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Today's Headlines
- Al-Assad to hold official talks with Yeltsin today
Syrian President Hafez al-Assad arrived in Moscow on Monday for a two-day official visit to Russia at the invitation of Russian President Boris Yeltsin. Syria, Politics, 7/6/99 - Barak's new government
The real test facing the new prime minister of Israel, Ehud Barak, is his commitment to the Wye Agreement, including the implementation of the pending two phases of the Israeli troop withdrawal from the West Bank. Palestine, Politics, 7/6/99 - Algerian prime minister presents civil reconciliation draft to parliament
Algerian Prime Minister Ismail Hamdani presented to the national public council the draft law for civil reconciliation, which will determine the destiny of the Islamists who threw down their weapons. Algeria, Politics, 7/6/99 - King of Morocco renews resolve to establish exemplary relations with Algeria
King Hassan II of Morocco renewed resolve to establish exemplary relations between Morocco and Algeria, given the two neighboring countries' shared destiny and their role in the construction of the Arab Maghreb Union. Morocco, Politics, 7/6/99 - Algeria supports Egypt's bid to join Maghreban union; 10 fold trade increase
the two states wish to increase at least by 10 fold the volume of trade exchanges, presently standing at one million dollars. Algeria, Politics, 7/6/99 - Iraqi deputy premier in Moscow Iraq, Politics, 7/6/99
- UAE pleased over GCC stand
The United Arab Emirates' news agency on Monday quoted UAE Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Sheikh Hamdan Bin Zayed al-Nahyan as saying that the UAE "appreciates the unwavering stand taken by her sisters in the GCC, released by their meeting in Jeddah, in which they voiced solidarity with Abu Dhabi to restore full supremacy on its three islands." United Arab Emirates, Politics, 7/6/99 - King Fahd calls for resuming peace negotiations
Saudi Arabia's King Fahd Bin Abdul Aziz emphasized the importance of resuming peace negotiations in Middle East on all tracks and he urged the other Gulf states to improve their relations with Iran. Saudi Arabia, Politics, 7/6/99 - Message from President Mubarak to Gaddafi
Libyan leader Col. Moammar Gaddafi received a message yesterday from Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak in which Mubarak informed Gaddafi of the results of his visits to the US and France. Egypt, Politics, 7/6/99 - Libyan-Moroccan talks on upcoming joint commission
Secretary general of the Libyan People's Committee of trade and mining, Meftah Ali Azzouza, met in Rabat on Monday with Moroccan minister of foreign affairs and cooperation, Mohamed Benaissa and minister of the government's general affairs, Ahmed Lahlimi. Morocco, Politics, 7/6/99 - Turabi sends envoy to meet with Sudanese opposition in Cairo
Kamal Tayeb Idris, the envoy of the chairman of the Sudanese National Council, Hassan Turbai, has been holding talks since Saturday in Cairo with leaders of Sudanese opposition groups to settle the conflicts which have led to divisions in the country. Sudan, Politics, 7/6/99 - Iraqi paper criticizes the Gulf states
The Iraqi daily al-Thawra has criticized the Gulf states for calling on Baghdad to cooperate with the UN in the statement which was released by the foreign ministers of the Gulf Cooperation Council. Iraq, Politics, 7/6/99 - Russian sources and al-Assad's visit to Moscow
Russian diplomatic sources in Damascus said that the Middle East peace process and the military cooperation will be among the most important issues President al-Assad is carrying to Moscow to discuss with his Russian counterpart, Boris Yeltsin. Syria, Politics, 7/6/99 - Morocco, China sign accord on maritime transport
Morocco and China concluded in Rabat on Monday an accord consolidating the juridical framework of bilateral cooperation in matters of maritime transport. Morocco, Economics, 7/6/99 - Moroccan fisheries professionals reject proposal to set up joint ventures with E.U.
For the Moroccan side, the Morocco-EU cooperation must seek another partnership formula, promoting joint ventures in fisheries-related sectors such as shipyards, ships maintenance, and sea-food processing, in addition to fish-farming. Morocco, Economics, 7/6/99 - Egypt, Arab League call for Israel's withdrawal from Arab lands
Egyptian presidential political advisor Osama El-Baz has urged Israel to withdraw from the occupied Arab territories. Egypt, Politics, 7/6/99 - Faisal Al-Husseini: Big mistake if Israel tries obstructing the Palestinian track
Egyptian Foreign Minister Amr Moussa met yesterday with Fiasal El-Husseini, the official in charge of the Jerusalem file in the Palestinian National Authority. Palestine, Politics, 7/6/99 - Arab committee condemns Copenhagen group conference
The Arab committee in charge of resisting surrender and normalization with Israel in the Middle East has expressed its strong condemnation of the activities of the Copenhagen group which convened on Monday its international conference in Cairo "in order to strengthen its surrender position in normalizing relations with Israel," SANA said. Regional, Politics, 7/6/99 - Anti-Copenhagen conference in Cairo
High-ranking Egyptian writers, intellectuals, leaders of political parties, artists and pressmen gathered on Monday morning at the Shepherd hotel in Cairo for a conference during which they expressed their opposition to normalizing relations with Israel. Regional, Politics, 7/6/99 - Cairo peace conference
In the meeting today, the conference started with the addressed delivered by Khalil, in which he hailed peace and presented former Israeli Prime Minister Shimon Peres, who said that peace was obstructed in former Israeli Prime Minsiter Benjamin Netenyahu's era and that the Israeli people showed in the last election that their choice is peace. Regional, Politics, 7/6/99 - Arab businesswomen's conference opens in Morocco
According to the head of the Egyptian delegation to the conference, Yamna Ach-Charidi, the Egyptian and Moroccan businesswomen associations will sign a cooperation agreement to exchange expertise and create joint projects Regional, Politics, 7/6/99 - On Israel's withdrawal from the Golan
