Gabriel Helou

“At a debate today in the European Parliament, Guy Verhofstadt urged the leaders of France and Germany to set aside short term national interests in favour of the survival of the EU: "There has been much media speculation in recent days that the end of the euro is close. This is less because of the inability of Greece, Italy or Spain to control their debt but the inability of Germany and France to agree on the necessary steps to save the Euro. "In the past France and Germany have represented the driving force of European integration. Today their differences threaten the EU's very survival." "Sarkozy refuses to accept fiscal union with its implications of a transfer of sovereignty to a collective and objective judge of sound budgetary policy such as the European Commission or European Court of Justice." "On the other hand, Chancellor Merkel calls one week for closer political union and the next she blocks proposals that go in this direction suc...

“A 19-month political feud between Belgium 's political leaders had ended with a budget deal that met the European Union structure a day after a debt downgrade. The budget envisages a fall in Belgium's public deficit to 2.8 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP) in 2012. "There is an agreement," the spokesperson for Elio Di Rupo, the French-speaking Socialist premier-to-be, told the AFP news agency. Di Rupo had been trying to form a government based on a six-party coalition. But he tendered his resignation on Monday after talks for the 2012 budget - agreement on which is a condition for forming a government - ground to a halt. King Albert II, who had stepped in throughout negotiations to soothe tempers and urge politicians to find agreement to end 18 months without a formal government. "As a next step, he has asked the chief negotiator to form a government as quickly as possible," the palace said in a statement.”

Following is UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s message for the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People, 29 November: "Sixty-four years ago on this day, the General Assembly adopted resolution 181, proposing the partition of the mandate territory into two States. The establishment of a Palestinian State, living in peace next to a secure Israel, is long overdue. The need to resolve this conflict has taken on greater urgency with the historic transformations taking place across the region.  I call on the Israeli and Palestinian leadership to show courage and determination to seek an agreement for a two-State solution that can open up a brighter future for Palestinian and Israeli children.  Such a solution must end the occupation that began in 1967, and meet legitimate security concerns.  Jerusalem must emerge from negotiations as the ‎ capital of two States, with arrangements for the holy sites acceptable to all.  And a just and agreed ...

" Israeli security forces officials said Wednesday that they believe Turkey is nearing a military intervention in Syria, in order to create a secure buffer zone for opposition activists. Thus far, Ankara has given shelter to some 20,000 refugees who escaped the deadly crackdown by Syrian President Bashar Assad's security forces, and also housed Syrian opposition groups."

“The United Nations' (UN) International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People is annually observed on November 29 across the world, including Pakistan to show solidarity with the Palestinian people. The day is also known as Solidarity Day that provides an opportunity for the international community to focus its attention on the fact that the question of Palestine is still unresolved and that the Palestinian people are yet to attain their inalienable rights as defined by the General Assembly, namely, the right to self-determination without external interference, the right to national independence and sovereignty, and the right to return to their homes and property from which they had been displaced. Special meetings are held to observe Solidarity Day in some UN offices, councils, government bodies and organisations that have a special interest in the issues encompassing the event.”

"Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh signed a Gulf initiative on Wednesday to hand over power to his deputy as part of a proposal to end months of protests that have pushed the Arab country to the brink of civil war."

  "أعلنت لجنة تقصي الحقائق المستقلة حول قمع الاحتجاجات في البحرين أن السلطات الأمنية استعملت القوة المفرطة وغير المبررة ضد المحتجين، في حين قبِل الملك حمد بن عيسى آل خليفة تقرير اللجنة وتعهد بمحاسبة المتجاوزين. فقد قال رئيس اللجنة شريف بسيوني في كلمة ألقاها بحضور ملك البحرين إن اعترافات المحتجزين انتزعت بالقوة وإن معتقلين تعرضوا للتعذيب. وأضاف في الجلسة الرسمية لإعلان التقرير، أن 35 شخصا قتلوا في الاضطرابات بينهم خمسة من أفراد الأمن، كما حث على إعادة النظر في أحكام أصدرتها السلطات بحق من اتهمتهم بالمسؤولية عن الاضطرابات."

“The head of a special commission that investigated Bahrain's unrest said Wednesday that authorities used torture and excessive force against detainees arrested in crackdowns on the largest Arab Spring uprising in the Gulf. Mahmoud Cherif Bassiouni — making the first official comments on report's findings — also said there was no evidence of Iranian links to Bahrain's Shiite-led protests in a clear rebuke Gulf leaders who accuse Tehran of playing a role in the 10-month-old showdown in the Western-allied kingdom.”

