Seeing the success of Bi’lin as an example, Palestinians are beginning to re-shift tactics away from militancy and back to the non-violent methods of the First Intifada:
- Nonviolent Protest Gains in West Bank (Christian Science Monitor)
Washington Post columnist details and laments over the Bush administration’s abandonment of supporting Egypt’s fledging independent press:
- Forsaking the Egyptian Free Press (Washington Post)
The gloomy possibility of further fragmentation in Somalia is raised, as splits within the provisional government appear to be emerging amid continued clashes between Ethiopian-backed government forces and Islamist-led rebels:
- Somali Violence Amid Sacking Row (BBC News)
While independent observers find Pakistan’s electoral system is “poorly prepared and… highly vulnerable to fraud†Musharraf’s strongest challenge to his presidential bid is not from weak opposition candidates, but legal petitions submitted to the Supreme Court disputing his eligibility to run:
- Pakistani Electoral Process in Disarray, Observers Warn (Washington Post)
- Musharraf Facing Election Rival (BBC News)
In a move likely to further polarize Lebanon along political and sectarian lines, Hezbollah-led opposition groups refuse to participate in parliamentary vote to elect new President if a “consensus†candidate cannot be found:
- Lebanon’s Opposition to Boycott Presidential Vote (Reuters/Washington Post)
Like religious fundamentalists who believe that certain interpretations of religion are taboo to question, one of Turkey’s secular counterparts states that the current interpretation of secularism implanted the national constitution “should not be a topic of discussionâ€:
- Turkish General Says Secularism Beyond Debate (Reuters/Washington Post)
Leave a Reply