الأربعاء، 27 فبراير 2013

#ليبيا اعضاء جهازالحرس البلدي بالقبة ينظمون حملة تفتيش على المطاعم والمخابز والمقاهي والمحال التجارية بالمنطقة.


القبة 27 فبراير 2013 ( وال)- قام اعضاء جهاز الحرس البلدي بمنطقة القبة بحملة تفتيشية على المطاعم والمخابز والمقاهي والمحال التجارية بالمنطقة. وافاد مديرالحرس البلدى بالقبة المقدم " مسعود صالح احمد " مراسل وكالة الانباء الليبية بالقبة أنه تم خلال هذه الحملة ضبط أكثر من (20) مهاجرا غير شرعيا من جنسيات أفريقية مختلفة كانوا متواجدين بالمنطقة بشكل غير قانوني وبدون أوراق ثبوتية ومصابون بمرض الوباء الكبدي . واوضح أن هؤلاء المهاجرين سيتم ترحيلهم وإعادتهم إلى بلدانهم . .. ( وال) ..

#ليبيا المؤتمر الوطني : قرار إعفاء المدير العام للمؤسسة الوطنية للنفط لم يحسم بعد


ذكر مصدر مطلع من المؤتمر الوطني العام، اليوم الأربعاء، أن قرار رئيس الوزراء علي زيدان بشأن إعفاء المدير العام للمؤسسة الوطنية للنفط لم يحسم بعد.
وأكد عضو المؤتمر الوطني العام الذي فضل عدم ذكر اسمه لـ”وكالة أنباء التضامن” أن “منصب المدير العام للمؤسسة الوطنية يعتبر من المناصب السيادية والحساسة في الدولة لذلك لم يحسم أمره بعد”.
وأضاف أن “هذا القرار يحتاج إلى دراسات مكثفة خاصة وإن البديل عن المدير العام للمؤسسة الحالي قيد الدراسة”.
ولفت أنه من المرجّح أن يكون المدير التنفيذي للمؤسسة الوطنية النفط خلفا للمدير العام.
وكالة أنباء التضامن – عشتار محمد

قسم المحاسبة بالاكاديمية الليبية ينظم اليوم مؤتمر علمي حول واقع مهنة المحاسبة في #ليبيا.


طرابلس27 فبرايــر 2013 (وال)- اقيمت بمقرالاكاديمية الليبية للدراسات العليا صباح اليوم الإربعاء مؤتمر علمي حول "واقع مهنة المحاسبة في ليبيا " . ويهدف هذا المؤتمرالذى نظمه قسم المحاسبة بالاكاديمية بالتعاون مع وزارة التعليم العالي وبرعاية مجموعة من المؤسسات النفطية والمصرفية في مختلف مناطق ليبيا إلى تحليل وتقييم واقع مهنة المحاسبة في البيئة الليبية والتعرف على دور المؤسسات والتنظيمات في تطوير هذه المهنة . كما يهدف ايضا الى إلقاء الضوء على التغييرات التي طرأت على بيئة مهنة المحاسبة واقتراح السبل والوسائل التى تسهم في الرقي بالمهنة الأخذه في التعقيد والدفع بها الى المزيد من التحديات امام مزاوليها بالاضافة إلى تجديد المعوقات التي تحول دون بلوغ اهدافها. وأوضح رئيس اللجنة التحضيرية للمؤتمر لوكالة الانباء الليبية السيد " فتحي الماقوري" ان هذا تنظيم المؤتمرإلى اعادة بناء وتنظيم كل المؤسسات للرفع من مستواها من خلال مساهمة جميع الفئات التي تهتم بالمهنة والخروج بتوصيات للدفع بها الى الامام وكذلك تزويد اصحاب القراربالمعلومات التي تمكنهم من اتخاذ قرارات رشيدة وسليمة حتى تصبح ليبيا في مصاف الدول المتقدمة . وناشد المؤتمر الوطني العام الى بذل المزيد من الجهود لدعم المؤسسات ماليا ومهنيا بالشكل الذي يتماشى مع متطلبات المرحلة الحالية . ويناقش المؤتمرالذي يتواصل على مدى يومين عدد من الاوراق البحثية التى تركز في مجملها على واقع مهنة المحاسبة في الوحدات الادارية العامة والمؤسسات المالية والمصرفية وفي المشروعات الصغرى والمتوسطة وفي الشركات، كذلك دور المؤسسات والتنظيمات في تطور مهنة المحاسبة في المؤسسات التعليمية ، ديوان المحاسبة ، نقابة المحاسبين والمراجعين الليبيين،شركات المحاسبة العالمية، الى جانب التطورات الحديثة في المحاسبة كاستخدام اساليب التقنية الحديثة، والتطورات الحديثة في معايير المحاسبة والمراجعة ، وتأثير حوكمة الشركات على مهنة المحاسبة. وحضر المؤتمروزير المالية في الحكومة المؤقتة ، ونائب محافظ مصرف ليبيا المركزي، ورئيس الاكاديمية الليبية للدراسات العليا ، ورئيس ديوان المحاسبة ، ووكيل وزارة التعليم العالي، وعدد من ممثلي الشركات والمؤسسات المالية والنفطية وعدد من اساتذة وطلبة قسم المحاسبة بالاكاديمية الليبية. (وال)

#ليبيا أعضاء هيئات التدريس وطلبة المعاهد المهنية ينظمون اليوم وقفة احتجاجية أمام مقر المجلس المحلي #طبرق .