" Egypt's ruling military council was expected to announce Tuesday that it would transfer powers to the state's Supreme Court and hand over the reins of leadership to civilian elements, local media reported. The reports came just before the leader of the military council, Field Marshal Mohamed Hussein Tantawi, was scheduled to address the nation after four days of deadly clashes between security forces protesters demanding a change in leadership."

“The government broker trying to end Belgium 's world record government stalemate has offered to resign, plunging the negotiations to new depths. The royal palace announced Monday that the king will consider the offer but reminded the six negotiating parties that the impasse at the 526-day-long talks needs to end soon to keep financial markets at bay. Last month, Francophone socialist Elio Di Rupo clinched a breakthrough on a constitutional revision to grant more autonomy to Dutch-speaking Flanders and Francophone Wallonia. But the talks are now stuck on the 2012 budget proposals. Di Rupo's Socialists have been unable to agree with the Dutch-speaking Liberals on additional taxation and austerity measures.”

“Yesterday the security forces used unnecessary violence to clear Tahrir Square. Some thousands of demonstrators were still sleeping when police started to knock down their tents and beat people. They turned a peaceful demonstration into a violent clash which injured a thousand people and killed two. The Supreme Council of Armed Forces said today that it will handover its power to civilian rule by the end of 2012, if the chaos ends. This is totally unacceptable, certainly from an institution that claims it wants to install democracy. Guy Verhofstadt , ALDE group leader in the European Parliament said: “It is expected that today again thousands of demonstrators will fill Tahrir Square to demand the military hand over their power to civilian rule. We urge the Supreme Council of Armed Forces, as well as the Egyptian government and the state media to stop creating violence and chaos. If the military will not organise presidential elections soon, the EU should consider stopping the aid it ...

“ Saif al-Islam Gaddafi told Reuters on Saturday that he was feeling fine after being captured by some of the fighters who overthrew his father and he said injuries to his right hand were suffered during a NATO air strike a month ago. Asked by Reuters correspondent Marie-Louise Gumuchian on the plane which flew him to the town of Zintan if he was feeling all right, Gaddafi said simply: "Yes." Reluctant to speak at length, the London-educated 39-year-old son of Muammar Gaddafi was asked about bandages on the thumb and two fingers of his right hand. "Air force, air force," he said. Asked if that meant a NATO air strike, he said: "Yes.”

“Moammar Gadhafi's son Seif al-Islam - the only wanted member of the ousted ruling family to remain at large - was captured as he traveled with aides in a convoy in Libya's southern desert, Libyan officials said Saturday. Thunderous celebratory gunfire shook the Libyan capital as the news spread. A spokesman for the Libyan fighters who captured him said Seif al-Islam, who has been charged by the International Criminal Court for crimes against humanity, was detained about 30 miles (50 kilometers) west of the town of Obari with two aides as he was trying to flee to neighboring Niger. But the country's acting justice minister later said the convoy's destination was not confirmed.”  

Second Committee Approves Text Relating to Permanent Palestinian Sovereignty over Resources in Occupied Territories "The General Assembly would demand that Israel stop exploiting, damaging, depleting, and endangering the natural resources in occupied Arab lands, according to the terms of one of seven draft resolutions approved today by the Second Committee (Economic and Financial). By other terms of that text, titled “Permanent sovereignty of the Palestinian people in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, and of the Arab population in the occupied Syrian Golan over their natural resources”, the Assembly would recognize the right of the Palestinian and other Arab peoples to claim restitution for such illegal actions. Further by the draft, the Assembly would call upon Israel to cease all actions that harmed the environment in all the territories under its occupation, as well as the destruction of infrastructure, including water pipelines and sewage networ...

Separation barrier route in Kibbutz Merav area changed leaving 1,500 dunams on Israeli side; may be first transfer of Palestinian-owned land to community on sovereign Israeli territory. " Israel carried out a de facto annexation of Palestinian land northeast of the Jordan Valley and given it to Kibbutz Merav. Merav, part of the Religious Kibbutz Movement, is about seven kilometers northwest of the parcel. The route of the separation barrier in the area was changed so that the plot in question, about 1,500 dunams (375 acres), would be on the Israeli side."

