Party congress endorses Raúl Castro’s economic reforms, but disappoints those hoping for new, younger leaders Cuba’s communist party has endorsed President Raúl Castro’s economic reforms but retained the old guard leadership, disappointing those who hoped for new blood at the top. A party congress on Tuesday confirmed Castro, 79, as first secretary and named José Ramón Machado Ventura, an 80-year-old political veteran, as his deputy, wrapping up a four-day gathering in Havana. The first congress in 14 years approved more than 300 proposals to liberalise the island’s creaking economy, potentially setting Cuba on a gradual path to Vietnam-style capitalism in all but name. Fidel Castro, 84, made an unannounced appearance alongside his brother and successor, prompting a standing ovation and tears from the 1,000 delegates. The former president, who wore a blue tracksuit and was helped to his seat by an aide, has relinquished all party and state posts for the first time in half a century. He wrote in a state website post published on Tuesday that he did not want any honorary position. “I think I have received too many honours. I never thought I would live so many years. Raúl knew that I would not accept at this time any position in the party.” His appearance was interpreted as a sign of support for the changes and a farewell to what was almost certainly his last congress. Raúl, who succeeded Fidel in 2008, surprised many by proposing a limit of two five-year terms for senior office holders, including himself, to “rejuvenate” the geriatric leadership. Nevertheless Machado, an old-school ideologue, was named as his deputy and Ramiro Valdés, a grizzled 78-year-old vice-president, was named number three. Several younger colleagues were promoted to lower-ranking posts on the 15-member ruling committee, including Marino Murillo, 50, who is tasked with implementing the reforms, Adel Izquierdo, 65, the economy minister, and Lázara Mercedes López Acea, 46, head of the party in Havana. “Murillo is one to watch. Whatever changes come to Cuba will come not from the opposition but within the ruling class,” said one European diplomat in Havana. In his website column Fidel hinted that younger committee members may call the shots while older, ostensibly more senior colleagues fade away. “There were some colleagues who, because of their years and poor health, can no longer do service to the party, but Raúl thought it would be very tough on them to exclude them from the list of candidates.” Many of the 300 proposals to shake up the centrally planned economy are already in evidence. In recent months Cubans have taken out more than 170,000 licences for new businesses such as flower stalls, beauty parlours, barber shops, taxis and restaurants. The hope is that a liberated private sector will soak up a million workers laid off from the state sector, a fraught mass cull so far delayed by bureaucratic resistance. In a speech closing the congress Raúl told Cubans to be patient: “Modernising the economic model is not a miracle that can be accomplished overnight like some believe.” The congress reportedly approved plans to legalise the selling and buying of cars and houses, some of the most closely watched proposals, but it was not immediately clear if all restrictions would be removed. Subsidies, notably a monthly ration book, are expected to be slashed. The changes, billed as steps to save socialism rather than usher in capitalism, are expected to be voted into law by the national assembly in coming weeks. Cuba Raúl Castro Communism Fidel Castro Rory Carroll guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …Tea Partier Allen West Wants Corporate Tax Rate Cut in Half in Exchange for Raising Debt Ceiling
April 19, 2011 No Comment
Click here to view this media On ABC’s This Week, wingnut tea partier Rep. Allen West did his best to make his buddies the Koch Brothers proud — Rep. Allen West Takes Debt Ceiling Hostage For Huge Corporate Tax Cut : Republicans have, for months, been laying out various demands that they want in exchange for voting to raise the nation’s debt ceiling, even though failure to do so would have widespread and disastrous consequences . Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner estimates that the country will reach its legal borrowing limit around May 16 . Calling it a “ leverage moment ,” some of the demands Republicans have cited are a balanced budget amendment to the Constitution and various versions of spending caps or cuts . Today on ABC’s This Week, Rep. Allen West (R-FL) added one more demand to the list — cutting the corporate tax rate in half: AMANPOUR: Congressman West, do you believe it when the Secretary of the Treasury, the Chairman of the Fed, say that the stakes [regarding the debt ceiling] are this high? WEST: Well, one of the things, having served 22 years in the United States military, I don’t believe in leadership by fear and intimidation. I think that leaders have to come up with viable solutions. I agree with one of the things [Rep.] Joe Walsh just brought up, we need to have a balanced budget amendment… But I think also, now is a great time, when we can cut our corporate business tax rate in half. Bring it from 35 percent to 20 to 22 percent because there’s a lot of capital just sitting out there that we could use to invest in long-term sustainable job growth …This is not about a debt ceiling being raised, this really comes down to a debt suggestion. I guess most of these corporations already paying next to nothing or zero as their effective tax rates isn’t quite good enough for West. I don’t know about anyone else, but I think this completely irresponsible game of chicken and hostage taking by the GOP and our politicians on raising the debt ceiling is getting really old, really fast.
