoli, how were the songs prepared?

Essam Assalini: We were modest in preparing and recording the songs, and one way or another the songs leaked out to the people and [were well received]. They were encouraging young people in Tripoli, but Kadhafi's battalions did not leave anyone alone, so we traveled to Tunisia. There we gave a concert for displaced Libyans and helped put a smile on the faces of children and were able to raise their spirits. We co-operated with charities there and then went to the free fortress city of Benghazi to share freedom with our brothers — for everybody knows that the youth of Tripoli has not and will not be silent about the injustice of Kadhafi. They are carrying out substantive operations against the regime and its cronies.

Magharebia: What are your upcoming works?

Assalini: We are now about to hold a set of concerts, and we will visit displaced families from the western region to share in their joys and raise their spirits. We will also visit the city of Ajdabiya and certainly Brega, for we have prepared a special song for [Brega] that we will perform.

Magharebia: Why choose the name "The Descendants of Omar Mukhtar"?

Assalini: We chose this name to prove to Kadhafi his permanent lie, and to tell him that his "Kadhafi" terms have no basis. We are from the western region, but we bear the name of a "mujahid" from the eastern region.

Magharebia: You confirm the presence of mercenaries there?

Assalini: Yes, they came to a site with an armed African person, who stopped me for a full hour on the wall – accompanying me were my mother, my father and my wife – until one of my brothers came. This African was a driver for one of the companies in Tripoli, and he asked my brother, "Is this your brother?" My brother answered yes, and the African replied, "Fine, there's no problem. We are one country."

Furthermore, the psychological situation among the people there is very bad, and they are waiting for the people of the liberated areas to rid them of this tyrant. There are also substantive operations carried out by the rebels of Tripoli on a daily basis, killing at least three soldiers a day from Kadhafi's brigades. The rebels are putting an independence flag on blocks of ice in the evening, and when the sun melts the ice the flag suddenly emerges and provokes the battalions. They also put recorders in garbage bags that, when connected to an electrical source, they loudly play the national anthem.

The disturbing thing there is the battalions from the area where you were born. At each gate you find Kadhafi supporters asking, "Where are you from?" And if your grandparents are from Benghazi, your fate is unknown. I personally encountered this position, for I was born in Benghazi but lived in Tripoli in Souq al-Juma, and every time I try to convince them of that for hours, for the young people of Benghazi and the eastern region meet with an unknown fate in Tripoli.

Magharebia: What do you have to report to us about the march by Kadhafi's supporters in Tripoli?

Assalini: First, most of those who came out for this march are not Libyans. The Libyans who are paid daily are people who sold their conscience for money. I remember when payment was cut off from them for mere days, they went out in a demonstration demanding their wages and saying "Amo Amo Amo, the 500 amo". This is evidence that they stand for money and not Kadhafi. I saw with my own eyes at Bab Al-Aziziya gate non-Libyan women—they were Chadian—selling incense wearing Libyan robes and collecting money [with their goods priced] from 50 to 150 dinars. The bottom line is that life has become intolerable there, and shops that were filled with food have become empty.

Source: Magharebia.
Link: http://www.magharebia.com/cocoon/awi/xhtml1/en_GB/features/awi/features/2011/08/26/feature-04.

Moroccan youth push for political representation

2012-02-21T15:32:00.003+02:00

With three months to go until legislative elections, Moroccan young people are seeking increased representation in parliament.

By Siham Ali for Magharebia in Rabat – 26/08/11

Young political activists in Morocco recently formed a new group to press for reform and to urge the creation of a national electoral list reserved for youth ahead of the November 25th legislative elections.

Members of the newly created "Moroccan Youth Movement for Political Representation Now" met with Youth Minister Moncef Belkhayat on Tuesday (August 23rd) in Rabat to advocate for a national list reserved for young people, half men and half women. Twenty-nine youth organizations and 17 civil society groups are affiliated with the movement.

The youth list will guarantee young people's representation in the Chamber of Representatives while at the same time encouraging "a renewal of the elite and inject new blood into institutions", according to the activists.

The movement also proposed the creation of a national fund to support young people that will protect their interests.

Youth Minister Belkhayat gave his support to the national list proposal, citing a recent royal speech that stressed the need to foster the emergence of new political elites among young people.

The youth initiative follows lobbying by the women's movement, which has pushed for a list to be reserved solely for women. The interior ministry previously proposed the adoption of a 90-seat national list for young people and women.

According to Abdelkader Kihel, general secretary for young people with the Istiqlal Party, the government's proposal was welcomed by young people but attempts have since been made to hijack it.

"Political parties have a problem with young people. There is a huge gap between what they say and what they do," he said.

The youth movement's goal is to bring about a full-scale renewal of the elites, which are one of the driving forces of democracy, according to Ali El Yazghi, secretary-general for young people with the Socialist Union of Popular Forces. He said that this renewal must happen immediately with election lists reserved for young people.

Young people from the movement say they are determined to achieve their goal of rejuvenating the political elite and accuse parties of having no clear vision on the issue.

If the movement's demands are not met, they plan to step up their campaign with protests to call for young people to be represented in the legislature.

The idea of a national list is an issue on which no consensus has yet been reached, government spokesman Khalid Naciri told reporters August 18th. He stated that there are differences of opinion between those who want it to be reserved solely for women, those who want it to be reserved for young people, and those who believe there is no point in implementing it.

"You must put yourselves in the shoes of the Ministry of the Interior, which is trying to establish a consensus by consulting political parties," Naciri said.

The ball is now in the court of political parties, which have differing views on the matter. The president of the National Council of the Party of Justice and Development, Saaddine Othmani, said that his party proposed that a third of the list be reserved for women, a third reserved for young people and the remainder for Moroccans living overseas.

In his view, young people should set up bodies of their own to solve the problem of representation as there cannot be several national lists.

As for the women's movement, the national co-ordinator for the Movement of Egalitarian Democracy, Khadija Rebbah, said that the national list should be reserved for women only. She said positive discrimination has historically focused on the sex with the least representation, whereas young people are an age-based category.

Source: Magharebia.
Link: http://www.magharebia.com/cocoon/awi/xhtml1/en_GB/features/awi/features/2011/08/26/feature-02.