Yemen: Saleh refused to step-down, again

Yemen's long-term President Ali Abdullah Saleh has once again agreed and then refused to sign a power sharing agreement, brokered by the Gulf. The deal, which was originally to be signed last month, was cancelled at the last minute.

The agreement, which has been subject to amendments after US and European intervention, was also expected to be overseen by both Yemen's General People's Congress party and the opposition, the Common Front.

Yemeni opposition officials have said that the agreement would have seen Saleh, who has ruled Yemen for over three decades, out of office within a month.

Discussions about the ongoing crisis in the country and arrangements for Saleh's departure broke down on Wednesday 18th May, when Saleh once again refused to sign the Gulf Co-operation Council (GCC) mediated deal which would have allowed him to step-down in exchange for immunity from prosecution.

Saleh's rebuff has prompted GCC chief, Abdul-Latif Al-Zayyani, to leave the country.

The president's aide, Ahmed Al-Sufi, confirmed that Saleh was not going to attend the newly scheduled signing on Sunday 22nd May. According to the spokesman, Saleh changed his mind due to the ongoing international diplomatic pressure.

Speaking about the situation in Yemen, US President Barack Obama said: "President Saleh needs to follow through on his commitment to transfer power.''

Sources: BBC News, Aljazeera, Voice of America, Reuters

For more news and expert analysis about Yemen, please see Yemen Focus.

Situation in Egypt may compromise Middle East peace process

The US has voiced disapproval over Egypt's Vice-President Omar Suleiman's comments about the country being unready for democracy, and called on the government to lift its 30-year-old state of emergency.

After numerous calls from the demonstrators and the opposition for President Hosni Mubarak to step down, Mubarak has said he plans to do so come September election time.

US Vice-President Joe Biden urged that the transition should produce, "Immediate, irreversible progress that responds to the aspirations of the Egyptian people…The real test of the revolution's success or failure is whether it changes Egypt permanently.”

Biden also called on the Egyptian government to cease arresting and abusing demonstrators and journalists, adding that the interior ministry should be under strict instruction and there should be a policy of no reprisals.

Speaking about Suleiman's remarks, US President Barack Obama's spokesman, Robert Gibbs, deemed them "particularly unhelpful", and added that they were unconstructive and in opposition of progress. The US has ordered Egypt to make “concrete changes”, but the Egyptian government has met the idea of change grudgingly, and has showed little inclination to take any action.

As the protests enter their third week, many of Western powers are starting to voice concern that the turmoil sweeping MENA States will compromise the ongoing Middle East peace process. Britain's Foreign Minister William Hague said:"Amidst the opportunity for countries like Tunisia and Egypt, there is a legitimate fear that the Middle East peace process will lose further momentum and be put to one side, and will be a casualty of uncertainty in the region.”

Hague voiced his concerns after Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu responded aggressively to the calls for change in Egypt, pledging to "reinforce the might of the state of Israel" regardless of how the situation is resolved.

Sources: BBC News, The Telegraph, Jerusalem Post, The Guardian

For more news and expert analysis about Egypt, please see Egypt Politics & Security.

South Sudan referendum results suggest secession

Southern Sudan's independence referendum came to a close on the evening of 15th January, and early results already coming in suggest the vast majority have voted for independence from the north.

The chairman of the Southern Sudanese Referendum Commission (SSRC), Mohamed Ibrahim Khalil said that more than 80 per cent of eligible voters in the south had participated, along with 53 per cent in the north and 91 per cent of voters living in the eight other countries hosting polling stations. Sixty per cent of registered voters had to cast their votes in order for the poll to be considered valid.

He said the referendum would be considered "a good result by any international standard."

Full results of the poll are not due until next month, but preliminary results are already trickling in from around the 3000 polling stations in Sudan. The Sudan Tribune has reported that at the Ngor voting centre in Torit, in south Sudan's Eastern Equatoria state only seven votes were cast in favour of unity, while 1718 voted for secession.

