Posted on 04/15/2007 4:43:46 PM PDT by DAVEY CROCKETT
Europe's bio-threat readiness questioned
Image: European Community Europe discusses how to prepare itself in the face of bio-terrorism threats and "perversions" of science, not to mention naturally occurring bio-threats to human health.
By Brooks Tigner in Brussels for ISN Security Watch (11/04/07)
The EU must work much closer with its 27 national capitals and across the Atlantic to combat the growing threat of bio-terrorism, according to EU and US policymakers and scientists.
The European Commission aims to fire up discussion of the issue and prompt some solutions when it issues a consultative document on bio-preparedness in the coming weeks.
While Washington is pushing ahead with high levels of government spending and close public-private coordination to protect the US population against bio-attacks, policy in Europe still lacks focus and is splintered into separate national policies, despite universal concern among EU and national experts that their continent is highly vulnerable to attack. Pan-European research is just as fragmented, though current and forthcoming EU-funded projects aim to pull researchers in the same direction.
~~~~~~~~ snip~~~~~~~
There is no policy coherence in bio-preparedness in general across Europe, whether the issue is one of vaccine production, security at bio- and virological laboratories or national immunization policies.
(Excerpt) Read more at isn.ethz.ch ...
[To get the new thread off to a good start]
Al Qaeda’s Abu Yahya al Libi:
Crown Prince or Pretender?
by Laura Mansfield
It’s been over nine months since we’ve heard from Al Qaeda leader Osama
Bin
Laden, and his minions are getting restless for word from the Sheikh
himself, as evidenced by a posting last week on a jihadist board that
had
many expecting an imminent release of a Bin Paden message.
But Bin Laden has gone silent for long periods of time before, leading
some
to speculate in the past that the terror leader had died or been
captured. The most
recent period of silence was from late October 2004 when he released a
video tape
just before the US presidential elections until January 2006, when he
released an audio
tape claiming that plans for attacks within the US were in progress.
So why is there so much angst beginning to appear among the jihadists
in
the absence of a Bin Laden message?
Perhaps the answer lies in the leadership vacuum that Al Qaeda is
currently
experiencing.
During the sixteen-month period from 2004 through early 2006 when there
was
no sign of Bin Laden, other charismatic men were steering the global
jihad
- men like Abu Mus’ab al Zarqawi, who was commanding headlines with his
exploits in Iraq and drawing new recruits into the global jihad like
flies
to honey. For much of this period, issues of Sawt al Jihad and Moaskar
al
Battar were being published regularly on the internet by Al Qaeda of
the
Arabian Peninsula. The Al Qaeda propaganda machine had no problems
finding
adequate material to keep the troops focused.
But since Zarqawi’s death at the hands of the US last summer, no one
else
has really stepped up to the plate.
Sure, we’ve had lots of messages from Al Qaeda second-in-command Dr.
Ayman
al Zawahiri. In fact we’ve had so many tapes in the last nine months
that
CNN’s Wolf Blitzer quipped on air to Vice President Dick Cheney that
Zawahiri was on TV more than Blitzer, who hosts a news show daily.
And let’s face it, Zawahiri may be the brains of Al Qaeda and wield
considerable influence over Bin Laden, he just doesn’t have the
charisma of
Osama. Nor does he have the charismatic appeal of a Zarqawi or even a
Moqrin. Although Zawahiri’s messages are key elements in the Al Qaeda
“marketing communications” program, they just aren’t doing the job of
rallying the troops.
In recent months, it has become apparent that Abu Yahya al Libi is
attempting to step in to this leadership vacuum.
Abu Yahya al Libi is considered by many jihadists to be a true mujahid
cleric, an Islamist preacher who has also earned his stripes on the
battlefield.
Al Libi’s big claim to fame until now has been his escape from American
custody in Afghanistan in 2005. He was being held at a prison in
Bagram,
Afghanistan, when he and three other jihadist detainees broke out of
the
facility. His three fellow escapees have either been killed or
recaptured,
yet al Libi continues to elude US forces.
This escape has earned him a considerable amount of legitimacy among
his
fellow jihadists, who view his escape as a victory over the Americans.
Al Libi has appeared in numerous videos through As Sahab since his
escape.
In the past nine months, the frequency of his videos has greatly
increased.
His rhetoric has become more and more inciting; back in July, he called
on
his followers to attack the White House. He has also called for the
group
to acquire and use weapons of mass destruction.
Al Libi has written letters to Zarqawi, issued fatwas against the
regimes
of Denmark and Afghanistan, and even delivered Eid messages to the
Islamic
Ummah.
His physical appearance in these videos has changed too; now he is
shown
with AK47 at his side, much like Bin Laden and Zawahiri.
In many cases, As Sahab translates the videos into English and provides
English subtitles and transcripts for the messages, a feature normally
found in videos of Bin Laden or Zawahiri.
Using the tapes featuring Al Libi that were produced by As Sahab as an
indicator, it becomes apparent that Al Libi has definitely moved up in
the
leadership chain in the Al Qaeda organizational charts.
Regardless of whether or not Bin Laden resurfaces with a video, it is
indisputable that Al Qaeda is in need of fresh leadership. After all,
Bin
Laden earned much of his mettle out in the field battling the Soviets
in
Afghanistan. Much of his legitimacy comes from his efforts in what is
seem
by the jihadists as their great victory over one of the infidel
superpowers.
But Bin Laden can’t get out and walk among his followers anymore.
Assuming
he is still alive, he must maintain tight security precautions for the
rest
of his life.A $50 million dollar reward from the Americans has
virtually
guaranteed that absent the emergence of a “safe haven” nation he will
have
to live out his days in hiding. (His current long period of silence is
very likely a result of these security precautions, rather than a sign
that
Bin Laden is dead.)
His followers need a leader, and Abu Yahya al Libi seems to be willing
and
able to take his place. He seems to have some sort of official sanction
from Al Qaeda, otherwise As Sahab would not be releasing his tapes in
the
manner that they are.
Al Libi has earned the respect of the jihadists as a result of his
escape
from an American prison in Bagram, and by eluding recapture since July
2005.
As we watch the emergence of Abu Yahya al Libi as an Al Qaeda leader,
we
need to consider who he is. Is he simply a pretender, one of many who
may
at times appear to be rising in the Al Qaeda leadership chain, only to
fall
by the wayside? Or are we watching the rise to power of the man who may
be
the ultimate successor to Osama Bin Laden, in effect the crown prince
of
the Global Jihad?.
Only time will tell.
