Most Families Outraged at Pan Am 103 Bomber's Release
CNN: Victims' family members and advocates are grieving anew as the only man convicted in the 1988 bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland -- which killed 270 people -- was released Thursday from a British prison.

"I feel sick. I feel depressed and outraged. I mean, I am just heartbroken," said Susan Cohen, whose daughter Theodora, a 20-year-old Syracuse University music student, was killed in the bombing.

Abdelbeset Ali Mohmed al Megrahi, 57, sick with advanced prostate cancer, was released on compassionate grounds and sent home to Libya to die, Scottish authorities said. Megrahi, who prosecutors said was a Libyan intelligence agent, was convicted in 2001 of placing a bomb on the Boeing 747.

Libya has formally accepted responsibility for the bombing and has compensated the families, although longtime Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi denied any culpability in the attack.

Cohen and others said international politics had trumped justice as U.S. and British relations with Gadhafi have thawed over the years.

"I feared they would do this," she said. "Now that they've made friends with Gadhafi ... the Western countries want to give him everything that he wants, appease him. He wanted Megrahi, they are rushing Megrahi out; they aren't even giving this a day. And the tiny little shred of justice we had is gone."

"I thought that our governments, both the U.S. and the U.K., owed it to the victims and their families to ensure that Megrahi would fulfill his sentence," said Victoria Cummock, whose husband, John, died in the attack. "If he did the crime, he should do the time. ... (But) when you try to combine politics with justice, politics always wins."

"I expected this," said Mark Zaid, a Washington-based lawyer for several victims' families. "I work with governments all the time, and governments do not act to protect the interests of the people, they act to protect the interests of the country. And those are different."

Zaid said he might file a lawsuit under the U.S. Freedom of Information Act to learn what the governments promised each other to accomplish Megrahi's release.

It especially galls the families that Megrahi's release was on compassionate grounds.

"This is mercy?" Cohen said. "Do you know what I've been living with for over 20 years now? This man deserves no compassion. He is a convicted mass murderer and terrorist. What have we come to, that this man is released?"

Added Cummock: "I think it's unconscionable that he would have the audacity to apply on compassionate grounds to be released and that they would actually consider it. Nevertheless, not only did they consider it, they granted it. "I think it's a huge disservice, not only to the families but also for the people of Lockerbie >>> Jim Kavanagh | Thursday, August 20, 2009

Leading Article: Return Flight
TIMES ONLINE: The decision to release the man convicted of the Lockerbie bombing was taken with all due consideration and compassion. But it is the wrong decision all the same

There is no question at all about Mr MacAskill’s legitimacy in making this decision. There are anomalies about the constitutional settlement between the nations of the British Union but no doubt that the relevant authority is that of Mr MacAskill. As he said at great length in his statement, Mr MacAskill followed due process meticulously. In a long list of parties and guidelines consulted he namechecked the prisoner transfer agreement (PTA), the Scottish Prison Service guidance on compassionate release, the families of victims, a woman from Spain whose sister was a member of the cabin crew, Hillary Clinton, the US Attorney-General, Eric Holder, Abdul Ati al-Obidi and his delegation from the Libyan Government, the Westminster Joint Committee on Human Rights, Jack Straw, Section 3 of the Prisoners and Criminal Proceedings (Scotland) Act 1993, the governor of Greenock prison, the Parole Board, the director of health and care for the Scottish Prison Service and, of course, the prisoner al-Megrahi himself. We might say that Mr MacAskill was at great pains to establish his authority.

So there is no question about the source of the decision. But, unfortunately, Mr MacAskill’s statement raised plenty of questions about its content. There are three things about Mr MacAskill’s statement that leave a sour taste, by far the most bitter of which is the decision itself. >>> | Friday, August 21, 2009

Nerves Show as Kenny MacAskill Faces the World’s Media
TIMES ONLINE: Kenny MacAskill, a Scottish politician who would probably be unrecognised on the streets of Glasgow, strode confidently into the Scottish government’s media lounge to deliver the statement that the world was waiting for.

Mindful of his international audience and taking into account the hours of media advice he has been given from advisers who lined the room, his usual rapid-fire delivery slowed to a plodding pace.

The opening of his carefully prepared announcement in which he recalled the night that 259 bodies fell from the sky over Lockerbie, in a bombing that killed 11 people in the town below, took on the tone of an inappropriate Jackanory episode.

“Four days before Christmas, men, women and children going about their daily lives were cruelly murdered. They included 11 from one small Scottish town. That — town — was — Lockerbie.”

Until yesterday he was best known as the man who wanted to rid Scotland of its booze-and-blade culture. Now Mr MacAskill, a mild-mannered, liberal-minded lawyer, will go down in history as the man who allowed one of the world’s most notorious mass-murdering terrorists to walk free from jail. >>> Lorraine Davidson | Friday, August 21, 2009

An Affront to Justice
DAILY EXPRESS: OUTRAGE spread across the globe last night as the man responsible for the murder of 270 innocent people in the Lockerbie bombing was freed on “compassionate” grounds.

Grieving relatives insisted that 57-year-old Abdel Basset al-Megrahi should have been left to rot in prison.

Clad in a white shell-suit, baseball cap and scarf, Megrahi was able to walk up the steps of the private Libyan charter jet waiting at Glasgow airport to take him home to Tripoli, despite terminal cancer leaving him with just months to live.

Scottish Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill claimed Megrahi’s release would show the world that Scotland was a compassionate country. But the act brought worldwide condemnation.

US President Bar­ack Obama branded it “a mistake” and David Cameron called it a “very bad” decision.

Those who lost loved ones called it an affront to justice and said Megrahi should only be going home “in a box”. >>> Gabriel Milland | Friday, August 21, 2009

David Cameron Condemns Lockerbie Bomber al-Megrahi's Release

Lockerbie Bomber Arrives in Libya


Abdul Baset Ali al-Megrahi Flies Home to Hero’s Welcome
TIMES ONLINE: The Lockerbie bomber flew out of Britain yesterday as a dying man deserving of compassion — and landed in Libya a national hero.

A crowd of thousands, many waving Scottish flags, gathered at Tripoli airport to welcome Abdul Baset Ali al-Megrahi as he stepped down from Colonel Muammar Gaddafi’s private jet to the strains of patriotic music.

He had changed from a white tracksuit and baseball cap into a dark suit and tie during the flight and was leaning on a gold-rimmed walking stick as he emerged from the aircraft to be hugged by Colonel Gaddafi’s son.

He was then taken in a motorcade to the city centre, where the main square was lit up in green and blue in preparation for a celebration that included a feast and laser show. The pan-Arab television channel Al-Jazeera reported that al-Megrahi’s car was held up along the way by the throng.

In the city centre groups of young men, many in white baseball caps like the one al-Megrahi was wearing when he left Glasgow, dashed excitedly from one side of the square to the other trying to catch a glimpse of the bomber. >>> Tim Reid, Philip Webster and Charlene Sweeny | Friday, August 21, 2009

Hero's Welcome for Lockerbie Bomber Who Slaughtered 270 as Shabby Political Deal Provokes U.S. Outrage
MAIL ONLINE: This was the moment the Libyan convicted of the Lockerbie bombing flew home to a hero's welcome.

As thousands cheered, Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed Al Megrahi was escorted down the steps of his plane by Saif Al-Islam Gaddafi, son of the Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi.

Earlier this month, Saif Gaddafi met Lord Mandelson in Corfu, raising suspicions that a deal was being made to free 57-year-old Megrahi. >>> David Williams and Ian Drury | Friday 21, 2009

Mosquée profanée à Toul : trois skinheads mis en examen
Des fidèles devant les inscriptions racistes sur la mosquée de Toul, mercredi. Crédits photo : Le Figaro
LE FIGARO: Les trois jeunes hommes, issus de mouvance d'extrême droite, sont soupçonnés d'avoir recouvert de croix gammées et d'abats de porc les murs du lieu de culte, mardi soir.

Les profanateurs présumés de la mosquée de Toul semblent avoir été retrouvés. Trois jeunes hommes issus de la mouvance skinhead, âgés de 19 à 21 ans, ont été mis en examen jeudi. Ils sont poursuivis pour «dégradation de lieu de culte, dégradation à connotation raciste et association de malfaiteurs», mais aussi provocation à la haine raciale et détention d'une arme de sixième catégorie (un couteau), selon le procureur de Nancy, Raymond Morey.

