Nobility Disadvantaged

"WikiLeaks -- if you look at past history -- their focus isn't necessarily the Constitution of the United States. It's simply to release as much information as possible. So that alone is a concern for me."
"I am concerned about those who surround him."
Lonnie Snowden, United States

Actually the unauthorized wholesale release of classified, heavily secretive state files meant for no eyes but those elite at the very height of executive and security office, does not quite honour the Constitution of the United States, any casual onlooker could surmise. It reflects the determination of someone who as a citizen of the United States of America, might wish to bring the outrage of the international community down on the heads of those for whom this is legitimate state business. But in the interests of furthering his own agenda, has committed that most egregious of national offences.

Becoming a traitor to the nation for a cause he knows will be applauded by others sharing a like mindset. For they will choose to believe that his intentions were purely honourable, not the least bit tainted by a wish to bring public attention and no little acclaim for his courage, to his mission and himself. The selfless nobility of Edward Snowden's release of National Security Agency surveillance program data certainly has its hardcore defenders.

And this, with a left-leaning administration, a Democratic, Nobel-Peace-Prize-winning biracial president of the United States of America of whom much was anticipated and who has gone out of his way, despite constraints, to ensure that his core constituents have not been given reason to regret their trust in him. Edward Snowden was so convinced that his country was guilty of official acts of malfeasance that he was prepared to be labelled a traitor.

He set out to present himself as someone in whom trust could be placed, in finding employment as an analyst at Booz Allen, a major U.S. defence contractor. Where he handily availed himself of a treasure trove -- or a damning trove of evidence of official skulduggery, preferably -- of top secret data, guaranteed to send shock waves of disbelieving back-stabbing through the hallowed halls of the State Department, Congress, the U.S. Senate, the Pentagon, the FBI and the CIA; in short the entire governing and security apparatus of the country.

Lonnie Snowden is upset that the professionals in the business of uncovering and flaunting government secrets in an effort to cause consternation, confusion, resentment, anger and destabilization as widely as possible, have taken to protecting the personal interests of his boy, as a valuable addition to their own business of contesting governments and displaying their foibles to a wide audience of questioners.

Edward Snowden has had more than his allotted 15 minutes of blame, shame and fame. He's become a veritable globe-trotter, offering his notoriety to those nations for whom schadenfreude is a transitory shared emotion, but valuable whenever it occurs to their gain, on occasion. "He has betrayed his government, but I don't believe that he's betrayed the people of the United States", commented father Snowden, hopefully.

Well, actually, this is a president and a government that was as good as acclaimed not only by the majority that voted it democratically into power, but the onlooking international community as well. The current administration forming the government of the United States of America has hugely popular appeal not least for its humanity, for its promise to govern more carefully, and wisely than its predecessors. But if there is one constant in international relations, it is that each spies on the other.

And while its political enemies abroad feel temporarily smug at the embarrassment and irritation brought down upon the Obama administration, its friends and allies are feeling somewhat less than appreciated as collegial members of the same political club; their loyalty snubbed, as it were. As though they themselves do not engage in similar undercover activities. Father Snowden is angling for guarantees of judicial fairness for his son should he opt to return to the U.S.

His own loyalty to his country is unquestioned as a retired officer of the U.S. Coast Guard who loves his country and believes he knows the tenor of the America he served. The public will forgive. His son should not necessarily be charged under the Espionage Act where a conviction would see him facing life in prison. He may be correct about the public attitude, but this administration by the people and for the people feels rather put out.

A casual onlooker might casually remark to Lonnie Snowden that he shouldn't bet the house on his own reaction to the so-minor misdemeanor of his son.

Labels: Crime, Crisis Politics, Defence, Human Relations, Justice, Security, United States

posted by Pieface @ Sunday, June 30, 2013

00:20 That's all for tonight. Today saw unprecedented numbers take to the streets all over Egypt, calling for Morsi to resign. It's hard to estimate numbers, but it's clear that 30 June has been bigger than anyone predicted. There was deadly violence in Beni Suef and Assiut, and there are ongoing clashes at the Brotherhood headquarters in Cairo, as we close. There were also 30 reported cases of sexual harassment in Tahrir Square - although none reported at Ittihadiya or at the ongoing pro-Morsi demonstration at Rabaa Al-Adawiya.
00:15 There are reports of ongoing clashes at the Muslim Brotherhood's headquarters in Mokattam, Cairo, which was earlier attacked by protesters throwing Molotov cocktails. There seem to be clashes between those inside the building and those attacking it, with birdshot and possibly live ammunition. There are a number of injuries reported, but all unconfirmed so far by official sources.

00:10 Crowds have thinned a bit but remain defiant and optimistic at the presidential palace, tooting their horns and calling for the president's resignation reports Ahram Online's Bel Trew. There seems to be strong pro-military sentiment at the palace, most of the people interviewed by Ahram Online were keen for some sort of intervention although they were unsure who should replace the president.

"We didn't expect anything from him but what he did was far worse, he made lost of promises but didn't fulfill any," says Om Maha, 53, housewife referring to the Brotherhood's Nahda (renaissance) project, that was centre peice to Morsi's presidential campaign but was largely dropped. Om Maha added that she didn't like any of the presidential candidates who ran last year such as Amr Moussa and Mohamed ElBaradei, "I don't think any of them are fit for the position, it needs to be someone outside of any existing political movemnet.

"The elections were a contract between the people and the president, he broke the rules and put himself first," says Ahmed Nagah, a 47-year-old English teacher. "I voted for Amr Moussa in the first elections only," Nagah added saying he didn't bother in the second round as he didn't want Ahmed Shafiq or Morsi.

