966 Bedouin Affairs
- First, on a very serious note, an Egyptian security official has said that Bedouin shot and wounded an Egyptian policeman in Sinai today. The news follows days of unrest sparked by the alleged killing of a Bedou man by police. It’s hard to imagine the security forces will leave it at that, though they can still opt for a negotiated resolution as the quickest means of restoring calm. Establishing stability will take longer.
- On a much lighter note (and there’s no way to make this transition without its being jarring and tasteless), from The Times of London via Kafr al-Hanadwa, a Bedou sheikh is sure Obama is his cousin. You must see the video attached to this article:
He has a host of relatives in exotic locations from Hawaii to Kenya, and during his run for the American presidency he discovered that he had an aunt living in Boston.
Now Barack Obama is being claimed by not one but as many as 8,000 Beduin tribesmen in northern Israel.
Although the spokesman for the lost tribe of Obama has yet to reveal the documentary evidence that he says he possesses to support his claim, people are flocking from across the region to pay their respects to the Bedu Obama, whose social standing has gone through the roof.
We knew about it years ago but we were afraid to talk about it because we didnt want to influence the election, Abdul Rahman Sheikh Abdullah, a 53-year-old local council member, told The Times in the small Beduin village of Bir al-Maksour in the Israeli region of Galilee. We wrote a letter to him explaining the family connection.
Mr Obamas team have not responded to the letter so far but that has not dampened Sheikh Abdullahs festivities.
He has been handing out sweets and huge dishes of baklava traditional honey-sweetened pastries to all and sundry, and plans to hold a large party next week at which he will slaughter a dozen goats to feed the village.
It was his 95-year-old mother who first spotted the connection, he says. Seeing the charismatic senator on television, she noted a striking resemblance to one of the African migrant workers who used to be employed by rich sheikhs in the fertile north of British Mandate Palestine in the 1930s.
The Africans would sometimes marry local Beduin girls and start families, though, like many migrant workers, would just as frequently return home after several years. [Continues…]
- Also via Kafr al-Hanadwa, and only tangentially related to Bedouin affairs, a photograph from Al-Watan that crams all of my stereotypes about Saudi Arabia into one image. (And I know this is stretching it the Bedouin connection: Egyptians like to scoff at Saudis as Bedouin, but no one would suggest the people of Jeddah were Bedouin.) You must see this large to fully appreciate it. Unfortunately, Al-Watan doesn’t credit its photographers. If you’re reading, sir, I would like to talk to you. You deserve a prize.
Bowling in Saudi Arabia
523 Bush’s Sword Dance
I love the BBC’s caption on this little video:
As part of his official visit to Saudi Arabia, US President George Bush took part in a ritual sword dance.
There is no commentary on this footage.
It’s true: What could they possibly say? There are no words…
521 Egypt’s Declining Brestige
First Sarko comes and plays Antony and Cleopatra with his mistress before getting down to real business in Saudi, showering the shuyukh with praise and nuclear reactors, now Bush touches down in Sharm for a few hours on a courtesy call…. Why, you’d almost think Egypt was a hopeless, decaying, fin-du-régime backwater in a decaying, hopeless region, and that the Saudis, with all their rotting trilobites, are the real go-to guys. How long will we suffer these insults?
Never mind. Looks to me like the Egyptians have (correctly) calculated that their future lies with the Chinese.
519 Britney Spears to Convert to Islam, Ensh’Allah
Hannah Allam gives “the story behind the story” of Bush’s visit to the UAE. Bush arrived in Saudi today, close on Sarko’s heels. The French president offered the Saudis nuclear aid.
More importantly, a British tabloid reports that Britney Spears may convert to Islam to marry the “pap rat” who “lured” her with “Brummie dirty talk.”
Egyptian squash players are the talk of the town in New York.
Egyptian authorities discovered another tunnel and more explosives near the Gaza border.
The stock market continues to climb, surpassing the 11,000 mark by the CASE index for the first time yesterday.
A steel “monopoly” in Egypt… but would competition lower prices?
