GCC union ‘just a wish,’ says Kuwaiti parliament speaker

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In his interview with Al Arabiya, Ali al-Rashed explained that that constitutional differences between Gulf countries and the uniqueness of each state's domestic affairs makes it difficult to form a union. (Al Arabiya)

Speaker of the Kuwaiti Umma Council expressed Sunday his reticence on forming a union that brings together the countries that make up the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC).

Ali al-Rashed explained in an interview with Al Arabiya that constitutional differences between Gulf countries and the uniqueness of each state's domestic affairs makes it difficult to form a union.

As the GCC celebrates its anniversary during the month of May, al-Rashed suggests that a GCC union is "just a wish" that has been recommended every now and then.

There should be a "legislative convention" that is agreed upon by all Gulf countries in order to achieve a GCC union, he said.

In his interview with Al Arabiya, al-Rashed touched on the political controversy in Kuwait, adding that there are groups that aim to hurt the government but not overthrow it. Some are trying to exploit arguments that have taken place between members of the royal family, he said.

The Kuwaiti politician, however, considered that what is taking place in Kuwait is normal and the fate of the Ummah council will only be determined by the constitutional court.

"We will accept the court ruling no matter what it is, and we call everyone to accept it," al-Rashed said.

Al-Rashed said inadequacy can be seen in some ministers' performances. The postponement of these ministers' interrogations made some assume that no action will be taken, he said.

"I informed his highness, the Emir and his highness, the prime minister, of the lack of cooperation by some ministers," he added.

Al-Rashed said that Iran is not a threat to the Gulf region but that there are differences in points of view.

"There are assaults on islands belonging to the emirates that we hope our brothers in Iran would stop," he added. However, Al-Rashed said that he believes Iran to be a Muslim country and that their relationship is very neighborly.

06 May, 2013

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Source: http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2013/05/06/GCC-union-just-a-wish-says-Kuwaiti-parliament-speaker-.html
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Car bomber kills 7 in Somali capital

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Officers stand by the remains of a wrecked car at the scene of car bomb explosion along the "Kilometre 4" road junction, south of the capital Mogadishu, May 5, 2013. (Reuters)

Seven people were killed Sunday morning when a suicide bomber attempted to ram a car laden with explosives into a military convoy escorting a four-member Qatari delegation.

Gen. Garad Nor Abdulle, a senior police official said the members of the Qatari delegation who were being escorted in the interior minister's convoy were unharmed and safely reached their hotel.

Abdulle said the interior minister was not in the convoy.

Mohamed Abdi, an officer at the scene of the blast, said four civilians and a soldier died immediately. Another two people died in hospital and 18 were being treated of wounds from the blast, said Dr. Duniya Mohamed Ali at the Medina hospital.

The Qatari delegates are involved in development projects in Mogadishu, Somali president Hassan Sheikh Mohamud said.

Mohamud blamed al-Qaida-linked Somali militant group al-Shabab for the attack.

He said "suspects" have been arrested.

After the explosion soldiers fired in the air to disperse crowds that had gathered at the blast site at the busy KM4 junction.

Separately, four Somali soldiers were wounded Sunday when a roadside bomb struck a government vehicle in Deynile district, in Mogadishu's northwest, said Ali Jimale, a captain with the Somali police.

The Somali government reopened key roads in the Somali capital, Mogadishu, four days ago which had been closed for security reasons. The roads were closed after the government received intelligence that militants were planning attacks, officials said.

KM4 is among the busiest roads in Mogadishu, largely used by government officials and African Union forces. It connects the presidential compound and other government offices to the airport.

The car bombing falls into a pattern of attacks blamed on the Islamic extremist group al-Shabab, which has been pushed out of much of the areas it occupied in South and Central Somalia by African Union troops.

Condemning Sunday's attack, the U.N. representative to Somalia, Augustine P. Mahiga said cowardly and senseless acts of violence will not undermine the remarkable progress Somalia has made in the past months.

"Attacks against civilians are never justifiable. I call on all parties to renounce violence and contribute positively to peace and stability," he said.

The British government condemned the attack through its Minister for Africa Mark Simmonds.

He said incidents such as these demonstrate the importance of the Federal Government of Somalia and international partners working together to combat violent extremism in Somalia.

Next week's Somalia Conference in London, co-hosted by the British and the Federal Government of Somalia will provide international support to help build Somali capacity to increase peace and stability, said Simmonds.

Al-Shabab once controlled almost all of Mogadishu. African Union and Somali forces pushed the radical rebels out of the city in 2011, but the fighters have continued to carry out bomb attacks.

Al-Shabab claimed responsibility for an attack on Somali's Supreme Court last month that killed 35, including nine attackers.

Somalia's prime minister said that several experienced foreign fighters took part in attack on the Supreme Court, the most serious Islamic extremist attack on Mogadishu in years, while other officials indicated the explosive devices were more advanced than normal, a possible indication of greater involvement by al-Qaida. The attack included six suicide bombings and two car bombs.

Al-Shabab boasts several hundred foreign fighters, including some from the Middle East with experience in the Iraq and Afghanistan conflicts. Al-Shabab also recruits fighters from Somali communities in the United States and Europe.

In March, an explosives-filled car targeting a truck of government officials hit a civilian car and exploded, setting a mini-bus on fire and killing at least seven.

Somalia has not had a functioning government since 1991 when warlords overthrew longtime dictator Siad Barre and turned on each other, plunging the impoverished nation into chaos.

President Mohamud was elected by parliament in October at the end of the eight-year U.N.-backed transitional government.

The U.N.-backed political process that resulted in Mohamud's election was condemned by Islamist militants who said it was manipulated by the West. But Mohamud has the support of the international community, which wants him to succeed and bring stability to the troubled Horn of Africa nation.

06 May, 2013

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Source: http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/africa/2013/05/06/Car-bomber-kills-7-in-Somali-capital.html
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Morocco busts ‘terror’ cells

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Moroccan security forces stand guard in Rabat. (AFP)

Morocco's interior ministry said on Sunday it had arrested two "terrorist" cells in the northern Nador region who were in contact with Islamist extremists in Mali, the national MAP news agency reported.

Members of the group are being questioned, the interior ministry said in a statement carried by MAP.

The ministry did not reveal how many suspects were arrested but said the cells committed robberies to finance their cause and had contacts with jihadists in northern Mali, the agency said.

In December, the Moroccan authorities said they had broken up a recruitment cell for al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb, a month after announcing having dismantled several "terrorist" cells who were planning attacks in the country.
 