Meanwhile further into the crowds Engineer Abdel-Rehim Kamal, 43, voicing a popular sentiment expressed both on Tahrir Square and at the palace, slammed Morsi for being "the same as [ousted leader] Mubarak."
Back on Tahrir Square, a little earlier, Fikra Mohamed, 52 director of a company showed Ahram Online his protest art: a tree of notices listing the "achievements, mistakes and economic failures," of the president during his first year in power.

"I voted for Morsi and I think I got fooled. I will not leave until Morsi steps down, my sons are with me - one of them has an exam - but he will no do his exam until Morsi resigns. This is not a second revolution, it is a continuation of the first one, we still haven't finished that battle yet."

"Egyptians don't have their basic needs, we have a massive problem of unemployment particularly within the youth, killing continues under his rule, then there is the breakdown of the state like train accidents and electricity outage," says Mohamed Ramadan Badawy, who had travelled from the Southern governorate of Qena to join Tahrir with a delegation of people from Upper Egypt. "Egyptian poverty is on the rise, to the point where people are eating from the rubbish."

00:00 The president's spokesman has just denied that Hatem Bagato, minister of legal and parliamentary affairs, will submit his resignation, as was reported by Ahram Arabic earlier this evening. 
23:55 The 30 June coordinating committee has released a statement.

“Egyptians have shown they are worthy of freedom, democracy and social justice which they have been calling for since the January revolution. We thank the Egyptian people who have revolted in their millions for a free Egypt, free of fascism, tyranny and injustice.”

Despite the fact that millions of people peacefully protested, said the statement, “the presidency has released a statement belittling us and our legitimate demands and our million man marches all over Egypt’s squares.”

The statement added that the 30 June coordinating committee “stand behind the people and their just demands” and calls for continuing the national strike which involves “the use of all democratic means to demonstrate, hold sit-ins and strikes and besiege all state institutions and we demand the trial all those responsible for torture, killing and announcing edicts inciting against the people and calls for terrorism which was called for by the Muslim Brotherhood.”

The committee includes the Revolutionary Youth Union, the Front’s youth organisation, the Maspero Youth Union, the Socialist Youth Union, the Liberal Youth Front, the Justice and Freedom Youth, the April 6 Democratic Front, the Mina Daniel Movement, and the National Salvation Front member parties - the Democratic Front Party, the Constitution Party, the Wafd Party, the Free Egyptians Party, the Egyptian Communist Party, the Egyptian Socialist Party, the Socialist Popular Alliance Party, the Tagammu Party, the Nasserist Party, the Egyptian Social Democratic Party, the Karama Party, the Egypt Freedom Party, the Egyptian Popular Current and the National Association for Change.
23:50 Pro-Morsi demonstrators are still camping out at Rabaa Al-Adawiya Mosque in Nasr City, a short distance away from the presidential palace.
23:45 The president’s office is holding its second press conference of the day. The spokesman stresses the president’s respect for the demands of the street, but says that dialogue is necessary.
"We respect the demands of the streets, and we acknowledge that the political scene in Egypt is continuously changing; however, initiatives are being made constantly and communications are ongoing.
Those who have demands or visions must sit for dialogue," said spokesman Omar Amer who reminded the audience of the president’s ongoing calls for dialogue which have been repeatedly rejected by much of the opposition.
Amer further stressed that the presidency will continue to protect the peaceful protests in assurance of the right for expression. He also praised the "nationalistic role played by security forces" in protecting the protests.
Asked about reports of police officers joining the anti-Morsi protests, Amer stressed that it is a matter to be judged by the ministry of interior, and not by the presidency.
23:40 The Freedom and Justice Party’s administrative office in Upper Egypt’s Beni Sueif was torched by anti-Morsi protesters, reports Ahram Arabic.
According to Ahram, the empty office was bombarded with Molotov cocktails.
23:35 From Damietta in the north of Egypt, Hatem El-Bayaa of the Socialist Popular Alliance tells Ahram Online that demonstrators in the city, estimated to be several thousand, have taken over the governorate headquarters and the offices of the local education authority. In coordination with employees within the governorate offices, anti-Morsi protesters are planning to occupy other government buildings to prevent Damietta governor Tarek Fathallah Khedr from entering his office.
Khedr is a police general who was appointed on 16 June by the president. He is a member of the liberal Ghad Al-Thawra Party, a rare liberal ally of Morsi.
23:25 Some shots of today's protests here.
23:20 In Assiut, the site of today's most deadly clashes, army and police have been deployed at the governorate headquarters and at the Freedom and Justice Party headquarters, located 100 metres apart, reports Ahram’s Osama Sediq.
Police are firing teargas in front of the FJP headquarters, where clashes are still ongoing and sounds of gunshots can be heard.
Clashes started when an anti-Morsi demonstration of several thousand passed by the FJP office. The FJP youth, who were forming a human shield to protect the office, thought protesters were attacking them, so they fired birdshot and live rounds, reports Sediq.
 23:10 Sexual harassment seems to be worsening in Tahrir Square. Tahrir Bodyguards, a civil initiative fighting harassment, tweets:

Lots of reported cases of assault & harassment in #Tahrir. We recommend extreme caution in the area, especially for female protesters #EndSH

Another anti-harassment initiative, OpAntiSH, reports that the number of cases reported to them has gone up to 26, and tweets that:

There are men with sticks at the entrance of the metro station across from KFC in #Tahrir who are attacking women. Please avoid.

23:00 Al-Gamaa Al-Islamiya’s Building and Development Party have released a statement claiming that the protester killed in Beni Suef earlier was a member of their group.
Atef Marzouk, a leading member of the Islamist group in Beni Suef, accused opponents of President Mohamed Morsi of initiating the attack by firing birdshot at a pro-Morsi march.
“We defended ourselves until one of us was martyred," said Marzouk.
Earlier, journalist Shaimaa Mafhouz told us that a thousand-strong anti-Morsi rally in Beni Suef was fired at. She said:

"A number of assailants, accused by protesters of being Islamist supporters of Morsi, attacked the rally...Some clusters of protesters scattered and hid inside the mosques surrounding the square; at the same time the armed forces mobilised to contain the situation. Assailants continued briefly to fire at the mosques where protesters were hiding but they ran away when the army arrived," Mahfouz said.

