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Arab ministers avoid rifts at meeting before summit

Arab ministers avoid rifts at meeting before summit (AFP) / 24 March 2014 Rifts between Qatar and the three other Gulf states as well as Egypt were expected to be tackled during the ministerial meeting and also at the two-day summit starting on Tuesday Arab League foreign ministers said they agreed on the draft resolutions on Sunday for a summit in Kuwait this week, despite deep rifts among member states. Tunisian Foreign Affairs Minister Mongi Hamdi speaks with his Qatari counterpart Shaikh Khaled bin Ahmed Al Khalifa during the opening session of the Arab League foreign ministers’ meeting in preparation for the Arab Summit in Kuwait City on Sunday. UAE Minister of State Dr Sultan bin Ahmad Sultan Al Jaber also seen in the picture. — AFP “There was no tension whatsoever in the meeting. Host country Kuwait in fact has smoothed relations,” Iraq’s Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari said at the end of the one-day meeting. “The subject of the … withdrawal of ambassadors was never mentioned at all,” he said. “There were no controversial issues or problems, and the atmosphere was very positive,” he said, declining to answer if efforts will be made to heal the rifts. Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Bahrain have recalled their ambassadors from fellow Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) member Qatar in protest at Doha’s perceived support for the Muslim Brotherhood, branded a terrorist organisation by Cairo and Riyadh. Rifts between Qatar and the three other Gulf states as well as Egypt were expected to be tackled during the ministerial meeting and also at the two-day summit starting on Tuesday. Algerian Foreign Minister Ramtane Lamamra, however, said: “Not all issues are discussed in the meeting hall. Some issues are debated on the sidelines behind the scenes.” Arab League assistant secretary-general for political affairs Fadhel Jawad has said the Arab leaders will hold a special session during the summit in a bid to sort out their differences. Morocco’s Minister of  State for Foreign Affairs, Salahuddin Mezwar, said the ministers discussed efforts to combat international terrorism and ways to limit its impact on Arab countries. But he said Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood or whether to approve a new inter-Arab counter-terrorism pact were not discussed at the meeting. Zebari said all draft resolutions were unanimously approved by Arab foreign ministers. A draft resolution on the Syrian conflict, which entered its fourth year last week, urges the UN Security Council to shoulder its responsibility after the failure of Geneva peace talks between the regime and the opposition. The leader of Syria’s opposition National Coalition, Ahmad Al Jarba, has been invited to address the Arab summit. But Syria’s seat in the Arab League remains vacant although the last annual summit, held in Doha, granted the seat to the opposition. The Arab League said the opposition still needs to meet some legal procedures to take up the seat. On the Palestinian issue, the ministers called on Arab states to provide $100 million in financial aid to the Palestinian Authority every month and rejected recognition of Israel as a Jewish state. The ministers approved the basic charter of a Bahrain-based Arab human rights tribunal and recommended that the next summit be held in Egypt. For more news from Khaleej Times, follow us on Facebook at facebook.com/khaleejtimes , and on Twitter at @khaleejtimes Continue reading

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Ruthless India whip West Indies in World Twenty20

Ruthless India whip West Indies in World Twenty20 (AFP) / 24 March 2014 India now need one more win from their remaining two matches against Australia and hosts Bangladesh to advance to the semi-finals. India’s spinners wreaked havoc on the West Indies batting to rout the defending champions by seven wickets in the World Twenty20 Super-10 group two match in Dhaka on Sunday. The West Indies, sent in to bat, managed only 129-7 as leg-spinner Amit Mishra claimed two for 18 in four overs, Ravindra Jadeja took three wickets and Ravichandran Ashwin picked up one. India strolled past the modest target with two deliveries to spare as Virat Kohli made 54 off 41 balls and Rohit Sharma remained unbeaten on a fluent 62. The pair put on 106 for the second wicket after left-hander Shikhar Dhawan was trapped leg-before by spinner Samuel Badree off the fifth ball of the innings. Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s men, who beat arch-rivals Pakistan on Friday, now need one more win from their remaining two matches against Australia and hosts Bangladesh to advance to the semi-finals. The bowlers kept the normally free-stroking West Indies batsmen in check, allowing them just 74 runs by the 15th over for the loss of four wickets. The hard-hitting Chris Gayle, dropped before he had scored and then again on 19, made a 33-ball 34 with two sixes and a four before he was run out in the 13th over. Mishra had Marlon Samuels stumped by Dhoni and claimed Dwayne Bravo leg-before off successive balls in the 15th over to open up the lower order. Lendl Simmons, who was caught off a Jadeja no-ball in the 18th over, celebrated the let-off by smashing the next ball for a six. Simmons made 27 off 22 balls as Jadeja conceded three sixes in the final over. Earlier on Sunday, Pakistan bounced back from their loss to India to defeat Australia by 16 runs. Two teams from the group will advance to the semi-finals. The other group comprises Sri Lanka, South Africa, England, New Zealand and the Netherlands. For more news from Khaleej Times, follow us on Facebook at facebook.com/khaleejtimes , and on Twitter at @khaleejtimes Continue reading

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Election a significant national experience: Panel

Election a significant national experience: Panel Staff Reporter / 23 March 2014 National Election Committee endorses the minutes of the first meeting, and reviewed the proposed budget and restructuring of the Committee. The National Election Committee discussed a number of studies related to the electoral process during its second meeting held recently in the capital. The meeting stressed the importance of organising meetings early enough to enable the committee to make the necessary preparations for the upcoming elections. Dr Anwar Mohammed Gargash, Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Minister of State for Federal National Council Affairs and Chairman of the National Election Committee, said the UAE election is a significant national experience that contributes towards enhancing political awareness among citizens and increasing their interest in the political process in the country. Dr Gargash stated that the empowerment programme of the President, His Highness Shaikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, aims to activate the role of the Federal National Council as a key executive authority that tackles issues concerning the citizens and finds appropriate solutions. “The UAE’s leadership is constantly working to expand political participation. The wise directives of the leadership are aimed at achieving growth and development to meet the UAE’s developmental goals based on the interests of the country and the citizens,” Dr Gargash added. The Committee endorsed the minutes of the first meeting, and reviewed the proposed budget and restructuring of the Committee, besides discussing studies related to the electoral process. The meeting was attended by Hamad Abdul Rahman Al Madfa, Secretary-General for the Supreme Council of the Union in the Ministry of Presidential Affairs; Dr Hadef Jowan Al Dhaheri, Minister of Justice; Dr Ali Mohammed Al Khouri, Director-General of the Emirates Identity Authority, Lieutenant-General Saif Abdullah Al Shafar, Undersecretary of the Ministry of Interior; Tariq Hilal Lootah, Undersecretary of the Ministry of State for Federal National Council Affairs. haseeb@khaleejtimes.com For more news from Khaleej Times, follow us on Facebook at facebook.com/khaleejtimes , and on Twitter at @khaleejtimes Continue reading

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