Grand imam of Egypt's Al-Azhar calls polygamy an 'injustice'

Yahoo – AFP, March 2, 2019

Sheikh Ahmed al-Tayeb, grand imam of Egypt's famed Al-Azhar institution, said
polygamy was the result of a "lack of understanding of the Koran" (AFP Photo/
Vincenzo PINTO)

Cairo (AFP) - The grand imam of Egypt's famed Al-Azhar institution, Sheikh Ahmed al-Tayeb, has described polygamy as an "injustice" for women.

"Polygamy is often an injustice to women and children," said the influential cleric, in quotes published on Twitter late Friday by Al-Azhar, Sunni Islam's most prestigious seat of learning.

The practice is the result of "a lack of understanding of the Koran and the tradition of the Prophet," he added.

Tayeb also addressed the issue in a weekly Friday television show, telling viewers: "Those who say that marriage must be polygamous are all wrong".

He added the Koran says that in order for a Muslim man to have multiple wives, he "must obey conditions of fairness -- and if there is not fairness it is forbidden to have multiple wives".

After the grand imam's comments sparked fervent debate on social media, Al-Azhar on Saturday clarified that he did not call for polygamy to be banned.

In his Friday comments, Tayeb called more broadly for the way women's issues are addressed to be revamped.

"Women represent half of society, if we don't care for them it's like we are walking on one foot only," he said in the remarks published on Twitter.

The grand imam's approach was welcomed by Egypt's National Council for Women.

"The Muslim religion honours women -- it brought justice and numerous rights which didn't exist before," said the Council's president Maya Morsi.

Egypt Copts hold Christmas mass under tight security

Yahoo – AFP, January 6, 2018

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi speaks near Coptic Pope Tawadros II (L)
during a Christmas Eve mass at the Nativity of Christ Cathedral in Cairo on
January 6, 2018 (AFP Photo/KHALED DESOUKI)

Nativity of Christ Cathedral (Egypt) (AFP) - Egypt's Coptic Orthodox Christians held a Christmas Eve mass on Saturday at a massive new cathedral east of Cairo amid tight security after a year of deadly jihadist attacks on the community.

President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi gave a short speech before the liturgy, which was led by Pope Tawadros II, wishing the Christians a merry Christmas and telling them that the country would prevail over the jihadists.

"You are our family, you are from us, we are one and no one will divide us," he said to ululations and chants from some of the congregants and visitors.

Police had set up barricades outside the cathedral in a new administrative capital Egypt is building east of Cairo.

The cathedral, Sisi said, was a "message to the world, a message of peace and a message of love".

Police had tightened security around the country's churches ahead of services following a spate of attacks that began in 2016.

More than 100 Christians have been killed in the violence, including a shooting at a church south of Cairo just last week claimed by the Islamic State group.

Since the military ousted divisive Islamist president Mohamed Morsi in 2013, security forces have sought to quell attacks led by the Egypt branch of IS which has increasingly targeted Christians.

While the jihadists have also taken aim at other civilians, including more than 300 Muslim worshippers massacred at a mosque last November, they have focused on the ancient Coptic community.

In December 2016, an IS suicide bomber killed almost 30 worshippers at a church in Cairo located in the Saint Mark's Cathedral complex, the seat of the Coptic papacy.

In the Sinai Peninsula, where IS is based, hundreds of Christians were forced to flee in January and December after a wave of assassinations.

IS suicide bombers killed more than 40 people in twin church bombings in April and shot dead almost 30 Christians a month later as they headed to a monastery.

The year ended with an IS jihadist killing nine people in an attack on a church in a south Cairo suburb.

Copts, who make up about 10 percent of Egypt's 93 million people, have long complained of discrimination and intermittent sectarian attacks.

