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| Abdul Jalil, the man who twice upheld death sentences in the Bulgarian nurses show trial But don’t worry: The State Department says he’s a refomer. |
The appellate judge in the case was none other than the current head of the NATO-installed Libyan National Transition Council (NTC) Mustafa Abdul Jalil, whose formal legal education consisted of sitting in on some Sharia law classes. Following his appellate decision in the case, and for other services rendered to the former regime, Jalil was rewarded with the post of Minister of Justice. He served loyally in that position until American associates encouraged the intensely ambitious Minister to resign on February 24, 2011, the day he joined the Benghazi based uprising, as “leader.”
In the Benghazi nurses case, “Judge”Jalil knew the defendants were innocent and had been regularly and severely tortured during years of incarceration and forced into making false confessions which they later recanted. He also knew that the families of the false government witnesses against the “Benghazi Six” had been threatened with death if their relative failed to testify that it was the defendants who injected 426 Libyan children with HIV at the al-Fateh hospital in Benghazi. Jalil was also fully aware that, as the Libyan and International medical community knew, unsanitary conditions at the hospital caused the spreading of the HIV virus which originated in Benghazi from African guest workers, well before the arrival of the Palestinian and Bulgarian humanitarian medical staff. |
| OMG WHY IS HE DOING THAT? Luis Moreno Ocampo, listens during a news conference at the United Nations on Wednesday, June 8, 2011. Ocampo said he is investigating whether Gadhafi provided Viagra-type drugs to Libyan soldiers to promote the rape of women during the current conflict. (AP Photo/Bebeto Matthews) |
Ocampo’s challenge will be to explain the legal steps to officials in Tripoli, and try to convince them that The Hague is the better option for the coming trials. Ultimately, it is up to the ICC judges backed by the UN whether to hand over the cases against Saif al Islam and Abdullah al Senussi to the NTC.
What the White House and NATO want is for former key Gadhafi loyalists like Seif al Islam to be silenced ( reminding one of Saddam, Osama and Muammar) before they can reveal criminal dealings by NATO country leaders. Chances are the jailed defendants will be killed unless the UN Security Council, which allowed the destruction of Libya via UNSC Resolution 1973, intervenes to uphold UN humanitarian principles. |
| War is good bussines |
River to Sea
Uprooted Palestinian
An interesting side drama at the annual Oil and Gas Turkmenistan conference was Turkmenistan’s very cautious step toward rapprochement with Russia, following months of strained relations, mutual recriminations, escalating militarization in the Caspian, and outright conflict over the Trans-Caspian Pipeline (TCP).
On November 16 at the conference, Bayramgeldy Nedirov, Turkmenistan’s minister of oil and gas industry and mineral resources, met with Yury Sentyurin, Russia’s deputy ministery of energy, the opposition website gundogar.org reported, citing the Russian ministry’s website.
Nedirov said that Turkmenistan was interested in “the active involvement of Russian companies in investment and also innovation projects in Turkmenistan.” He then touched upon the Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-Indian (TAPI) pipeline, noting that by the end of this year, the project would be ready for “implementation in the framework of a consortium with the participation of interested companies.” That was quite a bit warmer than the frosty responselast year, when Russian Deputy Vice Premier Igor Sechin seemed to jump the gun assuming Gazprom would be involved, and then got slammed by irate Turkmen Foreign Ministry officials who felt the Russians were being too presumptuous.
Nedirov then passed Sentyurin — who wasn’t at his level — off to his deputy, Jepbarberdy Atayev to discuss “the need to organize information exchange about projects.” Everything seemed as well as could be expected, but then the next day, Aleksandr Medvedev, deputy chair of Russia’s state monopoly Gazprom, publicly expressed doubts about the size of South Yolotan’s reserves, which which Turkmenistan is now claiming would make it the country with the second largest gas reserves in the world, after Iran and Qatar, instead of the fourth or fifth.
Medvedev fretted about Turkmenistan’s plans to feed Nabucco, which actually Ashgabat hadn’t mentioned at OGT, which of course is intended to circumvent Russia. In an interview then with the television channel Rossiya 24, Medvedev was dripping with sarcasm: “I think there’s no basis for such statements about such a deposit with such reserves of that size. That means this is being said with some sort of purpose. It’s understood with what aim, and it’s easy to guess.”
For those watching at home, it might not have been so easy to guess, but apparently what he meant was implied in his next statement — since Russian engineers basically built the Turkmen gas industry in the Soviet era and surveyed all the deposits back then, they knew the extent of the reserves, and they think the Turkmens are telling a whopper just to get more foreign investment. Medvedev added that no real audit had been made, nor had the new surveys been published. He reiterated a point that had irritated Turkmenistan last month, saying their gas extraction would be difficult and require greater investment.
Naturally, Medvedev’s knock on Turkmenistan’s gas industry once again evoked another denunciation of the Russia media and Gazprom by the Turkmen Foreign Ministry calling Medvedev “extremely impolite and disrespectful” as well as “non-objective” given the revised estimates by British consulting firm Gaffney, Cline & Associates. There was more in that vein — Medvedev had made “an awkward attempt to distort the real situation,” and so on. The question is whether Turkmenistan will compartmentalize the attacks by Gazprom on its gas reputation, and still try to do business with Russian ministers and other Russian companies it likes (such as Itera), or whether that will be impossible, given Gazprom’s monopolist status.
Another meeting that took place in Moscow on November 20 between Catherine Ashton, the European Union’s High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and Vice-President of the European Commission, and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, indicates that the EU is trying to smooth its end of relations with the Kremlin. Nice words were said about “mutually profitable energy cooperation,” and Lavrov referenced the Nordstream pipeline, which was launched November 8, as an example of cooperation between Russia and the EU. He then gingerly referenced the Trans Caspian Pipeline and “a number of problems existing in energy cooperation”, RIA Novosti reported.
Ashton said she was confident Russia and the EU would continue to cooperate and regarding the TCP, said that environmental protection must be secured for this project. RIA Novosti called the TCP “one of the weakest links in the Nabucco project” due to the lack of resolution of the status of the Caspian Sea — it seems Russia is the only one talking about Nabucco anymore. Despite EU speeches at OGT to the contrary, the US and UK are characterized these days as having given up on Nabucco and are focusing on TCP and other shorter pipelines. Of course, Russia wants to resolve all Caspian disputes multilaterally with all the littoral states; Turkmenistan and Azerbaijan want to resolve their border demarcation problems bilaterally, and the EU wants to deal just with Turkmenistan and Azerbaijan together, separately from Russia.
Whether one looks at Russia, the EU and Turkmenistan or the EU, Turkmenistan and Azerbaijan, the Russian fairy tale by Ivan Krylov comes to mind titled “The Swan, The Crab, and the Pike,” about creatures pulling in different directions. It will be interesting to see if the load gets across the river.
On the eve of German foreign minister Guido Westerwelle’s visit to Turkmenistan tomorrow, Reporters Without Borders and the Turkmenistan Helsinki Foundation For Human Rights have sent him a joint letter about the state of freedom of expression in this Central Asian dictatorship.
Dear Foreign Minister Westerwelle,
In view of your visit to Turkmenistan, Reporters Without Borders and the Turkmenistan Helsinki Foundation for Human Rights would like to draw your attention to the situation of freedom of information and human rights defenders in this country.
Turkmenistan has been ranked near the bottom of the Reporters Without Borders press freedom index for years. The hopes of democratization that were raised by President Saparmurat Niyazov’s death have come to nothing. His successor, Gurbanguly Berdymukhamedov, has launched his own personality cult, the state continues to control all the media, and the use of torture and the confinement of dissidents to psychiatric hospitals are as widespread as ever. Although aged 80, Amangelen Shapudakov was forced to spend 40 days in a psychiatric institution this past spring just for providing information to Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty.
The circulation of independently reported news and information is extremely limited and comes almost entirely from outlets based abroad. Independent journalists and bloggers are forced to operate clandestinely. A number of Internet users were questioned by the security services for breaking the official silence surrounding a deadly explosion at an arms depot in the Ashgabat suburb of Abadan in July and, according to several international media, some are still being held.
