Archive for October 26th, 2008
Speaking about Gay and Lesbian rights
The Organisation of the Islamic Conference has secured a deal in which they will withdraw their opposition to a Brazilian gay NGO gaining accredited status at the UN in return for a ban on gay, lesbian or transgender issues being discussed.
via Blazing Cat Fur: Muslims block gay issues at the UN…..
We would have to consider the reactions IF this agreement would have been reached by any Christian denomination…
Zapatero goes to China
Chinese President Hu Jintao met with the visiting Spanish Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero in Beijing on Saturday.
Hu said, as this year marked the 35th anniversary of China-Spain bilateral ties, China is willing to work with Spain to strengthen bilateral cooperation for joint development. Hu expressed hopes of further high-level exchanges among governments, parliaments, parties and local agencies between the two countries in the future.
He also urged enterprises of both countries to increase mutual investments and take active measures for trade balance. Exchanges and cooperation in the areas of culture, education, science and technology, sports and tourism are also expected to expand, said the President.
In addition, Hu stressed the two countries should strengthen negotiations and cooperation on important international issues like global finance, climate change, anti-terrorism and food safety, so as to safeguard the common interests of both countries.
Zapatero said the Spanish government attaches great importance to its relationship with China and is willing to play its role in promoting a Sino-European relationship in the future. China and Spain established an all-round strategic partnership to put forward bilateral cooperation in 2005.
via The Daily Mail – Daily News from Pakistan – Newspaper from Pakistan
Even if it’s logical to find new allies and to work hard for new commercial partners, I believe the moment is not the most appropriate one, with Zapatero begging for a seat in the G-20 meeting.
Police: 4 Pakistanis arrested over Marriott blast
Police arrested four men in connection with last month’s suicide attack on a hotel that killed 54 people, authorities said Friday.
The four are suspected of “indirect involvement” in the blast at the Marriott Hotel in Islamabad, police chief Ahmad Latif said. They are the first known arrests in the Sept. 20 attack.
The attack was a reminder of the gathering threat posed by Islamist militants in nuclear-armed Pakistan.
Latif said the men were arrested in different parts of Punjab province, but gave no more details. They were brought before an anti-terrorism court where a judge gave police permission to hold them for questioning for one week.
via Police: 4 Pakistanis arrested over Marriott blast – Yahoo! News
Related posts:
- Pakistan militants threaten more bombs.
- Afghan Ambassador kidnapped in north-west Pakistan.
- Pakistan gets a message against closer co-operation with US.
- Pakistan: US did not warn of any strike.
- WHO cancels polio jabs for Afghan children after doctors killed.
- Pakistan’s tribal areas: A wild frontier.
- Pakistan strikes back and accuses US of cooperating with terrorism.
- Pakistan restores three judges ousted by Musharraf.
- india accuses Pakistani intelligence of terrorist attack.
- Afghanistan accuses Pakistani intelligence of the terrorist attack against the Indian embassy.
US considering implications of nuclear decline
The mighty U.S. arsenal of nuclear weapons, midwived by World War II and nurtured by the Cold War, is declining in power and purpose while the military’s competence in handling the world’s most dangerous arms has eroded. At the same time, international efforts to contain the spread of such weapons look ineffective.
Defense Secretary Robert Gates, for one, wants the next president to think about what nuclear middle-age and decline means for national security.
Gates joins a growing debate about the reliability and future credibility of the American arsenal with his first extensive speech on nuclear arms Tuesday. The debate is attracting increasing attention inside the Pentagon even as the military is preoccupied with fighting insurgencies in Iraq and Afghanistan. The unconventional tools of war there include covert commandos, but not nuclear weapons.
via US considering implications of nuclear decline – Yahoo! News
For my part, that is a great error. Even if you’re not going to use it, your ennemies know you have that weapon and it can surely serve as a deterrent in case someone wants to attack you.
Kenya: Report Accuses Top Officials from Odinga’s Party for Post-Elections Ethnic Violence
A government-sponsored commission in Kenya has accused a number of top-level officials of inciting and funding ethnic violence in the country that left thousands dead and hundreds of thousands displaced following disputed elections late last year.
The report, which was embargoed by a separate government commission, was leaked to FOXNews.com. It makes allegations against 219 persons, including many government ministers.
Their names are included in the “Schedule of Alleged Perpetrators,” a 54-page appendix to the report of the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights, or KNCHR, on violence related to the country’s December 2007 elections.
Most of the accused are supporters of the Orange Democratic Movement, or ODM, whose leader, Raila Odinga, nonetheless supported the establishment of a tribunal to try those politicians responsible for inciting the post-election violence. Odinga, who is not accused, belongs to the Luo tribe.
So Odinga followers have been accused of Kenyan violence. And do you know who is Odinga’s cousin? Yes, he is… and Odinga himself was accused of racial cleaning.
Oh, yeah, how many MSM are going to report on this? Hmm, let me think…
Report: Iranian president has fallen ill (UPDATED)
A close associate of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad says the Iranian president has fallen ill under the strain of his position.
The official Iranian news agency has quoted Mohammad Ismail, a parliament member and close ally of the Iranian president, as saying Ahmadinejad was sick “but will eventually heal.”
Kowsari, who made his comments early Sunday, accompanied the president on his September visit to the U.N. General Assembly meeting in New York.
via Report: Iranian president has fallen ill – USATODAY.com
The problem is not only Ahmadinejad. Although I would like him to look for this as a God’s call: “don’t continue with nuclear weapons’ program, Allah doesn’t want it… you have even fallen ill“. 
(UPDATE) Angel has written more about this.
