WORLD MEDIA WATCH

Summaries are excerpted from the source articles; the featured article follows the summary section. 

1//The Globe and Mail, Canada
PM'S LINE IN SAND FUELS ELECTION FEVER [1] 

Parliament will be given three chances over the next two months to plunge the country into a spring election.  The federal government gave notice Wednesday that, in addition to the coming budget and a motion to extend the military mission in Afghanistan, it would also consider failure to pass a crime bill a matter of no-confidence.  Liberal Leader Stéphane Dion also heightened speculation about a possible election Wednesday by standing firm on his demand that Canada end its combat role in Afghanistan.  A Tory source told The Globe and Mail that, although Prime Minister Stephen Harper does not want an election, the government is prepared to draw a line in the sand on a number of issues.  Prime Minister Stephen Harper stands to speak while Liberal Leader Stéphane Dion looks on during Question Period in the House of Commons in Ottawa on Wednesday. ... The Tory tactics appeared to be an effort to reimpose the Prime Minister's agenda of last autumn, when Mr. Harper said that all major items within the Speech from the Throne would be confidence motions. The strategy was designed to make Mr. Dion appear weak by forcing him to support the government to avoid a vote.  However, Mr. Harper's party has since run into controversies involving the relationship between German-Canadian businessman Karlheinz Schreiber and former Tory prime minister Brian Mulroney, the shutdown of the Chalk River nuclear reactor and delays in informing Canadians that Canada had stopped handing detainees over to Afghan authorities.

AN EXPANDED EXCERPT OF THIS FEATURED ARTICLE FOLLOWS THE SUMMARIES 

2//Azzaman in English, Iraq
KURDS SAY TO LEAVE GOVERNMENT IF DEMANDS NOT MET [2]

The Kurds will withdraw from the government of Prime Minister Noori al-Maliki if their share of the country's oil revenues is reduced.  Mahmoud Othman, a Kurdish member of parliament, and a veteran Kurdish politician accused "certain political factions" in the government of attempts to "slash the gains Kurds have made" since a U.S.-led invasion toppled the regime of former leader Saddam Hussein.  Othman accused some Arab parliamentary blocs, both Shiite and Sunni, of attempts to "ignite Arab-Kurdish strife."  Tension between Arab Sunnis and Shiites has subsided recently with tribal leaders, clergymen and politicians of both sides working together to reduce levels of violence.  Othman said both Arab Sunnis and Shiites were trying to undermine the Kurds. ... The Kurds demand 17 percent but the government and its Arab allies say the figure is not representative of the population of their semi-independent enclave currently including the three province of Dahouk, Arbil and Sulaimaniya.  This year's budget has yet to be approved by the parliament but differences over Kurdish share have blocked the approval.  MPs from both Shiite and Sunni blocs are said to have vowed turn down any budget proposal that meets Kurdish demands on oil royalties.  But Othman said if the parliament rejects the proposal, the Kurds will leave the government.  A Kurdish departure will deny Maliki the parliamentary majority but analysts say Arab factions, both Shiite and Sunni, which have so far shunned the government, may join in.

3//The Daily Star, Lebanon
HARIRI LASHES OUT AT IRAN AND SYRIA, CALL FOR MASSIVE PROTEST [3]

