Ethiopians return home to a bleak future

 More than 150,000 Ethiopians have been deported from Saudi Arabia in recent months.

Ethiopians return home to a bleak future - Features - Al Jazeera English

Ethiopians return home to a bleak future

 More than 150,000 Ethiopians have been deported from Saudi Arabia in recent months.

Ethiopians return home to a bleak future - Features - Al Jazeera English

Ukraine accuses Russia of invading Crimea

Ukrainian official says Moscow has deployed nearly 2,000 suspected troops to an airbase in tense southeastern region.

Ukraine accuses Russia of invading Crimea - Europe - Al Jazeera English

Ukraine accuses Russia of invading Crimea

Ukrainian official says Moscow has deployed nearly 2,000 suspected troops to an airbase in tense southeastern region.

Ukraine accuses Russia of invading Crimea - Europe - Al Jazeera English

Le double langage du Kremlin sur l'Ukraine

http://www.lemonde.fr/europe/article/2014/02/28/le-double-langage-du-kremlin-sur-l-ukraine_4375379_3214.html

Sébastopol : une base navale russe clé en Ukraine

La base de Sébastopol, ville d'Ukraine située dans le sud-ouest de la Crimée, sera-t-elle le lieu d'un nouveau siège, cent soixante ans après la guerre de Crimée, qui commença le 27 mars 1854 ? Probablement non, mais les tensions entre le nouveau pouvoir ukrainien, les russophones de Crimée et plus généralement l'est de l'Ukraine, et Moscou, en font un point d'appui pour les menées de la politique russe.

Sébastopol abrite la flotte russe, puis soviétique, de la mer Noire depuis que la ville a été fondée par l'impératrice Catherine II à la fin du XVIII^e siècle. Pendant la campagne de Russie, qui commence en juin 1941, « le siège de la ville est l'un des plus longs et des plus cruels de la seconde guerre mondiale. A sa libération, Sébastopol obtient le titre de "ville héros" et accède au panthéon de la Grande Guerre patriotique en devenant l'égale de Stalingrad ou Leningrad. »

http://www.lemonde.fr/europe/article/2014/02/28/pourquoi-la-base-militaire-de-sebastopol-est-essentielle-pour-la-russie_4375318_3214.html

World Bank freezes aid to Uganda over gay law

Despite the fact that i'm absolutely in favor of gay Rights, there is something that its hard to see as a good thing - if the world bank is really commited to human rights it should include women rights - they are victims of all forms of abuse, genital mutilation, honor bloodshed, daily humiliation, all promoted by men. Gay rights is only about men? Is there some debate regarding Uganda lesbians? Hard to believe!



World Bank freezes aid to Uganda over gay law - Africa - Al Jazeera English

Ukraine: Russia behind airport takeovers -

Interim government accuses Russia of invading southeastern Crimea region, as armed men seize two airports amid turmoil.

Ukraine: Russia behind airport takeovers - Europe - Al Jazeera English

In admitting Israeli attack, Hezbollah changed the rules

Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah’s statement that the attack was not on Hezbollah alone, but on all of Lebanon, poses a dilemma for the new government. The organization is trying to force the government into responding to an attack that at least some ministers see as a punishment aimed solely at Hezbollah, not the country. And for Israel, Hezbollah’s new tactic means the “room for denial” policy no longer provides an umbrella under which it can attack without claiming responsibility, and to a large extent, without fearing a response.

In admitting Israeli attack, Hezbollah changed the rules - Diplomacy and Defense Israel News | Haaretz

The geopolitics of the Ukraine crisis

How the power vacuum will reshape the balance of power in the region between Russia and the European Union.

The geopolitics of the Ukraine crisis - Opinion - Al Jazeera English

Al-Qaeda: The third generation?

Since early 2014, "Jabhat al-Nusra", a self-declared al-Qaeda affiliate, sided with the more nationalistic and liberal grouping of Free Syrian Army (FSA) against the relatively more hardline ISIS. 

The feud between the two al-Qaeda affiliates, which turned into firece fighting in the past few weeks, reflected a serious ideological rift among al-Qaeda rank and file organisations. Analysts generally agree that of the eight major armed factions in the Syrian opposition, al-Nusra and the ISIS are by far the most prominent. This is hardly due to their relative strength since there are many groups in the Syrian opposition that are much better armed with many more fighters. al-Nusra has no more than 6,000 active members, while ISIS boasts about 7,000 members, out of which only 4,000 engage in actual fighting.

