Two separate news stories tonight seem ominous when juxtaposed.In the first, unemployment rate among Turkish youth has exceeded 25%, which is a guarantee of some form of street riots, revolution, etc.
Secondly, Turkey is responsible for a cryptographic device which will be used by NATO military communications.
There’s no real connection between these two stories, but still…
Oh, and also: Spain is experiencing a catastrophic decline in its real estate market, possibly worse than that of the United States.
Thanks to Aeneas, C. Cantoni, Gaia, heroyalwhyness, Insubria, JD, TB, Vlad Tepes, and all the other tipsters who sent these in. Headlines and articles are below the fold.
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California’s Jobless Rate Soars to 10.1%
[Comments from JD: “Iceberg, what iceberg? Full speed ahead…” ]
California’s unemployment rate jumped to 10.1% in January, the highest since 1983, as employers in the nation’s most-populous state cut 79,000 jobs in the month.
[…]
The state is threatening to pass the 11% jobless rate of late 1982, the highest since the Great Depression. “All we need is another month like this,” Mr. Roth said.
Mr. Schwarzenegger said in a statement that economic-stimulus measures in the budget he signed last week will create jobs. “The number of Californians without jobs and a means to provide for their families is a sobering reminder that there is nothing more important than getting California’s economy back on track,” he said.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Economy: Turkey May Soon Top the List of Unemployment Rate
(ANSAmed) — ANKARA, FEBRUARY 18 — Turkey’s official unemployment rate means the country ranks in the top three among the 52 most talked countries in global markets, according to the Turkish Confederation of Employers’ Unions, or TISK. Based on official data Turkey ranks third with its unemployment rate. “Unless preventive measures are launched rapidly, then Turkey is a candidate to top the list”, claimed TISK. The government should not remain indifferent to the country’s damaged economy, urged TISK, and quoted the Turkish Statistical Institute’s unemployment data for the November period. According to the data, Turkey’s estimated unemployment rate rose to 12.3% in October-December 2008 if compared to the same period of previous year. The number of unemployed increased by 645,000 to 2.300.000 million in the same period, the data showed. Non-agriculture unemployment rose to 15.4% from 12.3%, while unemployment among youth rose to 25.5% from 21.6% in urban areas. A total of 91,000 people lost their jobs in the construction industry, said TISK. (ANSAmed).
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
ILO Forecasts Loss of Between 7 and 22 Million Asian Jobs in 2009
The group warns about the risk of social protests, and advises governments to save the jobs and provide for the needs of the most vulnerable. But many say that the estimate is too optimistic: in China’s Guangdong province alone, 20 million jobs were lost in the second quarter of 2008.
Hong Kong (AsiaNews/Agencies) — In 2009, Asia will have at least 7.2 million fewer jobs following the global crisis, according to a study published yesterday by the International Labour Group. In the worst-case scenario, the ILO says that 22.3 million jobs will be lost in 2009, and 50 million for the entire period of 2007-2009. It forecasts that in 2009, there will be between 97 and 113 million people unemployed in Asia.
Sachiko Yamamato, the regional director of the ILO, warns that this scenario means that the “prospect [of unrest] is a real one, and therefore social partners have to be included in policy discussions in order to make sure that the most vulnerable and most affected people are given the centre of attention in fiscal measures.” Governments’ so-called stimulus measures for the economy must also be aimed first of all at creating jobs.
Following the crisis, a number of countries, like Malaysia, South Korea, and Thailand, have stop giving permits to foreign workers, which is causing more problems for other countries. It is estimated that a third of the Asian population is already “poor” (living on less than a dollar a day).
Experts nonetheless note the difficulty of obtaining precise current figures, in part because of the large numbers of people, especially migrants, who work in the underground economy. They observe that in Guangdong alone, the region with the largest concentration of economic production in China, official figures show that about 20 million jobs were lost in the second quarter of 2008, while the prospects for the immediate future are no better.
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
Indonesia: Economy Falters as Global Crisis Hits Exports
Jakarta, 18 Feb. (AKI/Jakarta Post) — The Indonesian economy grew at its slowest rate in two years in the fourth quarter of 2008 as the global economic slowdown slashed commodity prices and export demand.
The Central Statistics Agency (BPS) reported on Monday that the economy expanded by 5.2 percent in the fourth quarter of 2008 from a year earlier, slower than the annualised growth rate of 6.4 percent recorded in the previous quarter.
Worse still, on a quarterly basis, the economy contracted by 3.6 percent in the fourth quarter. But BPS head Rusman Heriawan said that a similar contraction had occurred in the same period in the past two years.
“This was not surprising as the economy usually contracts in the fourth quarter compared to the third quarter, as industrial output slows and harvest time ends. But the crisis made the contraction (in 2008’s fourth quarter) deeper,” he said.
Indonesia’s exports have been hard hit by the global economic downturn, which started to hit in the last three to four months of 2008.
Economists also predicted that investment — another driver of economic growth — would start to fall this year amid a worldwide liquidity shortage.
However, the agency endorsed government predictions that economic growth this year would not fall below 4.5 percent. Despite the fourth quarter contraction, the economy expanded by 6.1 percent last year, while many countries suffered from recession.
“Indonesia was far better off than other countries that had stronger trade relations with the US, Japan, and Western European countries. Even Malaysia and Singapore had a deeper economic fall,” said Rusman.
With exports and foreign investment expected to be hit hard by the worsening global conditions, Indonesia’s economic growth will rely on how effectively the government implemented budget allocations.
“The economy will depend on effective government spending and private consumption,” Rusman said.
Of last years’ 6.1 percent economic growth, government spending contributed 0.8 percent to the growth in gross domestic product, and private consumption 3.1 percent.
However, Danareksa Research Institute chief researcher Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa warned that if the government repeated last year’s spending patterns, then the economy “would be in trouble”.
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
Italy: Record Drop in Retail Sales in 2008
Economy and spending not expected to recover until 2010
(ANSA) — Rome, February 25 — Retail sales in Italy last year fell by an average of 0.6%, representing the biggest drop in consumer spending since 1997, national statistics bureau Istat reported on Wednesday.
The 0.6% drop was an all-time record since Istat record began monitoring retail sales, beating the previous record of -0.4% set in 2004.
Major outlets saw their sales rise by 1% in 2008, but this failed to offset a 2% drop for small shops.
Retail food sales last year inched up by 0.7% while sales of non-food goods sank 1.6%.
Year-on-year sales in December, which included the crucial Christmas period, were down 1.9%, the result of a 0.8% dip in food sales and a 2.7% drop for non-food goods.
Istat’s confirmation that consumer spending shrunk last year led retailer groups to call for tax breaks for small businesses while consumer groups demanded an across-the-board cut in retail prices in order to boost buying.
According to the national retailers’ association Confcommercio, the real decline in consumer spending in 2008 was closer to 0.8% and represented the biggest drop in the past 40 years, with the exception of 1993.
Confcommercio claimed that the main problem was the slow growth of available family income, while the downturn in inflation had little effect on spending.
The retailer services association Confesercenti said that Istat data confirmed the need to help small businesses, which suffered the most from the decline in consumer spending.
Some 36,000 small businesses were forced to shut down last year, the group added, ‘‘and with GDP expected to fall another 2% this year, 2009 is poised to be devastating one for small businensses and employment’’. Confesercenti urged the government to ‘‘swiftly adopt tax breaks and initiatives to help small businesses and help restore business and consumer confidence’’.
Consumer group Codacons said that ‘‘the particularly steep drop in consumer spending was a direct result of excessive price increases in all sectors during the course of the year’’.
‘‘There is only one way to save the retail sector: cut prices by at least 20% and lift all restrictions on when and how to hold sales. Only this will entice consumers to buy and, at this point, save thousands of shops from shutting down,’’ Codacons said.
THINK TANK SEES SLOW RECOVER FOR ITALY.
Italy’s recovery from the current economic recession will be slow and GDP will not return to the black until 2010, according to the latest forecast from Italy’s Institute for Economic Study and Analysis (ISAE). The think tank said that GDP this year will fall by 2.5% to then inch up by 0.4% in 2010. Because of slower economic growth, Italy’s deficit this year will be 4% of GDP and 3.9% in 2010 and the public debt will climb to 110.3% of GDP in 2009 and 111.8% next year. In its latest report, ISAE said that consumer spending will slip by 0.8% this year to then rise by 0.4% in 2010, while inflation will fall to 0.9% in 2009 and then bounce back up to 2% next year. Italy’s employment rate will decline by 1% this year and then rise by 0.2% in 2010, while the unemployment rate will be 8.1% this year and 8.5% next year, ISAE said.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Meet the D.C. Hypocrites
Democrats and three RINOs just spent nearly $800 billion to: 1) stimulate the economy; 2) create or save 3.5 million jobs; and 3) reduce dependence on foreign oil, according to President Obama, Senate Majority Leader, Harry Reid and Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi.
Neither Wall Street nor Main Street believes the massive expenditure will achieve the goals.
These goals could be achieved, however, with no new spending at all. In fact, a very simple policy change could achieve these desired goals and produce $2 trillion in new tax revenue as well.
Democrats could easily repeal the ban on domestic oil production and achieve all their stated goals with no new expenditures. A detailed study shows that by simply allowing access to offshore resources the economy could realize an $8 trillion shot in the arm. The economic stimulus that would come from opening the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge has long been known. Democrats have blocked every effort to utilize these domestic resources.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
UK: MI5 Alert on Bank Riots
TOP secret contingency plans have been drawn up to counter the threat posed by a “summer of discontent” in Britain.
The “double-whammy” of the worst economic crisis in living memory and a motley crew of political extremists determined to stir up civil disorder has led to the extraordinary step of the Army being put on standby.
MI5 and Special Branch are targeting activists they fear could inflame anger over job losses and payouts to failed bankers. One of the most notorious anarchist websites, Class War, asks: “How to keep warm during the credit crunch? Burn a banker.”
Such remarks have rung alarm bells in Scotland Yard and the Ministry of Defence. Intelligence sources said the police, backed by MI5, are determined to stay on top of a situation that could spiral out of control as the recession bites deep.
The chilling prospect of soldiers being drafted on to the streets has not been discounted, although it is regarded as a last resort.
What worries emergency planners most is that the middle classes, now struggling to cope with unemployment and repossessions, may take to the streets with the disenfranchised.
The source said “this potent cocktail is reminiscent of the poll tax riots which fatally wounded Margaret Thatcher’s government in 1990”.
Last night Scotland Yard vowed it was ready to face any threat. A source said: “We do have a policing plan in place and we have riot police officers trained for such measures.”
But other senior police leaders fear the force will be unable to cope.
Were that to be the case, the Government has a contingency plan to deploy troops on the streets of Britain’s major cities.
A senior source said: “This is a very real, and very serious, problem. I can tell you there have been crisis talks in Whitehall about this.
“Half the senior officers in Britain have been warning the Home Secretary about the dangerous effects that reducing police manpower may have this summer, especially in the industrial heartlands.
“We are not just talking about the problems of immigration and British jobs for British worker. We are also talking about mass unemployment.
“In many of our industrial cities, this will not be measured in the hundreds, but in the thousands. With unemployment, comes the risk of increased crime. Some forces, such as South Wales, have publically stated they would be swamped.
“Others are keeping it quiet, but you can be sure they are trying to make the Home Secretary listen, before it’s too late.”
The “protest season” is due to begin on April 1 with the G20 Summit in London next month, followed by the 60th anniversary of Nato in Strasbourg a few days later. May Day is also potentially a flashpoint.
Ministers cannot afford to allow latent public anger at Government policy to get out of hand if they are to maintain credibility through what promises to be Gordon Brown’s most testing period as Prime Minister.
The Stop the War coalition, orchestrating the G20 protest, said: “The first week of April could be a week of world leaders will never forget.”
The British authorities want to avoid a repeat of the rioting that scarred British cities in the 1980s Then, as now, the country was in recession with rising unemployment and deep public hostility to perceived social divisions. Today that anger is focused on the banks, with their bonus culture surviving despite billions being paid in taxpayer bail-outs.
This has fomented in the outrage over news that senior executives will be rewarded for their failure.
Sir Fred Goodwin, former boss of RBS, has refused to hand back his £693,000-a-year-pension even as the ailing bank announced a £24billion loss last year, the single largest loss in British corporate history.
