Monday, February 27, 2012
Israeli report says West Bank Palestinians may turn to violence, but 3rd intifada is ‘unlikely’ this year
Monday, 27 February 2012
Third Palestinian intifada was “unlikely” this year, but the Palestinians will instead seek diplomatic isolation of the Jewish state. (Reuters)
Instability in the Middle East region, following the revolutions that swept several countries within the Arab Spring, as well as the stalled Palestinian-Israeli peace process, are liable push to the Palestinians in the West Bank to turn violent towards the Jewish state, Israel’s Haaretz said in a report published on Monday.
The report, citing the annual intelligence assessment of the Israeli Foreign Ministry, also warned against a possible military operation in Gaza and said that it might generate a severe response from Egypt.
The report said that a third Palestinian intifada was “unlikely” this year, but the Palestinians will instead seek diplomatic isolation of the Jewish state.
“This report, which is more than 100 pages long, judges that an explosion of generalized violence in the form of a third intifada is unlikely,” said an official, who described the report to AFP on condition of anonymity.
The report, citing the annual intelligence assessment of the Israeli Foreign Ministry, also warned against a possible military operation in Gaza and said that it might generate a severe response from Egypt.
The report said that a third Palestinian intifada was “unlikely” this year, but the Palestinians will instead seek diplomatic isolation of the Jewish state.
“This report, which is more than 100 pages long, judges that an explosion of generalized violence in the form of a third intifada is unlikely,” said an official, who described the report to AFP on condition of anonymity.
The report, he said, is produced by the ministry’s intelligence service and was recently given to the government.
“The editors of this document were charged with a round-up of the past year and envisaging different scenarios for the current year,” he said.
“For the Palestinians, they judged that they will continue to seize all opportunities to isolate Israel on the international stage,” he added, referring in particular to Palestinian efforts to obtain full United Nations membership.
“There is little chance that negotiations will resume to the extent that the Arab regimes do not support dialogue with Israel,” he said.
“The document also states that the Palestinians have no negotiations plan or proposed political settlement -- their sole goal is to put pressure on Israel.”
The report covers both internal Palestinian politics and regional changes in the wake of the Arab Spring, according to the source and the Haaretz report.
It judges the reconciliation between the Fatah movement led by Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas and Islamist group Hamas, and their attempts to form an interim government of independents, as “little more than a facade,” he said.
“Hamas will never let the Palestinian Authority set foot in Gaza again and the Palestinian Authority has no intention of making a place for Hamas in the West Bank.”
According to Haaretz, the report also warns that the rise of a new government in post-revolution Egypt could affect future Israeli offensives.
The report also noted that last year’s attack on the Israeli Embassy in Cairo indicated that the Egyptian “street” has succeeded in forcing its opinions on the military leadership.
Egypt’s ruling army is aware of the benefits of the peace agreement, but “there are some elements that are dissatisfied with parts of the agreement,” the report said.
“Incidents deemed provocative, such as a military operation in Gaza or in the Sinai, will likely lead to a tougher, sharper response than in the past,” the newspaper quoted the report as saying.
And on Iran, the document reportedly warned that Tehran will seek to continue with its nuclear program, which Israel fears masks a weapons drive, despite international sanctions, paying “prices it perceives as tolerable.”
Iran sees its subversive behavior and support for terror “as an important tool in solidifying its regional position and as a way to weaken its rivals, including Israel and the United States, and to settle accounts with them,” the report said.
“The editors of this document were charged with a round-up of the past year and envisaging different scenarios for the current year,” he said.
“For the Palestinians, they judged that they will continue to seize all opportunities to isolate Israel on the international stage,” he added, referring in particular to Palestinian efforts to obtain full United Nations membership.
“There is little chance that negotiations will resume to the extent that the Arab regimes do not support dialogue with Israel,” he said.
“The document also states that the Palestinians have no negotiations plan or proposed political settlement -- their sole goal is to put pressure on Israel.”
The report covers both internal Palestinian politics and regional changes in the wake of the Arab Spring, according to the source and the Haaretz report.
It judges the reconciliation between the Fatah movement led by Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas and Islamist group Hamas, and their attempts to form an interim government of independents, as “little more than a facade,” he said.
“Hamas will never let the Palestinian Authority set foot in Gaza again and the Palestinian Authority has no intention of making a place for Hamas in the West Bank.”
According to Haaretz, the report also warns that the rise of a new government in post-revolution Egypt could affect future Israeli offensives.
The report also noted that last year’s attack on the Israeli Embassy in Cairo indicated that the Egyptian “street” has succeeded in forcing its opinions on the military leadership.