Al-Qaeda: The third generation? - Opinion - Al Jazeera English

Syria says 175 fighters killed near Damascus

Syria says 175 fighters killed near Damascus - Middle East - Al Jazeera English

Israel’s distinguishing between Christian and Muslim Arabs is racism

To say that "Such a distinction is designed to spark conflicts between minorities in a divide-and-conquer style that breaches international agreements that Israel has signed. It pushes Israel into the ranks of the darkest states." - is to ignore the root of this kind of conflict: no separation between state and religion - family law already make this distinction; not every "arab" has the right to join the army (even within same ethnic group, some beduins are allowed to serve, others not, Druzes are ok, muslims with palestinian origin are enemies, and so on).  May be is better to make it clear instead of so much incoherence, denial and lies. Without separation between state and religion there will be always ground to separate citizens into different groups. If there is pluralism and democratic values, may be self-determination and identity conflicts may be taken more seriously than formal denial.The meaning of  "arabs" is so politicized in Israel that it denied jewish arabs their own arab identity. For a jewish brazilian with arab origin i have always been used to tell that many of my recipes are from my arab root, jewish, but arab. No brazilian-arab question this fact that many jews have so common with them. Why? Brazilian-arabs are manly christians and jews, both persecuted in their homeland, share same experiences and love same food. In Israel, if there is sense for making some kind of distinction it should before review the meaning of what is ti be an "arab". 



Israel’s distinguishing between Christian and Muslim Arabs is racism - Opinion Israel News | Haaretz

UN: Syrians supplanting Afghans as world's biggest refugee group

UN: Syrians supplanting Afghans as world's biggest refugee group - Middle East Israel News | Haaretz

Bashir in DRC

http://www.hrw.org/news/2014/02/25/sudan-president-dr-congo

Israel strikes area on Lebanon-Syria border

Israeli jets have bombarded an area on the Lebanon-Syria border,
reportedly hitting a Hezbollah position, a Lebanese security source and a
Syrian NGO said,


"Two Israeli raids hit a Hezbollah target on the border of Lebanon
and Syria," the source told AFP news agency. The Syrian Observatory for
Human Rights said the target was a Hezbollah "missile base".


Lebanon's state news agency also confirmed the airstrikes, however,
there was no immediate confirmation from Lebanese security officials,
and the Israeli military declined comment.

Israel strikes area on Lebanon-Syria border - Middle East - Al Jazeera English

Three scenarios for Kenya's ICC trials - Opinion - Al Jazeera English

ICC, an universal court for Africa?

Three scenarios for Kenya's ICC trials - Opinion - Al Jazeera English

Suicide bomber kills three in Lebanon near Syria border

A suicide bomber killed two Lebanese soldiers and a civilian with a car bomb at an army checkpoint in a Hezbollah stronghold in northeast Lebanon on Saturday, security sources said.

The Nusra Front in Lebanon - a militant Sunni group named after one of the factions fighting against President Bashar al-Assad in Syria - said it carried out the attack, in a statement posted on Twitter and a website used by militant groups.

Suicide bomber kills three in Lebanon near Syria border - Middle East Israel News | Haaretz

Suicide bomber kills three in Lebanon near Syria border

A suicide bomber killed two Lebanese soldiers and a civilian with a car bomb at an army checkpoint in a Hezbollah stronghold in northeast Lebanon on Saturday, security sources said.

The Nusra Front in Lebanon - a militant Sunni group named after one of the factions fighting against President Bashar al-Assad in Syria - said it carried out the attack, in a statement posted on Twitter and a website used by militant groups.

Suicide bomber kills three in Lebanon near Syria border - Middle East Israel News | Haaretz

Hundreds killed in Syria airstrike campaign

Syrian activists say hundreds of people have been killed in airstrikes targeting rebel-held areas over the past few days.

The Syrian government forces continues to use barrel bombs - explosives packed inside drums and thrown from helicopters - which have been condemned as indiscriminate weapons.

Hundreds killed in Syria airstrike campaign - Middle East - Al Jazeera English

UN unanimously adopts Syria aid resolution

Non-binding resolution calls for humanitarian aid convoys to be allowed access across war-torn Syria.

Last updated: 22 Feb 2014 18:04

UN unanimously adopts Syria aid resolution - Middle East - Al Jazeera English

EU to impose sanctions as Ukraine death count soars

U.S. Vice President Joe Biden Biden called on Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovich to immediately pull back police, snipers, military, paramilitary and irregular forces, the White House said Thursday.

Biden spoke by phone with Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk on Thursday to discuss violent protests in Ukraine that have killed 75 people, the White House said.

"They discussed steps the United States, Poland, and the European Union are taking to support an end to the violence and a political solution that is in the best interests of the Ukrainian people," the White House said in a statement.

EU to impose sanctions as Ukraine death count soars Israel News | Haaretz

Germany to assist Israelis in states where they have no embassy

Germany is to offer Israeli citizens consular assistance in states such as Indonesia or Malaysia where Israel has no official diplomatic representation, under a new deal to be signed by Angela Merkel when she visits Jerusalem next week.

Germany to assist Israelis in states where they have no embassy - Diplomacy and Defense Israel News | Haaretz

Obama to host Dalai Lama at White House

 China tells the US to cancel meeting with spiritual leader, warning that it will "seriously damage" ties.


Obama to host Dalai Lama at White House - Americas - Al Jazeera English

Ukrainian presidency says deal made at talks

 Statement says that "initial deal" agreed to bring an end to violence after all-night crisis talks.