Early warnings of trouble ahead came from the furore over last months “British jobs for British workers” protest and wildcat strikes across the country.
This week Britain’s most senior police officer warned that the summer could bring a wave of protests orchestrated by extremists in which ordinary people, fired by their own anger and fear at the economic downturn — became “foot soldiers”.
Superintendent David Hartshorn, who heads the Met’s public order branch, identified the G20 as the possible start of a “summer of rage”.
Murray Benham, head of campaigns at the UK-based World Development Movement, accused Supt Hartshorn of “scaremongering”.
| — Hat tip: Gaia | [Return to headlines] |
“My Muslim President Obama” by Asma Gull Hasan
[Comments from JD: Comments to this article make for interesting reading.]
I know President Obama is not Muslim, but I am tempted nevertheless to think that he is, as are most Muslims I know. In a very unscientific oral poll, ranging from family members to Muslim acquaintances, many of us feel, just as African-Americans did for the non-black but culturally leaning African-American President Bill Clinton, that we have our first American Muslim president in Barack Hussein Obama.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Radio Chip Coming Soon to Your Driver’s License?
Homeland Security seeks next-generation REAL ID
Privacy advocates are issuing warnings about a new radio chip plan that ultimately could provide electronic identification for every adult in the U.S. and allow agents to compile attendance lists at anti-government rallies simply by walking through the assembly.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Schwarzenegger Declares California Drought Emergency
Federal water managers to cut off water this March to thousands of farms
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger declared a state of emergency Friday because of three years of below-average rain and snowfall in California, a step that urges urban water agencies to reduce water use by 20%.
“This drought is having a devastating impact on our people, our communities, our economy and our environment, making today’s action absolutely necessary,” the Republican governor said in his statement.
Mandatory rationing is an option if the declaration and other measures are insufficient.
The drought has forced farmers to fallow their fields, put thousands of agricultural workers out of work and led to conservation measures in cities throughout the state, which is the nation’s top agricultural producer.
Agriculture losses could reach $2.8 billion this year and cost 95,000 jobs, said Lester Snow, the state water director.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Scientists to Stop Global Warming With 100,000 Square Mile Sun Shade
Scientists claim they can fight global warming by firing trillions of mirrors into space to deflect the sun’s rays forming a 100,000 square mile “sun shade”.
[Comments from JD: Another asinine “idea” from an “expert”. Such a plan would have grave repercussions for life on earth.]
According to astronomer Dr Roger Angel, at the University of Arizona, the trillions of mirrors would have to be fired one million miles above the earth using a huge cannon with a barrel of 0.6 miles across.
The gun would pack 100 times the power of conventional weapons and need an exclusion zone of several miles before being fired.
Despite the obvious obstacles — including an estimated $350 trillion (£244trn) price tag for the project — Dr Angel is confident of getting the project off the ground.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
The Real Priority of Public Education
Today, we spend more than $10,000 per year per student on public education in Oregon, and that’s not including capital expenditures for new buildings and school busses. Private schools, on the other hand, generally spend less than half that amount, typically in the $4,000 to $4,500 range and rarely ask parents for substantial increases in tuition. Go figure.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Warning Issued Over ‘Spirit of Adulation’ of President
Archbishop: ‘In democracies, we elect public servants, not messiahs’
One of the prominent and rising archbishops in the Catholic Church is warning against a “spirit of adulation” towards President Obama, who was portrayed repeatedly during his campaign with messianic images.
WND reported during the campaign on a website called Obamamessiah which still holds images portraying the president in a “transfiguration” pose, with various haloes around his head, and the cover of a book, “Barack Obama, Son of Promise, Child of Hope.”
But in a message at St. Basil’s Church in Toronto recently, Denver Archbishop Charles Chaput warned against following blindly.
“President Obama is a man of intelligence and some remarkable gifts. He has a great ability to inspire. … But whatever his strengths, there’s no way to reinvent his record on abortion and related issues with rosy marketing about unity, hope and change,” Chaput said.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Washington Socialists Need a Good Spanking
I was in a grocery store this week when I rounded an aisle and witnessed an interesting sight.
A boy who looked to be about 9 years old was grabbing a box of cereal off the shelf while his mother said, “No, Johnny. We’re not getting that.” Unfazed, the boy dropped the cereal in the cart. The mother took the box and replaced it on the shelf. The boy promptly let out a howl of protest, snatched the cereal box, and put it back in the cart. The mother shrugged and moved on.
My path crisscrossed with this woman several times as I did my shopping. I saw two or three other incidences of this brat defying his mother and his ineffectual mother letting him. At one point his tantrums knocked a shelf full of items to the floor. While the mother was distracted replacing everything, the boy gleefully grabbed some candy and threw it in the cart.
Welcome to the current administration. They’re acting just like kids in a candy store.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Canadian Warplanes Chased Russian Jet Before Obama Visit
On the eve of Barack Obama’s visit to Ottawa, a Russian jet approached Canada’s Arctic air space and had to be turned away by Canadian warplanes, Defence Minister Peter MacKay said Friday at a news conference on Parliament Hill.
With Obama poised to leave American soil for the first time as U.S. president on Feb. 19, the joint Canada-U.S. aerospace command, Norad, detected the Russian plane. Two of Canada’s CF-18 fighter jets were scrambled to intercept one Russian aircraft, MacKay confirmed.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Bishop Apologizes for Denying Holocaust
ROME — A Catholic news agency says that a British bishop who had denied the Holocaust has apologized for his remarks.
Bishop Richard Williamson was shown in a Swedish state TV interview saying historical evidence indicates there were no Nazi gas chambers and that a maximum of 300,000 people died in concentration camps in the Holocaust.
The remarks caused widespread outrage.
Pope Benedict XVI had lifted a 20-year-old excommunication decree imposed on Williamson and three other bishops who had been consecrated without Vatican approval.
The Zenit Catholic news agency said Thursday that Williamson expressed regret for the statements.
It quoted him as saying that to all who took offense, “before God I apologize.”
| — Hat tip: heroyalwhyness | [Return to headlines] |
Calls for Brent Sharia Law Councillor to Resign
Politicians in Brent are calling for the resignation of a councillor after he advocated the introduction of Sharia law for British Muslims on a website, including the death penalty for women who commit adultery.
The remarks were a response to The Archbishop of Canterbury’s comments made earlier this month in which he said the adoption of Sharia law in the UK seemed unavoidable.
Councillor Atiq Malik, (Democratic Conservative Group), wrote two blogs, one on the UK Polling Report website and one on the Conservative Home website. Both read: “If Muslims living in the UK are happy that disputes be decided by Sharia courts then what?
“The reason why male gets more share than women is that male members of the family have the responsibilty to provide living expenses to female members of the family.
“If an unmarried woman has an affair she is lashed 100 times. If a married woman has an affair she is stoned to death. What is wrong in it?”
But when the Observer contacted Mr Malik he backtracked on his original views and said he did not believe Sharia law should be introduced in the UK but that it was acceptable in Islamic states.
He said: “No I am not adovating Sharia Law in England. England is not a Muslim country. Sharia Law is the belief of Muslims and is part of Koran. In a Muslim majority country the Koran is the code of conduct. But it is not practical in England because it is not a Muslim country.
“Yes of course I believe in Sharia, it is our way of life. I don’t see any harm in Muslims believing what is in the Koran.”
But politicians from different parties have been outraged by the remarks and believe he should step down from his post.
| — Hat tip: Aeneas | [Return to headlines] |
EU Puts Pressure on Swiss Over Tax Policy
The European Union has called on Switzerland to apply the same rules on tax issues as it did earlier this month with the United States.
EU Foreign Affairs Commissioner Benita Ferrero-Waldner said Brussels expected Switzerland to ensure that banking secrecy did not protect any form of tax scam.
She was speaking after talks in the Belgian capital with Swiss Foreign Minister Micheline Calmy-Rey.
Last week Switzerland gave Washington details of up to 300 clients of the country’s largest bank, UBS, in what has been considered as violation of banking secrecy.
Swiss law distinguishes between tax evasion, a civil offence, and tax fraud. Banking secrecy is only lifted in cases of fraud.
Ferrero-Waldner also asked non EU-member Switzerland for further concessions in a row over preferential taxes for holding companies from the 27-nation bloc.
Calmy-Rey said dialogue on fiscal matters with Brussels would continue.
Thursday’s meeting also covered plans for a framework agreement aimed at facilitating the implementation of a series of bilateral treaties between the two sides.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
EU: Leaders Strengthen Ties With ASEAN
Jakarta, 12 Feb. (AKI) — The European Union has announced a series of measures aimed at deepening ties with members of the Association of South East Asian nations (ASEAN). Among the measures is the accreditation of EU ambassadors to ASEAN.
The British, French, German, and Czech ambassadors to Indonesia were formally appointed representatives to ASEAN from their respective countries in Jakarta on Thursday. The appointment of other EU ambassadors is expected to follow soon.
ASEAN is headquartered in the Indonesian capital. However, EU diplomatic representation to ASEAN will be conducted as part of a “EU Troika”, comprising the current EU presidency, the subsequent EU presidency and a delegation from the European Commission.
Individual EU member sates will maintain their own bilateral contacts.
The European Union delegation in Indonesia has increased staff numbers in Jakarta and the European Commission is due to spend more than 50 million euros on development cooperation with ASEAN in the next three years.
Since the adoption of the ASEAN charter in December, ASEAN took the next step in its process of regional cooperation and integration. The charter reflects the commitment of ASEAN’s ten member states to deepen their cooperation on political, economic and social affairs, along the lines of the EU.
ASEAN is comprised of Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Brunei, Vietnam, Laos, Burma and Cambodia.
As of 2006, the ASEAN region included a total population of about 560 million and a combined gross domestic product of almost 1,100 billion dollars.
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
Europe: Italy and France to Sign Nuclear Pact
Rome, 23 Feb. (AKI) — Italy and France are to sign an historic agreement on nuclear cooperation when the country’s leaders meet in Rome on Tuesday. Italian industry minister Claudio Scajola said on Monday that the agreement would be signed during a meeting in the Italian capital between prime minister Silvio Berlusconi and visiting French president Nicolas Sarkozy.
Scajola said the agreement, to be signed in Rome by the leaders of the two nations, would include all aspects of nuclear power, from cooperation at the European level to security, technological cooperation, training, and industrial cooperation in other countries.
Ministers from eight different ministries — foreign affairs, defence, finance, economic development, transport, education, culture and community affairs — were expected to join their country’s leaders.
While Scajola’s statement offered no substantial details, the nuclear agreement is expected to provide a basis for which Italy’s major utility, Enel, can increase its participation in France’s nuclear power industry.
“Italy has taken a major step forward towards a new energy strategy for the country,” said Scajola.
“This involves greater security in regard to obtaining supply, through the diversification of sources and their geographic location and greater environmental protection,” he said.
According to media reports, Enel is expected to acquire a 12.5 percent stake in France’s second next-generation European Pressurised Reactor (EPR) nuclear reactor after the cooperation agreement is endorsed.
Enel already owns a 12.5 percent stake in France’s first EPR, which is being built at Flamanville in northwest France and will be operated by French power giant EDF.
At the weekend Enel agreed to buy a 25 percent stake in the Spanish builder Acciona in Endesa, Spain’s largest hydropower generator.
EDF is the world’s biggest operator of nuclear power plants. It may propose a joint venture to build a nuclear plant with Enel in Italy.
Italy shut down its four nuclear power plants after a referendum held the year after the 1986 Chernobyl disaster.
There is a moratorium on the construction of new plants but the Berlusconi government has flagged the possibility of new nuclear plants because of Italy’s dependence on energy imports.
Italy has been paying for the referendum decision with energy costs higher than most other European nations. Italy also imports a substantial part of its electricity from France where nuclear power is one of the main sources of energy.
Many French nuclear power plants are located near the Italian borders, making Italy vulnerable to nuclear disasters, even though none are present on its soil.
