Telegraph View: We Are Edging Towards the Partition of Libya

THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Western recognition of Libya’s National Transitional Council (NTC) looks like the start of a process that Nato has been desperate to avoid – the partition of the country.

Yesterday’s decision by the British Government to recognise Libya’s National Transitional Council (NTC) as the “sole governmental authority” of that country has limited practical but considerable symbolic significance.

It follows the decision a fortnight ago by the Libya Contact Group, meeting in Istanbul, to accept the rebels as the legitimate governing authority in Libya. A total of 30 countries, including the US and France, have now taken similar action.

In practical terms it means the expulsion from London of the Gaddafi regime’s remaining diplomats and the transfer of the embassy building and £91 million in frozen assets to the NTC.

William Hague, the Foreign Secretary, said it would also enable the UK and its allies to offer greater practical assistance to the NTC on the ground. But it is the underlying symbolism of the measure that matters most.

This looks like the start of a process that the Nato alliance has been desperate to avoid – the effective partition of the country. » | Telegraph View | Wednesday, July 27, 2011

Unbelievable Nonsense from the Muslim Militants in Somalia!

MAIL ONLINE: Militants believe triangular snack 'resembles Christian Holy Trinity'

Somalia's al-Shabaab group has banned samosas after ruling the popular snacks are 'offensive' and too Christian.

Militant Islamist fighters last week used vehicles mounted with loudspeakers to announce the bizarre ruling across the regions of the war-torn country it controls.

The extremist group has offered no official explanation for the ban on the triangular snacks, which are commonly cooked up and served across the Horn of Africa. Islamist group in Somalia bans samosas after deciding they're too Western » | Stewart MacClean | Tuesday, July 26, 2011

Massacre Suspect Wanted to Save Europe from Islam

”Spanish Revolution” in Full Swing

Belgian Face-Veil Ban Goes Into Effect

RADIO FREE EUROPE: On July 23, Belgium became the second European country after France to ban the wearing of veils covering the face in public.

The Belgian parliament passed the law by a vote of 149-1 in April 2010. But due to the fall of the government shortly thereafter and an inconclusive election that left the country with a caretaker government, its implementation was delayed until now.

The law does not explicitly mention niqabs or burqas. But it prohibits the covering of one's face in public for security reasons -- effectively banning the two Islamic garments. Violators will face fines of 137.50 euros ($197.50) and up to seven days in jail.

Support for the legislation crossed the ideological spectrum, with supporters calling it an effort to promote gender equality. » | Rikard Jozwiak | Saturday, July 23, 2011

Interview: Inside Norway Bomber's 'Manifesto' Claims
Blake Hounshell, managing editor, Foreign Policy magazine, spoke to al Jazeera about the 1500 pages 'manifesto' document that was allegedly written by the Norway bomber.

Norway Attacks: Utøya Gunman Boasted of Links to UK Far Right

THE GUARDIAN: Anders Brehing Breivik took part in online discussions with members of the EDL and other anti-Islamic groups

Anders Behring Breivik, the man accused of the murder of at least 92 Norwegians in a bomb and gun massacre, boasted online about his discussions with the far-right English Defence League and other anti-Islamic European organisations.

The Norwegian prime minister, Jens Stoltenberg, said Norwegian officials were working with foreign intelligence agencies to see if there was any international involvement in the slaughter. "We have running contact with other countries' intelligence services," he said.

Breivik was arrested on Utøya island where he shot and killed at least 85 people, mostly teenagers, at a youth summer camp for supporters ofNorway's Labour party after bombing Oslo's government district just hours before. Dressed as a police officer, he ordered the teenagers to gather round him before opening fire. Survivors described how dozens of people were mown down. The massacre led to the largest death toll ever recorded by a single gunman on the rampage. » | Mark Townsend in Sundvollen, Peter Beaumont and Tracy McVeigh | Saturday, July 23, 2011

THE GUARDIAN: Anders Behring Breivik: motives of a mass murderer: Killer is not ashamed of his terrorist act of massacring Norwegians and bombing government offices in Oslo » | Jamie Doward | Saturday, July 23, 2011

Norwegian Massacre Gunman Was a Right-wing Extremist Who Hated Muslims
THE DAILY MAIL: Suspect named by Norwegian media as Anders Behring Breivik / Police believe he acted alone and not connected to Islamist organisations

The massacre in Norway was the work of a man with extreme right wing views who hated Muslims, police said this morning.

Officers found a series of raving internet posts by 32-year-old Anders Behring Breivik, who was arrested for gunning down children on the island of Utoya yesterday.

National police chief Sveinung Sponheim told public broadcaster NRK that the suspected gunman's Internet postings 'suggest that he has some political traits directed toward the right, and anti-Muslim views, but if that was a motivation for the actual act remains to be seen'. » | Daily Mail Reporter | Saturday, July 23, 2011

Chechnya Moves to Ban 'Un-Islamic' Energy Drinks
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Russia's Muslim Chechen Republic is moving to ban non-alcoholic energy drinks like red bull as "un-Islamic," it has been reported.