Ukrainian presidency says deal made at talks - Europe - Al Jazeera English

Libya: State of Insecurity

 We return to Libya and investigate what NATO's humanitarian intervention has achieved after Gaddafi was overthrown

Libya: State of Insecurity - Fault Lines - Al Jazeera English

Dozens killed as mortars hit town in Iraq

 At least 22 people die when three mortar rounds strike crowded market in flashpoint area.

 

Dozens killed as mortars hit town in Iraq - Middle East - Al Jazeera English

EU imposes sanctions on Ukrainian officials

 Bloc agrees to put travel ban and asset freeze on officials as dozens of people are killed in the capital Kiev.

EU imposes sanctions on Ukrainian officials - Europe - Al Jazeera English

Deadly violence shatters Ukraine truce

 Clashes between police and protesters kill at least 70 as parliament demands withdrawal of security forces from square.


Deadly violence shatters Ukraine truce - Europe - Al Jazeera English

Australian policy not to blame for Indonesia incursions: review

http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/02/19/us-australia-indonesia-idUSBREA1I0BF20140219

Ukraine security force announces 'anti-terrorist' operation

Ukraine's state security service said on Wednesday it was launching an "anti-terrorist operation" across the country after the seizure of administrative buildings and arms and ammunition depots by "extremist groups".
http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/02/19/us-ukraine-sbu-idUSBREA1I18F20140219

Suicide bombers target Iranian center in Beirut

Two suicide bombers targeted the Iranian cultural center in Beirut on Wednesday, killing four people and themselves in an attack claimed by Sunni militants who said it was a response to the intervention of Iran and Hezbollah in the Syrian war.
The army said two cars packed with explosives had been used in the rush hour attack in the predominantly Shi'ite southern suburbs of Beirut. Similar tactics were used in a twin suicide attack on the nearby Iranian embassy in November.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/02/19/us-lebanon-blast-casualties-idUSBREA1I0PQ20140219

French, German, Polish ministers to visit Ukraine Thursday

 The foreign ministers of France, Germany and Poland will travel to Kiev on Thursday to assess the situation before a meeting in Brussels to decide whether to impose EU sanctions on Ukraine, French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius said on Wednesday.
Earlier, Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovich accused pro-European opposition leaders of trying to seize power by force after at least 26 people died in the worst violence since the former Soviet republic gained independence.
"With my Polish and German colleagues we have decided to go to Kiev tomorrow morning ... to gather the latest information before the meeting in Brussels," Fabius said alongside U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry.
Kerry said the United States was working closely with the European Union on the Ukraine crisis.
"President Yanukovich has the opportunity to make a choice. The choice is between protecting the people that he serves ... and (the) choice for compromise and dialogue versus violence and mayhem," Kerry said.
"We are talking about the possibility of sanctions or other steps with our friends in Europe and elsewhere in order to try to create the environment for compromise."

http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/02/19/us-ukraine-sanctions-ministers-idUSBREA1I1FY20140219

Britain sets out new test to limit EU migrant benefits

Britain laid out new rules on Wednesday designed to limit the access that migrants from other European Union states have to the country's welfare system.
The European Commission, which has previously warned Britain that European Union Freedom of movement rules were non-negotiable, said it would look closely at whether the proposals were against EU law.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/02/19/us-britain-immigration-test-idUSBREA1I1NQ20140219

Islamists order women to don veil in eastern Syria

Islamist rebels in eastern Syria have ordered women to put on the Islamic veil, warning that anyone not doing so would be held to account, in a concerted new attempt by hardliners to impose their strict views on society.
In a statement, an organization calling itself the Islamic Law Council of Deir al-Zor gave women until Saturday to don the face veil. It did not say what punishment would befall women who fail to comply with the order.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/02/19/us-syria-crisis-islamists-dress-idUSBREA1I1OX20140219

Delivery of $2 billion credit from Russia delayed until Friday: Ukraine government source

http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/02/19/us-ukraine-credit-idUSBREA1I1PL20140219

Libya to compensate women raped during 2011 uprising

Libya will offer compensation to women raped during the 2011 NATO-backed uprising which toppled Muammar Gaddafi, its justice minister said on Wednesday, touching a taboo subject.
Hundreds of women may have been raped during the eight-month conflict, according to the International Criminal Court, which has collected evidence that pro-Gaddafi forces used rape as a weapon to spread fear among its opponents.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/02/19/us-libya-rape-idUSBREA1I1PT20140219

Saudi Arabia jails seven men for up to 20 years for demonstrating

http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/02/19/us-saudi-sentences-idUSBREA1I1V920140219