For more translations and news on terrorism, visit
http://www.lauramansfield.com
The Jerusalem Post, April 16, 2007
Despite Pledge to US, Saudis Continue to Boycott Israel
By Michael Freund
Despite a promise made to Washington nearly 18 months ago to drop its
trade embargo against Israel , Saudi Arabia continues to enforce the
Arab League boycott, The Jerusalem Post has learned.
In November 2005, Riyadh pledged to abandon the boycott after
Washington conditioned Saudi Arabia ‘s entry into the World Trade Organization
(WTO) on such a move. A month later, on December 11, Saudi Arabia was
granted WTO membership.
The WTO, which aims to promote free trade, prohibits members from
engaging in discriminatory practices such as boycotts or embargoes.
Nonetheless, the Post has found, Saudi officials continue to bar
entry to products manufactured in Israel or to foreign-made goods
containing Israeli components.
“Goods made in Israel are not allowed here in Saudi Arabia,” Khaled
A-Sharif, assistant manager of the Saudi Customs Department at King
Abdul Aziz Airport outside Jidda, told the Post by phone. “Of course it is
not permitted,” he said.
In the past, A-Sharif added, products made by firms that had “a
relation” with Israel were also prohibited, but these were now allowed to be
brought into the country.
A Saudi customs official at the airport, who identified himself only
as Feisal, told the Post, “If it is made in Israel , then it is not
allowed here in Saudi Arabia . If it is made in any other country, then no
problem. But not from Israel .”
A Saudi customs official at King Fahd International Airport in
Dammam, who declined to give his name, told the Post Israeli-made goods would
be confiscated upon arrival and not permitted entry into the kingdom.
“You know, it is not allowed here,” he said.
US officials have said they continue to raise the boycott issue with
their Saudi counterparts.
In a written response appearing in last month’s Congressional Record,
US Trade Representative Susan Schwab addressed the question of Saudi
compliance after being queried on the matter by Sen. Gordon Smith.
In her reply to Smith, Schwab confirmed that continued Saudi
enforcement of the anti-Israel boycott would “not be in keeping” with Riyadh ‘s
commitments under the WTO.
Since the Saudis acceded to the WTO, Schwab wrote, “there have been
conflicting signals from Saudi officials” regarding the boycott.
“We have taken every available opportunity to raise this issue with
Saudi authorities to remind them of their commitment and our expectation
that they honor this commitment,” she said. “The administration will
continue to monitor the situation.”
As the Post revealed last year, the Saudis played host in March 2006
to a major international conference aimed at intensifying the
anti-Israel boycott, and an official Saudi delegation took part in a meeting of
the Arab League’s boycott office in Damascus last May.
[from a newsletter, url unknown]
Haaretz, April 13, 2007
There should have been a preventive strike
By Ze’ev Schiff
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/848025.html
In the coming days the Winograd Committee’s interim report on the
Second Lebanon War will be published. The report will deal, among
other things, with the six-year period preceding the war, 2000 to
2006.
The year 2000 is important as a kind of watershed. Hafez Assad
died and his son Bashar came to power. Bashar brought Hassan
Nasrallah closer and considered Hezbollah a part of his military
deployment. Israel withdrew from southern Lebanon unilaterally,
but in coordination with the United Nations over the
determination of the border. The second intifada broke out.
Hezbollah kidnapped three Israel Defense Forces soldiers on Mount
Hermon. During this time Iran helped Hezbollah to assemble a huge
battery of missiles in Lebanon.
Many assume that the Winograd Committee will focus on these six
years, on issues such as how the reserve units had almost no
training exercises, why the reserve units’ emergency warehouses
had emptied out, and why Israel assumed that Hezbollah’s missiles
would rust.
Advertisement
These are important questions, but there is a more important
question: Didn’t Israel make a serious mistake when it refrained
from responding with force to the build-up of the
Hezbollah-Iran-Syria military system next to the border?
Over the years a threatening system was established there, which
required an early preventive strike. Israeli avoidance of a
preventive strike finally led to the war in 2006.
Israel even avoided signaling to its enemies that it would not
return to business as usual in the face of the threatening
system. It did not try to stop the transfer of Iranian weapons to
Damascus, a move the Americans implied they would accept with
understanding. Israel never once struck at the convoys
transferring the missiles to Lebanon, and never struck even one
Hezbollah missile warehouse, or even the short-range rockets near
the border.
Although Israel prepared itself adequately for long-range
missiles and carried out several painful localized operations,
these did not affect the construction of the threatening system.
The result was that during this period Israeli deterrence against
Hezbollah and Iran increasingly eroded.
On March 7, 2000, even before the IDF withdrawal from Lebanon,
the head of Military Intelligence, Major General Amos Malka,
submitted a personal assessment to his superiors, in which he
wrote, among other things: “Those in favor of a unilateral
withdrawal are relying on the assumption that it is possible to
create a sufficiently powerful Israeli deterrence. It is doubtful
whether we will be able to create a deterrence. The Revolutionary
Guards are helping Hezbollah to set up a long-range weapons
system to reach areas in Israel where there is no protection for
the population. The result will be that a mutual
counter-deterrence will arise against Israel.”
Unlike Israel, Hezbollah did act. Its actions included the firing
of anti-aircraft artillery, which in effect harmed Israeli
communities, and it crossed the border and killed six Israelis in
an incident. About a month after the intifada broke out,
Hezbollah kidnapped three soldiers on Mount Hermon, and it did
the same in July 2006, three weeks after a military operation
began in the wake of the kidnapping of Gilad Shalit.
In six years Israel responded twice against the Syrians, but not
against the array of rockets, whose number had already reached
10,000. Israel hit a Syrian radar station in Dar el Beidar in
Lebanon, and a Palestinian training camp in Ein el Saheb in Syria.
The prime minister at the time, Ehud Barak, rejected the
suggestion by chief of staff Shaul Mofaz to take strong action
against Hezbollah after the kidnapping of the three soldiers. The
main reason was to not open a second front. Israel wanted to
focus on the Palestinian front.
This was later also the opinion of Ariel Sharon as prime
minister. Sharon certainly did not want to open a second, broader
front against Iran, which had built the threatening system in
Lebanon.
Hezbollah and Iran read things differently. They understood that
Israel was incapable of properly handling combat on two fronts at
the same time. Hezbollah acted on this assumption when it
embarked on the kidnapping on July 12, 2006. A few weeks earlier
it had not refrained from attacking the air force base on Mount
Meron with rockets.
