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RFE/RL Newsline, 08-01-24
CONTENTS
[01] LAVROV PRAISES NEW DRAFT UN RESOLUTION ON IRAN
[02] RUSSIAN BOMBERS TEST-FIRE ROCKETS NEAR FRANCE
[03] SERBIA AND RUSSIA REACH ENERGY COOPERATION AGREEMENT...
[04] ...WHILE GAZPROM'S INTERESTS REPORTEDLY DICTATE RUSSIA'S SERBIAN
POLICY
[05] IVANOV CRITICIZES SPACE AGENCY FOR GLONASS PROBLEMS
[06] SUCCESSOR MAKES FIRST CAMPAIGN SPEECH...
[07] ...AS COMMUNIST CANDIDATE MULLS PULLING OUT OF RACE
[08] STUDY SHOWS MEDVEDEV BENEFITS FROM MASSIVE MEDIA ADVANTAGE
[09] ELECTION COMMISSION REJECTS 15 PERCENT OF KASYANOV SIGNATURES
[10] FAR NORTH LOCALS LAUNCH BID TO MAINTAIN AUTONOMY
[11] YOUTH MOVEMENTS STRUGGLE TO FIND NEW IDENTITY
[12] ONE KILLED IN CAR-BOMB EXPLOSION IN INGUSHETIA
[13] ORGANIZER OF PLANNED INGUSHETIA DEMO DETAINED, RELEASED
[14] ARMENIAN COALITION PARTY LEADERS SLAMS ENTRENCHED ELECTION FRAUD
[15] AZERBAIJANI PARLIAMENT SHELVES DEBATE ON KEY DRAFT LAWS
[16] TOP EC OFFICIAL WARNS GEORGIA ELECTION PROBLEMS MUST BE RECTIFIED
[17] GERMAN JOURNALIST ASSAULTED IN KAZAKHSTAN
[18] KAZAKH PRIME MINISTER ORDERS STATE COMPANY TO BUY INTERNATIONAL
AIRPORT
[19] KAZAKH DEPUTY ENERGY MINISTER DETAILS INVESTMENT NEEDS FOR POWER
SECTOR
[20] KYRGYZ PARLIAMENT ELECTS NEW SUPREME COURT CHAIRWOMAN
[21] KYRGYZ, TAJIK COUNTERNARCOTICS AGENCIES SIGN COOPERATION AGREEMENT
[22] TAJIK ANTICORRUPTION AGENCY CHARGES STATE ENERGY GROUP WITH
EMBEZZLEMENT
[23] TAJIK REGIONAL GOVERNOR REPORTS ON 'ECONOMIC DAMAGE' FROM
ELECTRICITY SHORTAGES
[24] TAJIKISTAN HOSTS JOINT COUNTERTERRORISM EXERCISE WITH RUSSIAN
FORCES
[25] TAJIK PRESIDENT MEETS WITH SENIOR U.S. MILITARY COMMANDER
[26] BELARUSIAN PRESIDENT ACCUSES OPPOSITION OF COLLUDING WITH
BUSINESSMEN
[27] BELARUSIAN DEMONSTRATORS FINED, JAILED
[28] UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT INSISTS ON QUICK ABOLITION OF PARLIAMENTARY
IMMUNITY...
[29] ...AND CALLS ON PARLIAMENTARIANS TO ATTEND CONSTITUTIONAL COUNCIL
[30] DATE 'SET' FOR KOSOVA'S INDEPENDENCE
[31] SERBIA SELLS KEY ENERGY FIRM TO RUSSIA'S GAZPROM
[32] POLICE ACCUSED OF KOSOVA BOMBING
[33] KOSOVAR POLITICIANS MARK ANNIVERSARY OF PRESIDENT'S DEATH
[34] KOSOVAR SERBS BACK NATIONALIST FOR PRESIDENCY
[35] HOLLYWOOD STARS BACK SERBIA OVER KOSOVA
[36] PROGRESS CLAIMED IN MACEDONIA'S NAME DISPUTE
[37] KARZAI HOLDS EXTRAORDINARY SESSION OF AFGHAN CABINET...
[38] ...SEEKS UN CLARIFICATION ON ASHDOWN'S APPOINTMENT
[39] AFGHAN PROTESTORS ACCUSE BRITISH TROOPS OF DESECRATING KORAN
[40] REPORT SAYS LACK OF EMPLOYMENT FEEDS POPPY CULTIVATION IN
AFGHANISTAN
[41] GREAT POWERS AGREE ON TOUGHER SANCTIONS ON IRAN...
[42] ...AS FORMER DIPLOMAT SUGGESTS ISRAEL MIGHT STRIKE IRAN
[43] IRANIAN REFORMISTS REPORT EXCLUSION OF POLL CANDIDATES
[44] KILLER HANGED IN WESTERN IRAN
[45] IRANIAN STUDENTS RELEASED, FEMINISTS ACQUITTED OF CHARGES
[46] IRAQI PARLIAMENT ENDORSES CHANGE TO FLAG...
[47] ...WHILE DISPUTE ERUPTS OVER IRAQI BUDGET
[48] IRAQI GOVERNMENT EXTENDS APPLICATION DEADLINE FOR OIL SERVICE
CONTRACTS
[49] SUICIDE BOMBER STRIKES FUNERAL IN NORTHERN IRAQ, KILLING 17
[50] SUICIDE ATTACK TARGETS SCHOOL IN CENTRAL IRAQ
[51] COALITION FORCES DETAIN KEY AL-QAEDA IN IRAQ MEMBER
[52] THERE IS NO END NOTE TODAY.
Wednesday, January 23, 2008 Volume 12 Number 15
Russia
[01] LAVROV PRAISES NEW DRAFT UN RESOLUTION ON IRAN
The foreign ministers from the UN Security Council's five permanent
members -- Britain, China, France, Russia, and the United States --
plus Germany reached agreement at a meeting in Berlin on January 22 on
a new Security Council resolution on Iran's nuclear program. AFP,
citing RIA Novosti, quoted Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov as
saying after the meeting that the new draft resolution envisages direct
talks with Tehran that would include the United States. "It's clearly
confirmed by the resolution that direct negotiations on resolving all
questions related to the Iranian nuclear program -- with the
participation of all six powers, including the United States -- would
be initiated if Iran accepts the proposals of the six," Lavrov told
Russian journalists. He added that the proposed text does not foresee
fresh sanctions against Iran, although Western media reported that it
does call for tightening existing travel and financial sanctions.
Lavrov said the new wording "not only acknowledges, but salutes
progress made by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) in
clarifying aspects of Iran's nuclear program." Lavrov said Iran has
promised to deliver answers on outstanding questions put to it "within
the next two or three weeks." AFP quoted a senior U.S. official as
saying the new resolution "increases the severity of the sanctions
already in place and will also introduce new elements." The official
hailed the close cooperation between Lavrov and U.S. Secretary of State
Condoleezza Rice on the issue, saying the United States and Russia over
the previous four to five days "worked very hard together to try to
make progress." Iran's official IRNA news agency reported on January 22
that Russia has delivered a fifth consignment of fuel for Iran's
Bushehr nuclear power plant, bringing the Russian deliveries of nuclear
fuel to Iran so far to 55 tons, or two-thirds of the total order of 82
tons. JB
[02] RUSSIAN BOMBERS TEST-FIRE ROCKETS NEAR FRANCE
Russian Air Force spokesman Colonel Aleksandr Drobyshevsky said on
January 22 that two Tu-160 strategic bombers made a long-distance
flight to the Bay of Biscay off the coast of France, where the Russian
Navy is holding a large-scale exercise. The two bombers "carried out a
series of military training tasks and conducted tactical missile
launches," ITAR-TASS quoted Drobyshevsky as saying. British and
Norwegian fighters intercepted and followed the two Tu-160s as they
headed for the Bay of Biscay. JB
[03] SERBIA AND RUSSIA REACH ENERGY COOPERATION AGREEMENT...
