Diplomatie : Nicolas Sarkozy veut une reprise des discussions pour "un État palestinien réel"
Le président français Nicolas Sarkozy a reçu lundi à l'Élysée le président de l'Autorité palestinienne, Mahmoud Abbas. Crédits photo : Le Point
LE POINT: Un État palestinien dans les frontières de 1967, avec un échange de territoire : telle est la volonté de Nicolas Sarkozy, qui ne reprend donc pas à son compte l'idée évoquée par Bernard Kouchner ce week-end de reconnaître un État palestinien avant même le règlement de la question des frontières avec Israël. 



"Ce que nous voulons (...) c'est un État (palestinien) réel, qui puisse donner une espérance, un avenir aux millions de Palestiniens, [ce n'est] pas simplement une idée", a déclaré lundi le chef de l'État, lors d'une conférence de presse commune avec le président de l'Autorité palestinienne Mahmoud Abbas à l'Élysée. "Dans la déclaration de Bernard (Kouchner), il y avait de la prospective en disant : Si on n'arrive pas à ça, on peut marquer politiquement, le moment venu, en accord avec nos amis palestiniens, l'idée de cet État , donner un cran de plus en quelque sorte", a-t-il poursuivi. "Mais le point d'arrivée, c'est un État palestinien dans les frontières de 1967, avec un échange de territoire comme ça a toujours été dit", a insisté le président français. >>> Le Point avec AFP | Lundi 22 Février 2010

Point de vue : A quand l'Etat palestinien ?, par Bernard Kouchner et Miguel Angel Moratinos
LE MONDE: Le 17 décembre 2007, la Conférence internationale des donateurs pour l'Etat palestinien permettait de collecter 7,7 milliards de dollars pour l'Autorité palestinienne jusqu'en 2010. Il s'agissait de jeter les bases économiques, financières, institutionnelles du futur Etat palestinien et d'appuyer la démarche de paix du président Abbas au moment même où s'ouvrait la conférence d'Annapolis.

Deux ans après, le processus d'Annapolis a déçu, mais la construction des bases de l'Etat palestinien a nettement progressé, constituant aujourd'hui une base solide pour une reprise des négociations israélo-palestiniennes en vue d'un accord de paix. >>> Le Monde | Lundi 22 Février 2010

La Suède paralysée par une vague de froid
LE MONDE: Trains et métros paralysés, écoles fermées, des centaines de milliers de Suédois ont été affectés, lundi 22 février, par la vague de froid et les abondantes chutes de neige plongeant le pays dans le chaos.

Avec des températures allant jusqu'à - 40 °C dans le Nord, les aiguillages bloqués par la glace et les rails ensevelis sous la neige, un tiers des trains ont dû être annulés, d'autres retardés, a précisé un porte-parole de la compagnie publique de chemins de fer SJ. Rien que pour le transport ferroviaire, "près de 100 000 usagers ont probablement été affectés", selon le porte-parole Ulf Wallin. >>> LeMonde.fr avec AFP | Lundi, 22 Février 2010

Snow & Winds Blast Sweden, Cause Chaos and Cut Power
RADIO SWEDEN: Coming on the heels of a Class 2 weather warning issued by the Swedish meteorological service, a severe snowstorm is plaguing southern and central Sweden, bringing heavy snowfall, icy conditions, and high winds in its wake.

A great number of roofs have buckled throughout the country due to the weight of snow, including tennis halls and farmhouses, and trains, buses, and cars have ground to halt in the snowdrifts. >>> | Monday, February 22, 2010

Brown dément toute violence envers ses collaborateurs
LIBÉRATION: Le Premier ministre britannique est accusé dans un livre d'être colérique et de s'en prendre régulièrement à son personnel.

Le Premier ministre britannique Gordon Brown a affirmé qu’il n’avait «jamais, jamais» frappé quiconque, après la publication dimanche d’extraits d’un livre qui suggèrent qu’il rudoie régulièrement ses collaborateurs.

«Si je me mets en colère, je me mets en colère contre moi-même», a indiqué le Premier ministre sur la chaîne Channel 4 samedi soir. «Je jette des journaux sur le sol ou quelque chose comme cela».

Mais «laissez-moi expliquer, absolument clairement, pour qu’il n’y ait aucun malentendu: je n’ai jamais, jamais frappé quiconque de ma vie». >>> AFP | Dimanche 21 Février 2010

Brown bittet um zweite Chance: Die Labour-Partei lanciert in Grossbritannien den offiziellen Wahlkampf
NZZ ONLINE: Die britische Labour-Partei hat den Wahlkampf lanciert. Sie konzentriert sich auf die Wirtschaftspolitik und das Versprechen einer faireren Gesellschaft. Damit werden die Wähler im politischen Zentrum umworben.

Der britische Premierminister Gordon Brown ist von den britischen Massenmedien längst abgeschrieben worden. Er hat drei Putschversuche aus dem Innern der Partei überstanden, den letzten erst im Januar. Er wird von immer mehr prominenten Parteigenossen verlassen. Der jüngste Rückschlag erfolgte am vergangenen Freitag, als der frühere Sozialminister James Purnell, ein vielgelobtes Nachwuchstalent der Partei, den Rückzug aus der Politik erklärte. Doch je stärker Brown unter Druck zu geraten scheint, desto energischer und überzeugender bestreitet er den scheinbar verlorenen Wahlkampf gegen die führenden Konservativen. Am Samstag hat er mit einer Rede, die anstelle einer Frühjahrskonferenz, für welche die Partei kein Geld hatte, in der mittelenglischen Stadt Coventry gehalten wurde, die vier Schwerpunktthemen des Labour-Wahlkampfs präsentiert. >>> Peter Rásonyi, London | Sonntag, 21. Februar 2010

Turquie : Un poster dénonçant Israël brièvement déployé à Istanbul
20MINUTES.ch: Un poster représentant le président israélien Shimon Pérès s'inclinant devant le Premier ministre turc Recep Tayyip Erdogan, réponse présumée au traitement humiliant infligé par Israël à l'ambassadeur de Turquie, a été brièvement déployé dimanche à Istanbul, selon un journal local.

Le poster, de grande taille, suspendu à une grue dans la banlieue de la ville où M. Erdogan devait participer dimanche à l'inauguration d'une route, a été rapidement retiré par ses services avant son arrivée, rapporte le journal Aksam sur son site internet.

En janvier dernier, une nouvelle crise avait éclaté entre les deux pays, lorsque l'ambassadeur de Turquie à Tel-Aviv, Oguz Celikkol, avait été convoqué par le vice-ministre israélien des Affaires étrangères, Danny Ayalon, qui voulait protester contre la diffusion par une télévision privée turque d'un feuilleton jugé antisémite par Israël. >>> afp | Dimanche 21 Février 2010

Gordon Brown: 'Psychological Flaws' Is Starting to Look Like an Understatment
THE SUNDAY TIMES: Andrew Rawnsley's new book paints an all-too familiar portrait of Gordon Brown's struggle to cope with the responsibilities of running the country, writes Benedict Brogan.

Gordon Brown shouldn't have a prayer. Photograph: The Sunday Times
So that’s what Alastair Campbell meant when he complained about Gordon Brown’s ‘psychological flaws’. At the time the phrase had a hugely debilitating effect on Tony Blair’s leadership; now it reads like the mother of all understatements. If an even temperament is a vital quality in a leader, then Mr Brown should never have been allowed through the door of Number 10.

The wealth of detail laid out in Andrew Rawnsley’s latest book may get the odd recollection wrong here and there, but the overall picture of Mr Brown is all too accurate. This is a terrible portrait of a complex man overwhelmed by the demands of the job he coveted, who under pressure projects his frustrations outwards at those around him, most shamefully at those with no power to answer back.

