The ambassador of Syria off the list of guests at royal wedding

The British Foreign Minister, William Hague, announced Thursday the withdrawal of the invitation by the Syrian ambassador to the marriage of Prince William and Kate Middleton, said it was "unacceptable" after the repression of demonstrations in the country.

"In light of attacks against civilians this week by Syrian security forces, which we have condemned the Minister of Foreign Affairs has decided that the presence of the Syrian ambassador to the royal wedding would be unacceptable and that it should not take part, "said the Foreign Office in a statement.

Questioned by AFP, the royal service said they "share" this opinion.

The invitation to the Syrian ambassador had generated considerable controversy in the United Kingdom, after the violent suppression of demonstrations in Syria against the regime of President Bashar al-Assad. Since their beginning March 15, at least 453 people were killed, according to the Syrian Observatory of Human Rights.

Buckingham Palace, in charge of invitations with the Foreign Office pointed out that all the representatives of countries with which London has "normal diplomatic relations" were among the 1,900 guests at royal wedding.This explained why Libya was not invited to the UK conducting military operations.

But the presence of Syrian diplomat in royal wedding on Friday became all the more incongruous that he had been summoned Tuesday to the Foreign Ministry to be told that London considered "unacceptable" use of force by the government against the demonstrators.

This meeting was conducted as part of a joint effort by several European countries including France, Italy and Germany.

FRANCE - TUNISIA: A humanitarian emergency for Refugees Tunisian outside Paris

Tickets 50 euros raining in the small Parisian park. In less than three minutes, the scene turns into a riot. All around poor flock to be as quickly turned away. "Only for Tunisians!" Shouted angrily a young refugee to a group of Roma, before rushing to the benefactor came distribute its largess in solidarity.

Installed for several months in a small park of the nineteenth arrondissement of Paris, 200 to 300 illegal Tunisians, some twenty years on average, have fled Tunisia after the fall of former President Ben Ali to join France, via the Italian island of Lampedusa.

"I spend my days here and I can not do anything"

At only 17 years, Atef, a native of southern Tunisia, lives in the park for three months."Sometimes I do not eat for two days. They drink water from the fountain in the park, I sleep in a cardboard box under the ring. I wanted to come to France to send money to my mother because my father died. But, in fact, I spend my days here and I can not do anything, "said the young man in orange engulfing the ticket in his pocket.

Penniless and abandoned by the French state, this group of refugees living at the rate of distributions of meals provided by Tunisians living in Paris and the suburbs.

"They are forgotten by the world," railing against Mouldi Lady, living in France for 25 years.Every day he comes distribute jeans and t-shirts clean, toilet or food, and support young people to the neighborhood public showers.

"Here we do not have a policy, we take care of the emergency. France has two solutions: either to let them enter the territory but the dignified houses, or we make them go home," continues he said.

The stigma of the Revolution

Jamel Tunisian entrepreneur came distribute some tickets to his young fellow exiles, is convinced that they should return home - despite the economic difficulties faced by Tunisia since the Revolution.

"There are ideas to develop the country and restart the economy. It has no incentive to work elsewhere.With some careful thought you can hire everyone. The market wants, "he explains. Moreover, we must share the land with young people. After the Revolution, it is their right, "said James, who leaves in his air-conditioned 4x4 after his empty wallet.

For now, the economic and political challenges of the "new Tunisia" still far from the concerns of hundreds of refugees whose Tunisian only priority is to eat. For them, the humanitarian emergency - it is close to Paris.

Migrants who are victims of Franco-Italian differences

Samia Maktouf, Franco-Tunisian lawyer, committed volunteer in the defense of dozens of refugees in Tunisia.That day, she came up the names, ages and occupations of young men from the camp to try to get them a permit.

"It's allowed to dream in the aftermath of a revolution. They dreamed of a France of the revolution, freedom, equality. Degummed They have a dictatorship with bare hands and peacefully," outraged the lawyer, who believes that the solution must be European.

"This is for Europe to react and stop doing the ping-pong between France and Italy.Paris and Rome have left some relief to these young refugees and to make adjustments on a case by case, "said Samia Maktouf.

The controversial arrival in France, through Italy, thousands of migrants from North Africa will be the focus of a summit Tuesday in the Italian capital between the Italian prime minister Silvio Berlusconi and French President Nicolas Sarkozy.

TUNISIA: Libyan rebels took control of a major border crossing

AFP - Libyan rebels took Thursday morning one of the key border between Libya and Tunisia, Libya, near Wazzan (Libya) and Dehiba (Tunisia), and a hundred soldiers pro-Gaddafi went unarmed side Tunisia has found an AFP correspondent.

