Anti-Muslim violence in Burma rages on. It’s getting worse.
This past weekend, in a Sagaing Division village, a crowd of 1,000 Buddhists burned down the homes and shops of Muslims, while security forces “failed†to intervene.
Those attempting to help victims of Islamophobic violence are attacked themselves. Buddhist aid workers in Arakan State are beingforced to resign as they and their families become targets of threats and intimidation.
Last week, the UN Special Rapporteur for human rights in Burma was attacked by 200 Buddhists; the police failed to protect him, and the government immediately denied the attack.
UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Navi Pillay, has also called for an independent investigation into anti-Muslim attacks since June 2012, and this week, Physicians for Human Rights (PHR) called for an independent investigation inits latest report. PHR wrote that anti-Muslim violence, bolstered by hate speech, systems of impunity, and inaction by government and democracy movement leaders, “could lead to mass atrocities on a scale heretofore unseen in Burma†unless the international community addresses it.
According to UN Special Rapporteur for human rights in Burma, Tomas Ojea Quintana, “The human rights violations being committed against the Rohingya in Rakhine State are widespread and systematic and there continues to be absolutely no accountability for what is occurring there. There is no way of glossing over this state of affairs with the genuine progress that is being made in other areas.â€
URGENT Action
Contact President Obama to:
• urge the UN to establish an international, independent investigation into Burma’s ongoing anti-Muslim violence.
• demand accountability and justice in order for peace to prevail in the region.
• implore that the US and the UN should no longer tolerate systematic impunity and hate crimes against the stateless, helpless people of Burma.
Act Now:
• Call President Obama today: 202-456-1111, • Forward this message to your friends.
In the past week, the pressure on the US to take action of some sort on the Syrian conflict has escalated dramatically. The use of chemical weapons has repeatedly been established as a red line upon which the US would take action. Yet now that chemical weapons have reportedly been used, the US is uncertain about what actions it can and should take.
Red lines are always extremely tough for a president to establish. President Obama has repeatedly resisted pressure from Israel to set a red line for a military strike on Iran’s nuclear program because doing so would leave him no other option if that line were crossed. Politicians prefer to make vague threats and condemnations, which allow them to keep their options open. And so it is clear that when the president set his red line on Syria last year, he did so in the hope that that boundary would never be crossed. The threat had always been to deter Assad’s forces from using chemical weapons, rather than as a course of action for when he did so. But now, the United States is faced with the prospect of backing up that threat, and there are several reasons why the US has little choice but to do so.
The Syrian conflict has continuously been about setting precedents. Part of the motivation that Russia, and China, have in opposing intervention in Syria is preventing the establishment of a precedent for intervening in other nations’ human rights affairs. Both nations fear that they might someday face a rebellion from their own people in which they would need to take actions similar to Assad’s, and they fear the existence of a precedent of international intervention if that day comes.
Similarly, the United States has tried to establish the opposite precedent: that the international community can hold a leader responsible for human rights violations that he perpetrates in his country. Thus, in upholding that goal, it is imperative for the US to take action in response to the use of chemical weapons. Otherwise, the precedent established will be this: a dictator can get away with using chemical weapons as long as he maintains a level of ambiguity, denies what has occurred, and times the use of the weapons to when the international media is occupied with another, more intriguing story, in this case the Egyptian crisis.
The US does not wish to establish that kind of precedent, and so it faces enormous pressure to take action of some kind, not only to send a message to Assad, but to send a message to any other leaders who might someday try the same thing. Related to this is the blow that American credibility would take if the US failed to act on its previous threat. If the Obama Administration allowed Assad to call its bluff, then who is to say that Iran, whom the US has warned against building nuclear weapons, might not try the same thing?
Whether or not one believes that the US should intervene in Syria, the fact is that the US has left itself little choice but to do so. But there are many clues as to what form this intervention will take. The Obama Administration, has, unlike its predecessor, shown a reluctance to take any unilateral action. Any action the US takes will be with either the mandate of the UN Security Council, or, at the very least, the backing of the US’ NATO allies. With the Security Council currently in deadlock, the latter is the most likely option. Once action is taken, the Administration will likely attempt to limit its scope. Polls taken by Gallup earlier in the summer show that 68% of Americans oppose intervention in Syria, and with public opinion so sharply against it, there will be no large-scale intervention.
Whatever actions the international community takes, in the end, all that matters is that they ease the situation that has devastated the Syrian people for so long.
Ian Black on a new book which explains how Saudi Arabia and the Gulf monarchies have used sectarianism to try to escape the changes sweeping the region.
Obituaries of the Arab spring are blossoming in the heat of the unremittingly grim events in Syria, Egypt and Libya so it is timely to take a cool look at a part of the Middle East where the upheavals of 2011 never really happened — and to try to understand just why the Gulf is different.
Saudi Arabia has been in the news because of its staunch support for the military-backed government in Cairo – part of its wider strategy of resisting the Muslim Brotherhood and rolling back change. But closer to home the Saudis also back Bahrain’s Al Khalifa rulers, a Sunni dynasty facing down protests by the island state’s Shia and democratic opposition.
Toby Matthiesen’s new study of the Gulf counter-revolutions demonstrates how the Saudis, Bahrain and Kuwait have all combined repression and cash handouts with an almost instinctive sectarianism to keep demands for reform at bay.
The Saudis had long fretted about unrest in their predominantly Shia eastern province — the heartland of the kingdom’s oil industry. But when republican dictators were being toppled in Tunis, Cairo and Tripoli and revolution was in the air just across the Gulf in Manama, anti-Shia feeling was ratcheted up with the mass arrests of local activists who were accused of being part of a “foreign conspiracy.†It was supposedly led by Iran, but beyond shrill propaganda from Tehran and dark hints about “sleeper cells,†there is no evidence of that.
Matthiesen, an Arabist who had worked for the highly-respected International Crisis Group, blurs the boundaries between journalism and academia with nuggets of vivid reportage and background knowledge that translates obscure historical legacies into comprehensible contemporary terms. (Anti-Shia prejudice is akin in some ways to hostility to Catholics in Protestant culture). And the Gulf monarchies, as he puts it, “think strategically in sectarian terms, and shape their foreign policies in those terms.â€
In the end however it is more about power than faith. Matthiesen observes that the official discourse surrounding the alleged meddling of (the Shia) Iranian state and the transnational (Sunni) Muslim Brotherhood is actually very similar. And these allegations, he concludes, “are often about finding a scapegoat to deflect attention to an external enemy.†Saudi policy towards Bashar al-Assad — still one of the more opaque aspects of the Syrian crisis — includes the encouragement of vicious anti-Alawi rhetoric from Gulf-based Sunni clerics. (Alawis are an offshoot of Shi’ism). In Kuwait, official prejudice is directed against the Brotherhood (as it is, in spades, in the UAE), as well as the tribes and the stateless Bidoon.
Factors pushing for internal change include demographic pressures, labour markets that can no longer provide jobs for underperforming citizens with a sense of entitlement, dwindling oil resources and demands for political reform. But unlike Christopher Davidson, author of a recent much-discussed work on the future of the region, Matthiesen does not predict that any of the Gulf regimes face collapse any time soon.
Nor does he use the fashionable and superficial labels of Twitter or Facebook revolutions, arguing that brute force can be more effective than even the smartest digital technology.
Social media are a good way to organize revolution, sometimes. But guns and tanks are very effective tools to stop revolutions, particularly if…the soldiers are loyal to the regime and international pressure on the regime is limited.
Limited is the right word. Arguments about securing oil supplies, confronting Iran, arms exports and stability have all trumped western concerns about human rights and democracy in all the Gulf monarchies — as will surely be seen in a forthcoming report on UK relations with Bahrain and Saudi Arabia by a British parliamentary enquiry. As David Cameron put it in 2011: “Bahrain is not Syria†— a shorthand way of explaining why King Hamad Al Khalifa is still persona grata in Downing Street (and the White House) while Assad is not. Syria, meanwhile, has turned out to be a different sort of exception. But that’s another story.
On May 9, 2013 Malcolm Shabazz, grandson of El Hajj Malik El Shabazz, aka Malcolm X, was murdered in Mexico. Since then, there has been a total media blackout, and no meaningful investigation. No public debate has occurred regarding the only male heir of the civil rights history legend, as with the murder of Trayvon Martin.
Mama Dee, a radio talk show host in New Orleans thinks African Americans should be organizing, protesting, demanding justice. “Why are we allowing our children to be killed?†she implored.
Shabazz was in Mexico City to strengthen ties between African American and Mexican activists. His host, Miguel Suarez said Shabazz was killed during a dispute over a $1200 restaurant tab in the wee hours of the morning at an establishment of ill repute. Two waiters David Hernandez Cruz and Manuel Alejandro Perez de Jesus were arrested for homicide, though five men were said to have been involved. An autopsy found that Shabazz died of blows to the head, face and torso. The men who beat Malcolm Shabazz to death not only punched and kicked him but also used a bat or stick during the attack, Mexico City’s top prosecutor Rodolfo Rios said.
Suarez said that he and Shabazz were lured to the bar by a young woman who made conversation with Shabazz in English, reported CBS. Suarez, who is still in Mexico, is not being investigated.
