“The stakes are now very high because a jury will be asked to decide if the government engaged in preventative detention — a practice that Congress has never authorized in the history of this country†—
- Federal Magistrate Says US Falsely Detained Muslim Man as Witness in Terror Case (AP/ Washington Post)
Bahrain has offered $153,000 each in compensation to 17 families of victims killed in the anti-regime protests last March and has released an activist with a Twitter following of 150,000 after three weeks detention:
- Bahrain: $2.6 mn Compensation for Revolt Victims (PTI / Zeenews)
- Bahrain Human Rights Activist Nabeel Rajab Released (BBC)
The traditional venue for swearing in the Egyptian president of parliament “was dissolved by the ruling military council. The alternative” is “the Constitutional Court, which is packed with judges appointed in the Mubarak era. The venue will be a signal to revolutionaries whether their new president is willing to defy the powerful generals”:
- New Egypt President Moves Toward Unity Government (AP / Mercury News)
The contrast with her predecessors “are symbolic of the sea change in Egyptian politics” and “there is already a war of words on social media over her conservative, modest style which is shared by the vast majority of women in Egypt’s impoverished villages and towns”:
- Egyptian President-elect’s Wife Wants to Be ‘First Servant’ of the People, Not First Lady (AP / Washington Post with Foreign Policy)
U.S. Taxpayers should take warning, “senior Israeli military leaders” are using the election of an Islamist to the presidency of Egypt as an excuse to ask for $15 billion in additional military expenditures …
- Israel Army Asks For Extensive Deployment On Egyptian Border (International Middle East Media Center)
… Meanwhile, Israel’s defense minister says accusations that Mossad is behind the assassination are not “necessarily true,” while the Syrian opposition blames the government:
“Rebel forces attacked Syria’s main court in central Damascus on Thursday, state television said, while Turkey deployed troops and anti-aircraft rocket launchers to the Syrian border, building pressure on President Bashar al-Assad’ …
… as Russia stands by its ally:
“Separatists have dismissed the government’s promise to investigate the blaze and are demanding an independent probe. The separatists had called for a strike on Tuesday, but residents maintained it Wednesday on their own”:
- Most of Kashmir Shut for 3rd Day over Shrine Fire (AP / York Dispatch)
The Ahmadiyya movement, which claims that it founder fulfilled the promise of the return of Jesus as well personified the Muslim mahdi, “is persecuted around the world, but it has plenty of friends on Capitol Hill”:
- Ahmadi Muslim Leader Pushes Plight in Congress (Washington Post)
“Earlier this month the administration granted exceptions to India and six other economies. Japan and 10 European Union countries got exceptions in March”: