1. "More than 100 people have been killed and 1,500 injured at a protest held by supporters of ousted Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi in Cairo, doctors say." Egypt crisis: 'Scores killed' at Cairo protest http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-23474645 2. "The death of secular opposition figure Mohamed Brahmi, gunned down outside his Tunis home on Thursday, has heightened tensions in the North African country and turned up the pressure on its Islamist rulers. Witnesses said one man was killed early on Saturday in an anti-government protest in the southern city of Gafsa. Violence also broke out in several other cities. A bomb in a police car exploded in Tunis but caused no casualties, a spokesman at the Interior Ministry said." Car bomb, protest death stoke tension before slain Tunisian's funeral http://english.ahram.org.eg/News/77524.aspx 3. "More than 1,000 prisoners have escaped from a Libyan jail this afternoon, it has emerged. Libyan security officials said the mass jailbreak occurred at Koyfiya prison, near the eastern city of Benghazi. The jailbreak happened as protesters stormed the offices of Islamist-allied parties in Libya's main cities. Protesters had massed across the country angry over the killing of an activist critical of the country's Muslim Brotherhood group." More than 1,000 inmates escape Benghazi prison in mass jailbreak as protesters storm offices of Islamist parties across Libya http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art...ers-storm-offices-Islamist-parties-Libya.html 4. "Emboldened militants in Iraq set up their own checkpoint to kill drivers and bombed crowded cafes Thursday in the deadliest of a series of attacks that killed at least 42 people, authorities said. More than 550 people have been killed in violent attacks so far this month, according to an Associated Press count, as violence continues during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan. The speaker of Iraqi parliament even has acknowledged that insecurity in the nation likely will get worse after a massive al-Qaida-claimed prison break freed hundreds of inmates." Scores killed in Baghdad bombings http://www.france24.com/en/20130725-scores-killed-café-bombing-attacks-iraq 5. "More than 100,000 people have now been killed in the Syrian civil war, UN leader Ban Ki-moon said Thursday as he appealed for new efforts to convene a peace conference. On the ground, violence raged in the flashpoint city of Homs and a car bombing in Damascus killed 17 people, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said." Syria death toll tops 100,000 http://www.france24.com/en/20130725-un-leader-ban-ki-moon-says-syria-death-toll-tops-100000 6. "ISTANBUL — After weeks of sometimes violent confrontation with police, protesters in Turkey have found what could be a more potent form of resistance: standing still. The trend was launched by performance artist Erdem Gunduz, who stood silently for hours in Istanbul’s central Taksim Square on Monday night, in passive defiance of Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s violent crackdown on environmental protesters at a park adjacent to Taksim. The square has been sealed off from protesters since police cleared it over the weekend, though pedestrians can still enter." ‘Standing man’ becomes new rallying point for protesters as fresh demonstrations rock Turkey http://news.nationalpost.com/2013/0...-dress-inspiring-latest-turkish-protest-wave/ P.S. Although Turkey is not an Arab nation, it is included in this thread due to religious reason and its location in the Middle East. 7. Instead of being a symbol of hope and revival, the so-called Arab Spring could end up as one of the darkest chapters in the history of the Muslim World. Like a giant snake swallowing its own tail, the trauma could last for a very long time, possibly more than one generation, and the bloody conflict could engulf the whole region. Rising death toll in Egypt amid clashes between pro and anti-Morsi protesters http://www.haaretz.com/news/middle-east/1.538186 Tunisia must be wary of going down the same route as Egypt http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2013/jul/26/tunisia-wary-route-egypt Six Libyan soldiers killed in Benghazi violence http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/06/15/us-libya-attack-benghazi-idUSBRE95E04Y20130615 Benghazi violence kills Libyan colonel http://www.upi.com/Top_News/Special...ence-kills-Libyan-colonel/UPI-29091372346017/ Benghazi: violence continues http://weekly.ahram.org.eg/News/3068/19/Benghazi--violence-continues.aspx Iraq hunts escaped militants after al Qaeda prison raids http://www.france24.com/en/20130723-iraq-hunts-escaped-militants-after-al-qaeda-prison-raids Deadly suicide bomb attack hits Iraq mosque http://www.france24.com/en/20130719-sunni-deadly-bomb-attack-iraq-mosque Syrian Kurds plan self-government http://www.france24.com/en/20130720-syria-kurds-turkey-create-regional-government Shells hit major Shiite shrine near Damascus http://www.france24.com/en/20130720-syria-fighting-strikes-hezbollah-shiite-shrine Fresh clashes erupt between Kurds and Syrian Islamists along Turkey border http://www.france24.com/en/20130722-kurds-clash-islamists-turkey-syria-border
Lol, please write something important .. like "an Israeli added a window in his room ( in his village near Ramallah )" Something the pro Islamists will enjoy and comment about .....