Fred “The Saboteur” Abrahams writes on Libya:
At the end of the day, one fact is clear: Gaddafi is interested first and foremost in protecting and promoting his own power, and perhaps in eventually ensuring a transfer of power to one of his sons. His decision to engage with the west was driven by this calculated goal, fearing he was next after the US invasion of Iraq, and his future decisions will follow that logical course.
He will never undertake radical reform, such as allowing independent media or opposition groups. But acting in concert, the west can condition its relations on small but significant steps, such as abolishing the death penalty, improving the penal code, and strengthening the judicial system, all of which Gaddafi himself has placed on the agenda. [Full story]
Egypt’s Supreme Constitutional Court yesterday maintained that article 33 bis of the Agrarian Reform Act is unconstitutional.
494 Saudis Battle Wizards and Women
The Saudi religious police are funding a 700,000-riyal ($200,000) study into the harmful effects of “mixing” (read “women in the workplace”) and are devoting more resources to training members in counter-witchcraft and counter-deviancy. On November 2, the Saudis executed an Egyptian on ridiculous charges of practicing sorcery. From Al-Arabiya:
???????? ???? ?????? ??”??????? ????????? ???????????”
????? ??”????? ????????”?? ???????? ????????? ??700??? ????
???- ???????.??
???? ??????? ?????? ?????? ????? ???????? ?????? ?? ??????? ??????? ???????? ???????? ???????? ????? ?? ????? ????? ?? ???????? ?? ??????? ???????? ????? ????? ?? ???700 ??? ????. ???? ????? ??????? ??????? ???? ????? ????? ????? ???????? ?????? ?? ??????? ?????? ????? ?????? ????????? ???? “???? ????? ?? ???????? ?????????? ??????????”. ????? ?????? ?????? ?? ??????? ??????? ???? ??? “????? ????????? ??????? ?? ???????? ?????? ??? ?????????? ?????? ?????? ??????? ???????? ??????? ?????????? ???????? ?????? ????????? ??????? ??? ????? ??????? ????? ??????? ???” ???? ???? ??? ??? ?? ????? “????? ??????” ???????? ?????? 6-12-2007.
?? ??? ????? ????? ??????? ???? ???? ??????? ???? ??????? ????? ??????? ?????? ?????? ????? ???????? ?????? ? ????? ???? ??????? ?????? ??????????? ????? ??????? ?? ??????? ?????????? ????? ????? ????? ???? ????? ???????? ?????? ?? ??????? ???? ????????? ????????? 25 ?????? ????? ??????? ?????? ????????? ??? ?? ????? ??????? ????? ?????? ????? ??????? ????? ?? ???? ?????? ????? ???????? ??? ??? ?????. ????? ????? ????? ??? ??? ????? ?????? ????? ???? ??????? ?????? ????? ????? ???????? ?????? ?? ??????? ???? ?? ?????? ?????? ??? ??????? ????????? ?? ??????? ????? ???? ?? ????? ????????? ?????? ???????? ???? ???????? ?? ?????? ???????? ?? ?????? ??????????? ??? ????? ??????? ???? ?????? ???????? ???????? ????????.
UPDATE: An Egyptian journalist friend writes from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia: “Greetings from Medina, where I discovered to my absolute horror yesterday that cigarettes sales are completely banned here and in Mecca. I was wandering around to stores yesterday and I might as well have been asking where they kept the cocaine! As if I needed another reason to dislike these people….”
492 The Middle East and Asimov’s Laws of Robotics
Punditpalooza: What’s the noun of assembly for op-ed writers? “A pontification of priests” has “pontification” in it, but “priests” seems strikingly inappropriate. Some might argue that “a drift of swine” would be more like it, but I think “a glozing of taverners” is more charitable and perhaps more accurate. In any case, you can find them, and links to all the articles they wrote, mostly about the NIE, here.
