APS Diplomat Recorder articles from July 2008

APS Diplomat Recorder archives from July 2008

ARAB AFFAIRS - July 1 - Mousa Appeals To Lebanese Leaders To End Impasse.
July 5, 2008... Arab League chief AMousa warns a delay in forming a national unity government in Lebanon in line with Doha agreement can lead to a catastrophe. He said: "I wish a national unity government in Lebanon will be formed very soon to end the...

ARAB AFFAIRS - July 4 - Turkey Aiming To Get Syria, Israel Meet Face To Face.
July 5, 2008... Turkey will host a fourth round of indirect talks between Israel and Syria later this month, with the aim of bringing the bitter enemies to talk to each other directly. Turkish mediators have been shuttling between the Syrian and Israeli...

ARAB EUROPEAN RELATIONS - July 4 - UK Envoy Finesses 'Terrorist' Label On Hizbullah's Armed Wing.
July 5, 2008... The British ambassador to Lebanon, Frances Mary Guy, clarifies her government's recent move to classify the military wing of Hizbullah as a terrorist organisation in an interview published in the Lebanese daily. Guy denied implications that the...

ARAB ISRAEL RELATIONS - July 5 - Israel Blocks West Bank Village Over Barrier Protests.
July 5, 2008... Israeli forces block a Palestinian village in what the army called an open-ended effort to curb protests against the construction nearby of the West Bank barrier. Troops were encircling Ni'lin, near the Palestinian city of Ramallah, under...

ARAB-US RELATIONS - June 30 - US Forces In Iraq Wary Of Israeli Attack On Iran.
July 5, 2008... An attack by Israel on Iran's nuclear facilities, with tacit US approval, will lead to a major conflict in Iraq if Tehran chooses to respond by hitting American and Iraqi targets, Iraqi military officers and officials say. The potential Israeli...

ARAB-US RELATIONS - July 2 - Iraq Talks Advance On Deal For US Troops.
July 5, 2008... Iraq's FM Hoshyar Zebari says the US and Iraq are making progress towards forging a complex political and security agreement to allow US troops to operate legally in Iraq next year. "We have reached a comfortable stage of negotiations, and the...

ARAB-US RELATIONS - July 2 - Bush Says US Prefers Diplomacy In Iran Standoff.
July 5, 2008... With tension and warnings continuing to swirl around Iran and its nuclear program, President George W. Bush says that the US continued to prefer diplomacy but that, as always, "all options are on the table". When asked about the threat by Iran...

AFGHANISTAN - July 2 - Coalition Deaths In Afghanistan Hit A Record High.
July 5, 2008... More American and coalition troops died in Afghanistan last month than during any other month since the US-led invasion began in 2001, the latest evidence of a strengthening Taliban insurgency that has menaced NATO forces and reclaimed control...

IRAN - July 1 - Iran Says Offer Is Acceptable 'In Principle'.
July 5, 2008... A senior adviser to Iran's supreme leader indicated on Tuesday that Tehran could look favourably on the recent international offer put to it, describing the proposal as acceptable "in principle". Ali-Akbar Velayati, a former FM who advises Ayat...

IRAN - July 4 - Iran Sends Word On Nuclear Talks.
July 5, 2008... Iran sends a written response to an offer from the world's leading powers regarding its nuclear programme, amid hopes in the west that Tehran would give enough ground to allow formal negotiations to begin. Nearly three weeks after the...

IRAQ - June 29 - Bomb Kills Six Iraqi Police Officers.
July 5, 2008... A truck bomb detonates by remote control north of Baghdad killed six police officers and a member of a local group of Sunni volunteers who have turned against the insurgents, the police said. The truck was parked on a road in Duluiya, 75...

IRAQ - June 30 - 4 Iraqis Sue Over Abu Ghraib Treatment.
July 5, 2008... Four Iraqi men are suing US military contractors who they say tortured them while they were detained in Abu Ghraib prison, according to lawsuits being filed in US courts. The lawsuits allege the contractors committed violations of US law,...

IRAQ - July 2 - Iraq's Sunni Edge Closer To Reconciliation.
July 5, 2008... Iraq's main Sunni Muslim political bloc is on the verge of rejoining the Shi'ite-led government after a year-long boycott, a step widely seen as vital to reconciling the nation's warring factions. Sunni leaders said on July 2 they had suggested...

ISRAEL - June 29 - Israel Approves Prisoner Swap With Hizbullah.
July 5, 2008... Israel's cabinet on approves a deal with Hizbullah for the release of Lebanese and Palestinian prisoners in exchange for the return of the two Israeli soldiers whose abduction triggered the summer war in Lebanon two years ago. Ehud Olmert,...