“Intervening in an important debate today in Strasbourg on the future scope and structure of economic governance in Europe, Guy Verhofstadt (ALDE group leader) drew attention to widening spreads on European bond markets - even amongst AAA countries - and called for a bold and global step forward towards economic and fiscal union - the missing piece from the EMU project dating back 20 years to the Treaty of Maastricht. "The Eurozone crisis has reached a very dangerous point. We are now witnessing increasing spreads on interest rates between national sovereign bonds and the benchmark German bund even for countries with a AAA credit rating like France which is now having to pay twice as much interest on its borrowing than Germany. What then is the value of such ratings ? "The longer we delay decisive action to resolve the crisis, the more costly and radical the measures required.." "Now a bold and global vision is necessary and a comprehensive plan that should i...

Speech by the Leader of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE) in the European Parliament Guy Verhofstadt on Economic governance

لجنة العضوية التي عيَّنها مجلس الأمن للنظر في طلب عضوية فلسطين في الأمم المتحدة قالت أن "فلسطين لم توفِ المتطلبات الضرورية للدولة حيث أن السلطة الوطنية الفلسطينية لا تسيطر على جزء من اقليمها وهو قطاع غزة" مما شكل "عقبة رئيسية أمام قرار مجلس الأمن بشأن الطلب الفلسطيني". قد يكون هذا صحيح من ناحية القانون الدولي، لكن تم توظيف هذا الأمر لأسباب سياسية بحتة.  

“ Guy Verhofstadt , leader of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats in the European Union Parliament, and former Belgian Prime Minister and possible candidate for the 2014 EU Commission presidency , proposes federal union as the means to break the deadlock and solve Europe's financial crisis. Speaking to the Hong Kong Chamber of Commerce yesterday, Verhofstadt outlined comprehensive and detailed proposals for solving the EU's financial crisis. Verhofstadt states that with the launch of the Euro there was no public authority strong enough to penalize members who breached the rules. He calls the Greek crisis the trigger and not the cause of the crisis . The EU has used an intergovernmental method to solve its problems and he states "markets are asking for more unity and a transfer of powers to the European Institutions."”

“The Palestinian bid for U.N. membership went to a divided Security Council Friday after its admissions committee approved a report saying there is no consensus among the 15 council nations. For Palestine to become a U.N. member state, it needs the recommendation of the Security Council. That requires nine "yes" votes — which the Palestinians don't appear to have — and no veto by a permanent member. The U.S. has said it will veto a resolution supporting Palestinian membership if necessary. … When the admissions committee met last week, diplomats said China, Russia, Brazil, India, South Africa and Lebanon announced their support for Palestinian membership. France, Britain and Colombia announced they would abstain, and Bosnia later announced it would, too. While Nigeria, Gabon, Germany and Portugal didn't announce a final position, diplomats said Nigeria and Gabon will likely vote "yes" and Germany and Portugal will abstain or vote "no."”  

"قدمت لجنة القبول في عضوية الامم المتحدة تقريرها الى مجلس الامن الدولي الذي اجتمع اليوم الجمعة، والذي حمل عدم قبول فلسطين في الامم المتحدة بعد مشاورات منذ تقديم الطلب الفلسطيني في ايلول الماضي. ... وكانت 8 دول اعضاء في مجلس الامن الدولي مع التصويت وقبول فلسطيني عضوا كاملا في الامم المتحدة وهي "روسيا ، الصين ، الهند ، البرازيل ، جنوب افريقيا ، نيجريا ، الغابون ، لبنان" ، في حين عارضت الطلب الفلسطيني 7 دول "الولايات المتحدة ، بريطانيا ، فرنسا ، المانيا ، كولومبيا ، البوسنة والهرسك" في حين كان موقف البرتغال بالامتناع عن التصويت ."

"A UN Security Council committee said on Friday it had failed to reach agreement over a Palestinian application for full membership in the United Nations, the Portuguese UN ambassador said. The decision by the council's admissions committee brought the Palestinian Authority's push for UN recognition of a Palestinian state in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, one step closer to collapse. It is now up to Palestinians, who have so far been unable to secure the nine votes needed to pass a Security Council resolution favoring their UN bid, to decide whether or not to call a vote on their application."

