Headlines:

• France Wants Gulf Arab States to Help Back African Forces in Mali
• Report says Assad Residing on Russian Warship
• Election is Banned in Islam: Saudi Scholar
• US Pull-out from Afghanistan Worries India

Details:

France Wants Gulf Arab States to Help Back African Forces in Mali:

With the French military operations in Mali expected to last longer than expected, Paris has sought funding from rich Arab Gulf states, saying "everybody" should help in fighting the al-Qaeda-linked extremists in the African country. French foreign minister Laurent Fabius has said donors would meet by the end of January to provide funding for an African force due to be deployed in Mali within a week. He said the fighting in Mali is part of the global fight against terrorism and that "everybody has to commit to oneself in fighting against terrorism." "We are pretty confident that the Emirates will go into that direction as well," Fabius was quoted by the Abu Dhabi-based The National as saying. "We shall have a discussion with the authorities in the Emirates. There are different ways of helping, it can be through materials, can be through financing," Fabius said. France pledged on Tuesday to keep troops in Mali until stability returned to the West African country, raising the specter of a long campaign against al Qaeda-linked rebels who held their ground despite a fifth day of air strikes. Paris has poured hundreds of soldiers into Mali and carried out 50 bombing raids since Friday in the Islamist-controlled northern half of the country, which Western and regional states fear could become a base for terrorist attacks in Africa and Europe.

Report says Assad Residing on Russian Warship:

Syrian President Bashar Assad and his family have been living on a warship, with security provided by Russia, intelligence sources told a Saudi newspaper. An "Al-Watan" report Monday says the family and Assad aides are residing on the ship in the Mediterranean Sea and that he travels to Syria by helicopter to attend official meetings and receptions. Otherwise, he stays on the warship, the sources told the Arabic language newspaper. When he flies to his embattled country, the president lands at undisclosed locations and is transported to the presidential palace under heavy guard, the sources said. The Russian-guarded warship provides a safe environment for Assad, who has lost confidence in his own security detail, the report said. Assad's presence on the warship suggests he has been granted political asylum by Russia but there has been no official comment from Moscow, the newspaper said. The circumstances reinforce Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov's comment Sunday that Assad's removal from power is "impossible to implement," the newspaper said. Assad's presence on the ship could be a sign of looming negotiations on the conflict in Syria, the report said. "It is necessary to make everybody, including the opposition, which is still categorically denying any dialogue, to sit down at the negotiating table, Radio Free Europe Radio Liberty quoted Lavrov as saying during a visit to the Ukraine.

Election is Banned in Islam: Saudi Scholar:

A well-known Saudi Islamic scholar has issued a new fatwa (edict) saying holding elections for a president or another form of leadership is prohibited in Islam. Sheikh Abdul Rahman bin Nassir Al Barrak, reputed for his radical views, described western-style elections as an alien phenomenon to Islamic countries. "Electing a president or another form of leadership or council members is prohibited in Islam as it has been introduced by the enemies of Moslems," he wrote on his Twitter page, according to Saudi newspapers. "Selecting an Imam (leader) must be up to the decision-making people not the public...election is a corrupt system which is not based on any legal or logical concept for those who enforce this system by some Moslems...this system has been brought by the anti-Islam parties who have occupied Moslem land."

US Pull-out from Afghanistan Worries India:

Concerns over heightened terrorism from Pakistan, particularly in Jammu and Kashmir, post 2014 US pullout, have brought Washington and New Delhi closer. India and US last week decided to set-up a bilateral dialogue on Afghanistan to keep terrorism emanating from Af-Pak area under control and ensure stability of the Kabul government. The first meeting of the official level bilateral dialogue is scheduled next month. Government sources said even though there is already a trilateral dialogue between US, India and Afghanistan, the official interlocutors during meetings in Washington last week agreed to have a separate one-on-one channel between the two countries. This comes after the US agreed to share details with New Delhi on the reconciliation process in Afghanistan. It is understood that PM Manmohan Singh is concerned over the regional impact of US pullout from Afghanistan. Washington intends to dilute its equity in Pakistan and may need Islamabad only for the reconciliation process as the logistics line will die down after the pullout. However, there are clear indications that US intends to keep around 7,000 troops in support of the Afghan army and continue with aerial strikes on terrorist hideouts on the Durand Line. India wants that US should continue to push Pakistan on its counter-terrorism agenda and maintain the capability to wipe out high value terror targets in Frontier Administered Tribal Areas and Khyber-Paktunkhwa region of Pakistan.

Abu Hashim