Egypt Bombs IS in Libya after Beheadings Video

BBC AMERICA: Egypt says it has bombed Islamic State targets in Libya, hours after the militants released video of apparent beheadings of 21 Egyptian Christians.

State TV said the dawn strikes had targeted camps, training sites and weapons storage areas. A second wave of strikes was reported hours later.

Libyan officials said Egypt hit targets in the militant-held city of Derna. The strikes came amid widespread condemnation of the killings. The US and UN described them as "cowardly".

A video emerged on Sunday showing militants forcing a group of men to the ground and decapitating them.

The kidnapped Egyptian workers, all Coptic Christians, were seized in separate incidents in December and January from the coastal town of Sirte in eastern Libya, under the control of Islamist groups.

The video of the beheadings was posted online by Libyan jihadists who pledge loyalty to IS. It was one of the first such videos to come from an IS group outside its core territory in Syria and Iraq.

The video describes the Copts as "crusaders" and refers among other things to two women, wives of Coptic priests, whose alleged conversion to Islam triggered a sectarian dispute in Egypt in 2010.

IS militants claim to have carried out several attacks in Libya, which in effect has rival governments. (+ BBC video) » | Monday, February 16, 2015

How Isil Spread to Libya - and Now Has Europe in Its Sights

THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: The slow creep of Islamic State through Libya has gone largely unnoticed, but the jihadists have gained support in the divided nation on Europe's doorstep

Isil's execution of 21 Egyptian Christians on Libya's Mediterranean shore is intended as a clear message to Europe: the group is expanding its geographical spread, and it has the West in its sights.

The slow creep of Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (Isil) through Libya has gone largely unnoticed, but it is here, in a divided nation spiralling further into chaos, that the Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi's men are now finding find fertile ground.

The jihadist group - one of several now operating in Libya - gained a foothold in the port city Derna in back October, after a senior Isil official travelled to eastern Libya to unite a panoply of militant factions under a single banner.

The Isil leader has since recognised the Libyan "provinces" of Barqa in the east, Tripolitania in the west, and Fezzan in the desert south as belonging to his self-styled "caliphate." » | Louisa Loveluck | Monday, February 16, 2015

Hundreds of Jewish Tombs Damaged in Northern France

Overturned grave stones in the Jewish cemetery in Saare-Union

THE SUNDAY TELEGRAPH: Several hundred Jewish tombs have been damaged in a cemetery near the northeastern French city of Strasbourg

Hundreds of graves have been vandalized at a Jewish cemetery in eastern France, in what the president called an "odious and barbaric" anti-Semitic act against French values.

The vandalism comes at a time of growing insecurity among French Jews and amid general religious tensions in Europe, after Islamic radicals attacked a kosher market and a satirical newspaper in Paris last month and similar attacks hit Denmark this weekend.

French Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve said in a statement Sunday that a criminal investigation team is at the damaged cemetery in Sarre-Union, near the German border, and authorities will do "everything" to pursue the vandals. » | Reuters | Sunday, February 15, 2015

Islamic State: Egyptian Christians Held in Libya 'Killed'

Egyptians had protested earlier this week calling for the return
of the kidnapped Copts

BBC AMERICA: A video has emerged purportedly showing the beheading of 21 Egyptian Christians who had been kidnapped by Islamic State (IS) in Libya.

The footage shows a group wearing orange overalls, being forced to the ground and then decapitated.

It was posted online by Libyan jihadists who say they are allied with IS.

Egypt's president had earlier this week offered to airlift Egyptian expatriates out of Libyan territory.

The kidnapped Egyptian workers, all Coptic Christians, were seized from the coastal town of Sirte in eastern Libya, now under the control of Islamist groups. » | Sunday, February 15, 2015

Nétanyahou appelle les Juifs d'Europe à émigrer en Israël

LE FIGARO: «Aux Juifs d'Europe, comme à ceux du monde entier, je peux dire qu'Israël vous attend les bras ouverts», a déclaré le premier ministre israélien, dimanche, à Jéusalem.