Egypt’s ruling army is aware of the benefits of the peace agreement, but “there are some elements that are dissatisfied with parts of the agreement,” the report said.
“Incidents deemed provocative, such as a military operation in Gaza or in the Sinai, will likely lead to a tougher, sharper response than in the past,” the newspaper quoted the report as saying.
And on Iran, the document reportedly warned that Tehran will seek to continue with its nuclear program, which Israel fears masks a weapons drive, despite international sanctions, paying “prices it perceives as tolerable.”
Iran sees its subversive behavior and support for terror “as an important tool in solidifying its regional position and as a way to weaken its rivals, including Israel and the United States, and to settle accounts with them,” the report said.
Russia condemns ‘one-sided’ Syria meeting; China calls U.S. criticism ‘unacceptable’
Monday, 27 February 2012
Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov welcomed the constitutional referendum that Assad staged on Sunday amid the bloodshed as “an important step.” (Reuters)
Russia on Monday slammed as “one-sided” last week’s “Friends of the Syrian People” meeting in Tunis that condemned Damascus for its crackdown and vowed further sanctions against the Syrian regime, as China called “totally unacceptable” Washington’s denunciation of its stand on Syria.
“The meeting that was held in Tunis was clearly one-sided... It is clear to us that this meeting did not help create conditions that would stimulate all sides to seek a political solution,” Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov told reporters, according to AFP.
Russia boycotted the Tunis meeting after arguing that its Arab and Western participants were unfairly blaming one side of an “internal conflict” for violence that the opposition estimates has claimed more than 7,600 lives. China refused to attend meeting in Tunis as well.
“The meeting that was held in Tunis was clearly one-sided... It is clear to us that this meeting did not help create conditions that would stimulate all sides to seek a political solution,” Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov told reporters, according to AFP.
Russia boycotted the Tunis meeting after arguing that its Arab and Western participants were unfairly blaming one side of an “internal conflict” for violence that the opposition estimates has claimed more than 7,600 lives. China refused to attend meeting in Tunis as well.
Moscow has infuriated the West by refusing to single out President Bashar al-Assad’s regime over the deadly crisis and its assertion that both government forces and the opposition bear equal responsibility for the violence.
U.S. Secretary Hillary Clinton on Friday called Russia’s position “distressing.”
Lavrov was not asked about Clinton’s comments and did not volunteer any response of his own.
But he stressed that it is the West’s obligation to use its good standing with the Syrian opposition to call “on everyone who is shooting there to halt (the violence) as soon as possible.”
He also welcomed the constitutional referendum that Assad staged on Sunday amid the bloodshed as “an important step” and “movment toward democratization.”
U.S. Secretary Hillary Clinton on Friday called Russia’s position “distressing.”
Lavrov was not asked about Clinton’s comments and did not volunteer any response of his own.
But he stressed that it is the West’s obligation to use its good standing with the Syrian opposition to call “on everyone who is shooting there to halt (the violence) as soon as possible.”
He also welcomed the constitutional referendum that Assad staged on Sunday amid the bloodshed as “an important step” and “movment toward democratization.”
“Super arrogant” Washington
China, meanwhile, called “totally unacceptable” Clinton’s denunciation of its stand on Syria, and a top newspaper said that, after the Iraq war, Washington was “super arrogant” to claim to speak for Arab people.
China’s angry words came after Clinton on Friday called the Chinese and Russian veto of a U.N. resolution on Syria “despicable.”
“They are setting themselves not only against the Syrian people but also the entire Arab awakening,” Clinton said of China and Russia, which have resisted Western and Arab calls to push Syrian President Bashar al-Assad from power.
China’s defense of its policy was also vehement.
“This is totally unacceptable for us,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei told a daily briefing.
“China has always determined its stance on the Syrian issue proceeding from the peace and stability of Syria and the Middle East, and from protecting the long-term, fundamental interests of the Syrian and Arab peoples.”
The spreading bloodshed in Syria, where government forces have been bombarding neighborhoods held by opposition forces, has turned into a broader test pitting Western powers against China and Russia over how forcefully the world should intervene in civil turmoil.
The People’s Daily, the top newspaper of China’s ruling Communist Party, underscored that rift.
“The United States’ motive in parading as a ‘protector’ of the Arab peoples is not difficult to imagine. The problem is, what moral basis does it have for this patronizing and egotistical super-arrogance and self-confidence?” said a commentary in the paper that cited the U.S. invasion of Iraq.