Reluctant EU shifts course towards sanctions on Ukraine

 The European Union will on Thursday decide whether to impose financial and travel restrictions on Ukraine after the death of two dozen protesters in Kiev, even though diplomats have doubts about the effectiveness of sanctions.
Having said less than a week ago that the time was not right for sanctions on President Viktor Yanukovich and his government, officials changed tack after a police crackdown in Kiev left at least 26 people dead on Tuesday.
EU ambassadors discussed a series of possible steps including asset freezes and travel bans in talks on Wednesday, but left a decision on whether to impose sanctions to the EU's 28 foreign ministers, who will meet in Brussels on Thursday (from 1400 GMT).
In consultation with the EU, Washington was also considering the use of sanctions against those responsible for the violence in Ukraine, a senior U.S. official said.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/02/19/us-ukraine-europe-sanctions-idUSBREA1I20E20140219

U.S. considers reciprocating after Venezuela expelled diplomats

The United States said on Wednesday it was considering its response to Venezuela's expulsion of three U.S. diplomats and said this could include reciprocal action in Washington.
Venezuela ordered the expulsions on Monday, accusing the Americans of recruiting students to lead protests in Caracas that led to the most serious violence since President Nicolas Maduro's election in April.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/02/19/us-venezuela-usa-idUSBREA1I20M20140219

NATO warns Ukraine ties will suffer if army intervenes in crisis

NATO leaders echoed the United States on Wednesday in urging Ukraine's armed forces to stay out of the crisis there, warning Kiev that its relations with the Western alliance would suffer if the military did intervene.
"I strongly urge the Ukrainian government to refrain from further violence. If the military intervenes against the opposition, Ukraine's ties with NATO will be seriously damaged," NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen said in a statement.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/02/19/us-ukraine-nato-idUSBREA1I1XH20140219

Islamists kill 47 in attack in northeast Nigeria: police

 Gunmen from Nigeria's Boko Haram Islamist group attacked the northeastern town of Bama on Wednesday, opening fire on a school, shooting or burning to death 47 people and trashing the palace of a traditional ruler, officials and witnesses said.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/02/19/us-nigeria-violence-idUSBREA1I24T20140219

Obama: No revival of "Cold War" with Russia over Ukraine, Syria

 As the so-called ''Three Amigos'' summit wraps up in Mexico U.S. President Obama says the U.S. and Russia are not reviving a ''Cold War '' over Ukraine and Syria. . Deborah Lutterbeck reports.
http://www.reuters.com/video/2014/02/20/obama-no-revival-of-cold-war-with-russia?videoId=280181500&videoChannel=117760

Bulgarian police detain 120 after mosque attack

 Bulgarian police detained more than 120 people on Friday after hundreds of nationalists and soccer fans attacked a mosque in the country's second city Plovdiv, smashing its windows with stones.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/02/14/us-bulgaria-mosque-attack-idUSBREA1D1O820140214

Obama pledges $1 billion in loan guarantees for Jordan

http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/02/15/us-usa-jordan-loan-idUSBREA1E04L20140215

Syria adds opposition peace talks delegates to 'terrorist list'

http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/02/15/us-syria-crisis-blacklist-idUSBREA1E0QI20140215

Hezbollah says will quit Syria if Arabs stop meddling

Interesting point posed by Nasrallah, does he really think hezbollah is some sort of state, or outside intervention?  Alliance between Assad and Hezbollah is hard to be compared to same standards as rebels, foreign jihad and aid.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/02/16/us-syria-crisis-hezbollah-lebanon-idUSBREA1F0US20140216

Suspected Islamists kill 90 in Nigeria village raid: witnesses

 The Boko Haram gunmen surrounded the village of Izge, near the border with Cameroon, spraying it with bullets, setting off explosions and burning down dozens of houses, they said.
"As I am talking to you now, all the dead bodies of the victims are still lying in the streets," resident Abubakar Usman told Reuters by telephone. "We fled without burying them, fearing the terrorists were still lurking in the bushes."

http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/02/16/us-nigeria-violence-idUSBREA1F0RB20140216

Jakarta sees chilly ties with Australia until October: Indonesian government document

  Indonesia expects ties with Australia to remain on ice for at least six months given the time it will take to negotiate a code of conduct to govern intelligence gathering in the wake of reports Canberra spied on top Indonesians.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/02/16/us-indonesia-australia-ties-idUSBREA1F0VG20140216

Kerry: Climate change as dangerous as WMDs

Kerry continues to surprise, this time he thinks he can claim wmd are just like tsunamis! He is just forgetting that wmd are a creation of mankind, for warfare purpose. The fact that both can destroy humanity doesnot help the cause agaist wmp, instead, it seems to be a sort of manipulation - irresponsible as US foreign policy has been since Arab spring started!



Kerry: Climate change as dangerous as WMDs - Asia-Pacific - Al Jazeera English

Intervention en Syrie : comment les Américains ont lâché les Français

http://www.lemonde.fr/international/article/2014/02/15/intervention-en-syrie-comment-les-americains-ont-lache-les-francais-3-3_4367078_3210.html

Un « G5 du Sahel » pour le développement et la sécurité

Les présidents de la Mauritanie, du Mali, du Niger, du Burkina Faso et duTchad, réunis en mini-sommet dimanche 16 février à Nouakchott, ont créé le« G5 du Sahel », pour coordonner leurs politiques de développement et de sécurité, selon le communiqué final de leur réunion.