Mardi, deux de ces jeunes avaient été pris en flagrant délit par les gendarmes alors qu'ils taguaient un restaurant kebab de croix gammées et slogans racistes dans un village proche de Toul. Ils étaient donc déjà interpellés lorsque les fidèles de la mosquée de Toul ont découvert des inscriptions racistes et nazies, ainsi que des abats de porc, sur leur lieu de culte. «Milieux skinheads» >>> S.L. (lefigaro.fr) avec AFP | Jeudi 20 Août 2009

A Criminal Injustice
THE WALL STREET JOURNAL: The release of the Lockerbie Bomber demonstrates fecklessness, not compassion.

Libya had a plane waiting for terrorist Abdel Basset Ali Megrahi even before Scottish Justice Minister Kenny MacAskill had announced the Libyan's release from jail yesterday. Within hours of the announcement, Megrahi, convicted under Scottish law for the 1988 bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 in which 270 people were killed, was on his way home, flying safely through the same skies his victims had been blown out of 21 years ago.

In making his announcement of Megrahi's release on "compassionate grounds," Mr. MacAskill intoned that "when such an appalling crime is committed, it is appropriate that a severe sentence be imposed." Imposed, perhaps—but not carried out. Megrahi served less than a third of the 27 year "minimum" demanded in his 2001 life sentence. That works out to 11.6 days in prison for each of his victims, or about 14 days if you count from the time of his 1999 arrest.

Whatever else Megrahi's release is, then, it is not justice. The argument for compassion rests on Megrahi's case of advanced and apparently terminal prostate cancer. We're not sure what "compassion" is owed to a man by a country already too compassionate to apply the death penalty to mass murderers. Nor do we quite understand what Mr. MacAskill intended by his remark that Megrahi may face "a sentence imposed by a higher power." In this world, it makes no small difference to a man whether he ends his days in a foreign prison or in the bosom of his family and country. >>> | Thursday, August 20, 2009

Lockerbie Bomber: His Release Is a Mistake, Says President Obama
THE TELEGRAPH: President Barack Obama described the release of Lockerbie bomber Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed Al Megrahi as a "mistake" and called on the Libyan government to place him under house arrest.

In a live radio interview, the president said the United States administration had been in contact with the Scottish Government to register its objection to the move.

He also called on Libya to ensure Megrahi is not given a welcome back to his home country after being released today from a Scottish prison.

But thousands were on hand to greet him warmly when his plane from Scotland touched down at a military airport in Tripoli. There was a festive atmosphere with some wearing T-shirts with Megrahi's picture. Others waved flags while Libyan songs blared.

Megrahi, the only man convicted of the Lockerbie bombing, continued to protest his innocence and expressed his "sympathy" with the victims of the tragedy after being released from prison on compassionate grounds. >>> Lucy Cockcroft and Matthew Moore | Thursday, August 20, 2009

Watch BBC video:
Obama says Megrahi release a 'mistake' >>>

Watch BBC video:
Lockerbie bomber freed from jail >>>

BBC:
Megrahi: 'A convenient scapegoat?' >>> | Thursday, August 20, 2009

BBC: A woman whose husband died in the Lockerbie bombing has said convicted bomber Abdelbaset Ali al-Megrahi should have spent the rest of his sentence in jail.

Widow Stephanie Bernstein said in releasing Megrahi on the grounds of his terminal illness, a ''mass murderer'' had been allowed to go free.

Watch BBC video:
Widow's anger at release of bomber >>>

In Full: Statement from Megrahi
BBC: After leaving HM Prison Greenock after being released on compassionate grounds, Abdelbaset Ali al-Megrahi released the following statement:

"I am obviously very relieved to be leaving my prison cell at last and returning to Libya, my homeland.

I would like to first of all take the opportunity to extend my gratitude to the many people of Scotland, and elsewhere, who have sent me their good wishes.

I bear no ill will to the people of Scotland; indeed, it is one of my regrets that I have been unable to experience any meaningful aspect of Scottish life, or to see your country.

To the staff in HM Prison Greenock, and before that at HM Prison Barlinnie, I wish to express thanks for the kindness that they were able to show me.

For those who assisted in my medical and nursing care; who tried to make my time here as comfortable as possible, I am of course grateful.

My legal team has worked tirelessly on my behalf; I wish to thank Advocates Margaret Scott QC, Jamie Gilchrist QC, Shelagh McCall and Martin Richardson together with the team at Taylor & Kelly, for all of their gallant efforts in my bid to clear my name.

I know they share, in no small measure, my disappointment about the abandonment of my appeal.

Many people, including the relatives of those who died in, and over, Lockerbie, are, I know, upset that my appeal has come to an end; that nothing more can be done about the circumstances surrounding the Lockerbie bombing.

I share their frustration. I had most to gain and nothing to lose about the whole truth coming out - until my diagnosis of cancer.

To those victims' relatives who can bear to hear me say this: they continue to have my sincere sympathy for the unimaginable loss that they have suffered.

>>> | Thursday, August 20, 2009

Libyans Receive Al-Megrahi’s Release with Open Hands, Shocked at His State of Health
THE TRIPOLI POST: Tripoli, Libya-- Libyans are celebrating this evening the return of their beloved son, Abdelbaset Ali Al-Megrahi, with thousands are [sic] waiting for his plane to land at Ma’atiqa International airport.

However, those who have had the chance to see today’s photos of Abdelbaset Ali Al-Megrahi in such a bad state of his health [sic] are expressing their shock and some of them could not help but drop some tears on their faces.

Many are blaming the Scottish authorities for not taking care of Megrahi’s health while in prison and speculate that he was left, on purpose, to die of his cancer.

The statement made by the Scottish justice secretary, Kenny MacAskill, who said Thursday “Mr Al-Megrahi now faces a sentence imposed by a higher power. It is one that no court, in any jurisdiction, in any land, could revoke or overrule. It is terminal, final and irrevocable. He is going to die,” is being viewed by many Libyans as a case in point.

This statement reads as if the Scottish authorities have made sure that Megrahi dies within days from his release. In other words, Libyans are now convinced that the Megrahi case could be viewed as a premeditated murder on the part of the Scottish prison authorities.

However, despite such down feeling many are celebrating Megrahi’s return home.

The news of the long anticipated release of Abdelbaset Ali Al-Megrahi has provoked wide excitement among Libyans. The glad tidings came at a time when Libyans are already in preparation of the grand celebrations of the 40th Anniversary of the Great Al Fatah Revolution and welcoming of the holy month of Ramadhan.

Many of those interviewed by The Tripoli Post expressed a big sigh of relief for Al-Megrahi’s final return especially at a time when the Muslim Holy month of Ramadan is commencing. Ramadan is regarded as a symbolic Muslim month which symbolizes forgiveness, happiness and reunion. >>> Staff Writer, The Tripoli Post | Thursday, August 20, 2009

Zwecks EU-Annäherung: Albanien will Ehe für Homosexuelle einführen
WELT ONLINE: Das albanische Parlament soll nach der Sommerpause die gleichgeschlechtliche Ehe legalisieren. Premierminister Sali Berisha will mit dem Gesetz Europa imponieren. Doch der Vorschlag ist umstritten. In dem muslimischen Land war Homosexualität bis 1995 verboten und ist bis heute nicht gesellschaftlich akzeptiert.

Als Meister der Kehrtwende hat sich Albaniens Premier Sali Berisha in seiner Karriere vom Leibarzt des kommunistischen Autokraten Enver Hodscha bis zum konservativen Regierungschef oft erwiesen. Doch mit seinem jüngsten Husarenstück überrumpelte der 74-Jährige selbst seine Anhänger. Ausgerechnet der Mann, der sonst für traditionelle Familienwerte streitet, kündigte ein Gesetz zur Legalisierung der Homo-Ehe an, das das Parlament nach der Sommerpause absegnen soll.

Bis 1995 waren homosexuelle Beziehungen in Albanien strafrechtlich verboten. Die Aussicht, dass nun ausgerechnet Tirana sich zum Vorkämpfer der Gleichberechtigung von Homosexuellen auf dem Balkan aufschwingen könnte, stößt bei den 3,1 Millionen Einwohnern auf eher skeptischen Widerhall. „Dies ist eine Schande, kein Gesetz“, schäumt Shkelqim Muca, der Vorsitzende von Albaniens muslimischer Gemeinschaft. Die Ehe vereine zwei Menschen unterschiedlicher Geschlechter – und sei für gleichgeschlechtliche Verbindungen „nicht zu akzeptieren“, ärgert sich Monsignor George Frendo von der katholischen Kirche.