Hamas, Fatah sign deal on Palestinian reconciliation

Yahoo – AFP, Emmanuel Parisse with Adel Zaanoun in Gaza City, October 12, 2017

Palestinians wave flags as they gather in Gaza City to celebrate after rival
Palestinian factions Hamas and Fatah reached an agreement on ending a
decade-long split following talks mediated by Egypt on October 12, 2017 (AFP
Photo/MAHMUD HAMS)

Cairo (AFP) - Rival Palestinian factions Hamas and Fatah signed an agreement Thursday on ending a decade-long split following talks mediated by Egypt in Cairo, with president Mahmud Abbas calling it a "final" accord.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu strongly condemned the deal, saying it would make peace with his country "much harder to achieve".

Under the agreement, the West Bank-based Palestinian Authority (PA) is to resume full control of the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip by December 1, according to a statement from Egypt's government.

Abbas welcomed the deal and told AFP he considered it a "final agreement to end the division" -- though many details remain to be resolved and previous reconciliation attempts have repeatedly failed.

Israel says Islamist movement Hamas, with whom it has fought three wars since 2008, must disarm and recognise the Jewish state as part of any Palestinian reconciliation deal.

US President Donald Trump is currently seeking to restart frozen peace talks between the Palestinians and Israel.

"Reconciling with mass murderers is part of the problem, not part of the solution," Netanyahu said in a statement.

The agreement was signed in Cairo by new Hamas deputy leader Salah al-Aruri and Azzam al-Ahmad, head of the Fatah delegation for the talks, at the headquarters of Egypt's intelligence service, which oversaw the negotiations.

Celebrations broke out in the Gaza Strip after the announcement of the deal, with residents waving flags of Egypt, Palestine, Fatah and Hamas.

"We hope they won't disappoint our people and break the joy," said Rahaab Kanaan, 55.

Negotiations are now expected to be held on forming a unity government, with the various Palestinian political movements invited to another meeting in Cairo on November 21.

Fatah's Azam al-Ahmad (R) and Saleh al-Aruri (L) of Hamas sign a reconciliation deal 

at the Egyptian intelligence services headquarters in Cairo on October 12, 2017 (AFP

Photo/KHALED DESOUKI)

Sanctions to end

An official from Abbas's Fatah movement said the Palestinian president was planning to soon travel to the Gaza Strip as part of the unity bid, in what would be his first visit in at least a decade.

Sanctions taken by Abbas against Gaza will also soon be lifted, the Fatah official said.

The deal includes 3,000 members of the West Bank-based PA's police force redeploying to Gaza, a member of the negotiating team told AFP on condition of anonymity.

The figure is however a fraction of the more than 20,000 police officers employed separately by Hamas.

UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres spoke to Abbas to congratulate him on the deal and said the United Nations "stands ready" to support the PA "take up its responsibilities in Gaza", a UN statement said.

Guterres also underlined the "continuing need to urgently address the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, particularly with regard to the electricity crisis, and improved access to and from the territory".

One of the key issues has been punitive measures taken by Abbas against Gaza in recent months, including reducing electricity payments that left the territory's residents with only a few hours of power a day.

"All the measures taken recently will end very shortly," Zakaria al-Agha, a senior Fatah leader in the Gaza Strip, told AFP.

The Arab League also hailed the agreement saying it represented an "essential guarantee" toward achieving the aspirations of the Palestinian people to set up their own state.

A man holds a portrait of the Palestinian president among Palestinians waving flags as they 

gather in Gaza City to celebrate after rival Palestinian factions Hamas and Fatah reached an 

agreement on ending a decade-long split on October 12, 2017 (AFP Photo/MAHMUD HAMS)

Egypt's role

The two sides began meeting in Cairo on Tuesday with the aim of ending the crippling split between the rival factions.

Hamas seized Gaza from Fatah in a near civil war in 2007 and the two factions have been at loggerheads ever since.

Egypt has been keen to improve security in the Sinai Peninsula which borders Gaza and where jihadist rebels have fought a long-running insurgency.

An Egyptian source close to the talks said intelligence chief Khaled Fawzi had followed the negotiations closely.

Last month, Hamas agreed to cede civil power in Gaza to the PA but the fate of its vast military wing remains a significant issue for the two sides.