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Military says insurgents likely to use large-scale attacks to try to regain lost ground and derail transition process The Taliban are likely to use “large-scale, spectacular attacks” to try to destabilise the transition process in Afghanistan once the fighting season begins this summer, British military commanders have warned. They are expecting a change of tactics as insurgents try to regain ground lost to coalition and Afghan forces over the past six months. The warning came from Major General John Lorimer during a briefing at the Foreign Office in which officials attempted to set out the political and military progress that has been made in Afghanistan over the past year, and the problems that lie ahead. Lorimer said commanders in the International Security and Assistance Force (Isaf) and the Afghan military were predicting a backlash from insurgents, who have been under sustained pressure over the winter. However, commanders believe the Taliban’s strength has been so degraded that its fighters will have to find different ways of trying to derail a transition process that will see local forces take responsibility for seven provinces by July. “Over the last few months, we have been saying that the type of incident might change this year,” said Lorimer. “We were suspecting that we may see more spectaculars, more intimidation of locals. The insurgents have been under pressure over the winter – that inevitably will have an effect on their military operations. The anticipation is that they will probably move to different types of attack. The potential is that they will try large-scale attacks that make an impact in terms of the press.” Targeted assassinations of influential political figures is one likely method of attack, as well as suicide bombings. Michael O’Neill, the head of the Helmand Provincial Reconstruction Team, said: “The insurgency in Helmand, and elsewhere, clearly feels under pressure and one of the reasons they resort to [such] tactics is a result of this pressure. “We’ll see over the next three months. There’s a key test everyone is conscious of. In the late spring and early summer as we get past the poppy harvest, will the insurgents manage to get back and re-establish their position in areas they previously controlled? There are indications that they will find that more difficult, but we’ll see.” Both he and Lorimer said the Taliban would try to knock public confidence in a political process that will see the steady withdrawal of Nato troops over the coming months and years, but neither thought they would succeed. “There is a sense of momentum this year. There is a growing confidence that this steady progress is amounting to something,” said Lorimer. “I don’t think they will have an effect in terms of the progress that has been made.” O’Neill said poppy production in Helmand had fallen for a third consecutive year, a sign, he said, of growing law and order in the province. And while some of the relationships with tribal leaders were fragile, he praised Mohammad Gulab Mangal, the governor of Helmand, for trying to solve problems by brokering political settlements. Senior officials within the Foreign Office believe Afghan president, Hamid Karzai, should also clamp down on corruption, and that some high-profile investigations and convictions would help to bolster confidence in his leadership. Taliban Afghanistan Military Nick Hopkins guardian.co.uk
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Catches of octopus, squid, sole, shrimp and grouper, allegedly caught using child labour, impounded in Canary Islands European authorities have impounded 5m portions of fish destined for tables across the continent following allegations they were caught by illegal “pirate fishing” off west Africa using child labour. The block on catches of octopus, squid, sole, shrimp and grouper landed in the Spanish port of Las Palmas in the Canary Islands represents the biggest action yet against the landing of illegally caught fish in the European Union following the introduction of new Brussels regulations last year that ban the practice. The catches weighed a combined 1,100 tonnes and were worth around £4m. They were found on three refrigeration vessels owned and flagged to South Korea, Panama and China. The boats were heading to processing plants from where their catch was to be distributed to fish counters in Spain and the rest of Europe in time for Holy Week, when fish sales typically double in Spain. But the EU is pursuing allegations the catch was taken from waters protected for use by local fishermen and that some of the crew were 14-year-old Senegalese boys who had been at sea for three months. Local fishermen’s nets had allegedly been slashed by the foreign crews and one was allegedly assaulted with a metal bar when trying to retrieve his nets from