Wednesday, March 28, 2012

France launches hunt for Islamic extremists after attacks-EJP | News | France |



Updated: 27/Mar/2012 07:47
Yusuf al-Qaradawi, barred from entering France, has ties with Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood and has been accused of making anti-Semitic and homophobic statements and was banned from Britain in 2008. He has been banned from entering the United States since 1999.
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PARIS (AFP)---President Nicolas Sarkozy, in mid-campaign for re-election, said Monday French security services would launch a hunt for Islamic extremists following the killing spree by an Islamist gunman.   
Mohamed Merah, a 23-year-old who claimed he had links to Al-Qaeda and was killed Thursday in a stand-off with police in Toulouse, killed seven people including three Jewish children in the attacks in southwestern France.   
"Are there other Merahs? All the security, intelligence and police services in democratic countries are on the lookout," Sarkozy told France Info radio. 
He said the interior and justice ministries have been ordered to engage in a systematic evaluation of potential threats.   
On Sunday, authorities charged the gunman's brother, 29-year-old Abdelkader Merah, with complicity in the attacks but he denied any involvement.   
French security services have come under fire for not preventing the three shooting sprees, which saw the killings of three off-duty French soldiers and three children and a teacher at Jewish school in Toulouse.   
The attacks have also pushed security issues up the agenda in the midst of a heated campaign for France's April-May presidential election.   
Merah said he had received training in Pakistan and Afghanistan and he had been on a US "terror blacklist" banning him from US-bound flights after he was arrested in Afghanistan and sent back to France.   
The director general of the French national police, Frederic Pechenard, defended security services Monday, saying it was easier to criticize in hindsight. 
 "It's easy now, when we have the killer's name, to look back. It's a bit like the lottery: it's easy to have the six numbers in order after the fact," he told RTL radio.   
He said police were facing a daunting task in evaluating the risks of other potential extremists.   
"There are hundreds of young French people who go to Egypt, to Yemen, to Pakistan to study the Koran... who are nothing more than religious," he said.   
"Amid these hundreds of people are a few potential terrorists whom we need to work on."
   
Sarkozy also said Monday that France had barred influential Qatar-based Sunni Muslim cleric Yusuf al-Qaradawi from visiting the country.   
In the heated atmosphere following the attacks, Qaradawi's planned visit next month for a congress of the Union of Islamic Organisations in France (UOIF) was attacked by the opposition Socialists and far-right National Front.   
"I told the emir of Qatar himself that this gentleman was not welcome in the territory of the French Republic," Sarkozy told France Info.
   
Qaradawi, who hosts a popular show on Al-Jazeera satellite television, backed Arab Spring uprisings in Tunisia, Egypt and Libya, and has launched a fund-raising effort for the Syrian opposition.   
Qaradawi, who has ties with Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood, has been accused of making anti-Semitic and homophobic statements and was banned from Britain in 2008. He has been banned from entering the United States since 1999.   
The International Union of Muslim Scholars, which Qaradawi heads, criticized the decision but said it respected French sovereignty. 
 "We are surprised, and we admonish France for refusing to grant Sheikh Yusuf Qaradawi a visa. He is a moderate scholar who contributed to combating extremism," said the union's secretary general, Ali al-Qaradaghi. 

Saturday, March 24, 2012

African Union will send 5,000 troops to find Kony


Joseph Kony, leader of the Lord´s Resistance Army, in 2006. A video campaign on the Internet has drawn attention to his alleged war crimes. Associated Press, File
Joseph Kony, leader of the Lord's Resistance Army, in 2006. A video campaign on the Internet has drawn attention to his alleged war crimes. Associated Press, File
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ALSO ON PHILLY.COM
 