To our knowledge, at least two journalists are currently detained in connection with work:Annakurban Amanklychev and Sapardurdy Khadjiyev. They are serving jail sentences of six and seven years respectively for helping to make a documentary about Turkmenistan in 2006 for “Envoyé spécial,” a current affairs programme broadcast by the French state-owned TV stationFrance 2, and for gathering information about the human rights situation for the Turkmenistan Helsinki Foundation. A third journalist who was convicted at the same time, Ogulsapar Muradova,died in detention in September 2006 after being tortured.
Another journalist recently fell victim to Turkmenistan’s biased and unpredictable judicial system.Dovletmyrat Yazkuliyev, a reporter for the Turkmen-language service of Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty, was sentenced to five years in prison on 5 October after a summary trial held behind closed doors. The pardon he received three weeks later suggests that international pressure sometimes produces results.
We urge you to do everything in your power to obtain the release of Mr. Amanklychev and Mr. Khadjiyev. Attention is paid to what Germany says in the region, both by the authorities and the population. As the representative of a leading European nation, you have a duty to encourage this strategic partner to open up and move towards democracy. We are convinced that, by showing you do not avoid sensitive subjects, you would reinforce your credibility for all negotiations in the eyes of your interlocutors.
We trust you will give this matter your careful consideration.
Jean-François Julliard Reporters Without Borders Secretary-general
Tadjigul Begmedova Turkmenistan Heksinki Foundation for Human Rights Chairman
Michael Rediske Reporter ohne Grenzen Board chairman
[Loya Jirga Sets Conditions for American Partnership and for Honest Taliban Negotiations. Honesty is what they are after, but can it be found in the country today? The individual tribesman is fully dedicated to honesty, up until the point where it costs him. Their Western adversaries are led by psychopaths and sycophants, who do not understand the concept of honesty or the reason for unprofitable "mercy." How could such a partnership ever produce any kind of lasting peace or a workable agreement? Until the US side admits what its actual intentions are for its outpost/beachhead in Afghanistan after 2014, the diplomats and negotiators are selling all lies to the public. When we finally hear some American military talking head begin to describe the missions that are planned out of Mazar i-Sharif, either in pursuit of narco-terrorists, or on counter-terrorist missions, then we will know that honesty is part of American considerations. Until that happens all attempts at human reconciliation efforts will be operating in a river of pure bullshit.]
Deputies approved the Loya Jirga last weekend declaration prepared by President Hamid Karzai. Its main point – offering the U.S. military to remain in the country since 2014.
But first, a few words about how he trained the Loya Jirga (High vseafganskoy Assembly) and treated like the idea of its political parties and other opposition groups in Afghanistan.
The need for and purpose of the Loya Jirga
It should be noted that some political commentators and politicians some, talking about the causes and necessity of the Loya Jirga, in general, noted two points of view. First, the Loya Jirga – the idea of the Karzai government. Following the announcement of the withdrawal of foreign troops from Afghanistan’s rulers of this country think about their future. They would, of course, continue to remain in power by foreign military force. To implement this idea, you need to get formal approval Loya Jirga.
Secondly, this idea and the U.S., which also tend to stay in Afghanistan and after the announced withdrawal of troops in 2014. History shows that American troops everywhere, wherever they were, these places do not voluntarily leave. Recall Germany, Japan … They are almost always stayed at the request of the governments of these countries, which are mostly pro-American.
The position of Parliament and opposition parties
Four days before the opening of the Loya Jirga Parliament considered the participation of deputies in the Assembly. As the deputy told reporters in Badakhshan province of Afghanistan Fawzia Kufi, after heated debate, most MPs came to the conclusion that the conduct of the Loya Jirga – the illegal action of the authorities and to participate in it they will not. Also, deputies noted that the government has yet to report to Parliament on the budget of the Loya Jirga.
Some opposition political parties and organizations have also opposed the Loya Jirga.For example, Abdullah Abdullah, former Minister of Foreign Affairs of Afghanistan and Karzai’s main rival in the presidential election, who heads the alliance, “Change and Hope”, said the debate on two vital issues for the state (strategic partnership with America and the conclusion of peace with the Taliban) in Loya Jirga – the illegal action of the authorities. And because his alliance to participate in it will not.
According to him, the Loya Jirga – a mechanism by which Hamid Karzai wants to illegally extend his rule. As noted by Abdullah Abdullah, the members of the Assembly do not represent all the tribes and walks of life in Afghanistan. So Loya Jirga can not consider such important matters of state. It is the prerogative of the Parliament, whose rights were thereby infringes Karzai said Abdullah Abdullah.
“National Front”, which includes the powerful personality of Afghanistan, such as Ahmad Ziyo Masud, Muhammad Muhakkik, Abdurashid Dostum and others also suggests that “the holding of Loya Jirga is illegal and has a goal to reduce the value and position of Parliament.”
The Taliban had intended to blow up the Loya Jirga
On the eve of the Assembly, the Taliban claimed that they got a plan to provide security for Loyay Jirga and in the days of passing the Assembly are going to attack her.
Although the attack itself was not, however, at the request of law enforcement agencies of Afghanistan, a day before the opening of the vicinity of the Loya Jirga was destroyed by a suicide bomber, who had on the body belt with explosives. And on the second day near the building where the assembly took place, several rockets exploded. There were no casualties. Responsibility for the bombings took the Taliban.
Meeting
Responsibility for the preparation and conduct of the Loya Jirga, Hamid Karzai gave the Commission on the preparation and conduct of the Assembly, headed by former President Sibghatullah Mudzhaddidi. The Commission, consisting of 32 members had the right to verify the identity of candidates submitted by the Loya Jirga, that is to check whether they are persons of influence and where they were presented.According to established procedures to nominate one deputy had the right to the city and big towns of Afghanistan. Also on the list have been made about thirty percent of the provincial deputies. The final list was presented to Karzai, who is also his, and claimed.
According to the list in the Assembly were to take part in 2030 delegates, but by the beginning of the Loya Jirga delegates were registered only in 1900, including at least half of the representatives of the Afghan Parliament.
The first day of the deputies gave Hamid Karzai, who asked delegates to discuss two issues: strategic cooperation with the U.S. and the world with the Taliban. He made it clear to deputies, the U.S. military could stay in Afghanistan even after 2014, when they will consider and protect the interests of Afghanistan and not to interfere in the internal affairs of the country. But he added that Afghanistan will not allow use of its territory against third countries. With regard to peace with the Taliban Karzai any specific proposals are made. This case he lay on the Loya Jirga of Deputies.
All the deputies were distributed to 40 committees, and work was mainly on these committees. It is interesting that none of the deputies did not want to work on the Committee under number 39, even sitting in an office under that number, they refused. The fact is that in some provinces of Afghanistan, this figure is considered to be synonymous with the word “infamy” … As a result, the organizers had to turn on this issue.
The discussions in the committees continued until November 19. On this day in the presence of Hamid Karzai and Foreign Minister of Germany, Guido Westerwelle, the delegates adopted a declaration, which consists of 76 items.
What is said in the declaration?
Delegates said that any agreement will be signed between Afghanistan and America, must have a guarantee that it will run. This document must be approved by parliament and is registered in the United Nations. Afghans who are in U.S. prisons, should be returned to Afghanistan. Also, the U.S. should not have their own prisons in Afghanistan.
The Declaration recommends that the Loya Jirga to place U.S. military facilities in the border areas, which are clusters of sites militants, as well as demands to ban the nighttime military operations, withdraw immunity from Americans who commit crimes in Afghanistan.
Military facilities may not be near residential areas.
The declaration also stresses that in the territory of Afghanistan’s military installations should not be permanent. Training and equipping of the Afghan armed forces should be an integral part of an agreement with the United States.
In the final declaration of the Assembly of Representatives voted in support of continuing the negotiations with the Taliban, but it required a change in the mechanism of negotiation. ”The Afghan government needs to identify his friend and enemy, to demand from Pakistan’s ongoing change in policy toward Afghanistan and cooperate with the international community in combating terrorism” – the declaration said.