Ahmadinejad and the Gulf: Marc Lynch notices what most everyone else failed to notice in our astonishment at the NIE: Mahmoud Ahmadinejad glad-handing at the GCC. Prof. Lynch is more cautious, but these two events — the release of the NIE, Ahmadinejad in the Gulf exchanging platitudes about closer ties — could together make yesterday a decisive turning point in the world’s relations with Iran. How quickly can the United States pivot? I don’t think you appease someone like Iran’s diminutive president. I suspect you bait him with his megalomania until he chokes on it or finds himself caught in a cage. Like in chess or martial arts: You show your opponent a false opening, a feigned weakness, invite him in, and use his weight against him.
Moumediene/Al Odah v. Bush: Habeas corpus and Guantanamo at the Supreme Court. Brief resource center here. Good overview of what’s at stake from The Christian Science Monitor.
Dawn Visitors: Security detained 25 members of the Muslim Brotherhood in Cairo Wednesday morning. Security also detained either 11 (Reuters) or 13 (AFP) brothers in Sohag December 4. The Brotherhood renounced violence in the 1970s.
No Fuel in Gaza: Israeli sanctions have forced all official filling stations in Gaza to close indefinitely. No fuel also means that power stations can’t generate electricity and waterworks can’t pump water. So people are living in the dark without running water. The Palestinians are asking Egypt to help.
Tighter Control of Mercenaries: Mercenaries just got even less useful. The Pentagon and the State Department signed an agreement putting tighter military controls on Blackwater. Better late than never. Used to be that they were somewhat useful because they were not accountable. At least they still make blimps. I like blimps. But I’m not sure they’re the best use of Americans’ Hard-Earned Tax Dollars.
AU-EU Summit: Egypt hosted a preliminary meeting on the Lisbon EU-AU summit. So what? In 2004-2005, a high-level meeting on Darfur and human rights in Egypt would have sounded like a pipe dream.
Russia Flexes Naval Muscles in the Mediterranean and the Atlantic.
The Wacky Men and Women of the MKO: Video of a bizarre and ultimately boring parade of the Mojahidin-e Khalq, sort of the Scientologists of the “terrorist community,” set to techno. (Thanks, Blake, and congratulations)
Robots: I’ve been chewing over this weeks-old post from Mountainrunner for a few days now, and I have to confess, I’m not any closer to knowing what to think now than I was when I first read it. Mountainrunner reports that a South African robotic cannon went berserk, killing nine.
This has implications for his research, which sounds very interesting. Take his survey on perceptions of robots in warfare simply to be asked questions you likely never will be again. Ron Arkin’s paper on “constraining lethal actions in an autonomous robotic system so that they fall within the bounds prescribed by the Laws of War and Rules of Engagement” (PDF here) is also well worth the detour.
Now, I know when I’m out of my depth, but speaking as an unarmed human being, I’m wondering if we need an NGO to campaign for Isaac Asimov’s Laws of Robotics in the same way human rights organizations campaign for the implementation of international humanitarian law. Asimov’s 3 Laws of Robotics, first postulated in Runaround (1942), are:
- A robot may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm.
- A robot must obey orders given it by human beings except where such orders would conflict with the 1st Law.
- A robot must protect its own existence as long as such protection does not conflict with the 1st or 2nd Law.
In Robots and Empire (1982), Asimov added a “Zeroth” Law, to proceed and supersede all the others: “A robot may not injure humanity or, through inaction, allow humanity to come to harm.”
Why can’t all robots be like QRIO? (Elaborate bow, Mountainrunner)
456 Saudis Execute Egyptian for ‘Sorcery’
Saudi Interior Ministry Statement (via the MFA):
Riyadh, November 02. Mustafa Ibrahim, an Egyptian, was executed here today after being convicted of practicing magic and sorcery as well as adultery and desecration of the Holy Quran by putting it in a bathroom, said a statement released by the interior ministry.
The culprit was convicted by the court, and the verdict was approved by the cassation court and the supreme judicial council.
The statement confirmed the determination of the Saudi government on combating crime and severely punishing the criminals.
RIYADH, Nov 2 (Reuters) – Saudi Arabia executed on Friday an Egyptian man convicted of “sorcery”, desecrating the Muslim holy book and adultery, the official news agency said.
The Saudi Press Agency said Mustafa Ibrahim was put to death in Riyadh in a controversial case which has drawn criticism from rights activists.