According to Wilner Metelus of the Naturalized and Afro-Mexican Citizens Defense Committee, this is “one more proof of the corruption and complicity of the authorities with organized crime; it’s shameful and shows a lack of respect for all the citizens in the capital city and especially the Afro-Mexican community… We want to see that video. And we want a Truth Commission set up to investigate Malcolm Latif’s death, composed of both Mexican and international citizens. Those are our demands.â€
Luis González Placencia, head of the city’s Human Rights Commission, refused to meet with hunger strikers demanding an investigation, who protested outside Mexico City government offices for one week. Then he sent 500 riot police to clear them out.
Sabrina Green told W.E.A.L.L.B.E. Radio that hundreds of Mexican federal police savagely beat and kicked Afro-Mexican hunger strikers who “took to the streets of Mexico City†supporting Malcolm Shabazz on July 11, 2013.†The demonstration coincided with another protest supporting Nigerian immigrant Isaac Nwachukwu, killed by Mexican police who just paid a $210 fine after being charged. Police officers ripped up photos of Shabazz and confiscated demonstrators’ signs.
There have been multiple demonstrations in front of the Mexican Embassy in DC throughout July and August. Those participating included Razakhan Shaheed of the Philadelphia Innocence Project; Pam Africa of the International Concerned Family and Friends of Mumia Abu-Jamal; Basiymah Muhammad of the World Body of the United Negro Improvement Association; Archbishop John Lewis III of the African Orthodox Church; and Dr. Randy Short of the Black Autonomy Network Organization and Chairman of Malcolm Shabazz Truth and Justice Committee.
“Both governments U.S. and Mexico are in violation of The Foreign Relations Act. Malcolm is entitled by Law to have a proper national and international assassination investigation… it’s about holding both governments to accountability. African Americans have rights! We demand Justice for Malcolm!†commented Dr. Short, who travelled with Shabazz to Libya to meet with Muammar Gadhafi one week prior to NATO intervention, as part of a delegation led by Cynthia McKinney.
Shabazz supporters are now petitioning Secretary of State John Kerry for an investigation via change.org. So far, over 3,500 signatures have been collected.
“This is a very grave matter and those of us who have signed this petition are scrutinizing the U.S. and Mexican government very closely for their lack of interest in and/or coverage of this young man’s savage torture and assassination in a foreign country. We would like the steps of Malcolm Lateef Shabazz retraced from the time that he entered Mexico. The last month of his life are of the utmost importance in getting to the bottom of how he was murdered and who actually murdered him. Considering how closely he was being watched by your government’s FBI and CIA agencies, there is no reason why they should not be able to provide this information in great detail. Unless, of course, they were complicit in young Malcolm Shabazz’s assassination,†reads the statement, filed by Rozlyn Cross-Ratliff.
Dr. Short told W.E. A.L.L. B.E. Radio, “We know the CIA did it because of premonitions he had before his death.â€
Shabazz had posted on Cynthia McKinney’s Facebook page shortly before his assassination:
“The formula for a public assassination is: the character assassination before the physical assassination; so one has to be made killable before the eyes of the public in order for their eventual murder to then (be) deemed justifiable, and when the time arrives for these hits to be carried out, you’re not going to see a CIA agent with a suit & tie, and a badge that says ‘CIA’. What they will do is to out-source to local police departments in the region of their target, and to employ those that look like the target of interest to infiltrate the workings in order to set up the environment for the eventual assassination (character, physical/incarceration, exile) to take place.â€
Mauri’ Saalakhan of the Peace and Justice Foundation told TMO: “Malcolm Shabazz impressed me from afar as a gifted and committed young brother with enormous potential to do great things. The fact that his life ended so soon, like that of his imminent grandfather, should give us all pause and force us to reflect over several important lessons: (1) that life and death are twin halves of each other, and none of us knows when or where the end will come; (2) those of us involved in “political†work should not only be careful of how we live our lives, but who we allow into our inner circle. I do hope… that a campaign for accountability will grow, and that a full and transparent investigation will follow.â€
In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful
File: A man prepares bodies for burial after the mass killings in Egypt.
More than a month has passed since the coup. The perpetrators of the coup have committed acts of violence and aggression witnessed by the world resulting in hundreds dead and thousands wounded. (The world has also witnessed) an evil arraying of ranks from the army and the police and a minority of the people who were driven to support the coup either under the influence of devious media campaigns or for sectarian or ideological interests with the goal of imposing a new order by force.
In the face of these perilous developments—for now and in the future—it is the responsibility of the people of knowledge—with the obligation that Allah has placed upon them of speaking the truth and by virtue of the position of leadership that He has granted them over the matters of the Ummah—that they clarify the position of the Shariah with regards to what is happening in Egypt, the truth about the conditions that preceded the coup and its expected outcome, as follows.
1. Deposing of the elected president by the minister of defence is an all-out coup. This is an action that is outlawed and criminal. We reject it, as it is a rebellion against a legitimate elected ruler and a clear transgression against the will of the people. We emphatically declare that all subsequent proceedings are null and void.
We register our protest and astonishment at the behavior of some governments that were quick to recognize the coup despite its being contrary to the will of the people and a rebellion against an elected legitimate ruler. This is an act of aiding sin and transgression, which is forbidden in the Shariah. It will have serious negative consequences on everyone if Egypt—God forbid—were to descend into anarchy and civil war.
2. It is proven by looking at all the happenings, statements, and attitudes of regional and international players that this coup occurred with connivance between regional and international parties. And preparations for the coup had been in place from the moment Dr. Muhammad Morsi was elected the president of Egypt.
3. It is no longer a secret for anyone that the failure of the government of Morsi was deliberately and systematically engineered by way of stirring unrest, suspension of the wheels of production, and highhanded control of the elites of the deep state over basic services such as electricity, fuel, and flour with the goal of turning public opinion against him and against his government.
4. The reality of the matter is this coup was not a coup for reform but a coup meant to oust the Islamic and national movements and to prevent true independence and sovereignty for Egypt.
5. We deplore and condemn the acts of horrific violence and murder carried out deliberately by the army and security forces against hundreds of Muslim demonstrators during salah and in the public squares merely because they demonstrated against the coup–despite the fact that the job of the army and security forces was to defend them and to ensure their safety. Have they never come across this verse? “Whoever kills a believer deliberately, his recompense is Jahannam in which he will dwell forever and Allah has become angry with him and has cursed him and prepared for him a great punishment.â€
And the statement of the Messenger of Allah, “The loss of the entire world is lighter in the sight of Allah than the unjust shedding of the blood of one Muslim.â€
6. We reiterate for everybody that deposing of President Morsi and the bringing down of his government under the pretext of stopping the betrayal of the nation amounts to clutching at straws. The fact is that his government was overthrown because it was oriented Islamically and nationally.
In our stance of rejection of the coup and its aftermath, we are not defending the Muslim Brotherhood but rather seek to defend the truth and stand with the oppressed and with the rights of the Egyptian masses that have been transgressed against. We will never stand for one day with a party or individuals for their own sake, but if they are in the trenches on the side of the truth, we will stand with them and we will never forsake defending the truth just because they happen to be on its side.
7. Thus we deplore the stance of some parties and movements and individuals that are supporting this coup. We say: Our Shariah rejects rebellion against a legitimate ruler and rather calls for advising him and holding him responsible through legal means. Our faith requires us to fulfill our contracts and pledges even if they be against us.
We thus call upon them (the parties supporting the coup) to revoke their stance and to disassociate themselves from the coup makers, to remove the cloak of legitimacy from them, to condemn all actions of violence and aggression, to attribute them (these actions) to their true perpetrators, and to reconcile with their Islamic milieu, which is their mainstay. Similarly, we applaud the stance of the scholars that have sided with the truth and stood by it.
8. As is its habit, the West has proven again that it will side with tyranny and violence against the Muslim masses whether it be in the form of a war of annihilation as in Syria or a coup and confiscation of rights as in Egypt. We declare to the West that the people have understood its games and soon it will have to pay the price of violating values and principles. The West, with its double standards, is driving the region into anarchy and establishing a culture of violence.
9. We commend the stance of the Ulama of al-Azhar and other ulama from Egypt who have openly spoken the truth and rejected the coup. And we remind all the scholars, activists, and intellectuals of the necessity of taking a firm stand against the coup.
10. We call upon the entire world and media that they fear Allah with regards to Egypt and its people and to side with the truth and to recant their positions, especially after the coup-mongers have shed sacred blood, divided the people, and sought to spread mischief by inciting the people to fight each other.
To remain silent in the face of the crimes of the military is (in reality) betraying them and to support them is betrayal of the ummah and the aspirations of the people to freedom and dignity. There is only one way to help them—that is to prevent them from oppression.
11. We emphasize our support for everyone who calls for the restoration of the elected President Dr. Muhammad Morsi. We call upon them to stand firm and hope for reward from Allah, for they are on the truth and their demand is legitimate. We also implore them to restrain themselves and to block off the paths of those who seek mischief and will create means for further killings.
We supplicate to Allah to accept those that passed away from amongst them, to heal their wounded, to bestow upon their families patience and consolation, and grant them hope of reward (from Him).
