Kamel Daoud is an Algerian journalist and novelist whose first novel The Meursault Investigations won the Prix Goncourt amongst others. He’s had a fatwa issued against him for his writings on Islam (see Saudi Arabia below).

Born 17 June 1970 in Algeria, he’s a Sun Gemini square Pluto, trine Jupiter in Libra; with Pluto in a tough trine to Saturn in Taurus; and a high-adrenaline Mars in Cancer square Uranus. So a mix of communicative, determined, fair-minded and used to risk.

He’s got creative quintiles linking Sun Venus and Pluto in his 5th Harmonic. His even more creative 7th Harmonic is exceptionally strong with two Grand Trines. His ‘obsessive dream’ 11th is also marked; as is his leaving-a-legacy-for-history 17H.

He’s got a fairly tough 2016/17 ahead with tr Pluto trine his Saturn and into 2017 tr Saturn opposition his Sun and square his Pluto.

There’s an outspoken (and much-needed) piece in yesterday’s New York Times by Algerian novelist Kamel Daoud. It became their most emailed story, so the pressure is building on Saudi Arabia.

‘Black Daesh, white Daesh. The former slits throats, kills, stones, cuts off hands, destroys humanity’s common heritage and despises archaeology, women and non-Muslims. The latter is better dressed and neater but does the same things. The Islamic State; Saudi Arabia. In its struggle against terrorism, the West wages war on one, but shakes hands with the other. This is a mechanism of denial, and denial has a price: preserving the famous strategic alliance with Saudi Arabia at the risk of forgetting that the kingdom also relies on an alliance with a religious clergy that produces, legitimizes, spreads, preaches and defends Wahhabism, the ultra-puritanical form of Islam that Daesh feeds on.’ http://goo.gl/Bz1xI8

In military terms Saudi Arabia is training Syrian troops to combat ISIL and has suffered attacks within its own borders. But it still practices an extreme form of Islamism, this week condemning a Palestinian poet for apostasy (abandoning the Muslim faith). It also has the highest rate of executions, in the world, usually beheadings; one of only four countries that carries them out publicly.

The relationship chart between Saudi Arabia 1902/DAESH 2006 does show distinct signs of slump and separation with the tr Neptune square tr Saturn hitting on the composite Sun at 7 Sagittarius at the moment; and tr Saturn then continuing to conjunct the composite Mars Jupiter Mercury Venus in 2016/17; as well as tr Uranus conjunct the composite Neptune.

Which doesn’t mean that Saudi Arabia will abandon Wahhabism or move into the 21st Century. They may just regard Daesh/Isil as a troublesome neighbour but it may become more difficult for Western leaders to offer unconditional support to Saudi Arabia in return for stratospheric defence sales, if public pressure grows.

Further thought on Daesh/Isil: Next year their Uranus at 11 degrees Pisces will be hit by a tr Neptune conjunction and squared by tr Saturn; and critically will be triggered by the September Virgo Eclipse which falls closely opposition their Uranus squaring Mars in Sagittarius. That plus tr Uranus opposition their Sun Mars will be violent and exceedingly challenging.
Not that destroying them will be the answer to all woes since there is likely to be: 1) a vacuum in Syria and Iraq which will require a political strategy of a robust variety unseen in any previous Western interferences in Afghanistan or Iraq or Libya. 2) The disaffected who won’t be fighting in the Middle East will come back/or not leave to wreak havoc on Europe and elsewhere.

As light relief and to ensure normal life continues:- singer Adele has a new album out, which is amazon’s most pre-ordered ever. Given that her last album sold 30 million it looks good for her.
Born 5 May 1988 2.02am London (astrotheme), she’s mouthy, talks constantly, swears a lot, jokes and has been written off by critics as singing boring music. She should care.
She has Sun Jupiter in the 3rd opposition Pluto square a 1st house Mars in Aquarius so quite a heavyweight personality, pushily-confident, uncompromising and determined to go her own way.
She’s also got the triple conjunction in Capricorn with Neptune trine her Sun Jupiter; and Saturn Uranus and a Sagittarius Moon all opposition Venus square a North Node in Pisces. Emotionally quite volatile. Her Venus is in the entertaining 5th.

Tr Saturn is now moving through her 10th so a peak for her, stretching on till 2020. With tr Jupiter moving through her 8th at the moment and on till late 2017 giving her business finances a boost.

Her first hit album when she was 20 came with tr Pluto conjunct her Uranus and then through what must have been dizzying and stressful success tr Pluto crossed her Saturn and more recently Neptune with tr Uranus pitching in as well. It can’t have been easy for her.

At the moment tr Pluto is trine her Jupiter and will continue off and on to trine her Sun till late 2016 – so very progressive for her.