It is a serious mistake to think that refraining from a reaction
to the kidnapping of the soldiers in July would have spared us a
war. The war would have arrived later, after greater incitement
on the part of Hezbollah and Iran.
Iraq’s chief of security is running a parallel spy agency
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/04/16/MNGEGP92FE1.DTL&feed=rss.news
Iraq’s chief of security is running a parallel spy agency
Ned Parker, Los Angeles Times
Monday, April 16, 2007
(04-16) 04:00 PDT Baghdad — Suspicious of Iraq’s CIA-funded national
intelligence agency, members of the Iraqi government have erected a
“shadow” secret service that critics say is driven by a Shiite agenda
and has left the country with dueling spy agencies.
The minister of state for national security, a Shiite named Sherwan
al-Waili, has built a spy service boasting an estimated 1,200 agents
out of a second-tier ministry with a minimal staff and meager budget,
Western officials say.
continued.........
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/6558955.stm
US-Korean man jailed for spying
The two Koreas are still technically at war
An American man of Korean origin has been sentenced to nine years in
jail by a South Korean court for spying for Communist North Korea.
Jan Min-ho, also known as Michael Jang, was found guilty of passing
sensitive information about politicians and security to Pyongyang.
He was one of five people convicted of espionage by the court in Seoul.
Prosecutors have called it the biggest spying case since the two
Koreas began a process of reconciliation in 2000.
Two of the five are members of the left-leaning minor opposition
Democratic Labor Party (DLP).
Pyongyang had denounced the case as a “calculated plot” to smear North
Korea.
‘Politically-motivated’
Michael Jang, 44, was accused of being the group’s ring leader,
regularly meeting North Korean agents in China and Thailand after his
first visit to the North in 1989.
He was found guilty of passing on “national secrets”, which included
details about South Korean politics and its politicians.
“Judging from the danger and confidentiality of the crime, a heavy
jail sentence is not escapable,” judge Kim Dong-o told him.
The other four received jail sentences of between four and six years.
They were told by the judge that their links with Jang meant that they
could not avoid responsibility over the spying charges, “even if their
behaviour was driven from their aspiration for inter-Korean
unification”.
He said their sentences reflect the fact “it is hard to believe the
information they had delivered to the North seriously hurts national
security”.
The DLP - which has been under fire for its pro-North Korea image -
said the case was politically motivated.
“This shows that acts of trying to accuse our party of being
associated with a spy ring were only constructed to run the Democratic
Labor Party into the ground,” it said.
North and South Korea are still technically at war since their 1950-53
conflict ended in an armistice rather than a peace agreement.
But South Korea has operated a so-called “sunshine policy” of
engagement with its Communist neighbour since 2000.
That policy has come under strain since North Korea tested a nuclear
device in October, with calls for the South to be tougher on its
neighbour.
Good morning.
Waiting for a tow-truck.
Flat tire - Happy Monday, I guess. LOL
I pinged you to the shooting at Virginia Tech thread.
At least I get to freep while waiting for tow.
U.S.: Aid worker missing in Philippines
http://www.cnn.com/2007/WORLD/asiapcf/04/14/philippines.aidworker/index.html?section=cnn_latest
U.S.: Aid worker missing in Philippines
POSTED: 11:54 a.m. EDT, April 14, 2007
(CNN) — A search is under way for a U.S. aid worker missing for
nearly a week in the northern Philippines, the U.S. Embassy in Manila
told CNN on Saturday.
U.S. authorities are seeking information on Julia Campbell, a U.S.
Peace Corps volunteer last seen on Easter Sunday in the town of Banaue
in Ifugao province, said embassy spokesman Matthew Lussenhop.
Campbell had planned to hike alone on April 8 in a hilly region near
Batad, Lussenhop said. The area, about 260 kilometers (163 miles)
north of Manila, is famed for its mountain rice terraces, Lussenhop
said.
The communist New People’s Army (NPA) also operates in the region,
Lussenhop confirmed.
continued.........
U.S. decides against freeing 5 Iranian agents
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/18101894/
U.S. decides against freeing 5 Iranian agents
Administration resists Tehran’s pressure, State Department advise
By Robin Wright
Updated: 2:56 a.m. ET April 14, 2007
After intense internal debate, the Bush administration has decided to
hold on to five Iranian Revolutionary Guard intelligence agents
captured in Iraq, overruling a State Department recommendation to
release them, according to U.S. officials.
At a meeting of the president’s foreign policy team Tuesday, the
administration decided the five Iranians will remain in custody and go
through a periodic six-month review used for the 250 other foreign
detainees held in Iraq, U.S. officials said. The next review is not
expected until July, officials say.
The five, seized in a Jan. 11 raid by U.S. forces in the Kurdish city
of Irbil, are at the center of increasing tensions between Washington
and Tehran. The decision is certain to further irritate Tehran, which
has ratcheted up pressure on the United States and on its allies and
even its friends in the Iraqi government to win freedom for the Irbil
five.
The decision came as Iraq’s government spokesman, on a White House
visit Friday, urged better ties. “We feel that the improvement and the
better relations between the United States and Iran could minimize —
could make the [Iranian] interference less,” Ali Dabbagh said in a
news briefing with White House spokeswoman Dana Perino.
continued.............
Group cleared over Iran murders
By Frances Harrison
BBC News, Tehran
Iran’s Supreme Court has acquitted a group of men charged over a series of gruesome killings in 2002, according to lawyers for the victims’ families.
The vigilantes were not guilty because their victims were involved in un-Islamic activities, the court found.
The killers said they believed Islam let them spill the blood of anyone engaged in illicit activities if they issued two warnings to the victims.
The serial killings took place in 2002 in the south-eastern city of Kerman.
‘Morally corrupt’
The case raises serious questions about vigilantes in Iran taking justice into their own hands and undermining the rule of law.
Up to 18 people were killed in just one year, but only five of the murders were tried in court.
According to their confessions, the killers put some of their victims in pits and stoned them to death. Others were suffocated. One man was even buried alive while others had their bodies dumped in the desert to be eaten by wild animals.
The accused, who were all members of an Islamic paramilitary force, told the court their understanding of the teachings of one Islamic cleric allowed them to kill immoral people if they had ignored two warnings to stop their bad behaviour.
But there was no judicial process to determine the guilt of the victims in these cases.
The group even killed a young couple they thought were involved in sex outside marriage, but media reports say the couple were either married or engaged to be married.
Lawyers for the victims’ families say the Supreme Court has five times overturned the verdict of a lower court that found all the men guilty of murder.