Parliamentary majority leader Saad Hariri Saad-Hariri-Profile Sep-07 blasted Syria and Iran on Thursday for interfering in Lebanese politics and urged a massive turnout for a rally on the third anniversary of his father's assassination. "On February 14, we will all go down to Martyrs Square to say in one voice that the Lebanese are united, that they reject terrorism and that all attempts to intimidate us won't succeed," Hariri said in a fiery speech to his supporters at his residence in Qoreitem.  "On February 14 we will converge on Martyrs Square from all corners of the country to speak out loud in one voice that we want a president ... to say that the road to the presidency cuts through Beirut and the Parliament building, not through Damascus, Tehran or any other capital," he added.  "We are faced with the political and terrorist presence in Lebanon of the Syrian and Iranian regimes, but we will not sit by and watch," he said.  "If confrontation is our destiny, then we stand ready," Hariri said.  Hariri's father, former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, was killed in a massive car bombing on February 14, 2005, sparking international outrage and leading to the withdrawal of Syrian forces from the country after a 29-year presence.  One month after his death, on March 14, hundreds of thousands of Lebanese flooded into Martyrs Square in central Beirut, near where Hariri is buried, demanding an international inquiry and a withdrawal of Syrian troops. Syria has denied any involvement in the killing.  A number of politicians, journalists and other prominent figures have also been killed since Hariri's assassination, with the country embroiled in its worst political crisis since the end of the 1975-1990 Civil War.  Lebanon has been without a president since November when the term of close Syria ally Emile Lahoud ended. Members of Parliament have been called to a presidential election in Parliament on Monday.  However, the vote appeared to be heading for a 14th delay in the absence of a deal between the two sides. 

4//RIA Novosti (Russian News & Information Agency), Russia
MOSCOW TO DEPLOY S-400 AIR DEFENSE SYSTEMS IN NORTHWEST RUSSIA [4] 

Advanced S-400 anti-aircraft / anti-missile systems will be deployed in northwest Russia in the near future, an army commander said on Thursday.  "S-300 systems, currently in service in northwest Russia, will soon be replaced by the new S-400 Triumf [SA-21 Growler] system," said Lt. Gen. Vladimir Sviridov, the Leningrad Region Air Force and Air Defense Army commander. 

The S-400 is designed to intercept and destroy airborne targets at a distance of up to 400 kilometers (250 miles), twice the range of the U.S. MIM-104 Patriot, and 2.5 times that of the S-300PMU-2.  The S-400 Triumf is to form the core of Russia's theater air and missile defenses through 2020, or even 2025. ...The first S-400 battalion to be deployed was put into service to protect airspace around Moscow and industrial zones in central Russia.  The system is capable of effectively engaging stealth aircraft, cruise missiles, and ballistic missiles, with a range of up to 3,500 kilometers (2,200 miles) and a speed of up to 4.8 kilometers (3 miles) per second. ...

The Russian Air Force Special Command currently provides air defense for 140 strategic sites in 13 regions of central Russia, including administrative, industrial, and transportation facilities, as well as nuclear power stations.  

5//The Guardian, UK
PLANS FOR INQUESTS WITHOUT JURY BRANDED ALARMING [5]

Government plans to give the home secretary new powers to order sensitive inquests to be held without a jury were branded "seriously alarming" by an influential parliamentary committee today. 

Little-noticed provisions in last month's counter-terrorism bill would allow Jacqui Smith to block the summoning of a jury and to appoint her own coroner to investigate deaths if she deems it to be in the interests of national security, to maintain the UK's relationship with another country or "otherwise in the public interest". .... Although it is included in a bill to tackle the threat of terror, the new powers are not explicitly restricted to terrorism cases and could in theory be applied to cases of deaths where no link with violent extremism is suspected.  The joint committee on human rights today warned that the measures could be invoked to limit the scrutiny of deaths of British servicemen killed by US "friendly fire" in Iraq or into inquests on civilian deaths similar to the one investigating the death of Jean Charles de Menezes, who was mistaken by police for a suicide bomber.  The committee branded the inquest plans "astonishing", especially as they were introduced at a late stage of the bill with no time for consultation or pre-legislative scrutiny.  Andrew Dismore, the Labour chair of the committee, said: "We are seriously alarmed at the prospect that under these provisions, inquests into the deaths occurring in circumstances like that of Jean Charles de Menezes, or British servicemen killed by US forces in Iraq, could be held by a coroner appointed by the secretary of state sitting without a jury.  "Inquests must be, and be seen to be, totally independent and in public to secure accountability, with involvement of the next of kin to protect their legitimate interests. ... The report warned that the new measures may breach the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR), to which the UK is a signatory.  