entanglement with the industrial ship. “Those vessels could be totally frozen out of trade with the EU,” Maria Damanaki, commissioner for maritime affairs and fisheries told the Guardian last night. “Illegal fishing is a nightmare. A lot of countries are losing money from it and while we talk a lot about aid to the third world, if we stop illegal fishing a lot of local citizens in poorer countries will benefit.” She said illegal fishing damaged the sustainabilty of fish stocks and went hand-in-hand with criminality on a wider scale. It is estimated Sierra Leone loses up to $29m a year from pirate fishing. The new EU regulations aim “to prevent, deter and eliminate illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing”. Spanish officials seized a 500-tonne cargo on the South Korean-owned Seta No 73, which European Commission investigators believe was packed with fish illegally caught off Sierra Leone. Spain has also blocked the catch from the Chinese-flagged Haifeng 823 and Chinese-owned but Panama-flagged Lian Run, which together had nearly 600 tonnes on board. They await explanations from the flag states about where the fish came from. Processing plants in Gran Canaria have been becalmed by the sanctions and, with Easter looming, parts of the Spanish fish industry have complained the timing of the seizures is political. The moves are the start of a crackdown on pirate fishing planned by Brussels which could see dozens of industrial fishing ships banned from landing their catch in Europe, the world’s biggest market for fish. In a planned “second strike” the EU is investigating the activities of 70 vessels from 11 non-EU countries and five member states which it suspects of fishing illegally, Damanaki said. Alarm over Seta No 73′s activities was raised by Kaba Kaine, from Mania village in Sierra Leone, who reported the destruction of 250 yards of nets to the Environmental Justice Foundation, a British charity which runs a community surveillance programme in the area. Kaine had spotted a fleet of canoes fishing around a trawler, the South Korea-flagged Marcia 707, in an inshore exclusion zone reserved for “artisanal” fishermen. Buoys had been cut from many of the local fishermen’s nets, causing them to sink. Some of the canoe crews gave their age as 14 and said they had been picked up in Senegal before spending three months at sea, EJF reported. When the local fishermen and EJF officials boarded the rusty trawler they saw two men who they believed to be South Korean sitting on the dirty and waterlogged deck. Up to 120 fishermen slept in a block of makeshift rooms on deck in cramped and very basic conditions with latrines which dumped directly over the side of the ship. The boat is thought to have fed its catch to the Seta No 73. The crew of another vessel which provided part of the seized catch are alleged to have attacked a local fisherman who tried to retrieve his net when it became entangled with its fishing gear. He was allegedly hit on the head with a metal bar, opening a large gash, when he clashed with the crew in the exclusion zone. “This investigation has exposed the highly organised theft of natural resources from some of the world’s poorest people – communities dependent on fish for food security and employment,” said Steve Trent, executive director of EJF. “Without flag states better regulating the activities of their vessels and coastal countries taking responsibility for monitoring their waters, this theft will continue.” In the case of the Seta No 73, the European Commission is demanding answers from the Panamanian authorities who provided certificates the catches were legal and within international fishing agreements, which protect certain waters for local fishermen. “The most likely outcome is that a large part of the catch will be illegal,” said Oliver Drewes, a spokesman for the commission. “The ultimate sanction is they could lose their licence to land fish at EU ports.” Fishing Food Wildlife Conservation Animals Marine life Spain Sierra Leone Senegal European Union Europe Robert Booth guardian.co.uk
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Biggest concession yet to pro-democracy movement, which is gathering steam but has not reached tipping point Syria’s government has approved the lifting of a draconian decades-old emergency law in the most important concession yet made by the embattled president, Bashar al-Assad, after a month of unrest. Security forces again opened fire on demonstrators in Homs, Syria’s third largest city, in the early hours of Tuesday morning after more than 5,000 anti-government protesters took over the main square on Monday night, emulating demonstrators in Cairo and Bahrain by vowing to stay until their demands for change were met. The centre of Homs, which is north of Damascus, was described as a ghost town, with shops, markets and schools all