Archivo de 15 Junio 2007
Syria Calls on (IAEA) to Put Israeli Nuclear Facilities under International Supervision
Thursday, June 14, 2007 - 08:20 PM
VIENNA, (SANA) - Director General of the Atomic Energy Institution in Syria Dr. Ebrahim Othman has called The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to shoulder responsibility and put the Israeli Nuclear facilities under the international supervision and to allow the international inspectors to enter these facilities.
In the Interposition of the Syrian delegation in the meeting of IAEA Board of Governors, which is currently held in Vienna, Dr. Othman criticized some parties that neglect and defend the existence of Israeli Nuclear facilities out of the international authority, the matter that destabilizes the international nuclear guarantees system.
He warned against dangers of dealing with the rejected double standards which affects (IAEA)'s bases, principles and aims and negatively influences the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons Treaty.
Director General of the Atomic Agency Institution in Syria underlined the importance of dialogue and objectivity in dealing with the Iranian nuclear file from the technical and lawful viewpoint and not from the political background.
15 Junio 2007
Embajador iraní en la OIEA pide que el expediente nuclear de Irán salga del ámbito de la Junta de Gobernadores Viena, Austria. IRNA. 14 de junio de 2007
Internacional. Nacional. Política.
Ali Asghar Soltanieh, embajador de Irán en la Organización Internacional de la Energía Atómica (OIEA), ha solicitado en la reunión de hoy jueves de la Junta de Gobernadores (JG) que el expediente nuclear de su país salga del ámbito de dicha junta.
“Teniendo presente la realidad reflejada en los informes del director general de la OIEA de que las actividades nucleares iraníes no se han desviado de sus objetivos pacíficos no existe justificación alguna para que el caso siga en esta junta, por lo que los protocolos deberían seguir su curso ordinario”, ha manifestado Soltanieh en su turno de palabra.
Soltanieh continuó basándose en los informes presentados por la misma Agencia, que constatan el no desvío de los programa nucleares anunciados por Teherán y agregó que esta no es la primera vez que la OIEA así lo confirma “sino que es una realidad ratificada en varias ocasiones en estos últimos cuatro años.”
“Además, en el informe del cumplimiento del protocolo SIR se señala que la secretaría de la OIEA ha llegado a la conclusión que el material fisible anunciado en Irán está dentro de las actividades pacíficas”, arguyó.
Soltanieh sostuvo que la frase “actividades no anunciadas” que viene en algunos informes se presta a confusiones e indicó que Teherán “no mantiene compromiso alguno para anunciar la construcción de instalaciones antes de introducir material fisible en éstas y todas las actividades atómicas anteriores se han declarado y anunciado según lo establecen los amplios acuerdos protocolarios.”
En otra parte de su intervención Soltanieh aludió a las presiones ejercidas por parte de algunos países sobre el director general de la Agencia, Mohamed ElBaradei, por haber sido éste realista respecto a la capacidad técnica de enriquecer uranio de Irán, y agregó: “Este tipo de intromisiones irracionales con propósitos políticos en un asunto totalmente técnico pone en peligro con toda seguridad la credibilidad y la posición ejecutiva de la secretaría de la Agencia.”
El diplomático iraní concluyó: “La república islámica, a la vez que está en contra de las armas de destrucción masivas, en atención a sus compromisos legales y religiosos, procura hacerse de tecnología pacífica para el bienestar de su gente según sus derechos innegables y reconocidos en leyes internacionales como los estatutos de la OIEA y el Tratado de No Proliferación (TNP.)”
15 Junio 2007
Ottri Meets families of martyrs in Occupied Syrian Golan
Thursday, June 14, 2007 - 08:00 PM
DAMASCUS, (SANA)-Prime Minister Mohammad Naji Ottri received on Thursday a delegation representing families of martyrs in the occupied Syrian Golan.
Families of Martyrs briefed the Premier on the situation of the Syrian citizens in the occupied Golan and their suffering under the occupation and the heroic steadfastness in the face of Israel crimes and racist practices.
Ottri underlined that the government, upon directives of President Bashar al-Assad, is giving full care and following up the situation of our citizens in Golan , adding that the government is taking all procedures that support their steadfastness and enhance the resistance soul .
