COTE D'IVOIRE: UN concerned about the alleged supply of weapons from Belarus

AFP - The tension rose Monday between the camp of Ivorian President Laurent Gbagbo and the outgoing United Nations about an alleged case of delivery of weapons, while the humanitarian situation was deteriorating in Abidjan after fighting between government forces and pro-Gbagbo insurgents.

At the request of UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, the Security Council of the UN was discussing a possible meeting after information on the current delivery of three attack helicopters from Belarus and support material in Yamoussoukro (center) for the forces loyal to Mr.Gbagbo.

But Belarus has denied any violation of the arms embargo imposed in 2004 and denounced a "possible destructive campaign" against him.

The Gbagbo government has condemned a "conspiracy" and a "lie to justify an attack" from the UN.

He accused the UN mission in the country, UNOCI, which he calls the start of being complicit in the 'rebel' Forces Nouvelles (FN), combined with Alassane Ouattara - head of state recognized by the international community - which he believed to have infiltrated Abidjan.

The climate was still heavy in the economic capital with sporadic gunfire reported in several districts since Sunday, including in areas hitherto preserved as the plush Cocody district (east).

Fief of Mr.Gbagbo, the popular Yopougon (west) is now dotted with checkpoints "young patriots", his ardent supporters.Sometimes armed with machetes and clubs, they demand to search vehicles.

Their leader Charles Ble Goude called last week young people to "organize themselves into committees" to prevent "by all means" to move UNOCI.

Gbagbo's camp is over "harassment" against the UN "the act of direct hostility," he said Monday in Dakar Choi Young-jin, the head of UNOCI.

He said that three peacekeepers were injured by pro-Gbagbo forces this weekend in Abobo, a district pro-Ouattara in the north of Abidjan.

Abobo last week became the scene of clashes involving heavy weaponry between the pro-Gbagbo and rebels.

At Abobo, but also in the neighboring Anyama, the humanitarian situation was becoming increasingly worrisome background of the population exodus.

Some 3,000 people have already sought refuge in two Catholic missions, "in a crowded indescribable," he told AFP Abbe Augustin Obrou, spokesman for the archdiocese of Abidjan.

UNITED STATES: Boeing wins the tanker contract from U.S. Army

AFP - Boeing won Thursday for the second time the mega-tanker contract from the U.S. Air Force, crushing rival Airbus, which was nevertheless given favorite after years of political and legal twists.

"Today, on the basis of criteria evaluated (...) we announce that the Air Force has selected a proposal by the Boeing Company," said Secretary of the Army of the Air, Michael Donley, during a press briefing at the Pentagon.

Mr. Donley said the contract on 179 units, was valued at "more than 30 billion dollars."Eighteen aircraft will be delivered by 2017.

"Boeing wins hands down," noted Assistant Secretary of Defense William Lynn, when asked if it was difficult to decide between the two aircraft manufacturers for the contract, one of the most disputed of history of aviation.

Mr. Donley has ensured that the order was issued after a selection process "fair, open and transparent". He hoped that "both parties will respect this decision and allow this important acquisition to proceed without hindrance."

Industry experts expect indeed to make this call that EADS, which would block the contract.Before the announcement, Michael Boyd, president of a consulting firm specializing in aviation, had predicted that, regardless of the Pentagon's decision, one of the two groups would appeal, as the American states who would feel aggrieved.

Noting that the aircraft never flew Boeing, EADS said he was "disappointed" and "worried" the U.S. decision, without indicating whether he planned to appeal, as he has the chance.

Boeing said he was "honored" by the Pentagon's decision and "ready" to produce devices that will allow the U.S. Air Force to continue to deploy worldwide.

The contract is intended to replace the aging fleet of KC-135 dating from the '50s.

The story of the tender is peppered with twists, including a conflict of interest scandal. The contract was canceled twice, having been awarded to Boeing for the first time in 2003 and a second in 2008 to Airbus and its American ally Northrop Grumman.

EADS, Airbus' parent company, was launched this time without a major trading partner, but with the support of hundreds of U.S. equipment.

EADS praised the military version of its Airbus A330, the KC-45, as "the only real-tanker aircraft already in operation.The European, who had reviewed last week's price decline, suggested that its production in the United States would generate 48,000 jobs in the country.

Boeing said on his part that his aircraft was offering "a fuel consumption 24% lower than the unit proposed by EADS," and he would support 50,000 jobs in the United States.

The battle between the two giant aircraft was dubbed a political fight in Washington.

Patty Murray, Senator for the State of Washington (northwest), where Boeing planned to build the tankers at its plant in Everett, hailed "a major victory for American workers, the aerospace industry and the U.S. U.S. Army. "

However, elected officials in Alabama (south), where the tanker would have been assembled at Airbus, the European supporters.

The president of the AFL-CIO, Richard Trumka, hailed "a tremendous boost to American workers and the goal of President Obama create jobs in the country"

The Defence Committee of the House of Representatives has announced it will hold a hearing to ensure that assessments made by the Pentagon has been "transparent and fair for each competitor."