طبرق 27 فبراير 2013 ( وال ) - نظم أعضاء هيئات التدريس وطلبة معاهد " شهداء أمريرة " ، و " الحرية " المهنية بمدينة طبرق صباح اليوم الأربعاء وقفة احتجاجية أمام مقر المجلس المحلي بالمدينة . وطالب المحتجون في بيان لهم خلال هذه الوقفة الحكومة المؤقتة بالعمل سريعا على استرجاع المقارات الدراسية والتعليمية ، والتي استولى عليها بعض المواطنين وحولوها إلى مساكن .. مؤكدين على ضرورة عودتهم للعمل والدراسة المتوقفة منذ عامين كاملين واستبدالها بأماكن أخرى صالحة للدراسة. كما طالبوا أيضا بتوفير احتياجات المعاهد من مستلزمات وأدوات كالمقاعد والكتب ووسائل دراسية ومنهجية أخرى . ..( وال )..

#برنامج_فواصل يستمر ليومه الثاني على التوالي بمدينة #طرابلس



CIMG1838
تواصل أعمال برنامج فواصل للواقية من إدمان المخدرات بالمدارسـ أمس الثلاثاء، التي تنظمه منظمة مينتور العربية لوقاية الأطفال والشباب بالاشتراك مع مؤسسة اللقاء الوطني لمكافحة الأمراض بطرابلس.
وأكد العضو المتابع لمنظمة مينتور العربية صلاح الفرجاني “لوكالة أنباء التضامن” أن “البرنامج يستهدف تدريب شريحة الأخصائيين الاجتماعيين بالمؤسسات التعليمية لرفع قدراتهم المهنية حتى يتمكنوا من تطبيق البرنامج داخل المدارس والتعريف به للطلاب”.
من جانبها بينت الخبيرة المتخصصة بالمهارات الحياتية والوقائية ندي سفير “لوكالة أنباء التضامن” أن “برنامج فواصل برنامج وقائي من آفة المخدرات وانتشار هذه الآفة بين شريحة الشباب خاصة في مدارس الشرق الأوسط”.
وأكدت سفير إن استجابة الأخصائيين الاجتماعيين وحرصهم على استيعاب كان فوق المتوقع في داخل قاعة التدريب.
من جهتها عبرت المدربة ربا الحلو عن مدى إعجابه بنجاح البرنامج داخل ليبيا وما شاهدته من حصر المشاركين على فهم واستيعاب المهارات للقضاء على ظاهرة المخدرات وتعاطيها داخل المؤسسات التعليمية وتجفيف منابعها.
يذكر أن برنامج فواصل سيستأنف نشاطه ليشمل مدينتي بنغازي و مصراتة.
الجدير بالذكر أنه برنامج فواصل جاء بالشراكة مع مؤسسة اللقاء الوطني بالمركز الوطني بطرابلس وبرعاية وزارة التربية والتعليم ومكتب الأمم المتحدة لمكافحة الجريمة والمخدرات.
وكالة أنباء التضامن – مصطفى محمد

اللاعبة الليبية #سحر_الغنيمي تتأهل إلى #بطولة_العالم_لرفعات_القوة


سحر
تحصلت اللاعبة الليبية سحر الغنيمي اليوم الأربعاء على ذهبية بطولة فزاع الدولية لرفعات القوة  فئة ذوي الاحتياجات الخاصة التي تستضيفها مدينة دبي الإماراتية .
وقالت الغنيمي لـ”وكالة أنباء التضامن” أنها تمكنت من احتلال المرتبة الأولى فئة وزن 79كجم بعد تمكنها من حمل ثقل وزنه 90 كجم.
يُشار إلى أن اللاعبة أحرزت ذهبية بطولة الاستقلال الدولية الأولى لرفعات القوة التي استضافتها مدينة مصراتة شهر يناير الماضي و حظيت بمُشاركة نخبة من اللاعبين الدوليين في هذا المجال.
والجدير بالذكر أن الغنيمي بهذه النتيجة تأهلت مُباشرة لبطولة العالم لذوي الاحتياجات الخاصة المُقرر تنظيمها عام ألفين وأربعة عشر دون تحديد المدينة المُستضيفة حتى اللحظة.
وكالة أنباء التضامن / محمد الغنيمي

