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Guelma qui subit des températures extrêmes en ce quatorzième jour du mois de Ramadhan, vit une autre vague de chaleur.
Une canicule sévit depuis ce vendredi 9 juin, avec une température maximale relevée à midi se situant entre 35 et 36 degrés à l’ombre, selon les services de la météo, et promet d’augmenter encore dans les quatre jours qui viennent. Premier point chaud, donc, de la vague caniculaire annoncée et qui frappe cette semaine Guelma, qui n’est plus qu’une cite «morte», où les riverains ont déserté ce vendredi matin, rues, commerces et même les marchés des fruits et légumes.
Le quotidien des Guelmis en cette journée du mois sacré est donc bouleversé. La cité est quasi déserte mais la circulation automobile est très fluide, signe que les Guelmis se sont réfugiés chez eux ou bien dans les coins ombragés guettant les moindres bouffées d’air. La veille, les ventes d’eau minérale se sont multipliées, selon certains commerçants de la ville. Même constat pour les artisans d’entretien des appareils d’air conditionné qui ont connu un regain d’activité.
Cette vague de chaleur est malvenue, notamment pour les jeûneurs vulnérables mais aussi pour les candidats au baccalauréat qui entament les épreuves aujourd’hui.
Les spécialistes des services de prévention générale ont recommandé d’éviter les déplacements inutiles notamment pour les personnes âgées et les malades chroniques. Ces derniers ayant donné l’alerte dès l’annonce de cette canicule précisent qu’«il y a un risque de décès liés à l’hyperthermie», mais «si on applique les règles de prévention, on peut éviter ces complications dramatiques». En revanche, aucun problème majeur de santé n’a été signalé. Mais «les différents services des urgences des structures de santé de la wilaya ont enregistré une augmentation du nombre de patients présentant des symptômes ayant un rapport direct avec les fortes chaleurs et le jeûne, et certains se sont déplacés pour avoir des conseils», a expliqué un infirmier urgentiste dans une structure hospitalière de la wilaya.
«Les éléments de la Protection civile des différentes unités de la wilaya sont intervenus à plusieurs reprises pour des départs de feu, ainsi que pour des malaises et des déshydratations, survenus chez des personnes âgées», a indiqué une source proche de la Protection civile de la wilaya.

Des centaines d’étudiants de l’université d’El Affroun, dans la wilaya de Blida, s’affairent, chaque jour, à la recherche de restos du cœur pour manger à l’heure du ftour. Cette préférence pour les restos du cœur par rapport à la cuisine de leur campus est justifiée par la qualité et le goût des repas qui y sont servis.
De ce fait, ils bousculent, à leur corps défendant, les nécessiteux pour partager avec eux les repas du ftour, car, disent-ils, les plats servis dans les réfectoires de leur université sont loin d’égaler ceux des restos du cœur.
Pis, affirment-ils, ils ne sentent même pas l’odeur de la chorba ou autres plats réservés pour le mois de ramadhan, alors que, ajoutent-ils, de gros moyens sont déployés par l’Etat pour leur garantir des menus dignes du mois sacré. Ces étudiants, obligés de rester éloignés de leurs parents en raison de leur préparation aux examens de rattrapage ou au mémoire de fin d’année, ressentent cette nostalgie de l’ambiance familiale d’où leur proportion à la recherche de saveur qui leur rappelle les plats préparés par leurs mamans.
Sur un autre plan, ces étudiants auraient souhaité que le directeur des œuvres universitaires partage avec eux, ne serait-ce qu’une fois, les plats offerts au dîner du f’tour, pour qu’il prenne conscience du calvaire vécu par ces derniers, surtout qu’ils prennent un grand risque en quittant l’université pour se diriger à la ville d’El Affroun dans le but de trouver mieux.
Pour faire éclater leur colère quant à cet état de fait, certains étudiants utilisent les réseaux sociaux où ils dénoncent cette situation. Quelques-uns sont allés jusqu’à demander au ministère de l’Enseignement supérieur l’envoi d’une commission d’enquête pour évaluer la souffrance des étudiants durant ce mois de Ramadhan.

Sept (07) narcotrafiquants ont été arrêtés et une quantité de kif traité s’élevant à 127 kilogrammes a été saisie samedi par les éléments de la Gendarmerie nationale, a indiqué dimanche un communiqué du ministère de la Défense nationale (MDN).

« Dans le cadre de la lutte contre la contrebande et la criminalité organisée, des éléments de la Gendarmerie nationale ont arrêté, le 10 juin 2017 à Oran, Nâama et Tlemcen/2 RM, sept (07) narcotrafiquants et saisi une quantité de kif traité s’élevant à 127  kilogrammes, tandis que des Gardes-frontières ont saisi 9500 unités de cigarettes de différentes marques à Tlemcen », a précisé la même source.

A Bordj Badji Mokhtar/6 RM, un détachement de l’Armée nationale populaire a intercepté 5 contrebandiers et saisi un camion, un véhicule tout-terrain, 18 kilogrammes de kif traité et 3.000 litres de carburants.

Par ailleurs à Annaba/5 RM, des éléments des Garde-côtes ont déjoué une tentative d’émigration clandestine de 13 personnes à bord d’une embarcation de construction artisanale, tandis que 24 immigrants clandestins de différentes nationalités ont été appréhendés à Tamanrasset, Ghardaïa et Tlemcen, a relevé la même source.

