Gourt > Regional > Middle East > Palestinian Territory (87)
A territory is a defined area (including land and waters), usually considered to be a possession of an animal, person, organization, or institution (from the word 'terra', meaning 'land').
- In politics, a territory is an area of land under the jurisdiction of a governmental authority. Territory can, though, include any geographical area under the jurisdiction of a sovereign and does not have a political division status. The remainder of this article deals with political territories.
- In biology, an organism which defends an area against intrusion (usually from members of its own species) is said to be territorial. For further details see territory (animal).
- In psychology, environmentalists study territorial behaviour to understand which territory an organism defends and why. Territorial behaviour is defined as:
- The actions or reactions of a person or animal in response to external threats towards the space that is defended by that person or animal.
Types of political territories include:
- A legally administered territory, which is a non-sovereign geographic area that has come under the authority of another government. For example, American Samoa is a territory of the government of the United States. With regard to the Canadian provinces and territories, the major difference between a Canadian province and a Canadian territory is that the federal government has more direct control over the territories, while the provinces are run by provincial governments empowered by the constitution. The same distinction applies between States and territories of Australia, although Australia also distinguishes the mainland territories from the small insular possessions known as external territories. Under British rule, Hong Kong was often referred to as a territory, rather than a colony from about the 1960s onwards.
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Israel Palestine :: Middle East
The Economist: Middle East and Africa
Israel: Gang warfare, in the courts
Thu, 07 Aug 2008 12:59:56 -0000
A politician hits back against a rampant judiciary THEY are known collectively by their opponents as the "rule-of-law gang", and for the moment they seem to be in the ascendancy. The gang is the collection of judges, prosecutors, policemen and journalists who last week forced the prime minister, Ehud Olmert, to announce his resignation over allegations of corruption. They wear their sobriquet with pride; the gang members see themselves as having been vindicated, yet again, in their crusade against graft and sleaze in high places. After all, they argue, the fact that Mr Olmert was only the latest of Israel's four most recent prime ministers to have been involved in criminal inquiries while in office shows how bad things have become. Binyamin Netanyahu (Likud, 1996-99) was questioned about an alleged votes-for-influence conspiracy. Ehud Barak (Labour, 1999-2001) was implicated in election-financing irregularities. And Mr Olmert's predecessor, Ariel Sharon, was interrogated both about breaking such financing rules and about much more serious allegations of bribery and breach of trust. None of them was actually prosecuted (although Mr Sharon's son was and subsequently went to prison). Mr Olmert probably will be prosecuted. Indeed, two of his former ministers are already in court: Avraham Hirschson, the finance minister, on charges of theft and fraud, and Tzachi Hanegbi, minister of the environment, who is alleged to have handed out government jobs to political cronies. Thanks in part to the diligence of the gang, that particular practice, long customary in Israeli politics, is being rooted out. ...
South Africa: A future of division, factionalism, stagnation and patronage
Thu, 07 Aug 2008 12:59:56 -0000
The African National Congress under Jacob Zuma shows signs of losing its wayA LITTLE over half a year after Thabo Mbeki was ousted as president of the ruling African National Congress (ANC), worries are growing about the party's new leadership and where it may take South Africa after a general election due next year. Arguments still rage over the corruption charges facing the new leader, Jacob Zuma, who is likely to replace Mr Mbeki as the country's president. An unseemly fight within the ANC across the country is denting people's confidence in their rulers.Mr Zuma appeared in court this week in a bid to have the charges against him dismissed. Other appeals will probably follow and his trial--if it happens at all--is unlikely to start before the election. Critics accuse Mr Zuma of delaying tactics, but hundreds of supporters, including ANC bigwigs and some cabinet ministers, went to the small town of Pietermaritzburg to support their champion. They want the charges dismissed on the grounds that he is the victim of a political conspiracy and that a fair trial has become impossible. ...
The Middle East and America's election: Who would be best for the Arabs?