African Union force to step up hunt for Kony
ENTEBBE, Uganda - The African Union said Friday it would send 5,000 soldiers to join the hunt for notorious rebel leader Joseph Kony, a new mission that comes amid a wildly popular Internet campaign targeting the leader of the Lord's Resistance Army.
The mission is to be launched in South Sudan on Saturday and will last until Kony is caught, U.N. and African Union officials said at a news conference in Uganda.
"We need to stop Kony with hardware - with military hardware in this case," said Francisco Madeira, the African Union's special envoy on the LRA. "We are on a mission to stop him."
An Internet movie campaign this month backed by the U.S. advocacy group Invisible Children sought to make Kony "famous" so policymakers would make removing him a priority. The video has been viewed more than 100 million times.
Abou Moussa, head of the U.N. office in Central Africa, said soaring international interest in Kony had spurred regional efforts to eliminate the LRA.
"The awareness has been useful, very important," he said.
The hunt for Kony has primarily been carried out by troops from Uganda, who received a boost last year when President Obama deployed 100 U.S. forces to help in the mission.
The African Union mission, to be led by a Ugandan commander, will comprise troops from Uganda, South Sudan, Central African Republic, and Congo, countries where Kony's reign of terror has been felt over the years.
The African Union's most prominent military mission is in Somalia, where 17,700 troops - primarily from Uganda, Kenya, and Burundi - are fighting al-Shabab militants. The force has made strong gains over the last year, pushing insurgents out of Somalia's capital.
The African Union's new focus on Kony dovetails with the Ugandan military's stance that catching or killing him would mean the end of the LRA. His forces were ousted from Uganda in 2005.
The officials meeting in Uganda on Friday did not say where the funding for the mission would come from but acknowledged that finding money was a problem.
Madeira said the coordinated deployment of African troops would "neutralize Kony" and isolate the LRA, whose men have split into small groups. The LRA is thought to have only 200 to 300 soldiers. It has forced many children to become soldiers and porters, and women and girls to become sex slaves.
Kony is wanted by the International Criminal Court for war crimes and crimes against humanity. He is believed to be hiding in the Central African Republic.

Today's Bomb Treats to civility and human lives

Terrorist: Bin Laden Bankrolled 2002 Bali Bombings
MyFox Detroit
(NewsCore) - The $US30,000 that financed the deadly 2002 Bali bombings came directly from the late al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden, according to a terrorist convicted over the massacre. Testifying at the trial of another accused plotter, Umar Patek, ...
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MyFox Detroit
Osama bin Laden Funded Bali Bombing, Terror Trial Reveals
Jakarta Globe
Indonesian terror suspect Umar Patek, right, greets Bali bombing convict Ali Imron during his trial in Jakarta, Indonesia, on Thursday. Umar Patek is accused of mixing explosive materials used in the 2002 Bali nightclub attacks that killed 202 people.
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Jakarta Globe
Bombings in Iraq a sign of deep domestic problems
The Conversation
For some months now, Iraq has been experiencing a steady campaign of bombings and murders across the country. Iraqi security forces have been hard-pressed to deal with the attacks, especially since the departure of US forces.
See all stories on this topic »
Five killed in mosque bombing in NW Pakistan
Press TV
The bombing came exactly three weeks after a similar attack on a mosque in Tirah, which killed 22 people and wounded another 20 after Friday Prayers. Khyber is a haven for Pakistan's pro-Taliban militants who have been fighting the army, ...
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Press TV
Kim Kardashian Flour Bombed As Protesters Step Up Assaults
Reuters
By Andrew Chow, JD at FindLaw.com Kim Kardashian was hit with a 'flour bomb” Thursday night -- the latest in a series of benign celebrity “bombings” that can technically be considered assault and battery. Kardashian showed up at the West Hollywood ...
See all stories on this topic »
Taliban bomber kills 5 rival militants in Pakistan
The Seattle Times
A Taliban suicide bomber attacked the headquarters of a rival group Friday in northwest Pakistan, killing at least five fighters in the second such bombing this month, militants and a government official said. By RIAZ KHAN Associated Press No comments ...
See all stories on this topic »
Taliban suicide bomber kills at least 5 militants from rival group in ...
Washington Post
PESHAWAR, Pakistan — A Taliban suicide bomber attacked the headquarters of a rival group Friday in northwest Pakistan, killing at least five fighters in the second such bombing this month, militants and a government official said.
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Between defiance and crisis
Ahram Online
The government of Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad blamed "terrorists" seeking to overthrow the regime for the bombings. They were the fourth in a series of attacks targeting security or other sectors since December. No group claimed responsibility for ...
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Islamists seek influence in Syria uprising
Albany Times Union
A new al-Qaida-style group claimed Wednesday, March 21, 2012 that it carried out the double suicide bombing that killed dozens. Syria's uprising is taking on increasingly religious tones, and Islamic groups - from al-Qaida-style militants to the ...
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Iman, bodyguard killed in Russian Caucasus bombing
Europe Online Magazine
By our dpa-correspondent and Europe Online Moscow (dpa) - The head of a mosque and his bodyguard were killed in a bombing in Russia's restive Caucasus region on Friday, the Interfax news agency reported. Gitinamagomed Abdul Gapurov and bodyguard ...
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Friday, March 23, 2012