“Even now, violence continues unabated in Iraq, and ordinary people enjoy no security. This alone is enough for us to draw a huge question mark over the sincerity and efficacy of U.S. policy,” it said.
Beijing and Moscow are traditionally resistant to international intervention in domestic upheavals, and Russia has close ties with the Syrian government.
On Feb. 5, China and Russia used their veto power as permanent members of the U.N Security Council to block a proposed resolution backing an Arab plan pressing Assad to step down.
The commentary in the People’s Daily repeated China’s argument that its unwillingness to take sides in Syria’s conflict best reflected the interests of that country's people.
“While U.S. foreign policy claims the moral high ground by trumpeting ‘democracy’ and ‘freedom’, Washington is also constantly flinging epithets at Russia and China,” it said.
The People's Daily commentary was published under the pen name “Zhong Sheng,” meaning “Voice of China,” which is often used to give the paper’s view on foreign policy issues.
Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong said his government hoped that a referendum in Syria on Sunday -- widely rejected by opposition groups as a figleaf for Assad’s power -- could open the way for peaceful reconciliation.
“The outside should not impose so-called plans on Syria,” said Hong. “We hope that this step will help advance a spirit of reform in Syria, launch political dialogue, and answer the reasonable demands of the Syrian people for change and for protection of their own interests.”
China’s angry words came after Clinton on Friday called the Chinese and Russian veto of a U.N. resolution on Syria “despicable.”
“They are setting themselves not only against the Syrian people but also the entire Arab awakening,” Clinton said of China and Russia, which have resisted Western and Arab calls to push Syrian President Bashar al-Assad from power.
China’s defense of its policy was also vehement.
“This is totally unacceptable for us,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei told a daily briefing.
“China has always determined its stance on the Syrian issue proceeding from the peace and stability of Syria and the Middle East, and from protecting the long-term, fundamental interests of the Syrian and Arab peoples.”
The spreading bloodshed in Syria, where government forces have been bombarding neighborhoods held by opposition forces, has turned into a broader test pitting Western powers against China and Russia over how forcefully the world should intervene in civil turmoil.
The People’s Daily, the top newspaper of China’s ruling Communist Party, underscored that rift.
“The United States’ motive in parading as a ‘protector’ of the Arab peoples is not difficult to imagine. The problem is, what moral basis does it have for this patronizing and egotistical super-arrogance and self-confidence?” said a commentary in the paper that cited the U.S. invasion of Iraq.
“Even now, violence continues unabated in Iraq, and ordinary people enjoy no security. This alone is enough for us to draw a huge question mark over the sincerity and efficacy of U.S. policy,” it said.
Beijing and Moscow are traditionally resistant to international intervention in domestic upheavals, and Russia has close ties with the Syrian government.
On Feb. 5, China and Russia used their veto power as permanent members of the U.N Security Council to block a proposed resolution backing an Arab plan pressing Assad to step down.
The commentary in the People’s Daily repeated China’s argument that its unwillingness to take sides in Syria’s conflict best reflected the interests of that country's people.
“While U.S. foreign policy claims the moral high ground by trumpeting ‘democracy’ and ‘freedom’, Washington is also constantly flinging epithets at Russia and China,” it said.
The People's Daily commentary was published under the pen name “Zhong Sheng,” meaning “Voice of China,” which is often used to give the paper’s view on foreign policy issues.
Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong said his government hoped that a referendum in Syria on Sunday -- widely rejected by opposition groups as a figleaf for Assad’s power -- could open the way for peaceful reconciliation.
“The outside should not impose so-called plans on Syria,” said Hong. “We hope that this step will help advance a spirit of reform in Syria, launch political dialogue, and answer the reasonable demands of the Syrian people for change and for protection of their own interests.”
Blast kills three people at Mogadishu soccer match
Monday, 27 February 2012
Al-Shabab insurgents have waged a brutal war to oust the Western-backed Somali government and a contingent of African Union forces protecting the weak transitional administration. (Reuters)
“A heavy explosion, presumably a roadside bomb, went off at the soccer pitch as the match was about to start. ... Three spectators were killed and seven others injured,” police Colonel Abdi Mohamed said.
Witnesses said the blast occurred as spectators were arriving at a pitch in the southern Hararyale neighborhood. One person was killed on the spot, while ambulance driver Mohamed Moalim said two died in hospital.
Abduhafid Bashir, a witness, said: “The explosion went off at a corner of the pitch before the game started. I saw the dead body of a young man.”
The insurgents have waged a brutal war to oust the Western-backed Somali government and a contingent of African Union forces protecting the weak transitional administration.
