Aar Maanta Press Release

Deeqa is the long awaited single from the prolific UK based singer/songwriter Aar Maanta’s debut album ‘Hiddo iyo Dhaqan’ and is set for general release with the new acoustic version of the song on July 25th 2010.

‘Maanta’ was one of Aar’s most popular earlier singles and he quickly became synonymous with the title of the song so much so that he decided to change his name from simply ‘Aar’ or ‘Lion’ in the Somali language, to his current name ‘Aar Maanta’. Aar began his interest in music to deal with the solitude of living in London without his family when he escaped civil war in Somalia in the late 1980’s. Although the urban music styles around London have a strong presence in his music, it is the Somali influences which resonate the strongest. This is apparent even in his choice of title for the album, Hiddo iyo Dhaqan literally translating into ‘Custom and Culture’.

The single Deeqa, is written in the traditional Somali poetic form using allegory and alliteration. The word ‘Deeqa’ is not only a popular name for Somali women meaning ‘suffice’, ‘generosity’ or ‘gift’ it was also another name for the now defunct Somali Airlines. Deeqa is a protest song written to highlight the injustice Somali people receive at airports around the globe, but particularly in the West. Aar himself was held in custody after he was reported to police by staff at Heathrow airport upon returning from his homeland, Somali region in Ethiopia.

{youtubejw}IkbfCWTu0Zw{/youtubejw}Sadly he is not alone, many people of Somali ethnicity have been given the same, if not worse treatment at airports, some imprisoned and released without charge after weeks or even months in imprisonment. The ‘War on Terror’ and the governments that neglect their duty to citizens are to blame believes Aar as there is no law against going to any Somali region.

The video for the single is based on Aar’s own experiences at Heathrow airport while he was mistreated on several occasions by police and airport officials. Both the video and the song discuss the issues of identity, citizenship and racism.

MOSAD Inquiry Turns Dubai Police into Hero

After investigation into killing of Hamas official emirate's police chief emerges as a star across the Arab world. Until a month or so ago, few people outside Dubai had even heard of the emirate's police chief, Lt Gen Dahi Khalfan Tamim. But after his investigation into the assassination of a senior Hamas official by an alleged Mossad hit squad, Tamim has emerged as a local hero and a star across the Arab world, praised for his relentless pursuit of what he says "with 99% certainty" is an Israeli crime.

"Greetings of love and appreciation for General Dahi Khalfan, God protect you from all evil," an anonymous Iraqi wrote on al-Arabiyya.net website. "Congratulations to the Dubai police for this speedy and professional job, and hoping other Arab states can learn from your example," gushed another blogger. "Inshallah [God willing] Dubai's heroes will bring an end to Israel," went yet another delighted post.

Pundits from Kuwait to Cairo watched in amazement as the little Gulf emirate produced CCTV images of everything but the actual murder of Mahmoud al-Mabhouh on 19 January. Tamim coolly described the suspects wearing false beards, wigs and tennis gear as they shadowed the Hamas man at the airport and the five-star al-Bustan Rotana hotel – and then threatened to issue an arrest warrant for Israel's leader, Binyamin Netanyahu.

"Dubai's government and security apparatus have proved that crimes and murders are not allowed to pass unnoticed," Lebanese commentator Elias Harfoush wrote in al-Hayat. Ahmed Tibi, an Israeli Arab MP, called Tamim "the real hero in this story" – responding to a Jewish colleague's boast that the head of the Mossad deserved that accolade. Hamas and its Fatah rival, blaming each other for betraying Mabhouh, both expressed appreciation for Dubai's sleuths.

Israel has refused to confirm or deny its involvement but has described Mabhouh as playing a key role supplying Iranian rockets and money to Hamas.

In the west Dubai may be a byword for vulgarity, greed and financial meltdown but it also represents modernity and efficiency. These qualities are rare in the Arab world, where secret policemen routinely beat suspects and rely heavily on informers. "Dubai employs modern technology to uncover crimes," said an Egyptian columnist.

Tamim, 59, known as Abu Faris, trained in Jordan shortly after the UAE was created in 1971. He has a reputation for hard work and piety, visiting his mother before work every morning and reporting in person to Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, the ruler of Dubai, before he goes home.

Last year he won plaudits for solving the murder of Suzanne Tamim, a Lebanese singer killed on an Egyptian tycoon's orders in her Dubai Marina flat. He also cracked the assassination of a Chechen warlord and the robbery of jewellery worth $3.8m. The tackling of Israeli impunity is a big reason for Tamim's current popularity, but he has also urged Hamas to investigate its own security breaches and refused to hand over two Palestinian suspects to the group.

Yet Dubai's celebrity police chief may not welcome all the attention: one new Facebook fan is using the name and photograph of a "Peter Elvinger", a French passport holder who was named as one of Mabhouh's assassins and is thought to have commanded the team. "You are doing a very impressive work!" commented (the presumably spoof) Elvinger in a recent message. "I'll be more careful next time."

100 killed in Libya plane crash, child survives

Dubai An eight-year-old Dutch boy was the sole survivor when a Libyan plane arriving from South Africa exploded on landing at Tripoli airport today, killing more than 100 people, officials said.

Afriqiyah Airways listed 93 passengers and 11 crew members on board its flight 8U771 from Johannesburg.  

 

 

"I can confirm the crash but not the number of the dead," said Bongani Sithole, an official of the airline at Johannesburg airport. "We hear that it happened one meter (yard) away from the runway."

