*National Affaires
Political Headlines:
1. Israel must cooperate, says Aboul Gheit. (The Daily Star Egypt)
Israel must cooperate in this “critical phase” to achieve the goal of a peace treaty by the end of the year, Foreign Minister Ahmed Aboul Gheit said Friday.
Aboul Gheit was in London to attend the International Donors’ Conference for the Palestinian state and met with Israeli counterpart Tzipi Livni as well as UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon.
A foreign ministry statement said that Aboul Gheit “asserted in his talks with the Quartet members the importance of the international community’s active intervention to carve the option of two states, which was supported by the international meeting, yet it will be difficult to implement in case Israel continued its current settlement activity.”
Aboul Gheit also called for “the necessity of more neutrality and justice between both sides.”
The Foreign Minister outlined the obstacles that need to be addressed such as “Israel maintaining its settlement policy in the West Bank, including Jerusalem and its surroundings, in addition to the barricades and checkpoints which paralyze the movement of people and trade, and feed the Palestinian situation with more desperation.”
Aboul Gheit announced that Livni would attend the World Economic Forum to be held in Sharm El-Sheikh May 18-20.
The attendees at the conference also concurred that the siege of the Gaza strip needed to be lifted because of the worsening human conditions.
Egypt is currently attempting to broker a ceasefire between Israel and Palestinian factions in Gaza including Hamas which could see the end of the siege.
http://www.dailystaregypt.com/article.aspx?ArticleID=13481
2. France: Egypt could head part of Med Union. (The Egyptian Gazette)
Egypt could lead southern states in the new Union for the Mediterranean, which France plans to launch in July, French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner said yesterday.
French President Nicolas Sarkozy was forced to scale back plans for a full EU-style "Mediterranean Union" after fierce German resistance and wants to launch the new grouping of 27 EU countries and their southern neighbours in Paris in July.Kouchner said that the new grouping would have two presidencies - one for the northern and one for the southern states of the Mediterranean. "As to what concerns the southern Mediterranean countries, a lot is speaking for Egypt," he told Germany's Deutschlandfunk radio in an interview. Asked whether Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak would be a suitable leader, he said: "Of course he would be a possible leader for the Union for a Mediterranean, together with a representative from northern Mediterranean countries. That could possibly be France, but there will be rotation."Kouchner said the seat of the grouping's secretariat was still under discussion, adding: "I was in Morocco not long ago. Mubarak was in France. Things are moving forward."Sarkozy's plans for the new Union have been controversial both within and outside the European Union. The French President was forced to scale back his original plans after Germany voiced strong reservations, fearing the new body would split the EU and siphon off common funds.In March, EU leaders agreed to a limited form of union involving a regular summit between EU and Mediterranean leaders, with a joint presidency and a small secretariat. Syria, Libya and some other Arab countries have also appeared lukewarm over the project as it might suggest an indirect normalisation of their relations with Israel without any settlement of the Palestinian conflict.
http://www.egyptiangazette.net.eg/
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Economic Headlines:
1. Egypt concerned over producing biofuels. (The Egyptian Gazette)
Egypt yesterday expressed concern over using food crops to produce biofuels to power cars, trucks and buses, and called on Arab governments to seek other renewable energy resources like wind and solar power.
"There are a lot of concerns about social impacts, rising food prices and environment issues as a result of using food crops to produce biofuels,” Egypt's Minister of Investment, Mahmoud Mohieddin, told the opening session of the 16th Arab Economic Forum in Beirut yesterday.Mohieddin said that biofuels have had an indirect impact on many poor people, adding to the pinch caused by rising food prices.In his speech to the gathering, the Minister said that Egypt's economy has been booming in light of incentives for foreign direct investment (FDI). “The Egyptian foreign trade policy has been changed. At the present, 70 per cent of Egypt's products went to Asian and African countries. In the past, 90 per cent of these products went to the US and Europe," he said, adding that economic growth hit 7.1 per cent in the fiscal year (FY) 2006/07."Arab nations face many challenges, including overpopulation, unemployment and inflation," Mohieddin said, affirming that the current world crisis shouldn't divert Arabs from focusing on economic reforms.He said that boosting Arab economies hinged on encouraging investment and increasing subsidies for the poor.Mohieddin also called for using oil revenue surplus to finance giant agricultural projects to grow food staples according to Arab needs.