In den Staaten der Region haben Homosexuelle einen eher schweren Stand. Selbst beim EU-Anwärter Kroatien bekannte kürzlich rund die Hälfte befragter Homosexueller, dass sie schon einmal zum Opfer von verbaler und physischer Gewalt geworden seien. 80 Prozent verheimlichen ihre sexuelle Orientierung. Bürgerrechtsgruppen in Albaniens Hauptstadt Tirana bezeichnen die von Berisha angekündigte Vorlage denn auch als „wichtigen Schritt zur Emanzipation der albanischen Gesellschaft“. >>> Von Thomas Roser | Donnerstag, 20. August 2009

L'homme qui devait mourir pour les talibans
Avant de les rencontrer, Abed (emprisonné à Pulli Charkhi depuis quinze mois) n'avait jamais entendu parler des talibans. Cinq mois d'endoctrinement religieux et politique plus tard, le jeune Pakistanais était prêt à «sacrifier (sa) vie pour l'islam». Crédits photo : Le Figaro
LE FIGARO: TEMOIGNAGE - Abed, un Pakistanais de 22 ans, avait été endoctriné par les talibans pour commettre un attentat suicide sur un poste frontière afghan. Estimant avoir été floué, il a raconté son odyssée à notre reporter dans sa prison près de Kaboul.

Lorsque le détenu Abed, condamné à une peine de réclusion de vingt ans, est amené dans le bureau du surveillant chef, au sein du bloc 7 de haute sécurité de la prison de Pulli Charkhi, son allure n'est pas différente de n'importe quel jeune homme du peuple qu'on rencontre dans les bourgades du Pendjab, province orientale du Pakistan. Visage caramel ourlé d'une barbe noire et coiffé d'un petit bonnet brodé, saroual-kamiz beige, sandales hors d'âge, Abed ressemble à tous ces pauvres travailleurs intermittents qui louent leurs bras à la petite semaine pour échapper au chômage. Il s'assoit calmement, refuse poliment de prendre un morceau de pastèque amenée par les gardiens et, dans ce bureau sommaire où flotte une légère odeur de fromage rance, il commence, dès notre première question, à raconter en dari son hallucinante mésaventure.

Né en 1987, fils aîné d'un Pendjabien parti travailler en Arabie saoudite, Abed quitte l'école dès l'âge de 11 ans. Avec ses quatre frères et ses deux sœurs, il vit à Multan, chez sa mère, femme au foyer nourrissant sa famille grâce aux mandats que lui envoie son mari. La plupart du temps il est au chômage, mais travaille un moment comme apprenti chez un boulanger. Son frère cadet se débrouille mieux, qui trouve un emploi fixe dans une fabrique artisanale de meubles. En 2007, un loueur de main-d'œuvre lui trouve un contrat à 150 roupies (3 dollars) par jour, pour travailler à Karachi, dans le quartier de Manzoor Colony, dans une PME qui fabrique des bonbonnes d'eau réfrigérée en plastique. Là, un certain Abdul Rafur, originaire comme lui de Multan, mais employé d'un niveau supérieur - il est peintre d'affiches publicitaires - se lie d'amitié avec lui. Comme Abed, Abdul Rafur n'est pas un musulman très strict : il ne se rend à la mosquée que pour le prêche du vendredi. À l'occasion des vacances de l'Aïd-el-Kébir, en décembre 2007, tous deux rentrent ensemble à Multan, pour célébrer en famille la grande fête musulmane. Le surlendemain, Abdul Rafur propose à son ami de l'emmener à ses frais visiter les magnifiques montagnes du Waziristan. Le piège de l'endoctrinement >>> Renaud Girard, envoyé spécial du Figaro à Pulli Charkhi (Est de Kaboul) | Mercredi 19 Août 2009

The Path to the Final Solution

Radio Race Row at BBC's Flagship Asian Station
THE INDEPENDENT: Angry Sikhs besiege Asian Network over Muslim's 'joke'

The BBC's Asian Network was at the centre of a fresh race row last night after Sikhs accused the digital radio station of being insensitive towards their religion.

BBC bosses were forced to remove a show by the popular Muslim presenter Adil Ray from their website after the morning show DJ received threats from angry Sikh listeners who accused him of denigrating an important religious symbol.

The Birmingham-based network, which was set up eight years ago after the BBC's then director general Greg Dyke described his own organisation as "hideously white", has strongly denied the accusations or any suggestion that Ray meant to mock Sikhism.

But the anger from the Sikh community has nonetheless raised fresh questions over whether the digital network is serving its Asian listeners. Earlier this year, the BBC Trust told the network that it needed to attract more listeners after its audience fell from half a million to 405,000 in a year.

The complaints revolve around a show broadcast on Thursday 6 August in which Ray discussed the cancellation of a Punjabi music concert in Canada where police had banned a number of Sikhs who refused to remove their "kirpan" dagger – one of five ceremonial symbols that baptised Sikhs are expected to wear at all times.

A number of listeners believed that Ray had been disparaging about whether Sikhs really needed to carry their kirpans and began making complaints and threats against him. >>> Jerome Taylor, Religious Affairs Correspondent | Thursday, August 20, 2009

Lockerbie Bomber Released and to Return to Libya a Free Man
THE TELEGRAPH: The Lockerbie bomber, Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed Al Megrahi, has been released from prison in Scotland and can return to Libya a free man after serving eight years of his life sentence.

Lockerbie bomber released
Scottish Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill announced his release on compassionate grounds in a press conference.

Megrahi, who has terminal prostate cancer, could be on his way home within hours to spend his dying days with his family.

Sources at a military airport near Tripoli, Libya, said that the plane which will take him back home was en-route to Glasgow Airport earlier today, suggesting he could leave this afternoon.

Megrahi, 57, was convicted of killing 270 people in the 1988 bombing of Pan Am flight. Some 189 Americans were among those who died in the airliner explosion.

The decision to free him is likely to cause outrage in the United States, where Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said she hoped he would stay behind bars.

Mr MacAskill made the announcement at the Scottish Government's ministerial headquarters in Edinburgh. >>> | Thursday, August 20, 2009

Watch BBC video Lockerbie bomber to be released >>>

Megrahi Walks Up the Steps to Freedom
Photo: The Independent
THE INDEPENDENT: Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed al-Megrahi was today released from prison to die with his family in Libya.
Megrahi, who has terminal cancer, was driven from HMP Greenock in a white van escorted by three police cars, another van and five motorcycles.

The convoy set off on the 16-mile journey to Glasgow airport, where a jet was waiting to return him to Tripoli, after he was released on compassionate grounds by Scottish Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill.

Megrahi, 57, has served eight years of a life sentence for murdering 270 people when a Pan Am plane was blown up over Lockerbie in 1988.

Dozens of journalists from around the world were outside the entrance of the jail as its blue automatic door slid open to let the convicted bomber out at 2.36pm.

The convoy arrived at Glasgow airport at around at around 3.05pm. Megrahi was taken straight on to the tarmac where the plane was waiting.

After a short delay, the bomber, wearing a baseball cap, left the van and slowly walked with a stick up the stairs on to the jet.
In a move that has caused outrage in the United States, Mr MacAskill said Megrahi would now be released early from prison today.

He said Megrahi "now faces a sentence imposed by a higher power".

Mr MacAskill added: "It is one that no court, in any jurisdiction, in any land, could revoke or overrule. It is terminal, final and irrevocable. He is going to die."

In a statement that lasted more than 20 minutes, Mr MacAskill said Megrahi had shown no compassion to his victims, but added: "That alone is not a reason for us to deny compassion to him and his family in his final days."

Mr MacAskill said: "I am conscious there are deeply held feelings and that many will disagree whatever my decision. However a decision has to be made.

"Scotland will forever remember the crime that has been perpetrated against our people and those from many other lands, the pain and suffering will remain forever.

"Some hurt can never heal, some scars can never fade. Those who have been bereaved cannot be expected to forget, let alone forgive. Their pain runs deep and the wounds remain." >>> Press Association | Thursday, August 20, 2009

MacAskill's full statement on Lockerbie bomber >>> Press Association | Thursday, August 20, 2009

Cameron Condemns Lockerbie Bomber's Release
THE INDEPENDENT: The decision to free Lockerbie bomber Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed al-Megrahi on compassionate grounds was greeted with mixed reactions today.

