Monday, January 30, 2012

Tourism showed slight positive increase in 2011

Tourism industry showed “slight increase” in 2011, according to the managing director of the Moroccan National Office of Tourism (ONMT) Abdelhamid Addou, amid the economic crisis that hits the world.

 Addou said the number of arrivals were 2% higher year on year. “It is a good result compared with competing countries,” notably Egypt and Tunisia, although it is also “frustrating” compared with the expectations, Abdou told Moroccan French-speaking newspaper “L’Economiste.”

“The year 2012 will surely be very difficult,” added Addou who stressed the need to “increase efforts” in order to overcome this situation, while boosting communication campaigns.

@Map

SuperBoy

Imagine


THE SEASON FOR OLIVE

Olive season has just come to and end…and by olive season I mean that the olives ripened, were harvested, and either pressed for oil or cured to turn them edible. Did you know that both black olives and green olives come from the same tree? Here is a very ripe olive from our family farm.

 Did you also know that harvesting olives by hand is a labor intensive business? In Morocco it’s all done this way: a large plastic is laid out under the tree, then you take a long bamboo stick and start to beat at the olives to knock them down. Eventually you have to climb the tree to get to the higher branches. Olives yield about 16 liters of olive oil per 100 kgs of olives, depending on how much the trees were watered. The more they were watered, the juicier the olives.

I will never forget when I was 8 years old and I spent a whole day knocking all the olives off a particular tree. At the end of the day, I had very sore hand and about 20 kgs of olives. I was very excited to lug my harvest down the road to where they would buy them from you for about a dirham per kilo (like 6 cents per pound, for those of you who are allergic to the metric system). I walked back with more than 20 dirhams in my pocket (2.5 dollars). I’d never been prouder of my earnings (maybe even to this day . It didn’t occur to me that those olives actually belonged to my parents, and that technically, I owed them like 90% of the money. They kindly didn’t point it out either.

Everywhere in the Moroccan countryside, you see olive trees, and under them there is wheat or barley growing. Each farming family gets olive oil and flour for the entire year. This way they have fresh bread and olive oil, which, along with sweet green tea, is a meal unto itself. Talk about local, sustainable, organic and vegan….This is how it all once was.

@moroccoboard.com/

Pride at stake in 'dead' Morocco, Niger Cup tie

Eric Gerets, in what could be his last match as coach of Morocco, will expect his players to end their curtailed stay in Gabon with a flourish in the 'dead' clash with Niger on Tuesday. Both sides are heading home after this final Africa Cup of Nations Group C tie having been trumped in the race for a quarter-final place by co-hosts Gabon and Tunisia.

 While pride is the only prize at stake it promises to be a hard fought affair, with Niger seeking their first ever Cup points and Gerets hoping his team will show enough to persuade his paymasters that he is worth his reported 200,000 euros a month salary.

 After Friday's absorbing 3-2 loss to Gabon which sealed Morocco's fate the former Marseille manager took refuge in his team hotel lounge, drawing on a large cigar as he contemplated his future. Two games and zero points is not a good return by any yardstick, yet Gerets believes passionately in his mix of veterans like captain Houssine Kharja and a posse of up and coming youngsters.

 Speaking after that painful defeat in which Gabon scored the winner in the eighth minute of stoppage time the Belgian said: "If they (the Moroccan Football Federation) let me do my job I will continue, if they are not happy with my performance they will let me know. "For 15 months no one has talked about bad performances or a bad coach so it would be a bit surprising (to be sacked), but in my job it can happen - on Monday you are king, 24 hours later you are not a king. "As long as I am coach of Morocco I will take my responsibility and continue with my philosophy of making my players improve, I know the team are capable of better." Turning to the World Cup in Brazil in 2014 Gerets was asked whether he still thought Morocco could make it to the finals with qualifying starting in June.

 "One month ago I would have told you 'yes', but after this performance I think it's better not to answer - I will have to see the reaction of the younger players who have a future but who have to stand up now and fight against this disappointment - only the strong will survive." He will be looking for evidence of a positive reaction against Niger, whose first ever appearance at the Nations Cup has also harvested zero points with an opening 2-0 loss to Gabon followed by Tunisia's last gasp 2-1 win.

 Against Tunisia, Niger had regained much of the form that had seen them qualify in a group that also contained Egypt, winners of the last three editions, and South Africa. An entertaining encounter was heading for a 1-1 draw until substitute Issam Jemaa bagged the 2004 titleholders the points in the final minute. Worryingly, though, all Niger's qualifying points en route to the 2012 finals came at home in Niamey. Control of the team appears to have passed from African Coach of the Year Harouna Doula to his 'consultant', Rolland Courbis, like Gerets a former Marseille manager. Courbis it was who was orchestrating affairs from the touchline in the Tunisia defeat while Doula sat impassively in the dug out.

 One of the players who has shone for Niger is the tall Belgian-based striker Maazou Moussa Ouwo, whose dazzling runs had the Tunisian defence in difficulties here last Friday. It may have no significance as far as this competition goes but both sides have a point to prove at Libreville's L'Amitie stadium.

@Timesofindia.indiatimes.com

Morocco sees increase in mobile users

Mobile users in Morocco continued their upward push through 2011, with the number of users rising 14.29 percent to 36.55 million. According to the report from the country’s national telecom regulator ANRT, the result is a 113.57 percent penetration rate.

 Growth in post-paid customers also saw a large increase of 26.66 percent, compared to only 13.8 percent in 2010. “Mobile voice traffic increased by 65.6 percent and SMS traffic by 31.38 percent, compared to last year. Maroc Telecom saw its mobile market share fall to 48.85 percent at the end of 2011, compared to 52.81 percent a year earlier, Medi Telecom’s dipped to 32.92 percent from 33.74 percent and Wana Corporate’s (Inwi) grew to 20.23 percent from 13.45 percent,” the report said. “This should be a good boost to the beginning of this year in terms of increasing services that Moroccans should be getting,” Maroc Telecom consultant Ibrahim Mahmoud said.

 As mobile users continued to climb, fixed landlines saw a drop in subscribers by almost five percent, down to 3.57 million, or a penetration rate of 11.08 percent. The report said fixed call traffic came down by 9.42 percent year-on-year. “Wana Corporate had a 64.59 percent share of the fixed phone market at the end of 2011, followed by Maroc Telecom with 34.79 percent and Medi Telecom with 0.62 percent,” the report added.


@itnewsafrica.com

Sunday, January 29, 2012

Badr Hari knocks out Gokhan Saki

The first major kickboxing event of 2012, It's Showtime in Leeuwarden, went down yesterday (Sat., Jan. 28, 2012), and it delivered in spades.

 After years of enthralling audiences with his devastating power inside the ring and questionable antics outside of it, Moroccan "Bad Boy," Badr Hari, announced his intention to retire from kickboxing in order to pursue a career in professional boxing. For his final bout, he took on fearsome Turk Gokhan Saki, intending to leave on as high and exciting a note as he could.

 Mission accomplished. After a tentative start that saw Saki seemingly take Hari down into side control, the former split Saki's guard with an enormous right uppercut, sending him to the canvas. Incredibly, "The Rebel" got back to his feet, but was sent immediately back down by a glancing blow.