Thu, 07 Aug 2008 12:59:56 -0000
Weighing up the relative merits of Barack Obama and John McCainSIX months ago, in a mock poll conducted at the US-Islamic World Forum, a gathering of influential Muslims and Americans held every year in the Gulf state of Qatar, Barack Obama won a resounding victory as the preferred choice for the next American president. If one is to believe internet chatter from America's extreme right, the Illinois senator's popularity among Muslims in the Middle East might be due to the allegations that he is 43.75% Arab by blood, or that he has been secretly funded by Arabs with ties to terrorism. Then again, it might just be natural that a candidate who has some Muslim ancestry, and who has protested against the widely loathed policies of the Bush administration, would inspire more enthusiasm than a Republican opponent committed to continuing those policies. Oddly enough, however, recent statistical and anecdotal evidence from the region shows that enthusiasm for Mr Obama is less fulsome than might be expected.The lukewarm feelings partly reflect the burgeoning over the past eight years of a more general cynicism towards America. In a global opinion survey taken last spring regarding expectations from a new American president, results from five Muslim countries polled clashed with more optimistic opinions elsewhere; large majorities expected that American policies under any new administration would either not change much, or change for the worse. "Condoleezza Rice and Colin Powell were both black, and they still invaded Iraq," scoffs a Cairo taxi driver. ...
Rwanda: The blame game
Thu, 07 Aug 2008 12:59:56 -0000
Exchanging unpleasantries about the genocideDID France expect--and indeed help--the genocide that killed almost a million people in Rwanda 14 years ago? That is the claim made in a 500-page report published in Rwanda this week, accusing 33 French politicians and army officers, including France's then-president, Francois Mitterrand, of complicity. But the report must be read with a pinch of salt. It is in part the product of a feud between the two countries.The report was commissioned by Paul Kagame, Rwanda's president. Some will say it is a response to a French judge's indictment of nine of Mr Kagame's allies over the plane crash that killed his predecessor, Juvenal Habyarimana, whose death triggered the start of the massacres. But it is also part of a broader effort by Mr Kagame's government to entrench its own narrative of the 100-day killing spree and refute revisionist histories that minimise the killings or, in some cases, deny that any genocide took place. ...
Mauritania: Another president booted out
Thu, 07 Aug 2008 12:59:56 -0000
Why the world likes this coup less than the last one WHILE the rest of Africa seems to be slowly ridding itself of its penchant for coups, Mauritania seems to be perfecting its ability to stage them. Such is the country's current strike rate that the last two successful coups on the continent have both taken place in this Islamic republic, a vast, sandy country that sees itself as part of both the black and Arab parts of Africa. The latest victim is President Sidi Mohamed Ould Cheikh Abdallahi, who was arrested by his presidential guard and relieved of his duties on August 6th. Not a shot was fired and the news was spread mostly by the president's distraught daughter, who telephoned journalists as dissidents occupied their house and whisked her father away. According to script, state television and radio went off air, except to declare Mr Abdallahi a "former" president and to reinstate the senior army officers whose sacking had been announced earlier that morning. The coup was led by Mohamed Ould Abdelaziz, the head of the presidential guard and one of the officers Mr Abdallahi had tried to fire. Even before the military dismissals, politics in Mauritania had been in a rotten state. In the space of three months one government had been sacked and another forced to resign. Complaints have ranged from poor management of rising food prices to the lack of transparency over the first lady's finances. The army was believed to have instigated a mass resignation of the president's supporters in parliament earlier this week. ...
The Red Sea: Can it really be bridged?