Members of the delegation expressed pride for their belonging to the homeland Syria and stressing commitment to their land and the Syrian Arab identity.
15 Junio 2007
Eido funeral turns into rally against Syrians, opposition
By Hani M. Bathish
Daily Star staff
Friday, June 15, 2007
BEIRUT: Crowds of angry mourners converged on the Khashoggi Mosque in Beirut's Qasqas neighborhood on Thursday, joining the funeral procession for slain MP Walid Eido, carrying flags of his Future Movement and chanting anti-Syrian slogans a day after his death in a massive car bombing.
"Beirut wants revenge on [President Emile] Lahoud and [Syrian President] Bashar [Assad]," the crowd cried alongside ambulances carrying the bodies of Eido, his eldest son Khaled and one of the MP's bodyguards, Corporal Said Othman Shuman.
A Christian funeral service will be held later this week for Sergeant Major Fares Tannous Deeb, the second bodyguard killed with Eido.
Also slain in the bombing were two soccer players from the Nejmeh Club, Hussein Ali Daqmaq, 25, and Hussein Hassan Naim, 20, as well as 28-year-old lawyer Ghassan Dawoud. The results of DNA tests to identify of the eighth victim have not been released.
The bodies of the Eidos and Shuman were first taken by ambulance on Thursday morning from the American University of Beirut Medical Center to Eido's home in Verdun. Just after 11 a.m., the procession moved to the mosque, passing through Talet al-Khayyat and Corniche al-Mazraa, where hundreds of mourners joined the cortege. The procession was headed by parliamentary majority leader Saad Hariri and Progressive Socialist Party (PSP) leader MP Walid Jumblatt.
Family, friends and political allies of the slain MP prayed over the flag-draped coffins. Eido's sons Mazen and Zaher, as well as his brothers Nizar and Zuhair, were joined by ministers, MPs and clerics.
In the exterior atrium of the mosque, flag-waving mourners squeezed into a tight area, jostling for better views of the coffins as they were taken out of the main prayer hall following the funeral service.
At least two mourners were taken away on stretchers by the Lebanese Red Cross after faint-ing under the mid-day sun. In addition to the Future Movement flag, mourners carried flags of the PSP, the Lebanese Forces and the Murabitoun, a Sunni militia to which Eido belonged during the 1975-90 Civil War.
Chants of "We all support you Saadeddine [Hariri]" and "Terrorist, terrorist, Hizbullah is a terrorist group" echoed from the crowds, raising once again the specter of sectarian strife.
Young and full of ire, mourners called for revenge against Syria and its allies, whom they blamed for the bombing. Syria on Thursday condemned Eido's assassination and said it had nothing to do with the killing.
Future Movement MP Mohammad Qabbani, in a speech at the funeral, said that by refusing to sign decrees to authorize by-elections to fill the seats of slain March 14 MPs, Lahoud "is part of the plot and in turn is accomplice in the killings. Elections must be held even if Lahoud refuses."
"I tell those criminals we fear only God and we will continue our march of truth and justice. Let no one think that they frighten this nation or will bring it to its knees," Hariri said.
The majority leader also issued a warning that the perpetrators of the Eido assassination "will be punished and dragged to prison like lowlifes."
"Yesterday we lost Walid Eido," Hariri said, "and today he is alongside his brother [former Prime Minister] Rafik Hariri, as are his son Khaled and companion Said Shuman. They are all, God willing, martyrs for their country and martyrs for Beirut."
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Hariri said that Eido was killed because he was part of Rafik Hariri's movement and because he was a believer in March 14, 2005, "a day when all the Lebanese raised one Lebanese flag and stood united."
Qabbani called on the international community and the Arab world to take "practical steps" against terrorism to protect Lebanon and its people and to halt the smuggling of "all sorts of weapons and men across the Syrian border." He expressed solidarity with the army against Fatah al-Islam, which he called the "Abssi gang." He said the gang was part of the same plot, along with the bombings and assassinations, which aims to strike at Lebanon and its institutions.
Prayers were led by Grand Mufti Sheikh Mohammad Rashid Qabbani, who later addressed mourners and said the killings were the result of the politics of hate and envy.