Tunisia: Tunis to demand the extradition of Saudi Arabia ousted President Ben Ali

AFP - Tunis on Sunday asked in Riyadh for the extradition of deposed President Ben Ali, accused of being involved "in several serious crimes" and of inciting Tunisians to "kill each other," while demanding information about his condition health and "his eventual death.

In a statement quoted by official news agency TAP, the Foreign Ministry said it has requested in Riyadh to provide "all information available concerning the health of the deposed president, in light of contradictory information conveyed about the deterioration of his health and his eventual death.

The former president, aged 74, who fled to Saudi Arabia on January 14 under the pressure of the street is in a Jeddah hospital in a coma following a stroke, had AFP reported on Thursday near his family.

In the same statement, the ministry announced that it "sent through diplomatic channels a formal request to the Saudi authorities" who "seeks to extradite the deposed president" Zine El Abidine Ben Ali.

"Following a series of new criminal charges against the ousted president, on charges related to his involvement in several serious crimes that involve and encourage them to commit the murder and to sow discord among the citizens of the same countries pushing to kill each other, "Tunisia has requested his extradition, the statement said.

The new series of charges "is added to the letters rogatory issued by the Tunisian authorities and addressed before Saudi judicial authorities, as part of an action brought inquisitorial, currently, against the ousted president and his clan."

This commission relates to "charges on the grounds that the possession of bank accounts and property in several countries as part of laundering money acquired through illegal and that the holding and illegal export of foreign currencies , "the statement said.

The ousted president, who suffers from prostate cancer, and his family fled to Saudi Arabia on January 14 after nearly a month of unprecedented popular protest, suppressed at the cost of dozens of deaths.

Ben Ali has ruled the country by building his regime on a balance between iron fist based on a policy now disgraced and prosperity, which eventually failed, causing his fall.

Father of six children, he often appeared the last time accompanied by his wife Leila Trabelsi.According to observers, he seemed fragile and under the influence of his wife's family accused of grip on the economy.

The revolt against the government began in Sidi Bouzid (West Central) after the suicide in mid-December Bouazizi Mohammed, an unemployed youth of 26 years unable to perform as a peddler by police and became the symbol of the frustration of young people in this country where unemployment is nearly 30% of young people.

Since his departure, the assets of the deposed president were frozen in several countries, many family members were arrested and international arrest warrant was issued against him and his wife.

Since then, a transitional government, led by former Prime Minister Mohamed Ghannouchi and comprising members of the former opposition, promised democracy and pluralism.

BAHRAIN: Important deployment of security forces in the capital Manama

The Bahrain Police dismantled by force during the night of Wednesday to Thursday, a camp of protesters demanding political change in the kingdom, during an operation that killed two people, witnesses and opposition.

The Ministry of Interior wrote on Twitter that security forces had "emptied the place of the Pearl" in Manama and a grand avenue of the capital was partially closed.

Fifty armored vehicles were sighted Thursday morning trying to move towards the Place de la Perle.

More than a dozen tanks, military vehicles and army ambulances were seen in central Manama.

Inspired by revolutions in Tunisia and Egypt, thousands of Bahrainis, mainly from the Shiite majority, protested since Monday to demand political and social reforms in the kingdom ruled by a Sunni family.

Hundreds of them had begun to camp on the Place de la Perle, hoping to transform it into a rallying point of protest to the image of what the Egyptians did on Tahrir Square in Cairo until the fall of "Hosni Mubarak.

"They are killing us"

"The police are to intervene, she launched tear gas," said one demonstrator reached by telephone in the night by Reuters.

Another said: "I am wounded, I bleed.They are killing us. "

One protester said he evacuated two wounded by car by rubber bullets.

"I was there (...) The men fled but women and children could not run as fast," said Ibrahim Mattar, a member of Wefaq, the main Shiite opposition.

"Two people are dead, it's confirmed," he added. "Others are in serious condition."

About 200 people gathered in a major city hospitals.

Place de la Perle, on which lay a strong smell of tear gas, seemed deserted in the early hours of Thursday.Abandoned tents, blankets and trash littered the ground.

Two ambulances were seen trying to leave suddenly in the night.

Poverty and unemployment

"There was no any warning. We had the impression of an offensive against the enemy. People were sleeping quietly, "said a protester who requested anonymity.

The Wefaq, which suspended its parliamentary activities, Wednesday called for adopting a new constitution more democratic.

"We do not want to establish a religious state.We want a civil democracy (...) in which the people are the source of power, and for this we need a new constitution, "said party secretary general, Sheikh Ali Salman, during a press conference.

The protesters' main demand is the resignation of Prime Minister, Shaikh Khalifa bin Salman al Khalifa, who ruled the country since its independence in 1971. Uncle of King Hamad bin Isa al Khalifa, he is seen as a symbol of wealth the ruling family.

The demonstrators also denounced poverty and unemployment.They were also concerned about the benefits accorded to foreign Sunni from settling in the small kingdom (citizenship, employment in the security forces, housing) that tend to alter the demographic balance.

In the 1990s, Bahrain has already been the scene of unrest.The adoption in 2002 of a new constitution and organize elections had helped restore calm, but the opposition considers these reforms now insufficient.