closed in the city of around 700,000 people where 17 protesters were killed on Sunday night. In the absence of major protests in Damascus and Aleppo in the north, gaining a foothold in Homs would be significant for Syria’s pro-democracy movement, which is gathering steam but has yet to reach a tipping point. Activists have drawn inspiration from counterparts in Egypt, where Tahrir Square in Cairo became a focus for weeks of protest that brought down President Hosni Mubarak. Syria’s official Sana news agency said the government had also approved abolition of the state security court, which handled trials of political prisoners, and had passed a law allowing peaceful protests. The emergency law requires Assad’s signature to take effect, but that is expected to be a formality. “I think this will be done in the coming few days.” said Razan Zeitouneh, a lawyer in Damascus. The Foreign Office said the abrogation of the emergency law was “a step in the right direction” but it was “only one part of a wider package of necessary reforms. The Syrian authorities should do more to ensure the Syrian people experience real political progress without delay”. Lawyers and protesters told the Guardian that the moves were not enough. “If it had been made earlier, it might have made a difference,” said one activist in Damascus. “But now we have seen the regime for what it is.” Haitham Maleh, a former judge, said: “This [announcement] is all just talk. The protests won’t stop until all the demands are met or the regime is gone.” Syria’s ubiquitous security services are immune from prosecution under a law passed in 2008. Reports suggests the new law to regulate protests still gives the government considerable scope to decide when a protest is legal. Stringent anti-terrorism legislation is expected to enacted soon. Protesters have been increasingly angered by the government’s policy of disinformation. In an ominous sign, the government said on Monday that it was now facing an “armed insurrection” by Salafists – fundamentalist Sunnis who are equated by many with al-Qaida. “It is ridiculous and dangerous comment,” said Rime Allaf, a Syrian analyst at the Chatham House thinktank in London. “How many ‘armed insurrections’ have you seen sit in a square and wait to be gunned down?” Diplomats and analysts in Damascus said they feared the move to implicate “terrorists” would be used to justify a harsh crackdown. Syria’s government has often invoked the threat of Islamism to justify its hardline policy on internal dissent. The country has large minorities of Christians and Druze, and the fear of sectarian violence is often cited as an argument against too much political freedom. Conservative Sunni groups have represented the biggest challenge to the Ba’ath regime since it took power in 1963, when the emergency law came into force, prompting a hardline by the government throughout the 1970s and 1980s, culminating in the notorious Hama massacre of 1982 in which at least 10,000 died. Such a violent reaction may be less likely in the age of Twitter and YouTube, but the violence in Homs has heightened fears among protesters. A small protest was held at Damascus University’s faculty of medicine on Tuesday, just hours after the government had warned protesters not to take to the streets after security forces opened fire on demonstrators in Homs. Witnesses said the security forces had closed off the Clock Square in Homs and fired into the air and crowds. “People were running away from the square but the security forces chased them, beat and detained them,” said a man who identified himself as one man, Anwar al-Omar. “Many people are missing and we don’t know if they were killed, detained or are hiding somewhere.” He added that security forces opened fire again after protesters attending funerals on Tuesday threw shoes at security forces, although no fatalities were reported. Rights groups said at least one person was confirmed dead. Syrians have been increasingly drawing parallels with the 1980s, pointing to the heavy-handed tactics of the government including shootings and arrests, as well as the deaths of army officers, which the government claims were due to armed criminal groups. Katherine Marsh is a pseudonym for a journalist living in Damascus Syria Arab and Middle East unrest Middle East Protest Katherine Marsh Ian Black guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …Biggest concession yet to pro-democracy movement, which is gathering steam but has not reached tipping point Syria’s government has approved the lifting of a draconian decades-old emergency law in the most important concession yet made by the embattled president, Bashar al-Assad, after a month of unrest. Security forces again opened fire on demonstrators in Homs, Syria’s third largest city, in the early hours of Tuesday morning after more than 5,000 anti-government protesters