Monday, February 28, 2005


The Nefarious Wal-Mart Posted by Hello

When does all the violence in Iraq stop? When Lebanon gets a Lebanese government as well?

This is the old entry from February 2, 2005. I basically believe that an accord for peace with the Sunnis ultimately has to be the answer. The Sunnis removed themselves from a democratic process when The USA lead Coalition attacked Fallujah. It was after that they withdrew diplomats from the Iraqi Coalition Process including any elections.

Below the Saudis may feel differently.

...................................................

http://stopwarsaveearth.blogspot.com/2005_02_01_stopwarsaveearth_archive.html

Next Steps in Iraq
The New Iraqi Coalition Government needs to address The United Nations General Assembly to bring to bear a resolution taking The Dayton Peace Accords as a model to bring about a stable and peaceful Iraq. The parites involved in such a process will have to be representatives from the new 'elected' government and representatives of the Sunnis who were wrongfully estranged from the political process in Iraq by the wrongful aggressions in Fallujah by Bush. There was no voting in that hamlet due to the resistance of the Sunnis.The USA Republican Neocons have no peaceful measure for Iraq following the elections. They say there should be no 'artifical' deadlines for withdrawal of troops from Iraq but yet there have been plenty of artifical deadlines for every other date set arbitrarily. Sistani may have insisted the voting go forward but he didn't set the initial date which excluded most of the Sunnis, an entire ethnic division.The New York Times editorial is embellished in it's attempt to justify an unnecessary war by looking the other way at the methods this election was achieved and the level of dead and innocent Iraqis that will never grow into adulthood or those that would have voted but were denied life because of a very poorly conceived, illegal and immoral invasion.All of this could have happened by removing Saddam and without endangering the people of Iraq. It happened in Bosnia and Herzegovina and with that I point out what should have been the focus the editorial. The New York Times chronically panders to this president either out of it's inability to reach beyond the violence or it's refusal to do so. Pandering to criminals is the last thing this newspaper should be doing.THE NEXT STEP IN IRAQ IS NOT MILITARY. Is is however the de-escalation of the confrontation that started the most violent movement yet in Iraq resulted from the alienation of the Sunnis. I propose the use of Bosnia-Herzegovina as a model for the stabilization of Iraq and NATO ,which Russia is longing to be a part of, has the most experience in this area.The USA military never provided comfort to the people of Iraq as the reconstruction never ensued and the monies were funneled instead into bolstering further confrontation of the Sunni rebels in Iraq. To finish the thought each ethnic group, of which two are already settled into peaceful strongholds and a third that finds itself injured and alienated could easily be seen as confronting boundaries with the need for stabilization with the addition of a 'centralized government' as a goal.The USA has to begin withdrawal. Our presence there is wrong and once again as with Bosnia-Herzegovina we need 'peacekeeping' and not further confrontation.The Dayton Agreement is a world renowned doctrine with it's inception realized under President Bill Clinton. Greatest again can be realized in Iraq by applying the basis of Dayton. Dayton formed a multi-ethnic and democratic government while maintaining the sovereign boundaries of each country.With that said, again, we are looking not to the war mongering Bush/Cheney who maintain their precense in the area to irritate Iran while securing their profits with Halliburton; but to the United Nations to settle the peace in Iraq and to NATO to organize it and decide it's 'tone' and approach.The USA needs to leave Iraq and stop Allawis co-dependancy on OUR military and not Iraq's.A look at Dayton:Dayton Peace AccordThere aren't many lawyers who can say they made a country.From 1991 to 1995, Yugoslavia was a nation torn apart by war. Friends, neighbors, even family members, were split along ethnic lines and bent on destroying one another. The three warring ethnic groups—the Bosnian Serbs, Bosnian Muslims and Bosnian Croats—shocked the conscience of the international community with their actions.The Dayton Peace Accords on BosniaText of documents related to the Dayton Peace Agreement which was initialed at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Dayton, Ohio on November 21, 1995 and signed in Paris on December 14, 1995. The agreement is known as the Dayton Peace Accords. An official print version of the accords will be made available in the U.S. Department of State Dispatch Supplement, Volume 7, Number 1.
posted by Elisa Barrett @
5:13 AM 0 comments

....................................................

Saudi-German Talks Focus on Iraq

RIYADH, 28 February 2005 — Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Fahd and Crown Prince Abdullah held talks here yesterday with visiting German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder on major international issues including Iraq and Palestine. The two sides also explored ways of strengthening relations.

Saud Rules Out Ties With Israel Before Peace Deal

JEDDAH, 28 February 2005 — Saudi Arabia will not make any contacts or relations with Israel until the Jewish state signs a comprehensive peace deal with Arabs, Foreign Minister Prince Saud Al-Faisal has said.

Israel Freezes Middle East Peace Moves

GAZA, 28 February 2005 — Israel yesterday froze the peace process with Palestinians and Prime Minister Ariel Sharon threatened retaliation for Friday night’s Tel Aviv attack if the Palestinian leadership does not crack down on militant groups.

Editorial: Reforms in Egypt

All nations which aspire to a genuine democracy must have at the forefront free and fair elections. They must, of their choosing, elect representatives who will be of the people and for the people. Any country lacking a genuine ballot box can only pretend to be democratic. In the Middle East, pretenses are now being pushed aside for the real thing. We have seen unprecedented elections in Iraq and Palestine and nationwide municipal elections in the Kingdom. Now Egypt is also to be added to the list of countries participating in democracy in the Middle East.

Western Pacific Satellite 28.02.2005 - Right side of satellite image shows the source referred to below. Posted by Hello

Pacific Global Satellite 28.02.2005 - This is ths source for the 'heat energy' of the Super Cell over northeast North America. Posted by Hello

This is GOES EAST Water Vapor Satellite 28.02.2005 - "Clink On" Hemispheric - Super Cell to Right


Super Cell of the Day - GOES EAST 28.02.2005 Posted by Hello

Morning Papers - Domestic - TOO MANY Chiefs and the Indians are getting poorer by the day.

The Washington Post

Region Braces for Winter Storm
Significant Snowfall Expected Across the Metro Area
By Fred Barbash
Washington Post Staff Writer
Monday, February 28, 2005; 8:07 AM
All major school systems announced closures this morning and the Federal government announced an "unscheduled leave" policy as the National Weather Service warned of a three- to- six inch snowfall across most of the Washington region with more expected further out to the west.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A59314-2005Feb28.html

Bush is going to kill all the Baleens. WHERE is the God Almighty War that requires this type of assault on the seas of this planet? BUSH IS AN ENVIRONMENTAL LUNATIC !!! GET AWAY FROM MY WHALES YOU FLYING IDIOTS. Go play war in the BATHTUB !!!!!!

U.S. Set to Oppose Efforts To Restrict Use of Sonar


By Marc KaufmanWashington Post Staff WriterMonday, February 28, 2005; Page A05
The Bush administration is strongly opposing international efforts to restrict the Navy's use of active sonar anywhere in the world, putting it at odds with European allies and several key ocean-protection organizations.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A58339-2005Feb27.html?nav=hcmodule

Bush Weighs Offers To Iran
U.S. Might Join Effort to Halt Nuclear Program
By Robin Wright
Washington Post Staff Writer
Monday, February 28, 2005; Page A01
The Bush administration is close to a decision to join Europe in offering incentives to Iran -- possibly including eventual membership in the World Trade Organization -- in exchange for Tehran's formal agreement to surrender any plans to develop a nuclear weapon, according to senior U.S. officials.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A58417-2005Feb27.html

Wild Horses Run Risk of Slaughter
Advocates Rally to Revive Ban
By Kimberly Edds
Special to The Washington Post
Monday, February 28, 2005; Page A15
After more than 30 years of roaming federal lands free of any threat of the slaughterhouse, wild mustangs, which have become synonymous with the spirit and heart of the American West, can now be sold and butchered for meat if the Bureau of Land Management cannot sell them elsewhere.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A58187-2005Feb27.html?nav=hcmodule

The New York Times

In City's Jails, Missed Signals Open Way to Season of Suicides
By PAUL von ZIELBAUER
Published: February 28, 2005

The warnings were right there in her medical file: a childhood of sexual abuse, a diagnosis of manic depression, a suicide attempt at age 13 - all noted when Carina Montes arrived at Rikers Island in September 2002.

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/02/28/nyregion/28jail.html?hp&ex=1109653200&en=df96641a227ac082&ei=5094&partner=homepage

Switch by Former Supporter Shows Evolution of Death Law
By SAM ROBERTS
Published: February 28, 2005

Helene E. Weinstein owes her Assembly seat, in part, to capital punishment.
In 1978, her father toppled the Assembly speaker, Stanley Steingut, a death penalty opponent, from his Brooklyn district, in an upset that sent shock waves through state politics. Two years later, Ms. Weinstein herself was elected to the seat, and consistently voted in favor of the death penalty.

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/02/28/nyregion/28death.html?

