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Zimbabwe ‘Coup’ Escalates: US Embassy Closes, Explosions Rock Harare, Military Seize State Broadcaster

November 14, 2017

Zimbabwe ‘Coup’ Escalates: US Embassy Closes, Explosions Rock Harare, Military Seize State Broadcaster

Following at least three explosions across Zimbabwe’s capital city tonight – following what appears to be the start of a military coup as tanks rolled in – the US embassy in Harare has been closed. Additionally, reports state that troops have deployed on the streets and have seized the state broadcaster.

As we detailed earlier, The Associated Press said it saw three tanks with several soldiers in a convoy on a road heading toward an army barracks just outside the capital, Harare, while Reuters reported that four tanks were seen heading toward the capital.

And here is Al Jazeera with a brief explainer of the political crisis in Zimbabwe that threatens to sweep Robert Mugabe from his post:

Zimbabwe is facing a political crisis with the ruling Zanu-PF party, as a very public showdown over who is likely to succeed President Robert Mugabe plays out.

The current standoff is between the Youth faction, loyal to his wife, Grace Mugabe, and the former liberation fighters, loyal to Emmerson Mnangagwa, the vice president who was fired last week. Al Jazeera’s Hannah Hoexter explains.

But the situation appears to have escalated notably in the last few hours as The Telegraph reports, several loud explosions echoed across central Harare in the early hours of Wednesday after troops deployed on the streets of the capital and seized the state-owened Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corp.

“I was woken up at about 1.10 a.m. by a distant explosion that shook the bed — two others since then,” Roger Stringer, who lives in Harare’s Mount Pleasant suburb, said by phone.

AP notes that Zimbabwe’s ruling party is accusing the country’s army commander of “treasonable conduct” for his threat to have the military step in and calm political turmoil.

…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…

Millions Face Starvation in Yemen Due to Saudi Arabia’s Blockade

November 14, 2017

Millions Face Starvation in Yemen Due to Saudi Arabia’s Blockade

Two years ago, German intelligence warned the world of the unique risks Saudi Arabia posed to the region. I covered it at the time in the post, German Intelligence Warns – Saudi Arabia to Play “Destabilizing Role” in the Middle East. Here’s an excerpt:

Saudi Arabia is at risk of becoming a major destabilizing influence in the Arab world, German intelligence has warned. 

Internal power struggles and the desire to emerge as the leading Arab power threaten to make the key Western ally a source of instability, according to the BND intelligence service. 

“The current cautious diplomatic stance of senior members of the Saudi royal family will be replaced by an impulsive intervention policy,” a BND memo widely distributed to the German press reads. 

Saudi Arabia has previously been accused of supplying arms and funding to jihadist groups fighting in Syria, including Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (Isil).

At the core of this intelligence warning was none other than crown prince Mohamed bin Salman, or MBS. I’ve been warning about the specific dangers presented by his brazen and sociopathic personality for years, and the recent purge finally threw it all into the spotlight for everyone to see.

MBS has already wreaked havoc on portions of the region with his reckless and failed polices with respect to both Yemen and Qatar. Today’s post will focus on the humanitarian catastrophe unfolding in Yemen, courtesy of the Saudi crown prince.

The New York Times reported last week:

Saudi Arabia’s three-day-old blockade of entry points to Yemen threatens to plunge that war-ravaged country into a famine that could starve millions of people, the top relief official of the United Nations said Wednesday.

…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…

On The Verge Of Catastrophe: Saudi Arabia Says Lebanon Declared War

November 6, 2017

On The Verge Of Catastrophe: Saudi Arabia Says Lebanon Declared War

As expected, Saudi Arabia has cast itself as the victim of external Shia plotting after its internal weekend of chaos which included a missile attack from Yemen, the deaths of two princes and other high officials within a mere 24 hours, and an aggressive crackdown against dissent in the royal family which saw close to a dozen princes placed under house arrest. And as Al Jazeera noted,in this Saudi version of ‘Game of Thrones’, the 32-year-old Mohammed Bin Salman (MBS) shows that he is willing to throw the entire region into jeopardy to wear the royal gown.