Serbia's government on January 22 adopted a draft agreement on energy
cooperation with Russia, Britain's "Financial Times" reported on
January 23. Under the deal, Serbia will be included in the South Stream
gas pipeline project to take Russian gas to Europe under the Black Sea,
while Serbia in return will sell a majority of NIS, the state oil
monopoly, to Gazprom's oil unit, Gazprom Neft, for a price still under
negotiation. "Kommersant" on January 23 quoted Serbian Infrastructure
Minister Velimir Ilic as saying that the agreement will be signed in
Moscow on January 25, and that it is "the best news for Serbian
businessmen and our citizens." The newspaper quoted "a source familiar
with the course of the talks" as saying that Russian Industry and
Energy Minister Viktor Khristenko will sign the agreement on behalf of
Russia. JB
[04] ...WHILE GAZPROM'S INTERESTS REPORTEDLY DICTATE RUSSIA'S SERBIAN
POLICY
"Kommersant" reported on January 23 that Russia is ready to intervene
in Serbia's presidential election in order to ensure that Boris Tadic,
Serbia's EU-leaning incumbent president, defeats nationalist Serbian
Radical Party leader Tomislav Nikolic in the presidential runoff
election, set for February 3. The reports of Russian backing for Tadic
ignore the fact that Nikolic, who beat Tadic 39 percent to 35 percent
in the first round of voting on January 20, is so pro-Russian that he
"even speaks of his readiness, in the event of his victory, to
accommodate a Russian military base in Serbia at the ski resort in
Kopaonik," "Kommersant," reported. Moscow fears that Nikolic, if he
wins the presidency, will sever relations with any country that
recognizes Kosova's independence, according to the daily. "The
possibility that Serbia will turn into a rogue nation, albeit one loyal
to Moscow, will disrupt the ambitious plans of Gazprom, for which
Serbia is just one of the points of its ongoing European expansion,"
the newspaper wrote. Citing unnamed sources, "Kommersant" reported that
Russia has invited Tadic and Serbian Prime Minister Vojislav Kostunica
to visit Moscow this week, and that Moscow is expected to try to
convince Kostunica to support Tadic in order to ensure the latter's
re-election. "The paradoxical nature of the situation consists in the
fact that despite the European Union's negative attitude toward
Gazprom's strengthening position in the Balkans, the political
interests of Moscow and Brussels in a strange way coincide. Both Russia
and the EU are counting on Boris Tadic's victory [with] each side
reasoning from their own, non-intersecting interests in the Balkans."
JB
[05] IVANOV CRITICIZES SPACE AGENCY FOR GLONASS PROBLEMS
First Deputy Prime Minister Sergei Ivanov on January 23 blamed Russia's
space agency, Roskosmos, for "operational shortcomings" in its Global
Navigation Satellite System, or Glonass, the Russian equivalent of the
U.S. Global Positioning System (GPS). According to RIA Novosti, Ivanov
complained that Russia's satellite group does not provide total
accessibility to Glonass services across Russia, and that production
output at the plants that manufacture the satellites remains
inadequate. "Devices on the satellites have not yet reached the
necessary reliability level," Ivanov said. "Unfortunately, competitive
domestic navigation equipment is still not available on the Russian
market." JB
[06] SUCCESSOR MAKES FIRST CAMPAIGN SPEECH...
First Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev, who is President Vladimir
Putin's chosen successor as president and is widely expected to win the
March 2 presidential election, presented parts of his campaign platform
during a speech to the national Civic Forum in Moscow on January 22,
Russian media reported. Before an audience of some 1,300
representatives of public organizations and standing before a banner
reading, "Russia, Forward!," Medvedev spoke mostly about social issues,
saying it is "indisputable" that civil society "is an element of
political life." He pledged that in the future the government "will
maintain a steady course toward the development of a free society." He
said the focus of social policy must be the individual. "It is for the
individual that we must develop those spheres into which the state has
lately invested significant resources -- health care and education,
social support, employment, culture, housing, demographic and media
policies." He added that Russia has "a good chance" of becoming "a
prosperous, successful state." Medvedev said the state can only
flourish with "a free information space," adding that "an inseparable
part of that is influential and free mass media." Public Chamber member
Eduard Sagalayev told gazeta.ru that Medvedev's comments signal that
the government will finally move to create a genuinely independent
public broadcaster, an initiative that has been stymied since the
collapse of the Soviet Union. RC
[07] ...AS COMMUNIST CANDIDATE MULLS PULLING OUT OF RACE
Communist leader Gennady Zyuganov is seriously considering pulling out
of the March 2 presidential election, Russian media reported on January
23. Zyuganov has repeatedly stated that he will step aside unless
candidates are given equal access to the media and if the resources of
the executive branch are used to support the candidacy of the
pro-Kremlin candidate, First Deputy Prime Minister Medvedev. Zyuganov
has also called on Medvedev to participate in campaign debates.
"Vedomosti" reported that Communist Party officials have begun drawing
up the necessary documents to withdraw Zyuganov's candidacy.
"Nezavisimaya gazeta" noted that the Communist Party attempted to
withdraw its candidate, Nikolai Kharitonov, during the 2004
presidential election, but officials refused to remove him. Political
analyst Mikhail Rubin wrote on strana.ru on January 23 that withdrawing
from the race would make sense for Zyuganov: "Citizens support
[Communist platform planks such as] restoring the death penalty,
nationalization, state price controls, and spending from the
Stabilization Fund," Rubin wrote. "However, under current circumstances
when access to television is strictly limited for the Communists,
Zyuganov cannot realize this potential." However, Rubin concluded that
the Communists have always reached deals with the Kremlin in the past
and predicted that this election year will be no exception. "The
Communist leader needs the noise surrounding the possibility of
withdrawing more than he needs withdrawal itself," Rubin wrote. RC
[08] STUDY SHOWS MEDVEDEV BENEFITS FROM MASSIVE MEDIA ADVANTAGE
An analysis of the Russian media in the one-month period ending on
January 21 by the Medialogia research firm has found that First Deputy
Prime Minister Medvedev has dominated the media, gazeta.ru reported on
January 22. Medvedev was mentioned in the media 4,295 times and quoted
1,352 times, compared to 1,143 mentions and 90 quotes for second-place
Liberal Democratic Party of Russia leader Vladimir Zhirinovsky.