Conservative Party leader David Cameron said: "I think this is wrong and it's the product of some completely nonsensical thinking, in my view.

"This man was convicted of murdering 270 people, he showed no compassion to them, they weren't allowed to go home and die with their relatives in their own bed and I think this is a very bad decision."

But Tam Dalyell, the former Labour MP and ex-father of the House of Commons, who has persistently claimed that Megrahi was innocent, said today: "Mr MacAskill, the Scottish Justice Minister, has arrived at the right decision on compassionate grounds.

"I do not accept his endorsement of the guilt of Mr Megrahi, whom I continue to believe had nothing whatsoever to do with the crime of Lockerbie."

Kara Weipz, 36, who lost her student brother Rick, 20, in the atrocity, condemned the decision.

Speaking from her home in Mount Laurel, New Jersey, she said: "I think it's an absolutely horrible decision.

"I don't know how you show compassion to someone who has shown no remorse for what he has done and as Mr MacAskill praised the justice system and the investigation and the trial, how do you then show this person compassion? It's just utterly despicable.

"I think he should have died in prison. Why should he be returned to Libya?

"That's not what we were promised. We were always told he would serve out his full sentence in Scotland."

Scottish Labour criticised the decision to release Megrahi.

Labour leader and MSP Iain Gray said: "If I was First Minister, Megrahi would not be going back to Libya. The decision to release him is wrong.

"He was convicted of the worst terrorist atrocity in our history, the mass murder of 270 people.

"While one can have sympathy for the family of a gravely ill prisoner, on balance our duty is to honour and respect the victims of Lockerbie and have compassion for them.

"The SNP's handling of this case has let down Scotland." >>> Press Association | Thursday, August 20, 2009

The Face of Abbas Kargar Javid — Man Accused of Killing Neda Soltan
TIMES ONLINE: The man accused of killing Neda Soltan has been identified as Abbas Kargar Javid, a pro-government militiaman, after photographs of the Basiji’s ID cards appeared on the internet.

The identification challenges the Iranian regime’s claim that foreign agents shot the young woman, who became a global symbol of resistance to the Government of President Ahmadinejad.

One picture appears on Mr Javid’s Basij identification card, which was taken off him by the crowd that stopped him briefly when he fled the murder scene during a massive demonstration against electoral fraud on June 20.

Photographs of that card and another that was issued by the Interior Ministry have been posted on the internet, and the doctor who tried to save Ms Soltan as she lay dying on a Tehran pavement has confirmed that they show the man who was stopped.

“I can testify for certain that it is the same person,” Arash Hejazi told The Times.

Dr Hejazi said that he had checked with others who witnessed Mr Javid’s detention and they, too, had confirmed that it was the same man. He expressed disgust that a regime that had detained, tortured and killed so many peaceful demonstrators in the past ten weeks had — as far as he knew — taken no action against Mr Javid. “That’s how fair the situation is in Iran right now,” he said.

The regime has put blame for Ms Soltan’s murder on fellow demonstrators, the CIA, hostile foreign governments including Britain, and even the BBC, whose Tehran correspondent, Jon Leyne, was accused of organising the shooting to get good pictures. >>> Martin Fletcher | Thursday, August 20, 2009

Hillary Clinton’s Relentless Decline Continues
THE TELEGRAPH – BLOGS: Fresh from her seven nation tour of Africa – highlighted by an immensely embarrassing boogie dance in Kenya and an alligator–like snap at a defenceless Congolese student – the almost invisible secretary of state has been given a demotion in the Forbes Magazine annual list of the 100 most powerful women in the world.

Hillary Clinton has slipped eight places from 28 to 36, despite being elevated to the second most powerful position in the US government in January. How she actually achieved that drop in these circumstances would confuse even Sir Isaac Newton, but can be explained by a less than stellar performance in Foggy Bottom.

Hillary has been increasingly marginalized by the Obama team with its array of special envoys jetting across the world as well as by her own hubby who appeared like a rabbit out of a hat in Pyongyang on his own diplomatic mission two weeks ago. She looks more and more like a stern but easily flustered school teacher who’s losing control of her own class. American foreign policy under Obama is increasingly decided in the White House, not in the State Department, and has so many different tracks that it lacks any real coherence. It resembles a poorly stitched patchwork quilt rather than a carefully crafted global strategy. >>> Nile Gardiner | Thursday, August 20, 2009

World's First Muslim Superheroes, the 99, Are Headed for British Television Screens
The assault on Western values by Islam grows apace! Now we have the Jihad to instill Islamic values in our children! What next? – Mark

THE TELEGRAPH: The world's first Muslim cartoon superheroes have taken the Arab world by storm, and now they are headed for British television screens.

Jabbar, is one of The 99, the world's first Muslim cartoon superheroes. Photo: The Telegraph
Named the 99, as each possesses one of Allah's 99 attributes, the characters include a burka-clad woman named Batina the Hidden and a Saudi Arabian Hulk-type man named Jabbar the Powerful.

They have proved a hit from Morocco to Indonesia and were recently named as one of the top 20 trends sweeping the world by Forbes magazine.

Now they are being brought to British television by Endemol, the production company behind Big Brother, with a mission to instill Islamic values in children across all faiths. >>> | Thursday, August 20, 2009

World’s First Muslim Superheroes, the 99, Out to Conquer the West
TIMES ONLINE: Comic creator aims to counter jihadist role models

They are fighting for truth, justice and the Islamic way and are heading for your living room — prepare to say salaam to the world’s first Muslim superheroes.

Despite the ample wrongs waiting to be righted across the Middle East, Superman, Spider-Man and Batman mainly fight evil in America. When the East has featured as a setting for superhero antics — as in the recent film Iron Man — it has tended to be as a source of villainy.

That is about to change, courtesy of The 99, a Sharia-compliant version of the X-Men that has taken the Arab world by storm and has its sights set on the West.

The franchise, which was created as a cartoon strip three years ago to counter the effects of jihadist agitprop on Muslim minds, is poised to make its debut on British television this year. An animated series is being produced by Endemol, the Dutch company that made Big Brother internationally ubiquitous. Its mission: to instil old-fashioned Islamic values in Christian, Jewish and atheist children. >>> Rhys Blakely in Mumbai | Thursday, August 20, 2009

Lockerbie Bomber’s Private Jet to Freedom Courtesy of Gaddafi
TIMES ONLINE: Colonel Muammar Gaddafi will send his private jet to collect the Lockerbie bomber and take him home to Libya if, as expected, he is released from jail today on compassionate grounds.

Kenny MacAskill, the Scottish Justice Secretary, said that he would announce at 1pm his decision on whether Abdul Baset Ali al-Megrahi should be freed, but he gave no indication last night as to what that decision would be.

A luxury aircraft was scheduled to collect the bomber at Glasgow airport yesterday for his triumphant return to Tripoli, but the flight was cancelled at lunchtime because Mr MacAskill’s advisers were still locked in talks after intense diplomatic pressure from America to keep al-Megrahi in jail.

The prisoner, who is terminally ill with prostate cancer, called his wife, Aisha, from Greenock prison, saying that he was still uncertain about his fate. “He didn’t know when he will be released,” the mother of five told The Times. “He is happy [about the news] but he is very ill and waiting to find out what will happen to him.”

His mother said that he had called her and said that he hoped to be with her by Ramadan. Hajja Fatma, 95, told the Tripoli Post that she didn’t dare to close her front door: “I am expecting him to enter at any moment.” >>> David Brown, Charlene Sweeney and Richard Kerbaj | Thursday, August 20, 2009

Burqini Banned in Italian Town
If this Labour government could find its balls, it, too, would ban this symbol of subservience and darkness. Women haven’t fought for their rights over all these years only to be taken back into the Dark Ages by a people who are totally unenlightened and benighted. Emmeline Pankhurst: Eat your heart out! – ©Mark

THE TELEGRAPH: Muslim women have been banned from wearing the body-concealing swimming costume known as a burqini in the northern Italian town of Varallo Sesia, according to a report.

Women wearing the garment, made up of a veil, a tunic and loose leggings, face a fine of €500 (£430) if they are spotted at swimming pools or rivers, the ANSA news agency reported.

The anti-immigration mayor of the northern Piedmont town said: "The sight of a 'masked woman' could disturb small children, not to mention problems of hygiene.