Chechnya's increasingly draconian interpretations of Islamic law, with alcohol all but banned and women required to wear head scarfs in state buildings, has drawn criticism that the North Caucasus republic is introducing laws that are often in breach of the Russian constitution.

"Energy drinks are comparable to beer," Rukman Bartiyev, Chechen deputy health minister said. » | Roland Oliphant in Moscow | Tuesday, July 19, 2011

Inside Story: Will America Default?

Herman Cain: Islam Combines Church and State

Read the article here | Sunday, July 17, 2011

Saudi Beheads Man for Sexual Assault
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: A Saudi man was beheaded on Friday in Tabuk in the ultraconservative kingdom's north after being convicted of sexually assaulting another man's wife, a statement from the interior ministry said.

Adel bin Mohammed Assiri forcibly entered the man's apartment and assaulted the man's wife, hitting her, photographing her naked and attempting to rape her, said the statement carried by the official SPA news agency.

His execution brings to 32 the number of people beheaded in Saudi Arabia this year, according to an AFP tally based on official and human rights group reports. Continue reading and comment » | Saturday, July 16, 2011

A Message to My Followers, Visitors
I should like my followers and visitors to know that I am taking a holiday from full-time blogging in the coming weeks. Any blogs will be sporadic, for I shall be away from home for a while, too.

I trust that you will understand my need for some rest and recuperation. I shall be back with you thereafter. Best wishes, Mark

Nanny State Alert! Australia Bans Cigarette Pack Logos in Smoking Crackdown

THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Australia is to ban all logos and branding from cigarette packaging after introducing the world’s toughest anti-smoking laws.

Under the new rules, cigarettes can only by sold in plain olive green packs with prominent and graphic health warnings.

The laws were introduced into the Australian parliament on Wednesday and should come into force on Jan 1 next year.

With other countries including Britain known to be considering similar restrictions, the success of the crackdown will be closely scrutinised.

The laws have been introduced despite a fierce backlash by cigarette companies, with the Australian government pledging to defy “big tobacco’s intimidation tactics”.

In response, tobacco firms have launched legal action and a nationwide advertising campaign that claims Australia is a “nanny state” and that alcohol will be the next product to be banned. » | Jonathan Pearlman, Sydney | Wednesday, July 06, 2011

What a stupid little nanny-state Australia has become! Elect a Welsh Blodwen and this is what you get: absurdity!

If Australians are now to accept that logos are to be banned for tobacco products, are we going to see a level playing field and see logos banned for sugar products (after all, sugar causes diabetes), and fatty products (after all, fat causes obesity), and salty products (after all, too much salt causes hypertension, hence wreaks havoc with the circulatory system)? The possibilities are endless. Why don't they ban meddlesome, pea-brained politicians? After all, it would be a favour to the world! A blessing. – © Mark

Denmark Tightens Border Controls
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Denmark has tightened its border controls in a move which opponents claim could sound the death knell for the EU’s principle of free movement.

The Scandinavian country deployed an extra 50 customs officers at crossings on the German and Swedish borders in an attempt to curb cross-border crime and illegal immigration.

This figure will rise to 98 by the end of the year.

Denmark, which belongs to the EU’s passport-free Schengen zone, also plans to increase video surveillance at crossings and build four new customs houses.

Denmark’s decision to become the first country to break ranks with its Schengen peers has sparked concern for the future of unrestricted travel between EU countries.

The principle of open borders is already threatened by political pressures created by the influx of refugees fleeing the turmoil in North Africa. » | Matthew Day | Tuesday, July 05, 2011

Col Muammar Gaddafi 'Offers to Give Up Power in Libya'

THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Col Muammar Gaddafi has offered to give up power for the first time, but only if his hated son is allowed to stand as his successor, a Russian official claimed on Tuesday.

Western powers are seriously considering the proposal, which would include a guarantee of amnesty from prosecution for the Libyan leader, a senior official in the Russian leadership was reported as saying.

“The colonel has sent signals that he is ready to relinquish power in exchange for security guarantees and such guarantees are on the table,” the official told Russia’s respected Kommersant newspaper.

The purported offer comes amid speculation that Col Gaddafi is seeking to make a face-saving exit amid growing fears that shortages and poverty in the Libyan capital Tripoli were making his position untenable.

The official claimed that France supported the idea and had agreed to work both to lift an International Criminal Court indictment against Col Gaddafi and to unfreeze his family’s international assets. » | Adrian Blomfield, Tripoli | Tuesday, July 05, 2011

Down on the Fourth of July: The United States of Gloom

TELEGRAPH – BLOGS – TOBY HARNDEN: NEWS REVIEW: America’s deepening recession and widespread pessimism about the country’s prospects add a bitter note to Independence Day, reports Toby Harnden, US Editor.

