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Excerpts: Jakarta Conference re Palestinian development. Rouhani:
Excerpts: Jakarta Conference re Palestinian development. Rouhani: U.N. =
finds no evidence Iran wants nuclear arms. Saudi women want end to =
‘absolute’ male control.Hizbullah rejects any policy o.k. to Israel March =
02, 2014
+++SOURCE: Saudi Gazette 2 Mar.=9214:=94Mideast talks in focus at Jakarta =
summit=94, Agence France Presse
SUBJECT: JaKarta Conference re Palestinian development
QUOTE: =93co-chairs Japan and Indonesia reiterating their support for a =
two-state solution=94o
FULL TEXT: JAKARTA =96 Representatives of 22 nations met in Jakarta on =
Saturday[1 Mar.]Jakarta summit to discuss Palestinian development, with =
co-chairs Japan and Indonesia reiterating their support for a two-state =
solution.
The second Conference on Cooperation among East Asian Countries for =
Palestinian Development (CEAPAD) is aimed at boosting infrastructure and =
supporting the private sector in the Palestinian Territories.
But a looming deadline for a full Middle East peace deal brokered by US =
Secretary of State John Kerry is expected to feature prominently in talks. =
=93We still believe that the two-state vision can be envisaged and realised=
. =
And here I must commend the… efforts of Mr John Kerry,=94 Palestinian pri=
me =
minister Rami Hamdallah said during the conference=92s opening.
Kerry, who coaxed the two sides back to the negotiating table in late July =
after a three-year hiatus, said Wednesday a full deal would likely slip pas=
t =
the April 29 deadline.
The document has not yet been made public, but Hamdallah said on Friday[28 =
Feb.] =93all issues actually have been (put) on the table.=94
The document is understood to include a non-binding proposal laying out =
guidelines for negotiating the central issues of the conflict, including =
such as borders, security, Jerusalem, the settlements and the right of =
return for Palestinian refugees.
Hamdallah expressed gratitude to donor nations, but said Israeli settlement=
s =
were =93severely=94 hampering development.
=93Sixty-two percent of all our land is still controlled by the Israeli =
authorities. This impedes any access we have to natural resources, and =
severely restricts our development,=94 he said.
=93The people of Palestine have been struggling to achieve this dream for m=
ore =
than five decades,=94 Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said at =
the opening.
=93Providing them with capacity-building programme is critical.=94 Yudhoyon=
o =
said that Indonesia envisaged a Middle East =93at peace with itself and the =
rest of the world=94 and that peace would also depend on a treaty on nuclea=
r =
weapons and weapons of mass destruction.
Japanese Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida said that security in the Middle =
East was =93by no means someone else=92s problem in a distant region=94 for=
Asian =
nations.
=93I firmly believe participating countries share the common determination =
to =
assist in a Palestinian state-building that promises to bring about regiona=
l =
peace and stability,=94 he said in Japanese, according to a statement.
=93Such assistance will help achieve a =91two-state solution=92, which woul=
d see =
Palestine and Israel in peaceful coexistence and co-prosperity,=94 he said. =
The CEAPAD is jointly chaired by Indonesia, the Palestinian Authority and =
Japan.
Among attending nations are South Africa, Singapore, Australia, Brunei and =
Vietnam, while China=92s special envoy on the Middle East issue Wu Sike =
attended.
The conference was initiated by Japan, a major donor to the Palestinian =
Territories, with the first event held in Tokyo last year. =97 AFP
+++SOURCE: Naharnet (Lebanon) 2 Mar.=9214:=94Iran Pres. Rouhani Says U.N. F=
inds =
No Evidence Iran Seeks Nuclear Arms=94, Agence France Presse
SUBJECT Rouhani: U.N.finds no evidence Iran wants nuclear arms
FULL TEXT:President Hassan Rouhani said Sunday[2 Mar.] that despite =
“thousands of hours” of inspection, the U.N.’s atomic watchdog has found no =
evidence of military objectives in Iran’s nuclear drive.
His remarks came on the eve of an International Atomic Energy Agency board =
of governors meeting in Vienna, on the sidelines of which Iran will hold =
expert-level talks with world powers.
Western powers “all know that nuclear science in Iran follows a peaceful =
path”, Rouhani said in a speech broadcast on state television.
“The agency has conducted thousands of hours of inspection, and announced i=
t =
has not found any diversion from the peaceful use (of nuclear technology) t=
o =
military purposes.”
In its latest report on Iran in late February, the IAEA said Iran was =
sticking to a nuclear freeze it agreed under a November interim deal with =
world powers.
The watchdog’s report came a month after the deal came into force.
Iran and the so-called P5+1 group of world powers are seeking to reach a =
lasting accord that would allay Western suspicions that Tehran’s nuclear =
activities mask military objectives.
As part of such a comprehensive deal, the six seek to pressure Iran over it=
s =
ballistic missile program, which could theoretically provide Tehran with a =
device to deliver a nuclear warhead, should it choose to build one.
Rouhani on Sunday[2 Mar.] defended the program, saying it has “always been =
defensive in nature, and will always remain so”.
On Saturday[1 Mar..], Rouhani had called for calm amid provocative rhetoric =
from Iranian hardliners.
“Sometime one does not seek war but talks as if one does, and this is seen =
as a threat to other parties. This is an unnecessary provocation,” he told =
military personnel and defense ministry officials.
“The Islamic Republic of Iran’s foreign policy is based on detente and =
building trust,” he added.
Since taking office in August, Rouhani has vowed to rebuild strained =
relations with the West.
