Jordanian Parliament member pulls gun on debate opponent

The "People are losing their damn minds" file keeps getting larger..  Also:  Jordan is supposedly one of the "stable" Middle Eastern countries.  Again, though, I don't think this phenomenon is connected to any one region, either..   The Raw Story (With video):


A member of Jordan’s parliament faces attempted murder charges after pulling a gun on his opponent in a televised debate.



According to the Los Angeles Times, Mohammed Shawabka drew his weapon at former minister Mansour Murad Friday after Murad called him “a mafia thief” who “bought people’s votes.” The two men were taking part in a discussion Friday on a private satellite channel, Josat, regarding the uprising in Syria. Shawabka, who represents the town of Madaba, had accused Murad of being a spy for the Syrian government.


Despite repeated pleas to calm down by the host, identified by The Times of Israel as Mohammed Habashneh, Shawabka first threw his shoe at Murad before pulling his gun out and shoving Murad, though no shots were fired. The interviewer managed to get between both men.  (A true Moderator.  Very brave.)


The Jordan Times reports that the Syrian government has not issued a comment on Shawabka’s actions.

The crazy, it seems, is contagious. 

Egypt: Pipelines Are Poppin'

Egypt Pipeline Explosion Cuts Gas Supply To Israel Excerpts:

An explosion today on the Arab Gas Pipeline forced Egypt to shut off natural gas supplies to Israel and Jordan. There were conflicting reports out of Egypt as to the cause of the explosion, with the state-run Middle East News Agency saying the work was done by “subversive elements.” Oil Minister Samah Fahmy reportedly said it could take up to two weeks to repair the damage.

The pipeline is the third most strategically important piece of energy infrastructure in Egypt after the Suez Canal and the Sumed Pipeline. But it is the most important one to Israel, delivering 40% of Israeli natural gas supplies. The Israeli government said this afternoon that it did not expect any interruption of electricity supplies as the country has gas in storage and can also switch to other fuels like oil and diesel. Israel started receiving gas from the pipeline in 2008.

Assuming for a moment that this was not an accident, it represents a serious escalation of the crisis in Egypt.

As to the nature of the explosion, MSNBC plays up the terrorism angle, while Investors Business Daily plays it down. For clarity's sake, the fire/explosion happened at a facility that ultimately connects with pipelines heading both to Jordan and Israel. Reports are still conflicted as to whether the physical pipeline to Jordan was damaged, but Israel's pipeline was not.

This situation, while inconvenient for the Israelis(due to their rather large energy reserves), is devastating to the Jordanians, as they have no reserves, and import most of their energy solely from Egypt. Cause? To be determined, although my suspicious mind questions the perfect timing of this "accidental explosion." Which brings us to the focal question in this event's aftermath: Was this terrorism or something else?

This Week In "Other Protests Than Egypt"

Thousands of Albanian protest despite warnings Summary: A peaceful response to a violent reaction. Excerpts:
Tens of thousands of demonstrators gathered in the Albanian capital Tirana Friday for a silent protest closely monitored by police, a week after another demonstration turned deadly. The opposition went ahead with the protest in defiance of international appeals and police warnings, insisting it would be a peaceful gathering to honor the three people killed last week.

The demonstrators headed by the leadership of the opposition socialists and the families of the victims started their march on the government buildings, passing by the spot where the people were shot, placing flowers at the scene in silence.

Organizers said there were 200,000 protesters but AFP journalists put the number at several tens of thousands. Police would give no figure.
And:
Last Friday, tens of thousands of people turned out for a protest rally organized by Rama, calling on the government to resign over allegations of corruption and electoral fraud.

The subsequent clashes between demonstrators and the security forces left three people dead and a fourth critically wounded.

This is the longest ever political crisis in Albania, which began after the opposition disputed the results from the June 2009 parliamentary election.

Not big enough to be close to critical, tensions in Jordan, nonetheless, could flare up from growing discontent with Prime Minister Samir Rifai. Excerpts:

Thousands of people in Jordan have taken to the streets in protests, demanding the country's prime minister step down, and the government curb rising prices, inflation and unemployment.

In the third consecutive Friday of protests, about 3,500 opposition activists from Jordan's main Islamist opposition group, trade unions and leftist organisations gathered in the capital, waving colourful banners reading: "Send the corrupt guys to court".

The crowd denounced Samir Rifai's, the prime minister, and his unpopular policies.
Many shouted: "Rifai go away, prices are on fire and so are the Jordanians.''

Tame, for the moment.. We'll see, won't we? Any finally, the most desperate and volatile of the three, Yemen.. But.. Maybe the Yemeni government has learned a little something from the events of previous weeks. Calls for talks with opposition, warns of conflict Yemen ruling party urges dialogue to halt protests Excerpts:

Yemen's ruling party has called for dialogue with the opposition, the country's state news agency said late on Friday, in a bid to end anti-government protests fuelled by popular unrest across the Arab World.

Thousands of Yemenis have taken to the streets of the capital Sanaa in recent days demanding a change of government, inspired by the overthrow two weeks ago of Tunisian President Zine al-Abidine Ben Al Ben Ali and spillover to Egypt.

"We ... call for the halting of media propaganda and urge all political parties to work together to make the dialogue a success and arrange for upcoming elections," a committee of the ruling General People's Congress (GPC) party was quoted as saying on the website of the Saba state news agency.
And:
Saleh, a key ally of the United States in a war against a resurgent al-Qaeda wing in Yemen, has ruled the impoverished Arabian Peninsula state for over 30 years.

Yemen is trying to quell a secessionist rebellion in its south and cement a truce with northern Shiite rebels.

Security measures at the demonstrations appeared relaxed, but were tight around the interior ministry and the central bank.

The political heat in the Mid East continues to intensify, growing hotter and faster in some areas over others, but growing nonetheless. Day Five in Egypt is already underway. It's gonna get hotter 'fore it cools..