While Saudi Arabia has long blamed Iran for sowing unrest in the region, this evening’s declaration by Saudi Gulf affairs minister Thamer al-Sabhan that Lebanon has “declared war” against the kingdom is truly an historic first. But perhaps the biggest problem is that international media is currently uncritically spreading the statement, whereas what such a bizarre claim actually warrants is laughter. Thankfully, Nassim Nicholas Taleb sums it up nicely with a basic geography lesson: “Either the media is stupid, or Saudi rulers are stupid, or both. Lebanon did not formally declare war and there is no common border.”

With that in mind, here is the statement currently making headlines as reported by Reuters:

Saudi Arabia said on Monday that Lebanon had declared war against it because of attacks against the Kingdom by the Lebanese Shi‘ite group Hezbollah.

Saudi Gulf affairs minister Thamer al-Sabhan told Al-Arabiya TV that Saad al-Hariri, who announced his resignation as Lebanon’s prime minister on Saturday, had been told that acts of “aggression” by Hezbollah “were considered acts of a declaration of war against Saudi Arabia by Lebanon and by the Lebanese Party of the Devil”.

…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…

Saudis Call Missile Attack “Blatant Act Of Aggression” By Iran, “Could Be Considered Act Of War”

November 5, 2017

Saudis Call Missile Attack “Blatant Act Of Aggression” By Iran, “Could Be Considered Act Of War”

War is coming…

This weekend’s chaos in the middle east just got considerably more serious.

Yesterday we detailed reports that the Saudis intercepted a ballistic missile over the nation’s capital Riyadh…

At the time, Al Jazeera reported that Yemen’s Houthi rebels claimed responsibility for the attack, saying they launched the Yemeni-made, long-range ballistic missile Burqan 2-H (with a range of 500 kilometers) from the Saudi-Yemeni border before being intercepted.

But tonight, according to a statement from the Saudi coailition carried by the state-run Saudi Press Agency, the missile that targeted Riyadh has been called “a direct military aggresion” by Iran against Sauid Arabia,  that “could rise to be considered an act of war.” Furthermore, the Saudi-led coalition has closed all Yemen’s land, sea and air ports after missile targeted Riyadh.

Following on what the Coalition had previously announced regarding the ballistic missiles launched by the Iranian-controlled Houthi militias from within Yemeni territory that targeted the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the most recent of which was the flagrant military aggression by the Iranian-controlled Houthi militias which targeted the city of Riyadh on November 11, 2017 (Corresponding to 15/2/1439 Hijri) using a ballistic missile with a range of more than 900 Km.

And, after the thorough examination of the debris of these missiles, including the missile launched on July 22, 2017 (Corresponding to 28/10/1438 Hijri) by experts in military technology, has confirmed the role of Iran’s regime in manufacturing these missiles and smuggling them to the Houthi militias in Yemen for the purpose of attacking the Kingdom, its people, and vital interests.

…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…

 

Qatar May be Turning Its Back on the US Dollar — and We All Know What That Means

June 29, 2017

(ANTIMEDIA) — Late last week, Saudi Arabia and other members of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) that are involved in attempting to isolate Qatar sent the tiny Gulf nation a list of 13 demands. They are insisting that Qatar meet these demands within ten days or face unspecified further action.The list of demands includes Qatar shutting down Al-Jazeera and its affiliate stations; shutting down other news outlets that Qatar funds, including Middle East Eye; curbing diplomatic ties with Iran and expelling members of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard; terminating the Turkish military presence in Qatar; consenting to monthly audits for the first year following acceptance of the demands, and aligning itself entirely with the other Gulf and Arab countries militarily, politically, socially, and economically – to name but a few.

The most ludicrous of the demands is that Qatar must end its interference in sovereign countries’ internal affairs. Qatar does interfere in a number of countries, including Libyaand Syria, but as the German Foreign Minister explained, this list of demands directly challenges Qatar’s sovereignty. Who is interfering with whose sovereignty, exactly?

In that context, Saudi Arabia and its friends have given Qatar a list of demands they cannot conceivably meet and imposed a ten-day deadline to concede or face unspecified further action. Qatar was essentially doomed from the start of this rift, and it’s only just beginning. As Newsweek lamented, “the demands are designed to be impossible to comply with.”