But the al-Qaeda-linked rebels are now have been weakened since Kenya and Ethiopia deployed forces late last year to the lawless Horn of Africa country to defeat the insurgents they blame for causing insecurity in the region.
The Kenyan forces in the far south have carried out aerial and ground assaults against the extremist militia, while Ethiopian troops in the west last week wrested control of the southern Baidoa town from the rebels.
A missile strike last week also killed four Shebab rebels and destroyed their vehicle, reportedly carrying foreign fighters, some 60 kilometers (35 miles) south of Mogadishu.
Yemen’s Saleh formally steps down after 33 years at helm, hands over power to Hadi
Monday, 27 February 2012
“I hand over the banner of revolution... to safe hands,” said Yemen’s former president Ali Abdullah Saleh (R), standing beside the newly-elected President Abdurabuh Mansur Hadi. (Reuters)
Yemen’s former president Ali Abdullah Saleh backed his successor Abdurabuh Mansur Hadi and said that the fight against al-Qaeda should continue.
“I hand over the banner of revolution... to safe hands,” said Saleh, the fourth veteran Arab leader to fall in just over a year, standing beside Hadi.
“I hand over the banner of revolution... to safe hands,” said Saleh, the fourth veteran Arab leader to fall in just over a year, standing beside Hadi.
Saleh urged friends and brothers to back efforts to rebuild the country after the destruction that was caused by the uprising that led to his ouster. Saleh spoke in Sana’a during the ceremony of handing in the power to his successor.
Yemen’s new president will serve for an interim two-year period as stipulated by a Gulf-brokered power transition plan signed by Saleh last November.
Hadi, meanwhile, cautioned that the past year of political turmoil that has crippled the economy and unleashed nationwide insecurity was not over yet, and appealed to Yemenis to “cooperate with the new leadership” to help the country emerge from the crisis.
He said he hoped that at the end of his two years in office, Yemen could have a peaceful transition of power.
“I hope we will meet in this room again... to bid farewell and welcome a new leadership,” Hadi said. “I hope that in two years, I will stand in President Ali Abdullah Saleh’s place and a new president will stand in mine.”
Hadi took the oath of office in front of Yemen’s parliament on Saturday, and in his first speech as new leader, vowed to fight against al-Qaeda and restore security across his impoverished nation.
“It is a patriotic and religious duty to continue the battle against al-Qaeda,” he said. “If we don’t restore security, the only outcome will be chaos.”
Hadi was elected in a Feb. 21 presidential poll in which he received 99.8 percent of the votes cast in an election that saw a 60 percent nationwide turnout.
Months of weakened central government control have been exploited by a regional wing of al-Qaeda, which has expanded its foothold in the south of the country near oil shipping routes through the Red Sea.
A suicide bombing for which the militant network claimed responsibility killed at least 26 people on Saturday, hours after Hadi was sworn in as president.
“We call on all the sons of the nation to stand together alongside the political leadership ... I call for national solidarity to confront terrorism, principally al-Qaeda,” said Saleh, who returned to Yemen last week from New York.
Saleh has said he will stay on the political scene as leader of his General People’s Congress (GPC) party, casting doubt on his commitment to relinquishing power.
Yemenis gathered outside the new president’s house on Monday demanding Saleh and his relatives be distanced from the military and security services, where they still wield influence.
“We came here to stress that the revolution is ongoing and to demand its second goal be achieved, namely the restructuring of the armed forces and the distancing of Saleh and his relatives from leadership of military and security units,” said Adel Abdullah, one of the protest organisers.
“We elected Hadi to be president of Yemen, not to be an employee of Saleh.”
Yemen’s new president will serve for an interim two-year period as stipulated by a Gulf-brokered power transition plan signed by Saleh last November.
Hadi, meanwhile, cautioned that the past year of political turmoil that has crippled the economy and unleashed nationwide insecurity was not over yet, and appealed to Yemenis to “cooperate with the new leadership” to help the country emerge from the crisis.
He said he hoped that at the end of his two years in office, Yemen could have a peaceful transition of power.
“I hope we will meet in this room again... to bid farewell and welcome a new leadership,” Hadi said. “I hope that in two years, I will stand in President Ali Abdullah Saleh’s place and a new president will stand in mine.”
Hadi took the oath of office in front of Yemen’s parliament on Saturday, and in his first speech as new leader, vowed to fight against al-Qaeda and restore security across his impoverished nation.
“It is a patriotic and religious duty to continue the battle against al-Qaeda,” he said. “If we don’t restore security, the only outcome will be chaos.”