Welcome to the twilight zone of foreign policy and geopolitics where facts and fiction are inseparable and alliance formation is ever more elusive. In a tweet sent out early on Monday morning June 5th, the Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced: “Protecting national security from threats of terrorism and extremism, Saudi Arabia has decided to sever diplomatic and consular relations with the State of Qatar.”

The official statement accused Qatar of supporting “various terrorist and sectarian groups aimed at destabilizing the region, including the Muslim Brotherhood group, Daesh (ISIS), and Al-Qaeda, promoting the ethics and plans of these groups through its media (Al-Jazeera)”. The charge seems hyperbolic if not dubious.

While the diplomatic discontent between Saudi Arabia and Qatar has been written on the wall since the Arab Spring, it caught foreign policy experts in the Middle East and the West by surprise. Saudi Arabia has assembled a coalition that include UAE, Bahrain, Egypt and few others that are less important politically and economically to join in an effort to squeeze Qatar into submission. They simultaneously cut their relationships with Qatar and denied that tiny state any access to their sea, land and airspace. A significant amount of Qatar’s food import comes through Saudi Arabia and this being the holy month of Ramadan it could have severe consequence on the former’s food supply.

International Reaction

While the diplomatic dominoes were falling one after the other, the Pentagon, via its military Central Command, has issued a statement confirming that there was “no plans to change our posture in Qatar,” in reference to the US military base and troops stationed in that country. On the other hand, Avigdor Lieberman, Israel’s Defense Minister went public with his nation’s enthusiasm: “There is no doubt that this opens very many possibilities of cooperation in the struggle against terror”.

Meanwhile, Kuwait and Turkey have offered diplomatic intervention and urged all parties to de-escalate and exercise restraint. The Emir of Kuwait has been busying himself with ‘shuttle diplomacy’.

So, what is driving this issue, and why now? The possible answers might not please all parties.

Chameleons In The Desert

Multilateral diplomatic divorces of this nature are not something that occur haphazardly. If it is a single motive it would have to be a multifaceted one. And since the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) is the epicenter of Arab oil wealth, it is fair to conclude that there are other actors, interest groups and nations whose hands are not always visible.

Of course, each actor who is part of this coalition is there to gain something; some of them might have short-term interests while others are motivated by the strategic outcome or the long-term.

The HackGate

The recent public release of hacked emails of UAE Ambassador to the US Yousef Al-Otaiba raise many questions and implicate UAE along with some former US officials as a co-conspirators in a multiparty effort to isolate Qatar.

Virtually the entire agenda of a two day conference that took place a year ago between Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD)—a neocon think tank—and high level UAE government officials seemed as a deliberate effort to project Qatar as a rogue nation that finances and hosts “terrorist organizations”. Within 24hrs after since the hacked emails appeared in the public domain, the operation to sever relationship with Qatar was in full force.

Saudi Arabia, UAE, Egypt and Bahrain share four particular interests:

First, to uproot the Muslim Brotherhood as they have what’s generally considered as a legitimate moral grievance per el-Sisi led coup in Egypt and the subsequent atrocities of public massacres, mass incarceration, etc. And the brotherhood’s various institutions, expertise and intellectual capacity present to the coalition threats that are more consequential than that of ISIS and al-Qaida.

Second, to isolate Iran to prevent it from broadening its political influence in the Middle East, especially in Yemen and Syria.

Third, to seriously look into the split, or the two-Yemen solution since the Yemen war is becoming a bloody quagmire.

Fourth, to undermine Qatar’s rising political clout with blockade and negative campaign especially since 2022 World Cup could elevate its international profile and influence.

‘Hiding In The Shadows’

Erik Prince of the infamous Blackwater is a close friend of Sheik Mohamed bin Zayed al-Nahyan the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and he has an ‘intimate relationship’ with the US President Donald Trump. According to journalist Jeremy Scahill, Erik Prince is the de facto Trump adviser on military and intelligence matters. He “was with Donald Trump and his family at Trump Tower on election night in November.” Erik Prince is also the brother of Trump’s loyal friend, hefty campaign donor, and Secretary of Education, Betsy Devos. There is no RealityTV that can outdo this reality.

As someone who considers conventional military apparatuses to advance geopolitical interests both costly and obsolete and that paramilitary options could adequately fill their roles and achieve their objectives, Prince sees Trump’s myopic world view and rhetorical attack on Qatar as a valuable opportunity to rearrange US Qatar military partnership. For Prince and company, this is an opportunity to carve out his enterprise a much broader role. Prince and UAE partnership already has contracts in Somalia (Bosaaso Seaport) and Somaliland (Berbera Seaport).

The Trump Factor

In late May, at the Riyadh Summit, Donald Trump had addressed 50 Arab and Muslim leaders. In hindsight, Donald Trump clearly had four objectives. Two of them were for his political base and the Israel and Saudi lobbies: Escalate the anti-Iran rhetoric to pave the way for US pullout of the Iran deal negotiated by former President Barack Obama. Further isolate the Muslim Brotherhood to ultimately place that outfit in the international terrorist list.

The other objectives were to dominate the headlines to turn mainstream media away from the scandalous saga of the Trump presidency, ongoing investigation and Senate hearings implying illegal shenanigans.

And lastly, to hand the Deep State whom he is convinced is actively conspiring against him a payback punch by shaking the foundation on the US military arrangement with Qatar and thus the American grand strategy.

Any shake up in the current arrangement will make space for paramilitary entrepreneurs such as Erik Prince to expand their sphere of influence and indeed business. The danger in this option is that these private paramilitaries are accountable to none.