06 May, 2013

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Source: http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/africa/2013/05/06/Morocco-busts-terror-cells.html
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Attacks in Iraq kill 9, wound 33

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Iraqi troops stand at a makeshift camp at a public square in Hawija, near Kirkuk, 170 km (100 miles) north of Baghdad, April 23, 2013. (Reuters)

A series of attacks including a blast near an Internet cafe in a Sunni area of Baghdad killed nine people and wounded dozens on Sunday in and around the Iraqi capital.

The attacks came amid heightened sectarian tension following a deadly security crackdown on a camp in northern Iraq run by Sunnis, protesting what they consider to be their second-class treatment by the Shiite-led government. Government investigators say the April 23 incident left 40 people dead, while a spate of follow-up attacks and battles has killed well over 200 more.

The bloodshed has raised fears that the country could be heading for a new wave of sectarian fighting like that which nearly pushed it to the brink of civil war in the middle of the last decade.

Police officials said that the first attack occurred Sunday morning when a bomb went off near Zein al-Abideen mosque in the western suburbs of Baghdad. One passerby was killed, six others were wounded and the outer wall of the mosque was damaged.

Hours later, police said, gunmen stormed the house of a district mayor in Mahmoudiya town, killing the mayor and his son. Mahmoudiya is 30 kilometers south of Baghdad.

At night, police said that a bomb exploded near an Internet cafe in a Sunni neighborhood in western Baghdad, killing three people and wounding 13 others.

Minutes later, three people were killed and 14 others wounded when mortar shells landed on houses on the western edge of Baghdad.

Hospital officials confirmed the casualties. All officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they are not authorized to speak to the media.

Violence has ebbed in Iraq, yet insurgent attacks are still frequent.

Meanwhile, Iraq's Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki said that his government will continue to follow up on fake bomb detectors sold to Iraq years ago by a British businessman, according to a statement posted on the prime minister's web site.

Al-Maliki's comments came days after a British judge sentenced James McCormick to 10 years in jail for selling fake bomb detectors to several countries, saying the millionaire had shown a cavalier disregard for potentially fatal consequences.

Al-Maliki added that Iraqi authorities had taken the necessary measures regarding this issue a long time ago and that some of the people involved were convicted. He did not elaborate.

06 May, 2013

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Source: http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2013/05/05/Attacks-in-Iraq-kill-9-wound-33.html
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8 ex-militia youths shot dead in south Nigeria

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A girl walks on a gas pipeline running through Okrika community near Nigeria's oil hub city of Port Harcourt December 4, 2012. (Reuters)

Eight young men suspected of being ex-militia members from two rival groups were killed early Sunday in a shootout in Lorbia community in Nigeria's southern oil-rich Bayelsa state, their relations and the army said.

Among those killed were five youths belonging to a group led by ex-militia leader Reuben Wilson, who embraced the 2009 government amnesty.

Wilson's 37-year-old younger brother, Benaibi Wilson, died in the clash, the former militia leader said.

Mourners and sympathizers who thronged the home of Wilson on Sunday in Yenagoa, capital of Bayelsa state, were seen wailing over the deaths.

A spokesman of the Joint Task Force in the Niger Delta, Lieutenant Colonel Onyeama Nwachukwu, confirmed that some people died in the clash between two armed groups but declined to give a death toll or further details.

"At about 2:00 am (0100 GMT) today, there was an armed collision between two armed groups at Lorbia in Southern Ijaw Area which led to the death of unspecified number of persons", he said.

"Our troops have carried out a cordon and search operation in the community," he said, recovering items including two AK47 rifles, six AK47 magazines and a speed boat.

The cause of the clash was unknown.

Rival gangs in the region have in the past clashed over money, status or to avenge an earlier bloody attack.

Bayelsa is the home state of President Goodluck Jonathan.

The 2009 amnesty calmed a wave of violence which harmed oil production in the region.

06 May, 2013

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Source: http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/africa/2013/05/05/8-Ex-militia-youths-shot-dead-in-south-Nigeria-.html
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Malaysian regime retains 56-year hold on power

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Malaysian Prime MInister Najib Razak (far R) arrives at the UMNO headquarters in Kuala Lumpur on May 5, 2013 before the announcement of the election results. (AFP)

Malaysia's ruling coalition retained its 56-year hold on power, the country's Election Commission said early Monday, but a bitter opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim refused to concede defeat.

The commission said the ruling Barisan Nasional (National Front) coalition led by Premier Najib Razak secured 112 parliamentary seats, the threshold required to form a government in the 222-seat chamber.

The announcement capped a fierce election battle Sunday in which Anwar's three-party alliance had hoped to pull off a stunning win against the only government Malaysia has known.

"Candidates representing Barisan Nasional have won 112 seats," commission chair Aziz Yusof told a press conference.

Malaysians voted in record numbers in the general election but the hotly anticipated day was dogged by accusations of electoral irregularities.

Informed of Barisan's win, Anwar said he would not accept the result.

"It is an election that we consider fraudulent and the EC has failed," he told reporters.

Voters had taken to the Internet in droves to accuse Najib's government of trying to steal the election, as indelible ink that he touted as a guarantee against voter fraud was found to easily wash off.

The opposition also leveled a number of other accusations at the Election Commission -- which it accuses of being in Barisan's pocket.

The commission said a record 80 percent of the multi-ethnic country's 13 million registered voters -- or more than 10 million people -- had turned out.

Najib's 13-party Barisan Nasional (National Front) coalition had been favored to barely keep power.

But the charismatic Anwar, a one-time heir-apparent to leadership of Barisan, led Pakatan to historic gains in 2008 polls and the bloc was aiming for a landmark victory.

Pakatan has gained traction with pledges to end ruling-party corruption and authoritarianism, and to reform controversial affirmative-action policies for majority Malays that Anwar says are abused by a corrupt Malay elite.

Najib has offered limited political reforms but a largely stay-the-course vision for the mainly Muslim nation.

Voting was dominated by widespread complaints that indelible ink meant to prevent multiple voting was easily removed.

The opposition had already alleged numerous irregularities including a charge that tens of thousands of "dubious" and possibly foreign voters were flown to key constituencies to sway results. The government denies the charge.

"Twenty to 30 seats were lost with very close majorities. We are exploring political pressure and all legal avenues," a tired-looking Anwar said.

But Najib pressed Pakatan to accept the result.

"For the sake of national interest, I ask all parties, especially the opposition, to accept this result with an open heart," he told a press briefing.

"Overall, the results show a trend of polarization which worries the government. If it is not addressed, it can create tension or division in the country."

Anwar was deputy premier until his ouster in a 1998 power struggle with then-premier Mahathir Mohamad, and his jailing for six years on sex charges widely viewed as trumped up.