Hamas is blacklisted as a terrorist organisation by the United States and the European Union.

The blockaded Gaza Strip has seen deteriorating humanitarian conditions.

Faced with increasing isolation and a severe electricity shortage, Hamas has reached out to Cairo for help, hoping to have the Rafah border with Egypt -- largely closed in recent years -- opened.

Azzam al-Ahmad said that, as part of the deal, Gaza's border crossings with Israel will be handed back to the PA by November 1 with Rafah to follow shortly afterwards.

Egypt has also agreed to provide fuel to the Gaza Strip for electricity generation.

In return, Cairo pressed Hamas to move forward on reconciliation with Fatah.

Palestinians in the Gaza Strip watch a television broadcast of the signing of a 

reconciliation deal in Cairo between rival factions Hamas and Fatah on 

October 12, 2017 (AFP Photo/SAID KHATIB)

Fate of armed wing

Previous attempts at reconciliation have repeatedly failed, and many analysts are treating the latest bid with caution, waiting to see if actual change will occur on the ground.

Last week, PA prime minister Rami Hamdallah visited Gaza for the first time since 2015 and his ministers took formal control of government departments in the territory.

But the move was seen as mainly symbolic, with Hamas still effectively in charge in the Palestinian enclave of two million people.

One of the key sticking points will be the fate of Hamas's 25,000-strong military wing, the Ezzedine al-Qassam Brigades.

African leaders seek investments despite 'terror' threat

Yahoo – AFP, Jay Deshmukh, February 20, 2016

Egyptin secuity forces stand guard outside the conference hall in the Red Sea 

resort of Sharm el-Sheikh during the Africa 2016 forum on February 20, 2016

(AFP Photo/Mohamed El-Shahed)

Sharm el Sheikh (Egypt) (AFP) - African leaders and bankers vowed at an economic summit in Egypt Saturday to push for trade and investments on the continent despite the growing threat of "terrorism" in the region.

More than 1,200 delegates including some heads of state were in talks to sign business agreements during the two-day summit at the Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh, aimed at attracting private sector investment.

Organisers hope the "Africa 2016" conference can build on a 26-nation free trade pact signed last year to create a common market on half of the continent.

Egypt's President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi

attends the Africa 2016 forum on 

February 20, 2016, in the Red Sea resort 

of Sharm el-Sheikh (AFP Photo/

Mohamed El-Shahed)

Analysts say that despite an economic growth rate of more than four percent, Africa still accounts for about only two percent of global trade.

The forum was aimed at "pushing forward trade and investment in our continent to strengthen Africa's place in the world economy", Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi said in opening remarks.

Sisi said the conference aims to present investment opportunities in Africa and "open a direct channel of communication and cooperation" between African businessmen and overseas investors.

Organisers are also seeking to turn the spotlight on Egypt's sluggish economy after years of political turmoil following the ouster of longtime autocrat Hosni Mubarak in early 2011.

Heavily dependent on tourism, Egypt's economy was dealt a body blow when a Russian airliner broke up in mid-air last October 31, minutes after taking off from Sharm el-Sheikh.

All 224 people on board, mostly Russian tourists, were killed when the aircraft blew up over the Sinai Peninsula. The jihadist Islamic State group said it brought down the jet with a bomb.

Egypt says it still has no evidence that a bomb downed the plane, although Moscow has acknowledged that a "terrorist attack" caused the disaster.

"Africa 2016 forum is expected to position Egypt as a gateway for foreign investments into African markets," Omar Ben Yedder, a member of the organising committee, told AFP.

Those attending the summit organised by Egypt and the African Union include the presidents of Sudan, Nigeria, Togo, and Gabon, and dozens of African ministers and senior trade and investment officials.

Egypt's President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi delivers a speech during the Africa 2016 forum

 on February 20, 2016, in the Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh (AFP Photo/

Mohamed el-Shahed)

Security concerns

African investors should spearhead growth in the continent, which can come from developing the region's infrastructure, some delegates said.

"When our own people invest then other investors get convinced," said Sindiso Ngwenya, head of the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA).

