Month: February 2017

Sarraj: Rejection of Dialogue Increases Suffering of Libyans

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Cairo- Libya’s Prime Minister Fayez al-Sarraj has unveiled the reasons behind the failure to hold a tripartite meeting that was set to take place in Cairo on Tuesday to resolve the Libyan political crisis. “General Khalifa Haftar and Speaker of Tobruk-based House of Representatives Aqilah Saleh rejected to meet,” Sarraj told Asharq Al-Awsat. He said the dialogue will lead to solutions but the parties’ stubbornness is hurdling talks, increasing the agony of Libyans. Sarraj unveiled his willingness to announce a new roadmap within days but refused to give further details.…

Human Rights and Finance: UN Expert Launches Fact-Finding to Visit Tunisia

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The United Nations Independent Expert on foreign debt and human rights, Juan Pablo Bohoslavsky, will undertake an official visit to Tunisia from 20 to 28 February, to assess the effect of adjustment policies on the enjoyment of economic and social rights. He will also study the human rights impact of illicit financial flows. “The revolution of 2011 has resulted in significant improvements of civil and political rights,” Mr. Bohoslavsky said. “Liberties gained should be consolidated by similar progress in the field of economic, social and cultural rights.” “I am visiting…

Chahed: “Berlin terrorist attack must in no way affect Tunisian-German relations”

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“The terrorist attack committed by Anis Amri in Berlin should in no way affect the Tunisian-German relations. The perpetrator of this attack does not represent Tunisia, “Prime Minister Youssef Chahed  on Wednesday told the German public opinion. “I have managed to convince the German public opinion through the county’s media and senior officials of this position,” he said at the end of his two-day visit to Germany. In the same context, Chahed said he called for the return of German tourists to Tunisia, in particular in light of the restoration…

Algerians take steps to prosecute France for nuclear tests

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The top human rights organisation in Algeria announced y that it has contacted the UN Human Rights Council regarding France’s refusal to admit to the crimes of its nuclear test programme. The French government carried out 17 nuclear tests in the Algerian desert, causing the death of 42,000 individuals; thousands more were left chronically ill due to being exposed to nuclear radiation. The details were revealed in a statement by the National Secretary of the Algerian League for the Defence of Human Rights, Houari Kaddour, who is tasked with this…

Cardiovascular disease remains Europe’s biggest killer

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Cardiovascular disease accounts for 45% of all deaths in Europe and 37% of all deaths in the EU Death rates from cardiovascular diseases such as heart attacks and strokes are falling but still cost the EU economy an estimated €210 billion a year, according to new figures. Despite overall success in maintaining a fall in mortality rates, inequality between different parts of Europe persists, with central and Eastern Europe lagging behind. An annual study by the European Heart Network – an alliance of heart foundations and NGOs in 25 countries – shows…

Persona non grata: Potential Sisi Tunisia visit sparks anger

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The potential visit of Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi to Tunisia has sparked controversy within domestic politics with many political figures expressing anger at President Beij Caid Essebsi’s apparent invite of his Egyptian counterpart. During meetings between figures from the Tunisian government and Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry in January, an invite for Sisi to visit Tunis is said to have been extended – in order to discuss matters related to Libya’s ongoing civil crisis, and how to contain the regional fallout. However Sisi is viewed as a controversial figure in…

About twenty Tunisian economic operators prospecting in Cameroon

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Since this past 8 February, a delegation of about twenty Tunisian economic operators has been visiting Cameroon, as part of the multi-sector business mission, the Chamber of Commerce, Industry, Mining and Arts of Cameroon (CCIMA) announced. The mission ended on 13 February 2017, we learned. Organised by the Tunisian Ambassador in Cameroon, with the support from some Tunisian consular Chambers, this mission consisted in meetings between Tunisian and Cameroon economic operators. These meetings took place in Douala, the economic capital of the country, as well as Yaoundé, the political capital.…

What will Trump’s North Africa policy look like?

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“If Tunisia receives assistance, it will be given mainly to support Tunisia’s armed forces, security units.” Africa had been largely absent from the debates and speeches of the two US presidential candidates, Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump. Also among their advisers on foreign policy, Donald Trump definitely has no political knowledge on the continent. This raises some concerns about the uncertainty of his policy on the North African region and the African continent. Over the past two decades, United States Africa policy has enjoyed strong two-party congressional support from both…

Kobler praises Tunisian efforts to broker Libyan peace

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Tunisia’s efforts to help solve the crisis in Libya came in for praise from UN Special Envoy to Libya Martin Kobler when he met the Tunisian Foreign Minister Khemaies Jhinaoui today. For his part, Jhinaoui underlined the importance of the UN and the international community in supporting political reconciliation in Libya. The foreign minister told Kobler that allowing Libya to remain divided by factional fighting would only allow terrorism and organised crime to prosper. He also gave the UN envoy an overview of his country’s efforts to help find a political…

Did you know that a Tunisian pope created Valentine’s Day?

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Beyond the flood of everything red and heart-shaped, very little about Valentine’s Day can be deemed factual and it is quite hard to distinguish between the historical and the mythical. The day of love is said to have acquired its name from that of a saint, yet there is no consensus over which one. The Catholic Church, in fact, recognizes several saints with the name Valentine or Valentinus, each said to have some link or another to the now internationally renowned holiday. In the third century AD, Roman emperor Claudius…