የመንበረ ፓትርያርኩ ጠ/ቤ/ክ ጽ/ቤት በወቅታዊ የገዳማት ሁኔታ ላይ መግለጫ ይሰጣል

 
 (ደጀ ሰላም፤ መጋቢት 13/2004 ዓ.ም፤ ማርች 22/2012 READ THIS IN PDF)፦ የመንበረ ፓትርያክ ጠቅላይ ቤተ ክህነት ጽ/ቤት በዋልድባ ገዳማት ክልልና ዙሪያ የሚካሄደው‹‹የወልቃይት ስኳር ልማት ፕሮጀክት›› ስለተፈጠረው ውዝግብ፣ በዝቋላ ደብረ ከዋክብት ጻድቁ አቡነ ገብረ መንፈስ ቅዱስ ገዳምና አካባቢ እንዲሁም በደብረ ወገግ ቅድስት ሥላሴ ወአቡነ ሳሙኤል ገዳም ይዞታ በሆኑ ደኖች ስለደረሰው ቃጠሎ አደጋ ዛሬ መግለጫ እንደሚሰጥ ይጠበቃል፡፡

የጠቅላይ ቤተ ክህነቱ ሓላፊዎች - ምክትል ዋና ሥራ አስኪያጁ አቶ ተስፋዬ፣ የሕዝብ ግንኙነት መምሪያው ዋና ሓላፊ አቶ እስክንድር ገብረ ክርስቶስ - በዋልድባ ገዳማት ጉዳይ ወደ ስፍራው አምርተው ከመንግሥት፣ ከአህጉረ ስብከት እና ከገዳሙ ተወካዮች ጋራ መነጋገራቸው በአሜሪካ ድምጽ ሬዲዮ እና በደጀ ሰላምም መዘገቡ ይታወሳል፡፡
የሕዝብ ግንኙነቱ መመሪያው ምክትል ሓላፊው ሊቀ ኅሩያን ዳዊት ታደሰ እንዲሁም የካህናት አስተዳደር መምሪያ ሓላፊው (መጋቤ ካህናቱ) ሊቀ ማእምራን ኀይለ ሥላሴ ዘማርያም ከምዕራብ ሐረርጌ ሀ/ስብከት ሊቀ ጳጳስ ብፁዕ አቡነ ዳንኤል ጋራ በደብረ ወገግ ቅድስት ሥላሴ ወአቡነ ሳሙኤል ገዳም ተጉዘው እንደ ነበር ተሰምቷል፡፡
በሰሞኑ የዝቋላ ገዳምና አካባቢው ቃጠሎ ደግሞ እሳቱ ከተነሣ ሦስት ቀናት በኋላ በገዳማት አስተዳደር መምሪያው ሓላፊ ንቡረ እድ አባ ገብረ ማርያም ያሉበት ኮሚቴ ወደ ስፍራው አቅንቷል፡፡ የምሥራቅ ሸዋ ሀገረ ስብከት ሊቀ ጳጳስ ብፁዕ አቡነ ጎርጎርዮስ ውሎ እና አዳራቸውን በዚያው አድርገው ወደ መንበረ ጵጵስናቸው የተመለሱት ትንት ረፋድ ላይ ነበር፡፡
ከጠቅላይ ቤተ ክህነቱ የተሰማሩትን የሦስቱንም ቡድን ልኡካን ጉዞ ንቅናቄዎች አንድ የሚያደርጋቸው፡- ችግሩ ከተፈጠረ በኋላ መንግሥት ዕቅዱን ለማሳመን የሚጥረውን ያህል ቤተ ክህነታችን እንደ ባለቤት አጀንዳውን የራስ በማድረግ ፈጣን ምላሽ አለመስጠቱ፣ አደጋውን ከሐቁ ለማሳነስ አንዳንዴም ጨርሶ ለማስተባበል የተሞከረበት መሆኑ፣ በቤተ ክርስቲያኒቱ መብትና ጥቅም ላይ አገርንም ቤተ ክርስቲያኒቱንም ሊጠቅም የሚችል አቋም ከመያዝ ይልቅ የመደራደር ዝንባሌ መታየቱ፤ ከዚህም አልፎ በቤተ ክርስቲያኒቷ ችግር የጠቅላይ ቤተ ክህነቱ የችግር አፈታትና የሕዝብ ግንኙነት አቅም ተፈትኖ ደካማ ሆኖ መገኘቱ ናቸው፡፡
እግዚኦ በሚያሰኝ ሁኔታ ችግሩን ለመፍታት ከሄዱበት ህልውናው በአደጋ ውስጥ ከሚገኝ ገዳምአበል ጠይቀውና ተቀብለው የመጡ አሳፋሪ ልኡካንም እንዳሉ ጥቆማው ደርሶናል፡፡
ለማንኛውም ‹ጨርሶ ከመቅረቱ መዘግየቱ ይመረጣል›ና የተባለውን ወቅታዊ መግለጫ እንጠብቃለን፡፡
ቸር ወሬ ያሰማን
አሜን፡፡

