APS Diplomat Recorder articles from February 2007

APS Diplomat Recorder archives from February 2007

ARAB AFFAIRS - Do Not Endanger Gulf, Saudi King Tells Iran.
February 3, 2007... Saudi Arabia warns Iran that it can endanger the whole Gulf region if it does not resolve the problems in its "international relations", a reference to Iran's increasingly tense standoff with the US over its nuclear programme and its role in...

ARAB-US RELATIONS - Jan 30 - Suicide Bombers 'Entering Iraq From Syria'.
February 3, 2007... Dozens of Al Qaeda suicide bombers from countries such as Saudi Arabia and Sudan are crossing into Iraq from Syria every month. Speaking to the FT in London, the official said that, while sectarian conflict now represented the biggest threat to...

AFGHANISTAN - New US Commander Predicts More Suicide Attacks This Year.
February 3, 2007... A suicide car bomber attacks an Afghan Army convoy in western Afghanistan, wounding three soldiers and two civilians. The bomber blew himself up next to a bus carrying the soldiers near the airport in the western city of Herat, said General...

IRAQ - Jan 29 - Iraq Sliding Into Civil War, Report Warns.
February 3, 2007... Iraq is rapidly sliding into an all-out civil war that is likely to spill over into neighbouring countries, resulting in mass deaths and refugee flows, serious disruption of Gulf oil supplies and a drastic decline in US influence in the region....

IRAQ - Jan 29 - 'Chemical Ali' Admits He Ordered Kurd Villages Cleared.(Ali Hassan Al Majeed)(Brief article)
February 3, 2007... Saddam Hussain's cousin tells a court trying him for genocide that he had ordered Kurdish villages cleared in the 1988 "Anfal" campaign but insists he is right to do so and had nothing to apologise for. Ali Hassan Al Majeed, known as "Chemical...

IRAQ - Jan 29 - US, Iraqi Forces Kill 200 Militants In Najaf.
February 3, 2007... Iraqi officials report that 200 insurgents are killed in a battle near the southern city of Najaf, possibly thwarting a militant attack on nearby Shi'ite religious celebrations. Muhammad al-Askari, defence ministry spokesman, said Iraqi troops...

ISRAEL - Jan 29 - Suicide Bomber Hits Israeli Resort.
February 3, 2007... Palestinian militants warn suicide bombing that killed four people in the Israeli town of Eilat is the start of a wider offensive. It was the first such attack in Israel for nine months and the first in the Red Sea resort. Islamic Jihad and...

ISRAEL - Jan 31 - Former Israeli Minister Guilty Of Sexual Misconduct.
February 3, 2007... An Israeli court convicts former justice minister Haim Ramon, of sexual misconduct, delivering a further blow to the increasingly unpopular and scandal-plagued government to which he belonged. Ramon, 56, a friend and political ally of PM Ehud...

LEBANON - Jan 30 - Hizbullah Blames Bush For Unrest.(George W. Bush)(Brief article)
February 3, 2007... Lebanon's Hizbullah movement use the Shi'ite Muslim Ashura commemorationay to accuse the US and Israel of being responsible for the unrest in the country. Seven people died in political and sectarian clashes in the country last week. "The one...

PALESTINE - Jan 27 - Palestinian Factions Renew Gaza Fighting.
February 3, 2007... Palestinian factions battle again in the streets of Gaza City, despite a renewed plea by PM Ismail Haniya for a halt to internecine fighting that has left more than 20 dead and dozens wounded since erupting four days ago. "We call on all the...

PALESTINE - Feb 2 - Factions Retreat From Brink Of Gaza War.
February 3, 2007... Leaders of rival Palestinian factions attempt to pull back from the brink of a full-scale war in the Gaza Strip as the toll in street battles between forces of the ruling Hamas party and the Fatah movement rose to 20 dead and almost 200...

SOMALIA - Jan 30 - Somalian Government Agrees To Conference Of Clan Leaders.
February 3, 2007... Pres Abdullahi Yusuf of Somalia agree to call a broad conference of clan and religious leaders, triggering the release of EU funding for an African peacekeeping force in Somalia. The European aid envoy, Louis Michel, told journalists after...

ARAB AFFAIRS - Feb 5 - Arab League Ambassador Arrives To Lay Groundwork For Expected Moussa Visit.
February 10, 2007... Arab League Ambassador Hisham Youssef arrives in Beirut to "gauge the opinions" of Lebanon's opposing political camps prior to the as-yet-unscheduled arrival of league chief Moussa. "You won't like what I have to say", Youssef told the media...

