Tuesday, 31 August 2010


MEMRI - The Middle East Media Research Institute


The MEMRI Daily: August 31, 2010

The following is research published today from MEMRI’s Special Dispatch Series, the MEMRI TV Project, and the Jihad and Terrorism Threat Monitor.

*Special Dispatch Series

Special Dispatch No. 3203—Egypt/Leading Arab and Muslim Reformists/Democratization and Reform in the Arab & Muslim/U.S. and the Middle East

S'ad Al-Din Ibrahim: The Muslim Brotherhood – A Viable Alternative to the Egyptian Regime

After approximately three years abroad, Egyptian sociologist and human rights activist Dr. S'ad Al-Din Ibrahim returned on August 4, 2010 for a two-week visit to his homeland, where a number of lawsuits against him are pending. In an interview with the Egyptian daily Al-Masri Al-Yawm, for which he writes a weekly column, Ibrahim, who is founder and director of the Ibn Khaldun Center for Development Studies and a board member of the Arab Democracy Foundation, said that he considers the Muslim Brotherhood a sound alternative to the Egyptian regime. He also called on Egypt to support former International Atomic Energy Agency secretary-general Dr. Mohamed ElBaradei as a candidate for the Egyptian presidency.

These statements enraged Muhammad 'Ali Ibrahim, Shura Council member and editor of the Egyptian government daily Al-Gumhouriyya, and a full-blown press war between the two resulted, played out in articles in Al-Masri Al-Yawm and Al-Gumhouriyya. Muhammad 'Ali Ibrahim claimed that S'ad Al-Din Ibrahim's support of the Muslim Brotherhood and of ElBaradei attests to his detachment from the politics of the Egyptian street. He also raised the possibility that S'ad Al-Din Ibrahim is acting on the orders of the U.S., which he claimed is planning to turn Egypt into a religious state modeled after Iran or Turkey, and to allow a Palestinian state to be established in the Sinai.

In response, S'ad Al-Din Ibrahim said that he would be willing to provide the Al-Gumhouriyya editor with a scoop if the latter would arrange for him to meet with ElBaradei and with Muslim Brotherhood General Guide Dr. Muhammad Badi'.

Strangely, shortly after giving this interview S'ad Al-Din Ibrahim signed a petition by the Popular Coalition Supporting Gamal Mubarak for President, and said that if Gamal is elected through fair elections, this would not constitute inheriting the presidency. He explained that he supports the right of any citizen to submit his candidacy, and that consequently he also signed ElBaredei's petition. His goal, he clarified, is to breach the barrier of fear and promote democratic activity.

Following are excerpts of the exchange between S'ad Al-Din Ibrahim and Muhammad 'Ali Ibrahim:

To read in full, visit http://www.memri.org/report/en/0/0/0/0/0/0/4570.htm.

Special Dispatch No. 3202—Palestinians

Al-Arabiya TV Reports on New Shopping Mall in Gaza

This week, Al-Arabiya TV reported on a new shopping mall that opened recently in Gaza. The report aired on August 27, 2010. Last month, MEMRI published a report on the mall by a Palestinian website.

The following are excerpts from the Al-Arabiya report on the mall:

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Reporter: "In this shopping center, thousands of Gazans have begun to buy their food and clothing. It was named the "Gaza Mall” by its owners, a group of Palestinian businessmen, some of whom are affiliated with Hamas."

To read in full, visit http://www.memri.org/report/en/0/0/0/0/0/0/4571.htm.

Special Dispatch No. 3200—Egypt/Iran/Hamas/Inter-Arab Relations

Rage in Egypt at Hamas and Iran following Rocket Attacks on Eilat, Aqaba

The August 2, 2010 rocket attack on Eilat and Aqaba, carried out from the Sinai Peninsula, rekindled Egypt's anger at Iran and the Hamas movement. The Egyptian press stated that the firing of the rockets from Egyptian territory by Hamas or by organizations cooperating with it constituted an infringement on Egyptian sovereignty and the crossing of a red line. Some government papers even called to punish Hamas and sever ties with it.