Considering only national television, Medvedev again was the leader
with 142 mentions and 71 quotations. None of the references to him were
negative. Zhirinovsky again placed second with 43 mentions and 11
quotations, with one negative reference. By comparison, former Prime
Mikhail Minister Kasyanov was mentioned 31 times with six quotations
and one negative reference. In terms of airtime, Medvedev received six
hours and 22 minutes of coverage, compared to one hour and 53 minutes
for Zhirinovsky and 57 minutes for Kasyanov. A Levada Center poll
released on January 22 found that 60.4 percent of Russians support
Medvedev, 7.5 percent back Zhirinovsky, 6.1 percent will vote for
Communist leader Zyuganov, and 0.9 percent are backing Kasyanov. Some
10 percent said they will not vote. RC
[09] ELECTION COMMISSION REJECTS 15 PERCENT OF KASYANOV SIGNATURES
The Central Election Commission announced on January 21 that an initial
check of 400,000 of the signatures submitted by former Prime Minister
Kasyanov in support of his bid to run in the March election has
revealed that some 15 percent of them (62,000) are invalid, Russian
media reported on January 22. A rate above 5 percent is sufficient for
officials to deny registration, meaning that it is extremely unlikely
Kasyanov will be allowed to participate in the vote. The commission
will conduct a second check of Kasyanov's signatures by January 30.
Central Election Commission member Yelena Dubrovina said the failure
rate of the first check was so high that even if all the signatures
checked in the second round are found to be valid, the overall failure
rate will be more than 10 percent (in the second check, officials
examine only 200,000 signatures). Election officials and prosecutors in
numerous regions are also investigating allegations that Kasyanov's
campaign staff intentionally falsified signatures, gazeta.ru reported.
Election officials also announced on January 21 that Democratic Party
candidate Andrei Bogdanov will be registered for the election, since
only some 3.2 percent of his signatures were deemed invalid. RC
[10] FAR NORTH LOCALS LAUNCH BID TO MAINTAIN AUTONOMY
At least three local groups in the Nenets Autonomous Okrug have in the
last month filed petitions with local election officials calling for a
referendum on preserving the region's status as a separate subject of
the Russian Federation, RFE/RL's Russian Service reported on January
22. The government has begun taking steps to merge the region into
Arkhangelsk Oblast, and in November an agreement was signed under which
some of the region's autonomy was transferred to the oblast. Under
Russian law, it is extremely difficult for citizens to initiate
referendums and election officials have numerous legalistic means for
denying such petitions. RC
[11] YOUTH MOVEMENTS STRUGGLE TO FIND NEW IDENTITY
With the political transition proceeding smoothly and no signs of a
colored revolution in Russia, the Kremlin no longer has need of the
youth organizations it created in the run-up to the December Duma
elections, "Novye izvestia" reported on January 22. The Nashi, Young
Guard, Young Russia, and Mestnye (Locals) groups are now struggling to
find roles for themselves, according to analysts questioned by the
daily. Political analyst Stanislav Belkovsky said that, contrary to the
expectations of many youth activists, "the ruling class is in no hurry
to let anyone else into key positions -- not the young, not the old,
not anyone from the outside." Ilya Yashin, head of the youth wing of
Yabloko, told the daily the pro-Kremlin youth activists feel "unneeded"
and disenchanted. A few senior leaders have been granted positions in
the new political structure: former Nashi leader Vasily Yakemenko now
heads the State Youth Committee (see "RFE/RL Newsline," October 26,
2007); his brother, Nashi ideologue Boris Yakemenko, is a member of the
Public Chamber; Young Guard official Andrei Turchak has joined the
Federation Council; and four or five others were elected to the State
Duma. Several pro-Kremlin ,s, including former Young Guard Political
Council member Aleksei Radov (see "RFE/RL Newsline," January 16, 2008)
and Nashi leader Nikita Borovikov told the daily it is likely the
organizations will be merged into a single structure modeled on the
Soviet-era Komsomol. The daily added that even opposition youth groups
are experiencing a crisis of confidence, with Belkovsky noting that
"cynicism and disenchantment are growing among the young." RC
[12] ONE KILLED IN CAR-BOMB EXPLOSION IN INGUSHETIA
A car bomb containing the equivalent of some 20 kilograms of explosives
detonated at 6 p.m. local time on January 22 in the center of Nazran,
killing the driver and injuring three other people, ingushetiya.ru
reported. The website kavkaz-uzel.ru quoted unnamed Ingushetian
security officials as working on the assumption that the driver was a
resident of Daghestan who planned to stage an act of terrorism in
Ingushetia. Almost simultaneously, unidentified gunmen opened fire on a
minibus in Nazran, injuring four of the eight passengers, who included
senior staffers of the Federal Agency for Government Communications and
Information (FAPSI) on temporary assignment in Ingushetia,
ingushetiya.ru reported. One of those wounded died later from his
injuries. On January 20, telephone communications in Ingushetia were
temporarily disrupted after unidentified perpetrators fired several
grenades at the main post office in Nazran, kavkaz-uzel.ru reported on
January 21. LF
[13] ORGANIZER OF PLANNED INGUSHETIA DEMO DETAINED, RELEASED
Maksharip Aushev, one of the organizers of the demonstration in support
of President Putin's antiterrorism policies planned for January 26 in
Nazran, was summoned on January 21 to the republican prosecutor's
office, where he was questioned and threatened by Prosecutor Yury
Turygin and Interior Minister Colonel Musa Medov, according to
ingushetiya.ru. Aushev was reportedly then taken to a local police
station, where the officers on duty purportedly refused to comply with
Medov's demand that HE be detained for 15 days. After some 600 people
gathered outside the police station to demand Aushev's release, he was
allowed to go free. Aushev and co-organizer Magomed Yevloyev issued a
statement on January 22 affirming that the Nazran demonstration will go
ahead as planned, ingushetiya.ru reported. LF
Transcaucasia And Central Asia
[14] ARMENIAN COALITION PARTY LEADERS SLAMS ENTRENCHED ELECTION FRAUD
Campaigning on January 22 in Armenia's southern Armavir district, Vahan
Hovannisian, the presidential candidate of the Armenian Revolutionary
Federation-Dashnaktsutiun (HHD), which is a junior partner in the
coalition government headed by presidential front-runner and Prime
Minister Serzh Sarkisian, harshly criticized abuses of the existing
election system, RFE/RL's Armenian Service reported. "Presidential or
parliamentary elections always create a situation in Armenia in which
those who have come to power owe their success, their victory not to
you, but to criminal or semicriminal clans, wealthy individuals,
oligarchs, senior government officials, who bring them votes on a plate
by trampling on your rights, by crushing, deceiving, and bribing
people," said Hovannisian. "That is lip service. The authorities do not
benefit from that or become healthier as a result. But they are
accustomed to eating from that plate," which only an HHD candidate can
smash, he concluded. LF
[15] AZERBAIJANI PARLIAMENT SHELVES DEBATE ON KEY DRAFT LAWS
Draft laws on freedom of assembly and freedom of speech are not among