While gunfire echoed sporadically around 10:30 am (0930 GMT), this correspondent has seen pro-Qaddafi 102 soldiers, including officers, who went under the supervision of Tunisian military about 200 meters from the border, side Tunisia. The Tunisian military interrogators at a time.They include 13 officers including a colonel Staff, said a military source told AFP.

According to testimony of Customs and Tunisian military there, the Libyan soldiers wounded loyalists were evacuated to hospital Dehiba.

The green flag of Libya was removed from the Libyan border post, distant only 50 meters from the Tunisian post.

One of three military helicopters dispatched to the Tunisian area Wednesday night flying over the area Dehiba, located about 40 km from the Libyan city of Nalout, theater these days of intense bombing of forces loyal to Colonel Qaddafi.

The AFP correspondent was able to verify that the checkpoint had been captured by insurgents since it came safely into Libyan territory and was welcomed by the rebels.

Instead of green flags, the rebels hoisted with flags of the monarchy, the symbol of the rebels, while a tractor was busy destroying a large portrait of Colonel Muammar Gaddafi, which marks the entry into Libya.

According to the second chief of the operation of the rebels, "between 5 and 10" pro-Gaddafi soldiers were killed and 25 wounded.From the rebel side, there was "a minor injury," said Youssef, a first loan.

At the checkpoint, strewn with bullets, could be seen in the late morning thirty pickup, equipped with several missiles "Grad 25 kg" as a rebel.

After being supplied with water, most of the rebels walked away quickly towards the Libyan town Wazzan towards a mountainous area, Ghzeya, home of the pro-Gaddafi, said the rebel leader who now says fear cons-attack on the checkpoint where rebels continue to mount guard.

The attack against the post, said Youssef, was conducted "to allow the wounded" to move to Tunisia.

Libyan insurgents on a 4x4 briefly pursued the elements pro-Gaddafi Tunisian territory before ironing on the Libyan side.

Shortly before, the rebels had seized Wazzan, about 3 km from the border post.

In anticipation of renewed fighting in this area, the Tunisian army was deployed on Wednesday to 10 km north of Dehiba a company of a hundred men of the 1st Mechanised Brigade of Gabes, a large port city 150 km further north.

In recent days, fighting between pro and anti-Gaddafi came close Tunisian territory. Monday, several mortar rounds of the pro-Gaddafi had fallen in the area Dehiba, causing a "strong protest" in Tunis from the Libyan authorities.

Fighting violent shaking for several days west of Libya.Over 100 people were killed last weekend in Nalout Yefren and two towns south-west of Tripoli pounded by forces loyal to Muammar Gaddafi, according to locals.

14,100 Libyan nationals have fled the fighting and moved to Tunisia in the area of ​​Dehiba April 6 to 19, police said Tunisian border.

Iran: Ahmadinejad accuses Washington of creating tensions between Tehran and the Arabs

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on Monday accused the U.S. of trying to create tensions between Iran and the Arabs, following an appeal from the Gulf Arab monarchies to the UN to "stop interference" in Iran their business.

"The United States seeks to sow discord between Shiites and Sunnis (...) They want to create tensions between Iran and Arabs but their plan will fail," said Ahmadinejad in a speech at the annual parade Army, broadcast by state television.

The day before, the six member countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC-Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, UAE, Kuwait, Qatar, Oman), headed by Sunni families, denounced the "interference by Iran," Country Shiite-majority in their business.

They called, following a meeting in Riyadh, the international community and the Security Council of the United Nations to "stop the Iranian interference and provocation hardcore, especially after the unrest in Bahrain.

"The Islamic Republic of Iran is the friend of all nations and wants development.I'm sure with the vigilance of the people and politicians and, I hope the governments of the region, this new conspiracy of arrogance (the United States, ed) will fail, "said Ahmadinejad.

"The pro-Zionist leaders in the U.S. trying to save the Zionist regime but they will not succeed," he added, reiterating that there would soon have a new "Middle East without the domination of the United States and without the Zionist regime. "

"The United States is not an honest friend. Experience has shown that they have fought their own friends who had sacrificed for them," he saidAhmadinejad, referring to the fall of the regimes of Presidents Hosni Mubarak and Tunisia Zine El Abidine Ben Ali.

Iran is predominantly Shiite, while the Gulf Arab monarchies are mostly Sunni, with the exception of Bahrain, whose population is Shiite but is ruled by a Sunni dynasty.

Iranian officials have repeatedly condemned the sending of reinforcements to Saudi and UAE Bahrain to support the forces of that country to the suppression of protests led by Shiites in mid-February to mid-March.

The violence in Bahrain, officials said, 24 people including four policemen.Four protesters died in custody since the end of the protest movement.

