Need to remind anyone of Secretary H. Clinton’s warm embrace of Qatar – close ties Al Thani family with Bill’s Foundation – and the Muslim Brotherhood triangle Egypt’s Morsi and Turkey’s Edfogan.
Today:
○ Turkish authorities seize newspaper close to cleric Gulen – Zaman Today
Protesters confront riot police as opposition paper is shut-down by Erdogan APK gang and a government trustee group appointed to lead Zaman media.
BBC News – Zaman newspaper: Defiant last edition as Turkey police raid plus video. Saturday’s Zaman edition said Turkey’s press had experienced “one of the darkest days in its history”. Digital version Today’s Zaman: Error message – Error 521 Web server is down.
« click for message of support for free press in Turkey
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A fortnight ago:
○ Erdogan: A New Hitler Stands Up Nov. 28, 2015
Before Secretary Kerry took over the policy chaos of the Middle East:
○ Sultan Erdogan Al Jazeera and the al-Thani monarchy and princess Hillary of Al Jazeera and the al-Thani monarchy
NEW YORK — It was a good week for Mohammed Morsi. The Israel-Hamas ceasefire [not brokered by Secr. Clinton – Oui], which sees Egypt as the responsible enforcer of the peace, marks the final embrace of Morsi’s Muslim Brotherhood government by the West.
“Egypt’s new government is assuming the responsibility and leadership that has long made this country a cornerstone of regional stability and peace,” Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said glowingly, standing alongside Morsi’s foreign minister Mohammed Amr.
“This was a major moment for Mohammed Morsi,” noted Nicholas Burns, former undersecretary of state for political affairs and now a professor at Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government.
“There were a lot of doubts about how he would lead Egypt, whether he would maintain the peace agreement with Israel,” Burns told the PBS NewsHour. But Morsi “showed that he is very tough minded. He was willing to pressure Hamas, he was able to work with the Turkish and Qatari governments as well as the United States. He can be, based on this performance, I think an important partner for the United States. I think this is a confidence builder both for the Israelis and Americans in knowing they have a stable and impressive leadership in Cairo now that we can deal with.”
[Linked from a diary – Qatar Fail in Arab Spring and Loss to Saudi Diplomacy ]
Belgium: Dutch version Zaman Vandaag
○ US Foreign Policy, Turkey and the Muslim Brotherhood Ploy Oct. 13, 2012
Syrian ceasefire with Russian backing key to peace talks, say European leaders | The Guardian |
The Syrian ceasefire and its continued backing from Russia will help build a momentum behind peace talks in the war-torn country, European leaders have said.
The truce, which is broadly holding, began last weekend. The leaders of Russia, Germany, France, Italy and the UK held a conference call on Friday in which they agreed to use the “positive dynamic” to restart peace talks, a spokesperson for David Cameron said.
“The main point that the European leaders made on the call to [Russian president Vladimir] Putin was that we welcome the fact that this fragile truce appears to be holding,” the spokesman said.
“We have got to use this as a positive dynamic now to create some momentum behind the talks … so we can move from a truce into a more lasting, durable peace with a political transition away from Assad.”
Angela Merkel said in a news conference with François Hollande that Putin had told the others during the phone conference that Moscow is fully committed to the truce.
The German chancellor said: “I would like to stress one more time that the commitment to hold the ceasefire was confirmed as a key message by the Russian president.”
The five-year Syrian civil war, which began with the aim of overthrowing Syria’s president, Bashar al-Assad, has killed more than 250,000 Syrians and millions more have been forced from their homes, creating a massive refugee crisis for Lebanon, Turkey and the European Union.
Vladimir Putin takes personal charge of Syria ceasefire effort
- ○ Townhall Meeting Ms Clinton with CNN’s Amanpour June 21, 2014
○ Obama Sidelined on Syria, Hollande and King Abdullah Deliver Arms to Syrian Rebels Dec. 16, 2013
○ Jordan: US forces plan shield against Syria Oct. 11, 2012
○ The curious role of US Ambassador Robert Ford in Syria NowMediaNews - on July 1, 2011
