As hundreds of Al Qaeda militants in Yemen are said to be planning terror attacks against the West, a U.S. lawmaker has called on the Obama administration to halt immediately the release of Guantanamo detainees to the Middle Eastern country. Rep. Frank Wolf, R-Va., wrote to President Obama Tuesday requesting that the administration not send any more Guantanamo detainees back to Yemen or any other unstable country. Wolf, who has penned four similar letters since Oct. 1, said he also would ask that threat assessments be made public for each detainee who is cleared for release. "I'm troubled by every [detainee] that I've read about," Wolf told FoxNews.com. "I personally would have sent none of them back to Yemen. These guys are some of the most dangerous; they've been involved in activities with direct threats to the United States.... "Don't send them back to Yemen, particularly based on what happened on Christmas," he said. "It's dangerous to the country." Abu Bakr al-Qirbi, Yemen's Foreign Minister, told the Times of London on Tuesday that Yemeni authorities are aware of Al Qaeda operatives in the country, including some leaders. "They may actually plan attacks like the one we have just had in Detroit," he told the paper. "There are maybe hundreds of them -- 200, 300." Just five days earlier, the U.S. Department of Justice announced the transfer of 12 Guantanamo detainees to Afghanistan, Yemen and the Somaliland region. The six detainees released to Yemen were identified as: Jamal Muhammad Alawi Mari, Farouq Ali Ahmed, Ayman Saeed Abdullah Batarfi, Muhammaed Yasir Ahmed Taher, Fayad Yahya Ahmed al Rami, and Riyad Atiq Ali Abdu al Haf. Kirk Lippold, former USS Cole commander and senior military fellow at Military Families United (MFU), said reports that the former detainees worked with Abdulmatallab is the "clearest indication" yet that continual release of Guantanamo Bay detainees is an unacceptable risk to Americans. "As a nation, we cannot rely on so-called 'reform camps' in places like Saudi Arabia to prevent terrorists from striking again," Lippold said in a statement. "The President promised the victims of terrorism and the American people a clear strategy for how he intended to fight terrorism and deal with detainees in [Guantanamo]. Almost a year into his term, neither objective is close to being achieved." Lippold called on administration officials not to release any additional detainees from Guantanamo. "The President’s strategy of increasing risk to American lives as part of some indescribable national security strategy to defeat Al Qaeda must be refocused," the statement continued. "The Administration’s position on [Guantanamo Bay] is the centerpiece of this perilous strategy."
Foreign Minister Vuk Jeremić says that the genocide countersuit against Croatia has been prepared, but that he hopes the case would never proceed. Croatia sued Serbia for allegedly committing genocide in the 1990s to the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in The Hague some ten years ago; now Belgrade says it is ready to countersuit with the same accusation related to the same period. “I can say that Serbia’s lawsuit is finished. The suit is written and it is very ample,” Jeremić said. He added that the countersuit is related to crimes committed in between 1991-1995, and that it contains a “large historical addition”, regarding the World War II. Jeremić noted, however, that “it would be better if the court process never happened.” “It is better to cooperation and look towards a united future than to face each other in court. I hope that there is still time for it not to come to this,” Jeremić said. The foreign minister added that it is "in Croatia’s best interest" to back down from its lawsuit against Serbia. If Croatia does not change its decision, Serbia “will have no choice” but to proceed with its suit as well, he explained. Jeremić also said that in 2010, the Serbian diplomacy would continue its fight for the preservation of Serbia's territorial integrity in Kosovo and Metohija.
