Jewish Voice for Peace speaks out
Those around the world who expected little more than cursory speeches from the Annapolis meeting this past week were not disappointed. Annapolis delivered those speeches, a few photo-ops and, something that was not as sure a result, a re-starting of discussions between Israel and the Palestinians. But the outcomes were also deeply...Bush in a zero-sum Iranian game of his own making
Bush's woefully misguided invasion and occupation of Iraq in 2003, carried out under false pretences, has not only drained the United States treasury, but reduced Washington's standing in the Middle East in a way not yet fully grasped by most commentators. Whereas Washington once played off Tehran against Baghdad, while involved in a...Political split deepens over nuclear spying
TEHRAN (IPS) — Charges of spying for Britain persisting against former nuclear negotiator Hossein Mousavian appear to have intensified rifts within the alliance of conservatives and hardliners that made Mahmoud Ahmadinejad Iran's president more than two years ago. Mousavian, who was a deputy of the Supreme National Security Council and a...
Iran leader claims win in nuke faceoff
December 9th, 20070 President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on Wednesday called the dramatic U.S. turnaround in a new intelligence review a victory for Iran's nuclear program, suggesting it shows the success of his hard-line stance rejecting compromise. But his more moderate opponents at home are hoping the assessment's conclusion that Tehran shelved its effort...Israeli avoids UK arrest threat
LONDON — An Israeli minister has canceled a visit to the U.K. over concerns he could be arrested on war crimes charges. The foreign ministry said an "extreme leftist" organization was likely to file a legal complaint against Public Security Minister Avi Dichter. He was the domestic intelligence agency chief in 2002 when Israel bombed a...Niqab farce continues
When my partner Adèle, unable to get around because of knee replacement surgery, filled out her ballot at home, no one came around to see if she was wearing a niqab or other face covering. Perhaps the matter was overlooked. The bill forbidding voting while wearing a face covering is now moving through Canada's House of...Liberal leader attacks Khadr’s Gitmo ordeal
Stéphane Dion, leader of Canada's opposition Liberal Party, has called upon Conservative Prime Minister Stephen Harper to "demand that Omar Khadr be removed from Guantanamo Bay detention facility to be transferred to the United States to be tried in a legitimate court." Khadr, a Canadian citizen whose family has had close ties to Osama...Almrei denied bail from Gitmo North
Hassan Almrei is the last inmate of Guantanamo North, the detention facility for people with suspected terrorist affiliations seeking to avoid deportation from Canada. The facility is on the grounds of the Kingston Penitentiary. Justice François Lemieux refused to give him bail. Judge Lemieux listed several factors...Abu Dhabi spending billions in Alberta
Because of their province's substantial oil wealth, Albertans have been called Canada's blue-eyed Arabs. Now some dark-eyed Arabs are moving in. Abu Dhabi National Energy Co. (TAQA), majority-owned by the government of Abu Dhabi, has put down $5 billion to purchase Prime West Energy Trust, through its Canadian subsidiary TAQA...Muslim groups support rape victims
Recently, a Muslim student was sexually assaulted on an Ottawa campus. At first, the media described the assault as rape, a description which was later corrected. The woman made a point of having the correction noted because of the shame associated in some Muslim traditions with being the victim of rape. In response to...Canadian Islamic Congress stubs its toe
With Maclean's, the simplest description would be that it is more or less the Canadian Time, though, while over the decades Time has become somewhat less right wing, Maclean's has moved in the other direction. On October 20, Maclean's carried an excerpt from a book by Mark Steyn in which he argues that, as the title puts it, "The...Israel’s Syrian air strike was aimed at Iran
Until late October, the accepted explanation for the Sept. 6 Israeli air strike in Syria, constructed in a series of press leaks from U.S. officials, was that it was prompted by dramatic satellite intelligence that Syria was building a nuclear facility with help from North Korea. But new satellite evidence has discredited that narrative,...Proud history of Islamic medicine
Many people are unaware of the tremendous contribution to medical knowledge made in Islamic culture between the 9th and 13th centuries. It was Professor Ingrid Hehmeyer's task to open up this chapter of medical history at the recent gala dinner held by the Canadian Islamic Congress in Ottawa. She teaches at Toronto's Ryerson...Canada resists demand for passenger info
The Canadian government is now lending its voice to the objections raised by airlines to U.S. demands for information about passengers flying over the U.S. to destinations outside Canada such as Mexico and the Caribbean. Homeland Security wants lists of passengers and information about them — when reservations were made, method of...Situation of child soldiers pursued
The issue of what happens to child soldiers in Afghanistan is being raised both in Canada and the United States. In Canada, the deputy leader of the Liberal Party, Michael Ignatieff, pressed the government on its practice of turning child soldiers over to Afghan authorities because of concern about how prisoners are treated......
Arab boy chooses ballet for career
Ayman Saffah is a 17-year-old Israeli Arab from the town of Kafr Yassif, in Galilee, but he has chosen to live a life and develop a career beyond the cultural norms of his community. He fell in love with ballet while watching it on television, and he secretly practiced the steps which he saw. When he was 14, he asked his mother for...UAE recruiting in Quebec
Bernard Grenier, president of Personnel Outaouais, has recently returned from Dubai, and his firm is recruiting personnel to work in the United Arab Emirates. The Outaouais is the region of Quebec just across the river from Ottawa. He visited Dubai along with representatives from some 15 other Quebec head-hunting firms, under...No hijab in Manitoba judo
Here we go again! Another girl ruled out of a sports competition for wearing a hjijab, this time in Manitoba. Eleven-year-old Hajar Outbin was barred from a judo competition on November 17. Dave Minuk, president of Judo Manitoba, explained, "It has nothing to do with religion. It's a safety issue." The...Woman suspended for skirt length
Halima Muse, a Muslim woman working as a screener at Toronto International Airport, was suspended from her job because she wore a skirt longer than the regulation skirt provided by Garda, her employer. Garda requested direction from the Canadian Air Transport Security Authority (CATSA), with whom it has the contract, but CATSA......
Tight border security disaster
On November 11, the emergency call came in to Lacolle, Quebec. The local volunteer fire department was desperately needed to assist in putting out a fire across the border in nearby Rouses Point, New York. The six firemen from Lacolle piled into their fire engine and raced for the border, siren sounding and lights...Ashcroft’s lawyer: Arar belongs to al-Qaeda
During a U.S. Court of Appeals hearing on November 9, Maher Arar's lawyer David Cole, from the Center for Constitutional Rights, sought to re-start a suit to recover damages for Arar's extraordinary rendition to Syria, where he was tortured. A lawyer for former Attorney General John Ashcroft charged that Arar had "unequivocal......
Afghan prisoner abuse again raised
After a row in Parliament, Canada reached a new agreement in May with Afghanistan to permit Canada to monitor captured fighters turned over to Afghan authorities. On November 14, Canadian officials reported on the seventh complaint by prisoners since the agreement was signed. The Canadian government has tended to downplay such...Secret negotiations between Canada and Israel
Israeli Minister of Public Security, Ari Dichter and Canadian Public Safety Minister Stockwell Day, have been developing a cooperative approach to terrorism and related issues, involving exchange of information, technology, and operations. The Israeli Ministry web site reported on these developments, but Day's office was caught off......