Arab awakening - ABC Online

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Antoun Issa

With Egypt on the cusp of a democratic revolution, it is clear to the world that the Arabs are finally having their awakening. This decade will mark a significant change to the post-colonial Middle Eastern order that has stagnated the region for much of the past century.

The Arab ‘street’, which has been sidelined in the political life of these countries by decades of autocracy, is about to take charge in determining the interests of their states.

As a generation of tweeters take to the streets of Egypt in a bid to oust their dictator, President Hosni Mubarak, it is fair to deduce that globalisation has at last reached the shores of the Middle East.

‘Arab exceptionalism’ no more

The democratic wave that swept through Eastern Europe, Latin America and parts of Asia post-Cold War failed to dint the authoritarian landscape in the Arab world. Rather, Arab regimes tightened their autocratic rule when the world was heading in an opposite direction.

Discourse on globalisation and development, thus, largely bypassed the Arab world. It became widely anticipated that the Assads, Mubaraks and Abdullahs of the region would continue their dynastic rule by gifting their rule to their progeny.

‘Arab exceptionalism’ was a phrase coined to normalise the region’s autocracy and lack of development, and justify the failure of globalised trends to penetrate the Middle East. Adherence to this perception of the Arab world blinded many to the realities on the ground, and consequently caused shock in the West and Israel when millions began pouring onto the streets of Cairo to demand Mubarak’s resignation.

Indeed, a week prior to the beginning of the Egyptian protests, Israel’s head of military intelligence Major General Aviv Kochavi was certain on the stability of the Mubarak regime.

Global communications

Albeit dormant, the Arab ‘street’ was not totally immune to the effects of globalisation. Despite living in heavily censored states, young Arabs connected to the World Wide Web and discovered a means to challenge the status quo. Social media – a global phenomenon of Facebook, Twitter and blogging – pierced the tightly held information censorship bubbles of the Arab world, and enabled locals to air their frustrations in an open space.

Popular Facebook pages were up a week earlier informing Egyptians of mass protests, a date was chosen, a Twitter hashtag was selected, and before you knew it, tens of thousands were in the streets.

This is not to detract from the core elements of the protests. Indeed, like most revolutions, Egyptian grievances are found in poverty, unemployment, and a lack of freedoms. Social media and the internet, however, have provided Egyptians and Arabs with a means in which to communicate such grievances, exchange ideas, and aid in collective action.

Internet is for Arabs what cafés were for the French in 1789, an open space where aggrieved citizens can share their frustrations and work together towards an alternative. Social media did not cause the protests in Egypt and Tunisia, but it facilitated them.

Globalised ideals 

The use of the internet and social media is not the only indication of the effects of globalisation on the Middle East. Protests in Tunisia, Egypt, Yemen and Jordan are all chanting the same demand: democratic reform.

A globalised ideal that has made its way to all corners of the world is now on the lips of Arab protestors. Liberal democracy – a concept championed by the US seemingly everywhere but the Middle East – has been touted as the preferred alternative to authoritarianism.

In an era where the West feared an Islamist takeover of the region, that protestors are chanting for democracy should be a sign of comfort. Islamism infers that Arabs are still exempt from the global system, and are opting to pursue an antagonistic form of governance. However, the calls for democracy in Cairo and Tunis demonstrate an eagerness from the Arab ‘street’ to join the global system, and begin to receive the economic benefits promised by liberal democracy.

Indeed, liberal democratic reforms also include a redefinition of a nation’s interests. Sovereignty in the Arab world has long been confined to the selfish interests of despotic ruling families. This proved much easier for the US to manage in terms of finding allies to support its regional interests, such as containing Iran and protecting Israel.

Democracy, conversely, bestows sovereignty onto the people, and thus – as we understand from our own democratic traditions – the national interest becomes a complex and fluid concept driven by altering attitudes within the public.

At present, the Arab public remains hostile to Israel, and ambivalent towards Iran, and this poses a short-term dilemma for Washington. Long-term gains, however, outweigh any short-term costs, with a democratic and developing Arab world moving with the globalisation process and not against it. The social and economic pressures brought by despotic, corrupt rule will alleviate, and radical religious extremists will have a smaller pool of frustrated, impoverished youth to recruit from.

Using globalised means of communication to promote a globalised political system, Arabs have proven that they are no longer an exception.

Antoun Issa is an Australian-based freelance political writer, blogger, Global Voices Online author, and commentator on international affairs, with a specific interest in Middle Eastern issues.

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What Israel fears in Egypt - Washington Post

One might expect that Israelis, who live in the only democracy in the Middle East, would turn out in the squares of Jerusalem and the gardens of Tel Aviv to show solidarity with the demonstrators in Egypt. The protesters, after all, are seeking to overthrow an authoritarian regime.

Israelis, however, have stayed at home, warily following events on TV and the Internet.

It is not a democratic Egypt that Israelis fear but the prospect of Egypt being hijacked by enemies of democracy, of Israel and of the United States. Within every revolution are some who hope to use democratic processes to establish oppressive regimes. This was, to a large extent, what triumphed in Iran in 1979 and what happened in Gaza only five years ago. Many Israelis wonder why it would be any different in Egypt, which is home to the world's most powerful and popular Islamist movement.

Should the government of Hosni Mubarak be replaced by one not truly committed to freedom and peace, the consequences for Israel could be devastating. As Egypt struggles toward an internal balance that appeases all forces, including the Muslim Brotherhood, peace with Israel could be the price of an Egyptian compromise. And the risks are worse if the Brotherhood, an organization deeply hostile to Israel, America and the West, gets to call the shots.

Consider what an Egyptian official once told me: "There is no war without Egypt." From 1948 to 1973, Israel had to fight four wars against coalitions of Arab armies. Since the peace agreement between Egypt and Israel, however, there has not been even one war between Israel and Arab states. The lives of many Israelis and Arabs have been saved over the past four decades, and the security burden on Israel's economy has become more bearable. Yet if the peace with Egypt dissolves, the risks to the Jewish state and its citizens cannot be overstated.

The implications for the region could be massive. If Israel's western neighbor turns hostile, where would that leave our eastern neighbor, Jordan? Would it remain at peace with us? What would be the impact on other pro-American regimes? How many weeks, or days, would the new alignment of interests between Israel and most Arab regimes last against an aggressive and nuclear-armed Iran? If there is a negative outcome to the events unfolding in Egypt, the world will be living with a new Middle East, but it will be very different from the one we all aspire to.