Hadi was elected in a Feb. 21 presidential poll in which he received 99.8 percent of the votes cast in an election that saw a 60 percent nationwide turnout.
Months of weakened central government control have been exploited by a regional wing of al-Qaeda, which has expanded its foothold in the south of the country near oil shipping routes through the Red Sea.
A suicide bombing for which the militant network claimed responsibility killed at least 26 people on Saturday, hours after Hadi was sworn in as president.
“We call on all the sons of the nation to stand together alongside the political leadership ... I call for national solidarity to confront terrorism, principally al-Qaeda,” said Saleh, who returned to Yemen last week from New York.
Saleh has said he will stay on the political scene as leader of his General People’s Congress (GPC) party, casting doubt on his commitment to relinquishing power.
Yemenis gathered outside the new president’s house on Monday demanding Saleh and his relatives be distanced from the military and security services, where they still wield influence.
“We came here to stress that the revolution is ongoing and to demand its second goal be achieved, namely the restructuring of the armed forces and the distancing of Saleh and his relatives from leadership of military and security units,” said Adel Abdullah, one of the protest organisers.
“We elected Hadi to be president of Yemen, not to be an employee of Saleh.”
Nine killed as suicide car bomber hits Afghan airport over Quran burning row
Monday, 27 February 2012
Similar incidents of desecration of the Quran in the past have also sparked violence, although not as widespread and persistent as the riots and protests over the past week in Afghanistan. (Reuters)
A suicide car bomber has struck at the gates of Jalalabad airport in eastern Afghanistan, officials said, killing nine people in an attack insurgents said was revenge for U.S. troops burning copies of Quran.
The early Monday explosion comes after six days of deadly protests in Afghanistan over the disposal of Quran copies and other Islamic texts in a burn pit last week at a U.S. military base north of the capital, according to The Associated Press.
American officials have called the incident a mistake and issued a series of apologies. Afghan President Hamid Karzai has urged calm, saying that Afghans should not let the insurgents capitalize on their indignation to spark violence.
The early Monday explosion comes after six days of deadly protests in Afghanistan over the disposal of Quran copies and other Islamic texts in a burn pit last week at a U.S. military base north of the capital, according to The Associated Press.
American officials have called the incident a mistake and issued a series of apologies. Afghan President Hamid Karzai has urged calm, saying that Afghans should not let the insurgents capitalize on their indignation to spark violence.
Monday’s attack appeared to be a sign that the Taliban are seizing the opportunity to do just that.
An Afghan soldier and two local guards were among the dead, provincial police chief Abdullah Azem Stanikzai told AFP.
The bomber drove up to the gates of the airport -- which serves both civilian and international military aircraft -- shortly after dawn and detonated his explosives in a “very strong” blast, said Nangarhar provincial police spokesman Hazrad Mohammed.
An AP photographer saw at least four destroyed cars at the gates of the airport.
NATO forces spokesman Capt. Justin Brockhoff said that no international forces were killed in the early morning attack and that the installation was not breached by the blast.
The Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack, saying a suicide car bomber had driven up to the airport gate and detonated his explosives as international forces were changing from night to morning guard duty.
“This attack is revenge against those soldiers who burned our Quran,” Taliban spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid said in an email.
More than 30 people have been killed in protests and related attacks since the incident came to light this past Tuesday, including four U.S. soldiers.
On Sunday, demonstrators hurled grenades at a small U.S. base in northern Afghanistan and the ensuing gun battle left two Afghans dead and seven NATO troops injured.
Still, the top U.S. diplomat in Afghanistan said Sunday that the violence would not change Washington’s course.
With few signs of the crisis abating, the U.S. ambassador to Afghanistan said the United States should resist the urge to pull troops out of Afghanistan ahead of schedule.
“Tensions are running very high here. I think we need to let things calm down, return to a more normal atmosphere, and then get on with business,” Ambassador Ryan Crocker told CNN’s “State of the Union” in an interview from Kabul.
“This is not the time to decide that we are done here. We have got to redouble our efforts. We’ve got to create a situation that al Qaeda is not coming back,” he said, according to Reuters.
Under an international agreement, foreign combat forces are due to leave Afghanistan by the end of 2014.
In the most high-profile attack, two military advisers were found dead in their office at the Interior Ministry in the heart of the capital with shots to the back of their heads. The slayings inside one of the city’s most heavily guarded buildings raised doubts about safety as coalition troops continue their withdrawal.
The incident prompted NATO, Britain and France to recall hundreds of international advisers from all Afghan ministries in the capital. The advisers are key to helping improve governance and preparing the country's security forces to take on more responsibility.
