Palestinians accuse Ehud Barak of contempt for peace talks by giving approval for building of 277 homes in Ariel The Israeli government has authorised the construction of 277 homes in the West Bank settlement of Ariel, a move that will diminish the prospects for a resumption of peace talks with the Palestinians. An announcement from the defence ministry said approval for the scheme was given last week. The government also backed the building of 1,600 homes in the East Jerusalem settlement of Ramat Shlomo. Further announcements are expected in the coming days. Ariel, home to almost 20,000 Israelis, extends 12 miles (20km) inside the West Bank. Its future under any agreement on borders with the Palestinians is uncertain. Israel is determined to annex such a large settlement, but the Palestinians and many in the international community argue that it would cut the West Bank nearly in two, making a contiguous Palestinian state almost impossible. The housing units had been in the planning process for several years before being approved by the defence minister, Ehud Barak. One hundred homes will be reserved for settlers evacuated from Gaza in 2005; the remainder will be sold on the open market. The Palestinian Authority said the approval “makes clear to the world Israel’s contempt for a negotiated two-state solution”. Israel, it said in a statement, was “racing against time to make the two-state solution harder and harder by building on the land that is supposed to be the Palestinian state. The international community must ask Israel how it can pretend to be ready to negotiate while expanding Jewish settlements in the West Bank?” Hagit Ofran of the Israeli organisation Peace Now, which monitors settlement activity, described the approval as a cynical move amid the current Israel-wide tent protests about the cost of renting and buying homes. “The government is taking advantage of the housing crisis in Israel to expand its settlement policy,” she said. “Most Israelis are not settlers and don’t want to be settlers, and construction in Ariel is not relevant to them.” A spokesman for the US embassy said unilateral actions by either side were “not helpful to the process to try to get both parties back to the table”. Israel appears to be stepping up approval of settlement construction before the Palestinians’ bid for recognition of their state at the UN next month. The government is opposed to the Palestinians making a unilateral move, saying that only negotiations can bring about a Palestinian state within agreed borders. Attempts by the US and EU to persuade the parties to resume talks have not been successful. The US wants the pre-1967 border between Israel and the West Bank to be the basis of negotiations, with agreed land swaps to compensate for Jewish settlements Israel would retain. The Palestinians have identified continued settlement expansion as the main obstacle to resuming direct talks, which broke down last September after Israel refused to extend a temporary freeze on settlement construction. It emerged this week that Israel’s president, Shimon Peres, held a series of secret meetings with the Palestinian president, Mahmoud Abbas, in recent weeks. The talks were brought to an abrupt end when Peres was forced to cancel a meeting at short notice reportedly after the Israeli prime minister, Binyamin Netanyahu, refused to allow him room to negotiate. Approximately 300,000 Israeli Jews live in settlements in the West Bank, which are illegal under international law. Another 200,000 live in settlements in East Jerusalem, which was captured by Israel in 1967 and later annexed in a move not recognised by the international community. Israel Palestinian territories Middle East Harriet Sherwood guardian.co.uk
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Zawiya, 30 miles west of Tripoli, is seen as supply lynchpin in Gaddafi’s war machine – but taking capital is another matter Thirty-miles west of Tripoli, the one major asset that Muammar Gaddafi cannot afford to lose is starting to slip from his grasp for the second time. The oil refinery in the town of Zawiya has been a holy grail for Libya’s rebels since the start of the civil war. They took control of the town once in March, but were violently driven out by Gaddafi’s army, which knew that losing it meant probably defeat in the long run. Now, with what seems to be a sizable rebel force again inside Zawiya, a decisive battle in the western-backed Libyan campaign looms. Gaddafi on Monday acknowledged as much, urging his followers to liberate the country “inch by inch”, as what remains of his military makes its way towards the town. The oil from the Zawiya refinery, along with resupplies by road from Tunisia , have kept Gaddafi’s forces moving over the past five months. Few others, including the rebels, have had the same luxury – an oil shortage has kept most of the country at a near standstill since