In an interview on Israeli TV in Arabic, Professor Menahem Milson discussed the novel Banat Al-Riyadh ("Girls of Riyadh") by Saudi author Dr. Rajaa Al-Sanie.

The novel, which describes the lives of four young women in Riyadh, is structured as a series of e-mails sent anonymously by one of the young women.

Banat Al-Riyadh, published in 2005, sparked much controversy in the Arab world, especially in Saudi Arabia and the Gulf states, with some praising it for its boldness and literary merit, and others condemning it as provocative.

Menahem Milson, Professor of Arabic Literature at the Hebrew University and Chairman of MEMRI, is the author of several works on Arabic literature, including Najib Mahfuz: The Novelist-Philosopher of Cairo. He was interviewed by Mr. Nazih Khayr.

The interview, with English subtitles, can be viewed here. For an English translation of the interview, see MEMRI Special Dispatch No. 1589.

Sudan is planning a June 11-13 international conference on Islamic-Christian dialogue, under the slogan of "Sustainability of Peace and Consolidation of National Unity."
The conference, to be organized by the Ministry of Guidance and Endowments in collaboration with the Sudan Inter-religious Council and the Royal Institute for Religious Studies, will be held under the auspices of Prince Al-Hassan Bin Talal, Chairman of the Arab Thought Forum.

The conference is aimed at holding a scientific and objective dialogue in order to reach a common understanding and shared ground as well as to deepen the relationship and coexistence between the followers of Islam and of Christianity, and at promoting the role of mosques and churches in coexistence and in eliminating religious fanaticism and extremism.

Sudanese Minister of Guidance and Endowments Dr. Azhari Al-Tigani announced the completion of all preparations for the conference, and added that the conference was widely accepted by all religious bodies worldwide.

Source: Sudan Media Corner (smc.sd), Sudan, May 21, 2007

The Lebanese daily Al-Mustaqbal has criticized Qatar for refraining to vote for Resolution No. 1757 in the U.N. Security Council. The resolution approves the establishment of an international tribunal for the assassination of former Lebanese prime minister Rafiq Al-Hariri.

The paper mocked Qatar for citing an objective approach in explaining its action. The paper said that no objective approach could be taken between an assassin and the victim.

A top Syrian official said that his country had not changed its position on the tribunal, and that the tribunal's establishment based on Chapter 7 of the U.N. charter damages Lebanese sovereignty and is likely to further the deterioration in that country.

In the same vein, the Syrian government papers also warned of the resolution's ramifications for the domestic Lebanese arena.

Sources: Al-Mustaqbal, Lebanon; Al-Thawra, Syria; Teshreen, Syria, all May 31, 2007

Algerian correspondent for the Le Figaro daily Arezki Ait-Larbi was acquitted May 30 of defamation charges by an Algiers court.

In 1997, the former prisons director in the Algerian Justice Department, Abdelkader Sellat, filed a lawsuit over an 1994 article by Ait-Larbi in which Ait-Larbi described torture of political prisoners in the country during the 1980s.

Following the acquittal, the Committee for the Support of Arezki Ait-Larbi demanded an inquiry into what it termed crimes against humanity, based on evidence that had come to light during the trial.

Source: El-Watan, Algeria, May 31, 2007; El-Khabar, Algeria, May 31, 2007

Al-Fateh is the Hamas' magazine for children, which comes out in London twice a month, and is posted on the website www.al-fateh.net. Since the publication of the first issue in September 2002, a hundred issues have been published, the most recent in May 2007.

The magazine, which features materials for children (stories, poems, riddles, puzzles, etc.), includes inciting and violent contents: encouragement of terrorist operations, characterization of their planners and perpetrators as heroes, characterization of Jews as "murderers of the prophets," calls to kidnap soldiers, and descriptions of mothers who encourage their sons to kill Jews. There is a regular section titled "The Story of a Martyr," with each installment describing the "heroic deeds" of a mujahid from one of the organizations who died while carrying out a suicide operation (including operations against civilians) or was killed by the IDF.

The following are some images from the Al-Fateh magazine:

Image from the cover-page of Issue #99, May 2007

Bahrain's parliament has approved a bill that will be decided upon by the government that states that Bahrain will not support and will not participate in a U.S. attack on Iran, and that no use will be made of U.S. bases in Bahrain for any military attack on Iran.

Source: Akhbar Al-Khaleej, Bahrain, May 30, 2007

In the Gulf Region, 2,000 Projects Worth $1 Trillion

Hashim Al-Rifa'i, president of the Association of Project Management in Kuwait, said the Gulf region is going through an unprecedented period of prosperity.

He said there are currently in excess of 2,000 projects underway, at a cost of $1 trillion.

Source: Al-Qabas, Kuwait, May 31, 2007

Sabic To Borrow $29 Billion

The Saudi Basic Industries Corporation, the largest public corporation in the Middle East, is set to borrow $29 billion in the next three to five years to expand its petrochemical projects and acquire new companies.