LEBANON - July 2 - 'Hizbullah Trained Shi'ite Militiamen In Iraq'.
July 5, 2008... Lebanon's Hizbullah says it had agreed to a UN-mediated deal to exchange prisoners with Israel and expected the swap to take place around the middle of this month. "We have accepted this agreement and consider it a great accomplishment", said...

PALESTINE - June 30 - Hamas Hints It Will Raise Stakes For Captured Israeli Soldier.
July 5, 2008... Palestinian militants in Gaza holding an Israeli soldier says they have no reason to soften their demands in negotiations over his release, citing the high price that Israel is paying in a planned prisoner swap with Hizbullah. The declaration...

SAUDI ARABIA - July 1 - King's Vision Promotes World Peace.(King Abdullah)
July 5, 2008... The Council of Ministers commends Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah's futuristic vision that aims to achieve a balanced development for all the Kingdom's regions, boost relations with friendly countries, promote interfaith...

ARAB AFFAIRS - July 5 - Kingdom, Qatar To Mark Border.
July 12, 2008... Saudi Arabia and Qatar signs a landmark agreement to demarcate their border. Interior Minister Prince Naif and Qatari PM Shaikh Hamad ibn Jassim Al-Thani signed the accord in Jeddah, the Saudi Press Agency said. The two GCC neighbours also...

ARAB AFFAIRS - July 10 - Turkish Premier, In Iraq, Highlights A Warming Trend.
July 12, 2008... Turkey's PM visited Baghdad, only the second foreign head of a neighbouring state to visit Iraq since the American invasion. The visit of PM Recep Tayyip Erdogan came during a flurry of announcements from Arab countries - including Bahrain, the...

ARAB ISRAEL RELATIONS - July 6 - Israel Reopens Gaza Crossing.
July 12, 2008... Israel reopens vital crossings into the Gaza Strip in keeping with a truce with Hamas there, and much-needed supplies began flowing into the impoverished territory again. Since the truce went into effect on June 19, Israel has closed the...

ARAB ISRAEL RELATIONS - July 7 - Hizbullah And Israel Sign Prisoner Swap Deal.
July 12, 2008... Israel and Hizbullah have signed a UN-mediated prisoner exchange deal and the date for the swap will be settled this week. The source said Hizbullah leader Hassan Nasrallah and Israeli PM Ehud Olmert had both signed the deal under which the...

ARAB ISRAEL RELATIONS - July 10 - Israeli Soldiers Kill Unarmed Palestinian Lad.
July 12, 2008... A 17-year-old boy who crossed into Israel in search of work is killed by Israeli troops. Mouawiya Hassnin, a Health Ministry official, told Arab News that the teenager, identified as Salem Hamedi, was wearing a T-shirt and jeans and had...

ARAB-US RELATIONS - July 10 - Rice Warns Iran That US Will Defend Allies.
July 12, 2008... The confrontation between Iran and the US seems to sharpen as Iran says it tested missiles for a second day and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said the US would defend its allies and protect its interests against an attack. Rice was...

AFGHANISTAN - July 7 - Huge Blast At Indian Embassy In Kabul Kills 41.
July 12, 2008... A huge blast at the gates of the Indian Embassy in Kabul killed 41 people in the deadliest suicide car bombing since the American-led invasion of Afghanistan in 2001 ousted the Taliban. Among the victims of the attack, the first in seven years...

IRAN - July 8 - Tehran Warns West Against Attack.
July 12, 2008... A senior Iranian official threatens that Iran will respond to any military attack by striking Israel and America's vital interests around the globe. "In case that they commit such foolishness, Tel Aviv and the US fleet in the Persian Gulf would...

IRAN - July 9 - Iran Reports Missile Test, Drawing Rebuke.
July 12, 2008... Iranian Revolutionary Guards practicing war-game maneuvers test-fired nine missiles on July 9, including at least one the government in Tehran describes as having the range to reach Israel. The tests drew sharp American criticism and came a day...

IRAQ - July 7 - Maliki Raises Troop Withdrawal Timetable.
July 12, 2008... Nouri al-Maliki, the Iraqi PM, has for the first time suggested establishing a timetable for the withdrawal of US troops, a step that the Bush administration has long opposed. Maliki floated the idea on July 7 during a visit to the UAE, where...

IRAQ - July 7 - Uranium Removed From Iraq Nuclear Site.
July 12, 2008... American and Iraqi officials have completed nearly the last chapter in dismantling Saddam Hussein's nuclear program with the removal of hundreds of tons of natural uranium from the country's main nuclear site. The uranium, which was removed...