Relief, and Bewilderment, Over Arrest in Kansas Killings
By
MONICA DAVEY
Published: February 28, 2005

WICHITA, Kan., Feb. 27 - For those gathered inside Christ Lutheran Church on Sunday morning, the lasting images of Dennis L. Rader were simple, sweet moments. Just last Wednesday evening, for instance, he stopped by the church to drop off spaghetti sauce and salad for a potluck dinner before he went to visit his mother at the hospital.

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/02/28/national/28btk.html

U.S. Urges Judge to Dismiss Suit on Chemical Use in Vietnam War
By
WILLIAM GLABERSON
Published: February 28, 2005

The Justice Department is urging a federal judge in Brooklyn to dismiss a lawsuit aimed at forcing a re-examination of one of the most contentious issues of the Vietnam War, the use of the defoliant Agent Orange.

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/02/28/nyregion/28orange.html

Worldwide Anti-Tobacco Treaty Takes Effect
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published: February 28, 2005
GENEVA, Feb. 27 (AP) - A global anti-tobacco treaty came into effect on Sunday, but a leading expert said it needed strengthening quickly if it was to be effective in curbing smoking, which claims five million lives a year.

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/02/28/health/28tobacco.html

AH, AH, AH, as a Neocon would Scream, GERMS !!!!!

Novel Bacteria in Alaskan Ice May Be 32,000 Years Old
By NICHOLAS WADE
Published: February 26, 2005

NASA researchers say they have recovered bacteria that apparently lay dormant for 32,000 years in a frozen pond in central Alaska.
If confirmed, the finding means that there may be many other pockets of ancient life in permafrost and seafloor sediments. The hardiness of the bacteria also suggests that life could survive even on Mars, in places like the frozen sea reported by other researchers this week.

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/02/26/science/26germ.html

Desert Cool, Hot From the 50's

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/02/24/garden/24alex.html

The Seattle Post Intelligencer

5,000 cyclists huff and puff the Chilly Hilly
Sunshine, lack of skiing may have boosted numbers
By JESSICA BLANCHARD
SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER REPORTER
Whether they were inspired by champion cyclist Lance Armstrong, the need to improve their health or just a desire to enjoy the springlike day, thousands of cyclists from around the region journeyed to Bainbridge Island yesterday for the 33-mile Chilly Hilly recreational ride.

http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/213816_chilly28.html

13 states agree to raise H.S. standards
By BEN FELLER
AP EDUCATION WRITER

Gov. Bill Richardson, D-N.M., gestures during a planning session on redesigning high schools on Sunday, Feb. 27, 2005 in Washington. Governors from around the country are in Washington for the National Education Summit on High Schools, and the National Governors Association Winter Meetings. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
WASHINGTON -- A coalition of 13 states confirmed plans Sunday to require tougher high school courses and diploma requirements, changes that could affect about one in three students.

http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/national/apus_story.asp?category=1110&slug=Governors%20High%20Schools

Child tracing teams working hard in Aceh
By MARGIE MASON
ASSOCIATED PRESS WRITER

An Acehnese woman walks past by a list of missing children provided by UNICEF at a refugee camp in Mata Ie near the provincial capital of Banda Aceh, Aceh province, Indonesia, Friday, Feb. 18, 2005. Weeks after the earthquake and massive tsunami smashed the region, up to 10,000 children whose parents or other relatives went missing in the disaster have not been reunited with family members, aid officials said. (AP Photo/Dita Alangkara)

BANDA ACEH, Indonesia -- The last time Anshari saw his mother, she was screaming at him to flee up a mountain near their house as the tsunami's monster waves rushed at their village. The 10-year-old watched her wrap his baby brother in a traditional Indonesian cloth and prepare to follow him up the slope.

http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/national/apasia_story.asp?category=1104&slug=Tsunami%20Tracing%20Children

Black farmers seek compensation from gov't
By MALIA RULON
ASSOCIATED PRESS WRITER
WASHINGTON -- Thousands of black farmers who say they have been left out of a landmark civil rights case are turning to Congress as their last hope to get compensation for years of being denied loans by the government.

http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/national/apwashington_story.asp?category=1153&slug=Black%20Farmers

Report: Abbas says Mideast peace possible
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
LONDON -- Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas said in an interview published Monday that he believes peace with Israel is possible but added that ending violence is a mutual commitment.

http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/national/apeurope_story.asp?category=1103&slug=Britain%20Palestinian%20Leader

Ancient earth drawings found in Peru
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
LIMA, Peru -- Archaeologists have discovered a group of giant figures scraped into the hills of Peru's southern coastal desert that are believed to predate the country's famed Nazca lines.

http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/national/apscience_story.asp?category=1501&slug=Peru%20Earth%20Drawings

Canada Holocaust-denier ruling hailed
By BETH DUFF-BROWN
ASSOCIATED PRESS WRITER

Ernst Zundel speaks to reporters during a recess in his detention review with the Immigration and Refugee Board in Niagara Falls, Ontario, in this March 31, 2003 file photo. Jewish activists Friday Feb. 25, 2005 hailed a court ruling that allows Canada to deport German Holocaust denier Ernst Zundel to face prosecution at home. Zundel, author of "The Hitler We Loved and Why," has been held in a Toronto jail for two years while authorities determined whether he posed a security risk to Canadian society. (AP Photo/CP, Aaron Harris/ File)
TORONTO -- Jewish activists Friday hailed a court ruling that allows Canada to deport German Holocaust denier Ernst Zundel to face prosecution at home.

http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/national/apcanada_story.asp?category=1101&slug=Canada%20Holocaust%20Denier

Birth rate falls for Canadian grizzlies
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
CALGARY, Alberta -- Female grizzly bears are producing the fewest offspring ever in North America, a study said.

http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/national/apcanada_story.asp?category=1101&slug=Canada%20Dwindling%20Grizzlies

Calls to kill Sharon spiral before pullout
By STEVE WEIZMAN
ASSOCIATED PRESS WRITER

Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon attends the weekly cabinet meeting in Jerusalem Sunday Feb. 27, 2005. Sharon said Sunday that peace efforts with the Palestinians would be frozen if they do not crack down on militant groups in the wake of a suicide bombing that killed four people outside a Tel Aviv nightclub Friday night. (AP Photo/Menahem Kahana/Pool)
JERUSALEM -- The head of Israel's intelligence agency told Cabinet Ministers on Sunday that the number of calls for the death of Prime Minister Ariel Sharon is increasing sharply ahead of this summer's planned pullout from Gaza and part of the West Bank.

http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/national/aplatin_story.asp?category=1102&slug=Israel%20Extremist%20Threats

Cyclone Percy pounds tiny Pacific atoll
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
WELLINGTON, New Zealand -- Cyclone Percy battered the tiny South Pacific atolls of Tokelau with hurricane-force winds and high seas on Saturday, wrecking houses, uprooting trees and disrupting power supplies and communications, officials said. No injuries were reported.

http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/national/apaa_story.asp?category=1106&slug=South%20Pacific%20Cyclone

The King of Jordan - "A Prince of Peace"


His Majesty King Abdullah on Sunday welcomes Syrian Prime Minister Naji Otari before their talks at the Royal Court (Photo by Yousef Allan)
Posted by Hello

King meets Syrian PM, says Arab summit to activate peace initiative

President Mubarak - "A Prince of Peace"


WELCOME: Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak (L) welcomes Libyan Leader Muammar Qadhafi on his arrival at Itehadeya presidential palace in Cairo on Thursday. Qadhafi, on a five-day-visit to Egypt, will hold talks on bilateral and regional issues with his Egyptian counterpart.(REUTERS)
Posted by Hello

Mubarak and Qadhafi discuss Mideast peace, other regional issues

Morning Papers - Foreign Edition - There is never a 'perfect time' for peace.

In my opinion, the USA was in The Way.

Syria and Lebanon have much to settle. Terror groups are to be reined in. Iran is too delicate to disturb.

And the rest .....

Well.

Let's just say will be written in the history books that the USA was actually a shadow of fear to the process of peace.