ARAB AFFAIRS - Feb 6 - Saudis Press Palestinian Peace Effort.
February 10, 2007... Palestinian leaders arrive in Islam's holiest city for a summit meeting sponsored by Saudi Arabia aimed at coaxing the leaders of the two main Palestinian parties, Hamas and Fatah, to agree on a unity government that could end a wave of...

ARAB AFFAIRS - Feb 8 - Palestinians Vow Not To Leave Makkah Without Reaching Accord.
February 10, 2007... In a rare display of unity, Palestinian Pres Mahmoud Abbas, Hamas political strategist Khaled Meshaal and PM Ismail Haniyeh vow not to leave the holy city of Makkah without reaching a comprehensive reconciliation agreement. Many in the Arab...

ARAB-US RELATIONS - Feb 5 - US Prepares For Baghdad Crackdown.
February 10, 2007... A new command centre for US-Iraqi operations aim at restoring security in Baghdad will be operational "within days", US officers say, paving the way for a planned offensive in the capital. US advisers to Iraqi forces predicted that the scale of...

ARAB-US RELATIONS - Feb 6 - Bremer Admits Errors Over $20 bn Iraq Fund.
February 10, 2007... Paul Bremer, the US's top official in Iraq after the US-led invasion, admits making mistakes, as congressional investigators demanded answers about how $12 bn in reconstruction funding is spent. Under pressure from Democratic lawmakers on the...

EGYPT - Feb 7 - Cairo Cracks Down On Illegal Muslim Group.
February 10, 2007... Cairo refers the cases of forty members of the illegal Muslim Brotherhood to a military tribunal in a move which signals another escalation of the government's crackdown against the group - the largest opposition force in the country. Decisions...

IRAN - Feb 6 - Iran Accuses US Of Role In Iraqi Kidnap.
February 10, 2007... The Iranian government accuses the US of complicity in the kidnap of one of its diplomats in Iraq, in an incident that might inflame the already tense relations between Washington and Tehran. The Iranian government said that Jalal Sharafi,...

IRAN - Feb 8 - Rafsanjani Warns Iran On Potential US Attack.(Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani)
February 10, 2007... Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, the influential former Iranian president, warns of the grave consequences for Iran of a possible US attack, in a public challenge to the leadership's handling of the crisis surrounding its nuclear programme. Rafsanjani...

IRAQ - Feb 6 - Frustrated Maliki Acknowledges Problems With Baghdad Security Operation.
February 10, 2007... PM Nuri Kamal al-Maliki, under intense pressure to show progress in implementing a new security plan for this city after a series of bombings kill more than 1,000 civilians in the past week alone, expresses frustration over the delays that have...

ISRAEL - Feb 9 - Israel Police Break Up Al-Aqsa Protest.
February 10, 2007... Israeli riot police storm Jerusalem's al-Aqsa mosque complex at the end of Friday prayers to break up a demonstration by worshippers protesting against reconstruction work they claim is cover for a takeover of Islam's third holiest site....

PALESTINE - Feb 4 - Gunmen Pull Back From Gaza Streets.
February 10, 2007... Gunmen from the rival Hamas and Fatah factions begin withdrawing from Gaza's streets in the latest attempt to enforce a cease-fire in the strip. Police replaced gangs of gunmen on rooftops, both sides began to exchange hostages and joint...

PALESTINE - Feb 8 - Palestinians To Form Unity Government.
February 10, 2007... Fatah and Hamas leaders meeting in Mecca signed a pact last night to form a power-sharing government, bowing to pressure from the Arab world to bury their differences for the sake of Palestinian unity and head off a looming civil war. It was...

SOMALIA - Feb 5 - Somali PM Launches Peace Bid Amid Attack On Port.
February 10, 2007... Somali PM Ali Muhammad Gedi opens a reconciliation workshop in Mogadishu design to foster peace amid an escalating spate of guerrilla-style attacks in the volatile Horn of Africa nation. In the latest assault, unknown assailants fired four...

YEMEN - Feb 6 - 42 Yemeni Troops Killed In Clashes With Rebels.
February 10, 2007... Forty-two army and police troops have been killed since clashes broke out again with rebel fighters in the northern Yemeni province of Saada. The head of the National Security Agency, Ali Muhammad Al-Anessi, told the Shoura Council, the upper...