#بنغازي أطباء بيطرون في خطر ووزارة الزراعة تغض بصرها



مواشي 3
وصلت باخرة مواشي وأغنام ،اليوم الثلاثاء، بميناء بنغازي قادمة من دولة رومانيا لأحد شركات المواشي في بنغازي.
وشاهدت وكالة أنباء التضامن عند وصلوها بمقر الميناء وصعودها بالباخرة الأجواء والإمكانيات التي يمارس فيها الطبيب البيطري عمله.
وذكر الطبيب البيطري المختص في الكشف عن الحيوانات داخل الباخرة أن الباخرة يوجد بها ما يقارب بـ 4000 الاف و200 رأس غنم ، و125 رأس عجل وسيتم فحص المواشي من قبل طبيبين بيطريين لتأكد من خلوها من إي امرض معدية وإنها بحالة صحية جيدة ليتم اعطاءها أفراج مؤقت.
مواشي 2
وأضاف أن نكشف على المواشي لضمان خلوهن من الأمراض ، مؤكدا أن وزارة الزراعة والثروة الحيوانية لم تدعمهم مطلقا، لافتا إلى أن وظيفتهم تعتبر من أصعب واخطر المهام الوظيفية وهم معرضون لأي مرض معد .
ولفت إلى أن دعمهم ذاتي ابتداء من قلم الحبر وحافظات الوقاية التي تقي من الرائحة الكريهة وقفزات اليدين التي تقي من الأمراض المعدية ، مشيرا إلى أن الوزارة أخلت سبيلها من أي دعم قائلة بأنها ستدعهم إلا أنه لايوجد أي نتيجة تذكر على أرض الواقع ولم يتم إعطائهم لا مكافئات ولا علاوات خطر .
مواشي 1
ولاحظت وكالة التضامن أن باخرة المواشي يتفقدها عناصر من مصلحة الجمارك لتأكد من سلامة إجراءات الباخرة، بالإضافة إلى الصحة البشرية لتأكد من صحة العاملين بالباخرة .
وكالة أنباء التضامن – بنغازي – آية أغــا – جميلة عبدالرحمن 

#ليبيا #سرت تسعى لإضافة منطقة صناعية وفتح باب القروض أمام سكانها



sirt14
زار مدير مصرف التنمية في ليبيا مصطفى بيوك، مؤخرا، المجلس المحلي لمدينة سرت.
وذكر مراسل “وكالة أنباء التضامن” إن الزيارة ناقشت مجموعة من المواضيع من بينها توفير مقر للمصرف في المدينة وإضافة منطقة صناعية.
وأضاف “كما تناولت الشروع في فتح باب القروض لدعم المشروعات الصغرى والمتوسطة للشباب كالورش والمعامل”.
وكالة أنباء التضامن – عزالدين أحمد

#ليبيا #العروسي يجتمع بأعضاء مجلس البريقة المحلي والعسكري



نفط
اجتمع وزير النفط والغاز عبد الباري العروسي مؤخرا بأعضاء مجلس البريقة المحلي والعسكري وأعيان ومشايخ المنطقة بحضور عضو المؤتمر الوطني العام عن المنطقة عثمان عابد مذكور في قاعة المبنى الإداري لشركة سرت لإنتاج وتصنيع النفط والغاز بمنطقة البريقة.
وأوضح العروسي لـ”وكالة أنباء التضامن” أن “الهدف من الاجتماع وزيارة الشركة هو الوقوف على سير العمليات بشركة سرت والاطلاع على الأضرار التي تعرضت لها أثناء اندلاع حرب التحرير قبل أكثر من عامين.
كما أكد العروسي “على أهمية التعاون بين وزارة النفط والغاز وأهالي البريقة وما جاورها إذ أن المحافظة على استمرارية إنتاج النفط وإبعاد أيدي العابثين عن مؤسساته يأتي بمُساعدة أهالي المناطق المُجاورة للإنتاج أو التصدير خاصة في الفترة الحالية لأن أي تجاوزات ستؤدي إلى المساس بالدخل القومي للبلاد باعتبار النفط العمود الفقري للدخل في ليبيا”، على حد تعبيره.
تجدر الإشارة إلى أن العروسي استمع خلال الزيارة لمطالب العاملين بالشركة ووقف على أهم المشاكل والصعوبات التي يُعاني منها سكان البريقة وما جاورها من المناطق.

وكالة أنباء التضامن – خاص

#ليبيا مندوب مصلحة الآثار لدى #اليونيسكو يُطالب باستقلالية مدينة #جرمة


آثار
طالب مندوب مصلحة الآثار الليبية لدى اليونيسكو صالح عبد العزيز اليوم الأربعاء الحكومة الليبية بالعمل على اعتماد استقلالية اسم مدينة جرمة الأثرية.
وأوضح عبد العزيز لـ”وكالة أنباء التضامن” أن المدينة في العهد السابق أُدرجت في مناطق مدينة فزان ولم تحظى باعتماد اسمها على الرغم من أنها تأتي ضمن كبرى المدن الأثرية في البلاد.
كما لفت عبد العزيز إلى أنه لا يجد عائقا أمام الحكومة اللبيية خاصة وزارة السياحة في اعتماد اسم مدينة جرمة كمدينة مُستقلة بذاتها أسوة بباقي المدن الأثرية الليبية.
الجدير بالذكر أن جرمة مدينة أثرية تقع في الجزء الجنوبي الغربي من ليبيا وتُعد أهم وأقدم الشواهد الدالة على تاريخ الليبيين القدماء إذ بناها الجرمنتيون في القرن الأول للميلاد كعاصمة لدولتهم.
وكالة أنباء التضامن / محمد الغنيم

طرابلس #بوسليم تؤبن شهداء سجن منطقتها


تحتفل عائلات شهداء سجن بوسليم صباح الخميس، بذكرى هذه الحادثة في مقر السجن بمنطقة بو سليم.
وقال مصدر في المجلس المحلي طرابلس أن” الاحتفال تنظمه بعض عائلات شهداء حادثة سجن بوسليم بإشراف المجلس المحلي طرابلس”.