"We don't have to be tolerant all the time," Gianluca Buonanno said.

Justifying the move, Mr Buonanno added: "Imagine a western woman bathing in a bikini in a Muslim country. The consequences could be decapitation, prison or deportation. We are merely prohibiting the use of the burqini." >>> | Wednesday, August 19, 2009

Lest We Forget – Auschwitz: The Nazis and the Final Solution
Part 1:



Part 2:



Part 3:



Part 4:



Part 5:

Democrat Rift Threatens to Doom Barack Obama's Healthcare Reforms
TIMES ONLINE: After weeks of fierce protests against his plans to reform the US healthcare system, President Obama faced revolt inside his own party yesterday amid accusations that he was surrendering to its vociferous opponents.

The powerful liberal wing on Capitol Hill threatened to withdraw support for Mr Obama’s healthcare legislation if it did not include a government-run insurance programme — something he has appeared willing to abandon in recent days to try to garner Republican support.

However, fiscally conservative Democrats appeared increasingly opposed to the “public option”, leaving Mr Obama with the potential for a dangerous split in the Democratic Party that could doom the legislation.

The eruption of such a fight among Democrats underscored the huge challenge Mr Obama faces in getting legislation passed. It is the centrepiece of his domestic agenda and an issue on which he has spent enormous political capital.

Yet despite his efforts, voters are increasingly opposed to the idea of reform amid concerns about its huge cost.

For months Mr Obama has insisted that a government-run programme must be included in his effort to reform the health industry because it was the only way to give private insurance companies the competition needed to reduce soaring costs.

The scheme is opposed fiercely by Republicans, who claim it is too costly and will eventually lead to a solely government-run healthcare system. The conservative “Blue Dog” Democratic caucus in the House of Representatives is also unconvinced by the idea, and without its support the legislation could fail to pass the lower chamber.

In an effort to peel away more Republicans and assuage Blue Dog concerns, Mr Obama appeared to suggest at the weekend that a public option was not essential, describing it as only a “sliver” of his reform plans. His Health Secretary, Kathleen Sebelius, also hinted that the White House was open to dropping the idea.

The reaction from liberals was furious, with one Democratic congressman, Anthony Weiner, saying that without the option Mr Obama could lose 100 votes in the lower chamber, a reaction that would kill any Bill. Yesterday 60 House Democrats sent a letter to Ms Sebelius warning that without a government-run option the legislation would fail. >>> Tim Reid in Washington | Wednesday, August 19, 2009

Uncommon Knowledge: Daniel Pipes (June 01, 2008)

Model Who Drank Beer to Be First Woman Caned in Malaysia
THE TELEGRAPH: Muslim model Kartika Sari Dewi Shukarno has become the first woman in Malaysia to be sentenced to a caning after being caught drinking beer in a beach resort.

The 32-year-old will receive six lashes at a woman's prison next week in what is being viewed as an example of the growing influence of Islamic hardliners on the country.

The mother-of-two who lives in Singapore with her husband, paid a fine of £860, but declined to lodge an appeal so she could get the punishment over with and put the episode behind her.

The harsh sentence has provoked anger among women's rights groups who fear it is another sign of the creeping influence of conservative Islam on Malaysian society.

In the northern backwater state of Kalentan ruled by the hardline Pan-Malaysian Islamic Party, authorities have decreed that supermarkets must have separate checkout queues for men and women and beaches be segregated.

Young couples caught sitting too close together on park benches in the state capital, Kota Baru, are hunted down by the city's moral enforcers and fined up to £285 in Sharia courts.

The Islamic alcohol prohibition laws in Malaysia's eastern Pahang state date back more than two decades. But Malaysian-born Kartika, who now has Singaporean citizenship, is the first woman to fall foul of them.

She was arrested in July last year in a hotel nightclub in the beach resort of Cherating during a raid by the state's religious department and admitted drinking beer.

An Islamic court fined her and ordered her to be caned at Kajang women's prison next week, but spared her a jail term of up to three years.

She received word of the sentence from her father and said she would be returning to Malaysia from Singapore.

"I accept the punishment," she said. "I am not afraid because I was ready to be punished from day one. [The authorities] hope to use my case as a way to educate Muslims. So go ahead. I want to move on with my life." >>> Ian MacKinnon in Bangkok | Wednesday, August 19, 2009

Explosions Rock Baghdad

Obama plaide pour la patience en Afghanistan
À Phoenix (Arizona), lundi, lors d'une convention de vétérans, Barack Obama a rappelé que la mission américaine serait longue et difficile. Crédits photo : Le Figaro
LE FIGARO: Le président américain veut injecter plus de moyens civils et militaires pour gagner «les cœurs et les esprits» de la population afghane.

Il faut avoir écouté l'ambassadeur américain Richard Holbrooke présenter jeudi dernier sa «stratégie civile » pour l'Afghanistan et le Pakistan pour mesurer l'ambition - et les risques - de la nouvelle politique afghane de l'Amérique. Flanqué d'une armée d'éminents stratèges et autres techniciens agricoles et financiers, l'«émissaire spécial » de Barack Obama a exposé pendant deux heures comment l'Amérique entendait compléter sa stratégie strictement militaire en œuvrant à la reconstruction de l'Afghanistan. Relance d'une agriculture qui emploie près de 80 % de la population afin de la détourner de la culture omniprésente du pavot ; construction d'écoles ; lutte contre la corruption des ministères ; sécurisation de réseaux de téléphones portables pour que la population puisse échapper aux «discours de haine » des talibans, présents sur les radios locales ; contre-propagande… La liste des missions projetées par l'oncle d'Amérique avec l'aide de ses militaires et de quelque 4000 agents civils est colossale.

Bien éloigné des promesses de la nouvelle équipe de «revoir à la baisse » la mission pharaonique de l'Administration Bush de créer un «Afghanistan démocratique », le projet suscite une nervosité croissante. La peur d'un «nouveau Vietnam » affleure. Le président lui-même l'a reconnu, dans un discours prononcé lundi : «L'insurrection en Afghanistan n'a pas commencé du jour au lendemain. Nous ne pourrons pas la vaincre du jour au lendemain. Ce ne sera pas rapide. Ce ne sera pas facile. » Offensive de charme >>> Laure Mandeville, correspondante du Figaro à Washington | Mardi 18 Août 2009

«Mit Demokratie haben diese Wahlen wenig zu tun» : Präsident Karzai setzt in Afghanistan alle Mittel ein, um an der Macht zu bleiben
NZZ ONLINE: Am Donnerstag wird in Afghanistan ein neuer Präsident gewählt. Die prekäre Sicherheitslage dürfte viele Afghanen im Süden vom Wählen abhalten. Die Tatsache, dass der Amtsinhaber Karzai Wahlbetrug im grossen Stil betreibt, sorgt ebenfalls für Unlust bei den Wahlberechtigten und wirft Fragen nach der Legitimität des Urnengangs auf.

In Afghanistan finden am Donnerstag zum zweiten Mal seit dem Sturz der Taliban im Jahr 2001 Präsidentenwahlen statt. Gleichzeitig werden auch die Räte der 34 Provinzen des Landes neu bestellt. Für das höchste Amt im Staat haben sich 37 Kandidaten beworben, für die Provinzwahlen über 3000. Die 17 Millionen registrierten Wähler können ihre Stimme in rund 8000 Wahlzentren abgeben. Im Gegensatz zur letzten Präsidentschaftswahl im Jahr 2004, die von der Uno organisiert wurde, ist diesmal eine afghanische Wahlkommission für die Durchführung verantwortlich.

Prekäre Sicherheitslage

Die Abhaltung des Urnengangs in einem Land, dessen Infrastruktur nach 30 Jahren Krieg weitgehend zerstört ist, stellt organisatorisch eine Herausforderung dar. Ein noch viel grösseres Problem ist jedoch die prekäre Sicherheitslage. Weite Teile des Landes befinden sich nicht unter Kontrolle der Regierung. Vor allem im umkämpften Süden und Osten Afghanistans, aber auch in gewissen Distrikten im Westen und Norden haben die Taliban das Sagen. Die islamistischen Extremisten haben zum Wahlboykott aufgerufen und angekündigt, den Urnengang mit Strassenblockaden und Anschlägen zu stören. Taliban-Gruppen haben auch gedroht, mit Tinte geschwärzte Finger abzuhacken. Mit der Tinten-Markierung soll sichergestellt werden, dass ein Wähler seine Stimme nicht mehrfach abgeben kann.

