Where All Despots End Up: Five top Yemeni officials in Saudi for treatment

AP

"Five top members of the government were sent to Saudi Arabia for treatment of wounds they suffered in a rebel rocket attack on the presidential palace, the official government news agency reported today. President Ali Abdullah Saleh was slightly injured....

As for Saleh's injuries, Deputy Information Minister Abdu al-Janadi spoke of only "scratches to his face."[Hopefully 4-inches deep.] But there were indications the injuries may have been more severe. Saleh, in his late 60s, was taken to a Defense Ministry hospital, while officials promised repeatedly that he would soon appear in public. But by late Saturday morning, state television had aired only an audio message from the president, with an old still photo....."

Gazans try to storm Egyptian border crossing

AP

"Palestinian travellers say dozens of angry Gazans attempted to storm a crossing at the Egyptian border but were pushed back.

The commotion came just a week after Egypt permanently reopened the crossing and lifted travel restrictions on the Gaza Strip.

Several travelers at the Rafah crossing say about 200 people waited to cross into Egypt today but were denied entry.

Dozens then pushed up against a terminal fence, until Hamas forces cordoned off the area. The witnesses spoke on condition of anonymity, fearing for their own safe passage.

It wasn't immediately clear why the Gazans were prevented from crossing into Egypt.
Gaza's Hamas rulers have complained that despite Egypt's ending of its four-year blockade, there are still limitations on Palestinian travel. "

A Weak Position by HRW, but Better Than Nothing: Yemen: Other States Should Freeze Officials' Assets

Forces and Gangs Kill Protesters, Attack Medical Workers in Taizz

June 4, 2011

"(Tunis) - The Yemeni government's escalating violence against largely peaceful protesters and medical workers should prompt countries around the world to freeze foreign assets of President Ali Abdullah Saleh and his top security officials, Human Rights Watch said today. Other countries should also ban all exports of arms and security equipment to Yemen, Human Rights Watch said.

During the three-day rampage in Taizz, beginning May 29, 2011, and followed by an additional attack on June 3, state security forces, in concert with pro-government assailants, shot dead at least 19 people, including a young boy and a man who bled to death after troops forced a doctor to stop tending him, witnesses and doctors told Human Rights Watch. Doctors pronounced at least eight other protesters clinically dead. They said the clashes left at least 262 people wounded. Security forces and armed gangs also burned and razed protesters' tents to force them from their sit-in site, fired on medical facilities using live ammunition, prevented medical workers from treating wounded protesters, and detained a doctor and four nurses along with two dozen protesters, the doctors and witnesses said.

"First the security forces kill and wound protesters, then they keep medical workers from treating the wounded and raze the protesters' camps to wipe out all traces of them," said Joe Stork, deputy Middle East director at Human Rights Watch. "Foreign countries need to respond. They should freeze the assets of the president and other top officials until these horrendous abuses stop and those responsible are brought to account."......

..... The US, the EU, and Gulf states have condemned serious human rights violations and stepped up calls for the president to relinquish power, but have stopped short of imposing arms embargoes and individual sanctions similar to those in place against officials in Syria and Libya....."

Report: U.S. to offer Turkey major role in Mideast talks if it stops Gaza flotilla

The U.S. government is considering to offer Turkey a deal in which Ankara would stop a second Gaza flotilla that is due to depart later this month in exchange for the opportunity to host an Israeli-Palestinian peace summit in Ankara, the Turkish newspaper Today's Zaman reported Friday.

Israel has been preparing to block the second aid flotilla sailing from Turkey to Gaza, one year after the Israel Defense Forces' deadly raid on the first Gaza flotilla in which nine Turkish activists died. Turkey has demanded Israel apologize for the raid in order to restore Turkish-Israeli ties.

We are all Hamza's mothers Silent protest in Damascus

مؤتمر العرب وتركيا - الجلسة الافتتاحية - د.عزمي بشارة- 1/2

مؤتمر العرب وتركيا - الجلسة الافتتاحية - د.عزمي بشارة- 1/2


مؤتمر العرب وتركيا - الجلسة الافتتاحية - د.عزمي بشارة- 2/2

The Cowardly Lebanese "Army" is at it, Again! They Miss Serving Tea to the IOF: Lebanon army bans demonstrations near Israel border

"TYRE, Lebanon — Lebanon has banned all demonstrations near the Israeli border as the Palestinians gear up to mark 44 years since the seizure of the West Bank and Gaza Strip in the Six Day War, a security official told AFP on Friday.