Thu, 31 Jul 2008 12:10:21 -0000
A fantastic plan to span the Red Sea's troubled waters is raising eyebrowsONE OF Osama bin Laden's many half-brothers, Tarek bin Laden, this week signed a deal with tiny Djibouti which may--or may not--mark the start of one of the world's boldest engineering projects. Djibouti's president, Ismael Omar Guelleh, promised Mr bin Laden 500 sq km (193 sq miles) of land to start building Noor City, the first of a hundred "Cities of Light" the vast Saudi Binladen Group plans around the world. "A hope for all humanity, the first environmental city of the 21st century," gushed the promotional video at the signing. The audience, mostly American military contractors near retirement age, clapped enthusiastically. Engineers elsewhere say the scheme is a fantasy.Mr bin Laden, his sons, and their front man, Muhammad Ahmed al-Ahmed, a Saudi former shipping executive, say they have already invested "hundreds of millions of dollars" in a plan to build cities on either side of the Bab al-Mandib (Gate of Tears) strait at the foot of the Red Sea. Construction is supposed to begin next year, after the terms of sovereignty for the tax-free metropolises have been agreed. By 2025, says Mr Ahmed, Djibouti's Noor City will have 2.5m people and its Yemeni twin 4.5m. Several million jobs will be created. An airport serving both cities will, he says, attract 100m passengers a year. A 29km bridge across the strait will connect Arabia and Africa by road, rail and pipelines, its towers among the tallest on earth. The cost? A mere $200 billion or so. ...
L.A. Times - Middle East
Iraq parliament fails to pass elections bill
Thu, 07 Aug 2008 00:00:00 -0700
Iraq lawmakers break for vacation, unable to agree on oil-rich Kirkuk, which the Kurds want to annex to the semiautonomous Kurdish region. The Iraqi parliament broke for summer vacation Wednesday without passing a bill that would have allowed provincial elections to be held this year, dealing a blow to hopes for bringing alienated Sunni and Shiite Muslim voices into the political process any time soon.
Mauritania president ousted in military coup
Thu, 07 Aug 2008 00:00:00 -0700
Democracy advocates condemn the move in the Arab nation. President Sidi Ould Cheikh Abdallahi, who had recently fired key military figures, is placed under house arrest. The elected president of Mauritania was ousted Wednesday in a bloodless military coup that appeared to spell the end for the Arab nation's experiment in democracy.
Nairobi survivors will mark 10th anniversary of embassy blast
Thu, 07 Aug 2008 00:00:00 -0700
Along with sadness, victims plan to voice anger over a lack of better compensation after the 1998 terrorist attack. They call themselves the forgotten victims of Al Qaeda's deadliest terrorist strike against U.S. interests abroad.
U.S., Russia send mixed message on Iran
Thu, 07 Aug 2008 00:00:00 -0700
The United States and Britain said major powers agreed Wednesday to consider more U.N. sanctions against Iran after Tehran failed to freeze its nuclear activities, but Russia said there was no firm deal.
World Briefing
Thu, 07 Aug 2008 00:00:00 -0700
Venezuela: Hundreds protest Chavez decrees / Middle East: Israel to free 150 Palestinians / Russia: Solzhenitsyn is buried / Afghanistan: Marine dies in blast / Malaysia: Ibrahim charged with sodomy VENEZUELA Hundreds protest new decrees
Verdict is mixed in first Guantanamo trial
Thu, 07 Aug 2008 00:00:00 -0700
Defense, prosecution both claim victory as Osama bin Laden driver Salim Ahmed Hamdan is found guilty of supporting terrorism but acquitted of more serious conspiracy charges. A military jury Wednesday convicted Osama bin Laden's driver of supporting terrorism in the first trial conducted by an American war crimes tribunal since World War II, but his acquittal on other charges gave both defenders and critics of the controversial process reason to declare victory.
NPR Topics: Middle East
Middle East Diplomacy, Shrinking U.S. Involvement
Wed, 06 Aug 2008 10:41:00 -0400
Complex diplomatic negotiations are taking place in the volatile region. With the U.S. taking a back seat in the talks, smaller countries such as Egypt and Syria are stepping up and taking leading roles.