Die USA haben in den letzten Monaten ihre Truppen im Süden Afghanistans deutlich aufgestockt. Auch die von der Nato angeführte Isaf hat ihre Militäraktionen verstärkt, um den Wahlprozess zu sichern. Momentan sind rund 100 000 ausländische Militärangehörige am Hindukusch im Einsatz, zwei Drittel von ihnen sind Amerikaner. Da die Aufständischen auf die erhöhte Truppenpräsenz mit mehr Angriffen und Anschlägen reagierten, hat sich die Sicherheitslage in den letzten Monaten jedoch eher noch verschärft. Viele Wahlberechtigte in umkämpften Gebieten dürften aus Angst vor Gewalt den Urnen fernbleiben. Nach Angaben der Wahlkommission werden mindestens 700 Wahllokale im Süden und Osten aus Sicherheitsgründen erst gar nicht geöffnet. In vielen anderen Regionen wird mit einer sehr geringen Beteiligung gerechnet. Das stellt die Legitimität der Wahlen ernsthaft in Frage. Manipulation im grossen Stil >>> spl. Kabul | Dienstag, 18. August 2009

Muslimischer Antisemitismus in Deutschland

The Holocaust: A Survivor Speaks
Part 1:



Part 2:



Part 3:



Part 4:

Dozens Dead as Baghdad Rocked by Series of Massive Explosions
TIMES ONLINE: Scores of people have been killed and hundreds injured by a series of co-ordinated bomb attacks in Baghdad today.

In the deadliest attack in Iraq this year, and the most audacious one in the capital for several more, truck and car bombs and mortar fire were directed against the main centres of power. The targets included the ministries of finance, foreign affairs, health and housing, as well as the Parliament and Cabinet buildings. Also hit was a checkpoint on the approach roads to the fortified Green Zone.

The largest explosion was a truck bomb across the street from the Foreign Ministry, just outside the Green Zone, which is reported to have killed up to 59 people and injured 250. The force of the blast flattened the compound wall and blew concrete slabs off the front of the 10-storey block, killing people working inside the building and devastating cars and bystanders for hundreds of metres around.

It left a crater in the road 3 metres deep and 10 metres wide, full of dozens of burned and twisted cars and a few charred bodies. Other nearby buildings were also damaged, including the Parliament which lies inside the Green Zone. Water tanks collapsed on nearby houses, sending water gushing through people's homes. >>> Oliver August in Baghdad | Wednesday, August 19, 2009

53% of Saudi Men Lazy: Study
SAUDI GAZETTE: JEDDAH – Saudi males are lazy, eat too much junk food and spend excessive time in front of the television, all which means they are only likely to get fatter, an Arab health and nutrition expert has said.

Dr. Abdullah Musaiqir, head of the Arab Center for Nutrition, has warned of increasing obesity in the Gulf states and particularly Saudi Arabia, and cites a Saudi study showing that over 53 percent of Saudi males live a “lethargic lifestyle”, with only 20 percent described as leading a healthy lifestyle and engaging in activities that help keep them in good physical shape. Twenty seven percent were described by the study as having a “partially active” lifestyle.

Parents, Dr. Musaiqir said, are advised to cut down on television watching time for both themselves and their children, and to remove television sets from dining rooms and bedrooms. According to Musaiqir, watching television encourages further unhealthy eating practices as the activity is popularly accompanied by the consumption of snack foods.

Musaiqir said the first steps toward promoting a healthier lifestyle should come with awareness programs conducted throughout the Gulf with media involvement, and that school and university curricula should be improved to address issues of nutrition and public health.

Schools, Muqaisir said, should make greater efforts to support and encourage sporting activities both inside and outside the confines of their campuses. [Source: Saudi Gazette] Okaz/SG | Wednesday, August 19, 2009

Kondolenz: Nordkoreas Diktator bedauert Kim Dae-jungs Tod
WELT ONLINE: Der nordkoreanische Machthaber Kim Jong-il hat sein Beileid zum Tod des am Dienstag verstorbenen Ex-Präsidenten Kim Dae-jung ausgesprochen. TV-Berichten zufolge will er sogar eine Delegation zu dessen Beerdingung entsenden. Experten spekulieren über eine Wiederannäherung der beiden verfeindeten Staaten.

Nordkorea wird einem Bericht zufolge eine Delegation zum Begräbnis des früheren südkoreanischen Präsidenten Kim Dae-jung entsenden. Der südkoreanische Sender YTN nannte am Mittwoch keine Quelle für seine Informationen.

Nordkoreas Machthaber Kim Jong-il hatte zuvor nach offiziellen Angaben sein Beileid zum Tod des ehemaligen südkoreanischen Präsidenten Kim Dae-jung übermittelt. Die amtliche nordkoreanische Nachrichtenagentur KCNA zitierte am Mittwoch aus dem Kondolenzschreiben Kim Jong-ils: „Obgleich er zu unserem Bedauern verstorben ist, werden seine Leistungen für eine nationale Aussöhnung und für die Verwirklichung des Wunsches nach einer Wiedervereinigung dem Land noch lange bleiben.“ >>> | Mittwoch, 19. August 2009

Liban: Un islamiste repris après évasion
leJDD.fr: Un militant islamiste de nationalité syrienne, Taha Hadjj Souleïmane, évadé mardi de la prison libanaise de Roumeih, à l'est de Beyrouth, a été repris, a-t-on appris auprès des forces de sécurité. Celles-ci ont ratissé de nombreux quartiers de la capitale libanaise pour retrouver le membre du Fatah al Islam, un groupe proche d'Al Qaïda, qui était incarcéré pour son implication dans des actes de terrorisme, notamment des attentats à la bombe. L'évadé a finalement été retrouvé dans les bois près de la prison. Selon la presse libanaise, sept détenus ont préparé l'évasion du Syrien pendant deux semaines, sciant notamment les barreaux de leurs cellules. [Source: leJDD.fr] | Mercredi 19 Août 2009

New Book Reveals Horror of Nazi Camp Brothels
REUTERS: BERLIN - In 1942, the Nazis decided that forced labourers in concentration camps would work harder if they were promised sex -- so they made female prisoners work in brothels for them.

The brothels form the subject of "Das KZ Bordell" (The Concentration Camp Brothel) by Robert Sommer, a book that has been hailed as the first comprehensive account of a little known chapter of Nazi oppression in World War Two.

Sommer's 460-page work, due to be presented at the Berlin state parliament on Wednesday, explores the origins, structure and impact of the "Sonderbauten" (special buildings) run by Heinrich Himmler's SS in Germany and Nazi-occupied Europe.

"In the collective memory and written history of World War Two, the camp brothels were for a long time taboo," the 35-year-old Berliner told Reuters. "The former prisoners didn't want to talk about it: it was a difficult subject to handle.

"It didn't fit so easily into the postwar image of the concentration camps as monuments to suffering."

Beginning with the Austrian camp at Mauthausen in 1942, the SS opened 10 brothels, the biggest of which was in Auschwitz, in modern Poland, where as many as 21 women prisoners once worked. The last opened in early 1945, the year the war ended.

The chapter is separate from the annals of the Holocaust of European Jews. Jewish women were not recruited as prostitutes, and Jewish men were not admitted to the brothels.

Sommer estimates around 200 women inmates in total were forced to work in the brothels -- initially offered the prospect of escaping the brutality of the concentration camps.

"They were promised release after half a year if they served in the brothel. But the promises were never honoured," he said. "Later, the SS just selected women they felt were suitable."

"Jews were not allowed in. Neither were Soviet prisoners of war," he added. "Jewish women did not serve as sex workers."

Tens of thousands of captured soldiers, political prisoners and people branded socially undesirable by the Nazis, including Roma and homosexuals, were held in camps alongside the millions of Jews who died in the Holocaust.

"The idea behind the brothels was to raise productivity by providing forced labourers with added incentive," said Sommer. "Yet from what I found, it didn't work at all. Only a few people were actually in a physical condition to go to them."

According to Sommer, the use of prisoners to provide sex to other prisoners was purely a Nazi phenomenon in the war. >>> Dave Graham, Editing by Kevin Liffey | Monday, August 17, 2009

Fat, Unfit NHS Staff Top the Sick League
TIMES ONLINE: More than 45,000 NHS workers call in sick each day — one and a half times the rate of absence seen in the private sector.