Afghan President Hamid Karzai said that the adopted declaration will be his guide to action.
Kazakhstan’s Response to Local Terrorist Acts is Closely Tied to Its Relationship with Foreign Investors
By Andrew Roth
Russia Profile
When the dust cleared last Saturday in Taraz, a city 350 miles to the west of Kazakhstan’s former capital Almaty, seven people had been shot dead by a would-be suicide bomber who then detonated his explosives, killing himself. In a country that touts itself as the richest and most stable country in Central Asia, months of bombings and shootouts between police and outlaws have convinced many that an Islamist insurgency is brewing. Yet the Kazakh government’s fears that declaring a war on terror could spook its foreign investors, who are important in maintaining the country’s economic stability and sending a steady flow of cash to the government, may prevent it from employing the same hard-line tactics against suspected insurgents that have become commonplace in the neighboring republics.
Kazakhstan has seen an unprecedented rise in terrorist attacks this year. The violence began this May, when the country’s first suicide bomber in its history attacked the headquarters of the local security services in Aktobe, a city in the west of the country. Last month, another bombing took place in the city of Atyram on the Caspian coast. A previously unknown Islamist terrorist group, Jund-al-Kalifhah (Soldiers of the Caliphate), claimed responsibility for the attack at Atyram, as well as last week’s rampage at Taraz.
All this is taking place in a country whose president, Nursultan Nazarbayev, only admitted that there was militant Islam in the country in late August. Pledging to “protect the country against religious extremism,” the Kazakh Parliament subsequently banned prayer rooms in government buildings and required missionaries to register with authorities. Jund-al-Kalifhah has claimed that its attacks have been protests against the targeted legislation.
However, just what role radical Islam actually played in much of the violence remains hotly contested. “So far it’s too early to talk about these attacks as systematic acts of violence. The acts themselves have been quite different, in terms of their technical aspects, and in terms of where they’ve taken place,” said Rustam Burnashev, director of analysis at the Almaty-based Center for Political Solutions. At its core, the violence reflects local dissatisfaction with the government. “These actions are first and foremost linked to the internal situation in Kazakhstan right now, insofar as they are tied to the activities of the security services, socio-economic conditions and the political situation. It can not be linked alone to the law [on religion], although that may have served as a kind of impulse,” he said.
Clumsy denials by the government about active Islamist groups in the country have only served to fuel rumors among rank-and-file Kazakhs about a growing Islamist threat. In an article for The Diplomat magazine, Joshua Kucera noted that officials had painted previous attacks as the work of Mafioso and criminal groups to assuage fears among foreign investors, in particular in the gas and oil sectors, who might pull out of the country if they sense a serious threat.
The presence of ample direct investment from oil and gas majors is one of the key reasons why Kazakhstan has not rushed to tighten the screws over its civil society, as regularly happens in Uzbekistan and other neighboring Central Asian republics after similar violence, noted Eric McGlinchey, an associate professor of Government and Politics at George Mason University and an expert on Central Asia. In Uzbekistan, rich Muslim oppositionists have challenged the state’s ability to control the country via a system of patronage – in that country, controlling any kind of Muslim uprising is not only a question of security, but one of political survival for the government, he said. “Kazakhstan’s got a lot of money, so Kazakhstan doesn’t have to worry about Islam as a challenge to the state patronage network. So it doesn’t face the same incentives that the Uzbek government does to really ratchet up its response to eliminate potential competition,” said McGlinchey.
Investors in the region are on edge, but most seem to be staying put. The first and only organization to leave Kazakhstan wasn’t even a major investor, but, unexpectedly, the U.S. Peace Corps, which is pulling close to 120 members out of the country. According to Kazakhstan’s education minister, the official reasoning was that Kazakhstan was no longer a developing country that required support from the Corps, but the Wall Street Journal reported that concerns over sexual assaults and local terrorism led the Corps to close its last major program in Central Asia.
“There is a sense that while there isn’t a political threat [to the Kazakh government], there is a real security threat, and the United States wouldn’t pull the Peace Corps unless they had a sense that there was a serious security threat in the region,“ said McGlinchey.
Other investors, especially in the oil and gas industry, will be tougher to dislodge from the country. While Peace Corps’ sudden exit from Kazakhstan may serve as an “indicator” of the rising dangers in the country, the oil and gas majors that contribute heavily to Kazakhstan’s prosperity have a “greater tolerance for risk,” said Louise Taggart, an intelligence analyst for Central Asia at the U.K.-based EKA risk management consultancy. “In the short term they have a higher risk threshold than other investors would because the majority of them are used to operating in less stable, even dangerous environments. That begs the questions of whether terrorism might start targeting the oil and gas infrastructure in the country in the longer term. If that happens, then that could be the start of a major problem for them, and we would see a very serious response from the government.”
“CentralAsiaOnline.com is a website sponsored by USCENTCOM to highlight movement toward greater regional stability both through bilateral and multilateral cooperative arrangements.”
Why is the Pentagon spending tens of millions of U.S. tax dollars to whitewash the image of Central Asian dictatorships?
BY DAVID TRILLING
BISHKEK, Kyrgyzstan – When people read a news website, they don’t usually imagine that it is being run by a major producer of fighter jets and smart bombs. But when the Pentagon has its own vision of America’s foreign policy, and the funds to promote it, it can put a $23 billion defense contractor in a unique position to report on the war on terror.
Over the past three years, a subdivision of Virginia-based General Dynamics has set up and run a network of eight “influence websites” funded by the Defense Department with more than $120 million in taxpayer money. The sites, collectively known as the Trans Regional Web Initiative (TRWI) and operated by General Dynamics Information Technology, focus on geographic areas under the purview of various U.S. combatant commands, including U.S. Central Command. In its coverage of Uzbekistan, a repressive dictatorship increasingly important to U.S. military goals in Afghanistan, a TRWI website called Central Asia Online has shown a disturbing tendency to downplay the autocracy’s rights abuses and uncritically promote its claims of terrorist threats.
Central Asia Online was created in 2008, a time when Washington’s ability to rely on Pakistan as a partner in the U.S.-led operation in Afghanistan was steadily waning. In the search for alternative land routes to supply U.S. troops, Uzbekistan seemed the best option. Nearby Iran was a non-starter, and Uzbekistan’s infrastructure — used by the Soviets to get in and out of Afghanistan during their ill-fated war there — was far superior to that of neighboring Tajikistan. Today, the U.S. military moves massive amounts of cargo across Uzbekistan. By year’s end, the Pentagon hopes to see 75 percent of all non-lethal military supplies arrive in Afghanistan via the so-called Northern Distribution Network, a web of land-based transport routes stretching from the Baltic Sea to the Amu Darya River.
Gas-rich Uzbekistan, the most populous of the formerly Soviet Central Asian republics, has been ruled since before independence in 1991 by strongman President Islam Karimov, who is regularly condemned in the West for running one of the world’s most repressive and corrupt regimes. Freedom House gives Uzbekistan the lowest possible score in its Freedom in the World report, while watchdog groups like Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch have reported on widespread torture and forced child labor. The respected Russian human rights group Memorialsays Karimov holds more political prisoners than all other post-Soviet republics combined, often through an “arbitrary interpretation” of the law. The overwhelming majority of those convicted are somehow linked to Islam. Memorial has found that thousands of “Muslims whose activities pose no threat to social order and security are being sentenced on fabricated charges of terrorism and extremism.”
Nonetheless, with Pakistani-American relations at a desperate low, Washington now seems more eager than ever to make overtures to Tashkent. In the past, Karimov has responded to U.S. criticism by threatening to shut down the supply route to Afghanistan. In 2005, after Washington demanded an investigation into the massacre of hundreds of civilians in the eastern city of Andijan, he closed the American airbase at Karshi-Khanabad. So Washington’s expressions of disapproval have given way to praise. In September, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton cautiously commended Tashkent for its “progress” on political freedoms, and, more significantly, President Barack Obama moved to end restrictions on military aid, in place since 2004. Then, during an Oct. 22 visit to Tashkent, Clinton thanked the Uzbek leader in person for his cooperation. A State Department official traveling with her said he believed Karimov wants to leave a democratic legacy for “his kids and his grandchildren.”