(ደጀ ሰላም፤ መጋቢት 12/2004 ዓ.ም፤ ማርች 21/2012/ READ IN PDF)፦ ስጋቱ ዛሬ አዳሩንከምሽቱ 300 ገደማ የቅዱሳን ከተማ በሚባለው ስፍራ ሲጤሱ የዋሉ የገመኑ (የተቃጠሉጉቶዎችና ግንዶች ምሽቱንእሳት መቀስቀሳቸው ተሰምቷል፡፡ የእሳቱ መጠን ምን ያህል አሳሳቢ እንደሆነ ለጊዜው ማወቅ ባይቻልም÷ በየአቅጣጫውሁኔታውን በንቃት እየቃኙ በነበሩት መናንያን በተሰማው ደወል በገዳሙ አዳራሽ የነበረው ምእመን እንዲጠራ ተደርጎ፣በተራራው ላይ የመከላከሉን ተግባር በከፍተኛ ደረጃ ሲያግዙ ከነበሩት የፌዴራል ፖሊስ እና የመከላከያ ኀይሎች ጋራየተቀሰቀሰውን እሳት ለማጥፋት እየተረባረቡ መሆኑ ተገልጾልናል፡፡

ንት ሌሊቱንና ዛሬ ውሎውን የቃጠሎው መዛመት ተግ ብሎ ከጋራው ግርጌ በኩል የሚጤሱ የጋሙ ጉቶዎች ጢስብቻ ነበር የሚታየው፡፡ ማምሻውን የተቀሰቀሰው እሳት በቃጠሎው ብዛት የገመኑት ግንዶችና ጉቶዎች የፈጠሩትን ፍሕምጨርሶ ለማጥፋት በአየር የሚረጨው ኬሚካል በእጅጉ አስፈላጊ እንደ ሆነ ያለማቋረጥ እየቀረበ ያለውን ጥያቄትክክለኛነት የሚያስረግጥ ነው፡፡ በመሆኑም በጎ አድራጊ አካላት ለዚህ ተፈጻሚነት እንዲተባበሩ ተጠይቋል፡፡
ከዚህ ውጭ ያለው አማራጭ የነፍስ ወከፍ የውኃ ርጭት ነው፡፡ ይሁንና ገዳሙ ከቀድሞም ባለበት የውኃ እጥረትናከፍሕሙ መብዛት የተነሣ በቂ ውኃ ለማግኘት አይችልም፡፡ እስከ ኀሙስ ገበያ ድረስ ለመምጣት የቻለው ውኃም እየተቀዳ ቃጠሎውን ለማጥፋት ለተሰማሩት ወገኖች ነው የተከፋፈለው፡፡ በመሆኑም በዚህም በኩል በጎ አድራጊ አካላትውኃና ውኃ የሚያቀርቡ ተሽከርካሪዎችን በማቅረብ እንዲራዱ ተጠይቀዋል፡፡