The first national audit of staff habits has found that high rates of obesity, smoking, absenteeism and poor mental health are having a direct impact on the quality of patient care.

Dr Steve Boorman, a leading occupational health expert, was asked by the Government to assess links between staff habits and NHS productivity. He will present his interim review today. His findings are drawn from six months of staff surveys, workshops, data reviews and responses from trusts and experts.

— More than 45,000 NHS workers are calling in sick every day, one and a half times the rate of absence in the private sector. Reducing the 10.3 million working days lost per year by a third would save the NHS £555 million annually.

— More than one in five staff smoke, the same proportion as in the adult population. About 40,000 NHS workers smoke more than 20 cigarettes a day.

— More than a third of the workforce are in moderate to very poor mental health, with many expressing concern about intimidation from patients and their relatives[.]

— Hospitals with worse staff health are less productive and have higher rates of superbug infection, unnecessary use of agency workers and higher patient mortality rates. More than three-quarters of staff believe that the state of their health affects patient care.

— About 40 per cent undertake exercise less than the Government’s three recommended occasions a week. >>> Sam Lister, Health Editor | Wednesday, August 19, 2009

Hillary Clinton in Last-ditch Intervention in Lockerbie Case
TIMES ONLINE: Hillary Clinton has made a last-minute attempt to intervene in the Lockerbie bomber case, warning the Scottish Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill that it would be "absolutely wrong" to release him from jail.

Spurning diplomatic channels, the US Secretary of State gave a public statement to reporters in Washington saying that Abdel Baset Ali Mohmed al-Megrahi, the Libyan spy who was jailed in 2001 for blowing up Pan Am flight 103 with the loss of 270 lives, should not be released on compassionate grounds or granted a transfer to a Libyan jail but should die in prison.

The statement comes after Mrs Clinton's private phone call to Mr MacAskill last week to warn him against agreeing to either of the requests lodged by al-Megrahi, who is terminally ill with prostate cancer.

Mrs Clinton was spurred to intervene again after the High Court in Edinburgh ruled yesterday that al-Megrahi could withdraw his legal attempt to clear his name, removing one procedural hurdle to his return to his homeland.

“I just think it is absolutely wrong to release someone who has been imprisoned based on the evidence about his involvement in such a horrendous crime,” said Mrs Clinton, a former Senator for New York State from where many of the Lockerbie victims were drawn.

“We are still encouraging the Scottish authorities not to do so and we hope that they will not.” >>> Jenny Booth | Wednesday, August 19, 2009

Hillary Clinton Reaffirms US Stance on Lockerbie Bomber

People & Power - Iran: Inside the Protests – July 10, 2009

You’ve Just Gotta Chill Out with Chris Brown Singing 'Forever' – The Official Music Video
Watch here

Obama Joker Artist Unmasked: A Fellow Chicagoan
Firas Alkhateeb. Photo: Los Angeles Times
LOS ANGELES TIMES: When cryptic posters portraying President Obama as the Joker from "Batman" began popping up around Los Angeles and other cities, the question many asked was, Who is behind the image?

Was it an ultra-conservative grassroots group or a disgruntled street artist going against the grain?

Nope, it turns out, just a 20-year-old college student from Chicago.

Bored during his winter school break, Firas Alkhateeb, a senior history major at the University of Illinois, crafted the picture of Obama with the recognizable clown makeup using Adobe's Photoshop software.

Alkhateeb had been tinkering with the program to improve the looks of photos he had taken on his clunky Kodak camera. The Joker project was his grandest undertaking yet. Using a tutorial he'd found online about how to "Jokerize" portraits, he downloaded the October 23 Time Magazine cover of Obama and began digitally painting over it.

Four or five hours later, he happily had his product.

On Jan. 18, Alkhateeb uploaded the image to photo-sharing site Flickr (shown at right). Over the next two months, he amassed just a couple thousand hits, he said.

Then the counter exploded after a still-anonymous rogue famously found his image, digitally removed the references to Time Magazine, captioned the picture with the word "socialism" and hung printed copies around L.A., making headlines.

Alkhateeb's original Flickr page surpassed 20,000 views. The Times found his Flickr site last week thanks to a tip left by a loyal reader of The Ticket. By Friday, the page had been taken down.

On Alkhateeb's page, a manipulated image condemning fellow Chicagoan and White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel (captioned "epic fail") was mixed in with parodies of the "Guitar Hero" game franchises -- dubbed Quran Hero -- and of Napoleon riding a motorcycle (pictured after the jump).

Flickr had removed the Joker image due to copyright-infringement concerns, Alkhateeb says the company told him in an e-mail. A Flickr spokeswoman declined to comment due to a company policy that bars discussing inquiries about individual users.

Alkhateeb says he wasn't actively trying to cover his tracks, but he did want to lay low. He initially had concerns about ... ... connecting his name with anything critical of the president -- especially living in Chicago, where people are "very, very liberal," he said.

"After Obama was elected, you had all of these people who basically saw him as the second coming of Christ," Alkhateeb said. "From my perspective, there wasn't much substance to him."

"I abstained from voting in November," he wrote in an e-mail. "Living in Illinois, my vote means close to nothing as there was no chance Obama would not win the state." If he had to choose a politician to support, Alkhateeb said, it would be Ohio Democratic Rep. Dennis Kucinich. >>> Mark Milian | Monday, August 17, 2009

Obama the Joker. Photo: Los Angeles Times

Liechtenstein Prince Criticized for Jewish Comments
Vaduz castle, Liechtenstein. Photo: Google Images
YNET NEWS: Germany's Central Council of Jews accuses Prince Hans-Adam II of making a 'mockery' of Holocaust by saying bank secrecy in his principality helped save many Jews during WWII

Germany's Central Council of Jews has accused Liechtenstein's Prince Hans-Adam II of making a "mockery" of the Holocaust by saying bank secrecy in his principality had helped save many Jews during World War II.

The prince made the comments in an interview with the Liechtensteiner Volksblatt newspaper, saying Liechtenstein and Switzerland had "saved the lives of many people, especially Jews" thanks to their bank secrecy laws.

He added Germany "should think about its own past" before attacking Liechtenstein and other countries for banking policies that Berlin says encourage tax dodging.

Germany's Central Council of Jews sharply criticized the comments on Monday, describing them as a misrepresentation of the historical record.

"The comments make a mockery of the Holocaust and those that survived it," Stephan Kramer, general secretary of the Council, told the Bild daily.

"It is an attempt to use the Holocaust as a defense for the prince's political failures. Portraying Liechtenstein as a merciful helper of the Jews does not chime with the historical facts."

Liechtenstein remained neutral during World War II. >>> Reuters | Tuesday, August 18, 2009

Liechtensteiner Volksblatt >>>

Iran: Khatami et Karoubi rejoignent un mouvement lancé par Moussavi
LE POINT: L'ancien président réformateur Mohammad Khatami et l'ex-candidat réformateur à la présidentielle Mehdi Karoubi, ont rejoint le "Chemin vert de l'espoir", mouvement récemment lancé par l'un des chefs de file de l'opposition, Mir Hossein Moussavi, selon l'agence Ilna. "Le conseil central du Chemin vert de l'espoir sera formé par un petit groupe de personnes, de cinq à six, parmi lesquelles MM. Khatami et Karoubi", a expliqué Alireza Beheshti, un collaborateur de M. Moussavi, cité par Ilna.

Ce mouvement a été lancé pour poursuivre la contestation de la réélection du président Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, a rapporté dimanche le quotidien réformateur Etemad Melli. "Le Chemin vert de l'espoir est constitué pour défendre les demandes légitimes du peuple et l'obtention de ses droits", a expliqué Mir Hossein Moussavi lors d'une réunion, à une date non précisée, avec des membres de l'Association des médecins islamiques, selon le journal. >>> AFP | Mardi 18 Août 2009

Afghanistan: Der Präsident zeigt im Wahlkampf keine Skrupel
Wahlkampfauftritt von Karzai: Der Präsident zieht alle Register. Photo: FAZ
FRANKFURTER ALLGEMEINE ZEITUNG: Noch stehen die grauen Holzbänke im Klassenzimmer, und an der Tafel sind die Mathe-Formeln der vergangenen Unterrichtsstunde zu erkennen. Wenig deutet daraufhin, dass in diesem Gymnasium im Herzen Kabuls am Donnerstag 15.000 Hauptstädter ihre Stimmen abgeben sollen. Aber der Schuldirektor ist sicher, dass alles rechtzeitig am Platz sein wird: „Wir werden hier für einen fairen und transparenten Ablauf sorgen“, versichert er - und wagt dann eine Einschränkung: „Was danach mit den Stimmen geschieht, darauf haben wir keinen Einfluss.“

Eine freie und faire Wahl wurde den Afghanen versprochen, aber genau daran wachsen die Zweifel. Seit Wochen häufen sich Vorwürfe und Verdachtsmomente gegen Amtsinhaber Hamid Karzai. Der Präsident ziehe alle Register, um als Sieger aus den Wahlen hervorzugehen, heißt es unter Beobachtern. Von „zu erwartenden Manipulationen“ ist die Rede. Manche gehen sogar soweit, die zweite Präsidentenwahl seit dem Sturz der Taliban als „Farce“ zu bezeichnen.

