[Transcript]  Mosaic News - 02/07/08: World News From The Middle East

Presenter, Man # 1
The Arab League secretary general, Amr Mussa, returns to Beirut in a new attempt to find a solution to the Lebanese crisis.

Presenter, Woman # 1
This visit comes as the March 14Th alliance called on its supporters to hold the largest gathering to commemorate the late Prime Minister Rafeaq Al Hariri’s death. Meanwhile, the opposition confirmed that it is still committed to its fundamental principles.

Reporter, Woman # 2
Amr Musa pushed up his visit to Beirut to allow for more create time to hold more negotiations before next Monday, when the Lebanese parliament will meet to vote on the next president. Many are wondering if Musa’s visit can make a difference considering the complicated internal situation and divisions between the main political parties. The March 14th alliance used stronger words in its talks with the opposition and threatened to use its constitutional right to fill the Presidential office. It also called on the Lebanese to express their rejection to what it described as blatant attempts to assassinate Lebanon and its institutions.

Guest, Man # 2
We are committed to make Amr Musa’s mission easier. The question is whether the other side in Lebanon wants to do the same.

Reporter, Woman # 2
The opposition, through Hezbollah secretary General and the head of the Reform and change party, confirmed that it is committed to what it calls the fundamental principles that are needed to resolve the current crisis. It also confirmed that the Arab initiative must be understood as a whole and that Amr Musa must play the role of mediator without taking sides.

Guest, Man # 3
I think if Mr Musa is going to repeat the same things he said previously, then the Arab initiative will not take us anywhere; unless he has new ideas to discuss the implementation of the initiative the way it is, not the way some wants it to be.

Reporter, Woman # 2
There are indications that Amr Musa may not succeed in breaking through the walls of the Lebanese crisis unless he has new ideas pertaining to moving along the stalled issues within the Arab initiative. This comes as tension between major political Lebanese parties are escalating once again. Bushra Abdel Samd, Al Jazeera, Beirut.

Guest, Man # 1 Hariri
Our friends and families in Lebanon; when the Lebanese became vocal in demanding that the Syrian regime stop interfering in our country, they rallied support for this regime. Their demonstration were not only to show loyalty to Bashar Al Assad, but they were also a misrepresentation of Lebanese feelings. A Certain group of the Lebanese were dragged into adapting fake feelings, which they used to build the corner stone for the internal divisions. The have mastered the art of derailment. They have elevated derailment into a cultural norm. This derailment affects everything. The derailment of the authority. The derailment of the constitution. The derailment of the economy The derailment of security. The derailment of roads. The derailment of dialogue. The derailment of initiatives.The derailment of logic. And the derailment of the Paris III Conference which brought the Lebanese 7.5 billion to the Lebanese. The transfer of these funds to Lebanon was derailed because the Parliament was closed and so it can’t pass laws. The derailment of the presidential elections. And finally, the derailment of the army.

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Presenter, MALE, #1
Schools in Gaza are not safe from being targeted by Israel, whose aircrafts continue to shell Palestinian resistance cells. Today, they killed seven Palestinian resistance fighters from al Qassam Brigades and the Jerusalem Brigades, the military wings of Hamass and the Islamic Jihad, respectively. A Palestinian teacher was also killed, and 5 students were injured when an agricultural school in Northern Bait Hanoon was targeted. Reporting on yet another bloody day in Gaza is our Gaza correspondent Zuheir Saqallah.

Reporter, MALE, #2
The occupation got him before he could complete his mission of education. The teacher Hani Na’eem used to meet with his students at school every morning, but today, the occupations’ barbarism presented an obstacle in his way, an everlasting one:
A mortar shell targeted his school inNorthern Bait Hanoon, killing him and injuring a number of his students.

Guest, MALE, #3
This sends the message to the Palestinian people that they are all targets, young or old.

Guest, MALE, #4
This is the Zionist enemy; it does not discriminate between the civilians and the military.

Reporter, MALE, #2
It is not new for Israel to use the excuse of responding to resistance rockets or missing the target, when Palestinian civilians are injured. Last night, Israeli aircrafts flew over Gaza and shelled a blacksmithing workshop in the middle of the city, killing 7 fighters from the Qassam Brigades and the Quds Brigades in Northern Gaza, thus publicly escalating their offensive and warning of more on the way.

