Hezbollah escalates rhetoric, hints at possible Syria intervention

In his speech, Nasrallah said the Syrian opposition fighting pro-Assad forces will not be able to topple the Syrian president militarily. (Al Arabiya)

The chief of Lebanese Shiite Muslim party Hezbollah, a close Damascus ally, said on Tuesday that Syria's friends would not let the embattled regime of President Bashar al-Assad fall.

"Syria has true friends in the region who will not allow Syria to fall into the hands of the United States, Israel and 'takfiri' groups," Hassan Nasrallah said, referring to Sunni Muslims fighting to overthrow Assad.

Reports have emerged that Hezbollah fighters were fighting with Assad forces against rebels in Shiite villages near the Lebanon border. However, Nasrallah's Tuesday comments were the strongest indication yet that his group was ready to get more substantially involved to rescue Assad's government.

In his speech, Nasrallah said the Syrian opposition fighting pro-Assad forces will not be able to topple the Syrian president militarily, adding that dialogue was their only way out.

"The Syrian opposition is the one refusing dialogue. Whoever wants to resolve the Syrian crisis, a political solution is the only way," he said.

Meanwhile, Nasrallah also said that armed rebel groups battling Assad impose a "threat" to Lebanese residents living near border towns.

"A large number of [rebels] were preparing to capture villages inhabited by Lebanese," so it was "normal to offer every possible and necessary aid to help the Syrian army, popular committees (pro-government militia) and the Lebanese," Nasrallah said.

"The Lebanese state is incapable of protecting Lebanese towns near the Syrian border."

"Defending them doesn't need a decision from anyone. We won't leave town residents without any help."

Accusations against Hezbollah

Hezbollah denies it has sent guerrillas to fight alongside Assad's forces inside Syria, but has held regular funerals for fighters it said were carrying out "jihadi duties." It says any Hezbollah fighters involved are local Shiite residents of Lebanese villages inside Syria, defending their territory.

Nasrallah said that his fighters had a duty to protect the holy Shiite shrine of Sayida Zeinab in southern Damascus.

"If the shrine is destroyed, things will get out of control," Nasrallah said, citing the 2006 bombing of the Shiite al-Askari shrine in the Iraqi city of Samarra.

Nasrallah also addressed during his Tuesday speech accusations that Iranian forces were taking part in the Syrian clashes, which have killed at least 70,000 people, according to the United Nations.

"Everyone knows there are no Iranian forces in Syria but only experts," the Hezbollah chief said.

"What do you imagine would happen in the future if things deteriorate in a way that requires the intervention of the forces of resistance in this battle?"

Hezbollah has an arsenal that is the most powerful military force in Lebanon, stronger than the national army. Its growing involvement in the Syrian civil war is already raising tensions inside the divided country and has drawn threats from enraged Syrian rebels and militants.

A parliamentarian from Lebanon's Future bloc criticized Nasrallah's statements and interference in the Syrian conflict.

"Nasrallah is talking as if he was Bashar al-Assad's chief-of-staff," Mouin al-Merhebi told Al Arabiya news channel. "No one tasked Nasrallah with defending the towns near the border."

"If [Nasrallah] is talking about being humanitarian, then he should fight against Assad who kills hundreds [of civilians] every day."

"Bashar al-Assad is a criminal and a killer."

01 May, 2013

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Source: http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2013/05/01/Hezbollah-escalates-rhetoric-hints-at-possible-Syria-intervention.html
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Kuwait says owed $11.2 billion in Iraq war reparations

Kuwait has received $2.43 billion in war reparations from Iraq since the start of the year and is still owed another $11.2 billion, a senior official in the Guly emirate said on Tuesday.

"Kuwait received $1.3 billion in January and $1.13 billion on April 25," the official KUNA news agency cited Compensation Claims Commission chief Khaled al-Mudhaf as saying.

Speaking before the Geneva-based U.N. Compensation Commission, Mudhaf called on Baghdad to continue to deposit five percent of its oil revenues into the fund to ensure regular payments.

Kuwait has so far received about $30 billion in war reparations out of about $41 billion decided by the U.N. compensation body established after Iraqi troops were driven out of Kuwait in 1991 following a seven-month occupation.

01 May, 2013

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Source: http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2013/04/30/Kuwait-says-owed-11-2-billion-in-Iraq-war-reparations-.html
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Six Tunisian soldiers wounded in ‘terrorist’ hunt

Tunisian protesters stand next to burning tires set on fire to block a road in the center of Kasserine on April 30, 2013 during a protest in support of security forces and to demand better equipment for the military. (AFP)

Land mines wounded six soldiers and police in western Tunisia on Tuesday as security forces continued a search for "terrorists" that has already caused casualties, the interior ministry said.

Two men were seriously wounded by Tuesday's explosions, the ministry said without elaborating, a day after a soldier and a member of the national guard each lost a leg in similar blasts and another was seriously hurt in the eyes.

The explosions occurred during a search operation in the inaccessible Mount Chaambi region, where the security forces have carried out numerous sweeps since last December when a policeman was killed in clashes with gunmen.

The government said Monday the security forces were searching for a group of "terrorists," but has refused to give further details on the operation. A heavy security presence has been deployed in the region.

Prime Minister Ali Larayedh told reporters Tuesday he was determined to defeat the terrorist threat facing Tunisia, after a government meeting about the ongoing operations in the country's west.

"Terrorism sows death and has no future, it will not triumph. What will triumph is the will of the people, life, security and stability," he said.

The national guard, or auxiliary police, staged a demonstration in the regional capital Kasserine with the support of residents, demanding better equipment to detect land mines and protect themselves, an AFP journalist reported.

Other protesters gathered in the city center and burnt tires.

Security sources contacted by AFP said Tunisian forces were searching for a small armed group hiding in the mountainous region which it has mined with homemade bombs, according to preliminary reports.

Since the revolution in January 2011 that ousted veteran strongman Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, Tunisia has witnessed a wave of sometimes deadly unrest blamed by the authorities on hardline Islamists, who were repressed under the former president.

Algeria, Libya and Tunisia agreed in January to strengthen cooperation to secure their long and porous common borders, where arms trafficking is common.
 