Middle-Eastern Perspectives On The U.S. Election
Tue, 05 Aug 2008 14:34:00 -0400
Rami Khouri, editor for the Daily Star, discusses the political challenges in Lebanon and describes the different ways people in the Middle East view the U.S. presidential election. Khouri directs the Fares Institute of Public Policy and International Affairs at the American University of Beirut.
Training Afghan Forces Is Mission Critical For U.S.
Sun, 03 Aug 2008 09:21:00 -0400
Training Afghan security forces is seen as a critical component of stabilizing the country. NPR's Jackie Northam is embedded with U.S. Special Forces in Afghanistan, and she talks with host Liane Hansen about efforts to get the new Afghan army battle-ready.
Palestinian Rivals Accused Of Human Rights Abuses
Thu, 31 Jul 2008 15:54:00 -0400
Human Rights groups say the two main Palestinian factions, Hamas and Fatah, have been illegally arresting, torturing and even killing each other's members.
U.S. Civilians Recruited To Help Troubled Nations
Thu, 31 Jul 2008 15:49:00 -0400
The State Department hopes patriotism will compel American civilians to leave their comfortable lives in the U.S. for far-flung locales and potentially dangerous work: saving states the U.S. classifies as "failing." Critics say the program will be seen as nation building.
Officer Suggests Ways To Support The Troops
Thu, 31 Jul 2008 11:39:00 -0400
Capt. Nate Rawlings urges people who want to help U.S. troops to send a letter or visit a veterans hospital. The Army officer also explains how he and his soldiers approach political debates.
UN News Centre - Middle East
UN mission in Iraq regrets' failure of parliament to pass an electoral law
Thu, 07 Aug 2008 00:00:00 -0500
The United Nations Mission in Iraq (UNAMI) says it regrets that an opportunity was missed yesterday when the country's parliament adjourned without reaching agreement on a new provincial elections law.
Israel and Palestinians to boost postal services with help from UN agency
Thu, 07 Aug 2008 00:00:00 -0500
Israeli and Palestinian postal authorities have agreed to start direct mail exchanges between the Palestinian Authority and the 191 member countries of the United Nations Universal Postal Union (UPU), with mail transiting through Jordan.
Time for Iraqis to make political progress, UN political chief says
Wed, 06 Aug 2008 00:00:00 -0500
Iraqis must focus on political dialogue, reconciliation and bread-and-butter economic issues now that they are seeing improved security, the top United Nations political official told the Security Council today.
Syria: UN sparks hope among Iraqi refugee schoolchildren
Tue, 05 Aug 2008 00:00:00 -0500
The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) is reaching out to Iraqi schoolchildren in the Syrian capital Damascus by distributing school supplies before the start of the school year next month.
Ban outlines options to wind up oil-for-food programme
Tue, 05 Aug 2008 00:00:00 -0500
Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has outlined options for resolving outstanding issues involved in winding up the oil-for-food programme for Iraq.
Palestinians stranded on Iraq-Syria border to resettle in Iceland - UN agency
Tue, 05 Aug 2008 00:00:00 -0500
More than two dozen Palestinians stranded for the last two years in makeshift camps in the desert on the Iraq-Syria border are set to leave in the coming weeks for Iceland, the United Nations refugee agency said today, while calling attention to the plight of more than 2,000 Palestinians who remain in the camps.
NYT > Middle East
Iraqis Fail to Agree on Provincial Election Law
Thu, 07 Aug 2008 07:19:06 -0000
The failure to reach a deal before Parliament’s recess left the fate of provincial elections in doubt.
Hamdan Speaks at Sentence Hearing
Thu, 07 Aug 2008 17:36:06 -0000
Salim Hamdan, the convicted former driver for Osama bin Laden, apologized to the victims of terror in a brief statement at a sentencing hearing on Thursday.
As a Gesture to Abbas, Israel Says It Will Release About 150 Palestinian Prisoners
Thu, 07 Aug 2008 07:07:09 -0000
The release, planned to take place at the end of August, may include several prominent prisoners.