“ Palestinian officials have admitted their bid for statehood in the United Nations in all likelihood has failed. A UN Security Council committee that has been considering the Palestinian application for recognition as a member state was expected to issue a final statement last night saying that it had been unable to muster majority support for the bid. The committee released a draft statement earlier this week that made the same point. Without the approval of the Security Council, the Palestinian application for UN membership cannot be considered by the 193-nation General Assembly, where it probably would have been approved. Palestinian officials said they still hoped the Security Council would hold a vote to ''name and shame'' those who stood against them. ''We believed that those who do not think we deserve a state should say so publicly and not hide behind a technicality of not reaching a consensus,'' a spokesman for the Palestinians, Xavier Abu Eid...

Whereas it has become increasingly unlikely that Palestine would acquire full UN Membership - not only because the United States has undertaken to veto its application at the Security Council, but also due to the fact that a number of Security Council Members announced that they would abstain from voting – the focus should now move to the UN General Assembly (UNGA). If Palestine were able to garner a resolution from UNGA recognizing it and upgrading its status to an observer non-Member State, this would not be superfluous – at least from a legal perspective. This could in effect pave the way for Palestine to join other international bodies, as this step would serve as a “certificate” of its existence as an independent and sovereign State. Palestinians would then have at hand a legal document to attach to their application for membership at international organizations. However, we should bear in mind that some international organizations - such as the World Trade Organization (WTO) - re...

“ Palestinians officials said Wednesday they are resigned to defeat in their quest for full membership at the United Nations and have resorted to a backup plan. The officials said they would seek an upgraded observer status that would give them access to key international organizations. They were speaking Wednesday on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the issue.”

“A draft report by a key UN Security Council committee, obtained by Reuters on Tuesday, declared that members could not reach consensus on whether the Palestinians' UN statehood bid should be accepted. "The committee was unable to make a unanimous recommendation to the Security Council," said the draft report of the council's committee on admitting new member states. It was circulated to all 15 Security Council members on Tuesday. The four-page draft appears to confirm that the Palestinian move to join the world body as a full member, which Western envoys said was doomed from the outset due to a U.S. vow to veto it if it ever came to a vote in the council, is set to fail due to the council's irresolvable deadlock.”

“French President Nicolas Sarkozy reportedly told US President Barack Obama that he could not "stand" Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and that he thinks the Israeli premier "is a liar." According to a Monday report in the French website "Arret sur Images," after facing reporters for a G20 press conference on Thursday, the two presidents retired to a private room, to further discuss the matters of the day. The conversation apparently began with President Obama criticizing Sarkozy for not having warned him that France would be voting in favor of the Palestinian membership bid in UNESCO despite Washington's strong objection to the move.”

Netanyahu : " Israeli settlement in West Bank important, but must be done legally. "   How could settlements be “legal” when the seizure of land and their construction contradict the concept and norms of international law?

"فجر محمود جامع الصديق ، عضو اول مجلس الشورى في مصر والمقرب من الرئيس السادات مفاجأة من العيار الثقيل في حوار مع "إيلاف" بقوله ان السادات خصه بسر أثناء زيارتهما لسوريا في عام 1969 وأثناء وقوفهما فوق هضبة الجولان حيث قال له السادات: "إن هذه الهضبة دفعت فيها إسرائيل 100مليون دولار تقريبا بصك تسلمه - آنذاك - رفعت الأسد وحافظ الأسد وأودع الصك في أحد بنوك سويسرا وأن رقم هذا الصك موجود عند عبد الناصر."

" France says it will abstain when the UN Security Council votes on whether to admit Palestine as a full member of the world body. Earlier this week, France voted to approve a similar Palestinian request for membership in UNESCO. But the Foreign Ministry said Friday that, while Palestine's quest for statehood is legitimate, it has no chance of getting past the Security Council. That's because the United States, which wields the power to veto measures there, has said it will vote "no." The ministry also said it was worried that the vote and its failure would unleash a violent reaction."

“The Palestinian bid for membership at the United Nations, which was doomed from the start by the threat of an American veto, moved another notch closer to rejection on Thursday at the Security Council, diplomats said. The Council’s membership committee met in private, with member states laying out their individual positions on the Palestinians’ request, said diplomats, who spoke on the condition of anonymity under diplomatic protocol. The membership committee is trying to produce a report by Tuesday, and indications are that the group will be unable to reach a consensus. The report is likely to be a dry, diplomatic document that says some committee members support the Palestinian’s bid and others oppose it. A vote to forward the report to the General Assembly will probably take place on Nov. 11, diplomats said. But a vote on the membership request itself — which was intended by the Palestinians to represent international recognition of statehood — might even be skipped if none of the...