Theoretically, with the restrictions lifted, General Dynamics stands to profit. The company has already shown interest in finding clients in Central Asia, hawking its wares at a defense exposition in Kazakhstan last year. This potential self-interest casts an unflattering light on Central Asia Online’s flattering coverage of the region’s calcified dictatorships, especially Uzbekistan.
Take a March story praising Tashkent’s effort to register religious groups. The story does not mention reputable organizations’ allegations about arbitrary arrests of Christians and Muslims from unregistered groups, but cites state-affiliated clergy lauding the country’s religious freedom and praises the feared security services for acting within the law. The story ends by saying, “Uzbekistan is doing everything necessary to ensure its citizens have the proper conditions to exercise freedom of conscience.”
That is patently not so, says John Kinahan of Forum 18, an Oslo-based religious freedom watchdog: “The only thing harmonious in Uzbekistan is a constant picture of violations of just about every human right you can name, which is certainly not producing any meaningful exchange of views of what is going on or how people relate to each other.”
[It cannot be a coincidence that the Uzbek railway line which suffered a terrorist bombing on Nov. 16 services the Tajik city where the Russian pilot was sentenced to eight and a half years. This implicates either the Russian secret service in the bombing of the NDN (Northern Distribution Network), or links Uzbek terrorists to Russian interests. Either way, the terror attack was a message to Obama to end the Tajik pilot gambit. It should be remembered that the IMU (Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan) was created by a Russian Special Forces soldier, allegedly gone rogue Juma Namangani.]
The pilots were detained in March after flying from AfghanistanA Tajik court has freed a Russian and an Estonian pilots whose jailing this month led to a major row with Moscow.
Russia’s Vladimir Sadovnichy and Alexei Rudenko from Estonia were jailed for eight-and-a-half years for smuggling and illegally crossing the border.
But the men, who both denied the charges, have now been released at the request of the prosecutor and following heavy pressure from the Kremlin.
Many Tajik migrants were rounded up in Moscow after the initial guilty ruling.
And in another, apparently tit-for-tat, move, Russia’s chief medical officer last week expressed concern about whether ethnic Tajik workers in Russia were carrying the HIV virus that causes Aids.
Migrant work in Russia is a vital source of income for many nationals from Tajikistan, the poorest former Soviet Republic.
Amnesty applied
Tajiks are a cheap source of labour in Russiaand asked the judges to reduce the pilots’ original terms to two-and-a-half years.
The prosecutors were also urged to apply a new amnesty law to shorten the sentences by a further two years.
The judge agreed and the result was that the two pilots were released from court immediately because of the time they had already spent in jail.
Moscow earlier condemned the jailing of the pilots, saying the verdict was politically-motivated.
The pilots were detained on 12 March after landing their An-72 cargo planes at Kurgan-Tyube airport.
They were flying back to Russia from the Afghan capital, Kabul, where their company, Rolkan Investments, had been working for the Afghan government, delivering aid from Russia.
Russia and Tajikistan are nominally allies but have long had frictions over each other’s treatment of human rights.
Ukraine is set to rely on Chinese funds after Kyiv surprisingly announced it was turning away from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to help finance its struggling economy.
The Central Bank of China has offered a credit line to Ukraine, the Ukrainian daily Kommersant reported today (21 November).
The announcement comes after the IMF published on 18 November a report on the implementation of the stand-by agreement with Ukraine, deploring a lack of political will from Kyiv (see background).
The IMF said that the stand-by programme initiated for Ukraine in 2008 had brought short-term positive results, but not the broader improvement of the economic situation it had expected.
“Progress [in structural reforms] hasn’t been as fast as we would like it to be,” Max Alier, the IMF’s resident representative in Ukraine said recently, quoted by the Kyiv Post.
Ukraine next year will face considerable challenges related to the worsening global economic situation, which will make GDP growth slow to 3.5% from this year’s 5%, Alier said.
He also said the country needs to maintain its attractiveness to investors as it requires large external injections of capital.
Gas talks
One reason for Ukraine to suspend IMF talks also appears to be related to Kyiv’s ongoing negotiation with Russia over natural gas prices. Sergiy Tigipko, Ukrainian Vice Prime Minister and Minister of Social Policy, said on Monday that the Ukrainian government expects gas talks with Russia to be completed in this month.
Tigipko said the negotiations with the IMF mission, which are now suspended, will depend on the outcome of the talks.
Ukraine is buying gas from Russia at $400 (€297) per thousand cubic metres, which is substantially higher than the price Western Europeans pay for Russian gas. A new price at the level of $200 (€148) per thousand cubic metres is reportedly under negotiation.
On 14 November Ukrainian Prime Minister Mykola Azarov surprisingly said that the country could survive without the help of IMF.
Addressing a press conference in Kyiv, Azerov said that after almost a full year, Ukraine had not received “a single dollar” from the IMF.
“We survived this year, we will survive the next one,” Azerov said, adding that thanks to a balanced economic policy, the government had been able to stabilise the internal situation and to reduce the ratio of the external debt to GDP.
According to the Russian website Lenta.ru, even if China grants Ukraine the funds which were expected from the IMF, the presence of the latter in Ukraine is still needed, as it provides a climate of confidence needed by foreign investors.
China has already provided credits to Belarus, another former Soviet country.
Family members carry the body of 16-year-old protester Ali al-Badah during the funeral procession in Sitra, south of Manama, November 19, 2011. Crowds of mourners confronted police in Bahrain on Saturday after a teenage protester was killed by a police car, residents said, heightening tensions in the Gulf state.
The Daily Star – Lebanon
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DUBAI: Bahrain is bracing for the findings of a probe into a government crackdown on protesters as tension escalates in Shiite areas and the opposition vows not to back down from demands for democratic reform.
The report due out on Wednesday, commissioned by King Hamad, will unveil the findings of Bahrain’s Independent Commission of Inquiry into alleged government misconduct during the February-March crackdown on Shiite-led protests.
Authorities say 24 people, including four policemen, were killed in a month of unrest, while the Shiite-led opposition puts the death toll at 30. Hundreds more were injured.
Anti-government protests in mainly Shiite areas on the outskirts of Manama have intensified this month, resulting in clashes with security forces that have left dozens injured and one 16-year-old boy dead.
The mass demonstrations which rocked the Sunni-ruled kingdom earlier this year were violently crushed as government forces used live ammunition and heavy-handed tactics in clashes with protesters.
The final blow to the protests, inspired by the Arab Spring, came in mid-March as Bahraini security forces, boosted by troops from Gulf nations, drove demonstrators out of Manama’s Pearl Square — the focal point of protests.
Speaking at cabinet meeting on Sunday, King Hamad warned Bahrainis to steer clear of “anything that adversely affects” their unity.
Sporadic protests since March have intensified in anticipation of the commission’s findings.
“The real question is what happens after the report,” said human rights activist Mohammed Maskati.
“The situation is already very tense. The number of protests in the last two weeks is steadily increasing, as is the number of arrests,” said Maskati who heads the Bahrain Youth Society for Human Rights.
He warned that the report should “at the very least reflect the conclusions of other international human rights organisations … Otherwise, the crisis will escalate.”
International organisations, including Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch and the UN human rights agency, have repeatedly accused the government of violating citizens’ rights, citing allegations of torture, unfair trials, excessive use of force and violent repression.
Since the protests broke out, hundreds of Shiites have been arrested, including prominent members of the opposition, medics, teachers and youth activists.
Bahrain’s opposition groups have withheld comment until after the report is released, but at a joint press conference late Sunday they reaffirmed their commitment to democratic change.
“The Bahraini people will not go home-empty handed and we will not accept the status quo,” said prominent Shiite cleric Sheikh Ali Salman, who heads Bahrain’s largest opposition group, Al-Wefaq.
“After the report is released, we will meet to plan our next steps,” said Salman.
“Our demands are clear: an elected government, a parliament with full authorities, an independent judiciary, security for all and a just electoral system,” he said.
Salam warned that there was “no way out” of the current political crisis unless the demands were met.