Meanwhile, Israelis are uncertain about some positions of the U.S. administration. They remember how, after the 2009 presidential election, the Obama administration refused to support courageous Iranians who demonstrated against the oppressive "hate to America" regime in Tehran. People are understandably puzzled when news reports show an ally of America - even an authoritarian one - abandoned while U.S. rivals are honored with state dinners in Washington, despite their gross violations of human rights. In this highly charged region, Washington's actions are carefully watched. Israelis are looking at the results of U.S. policy in Iraq, the recent loss of Lebanon to Iran and how American pressure on Israel led to a "democratic" takeover of the Palestinian Authority by Hamas terrorists. Israelis live every day with the results of the U.S. administration's blunder that made already-difficult negotiations with the Palestinians impossible.

Israelis have learned the hard way that Israel cannot shape internal developments in our neighboring Arab states. While they wish America could responsibly engage in this process and ensure a positive outcome, they also doubt whether even America can prevent events from proceeding toward, and down, a slippery slope.

It is said, and is possibly true, that worry may be in the Jewish genes. With our history, having paved so many roads with good intentions only to see them lead to destruction, and having experienced how democratic slogans and processes have been abused again and again by murderous dictators, it is hard not to be concerned.

The future of Egypt is uncertain: Is it a hostile Islamist tyranny, using democracy as a fake ladder, or a compromise at Israel's expense that may be about to occur? The fear of war and death is on Israelis' hearts and minds.

But if a real democracy, committed to the values of freedom and peace, were to emerge in Egypt, Israelis would overwhelmingly support it.

The writer was Israel's ambassador to the United States from 2005 to 2009.

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DIARY - France to Feb 28 - Reuters

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Historic temple caught in Thai-Cambodia crossfire - Washington Post

PREAH VIHEAR, Cambodia -- High on a cliff overlooking the jungles of northern Cambodia, heavily armed troops crouch in fortified bunkers on the grounds of an ancient temple turned modern-day battlefield.

The stone remains of Preah Vihear, built nearly 1,000 years ago, are supposed to be a protected U.N. World Heritage site. Instead they are at the heart of a dangerous tug-of-war between Cambodia and Thailand - one that has taken at least eight lives and forced 15,000 to flee in four days of clashes recently.

The battle over a hilly patch of land in this remote countryside is rooted in a decades-old border dispute that has fueled nationalist passions and been driven by domestic politics and conspiracy theories on both sides.

A fragile truce has held since Monday night, but the dispute remains unsettled, and troops are digging in for another round of combat.

The Cambodians filled fresh sandbags earlier this week, stacking them meticulously in 10 bunkers along one of the temple's low outer walls. It looks out over a ravine toward Thailand's sandbagged foxholes on the other side.

"We're just praying in our hearts for this to be over," said Hun Demong, a Buddhist monk who fled into a Cambodian army bunker after the fighting broke out on Feb. 4. "We only hope it will not start again."

With ornamental panels dedicated to the Hindu deity Shiva, Preah Vihear was a stunning achievement of the Angkorean empire, whose realm once took in parts of modern-day Thailand and Vietnam.

When the latest firing stopped, the great stone temple itself stood as a silent victim, small chunks of its darkened gray walls blown off by shrapnel from shells fired from Thailand.

The tail of an exploded rocket lay at the feet of a squatting Cambodian soldier atop the 160-step stairway at the temple's entrance. Along a stone causeway leading farther into the complex, an empty gun battery looked out over a charred hillside, its shredded trees and gnarled saplings bearing testament to the ferocity of the fighting.

A pool of dried blood spattered the floor under a sandstone archway, the spot one mortally wounded soldier was carried to by comrades after being hit by an artillery blast.

There is no simple answer to what sparked the latest fighting.

The temple has been the subject of an intense boundary dispute since French colonial forces withdrew from Cambodia in the 1950s.

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India, Pakistan Agree to Resume Peace Talks - Salt Lake Tribune

India, Pakistan Agree to Resume Peace Talks The Washington Post

First published 1 hour ago
Updated 38 minutes ago Updated Feb 10, 2011 07:19PM New Delhi • India and Pakistan agreed Thursday to resume formal peace talks that were broken off after the 2008 terrorist attacks in Mumbai, which were blamed on Pakistan-based militants. The decision could ease tensions between the nuclear-armed rivals and was welcomed by the Obama administration.

The United States has urged the Indian government to resume the dialogue with Pakistan, in part because their rivalry undermines efforts to stabilize Afghanistan. There has been a string of meetings in the past year between officials from both sides, but Thursday’s announcement of a dialogue “on all issues” marks a significant step forward, regional experts said.

It also represents something of a concession by India, which had been pressing Pakistan to bring to justice those responsible for the November 2008 attack on Mumbai, India’s financial hub, when gunmen stormed luxury hotels and a Jewish center, killing 166 people.

Retired Indian Maj. Gen. Ashok Mehta, who has convened informal talks involving retired military and foreign service officials, as well as opinion leaders, from both countries, said India had realized how hard it was for Pakistan to comply with that demand, given the reluctance of judges there to prosecute suspected militants and the reluctance of witnesses to come forward.

“The conditions India imposed in the aftermath of Mumbai were dictated by domestic political compulsions,” Mehta said. “Now that more than two years have passed, we ourselves have realized the conditions have to be watered down, and that is precisely what we have done.”

Copyright 2011 The Salt Lake Tribune. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. blog comments powered by Disqus

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Korean Talks End Without Agreement - Wall Street Journal

SEOUL—Midlevel military officials from South and North Korea ended two days of talks Wednesday without agreeing to higher-level discussions, closing for now a slim opening they had created to discuss a flare-up of tensions over the past year.

The outcome wasn't surprising. Statements from the two countries over the past month showed they held vastly different goals for the meeting, and they took several weeks just to negotiate its particulars.

Kim Tae-Hyung/European Pressphoto Agency South Korean Col. Moon Sang-Kyun, left, and North Korean Col. Ri Seon-Kwon walking briskly to their meeting Wednesday

But the prospect of no further talks leaves the U.S., China and other countries in a quandary over how to proceed with North Korea.

The U.S. watched the proceedings for signs that North Korea was willing to discuss difficult issues, which could make it worthwhile for Washington to re-engage with Pyongyang diplomatically. Asked later about the development, State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley said, "We'll just continue to evaluate what unfolds going forward, but clearly, this was an important opportunity for North Korea to demonstrate its sincerity."

China, North Korea's closest ally, is believed by many outsiders to have pressured it into talking. Beijing is thought to have become angry over Pyongyang's belligerence, most notably after its attack on a South Korean island in November.

Military talks between the rival Korea's stall, dealing a setback to efforts to restart international aid-for-disarmament talks. Video courtesy of Reuters.

North Korea's access to China's economic support may hinge on its ability to demonstrate it isn't going to engage in more tension-raising behavior, said Dan Pinkston, Korea analyst at International Crisis Group in Seoul. "The key question is will this be perceived by the Chinese as a legitimate and sincere effort by the North to reconcile with the South?" Mr. Pinkston said.

