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Syria-Lebanon-Iran

Qatar FM Accuses Hizbullah of Killing, Displacing Syrians

2015-02-20

[An Nahar] Qatar ...an emirate on the east coast of the Arabian Peninsula. It sits on some really productive gas and oil deposits, which produces the highest per capita income in the world. They piss it all away on religion, financing the Moslem Brotherhood and several al-Qaeda affiliates... i Foreign Minister Khaled al-Attiyah lashed out at Hizbullah ...Party of God, a Leb militia inspired, founded, funded and directed by Iran. Hizbullah refers to itself as The Resistance and purports to defend Leb against Israel, with whom it has started and lost one disastrous war to date, though it did claim victory... on Thursday, stressing that the Gulf state is in a rift with the party. "Hizbullah went back to the Syrians who welcomed it (in July 2006 war with Israel) to kill and displace them," al-Attiyah said in an interview with the pan-Arab daily al-Hayat. The Foreign Minister ruled out any aid offered by Qatar to Hizbullah, saying: "We disagree with the party." Al-Attiyah pointed out that Hizbullah was a "party of resistance until it changed its direction and headed to Syria." "We were surprised that Hizbullah (supported the regime of Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir Pencilneck al-Assad Light of the Alawites... ) at the beginning of the Syrian revolution and rewarded those who welcomed it with slaughtering and displacing them," he added. "This is the core of our differences," al-Attiyah stressed. In July, the Gulf Cooperation Council -- which includes Soddy Arabia ...a kingdom taking up the bulk of the Arabian peninsula. Its primary economic activity involves exporting oil and soaking Islamic rubes on the annual hajj pilgrimage. The country supports a large number of princes in whatcha might call princely splendor. When the oil runs out the rest of the world is going to kick sand in the Soddy national face... , Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, Oman and the UAE -- has said the bloc would crack down on Hizbullah members as part of a joint effort to limit the group's "financial and business transactions."

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Arabia

Qatar condemns Islamic State and rejects funding accusations

2014-08-24

[Al Ahram] "Qatar does not support krazed killer groups, including ISIS, in any way. We are repelled by their views, their violent methods and their ambitions," Qatari Foreign Minister Khaled al-Attiyah said in a statement released in London. His comments came a day after the German government apologised for remarks by a minister accusing Qatar of financing Islamic State Attiyah described the recent comments as ill-informed. "The vision of krazed killer groups for the region is one that we have not, nor will ever, support in any way." Qatar has previously denied supporting Islamist snuffies who have seized wide areas of northern Iraq, northern and eastern Syria. But diplomats and opposition sources say while Qatar supports relatively moderate rebels also backed by Soddy Arabia ...a kingdom taking up the bulk of the Arabian peninsula. Its primary economic activity involves exporting oil and soaking Islamic rubes on the annual hajj pilgrimage. The country supports a large number of princes in whatcha might call princely splendor. When the oil runs out the rest of the world is going to kick sand in the Soddy national face... and the West, it also has backed more hardline factions seeking to set up a strict Islamic state. Attiyah said Qatar's goal was to do all it could to see peace and justice across the region and called for collective action to end the violence in Iraq and Syria. He urged the Iraqi government to provide safety and security for its citizens and vowed that Qatar, a tiny but wealthy Gulf Arab state, would continue to provide humanitarian aid to the Iraqi people. "The killing of innocent civilians and the forced flight of hundreds of thousands of people threatens the very existence of Iraq and the peace and security of the entire region," he said. "So while, along with many other countries from the Middle East and wider international community, we have supported the Syrian opposition to the Assad regime, we do not fund ISIS or other krazed killer factions."