A manhunt was under way for the main suspect in the shooting -- an Afghan man who worked as a driver for an office on the same floor as the advisers who were killed, Interior Ministry spokesman Sediq Sediqi said. He did not provide further details about the suspect or his possible motive.
The Taliban claimed that the shooter was one of their sympathizers and that an accomplice had helped him get into the compound to kill the Americans in retaliation for the Quran burnings.
The Pentagon said Sunday that Afghanistan’s defense and interior ministers had cancelled a visit to Washington this week to concentrate on addressing security concerns at home.
U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta “understands why that’s a priority and why they are unable to travel to Washington in the coming days,” Pentagon spokesman George Little said in a statement, according to AFP.
President Barack Obama has apologized for the burning of the Quran copies.
With the 2014 timetable unfolding, pressure is growing for an earlier pullout, especially among Washington’s allies in Europe, where the bloody and expensive war is deeply unpopular.
Similar incidents of desecration of the Quran in the past have also sparked violence, although not as widespread and persistent as the riots and protests over the past week.
Last April, seven foreign U.N. staff were killed when protesters over-ran a base in the northern city of Mazar-i-Sharif after a pastor from a fringe church in the United States deliberately burnt a copy of the Quran.
An Afghan soldier and two local guards were among the dead, provincial police chief Abdullah Azem Stanikzai told AFP.
The bomber drove up to the gates of the airport -- which serves both civilian and international military aircraft -- shortly after dawn and detonated his explosives in a “very strong” blast, said Nangarhar provincial police spokesman Hazrad Mohammed.
An AP photographer saw at least four destroyed cars at the gates of the airport.
NATO forces spokesman Capt. Justin Brockhoff said that no international forces were killed in the early morning attack and that the installation was not breached by the blast.
The Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack, saying a suicide car bomber had driven up to the airport gate and detonated his explosives as international forces were changing from night to morning guard duty.
“This attack is revenge against those soldiers who burned our Quran,” Taliban spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid said in an email.
More than 30 people have been killed in protests and related attacks since the incident came to light this past Tuesday, including four U.S. soldiers.
On Sunday, demonstrators hurled grenades at a small U.S. base in northern Afghanistan and the ensuing gun battle left two Afghans dead and seven NATO troops injured.
Still, the top U.S. diplomat in Afghanistan said Sunday that the violence would not change Washington’s course.
With few signs of the crisis abating, the U.S. ambassador to Afghanistan said the United States should resist the urge to pull troops out of Afghanistan ahead of schedule.
“Tensions are running very high here. I think we need to let things calm down, return to a more normal atmosphere, and then get on with business,” Ambassador Ryan Crocker told CNN’s “State of the Union” in an interview from Kabul.
“This is not the time to decide that we are done here. We have got to redouble our efforts. We’ve got to create a situation that al Qaeda is not coming back,” he said, according to Reuters.
Under an international agreement, foreign combat forces are due to leave Afghanistan by the end of 2014.
In the most high-profile attack, two military advisers were found dead in their office at the Interior Ministry in the heart of the capital with shots to the back of their heads. The slayings inside one of the city’s most heavily guarded buildings raised doubts about safety as coalition troops continue their withdrawal.
The incident prompted NATO, Britain and France to recall hundreds of international advisers from all Afghan ministries in the capital. The advisers are key to helping improve governance and preparing the country's security forces to take on more responsibility.
A manhunt was under way for the main suspect in the shooting -- an Afghan man who worked as a driver for an office on the same floor as the advisers who were killed, Interior Ministry spokesman Sediq Sediqi said. He did not provide further details about the suspect or his possible motive.
The Taliban claimed that the shooter was one of their sympathizers and that an accomplice had helped him get into the compound to kill the Americans in retaliation for the Quran burnings.
The Pentagon said Sunday that Afghanistan’s defense and interior ministers had cancelled a visit to Washington this week to concentrate on addressing security concerns at home.
U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta “understands why that’s a priority and why they are unable to travel to Washington in the coming days,” Pentagon spokesman George Little said in a statement, according to AFP.
President Barack Obama has apologized for the burning of the Quran copies.
With the 2014 timetable unfolding, pressure is growing for an earlier pullout, especially among Washington’s allies in Europe, where the bloody and expensive war is deeply unpopular.
Similar incidents of desecration of the Quran in the past have also sparked violence, although not as widespread and persistent as the riots and protests over the past week.
Last April, seven foreign U.N. staff were killed when protesters over-ran a base in the northern city of Mazar-i-Sharif after a pastor from a fringe church in the United States deliberately burnt a copy of the Quran.