"These three martyrs died as a result of politics practiced outside constitutional institutions, in the streets," he said.
He said the killings were the result of the same politics that "threatened to undermine Lebanon's security and independence, should the international tribunal be ratified in the UN Security Council."
"All of them must come back to their senses," Qabbani said, referring to the opposition. "They are all responsible directly or indirectly for Lebanon teetering on the brink of collapse."
The media were not spared the wrath of the angry mourners. A New TV crew was abused by crowds in front of the mosque and forced to retreat.
"This is normal, we get cursed at and hear abusive words all the time," Nancy Sabaa, a New TV reporter, told The Daily Star.
Sabaa said the incident began when an elderly woman said she wanted to break Sabaa's legs. "Soon the crowds gathered and started getting close to us, so we stepped back," Sabaa said.
Soldiers stepped between the mourners and the news crew.
"We do not want them here, they should get out," several mourners shouted.
Arab foreign ministers to discuss crisis today
CAIRO: Arab foreign ministers will hold an extraordinary meeting in Cairo on Friday to discuss the violence in Lebanon and the Gaza Strip, a league official told AFP.
Hisham Youssef, Arab League Secretary General Amr Moussa's chief of staff, said the meeting - initially scheduled for Saturday - had been brought forward because of the severity of the situations.
Lebanese Prime Minister Fouad Siniora called for the crisis meeting to discuss Wednesday's assassination of March 14 MP Walid Eido and other security issues.
Acting Foreign Minister Tarek Mitri will represent Lebanon at the talks in Cairo. According to Lebanese Broadcasting Corp. television, Mitri will be presenting reports of armed groups in the Bekaa, of weapons smuggling across the Syrian border and evidence linking Syria to militants battling the Lebanese Army at the Nahr al-Bared Palestinian refugee camp in North Lebanon. - AFP, The Daily Star
15 Junio 2007
Rice expresses U.S. support for Abbas amidst Gaza infighting
By News Agencies
American Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice telephoned Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas on Thursday to underline the United States' support for him and his allies in the fighting between his Fatah party and the rival Hamas raging in the Gaza Strip.
U.S. State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said the call essentially was to "talk to him about the current situation, the situation as he saw it, and to underline the United States' support for Abbas, for the Palestinian moderates who have made the commitment to working with the Israeli government and working with countries around the world on the issue of peace in the Middle East."
He said their choice to work toward peace has been challenged by those individuals in Gaza who have attacked the legitimate security forces of the Palestinian Authority, who have, in a premeditated way, decided that they are going to try to extinguish the hopes of the Palestinian people for their own state.
Meanwhile, the White House on Thursday expressed deep concern about the deteriorating situation in the Gaza Strip and accused Hamas of committing "acts of terror" against the Palestinian people.
A Hamas victory in factional fighting in Gaza would deal a blow to a United States peace push founded on the premise that the Western-backed Abbas would be capable of reining in militants and Israel would embrace him as a partner.
"This is a source of profound concern," White House spokesman Tony Snow told reporters when asked about conditions in Gaza after Hamas fighters captured one of the last Gaza City bastions of forces loyal to Abbas and his Fatah faction.
"Hamas has demonstrated its own view of democracy by once again committing acts of terror, now against the Palestinian people," he said.
Hamas, which won a Palestinian parliamentary election last year, is considered a terrorist organization by the United States, the European Union and Israel.
Washington has led efforts to isolate the Hamas-dominated government, demanding that it renounce violence, recognize Israel's right to exist and abide by existing agreements with the Jewish state.
"We think that it's important that the violence cease and that democracy, real democracy, get a chance to succeed in the Palestinian areas," Snow said.
"The Palestinian people have been afflicted by violence and want for far too long, so we are keeping very close watch," he added.
The head of the Arab league on Thursday warned of a disastrous outcome if the bloody infighting between the rival Palestinian Hamas and Fatah sides continues and urged and immediate cease fire.
"I call for a cease fire immediately," Amr Moussa said in the Egyptian capital, Cairo.
Moussa spoke after an urgent meeting with Jibril al-Rajoub, Abbas' senior security adviser.
Moussa urged the Palestinian factions embroiled in what looks increasingly like a civil war in the Gaza Strip to cooperate more with an Egyptian team of mediators.