FEATURED ARTICLE 

1//The Globe and Mail, Canada  February 7, 2008 at 2:26 AM EST [6]

PM'S LINE IN SAND FUELS ELECTION FEVER

Government will consider looming votes on the Afghan mission, the federal budget and a crime bill to be matters of confidence 

Brian Laghi and Jane Taber and Daniel LeBlanc 

OTTAWA -- Parliament will be given three chances over the next two months to plunge the country into a spring election. 

The federal government gave notice Wednesday that, in addition to the coming budget and a motion to extend the military mission in Afghanistan, it would also consider failure to pass a crime bill a matter of no-confidence. 

Liberal Leader Stéphane Dion also heightened speculation about a possible election Wednesday by standing firm on his demand that Canada end its combat role in Afghanistan. 

A Tory source told The Globe and Mail that, although Prime Minister Stephen Harper does not want an election, the government is prepared to draw a line in the sand on a number of issues.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper stands to speak while Liberal Leader Stéphane Dion looks on during Question Period in the House of Commons in Ottawa on Wednesday.  

The most explosive potential vote would be on the future of the Afghan mission. The Tories want to extend it past the 2009 deadline if NATO agrees to provide 1,000 more troops, as well as helicopters and unmanned aircraft. The NDP and the Bloc Québécois want Canada out of the conflict, while the Liberals have taken a middle road, saying Canada should stay, but that troops should switch to more of a training and rebuilding role. 

Mr. Harper made his preference clear during Question Period. 

"We either stay and do the job with our military in Afghanistan or we leave. We believe we should get more commitments from our allies and stay." 

Radio-Canada reported Wednesday night that the motion on Afghanistan would propose a reduced combat role and a review of the mission in 2011. However, a government source played down the report. 

After meeting with his caucus Wednesday, Mr. Dion acknowledged the difference between positions of the Liberals and the Conservatives. 

"You need to be prepared to fight, but the combat role is when you are proactively seeking the engagement with the enemy," Mr. Dion said. "It's something I have said that we will interrupt in February, 2009." 

A Liberal source said if a compromise can't be found, the party would have to look at whether it should defeat the government on the budget. 

The worsening economy has given the Liberals some wind in their electoral sails, although many would prefer to wait until the economic difficulties bite harder. 

The Tories also rattled the election sabre at a Senate committee. Justice Minister Rob Nicholson said he will ask the Prime Minister to "go to the people" if the omnibus Bill C-2 on violent crime doesn't pass by the end of the month. 

Mr. Nicholson suggested the Governor-General could be asked to dissolve Parliament if the legislation doesn't move through quickly enough. 

(SNIP) 

Liberals said the Tories appear to be trying to force them to trigger an election. 

"They are [goading us], but they're not doing it very well," Liberal Bryon Wilfert said. 

NDP Leader Jack Layton said it was more than a coincidence that both Mr. Nicholson and the Prime Minister were discussing no-confidence motions on the same day. 

"They always seem to be strategizing, as though the life of Canadians is some kind of a chess game," Mr. Layton said. 

(SNIP) 

The Tory tactics appeared to be an effort to reimpose the Prime Minister's agenda of last autumn, when Mr. Harper said that all major items within the Speech from the Throne would be confidence motions. The strategy was designed to make Mr. Dion appear weak by forcing him to support the government to avoid a vote. 

However, Mr. Harper's party has since run into controversies involving the relationship between German-Canadian businessman Karlheinz Schreiber and former Tory prime minister Brian Mulroney, the shutdown of the Chalk River nuclear reactor and delays in informing Canadians that Canada had stopped handing detainees over to Afghan authorities. 

Copyright 2008, Gloria R. Lalumia

WORLD MEDIA WATCH 

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