“The opposition will continue with its demonstrations and protests and the peaceful actions inside and outside Bahrain, and we will not back down,” he vowed.
In the 1990s, the archipelago state was also hit by a wave of Shiite-led unrest which abated after the government launched steps to convert the Gulf emirate into a constitutional monarchy.
The commission, which has interviewed thousands of opposition officials and government representatives, is composed of five lawyers, including foreign nationals, and headed by international law and human rights expert Cherif Bassiouni.
In August, the commission was forced to close down its office in Manama after it was stormed by a mob angered by media claims that the panel had cleared authorities of crimes.
The incident demonstrated the sensitivity of the report and the potential for further escalation if the findings released on Wednesday do not live up to the expectations of the opposition.
“If the report’s conclusions are weak, there is real potential for escalation,” predicted Maskati.
Read more: http://www.dailystar.com.lb/News/Middle-East/2011/Nov-21/154758-bahrain-braces-for-unveiling-of-probe-into-unrest.ashx#ixzz1eR0LueB5
(The Daily Star :: Lebanon News :: http://www.dailystar.com.lb)
By Sudhir Ahmad Afridi
LANDIKOTAL: Taking advantage of dilapidated Pak-Afghan Torkham Highway, drug addicted people has started repairing the craters at main road to collect money from the truckers.
Sajid Shinwari said that administration has nothing to do with repairing of the road while media has been throwing dust into the eyes of the local tribesmen saying that the political administration has repaired Torkham Road.
By filling the big holes with mud the roads cannot be repaired. A Subedar of Khasadar Force told that he had filled the big cavities of Torkham-Landikotal Road with mud and sprinkled water over the soil. Though Torkham Road is still dilapidated with big craters, which cause traffic accidents on daily basis.
Arshad Ali Afridi, a local resident and social activist criticizing the media report regarding the repairing and reconstruction of Torkham Road said that the entire road from Peshawar to Torkham was presenting a deserted look, which he said was totally expired.
He asked the government to allocate budget for reconstruction of the Pak-Afghan highway to facilitate the transporters and the local people. Peshawar to Landikotal distance could be traveled in more than two hours, which has become headache, he regretted. Making patches in the road is not a right solution, he pointed out, saying that the complete road was no more usable.
It is worth mentioning that every segment of society including political parties have time and again protested against dilapidated condition of Pak Afghan highway but they all failed to force the government and the concerned department to start repairing or reconstruction of this important road. Additional Political Agent Syed Ahmad Jan talking to Daily Times few days ago said that there was a shortage of funds with the government to repair this main road.
PPP MPA Salim Khursheed Khokhar sat down in front of Speaker Nisar Khuhro to protest against the PTA’s alleged ban on the words ‘Jesus Christ’. PHOTO: EXPRESS
KARACHI: If we are barred from using the words ‘Jesus Christ’ in text messages, how will we celebrate Christmas and other religious events, protested a Christian MPA on Monday.
The ruling party’s Salim Khursheed Khokhar tried to lodge his point with a sit-in protest once he was denied permission to move a resolution. “When the American priest desecrated the Holy Quran, we [the Christian community] condemned it and criticised those who used derogatory language against Prophet Muhammad (pbuh),” he said. “What about the fact that we are deprived of our religious rights and face discrimination in Pakistan.” The MPA requested the speaker to take up the resolution because if he didn’t how would Christians celebrate Christmas and other religious events.
On Monday, Pakistan’s mobile operators deferred implementing a ban on nearly 1,700 “obscene” words from text messages, saying they were seeking further clarification from the telecom authority.
In a harsh voice, Speaker Nisar Khuhro asked the MPA to settle down and gave him permission to move the resolution later. Khokhar responded by saying that the issue was an important one, so if the speaker could bend the rules for other resolutions, then why not this one. Khokhar then started to shout and threw the assembly agenda aside as he went to sit in front of the speaker’s chair in protest. “I am being deprived of my religious rights and will not move till the resolution is taken seriously,” he said. “I do not care if anyone votes for it or not.”
Sindh Law Minister Ayaz Soomro and Sindh Local Bodies Minister Agha Siraj Durrani rushed to reassure Khokhar and took him back to his seat. They said that the matter would be resolved. The speaker said that he was not opposing the resolution, but the MPA should have informed him earlier. Khokhar responded and said that he had submitted a copy of the resolution to the speaker and the law minister. Soomro said that he would contact the chairman of the PTA and discuss the issue with him.
The MPA also said that people who faced blasphemy charges were awarded capital punishment but no action was taken against those who used derogatory words for Jesus Christ and attacked the minorities. Sindh Archives Minister Rafique Engineer, Sindh Power Minister Shazia Marri, Deputy Speaker Shehla Raza and Muttahida Qaumi Movement MPA Faisal Sabzwari condemned the PTA decision.
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| BBC Scientists are trying to understand the brain functions in psychopaths. |
When Brian Dugan pleaded guilty to the rape and murder of a seven year old girl, Jeanine Nicaro, many thought the guy was the spitting image of a brutal serial murderer.Although she was killed in 1983, Dugan confessed his guilt to 2009. By then he had been repeatedly convicted for rape and murder of two people, one seven year old girl and a nurse of 27 who was also raped and killed.
If the death penalty in Illinois had been withdrawn, Dugan would have been executed. But its most extraordinary thing is that he never showed any remorse for any of their murders or crimes. Now scientists think that this lack of empathy could in fact be linked to why he committed such acts. Dr. Kent Kiehl, a neuroscientist at the University of New Mexico, United States, could scan the brains of Dugan as part of a unique project to understand whether antisocial behavior is linked to brain structure and function. ”It was hard to understand why people were interested in what he had done,” he told the BBC Dr. Kiehl, recalling the time he interviewed Dugan. ”Clinically it was something fascinating.”Psychopathy The Dr. Kiehl is considered a pioneer in the field of behavioral neuroscience. You are trying to understand the brain functions in psychopaths and use this knowledge in the development of treatments for these individuals. It is a controversial area because for thousands of years the subjects as Dugan has not been listed as sick but as evil. In popular culture term “psychopath” does not describe a diagnostic that takes compassion, but is something that inspires terror. Kiehl has a different opinion: “I tend to see psychopaths as someone who has a condition so do not use the word evil to describe them” . So what is a psychopath? ”Clinically we define it as someone who gets a high score on characteristics such as lack of empathy, guilt and remorse,” says Dr. Kiehl. ”They are very impulsive individuals usually do not plan or think before acting. They tend to get into trouble at an early age, “says the scientist. has long been known that many people in prison have symptoms of psychopathy, but so far not been able to obtain sufficient information on this disorder. The laboratory of Dr. Kiehl designed a unique portable brain scanner. It is equipped with the latest computer imaging technology but can be transported in a van and taken to high security prisons. The scientist used the device for carrying out two types of analysis in the brains of Dugan: observe the density and function . ”Brian’s Brain (Dugan) has very low density in the paralimbic system called” the BBC said the scientist. This system is the “circuit of behavior” in the brain and includes regions known as the amygdala and prefrontal cortex. Scientists have long known that these areas are associated with emotional processing.Throughout the century, has studied people with brain damage in these areas because it was found that their behavior changes suddenly and become antisocial. ”We believe these systems are not developed normally in Brian,” says Dr. Kiehl. Psychopathy appears to be linked to lack of development in these regions, which could be genetically determined. The doctor held scanners Kiehl time real Dugan’s brain to see his reaction to disturbing images, like the face of suffering people. The aim was to test the functioning of your brain. The scans showed very little activity in the paralimbic system for Dugan during the processing of emotions. ” out of these sessions Brian scanning and say ‘wow I had a hard time trying to understand what you wanted me to do,’ “recalls Kiehl. ”And he had more errors on the test than other individuals.” emotional capacity According to researcher this proves that psychopaths lack the emotional capacity, in the same way that other people lack the intellectual capacity. And he says he has obtained similar results in a high number of subjects in prisons throughout the United States. Dugan, says the researcher, simply does not have a concept of the damage it has caused. ”When he talks about his crimes is as if you are wondering what you ate for breakfast,” says Dr. Kiehl. He adds that in some sense not surprising that someone so different brain and also be seen as antisocial in scanners so different from other brains. ”But only now that we have been able to see such drastic differences in these brains, people are starting to pay attention,” adds the scientist. ”And this has a powerful impact on the legal system. “ The scientist hopes her work will lead to changes in the sentences of violent psychopaths like Brian Dugan. What I argue is that the understanding of psychopathy may lead us to distitnos types of sentences, in particular to end the death penalty for these individuals. ”My hope is that neuroscience will help the legal system to understand that these individuals have a disease that is treatable,” says Kiehl. And these treatments should begin at key moments of life. ”Brian began to suffer from their earliest years of life,” says neuroscientist. ”committing acts such classics as lighting fires, damage to animals, hurting their brothers and sisters.” Although it was referred to specialist services in childhood they lacked an understanding of their disorder. In fact, children who have symptoms related to psychopathy often respond poorly to the type of technique used with children who misbehave. Because of their lack of emotional capacity, when teachers try to make them feel sorry it’s only the condfunde more and more likely to hurt more people. The intention now is to develop specific diagnoses for these children and establish programs and treatments specifically targeting your condition. In essence, teach these children laboriously have reactions in the other human beings arise automatically.