Avec des mots comparables à ceux qu'il avait employés après la tuerie de l'Hyper Cacher, Benyamin Nétanyahou a lancé dimanche un appel à l'«émigration massive» des Juifs d'Europe vers Israël. «Le terrorisme islamique vient encore de frapper en Europe, a dénoncé le premier ministre israélien lors de la réunion hebdomadaire de son cabinet, et cette vague de terreur va se poursuivre.» Un plan de 180 millions de shekels (environ 40 millions d'euros), destiné à faciliter l'accueil des Juifs de France, de Belgique et d'Ukraine, était examiné au même moment par son gouvernement. «Aux Juifs d'Europe comme à ceux du monde entier, je peux dire qu'Israël vous attend les bras ouverts», a conclu Benyamin Nétanyahou. Cette invitation, lancée quelques heures seulement après l'attaque qui a coûté la vie à un jeune juif posté devant une synagogue de Copenhague, a été accueillie avec une certaine fraîcheur par le grand rabbin du Danemark. » | Par Cyrille Louis | dimanche 15 février 2015

Der neue Exodus der europäischen Juden

DIE WELT: Premier Netanjahu ruft Europas Juden erneut auf, nach Israel zu kommen. Diesmal begnügt sich seine Regierung nicht mit Worten. Sie stockt den Etat für Einwanderer auf und hofft auf einen Massenexodus.

Israels Außenminister Avigdor Lieberman ist nicht bekannt für diplomatische Zurückhaltung. Er pflegt das offene Wort. So auch jetzt, nach den Attentaten von Kopenhagen. Der Politiker forderte einen "kompromisslosen Krieg gegen den islamistischen Terror und seine Wurzeln". "Die internationale Gemeinschaft darf sich nicht mehr mit Erklärungen und Demonstrationen gegen den Terror zufriedengeben, sondern muss die Regeln der politischen Korrektheit aufgeben", verlangte Lieberman auf seiner Facebook-Seite.

Die Anschläge – auch auf eine Synagoge – bewiesen, dass Israel und die Juden "die Frontlinie im Krieg sind, den die Terroristen gegen den Westen und die ganze freie Welt führen". Bei einem Anschlag auf ein Kulturcafé und Schüssen auf eine Synagoge waren in Kopenhagen zwei Menschen getötet und mehrere verletzt worden. » | Von Gil Yaron, Tel Aviv | Sonntag, 15. Februar 2015

Al Qaeda-inspired Gunmen Seize Radio, TV Stations in Central Libya

TRIPOLI, Libya - Gunmen from an al Qaeda inspired militia have taken over radio and television stations in the central Libyan city of Sirte, a security official said. He said the seizure of the buildings happened on Thursday after militants from Ansar al-Sharia had warned the station to stop broadcasting music. The group, considered a terrorist…

European Group Seeks 24/7 Protection at Jewish Institutions

BRUSSELS (AP) - A European Jewish organization on Sunday demanded round-the-clock protection at Jewish institutions following the shooting attacks in Denmark at a synagogue and free speech event that left two people dead. Rabbi Menachem Margolin, general director of the European Jewish Association, accused European Union leaders of not doing enough to combat anti-Semitic attacks and…

Danish PM on Jihad Murders: “This Is Not a War between Islam and the West”

Helle Thorning-Schmidt, the Danish Prime Minister

JIHAD WATCH: “We feel certain now that it was a politically motivated attack, and thereby it was a terrorist attack,” said Thorning-Schmidt. But actually, it was a religiously motivated attack. Islam is the only belief-system that mandates violence against those who commit the crime of drawing cartoons of Muhammad and those who commit the crime of being Jews. Thorning-Schmidt’s denial of manifest reality only aids and abets the advancing jihad. Read on and comment » | Robert Spencer | Sunday, February 15, 2015

Saudi Arabia Condemns 'Terrorist' Killing of American Muslims in North Carolina

FOX NEWS: DUBAI, United Arab Emirates – Saudi Arabia on Sunday condemned the killing in North Carolina of three American Muslim college students as a "heinous terrorist" act, and called for an end to incitement against Muslims.