The Beni Suef office of the Egyptian Popular Current, a leftist group led by opposition leader Hamdeen Sabbahi, also claimed in a statement that 30 members of “the jihadist movement” in Beni Suef were the ones who fired at the protest and that several protesters were injured.
Mahfouz told Ahram Online she saw a child injured with a bullet to the shoulder.
Ahram Online has not been able to independently verify what happened in Beni Suef.
22:50 Political forces protesting in front of Ittihadiya presidential palace have announced from the main stage that they will hold an open ended sit-in until “the fall of the regime”, reports state-owned news agency MENA.
They are further calling on all workers and employees at state institutions to go on a general strike starting Monday until July.
22:40 Thousands of protesters, many of them women, are gathering in front of Qubba presidential palace singing and chanting, reports Ahram Online's Ahmed Abdel-Rasoul.
An anonymous source had earlier told Al-Ahram Arabic news website that President Mohamed Morsi was at Qubba presidential palace, which is around three kilometres away from Ittihadiya.
22:30 Ahram Online’s Bassem Abo El-Abbas reports from the presidential palace where he says that fireworks are lighting up the sky as military helicopters continue to scan the palace perimeter.
Fathi Mabrouk, a 36-year-old bearded man in traditional attire told Abbas he is taking part in the protest because he doesn't believe in political Islam, adding that President Morsi “has been unjust to his people and thus he should be forced out of power for he disobeyed Islamic values.”

"I am also against the return of military rule even for another transitional period. I approve of the scenario of the head of the High Constitutional Court replacing Morsi until new elections are held," Mabrouk added.

22:20 Three protesters have been killed in Upper Egypt’s Assiut, chief of security in the city General Abou El-Qassem Abou El-Deif has said in a press statement.
The three people were part of an anti-Morsi protest of thousands which was attacked by unknown assailants as they were marching near the Freedom and Justice Party’s headquarters in the Upper Egyptian governorate.
According to Ahram Arabic, one of the slain, Abanob Atef, was killed after being shot in the head by gunmen on a motorcycle.
At least eight were injured in the attack, including a police officer.
22:15 A military source told Ahram Arabic that the army helicopters hovering over Cairo aim to secure protesters and make sure everything is peaceful.The same source says Egypt's armed forces are securing the borders.
Ahram Online’s Ayat Al-Tawy was in Tahrir around an hour ago, and she reported that the helicopters flying overhead were welcomed with rapturous applause, flag-waving, and pro-army slogans.
She spoke to protester Wafaa Mohamed, who was wearing the full face veil, about why she was in Tahrir today.

“The people in Rabaa Al-Adawiya are brainwashed. Morsi is a hypocrite, a liar; he’s unjust.”

22:05 Minister of Legal and Parliamentary Affairs, Judge Hatem Bagato, has written his resignation and will submit it on Monday, sources have told Ahram Arabic website.
22:00 Egyptian Health Minister Mohamed Hamed confirms the death of 25-year-old Ammar Gouda, the protester who was killed in Beni Suef earlier when unknown assailants open-fired on an anti-Morsi protest.
Hamed also said that the injury toll across seven governorates had increased to 228 from 174, with 36 being discharged from hospitals. A lot of the injuries are related to the heat and crowds rather than clashes.
21:50 In Assiut, Aswat Masriya reports, unknown assailants riding a motorcycle shot at an anti-Morsi demonstration, injuring one protester who took a bullet in the head. He was transferred to hospital.
Protesters in Assiut have said that they will start a sit-in.
21:45 The 6 April Youth Movement and the liberal Constitution Party have announced that they will hold a sit-in in front of Abdeen Palace in downtown Cairo.
The announcement said they had received information that Egyptian Prime Minister Hisham Qandil is currently inside.

"Our peaceful assembly in front of Abdeen Palace comes as another instrument of pressure against the government in order to achieve the people's demand of holding snap presidential elections," said spokesman Mohamed Adel in a press statement following the announcement.

21:30 An eyewitness tells Ahram Online that she saw 12 people injured in the ongoing melee at the Muslim Brotherhood's headquarters, saying the number of injuries is likely be higher and is expected to further rise the coming few hours.
The 26-year-old, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said some were injured by birdshot, including a photojournalist who was shot in the eye.
An officer had his back wounded by birdshot, as did a female journalist who sustained a leg injury. According to the witness, the building was first attacked with Molotov cocktails and stones.
The eyewitness also stresses that birdshot is used by both Muslim Brotherhood members and their opponents.
21:20 OpAntiSH, one of the civil society anti-sexual harassment initiatives that is present in Tahrir Square tonight, reports on Twitter that there have been a number of incidents:

The total number of mob assaults in #Tahrir has risen to 13. Three took place near Hardee's,
and we were able to intervene.

Tahrir Bodyguards, another such initiative, tweets that the huge crowds in Tahrir are reducing mobility, creating opportunities for sexual harassment and making it difficult for the group's members to rescue victims.
Ahram Online's Ayat Al-Tawy who is in the square says that she has felt a bit uncomfortable at times, and has seen some minor harassment by groups of men surrounding girls and catcalling them.

"One girl screamed and slapped a guy who was approaching her. I don't know what started it, but a number of people surrounded her and asked her if she needed help."