Another day another atrocity. This time in Mali, a former French colony in western Africa, where a breakaway Al-Quaeda group of terrorists held guests and staff hostage at a hotel favoured by westerners. 18 are reported dead so far, some of them gunmen after special forces stormed the hotel. French and US troops have recently been in the country helping to fight Islamist groups.

Mali gained independence on 20 August 1960 at 2 am GMT, capital Bamako. It has a fairly tough, unsettled chart with the Leo Sun conjunct Uranus on one side and conjunct Pluto on the other. With Pluto Venus in Virgo square Mars and trine Saturn in Capricorn.
Over the past two years tr Uranus square Pluto have been in hard aspect to the Mali Saturn though that is now past. The tr Saturn square tr Neptune have also been elbowing the Mali Pluto. The September Virgo Solar Eclipse was exactly conjunct the Mali IC, so a domestic crisis was indicated.

The attack started around 7am this morning in Bamako when Saturn was on the Ascendant square Neptune on the IC. Alongside the panic of that and perhaps more pertinently Mars in Libra, on the ingress on the day of the Paris shootings last Friday, is now moving towards the square to Pluto (Dec 6) and opposition to Uranus (Dec 11). The run up to this particular aspect is very accident prone, enraging and can be violent. And it often triggers early.

Actor Donald Sutherland is still going strong at 80 after a hugely varied and successful film and TV career and is now back hitting the headlines in the Hunger Games film series. He hit the big time playing in M*A*S*H and oddball roles in The Dirty Dozen and Kelly’s Heroes.

He was born 17 July 1935 11.30am St John, NB, Canada (ADB) and has some chart. His 10th house Cancer Sun Pluto oppose the North Node and square onto Mars in Libra – so a forceful personality. His Jupiter in Scorpio in the 2nd opposes a whacky 8th house Uranus squaring onto a 5th house Aquarius Moon – so custom built to play crazy roles that earned him money and attention.

He also has a creative, self-protective Water Grand Trine of a 10th house Mercury in Cancer trine Jupiter trine a 6th house Saturn in Pisces. That is formed into two Kites by Jupiter opposition Uranus and Saturn opposition Venus Neptune in Virgo. Just overflowing with talent though not an easy man emotionally. His son Kiefer Sutherland, also multi-talented, has had a few problems along the way.

The 6th house Saturn is interesting since he has been plagued with numerous health problems – pneumatic fever, polio, hepatitis, an appendectomy, scarlet fever and a near-death experience when he had spinal meningitis.

Another two terrorists:
Omar Ismael Mostefai, 21 Nov 1985, Paris-born of Algerian origin. Involved in petty crime but never imprisoned. Became radicalised at a local mosque, travelled to Syria, returned and joined a group of Salafists (violent jihadists/Sunni)at Chartre. He blew himself up and was identified by a fingertip.

He was a last degree Scorpio Sun conjunct Saturn in Sagittarius; with a mini Grand Trine of Mars trine Jupiter in Aquarius, sextiling onto Mercury Uranus in Sagittarius – confident, adventurous. An emphasised Uranus in Sagittarius is a good description of rebel for a cause. He also had Venus Pluto conjunct in Scorpio with a Pisces Moon.

His Sun was conjunct Saturn and both were semi-square Mars. His Uranus was conjunct Sun/Neptune so easily led by fanatics. His Neptune = Sun/Pluto = Saturn/Pluto. That combination of Neptune and Pluto can be delusional.

Samy Amimour, from a French-Algerian family, who blew himself up after the shootings at the Bataclan concert. Born 15 October 1987, Paris. His father travelled to Syria to try to extract him in 2014 and failed.
He was a Sun Libra opposition Jupiter in Aries which was sextile/trine Saturn Uranus in Sagittarius. Not short of confidence. Saturn Uranus can be autocratic but also has the ability to create changes. He also had the emotionally intense Venus Pluto conjunction in Scorpio (and Mercury) which others have as well. His Moon was Cancer/Leo.
His Sun was exactly conjunct his Mars/Pluto midpoint, square Pluto/Node and = Neptune/Pluto. His Pluto was also conjunct his Mars/Saturn midpoint. So all fairly familiar.

The Guardian isn’t pulling its punches about the visit of India PM Narendra Modi to the UK.

‘This week the Indian prime minister makes a triumphant visit to the UK after cosying up to everyone from Silicon Valley CEOs to Rupert Murdoch. What’s behind the uncritical embrace of a man who has presided over a rising tide of assassinations and religious zealotry, and driven the country’s writers and artists into revolt?’
http://goo.gl/kAq5hj

During his term, 26 May 2014 6.13pm New Delhi, Hindu supremacists have been emboldened to attack activists, scholars, secular intellectuals and “westernised” women as well as public figures with Muslim and Christian names. Several influential Indians have spoken out against the rising tide of sectarian hatred. Though there are signs the electorate is tiring of him with defeats in a recent regional poll.