The talks, held between colonels of the two sides who had met before, most recently in September, were designed to set conditions and talking points for a meeting of higher-level officials later this month or next. But after the colonels met on Tuesday, a difference was clear. South Korea said it was seeking a ministerial-level meeting while North Korea only wanted deputy ministers to meet.

Yonhap/European Pressphoto Agency The two colonels started Wednesday's talk with a shake but ended without an agreement.

Also, South Korea wanted North Korea to acknowledge—and move toward some form of apology for—its attacks on the South last year, including the Nov. 23 artillery barrage of Yeonpyeong Island, which killed four people, and the March 26 sinking of a patrol ship, which killed 46. Both incidents happened in the area of a maritime boundary that North Korea disputes.

North Korea's representatives at the talks on Tuesday said that South Korea's insistence on talking about those matters amounted to a rejection of the importance of discussions. On Wednesday, North Korea again criticized the South for focusing on the attacks, the South said. North Korea's representative also repeated the country's oft-stated line on the attacks: that it wasn't involved in the sinking and that the island bombardment was the South's fault.

In a statement after the meeting broke up, South Korea's defense ministry said, "We kept our position that we are willing to hold a high-level military talk if North Korea accepts our agenda and level of official."

North Korea on Thursday Asia time issued a lengthy statement blaming South Korea for the collapse of the talks and said it didn't feel any need to meet again. "South Korea pretends to be interested in talk with us, but in their minds they are not," the statement said.

In early January North Korea began a campaign to promote inter-Korean talks, which it officially proposed later in the month. But from the start, its purpose for such discussions was at odds with South Korea's. North Korea's state media repeatedly stated that the talks should "promote the national reconciliation and unity and hasten independent reunification," a phrase that to Pyongyang means control of the South by the North.

That notion is considered ridiculous in the South. But because North Korean officials rarely want face-to-face discussions, South Korea grabs most opportunities, even when little is expected to be achieved. Last week, South Korean President Lee Myung-bak described this week's meeting as merely a test of North Korea's "seriousness for dialogue."

— Jaeyeon Woo contributed to this article.

Write to Evan Ramstad at evan.ramstad@wsj.com

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Cambodian-Thai border rift sees no immediate settlement - Xinhua

PHNOM PENH/BANGKOK, Feb. 10 (Xinhua) -- As of Friday, two days have passed without gunshots disturbing the 11th-century Preah Vihear temple after the Feb. 4-7 bloody clashes between Cambodian and Thai troops, but there's a fear that real peace is still far out of reach in the disputed border area.

The skirmishes, in which heavy weapons including rockets, machine guns, mortars and artillery were resorted to, have reportedly killed at least eight Cambodian and three Thai soldiers, wounding many more, and compelling tens of thousands of villagers to flee home for shelters.

Witnesses said damage was done to the 900-year-old temple, a World Heritage site, and that although firing had stopped for two days, additional Thai tanks were seen en route to the contested areas, and Cambodia's military deployment near the frontier was not lessened.

The border between Thailand and Cambodia has never been completely demarcated. Although the International Court of Justice ruled in 1962 that the temple itself belonged to Cambodia, the row over the 4.6-square-km territory around the temple has never been resolved.

As the international community urges both sides to display restraint and calls for a peaceful solution to their age-old territorial dispute, the two neighbors are even at odds over the way of working the matter out.

Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen favors the United Nations Security Council's decision to hold a meeting on Feb. 14 to discuss the Cambodian-Thai border dispute.

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Teen suicide bomber kills 20 at Pakistan army centre - Reuters

By Zeeshan Haider

ISLAMABAD | Thu Feb 10, 2011 2:27am EST

ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - A boy in a school uniform blew himself up at a Pakistani army recruitment center on Thursday, killing 20 cadets, officials said, in an attack that challenges government assertions that crackdowns have weakened militants.

Pakistan's army has carried out a series of offensives against al Qaeda-linked Taliban insurgents. But the operations in lawless tribal areas along the Afghan border have failed to break the resolve of Taliban fighters determined to destabilize the U.S.-backed government.

The brazen bombing on Thursday in the northwestern town of Mardan suggested militants are regrouping after a lull in major attacks.

Militant operations in recent months have been mostly sectarian and have not focused on military targets.

"The bomber struck recruits when cadets were busy in their morning training," a military official told Reuters. At least 20 people were wounded.

The boy apparently walked into the compound, officials said.

"It seems the Taliban are still a very potent force because they continue to attack installations, even if they have been quiet for a time," said former general Talat Masood.

"They reassert themselves after a while, and it will be a while before we consider them to be less of a threat."

The Taliban have previously launched bold attacks on the military, Pakistan's most powerful institution.

Last March, two suicide bombers targeting the Pakistani military killed at least 45 people in the city of Lahore, including nine soldiers.

In 2009, Pakistani Taliban militants disguised as soldiers attacked the army's headquarters in Rawalpindi and later took 42 people hostage in a nearby office building.

Prime Minister Yusuf Raza Gilani condemned Thursday's attack at the Punjab Regiment Center.

"Such cowardly attacks cannot affect the morale of the security agencies and the resolve of the nation to eradicate terrorism," he said in a statement.

Gilani's government faces pressure on several fronts.

It is trying to revive a stagnant economy propped up by an $11 billion Internet Monetary Fund loan which requires politically sensitive reforms.

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Google Executive in Egypt is Released - Wall Street Journal

(See Corrections and Amplifications item below.)

Google Inc. executive Wael Ghonim has been released from government custody in Egypt after disappearing during the massive protests that have rocked Egypt for two weeks, ending a tense wait over the whereabouts of one of the rallying symbols for the anti government movement.

Google, Inc. Wael Ghonim

The silence around Mr. Ghonim, who vanished 10 days ago, broke late Monday evening, when a one-line message was sent from his Twitter account, @ghonim: "Freedom is a bless that deserves fighting for it."

The message set off a wave of cheering on Twitter. Google later confirmed his release with a tweet of its own — "Huge relief—Wael Ghonim has been released" — and a friend of Mr. Ghonim's said the executive was safe and unharmed at home with his family.

Mr. Ghonim, Google's marketing manager for the region, had been involved with Internet-based activists mobilizing opposition to the regime, and after his disappearance became a rallying symbol for the young demonstrators in Cairo's Tahrir Square.

Many suspected he had fallen into the hands of Egypt's feared security services, but there had been no confirmation. Then Sunday evening, his brother Hazem said people who met yesterday with Egypt's new vice president, Omar Suleiman, had brokered his release.

Monday brought a tense waiting game. Mr. Ghonim's family was expecting him to be released around 4 p.m. Cairo time. The U.S. State Department said it had received confirmation of the release, but four hours later, Mr. Ghonim's relatives said they had yet to be contacted regarding his whereabouts.