The loans will come in the form of bonds, direct borrowing from financial institutions and the issuance of sekouk or Islamic bonds.

[SABIC acquired, early this month, the plastic business from General Electric, for $11.6 billion.]

Source: Al-Sharq Al-Awsat, London, May 31, 2007

Gulf Bank To Turn Islamic

The secretary-general of the High Council for Islamic Banks and Financial Institutions, which is located in Bahrain, has declared that the banks in the Gulf countries are moving toward becoming Islamic banks over the next 10 years.

He said that the number of Islamic financial institutions had increased from 176 in 1997 to 350 in 2005, apart from Islamic banking windows in non-Islamic banks and insurance companies.

In terms of their distribution in the GCC countries in 2006, 36% of such institutions are in Saudi Arabia, 27% in Kuwait, 23% in U.A.E., 9% in Bahrain, and 5% in Qatar.

Source: Al-Hayat, London, May 31, 2007

Dubai International To Develop London Gateway

The U.K. government has given its approval to Dubai International Port, one of the largest owners and operators of ports in the world, to develop the “London Gateway” project on the Thames River in Essex County. The port area, formerly owned by Shell Haven, will be used to provide logistical support throughout the U.K. The cost estimate is $3 billion and the construction will take 10-15 years to complete. The project will create 14,000 new jobs.

Source: Al-Khaleej, U.A.E., May 31, 2007

Qatar Offers Egypt Gift Of 40 New Locomotives

Qatar has is paying for 40 new locomotives to Egypt, at a cost of $120 million.

The locomotives will be supplied at a rate of 10 locomotives per month, to modernize Egypt's rail system.

The gift includes free maintenance for the first two years.

Source: Al-Sharq, Qatar, May 31, 2007

Lebanon Could Suffer Economic Difficulties

The 100-day political truce that was supposed to take effect in Lebanon on June 1 appears to be in jeopardy because of the terrorist activities by Fateh Al-Islam in Nahr Al-Bared, and because of the stirrings by Syria and its agents in Lebanon [in particular, Hizbullah and president of the republic Emil Lahoud] following yesterday's U. N. Security Council resolution to establish an international tribunal for the assassination of former Lebanese prime minister Rafiq Al-Hariri.

[in which Syria is implicated].

Source: Al-Sharq Al-Awsat, London, May 31, 2007

Iraqi Families Receiving Food Rations For Deceased Members

To mitigate the consequences of U.N. sanctions in the 1990s, the Saddam regime introduced a system of food rationing for all Iraqis.

This system was kept in place even after the fall of the regime, notwithstanding the abundance of food and consumer goods in the markets.

Iraqi families have for a long time refrained from informing authorities of deaths in the family so that they can continue to receive their food rations.

The Ministry of Trade considers the practice "theft" but doubts that it can do anything to change it.

Source: Al-Sharq Al-Awsat, London, May 31, 2007

Directors of Sudanese Companies Shrug Off New U.S. Sanctions

The directors of Sudanese companies shrugged off the new U.S. sanctions announced by President Bush early this week.

They said that some forms of sanctions have been in existence since 1996, and that companies have learned to live with them.

They also claimed that the U.S. has avoided the big players, particularly those which maintain business relationships with China.

Source: Al-Sharq Al-Awsat, London, May 31, 2007

Qatar Currency Remains Pegged To Dollar

The governor of the Central Bank of Qatar confirmed that Qatar's currency will continue to be pegged to the dollar, unlike Kuwait, which has recently decided to peg its dinar to a basket of currencies.

Qatar is facing a problem of rising inflation, which reached 15 percent through March 15, and is generated largely by rapid public spending.

Source: Al-Dustour, Jordan, May 31, 2007

A joint military effort by 4000 Iraqi forces supported by armed men from 100 tribes have mounted a joint effort in the Anbar Province in western Iraq to bring down the so-called "Islamic State of Iraq" (ISI).

The ISI, declared by Iraqi and foreign terrorists, has killed thousands of people and destroyed mosques, schools, and anything that has come their way.

They have made life unbearable for the major cities of the province, particularly the provincial capital of Ba'quba.

Source: Al-Rafidayn, May 31, 2007

While to date no group has claimed responsibility or made demands in connection with the kidnapping of an Egyptian engineer in the Algerian Tizi Ouzo district on the night of May 27-28, two Algerians who were also kidnapped and subsequently released have reportedly identified the kidnappers as members of armed groups active in the region.

Therefore, there is reason to think that the Al-Qaeda Organization in the Islamic Maghreb was behind the kidnapping.

However, kidnapping for criminal motives is not infrequent in the area.

Source: El-Shorouq El-Yawmi, Algeria, May 29, 2007

In order to clamp down on arms trafficking and to prevent weapons from reaching Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb, Algerian security forces have heightened security measures on the country's southern border, and have stepped up cooperation with their counterparts in Mauritania, Niger, and Mali.

The new measures coincide with the visit of security delegations from Mauritania, Tunisia, and Libya.

Source: El-Shorouq El-Yawmi, Algeria, May 29, 2007