The statement carried by the official Saudi Press Agency also condemned as a "terrorist" act the recent attacks that killed two people in Denmark, one at a panel discussion that included an artist who caricatured the Prophet Muhammad and the other outside a synagogue.

In neighboring Qatar, several thousand people held a march Sunday in the capital Doha in solidarity with the families of the North Carolina victims. The marchers appealed for protection against hate crimes for the tens of thousands of young Arabs studying in the United States on scholarships funded by the energy-rich governments of the Gulf. » | Associated Press | Sunday, February 15, 2015

Muslim Population in England and Wales Nearly Doubles in 10 Years

THE GUARDIAN: More children and fewer elderly people help Muslim population grow faster than population overall, analysis of latest census data shows

The Muslim population of England and Wales is growing faster than the overall population, with a higher proportion of children and a lower ratio of elderly people, according to an analysis of official data.

One in three Muslims is under 15, compared with fewer than one in five overall. There are also fewer elderly Muslims, with 4% aged over 65, compared with 16% of the overall population.

In 2011, 2.71 million Muslims lived in England and Wales, compared with 1.55 million in 2001. There were also 77,000 Muslims in Scotland and 3,800 in Northern Ireland. » | Aisha Gani | Wednesday, February 11, 2015

Obama Receives Secret Letter by Iranian Leader Ayatollah Khamenei

Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Al Khamenei reportedly sent a secret letter to President Obama responding to requests the president made amid nuclear talks. Iran's spiritual leader wrote to Obama in recent weeks to respond to a presidential letter sent in October that suggested the possibility of U.S.-Iranian cooperation in fighting the Islamic State is a nuclear…

'Copenhagen Gunman' Shot Dead

THE SUNDAY TELEGRAPH: Danish police shoot dead man they believe was responsible for two 'Charlie Hebdo-style' attacks in Copenhagen that left two people dead and several injured


Copenhagen police said on Sunday they believe a man shot dead by officers was responsible for two fatal attacks that shocked the normally peaceful Danish capital.

The killings, coming little more than a month after bloody Islamist attacks in Paris that left 17 people dead, were described by Danish Prime Minister Helle Thorning-Schmidt as "a cynical act of terror".

The man believed to be behind the shootings was shot dead after he opened fire on police at a rail station, a spokesman said.

It came after a 55-year-old man was killed at a panel discussion about Islam and free speech on Saturday attended by the Swedish cartoonist behind controversial caricatures of the Prophet Mohammed.

In the second attack, a Jewish man was killed and two police officers were wounded outside Copenhagen's main synagogue early on Sunday.

"We believe the same man was behind both shootings and we also believe that the perpetrator who was shot by the police action force at Noerrebro station is the person behind the two attacks," Torben Moelgaard Jensen told a press conference. » | AFP | Sunday, February 15, 2015


Copenhagen shooting during debate on Islam: live »

Danish Rabbi Criticises Benjamin Netanyahu's Jewish Emigration Call

THE SUNDAY TELEGRAPH: Leader of Denmark's Jews voices "disappointment" over Israeli leader's "come to Israel" plea following deadly anti-Semitic attack

Benjamin Netanyahu has clashed with Denmark's chief rabbi after seizing on the weekend's deadly shootings in Copenhagen to call on European Jews to emigrate en mass to Israel.

Rabbi Jair Melchior said he was "disappointed" by the comments of Mr Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister, who made a fresh plea for Jewish emigration while extending condolences to Denmark over the twin attacks. An armed assailant killed a Jewish man guarding Copenhagen's main synagogue at around 1am on Sunday morning, following an earlier incident at a cultural centre hosting a conference on free speech in which another man was shot dead.

"Jews have been murdered again on European soil only because they were Jews and this wave of terrorist attacks – including murderous anti-Semitic attacks – is expected to continue," Mr Netanyahu told the Israeli cabinet, as it met to approve a £30 million scheme to absorb Jewish immigrants from France, Belgium and Ukraine.