01 May, 2013

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Source: http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2013/04/30/Six-Tunisian-soldiers-wounded-in-terrorist-hunt-.html
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Obama vows new bid to shut Guantanamo ‘no man’s land’

Obama's tough words were the most extensive the president has delivered on Guantanamo for months. (AFP)

President Barack Obama vowed Tuesday to renew a push to close the U.S. military prison in Guantanamo Bay, amid a growing hunger strike by inmates at the controversial jail.

Calling the prison a legal "no man's land," Obama told a White House news conference he did not want any inmates to die and urged Congress to help him find a long-term solution that would allow for prosecuting terror suspects while shuttering Guantanamo.

"I continue to believe we have to close Guantanamo. I think it is critical for us to understand that Guantanamo is not necessary to keep America safe.

"It is expensive. It is inefficient. It hurts us in terms of our international standing. It lessens cooperation with our allies on counterterrorism efforts. It is a recruiting tool for extremists.

"It needs to be closed," he said.

His tough words were the most extensive the president has delivered on Guantanamo for months and reflected his frustration with Congress, which he blamed for blocking his efforts to shut the jail during his first term.

A spreading hunger strike among inmates, who are protesting their indefinite detention without charges or trials, has put Guantanamo back in the headlines and placed Obama in a difficult position.

The U.S. president said it was "not a surprise to me" that there were "problems" at Guantanamo.

Out of 166 inmates held at the prison at the remote U.S. naval base in southeastern Cuba, 100 are on hunger strike, according to the latest tally from military officers. And of those, 21 detainees are being fed through nasal tubes.

"I don't want these individuals to die.

"Obviously, the Pentagon is trying to manage the situation as best as they can, but I think all of us should reflect on why exactly are we doing this," he said.

Obama has long argued for prosecuting enemy combatants in civilian courts and transferring those cleared of wrongdoing to their home countries.

As a candidate in 2008, Obama pledged to close the jail and announced plans to close Guantanamo immediately after entering office in 2009.

But a majority of lawmakers, particularly Republicans, have insisted the jail should stay open, that the detainees are too dangerous to hold on the U.S. mainland and that the suspects should only be tried before military tribunals.

Obama said he would try again to persuade Congress to find a way to close the Guantanamo prison, which was set up by his predecessor, George W. Bush, to hold those captured in Afghanistan and elsewhere after the attacks of September 11, 2001.

"I'm going to reengage with Congress to try to make the case that this is not something that's in the best interest of the American people. And it is not sustainable."

Obama warned the situation would only get worse and said it made no sense to hold more than 100 people in a "no man's land" indefinitely -- even after the withdrawal of US forces from Iraq and soon in Afghanistan.

It is "contrary to who we are and our interests and it needs to stop," Obama said, adding: "It is a hard case to make."

Rights groups, which have long branded the prison as a legal "black hole," welcomed Obama's remarks.

"The writing is on the wall. It's time for the failed Guantanamo experiment to end and for our nation to return to the values that have kept us strong," Daphne Eviatar of Human Rights First said in a statement.

01 May, 2013

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Source: http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/world/2013/04/30/Obama-vows-new-bid-to-shut-Guantanamo-no-man-s-land-.html
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Syrian air strike on Turkish border kills at least five

Turkish soldiers stand guard at the border gate Cilvegozu in Reyhanly near Hatay province on July 21, 2012. (AFP)

A Syrian air strike on a headquarters of a rebel brigade along the Turkish border killed at least five people and wounded dozens more on Tuesday, opposition activists said.

The attack targeted buildings belonging to the Ahrar al-Sham, a Salafist Islamist rebel unit fighting to topple Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, the activists said. A Turkish aid worker said the strike also hit a warehouse used by aid groups.

"The target appears to be Ahrar al-Sham but most of the fighting brigades have presence at and around the crossing and it is impossible to get them without harming civilians," said Mohammad, an activist at the crossing, who gave only his first name.

"This is the closest air strike we have seen to the border. The crossing had been seen as a safe haven before," he said.

Another activist at Bab al-Hawa said people waiting to cross were among those hit.

He added that at least 15 wounded were taken to hospital near the crossing on the Syrian side and among the dead were a one-and-a-half-year-old child and two teenage girls. He said other casualties, many of them in critical condition, were taken to the Turkish towns of Reyhanli and Antakya.
 

01 May, 2013

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Source: http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2013/04/30/Syrian-air-strike-on-Turkish-border-kills-at-least-five-.html
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Jordan warns U.N. of ‘crushing weight’ of Syria refugees

Jordan warns U.N. of 'crushing weight' of Syria refugees

Syrian refugees watch the convoy of Oxfam chief executive Mark Goldring as he visits Al Zaatri refugee camp in the Jordanian city of Mafraq, near the border with Syria, April 30, 2013. (Reuters)

Jordan on Tuesday warned the U.N. Security Council that the growing exodus of Syrian refugees was a threat to its stability and the council is now considering a visit to the camps.

Jordan faces a "crushing weight" if the refugee numbers, already over 500,000, keep growing at the current rate, said the ambassador, Prince Zeid al-Hussein, after a private meeting with Security Council envoys.

Zeid said international help had been "insufficient" and that "from the perspective of the Jordanian government unless the support is forthcoming then we consider this to be a threat to our future stability."

Up to 2,000 Syrians are crossing the border each night and on Sunday 4,000 had fled the two-year-old conflict into Jordan, the ambassador said.

The United Nations has predicted that there could be 1.2 million refugees in Jordan by the end of the year -- equivalent to a fifth of the kingdom's population.

The U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees says there are now more than 1.4 million Syrians in Lebanon, Turkey and Jordan and that the figure increases by 200,000 every month.

U.N. agencies say the Syria conflict, in which more than 70,000 people have died in the past two years, is now the biggest humanitarian crisis they face.

Diplomats told AFP after the meeting that the 15-nation council, badly divided over political efforts to end the conflict, was considering a visit to Jordan after the plea.

"On the basis of what we heard from council members we feel that there is some support for the idea. The decision will of course revert back to the council," Zeid said.

The envoy said that the refugee exodus from Syria now needs to be treated by the U.N. as a separate crisis from the worsening civil war and that international support so far was "insufficient."