Now the Supreme Court is reported to have acquitted all the killers of the charge of murder on the grounds that their victims were all morally corrupt.
Some of the group may, however, face prison sentences or have to pay financial compensation to their victims’ families.
Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/middle_east/6557679.stm
Published: 2007/04/15 16:16:54 GMT
© BBC MMVII
BBC man’s ‘killing’ not verified
The BBC says it still has no independent verification of a claim by a Palestinian militant group that it has killed reporter Alan Johnston.
The corporation said it was “highly concerned” for Mr Johnston’s safety and reiterated calls for his release.
On Sunday, the previously unheard of Tawhid and Jihad brigades claimed it had executed Mr Johnston.
BBC colleagues have rallied for Mr Johnston, 44, who was abducted at gunpoint in Gaza City on 12 March.
His parents, Graham and Margaret, say they are desperately worried and have appealed for anyone with information about their son to make contact.
ALAN JOHNSTON
Born in Lindi, Tanzania, on 17 May 1962
BBC Kabul correspondent from 1997 to 1998
BBC Gaza correspondent from April 2004
Journalists have rallied in the Lebanese capital, Beirut, in support of Mr Johnston, as public campaigns to secure his release continue.
Dozens of demonstrators held portraits of the journalist, who was seized at gunpoint in Gaza City on 12 March.
Others gathered outside the European Commission building in Brussels.
BBC rallies
BBC colleagues held a vigil at London’s Television Centre, in Birmingham and at Bush House, home of the World Service.
The corporation’s Director General Mark Thompson said the BBC was still seeking clarification of the reporter’s condition.
He praised Mr Johnston’s family, calling the wait for news “agonising” for them.
Earlier, in a statement, the BBC said it could not confirm the claims by the Tawhid and Jihad (Holy War and Unity) brigades, describing the story as a rumour without verification.
“We continue to be highly concerned for [Alan Johnston’s] safety and are demanding urgent clarification from the Palestinian and British authorities,” it said.
The Tawhid and Jihad brigades made its claim in an email to media organisations, linking Mr Johnston’s purported execution to the plight of Palestinian prisoners held in Israel.
A spokesman for UK Prime Minister Tony Blair said the government was investigating the reports.
“We are working closely with the Palestinian Authority and are urgently seeking information from them and other sources,” he said.
‘Worrying time’
In the latest of almost daily demonstrations in the wake of Mr Johnston’s abduction, journalists gathered outside the Lebanese Press Syndicate building in Beirut to press for his release.
It’s very important to show our solidarity with any colleague that’s harmed because of his job
Diana Moukalled
Lebanese TV reporter
“We would like to appeal today to whoever is holding [Alan Johnston] to release him today unharmed,” the BBC’s Beirut correspondent, Kim Ghattas, told media.
Our correspondent said Mr Johnston had continued to do his job professionally, despite the risks.
But, more than a month since his abduction, there was concern about Mr Johnston’s mental health and physical state, she said.
Another demonstrator, Lebanese TV reporter Diana Moukalled, said it was very important “to show our solidarity with any colleague that’s harmed because of his job”.
Earlier, Mr Johnston’s parents Graham and Margaret Johnston issued a statement, saying it was a “desperately worrying time”.
They added: “We make a heartfelt appeal to anyone who may have knowledge of Alan’s situation and well-being to contact the authorities in Gaza.”
Mr Johnston, from Scotland, joined the BBC World Service in 1991 and has spent eight of the last 16 years as a correspondent, including periods in Uzbekistan and Afghanistan.
He has lived and worked in Gaza for three years and was the only Western reporter permanently based in the often violent and lawless territory.
His posting in Gaza had been due to end in late March.
Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/middle_east/6559619.stm
Published: 2007/04/16 13:30:33 GMT
© BBC MMVII
Iran pardons jailed Swedish pair
Iranian authorities say they have pardoned two Swedish men jailed after photographing military facilities.
Stefan Johanssen and Jari Hjortmar, who had been sentenced to at least two years in jail, would be freed later on Monday, Iran’s foreign ministry said.
They were arrested in March 2006 for taking pictures of installations on the southern island of Qeshm.
Earlier this month Iran released 15 UK naval personnel detained while allegedly operating in Iranian waters.
Foreign ministry spokesman Mohammad Ali Hosseini said the pardoned pair would be handed over to Swedish diplomats.
“Following the requests of the families and repeated requests from Swedish politicians... they have been pardoned and will be freed at 1800 (1430 GMT),” he said.
The pardon was granted as part of Iran’s “humanitarian efforts”, he added.
Diplomatic efforts
According to Swedish media reports the men had been working as construction workers at the time of their arrest.
But Swedish officials said they would not comment until the men had arrived back home.
Qeshm is an Iranian island in the Strait of Hormuz, about 1,400km (870 miles) south of the capital, Tehran, and near the city of Bandar Abbas.
Mr Hosseini said Urban Ahlin, a Swedish MP, had travelled to Iran several times in recent months to negotiate the release of the two men, AFP news agency reported.
A German citizen and a French man arrested in late 2005 have also been freed by Iran in recent months.
Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/middle_east/6560429.stm
Published: 2007/04/16 14:35:07 GMT
© BBC MMVII
Russia presses UK on Berezovsky
Russia’s chief prosecutor has sent a new request to the UK for the London-based Russian tycoon Boris Berezovsky to be extradited.
Yuri Chaika’s request followed Mr Berezovsky’s claim on Friday that he was working to overthrow Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Russia wants the UK government to strip Mr Berezovsky of his refugee status.
Russian prosecutors have previously charged him with fraud. He was granted political asylum in the UK in 2003.
Russia’s latest extradition request was triggered by Mr Berezovsky’s interview with the Guardian newspaper on Friday, in which he said he was plotting a “revolution” to overthrow President Putin.
The tycoon later clarified his words, stating that he was advocating “bloodless change” - not violence.
UK assessment
On Friday the UK Foreign Secretary, Margaret Beckett, said she was aware of Mr Berezovsky’s comments to the Guardian, “appearing to call for the overthrow of the current Russian government by force”.
“I deplore such sentiments. We expect everyone living or working in, or visiting the UK, whatever their status, to observe our laws and regulations. The Home Office will now seek to collate full information on the alleged comments so that a review and full assessment can be made,” she said.
Writing in the Guardian on Monday, Mr Putin’s spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Mr Berezovsky’s motives had been laid bare.
“We now expect the British authorities to rethink their decision to harbour a fugitive billionaire,” Mr Peskov wrote.