 Though he rose again, a third uppercut sealed the deal, giving Badr Hari a devastating knockout victory in his farewell fight. Shine on, you crazy diamond. In the co-main event, hard-hitting giants Daniel Ghita and Hesdy Gerges squared off for Gerges's heavyweight title in a rematch of their spectacular clash in March 2011. Gerges claimed victory the first time around in an incredibly close affair that saw Ghita drop his hands and give the hard-punching Gerges several free shots to his jaw, laughing them off. He'll be laughing even harder this time. While Ghita is renowned for his bone-crushing leg kicks, it was his punching power that carried the day this time around.

He very nearly dropped Gerges in the early going with a left hook, and late in the first round, landed that punch once again in even more devastating fashion. Gerges went down in a heap, limp on impact and the recipient of one of the most brutal knockouts in recent memory. Welcome to the highlight reel, Hesdy. Sorry it couldn't have been under better circumstances. It's Showtime 70kg "Fast and Furious" tournament champion Robin van Roosmalen was also in action, taking on crafty veteran Murat Direkci.

 The two put on a fantastic show, the careful rangefinding kicks of Direkci keeping him out of range of Roosmalen's colossal punches and Roosmalen bullying his way inside with big flurries. In the end, after a razor-close battle, Roosmalen walked away with a majority decision and Murat announced his retirement. He may not have gotten the win, but he certainly went out on a high note. Golden Glory banger Errol Zimmerman took on young upstart Rico Verhoeven, who had recently defeated Hesdy Gerges by decision. Unfortunately for Rico, his luck apparently ran out after that effort, and after standing directly in front of the hard-hitting "Bonecrusher" for just a few seconds two long, ate a brutal combo in the middle of the first, capped off with a left hook that left him limp on the canvas.

 Move your head or they'll move it for you, Rico. High-flying Chris Ngimbi took on the crafty boxing of Murat Direkci in the second fight of the event, looking to land one of his patented long-range flying knees. No such luck. Direkci's punching prowess proved too much for Ngimbi, as Murat bullied him all across the ring for the better part of two rounds, never giving him the range necessary to get his offense going. Eventually, a heavy standing knee from Direkci split Ngimbi's guard, opening a nasty cut above the latter's right eye and prompting the doctor to stop it. An excellent performance from Direkci and an underwhelming one from the normally high-octane Ngimbi.

 The main card began with a clash between Michael Duut and Anderson "Braddock" Silva (no relation to the UFC middleweight champion). The bout was mostly one-way traffic, with the boxing and defense of Silva proving too much for Duut, who was dropped in the second round and repeatedly found himself on the wrong end of a powerful counter left hook.

@.mmamania.com

WORDS HURT |Ad


The Power Of The Words, it's Hurt Don't be a part of it


Google seeks to clarify new privacy policy

Seeking to blunt a sharp backlash to recent privacy policy changes, Google has offered to share "the real story" about a system that compiles information about users based on their activity on all of Google's sites and products.

 This week, Google announced new privacy settings. They spell out the fact that the company collects and compiles data about its users based on their activity on its various sites -- from its search page to Gmail to YouTube to phones running its Android operating system.

The announcement gave some privacy advocates cause for alarm, even though Google says the information is assembled to enhance user experience, such as better targeting ads that will be of interest to its customers. Perhaps most notably, eight members of Congress, both Democrats and Republicans, wrote a letter to Google CEO Larry Page asking for clarification about the changes.

 "While Google suggests that the purpose of this shift in policy is to make the consumer experience simpler, we want to make sure it does not make protecting consumer privacy more complicated," reads the letter. The lawmakers also noted that because of Google's global reach, the change "potentially touches billions of people worldwide." It asks Google to share what kind of data it currently collects and explain how information collected under the newly announced system will be used. In a post on the company's public policy blog, Google's Betsy Masiello wrote that there have been misconceptions about the changes. "A lot has been said about our new privacy policy," she wrote.

"Some have praised us for making our privacy policy easier to understand. Others have asked questions, including members of Congress, and that's understandable too." Among the points that Masiello makes in the post: _ Users don't have to be logged in to use many of Google's products, including search and YouTube. No data is collected when a user is not logged in. _ When logged in, users can edit or turn off their search histories, switch Gmail chat to "off the record," use "incognito mode" on the Google Chrome browser or employ other of Google's privacy tools.

 _ Quite simply, Web users don't have to use all of Google's products. She noted that Google won't be collecting any more data about users than it was before. "We're making things simpler and we're trying to be upfront about it. Period," she wrote. Not everyone was convinced. While noting that there are some advantages to having your information stored in one place, Brent Rose wrote for tech site Gizmodo that there are some scary aspects to it as well. "There are certainly reasons to be concerned about keeping all of your eggs in one basket. It means there's a single point of failure, which makes me nervous," Rose wrote. "The fact that you can't opt-out of shared search data, and that Google will know more about you than your wife? That's a little creepy."

@CNN

Morocco trip pulled Brad Pitt from a deep depression

Brad Pitt has revealed that it took him a trip to the North African kingdom of Morocco, one of the world’s major producers and exporters of cannabis, to get rid of his deep depression marked with “smoking way too much dope.”

 While Pitt was living the brightest moments of his professional life in the 1990s with his roles in “A River Runs Through It,” “Legends of the Fall” and “Seven,” the Hollywood star was living debasing moments in his personal life. “I got really sick of myself at the end of the 1990s: I was hiding out from the celebrity thing; I was smoking way too much dope; I was sitting on the couch and just turning into a doughnut, and I really got irritated with myself,” Pitt told The Hollywood Reporter magazine.

 “I was doing the same thing every night and numbing myself to sleep – the same routine: couldn’t wait to get home and hide out. But that feeling of unease was growing and one night I just said, ‘This is a waste.’” Towards the end of the 1990s, Pitt went on a trip to Morocco, a country where one would least expect to lose addiction to cannabis. During his trip, seeing extreme poverty made the Hollywood star appreciate his life and helped him recover from his deep depression.

 “I saw poverty to an extreme I had never witnessed before, and we talked about inequality and health care, and I saw just what I felt was so unnecessary, that people should have to survive in these circumstances – and the children were inflicted with a lot of deformities, and things that could have been avoided had become their sentence. It stuck with me,” he told the magazine. “I just quit. I stopped grass then – I mean, pretty much – and decided to get off the couch.”

@alarabiya.net

KISSING THE YOUNG PRINCE'S HAND in Morocco

In Egypt and Sudan female circumcision is still practiced, in Tibet, we are told, one can be cut in pieces and have the pieces thrown to birds, in East Africa some tribes slice their phallus, in India there are still instances of widows burning, and in Kuwait men shake noses instead of shaking hands…

 Yet, to be politically correct, some people say ‘’it’s cultural!’’! But when it comes to a Moroccan overly solicitous general kissing the hand of the young crown prince, no one thinks it’s cultural and many Arabs get to criticizing Moroccan affairs! If I meet the crown prince Moulay El Hassan or his father King Mohamed VI, I don’t think I will kiss their hands, but no one will cut my head or put me in prison for that! What other Arabs don’t understand or refuse to admit is that we are different and we have different traditions and histories, even if they cross often. Therefore, it’s no one’s business what we do with our 12 centuries monarchy, and if some traditional or old-school-servants to the throne still want to show their allegiance to the royal family by kissing their hands to show respect, it’s up to us to judge them.