The chairman of Israel's Arab Democratic Darty Abdul Wahab Darawshe, who is also a former member of the Israeli Knesset, has expressed his conviction that Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak will carry out the Israeli withdrawal from the Lebanese territories within one year from the presentation of his government to the Knesset. Syria, Politics, 7/6/99 - Trial of Sheikh al-Jamri to resume in Bahrain
The trail of prominent Shiite leader Sheikh Abdul Hamid al-Jamri resumed today. Al-Jamri has been detained by the Bahraini authorities for three years. Bahrain, Politics, 7/6/99 - Lebanese Parliament speaker confers with US ambassador
Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri received the US ambassador to Lebanon, David Satterfield, on Monday in Beirut. Talks dealt with local and regional developments. Lebanon, Politics, 7/6/99 - Exporting Egyptian potatoes to Uruguay
The Egyptian Ihuad company for foodstuffs agreed to export 70% of the potato production of the company's factory to Uruguay. Egypt, Economics, 7/6/99 - Egyptian - Iranian transaction worth $100 million
Egypt and Iran agreed yesterday on implementing an equal transaction of $100 million to be increased during the coming three years. Egypt, Economics, 7/6/99 - Saudi fund grants Morocco $40 million loan
The Saudi Development Fund has granted Morocco a loan worth $40 million to finance three projects, it was officially announced in Rabat on Tuesday. Morocco, Economics, 7/6/99
Short Takes
- Algerian President Abdelaziz Bouteflika directed a message to the Algerian people on the 37th anniversary of the national Independence Day. In his message he stated his political initiatives and urged his people to achieve national reconciliation. In his Independence Day message, Bouteflika focused on the importance of the great sacrifices the Algerian people made for independence and he gave a critic of each stage of the previous Algerian rule. Go
- The London-based al-Sharq al-Awsat daily quoted an official at the Syrian Ministry of the Interior as saying that a joint decision between the Syrian and Lebanese governments that was released recently provides for permitting Palestinians who carry documents as residents in Syria and Lebanon to freely enter and exit the two states, as do the citizens of the two countries. In its Sunday issue the paper added that the Palestinians who live in Syria have become able to enter the Lebanese territories without any previous measures and for a period of seven days. Go
- It was announced in Khartoum on Monday that Sudan will take part in the meetings of the 35th Organization of African Unity Summit conference to be held in Algeria on July 12 - 14. The Sudanese delegation to the conference will be headed by President Omar Hassan al-Bashir. Go
- Some 30 detained Algerian gunmen were released on Monday following the pardon released by Algerian President Abdul Aziz Bouteflika. On Sunday the Algerian president issued a pardon which covered thousands of Algerian gunmen who were not involved in killing crimes or rapes. Go
- Israel Radio said on Monday that Israeli - Palestinian trade and industrial meetings are currently being held with the objective of studying means of strengthening cooperation between the Palestinian government and Israel. Trade director general at the Palestinian government Abdul Hafeez Noufel expressed his optimism that the coming phase will witness an improvement in the trade and economic relations between the two sides. Go
- Meetings between the delegations of the Israeli civil aviation directorate with a Jordanian civil aviation delegation started in Tel Aviv on Monday in order to organize Israeli - Jordanian relations in the area of civil aviation. In a statement to Israel Radio, the chairman of the Israeli civil aviation directorate said that the Israeli - Jordanian meeting dealt with several matters, including the possibility of exchanging expertise in the area of maintenance and the number of passengers. Go
- A large British delegation including several members of the house of commons representing both the Labor and the Conservative parties as well as several economic activists in Britain arrived in Tripoli on Monday. In a press statement, a member of the house of commons for the Labor Party, Lord Nazir, said: "We are here to strengthen relations with the Libyan people and to understand more and to have a clearer picture." He stated that the size of this delegation shows the extent of appreciation for Libya's role in the world. Go
- Emir of Qatar Sheikh Hamad Bin Khaleifa al-Thani on Monday released a decree that provided for appointing the chairman of the Emir's divan, Abdullah Bin Khaleifa al-Ateyah, as a minister of state. The Qatar News Agency in its news broadcast on Sunday night did not mention the tasks assigned to the new post. Go
- Ankara sources said in Monday that Turkish forces once again on Monday were deployed in northern Iraq in a new invasion of the region under the pretext of chasing the armed Kurds. No news was reported on the number of Turkish troops which entered the Iraqi territories or the number of dead or wounded between the two sides. Go
- Iraq said it is ready to deal with any draft presented to the United Nations Security Council that would consider lifting the international sanctions imposed for nine years. Go
- The United Nations Fooda and Agriculture Organization office in Baghdad warned of the great effects of the drought currently taking peace in Iraq, which threatens agricultural and animal production. In a statement yesterday, the organization said the basin of the Degla River witnessed the lowest level of water flow and that a drought could cause loses in the agricultural crops at a rate of 37% for wheat and 63% for malt in central and southern Iraq. Go
- Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak met today in Cairo with Palestinian President Yasser Arafat to discuss the prospects for the Middle East peace process in light of Mubarak's visit last week to the United States and Arafat's discussion last week with Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak. Go