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
France: Court, State Co-Responsible for Deportation of Jews
(ANSAmed) — PARIS, FEBRUARY 17 — France’s Council of State , the country’s highest administrative institution, has ruled that the State shares responsibility for the deportation of French Jews to Nazi concentration camps during World War II, although restricting possible future claims for compensation. Yesterday the Council recognised — a first for a French court — “the error and responsibility of the State” in the deportations to Nazi concentration camps of around 76 thousand French Jews between 1942 and 1944, only 3 thousand of whom survived. Former President Jacques Chirac was the first French leader to admit responsibility for the deportations in a speech he gave in 1995, breaking with the tradition of dissociating France form the collaborationist Vichy regime. Chirac’s statement opened the way for many victims’ families to issue claims for damages. France has paid out hundreds of millions of euros since then. The Court also established that “the various reparation measures have compensated for the losses suffered due to the State as far as possible”. Minor courts can therefore assess possible claims for damages, but — the Court warns — they should take into account that Paris has fulfilled its duties and the European regulations regarding compensation payments. Serge Klarsfeld, a well-known French Nazi hunter, has welcomed the verdict: “It is satisfying” he told ‘Le Figaro’. “France is foremost among nations in dealing with its past”. The claims for damages “are no longer the main issue, those making them today have already received something in the past” Klarsfeld said. (ANSAmed).
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
France: North Inundated by Calls From Morocco
(ANSAmed) — PARIS, FEBRUARY 19 — For about a week, hundreds of telephone subscribers in the Valenciennes region in northern France have been swamped with calls from Morocco, especially Rabat. Day and night, according to La Voix du Nord, Arab and French-speaking interlocutors with Oriental music playing in the background and voices heard in the distance have engaged in conversation which at times end in marriage proposals, at times in insults or death threats. Many elderly people who have fallen victims to this sort of unexplained mobbing have been traumatized by it. The daily paper said that no one had been spared, neither those on the pink list (reserved) nor administration offices or police stations. Hundreds of subscribers have reported the matter to police and many have taken Orange agencies by assault, afraid their bills would rise. The matter is being taken seriously by the police and magistrature, so much so that the central offices of the anti-crime department dealing with IT and communications offenses may be getting hold of the dossier to find out the reason behind this tidal wave of calls, which began in the Denain region to then spread to Valenciennes and south of the Lilla dé partement. The question most are asking is whether it is some sort of joke or a technical problem. The upcoming transition of Morocco to a new numbering system is one of the possible answers, and the head offices of France Telecom seem to be supporting the hypothesis of a technical problem of a Moroccan operator, ruling out any reasons related to fraud. (ANSAmed).
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Islam: France; Hairdressers in Paris for Veiled Women
(ANSAmed) — PARIS, FEBRUARY 19 — A thick, coloured blind is cancelling out the debate in France over integration and secularism. It is hanging up in a unisex hairdresser in Suresnes on the outskirts of Paris ‘to protect the modesty of Muslim women’’, in other words from the indiscreet stares of men having their hair and beards trimmed on the other side of the salon. ‘Room reserved for veiled women’’ reads the leaflet advertising the salon in Marrakesh, which is on the ground floor of a council block, and ‘for the veiled woman who does not want men to look at her, there is a corner just for her’’. Four sofas have been placed in the area which takes up half the salon, where Muslim women can remove their veils and place themselves in the expert hands of the hairdressers and colourists who are also of course women. The owner, who opened the salon last summer and wishes to remain anonymous, confirms in embarrassment that the idea came from the previous owner, although the new telephone number is included in the new leaflets. The whole affair is a bolt from the blue for the City council of Suresnes, who only yesterday learnt of the existence of the salon, which was discovered by the daily newspaper Le Parisien; the National Council of Hairdressers, the main union for the sector, is no less surprised by the initiative. ‘While we talk about integration and above all about secularism, it is truly incredible’’ says Secretary General Michéle Duval, ‘but in the end everyone is free to find the formula they want, and it may just be a case of finding a way of attracting a certain type of customer in the current crisis’’. President of the Coordination of Islam and Society Abdel Ghani expressed a similar attitude, saying that it is a case of ‘the law of supply and demand’’. Even though the more strict Muslim husbands will like the idea of finding a guarantee over the moral integrity of their wives, it is worrying for French citizens of foreign origins like those belonging to the Zy’va association of Nanterre: ‘we are fighting against discrimination and at the same time we are discriminating against ourselves’’ complained its president Hafid Ramouni, annoyed by certain ‘unsocial behavior in a secular society’’ including women-only swimming pools. (ANSAmed).
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Military to Use New Gel That Stops Bullets
A new “bullet-busting” shock-absorbent gel is set to save the lives of British soldiers by substantially reinforcing their helmets.
The Ministry of Defence has awarded £100,000 to a small company that has developed a special substance that hardens immediately on impact.
It is hoped that the shock-absorbing substance will soon be fitted onto the inside of soldiers’ helmets reducing in half the kinetic energy of a bullet or piece of shrapnel and hopefully making them impenetrable.
The gel, called d3O locks instantly into a solidified form when it is hit at high impact.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Muslim Men, Women Segregated in Rotterdam Theatre
ROTTERDAM, 28/02/09 — On Friday night, a Muslim stand-up comedian was scheduled to give a show in a Rotterdam theatre with segregated seating for the men and women in his audience.
Moroccan-born writer and TV producer Salaheddine Benchikhi was to make his debut as a stand-up comedian at Theater Zuidplein in Rotterdam. At his request, the theatre said it would offer female audience members the option of sitting apart from the men, as Algemeen Dagblad reported several hours before the show on Friday.
According to the newspaper, 50 of the 590 seats had been reserved for women who object to sitting beside a man due to their Islamic faith. As an extra ‘service’, the orthodox ladies may sit in the first rows of the balcony.
“Whether the option will actually be utilised remains to be seen”, Joyce van Dongen of Theater Zuidplein stated. “Fifty is an estimate made by Salaheddine’s management. Since the show is an opening night, we have no previous shows to serve as an example”. If called for, a larger number of separate seats would be arranged, according to Van Dongen.
| — Hat tip: TB | [Return to headlines] |
Real Estate: Spanish House Sales Plunge, -28.6%
(ANSAmed) — MADRID, FEBRUARY 16 — The National Institute of Statistics has said today that the real estate sector in Spain ended 2008 on a very bad note indeed, with sales dropping by 28.6% on the previous year, -39.3% for non-newly constructed homes. As for all 2008 deals, those regarding unoccupied homes dropped by 28.9% while transactions for council housing slid by 25.5%. Market paralysis led to the accumulation of a great deal of unsold housing stock, between 600,000 and 900,000 finished homes, depending on the source. At the same time housing prices fell by 3.2% according to the Housing Ministry and by 10% according to the tax company Tinsa. According to the forecast of the latter, 2009 will end with a drop in real estate prices by 20%, going back to the levels seen before the real estate speculative bubble which burst in 2007, when, in one year, Spain built as many houses as Germany, France and Italy together. (ANSAmed).
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Sweden Bans Tennis Spectators in ‘Gaza Protest’
A Swedish town has banned spectators from a Davis Cup match with Israel in an apparent protest at the invasion of Gaza.
The decision to lock people out of three-day tennis tournament in Malmo followed a local campaign to ban the event in protest at the recent military operation.
The event takes place between March 6 and 8.
Malmo’s municipal recreation committee justified the move by saying the event could pose a risk to the public because of anti-Israel demonstrations being planned. The local police however, had reportedly given their go-ahead to let fans into the area.
Yaron Michaeli, spokesman for the Israel Tennis Association, said: “It’s too bad that this is the situation and that is what they have decided. But we cannot tell them how to behave. But we will go and we will win and come back.”
Andy David, a foreign ministry spokesperson said the decision was a “shallow understanding of the situation.”
He said: “There are all kinds of elements trying to use naïve people for their political gains and trying to portray a complex picture in black and white.”
The row follows a dispute earlier this month when Israeli Shahar Peer was refused entry to the United Arab Emirates.
Dubai organisers said they feared a threat to the player’s safety because of public opinion on the Gaza conflict.
| — Hat tip: Aeneas | [Return to headlines] |
UK: Award-Winning Artist’s Anti-War Mural is Scrubbed… for Fear of Violence
His award-winning graffiti was praised by South Bank Show judges for ‘creating messages of peace, unity and hope’.
But it seems police saw Birmingham-born artist Mohammed Ali’s work rather differently, after they removed one of his murals, apparently for fear it would trigger racial violence.
Last night, Mr Ali accused officers of ‘wanton censorship’ after they removed the mural, which protested against Israeli attacks in Gaza.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
UK: Death-Drive Peer May Serve Just 18 Days of Jail Termby Mail on Sunday Reporter
The Labour peer jailed for dangerous driving after sending texts on the M1 before a fatal crash could be freed just 18 days into his 12-week sentence.
Lord Ahmed of Rotherham, Britain’s first Muslim peer, was sent to Doncaster Prison last week but his lawyer believes he could be released early.
If so, he would have to wear an electronic tag confining him to his home between 8pm and 6am.
Lord Ahmed would be eligible for parole after six weeks, but his solicitor Steve Smith said: ‘Lord Ahmed is clearly no danger to the public and in these circumstances the prison authorities can consider early release. He has to serve a minimum of 18 days.’
Lord Ahmed admitting sending texts minutes before his Jaguar hit a stationary Audi near Rotherham on Christmas Day 2007, killing its driver, Martyn Gombar, 28. The prosecution did not link the texting to the crash.
‘The prison governor will have to decide whether he is a suitable candidate for release and I think he is,’ said Mr Smith. ‘They know he will not try to escape.
‘His life and career have been wrecked for the sake of 18 days in prison. It is pathetic.’
Mr Gombar’s 36-year-old widow Monica — who is already planning to appeal against the original sentence in the European courts — said: ‘I would not be happy with a decision to release Lord Ahmed on a tag. It is one rule for Lords and another for everyone else.’
The Ministry of Justice refused to comment on individual cases.
| — Hat tip: Gaia | [Return to headlines] |
UK: Hate Preacher Gets OK to Run Sharia Law Demo
HATE preacher Anjem Choudary will march in London today calling for Britain to adopt Islamic Sharia law.
The startling move comes just days after processions celebrating St George were banned for being racist.
Choudary was given the green light yesterday despite a previous demonstration in which some of his supporters chanted: “Bomb the UK”.
Publicity for the march, in the East End, carries 41-year-old Choudary’s personal mobile number and says the aim of the campaign is to “emulate the Prophet and his companions, by calling for Islam and speaking out against the oppression of man-made law”.
It says that Britain is full of “disbelievers” who are involved in prostitution, gambling, alcoholism and worshipping other gods.
The publicity says women are welcome to join the march but they must walk at the back of the procession as “strict segregation will be enforced”.
The demo comes 18 months after three of Choudary’s supporters were jailed for soliciting murder in a London protest against cartoons of the prophet Mohammed published in Denmark.
That was when some demonstrators chanted “Bomb the UK” and “Europe, you will pay with your blood”. Organiser Choudary was fined.
Today’s march won permission after a council withdrew funding for a St George’s Day parade in the Midlands — on the grounds that it was “racist”.
Parade founder Mark Cowles, 40, of West Bromwich, said yesterday: “I can’t believe Choudary’s event can go ahead.