He added that trade and investments within COMESA had surged from $837 million in 2007 to $12 billion currently.

Officials said a robust railway network could further propel growth.

"Rail will do to Africa what it did to agriculture in Asia and even in America. If you have power and rail, Africa will explode," Benedict Oramah, president of African Export-Import Bank, told AFP.

But rising terrorism and falling commodity prices pose challenges to growth.

"The new problem affecting investments is international terrorism... lot of resources that could be used for development are being diverted to address security issues," Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari said.

Nigeria, Africa's largest economy, is fighting a brutal insurgency launched by Boko Haram in 2009.

Egypt's President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir 

and Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari attend the Africa 2016 forum on

February 20, 2016, in the Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh (AFP Photo/

Mohamed El-Shahed)

Boko Haram, which wants a hardline Islamic state in northern Nigeria, has killed some 17,000 people and forced more than 2.6 million others to flee their homes since the insurgency began.

Bankers say despite these challenges, the continent remains an investment destination.

"We plan to invest 12 billion dollars in the energy sector over the next five years... so that people in Africa can have universal access to electricity," Africa Development Bank president Akinwumi Adesina told AFP.

The continent still has 645 million people without access to electricity, he said, and the only way to address the issue is to widen private sector participation in the energy sector.

Africa's economy is projected to grow by 4.4 percent this year and five percent in 2017 as against three percent growth expected in developed countries, he said.

"Africa is doing well despite the challenges it is facing," Adesina said.

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"The Dysfunction of Darkness" - Nov 14, 2015 (Kryon Channelling by Lee Carroll) - (Reference to Paris/ISIS/Dark-Old Energy/USA+Warning for Governments around the World !!!) - (Text version) New

“…  The Dark Menace is Here

I have been giving you messages of the recalibration of dark and light for years:

"Civilization itself is at stake within this movement, and you've passed the marker - an alignment that many said would never happen. This is the fifth time you've been through this opportunity and now, dear ones, you're headed for the potential of peace on Earth. Twenty-three years ago, we told you this could happen and that the potentials were strong for it. Now, all that is around you is struggling with it, for the shift is here. I'll say this over and over: The old energy of darkness dies hard, screaming and struggling to keep what it has had, and it struggles with its own demise. So that is the energy we speak of now, and the subject is the Human consciousness balance between dark and light."

Kryon, Feb 2012, San Antonio, TX (*)

Over a year ago, I also gave you predictions that the coming change will be different from anything you have ever expected. (**) There is darkness that has come together on this planet, and we told you it would increase. It is a response to the light that you have turned on. It is fighting for its own life within the old energy. A consciousness of darkness has always prevailed on the planet. Corruption and greed, and uncaring death, have always been the way of an older Human nature. Suddenly, in this precession of the equinoxes, the prophecies are starting to come true. The end of the indigenous calendars predicted it, and it's here.

The metaphor is clear. Light is starting to be turned on. That is a metaphor for increased awareness - of everything! We told you many years ago that, "When everyone can talk to everyone, there can be no secrets." This was given before the Internet, and now you know what we speak of. This technology is actually a tool for you to fight the darkness. I will show you in a moment. What I give you in this channel may seem impossible. Let me start at the beginning.  …”

"The End of History"- Nov 20, 2010 (Kryon channeled by Lee Carroll) - (Text-Version)

" .... Africa

Let me tell you where else it's happening that you are unaware - that which is the beginning of the unity of the African states. Soon the continent will have what they never had before, and when that continent is healed and there is no AIDS and no major disease, they're going to want what you have. They're going to want houses and schools and an economy that works without corruption. They will be done with small-minded leaders who kill their populations for power in what has been called for generations "The History of Africa." Soon it will be the end of history in Africa, and a new continent will emerge.

Be aware that the strength may not come from the expected areas, for new leadership is brewing. There is so much land there and the population is so ready there, it will be one of the strongest economies on the planet within two generations plus 20 years. And it's going to happen because of a unifying idea put together by a few. These are the potentials of the planet, and the end of history as you know it.