وكالة انباء التضامن – احمد الحطاب

#ليبيا خلاف حول احد بنود الميزانية يؤدي إلى تاجيل التصويت عليها في المؤتمر


ذكر عضوُّ في المؤتمر الوطني العام، اليوم الأربعاء، أن المؤتمر الوطني قرر تأجيل التصويت عن الميزانية ليوم الأحد القادم  بسبب خلاف حول احد بنودها.
وأكد عضو المؤتمر الوطني الذي فضل عدم ذكر اسمه لــ”وكالة أنباء التضامن” أن المؤتمر قرر التأجيل بسبب وجود بند يتعلق بفصل الأمن الرئاسي عن وزارة الدفاع نهائيا وتخصيص ميزانيتهم من ميزانية المؤتمر الوطني.
وكالة أنباء التضامن – عشتار محمد

#Ghannouchi holds the key to resolve crisis in #Tunisia

TUNIS — A solution to Tunisia’s political crisis lies with Rached Ghannouchi, hardline leader of Ennahda party, but his determination to see the Islamists retain power is foiling efforts to end the deadlock, experts say.

Ghannouchi, respectfully called as "The Sheikh" by supporters, made his intentions clear on February 16 by telling a rally that "Ennahda ... will never give up power, as long as it benefits from the confidence of the people and the legitimacy of the ballot."

Three days later his number two in Ennahda, Hamadi Jebali, resigned as prime minister after failing to garner support from his own party for his initiative to form a government of technocrats he said was necessary to pull Tunisia out of its worst crisis since the revolution two years ago.
The daylight assassination on Feb. 6 of Chokri Belaid, a fierce critic of Ennahda, deepened a crisis already building for months due to rising tensions between the country’s Islamists and liberals.

Belaid’s killing sparked bloody clashes between opposition supporters and police, attacks on Ennahda offices, and cast a harsh spotlight on Tunisia’s widening political fissures.

"Rached Ghannouchi, chief of Ennahda for 35 years, is currently... the chief of Tunisia, especially one against whom nothing can be done," said political analyst Ahmed Manai.

Ghannouchi has an undeniable legitimacy within his party that allowed him to defeat Jebali’s initiative — not even the moderate figures from within Ennahda publicly backed the former premier. "Ghannouchi is respected by all supporters (of Ennahda) and also by those who criticize his policies," noted analyst Slaheddine Jourchi.

The Islamist leader justifies his hardline approach by pointing to the results of the October 2011 election for the National Constituent Assembly that saw Ennahda win more than 40 percent of votes.

"So all those who want to deal with the authorities are obliged to go through (Ghannouchi)," says Jourchi.

Ali Larayedh has now been chosen as the new prime minister by Ennahda and charged with forming a new government after Jebali resigned.

The media have in the past few days reported that a larger and broader coalition would be formed in a bid to pull Tunisia out of the crisis — its worst since the revolution two years ago that ousted former strongman Zine El Abidine Ben Ali.

Ennahda however is known to be reluctant to entrust the interior, justice and foreign ministries to independents.

Analysts say it has little choice but to form a broad consensus that could also draft the constitution that has been in a limbo for 16 months and set a timetable for elections.

The daily La Presse lashed out at Ghannouchi on Sunday.
"It is significant to note that at every decisive moment of the country Rached Ghannouchi takes a stance, sets the tempo and leads the way ahead," it said.

This "irritates and only prolongs the uncertainty, with president of Ennahda overstepping his role and prerogatives outright," the newspaper said, adding that "it was about time Ennahda’s hegemonies ended".
In his address declaring he was stepping down, Jebali had warned that only a "neutral government" could bring "clear and urgent solutions" to Tunisia’s crisis. — AFP

#Obama plans to ‘listen’, not present peace plan — #Kerry

BERLIN — US President Barack Obama will not bring a peace plan to Israel and the Palestinian Territories next month, but rather intends to listen, Secretary of State John Kerry said Tuesday.

Obama’s plan to visit has raised speculation of a new US push to revive Israeli-Palestinian negotiations, stalled since 2010 in a dispute over Israeli settlement expansion in the occupied West Bank.

But Kerry, speaking to German students during his first foreign trip as Washington’s top diplomat, played down expectations.

"We’re not going to go and sort of plunk a plan down and tell everybody what they have to do," Kerry said. "I want to consult and the president wants to listen."

Obama, who has a testy relationship with right-wing Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, made peace between Israelis and Palestinians a priority in his first term but, four years later, has little to show for it.

In recent months, each side has antagonized the other — Israel by building Jewish settlements on occupied land and the Palestinians by seeking enhanced status at the United Nations.

Kerry said that after Obama’s trip, which also includes a stop in Jordan, the United States would see how it might pursue peace. He urged all sides to behave calmly and keep the possibility of peace alive.

Tensions have risen in the West Bank, territory that the Palestinians want to be part of a future state including the Gaza Strip and East Jerusalem, after the death of a Palestinian in an Israeli jail.

A hunger strike by four other Palestinian prisoners has also fueled violent protests.
"We really hope everybody will step back a little and try to find a way to proceed very calmly and very thoughtfully in these next days (and) leave the opportunities for peaceful resolution open," Kerry said. — Reuters

#Iran minister confident of nuclear deal with West


VIENNA — Iran's foreign minister said on Wednesday he was optimistic an agreement could be reached with six world powers on the country's disputed nuclear program.