"يجتمع مجلس الامن الخميس لبحث مشروع تقرير حول طلب الترشيح الفلسطيني لنيل العضوية الكاملة في الامم المتحدة، ولكن خلافا لما حصل في اليونيسكو فان التصويت على هذه العضوية، المرجح حصوله بحلول نهاية العام، ستكون نتيجته سلبية. واعتبارا من الساعة 15,00 (19,00 ت غ) سيبدأ المجلس النظر في هذا التقرير الذي من المفترض ان يقدم رسميا في 11 تشرين الثاني/نوفمبر الجاري الى جلسة نهائية يعقدها المجلس على مستوى السفراء حول هذا الموضوع. وبعدها يتعين ان يطلب عضو واحد على الاقل من اعضاء المجلس ال15 احالة الطلب الفلسطيني على التصويت، الذي قد يجري بحلول نهاية تشرين الثاني/نوفمبر الجاري، ولكن حتما قبل نهاية العام، كما يؤكد دبلوماسيون. وعندما سيجتمع مجلس الامن للتصويت على طلب العضوية لا بد من ان يحوز هذا الطلب موافقة تسعة على الاقل من اعضاء المجلس، شرط عدم استخدام اي دولة دائمة العضوية حق الفيتو الذي تتمتع به، من اجل صدور توصية ايجابية عن المجلس باحالة الملف على الجمعية العامة، ولكن الفلسطينيين لم يتمكنوا من حشد الاصوات التسعة اللازمة. ولكن حتى لو تمكنوا من حشد اصوات تسعة اعضاء في المجلس فان واشنطن حذ...

"Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu decided Thursday to freeze funding to UNESCO after it had granted the Palestinians membership on Monday. Israel transfers some $2 million to the UN cultural body yearly. A source in the Prime Minister's Office said that Netanyahu instructed to transfer those funds to initiatives working toward regional cooperation."

If Greece decided to leave the euro, it would also have to quit the European Union, according to the terms of the EU's treaties, the European Commission said on Thursday. “"The treaties indeed confirm what we have been saying here: the treaty doesn't foresee an exit from the euro zone without exiting the EU, so indeed that is the current situation," European Commission spokeswoman Karolina Kottova said. The comment was in response to a question about the provisions the EU treaties make for a country to leave the euro, but the spokeswoman did not refer to a particular member state.”

“The acceptance of the Palestinian Authority as permanent member of UNESCO didn't really cause a stir at the United Nations headquarters in New York. Much like the Geneva-based Human Rights Committee, whose priorities and voting patterns rarely cause a stir among the UN member states in New York, UNESCO, an independent organization, does not get much respect. At the UN headquarters, there is widespread tacit criticism thatsome of its agencies and branches seem to discover excessive independence – a critique that turns bitter, especially when regarding initiatives directly related to the most pressing and divisive issues being discussed in New York. … Diplomats in New York say that the large majority of UN members which voted for Palestinian membership in UNESCO (106 for, 14 against), is an expression of adulation that the Palestinian issue has garnered across the world. Such adulation was a product of a process that reached an unprecedented peak during Palestinian President Mahmo...

Catherine Ashton , the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and Vice-President of the Commission made today the following statement: " I am deeply concerned by the latest Israeli decisions to expedite settlement activities in response to Palestinian accession to UNESCO. Israeli settlement activity is illegal under international law including in East Jerusalem and an obstacle to peace. We have stated this many times before. We call on Israel to reverse this decision and call on both sides to continue their engagement with the Quartet on advancing peace efforts ."

"The 1917 letter that made public the British support of a Jewish homeland in Palestine led the League of Nations to entrust the United Kingdom with the Palestine Mandate in 1922. The Balfour Declaration , a letter from British Foreign Secretary Arthur James Balfour to Lord Rothschild in which the British made public their support of a Jewish homeland in Palestine, was a product of years of careful negotiation." Text of the Declaration: "Dear Lord Rothschild, I have much pleasure in conveying to you, on behalf of His Majesty's Government, the following declaration of sympathy with Jewish Zionist aspirations which has been submitted to, and approved by, the Cabinet. "His Majesty's Government view with favour the establishment in Palestine of a national home for the Jewish people, and will use their best endeavours to facilitate the achievement of this object, it being clearly understood that nothing shall be done which may prejudice the civil and religious r...