D'après le texte, ce nouveau groupe est « un cadre institutionnel de coordination et de suivi de la coopération régionale » et sa présidence a été confiée au chef de l'Etat mauritanien, Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz, par ailleurs nouveau président en exercice de l'Union africaine (UA).

Le G5 du Sahel ne « remplace nullement le Cilss |Comité inter-Etats de lutte contre la sécheresse au Sahel, qui regroupe 13 pays] ou d'autres organisations sous-régionales existantes, mais [il] permet une coordination entre les cinq pays qui partagent les mêmes défis », a précisé Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz devant la presse à la fin du mini-sommet, auquel ont participé ses homologues Ibrahim Boubacar Keïta (Mali), Mahamadou Issoufou (Niger), Blaise Compaoré (Burkina Faso) et Idriss Deby Itno (Tchad).

http://www.lemonde.fr/afrique/article/2014/02/16/un-g5-du-sahel-pour-le-developpement-et-la-securite_4367635_3212.html

http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/02/16/us-africa-sahel-g-idUSBREA1F0P520140216

Morsi due in court for espionage trial

Egypt's deposed President Mohamed Morsi is due in court on charges of espionage, along with 35 other defendants.

Morsi is accused of inciting murder and using violence against protesters during his presidency that ended after he was ousted by the military in July.

The charges in Sunday's proceedings relate to the deaths of at least 10 people who were taking part in rallies outside the presidential palace in December 2012.

He is also charged with conspiring with terrorist organisations. Prosecutors say Morsi worked with the Palestinian group Hamas and Lebanon's Hezbollah.

 due in court for espionage trial - Middle East - Al Jazeera English

DR Congo massacre may alter international law

 


Case to be decided on March 7 could represent a breakthrough for justice related to sexual crimes during war.

DR Congo massacre may alter international law - Features - Al Jazeera English

ICC to open war crimes probe in CAR

Paris to send 400 more soldiers to the Central African Republic as concern grows over the country's increasing violence. 


ICC to open war crimes probe in CAR - Africa - Al Jazeera English

France sends more troops to unrest-torn CAR

 Paris to send 400 more soldiers to the Central African Republic as concern grows over the country's increasing violence.


France sends more troops to unrest-torn CAR - Africa - Al Jazeera English

Al-Qaeda inmates freed in Yemen jail attack

 At least 14 inmates, mostly from al-Qaeda, have escaped from a
prison in Yemen's capital after heavily armed gunmen mounted a bomb,
grenade and gun assault on the main jail in Sanaa.


Eleven people were killed during the attack, a security source said. Seven
policemen were killed, two policemen and two gunmen were wounded, and
one of the attackers was captured, according to the interior ministry.

Al-Qaeda inmates freed in Yemen jail attack - Middle East - Al Jazeera English

Lebanese Sunnis fighting 'holy war' in Syria

 Initially, Lebanese who sympathised with
the rebels went to Syria on their own accord. But during the Qusair
battles, clerics led by Rafei called on people to cross the border to
fight Assad's forces and Hezbollah, and coordinated the entry of three
battalions into the war-torn country.

Lebanese Sunnis fighting 'holy war' in Syria - Features - Al Jazeera English

The rise of Yemen's Houthis

 Shia rebels who fought several wars against the government have made significant gains since President Saleh ceded power.



The Houthis could well be the biggest winners following the recent
upheaval in Yemen. Before the beginning of the uprising against the
regime of President Ali Abdullah Saleh in 2011 the group barely had any
hopes of expanding so quickly both as a major military force and as a
relatively accepted political entity within other parts of Yemen.

In
terms of religion, the Houthis are part of the Shia Zaidi, a branch of
the Shia Imamiya of Iran. The Zaidi believe that Muslims should be ruled
only by a descendant of Prophet Muhammad whom they call an Imam. Yemen
was ruled by such Imams for more than 1,000 years and their rule ended
only in 1962.

This is interesting because the Zaidi do not
represent a majority in Yemen. But the ideological differences between
them and the Sunni Shafi'i majority are not as big as in the cases of
Iraq and Iran. Both sects harmoniously lived together and prayed in the
same mosques for hundreds of years.

Now, the Houthis are seen as a
diversion, or an extremist offshoot that was only recently hatched amid
a delicate political context and ironically many fingers point to their
archenemy, former President Saleh, as the man behind their inception.

The
Houthi movement metamorphosed in the same manner as the Taliban from a
religious school into a religious military ideology. The school was
allegedly sponsored by the former president and built in Saada, a remote
province in northern Yemen, in the late 1990s. Saleh's idea was to form
a generation of religious fighters who could stand in the face of Sunni
Muslim Saudi Arabia's territorial expansionist aspirations and
sometimes "aggressions" against Yemen. At that time Yemen accused the
Saudis of repeatedly encroaching on swathes of land along the yet
unofficial borderline between the two countries.