The result is excruciating to behold. A British Prime Minister is reduced to issuing official statements denying that he has ever hit anyone, like the man in the joke asked ‘when did you stop beating your wife?’ What must those tiresome foreigners he disdained so much – ‘why do I have to meet these f****** people!’ - be making of him now?

To those operating in Westminster there is nothing startling here. Mr Brown’s capacity for anger is well known, as is his inability to make snap decisions, another essential requirement of high office. His allies defend these aspects of his character as the unavoidable counterpart to his towering intellect the price we pay for the leadership he showed in the financial crisis. Those explanations have worn thin, and are heard less frequently these days. >>> Benedict Brogan | Sunday, February 21, 2010

WELT ONLINE: ”The End of the Party” – Neues Buch zeigt Gordon Brown als Tyrannen: Der britische Premierminister Brown wird in einem neu erschienenen Buch als Rüpel dargestellt, der seine Mitarbeiter einschüchtert, anpöbelt und auch mal am Kragen packt. Autor Andrew Rawnsley nutzt sein Insider-Wissen und liefert der Opposition reichlich Munition für die bald anstehende Wahl. >>> Von Thomas Kielinger | Montag, 22. Februar 2010

Sarah Palin Comes Third in Republican Presidential 'Beauty Contest'
THE SUNDAY TELEGRAPH: Sarah Palin has come third in a Republican "beauty contest" of presidential hopefuls.

The first contest for Republicans seeking to battle Barack Obama for the White House was won by Ron Paul, a libertarian Congressman who is barely considered a member of the party.

In a straw poll taken at an annual conference for conservative activists, 31 per cent supported Ron Paul, a maverick fringe contender in the past who proposes isolationism in foreign policy and abolition of the Federal Reserve Bank. >>> Alex Spillius in Washington | Sunday, February 21, 2010

Saudi Women Lawyers to Be Permitted to Appear in Court
SAUDI GAZETTE: RIYADH – The Ministry of Justice is drafting a law that would allow female lawyers to argue legal cases in court.

Sheikh Muhammad Bin Al-Issa, Minister of Justice, said Saturday the bill will be issued in the coming days as part of King Abdullah’s “plan to develop the justice system.”

Addressing a workshop on the international legal framework for countering terrorism and its funding which opened in Riyadh Saturday, Al-Issa said the committee to study the role of women in the legal profession has finished its task and that the matter was now awaiting the approval of the King.

The law would mark a major step for female lawyers in the Kingdom. Currently, women law graduates can work in government offices and in court offices, but cannot argue cases before court.

Under the new law, women would be allowed to argue cases on child custody, divorce and other family-related issues. Saudi women lawyers would be allowed to appear in court >>> Fahd Al-Dhibyaniand Adnan Al-Shabrawi | Sunday, February 21, 2010

Stupidity Alert! Schools Should Not Force Girls to Wear Skirts – It Discriminates Against Transsexuals, Warns Watchdog
Photograph: Mail On Sunday
MAIL ONLINE: For generations, the skirt has been an integral part of a girl's school uniform.

But the Government's human rights watchdog says schools who force girls to wear skirts may be breaking the law because the policy discriminates against transsexuals.

Official guidance from the Equality and Human Rights Commission warns schools that the dress code may breach the rights of girls who feel compelled to live as boys.

In a 68-page report on the human rights of transsexuals, the watchdog says that 'requiring pupils to wear gender-specific clothes is potentially unlawful'.

It says that research conducted for its report found that 'pupils born female with gender dysphoria experienced great discomfort being forced to wear stereotypical girls’ clothes — for example a skirt'. >>> Artheur Martin | Sunday, February 21, 2010

Oriana Fallaci: Sermon for the West

Oriana Fallaci On European Anti-Semitism (April 12, 2002)

Judenhaß – das gefährlichste Gift der Welt
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Islamhaß in Europa heute - Parallelen zum Antisemitismus?

Shirin Ebadi: Human Rights and Civil Society in Iran

Come Clean on Pius XII
THE JERUSALEM POST: Pius is accused both by Jews and non-Jews of having betrayed the Jews during their darkest hours.

Pope Benedict XVI’s intention to elevate his World War II-era predecessor, Pope Pius XII, to sainthood has inexorably revived the polemic about whether Pius turned a blind eye to the Holocaust. In a transparent effort to calm the controversy it itself has recharged, the Vatican announced last week that it will soon make some of its WWII archives available on the Internet. The Holy See’s semi-official newspaper, L’Osservatore Romano, claimed this will “render service to the historic truth.”

But will it? Odds are that this will be a hi-tech rerun of what occurred in 1999. To counter British author John Cornwell’s book Hitler’s Pope, the Vatican appointed a panel – the International Catholic-Jewish Historical Commission – to go over material kept zealously concealed from public scrutiny. Yet even this handpicked and specifically approved panel was denied full access. Only pre-1923 papers were made available. In reaction, the commission suspended its work in 2001, after producing no findings on the papacy during the Holocaust.

This time, too, it is already being indicated that of the 8,000 pages to be uploaded, none will directly relate to the wartime pope and that only in another five to six years will anything pertaining to Pius see light. Such promises for future lifting of secrecy have been made periodically over the years, and each time the target date is further postponed. >>> JPost Editorial | Saturday, February 20, 2010

Syria Warns: Next War Will Be Ruinous
THE JERUSALEM POST: Syrian PM says if future conflict erupts it will affect "the region and beyond."

Syrian Prime Minister Naji al-Otari on Saturday warned Israel that any new Mideast war would be catastrophic for the region and beyond.

Speaking to reporters Saturday after meeting with French Prime Minister Francois Fillon, he said that a new war will have dangerous repercussions not only in the Middle East but also on the international level.

Syria's foreign minister warned Israel earlier this month that any new war would reach Israeli cities, to which Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman responded that the Syrian army would be defeated and its regime would collapse in any future conflict.

Otari's statements to his French counterpart on Saturday come after several weeks of quiet in the Israeli-Syrian war of words.

The United States, meanwhile, has appointed a new ambassador to Syria after the previous administration led by George W. Bush withdrew its ambassador in 2005.

It also withdrew travel warnings saying that American citizens would face security risks if they traveled to Syria.

The US did not, however, remove Syria from its list of states sponsoring terrorism. >>> JPost Staff and AP | Sunday, February 21, 2010

New Dark Age Alert! Jews Leave Swedish City After Sharp Rise in Anti-Semitic Hate Crimes
Judith Popinski. Photo: The Telegraph
“... The hatreds of the Middle East have come to Malmo. Schools in Muslim areas of the city simply won't invite Holocaust survivors to speak any more." – Mrs Popinski, Holocaust survivor
THE SUNDAY TELEGRAPH: Sweden's reputation as a tolerant, liberal nation is being threatened by a steep rise in anti-Semitic hate crimes in the city of Malmo.

When she first arrived in Sweden after her rescue from a Nazi concentration camp, Judith Popinski was treated with great kindness.

She raised a family in the city of Malmo, and for the next six decades lived happily in her adopted homeland - until last year.

In 2009, a chapel serving the city's 700-strong Jewish community was set ablaze. Jewish cemeteries were repeatedly desecrated, worshippers were abused on their way home from prayer, and "Hitler" was mockingly chanted in the streets by masked men.

"I never thought I would see this hatred again in my lifetime, not in Sweden anyway," Mrs Popinski told The Sunday Telegraph.

"This new hatred comes from Muslim immigrants. The Jewish people are afraid now."