took over the main square on Monday night, emulating demonstrators in Cairo and Bahrain by vowing to stay until their demands for change were met. The centre of Homs, which is north of Damascus, was described as a ghost town, with shops, markets and schools all closed in the city of around 700,000 people where 17 protesters were killed on Sunday night. In the absence of major protests in Damascus and Aleppo in the north, gaining a foothold in Homs would be significant for Syria’s pro-democracy movement, which is gathering steam but has yet to reach a tipping point. Activists have drawn inspiration from counterparts in Egypt, where Tahrir Square in Cairo became a focus for weeks of protest that brought down President Hosni Mubarak. Syria’s official Sana news agency said the government had also approved abolition of the state security court, which handled trials of political prisoners, and had passed a law allowing peaceful protests. The emergency law requires Assad’s signature to take effect, but that is expected to be a formality. “I think this will be done in the coming few days.” said Razan Zeitouneh, a lawyer in Damascus. The Foreign Office said the abrogation of the emergency law was “a step in the right direction” but it was “only one part of a wider package of necessary reforms. The Syrian authorities should do more to ensure the Syrian people experience real political progress without delay”. Lawyers and protesters told the Guardian that the moves were not enough. “If it had been made earlier, it might have made a difference,” said one activist in Damascus. “But now we have seen the regime for what it is.” Haitham Maleh, a former judge, said: “This [announcement] is all just talk. The protests won’t stop until all the demands are met or the regime is gone.” Syria’s ubiquitous security services are immune from prosecution under a law passed in 2008. Reports suggests the new law to regulate protests still gives the government considerable scope to decide when a protest is legal. Stringent anti-terrorism legislation is expected to enacted soon. Protesters have been increasingly angered by the government’s policy of disinformation. In an ominous sign, the government said on Monday that it was now facing an “armed insurrection” by Salafists – fundamentalist Sunnis who are equated by many with al-Qaida. “It is ridiculous and dangerous comment,” said Rime Allaf, a Syrian analyst at the Chatham House thinktank in London. “How many ‘armed insurrections’ have you seen sit in a square and wait to be gunned down?” Diplomats and analysts in Damascus said they feared the move to implicate “terrorists” would be used to justify a harsh crackdown. Syria’s government has often invoked the threat of Islamism to justify its hardline policy on internal dissent. The country has large minorities of Christians and Druze, and the fear of sectarian violence is often cited as an argument against too much political freedom. Conservative Sunni groups have represented the biggest challenge to the Ba’ath regime since it took power in 1963, when the emergency law came into force, prompting a hardline by the government throughout the 1970s and 1980s, culminating in the notorious Hama massacre of 1982 in which at least 10,000 died. Such a violent reaction may be less likely in the age of Twitter and YouTube, but the violence in Homs has heightened fears among protesters. A small protest was held at Damascus University’s faculty of medicine on Tuesday, just hours after the government had warned protesters not to take to the streets after security forces opened fire on demonstrators in Homs. Witnesses said the security forces had closed off the Clock Square in Homs and fired into the air and crowds. “People were running away from the square but the security forces chased them, beat and detained them,” said a man who identified himself as one man, Anwar al-Omar. “Many people are missing and we don’t know if they were killed, detained or are hiding somewhere.” He added that security forces opened fire again after protesters attending funerals on Tuesday threw shoes at security forces, although no fatalities were reported. Rights groups said at least one person was confirmed dead. Syrians have been increasingly drawing parallels with the 1980s, pointing to the heavy-handed tactics of the government including shootings and arrests, as well as the deaths of army officers, which the government claims were due to armed criminal groups. Katherine Marsh is a pseudonym for a journalist living in Damascus Syria Arab and Middle East unrest Middle East Protest Katherine Marsh Ian Black guardian.co.uk