The Jordan Times

King meets Syrian PM, says Arab summit to activate peace initiative
Agencies

HIS MAJESTY KING Abdullah on Sunday said Jordan's current efforts focus on achieving a just, comprehensive and sustainable peace in the region, including the Syrian and Lebanese tracks.

http://www.jordantimes.com/mon/homenews/homenews1.htm

Mubarak likely winner — even with rival
By Jonathan Wright
Reuters

CAIRO — Prodded by Washington to lead the Arab world on democracy, Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak has agreed to let rivals compete for the presidency this year but analysts say he could still easily sweep a multi-candidate vote.

http://www.jordantimes.com/mon/news/news1.htm

Syria linked to arrest of Saddam's brother

BAGHDAD (Reuters) — A half brother of Saddam Hussein who has played a leading role in the insurgency has been captured with help from Syria, which faces US allegations of abetting terrorism, Iraqi government officials said on Sunday.

http://www.jordantimes.com/mon/news/news2.htm

King meets with Oracle representative

AMMAN (Petra) — His Majesty King Abdullah on Sunday received Sergio Giacoletto, executive vice president of Oracle Europe, Middle East and Africa.

http://www.jordantimes.com/mon/homenews/homenews3.htm

Environmentalists raise awareness on deforestation in Palestinian areas

Israel is uprooting an average of 1 tree per minute in Palestinian areas
By Rami Abdelrahman

AMMAN — The World Council of Churches is working with environmentalists in Jordan and the region on a campaign to stop Israel from uprooting trees in Palestinian areas.

http://www.jordantimes.com/mon/homenews/homenews4.htm

Haaretz


Former deputy IDF chief: PM to blame for Tel Aviv attack
By Haaretz Service
Former deputy IDF chief Uzi Dayan said Monday that Prime Minister Ariel Sharon is to blame for Friday's suicide attack in Tel Aviv, in which five people were killed, because he has failed to ensure that the West Bank separation fence is completed.
Dayan, who heads a public pressure group advocating the construction of the fence, told a meeting of the Knesset's Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee that, had the fence been completed, the terrorist who carried out Friday's attack would not have been able to reach Tel Aviv.

http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/545673.html

Anti-Syrian protesters take to Beirut's streets despite ban
By The Associated Press and Haaretz Service
Several thousand anti-Syrian protesters took to Beirut's streets late Sunday in defiance of a ban by Lebanon's pro-Damascus government against demonstrations, as a U.S. official kept up Washington's pressure on Syria by calling on it to withdraw its 15,000 troops from Lebanon and stop interfering in this country's affairs.

http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/545735.html

A critical test for Israel
By
Akiva Eldar
When four civilians are killed and 50 are wounded in the heart of the city at the height of a cease-fire and the blood is boiling, the brain becomes feverish. On the one hand, "security sources" explain that the Islamic Jihad sent the murderer to sabotage the new Abu Mazen government, and to foil its attempts to rehabilitate the political channel and increase security cooperation with Israel. On the other hand, the defense minister decides to punish the Palestinian Authority by freezing the transfer of security responsibility to them for cities in the West Bank.

http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/545716.html

Egypt Today

THE YOUNG MAJORITY
Twenty-five years after its birth, the Islamic Republic of Iran is facing one of the greatest internal challenges to its legitimacy and permanence: With one of the youngest populations in the world, the generation that came after Khomeini’s Islamic Revolution is coming of age in a climate that bears little relation to the events of 1979. High unemployment, increasing social problems and unprecedented access to the outside world are pushing Iran down a path of instability and fundamental discontent.

http://www.egypttoday.com/article.aspx?ArticleID=4288

On the Hustings
The ruling National Democratic Party says President Hosni Mubarak will be its candidate of choice to face the nation in a fall presidential referendum. Yet the president himself claims he has yet to decide whether he’s ready to hit the campaign trail for a fifth time and says he welcomes challengers. Three have offered. Welcome to an unprecedented debate.

http://www.egypttoday.com/article.aspx?ArticleID=4283

The Middle East Times

Opinion: This time, I'm hopeful
Eyad El Sarraj
Published February 22, 2005
GAZA -- A couple of days after Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas declared a halt to hostilities, I met with a few of the many journalists and commentators who roam the streets of Gaza.

... "Do you really trust Hamas to stop terror?" one of the journalists asked me. "Even when they announce that they are not bound by the agreement?"

To his obvious shock I replied, "Yes."

I have spent many years observing Hamas at close range as it has grown from a small Islamic religious movement into a major army. I have been debating politics with its leaders and members for a long, long time. That experience leads me to believe that Hamas will very soon transform into a political party and will seriously contemplate taking over the government by democratic means.

http://metimes.com/articles/normal.php?StoryID=20050222-030133-5721r

Mubarak and Qadhafi discuss Mideast peace, other regional issues
Published February 18, 2005

WELCOME: Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak (L) welcomes Libyan Leader Muammar Qadhafi on his arrival at Itehadeya presidential palace in Cairo on Thursday. Qadhafi, on a five-day-visit to Egypt, will hold talks on bilateral and regional issues with his Egyptian counterpart.
(REUTERS)
CAIRO -- Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak met Libyan leader Muammar Qadhafi in Cairo on Thursday to discuss the Middle East peace process, Iraq and a range of other regional issues, the official MENA news agency reported.

http://metimes.com/articles/normal.php?StoryID=20050218-090050-5998r

Protests held in Cairo against fifth term for Mubarak
Published February 22, 2005

ENOUGH!: An Egyptian protestor shouts anti-government slogans outside Cairo University during a demonstration against an extension of the rule of Egypt''s President Hosni Mubarak. About 300 protestors called for an end to the rule of Mubarak, who has been Egypt''s leader since 1981 and is widely expected to seek a fifth six-year term this year.
(REUTERS)
CAIRO -- More than 500 people rallied in Cairo on Monday to protest against a new term in office for Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak and against moves to enable his son Gamal to succeed him afterward.

"That's enough" and "Down with Hosni Mubarak" shouted protestors who gathered in front of Cairo University, while around 50 trucks packed with police were deployed nearby.

http://metimes.com/articles/normal.php?StoryID=20050222-072008-4927r

'Third time a charm' for Qurei's cabinet
Yasser Baraka
Middle East Times
Published February 25, 2005

ALMOST NEW: Palestinian Prime Minister Ahmed Qurei (L) and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas (C) pose for photographs along with other members of the Palestinian cabinet, following a swearing-in ceremony in the West Bank city of Ramallah on Thursday, after parliament approved a cabinet of mostly new faces.
(REUTERS)
GAZA -- Palestinian Prime Minister Ahmed Qurei has had a tough week. No matter what he tried, he was stopped each time by opponents. His task had been to nominate an entire cabinet, the first since the death of late president Yasser Arafat.

But on Thursday Qurei's third attempt succeeded like a charm when the Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC) overwhelmingly approved a new cabinet.

http://metimes.com/articles/normal.php?StoryID=20050225-080038-4385r

Analysis: Activist arrest overshadows US-Egypt ties
Seif Nisrawi
UPI
Published February 22, 2005
CAIRO -- Egyptian-US relations are not in their best shape nowadays, and one cannot help noticing the lukewarm dealings between Washington and one of its main Arab allies.

The controversial arrest and imprisonment of Egyptian politician and human rights activist Ayman Al Nur was denounced by the US administration, which slammed the move as "harmful for the democratic process in Egypt".

http://metimes.com/articles/normal.php?StoryID=20050222-080425-8324r

Lebanese PM is 'ready to resign'
Published February 23, 2005

READY TO RESIGN: File photo of Lebanese Prime Minister Omar Karameh leaving parliament in Beirut in November 2004. Karameh has said that he was ready to resign, facing intense pressure to end Syrian domination of his country.
(REUTERS)
BEIRUT -- Lebanon's beleaguered Prime Minister Omar Karameh said on Wednesday that he was ready to resign, facing intense pressure to end Syrian domination of his country and find the killers of ex-premier Rafiq Al Hariri.

http://metimes.com/articles/normal.php?StoryID=20050223-071710-7046r

Analysis: Blogs are Iranians' weapons of choice
Jason Motlagh
UPI
Published February 22, 2005
WASHINGTON -- Iran is already under attack. The opposition is at work both within and beyond its borders, restless, coordinating and sharing intelligence

http://metimes.com/articles/normal.php?StoryID=20050222-034433-2038r

Syria to redeploy troops in Lebanon
Nayla Razzouk
Published February 25, 2005

REDEPLOYING: Syrian soldiers gather at their base in Aley village in Lebanon on February 24. Lebanon''s defense minister Abdel Rahim Murad said that Syrian forces would soon start redeploying to Lebanon''s eastern Bekaa Valley in line with a 16-year-old agreement.
(REUTERS)
BEIRUT -- Syria, under intense international pressure to end its tight military and political grip on neighboring Lebanon, prepared on Friday to redeploy its troops toward the border, Lebanese officials said.

http://metimes.com/articles/normal.php?StoryID=20050225-094928-5288r

Rescuers pull bodies from quake-hit Iran villages as toll tops 530
Siavosh Ghazi
AFP
Published February 23, 2005

DESTRUCTION: A general view of the quake-damaged village of Dahuyeh, near Zarand, some 1,000 kilometers southeast of Tehran, on February 22.
(REUTERS)
HOUTKAN -- Rescuers using their bare hands pulled more bodies on Wednesday from the rubble of freezing mountain villages flattened by a powerful earthquake in Iran as officials warned that the death toll could reach 550.

