Mahmoud Ahmadinejad

AHVAZ, Khuzestan, Jan. 2--President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said on Tuesday the Iranian nation would strongly defend its rights, praising the people of Khuzestan for their resistance during the 1980-88 Iraq-imposed war.
Addressing a public gathering in Ahvaz, President Ahmadinejad noted that the people of Khuzestan are frontrunners in Iran’s move toward independence and grandeur, IRNA reported.
Praising the resistance of its local people during the Iraq-imposed war, the president said Khuzestan province is a base of stability and strength for Islamic Iran.
“Khuzestan is a land of devotion, kindness and effort,“ he said. Referring to the Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein’s imposition of the eight-year war on the Iranian nation, he pointed out that Saddam was backed by certain bullying and strong powers.
“He attacked Iran with the support of the US and the Soviet Union by using advanced military equipment, but was defeated thanks to the bravery and resistance of the Iranian people,“ he said.
The president stressed that the fate of Saddam is a lesson for all dictators of the world.
“The Iranian people and all free nations are happy with the execution of a criminal. Rulers who stand against their nation and are at the service of bullying powers will face a similar fate,“ he said.
Ahmadinejad also said Iran is a proponent of peace and security in the region.
Urged the occupiers of Iraq to speed up their withdrawal from Iraq, he said, “Occupiers intend to use Saddam’s execution for escalating sectarian violence in Iraq.“
“Today, our enemies who could not reach their goals in their eight-year imposed war, are against the development and progress of Iranians, under the guise of advocating human rights and opposing nuclear weapons,“ he said.
The president also said Resolution 1737 recently passed by the United Nations Security Council against Iran’s peaceful nuclear activities was against the UN Charter.
“The Iranian nation will not accept the resolution, which is politically motivated,“ he said.
Stating that the Security Council should safeguard rights of nations, he said, “The Security Council ratified the illegal resolution against the Iranian nation under the American and British pressure. The issuance of the resolution and the opposition of Security Council with Iran’s peaceful nuclear program have discredited the council.“
Ahmadinejad further said that the roots of the ongoing wars in the world should be sought in the structure of this body’s management.
The president’s current visit to the oil-rich province is his 24th to various provinces of the country since the start of his initiative of bringing the government closer to the people.

TEHRAN, Jan. 2--Iran arranges its relations based on the mutual interests of both sides, the government spokesman said on Tuesday, clarifying that the Majlis bill does not imply Iran’s withdrawal from NPT.
Asked about the formation of a committee to review relations with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Gholamhossein Elham added that political and economic relations with other countries are also related, IRNA reported.
“It is not as if with one country we will have high-level economic relations, but low-level diplomatic relations,“ he said.
Noting that other countries need relations with Iran, the spokesman said, “In cultural-political fields, they need to have relations with the Islamic Republic. Our country’s nuclear issue affects other countries. Our diplomatic relations with other countries are managed by the Foreign Ministry, which makes its decisions by considering our national interests.“
Commenting on Iran’s relations with the IAEA, Elham said, “The bill ratified in the Majlis gave the administration certain additional powers, but this does not mean that Iran is withdrawing from the Non-Proliferation Treaty.“
He reiterated that as a member of IAEA, Iran acts as per its agreements.
“This also means that both sides must carry out their duties. It cannot be that one side carries out its duty while the other side is deprived of its rights,“ he said.
Elham declared that if they refuse to recognize the Islamic Republic’s rights and intensify pressure, Iran can use its prerogative of withdrawing or not withdrawing from the treaty.
On losses incurred by Iran in the 1980-88 Iraq-imposed war, Elham said, “We must seek damages for the imposed war through international tribunals and from those who caused the war, especially the United States.“

