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April 28, 2006 |
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***** The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah Ibn Abdul Aziz received at the Royal Court at Al-Yamamah palace U.S. Ambassador to the Kingdom James Oberwetter. During the audience, the ambassador conveyed to the Monarch the greetings of U.S. President George W. Bush. In turn, the King sent his greetings to the President. The audience was attended by a number of princes and officials. The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah Ibn Abdul Aziz received the delegation of foreign affairs committee of Kuwaiti parliament. The audience was attended by a number of princes and officials. The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah Ibn Abdul Aziz received a telephone call from President Jacques Chirac. During the call they discussed the regional and international developments atop of which the Middle East. They also discussed bilateral relations and ways of enhancing them. The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah Ibn Abdul Aziz will patronize on the 14th of May 2006 the celebration of King Saud University on the occasion of the 50th year of its establishment. The event will be held at the university city in Diraya said the Director of the university Dr Abdullah Ibn Mohammed Al-Faisal in a press conference. Dr Al-Faisal said the university is honoured that the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques will patronize the event which will include activities that will continue throughout the year. Crown Prince Sultan Ibn Abdul Aziz, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Defense and Aviation and Inspector General received a delegation of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the Kuwaiti parliament headed by Mohammed Jassim Al-Saqir, the committee's chairman and president of Arab interim parliament. During the meeting, they exchanged cordial talks and discussed topics of mutual concern. The audience was attended by Dr. Salih Bin Abdullah Bin Homaid, chairman of the Shoura council and a number of officials. Crown Prince Sultan Ibn Abdul Aziz, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Defense and Aviation and Inspector General will patronize the ceremony to be held in the occasion of the opening of the new building of the Saudi Organization for Health Specialization and the graduation of Saudi doctors and pharmacists who received the Saudi certificate of specialization. Crown Prince Sultan Ibn Abdul Aziz, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Defense and Aviation and Inspector General honoured Dr Sultan Al Mubarak Consultant in gum diseases and director of dental diseases at Prince Sultan Humanitarian city, on the occasion of his success in receiving as the first non-American the Aluminus certificate of distinction. Al Mubarak expressed his thanks and gratitude to the Crown Prince. A general agreement on economic, commercial, investment, scientific, technological, cultural, youth and sports cooperation between the governments of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and Malta was signed. On the Saudi side, it was signed by Prince Saud Al-Faisal, the Foreign Minister and on the Maltese side by Foreign Minister Michael Frendo. Earlier, the Maltese foreign minister arrived in Riyadh. At King Khalid International Airport, he was received by Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Dr. Nizar bin Obaid Madani. Presided over by its Chairman Dr. Salih Bin Abdullah Bin Homaid, the Shoura council approved in its ordinary session in Riyadh a draft memorandum of understanding on military cooperation between the kingdom and Sweden. Secretary General of the Shoura Council Dr. Salih Bin Abdullah Al Malik said in a statement to the Saudi Press Agency that the council also endorsed a bilateral agreement on air transportation services between the kingdom and Niger. The council discussed reports of grain silos and flour mills organization and the achievements of the ministry of health, he added. The council also reviewed a draft cooperation agreement on security and combating narcotics and psychotropic substances between the kingdom and turkey, Al-Malik said. Sultan Qaboos bin Saeed of the Sultanate of Oman received the Secretary General of the Gulf Cooperation Council Abdul Rahman bin Hamad Al-Atiyyah. During the meeting, they discussed the march of the GCC and ways of enhancing it in all fields. The Secretary General also visited Kuwait in a tour in the Gulf prior to the consultative meeting, which will take place in May. Al Atiyyah said the meeting will review a number of political and security issues, particularly those related to combating terrorism. He added the summit will also discuss the current situation in Iraq and the Middle East peace process. The Second meeting of the Saudi-American Strategic Dialogue will be held in Washington in May. The Saudi delegation will be led by Foreign Minister Prince Saud Al-Faisal. The idea of the dialogue was set up after the meeting between the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah Ibn Abdul Aziz and President George W. Bush that took place in Texas. Also in May a Forum titled Two Kingdoms will be held in Madrid in Spain. Prince Saud Al-Faisal will lead the Saudi delegation which will include a large number of officials in different governmental areas and from the private sector. The Forum aim at enhancing relations between both countries. The Spanish delegation will be led by the Spanish