Rice Criticizes Settlement Expansion on Arrival in Israel

The United States' top diplomat has arrived in the Middle East to try to give a boost to the peace process. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice is pushing for a peace agreement before President Bush leaves office in January.

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice began her peace mission with harsh criticism of Israel's announcement that it plans to build 1,300 new homes in disputed East Jerusalem. Rice told reporters on her plane that settlement expansion does not build confidence and is an obstacle to peace.

The Palestinians claim East Jerusalem as the capital of their future state. But Israel says it can build anywhere in Jerusalem because it will be the capital of the Jewish state in any final peace agreement. "Jewish neighborhoods in Jerusalem will remain part of Jerusalem in final status talks, and the truth is everyone understands that," said Israeli spokesman Mark Regev.

Israel has announced plans to build some 3,000 new homes in East Jerusalem and the West Bank since peace talks resumed six months ago. Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat says enough is enough. "This cannot stand," said Erekat. "The government of Israel has a choice, either to continue the settlement activity or to continue the peace process. It cannot have both."

　
The settlement issue will be high on the agenda when Rice meets separately with Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Sunday.

French Ship Foils Pirate Attack

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Record high prices of gold have failed to dent its consumption in India – the world's largest market for the precious metal

R.K. Garg, 50, and his wife are shopping for gold earrings at the Gold Souk Mall in Gurgaon, close to New Delhi. Prices are up by 25 percent since he bought gold jewelry for his daughter's wedding last year, but he says he has no choice except to buy another piece.
"For the first anniversary we have to give some gift to her," Garg said.
A centuries-old tradition of gifting gold at marriages and other occasions and buying it during festivals is keeping the gold market buoyant in India, although prices are hovering around $1340 an ounce – an all-time high.
The economic recession and a drought had led to a sharp fall in demand, last year. But those memories have faded as the Indian economy grows briskly once again and good rains this monsoon season boost farm incomes.
Wedding season, new designs
As the main festival and wedding season gets underway, jewelers are getting ready with new designs and attractive offers to lure customers.
Rajinder Bhola's jewelry shop at the Gold Souk is buzzing with customers. He says he sees fewer casual customers walk in to buy pieces of jewelry, probably due to the high prices.
But Bhola says demand for jewelry to be presented at weddings remains consistent. And, in a country where two-thirds of the billion-plus population is under 30, the number of marriages is on the rise.
"The growing population, and then the weddings, and then very basic needs like all women in India wear a chain, and ring and bangles, these are the primary things which people have to buy," said Bhola.
Good investment
It is not just the cultural affinity with gold that continues to fuel demand.
In Mumbai, Associate Director at the World Gold Council in Mumbai, Keyur Shah, says the massive jump in prices in recent years has only reinforced the centuries-old belief that gold is a time-tested asset.
"Indian consumers are not afraid of the price level," Shah said. "In fact it reiterates their confidence if prices consistently go up in gold. They always feel they made a wise decision to buy gold say two years back and wish they had bought more."
Belief that gold is a good investment is also spurring the sales of gold coins and gold bars. And, it is not just prosperous, urban centers where gold is selling. Demand is also high in rural areas where other investment options such as banks and stocks are limited. Rural areas account for nearly two-thirds of gold purchases in the country.
A report by the World Gold Council says India and China are set to be the driving force behind gold demand.
The World Gold Council's Shah says prosperity is driving demand in these countries.
"If you look at the retail demand globally, consumption in India and China is on the rise and it is mainly due to rising incomes of the middle class," he added.
That includes people like Somya Misra, who will be getting married in January. She is going around jewelry shops to decide what she would like to pick up. The bride-to-be is not worrying about prices, but what pieces she wants.
"If marriages are happening, people are buying gold, irrespective of price, so I think till the time marriages continue in the same spirit in India, the purchase of gold is going to be high," Misra said.
That is what jewelers across the country are hoping will happen, helping them pull in good profits.

UN: Iran Will Allow Access to Suspected Nuclear Military Site

The head of the U.N. nuclear watchdog agency says the Iranian government has agreed to give his inspectors access to what had been an off limits military site where the United States believes the country may be developing a nuclear weapon.

For months, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has been denied access by Iran to the Parchin military complex, a site that the United States suspects Tehran may be using to develop nuclear weapons.

Now, IAEA Director-General Mohamed ElBaradei says Tehran may have changed its mind.

"We will probably expect to do certain activities in the next few weeks, including hopefully a visit to this Parchin site," he said.

Interest in the site is driven in part by satellite images that suggest the testing of high explosives at the facility. But without actually gaining access first hand, experts say such components could just as easily have non-nuclear applications.

So far, Iran has allowed UN nuclear inspectors access only to non-military zones and the IAEA chief did not say what might have led the country to this apparent reversal of course.