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Uzbekistan Airways, the national carrier of Uzbekistan, has plans to increase its current flight frequency to Delhi from five flights a week to daily operations and add more destinations in India in the coming months. According to official sources, the airline is awaiting approvals from the regulatory authorities and will increase flight frequency on the Delhi – Tashkent route once the approvals are received. “We are hopeful that we will be able to commence daily operations on the Delhi -Tashkent route in a couple of months’ time,” the official said.
Besides adding frequencies on Delhi-Tashkent route, the airline is also looking at launching operations from Mumbai and Chennai as well. When asked about the flight frequencies the airline is looking to introduce in these two destinations, the official said that they will be launching twice-weekly flights from these destinations. “Although we currently do not have any flights from these destinations, we have our offices in all these cities. We get a lot of passengers from South India through our interline local airline partners and so, after discussing with our travel partners, we have decided to expand our operations to these two cities as well,” he said. The airline is hopeful of commencing operations on these two routes by April or May, 2012. Uzbekistan Airways currently connects Delhi and Amritsar to Tashkent. They have four weekly flights from Amritsar to Tashkent. “While we generally operate a 194-seater Airbus on the Delhi –Tashkent route, we bring in 264-seater Boeing when there is demand. For Amritsar, we fly a brand new Airbus 320, with 150 seats,” the official said. |
[Is it so important to Russian leaders that they appear outraged at the Tajik court decision that they alienate the Tajik government? I can't believe that Russian chess masters are allowing Obama to outplay them in Tajikistan. He already has Uzbekistan in his pocket, with Turkmenistan maintaining its usual position of "neutrality" (even though it remains anti-Russian), Kyrgyzstan keeps wobbling between the US and Russia, and Kazakhstan is practically allied with the West. Putin appears to be losing the battle to preserve the Russian foothold in the Stans, without ever firing a shot. The aircraft/pilot episode is an American/Afghan set-up. Instead of persecuting the Emomali Rahmon govt., Putin/Medvedev should be downplaying the incident and resort to some real underhanded diplomacy like the Americans do, in order to find-out Rahmon's reasons for turning towards the Americans, especially after renewing the lease for the 201st Motorized Rifle Division.]
Russian pilot Vladimir Sadovnichy and his Estonian co-pilot were sentenced to eight and a half years in prison in Tajikistan for smuggling and border violations on November 8. Moscow said the charges were “politically motivated.”
MOSCOW, November 21 (RIA Novosti)
Russia threatened on Monday to slap sanctions on vegetable imports from Tajikistan, a move that comes shortly after the jailing of a Russian pilot in the Central Asian republic.
Russian pilot Vladimir Sadovnichy and another pilot, an Estonian national, were sentenced to eight and a half years in prison in Tajikistan for smuggling and border violations on November 8. Moscow said the charges were “politically motivated.”
Russia’s Federal Service for Veterinary and Phytosanitary Monitoring, Rosselkhoznadzor, said it may impose temporary restrictions on vegetable imports from Tajikistan in connection with what it called “violations” of hygiene regulations.
In a much publicized move, Russia has also deported at least 300 Tajik migrant workers following the jailing. President Dmitry Medvedev said then the expulsion of the Tajik migrant workers had nothing to do with the pilot case. He also said that illegal migrants would be deported regularly from now on.
South China Sea matters not a whit to Philippines, U.S. |
| English.news.cn |
By Li Hongmei
The Philippines has been playing an active hand in roiling the South China Sea of late. It has not only renamed some water areas as “West Philippine Sea,”: following its President Aquino’s lead, the Philippine weather bureau has adopted the name “West Philippine Sea” to refer to waters of the South China Sea in its official advisories, and U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton also followed suit addressing the waters as “West Philippine Sea.” The Philippines even sent officials to claim sovereignty on a disputed island and called on the ASEAN countries to form a “united front” against China.
The cabinet members of the Philippines have also fiercely lashed out against China, stressing that the U.S.-Philippine military cooperation “delivers a strong warning signal to China.”
Philippine’s constant provocations are mostly “political stunt”, far form a real bite; but many people here in China advise that the country should take fitting measures to pay the Philippines back, as they believe it is necessary to prevent another country taking a leaf out of the Philippines’ book against China.
As to some of the foul-mouthed Philippine officials, their performance has thus far been taken as an echo posture to Washington’s “Return to Asia” strategy.
But people cannot help but wonder how much the South China Sea issue virtually means to theU.S., and what is the true significance of the Philippines’ high-pitched claims over the sea.
First, it is an unwise move if it insists on playing a meddling hand in the South China Sea disputes. Some analysts take it risky that Washington would stake its prestige on a remote and strategically third-rate ally when it provokes a clash with a neighboring far stronger nation, whom the U.S. has been increasingly counting on to recover its dislocated economy, combat terrorism and shared challenges, and deal with a host of global problems.
A couple of months ago, Prof. Lyle Goldstein painted a doleful picture in the Foreign Policy magazine. He said if U.S. leaders heed his advice, they should shed most commitments in Southeast Asia, which he portrays as a region of trivial importance situated adjacent to an increasingly powerful China. He maintained that “Southeast Asia matters not a whit in the global balance of power.”
When tense maritime stand-offs occur in the heated region, it is wise for the U.S. to avoid getting embroiled in the intricate disputes poisoning regional politics, in lieu of what it is currently doing: sowing discord or acting as an agitator in the flare-up. Otherwise, Washington risks a new diplomatic setback for the so-called unconceivable “gains.”
Meanwhile, with the progress of the China-ASEAN free trade zone, which was established in 2010, as well as policy initiatives carried out in both countries, China and the Philippines are embracing new opportunities for cooperation. In 2010 alone, China-Philippines trade amounted to 27.7 billion dollars, making China the third largest trade partner of the Philippines. Both are settled to work to double their trade volume to hit 60 billion dollars in the coming five years.
Hence, it is equally of no wit to play up the South China Sea issue in the world’s only economically dynamic region and at such a critical juncture.
The Philippines will never be so naive that it would sacrifice its vested interests for an intangible and unreal promise from Washington to counterbalance China.
By M K Bhadrakumar
Afghan President Hamid Karzai has seriously dented the credibility of one of the noblest institutions of his country’s history and culture. A large number of Afghans today would hope that the institution of the loya jirga (grand tribal assembly) survives Karzai’s presidency.
There are very few Afghan institutions remaining after the systematic vandalization of society and its native traditions through the past three decades of civil war, foreign interference and blood-soaked chaos.
Loya jirgas are called rarely – fewer than 20 have been held in the past 300 years of Afghan history. And they were probably never called to sanctify the bonding of an Afghan ruler with a foreign power. Karzai has violated a sacrosanct tradition. There could be a price to pay.
The 2,300-strong four-day jirga that concluded in Kabul on Saturday was packed with “tribal leaders and other community leaders” whom Karzai nominated. According to the New York Times:
From the beginning, the jirga was called into question by both its timing – it seemed to undercut an active session of parliament – and its composition, in which about 90% of the delegates were handpicked by Mr Karzai or his aides.