Anger was also directed at Iran. The Egyptian position is that Iran is employing local proxies, such as Hamas, to escalate violence in various conflict zones in the Middle East, with the aim of using its influence as leverage in its maneuvers vis-à-vis the West – especially since the increase of international pressure on it over its nuclear dossier. According to the Egyptian government press, Iran is using Hamas to sabotage the inter-Palestinian reconciliation efforts, as well as the efforts to renew the Palestinian-Israeli negotiations.

Two days after the rocket attack, the International Center for Future and Strategic Studies in Cairo held a conference on the issue of a nuclear Iran and its possible impact on the region, at which harsh accusations were made against this country. Dr. Ibrahim Nawar, former political affairs officer with the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq, assessed that it would be a historic and strategic mistake to view the Iranian nuclear capabilities as a solution to the Palestinian problem, because an Iranian nuclear weapon means that millions of innocent people throughout the Middle East would become victims. The center's executive director, 'Adel Suleiman, assessed that Iran would be able to manufacture a bomb by 2011, but would use it only for deterrence purposes, and in order to increase its involvement in the Arab region and build up the military capabilities of Hamas and Hizbullah. Dr. Mahmoud Barakat, former head of the Arab Nuclear Agency, said at the conference that Iran already possessed three nuclear bombs, purchased in 1991 from Kazakhstan at a cost of $50 million each, with the consent of the Kazakhi president.

Iran, for its part, has also been directing accusations and insults at Egypt. The daily Jomhouri-ye Eslami, for example, called Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak a "Zionist Arab," adding that if he lets his son succeed him as president this would be a "Pharaoh-like" move on his part. At the same time, the head of the Iranian Interest Section in Cairo, Mojtaba Amani, recently told an Egyptian paper that the two countries consult on international matters and that the economic and trade cooperation between them continues. He added that Iran and Egypt disagree on the issue of the so-called peace with Israel, and that their relations would improve once Egypt understood that this peace is useless. He also said that Iran would be willing to help resolve the wheat shortage in Egypt, if Egypt appealed to Iran for assistance, and denied any Iranian involvement in spreading Shi'ism in Egypt.

The following are excerpts from articles published in Al-Ahram, Al-Gumhouriyya and Roz Al-Yousef lambasting Hamas and Iran over the rocket attack.

To read in full, visit http://www.memri.org/report/en/0/0/0/0/0/0/4568.htm.

*From MEMRI TV

Iran Unveils New Bomber Drone and Tests a Surface-to-Surface Missile

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Following are excerpts from an Al-Alam TV report on the new Iranian drone, which aired on August 22, 2010:

To view this clip on MEMRI TV, visit http://www.memritv.org/clip/en/0/0/0/0/0/0/2585.htm.

*From the MEMRI Jihad and Terrorism Threat Monitor

Gazan "Al-Tawhid Wa'l-Jihad" Group Decries Hamas Campaign against Its Commander, Members

In a communiqué dated August 28, 2010, the Gaza-based salafi jihadi organization Jama'at Al-Tawhid Wa'l-Jihad (JTJ) denounced "the crimes of the Gaza government" against the organization. JTJ claims in the communiqué that Hamas has been persecuting them and their commander, Abu Al-Walid Al-Maqdisi, and has also distributed "Wanted" posters with photographs of the salafi mujahideen...

To read in full, visit http://www.memrijttm.org/content/en/blog_personal.htm?id=3749&param=GJN.

The Chechen Commanders' Version of the Cause of the Schism in the Caucasus Emirate

In a video dated August 10, 2010, three senior Chechen commanders explained their reasons for rejecting Dokka Umarov's continued leadership of the Caucasus Emirate. The three speakers were Hussein Gakayev, whom Umarov himself had appointed as wali (governor) of Chechnya in July; Aslambek Vadalov, whom Umarov had personally appointed as his successor; and Muhannad, an Arab commander of unknown nationality who is allied with the Chechen faction against Umarov...

To read in full, visit http://www.memrijttm.org/content/en/blog_personal.htm?id=3747&param=IDTA.

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Posted by Britannia Radio at 21:10