(Reuters) - The United States warned on Friday that it may soon close its embassy in Syria due to the worsening security situation, a move that could exacerbate tensions between Washington and Damascus over its bloody crackdown on protests.
"While no decision has been made, we have serious concerns about the deteriorating security situation in Damascus," the State Department said in a written statement
"We have also advised the Syrian government that unless concrete steps are taken in the coming days, we may have no choice but to close the mission."
The United Nations’ humanitarian chief Valerie Amos spoke to the Security Council Wednesday regarding her concerns about the impact of Israeli settlement activity on Palestinian economic development and access to basic services. But the Israeli ambassador dismissed her worries, saying no humanitarian crisis exists.
Amos, who spoke to the council in a private session, told reporters that in the five years since Israel imposed a blockade on the Gaza Strip after Hamas took over, exports from the territory have been cut in half.
"If Gaza is going to come off its dependence on humanitarian aid, we need to see economic development and economic activity in Gaza," she said.
Syria will introduce a managed float of its currency next week, central bank Governor Adib Mayaleh said. The move will allow the pound to devalue after demand for foreign currency drove a surge in black-market rates.
“We will have a partial managed float, allow the rate to be determined by the market and intervene when necessary,” Mayaleh said in a phone interview from Damascus today. “If we see a rate, like that of 70 pounds now, which I don’t like, then we will intervene, and next week there will be a positive intervention by the central bank with the injection of foreign currency into the market.”
Sarkozy hopes 2012 will see the revival of the MU
PARIS, Jan 20 (KUNA) -- The new rulers of the "Arab Spring" countries should respect the rules of democracy, mainly power rotation, political pluralism and guaranteeing minorities' rights, French President Nicolas Sarkozy said Friday.
Addressing foreign ambassadors and diplomatic missions here, Sarkozy said the new leaders should be given enough time to show their respect of democratic rules and their societies' diversity.
The French President rapped the Quartet peace group's failure to organize peace negotiations between Palestinians and Israelis according to clear-cut timetable, mechanisms and guarantees.
He called for expanding Quartet membership to include new world players. Palestinians are waiting for a long time to see the birth of their state, he said. The French President also defended France's support for Palestine's accession to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). He also underscored France's firm commitment to Israel's security, saying that France will never accept any threat to Israel and its existence.
Meanwhile, Sarkozy disclosed Tunisian President Moncef Marzouki will visit France next month. He added that France is ready to offer all support to Tunisia to help prove the democratic transition successful. He stressed the need for defending the rights of Christian minorities in the Middle East. Christians are part of Middle East's treasure and France and will stand by them firmly, Sarkozy said.
The French President expressed hopes 2012 would witness the revival of the Union for the Mediterranean - Discussion
Nicolas Sarkozy, Zine El Abidine Ben Ali of Tunisia and Hosni Mubarak of Egypt at the UfM summit in 2008
More Violence in Syria amid Arab League Diplomacy
Damascus, Syria (CNN) -- Deaths mounted and violence raged across Syria on Saturday as Arab League diplomats prepared to discuss extending its monitoring mission.
The number of people found dead in Syria has risen to at least 54 on Saturday, said the Local Coordination Committees in Syria, an opposition activist group. They include 30 unidentified corpses found at the National Hospital in Idlib and at least 13 victims of a bus explosion. Deaths occurred in other locations, including Douma, Deir Ezzor in the east and Homs in the west, the LCC said.
For more than 10 months, Syria has been engulfed an anti-government public uprising and a brutal security crackdown against protesters. The United Nations last month estimated well over 5,000 deaths since mid-March. Opposition groups estimate more than 6,000 people have died. -Source
Egypt's Islamist Parties Win Elections to Parliament
The final results in Egypt's first post-Mubarak parliamentary elections confirm an overwhelming victory for Islamist parties.
The Muslim Brotherhood's Freedom and Justice Party (FJP) won the largest number of seats under Egypt's complex electoral system. The hardline Salafist Nour party came second. The liberal New Wafd and the secular Egyptian Bloc coalition are some way behind them.
Egyptians voted in three phases over a six-week period to elect the 498 members of the People's Assembly. Ten further members are appointed by the ruling military. Under the country's system, two-thirds of the seats are allocated to party list candidates, and the remaining third are voted for directly.
The overall results mean that Islamist parties control around two-thirds of the seats in the assembly, though the final share out of seats is not yet known -Source
China says GCC Trade Deal Near
A free-trade deal between China and the Gulf Cooperation Council is close to being signed, Wen Jiabao, the Chinese premier, said yesterday, raising hopes of a huge increase in commerce.
Mr Wen made the remarks during his first visit to the Gulf, during which he signed a number of business deals with the UAE and Saudi Arabia.
But despite seven years of talks, a free-trade agreement has so far proved elusive. "The negotiations are approaching a close," Mr Wen said during an Arab-Chinese business conference in Sharjah yesterday. "At this moment, the two sides need to show greater political will and sign the agreement as soon as possible."
China and the GCC have been forging closer links in recent years as the world's second-biggest economy's hunger for energy grows and the GCC buys more Chinese products. Trade between the two sides reached about US$70 billion (Dh257bn) in 2008. -Source
Material for manufacturing missiles and chemical weapons has been discovered by the Turkish authorities on Iranian trucks heading to Turkey, Turkish media reported on Friday.
The Turkish newspaper “Taraf” reported that Turkish authorities, who stopped the trucks two weeks ago at customs, had found material on board the trucks which could be used for manufacturing missiles and chemical weapons. Turkish customs officials intercepted the four trucks on suspecion of carrying military equipment from Iran to Syria earlier this month.
The governor of Kilis province in Turkey said the trucks were confiscated at the Oncupinar border crossing into Syria after police received information about their cargo, according to Dogan news agency. -Source
Report: Turkey Intercepts Material for Missiles, Chemical Weapons on Iranian Trucks