Ohne Betrug werde Karzai die Wahlen verlieren, sagte sein ernsthaftester Herausforderer, Abdullah Abdullah, Ende vergangener Woche in Kandahar. Am Montag wiederholte der frühere Außenminister seine Vorwürfe, als er in einem Kabuler Stadium seine letzte Wahlkampfrede hielt. „Wenn es keinen Wahlbetrug gibt, dann wird das Volk gewinnen“, „Wenn Eure Stimmen nicht gestohlen werden, werdet Ihr dieser korrupten Regierung ein Ende machen.“

Im Präsidentenpalast werden derartige Vorwürfe zurückgewiesen, und tatsächlich sind bislang nur unbewiesene Meldungen im Umlauf. Wie es heißt, werden derzeit Stimmzettel zu Tausenden verkauft. Im paschtunischen Süden sollen Männer festgenommen worden sein, die ganze Stapel von Stimmkarten im Gepäck hatten. Dorfältesten seien von den örtlichen Wahlbehörden Sammelkarten ohne Identitätsnachweise ausgehändigt worden, heißt es. >>> Von Jochen Buchsteiner, Kabul | Dienstag, 18. August 2009

FRANKFURTER ALLGEMEINE ZEITUNG:
Afghanistan: Wieder Tote bei Selbstmordanschlag in Kabul >>> | Dienstag, 18. August 2009

Les secrets posthumes de la reine mère bientôt publiés
«Queen Mum» en avril 1960 pour ses 60 ans. Derrière le sourire légendaire, le vrai personnage de­meurait encore largement méconnu. Crédits photo : Le Figaro
LE FIGARO: Un an avant sa mort, la reine Élisabeth avait livré sa vision sur la Seconde Guerre mondiale, Margaret Thatcher et l'affaire Diana. Sortie du livre le 17 septembre.

La reine mère parle. Et la Grande-Bretagne tout entière attend avec impatience le livre à paraître dans un mois. Un an avant sa mort en 2002, à l'âge de 101 ans, la reine consort Élisabeth, qui fut l'épouse du roi George VI, avait enregistré des heures de conversation avec un vieil ami, sir Eric Anderson, l'ancien professeur du prince Charles. Une démarche tout à fait inhabituelle dans une famille régnante dont les membres s'expriment le moins possible. Élisabeth n'avait donné qu'une interview dans sa vie, avant son mariage avec George VI. L'entourage et le gouvernement furent horrifiés, et elle ne parla plus jamais à la presse. Ce qui rend encore plus surprenant le choix, par la famille royale, du journaliste chargé d'écrire la biographie officielle de la reine mère. William Shawcross, professionnel réputé, est connu pour ses livres riches en révélations sur Kissinger et la guerre secrète de Nixon au Cambodge.

Élevée par une gouvernante française

Non seulement Shawcross a eu accès aux enregistrements, mais son livre est aussi fondé sur des entretiens avec la reine Élisabeth II et le prince Charles. L'occasion d'éclairer un mystère. Personnage adoré de ses sujets, la reine mère, la «Queen Mum» comme on la surnommait, régnait sur les cœurs sans rien faire d'autre que sourire (une innovation qu'elle apporta à sa nouvelle famille, où ne l'on desserrait pas les dents sur les photos), de porter des chapeaux géants sur des robes pastel à froufrous, et de tenir l'alcool comme un matelot, qualité toujours appréciée outre-manche. >>> Pierre Prier | Jeudi 06 Août 2009

The Turing Enigma: Campaigners Demand Pardon for Mathematics Genius
THE INDEPENDENT: He should have been hailed a hero for his wartime codebreaking. Instead he was prosecuted for his homosexuality and took his own life. So why has Britain never said sorry? Jonathan Brown reports

He may have played a pivotal role in securing victory in the Second World War for his country six years earlier, but few outside the academic community would have recognised Alan Turing as he made his way down Manchester's Oxford Street shortly before Christmas in 1951. Someone who did notice the athletically-built scientist, however, was a young working class gay man called Arnold Murray.

Homosexuality was still illegal under the same repressive laws which had sent Oscar Wilde to jail half a century earlier. But regardless of the risk, the chance encounter was to develop into something more substantial and Murray spent a number of nights at the older man's modest home in suburban Wilmslow.

A month later, after Turing, a veteran of the then still secret Bletchley Park code-cracking team, had been giving a talk to the BBC on his pioneering work on artificial intelligence, he returned home to find his house burgled.

The culprit was an acquaintance of Murray's, who would prey on Murray's lovers, thinking they would be so afraid of being outed that they would not report the thefts to the police.

But Turing defied this convention and went straight to the police, where he admitted his affair – a "crime" for which he was spared the normal two-year jail term in favour of a hormonal treatment designed to beef up his masculine urges and suppress his homosexuality. The resulting publicity was to prove too much to bear and in June 1954, the 41-year-old was found dead in bed by his housekeeper. He had eaten an apple he had laced with poison.

The consequences which unfolded were not only a tragedy for Turing, his friends and family, it also robbed the world of one of the greatest thinkers of the 20th century. Now campaigners are demanding an official apology from the Prime Minister Gordon Brown, recognising the "consequences of prejudice that ended his career". More than 700 people have signed a petition started by the leading computer scientist John Graham-Cumming on the Downing Street website, including gay rights campaigners, politicians and scientists.

"What really annoyed me about this was here was a man who died in his early 40s because he was a homosexual. He was a war hero but here was a part of our history that we were turning a blind eye to when we should be celebrating it. There were a lot of homosexual people during the war doing incredible work – if it was not for Turing we would most likely be having this conversation in German," Mr Graham-Cumming said. >>> Jonathan Brown | Tuesday, August 18, 2009

Gotteskrieger in Bosnien auf dem Vormarsch
TAGES ANZEIGER: In Bosnien leben seit dem Krieg Hunderte muslimische Eiferer. Liberale Muslime befürchten deshalb, dass die Fanatiker das Zusammenleben gefährden.

Konservative bosnische Muslime beten vor einer Moschee in Sarajevo. Bild: Tages Anzeiger
Architektonisch wirkt die bosnische Stadt Mostar, als könnten die Religionen hier zusammenleben. Am Ufer der Neretva stehen Moscheen und Kirchen, die im Krieg zerstörte weltberühmte Alte Brücke strahlt in neuer alter Schönheit. Doch politisch bleibt Mostar geteilt: Seit dem Bosnien-Krieg leben die Muslime im östlichen Stadtteil, die katholischen Kroaten im Westen. Nun droht in Mostar eine weitere Spaltung, diesmal in der muslimischen Religionsgemeinschaft. Die Spannungen zwischen islamistischen Fanatikern, die sich als Rechtgläubige bezeichnen, und liberalen Muslimen nehmen zu. Jüngst brach der Streit offen aus: Bei einer Massenschlägerei zwischen einer Gruppe ultrareligiöser Wahhabiten und vermutlich ehemaligen Kämpfern der bosnischen Armee wurde der 34-jährige Magdi Dizdarevic getötet.

Die islamische Gemeinschaft Bosniens bezeichnete den strenggläubigen Dizdarevic als Opfer der Vorurteile und des Hasses gegen die Muslime. Bei der Beerdigung ehrten ihn Glaubensbrüder als islamischen Märtyrer. Einige Wahhabiten sollen laut bosnischen Medien sogar mit Selbstjustiz gedroht haben. Inzwischen bemühen sich angesehene Bürger Mostars um die Beruhigung der Gemüter. 2000 arabische Kämpfer kamen >>> Von Enver Robelli, Zagreb | Dienstag, 18. August 2009