Maybe something like "an Israeli peeping through a window of a Palestinian room" would be more important and interesting to you..... It looks strange to propose handing the enemy land over to another country instead of annexing it. Why nobody in the US government proposes the formula Taiwan = Chinese mainland?
Army seals off Tunis square after rival protesters clash... Party in Tunisian ruling coalition demands new government 29 July`13 - A secular party in Tunisia's ruling Islamist-led coalition demanded a unity government on Monday to defuse a deepening political crisis, hours after the army sealed a square in the capital where protesters had clashed. See also: Tunisia to Hold Elections by Dec. 17, Says PM July 29, 2013 > Tunisia's prime minister says the government will not step down despite opposition demands. He also promises to finish the constitution by October and hold elections on Dec. 17.
1. Following are excerpts from the article headlined "Over 200 dead after Egypt forces crush protest camps" at http://uk.reuters.com/article/2013/08/14/uk-egypt-protests-idUKBRE97514U20130814 (Begin excerpts) (Reuters) - Egyptian security forces crushed the protest camps of thousands of supporters of the deposed Islamist president on Wednesday, shooting almost 200 of them dead in the bloodiest day in decades and polarising the Arab world's most populous nation. At least 235 people were killed in all, including at least 43 police, and 2,000 wounded, a health official said, in fierce clashes that spread beyond Cairo to towns and cities around Egypt. Deposed president Mohamed Mursi's Muslim Brotherhood said the death toll of what it called a "massacre" was far higher..... Prime Minister Hazem el-Beblawi defended the use of force, condemned by the United States and European governments, saying the authorities had no choice but to act to end "the spread of anarchy". "We found that matters had reached a point that no self-respecting state could accept," he said in a televised address.... The use of force prompted Mohamed ElBaradei, a former U.N. diplomat and the most prominent liberal supporter of Mursi's overthrow, to resign as vice president, saying the conflict could have been resolved by peaceful means. "The beneficiaries of what happened today are those call for violence, terrorism and the most extreme groups," he said.... Security officials initially said senior Brotherhood figures Mohamed El-Beltagi and Essam El-Erian had been arrested, joining Mursi himself and other Brotherhood leaders in jail, but later acknowledged they had not been captured. Beltagi's 17-year-old daughter was among the dead. Beltagi warned of wider conflict, and urged people to take to the streets to oppose the head of the armed forces, who deposed Mursi on July 3 following mass protests. "I swear by God that if you stay in your homes, Abdel Fattah al-Sisi will embroil this country so that it becomes Syria. Abdel Fattah al-Sisi will push this nation to a civil war so that he escapes the gallows." ElBaradei's political movement, the anti-Islamist National Salvation Front, did not share his qualms, declaring that "Egypt has held its head high in the sky announcing victory over political groups that abuse religion"..... (End excerpts) More than 200 killed as Egyptian forces bust up sit-ins http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2013/08/14/egypt-camps-demonstrators/2651377/ The Egyptian Military Massacre.The Role of the U.S. Government in the Egyptian Crisis http://www.globalresearch.ca/the-egyptian-military-massacre/5342161 2. Following are excerpts from the article headlined "MUSLIM BROTHERHOOD SUPPORTERS ATTACK CHURCHES AROUND EGYPT IN APPARENT RETALIATION FOR MILITARY CRACKDOWN AS 149 PEOPLE KILLED" at http://www.theblaze.com/stories/201...-for-military-crackdown-as-149-people-killed/ (Begin excerpts) While most headlines from Egypt are focused on Wednesday’s violent dispersal of Muslim Brotherhood supporter sit-ins....Christians in the embattled country are facing what’s being described as “a black day” as their churches are being attacked and torched by angry Islamists. Supporters of ousted President Mohammed Morsi set fire to churches around Egypt in apparent retaliation for the police dispersing the pro-Morsi demonstrations in Cairo. According to AFP, three churches were attacked, but other outlets place the number higher. Egypt-watchers and reporters are using terms such as “unprecedented,” a sectarian “catastrophe” and “a literal pogrom” to describe the unfolding of events Wednesday. One Twitter user called it “a black day in the Coptic modern history.” The Egyptian blogger The Big Pharaoh reported that the St. Theresa Church in Assiut in Upper Egypt was set ablaze and that both the St. James monastery and a Jesuit nuns’ school in Meniah “a very old building” were burned down. Churches in Arish and Ezbet el-Nakhl in Greater Cairo were also “torched,” The Big Pharaoh blogger reported. “I think the magnitude and geographical spread of the attacks on Christians didn’t happen before since the mid ages,” the blogger tweeted.... (End excerpts) 3. Following are excerpts from the article headlined "Egypt: Why Are the Churches Burning?" at http://www.nybooks.com/blogs/nyrblog/2011/may/17/egypt-why-are-churches-burning/ (Begin excerpts) ....By far the largest Christian minority in the Middle East, Egypt’s Copts account for some ten percent of the country’s population of 82 million. Since Mubarak’s resignation on February 11, hardline Salafis —who were kept under tight control by the former regime—have become vocal opponents of the church. Although they command only a small fraction of the followers of the mainstream Muslim Brotherhood, the Salafis’ brand of purist Islam is popular among some in conservative and working class districts, where there is growing resentment that the revolution hasn’t brought any tangible benefits. Leading up to the March constitutional referendum, they promoted “yes” as a vote for “religion and stability,” and they are increasingly turning to the same outreach strategies long-used by the Brotherhood to win supporters. In some areas, Salafi Sheikhs have been using their Friday sermons to incite violence against Copts, whom they regard as infidels, and preach against democracy, which they say is not compatible with their goal of establishing an Islamic State. The first major attack on the Coptic community occurred on March 4, when armed thugs bulldozed a church to its foundations on the outskirts of Cairo, allegedly over an illicit relationship between a Coptic man and a Muslim woman. The incident was followed by riots and clashes that left 13 people dead and 140 wounded. Yet rather than arresting and charging those responsible—sending them for quick military trials as it increasingly does with peaceful youth protesters—the military simply called on a Salafi Sheikh, Mohamed Hassan, to visit the area and try to reconcile Copts and Muslims..... (End excerpts) 4. Following are excerpts from the article headlined "Christians Under Siege in Egypt" at http://frontpagemag.com/2011/rick-moran/christians-under-siege-in-egypt/ (Begin excerpts) Authorities in Cairo have imposed a strict curfew in the aftermath of massive riots between Coptic Christians and police on Sunday that killed 25 and wounded 400 more. The Copts were protesting the destruction of one of their churches in the southern province of Aswan on October 1 — a crime that the Copts say the police are ignoring. Although the demonstration began peacefully, witnesses report that gangs of plainclothes thugs attacked the marchers, which then started the melee. The police moved in and opened fire on some marchers while running over others with armored cars..... The church attack and the harsh crackdown by security forces highlight the plight of Coptic Christians in Egypt since the fall of Mubarak. It is part of a region-wide persecution of Christians taking place since the so-called “Arab Spring” began in nations from the Sudan to Iraq, to Lebanon, Iran, Syria, and the Gulf states. Hundreds of churches have been torched, scores of Christians have been murdered, and authorities are allowing fundamentalist Muslims to carry out these attacks with impunity. In Egypt, state run press has actually encouraged the attacks. The Washington Post reports that “roadcasters called on ‘honest Egyptians’ to take to the streets to defend the military from what anchors described as Coptic Christian assailants, a call that appeared to resonate with Egyptians who thronged downtown wielding clubs and chanting pro-Islamic slogans.” The prime minister has promised an investigation into the violence, setting up a cabinet level panel to look into the causes. But as the Washington Post reports: “a growing body of evidence, including video footage and eyewitness reports, suggest that military forces opened fire on unarmed protesters and deliberately drove hulking armored vehicles into crowds of civilians.” ....On September 30, “some three thousand Muslims rampaged the church, torched it, and demolished the dome; flames from the wreckage burned nearby Coptic homes, which were further ransacked by rioting Muslims.” Predictably, the Governor of Aswan blamed the Christians for the violence, pointing out that the Copts were building the roof of the church 3 meters too high. “Copts made a mistake and had to be punished, and Muslims did nothing but set things right, end of story,” said the governor. Coptic Christians were second class citizens under the Mubarak regime, but their churches were protected and radical Islamists were reined in. But since the “Arab Spring,” the authorities have turned a blind eye as Muslims have run wild, burning churches, murdering Christians, and rampaging through Christian communities..... (End excerpts) Coptic churches burn in Egypt http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/religion/3054727/posts Persecution of Copts http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Persecution_of_Copts 5. Among nearly 300 people killed in the August 14 military crackdown were 43 police -- a surprisingly high figure for the police casualties given that the protesters' denial that they had no firearms, but defending themselves with sticks and stones. So who killed the 43 police? The police themselves? In the aftermath of the security crackdown, pro-Morsi supporters vented their anger on a weaker and easier target, the Coptic Christians, instead of the security forces, the majority of whom are Muslims. Online reports suggest