Britain Debates Army’s Delay at Basra
Thu, 07 Aug 2008 06:12:53 -0000
A political controversy has erupted in London over Britain’s failure to deploy troops to help save a faltering Iraqi Army offensive against Shiite militias earlier this year.
World Briefing | Middle East: Iran: Dispute With Russia on Sanctions
Thu, 07 Aug 2008 06:08:21 -0000
The United States and Britain said that six major powers had agreed to consider additional sanctions against Iran after it declined to state clearly whether it would freeze its nuclear activities.
As Iraq Surplus Rises, Little Goes Into Rebuilding
Wed, 06 Aug 2008 15:12:28 -0000
Rising oil prices will leave the Iraqi government with a budget surplus of as much as $79 billion, a report says.
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Israel: Gang warfare, in the courts
Thu, 07 Aug 2008 12:59:56 -0000
A politician hits back against a rampant judiciary THEY are known collectively by their opponents as the "rule-of-law gang", and for the moment they seem to be in the ascendancy. The gang is the collection of judges, prosecutors, policemen and journalists who last week forced the prime minister, Ehud Olmert, to announce his resignation over allegations of corruption. They wear their sobriquet with pride; the gang members see themselves as having been vindicated, yet again, in their crusade against graft and sleaze in high places. After all, they argue, the fact that Mr Olmert was only the latest of Israel's four most recent prime ministers to have been involved in criminal inquiries while in office shows how bad things have become. Binyamin Netanyahu (Likud, 1996-99) was questioned about an alleged votes-for-influence conspiracy. Ehud Barak (Labour, 1999-2001) was implicated in election-financing irregularities. And Mr Olmert's predecessor, Ariel Sharon, was interrogated both about breaking such financing rules and about much more serious allegations of bribery and breach of trust. None of them was actually prosecuted (although Mr Sharon's son was and subsequently went to prison). Mr Olmert probably will be prosecuted. Indeed, two of his former ministers are already in court: Avraham Hirschson, the finance minister, on charges of theft and fraud, and Tzachi Hanegbi, minister of the environment, who is alleged to have handed out government jobs to political cronies. Thanks in part to the diligence of the gang, that particular practice, long customary in Israeli politics, is being rooted out. ...
South Africa: A future of division, factionalism, stagnation and patronage
Thu, 07 Aug 2008 12:59:56 -0000
The African National Congress under Jacob Zuma shows signs of losing its wayA LITTLE over half a year after Thabo Mbeki was ousted as president of the ruling African National Congress (ANC), worries are growing about the party's new leadership and where it may take South Africa after a general election due next year. Arguments still rage over the corruption charges facing the new leader, Jacob Zuma, who is likely to replace Mr Mbeki as the country's president. An unseemly fight within the ANC across the country is denting people's confidence in their rulers.Mr Zuma appeared in court this week in a bid to have the charges against him dismissed. Other appeals will probably follow and his trial--if it happens at all--is unlikely to start before the election. Critics accuse Mr Zuma of delaying tactics, but hundreds of supporters, including ANC bigwigs and some cabinet ministers, went to the small town of Pietermaritzburg to support their champion. They want the charges dismissed on the grounds that he is the victim of a political conspiracy and that a fair trial has become impossible. ...
The Middle East and America's election: Who would be best for the Arabs?
Thu, 07 Aug 2008 12:59:56 -0000
Weighing up the relative merits of Barack Obama and John McCainSIX months ago, in a mock poll conducted at the US-Islamic World Forum, a gathering of influential Muslims and Americans held every year in the Gulf state of Qatar, Barack Obama won a resounding victory as the preferred choice for the next American president. If one is to believe internet chatter from America's extreme right, the Illinois senator's popularity among Muslims in the Middle East might be due to the allegations that he is 43.75% Arab by blood, or that he has been secretly funded by Arabs with ties to terrorism. Then again, it might just be natural that a candidate who has some Muslim ancestry, and who has protested against the widely loathed policies of the Bush administration, would inspire more enthusiasm than a Republican opponent committed to continuing those policies. Oddly enough, however, recent statistical and anecdotal evidence from the region shows that enthusiasm for Mr Obama is less fulsome than might be expected.The lukewarm feelings partly reflect the burgeoning over the past eight years of a more general cynicism towards America. In a global opinion survey taken last spring regarding expectations from a new American president, results from five Muslim countries polled clashed with more optimistic opinions elsewhere; large majorities expected that American policies under any new administration would either not change much, or change for the worse. "Condoleezza Rice and Colin Powell were both black, and they still invaded Iraq," scoffs a Cairo taxi driver. ...