"Very confident," Ali Akbar Salehi told Reuters when asked on the sidelines of a UN conference in Vienna how confident he was of a positive outcome.

The powers — France, Germany, the United States, China, Russia and Britain — earlier ended two days of talks with Iran without a breakthrough, but agreed to meet in Istanbul next month and resume negotiations in Kazakhstan on April 5. — Reuters

Expectations low as world powers and #Iran exchange offers


European Union foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton (left) and Iran’s Supreme National Security Council Secretary and chief nuclear negotiator Saeed Jalili meet before the talks in Almaty, Tuesday — Reuters

ALMATY, Kazakhstan — World powers and Iran Tuesday exchanged offers in crunch talks in Kazakhstan aimed at breaking a decade of deadlock over Tehran’s nuclear drive despite low expectations of any deal.

The two-day meeting in the Kazakh city of Almaty comes as sanctions bite against the Islamic republic and Israel still refuses to rule out air strikes to knock out Iran’s suspected nuclear weapons drive.

The first round of closed-door talks involving the United States, Russia, China, France, Britain and Germany lasted several hours. They were expected to later adjourn and resume Wednesday, Kazakh officials following the talks said.

“We have come here with a revised offer and we have come to engage with Iran in a meaningful way,” EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton, who negotiates with Iran on behalf of the world powers, said in a statement.
US Secretary of State John Kerry, visiting Berlin, said there is a “diplomatic path” in the nuclear crisis and expressed hope that “Iran itself will make its choice to move down the path of a diplomatic solution.”

The world powers are offering Iran permission to resume its gold and precious metals trade as well as some international banking activity which are currently under sanctions, Western officials told AFP.

But in exchange, Iran will have to limit sensitive uranium enrichment operations that the world powers fear could be used to make a nuclear bomb, the sources added.

Iran would have to stop enriching uranium to 20 percent and shut down its controversial Fordo plant where such activity occurs, a Western official said.

An Iranian source said Tehran had come up with a counter-offer, whose final nature would be determined by terms posed by the big powers.
“Which version we present depends on what the 5+1 (world powers) put forward. Our offer will be of the same weight as their offer,” the Iranian delegation source said.

The source stressed “there was no question” of Tehran closing the Fordo plant where uranium is enriched to up to 20 percent — a level seen as being within technical reach of weapons-grade matter. But Iran could envisage halting the enrichment of uranium to 20 percent, if all international sanctions against it were dropped, including UN Security Council measures, the source said.

Hopes are low of a breakthrough at the talks — the first such since a meeting in Moscow in June 2012 — and Iranian officials have doused expectations by insisting they will offer no special concessions.

“It’s clear that no one expects everyone to walk out of here in Almaty with a done deal. This is a negotiating process,” said Ashton’s spokesman Michael Mann. — AFP

Four ex-generals testify in #Turkey coup trial


ANKARA — Four retired generals and a serving military officer testified in an Ankara court on Wednesday as part of an ongoing probe into the forced resignation of an Islamic-leaning government in 1997.

Aslan Guner, former war academies commander, and Erdal Ceylanoglu, former land forces commander, were among the four generals giving evidence to prosecutors on the eve of the coup's 16-year anniversary, state-run Anatolia news agency reported.

Guner is known to have ordered scores of tanks to roll through the streets of Ankara in what was perceived as a show of power against the government of former Prime Minister Necmettin Erbakan, who stepped down as a result.

The events of February 28, 1997 are widely referred to in Turkey as a "post-modern coup" since they involved no troops and the deposed cabinet was not replaced by a military administration.

Current Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan is a disciple of Erbakan.

Tensions have been building for years between Erdogan's government and the military, which has authored four coups since the 1960s and considers itself the self-appointed guardian of Turkish secularism.

Hundreds of suspects, including army officers, journalists, academics and lawmakers, are being tried in separate cases over their alleged roles in plots to topple Erdogan's Justice and Development Party (AKP), which has sought to weaken the army's influence in politics.

In September, more than 300 retired and active military officers received prison sentences of up to 20 years after the court ruled that a military exercise dubbed "Sledgehammer" in 2003 was an undercover coup plot.

Pro-government circles have praised the investigations as a step toward democracy but critics have branded them witch-hunts aimed at stifling opposition.

Turkey's new constitution is expected to reduce the political influence of the military.

The four political parties represented in the 550-seat parliament have recently agreed to subordinate the army's top leadership, or General Staff, to the defense ministry in the new charter.

Under the existing constitution, drafted by the junta after the 1980 military takeover, the General Staff is directly tied to the prime ministry but is autonomous in exercising its legal powers and cannot be challenged by the defence ministry. — AFP

#ليبيا افتتاح الملتقى السادس لاتفاقيات الشراكة في قطاع البناء والطاقة والأشغال العمومية


وكالة الانباء الليبية
افتتح بطرابلس صباح اليوم الأربعاء، الملتقى السادس لاتفاقيات الشراكة في قطاع البناء والطاقة والأشغال العمومية ، بمشاركة 45 شركة من دول المغرب العربي . يهدف الملتقى – الذي تنظمه شركة المتوسط للتطوير والاستثمار الصناعي خلال الفترة من 27-28 من الشهر الجاري – الى تقوية الروابط المهنية من أجل استثمار وتطوير وتنمية قطاع الصناعة ، على مختلف المجالات الفنية والاقتصادية والبشرية ، وإبراز المهارات الليبية وقدرتها على منافسة الصناعاتِ العالمية .