Guest, MALE, #5
The Israeli escalation against the Gaza strip in particular, the constant infiltrations, raids, killings, and assassinations…all this crushes the concept of peaceful politics. It does the opposite, complicating the situation for Palestinians’ negotiations over a final solution.

Reporter, MALE, #2
Israel’s offensives are a recurring theme that takes on many faces: aside from shelling and assassinations, it reduced its supply of electricity, thus clearly implementing the policy of group punishment, exacerbating the crisis more and more. Divine intervention did not stop another massacre from occurring, and what happened shows that there are no red lines for the occupation, which has gotten used to doing anything to all that is Palestinian. Zuheir Saqallah, Dubai TV, Bait Hanoon, Northern Gaza.

PRESENTER, FEMALE #1
In occupied Iraq, a road side bomb, targeting a US military convoy, exploded in central Diwania, killing 4 Iraqis, including 2 women, and injuring 6 others. In addition, 8 Iraqis, including a woman, were killed and 10 others were wounded in sporadic attacks in Baghdad and Samaraa. In a statement, the US occupation forces said they have arrested over the past few days more than 20 people in military operations. During the past 24 hours, the Iraqi police discovered several bodies in various parts of Iraq.

PRESENTER, MALE #1
Iraq is a country of widows. The new name was made possible by the US occupation there. According to international reports, the number of Iraqi widows stands at 2 million and 300 thousand.

REPORTER, MALE #2
Her life partner is no longer alive. This is not the only crisis facing Um Alaa. She, along with other widows, is facing many other challenges. After the head of the household passes away, Iraqi widows find themselves left alone to raise their children. Because of this, Iraq was named “The country of the widows and the orphans.” The love story between Um Alaa and her husband was buried with his remains.

GUEST, FEMALE #2,
We received a warrant saying that my husband was to be questioned by the Americans. He was turned over to the militias, who killed him. He was slaughtered, just like you would slaughter an animal.

REPORTER, MALE #2
In a report, the UN accused the US occupation forces of committing crimes in Iraq, through its military operations. In addition, the US occupation and Iraqi armed militia groups have accelerated the wheel of death in Iraq. According to international reports, more than 2 million and 300 thousand widows are currently living in Iraq. However, this is not the end of the story, as the security situation in Iraq indicates that more deaths are still to come.

GUEST, FEMALE #2
We are the victims. We are worried about our children. Can you imagine a child dying of hunger or from the cold weather?

REPORTER, MALE #2
Um Mohammad, whose tears were faster than her words, took from this dark place a home to shelter her daughters. All Um Mohammad wants is a door to lock her exposed home and protect her grown up daughters from the harm of strangers. She is one of the displaced families, who were forced out of their homes.

GUEST, FEMALE #3
I have children, including grown up daughters. I don’t have a door to secure my home; our home is exposed. At night, we keep hearing people coming around the house. One person tried to come in. I’m worried about my daughters. We are living under harsh conditions. The other day, the Americans stormed into the home.

REPORTER, MALE #
The look of poverty, misery, and sickness, were evident on the frail faces of these women, who are waiting for someone to lead them out of their miserable living conditions. From a palace to a cave, and from a life full of grace to a life full of humiliation and poverty, this is the case of Iraqi widows and orphans. Also, this is taking place under the eyes of the US occupation in Iraq. Does the US administration, which is claiming to promote democracy and defend human rights, know the amount of pain and suffering Iraq’s displaced families are enduring? Most of these families have no one to support them and no home to shelter them; and the picture here is worth a thousand words. For the Syrian Arab Television, Shafeek Abed Jabar, Baghdad.

Presenter, Woman # 1
US President George Bush’s warnings about the risks of withdrawing American forces from Iraq raises questions about the ongoing situation on the ground there. The security situation in Iraq is tense, the political process has been obstructed, and the number of American soldiers killed in Iraq has been increasing. Non governmental organizations released a report saying that one million Iraqis have been killed since the American invasion of Iraq.