 We have a proverb in Morocco that says "wait until you have crossed the river and dried your feet to give advice". I will bring up the same proverb for my Arab readers, who just got out of their revolution and who have still their wet feet in the mud of years of oppression, but who have already become specialists in Arab affairs and have started giving advice and want to export their experience to countries which live in an entirely different context. Some of these people come from countries that didn’t exist on the map 50 years ago, others from places where my father is older than their monarchies, and most from countries to which Nasser exported his military socialist model 60 years ago. No need to say that it’s Nasser’s legacy that the people are revolting against today in Iraq, Syria, Libya, Yemen, Tunisia because apparently the citizens of these countries realized that they prefer a civilian liberal rule rather than a pan-Arabist military one.

 Now let’s take the Moroccan example. While Nasser and his clan were mocking our monarchy 60 years ago, we chose another path, a path of gradual democratic transitions, a liberal economy, structural adjustments, strategic partnerships with the West, and a reconciliation process which started long enough to start giving its fruits. Yes Hassan II was a hard father on us.

Yes you can call him a dictator in regards to certain decisions he took. But, that clever king saved us from 60 years of ‘’ideological adolescence’’ if we had taken the Nasser path like everyone else in the region. And now in less than 15 years we had voted for a leftist government, a right wing government and now we are trying the Islamist model, all without any complex and in a mature transitional democratic process that we are internally very critical about! I don’t pretend my country is perfect. I know better than anyone that it has its weaknesses.

We have a young movement which is calling for constitutional and economic reforms called the Feb-20th Movement , which recently made things advance for the better and created a fresh dynamism in the relations between the palace and the people. However, I can't stand lesson givers

@Moroccoboard.com

Saturday, January 28, 2012

MARIAH CAREY TO PERFORM IN MAY AT MOROCCAN FESTIVAL

Since Mariah Carey has a boy boy named Moroccan and have a Moroccan-themed room in her New York apartment, it would make sense that she would perform in the country that has inspired her marital life.

 The R&B diva reportedly has agreed to perform at Morocco’s Mawazine Festival in May. According to Morocco World News, Carey will sing at the festival in the Moroccan city of Rabat on May 26, closing out the eight-day event, which begins on May 18.

 Organizers says that Carey will perform a couple of new songs that she has been working on for the past year. This will mark the first time Carey has performed in front of a live audience since the birth of her twins Moroccan and Monroe last year.

Past performers who graced the stage at the Mawazine Festival include Shakira, Kanye West, Alicia Keys, Elton John and Whitney Houston.

@popcrush.com

Gabon, Tunisia through as Morocco crash out

Gabon and Tunisa became the latest teams to seal their Africa Cup of Nations quarter-final places on Friday as Morocco and newcomers Niger were knocked out. Day seven at the 2012 Nations Cup delivered up a Group C double bill in Libreville.

The first leg saw Tunisia, champions in 2004, down Niger 2-1 to put one foot in the last eight. Next on the menu at the L’Amitie Stadium came Gabon, who faced a Morocco side fighting for their Cup lives after an opening loss to Tunisia. Not one of the 40,000 crowd spurring on their national team will ever forget this tie which erupted in the final quarter of an hour with four goals, two of them in stoppage time.

Morocco, with an injury time penalty, believed they had done enough to keep the wheels on their Cup campaign, but that wasn’t counting on Bruno Mbanangoyes’s curling freekick in the final second of the eighth minute of stoppage time of a remarkable encounter.

 Gabon had been on the brink of winning in normal time after goals from Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Daniel Cousin in the 73rd and 77th minutes had put them in command after Houssine Kharja’s opener. But, as the stadium announcer urged the partisan supporters to “remain calm, remain calm” Kharja appeared to have spoiled Gabon’s night when stepping up to coolly convert the 91st minute spotkick awarded for Charly Moussono’s handball.

 Rarely can one man have ever so effectively silenced a crowd of this size. But then along came Mbanangoye to seal all three points and put Gabon into the knockout stages, and give the fans back their voice. The result also put Tunisia into the quarter-finals, these two teams joining already qualified Equatorial Guinea and Ivory Coast. Reflecting on the stunning win Gabon coach Gernot Rohr said: “The final 15 minutes were truly dramatic. I must say bravo to my players.

“Our fortunes turned when Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang scored. Now we’d like to finish top of the group, then we can stay in Libreville.” The German praised not only his team, but their ’12th man’ – the crowd. “The atmosphere reminded me of a night when I was coach of Bordeaux, with (Zinedine) Zidane, we beat AC Milan 3-0 in the Champions League in 1996, the crowd helped us that day like they did tonight.” Morocco coach Eric Gerets was bemused how the game had slipped from his team’s grasp, and marvelled at the dramatic finish.

 “My heart was going 200 beats a second! “I have to congratulate Gabon’s coach and his team, they’ll have a big party in Gabon tonight, but I would have preferred a big party in Morocco.” Morocco captain Kharja added: “Well done Gabon but we are so disappointed and frustrated, we thought we were going to win this game.

 “There was so much expectation from the Moroccan people, now we’re knocked out. We fell from very high to very low. We wil ltry to learn from this experience and come back winners in thhe future.” Earlier, Tunisia had raced into a three minute lead against Niger courtesy of Youssef Msakni only for William Tonji Ngounou to create history with debutant Niger’s first ever Cup goal five minutes later. But Tunisia ruined Niger’s night when substitute Issam Jemaa bagged the winner for the 2004 titleholders in the final minute. Niger’s Maazou Moussa Ouwo said: “It hurts, because we were in control of the game and it’s too bad we should lose in the last minute. We’re not going to sleep very well tonight, we’re really going to regret this game.” Tunisia coach Sami Trabelsi reflected: “We knew Niger would be well organised and rigorous on the counter attack. The spirit of my team was there for all to see. Thank God we were able to win, thank God.”

@capitalfm

Friday, January 27, 2012

Viadeo vies for Arab expansion with Moroccan branch

Viadeo, the world's second-biggest online networking site for professionals after LinkedIn, said on Friday it had opened a regional branch in Morocco as it seeks to expand its presence in the increasingly-wired Arab world.

 Viadeo, which targets professionals, job seekers and recruiters, shelved plans for an initial public offering last year to focus on growth in emerging markets.

 "Morocco is the first country in Northern Africa and within the Arab world where Viadeo has established an office; this follows the opening of an office in Senegal in March 2011," Viadeo said in a statement.

 Morocco accounts for a quarter of Viadeo's 2 million members in Africa. The increasing use of Internet and high youth unemployment in the Arab world, which hovers around 30 percent in Morocco, is a boon for businesses like Viadeo.

 "The membership base in Morocco has doubled in less than a year and represents the second French speaking community of the platform after France," it said.

@reuters

An Ordinary Day |ShortFilm

Just show your real face... STOP hiding it


Thursday, January 26, 2012

Malaria distracts Morocco ahead of must-win game

Morocco faced a tough task to stay alive in the African Cup of Nations even before reserve goalkeeper Issam Badda was diagnosed with a mild form of malaria and leading striker Marouane Chamakh was hit by fever and a stomach illness. Having lost to Tunisia in its Group C opener, Eric Gerets' team faces a buoyant Gabon which will be boosted again by a stadium of rowdy home supporters in Libreville on Friday.