He later brought his pan-racial appeal to the once-divided opposition, dramatically reversing its fortunes.

But Najib's ethnic Malay-dominated regime retains powerful political advantages, including control of traditional media, key institutions and charges of Election Commission bias.
 

06 May, 2013

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Source: http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/asia/2013/05/05/Malaysian-regime-retains-56-year-hold-on-power-.html
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Turkey, Israel to meet Monday on raid compensation

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Ankara demanded a formal apology from Israel and compensation for the families of the raid victims, as well as the lifting of an Israeli blockade on Gaza. (AFP)

Turkish and Israeli officials will meet on Monday in Israel for another round of talks over compensation for a deadly 2010 raid on a Gaza-bound aid flotilla, a diplomatic source told AFP.

"The second round of negotiations will be held in Israel tomorrow," the source said on Sunday, without elaborating.

An initial meeting was held in Ankara on April 22 to discuss the amount and the terms of the payment for the compensation by Israel, which Turkey has named as a precondition for normalization of diplomatic ties.

That meeting was the first stage of what Turkish officials have said would be a multi-step diplomatic process that could finally reinstate bilateral ties between the former allies.

Monday's talks will see Turkish diplomats officially visit Israel for the first time in three years since Israeli commandos staged a botched pre-dawn raid on an aid flotilla bound for the Gaza Strip, killing nine Turkish nationals.

An Israeli official told AFP the Israeli side would be led by national security adviser Yaakov Amidror and special liason for Turkish reconciliation Joseph Ciechanover.

"The two teams will discuss moving forward towards full normalization of relations," he said, without providing any further details.

Following the first round of talks, Ankara had said "initial parameters" were set and a framework was established, but the amount was still to be discussed.

The maritime assault severely wrecked relations between the regional allies, with Ankara demanding a formal apology and compensation for the families of the raid victims, as well as the lifting of an Israeli blockade on Gaza.

Compensation talks finally began in late March, after Israel extended a formal apology to Turkey to get the rocky relations back on track.
 

06 May, 2013

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Source: http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/2013/05/05/Turkey-Israel-to-meet-Monday-on-raid-compensation-.html
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U.S. diplomat disputes initial account of Benghazi attack

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U.S. diplomat disputes initial account of Benghazi attack

An attack by armed men on the U.S. embassy in the eastern city of Benghazi came amid a wave of protests in the Muslim world against a U.S.-made amateur Internet film deemed insulting to the Prophet Mohammed. (Reuters)

A key U.S. diplomat has sharply disputed the Obama administration's initial account of an attack on a U.S. mission in Libya that killed the U.S. ambassador and three others, CBS reported Sunday.

The U.S. deputy chief of mission in Libya, Greg Hicks, told congressional investigators that, from the outset, the September 11, 2012 attack on the mission in Benghazi was seen as a terrorist event by those on the ground, CBS said.

"I thought it was a terrorist attack from the get-go. I think everybody in the mission thought it was a terrorist attack from the beginning," Hicks was quoted as telling congressional investigators.

The disclosure revives a long-simmering controversy over a statement by Susan Rice, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, soon after the attack that it had originated as a spontaneous protest over an anti-Muslim Internet video.

Republicans have pressed to know whether Rice's talking points were changed, either to deflect attention from the State Department's failure to step up security in Libya or to conform to Obama reelection campaign messages highlighting progress in the war on terrorism.

The administration, which later acknowledged that the attack was pre-planned and not spontaneous, attributed the initial account to confusion about what was happening on the ground.

But CBS, quoting from a transcript, said Hicks told investigators there had been no indication of a protest outside the Benghazi mission.

He insisted that Chris Stevens, the U.S. ambassador who was visiting the Benghazi mission, would have reported signs of a demonstration, saying it was "unbelievable" he would have failed to report a protest at his "front door."

Stevens was killed along with three others after militants linked to Al-Qaeda stormed the Benghazi mission and a nearby CIA compound. An internal probe ordered by former secretary of state Hillary Clinton found that no U.S. forces would have got to Libya in time to stop the attack.

Hicks is scheduled to appear on Wednesday before the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, one of three witnesses who Republicans have called "whistleblowers."

The two others, also from the State Department, are Mark Thompson, deputy coordinator for operations in the Counterterrorism Bureau, and Eric Nordstrom, the top security officer in Libya in the months leading up to the attack.

Republican lawmaker Darrell Issa, who heads the committee said on his Twitter feed Saturday the three have "critical info" about the attack "that differs from what Admin officials have portrayed."

John Kerry, who took over from Clinton, has denied claims the State Department had failed to be transparent enough.

"Look there's an enormous amount of misinformation out there," he said, adding his chief of staff David Wade was now closely in touch with Congress to answer any lawmakers' questions.
 

06 May, 2013

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Source: http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/world/2013/05/05/U-S-diplomat-disputes-initial-account-of-Benghazi-attack-.html
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Obama urged to train, provide intelligence to Syria rebels

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The intensifying debate in the United States over what to do about Syria comes as Israel struck Syrian targets for the second time this week. (AFP)

U.S. lawmakers called Sunday on President Barack Obama to provide intelligence and training to Syrian rebels through Arab states to speed the fall of the regime of President Bashar al-Assad.

Representative Mike Rogers, chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, said such a combination should also aim to leave a stabilizing force in place in Syria after Assad's fall -- without committing U.S. ground forces.

"U.S. leadership through intelligence and training" -- in coordination with Arab League partners -- "could be hugely helpful to bringing the regime down quicker, number one, and try to at least have a stabilizing force exist after this happens," he said on CBS's "Face the Nation."

The intensifying debate in the United States over what to do about Syria comes as Israel struck Syrian targets for the second time this week and follows U.S. and other intelligence assessments that the Syrian regime has used chemical weapons.

Obama, who had warned that use of chemical weapons would be a "game changer," has pressed for further evidence before taking action.

Rogers, a Republican, said the situation in Syria was "deteriorating by the day" with thousands of foreign fighters flooding into the country on both sides of the civil war, creating an unstable mix.

They include Lebanon-based Hezbollah fighters who back the Assad regime and thousands of foreign fighters joining the al-Qaeda-linked al-Nusra Front on the rebel said, he said.

The ranking Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, Dutch Ruppersberger, said the looming question was what happens after Assad falls, adding, "We can't be the sheriff for the whole world."

"So when we move and make the move to go in, we have to do it with a coalition, the Arab coalition and other countries in the area," he said.

"We have resources no other country has, and we have to make sure to use them. Some of the resources we have are the training of people fighting and the intelligence," he said.
 