Trump wasted no time in taking credit. In his own special way and through his favorite platform, Trump praised Saudi Arabia and the Covfefe Coalition with these two historic tweets:

During my recent trip to the Middle East I stated that there can no longer be funding of Radical Ideology. Leaders pointed to Qatar – look!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 6, 2017

And

…extremism, and all reference was pointing to Qatar. Perhaps this will be the beginning of the end to the horror of terrorism!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 6, 2017

Notice the contradiction between Trump’s tweets and the Pentagon statement quoted earlier.

In these times of uncertainty when a number of Middle East states have been collapsing one after another, Qatar has been making sound strategic decisions. It is the richest nation in the world in terms of per capita and is the standard bearer of Arab progress. It has press freedoms that standout in the Arab world as media in countries such as Egypt and Lebanon have been growing flagrantly jingoistic or sectarian. Also, in 2022 it is set to step up to the global center stage as it becomes the first Arab and first Muslim nation to ever host the FIFA World Cup.

This enviable position has emboldened Qatar to act independently when it comes to its own self-interest and maintaining strategic partnerships with Iran and Turkey—the two main contenders against Saudi Arabia’s quest for Middle East leadership. Though the Kingdom has zero tolerance for ‘insubordination’ and criticism, sustainability of its current stance is very questionable.

When the dust settles down, geopolitics will supersede the Kingdom’s neighborhood politics and traditional sword dance.

The post The ‘Covfefe’ Coalition to Squeeze Qatar appeared first on Foreign Policy Blogs.

L’équipe du Bénin a pris les 3 points de la victoire face à la Gambie, ce 11 juin 2017 à Cotonou, en éliminatoires de la CAN 2019. Une victoire 1-0 des Béninois avant d’aller jouer au Togo, avant mars 2018.

U.S. Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis and Tomomi Inada, the minister of defense for Japan, during the IISS 16th Asia Security Summit in Singapore on June 3, 2017. (DOD/Air Force Staff Sgt. Jette Carr)

The Shangri-La Dialogue concluded last weekend in Singapore, marked by sharp differences between Beijing and Washington over the South China Sea and Taiwan. Hailed by its sponsor, the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS), as the most important regular gathering of defense professionals in the Asia-Pacific region, the forum (previously known as the Asia Security Summit) remains the only annual meeting for defense ministers from across the Asia-Pacific region according to its website.

Since its launch in 2002, the Dialogue has attempted to build confidence and foster security cooperation among Asia’s defense and security policymakers. On Sunday, however, Beijing expressed strong dissatisfaction with some countries both inside and outside the region, who “have been bent on going against the trend, making repeated erroneous remarks, ignoring the facts and confusing black from white with entirely ulterior motives”. The remarks by Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying were in reference to “irresponsible remarks” made by U.S. Secretary of Defense James Mattis and Japanese Defense Minister Tomomi Inada.

In his speech at the forum, Mattis had alluded to China’s activities in the South China Sea, stating “We oppose countries militarizing artificial islands and enforcing excessive maritime claims unsupported by international law”. Inada, in her remarks, also mirrored Mattis’ remarks, saying “In the East and South China Seas, we continue to witness unprovoked, unilateral attempts to alter the status quo based on assertions incompatible with existing international norms”.

In her regular press conference on June 4, Hua Chunying disputed their remarks, stating “China builds relevant facilities on islands and reefs of the Nansha Islands for the purpose of improving the working and living conditions for people stationed there, better defending its sovereignty and performing China’s international obligations and responsibilities. It is totally within China’s sovereignty to deploy necessary defense facilities on its own territory. It is exercising the self-preservation and self-defense rights that a sovereign state is entitled to, and has nothing to do with “militarization”.

Unfortunately, some defense ministers at the forum would disagree with China’s claim of sovereignty over all the Spratly islands and their waters, which are contested among Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, Taiwan (ROC), the Philippines and Vietnam. Others would disagree with her definition of “militarization”, including the Merriam Webster dictionary, which defines “militarize”: 1) to give a military character to; 2) to equip with military forces and defenses; and 3) to adapt for military use.

According to AMTI, China “appears to have built significant point-defense capabilities, in the form of large anti-aircraft guns and probable close-in weapons systems (CIWS), at each of its outposts in the Spratly Islands.”

This latest refusal to acknowledge its militarization of occupied artificial islands bodes ill for any reasonable dialogue between Washington and Beijing – and will no doubt add to the distrust and discord between China the other littoral nations which claim features in the South China Sea.

The post Mattis and Inada Draw Fire at Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore appeared first on Foreign Policy Blogs.

La presse en parle rarement, les habitants y manifestent pourtant quotidiennement par centaines,

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Les forces spéciales somaliennes, appuyées par une frappe américaine, ont détruit dimanche un camp d'entraînement des islamistes shebab à environ 300 kilomètres au sud-ouest

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L’Etablissement public de transport urbain et suburbain d’Alger (ETUSA) renforcera à partir du dimanche 11 juin en cours ses navettes bus en direction des Sablettes afin de répondre à la demande en matière de déplacement dans la capitale durant le Ramadhan, a-t-elle indiqué dans un communiqué.

Ainsi, les navettes bus seront renforcées avec comme points de départs les stations de la Place du 1er mai, Bachdjerah, la Place des Martyrs,  Grande-Poste, Ben Aknoun et d’El Harrach vers ce lieu de loisirs.

