Hillary Clinton arrives in Tunisia

The visit is the first by senior US official since mass protests led to the overthrow of president Ben Ali. Last Modified: 17 Mar 2011 01:59

Dozens of Tunisians marched in Tunis under tight security to protest Clinton's visit [REUTERS] US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has arrived in Tunisia two months after mass protests led to the overthrow of its president. Clinton, who arrived late on Wednesday, is set to meet with interim President Foued Mebazaa on Thursday. The chief US diplomat, who made no statements to reporters on the flight from Cairo to Tunis, will also meet with Foreign Minister Mouldi Kefi and interim Prime Minister Beji Caid Essebsi. And her visit will also take in meetings with young people who took part in the mass protests; and relief officials who have helped the more than 100,000 foreign workers and others who have fled fighting in neighboring Libya. But dozens of Tunisians marched in Tunis under tight security on Wednesday to protest Clinton's visit. Demonstrators chanted: "No to normalisation, Tunisia is free and not for sale" or "Tunisia is an Arab country, neither imperialist nor Zionist." It was the second demonstration in two days in the capital against the visit of Clinton. Seeking partnership When Clinton announced her plans to visit Egypt and Tunisia last week, she said she would convey the US intention to be "a partner in the important work that lies ahead as they embark on a transition to a genuine democracy." Amid warnings about Iran's bid for influence in the Middle East, she told US legislators at the time that "we have an enormous stake in ensuring that Egypt and Tunisia provide models for the kind of democracy that we want to see." Clinton said she would also push for 20 million dollars for Tunisia to "respond to some of their needs" after Tunisian officials clamored for US help, but hinted at more aid. "We need to have a very big commitment to Tunisia, that we can be ready to help them economically as well as with their democratic transformation," said the secretary. Standard & Poor's on Wednesday trimmed its long-term credit rating of Tunisia by one notch to BBB-, but said it viewed the political outlook as now stable following the overthrow of president Zine El Abidine Ben Ali. Just over a week after Ben Ali fled to Saudi Arabia on January 14, Washington dispatched Jeffrey Feltman, the assistant secretary of state for Near East affairs, to Tunis. Then William Burns, the US under-secretary of state for political affairs, visited Tunis last month. The popular uprising against Ben Ali, who ruled with an iron fist for 23 years, began after a 26-year-old fruit vendor, Mohammed Bouazizi, set fire to himself to protest police abuses. It sparked similar protests in Egypt, where President Hosni Mubarak was toppled on February 11, as well as in many other countries, including in Bahrain, Oman, Yemen and Libya.

Source: Agencies

Defiant Gaddafi vows 'decisive battle'

Libyan leader promises to wrest town of Misurata from rebels as UN plans vote on imposing no-fly zone. Last Modified: 17 Mar 2011 09:00