“The British establishment is trying to take away the British voice but other cultures choose to force their way of life on us.”
| — Hat tip: Vlad Tepes | [Return to headlines] |
Kosovo: ICC, 15-22 Yrs Prison for Milutinovic Die-Hards
(ANSAmed) — BRUSSELS, FEBRUARY 26 — The International Criminal Court (ICC) in the Hague has passed sentences of between 15-22 years for 5 co-defendants standing trial alongside former Serb President Milan Milutinovic. The five co-defendants are the former Yugoslavian Premier Nikola Sainovic, former Chief of Staff, General Dragoljub Ojdanic, former Commander of the 3rd Army Corps Nebojsa Pavkovic, former Drill Ground Commander of Pristina Vladimir Lazarevic, and former Chief of Federal Police in Kosovo, Sreten Lukic. They were also accused of war crimes and crimes against humanity for their part in attempting to drive Albanians out of Kosovo through “a systematic campaign of terror and violence” in the period 1998-1999. (ANSAmed)
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Cooperation: Mozzarella in Libya With Italian Know How
(by Francesca Spinola) (ANSAmed) — TRIPOLI, FEBRUARY 23 — Thanks to Italian cooperation, by this summer, mozzarella will be produced in Libya, according to an announcement by the project coordinator, veterinarian Andrea Dominici who, with Carmine Nutolo, the head of the Office of Cooperation in Tripoli, has already developed two experiments in the zootechnics field in Sirte and agricultural field in Tobruk. “Today we already supply some of the markets in Sirte with our products, mostly ricotta, primo sale (a Sicilian cheese), and goat cheese”, explained Dominici, underlining that the project’s objective, including 5 Libyan experts and 10 workers, “is to train and supply technology”. The Centre for Applied Research and Experimentation of Zootechnics and Agriculture in Sirte is not just a productive unit, it is also connected to the universities of Florence, Sirte, and Al Beida, where there is an exchange of applied know how to zootechnics. “The aim is didactical, and we will give support until the end of the year when the two centres must work on their own and we hope that other similar projects are developed in Libya”, explained Nutolo. The projects have been financed by the Foreign Affairs Ministry, the General Direction for Cooperation and Development, and realized with the Overseas Agronomics Institute of Florence with whom several scholarship holders and university professors have been exchanged. The project in Sirte, developed in an area that was cleared after the war and chosen by Gaddafi in person, cost 4.2 million euro, and has the aim of promoting the dairy industry using water from the Great Manmade River in Libya. “The 40 hectares cultivated with forage make the company self-sufficient, and with the sale of its products it also finances itself”, explained the veterinarian of the centre, which recently hosted dissertation students from the University of Florence. The centre in Tobruk, which cost 3.5 million euro, is an agricultural research centre mainly made up of laboratories that study the geography of the area, analysing the areas where “shaded areas” have been created to allow some types of plants to grow better in a pre-desert environment. Here the connection between the university and the exchange of technological information in the agricultural sector is strong. Both the Centre of Tobruk and the Dairy Farm of Sirte were built by Italian company Edilbono, present in Libya for 20 years, which in 2003 won an international bid opened by the UNDP (United Nations Development Programme), which then was financed by Foreign Affairs Ministry to begin the first phase of these projects. “Today we are in the third phase — explained Nutolo — and thanks to a memorandum agreement with the national veterinarian service, shortly we will import bull sperm and embryos from local cows to be implanted in Libya”. The truck to transport the mozzarella to Tripoli has already been purchased using Italian cooperation funds. Italians living in Libya and Libyans with a passion for this famous Italian cheese will only have to wait until the summer to taste fresh mozzarella every day. (ANSAmed).
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
UFM: a Step Towards Peace and Prosperity, EP Report Says
(ANSAmed) — BRUSSELS, FEBRUARY 19 — Opening up the Union for the Mediterranean (UfM) to countries not involved in the partnership “increases the likelihood of establishing parity in relations between the EU and the Mediterranean partner countries and of tackling the problems of the region in a comprehensive way”, says a European Parliament (EP) report adopted with 521 votes in favour, 44 against and 13 abstentions. It says that provided the proposal for a UfM “delivers its promises and yields concrete and visible results” it contributes towards peace and prosperity and constitutes “a step towards economic and regional integration as well as ecological and climatic co-operation between the Mediterranean countries”. The report, according to an EP press release, also welcomes the decision of the UfM Ministers for Foreign Affairs to include the League of Arab States as a participant at all meetings. The EP calls for the UfM Secretariat to be brought into operation as a matter of urgency and considers it necessary that the strategic value of Euro-Mediterranean relations and the Barcelona Process, including the involvement of civil society, be reaffirmed. Regarding funds, it says projects financed within the framework of the UfM should be supported from the Community, from partner states and from private financing. It calls on the Council and Commission to specify the role and strengthen the initiatives of the Facility for Euro Mediterranean Investment and Partnership (FEMIP). It also reiterates its support for the creation of a Euro Mediterranean Investment Bank.(ANSAmed).
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Maghreb Union, 20 Years of Missed Opportunities
(ANSAmed) — TUNIS, FEBRUARY 20 — The lack of cooperation will cost countries in North Africa a hundred billion dollars per year in the coming six years, the result of an ambitious project that never took shape. The project started twenty years ago: on February 17, 1989 the Arab Maghreb Union (AMU) was founded in Marrakesh by Algeria, Libya, Morocco, Mauritania and Tunisia and has remained a project on paper since then. Based on the model of the European Union, the AMU had to open its borders by 2000 and form a joint market of 90 million consumers. However trade between the five countries has stayed at 3.3% due to mutual mistrust and the conflict between Morocco and Algeria on the Western Sahara which has blocked the borders between the two countries since 1994. “Progress has been made, but the unexplored potential is still very high” said Tunisian Development Minister Mohamed Nouri Jouini during a expert meeting in Tunis on the 20th anniversary of the AMU. “More trade would raise each country’s GDP by two points allowing to lower unemployment among young North Africans who now are tempted to escape to Europe”. “Our economies are complementary, we have 3% of global oil reserves, 4% of gas and 50% of phosphates” said Mabrouk Bahri, president of the Maghreb Farmers Union, who warned AMU countries for the risk of facing the international economic crisis, food insecurity the lack of water and climate change in loose array. The president of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Dominique Strauss-Kahn, agrees. In November he pointed out in Tripoli that the Maghreb countries have to step up their economic integration. AMU secretary Habib Ben Yahia urged his ‘partners’ to compare the pitiful 3.3% of their commercial exchange to the 21% of Asean, the 19% of Mercosur and the 10.7 of Cedeao. In 2006 the World Bank calculated that full integration would have led to a significant increase of GDP for Tunisia, Morocco and Algeria between 2005 and 2015: respectively 24, 27 and 34%. The economic recession in the West may speed up the formation of a joint Maghrebi market, but at the moment the necessary instruments are weak or non-existent, there are customs barriers, bureaucracies are invasive, there is no competition between banks and the non-integrated infrastructures weigh for 25% on the cost of products, not to mention the problem that trade between Algeria and Morocco often passes through Europe due to the Western Sahara problem. (ANSAmed).
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Morocco: More Than 10% of Weddings Involve Minors
(ANSAmed) — RABAT, FEBRUARY 18 — In spite of the new family law promulgated in Morocco in 2004, setting the lawful age for getting married at 18 years, the number of underage girls getting married is rising. Out of the 33,710 marriage requests involving underage girls made in 2007, the courts granted 33,560, or 94%. In the same year the total number of weddings involving minors was 10.3% of the total. Morocco’s Justice Minister Abdelwahed Radi considers the figures a positive sign. To the House of Representatives he said that “the fact that a certain number of them is refused (6%) shows that not all are approved automatically”. Radi quoted figures to support his case, saying that in 2007 the courts granted wedding requests for 1,900 girls of 15 years and 156 of the age of 14. “In these last cases” the minister said “the requests were accepted due to the particular social circumstances”. Associations of women’s rights are less optimistic than the minister. According to the Democratic League of Women’s Rights “the context of the investigation by the judges does not allow the girls to freely express their opinion before their family and fiancé”. According to Rabia Naciri, president of the Democratic Association of Moroccan Women, men who marry a second woman circumvent the law through a widely accepted religious wedding and the court therefore has no choice but to bless the wedding. (ANSAmed).
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Terrorism: Algeria, 3 Islamic Militants Killed in Tebessa
(ANSAmed) ALGIERS, FEBRUARY 18 — At least three members of Algerian, Islamist-oriented armed groups have been killed by security forces in Stah Guentis in the Tebessa region, which had been hit by several terrorist attacks this week. The news was from the APS agency, citing security sources. The three men, APS reports, were part of a group of terrorists which has been surrounded. The Algerian army began a huge round-up operation in the region after attacks in recent days left 11 dead and many injured. On Sunday at least four soldiers died and five were injured when a bomb exploded on the road to Gherab, close to Tebessa (600km south- east of Algiers). In the same area, seven people — including two women and a new-born baby — died on Thursday in a double bomb attack. (ANSAmed).
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Terrorism: Algeria, Bomb Explodes as Train Passes by
(ANSAmed) — ALGIERS, FEBRUARY 23 — The Algerian press has reported that a bomb went off yesterday as a train filled with goods was passing near El Hoecinia, near Ain Defla in western Algeria. However, authorities have not yet confirmed the reports. El Watan reported that the bomb had been hidden along the tracks and allegedly injured 4, as well as damaging numerous carriages of the train headed for Algiers. According to other newspapers, the explosion caused 4 carriages carrying diesel fuel to be derailed but did not result in any victims. (ANSAmed).
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Gaza: Czech Minister to Attend Donor Conference
(ANSAmed) — BRUSSELS, FEBRUARY 25 — On 2nd March, president of the Eu General affairs and external relations council, Karel Schwarzenberg, will attend the international conference in support of the Palestinian economy and reconstruction of Gaza. The conference will be held in Sharm el Sheikh in Egypt and it will be presided by Egypt together with Norway. The conference will also be supported by the Eu, Un, Italy, France and several Arab countries. Presentation of the consequences of the Gaza blockade and the military intervention in Gaza and the recovery plan is expected from the Palestine National Authority. Among the invited guests are Ministers of approximately 80 countries (among others, all Eu Member States, all Arab states, Usa, Canada, Russia, Japan, China) and representatives of the Eu, the Un, the African Union, the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund. (ANSAmed)
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Gaza: 436 Million Euros for Donors’ Conference From EU
(ANSAmed) — BRUSSELS, FEBRUARY 27 — The European Union will allocate 436 million euro for the reconstruction of Gaza during the upcoming Donors’ Conference, which will take place on March 2 in Sharm el Sheikh, announced the EU Commission in a statement. The Gaza Donors’ Conference is sponsored by Brussels and co-chaired by Egypt and Norway. “Our priority today is to adequately respond to humanitarian disaster in Gaza, and by offering a substantial aid package we confirm our commitment to the Palestinians”, Benita Ferrero-Waldner, Commissioner for External Relations, said. (ANSAmed).
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Gaza: ‘Yes’ to Italian NGO Operation to Well Recuperation
(ANSAmed) — ROME, FEBRUARY 27 — The Italian NGO, GVC, reported to having obtained, after more than a year and a half of waiting, the authorisation for entrance into the Gaza Strip of three containers carrying everything necessary for the installation of a desalination plant at the Al Bureij camp. Thanks to this operation, a statement reads, 22,000 people will finally have drinking water. The well, which will be re-enabled and connected to the plant, currently provides water with a chloride concentration four times more than the limits recommended by the WHO, the World Health Organisation. The NGO’s programme, as well as the plant’s installation, also provides for quality control on the water supplied by the municipal network and private sources. “Through the strengthening of dialogue between local water committees and the institutions that manage the services, the project”, the statement goes on to say, “aims at guaranteeing a more equal distribution of water resources, contributing to a reduction in the frequent service interruptions”. (ANSAmed).
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Israel: Netanyahu-Livni Split, Right-Wing Executive Likely
(by Aldo Baquis) (ANSAmed) — TEL AVIV — The Likud party is heading towards the formation of a solidly right-wing coalition government, propped up by religious parties, after another meeting between premier-designate Benyamin Netanyahu and the leader of Kadima, Tzipi Livni, ended in failure today. Talks lasting approximately one hour, held in a top Tel Aviv hotel, ended with the two politicians going to separate press de-briefings in which each accused the other of displaying a lack of the kind of flexibility needed to get a broad coalition government on its feet — the task the pair were charged with by head of State Shimon Peres last week. Neither Netanyahu nor Livni, however, explicitly ruled out having yet another meeting. But the tones of irritation in their voices, together with the contents of their statements, have given rise to a general conviction that any rapprochement between Likud and Kadima with the aim of forming a unity government has truly run aground by now. The origins of this political tangle can be traced to the results of the general election held on February 10. Kadima came out of the vote as the party with the highest absolute majority (with one seat more than Likud), but without the mathematical possibility of obtaining a majority in Parliament. The prospect of a Palestinian state would appear to have been the principal bone of contention in the talks between Netanyahu and Livni (the second to be held this week). For the Likud leader, a Palestinian state would represent a potential threat to Israeli security in the light of the strong political gains made by Hamas (a pro-Iranian movement eager for the destruction of the Zionist state) and the parallel decline of the pragmatic forces represented by the PLO and al-Fatah. For Livni, the opposite is true: it would be precisely the creation of a Palestinian state neighbouring Israel that would give rise to confidence. This is partly because, in her opinion, this is the only way to guarantee that Israel can preserve its predominantly Hebrew character in the future and not be transformed into a bi-national entity. During the morning, a prominent figure in Likud, Benny Begin (son of the party’s founder, Menachem Begin) had expressed the fear that Livni was grasping at any excuse she could in order to get out of joining a broad-coalition government, something he believes is desirable for any prospect of making progress on institutional reform and tackling the global economic crisis. ‘‘The formula of two states for two peoples,’’ Livni replied following her meeting with Netanyahu, ‘‘is far from being an empty slogan. It is a matter of principle, of substance — not an expedient’’. It would appear, on the other hand, that Netanyahu is willing to go no further than continue with the peace process: a vague formula in Kadima’s eyes, which risks isolating Israel in the face of the Quartet (USA, EU, Russia, UN). For his part, Netanyahu has implicitly accused Kadima of behaving irresponsibly ‘‘while Israel is going through a particularly critical period’’. The Likud leader listed a range of steps he had taken to ease the formation of a broad-based government: ‘‘But from Ms Livni,’’ he bemoaned, ‘‘I was greeted with a dead refusal’’. So now Likud is getting down to the task of reaching coalition agreements with the right-wing radicals of Israel Beitenu, with the orthodox Jews of Shas and the Torah Front, and with the nationalists of Hebrew Home and the National Union. This would result in a complicated six-party coalition totalling 65 MPs out of a total of 120 seats. ‘‘Israel is in need of a government and she shall have one soon’’, Netanyahu promised. (ANSAmed).