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Home Front: WoT

Obama: Netanyahu Too Strong, Abbas Too Weak For Peace

2014-08-10

Hush, children, hush. Sit down very quietly, and watch how the The Smartest, Most Powerful Man In The World thinks about one of his problems. If you listen very hard, and are particularly clever, perhaps you will learn some small piece of what makes him great. [IsraelTimes] Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is too strong, and Paleostinian Authority President the ineffectual Mahmoud Abbas ... a graduate of the prestigious unaccredited Patrice Lumumba University in Moscow with a doctorate in Holocaust Denial... too weak, for the two leaders to fully cooperate and make the concessions needed in order to achieve a long lasting peace agreement between Israel and the Paleostinians, US President Barack Obama Ready to Rule from Day One... asserted Friday. Speaking during an interview with the New York Times ...which still proudly displays Walter Duranty's Pulitzer prize... ' Thomas L. Friedman, Obama said he believed Netanyahu's high approval ratings among the Israeli populace contributed to the stalemate in peace negotiations, since Netanyahu was consequently less inclined to engage in risky and divisive ...politicians call things divisive when when the other side sez something they don't like. Their own statements are never divisive, they're principled... political endeavors. Netanyahu's "poll numbers are a lot higher than mine," Obama admitted, adding that the Israeli prime minister's favorable ratings "were greatly boosted by the war in Gazoo." The president argued that "if [Netanyahu] doesn't feel some internal pressure, then it's hard to see him being able to make some very difficult compromises, including taking on the settler movement. That's a tough thing to do." Obama contended that as opposed to Netanyahu's solid backing in Israel, Abbas lacked popular support from the Paleostinian people and as a result was constrained in his ability to push a peace agreement forward. "In some ways, Bibi [Netanyahu] is too strong [and] in some ways Abu Mazen [Abbas] is too weak to bring them together and make the kinds of bold decisions that [Egypt's president] Sadat or [Israeli prime ministers] Begin or Rabin were willing to make," Obama said. "It's going to require leadership among both the Paleostinians and the Israelis to look beyond tomorrow. … And that's the hardest thing for politicians to do is to take the long view on things." When asked whether he was concerned over the fate of Israel in the future, Obama replied that the Jewish state's extraordinary achievements over the decades since its creation, along with the country's military might, provided him with solid reason to believe no threat existed to the survival of the nation. Never mind that pesky little problem of Iran's nuclear bomb program. The Great Man has deigned to pronounce from his vast stores of knowledge and wisdom. Obama said the he was instead troubled by the challenges facing Israel with regards to the country's ability to uphold democratic values and maintain security on the one hand, while at the same time not denying rights from Paleostinians on the other. "I think the question really is how does Israel survive," Obama said. "How can you preserve a Jewish state that is also reflective of the best values of those who founded Israel. And, in order to do that, it has consistently been my belief that you have to find a way to live side by side in peace with Paleostinians. … You have to recognize that they have legitimate claims, and this is their land and neighborhood as well." Earlier in the interview, the US president weighed on what the New York Times described as the "disintegration" of the familiar world order, including recent Russian aggression in Ukraine, military advances of the radical sunni Lion of Islam Islamic State in Iraq and Syria, and the shifting attitudes towards American intervention in embattled countries across the world. Tensions between Netanyahu and Obama have run high recently over American efforts to reach a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, always the voice of sweet reason, in Gazoo, with Israeli officials aiming sharp criticism at the administration in Washington for its handling of the negotiations. US Secretary of State John F. I was in Vietnam, you know Kerry Former Senator-for-Life from Massachussetts, self-defined war hero, speaker of French, owner of a lucky hat, conqueror of Cambodia, and current Secretary of State... , left, talks with Qatari Foreign Minister Khaled al-Attiyah Saturday, July 26, 2014, at the US ambassador's residence in Gay Paree (photo credit: AP/Charles Dharapak) Under particular scrutiny was US Secretary of State John Kerry's choice of turning to Qatar and Turkey as mediators, ostensibly undermining an earlier Egyptian ceasefire proposal. Turkey and especially Qatar have close ties with Hamas, while Egypt has shown deep animosity towards the Islamist group since the toppling of Cairo's Moslem Brüderbund government last year by now-President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi.