In approximately 70 years, there will be a black man who leads this African continent into affluence and peace. He won't be a president, but rather a planner and a revolutionary economic thinker. He, and a strong woman with him, will implement the plan continent-wide. They will unite. This is the potential and this is the plan. Africa will arise out the ashes of centuries of disease and despair and create a viable economic force with workers who can create good products for the day. You think China is economically strong? China must do what it does, hobbled by the secrecy and bias of the old ways of its own history. As large as it is, it will have to eventually compete with Africa, a land of free thinkers and fast change. China will have a major competitor, one that doesn't have any cultural barriers to the advancement of the free Human spirit.. ...."

Ukraine, Japan, Egypt win UN Security Council seats

Yahoo – AFP, Carole Landry, 15 Oct 2015

The UN Security Council, seen in session at the UN General Assembly on

September 30, 2015 in New York (AFP Photo/Timothy A. Clary)

United Nations (United States) (AFP) - Ukraine, Japan and Egypt won seats at the UN Security Council on Thursday as world diplomacy is overshadowed by tensions with Russia and bloodshed in the Middle East.

Senegal and Uruguay were also among the five countries that garnered the required votes for council seats during a secret-ballot poll held at the UN General Assembly.

The five countries ran unopposed for the non-permanent seats after regional groups put them forward as their choice, but the contenders still had to garner two-thirds of votes cast.

Applause and cheers broke out in the assembly hall after first results showed Senegal had won the largest share, picking up 187 votes followed by Uruguay with 185.

Japan picked up 184 votes, Egypt won 179 and Ukraine 177 in the 193-nation assembly.

Ukraine's candidacy had been closely watched amid expectations that sparks will fly with permanent council member Russia, which is accused of supporting separatist rebels in the war in eastern Ukraine.

After the results were announced, Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko posted a victorious "Yes, we did it!" on his Facebook page.

The vote "opens new possibilities for Ukraine to protect its sovereignty and territorial integrity," he wrote.

Foreign Minister Pavlo Klimkin hailed the result as "a very important day for Ukraine" and stressed that his country "understands the value of peace, struggling under Russian aggression."

Kiev's envoy "will be making the case for Ukraine, for our fight" at the council, Klimkin told reporters.

The newly-elected members will begin their two-year stint on January 1, replacing Chad, Chile, Jordan, Lithuania and Nigeria.

Japan eyes permanent seat

One of the most experienced non-permanent members, Japan, will be taking its seat for the 11th time as it is locked in an island dispute with China and bristles at Beijing's global role.

Tokyo is also making a push at the United Nations for expanding the 15-member council and making Japan a permanent member, a plan fiercely opposed by China and resisted by Russia and the United States.

Japanese Ambassador Motohide Yoshikawa said Tokyo wants to make the council "stronger and also more open" and recalled that Pope Francis had spoken out in favour of Security Council reform during his UN visit last month.

Taking a tough line on North Korea, Japan is expected to raise concerns about the Pyongyang regime at the council even though China sought to block discussion about human rights when it came up in December.

Yoshikawa said he hoped that the council will "be seized" by North Korea's dismal rights record "at the appropriate moment" and decide on the how to deal with the "betterment of the human rights issue."

Egypt is returning to the council for the sixth time as Yemen, Libya, Lebanon and the Palestinian territories join Syria on the list of Middle East crisis spots.

Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry said his country will work "to resolve the very many issues" on the UN agenda.

The five newcomers will join the other five non-permanent council members: Angola, Malaysia, New Zealand, Spain and Venezuela.

The campaign for a seat at the top diplomatic table caps months and, in some cases, years of lobbying by contenders.

As voting got underway, delegates at the General Assembly were handed gift bags with chocolates from Ukraine, tea from Japan, pens from Senegal and a football from Uruguay.