Members of Mr. Ghonim's family spent the early evening in Tahrir Square, the area in downtown Cairo that has become the symbolic heart of the protest movement and the spot where Mr. Ghonim was thought to have been arrested. Multiple news outlets had erroneously reported that the executive was being taken there shortly after 4 p.m., the time at which the prime minister had announced he would be released.

Many details of Mr. Ghonim's disappearance are still unknown. Friends and political activists who know Mr. Ghonim suspect that the executive was seized on Jan. 28 in the downtown square after he joined thousands of others protesting for the ouster of President Mubarak.

The Egyptian Organization for Human Rights estimates that at least 1,275 people have been detained by police since the protests began. Most have been released, lawyers at the center and other human-rights groups say. Those who remain in jail are considered key targets of the Egyptian security services, according to human rights lawyers.

A group of elder Egyptian statesmen who have opened negotiations with Mr. Sulieman to press for constitutional and political reforms told the government that Mr. Ghonim's release was critical to prove to the protesters that the government's promises to enact reform were sincere.

"There's a huge gap of mistrust among the youth in Tahrir towards the government. We told the vice president that Wael and all people who have been detained for expressing their political opinions must be freed," said Naguib Sawiris, an Egyptian billionaire who has taken a lead role within the negotiations.

It remains unclear what role, if any, Mr. Ghonim played in organizing the Jan. 25 protest movement itself, the largest Egypt has seen in more than 30 years. However, he played a prominent role in online activism in the months ahead of the protests which have forced the resignation of Egypt's government and historic political concessions from the autocratic president.

Corrections & Amplifications

Wael Ghonim is head of marketing for the Middle East and North Africa for Google Inc. In addition, the company doesn't have a head office for the Middle East region. An earlier version of this story incorrectly said he was Google's top executive in the region and incorrectly described Google's Dubai office as the company's regional headquarters.

Write to Nour Malas at nour.malas@dowjones.com, Margaret Coker at margaret.coker@wsj.com and Keith Johnson at keith.johnson@wsj.com

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Follow the Egyptian money - Washington Post (blog)

"So in addition to supporting institutions and free and fair elections, we are committed to supporting strong civil societies, the activists, organizations, congregations, intellectuals, reporters who work through peaceful means to fight corruption and keep governments honest. Their work enriches the soil in which democracy grows."
--Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, Feb. 5, 2011

The Egyptian protests have thrown a spotlight on what the Obama administration has done in its first two years to help promote democracy in Egypt. The administration has claimed that it privately pressed Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak for changes, but we have documented how President Obama, at least in his public statements, tended to play down the need for specific actions by the Egyptian government.

Clinton's statement, made while discussing the turmoil in the Middle East during a security conference in Munich, raises another question: How committed has the administration been to supporting democracy-minded civic and social organizations -- what are known collectively as civil society-- in Egypt? To find out the answer, we need to follow the money.

The Facts

Since the Camp David peace accords more than three decades ago, the United States and Egypt have had an unspoken bargain in terms of the roughly $2 billion in aid given each year to Cairo: The Egyptian government had veto power over which nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) could receive the money. This deal meant that funds labeled by Washington as promoting democracy often ended up being used for other projects, such as sludge removal or to bolster the very judicial institutions used to jail democracy advocates.

Meanwhile, the largest chunk of the annual largess, about $1.3 billion, was given to Egypt's military and security forces. The security forces have been repeatedly cited in the State Department's human rights report for torture, prolonged detentions without charge and other abuses. While overall aid to Egypt has declined in recent years, the budget for the security forces and the military has remained mostly intact.

The George W. Bush administration tried to change the dynamic regarding civil society funding, though its effort met with fierce resistance by the Egyptian government. There were banner headlines in the Egyptian press the first time a U.S. ambassador actually gave money to institutions that were independent of Hosni Mubarak's regime, even though the funds amounted to just $1 million. One Egyptian newspaper called it a "bombshell announcement."

The Bush administration's effort was also backed by Congress, which tried to condition aid on improvements in Egypt's human rights record and directed that "assistance shall not be subject to the prior approval by the government of any foreign country."

Egyptian entities that took money directly from the United States ran the risk of being labeled American stooges by Egypt's state-run media. A 2009 audit of Egyptian aid by the USAID inspector general found that the results of the U.S. government's democracy effort were mixed, though the "greatest success" was achieved in programs funded directly by the United States.

"A major contributing factor to the limited achievements for some of these programs resulted from a lack of support from the Government of Egypt," the report said. "According to a mission official, the Government of Egypt has resisted USAID/Egypt's democracy and governance program and has suspended the activities of many U.S. NGOs because Egyptian officials thought these organizations were too aggressive."

Toward the end of Bush's term, his fiscal year 2009 budget proposed spending $45 million on democracy and good-governance programs in Egypt, including more than $20 million on promoting civil society. This would have kept the amount earmarked for democracy programs the same as 2008, even as spending in other areas, such as health, education and economics, was scheduled to be reduced in what is known as the Economic Support Fund as part of a reordering of priorities.

"The United States has developed strategic partnerships with reformers from Egyptian civil society and within governmental institutions," the administration said in a document to Congress. "While some democracy and governance activities, such as reforming the judiciary, will be implemented through direct assistance to the GOE [Government of Egypt], assistance to civil society and other non-governmental organizations (NGOs) will be funded directly."

But that nascent effort was largely shelved when the Obama administration took office. For fiscal year 2009, the administration immediately halved the money for democracy promotion in Egypt; the civil society funds were slashed 70 percent, to $7 million.

Meanwhile, money that was to be given directly to civil society groups was eliminated and the administration agreed to once again fund only those institutions that had Mubarak's seal of approval. Jennifer L. Windsor, an associate dean at Georgetown University's School of Foreign Service and former executive director of Freedom Watch, said she was told at the time by U.S. Ambassador Margaret Scobey that the shift was made to "facilitate" better relations with Egypt's government.

The new policy received little public notice at the time but is documented in official government documents and also on the USAID Web site. Obama's 2010 budget justification to Congress eliminated all mention of giving direct assistance to civil society groups. The 2011 budget proposed modestly increasing democracy funding -- from $20 million to $25 million, with $8.5 million going to civil society groups -- and explicitly stated that "grants will be made to Egyptian registered NGOs."

Freedom House, a bipartisan democracy advocate, tried to sound a warning in 2009 about the reductions. After the administration halved democracy funding for Egypt, Freedom House said in its analysis of the foreign aid budget, "The Obama Administration should reassess this reduction in support and strengthen its diplomatic efforts on behalf of independent democracy and human rights activists in this important country."