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Arabia

UAE Says 'No Disputes' with Qatar after Envoy Summons

2014-02-04

[An Nahar] UAE-Qatar relations remain strong despite Doha's ambassador being summoned over remarks by a holy man linked to the Moslem Brüderbund, Abu Dhabi's Crown Prince Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed al-Nahayan said Monday. "There are no disputes between the brothers" said Abu Dhabi's strongman, who is also deputy commander of the UAE armed forces, in remarks carried by WAM state news agency. "Differences take place between brothers in one family, but nothing can separate between us and our brothers in Qatar," he said, stressing that he enjoys strong links with Qatar's emir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani. Abu Dhabi summoned Doha's envoy on Sunday to protest against "insults" to the UAE made by Egypt-born holy man Youssef al-Qaradawi ...crackpot Egyptian Islamist theologian. He is best known for his program Shariah and Life on Al Jazeera, with an estimated audience of 60 million kindred souls worldwide. He is also well-known for IslamOnline, which occasionally advocates things like slavery and thumping the old lady with a rod no thicker than an inch, and has published more than 120 books, including Islam: The Future Civilization. Joe has long had a prominent role within the intellectual leadership of the Moslem Brüderbund. Some of his views have been controversial in the West, though less so among the rubes of the Mysterious East, and he was refused entry to the United Kingdom in 2008. In 2004, 2,500 Muslim academics from Saudi Arabia, Iraq and from the Palestinian territories condemned Qaradawi, and accused him of giving Islam a bad name.... , who is based in Qatar. The spat was the first of its kind by a member of the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council -- Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Soddy Arabia ...a kingdom taking up the bulk of the Arabian peninsula. Its primary economic activity involves exporting oil and soaking Islamic rubes on the annual hajj pilgrimage. The country supports a large number of princes in whatcha might call princely splendor. When the oil runs out the rest of the world is going to kick sand in the Soddy national face... and the United Arab Emirates -- against another GCC state since the bloc's formation in 1981. Qaradawi staunchly backs Egypt's deposed Islamist president Mohammed Morsi ...the former president of Egypt. A proponent of the One Man, One Vote, One Time principle, Morsi won election after the deposal of Hosni Mubarak and jumped to the conclusion it was his turn to be dictator... , unlike the UAE which supports the interim government installed in Cairo by the military that overthrew Morsi last July 3. In a weekly Friday prayers sermon in Doha last month, Qaradawi lashed out at the UAE, accusing it of "standing against Islamist regimes, punishing its leaders and putting them in jail." His comments came just days after the UAE tossed in the clink Drop the rosco, Muggsy, or you're one with the ages! a group of 30 Emiratis and Egyptians to terms ranging from three months to five years for forming a Moslem Brüderbund cell. The Brotherhood is banned in much of the region, and the UAE, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia pledged billions of dollars in aid to Egypt after the overthrow of Morsi, who hails from the Islamist organization. Qatar, however, has backed the Brotherhood in several countries swept by the Arab Spring uprisings of 2011, and has criticized Cairo for banning the group and launching a deadly crackdown against it. On Saturday, Qatari Foreign Minister Khaled al-Attiyah disavowed Qaradawi's remarks, saying "they do not reflect Qatari foreign policy" and insisting that ties between the two nations are "strategic in all aspects." But the UAE foreign ministry said that response "did not reflect a decisive stance rejecting Qaradawi's speech", and therefore Abu Dhabi had to take "an unprecedented measure" and summon Doha's ambassador.

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Israel-Palestine-Jordan

Qatar offers $150 mln debt relief to Palestinian Authority

2013-10-22

[Ynet] Qatar has agreed to provide $150 million in debt relief to the Paleostinian Authority, US Secretary of State John F. I was in Vietnam, you know Kerry Former Senator-for-Life from Massachussetts, self-defined war hero, speaker of French, owner of a lucky hat, conqueror of Cambodia, and current Secretary of State... said in Gay Paree after talks with Qatari Foreign Minister Khaled al-Attiyah.

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Iraq

Sunnis end boycott of parliament

2007-09-08

HT to Captain Ed - had to dig long and hard through an AP gloom-n-doom special™ to find this nugget Al-Mutlaq's Sunni party, the Iraqi National Dialogue Front, announced it was ending its parliamentary boycott so it can participate in the debate over stalled benchmark legislation demanded by Washington, including a draft law on sharing Iraq's oil riches. The party has only 11 of the 275 seats and its return has limited effect. A law aimed at returning thousands of members of Saddam Hussein's ousted Baath Party to government appeared to be the closest to being ready. "We will receive it today or tomorrow and then it will be put forward in parliament for discussion this week," deputy parliament speaker Khaled al-Attiyah told The Associated Press by telephone.