Morocco, meanwhile, has been demoralized by a disappointing result against its North African rival and health worries over Badda and Chamakh. Forward Oussama As-Saidi is definitely out of the second match with injury, too. Another loss and the talented Moroccans would match Senegal's surprising elimination from the tournament. The atmosphere was "tense'' in the camp, coach Eric Gerets said on Thursday. Badda had to receive a blood transfusion a day earlier at a Libreville hospital after being diagnosed with Type 3 malaria, while Chamakh underwent a series of tests after being seen by a doctor.

Both were recovering but Morocco's on-field form also needed some help after a careless display was punished by the Tunisians at Stade de l'Amitie. "It's normal to be tense. It's the most important tournament in my life as a trainer,'' Gerets said. "We have come here with big ambitions and you see there are things lacking to get to where we want to be. So, I can say I have some concerns.'' Gabon's 2-0 win over Niger in front of its loud, colorful and fiercely loyal home fans put the co-host in high spirits, but also warned of its ability to play slick, attacking football. A repeat of that intimidating atmosphere on Friday could carry Gabon to a place in the last eight - just like co-host Equatorial Guinea. Morocco, meanwhile, missed chances against Tunisia and has yet to show the form that caused many to tip Gerets' team to go far.

 "We know its going to be a tough match, a difficult match, maybe even more difficult than the match against Tunisia,'' Gerets said. While Chamakh missed training on Wednesday he was expected to be available for the Gabon match. Badda will stay with the team and his scare wasn't on the players' minds anymore, captain Houssine Kharja said, who probably didn't expect to field questions on malaria in the buildup to a match.

But such is the unique nature of the African Cup. "No we are not afraid, no. We know you can catch malaria here like you can get it elsewhere,'' the midfielder said. "We are taking our medications ... we've taken all the precautions. "It's a small episode which is now past and so our main concern now is the match with Gabon, to qualify. We are totally focused on our African Cup.'' Tunisia plays Niger in Group C's other match on Friday.

@cnn.com

South Africans Among the Most Prolific Twitter Users |Morocco 5Th

While Twitter played an important role in the 2011 Egyptian revolution, South Africa is home to Africa's most prolific tweeters, according to a report on Twitter use on the continent. Portland Communications and Tweetminster monitored more than 11.5 million location-tagged tweets in Africa and conducted a survey of the region's 500 most active Twitter users to deliver what is perhaps the first comprehensive report on Twitter use on the continent. Titled "How Africa Tweets," the report discovered that South Africa has the most active Twitter population in Africa, tweeting twice as much as Kenya, the second-most active country.

 In the last quarter of 2011, South African Twitterers posted more than 5 million 140-character messages, compared to about 2.47 million sent from Kenya. Nigeria was the third most-active country (1.65 million tweets), followed by Egypt (1.21 million), and Morocco (745,620 tweets).

More than half (57 percent) of these tweeters are posting from their mobile phones, and a majority (60 percent) of the most active users are in their 20s, the study said. A lion's share of the chatter on Twitter in Africa is conversational, with 81 percent of those polled reporting that they use the platform to talk with friends. But it's not just a social mechanism. The report found that 68 percent of respondents use Twitter to get current events, and 22 percent troll Twitter for job opportunities.

In Africa, if a person is using Twitter, it's likely they also have profiles on other social media sites. According to the study, Twitter users on the continent are generally active on a variety of platforms, including Facebook, YouTube, Google+, and LinkedIn. However, the micro-blogging site is populated mostly by regular citizens, rather than people in the public arena.

 "One of the more surprising findings of this research is that more public figures have not joined Africa's burgeoning Twittersphere," Portland's Mike Flanagan said. "With some notable exceptions, we found that business and political leaders were largely absent from the debates playing out on Twitter across the continent. As Twitter lifts off in Africa, governments, businesses, and development agencies can really no longer afford to stay out of a new space where dialogue will increasingly be taking place." Though many African nations have caught on to Twitter, the study shows that there is plenty of room for the platform to grow.

@pcmag.com

Morocco Government Wins Parliament Confidence

The new coalition government of Morocco, led, for the first time, by the Islamic-leaning Justice and Development Party (PJD), won a vote of confidence by the parliament on Thursday.

 A total of 218 MPs voted for the four-party government of Prime Minister and PJD Chairman Abdelilah Benkirane against 135 without any abstention. The government, formed on January 3, enjoys larger powers compared to the previous government under the provisions of the new Constitution which was adopted in a national referendum on July 1, 2011.

 Article 88 of the Constitution empowers the leader of a party with largest representation at the parliament to nominate a prime minister, develop a policy statement and shoulder the responsibility for implementing it. In its statement, Benkirane’s government focuses on job creating to curb the spiraling unemployment, keep the inflation rate in the vicinity of 2.5 percent and secure a 5.5 percent annual economic growth rate.

 The opposition parties, notably the Socialist Union of Popular Forces and the National Congress Party, criticize the economic growth target saying it’s lower than last year’s seven percent. However, the majority of MPs argue that the government platform meets the aspirations of the grass roots for addressing the social and economic challenges in the wake of the events of the Arab Spring.

@KUNA

Tuesday, January 24, 2012

Famous Photographers with their Most iconic Pictures

The Tank Man of Tienanmen Square. Muhammad Ali standing over Sonny Liston in victory. The portrait of the Afghan Girl on the cover of National Geographic. Many of us can automatically recall these photos in our heads, but far fewer can name the photographers who took them. Even fewer know what those photographers look like. Tim Mantoani hopes to change that by taking portraits of famous photographers holding their most iconic or favorite photos in his new book Behind Photographs: Archiving Photographic Legends.

Steve McCurryMantoani has shot over 150 of these portraits in the last five years, most of which are contained in the book. “I felt like there was kind of this void,” says Mantoani. “There were all these anonymous photographers out there who have not been given enough credit.” At a time when everyone has a camera in their pocket and millions, if not billions of photos are flying around the internet each day, Mantoani wants to help people understand that iconic photos don’t just happen. They are the product of people who devote their entire lives to photography. Giving these people a face, he says, helps do that. “It was important to step back and understand that cameras didn’t make these photos, photographers made these photos,” he says.

 “Without these people and their understanding of photography, these moments would not be there for us to understand and appreciate over the course of time.” Mantoani, a San Diego-based commercial and editorial photographer who is well known for his portrait work, decided to challenge his own craftsmanship by shooting the portraits on the enormous 20×24 Polaroid format. Only a few 20×24 Polaroid cameras still exist, and the film can be prohibitively expensive — about $200 per shot. Over the course of the project, some of the photographers who participated passed away. Polaroid went belly up, making 20×24 film that much harder to come by. The weight of each photo’s importance as a historic document became more apparent with each loss. “We have come to a point in history where we are losing both photographic recording mediums and iconic photographers,” Mantoani says.

 Scarcity and history also increased the pressure to produce a quality image. “Digital has allowed you to hold the hammer down and work it out later,” he says. “This process really forced me to go back to my roots and try to get everything perfect before I even made the exposure.” Some portraits Mantoani nailed on the first shot, others took three or four tries. The process often became a collaboration between Mantoani and his subjects, who offered their own advice. Steve McCurry, for example, looked at his own first portrait and commented on the amount of space that Mantoani left between his head and the top of the frame.