Rwanda: The blame game
Thu, 07 Aug 2008 12:59:56 -0000
Exchanging unpleasantries about the genocideDID France expect--and indeed help--the genocide that killed almost a million people in Rwanda 14 years ago? That is the claim made in a 500-page report published in Rwanda this week, accusing 33 French politicians and army officers, including France's then-president, Francois Mitterrand, of complicity. But the report must be read with a pinch of salt. It is in part the product of a feud between the two countries.The report was commissioned by Paul Kagame, Rwanda's president. Some will say it is a response to a French judge's indictment of nine of Mr Kagame's allies over the plane crash that killed his predecessor, Juvenal Habyarimana, whose death triggered the start of the massacres. But it is also part of a broader effort by Mr Kagame's government to entrench its own narrative of the 100-day killing spree and refute revisionist histories that minimise the killings or, in some cases, deny that any genocide took place. ...
Mauritania: Another president booted out
Thu, 07 Aug 2008 12:59:56 -0000
Why the world likes this coup less than the last one WHILE the rest of Africa seems to be slowly ridding itself of its penchant for coups, Mauritania seems to be perfecting its ability to stage them. Such is the country's current strike rate that the last two successful coups on the continent have both taken place in this Islamic republic, a vast, sandy country that sees itself as part of both the black and Arab parts of Africa. The latest victim is President Sidi Mohamed Ould Cheikh Abdallahi, who was arrested by his presidential guard and relieved of his duties on August 6th. Not a shot was fired and the news was spread mostly by the president's distraught daughter, who telephoned journalists as dissidents occupied their house and whisked her father away. According to script, state television and radio went off air, except to declare Mr Abdallahi a "former" president and to reinstate the senior army officers whose sacking had been announced earlier that morning. The coup was led by Mohamed Ould Abdelaziz, the head of the presidential guard and one of the officers Mr Abdallahi had tried to fire. Even before the military dismissals, politics in Mauritania had been in a rotten state. In the space of three months one government had been sacked and another forced to resign. Complaints have ranged from poor management of rising food prices to the lack of transparency over the first lady's finances. The army was believed to have instigated a mass resignation of the president's supporters in parliament earlier this week. ...
The Red Sea: Can it really be bridged?
Thu, 31 Jul 2008 12:10:21 -0000
A fantastic plan to span the Red Sea's troubled waters is raising eyebrowsONE OF Osama bin Laden's many half-brothers, Tarek bin Laden, this week signed a deal with tiny Djibouti which may--or may not--mark the start of one of the world's boldest engineering projects. Djibouti's president, Ismael Omar Guelleh, promised Mr bin Laden 500 sq km (193 sq miles) of land to start building Noor City, the first of a hundred "Cities of Light" the vast Saudi Binladen Group plans around the world. "A hope for all humanity, the first environmental city of the 21st century," gushed the promotional video at the signing. The audience, mostly American military contractors near retirement age, clapped enthusiastically. Engineers elsewhere say the scheme is a fantasy.Mr bin Laden, his sons, and their front man, Muhammad Ahmed al-Ahmed, a Saudi former shipping executive, say they have already invested "hundreds of millions of dollars" in a plan to build cities on either side of the Bab al-Mandib (Gate of Tears) strait at the foot of the Red Sea. Construction is supposed to begin next year, after the terms of sovereignty for the tax-free metropolises have been agreed. By 2025, says Mr Ahmed, Djibouti's Noor City will have 2.5m people and its Yemeni twin 4.5m. Several million jobs will be created. An airport serving both cities will, he says, attract 100m passengers a year. A 29km bridge across the strait will connect Arabia and Africa by road, rail and pipelines, its towers among the tallest on earth. The cost? A mere $200 billion or so. ...
