Middle East Aggregator

The United States is freezing the assets of three Gulf-based militants on Thursday, saying they provided financial and material support to al Qaeda.
"These three dangerous individuals must be stopped from further facilitating terrorism," said Stuart Levey, Treasury's undersecretary for terrorism and financial intelligence.
"The global community should act swiftly to prohibit them from using the financial system and from traveling internationally," Levey said.
Any assets these men have under U.S. jurisdiction will be frozen, and Americans will be prohibited from doing business with them, the Treasury Department said.
The three include Khalifa Muhammad Turki al-Subaiy, a citizen of Qatar, described by Treasury as a financier and facilitator who has provided financial support to, and acted on behalf of, al Qaeda senior leadership.
Treasury named the others as Bahrain-born Adil Muhammad Mahmud Abd al-Khaliq, who it says has provided financial, material, and logistical support to al Qaeda and the Libyan Islamic Fighting Group; and Bahrain-born 'Abd al-Rahman Muhammad Jaffar 'Ali, a financier who it says facilitated the movement of money to a senior al Qaeda individual in Iran and also provided his personal funds for use by an al Qaeda recruit. (Reuters)

The assets were frozen just one week after British Banker Charles Ridley, was 'detained' in Dubai, allegedly in relation to investment funds in petro-chemical developments in Pakistan, and with no access to lawyers. As of yet, there is no connection between the two incidents. (Referenced: GDN)

Update: Charles Ridley was arrested for funds directed through the Dubai Islamic Bank. We have just gotten confirmation that the ex-VP of the bank, Rifat al-Islam Usmani, was also detained yesterday as part of a bribery Investigation. As of yet, there is no official connection between these incidents, though it seems on first glance that Ridleys arrest may have been part of a dragnet on the Dubai Islamic Bank. The freezing of assets of the alleged militants, as of yet, does not seem to be related. (Referenced: Gulf Times)

Labels: Al Qaeda, Bahrain, Qatar, U.S.

Bahrain's anticipated appointment of a Jewish woman as ambassador to the United States - the first for an Arab country - is not a public relations stunt, a senior official said on Saturday. "This is not a public relations move," the official said, referring to the expected naming of Huda Nunu as the Gulf kingdom's ambassador to Washington.

The official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said King Hamad informed US officials during a visit to Washington in March of Bahrain's intention to name Nunu.

The Jewish population amounts to no more than 37 among a total of around 530,000 people.

"This move is not propaganda. It reflects a climate of tolerance toward minorities in Bahrain," which is ruled by a Sunni dynasty and has a disgruntled Shiite majority.

Nunu will be the third Bahraini woman to be appointed as an ambassador. Sheikha Haya al-Khalifa was the country's ambassador to France, while Shiite Bibi Alawi was appointed a few months ago as envoy to China. Until she assumes her new position, Nunu will continue serving in the appointed Shura (consultative) Council - the upper chamber of Parliament. In 2006, she replaced her brother Ibrahim, the first Jewish member of the council. (AFP)

Labels: Bahrain, Freedom of Religion

Bahrain's king has appointed a woman believed to be the Arab world's first Jewish ambassador as the country's envoy to Washington.

Lawmaker Houda Nonoo said she was proud to serve her country "first of all as a Bahraini," adding she was not chosen for the post because of her religion.

"It is a great honor to have been appointed as the first female ambassador to the United States of America and I am looking forward to meeting this new challenge," Nonoo told The Associated Press by telephone.

The Wednesday decree issued by King Hamad bin Isa al-Khalifa and reported by the official Bahrain News Agency had not specified where Nonoo, a 43-year-old mother of two boys, would be posted. But her appointment to the U.S. ambassadorship was rumored for months.

Bahrain - a pro-Western island nation with Sunni rulers and a Shiite majority - is a close U.S. ally and hosts the U.S. Navy's 5th Fleet. It has about 50 Jewish citizens among a population of roughly half a million people.

Nonoo has served as legislator in Bahrain's all-appointed 40-member Shura Council for three years. (AP)

Labels: Bahrain, Freedom of Religion

A Bahraini Islamist lawmaker on Sunday called for the expulsion of Bangladeshi workers from the country after one of them was accused of a gruesome killing. The government must "put a timetable for the deportation of Bangladeshi laborers from Bahrain after their repeated involvement in murders and other crimes," Akhbar Al-Khaleej daily quoted MP Abdul Halim Murad of the hard-line Salafi bloc as saying. Bangladeshi Charge d'Affaires Saif al-Islam said that the estimated 106,000 Bangladeshis working in Bahrain should not all be made to pay for the alleged action of the mechanic suspected of the murder. "We told the Bahraini authorities to put this Bangladeshi national on trial and punish him if he is convicted," he told AFP. (AFP)

Labels: Bahrain, Migrant Rights

Lebanese singer Haifa Wehbe, known for her sexy looks and revealing outfits, went ahead with a performance in Bahrain despite an attempt by the Islamist-dominated Parliament to stop the show.