12. We remind ourselves and our brethren in Egypt and elsewhere that whatever is happening is occurring with the decree of Allah; it is but a chapter from the annals of conflict between truth and falsehood, between secularism and Islam, between leadership and subjugation. Gird yourselves and stand firm in opposing the coup that began with the suspension of your constitutional institutions and followed with the massacres of people in prayer….
Finally, we must be brave enough to see our own shortcomings that undoubtedly have been the weak points that the enemy took advantage of, foremost amongst them being our own inner division and party politics.
We advise our brethren in Egypt to be conscious of Allah and to hold fast to His strong rope and to stand firm on the straight path…. Allah says: “And verily this my straight path, so follow it, and do not follow the (other) ways, lest they separate you from His way. That is what He has enjoined upon you so that you may be God-fearing.â€
O Allah protect Egypt, its peace, security and faith; unite its people on the truth; and protect them from their enemies—whether they be internal or external. Ameen.
The Levantine Cultural Center in Los Angeles presented an outstanding event on Syria and the Syrian refugee crisis this past week. Featured speakers were immigration attorney, Reem Salahi, and UCLA filmmaker, Faisal Attrache. This was not Ms Salahi’s first presentation at the Center. In 2009, after returning from a trip to Palestine, she told of her experiences in witnessing first hand the destruction left by Israel’s Operation Cast Lead (The Muslim Observer, April 13, 2009).
The presentations were accompanied by pictures.
Ms Salahi began by saying that she was born in the United States of Syrian extraction. She visited the Northwest portion of Syria during the last two weeks of this past June. She also spent a week in Turkey and Jordan. In villages she met with activists, Syrian refugees in camps, and local groups.She gave a brief history of recent events as they unfolded in Syria.
On March 6, 2011 a group of 12 young boys spray painted a decidedly anti-Assad message on the wall of a mosque, the boys were arrested, and, in the aftermath. a Facebook page was set up in their honor calling for days of rage.
One of the boys, 13 year old Hamza Al Khateeb, was brutally tortured and castrated, his body left to be discovered. He became a symbol of the revolution and the fight against the Assad regime. Crowds assembled with Hamza as the focal point and called for the ouster of the Assad regime.
Ms Salahi also told of the brutal murder of poet, Abrahim Qashoush, known as the nightingale of the revolution. He was kidnapped and killed, and when his body was found, it was discovered that his vocal cords had been slashed.
Ali Farzap was a well known and respected blogger whose opposition to the Assad regime took the form of cartoons. He was kidnapped by car and was later found with both hands broken.
The Free Syrian Army (FSA) was formed in September 2011. Ms Salahi said that she had met many of the members. In July the FSA existed as a hodge podge of groups, a sizeable number of its members made up of defectors from the Syrian Army. At first they were in place to protect the protestors, but later they formed part of the protest.
Ms Salahi showed a brief excerpt from an interview between Bashar Assad and Barbara Walters. In it Assad denied the atrocities attributed to his regime even in the face of proof supplied by United Nations investigators. She pointed to this as a prime example of disconnect.
Her trip included a visit to the city of Saraqeb, largely destroyed by government forces. She continued by saying “how amazing it was how people can copeâ€. She visited an underground hospital. In liberated areas there is no government per se, but people are trying to form a civil society.
Ms Salahi spoke of visiting refugee camps for internally displaced refugees (IDR). When the public hears the word refugee, they think in terms of people who have left their native land to flee to another. In a civil war, the phenomenon of the internally displaced person – a refugee in his own land, if you will – becomes a problem. There are 2.5 million IDRs in Syria. The people in these camps need everything. She visited the Kafranbel Center, the creative center of the revolution. There are drawings of freedom in the Center. It is run by the FSA. Every Friday there are protests.
The freedom fighters want anti aircraft missiles to protect them from the death dealing bombs dropped by the Assad regime’s helicopters.
Faisal Attrache was born in Syria and is currently a student at the UCLA film School. After a fundraiser Mr Attrache and his team visited the Zaatari Refugee Camp in Jordan. The result is a film titled: “Walk-Ins Welcome: Stories from Syrian Refugee Barbersâ€. When asked why his team focused on barbers, Mr Attrache will reply that at some point in everyone’s life he will need the services of a barber. People speak freely to barbers, and barbers are usually acutely aware of their environment.
The refugee camp is densely packed, having grown considerably from its original size. The refugees are not permitted to leave and the entrance to this camp is heavily patrolled. Jordan governs Zaatari with a heavy hand. There is a trench around the camp, and soldiers patrol the perimeter. It is truly an open air prison.
Many groups including NGOs work in the camp to help the inhabitants. For example, the Saudi government has opened a school in Zaatari. The Assad forces took what the refugees had, and the rebels helped the refugees to get to the camp.
The Jordanian authorities will take the ID of everyone in the camp, even multiple IDs. This would make it difficult, if not impossible, for a refugee who left the camp to get back into Syria as the latter demands a form of ID for entry.
Kitchens in the camp are communal. As is invariably the case, the situation in Syria has impacted most heavily on the children. They have a serious nutrition problem.
A lively question and answer session followed the two presentations.
The Levantine Cultural Center in West Los Angeles seeks to promote a greater understanding of the Middle East and North Africa. It goals are educational and cultural enrichment.
ISLAMABAD, Aug 27 (Reuters) – Pakistan, keen to show its commitment to fixing its ailing finances, on Tuesday reported a 25 percent rise in tax revenues since the beginning of the fiscal year due to a raft of new tax collection measures introduced by the new government.
Pakistan has one of the lowest tax collection rates in the world and the International Monetary Fund is watching its efforts closely. It wants Pakistan to do more to tackle rampant tax evasion, particularly by its wealthy elite.
Any delay in implementing proposed reforms could disrupt the delivery of vital assistance from the IMF, which last month agreed that Pakistan can seek a loan package worth $6.6 billion to fix its moribund economy.
The finance ministry said new measures such as a sales tax rise to 17 percent from 16 percent had already generated $1.3 billion in revenues since the beginning of the new fiscal year in July, a 25 percent rise compared to a year earlier. A finance ministry official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the new measures were expected to generate 207 billion rupees in the current fiscal year.
“In the first month of the fiscal year, that is in July, the increase ascribed to the new taxes would be roughly 10 billion rupees,†the official said.
“The rest can be ascribed to better assessments, plugging of leakages and better supervision and management.â€
Pakistan’s Western allies have poured in billions of dollars to aid its economy, reflecting worries that growing public anger at crumbling finances could play into the hands of Islamist insurgents and destabilise the region.
But the aid has not been nearly enough to plug the gap between members of the elite, who pay little tax, and the poor, who rely on public services which taxes should fund. Pakistan’s new government wants to show it is serious about the problem.
“The government had decided to bring 0.5 million new taxpayers into the tax net,†Finance Minister Ishaq Dar told reporters on Tuesday. “We have also sent 10,935 notices to taxpayers last month.â€
The new government has already made steps towards reforms, setting an ambitious budget deficit target of 6.3 percent for 2013/14, which most analysts say might be hard to meet.
“We realise the consequences of a failure to implement tax reform,†said the ministry official. “We are working on a war-footing.†($1 = 103.7100 Pakistani rupees) (Writing By Mehreen Zahra-Malik; Editing by Nick Macfie)
Eric Walberg lives in Alexandria, and has been for some years a columnist for Al-Ahram. A critic of globalisation, he specialises in the MIddle East, Central Asia and Russia.
A supporter of Muslim Brotherhood and ousted Egyptian President Mohamed Mursi hold up a poster of Mursi during a protest in Cairo August 23, 2013.
REUTERS/Muhammad Hamed
A new tactic has been added to the US democracy promotion arsenal, where `color revolutions’ are too difficult, and `postmodern coups’ fail, writes Eric Walberg
The smoke is already clearing in the wake of Egypt’s latest coup—the whodunnit and why. All traces of the post-2011 attempts to reform and clean up the corruption of the previous 40 years are systematically being erased. All appointees under Morsi are being replaced by military officials and old-guard Mubarakites. A state of emergency and trials by military courts are in place. Complete disregard for legal norms—presided over by the Mubarakite head of the Supreme Constitutional Court and interim President Adly Mansour—is the order of the day.
President Morsi is accused of conspiracy against Egypt—with the hapless Palestinians. The respected 70-year-old Muslim Brotherhood (MB) Supreme Guide Mohammed Badie is under arrest, and MB Secretary General Mohammed el-Beltagi, whose daughter Asmaa was murdered—shot in the back and chest—in hiding, themselves accused of murder. Documented murders, like the gassing and shooting of 36 Muslim Brotherhood prisoners in a truck this week by police, are ignored or applauded in the press and on TV, now safely back in the hands of Mubarakites, with no risk of censure (this passes for `freedom of the press’).
The horrendous death toll made President Obama squirm a bit, and cancel some F-16 fighter pilot sales. He even nixed the comradely joint “Bright Star†military exercises (what possible scenario could make US and Egyptian troops fight shoulder-to-shoulder?).
Coup who’s who
Pro-coup and anti-coup are finding unlikely bedfellows around the world: the coup is enthusiastically welcomed by the Saudi sheikhs, Israeli leaders, Syria’s embattled Bashar al-Assad, and Iraq’s lame duck Nouri al-Maliki (the latter two albeit fighting their own civil wars against Sunni fundamentalists). At the same time, Iran, Turkey, Europe, and, for the time being, the US, are lining up against it.