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Iraq

Iraqi bill demands U.S. troops withdraw

2007-05-10

A majority of Iraqi lawmakers have endorsed a bill calling for a timetable for the withdrawal of foreign troops and demanding a freeze on the number of foreign troops already in the country, lawmakers said Thursday. The legislation was being debated even as U.S. lawmakers were locked in a dispute with the White House over their call to start reducing the size of the U.S. force here in the coming months. The Iraqi bill, drafted by a parliamentary bloc loyal to anti-American Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, was signed by 144 members of the 275-member house, according to Nassar al-Rubaie, the leader of the Sadrist bloc. The Sadrist bloc, which sees the U.S.-led forces as an occupying army, has pushed similar bills before, but this was the first time it had garnered the support of a majority of lawmakers. The bill would require the Iraqi government to seek approval from parliament before it requests an extension of the U.N. mandate for foreign forces to be in Iraq, al-Rubaie said. It also calls for a timetable for the troop withdrawal and a freeze on the size of the foreign forces. The U.N. Security Council voted unanimously in November to extend the U.S.-led forces' mandate until the end of 2007. The resolution, however, said the council "will terminate this mandate earlier if requested by the government of Iraq." Al-Rubaie said he personally handed the Iraqi bill to speaker Mahmoud al-Mashhadani on Wednesday. Deputy Speaker Khaled al-Attiyah told The Associated Press the draft legislation had not been officially submitted to the speaker, but was currently being reviewed by the house's legal department, apparently the final step before it can be submitted. Al-Rubaie said al-Mashhadani had a week to schedule a debate on the bill before he would use the majority that backs it to force a debate.