 McCurry insisted that Mantoani could do what he wanted, but Mantoani was happy to take the advice — especially considering the source. “The shoots sometimes became little mini workshops,” Mantoani says. Some of the photographers not only lent their advice, but also their rolodex. The first few photographers Mantoani worked with were instrumental in getting him access to the larger community. Some photographers still said no, even with the referral. Others, such as Herman Leonard, took a long time to come around. “When people realized that I wasn’t out to take advantage of them but instead wanted celebrate this group of photographers, they wrapped their arms around the project,” Mantoani said.

 The book is the first step in preserving and broadcasting the archive. Mantoani eventually wants the original prints to become part of an exhibition. “I wanted to create this archive so that some day when the photographers are all gone, my grandkids can not only appreciate their photos, but also know who they were and what they looked like.”

@wired.com

Jeff Widener
Steve McCurry
Neil Leifer
Bill Eppridge
Elliot Erwitt
Brent Stirton
Brian Smith
Douglas Kirkland
Harry Benson
Karen Kuehn
Lyle Owerko
Mark Seliger
Mary Ellen Mark


TUNISIA EDGES MOROCCO, GABON TOPS NIGER AT AFRICAN CUP

الفايسبوكيون المغاربة يتندّرون بمرارة على خسارة المنتخبGabon matched Equatorial Guinea's spirited start at the African Cup of Nations on Monday after a pulsating atmosphere at Stade de l'Amitie carried the co-host to a 2-0 win over Niger in front of its football-mad president. Ali Bongo and his first lady Sylvia -- wearing a team shirt -- celebrated like fans in the stadium's VIP section as the "Panthers" outclassed tournament debutant Niger 2-0 in the first match in Gabon.

 Gabon controlled its match from start to finish, with first-half goals from Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Stephane Nguema capping its dominance as it was roared on by rowdy supporters. Morocco then fell to a surprise defeat -- as Senegal did on the opening day -- after missing a bunch of chances to go down 2-1 to North African rival Tunisia, which held on under late pressure after conceding an 86th-minute goal. Every top team is now aware of the danger of the underdogs at Africa's showpiece. Not least highly rated Ghana, which takes on another first-timer in Botswana when Group D kicks off on Tuesday in Franceville.

 At Libreville, President Bongo jumped out of his seat to celebrate and hug his smiling wife when Nguema scored to seal the victory that put Gabon top of Group C. Gabon had opened its biggest sporting moment with a brief opening ceremony at the new stadium, but the atmosphere fizzled when the home team appeared on the pitch at the packed 40,000-seat venue. Sylvia Bongo had replaced her chic suit for the ceremony with a shirt bearing the No. 9 of star striker Aubameyang, and the Saint-Etienne forward repaid the first lady's faith with Gabon's opener. Roared on by the yellow, green and blue crowd, Nguema swept in a second goal with Niger failing to match the intensity of the home team. "We had to concentrate on the team and not on the crowd," Niger coach Harouna Doula said, conceding the atmosphere had made a big difference. "It was always going to be pretty difficult against the host country."

 Despite his team's impressive start -- and an underwhelming show from Morocco -- Gabon coach Gernot Rohr called for calm with the buoyant co-host and its excited supporters now targeting upsets against the North African pair. "What's important for us now is the future," Rohr said. "We've taken a step today. We have two more important steps to take in order to qualify. The pressure was strong and we managed it very well." Arsenal's Marouane Chamakh and Youssouf Hadji produced the worst of a string of misses for Eric Gerets' Morocco, which was tipped to go far in the competition and possibly challenge favourite Ivory Coast and the Ghanaians for the title. But Gerets' team was at times careless and undone by a youthful Tunisian outfit which capitalized on its chances through Saber Khalifa and a high-quality second-half goal by substitute Youssef Msakni. Morocco captain Houssine Kharja pulled one back late -- sparking a goalmouth scuffle -- but he hit a last-minute shot agonizingly over to leave Morocco trailing Tunisia and Gabon ahead of a meeting with the co-host on Friday. "This shows each match is difficult. We can have a lot of surprises in the tournament," a stern-looking Gerets said. "It seems our game against Gabon will be a big game.

 The best lesson to my players should be don't forget your head. Sometimes it was only the heart that was playing." Amidst reports of not being happy with its remote hotel in Gabon's south east city of Franceville, Ghana is under pressure to keep its focus against minnow Botswana when the final group gets underway. The team has already been warned not to be complacent by the country's vice-president, John Dramani Mahama -- another politician closely following Africa's football showpiece. Ghana has a full squad to pick from with the exception of suspended defender Isaac Vorsah, meaning Asamoah Gyan could return from the hamstring injury that had threatened his participation in the tournament. Guinea and an injury-hit Mali, meanwhile, will be the final two teams to play in the tournament, meeting in Tuesday's second game at Stade de Franceville.

@Tsn.ca

Moroccan law graduate who burned himself dies

وفاة مُعطّل من الذين طالت النيران أبدانهم بالرّباط A 27-year-old Moroccan who set himself on fire to protest his unemployment died from his burns Tuesday in a Casablanca hospital, his wife said.

 Abdelwahab Zaydoun was part of a group of unemployed graduates who occupied an Education Ministry building in Rabat, the Moroccan capital, to protest their unemployment and threatened to set themselves fire when police didn't let supporters deliver them food. "I saw him in the morgue, he is dead and I accuse the makhzen of killing him," Amina Naddam, 25, told The Associated Press by telephone from the hospital, referring to the ruling elite that many say controls the kingdom. "I ask the human rights organizations for help in opening an investigation into whoever forbade the bread from going to the protesters," she added, weeping into the telephone. Once rare, self-immolation has become a tactic of protest across North Africa ever since a vegetable seller in Tunisia set himself on fire in December 2010, setting off an uprising that toppled the government.

 The Moroccans were part of the "unemployed graduates" movement representing millions of university graduates demanding jobs. While Morocco's official unemployment rate is only 9.1 percent, it rises to around 16 percent for graduates.

 The North African kingdom of 32 million is home to the largest income inequalities in the Arab world. It has 8.5 million people in poverty and ranks 130 out of 186 on the U.N.'s human development index, but still hosts international stars for concerts and has built a huge new mall with luxury stores near Casablanca.

 Zaydoun, who had a master's degree in law, was from the southern coastal town of Essaouira but moved to near Rabat to take part in the protests, his wife said. After the activists had occupied the ministry building for two weeks, security surrounded them and prevented colleagues from bringing them food. In a video last week, supporters threw bread over the heads of security while activists doused themselves with liquid and ran to get the bread. Zaydoun was seen running to the bread, throwing it back to the building before being beaten by police. When a colleague burst into flames, he ran over to help, only to catch fire himself. The state news agency confirmed his death, saying he had third-degree burns across 50 percent of his body.

 The other activist in the hospital had burns across his face and hands but was in good condition. Security at the hospital was heavy, according to activist Abdallah Kacimi. "It is surrounded as though they are preparing for a war," he said. On Thursday, the government elected in November presented its new plan to parliament with a focus on job creation, education and improving health care. The Islamist-led government promised to create 200,000 new jobs a year through public and private investment.

 Prime Minister Abdelilah Benkirane's plan to bring unemployment down to 8 percent called for increased training programs and some government jobs to absorb the unemployed graduates, but will mainly rely on the private sector. While the Moroccan economy has posted steady growth rates for the last several years of around 4 to 5 percent, it has been unable create enough jobs for the growing numbers of young people entering the work force. The self-immolation of Tunisia's Mohammed Bouazizi in the hardscrabble town of Sidi Bouzid in December 2010 became the symbol of the depths of despair to which the poor of North Africa and the Middle East have sunk. Two weeks ago, four more people set themselves on fire in Tunisia, including a father of three who died from his burns.