06 May, 2013

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Source: http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/world/2013/05/05/Obama-urged-to-train-provide-intelligence-to-Syria-rebels-.html
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Egypt court keeps activist in jail as trial starts

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Political activist Ahmed Douma began his online activism before the 2011 uprising that swept president Hosni Mubarak from power. (Photo from his Facebook page)

A prominent Egyptian blogger and political activist went on trial on Sunday charged with insulting President Mohamed Mursi, in a case his supporters see as evidence of an escalating crackdown on dissent.

Ahmed Douma is on trial for calling Mursi a criminal and a murderer during recent media interviews. His arrest on April 30is the latest in several moves against dissidents accused of insulting the president elected last June.

Such cases have triggered criticism from the United States, which provides Egypt with $1.5 billion a year in aid, most of it for the military. It has accused Cairo of trying to silence Mursi's critics. The president says he respects freedom of expression.

Witnesses said 15 truckloads of riot police were deployed near the court in Tanta, 100 km (60 miles) north of Cairo.

The court rejected a request by Douma's lawyers for his release. Khaled Ali, one of the lawyers and a former candidate for the presidency, told the court there was no justification for his client to be kept in detention, Egypt's state news agency reported.

The judge referred the case to another court and set a May13 date for the next hearing.

Douma began his online activism before the 2011 uprising that swept president Hosni Mubarak from power.

Heba Morayef, Egypt director with New York-based Human Rights Watch, said the start of Douma's trial marked a "procedural escalation" against such dissidents.

Mursi and his Islamist supporters have been fiercely critical of independently owned media they accuse of routinely printing false news about the president and the group.

Two dozen cases of "insulting the president" were brought in Egypt in the first 200 days of Mursi's rule - four times as many as during Mubarak's 30 years in power, according to a report by an Egyptian human rights group.

The presidency denies it wants to crush dissent. Mursi has pointed to his banning of pre-trial detention of journalists as proof of his commitment to a free press.

But his supporters still have the right to file formal legal complaints against his media detractors, and Egyptian law gives wide scope for prosecution on the grounds of defamation.

Television satirist Bassem Youssef, who is often compared to American "Daily Show" comedian Jon Stewart, was summoned by the state prosecutor for questioning in March for allegedly insulting Mursi and Islam.
 

06 May, 2013

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Source: http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2013/05/05/Egypt-court-keeps-activist-in-jail-as-trial-starts.html
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Algeria opposition party elects new hardline chief

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A delegate shouts at other delegates protesting the results of the last parliamentary election, during the opening session of the new National Assembly in Algiers May 26, 2012. (Reuters)

Algeria's largest opposition party has elected a new hardline leader, in a sign it plans to harden its resistance to government policies, the Associated Press reported.

The Movement for Society of Peace elected Abderazak Mokri, who said he hopes to unite the country's Islamist parties and bring about an Arab Spring in Algeria.

Algeria's Islamist parties suffered a surprising defeat in elections last year - bucking the trend seen elsewhere in the Arab world.

Mokri said after his election on Saturday night that he would work to regain the trust of voters disappointed by the many years MSP supported the government in a ruling collation. The party left that coalition last year. He also said he thought President Abdelaziz Bouteflika, who recently suffered a minor stroke, should not seek a fourth term next year.

Police beat protestors outside the parliament

Earlier on Sunday, Algerian police beat tens of young people with batons as they protested outside parliament about a lack of job security, and arrested several, an opposition MP told AFP.

"This morning, almost 200 young people gathered peacefully outside parliament to make MPs aware of their difficult situation. Police beat them with their batons and arrested seven of them," said Ahmed Betatache, head of the opposition Socialist Forces Front (FFS).

"I was beaten by the policemen even though they know who I am," he added.

Betatache had gone along with another MP from his party to talk to the protesters.

"It is ironic that at the very same time, a debate about press freedom was taking place in parliament," he said.

The young protesters, who work on pre-employment contracts, were "demanding their integration to stop this slavery," Betatache told AFP.

These unsecure jobs do not even pay the minimum wage of around 180 euros ($240) per month, and do not guarantee future work.

The FFS in a statement sent to AFP condemned "this savage repression" of the young demonstrators, as well as "the attack on the head of its parliamentary grouping, in violation of his political immunity".

Algeria is plagued by high youth unemployment affecting 21.5 percent of those under 35, according to estimates from state agencies and the International Monetary Fund. Nationwide unemployment stands at 10 percent.

But those in work are also dissatisfied with their situation, and private and public sector health workers began a series of actions on Sunday to call for better working conditions.

The situation is worse in the south, an underdeveloped but hydrocarbons-rich region flooded by job seekers from the north.

Health workers have held sit-ins and demonstrations in Algiers' Mustapha-Pacha hospital center, the most important in the country, and accused authorities of being deaf to their "legitimate demands".

For several weeks, Algeria has been hit by strikes not only in the health sector, but also among education and transport workers.

06 May, 2013

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Source: http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/africa/2013/05/05/Algeria-opposition-party-elects-new-hardline-chief.html
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A decade’s history of Israeli attacks on Syria

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Israeli warplanes struck areas in and around the Syrian capital Sunday, setting off a series of explosions. (Al Arabiya)

Israeli warplanes struck areas in and around the Syrian capital Sunday, setting off a series of explosions as they targeted a shipment of highly accurate, Iranian-made guided missiles believed to be on their way to Lebanon's Hezbollah militant group, officials and activists said.

The attack, the second in three days, signaled a sharp escalation of Israel's involvement in Syria's bloody civil war.

In 40 years, since a war with Syria then ruled by Hafez Assad, Israel has been locked in a cold standoff with Damascus. And since 2000, with Bashar al-Assad as Syrian president, Israeli attacks against the country were reported frequently.

The beginning was in July 2001, when Israeli warplanes attacked Syrian military radar in Lebanon, responding to a Hezbollah attack against Israeli bases in the Shebaa Farms, a small uninhabited territory claimed by Lebanon yet occupied by Israel.

But what has been considered as the first overt Israeli military operation in Syria since 1973, was The Ain es Saheb airstrike, which occurred on October 5, 2003. Israel targeted Palestinian militants in the Ain es Saheb training camp, 25 kilometers northwest of the Syrian capital Damascus, in response to the suicide bombing in Haifa 12 hours earlier by the Palestinian Islamic Jihad. The Israel Defense Forces [IDF] claimed the camp was used to train recruits in bomb assembly and guerrilla warfare.