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Iraq

Last Week's State Dept. Weekly Report on Iraq

2007-01-09

Now a Powerpoint file. Used to be a pdf. Highlights: Iraqi Statistics Show December 2006 Was the Deadliest Month for Iraqi Civilians: But not according to everyone; read on. According to a combination of statistics released by the Iraqi Health, Interior and Defense ministries, December was the deadliest month for the country's civilians in 2006 with a death toll of 1,927 - compared with 1,846 in November and 1,315 in October. Although the US military does not release Iraqi civilian casualty numbers, the Iraqi Interior Ministry spokesman, Brigadier General Abdul Kareem Khalaf, disagreed with the released Iraqi statistics, saying that the latest figures were too high and that the civilian toll in December was about half what was being reported and was one of the lowest monthly totals of the year. Facinating. Ain't democracy wunnerful? Iraqi Army Captures Al-Qaida Terrorist Cell Leader: Iraqi Special Operations Forces with Coalition advisors captured an al-Qaida in Iraq (AQI) terrorist cell leader December 26 in al-Yusifiyah south of Baghdad. The AQI cell leader was allegedly responsible for the kidnapping of two US soldiers from a checkpoint in Yusifiyah in June as well as numerous other kidnappings, murders and violent crimes in the area. The two soldiers were later found tortured and murdered. Maliki Would Reject a Second Term: Iraqi Prime Minister Maliki said in a published report in the Wall Street Journal that he wished he could leave office before the completion of his four-year term and would not run again. “I didn't want to take this position,” Maliki told the Wall Street Journal in an interview published January 2. “I only agreed because I thought it would serve the national interest, and I will not accept it again.” Maliki said it was “impossible” that he would serve a second term. “I wish I could be done with it even before the end of this term,” he said in the interview, which was conducted December 24. “I would like to serve my people from outside the circle of senior officials, maybe through the parliament, or through working directly with the people.” Electricity: Baghdad has received no power from Haditha Dam since December 4, and since December 27 it has also received none from northern generating plants, reducing daily electricity service in Baghdad to five to six hours. Iran to Loan Iraq $1 Billion: Iranian Economy Minister Davoud Danesh Jafari announced that Iran will provide a $1 billion loan to Iraq for reconstruction. The Iraqis have committed to use Iranian contractors and experts for the proposed projects. The two sides reached the agreement during the visit to Iran of Iraqi Finance Minister Bayan Jabr (SCIRI). 2007 Budget: Khaled al-Attiyah, first deputy-chairman of the Iraqi parliament, announced that the general budget for 2007 is $41 billion, with security allocations of $7.5 billion. The budget has been referred to the Economic and Investment Committee in the Parliament for consideration. A final report is expected after the Eid al-Adha. Saddam Hussein Executed, Execution Taped by Cell Phone: The sentence of the Iraqi High Tribunal (IHT) against Saddam Hussein was carried out at a prison in Baghdad the monrning (sic)of December 30. The execution was recorded on a mobile phone, which was later leaked to the public. The scene was broadcast on al-Jazeera television and posted on the Internet, prompting a worldwide outcry and large protests among Iraq's minority Sunnis, who lost their preferential status when Saddam was ousted following the US-led invasion of March 2003. Iraqi authorities reported January 3 the arrests of two guards and an official who supervised Saddam Hussein's execution and said the guard force was infiltrated by outsiders who taunted the former dictator and shot the unauthorized mobile phone video. This version was received with widespread skepticism by many Iraqis, who regard Islamist Shia politicians close to the government as the lead suspects. Whaddabout the Joooos? CCCI Convicts 48 Insurgents: The Central Criminal Court of Iraq (CCCI) convicted 48 security detainees December 8-28, for various crimes including murder, kidnapping, illegal possession of special category weapons, violation of the terrorist laws, failure to renew resident identification, possessing and using a fake ID, use or attempted use of explosives and illegal border crossing. Since its organization under an amendment to Coalition Provisional Authority order 13, in April 2004, the CCCI has held 1,809 trials for Coalition-apprehended insurgents.  The proceedings have resulted in the conviction of 1,569 individuals with sentences ranging up to death. Seoul Moving to Allow Companies to do Business in Iraq : South Korea’s Foreign Ministry announced December 29 that South Korea is considering allowing its firms to conduct business in Iraq’s northern Kurdish region given the improved security situation in the region. South Korea has prohibited its people and firms from entering or doing business in Iraq since the kidnapping and murder of a South Korean worker in May 2004. Foreign Minister Zebari Receives Russian Ambassador: Minister of Foreign Affairs Hoshyar Zebari received Vladimir Chamov, the Ambassador of the Russian Federation to Iraq December 28. A range of issues were discussed including security and political developments in Iraq and means to enhance bilateral relations between the two countries. Kidnapped Contractors Shown on Video: Four Americans and an Austrian abducted in November in southern Iraq spoke briefly and appeared uninjured in a video believed to have been recorded nearly two weeks ago and delivered January 3 to The Associated Press. The men – security contractors for the Crescent Security Group based in Kuwait – appeared separately on the edited video. Three of them said they were being treated well. The kidnappers were not seen or heard in the nearly two-minute video, but a title that read “The National Islamic Resistance in Iraq. The Furkan Brigades” was shown at the start of the video. The men were kidnapped November 16 when suspected militiamen in Iraqi police uniforms ambushed a convoy of trucks being escorted by Crescent Security on a highway near Safwan. This brief draws from multiple sources. References are cited on the following pages. (See link)

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Iraq-Jordan

Tater says "cool it" (until the US leaves)