President Mohammad Khatami, whose government is facing protests from stricken villagers at the delay in aid reaching some of the most devastated areas, said that Iran would accept international help if offered.

http://metimes.com/articles/normal.php?StoryID=20050223-080022-1451r

The Jerusalem Post


Israel launches 'hasbara' campaign against Syria
By
GIL HOFFMAN AND MARGOT DUDKEVITCH

Police officer inspects the scene of the blast
Photo: AP

Victims of TA suicide bombing: [Top] Yitzhak Buzaglo, 40, Yael Auerbach, 28, [bottom] Aryeh Nagar, 37, Ronen Reuvenov, 28

As the March 1 London conference devoted to the re-building of the Palestinian Authority approaches, Israel has launched an informational "hasbara" campaign to shed light on Syria's involvement in terror orchestration.

http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=JPost/JPArticle/ShowFull&cid=1109301662303

Secret Syria-Israel talks, 'Post' learns

An official Jordanian source told The Jerusalem Post on Sunday that Syrian, Jordanian and Israeli Foreign Ministry officials held secret peace talks in Jordan last week. According to the source, technical committees from Syria and Israel were hosted at the Movenpick Hotel on the Jordanian side of the Dead Sea.

http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=JPost/JPArticle/ShowFull&cid=1109475189059

Opinion: Say yes to Syria

An inhabitant of this region who lived here during the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s, then left and returned only in 2004, would never believe that the president of Syria would offer unconditional bilateral negotiations with Israel, and that the prime minister of Israel would turn them down.
For decades the Arab world negated peace, recognition and negotiations with Israel, as stated in the Khartoum declaration of 1967.
However, over the years, and with international pressure, this notion has been replaced by demands for a withdrawal by Israel to the 1967 borders, as a prerequisite to negotiations, recognition and a peaceful settlement.
In short, land for peace.

http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=JPost/JPArticle/ShowFull&cid=1102752565452
Iraq: Suicide bomber kills 125
By
ASSOCIATED PRESS

BAGHDAD, Iraq
A suicide car bomber blew himself up Monday in a crowd of police and Iraqi national guard recruits south of Baghdad, killing at least 125 and wounding over 200, police and witnesses said.

http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=JPost/JPArticle/ShowFull&cid=1109561138022

The Moscow News

Troops Confront More Terror Cells in North Caucasus
By Anna Arutunyan The Moscow News

In a near-repeat scenario of two previous sieges this year, Russian troops broke up yet another group of separatist rebels believed to be part of a terrorist cell in the southern Russian province of Kabardino-Balkaria.

http://english.mn.ru/english/issue.php?2005-7-3

The Rain in Spain Falls Mainly on the EU
By Robert Bridge The Moscow News

Spain became the first nation to approve the European constitution on Sunday, thus handing the pro-EU lobby a powerful victory.

http://english.mn.ru/english/issue.php?2005-7-4

Militants Distribute Terror Tapes Across Russia
By Anna Arutunyan and Oleg Liakhovich

Chechen police are raiding local outdoor markets in Grozny after discovering last week bootlegged video-footage of terrorist attacks against federal forces. In the course of a single day, police sources say they have confiscated hundreds of videos in Grozny alone and have detained four vendors.

Pasted from <
http://english.mn.ru/english/issue.php?2005-7-11>

Bushehr Explosion Gives Rise to Speculations
By Anna Arutunyan and Oleg Liakhovich

Iranian media and officials give contradicting information on the explosion which allegedly occurred in the outskirts of Dailam in the Bushehr province, where a nuclear power plant is currently under construction. The story created a worldwide media scare that jolted financial markets amid fears of a possible U.S. or Israeli military strike to end Iran's nuclear ambitions. The initial report by satellite TV channel Al Alam attributed the blast to a missile, while Ali Reza Afshar, a senior Iranian military official later said the explosion was part of blasting work involved in building a dam, Reuters reports. Quoted by the press service of the Iranian Defense Ministry, Iran's Defense Minister Ali Shamkhani condemned the Western media "for spreading unverified and false information" and warned that Iran would strike back promptly and correspondingly in case of any attack on Iranian nuclear and civil facilities.

http://english.mn.ru/english/issue.php?2005-7-12

Chernobyl to Repair Leaking Sarcophagus
By Anna Arutunyan and Oleg Liakhovich

In Ukraine, repairs began on the sarcophagus built over the debris of Chernobyl's ill-fated No. 4 reactor after experts affirmed that the structure failed to meet safety regulations due to deterioration. Hastily constructed in 1986 as a temporary measure designed to contain radiation emitting from the reactor's debris, the sarcophagus itself long became a hazard, experts warned. Repair plans include adding a second shelter around the old one. "Shelter 2" is a huge 19,800-ton steel arch designed to be assembled nearby, then slid into place on rails to minimize workers' radiation exposure, Vesti news program reported.

http://english.mn.ru/english/issue.php?2005-7-13

Russia's Arms Exports: Hitting the Ceiling?
By Aleksandr Golts deputy editor-in-chief, The Yezhenedelny
Despite warnings from the supreme commander, Russian traders are determined to strengthen the armies of other nations

Lately, Vladimir Putin has not had too much cause for triumph. But now at last he seems to have found it - Russia's arms trade.
Here are just a few figures. In the past five years, export sales have almost doubled, reaching $5.12 billion. Military equipment is sold to 59 countries, including the United Nations.

http://english.mn.ru/english/issue.php?2005-7-20

Pravda

Personality of the Week: Vladimir Putin
02/28/2005 10:35

President of the Russian Federation firm and resolute in Bratislava
Vladimir Putin again demonstrated his statesmanship this week in Bratislava in his meeting with President Bush, responding to the latter's "concerns" with diplomacy and tact, two pages that Condoleezza Rice might wish to take from the Russian President's book.

http://english.pravda.ru/mailbox/22/101/399/15028_putin.html

Putin answers Bush word for word
02/25/2005 10:17

Putin-Bush Summit - more points in common than differences
The Presidents of the Russian Federation and the United States of America stressed that there are more points in common than differences at a time when the international policy of Washington has put a strain on its relations with the international community.

http://english.pravda.ru/mailbox/22/101/399/15015_summit.html

Ukraine blames Russia for the loss of shoulder-fired missiles
02/28/2005 11:46
The news about the loss of the shoulder-fired missile system has caused a slight commotion in the Ukrainian Army
The shoulder-fired anti-aircraft system Strela-3, which has been lost in Ukraine, as the Ukrainian Navy command supposes, was handed over to Ukraine in 1996. According to the statement from the press service of the Russian Black Sea Navy, the system was handed over to the Ukrainian Navy on the base of adequate documents, signed by Ukrainian officials.

http://english.pravda.ru/world/20/92/370/15029_strela.html

Slobodan Milosevic, jailed in the Netherlands, receives his Belgrade villa back
02/25/2005 17:46
Slobodan Milosevic purchased the above-mentioned villa two days before NATO started bombing Yugoslavia
The Supreme Court of Serbia cancelled the decision of the first instance court to confiscate Slobodan Milosevic's villa situated in a prestigious district of Belgrade.

http://english.pravda.ru/world/20/91/365/15023_milosevic.html

The China Daily

Iran, Russia sign nuke deal opposed by US
(Agencies)
Updated: 2005-02-28 09:13
Russia and Iran signed a nuclear fuel supply deal long opposed by Washington Sunday, paving the way for Iran to start up its first atomic reactor next year.

http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/english/doc/2005-02/28/content_420034.htm

Syria hands Saddam's half-brother to Iraq
(Agencies)
Updated: 2005-02-28 08:02
Iraqi officials said Sunday that Syria captured and handed over Saddam Hussein's half-brother, a most-wanted leader in the Sunni-based insurgency, ending months of Syrian denials that it was harboring fugitives from the ousted Saddam regime. Iraq authorities said Damascus acted in a gesture of goodwill.

http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/english/doc/2005-02/28/content_419961.htm

Kitty Hawk sailor to appear in HK court
(Xinhua)
Updated: 2005-02-28 09:03

A 27-year-old sailor from the USS Kitty Hawk (right) is arrested by police in Hong Kong for punching a local taxi driver and police officer on Saturday morning after a drinking bout. He will be brought today to court, where it will be decided whether he will be sent back to the United States Navy for punishment. [newsphoto]
A sailor from the USS Kitty Hawk will be brought to court in Hong Kong on Monday for punching a police officer and a taxi driver.

http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/english/doc/2005-02/28/content_420004.htm

Berry, Bush, Schwarzenegger win Razzies
(Agencies)
Updated: 2005-02-28 13:33
Hoisting her Academy Award in one hand and newly won Razzie in the other, Halle Berry reveled in a career low point. "Omigosh, oh my God," Berry gasped, feigning excitement. "I never in my life thought that I would be here, winning a Razzie. It's not like I ever aspired to be here, but thank you."

http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/english/doc/2005-02/28/content_420342.htm

Scientists could produce cancer-killing cells
(Agencies)
Updated: 2005-02-28 15:02
SEOUL - A team of South Korean scientists say they have found a way to produce the human body's own cancer-killing cells through gene therapy, offering new hope to cancer sufferers.
The team said they had found that a gene called Vitamin D3 Upregulated Protein 1 (VDUP1) plays a crucial role in directing stem cells to diversify into immune cells known as natural killer cells.

http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/english/doc/2005-02/28/content_420402.htm

Sunday, February 27, 2005

Syria hands Saddam's half-brother to Iraq


Sabawi Ibrahim al-Hassan, who shared a mother with Saddam, was nabbed along with 29 other fugitive members of the former dictator's Baath Party in Hasakah in northeastern Syria, 30 miles from the Iraqi border, the officials said on condition of anonymity. The U.S. military in Iraq had no immediate comment.
Posted by Hello

I thank Syria for the expression of Good Faith. Indeed it is.