21:15 The Egyptian health ministry reports that hospitals have received 174 injured protesters today in seven different governorates: Cairo, Alexandria, Daqahliya, Gharbiya, Menoufiya, Beni Suef and Beheira.
The ministry said four cases in Gharbiya were from birdshot wounds, with no official confirmation of the Beni Suef anti-Morsi protester who died, according to the city’s police chief.
21:10 It’s now 9:10pm, and millions are filling squares in Cairo and in other locations all over Egytp, protesting against President Mohamed Morsi.
In addition to Tahrir Square and the vicinity outside the presidential palace, squares in Alexandria, in the Nile Delta and in Upper Egypt are also full of protesters.
There is relatively little violence so far, with the exception of brief clashes in Beni Suef where one person was killed. The army broke up the situation after unknown assailants fired on anti-Morsi protesters, and the situation is now calm, with the protest continuing.
Supporters of the president remain gathered at Rabaa Al-Adawiya Mosque in Nasr City, where hundreds of thousands are holding their sit-in for the third day.
20:50 It seems that the protest areas in Cairo are so packed, mobile networks are overloaded and it's hard to get through to people in the area.
20:40 Osman El-Sharnoubi, who is still at the presidential palace in Heliopolis, says that protesters are carrying flags bearing the face of revolution’s slain protesters, like Mohamed ‘Gika’ Gabr who was killed during Morsi’s rule, Mina Daniel who was killed during the rule of the military council, and Khaled Said who was killed under Mubarak.
20:37 Prominent Sunni cleric Youssef El-Qaradawi, known for his support for the Muslim Brotherhood, has released a video statement calling on Egyptians to stay patient with President Mohamed Morsi, stressing that he is expected to make mistakes as he is a human being.

“If we have waited on the Mubarak’s regime for 30 years, and another 30 years before him on the tyrants, why can’t we wait on Morsi for a year?” asked El-Qaradawi.

El-Qaradawi further pointed out that President Morsi has been asking for dialogue.
20:35 Thousands of protesters have joined rallies at Al-Shoun Square in key industrial city of Mahalla.
Protesters are chanting against President Mohamed Morsi, repeating slogans such as “Abdel-Nasser has said it before, the Muslim Brotherhood are not to be trusted,” a famous chant referring to former president Gamal Abdel-Nasser whose era witnessed the persecution of several Islamist figures.
20:30 American journalist Kristen Chick is at the headquarters of the Muslim Brotherhood in Cairo right now. She reports on her Twitter account that there is a fire in the yard and the sound of shots being fired. She tweets:

"We want to break in" one guy tells me at MB HQ. "why?" "Bc they are choking us" he says."

20:25 Around two hundred protesters are gathering in front of President Mohamed Morsi's house in New Cairo, a wealthy satellite city outside of Cairo, as security forces deploy barriers to keep protesters away from the building.
One of the protesters in Alexandria, Wael Nabil, tells Yasmine that he is determined to stay until Morsi leaves, even if it means waiting a year.

“Mubarak repressed us, but at least he gave us services; at least he didn’t cut the electricity, water and petrol like now.”

“Nothing has changed; my salary didn’t increase. My wife is pregnant, how will I provide for my baby?” added Nabil.

20:23 Ahram Online’s Osman El-Sharnoubi reports that the vicinity of the Ittihadiya presidential palace is extremely crowded, with moving even small distances taking a long time. The crowd seems never-ending as one walks away from the palace. Fireworks are being lit from a building overlooking the avenue as the crowds cheer.
According to Osman, it’s not possible to see the end of the crowd.
20:20 Reports of violence at the headquarters of the Muslim Brotherhood in Cairo.
Around 500 people gathered at headquarters in Cairo's Moqattam district, hurling Molotov cocktails and stones at the building, says state news agency MENA, which quoted eyewitness as saying they had heard shots during the melee.
Senior FJP official Gehad El-Haddad says on Twitter:

No police on scene yet in #Moqatam. Security is dealing w/ attacking thugs. They were joined by othrs wearing blackblock uniform w/ firearms

A number of offices of the Brotherhood and its political arm, the Freedom and Justice Party, have been attacked in recent days.
20:15 Ahram Online’s Yasmine Fathi says spirits in Alexandria’s Sidi Gaber are high. “People are playing drums, clapping, waving flags,” she reports.
Occasionally, helicopters pass over the protests and people cheer and wave, reports Fathi.
20:12 In Gharbiya governorate’s Kafr El-Zayat, hundreds are participating in anti-Morsi protests.
 Crowds are chanting: “national unity against the Muslim Brotherhood” and “you who rule in the name of religion, where is justice and where is religion?”
20:10 Leading labour activist Kamal El-Fayoumi, currently protesting in front of Ittihadiya palace in Cairo, tells Ahram Online that he will be heading back to the industrial city of Mahalla tomorrow.

“By then, if the regime hasn’t been toppled we will join the sit-in and the calls for civil disobedience,”added Al-Fayoumi.

Amir Bassam, Shura Council member from the Muslim Brotherhood's Freedom and Justice Party, tells Orbit TV that crowds supporting President Morsi around Rabaa Al-Adawiya Mosque in Cairo are more than all the anti-Morsi protesters, not only in Tahrir Square, but all across Egypt.
Given the numbers of people reported in Tahrir Square and at the Ittihadiya presidential palace - both packed to overflowing - this seems highly unlikely.
20:05 The main opposition coalition group, the National Salvation Front, has issued a “revolutionary statement.”

"In the name of the Egyptian people with all their factions, the National Salvation Front announces public endorsement of the ouster of the regime of Mohamed Morsi and the Muslim Brotherhood," the statement reads.
"The Egyptian population continue their revolution and will impose their will, which has become unequivocally clear in all Egypt's squares."
"The Salvation Front also trusts that the Egyptian people will protect its revolution until peaceful transition of power is fulfilled...we also call on all political forces and all citizens to remain peaceful…and refrain from dealing with the failed Brotherhood government until the fall of this tyrannical organisation."