http://www.egyptiangazette.net.eg/
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*Regional and International Affairs
Political Headlines:
1. Abbas despairs on foils to peace. (The Washington Times)
Aides to Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas said yesterday that he is "depressed" by the lack of progress in negotiations with Israel and views President Bush's summit with Arab leaders this month as a crucial test for U.S.-brokered peace efforts.
Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, meanwhile, fought for his political life amid speculation he might be forced to resign. Mr. Olmert, the subject of at least two corruption inquiries, was questioned by police investigators Friday.
Despite his frustration, Mr. Abbas thanked visiting Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice for "exerting utmost efforts" to help Israelis and Palestinians reach an agreement to establish a Palestinian state.
"He is really depressed right now," one of Mr. Abbas' senior aides said. "When he goes to visit other Arab countries, he tells them that we negotiate with the Israelis on a daily basis, but we have nothing to show for it."
The aide, who asked that his name not be used because he was describing private conversations involving the Palestinian leader, said Mr. Abbas thinks Miss Rice is doing the best she can.
As Miss Rice headed for the Middle East, Palestinians accused Israel of blocking a $650 million investment in a new cellular-telephone network for the West Bank and of failing to meet a pledge to remove some roadblocks that prevent Palestinian travel between West Bank cities.
The Palestinian aide said the most pressing issue is whether Mr. Bush is willing to pressure Israel to stop expanding Jewish settlements in the West Bank.
"If the settlement issue is not resolved, any agreement [with Israel] Abbas brings to the Palestinian people they will not take seriously," the aide said.
http://www.washingtontimes.com/article/20080505/FOREIGN/557993201/1003
2. Israeli Political Crisis Overshadows Rice’s Trip. (The New York Times)
Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice held a series of talks on Israeli-Palestinian peace here on Sunday, saying she believed an accord was attainable by year’s end. But the process was overshadowed by an intensifying police investigation of Prime Minister Ehud Olmert of Israel.
Ms. Rice, who arrived here from a conference in London that focused on international donations to the Palestinian Authority, has held meetings with Mr. Olmert; the Palestinian president, Mahmoud Abbas; and other top officials from both sides. In brief statements so far, all have been tight-lipped.
“We continue to believe that it is an achievable goal to have an agreement between the Palestinians and the Israelis by the end of the year and by the end of President Bush’s term,” Ms. Rice said. She focused some of her comments on the need for Israel to make daily life easier for Palestinians living under Israeli occupation in the West Bank.
President Abbas, who had been unusually pessimistic after meeting President Bush in Washington last month, seemed more upbeat on Sunday as he appeared with Ms. Rice in Ramallah after their meeting, saying he was focused on success.
President Bush is due here next week to help Israel celebrate its 60 years of independence, and being able to report progress then would strengthen the visit.
But there were more signs on Sunday that the investigation of Mr. Olmert could further bog down the peace negotiations.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/05/world/middleeast/05mideast.html?ref=world
3. Hezbollah Trains Iraqis in Iran, Officials Say. (The New York Times)
Militants from the Lebanese group Hezbollah have been training Iraqi militia fighters at a camp near Tehran, according to American interrogation reports that the United States has supplied to the Iraqi government.
An American official said the account of Hezbollah’s role was provided by four Shiite militia members who were captured in Iraq late last year and questioned separately.
The United States has long charged that the Iranians were training Iraqi militia fighters in Iran, which Iran has consistently denied, and there have been previous reports about Hezbollah operatives in Iraq.
But the Americans say the reports of Hezbollah’s role at the Iranian camp offer important details about Iranian assistance to the militias, including efforts Iran appears to be making to train the fighters in unobtrusive ways.