"The army has taken the decision to ban any demonstration south of the Litani (river) and particularly at the border," the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

"The army will not allow anyone to approach the border."[The Watchdog for Israel??]

Palestinians in Lebanon and other Arab states neighbouring Israel had said they planned to march on the Jewish state's borders on Sunday to mark the anniversary, known in Arabic as the "Naqsa" or "setback."

Organisers of the protest said in a statement that the march had been cancelled because of the ban, and instead called on Palestinians in Lebanon to stage sit-ins and gatherings on Sunday inside the refugee camps....."

Lebanese Soldiers Serve Tea To Israeli Soldiers in Marjayoun

Been There, Done That, But it did Not Help the Pharaoh! Syrian Internet Networks Shut Down as Protests Intensify

"June 3 (Bloomberg) -- About two-thirds of Syria’s Internet networks became unreachable today as protests against President Bashar al-Assad intensified.

Starting early this morning, the routes to 40 of 59 networks were withdrawn from the global routing table, security firm Renesys said on its website. The country’s Web traffic depends on domestic operator Syriatel Mobile Telecom SA, the company said.

Syrian security forces killed more than 60 people in the town of Hama and injured as many 20 people in Deir Al-Zour as thousands demonstrated today after prayers in Hama, Damascus and the province of Idlib, Mahmoud Merhi, head of the Arab Organization for Human Rights, said today. Gunfire was heard also in Nawa in the south, he said, adding that the central towns of Rastan and Talbiseh are surrounded by tanks and troops.

Spokesmen for the Syrian Ministry of Communications and Technology and Syriatel couldn’t immediately be reached to comment.

In several North African and Middle Eastern countries, a “critical battle” is taking place for control of mobile-phone connections and Internet access, Amnesty International said last month after demonstrations against governments in Tunisia and Egypt...."

Al-Quds Al-'Arabi Cartoon, by Emad Hajjaj

The Only Way to Remove Them!

شام - معرة النعمان - لأمن يهرب من متظاهري الحرية

A Video Sent Today From Inside Syria: The Brutal "Security" Forces Running AWAY From Angry Protesters!

شام - معرة النعمان - لأمن يهرب من متظاهري الحرية

Al-Jazeera Video: Syria's brutal crackdown continues

The Determination of the Arab Revolutions

Autumn of the Autocrats?

A VERY GOOD PIECE
By ESAM AL-AMIN
CounterPunch

"After the relatively swift triumphs of the Tunisian and Egyptian revolutions in deposing their dictators earlier this year, other Arab dictators drew a different set of lessons than their populations did.

Fed up with decades of repression, corruption, and the break down of state institutions, as well as the complete loss of faith in any meaningful political or social reforms in their societies, people across the Arab world this spring have waged simultaneous mass movements to force sweeping changes.

Arab autocrats, sustained for decades by the powerful security state, were shocked and startled as they observed in horror the dismantling of the security apparatuses in Tunisia and Egypt, facing fearless populace willing to sacrifice their lives to liberate themselves from the yoke of tyranny and regain their freedoms and dignity....

However, the authoritarian regimes drew different lessons from the Tunisian and Egyptian experience. They did not see the power and determination of the people but the weakness of the regimes and fragility and indecisiveness of its leaders.

In each case, though engulfed in its own particular circumstances and distinct features, the overall framework of how each regime dealt with its own popular uprising is strikingly similar.....

Ultimately, the main strategy of each regime is to regain the initiative from the streets so they continue to use these different tactics in order to split the opposition or wear down the people. Endless promises, delay tactics, and old style propaganda techniques and maneuvers are utilized. President Saleh employed his infamous delaying schemes to wear down the opposition, thus promising to step down five different times as a result of the Gulf Cooperation Council initiative, only to renege each time. Eventually, the GCC itself completely abandoned its own initiative. The Syrian president officially lifted the state of emergency. Yet since then, over 1200 people have lost their lives and over 12,000 have been detained without trial. Electricity as well as water and phone lines were cut off from some cities that were under siege by the military for many days.