20:00 There are reports of deadly violence in Beni Suef in Upper Egypt.
Ibrahim Hodeib, chief of security in Beni Suef, said that one protester was killed and 30 injured following an attack by unknown assailants, in a phone interview with private satellite channel CBC.
Journalist Shaimaa Mafhouz tells Ahram Online that a thousand-strong anti-Morsi rally in El-Modereya Square, the main square in Muslim Brotherhood stronghold Beni Suef, was fired at.
"A number of assailants, accused by protesters of being Islamist supporters of Morsi, attacked the rally...Some clusters of protesters scattered and hid inside the mosques surrounding the square; at the same time the armed forces mobilised to contain the situation. Assailants continued briefly to fire at the mosques where protesters were hiding but they ran away when the army arrived," Mahfouz said.
The Beni Suef office of the Egyptian Popular Current, a leftist group led by opposition leader Hamdeen Sabbahi, claimed in a statement that 30 members of “the jihadist movement” in Beni Suef were the ones who fired at the protest and that several protesters were injured.
Mahfouz told Ahram Online she saw a child injured with a bullet to the shoulder.
Hodeib told Ahram Arabic news website that one suspect behind the violence is Al-Gamaa Al-Islamiya leader in the city named Ahmed Youssef.
Ahram Arabic reporter in Beni Suef Emad Abouzeid says the assailants fired birdshot at the protest, although others said that the assailants used live ammunition.
19:55 Members of the Muslim Brotherhood’s Freedom and Justice Party (FJP) have gathered in Aswan in front of their party headquarters to secure them, reports Ahram Arabic website.
Aswan, in Upper Egypt has also seen a heavy security presence securing police stations.
 19:55 Ayman Masoud, keyboardist for Egyptian band Massar Egbari, tells Ahram Online’s Rowan El-Shimi that "there is a lot of energy among people marching to Tahrir,” adding that in Alexandria, the hometown of the band, they are used to marching everywhere and not having sit-ins.

 “Here everyone is excited and putting their energy into the chants,” added Masoud.

19:50 Solidarity protests have been taking place at a number of locations around the world.  Dozens of Palestinians in the West Bank held a small protest in Ramallah in solidarity with Egyptians demanding that President Morsi step down. Protesters held placards saying "No injustice, Egypt is the mother of freedom.”
There were also reportedly protests by Egyptian expats in Jordan and in Norway, according to state news agency MENA.
19:45 Heba El-Sayed, a nurse at the field clinic in Omar El-Islam Mosque in Alexandria’s Sidi Gaber, tells Ahram Online’s Yasmine Fathi that several people have been injured in sporadic scuffles between protesters. So far, however, Alexandria has not seen the kind of violent clashes that have been taking place over the last few days.
19:40 Meanwhile, in Upper Egypt's Luxor, hundreds of boats are reportedly heading down the Nile to voice their opposition to President Mohamed Morsi.
Hundreds of other protesters are marching around the touristic city en route to their rallying-point at the governorate building, where they plan to hold a sit-in until their demands are met.
19:35 “If Morsi or the Brotherhood had any real presence, they would have organised a million-man march either here [Alexandria] or in Cairo, but they could only fill Rabaa Al-Adawiya,” Sarah Mamdouh, one of the protesters at Alexandria’s Sidi Gaber, tells Ahram Online’s Yasmine Fathi.

Mamdouh added that Morsi had lost his legitimacy by “his dictatorial decisions and his inability to listen to other political opinions.

“He made people who were against each other unite against him, even the remnants of the former regime,” added Mamdouh.

19:30 From the vicinity of the presidential palace, former MP Mostafa El-Naggar tells Ahram Online that “talks of Morsi’s legitimacy is null and void now and is used by the Brotherhood to scare people off the early elections scenario...there is a revolutionary legitimacy now. The legitimacy of millions in the street trumps the previous electoral legitimacy,”
He adds that the army’s role should be to protect the transitional period.
19:30 Welcome to the second part of Ahram Online's live updates. Today, the anniversary of President Mohamed Morsi's first year in power, we are seeing virtually unprecedented numbers of protesters taking to the streets to demand that the president step down. Both Tahrir Square and the vicinity of the Itihadiya presidential palace in Heliopolis are packed with people.
There are also protests all over Egypt, including Mansoura, Damanhour, Alexandria, Mahalla, Suez, Minya and Sharqiya, and there have been some violent clashes reported in Tanta.
There is also a large demonstration and sit-in taking place in Cairo's Nasr City in support of President Morsi.
For the first part of Ahram's live updates, click here.

Labels: Crisis Politics, Egypt, Muslim Brotherhood, Societal Failures

posted by Pieface @ Sunday, June 30, 2013

Labels: Chaos, Conflict, Crisis Politics, Democracy, Egypt, Islamism, Muslim Brotherhood, Societal Failures

posted by Pieface @ Sunday, June 30, 2013

Nelson Mandela and Zionism

We shouldn’t underestimate the significance of such a debate. Mandela has entered the pantheon of 20th-century figures that exercised the most extraordinary influence over global events, touching the lives of ordinary mortals in the process.

In the 1940s, many Britons could tell you exactly where they were when Churchill delivered his famous “Blood, Sweat and Tears” speech to the House of Commons; in the 1960s, it was hard to find an American who couldn’t remember his or her precise location when the news of Kennedy’s assassination came through; and in the 1990s, it seemed, at least to me, that absolutely everyone could recall what they were doing at the moment the world learned that Mandela had been released after serving 27 years in a South African jail.

I certainly remember where I was on February 11, 1990, when Mandela finally exited prison. Along with thousands of others, I stood at the gates of the South African Embassy in London, an imposing edifice on the eastern side of Trafalgar Square. During my late teens, I’d become a regular attendee at rallies and protests outside the embassy demanding Mandela’s release. I can still hear the joyous roar of the crowd gathered around me, as we celebrated the fact that Mandela was no longer a prisoner of the apartheid regime.