III. KA: 10 best places in the world to party
1. Belgrade: “The long years of bad press that kept Serbia off the map have now passed,” says Lonely Planet. “Foreigners are now realizing what locals always knew – that Belgrade really rocks. With an exuberant population and its legacy as an intellectual hangout, Belgrade offers varied nightlife, ranging from eclectic watering holes for those in the know, to the busy restaurants and bars of the Skadarlija district and the summer clubs in barges on the Sava and Danube Rivers.” 2. Montreal: “Easygoing Montreal is increasingly popular with foreign travellers, who enjoy the joie de vivre of a place with bilingual ambience, good local beer and even skiing at nearby Mount Royal. Montreal’s irrepressible student population and atmosphere (Old Montreal) give the city a lighthearted, Bohemian air. There are Old World cafes, cool jazz clubs, packed discos and late bars to choose from, plus a popular comedy festival each July.” 3. Buenos Aires: “With its unique mix of European and South American cultures, and a native passion for dance, the Argentine capital provides fertile ground for lively nightlife. There’s an emphasis on fashion and a diverse range of entertainment offerings in Buenos Aires’ barrios. Relax at a swinging jazz club or dance all night by the waterfront; some clubs and cultural centres offer classes so you can learn to tango or salsa like a local. There’s everything from Irish pubs and local folk to house parties.” 4. Dubai: “For those who can afford it, the world capital of conspicuous consumption is unbeatable. Dubai’s extravagance is way over the top, with ultraluxury hotels on artificial islands, slick modern malls and tonnes of precious metals glittering in shops. Yet Dubai is also a cosmopolitan place, so if you’re not invited to party on board the private yacht of a celebrity, you can always mingle with people from around the world in the swank bars and clubs of the Middle East’s most decadent desert getaway.” 5. Thessaloniki: “Greece’s second city has style, with plenty of fashionable shops and salons. Thessaloniki boasts great nightlife during those long months when more famous Greek destinations are deep in hibernation, from arty cafes to Latin bars to discos pumping out house music to salacious bouzoukia (clubs featuring twangy, Eastern-flavoured Greek folk-pop). That’s plenty to keep you occupied after you’ve traversed the sublime Byzantine churches, museums and ruins. It’s not cheap, but no Greek city save Athens compares.” 6. La Paz: “Don’t forget that liquor goes to the head quickly in the Bolivian capital, well over 3,000 metres above sea level. Get hot and sweaty in one of many slick nightclubs, which cater to chic locals and the foreign contingent. The natives are friendly and, with a steady stream of travellers, it’s a town of many tongues. World-class bars, swank cafes and restaurants serenading with traditional music round out the offerings. Buy traditional Aymara herbs at the Witches’ Market (Mercado de Brujas) to ward off hangovers and bothersome spirits.” 7. Cape Town: “With the 2010 World Cup bringing a global audience to South Africa, the partying will only get harder as travellers converge on a city already well known for nightlife. Luxuriate on some of the world’s best beaches by day and kick back under the moonlight at suave cocktail bars by night. Two hours east, in the Indian Ocean, lies the elegant beach village of Mossel Bay, with more great beaches and chic flair. Visitors must try some of the wines crafted by South Africa’s world-renowned vintners, either at a Cape Town bar or at one of several wineries nearby.” 8. Baku: “Since the 1990s, when it started taking off as a hub for Caspian Sea oil and gas, (this city in Azerbaijan) has been transformed and this new- found economic stimulation hasn’t failed to influence urban nightlife. The cash injection from energy projects, enhanced by the presence of thousands of international oil workers and wealthy consultants, has turned Baku into an oasis of excess in an otherwise fairly traditional Muslim country.” 9. Auckland: “Myriad cafes, bars and dinner clubs cater to a hip young clientele in New Zealand’s biggest city. Try the glittering waterfront for smart bars, and hit the happening clubs (some stay open 24 hours). There are plenty of live shows on offer too, from folk in Devonport to louder sounds at Mount Eden. And you can always walk off the Sky Tower – the southern hemisphere’s tallest structure – a 328-metre cable-controlled drop in which jumpers reach a speed of 85 kilometres per hour.” 10. Tel Aviv: “Like elsewhere in the Mediterranean, Israel’s capital gets going late. The endless bars, pubs and cocktail venues start to fill up by midnight, from which point the nightclubs get revved up with dancing till dawn. Nowadays an international crowd joins Israelis for a mixed bag of funk, pop, house and techno at the city’s dozens of entertainment hot spots. Tel Aviv has a relaxed air, and prides itself on being gay-friendly and outgoing.”
