Archive for November 11, 2009

Corruption in UNRWA

Accusations of corruption in UNRWA. Not new. (thanks Jobo)

Posted by As'ad at 11:35 AM 11/11/09

So who will succeed Abu Mazen? Chief PA buffoon answers

“Alors, dans tout cela, la succession de Mahmoud Abbas ? “Pour faire quoi ? Ce n’est pas une question de personne, conclut M. Erakat, dans les circonstances actuelles.” (thanks “Ibn Rushd)

Posted by As'ad at 11:21 AM 11/11/09

Israeli counsel in Houston

A student sent me this (he/she does not want to be identified): “Hi. I have an anecdote which I would like to share with you. Yesterday my professor invited the Israeli counsel general in Houston to speak in class. She/he is [of Arab] origin, and ap…

Posted by As'ad at 11:14 AM 11/11/09

Hear Ye, Hear Ye, O Hummus Nation

Lebanese Army plans to coordinate with the Malaysian military. Now that will change the military balance of forces in the world. (thanks Hicham)

Posted by As'ad at 11:13 AM 11/11/09

Hasan Nasrallah: on Virtue

Oh, no. Hasan Nasrallah started talking about virtue and advocating against drug use. He said that drug use is even worse than “illicit sexual relations”, as if sexual relations are bad, or as if there is such a thing as “illicit” as defined by cleri…

Posted by As'ad at 10:45 AM 11/11/09

Who is funding the Taliban

““More money is coming from the Gulf than is coming from the drug trade to the Taliban,” Mr Holbrooke told journalists at Nato headquarters in Brussels. He didn’t identify the countries where the sympathisers were donating from, but nations l…

Posted by As'ad at 10:44 AM 11/11/09

land of the free, home of the brave

“Marine reservist Jasen Bruce was getting clothes out of the trunk of his car Monday evening when a bearded man in a robe approached him. That man, a Greek Orthodox priest named Father Alexios Marakis, speaks little English and was lost, police said…

Posted by As'ad at 10:41 AM 11/11/09

Zionist gimmicks

“As well as the fact that Jews in Arab countries were actively encouraged by the Zionist movement to move to Israel, there is another big problem with the ‘swap’ theory – timescale. Dr. Philip Mendes points out how “the Jewish exodus from Ir…

Posted by As'ad at 10:34 AM 11/11/09

The Israeli war on Lebanon in 2006

Hasan Nasrallah is still speaking. He made a good point about the Israeli war on Lebanon in 2006. He said that what was distinctive about that war is that no Lebanese fighter fled from the battle. That this is unprecedented, and it is, especially if…

Posted by As'ad at 10:34 AM 11/11/09

pungent piece of manipulative delusion

“Thus, neither the facts nor the law support an Israeli self-defense claim. Rather than condemn Israel’s act of aggression and its ongoing occupation and blockade of the Gaza Strip, Congress added its name to a pungent piece of manipulative delusion…

Posted by As'ad at 10:29 AM 11/11/09

25,000 Palestinian houses destroyed in Jerusalem

According to a recent study, 25,000 Palestinian houses have been destroyed in Jerusalem since 1967.

Posted by As'ad at 10:27 AM 11/11/09

This is Israel

“The [Israeli] judge accepted the defense counsel’s claim that the State engages in a discriminatory policy against Arab youth involved in offenses of “ideological violence”.”

Posted by As'ad at 10:25 AM 11/11/09

Qatari government hearts Israel

“Qatar to allow Israeli football players if it wins World Cup bid”. Make no mistake about it: all lousy Arab regimes would beg for peace for Israel to please the US. (thanks Olivia)

Posted by As'ad at 10:22 AM 11/11/09

Dahlan, o Dahlan

Dahlan allegedly initiates a campaign of billboards against AlJazeera because (the billboard said, or falsely claimed) Aljazeera is up for sale to an Israeli businessman. Like Dahlan objects to selling the station to Israel? The man has sold his “soul…