Malmo's Jews, however, do not just point the finger at bigoted Muslims and their fellow racists in the country's Neo-Nazi fringe. They also accuse Ilmar Reepalu, the Left-wing mayor who has been in power for 15 years, of failing to protect them.

Mr Reepalu, who is blamed for lax policing, is at the centre of a growing controversy for saying that what the Jews perceive as naked anti-Semitism is in fact just a sad, but understandable consequence of Israeli policy in the Middle East.

While his views are far from unusual on the European liberal-left, which is often accused of a pro-Palestinian bias, his Jewish critics say they encourage young Muslim hotheads to abuse and harass them.

The future looks so bleak that by one estimate, around 30 Jewish families have already left for Stockholm, England or Israel, and more are preparing to go. >>> Nick Meo in Malmo, Sweden | Sunday, February 21, 2010

Stephen Hester Lines Up £1.6m RBS Bonus
RBS cheif executive Stephen Hester. Photograph: The Sunday Times
THE SUNDAY TIMES: Taxpayer banks set to report £12bn losses as bosses agonise over their big bonus payouts

STEPHEN HESTER, chief executive of Royal Bank of Scotland, is in line to collect a bonus of up to £1.6m despite the bank posting losses of several billion pounds.

Talks over the bumper payout are expected to reach a conclusion within days and could be announced alongside the bank’s results later this week.

Although the 49-year-old has yet to make a final decision on whether to accept the pay deal, it is understood that the conditions in his contract would permit a large payout.

The deal comes amid continuing controversy over bonuses at taxpayer-backed banks. RBS, 84%-owned by the state thanks to huge injections of government funds, will confirm this week that it is to pay out £1.32 billion in bonuses to its investment bankers.

Lloyds Banking Group is expected to award £200m to its staff and is on a collision course with investors over a bonus for Eric Daniels, its chief executive.

The payments come against a stark financial backdrop at the two banks. Lloyds and RBS are expected to post combined losses of about £12 billion this week, following enormous charges for bad debts. >>> Iain Dey and Dominic O’Connell | Sunday, February 21, 2010

Thousands of Illegal Immigrants Win Right to Stay in Britain Under 'Squatters' Rights'
THE TELEGRAPH: Thousands of illegal immigrants have been granted "squatters' rights" to remain in Britain permanently after proving they have lived here for 14 years, it can be disclosed.

A little-known rule, introduced by Labour in 2003, allows illegal immigrants to claim "indefinite leave to remain" if they manage to live in Britain's black economy for long enough or are failed asylum seekers who manage to avoid deportation.

After 14 years they can apply to the Home Office which considers factors such as "compassionate circumstances, strength of connection to the UK and previous criminal record", before deciding whether an illegal immigrant will be allowed to stay.

If successful, the immigrant will then be allowed full access to the welfare state and be eligible to apply for a British passport.

Since rules changed in April 2003, 7,245 illegals have won the right to live here permanently – more than 1,000 a year on average. It is likely that many paid no income tax during the 14 years they spent in Britain. >>> David Barrett, Home Affairs Correspondent | Saturday, February 20, 2010

Defence Chiefs Fight Plans to Build a Giant Mosque Overlooking Sandhurst Parade Ground
MAIL ON SUNDAY: The Ministry Of Defence is fighting plans to build a giant mosque overlooking Sandhurst.

Military chiefs claim the place of worship will pose a security threat to the world-famous Army academy.

They have lodged an official objection backed by 7,000 local residents who have signed a petition.

Surrey Council has already approved an application to build the mosque, which would have a huge dome and two 100ft minarets that would be just 400 yards from the soldiers' parade ground.

But security experts have warned the mosque could attract radical Islamists if it is constructed.

'We have some concerns and have been checking links with known radical mosques in other areas and postings on websites,' a security source told the News Of The World.

'Police special branch has asked to brief the local council.'

A Ministry of Defence spokesman said: 'Sandhurst has objected to the plans as such a tall building would give oversight into Defence property which could prove a security risk. >>> | Sunday, February 21, 2010

Pope Enters Airport Body Scanners Row
THE GUARDIAN: Benedict addresses plans for 'virtually naked' passenger images, telling airport bosses personal integrity must be safeguarded

Airport security chiefs may have thought they had enough to worry about with shoe bombers, underpants bombers and people who forget to put their toothpaste into those little plastic bags. But, if so, they were reckoning without Benedict XVI.

At a meeting in the Vatican at the weekend, the pope made an authoritative – if entirely unexpected – incursion into the raging debate over the planned use of airport body scanners. He told an audience from the aerospace industry that, notwithstanding the threat from terrorism, "the primary asset to be safeguarded and treasured is the person, in his or her integrity". >>> John Hooper in Rome | Sunday, February 21, 2010

The New Poor: Millions of Unemployed Face Years Without Jobs
THE NEW YORK TIMES: BUENA PARK, Calif. — Even as the American economy shows tentative signs of a rebound, the human toll of the recession continues to mount, with millions of Americans remaining out of work, out of savings and nearing the end of their unemployment benefits.

Economists fear that the nascent recovery will leave more people behind than in past recessions, failing to create jobs in sufficient numbers to absorb the record-setting ranks of the long-term unemployed.

Call them the new poor: people long accustomed to the comforts of middle-class life who are now relying on public assistance for the first time in their lives — potentially for years to come.

Yet the social safety net is already showing severe strains. Roughly 2.7 million jobless people will lose their unemployment check before the end of April unless Congress approves the Obama administration’s proposal to extend the payments, according to the Labor Department.

Here in Southern California, Jean Eisen has been without work since she lost her job selling beauty salon equipment more than two years ago. In the several months she has endured with neither a paycheck nor an unemployment check, she has relied on local food banks for her groceries.

She has learned to live without the prescription medications she is supposed to take for high blood pressure and cholesterol. She has become effusively religious — an unexpected turn for this onetime standup comic with X-rated material — finding in Christianity her only form of health insurance.

“I pray for healing,” says Ms. Eisen, 57. “When you’ve got nothing, you’ve got to go with what you know.” >>> Peter S. Goodman | Saturday, February 20, 2010

Moyen-Orient : Le souverain saoudien a reçu l'ex-PM irakien
leJDD.fr: Le roi Abdallah d'Arabie saoudite a reçu samedi en audience l'ancien Premier ministre irakien Iyad Allaoui, un chiite partisan de la laïcité de l'État. L'Arabie saoudite, principale nation sunnite de la région, a toujours maintenu une attitude de neutralité vis-à-vis des tensions inter-religieuses en Irak, mais ne cache pas son inquiétude face à l'influence grandissante de la République islamique chiite iranienne dans les affaires irakiennes. Iyad Allaoui est à la tête d'une une coalition de sunnites et de chiites, et présente de fait un projet laïc, dans le cadre des élections législatives en Irak, qui auront lieu le 7 mars. [Source: leJDD.fr] | Samedi 20 Février 2010

France, Spain Push Bid to Recognize Palestinian State Within 2 Years
HAARETZ: French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner and his Spanish counterpart Miguel Moratinos are promoting an initiative by which the European Union would recognize a Palestinian state in 18 months, even before negotiations for a permanent settlement between Israel and the Palestinian Authority are concluded.

According to senior European diplomats and senior Israeli officials, Israel has relayed its opposition to the initiative - warning that it would undermine any chance of a successful peace process. >>> Barak Ravid, Haaretz Correspondent | Sunday, February 21, 2010

Islam in the USA: Halal Meals on Wheels Offered in Parts of Wayne County (Michigan)
THE DETROIT NEWS: Program, believed to be first in nation, caters to homebound Muslims in Wayne County

Dearborn -- Mariam Wehbe lives alone and can no longer stand on her feet to prepare her meals. A devout Muslim, she needs to eat dishes that meet religious requirements, but her options are limited.