እስከ አሁን - የገዳሙ መነኰሳት እስከ አሁን የተደረገውን ቃጠሎውን የመከላከል ጥረት እንደሚከተለው ገልጸውታል፡- ‹‹በእግዚአብሔር ቸርነት፣ በምእመኑ ብዛት እሳቱ ጠፍቷል፤ አሁን ባለበት ርቀት  የሚበላውን ያህል በልቶ ስለጨረሰ ከዚህ በኋላ ሊስፋፋ አይችልም፡፡
ሕዝበ ክርስቲያኑ፣ መከላከያው፣ ፖሊሱ፣ የአደጋ መከላከልና ዝግጁነት ባለሞያዎች ወደ ገዳሙ መዳረሻ በሆኑ መንገዶች አፈሩን እየቆፈሩ ጉድጓዶችን በማውጣት፤ አፈሩን፣ ቅጠሉንና ግንዱን በመከመር ቃጠሎው ወደ ጠበሉ እንዳይገባ አድርገውታል፡፡
አሁን የቃጠሎው ስጋት ያለው ጢሱ በሚታይበት ተራራ ግርጌ፣ በአዱላላ በኩል ጊዳ መሥመር እየተባለ በሚታወቀው አቅጣጫ ነው፡፡ ሌሊት መናንያን ሁኔታውን በንቃት ይጠብቃሉ፡፡ የሚያሰጋ ከሆነ ደወል ይደውላሉ፡፡››
የገዳማውያኑ ምስጋና - ‹‹ለቦታው ተቆርቋሪ ከሆነው ወገን የቀረ ሰው የለም፡፡ የዩኒቨርስቲ ተማሪው፣ የከተማው ወጣት፣ የሰንበት ት/ቤት ተማሪዎች፣ ፖሊሱ፣ መከላከያው በአጠቃላይ ሕዝበ ክርስቲያኑ እዚሁ ነው ያለው፡፡ በተለይ ወጣቱ ለቦታው ታላቅ ባለውለታ ነው፡፡ ሃይላንዳቸውን ብቻ ይዘው ተራራውን ወጥተው ከዚህ መድረሳቸው ብቻ ለእኛ አለኝታ ነው፡፡ እግዚአብሔር ሐሳባቸውን ያስፈጽምላቸው፡፡ ውለታቸው በሰው ተነግሮ የሚያልቅ አይደለም፡፡ ቦታውን ታድገውታል፡፡››

ቸር ወሬ ያሰማን

አሜን

Thursday, March 22, 2012

Global water shortage tackled by USDA | Management content from Western Farm Press