Greek and Turkish leaders in Cyprus are to embark on a new round of "kitchen table diplomacy" in the New Year in an attempt to reach a breakthrough agreement before elections on the northern side of the island in April. But the opportunity to forge an agreement to heal the 35 year division of the island is in jeopardy if UN-sponsored talks fail to gain momentum within days, Mehmet Ali Talat, the [leader] of the Turkish enclave in the north, told the Daily Telegraph. Mr Talat and Cyprus President Dimitris Christofias, have met 55 times since September 2008 but have agreed to throw off the shackles of aides and note-takers in a last ditch effort to make peace. Both men are widely regarded as doves, who are determined to seal a deal. "The pace of the talks is too slow. We need a quicker round of talks in early 2010," Mr Talat said. "So we have agreed that we will hold three days of all day talks in our own homes in a relaxed atmosphere without the disturbance of minute takers and officials. That way we will have the opportunity to concentrate on the most difficult issues." Cyprus has been divided since 1974, when the Turkish army invaded. Cypriot voters will judge any agreement on the mechanism it proposes to enable displaced citizens to recover property lost in the invasion. Despite the slow progress, Greek Cypriots fear that reunification will become an impossible dream after the generation who lost their homes in 1974 dies out. "If we can't solve this problem, life will solve it."
A ship carrying phosphate fertilizer from the Port of Tampa has been hijacked by Somali pirates while on its way to India. Greece's Merchant Marine Ministry said the Navios Apollon was taken 240 nautical miles northeast of Seychelles on Monday. The crew was comprised of one Greek and 18 Filipinos. Tampa Port Authority spokesman Andy Fobes said the ship left the port on Nov. 20 and was loaded with phosphate fertilizer. The ship, which is managed in Greece and flagged in Panama, was taken just three hours after a British tanker was taken. International maritime experts say that with the latest hijackings, pirates now hold 12 vessels and 263 crew members.
Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin has driven a limited model, metallic-gold Patriot with a Russian-Italian engine, made for Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, off the production line before delivery. Berlusconi wished to buy the model during a meeting in St. Petersburg in October. On Tuesday, Putin unveiled a plant in Russia's Far Eastern city of Vladivostok to assemble Korean cars. The Russian PM also took a tour of the plant's assembly room. "You promised Berlusconi a discount," Putin reminded Vadim Shvetsov, the auto holding's director. "Yes, we will honor a 10% discount," Shvetsov confirmed. Speaking to plant workers on Tuesday, Putin said Russia will continue reviving the domestic car industry, which was hard hit by the global financial and economic crisis. The project was launched a year after the federal government raised import duties on used cars, angering drivers and businesses in the Far East, who relied almost exclusively on imported Asian cars.
VII. IR: Archbishop Hilarion hopes to strengthen Orthodox positions in Conference of European Churches
The Moscow Patriarchate hopes the Conference of the European Churches under its new head will pay more attention to Orthodox opinion. “I hope you will spare to effort to make Protestant majority take seriously Orthodox witness to the CEC, and make the Conference efficient instrument and platform for inter-Christian cooperation and dialogue,” head of the Moscow Patriarchate Department for External Church Relations Archbishop Hilarion of Volokolamsk said in his message to Metropolitan Emmanuel of France recently promoted to the CEC President. The Moscow Patriarchate official considers “situation in modern inter-Christian movement, in particular in the CEC, critical” and believes “it is not so much a matter of financial crisis, which today has a global character, but the crisis of world outlook.” According to Archbishop Hilarion, the Russian Church is deeply concerned with “tendencies of liberalization of church practice and revision of moral teaching in some European Protestant communities.” “We can’t ignore the fact that liberal innovations are being treated as a norm while Orthodox believers are often blamed for their backwardness and intolerance,” the Archbishop further said in his message cited at the DECR official website.