According to Iranian media, the Iranian Foreign Minister, Ali Akbar Salehi, asked in a letter to Secretary General of the UN Security Council intervention to "stop the killing of the Bahraini population.

ITALY: The justice reform accelerates the benefit of ... Berlusconi

The Italian Chamber of Deputies Wednesday passed a law reducing the legal time limits, a measure which, if passed by the Senate, will
the effect of avoiding the Chairman Silvio Berlusconi on trial for witness tampering.

Under the jeers from the opposition benches, the House voted by 314 votes against 296 the bill reducing the statute of limitations for criminal defendants to
criminal record.

It would shorten the eight-month trial Mills, named after British lawyer David Mills in which Berlusconi is accused of having given 600,000 dollars in exchange for false testimony.Berlusconi denies it, but it is now unlikely that a verdict could intervene before the action is extinguished.

Opponents have expressed for several days before the Parliament and the House debate was lively.

"We wish to reiterate that not only laws but also the principles of the Constitution that the government stalled," said Dario Franceschini, president
House Democrats of the Left, the main opposition party.

The measure is part of a broader program initiated by the Justice Minister, Angelino Alfano, presented by the government as a necessary reform of the judiciary, but critics say tailored to avoid jail Berlusconi.

Alfano, a Sicilian than 40 years often presented as the political heir of Berlusconi, has denied that his reform of the Italian judiciary, known for its slowness, is intended to
help Berlusconi escape to the judges.

The bill must still be passed by the Senate, where the center-right government of Berlusconi controls the majority.

JAPAN: A month after the earthquake, the Japanese pay homage to victims

"The country is not able today to organize ambitious events, so they are quite intimate ceremonies taking place today," said FRANCE 24 correspondent found in Japan, Marie Linton.

On Monday, one month to the day after the magnitude 9 quake and tsunami occurred on March 11 giants, a minute's silence was observed in the north-east by the survivors and rescuers at 2:46 p.m. (5:46 GMT). At the exact time of the first quake, sirens sounded and the local population was immobilized to honor the victims.

According to the latest report from the authorities, at least 27,000 people died or disappeared in the disaster, and 150,000 people were left homeless.

Members who participate in rescue and search for bodies of victims have interrupted their work to this tribute before resuming operations as soon as the minute's silence ended.

"We saw last month: the Japanese are collected, but also very modest in the way they express their pain," reflects Mary Linton. "But they will long remember the disaster, the worst ever for the islands since the Second World War," she says.

Fukushima always worries

One month after the earthquake, the situation remains precarious in the country. Since March 11, Japan was hit by several aftershocks.On Monday, a new tremor of 7.1 magnitude shook the north-east and a new tsunami warning has been run before being lifted soon after.

Especially, the situation remains worrisome in the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant (No. 1), 250 kilometers north of Tokyo, where the six reactors were decommissioned by the tsunami on 11 March. The waters had broken their power and embedded generators. The following days, the nuclear fuel was heated, causing an explosion of buildings and, ultimately, a leak of radioactivity.

A month later, experts believe that the worst was avoided, although the situation remains precarious."We saw no signs of real improvement," worries the Japanese media on Monday. Indeed, the Japanese authorities and utility Tokyo Electric Power (TEPCO) have not yet managed to fully control the situation. According to Japanese media, the authorities are even considering expanding the exclusion zone around the plant because of high levels of radioactivity.

Questioned by AFP, an industrial sector said that the staff working on the central act "in a rugged environment that does not work in normal conditions." He said "it will take weeks if not months to achieve proper control over the situation."

Rome will grant temporary visas to migrant Tunisians

AFP - Italy has decided to issue temporary residence permits "humanitarian" immigrants recently arrived on Tunisian soil, enabling them to travel to all countries of the European Schengen zone, said Thursday the Minister of Interior Roberto Maroni.

"We decided to grant temporary residence permits for humanitarian protection, which will (such migrants, ie) to travel in the countries of the Schengen area," said the minister, noting that "the overwhelming majority of immigrants say they want to join friends and relatives in France or other European countries. "

The minister appeared before the Chamber of Deputies the agreement reached this week with the Tunisian authorities, after the visit Monday of the Italian prime minister Silvio Berlusconi in Tunis.

It was on this occasion on Friday confirmed he would meet his French counterpart Claude Gueant "to define a common response system so that France and Italy may involve all countries of the European Union."

Mr Maroni said that the temporary permit applied only to migrants have arrived on Italian soil.According to the agreement with Tunisia, newcomers must be returned to Tunisia.

Since January, with the fall of Tunisian President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali and the insurgency in Libya, Italy is facing an exceptional influx of immigrants, with over 22,000 landings, mainly from Tunisia.

The majority of these immigrants from francophone ensures want in France.