Le premier départ après la rupture du jeûne (f’tour) est prévu à 21h, ajoute le transporteur public urbain d’Alger.

Pour rappel, en réponse à la forte demande en matière de transport durant le mois de Ramadhan, L’Etusa a établi un aménagement horaire qui permet à ses usagers de se déplacer sur l’ensemble du réseau de la capitale habituellement desservie avec un service de nuit spécial.

Les banlieues Est, Ouest et Sud de la capitale, à savoir les secteurs de Dergana, de Zeralda et de Hamadi, sont également concernées par ce programme.

Pendant les jours ouvrables (du dimanche à jeudi), le réseau bus de l’Etusa couvre un total de 90 lignes régulières dont 25 du réseau affrètement.

Ainsi, le service Jour est programmé sur une plage horaire avec un premier départ à 5h30 et le dernier départ à 19h05.

Quant au service de Nuit, le premier départ après la rupture du jeûne est programmé à 21h tandis que le dernier départ est prévu à 2h00 du matin.

Durant le week-end (vendredi et samedi), le réseau est renforcé par trois (3) autres lignes qui sont réajustées en fonction des besoins du trafic réel.

Following the twin terror attacks in Iran that killed at least 16 people, ISIS claimed responsibility for them on its affiliated website and the Iranian regime blames the Saudis, whom they claim support ISIS.

However, more than one Middle Eastern dissident stated in exclusive interviews that perhaps what happened in the Iranian Parliament building and in Khomeini’s mausoleum was an inside job perpetrated by the Iranian regime. According to Iranian human rights activist Kaveh Taheri, “This is likely to be closer to the reality if you focus on the tragic events.”

“It could be completely staged,” Iranian journalist Mohsen Behzad Karimi related. “There is a big chance due to the security measures and the wrong date. If it was an ISIS attack, they would do it two days earlier, when thousands of people were commemorating Khomeini’s death in the same place. In addition, penetrating the parliament is impossible. There are three layers of security.” As one of the victims related, “We are not allowed to bring a pen into the Iranian Parliament but the attackers easily fired at us in the building.”

Iranian dissident Shabnam Assadollahi added that the attackers were dressed as women wearing chadors and they shot most of the victims in the legs, which is not ISIS style terrorism: “Have you ever seen ISIS members shooting at people like that? They create horror in public areas for ISIS creates fear among ordinary people. They don’t shoot in the legs. They behead people. They don’t go to parliaments. I believe it was a plan to create victimhood.”

Syrian Kurdish dissident Sherkoh Abbas concurred, stressing that the Iranian regime wanted to portray Sunnis in a negative light especially after the GCC meeting on the Iranian threat and Trump’s meeting with the Saudis.

Middle East scholar Robert Sklaroff stressed that Trump developed a strategy in recent times to rid the world of ISIS without empowering Iran: “And that is why he has embedded Americans with Kurdish forces attacking Raqqa for it is impossible to be a player without having placed pieces on the board.” He added that in recent times, the Sunni Gulf Arab countries are more pro-NATO than pro-Ankara and they are very hostile towards Iran, which is why these countries are increasingly cooperating with the US.

According to Abbas, all of these developments are not positive for the Islamic Republic: “Now the Iranians are going to the next step, which is the GCC and other Sunni Arabs are behind horrible terror acts within Iran to make themselves as a victim and to distance themselves from ISIS.” He implied that this is an Iranian strategy to derail America’s relations with these countries. In addition, Abbas argued that the twin attacks can be used to justify Iran’s presence in both Syria and Iraq as well as to crack down further upon their own people: “When you have a terror attack, people prefer security over freedom and democracy.”

Aside from the issues mentioned above, these twin attacks in Iran occurred at a time when the Iraqi Kurds are preparing a referendum on independence that can suffer as a buffer against Iranian aggression in the region and Abbas noted that there is an alliance between Russia, Iran and Turkey to thwart Kurdish national aspirations: “They agreed on a safe zone in Syria with the blessing of Assad. That tells you there is an understanding and agreement. This is a marriage of convenience. The Kurds are in the middle and are targeted by Iran and Turkey. The twin attacks gives them legitimacy to stay in Iraq and Syria to thwart Kurdish national aspirations. Before, they had no reason for there were no attacks on them.”

According to Karimi, even if ISIS was responsible, they had to have been given a free pass by the regime to implement the terror attack: “They let it happen. It was a very good moment. It happened on the very day that the US Senate was to decide on Iranian Revolutionary Guard terrorist activity. At the same time, there were a lot of activities going on about Iran in the EU. It was the right moment from the Iranian regimes point of view to victimize themselves and to show the world that they are also under attack.”

Abbas argued that some of ISIS is compromised by the Iranian regime: “ISIS is not a homogenous group. There are ISIS groups that you can call on as needed. Many of those ISIS groups are Syrian military and intelligence officials. These staged things occurred in the past in Syria in order to coerce Kurds, Christians and others in order to submit that Assad is their only protector so they can’t shift to any other alliance.”

In some corners, the Iranian regime clearly benefited from these twin attacks, giving credit to claims that the twin attacks were an inside job. Canada’s Foreign Minister mourned the two attacks in Iran but she did not condemn Iran for assisting the Taliban and deporting ISIS to Afghanistan. Furthermore, Senator Bernie Sanders proclaimed on the US Senate floor: “Let us tell the people of Iran that while we have serious disagreements with them on a number of issues that today when they are mourning and dealing with the shock of a terrorist attack, today is not the day to pass this legislation.”