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Partners in Arms? Fatah and Hamas Say They’ll Unify
Fatah and Hamas leaders have announced an “agreement in principle” that would lead to a joint Fatah-Hamas led Palestinian Authority, according to the Bethlehem-based Ma’an news agency. The two groups plan to form a joint transitional government that would operate until elections can be held. In addition, they agreed to a prisoner exchange between them.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
PNA: EC Funds Wind Energy System for Hebron Hospital
(ANSAmed) — BRUSSELS, FEBRUARY 25 — The European Commission has signed an agreement with the Patient’s Friend Society Al Ahli hospital in the West Bank city of Hebron, to finance a cutting-edge wind energy production system that will provide over 40% of the hospital’s energy needs. This will be the first institution in Pna to generate its electricity from wind power. The EU contribution to this project is EUR 1,3 million equivalent to 80% of the total cost of the action. The project will include the installment of a wind turbine that can produce up to 700 KW of energy. Hebron, which is the largest city in the West Bank, is also one of the largest electricity consuming areas. Located at the highest point in the West Bank it is ideally suited for a wind energy plant as there is wind almost every day of the year.(ANSAmed).
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Defence: Turkish Crypto to Store NATO’s Top-Secret Files
(ANSAmed) — ANKARA, FEBRUARY 23 — The Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey (TUBITAK) researchers developed a cryptographic key loading device to store confidential data and information among NATO-member States, Anatolia news reports. The device developed by the National Research Institute of Electronics and Cryptology (UEKAE), an affiliate of the TUBITAK, was approved by the Alliance for use within NATO and the allied countries for communications with all security classification levels. Koray Arikan, one of electronics and communication engineers at the Institute, said that “600 devices would be sent to NATO in the coming days to be used to provide security in data transmission and communication among the allied countries”. “We have succeeded in developing such a portable device. It is the first of its kind in the world”, Arikan added. (ANSAmed).
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Dozens of Christian Families Go Back to Mosul
Over the past two months, 81 families have returned to the city. Sources for AsiaNews in Mosul say there is a climate of “hope and fear.” The central government is paying more attention to the conditions of refugees. The Iraqi deputy minister criticizes European governments for “inciting families to flee.”
Mosul (AsiaNews) — Over the past two months, dozens of Iraqi Christian families have returned to Mosul. In the local community, there is a climate of “hope and fear”; in Baghdad, the government seems to be paying more attention to the conditions of refugees.
Today, authorities in Mosul announced the return of a substantial group of Christian families to the city. One official confirms that “between January and February, 81 families returned to their homes.” According to the department for immigration and refugees, there are still 10,000 families of refugees in Al-Hamadaniya, a district 30 kilometers east of Mosul.
From Baghdad, there are signs of interest in the condition of refugees. The government says it is “taking care of the Christians,” and the “concrete problems” of the people are beginning to be discussed. “This aspect,” a local source confirms for AsiaNews, “is evident also in the results of the elections for the renewal of the provincial councils. Slogans of a religious nature were banned, and concrete questions were discussed: the shortage of electricity, of running water, of hospitals and health care, of telephone and postal communications, of roads and infrastructure.”
Yesterday, Asghar al-Moussaoui, Iraq’s deputy minister for immigration and refugees, criticized European nations for “inciting Christian families to flee Iraq.” “This statement is hardly credible,” the source says, “especially at the present time: it seems more an individual position than that of the government, and sounds like quite a stretch.” There are still many families of refugees in Jordan who are waiting for expatriate visas, and it is “difficult” for them to return to Iraq.
For the Christians in Kurdistan, the situation is different: “These families,” the source concludes, “hope to return to Mosul for two reasons. They want to take possession of their homes, their businesses, their property. Also, it is expensive to rent apartments in the Kurdish area, and often families are not able to afford them.”
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
Emirates Ban Israeli Cartoon Accused of Mocking Muslims
(ANSAmed) — ROMA, 26 FEB — The United Arab Emirates have blocked an Israeli cartoon on the video sharing website YouTube due to content that mocks Muslims and insults the Uae, as reported today by Al Arabiya website. The controversial cartoon, called Ahmed and Salim, is a set of satirical skits that center on the title characters who are more interested in Western pop culture than their father’s aspirations of having them die as martyrs by carrying out terrorist attacks on ‘filthy Jews or Americans,’ which the boys continue to fail at. The UAE’s Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA) said the decision to block the animated movie came after the organization received several complaints about the content that was deemed to be extremely insulting to Islam. “We informed the two UAE internet service providers Etisalat and Du of the decision and they blocked the movie,” a TRA spokesman told AlArabiya.net. “Now users who try to see it will get an ‘access denied’ message.” The skits are spoken in gibberish but are subtitled in Hebrew and English and a laughing audience can be heard in the background. One of the two young boys is dressed in traditional Gulf attire and the other wears a balaclava covering his face. The UAE flag is shown in several scenes and in one of the scenes the boys are tasked with blowing up an Israeli bus but decide to get some ice-cream instead, when they return they mistakenly plant a bomb on a UAE-flagged bus. (ANSAmed).
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Father Sues Turkish Education Ministry Over Armenian ‘Genocide’
A father is suing the Turkish Education Ministry for forcing his 11-year-old daughter to watch a “racist” and “disturbing” film countering claims that Ottoman Turks committed genocide against Armenians in 1915 with graphic allegations of Armenian atrocities against Turks.
The landmark case takes on what human rights activists have called the State’s militarist policy of brainwashing Turkey’s schoolchildren to the point of racist paranoia, aiming to preserve a nationalist status quo criticised by the European Union, which Turkey is keen to join.
“My daughter was very disturbed and frightened by the documentary and kept asking me if the Armenians had cut us up,” said Serdar Kaya, an ethnic Turkish doctor, who is suing the ministry and the child’s school for inciting racial hatred.
“There are many mass graves, bones and skulls in the DVD. They have interviewed old grandads who inspire confidence and compassion. When they say things like ‘They cut off his head’ and ‘They used it instead of firewood’, that is bound to stay with the children,” Serdar Degirmencioglu, a psychologist, told the Armenian newspaper Agos when news first broke that the documentary was being shown to primary school children — including ethnic Armenian Turks.
The Education Ministry says that it has stopped the distribution of the documentary, Sari Gelin (Blonde Bride), named after an Armenian folk song. But it has apparently not recalled it and critics say that it remains part of the curriculum.
Some MPs are bringing up the case in Parliament. The education union Egitim-Sen has condemned the film, and the History Foundation has dismissed it as baseless propaganda…
| — Hat tip: Aeneas | [Return to headlines] |
Iran Says There Will be No Slowdown in Its Nuclear Plan and Urges US to ‘Face Reality’
Iran yesterday denied having slowed down its nuclear activities and said it planned to install 50,000 centrifuges to enrich uranium over the next five years after staging a dummy run of its Bushehr reactor, built with Russian help.
Gholamreza Aghazadeh, head of Iran’s Atomic Energy Organisation, dismissed claims by the UN nuclear agency that Iran had slowed the expansion of its controversial uranium enrichment plant at Natanz.
“America should face reality and accept living with a nuclear Iran,” Aghazadeh said, adding that a new nuclear achievement would be announced in April. There are currently 6000 centrifuges operating at Natanz, up from 5000 last November.
Aghazadeh was speaking at Bushehr, on Iran’s Gulf coast, site of the country’s first nuclear power plant. Iran said it had carried out successful tests that had taken it a step closer to its launch.
“Our plan to install and run centrifuges is not based on political conditions,” Aghazadeh told reporters. “We have a plan and we will go ahead with it.”
| — Hat tip: Aeneas | [Return to headlines] |
Iran’s Hegemonic Venture
Iranian claims on the Gulf state of Bahrain are the latest example of Tehran’s growing hunger for power and influence
Last week, the Arab Gulf countries took a deep sigh. In a speech reminiscent of Saddam Hussein’s expansionist appetite, Nateq Nouri, the Iranian supreme leader’s adviser, bluntly stated that Bahrain, home to the US fifth fleet, was his country’s 14th province until the shah lost it in 1970.
What followed was intense, for the former British colony has a history of internal tensions between the Sunni ruling family and the Shia majority, many of whom have Iranian roots. The Jordanian king, Abdullah II, made a swift solidarity visit to Bahrain, while the support calls poured in from many Arab countries, including a one from Bashar al-Assad, the Syrian president, and Iran’s foremost ally in the Arab world.
In the Arabic media, editorials condemned “Iranian irredentism” and drew comparisons with Saddam’s ambitions and their catastrophic end.
| — Hat tip: Aeneas | [Return to headlines] |
Islam: UAE, Row Over Sex Within Marriage Book
(ANSAmed) — ROME, FEBRUARY 26 — Fierce controversy has erupted in the Emirates over a book about the secrets of sex within marriage written by Wedad Lootah, a female lawyer who works on matrimonial cases at the court in Dubai. The book which came out about a month ago, includes several chapters on marriage within Islam, Islamic law on the issues of co-habiting and sex, and possible solutions to sexual problems. Arab News reports that it is mainly men who are against the book, maintaining that issues of this nature should not be discussed publicly. Some of the detractors have even gone so far as to accuse the author of being an infidel and sinner for writing the book. Supporters however say that there is a great need for published information on the issues and that until know Arab society has not wanted to recognize problems arising from ignorance in sexual matters. Lootah, who wears the Muslim veil, does not seem too surprised by the criticisms, and maintains that she based the book on Islamic sources, stressing that it was even approved by the mufti of Dubai. The book was suggested by her own six years of experience working on divorce cases, and from the knowledge that many of these cases come about because of a lack of preparation for couples in the matter. (ANSAmed).
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Saudi Arabia: Critic Calls for Inquiry Into Shia Arrests
Riyadh, 25 Feb. (AKI) — A prominent Saudi intellectual has asked the government to hold an inquiry into the behaviour of religious police after nine Shia pilgrims were arrested during clashes in the holy city of Medina. Tawfiq al-Sayf called for probe because he believed the pilgrims’ arrests occurred for no reason.
Saudi authorities reportedly arrested at least nine Shia pilgrims after three days of violent clashes in the holy city. The first protest occurred on Friday and the last protest took place on Tuesday.
Jaafar al-Shaib, a leading figure among minority Saudi Shias, said the clashes occurred between Shia pilgrims and religious police near a mosque that houses the tomb of Prophet Mohammed.
“Some 1,500 Shia pilgrims gathered near the mosque for the commemoration of Prophet Mohammed’s death,” Jaafar told the media.
“We came here to celebrate the birth of Mohammed and the religious police charged at us. While we were in front of the mosque, plainclothes police charged at us with batons to disperse us.”
Religious police often prevent pilgrims venerating tombs, seen as idolatry under the strict Saudi version of Islam.
According to Arab daily, al-Quds al-Arabi, there were as many as 1,500 pilgrims outside the mosque where they held a demonstration, shouting slogans against the government and accusing authorities of discrimination.
Some pilgrims were injured in a stampede after police fired into the air to disperse the crowd, Jaafar said.