In June, 2006, Israel sent four F-16s over different parts of Syria and Lebanon as a warning to Damascus. According to the Israeli Air Force, the planes flew low for several minutes over Assad's summer residence in Latakia in northern Syria, after easily getting through the country's radar defenses. The F-16s broke the sound barrier over Latakia as well as over Beirut. The planes arrived back at base without incident.

Again on September 6, 2007, Israel led Operation Orchard, an Israeli air and commando mission against Syria's alleged nuclear program. The mission targeted a "Nuclear reactor" near the city of Deir ez-zour according to [IDF].

In November 2011, after a few months before the uprising in Syria started, Israel fired shells into the country after mortars fell on the Israeli part of the Golan Heights, during clashes between the Syrian regime army & the Free Syrian Army. A similar incident happened on March 24, 2013, when Israel destroyed a machine-gun position in the Golan Heights from which shots were fired at Israeli soldiers in a further spillover from Syria's civil war.

Finally, Jamraya was also attacked by Israeli warplanes earlier this year, on January 30. The target was a convoy carrying sophisticated antiaircraft weaponry, which was allegedly on its way to Hezbollah's Shiite militia wing in Lebanon.

In all former occasions, and throughout the years, Syrian authorities always had the same statement after every attack "Syria retains the right to respond."
 

06 May, 2013

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Source: http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2013/05/05/A-decade-s-history-of-Israeli-attacks-on-Syria.html
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Syrian rebels enter northern air base

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Rebels have been trying to capture Mannagh air base for months but were only able to take small parts of it. (AFP)

Rebels occupied Sunday parts of a military air base in northern Syria after days of fighting with government troops who have been defending the sprawling position for months, activists said.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said rebels moved deep inside Mannagh air base, near the border with Turkey, despite fire from government warplanes. The Aleppo Media Center says rebels captured a tank unit inside the base and that the base commander, Brig. Gen. Ali Salim Mahmoud, was killed.

The fighting came hours after Israeli warplanes struck areas in and around the Syrian capital, setting off a series of explosions as they targeted a shipment of highly accurate, Iranian-made guided missiles believed to be bound for Lebanon's Hezbollah militant group, officials and activists said.

The attack, the second in three days and the third this year, signaled a sharp escalation of Israel's involvement in Syria's civil war. Syrian state media reported that Israeli missiles struck a military and scientific research center near Damascus and caused casualties.

Rebels have launched a wave of attacks on military air bases around the country in the past months in an attempt to deprive the army of a key weapon used to target anti-government forces.

Rebels have been trying to capture Mannagh air base for months but were only able to take small parts of it. The sprawling base has been under siege since last year.

The Observatory said rebels also fired mortar rounds at the Abu Zuhour air base in northwestern Idlib province. It did not say if there were casualties.

The Observatory also reported heavy fighting inside the contested town of Qusair near the Lebanese border. Troops captured several villages and towns surrounding Qusair in the past month.

The Local Coordination Committees, another activist group, said Syrian warplanes bombarded the northern Damascus neighborhood of Qaboun. It also reported air raids on the northern province of Raqq and the eastern region of Deir el-Zour.

The Syrian conflict started with largely peaceful protests against President Bashar Assad's regime in March 2011, but eventually turned into a civil war that has killed more than 70,000 people according to the United Nations.
 

06 May, 2013

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Source: http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2013/05/05/Syrian-rebels-enter-northern-air-base-.html
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Killings hike tension in Abyei area disputed by Sudans

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High tension after tribal chief, peacekeeper die in Abyei region. (AFP)

Tension and anger on Sunday gripped the Abyei region disputed by Sudan and South Sudan after the killing of a tribal chief and at least one peacekeeper, residents said, as the U.N. boosted security.

The Sudanese foreign ministry condemned the "isolated incident" which killed Kual Deng Majok, the top Ngok Dinka leader in Abyei.

Khartoum said members of the Misseriya tribe, the other dominant group in the area, also died in Saturday's incident, along with three peacekeepers from the U.N. Interim Security Force for Abyei (UNISFA).

The United Nations earlier said one Ethiopian peacekeeper died and two other Blue Helmets were seriously wounded in the "attack by a Misseriya assailant on a UNISFA convoy".

The foreign ministry expressed hope that the killings will not affect improving relations with South Sudan, whose army spokesman also condemned the violence.

"It looks like Dinka are very angry," one local resident told AFP.

He reported fire burning in Abyei's town Centre, where Misseriya run small shops.

A curfew was in effect, with UNISFA setting up extra checkpoints trying to restrict movement and prevent gatherings, the resident said on condition of anonymity.

The resident, who is familiar with the incident, said five Misseriya died in Saturday's skirmish.

"There is high tension and all sides are alert, ready for anything," but no new fighting occurred on Sunday, Mohammed al-Ansari, a Misseriya chief in Abyei, told AFP.

The U.N. humanitarian coordinator for South Sudan, Toby Lanzer, said on Twitter that UNISFA was "expanding patrols with [the] aim of maintaining calm".

But South Sudan's army spokesman, Philip Aguer, said the killings show the 4,000-member UNISFA needs to be strengthened "so that it can provide full security".

U.N. chief Ban Ki-moon urged both tribes and governments to "avoid any escalation of this unfortunate event," a statement said.

Abyei's status has not been resolved despite steps which Sudan and South Sudan have taken since March to normalize their relations in other areas, after months of intermittent clashes along their undemarcated frontier.

"The government of Sudan renews its commitment to all the agreements that have been signed with South Sudan," Khartoum affirmed after Majok's death.

Abyei's status was the most sensitive issue left unsettled when South Sudan separated from Sudan in 2011.

The territory was to hold a referendum in January 2011 on whether it belonged with the north or South, but disagreement on who could vote stalled the ballot.

Majok was heading north from Abyei town with UNISFA when they were stopped by a group of Misseriya, a Misseriya leader said.

Despite negotiations, "a clash happened when a UNISFA soldier shot one of the Misseriya who was readying his weapon," said the Misseriya chief who asked to remain anonymous.

Majok and his driver were killed in the ensuing clash, he said.

Dinka are a dominant tribe in South Sudan and made up the majority of Abyei's permanent residents, but large numbers of nomadic Arab Misseriya have traditionally used the territory's pasture and water sources for their cattle.

After Misseriya surrounded Majok's convoy, negotiations continued "for a long time" until a Misseriya youth, shouting and armed with a weapon, climbed onto the roof of Majok's car, said the Abyei resident familiar with the situation.

"At some point a bullet came from one side," triggering an exchange of fire, he said.

Majok's death is the most serious incident since Sudanese troops withdrew in May last year to end a year-long occupation that forced more than 100,000 people to flee Abyei towards South Sudan.