…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…

Arab States Issue 13 Demands To Qatar – Include Unfriending Iran, Beheading Al-Jazeera And Nixing Turkish Base

June 23, 2017

Arab States Issue 13 Demands To Qatar – Include Unfriending Iran, Beheading Al-Jazeera And Nixing Turkish Base

Two days after the US State Department formally inquired about WTF is going on between Arab States and Qatar, the countries of Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Baahrain, and the UAE sent a list of 13 demands to the tiny Gulf nation to be met within 10 days in order to lift their total blockade of the country. Among them – reducing diplomatic ties with Iran, shutting down broadcaster Al Jazeera (and affiliates), and immediately cease working to open a Turkish military base announced in May of 2016. Also interesting is the demand that Qatar give up their intel on terrorist groups they have supported and “provide all databases related to oppositionists…” (Scroll down for full list of demands)

This formal list comes on the heels of a June 6th rumor that Arab States issued a list of 10 demands to be fulfilled within 24 hours, however Qatar said they never received them according to Al Jazeera journalists who are now dusting off their resumes.

Embargo

On June 5th, news broke that Bahrain, the UAE, Saudi Arabia, and Egypt had cut off diplomatic ties with Qatar over accusations of ‘spreading chaos’ by ‘funding terrorism and supporting Iran’ – shutting down all land, sea, and air crossings with the tiny energy-rich nation that has the highest per capita income in the world. Qatari visitors and residents were given two weeks to leave – while diplomats had just 48 hours.

 

While Qatar has been friendly with Iran for years, the prelude to the embargo began after a broadcast which showed Qatari Emir Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani speaking with no audio – and scrolling text at the bottom of the screen which stated his support for Iran and terrorist groups. Qatar claims the broadcast was ‘hacked.’

After the broadcast, Saudi Arabia and the UAE blocked Qatari news organization Al-Jazeera.

…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…

Thoughts on the Media and the EU Referendum 190

July 3, 2016

Thoughts on the Media and the EU Referendum 190 

Al Jazeera’s Listening Post programme on the EU referendum media coverage was just broadcast. They only used about 5% of what they recorded of me, split into four soundbites to fit their format.

I think the much more interesting points I made were not used at all. So just for the record, I also made these points:

a) I did not accept the argument that the BBC was biased in the referendum campaign towards Brexit. Indeed especially in the last few days, I thought it was biased towards Remain.
b) However the BBC had been guilty of helping promote Brexit by giving Farage massive and disproportionate publicity for many years, from when UKIP was a negligible electoral force. They were always willing to give right wings views publicity but not left wing views.
c) The right wing print media were indeed a major problem distorting democracy. However the solution to this should be to break up media ownership, not impose government control of content.
d) Project Fear had not succeeded in the Scottish referendum. It had seen a 35 point unionist lead cut to a 10 point lead, making it one of the most disastrous campaigns in history. The question of why Project Fear “succeeded” in Scotland but not the EU referendum was therefore a false one.
e) Media coverage focused on the despised political class rather than the facts.

I do not blame Al Jazeera at all or accuse them of doing anything unethical – they were looking for soundbites for their broadcast. But I do think the above points which they did not broadcast, were a great deal more interesting than their programme!

…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…

Protesters Set The Streets On Fire In Bahrain After Saudis Kill Top Shiite Cleric

January 2, 2016

Protesters Set The Streets On Fire In Bahrain After Saudis Kill Top Shiite Cleric

Earlier today, we documented Saudi Arabia’s largest mass execution in 25 years.

In what was billed as an effort to rid the world of 47 “terrorists”, the Saudis killed dozens of al-Qaeda affiliates and four Shiites who stood accused of shooting policemen in the anti-government protests which broke out during the Arab Spring.

Among the Shiites killed was prominent cleric Nimr al-Nimr. The Sheikh was an outspoken supporter of the anti-government movement and his death drew sharp condemnation from Iran, Hezbollah, and the Houthis on Saturday.

In the wake of the execution, “scores marched through Nimr’s home district of Qatif shouting ‘down with the Al Saud’ and, in neighboring Bahrain, police fired tear gas at several dozen people who gathered to protest the news,” AP reported.

“Bahrain’s Saudi-backed Sunni authorities crushed protests led by its majority Shia shortly after they erupted on February 14, 2011, taking their cue from Arab Spring uprisings in the Middle East and North Africa,” al-Jazeera wrote back in February when hundreds took to the streets of Manama to commemorate the anniversary of the Arab Spring uprising. “Tensions are running high in the kingdom where a sectarian divide is deepening and there is a growing gap between the Sunni minority government and the Island’s Shia majority.”