Benghazi residents remain defiant and vow to fight on to defeat Gaddafi's troops [Al Jazeera] A defiant Muammar Gaddafi has promised a "decisive battle" to recapture the rebel-held town of Misurata, undaunted by growing international pressure for a UN-sponsored no-fly zone over Libya to rein him in. "The battle continues at Misurata on Thursday, that will be the decisive battle," state television quoted Gaddafi as saying on Thursday. "You are going to be called to take up arms and on Thursday you will take part in the battle," he added, addressing a group of young people from Misurata. Gaddafi urged his audience "not to leave Misurata hostage in the hands of a handful of madmen". On Tuesday, Libyan state television said the army would soon move against the rebel-stronghold of Benghazi, while a day before Gaddafi's son Saif al-Islam had predicted that everything would be over within 48 hours. Al Jazeera's Tony Birtley, reporting from Benghazi, said the Libyan people hope a no-fly zone will be enforced, however, "they are feeling more and more that basically everything lies in their own hands". "What they are calling for now is weapons and money to bolster and train their forces and to make a credible defense. "They are still holding out, so fears that Benghazi is just going to fall are unfounded at the moment," he said. Stung by an uprising against his more than 41-year-old rule, Gaddafi has unleashed his forces to wrest control of territories seized by the rebels. Though his well-trained and heavily armed forces have registered significant successes in recent days, a rebel spokesman in Misurata, which lies 150km from the capital Tripoli, said on Wednesday they had beaten back an attack by loyalist forces on the city, killing 80 of Gaddafi's men. Meanwhile, fighting is raging for the control of Ajdabiya, the gateway to Benghazi. A doctor told the AFP news agency that fighting was still going on in and around the town, which also guards the road to Tobruk and the Egyptian border in the rebel-held east. "We received four bodies today, all rebel fighters," Abdelkarim Mohammed said, adding that 22 bodies, mainly civilians killed by artillery or air strikes, had been brought in on Tuesday. UN vote The battles raged as the United Nations Security Council planned to vote on Thursday on a draft resolution that would not only introduce a no-fly zone over Libya but may also authorise the use of air strikes to stop the advance of forces loyal to Gaddafi. Martin Nesirky, a spokesman of Ban Ki-moon, said the secretary-general was "gravely concerned" about signs that Gaddafi was preparing to attack Benghazi. "A campaign to bombard such an urban centre would massively place civilian lives at risk," he said. "The secretary-general is urging all parties in this conflict to accept an immediate ceasefire and to abide by Security Council resolution 1970." "In the coming hours we will see a real genocide if the international community does not act quickly" Ibrahim Dabbashi, Deputy Libyan UN ambassador UN passed a resolution on February 26 which called for an end to Gaddafi's onslaught against his opponents and imposed sanctions against his regime. Ibrahim Dabbashi, the deputy Libyan UN ambassador, warned that, "in the coming hours we will see a real genocide if the international community does not act quickly." Dabbashi, who defected early on from the Gaddafi regime, said "about five" Arab states were ready to help police the no-fly zone if it was adopted. In Cairo on Wednesday, Hillary Clinton, the US secretary of state, said: "We want to do what we can to protect innocent Libyans against the marauders let loose by the Gaddafi regime. "And yes, time is fast upon us. There is an urgency to it," she said. Clinton stopped short of explicitly backing a no-fly zone, saying only that it was one of several options under consideration. Washington joined Britain and France in pressing for a Security Council vote Thursday on a no-fly zone to halt Gaddafi's attacks. Britain, France and Lebanon, on behalf of the Arab League, have been seeking to overcome resistance to a no-fly zone.

Source: Al Jazeera and agencies

Pakistan furore over American's release

Hundreds protest after CIA contractor, accused of killing two men, is set free and sent back home. Last Modified: 17 Mar 2011 09:05

The case involving Raymod Davis strained Pakistan-US relations, Pakistan [EPA] Pakistan has witnessed widespread protests a day after Raymond Davis - a CIA contractor accused of killing two Pakistani youths in Lahore - was released and flown out of Pakistan. Kamal Hyder, Al Jazeera's correspondent reporting from the north western city of Peshawar, on Thursday said many Pakistanis were incensed and described his release as a sell-out. "Hundreds of students at Peshawar University with banners and slogans expressed their anger. An effigy of Raymond Davis was also burnt after the protest. "They alleged that Davis was a spy and asked why was he let go?" More protests are planned later on Thursday. Blood money The CIA contractor was released on Wednesday after the families of the two men he killed were given "blood money" and the case was dropped. Chaudhry Mushtaq, superintendent at Kot Lakhpat jail, said Davis left the jail with US consulate officials after a court hearing. However, Hillary Clinton, the US secretary of state, has denied claims the US paid compensation to secure Davis' release. Clinton's statement contradicts a lawyer for the victims' families, who said the US paid more than $2mn in so-called ‘blood money’ to free Davis. The Pakistani government has yet to comment on the issue. Davis' detention in Pakistan had strained ties between Washington and Islamabad. While the US insisted he had diplomatic immunity and demanded his repatriation, Pakistani courts ruled in favour of a trial. Davis shot dead two men in the city of Lahore in January in an act he described as self-defence. He said the men were trying to rob him, a claim yet to be corroborated.