....In essence, the dictators and their cronies are fighting, not just to stay in power, but also to literally escape punishment for their crimes. But perhaps the most brutal and effective tactic to derail any peaceful revolution is to drag the country into civil war.

Regional players such as Israel and the Saudi ruling family, as well as other international players are very nervous about the popular discontent and the changes sweeping the region.....

People in the Arab world are instead determined to rely on themselves with an uncompromising will to continue their just struggle for freedom and dignity echoing the voice of another young leader in the Latin American jungles many decades ago, as Che Guevara reminded his comrades “Until victory always” but “better to die standing, than to live on your knees.” "

Yemen: attack on president keeps observers guessing

Confusion reigns in Yemen over President Saleh's injuries. Whatever the truth, the country is facing a decisive moment

Brian Whitaker
guardian.co.uk, Friday 3 June 2011

"I started this morning planning to write a general blog post about Yemen, but events took a dramatic turn this afternoon – and are still developing. Let's start with the official version. The presidential palace in Yemen was hit by shells on Friday. Government sources said at first that President Saleh was unhurt and would be giving a news conference within an hour.

The news conference didn't happen and the new line seems to be that the president has been slightly injured and is now in hospital.

At present, there is no way of knowing if this is true. Being taken to hospital could explain why Saleh hasn't given the promised news conference. So would being killed. We can't be absolutely sure that Saleh is still alive until he is seen on television talking about what happened.

If he were dead, Yemeni officials wouldn't necessarily say so until the resulting power vacuum had been filled. Similarly, if his injuries were serious, officials might still be expected to describe them as slight....."

Guardian Video: Sana'a Friday prayers rally piles pressure on Yemen's ruler

As the presidential palace is hit by a rocket attack, tens of thousands of anti-regime protesters in central Sana'a demonstrate against Ali Abdullah Saleh after Friday prayers

Yemen, Bahrain, Syria and Middle East unrest – live updates

The Guardian

"The Associated Press's latest dispatch from Sanaa has an updated casualty count, saying that six guards at the presidential palace were killed and seven top officials injured, quoting an "official" who was at the scene:

A volley of three rockets hit Saleh's presidential compound Friday as he and other officials were praying at a mosque inside, the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the situation. Six presidential guards were killed, according to a medical official.

Seven top officials were wounded, including the prime minister, the deputy prime minister, the parliament speaker and the governor of Sanaa, the official said. The most serious injuries were to Sanaa's governor Nooman Dweid, and Deputy Prime Minister Rashad al-Alimi, who is also the president's top security adviser and who remained unconscious from his wounds, the official said....."

'Dozens killed' in fresh Syria protests

Activists say 34 people killed in the city of Hama during one of the largest anti-government protests in the uprising.

Al-Jazeera

"Syrian security forces have opened fire on one of the largest anti-government protests in the 10-week uprising so far, leaving at least 34 people dead in the central city of Hama, activists said.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the victims were killed on Friday as security forces dispersed a rally of more than 50,000 people in a city where thousands died in a failed 1982 revolt against the government.

The deaths came as president Bashar al-Assad's forces renewed their assault on towns seen as key to the demonstrations calling for an end to his family's 40-year rule.

Rami Abdul-Rahman, director of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, said the Hama protest was among the largest yet in the uprising that began in mid-March. He said security forces also shot dead one person in the village of Has in the northern province of Idlib........

'Children's Friday'

The opposition had called for Friday's nationwide rallies to commemorate the nearly 30 children killed during the uprising.

In the southern city of Deraa, where the uprising began 10 weeks ago, scores of people rallied in the city's old quarter, chanting "No dialogue with the killers of children," an activist said.

The protesters were referring to a decree by Assad to set up a committee tasked with leading a national dialogue.

The call for protests came after a video surfaced earlier this week on YouTube, Facebook and websites featuring Hamza al-Khatib, a 13-year-old boy whose tortured and mutilated body was returned to his family weeks after he disappeared during the protests.

The boy has since become a symbol to Syria's uprising and many people carried his posters during anti-regime rallies this week."

A Sample of Fresh Videos From Inside Syria, Documenting Protests Against the Bloody Regime Today, Friday June3, 2011.