The latest anti-coupers include even some of the most pro-Zionist Zionists, not only “Bomb, bomb, bomb Iran†Senator John McCain (whose visit to Cairo last week to admonish coupmaker General Abdel Fattah el-Sisi was followed a few days later by the slaughter of thousands of MBers), but Brookings Institute neoconservative Robert Kagan, with his bipartisan Foreign Policy Initiative and Working Group on Egypt. Like McCain, he issued a statement shortly after the coup calling for suspending military and economic aid to Egypt. Kagan correctly argues that the paltry $1.5 billion in US aid to the Egyptian military provides no real leverage. Why? Because the generals know that the Obama administration cannot afford to withdraw the aid, despite any `threats’.
PNAC’s coup strategies
Neither Kagan nor McCain is serious, of course. But why are they being holier-than-thou? Do they really care about thousands of peaceful Muslims being mowed down by US bullets? Kagan’s motives must be read between the lines: “Suspending aid now is not merely a matter of principle or even of abiding by our own laws—although that ought to count for something. As a practical security matter, we may pay a heavy price down the road for our complicity—a whole new generation of Islamist fighters, some percentage of whom will turn to terrorism. The United States should acknowledge that Morsi failed utterly as Egypt’s first freely elected president. But the reliance on military intervention rather than a political process to resolve crises severely threatens Egypt’s progression to a stable democracy.â€
Yes, “Morsi failed utterlyâ€, though Kagan doesn’t say why. It was because he never had a chance, having been reluctantly installed by the military following his election, in what was really just another coup, a `postmodern’ one, which on the surface gave Morsi the reins of office, but without any power to reign.
Some background on Kagan, a devotee of Bush/ Cheney and founder of the Project for a New American Century (PNAC). On the eve of 9/11, PNAC’s “Rebuilding America’s Defenses: Strategy, Forces and Resources for a New Century†(2000) called for a “new Pearl Harbor†which would justify launching pre-emptive wars against nations “challenging our leadership†as “the US is the world’s only superpower.†In 2007, retired General Wesley Clark revealed that by 9/11, in addition to Afghanistan, the Pentagon already had plans to take down seven Muslim countries—Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and Iran.
An important concurrent strategy to facilitate or preempt the need for such messy invasions was `democracy promotion’ and `color revolutions’, which are necessary when an anti-American government is popular and a direct invasion difficult. Groups like the US government-funded National Endowment for Democracy, International Republican Institute, and Freedom House, and their local spin-offs, created a wave of color revolutions in newly created `nations’ in the 2000s (Kyrgyzstan, Ukraine, Georgia, Serbia), by fomenting instability using young unemployed urban youth with cell phones to bring their societies to a halt, and instigating `revolutions’.
They have advisers and financing from such as the head of Google Ideas Jared Cohen, who helped train digital activists of the Egyptian April 6th Youth Movement, and Google’s billionaire boss and “Obama lackey†Eric Schmidt, who has “White House and State Department support and air cover. In reality, they are doing things the CIA cannot do,†according to former State Department security official Fred Burton (courtesy of a 2007 Wikileak).
Managing Egypt’s coups
Kagan’s `Working Group on Egypt’ does not want to invade Egypt, Israel’s most important ally and neighbor, which would be far too messy. The intent from the 2000s on has been to promote a color revolution to shape an acceptable Egyptian government. Kagan’s democracy-promotion wonks were active in the 25 January 2011 collapse of Mubarak’s regime, and worked in the aftermath to promote western-friendly Egyptian NGOs, hoping that pro-West secularists would win in open elections—the classic color revolution.
Like the boy calling “Wolf!â€, Kagan also called for a suspension of aid to Egypt on 29 January 2011, “until the Egyptian government commits to free and fair elections and the transfer of power to a legitimate government.†But things didn’t go as planned—US funded NGOs promoting Washington’s agenda were prosecuted, and elections, free of US interference, eventually were swept by the MB and Salafi. The `Arab Spring’ was turning into an `Islamic Awakening’. Neither the Egyptian military nor the US could allow this unforeseen outcome.
Sisi graduated from the US Army War College in 2006, where he was indoctrinated with the PNAC line, while advising the need to cultivate “public support from religious leaders [who] can help build strong support for the establishment of democratic systems.†He obvious agrees it’s okay for the US to invade countries such as Afghanistan, Iraq and Iran, which challenge US leadership. Sisi likes the Saudis who have squared the circle, are faithful US allies and the model for acceptable “religious leadersâ€. However, Egypt’s MB were the long-standing respected Islamists and had to be given a chance following the collapse of the Mubarak order to see if they would be acceptable to Washington. When they started to deviate from the US-Saudi scenario, they had to be replaced.
The military cheered the opposition Tamarod movement on—no limits to their demonstrations—providing the pretext for the coup, employing standard Great Game tactics as used in Iran (1953), Brazil (1964) and Chile (1973). (Ironically, just this week the CIA finally admitted its role in Iran in 1953.) If Sisi had really been concerned with sustaining “the religious base, versus devaluing religion and creating instability†as he argued at the US Military College in 2006, he would have supported the reinstatement of parliament (disbanded on a technicality by his predecessor), made sure that MB officials and buildings were safe from arson and snipers, and certainly not have given a carte blanche to the subversion of the legitimate government by the Mubarakite old guard. By warning the opposition that they must wo rk with the elected government, no Johnnie-come-lately Tamarod would have swamped the airwaves and streets, egged on by the Mubarakites; no gas shortages would have been orchestrated.
Mother America’s liberals
Egypt has a well-ensconced pro-western elite, corrupt, extremely rich, and as events over the past two years prove beyond a doubt, vicious and unprincipled. When Morsi proved able to function despite the June 2012 postmodern coup, and refused to bow to this latest color revolution, it was necessary for Obama to give it a nudge. On 1 July, after the ultimatum of “Mother America†demanding Morsi resign, Washington finally sent word that the military takeover was about to begin. One of Morsi’s aides texted: “Mother just told us that we will stop playing in one hour.â€
Mother America now insists that all these revolutions/ coups should be relatively bloodless, in keeping with the New World Order principles of `democracy’ under a benign US hegemon. The US counts on the `democracy promotion’ chaos undermining the legitimate government, which is then unable to mobilize its supporters to defend it, and is easily overthrown `by the popular will’. None of this worked in Egypt, and mass slaughter has meant that the neocon poster-boy Mohamed Elbaradei had to resign in disgrace after the killings (he will now be tried for “betrayal of trustâ€). But there are lots of unscrupulous liberals eager for the limelight.
Qatar analyst Larbi Sadiki asks in Al-Jazeera, “Who are these Arab liberals? Who amongst them has one iota of Mill or Locke’s political creativity? They have an obsession with bombing Iran, bashing Islamists, and being bedfellows with the enemies of democracy. It’s not their political rhetoric but their relationship with the generals of security forces and intelligence services that is cause for most concern. Instead of learning about constitutionalism or putting together theories about legal and democratic governance, they unfortunately seek satiation of their hedonism.†Well, Larbi, in answer to your question, they are the new puppet rulers of Egypt (and Libya), and their friends in Tunisia and Syria are looking on longingly, waiting for their chance.
Egypt’s future
Much like the old Communist International, Kagan and the `democracy promoters’ in Washington have created a “Capitalist Internationalâ€, according to Steven Weissman, to promote such liberals through `democracy promotion’, `color revolutions’ and now `color coups’. The formula for the color coup: slap Sisi’s wrists, paper over the massacre, and restore the safe Mubarakite order.
Kagan’s tears over the fate of the likes of Asmaa are crocodile ones, intended to pressure the coupmakers into moving quickly to cover their tracks, though there is little room left for them to maneuver. The Haiti scenario where Jean-Bertrand Aristide was reinstated to carry out the last year of a lame duck presidency in 1994 is not possible now, given that the coupmakers would have to face the music for their crimes.
Pinochet was humiliated in the end, but died without facing the music. That is surely Sisi’s worst-case scenario. He still has an ace, however threadbare: he could try to drape himself in Gamal Abdel-Nasser’s nationalist cloak and turn to Russia-China for support. So the US will bite the bullet, and resign itself to a few more wintry decades subsidizing their Pinochet-on-the-Nile.
Washington must weigh the pros and cons of what follows carefully. It can’t risk genuine elections in Egypt at this point. Will a frightened, weary Egypt accept phony elections, put hopes for a new, Islamic society on hold, and let their Pinochet govern with craven liberals as a cover, a la Islam Karimov in Uzbekistan? Can Egypt’s dysfunctional economy be squeezed enough to keep the starving masses alive without jeopardizing either the Mubaraks or the Elbaradeis in their gated communities?
Egypt’s new US Ambassador Robert Ford, with his experience in Iraq 2004–06, Algeria and Syria, is a clear sign that Obama will back the coupmakers with all the dirty tricks in the bag, including death squads, to maintain US hegemony in the region. Kagan can rest assured.
My beloved daughter and dignified teacher Asma al-Beltaji; I do not say goodbye to you; I say tomorrow we shall meet again.
You have lived with your head held high, rebellious against tyranny and shackles and loving freedom. You have lived as a silent seeker of new horizons to rebuild this nation to assume its place among civilizations.
