A London newspaper has published leaked NATO documents that describe Kosovo Albanian PM as one of the "biggest fish" in organized crime in Kosovo. The Guardian has published the article on the day the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe is debating a draft resolution based on Dick Marty's report on human organ trafficking in Kosovo, and Albania, writes the BBC. The article also incriminates Xhavit Haliti, "a former head of logistics for the KLA who is now a close ally of the prime minister and a senior parliamentarian in his ruling PDK party", whom the Marty report named as a member of the so-called Drenica Group. The newspaper says the NATO documents are marked secret, and reveal that America and other western backing Kosovo's government "have had extensive knowledge of its criminal connections for several years". Haliti is linked with the Albanian mafia in the report, which also suggests that he is the person who "exerts considerable control over Thaci". Haliti is expected to be among Kosovo's official delegation to Strasbourg tomorrow and has played a leading role in seeking to undermine the Marty report in public, writes the Guardian. The NATO papers, said to have originated in Kosovo in 2004, also suggest that "behind his role as a prominent politician, Haliti is also a senior organized criminal who carries a Czech 9mm pistol and holds considerable sway over the prime minister" It further says that Haliti "more or less ran a fund for the Kosovo war in the late 1990s, profiting from the fund personally before the money dried up. As a result, Haliti turned to organized crime on a grand scale." The daily further quotes from the NATO documents to describe Haliti as "highly involved in prostitution, weapons and drugs smuggling", who "serves as a political and financial adviser to the prime minister". Haliti uses a fake passport to travel abroad because he is black-listed in several countries, including the U.S., according to this. Haliti is further linked to the alleged intimidation of political opponents in Kosovo and two suspected murders dating back to the late 1990s, "when KLA infighting is said to have resulted in numerous killings". "One was a political adversary who was found dead by the Kosovo border, apparently following a dispute with Haliti. A description of the other suspected murder – of a young journalist in Tirana, the Albanian capital – also contains a reference to the prime minister by name, but does not ascribe blame," writes the Guardian. "Haliti is also named in the report by Marty, which is understood to have drawn on NATO intelligence assessments along with reports from the FBI and MI5," says the article. To read the article "Report identifies Hashim Thaci as 'big fish' in organised crime, please click here.
II. YNET - Egypt says arrested 19 suicide bombers
Egyptian Interior Minister General Habib Adli said Tuesday that 19 Arabs suspected of links to al-Qaeda were arrested last month in Egypt en route to Iraq. The suspects were planning to carry out terrorist attacks against various places of worship in Egypt, he said. In an interview with the Egyptian daily al-Ahram, Adli said that the terrorists were arrested before getting a chance to carry out the attacks. "This is a network of an organization that supports Jihad and that wishes to target Christians and jews," he said. According to the minister, al-Qaeda has set up extensions in the region – three branches in Iraq, the Maghreb and the Gaza Strip operating under the name The Army of Islam. "Activists receive funds from these stations as well as orders to carry out attacks, including in Egypt," Adli said. "When the Alexandria attack occurred, I said these are outside hands that carried it out. In the past al-Qaeda has threatened to attack churches and we had information regarding the group's plans to target places of worship." The minister provided details on the terrorist network exposed in Egypt and said it has ties to al-Qaeda in Iraq and includes 19 suicide bombers. According to Adli, one of the suspects involved in the Alexandria attack was in contact with this network directly. On New Year's eve, a car exploded in front of a Coptic Christian church as worshippers emerged from a New Year's Mass in the Egyptian city of Alexandria. Violent clashes between Copts and security forces broke out following the attack as the government worked to boost security in churches in the country.
III. GLOBES - Egypt considers claim in stake of Israeli gas fields
Egypt's Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources Sameh Fahmi said yesterday that his government was considering claiming a stake in the natural gas reserves recently discovered off the coast of Israel, Egyptian newspaper "Al-Masry Al-Youm" reported. Fahmi observed that three other countries besides Israel - Lebanon, Cyprus and Turkey - were also considering staking claims on the gas reserves. Fahmi cited a recent report by the US Geological Survey that said that total gas reserves found in the area amounted to 122 trillion cubic feet. Fahmi said “We're studying the precise coordinates of the water borders in order to determine our share of the reserves.” He added that his ministry would not sign any new gas export agreements given recent jumps in domestic demand. Fahmi said that the suspension of gas export deals could serve to discourage foreign companies from investing in research and exploration in Egypt.