Material from the interrogations was given to the Iraqi government, along with other data about captured Iranian arms, before it sent a delegation to Tehran last week to discuss allegations of Iranian aid to militia groups.
It is not known if the delegation confronted its Iranian hosts with the information, or how the Iranians responded.
Prime Minister Nuri Kamal al-Maliki’s government announced Sunday that it would conduct its own inquiry into accusations of Iranian intervention in Iraq and document any interference.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/05/world/middleeast/05iran.html?_r=1&ref=world&oref=slogin
4. Iran rules out halt to sensitive nuclear work. (The Washington Post)
Iran ruled out halting its disputed nuclear work on Monday, saying it would not consider any incentives offered by world powers that violated the Islamic Republic's atomic rights.
Six world powers agreed at a meeting in London on Friday to offer a new incentives package to coax Iran to suspend uranium enrichment, a process which the West believes Tehran wants to master so that it can build nuclear weapons.
Iran, which insists its nuclear program is aimed at generating electricity, says enrichment is a national right that it will not give up.
"Those incentives that violate the Iranian nation's right in any form will not be reviewed by the Islamic state," Foreign Ministry spokesman Mohammad Ali Hosseini told a news conference.
Iran's English-language Press TV earlier translated Hosseini as saying incentives violating Iran's rights would "not be supported by us." It said Iran had not officially received any package.
The five permanent members of the U.N. Security Council -- the United States, France, Britain, China and Russia -- and Germany, known as the P5+1, offered a package to Iran in 2006 that demanded Iran halt enrichment. Tehran rejected it
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/05/05/AR2008050500049.html
5. Iran suspends talks with US on security in Iraq. (The Huston Chronicle)
Iran said Monday it would not hold a new round of talks with the U.S. on security in Iraq until American forces end their current assault against Shiite militias.
U.S. and Iraqi forces have been battling supporters of radical Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, and Iraq's government spokesman said Sunday that the crackdown would continue even if Iran pulled out of the talks.
"We believe the talks will not be held given the current situation (in Iraq)," Iran's Foreign Ministry spokesman Mohammad Ali Hosseini told reporters during his weekly press briefing Monday.
Hosseini's announcement was the first official confirmation that Iran has decided to suspend talks with the Americans. Iran and the U.S. have held three rounds of ambassador-level talks on security in Iraq since last May.
"What we are witnessing is open and extensive bombing of the Iraqi nation, while the main goal of talks with the American side would have been security and peace in Iraq," said Hosseini. "It is a matter of doubt that the U.S. is pursuing a solution for the crisis, which was caused by them."
The U.S. has accused Iran of supporting Shiite militias in Iraq. But Iran, which is predominantly Shiite like Iraq, has blamed violence in the war-torn country on the U.S. presence.
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/ap/world/5753647.html
6. Zimbabwe run-off vote may face year delay. (The Guardian Unlimited)
Zimbabwe's ruling party has said that a second round of presidential elections could be delayed by up to a year in a move that would extend Robert Mugabe's rule even though he admits to having lost the first round of voting five weeks ago.
The election commission is expected to meet soon to set a date for the run-off vote between Mugabe and the opposition candidate, Morgan Tsvangirai. The law required it to have been held within three weeks of the original election, but the commission has the power to extend the period between the votes.
The deputy information minister, Bright Matonga, said at the weekend that the run-off might take place in three weeks, but could take up to a year, suggesting that Zanu-PF remains concerned at Mugabe's ability to win, despite a state-sponsored campaign of violence and intimidation against the opposition.
Mugabe won only four out of 10 votes in the first round, according to the election commission, leaving him with a considerable task to win the run-off. The election commission gave him 43.2% of the vote to 47.9% for Tsvangirai of the Movement for Democratic Change.
While it is not clear whether Matonga was speaking with Mugabe's authority in suggesting a long delay, political analysts in Zimbabwe say Zanu-PF is not in any hurry for another election.