Foreign Minister Miguel Moratinos. After months of deadlock, President Jalal Talabani asked Shiite politician Jawad Al-Maliki to head Iraq's first full-term government. "I would like to inform the brothers and sisters that we decided unanimously to endorse our dear brother Nouri Jawad Al-Maliki to head the Cabinet," Talabani said in Parliament. He was nominated by the Shiite United Iraqi Alliance, the largest bloc in Parliament, in a compromise vote that ended four months of political deadlock. Maliki, an official in Iraq's oldest Islamist party, now has one month to form a Cabinet and put it to a vote. "We are going to form a family that will not be based on sectarian or ethnic backgrounds," he told a news conference. The alliance chose Maliki after its original candidate, interim Prime Minister Ibrahim Jaafari, bowed out to end the stalemate after other parties objected to his candidature. Parliament earlier re-elected Talabani as president. Sunni Islamist Mahmoud Al-Mashhadani was elected as parliamentary speaker. The Parliament's two-hour session also elected representatives to a number of key posts. Shiite leader Adel Abdel Mahdi and Sunni politician Tareq Al-Hashemi were elected as the two vice presidents, Kurdish lawmaker Aref Tayfur and Shiite MP Sheikh Khalid Al-Attiya were appointed as deputy speakers. Sheikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoom, Vice President of United Arab Emirates, Premier and Governor of Dubai, thanked the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah Ibn Abdul Aziz for the warm welcome and generous hospitality accorded to him and the accompanying delegation during their stay in the kingdom. Following his departure, Sheikh Al Maktoum dispatched the cable to the Monarch, wishing him continuous health and happiness and the Saudi people steady progress and prosperity. Sheikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoom also thanked Crown Prince Sultan Ibn Abdul Aziz, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Defense and Aviation and Inspector General, for the warm welcome and generous hospitality accorded to him and the accompanying delegation during their stay in the kingdom. In a cable to Crown Prince Sultan, Sheikh Al Maktoum lauded the achievements accomplished in the kingdom and the prudent instructions of the Custodian of The Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah Ibn Abdul Aziz, wishing the Saudi people every progress and prosperity. A military judge allowed defense lawyers to call a general to testify at a court martial in the Abu Ghraib prisoner abuse scandal. However, the judge barred the defense from summoning Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld. Maj. Gen. Geoffrey Miller, the former commander of the detention center at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, would become the highest-ranking military officer to testify in the cases stemming from mistreatment of inmates. At a pre-trial hearing in the case of Army Sgt. Santos A. Cardona, a defense lawyer said Rumsfeld personally dispatched Miller to Abu Ghraib to review interrogation procedures as the U.S. military sought better intelligence from prisoners amid a growing insurgency in Iraq. In March, Army dog handler Michael J. Smith was sentenced to six months behind bars for using his snarling canine to torment prisoners. The military jury could have sentenced Smith, 24, to more than eight years in prison. Nine other soldiers have been convicted of abusing detainees at Abu Ghraib. Among them, former Cpl. Charles Graner Jr., received the stiffest sentence 10 years in prison. "The Palestinian-Israeli conflict stands as a stumbling bloc to achieving peace and stability in the region," Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Abul-Gheit said. At the Euro-Mediterranean forum in Cairo with the participation of 11 foreign ministers, the top Egyptian diplomat said the Euro-Mediterranean countries are expected to try their best to help bring in lasting and just peace in the region. He also said the meeting is a full opportunity to cement multi-cultralism and dialogue between the West and Islam in the wake of the cartoons crisis that exposed the yawning cultural gap between both sides. "We want to stand firmly in the face of any attempts to fan racism, extremism and blasphemy," he said. The Under Secretary of the Ministry of Health Dr Mansour Al Hawathi said the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques project to found 2000 health centers in the kingdom puts the Kingdom in a prime position amongst developed nations. Al Hawathi said the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques issued his directives to allocate SR 3 million to implement the second phase of the program. The centers will serve 50 million a year. Peace with Israel is achievable only if it returns land seized in 1967, including Jerusalem, back to Palestine, a senior Hamas leader has said. Khalid Mishaal, Hamas's chief political officer, told ZDF, a German public television channel: "Israel must withdraw from territories it has occupied since 1967. This includes the capital of Jerusalem." Other conditions Mishaal said include "the right of refugees to return as well as the dismantlement of Jewish settlements, the destruction of the separation barrier and the release of all [Palestinian] detainees. "If and only if Israel does this, then Hamas, Palestinians, Arabs and Muslims will be ready for true peace." PRESIDENT Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo will be on a state visit