In 2010, Freedom House again raised an alarm, and added: "We have serious concerns about the US Government decision to stop funding civil society groups not registered with the Egyptian Ministry of Social Solidarity, essentially giving the Egyptian Government veto power over who receives funding from USAID. Not only is this decision harmful to civil society groups in Egypt, it sets a dangerous precedent in terms of U.S. foreign assistance." It also noted that although the administration indicated it might offset the cuts in bilateral aid with increased funding from other entities--the State Department suggests this totaled $6 million in 2010--"it is not clear that has been the case."

The Obama administration signaled it would cut democracy funding for Egypt within weeks of taking power, even before the president went to Cairo and made his famous speech on outreach to the Muslim world.

Just days before his address, a group of Middle East experts debated the issue on a Harvard University blog. Windsor wrote that the decisions "were a terrible mistake."

She added that she had just returned from Cairo and "what I found most heartening was the diversity of groups and individuals who seek genuine change." They were disorganized, fragmented and needed more support, she said, but "their potential is demonstrated by the fact that the Egyptian security services have asked for a massive increase in funding" -- roughly equivalent to the cut in U.S. funding to democracy groups. "So the advocates for oppression in Egypt will get more funds, and the advocates for freedom get less," she concluded.

State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley acknowledged Wednesday that "funding for democracy activities in Egypt did drop" between fiscal year 2008 and 2009, which he attributed to the Bush administration's proposed cut in overall economic support funds. "We increased funding in fiscal year 2010 and sustained that in our proposal for fiscal year 2011 while also reorienting our approach to provide direct support to indigenous Egyptian organizations."

Crowley added: "We are currently looking at ways to expand our support to civil society in Egypt given the events that are now unfolding. Unfortunately, Congress is contemplating severe cuts in foreign assistance which potentially threaten these efforts at a time when they can have the greatest impact."

The Pinocchio Test

Clinton is certainly correct to say that the United States supports and encourages civil society groups around the world. But when it comes to Egypt, the administration's performance appears to fall short.

Obama ended a potentially promising effort to support democracy groups not beholden to Egypt's authoritarian government in order to curry favor with that government. The administration also reduced the budget devoted to promoting civil society. It is not possible to know whether the tens of thousands of people protesting every day would be better organized or have more visible leaders today if substantial direct funding had been maintained. But it would be better for the administration to admit it made a mistake than to pretend it had not changed the policy.

Two Pinocchios

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Egyptian foreign minister rejects US intervention - The Guardian

Protesters in Tahrir Square. The US has warned that Cairo has not done enough to meet the protesters' demands. Photograph: Pedro Ugarte/AFP/Getty Images

The Egyptian leadership is pushing back against American pressure for rapid political reform, again warning that mass demonstrations and spreading strikes to demand President Hosni Mubarak's immediate resignation could lead to a military coup.

Egypt's foreign minister, Ahmed Aboul Gheit, rejected Washington's demand for concrete actions to show that major change is under way, saying that Washington should not "impose" its will.

The White House responded by warning that Cairo has not done enough to satisfy what the Obama administration has previously characterised as the legitimate demands of the protesters.

"I think it is clear that what the government has thus far put forward has yet to meet a minimum threshold for the people of Egypt," said Robert Gibbs, the White House spokesman.

Earlier this week, the US vice-president, Joe Biden, called Mubarak's deputy, Omar Suleiman, the former intelligence chief who is now overseeing dealings with the opposition and the promised political transition, to urge him to immediately lift the oppressive 30-year state of emergency.

In an interview with PBS television in the US, Aboul Gheit was asked if he regarded Biden's call as helpful advice from a friend.

"No, not at all. Why is it so? Because when you speak about prompt, immediate, now – as if you are imposing on a great country like Egypt, a great friend that has always maintained the best of relationship with the United States, you are imposing your will on him," he said.

The Times has reported that Saudi Arabia has threatened to prop up Mubarak if the White House tries to swiftly force him from power. It said that King Abdullah told Obama two weeks ago not to humiliate Mubarak and said Saudi Arabia would step in to replace the $1.5bn (£0.9bn) in annual US aid to Egypt, most of it to the military, if Washington cuts off assistance.

Such an offer would embolden Suleiman who would otherwise be concerned about the impact on the army about the sudden loss of financing.

King Abdullah has defended Mubarak and accused "intruders" of meddling in Egypt's affairs.

Aboul Gheit said that the US should accept the extended timetable for political change outlined by the Egyptian leadership which centres on Mubarak resigning at elections in September.

"So for Americans to come and say 'Change is now', but already we are changing! Or 'You start now', we started last week. So better understand the Egyptian sensitivities and better encourage the Egyptians to move forward and to do what is required. That is my advice to you," he said.

However, talks with Mubarak's political opponents have faltered before they even gained traction after the regime declined to consider the establishment of an interim government.

Diaa Rashwan, a member of a key opposition group, the Council of Wise Men, told the Guardian that talks are going nowhere for now and that pro-democracy campaigners are alarmed at Suleiman's warning - since reiterated by Aboul Gheit - that if the protests continue there could be a military coup.

"The regime is taking a hard line and so negotiations have essentially come to an end. Suleiman's comments about there being a danger of a coup were shocking to all of us. It was a betrayal of the spirit of negotiations, and is unacceptable," he said. "The regime's strategy has been just to play for time and stall with negotiations. They don't really want to talk to anyone. At the start of this week they were convinced that the protests were going to fade away."

Instead, the government was faced with its largest demonstration to date in Cairo on Tuesday with another mass turnout planned tomorrow (Friday), Some trade unions have thrown their weight behind the opposition cause with a series of strikes.

Rashwan said that the lack of swift progress in the talks and the upsurge in protest has shifted the initiative back to the street.

The Egyptian foreign minister said that Mubarak has not considered stepping down immediately as the demonstrators are demanding because it would lead to chaos and possibly a coup.

"When you have a president who is stepping down, you have one of two possibilities. The demonstrators and the opposition insisting that they compose a government unconstitutional. And then maybe the armed forces would feel compelled to intervene in a more drastic manner," he said. "Do we want the armed forces to assume the responsibility of stabilizing the nation through imposing martial law, and army in the streets? The army is in defence of the borders of the country and the national security of the state. But for the army to rule, to step in, to put its friends on the scene, that would be a very dangerous possibility."

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Mubarak spurns opposition demands to leave office immediately - Washington Post

'Revolution': As protesters vow more marches, violent confrontation is feared

The military's role: Allegiance of armed forces remains a pivotal issue

Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak ceded some authority to his vice president Thursday but refused to quit, insisting that he would stay in office to oversee a drawn-out transfer of power. His defiance stunned and angered hundreds of thousands of protesters in the capital, who responded with chants of "revolution, revolution."

