The Nairobi-based The East African newspaper has recently reported that Dubai Ports Authority (DPA) and Djibouti Port had signed an agreement giving the DPA the right to manage the port for 20 years. Under this agreement the DPA intends to increase the port’s handling capacity from current 125,000 to 300,000 tones a year. The aim behind the contract is also to render Djibouti port the favored transshipment point in the Horn of Africa. The initial agreement between the two sides was signed in Djibouti in June.
The recent DPA move is part of its plans to conclude contracts to operate several ports in the Middle East. Choosing the port of Djibouti by DPA was because of its strategic situation at the entrance of the Red Sea, its suitable maritime characteristics and its being the sea outlet to landlocked Ethiopia. Djibouti also serves other Horn of Africa countries and provides bunkering for vessels passing through the Red sea.It is to be concluded that this latest contract would be as if laying an economic and commercial siege to the Yemeni port of Aden.
Establishment of a competing container terminal at Djibouti port which is closer to international maritime routes could pose serious threat to Aden Port.

Sources in Aden told YT that trial of the suspects who attacked the USS Cole would probably begin before the end of Nov. The sources added that six of them will be prosecuted after providing evidence and confessions before the Yemen investigators. Security sources said that they are still looking for 4 other suspects among whom there are some Arabs, two are thought to have left Yemen soon after the explosion. Sources, close to investigators, said that confessions of many suspects in planning and carrying out the act along with prosecution witnesses in the case, the tools, instruments that some of the suspects had and used in the criminal act were arrested and will be brought before the court. All these are enough indications of their involvement in Cole incident. The same sources said all the suspects are members of the Islamic Jihad and one of them is involved in bombing the US embassy in Nairobi. Until now the security authorities think that the attack on the USS Cole was carried out by two Yemenis holding Saudi nationality.
Sources said that the operation’s main planner, an Arab living in the UAE called Mohammed Omer, was giving his orders to the group members in Aden by phone, and by a code with one of the suspects called Gamal Al-Badwi, a Yemeni national. it is thought that one of the executers of the bombing is called “Abdul Muhsin Al Taifi”, Yemeni nationality, the one suspected to be involved in the bombing of the American Embassies in Nairobi and Dar ElSalam.
In an interview with mbc, Saturday evening, President Ali Abdullah Saleh said that the bombers are Yemenis who fought in Afghanistan and the Yemeni security authorities have arrested them. He also said that investigations were still going on with all those involved in the explosion. He indicated that there were a few American investigators and they would make investigations for a limited time and that Yemen never welcomes any intruders whatever nationalities they are. He added that Americans made a mistake when they entered the port with such a large size and greatly valuable destroyer without guarding or notifying the Yemeni side to provide such protection.

An official Yemeni delegation has taken part in the first Arab Woman Summit held Saturday in Cairo.
Fathiah Buhran, head of the delegation asserted in her address to the opening meeting the courageous call adopted by President Saleh to have effective resolutions and clear-cut stands against Israel, calling the International community to carry out international legitimacy resolutions and Middle East peace agreements.
She indicated participation of Yemeni women in all spheres of life marking their presence in labor forces of the society as by 20%.
She highlighted measures and programs being carried out now to integrate women in development so as to develop Yemeni women’s conditions and enhance their participation in the development of the society.
Worth mentioning is that while preparing for the Yemeni delegation, some heated debates were witnessed over the nominees for the delegation. Jamilah Ali Raja’a, cultural and media chairwoman in Cairo, has interfered to choose the delegation. Some qualified women were ignored and Fathiah Bahran was nominated the head of the delegation instead of Rashidah al-Hamdani, chairwoman of the Women National Committee affiliated to the Cabinet.
Some sources interested in issues of Yemeni women indicated that Yemen’s speech at the summit was not up to the standard in comparison with other speeches presented by other Arab delegations.
Egyptian first lady Susan Mubarak proposed Saturday at the first ever Arab Women Summit to hold Arab women meetings regularly to review problems and issues pertaining to women.
Addressing the opening session of the summit, Susan also said this conference was convened at decisive historical moments the Arab nation was going through and to answer the challenges of these moments and the expectation of unifying the Arab world. She said that “realizing Arab solidarity is our way to confront risks threatening our Arab nation and to come into reality our dream of a better tomorrow for women in every Arab country.”
“We raise our voice in protest against the blatant injustice befalling the struggling Palestinian people and against the violations perpetrated against women and children in Palestine,” she added.
Susan also said that the three-day gathering was meant to upgrade Arab women so that they would be more capable of soundly contributing to the development of their societies.
The summit was attended by a total of 400 Arab female dignitaries, including nine first ladies and representatives from all strata of life in the Arab countries.

MPs voted with majority for the draft of constitutional amendments yesterday. The MPs that attended were 284. Those who voted were 276 and the members that opposed the amendments were 17.
Last weeks have witnessed hot discussions and arguments among the Yemeni political forces about the amendments that were opposed by the Supreme Coordination Council of Opposition parties. The Yemeni Congregation for Reform, that had opposed those amendments earlier, but accepted them two days before voting. The draft presented by the President of the Republic included terms that involve the Consultative Council in some authorities of the Parliament like ratifying economic, social drafts and international agreements and conventions.

The court of Bani Al Harith, Sunday issued its verdict against Mohammed Adem Omar. The court stated that the sentence should be executed in pubic at Sana’a University faculty of Medicine near the morgue.
It was also reported that he should be given 80 lashes because of drinking as it is in the Islamic law. The second item of the verdict stated that Sana’a University should pay 10 million Yemeni Ryals to the families of the victims, 5 million each.
The third is to name two halls after the two victomes.
The verdict is subjected to appeal by the accused. The lawyers of the victims described the sentenses as just, but they were not satisfied with the second part concerning Sana’a University. They said that the compensation to be paid does not go along with the damage that has been caused to the families of the victimes.
This has put an end to the Adem case, but many questions about the University Autorities are still unanswered.

Last Tuesday evening an armed group from Al-Zaidi Tribe - Mareb, kidnapped a Swedish expert who works for a power station in Sana’a. They took him from Showkan, 5 kilometers from Sana’a, and led him to Al-Mahjaza, an area in Mareb. Mediating Sheiks of tribes initiated negotiations with the kidnappers last Friday. One of the sheiks told YT that the authorities rejected the kidnappers’ demands.
The most important demand was: reinstating of some men of the tribe to the civil and military posts they were dismissed from. Another demand was the implementation of two drinking water projects. Besides, they asked to be compensated for the damage incurred upon them by torrents in 1997. Tribe sources mentioned that the kidnappers had changed the place where they put the expert and security authorities did not know their whereabouts yet. The translator, brought to the kidnapped, mentioned that the Swedish expert was 70 years old and was running diabetes. Military forces in Serwah Mareb have surrounded the area where the kidnappers exist but have not yet launched any attack just to avoid escalating the situation.Security forces in Sana’a have alos surrounded houses of Al-Zaidi tribesmen in Sana’a and arrested six of them who study in Sana’a.