May. With petrol in their tanks, the vital re-supply route to Tunisia cut, and Nato jets overhead presumably able to pick off Gaddafi’s men as they attempt to retake Zawiya, the run east to the capital should theoretically be straightforward. But the winding streets of Tripoli are where the resolve of Gaddafi and his loyalists will truly be tested. And by most assessments he remains popular and in control of much of the capital that he has run like a fiefdom for more than four decades. Regular pleas from the African Union, as well as Russia and Belarus, have failed to shift the autocrat, who has given every indication that he is digging in for a last stand. And so too, apparently, are many thousands of loyalists, convinced by Gaddafi’s angry retorts against months of Nato bombings and an economic siege that is being widely perceived as an unjust collective punishment. Gaddafi’s defiance has resonated on a personal level with many in the capital, who view the continued bombing and rebel assault, in the face of repeated calls for a negotiated ceasefire, as a slight to their dignity – a serious affront in the Arab world, and one which very much drove the early days of the anti-American uprising in Iraq. Those who may be motivated to put right a perceived wrong will also have the means to do so. Since the start of the war any family demonstrating loyalty to the regime has been issued at least one Kalashnikov rifle and ammunition from government armouries in Tripoli. Tens of thousands of the firearm have been handed out, according to locals who have said they would use them to defend both their homes and their dignity. Short of a dramatic backdown by Gaddafi, Tripoli will not be taken without a fight. Strategically there is very little left for Nato to bomb there, so any fighting will probably be street to street – a scenario that raises the prospect of a protracted guerrilla campaign. After months of tentative advances followed by rapid retreats and confusion, the rebels would be unlikely to welcome this. With Zawiya again in play, along with Ghariyan to its immediate south, and finally some movement near the dead-locked eastern oil town of Brega, the situation has grown more delicate for Gaddafi. However, he has been underestimated throughout the campaign, emboldened by withstanding the cream of Europe’s air forces and buoyed by supporters in the capital. It may not be the end game just yet. Libya Middle East Africa Muammar Gaddafi Arab and Middle East unrest Nato Martin Chulov guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …Despite US protests , Pakistan has allowed Chinese officials to inspect the remains of the American secret stealth helicopter left behind after the raid that killed Osama bin Laden, reports Reuters . A spokesman for the ISI, Pakistan’s top spy agency, denied the accusations, but new reports indicate that Pakistan not only…
Continue reading …Now that Michele Bachmann has Texas Gov. Rick Perry’s hot breath on her neck she’s looking more like a … diva. That’s the assessment of Politico , which found Perry coming off as a get-along, down-home kind of guy at his first major campaign event with Bachmann. Bachmann, on the other hand,…
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Wellington residents enjoy ‘once in a lifetime’ weather Residents of Wellington, New Zealand’s capital city, are taking delight in the unusual sight of snowflakes falling in what forecasters are describing as a once in a lifetime event. Services across the country on Monday were disrupted by the snowfall, which were accompanied by heavy rain and high winds. Mail delivery in many areas was cancelled, as were several flights. Some roads were closed and recreational facilities such as libraries and swimming pools were shut. Wellington rarely gets snow – the few inches it got on Sunday and Monday is the most in at least 30 years – and people have been taking to the streets to photograph the event. Forecasters predict the cold snap will continue until Wednesday. New Zealand New Zealand Australasia New Zealand guardian.co.uk
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Ed Miliband joins those criticising historian’s claim that ‘whites have become black’, saying it is ‘disgusting and outrageous’ The BBC has received more than 700 complaints about the controversial claim by historian and broadcaster David Starkey that “whites have become black” in a discussion about last week’s riots on Newsnight. Of those contacting the BBC, 696 were protesting about Starkey’s comments, with 21 supporting him, complaining the debate was chaired poorly and he was treated “unfairly” as a result. Media regulator Ofcom has also had complaints while an online campaign by an organisation called gopetition.co.uk demanding the BBC should issue a public apology for “unacceptable comments” had attracted more than 3,600 signatures by mid-afternoon on Monday. The Labour