He also said some shops owned by Shias were attacked.
An interior ministry spokesman for security affairs described the incident as “a quarrel between visitors and worshippers”.
Relations are tense between Saudi Arabia’s majority Sunnis and the Shia, who are a minority of the country’s 22 million people.
The Shia are regarded as infidels under the fundamentalist Wahabi interpretation of Islam followed in Saudi Arabia and often complain of discrimination.
Many Shia critics have been jailed, and others claim to have been banned from jobs in the religious police and teaching religion
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
Turkey to Contribute to Construction of Mosque in Moscow
(ANSAmed) — ANKARA, FEBRUARY 18 — Turkey will financially contribute to the construction of the Central Mosque in Moscow, Anatolia news agency reports. According to the website of the Russian Union of Muftis, the topic of Turkey’s would be contribution came up during Turkish President Abdullah Gul’s talks with the chairperson of the Russian Union of Muftis, Ravil Gaynuddin, as part of Gul’s state visit to Russia recently. A part of the Central Mosque will be built by Turkish architects. Gaynuddin touched on the relationship between Russian and Turkish Muslims while talking with Gul and pointed out that a protocol signed last November would develop relations among the Muslim populations of both countries. (ANSAmed).
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Turkey to Transit 1bln Cubic Metres of Iranian Gas to Europe
(ANSAmed) — ANKARA, FEBRUARY 23 — National Iranian Gas Export Company (NIGEC) and a Turkish company signed a letter of agreement in Tehran to export up to 991 million cubic meters Iran’s natural gas to Europe via Turkey per year, Hurriyet Daily News reported quoting daily Tehran Times. The name of the Turkish entity was not released in the report. NIGEC Managing Director, Seyyed Reza Kassaizadeh, said that “the company has required the Turkish side to receive their government’s permission for the transfer of up to 35 billion cubic feet (991 million cubic meters) of gas per year”. A new joint company will be established in this regard and NIGEC will have 50% of the shares. Iran has the largest natural gas reserves in the world after Russia. (ANSAmed).
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Turkey: Transsexual Candidate for District Representative
(ANSAmed) — ANKARA, FEBRUARY 26 — The days of the local elections on 29 March are dwindling and political debate is growing, but, for the first time in the history of modern Turkey, a transsexual woman decided to put his candidacy as Istanbul district representative, daily Sabah reported. “As a transsexual woman, I believe I will be able to secularly fulfill my duties. I plan to determine the problems, present and solve them with the public. There are two men also up for this position, but I believe I am going to win”, Belgin Celik, the transsexual candidate said. Celik is a candidate for representative of the district neighborhood located between Cihangir and Istiklal Caddesi and, despite this district being a historical one, there has never been a female district representative candidate never mind a women ever serving in the position. This neighborhood, which 50 years ago was inhabited entirely by non-Muslims, is projecting Celik’s success in the elections as a sure thing. Celik has been a neighborhood resident for 30 years, and states: “I know everyone here and have acquaintances and friendships with everyone”. Celik, a human rights activist has also worked for the UN Refugee High Committee and International Amnesty. In addition, she is also one of the founders of the homosexual initiative, Lambda in Istanbul. (ANSAmed).
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Hate Crimes in Russia
Africans arriving in the Russian capital these days to work or study are provided with an unusal set of instructions.
The list includes the following:
- Avoid moving around the city alone
- Know your destination and walk quickly and directly towards it
- In buses, trams and trains sit close to the driver
- Avoid travelling for four hours before and after soccer and hockey games
At first glance, the instructions may appear overly cautious, perhaps even patronizing. But increasingly, people who aren’t Russian, or people who don’t look Russian, are being attacked by neo-Nazis and skinhead groups.
Jessica Golloher reports from Moscow that the attacks aren’t simply increasing in frequency, but in intensity as well. The last year for which there are official statistics is 2007. In that year, 653 people were victims of hate crimes. Of those, 73 died as a result of their injuries.
Police indifference
As Jessica found out, hate crimes are treated with indifference by police. And in some cases, assaults have taken place directly in front of police officers, who do nothing to help.
There is one ray of hope. Jessica went to a clinic run by American missionaries, which was set up specifically to help treat those who’ve been assaulted in hate crimes. There she spoke with a few men, from Ghana and Nigeria. One man, Manuel Thomas, told her how he’d been beaten by eight men who left him for dead.
| — Hat tip: TB | [Return to headlines] |
Beijing Warns Kathmandu Against Pro-Tibet Rallies in Nepal
China’s deputy foreign minister visits Nepal, tells Nepalis about his country’s concerns over protests to mark the 50th anniversary of Tibet uprising. Bilateral deals are signed. China will help Nepal build a hydroelectric plant. Nepali prime minister plans to visit Beijing to sign a new friendship treaty.
Kathmandu (AsiaNews) — Beijing is concerned about anti-Chinese rallies in Nepal to mark the 50th anniversary of the Tibet uprising against Chinese occupation and the subsequent flight of the Dalai Lama to India. It has called on Nepali authorities to keep a lid on the situation. A Chinese delegation led by Deputy Foreign Minister Hu Zhengyue met Nepali officials during a visit yesterday and today.
In his talks with Nepali Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal, Defence Minister Ram Bahadur Thapa and other Nepali security officials, China’s envoy stressed that 2009 was “a sensitive year” for his country, renewing concerns expressed by Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi in his visit to Nepal back in December.
On Wednesday self-styled activists hung a Tibet flag on the wall of the Chinese Embassy’s visa office, spray-painting ‘Free Tibet’ on the latter’s gate.
Following the talks Nepali Prime Minister’s Press Advisor Om Sharma reiterated his government’ intention to control anti-China activities (protests last August pictured).
Nepal’s defence minister said that Nepal would tighten controls on the border to prevent Dalai Lama supporters from entering Nepal.
Minister Thapa noted that “this is more than a bilateral issue between Nepal and China. The issue of Tibet is a tripartite issue between Nepal, India and China.”
At the end of his trip, China’s envoy said the meeting held in the Nepali capital were part of a “regular and normal exchange of visits,” adding that the two sides “discussed the need to work together in many areas.” He said the Chinese government is going to increase its assistance to Nepal in various fields.
One field is economic and technical cooperation. Agreements were signed, especially concerning Chinese funding for the Narsinghgad Hydropower Project in Jajarkot, in western Nepal.
Nepali officials also announced that Prime Minister Dahal and Foreign Minister Thapa will visit Beijing at the end of the April and mid-May.
The Nepali government spokesman said that the trips will allow the parties to finalise a peace and friendship treaty that will define relations between the two countries.
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
Kashmir: Young Converts From Islam Pray for Benedict XVI
After a group of Muslims from North Africa and the Middle East, young converts from Kashmir join in the prayers for the pope launched by AsiaNews for this Lent. The three converts are offering their suffering and marginalization, together with the sacrifice of their father Bashir, murdered by Muslim extremists because he had converted to Christianity. There is also participation from Italy, where the humiliations suffered by John Paul II are also being remembered.
Mumbai (AsiaNews) — Some young former Muslims who converted to Catholicism are joining in the prayers for the Pope this Lent. Shabnam (21), Saira (17), and Adil (16), together with their mother Ameena, who still lives in Kashmir, want Benedict XVI to know that they are praying for him and offering their sufferings and humiliations for his mission. “We pray that he may be strong,” Shabnam he says, “and may continue to be the beacon of truth and love for the whole world.”
The three young people and their mother are participating in the proposal made by AsiaNews yesterday, that during Lent Christians should pray for the pontiff, who is at the center of a media “war” against his ministry. The proposal originated from a suggestion sent to AsiaNews by a group of several hundred former Muslims in North Africa and the Middle East, who have launched prayer novenas for the pope, whom they see as a “sign of Jesus’ love and a defender of the weak.”
Adil, the youngest son, who this year will take his final year school exams, sees a profound unity between the sufferings and humiliations of converts from Islam, and the humiliations suffered by the pope: “I was baptized when I was very young, and it has always been very difficult: criticism, sarcasm, threats, discrimination, and social ostracism have caused us great suffering. But every suffering teaches us something, and our faith is strengthened, we rely on Christ and it is he who guides us in difficult times.
“Holy and beloved Father, never lose sight of your mission, do not forget the reason why God chose you, guide the generations to truth, and may God always be with you.”
Bashir Ahmad Tantray, the father of Shabnam, Saira, and Adil, was killed by Islamic militants in November of 2006, in broad daylight. He had converted to Christianity in 1995, and had fled from his village after being threatened by Islamic extremist groups. Years later, he had gone back there to care for his dying father, and was killed.
Bashir was an engineer for the J&K Power Development Dept, and regional coordinator of the Global Council of Indian Christians in Kashmir. “Ever since the death of our father,” Shabnam recounts, “it has been horrible. Few can understand our suffering and sense of abandonment. We fled to Mumbai, but our mother is still in Kashmir. We see her only during vacations. For her, every day is a constant struggle and a constant suffering.”
Among the expressions of support for the proposal to pray for Benedict XVI sent to AsiaNews is one from an Italian woman, Paola.
“I join the initiative without reservation,” Paola writes, “I will pray for the pope, as I have always done since 1978.”
And she recalls that John Paul II was also frequently attacked (and still is today, even after his death): “In order to proclaim to humanity that it is only in Christ that man rediscovers himself, in order to seek unity among Christians, Pope Wojtyla did not hesitate, even at the last limits of his strength, to confront exhausting journeys, almost impossible encounters, even criticisms on the part of those who were close to him. Did we ever ask ourselves how much pain he felt in the face of the accusations from Küng, or from the Lefebvrists? And what can be said about the radical attacks and his isolation amid his countless appeals against war, against abortion, against the dangers of a humanity without God?”
“Yes,” she concludes, “I will pray for Pope Benedict XVI; even more than this, I will entrust him the intercession of his ‘little-great predecessor’, but I also urge more fervent prayers that the appeal of ‘Santo subito’ [the immediate canonization of John Paul II] may come to fruition.”
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
Protesters Who Set Themselves on Fire in Beijing Are Uyghurs
They had come to present a petition. Today the group “Tiananmen Mothers” asked the government to reveal whether 127 people who disappeared in the massacre on June 4, 1989, are alive or dead. Experts: the government is not resolving the problems, and there are more and more protests, some of them with extreme actions.
Beijing (AsiaNews/Agencies) — The three Chinese who set themselves on fire in a car when the police stopped them in downtown Beijing were Uyghurs. Experts expect numerous protests this year, because the government is preaching social harmony, but is not resolving the problems. The police are responding by patrolling Beijing with helicopters.
It appears that the three, who were members of the same family, had come to the capital to present a petition about a property dispute. The parents are still being treated in the hospital for their burns, but there is no information about their son, who was taken away by the police. The reason behind their action is unknown; it may have been an extreme protest against a situation of injustice.
Next week, the annual session of the National People’s Assembly begins, and for the occasion many Chinese go to Beijing to present petitions, asking for justice. Today the group “Tiananmen Mothers” presented a petition to find out what happened to 127 people who disappeared during the massacre on June 4, 1989, when the army brought in tanks and fired on thousands of unarmed demonstrators who were occupying Tiananmen Square and calling for democratic reforms. 20 years later, it is still unknown whether these 127 people are dead or in prison.
The group, which unites the parents of young people who died or disappeared that June 4, is asking the government to verify all of the deaths, compensate families, and punish “those responsible for the killings.” According to Human Rights in China, the petition claims that “China has become like an airtight iron chamber and all the demands of the people about June 4, all the anguish, lament and moaning of the victims’ relatives and the wounded have been sealed off.” The request for official recognition of the killings has long been headed by Ding Zilin,a retired professor whose 17-year-old son died in the square. At the time, China limited itself to describing the demonstrators as “counterrevolutionaries,” and still speaks of it as a period of “political tumult,” avoiding further comments.
Another protest took place yesterday, when, in front of more than 100 journalists, in front of the press office of the State Council, a man climbed a street sign, shouting “give back my political rights” and displaying a placard (in the photo). Finally, the police forced him down.
This year, there are many anniversaries of questions that are still open, and the police have begun to patrol Beijing with helicopters ahead of next week’s session, to better control the situation.