up to 17 churches were burned across Egypt, along with other Christian-owned businesses and schools. The church attack highlights the plight of Coptic Christians in Egypt since the fall of Mubarak. It is part of a region-wide persecution of Christians taking place since the so-called “Arab Spring” began in nations from the Sudan to Iraq, to Lebanon, Iran, Syria, and the Gulf states. Hundreds of churches have been torched, scores of Christians have been murdered, and authorities are allowing fundamentalist Muslims to carry out these attacks with impunity. The persecution of Christians in the Middle East seems to have escaped the notice of the US and other Western nations which focus their attention on the social unrest in Egypt and the civil war in Syria. The current event in Egypt points more and more in the direction of my recent prediction: "Instead of being a symbol of hope and revival, the so-called "Arab Spring" could end up as one of the darkest chapters in the history of the Muslim World (more accurately, the Middle East and Muslim northern Africa). Like a giant snake swallowing its own tail, the trauma could last for a very long time, possibly more than one generation, and the bloody conflict could engulf the whole region."
1. Following are excerpts from the article headlined "Mohamed ElBaradei, Egypt's much maligned voice of reason" at http://www.latimes.com/news/nationw...a-fg-egypt-elbaradei-20130814,0,2828349.story (Begin excerpts) CAIRO Mohamed ElBaradei has cut a curious path through Egyptian politics, rising from reluctant opposition figure to vice president in a dangerously polarized nation, much of which views his liberalism and diplomatic instincts with suspicion and scorn. The Nobel laureate and former head of the United Nations' nuclear regulatory agency is a meticulous man of conscience in a country driven by incendiary passions and divisions between Islamist supporters of deposed President Mohamed Morsi and millions of Egyptians who back the largely secular government installed last month by the military. The two sides are girding for fresh violence as police in Cairo threaten to disperse two massive sit-ins organized by Morsi's Muslim Brotherhood movement. The protesters say they will not leave until the former president is reinstated. Security forces have characterized the Brotherhood as a band of terrorists and child abusers..... ElBaradei has emerged as a steady if much maligned voice and tireless tweeter of reason. He opposes the storming of the sit-ins and has angered hard-liners with calls for compromise. Critics portray him as a whiner and worse. But his post as interim vice president for international affairs has given Cairo the credibility it desperately needs as it seeks billions of dollars in foreign investments. Many of those against ElBaradei are remnants of Hosni Mubarak's government, which was overthrown in a 2011 uprising that hastened the Brotherhood's now-aborted political ascent. These elements, which want a return to Mubarak's police state, are pressing Gen. Abdel Fattah Sisi, commander of the armed forces, for decisive action against Islamists. "Those who want to crush the Brotherhood accuse me of being soft. I don't believe my concern over the loss of lives makes me a soft man," ElBaradei said in a recent television interview. "It's easy to get angry and say we'll crush the Islamists, but it will result in massive deaths." Such sentiments have drawn the ire of those with links to the old guard, including Gamal Ghitani, a columnist for the state-run Al Akhbar newspaper. "This man is a danger to the people and the state," Ghitani recently wrote. "I've been watching ElBaradei from afar with his diplomatic demeanor and chic clothes, and arrogance over morals. Even some village folk in the resort he lives in told me one day: 'This man is so arrogant, he doesn't say hello to us.'" Mubarak-era holdovers are "very concerned about ElBaradei's role because they want to push this new revolution down the road of violence and bloodshed" to further marginalize the Brotherhood, said Gamal Sultan, editor of Masryoon newspaper. He added that ElBaradei advocates including Islamists in a political "reconciliation that doesn't exclude or eliminate anyone." Attacks on ElBaradei have grown personal and have shaken a man who as U.N. negotiator was accustomed to the baroque antechambers and diplomatic whispers of Europe. Egyptian politics has a rougher edge, and ElBaradei more technocrat than charismatic populist often appears uncomfortable and outflanked in the larger struggle between Islamists and secular forces to chart the nation's future. "Lies and defamation since January 2010 [when ElBaradei returned to Egypt] in desperate attempts to keep tyranny alive: attacks on my identity, work, international relations, personal life," he wrote on Twitter. "I say to them all: voicing out rights for freedom, dignity and human values will continue so long as I am alive and the revolution will triumph." Like many liberals, ElBaradei endorsed the July 3 coup that followed widespread antigovernment protests and led to Morsi's downfall. It was an irony turned into a marriage of convenience when ElBaradei embraced the generals he had frequently criticized during the army's repressive 