Source: Al Jazeera

Japan dumps water on stricken reactors

Military helicopters undertake aerial spraying in bid to avert meltdown in quake-hit Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant. Last Modified: 17 Mar 2011 05:35 Military helicopters in Japan have dumped water on reactors at the quake-stricken Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power station in an effort to cool down a spent fuel storage pool, local media said. Two CH-47 helicopters scooped up seawater and released it over the reactors on Thursday while another helicopter checked radiation levels in the air. The plant, 220km north of Tokyo, has been hit by several explosions after a devastating earthquake and tsunami last Friday. Al Jazeera's Andrew Thomas, reporting from Osaka, said "four flights were made and of those water-drops by the helicopters, only one hit its target". The effort has since been abandoned, he said. LIVE BLOG "Given that more than a hundred would be required to hit dead-on to fill the reactors with enough water to cool the rods, it is – forgive the phrase – a bit of drop in the ocean at the moment," our correspondent said. The mission was part of efforts to cool the storage pools at the number 3 and number 4 reactors. The cooling systems at both reactors are not functioning, raising fears that spent fuel rods could melt and release radioactive material outside the building. Police water cannons were also set to support the effort in addition to equipment already in use over recent days at the plant. Toshimi Kitazawa, the defence minister, said an additional 11 military vehicles would be deployed for efforts to help cool the reactors, while pumps supplied by the US armed forces were also being transferred. Nuclear safety The government's Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency said the top priority should be pouring water into the fuel-rod pools at reactors 3 and 4, which may be boiling and are not fully covered by roofs that would reduce radiation leaks. An official at plant operator Tokyo Electric Power Co (TEPCO) said the pool at the number-four reactor "seemed to have water" on Wednesday, based on aerial observation carried out by the military helicopters. The nuclear agency said two radioactive substances, cesium and radioactive iodine, have been detected near the Fukushima number 1 reactor. The agency said this indicates that some of the metal containers of uranium fuel may have started melting. The substances are produced by fuel fission, NHK, Japan's broadcaster said. Bad weather conditions are impeding rescue and relief efforts [Getty] Naoto Sekimura, a University of Tokyo professor, told NHK that only a small part of the fuel may have melted and leaked outside. He called on residents near the power station to stay calm, saying that most of the fuel remains inside the reactor, which has stopped operation and is being cooled. Some 70 workers have been using pumps to pour seawater to cool reactors at the plant, according to media reports, using electricity from borrowed mobile generators. Paul Carroll, a programme director at Ploughshares, an international nuclear security foundation, told Al Jazeera that the engineers at the plant are doing heroic work. "In order to be adequately protected from the radiation they would need to have essentially leaded shielding. If that is what they are equipped with, it would make it extremely difficult for them to actually move around. "I suspect that these are almost – I hate to say it – suicide missions. These workers have signed up for a mission that puts themselves behind their countrymen," Carroll said. Imad Khadduri, a nuclear scientist based in Qatar, told Al Jazeera that Japanese authorities are "thinking of bringing in retired workers to the plant because they have a short lifetime left". "People who are exposed to such high levels of radiation can only do that for a certain period before developing radiation sickness and will have to be replaced," Khadduri added. Death toll Meanwhile, the official death toll from last Friday's twin disasters has risen to 5,198, Japanese police has confirmed, with relief efforts being hampered by adverse weather conditions in the north of Japan. The 9.0-magnitude quake - the biggest in Japan's history - triggered a massive tsunami that decimated large tracts of the country's northeastern coastline. "Half a million people are still living in evacuation centres. The cold and the ice make rescue efforts very difficult," our correspondent said. The US state department late on Wednesday authorised the voluntary departure of embassy family members in quake-damaged Japan. "We have not ordered them to leave. We have made this opportunity available to them should they choose to exercise it," Patrick Kennedy, a state department official said in a conference call to reporters. The authorisation applies to around 600 family members of diplomats in the US embassy in Tokyo, the consulate in Nagoya and a language school in Yokohama, Kennedy said. Source: Al Jazeera and agencies

Iran FM warns 'no force' against Bahrain's protests

Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi, seen here in January 2011, has demanded that Bahraini leaders be wise and not use violence in their handling of anti-government protests, according to the state-run Fars news agency.

AFP - Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi on Monday demanded that Bahraini leaders be wise and not use violence in their handling of anti-government protests, the state-run Fars news agency reported.

Salehi said the Bahraini authorities should avoid using "violence and force against the population", adding that Iran expects "the Bahraini government to be wise in responding to the demands of protesters and respecting their rights."

Protests flared up in Bahrain on February 14 and seven people died in a subsequent crackdown on demonstrations, according to an AFP tally based on relatives of victims and opposition officials.

Opposition protesters are demanding far-reaching democratic reform in the mainly Shiite country which has been ruled by a Sunni Muslim dynasty for more than 200 years.