The analyst Zhang Dajun observes that last year, the Beijing Olympics drew Chinese public opinion, but he expects that this year there will be many public protests, because “people’s problems have not been solved. When people become desperate, they try extreme measures, like the burning incident in Beijing, to have their voices heard.”
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
Pyongyang Ready to Launch “Satellite”
The communist government claims it is “rocket for spatial communications”. Analysts do not exclude the possibility it is a missile capable of carrying a nuclear war head. The South Korean foreign minister in Beijing to discuss the North’s nuclear ambitions. Pyongyang has increased its military spending, but the population continues to starve.
Seoul (AsiaNews/Agencies) — North Korea says it is preparing to launch a telecommunications satellite on one of its rockets, which analysts have said could actually be a test-launch of its longest-range missile Taepodong-2. The satellite would be capable of containing atomic warheads and could reach Alaska or the US western seaboard.
The launch may take place on March 8th next from Donghae, North Hamgyong province, to mark the renewal of the North Korean National Parliament.
Fresh rumours of another imminent missile launch by Pyongyang are alarming the international community and regional neighbours. Japan says it is ready to face an ‘emergency’ situation. Today the South Korean foreign minister travelled to Beijing to meet his Chinese counterpart and discuss the North Korean issue.
Yesterday Seoul also published its white paper report on Defence, which defines North Korean regime a “direct and serious” threat. Its military had grown to 1.19 million, an increase of 20,000 from 2006, while the number of its lightly equipped special forces trained to swiftly infiltrate South Korea had increased 50%; it reiterated a 2006 assessment that North Korea possesses 2,500 to 5,000 tonnes of chemical weapons. Military expenditure decided by Pyongyang weighs heavily on the North Korean population, which continues to starve and the children continue to be exploited as a “working force”.
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
Australia Seeks Ways to Reduce Animal Gas Emissions
In its ongoing quest to reduce the emissions of gases blamed for climate change — and placate grumbling green activists — the Australian government has earmarked $17 million for research into how to prevent the country’s 120 million farm animals from emitting so much methane.
The project, launched this week by Agriculture Minister Tony Burke, will fund 18 areas of research, including dietary changes, genetic manipulation and ways to control stomach bacteria to reduce methane production.
As the animals chew, belch and pass wind, they release methane, while nitrous oxide is released from their waste. Both are “greenhouse gases” and are, scientists say, considerably more potent than carbon dioxide (CO2), the gas that gets most attention from global warming proponents.
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Denmark: Politicians Plot to Deport Weapons Violators
The integration minister plans to propose a legal change that would allow foreign criminals convicted of weapons violations to be deported
Integration Minister Birthe Rønn Hornbech wants to table a proposal that would tighten weapons laws and allow for the deportation of foreign criminals who have been convicted of weapons’ crime.
‘We must do everything to make it clear that we simply won’t stand for this. Those [criminals who have broken weapons laws] who do not need be in the country, have to know that they are at risk of being deported,’ said Hornbech to DR News.
Both the Conservatives and the Danish People’s Party (DF) have already backed the plan, which would signal a parliamentary majority backing for the change.
‘If someone is not a Danish citizen and has committed a crime then they should be deported, no matter how long they have been in Denmark,’ said DF legal spokesman Peter Skaarup. ‘We should not accept that Denmark is becoming a playground for criminal activities.’
Khalid Alsubeihi has worked for many years with immigrant youths in the Nørrebro district of Copenhagen and warned against introducing legislation that would punish one group more than another.
‘It’s sending the wrong signal to young people. Criminality should be heavily punished, but it should be equally so for everyone,’ said Alsubeihi.
| — Hat tip: TB | [Return to headlines] |
Italy: Non-EU Workers Earn 7.000 Euro Less
(ANSAmed) — ROME, FEBRUARY 20 — The average annual retribution per capita for non-EUs who work in Italy is 11,712 euros. In the north this figure reaches 12,200-12,300 euros while in the south it goes down to less than 9,000. Compared to Italian workers, foreigners earn about 7,000 euros less per year, a report presented today from CNEL on immigrant immigration shows. The difference in retribution between the north and south, among non-EU workers, is on average 3,000 euros, but has become 5,000 in the first region (Friuli with 13,000 euros) and the last (Molise with 8,400). In the comparison with Italians, non-EUs earn over 7,000 euros less, which in some contexts become up to 10,000 less. This is the case in Rome (11,000 euros less) and in Milan (13,000 less). The differences are less accentuated in the south. The CNEL report highlights that 87,983 immigrants are employed in high qualified positions (managers and employees, workers and apprentices excluded) while the total number of immigrants is 5 million (37.4% of the total number of company employees). Sardinia, Sicily and Lazio occupy the first places with the highest percentages (12-15%) while the last are the central northern regions. In Cagliari, qualified immigrants number about 20%, in Rome and Naples 13%. The rate of foreign entrepreneurship averages 4.35% (there were 13,000 in 2006, becoming 165,000 in June 2008); it is superior in Sardinia and Calabria (in Cantazaro and Cagliari it is 17%) than in northern regions. (ANSAmed).
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Italy: Doctors Refuse to Report Illegal Immigrants, Survey Says
Rome, 25 Feb. (AKI) — A survey of Italian doctors shows 85 percent of them have rejected a move by the Berlusconi government allowing them to report illegal immigrants to authorities when they seek medical care. The survey, released on Wednesday, sought the doctors’ reaction to the measure contained in a series of tough security laws recently approved by the Italian Senate or upper house of parliament.
The survey was conducted by Quotivadis, an online daily produced by the medical and scientific organisation, Univadis.
Despite the measure, 21 percent of doctors said they would “continue to act in the same way”.
Research by Adnkronos found there has been a decline of 10 to 15 percent in the number of immigrants using hospital services in Italy since the measure was approved, however.
Allowing doctors and medical staff to report illegal immigrants reverses a previous prohibition that dated to 1998.
An emergency decree issued by the government last Friday also allows authorities to detain immigrants for up to six months, instead of two months, as they try to identify them and process asylum requests.
The decree also sets a mandatory life sentence for the rape of minors or attacks where the victim is killed, and establishes rules for citizen street patrols to be conducted by unarmed and unpaid volunteers.
The conservative government led by prime minister Silvio Berlusconi passed the measures after a recent spate of rape attacks allegedly committed by Romanian immigrants.
Racial tension and attacks against Romanians and other immigrants are on the rise throughout Italy.
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
Italy: Govt ‘Planning to Triple’ Immigrant Detention Centre Capacity
Rome, 25 Feb. (AKI) — The conservative Italian government is planning to more than triple the 1,200 illegal immigrants that can currently be held in the country’s 11 detention centres, unnamed officials have told Adnkronos.
Ministers were due to meet on Thursday to identify sites where the new centres could be located to hold 4,000-4,500 immigrants within the next few months.
Feasibility studies are being carried out this week and the new centres are likely to be housed in former military barracks and military facilities, as well as disused prisons.
Closeness to airports and non-proximity to residential areas will be factors in locating the new detention centres. The government wants to have one such centre in every Italian region.
Sites under consideration include the southern city of Caserta, the northern towns of Boscomantico and Tessera in the Veneto region, Grosseto and Campi Bisenzio in Italy’s central Tuscany region and Falconara, close to the Adriatic port city of Ancona in the Marche region.
Detailed costings for the new immigrant detention centres are not yet available, but it is estimated they will cost tens of millions of euros to build.
The move follows an increase in the period of time illegal immigrants can be held in Italian detention centres from two to six months as part of measures contained in a tough new emergency security decree issued by the government last Friday.
The government says the new detention centres will enable Italian authorities to more efficiently identify illegal immigrants and asylum-seekers, and expel those who are not entitled to remain in Italy.
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
Lampedusa: Entry Denied to Euromed Mission
(ANSAmed) — ROME, FEBRUARY 27 — “Agrigento’s prefecture denied us entrance to the Centre for Identification and Expulsion (CIE) in Lampedusa. So we couldn’t check with our own eyes the condition in which Tunisian citizens who have been held in the CIE illegally for over a month are living”. This criticism comes from the representatives of the delegation sent by the Euro-Mediterranean network for Human Rights (EUROMED) on February 25 and 26, including the Tunisian League for the Defence of Human Rights (LTDH) and the Tunisian Federation for a Two-Shore Citizenship (FTRC), along with the Italian Council for Refugees (CIR). “We came back from Lampedusa last night”, said Mokhtar Trifi, President of LTDH, ‘where hundreds of Tunisians held in the centre live isolated from the world, without being able to have contacts with those outside, without even being allowed to recharge their mobile phones as there are no electrical sockets. Even the most basic protection and the rights guaranteed by Italian law and by international law have been called off’’. The reasons for the denial by Agrigento authorities weren’t yet clear. The Interior Ministry will have to give us an explanation for this refusal, they say at CIR. What is certain, the members of the Euromed network mission say, is that out of some 800 Tunisians on the island at least 39 have applied for asylum. “They shouldn’t be there, but they should already have been transferred to the various Reception Centres for Asylum Seekers (CARA) around the peninsula”, said CIR’s head Christopher Hein. “No one — he said — has really tried to understand why those North African citizens held in the CIE have applied for asylum”. Most of the applicants — the mission members claim — come form the Redeyef mining area, where the riots of the past months led the Tunisian government to react with heavy-handed repression. “They fled from an intolerable situation to live in an awful situation such as the one at CIE”, LTDH’s president Triffi said, “The fact that an official delegation of the Tunisian government managed to enter the Centre in the past few days while our association cannot manage to get the permits is a very serious one”. “We want the CIE to be closed down and that only the CPA, the Centre for Early Reception, to remain open, and attention to be paid to asylum seekers”, Omaya Essedick, of FTRC, said. “Behind the recent agreement concluded by Italy’s Interior Minister Maroni and his Tunisian counterpart Kacem — under which, among other things, 500 Tunisians are to be repatriated by the end of March — there are undoubtedly economical advantages for Tunis”, Essedick said. (ANSAmed).
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Lampedusa: 190 Repatriations in a Month’s Time
(ANSAmed) — ROME, FEBRUARY 27 — Over the course of the week, 57 illegal non-EU’s, mostly Tunisians and Algerians who landed in Lampedusa, were repatriated, reported the Interior Ministry. Next week another 80 Tunisian citizens, already identified, will be transferred from Lampedusa to be repatriated after a technical stop-over in the Centre for Identification and Expulsion at Ponte Galeria in Rome. The total number of repatriations for February is 190 illegal foreigners. (ANSAmed).
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Migration: Kouchner in Malta, When Illegal a Burden to Share
(ANSAmed) — LA VALLETTA, 27 FEB — French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner this afternoon spoke on the need for burden sharing in the problem of illegal migration to be spread from the south of the EU to the north. Addressing a news conference with Foreign Minister Tonio Borg, Mr Kouchner referred to a ceremony at the university in the morning during which he was awarded a doctorate honoris causa saying it had been a very moving ceremony. He said that Malta was facing a huge burden with regards to illegal migration and the EU needed to share the burden with the country. France, he said, had already promised to take 80 immigrants but this was not enough. Dr Borg said that besides irregular migration, he and his French counterpart discussed about the office of the Union for the Mediterranean. Dr Borg thanked France for its gesture in accepting 80 immigrants from Malta — the highest number ever taken by a European country so far. Discussions between Malta and France, he said, would continue at an EU and a bilateral level. (ANSAmed).
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Switzerland: Rightwing Extremism on the Rise
Skinheads and other extremists are a small but growing group in Switzerland, where researchers say one in three people is xenophobic and one in five anti-Semitic.
But the far right remains fractured and weak, with just 1,200 active members, according to the national research programme findings.
Overall, that’s about on par with Germany and the rest of Europe.
“Although extremism is on the rise, it is not at a level where it would be an immediate threat to democratic society,” said Marcel Niggli, president of NRP40+, which presented the findings in Bern on Tuesday.
Niggli was one of four researchers who discussed the results of 13 studies commissioned by the government after neo-Nazis disrupted a festival on August 1, 2000 marking the founding of the Swiss confederation.
The SFr4-million ($3.45-million) project is the first to take a comprehensive look at the social profiles of members of rightwing groups, their victims and the role the media plays in how society responds to these acts.
The researchers also wanted to put Switzerland’s rightwing extremists into an international context for comparison. Recommendations on how to combat the problem, however, could prove to be difficult.
“There isn’t a measure you can do to say tomorrow it will no longer exist,” said Sandro Cattacin, a project leader.