That's why Wehbe, 70, is glad to be part of Michigan's first halal Meals on Wheels program. The program, which is also believed to be the first in the nation, provides meals made with meat butchered using a process outlined in the Quran, the religious text of Islam.

The pilot program serves about 20 seniors and was launched last month in Dearborn, one of the largest Muslim communities in the U.S., but it is available to southern and western Wayne County residents who qualify. >>> Kim Kozlowski | Saturday, February 20, 2010

Unveiling the Truth Behind Shariah
TORONTO SUN: Let’s revise the famous opening sentence of Marx and Engel’s Communist Manifesto to state there is a real peril, instead of a spectre, haunting the West — the peril of acquiescing to the Shariah-based demands of the Islamists.

At the top of the Islamist demands is to make defamation of religion a punishable offence. Since Judaism and Christianity are open to criticism, even ridicule in free and secular societies of the West, such a demand is to make an exception for Islam.

The trial of Geert Wilders in Amsterdam for offending Muslims indicates the extent to which Holland, one of the most open European countries, has tilted in the direction of becoming a “Shariah-compliant” society.

Holland is not alone in this effort to appease the Islamists. Across the West, a chill has fallen over the fundamental right to think and speak freely about Islam like any other subject of public interest.

The not-so-curious fact that the mainstream media remains silent by not exposing the travesty in bringing Wilders to court for expressing his thoughts on Islam — it also remained silent by not publishing the Danish cartoons that incited a large number of Muslims around the world to rage and commit acts of violence — is proof of how great is the peril of western societies conceding de facto or de jure to Islamist demands for Shariah-based rulings.

There is terrible irony in this. Muslims remain the first victims of a Shariah-governed society, and the imposition of Shariah is the primary cause of the contemporary retardation of Muslim countries. >>> Salim Mansur, QMI Agency | Saturday, February 20, 2010

Portugal : Des milliers d'opposants au mariage homosexuel manifestent
20MINUTES.ch: Plus de 5000 personnes ont manifesté samedi dans les rues de Lisbonne contre la légalisation du mariage homosexuel. Le projet de loi a été adopté il y une dizaine de jours par le parlement portugais.

Les manifestants ont défilé jusqu'à une importante place du centre-ville où ils ont organisé «une grande fête de famille». Ils répondaient à l'appel de la plate-forme «Citoyenneté et mariage», à l'origine d'une pétition de 90'000 signatures pour exiger l'organisation d'un référendum sur la question.

«Le mariage est sacré, ce n'est pas à l'Etat laïc de le détruire», lisait-on sur les pancartes. La hiérarchie de l'Eglise catholique portugaise a exprimé sa «sympathie» pour cette manifestation. >>> ats | Samedi 20 Février 2010

Dati: Burka 'Not a Religious Expression'
Dati: 'The burka does not correspond to our values'. Photograph: BBC
BCC: The former French justice minister, Rachida Dati, has condemned the wearing of the burka, saying that it "does not correspond" to European values.

Ms Dati, the first person of North African descent to serve in the French cabinet, is in the UK to visit the Justice Secretary Jack Straw's Blackburn constituency.

In a rare interview, she told Today programme reporter Zubeida Malik that "it's important to remind what helps citizens live together and have a common destiny and living together and having a common destiny means having principles and values in common.

"And it's true that the burka" - the wearing of which is now the subject of heated debate in France - "does not correspond neither to our values nor to our principles whether French or British and not even European. So it is important to say no to this expression that is not a religious expression."

Ms Dati rejected suggestions that banning the burka and other face veils would make them more popular. "We have to remember that often women who wear the burka are either doing it out of ignorance or others are motivated by an activism linked to the creation of a new identity," she said.

"And to those for whom it represents the expression of an identity, it is important to say that in our countries there can't be any confrontation of identities. There is one single identity based upon common values and principles shared by our countries."

Rachida Dati was a lawyer when she was named as French justice minister by President Sarkozy in 2007. She was the first person of North African origin to hold a top government post in Paris.

Born in 1965 to a Moroccan mason father and an Algerian mother, Ms Dati was one of 12 children raised in humble circumstances. Aged 16, she started working as a carer in a private clinic, looking after her younger sisters and brothers after her mother's death. >>> | Friday, February 19, 2010

Alexander Haig Dies

The Need for Health Reform

Iran’s Power Struggle

Diplomatie – François Fillon : "Clotilde Reiss est une femme innocente qui doit être libérée dans les meilleurs délais et sans condition"
LE POINT: Le Premier ministre français François Fillon a demandé samedi la libération de la Française Clotilde Reiss, retenue en Iran, lors d'une visite en Syrie, pays qui avait contribué à obtenir sa libération sous caution. "Clotilde Reiss est injustement détenue en Iran", a déclaré François Fillon lors d'une conférence de presse à Damas avec son homologue syrien Mohammad Naji Otri. "C'est une femme innocente qui n'a aucune raison d'être détenue et qui doit donc être libérée dans les meilleurs délais et sans condition", a-t-il ajouté. 



"Voilà le message que nous passons au gouvernement iranien et je voudrais encore une fois remercier le président Assad de nous avoir aidés à relayer ce message", a-t-il indiqué. Clotilde Reiss, lectrice à l'université d'Ispahan (centre de l'Iran), avait été arrêtée le 1er juillet 2009 et accusée d'atteinte à la sécurité nationale de l'Iran pour avoir transmis aux autorités françaises des informations et photos lors de manifestations contre le président Mahmoud Ahmadinejad en juin. >>> AFP | Samedi 20 Février 2010

Paris et Damas confirment leur rapprochement, sauf sur l'Iran
LE POINT: François Fillon a achevé samedi une visite à Damas en appelant à convertir en dividendes économiques et commerciaux le "tournant" diplomatique que la France et la Syrie ont amorcé en 2008.

Mais si le réchauffement bilatéral est notable, la question iranienne reste une pomme de discorde tenace.

Durant cette visite de 24 heures, la première d'un chef de gouvernement français depuis Raymond Barre en 1977, François Fillon n'a eu de cesse de défendre le choix de Nicolas Sarkozy de renouer le dialogue avec la Syrie, jugé infréquentable sous l'ère Chirac après l'assassinat de l'ex-Premier ministre libanais Rafic Hariri en février 2005 à Beyrouth.

Un assassinat imputé aux services secrets syriens - ce que Damas dément - qui fit dire à Jacques Chirac en 2006 que le régime syrien était "difficilement compatible avec la sécurité et la paix". >>> Reuters | Samedi 20 Février 2010

En Syrie, Fillon fait preuve 
de fermeté à l’égard de l’Iran
LE FIGARO: En visite officielle à Damas, le premier ministre a accusé Téhéran de violer les résolutions du Conseil de sécurité de l’ONU, et a de nouveau appelé à la libération de la Française Clotilde Reiss.