وافتتح على هامش الملتقى ، معرض شاركت فيه العديد من الشركات المتخصصة في مواد البناء ، والصناعات الميكانيكية ، والكهروميكانيكية ، والحديد والصلب ، وقطع الغيار . وحضر افتتاح أعمال الملتقى ، عدد من رجال الأعمال ، والشركات ، والمؤسسات ، والمصنعين ، والمقاولين والاستشاريين بدول المغرب العربي .

#Iraq resumes flights to Kuwait after 22-year halt


BAGHDAD — An Iraqi plane has landed in Kuwait for the first time since Saddam Hussein's 1990 invasion of the tiny emirate.

Iraq's Transportation Ministry spokesman says Wednesday's flight will open "important horizons for cooperation based on brotherhood" with Kuwait.

Karim al-Nouri also says demand will determine the number of flights in the future.

Government ministers from both Kuwait and Iraq were on hand for the ceremonial landing at the international airport in Kuwait City.

Kuwait's parliament in January approved a deal under which Baghdad will pay $500 million in compensation to Kuwait's national carrier for damages caused during the Iraqi occupation. The accord seeks to end a long-running dispute over reparations for Kuwait Airways.

Although the airline dispute appears settled, there are other disputes over war reparations between the two nations. — AP

International pressure mounts for #Syria dialogue



DAMASCUS — The parties to the Syrian war came under intense international pressure Wednesday to open direct talks to end their two-year conflict, on the eve of a Rome meeting of the Friends of Syria group.

The main opposition National Coalition, meanwhile, was preparing for a weekend gathering in Istanbul to elect a prime minister and government to run "liberated" parts of the country.

But the combatants in Syria seemed deaf to the diplomatic activity, fighting and bombarding each other near Damascus as the regime renewed its campaign to suppress the insurgency, a watchdog reported.

Initially at odds over Syria, Washington and Moscow on Tuesday sought to find common ground to end the bloodshed in a meeting between US Secretary of State John Kerry and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov.

Russia, the most powerful supporter of Syria's President Bashar al-Assad, this week urged his regime to start a dialogue to end the conflict that has cost at least 70,000 lives since March 2011.

After their Berlin meeting, Lavrov called on the opposition to "declare itself in favor of dialogue" when it meets various Western leaders, including Kerry, at Thursday's crunch talks in Rome.

Describing his meeting with Kerry as "constructive," Lavrov said Syrian regime officials had "assured" Moscow they "have a negotiating team and are ready to start dialogue as soon as possible."

He called on the opposition also to name a negotiating team.

US State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said Kerry — on an 11-day tour of Europe and the Middle East — had a "really serious and hard-working session" with Lavrov.

She said discussions had "focused on Syria and how we can work together to implement the Geneva agreement," which remains hazy on whether Assad needs to step down before talks can begin.

Russia is one of the few big powers to maintain ties with Assad and, with China, has vetoed UN Security Council resolutions that threatened sanctions on Damascus.

But Washington has toned down its criticism of Moscow's perceived intransigence.

"We've been absolutely clear that there needs to be a political transition, and we felt that Russia could play a key role in convincing the regime... that there needs to be that political transition," a State Department official said.

Ahead of the talks, Lavrov had blasted "extremists" who were blocking dialogue efforts.

The National Coalition cancelled a planned boycott of the 11-nation meeting in Rome after the US and Britain "promised specific aid to alleviate the suffering of our people."

The Washington Post said Wednesday the White House was considering a major policy shift to supply rebels with "non-lethal" aid including body armour, armoured vehicles and perhaps even military training.

In Istanbul on Saturday, the Coalition is to appoint the head of an interim cabinet in a secret ballot, the first of its kind since the uprising erupted.

The names of at least five candidates are already circulating, including Burhan Ghalioun, the former head of the Syrian National Council, one of the main components of the umbrella Coalition.

Others include Osama Kadi, an economist and long-time dissident, and former prime minister Riad Hijab, who defected in mid-2012.

On the ground, fierce battles rocked towns near Damascus as the regime renewed its campaign to crush the insurgency around the capital, a watchdog said.

Tanks pounded the rebel-held town of Daraya southwest of Damascus, while new clashes broke out in Irbin to the northeast, said the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

State television said "two mortar rounds fell near the Faculty of Literature in Damascus," without elaborating.

Six rebels were killed near the police academy in Khan Al-Assal, one of the regime's last strongholds in the northern province of Aleppo that they have been fighting to seize for the past week.

Wednesday's violence came a day after at least 134 people were killed across Syria, including 52 civilians, said the Observatory, which relies on a network of sources on the ground for its information. — AFP

#Syria to renew passports, in apparent concession


DAMASCUS — The Syrian regime has decided to renew the passports of any of nationals in embassies abroad, in an apparent concession to the opposition, according to documents seen by AFP.

The interior ministry said in a circular that it has authorized "the renewal for two to four years of passports and travel documents belonging to Syrian citizens abroad."

"Passports will now be renewed regardless of the reasons that had earlier prevented their renewal, and without obtaining the necessary authorizations," said the circular.

The decision was published on Saturday and authorized by Interior Minister Mohammad Al-Shaar.

Also reported by pro-regime newspaper Al-Watan, it comes with the regime and opposition facing strong international pressure to engage in talks to end a civil war that has cost at least 70,000 lives.

Last month, opposition chief Ahmed Moaz Al-Khatib had called for the renewal of passports as one of two main conditions for talks with regime officials, along with the release of 160,000 prisoners.

Some 10 million Syrians live abroad, many of them opponents of the Assad regime.

Hundreds of thousands of Syrians have fled the country during the spiralling 23-month conflict, many through illegal border crossings.

Others were exiled before the uprising because of their opposition to President Bashar Al-Assad and his father Hafez, including many leaders of the opposition National Coalition headed by Khatib.

In January, following a dialogue plan proposed by Assad, the regime issued a circular aimed at "facilitating the return to the country of Syrian nationals."

It also called on foreign-based opponents to return, regardless of whether their travel documents were up to date. — AFP

#Turks want to retrieve kids fostered outside their culture

ISTANBUL — Turkey has embarked on a campaign to retrieve children of Turkish immigrant families living in Europe who are fostered by foreigners, and instead place them in homes where their cultural identity can be preserved.

The step comes after a court in the Netherlands refused last week to return nine-year-old Yunus — who had been taken into care by a Dutch lesbian couple — to his biological Turkish family, reportedly citing the mother’s inability to speak Dutch.

Turkey fears that children placed in Christian homes will forget their Muslim roots, and also disapproves of placements with gay couples.
A statement from Turkey’s expatriates authority YTB said that Yunus’s foster parents frequently took him to church, and that "out of his confusion about the family institution", he calls both foster parents "mother".

Following the verdict, Turkey’s Deputy Prime Minister Bekir Bozdag told reporters: "Turkish families just do not want to give their kids to couples of same-sex marriage.

"It is important for kids to be raised in an environment similar to (their) home culture."

Turkey had since stepped up efforts to guide the family through legal procedures to get Yunus back. Failing that, Bozdag said, authorities would push to get the boy placed with parents the family would approve of.
Unlike some European countries, same-sex marriages are not recognized in Muslim-majority Turkey.

Former Families Minister Aliye Kavaf found herself at the center of a public row in 2010 after she described homosexuality as a "disease that needs to be treated".

The campaign specifically concerns the children of Turkish families living in countries like Germany or the Netherlands, both home to large Turkish expatriate populations.

Germany is home to at least three million Turks, who make up the country’s largest minority, while around half a million Turks have set up home in the Netherlands.

Turkey’s parliamentary Human Rights Commission estimates that at least 5,000 Turkish children in Germany have been placed in foster care.

While the commission has not submitted any formal request to retrieve Turkish children, international conventions do give Turkey the right to do so, ruling party lawmaker Ayhan Sefer Ustun, who heads the commission, told AFP.

"We might exercise that right if protective measures continue to pose this problem," he warned.

Foreign Ministry spokesperson Levent Gumrukcu confirmed that Ankara was keeping a "watchful eye" on fostering abroad.

European fostering bodies take children into their care for different reasons: the death of the parents, poverty or parental negligence.
They say their priority is to place the children under the protection of the best possible caregiver. "We try really hard to find the best possible match for the child in a foster home," Hilje Wolfson, spokesperson for a Dutch foster foundation, told AFP.

"That’s why we always first look into the network: are there family members who can take care of a child?" she said. They did make efforts to keep Turkish children in their original environment so they could keep their ties with their culture, she added.

Part of the problem is that very few children are fostered by other Turkish families, usually only by European families.

"Throughout these 50 years we lived in Europe, we have established mosques, tea shops, restaurants... But apparently we never thought of our posterity," said Kamil Altay, head of the Germany-based Umut Yildizi (Star of Hope), established to encourage Turkish expatriates to foster.

"There were virtually no Turkish foster families before this campaign -- kids naturally end up with European families and forget their languages and culture," Altay added.

"After years of foster care, they sometimes do not even know they are Turkish." — AFP