Posted by As'ad at 10:20 AM 11/11/09

Prince Sultan bin Fahd

You have to watch this. Prince Sultan bin Fahd rebukes members of the Saudi soccer team for their “bad” performance. This should be seen around the world. (thanks Muhannad)

Posted by As'ad at 10:18 AM 11/11/09

Khalid Bin Sultan: “Feared by Armies” (and loved by bribes)

This article in the Saudi newspaper, Al-Madinah, should have been titled: Feared by Armies, and loved by bribes. The article said that his plans are “taught” in military academies around the world. I can add this his bribes in 1990-1991 are also taug…

Posted by As'ad at 10:14 AM 11/11/09

Look how defensive Israeli propaganda outlets are

“Brazilian workers are protesting their work conditions. The rally has no connection to Peres’ visit in the country.” (thanks Rashid)

Posted by As'ad at 10:12 AM 11/11/09

Three Americans in Iran

Now I feel disturbed about this: “Iran said on Tuesday that three arrested American hikers committed the crime of entering the country illegally, even as they are also reported to be facing other possible charges.” I don’t remember the names of my Be…

Posted by As'ad at 10:08 AM 11/11/09

Murder and bribes

“Top executives at Blackwater Worldwide authorized secret payments of about $1 million to Iraqi officials that were intended to silence their criticism and buy their support after a September 2007 episode in which Blackwater security guards fatally sho…

Posted by As'ad at 10:07 AM 11/11/09

The Obamian Commitment

I am blogging and watching the speech by Hasan Nasrallah. He for the first time in Arabic used the word Obama as adjective, as in “the Obamian commitment” to Israel.الإلتزام الأوبامي

Posted by As'ad at 10:05 AM 11/11/09

Iraqi electoral law

I like when American advocates of American occupation of Iraq try to pretend that there is an Iraqi parliament. Anthony Cordesman, in a recent report, said that the Iraqi parliament is the most vibrant or dynamic in the Middle East region. It shows m…

Posted by As'ad at 10:00 AM 11/11/09

Destroying the Zionist racist separation barrier

(AFP)

Posted by As'ad at 9:59 AM 11/11/09

Jimmy Carter responds to Thomas Friedman

I never thought that I would quote Jimmy Carter, but I would today. “Mr. Friedman is advocating what some Israelis want and no Palestinian wants: a perpetuation of the status quo, and for the United States to “just get out of the picture.” He clai…

Posted by As'ad at 9:56 AM 11/11/09

Dancing between the snakes

Comrade Fawwaz has a comprehensive article about the Yemeni war and Saudi intervention. We need a volunteer to translate this into English to share with more readers.

Posted by As'ad at 9:55 AM 11/11/09

Another Manaqish story

Fellow blogger, Qifa Nabki, sent me this (I cite with his permission): “A couple years ago, I told my friend (who was a student at AUB at the time) that my favorite manqousheh in the Hamra area was made by the al-Afran al-Wataniyya branch on Bliss s…

Posted by As'ad at 9:50 AM 11/11/09

Octavia Nasr hearts Israeli propaganda

Octavia Nasr started her career with the LBC-TV. But she started when LBC-TV was in fact officially the militia TV propaganda outlet for the Lebanese Forces militia in Lebanon (the fascistic, sectarian Christian militia, armed and supplied by Israel a…

Posted by As'ad at 9:36 AM 11/11/09

CNN’s PR work for Qadhdhafi dictatorship

This is an outrageous propaganda piece written for the Libyan regime. Just as Prince Muhammad Bin Nayif has been inviting the press to tout his achievements with the “rehabilitation” of Al-Qa`idah members in the kingdom–until he was hit with the butt…

Posted by As'ad at 9:33 AM 11/11/09

Cache of Huthi Weapons

I woke up, and turned Saudi Al-Arabiyya TV (the private station of King Fahd’s brother-in-law). They had an exclusive footage of a weapons cache from Huthi fighters, acquired by the heroic Saudi soldiers. I am not making this up. They showed three v…

Posted by As'ad at 9:28 AM 11/11/09