François Fillon n’est pas tombé dans le panneau. A l’heure de la conférence de presse commune avec son homologue syrien Mohammad Naji Otri qui venait de défendre «l’emploi pacifique de l’énergie nucléaire» par le voisin iranien et fustiger la «menace de la puissance israëlienne», le chef du gouvernement français a repris la parole pour une ferme mise au point. Pas question de laisser cette fin de non recevoir syrienne sans réponse. S’appuyant sur le dernier rapport de l’AIEA (l’Agence internationale de l’énergie atomique), François Fillon a accusé «le gouvernement iranien de violer très directement les résolutions du Conseil de sécurité de l’Onu. Autant dire que si la France et la Syrie ont décidé de réchauffer leurs relations depuis deux ans, le dialogue reste de l’aveu même de François Fillon «franc et transparent». >>> A Damas, Bruno Jeudy | Samedi 20 Février 2010

Madère/intempéries : au moins 32 morts
LE FIGARO: Les intempéries qui ont frappé aujourd'hui l'île portugaise de Madère ont fait au moins 32 morts et 68 blessés, selon un nouveau bilan annoncé par le ministre de l'Intérieur portugais, Rui Pereira. >>> AFP | Samedi 20 Février 2010



At Least 32 Killed in Madeira Storms
THE TELEGRAPH: At least 32 people are feared dead after mudslides and floods swept the Portuguese holiday island of Madeira.

Rescue efforts have been hampered by strong winds, high seas and blocked roads. Photograph: The Telegraph
More than 60 others were also hospitalised as torrential streams of water and liquid mud swept through the capital, Funchal, destroying homes, overturning cars and felling trees. The Atlantic island, which lies around 600 miles south-west of Portugal, is a popular destination for British holidaymakers and is thought to have been busy this week with half-term visitors. Last night the Foreign Office said it was monitoring the situation, althought there were no reports of foreign tourists being killed or injured.

The Portuguese interior minister Rui Pereira was preparing to make an emergency visit to the island, which was battered by winds in excess of 70mph.

"We’re overwhelmed by calls from people asking for help after the torrential rains," added one duty officer at the civil protection service.

Rescue efforts have been hampered by strong winds, high seas and blocked roads, while phone and electricity lines thought to have sustained severe damage.

Portugal's prime minister, Jose Socrates, expressed his “profound shock” at the scale of the devastation, which is thought to have affected mainly the capital. >>> Colin Freeman and Nick Meo | Saturday, February 20, 2010

Staatsschulden: Deutschland erwägt Milliardenhilfe für Griechen
WELT ONLINE: Die übrigen Euro-Länder erwägen, das verschuldete Griechenland mit einer Milliardenhilfe zu unterstützen. Laut einem Magazinbericht könnte allein Deutschland mit bis zu fünf Milliarden Euro einspringen. Deutschen Banken drohen Verluste wegen Finanzgeschäften mit Griechenland und weiteren Staaten.

Die Hilfen der Euro-Gruppe für Griechenland könnten nach einem „Spiegel“-Bericht ein Volumen zwischen 20 und 25 Milliarden Euro erreichen. Das Nachrichtenmagazin bezieht sich auf „erste Überlegungen“ des Bundesfinanzministeriums.

Auf Deutschland könnten demnach vier bis fünf Milliarden Euro entfallen. Ein Sprecher des Ministeriums nannte den Bericht eine Spekulation und die darin genannten Angaben zu „konkreten Überlegungen“ der Länder der Eurogruppe unzutreffend. „Im Finanzministerium gibt es keinerlei Festlegungen dazu. Dies gilt auch in Bezug auf Spekulationen des Spiegel zu konkreten Hilfsinstrumenten“, sagte der Sprecher von Minister Wolfgang Schäuble (CDU) weiter. >>> dpa/lac/oht | Samstag, 20. Februar 2010

Neuwahl Chance für Wilders: Koalitionsbruch in Holland nützt den Populisten
WELT ONLINE: Das Bündnis aus Christlich-Demokratischem Appell, Sozialdemokraten und der protestantisch-konservativen Christen-Union scheiterte am Streit um den Einsatz holländischer Soldaten in Afghanistan. Bei Neuwahlen könnte die rechtsgerichtete Partei für die Freiheit (PVV) des Populisten Geert Wilders zweitstärkste Kraft werden.

Geert Wilders. Bild: Welt Online
Zwei Tage vor ihrem dritten Geburtstag ist die vom niederländischen Christdemokraten Jan Peter Balkenende geführte Koalition zerbrochen. Das Bündnis aus Balkenendes Christlich- Demokratischem Appell, den Sozialdemokraten von Vizepremier Wouter Bos und der kleinen protestantisch-konservativen Christen-Union scheiterte am Streit um dem Einsatz holländischer Soldaten in Afghanistan.

Die Sozialdemokraten hatten öffentlich gefordert, einer Nato-Anfrage nach einer Ausweitung des niederländischen Engagements am Hindukusch eine klare Absage zu erteilen. Auch ein 16-stündiger Beratungsmarathon konnte die vierte von Balkenende geführte Koalition nicht retten – sehr zur Freude der Oppositionsparteien des linken und rechten Spektrums, die bei den nun vermutlich vorgezogenen Wahlen mit kräftigen Stimmenzuwächsen rechnen können.

Nutznießer des Koalitionsbruchs dürfte besonders die rechtsgerichte Partei für die Freiheit (PVV) des Populisten Geert Wilders sein. Nach Meinungsumfragen dürfte sie bei der nächsten Parlamentswahl die Zahl ihrer Mandate von derzeit neun auf 24 mehr als verdoppeln und zweitstärkste Kraft werden. >>> Von Rachel Levy | Samstag, 20. Februar 2010

Verbunden / Related:

Dutch Cabinet, Balkenende’s Fourth, Collapses >>> Petra de Koning in Brussels | Friday, February 19, 2010

9/11–Held: New Yorks Ex-Polizeichef muss 4 Jahre ins Gefängnis
Bernhard Kerik: Foto: Krone.at
KRONE.at: Er war einer der Helden nach den Terrorangriffen vom 11. September – doch spätestens jetzt ist sein Ruhm wohl für immer verpufft. Bernard Kerik, ehemaliger Polizeichef von New York, muss wegen Bestechlichkeit, Falschaussage und Veruntreuung von Steuergeldern für vier Jahre ins Gefängnis. Nun ist er wieder dort, wo er vor seinem märchenhaften Aufstieg stand: ganz unten.

In Amerikas dunkelster Stunde war Bernard Keriks Stern aufgegangen. Nach dem Terrorangriff auf das World Trade Center am 11. September 2001 stand der damalige Polizeichef in vorderster Front, koordinierte die Einsätze, motivierte seine Leute und gab seinem Land neue Hoffnung. Auch bei George W. Bush machte sein Einsatz großen Eindruck, so dass ihn der Ex-Präsident 2004 zum Chef des mächtigen Heimatschutz-Ministeriums machen wollte.

Doch genau das brach Kerik das Genick. Denn im Zuge seiner Nominierung wurde er gründlich durchleuchtet. Dabei traten zahlreiche Verfehlungen zutage. So entdeckten die Ermittler, dass Kerik Steuergelder unterschlug, Falschaussagen tätigte und eine Illegale als Kindermädchen beschäftigte.

