Tag: UN

  • Egypt condemns Yemen mosque attacks, coalition airstrikes continue

    Egypt condemns Yemen mosque attacks, coalition airstrikes continue

    Yemeni air force plane AFP PHOTO
    Militant action in Yemen has continued as the Saudi-led coalition targeted republican guards camps in Yemen’s capital
    (AFP FILE PHOTO)

    Militant action in Yemen has continued as the Saudi-led coalition targeted republican guards camps in Yemen’s capital, Sana’a. Egypt condemned the terrorist attacks.

    The Egyptian Foreign Ministry issued a statement Friday condemning the terrorist attacks that targeted mosques in Sana’a, killing 31 and leaving scores injured.

    Foreign Ministry spokesman Badr Abdelatty asserted Egypt’s firm stance rejecting “communalism and sectarianism”, whilst also supporting “legitimacy”, according to the statement.

    The attacks claimed by the militant group Islamic State (IS) hit three mosques that belong to the Shi’a Zaydi sect, of which the rebellion group, the Houthis, who have taken over Sana’a and large territories in Yemen, belong to.

    On the political stage, the UN-brokered peace talks in Geneva between the Houthis and representatives of President Abd Rabbuh Mansour Hadi’s government have stalled, resulting in a ceasefire.

    UN special envoy for Yemen Ismail Ould Sheikh Ahmed said Friday the parties “didn’t reach a final agreement. We have to be clear and transparent”, AP reported. Sheikh Ahmed added that “further consultation” will be needed in order to achieve a deal.

    Since Hadi fled the country and the Saudi-led coalition’s air strikes began in March, Yemen was only able to catch its breath during a five-day ceasefire in May.

    Hadi’s government and the Saudis insist on the implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 2216, calling for a withdrawal of Houthi troops from all conquered territory and the return of military and political power to Hadi.

    The Saudi-led coalition’s airstrikes fighting the Houthis has been stepping up recently, especially since a Scud missile was fired towards a Saudi air base almost two weeks ago.

    Early on Saturday, the coalition launched airstrikes that targeted camps of the republican guard in Sana’a, Saudi newspaper Al-Arabiya reported.

    The coalition also launched airstrikes that hit other targets in Sana’a, Al-Jawf and Aden governorates.

     

  • Tobruk government rejects UN draft proposal

    Tobruk government rejects UN draft proposal

    United Nations Special Envoy for Libya Bernardino Leon  (AFP Photo/Gianluigi Guercia)
    United Nations Special Envoy for Libya Bernardino Leon
    (AFP Photo/Gianluigi Guercia)

    By Tim Nanns

    In a move that is likely to crush UN Libya Envoy Bernardino Leon’s hopes of producing an agreement before Ramadan, the internationally-recognised Libyan government in Tobruk rejected on Tuesday a UN draft proposal to form a unity government, Reuters reported.

    The government also barred its delegates from travelling to Berlin on Wednesday to continue the peace talks. Earlier on Tuesday, Leon had spoken of “a general sense of hope, […] even optimism” on the sidelines of the talks currently commencing in Morocco.

    On Monday night, the UN delegation handed out a new draft proposal laying out the details on what a Libyan interim government might look like. The proposal also included the merger of militias into the regular army, as well as incentives for militiamen to return to civil life.

    The UN mission has the backing of the permanent members of the UN Security Council, who also wanted to join the meeting in Berlin. The peace talks even won the endorsement of the G7, who demanded “bold political decisions” in a declaration, but also offered “significant support” for the transition.

    Leon originally aimed to broker an agreement before Ramadan, but the withdrawal of the Tobruk government severely threatens that plan.

    The draft proposal intends to keep the Tobruk government’s parliament as the legitimate legislative power during the transitional period, thus favouring it over the rival General National Congress (GNC) in the capital Tripoli.

    This recent development comes after reports earlier on Tuesday that groups affiliated with “Islamic State” took over a power plant near Sirte, and confirmation from US officials that the militants also kidnapped 88 Eritrean Christians.