the draft legislation to be debated during the spring session of the
Milli Mejlis, Iqbal Agazade, who heads the parliament's human-rights
commission, told day.az on January 23. On January 8, the online daily
zerkalo.az quoted presidential administration official Cingiz Asqerov
as saying the proposed amendments to the existing law on freedom of
assembly, which were drafted during discussions between the Azerbaijani
authorities and the Council of Europe's Venice Commission, are ready
and have been sent to parliament. Parliamentarian Panah Husein of the
opposition Musavat faction likewise complained to day.az on January 22
that several bills he co-drafted have not been circulated among his
fellow deputies. The bills are on political parties, former presidents,
and oil. The fate of a fourth draft law, on corruption, drafted by
former Justice Minister and Adalat party Chairman Ilyas Ismailov, also
remains unclear. LF
[16] TOP EC OFFICIAL WARNS GEORGIA ELECTION PROBLEMS MUST BE RECTIFIED
In a January 22 letter to Mikheil Saakashvili congratulating him on his
reelection for a second term as Georgian president, European Commission
President Jose Manuel Barroso acknowledged Georgia's "undeniable
success" over the past four years in promoting economic reform,
combating corruption, and reforming state institutions, civil.ge
reported on January 23. But at the same time, Barroso noted that the
crackdown in Tbilisi in November 2007 and the conduct of the January 5
preterm presidential ballot demonstrate that "Georgia still faces
formidable challenges to foster a genuine democratic culture in its
political body and to achieve a more effective separation of
institutional powers." He expressed confidence that the Georgian
authorities will ensure that the shortcomings observed during the
January 5 vote will not be repeated during the parliamentary elections
later this year. Also on January 22, several hundred people attended a
demonstration convened by the Conservative party, a member of the
nine-party opposition National Council, outside the U.S. Embassy in
Tbilisi to protest what they termed Washington's support for the
falsification of the ballot to give Saakashvili a first-round win over
the National Council's candidate, Levan Gachechiladze, civil.ge
reported. LF
[17] GERMAN JOURNALIST ASSAULTED IN KAZAKHSTAN
Late on January 19, Kazakh police found German journalist Marcus
Bensmann beaten unconscious on the side of a road in Astana, RFE/RL's
Kazakh Service reported. Bensmann was assaulted by an unknown assailant
and suffered a concussion and broken jaw, as well as from severe
frostbite after being left in subzero temperatures. The 39-year-old
Bensmann was flown to Germany for further medical care after being
stabilized in a Kazakh hospital, RFE/RL's Kazakh Service reported on
January 22. He was working in Kazakhstan on an assignment to produce a
documentary for German television and is well-known as a writer on
Central Asian affairs, including several articles critical of the Uzbek
government. He is married to Uzbek journalist Galima Bukharbaeva, an
eyewitness to the bloody crackdown on demonstrators by security forces
in the Uzbek city of Andijon in May 2005. RG
[18] KAZAKH PRIME MINISTER ORDERS STATE COMPANY TO BUY INTERNATIONAL
AIRPORT
Prime Minister Karim Masimov on January 22 issued orders for the
purchase of the Almaty International Airport by the Samruk state
holding company, Interfax-Kazakhstan reported. In a statement released
in Astana, Masimov explained that the "airport has strategic
importance," arguing that it "must be owned by the state." The airport
is the largest and busiest air hub in the country and, according to
data released by the Transport and Communications Ministry, accounts
for roughly half of all passenger traffic and an estimated 68 percent
of air-cargo traffic. The facility handles some 2.5 million air
passengers each year. RG
[19] KAZAKH DEPUTY ENERGY MINISTER DETAILS INVESTMENT NEEDS FOR POWER
SECTOR
In a report to a meeting of Kazakhstan's state agency for regulating
natural monopolies in Astana on January 22, Deputy Energy and Mineral
Resources Minister Duisenbai Turganov issued a detailed proposal for
greater investment in the energy sector, according to Kazakhstan Today.
Turganov called for some $21 million in state investment to fund a
long-term strategic development plan to modernize the energy sector by
2015. The plan calls for the modernization of the "electricity
generation, distribution, and transmission sector," in accordance with
a strategic energy plan approved by Prime Minister Masimov. For his
part, Masimov announced on January 22 at the same meeting his
endorsement of a proposal to amend the law on energy-saving measures,
instructing the Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry to "speed up" a
revised program on energy saving, incorporating a set of
recommendations from the European Bank for Reconstruction and
Development, Interfax-Kazakhstan reported. RG
[20] KYRGYZ PARLIAMENT ELECTS NEW SUPREME COURT CHAIRWOMAN
The Kyrgyz parliament on January 22 approved Janyl Alieva as a new
member of the Supreme Court, the 24.kg website reported. Heading the
effort to elect Alieva, parliamentarians Ishak Masaliev and Alisher
Sabirov said that according to the Kyrgyz Constitution, the new judge
will join the court as soon as she is sworn in, adding that she may
then run as a candidate to assume the chairmanship of the Supreme
Court. But the parliament ignored the deputies and voted to name Alieva
the new Supreme Court chairwoman, making her the country's first female
Supreme Court chief justice, AKIpress reported. That role has been
vacant since the recent dismissal of Kurmanbek Osmonov by the
parliament (see "RFE/RL Newsline," January 18, 2007). The parliament
also elected Abibila Abdugaparov, an adviser to President Kurmanbek
Bakiev, as a member of the Constitutional Court and, according to
parliament speaker Adakhan Madumarov, both new judges will be sworn in
on January 25, AKIpress reported. RG
[21] KYRGYZ, TAJIK COUNTERNARCOTICS AGENCIES SIGN COOPERATION AGREEMENT
Meeting in Bishkek on January 21, Alimbai Sultanov and Rustam Nazarov,
the heads of the Kyrgyz and Tajik counternarcotics agencies, signed a
bilateral cooperation agreement to coordinate efforts to uncover
drug-smuggling routes and combat drug trafficking, Asia-Plus and the
Avesta website reported. According to Vaysiddin Azamatov, the first
deputy chief of the Tajik Drug Control Agency, the agreement also
targets the link between drug traffickers and the financing of
"international terrorist activity," and includes plans to stage joint
cross-border operations aimed at disrupting the drug trade in the
region. The agreement also establishes new programs for joint training
and intelligence sharing based on the shared threat from the smuggling
of heroin, opium, and marijuana by organized criminal groups operating
in Afghanistan. RG
[22] TAJIK ANTICORRUPTION AGENCY CHARGES STATE ENERGY GROUP WITH
EMBEZZLEMENT
Speaking to reporters at a press conference in Dushanbe, Sherkhon
Salimov, the director of the Tajik Agency for State Financial Control
and Combating Corruption, on January 21 accused the state-owned
DushanbeGaz natural-gas distributor of embezzlement and corruption,
Asia-Plus reported. Salimov charged unnamed officials with embezzling
some 3.8 million somonis (over $1 million) through a complicated
criminal scheme to skim money from purchases of cement and other
building material during the construction of a DushanbeGaz subsidiary.