Results in Juba appear to be similarly one-sided: early results show that of stations already reporting 20,012 people voted for secession, while 270 voted for unity.

Not all results have been so clear, however. In north Sudan's Greater Omdorman area, for example, where 35 polling stations were located, 4838 people voted for secession while 4420 voted for unity.

Polling also took place in eight countries outside of Sudan: Australia, Canada, Egypt, Ethiopia, Kenya, Uganda, the UK and the US. Voters in Australia have been given extra time to cast their votes in areas where flooding has hampered the process.

Voters in the UK, the only site in Europe, have reportedly voted 97per cent in favour of secession. Federico Vuni, the SSRC official in charge in London, announced on 16th January that 626 votes were cast in favour of secession, with only 13 for unity.

Similar results were obtained in Canada, where voting took place in Toronto and Calgary, and in Egypt.

US President Barack Obama has welcomed the vote, saying "The sight of so many Sudanese casting their votes in a peaceful and orderly fashion was an inspiration to the world and a tribute to the determination of the people and leaders of south Sudan to forge a better future."

"We urge all parties to continue to urge calm and show restraint as the parties work to complete implementation of the 2005 Comprehensive Peace Agreement,” he added.

Washington has promised to remove Sudan from the list of countries that sponsor terrorism by July if it recognises the result of the vote. The US special envoy to Sudan Scott Gration met with foreign minister Ali Karti in Khartoum to discuss with him the future of bilateral relations following the referendum's conclusion.

Karti told reporters after that he hoped for more dialogue on normalising ties and said that more meetings would be held in mid-February to continue discussions. He cautioned, however, that putting new conditions on normalising ties, including Darfur conflict resolution, would not be accepted.

Meanwhile Southern Sudan leader Salva Kiir made his first public address since the vote on Sunday, 16th January, speaking in a Catholic Cathedral in Juba. He urged people to forgive the north for the killings that happened during the civil war that lasted for more than 20 years.

"For our deceased brothers and sisters, particularly those who have fallen during the time of struggle, may God bless them with eternal peace," Kiir said.

"And may we, like Jesus Christ on the cross, forgive those who have forcefully caused their deaths."

An estimated two million people died in the war between Khartoum and rebel groups, most prominently in the south, and millions more were displaced. The independence referendum is the culmination of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA), signed in 2005, which ended the civil war.

Sources: BBC News, Sudan Tribune, Sudan Tribune 2

For more news and expert analysis about the Sahara region, please see Sahara Focus.

UN votes for new sanctions on Iran over nuclear issue

The UN Security Council has voted in favour of fresh sanctions against Iran over its nuclear programme.

The council voted 12 to two, with one abstention, in favour of a fourth round of sanctions, including tighter finance curbs and an expanded arms embargo.

US President Barack Obama said the sanctions were an unmistakable message on stopping the spread of nuclear arms.

Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said the sanctions should be thrown in the dustbin like a "used handkerchief".

The US and its allies fear Iran is secretly trying to build a nuclear bomb, but Tehran insists its programme is aimed solely at peaceful energy use.

Heavy weapons

The Security Council resolution was opposed by Turkey and Brazil. They had earlier brokered a deal with Iran on uranium enrichment. Lebanon abstained.

The new sanctions were passed after being watered down during negotiations with Russia and China on Tuesday.

There are no crippling economic sanctions and there is no oil embargo.

Those passed include prohibiting Iran from buying heavy weapons such as attack helicopters and missiles.

They also toughen rules on financial transactions with Iranian banks and increase the number of Iranian individuals and companies that are targeted with asset freezes and travel bans.

There is also a new framework of cargo inspections to detect and stop Iran's acquisition of illicit materials.

Mr Obama accused Iran's leaders of "hiding behind outlandish rhetoric".

But he said the sanctions did "not close the door on diplomacy" and he urged Iran to "choose a different and better path".

For the full story please visit BBC News.

For more news and expert analysis about Iran please see Iran Strategic Focus or visit Menas Associates Newsroom.