    Libya has been engulfed by chaos and unrest since the ouster and killing of Muammar Gaddafi. In 2014 the elected parliament had to flee to Tobruk, along with the government, leaving Tripoli to the Islamist Libya Dawn militias that installed the old GNC as the parliament.

    In recent weeks, “Islamic State” and affiliated groups were able to quickly gain ground in Libya, capturing the city of Sirte along with its airport and military airbase. Neither the Tripoli nor the Tobruk government is seriously able to halt their advance since a UN arms embargo has been in place since 2011.

     

  • Geneva talks on Yemen to proceed minus Hadi

    Geneva talks on Yemen to proceed minus Hadi

    Yemeni President Abdrabuh Mansur Hadi (AFP File Photo)
    Yemeni President Abdrabuh Mansur Hadi
    (AFP File Photo)

    Yemeni President Abdrabuh Mansur Hadi announced on Saturday that he will not participate in the UN-sponsored peace talks starting this coming Thursday, according to Saudi-based media outlet Al-Arabiya. The announcement comes amidst preparations for the talks that are to be held in Geneva, Switzerland.

    The Hadi government insists on the implementation of UNSC Resolution 2216, calling for the Houthi militia’s complete withdrawal from captured territory and the return of control of state institutions and of weapons seized from the army.

    Yet it is unclear whether the government will send a representative other than Hadi himself to the talks, which will involve participants from the Houthi militia and former president Ali Abdullah Saleh’s party.

    The UN Special Envoy to Yemen, Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed, met with Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Zarif on Thursday to prepare the talks. Semi-official Iranian news agency FARS also claimed that Cheikh Ahmed lauded the Iranian efforts to settle the Yemen crisis.

    The participants of the Geneva talks remain unconfirmed; with no clear sign that Iran or Saudi Arabia taking part in the conference.

    Talks, likely in preparation of the Geneva summit, were held in the Omani capital Muscat, with a Houthi delegation arriving there on Saturday according to Reuters news agency. Oman has a reputation for being a relatively neutral broker in the Yemen crisis for not siding with a specific faction, although it is a member of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC).

    Meanwhile, the Yemen Post newspaper reported the downing of an F-15 Saudi fighter jet, backing the claim with footage of the purportedly downed plane. The information could not be confirmed independently so far.

    Fighting in Yemen is still fierce, with reports about heavy shelling of the city of Taiz by Houthi forces and about renewed coalition air strikes. Also the border crossing between Saudi Arabia and Yemen has been partially destroyed during the exchange of heavy artillery fire by the two sides.

     

  • Morsi verdict sparks further international condemnation

    Morsi verdict sparks further international condemnation

    (AFP PHOTO / KAYHAN OZER)
    Ousted president Mohamed Morsi
    (AFP PHOTO / KAYHAN OZER)

    Hundreds of protesters have continued their demonstrations in several Turkish cities against the death sentence issued against ousted president Mohamed Morsi and other Muslim Brotherhood members on Saturday.

    Protesters in Istanbul started carrying photos of Morsi and the Rabaa sign outside the Egyptian embassy, but then expanded to many other parts of the city.

    “The protest was relatively small and well behaved, and since it is an anti-Sisi rally in line with government it is unlikely there would be trouble,” John W, an Istanbul-based photojournalist told Daily News Egypt.

    “Protests are common in Turkey and rarely disrupt things unless very big rally and anti-government,” he added. “There are often small pro-Muslim Brotherhood protests around the city but always very low key events.”

    Following the ouster of Muslim Brotherhood regime in 2013, Turkey has been a strong opponent of the Egyptian regime, continuously referring to it as a “military coup”. Yet, a leftist Turkish politician and head of Al-Watan Party, Yunis Suner, had a different perspective towards the verdict.

    He told state-run news agency MENA reporter in Ankara: “Morsi’s case is a totally Egyptian matter, and we do not think we should comment on any of the Egyptian courts decisions otherwise it will be a violation to the Egyptian sovereignty.”

    In the US, White House spokesperson Jeff Rakhte said: “We are deeply concerned by yet another mass death sentence handed down by an Egyptian court to more than 100 defendants, including former president Morsi.”

    “This practice, which in this instance was directed against, among others, a former elected president, is unjust and undermines confidence in the rule of law,” he said.