@boston.com

Monday, January 23, 2012

Stop using Newspapers to clean your windows

A New AD by Nikol ( a brand name for Windows Claning)

Megaupload shut down

Sketch of Anthony Como Talking about the closure of MegaUpload in french.

 Story: File-sharing website Megaupload.com has been shut down for violating piracy laws, according to reports. The New York Times reports that the company – which, according to the indictment filed by federal prosecutors in Virginia, America, was at one point the 13th most popular website in the world – has been closed down and its founders have been charged. Prosecutors claim that the service has cost copyright holders more than $500 million (£320 million) in lost revenue, although Megaupload claim that they have always been diligent in dealing with any complaints regarding pirated material.

THE “ARAB SPRING” SPURS ALGERIA TO RECONCILE WITH MOROCCO

Reports of the upcoming visit by the new Moroccan Foreign Minister to Algiers are signs that recent political and social events in North Africa are forcing the Algerian government and the Moroccan authorities to reconsider their long simmering rivalry.

Morocco and Algeria have been in a state of “undeclared war” since the beginning of hostility in the Western Sahara in 1975. However, the toppling of the Tunisian, Egyptian and Libyan dictatorships is forcing the aging Algerian Political and Military leaderships to reconsider their regional strategy. For its part, the Moroccan authorities, under similar pressures but with more wiggling room, hastened political reforms in the Kingdom leading to the formation of an Islamist government issued from the opposition.

 More than ever, the Military establishment and the political Old Guard in Algeria need a hand from the Monarchy in Morocco so both nations can thrive in a fast moving political environment. It is worth noting that on several occasions Morocco made attempts to mend relations with Algeria just to be turn down by the Bouteflika Government. So what is different about these new rapprochement attempts? The formation of a new Government in Morocco has made it easy for the Algerian hardliners to justify their change of heart toward the Kingdom of Morocco as an overture toward a new Moroccan political elite that has opposed the status quo in Morocco and that is in theory not connected to the Monarchy.

 But it is the fear of a radical change in Morocco that keeps the Algerian Military up at night. It will be difficult for the current Algerian regime to survive, in case the opposition gains more ground in Morocco. Notwithstanding Algeria’s past refusals to open borders and improve relations with Morocco, it is becoming evident to the “Oujda clan” and the top brass of the Algerian Armed Forces that a stable and secure Moroccan Monarchy is in the best interest of the current Algerian regime. In other words, the “Arab Spring” is coercing the hardliners in Algeria to align with Morocco. Forced to co-exist with dramatically different and essentially opposite “type” of governments in Tunisia, Libya and Egypt, Algerian officials found themselves closer to Rabat than any other regime in the region. All of sudden, King Mohammed VI gradual reforms and his power-sharing arrangement with the opposition started to look appealing to the Algerian oligarchy.

Well aware of the political and economic discontent in their back yard, the rulers in Algiers are also worried about the potential impact of the Moroccan F20M on the brewing Algerian unorganized opposition. the Algerian press hardly report on the familiar weekly protests in Morocco even though such social disturbances were used in the past by the Algerian official press as” propaganda” tools to discredit the Moroccan model. In opening up to the newly installed government in Morocco, the Algerian old guard will most likely buy more time in power. For their part, the Moroccans are eager to tap into the Algerian market and willing to work with the current Algerian government to avoid any sudden and unpredictable change in Algeria, as the world witnesses in Tunisia, which may disturb the security and stability of both countries.

 Recent positive comments by Algeria’s Foreign Minister regarding the importance of reviving the regional union of the five North African nations known as “the Union of Arab Maghreb” (UAM), the announcement by Algeria of a meeting of UAM Foreign Ministers in Morocco, and the recent parade of important Moroccan and Algerian business delegations exchanging visits are all signs that Algerian officials are finally realizing the importance of a realpolitik approach in dealing with Morocco. Albeit seldom reported in the international press, Algeria is plagued with sporadic social unrests including public disturbances, student and government workers frequent strikes and occasional terrorist acts. In Morocco, while the social tension has diminished a notch, thepro-democracy movement known as the February 20 movement (F20M) still commands crowds in some parts of the country.

 With a political change in Morocco, the advent of a democratically elected government in Tunisia and the defeat of the Gaddafi regime, the Algerian officials are waking up to an inhospitable environment that threatens their way of running the “system”. The Algerian youth, still traumatized by the violence of the1988 “bread riots”, cannot help but watch countries in the region press forward with genuine political changes while Algeria stays stagnant and ruled by the same faces since the country’s independence in 1962. Tunisian President’s decision to “snub” Algeria by taking his first official to Libya and Libya’s subtle affronts to Algerian sensitivities are two subjects widely discussed among average Algerians and thus putting pressure on the Bouteflika Government and the Military institution to come up with new “distraction” to explain and justify the political and diplomatic stagnation of Algeria’s diplomacy. Along this line and in another positive development, the Algerian authority has reportedly agreed to a temporary reopening of the land crossing between Morocco and Algeria closed since 1994. According to Several Algerian websites, an Algerian Court accepted a request by the Moroccan Federation of cycling to reopen the western border to allow a stage of the “Tour du Maroc” to use the Algerian territory. The Algerian Ministry of Interior has not issued a formal announcement on this matter.

 As the Moroccan and the Algerian public, familiar with these ” trial balloon news items”, awaits an official pronouncement regarding this small yet significant gesture, other diplomatic and economic activities are pointing to a possible warming of relations between Rabat and Algiers.

 @moroccoboard.com BY HASSAN MASIKY

In Morocco, Islamists Learn To Work With A King

An Islamist party heads Morocco's newly elected government, part of a wave of Islamist election victories following uprisings across North Africa. But Morocco's case is a bit different. King Mohammed VI responded quickly to a pro-democracy movement last year with a new constitution and snap elections. The Justice and Development Party, known as the PJD, won the most votes in November.

Morocco's Islamist Justice and Development Party heads the country's new government, the result of snap elections called by the king. Here, Abdelilah Benkirane, the party's secretary general and now prime minister, arrives for an election rally in Sale on Nov. 1. The party now faces political as well as economic challenges.Now, Moroccans ask: How will this popular Islamist party govern? Islamists in the PJD say they are different. For one thing, they stayed away from street protests last year, when pro-democracy activists called for an end to corruption and a curb on the absolute power of the monarchy. Another difference lies in the fact that the PJD's victory came from reform, a consequence of measures proposed by the king rather than a revolution, as in Egypt and Tunisia. They won the most votes, but not enough to govern alone.

Now, the PJD must share power with the king's closest allies. "Our way of government is to work and to cooperate with the king," says Mustapha Khalifi, 35, the youngest Cabinet minister and a key member of the party. When asked whether the party is Islamic, democratic and royalist, he agrees that these are "the three elements that describe our identity in the political arena." Khalifi, a former newspaper editor, helped shape the party identity. He says he learned how democracy works while interning in a congressional office in Washington, D.C. The PJD's platform is to create jobs and fight corruption in a country where cash for favors has long been a way of doing business.

 Ongoing Protests 

 ressure to make progress on that platform is visible on the streets of the capital, Rabat. Three times a week, thousands of unemployed graduates march to demand jobs that Morocco's economy has been unable to create.

