Deadly suicide bomb attack rocks Damascus

Muslim Brotherhood Strongest Contender In Libya’s Coming Elections

“The Brotherhood are different from how Libyans view Islam,” and “They represent outsiders and interference in our country” , “Our revolution was not about replacing one autocratic regime with another.” That said, the Muslim Brotherhood is odds-on favorite to win the June elections, in the view of many observers here in Libya. The reason the MB is in such a relatively strong position is that is has the support of Qatar, assistance from the well-established MB organizations in Egypt, Tunisia, Morocco, Algeria, and Turkey. The flights arriving in Tripoli from Egypt are always full and some of the passengers are MB operatives according to Professor “Dr. Ali”, a pro-Gadafi political scientist who has so far managed to keep his teaching post.

Muslim Brotherhood Strongest Contender In Libya’s Coming Elections

Qatar, Unveiling Tensions, Suspends Sale of Alcohol

The alcohol ban has raised questions over how easily Qatar can bridge the two worlds. Qatar, where the strict strand of Wahhabi Islam is predominantly observed, wants to retain a conservative Arab culture rooted in Islamic traditions where women are often veiled and arranged marriages are common. Muslims are prohibited by Islamic law from consuming alcohol or pork. Last month, restaurants on the Pearl were instructed to suspend alcohol sales until further notice, according to a person familiar with the matter at Doha-based United Development Company, the real-estate developer that built the island. No reason was given, and it isn't clear how long the ban will be enforced.

Qatar, Unveiling Tensions, Suspends Sale of Alcohol

Lebanon joins volatile Med gas scramble

Lebanon has raised the stakes in the high-octane poker game under way in the natural gas-rich eastern Mediterranean by approving a law to administer offshore exploration and drilling, joining Israel, Cyprus and Turkey in a potentially explosive race for energy riches. The Beirut government laid down the regulations for the emerging energy industry Wednesday. "If all goes as scheduled," said Cesar Abi Khalil, an Energy Ministry adviser, "the licensing round will be held this year. "The companies will have six months to bid and then the winners will be chosen and exploration will begin." Energy expert Roudi Baroudi estimates that Lebanon's reserves total three times those of Libya's 54 trillion cubic feet. That's probably a major overestimate. But it's certain to heighten tension in the region triggered by Israel's discovery of major gas fields off its coast, a drive by nearby Cyprus to follow suit and Turkey's threat to send in its navy to stop the other two from joining forces to exploit the region's energy riches.

Lebanon joins volatile Med gas scramble

Russian warships heading for Syria

The Russian Navy's warships patrolling the eastern Mediterranean Sea were heading for a Syrian port, the state-owned Itar-Tass news agency reported on Friday. The warships were scheduled to arrive in Tartus, a point of logistics supplies of the Russian navy on Saturday, according to preliminary information. "It is planned that the port of Tartus will be visited by a big anti-submarine ship of the Northern Fleet 'Admiral Chabanenko' and an escort ship 'Yaroslav Mudry'," Itar-Tass quoted a source with the Russian Navy as saying. "Our ships are supposed to stay in Syria for several days," the source said, without giving more details about the warships' mission in the country. Russian Navy dispatched their warships to the Mediterranean sea in November, and claimed the move was part of scheduled exercises and had no connection with the situation in Syria. The warships, led by "Admiral Kuznetsov", the country's only aircraft carrier, have started their patrol missions in the Northeast Atlantic and the Mediterranean Sea since Dec. 6 to "ensure the security of the sea navigation and other Russian maritime economic activities," according to Russian Navy.

Russian warships heading for Syria

What exactly is The Syrian Free Army (SFA) ?

SFA is an umbrella name for armed groups and opposition militia in Syria. It serves as a pretext under which smuggling weapons and arming civilians can be justified (civilians would be called “volunteers”, as mentioned clearly by Captain Ibraheem Majbour in his Alarbiya interview above, or even claim to be army defectors like the school teacher in the video above). But the more important role SFA plays is providing a pretext for imposing foreign military intervention in Syria, whether in the form of a no-fly zone (as requested by SFA leader himself), or other scenarios that have been proposed by other parties, such as the Alain Juppe’s infamous “humanitarian corridor”.

What exactly is The Syrian Free Army (SFA)?

Taliban strike deal with Qatar on liaison office

Taliban spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid said the liaison office will conduct negotiations with the international community. He did not say when it would open.

"Right now, having a strong presence in Afghanistan, we still want to have a political office for negotiations," said Mujahid. "In this regard, we have started preliminary talks and we have reached a preliminary understanding with relevant sides, including the government of Qatar, to have a political office for negotiations with the international community." Mujahid's emailed statement also said the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan— the name of Afghanistan under Taliban rule — , has "requested for the exchange of prisoners from Guantanamo." He was referring to a Taliban demand that the U.S. military release about five Afghan prisoners believed to be affiliated with the Taliban from the prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

Taliban strike deal with Qatar on liaison office