Enormous crowds, which had gathered in anticipation that Mubarak would announce his resignation in a televised address, expressed disappointment and fury as the message sunk in that the president had no intention of leaving. Some masses moved tentatively toward the heavily guarded state television tower, while others vowed to march on the presidential palace.

"Oh Mubarak, be patient! The people will dig your grave," shouted protesters in the central Tahrir Square late into the night.

Mubarak's rejection of the rebellion, in a rambling late-night speech, capped a confusing day of contradictory messages, exultant expectations and, ultimately, flattened hopes. It left Egyptians and the rest of the world anxious and afraid of how the conflict would unfold in the hours and days ahead.

The Egyptian army, which rolled more tanks into the city center, did not move immediately to impede the demonstrators. But with large protests planned for Friday, the military's allegiance remained a question mark and appeared to swing back and forth between the president and the people.

Some leaders warned that Mubarak was risking a bloody revolt.

"There is no way the Egyptian people right now are ready to accept either the president or the vice president," Mohamed ElBaradei, a Nobel Peace Prize winner and opposition leader, told CNN. "They have lost all authority, all legitimacy. . . . My fear is that the situation will turn violent."

The developments not only shocked Egyptians but seemed to catch the world by surprise, including the highest levels of the U.S. government. In a written statement, President Obama said "it is not yet clear'' whether the transition to democracy pledged by Mubarak would be "immediate, meaningful or sufficient.''

Earlier Thursday, CIA Director Leon Panetta told Congress that "there is a strong likelihood that Mubarak may step down this evening." In an afternoon speech to university students in Michigan, Obama gave no indication that he expected otherwise, calling the events in Egypt "a moment of transformation that's taking place because the people of Egypt are calling for change."

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Egypt minister criticises US role - BBC News

10 February 2011 Last updated at 07:51 GMT Mr Aboul Gheit has been Egypt's foreign minister for seven years Egypt's foreign minister has rebuffed calls from Washington to speed up the pace of political reform.

Rejecting a US demand to lift a state of emergency, Ahmed Aboul Gheit said Washington should not "impose" its will on "a great country".

Many thousands of Egyptians have been protesting sine 25 January calling for President Hosni Mubarak to step down.

Wednesday saw protests in Cairo spread to Egypt's parliament, with violence and reports of strikes in other cities.

In reply to Mr Aboul Gheit, the White House said Egypt's transition plans were not yet enough to satisfy those calling for change.

"I think it is clear that what the government has thus far put forward has yet to meet a minimum threshold for the people of Egypt," spokesman Robert Gibbs said.

'Angry, infuriated'

In his PBS interview, Mr Aboul Gheit said Egypt was enduring an "upheaval", and was sharply critical of US statements on Egypt, including Vice-President Joe Biden.

Explicit calls from Mr Biden for "prompt, immediate" action from Egypt were tantamount to "imposing your will" on a long-time ally of the US, Mr Aboul Gheit said.

Continue reading the main story

Washington does not now think the Egyptian government is serious about delivering change, and wants everyone to hear that message”

End Quote Mark Mardell BBC North America editor On the issue of Egypt's emergency law, in place for four decades, Mr Aboul Gheit described himself as "amazed" by Mr Biden's reported comments for it to be lifted.

Jailbreaks amid the recent street protests meant that 17,000 prisoners are now loose on Egypt's streets, the foreign minister said.

"How can you ask me to disband the... emergency law while I'm in difficulty? Give me time. Allow me to have control, to stabilise the nation, to stabilise the state, and then we would... look into the issue."

After an initial reluctance to become publicly involved in Egypt's internal disputes, the White House has in recent days repeatedly called for an "orderly transition" in Egypt.

But Mr Aboul Gheit was critical of Washington's posture during the early days of protest.

"The first four, five days, it was a confusing message. And I was often angry, infuriated.

"But, through discussions with the administration, I think now we have an administration that understands exactly the difficulties of the situation and the dangers and the risks that are entailed in a rush towards chaos without end. So... the administration's message now is much better."

The tens of thousands of protesters taking to the streets of Cairo and other cities over the past 16 days have called overwhelmingly for Hosni Mubarak, the country's long-serving president, to step down immediately.

Mr Mubarak has said he intends to step down after presidential elections, due to be held in September.

Newly appointed Vice-President Omar Suleiman has begun a process of talks with opposition political figures. But opposition groups fear the government is stalling for time and will fail to enact meaningful changes.

New focus

Despite Mr Aboul Gheit's words, Washington once again reiterated its call for rapid and meaningful change in Egypt.

State department spokesman PJ Crowley said the US had been calling for years to an end to the state of emergency, while Mr Gibbs insisted it was obvious that Mr Mubarak's pledges of reform had not gone far enough, fast enough.

"And I think, unless or until that process takes hold, I think you're going to see the continued pictures that all of us are watching out of Cairo and of other cities throughout Egypt.

"If there's some notion on the government side that you can put the genie back in this bottle, I think that's gone a long time ago," he added.

The BBC's North America editor Mark Mardell says Western diplomats believe the US administration has changed its approach in the last two days. Washington does not now think the Egyptian government is serious about delivering change, and wants everyone to hear that message, our correspondent says.

After more than two weeks of protests focussed on Tahrir Square in central Cairo, Wednesday saw protests in the capital spread to the country's parliament, the People's Assembly.

Many regard the assembly as illegitimate after its members were elected in elections widely seen as heavily rigged in favour of Mr Mubarak's party.

There were also reports of widespread industrial action, and of protests outside Cairo - in cities such as Suez and Port Said - turning violent.

Researchers from Human Rights Watch (HRW) say they have confirmed the deaths of 297 people since 28 January, based on a count from eight hospitals in the cities of Cairo, Alexandria and Suez.

No comprehensive death toll has been given by the Egyptian government.

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Iran Presses Opposition to Refrain From Rally - New York Times

Security forces stationed outside the home of the reformist cleric Mehdi Karroubi, one of the country’s most prominent opposition leaders, prevented Mr. Karroubi’s son from seeing his father on Thursday, according to the son, Hossein.

In an interview with an Arabic-language news Web site, Al Arabiya, Hossein Karroubi, who is politically active, said that the security forces told him that other family members, except his mother, were also barred from seeing his father.

The elder Mr. Karroubi and another government critic, Mir Hussein Moussavi, had submitted a formal request to the government to hold the rally on Feb. 14. Opposition Web sites have also reported the arrest of a number of people associated with the two opposition leaders. On Wednesday night, Taghi Rahmani, an activist close to Mr. Karroubi, and Mohammad-Hossein Sharifzadegan, a former welfare minister and an adviser to Mr. Moussavi, were arrested at their homes by Iran’s security forces. The Web sites also reported Thursday that two reformist journalists had been arrested.