Assadollahi stressed that as the Cinema Rex Arson Attack demonstrated in 1978, the Iranian regime has no problem committing an act of terror as an inside job and blaming it on others. In the Cinema Rex Arson Attack, which killed at least 470 Iranians, the mullah’s blamed Savak (the Shah’s Secret Police) for the attack but later on, it was proven that the Islamists who now make up the present Iranian regime were responsible for it: “They don’t have any problem terrorizing the nation. They don’t have any love for our country. Their interest is Shia political Islam.”

According to Taheri, Iran’s Supreme Leader proclaimed that “terrorist fumbling with firecrackers won’t impact the Iranian nations’ willpower” yet the Iranian regime has not even declared a public day of mourning in solidarity with the victims. As an Iranian dissident, he declared: “We stand firmly with the people of Iran and will advocate for their right to freedom and true democracy. Violence and terrorist acts against the people of Iran must not be tolerated and shall be condemned unequivocally.”

In conclusion, Abbas proclaimed: “If the Arab GCC are serious about the Iranian threat, now is the time to put Arab nationalism behind them and to view the Kurds as allies to prevent the emerging threats of Iran and Turkey. Turkey is interfering in Syria. The Turkish Parliament approved sending its military to Qatar. Iran is supporting Qatar. It is interesting what is going on in that area. They need to view the Kurds and Israel not as a threat.”

“It is easier to win by supporting an independent Kurdistan, Balochistan, and Azeristan. It won’t cost a lot of money like wars. Then you don’t need a few hundred troops to fight the battle. You let the people there fight for themselves and naturally, you benefit from that for fighting Iran even with a few thousand troops won’t defeat Iran. Saddam tried and failed. Therefore, let the minorities do it for you.”

The post Middle Eastern Dissidents: Iranian Regime Responsible for Twin Attacks appeared first on Foreign Policy Blogs.

Depuis 15 jours, les manifestations se multiplient à Hoceïma, dans le Rif, pour réclamer la libération des leaders d'un mouvement de contestation. En soutien, un grand rassemblement a eu lieu, dimanche, dans la capitale marocaine.

Les épreuves du baccalauréat ont coïncidé cette année avec le mois sacré du Ramadhan. Toutefois, les conditions climatiques ne semblent pas affecter le moral des candidats aux épreuves de fin d’année scolaire 2016-2017, notamment les candidats au bac. En effet, contrairement aux années précédentes, parents d’élèves et candidats reconnaissent unanimement que le climat est clément en ce début de mois. Selon un communiqué de la sûreté de wilaya de Laghouat, en sus des rondes programmées et inopinées, des éléments de la police ont été déployés devant l’ensemble des centres d’examen et des numéros verts vulgarisés à grande échelle. De même pour les éléments de la Protection civile qui se sont déployés sur le terrain pour faire face aux risques de malaises pouvant affecter les candidats. Une tournée au niveau de quelques centres d’examen nous a permis de constater que les salles sont climatisées. Ils sont 7 955 élèves, toutes filières confondues, concernés par ces épreuves pour tenter de décrocher le sésame permettant l’entrée à l’université. Ils se sont rendus dans 58 centres d’examen retenus à travers le territoire de la wilaya, dont 7 nouveaux centres au nord de Laghouat pour les candidats libres. Parmi ces candidats, 8 601, soit 51,95 %, passeront l’examen en qualité de candidats libres. Le nombre de filles candidates libres s’élève à 3 341 filles soit un taux de 38,84%. Pour la majorité des candidats aux épreuves du bac, s’agissant d’un examen national, il est normal qu’il n’y aura pas de mesures exceptionnelles pour les régions du Sud du fait que le même programme soit étudié durant l’année dans l’ensemble des établissements scolaires de la République. D’où les mêmes sujets d’examen sont décidés pour tous les candidats. Par ailleurs, inquiets pour l’avenir de leur progéniture, pour cause des retards cumulés dans les programmes scolaires en raison des grèves enregistrées durant l’année scolaire, les parents d’élèves craignent les résultats catastrophiques enregistrés par la wilaya de Laghouat dans un passé récent. Plusieurs parents d’élèves approchés par Liberté n’ont pas caché leur déception quant aux contre-performances que continue à enregistrer leur wilaya en matière d’enseignement. Pour beaucoup d’entre eux, le mal de l’éducation dans cette wilaya du sud du pays est à chercher, d’une part, au sein même des services de la direction de l’éducation qui nécessitent une refonte en profondeur et, d’autre part, à la nécessité de hisser le niveau de l’encadrement administratif des lycées. Car, il faut dire qu’à Laghouat, il y a des signes avant-coureurs qui renseignent sur un secteur stratégique qu’on sait du reste déjà malade. La réalité est que la majorité de ses établissements scolaires présente des déficits énormes en encadrement de qualité, ce qui se répercute inévitablement sur la qualité de l’enseignement. Lesquels déficits sont la cause principale des contre-performances enregistrées lors des examens de fin d’année.

L’équipe de la République centrafricaine s’est installée en tête du groupe H en compagnie de la Guinée, en éliminatoires de la Coupe d’Afrique des nations 2019. Les Centrafricains ont battu les Rwandais 2-1, ce 11 juin 2017 à Bangui, durant la première journée de la phase de groupes.

Zakat El-Fitr pour le mois de Ramadhan a été fixée cette année à 100 DA, a annoncé dimanche le ministère des Affaires religieuses et des wakfs.