While Sudan and South Sudan have been implementing timetables set out in March for restoring relations, they have not met deadlines they also agreed upon to set up Abyei's administrative structure, including a police service.

06 May, 2013

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Source: http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/africa/2013/05/05/Killings-hike-tension-in-Abyei-area-disputed-by-Sudans-.html
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Bangladesh building-collapse toll tops 600

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Rescue workers carry the remains of a garment worker retrieved from the rubble of the collapsed Rana Plaza building in Savar, 30 km outside Dhaka May 5, 2013. (Reuters)

More than 600 bodies have been recovered from the garment-factory building that collapsed well over a week ago, police said Sunday as the grim recovery work continued in one of the worst industrial accidents ever.

Police said Sunday night that the death toll had reached 622. Well over 200 bodies have been recovered since Wednesday, when authorities said only 149 people had been listed as missing. The stench of decomposing bodies remains amid the broken concrete of the eight-story Rana Plaza building, and it is anyone's guess how many victims remain to be recovered.

The April 24 disaster is likely the worst garment-factory accident ever, and there have been few industrial accidents of any kind with a higher death toll. It surpassed long-ago garment-industry disasters such as New York's Triangle Shirtwaist factory fire, which killed 146 workers in 1911, and more recent tragedies such as a 2012 fire that killed about 260 people in Pakistan and one in Bangladesh that same year that killed 112.

An architect whose firm designed the building said Sunday that it had not been designed to handle heavy industrial equipment, let alone the three floors that were later illegally added. The equipment used by the five garment factories that occupied Rana Plaza included huge generators that were turned on shortly before the building crumbled.

Masood Reza, an architect with Vastukalpa Consultants, said the building was designed in 2004 as a shopping mall and not for any industrial purpose.

"We designed the building to have three stories for shops and another two for offices. I don't know how the additional floors were added and how factories were allowed on the top floors," Reza said.

"Don't ask me anything else. This is now a sensitive issue," Reza said before hanging up.

Government officials say substandard building materials, combined with the vibration of the heavy machines used by the factories, led to the collapse.

The building developed cracks a day before the collapse and the owner, Mohammed Sohel Rana, called engineer Abdur Razzak Khan to inspect it. Khan appeared on television that night and said he told Rana the building should be evacuated.

Police also issued an evacuation order, but witnesses say that hours before the collapse, Rana told people that the building was safe and garment factory managers told their workers to go inside.

Rana has been arrested is expected to be charged with negligence, illegal construction and forcing workers to join work, crimes punishable by a maximum of seven years in jail. Authorities have not said if more serious crimes will be added.

Khan was arrested as well. Police said he worked as a consultant to Rana when the three illegal floors were added.

The government promised to make the garment industry safer after the November garment factory fire that killed 112 people, saying it would inspect factories for safety and pull the licenses of those that failed. That plan has yet to be implemented.

Bangladesh's $20 billion garment industry supplies retailers around the world and accounts for about 80 percent of the impoverished country's exports. The collapse has raised strong doubts about retailers' claims that they could ensure worker safety through self-regulation.

Bangladesh is popular as a source of clothing largely because of its cheap labor. The minimum wage for a garment worker is $38 a month, after being nearly doubled this year following violent protests by workers. According to the World Bank, the per capita income in Bangladesh was about $64 a month in 2011.

The European Union has said it could restrict Bangladesh's access to its crucial market if it fails to ensure that basic labor standards are enforced.

"We are going to make it very clear to the Bangladeshi government that they have to take immediate action with a precise timeline," EU Trade Commissioner Karel de Gucht told Sky News. Otherwise, he said, the EU will conduct an investigation that could lead to trade restrictions.

"Not because we want to hurt Bangladesh, but because what is happening is simply not acceptable," he said. "From a humane point of view, we cannot afford that and we have to do something about it."

06 May, 2013

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Source: http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/asia/2013/05/05/Bangladesh-building-collapse-toll-tops-600.html
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Clashes and bombing kill six Pakistani troops

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A picture showing Pakistani security officials examine the site of twin bomb blasts in Peshawar earlier. (AFP)

Military operations and insurgent attacks in lawless districts of Pakistan left six troops and nearly 30 militants and criminal suspects dead on Sunday, officials said.

Two soldiers and 16 militants were killed in clashes in the Tirah Valley area of the Khyber tribal region in the northwest, the military said in a statement. Another three soldiers were wounded in the remote mountainous district near the Afghan border.

The army launched an offensive last month into the valley targeting the Pakistani Taliban and an allied group, Lashkar-e-Islam. The military statement said the latest fighting forced the militants to flee from two of their hideouts, leaving behind a huge cache of arms and ammunition.

In the North Waziristan tribal region, another northwestern district bordering Afghanistan, a roadside bomb attack on a convoy killed two soldiers and wounded three, said two Pakistani intelligence officials. They spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to talk to the media.

The tribal region is home to both Pakistani and Afghan militant groups, including al-Qaida-linked organizations with significant numbers of foreign fighters. The military conducts sweeps against the insurgents, inflicting losses but not preventing them from striking back with roadside bombs and ambushes targeting soldiers, government-allied militias, anti-militant politicians, and others.

Also Sunday, two members of the paramilitary Frontier Corps were killed in clashes in the Bolan district of the southwestern province of Baluchistan, said government official Waheed Shah. He said the fight also killed 13 "criminals" suspected in kidnappings and robberies.

The southwestern province has seen for years a low-level insurgency by nationalist groups who want a greater share of regional resources of oil and gas. Lawlessness in the region has also allowed sectarian groups and criminal gangs to operate.
 

06 May, 2013

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Source: http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/asia/2013/05/05/At-least-six-Pakistani-troops-killed-clashes-and-bombing-.html
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Algeria court sentences two Islamists to death, lawyer says

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Algerian law offers amnesty to Islamist fighters who do not have blood on their hands. (AFP)

Two Islamists accused of killing 500 people during Algeria's civil war, including the rape and murder of 60 women, were sentenced to death on Sunday, an AFP correspondent said.

The judge sentenced Djilali Kouri, 32, and Antar Ali, 35, to death for "founding and running a terrorist group that killed and spread terror among the population and that murdered hundreds of civilians and soldiers" between 1996 and 2004.

Kouri and Ali admitted having killed members of the security forces in the civil war, but denied raping and killing civilians.

"Kouri has already been sentenced to death for some of the charges against him, but sought acquittal on the other counts," said Brahim Behloul, the court-appointed lawyer for both accused.

"Antar Ali asked to be considered under the Civil Concord law," said Behloul, referring to a law adopted by referendum in 1999 to encourage thousands of Islamists to surrender in exchange for a pardon.