Separately, Salimov also reported on the results of several
investigations carried out by his agency, saying that it "instituted
criminal proceedings against 127 officials of public management bodies,
officers from the law enforcement and power-wielding structures as well
as representatives from judicial authorities on charges of abuse of
office, bribery, and embezzlement of state funds" last year. The Agency
for State Financial Control and Combating Corruption was first
established in January 2007, merging anticorruption responsibilities
previously held by several other bodies, including the State Financial
Control Committee, the Main Tax Police Directorate, and the Directorate
for Combating Corruption (see "RFE/RL Newsline," January 11, 2007). RG
[23] TAJIK REGIONAL GOVERNOR REPORTS ON 'ECONOMIC DAMAGE' FROM
ELECTRICITY SHORTAGES
The governor of Tajikistan's northern Sughd region, Qohir Rasulzoda,
announced on January 21 that the region suffered an estimated 23
million somonis (about $6.7 million) in "economic damages" from
electricity shortages last year, according to Asia-Plus. Speaking to
reporters at a press conference in the city of Khujand, Rasulzoda, who
was also recently elected as a deputy speaker of parliament (see
"RFE/RL Newsline," December 20, 2007), added that a series of power
cutoffs over the past year have inflicted particularly severe damage to
the region's cotton-processing industry. RG
[24] TAJIKISTAN HOSTS JOINT COUNTERTERRORISM EXERCISE WITH RUSSIAN
FORCES
A joint Tajik-Russian counterterrorism exercise opened on January 21 at
the Russian military base outside Dushanbe, ITAR-TASS reported. The
exercise, centered on testing a joint command-and-control system
operated by Tajik and Russian officers, involved over 800 soldiers
conducting operations using tanks, artillery, and aircraft targeting
"terrorists" in several simulations in both desert and mountainous
terrain. RG
[25] TAJIK PRESIDENT MEETS WITH SENIOR U.S. MILITARY COMMANDER
Tajik President Emomali Rahmon met on January 22 in Dushanbe with the
head of U.S. Central Command, Admiral William Fallon, to discuss
"security and cooperation" between Tajikistan and the United States,
according to Asia-Plus. Fallon, the commander of all U.S. military
forces in the Middle East and Central Asia, expressed his appreciation
for Tajikistan's assistance for coalition operations in neighboring
Afghanistan and hailed Rahmon for agreeing to host Afghan military
cadets at the Dushanbe Military Institute for international training.
With a first stop in Tajikistan, Fallon is on a regional tour and is
set to travel on to Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Uzbekistan. He was last
in Tajikistan in November 2007 where he met with Rahmon and Defense
Minister Colonel General Sherali Khayrulloev and concluded an agreement
to provide training for the Tajik Army's peacekeeping force (see
"RFE/RL Newsline," November 7, 2007). RG
Eastern Europe
[26] BELARUSIAN PRESIDENT ACCUSES OPPOSITION OF COLLUDING WITH
BUSINESSMEN
Alyaksandr Lukashenka on January 22 suggested that the opposition,
under the guise of protecting businesses, is attempting to destabilize
the country, Belapan reported. The previous day, small-business
activists held an unsanctioned demonstration in Minsk to protest the
presidential decree that, starting on January 1, restricts the
activities of certain small-business owners. "We should not permit the
destabilization of the country by an opposition that is hiding behind
slogans about some protection of business," Lukashenka said. "Money and
investors do not like marches on squares, some rumpus, but they, the
opposition, seem to want destabilization. That is why we cannot allow
calm and peaceful Minsk to come to a boil." Lukashenka said that
small-business owners comprised "a 10th" of those gathered, adding that
they left the demonstration "claiming that they were framed." AM
[27] BELARUSIAN DEMONSTRATORS FINED, JAILED
Minsk district courts on January 22 sentenced seven participants in the
January 21 protest against restrictions on the activities of small
businesses to terms in jail and others to fines, the Vyasna human
rights group reported on its website (http://spring96.org). Artur
Pyatsko, Viktar Kuklish, Syarhey Shautsou, and Uladzimir Nyapomnyashchy
received 15-day sentences; Andrey Kim received a 10-day sentence and a
fine of $490; Andrey Presnyak received a 10-day sentence; and Alyaksey
Bondar received five days in jail. The remaining detainees were
sentenced to fines: Andrey Sharenda -- $818; Yury Bakur and Mikhail
Subach -- $654; Liliya Subach, Alina Hladkaya, and Ales Krutkin --
$490, Viktar Buhayeu, Vadzim Barouski, Alyaksandr Hrabyanchuk, Mikalay
Dzemidzenka, Alyaksandr Lyubyanchuk, Valantsin Sakalouski, and
Kanstantsin Balahura -- $327; and Andrey Sauchuk and Tamara Sauchuk --
$245. AM
[28] UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT INSISTS ON QUICK ABOLITION OF PARLIAMENTARY
IMMUNITY...
President Viktor Yushchenko said on January 22 that the Verkhovna Rada
during its ongoing session should pass a draft bill abolishing
parliament deputies' immunity from prosecution, RFE/RL's Ukrainian
Service reported. Vyacheslav Kyrylenko of the Our Ukraine-People's
Self-Defense bloc (NUNS) and Ivan Kyrylenko of the Yulia Tymoshenko
Bloc (BYuT) on January 21 submitted the corresponding draft to the
parliament. The annulment of parliamentary immunity must first be
approved by a simple majority in the Verkhovna Rada, then confirmed by
the Constitutional Court, and finally the 450-seat parliament must
approve it by a two-thirds majority. The coalition of the BYuT and NUNS
controls 228 seats in the Verkhovna Rada. AM
[29] ...AND CALLS ON PARLIAMENTARIANS TO ATTEND CONSTITUTIONAL COUNCIL
President Yushchenko met on January 22 with leaders of parliamentary
factions and called on them to nominate representatives to the National
Constitutional Council, RFE/RL's Ukrainian Service reported. Yushchenko
created the Constitutional Council in December 2007 in order to prepare
a new version of the Ukrainian Constitution. Yushchenko told the
meeting that at least 230 candidates to the council have been proposed
so far, including representatives of four parties represented in the
parliament. "The opposition must be involved to the maximum. This is of
crucial significance for me," Interfax quoted Yushchenko as saying.
Viktor Yanukovych, leader of the opposition Party of Regions, said that
his party is holding off on nominating its candidates until a meeting
with the president. "If we are at the start and if we are beginning to
move along this way, our party will undoubtedly participate,"
Yanukovych said. AM
Southeastern Europe
[30] DATE 'SET' FOR KOSOVA'S INDEPENDENCE
Kosova and its international allies have already set a date for Kosova
to declare its independence and the date will be made public "in the
coming days," Kosovar Prime Minister Hashim Thaci told reporters on
January 22. Thaci emphasized that the decision was "coordinated" with
the European Union and the United States. Thaci will be heading to
Brussels on January 25 to meet with the EU's foreign-policy chief,
Javier Solana, the secretary-general of NATO, Jaap de Hoop Scheffer,
and the Dutch diplomat who will head the EU's planned mission to
Kosova, Peter Feith. The general expectation to date has been that
Kosova will declare itself a state shortly after Serbs choose their
next president on February 3. AG
[31] SERBIA SELLS KEY ENERGY FIRM TO RUSSIA'S GAZPROM
The Serbian government agreed on January 22 to sell Serbia's largest
energy company, Naftna Industrija Srbije (NIS), to the Russian energy
giant Gazprom. Details of the deal will be agreed on January 25, when
Infrastructure Minister Velimir Ilic flies to Moscow. The price for the
controlling, 51 percent stake in NIS is one of the key details yet to
be agreed, the government said, but the deal is expected to include
cash -- Gazprom has so far offered to pay 500 million euros ($725
million), according to the highest figure reported -- as well as a
commitment from Gazprom to route a gas pipeline through Serbia and
build a storage unit, local media reported (see "RFE/RL Newsline,"
January 14, 2008). The importance of the deal was underscored by
several ministers, with Ilic describing it as "Serbia's most important
strategic deal" and Prime Minister Vojislav Kostunica declaring that it
will "secure stable and regular energy supplies...for the next few
decades." However, the government's smallest party, G17 Plus, refused
to vote because, as its leader, Economy Minister Mladjan Dinkic,
stated, "the agreement remains incomplete and can be improved." Dinkic
has consistently criticized the perceived rush to a deal, arguing on
December 29 that "I am in favor of negotiations with the Russians --
but for negotiations, and not to go with our hands up" (see "RFE/RL
Newsline," January 14, 2008). Among the details that have yet to be
settled is where the pipeline will run, with uncertainty about whether
it will be part of the main South Stream pipeline -- which will run to
Italy -- or an offshoot pipeline (see "RFE/RL Newsline," October 11,
2007). Russia and Serbia's neighbor, Bulgaria, in mid-January agreed
that part of the South Stream pipeline should pass through Bulgaria.