Am schlimmsten wog jedoch der Vorwurf, dass Kerik sich sein Appartement von einer Firma renovieren ließ, der schon damals intensive Mafia-Kontakte nachgesagt wurden. 250.000 Dollar kostete die Luxus-Sanierung, an deren Ende die Behausung mit Marmor-Bädern, einer Luxus-Küche und einem Whirlpool ausgestattet war. Im Gegenzug sorgte Kerik dafür, dass die Firma öffentliche Aufträge bekam, wofür er wiederum sein Ansehen in die Waagschale warf, das er sich am 11. September erworben hatte. >>> | Freitag, 19. Februar 2010

Britain - Money - Muslims - Monarchy - A Discourse by Shaykh Dr. Abdalqadir as-Sufi


Related:

Radical Muslim Leader Has Past in Swinging London >>> Barney Henderson | Saturday, February 20, 2010

Shaykh Dr. Abdalqadir as-Sufi: A Russian Interview


Related:

Radical Muslim Leader Has Past in Swinging London >>> Barney Henderson | Saturday, February 20, 2010

Shaykh Abdulqadir as-Sufi: The Bankers' World War


Shaykh Abdalqadir >>>

Related:

Radical Muslim Leader Has Past in Swinging London >>> Barney Henderson | Saturday, February 20, 2010

Shaykh Abdalqadir as-Sufi on Governance


Related:

Radical Muslim Leader Has Past in Swinging London >>> Barney Henderson | Saturday, February 20, 2010

SHAYKH DR. ABDALQADIR AS-SUFI: The Collapse of the Terrorist Dialectic >>> By Shaykh Dr. Abdulqadir as-Sufi | Sunday, February 07, 2010

Shaykh Abdalqadir’s Sufi Order: Murabitun Darqawiya (Granada in Early ‘80’s)


Shaykh Dr. Abdalqadir as-Sufi’s website >>>

Introduction to Sufi Islam


Related:

Radical Muslim Leader Has Past in Swinging London >>> Barney Henderson | Saturday, February 20, 2010

Mayor 'Bans' Barack Obama from Las Vegas for Sins Against the City
Oscar Goodman, the Las Vegas Mayor, greets showgirls at a party celebrating his 70th birthday in July last year. Photo: Times Online
TIMES ONLINE: The list of people banned from Las Vegas is a litany of dishonour. But among the swindlers, fixers and mobsters — many of their mugshots displayed on the Nevada Gaming Commission’s website under the heading Excluded, Wanted & Denied — is a new and rather unlikely name: that of Barack H. Obama, of Washington.

“I want to assure you that when he comes [here], I’ll do everything I can to give him the boot,” growled Oscar Goodman, the Mayor of Las Vegas, before Air Force One swooped down over Sin City’s infamous “Strip” for a presidential visit that was expected to last less than 24 hours.

Mr Goodman was not there to greet Mr Obama when he stepped on to the tarmac of McCarran International, having turned down an invitation from the White House. Nor was he expected to attend any of the President’s events — an astonishing rebuff by a lowly city mayor to a US leader.

With Obama’s visit intended in large part to help the re-election chances of the deeply unpopular Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid — a man who opined with excruciating candour that the President’s victory in 2008 was a result of him being a “light-skinned African-American, with no Negro dialect” — the mayor’s snub was threatening to turn an already awkward situation into a full-blown political debacle.

But as of last night, Mr Goodman was undeterred. A rotund and unshaven former Mob lawyer, who is rarely pictured without a Martini glass in his hand, flanked by showgirls, the 70-year-old mayor is livid about what he regards as Mr Obama’s repeated attacks on his beloved city, which has been hurt badly by the recession. >>> Chris Ayres, Las Vegas | Saturday, February 20, 2010

New Dark Age Alert! Fear Grows Among Uganda’s Gay Community Over Death Penalty Draft Law
TIMES ONLINE: There was a time in Kampala when gay men would meet for furtive one-night stands, even if they were prevented from forming lasting relationships in a country where homophobia is rife.

“You would just have sex, then disappear. We were secretive out of fear,” said Peter, 39. At one point, things had begun changing for the better. “You could know where a guy lived and hung out; you could start to form relationships, something more permanent,” he said. “Then along comes this Bill that wants to kill us.”

Homosexuality has always been illegal in Uganda, but draft legislation introduced by a born-again Christian parliamentarian proposing the death penalty for gay sex, under certain conditions, has upped the ante. Peter is again living in fear.

Anti-gay sentiment is on the rise in many parts of Africa. In a bellwether case, a gay couple face trial for “unnatural practices” in Malawi; in Kenya, police arrested guests at what is claimed to have been a gay wedding last week — supposedly to protect them from an angry mob. “They are proposing a witch-hunt,” said Peter. “That Bill could put me to death, or in prison, in many ways. They want to legislate us out of existence.”

The draft law proposes the death penalty for having gay sex with anyone under 18, if infected with HIV/Aids, or with someone who is disabled — or for being what the Bill terms “a serial offender”. Gay sex between consenting adults would lead to a life sentence.

It also calls for prison sentences for those “promoting homosexuality” — which could be interpreted to mean any human rights groups — and for anyone failing to report a homosexual act to the authorities. >>> Tristan McConnell in Kampala | Saturday, February 20, 2010

Dutch Cabinet, Balkenende's Fourth, Collapses
NRC HANDELSBLAD INTERNATIONAL: The Dutch coalition government fell in the early hours of Saturday morning because it could not come to an agreement over whether to extend the Netherlands' military mission in Afghanistan.

Labour, the second largest party in his three-party alliance, is quitting what had always been an uneasy partnership with the bigger Christian democratic CDA and junior partner ChristenUnie, a small orthodox Christian party.

After a 16-hour cabinet meeting in The Hague last night, prime minister Jan Peter Balkenende gave a brief press statement explaining the parties have no confidence left in each other. "Where there is no trust, it is difficult to work together," Balkenende said. "There is no road left for this cabinet to walk."

Labour leader, and now ex-finance minister, Wouter Bos had given the cabinet a Friday deadline to confirm it would withdraw all 1,600 Dutch soldiers from the Afghan province Uruzgan no later than December 2010. The CDA and ChristenUnie refused to comply with his demand, which goes against the explicit wish of Nato for the Netherlands to stay longer. The Nato secretary general filed an official request for the extension of the Dutch mission earlier this month. >>> AP, NRC | Saturday, February 20, 2010

NRC HANDELSBLAD INTERNATIONAL: Nato flabbergasted by Dutch reaction to troop request: Dutch politicians asked for an official Nato request to keep troops in Uruzgan. The current political infighting in The Hague is raising eyebrows at the organisation’s headquarters. >>> Petra de Koning in Brussels | Friday, February 19, 2010

Radical Muslim Leader Has Past in Swinging London
THE TELEGRAPH: As part of the bohemian scene in swinging sixties London, Ian Dallas inspired Eric Clapton to write Layla and counted George Harrison and Edith Piaf among his friends.

Ian Dallas converted to Islam and took the name Abdalqadir. Photo: The Telegraph
Born into a landowning clan in Ayr, south-west Scotland, he had left the family estate for London and quickly fell in with a host of stars after writing and directing a series of television hits.

He directed a play starring Albert Finney, wrote versions of the classics Jane Eyre and Vanity Fair for the BBC and even acted in the Federico Fellini classic 8½.

But these days Mr Dallas is famed for very different reasons as the leader of an extreme Islamic group with thousands of followers across the world.

He has called for Britain to be run by a Muslim council and likened the war in Afghanistan to the Holocaust.

During the Sixties, he became increasingly disillusioned with his London life and began exploring Islam. In 1967 he met Shaykh Abdalkarim Daudi in Fes, Morocco, converted to Islam and took the name Abdalqadir.

He spent years travelling north Africa, learning from various leading Muslim scholars before founding the orthodox Murabitun Worldwide Movement in the early 1980s.

It now has more than 10,000 committed followers across the world – spread from Denmark to Indonesia – and thousands more who support the movement.

Shaykh Abdalqadir as-Sufi, as he is now known, believes the Islam world will conquer the "Jewish dominated" West with an [sic] hardline interpretation of Islamic law.

"(Israel) knows that without its massive defence subsidy from the USA it could not last one financial year," he states.

Abdalqadir's teachings range from the claim that movies and football "degrade the proletariat" to calls for Middle Eastern-style monarchical rule in Britain supported by a moral body of Muslims. >>> Barney Henderson | Saturday, February 20, 2010

Greece Seeks Support for Debt Plan But Not Bail-out
BBC: Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou has said his country needs the support of European governments if it is to cut its debt levels effectively.