But the Imam of
the school, Hussein Badreddin al-Houthi, had other plans in mind.
Hussein was the son of a prominent Imam of the Shia Zaidi of Yemen, and
was said to have been influenced by the Iranian revolution. He turned
the school into a breeding ground for a generation of hardline religious
zealots. This coincided with the rise of other formerly marginalised
Shia minorities in the Middle East, such as in Bahrain and Lebanon.

The rise of Yemen's Houthis - Al Jazeera Blogs

El Salvador: Quest for Justice

 More than 20 years after the end of its civil war, the country is ready to confront and redress its bloody past.

 Until now, an amnesty has shielded from prosecution those suspected of
atrocities. But the discovery of a secret directory of death squad
targets has given campaigners hope that the guilty can at last be held
accountable.



Between 1980 and 1992, around 75,000 Salvadorians were killed.
Paramilitary death squads murdered roughly 8,000 civilians and torture
and disappearances were rampant. And yet, the human rights community has
doubted that anyone will be held to account.


While that feeling may finally be changing, one significant stumbling block remains: El Salvador's amnesty law.


In 1992, the Salvadoran military and leftist guerillas signed a peace
accord. A year later, the country's legislative assembly passed an
amnesty law shielding perpetrators from prosecution for their role in
wartime atrocities. That law is still on the books, and continues to
upset victims like Rosa Rivera, whose immediate family was killed by
Salvadoran military and security forces.

El Salvador: Quest for Justice - People & Power - Al Jazeera English

Syria strikes kill 400 this month in Aleppo

Government shelling and airstrikes using makeshift barrel bombs have killed about 400 people in Syria's
largest city so far this month, activists said Thursday, as U.S. and
Russian envoys met in Geneva to try to revive the deadlocked peace
talks.






The bombings in Aleppo are part of a campaign by President Bashar Assad's forces to wrest control of neighborhoods that were seized by rebels in the northern city since mid-2012.







Syria strikes kill 400 this month in Aleppo - Middle East Israel News | Haaretz

Hezbollah will not hold annual rally this month

The militant Hezbollah
group says its leader will give an annual speech later this week but it
did not announce the usual public rally that accompanies it.






Sheik Hassan Nasrallah
normally holds a rally every year in mid-February marking the death of
three of the group's leaders including Hezbollah's top military
commander Imad Mughniyeh who was killed in 2008 by a bomb that ripped
through his car in Damascus, Syria.






Hezbollah
did not give a reason for not announcing the annual rally that is
usually attended by hundreds of supporters in their stronghold south of
Beirut.






The
cancellation appears to be related to a wave of bombings in Hezbollah's
strongholds around Lebanon that left scores of people dead over the
past months.






Last year, Hezbollah openly joined Syria's civil war, fighting alongside government forces.





Hezbollah will not hold annual rally this month - Middle East Israel News | Haaretz

Hamas rejects UN textbooks in Gaza schools

 The government believes the curriculum does
not match the 'ideology and philosophy' of the local population, says
spokesman for the Hamas-run Education Ministry.

Hamas rejects UN textbooks in Gaza schools - Middle East Israel News | Haaretz

Ticket to Paradise - Latin America 2014 - Haitianos em Brasiléia

O início da tragetória brasileira.



Ticket to Paradise - Latin America 2014 - Al Jazeera English

Iran ready for 'decisive battle' with U.S. and Israel, says army chief

Iran ready for 'decisive battle' with U.S. and Israel, says army chief - Middle East Israel News | Haaretz

Nazi scientists helped U.S. test LSD on Soviet spies, new book shows

Nazi scientists helped U.S. test LSD on Soviet spies, new book shows - Jewish World News Israel News | Haaretz

Egypt's Sisi heads to Moscow for talks

Egypt's Sisi heads to Moscow for talks - Middle East - Al Jazeera English

The risk of reporting US drone strikes

Yemen researcher says he received a death threat after investigating deadly wedding-convoy attack.

The risk of reporting US drone strikes - Features - Al Jazeera English

Erdogan: Turkey's role in the Middle East

 Erdogan: Turkey's role in the Middle East - Talk to Al Jazeera - Al Jazeera English

Iranians rally to mark 35 years of revolution

Hundreds of thousands of people gathered on the streets of the Iranian capital and cities around the country to mark the 35th anniversary of the Islamic Revolution.

In Tehran, huge crowds thronged central Azadi square on Tuesday for a speech by President Hassan Rouhani, his first major address to the public since his election in August.

Rouhani launched into the traditional anti-US rhetoric despite a significant political shift in Tehran, which resulted in his election last year as a leader pursuing a policy of outreach to the West.

"The people's vote had no role in running this country. This was a huge humiliation," Rouhani said, referring to the period when Iran was a constitutional monarchy. 

"People wanted their views to be an influence [but] the big powers were interfering in the internal affairs of this country ... The Americans thought the country of Iran belongs to them. They interfered everywhere even on security issues."