SourceAgence France Presse
+++SOURCE: Naharnet (Lebanon)2 Mar.=9214:=94Saudi Women Activists Demand En=
d to =
=91Absolute=92 Male Control=94, Agence France Presse
SUBJECT: Saudi women activists demand end to =91absolute=92 male control
FULL TEXT:Saudi women activists have petitioned the country’s consultative =
council to back a demand to curb the “absolute authority” of male guardians =
over women in the ultra-conservative Sunni Muslim kingdom, a signatory said.
Saudi Arabia imposes a strict interpretation of Islamic law, forbidding =
women to work or travel without the authorization of their male guardians.
It is also the only country in the world that bans women from driving, and =
a =
woman cannot obtain an identification card without the consent of her =
guardian.
Activist Aziza Youssef told Agence France Presse that “rights activists hav=
e =
petitioned the Shura (consultative) Council on the occasion of the =
International Women’s Day (on March 8) demanding an end to the absolute =
authority of men over women.”
They demanded “measures to protect (women’s) rights,” in their petition to =
the Shura Council, she said.
Laws in the kingdom enforcing such restrictions on women “are not based on =
religious” teachings, said Youssef.
The petition, signed by 10 female activists, also calls for allowing women =
to drive.
Women in Saudi must obtain permission from a male guardian to perform =
“certain surgeries” and to “leave the university campus during study hours,=
” =
she added.
She cited a recent case in which a pregnant student had to give birth on =
campus after a women-only university in Riyadh denied access to paramedics.
And a university student died in February after paramedics were prevented =
from entering her campus because they were not accompanied by a male =
guardian, a must according to the strict segregation rules in the Muslim =
kingdom.
Earlier this year, Saudi Arabia suspended a notification program that had =
been running since 2012, which alerted male guardians once women under thei=
r =
custody left the country, even if they were traveling together.
Three female members of the Shura Council presented a recommendation that =
women be given the right to drive in October, but the male-dominated =
150-member assembly blocked the proposal.
The Shura Council is appointed by the king and advises the monarch on =
policy, but cannot legislate.
SourceAgence France Presse
+++SOURCE: Naharnet (Lebanon) 2 Mar.=9214:=94Hizbullah=92s Qaouq: We Reject=
Any =
Policy Statement that Satisfies Israel=94
SUBJECT: Hizbullah will reject any policy statement that satisfies Israel
FULL TEXT:QUOTE:=94Hizbullah: =91We reject any ministerial policy that woul=
d =
satisfy Israel because we don=92t want to give up the reason behind Lebanon=
=92s =
strength, which is the resistance=92 =93
Deputy head of Hizbullah’s Executive Council Sheikh Nabil Qaouq on Sunday[2 =
Mar.] stressed that the party will =93reject any ministerial policy stateme=
nt =
that would satisfy Israel.=94
=93We reject any ministerial policy statement that would satisfy Israel =
because we don’t want to give up the reason behind Lebanon’s strength, whic=
h =
is the resistance,=94 Qaouq said during a memorial service in the southern =
town of Houla.
=93We are ready to bear all forms of insults and incitement because the iss=
ue =
is not related to a certain party, movement, region or sect, but rather to =
the country’s dignity,=94 he added.
=93We will not impose dignity on those who don’t want it, but we won’t allo=
w =
that Lebanon’s strength be given up in the face of Israeli threats,=94 the =
top =
Hizbullah official said.
He noted that =93the resistance’s strength, its growing capabilities and it=
s =
decision’s courage are what deterring Israel from taking advantage of the =
Syrian crisis to carry out an aggression against Lebanon, not the statement=
s =
of the March 14 camp.=94
=93The only thing that has humiliated and insulted the Israeli army since 1=
948 =
until today is the resistance and not anything else, as who can guarantee =
Israel’s intentions against Lebanon should we give up Lebanon’s strength an=
d =
the resistance?=94 Qaouq added.
He pointed out that the resistance did not ask the government for =93any =
political cover for its role in Syria, but rather for a strong national =
stance in the face of Israel.=94
=93The policy statement must represent a message of strength, invincibility=
, =
potency and pride for the country against all takfiri and Israeli threats =
and must not represent a message of reassurance to Israel,=94 Qaouq =
underlined.
=93Our stance is clear following the provocations, statements and media and =
political tensions that happened. Those who support the resistance will gai=
n =
more dignity, pride and honor and those who don’t want to support it will =
only gain further repentance while those who want to target it will only =
gain further disappointment,=94 he emphasized.
=93We are not people who would give up a single iota of the resistance’s =
dignity or who would allow an attack on any of its letters,=94 Qaouq pledge=
d.
On Saturday, Hizbullah and President Michel Suleiman were at loggerheads =
over the president’s recent statement concerning the cabinet’s policy =
statement.
Suleiman said Friday that the land, people and common values formed the =
country’s =93permanent equation,=94 describing the people-army-resistance =
equation as =93wooden=94 or outdated.
Hizbullah was quick to hit back at Suleiman, accusing him on Saturday of no=
t =
being able to differentiate between =93what’s golden and what’s wooden.=94
On Friday, the committee drafting the ministerial policy statement failed =
anew to reach an agreement on the clause related to resisting Israel as the =
March 14 forces insisted on =93the state’s authority over everything.=94
The committee’s meeting was the seventh since Prime Minister Tammam Salam’s =
cabinet was formed around two weeks ago.
The panel will hold a new session at the Grand Serail on Monday[3 Mar.].
Salam has announced that his government’s mission is combating terrorism an=
d =
preparing for the upcoming presidential election.
LebanonPolitics
=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=
=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=
=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D
Sue Lerner – Associate, IMRA =
________________________________________
IMRA – Independent Media Review and Analysis
Since 1992 providing news and analysis on the Middle East with a focus on A=
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Source: http://www.imra.org.il/story.php3?id=63329