Across America today, people will gather for barbecues in their backyards, parades through their towns and firework displays lighting up the night sky.

They’ll be celebrating Independence Day – the birthday of the United States and the 235th anniversary of shaking off the oppressive yoke of British rule.

On this day in 1776 a group of 13 colonies broke away to found a new nation free to govern itself as it saw fit, pledging that each citizen would have the unalienable right to “life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness”. A nation, as Americans are apt to declare without equivocation, which became the greatest on the face of the earth.

That’s the good news. On the flip side, however, a country whose hallmark has always been a sense of irrepressible optimism is in the grip of unprecedented uncertainty and self-doubt.

With the United States mired in three foreign wars, beaten down by an economy that shows few signs of emerging from deep recession and deeply disillusioned with President Barack Obama, his Republican challengers and Congress, the mood is dark.

The last comparable Fourth of July was probably in 1980, when there was a recession, skyrocketing petrol prices and an Iranian hostage crisis, with 53 Americans being held in Tehran. Read on and comment » | Toby Harnden | Sunday, July 03, 2011

Israel Claims Diplomatic Victory as Greece Stops Gaza Flotilla

THE SUNDAY TELEGRAPH: Israel on Sunday claimed a diplomatic victory in its attempts to stop a flotilla of ships manned by pro-Palestinian activists from sailing towards Gaza after it was banned from leaving port by the Greek authorities.

Eleven ships were due to set sail this weekend, including nine from Greece, but two discovered damage to their propellers which activists blamed on Israeli sabotage.

Another ship was arrested on the high seas by the Greek coastguard for leaving port without permission, and the remainder were told they could not set sail.

Avigdor Lieberman, the Israeli foreign minister, claimed credit for the delays to the flotilla. "I welcome all the efforts that have been made to stop the flotilla," he said in a radio interview. "The success of these efforts on the diplomatic side are the fruits of intensive contacts with states in the region and the international community."

Israel is keen to prevent a repeat of the violent outcome to a similar attempt to break the blockade of Gaza last year, when its navy stormed the lead ship, killing nine Turkish activists. » | Phoebe Greenwood in Tel Aviv and Richard Spencer | Sunday, July 03, 2011

Dominique Strauss-Kahn Accuser Could Face Perjury Charges

THE SUNDAY TELEGRAPH: The hotel maid who alleges that she was sexually attacked by Dominique Strauss-Kahn could face charges for perjury or be deported from the US following claims that she lied under oath.

The 32-year-old maid is under intense scrutiny after New York prosecutors were forced to tell a court on Friday that they had found holes in her story that may seriously damage her credibility as a witness.

Reports in New York tabloids alleged that she provided sex for hotel guests in return for money, and that Mr Strauss-Kahn may have misunderstood the situation on May 14.

Mr Strauss-Kahn, who at the weekend was enjoying freedom without bail, is charged with trying to rape her after she arrived to clean his Manhattan Sofitel suite and forcing her to give him oral sex.

But the case against him is hanging by a thread. Reports claim that soon after the incident, she was recorded telling a drug dealer in Arizona: "Don't worry, this guy has a lot of money. I know what I'm doing".

But what is certain is that the maid told detectives and prosecutors that afterwards "she fled to an area of the main hallway" and "waited there until she observed the defendant leave suite 2806". French newspapers reported on Sunday that the maid married the drug dealer, a Gambian national, last year.

A letter filed to court by Cyrus Vance jr, the Manhattan district attorney, said: "The complainant testified to this version of events when questioned in the Grand Jury about her actions".

However she "has since admitted that this account was false" and that she went on to clean another room, and returned to clean Mr Strauss-Kahn's suite, before reporting the incident to her supervisor.

Professor Kevin Johnson, the dean of the University of California's law school and an expert in immigration law, said: "The department of homeland security could try to reopen her asylum case on the basis that she appears to have lied in her application, and ultimately say that she should be removed from the country. This is an extraordinary case ... I can imagine the department going after her". Read on and comment » | Jon Swaine, New York | Sunday, July 03, 2011

Tunisia's Zine el Abidine Ben Ali Sentenced to 15 Years in Prison

THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Zine el Abidine Ben Ali has been sentenced in absentia to 15 years in jail for possession of arms, drugs and archaeological artefacts.

In his second trial, Ben Ali, who fled to Saudi Arabia following a popular uprising in Tunisia in January, was also sentenced to a fine of 54,000 euros (£49,000).

The trial before a Tunis court had been scheduled to take place last week but was postponed due to a judges' strike.

The former strongman and his wife Leila Trabelsi had already been sentenced in their absence last month to 35 years in prison for misappropriating public funds after large sums of cash and jewellery were discovered in a police search of their palace.

In Monday's trial, Ben Ali alone was accused of harbouring drugs and weapons at his palace in the Carthage neighbourhood north of Tunis. He also faces a drug trafficking charge. » | Monday, July 04, 2011