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Minister claims France and UK ‘violating’ UN mandate as Nato airstrikes hit pro-Gaddafi communication centres The Anglo-French decision to send a team of military advisers to Libyan opposition forces in Benghazi is a “clear violation” of the UN security council remit, Muammar Gaddafi’s deputy foreign minister, Khaled Kayim, has told the Guardian. “No one can legitimise such actions. They will get nothing in return apart from more casualties.” He accused Nato and the international coalition of overstepping the limits of the UN security council resolution authorising military action to protect civilians, saying they were “siding with the rebels. Everything they have been doing since the start is outside the mandate.” Libya’s response came as fighting continued in Misrata and efforts intensified to bring in humanitarian aid to the population and evacuate those trapped in the besieged city. The Libyan government denied there was any bombardment by its forces. Kayim said: “I think this is a big trap for Britain and France. They are dealing with the wrong groups. I can’t understand why Britain and France are so keen to get themselves into trouble and in this trap.” The two western countries would find themselves allied with al-Qaida forces, he said, which pro-Gaddafi forces claim are embedded with the rebels. The Anglo-French move followed Nato airstrikes which destroyed three telecommunications installations around the city of Sirte on Monday, according to the Libyan government. Nato’s goal was to cut off communications, Kayim said. “The aim is clear: to enable the rebels to advance and to cut communications between [government] troops.” A large area around Sirte was without communications although the city centre was still functioning, he said. Nato confirmed that communications infrastructure had been targeted and the headquarters of a Libyan army brigade. “Last night we conducted deliberate multiple strikes against command and control facilities of the Gaddafi regime, including communications infrastructure and a 32nd brigade headquarters located 10km south of Tripoli,” Brigadier General Mark van Uhm said at Nato headquarters in Brussels. The airstrikes on communications centres came “at the same time as the British government sends very sophisticated tele communications equipment to the rebels to enable them to organise themselves”, Kayim told a press conference in Tripoli. He added: “If Nato really cared about civilians, they have to stop the airstrikes and stop siding with the rebels. Their aim is to push the country into a civil war. That’s clear from day one.” He warned against any deployment of ground troops to protect humanitarian missions, as floated by the EU. “If there is any deployment of any armed personnel on Libyan ground, there will be fighting. The Libyan government will not take it as a humanitarian mission, it will be taken as a military mission,” he said. “The Libyan people will not stay silent. They will join the armed forces and fight.” He said the Libyan government was doing its utmost “to help people and supply them with food”, but he repeatedly declined to answer questions about whether Libya would agree to a pause in military action to allow humanitarian aid to reach the besieged city of Misrata. “There is no need for such things. There is no bombardment from the armed forces on Misrata, none at all. There are pockets of resistance, but other areas are peaceful. There is no fighting in Misrata.” His claim contradicted witness accounts from inside the city and a Nato statement that Gaddafi’s forces were shelling Misrata indiscriminately. Nato said its operations had inflicted “quite significant damage” to Libya’s heavy weaponry while warning that Gaddafi’s forces still had “considerable” resources left. “But there is a limit to what can be achieved with airpower to stop fighting in a city. We are taking every precaution to avoid causing civilian casualties by our own air operations,” said Van Uhm. Admiral Giampaolo di Paola, chairman of Nato’s military committee, speaking in Rome, said it was proving “very difficult” to strike against government forces in Misrata without inflicting civilian casualties. “It’s not a conventional war,” he added. Witnesses in Misrata report that government snipers were firing from tall buildings and mosques. The Libyan opposition claimed that 10,000 people had been killed since the start of the uprising, and more than 50,000 injured. It was unclear how casualty figures had been documented. Kayim claimed the international coalition was exaggerating the number of casualties in Misrata: “This is all shit.” Opposition forces in Misrata say the city may be lost within days without increased military action from Nato, and they have appealed for troops to protect the passage of humanitarian aid through the bombarded port. The city is surrounded by government forces on all land sides; the port is the only means of access to and from the area controlled by opposition forces. They say that around 1,000 people have been killed since the siege began in late