Le ministère a appelé dans un communiqué à s`acquitter de Zakat El-Fitr,  précisant que sa valeur avait été fixée cette année à 100 DA, soit un  « Sa`a » (une mesure) de nourriture équivalant à 2 kg.

Le ministère a, par ailleurs, indiqué avoir chargé les imams des mosquées de procéder, en collaboration avec les comités religieux des mosquées à travers l`ensemble du territoire national, à la collecte de Zakat El-Fitr à compter du 15ème jour du mois de Ramadhan en vue de la distribuer aux nécessiteux, un ou deux jours avant Aïd El-Fitr ».

L’Algérie lance la 2éme campagne de collecte de  sang, coïncidant avec le mois du ramadhan, indique dimanche dans un  communiqué, l’Agence nationale du sang (ANS) qui mène diverses  manifestations de sensibilisation à travers le territoire national sur  l’importance de ce geste « vital ».

L’Algérie, qui célèbre le 14 juin de chaque année la Journée mondiale du  don de sang, lance la 2éme campagne de collecte de sang en partenariat avec  la Direction générale de Sûreté nationale (DGSN) et impliquant de nombreux  partenaires de « façon étroite » tels que le ministère des Affaires religieuses et des Wakfs, diverses administrations, entreprises publiques  et privées, les opérateurs de téléphone mobile, la Télévision algérienne,  les Radios, la presse écrite et le milieu associatif, précise la même  source.

Qualifiant ces partenaires d’incontournables » de cette noble cause,  l’Agence nationale du sang convie l’ensemble des médias à couvrir cette  Journée afin de « contribuer à l’instauration d’une culture du don de sang  dans notre société ».

Cette seconde campagne vise à « sensibiliser nos concitoyennes et nos concitoyens à l’importance du don de sang d’une part et d’autre part de rendre un vibrant hommage à tous les donneurs bénévoles », précise l’ANS,  rappelant que le thème retenu par l’Organisation mondiale de santé (OMS)  pour cette année est : « Le don de sang dans les situations d’urgence » et le  slogan « Donneur du sang. Donner maintenant. Donner souvent »,  Dans ce cadre, et en coordination avec les directions de la Santé et de la  Population à travers les structures de transfusion sanguine et en  partenariat avec la Fédération algérienne de donneurs de sang, le mouvement  associatif ainsi que les différents partenaires, l’ANS organise diverses  manifestations à travers le territoire national.

Il s’agit notamment, des portes ouvertes de sensibilisation, collectes de  sang, cérémonies honorifiques au profit des donneurs de sang, conférence de  presse, précise l’organisateur, notant que la célébration de cette journée  coïncide avec le mois sacré de Ramadhan.

En outre, et pour la première fois, au niveau de la wilaya d’Alger (tous  les vendredis au bastion 23), une collecte est organisée sous le thème  « Vendredi du partage ».

La première campagne effectuée du 28 au 30 mars 2017 au sein des  structures de la Sûreté nationale a permis de collecter près de 6000 poches  de sang au profit des patients, est-il rappelé.

Durant le mois de Ramadhan 2016, 43 770 poches de sang ont été collectées  travers les 217 structures de transfusion sanguine réparties à l’échelle  nationale. 649 080 candidats se sont présentés et un total de 557 007  poches de sang ont été collectées, soit une augmentation de 3.2% par rapport à l’année 2015.

« Malgré ce chiffre appréciable, ce dernier reste insuffisant vu qu’un  tiers (1/3) des dons provient encore de donneurs de compensation ou  familiaux aussi les deux-tiers (2/3) des dons collectés sont réalisés en  site fixe et un tiers (1/3) en collecte mobile », déplore l’agence.

Tout en relevant que le nombre de dons pour 1000 habitants est un  « indicateur de la disponibilité » en sang, elle fait savoir qu’en Algérie,  le taux est de 13,92 dépassant le taux moyen de 11,7 des pays à revenu  intermédiaire. Les hommes étant plus nombreux que les femmes à recourir à  ce geste, soit 78% des donneur alors que la pyramide des âges de donneurs  révèle un niveau élevé chez les personnes âgées entre 27-36 (32%), 18-27  ans (27%), 36-45 ans (25%), et un niveau bas chez les personnes âgées entre  46-54 ans (11%) et 55-66 ans (5%).

En 2016, la mobilisation durant la Journée mondiale du don de sang a  permis de collecter 8 212 dons de sang et 10 039 poches de sang  lors de la  Journée maghrébine du don de sang, célébrée le 30 mars 2017 .

President Trump is setting up a “war room” to counter the Russia probe. With all of the talk about Russian government tactics for meddling in Western democratic processes, I thought it would be interesting to tease out what the Russians might do in such a war room.

There are several timely monographs detailing Russian tactics in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE), including from the Center for Strategic and International Studies, Jamestown Foundation, the journal of Comparative Strategies, and Yale Press. Together, these pieces highlight three tactics that Russia might use if it were running Trump’s new war room:  high-level pressure, information dissemination and persuasion, and revisionism.

We have already witnessed high-level pressure in the form of Trump asking investigators in federal agencies to halt a line of query and pledge loyalty to the president, or be fired. The White House could next offer deceptive interactions, such as pretending to support an investigation by slowly offering information, while at the same time trying to subvert it.

This has been used by Russia in regard to conflict resolution measures in separatist and war torn parts of Eurasia. By pretending to be for peace, Russia has been able to delay resolving conflicts, while aiding one side, or sometimes both.