"Haifa Wehbe was dressed modestly. She was almost veiled," Adel Surour, 37, who attended Wednesday night's show with his family, said Thursday. "Her performance was measured compared to her usual demeanor. We thoroughly enjoyed the show."

Surour said the audience consisted mainly of families, including Gulf Arabs from neighbouring countries.

Al-Ayyam newspaper on Thursday carried pictures of Wehbe dressed in a long green gown with a low V-neckline during the performance.

On Tuesday Sunni and Shiite Islamist MPs approved an urgent motion asking the Bahraini government to ban the show, which was timed to mark Thursday's May Day celebrations.

The move by the 40-member Parliament, where Islamists hold three-quarters of seats, came despite assurances by organizers that Wehbe would dress modestly during the show, which would be reserved for families and respect Bahraini traditions. (AFP)

Labels: Bahrain, Free Speech

Bahrain's Islamist-dominated Parliament on Tuesday approved an urgent motion asking the government to ban a performance by Lebanese singer Haifa Wehbe, known for her sexy looks and revealing outfits. Sunni and Shiite Islamist lawmakers joined hands to push through the motion, which requires the government to take the necessary measures to stop the show, timed to coincide with Labor Day on Thursday, a parliamentary statement said.

The move by the 40-member Parliament, where Islamists hold three-quarters of seats, came despite assurances by organizers that the Lebanese superstar would dress modestly during the show, which would be reserved for families and respect Bahrain's traditions.

Islamist MPs regularly campaign to stop shows and other forms of entertainment deemed to violate Islamic tenets in Bahrain, which has traditionally been relatively liberal by the standards of the conservative Gulf region.

Four years ago, Sunni Islamist MPs, who are close to the government, forced Saudi-owned MBC satellite television to suspend the production of an Arabic version of the reality TV show "Big Brother" that was being filmed in Bahrain, charging that the show flouted Islamic traditions. (AFP)

Labels: Bahrain, Free Speech, misc

Bahrain will name a Jewish ambassador to the United States, a report said.

Huda Azar Nunu, a Jewish woman who is a lawmaker in Bahrain's upper house, will be named to the Washington position, according to a report this week in A Sharq al-Awsat, a Saudi-owned pan-Arab daily published in London.

"The sources denied that the appointment of Nunu as a woman and a Jew is a public relations campaign by Bahrain in the West, emphasizing that Huda Nunu has proven her qualifications, whether through her membership in the Consultative Council or through her work in human rights associations, of which she is an active participant in Bahrain," the newspaper said.

Bahrain, a Persian Gulf state sandwiched between Iran and Saudi Arabia, has a tiny Jewish population dating back to Talmudic times. Nunu is descended from Iraqi Jews who migrated to the port of Manama in the late 19th century. Jews in Bahrain have kept a low profile but generally have been treated well.

The nation is considered among the more progressive in the region, and was among the first to allow women to run for public office. (JPost)

Labels: Bahrain, Freedom of Religion

NATO's secretary-general told Gulf Arab states on Thursday that Iran's nuclear ambitions were a major threat to regional stability.

"Iran's pursuit of uranium enrichment capability in violation of its U.N. Security Council obligations is a serious concern not just for Iran's neighbors but for the entire international community," Jaap de Hoop Scheffer told a conference to promote ties between NATO and Gulf Arab states.

Iran says its nuclear program is aimed solely at producing electricity but the West accuses it of trying to develop nuclear weapons, a charge Tehran denies. Gulf Arab states have also voiced concern over Iran's nuclear plans.

"We in the Gulf think Iran has the right to nuclear energy for peaceful purposes, but we fear Iran's intentions. We (the Gulf states) speak the same language on Iran," Bahraini politician Sheikh Khaled Khalifa al Khalifa told Reuters.

NATO, a 26-nation security and defense alliance of North American and European countries, has sought to bolster ties with Gulf Arab states. Bahrain, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar have agreed to explore cooperation opportunities.

At the conference, Bahrain signed an agreement with NATO on the exchange of security information. (Reuters)

Labels: Bahrain, GCC, Iran, NATO

US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice is in Bahrain for a meeting of the Gulf Cooperation Council.