The angry demonstrators had been pronounced dead Wednesday by two of them on Monday and Tuesday in clashes with security forces.

"The people calling the fall of the regime," shouted protesters Wednesday, beating his chest, a gesture of mourning for Shiites.

PALESTINIAN AUTHORITY: The Fayyad government is about to be revamped

AFP - Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad, presented Monday his government's resignation to the President of the Palestinian Authority, Mahmoud Abbas, told AFP a minister under cover of anonymity.

"Fayyad told the Cabinet that the government had resigned. I will see President Abbas and give him a letter formalizing our resignation," said the minister.

A senior Palestinian official announced Sunday night that Mr. AFPFayyad would deliver his government's resignation to President Abbas to form a new cabinet.

The Prime Minister must promptly enter into consultations with the Palestinian parties and civil society, the source said.

President Abbas had announced at the end of last year its intention to overhaul the government headed by Fayyad, an independent economist. He then said that he, aged 58 years and prime minister since 2007, would be reappointed.

EGYPT: Washington believes that the Egyptian government's efforts are insufficient

The tone rose Wednesday between Washington and Cairo, the White House saying that the changes incurred by the Egyptian government remained inadequate, while the Egyptian foreign minister accused the Americans of wanting to "impose" their will on his country.

In the sixteenth day of unprecedented revolt against the regime of Hosni Mubarak's ally, Washington has had to defend itself from any interference in the affairs of Egypt, but again claiming the reforms that meet the protestors in Tahrir Square.

"Clearly, what the government has put on the table so far has not completed the minimum threshold of what is required by the Egyptians," he observed to the press spokesman of the White House Robert Gibbs.

Mr.Gibbs attacked particularly the Vice-President of Egypt Omar Suleiman, appointed by Mr. Mubarak to negotiate a political transition with the opposition.

"The transition process does not seem to expect the Egyptians," added the spokesperson for Barack Obama, warning against a new outbreak of protest in Egypt if the power does not give enough ground.

A senior State Department, Jake Sullivan, for his part stressed that "the United States has never said that Vice-President Suleiman was the appropriate person (to lead the transition) or delivered for trial who should be in control. "

"We are not interested persons (...) but concrete results," he said during a media teleconference.

The Egyptian regime has previously hinted his temper against pressure from Washington.

"When you talk about quick and immediate change to a great country like Egypt, with which you have always maintained the best relationships, you impose your will", denounced the Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Aboul Gheit, in a Service in the U.S. television network PBS.

"We are already changing," shouted Mr. Gheit, referring to discussions with the protesters.

Mr.Gheit also warned that "the army would intervene in case of chaos to take things in hand," according to comments reported by the official MENA news agency.

Asked about the statements, the spokesman for the State Department, Philip Crowley, urged the Egyptian army to "continue to exercise the same moderation that in recent days."

On Tuesday, U.S. Vice President Joe Biden called Mr. Suleiman for him to claim an immediate end to the state of emergency in force for nearly 30 years.

On PBS, Mr. Gheit said he was "truly astonished" by this request: "As we speak, there are 17,000 prisoners loose in the streets because the prisons were destroyed.How can you ask me to abolish the state of emergency while I'm in trouble? "

Mr. Gheit told he had been "often angry, angry" face to the American response in the initial events in Cairo, although the relationship has since subsided.

Asked about the Egyptian minister, Mr. Crowley has assured that Washington was not seeking "to dictate anything." He defended the call to immediately lift the state of emergency is an "interference" and stressed that the solution to the crisis should be found by the Egyptians themselves.

CAMBODIA: New clashes on the border between Thailand and Cambodia

AFP - New clashes erupted Sunday near a disputed temple on the border between Cambodia and Thailand, the day after a cease-fire between the two countries, said a Cambodian military commander at the AFP.

"We're beating us at this time, they started shooting at us," the official said, referring to the Thai soldiers.

The new clashes broke out around 6:35 p.m. local time (11:35 GMT).

After fighting with heavy weapons Friday for about two hours, firefights had occurred again at dawn on Saturday for about thirty minutes.Before the two neighbors herald a cease-fire.

During the fighting, the most violent since 2008, at least five people were killed: a soldier and a villager Thai and two Cambodian soldiers and one civilian.

The border between the two countries has never been fully demarcated.

HAITI: Mirlande Manigat and Michel Martelly the second round of presidential

Reuters - The second round of presidential elections in Haiti will oppose Mirlande Manigat Michel Martelly March 20, according to members of the Provisional Council election which partially reversed the provisional results of the first round.

Organized as the country is still recovering from the earthquake a year ago, the first round was held in the utmost confusion on Nov. 28 last. Charges of fraud and street protests following the consultation.

According to preliminary results, the second round should oppose the government candidate, Jude Celestin, the former first lady, Mirlande Manigat.

But these results were criticized by the international community, and an expert mission of the Organization of American States (OAS) had held that Jude Celestin had to be discarded in favor of the second round of Michel Martelly, popular singer originally given in third place with less than 7,000 votes behind the candidate backed by outgoing President, Rene Preval.