On Wednesday, Iran’s top prosecutor, Gholam-Hossein Mohseni-Ejehi, said that the request to hold a demonstration separate from the annual government-sponsored rally to mark the anniversary of the Islamic Revolution, scheduled for Friday, was “political” and “divisive.”

“Setting a different date means that these individuals are separating themselves from the people and creating divisions,” Mr. Mohseni-Ejehi said in comments reported in the semiofficial news agency ILNA, referring to the opposition leaders who called for the rally. Iran has expressed official support for the antigovernment movements in Egypt and Tunisia, but supporters of Iran’s opposition criticize that stance as hypocritical, given the government’s brutal suppression of Iranian protesters who took to the streets after the disputed re-election of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in 2009.

“If they are not going to allow their own people to protest, it goes against everything they are saying, and all they are doing to welcome the protests in Egypt,” Mr. Karroubi said in an interview with The New York Times earlier this week via an online video link.

The last opposition protests against the elections were held more than a year ago and were halted after the government crackdown killed scores and left many government critics imprisoned.

Neil MacFarquhar contributed reporting from the United Nations.

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Over 400 Property Owners Get Paid for Electricity - ABC News

NASHVILLE, Tenn. February 8, 2011 (AP)

More than 400 property owners who use solar power to generate electricity at their homes or businesses are getting paid for it with the help of the Tennessee Valley Authority and local power distributors.

Some residents have large enough arrays of solar electric generation panels that they get rolling credits on their electricity bill or year-end checks. Most are in Tennessee and The Tennessean reports another 200 projects are in the pipeline.

The Generation Partners program allows property owners to feed electricity into the grid and some distributors, like the Nashville Electric Service, pay more than double what the utility charges for power. The program has grown increasingly popular. NES now has 63 customers generating power and 15 others about to begin.

In Ashland City, Carly and Ed Wansing have a $100 credit on their most recent home electricity bill. They installed their panels in 2007 and are leaving the credit to make up for other months when they might use more electricity.

"We build up our credit in the spring and the fall and use the credit in the summer and the winter," said Carly Wansing, an architect with Street Dixon Rick, which also has solar panels.

Their 2.16-kilowatt solar panel system cost them $11,500 after incentives and should take 12 more years to pay off. Along with a $2,000 federal tax credit, the Wansings got a $500 sign-up payment from TVA's Generation Partners program.

Andy Sudbrock got checks from his electric utility in Williamson County last month that totaled $2,010 for electricity generation from panels on the barn at his plant nursery company, Nashville Natives.

"That doesn't factor in all the electricity we didn't have to pay for, either," he said. "We had zero electricity bills all year."

He virtually paid for the $60,000 8.28-kilowatt solar power system in the first year, thanks to some incentives.

About 95 percent of the cost came from a state cost-share program for businesses, a U.S. Department of Agriculture grant, a federal tax credit and a $1,000 signing bonus from TVA and the distributor.

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India, Pakistan to hold talks on all issues - The Hindu

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India, Pakistan to hold talks on all issues

Sandeep Dikshit The agreement was reached between Nirupama Rao and Salman Bashir in Thimphu

Secretary-level talks will be held on eight subjects

Issues include counter-terrorism, Kashmir and Siachen

NEW DELHI: Short of calling it composite dialogue, India and Pakistan have agreed to hold wide-ranging talks on all issues they were discussing before the November 2008 Mumbai attacks, according to a simultaneous announcement in both countries.

The agreement was reached during a 90-minute meeting on Sunday between Foreign Secretary Nirupama Rao and her Pakistani counterpart Salman Bashir in Thimphu on the sidelines of a South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) meeting. The details were revealed on Thursday after both sides had briefed their governments.

Secretary-level talks will be held on eight subjects which will be followed by a wrap up round between the Foreign Secretaries. These will be followed by a meeting here between External Affairs Minister S.M. Krishna and his Pakistani counterpart Makhdoom Shah Mehmood Qureshi by July.

The subjects on which talks will be held are counter-terrorism (progress in Mumbai trial included), humanitarian issues, peace and security, including confidence building measures, Jammu and Kashmir, promotion of friendly exchanges, Siachen, economic issues and the Wullar Barrage/Tulbul Navigation Project. The issue of Sir Creek will be discussed at the level of Additional Secretaries or Surveyors-General.

Composite dialogue covering these issues was resumed in 2004 after a summit meeting, incidentally, on the sidelines of a SAARC summit in Islamabad. After completion of four rounds and considerable narrowing of differences as well as progress on many issues, it was put on hold by India following the Mumbai attacks.

With the law of diminishing returns having set in on India's insistence of comprehensive action against Pakistan-based perpetrators of the Mumbai attacks and India's moral high ground having been eroded by the complicity of its nationals in the Samjhauta Express blasts that killed 42 Pakistanis, the Indian side has been consistently indicating a “new approach” in which “all issues will be discussed.”

Afghanistan

Interestingly, speaking to the media in Thimphu, Ms. Rao had hinted at the talks incorporating a new subject — Afghanistan. “Why not? One of the ideas that came up was that why should we be just stuck with discussing these issues, why cannot we discuss more issues? Why cannot we discuss the situation in our region,” Ms. Rao said when asked whether both sides were prepared to discuss coordination of positions on Afghanistan.

Indian officials refused to get stuck in terminology and maintained that while this was no composite dialogue, bilateral ties were such that all issues had to be discussed. “And when you say all outstanding issues are going to be discussed, you will obviously have to discuss every outstanding issue. Therefore, who discusses the outstanding issues? There are a number of stakeholders. A number of government departments would be concerned. So, it has to be a comprehensive exercise, put it that way,” reasoned Ms. Rao.

The decision to resume dialogue on all subjects following the Rao-Bashir meeting is being termed the second Thimphu thaw. The first took place in April last year when Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and his Pakistani counterpart Syed Yusuf Raza Gilani directed their Foreign Ministers and Foreign Secretaries to hold talks aimed at reducing the trust deficit between the two countries.

While Mr. Krishna and Mr. Qureshi did meet in Islamabad in July, their concurrence on some issues was lost in a post-interaction acrimony. The two sides then kept minimal contacts until the Foreign Offices began consulting each other regularly over the past few weeks in the run-up to the Thimphu meeting between Ms. Rao and Mr. Bashir.

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Crash investigation is under way - BBC News

11 February 2011 Last updated at 06:24 GMT The aircraft had two crew and 10 passengers on board Investigations are under way into the crash that killed six people at Cork Airport on Thursday morning.

The wreckage of the Manx2 plane remains at Cork on Friday morning as air accident investigators try to find out precisely what went wrong.

Two flight recorders have already been removed from the scene.

The plane, which was travelling from Belfast, came down in thick fog and burst into flames. Six people died and six were injured.

Air accident investigator with the Irish Department of Transport, Paddy Judge, said they hoped to reconstruct the events surrounding the plane crash by accessing information from the aircraft's black box.