AL Jazerra English in depth
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| Restoring harmony between Bangkok and the Malay Muslims of South Thailand | ||||||
| Peace can only come to South Thailand if freedoms and human rights are extended to all the country's citizens. Last Modified: 27 Feb 2012 15:59  | ||||||
 Thai policies of cultural assimilation have inflamed tensions in Thailand's largely Malay Muslim southern provinces [EPA] | ||||||
| This article is the fourth in a series by Ambassador Akbar Ahmed, a former Pakistani high commissioner to the UK, exploring how a litany of volatile centre/periphery conflicts with deep historical roots were interpreted after 9/11 in the new global paradigm of anti-terrorism - with profound and often violent consequences. Incorporating in-depth case studies from Asia, Africa, and the Middle East, Ambassador Ahmed will ultimately argue that the inability for Muslim and non-Muslim states alike to either incorporate minority groups into a liberal and tolerant society or resolve the "centre vs periphery" conflict is emblematic of a systemic failure of the modern state - a breakdown which, more often than not, leads to widespread violence and destruction. The violence generated from these conflicts will become the focus, in the remainder of the 21st century, of all those dealing with issues of national integration, law and order, human rights and justice. Washington, DC - On January 20, 2012, Jaesong Salae, a Muslim widow of a school janitor in the Pattani Province of South Thailand, was shot in a temple with a pistol by a lone gunman. At the time, she was sitting by her husband's grave reading the Quran and praying. The victim: a Malay Muslim. The perpetrator: a Malay Muslim. We ask ourselves: How could such a heartless and brutal act be committed against a fellow Muslim at a moment of such piety and vulnerability?
The Malay Muslims of Thailand's three southern border provinces, within which they compose roughly 80 per cent of the population, have been locked in a cycle of violence and retribution with the central Thai government in Bangkok. Dr David Kilcullen, the Australian anthropologist and counter-insurgency expert, called the widespread violence in South Thailand between the years 2004 and 2007 "second only to Iraq and Afghanistan". The Southern Border Police Operation Centre in Thailand reported that, by the end of 2011, 5,243 people had been killed in the southern border region since 2004. The victims include soldiers, policemen, civilians, teachers, monks, and insurgents - Muslims and Buddhists, Thai and Malay alike. Many of the attacks are acts of revenge against oppressive measures employed by the Thai security forces, including arbitrary arrests, torture, and extrajudicial killings. This anarchic conflict between Bangkok and the Malay militants consists mostly of constant, low-scale attacks by decentralised cells lacking formal leadership, a "network without a core". The violence can also be seen as a reaction against the Thai policies of cultural assimilation in the south. Despite being granted freedom to worship by the state, in practice the Malays are denied their ethnic identity, being declared "Thai Muslims", and are not granted the right to education in their own language. Formation of identity Malays in southern Thailand, as distinct from the dominant Thai culture, draw their identity from three sources: as Malays with their own language and cultural traditions, as Muslims, and as the heirs to the Sultanate of Patani, the historical Malay kingdom that comprised the three southern border provinces. These three pillars of "Malay-ness" are so closely bound as to be interchangeable and inseparable parts of one integral identity. This is partly evidenced by the term in the Malay language for converting to Islam, masok melayu, which literally means "to become Malay". The Patani Malays developed a distinct culture under the Patani Sultanate, seeing themselves as belonging to the broader Malay world. Founded in the 14th century, Patani was, for centuries afterwards, an important shipping centre for pepper in Southeast Asia, serving as an intermediary stop for shipments between the ports of Malacca and China. It was a centre of Islamic learning and scholarship, known as the "Cradle of Islam" in Southeast Asia. Patani produced a number of prominent Muslim intellectuals educated in Mecca and Cairo. A Dutch scholar visiting Mecca in the 1880s noted the extensive network of Patani scholars in the city, holding prominent positions as publishers, writers, and teachers of other Patani Muslims, who would then return to Patani and were held in the highest regard. Beginning in the 17th century, the Patani Sultanate came under the influence of Thai kings. The Thais received the bunga ma dan perak (golden and silver flowers) as a sign of tribute from Patani's rulers, yet still honoured their autonomy. But in 1909, Patani was fully annexed and integrated into the borders of present-day Thailand, with the Malay political leadership being replaced with Thai Buddhist bureaucrats and direct control from Bangkok. Religious and ethnic persecution under Thai rule resulted in a series of insurgencies following the annexation under the leadership of Malay elites. The violence was reined in under Prime Minister Prem Tinsulanond's government in the 1980s by an amnesty extended to former militants - and the setting up of new security and governance arrangements through the Southern Border Provinces Administrative Centre (SBPAC). This new administrative structure allowed Malays to participate in the political system and strove to integrate the Malay Muslim elite through a combination of political privileges and development funds. Deterioration With the election of Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra in 2001, the situation in the south - which had been gradually improving - quickly deteriorated because of a rigorous and heavy-handed centralisation of political power. Thaksin dissolved the special administrative arrangements and gave greater powers to the extremely unpopular security forces in the south. After 9/11, confused and contradictory statements emerged from Bangkok about possible al-Qaeda links with the Malay Muslims of South Thailand. To date, nothing concrete has been proven - but in the heated environment, whispers and rumours are sufficient to bring the dreaded security officials knocking at the door. In 2004, a string of attacks and reprisals between Malays and the Thai authorities marked a resurgence of violence that has continued to the present. Unlike the previous insurgencies under traditional Muslim leadership, the dismantlement of the old system has resulted in a chaotic lashing out, without clear leadership or goals.