leader, Ed Miliband, on Monday described Starkey’s comments on race as “disgusting and outrageous”. Speaking at Haverstock School, his former school in Chalk Farm in London, Miliband said it was “absolutely outrageous that someone in the 21st century could be making that sort of comment”. He added: “There should be condemnation from every politician, from every political party of those sorts of comments.” Starkey’s remarks, made during a debate about the riots on Friday’s Newsnight, provoked an immediate storm of controversy, with BBC business editor Robert Peston tweeting: “David Starkey’s nasty ignorance is best ignored, not worthy of comment or debate – though I fear there will be a media feeding frenzy”. CNN presenter Piers Morgan described him on Twitter as “a racist idiot” and said he had committed career suicide. The majority of complainants said the BBC was wrong to allow him to express such a view and should not have had him on as a guest, or at the very least should have challenged him more robustly. Starkey was in the middle of a heated discussion with Owen Jones, author of Chavs: the Demonisation of the Working Classes, when he made his remarks during a debate hosted by Emily Maitlis. “What has happened is that the substantial section of the chavs that you wrote about have become black. The whites have become black. A particular sort of violent, destructive, nihilistic gangster culture has become the fashion,” he said. “Black and white, boy and girl operate in this language together. This language, which is wholly false, which is this Jamaican patois that has intruded in England. This is why so many of us have this sense of literally a foreign country.” Starkey then referred to Labour MP for Tottenham David Lammy, who he described as “an archetypal successful black man”. He said he sounded white. “If you turn the screen off, so you were listening to him on radio, you would think he was white.” Lammy has since denounced Starkey’s remarks as “dangerous and divisive”. The BBC said while it acknowledged that some people will have found Starkey’s comments “offensive”, “he was robustly challenged by presenter Emily Maitlis and the other contributors who took issue with his comments”. Jones highlighted the potential offence Starkey may have given and Maitlis provided further context by pointing out that David Cameron had already said the riots were not a race issue, the corporation added. •
Continue reading …With Libyan rebels closing in on Tripoli , Moammar Gadhafi called on his supporters to fight opposition forces, reports CNN . “You are hearing from me even under shelling,” his voice was heard on national radio and TV over a poor quality telephone line. Go “to the front always, to the fights,…
Continue reading …The founder of an 8,000-member church in central Florida was found dead in a W Hotel room in New York’s Times Square, reports the New York Daily News . The cause of death will be determined by an autopsy. Criminality is not suspected, said police. Zachery Tims, 42, who founded…
Continue reading …Jessica Alba is a mommy again, announcing via Facebook that her newborn daughter’s name is … Haven Garner Warren, reports the Daily Mall . Weighing in at seven pounds and measuring 19 inches long, Haven is the second daughter of Alba and hubby Cash Warren, along with 3-year-old Honor Marie. “Healthy and…
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One-year ban and fined £150 for motorist caught speaking on one phone and texting on another A man spotted behind the wheel on a 70mph road as he used two mobile phones has been banned from driving. Police spotted David Secker making a phone call with one hand and apparently sending a text message with the other, Norwich magistrates’ court heard. When officers pulled over the 34-year-old they had to wait for him to finish his conversation. Prosecutor Denis King said: “He was seen holding a mobile phone to his right ear and as he moved closer the officer saw he was holding another phone in his other hand as though he was texting.” Simon Nicholls, in mitigation, said his client had been reading a number from one phone to somebody on the other end of the line. He disputed claims that his client had been driving his M-reg Vauxhall Tigra with his knees. Secker was caught on a 70mph dual-carriageway on the outskirts of Norwich on 17 May. Secker was found guilty in his absence at an earlier hearing of using a mobile while driving, having no insurance and not being in a position to have proper control. Secker was given a total of 14 points on his licence. He was banned for 12 months and fined £150. Outside court, Secker said: “I think the magistrates treated me fairly.” Nicholls said: “We hear about people driving while eating apples and doing all kind of stupid things. He accepts he made a mistake and will learn from it.” guardian.co.uk
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