February. More than 300 have been confirmed dead in the city’s hospitals. The UN’s World Food Programme said on Tuesday it had sent eight trucks loaded with wheat flour and high-energy biscuits into government-controlled western Libya to reach areas affected by fighting. Battles between opposition forces and government troops have continued near the Tunisian border. Libya Nato Arab and Middle East unrest Middle East France Muammar Gaddafi Europe Harriet Sherwood guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …Minister claims France and UK ‘violating’ UN mandate as Nato airstrikes hit pro-Gaddafi communication centres The Anglo-French decision to send a team of military advisers to Libyan opposition forces in Benghazi is a “clear violation” of the UN security council remit, Muammar Gaddafi’s deputy foreign minister, Khaled Kayim, has told the Guardian. “No one can legitimise such actions. They will get nothing in return apart from more casualties.” He accused Nato and the international coalition of overstepping the limits of the UN security council resolution authorising military action to protect civilians, saying they were “siding with the rebels. Everything they have been doing since the start is outside the mandate.” Libya’s response came as fighting continued in Misrata and efforts intensified to bring in humanitarian aid to the population and evacuate those trapped in the besieged city. The Libyan government denied there was any bombardment by its forces. Kayim said: “I think this is a big trap for Britain and France. They are dealing with the wrong groups. I can’t understand why Britain and France are so keen to get themselves into trouble and in this trap.” The two western countries would find themselves allied with al-Qaida forces, he said, which pro-Gaddafi forces claim are embedded with the rebels. The Anglo-French move followed Nato airstrikes which destroyed three telecommunications installations around the city of Sirte on Monday, according to the Libyan government. Nato’s goal was to cut off communications, Kayim said. “The aim is clear: to enable the rebels to advance and to cut communications between [government] troops.” A large area around Sirte was without communications although the city centre was still functioning, he said. Nato confirmed that communications infrastructure had been targeted and the headquarters of a Libyan army brigade. “Last night we conducted deliberate multiple strikes against command and control facilities of the Gaddafi regime, including communications infrastructure and a 32nd brigade headquarters located 10km south of Tripoli,” Brigadier General Mark van Uhm said at Nato headquarters in Brussels. The airstrikes on communications centres came “at the same time as the British government sends very sophisticated tele communications equipment to the rebels to enable them to organise themselves”, Kayim told a press conference in Tripoli. He added: “If Nato really cared about civilians, they have to stop the airstrikes and stop siding with the rebels. Their aim is to push the country into a civil war. That’s clear from day one.” He warned against any deployment of ground troops to protect humanitarian missions, as floated by the EU. “If there is any deployment of any armed personnel on Libyan ground, there will be fighting. The Libyan government will not take it as a humanitarian mission, it will be taken as a military mission,” he said. “The Libyan people will not stay silent. They will join the armed forces and fight.” He said the Libyan government was doing its utmost “to help people and supply them with food”, but he repeatedly declined to answer questions about whether Libya would agree to a pause in military action to allow humanitarian aid to reach the besieged city of Misrata. “There is no need for such things. There is no bombardment from the armed forces on Misrata, none at all. There are pockets of resistance, but other areas are peaceful. There is no fighting in Misrata.” His claim contradicted witness accounts from inside the city and a Nato statement that Gaddafi’s forces were shelling Misrata indiscriminately. Nato said its operations had inflicted “quite significant damage” to Libya’s heavy weaponry while warning that Gaddafi’s forces still had “considerable” resources left. “But there is a limit to what can be achieved with airpower to stop fighting in a city. We are taking every precaution to avoid causing civilian casualties by our own air operations,” said Van Uhm. Admiral Giampaolo di Paola, chairman of Nato’s military committee, speaking in Rome, said it was proving “very difficult” to strike against government forces in Misrata without inflicting civilian casualties. “It’s not a conventional war,” he added. Witnesses in Misrata report that government snipers were firing from tall buildings and mosques. The Libyan opposition claimed that 