    The negative reactions also extended to supporters of the current Egyptian regime. The UK and Germany added to the growing list of international condemnations towards the Muslim Brotherhood verdict.

    Chancellor Angela Merkel’s spokesman, Steffen Seibert, said at a press conference in Berlin on Monday:  “There were “doubts” over the fairness of the trial. The German government opposes the death penalty in principle, under all circumstances.”

    A statement issued Sunday by British Minister of State for the Middle East Tobias Ellwood said: “We look to the Egyptian authorities to apply the rule of law consistently in line with international standards and to protect the political and legal rights of all Egyptians as the basis for the country’s future stability.”

     

  • Yemen ceasefire takes effect Tuesday evening

    Yemen ceasefire takes effect Tuesday evening

    Saudi-led coalition forces pounded several locations across Yemen with heavy air strikes earlier on Tuesday, despite a truce scheduled to take effect on Tuesday evening. (Photo Public Domain)
    Saudi-led coalition forces pounded several locations across Yemen with heavy air strikes earlier on Tuesday, despite a truce scheduled to take effect on Tuesday evening.
    (Photo Public Domain)

    By Tim Nanns

    Saudi-led coalition forces pounded several locations across Yemen with heavy air strikes earlier on Tuesday, despite a truce scheduled to take effect on Tuesday evening.

    Further, the amassing of Saudi troops, described as a ‘strike force’, raises doubts over whether the ceasefire will hold.

    The build-up of Saudi forces comes after the Houthis stepped up their campaign of artillery attacks on Saudi soil, killing a Saudi national on Monday.

    Yemen’s state news agency Saba reported Tuesday that approximately 90 people were killed during an air raid on the Yemeni capital, Sana’a, a claim that is as yet unconfirmed.

    A lasting ceasefire would mark the first break in coalition attacks on Yemeni soil after the start of operations on 25 March. The end of ‘Operation Decisive Storm’ on 21 April sparked hopes of an end to hostilities, but the rebranding of the operation to ‘Restoring Hope’ did not end the air strikes.

    An end of fighting and the blockade is desperately needed, considering the dire humanitarian situation in Yemen, as reported by various international rights watchdogs and the UN. During the weekend, the World Food Programme was the first to deliver fuel supplies to the country, which are needed to run water pumps and keep hospitals working. It is expected that aid deliveries will be stepped up dramatically, should the truce hold.

    A UN statement announced that the UN Special Envoy to Yemen, Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed, was to head to Yemen before the implementation of the truce. He reportedly arrived in Sana’a on Tuesday afternoon.

    Meanwhile, Human Rights Watch (HRW) called upon the Houthi militia and the other conflict parties in Yemen to stop using child soldiers in the Yemen conflict. HRW quoted UNICEF sources claiming that up to one third of the fighters in Yemen are minors. The report states that some of them are under the age of 15, and whose recruitment as such is a war crime under international law.

    Houthi leader Abdul Malik Al-Houthi pledged in November 2012 to a UN representative to “work towards the reintegration of children”, now sparking demands by HRW to honour that statement. The NGO has already accused the Houthi militia of war crimes and called upon them to investigate misdemeanours committed by their troops.

     

  • Egypt can return to era of good population policies: UNFPA Representative

    Egypt can return to era of good population policies: UNFPA Representative

    Jaime Nadal, UNFPA representative in Egypt (Photo by Emir Nader)
    Jaime Nadal, UNFPA representative in Egypt
    (Photo by Emir Nader)

    Following a visit to Sohag to observe the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) conduct an awareness campaign on family planning, Daily News Egypt met with Jaime Nadal, UNFPA’s representative in Egypt, to discuss population growth, infrastructure and the other wider issues facing the country.

    The conversation covered the many indicators that suggest Egypt could reach a “doomsday scenario” in the near future. However, Nadal remains confident the country has a history of good population policies and can return to that era.

    Jaime gave a positive assessment of the government’s large-scale infrastructure initiatives and, despite the many concerns that have been raised, spoke approvingly of the plans for a new capital: “It shows the government’s long-term thinking.”

     

    How has Egypt faired in terms of population control?