Skinhead history
Rightwing extremism has changed throughout the years in Switzerland from a limited underground movement at the end of the Second World War into a larger subculture today, according to Damir Skenderovic, author of one of the 13 studies.
Skenderovic says that the transformation accelerated during the mid-1980s during the “Small Springtime of Fronts” when young skinheads took more public roles. Some groups were highly organised propagandists that rallied around a single leader while others were little more than gangs that drank at the same bar.
But their impacts were clear. Statistics show that between 1988 and 1993 members of the extreme right committed 378 violent acts, assaulting immigrants, burning asylum seekers’ lodgings and threatening opponents. Fourteen people were killed and 145 people were injured.
“Given the size of the population, the number of deaths in Switzerland has been far higher, proportionately, than in Germany,” Skenderovic wrote.
Today the situation has grown considerably worse. Police figures estimate there are about 1,200 active rightwing extremists in Switzerland, a 30 per cent increase since 2000 and a 336 per cent leap since 1997. They have committed more than 990 violent acts between 1997 and 2007.
“In a more globalised society like we have today, that isn’t really surprising,” Niggli said. “But it is nevertheless valuable to know that there is a rather important group that does not accept one of the foundations of democracy, the equality of men.”
Family violence
Starting around 1985 the media began to report more frequently on random acts of violence committed by skinheads and hooligans. Today that trend continues.
Some researchers said the media had become “hysterical” with such stories — as with the recent case of a Brazilian woman who falsely claimed to have been attacked by Neo-Nazis in Zurich. That kind of reporting can be dangerous because emotions hinder rational dialogue and can lead to more violence, they said.
The presenters were reluctant to speculate on the reasons why extremism is on the rise in Switzerland because the studies presented on Tuesday were the first comprehensive body of work for the country on the subject. Instead, the project was intended to provide a snapshot of the situation now.
Thomas Gabriel, a project leader from Zurich University, looked at the relationship between extremists and their upbringing.
“There are several influences and life circumstances that have to come together,” he said. “What we found was a link to conservative or rightwing attitudes and violence within the family. Another development path is a juvenile trying to get attention.”
Contrary to some opinions, Gabriel said such youths and their families have not been left out of modern society and that social marginalisation plays only a minor role in the evolution of a skinhead. Rather, it’s the social network and family itself that influences their development.
Of 26 cases his group looked at, 77 per cent of the extremists were male with an average age of 18, though half were under 20. More than 50 per cent belonged to a political organisation, like the Swiss Hammerskins or the Party of Nationally Oriented Swiss (PNOS).
Islamophobia
While far-right activities may be proportionate with the rest of Europe, Switzerland does breed its own variety of extremist.
According to a survey of 3,056 people from three of the country’s language regions, nearly one in three Swiss are Islamophobes. More shocking is sexism, where 40 per cent of the population does not agree entirely with gender equality. Seven per cent believes violence can solve problems.
But extreme rightwingers are in no position to hurt Switzerland’s democracy because those groups tend to be marginalised and not in government, said Cattacin, who looked at monitoring extremist attitudes. Switzerland’s biggest political group, the Swiss People’s Party, is considered rightwing but it is hardly extreme.
Nevertheless that party helps to vent at least some steam for other, far more radical groups by championing conservative stances on immigration and asylum, for example. Giving a voice to everyone is critical to a democracy, he added.
“Switzerland has to work on the public space to give all positions a way to express themselves,” Cattacin said.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Theatre: Illegal Immigrant Harlequin Opens Biennial Festival
(by Paolo Petroni). (ANSAmed) — VENICE, FEBRUARY 23 — The Biennial Theatre Festival has opened in the name of Goldoni, which following the Mediterranean project conceived by Maurizio Scaparro brings characters and situations from the African shore to the Venice lagoon in upcoming days. The ‘Servant of Two Masters’, the classic text made famous with a live version by Giorgio Strehler, already shows the signs of a changing world and becomes Argelino, a poor illegal immigrant arriving by boat, who because of hunger, becomes exploited as a labourer by a gay couple and falls in love with another immigrant who marries his master in order to obtain a stay permit. This is the rereading and rewriting of the Goldonian outline presented in Mestre, the inland part of Venice, by Spanish director Andres Lima with the Animalario company, who said: “What interested me about Harlequin was not the mask, but his great hunger, at a time when immigration to Europe creates communication and understanding problems and mainly, new slavery”. The Harlequin proposed many years ago by the Teatro delle Albe, with a black actor as e Senegalian street merchant, comes to mind. But here the choice becomes extreme and played not with the classical Goldonian games and ambiguities, but harsh relationships, exploitation, and love-sexual interests. If anything Fassbinder’s rewriting of the “Bottega del caffe” comes to mind, with this being a less expressionist version, more Mediterranean in its black atmosphere. Other more exemplary stories surround the protagonists, like a father who wants to force his daughter to marry for interests and money, or the young Smeraldina, a South American girl with a master, Pantaleone who beats and abuses her, while she does not stop defending her humiliated femininity and dreams of a society where she can live better, with respect as a woman, but also as a foreigner and as a worker. The various characters take the stage crossing through the audience trying to sell the public small useless lighted gadgets, like the vendors on the street or at restaurants. The acting, body language, the invention of jokes with an echo that recalls the African speech and life of Morocco. A group of relationships based on the abuse of power that exploits the extreme need and impossibility to defend one another, all with a little bit of excess, until an emblematic simplification, which lives thanks only to the irony, impetuousness, humiliation, and personality of the Argelin of Jvier Gutierrez, with his perpetual, obsessive search for something to eat. (ANSAmed).
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
UK: is the BNP Becoming Cumbria’s Cup of Tea?
The far-right party is on its best behaviour in the North-west — and may win its first seat in the European Parliament. But scratch the surface, says Paul Vallely, and the familiar anti-immigrant message shines through…
| — Hat tip: Aeneas | [Return to headlines] |
Atheists Launch Non-Prophet Bus Campaign
“There’s probably no God. Now stop worrying and enjoy your life.” That message, on British buses for just over a month, is coming to Switzerland.
The Swiss freethinkers’ association launched a campaign on Monday to collect donations to “give a voice to those people who feel plagued by the missionary slogans” plastered around the country.
“We did it because so many people asked us to do it,” Reta Caspar, spokeswoman for the association, told swissinfo.
“We hadn’t planned it — we had our own campaign last October in which we invited people to ‘out’ themselves on our website, saying they were non-religious and why.”
Caspar said one of the aims of that campaign was to give faces to the 11 per cent of Swiss who are non-religious.
“When we saw what happened in London and how people were so happy to have a campaign like this and how much support they got, we said we had to do it.”
The Swiss freethinkers’ association, which celebrated its 100th anniversary last year, guarantees that all donations will be used only for the bus campaign.
“People called us and emailed us saying ‘finally — someone is standing up for non-religious people. We’re so fed up with religious advertising in Switzerland everywhere’,” Caspar said.
As an example she cites the biblical quotations on walls and newspapers in Switzerland paid for by the Christian organisation Agentur C.
International success
The Atheist Bus Campaign, which has spread to the United States, was launched by British journalist Ariane Sherine on October 21 in response to a Christian bus advertisement which led people to an internet link saying non-Christians would spend “all eternity in torment in hell”, burning in “a lake of fire”.
The campaign’s original goal was to raise £5,500 (SFr9,150) to run its own counter slogan on 30 buses across London for four weeks. Within three days more than £100,000 had flooded in.
The first “atheist buses” started running on January 6 and 800 ended up getting stuck in traffic jams around Britain for four weeks. Future plans include placing 1,000 adverts on the London Underground featuring quotations from famous atheists.
In response, three Christian groups launched counter campaigns with slogans including “The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God”.
" People called us and emailed us saying ‘finally — someone is standing up for non-religious people’. "
Reta Caspar Fed up
Caspar says their initial target is Fr50,000 ($43,000) — “actually I think we could make SFr100,000” — and explains it would cost about SFr5,000 to take out one advert on a tram or bus for one year in a city. It’s a bit cheaper in the countryside.
“With the money starting to come in, we can see where it’s coming from. That will influence our decision on where to spend it,” she said.
But she adds that it’s not actually their aim to make as much money as possible.
“We want to show that there really are a lot of people, internationally, fed up with not only religious advertising but also the religious speak of politicians,” she said.
“What made us really angry was when the Swiss president [Hans-Rudolf Merz] ended his New Year address with the sentence ‘relying on our mutual beliefs we are going to meet the challenges of the New Year’. We wrote to him asking what ‘our mutual beliefs’ were. He confirmed receipt of our letter but hasn’t replied. He said he’s working on it.”
Counter campaign
Reactions to the campaign in Switzerland have been mixed.
The main national churches didn’t want to comment and the centre-right Christian Democratic Party said it only took a stance on political matters not religious ones.
The Protestant Party on the other hand said it was considering a counter campaign.
Simon Weber, spokesman for the Federation of Swiss Protestant Churches, told swissinfo: “You could also say the opposite: there probably is a God — don’t worry, enjoy your life.”
He added: “Preaching about God and salvation is the church’s mission and it’s been doing that for 2,000 years. If someone says something different, that’s nothing new — although it’s new in this form. The campaign in Britain didn’t trouble us.”
Positive
Caspar points out that their campaign, Geniess das Leben! (Enjoy Life!), is positive. She adds that the subtitle — “für religiöse Abrüstung” — is a call for religious disarmament.
“The Reformed Protestant church in Basel has launched a tram that is covered with all sorts of statements about the church for one year. They’re trying to get back the 2,000 or so people who left the church over the past couple of years.”
This, she says, is a type of “arming”, with everyone starting to fight for members and power in society.
“We think this is really counterproductive and it has to stop.”
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Lawmakers Declare Fetuses to be People, Too
States vote on measures that extend full ‘personhood’ rights to pre-born
Legislative bodies in two states voted this month to define the beginning of human life — and human rights — at conception.
On Feb. 17, North Dakota’s House of Representatives voted 51-41 to approve a bill that declares “any organism with the genome of homo sapiens” — even one not yet born — is a person protected by rights under the state’s constitution.
Yesterday, the Montana Senate voted 26-24 to approve S.B. 406, a constitutional Personhood Amendment that states, “All persons are born free and have certain inalienable rights. … Person means a human being at all stages of human development of life, including the state of fertilization or conception, regardless of age, health, level of functioning or condition of dependency.”
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Physicians: Obama Plan Will ‘Shut Down Hospitals’
‘Radically pro-abortion agenda’ would remove conscience protections
Doctors are forecasting the closure of hospitals and clinics across America and a mass migration of physicians and their assistances to other careers should the Obama administration succeed in its attempt to overrule their rights of conscience.
“Thousands of conscientious and compassionate physicians, nurses, hospitals and clinics currently serve poor women and those who live in medically underserved areas,” said David Stevens, CEO of the Christian Medical Association today.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Do These Mysterious Stones Mark the Site of the Garden of Eden?
The first is its staggering age. Carbon-dating shows that the complex is at least 12,000 years old, maybe even 13,000 years old.
That means it was built around 10,000BC. By comparison, Stonehenge was built in 3,000 BC and the pyramids of Giza in 2,500 BC.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
OIC Secretary General Condemns Israeli TV’s Defamation of Prophet Muhammad
The Secretary General of the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC), Professor Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu, vehemently condemned the Tenth Israeli TV channel’s defamation of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH), hurting thus the feelings of Muslims and slurring their faith. He emphasizes that the calumnious program bears testimony to the truly racist character of the Israeli Establishment and its steadfast endeavors to trigger dissension and stir up conflicts particularly that this condemnable act unfolds a few days after the broadcast of a program with offensive material against Prophet Jesus and his Mother Mary (peace be upon them).
The feelings of Muslims throughout the Muslim world have been hurt by the unceasing and malignant campaign against Islam and Prophet Muhammad (PBUH). The campaign has shamelessly targeted all sacred beliefs and symbols, persistently slandering Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) and disparaging a tolerant religion embraced by more than a billion and a half people.
Hence, the OIC emphatically reaffirms that Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) is a red line for the Muslim Ummah [nation] and reiterates the call for the creation of an international alliance to combat the defamation of religions and scared faiths and oppose any insults against religious symbols.
| — Hat tip: TB | [Return to headlines] |
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