We have other people to reassure their beliefs will be honored but only in peace. I trust Syria to meet that challenge.

Lebanon needs security and peace. They deserve it.

In addition, we all have a far greater responsiblity. It is also to our children and their future. Both in peace within the borders of our country and within their communities. They also need a happy Earth to live on. God loves all of us. God gives us no gifts. God expects stewardship for the reward we are all promised.

Sharon orders all ministries to tally and submit disengagement bill to treasury


Israeli settlers last week at an Emergency Disengagement Meeting Posted by Hello

This is heartbreaking for these people. They and we love Israel enough to do the right thing. We trust Prime Minister to lead.


Jordan's Abdullah considers visiting Israel in coming weeks

By Yoav Stern, Haaretz Correspondent
Jordan's King Abdullah is considering extending a trip to the Palestinian Authority planned for the coming weeks and making a visit to Israel.

Israel nixes meeting of prisoner panel in wake of TA attack

In the wake of Friday's suicide bombing in Tel Aviv, Justice Minister Tzipi Livni on Sunday informed the Palestinian Authority that Israel is opposed to a meeting of the joint committee to discuss the release of Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails.

Human Right's Watch, Israel :: http://hrw.org/doc/?t=mideast&c=isrlpa The Israeli Information Center for Human Rights in the Occupied Territories :: http://www.btselem.org/English/index.asp Rabbis for Human Rights :: http://www.rhr.israel.net/ Posted by Hello

Human Rights Watch, Palestinan Authority :: http://hrw.org/doc/?t=mideast_pub&c=isrlpa Human Rights Solidarity for Palestinian :: http://www.sphr.org/ Posted by Hello

Human Rights Watch, Lebanon :: http://www.hrw.org/doc?t=mideast&c=lebano The Institute for Human Rights, Lebanon :: http://www.humanrightslebanon.org/ Posted by Hello

Human Rights Watch :: Syria :: http://www.hrw.org/doc?t=mideast&c=syria The Syrian Human Rights Committee :: http://www.shrc.org.uk/default.aspx  Posted by Hello

The Permanent Trauma of Terrorists Posted by Hello

Morning Papers

Rooster "Cock-A-Doodle-Do"

"Okeydoke"

February 26…

1766: Empress Catherine II (the Great) grants freedom of worship in Russia.

1802,
Victor Hugo, French poet, novelist, and playwright

1916,
Jackie Gleason, comedian and actor

1928, Fats Domino, rock-and-roll pianist, singer, and songwriter

1829, Levi Strauss, creator of blue jeans

1808,
Honoré Daumier, French painter and caricaturist

1815, Napoleon Bonaparte escaped from the Island of Elba to begin his second conquest of France.

1848, the Second French Republic was proclaimed.

1848: Karl Marx and Friederich Engels publish the Communist Manifesto in London.

1919: The United States Congress establishes the Grand Canyon as a national park.

1929, President Coolidge signed a measure establishing Grand Teton National Park.

1932,
Johnny Cash, country music singer

1951, the 22nd Amendment to the Constitution, limiting a president to two terms of office, was ratified.

1962 US Supreme court disallows race separation on public transportation

1967 USSR performs nuclear test at Eastern Kazakhstan/Semipalitinsk USSR

1968 Clandestine Radio Voice of Iraqi People (Communist) final transmission

1970 Beatles release "Beatles Again" aka "Hey Jude" album

1970 "Georgy" opens at Winter Garden Theater NYC for 4 performances

1972 Slag heap dam collapses above Buffalo Creek WV, kills 125

1973 Triple Crown horse Secretariat bought for a record $5.7m

1974 Gold hits record $188 an ounce in Paris

1975 1st televised kidney transplant (Today Show)

1979, a total solar eclipse cast a moving shadow 175 miles wide from Oregon to North Dakota before moving into Canada.

1985: Tina Turner wins two Grammy Awards for her hit song "What's Love Got to Do With It?"

1987, the Tower Commission, which probed the Iran-Contra affair, issued its report, which rebuked President Reagan for failing to control his national security staff.

1993: A terrorist bomb explosion kills five people and badly damages the World Trade Center in New York, New York.

2003, the Supreme Court ruled that federal racketeering and extortion laws had been wrongly used to try to stop blockades, harassment and violent protests outside clinics.

Missing in Action

1966
NEWTON DONALD S. SAN PEDRO CA
1966
WILLS FRANCIS D. LA PLANTA MD
1971
HARRISON LARRY G. WILLIAMSTON NC
1971
SWANSON JON E. DENVER CO

February 27…

1594: Henry IV is crowned king of France in Chartres.

1807
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, poet was born in Portland, Maine.

1869
Alice Hamilton, physician and pioneer in industrial toxicology

1899,
Charles Best, Canadian physiologist

1902, John Ernst Steinbeck,
American writer and Nobel laureate, who described in his work the unremitting struggle of people who depend on the soil for their livelihood. Born in Salinas, California, Steinbeck was educated at Stanford University. As a youth, he worked as a ranch hand and fruit picker. His first novel, Cup of Gold (1929), romanticizes the life and exploits of the famous 17th-century Welsh pirate
Sir Henry Morgan. In The Pastures of Heaven (1932), a group of short stories depicting a community of California farmers, Steinbeck first dealt with the hardworking people and social themes associated with most of his works. His other early books include To a God Unknown (1933), the story of a farmer whose belief in a pagan fertility cult impels him, during a severe drought, to sacrifice his own life; Tortilla Flat (1935), a sympathetic portrayal of Americans of Mexican descent dwelling near Monterey, California; In Dubious Battle (1936), a novel concerned with a strike of migratory fruit pickers; and Of Mice and Men (1937), a tragic story of two itinerant farm laborers yearning for a small farm of their own.

1922: The United States Supreme Court declares the Nineteenth Amendment constitutional, thereby guaranteeing women's voting rights.

1932
Elizabeth Taylor, actress

1960, the U.S. Olympic hockey team defeated the Soviets, 3-2, at the Winter Games in Squaw Valley, Calif. (The U.S. team went on to win the gold medal.)

1972, President Nixon and Chinese Premier Chou En-lai issued the Shanghai Communique at the conclusion of Nixon's historic visit to China.

1973: Sioux Native Americans seize and hold Wounded Knee on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, demanding a United States Senate investigation of Native American problems.

1979, Jane M. Byrne confounded Chicago's Democratic political machine as she upset Mayor Michael A. Bilandic to win their party's mayoral primary. (Byrne went on to win the election.)

1982 Earl Anthony becomes 1st pro bowler to win more than $1 million

1982 Wayne Williams found guilty of murdering 2 of 28 blacks in Atlanta GA

1982 France performs nuclear test at Muruora Island

1983 Eamonn Coghlan sets indoor mile record of 3 49.78

1983 Jan Stephenson wins Tucson Conquistadores LPGA Golf Tournament

1984 WRC-AM in Washington DC changes call letters to WWRC

1984 Carl Lewis jumps world record indoor (8,675 meters)

1984 Worker's union leader Billy Nair freed in South Africa

1985 Farmers converge in Washington to demand economic relief

1985 US dollar is worth ƒ3.9355 (Netherlands)

1987 Donald Regan resigned as White House chief of staff

1987 NCAA cancels SMU's entire 1987 football schedule for gross violations of NCAA rules regarding athletic corruption

1987 "Washington Week In Review", 20th anniversary on PBS

1987 Mike Conley triple jumps world indoor record (17.76 meters)

1988 Bonnie Blair (US) wins Olympics 500 meter speed skating in record 39.1

1988 Katarina Witt (GDR) wins 2nd consecutive Olympics figure skating

1988 Ayako Okamoto wins LPGA Orient Leasing Hawaiian Ladies Golf Open

1989 German war criminals Austria der Fünten/Fischer, freed in Holland

1990: The Exxon Corporation is indicted on five criminal charges relating to the 1989 Alaskan oil spill.

1991 Noureddine Morcelli set 1500 meter mark at 3 34 16

1991 Singer James Brown is released from prison

1991 Gulf War ends after Iraqi troops retreat & Kuwait is liberated

1992 Tiger Woods, 16, becomes youngest PGA golfer in 35 years

2003: A design by architect Daniel Libeskind is selected to be built on the former site of the twin towers of New York City's World Trade Center.