But he reiterated that Greece is not looking for a financial bail-out from other European countries.

"Our problem is our problem, our responsibility," he said. >>> | Friday, February 19, 2010

Christian 'Homosexual Cure' Conference Sparks Protests
THE INDEPENDENT: Being gay is not an illness, say demonstrators as they picket Belfast church

Gay campaigners began a weekend of protests last night against an international conference in Belfast which promotes the controversial claim that homosexuality can be "cured" using psychotherapy and prayer.

The conference is organised by Core Issues, an evangelical Christian group in Northern Ireland which promotes so-called "conversion therapy" and claims to have "saved" numerous homosexual Christians. The star speaker is the Rev Mario Bergner, a Chicago-based Anglican preacher and leading proponent of conversion therapy, who claims to have been cured of Aids and homosexuality through prayer.

In response, a coalition of protesters has begun picketing Ballynahinch Baptist Church, where the conference began last night. The protests are being organised by the Queer Youth Network and the Stop Conversion Therapy Taskforce (Scott), a new lobby group set up by gay journalist Patrick Strudwick. >>> Jerome Taylor, Religious Affairs Correspondent | Saturday, February 20, 2010

Assisted Suicide: Law to Be Decriminalised 'by Back Door' from Next Week
THE TELEGRAPH: Assisted suicide will be effectively decriminalised by the back door in landmark guidance to be published next week.

Final rules set out by the Crown Prosecution Service will make it clear that those who help others end their lives are unlikely to face court if they acted out of compassion.

However the factors against prosecution are likely to be altered from existing draft guidance, after it was claimed that they would leave the most vulnerable members of society at greater risk while providing immunity to spouses regardless of their motives.

It marks a legal milestone as the law against assisting suicide is in effect being changed without the involvement of Parliament, on the orders of the Law Lords.

It is also unprecedented for prosecutors to set out in such detail the ways in which people can commit a particular crime yet avoid being charged. >>> Martin Beckford, and Heidi Blake | Friday, February 19, 2010

Tiger Woods: Money Went to His Head!
TIMES ONLINE: A downcast and sometimes angry Tiger Woods broke his three-month silence yesterday with a rambling apology to friends, fans — and his absent wife.

Sighing heavily and sniffing back tears, the world’s leading golfer and first billion-dollar sportsman read a repetitive 14-minute statement to a small, invited audience during a week-long break from his sex addiction therapy.

“I felt that I had worked hard my entire life and deserved to enjoy all the temptations around me. I felt I was entitled. Thanks to money and fame, I didn’t have to go far to find them,” he confessed. “I was wrong. I was foolish. I don’t get to play by different rules.”

Woods’s beloved mother Kultida sat in the front row at the PGA headquarters on the TPC Sawgrass course on the Florida coast, and he choked back tears as he hugged her afterwards.

His estranged wife, the Swedish supermodel Elin Nordegren, the mother of his two children, was nowhere to be seen. “I understand the press wants to ask me for the details and the times I was unfaithful. I understand people want to know if Elin and I will remain together . . . These are issues between a husband and a wife,” he said. Tiger Woods: I felt I deserved to enjoy all the temptations. I was wrong >>> James Bone, Ponte Verda Beach, Florida | Saturday, February 20, 2010

Tzipi Livni Scoffs at Tory Pledge to End Threat of Arrest for Israel Officials
THE TELEGRAPH: A Conservative party pledge to end the threat of arrest hanging over visiting Israeli officials has received short shrift from the senior politician whose arrest was sought by a London court in December.

Tzipi Livni, leader of the Israeli opposition, responded with notable coolness when she was paid a visit by Edward Garnier, the shadow attorney general, this week.

Mr Garnier relayed a promise from David Cameron, the Conservative leader, that legislation to guarantee immunity for visiting Israeli officials would be one of his government's top priorities following a general election expected in May.

"I've been asked officially to relay to you on behalf of the Conservatives that immediately after we are elected, we will handle this matter, end this affair and make it possible for you to go to Great Britain," Mr Garnier told Mrs Livni, according to Israel's Yediot Ahronot newspaper.

A Westminster magistrate's court last December granted an application by pro-Palestinian groups to issue an arrest warrant for Mrs Livni over war crimes allegedly committed during Israel's Gaza offensive a year ago when she visited. At the time of Israel's military operation, Mrs Livni was foreign minister.

But if Mr Garnier expected gratitude from the Israeli opposition leader, he was to come away disappointed. >>> Adrian Blomfield in Jerusalem | Friday, February 19, 2010

Maroc : Un minaret s'effondre et fait un carnage
20MINUTES.ch: Trente-deux personnes ont été tuées et 68 blessées vendredi lors de l'effondrement du minaret historique d'une mosquée à Meknès (centre du Maroc), a annoncé la télévision publique Al-Oula, citant un bilan provisoire du ministère de l'Intérieur.

La télévision a mis en cause les pluies qui se sont abattues sur la région.

«Le minaret s'est effondré à cause des fortes pluies» de ces derniers jours, a expliqué la télévision dans son principal bulletin d'information de la soirée.

Des habitants de Meknès, joints au téléphone par l'AFP, ont confirmé que «des pluies diluviennes» sont tombées sur la ville et sa région. «Le minaret et une partie du toit se sont effondrés sur les fidèles alors qu'ils accomplissaient la prière du vendredi», ont- ils dit. Prière du vendredi >>> ats | Vendredi 19 Février 2010

THE TELEGRAPH: Morocco minaret collapse kills dozens: At least 40 people died and 71 were injured after the minaret of a historic 18th century mosque collapsed in the central Moroccan city of Meknes during Friday prayers, the interior ministry said. >>> | Saturday, February 20, 2010

New Dark Age Alert! Shariah Law – For Extra-marital Sex? Cane Them!
MAIL ONLINE: Three Muslim women who were the first in Malaysia to be caned for having sex outside marraige this morning claimed the punishment was an opportunity for them to repent.

Prison authorities caned the women last week after an Islamic Shariah court issued the penalty.

The caning has outraged rights groups and revived speculation that conservative Islamists, who advocate harsh punishment, are gaining influence in the country.

The three women, aged 17-25, said they turned themselves in after feeling guilty for sleeping with their boyfriends before marriage and getting pregnant.

The 17-year-old told reporters that she surrendered to Islamic authorities after her prematurely born child died.

She is now serving a six-month prison sentence.

'I know I have sinned, and I have to be punished. Strangely however, I felt that the caning was not a form of punishment but was an opportunity for me to repent and return to the right path,' she said.

She has already married her boyfriend, who has also been caned and jailed over the offence.

The other women, who have one young child each, are planning to marry their partners after they are released.

The men were also caned for having sex. 'We deserved our punishment': What three Muslim Malaysian women said after being caned for having sex outside marriage >>> | Saturday, February 20, 2010

Rachida Dati veut être au côté de Nicolas Sarkozy en 2012
LE FIGARO: L'ancienne garde des Sceaux multiplie les déplacements en France et à l'étranger. L'occasion de vérifier sa popularité.