Reporter, Man # 1
Iraq is always mentioned in the speeches of American politicians including Bush’s State of the Union address, and the presidential debates. The American presence in Iraq which has exceeded five years is raising many questions. This comes as the primary presidential elections are becoming more critical. Political observers believe that the American administration is drowning in the Iraqi quagmire and that the US will be lucky if it can get out of it. Hundreds of thousands of Iraqis have been killed in this quagmire. In fact, according to a study conducted by one of the most prominent survey centers in Britain, more than one million Iraqis have been killed since the American invasion of Iraq in 2003. About two million have been displaced inside Iraq, and another two million were forced to seek refuge in neighboring countries. The situation has turned into a hopeless humanitarian catastrophe. The number of Americans killed or injured in Iraq has been constantly rising, despite the many security plans and political initiatives that have been announced by Washington and supported by the Iraqi government. This forced the American administration to look for suitable solutions in order to ease the burden on its soldiers and shape the public opinion into believing that the problem of Iraq will be resolved. There is no military solution for this problem, but the White House does not want to recognize this because it does not want to show its failure especially at this particular time, amidst the primary presidential elections. Sami Raghi, Russia Today.

Presenter, MALE #1:
Amidst the primary elections among the Republican and Democrats in the race to the White House, the Arab and Muslim communities in the United States expressed their opinion, hoping that the future American President will work to revive the Middle East peace process and achieve peace throughout the world.

Reporter, MALE #2:
During the elections race in the United States of America, the candidates work to gain the favor of various ethnic minorities and religious sects. In the immigrant communities, Muslims and Arab Americans are living amidst the primary presidential elections. They are keeping a close eye on who may be the future president, hoping that the leader of the most powerful country in the world will take positions that may contribute to solving the problems of their countries from which they originated.

Guest, MALE #3:
They should pay attention to the Arab community but not more than any other community. All communities are unique for various reasons. However, the Arabs have not been able to secure all their rights.

Reporter, MALE #2:
In the Astoria neighborhood of Queens, a borough of New York City, there is a line of businesses and Arab coffee shops, where Arab citizens are witnessing the elections and contribute their opinions about one candidate or the other, favoring any candidate, who offers even a sign of paying attention to the issues of Arabs, whether they are immigrants or living in their homelands. Arab voters are interested in issues such as peace in the Middle East and the war in Iraq. The candidate’s response to these issues will sway their opinions and will determine how they vote.

Guest, MALE #4:
Anytime America is at war, this war will be of importance in the elections. I think that Hillary may have made a mistake in her vote. This mistake will follow her throughout her political career.

Reporter, MALE #2:
Arab citizens, just like other minorities, view the primary elections as the official beginning of a larger competition, which leads to the White House. To get there, the candidate must win the larger general elections. Meanwhile, the primaries remain as the qualification round that has its own partisan tactics and its own specific calculations.
Have the Arab and Muslim communities reached a level of importance and political maturity to be a deciding factor? This question is answered by the reality of the fractionalization of this community, which lacks influence and organization.
Their voices are scattered among Democratic Arabs and Republican Arabs. In the meantime, the campaign elections remain as a passing summer cloud and all these campaign promises will, in the end, only serve the political interests of the United States. Here in Astoria, part if New York City, the Arab community lives and conducts its business. And just like all Americans, the Arab community continues to keep up with political developments. Mohammed Saeed Al Wafi. Al Iraqiya. Astoria; New York.

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Presenter, FEMALE, #1
Welcome back. Last night, the Turkish Parliament passed a constitutional amendment that allows women to wear the hijab in universities. This controversial topic divides the people of Turkey, an Islamic country with a secular government.

Reporter, FEMALE, #2
It is no longer prohibited to wear the hijab in Turkey’s Universities. The Parliament adopted this decision after a final vote, thus amending one of the most controversial constitutional clauses. Four hundred and four parliamentarians out of 505 approved the amendment in an anonymous vote. Thus, the amendment received more than two thirds of the necessary votes. The stormy debate marathon lasted more than 13 hours. Another vote will take place on Saturday, to add the final touches of the amendment, which is under the care of a party that emerged from the ruling Islamic party and a party from the republic people’s party. After the military coup in 1980 that placed them into power, military authorities prohibited the hijab on University campuses in order to stand against the influence of the Islamists in politics. Two thirds of women in Turkey wear the hijab, and many of them desisted from joining universities after 1980. The constitutional amendment stirred up protests amongst secular groups and the People’s Republic party.
They believe that the amendment blasts the secular principles of the Republic of Turkey, fearing that Turkey will be influenced by the religious leader in neighboring Iran, and slip into Islamic fundamentalism.

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