Ms Rice repeated calls for Arab states to open full diplomatic ties with Baghdad to counter Iranian influence in the region.

Iraqi PM Nouri Maliki has made a similar appeal.

He said he was bewildered by the position of countries that did not recognise the Iraqi political process and incited strife.

From Bahrain Ms Rice will travel on to Kuwait for talks with countries that neighbour Iraq.

Officials from Iran and Syria are expected at the discussions in Kuwait although there are no plans for the secretary of state to meet them. (BBC)

Labels: Bahrain, GCC, Iraq, U.S.

A Bahraini court on Wednesday adjourned until May 11 the trial of 15 opposition activists accused of involvement in clashes with police in Shiite areas to allow the defense to examine a medical report on torture claims, a lawyer said. Wednesday's session was held amid tight security in a courtroom packed with the defendants' relatives and supporters. The defense had asked that the defendants have medical tests to verify allegations they were tortured in detention. The claims were made by the defendants, rights groups and opposition activists, but were denied by officials. The 15 were charged after clashes between police and protesters in December after the death of a demonstrator at an opposition rally to demand compensation for victims of alleged human rights violations. (AFP)

Labels: Bahrain

A policeman was killed when his patrol was attacked with petrol bombs in a Bahraini village south of the capital Manama overnight, police said on Thursday.

"A security force patrol was attacked by masked people. A police officer was killed and others were lightly wounded," the official news agency BNA quoted a police official as saying.

The official added that an inquiry had been launched into the incident which took place in a Shiite majority village.

Bahraini Prime Minister Sheikh Khalifa bin Salman al-Khalifa denounced the attack in an interview with local media, saying it marked a "serious and unjustifiable escalation" in tensions.

Anger has spilled out on to the streets of the tiny Gulf archipelago after demonstrations in December following the death of an opposition protester.

The Shiite majority in Sunni-ruled Bahrain has been campaigning for compensation for alleged human rights violations during the 1980s and 1990s.

At least 38 people died in Shiite-led protests in Bahrain, a close US ally, between 1994 and 1999. (AFP)

Labels: Bahrain

Shiite opposition MPs in Bahrain on Tuesday called for a government minister from the ruling Sunni dynasty to be questioned for allegedly concealing information about the country's population. Opposition groups have long accused the Sunni-controlled government of secretly naturalizing Sunni residents in a bid to alter the demographic balance of the tiny Gulf state, which has a Shiite majority.

A request to grill Cabinet Affairs Minister Sheikh Ahmad bin Atiyatullah al-Khalifa, who heads the Central Information Organization, was presented to the office of the Parliament speaker, "and we expect to receive a response by next week," MP Khalil al-Marzuk told AFP.

Marzuk is deputy head of the parliamentary bloc of the Islamic National Accord Association, the main Shiite political formation, which has asked to question Khalifa. (Daily Star)

Labels: Bahrain

The ties between the United States and its close ally Bahrain were further strengthened on Monday when the countries signed a deal on civilian nuclear cooperation. Bahrain also signed the US and Russian-backed Global Initiative to Combat Nuclear Terrorism meant to prevent terrorists from acquiring nuclear weapons.

In a statement released by the State Department, the agreement was praised as part of the US desire to cooperate with states in the Middle East that are interested in nuclear energy for peaceful purposes.

Bahrain has decided to forgo the sensitive nuclear enrichment process needed to create nuclear fuel and instead import its fuel. (JPost)

Labels: Bahrain, Nuclear Power, Russia, U.S.

Bahrain's navy on Tuesday took over command of a task force of the US-led coalition that combats terrorism, piracy and drug trafficking in Gulf waters. US naval officers handed control of Combined Task Force 152 to their Bahraini counterparts for three months during an official ceremony in Manama. The tiny archipelago of Bahrain is a close ally of Washington and is home to the US Navy's Fifth Fleet. (Link)

Labels: Bahrain, U.S.

The Saudi Arabian embassy in Beirut has called on its nationals to leave Lebanon a day after a US warship was positioned off the country's coast.

The embassy on Saturday sent SMS messages to Saudis living in Lebanon urging them to leave the country as soon as possible, Al Jazeera's correspondent said.

Saudi Arabia issued an advisory last month urging its citizens not to travel to Lebanon because of deteriorating political and security conditions.

Kuwait and Bahrain followed with similar calls. (Link)

Labels: Bahrain, Kuwait, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia

Bahrain should investigate complaints that detained opposition activists have been repeatedly abused in jail, Western human rights groups said.