"It leaves us very worried that we may not be able to cope if these numbers continue to increase almost, exponentially, in the next few months."

Jordan has committed not to close its borders, but the ambassador said "we would be under a crushing weight."

The country is already implementing an International Monetary Fund program and Zeid said "we would be placed in an impossible situation unless we have some assistance, or greater assistance from the international community."
 

01 May, 2013

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Source: http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2013/04/30/Jordan-warns-U-N-of-crushing-weight-of-Syria-refugees.html
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Bashir pardons Sudan security agents over coup, media says

Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir pardons six security service agents jailed over a coup attempt last year. (AFP)

President Omar al-Bashir has pardoned six members of Sudan's powerful security service just days after they were jailed over a coup attempt last year, state-linked media said on Tuesday.

Several army officers convicted this month for the same plot have also been released under a presidential pardon.

The National Intelligence and Security Service (NISS) members received similar treatment "according to a request of amnesty they presented to the presidency," said the Sudanese Media Center, which is close to the security apparatus.

Analysts say the case reflects a political struggle within the 24-year government of Bashir, who himself took power in a coup.

Officials have never revealed more than vague details about the plot that analysts said was linked to hardcore Islamist officers who had once firmly backed the regime.

NISS said in a statement last Thursday that a special court convicted the security agents for various prison terms up to eight years.

They had "participated in the plot" last November, it said.

01 May, 2013

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Source: http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/africa/2013/04/30/Bashir-pardons-Sudan-security-agents-over-coup-media-says.html
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Jordanian kills sister to ‘cleanse family honor’

Murder is punishable by death in Jordan, but in "honor killings" courts can commute or reduce sentences, particularly if the victim's family asks for leniency.(Photo courtesy mid-day.com)

A Jordanian has confessed to slitting his sister's throat and stabbing her 20 times in the face and chest because she was rarely home, apparently "to cleanse the family honor," police said Tuesday.

"People last night found the body of a girl in her twenties. She had been stabbed 20 times in face and chest before she had her throat slit," a police spokesman said.

"Police arrested her brother, who confessed to committing the crime because his sister spent so little time at the family home. His confession indicates that he sought to cleanse the family honor."

On April 15, police said they found the burned body of a pregnant woman whose throat had been slit and belly cut open showing her four-month-old fetus, in an apparent "honor killing".

Between 15 and 20 women die in so-called "honor" murders each year in the Arab kingdom, despite government efforts to curb such crimes.

Murder is punishable by death in Jordan, but in "honor killings" courts can commute or reduce sentences, particularly if the victim's family asks for leniency.
 

01 May, 2013

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Source: http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2013/04/30/Jordanian-kills-sister-to-cleanse-family-honor-.html
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Iraq media suspensions draw international criticism

Among the channels, Qatar-based news network Al Jazeera has been blocked along with Sharqiya, a leading channel in Iraq. (Courtesy:bbg.gov)

The United Nations and Human Rights Watch called on Iraq on Tuesday to rescind its suspension of the licenses of 10 satellite TV channels, a move that bars them from working in the country.

Media rights watchdog Reporters Without Borders (RSF) has also criticized the decision by the Communications and Media Commission, Iraq's media regulator, to suspended the channels for allegedly "encouraging violence and sectarianism."

"Press freedom is a fundamental pillar of democracy, one that the United Nations takes very seriously," U.N. envoy Martin Kobler said in a statement. "I urge the Commission to fully respect its commitment to press freedom."

Human Rights Watch condemned the suspensions, saying "Iraq's media commission should immediately reverse the license suspensions for 10 satellite television stations and allow them to continue broadcasting."

"The authorities have admitted that there was no legal basis for their decision, which looks more suspicious given the government's history of cracking down on opposition media, particularly during protests," Sarah Leah Whitson, HRW's Middle East director, said in a statement.

The suspensions came during a wave of violence that began on April 23 with deadly clashes between security forces and Sunni anti-government protesters.

Dozens more were killed in subsequent violence, bringing the death toll to more than 240 in seven days and raising fears of a return to all-out sectarian conflict that plagued Iraq in past years and left tens of thousands dead.

The suspended channels included pan-Arab network Al-Jazeera and Sharqiya, a leading Iraqi station.

"We took a decision to suspend the license of some satellite channels that adopted language encouraging violence and sectarianism," Mujahid Abu al-Hail, a top official from the CMC, told AFP on Sunday.

"It means stopping their work in Iraq and their activities, so they cannot cover events in Iraq or move around," he said.

RSF has also slammed the suspensions, saying in a statement on Monday that "this draconian and disproportionate decision has seriously endangered freedom of information."

The CMC should "quickly rescind this decision and to allow the media to cover all developments of general interest throughout the country," RSF said.
 

01 May, 2013

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Source: http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2013/04/30/Iraq-media-suspensions-draw-international-criticism.html
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Gunmen surround Libya’s Justice Ministry

Members of armed revolutionaries stage a protest in front of the Libyan Justice Ministry in Tripoli April 30, 2013. (AFP)

Gunmen demanding the sacking of former officials of the ousted Qaddafi regime surrounded the justice ministry on Tuesday, stepping up an action started at the foreign ministry, an official said.

"Several armed men in vehicles equipped with anti-aircraft guns surrounded the ministry of justice," spokesman Walid Ben Rabha told AFP.

"They asked the minister and staff present to leave their offices and close the ministry."

An AFP photographer saw more than 20 pick-up trucks loaded with machine guns, anti-aircraft guns and rocket launchers and said they had blocked access to the building.

Dozens of gunmen making the same demand have kept the foreign ministry under siege since Sunday, paralyzing its work.

The interior ministry and national television station have also been attacked.

On Monday, angry police officers firing their guns in the air stormed the interior ministry demanding higher wages.

Prime Minister Ali Zeidan has denounced the encircling of the foreign ministry and other such attacks.

On Sunday, he appealed to Libyans to support the government in resisting armed groups "who want to destabilize the country and terrorize foreigners and embassies," but said the government would "not come into confrontation with anyone."

The government is struggling to assert its influence across the country, where former rebels who fought to unseat Moamer Qaddafi in 2011 still control large amounts of territory.