ARAB AFFAIRS - Feb 5 - Israel Says Hizbullah Violated 1701.
February 10, 2007... The Israeli Army claims that it found and detonated at least four bombs just south of the UN-demarcated Blue Line, inside Israeli territory - and accused Hizbullah of planting the explosives as recently as Feb 4. If confirmed, it would mark the...

ARAB AFFAIRS - Feb 15 - Iraq Closes Borders With Iran And Syria.
February 17, 2007... Iraq closes its borders with Iran and Syria as US and Iraqi troops tightened their grip on Baghdad, setting up more checkpoints that stopped and searched even official convoys for weapons. An Interior Ministry official, who spoke on condition...

ARAB AFFAIRS - Feb 15 - OIC Mulls Peace Force.
February 17, 2007... The 57-member Organisation of the Islamic Conference (OIC) says there is growing support within its ranks to form a Muslim peacekeeping force as part of plans to bolster its image. "At the moment we do not have a mechanism (for a peacekeeping...

ARAB EUROPEAN RELATIONS - Feb 12 - PA Given Hope Of EU Aid.(Palestine National Authority)
February 17, 2007... One of the EU's top officials holds out the prospect of resuming aid to the PA in the wake of last week's agreement by Fatah and Hamas to form a national unity government. The 27-nation bloc has frozen direct aid to the PA since Hamas won...

IRAN - Feb 11 - Iran Raises Hopes Of Nuclear Settlement.
February 17, 2007... Iran's top security official holds out hope for a "negotiated settlement" on Tehran's nuclear programme and says the programme will pose no threat to Israel or any other country. Ali Larijani, Iran's chief nuclear negotiator, also told an...

IRAN - Feb 14 - Car Bomb Kills 11 Iranian Revolutionary Guards On Bus.
February 17, 2007... A car loaded with explosives blow up in front of a bus carrying members of the Revolutionary Guards in southeastern Iran, killing at least 11 and wounding 34, according to state-run press outlets. The explosion took place in the city of...

IRAQ - Feb 12 - Bombs Kills At Least 76 In Baghdad.
February 17, 2007... Bomb attacks at crowded markets in central Baghdad kill at least 76 people as Iraqis marked the first anniversary of a Shi'ite shrine bombing that pitched the country to the brink of civil war. The blasts comes a day after Shi'ite PM Nuri...

IRAQ - Feb 14 - GIs Conduct Baghdad Sweep, With Iraqis In Minor Role.
February 17, 2007... Thousands of American troops in armored Stryker vehicles swarm three mostly Shi'ite neighbourhoods of north-eastern Baghdad, encountering little resistance during what commanders described as the first major sweep of the new security plan for...

EGYPT - Feb 15 - Cairo Arrests 73 Brotherhood Members.
February 17, 2007... The Egyptian authorities detain 73 members of the Muslim Brotherhood, the banned group considered the largest opposition force in the country. The arrests, in Cairo and provinces in the Nile Delta, are the latest in a campaign against the group...

LEBANON - Feb 13 - Bomb Attacks Near Beirut Kill Three.
February 17, 2007... Three people died and 17 are injured when bombs rip through two crowded minibuses in the Christian heartland north of Beirut, the worst terrorist attack against civilians in Lebanon in recent years. The bombings exacerbated tensions ahead of a...

LEBANON - Feb 16 - Nasrallah Reiterates Campaign To Bring Down Siniora Government.(Hassan Nasrallah, Fouad Siniora )
February 17, 2007... Hizbullah leader Hassan Nasrallah vows to continue the opposition campaign led by his group to force PM Fouad Siniora to share power or step down. Speaking at a rally in a southern Beirut Hizbullah stronghold, Nasrallah said he was confident of...

PALESTINE - Feb 12 - Hamas Govt To Quit Soon To Start New Coalition Process.
February 17, 2007... PM Ismail Haniyeh returns to the Gaza Strip through the Rafah Crossing that was opened early in the morning for Palestinian travelers. Haniyeh told reporters at the crossing that his government planned to resign in the coming days to start the...