He’s certainly got an aggressive chart with a vengeful Mars in Scorpio on the focal point of a wide opposition of Pluto to Jupiter in Aquarius; with a Virgo Sun Saturn Mercury sextile Mars as well. So not one to hold back.

There are evidently two birth times for him, one with a Libra Asc and the 11am Mehsana, India giving him a Scorpio Ascendant conjunct Mars which feels about right. Either will give him tr Saturn moving through his 1st quadrant which usually not a time of great success and he has the tr Saturn square tr Neptune denting his popularity further as it crashes into his (maybe) 10th house Venus in December and early 2016.

His term chart is fairly similar to that of Al Sisi of Egypt, coming as it did only two weeks earlier, with the Cardinal Grand Cross of Mars opposition Uranus square Pluto opposition Jupiter – so explosive, ruthless, confident and faced with rolling crises.

Though the axis is different and in Modi’s case there is also an unhelpful Sun square Neptune. That latter is getting a reality-check in November from tr Saturn. Then from this New Year tr Pluto will start to square the Uranus for two years which could destabilise him. Plus Solar Arc Pluto exactly square Uranus in 9 months times so the run up to that will add to the wobbles which might see him off his perch altogether.

His personal chart is not dissimilar to Al Sisi who has a Scorpio Sun on the point of a T Square to Pluto opposition Mars.

A bombshell has dropped on the International Athletics Association with the long awaited report on drug testing with allegations that laboratory tests were interfered with and officials bribed to stay silent. Russia has come in for the most serious criticism – ‘state-sponsored doping’ – which the Kremlin has said are groundless and politically motivated. There are calls for Russia to be banned from the 2016 Rio Olympics. Though they aren’t the only ones. All of which has landed a poisoned chalice in the lap of Sebastian Coe who only took over as Chairman on August 31 this year.

As mentioned in a previous post Coe was always going to be facing a testing run with heavy criticism already about his weak response. The Aug 31 chart has a disappointing Neptune opposition Jupiter Sun; and an impulsive, insecure Uranus trine Mars Venus in Leo; with admittedly a confidently pushy Pluto trine Sun Jupiter.

Later November will see the tr Neptune square tr Saturn hitting the Sun and in December tr Saturn squaring Neptune – so there is a swamp ahead for him.

The IAAF chart, 17 July 1912, has tr Saturn conjunct Jupiter through this month deflating its confidence and denting its image. With a highly strung, nervy tr Uranus square the Neptune Sun conjunction from late May next year extending across the August Olympics. Which suggests the consequences of this report will bedevil next year’s major events.

As far as Sebastian Coe is concerned 2018 looks a real danger spot for him with tr Pluto square Uranus which could topple him.

Efforts by Pope Francis to reform the mismanaged, greedy and corrupt Vatican bureaucracy may be helped rather than hindered by the leaking of documents to the author of two new books. One is called The Merchants of the Temple and the other simply Avarice. He faces stiff resistance from the old guard to his reform agenda, which was supposedly what led his predecessor Pope Benedict XVI to take the unthinkable step of resigning.

Francis’ Election chart, 13 March 2013 7.06pm Rome, always did look divisive with Uranus in the 7th conjunct Mars in Aries square a mutinous 4th house Pluto. That looks set for a jolt come late 2016 when Solar Arc Uranus closes the square to Pluto. There’s also a strained Yod of a 2nd house Saturn in Scorpio inconjunct Jupiter sextile Uranus which makes sense.

That chart also has tr Pluto square the 7th house Moon from early 2016 for two years which will heighten emotions considerably.

His relationship chart with the Vatican has the composite Moon under pressure this month with tr Pluto square; and more serious upheavals from spring 2016 as tr Uranus squares Pluto and is conjunct the composite Uranus. That relationship chart has Neptune Mars in the 2nd opposition Jupiter Venus Sun in the 8th – so finances were always going to be the key factor in the relationship. Though whether he’ll win or not is questionable against vested interested.

His own personal chart, 17 Dec 1936 9pm Buenos Aires, has a disruptive, shocking (sometimes literally) tr Uranus opposition Mars; and then a dreary, tough slog tr Pluto sextile Saturn in 2016/17. With a dead-halt Solar Arc Pluto conjunct Mars in 2017. He is getting on in years and has said he’ll resign when he feels he can’t do anymore. The next two to three years will certainly test that thought.

The Vatican chart has tr Uranus square Pluto now and then tr Pluto opposition Pluto in 2016/17 – which suggests forced changes against heavy resistance. With a discouraging tr Saturn opposition the Gemini New Moon through 2016; and a Saturn Return in 2017 which is always face-reality time.