 

A Libyan security official earlier said that all those on board the Airbus A330 had died but an airport official said in fact a Dutch boy had survived and been rushed to hospital near Tripoli.

 

There was no immediate indication of the cause of the crash, which occurred as the Afriqiyah Airways plane was landing after a flight from Johannesburg at around 6 am (9.30 IST).

 

"It exploded on landing and totally disintegrated," the security official said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

 

The crew members were all Libyan nationals, the official added.

 

The crash site had been sealed off by security officials and ambulances and emergency vehicles were seen rushing between the airport and the capital, about 50 kilometres apart.

 

The wreckage could be seen in the distance but no plumes of smoke were evident. Weather conditions were good at Tripoli this morning, with only light clouds in the sky.

 

Afriqiyah Airways said on its website that it operates an Airbus fleet.

 

It started operations with five leased planes and signed a contract with Airbus at an exhibition in Paris in 2007 for the purchase of 11 new planes, the website said.

 

It was founded in April 2001 and at first fully owned by the Libyan state. The company's capital was later divided into shares to be managed by the Libya-Africa Investment Portfolio.

 

Last June, a 12-year-old girl was the sole survivor of a Yemeni plane crash off the Comoros.

 

Recent major plane crashes

 

A passenger plane crashed in Libya on Wednesday, killing 105 people, Al Arabiya television said, quoting official sources.

 

Here are some details of major plane crashes in the last three years:

 

Jan. 1, 2007 - Indonesian Boeing 737-400 operated by budget carrier Adam Air disappeared from radar screens during flight from Java to Sulawesi islands. Wreckage located at sea 10 days later. All 102 passengers and crew killed.

 

May 5 - All 114 people on board Kenya Airways Boeing 737 died when plane crashed in torrential rain after takeoff from Douala in Cameroon, bound for Nairobi.

 

July 17 - Brazilian TAM passenger plane crashed into buildings when trying to land in Sao Paulo, killing 199 people aboard and on the ground.

 

Sept. 16 - One-Two-Go, a budget Thai airliner carrying 123 passengers and several crew, crashed on landing at resort island of Phuket. At least 85 of the 123 passengers were killed and five of seven crew.

 

Aug. 20, 2008 - Spanair MD-82, flying to Canary Islands with 166 passengers and six crew, crashed on takeoff at Madrid airport, killing 154 people. Remaining 18 seriously injured.

 

Aug. 24 - Boeing 737-200 belonging to private Kyrgyz company Itek-Air, chartered by Iranian company and bound for Iran, crashed at Bishkek airport. Around 70 people died, including members of local teenage basketball team.

 

May 20, 2009 - Indonesian C130 military transport plane carrying 110 passengers and crew crashed and burst into flames 6.5 km (4 miles) from Iswahyudi air force base in East Java while preparing to land, killing 98 people, including two on the ground.

 

June 1 - Air France Airbus A330-200 jetliner carrying 228 people crashed over Atlantic. Fifty-one bodies and 600 pieces of wreckage were recovered before search for survivors was called off on June 26.

 

June 30 - Yemen Airways aircraft carrying 153 people crashed in sea off Indian Ocean archipelago of Comoros. A Franco-Comoran girl was rescued alive from sea. Twenty-four corpses were pulled from waters before search for more bodies was called off.

 

July 15 - Caspian Airlines aircraft, carrying 153 passengers and 16 crew travelling from Tehran to Yerevan in Armenia, crashed near city of Qazvin, killing all aboard.

 

Jan. 25, 2010 - Ethiopian Airlines Boeing 737-800 crashed minutes after taking off from Beirut airport in stormy weather, plunging in ball of fire into sea. All 90 passengers and crew killed.

 

April 10 - Ninety-six people aboard Polish President Lech Kaczynski's official Tupolev Tu-154 plane were killed in crash near Smolensk airport in western Russia. Plane was carrying Kaczynski, his wife Maria and large number of senior officials.

 

May 12 - Passenger plane crashed in Libya, killing 105 people, according to al-Arabiya television, citing official sources. Libyan airport official said plane was Libyan-operated Airbus that crashed as it tried to land at Tripoli airport after flight from South Africa.

Black Sea medical team heads to Ethiopia

A group of 21 Turkish doctors left the Istanbul on Friday to visit Ethiopia, a landlocked state in the Horn of Africa, to extend medical assistance.

Health professionals from the Turkish Cooperation and Development Agency (TİKA) and the Black Sea Health Professionals Association (KARSAMED) decided to go to Ethiopia, because a large segment of the population, some 38 percent, lives below the poverty line. They will take medical supplies and equipment and distribute 1,000 kilograms of medicine in Ethiopia during their stay.

Alaattin Çebi, the president of KARSAMED, said they had previously been to Ethiopia to volunteer their services and had helped approximately 7,000 locals and distributed 3,000 kilograms of medicine. Çebi, who is also a doctor, said the health professionals, including doctors and pharmacists, will carry out procedures ranging from physical examinations to surgical operations. “We are training our health professionals on how they should behave toward Ethiopians during their treatment. In addition to medical care, we want to show our interest in Ethiopia and the love, sincerity and compassion felt for them by Turkish people,” he said.

During their stay, the volunteer doctors will first go to the capital, Addis Ababa, and then on to Adwa, a town in northern Ethiopia. “We are planning to help 10,000 local people this year. People in Ethiopia live under the threat of starvation. Many diseases, including malaria and AIDS, are very common, and the average lifespan in Ethiopia is 50 for men and 52 years for women,” said Çebi.

The medical team is planning to return to Turkey on March 7.