The law offers amnesty to Islamist fighters who do not have blood on their hands.

Ali and Kouri told investigators they were part of a group of Islamist fighters in the Chlef region during the civil war, and took part in operations in other areas.

The Algerian press has reported that the pair confessed to killing soldiers and members of auxiliary units in northern Algeria, as well as taking part in the rape and murder of scores of women.

While they admitted in court killing members of the security forces, they denied involvement in the rape and murder of civilians.

"I admit having participated in the killing of five soldiers and five municipal guards, but I did not massacre civilians and rape women," Kouri told the court.

Ali also said that he had "taken part in ambushes against the military," but denied playing a role in the massacre of civilians.

"I did not commit massacres, I was fighting the authorities. I'm not a terrorist, I am myself a victim," he told the court.

As the verdict was read out, a mother of one of the victims stood up and shouted "Long live Algeria! Long live justice!"

While Algerian courts still hand down the death penalty, it is no longer applied under a moratorium adopted in 1993.

Originally the trial had been set for April 1, but Antar Ali rejected the court-appointed lawyer to defend him, causing a postponement.

The civil war, which broke out after the government annulled an election won by the Islamic Salvation Front, killed around 200,000 people according to official estimates.

05 May, 2013

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Source: http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/africa/2013/05/05/Algeria-court-sentences-two-Islamists-to-death-lawyer-says.html
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Iraq says Turkey controlling protests

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Defense minister Saadun al-Dulaimi also had harsh words for the protesters themselves. (AFP)

Acting defense minister Saadun al-Dulaimi on Sunday accused Turkey of controlling Sunni anti-government protests in Shiite-majority Iraq, saying the demonstrations are a haven for "terrorists and killers."

"There are foreign agendas controlling these sites," Dulaimi said of the protests.

"It is like Anbar, or Mosul or Samarra are part of the Ottoman Empire," he said, referring to Sunni areas in Iraq.

Areas of what is now Iraq were part of the Ottoman Empire, which was governed from Istanbul in what is now Turkey, before the empire's dissolution after World War I.

Ties between Baghdad and Ankara have been strained by issues including Turkey hosting Tareq al-Hashemi, Iraq's fugitive former vice president who has been sentenced to death on charges including murder.

Dulaimi also had harsh words for the protesters themselves.

"Shame... on those sites that are opening their doors to Istanbul or any other country," he said.

"Protest sites have become a safe haven for terrorists and killers and those who call for strife, sectarianism and hate."

The protests broke out in Sunni areas of Shiite-majority Iraq more than four months ago.

Demonstrators have called for the resignation of Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki, a Shiite, and criticized authorities for allegedly targeting their community with wrongful detentions and accusations of involvement in terrorism.

On April 23, security forces moved on protesters near the town of Hawijah in Kirkuk province, sparking clashes that killed 53 people.

Dozens more died in subsequent unrest that included revenge attacks targeting security forces, raising fears of a return to the all-out sectarian conflict that claimed tens of thousands of lives between 2006 and 2008.
 

05 May, 2013

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Source: http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2013/05/05/Iraq-says-Turkey-controlling-protests.html
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Libya passes law banning former Qaddafi officials from government

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People protest at "Freedom Square'" near the courthouse in Benghazi, to demand the government remove all former officers from Muammar Qaddafi's regime from their current positions January 18, 2013 (Reuters)

Libya's General National Congress unanimously approves 'Political Isolation Law' on Sunday, Al Arabiya correspondent reported.

Libya's parliament passed a law banning anyone who held a senior position during Muammar Qaddafi's 42-year rule from working for the new administration, a move that could force the prime minister to step down.

Prime Minister Ali Zeidan was a diplomat before defecting in 1980 and joining the opposition. The wording of the law adopted has not made it immediately clear whether or not he was senior enough to be barred from the new government.

The law bans individuals who had played any political, economic and educational role in supporting Qaddafi from holding senior positions in the country , Al Arabiya's correspondent cited the parliament's statement as saying.

The ban also includes individuals who had used religion to diminish and discourage people from participating in the Libyan revolution that broke out in Feb. 2011 and toppled Qaddafi, the statement added.
 

05 May, 2013

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Source: http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2013/05/05/Libya-passes-law-banning-former-Qaddafi-officials-from-government.html
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Malaysians vote, with power at stake for first time

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Malaysian voters queue to cast their votes during the country's 13th general elections in Kuala Lumpur on May 5, 2013. (AFP)

Malaysians voted in record numbers in Sunday's general election, with one of the world's longest-serving governments facing a serious threat from an upstart opposition that pledges sweeping reform.

Early results were mixed, more than four hours after polls closed at 5 p.m. (0900 GMT), with each side seeing both gains and losses as votes were slowly tallied.

The Election Commission said a record of about 80 percent of 13 million registered voters -- or more than 10 million people -- had turned out, in polls dogged by controversy from the start.

Analysts have said high turnout could benefit the opposition led by Anwar Ibrahim over the ruling coalition dominated by the United Malays National Organization (UMNO), which has had a lock on power since independence in 1957.

"There is clearly, undeniably, a major groundswell and a major shift among the population across ethnic lines," Anwar, 65, said after he voted earlier Sunday in his constituency in the northern state of Penang.

"Inshallah (God willing), we will win."

Voters in the multi-ethnic nation swamped the Internet with accusations that Prime Minister Najib Razak's government sought to steal the election, as indelible ink that he touted as a guarantee against fraud was found to be easily washed off.

The complaints added to a host of allegations by the opposition Pakatan Rakyat (People's Pact) alliance of irregularities that have raised the spectre of a disputed result.

The three-party Pakatan led by charismatic former UMNO star Anwar stunned the country with historic gains in 2008 polls and is gunning for a landmark victory.

Najib's 13-party Barisan Nasional (National Front) coalition is favoured to keep power. But Anwar has been feted by massive crowds on the stump and recent opinion polls have suggested a race too close to call.

Pakatan has gained traction with pledges to end ruling-party corruption and authoritarianism, and to reform controversial affirmative-action policies for majority Malays. Anwar says they are abused by a corrupt Malay elite.

Najib has offered limited political reforms but a largely stay-the-course vision for the mainly Muslim nation.

The ink was introduced for the first time and touted by Najib and the Election Commission -- widely viewed as Barisan-controlled -- as proving their commitment to fair polls.

It is applied to a person's finger to show they have voted.

But voters like Halim Mohamad, 77, said the ink washed right off even though it is supposed to last several days.