"Jews deserve protection in every country but we say to Jews: Israel is your home. We are preparing and calling for the absorption of mass immigration from Europe. I would like to tell all European Jews and all Jews wherever they are: 'Israel is the home of every Jew.' ... Israel is waiting for you with open arms." Read on and comment » | Robert Tait, Jerusalem | Sunday, February 15, 2015

Dresden: Tausende bei Pegida-Kundgebung

DIE PRESSE: Zur ersten Kundgebung seit dem Ausscheiden von Ex-Sprecherin Kathrin Oertel kamen am Montagabend rund 2000 Personen. Pegida-Gründer Lutz Bachmann trat erstmals seit seinem Rücktritt wieder auf.

In Deutschland rückt mit der Rückkehr von Pegida-Gründer Lutz Bachmann die islamkritische Dresdner Bewegung weiter nach rechts. Zur ersten Pegida-Kundgebung seit Abspaltung der Gruppe um Ex-Sprecherin Kathrin Oertel zogen am Montagabend laut Polizei rund 2000 Demonstranten vor die Dresdner Frauenkirche. » | APA/dpa | Montag, 09. Februar 2015

Record de neige à Boston, des centaines de vols annulés

TRIBUNE DE GENÈVES: Météo – Une nouvelle tempête hivernale, la troisième en deux semaines, paralysait lundi une partie du nord-est des Etats-Unis.

Une nouvelle tempête de neige a provoqué l'annulation de centaines de vols et la fermeture d'écoles et d'administrations dans le nord-est des Etats-Unis, notamment à Boston.

La tempête pourrait encore voir 60 cm de neige tomber sur la principale ville du Massachusetts, qui a déjà battu un record, avec 1,54 mètre de neige tombée en un mois. Le précédent record, qui datait de 1978, était de 1,49 m de neige en un mois. » | lundi 09 février 2015

BROOKE GOLDSTEIN: Denying the Real Motivation for Islamist Terrorism

Islamists are winning their war to silence critical commentary in the West about Islam. So says Flemming Rose, culture editor of the Danish newspaper Jyllands-Posten, which originally published the now-infamous images of Muhammad, in his recent book, "The Tyranny of Silence." Whether motivated by a cowardly nature or by an obsequious desire to be nice, much…

Vladimir Putin's Egypt Visit Sends Message to US

THE GUARDIAN: Russian president’s arrival in Egypt allows both countries to signal that their foreign policies are not to be dictated by others

Russian president Vladimir Putin has flown to Cairo for a two-day visit, in a move nominally aimed at bolstering bilateral ties with Egypt that also allows both countries to send pointed messages to the US.

As Russian and western diplomats struggle to reach a peace deal over the conflict in Ukraine, Putin will spend Monday evening at Cairo’s opera house. In meetings on Tuesday, the day before the resumption of Ukraine peace talks, Putin is expected to hold discussions about ending the use of the US dollar in bilateral trade between Egypt and Russia. Collaboration between a Russian and Egyptian newspaper is also reported to be scheduled for discussion.

Analysts believe both sides, though interested in forming stronger relations, primarily seek to signal to the international community that their foreign policies are not to be dictated by others. In the middle of negotiations that have left him with few friends, Putin wants to show that he still has allies, said Ben Judah, a chronicler of Putin’s life, and the author of Fragile Empire, a book about Putin’s Russia. Read on and comment » | Patrick Kingsley in Cairo | Monday, February 09, 2015

Queen Rania Addresses Government Summit Delegates

رانيا العبدالله في كلمة للقمة الحكومية المنعقدة في دبي

Austrians Say Islam Does Not Belong In Their Nation: Poll

BREITBART: A survey of social attitudes in Austria has revealed the vast majority of Austrians don’t believe Islam belongs in their country, with almost half going further and saying the religion should “definitely not” have a home there.

In the survey, 69 percent of those polled said they did not believe Islam belonged in Austria, a strong rise on previous polls taken before the Charlie Hebdo attacks made earlier in the year, reports TheLocal.at. Even more than that – around three quarters – thought if a citizen left Austria to fight for extremist groups such as the Islamic State, they should have their citizenship withdrawn completely.