شام - حوران - مظاهرات جمعة أطفال الحرية 3-6-11 ج1



شام - حوران - مظاهرات جمعة أطفال الحرية 3-6-11 ج2



شام - حوران - مظاهرات جمعة أطفال الحرية 3-6-11 ج3



شام - عامودا - مظاهرات جمعة أطفال الحرية 3-6 ج1



شام - عامودا - مظاهرات جمعة أطفال الحرية 3-6 ج2



شام - حوران - المسيفرة - جمعة أطفال الحرية 3-6 ج1

أفكار ميثاقية لأي ثورة عربية ديمقراطية

"تلح ضرورة توفر أفكار ومبادئ ميثاقية لأي ديمقراطية عربية قادمة يقوم على أساسها عهد بالالتزام بقيم الثورة بين قوى الثورة وجمهورها وبين القوى السياسية المتنافسة المؤهلة للحكم. وليس المقصود هو مبادئ دستورية أو فوق دستورية، بل ترويج أفكار ومبادئ وقيم تستند إليها عملية صياغة مبادئ الدولة الديمقراطية العربية. بعضها يصلح أن يكون في الدستور، وبعضها قيم ثاوية في أساسه، وأخرى لا يمكن أن يشملها دستور، ولكنها توجه السياسات إذا ما تحولت إلى شبه مسلمات يمكن أن تكنى بـ "قيم الثورات العربية الديمقراطية ومقاصدها".

ونحن نستخدم هذه العبارة مع درايتنا بالنقاش الدائر بعد كل ثورة حول تغير مصادر الشرعية. ما هو المصدر الجديد للشرعية؟ هل هي مبادئ فوق دستورية، أم هي إرادة الأغلبية؟ فالمبادئ فوق الدستورية تحتاج لمن يضعها، وإرادة الأغلبية تصلح لتغيير الحكومات مرة كل بضعة أعوام وليس لوضع الدستور.

فلا يجوز تغيير الدستور بشكل متواتر، وذلك ليس فقط لأن الأغلبية متقلبة، بل أيضا لأنه يجب أن يستند إلى مبادئ راسخة. ومهما قلبنا بسؤال الدجاجة والبيضة هذا وبحثنا عن مصادر مطلقة فوق الآني والراهن، فإنه لا بديل عن ترسخ مبادئ وقيم متفق عليها تحكم الحياة السياسية. ولا بديل عن محاولة صياغتها والتناقش حولها
.....
أفكار ميثاقية:
.....
لكي يمكن انتخاب النظام دوريا لا بد من حريات سياسية: حرية الرأي، وحرية الوصول للمعلومات، وحرية الاجتماع والتنظيم
....
المواطنية هي التجسيد الحقوقي الفردي لتشكل الأمة ذات السيادة, والديمقراطية هي أرقى أشكال ممارسة المواطنية بتجسيدها للمواطنية عبر الأمة الديمقراطية سيدة ذاتها ومصيرها
...."

Seymour Hersh: Despite Intelligence Rejecting Iran as Nuclear Threat, U.S. Could Be Headed for Iraq Redux

"In his latest article for the New Yorker magazine, Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative journalist Seymour Hersh says the United States might attack Iran based on distorted estimates of Iran’s nuclear and military threat – just like it did with Saddam Hussein’s government in Iraq. Hersh reveals that despite using Iranian informants and cutting edge surveillance technology, U.S. officials have been unable to find decisive evidence that Iran has been moving enriched uranium to an underground weapon-making center...."

Seymour Hersh on the Arab Spring, "Disaster" U.S. Wars in Afghanistan and Pakistan, and the Looming Crisis in Iraq

"Veteran investigative reporter Seymour Hersh assesses the popular uprisings sweeping the Middle East and North Africa amidst ongoing U.S. wars in Afghanistan, Iraq and Pakistan. Despite touted gains and an upcoming U.S. military withdrawal deadline in Iraq, Hersh says: "Whatever you’re hearing, Iraq is going bad ... It’s sectarian war, and the big question will be whether we pull out or not." On the uprisings, Hersh says Saudi Arabia—fearing an overthrow of the regional order—is driving the embattled regimes’ attempts to crush the protests...."