The EU expressed concern on January 10 about a possible NIS-Gazprom
link-up, saying that the European Commission "hopes that the sale of an
important asset such as the Serbian oil company will be open and driven
by objective, commercial and economic interests" (see "RFE/RL
Newsline," January 14, 2008). AG
[32] POLICE ACCUSED OF KOSOVA BOMBING
Two Kosovar police officers and a member of the UN-administered
province's civil emergency corps were arrested on January 21 for a bomb
attack on a coffee shop in central Prishtina in September 2007, AP and
local media reported. The blast killed two people, including a police
officer, injured 11 people, and destroyed four buildings (see "RFE/RL
Newsline," September 25, 2007). Police gave no names, details, or
motives, but did state that more arrests are likely. The blast occurred
near a cafe-bar whose owners are widely suspected of -- but not charged
with -- involvement in the killing of a member of an elite police unit
(see "RFE/RL Newsline," September 6, 2007). The latest in a series of
bomb blasts in Prishtina in the past year occurred on January 20, in an
upscale neighborhood (see "RFE/RL Newsline," January 22, 2008). The
number of people reported injured has now risen from four to five, but
none are in a serious condition. The daily "Koha ditore" reported on
January 22 that one, unnamed person has been arrested in connection
with that incident. The motive for the attack remains unclear. AG
[33] KOSOVAR POLITICIANS MARK ANNIVERSARY OF PRESIDENT'S DEATH
Kosovar President Fatmir Sejdiu marked the second anniversary of the
death of his predecessor, Ibrahim Rugova, by visiting Rugova's grave in
a cemetery in the capital, Prishtina, on January 21. Speaking to a
crowd that included diplomats and Kosovar officials, Sejdiu described
Rugova as "the father of the modern state of Kosova," local media
reported. Rugova was also the founder of Sejdiu's party, the Democratic
League of Kosova (LDK), the dominant force in Kosovar politics during
the 1990s and during much of the 2000s. However, Rugova's insistence on
seeking independence for Kosova through nonviolent means was eclipsed
in 1998-99 when the Kosova Liberation Army (UCK) launched a separatist
campaign. The UCK's political leader, Hashim Thaci, is now Kosova's
prime minister, following the victory of his party, the Democratic
Party of Kosova (PDK), in parliamentary elections held in November. The
PDK has since formed a grand coalition with the LDK, which has been in
government ever since one was formed following NATO's intervention in
1999. AG
[34] KOSOVAR SERBS BACK NATIONALIST FOR PRESIDENCY
Figures from Serbia's January 20 presidential election suggest that the
winner of the first round, the nationalist Tomislav Nikolic, won
particularly strong support among ethnic Serbs in the disputed province
of Kosova. Nationally, Nikolic secured 39 percent of the vote, but in
Kosova his support was 42 percent, the news service Balkan Insight
reported. Nikolic chose to make the ethnically divided and sensitive
town of Mitrovica one of his last campaign stops in an effort to
accentuate his credentials as a defender of Serbia's sovereignty over
Kosova, and his position as an extreme nationalist is deemed a
significant factor in his first-round victory, even though both he and
his chief rival, President Boris Tadic, insist on Serbia's continued
sovereignty, reject the possibility of going to war over Kosova, and
reserve the right to send troops into Kosova to protect the Serbian
minority (see "RFE/RL Newsline," January 22, 2008). AG
[35] HOLLYWOOD STARS BACK SERBIA OVER KOSOVA
Two of Hollywood's brightest stars, George Clooney and Sharon Stone,
have voiced support for Serbia's attempt to retain sovereignty over
Kosova, German and local media have reported in recent days. Clooney
told the Serbian-language, Frankfurt-based daily "Vesti" on January 19
that "I will, with my colleague and friend Sharon Stone and her
childhood friends, who are of Serb origin, organize a protest soon over
the attempt to have Kosovo declare independence," the paper quoted him
as saying. The Serbian news agency Tanjug reported on January 21 --
citing unnamed foreign media -- that two other stars, Sean Connery and
Richard Gere, have also voiced support for Serbia's case. AG
[36] PROGRESS CLAIMED IN MACEDONIA'S NAME DISPUTE
The latest round of talks aimed at settling Greece's dispute over
Macedonia's name ended on an optimistic note on January 21, with the
UN's mediator, Matthew Nimetz, saying, "we are definitely making
progress." He added that an agreement on the 16-year dispute might be
within reach following what he described as "the best meeting so far,
with both parties demonstrating willingness for ironing the
differences." He did not indicate whether any new compromise proposals
were made. At Greece's insistence, Macedonia has been referred to in
most international forums as the "Former Yugoslav Republic of
Macedonia" for most of its existence as an independent state and,
although over two-thirds of the UN's members recognize Macedonia under
its constitutional name, "the Republic of Macedonia," Greece's public
stance has hardened over the past year, with Athens threatening to veto
Skopje's attempt to join NATO and the EU. Going into the meeting, there
was no indication that either side would compromise, the news agency
Makfax reported. However, Macedonian media reported that Foreign
Minister Antonio Milososki suggested during the talks that the two
countries should first make a public declaration of friendship in which
Macedonia would state that it has no claims on or aspirations to Greek
territory. Despite repeated Macedonian avowals to the contrary, Greece
believes that Skopje's insistence on the use of the name Macedonia
hides a longer-term determination to lay claim to the northern Greek
province of the same name. In December, Macedonia also proposed the
creation of a historical committee to address points of difference in
the two countries' historiography. Macedonia is willing for Greece to
refer to Macedonia using a name of its choice, but insists on being
able to use its constitutional name with the rest of the world. The
latest meeting, which was held in the Macedonian town of Ohrid, is part
of an attempt to instigate more regular contacts between the two
countries' negotiators (see "RFE/RL Newsline," November 6, and December
5, 12, and 20, 2007). Further talks will be held in Athens in two
weeks' time. AG
Southwestern Asia And The Middle East
[37] KARZAI HOLDS EXTRAORDINARY SESSION OF AFGHAN CABINET...