to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia from May 7 to 10 to discuss the oil price increase issue and boost ties between the Kingdom and the Philippines, Malacañang (Presidential Palace) said. The President will meet with representatives of the Saudi business community and with Filipinos in the kingdom, the Palace said. Arroyo's visit is on the invitation of Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah Ibn Abdul Aziz Al-Saud. The Philippines imports about 40 percent of its oil needs from Saudi Arabia, which is also its 12th largest trading partner, according to the Palace. Ties between the two countries can also be traced in efforts to develop Mindanao, with the Saudi Fund for Development pledging a total of 100 million dollars for development in the region, according to the Palace. Minister of Foreign and Expatriates Affairs Abu Bakr al-Qirbi affirmed that the discussions between GCC and Yemen came with positive outcomes. The outcomes of the discussions in Sana'a created a clear working plan and road map for joint works between the two sides in the coming period , al-Qirbi said. The discussions also assured the adherence of the general secretary of Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) to put steps for the coming conference of donors and discovering investment chances in Yemen to be held in Sana'a, he said. He confirmed that Yemen is going to take all measures to improve the partnership with GCC, pointing out that the government formed a high committee to follow the cooperation aspects with the council. Al-Qirbi expected that the coming period would witness more moves on the way of Yemen's jointing to the Gulf economy Arab League chief Amr Moussa said while in Spain "If nuclear energy and even atomic weapons are good, they should be good for all and if they are bad, they should be bad for all." Moussa blasted US efforts to block Iran's progress in its civilian nuclear program although Iran "is a signatory to the NPT and complies with its commitments under the treaty." "How is it possible that states that are not members of the NPT can pursue nuclear ambitions while a member to the treaty cannot avail of its advantages?" Moussa asked. Iran's program is civil, under the watch of UN nuclear agency, and is not military. Moussa advised that those interested in disarming the region from nuclear weapons should focus on Israel. He warned Western states that continuation of their double standards on the nuclear issue in the Middle East "will lead to a disaster in the future." Egypt's Foreign Minister Ahmed Abul-Gheit said that the Iranian nuclear program is worrisome because Egypt has been always pressing for rendering the Middle East free from weapons of mass destruction. He recalled that Egypt and Iran adopted an initiative in 1974 and raised it to the UN General Assembly to issue a resolution on nuclear non-proliferation. "We are still after this goal," the top Egyptian diplomat said. He said Egypt wants all Middle East countries join the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), including Israel. "That's why Egypt rejects to see a nuclear power in this region of the world," he added. Abul-Gheit, however, said NPT signatories have every right to pursue "peaceful" nuclear programs. "We only object to the non-peaceful use of atomic power," he noted. Abul-Gheit further said that Egypt firmly believes that the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has the finally say over the Iranian nuclear program. "The IAEA is the yardstick when it comes to the Iranian nuclear program," he stressed. Abul-Gheit received a phone call from his Iranian counterpart Manuchehr Motaki, discussing a report to be submitted by IAEA Chief Mohamed El-Baradei to the UN Security Council next week on Iran's nuclear dossier. They also dealt with Tehran's negotiation with the European Troika and Russia's active role in the Iranian stand off. Tehran is keen on continuing political dialogue, Motaki said, noting, however, that his country would not give up its peaceful nuclear program. Political directors of the UN Security Council's five permanent members will likely meet May 2 in Paris to thrash out a strategy in the Iranian nuclear crisis, a senior US official said, according to AFP. Nicholas Burns, undersecretary of state for political affairs, said the meeting would be one of a series of diplomatic encounters in the coming weeks to discuss Iran's alleged attempt to build a nuclear bomb. Burns said the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), the UN watchdog, was likely to report that Iran was refusing to comply with a UN Security Council injunction to halt uranium enrichment."Assuming a negative report, which we do, the commitment that all of us have together is we are going to meet on May 2nd in Paris, the P-5 political directors," Burns told reporters. The P-5 consists of the United States, Russia, China, Britain and France. It was not clear whether the Paris meeting would embrace Germany, which has been a part of previous consultations, including a session this week in Moscow, AFP noted. The United States has been pushing for tough UN action against Iran, such as a freeze on assets or travel restrictions for its leaders, but has run into resistance from Russia and China. Burns said Britain and France were expected to present in early May a Security Council resolution under chapter seven of the UN charter, which authorizes possible sanctions or even the eventual use of force, AFP added. He said Iran would also be "the leading issue" when foreign ministers of the Group