    Egypt is a country that used to do very well in terms of managing population, and has a very successful history of achievements in terms of women’s literacy, granting good quality health services to the population. But it is also a country that has been sliding down over time in terms of coverage and quality of those services. Until you see that the gains made in the ‘60s and ‘70s, at some point it begin to reverse.

     

    Almost half of Egypt’s new births are in the rural south, where poverty is high. Is high population growth this a question of tradition or economics?

     

    The poor are very rational in their way of thinking even though they may be poor. The problem is that they do not have the benefit of time to make long-term decisions. They need to make short term decisions, because survival is a matter of tomorrow. Decisions made about children have a lot to do with this short term thinking, they need people, they need hands to help. The government is now testing a policy of conditional cash transfers programmes that have been very successful in Latin American countries to reduce births. I believe they could be very successful because all traditional societies value fertility, no matter where you are in Bolivia or Egypt.

     

    But by traditional, you just mean poor? The wealth of a family is the main determinant of how many children they will have?

     

    Rural, traditional societies tend to value fertility. But if you ask women from those communities they often say the ideal number of children they would like to have is about three, but they are having six or seven. Cash assistance as an incentive was tested successfully in Mexico and Brazil where the governments said to low-income families “take your children to school, look after their health, your health, and as long as you maintain this behaviour you receive cash assistance”. So if you show socially responsible behaviour to yourself and to society and your family and you receive the cash assistance, so you don’t have to take your family to the fields.

     

    Do you think that’s asking more of the poor than you’re asking from other people in society? You’re not making services to the middle-class dependent on behaviour?

     

    I believe that, for instance, the policies that have been in place such as subsidies were very regressive, the richest were benefitting from them the most. What the government is doing here, slashing subsidies and using it for cash assistance, is based on simple conditions such as vaccinating your kids and taking them to school. These are behaviours that the middle and upper classes are demonstrating, now the government is providing them with the opportunity to do the same, its voluntary.

     

    What do you think of the government’s big infrastructure ideas such as the new capital in terms of population growth?

     

    This has been done in a number of countries such as Nigeria, when Lagos got to a point where it was untenable in terms of population, crowding, roads, pollution and was a successful experiment. The reality is that Egypt is a country that by 2050 will have a population of around 140 million people, by then Cairo may have around 40 million people. With the current level of infrastructure there is no way to handle that. The government is trying to think ahead.

     

    Would the $45bn not be better spent on infrastructure in Cairo? Aren’t the upper and middles classes going to move to a Dubai-style satellite, while the poor will be left behind?

     

    I have not seen this happen in any of the other countries where it has been undertaken. Lagos is still Lagos, it hasn’t become a second-class city. You see a natural process of decantation, where the government moves and some businesses follow, but not entirely. But it comes with many challenges too; providing water, energy, and so on. And what will happen to Cairo after that? A lot of the life here moves around government and business.

     

    How is your relationship with the new Ministry of Population, established in March?

     

    From the discussions I have had with Minister Hala Yousseff, the main focus will be on implementing the National Population Strategy. This is a very interesting piece of work, because it is very comprehensive. It takes in to concern women’s issues, education and rights. The government is starting to recognise that before a healthy baby is a healthy mother and before a healthy mother is a healthy woman, and girl’s education is key. The strategy is looking at family planning, girls educations, women’s education, economic empowerment and youth civil education. This is important because people under 40 make up 60% of the population but you don’t see them in positions of power. What’s being understood is that population is not a matter of balancing your books and saying what is the correct number of children to have, it is about the welfare of people.

     

    Have the past four years brought these issues more importantly as its now also recognised as a question of stability and security?

    Egypt is a country that is living in a tight equilibrium in terms of resources, for instance it is the world’s largest importer of wheat: 75% is imported. Think about what large growth means in terms of food and water. What will be the situation if you have to depend more and more on international markets to purchase all that food and water, the country becomes weaker internationally and is a lot more vulnerable to external shocks, it is really a doomsday scenario.