Iranians rally to mark 35 years of revolution - Middle East - Al Jazeera English

Al-Qaeda group kidnaps Mali Red Cross staff

Al-Qaeda group kidnaps Mali Red Cross staff - Africa - Al Jazeera English

Islamist threat at home forces Saudi rethink on Syria

http://www.jpost.com/Breaking-News/Islamist-threat-at-home-forces-Saudi-rethink-on-Syria-341112

Yemen hands 29 Qaeda militants to Saudi Arabia

ADEN, Yemen - Yemen has handed to Saudi Arabia 29 al Qaeda militants who were wanted by the Saudi authorities, the Yemeni defence ministry website said on Tuesday, citing informed sources.

The website quoted the sources as saying the militants had Saudi nationality and that they had been handed over to the Saudi security apparatus in the past few days.

Saudi interior ministry spokesman Major General Mansour Turki said he had no information on the matter, but was seeking to verify the report.

Yemen, which neighbours top oil exporter Saudi Arabia, is home to one of al Qaeda's most active branches, known as 'al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula', who have plotted unsuccessfully to attack Western targets, including international airliners.

http://www.jpost.com/Breaking-News/Yemen-hands-29-Qaeda-militants-to-Saudi-Arabia-341059

Israel joins regional group at UN, obtains observer status on Latin American trade body

Reports of Israel’s international “isolation” have been greatly exaggerated, Foreign Minister Avigdor Liberman said Tuesday, announcing Israel’s new membership in two international groupings.

“Next time you hear reports of diplomatic isolation or a wave of boycotts threatening Israel, know that the reality is very different,” he wrote on his Facebook page, announcing Israel’s membership in a UN grouping known as JUSCANZ and the observer status it gained in the Pacific Alliance in Latin America.

http://www.jpost.com/Diplomacy-and-Politics/Israel-joins-UN-regional-consultative-grouping-to-Human-Rights-Council-341143

Israel Air Force strikes Hamas targets in Gaza

Israel Air Force attacked two targets in Gaza early Tuesday, according to a statement by the Israel Defense Forces Spokesperson.






According
to the statement, the targets were a rocket launcher in the central
Gaza strip and another, undisclosed target in north Gaza.






The strike came in response to weeks of sporadic Gaza rocket attacks on south-Israeli towns. The IDF blamed Hamas for "not stopping" the attacks. "The Hamas organization is the address and it carries responsibility," the Tuesday statement read.






"The
IDF sees any firing on Israel's territory as severe," the statement
added, "and will continue to act with force against any group that seeks
to use terror against the State of Israel."

Israel Air Force strikes Hamas targets in Gaza - Diplomacy and Defense Israel News | Haaretz

Khamenei: U.S. would overthrow Iran's government if it could

The same is true regarding Iran and the Arab countries...

Khamenei: U.S. would overthrow Iran's government if it could - Middle East Israel News | Haaretz

Egypt says Sinai fighters killed in air raids

Air attacks in the northern Sinai Peninsula have killed 16 armed fighters with ties to the Muslim Brotherhood, according to Egypt's military spokesman.

Colonel Ahmed Mohammed Ali said on Saturday that the raids had targeted hideouts of "terrorist, extremely dangerous" armed groups late on Friday in the eastern border town of Sheikh Zuweid.

It was the fourth such attack with a high death toll since armed fighters downed a military helicopter in a nearby area on January 24, killing all its crew members.

Egypt says Sinai fighters killed in air raids - Middle East - Al Jazeera English

Egypt army chief Sisi says will run for president: report

http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/02/05/us-egypt-sisi-election-idUSBREA1426Q20140205

Cuban doctor defects in Brazil over pay, seeks asylum

over pay?? Brazilian media just noticed that she quited"medicos sem fronteiras" to ask for asylum. Probably they will deny her shelter and send her to Cuba, to jail. Sure Brazil didn't invite them to this purpose!

 She is one of 7,378 Cubans who are in Brazil as part of a program that hires foreign doctors to tend the sick in slums and remote rural locations where there are no Brazilian physicians.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/02/05/us-brazil-cuba-defection-idUSBREA1426920140205

El Salvador top court orders probe of civil war massacre

 El Salvador's Supreme Court on Wednesday ordered the country's top prosecutor to investigate the alleged massacre of dozens of civilians in 1981 by army troops during the nation's bloody civil war.
The court ruled General Prosecutor Luis Martinez had to reopen a previous investigation that had fizzled out without any charges being filed. The court demanded prosecutors charge any guilty parties and release publicly the results of its probe.
The ruling is an unprecedented move by the court to order the probe into a particular case relating to the country's 1980-1992 civil war.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/02/06/us-elsalvador-justice-idUSBREA1506K20140206

Sri Lankan forces may have destroyed evidence of mass killings: new report

http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/02/06/us-srilanka-war-report-idUSBREA1506620140206

China criticizes Japan over comments doubting Nanjing massacre

 China's Foreign Ministry has criticized remarks by a board member of Japan's state broadcaster who said a massacre carried out by Japanese troops in China's then-capital of Nanjing in 1937 did not happen.
China consistently reminds people of Japan's historical brutality, such as the Nanjing Massacre in which China says Japanese troops killed 300,000 people.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/02/06/us-china-japan-idUSBREA1505Q20140206