#Egypt suspends #Luxor balloon flights after deadly crash


The Egyptian authorities have suspended all hot air balloon flights near Luxor and launched an investigation following the deaths of 19 tourists in a crash.
Hong Kong, Japanese, British, French and Hungarian nationals were among those killed on Tuesday morning.
A landing rope is reported to have got caught around a helium gas tube and severed it, after which a fire erupted and the balloon shot up into the air.
It then plunged some 300m (1,000ft) to the ground in a field west of the city.
The pilot and one passenger survived by jumping out of the basket.
Burns
Balloon rides are a popular way to see the numerous ancient sites which line the banks of the River Nile at Luxor, in the south of Egypt, such as the temple of Karnak and the royal tombs in the Valley of the Kings.
The balloon which crashed was one of at least nine which took off in a field north of Luxor, on the west bank of the Nile, at dawn on Tuesday.
It was operated by the local company, Sky Cruise, which said a gas cylinder had exploded on board when it was about 300m in the air.
An investigator with the state prosecutor's office told the Associated Press that the balloon had been in the process of landing at around 07:00 (05:00 GMT) when a landing cable got caught around a gas tube and a fire erupted on board.
The balloon then quickly gained altitude before the fire caused the gas canister to explode and it fell to the ground in a sugar cane field outside the village of al-Dhabaa, west of Luxor, an Egyptian security official said.
Mohammed Youssef, a pilot of another balloon which was in the air nearby at the time, told the Guardian newspaper that the fire started when it was 3m from the ground and was caused by a gas leak.
The pilot and a British passenger jumped to safety when the fire erupted, which affected the balance of the balloon, sending more heat into its "envelope" and causing it to climb rapidly, he said. About five or six other people leapt out when it was about 30m off the ground, he added.
"People were jumping out of the balloon from about the height of a seven-storey building," Cherry Tohamy, an Egyptian who was in another balloon, told the BBC. Ambulances arrived 15 minutes later, she said.
Egypt's health ministry said nine tourists from Hong Kong, four Japanese nationals, two British, two French, one Hungarian and an Egyptian had died.
The Hungarian is understood to have been a UK resident, while another Briton is in a stable condition in hospital in the capital, Cairo.
Mr Youssef said he was a close friend of the pilot. He said his father had visited the pilot, who was conscious but had suffered 70% burns.
'Awful thing'
The governor of Luxor, Ezzat Saad, told the BBC he wanted to send his condolences to the families of those killed and injured.
"We have never seen anything quite like this in Luxor before. It is an awful thing," he said.
"For the safety of the tourists and the Egyptians I have ordered all the companies dealing with balloons to stop flights until we know exactly what happened and the reasons for it."
Civil Aviation Minister Wael al-Maadawi said a committee from the ministry was travelling to Luxor to investigate the incident.
"We cannot say whether this was because of maintenance or human [error] until the investigation committee is completely done with its investigation," he told al-Jazeera TV's Egyptian channel, Mubasher Misr.
The BBC's Aleem Maqbool, who is in Luxor, says there have been concerns about safety since a balloon crashed after hitting a mobile phone transmission tower in April 2009, injuring 16 people, including two British women.
Balloon flights in the area were suspended for six months after the crash while safety measures were tightened up and pilots retrained.
BBC




#Egypt suspends #Luxor balloon flights after deadly crash


The Egyptian authorities have suspended all hot air balloon flights near Luxor and launched an investigation following the deaths of 19 tourists in a crash.
Hong Kong, Japanese, British, French and Hungarian nationals were among those killed on Tuesday morning.
A landing rope is reported to have got caught around a helium gas tube and severed it, after which a fire erupted and the balloon shot up into the air.
It then plunged some 300m (1,000ft) to the ground in a field west of the city.
The pilot and one passenger survived by jumping out of the basket.
Burns
Balloon rides are a popular way to see the numerous ancient sites which line the banks of the River Nile at Luxor, in the south of Egypt, such as the temple of Karnak and the royal tombs in the Valley of the Kings.
The balloon which crashed was one of at least nine which took off in a field north of Luxor, on the west bank of the Nile, at dawn on Tuesday.
It was operated by the local company, Sky Cruise, which said a gas cylinder had exploded on board when it was about 300m in the air.
An investigator with the state prosecutor's office told the Associated Press that the balloon had been in the process of landing at around 07:00 (05:00 GMT) when a landing cable got caught around a gas tube and a fire erupted on board.
The balloon then quickly gained altitude before the fire caused the gas canister to explode and it fell to the ground in a sugar cane field outside the village of al-Dhabaa, west of Luxor, an Egyptian security official said.
Mohammed Youssef, a pilot of another balloon which was in the air nearby at the time, told the Guardian newspaper that the fire started when it was 3m from the ground and was caused by a gas leak.
The pilot and a British passenger jumped to safety when the fire erupted, which affected the balance of the balloon, sending more heat into its "envelope" and causing it to climb rapidly, he said. About five or six other people leapt out when it was about 30m off the ground, he added.
"People were jumping out of the balloon from about the height of a seven-storey building," Cherry Tohamy, an Egyptian who was in another balloon, told the BBC. Ambulances arrived 15 minutes later, she said.
Egypt's health ministry said nine tourists from Hong Kong, four Japanese nationals, two British, two French, one Hungarian and an Egyptian had died.
The Hungarian is understood to have been a UK resident, while another Briton is in a stable condition in hospital in the capital, Cairo.
Mr Youssef said he was a close friend of the pilot. He said his father had visited the pilot, who was conscious but had suffered 70% burns.
'Awful thing'
The governor of Luxor, Ezzat Saad, told the BBC he wanted to send his condolences to the families of those killed and injured.
"We have never seen anything quite like this in Luxor before. It is an awful thing," he said.
"For the safety of the tourists and the Egyptians I have ordered all the companies dealing with balloons to stop flights until we know exactly what happened and the reasons for it."
Civil Aviation Minister Wael al-Maadawi said a committee from the ministry was travelling to Luxor to investigate the incident.
"We cannot say whether this was because of maintenance or human [error] until the investigation committee is completely done with its investigation," he told al-Jazeera TV's Egyptian channel, Mubasher Misr.
The BBC's Aleem Maqbool, who is in Luxor, says there have been concerns about safety since a balloon crashed after hitting a mobile phone transmission tower in April 2009, injuring 16 people, including two British women.
Balloon flights in the area were suspended for six months after the crash while safety measures were tightened up and pilots retrained.
BBC