10,000 people had been killed since the start of the uprising, and more than 50,000 injured. It was unclear how casualty figures had been documented. Kayim claimed the international coalition was exaggerating the number of casualties in Misrata: “This is all shit.” Opposition forces in Misrata say the city may be lost within days without increased military action from Nato, and they have appealed for troops to protect the passage of humanitarian aid through the bombarded port. The city is surrounded by government forces on all land sides; the port is the only means of access to and from the area controlled by opposition forces. They say that around 1,000 people have been killed since the siege began in late February. More than 300 have been confirmed dead in the city’s hospitals. The UN’s World Food Programme said on Tuesday it had sent eight trucks loaded with wheat flour and high-energy biscuits into government-controlled western Libya to reach areas affected by fighting. Battles between opposition forces and government troops have continued near the Tunisian border. Libya Nato Arab and Middle East unrest Middle East France Muammar Gaddafi Europe Harriet Sherwood guardian.co.uk
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Met officers under fresh inquiry by watchdog after father-to-be Michael Sweeney dies in hospital after Hackney pub arrest The independent police watchdog is investigating after a father-to-be died in police custody following an apparent altercation at a pub in east London. Friends of Michael Sweeney, 38, said he was in the Approach tavern, in Hackney, east London on Monday evening when police were called. One friend told the Guardian that he had heard reports that more than 10 police officers had attended the scene and Sweeney was led away. He was pronounced dead later that evening at the Royal London Hospital. A spokesman for the Metropolitan police said officers were called to the pub at 7.25pm following a report that there was a man on the premises in possession of a knife. “Officers attended and detained the man. He was taken to the Royal London hospital by police where the man subsequently died.” Scotland Yard said the matter was being investigated by the directorate of professional standards at the Met and by the Independent Police Complaints Commission. Officers from the directorate of professional standards were at the pub most of the day. Sweeney, of Bow, east London, was about to become a father for the first time, according to friends. But he had already served two long prison sentences. The IPCC’s statement said: “At approximately 7.40pm on Monday 18 April 2011, police were called to the Approach tavern on Approach Road (E2) by a member of the public reporting that a man in the pub had a knife. “Officers went to the pub and detained the man. A decision was taken to call an ambulance to take him to hospital rather than to a police station. However, the police incident log – a contemporaneous record of actions taken during the handling of an incident – shows that no ambulance units were available. “A decision was made by the police to take the man to Royal London Hospital in a police van. The man was treated at hospital but was pronounced dead at 10.07pm. The Metropolitan police service (MPS) referred the incident to the IPCC and independent investigators were deployed overnight.” The IPCC investigators will be studying police records and radio traffic, examining relevant evidence and looking at CCTV from inside the pub, as well as any available and relevant CCTV from the local area and from the hospital, the spokesman said. “They will be working to identify and speak to independent witnesses, including people who were inside the pub when the incident happened and medical staff at the hospital.” IPCC commissioner Sarah Green said: “This investigation will examine the initial police response, the decision-making behind when and how to take him to hospital and the care he received while being transported, as well as any interaction between police officers and the man when at the hospital. “A number of witnesses have already been identified, but we are keen to hear from anybody else who was inside the pub, or indeed anyone who saw any part of the incident as it unfolded.” Sweeney’s death came as the IPCC continues its investigation into the death in police custody of the musician Smiley Culture, who died of a suspected stab wound after officers carried out a raid. The musician, whose real name is David Emmanuel, had been due to face trial for conspiracy to supply cocaine. His biggest hit was Police Officer, in 1984. The record reached number 12 in the UK charts. His other singles included Cockney Translation and Schooltime Chronicle. Police Independent Police Complaints Commission London Crime Sandra Laville guardian.co.uk
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