Before this account gets overly saccharine, I should add that not every opponent of apartheid was a consistent advocate of democracy elsewhere in the world. Many of the protestors around me were, frankly, diehard Stalinists. And while they accurately perceived the monstrosity that was apartheid, they were only too happy to excuse the brutal crimes of the Soviet Union and its satellite states. They had copious words of condemnation for the white minority regime in Pretoria, but they rolled their eyes in irritation at the suggestion that the Soviet KGB, the East German Stasi and the Romanian Securitate were just as bad, if not worse. Indeed, I couldn’t help thinking that they regarded Mandela’s release as welcome relief from the gloom that set in when communism unraveled around the same time.

Which brings me to the question of Mandela’s political legacy. There will be no shortage of platitudes on the left about Mandela’s nonetheless heartfelt commitment to racial tolerance, painstaking negotiation and civil disobedience in the face of injustice. Equally, many on the right will accurately recall that Mandela’s African National Congress (ANC) was closely aligned with the Soviet Union and with a host of thoroughly unpleasant terrorist organizations, like the PLO, who dressed themselves up as “liberation movements.” As a recipient of both the Soviet Order of Lenin and the American Presidential Medal of Freedom, it might be said that Mandela embodied this contradiction.
Still, Mandela was no orthodox leftist. In his autobiography, he discusses how he was strongly influenced by the Atlantic Charter of 1941, a mission statement shaped by the visions of Churchill and FDR for a post-war order in which freedom would reign, fear and want would be banished, and self-government would emerge as a core principle. Elsewhere in the book, he takes care to distinguish the African nationalism he subscribed to from the communist beliefs that prevailed among those he worked with—and his understanding of nationalism bears a close resemblance to the national movements that surfaced in Europe at the end of the nineteenth century, including Zionism.

This latter point is important because there is a widespread misapprehension that Mandela was an opponent of Zionism and Israel. In part, that’s because a mischievous letter linking Israel with apartheid, purportedly written by Mandela, went viral on the Internet (in fact, the real author was a Palestinian activist named Arjan el Fassed, who later claimed that his fabrication nevertheless reflected Mandela’s true feelings.) Yet it’s also true that, in the Cold War conditions of the time, the ANC’s main allies alongside the Soviets were Arab and third-world dictators like Ahmed Ben Bella in Algeria and Gamal Abdel Nasser in Egypt. The confusion is further stirred by the enthusiasm of some of Mandela’s comrades, like Archbishop Desmond Tutu, to share the South African franchise on the word “apartheid” with the Palestinians.

But those activists who want to make the Palestinian cause the 21st-century equivalent of the movement that opposed South African apartheid in the 20th century will—assuming they conform to basic standards of honesty—find it very difficult to invoke Mandela as support. Mandela’s memoirs are full of positive references to Jews and even Israel. He recalls that he learned about guerilla warfare not from Fidel Castro, but from Arthur Goldreich, a South African Jew who fought with the Palmach during Israel’s War of Independence. He relates the anecdote that the only airline willing to fly his friend, Walter Sisulu, to Europe without a passport was Israel’s own El Al. And the ultimate smoking gun—the equation of Israel’s democracy with apartheid—doesn’t exist.

Mandela once wrote that Jews, in his experience, were far more sensitive about race because of their own history. Now, it is absolutely true that there are parallels between the oppression suffered by South African blacks under racist white rulers, and Jews living under hostile non-Jewish rulers. The notorious Group Areas Act, which restricted black residency rights, brings to mind the enforced separation of Jews into the “Pale of Settlement” by the Russian Empress Catherine in 1791. Many of the other apartheid regulations, like the ban on sexual relationships between whites and blacks, carried echoes of the Nazi Nuremburg Laws of 1935.

Mandela’s diagnosis was that Africans should be the sovereigns of their own destiny. Similarly, the founders of Zionism wanted nothing less for the Jews.

Labels: Israel, South Africa

posted by Pieface @ Sunday, June 30, 2013

It might not have occurred to the AKP government that unless it changes course, it could suffer the same fate as other regimes.

By now, it must have dawned on even the most dim-witted European politician that there is a discrepancy between Turkey's rhetoric and performance -- at least, as far as Europe is concerned. Turkey's EU Minister Egemen Bağış has from time to time entertained us with his various distortions of reality, including his recent claim that "the sun of Europe rises from Istanbul every morning nowadays." But the events that have unfolded in Turkey in recent weeks present a different picture.

In 2006 Turkey and the US agreed that Turkey's EU accession is a strategic priority for both countries, and three years ago the UK renewed its strategic partnership agreement with Turkey. On this occasion, David Cameron underlined that the UK would remain Turkey's "strongest possible advocate" for EU membership. A recent photo posted on the Twitter account of the Turkish Ambassador to Washington, Namık Tan, showing US Secretary of State John Kerry, with his hand on British Ambassador Peter Westmacott's shoulder, talking with Namık Tan, indicates that the three are still hugger mugger.

Whatever Turkey might profess, the drift of Turkey's foreign policy, not to speak of its domestic policy, is towards the Muslim world and the Middle East. In an interview with the Cairo Review in March last year, Foreign Minister Davutoğlu explained that Turkey's policy of strategic depth, which has been dubbed "neo-Ottoman," rests on an engagement with countries with which Turkey shares a common past and geography as well as shared interests and common ideals. He envisaged Turkey utilizing its geopolitical position in the midst of Afro-Eurasia to set the parameters of a new global order.