Meanwhile, the White House could find an otherwise legitimate actor to apply pressure on members of the investigation teams. This could include carrots, such as favors, or sticks, such as the collection and threat of dissemination of personally embarrassing information or threatening to support a politician’s opponent in the next race. This has done by Russia to gain leverage over political outcomes and business assets in CEE.

Another means to apply pressure could be a significant increase in White House staff allegiant to the president. Tens more people working the case for the White House could substantially strengthen their collection of information and abilities to counter information. Since Putin came to power, Russian embassy staff in every CEE capital has increased, including hundreds of intelligence agents working across Europe. This has strengthened counterespionage efforts, as well as recruitment.

The Trump team could tap into a growing admiration of the ‘strongman’ Putin and his way of governing.  Among broader society, there is already a sympathetic base that does not like the ‘Russia bashing’ by the liberal media.

A counter effort to recruit businesspeople, journalists, academics, and other public figures in the U.S. to speak more positively about ties to Russia could take place. Russia has covert and overt funds for this and has managed to retain a list of pro-Russian voices throughout Europe.

The Trump Administration could also infiltrate and pressure civil society in America by creating a fund to cultivate divides, and then offer mediation services, all the while recruiting subversives. By manipulating societal tensions, the government and society will turn their attention to addressing this issue rather than the Russia probe. In Russia’s case, this has included encouraging campaigns for minorities, advising on separatist tactics, and even arming groups in third countries.

The second tactic—sophisticated information dissemination—has become a hallmark of Russia in CEE, including the buying up of media outlets.

More recently, Russia’s toolkit includes cyber, trolling, and propaganda dissemination combined with actions, or “active measures,” such as disinformation campaigns, media manipulation (particularly on political and public opinion), media creation, or spreading confusion and fear, i.e. “psychological operations.” The White House has several loyal media outlets that could ramp up their operations.

Ideologically, the White House could claim victimization by creating an alternative story behind the “witch hunt” on Russia. Russia has gone after foreign funded NGOs, multinational institutions, and the media, labeling them “enemies of the state” and crippling their capability, including jailing citizens and closing down organizations.

An image of the wounded Russians at the hands of the sinful, racist, and fascist Russophobic Westerners could translate into the wounded conservative at the hands of sinful, violent, and irrational liberals.

Finally, rewriting the wrongs of history by literally revising history is a Russian tactic. According to current historical rewriting, Russia tried to join the West, but was rebuffed. So, it had no option but to create new alliances by revising borders and international alliances. In blaming ‘the other’ by revising the Obama/Clinton years as sacrificing American greatness and making America weak, the Trump Administration is righting wrongs by making relations with Russia great again.

Trump’s war room against the Russia probe, if run by the Russians, could employ the tactics of high-level pressure, information dissemination and persuasion, and revisionism. Governments in CEE, meanwhile, are taking measures to counter Russian tactics.

The first step is recognizing what is happening and mobilizing to counter it.

The second step is informing society about potential subterfuge, such as false media reports and disruptive organizations.

The third step is to strengthen government institutions and ensure they remain independent and immune from corrupt practices.

The fourth step is ensuring freedom of the press, protecting journalists from influence as well as external financing for media outlets.

Fifth and final, educational bodies must continue to check for historical accuracies and take measures to reeducate society.

Perhaps most important of these countermeasures is that we, the people, make more of an effort to discern when these tactics are being used and urge our lawmakers to take action. We face a critical point in preserving our democratic system, our freedom of the press, and our own interpretation of ourselves.

Stacy Closson is a Global Fellow with the Kennan Institute at the Wilson Center in Washington, D.C. and a Truman National Security Fellow. She lives with her family in Bismarck. Views expressed are her own.

The post President Trump’s War Room on Russia, As If Russia Were Running It appeared first on Foreign Policy Blogs.

Brett Edkins and Dr. Brzezinski in Guilin, China.

By Brett Edkins

When I first met Zbigniew Brzezinski, he was 78 years old. I was a recent college graduate looking for a job.

It was 2006, and three decades after serving as Jimmy Carter’s National Security Advisor, Dr. Brzezinski was still a giant of American foreign policy. On every major issue, diplomats, scholars, and politicians sought his opinion and strategic guidance. His long opposition to the war in Iraq was now the mainstream consensus, and it made him a sudden and surprising darling of the political left.

Sitting in his office in a brown, tufted leather chair, Dr. Brzezinski quietly reviewed my resume and transcript. I did not think I would get the job as his research assistant, so I was not too anxious. I was just excited to be meeting someone so famous. Brzezinski paused. “What happened in biochemistry?” he asked. He sounded serious. I wasn’t sure what to say. How could I explain away that terrible grade? After what seemed like a long pause, Brzezinski grinned. He was ribbing me.

Thankfully, Brzezinski hired me despite my biochemistry grade, and for two years I had a front row seat to American foreign policy.

One of my first tasks was to accompany Dr. Brzezinski to a meeting with Democratic members of the House of Representatives. A black town car with tinted windows drove us to Capitol Hill. Addressing the group, Brzezinski outlined a simple four-point approach to ending the war in Iraq. Brzezinski had an uncanny ability to speak in self-contained, perfectly constructed paragraphs. After his remarks, a few congressmen asked me to send them a copy of Brzezinski’s speech. I told them, there was no speech, no prepared remarks.