U.S.-based Human Rights Watch called on the Gulf Arab state's government to allow independent doctors to examine detainees who say they have faced torture and sexual assault.

"The silence of Bahraini authorities in the face of multiple complaints of detainee abuse casts doubt on their commitment to the rule of law," said Joe Stork, Middle East and North Africa director at Human Rights Watch, in a weekend statement.

"Bahrain should immediately allow independent physicians to examine detainees who are alleging abuse."

The detainees were among those arrested after protests by majority Shi'ites in the U.S.-allied island state in December. (Link)

Labels: Bahrain, Human Rights Watch

Work is likely to resume today on G.P. Zachariades projects that had taken a hit after over 2,000 of its workers went on a flash strike five days ago on Saturday, an official from the General Federation of Bahrain Trade Unions said.

“The company representative verbally agreed to increase our salaries. But we are waiting for them to give it in writing,” a worker told the Tribune yesterday, “A member from the GFBTU was doing the negotiations on our behalf.” (Link)

The General Federation of Bahraini Trade Unions had this to say, "“We witnessed the worst forms of exploitation and violation of the fundamental rights of workers, including the work environment, housing and living conditions provided to the men living in labour camps,” said GFBTU members who visited labour camps of companies whose workers had recently gone on strike.

“The companies and authorities concerned had turned a deaf ear to our warnings to put a stop to violations of human rights of the workers,” they continued, “Their disregard to our warnings is now affecting the economic and social stability of our country.”

The GFBTU Employers make profits at the expense of expatriate workers who are brought in from countries where labour is cheap. They are then huddled into small rooms which do not give them any privacy.

The union also slammed the construction sector which they said is witnessing a boom but is also the biggest violator of human rights and labour laws. (Link)
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This is an important milestone for migrant worker rights in the region. Bahrain is one of the few (only?) country in the region that provides workers in 'non-vital' sectors to strike. Hopefully the resolution of this matter will set a standard around the region in the coming years. The GFBTU needs to place the rights of migrant workers at its core, alongside nationals. It should make no distinction between a local worker or a foreign one, as anyone working in the country must be represented equally in any given negotiation.

Labels: Bahrain

Around 1,300 migrant workers helping to build a luxury coastal development in Bahrain have gone on strike to demand higher wages, a company official said on Sunday.

The workers are employed by the contracting firm GP Zachariades to work on the Durrat al-Bahrain development in the south of the wealthy Gulf archipelago.

"Around 1,300 workers on the Durrat al-Bahrain project have been on strike since Saturday to demand an increase in their wages," the firm's health and safety chief Abdul Wahed al-Umran told AFP.

The workers have been confined to their living quarters by police while labour ministry officials try to persuade them to call off the strike, Umran added.

Official figures state Bahrain has approximately 270,000 expatriate workers who are mostly from the Asian sub-continent and employed mainly in unskilled jobs.

Umran said the labourers downed tools after hearing that around 750 workers employed by Almoayyed Contracting Group last week forced the firm to boost their salaries after going on strike for two days.

The striking workers on the Durrat al-Bahrain project earn between 120 and 180 Bahraini dinars (319 and 478 US dollars) a month, Umran said.

Durrat al-Bahrain -- the Arabic for "Pearl of Bahrain" -- is a multi-billion-dollar residential and commercial development consisting of 15 man-made islands set out in the shape of a necklace.

Workers employed in non-vital sectors are permitted to strike in Bahrain, unlike in other oil-rich Gulf Arab states such as Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

International Rights groups have criticised Gulf states for their treatment of migrant workers, on whom they rely to power their booming economies.

In March 2006, 2,500 labourers rioted in the UAE at the building site of Burj Dubai, which is still under construction but has already become the world's tallest skyscraper.

The incident prompted the New York-based Human Rights Watch to call on the UAE government to "end abusive labour practices" and describe labour conditions as "less than human". (Link)

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Best news I've heard all week, thanks Ashanti for the tip! The labor officials "confined" the migrant workers to their quarters and are urging them to end the strike... that essentially means they've locked them in the massive communal housing they live in and told them to stop striking... now that's negotiation for ya!

Update: Bonny Mascarenhas from the Bahrain Tribune who covered the situation in this article, offered a correction and said that it was the workers who barricaded themselves in as a sign of protest, not the police barricading the workers (as the AFP article states). They had temporarily been holding 50 Chinese workers, all of whom have now been released. While their case highlights the plight of migrant workers in the region, their temporary holding of the Chinese workers is problematic, and could play out against them as the situation moves forward.

Labels: Bahrain