You never occupied yourself with what preoccupies those of your age. Even though traditional studies failed to fulfil your aspirations and interest; you have always been the first in your class.
I have not had enough of your precious company in this short life, especially that my time did not allow me to enjoy your companionship. The last time we sat together at Rabaa Al Adawiya square you asked me “even when you are with us you are busy†and I told you “it seems that this life will not be enough to enjoy each other’s company so I pray to God that we enjoy our companionship in paradise.â€
Two nights before you were murdered I saw you in my dream in a white wedding dress and you were an icon of beauty. When you lay next to me I asked you “Is it your wedding night?†You answered, “It is in the noon not the eveningâ€. When they told me you were murdered on Wednesday afternoon I understood what you meant and I knew God had accepted your soul as a martyr. You strengthened my belief that we are on the truth and our enemy is on falsehood.
It caused me severe pain not to be at your last farewell and see you for the last time; not to kiss your forehead; and not be honoured to lead your funeral prayer. I swear to God, my darling I was not afraid for my life or from an unjust prison, but I wanted to carry the message you scarified your soul for; to complete the revolution, to win and achieve its objectives.
Your soul has been elevated with your head held high resisting the tyrants. The treacherous bullets have hit you in the chest. What spectacularly determined and pure soul. I am confident that you were honest to God and He has chosen you among us to honour you with sacrifice.
Finally, my beloved daughter and dignified teacher:
I do not say goodbye, but I say farewell. We shall meet soon with our beloved Prophet and his companions in Heaven where our wish to enjoy each other’s company and our loved ones’ company will come true.
NOTE: Upon hearing the letter during a live TV broadcast, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan broke down in to tears.
World-renowned neurosurgeon Dr. Ghaus Malik. (Photo: Laura Fawaz)
West Bloomfield, MI–Dr. Ghaus Muhammad Malik of West Bloomfield, MI is a world-renowned neurosurgeon at The Henry Ford Hospital of West Bloomfield.
Officially speaking, he is the Director of the Neurovascular Program, the Executive Vice Chair, and head of the Department of Neurosurgery. These titles are not just given out; they are awarded to the best and brightest in their respective fields. After what Dr. Malik has done for the world of neurosurgery, his patients would agree with his accommodations.
In the past, patients with A.V.M (arteriovenous malformation) disease did not even know that they had this illness, until it struck. This is why this disease is so serious, because even though it is one that people are born with, it goes untreated for so many years. Dr. Malik explained A.V.M similar to a blister, where it forms like a cluster of blisters in the brain. Those blisters are the blood vessels clustering dangerously close until they rupture. The upside is that with recent technologies such as MRI’s, doctors are now able to see the A.V.M cluster in the brain. The only problem is that since there are no signs to watch out for with this disease, there is not reason to get the MRI.
To add to the complications, no two A.V.M.’s are alike. Before Dr. Malik came to the scene, it used to be that A.V.M was just something you were born with. The patient would have no idea until a blood vessel ruptured, and there was nothing that could be done about it. “We spent lots of time treating brain tumors, giving the patients just a few short months. But when these young people came in with A.V.M, we told them that there was nothing that could be done. This didn’t make sense,†said Dr. Mailk.
And now there is a method of actually being able to treat it. This new treatment method consists of beams of radiation that delicately blocks the passageway for these clusters to the rest of the brain, as well as untangels the blood vessels that they can. For most patients, depending on the severity of their incident, they will still carry some of the effects of the accident after surgery. For example, there was a 19-year-old man who fell over after a basketball game; and that was when he and his family found out that he had A.V.M. They were given the option of treatment, and after some time, he is back to his old self, with a slight limp on his right side, and he had to switch to being left handed.
Patients come from all over the world to The Henry Ford West Bloomfield to have their procedure done here. Recently, a 21-year-old woman from Islamabad came, and just before that, another young woman from Saudi Arabia came for the procedure as well.
What peaked this doctor’s interest in this specialty began early in his career when A.V.M.’s were considered untreatable with numerous bleeding episodes for the patient until death. So he started officially his career in neurosurgery in 1975, and has had success ever since.
With his most recent award as Chair of the Department, the hospital has been endowed from the John R. Davis foundation with $1 million for the Henry Ford West Bloomfield to go towards research in the neurosurgery department. Also, Dr. Malik has been granted a lectureship in his name. This means that he that Dr. Malik is invited to attend conferences on the topic all around the world so that he along with his international colleagues can exchange ideas and experiences. He enjoys giving lectures to help provide educational resources, and to create this chain of collectiveness.
Yes many lives are prolonged and saved throughout all this research, but ultimately, what it leads to is even further advancements in the field. It emphasizes on education, training, experiences, and advancing neurosurgery.
Dr. Malik has been elected to many professional associations and societies, including the American Association of Neurological Surgeons, the Congress of Neurological Surgeons, the American Medical Association, and the American College of Surgeons. He also belongs to the Association of Pakistani Physicians, the Medical Research Society of Pakistan, and the Pakistan Society of Neurosurgeons. He is also one of the founders, and serves currently as chairman of the board of trustees, of the Islamic Association of Greater Detroit (IAGD), one of the earliest mosques of the Detroit area.
He has served many committees throughout the Henry Ford Health System including the Board of Governors and Board of Trustees. Dr. Malik has published over 80 articles and chapters in the neurosurgical literature. He has given numerous presentations at both national and international meetings and has been an invited lecturer in many countries including Argentina, India, Italy, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, Pakistan, Singapore, South Korea and Spain.
“Each has it’s own importance, exchange of information and education,†said Dr. Malik.
A U.N. chemical weapons expert talks to a woman during their visit to a hospital where people affected by an apparent gas attack are being treated, in Damascus’ suburb of Zamalka August 28, 2013. U.N. chemical weapons experts investigating an apparent gas attack that killed hundreds of civilians in rebel-held suburbs of Damascus made a second trip across the front line to take samples. REUTERS/Bassam Khabieh
U.S. officials are still grappling with how to design a military strike to deter future chemical weapons attacks in Syria and assessing how President Bashar Assad might respond, two senior officials said Wednesday, as the Obama administration insisted the Syrian government must be punished.
U.S. intelligence agencies are preparing a report laying out the evidence against Assad’s government in last week’s alleged chemical weapons attack on civilians. The classified version would be sent to key members of Congress and a declassified version would be released publicly.
The White House says it’s already convinced, however, and is rounding up support from international partners while planning a possible military response.
“If there is action taken, it must be clearly defined what the objective is and why†and based on “clear facts,†said one of the senior administration officials, speaking on condition of anonymity because he wasn’t authorized to discuss internal deliberations publicly.
The official said the administration is considering more than a single set of military strikes and “the options are not limited just to one day†of assault.
In broad terms, the U.S. and international goals in striking Syria would be to damage the Syrian government’s military and weapons to make it difficult to wage chemical attacks, and to make Assad think twice about using such weapons in the future. Such a strike likely would be led by low-flying cruise missiles fired from any of four U.S. Navy destroyers off Syria’s coast.
The manner and timing of Syria’s response are among the so-called “next day†questions that the administration is still thinking through as it prepares a possible military action. No additional U.S. defensive weapons have been deployed in the region in anticipation of Syria reprisals, the official said. The U.S. already has Patriot anti-missile batteries in Jordan and Turkey.
The other senior U.S. official said the administration has determined it can contain any potential Syrian military response in the event that President Barack Obama orders a U.S. attack.
Both officials were granted anonymity in order to discuss internal deliberations on complex questions that surround crafting a response to the Aug. 21 attack in which hundreds of Syrian civilians were killed.
In Congress, which is in summer recess, members from both parties have expressed reservations about a rush toward launching a military action without congressional approval. On Wednesday, Washington Rep. Adam Smith, the ranking Democrat on the House Armed Services Committee, cautioned that an attack might be ineffective and draw the United States into the Syrian civil war.
“Simply lashing out with military force under the banner of ‘doing something’ will not secure our interests in Syria,†Smith said in a statement.
In the House, 69 Republicans and 13 Democrats have signed a letter to Obama demanding that he seek congressional authorization for military action against Syria. The letter written by Rep. Scott Rigell, R-Va., argues that intervention without a direct threat to the United States and without Congress’ approval would be unconstitutional.
The administration in recent days has made clear it believes it must take punitive action against Syria for its alleged use of chemical weapons, which are banned by international convention. But the senior officials’ comments Wednesday made clear that questions about using military force in this circumstance are still being worked out.
The officials said diplomatic and legal issues also are still being discussed internally.
“If any action is taken it will not be taken until all these pieces are in place: the legal issues, the international piece, the consequences thought through, the facts and everything that needs to be tied together,†the first senior official said.
The official did not go into detail. Questions may include to what degree military strikes would prevent Assad from using poison gas in the future, and how to respond if he does.
The administration also is concerned that if Assad is not punished, dictatorial leaders of other nations in possession of chemical weapons, like North Korea, might see the failure to act as a sign that they could get away with using the weapons.
In Israel, a close U.S. ally in the Middle East, the military and citizens were preparing for what officials said was a slim possibility of a retaliatory attack by Syria after a U.S. strike.