Missing in Action

1967
ALWAN HAROLD J. PEORIA IL
1967
HUIE LITCHFIELD P. WARSAW NC BLOWN OFF CARRIER SANK NO RECOVER
1967
LETCHWORTH EDWARD N. LIBBY MT BLOWN OFF CARRIER SANK NO RECOVER
1967
SAUSE BERNARD J. JR. BALTIMORE MD BLOWN OFF CARRIER SANK NO RECOVER
1967
ZEMPLE RONALD L. GRAND RAPIDS MN BLOWN OFF CARRIER SANK NO RECOVER
1968
HARTZHEIM JOHN F. APPLETON WI REMAINS IDENTIFIED 03/17/99
1968
MILIUS PAUL L. WAVERLY IA
1968
PALMER GILBERT S. BIRMINGHAM AL
1968
WRIGHT THOMAS T. GARY IN
1971
BABCOCK RONALD L. TUCSON AZ
1971
LEWIS LARRY G. ASHVILLE NC
1971
MOONEY FRED NORTHUP OH
1975 DILLON MICHAEL 03/75 RELEASED
1975
AYRES VICKI 03/75 RELEASED

The Daily Star - Lebanon

Iraqi forces capture top aide to Zarqawi
Sistani endorses Jaafari's nomination
Compiled by Daily Star staff
Saturday, February 26, 2005

Iraqi forces captured a top aide to Jordanian-born terrorist Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, who leads an Al-Qaeda-linked insurgency in Iraq, during a violence-ridden day which saw 13 civilians killed. The violence came as Iraq's most influential Shiite cleric, Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, endorsed Ibrahim al-Jaafari's nomination for prime minister.

http://www.dailystar.com.lb/article.asp?edition_id=10&categ_id=2&article_id=13007

Sharon accepts invitation to Tunis
Visit can 'pave the way for a new era of relations'
By Marius Schattner
Saturday, February 26, 2005
JERUSALEM: Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon has accepted an unprecedented invitation from Tunisian President Zine El-Abidine Ben Ali to visit the North African country, his office said Friday, amid a renewed Israeli diplomatic push in the Arab world.

http://www.dailystar.com.lb/article.asp?edition_id=10&categ_id=2&article_id=13008

Assad calls for dialogue with U.S.
By Agence France Presse (AFP)
Saturday, February 26, 2005

ANKARA: Syrian President Bashar Assad has said in an interview with a Turkish newspaper that he wants direct dialogue with the United States in hopes of easing mounting tension between the two countries."Talks on security issues must not be broken. The only way to do this is through dialogue," Bashar said in an interview published in the daily Hurriyet newspaper on Friday.

http://www.dailystar.com.lb/article.asp?edition_id=10&categ_id=2&article_id=13006

Two years on, world remains at loggerheads over Darfur
By Mohammad Ali Said
Saturday, February 26, 2005

Mohammed Ali Said
Agence France Presse
KHARTOUM: Two years after an ethnic minority uprising prompted Sudan's government to unleash a savage crackdown in Darfur, 1.6 million displaced people face the threat of famine and the world remains at loggerheads how best to intervene.

http://www.dailystar.com.lb/article.asp?edition_id=10&categ_id=2&article_id=12981

Lebanese government eager to cooperate with United Nations investigation team
By Leila Hatoum
Daily Star staff
Saturday, February 26, 2005
BEIRUT: Lebanon's Justice Minister Adnan Addoum insisted the Lebanese government will cooperate with the United Nations investigation team as it visited the scene of the assassination of former Premier Rafik Hariri. Following a meeting with the UN team, Addoum said: "The Lebanese authorities will provide all help possible to the United Nations team of investigators, and will provide them with all available information obtained by the judiciary investigation."

http://www.dailystar.com.lb/article.asp?edition_id=1&categ_id=2&article_id=13004

British offer expertise to Hariri assassination investigation
By Khalil Fleihan
Daily Star correspondent
Saturday, February 26, 2005
BEIRUT: Britain has offered its expertise to investigators regarding the assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, according to Foreign Minister Mahmoud Hammoud, who was quoting British Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Baroness Symons.

http://www.dailystar.com.lb/article.asp?edition_id=1&categ_id=2&article_id=13002

Syria Times

Official source: Syria has nothing to do with bombing
An official source at the Foreign Ministry has denied the statements of the Israeli زDefense Minister,س Shaol Mofaz on Syriaصs responsibility for the Tel Aviv bombing of 25.02.2005.

http://www.teshreen.com/syriatimes/_first.asp?FileName=20050227050545

Hezbollah denies involvement in Tel Aviv bombing
Lebanese Hezbollah categorically denied Saturday that it had anything do do with an overnight suicide bombing in Tel Aviv.

http://www.teshreen.com/syriatimes/_first.asp?FileName=20050227050607

Abbas blames third party for Tel Aviv bombing
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas vowed on Saturday to bring to justice those behind a deadly suicide bombing in Tel Aviv and blamed an unnamed third party for trying to sabotage peace efforts.

http://www.teshreen.com/syriatimes/_first.asp?FileName=20050227050634

Syria Today

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad signed an agreement with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin in the Kremlin on January 25 during a four-day state visit to Moscow which included a deal to write off nearly three quarters the debt Syria had run up with its ally during the Soviet era.
“We highly value your positions and we share common interests,'' Assad told Putin, saying he welcomed a stronger Russian role in the Middle East .

http://www.syria-today.com/issues/issue_3/news_highlights/syria_russia.htm

European Union Middle East Envoy Marc Otte said Syria was “ready to resume peace negotiations with Israel without preconditions", following a meeting with the President and Foreign Minister on February 7.

http://www.syria-today.com/issues/issue_3/news_highlights/eu_envoy.htm

US President George Bush put further pressure on Syria during his State of the Union address on February 2, saying the country, “still allows its territory, and parts of Lebanon, to be used by terrorists who seek to destroy every chance of peace in the region.”

http://www.syria-today.com/issues/issue_3/news_highlights/syria_us.htm

The UN Security Council voted unanimously on January 28 to adopt a proposal ruling that the Shaba farms, the area of land at the northern edge of the Golan Heights, occupied by Israel since the Six Day War in 1967, and claimed by Lebanon, belonged to Syria .
The proposal, which was drafted by France and co-sponsored by the United States, Britain, Denmark and Greece, also concluded that Israel has fully complied with UN Security Council Resolution 425, which obligated it to withdraw to the UN-delineated blue line border.

http://www.syria-today.com/issues/issue_3/news_highlights/security_council.htm

Two men accused of involvement in a bomb attack and gun fight at a disused UN building in Damascus' suburb of Mezze last April that left killed four people were sentenced to death by hanging SANA reported on December 29.
The report said the state security court ordered that the two men be hanged, a ruling that cannot be appealed, while two other defendants were sentenced to forced labour for life.
Another 18 defendants received jail terms of between one and 20 years.

http://www.syria-today.com/issues/issue_3/news_highlights/ruling_attack.htm

Aktham Naise, the head of the Committees for the Defence of Democratic Liberties and Human Rights in Syria, was awarded the annual Swiss-based Martin Ennals Foundation award for Human Rights Defenders on January 12.

http://www.syria-today.com/issues/issue_3/news_highlights/naise_award.htm

TOO MANY ENTANGLEMENTS !!

On February 2 the Syrian cabinet endorsed a bill exempting Lebanese citizens from all entry taxes usually paid when they cross the border into Syria either by air, land or sea. The bill also exempts Lebanese vehicles from all taxes except the initial entry duty.
The move follows the signing of an agreement between Syrian Prime Minister Mohammad Naji Otri and Lebanese Prime Minister Omar Karami, at the end of January, mandating the Syrian-Lebanese economic committee to prepare for the unifying of customs duties between the two countries within five years.

http://www.syria-today.com/issues/issue_3/news_highlights/tax_exemption.htm

Ken Charman, Economist and Team Leader for the EU-funded Institutional and Sector Modernisation Facility (ISMF), on an economy at the crossroads.

For many years, Syria has been a closed economy hampered by under-performance. The country has long depended on oil reserves to provide foreign exchange and macroeconomic stability, but with oil production now in decline, the pressure for change is considerable. At the same time, Syria has to diversify its economy in the face of a host of regional problems. The good news, however, is that these issues are not necessarily connected to the domestic policy challenges that must be addressed if growth and diversification of the economy are to transpire.

http://www.syria-today.com/issues/issue_2/economic_analysis/economic_analysis_1.htm

THE STRUGGLE FOR MEDIA REFORM

Syria's media is now facing major challenges from both inside and outside the country. However, responding to these may offer great opportunities. Rhonda Roumani takes a closer look.

http://www.syria-today.com/issues/issue_2/features/media_feature_1.htm

GOOD IDEA !!