17-month rule following Mubarak's ouster. But ElBaradei feared that the Brotherhood was destroying the economy, sidelining the opposition and pushing the country toward Islamic law. He was named vice president and urged Egypt to move beyond the army takeover. The generals, however, are still in charge and ElBaradei has gone from opposition leader to, at least in the eyes of the Brotherhood, a collaborator against democracy. Many liberals face a similar conundrum. But millions of Egyptians remain stalwart for the army and want the Brotherhood eliminated. ElBaradei is navigating sensitive terrain, seeking to keep hard-liners at bay while preparing for parliamentary elections early next year that will nudge the military from power. Some analysts suggest ElBaradei and Sisi both benefit from avoiding further bloodshed after more than 200 people, mostly Islamists, have been killed in recent clashes with security forces. "What is the proof that there is disagreement between ElBaradei and the military?" said Diaa Rashwan, director of Al Ahram Center for Political and Strategic Studies. "Disagreement in a coalition system is quite normal.... I think the ElBaradei issue has been blown out of proportion." Many Egyptians regard ElBaradei as an outsider, a diplomat who returned home after years of living abroad with an intellect's aloofness and little inkling of the country's needs. He disappointed early as an opposition figure who failed to consistently lead rallies against Mubarak. He abandoned his presidential campaign in 2012, complaining the army was suppressing political freedoms. But he has been a voice for pluralism and has the backing of young activists. Sultan, the newspaper editor, said of ElBaradei: "The world's respect for him represents a source of strength in his position as defender" of the unfinished revolution that unseated Mubarak. (End excerpts) 2. As the Nobel laureate and former head of the United Nations' nuclear regulatory agency, Mohamed ElBaradei is an ideal choice for the US and other Western nations to head the Egyptian government after the overthrow of Mubarak and Morsi. However, as pointed out in the article, he is "more technocrat than charismatic populist often appears uncomfortable and outflanked in the larger struggle between Islamists and secular forces to chart the nation's future". The situation in Egypt is reminiscent of China after the collapse of the Qing Dynasty or America on the brink of the Civil War. If ElBaradei were one of the leading politicians in China or America at that time, he would definitely be outflanked by the like of Mao Zedong or Abraham Lincoln. As pointed out in the article, he "disappointed early as an opposition figure who failed to consistently lead rallies against Mubarak", and "he abandoned his presidential campaign in 2012". In my opinion, he has very little chance to lead a government that could bring peace, social order and democracy to Egypt. Even if he were chosen to be the head of the government, he won't be able to survive for long in the "larger struggle between Islamists and secular forces". Mohamed ElBaradei http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mohamed_ElBaradei
The fundamental problem here is the Western concept of equality. After WW2 the West has been swept up in a left wing propaganda drive to make everyone and everything equal. Man vs Woman, Black Vs White, Rich Vs Poor, Old Vs Young, Smart Vs Stupid. We have debased our societies with this obsession in equality. One of the perverse results of this equality brain washing is the approach to foreign affairs, the idea that democracy is is for all men, and that all men are equal. Equality in a legal system is very different from a real world concept of equality. In a sports game the rules are set out for fairness and equality but that doesn't mean all the players in the game have the same ability. The problem we have in the Arab world is that the West thinks they should be democratic societies, but democracy is a high level social order. You need alot of social linch pins in place for democracy to work. If you go read about old Germanic/Nordic and Celtic cultures in Europe you'll find that these tribes worked in a democratic social frame work. Not because it was some kind of evolution or revolution but it naturally suited their way of thinking and their culture. For many European Mediterranean countries, Spain, Portugal, Italy, Greece modern democracy is only 30 odd years old, under the current economic strain many of these democracies have failed, namely Greece and Italy where emergency coalitions have been forced in place to enable some form of civilised governance. So its clear that even for many European countries enforcing a stable democracy is difficult and takes a highly educated population with highly developed social institution and legal frame works. Frankly the Arab world doesn't have a well educated population never mind highly educated and has none of the social and legal linch pins to help bind the frame work for democracy. The sooner the Western Powers accept that man is not equal and start shaping foreign policy to cater for the various levels of capability of peoples in Africa and the Middle East the sooner we'll see an end to blood shed.