Of the nearly seven in ten people who believed Islam didn’t belong in Austria, a sizeable minority went even further, with 42 percent of those polled saying there should “definitely” be no Islam in the country. A similar proportion of people felt Islam was a “threat” to Austria. Read on and comment » | Oliver Lane | Monday, February 09, 2015

TAMMY BRUCE: Obama Discounts Current Sins of Islam

Every week President Obama delivers some new experience that makes me wonder how the entire nation got dropped down Alice's rabbit hole all at once. Yet, in these first few weeks of Mr. Obama's last two years in office, he's made sure the United States won't turn into a collective Sally Field, exclaiming, "You like us!…

Jewish Survivor Zelda-Rivka Hait Testimony

Should British Muslims Follow 'Values That We Hold Dear'?

Muslims demonstrating in Whitehall have challenged Prince Charles' comments over British Muslims abiding by British values.

Read the Channel 4 article here | Sunday, February 08, 2015
Related »

Prince Charles Tells British Muslims 'If You Live in Our Country, Abide by Our Values'

SUNDAY EXPRESS: PRINCE Charles issued an extraordinary rallying cry today calling on Muslims living in the UK to show more respect for British values.

The heir to the throne railed against the radicalisation of young British men by Islamist extremists as he launched an impassioned defence of Britain's "Christian" heritage.

Telling British muslims that they should show more respect for "the values we hold dear," the Prince revealed that he was terrified by the influence of radical preachers who spread their teachings on the internet.

In an unprecedented outburst, he said: "The radicalisation of people in Britain is a great worry, and the extent to which this is happening is alarming, particularly in a country like ours where we hold values dear.

"You would think the people who have come here, or are born here, and go to school here, would abide by those values and outlooks."

He added that it was "frightening" that young British Muslims were being radicalised by "crazy stuff on the internet".

The outspoken comments are a further sign that the Prince is not prepared to keep quiet on political causes close to his heart, despite assuming more and more responsibility from the Queen.

They came as he started a six-day tour of the Middle East in his mother's place, during which he has been urged to speak out against the barbaric practises of some Gulf states.

It is understood that the Prince will challenge new Saudi king Salman bin Abdulaziz al Saud over the terrible punishment handed down to blogger Raif Badawi when the pair meet face to face this week. » | Nick Gutteridge | Sunday, February 08, 2015

Related »

Austria Threatens to Close Saudi-Backed Interfaith Dialogue Center

GATESTONE INSTITUTE: Austrian Chancellor Werner Faymann has expressed public outrage over the refusal of the King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz International Centre for Interreligious and Intercultural Dialogue to speak out against the flogging of Raif Badawi, a Saudi human rights activist and blogger who has been sentenced to 1,000 lashes and 10 years in prison for "insulting Islam."

"Saudi Arabia practices a form of Sharia law that is one of the most brutal systems in the world... Does the Austrian Foreign Ministry really want to give such a state the opportunity to build an international propaganda center in Austria?" — Editorial, Die Presse.

"An inter-religious dialogue center that remains silent when it is time to speak out clearly for human rights is not worthy of being called a dialogue center. It is a silence center." — Austrian Chancellor Werner Faymann.

"If the center wants to remain only an economic center with a religious fig leaf, then Austria should no longer be a part of it. In any event, Austria will not allow itself to be threatened or blackmailed." — Austrian Chancellor Werner Faymann.

The Austrian government has threatened to close a controversial Saudi-sponsored religious dialogue center because of the latter's failure to condemn the flogging of a Saudi human rights activist and blogger.

Saudi Arabia has responded to the threat by issuing a counter-threat to move the permanent headquarters of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries [OPEC] out of the Austrian capital of Vienna. » | Soeren Kern | Sunday, February 08, 2015

Al-Khanssaa Brigade, Women of Islamic State, Print Manifesto: Girls, 9, May Marry

The all-female militia unit of the Islamic State - the Al-Khanssaa Brigade - put out a manifesto that, translated into English, says women should be homemakers and mothers, and that girls as young as age 9 can marry. "It is considered legitimate for a girl to be married at the age of 9," the manifesto said,…

The Radical Cleric Building a Militia in the Heart of Islamabad

Cleric Maulana Abdul Aziz shows religious books to the media
during a news conference in Islamabad on Friday.