The latest events illustrate a rise in violence in Tripoli, where a car bomb struck the French embassy last week, wounding two French guards and a girl living nearby.

Gunmen have said they will lift their siege when their demands are met by a vote in the General National Congress -- Libya's highest political authority -- on a bill calling for the expulsion of former regime employees from top government and political posts.

The bill could affect several senior government figures and has roiled the country's political class.

Under pressure, Congress adjourned until Sunday to allow its various political blocs to seek consensus on the bill.

That came as protesters gathered in central Tripoli's Martyrs Square and planned to hold a sit-in later Tuesday in front of the Congress.

In March, demonstrators encircled the assembly itself, trapping members inside the building for several hours as they called for the adoption of the law.

After the siege was lifted, gunmen targeted Congress chief Mohammed Megaryef's motorcade without causing any casualties.

In other developments on Tuesday, clashes raged in western Libya as tribes from the towns of Nalut and Tiji clashed with heavy weapons after an argument between two men, witnesses said.

01 May, 2013

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Source: http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2013/04/30/Gunmen-surround-Libya-s-Justice-Ministry-.html
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Obama: Syrian chemical strike would force U.S. to ‘rethink’

Obama: Syrian chemical strike would force U.S. to 'rethink'

Obama did not rule out eventual U.S. military action, but remained cautious. (Reuters)

President Barack Obama said Tuesday that the United States would "rethink" its policy on Syria if he receives proof that the Damascus regime has used chemical weapons.

But he expressed caution about recent intelligence reports, telling a White House news conference: "I've got to make sure I've got the facts. That's what the American people would expect."

"If I can establish in a way that not only the United States but also the international community feel confident in the use of chemical weapons by the Assad regime, then that is a game changer," he warned.

Bashar al-Assad's government has been accused of using weapons loaded with nerve agents against targets in civilian areas during its battle with an armed rebellion against his rule.

Washington has previously warned that the use of so-called weapons of mass destruction would be a "red line" that Assad must not cross if he is to avoid triggering an international response.

Obama did not rule out eventual U.S. military action, but remained cautious.

"By game changer, I mean we would have to rethink the range of options that are available to us. We are invested in trying to bring back a solution inside of Syria," he told reporters.

"Obviously, there are options that are available to me that are on the shelf right now that we have not deployed, and that's a spectrum of options.

"As early as last year, I asked the Pentagon, our military, our intelligence officials to prepare for me what options might be available and I won't go into the details of what those options might be," he continued.

"But clearly that would be an escalation in our view of the threat to the security of the international community, our allies and the United States and that means that there are some options that we might not otherwise exercise that we would strongly consider."
 

30 Apr, 2013

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Source: http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2013/04/30/Obama-Syrian-chemical-strike-would-force-U-S-to-rethink-.html
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Pope: ‘courageous decisions’ needed from Israel, Palestinians

Pope Francis called on Tuesday for Israel and the Palestinians to "resume negotiations" and "take courageous decisions", the Vatican said in a statement, after a meeting between the pontiff and Israeli president Shimon Peres.

"A speedy resumption of negotiations between Israelis and Palestinians is hoped for," it said.

"With the courageous decisions and availability of both sides, as well as support from the international community, an agreement may be reached," it added.

Such an agreement should "respect the legitimate aspirations of the two peoples, thus decisively contributing to the peace and stability of the region."

The meeting, the first between a leader from the Middle East and Francis, who was elected in March, came at a time of important developments in peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians.

Peres also invited Pope Francis on an official state visit to Israel.

On Tuesday, Israel's lead peace negotiator Tzipi Livni praised as "important" a concession by the Arab League that Israel and the Palestinians could trade land in a bid to move the peace process forward.

The development emerged out of talks in Washington between U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and an Arab League delegation to discuss the 2002 Arab Peace Initiative.

The proposal would see 22 Arab countries normalizing ties with Israel in return for a withdrawal from lands it occupied during the 1967 Six Day War.

During the meeting, Peres and Francis also expressed "worry for the conflict that plagues Syria" and hoped for a political solution to the crisis, the Vatican said.
 

30 Apr, 2013

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Source: http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2013/04/30/Pope-courageous-decisions-needed-from-Israel-Palestinians-.html
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Iran says use of chemical arms by anyone in Syria is ‘red line’

In calling chemical weapons use a "red line" for Iran, Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi did not indicate what action Tehran might take. (Reuters)

Iran said on Tuesday it regarded the alleged use of chemical weapons in Syria's civil war as a "red line," echoing major adversary the United States but saying Syrian rebels were the main culprit and not the Damascus government.

Last week Washington said it had "varying degrees of confidence" that Syrian government forces had likely used the nerve agent sarin on a small scale against rebels fighting to overthrow President Bashar al-Assad.

U.S. President Barack Obama has warned Damascus that deployment of chemical weapons could trigger consequences for Assad - language widely interpreted to include military intervention so far shunned by Washington. Obama has also called resort to chemical arms a "red line" Assad must not cross.

In calling chemical weapons use a "red line" for Iran, Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi did not indicate what action Tehran - one of Assad's staunchest political and military allies- might take in the case that a poison gas attack by either side in the conflict were to be proven.

"We have always emphasized that the use of chemical weapons on the part of anyone is our red line," Salehi said, according to the ISNA news agency. "Iran is opposed to the use of any kind of weapon of mass destruction, and not just their use but their production, accumulation, and use."

Salehi also reiterated calls for the United Nations to investigate assertions by the Syrian government that Syrian insurgents had used chemical weapons.

"On Syria," he said, "we have also requested that in accordance with the Syrian government, which emphasizes that the opposition has used these weapons, the United Nations...identify the main culprit in this regard, which is the opposition."

The Syrian government and the opposition blame each other for alleged chemical attacks in Aleppo in March and Homs in December. Syria wants U.N. investigators to look into only the reported Aleppo attack, but U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon wants the inquiry he has ordered to cover both incidents.

Ban said on Monday that investigators have been gathering and analyzing available information on alleged chemical attacks in Syria, but access to the war-torn country was essential for a "credible and comprehensive inquiry."