Africa leaders sign 'Cape to Cairo' free trade bloc deal

Yahoo – AFP, Jay Deshmukh, 10 June 2015

Egypt's President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi was one of the four signatories to the 

Tripartite Free Trade Area (TFTA) during a summit in the Red Sea resort of 

Sharm el-Sheikh, on June 10, 2015 (AFP Photo/Khaled Desouki)

Sharm el Sheikh (Egypt) (AFP) - African leaders signed Wednesday a 26-nation free trade pact to create a common market that would span half the continent from Cairo to Cape Town.

The Tripartite Free Trade Area (TFTA) deal, which must still be fine-tuned and ratified, caps five years of talks to set up a framework for preferential tariffs to ease the movement of goods in an area home to 625 million people.

The Tripartite Free Trade Area (TFTA)

 is expected to boost economic growth 

across Africa (AFP Photo/Lucien Kahozi)

Analysts say it could have an enormous impact on African economies, which account for only about two percent of global trade despite strong growth.

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, President Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe and President Omar al-Bashir of Sudan were among those who signed the pact at a summit in the Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh.

But hurdles remain, with the timeline for bringing down trade barriers yet to be worked out and the deal needing ratification in national parliaments within two years.

"What we are doing today represents a very important step in the history of the regional integration of Africa," Sisi said as he opened the summit.

"We have told the word today... of our desire to adopt practices that are necessary to increase trade among ourselves... We will do whatever is possible to activate this agreement," he later said, wrapping up the summit.

World Bank President Jim Yong Kim said that with the launch of the TFTA "Africa has made it clear that it is open for business."

Bolster intra-regional trade

The deal will integrate three existing trade blocs -- the East African Community, the Southern African Development Community and the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) -- whose countries have a combined gross domestic product of more than $1 trillion (885 billion euros).

"The geographical area covers the Cape (of Good Hope) to Cairo... The agreement paves the way for a continental free trade area that will combine the three biggest regional communities," Ethiopian Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn said.

Egypt expects to export about $5 billion worth of goods over the next five

 years to fellow members of the Tripartite Free Trade Area (TFTA) (AFP 

Photo/Khaled Desouki)

And Mugabe said the deal would create a "borderless economy" that would rank 13th in the world in terms of GDP.

Members of the three blocs range from relatively developed economies such as South Africa and Egypt to countries like Angola, Ethiopia and Mozambique, which are seen as having huge growth potential.

"The establishment of TFTA will bolster intra-regional trade by creating a wider market" that would "increase investment flow... and enhance regional infrastructure development," a final statement said.

Negotiators were optimistic the deal would be ratified by parliaments, and would help not just developed economies but also smaller ones.

"On the ground it means jobs being created... or else there could be an Africa spring far worse than the Arab Spring," COMESA Secretary General Sindiso Ngwenya, who led the negotiations among the three blocs, told AFP.

Negotiators drafted the deal this week in Sharm el-Sheikh, and said it addresses such concerns as management of trade disputes and protection for small manufacturers once the TFTA comes into force.

The TFTA has been widely welcomed by world business leaders, with experts pointing out that only 12 percent of Africa's trade is between countries on the continent.

'One trade regime'

In 2013, the UN Conference on Trade and Development said Africa must focus on creating more space for the private sector to play an active role if it is to boost intra-continental trade.

Egyptian Prime Minister Ibrahim Mahlab

(R) and President of the World Bank Jim 

Yong Kim attend a meeting to sign a 

trade agreement on June 10, 2015

(AFP Photo/Khaled Desouki)

Analysts say although the continent's growth in the past 15 years outstripped global GDP expansion by nearly three percentage points, falling commodity prices, power shortages, political instability and corruption are still holding back its economies.

Egypt's Minister of Industry and Trade Mounir Fakhri Abdel Nour said the TFTA would help Africa boost trade and investment, while also building infrastructure and production capacities.

Egypt itself expected to export about $5 billion worth of goods in the next five years to TFTA countries.

Officials said companies would benefit from an improved and harmonised trade regime, which would reduce costs by eliminating overlapping trade rules.

"What we have realised is that having one trade regime is better than the costly multiple trade regimes," said Ngwenya.