Administration officials have said Assad’s actions posed a direct threat to U.S. national security, providing Obama with a potential legal justification for launching a strike without authorization from the United Nations or Congress. However, officials did not detail how the U.S. was directly threatened by an attack contained within Syria’s borders. Nor have they yet presented concrete proof that Assad was responsible.
Assad has denied using chemical weapons, calling the allegations “preposterous.â€
“Allowing the use of chemical weapons on a significant scale to take place without a response would present a significant challenge to, threat to, the United States’ national security,†White House spokesman Jay Carney said Tuesday.
The U.S. and its international partners were unlikely to undertake military action before Thursday. That’s when British Prime Minister David Cameron will convene an emergency meeting of Parliament, where lawmakers are expected to vote on a motion clearing the way for a British response.
The prime minister’s office said Wednesday that it will put forward a resolution to the U.N. Security Council condemning the Syrian government for the alleged chemical attack.
Obama and Cameron spoke Tuesday, and a Cameron spokesman said the two leaders agreed that a chemical attack had taken place, and that the Assad regime was responsible.
Also Tuesday, Vice President Joe Biden became the highest-ranking U.S. official to publicly charge that Assad’s government fired chemical weapons last week near Damascus.
“There’s no doubt who is responsible for this heinous use of chemical weapons in Syria: the Syrian regime,†Biden said.
Ahead of any strike, the U.S. also planned to release additional intelligence it said would directly link Assad to the attack in the Damascus suburbs. Syrian activists said hundreds of people were killed in the attack. A U.S. official said the intelligence report was expected to include “signals intelligence†— information gathered from intercepted communications.
Even before releasing that information, U.S. officials said Assad was culpable in the attack, based on witness reports, information on the number of victims and the symptoms of those killed or injured, and intelligence showing the Syrian government has not lost control of its chemical weapons stockpiles.
———
AP National Security Writer Robert Burns reported from Bander Seri Begawan, Brunei. Lolita C. Baldor and Bradley Klapper in Washington contributed to this report.
Detroit, MI–Detroit’s mayoral elections took place on August 8th of this year, and Mike Duggan was listed as the winner. Yet last Tuesday, Wayne County Board of Canvassers decided to not validate all of the votes, and have asked the Board of State Canvassers to review the results.
About 18,000 of the 44,000 votes cast for Mayoral candidate Mike Duggan are in jeopardy, which could change the election result making his opponent Benny Napoleon the winner with 28,391 votes. The Detroit Free Press, along with WDIV-Local 4 reported that they were being called into question “due to errors by Detroit elections workers.†These votes are in question due to a technicality: city election workers failed to use hash marks to tally the votes in question, instead they used numbers to tabulate them. In a written statement, Duggan’s campaign manager Bryan Barnhill says, "Our opponents tried another dirty trick today and it didn’t work.â€
Napoleon’s response: "You know, if you put, ‘Once upon a time,’ in front of that statement, it’ll make good fairy tale. I don’t know anything about this, and I have nothing to do with this."
To its credit, the Board of Canvassers unanimously refused to neglect 18,000 Detroiters who properly cast their write-in votes for Mike Duggan. “We’re confident the State Elections Division will certify the results of the election properly and make certain that all votes are counted," said Barnhill.
Early Tuesday morning, Napoleon called for federal oversight of the November election, wanting the Governor’s office to get involved. “This is no small margin of error,†he said. “This is very troubling and I believe it is cause for Detroit General Election to be overseen by the highest authority.â€
A spokesperson for the Michigan Secretary of State’s Office said the state Bureau of Elections is in contact with the Wayne County Board of Canvassers, but wasn’t ready to comment on the matter.
In a tweet Tuesday, Napoleon responded to all this with: "This is no small margin of error in #vote tally. It’s very troubling. I call for federal oversight of November election. A citizen’s vote is the cornerstone of Democracy, and people should be able to put their faith in their ballot. #Detroitâ€
It should be noted that several community activists at the board meeting are calling for a recount. Tom Barrow, the mayoral candidate who received less than 4% of the vote, has said the election was "fraught with massive fraud."
If the 18,00 votes were to be disqualified, the new results would place Wayne County Sheriff Benny Napoleon in first place with 41 percent of the vote, followed by Mike Duggan with 34 percent. That’s compared to the initial 46-30 win in Duggan’s favor that was reported after the election. Regardless, the two men will face of in the general election being held on November 5th. This will determine who will be Detroit City Mayor as the city continues to work through bankruptcy proceedings and emergency management.
Seventeen-year-old Asma el-Beltagi was loved as the daughter of one of Egypt’s first ever democratically elected leaders.
By Ruth Sherlock and Magdy Samaan, Cairo
All of this must have been running through the mind of her father, Mohammed al-Beltagi, the secretary general of the country’s ousted Muslim Brotherhood party, as he learned the news of his daughter’s death on Wednesday.
Standing in the makeshift field hospital, his protest camp of Rabaa al-Adawiya burning around him, he had stared down, frozen, his eyes brimming with tears, at the lifeless body of his daughter, one eyewitness recalled.
Asma el-Beltagi was one of at least 525 people who were killed on Wednesday when Egyptian security forces stormed two Muslim Brotherhood protest camps that, for the past six weeks, had been calling for a reversal of the military coup that ousted Mohammed Morsi and Mr Beltagi, among others, from power.
Her death certificate, seen by The Telegraph, said that Asma had been shot in the chest, that her skull was crushed and her left leg broken.
Speaking for the first time, her brother Anas el-Beltagi, described how she had been on her to way to help at a field hospital when she was caught up in the violence.
“She was shot on her way there,†he said. “I was with her just after. We took her to hospital. She needed a blood transfer, but we couldn’t operate. She died at 1pm.â€
Anas and another brother Malik el-Beltagi said they had been tasked with organising her funeral as their father Mohammed has been forced to go into hiding.
In the space of a few short weeks, the leaders of Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood went from being the country’s rulers to being vilified and persecuted as criminals. The new army-installed government has declared them “wantedâ€, and vowed to arrest them.
It is unclear whether Mohammed Beltagi will risk attending his daughter’s funeral. One of his brothers, Asma’s uncle, said Mr Beltagi had gone into hiding and that he had been unable to reach him. Other relatives gathered on Thursday outside Al-Hussein morgue, where her body was being kept, to mourn her death.
“She was the best in school. She was calm, and had a good manner and a kind heart,†said Hoda Mohammed, one of Asma’s aunts. “She always participated in Muslim Brotherhood activities. Her father was her role model.â€
Her relatives said Asma completed the task of learning to recite the entire Koran, word for word, a month ago. She was popular in school, and had a good sense of humour.
As a young, modern woman, she also had many interests. Her Facebook page showed The Pianist as one of her favorite films and Woody Allen as a favourite actor.
When her father was ousted from power in June Asma had participated enthusiastically in the opposition sit-ins. She would stay overnight regularly, sleeping in makeshift tents alongside other women protestors.
On the night of the attack protest leaders started calling for demonstrators to come to the exposed main street and show their defiance against the security forces, said Hoda, who was with Asma at the time.
“We started chanting and praying to God because we felt we were going to be martyrs,†said Hoda.
Minutes later she lost Asma in a volley of teargas.
“I found her later bleeding on the ground,†she said.
“Every minute someone died around us. The floors of the hospital were covered in the dead and the wounded. We couldn’t find a space for her.
“Then the army started shooting teargas into the hospital and we had to flee.
“After an officer stood in front of the hospital door gripping his gun, and allowed us back, only briefly enough to take our corpses.†As Hoda spoke, another aunty of Asma broke down into tears. Her whole body shook as she sobbed in realization of everything that her family and Mohammed Beltagi had lost: first the country, and now their most precious relative. “She was an angel,†she whispered through the tears.
Somali-British runner Mohamed “Mo†Farah achieved a historic feat in Moscow last week as he added two world titles to his two Olympic triumphs from last summer. He became just the second man to achieve the “double doubleâ€, winning the 5000 and 10,000m races at the Olympics and the world championships. Last summer he also took both the 5,000 and 10,000m titles at the 2012 London Olympics.
After his triumph in Russia he told the press: “It was great, it was amazing, I got what I wanted and it wasn’t easy from last year to this year, because I had to work twice as hard.†And with that hard work he just may have achieved the title of best British athlete in history. And that has not gone unnoticed by British Prime Minister David Cameron. Cameron said: “The Olympic and world double-double is one of the great sporting achievements. If the honors committee were to recommend Mo for a knighthood, I would warmly welcome it.â€
Speaking after his victory on Friday he said: “What a year I’ve had. It has been, you know, hard work but I enjoyed this year. It is great being able to achieve what I have achieved. I can’t quite believe it at all. It is something I never dreamt of. I am honored to be able to achieve what I have.â€
Farah has won several prominent awards for his athletic achievements. He was voted European Athlete of The Year in both 2011 and 2012. Then, most recently, he was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in the 2013 New Year Honors for services to athletics.
The country of Afghanistan celebrated its first international soccer match in Kabul in a decade with solid 3-0 victory over neighboring country Pakistan. A capacity crowd of 6,000 onlookers was at the Afghanistan Football Federation (AFF) Stadium to witness the spectacle. The match was played on an artificial pitch funded by the FIFA world body, and it was the first home international since Afghanistan played Turkmenistan in 2003.