Afghan President Hamid Karzai on January 21 held an extraordinary
session of the Council of Ministers to discuss key issues of governance
and security, the Bakhtar news agency reported. Karzai expressed his
satisfaction that few incidents occurred during the recent Ashura
celebrations, and noted the "fraternal environment" between Sunnis and
Shi'a "realized by religious scholars and noble people across the
country." Also during the session, Finance Minister Anwarulhaq Ahady
provided an update on national development priorities and fund
allocations laid out in the next five-year budget, and emphasized
economic development and employment opportunities as essential to
ending poverty and social unrest in Afghanistan. MM
[38] ...SEEKS UN CLARIFICATION ON ASHDOWN'S APPOINTMENT
The "Kabul Times" reported on January 21 that President Karzai has
asked the United Nations to clarify "some vagueness" regarding the role
of the new UN special envoy in Afghanistan, Paddy Ashdown. The request
reflects the concerns of some Afghan officials over the extent of
Ashdown's authority in Afghanistan. Ashdown's reported role as a "super
envoy," as the media have labeled him, and the fact that he comes from
Britain, a former colonial power in Afghanistan, have raised fears that
he might undermine the authority of the Afghan government in the eyes
of the public. The "Anis" daily newspaper said in an editorial that
"Ashdown should know that he is only the coordinator of UN programs in
Afghanistan. He lacks competence to determine our policy." The
editorial added that the perception that a powerful foreign
administrator contributes to determining policies in Afghanistan is
likely to cause indignation among the Afghan public and further
complicate the political and security environment. MM
[39] AFGHAN PROTESTORS ACCUSE BRITISH TROOPS OF DESECRATING KORAN
Abdul Manaf, the governor of Gereshk district in Helmand Province, on
January 21 confirmed that district residents have held several
scattered demonstrations against purported desecrations of the Koran by
British troops, Britain's "Daily Mail" reported. The protesters claim
that British forces threw copies of the Muslim holy book on the ground.
Manaf suggested that Taliban militants and their allies might have
started the rumors to incite violence and promote antigovernment
feelings among the local population. A witness told the "Daily Mail" in
a phone interview that "villagers told [the British troops] that there
were no Taliban hiding in the villages, and swore by copies of the
Koran they had in their hands," but "the British soldiers threw away
the Koran and began searching the houses." A spokesman for the British
forces, Lieutenant Colonel Simon Millar, in southern Afghanistan
acknowledged that a small demonstration took place, but said no troops
desecrated the Koran. Allegations of desecration of the holy book have
in the past led to violent demonstrations against the presence of the
international security forces and the government of President Karzai.
MM
[40] REPORT SAYS LACK OF EMPLOYMENT FEEDS POPPY CULTIVATION IN
AFGHANISTAN
Poor farmers cultivating poppies in southern Afghanistan's Helmand
Province complain that no other form of livelihood is possible due to
the lack of infrastructure, the high cost of fuel, and water shortages,
the BBC reported on January 22. A farmer told the BBC that "I only have
a small area of land and 10 people in my family... I can only grow
enough wheat to last two months on this land, so the only way to feed
them is growing poppies." British counternarcotics efforts in
Afghanistan have largely failed to curb local farmers' reliance on the
drug trade, which is also blamed for fueling the Taliban insurgency,
corruption, and instability. David Belgrove, the head of the British
counternarcotics team in Afghanistan, said that "to stop poppy
production [requires] more than just law enforcement. It's a complex
thing of establishing the rule of law, building alternative
livelihoods, building access to markets, education -- and all of these
things are very difficult to deliver in an unstable environment." MM
[41] GREAT POWERS AGREE ON TOUGHER SANCTIONS ON IRAN...
At a meeting in Berlin on January 22, foreign ministers of the five
permanent members of the UN Security Council and Germany agreed to
intensify existing sanctions on Iran for its suspected failure to
comply with the international nuclear nonproliferation regime, agencies
reported. The reports did not reveal the precise contents of the
agreement, but a draft text is to be presented to the Security Council
for discussion in the coming days, AP reported. Iran has refused to
suspend its nuclear-fuel production activities, which are thought to
have potential military applications. Tehran maintains that its nuclear
program is strictly civilian and that it has a right to make fuel for
nuclear power generation. German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter
Steinmeier told the press in Berlin on January 22 that the six powers
agreed "on the content of the next Security Council resolution," and
more broadly on working to prevent Iran's "nuclear armament." An
unnamed U.S. official told AP that the new resolution seeks to increase
"the severity of sanctions, and...expands the sanctions in some of the
categories," such as travel bans and freezing assets for Iranian
citizens and companies thought to be involved in the nuclear or
missile-development industries. VS
[42] ...AS FORMER DIPLOMAT SUGGESTS ISRAEL MIGHT STRIKE IRAN
The former U.S. envoy to the United Nations, John Bolton, said on
January 21 that U.S. military action against Iran in response to its
nuclear program is "highly unlikely" in 2008, but warned that Israel
might take military action to prevent Iran from gaining access to
nuclear weapons, AFP reported. Speaking on the sidelines of a
conference in Herzliya, Israel, Bolton said that UN sanctions are not
likely to stop Iran's nuclear program, and that in the absence of U.S.
action, Israel might strike Iran "if it feels Iran is on the verge of
acquiring that capability." Iranian officials, including President
Mahmud Ahmadinejad, have repeatedly stated their opposition to Israel's
existence. Meanwhile, Israel has reacted skeptically toward a U.S.
intelligence report, released late in 2007, that concluded that Iran
probably stopped its nuclear-weapons development program in 2003. "The
pressure is on Israel now after the National Intelligence Estimate,
because, I think, the likelihood of American use of force has been
dramatically reduced," Bolton said. He said the regional "calculus"
would change if Iran became a nuclear power, and "the preemptive use of
force or the overthrow of the Iranian regime has to come before they
get the weapon," AFP reported. VS
[43] IRANIAN REFORMISTS REPORT EXCLUSION OF POLL CANDIDATES
Iranian reformists on January 22 reported that many registered
candidates for parliamentary polls scheduled for March have been
disqualified, Radio Farda reported that day, citing Iranian agency
reports. A spokesman for the Reformist Coalition Headquarters, Abdollah
Naseri, said the disqualified candidates include members of the last,
reformist-dominated parliament, and of the Participation Front and the
Islamic Revolution Mujahedin Organization -- two reformist parties that
have publicly criticized the government of Mahmud Ahmadinejad. The
registrants were disqualified by electoral executive boards appointed
by the Interior Ministry to check candidates' backgrounds. The head of
the Interior Ministry's election headquarters, Alireza Afshar, earlier
said that 3,000 hopefuls had criminal or legal records of varying
gravity (see "RFE/RL Newsline," January 22, 2008). The records of some
former lawmakers might include prosecution on slander-related charges
for critical speeches they made in parliament and elsewhere.