 Abdul Rahim Momneah has been marching for more than a year. "I have a degree, a master's degree in English. I am here, idle, without job, without dignity, without anything. So we hope from this new government to find a solution to this," he says. More than half of Morocco's population of 32 million is under 25, and youth unemployment tops 30 percent. Last week, the protests took a dangerous turn, a reminder of protests in other Arab countries, when five unemployed students set themselves on fire; three went to the hospital. "The demand now is really on improving the standards of living of Moroccans," says Abou Bakr Jamai, an exiled financial journalist and prominent dissident.

"In all fairness, they have no way to achieve that. Even in a purely democratic system, they can't." The PJD enters government just as the country is facing an economic blow tied to Europe. Tens of thousands of Moroccans went to work there and send money home. But Europe's financial crisis, Jamai says, is shutting down that option. "People will probably at some point be coming back to Morocco because the situation in so dire," he says. Morocco's Arab Spring started on Feb.

 20, 2011. The movement is quieter now, but still a force, a nationwide opposition movement. Khalifi says his Justice and Development Party shares many of the same goals. If the PJD fails, he says, the party will lose the next election. "We are under the pressure that we should deliver answers to the people," Khalifi says. "In the era of the Arab Spring, there is no choice." And in this new era, the price of failure will come quickly, says Mohammed El Boukili with the Moroccan Association for Human Rights. "The masses, millions of people are watching and waiting. Moroccans are patient, but it can explode," he says. And this is the biggest pressure on the Justice and Development Party. It faces the same hurdles all the Islamist parties new to power are facing: how to govern at a time of rising expectations, how to deliver both change and stability, and — in Morocco — how to remain a democrat and a royalist.

 @npr.org

Anonymous Strikes Again



Last week, just hours after the U.S. government arrested the leaders of and shut down MEGAUPLOAD.COM, a popular hub for illegal file sharing, "hacktivist" collective ANONYMOUS counter-attacked by shutting down the websites to the U.S. DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE, UNIVERSAL MUSIC GROUP, the RIAA, the MPAA and among many other targets, possibly including the WHITE HOUSE (NET NEWS 1/19).

Now, "ANONYMOUS strikes again," reports PC MAGAZINE. "Fresh off the last few days' worth of Web attacks, designed as a kind of cyber-retribution for the demise of file-sharing site MEGAUPLOAD at the hands of the FBI, members of the group have taken to TWITTER to claim accountability for an attack on CBS.COM" as well as UNIVERSAL MUSIC and WARNER MUSIC.
@allaccess.com

Sunday, January 22, 2012

Pepe stamps On Lionel Messi hand #Messi

Pepe once again has expressed in his own way, walking deliberately on the hand of Lionel Messi.

Otherwise, FC Barcelona won 2-1 against Real Madrid in the clasico, with a winning goal from Eric Abida
 


A Moroccan Movie Poised to Be Nominated by the Academy Awards

For the first time, Morocco might be among the countries that will be represented in the the 84th edition of the Academy Awards scheduled to be held on February 26.
The Moroccan movie, Omar Killed Me, by Roshdy Zem is among the nine foreign-language movies included in the shortlist that has just been released by the Academy.
Only five films will be nominated in the Foreign Language Film category.
An unjustly convicted man fights for justice in this drama based on a true story. Omar Raddad (Sami Bouajila) had worked for years as a gardener for Ghislaine Marchal (Liliane Nataf), an elderly woman living in the South of France. In the summer of 1991, Marchal was founded murdered in the basement of her home, with the message “Omar M’a Tuer” — literally “Omar Has Kill Me” — written in her own blood on the wall.
Raddad quickly became the prime suspect, even though he had a viable alibi, and he was convicted and sent to prison. However, a journalist covering the case, Pierre-Emmanuel Vaugrenard (Denis Podalydes), had a hard time believing Marchal would scrawl a message about her killer with her last ounce of strength, particularly one that was grammatically incorrect, and he began investigating the case, firm in his belief that Raddad was a victim of racism while the real killer had escaped justice.
Directed by Roschdy Zem, Omar M’a Tuer (Omar Killed Me) received its North American premiere at the 2011 Toronto International Film Festival.

Morocco, Tunisia group favorites 'only on paper'

Morocco coach Eric Gerets had predicted a tournament of surprises at the African Cup of Nations even before Equatorial Guinea's dramatic victory over Libya and Zambia's shock win over Senegal on the opening night.
The unexpected results will serve as a warning to Morocco ahead of games against co-host Gabon and little-known debutant Niger in Group C.
First, Gerets' team starts against North African rival Tunisia on Monday when the African Cup switches to Gabon and Libreville's Stade de l'Amitie.
The match between familiar opponents takes on added importance with both hoping to be in good position ahead of the tricky encounters against less known teams later in the first round.
Before Morocco and Tunisia meet in a repeat of the 2004 final, Gabon and first-timer Niger will battle in the group opener to see who will emerge as top underdog and main challenger to the North Africans.
Gerets' words rang true after the successes of Equatorial Guinea and Zambia in Bata. The Belgian coach said Morocco and Tunisia were favorites to progress from Group C "only on paper,'' and would - like Libya and the highly rated Senegal - face tough competition.
"What happens on the pitch is sometimes another story because there is always surprises,'' Gerets said.
The fear of the unknown for both Morocco and Tunisia later in the tournament has made Monday's matchup critical, with both targeting a strong start.
The regional rivals haven't met at a Cup of Nations since the final eight years ago, when Tunisia triumphed, but know each other well and share similar philosophies of strong organization and defensive discipline.
Morocco has unfinished business against Tunisia after that final loss, but was already tipped to emerge as group winner under the clever tactics of Gerets and with the talents of Adel Taarabt and Marouane Chamakh, who both play in England's Premier League.
"We are not afraid. I think we need to concentrate on our group because we have a super team and so we need to show everyone,'' said Queens Park Rangers midfielder Taarabt. "When all is said and done you've got to beat all the other teams to be champion of Africa. So we need to concentrate on the group stage.''
Tunisia differs slightly in that Sami Trabelsi's squad has a bigger contingent of home-based players, although France-based striker Issam Jeema is its all-time leading scorer and fellow forward Amine Chermiti of FC Zurich could be key.
Tunisia - the last team to win the Cup of Nations before Egypt's three straight titles - struggled in qualifying and was recently outclassed by Ivory Coast in a warmup match.
But a game against longtime rival Morocco - even if it is in the heart of central Africa - could inspire Trabelsi's team to find form.
"The match against Morocco is a big game for us and we need the three points,'' Chermiti said. "It's important for us to win to get the confidence to continue. It's important on a North Africa level, our opponent is a neighbor against whom we have a long footballing history.''
Gabon's "Panthers'' hope to repeat Equatorial Guinea's winning start as co-host, but won't want any of the momentary chaos that accompanied the opening game in Bata, where thousands of fans forced their way into the stadium's outer complex.
Libreville's new Stade de l'Amitie has seen frenzied final preparations ahead of Gabon's moment, with local fans hoping the home team is also ready for Niger.
Although it's making its debut, Niger ousted both seven-time champion Egypt and South Africa in qualifying to get the chance to line up for its first African Cup of Nations game.