PALESTINE - Feb 15 - Abbas Asks Haniyeh To Form Govt.(Mahmoud Abbas, Ismail Haniyeh )
February 17, 2007... The Hamas Cabinet resigns to make way for a new unity government with the rival Fatah of moderate Palestinian Pres Mahmoud Abbas. Abbas asked PM Ismail Haniyeh to form the new Cabinet despite what his aides said was a warning by the US that...

ARAB AFFAIRS - Feb 17 - Arab Initiative, Tehran Talks, Internal Shifts Mark Crossroads For Lebanon.
February 24, 2007... The head of the Arab League General AMoussa voices optimism on negotiations to end Lebanon's political stalemate, as internal talks are put on hold pending the outcome of Feb 17 meetings between Syrian Pres Bashar Assad and Iranian Pres Mahmoud...

ARAB AFFAIRS - Feb 19 - Middle East Talks End Without Progress.
February 24, 2007... A meeting that Israeli and Palestinian leaders with Condoleezza Rice, the US secretary of state, matches its low expectations when they agree on little more substantial than a willingness to meet again. After talks with the Israeli PM Ehud...

ARAB AFFAIRS - Feb 22 - OIC Slams 'Deafening Silence'.
February 24, 2007... The foreign ministers of the Organisation of the Islamic Conference (OIC) accuses the international community of ignoring the excavations near the Al-Aqsa Mosque that many contend will affect the structural foundation of Islam's third-holiest...

ARAB-EUROPEAN RELATIONS - Feb 21 - Blair Hints UK May Deal With Hamas.(Tony Blair)
February 24, 2007... The UK indicates it can be prepared to do business with the Islamic group Hamas, in comments that underlined the growing difference in approach between Europe and the US on how best to pursue peace in the Middle East. Speaking in London ahead...

ARAB-US RELATIONS - Feb 18 - US Backs Israel On Middle East Talks.
February 24, 2007... PM Ehud Olmert says Pres Bush promises Israel the US will boycott a new Palestinian unity government that fails to recognise it, renounce violence and accept existing agreements. Olmert told a cabinet meeting he had received the assurance from...

ARAB-US RELATIONS - Feb 18 - Rice Meets With Iraqis On Security Plan.(Condoleezza Rice)
February 24, 2007... -By Damien Cave -Saturday, February 17, 2007 -BAGHDAD -Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice made a surprise visit to Baghdad on Saturday to meet with PM Nuri Kamal al-Maliki and other Iraqi officials about the new security plan and how the...

IRAN - Feb 18 - Tehran Dashes Hopes Of Nuclear Compromise.
February 24, 2007... Iran's foreign ministry dismisses talk of immediate suspension of uranium enrichment ahead of this week's UN Security Council deadline despite a recent flurry of Iranian diplomacy that had raised hopes of a compromise. Intensifying US pressure...

IRAN - Feb 18 - Insurgent Bombers Are Trained In Pakistan - FM.
February 24, 2007... The Iranian FM charges that Sunni insurgents from Iran used Pakistan as a base to plan a bombing that killed 11 people and wounded more than 30 in the south-eastern border city of Zahedan last week, and an official said that the ministry had...

IRAQ - Feb 18 - 2 Car Bombs Kill At Least 60 In Baghdad Market.
February 24, 2007... Two days after PM Nuri Kamal al-Maliki calls the first days of the security crackdown in this capital city a "dazzling success", two car bombs tore through a crowded market and killed at least 60 people. The attack occurred only minutes after...

ISRAEL - Feb 21 - Billionaire To Set Up Rightwing Party In Israel.(Arkadi Gaydamak)
February 24, 2007... Arkadi Gaydamak, a Russian-born billionaire businessman and sports entrepreneur, decides to enter Israeli politics as a rightwing kingmaker at a time when voters' respect for their present leaders has plumbed record lows. The controversial...

PALESTINE - Feb 18 - Abbas Defends Unity Govt Deal.(Mahmoud Abbas of the Palestine Liberation Organization)
February 24, 2007... Palestinian Pres Mahmoud Abbas hold talks with US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice defending his unity deal with Hamas after US and Israel threatens to shun a coalition government. However, a joint press conference scheduled after the...

SOMALIA - Feb 23 - Somalia On Brink Awaiting Peace Troops.
February 24, 2007... Somali government and Ethiopian forces are hoping to stamp out a nascent insurgency in Mogadishu before the arrival of African Union peacekeepers, amid concern that the opportunity to stabilise Somalia is rapidly narrowing. Uganda is due to...