Tear Gas in Bahrain: Suppression and Suffering Through "Lethality Reduction"

Click here to read article in Arabic. Thanks to مترجِم 14 فبراي for the translation.

Visiting the website of Condor Technologies, a Brazilian "non-lethal" arms company accused this week of exporting tear gas to Bahrain, one is instantly impressed that they have thought very hard about how to present their business. The front page picture asks us to ponder: what on earth is "Lethality Reduction"?

On Sunday in Bahrain, a funeral was held for Abdulali Ali Ahmed, a 73-year man who choked to death in his home from tear gas inhalation. The funeral itself was attacked by police with tear gas.

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EA Cyber-Special: What is LulzSec? And Is It More than a Bit of LOL and Mischief? (Dunne)

LulzSec's "Pierre DuBois"LulzSec --- the mischievous internet group responsible for infiltrating servers at Sony, Sega and the International Monetary, as well as disabling Government websites on both sides of the Atlantic --- has expanded its operation, codenamed AntiSec, to South America. Early on Wednesday, the group claimed to have disabled two websites of the Brazilian Government, Portal Brazil and the site of President Dilma Vana Rousseff.

The group maintains it is acting simply "for the Lulz", a play on "LOL", getting amusement from random digital anarchy. Fridays become "FF", the designated day of the week for dissemination of stolen material.

But is there a significance beyond mischief and laughs?

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The Latest from Iran (25 March): Remembering the Victims

1805 GMT: Press Watch. Kamran Najafzadeh, a journalist with state broadcaster IRIB, has been expelled from France. The reason for the expulsion is unknown.

1545 GMT: Tehran Friday Prayers Update. Ayatollah Seddiqi courting controversy in today's Friday Prayer, as he called on Iranian officials and people to try their best and lay the foundation for the country's economic prosperity.

Seddiqi carried out the risky strategy of using exactly the same language deployed by the Supreme Leader on Monday, declaring that the success of "economic jihad" would help solve problems such as addiction and unemployment. He explained that economic hihad is a form of all-out war with the enemy which requires the possession of qualities such as a jihadi spirit and faith as well as the unity of the people with officials and officials with one another.

Seddiqi also revealed that Iran was way better than any other country: “The only miracle of the West was industrial development and progress. This is while presently there is a country like [the] Islamic [Republic of] Iran which possesses science and technology, and also presents its science and technology in a spiritual form."

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Israel-Palestine Analysis: US Declares "Fresh Start" Despite Failure over Israeli Settlements and Palestinian Recogntion

Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak, addressing the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee on Tuesday, said discussions over another moratorium on expansion of West Bank settlements had been suspended in the wake of the WikiLeaks crisis and the tensions between North and South Korea. 

A senior Israeli official went further, declaring said that the talks over the settlements had reached a dead end, and West Jerusalem and Washington would find new ways to advance the peace process. A senior US official confirmed, "After consultation with the parties, we have determined that a moratorium extension will not at this time provide the best basis for resuming direct negotiations."

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Palestine Snap Analysis: As Latin Americans Give Recognition, Where Are Washington's "Vital Security Interests"?

On Monday, Argentine and Uruguay followed Brazil's recognition of the state of Palestine based on 1967 borders.  Argentine Foreign Minister Hector Timerman read the letter sent by President Cristina Kirchner wrote to Palestinian Authority leader Mahmud Abbas: "The Argentine government recognizes Palestine as a free and independent state within the borders defined in 1967." 

Uruguayan deputy foreign minister Roberto Conde said, "Uruguay will surely follow the same path as Argentina in 2011. We are working towards opening a diplomatic representation in Palestine, most likely in Ramallah."

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Palestine Analysis: Can US Make the Most of Moves by Abbas and Hamas?

On Saturday, the leader of the Palestinian Authority, Mahmoud Abbas, and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke by phone. Abbas expressed his condolences over the deadly fire in Israel, and Netanyahu expressed his thanks for the help of Palestinian civil defence members. 

Beyond that conciliatory conversation, there were significant political manoeuvres.

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China This Week: Sino-US Talks; No More Iran Sanctions; Sea Tension with Japan; Ties with Myanmar

High-level talks strengthen Sino-US ties: Lawrence Summers, the head of President Barack Obama's National Economic Council, and Deputy National Security Adviser Tom Donilon visited China from 5 to 8 September, seeking to iron out touchy issues in bilateral relations.

President Hu Jintao called said during a meeting on Wednesday, "Further comprehensive development of Sino-US relations is more important than ever before, as the global economic recovery is facing a variety of unstable and uncertain factors. China and the US should view the bilateral relationship from a global and strategic perspective."

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