TEHRAN, Jan. 2--A total of 203 lawmakers in a statement stressed that the crimes’ dossier of Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein should remain open and be reviewed in a committee comprising representatives of Iran and Kuwait.
The statement was read by a member of Majlis Presiding Board, Jahanbakhsh Mohebbinia, ISNA reported.
The lawmakers felicitated the Iranian, Iraqi and Kuwaiti nations on the execution of Saddam, adding that one of the most important lessons of contemporary history is the fate of a criminal whose life is full of crimes and oppressions.
“Saddam committed the world’s biggest crimes by imposing wars on Iran and Kuwait, martyring the innocent people of Iraq, particularly residents of Halabcheh and Shiite religious scholars,“ the statement said.
The lawmakers noted that an important question remains unanswered and that is why American troops, who held Saddam in custody since his arrest in late 2003 until his execution on December 30 did not allow Saddam to be tried for his crimes against Iranian, Kuwaiti and Iraqi nations.
It added that nothing was said about Saddam’s relationship with the western countries, particularly regarding chemical weapons.
“We lawmakers, as representatives of the great nation of Iran, especially the martyrs’ families, those missing in action, war disabled and ex-PoWs, will do our best to pursue the rights of the Iranian people in cooperation with the new Iraqi government,“ it said.
Meanwhile, the Society for Defending the Rights of Chemical Victims of Sardasht issued a statement and urged officials to take more serious action for pursuing the rights of the chemically wounded people.
Referring to Saddam’s execution, it noted that Saddam was hung at a time when he was not tried for many of the crimes he committed such as Halabcheh and Sardasht chemical bombardments.
“As representatives of hundreds of families of the victims of Sardasht, we request all freedom-seekers and defenders of human rights to take more serious measures for defending the people’s rights,“ the society said.

BAGHDAD, Iraq,
Jan. 2--US-led forces are likely to launch a limited New Year offensive against Shiite cleric Moqtada Sadr’s Mehdi Army militia, blamed for sectarian death squad killings, senior Iraqi officials say.
The Pentagon, in a report last month, described Mehdi Army militias as the biggest threat to Iraq’s security and diplomats say Washington is impatient to confront them, Reuters reported.
Several officials in the Shiite political parties that dominate Prime Minister Nuri Maliki’s unity government also say they are losing patience with Sadr’s supporters and predict more raids like last week’s joint US-Iraqi operation in which a senior Sadr aide was killed.
“There will be limited and targeted operations against members of the Mehdi Army,“ a senior Shiite official told Reuters. “The ground is full of surprises but we think around Jan. 5 there will be some operations. I can say no more.“
British forces in the southern oil province of Basra have also been conducting major raids against groups they describe as “rogue Mehdi Army“, some entrenched in Iraqi police units.
Last week, British troops blew up the headquarters of Basra’s Major Crimes Unit and said they freed tortured prisoners.
Sadr’s supporters twice launched armed uprisings against the US occupation in 2004 but have since formally joined the US-sponsored political process.
A handful of Sadr’s ministers suspended their participation in Maliki’s government and his 30 members of parliament have also been staying away since Maliki approved a renewal of the US forces’ UN mandate a month ago.
But Maliki’s fragile authority among his fellow Shiites has been bolstered by Saturday’s hanging of Saddam Hussein, whose Sunni-led administration oppressed the Shiite majority.
While he negotiates to end a boycott of the cabinet by moderates in Sadr’s movement, other Shiite leaders are pushing for a crackdown on Sadr militants.
“They are jeopardizing all our efforts and achievements,“ said a senior official from another group in the main United Alliance bloc of which Sadr’s group is a key part.
Maliki has repeatedly said since taking office eight months ago that he will disband all militias but has asked for patience and insists the main threat is from Sunni insurgents.
Several political sources said Maliki, from the Dawa party and a compromise choice as premier who owed his appointment to support from the populist Sadr, was trying to give political negotiations with Sadr a last chance before any crackdown.

BRASILIA, Brazil, Jan. 2--Brazil’s first working-class president was sworn in Monday to a second term, promising to boost the nation’s lackluster economy and ease the deep divide between a rich elite and millions living in misery.
Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva took the oath of office in Congress after riding to the ceremony in a classic Rolls-Royce convertible, in keeping with inaugural protocol, but insisted he has not lost sight of his roots as the son of a dirt-poor farmer from Brazil’s impoverished northeast, AP reported.
“One of my biggest commitments is that I never forget where I came from,“ Silva told lawmakers in Brasilia’s congressional palace.
Silva, who became Brazil’s first elected leftist leader four years ago after gaining fame as a union leader resisting Brazil’s 1964-85 military dictatorship, said low-income workers in the nation of 187 million still do not earn enough and have limited opportunities to better their lives.
The country’s economy has significantly lagged in growth compared with the rest of South America. This, along with a corruption scandal that dogged his Workers’ Party, put him on the defensive during his reelection campaign.
Analysts said Silva won heavy support for his landslide reelection victory in October by expanding the “Zero Hunger“ program that gives 11 million Brazilian families money for food every month if they keep their children in school. A poll released earlier this month showed Silva is Brazil’s most popular president in recent decades, but analysts doubt he has the congressional votes needed to push through extensive reforms.