Below, find the searing (literally) images from Bahrain where police fired tear gas at protesters to disperse the crowds.

Are the days of the Gulf monarchies numbered?

NSA Leaker Thomas Drake Praises Report Showing U.S.’ Failure Toward Whistleblowers

November 24, 2015

NSA Leaker Thomas Drake Praises Report Showing U.S.’ Failure Toward Whistleblowers 

    Former National Security Agency official Thomas Drake was originally charged with leaking classified information. (Jacquelyn Martin / AP)

Whistleblower Thomas Drake, who in 2010 became the first American charged with espionage in almost 40 years and who was a predecessor of Edward Snowden, applauds a new report by the PEN American Center accusing the government of failing to protect whistleblowers.

The report comes after presidential candidate Hillary Clinton said at last month’s Democratic debate that NSA whistleblower Snowden “could have gotten all the protections of being a whistleblower” instead of leaking materials to the press. PEN’s report shows that Clinton is wrong and that the U.S. government gives employees and contractors little assurance that they won’t be prosecuted, even if they go through sanctioned channels.

Of his experience as a whistleblower, Drake said during “Secret Sources: Whistleblowers, National Security and Free Expression,” a panel at the Newseum in Washington examining the impact of the Obama administration’s response to national security leaks, “I had become a dissident, as far as the NSA was concerned […] If you become a dissident, the white blood cells kick in, culturally, to get rid of you.”

Charges that Drake passed classified documents to a newspaper reporter were dropped in 2011. He said of the PEN report to Al-Jazeera’s “America Tonight”:

Probably the biggest takeaway for me is it’s one of the first reports that actually pulled this information all together in a cogent fashion. It gives a history. It shows the dynamics. It shows how things have evolved. It shows how far the administrations, particularly President Obama, have gone in pursuing those who would dare hold up a mirror to power. It talks about the lack of protections for sources. It highlights the risks to journalism, as sources, like myself, are considering engaging in criminal activity. It raises serious questions, extraordinarily disturbing questions, about the government.

…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…

2 More Fracking-Related Earthquakes Hit Oklahoma Despite New Rules Meant to Prevent Them

October 14, 2015

2 More Fracking-Related Earthquakes Hit Oklahoma Despite New Rules Meant to Prevent Them

Two earthquakes registering at a 4.5 and a 4.4 magnitude shook frack-happy Oklahoma on Saturday, some of the strongest felt in the state this year. The stronger quake occurred just a few miles from the city of Cushing, which holds one of the largest crude oil storage facilities in the world.

The recent quakes struck only a handful of weeks after the Oklahoma Corporation Commission (OCC), the state’s public utilities commission, shut down several disposal wells around Cushing and issued new regulations meant to prevent more earthquakes in the area, according to Al Jazeera.

frackingok
This map shows earthquakes with 2.5+ magnitudes within a 400-mile radius of Oklahoma City. On Saturday, a 4.5 quake hit the city of Cushing, a major crude oil storage hub. Photo credit: NewsOK

A local report said that the stronger 4.5 magnitude quake occurred around 5 p.m. Saturday evening and could be felt in the nearby cities of Stillwater, Guthrie, Sapulpa, Oklahoma City and other parts of the metro. There were multiple aftershocks in Cushing, recorded at 3.0, 3.2, 3.1, 2.8, 2.7 and 2.5.

Bob Noltensmeyer, Cushing Emergency Manager, told the Associated Press he had not received reports of significant damage in the area although there were “shattered nerves.”

“This one was pretty strong,” he added. “The whole house shook.”

A 4.4 was also recorded on Saturday at 4:20 a.m. about 18 miles southwest of Medford and about 100 miles northwest of Cushing.

America’s heartland used to register earthquakes from two a year to almost two a day. This year, roughly 700 earthquakes of magnitude 3 or higher has shook the state, compared to 20 throughout 2009, as the Associated Press pointed out.

The Sooner State’s seemingly never-ending earthquakes appear to be a man-made side effect of the country’s drilling boom. Scientists say that the injection of wastewater byproducts into deep underground disposal wells from fracking operations are very likely triggering the major increase of seismic activity in Oklahoma, which is not near any major fault lines.