    So I truly think that the decisions the government is making in terms of population are very visionary because they recognise that this scenario is looming and may happen and the country has a last opportunity. A lot what was behind the civil unrest of the past few years has to do with the situation that was building up, and it is being recognised that, unless something changes the next revolution will be something different

     

  • Coalition airstrikes hit military and civilian targets, Houthis continue advance

    Coalition airstrikes hit military and civilian targets, Houthis continue advance

    Yemeni soldiers stand guard outside the state security court in the capital Sanaa on January 19, 2013  (AFP File Photo/Mohammed Huwais)
    Yemeni soldiers stand guard outside the state security court in the capital Sanaa on January 2013
    (AFP File Photo/Mohammed Huwais)

    By Tim Nanns

    Airstrikes on a Yemeni refugee camp near Haradh Tuesday sparked strong UN condemnation, while Saudi Arabia continued clashes with Houthi Shi’a fighters on the border between the two countries.

    Meanwhile, UNICEF called upon the rival parties to do “all in their power to keep children safe”, after stating that at least 62 children were killed since the beginning of the airstrikes.

    The airstrikes on the refugee camp that occurred on Monday along with other attacks against hospitals and other civilian institutions have killed “dozens” of civilians. It has led to UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein, stating that he “roundly condemn[s] all attacks on hospitals and other medical facilities, which have a special protected status under international law”.

    Yemeni Foreign Minister Riyadh Yaseen reiterated, in an interview with Al-Arabiya TV station, earlier calls for a ground offensive as soon as possible. The spokesperson for the Saudi-led military coalition, Brigadier General Ahmed Asseri, stated on Tuesday that a ground operation would only take place if necessary. Asseri also talked of “limited ground operations”, but that it was not a given that full blown ground operations would occur.

    Asseri’s statement came on Tuesday after a day of fierce clashes on the Saudi -Yemeni border, which Reuters news agency has described as the “heaviest exchange of cross-border fire since the start of a Saudi-led air offensive”. Coalition air strikes and fighting continues, hitting military and civilian targets. Among the latter, a factory likely hit by airstrikes in the night from Tuesday to Wednesday, left at least 25 workers dead, while shelling by the Houthi militia on Aden reportedly killed 26 overnight.

    Also on Tuesday, Reuters reported the Houthis seized a coastal military base overlooking the Bab El-Mandeb strait, which is especially important for oil exports and the naval traffic running through the Suez channel. The move may spark further Egyptian involvement in the ongoing conflict since the fares gathered by Egypt through the Suez channel are among its most important sources of foreign currency. President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi meanwhile called upon the Houthis in a speech on Tuesday to withdraw after unconfirmed reports on Monday said Egyptian warships were involved in the shelling of a Houthi military convoy.

    The attacks by the Saudi-led coalition started on Wednesday last week after the Houthi militia, purportedly backed by Iran, forced Yemen’s President Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi to flee his interim capital Aden. He had relocated when the Houthi rebels took over Sana’a earlier this year. Saudi Arabia accuses Iran of trying to expand its influence in the Middle East by its involvement in Yemen, Iraq and Syria while Saudi Arabia itself is involved in sponsoring rebel groups in Syria and now actively intervenes in Yemen.

  • Contours of future Israeli-Palestinian battles emerge on the football pitch

    Contours of future Israeli-Palestinian battles emerge on the football pitch

    James M. Dorsey
    James M. Dorsey

    By James M. Dorsey

    Legal and diplomatic battles in United Nations organisations and international sport associations involving charges of war crimes and efforts to suspend membership of one or the other are likely to shape future Israeli-Palestinian relations in the wake of last month’s electoral victory by Benjamin Netanyahu.

    The contours of the coming battles are emerging on the football pitches even before Netanyahu forms his cabinet with a Palestinian campaign to suspend Israeli membership of world football body FIFA and the petitioning by an Israeli law firm of the International Criminal Court (ICC) to investigate Palestine Football Association (PFA) president Major General Jibril Rajoub for war crimes allegedly committed during last year’s Gaza war.