«Pour moi, l'ambition n'est pas un gros mot, ce n'est pas un tabou.» Ces mots, prononcés jeudi soir à Londres devant une centaine d'expatriés militants UMP, sont ceux de Rachida Dati. Six mois après son départ forcé du gouvernement, l'ancienne ministre de la Justice regarde devant elle. Et elle peut savourer une victoire : même «exilée» à Strasbourg, elle n'est pas sortie des écrans radar. Toujours aussi présente, toujours aussi demandée, elle multiplie les déplacements en France et à l'étranger. Et remplit les salles. «Alain Juppé et Xavier Bertrand sont les derniers à être venus. Ils n'ont pas eu plus de monde que Rachida Dati. En fait, elle a fait mieux qu'eux», glisse un adhérent UMP. Pour les régionales, elle ira à Lyon, Avignon ou Chalon-sur-Saône, la ville de sa jeunesse. D'autres meetings sont programmés dans le Centre, en Poitou-Charentes, en Paca… «Il y aura du monde», promet-elle crânement. >>> Par Anne Rovan | Vendredi 19 Février 2010

Hundreds Defy Warning to Give Mohammed ElBaradei Hero's Welcome Home to Egypt
THE TELEGRAPH: Hundreds of Egyptian opposition supporters defied warnings to welcome home Nobel Peace laureate and former UN atomic watchdog chief Mohamed ElBaradei amid hopes he will run for president.

Chanting the national anthem, the crowd was so large that it twice prevented Mr ElBaradei, 67, from exiting Cairo airport after he flew in from Vienna following 12 years at the helm of the International Atomic Energy Agency.

About 1,500 people thronged the airport and wellwishers held up banners that read "Yes, ElBaradei president of Egypt" and "ElBaradei for presidency of Egypt 2011".

Others shouted "ElBaradei 100 per cent, he will bring to account the thieves" in reference to alleged corruption during the 29-year-old regime of President Hosni Mubarak. >>> | Saturday, February 20, 2010

Jesus Was Gay, Says Elton John
THE TELEGRAPH: Sir Elton John has claimed that Jesus Christ was gay.

In a magazine interview, he said: "I think Jesus was a compassionate, super-intelligent gay man who understood human problems.

"On the cross, he forgave the people who crucified him. Jesus wanted us to be loving and forgiving." >>> | Thursday, February 18, 2010

I Know Why Judas Betrayed Jesus, Says Gerry Adams in Channel 4 Documentary
TIMES ONLINE: Ever since Judas Iscariot betrayed Jesus with a kiss 2,000 years ago theologians have argued about his motives. But one British academic has now given credit to Gerry Adams, the Sinn Féin leader, for a new insight into one of the most controversial passages of the Bible.

The man who spent a lot of his youth “on the run” from the Army in Belfast yet still swears that he has never been a member of the Provisional IRA, believes that Judas was turned informer by the Roman security services of the time in Palestine, just as many of his former comrades in the Republican movement were induced to spy. >>> David Sharrock, Ireland Correspondent | Monday, February 15, 2010

How Shariah Law Has Taken Over The West

Birmanie : L'émissaire de l'ONU n'a pas pu rencontrer Suu Kyi
20MINUTES.ch: Un haut responsable de l'ONU a quitté Rangoun vendredi après une visite de cinq jours consacrée aux droit humains en Birmanie. Il a évoqué sa profonde déception de s'être vu refuser par le régime militaire une rencontre avec l'opposante Aung San Suu Kyi.

L'Argentin Tomas Ojea Quintana, rapporteur de l'ONU sur les droits de l'homme en Birmanie, n'a pu que constater son échec à convaincre la junte au pouvoir d'assouplir sa position, à quelques mois d'élections aux dates encore inconnues et dont la crédibilité est plus que jamais sujette à caution.

«Je suis déçu de n'avoir pas pu rencontrer Mme Aung San Suu Kyi cette fois-ci, en cette période cruciale d'année électorale, les premières élections en vingt ans», a déclaré l'émissaire de l'ONU avant de partir pour Bangkok. >>> ats | Vendredi 19 Février 2010

France : Sixième suicide depuis janvier à France Télécom
20MINUTES.ch: Un salarié de France Télécom s'est suicidé le week-end dernier à son domicile, ce qui porte à six le nombre de suicides dans l'entreprise depuis le début de l'année, a-t-on appris vendredi auprès de la société.

Ce dessinateur-projeteur de 53 ans était en congé maladie, a indiqué un porte-parole. Un phénomène de suicides a fait selon le direction de la société 32 morts en 2008 et 2009 à France Télécom, ancienne administration d'Etat devenue société anonyme en 1996. Les syndicats avancent des bilans plus lourds. >>> ats | Vendredi 19 Février 2010

Protest gegen Sparmassnahmen: Den Griechen geht das Benzin aus
20MINUTEN.ch: Weil die Zollbeamten in Griechenland weiter streiken, wird es langsam aber sicher knapp mit dem Benzin. Viele Tankstellen sind bereits geschlossen und nun haben auch noch die Taxifahrer ihre Arbeit niedergelegt. >>> ddp | Freitag, 19. Februar 2010

Bevölkerung: Europa schrumpft, Afrika und Asien wachsen
DIE PRESSE: Die Umverteilung der Welt: Bis 2050 wird Europa schrumpfen, während die Bevölkerungszahl in Afrika und Asien wächst. Das erhöht den Migrationsdruck und verändert die globale Machtbalance. >>> Von Christian Ultsch, Julia Hartz, Isabel Groetzinger-Singer (Doe Presse) | Freitag, 19. Februar 2010

Russia 'Very Alarmed' by Iran Nuclear Report
THE TELEGRAPH: Iran was driven deeper into international isolation yesterday after Russia said it was "very alarmed" by a leaked UN report which directly accused the country of building a nuclear weapon for the first time.

Sergei Lavrov, the Russian foreign minister, said Moscow had lost patience with the regime after UN weapons inspectors declared for the first time on Thursday that it was seeking to "weaponise" its nuclear stocks.

"We are very alarmed and we cannot accept this, that Iran is refusing to co-operate with the IAEA," Mr Lavrov said. "Some questions remain on the table and Iran has so far not reacted to them but they are rather serious and we need to understand how several documents concerning military nuclear technology found their way to Iran.

"Clear explanations are needed."

The strong denunciation was a departure for Russia, which has been a brake on efforts to censure Iran until recently.

Iran suffered a double blow on Thursday when a G20 report on money laundering identified the Islamic Republic as the worst violator of laws against funding terrorism and the proliferation of weapons. The report also hinted at concerns that banks in Syria and Turkey, two other nations cited for involvement in terrorism financing, were acting as an axis to help Iran evade UN financial sanctions. >>> Damien McElroy, Foreign Affairs Correspondent | Friday, February 19, 2010

ElBaradei Returns to Egypt Hoping to Run for Presidency
YNET NEWS: After ending term as International Atomic Energy Agency chief, Mohamed ElBaradei returns to homeland to 'do everything I can for Egypt to advance toward democracy'

Nobel Peace laureate Mohamed ElBaradei, former head of the UN nuclear watchdog, is awaited in Cairo as police warn his supporters not to mark the homecoming of a would-be electoral challenger to President Hosni Mubarak.

ElBaradei, who is expected to fly home on Friday, has repeatedly called for democratic change in Egypt since stepping down as head of the International Atomic Energy Agency in November.

On the eve of his return, he reaffirmed his determination to "do everything I can for Egypt to advance toward democracy and economic and social progress."

"I hope to be an instrument for change," the 67-year-old long-time international civil servant said in an interview with Egypt's Dream TV.

"I am ready to throw myself into Egyptian political life on the condition that there are free elections, and the first step toward that would be a constitutional amendment under which I can be a candidate and others as well."

Mubarak, 81, will complete his fifth term in office next year and his son, Gamal, is often cited as his potential successor.

At the moment, the constitution effectively bars an ElBaradei candidacy. >>> AFP | Friday, February 19, 2010