Afterwards, Nancy Pelosi ushered Brzezinski out of the building, along with former Secretary of State Madeline Albright and former NATO Supreme Allied Commander Wesley Clark, who also addressed the group. I found myself walking next to Albright and tried to make small talk. She worked for Brzezinski in the Carter White House and helped him write his memoirs, Power and Principle. Brzezinski, she told me, was the nicest boss she ever have. When they worked together, Albright never knew what to call herself, “assistant” or “research assistant,” so Brzezinski told her to use whatever title helped her get what she needed from other people. Albright said that quickly devolved into calling herself “Grand Empress of Diplomacy” or something similarly outrageous.

The next few weeks were spent editing Brzezinski’s new book, Second Chance, which assessed the foreign policies of Presidents H.W. Bush, Clinton, and W. Bush, and suggested that America had one last chance to restore its political credibility and reclaim the mantle of the world’s leading power. Brzezinski and I bickered (politely) throughout the editorial process, as I tried to make his dense, insightful prose lighter and more colloquial. Sometimes I won. Usually he won. But we both enjoyed the back-and-forth.

The book became a New York Times bestseller after Brzezinski appeared on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart. I munched on M&M’s in the studio’s green room as Brzezinski and Stewart cracked jokes and talked about the book. Brzezinski leveled some harsh criticism on President Bush for squandering the global consensus after 9/11 on a war of choice in Iraq, and for his “Manichean paranoia”—his tendency to see the world in black and white, divided us from them, and using our assumed moral superiority as an excuse to justify immoral acts.

When Dr. Brzezinski was on your side, you could ask for no better spokesman. During the Bush years, he excoriated neoconservatives for advocating the ill-conceived and historically naïve war in Iraq. “You don’t change a region by injecting a foreign army and pulverizing a state and then saying that you are, in fact, nurturing democracy,” he once said. His sharp tongue warned against expanding the conflict into Iran, as some in the administration wanted.

In October 2007, Brzezinski and I traveled to China, along with his wife Emilie, a renowned sculptress known to her friends as Muska. The Chinese held Dr. Brzezinski in high regard for his role in normalizing diplomatic relations between our countries. When Jimmy Carter was elected president in 1976, normalization was far from certain, despite the progress made under President Nixon. Brzezinski, however, was determined to make it happen. In 1978, over the objections of the State Department, he went to China to begin negotiations. By December, an agreement had been reached to establish full diplomatic ties, ending decades of estrangement and hostility and laying the foundation for what is arguably the most important bilateral relationship in the world today.

On our first full day in China, Brzezinski and I met with former President Jiang Zemin, instantly recognizable in his oversized black glasses. Jiang cheerfully told us about his exercise routine and weekly lessons in English and world history. He recounted the many Brzezinski books he had read. And he discussed Taiwan, the Iranian nuclear issue, and other global issues with Dr. Brzezinski. In the next ten days we met with the Chinese prime minister, defense minister, foreign minister, and dozens of other dignitaries and scholars.

Our Chinese hosts, mostly former military officials, took us on a whirlwind tour of the country. In Beijing, we visited the Forbidden City. Fourteen black-suited bodyguards circled Brzezinski at all times. In Guilin, we took a boat down the Li river. Our host offered us a snack of fried fishes on a stick. Quick on his toes, Dr. Brzezinski feigned a seafood allergy, and I got stuck scarfing down the little anchovies. In Zhengzhou, we toured a Buddhist temple and a provincial museum. Every night ended with a large dinner and toasts of highly-alcoholic baijiu. After one particularly extravagant ten-course meal, Brzezinski quipped, “How do you like my 1.3 billion friends?”

Meanwhile, back in the United States, the 2008 presidential campaign was heating up. In August 2007, Dr. Brzezinski became one of the first foreign policy heavyweights to endorse Barack Obama. Brzezinski even campaigned with Obama in Iowa in March 2008, introducing him for a major speech about the Iraq War, a conflict that both men opposed from the beginning.

He also used his sharp tongue to defend Obama from critics. In the midst of the Democratic nomination fight, Tucker Carlson, then of MSNBC, asked Brzezinski about Hillary Clinton’s claim that Obama had no foreign policy experience. Brzezinski let it rip: “Well I sort of don’t take that very seriously. She says she’s been to eighty countries and trips. My travel agent has been to a 150 countries and trips. That doesn’t make him qualified to be president.” Then he compared Clinton to Mamie Eisenhower. The Morning Joe crew roared with laughter, calling the critique “devastating.”

Dr. Brzezinski did not suffer fools or foolish arguments. He would listen politely, then calmly dismantle your argument until there was nothing left. As his research assistant, you had to present your work logically, carefully, and, above all, you had to be prepared for a tough cross examination.

This was excellent preparation for law school, which is where I went after my two-year stint with Dr. Brzezinski. Back when he hired me in 2006, I had a rudimentary understanding of foreign policy, but no framework for understanding the geopolitical implications or overall significance of events happening abroad. Brzezinski changed that, instilling in me a sense of realism and history.

For most, Zbigniew Brzezinski will be remembered as a foreign policy great—a man who helped end the Cold War, establish diplomatic ties with China, and negotiate peace between enemies in the Middle East. For me, he was an example to emulate, to strive for. He was also a genuinely fun person to work for. I will miss him.

 Brett Edkins is an attorney and a Forbes contributing writer living in New York City. He graduated from Yale Law School in 2011.

The post Remembering My Mentor Zbigniew Brzezinski appeared first on Foreign Policy Blogs.

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