ISRAEL - July 11 - Israeli Police Widen Olmert Probe.(Ehud Olmert)
July 12, 2008... Israeli police says they had widened their corruption probe against the Israeli PM Ehud Olmert, who is now also suspected of double-billing for trips during his tenure as mayor of Jerusalem and trade minister. Olmert is already under intense...

LEBANON - July 9 - Siniora Declares 'A Lot Of Progress' In Formation Of Unity Government.(Fouad Siniora)
July 12, 2008... Premier Fouad Siniora says that he hoped a new cabinet would be formed before President Michel Sleiman leaves the country on July 12 to participate in the Mediterranean Union summit in France. Siniora said after meeting Sleiman at the...

PALESTINE - July 8 - Abbas 'Open To National Dialogue To End Feuds'.
July 12, 2008... Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas met with the leader of the Islamic Jihad group in Syria on July 7, in the latest incremental step to reconcile the divided Palestinian factions. Talks with archrival Hamas, however, still appear to be far...

SYRIA - July 11 - Assad Makes Remarkable Comeback.(Bashar al-Assad)
July 12, 2008... After years of isolation Bashar al-Assad stages a diplomatic comeback, courtesy of French president Nicolas Sarkozy. Still boycotted by some of his Arab neighbours and shunned by the US, the controversial Syrian president will be in the company...

ARAB AFFAIRS - July 16 - Arab League Concerned Over Al Bashir Arrest Warrant.
July 19, 2008... The Arab League expresses concern over the International Criminal Court's charges of genocide against Sudan Pres Omar Al Bashir. The League said the charges may not have been well thought out, adding that it was concerned about repercussions....

ARAB EUROPEAN RELATIONS - July 14 - Sarkozy Helps To Bring Syria Out Of Isolation.
July 19, 2008... Leaders of 43 nations with nearly 800 million inhabitants inaugurated a "Union for the Mediterranean" meant to bring the northern and southern countries that ring the sea closer together through practical projects dealing with the environment,...

ARAB EUROPEAN RELATIONS - June 17 - EU backs Iran offer with new sanction threat.
July 19, 2008... The EU will impose new financial sanctions on Iran in the next few weeks if Tehran fails to respond positively to a fresh offer from the big world powers regarding its nuclear ambitions. After a visit to Iran weekend by Javier Solana, the EU...

ARAB ISRAEL RELATIONS - July 13 - Israel To Release Palestinian Prisoners.
July 19, 2008... Embattled Israeli PM Ehud Olmert declares that Israel and the Palestinians have never been closer to making peace - even as a widening corruption probe brings him closer than ever to being ousted from office. To help build confidence between...

ARAB ISRAEL RELATIONS - July 16 - Israel And Hamas 'Call Ceasefire'.
July 19, 2008... Israel and Hamas have agreed to begin a truce, the first since the Islamist group's takeover of the Gaza Strip a year ago, said Egyptian officials who mediated in the ceasefire. Barring last-minute complications, the truce, set to start at 6am...

ARAB-US RELATIONS - July 18 - Bush Agrees Withdrawal Deal With Iraq.(George W. Bush)
July 19, 2008... George W. Bush has agreed to commit the US to a "time horizon" for withdrawal of US combat troops from Iraq, marking a significant shift by a Pres who has long opposed setting target dates for ending the war. The Pres struck the agreement with...

AFGHANISTAN - July 13 - Deadly Taliban Attack Took Afghan Base By Surprise.
July 19, 2008... Taliban insurgents manage to breach the walls of the outpost in Kunar Province where nine American soldiers were killed July 13 morning in what was a well-planned attack that took the soldiers on the base by surprise. The insurgents, estimated...

ISRAEL - July 13 - Olmert Hits Back On Graft Investigation.
July 19, 2008... The battle between Ehud Olmert and Israel's police and prosecutors sharpened with one of the PM's lawyers accusing the authorities of trying to "ruin" the country's elected leader. Olmert described the latest allegations in the widening...

KUWAIT - July 17 - Kuwait Names First Ambassador To Iraq Since 1991 Gulf War.
July 19, 2008... Kuwait named an ambassador to Iraq, its first since the 1991 Gulf War, in a major step toward healing the two countries' painful past and renewing regional ties with Baghdad's postwar government. The announcement came as Saad Hariri, a Sunni...

LEBANON - July 16 - Hizbullah Hails Israel Prisoner Swap.
July 19, 2008... Hizbullah celebrated the release of the last five Lebanese prisoners held by Israel as a "victory from God" and gave them a hero's welcome at a rally attended by much of the country's political leadership. The jubilant scenes in Beirut followed...

LEBANON - July 16 - Nasrallah Addresses Celebration Rally.
July 19, 2008... Hizbullah leader Hassan Nasrallah made a rare public appearance at a celebration rally for the five fighters released by Israel. The rally, in the southern suburbs of Beirut, was attended by hundreds of thousands of people. Nasrallah, who has...