GENEVA, Jan. 2--Air crashes worldwide fell to their lowest level in forty-three years in 2006, when the number of air deaths also dropped by 11 percent from the previous year, the Aircraft Crashes Record Office said on Tuesday.
The Geneva-based body recorded 156 incidents in the last 12 months, 22 fewer than in 2005 and their lowest level since 1963, AFP reported.
The number of victims dropped to 1,292, it said in a statement.
Air traffic continued to boom in 2006, with a “big improvement in the number of passengers transported and plane journeys“, ACRO Director Ronan Hubert said.
In 2006, the total number of air passengers was 4 billion, compared to 1.5 billion in 2001.
North America bore the brunt of air accidents with 32 percent of the world’s total, followed by 18 percent in Africa, 17 percent in Asia, 12 percent in South America, 11 percent in Europe, 8 percent in Central America and 2 percent in Oceania.
In the United States there were 45 accidents, making it the hardest-hit country, followed by 11 in the Democratic Republic of Congo, 6 each in Venezuela and Sudan, and 5 apiece in Canada, Russia and Colombia.
Four accidents caused over 100 deaths each. The deadliest incident in Europe was the crash of a Tupolev-154 operated by Pulkovo Aviation in Ukraine on August 22, which led to 170 deaths.
This was the largest loss of life in an air crash worldwide since 2002.
European aircraft manufacturer Airbus lost two planes in 2006 while its American rival Boeing lost five, the ACRO said.
Antonov lost 16 planes, BAe 5, Beechcraft 7, Canadair 2, Casa 4, Cessna 28, Convair 2, Dassault 2, De Havilland Canada 13, Douglas 3, Fokker 3, Learjet 4, Ilyushin 1, Let 4, Lockheed 6, McDonnell Douglas 1, Mitsubishi 3, Piper 7, PZL-Mielec 6, Rockwell 7 and Tupolev 3, the group said.
Three quarters of all planes downed in 2006 were propellor or turboprops, it added.

GAZA CITY, Occupied Palestine, Jan. 2--Violence erupted in the Gaza Strip again, with warring Palestinian factions firing on each other and kidnapping rivals, and gunmen abducting a foreign news photographer.
The clashes in the Jebaliya Refugee Camp near Gaza City on Monday broke a weeklong pause in the violent confrontation between the Islamic Hamas, which controls the government, and moderate President Mahmoud Abbas’ Fatah, AP reported.
In the past few weeks, 17 people have been killed in the internal fighting, leading to fears of civil war.
At least two people were wounded in the gunfire on Monday, security officials said, and media reports said 18 Hamas gunmen and four from Fatah were kidnapped. Seven of the Hamas militants were later freed. In the past, kidnapped militants have usually been released unharmed.
Armed confrontations escalated, as Fatah-Hamas talks on a national unity government broke down several weeks ago.
Frustrated by lack of progress, Abbas threatened to call an early election, but Hamas rejected that as an attempted coup and said it would boycott.
The renewed violence came despite a four-day Muslim holiday, Eid Al-Adha (Feast of the Sacrifice), when Palestinians usually concentrate on family visits instead of internal politics. Before sundown Monday, gunmen abducted a photographer from the French news agency AFP from downtown Gaza City.
AFP identified the photographer as Jaime Razuri, 50, from Peru. An AFP reporter said the photographer was returning from an assignment in Gaza and was abducted at gunpoint as he got out of his car with his driver. There was no public claim of responsibility for the kidnapping.
Abbas condemned the kidnapping, according to a statement on the Palestinian WAFA news agency.
The AFP reporter said the photographer spent most of his career covering Latin America.
This was just the latest in a string of kidnappings of foreigners in Gaza in recent months. Most have been carried out by disgruntled workers seeking promises of payment of long overdue salaries or splinter militant groups. In most cases, the victims have been released unharmed within hours.