Rihanna - We Found Love

We Found Love

Friday, January 6, 2012

العالم يشهد أول اعتراف رسمي بدين تكنولوجي جديد


شعار الكنيسة حرف K  الأول من اسم الديانةدين جديد ولد من رحم التكنولوجيا وأسسه مراهق كان عمره 17 سنة حين دعا إليه لأول مرة منذ عامين، حقق أول انتصار له الأربعاء الماضي حين أعلنت السويد اعترافها بكنيسته رسميا، قائلة إن لديانة "الكوبيميزم" فضائل ومقدسات جدية ولأتباعها الحق بالتبشير.

الديانة الجديدة هي Kopimism التي استمدت اسمها من Cope Me أو "انسخني" ودعا إليها زعيمها الروحي، السويدي ايزاك جيرسون، وهو طالب فلسفة بجامعة استوكهولم يصف نفسه في صفحة على الإنترنت بأنه "عاشق للحرية ولتبادل المعلومات مهما كانت لإنقاذ العالم" كما يقول.

وبدأ جيرسون بالديانة الجديدة في 2010 طالبا الحصول على اعتراف رسمي من الحكومة السويدية، ولأنها رفضت أقام "النسخيون" دعوى ضدها فدافعت بأنهم بلا معابد ولا نشاط تبشيري ولا فرائض وطقوس ولا تنطبق على ما يدعون اليه صفة "دين" فخسروا الدعوى في يوليو/تموز الماضي.

لكنهم سريعا استوعبوا الرسالة، فاختاروا جيرسون زعيما روحيا وقاموا بإعداد طقوس وفرائض مع شرح لما هو ذنب وعقاب وفضائل وخير وشر، وأقاموا كنيسة لهم أيضا، ثم استأنفوا الحكم ونجحوا باستصدار آخر لمصلحتهم قبل أسبوعين، وبعده نالوا اعترافا بهم كدين جديد.

|Alarabiya.net

Wednesday, January 4, 2012

Facebook Messenger for Windows officially released

Mere hours after Facebook Messenger for Windows leaked, Facebook has released the official desktop client. Facebook contacted me and said the official Messenger for Windows download link is available from fbcdn_dragon-a.akamaihd.net. Facebook would not confirm the version number with me, but given that the application updates automatically, I think Menlo Park made a decision to officially release it instead of trying to combat the leak. Smart move. This means that the screenshots I put together earlier today still apply: Facebook Messenger for Windows leaks (screenshots). Facebook started testing the Messenger for Windows desktop client with a limited group of users last month. The application, which requires Windows 7, provides access to three main Facebook features: Facebook Chat, the new Ticker feed, and notifications. In addition to Windows 7, Facebook Messenger is also already available for Android, iPhone, and BlackBerry. Facebook has hinted at a few upcoming features for the Windows flavor already: chatting with multiple friends, video calling, limiting chat availability, and editing settings. It’s not clear if the company will be making announcements for every new version or if they will be just quietly released like this first version. So, what does this application require to keep you updated? First and foremost, you must be logged into Facebook. After you click on the blue “Log In” button pictured above, you will redirected to the facebook.com/desktop/login webpage where Facebook explains that Messenger for Windows requires you stay logged in so that it can deliver chat and notification messages to your desktop. This means you will stay logged into Facebook even after you close your browser. To log out of Facebook, you’ll need to actually do so from Facebook Messenger for Windows. Facebook believes users want to use the social network’s real-time features without having to keep a browser window open. The social networking giant is clearly hoping that users will leave Messenger for Windows on throughout the day, probably since most Facebook addicts already do so with a browser tab. In addition to being a standalone application, Facebook Messenger for Windows can be snapped to the side of the screen; that’s probably why it only works for Windows 7. The application was developed entirely by Facebook and does not constitute a new partnership with Microsoft, which is a big investor in Facebook. It’s not clear if Facebook will offer support for anything before Windows 7, or if it will simply move on towards Windows 8. Clients for Mac and Linux will likely only be released if the Windows 7 version proves popular.

|zdnet.com

Dubai: New Year Eve 2012

2011 Told Through Twitter - Year in Review

Then&Now

NOW                               THEN
Mustaf Ramid Minister of Justice in Morocco

The Most Popular YouTube Videos of 2011





1- Rebecca Black - Friday - Official Music Video:

 2- Ultimate Dog Tease:


  3- Jack Sparrow (feat. Michael Bolton):

 4- Talking Twin Babies - PART 2 - OFFICIAL VIDEO:

5- Nyan Cat [original]:

Morocco Timelapse



Tuesday, January 3, 2012

تعيين حكومة جديدة في المغرب #Morocco


عين الملك محمد السادس ، مرفوقا بولي العهد الأمير مولاي الحسن اليوم الثلاثاء بقاعة العرش بالقصر الملكي بالرباط أعضاء الحكومة الجديدة.
الملك محمد السادس يعين أعضاء الحكومة الجديدة (لائحة الوزراء)
في ما يلي تشكيلة الحكومة الجديدة :
عبد الإله بنكيران : رئيس الحكومة
عبد الله بها : وزير الدولة
محند العنصر : وزير الداخلية
سعد الدين العثماني : وزير الشؤون الخارجية والتعاون
مصطفى الرميد : وزير العدل والحريات
أحمد التوفيق : وزير الأوقاف والشؤون الإسلامية
إدريس الضحاك : الأمين العام للحكومة
نزار بركة : وزير الاقتصاد والمالية
نبيل بنعبد الله : وزير السكنى والتعمير وسياسة المدينة
عزيز أخنوش : وزير الفلاحة والصيد البحري
محمد الوفا : وزير التربية الوطنية
لحسن الداودي : وزير التعليم العالي والبحث العلمي وتكوين الأطر
محمد أوزين : وزير الشباب والرياضة
عزيز رباح : وزير التجهيز والنقل
الحسين الوردي : وزير الصحة
مصطفى الخلفي : وزير الاتصال الناطق الرسمي باسم الحكومة
فؤاد الدويري : وزير الطاقة والمعادن والماء والبيئة
عبد الواحد سهيل : وزير التشغيل والتكوين المهني
عبد القادر اعمارة : وزير الصناعة والتجارة والتكنولوجيات الحديثة
لحسن حداد : وزير السياحة
بسيمة الحقاوي : وزيرة التضامن والمرأة والأسرة والتنمية الاجتماعية
محمد الأمين الصبيحي : وزير الثقافة
عبد الصمد قيوح : وزير الصناعة التقليدية
الحبيب الشوباني : الوزير المكلف بالعلاقات مع البرلمان والمجتمع المدني
عبد اللطيف لوديي : الوزير المنتدب لدى رئيس الحكومة المكلف بإدارة الدفاع الوطني
عبد اللطيف معزوز : الوزير المنتدب لدى رئيس الحكومة المكلف بالمغاربة المقيمين في الخارج
الشرقي الضريس : الوزير المنتدب لدى وزير الداخلية
يوسف العمراني : الوزير المنتدب لدى وزير الشؤون الخارجية والتعاون
محمد نجيب بوليف : الوزير المنتدب لدى رئيس الحكومة المكلف بالشؤون العامة والحكامة
عبد العظيم الكروج : الوزير المنتدب لدى رئيس الحكومة المكلف بالوظيفة العمومية وتحديث الإدارة
ادريس الأزمي الإدريسي : الوزير المنتدب لدى وزير الاقتصاد والمالية المكلف بالميزانية

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