The flight was scheduled to depart Belfast at 0750 GMT and eventually left at 0812 GMT. It was due to land in Cork at 0910 GMT.

The plane first attempted to land from a southerly direction on Cork's main runway, known as Runway 17. This was aborted due to low visibility.

It then tried to land on the opposite, northerly, approach to the main runway - known as Runway 35. The Aviation Authority says it is believed wind was not a problem, but the pilot was still unhappy with visibility.

The plane went into a holding position for 20 minutes, before making a third attempt to land on the southerly approach to the main runway.

At 0940 GMT, the plane was 10 miles out from the airport. At 0950 GMT, the plane hit the ground at what is called the 'western threshold' of the runway. Eye witnesses reported hearing a loud bang.

It is understood the plane flipped over on landing and caught fire.

The names of three people killed in the accident were released on Friday

Brendan McAleese, a cousin of Irish president, Mary McAleese's husband, was killed in the crash.

Pat Cullinan, originally from Omagh, County Tyrone, and a partner in accountancy firm KPMG in Belfast. A third victim, Captain Michael Evans, was a deputy harbour commissioner in Belfast.

Captain Michael Evans was the deputy harbour commissioner in Belfast

Irish, British and Spanish passport-holders were on board the aircraft which was flying between the two cities as part of a scheduled daily service. All their families have been informed.

The identity of the three other passengers killed is likely to be released by Irish police on Friday.

The six injured are being treated at Cork University Hospital.

Dr Gerry McCarthy, head of emergency medicine at Cork University Hospital, said two people are in intensive care with chest, abdomenal and spinal injuries.

Two people remain in a serious condition, while the other two are described as doing "well".

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Twins' father 'surfed gun sites' - BBC News

10 February 2011 Last updated at 22:50 GMT Police released an undated image of Matthias Schepp The father of two missing Swiss twin girls trawled websites on suicide, guns and poison before killing himself, police say.

Police also said that Matthias Schepp, who was last seen with the twins on a ferry to the island of Corsica, made the trip back to mainland France alone.

The uncle of six-year-old Alessia and Livia said the latest news was "very, very worrying".

Schepp threw himself under a train in southern Italy on 3 February.

Police spokesman Jean-Christophe Sauterel said analysis of Schepp's work computer had turned up the websites, which also included ferry schedules.

"These factors show that the father had carefully planned his journey," Mr Sauterel said.

"The investigation is now focusing on trying to establish more precisely the movements of the father from Tuesday noon, when he arrived in Corsica with the girls, until Thursday noon, when he was in the region of Naples."

'Terrible premeditation'

Meanwhile, police official Alfredo Fabbrocini told Associated Press that Schepp was on his own when he sailed back to the port city of Toulon in mainland France from Corsica on 1 February.

Prosecutors earlier this week said that the girls were last seen with their father on a ferry to Corsica - the first confirmation that they had boarded the boat.

Continue reading the main story Friday 28 January: Schepp picks up his daughters to spend the weekend with them in their home village, St Sulpice, where both he and his estranged wife have homesSunday 30 January at 1300 (1200 GMT): The girls are last seen with Schepp in St SulpiceSunday 30 January at 1804 (1704 GMT): Schepp crosses the border into FranceMonday 31 January: Schepp sends a despairing postcard to his wife from Marseille; he and the girls take an evening ferry to Propriano, Corsica Tuesday 1 February: Schepp disembarks in Propriano, with or without the girls; he later leaves Corsica for Naples in ItalyThursday 3 February: Schepp throws himself under a train at Cerignola, in the south Italian region of Puglia The 43-year-old father had been looking after the girls for the weekend, but failed to return them home as planned.

He picked up the girls from his estranged wife's house in the Swiss village of St Sulpice on 28 January, before travelling to France and Italy. He was found dead in Cerignola, in the region of Puglia.

An unconfirmed report from a cafe owner in Cerignola emerged in recent days suggesting that the girls were seen with their father shortly before he threw himself under a train.

But Mr Fabbrochini said police had viewed closed circuit video footage from the cafe "over and over," but had not seen them.

He added that days of searching the Cerignola area with sniffer dogs had failed to turn up any trace of the girls.

The twins' uncle, Valerio Lucidi, said Schepp's "terrible premeditation" was "very, very worrying", according to AFP news agency.

On Wednesday, the girls' mother, Irina Lucidi, went on Italian TV to urge viewers who might know anything about the case to contact police.

"I appeal to whoever has seen them or knows something to contact the police," she said on Rai 3's primetime news bulletin.

Alessia was dressed in blue jeans, a striped T-shirt and a white jacket, while Livia wore a purple ski jacket with white and pink sneakers.

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Campbell's To Power Soup With Solar Energy - Energy Matters

THURSDAY 10 FEBRUARY, 2011 | Campbell's To Power Soup With Solar Energy

by Energy Matters

Campbell's Soup in the USA will be a little more environmentally friendly as a result of solar power providing energy for its operations in Napoleon, Ohio.
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Campbell Soup Company yesterday announced a power purchase agreement with BNB Napoleon Solar LLC for the construction of a 9.8MW PV-based solar farm on 24 acres at Campbell's largest plant.
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The solar farm is expected to provide around 15 percent of the plant's electricity needs, saving the company up to $4 million over the 20 years of the agreement. The system will produce more than 14.7 million kilowatt hours of electricity during the first year of operation.
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Carbon emission reductions from the clean electricity production is projected to be approximately 250,000 tonnes in total, or the equivalent of taking 2,000 cars off the road each year.
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Approximately 24,000 SunPower solar panels will be used at the facility, along with Sunpower's Tracker system; which follows the sun throughout the day and angles the solar modules for optimal energy harvesting.
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The project will generate around 200 local construction jobs in Ohio.?
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Campbell Soup Company has committed to cutting the environmental footprint of it's product portfolio in half, as measured by water use and CO2 emissions per tonne of product produced. According to the company's 2010 corporate social responsibility report, Campbells recycled more than 84% of waste generated and invested more than $6 million in environmental sustainability projects. The company states it now produces a tonne of food with 19% less energy than it consumed 10 years ago. Campbell's products extend far beyond soup and includes well known brands such as Arnotts, V8 and Pepperidge Farm.
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Pirates board, take control of Italian oil tanker - Reuters

ROME | Tue Feb 8, 2011 4:10am EST

A spokesman so no one was injured in the attack on the Savina Caylyn, which took place some 500 miles off the coast of India and some 800 miles off the coast of Somalia.

He said it was believed that at least five pirates took part in the attack, which took place at about 0625 GMT. The crew was made up of 17 Indians and five Italians. A navy frigate was heading to the scene. (Reporting by Antonella Cinelli)

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