Russia says now is not the time for U.N. resolution on aid to Syria

 "We're against moving to a resolution now on the Security Council. That's as clear as I can put it," Russia's U.N. Ambassador, Vitaly Churkin, told reporters. "It's not a good time to have any resolution discussed in the Security Council."
http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/02/06/us-syria-crisis-un-aid-idUSBREA1504220140206

Après les négociations de Genève, l'armée syrienne repart à l'offensive contre Alep

http://www.lemonde.fr/international/article/2014/02/04/apres-les-negociations-de-geneve-l-armee-syrienne-repart-a-l-offensive-contre-alep_4359720_3210.html

Japon : un patron de la télévision publique nie le massacre de Nankin

Le massacre de Nankin et les femmes de réconfort sont au cœur des polémiques incessantes depuis des années entre le Japon d'un côté et la Chine et la Corée du Sud de l'autre.
http://www.lemonde.fr/japon/article/2014/02/04/japon-un-patron-de-la-television-publique-nie-le-massacre-de-nankin_4359634_1492975.html

France to open Rwanda genocide trial

A former Rwandan intelligence chief is about to go on trial in France for his role in the 1994 genocide that killed more than 500,000 people.

Pascal Simbikangwa, 54, will appear on Tuesday in a Paris court for an expected seven-week trial to face charges of complicity in genocide and in crimes against humanity.

Through the trial, France - Rwanda's former coloniser - is also coming to terms with its much-criticised response to the mass murder.

France is trying to catch up with a UN tribunal and other courts that have convicted dozens and shed light on the genocide nearly two decades ago.

Activists hope the Paris trial will remind French leaders of their role and responsibility in Africa, and mark the end of an era in which France provided a haven for those who committed atrocities abroad.

In 2004, the European Court for Human Rights based in the eastern city of Strasbourg condemned France for taking too long to consider one woman's legal effort over the Rwanda genocide.

France to open Rwanda genocide trial - Europe - Al Jazeera English

Millions at risk in the Sahel food crisis

The UN projects 20 million people to be at risk of food insecurity in the Sahel region, with 2.5 million needing "urgent lifesaving food assistance".

According to the UN, five million children younger than five in the region will suffer from malnutrition this year.

At the event in Rome, the UN launched a three-year response plan, to help the Sahel, which it defines as a nine-country region stretching from Chad to Senegal.

"A dramatic increase in the number of food insecure is expected, driven in particular by a deterioration in the food security situation in Northern Nigeria, Northern Cameroon and Senegal. These three countries represent over 40 percent of the overall caseload," the response plan said.

Besides instability in countries like Nigeria and Mali, population growth and high food prices are contributing to the problem.

Millions at risk in the Sahel food crisis - Africa - Al Jazeera English

Deadly blast hits bus of Yemeni soldiers - Middle East - Al Jazeera English

Yemeni officials said the Tuesday morning blast in Sanaa also wounded at least 10 soldiers. It hit as the bus was passing through the Dar Silm district, taking officers and troops to work.

The officials, who have spoken on the condition of anonymity, say they are investigating whether the explosion was caused by a bomb hidden on the bus, a roadside device or a suicide bomber. 

Deadly blast hits bus of Yemeni soldiers - Middle East - Al Jazeera English

Al-Qaeda disowns ISIL rebels in Syria

 Al-Qaeda's 'general command' rejects link with Islamic State in Iraq and Levant, which has been fighting other rebels.



Al-Qaeda disowns ISIL rebels in Syria - Middle East - Al Jazeera English

Suicide bomber strikes southern Beirut

 Two people, including bomber, dead in attack inside minibus as Lebanon feels the fallout of neighbouring Syria's war.

Suicide bomber strikes southern Beirut - Middle East - Al Jazeera English

Somalis balk at plans for Ethiopian troops

 Thousands of Ethiopians will be deployed as part of an African Union peacekeeping mission, worrying many in Somalia.



Somalis balk at plans for Ethiopian troops - Features - Al Jazeera English

Israel returns Palestinian bombers' bodies, decade after attacks

 More than a decade later, after appeals from human rights groups, Israel
is handing over some 30 bodies of Palestinian assailants, including
that of al-Akhras, enabling her family to arrange a funeral.


Israel returns Palestinian bombers' bodies, decade after attacks - Diplomacy and Defense Israel News | Haaretz

Deadly blasts hit Pakistan cinema

Attack in Peshawar neighbourhood targeted earlier in September, comes as government weighs talks with Pakistani Taliban.

Deadly blasts hit Pakistan cinema - Central & South Asia - Al Jazeera English

'Dozens dead' in air raids on Syria's Aleppo

 Activists say at least 36 people killed in city where government is using massive air power to crush opposition.

'Dozens dead' in air raids on Syria's Aleppo - Middle East - Al Jazeera English