"I expect that we will be visiting there in the next few days or weeks," he added.

There has been no comment from Iran. But such a visit would mark the latest twist in the IAEA's long dealings with Iran over its suspected nuclear weapons program. The U.N. agency has not found hard evidence proving the country is working to produce nuclear weapons. But Tehran has acknowledged that it hid critical aspects of its civilian nuclear program for nearly two decades even though it insists all such programs are intended to produce electricity.

The Bush administration believes Iran is working to develop nuclear weapons and pushed for an IAEA decision to refer the matter to the U.N. Security Council. The European Union, meanwhile, puts forward a package of economic incentives in exchange for an Iranian promise to freeze uranium enrichment.

Japan's hopes of acquiring the jet touted as the world's most advanced fighter are being dashed. The commander of U.S. Forces Japan

The top American military commander in Japan rebuffed Tokyo's hopes of acquiring a new state-of-the-art fighter, just days after the U.S. Senate cut future funding for production of the combat jet.

Lieutenant General Edward Rice on Thursday said the F-22 Raptor was never intended to be sold to other countries, despite interest expressed by such allies as Japan, Australia and Israel.

　

"Given that the F-22 is not available to anybody in the world as an export aircraft, what is the best aircraft for Japan to purchase to secure their defensive needs of the available aircraft? I certainly am not in a position or would not take a position to try to suggest to the Japanese what aircraft they should buy," Rice said.

The Japanese and other allies may have to look at the smaller, slower and cheaper F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, which has some of the advanced technology developed for the Raptor.

　
President Obama has said it would be a waste of money to build more F-22's, a stance many U.S. lawmakers supported. His administration wants to shift more of the defense budget away from conventional warfare projects that have huge costs.

But influential proponents of the F-22 in the U.S. Congress say that even if the Air Force does not want more of the twin-engine jets, they should be built for sale to allies. Supporters say the high-altitude supersonic fighter is ideal to counter any future threat from China's combat jets.

　

Japan's Air Self Defense Force primarily relies on F-4 and F-15 fighter jets. Defense officials here say their top preference to replace the aging F-4's remains the Raptor despite the funding cut by U.S. senators.

Iraqi officials testifying before a committee of Congress have urged the United States to be cautious in how it withdraws military forces from their country

Iraqi Prime Minister Ayad Allawi and another member of Iraq's parliament also said Thursday that national elections slated for January will mark a critical turning point and must be closely monitored by the international community.

The hearing of the House of Representatives Subcommittee on International Organizations, Human Rights and Oversight was called to examine the Chapter Seven United Nations mandate for Iraq, which was extended in August for 12 months, as well as U.S.-Iraqi agreements and their implications for the future.

However much of the questioning by lawmakers focused on the political and security conditions in the country and what they could mean for Iraq's January national elections.

Former Iraqi Prime Minister Allawi said the United States and Iraq have similar goals. The U.S. wants to leave Iraq, but not in turmoil, he said, while Iraq seeks a path of prosperity and sovereignty where individual and minority rights are respected.

　
But, both Allawi and parliament member Saleh al-Mutlaq pointed to political, sectarian and other problems as well as external factors, such as pressures from Iran, that could cause problems during and after the elections.

While Iraqis know the United States will be withdrawing its military forces, Allawi said Iraq's military remains unable to shoulder the security burden. And he said oustanding political and constitutional issues are also giving rise to severe tensions.

　
"The implementation of [the] political reform act as passed by Parliament in 2008 is a must. The act includes, among [other things] amending the Constitution, instituting an inclusive political process and implementing political and national reconciliation. None of these steps has been acted upon, yet these steps are very necessary for the stabilization of Iraq," he said.

　

President Barack Obama has ordered all U.S. combat forces out of Iraq by the end of August of next year, and all U.S. forces gone by the end of 2011.

Saying the United States withdrawal should be "moral and responsible," Iraqi parliament member Saleh al-Mutlaq said the only way to ensure free and fair elections in his country is with a commitment by the U.S. and United Nations for thorough monitoring.

　
"Without this monitoring, I believe that the election will be the same as happened before. The intimidation is already there, the assassinations are already there. And we have been getting so many warnings that we are going to be targeted, that our people are going to be targeted," he said.

　
Calling the elections critical, not only for Iraq's future but for the region, the subcommittee Chairman, Democratic Representative William Delahunt, said a large international observer presence is required before and during the vote.

　
Pointing to questions about the legitimacy of the recent election in Afghanistan, Delahunt worries not only about a deterioration in Iraq, but the impact electoral problems in Iraq could have on the American public support for U.S. policy in Afghanistan.