  • USDA agencies with a water mission are working closely together to develop practical solutions for securing food and water resources in the future—not just for Americans, but also globally.
This week marks the 19th year of World Water Day. The United Nations Conference on Environment and Development designated this day as an annual international event focusing on the importance of sustaining and managing fresh water resources.  This year’s theme is water and food security.  This is such a critical issue to not only to our international friends, but also for U.S. farmers, ranchers, growers, consumers, and conservationists.
The United Nations also convened its Sixth World Water Forum in France last week.  Held every three years, it’s the largest ministerial and scientific meeting addressing water issues that impact our world.  Mark Walbridge, ARS National Program Leader for Water Quality & Water Management, and Ibrahim Shaqir, Director of the ARS Office of International Research Programs, had the distinguished honor to participate in the Forum’s U.S. Pavilion on behalf of USDA.
They highlighted recent research advances developed by ARS scientists that are changing the way we use water.  The conference was an opportunity to also establish and build international collaborations needed to address critical water issues—particularly those related to food and agriculture.
Two key projects were emphasized.  The first featured ARS-developed technology using deficit irrigation management to help farmers determine how much water is needed to produce a particular crop.  This system takes into account various things like plant temperature, land characteristics, drainage, climate and temperature variables, etc., to determine the most efficient water amounts needed to produce the highest crop yields.
The other is a collaborative project with the National Drought Mitigation Center, USAID and scientists in Africa, China and other countries to test a drought prediction system.   ARS developed a series of remote sensing tools that can be used to assess water in soil over large geographic regions—like Ethiopia, for example, where large-scale droughts can result in famine.  Such a system will improve agricultural drought detection, increasing our ability to reduce and prevent drought’s impact on global food markets.
USDA agencies with a water mission are working closely together to develop practical solutions for securing food and water resources in the future—not just for Americans, but also globally

Judith Tebbutt, British Hostage, Freed From Somalia (VIDEO)

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British woman Judith Tebbutt, who taken hostage in Kenya and held in Somalia six months ago, has said she is "really happy" to have finally been released by her captors.
She told ITV News she was happy to be free: "I am just happy to be released and I'm looking forward to seeing my son who successfully secured my release.
"I don't know how he did it, but he did. Which is great."


The BBC broadcast footage showing Tebbutt on a beach in Somalia, being taken towards a plane.
The 56-year-old was kidnapped the Kiwayu Safari Village Kenya in September 2011, on what was supposed to be a once-in-a-lifetime trip with her husband David. He was murdered by the kidnappers, while she was taken to Somalia by men reported to be pirates.
Social worker Tebbutt, who is thought to be partially deaf and wears a hearing aid, is now on her way to Nairobi, according to reports.
The prime minister's official spokesperson said the priority was to get Tebbutt ''to a place of safety", adding that officials were standing by to provide consular care.
"We can confirm that she has been released. Our priority now is to get her to a place of safety.
"We will have more to say about that shortly. We are standing by to provide consular care as soon as she arrives in Nairobi."
Asked whether the government was aware of a ransom being paid, the spokesman said: "Our position is that we do not pay ransoms and we do not facilitate concessions to hostage-takers."
Asked whether officials had advised the family not to pay a ransom, he replied: "All I can say is that we have been in close contact throughout.
"We have obviously been providing support to the family and been in close contact with the family throughout and have been meeting regularly to discuss the case."
According to the BBC her relatives raised money to pay her ransom. Reports indicate she smiled and spoke to journalists as she left Somalia, saying she was glad to be safe.
Somali pirate Bile Hussein and Mohammed Hussein, an official with the militia Ahlu Sunnah Wal Jama, said Tebbutt was released by pirates holding her on Wednesday. The Tebbutts, from Bishop's Stortford, Hertfordshire, had arrived at the safari village in Kenya in September after visiting the Masai Mara game reserve and were the resort's only guests.
Police believed that David Tebbutt resisted and was shot. The Kiwayu Safari Village resort is 30 miles north of Lamu and consists of 18 luxury cottages spread along a private beach.
Paul Chandler, who with his wife Rachel spent 388 days in captivity after they were abducted at gunpoint by Somali pirates while sailing their yacht near the Seychelles in October 2009, told BBC News: "I hope she will have an opportunity to pick up the pieces of her life, and deal with the loss she has had."
Rachel Chandler said: "My feeling is one of relief and happiness for Judith Tebbutt and her family, that finally she is free."
Local MP Richard Harrington, from Watford, told Sky News: "Our thoughts are with Oliver [the couple's son], who must have such feelings today. Under the circumstances, he's done absolutely fantastically.
"To see his parents go on holiday, and saying he'll see them in a couple of weeks' time, in the most routine way that happens to all of us, then to find what happened to his father, and his mother, for so long whereabouts unknown, I'm sure he's got the deepest emotional feelings today, that none of us will ever experience in our lives, but I think he's conducted himself for one so young so extremely well, and I do nothing other than just commend him."