"The ultimate goal is to expeditiously establish a single free trade area... then establish a single customs union and then merge" the three blocs, he said.

Related Article:

"The End of History"- Nov 20, 2010 (Kryon channeled by Lee Carroll) - (Text-Version)

" .... Africa

Let me tell you where else it's happening that you are unaware - that which is the beginning of the unity of the African states. Soon the continent will have what they never had before, and when that continent is healed and there is no AIDS and no major disease, they're going to want what you have. They're going to want houses and schools and an economy that works without corruption. They will be done with small-minded leaders who kill their populations for power in what has been called for generations "The History of Africa." Soon it will be the end of history in Africa, and a new continent will emerge.

Be aware that the strength may not come from the expected areas, for new leadership is brewing. There is so much land there and the population is so ready there, it will be one of the strongest economies on the planet within two generations plus 20 years. And it's going to happen because of a unifying idea put together by a few. These are the potentials of the planet, and the end of history as you know it.

In approximately 70 years, there will be a black man who leads this African continent into affluence and peace. He won't be a president, but rather a planner and a revolutionary economic thinker. He, and a strong woman with him, will implement the plan continent-wide. They will unite. This is the potential and this is the plan. Africa will arise out the ashes of centuries of disease and despair and create a viable economic force with workers who can create good products for the day. You think China is economically strong? China must do what it does, hobbled by the secrecy and bias of the old ways of its own history. As large as it is, it will have to eventually compete with Africa, a land of free thinkers and fast change. China will have a major competitor, one that doesn't have any cultural barriers to the advancement of the free Human spirit.. ...."

Arab leaders agree joint military force

Yahoo – AFP, Haitham El-Tabei, 29 March 2015

(Front from L-R) Egypt's President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, Kuwait Emir Sheikh 

Sabah al-Ahmad Al-Sabah, Saudi King Salman bin Abdulaziz al-Saud, Yemeni 

President Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi and Sudanese President Omar al Bashir 

(middle-C) (AFP Photo/Mohamed Samaaha)

Sharm el Sheikh (Egypt) (AFP) - Arab leaders agreed on Sunday to form a joint military force after a summit dominated by a Saudi-led offensive on Shiite rebels in Yemen and the threat from Islamist extremism.

Arab representatives will meet over the next month to study the creation of the force and present their findings to defence ministers within four months, according to the resolution adopted by the leaders.

"Assuming the great responsibility imposed by the great challenges facing our Arab nation and threatening its capabilities, the Arab leaders had decided to agree on the principle of a joint Arab military force," Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi told the summit in the resort town of Sharm el-Sheikh.

The decision was mostly aimed at fighting jihadists who have overrun swathes of Iraq and Syria and secured a foothold in Libya, Arab League chief Nabil al-Arabi said ahead of the summit.

On Sunday, Arabi told the meeting the region was threatened by a "destructive" force that threatened "ethnic and religious diversity", in an apparent reference to the Islamic State group.

"What is important is that today there is an important decision, in light of the tumult afflicting the Arab world," he said.

Egypt had pushed for the creation of the rapid response force to fight militants, and the matter gained urgency this week after Saudi Arabia and Arab allies launched air strikes on Huthi rebels in Yemen.

A handout picture made available by the Egyptian presidency shows Egyptian

 President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi (C) speaking during a closed session with Arab

 leaders during the Arab League summit in the Red Sea resort of Sharm 

El-Sheikh on March 28, 2015 (AFP Photo)

Arabi, reading a statement at the conclusion of the summit, said on Sunday the offensive would continue until the Huthis withdraw from regions they have overrun and surrender their weapons.

Several Arab states including Egypt are taking part in the military campaign, which Saudi King Salman said on Saturday would continue until the Yemeni people "enjoy security".

'Months to create'

Yemeni President Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi at the start of the summit called for the offensive to end only when the Huthis "surrender", calling the rebel leader an Iranian "puppet".

However, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon urged the leaders to find a peaceful resolution in Yemen.