Civic pride was evident amongst the fans, but that was even trumped by the sheer joy of victory in the match itself, a match was promoted as a symbol of football’s ability to foster peace and unite countries in a shared love of sports. “I am a huge football fan, and this match was so important for us,†said Shabir Ahmad, 27, a government employee at the match. “There are a lot of rivalries between Afghanistan and Pakistan, even if this match was meant to boost friendship.â€
Security was tight at the affair, as Kabul has been rocked by a series of militant attacks this year. Hoards of riot police and soldiers had to beat back frustrated fans who could not get tickets locked outside of the stadium. There was very little sign of Pakistani support at the match, despite thousands of Pakistanis living and working in the Afghan capital. But the match was attended by some senior Afghan officials and foreign diplomats, including the British ambassador.
One fan, Ahmadzai Fazeli, 25, said that insurgents at a Taliban roadblock in volatile Wardak province had wished the team well. “On the way here the Taliban stopped me. I told them I was going to the football match, and they happily let me pass,†he said. “Now I am here feeling very patriotic and happy.†The final whistle triggered delirium as players paraded the national flag in front of dancing spectators and crowds celebrated on the city streets.
The historic match will be followed up later this week by the start of the second season of the eight-team Afghan Premier League. Afghanistan, ranked by FIFA 139th in the world just above Pakistan, has a return leg with Pakistan scheduled to be played in Lahore, Pakistan in December.
Imagine if, in 1973, with elected Chilean leader Salvador Allende being swept from power in a bloody military coup by the unelected General Augusto Pinochet, a group like Amnesty International chose to focus its attentions almost exclusively on the plight of a poet being banged up in, say, Belarus. Even if you believed the imprisonment of poets to be a very bad thing, you would think that was weird, right? A case of twisted priorities.
Well, the equivalent is happening right now. In Egypt, a military dictatorship has deposed and imprisoned an elected president, massacred hundreds of his supporters, and created government departments to oversee the interrogation and torture of ‘terrorists’ (otherwise known as Muslim Brotherhood voters). And yet the big issue on Amnesty’sonline activism page is, as it has been for months, the continuing legal fights of imprisoned Russian punk band Pussy Riot. It seems if you want to win the attention of the West’s best-known human-rights outfit, it helps to be pretty white women with guitars rather than gruff brown men with beards.
There are many striking things about the political situation in Egypt. But perhaps the most striking thing is the silence of those who pose as human-rights cheerleaders, of the West’s head-shakers over tyranny in far-off lands, who have gone strangely mute, or at least uncharacteristically coy, in the face of the Egyptian military’s seizure of power and repression of dissent.
From all those high-minded newspaper columnists who normally bang the drum for Western warmaking against foreign countries that do authoritarian things, nada. From the leaders of Britain, America and France who usually get off on denouncing tyrannical militarism, zilch – or at best a half-assed plea to the Egyptian military to calm down. And from the human-rights industry, the self-styled moral conscience of the decent West, not much. Scour Amnesty International’s recent statements and you’ll discover that it has in fact put out an anaemic press release about Egypt, calling on the security forces to ‘protect protesters from violent attack’. What? It’s the security forces, primarily armed police units, that are violently attacking the protesters. No wonder Amnesty hasn’t said much about Egypt – it doesn’t seem to know what’s happening there.
The Western do-gooder lobby’s lack of concern about the bad currently being done in Egypt is summed up in the severe downturn in the number tweets containing the word ‘Egypt’. Between 1 January and 28 February 2011, when Egyptians rose up against the then dictator Hosni Mubarak and his violent security apparatus, globally there were 3,005,395 tweets containing the word Egypt, as many Western radicals and human-rights types hammered their outrage into 140 characters. Over the past four weeks, as numerous Egyptians have taken a stand against the new dictator Fattah al-Sisi, and have been massacred or jailed in their hundreds for doing so, globally there have been 1,970,570 tweets containing the word Egypt. And bear in mind that the number of registered Twitter accounts has more than doubled since early 2011, rising from 175million to over 500million. So the number of Twitter users has risen exponentially, yet the liberal Twitterati’s expressions of outrage over events in Egypt are shrivelling up.
The lack of outrage from those who normally make a great display of being outraged by foreign tyranny is striking, because there’s a great deal to be outraged by in Egypt. Here’s what’s happened: On 3 July, Mohammad Morsi of the Muslim Brotherhood, who was elected by 52 per cent of voters in 2012, was deposed by his defence minister, al-Sisi. Morsi has since been imprisoned on jumped-up charges of conspiring with Hamas to destabilise Egypt. Many of his ministers have been put under house arrest. Al-Sisi’s military regime has rehabilitated Egypt’s much-hated secret police, the Mabahith Amn ad-Dawla. Created by Muburak, this outfit is devoted to investigating, harassing and sometimes torturing Islamist and other opposition activists. Its scrapping was one of the key demands of the January revolution against Mubarak. Now it’s back.
The new regime has also launched a ‘war against terrorism’, by which it means against anyone who publicly opposes al-Sisi. At the end of last week, it called upon Egyptians who support the military, which includes many radicals, to swarm the streets in order to give the army a ‘mandate to confront possible violence and terrorism’. Sadly, radical Egyptian groups were quick to provide that mandate. Tamarod, the left-leaning, post-Egyptian Spring movement that called for the removal of Morsi, got its supporters on to the streets and said it was ‘happy for [the security forces] to play their role in confronting the violence and terrorism practiced by the Muslim Brotherhood’. We saw the end result of this ‘war against terrorism’ at the weekend, with the massacre of at least 83 Morsi supporters, carried out under the guise of combatting terrorism and with the complicity and radical cover of groups like Tamarod.
Herein lies the rub: fundamentally, they support it. Or they’re at best ambivalent about it. Those Western ‘humanitarian’ warriors who spent the past 10 to 15 years weeping over Saddam’s military authoritarianism and the Taliban’s intolerance of opposition, and who demanded Something Be Done about those terrible things, are in favour of the military crackdown in Egypt. In the words of the New York Times’ David Brooks, who was so offended by undemocratic militarism in Iraq that he cheered America’s invasion in 2003, the current opposition-obliterating militarism in Egypt is fine because it has ‘removed from office’ radical Islam, ‘the main threat to global peace’.
Western leaders, from Barack Obama to David Cameron, have also given an implicit nod of approval to the coup, because they, too, prefer to see strongman control in Egypt over an Islamist-leaning government chosen by the thick Egyptian public (who lack the ‘basic mental ingredients’ for democracy, says David Brooks). Tony Blair, who spent a large chunk of his time as British PM posing as Mr Human Rights and wringing his hands over far-off military-style dictatorships, is now the go-to man for media outlets who want a big name to big up the Egyptian military dictatorship. ‘Democratic government doesn’t on its own mean effective government’, he said in his craven justification of the Egyptian military’s assumption of political power.
As to the human-rights industry – it seems cautiously supportive of the shift in political power in Egypt. Certainly its only, relatively mild criticisms have been of the excesses of the security forces, not of their takeover of the seat of government. That’s because it sees radical people it admires supporting the coup – from Tamarod to Mona Eltahawy, the poster girl of the 2011 anti-Mubarak protests, to the respectable National Salvation Front led by Mohamed ElBaradei, former nuclear weapons inspector beloved of international-justice types – and it assumes it must therefore be a good or at least okay thing.
What lies bleeding in Cairo, Alexandria and elsewhere in Egypt is not just the supporters of Morsi, but also the democratic pretensions of those Westerners who sing from the hymn sheet of human rights. Their high-minded posturing about authoritarianism in distant lands has been exposed as extraordinarily shallow, changeable, contingent, a sham. They’re enraged by political dictatorship in some instances, and completely relaxed about it in others. They rail against and even fire bombs at certain rights-abusing states, yet take to their iPads or appear on TV to defend and cheer or apologise for other rights-abusing states. The human-rights industry, the entire human-rights script read from by our leaders and betters over the past two decades, stands exposed, naked and ridiculous, following recent events in Egypt.
Islamic Center of Long Island breaks ground on expansion
LONG ISLAND,NY–The much awaited expansion of Islamic Center of Long Island has finally broken ground. The Long Island Press reports that this oldest mosque on the island will undergo a $4 million expansion.
“We’ve been waiting for this day for a long time,†ICLI chairman, Habeeb Ahmed, told the congregation Friday in front of a recently completed $1 million parking lot that has helped ease congestion in the neighborhood.
Joining the mosque’s board for the groundbreaking ceremony were dozens of worshipers, religious leaders from other faiths and about a half-dozen local officials who have assisted in the expansion project by educating the surrounding community, including the village’s mayor, Peter Cavallaro, who was praised for his efforts during the process.
The plan calls for more classrooms to support the growing number of Muslim families moving into the community, a recreation area, an interfaith center and a space for seniors—or “medicare beneficiaries,†one mosque trustee said.
Mosque plans delayed
ST.CLOUD,MN–St. Cloud’s Planning Commission has delayed a decision on the local Islamic Center’s proposal to build a new mosque and related buildings amid opposition from some neighbors.
The Islamic Center of St. Cloud wants to build in a mostly residential area. Minnesota Public Radio News reports that requires a decision by the city on whether to change zoning in the area in question. Nearby residents say their concerns are about traffic congestion in the area, not religion. The center’s president says he’s willing to scale back some of the plans for the site to compromise with neighbors.