If those efforts are not supported by the different Palestinian factions fighting, the outcome will be a disaster, Moussa warned. Moussa also said that the Arab states were extremely displeased at the Palestinian clashes which he described as unacceptable.
The Arab League was preparing for holding an urgent Arab foreign ministers meeting on Friday to discuss the deteriorated security situation in the Palestinian territories, Moussa said.
Al-Rajoub said what is needed now was a constructive unified Arab stance to rescue the Palestinians from this destruction.
He warned that if the fighting isn't halted it would make all the Palestinians losers.
Hamas on Thursday overran the southern Gaza city of Rafah, the second of the strip's four main towns to fall into the Islamic militants' hands. Abbas for the first time in five days of fierce fighting, ordered his elite presidential guard to strike back, but his forces were crumbling fast under the onslaught by the better-armed and better-disciplined Islamic fighters.
A Hamas military victory in Gaza would split Palestinian territory into two, with the Islamic extremists controlling the coastal strip and Western-backed Fatah ruling the West Bank.
EU commission suspends Gaza humanitarian aid projects
The European Commission on Thursday suspended its humanitarian aid projects in the Gaza Strip, citing the escalating sectarian violence.
"I fervently hope that the projects can resume very soon," said EU Humanitarian Aid Commissioner Louis Michel.
EU humanitarian operations in both Gaza and the West Bank totaled $110 million last year. So far this year, it has earmarked euro60 million $80 million.
On Thursday, violence continued unabated, with Hamas fighters overrunning one of the rival Fatah movement's most important security installations in the Gaza Strip on Thursday, and witnesses said the victors dragged vanquished gunmen from the building and executed them in the street.
Some 80 people, most of them militants, have been killed since a spike in violence Sunday sent Gaza into civil war. At least 15 people died on Thursday.
"This is a time when people desperately need protection and support. The warring parties must respect the principles of international humanitarian law," said Michel.
Meanwhile, the Rafah border crossing between Egypt and the Gaza Strip, monitored by an EU mission since November 2005, has been closed since June 9 due to security concerns, an official said.
"I can't tell you when the border will next be open. Since 2005 we have been open only 20 percent of the time," Maria Telleria, spokeswoman for the EU mission, said in a telephone interview.
"The situation is quite difficult. At this moment we're on standby," she said.
The mission monitors, verifies and evaluates the Palestinian Authority's border guards at the Rafah passenger terminal, which opened after Israel's 2005 pullout from Gaza to reassure an apprehensive Israel that Palestinian inspectors would prevent the smuggling of weapons and militants.
Results, however, have been mixed, amid frequent closings forced by Israel due to security concerns. Although the Palestinians run the crossing, Israel still has final say over whether it operates.
Telleria said the EU mission has been under pressure in the last year from Israel.
Despite the escalating violence, EU External Relations Commissioner Benita Ferrero-Waldner called on the Palestinians to stick with a national unity government.
"Now is not the time to give up on national unity, both in the government and in the security sector," she said. "I call on both Hamas and Fatah to invest all their energy in this coalition."
European officials urge calm in Gaza
British Foreign Secretary Margaret Beckett on Wednesday denounced fighting between the rival Palestinian factions as "senseless," and said Britain was continuing to press for the release of BBC correspondent Alan Johnston, abducted in Gaza City three months ago.
In a statement released late Wednesday, Beckett called the fighting a "tragedy" and said she would be speaking to Abbas, as well as the governments in Egypt and Saudi Arabia, to explore ways to resolve the crisis.
"This fighting is a tragedy. It puts civilians at risk… It makes it harder for the international community to extend assistance to the people," she said.
Beckett said she would appeal to Abbas to ensure that "cool heads prevail" in the conflict.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel called Thursday for the warring factions to end their conflict.
"The events of the last days have really effected us," Merkel told the German Parliament and said that Hamas and Fatah needed to end their violence immediately.
Merkel spoke by telephone to both Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and the Abbas on Wednesday evening.
In her telephone call with Abbas, Merkel gave her support to the efforts aimed at stabilizing the situation in Gaza, said German government spokesmen Ulrich William in Berlin.
15 Junio 2007