THE SUNDAY TELEGRAPH: Maulana Abdul Aziz, the cleric of the Red Mosque and one of the most dangerous men in Pakistan, tells the Telegraph if the country does not implement Islamic law, he and his followers “will solve it”.

He is one of the most dangerous men in Pakistan and is supposed to be in police detention.

Instead, as several thousand hardline Muslim worshippers knelt in prayer at the Red Mosque in the heart of Islamabad, the voice of Maulana Abdul Aziz called out over them defiantly.

Seven years ago, the radical cleric led heavily armed al-Qaeda gunmen in a bloody siege at the Red Mosque, or Lal Masjid in Urdu, which left more than a hundred children, soldiers and militants dead.

The brutal denouement, including the killing of his brother and son, set off a wave of Taliban suicide bombings which struck at the heart of Pakistan's military establishment.

Now Pakistan’s intelligence services believe he is building a new militia, grabbing land for more madrassas and preparing for another tilt at forcing the country to adopt strict Islamic law. Eyewitnesses said they had seen 30 to 40 heavily armed men from the militant group Sipah-e-Sahaba inside the mosque.

Once again, he is a reminder that one of the West's most important allies against the forces of terror has a problem dealing with militant voices even in the middle of its own capital. In December, a Pakistani court issued an arrest warrant for Aziz but the police have been unable to enforce it. “We are trying out best to implement it,” a police official said. » | Dean Nelson, Islamabad | Sunday, February 08, 2015

Huge Crowd of Muslim Protesters Picket Downing Street to Protest at Charlie Hebdo Cartoons

THE SUNDAY TELEGRAPH: The protestors, many of whom were divided into groups of men and women and included children gathered just yards from the Cenotaph

At least 1,000 Muslim protesters gathered outside the gates of Downing Street to protest against the depictions of the Prophet Mohammed in Charlie Hebdo, the French satirical magazine.

The protestors, many of whom were divided into groups of men and women, gathered just yards from the Cenotaph which remembers Britain’s war dead, and blocked half of Whitehall as they demonstated.

It comes weeks after two terrorists attacked the offices of Charlie Hebdo, the Paris-based satirical magazine which had published images of the Prophet Muhammad, killing 12 staff and wounding 11 others.

The protest was organised by the Muslim Action Forum, which said that the Charlie Hebdo cartoons had helped “sow the seeds of hatred” and had damaged community relations.

One young child, who appeared to be under the age of 10, stood next to a placard displaying the message: “Charlie and the abuse factory”. A series of Muslim leaders addressed the crowd from a platform outside the Ministry of Defence, with the message “Be careful with Muhammad”. » | Christopher Hope, Chief Political Correspodnent | Sunday, February 08, 2015

Prince Charles Says Radicalisation of Young People 'Alarming'

Prince Charles also discussed the work of his charity
The Prince's Trust in combatting radicalisation

BBC AMERICA: The Prince of Wales has described the extent to which young people are becoming radicalised as "alarming" and one of the "greatest worries".

In an interview with Radio 2's The Sunday Hour, Prince Charles spoke of his hopes to "build bridges" between different faiths.

He also spoke of his "deep concern" for the suffering of Christian churches in the Middle East.

He is currently in Jordan on a six-day tour of the region.

The prince arrived in the capital Amman on Saturday night and is due to hold talks with King Abdullah II later.

The Radio 2 programme covers visits by the prince to Armenian, Roman Catholic Chaldean and Syrian Orthodox churches in the UK, and contains accounts from members of these denominations who have had to flee persecution in Syria and Iraq.

On the radicalisation of young people, Prince Charles says: "Well of course, this is one of the greatest worries I think, and the extent to which this is happening is the alarming part.

"And particularly in a country like ours where you know the values we hold dear.

"You think that the people who have come here, [are] born here, go to school here, would abide by those values and outlooks."