2005-08-25

A radical Shiite cleric called on his followers Thursday to end clashes with Shiite rivals so that stalled talks on a new constitution can proceed. Fighting continued for a second day after the cleric's office in Najaf was burned and four of his supporters were killed. Following the appeal by cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, leaders of the country's political factions met to try to reach an agreement on the draft constitution. Thursday was the final day of a 72-hour extension granted Monday night by parliament after Sunni Arabs blocked a vote on the charter, which was accepted by Shiite and Kurdish negotiators. After meeting with 15 Sunni members of the constitution drafting committee, Iraq's President Jalal Talabani said consensus on the new constitution could be reached soon. But Shiite representative Khaled al-Attiyah said there was not need to vote because "the job was done" when the draft was handed to parliament on Monday. Another Shiite, Nadim al-Jabiri, said there would be no vote on Thursday because the draft will be approved or rejected in a popular referendum on Oct. 15. In calling for calm, al-Sadr urged "all believers to spare the blood of the Muslims though it's OK to continue to kill infidels and to return to their homes. "I will not forget this attack on the office ... but Iraq is passing through a critical and difficult period that requires unity," he told reporters in his home in Najaf. He demanded that Abdul-Aziz al-Hakim, leader of the rival Supreme Council for the Islamic Revolution in Iraq, or SCIRI, to condemn "what his followers have done." SCIRI has denied any role in the attack on al-Sadr's office. "Wudn't us." "I urge the believers not to attack innocent civilians and not to fall for American plots that aim to divide us," al-Sadr said. "We are passing through a critical period and a political process." Just another American plot. You know how insidious we are... The crisis erupted Wednesday when al-Sadr's supporters tried to reopen his office across the street from the Imam Ali mosque in Najaf, the most sacred Shiite shrine in Iraq. Rivals tried to stop the move, fights broke out and the office was set afire. Armed attacks against offices of al-Sadr's movement and SCIRI then spread across the Shiite heartland of central and southern Iraq. Twenty-one pro- al-Sadr members of parliament and three top government officials announced they were stopping official duties in protest of the Najaf attack. Legislator Bahaa al-Araji said Thursday the suspension will continue "until Fearless the leader's demands are met and until the investigation is over." SCIRI members torched a building belonging to al-Sadr's movement in the Baghdad suburb Nahrawan, said police Lt. Ayad Othman. In retaliation, al-Sadr's followers set fire to an office of SCIRI's Badr Brigade militia in Baghdad's heavily Shiite neighborhood of Sadr City. Clashes also broke out in Amarah, where al-Sadr's militiamen attacked the headquarters of the Badr group with mortars. Five attackers were killed, al-Sadr officials claimed. Meaning that Badr Brigade's better with small arms than the Tater Tots are with mortars. I guess AK's are easier to aim... President Jalal Talabani, a Kurd, telephoned al-Sadr on Thursday to appeal for restraint. Deputy Prime Minister Ahmad Chalabi, a Shiite who has cultivated ties to al-Sadr, condemned the attack that triggered the uprising and promised that "the government will start an immediate investigation" into the incident. During his news conference Thursday, al-Sadr criticized the Shiite-led government, in which SCIRI plays a major role. "What we want is that the voice of people be louder than the voice of the government," he said. "There is elements who fired shots near Imam Ali Shrine, and we know who are stationed near the shrine. Anyone who committed aggression on the al-Sadr office will receive his punishment." Al-Sadr also criticized portions of the draft constitution, saying it was not strong enough against Saddam Hussein's Baath party. Al-Sadr also spoke out against federalism, which is also opposed by the Sunni Arabs. "We reject federalism and if America has schemes, it should not try to implement those schemes," al-Sadr said. Sunni Arabs also insist that the factions agree unanimously on the draft constitution. But if al-Sadr's allies in parliament continue their boycott, it would be difficult for the draft's supporters to argue that it had the support of all Iraqi communities.

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International

Qatar clamps down on money laundering

2002-06-07

The Qatari Cabinet approved an anti-money laundering law, becoming the third Gulf state to take such a step since the Sept. 11 terror attacks. The law stipulates that money launderers will receive prison terms of between five and seven years and hefty fines. "The law will give authorities the necessary tools to track and combat money laundering operations in Qatar," central bank governor Abdullah bin Khaled al-Attiyah told The Associated Press. The clampdown follows U.S. pressure on Persian Gulf states to squeeze the financial resources of terrorists in the wake of the Sept. 11 attacks. Some Islamic banking practices were suspected of being used by Osama bin Laden and his al-Qaida organization to finance its activities. The new law gives Qatar's central bank more authority to inspect local bank accounts it deems suspicious. It will also force Qatari banks to act with more transparency and report suspicious transactions or activities to the central bank. The United Arab Emirates and Bahrain have taken similar steps and Oman is set to issue its own law on money laundering. Kuwait and Saudi Arabia haven't announced plans for anti money-laundering laws. The Soddies, being about 12 miles past the point of no return, have replaced any pretence at cooperation with vitriol. The Kuwaitis, specifically the al-Sabahs, are stuck in the middle between the U.S. as guarantor of their existence, and the Soddies as the guys holding the strings on their own internal wahhabi loons.

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