IN CLOSE ASSOCIATION

The newly-initialled Association Agreement between Syria and the EU will mean both political and economic changes in the relationship between Damascus and Europe , as Andrew Tabler explains.

http://www.syria-today.com/issues/issue_2/features/association_feature_1.htm

The Jerusalem Post

Mofaz freezes PA town handovers
Syria and Islamic Jihad are responsible for Friday night's suicide bombing in Tel Aviv and Israeli officials will meet with ambassadors of all member of the UN Security Council to demand a strong condemnation of Syria, Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz said.

http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=JPost/JPArticle/ShowFull&cid=1109301662303

Four killed, 50 wounded in attack
Israel will focus its anticipated reprisal for Friday night's Tel Aviv suicide bombing on targeting Islamic Jihad in Syria, the group believed to have dispatched the bomber, Defense Ministry officials said Saturday.

http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=JPost/JPArticle/ShowFull&cid=1109387975271

Rice: PA must take action
The US on Friday condemned the suicide bombing in Tel Aviv and demanded that the Palestinian Authority take steps to combat terrorist organizations.

http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=JPost/JPArticle/ShowFull&cid=1109301662805

Comrades in death
It was a surprise birthday party that turned into a nightmare.

Close-knit members of a reserve IDF combat unit and their loved ones who gathered Friday night at the Stage nightclub to help one of the reservists celebrate his 30th birthday lost four of their group when a suicide bomber blew himself up.

Among the victims were Yitzhak Buzaglo, 40, of Moshav Mishmar Hayarden in the Upper Galilee who was a father of two, and Yael Orbach, 28, of Rehovot who was three weeks shy of her wedding. Also killed was carpenter Aryeh Nagar, 37, another member of the unit who came for the celebration. The coordinator of the birthday party, Ronen Reuvenov, was the fourth victim. His name was released Sunday morning.

Reuvenov 30, from Tel-Aviv, was described by his sister Orley to Army Radio Sunday morning as, "someone who wasn't afraid of anything. He believed always that everything would be all right."

Buzaglo's wife, Linda, and Orbach's fiancee, Ophir Gonan, are among the seriously wounded.

http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=JPost/JPArticle/ShowFull&cid=1109387974746

Mehereta, symbol of Ethiopian pride
Mehereta Baruch might have fallen short of her aspiration to represent Israel in New York City when she came in second on the reality TV show The Ambassador. But she soared to the top of the list of most recognizable Ethiopian-Israelis, earning the role of representing her community within Israel itself.

http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=JPost/JPArticle/ShowFull&cid=1109387976245

Haaretz

Diplomats: Iran acquired nuclear arms technology by late 80s
By The Associated Press
VIENNA - Iran, through the black market network, had accumulated all the knowledge it needed by the late 1980s to set up technology that can be used to make nuclear weapons, diplomats have said.

http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/545230.html

Working together against terror
When the defense minister was asked recently what the fate of the cease-fire between Israel and the Palestinians would be if Israel responded with force to a terror attack within the country, he responded that "the test is one of intentions." If it turns out that Mahmoud Abbas, as opposed to Yasser Arafat, is not intent on terror but is working to put a stop to it, if the Palestinian Authority leadership does not initiate, encourage or economically support terror, and if it does what is at this stage its limited best to stop attacks, it would be unwise to renew military activities after an attack. Such a decision would cancel out the achievements already visible on the ground that were brought about by bilateral cooperation.

http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/545226.html

The Gulf News

Palestinians arrest suspects in Tel Aviv blast

Agencies
Ramallah: Scrambling to save a battered truce, Palestinian officials arrested three West Bank suspects yesterday after a suicide bombing that killed four Israelis.

http://www.gulfnews.com/Articles/RegionNF.asp?ArticleID=153799
Israel blames Syria for bombing

AP
Occupied Jerusalem: Israel's defense minister blamed Syria and a Palestinian militant group based there for a suicide bombing that killed four Israelis outside a Tel Aviv nightclub and shattered an informal truce, prompting him to freeze plans to hand over security responsibilities in the West Bank.

http://www.gulfnews.com/Articles/RegionNF.asp?ArticleID=153916

Killings do not serve any purpose

Whoever thought another suicide bombing in Tel Aviv would achieve its purpose is no friend of the Palestinians; nor, apparently, an advocate of peace.

http://www.gulfnews.com/Articles/RegionNF.asp?ArticleID=153762

Egypt to have direct presidential polls

By Ramadan Al Sherbini, Special to Gulf News
Cairo: The Egyptian President yesterday ordered parliament to amend the Constitution to allow direct presidential elections.

http://www.gulfnews.com/Articles/RegionNF.asp?ArticleID=153795

Intellectual forum will seek ways to combat rise of extremism

By Mohammad Almezel, Bureau Chief
Manama: Leading intellectuals from the Arab world will begin a forum in Bahrain today in an attempt to find ways to combat the rise of extremism and promote moderation.

http://www.gulfnews.com/Articles/RegionNF.asp?ArticleID=153772

Weed out the seeds of suspicion

Across the Arab world, much seems to be marred by tides of disarray and fragmentation. Furthermore, accusatory finger-pointing against Islam has intensified in recent years, especially since the terrorist attacks of 9/11. Could it be argued that the Arab and Muslim worlds are in crises?

http://www.gulfnews.com/Articles/RegionNF.asp?ArticleID=153763

Arab bank told to stop wire transfers

Agencies
Washington: The United States has ordered Palestinian-managed Arab Bank Group to convert its New York branch to a federal banking agency, ending the branch's wire transfer business.

http://www.gulfnews.com/Articles/RegionNF.asp?ArticleID=153794

Set of twins is born every 10 minutes in Egypt

By Ramadan Al Sherbini, Special to Gulf News
Cairo: Now a mother of triplets, Magada recalls that 15 months after her marriage she did not get pregnant and had to seek fertility treatment.

http://www.gulfnews.com/Articles/RegionNF.asp?ArticleID=153771

Oman close to being declared malaria-free
Staff Report
Muscat: Oman is a step closer to being declared malaria-free by the World Health Organisation (WHO), the Ministry of Health has said.

http://www.gulfnews.com/Articles/RegionNF.asp?ArticleID=153750

Quake toll put at 602 dead and 991 injured

Reuters
Tehran: Iran said on Friday the powerful earthquake which struck the southeast of the country last week killed 602 people and it did not expect to find many more bodies buried under the rubble.

http://www.gulfnews.com/Articles/RegionNF.asp?ArticleID=153774

They need an Ayatollah.

'Zionist holiday' sparks protest

AP
Baghdad: A government decision to alter the traditional Iraqi weekend has sparked ire and protests among many who resent being forced to take a day off that many here associate with the Jewish day of rest.

http://www.gulfnews.com/Articles/RegionNF.asp?ArticleID=153791

The Boston Globe

Israel links Syria to blast, freezes West Bank pullback
By Corinne Heller, Reuters February 27, 2005
JERUSALEM -- Israel declared Syria responsible yesterday for a Palestinian suicide attack on a Tel Aviv nightclub Friday night that killed four Israelis and wounded dozens more. The attack threatened to taint the conciliatory atmosphere that has taken hold since Yasser Arafat died in November.

http://www.boston.com/news/world/middleeast/articles/2005/02/27/israel_links_syria_to_blast_freezes_west_bank_pullback/

Mubarak pushes freer Egypt voting
Move would allow for more candidates
By Paul Schemm, Globe Correspondent February 27, 2005
CAIRO -- President Hosni Mubarak of Egypt asked the country's parliament yesterday to amend the constitution to permit a multi-candidate presidential election this fall, a surprising step toward democracy in the Arab world's most populous nation.

http://www.boston.com/news/world/middleeast/articles/2005/02/27/mubarak_pushes_freer_egypt_voting/

Iraq oil pipeline blown up
Newscaster is found dead; US soldier killed
By Sameer N. Yacoub, Associated Press February 27, 2005
BAGHDAD -- A major oil fire raged yesterday after insurgents blew up a pipeline in the north of the country. The family of an anchorwoman for a US-funded state television station -- a mother of four who was repeatedly shot in the head -- found her body dumped on a street in the northern city of Mosul.

http://www.boston.com/news/world/middleeast/articles/2005/02/27/iraq_oil_pipeline_blown_up/

Russia, Iran put off deal on nuclear fuel Still working out delivery disputes
By Associated Press February 27, 2005
TEHRAN -- Last-minute disputes yesterday forced Iran and Russia to postpone the signing of an agreement to supply Iran with fuel for its first nuclear reactor, a deal strongly opposed by the United States.

http://www.boston.com/news/world/asia/articles/2005/02/27/russia_iran_put_off_deal_on_nuclear_fuel_still_working_out_delivery_disputes/

VLADIMIR IS INTERESTED IN THE WTO !!