Bahrain's opposition said Monday it considered any foreign military intervention to be an occupation, after a Saudi official said the kingdom's troops had entered the neighbouring Gulf state.

US Defense Secretary Robert Gates on Saturday urged Bahrain to undertake rapid and significant reform, citing concerns in Washington that the longer the instability dragged on the more likely Iran, a Shiite theocracy, would profit.

44 injured in fresh clashes in Yemen: officials

Hundreds of Yemeni anti-government protesters call for the ouster of President Ali Abdullah Saleh during a demonstration in the northern restive city of Saada. At least 44 protesters were wounded when police opened fire on Monday to disperse demonstrations in Yemen, a strategic US ally in the fight against Al-Qaeda, officials said.

AFP - At least 44 protesters were wounded when police opened fire on Monday to disperse demonstrations in Yemen, a strategic US ally in the fight against Al-Qaeda, officials said.

The violence came after eight people were killed in weekend clashes with security forces, sparking condemnation and calls for restraint from the United Nations and Western powers.

Twenty people demanding the resignation of President Ali Abdullah Saleh, in power for 32 years, were injured when they tried to assault the government headquarters in Jawf, northeast of the capital Sanaa, an official said.

Security forces and pro-regime loyalists guarding the building opened fire. Two loyalists were injured by stones hurled by the protesters.

In Marib province, east of Sanaa, 17 protesters were injured in similar circumstances when security forces opened fire to prevent them storming the local government headquarters.

Meanwhile, five protesters were wounded in the southern port city of Aden when police opened fire and and tear-gassed anti-regime demonstrators who blocked a road with burning tyres, witnesses said.

Medics said that two protesters were shot, and three others sustained injuries after being hit by police batons.

Demonstrations also raged in other parts of the south.

In Lahij province, hundreds took to the streets in the city of al-Hawtah chanting anti-regime slogans, while police fired warning shots to disperse demonstrators in the city of Mukalla, in the southeastern province of Hadramut.

Meanwhile, at least 10,000 protesters marched peacefully in the province of Daleh, witnesses said.

A parliamentary committee tasked with probing events in Aden has charged southern separatists and the Al-Qaeda franchise in Yemen of turning peaceful demonstrations into acts of vandalism.

According to the ruling party website Almotamar.net, the committee said 11 people were killed between February 8 and February 26, including an officer and a soldier, and 77 others were wounded, including 47 military personnel.

Some 40 people have been killed in political violence since unrest erupted in the deeply tribal country at the end of January, as pro-democracy revolts shook the Arab world.

In a speech to tens of thousands of people at Sanaa's stadium on Thursday, Saleh promised to protect protesters from violence and offered to hold a referendum on a new constitution which would devolve power to parliament.

The United States, which sees Saleh as a pillar of stability in a fragile nation, welcomed the gesture, but Yemen's parliamentary opposition says the president has lost all credibility and must resign this year.

Jordan creates commission to examine reform

Thousands of Jordanians demonstrate in support of King Abdullah II in Amman on March 12. Jordan's government on Monday approved the creation of a 52-strong National Dialogue Committee charged with drawing up a new electoral law within three months, the official Petra news agency reported.

AFP - Jordan's government on Monday approved the creation of a 52-strong National Dialogue Committee charged with drawing up a new electoral law within three months, the official Petra news agency reported.

It said the committee, headed by Senate president Taher al-Masri, would work on "two amended laws on general elections and political parties."

The new body will include former ministers, members of political parties, trade unionists, Islamists and writers, Petra said.

In a letter to Masri, King Abdullah II wished him and the panel "success in developing a productive political dialogue framework that enhances achievements and stability."

He reiterated the "importance to agree on a democratic elections law, paving the way for a parliament that represents all Jordanians and plays a key role in enhancing justice, transparency, fairness and the rule of law."

Inspired by the revolts in Tunisia and Egypt, Jordanians have been demonstrating for nine weeks demanding general reforms.

Tensions between the government and Islamists escalated on Friday after the latter refused to take part in the national dialogue commission, claiming the regime was not serious about reform.

On Saturday, thousands of people rallied in support of the king, chanting "the people want to bring down political parties" and the opposition Islamic Action Front (IAF) "does not represent the Jordanian people."

The IAF has been calling for sweeping reforms, including an amended electoral law, leading to a parliamentary government and elected prime minister.