It said Ibrahim had been accused by another foreign resident of practicing magic in order to separate him from his wife and said evidence had been found in his home, including books on black magic, a candle with an incantation “to summon devils” and “foul-smelling herbs”.
“He confessed to adultery with a woman and desecrating the Koran by placing it in the bathroom,” the agency said.
Saudi media first reported the case in April, saying mosque worshippers had complained that a pharmacist in the northern desert town of Arar had placed copies of the Koran in washrooms. No accusation of adultery was mentioned at the time.
Clerics of Saudi Arabia’s austere form of Islam, known as Wahhabism, take accusations of sorcery seriously and recently held a conference in Riyadh on how to combat it. Clerics dominate the legal system, acting as judges.
“This is a sad day for justice in Saudi Arabia. This execution is a clear indicator of the medieval character of the Saudi judicial system,” said Ali al-Ahmed, a Washington-based rights activist of Saudi Arabia’s Shi’ite Muslim minority.
“This man was murdered in cold blood while the Saudi king is in Europe being touted as a reformer … This man was sentenced to death without any explicit evidence to prove what was perceived as violation of the law,” he told Reuters.
Executions are usually carried out by public beheading with a sword for murder, rape, drug smuggling and armed robbery.
Saudi authorities say they apply strict Islamic law which ensures full rights for Muslims and non-Muslims. Families of victims have the right to waive the death sentence and claim financial compensation instead.
But in an apparent acknowledgement of problems, King Abdullah last month announced a reform of the court system which the state-run government Human Rights Commission said will include putting the penal code in writing.
Friday’s execution takes the total number of executions this year to well over 120, compared with a record of 192 recorded by Reuters for all of 1995.
Hands Off Cain (www.handsoffcain.info), a Rome-based anti-death penalty group, said there were 119 executions in the first six months of 2007. Only around 38 people were executed in 2006.
I can’t seem to get on the Egyptian Foreign Ministry’s site now. Has anyone seen any public statement from them on this?
336 Obaid Fired for Op-Ed
Interesting post-script to the Washington Post op-ed by Nawaf Obaid, a consultant to the Saudi government, suggesting the Saudis might fight a proxy war with Iran in Iraq if the Americans go: He’s fired.
(Blog reaction to the offending op-ed at Arabist, Abu Aardvark, here, and everywhere)
[tags]Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Iran[/tags]
320 The Paypal Fund for Peace in Iraq
If the Americans go, advisor to the Saudi government Nawaf Obaid says, the Saudis will fight a proxy war with the Iranians over Iraq.
At first glance, that seems to be a pretty galling threat, and an incongruously incautious move for the PR-sensitive Saudis, when it appears on the pages of the Washington Post. One correspondent speculates that Cheney or someone in his entourage may have told the Saudis the United States is withdrawing from Iraq and that the Saudis had better use whatever influence they have to rein in the insurgency now, else the Sunnis will be overrun. According to this theory, Obaid’s article is the Saudis’ way of saying things won’t be that simple. Another speculates that this is a variation on the ‘Sunni Bulwark’ idea we’ve been hearing so much about lately (because supporting Sunni mujahideen against an enemy state has always worked out so well for the United States in the past). Yet another predicts that this would lead to an arms-dealers’ bonanza for the next 10-20 years and the eventual breakup of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. “How do I become a Shia?” he jokes. Everyone on this little email discussion seems to agree that this is A Very Bad Idea.
Read the article. Other theories welcome.
In any case, I think I have the solution: I’ll take out a Paypal account. Saudis, Iranians, expat Baathists: rather than buying guns for pissed-off Iraqis, send those petrodollars this way. Americans: what are you spending on Iraq? Eleven million dollars an hour? Send it here. Let’s see how long the fighting lasts without a fresh supply of ammunition.
[tags]Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Iran, United States, Cheney[/tags]
258 While We’re Picking on Gulfis…
After another summer watching khaleegis slumming in Cairo, I figure that, like Flava-Flav, “I got a right to be hostile:”
[tags]Saudi Arabia, women, niqab[/tags]
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