Important Afghan figures, including many members of parliament, prominent civic leaders and political opposition, responded by boycotting the meeting. That undermined the traditional weight that jirgas are given in Afghan society.
Karzai’s nominees dutifully handed to him their approval for his decision to ink a strategic partnership with the United States that allows American military bases after most foreign troops leave in 2014. The jirga resolution noted that the strategic partnership would be for 10 years and could be extended if necessary.
Put plainly, Karzai can now claim he has a mandate from the Afghan nation even if parliament were to refuse to ratify the Afghan-US strategic pact.
More questions than answers
Karzai promptly declared, “I agree with your decisions and the resolution read out today has been a comprehensive decision that will be represented and implemented.”
The funny side is that Karzai did not even share with the jirga the terms of the agreement, since Washington insisted it might not be a good idea to publicize them. Indeed, this political theater was not entirely Karzai’s brainwave.
Washington wanted Karzai to secure a mandate from a loya jirgabefore the pact is inked at the Bonn Conference II on December 5 to which 90 countries have been invited.
The US expectation is that the loya jirga’s ”mandate” and the presence of the “international community” at Bonn will give the strategic pact a degree of legitimacy that irate regional powers – Russia, Iran and Pakistan, in particular – may find difficult to question.
Washington is also sensing (rightly so) that Afghan opinion would militate against foreign occupation. Significantly, the recently formed National Front, which includes heavyweights like former vice president Ahmad Zia Massoud (brother of the late Ahmad Shah Massoud), Jumbish leader Abdur Rashid Dostum and Hezb-e-Wahdat chief Muhammad Mohaqiq with a power base among the Tajiks, Uzbek and Hazara communities, called Karzai’s move to convene a loya jirga ”unconstitutional” and boycotted it.
The administration of US President Barack Obama burnt its fingers in Iraq where Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki wouldn’t or couldn’t steamroll public opinion into accepting an extended US presence after formal withdrawal at the end of this year.
Again, regional opposition to the US military bases is much stronger with regard to Afghanistan. Tehran has been a trenchant critic of Karzai’s proposed pact. Pakistan has made no bones that it disfavors US military bases in Afghanistan.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov questioned American intentions in a lengthy statement in Moscow on Thursday. He seemed to have had the ongoing jirga in mind:
It is not yet clear how the planned 2014 withdrawal from Afghanistan, determined, we are told, by the completion of the anti-terrorist operation there, correlates with the plans to set up large US military bases in the country.
We put these questions to our American partners, and discussed them with the leadership of Afghanistan. So far there are more questions than answers – especially with the information that US colleagues want to expand their military presence in Central Asian countries.
Since the beginning of the operation against al-Qaeda and the Taliban, we have been constantly told that the foreign presence in Afghanistan and the use of the transit facilities in Central Asia are only required to remove the specific terrorist threat, which manifested itself on September 11, 2001, and thatno long-term geopolitical calculation is hidden behind this. We will assume that the principles referred to in the beginning of the operation must be respected in full. (Emphasis added.)
With the Taliban repeatedly and categorically stating their opposition to Karzai’s pact with Washington and influential sections of Afghan (non-Taliban) opinion and key regional powers questioning the move, what does the Afghan president hope to achieve?
In a nutshell, he hopes to secure American consent to his continuing in power in the period beyond 2014. But Karzai will find the going very tough now that his peace and reconciliation process with the Taliban has run aground.
His equations with the Pakistani leadership continue to deteriorate. Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar last week publicly aired annoyance with the Karzai government. The recent Turkish move to mediate apparently met with no success. Karzai had a frosty meeting last week with Pakistan Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani on the sidelines of a regional South Asian summit in Male.
Once a lion, ever a lion
To be sure, the most critical factor on the chessboard is that Pakistan views the Bonn Conference with a singular lack of enthusiasm. Without Pakistan’s whole-hearted support, the Bonn process won’t have much meaning. German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle visited Islamabad last week and met army chief General Ashfaq Kiani.
However, an all-consuming political crisis is threatening to unfold in Pakistan – stemming from disclosures that a few months ago the civilian government of President Asif Ali Zardari sought Washington’s help to crack down on the military leadership.
These are early days, but two things are becoming apparent. One, the political crisis is bound to strengthen the Pakistani military vis-a-vis a civilian government that is perceived to be selling out to the US.
Two, Washington figures at the epicenter of the ensuing civil-military rift in Pakistan and this is bound to weaken the US’s capacity to influence the leadership in Islamabad in the near term.
The high probability is that the Pakistani leadership will not budge from its position as regards the Afghan settlement. The US can have its security pact with Karzai, but it means nothing if the peace process can’t get underway. The more time passes, the more untenable Karzai’s position would become.
Karzai would know that Washington has a poor opinion of him and that there is no dearth of Afghan politicians who could fill his shoes in 2014 and equally sub-serve American interests.
Washington couldn’t have felt comfortable with Karzai’s “fiery” speech at the loya jirga on Wednesday when he posed as a staunch nationalist who is at loggerheads with the Americans. For establishing his nationalistic credentials, Karzai said words that have since become the butt of jokes in the Kabul bazaar:
Even if old, sick and feeble, a lion is still a lion. Other animals in the jungle are afraid of even a sick lion and stay away from him. We are lions, the United States should treat us as lions, and we want nothing less than that. We therefore are prepared to enter into a strategic agreement between a lion and America.
A lion hates a stranger entering his home; a lion dislikes a stranger trespassing its space, a lion does not want his offspring taken away at night. The lion does not allow parallel structures to operate, the lion is the king of his territory and he governs his own territory. The lion has nothing to do with others in the jungle.
Then he added:
They [US presence] bring us money; train our soldiers and police, and provide security for the home of the lion. The lion does not have leisure time to do all these things. They should protect his surroundings but should not touch the lion’s home. They should protect the four boundaries of the jungle.
Karzai seemed acutely self-conscious that the Afghan people would not take kindly to a ruler who is so obviously the puppet of a foreign power. Shuja Shah was put on the throne by the British in 1839 out of sheer gratitude for concluding Kabul’s first and only “strategic pact” with an imperial power, but could not remain in power when the British left.
The saving grace is, perhaps, that Karzai is intuitive. He chose to make the short trip from his presidential palace to the venue of thejirga by helicopter. On the conclusion of the meeting on Saturday, when he returned home, two additional helicopters were also deployed as decoys.
Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar was a career diplomat in the Indian Foreign Service. His assignments included the Soviet Union, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Germany, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Uzbekistan, Kuwait and Turkey.
The agency’s crucial post in Beirut is affected after the arrest of several informants this year, sources say.
 Hezbollah leader Sheik Hassan Nasrallah speaks via a video link Friday in Beirut’s southern suburbs. He announced in June that three members had been arrested as spies. (Bilal Hussein / Associated Press) |
The CIA was forced to curtail its spying in Lebanon, where U.S. operatives and their agents collect crucial intelligence on Syria, terrorist groups and other targets, after the arrests of several CIA informants inBeirut this year, according to U.S. officials and other sources.
“Beirut station is out of business,” a source said, using the CIA term for its post there. The same source, who declined to be identified while speaking about a classified matter, alleged that up to a dozen CIA informants have been compromised, but U.S. officials disputed that figure.
U.S. officials acknowledged that some CIA operations were suspended in Beirut last summer. It’s unclear whether full operations have resumed. Beirut is considered a key watching post for turmoil in the Middle East.
Senior CIA officials have briefed congressional staffers about the breach, and Rep. Mike Rogers (R-Mich.), who chairs the House Intelligence Committee, visited Beirut recently to interview CIA officers. Committee staff members want to determine whether CIA operatives used sloppy practices that revealed sensitive sources and methods.
Much in the case remains unclear, including the extent of the damage and whether negligence by CIA managers led to the loss of the Lebanese agents.
According to the source, CIA case officers met a series of Lebanese informants at a local Pizza Hut, allowing Hezbollah and Lebanese authorities to identify who was helping the CIA. U.S. officials strongly disputed that agents were compromised at a Pizza Hut.