Mr Peskov quoted a Russian academic, Andrei Piontkovsky, who called Mr Berezovsky “the embodiment of robber capitalism”.
Mr Peskov said Russia “no longer tolerates the unfettered personal acquisition of state assets”.
Mr Berezovsky has a fortune estimated at £800m ($1.4bn).
Previously an ally of former President Boris Yeltsin, he has already fought off Russian extradition requests on fraud charges which he said were politically motivated.
He was one of the first targets of President Putin’s crackdown on the Russian oligarchs - well-connected entrepreneurs who made fortunes during privatisation - and went into self-imposed exile at the end of 2000.
Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/europe/6559551.stm
Published: 2007/04/16 12:01:35 GMT
© BBC MMVII
Russian opposition in fresh rally
Hundreds of anti-Kremlin demonstrators have held a rally in St Petersburg, a day after a protest in Moscow ended in scuffles and arrests.
The participants gathered at a square in the city centre, but were encircled by a similar number of riot police and prevented from marching.
Smaller groups clashed with police after the main rally finished. Several opposition leaders were arrested.
Ex-chess champion Garry Kasparov was among 170 held in the Moscow march.
Mr Kasparov was freed several hours later after being fined $40 (£20) for public order offences.
The protesters, allied under the Other Russia coalition, say President Vladimir Putin is stifling democracy.
March banned
Reports say Eduard Limonov, leader of the radical National Bolshevik party, and several other organisers were arrested.
It is no longer a country... where the government tries to pretend it is playing by the letter and spirit of the law
Garry Kasparov
A number of participants had been detained on arrival in the city, including the leader of the Pora youth movement Andrey Sidelnikov and Olga Kurnosova, the local head of Mr Kasparov’s United Civil Front.
A reporter for the private Moscow Echo radio station said before the rally that he saw interior ministry troops and a water cannon in the city, adding that people could be forgiven for thinking a military operation was about to start.
Demonstrators were seen holding flags of various groups including that of the liberal Yabloko party and the hammer and sickle banner of the National Bolsheviks.
But correspondents say the turnout was not as good as the organisers might have hoped.
Organisers contemplated whether to try to march down the city’s main street, but were blocked by police and began to disperse after two hours.
One group of demonstrators who avoided the encirclement tried to march but were stopped at a nearby railway station, where scuffles broke out with police, local media said.
Reports say several people were beaten by police, including an elderly man.
Russian authorities sanctioned the rally but banned any marching.
President Vladimir Putin denies the opposition charge that he is trampling on democracy, accusing the opposition of destabilising Russia.
In Moscow on Saturday, a huge security operation, including more than 9,000 police, was launched to prevent protesters from gathering at Pushkin Square.
Mr Kasparov’s swift arrest followed warnings by the prosecution office on the eve of the march, stating that anyone participating risked being detained.
After being released Mr Kasparov said: “It is no longer a country... where the government tries to pretend it is playing by the letter and spirit of the law.”
Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/europe/6556739.stm
Published: 2007/04/15 11:59:51 GMT
© BBC MMVII
[Without double checking, on the long list of news urls, this same acid was found in Iraq...........on todays url post..
The radio says the baby will be in the hospital many weeks.............granny]
US toddler burnt in park attack
A two-year-old boy is facing surgery after receiving serious burns at a playground slide in the US that had been vandalised with harsh chemicals.
Peyton Duschl received second and third-degree burns, mostly to his legs, after using the primary school slide.
Vandals had poured industrial-strength drain cleaner over the ride, and opened bottles of the dangerous chemical were found at the scene, police said.
A hazardous materials team was called in to clean the site in Maryland state.
The boy will have surgery on Sunday and is expected to stay in hospital for several weeks, his mother Carol Duschl said.
With a high sulphuric acid content, the cleaner was so strong that the accident and emergency department at the first hospital the boy attended had to be evacuated, said Michael Robinson, from the Baltimore County Fire Department.
“I just don’t understand what would draw somebody to do something like that,” Ms Duschl told US television station WMAR-TV. “What kind of sick joke is that?”
There were signs of forced entry to a storage room at Victory Villa Elementary School in Middle River, police spokeswoman Sgt Vickie Warehime said.
She said that whoever poured the chemical was also likely to have been burnt.
Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/americas/6556823.stm
Published: 2007/04/15 07:25:53 GMT
© BBC MMVII
Deadly shooting at US university
At least one person has been killed and one injured in a shooting on the campus of a university in Virginia, US, the Associated Press has reported.
The shooting at Virginia Tech reportedly took place in West Ambler Johnston Hall, a student dormitory.
A warning posted on the university’s web site warned students that there was a gunman on the loose on campus.
The website message advised students that the police were in attendance and to remain indoors until further notice.
“There’s just a lot of commotion. It’s hard to tell exactly what’s going on,” Jason Anthony Smith, 19, who lives in the building where the shooting took place told AP.
The state university in the town of Blacksburg has 26,000 students.
In August 2006 classes the campus was ordered shut and classes were cancelled when police were hunting an escaped prison inmate who killed a hospital guard and sheriff’s deputy close to the site.
Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/americas/6560685.stm
Published: 2007/04/16 15:26:12 GMT
© BBC MMVII
Chavez hosting summit on energy
The pros and cons of ethanol and plans for a 5,000 mile natural gas pipeline are top of the agenda at the South American Energy Summit in Venezuela.
The two day summit on the Caribbean island of Margarita is being hosted by Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez.
Venezuela is the region’s only member of the oil-producers’ cartel Opec and Mr Chavez opposes the use of ethanol.
He is expected to give more details of a proposed gas pipeline between Venezuela and Colombia.
The Venezuelan energy minister Rafael Ramirez says the plan would involve investing $10m (£5.02m) on improving the quality of life in villages along the route of the pipeline.
Ethanol as a biofuel
Brazil’s President Luiz Ignacio Lula da Silva has rejected criticism from President Chavez and others that the use of ethanol as a biofuel would increase food prices.
Brazil is a pioneer in the use of ethanol made from sugar cane to power cars.
“All South American countries and Africa can easily produce oil seeds for biodiesel, sugar cane for ethanol and food at the same time,” Mr Lula said on his weekly radio programme.
Mr Chavez says he does not plan to pick a fight with the Brazilian leader.
“The issue is not ethanol as an additive,” he said.
“The issue is the US empire wanting to substitute gasoline with ethanol - that’s crazy.”
Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/business/6560197.stm
Published: 2007/04/16 14:27:37 GMT
© BBC MMVII
Venezuela steps up land seizures
Venezuela’s government has seized more than 330,000 hectares (815,450 acres) of land to redistribute them under an agrarian reform programme.
President Hugo Chavez said 16 farms - which he described as large and unproductive - had been expropriated.
His government was moving towards a “collective property” policy as part of its “drive towards socialism”, he said.
Critics say land reform has failed so far to revive the agricultural sector and end dependence on food imports.
More expropriations
Mr Chavez announced the latest round of land seizures during his TV and radio programme Hello, President.
“From today [Sunday] this becomes social property to satisfy the needs of the people,” he said, speaking from one of the seized farms in the state of Barinas.
Another 13 farms would be expropriated in the coming weeks, Mr Chavez added.
He said the land would be used for cattle production.
In the past five years, almost 2m hectares have been seized after being declared unproductive or because the owners did not have the property documents in order.
Mr Chavez, who was re-elected with a large majority last year, has pledged to turn Venezuela into a socialist state.
Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/americas/6494843.stm
Published: 2007/03/26 10:04:22 GMT
© BBC MMVII
Civil servant on terrorist charge
A County Antrim civil servant working for the police has appeared in court on terrorism charges.
Aaron Hill, 22, of Mainebank, Randalstown, was alleged to have illegally accessed information from the PSNI computer system.
He was arrested last Friday during an investigation into terrorist crime. The court heard information was accessed over a five year period to April 2007.
He is accused of possessing information likely to be of use to terrorists.
Mr Hill is also accused of breaching the Data Protection Act and a further count of misconduct in public office.
He appeared at Belfast Magistrates Court on Monday.
Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/uk_news/northern_ireland/6559747.stm
Published: 2007/04/16 11:37:47 GMT
© BBC MMVII
EU worry over Russia ‘crackdown’
By Steven Eke
BBC Russia analyst
The European Union has called on Russia to respect freedom of expression and freedom of assembly, after a weekend crackdown on demonstrators.
A spokeswoman for the EU said the body was very concerned about the police action in Moscow and St Petersburg.
Earlier, Russia’s human rights ombudsman said he intended to investigate the incident.
Police are accused of randomly beating demonstrators, journalists and even passers-by.
‘Exceeded authority’
The EU spokeswoman said the European Commission would continue to raise the issue of respect for basic freedoms in its regular meetings with Russian officials.
What are the authorities so afraid of?
Mikhail Romanov
Moskovskiy Komsomolets daily
Human rights groups in Russia say they intend to set up a commission to investigate why such force was used against peaceful demonstrators in Moscow on Saturday, and then St Petersburg, Russia’s second city, on Sunday.
They have been encouraged by a pledge from Vladimir Lukin, Russia’s official human rights ombudsman, who said he believed police had exceeded their authority.
In a key election year, the Russian authorities appear nervous. They have begun to use a degree of violence against demonstrations not seen since the 1980s, when the Soviet Union still existed.
Demonstrators argue that they have a constitutional right to participate in protests unimpeded by the authorities. They say a raft of laws and regulations - some introduced very recently - limiting such protests are simply unconstitutional.
That is not an analysis the authorities agree with. Russia’s top political commentators say there is a logic to the authorities’ actions.
Russia will hold parliamentary elections in December and then a presidential vote in March next year.
It is already clear that the authorities’ key strategy is to consolidate support for their parties and candidates by stressing unity in the face of an external enemy - namely the West.
In response to complaints from foreign governments that their journalists were also attacked by police, Russian diplomats have accused them of “unobjective coverage” of the protests.
Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/europe/6560523.stm
Published: 2007/04/16 14:48:37 GMT
© BBC MMVII
[Last night, Dr. Bill Wattenberg was asked about this, he says that Iran will have weapon grade material, before the end of the year...........granny]
Iran: “Only One Step Away from Producing Nuclear Weapons”
http://www.memri.org/bin/opener_latest.cgi?ID=IA34207
Inquiry & Analysis-Iran
April 13, 2007
No. 342
Tehran Times: “A Country That Has... Uranium Enrichment Is Only One
Step Away from Producing Nuclear Weapons; This Step Is Not a
Scientific or a Technical [One] – But a Matter of Political Decision”
By Y. Mansharof*
Introduction
On April 10, 2007, after several postponements, Iranian President
Mahmoud Ahmadinejad delivered his long-promised message “that will
gladden all Muslims” at Iran’s Nuclear Day festivities.(1) During the
day’s main rally, held at the nuclear facility at Natanz, Ahmadinejad
said that Iran was now manufacturing nuclear fuel on an industrial
scale.(2)
At this stage, senior Iranian nuclear program officials are not saying
exactly how many centrifuges are operating at Natanz, apparently out
of fear of a possible military attack by the West.(3) At the same
time, both senior officials and the Iranian media are stressing the
importance of this accomplishment, and that it marks the point of no
return in Iran’s nuclearization process.
With this announcement, the Iranian regime is apparently trying to
achieve two aims. The first is to announce its nuclear progress
despite U.N. sanctions and international pressure, and thus to deter a
possible attack on its nuclear facilities. The second is to reduce
domestic criticism following the increase in Western pressures and
sanctions.(4)
The following are excerpts from Ahmadinejad’s April 10 speech and from
statements by other senior Iranian officials, as well as from the
Iranian press, on the issue.
Ahmadinejad: Iran Now Producing Nuclear Fuel on an Industrial Scale
“I declare today, in all pride, that from this day, Iran is among the
countries producing nuclear fuel on an [industrial] scale... Today,
Iran’s enemies are embarrassed by Iran’s progress in various areas...
According to a pre-set program, the Iranian government is determined
to produce at least 20,000 megawatts of nuclear electricity according
to a specific timetable... We warmly shake the hands of all
governments interested in holding talks with us and in cooperating
with us in this area.
“I [address] the governments that have so far refused to come to terms
with today’s reality and with the Iranian people’s right [to develop
nuclear technology], and demand that they stop acting aggressively,
illogically, hostilely, and in violation [of the law] towards Iran.