CHINA: Police refuse to explain the arrest of the dissident artist Ai Weiwei

AFP - Police refused to provide explanations on the reasons for the arrest of the artist Ai Weiwei, his wife said Monday as a wave of repression has fallen on dissent in China.

This outspoken government critic, known abroad, was arrested Sunday at the Beijing International Airport as he prepared to board, confirmed his wife, Lu Qing, told AFP.

His aides had said he wanted to go to Hong Kong and that police had raided his studio in north-east of Beijing.

"So we stopped him, the police came home with a search warrant and searched everywhere," added his wife by telephone.

"They took the computer and other equipment," said Lu Qing, "they refused to give the reason for the search warrant or arrest of Ai Weiwei.

More assistants to the artist were questioned and released Sunday, said Lu, adding that she herself had not been under house arrest.

Contacted by AFP, Beijing City Police refused to comment on Ai.

His arrest comes at a particularly difficult for critics of Chinese communist regime, dozens of whom were detained under house arrest or far from home in recent weeks as Beijing fears contagion of revolt in the Arab world, as organizations Defence of Human Rights.

Ai Weiwei's arrest was greeted with concern by those organizations.

"The Chinese government is intensifying its policy of harassment against the latest symbols of dissent and seeks to silence all critical voices," said Reporters Without Borders.

"We urge the international community to respond forcefully to the arrests of dissidents and bloggers who follow each other at a pace not seen in China."

Ai Weiwei had said last week the AFP will open a studio in Germany to exhibit his work, saying they are frustrated by the obstacles he experienced in China.

"What happens here is very discouraging and I want to keep working, I must find a basis," said Ai, who is known for monumental exhibitions including, most recently in London.

On Monday, his cellphone rang in the air and his Twitter was dumb.The major Chinese websites have been redacted information of his arrest.

"Since mid-February, the GOVERNMENT has stepped up pressure on militants in recent days and the repression was even stronger," noted Hong Kong's Defenders of Human Rights in China, in reaction to the arrest of the artist.

YEMEN: Face-to-face tension between supporters and opponents of President Ali Abdullah Saleh

AFP - Supporters and opponents of President Ali Abdallah Saleh came out in droves Friday in Sanaa where security forces and the army deployed an unprecedented fear of clashes between rival groups, according to an AFP journalist.

"(...) I agree to sacrifice myself, for my blood and all that is dear to the people," shouted Mr.Saleh in "thanking" her supporters for their support during a brief appearance on the site Sabiine, adjoining his palace.

"I hope that their speech will be wise and responsible" and they do not irresponsible remarks, "he said at the protesters, who had planned for this Friday but canceled a march on the palace Presidential initiative strongly criticized by the entourage of Mr.Saleh.

"The people want Ali Abdullah Saleh", "By our souls and our blood, we sacrifice ourselves for the president," chanted the supporters of the regime, harangued by the imam of the Muslim weekly prayers on Friday Tahrir Square in the center of Sanaa.

"These millions of Yemenis who have poured in from all provinces say yes to President Saleh," he told the imam in his sermon broadcast on state television, accusing the opposition of seeking to lead the country "in the insurgency, bloodshed and civil war. "

The tension was high in the capital, where security forces and the army stepped up checkpoints on roads leading to various meeting places of the demonstrators, dividing the city into two parts: the north dominated by the opposition and the south by the regime.

Around the square of the Change, near the University of Sanaa, where camped for over a month the young protesters demanding the departure of President Saleh, the army, whose officers have joined the protest movement, has established checkpoints at access points of the square.

Units of security forces in turn channeled the flow of regime loyalists, including many tribesmen raised the call of the head of state, and Tahrir squares Sabiine.

The day Friday was named the "Hi's" by the protesters and "Brotherhood" by loyalists.And places of assembly are located in different districts of Sana'a, a few kilometers apart.

But an explosion of violence was feared in the capital where the face of rival army units, partially concurred with the protesters, and the Republican Guard, commanded by the son of head of state, Ahmad.

The protesters, according to an AFP correspondent, Friday expanded their sit-in to the streets around the square of the Change, after renouncing the march on the presidential palace for fear of violence.

Britain has also Thursday urged its nationals to leave immediately Yemen, where the situation "deteriorating rapidly", the Foreign Office in noting its "travel advisories" that Friday's events could escalate into violent confrontations.

The head of state has faced since late January to a popular protest movement calling for his departure and which intensified after the death March 18, 1952 demonstrators by shooting attributed to his supporters.

Of negotiations between President Saleh and the strong man of the army, General Ali Mohsen al-Ahmar - who joined the protest after having long been an ally - did not lead to a negotiated transition power, and the President decided to continue.