U.S. officials also denied the source’s allegation that the former CIA station chief dismissed an email warning that some of his Lebanese agents could be identified because they used cellphones to call only their CIA handlers and no one else.
Hezbollah, an Iranian-backed militant group that the U.S. considers a terrorist organization, and Lebanon’s internal security service have used software to analyze cellphone calling and location records to help them identify a network of alleged Israeli spies since 2007, according to several people familiar with the case. Dozens of people were arrested.
In 2010, U.S. counterintelligence officials determined that the CIA’s Lebanese agents could be traced the same way, the source said. But the station chief allegedly ignored the warning. “He said, ‘The Lebanese are our friends. They wouldn’t do that to us,’ ” the source said.
The Times is withholding the former station’s chief’s name because he remains undercover. He now has a supervisory role at CIA headquarters in operations targeting Hezbollah. The CIA declined to make him available for comment.
“Espionage has always been a complex business,” said a U.S. official, who declined to be identified in discussing the Lebanon case. “Collecting sensitive information on adversaries — who are aggressively trying to uncover spies in their midst — will always be fraught with risk.”
Hezbollah is “an extremely complicated enemy,” the official added. “It’s a determined terrorist group, a power political player, a mighty military and an accomplished intelligence organization — formidable and ruthless. No one underestimates its capabilities.”
In June, Hezbollah’s leader, Sheik Hassan Nasrallah, announced the arrest of three of its members. He said two were “affiliated with the CIA, and one more might be affiliated with either the CIA, European intelligence or Mossad,” Israel’s foreign intelligence service.
Nasrallah did not disclose their names, explaining that he wanted to protect their families, “whom I know personally.” He said that CIA officers, working under diplomatic cover at the U.S. Embassy, had recruited them in early 2011.
The U.S. Embassy dismissed the charge. “These are the same kind of empty allegations that we have heard repeatedly from Hezbollah,” it said in a statement.
Lebanon’s security service was able to isolate the CIA informants by analyzing cellphone company records that showed the numbers called, duration of each call and location of the phone at the time of the call, the source said.
Using billing and cell tower records for hundreds of thousands of phone numbers, software can isolate cellphones used near an embassy, or used only once, or only on quick calls. The process quickly narrows down a small group of phones that a security service can monitor.
In 2005, an Italian prosecutor used cellphone calling and location records to help identify 26 Americans who he said took part in a 2003 abduction of a Muslim cleric on a street in Milan. A judge later convicted 23 Americans, including the CIA’s former Milan base chief, in absentia for their role in the “extraordinary rendition” case.
Washington has given Lebanon’s government more than $1 billion in various forms of aid since 2006 and has proposed an additional $236 million in aid this fiscal year.
The Obama administration has struggled with the relationship since 2008, when Hezbollah fighters seized control of parts of Beirut. That resulted in an Arab-brokered peace deal that gave Hezbollah a major role in Lebanon’s government.
The group’s political arm now has 16 of the 30 seats in the Cabinet of Lebanon’s prime minister, Najib Mikati. Hezbollah is also active in Lebanon’s security and intelligence services.
Democracy In Egypt, posted with vodpod
Cairo (CNN) – The number of people wounded in three days of clashes in Egypt has reached 1,700, a health ministry spokesman said Monday.
In addition, 20 people have died, including at least 10 on Sunday in confrontations between protesters and security forces in Cairo.
Doctors at Cairo’s Tahrir Square said injuries include gunshot wounds, excessive tear gas inhalations and beatings to the head.
“I have received many people suffering of convulsions,” said Tarek Salama, a medic in a makeshift hospital in Tahrir Square. “Lots of gunshot wounds from rubber and bird shots. And I have seen two cases who have been hit with actual live bullets.”
Tahrir Square — once a center of euphoria following the ouster of longtime President Hosni Mubarak in February — continues to be a major flashpoint for the unrest.
“People here feel that they have been cheated and that they have moved from an autocracy to a military dictatorship,” protester Mosa’ab Elshamy said. “So they are back to the square — back to square one — to ask for their rights once again.”
Egypt’s parliamentary elections are set to take place November 28. But demonstrators are upset about a proposed constitutional principle that would shield the military’s budget from scrutiny by civilian powers. They worry that the military would be shaped as a state within a state.
Mohamed Higazi, a spokesman for the prime minister’s office, said the government will continue dialogue on reaching a constitution that ensures the election of a civilian government.
The military said it wants to transfer power to a civilian parliament and president, but many citizens are dissatisfied with the pace of the transition and the resolve of the military rulers.
Some on the streets expressed little confidence in the current government, saying there had been little progress since Mubarak’s ouster.
“Nothing has changed,” said Zahra, one protester. “We’ve gone backwards. The military council is garbage. Mubarak is still alive and well, and the people are dying.”
Fighting erupted Saturday when police worked to clear Tahrir of people who remained after massive protests on Friday. Thousands have denounced a plan for a constitution that would protect the military from public oversight.
Protesters threw Molotov cocktails and rocks and torched a police van. Scuffles broke out on side streets and clouds of smoke rose from burned tires.
Clashes between protesters and police also reportedly broke out in the cities of Suez and Alexandria.
Hisham Qasim, a publisher and human rights activist, said that Egypt can’t afford anything — including another revolt — that could further hamper its already struggling economy. The nation’s once thriving tourism industry continues to struggle, while unemployment remains high.
“The poverty belt is now the ticking time bomb in Egypt,” Qasim said. “It threatens that what we went through (earlier this year) could be repeated. … I don’t think we’ll survive a second uprising in the span of 10 years.”
CNN’s Ben Wedeman and Saad Abedine and journalist Ian Lee contributed to this report
In what many say was a strategic blunder, New Delhi later closed down the hospital at the Farkhor Airbase, losing its strategic presence so close to Afghanistan. The move was all the more baffling given the chaos and confusion in Afghanistan and jockeying by various foreign powers in the post-9/11 world.
The government, sources said, has now decided to go back to Tajikistan and open a military hospital. The original proposal to revive its presence in Tajikistan was taken a year back, but the defence ministry sat on it. With prodding from the security establishment, sources said efforts are now underway to open a field hospital before winter sets in. At a high level meeting a few days ago, the government decided to speed up the plan, a senior source said.
Sources said an Army team has already completed reconnaissance in Tajikistan and has identified a location outside Dushanbe, the capital city. Army has also identified personnel from its medical corps to set up a 20-bed field hospital. “They are ready to leave on a short notice,” the source said.
“The proposal (to open hospital) was first mooted when the Army chief (Gen V K Singh) visited Tajikistan last year. But the entire proposal has been pending with the MoD for a year now,” a senior source in the security establishment told TOI. The hospital would cater to both civilians and Tajik military, he said. The Tajik Army has for long been engaged in fighting a bloody insurgency. “So, our hospital would be of great assistance to the Tajik Army,” the source said.
Meanwhile, the security establishment is also witnessing discussions about further intensifying India’s security engagement with Tajikistan, which shares a 1,400-km border with Afghanistan. A strong section in the security establishment would like to extend the runway at Farkhor airbase and stage air force assets there.
India has never deployed its air force assets outside its territory, except in UN operations and as part of Indian Peace Keeping Force operations in Sri Lanka in the late 80s. Maintenance of air assets abroad is a logistically complex issue needing huge number of technicians and regular spare-parts supply. So the suggestion is to base either Russian-made helicopters or Russian fighters there and then invite the Russians to maintain them. However, the air force for now is reluctant to move its assets so far out, sources said.
The decision to open a military field hospital and discussions to base air assets in Tajikistan comes even as the deadline for US withdrawal from Afghanistan draws closer. By this year-end, US would withdraw 10,000 troops and by 2014 they would have completed the withdrawal. The US troop withdrawal could be followed by further chaos in Afghanistan and a desperate scramble by Pakistan to establish strategic depth in the country. In such a tense atmosphere, presence in Tajikistan would give a firmer presence for India in the strategically crucial region, and a better view of Afghanistan, sources said.
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