In a speech made last April at a Justice and Development Party [AKP] congress in Konya, Davutoğlu was more specific and spoke of the party's historic mission to create a new world order [nizam-i âlem, the Ottoman concept of a world order under Islam] with the emergence of Turkey as a global power.
This hangs together with Davutoğlu's Sarajevo speech in October 2009, where he made clear that the goal of Turkish foreign policy was once again to make the Balkans, the Caucasus and Middle East, together with Turkey, the center of world politics. This March, in an address to the party faithful in Bursa, the Foreign Minister stated that the last century was a parenthesis and that Turkey would again unite Sarajevo with Damascus and Benghazi with Erzurum and Batumi.

This theme was echoed by Prime Minister Erdoğan recently, when on his return from North Africa he sent greetings to Istanbul's brother cities Sarajevo, Baku, Beirut, Skopje, Damascus, Gaza, Mecca and Medina, but with no mention of Europe. According to Nuray Mert, Associate Professor of Political Science at Istanbul University, who has previously clashed with Erdoğan, many observers have failed to recognize that neo-Ottomanism is an irredentist version of Turkish nationalism.

In a keynote speech at the Istanbul Forum last October, Erdoğan's chief advisor Ibrahim Kalın spoke of a new geopolitical context and of a conscious decision by Turkish policy-makers to redefine Turkey's strategic priorities in the 21^st century. According to Kalın, Turkey is beginning to read history from a non-Eurocentric point of view: the European model of secular democracy and pluralism has little traction in the Arab and larger Muslim world.

In a television interview early this year, Prime Minister Erdoğan mentioned that he had told Russian President Vladimir Putin that if Turkey were admitted to the Shanghai Five [Shanghai Cooperation Organization], they would say goodbye to the EU: "The Shanghai Five is better and more powerful and we have common values with them."

After the clashes between demonstrators and police around Gezi Park in Istanbul, the European Parliament a fortnight ago passed a strongly worded resolution, expressing not only deep concern at the disproportionate and excessive use of force by the Turkish police but also reiterating the rules of the club that Turkey ostensibly aspires to join.

The resolution pointed out that freedom of assembly, freedom of expression and freedom of the press are fundamental principles of the EU and reminded Turkey that in an inclusive, pluralist democracy all citizens should feel represented. Furthermore, Prime Minister Erdoğan was urged to take a unifying and conciliatory position.

Apart from agreeing to abide by the decision of Istanbul's administrative court on the future of Gezi Park, and, if necessary, to hold a plebiscite, Erdoğan's response was predictable. He refused to accept the European Parliament's decision; he said it was both not binding for Turkey and "anti-democratic." Characteristically, he added, "Is it your place to pass such a resolution?"

The EU's decision to open one more negotiating chapter with Turkey, but to postpone the opening until October, means that there is still a slender thread binding Turkey to the EU. But Prime Minister Erdoğan's response to the demonstrations could usher in a new era of intolerance and repression.
At a number of mass rallies under the slogan "Respect for the National Will," Erdoğan has claimed that the widespread unrest is the result of an conspiracy between "the traitors inside and their partners outside" to destabilize the Turkish economy and the government's achievements. More specifically, he has accused "the interest rate lobby," which is understood to be a reference to the Jews. Yeni Şafak, an Islamist daily, has even alleged that the protests are an American Jewish plot organized by the AIPAC [American Israel Public Affairs Committee] and the American Enterprise Institute.

A round-up of protesters has already begun and the Turkish intelligence service [MIT] has launched an investigation into foreign links. Moreover, Interior Minister Muammer Güler has spoken of the need for a regulation to take action against those who provoke the public via the social media. A number of television channels have also been fined for their coverage of the Gezi Park protests, as the Radio and Television Supreme Council [RTÜK] consider this "harming the physical, moral and mental development of children and young people."

Foreign Minister Davutoğlu in his interview with Cairo Review said that history is replete with examples of regimes failing to survive when they lost their legitimacy in the eyes of their people. It might not have occurred to the AKP government that unless it changes course, it could suffer the same fate.

Robert Ellis is a regular commentator on Turkish affairs in the Danish and international press.

Labels: Controversy, Crisis Politics, Democracy, European Union, Human Relations, Islamism, Turkey

posted by Pieface @ Sunday, June 30, 2013

Taking Outsize Role in Syria, Qatar Funnels Arms to Rebels

By MARK MAZZETTI, C. J. CHIVERS and ERIC SCHMITT

Labels: Conflict, Munitions, Qatar, Revolution, Syria

posted by Pieface @ Sunday, June 30, 2013

For a second day Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's forces bombed the city of Homs, which is currently controlled by rebels. Representatives for the rebels say they are ready for a long battle.

President Bashar al-Assad's forces pounded Sunni Muslim rebels in the city of Homs with artillery and from the air on Sunday, the second day of an offensive to expand loyalist control over Syria's strategic centre, activists said.
They said rebels defending the old centre of Homs and five adjacent Sunni districts had largely repelled a ground attack on Saturday by Assad's forces but reported fresh clashes and deaths within the city on Sunday.

The offensive follows steady military gains by Assad's forces, backed by Lebanese Hezbollah militants, in villages in Homs province and towns close to the Lebanese border.

British Foreign Secretary William Hague said Assad must halt his "brutal assault" on Homs. Gulf countries, which back the rebels, urged Lebanon to stop "parties" interfering in the Syria conflict, a reference to Iranian-backed Hezbollah.

Opposition sources and diplomats said the loyalist advance had tightened the siege of Homs and secured a main road link to Hezbollah strongholds in Lebanon and to army bases in Alawite-held territory near the Syrian coast, the main entry point for Russian arms that have given Assad a key advantage in firepower.

At least 100,000 people have been killed since the Syrian revolt against four decades of rule by Assad and his late father erupted in March 2011, making the uprising the bloodiest of the Arab Spring popular revolutions against entrenched autocrats.