    A statement on the PFA’s website sought to win support for a PFA resolution calling for the suspension of its Israeli counterpart, the Israeli Football Federation (IFA), slated for submission at FIFA’s Congress in May. In the statement, Rajoub said the resolution was designed to force Israel and the IFA to:

    –          Lift all restrictions on the free movement of Palestinian players, staff and officials within Palestine defined as both the West Bank and the Gaza Strip as well as on the import of football equipment;

    –          Removal of all obstacles to the development of Palestinian football;

    –          The banning of football clubs belonging to Israeli settlements on the West Bank from playing in IFA competitions, a demand that goes to the core of disputes over occupied territory between Israelis and the Palestinians;

    –          Take firm action to combat racism in Israeli football, a reference to Israeli club Beitar Jerusalem, the only top Israeli club that refuses to hire Palestinian players and whose fan base is overtly racist. The IFA, the only Middle Eastern football association to have launched an anti-racist campaign, has repeatedly penalised Beitar, but has stopped short of cracking down on it.

    The Palestinian campaign that has been building up for several years is embedded in a strategy that seeks to achieve recognition of Palestinian statehood and membership in United Nations agency while at the same time isolating Israel. The strategic effort has gathered steam with the recognition of Palestinian statehood by various European countries and acceptance of Palestine by various UN bodies, including the ICC, since last year’s breakdown of US-sponsored Israeli-Palestinian peace negotiations.

    “It is clear that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will form the next government, so we say clearly that we will go to the International Criminal Court in The Hague and we will speed up, pursue and intensify all diplomatic efforts,” Palestinian peace negotiator Saeb Erekat told Agence France Presse.

    Several years of failed attempts to negotiate a solution to Palestinian football problems stemming from Israel policies, have forced football’s top global executives to take serious pressure to act against Israel. FIFA president Sepp Blatter last June averted a push for sanctions against Israel by creating a committee that to oversee efforts to address Palestinian grievances and report back to the FIFA executive committed within six months. The committee handed back its mandate in December after failing to negotiate a solution, according to the PFA.

    Michel Platini warned the IFA recently that Rajoub, a former Palestinian security chief with presidential ambitions who also heads the Palestine National Olympic Committee, planned to not only petition FIFA but also UEFA, the European football body that Platini heads. “This time it is serious,” Platini was quoted as telling the IFA’s UEFA representative, Ali Luzon, saying that several European associations would side with the Palestinians, “even if you are right”. Israel has been grouped in Europe after Arab football associations forced its expulsion from the Asian Football Confederation in the early 1990s.

    Platini and FIFA secretary general Jerome Valcke have argued in the past that there were no legal grounds on which to act against Israel given that obstacles to the development of Palestinian football were being imposed by the Israeli military rather than the IFA.

    That argument is being called into question by Palestinians who argue that the IFA is in effect an arm of the Israeli state – a charge that matches Israeli allegations against the PFA in the complaint against Rajoub in the International Criminal Court. Palestinians bolster their assertion with fact that the IFA like the military is regulated by Israel’s State Comptroller and that it allegedly is funded to a significant degree by the government.

    In the latest of a series of reports on alleged Israeli transgressions of FIFA rules and regulations issued this weekend and circulated by PFA executive committee member Susan R. Shalabi, the Palestinians moreover charged that IFA demands that the Palestinian association should “operate through the formal channels of the state of Israel” violated the world football body’s statutes that stipulate that its members manage their affairs “independently and with no influence from third parties”.

    The report argued further that the IFA’s failure to take a stand against Israeli policies that inhibit the development of Palestinian football makes it difficult for the PFA to exercise its rights and fulfil its obligations in accordance with the statutes.

    In a shot across the Palestinians’ bow, Sherut HaDin – Israel Law Center, a law firm that in February convinced a US jury to order the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) and President Mahmoud Abbas’ Palestine Authority to pay $218.5m to American families of victims of two Palestinian bombings more than a decade ago, petitioned the ICC to investigate Jibril on charges of war crimes.

    The petition asserts that Rajoub wearing another of his many hats as deputy secretary general of Al-Fatah, the largest Palestinian faction in the PLO headed by Abbas was aware, abetted and endorsed rocket and mortar fire from Gaza on largely civilian targets in Israel during last year’s war by Al-Fatah and the Al-Aqsa Martyrs’ Brigade, a militia that is associated with the group.