Iran counts itself as the biggest victim of chemical weapons attacks in recent history, saying up to 100,000 Iranians were exposed to the effects of Iraqi poison gas during the two neighbors' 1980-88 war. Other studies have estimated that around 60,000 were affected.

Tehran, however, is suspected by Western powers of seeking another form of mass-destruction weapons capability - nuclear -with its shadowy uranium enrichment program. Iran denies this, saying it seeks nuclear energy only for peaceful purposes.

30 Apr, 2013

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Source: http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2013/04/30/Iran-says-use-of-chemical-arms-by-anyone-in-Syria-is-red-line--1622.html
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Russia bans passenger flights over Syria

The ban comes after the crew of a charter plane flying from the Egyptian resort of Sharm-el-Sheikh to the Russian city of Kazan on Monday said it had come under threat when it flew over Syria. (Reuters)

Russia's air transport agency on Tuesday banned all Russian civilian planes from flying through Syrian air space after the crew of a Russian passenger jet reported coming under threat over the war-torn country.

The federal agency Rosaviation said the ban on flights over Syria went into force on Monday and will remain until further notice.

"The federal air transport agency believes that in this situation commercial interests cannot prevail over the safety of people who use the services of Russian airlines," it said in a statement.

The ban comes after the crew of a charter plane flying from the Egyptian resort of Sharm-el-Sheikh to the Russian city of Kazan on Monday said it had come under threat when it flew over Syria.

The plane carrying 159 passengers said it detected "signs of combat actions" on the ground in Syria, Russian officials said without providing further details.

The Interfax news agency, citing a source in Moscow, said unidentified assailants fired two land-to-air missiles at the plane. The aircraft did not suffer any damage and landed in Kazan on time.

The Russian foreign ministry said it had asked the Syrian government to provide a full explanation of the incident.

Rosaviation said a number of airlines had already stopped flying through Syrian airspace after the agency first issued a warning in February. But a number of carriers continue flying over the country, the agency said.

30 Apr, 2013

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Source: http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2013/04/30/Russia-bans-passenger-flights-over-Syria.html
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FSA may soon launch counterattack on Hezbollah, says Jordanian ex-army official

Jordanian major-general Fayez al-Doueiri, who is now a military analyst, said the continuing battles between the FSA and Hezbollah members could be a "positive development for the FSA." (Al Arabiya)

The Free Syrian Army (FSA) may soon be planning to launch planning retaliatory attacks on "elite Hezbollah forces" reportedly fighting in Syria, retired Jordanian major-general Fayez al-Doueiri  told Al Arabiya on Monday night.

Doueiri, who is now a military analyst, said the reported continuing battles between the FSA and Hezbollah fighters could be a "positive development for the FSA as it is managing to inhibit Hezbollah's elite forces."

This may mean the "FSA is preparing to launch reverse operations to gain back what it lost in the past few weeks," he added.

He also said Hezbollah has dubbed its members killed in Syria as "martyrs of duty," a term previously used to describe its fighters during the July 2006 war with Israel.

Doueiri added that Shiite party has partially lost its combat capabilities.

"Hezbollah has lost plenty of positions (in Syria), and this will affect it negatively if a confrontation happens."

Hezbollah, a close ally of President Bashar al-Assad's regime, has denied Syrian opposition accusations that it has sent its elite troops into Syria to support regime troops battling insurgents.

It says Syrian rebels have targeted Shiite areas of Syria inhabited by Lebanese and that Shiites in Syria have a right to self-defense.

But the accusations against Hezbollah have multiplied as fighting escalated this week in the Qusayr area near the Lebanon border.

Last Tuesday, the FSA reportedly killed 18 Hezbollah fighters in Qusayr, activists at the Syrian Revolution General Commission reported.

The fighters were allegedly killed in a battle between the Syrian rebels and the Hezbollah fighters.

Last week, Assad reportedly told Lebanese politicians that Syria's "main battle" at present is raging in the Qusayr area, close to the Lebanese border.

Speaking to a delegation of Lebanese backers of his regime, Assad said his forces were determined to succeed in the area "at any cost," according to Abdel Rahim Mrad, a former MP who spoke to AFP after the meeting in Damascus.

"The main battle is taking place in Qusayr," he quoted Assad as saying.

"We want to finish it at any cost and we want to do the same in Idlib," a province on the Turkish border in the northwest which is a major rebel stronghold.

The two-year Syrian conflict, which started with peaceful protests against the president, has morphed into a civil war that has affected its neighboring countries, including Lebanon.

At least 70,000 people have been killed since the start of the Syrian conflict and about 1.4 million left their conflict-ravaged country, the U.N. says.

30 Apr, 2013

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Source: http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2013/04/30/Elite-Hezbollah-forces-sent-to-Syria-s-Qusayr-says-Jordanian-ex-army-official.html
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Armed men surround another Libya ministry, says official

"Several armed men in vehicles equipped with anti-aircraft guns surrounded the ministry of justice," Walid Ben Rabha, head of the ministry's information department, told AFP. (AFP)

Gunmen demanding the expulsion of officials from the ousted Muammar Qaddafi regime surrounded the justice ministry on Tuesday, stepping up an action started at the foreign ministry, an official said.

"Several armed men in vehicles equipped with anti-aircraft guns surrounded the ministry of justice," Walid Ben Rabha, head of the ministry's information department, told AFP.

"They asked the minister and staff present to leave their offices and close the ministry."

Dozens of gunmen in Tripoli making the same demand have kept Libya's foreign ministry under siege since Sunday, paralyzing its work.

Libya's interior ministry and the national television station have also been attacked.

On Monday, angry police officers firing their guns in the air stormed the interior ministry demanding higher wages.

Prime Minister Ali Zeidan has denounced the encircling of the foreign ministry and other such attacks.

On Sunday, he appealed to Libyans to support the government in resisting armed groups "who want to destabilize the country and terrorize foreigners and embassies," but said the government would "not come into confrontation with anyone."

Gunmen have said their siege of the ministries would be lifted when their demands are met by a vote in the General National Congress –Libya's highest political authority - on a bill calling for the expulsion of former regime employees.

The Congress is studying proposals for a law to exclude former Qaddafi regime officials from top government and political posts.

The proposed law could affect several senior figures in the government and has caused waves in the country's political class.