He told the BBC programme he believed part of the reason some young people are radicalised is a "search for adventure and excitement at a particular age". » | Saturday, February 07, 2015

Iraqi Christians Form Militia: 'I Want to Defend Our Own Lands' from Islamic State

Hundreds of Iraqi Christians are picking up arms and forming a new Christian militia, training to reclaim their homes from Islamic State militants. New recruits are gathering at a former U.S. military facility in the hills of northeast Iraq seeking to create a force that will be able to protect their towns and villages safe even…

How Saudi Arabia Financed Global Terror

Funding Jihad? (2003) - Did the Saudi Royal Family really finance 9/11?

Richard Dawkins: Islam Is Not a Religion of Peace, It Was Founded On War & Spread by War

Richard Dawkins discusses the Paris attacks & radical Islam on BBC Daily Politics.

'US & UK Try to Sabotage Any Ukraine Peace Agreement'

Talks between Russia’s President Putin, France’s President Hollande, and German Chancellor Merkel have been constructive, said Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov on Friday. However, RT spoke with political analyst Dan Glazebrook, who thinks that while Germany seems enthusiastic about the peace talks, the other sides involved in the conflict – the US and UK – are creating obstacles which may stand in the way of the conflict’s resolution.

Putin, Hollande, Merkel Talks on Ukraine ‘Constructive’, Possible Document 'In Progress'

German, French and Russian leaders conclude their talks over the Ukrainian crisis, with preliminary results to be announced on Sunday. Work is underway on a possible joint document aimed at implementing the Minsk agreements, said Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov.

Das deutsch-amerikanische Zerwürfnis auf offener Bühne

DIE WELT: Die Amerikaner verstehen nicht, warum Deutschland einem Volk, das seine Freiheit gegen einen undemokratischen Aggressor verteidigt, keine Waffen an die Hand gibt. Merkel bleibt hart.

Es war ein Konflikt auf offener Bühne zwischen Amerika und Deutschland, der sich auf der Münchner Sicherheitskonferenz abgespielt hat. Die Bundeskanzlerin hatte sich noch einmal vehement gegen Waffenlieferungen an die Ukraine gewandt. Und sie wiederholte ihr Mantra, es könne keine militärische Lösung dieses Konfliktes geben. "Ich kann mir keine Situation vorstellen, in der eine verbesserte Ausrüstung der ukrainischen Armee dazu führt, dass Putin annimmt, diesen Konflikt militärisch zu verlieren", begründete sie ihre Haltung. » | Von Clemens Wergin | Korrespondent in Washington | Samstag, 07. Februar 2015

Après la mort de son pilote, la Jordanie promet d'"éradiquer" l'EI

LE POINT: Le chef de la diplomatie jordanienne a assuré que les frappes menées contre l'organisation jeudi n'étaient que le début de la "vengeance" de son pays.

La Jordanie a affirmé vendredi que les frappes contre le groupe État islamique (EI) n'étaient que le début de sa "vengeance" pour l'exécution de son pilote, promettant d'"éradiquer" l'organisation djihadiste. "La Jordanie pourchassera avec toutes ses forces l'organisation (EI) n'importe où", a déclaré le chef de la diplomatie Nasser Joudeh à la chaîne de télévision américaine CNN. "Tout membre de Daesh (acronyme en arabe de l'EI) est une cible pour nous. Nous les pourchasserons et nous les éradiquerons; (...) Nous sommes en première ligne, c'est notre bataille", a ajouté le ministre dont le pays participe aux frappes en Syrie contre l'EI dans le cadre de la coalition internationale dirigée par les États-Unis. Il a affirmé que son pays avait tenté de sauver le pilote Maaz al-Kassasbeh, capturé en décembre par l'EI en Syrie après le crash de son avion, mais sans fournir d'autres détails. » | Source AFP | vendredi 06 février 2015

Obama Administration Issues 5.5M Work Permits to Non-citizens; Jeff Sessions Wants Investigation

New documents reveal that the Obama administration has issued roughly 5.5 million work permits to non-citizens without Congressional authorization. The documents, obtained through a Freedom of Information Act request by the conservative-leaning Center for Immigration Studies demonstrate what critics call a "shadow" or "parallel" immigration system that infringes on employment opportunities for Americans, Fox News reported…

JUDSON PHILLIPS: Barack Obama: What the Heck Is Wrong with You?