of Eight industrialized power meet in Moscow in June, and leaders hold their summit in St. Petersburg the following month. Russia rejected a U.S. call to end its cooperation with Iran in constructing the Bushehr nuclear power plant. "The adoption of a commitment on ending cooperation with this or that state in some sphere lies exclusively in the competence of the UN Security Council," Foreign Ministry spokesman Mikhail Kamynin said in a statement. "Up to now, the Security Council has made no decision on ending cooperation with Iran in nuclear energy." The Palestinian son-in-law of al-Qaeda number two Ayman al-Zawahiri was killed during an American bombing in Afghanistan several days ago, the French news agency AFP reports. Family members of Houssam Abdellatif Abu Bakr opened a mourning house for condolence visits in his home village near Jenin in the West Bank, shortly after news of his death was received. Abu Bakr, 32, was married to Fatima Al Zahra'a, a daughter of Zawahiri, and was father to four children, his relatives told AFP. According to family, Abu Bakr was also "one of the main bodyguards" of Osama bin Laden. His parents, who have been living in Saudi Arabia since the 1970s, received a phone call "announcing the death of their son in an American bombardment in Afghanistan," said his relatives in Yaabad. Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak has said that it was too early to talk about a Palestinian-Israeli conference in the Egyptian Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh, the Egyptian Gazette reported. In exclusive statements to Mohamed Ali Ibarahim, editor-in-chief of the Arabic-language daily Al-Gomhuria, Mubarak said that intensive preparatory contacts with the Palestinians and the Israelis were necessary before holding such a summit. He pointed out that the previous Palestinian-Israeli summit, held in Sharm el-Sheikh in February 2005 between Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas and former Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, had been preceded by intensive preparatory contacts. Mubarak said that a certain agreement must be reached between the former ruling Fatah movement led by Abbas and the new Hamas-led government before such a meeting could go ahead. "The most important requirement of such a summit would be to put the Palestinian house in order, thus enabling the Palestinians to speak with one voice," said Mubarak. President Ali Abdullah Saleh met here with the mission of the French Senates headed by the chief of French-Yemeni Friendship Committee, André Ferrand. The mission forwarded president Jacques Chirac greetings and wishes of prosperity and progress to president Saleh and the Yemeni government and people. The French mission lauded Yemen democratic process and Yemeni-French strong relations. It asserted the importance of bilateral partnership, especially in the economic and commercial fields. The talks also focused on the regional situations, in Palestine and Iraq in particular, in addition to the role of France and the EU to push peace process forward. President Saleh welcomed the French investments in Yemen, assuring that it would get all help and facilities to be established for the common interest. Saleh talked over developments in field of democracy, freedom of press and human rights in light of establishing the ministry of human rights out of national willingness. He said that Yemen welcomes aids for supporting democracy and development process without any conditions. He also noted that well-off countries should help under-developing countries in order to support development and eradicate poverty that is considered the main source of extremism. Senior leaders of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas' Fatah movement and the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) agreed to end current chaos sparked by a dispute over the control of the Palestinian security forces. Fatah spokesman Maher Meqdad told reporters that Fatah and Hamas leaders reached an agreement brokered by high-ranking Egyptian security officials who arrived in Gaza on Saturday afternoon to end the current tension between the two groups and the chaos it resulted in. "We agreed to end tensions as well as all kinds of provocations and clashes," said Meqdad, adding that the two sides also agreed during the five-hour-long meeting held in an Egyptian diplomat's residence in Gaza to form a joint follow-up committee. The Fatah spokesman also revealed that the groups urged both President Abbas and the Hamas-led cabinet to work together to "end differences and disputes." A statement issued after the late Saturday meeting also called upon all the Palestinians to stop any actions which "lead to tensions" in order to boost "national unity and maintain the Palestinian people's rights." The Hamas-Fatah meeting came following fierce clashes between Hamas loyalists and Fatah supporters in Gaza City triggered by a dispute over the control of Palestinian security forces. Sayyid Badr bin Hamad bin Hamoud Al Busaidi, undersecretary at the Foreign Ministry, in a statement to ONA, has affirmed the continued efforts of the Sultanate for achievement of peace and security in the Gulf region, the Middle East and the world at large. He said the Sultanate was concerned with the peaceful and diplomatic settlement of Iran's nuclear row. He said Iranian officials always provided friendly initiatives to other countries of the region. He said the crisis led to increase in oil prices, which necessitated a peaceful settlement of the issue. |