In October 2004, the Thai military fired into a crowd of unarmed protesters incensed at the previous incidents, killing seven. Hundreds of men and boys were beaten and arrested and, then, stacked four to five people deep in large army transport trucks. Seventy-eight protesters died in Thai military custody from suffocation, or from being crushed to death. Violence intensifying Since the violence of 2004, the intensity of the conflict has increased, emerging in response to the many draconian and oppressive methods used to "mop up" the remaining resistance in the region. These methods included "shaking down" and torturing suspects in security cases, as well as an informal policy of extrajudicial killings. The Malay Muslims, responding to these measures, seemingly have zero tolerance for any other Malay Muslim associating with the Thai government in the southern provinces. Malay Muslims who are thought to collaborate with the security forces or work for the government - including teachers, janitors, and postmen - have been labeled munafik, or hypocrites, implying those who undermine Islam itself. They have increasingly become, along with their families, the targets of Malay Muslim violence over the past eight years, as seen by the tragic and brutal death of Jaesong Salae last month. This has torn the Malay community apart. With the widespread violence in South Thailand continuing, even escalating by some accounts, it is clear that a military solution has failed. Looking to past periods of peace provides lessons for resolving the Malay crisis. In the 1920s, King Vajiravudh, in response to early rebellions, granted the Malays a degree of autonomy including religious and cultural rights, a policy disrupted by renewed religious and ethnic persecution under Prime Minister Phibun in the 1930s. In the 1980s, Prime Minister Prem Tinsulanond similarly saw the need for addressing the conflict with a political solution sensitive to the cultural traditions of the Malay people. Yet this was halted with the intervention of Prime Minister Thaksin's security-first policies. In contrast to the oppressive and politically motivated measures of Prime Ministers Phibun and Thaksin stands the king, a revered figure of benevolence and compassion among the Thai people and an embodiment of Buddhist principles. One of the authors of this piece saw the reverence for the king first-hand growing up in Bangkok in the 1950s and 1960s. He witnessed people in cinema halls respectfully standing and bowing their heads in unison when the picture of the king came on the screen. The king was viewed by the Thai people - non-Muslims and Muslims alike - as a towering and benign figure of unity. He represented the accepting and compassionate traditions of Buddhism.The problems between Bangkok and South Thailand are not insuperable. As the upholder of religions according to the Thai constitution, the king is largely a benefactor of the Islamic faith across Thailand, paying for Muslims to undertake the Hajj pilgrimage and funding the construction of new mosques. Drawing on the example of past kings such as King Vajiravudh, the current king, King Bhumibol, should intervene. He must advocate religious and cultural freedom, autonomy, and the extension of human rights for all citizens of the nation. Only then can Thailand begin to work towards a solution to the state's security crisis and peace for the long-suffering people of South Thailand. The current fractious relationship between Bangkok and the Malay Muslims would then only be a tragic interlude in the history of Thailand. This article was written by Akbar Ahmed and Harrison Akins. Professor Akbar Ahmed is Ibn Khaldun Chair of Islamic Studies at American University in Washington DC and the former Pakistani High Commissioner to the United Kingdom. Harrison Akins is an Ibn Khaldun Chair Research Fellow at American University's School of International Service and is assisting Professor Ahmed on Ahmed's forthcoming study, Journey into Tribal Islam: America and the Conflict between Center and Periphery in the Muslim World, to be published by Brookings Press. The views expressed in this article are the author's own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeera's editorial policy. | ||||||
| Source: Al Jazeera | ||||||
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