Several students honored at NJ Young Scholars Program
On Aug. 3, 107 students in New Jersey SEEDS’ Scholars and Young Scholars Programs completed their 14-month experiences with the organization and celebrated their graduations. New Jersey SEEDS is an educational nonprofit that transforms the lives of motivated, high-achieving students from low-income families. The Scholars Program is a tuition-free academic program designed to prepare eighth-grade students in New Jersey for placement in academically rigorous selective schools with substantial financial aid packages. The Young Scholars Program works with children in fifth and sixth grades in Greater Newark. Students enrolled in the tuition-free program engage in academic classes before being placed in day or junior boarding schools with significant financial aid directly from the independent schools.
At the ceremony, several students were honored for academic and leadership accomplishments:
Abdul-Nafea Syed was named the Dwight L. Wilson Scholar for his sense of personal ethics, honesty, integrity, love of education and willingness to work hard while enrolled in the New Jersey SEEDS Scholars Program.
— Amera Youssef was presented with the Dean’s Award for her overall achievement, strong leadership, citizenship, exceptional academic qualities and great personality while enrolled in the Scholars Program.
— Nada Zohayr was named the Amy Ziebarth Scholar for her passion for social justice and strong commitment to SEEDS while enrolled in the Scholars Program.
Bernards library ‘Muslim Journeys’ grant
BERNARDS TWP., NJ– The Bernards township library received a $3,500 grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) and the American Library Association (ALA) to host a five-part reading and discussion series titled “Let’s Talk About It: Muslim Journeys.’’
The library is one of 125 libraries and state humanities councils across the country selected to participate in the project, which seeks to familiarize residents in the United States with the people, places, history, faith and cultures of Muslims in the U.S. and around the world.
“Bernards Township is a community of well-educated, cultured and motivated citizens,’’ said Library Board President Tim Opremcak. “It is a testament to them and the quality of our library that we were the only public library in New Jersey, along with three academic institutions, selected for this honor.â€
All programs will be held at the township library at 32 S. Maple Ave. in Basking Ridge.
The Muslim Journeys theme that the library has chosen to explore is “Points of View.†Through the titles selected, readers will encounter individual experiences in Muslim majority societies through memoirs and novels representing a diverse geography and some of the best contemporary storytellers.
“We are delighted to have been chosen to host this unique series that will allow patrons a chance to discuss some important themes in Muslim history and literature with the help of a well-qualified scholar,†said Library Director Ruth Lufkin.
CAIRO (Reuters) – Egypt’s political crisis has dealt a blow to any hopes for a quick economic recovery, but aid from its Gulf allies is likely to prevent a financial collapse.
Clashes between followers of deposed Islamist President Mohamed Mursi and security forces have caused the deaths of at least 830 people since Wednesday, the worst political bloodletting to rock Egypt in recent history.
When the army-backed government took over after the ousting of Mursi last month, it hoped to repair the business environment and attract money back to Egypt by improving security, removing logistical bottlenecks and pumping in new funds. That in turn could reduce social tensions by starting to create jobs and raise living standards.
The latest violence may have doomed such hopes for some months at least. If the conflict continues to worsen, the economy could slow further from the anemic 2.2 percent growth in the first quarter of this year – a rate already much too low to cut unemployment, officially estimated at around 13 percent.
“If you see widespread terrorism and bombs, you won’t get a recovery in tourism or domestic investment, and capital flight may continue,†said Simon Kitchen, a strategist with investment bank EFG Hermes.
But after Mursi was deposed, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates promised Egypt a total of $12 billion in loans, grants and fuel shipments. Of that, $5 billion has already arrived – an unusually fast delivery of aid commitments, showing the importance the Gulf attaches to stabilizing Egypt.
That means a balance of payments crisis or a collapse of government finances – which had seemed possible during Mursi’s administration – do not appear to be on the cards.
Late on Monday, Saudi Arabian Foreign Minister Prince Saud al-Faisal signaled that the world’s top crude oil exporter was ready to provide more billions if necessary.
“To those who have declared they are stopping aid to Egypt or are waving such a threat, the Arab and Muslim nations are wealthy with their people and resources and will not shy away from offering a helping hand to Egypt,†he told state news agency SPA in Jeddah.
TOURISM DAMAGED
Much depends on whether the struggle between the army and the Islamists develops into a protracted armed conflict. Even if it does not, the latest violence is likely to have harmed the economy for some months.
Tourism may not recover before next year at the earliest. In 2010 Egypt attracted 14.7 million visitors, according to the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development; in the wake of the 2011 revolution, the number fell to 9.5 million that year before partially recovering to 11.2 million in 2012. The tourism sector directly accounts for about 7 percent of Egypt’s GDP, according to its State Information Service.
In response to the latest violence, European travel agents are again suspending trips to Egypt, while the United States has warned citizens against travelling to the nation. After closing facilities in Egypt for several days, major foreign investors such as General Motors, German chemicals firm BASF and Swedish home appliance maker Electrolux have fully or partially reopened for business this week.
They are likely to stay open, barring another big outbreak of violence. But even a low level of political unrest or tension in coming months could hurt the Egyptian economy at the margins, by making foreign buyers of its exports more cautious.
Efforts to put Egypt’s catastrophically weak state finances on a sustainable footing may be another casualty. The army-backed government has inherited a budget deficit that since January has been running at around $3.2 billion a month, equivalent to almost half of state spending.
The cabinet expects to be in power only until early next year, when it is to be replaced after planned elections, so it lacks a popular mandate to take big steps to cut the budget deficit. Locked in a struggle with the Brotherhood, it is even less likely to push politically sensitive economic reforms.
“If the violence continues, the government will be even less politically armed to go out and control the budget deficit by reducing subsidies,†said John Sfakianakis, investment strategist at Saudi investment firm MASIC.
BUDGET DEFICIT
Being unable to fix the finances may not matter so much, however, if Egypt can draw on the resources of the Gulf’s wealthy oil exporters, most of which view crushing the Muslim Brotherhood as a geopolitical priority, since they see the group as a long-term threat to their monarchies.
Egypt’s foreign reserves totaled $14.9 billion at the end of June, before any of the Gulf aid announced in July arrived. Excluding inflows of aid, they had been falling by around $1-2 billion every month, so the aid may cover Egypt’s external deficits into early 2014.
By itself, the Gulf aid announced so far only covers a few months of Egypt’s state budget deficit, but confidence created by the aid should help the government finance the rest of the deficit with borrowing. Yields at government Treasury bill auctions fell after Mursi was deposed; they spiked up during last week’s violence, but are still a couple of percentage points or more below their peaks under Mursi.
Most importantly, as Prince Saud indicated, Egypt can count on additional billions from the Gulf if its political turmoil causes fresh capital outflows or delays the transition back to civilian rule.
This should more than offset any potential loss to Egypt if the European Union or the United States cut back their economic and military assistance to Cairo in protest at the killings.
The EU and international financial bodies last year promised Egypt 5 billion euros ($6.7 billion) of grants and loans over several years, but little of that money has actually arrived and much has been blocked because Cairo failed to meet conditions for democratic reform. Washington has provided $1.3 billion of military aid and just $250 million of economic aid annually.
Qatar, which had good ties with the Muslim Brotherhood, spent about 4 percent of its GDP helping Egypt before Mursi’s downfall. Back-of-the-envelope calculations suggest Cairo could receive a further $40 billion, in addition to the money pledged last month, if Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Kuwait were to match prior Qatari levels now Mursi has gone. The Saudi government’s budget surplus in 2012 alone was $103 billion.
Even so, such massive dependence mortgages Egypt’s future; much of the aid is in the form of loans, which must ultimately be repaid.
But for now, it gives Cairo room to maneuver. The government’s economic planning team said on Monday that it would work to provide financing for the budget and import essential commodities by attracting more foreign investment, especially from Arabs.
It promised to speed up implementation of public-private partnerships, especially to build roads, sanitation and hospitals, and give priority to investment projects that affect the daily life of citizens. Cash from the Gulf may make some of these projects possible.
The resilience of Egypt’s stock market shows how the Gulf aid has kept hopes for the economy alive. The market is down about 4 percent since last week’s violence, but it is still up 21 percent from its low in June.
The gap between the official and black market exchange rates of the Egyptian pound against the dollar, which almost disappeared in the initial weeks after Mursi was deposed, has widened since last week but remains under 2 percent. It reached 7 percent or more under Mursi.
(Additional reporting; Editing by Andrew Torchia and Will Waterman)
IAGD had a very nice event this past weekend which hosted approximately 50 people, and a full time teacher from a Muslim school engaged with the children on issues such as choosing real friends, the deep impact on one’s life from having either good or bad friends, the influence on the afterlife of having good or bad friends. The speaker talked in detail about Qur`anic ayahs that consider friendship, exploring different terms for friendship used by Allah in Qur`an and by Prophet (s) in the ahadith, for example Prophet’s (s) statement that if did not already have Allah as his khaleel, he would have had Sayyidina Abu Bakr as-Siddiq as his khaleel.
The speaker discussed Prophet’s (s) sense of humor, giving examples of how he joked with people and made them laugh (but he joked without lying).
The entire audience was completely engaged by the speaker, and he taught valuable information.