The Syrian conflict is increasingly pitting Assad's Alawite minority, backed by Shi'ite Iran and its Hezbollah ally, against mainly Sunni rebel brigades supported by the Gulf states, Egypt, Turkey and others.

Sunni Jihadists, including al Qaeda fighters from Iraq, have also entered the fray.

The loyalist advances have alarmed international supporters of the rebels, leading the United States to announce it will step up military support. Saudi Arabia has accelerated deliveries of sophisticated weaponry, Gulf sources say.

The Sham News Network opposition monitoring group said fighters belonging to the al Qaeda-linked Nusra Front had killed five loyalist troops in fighting in the Bab Hud district of Old Homs on Sunday.
Activists said one woman and a child had been killed in an airstrike on the old city, home to hundreds of civilians.

Video footage taken by the activists, which could not be immediately verified, showed the two bodies being carried in blankets as well as a man holding a wounded child with a huge gash in his head.
Rebel fighters also fought loyalist forces backed by tanks in the old covered market, which links the old city with Khalidiya, a district inhabited by members of tribes who have been at the forefront of the armed insurgency.

"After failing to make any significant advances yesterday, the regime is trying to sever the link between Khalidiya and the old city," Abu Bilal, one of the activists, said from Homs.
"We are seeing a sectarian attack on Homs par excellence, The army has taken a back role. Most of the attacking forces are comprised of Alawite militia being directed by Hezbollah."

The Alawites are an offshoot of Shi'ite Islam that have controlled Syria since the 1960s, when members of the sect took over the army and the security apparatus which underpin the power structure in the mainly Sunni country.

Located at a major highway intersection 88 miles north of Damascus, Homs is a majority Sunni city. But a large number of Alawites have moved into mostly new and segregated districts in recent decades, drawn by army and security jobs.

Lebanese security forces said Hezbollah appeared to be present in the rural areas surrounding Homs but there was no indication that it was fighting in the labyrinth streets of Homs, where it could take heavy casualties.

Anwar Abu al-Waleed, an activist, said rebel brigades were prepared to fight a long battle, unlike in Qusair and Tel Kalakh, two towns in rural Homs near the border with Lebanon that fell to loyalist forces in recent weeks.

"We are talking about serious urban warfare in Homs. We are not talking about scattered buildings in an isolated town but a large urban area that provides a lot of cover," he said.

Britain's Hague expressed concern over the escalation of fighting in Homs, saying in a statement: "I call upon the Assad regime to cease its brutal assault on Homs and to allow full humanitarian access to the country."

The Syrian conflict has aggravated neighbouring Lebanon's own complex sectarian rivalry, triggering fighting between Alawite pro-Assad and Sunni anti-Assad militia in the northern city of Tripoli that has killed dozens.

Gulf foreign ministers meeting in Bahrain urged the Lebanese government to "commit to distancing itself from the Syrian crisis and to prevent any Lebanese parties from interfering in (Syria) in order to enable it to confront the brutal attacks and crimes conducted by the regime and its allies."

Additional reporting by Angus McDowall and William Maclean in Dubai

Labels: Conflict, Revolution, Syria

posted by Pieface @ Sunday, June 30, 2013

Egypt Morsi: Mass political protests grip cities

Tens of thousands of opponents have massed in Tahrir Square and outside the main presidential palace.

Protesters accuse Mr Morsi of failing to tackle economic and security problems since taking power a year ago.
A presidential spokesman urged them to respect the democratic process.

Morsi supporters massed in the Cairo suburb of Nasr City with banners denouncing the opposition.
The president's critics say the country's first Islamist president has put the agenda of the Muslim Brotherhood party ahead of the country's wider interests.
Demonstrations are being reported across the country

• In Alexandria, the second-biggest city, thousands of protesters gathered for a march to the central Sidi Gaber area, BBC Arabic's Rami Gabr reports

• A big stage has been erected in the main square of the Suez Canal city of Port Said, and protesters are checking the identities of those going in and out of the square, BBC Arabic's Attia Nabil reports

• Rallies are also expected in Suez, Monofia and Sharqiya - the birthplace of President Morsi.

Windows in the Muslim Brotherhood headquarters in Cairo were reinforced with sandbags ahead of the protests.

Some Morsi supporters in Nasr City are wearing banners saying that they are willing to be martyrs for the cause of keeping the president in power.

"Political diversity necessitates on all parties to abide by the democratic process," he said.
He told reporters that the presidency was open to a "real and serious national dialogue".
Egyptians have been talking about this day for many weeks - with the opposition vowing not to leave until Mr Morsi steps down and calls early presidential elections, our correspondent says.
But supporters of Mr Morsi point out that he was elected and say he should see out his full term in office, so there is a real split in Egyptian society at the moment, he adds.

Opposition activists say more than 22 million people have signed a petition seeking a snap election.
The grassroots movement Tamarod (Rebellion) is behind the petition, which has united liberal and secular opposition groups, including the National Salvation Front.

However, many ordinary Egyptians - angered by Mr Morsi's political and economic policies - are also taking part in the rally in Tahrir Square.
Hanan Bakr, who travelled specially from Dubai where she lives, to join the "second Egyptian revolution", told the BBC: "I'm hoping to stay on the streets until the whole regime of the Brotherhood is brought down.

"If Egypt falls under Islamist extremism, this will affect the whole region."
President Morsi earlier this week offered a dialogue - a move rejected by his opponents.
Mr Morsi, who hails from the Muslim Brotherhood, became Egypt's first Islamist president on 30 June 2012, after winning an election considered free and fair.

His first year as president has been marred by constant political unrest and a sinking economy.

Labels: Chaos, Controversy, Egypt, Islamism, Muslim Brotherhood, Societal Failures

posted by Pieface @ Sunday, June 30, 2013