…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…

‘Media Is Our Last Line of Defence’: Mohamed Fahmy

September 26, 2015

‘Media Is Our Last Line of Defence’: Mohamed Fahmy

Newly pardoned journalist Mohamed Fahmy has ”many thank yous” for fellow Canadians who stood by him through his 411-day imprisonment and two-year legal battle in Egypt.

But though he’s grateful for the efforts of Canada’s ambassador and foreign minister on his behalf, the former Al Jazeera bureau chief said the federal government needs to more aggressively advocate for citizens jailed abroad.

”There are things that could be done to improve how the government in Canada dealt with my situation,” he said in a phone interview from Cairo on Friday, adding how, on return, he hopes to start a constructive debate on what Canada can learn from his case.

The Conservative government welcomed Fahmy’s pardon this week by Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, along with that of fellow Al Jazeera staffer Baher Mohamed. The two had been sentenced to seven years in prison — convicted of offences including fabricating news and undermining national security in a trial that was widely denounced by human rights groups. In late August, their sentences were reduced to three years following an appeal. A third Al Jazeera staffer, Peter Greste, was earlier deported to Australia.

”Canada has consistently called at the highest level for Mr. Fahmy’s release and return to Canada,” said Lynne Yelich, Canada’s foreign affairs and consular Minister of State in a Sept. 23 statement. ”The Government of Canada will continue to provide Mr. Fahmy with consular assistance and will assist in facilitating his departure from Egypt.”

With a University of British Columbia journalism school job waiting for him, Fahmy said he is looking forward to starting ”a whole new life” in Vancouver. He’s also launched the Fahmy Foundation for a Free Press to advocate for journalists and bloggers jailed or persecuted overseas.

 

…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…

Greeks: How did we lose our way?

August 15, 2015

Greeks: How did we lose our way?

In the heart of Athens everyday Greeks show us how they face the hardship and constraints brought on by the crisis.

For five years Greece has been mired in economic crisis, haunted by the spectre of expulsion from the eurozone.

A Greek exit seemed closer than ever this summer until a last-minute deal with the creditors – the international Monetary Fund (IMF), the European Central Bank and other eurozone countries – kept Greece in, but at the cost of more painful austerity measures and a humiliating further loss in sovereignty.

The grim figures of Greece’s great depression are well-known: a 25 percent contraction in the economy; youth unemployment at over 50 percent.

But while almost all Greeks have stories of hardship and anxiety to tell, life does go on.

Al Jazeera’s Barnaby Phillips heads to the Athenian middle-class neighbourhood of Nea Smyrni to see how Greeks are getting by, and hear their hopes and fears for the future.

The banks used to phone us. They’d say, ‘Take this money and have a lovely holiday!’ or ‘Take this money and buy the car of your dreams.’ The people who accepted this money made a big mistake.

Sandy Karaiskou, 68-year-old pensioner

The bailout agreement impacts all Greeks, but pensioners and small business owners are particularly worried.

We meet 68-year-old pensioner Sandy Karaiskou who lives on her own. Sandy was an airhostess for Olympic Airways, the Greek national airlines that went bust in 2009.

She takes us on a tour of her neighbourhood to meet her local baker and pharmacist, and to a laiki, the weekly street market.

Baker Dimitris Papavassiliou struggles to keep his business afloat. He talks to us about how the crisis has changed his family and work life and what will happen to his employees. He tells us about how he thinks the past governments are responsible for the crisis.

“Previous governments didn’t take the measures that they should have taken and failed to enforce necessary reforms. And now it’s escalated into a mountain,” he says.

 

…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…

Retired General: Drones Create More Terrorists Than They Kill, Iraq War Helped Create ISIS

July 17, 2015

Retired General: Drones Create More Terrorists Than They Kill, Iraq War Helped Create ISIS

Retired Army Gen. Mike Flynn, a top intelligence official in the post-9/11 wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, says in a forthcoming interview on Al Jazeera English that the drone war is creating more terrorists than it is killing. He also asserts that the U.S. invasion of Iraq helped create the Islamic State and that U.S. soldiers involved in torturing detainees need to be held legally accountable for their actions.