[They had better] know that every member of the Iranian people stands
fast behind its leaders, out of knowledge, faith, and absolute unity,
and [that the Iranian people] will defend its right to the end... The
[Western countries] should know that the path of the progress of the
Iranian people is irreversible... They must pay attention, and do
nothing to cause this brave and great people to reconsider the way it
deals with them. [Western countries] have tried this [hostile]
approach several times, and have seen that this [Iranian] people is
capable of [reconsidering its approach towards them]...”(5)
Larijani: We Are Rapidly Advancing Towards 54,000 Centrifuges
In an interview with the Iranian daily Kayhan, which is identified
with Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, Iranian Supreme National
Security Council Secretary Ali Larijani, who is in charge of Iran’s
nuclear dossier, confirmed that UF6 gas had been injected into
centrifuges installed in the uranium enrichment facility at Natanz. He
said, “[The Western countries] must in any event accept a nuclear
Iran... We are moving vigorously along the path of obtaining... 54,000
centrifuges... The sanctions against us [UNSC Resolution 1747] have
had no effect, and will have no effect, on our movement towards this
goal [in the future]...”(6)
Larijani also noted that the purpose of the nuclear program could
change. He said, “We are not interested in such a thing taking place,
but when we encounter the ill temper and exaggerations of [the West,]
we are pressured by the Majlis, and could make different decisions.”(7)
With regard to the number of centrifuges at Natanz, Larijani said,
“The number of centrifuges doesn’t matter. But we have a work output
of 3,000 centrifuges. This level and above is considered
industrial...”(8)
Aghazadeh: We Are Aiming to Operate 50,000 Centrifuges
Iranian Atomic Energy Organization director Gholam Reza Aghazadeh also
refused to indicate the precise number of centrifuges operating in
Natanz. He said, “Iran’s program is not to install and operate only
3,000 centrifuges at the Natanz uranium enrichment facilities, but
50,000... We planned and invested for [the installation of] 50,000
centrifuges. The infrastructure that has been established – including
equipment for air filtering, electricity, a new air supply, and
everything required for this industry – was for 50,000 centrifuges...
I intentionally did not indicate any number [in my speech at the
Natanz celebrations]... because I wanted no misunderstandings in the
foreign media, [and I did not want] them to think that Iran’s [nuclear
program] included [only] 3,000 centrifuges...
“[The situation is] quite the opposite. As we enter the industrial
stage, the installation of the centrifuges will be carried out on an
ongoing basis, until all 50,000 [centrifuges] are installed... Our
declaration that we have entered the stage [of producing nuclear fuel]
on an industrial [scale means] that there is no turning back.”(9)
At the Natanz celebrations, Aghazadeh stressed that “despite the
commitments we have received from [various] countries, no expert or
[external] company has stood by us... but despite these challenges,
obstacles, and problems, Iran was determined to realize, by means of
its creative young people, its nuclear program – which includes
peaceful purposes, with the first priority being to produce a nuclear
fuel cycle as supreme science in nuclear technology... and in the past
year our young scientists have managed to produce 270 tons of UF6.
“Not long ago, [producing] this important substance was far from the
imagination of our country’s nuclear researchers and scientists. But
finally, we managed to attain [enrichment of] uranium, at [a level of]
3.5% to 5%... Now, as we enter mass production of centrifuges and
begin to produce [nuclear fuel] on an industrial [scale], we are
taking one more step towards the flowering of Iran...”(10)
Aghazadeh also pointed out, “Now that Iran has entered into production
of nuclear fuel on an industrial [scale], there will be no limit on
the production of nuclear fuel in Iran... This is the accomplishment
of some 3,000 expert scientists and the best of the forces that worked
in the past year night and day at the Natanz facility.”(11)
Kayhan Editor: Only One More Step to Nuclear Fuel Production
In an April 10 lecture on the current state of Iran’s nuclear dossier
to students and lecturers at Babol University for the Medical Sciences
in Mazandaran, Hossein Shariatmadari, editor of the Kayhan daily which
is close to Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, said, “A country that
has attained the knowledge and technology of uranium enrichment is
only one step away from producing nuclear weapons. This [additional]
step is not a scientific or a technical step, but a matter of
political decision. But Iran announced several times that it would
never produce nuclear weapons...” Shariatmadari added that Iran had
decided to install at least 60,000 centrifuges.(12)
Kayhan: “The West Must Expect a Shock from Iran at Any Moment”
In an April 10, 2007 editorial headlined “Strategy of Ambiguity,”
Kayhan noted that since Iran had reached the point of no return in its
nuclear program, it could shape its nuclear program in accordance with
its political aspirations. The paper said that Iran was now acting far
from the eyes of the International Atomic Energy Agency, and that this
will enable it to surprise the West – which should at any moment
expect an earthshaking announcement from Iran. The following are the
main points of the editorial:
“Yesterday, Iran crossed the nuclear point of no return. Now it is for
all practical purposes a nuclear state, and in light of this reality,
its name should carry a different weight [than in the past] in any
kind of regional or super-regional security balance... From now on,
Iran is freed from technical limitations, and can choose the goals of
its nuclear program.
“We will see in which [direction] Iran’s political aspiration will
incline. If Iran is subjected to threats, and others want to act
[against it] illegally, the direction its desire will take is clear.
If it is treated without rules and laws – which is what is actually
happening – Iran will have a different aspiration [than it has
today]... What is important is that Iran now has the backing it needs
in order to choose any direction it wants.
“The event yesterday at Natanz sent a crystal-clear message to the
West: the path you are following is mistaken... Iran is following two
paths: one, the path of rapid progress in its technical work, and two,
the gradual reduction of the IAEA’s access to its nuclear facilities...
“Under the current threatening and unjust conditions, Iran has decided
to employ a strategy of ambiguity. Since Iran’s nuclear dossier was
illegally returned to the U.N. Security Council, the eyes of the IAEA
– the intelligence agency of the West – are finding it more difficult
every day [to monitor Iran’s activities]. When [the IAEA] reported on
[Iran’s nuclear dossier] to the Security Council last winter, Iran
announced that it would no longer be implementing the Additional
Protocol. A few months later, when sanctions resolution 1737 was
issued, Iran began to install 3,000 centrifuges at Natanz... When
sanctions resolution 1747 was passed, Iran further reduced IAEA access
[to its nuclear facilities] by stopping the implementation of the
agreements connected to the ‘Safeguards Agreement.’
“Now, when less than 15 days of the two-month extension given to Iran
under 1747 remain, Iran celebrates its entrance into the club of the
[countries] producing nuclear fuel on an industrial [scale]. The path
is completely clear... From now on, Westerners must expect a shock
from Iran at any moment. It is true that our hands are tied in the
Security Council, and that we have no great ability to restrain their
[i.e. the West’s] aggression. But the Westerners must not forget that
Iran’s hands are completely free in its nuclear facilities, and that
any sanctions resolution in New York... accelerates our technological
progress at Natanz. The new surprise has begun...
“According to [Iran’s] obligations under the agreement [with the
IAEA], it is required to inform the IAEA only 180 days before bringing
nuclear material into its facilities. That is, Iran... can patiently
plan and build the facilities it wants, and inform the IAEA [only]
when the work is finished. True, under the ‘Safeguards Agreement,’
(known as Section 3.1), any country that recognizes [the agreement]
must inform the IAEA about its nuclear facilities as soon as it begins
construction (not [180 days] before the facility begins operation).
But Iran – which implemented this agreement since May 2003 –
announced following sanctions resolution 1747 that it would stop
[abiding by Section 3.1]... This is precisely the strategy of
ambiguity.”(13)
In another editorial, published April 11, 2007 and headlined “Duel
with an Unloaded Gun,” Kayhan said, “Now America has expended all the
bullets in its clip. Now, it is Iran that will decide, in the face of
the shocked world, on the ‘news’ and the ‘event’ with which it will
strike the superpowers at their weak points and their Achilles heel.
Iran still has great wisdom in its clip – and each bullet of wisdom
prepares the ground for new opportunities, and makes Iran’s hands more
skilled... America is now dealing with the deadly hail of Iran’s
wisdom...”(14)
Resalat: Iran Has Become an Influential Force on a Global Scale
An article published April 11, 2007 by the conservative daily Resalat
stressed that Iran’s entrance into the club of countries producing
nuclear fuel on an industrial scale had been attained by relying
solely on domestic capabilities. It also stated that the West was
helpless in the face of this achievement, and that whether it
continued to object to Iran’s nuclearization or recognized its right
to do so, Iran had won. The following are the main points of the
article:
“On the day of the nuclear celebrations, Iran took another
[significant] step on the path to the country’s progress and
flowering. With the beginning of the production of nuclear fuel on an
industrial [scale], Iran has joined the limited group of countries
that [possess this capability]. When it declared that it was producing
nuclear fuel on an industrial [scale], Iran reached the point of no
return of nuclear technology, and today we are recognized as an
influential power in the regional and world balance.
“The phenomenal progress of Iran’s scientists in producing nuclear
fuel and in injecting [UF6] gas into 3,000 centrifuges is
significant... because no foreign country or organization helped Iran
in the slightest, and because Iran’s nuclear technology is completely
domestic...
“Now, in light of their progress, which brings pride to the sons of
the Iranian people, the powers of arrogance [i.e. the West, headed by
the U.S.] stand before two paths: Either they continue on the path of
their hostility towards Iran – and if they do, they will make the
Iranian people determined to conquer the highest peaks of science – or
they officially recognize the legal right of the Iranian people, and
stop being stubborn. In either case, victory will be with the great
Iranian people... Our experience with the difficulties raised by
Russia in operating the Bushehr nuclear reactor, and its failure to
send nuclear fuel to this reactor, have proven that others cannot be
trusted...”(15)
Tehran Times Editor: Recognize Iran’s Nuclear Rights – Or “The World
Will Again Witness the Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons”
In an article in the Iranian daily Tehran Times, which is identified
with Iran’s Foreign Ministry, Pervez Ismaili, who is also the
editor-in-chief of the conservative Iranian news agency Mehr, stated
that the West must recognize Iran’s nuclear rights, because Iran had
reached the point of no return in its nuclear program. The following
are the main points of the article, in the original English:
“...What happened in Iran on Monday provides a great opportunity for
the international community. In the current situation, particularly
since the 1990s, all nuclear tensions are focused on the idea that
there is only a short distance between attaining the expertise
required for gaining access to the complete nuclear fuel cycle to
produce nuclear fuel for peaceful purposes and using that ability to
produce nuclear weapons...
“However, the West’s severe reaction to Iran’s transparent nuclear
measures will certainly encourage developing countries to limit
transparency or even to establish secret underground installations and
eventually withdraw from the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) in
order to maintain their national interests... If the international
community fails to resolve the current crisis as soon as possible by
accepting Iran’s model, the world will again witness the proliferation
of nuclear weapons and other weapons of mass destruction in the near
future, regardless of the outcome of the confrontation with
Iran...”(16)
* Y. Mansharof is a research fellow at MEMRI.
Endnotes:
(1) The declaration was postponed twice: It was meant to be delivered
in February 2007, in the context of the “Ten Days of Fajr”
celebrations marking the victory of the Islamic Revolution, and then
on the Persian New Year, March 21, 2007.
(2) In mid-March 2007, Iranian Atomic Energy Organization deputy
director Mohamed Saeedi revealed that Iran had already attained the
know-how necessary for a nuclear fuel cycle and for constructing
nuclear reactors, and also said that Iran had begun to use this
know-how. See MEMRI TV Clip No. 1404,
http://www.memritv.org/search.asp?ACT=S9&P1=1404, March 13, 2007.
(3) Rooz, April 10, 2007.
(4) See MEMRI Inquiry and Analysis No. 317, “Iranian Domestic
Criticism of Iran’s Nuclear Strategy,” January 24, 2007,
http://memri.org/bin/articles.cgi?Page=countries&Area=iran&ID=IA31707.
(5) IRNA, Kayhan (Iran), April 10, 2007
(6) Kayhan (Iran), April 10, 2007.
(7) IRNA (Iran), April 10, 2007.
(8) Mehr (Iran), April 9, 2007.
(9) IRNA (Iran), April 10, 2007.
(10) Kayhan (Iran), April 11, 2007.
(11) Jomhour-ye Eslami (Iran), April 11, 2007.
(12) Kayhan (Iran), April 11, 2007.
(13) Kayhan (Iran), April 10, 2007. In an April 9, 2007 article, the
Sobh-e Sadeq weekly, which is the mouthpiece of Iran’s Supreme Leader
Khamenei circulated among the Revolutionary Guards, notes that in a
letter given to IAEA chairman Mohammad Al-Baradei on March 29, 2007,
Iran informed the IAEA that it was suspending its implementation of
the Safeguards Agreement, and thus “from this moment on, Iran is not
obligated to notify the IAEA of its decisions [regarding] the
construction of new nuclear facilities.” Sobh-e Sadeq, April 9, 2007.
(14) Kayhan (Iran), April 11, 2007.
(15) Resalat (Iran), April 11, 2007.
(16) Tehran Times (Iran), April 11, 2007.
*********************
The Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI) is an independent,
non-profit organization that translates and analyzes the media of the
Middle East. Copies of articles and documents cited, as well as
background information, are available on request.
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