In March, demonstrators encircled the assembly itself, trapping members in the building for several hours as they called for the adoption of the law.

After the siege was lifted, gunmen targeted Congress chief Mohammed Megaryef's motorcade without causing any casualties.

Libya's government is struggling to assert its influence across the country, where former rebels who fought Qaddafi in the 2011 uprising still control large amounts of territory.

The latest events illustrate a rise in violence in Tripoli where a car bomb struck the French embassy last Tuesday, wounding two French guards and a girl living nearby.

30 Apr, 2013

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Source: http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/africa/2013/04/30/Armed-men-surround-another-Libya-ministry-says-official.html
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Saudi police arrest two wanted men after gunfight

Saudi police arrested 23 men on a wanted list for allegedly fomenting trouble in the eastern region. (AFP)

Saudi police arrested 23 men on a wanted list for allegedly fomenting trouble in the eastern region, the state SPA news agency reported on Tuesday.

Among the men, Abdullah bin Salman bin Saleh al-Isreeh was arrested by security authorities, along with another man for his involvement in the crimes of drug promotion.

Police exchanged fire with the two men in the eastern village of Awamiya, wounding them in legs before they were captured, interior ministry spokesman General Mansur al-Turki said in a statement carried by SPA state news agency.

"The Ministry of the Interior confirmed that the security authorities will pursue wanted persons and arrest them, calling on those persons whose names were announced as 'wanted' to surrender themselves to the nearest security center," SPA reported.

30 Apr, 2013

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Source: http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2013/04/30/Saudi-police-arrest-two-wanted-men-after-gunfight.html
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Palestinian killed in first deadly Israeli airstrike since truce

Smoke rises after an Israeli air strike in the northern Gaza Strip November 14, 2012. (Reuters)

A Palestinian man was killed on Tuesday after an Israel air strike on Gaza City, in the first deadly air raid since an Egyptian-brokered truce went into force last November.

Gaza's health ministry said one man was killed and another injured.

"A man in his 20s was martyred and another injured in an Israeli air strike... in Shati refugee camp in western Gaza City," health ministry spokesman Ashraf al-Qudra told AFP news agency.

An Israeli government spokesman told Reuters news agency the military had hit a "jihadi who was an expert in manufacturing rockets".

He added that the man had "played a role" in a rocket attack from Egypt's Sinai peninsula against Israel's Red Sea resort of Eilat on April 17, which had caused no damage or injuries.

Locals in Gaza named the dead man as Haitham al-Meshal, 29,saying he was hit while riding a motorcycle in the north of the enclave. He was believed to be a member of Hamas's national security force, but relatives said he also belonged to a Jihadist Salafist organization.

Over the last two months, there has been an uptick in rocket fire on southern Israel after more than three months of complete quiet following a deadly confrontation in November which ended with the Egyptian-brokered truce deal.

The latest firing was on Monday when a mortar shell struck an open area in southern Israel, a day after an Israeli air strike on southern Gaza. Neither incident caused any injuries.

On Sunday morning, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned that Israel would retaliate with great force against any rocket or missile fire on Israeli territory.

"I want to make it clear that we will respond in a very offensive way against any rockets or missiles. We will take all necessary measures to ensure the security of Israelis... on all fronts," his office quoted him as saying.
 

30 Apr, 2013

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Source: http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2013/04/30/Palestinian-killed-in-Gaza-by-targeted-Israeli-airstrike.html
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Extra medical staff sent to Guantanamo over hunger strike

Lawyers for the detainees have said around 130 inmates are observing the hunger strike, more than officially acknowledged. (Reuters)

Extra medical staff have been sent to the U.S. military prison in Guantanamo Bay to help address a hunger strike that has spread to nearly two-thirds of the detainees, authorities said Monday.

With the strike now entering its 12th week, President Barack Obama has faced fresh calls to honor his promise to close the prison at the U.S. base in Cuba, which holds 166 individuals captured as part of the "War on Terror."

Some 40 U.S. Navy medical personnel, including nurses and specialists, arrived over the weekend, said Lieutenant Colonel Samuel House, a military spokesman at Guantanamo.

"The influx of personnel was planned several weeks ago as increasing numbers of detainees chose to protest their detention," he said.

House said 100 of the 166 inmates are striking, a number that hasn't changed since Saturday. Of those, 21 are receiving feeding through nasal tubes, the spokesman said, one more than on Saturday.

Five are hospitalized, he added in the statement, without specifying whether any were in life-threatening condition.

However, he told AFP that none were close to dying, officially denying allegations by British Guantanamo expert Andy Worthington, who wrote on his blog that four prisoners were "close to death" as a result of the strike, citing a "credible source inside Guantanamo."

One of the at-risk detainees, Worthington said, was Khiali Gul, one of 86 prisoners cleared for release yet jailed indefinitely.

"Every day I expect to hear the worst. I am appalled that President Obama has done nothing, and continues to do nothing," Worthington told AFP.

Lawyers for the detainees have said around 130 inmates are observing the hunger strike, more than officially acknowledged.

The rapidly growing protest movement began on February 6, when inmates claimed prison officials searched Korans in a way they considered blasphemous, according to their lawyers.

Officials have denied any mishandling of Islam's holy book.

But the strike has now turned into a larger protest by prisoners against their indefinite incarceration without charge or trial over the past 11 years.

House said recently that while detainees have a right to protest, "it is our mission to provide a safe, secure and humane environment, and we will not allow our detainees to starve themselves to death."

On Friday, the White House said it continues to closely monitor the hunger strikers and that Obama remained "committed to closing" Guantanamo.

"A fundamental obstacle to closing this detention facility ... remains in Congress," White House spokesman Jay Carney said.

A 'critical moment'

More and more critics have called for the immediate closure of the facility.

Among them is former chief prosecutor at Guantanamo, Air Force colonel Morris Davis, who warned that "unless President Obama acts soon, I believe it is likely one or more of the detainees will die."

Andrea Prasow, senior counterterrorism counsel and advocate at Human Rights Watch, said "there has never been such a critical moment in the history of Guantanamo."

"It's an incredible crisis in the American government, both in terms of health and welfare of these men, but there are also very serious national security concerns should someone die in Guantanamo," she told AFP.

