Stay true to the dreams of thy youth

• Saudi Arabia fund to roll out new scheme | Real Estate | AMEinfo.com

  Saudi Arabia's Real Estate Development Fund (REDF) is set to introduce soon a new mechanism for prioritising the disbursement of real estate loans, Saudi Gazette has reported. The mechanism will help determine who deserves loans from those who applied via electronic registration last year, said the REDF. "The mechanism is being studied now in cooperation with the ministry of housing. Several criteria will be selected, most prominent of which are the applicant's age, number of family members, monthly income and other criteria that aim to grant loans to those who really deserve them," it said.

• Analyst: bin Laden betrayed by Al Qaeda - The National

  Within two years of the September 11 attacks, Osama bin Laden was an ailing, delusional and irrelevant figure who had been shuffled out of Al Qaeda's leadership and was eventually sold out to the Americans by the organisation. That is the controversial report compiled by Shaukat Qadir, a columnist for The National and a former Pakistan military officer

• Utah's Sexual Education Bill Bans Contraception Curriculum

  What’s more conservative than abstinence-only education? Utah may soon find out now that lawmakers signed off on a bill this week that bans public schools from teaching students about contraception, human sexuality and homosexuality altogether.

• Americans Abroad

  The survey found that 78 percent of Americans have visited at least one foreign country, 61 percent have visited multiple countries, and 36 percent have traveled to four or more foreign destinations. The average number of countries visited was more than four. "Our survey puts the old wives’ tale to bed that only 15 percent of Americans own passports," said Dave Madden, GM of LivingSocial Escapes, North America.

• Was Osama Bin Laden Really Buried At Sea? WikiLeaks Emails Suggest Al Qaeda Chief's Body Was Flown To US Military Mortuary

  Osama Bin Laden was apparently buried in the waters of the north Arabian sea, but internal emails from intelligence service Stratfor, obtained by hacker group Anonymous and posted by WikiLeaks suggest otherwise. But a leaked email from Stratfor vice president for intelligence Fred Burton, sent on 2 May 2011, at 5.26am states: “Reportedly, we took the body with us. Thank goodness.”

• 5 alleged members of Anonymous hacking group charged - The Washington Post

  Five hackers associated with some of the most notorious cybercrimes in recent years were charged Tuesday after a key member of their loose-knit network was turned by the FBI and became a confidential informant, according to federal officials. Federal prosecutors in New York unveiled the charges against five men — two from Britain, two from Ireland and one from Chicago — in connection with a string of cyber-assaults in which hackers stole confidential information from U.S. companies and temporarily shut down government Web sites.

• Jordanian blogger stabbed after post that criticized royal family - latimes.com

  As blogger Enass Musallam of Jordan was leaving a cafe in the nation's  capital last week, a man wearing a mask and gloves grabbed her from behind. "In the name of his royal majesty and the prince," the assailant said as he stabbed Musallam in the stomach, according to a statement by the press freedom group Committee to Protect Journalists, or CPJ. "Next time, you will be slaughtered," he continued and put the knife to her throat before throwing her down a flight of stairs and fleeing.

• Saddam Hussain on pornography charge in Dubai court - The National

  A Dubai court has found Saddam Hussain guilty of distributing pornography in the Emirates. The Dubai Court of Misdemeanours today sentenced a 26-year-old Bangladeshi namesake of the deceased Iraqi leader to two months in prison for possessing and selling pornographic DVDs.

• Portugal prays for rain as drought adds to crisis | Reuters

  After Portugal's driest February in 80 years, farmers are praying for a miracle as drought ravages pastures and sparks forest fires, exacerbating the country's economic crisis. Worse still, official forecasters expect the freak weather pattern to prevail at least through the end of March, which would worsen a drought now classified as severe and extreme throughout mainland Portugal.

• Polish fracking well probe shows no harm to environment | Reuters

  Drilling at Poland's first shale gas exploration well using the controversial technique known as fracking has not harmed the environment, according to a government study published on Friday.

• Abu Dhabi takes sole ownership of US chip maker - Technology - ArabianBusiness.com

  Abu Dhabi’s Advanced Technology Investment (ATIC), a high-tech investment fund owned by Mubadala, has taken over full ownership of Silicon Valley computer chip maker

• Total eyes 200bn unfound oil barrels in Egypt, Libya - Transport - ArabianBusiness.com

  Total SA is planning to explore for oil and natural gas off the coasts of Libya and Egypt, a region that may hold as much as 200bn barrels of oil equivalent, a company official said.

• Mr Obama must take a stand against Israel over Iran - FT.com

  (Aipac). That event offers both men a chance to appeal to some of Israel’s most ardent American supporters. We can therefore expect to hear repeated references to the “common interests”, “unshakeable bonds” and “shared values” of the two countries. This familiar rhetoric is misleading at best and at worst simply wrong. No states have identical interests, and Israel and America are at odds on two vital issues: Iran and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Mr Obama should continue to rebuff Israel’s efforts to push him into military confrontation with Tehran, while reminding Mr Netanyahu the true danger to Israel lies in its refusal to allow a viable Palestinian state.

• Relax US visa curbs for UAE citizens - Dubai official - Politics & Economics - ArabianBusiness.com

  Citizens of the UAE should be allowed easier entry into the US, a leading Dubai official has claimed, emphasising enhanced relations between the two countries.

• Trend Lines | Israel-Azerbaijan Arms Deal Signals Close Ties, While Raising Tensions With Iran

  Israeli defense officials confirmed Sunday a deal to sell $1.6 billion in arms, including drones and missile defense systems, to Azerbaijan. The deal reflects the close relationship between Israel, which finds itself increasingly isolated in an increasingly hostile region, and Azerbaijan, which shares a border with Iran and is building up its military capability in the midst of its own dispute with Armenia.

• Istanbul’s Main Square To Become Lifeless And Isolated In New Urban Plan, Opponents Warn | Green Prophet

  Today, Istanbul’s Taksim Square is a bustling hub of activity, with majestic Gezi Park providing some natural solace — even when the trees are brown in winter, as in the above photo. But a new plan would eliminate most of the greenery in this photo and cut off Taksim from the rest of the city. That’s the argument of the Taksim Platform, a group of concerned citizens, urban planners, lawyers, and academics who have so far collected more than 13,500 signatures against the project. See what the new square would look like after the jump.

Posted from Diigo. The rest of my favorite links are here.