Flynn, who in 2014 was forced out as head of the Defense Intelligence Agency, has in recent months become an outspoken critic of the Obama administration’s Middle East strategy, calling for a more hawkish approach to the Islamic State and Iran.

But his enthusiasm for the application of force doesn’t extend to the use of drones. In the interview with Al Jazeera presenter Mehdi Hasan, set to air July 31, the former three star general says: “When you drop a bomb from a drone … you are going to cause more damage than you are going to cause good.” Pressed by Hasan as to whether drone strikes are creating more terrorists than they kill, Flynn says, “I don’t disagree with that.” He describes the present approach of drone warfare as “a failed strategy.”

“What we have is this continued investment in conflict,” the retired general says. “The more weapons we give, the more bombs we drop, that just … fuels the conflict.”

Prior to serving as director of the Defense Intelligence Agency, Flynn was director of Intelligence for the Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC) during the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. During his time in Iraq, Flynn is credited with helping to transform JSOC into an intelligence-driven special forces operation, tailored to fight the insurgency in that country. Flynn was in Iraq during the peak of the conflict there, as intelligence chief to Stanley McChrystal, former general and head of JSOC. When questioned about how many Iraqis JSOC operatives had killed inside the country during his tenure, Flynn would later say, “Thousands, I don’t even know how many.”

 

…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…

UN says Ebola outbreak ‘not yet finished’

July 13, 2015

UN says Ebola outbreak ‘not yet finished’

About 30 people are still getting infected with Ebola virus each week in West Africa, says UN’s envoy David Nabarro.

The worst recorded outbreak of Ebola has already killed more than 11,200 people across West Africa [AP]

Africa’s Ebola outbreak has not run its course and about 30 people are still getting infected each week, the United Nations’ special envoy for the deadly disease has said.

Under normal circumstances, such an infection rate would be considered “a major, major outbreak,” David Nabarro said on Monday.

“Probably about one third of these people are not coming from the contact list, which means they are surprise cases, and that’s a big worry,” Nabarro told a conference organised by the World Health Organization in Cape Town.

The worst recorded outbreak of Ebola has already killed more than 11,200 people across West Africa.

Infection rates are down from the peak of the crisis. But Liberia reported a 17-year-old boy tested positive for the virus on June 30 – almost two months after the country was declared free of Ebola.

Liberia, the country worst hit by the virus, had been hailed as an example for neighbouring Guinea and Sierra Leone, which are also struggling to stop the spread.

Source: Reuters

 

Western Collusion With Egypt’s Reign of Terror

June 26, 2015

Western Collusion With Egypt’s Reign of Terror

Germany’s detention without charge of a journalist critical of Abdul Fattah al-Sisi is part of a pattern of Western collusion in Egypt’s war on democracy

Why was Al Jazeera journalist, Ahmed Mansour, detained by German authorities under an Egyptian arrest warrant for three days, before being released without charge?

The popular Egyptian-British presenter, who hosts Al Jazeera’s Arabic-language show “Without Frontiers,” told a press conference this Tuesday that the German government had still failed to explain why he had been arrested and detained in the first place.

According to initial reports, German authorities had detained Mansour on the basis of an “international arrest warrant” and extradition request from Egypt.  Of course, there is no such thing as an international arrest warrant.

Political decision

Those vague claims were followed by a more official explanation, put forward by a German government spokesperson, that the Egyptian arrest warrant came through via Interpol’s “red notice” system. In October 2014, Mansour was convicted in absentia – without trial – for the trumped up charge of torturing a lawyer in Tahrir Square in 2011.

But Interpol has confirmed that there was no such notice for Mansour, and had refused to issue the Cairo warrant.

Germany has not signed an extradition treaty with Egypt, and so is under no obligation to consider such a request. So why did Germany decide to accede to the request?

According to the German publication, Zeit Online, before making its decision to arrest and detain Mansour, the German Federal Office of Criminal Investigation took the step of asking Germany’s Ministry of Justice and Federal Foreign Office to assess the case against Mansour. Only after those reviews was Mansour detained at Berlin’s Tagel Airport. There can be no doubt, then, that this was a political decision.

– See more at: http://www.middleeasteye.net/columns/western-collusion-egypt-s-reign-terror-1040634338#sthash.NOqnDCOK.dpuf

 

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