Tehran-based academic Sadeq Zibakalam told Radio Farda that
"clearly...the governing system is very serious about the
disqualifications." He said he believes moderate reformist figures
associated with former parliamentary speaker Mehdi Karrubi and his
National Trust Party may succeed in entering the next parliament, Radio
Farda reported on January 22. Some of the reformist figures whose
candidacies have reportedly been accepted are Mohammad Reza Aref, a
vice-president in the government of Mohammad Khatami; Ishaq Jahangiri,
Morteza Haji, and Ahmad Khorram, respectively the ministers of
industry, education, and transport under Khatami; and former
legislators and leftist clerics Majid Ansari and Rasul Montajabnia,
Radio Farda stated. VS
[44] KILLER HANGED IN WESTERN IRAN
A man convicted of killing a married couple in Khorramabad, western
Iran, was hanged in public early on January 22, "Kayhan" reported the
next day. The unnamed killer reportedly stabbed the couple to death in
their home with a sharp object. VS
[45] IRANIAN STUDENTS RELEASED, FEMINISTS ACQUITTED OF CHARGES
Four Iranian students arrested in late 2007 were released on bail on
January 21, "Etemad" reported the next day. The students were
identified as Ruzbeh Safshekan, Mohsen Ghamin, Ruzbahan Amiri, and
Anusheh Azadbar. Their parents had to post bail ranging from just over
$30,000 to a little over $150,000, the daily reported. The report
indicated they were among leftist students arrested in December for
taking part in protests (see "RFE/RL Newsline," December 5 and 10,
2007). The daily reported that judicial authorities have set bail for
seven other students, and that their parents or other relatives are
trying to raise the money. ISNA separately reported on January 21 that
a branch of the Revolutionary Court has acquitted three women's rights
activists of charges of disrupting the public peace, resisting arrest,
and threatening national security. Susan Tahmaseb or Tahmasebi, Fatemeh
Govarai, and Asieh Amini were charged after taking part in protests in
Tehran in March 2007, but were acquitted after an investigation and
court hearings (see "RFE/RL Newsline," March 5 and 9, 2007). VS
[46] IRAQI PARLIAMENT ENDORSES CHANGE TO FLAG...
The Iraqi Council of Ministers on January 22 overwhelmingly approved a
draft law modifying the national flag, state-run Al-Iraqiyah television
reported. The new flag design will have the same colors and keep the
words Allah Akbar (God is Great), but remove the three stars at the
center. The stars symbolized the former Ba'ath Party slogan of unity,
freedom, and socialism. Iraqi Kurds have bitterly complained about the
existing flag, saying it is associated with the former regime's
oppressive policies, including the 1987-88 Anfal campaign that killed
an estimated 180,000 Kurds. In 2006, the Kurdish authorities banned the
use of the flag at all public buildings in the semi-autonomous Kurdish
region. The issue became even more contentious when the Kurds adamantly
refused to fly the Iraqi flag during the upcoming pan-Arab meeting,
scheduled to take place in the Kurdish region on March 10, raising the
potential for embarrassment for the Iraqi government. Azad Barami, a
Kurdish lawmaker, applauded the new flag. "The Kurds are happy with the
change because they have suffered a lot of miseries under this [old]
flag. This is a victory not only for the Kurdish coalition, it is a
victory for all [Iraqis]," Barami said. The design for the new flag is
intended to be used for just one year, while discussions continue on a
final design. SS
[47] ...WHILE DISPUTE ERUPTS OVER IRAQI BUDGET
A dispute between Iraqi parliamentary blocs has stalled the passage of
Iraq's $48 billion budget for 2008, international media reported on
January 22. The dispute centers on a demand by the Kurdistan Regional
Government (KRG) that 17 percent of the budget be allocated to their
semi-autonomous region, based on population estimates, and that the
national defense budget also be used to pay for the regional Kurdish
Peshmerga security forces. But several lawmakers say that in the
absence of an accurate census, the Kurds should only receive 12 percent
and allocate funds for the Peshmerga themselves. Usama al-Nujayfi of
the secular Iraqi National List said the Kurds' demands present a major
problem. "Kurdistan's share of 17 percent is not fair, and the
Peshmerga allocations should be taken from Kurdistan's allocations, not
from the Defense Ministry," al-Nujayfi said. SS
[48] IRAQI GOVERNMENT EXTENDS APPLICATION DEADLINE FOR OIL SERVICE
CONTRACTS
The Iraqi government on January 22 announced that it has extended to
February 18 the deadline for foreign firms to apply for service
contracts linked to the development of Iraq's oil fields, AFP reported.
Asim Jihad, a spokesman for the Iraqi Oil Ministry, said that more time
is needed to prepare the documents related to the service contracts.
"The deadline was extended from January 31 to February 18," Jihad said.
"A ministry committee has invited international companies to apply for
service licenses related to the extraction of oil, the development of
oil fields, and the deployment of expertise, equipment, and training
for projects that will be implemented by Iraqis," he added. Jihad said
the contracts will be valid for two years, after which the firms will
be allowed to bid for more lucrative long-term resource exploitation
contracts. SS
[49] SUICIDE BOMBER STRIKES FUNERAL IN NORTHERN IRAQ, KILLING 17
A suicide bomber on January 21 attacked a funeral in the town of Hajaj
in Salah Al-Din Governorate, killing at least 17 people and wounding
more than 11, Iraqi media reported. Local police said the bomber
targeted a funeral tent where approximately 70 mourners were gathered
to pay respects to Antar Muhammad Abid, a relative of Salah Al-Din
Deputy Governor Ahmad Abduallah al-Jaburi. Police believe that the
intended target of the attack was al-Jaburi, who escaped unharmed. No
one claimed responsibility for the bombing. However, an official, who
spoke on condition of anonymity, said the funeral was attended by
several members of a local Awakening Council, and that suspicions
therefore fell on Al-Qaeda in Iraq. Awakening Councils are a collection
of local Sunni tribes who have organized themselves to rid the region
of Al-Qaeda in Iraq elements. SS
[50] SUICIDE ATTACK TARGETS SCHOOL IN CENTRAL IRAQ
A suicide bomber on January 22 detonated his explosives near a boys'
school in the city of Ba'qubah, capital of Diyala Governorate, killing
one person and wounding at least 22, Al-Sharqiyah television reported.
Local security officials said the man was wearing an explosives belt
and pushing a booby-trapped cart when he set off the blast at the main
entrance to the Al-Jawahiri Preparatory School. An official at the
Ba'qubah General Hospital said 17 students and four teachers have been
treated so far, many of them for serious injuries. Diyala Governorate
is one of the most violent regions in Iraq and the site of ongoing
fighting between U.S. and Iraqi forces and Al-Qaeda in Iraq. Ba'qubah
and the surrounding areas have witnessed several suicide bombings in
the last week. On January 17, a suicide bomber attacked a Shi'ite
mosque in the city, killing eight people and wounding at least 13 (see
"RFE/RL Newsline," January 18, 2008). On January 16, a female suicide
bomber blew herself up in a crowded marketplace in the town of Khan
Bani Sa'd, near Ba'qubah, killing eight people and wounding seven (see
"RFE/RL Newsline," January 17, 2008). SS
[51] COALITION FORCES DETAIN KEY AL-QAEDA IN IRAQ MEMBER
The U.S. military announced in a statement on January 22 that its
forces have arrested a key member of Al-Qaeda in Iraq's Baghdad
network. The suspect is believed to be a "direct subordinate of the
network's senior leader." The military said the suspect was "involved
in attacks against coalition forces, beheadings, sniper and improvised
explosive device attacks, and foreign terrorist facilitation." U.S.
military spokesman Major Winfield Danielson said the arrest was another
blow to the Al-Qaeda in Iraq network. "Iraqi and coalition forces
continue our efforts to drive Al-Qaeda in Iraq members and other
extremists from their hiding places, and bring them to justice,"
Danielson said. SS
End Note
[52] THERE IS NO END NOTE TODAY.
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