SAUDI ARABIA - July 16 - Shun Extremist Violence, Saudi King Urges Believers.
July 19, 2008... King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia opens a meeting of Muslims, Christians, Jews and other believers July 16 with a call to shun the extremist violence that has tarnished the reputation of religious faith. The three-day conference in Madrid aims to...

SUDAN - Sudanese Protest War Crimes Case Against Pres At Scripted Rally In Capital.
July 19, 2008... Thousands of people took to the streets of Sudan's tense capital in a carefully choreographed protest against the expected request by the International Criminal Court to arrest Pres Omar Hassan al-Bashir on war crimes charges. Students and...

TURKEY - July 14 - Eighty-Six Indicted In Plot To Topple Turkish Government.
July 19, 2008... A top prosecutor announces a long-awaited indictment against 86 individuals suspected of involvement in a coup plot against Turkey's Islamist-rooted government. The document is the first to emerge from a year-long investigation into an alleged...

ARAB AFFAIRS - July 22 - Syria Ready To Delineate Border With Lebanon.
July 26, 2008... Visiting Syrian FM Walid Muallem says that Damascus is keen to open a new chapter in its relations with Lebanon and to delineate the border between the two countries. "Our relations today are on an equal footing", Muallem told a news conference...

ARAB AFFAIRS - July 21 - Syria Moves Ahead In Recognizing Lebanon.
July 26, 2008... The FM of Syria reiterates on that Syria intends to establish diplomatic relations with Lebanon, for the first time since the two nations gained independence more than 60 years ago. "We are determined to open an embassy and to exchange...

ARAB EUROPEAN RELATIONS - July 21 - Brown Offers Israel Reassurance On Iran.
July 26, 2008... PM Gordon Brown of Britain says that his country would remain at the forefront of efforts to block Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons, directly addressing one of Israel's greatest fears. Speaking to the Knesset, or Israeli Parliament, in the...

AFGHANISTAN - July 25 - Battle In Southern Afghanistan Leaves 35 Dead.
July 26, 2008... Fierce fighting broke out in southern Afghanistan when scores of Taliban insurgents attacked an Afghan Army convoy on the main highway south of the capital. Afghan officials said that the Taliban were beaten back by soldiers and police officers...

IRAN - July 19 - Iran's Ahmadi-Nejad Says Nuclear Talks A 'Step Forward'.
July 26, 2008... Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadi-Nejad has described nuclear talks with world powers in Geneva as a step forward. At the meeting, Iran was given a two-week deadline to decided whether it will accept an incentives package in exchange for...

IRAQ - July 20 - US Forces Kill Relatives Of Iraqi Governor.
July 26, 2008... American Special Operations forces shot to death the son and nephew of the governor of Salahuddin Province during a raid in the northern city of Bayji, the latest in a series of operations that have resulted in the deaths of civilians or close...

IRAQ - July 20 - Iraqi Parliament Welcomes Return Of Sunni Politicians.
July 26, 2008... Iraq's Parliament Speaker Mahmoud al-Mashadani welcomes Sunni Arab politicians back to Iraq's Shi'ite-led government. The nation's main Sunni bloc ended a year-long boycott of the government, after parliament approved six Sunni officials to...

LEBANON - July 22 - Hizbullah Identifies Bodies Of 157 Fighters Returned By Israel.
July 26, 2008... Hizbullah has identified 157 fighters whose bodies Israel returned in a prisoner swap with the Lebanese resistance group. Hizbullah says DNA tests identified the nationalities of the fighters. Among the 157 were Lebanese, Palestinian, Syrian,...

LEBANON - July 25 - 5 Killed In Sectarian Fighting In Northern Lebanese City.
July 26, 2008... Sectarian clashes broke out in the northern Lebanese city of Tripoli, killing six people, including a 10 year-old-boy and a policeman, and wounding at least 15, police officials said. The clashes between Sunni Muslim gunmen and Alawites, an...

PALESTINE - July 23 - Israel to pardon 24 Fatah fighters.
July 26, 2008... Palestinian sources say that Israel has informed the PA that it is willing to pardon 24 wanted Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades members as part of the deal signed between both sides in July 2007. Israeli sources said that the decision was made...

SYRIA - July 23 - Syria Receives Bodies Of 114 Arab Fighters Returned By Israel.(Brief article)
July 26, 2008... The bodies of 114 Arab fighters were received by Syria as part of a prisoner exchange between Israel and Hizbullah. The bodies were among the 197 returned by Israel last week for the remains of two Israeli soldiers in a UN mediated deal. Five...