Oil and Russian hubris
February 27, 2005
Thomas Oliphant -- WASHINGTON
IT IS time for Americans to pay less attention to words and more attention to the ugly realities of a misbehaving nation with nuclear weapons and disturbing intentions.

http://www.boston.com/news/globe/editorial_opinion/oped/articles/2005/02/27/oil_and_russian_hubris/

Romney walking political tightrope
By and Raphael Lewis, Globe Staff February 27, 2005
Governor Mitt Romney's entrance into national politics is forcing him to walk a careful political path, as he delivers out-of-state speeches that critique Massachusetts and its perceived liberal excesses while he pledges to pass an ambitious agenda with the help of newly wary Beacon Hill Democrats.

http://www.boston.com/news/local/articles/2005/02/27/romney_walking_political_tightrope/

A top Democrat takes up cudgel
Reid battles Bush on Social Security
By Rick Klein, Globe Staff February 27, 2005
SEARCHLIGHT, Nev. -- Senator Harry Reid of Nevada, two months into his new job as the Democratic leader, declared Friday that his party is ''winning" the fight against President Bush and his plan to remake Social Security.

http://www.boston.com/news/nation/washington/articles/2005/02/27/a_top_democrat_takes_up_cudgel/

Some top Democrats tout moving primary to May
Other party leaders, GOP doubt proposal
By Frank Phillips, Globe Staff February 27, 2005
Leading Democrats in Massachusetts are lobbying Beacon Hill lawmakers to push the date of the state primary elections from September to May or early June, a move that would not only transform state politics but, party leaders are convinced, could also help them recapture the governor's office in 2006 after a 16-year drought.

http://www.boston.com/news/local/articles/2005/02/27/some_top_democrats_tout_moving_primary_to_may/

Mass. colleges see costs rise, aid fall
Needy students getting hit hard, officials report
By Jenna Russell, Globe Staff February 27, 2005
Massachusetts cut spending on grants and scholarships for college students by more than $20 million in the past five years, at the same time enrollments increased, and public campuses, battered by state budget cuts, boosted tuition and fees by 50 to 75 percent, according to state budget records and officials.

http://www.boston.com/news/local/articles/2005/02/27/mass_colleges_see_costs_rise_aid_fall/

More young women in Hub pursuing careers in wine
By Caitlin Curran, Globe Correspondent, 2/20/05

A cellar master at Grill 23 & Bar in Boston, Nina Seymour, 31, says "It's easy to sell wine - I love it."
Cat Silirie remembers being interested in wine when she was 14 and a busgirl at a small restaurant in South Florida, where she grew up. "At the time, I loved to talk about wine," says Silirie, as she sat at the bar in The Butcher Shop, a South End restaurant where she is the wine director. "I never thought it would become my career."

http://bostonworks.boston.com/globe/articles/022005_wine.html

In Scituate, a tragic list of loss
By Stephanie Ebbert and Joanna Weiss, Globe Staff February 27, 2005
SCITUATE -- In an impromptu ceremony last week, Chris Field attached another photograph to the dashboard of his Dodge Neon Sport. Then he realized he was running out of space for tributes to lost friends.

Every day, he had been driving with an eye on two prayer cards from the funerals of Scituate High School classmates -- Greg Moynahan, who died in a car crash last spring, and Matt Lynch, thrown from a car and killed seven months later, both in their early 20s. On Monday, he added a snapshot of Michael O'Connor, 22, missing since a fishing boat caught fire offshore last weekend.

http://www.boston.com/news/local/articles/2005/02/27/in_scituate_a_tragic_list_of_loss/

But Winnipeggers say there's more to their city than frigid temperatures
than frigid temperatures
By Linda Matchan, Globe Staff February 27, 2005
WINNIPEG, Manitoba -- Lorraine and Ed Palamar were working on a crossword puzzle recently in this brutally cold prairie city, when they found themselves stumped.

The clue was ''Great white north." As in Canada. ''We couldn't imagine what it was," said Lorraine, who has spent most of her 70 years in Winnipeg, where the temperature regularly plummets to 30 below in the winter and hit 54 below one day last month, factoring in wind chill. ''We were thinking, is it the Yukon? is it Northwest Territories?"

http://www.boston.com/travel/articles/2005/02/27/but_winnipeggers_say_theres_more_to_their_city_than_frigid_temperatures/

The Moscow Times


Global Eye
Core Values
By Chris Floyd
Published: February 25, 2005
Day in and day out, patriotic American dissidents on both the left and the right keep shovelling through the bloody muck of the Bush Imperium. The filth is endless, Augean; Salon.com recently catalogued 34 ongoing major scandals, equalling or surpassing the depravity of Watergate. Yet still the patriots bend to the task, tossing up steaming piles of ugly truth before the public.

http://context.themoscowtimes.com/stories/2005/02/25/120.html

Teen Spirit
Photographer Sergei Chilikov turns his lens on Samara teenagers in a new exhibition at XL Gallery.
By Romilly Eveleigh
Published: February 25, 2005
Below a clothesline in someone's grimy backyard, a group of boys are engaged in what looks like a raucous fistfight. Elsewhere, panic-stricken men in sunglasses and military uniforms haul a bare-chested youth across the beach. Out in the countryside, a circle of friends strike poses next to a rusting bulldozer.

http://context.themoscowtimes.com/stories/2005/02/25/103.html

Michael Moore Today

PM fires back in missile row; U.S. plans to fire over Canada without seeking permission
Toronto Star
Canada's rejection of missile defence is a historic shift in its relationship with the United States and could have deep unforeseen consequences, analysts warn.

http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/index.php?id=1567

Suicides in Marine Corps Rise by 29%; Fast Pace of Operations Are Believed to Contribute
By Ann Scott Tyson /
Washington Post
The Marine Corps suffered a 29 percent spike in suicides last year, reaching the highest number in at least a decade, with the demanding pace of military operations likely contributing to the deaths, the top-ranking U.S. Marine said yesterday.

http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/index.php?id=1554

The Crawford Deal: did Blair sign up for war at Bush's Texas ranch in April 2002?
We know that arguments raged about the legality of the war right up to a crucial cabinet meeting on 17 March 2003, two days before the attack began. But now new evidence pieced together by the 'IoS' strongly backs the suspicion that the PM had already made the decision to strike a year earlier.
By Raymond Whitaker /
Independent
It was one of the most tense cabinet meetings Downing Street had seen in living memory. "We were on the brink of war," recalled Clare Short, who was there. The consequences would be dramatic, not only for those round the table, but for millions of Iraqis and hundreds of thousands of British and American troops.
The date was 17 March 2003,

http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/index.php?id=1575

The Guardian Unlimited

Blair is election liability, warn Labour aides
Gaby Hinsliff, political editor
Sunday February 27, 2005
The Observer
Tony Blair risks becoming an electoral liability, according to government ministers as the Prime Minister faces fresh accusations that his 'presidential style' is starting to affect Labour's support.

http://observer.guardian.co.uk/politics/story/0,6903,1426456,00.html

Our hands are clean: Palestine President
Abbas says suicide attack on nightclub was bid to sabotage peace process
Jason Burke, Gaby Hinsliff and Conal Urquhart in Tel Aviv
Sunday February 27, 2005
The Observer
Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas angrily accused a 'third party' yesterday of sabotaging the Middle East peace process by orchestrating the suicide bombing on Friday night, as Israel threatened a resumption of targeted killings of militants.

http://observer.guardian.co.uk/international/story/0,6903,1426307,00.html

Judges to rule on terror orders
Martin Bright and Jason Burke
Sunday February 27, 2005
The Observer
The Home Secretary will have to apply to a judge within 24 hours of issuing 'control orders' to limit the movement of terror suspects under proposals being considered by Charles Clarke. The government is set for a climbdown over its Prevention of Terrorism Bill by allowing a judge to be involved at a far earlier stage in the decision.

http://observer.guardian.co.uk/politics/story/0,6903,1426451,00.html

A schism that threatens us all
Rowan Williams must confront those who would destroy the liberal traditions of Anglicanism
Will Hutton
Sunday February 27, 2005
The Observer
The genius of the Anglican Church has been the depth of its embedded tolerance. Walk into any one of its churches that stud our cities, towns and villages and you can almost smell the reflective friendliness seeping out of the walls. This is a church that since Henry VIII' s break with Rome has been squaring biblical injunction with the way the English actually live their lives, throwing the mantle of Christian solidarity around believers, half-believers and sceptics alike. As a national church, its job is to include and tolerate us all; it is everyone's friend in need.

http://observer.guardian.co.uk/comment/story/0,6903,1426330,00.html

A genius explains
Daniel Tammet is an autistic savant. He can perform mind-boggling mathematical calculations at breakneck speeds. But unlike other savants, who can perform similar feats, Tammet can describe how he does it. He speaks seven languages and is even devising his own language. Now scientists are asking whether his exceptional abilities are the key to unlock the secrets of autism. Interview by Richard Johnson

http://www.guardian.co.uk/weekend/story/0,,1409903,00.html

c
ontinued...