    Relying on media reports, the complaint seeks to establish Rajoub’s guilt by association based on his own statements and those of other Fatah members. “Our decision is resistance in the occupied territories in order to bring an end to the occupation (using) all forms of resistance,” the complaint quotes Rajoub, who spent 17 years in Israeli prison, as saying. It further quotes him as praising the armed resistance in Gaza.

    Sherut HaDin failed to answer questions about the complaint, despite repeated promises to do so. Those questions included why the law firm had singled out Rajoub and not included in its petition other senior Fatah officials, including those it quotes in its complaint.

    It was also unclear whether, by identifying Rajoub as a Jordanian national, the law firm was deliberately ignoring the fact that Palestine was joining the ICC as a state rather than an entity or political grouping, both of which would not be eligible for membership.

    By design or default, the complaint not only serves as an early indicator of likely diplomatic and legal battles to come, but also effectively seeks to undermine the credibility of Rajoub at a time that he is believed to be positioning himself as a candidate in a future Palestinian presidential election.

    If successful, it could strengthen another potential candidate and arch rival of Rajoub, Mohammed Dahlan, who is widely viewed as an US, Israeli and Emirati favourite. Dahlan, a former head of Al-Fatah in Gaza, who sought to overthrow the strip’s Hamas rulers with US and Israeli backing, currently serves as an advisor to United Arab Emirates Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed.

    James M. Dorsey is a senior fellow at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies, co-director of the University of Würzburg’s Institute for Fan Culture, a syndicated columnist, and the author of The Turbulent World of Middle East Soccer blog and a forthcoming book with the same title.

  • ‘Libyan people cannot endure terrorism until political solution reached’: Al-Sisi

    ‘Libyan people cannot endure terrorism until political solution reached’: Al-Sisi

    President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi  (AFP PHOTO)
    President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi
    (AFP PHOTO)

    Egypt announced its support for UN efforts to seek a political solution to the conflict in Libya, yet warned of the possible ‘lengthy’ time period needed for peaceful negotiations to conclude.

    “We cannot ask the Libyan people to endure the fire of terrorism until a political solution is reached,” President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi said Saturday, in his opening speech at the Arab League Summit in Sharm El-Sheikh.

    On Friday, Egypt renewed its declaration to endorse and empower the Libyan legitimate government of Tobruk and help to prevent funds and weapons from reaching extremist militant groups.

    Counterterrorism efforts also require supporting the armed forces of General Khalifa Haftar, according to discussions on Libya’s internal security between Al-Sisi and head of the Libyan House of Representatives Aqila Saleh ahead of the summit.

    Also on Friday, Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General Bernardino Léon, said at the conclusion of the latest round of peace talks that there has been “very important progress” during the past week.

    Leon said that Libyan parties have welcomed the proposals and ideas published by UN Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) as a basis for future discussions.

    “It does not mean they agree with everything in these documents, we still have a long way,” he said. “We still have to work hard, but I believe that we have.”

    This comes as UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon addressed the Security Council Friday, stating the urgency to help Libya end the military conflict.

    “It is crucial to curb the danger of Libya falling in the hands of terrorist groups. No strategy will succeed without strong regional cooperation and an empowered Libyan State,” Ban said.

    Ban announced the UN’s Plan of Action on Preventing Violent Extremism to be launched in September. He also expressed deep concerns over the escalation of fighting by the so-called Islamic State group (IS) against ethnic and religious minorities in Syria, Iraq, Libya and now Yemen.

    “Thousands of civilians are at the mercy of IS,” Ban said. “Its fighters kill systematically members of ethnic and religious minorities, prey on women and children with unspeakable brutality and destroy religious and cultural symbols that are the heritage of humanity.”

    Ban addressed the Security Council on victims of attacks and abuses on ethnic or religious grounds in the Middle East. “I am deeply concerned about the grave dangers faced by minorities in parts of the Middle East. Currently, thousands of civilians are at the mercy of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, (ISIL), also called Daesh,” he said.

    Al-Sisi has been calling on the international community to “assume responsibilities” with a “realistic and clear vision” of the situation in Libya. He has also asked for the UN Security Council to lift the arms embargo imposed on the Libyan army.