The opposition also fears that spreading political violence will provide a pretext for Zanu-PF to drag out the election further on the grounds that there is too much instability to hold another vote, even though the ruling party is principally responsible for creating the upheaval.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/may/05/zimbabwe
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US:
1. Obama accuses Clinton of using the language of Bush on Iran. (The Guardian Unlimited
Barack Obama yesterday accused his rival for the Democratic nomination, Hillary Clinton, of adopting the language of the Bush presidency in her approach to dealing with a nuclear Iran.
Ahead of Tuesday's hotly contested primaries in Indiana and North Carolina, the two Democratic contenders took to competing television networks and levelled at times pointed criticism at each other over foreign policy and the economy.
In the sharpest attack, Obama said that Clinton's threat to "totally obliterate" Iran should it attempt a nuclear attack on Israel was inappropriate. "It's not the language we need right now. It's language that's reflective of George Bush," he said.
Obama said it was time to get away from a foreign policy of "bluster and sabre-rattling and tough talk". He reminded Clinton that she had urged caution in terms of speculating about Iran on the campaign trail "yet a few days before an election she's willing to use that language".
Obama's comments, made on Meet the Press on NBC, were put to Clinton as she appeared simultaneously on ABC's This Week. She remained unapologetic: "I think we have to be very clear about what we would do. I don't think it's time to equivocate. [Iran has] to know they would face massive retaliation. That is the only way to rein them in."
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/may/05/barackobama.hillaryclinton
2. In Poll, Obama Survives Furor, but Fall Is the Test. (The New York Times)
A majority of American voters say that the furor over the relationship between Senator Barack Obama and his former pastor has not affected their opinion of Mr. Obama, but a substantial number say that it could influence voters this fall should he be the Democratic presidential nominee, according to the latest New York Times/CBS News Poll.
At the same time, an overwhelming majority of voters said candidates calling for the suspension of the federal gasoline tax this summer were acting to help themselves politically, rather than to help ordinary Americans. Mr. Obama’s rival for the Democratic nomination, Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton, has made the suspension of the gas tax a centerpiece of her campaign in recent days.
In the survey, taken in the days leading up to the primaries on Tuesday in Indiana and North Carolina, Americans were divided over the merits of the gasoline-tax suspension, which has also been backed by the presumptive Republican nominee, Senator John McCain, and condemned by Mr. Obama as political gimmickry.
Mrs. Clinton and Mr. Obama spent the final Sunday before the two primaries debating the gas-tax holiday and other issues on morning talk shows and in events across Indiana.
The poll, conducted after Mr. Obama held a news conference on Tuesday in which he renounced his former pastor, the Rev. Jeremiah A. Wright Jr., for making incendiary comments, found that most Americans said they approved of the way Mr. Obama had responded to the episode and considered his criticism of Mr. Wright appropriate.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/05/us/politics/05poll.html?ref=us
3. Democrat wins in Republican congressional bastion. (The International Herald Tribune)
A Democrat has taken an open House of Representatives seat long held by Republicans in the conservative district around Baton Rouge in a special election, giving the party an early boost in its quest for an increased majority in the House.
Don Cazayoux, a state representative and former lawyer, defeated Woody Jenkins, a small-newspaper publisher and former legislator long associated with religious-right causes in Louisiana, on Saturday by 49 percent to 46 percent in a race for a seat left open by the retirement of the Republican incumbent, Richard Baker.
Cazayoux portrayed himself as little different from Jenkins on social issues, overcoming the Republicans' depiction of him as a "liberal" in lock-step with red-flag figures like the speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi, and Barack Obama, who shared billing with him in a barrage of Republican attack ads.
Both parties had seen the Louisiana race as an important test for the autumn elections, given how safe the district has been for Republicans for more than three decades.
Cazayoux, a low-key member of the state house and former prosecutor, fit the conservative model Democrats deployed successfully in the 2006 elections when they took seats from Republicans. On social issues like abortion and guns, he was close to Jenkins; he spoke approvingly of John McCain, rarely mentioned the Democratic nominees and suggested he would buck his party if the district's interests seemed to call for it.
http://www.iht.com/articles/2008/05/04/america/vote.php