　

"If the election in January is unsuccessful, support here in this country for involvement in Afghanistan will diminish because the American people will be saying, 'We tried it once; it didn't work. And look what happened.' So this isn't just simply about supporting the Iraqi people and democracy in Iraq. It's about Afghanistan and I dare say it's about the entire region," he said.

The Democratic representative of the U.S. Congress to the United Nations, Delahunt said he will use consultations in New York next week to generate support for international monitoring of the Iraqi elections.

In his testimony to the subcommittee, Kenneth Katzman, a specialist in Middle East Affairs with the Congressional Research Service, warned that sectarianism in Iraq might worsen in the run-up to the elections. "Sectarianism, and ethnic and factional infighting continue to simmer. And many Iraqis' views and positions are colored by efforts to outflank, outmaneuver and constrain rival factions," he said.

　

Katzman said sectarian tensions could reach a peak as Iraqis decide whether to hold a referendum on the U.S. military presence.

On the final day of a visit to Iraq, U.S. Vice President Joe Biden said on Thursday the United States will abide by any decisions by the Iraqi people on the U.S. withdrawal schedule, part of which was established in a Status of Forces Agreement reached during the Bush administration.

　
In his testimony Thursday, former Iraqi Prime Minister Allawi voiced concern about what he called "reversals in security" after a fragile period of improvement, along with an upsurge in sectarian tensions.

　
The United States, he said, has a moral responsibility and national security interest in ensuring fraud-free elections in Iraq, which should include not only the deployment of U.S. forces, but a strong United Nations involvement.

Just one month before the 2010 midterm elections

The survey also finds that discrimination against Arab Americans appears to be on the rise.
Americans go to the polls next month to cast their votes against during a time of continued economic distress and unresolved conflicts across the Middle East. Arab Americans, once considered a political swing group, are now solidly in the Democratic camp, according to the new survey by Zogby International, which was sponsored by the Arab American Institute.
Favoring Democrats
James Zogby, president of the Arab American Institute, points to foreign policy and civil rights as major reasons for the community's support of the Democratic party.
"It is not the party that made the war in Iraq. It is not the party that supported the devastation of Lebanon. It is not the party that supported and wrote the PATRIOT act and supported the abuse of civil liberties," says Zogby
The survey shows that Arab-Americans support Democrats two-to-one over Republicans on national security, fighting terrorism and the economy. On the issue of civil liberties, the margin is three-to-one in favor of the Democrats.
The survey was conducted during the last week of September, following weeks of controversy over plans by a Muslim group to build an Islamic cultural center and mosque - called Park 51 - near the site of the World Trade Center.
Many opponents of the project were conservative Republicans, who said building a mosque there would be insensitive to the families of those killed in the September 11, 2001 attacks. Zogby says that reinforced Arab-Americans' tendency to lean toward the Democrats.
Discrimination
Nearly half of those polled also report experiencing discrimination.
"When we asked Arab-Americans, 41 percent said they have been discriminated against because of their ethnicity. They are sensitive to these issues because they know when it does not smell right , does not feel right," says Zogby. "People are not going to vote Park 51, that is not going to be the cause of the vote, but it has created an atmosphere which reinforces a sense of not being welcomed, of not being included."
Zogby says the Arab-American vote in the midterm elections will be significant in Pennsylvania, Ohio, California and Florida, where there are large Arab-American communities. He expects a very significant impact in Michigan, where Arab-Americans make up five percent of registered voters.
Increased participation
Hassan Jaber, executive director of the Arab Community Center for Economic and Social Services in Michigan, says one of the center's goals is to increase Arab-American political participation in the state.
"Detroit is one of the largest Arab-American communities in the nation and the community is extremely dynamic and engaged," says Jaber. "We have seen more engagement in the political process and obviously the Arab-American community has a lot of economic clout in Detroit, so it is significant. We work with community leaders in making sure that we maximize the engagement of Arab-Americans and that there will be coordination among Arab-American organizations."
According to Jaber, similar efforts are being made in many other Arab-American communities throughout the U.S., but there is a special focus on Michigan.
"There are scheduled fundraising events almost every evening this week, there is, in Michigan, recognition of the size and of the power of Arab-Americans and we are very happy with the level of engagement."
Jaber says candidates often attend these fundraising events, where Arab-American voters express their concerns over the rising trend of discrimination and the racial profiling of Arabs and Muslims at American airports.
The Zogby poll indicates that jobs and the economy are the top priority for 70 percent of Arab-American voters, followed by the war in Iraq, Middle East peace efforts and other foreign policy concerns.
On virtually every one of these issues, respondents said that the Democrats would do a better job than the Republicans and that they favor a Democratic-controlled Congress. Mid-term elections will be held on November 2, 2010.