"I think it will be perceived outside of the U.S. as the U.S. government's responsibility."

Senator Dianne Feinstein, a Democrat from California, wrote a letter to Obama asking the administration to "renew its efforts" to transfer out the 86 detainees who were cleared for such a move by U.S. military authorities.

She also called for the reassessment of the "security situation on the ground in Yemen, because is my understanding that 56 of the 86 detainees cleared for transfer are Yemeni."

Obama imposed a moratorium on repatriating Yemenis held at Guantanamo in 2009 after a plot to blow up an airliner on Christmas Day was traced back to al-Qaeda's Yemeni franchise.

30 Apr, 2013

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Source: http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/world/2013/04/30/Extra-medical-staff-sent-to-Guantanamo-over-hunger-strike.html
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Watchdog: Bomb near interior ministry building in Damascus kills five

Syrian TV confirmed the explosion occurred in the central district of Marjeh, although the target was not immediately clear. (Courtesy: Syria's al-Ikhbariya TV)

At least five people were killed in Damascus after a powerful explosion hit an area near to an interior ministry building on Tuesday, a Syrian watchdog reported.

"At least five citizens were killed in a car bomb near the back door of the old interior ministry building in the Marjeh district," the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said in a statement, warning that the number of casualties was expected to rise.

Gunfire was heard in the area immediately after the Tuesday morning blast, according to The Associated Press.

Syrian TV also confirmed the explosion occurred in the central district of Marjeh, although the target was not immediately clear.

The blast comes a day after Syria's prime minister narrowly escaped an assassination attempt in Damascus' Mazzeh neighborhood.

The car bomb, which exploded as his convoy passed through the upscale neighborhood, killed one of his bodyguards and five other people, according to the Observatory.

Damascus has seen a wave of major bombings in recent weeks, including on April 9, when a massive blast in the center of the city killed at least 15 people.
 

30 Apr, 2013

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Source: http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2013/04/30/Watchdog-Bomb-near-interior-ministry-building-in-Damascus-kills-five-.html
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Boston Marathon investigators find woman’s DNA on bomb fragment

FBI image shows the remains of a pressure cooker that the FBI says was part of one of the Boston Marathon bombs (Courtesy: AP /FBI)

Investigators have found traces of female DNA on a fragment from one of the bombs that exploded at the Boston Marathon earlier this month, U.S. officials said late Monday.

While it is still unclear who the DNA matches to, the find indicates a female accomplice may have helped the two brothers suspected in the bombings, Tamerlan and Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, according to officials briefed on the probe speaking to U.S. press.

Investigators will now compare the DNA of Katherine Russell, the widow of accused bomber Tamerlan, against the DNA found on the bomb remnant to determine if she ever came in contact with the device, U.S.-based CBS news reported on Tuesday.

Russell is not a suspect in the bombings.

"FBI agents met with Russell at her parents' Rhode Island home Monday to collect a DNA sample," the CBS report stated.
Tamerlan died after a shootout with police four days after the April 15 bombings.

"The FBI is there as part of our ongoing investigation, but we aren't permitted to discuss specific aspects of the case," FBI spokesman Jason Pack was widely quoted as saying by the U.S. press.

Boston bombing suspects Tamerlan Tsarnaev (L) and Dzhokhar Tsarnaev. (Al Arabiya)

Russell has remained silent, staying with her three-year-old daughter Zahara at her parents' house in Rhode Island. Russell's family has issued a statement saying they were shocked by the attack.

Still, investigators want to question Russell to find out if she had any knowledge of her husband's plans.

In 2009, Tamerlan was arrested for assaulting Russell.

Still, investigators want to question Russell to find out if she had any knowledge of her husband's plans.

Her school friends have reportedly said she was "brain-washed by her extremist husband."

Meanwhile, the Tsarnaevs' parents have denied their sons were involved in terrorism.

The father of the bombing suspects has accused the FBI of "setting up" his sons.

"They just wanted to set up Tamerlan, and Dzhokhar just turned out to be in the wrong place at the wrong time," Anzor Tsarnaev told the Russian Komsomolskaya Pravda daily last week.

"Tamerlan was driving him to school when they started shooting at them," he said. "This is a set-up, a political order, a Hollywood show."

Zubeidat Tsarnaeva, the suspects' mother, has also said she believed her sons have been framed by U.S. authorities
 

30 Apr, 2013

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Source: http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/world/2013/04/30/Boston-investigators-find-female-DNA-on-bomb-fragment.html
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Mass food poisoning at Egyptian university sparks student anger

An Egyptian student from al-Azhar University receives treatment at an ambulance in Cairo, after nearly 500 uni students were taking to hospital with food poisoning earlier this month. (AFP)

In the second mass food poisoning case to hit Egypt's al-Azhar University this month, 107 students were poisoned on Monday night, according to the country's ministry of health.

Egyptian students broke out in protest when the 107 cases were confirmed, blocking a road near the campus and clashing with police "who fired teargas in an attempt to open the road to traffic," Egypt's al-Ahram newspaper reported.

The suspected cause of the poisoning was a tuna fish meal eaten by the students at the campus cafeteria.

The students fell sick after eating meals served at the university's campus dormitory in the Nasr City district of the capital, the coordinator of the Popular Movement for an Independent Azhar was reported as saying by al-Ahram.

Earlier this month, some 460 Al-Azhar University students were hospitalized following a mass food poisoning on campus.

Protesting students said the incident on Monday was a sign of neglect by officials at al-Azhar, a thousand-year-old mosque and university in Cairo that draws students from across the Sunni world.

While food poisoning is not uncommon in Egyptian university dormitories, where basic hygiene standards are often not observed, the latest outbreak is the biggest in years.
 

30 Apr, 2013

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Source: http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2013/04/30/Mass-food-poisoning-at-Egyptian-university-enrages-students.html
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Kerry seeks to drum up Arab support for Israeli-Palestinian peace

Since taking office on February 1, Kerry has made no secret of his hope to revive peace talks, which broke down in 2010. (Reuters)

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry made a fresh push Monday to revive the moribund Middle East peace process, meeting top Arab League officials in a bid to re-launch a decade-old Saudi plan.