L.A. Times - Middle East
Iraq parliament fails to pass elections bill
Thu, 07 Aug 2008 00:00:00 -0700
Iraq lawmakers break for vacation, unable to agree on oil-rich Kirkuk, which the Kurds want to annex to the semiautonomous Kurdish region. The Iraqi parliament broke for summer vacation Wednesday without passing a bill that would have allowed provincial elections to be held this year, dealing a blow to hopes for bringing alienated Sunni and Shiite Muslim voices into the political process any time soon.
Mauritania president ousted in military coup
Thu, 07 Aug 2008 00:00:00 -0700
Democracy advocates condemn the move in the Arab nation. President Sidi Ould Cheikh Abdallahi, who had recently fired key military figures, is placed under house arrest. The elected president of Mauritania was ousted Wednesday in a bloodless military coup that appeared to spell the end for the Arab nation's experiment in democracy.
Nairobi survivors will mark 10th anniversary of embassy blast
Thu, 07 Aug 2008 00:00:00 -0700
Along with sadness, victims plan to voice anger over a lack of better compensation after the 1998 terrorist attack. They call themselves the forgotten victims of Al Qaeda's deadliest terrorist strike against U.S. interests abroad.
U.S., Russia send mixed message on Iran
Thu, 07 Aug 2008 00:00:00 -0700
The United States and Britain said major powers agreed Wednesday to consider more U.N. sanctions against Iran after Tehran failed to freeze its nuclear activities, but Russia said there was no firm deal.
World Briefing
Thu, 07 Aug 2008 00:00:00 -0700
Venezuela: Hundreds protest Chavez decrees / Middle East: Israel to free 150 Palestinians / Russia: Solzhenitsyn is buried / Afghanistan: Marine dies in blast / Malaysia: Ibrahim charged with sodomy VENEZUELA Hundreds protest new decrees
Verdict is mixed in first Guantanamo trial
Thu, 07 Aug 2008 00:00:00 -0700
Defense, prosecution both claim victory as Osama bin Laden driver Salim Ahmed Hamdan is found guilty of supporting terrorism but acquitted of more serious conspiracy charges. A military jury Wednesday convicted Osama bin Laden's driver of supporting terrorism in the first trial conducted by an American war crimes tribunal since World War II, but his acquittal on other charges gave both defenders and critics of the controversial process reason to declare victory.
NPR Topics: Middle East
Middle East Diplomacy, Shrinking U.S. Involvement
Wed, 06 Aug 2008 10:41:00 -0400
Complex diplomatic negotiations are taking place in the volatile region. With the U.S. taking a back seat in the talks, smaller countries such as Egypt and Syria are stepping up and taking leading roles.
Middle-Eastern Perspectives On The U.S. Election
Tue, 05 Aug 2008 14:34:00 -0400
Rami Khouri, editor for the Daily Star, discusses the political challenges in Lebanon and describes the different ways people in the Middle East view the U.S. presidential election. Khouri directs the Fares Institute of Public Policy and International Affairs at the American University of Beirut.
Training Afghan Forces Is Mission Critical For U.S.
Sun, 03 Aug 2008 09:21:00 -0400
Training Afghan security forces is seen as a critical component of stabilizing the country. NPR's Jackie Northam is embedded with U.S. Special Forces in Afghanistan, and she talks with host Liane Hansen about efforts to get the new Afghan army battle-ready.
Palestinian Rivals Accused Of Human Rights Abuses
Thu, 31 Jul 2008 15:54:00 -0400
Human Rights groups say the two main Palestinian factions, Hamas and Fatah, have been illegally arresting, torturing and even killing each other's members.