    The Egyptian Foreign Ministry has pledged for the same during Minister Sameh Shoukry’s last visit to New York, arguing that it IS presence in Libya was as dangerous as those in Iraq and Syria.

    Calls from Libya also pushed for the joint Arab military force to help to allow the arming of the army, according to a statement by the Libyan Organisation for the Displaced published by news reports, sent to the Arab League Summit.

    “Supporting the Libyan army is the only solution to get out of the current crisis,” Libyan Minister of Media, Culture and Antiquities Omar El-Gawairi stated earlier in an exclusive interview with Daily News Egypt.

    Asserting that “by the end of the year, Libya will be back on track,” El-Gawairi praised Egypt’s airstrikes against IS targets last February.

  • What UPR recommendations did Egypt reject?

    Egypt rejected 23 out of 300 recommendations Friday submitted by states during the UN’s Universal Periodical Review on Egypt’s human rights status in November 2014.

    Egypt’s responses to the recommendations had varied from accepting and partially accepting to stating recommendations are noted or rejected.

    Although Egypt has fully accepted 224 and partially accepted 23 recommendations, rights groups were sceptical towards the state’s response asserting “practices prove the contrary”.

    The rejected recommendations dealt a range of issues such as death penalty, torture, Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, detention facilities, military courts and protest law. One recommendation dealt with the Rabaa Al-Adaweya sit-in dispersal killings, which were deemed “incorrect” by Egypt.

    Sixteen recommendations submitted by Turkey, Rwanda, Portugal, Sierra Leone, Chile, Argentina, Romania, Spain, Togo, France, Germany, Hungary, Australia, Luxembourg, Italy, Switzerland, Uruguay and Montenegro urged Egypt to sign and ratify the second optional protocol of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR). The protocol abolishes the death penalty and to establish a moratorium on death sentences.

    Egypt stated that Turkey’s recommendation to sign the protocol is noted while rejected other recommendations to ratify the protocol, abolish the capital punishment and suspend death sentences.

    Four other recommendations from Gabon, Chile, Czech Republic, Sierra Leone, Switzerland, Togo, Tunisia, Austria and Portugal to withdraw reservations against the Convention against Torture (CAT) and to ratify its optional protocol, which establishes an international inspection system for places of detention, were rejected by Egypt.

    Egypt had signed the convention in 1986, but declared reservation to articles 21 and 22, which sought the authorisation of a UN committee against torture to listen to and deal with claims from other states in the convention or individuals about violations related to torture in other states in the convention.

    In the response to the recommendations, Egypt commented on the issue of withdrawing reservations on the CAT stating that joining the two articles of the convention is optional.

    Egypt also rejected a recommendation to ratify the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (ICC) submitted by Chile, Estonia, Slovenia, Tunisia and Uruguay.

    Establishing a mechanism to mandate independent visits to civil, military and national security agency’s detention places was a recommendation submitted by Switzerland which Egypt rejected.

    Furthermore, Israel submitted a recommendation calling on Egypt to release its citizen Ouda Tarabin, who is convicted for espionage. The recommendation was rejected by Egypt.

    Austria encouraged Egypt to review the presidential decree that expands the jurisdiction of military courts. Egypt also rejected the recommendation.

    Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi issued a law in October 2014, granting the military judiciary authority over civilians in cases of vandalising public property or blocking public roads for trial in a military court.

    Egypt also rejected a recommendation submitted by Turkey to repeal or amend the Protest Law issued in November 2013.

    However, Egypt stated in its response that the government currently conducts discussions with civil society to draft a law that organises the work of NGOs and the right of peaceful assembly with accordance with Egypt’s constitution and Egypt’s international commitments.

    Several rights groups in Egypt though have stated their concerns over this statement, saying  they had invited the government to discuss the first UPR session and the recommendations submitted to Egypt, but these invitations “went unanswered”.

    One recommendation was deemed by Egypt as “inaccurate”. The recommendation submitted by Iceland called for “thorough, independent and impartial investigations into the mass killings in Rabaa Al-Adaweya in 2013 and make the perpetrators accountable”.