"It is my fervent hope that at this Arab League summit, leaders will lay down clear guidelines to peacefully resolve the crisis in Yemen," he said.

James Dorsey, a Middle East analyst with the Singapore-based S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies, said that despite support for a joint-Arab force, "it would still take months to create and then operate on an ad-hoc basis.

"I don't think we will get an integrated command anytime soon, as no Arab leader would cede control of any part of their army anytime soon," he said.

"Today we will have a formal declaration that would be negotiated every time during action."

Sisi said in a recent interview that the proposal for a joint force was welcomed especially by Jordan, which might take part alongside Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Kuwait.

Saudi Brigadier General Ahmed Asiri, spokesman of the Saudi-led coalition

 forces, speaks to the media next to a replica of a Tornado fighter jet (AFP

Photo/Fayez Nureldine)

Aaron Reese, deputy research director at the Washington-based Institute for the Study of War, said "each of these countries would bring a different capability.

"The Jordanians are well known for their special forces capability... the Egyptians of course have the most manpower and bases close to Libya."

Before Egyptian air strikes in February targeting the IS in Libya, the United Arab Emirates, which shares Cairo's antipathy towards Islamists, had reportedly used Egyptian bases to launch its own air strikes there.

Cairo had sought UN backing for intervention in Libya, dismissing attempted peace talks between the rival governments in its violence-plagued North African neighbour as ineffective.

Asean peacekeeping force (JG Graphics/Josep Tri Ronggo)

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Reconstruction funds pledged for Gaza

Pledges for the reconstruction of Gaza have been made at an international meeting in Cairo. There were also renewed calls for peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians.

Deutsche Welle, 12 Oct 2014

Thirty international envoys gathered in Cairo on Sunday to discuss reconstruction of the Gaza strip. Some 18,000 homes in Gaza together with major parts of the territory's infrastructure were destroyed in the seven-week conflict with Israel this summer. The Palestinians have put the full cost of reconstruction at about $4 billion (3.16 billion euros) over three years.

"The state of Qatar announces its participation with an amount of $1 billion for the reconstruction of Gaza," Qatari Foreign Minister Khaled al-Attiya said at the meeting.

US Secretary of State John Kerry announced $212 million in US aid to Palestinians in the Gaza Strip. "The people of Gaza do need our help, desperately, not tomorrow, not next week, they need it now," Kerry told the meeting.

European Union member states will contribute a total of 450 million euros ($568 million) to Gaza, the bloc's foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton said. Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier announced Germany is to contribute 50 million euros to reconstruction efforts in Gaza: "We can't allow the people in Gaza to sink into despair," he said in a statement.

Britain is to provide $32 million for reconstruction according to the country's ambassador in Cairo.

Palestinians put the cost of reconstruction
at about $4 billion

Israel was not invited to the conference but Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman said any effort would need his government's consent: "Gaza cannot be rebuilt without the cooperation and participation of Israel," Lieberman told the Ynet news service. He added that Israel would be "receptive" to plans for "the reconstruction of civilian infrastructure in Gaza."

Renewed peace calls

At the conference on Sunday there were also renewed calls for a peace process between the Palestinians and Israel.

"Out of this conference must come not just money but a renewed commitment from everybody to work for peace that meets the aspirations of all, for Israelis, for Palestinians for all people of this region," Kerry said. "And I promise you the full commitment of president Obama, myself and the United States to try to do that."

Egypt renewed its call for a wider Middle East peace deal based on a 2002 initiative proposed by Saudi Arabia, offering full recognition of the Jewish state, if it gave up all land seized in the 1967 Middle East war and agreed to a "just solution" for Palestinian refugees.

Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas also said the 2002 Arab plan could be the framework for a new comprehensive approach to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict.

Israel has previously rejected this initiative.

jm/rc (Reuters, AFP)

US Secretary of State John Kerry (L) greets Palestinian Authority President

 Mahmud Abbas (C) at Andalus Villa in Cairo on October 12, 2014, on the

sidelines of the Gaza Donor Conference (AFP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

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