"This is cheating. I was shocked when it came off," he told AFP after voting in Penang, showing his cleaned index finger. "I complained to an Election Commission official and he just laughed."

The opposition had already alleged numerous irregularities including a charge that tens of thousands of "dubious" and possibly foreign voters were flown to key constituencies to sway results.

The government has said the flights were part of a voter-turnout drive but has provided no details, while Najib tweeted Sunday that no foreigners were drafted in.

"We are committed to a fair election," he said.

But videos, pictures and first-hand accounts of purportedly foreign "voters" being turned away from polling centres went viral online.

Anwar was deputy premier until his ousting in a 1998 power struggle with then-premier Mahathir Mohamad, and his jailing for six years on sex charges widely viewed as trumped up.

He later brought his pan-racial appeal to the once-divided opposition, dramatically reversing its fortunes.

Najib's ethnic Malay-dominated regime retains powerful advantages, including control of traditional media, key institutions and an electoral landscape which critics say is biased.

Najib has predicted chaos and racial strife under Pakatan, which includes Anwar's multiracial party, one led by ethnic Chinese and another representing conservative Muslim Malays.

"It's a tight run. But I'm not scared, I'm excited," retiree H.Y. Ong said of the race before voting in the capital Kuala Lumpur.

"The times have changed, they (the government) need to change. Money politics should be controlled," he added, while not divulging his voting preference.

05 May, 2013

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Source: http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/2013/05/05/Malaysians-vote-with-power-at-stake-for-first-time.html
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Egypt says Arab peace proposal to Israel unchanged

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Egyptian Foreign Minister Mohamed Kamel Amr said there had been no change in the Arab League's 2002 plan. (AFP)

Egypt denied Sunday that an Arab League Middle East peace plan was amended to include land swaps between Israel and a future Palestinian state, after Qatar suggested Arab acceptance of the proposal.

Qatari Prime Minister Hamad bin Jassim had said an Arab League delegation that met U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry in Washington last month recognized the possibility of a land swap.

His statement was welcomed by the United States, the main broker in talks between the Palestinians and Israel, and by the Jewish state itself.

But Egyptian Foreign Minister Mohamed Kamel Amr said there had been no change in the Arab League's 2002 plan, which called on Israel to withdraw from all territories it occupied in 1967 in return for diplomatic recognition.

"Any talk of land swaps being merged into the proposal is not true," Amr told reporters.

The Palestinians have played down a shift in the Arab League's stance, saying they had already agreed in past talks with Israel on minor land swaps in which Israel would retain some settlement blocs in the West Bank.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has categorically rejected outright any return to what he has said would be the "indefensible" lines before June 4, 1967.
 

05 May, 2013

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Source: http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2013/05/05/Egypt-says-Arab-peace-proposal-to-Israel-unchanged.html
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Syria says Israel strike ‘opens door to all possibilities’

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An image grab taken from the state-run Syrian TV on May 5, 2013, shows Syria's Information Minister Omran al-Zohbi as he gives a press conference in Damascus, following Israeli air strikes on Syria. (AFP)

Syria's government condemned Israel's attacks on Damascus early Sunday saying that the "Israeli aggression opens the door to all possibilities," without elaborating on any potential retaliation.

Syrian Information Minister, Omran al-Zoubi, said in a press conference that the Israeli aggression has made the region "more dangerous."

The statement comes after Israeli strikes earlier on Sunday hit a military target outside Damascus. The attack was considered to be the Jewish state's second reported raid on Syria this week, with residents saying it felt like an earthquake and turned the sky red, reported AFP.

The Arab league has also demanded on Sunday that the U.N. Security Council "act immediately to end Israeli attacks on Syria," which it described as a "dangerous violation of an Arab state's sovereignty," AFP said.

The Egyptian presidency has also condemned the aggression saying the air strikes "violated international law and principles that will further complicate the situation."

The sites targeted were -- a military facility, a nearby weapons depot and an anti-aircraft unit in Sabura -- a diplomatic source in Beirut told AFP.

The official SANA news agency said Israel targeted the military research center at Jamraya, northwest of Damascus, without giving details on casualties or damage.

"This new Israeli aggression is a clear attempt to alleviate the pressure on the armed terrorist groups after our army beat them back in several regions and after the army's victories on the road to recovering security and stability in Syria," SANA said.

The Syrian government made a statement Sunday morning saying the Israeli strikes managed to kill and wound several people as well as causing an evident amount of damage.
 

05 May, 2013

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Source: http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2013/05/05/Syria-says-Israel-strike-opens-door-to-all-possibilities-.html
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Thousands march in Morocco against child abuse

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Thousands of people marched in Casablanca on Sunday to protest against child sexual abuse in Morocco. (Reuters)

Thousands of people marched in Casablanca on Sunday to protest against child sexual abuse in Morocco after a harrowing assault last month nearly killed a nine-year-old girl.

Many protesters, including many mothers and local celebrities, dressed from head to toe in white and carried white roses as they marched along the corniche, an AFP photographer said.

During the protest, organized by a coalition of rights activists calling themselves "Fi-ou" (Wake Up), demonstrators chanted slogans calling for children to be protected and denounced pedophilia.

"Our goal is to ensure pedophilia is listed in the penal code because so far it is only referred to as 'aggravated rape'," said Valerie Morales-Attias, one of the organizers.

Last month the child named as Wiam was found unconscious in a pool of blood by her 6-year-old brother after a neighbor in a village of the Sidi Kacem region in northwest Morocco sexually abused and beat her, media reports said.

The man, a father said to be "mentally ill," dragged the child to a field where he attacked her using a sickle, the reports said.

Wiam was operated on for seven hours to repair several fractures, a broken tendon and a ripped ear, her surgeon Tazi El Hassen told AFP.

"She is no longer in danger. It was a miracle" she survived, Hassen said, adding that she was also being monitored by psychologists.

Pictures of Wiam in hospital show the child with a bandage around her head and chin, her right eye taped shut and her face bruised black and blue. Her right hand is also heavily bandaged.

Wiam's ordeal prompted the coalition of activists and local figures to organize Sunday's so called "White March" in tribute to her and to other children sexually abused in Morocco.

"We know that Wiam is not the only victim of such crimes," the organizers said in a statement.

"Hundreds of children, whose stories are not published by the media, are regularly raped and abused without anyone knowing,"

Two years ago 16-year-old Amina Filali committed suicide after her family forced her to marry a man who had raped her.

Under Article 475 of Morocco's penal code, a suspected rapist is spared judicial proceedings if he marries his victim.

 

05 May, 2013

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Source: http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/africa/2013/05/05/Thousands-march-in-Morocco-against-child-abuse-.html
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