Kerry has suggested that the Arab Peace Initiative - unveiled in 2002 by Saudi King Abdullah in which 22 Arab countries would normalize ties with Israel in return for Israeli withdrawal from occupied lands - could provide a framework.

Far from the cameras, the new top U.S. diplomat held talks with senior ministers from the Arab League, Bahrain, Egypt, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the Palestinian territories to discuss the initiative.

The ministers, meeting in the privacy of Blair House just a stone's throw from the White House, were also joined by Vice President Joe Biden, for what Kerry called a "very positive, very constructive discussion."

"I underscored the Arab League's very important role ... by reaffirming the Arab Peace Initiative here this afternoon," Kerry told reporters after the talks

Since taking office on February 1, Kerry has made no secret of his hope to revive peace talks, which broke down in 2010, but it remains unclear whether U.S. President Barack Obama will decide to back a major U.S. effort.

Kerry has already traveled three times to the region, meeting senior Israeli and Palestinian officials, pursuing what he has called "a quiet strategy" in an ambitious bid to revive the talks and achieve a peace treaty which has eluded successive American administrations for decades.

Addressing reporters after the talks, he said he had reaffirmed the vision of President Barack Obama of "two states living side-by-side in peace and security, brought about through direct negotiations between the parties."

The proposal

The Arab League proposal offered full Arab recognition of Israel if it gave up land seized in a 1967 war and accepted a "just solution" for Palestinian refugees.

Rejected by Israel when it was originally proposed at a Beirut summit in 2002, the plan has major hurdles to overcome.

Israel objects to key points, including a return to 1967 borders, the inclusion of Arab East Jerusalem in a Palestinian state and the return Palestinian refugees to what is now Israel.

"The Arab League delegation understands that peace between the Palestinians and the Israelis is ... a strategic choice for the Arab states," Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim al-Thani, who serves as Qatar's prime minister and foreign minister, told reporters.

The core issues that need to be settled in the more than six-decade dispute include borders, the fate of Palestinian refugees, the future of Jewish settlements on the West Bank and the status of Jerusalem.

30 Apr, 2013

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Source: http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/world/2013/04/30/Kerry-seeks-to-build-Arab-support-for-Israeli-Palestinian-peace.html
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UK: Guardian newspaper’s Twitter feeds hacked

The Guardian paper reported on its website Monday that several of its Twitter feeds were broken into over the weekend. (Screen grab)

The Guardian newspaper says its Twitter accounts have come under a cyberattack, and it cited a claim of responsibility from the group calling itself the Syrian Electronic Army.

The British paper reported on its website Monday that several of its Twitter feeds were broken into over the weekend. It said it has since discovered the attack apparently originated from Internet protocol addresses within Syria.

The paper said the Syrian Electronic Army, which has claimed responsibility for attacks on other media targets including The Associated Press, accused The Guardian of spreading "lies and slander about Syria."

The Guardian said it first recognized it was being targeted when suspect emails were sent to staff members.

Some of The Guardian's Twitter accounts, including those focusing on books and film, were suspended Monday.

30 Apr, 2013

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Source: http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2013/04/30/UK-Guardian-newspaper-s-Twitter-feeds-hacked.html
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Armed clashes at Jordan university kill three, hurt 25

Three people died and 25 injured after a fight at the King Hussein bin Talal University's campus in Maan city, Jordanian Interior Minister Hussein Majali says. (Photo courtesy Al Wakeel News website)

Armed clashes between students killed three people and hurt 25 others at a university campus in the restive Jordanian city of Maan on Monday, the kingdom's interior minister said.

"Three people died and 25 were injured the fight at the King Hussein bin Talal University's campus in Maan," in southern Jordan, Hussein Majali told AFP.

"Police fired tear gas, made 22 arrests and seized four weapons, including two automatic ones. One of the injured was in a bad condition after he was shot in the stomach."

Majali said a "former convict who once shot at a police station" was involved in the clashes.

"Police, who are still searching for the suspect, threw a security cordon around the university after evacuating people. Security was restored after these criminal acts."

The reasons behind the gun battle were unclear, but an activist said it was related to "tribal problems."

"It wasn't the first brawl over tribal problems. I think the shootout will have repercussions for the entire city of Maan," said Fakher Daass of Thabahtuna reformist movement.

Violence occurs almost frequently at Jordanian universities, and sometimes spreads beyond campuses.

Maan has a bloody and rebellious past that goes back to the turn of the last century, when the town was the seat of the Great Arab Revolt that crushed toman rule.
 

30 Apr, 2013

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Source: http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2013/04/30/Armed-clashes-at-Jordan-university-kill-three-hurt-25.html
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Report says two missiles target Russian passenger plane over Syria

Unidentified assailants fired two land-to-air missiles at a Russian passenger plane carrying over 150 people when it flew over Syria on Monday, the Interfax news agency reported, citing an informed source in Moscow.

"The Syrian side informed us that on Monday morning unidentified people had fired two land-to-air missiles which exploded in the immediate proximity of a civilian plane belonging to a Russian airline," the source was quoted as saying.

"The crew was able to move the aircraft to the side on time and save the lives of the passengers," the source said, adding that it was unclear whether the attackers knew that the plane was Russian.

The plane was returning from a resort in Egypt, a popular destination for Russian tourists.

The federal air transport agency Rosaviation issued a statement later Monday, saying the crew of a charter plane flying from the Egyptian resort of Sharm-el-Sheikh to the Russian city of Kazan had detected "signs of combat actions" when it was flying over Syria.

The crew of the A-320 plane, which belongs to Nord Wind Airlines, believed that those actions threatened the aircraft's safety, said the agency, adding that the plane landed in Kazan on time.

The Russian foreign ministry said in a separate statement that it was taking "urgent measures" to clarify the situation and was in contact with the Syrian authorities. It said the plane carried 159 passengers.

Neither the air transport agency nor the foreign ministry made any mention of the missiles.

Russia, one of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's staunchest allies, is firmly opposed to foreign intervention in Syria.

30 Apr, 2013

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Source: http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2013/04/30/Report-says-two-missiles-target-Russian-passenger-plane-over-Syria.html
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