U.S. Civilians Recruited To Help Troubled Nations
Thu, 31 Jul 2008 15:49:00 -0400
The State Department hopes patriotism will compel American civilians to leave their comfortable lives in the U.S. for far-flung locales and potentially dangerous work: saving states the U.S. classifies as "failing." Critics say the program will be seen as nation building.
Officer Suggests Ways To Support The Troops
Thu, 31 Jul 2008 11:39:00 -0400
Capt. Nate Rawlings urges people who want to help U.S. troops to send a letter or visit a veterans hospital. The Army officer also explains how he and his soldiers approach political debates.
UN News Centre - Middle East
UN mission in Iraq regrets' failure of parliament to pass an electoral law
Thu, 07 Aug 2008 00:00:00 -0500
The United Nations Mission in Iraq (UNAMI) says it regrets that an opportunity was missed yesterday when the country's parliament adjourned without reaching agreement on a new provincial elections law.
Israel and Palestinians to boost postal services with help from UN agency
Thu, 07 Aug 2008 00:00:00 -0500
Israeli and Palestinian postal authorities have agreed to start direct mail exchanges between the Palestinian Authority and the 191 member countries of the United Nations Universal Postal Union (UPU), with mail transiting through Jordan.
Time for Iraqis to make political progress, UN political chief says
Wed, 06 Aug 2008 00:00:00 -0500
Iraqis must focus on political dialogue, reconciliation and bread-and-butter economic issues now that they are seeing improved security, the top United Nations political official told the Security Council today.
Syria: UN sparks hope among Iraqi refugee schoolchildren
Tue, 05 Aug 2008 00:00:00 -0500
The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) is reaching out to Iraqi schoolchildren in the Syrian capital Damascus by distributing school supplies before the start of the school year next month.
Ban outlines options to wind up oil-for-food programme
Tue, 05 Aug 2008 00:00:00 -0500
Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has outlined options for resolving outstanding issues involved in winding up the oil-for-food programme for Iraq.
Palestinians stranded on Iraq-Syria border to resettle in Iceland - UN agency
Tue, 05 Aug 2008 00:00:00 -0500
More than two dozen Palestinians stranded for the last two years in makeshift camps in the desert on the Iraq-Syria border are set to leave in the coming weeks for Iceland, the United Nations refugee agency said today, while calling attention to the plight of more than 2,000 Palestinians who remain in the camps.
NYT > Middle East
Iraqis Fail to Agree on Provincial Election Law
Thu, 07 Aug 2008 07:19:06 -0000
The failure to reach a deal before Parliament’s recess left the fate of provincial elections in doubt.
Hamdan Speaks at Sentence Hearing
Thu, 07 Aug 2008 17:36:06 -0000
Salim Hamdan, the convicted former driver for Osama bin Laden, apologized to the victims of terror in a brief statement at a sentencing hearing on Thursday.
As a Gesture to Abbas, Israel Says It Will Release About 150 Palestinian Prisoners
Thu, 07 Aug 2008 07:07:09 -0000
The release, planned to take place at the end of August, may include several prominent prisoners.
Britain Debates Army’s Delay at Basra
Thu, 07 Aug 2008 06:12:53 -0000
A political controversy has erupted in London over Britain’s failure to deploy troops to help save a faltering Iraqi Army offensive against Shiite militias earlier this year.
World Briefing | Middle East: Iran: Dispute With Russia on Sanctions
Thu, 07 Aug 2008 06:08:21 -0000
The United States and Britain said that six major powers had agreed to consider additional sanctions against Iran after it declined to state clearly whether it would freeze its nuclear activities.
As Iraq Surplus Rises, Little Goes Into Rebuilding
Wed, 06 Aug 2008 15:12:28 -0000
Rising oil prices will leave the Iraqi government with a budget surplus of as much as $79 billion, a report says.
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