Prime Minister George Papandreou underlined on Monday that Greece already has enough problems to deal with, "and there is no need to fabricate new, non-existent ones." Addressing Parliament during an off-the-agenda debate requested by the main opposition New Democracy (ND) party, Papandreou added that the country's foreign policy "should unite all Greeks... The (economic) crisis obliges us to think in a very different manner. It is not time for feigned opposition, to create internal enemies with mythical scenarios alleging conspiracies. What we need is to present ourselves firmly united, in order to build a new Greece, one inspired by a new patriotism," he said, adding: "And the Greek people, united and showing an unprecedented maturity and determination are waging a day-to-day battle ... Citizens have understood what went wrong and they know that they have a government that is doing its duty, namely, everything in its power," the prime minister stressed. Additionally, Papandreou underlined that his government, through its efforts to ensure that the country regain its reliability in the fiscal sector, "has managed to keep national issues out of the sphere of Greece's depreciation. This climate should not be undermined by non-existent spectres and chimeras ... Patriotism means to prevent your country from reaching the point where it stands today," he said. Papandreou expressed his displeasure over what he called "pre-emptive criticism" regarding his recent visit to Turkey, reiterating that he has no problem addressing any kind of audience and in any circumstances since, as he said, "if you speak the truth you fear nothing." He was referring to his address to the Turkish diplomatic corps in the NE Turkish city of Erzurum earlier this month. "We told Turkey that we are for peace, but war threats or violations of our national sovereignty have no place in the European Union. It is a useless practice, which secures no advantage for Turkey. The status quo in the Aegean does not change and our pilots stand, as always, ready," the prime minister noted. "Turkey's future is in Europe but the road is not easy. In a few months we gave a new impetus to Greek-Turkish relations. We have signed 22 agreements. We will continue on the same path," he noted. "The government's policy is to delimitate the maritime zones with all neighbouring countries and, of course, there remains the complex issue of the continental shelf, which we must handle with determination," Papandreou said. Regarding the Cyprus issue, the premier said the idea by Turkey and by the Turkish Cypriot leadership for a loose confederation "is not viable, but divisive and not functional." "We support the efforts made by (Cyprus) President (Demetris) Christofias. The other side is trying to lead the process to a deadlock in order to provoke a solution imposed from the outside. But the international community and the EU will not legalise the occupation of Cyprus."
V. RIANOVOSTI - Russian State Duma ratifies new START treaty
Russia's lower house of parliament, the State Duma, ratified on Tuesday a new strategic arms reduction agreement with the United States. Russian lawmakers approved the document, adding some provisions to the ratification document and issuing two supplementary statements to the resolution on ratification of the treaty. The ratification document provides a legally-binding clause that links strategic offensive and strategic defensive weapons. The first supplementary statement addresses the current state and the future of Russia's nuclear deterrent, while the second outlines the State Duma's position on the reduction and limitations of strategic offensive armaments. The new arms reduction pact, replacing START 1, which expired in December 2009, was signed in Prague last April by President Medvedev and U.S. President Barack Obama. The document slashes the Russian and U.S. nuclear arsenals to a maximum of 1,550 nuclear warheads, down from the current ceiling of 2,200. The U.S. Senate ratified the new arms deal with Russia on December 22, 2010, but added several amendments to the resolution on ratification, including a demand to build up U.S. global missile defenses. The new agreement will come into force after ratification by both houses of the Russian parliament, the State Duma and the Federation Council. The upper house could hold its ratification vote as early as in its first session on January 26.
VI. INTERFAX - Patriarch Kirill urges Cyprus reunification
Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia on Saturday called for rebuilding the unity and territorial integrity of Cyprus. "The position of both the Russian Orthodox Church and Russia remains unchanged - Cyprus is a single state. All resources must be used to restore the degree of confidence that between the two communities had for centuries and the atmosphere in which people lived," Patriarch Kirill told reporters after he and the archbishop of Cyprus, Chrysostomos II, led a worship service at the Assumption Cathedral in the Kremlin. There are "quite many means" to reunify Cyprus, and it is "deplorable" that the international community has been unable to have the country reunited, the Patriarch said. He said he would pray "for justice to be restored, for the unity and territorial integrity of Cyprus to be restored, for the two communities - the Greek and Turkish ones - to live together in peace and harmony of thought, maintaining a good relationship and preserving their cultural and religious traditions... We will use all available resources to bring this about," the Patriarch said.
VII. CATHOLICONLINE - No Lack of Energy, Enthusiasm, Passion and Conviction at the 2011 March for Life
ince 1974, the March for Life has been an annual reminder to the Beltway political machine that America must protect the lives of the unborn. This year was no different, but not with the 20,000 that came to the first March but well over 200,000 who showed up on this cold January Monday. The signs were the same, the chants were similar, but there seemed to be a renewed energy this year. It's hard to determine what may be different, perhaps it's due to the change brought about by the mid-term elections. There also seemed to be a lot of first-time participants at the event who were experiencing the initial awe and awareness that they are not alone in their conviction for life. The March is always a tremendous opportunity to see the unity across denominations and jurisdictions that stand together. In addition Catholics, Eastern Orthodox, Lutherans, Anglicans and many other groups all joined together to lend their voices for the voiceless - the unborn babies who were killed before they could utter their first cry... Presented with a number of Orthodox bishops who stood for life, Metropolitan Jonah of the Orthodox Church in America (OCA) told the crowd at the rally of his concern for the moral decay and decadence taking place in America. Part of this degeneration in society is supported by the plague of abortion, "which creates a culture of death; which creates a culture of despair; which condemns a generation of women to self-hatred, to decades of guilt, to decades of despair." "The murder of persons," the Metropolitan went on to say, "whether children in the womb, whether they are sick or elderly, is the same thing - it is murder." He called upon all present to fight against hedonism and selfishness which is at the core of our nation's destruction and take the message of forgiveness and healing to the culture... The March itself was shorter again this year, beginning on 4th Street at the National Mall and marching up Constitution Avenue to 1st Street in front of the Supreme Court.