On Tuesday, the radical Islamist group ISIS released a video of the horrifying execution of a Jordanian pilot. Horrifying does not even begin to describe what happened to the 26-year-old pilot. He was soaked in gasoline and then marched into a cage. A trail of gas was poured that led to the cage and then lit.…

White House Gives Names of Muslim Leaders Who Met with Obama

The White House has finally divulged the names of American Muslim leaders who met with President Obama this week, including Imam Mohamed Magid, who has advised the administration on formulating responses to incidents that Islamists consider offensive. After stonewalling journalists for two days about the names of the participants at the meeting on Wednesday, the White…

Ukraine Crisis Will Not Be Solved By Military Means, Says Angela Merkel

German chancellor admits, however, that she is unsure whether the current diplomatic push to end the conflict in the east of the country will succeed

Read the Guardian article here | Chris Johnston and agencies | Saturday, February 07, 2015

Obama's 'High Horse': IS, the Crusades and Moral Equivalency

BBC AMERICA: Behold the perils of invoking moral equivalency - even, or perhaps especially, when some of the events in question are separated by 800 years.

During a speech Thursday at the National Prayer Breakfast, President Barack Obama leavened his condemnation of the Islamic State's recent atrocities with a word of warning to his fellow Christians who wish to conflate the militant group's actions with Islam as a whole.

"Lest we get on our high horse and think this is unique to some other place, remember that during the Crusades and the Inquisition, people committed terrible deeds in the name of Christ," the president said. "In our home country, slavery and Jim Crow all too often was justified in the name of Christ."

Murderous extremism, he continued, "is not unique to one group or one religion. There is a tendency in us, a sinful tendency that can pervert and distort our faith."

The comments prompted an angry reaction - bordering on apoplexy - from many on the right.

Washington Post columnist Charles Krauthammer called the president's comments "banal and offensive" and "adolescent stuff".

"Christianity no longer goes on Crusades," he said on Fox News "The story of today, of our generation, is the fact that the overwhelming volume of the violence and the barbarism that we are seeing in the world from Nigeria to Paris all the way to Pakistan and even to the Philippines, the island of Mindanao in the Philippines, is coming from one source, and that's from inside Islam."

Others, such as conservative radio host Rush Limbaugh, took issue with the president's contention that IS is not reflective of Islam as a whole. "Sharia law is the present day threat to individual and civil liberties all over the world," he said. "Sharia is not a narrow cult. Sharia law is Islam." » | Anthony Zurcher | Editor | Echo Chambers | Friday, February 06, 2015

Front National's Le Pen on Charlie Hebdo Shootings

BBC AMERICA: Britain "should break with the model of communitarianism" and the rights of individuals, said the leader of France's Front National after the Charlie Hebdo shooting.

Marine Le Pen said the Schengen agreement, which allows open borders across most of Europe outside the UK and Ireland, should be suspended.

And she claimed that terrorism was "only a means of Islamic fundamentalism" which France had not faced up to, due to "political correctness and fear".

She was not invited to the display of international political leaders in Paris following the shootings which led to 17 deaths last week.

In a Daily Politics film from Strasbourg, Adam Fleming spoke to the leader of the Front National who explained France did not have a crime of blasphemy, and it had the "freedom to talk about religion and this won't change". (+ BBC video) » | Thursday, January 15, 2015

Marine Le Pen: Fundamentalism Is 'Internal Threat'

BBC AMERICA: The leader of the French far-right Front National party has claimed that controlling immigration is essential in the fight against Islamist extremism.

Marine Le Pen rejected accusations of racism from protesters outside the Oxford Union where she spoke on Thursday night, and in turn accused the demonstrators of being the enemies of liberty and free speech.

She has enjoyed strong support among French voters over the past year and her current poll ratings suggest she might be a serious candidate for the presidency in 2017.

She spoke to the BBC's Huw Edwards. (+ BBC) » | Friday, February 06, 2015

Free Speech Oxford University-Style: Chants Against Le Pen In Oxford

Anjem Choudary, Radical Muslim Cleric: Quran Justifies Jordanian Pilot Burning

THE WASHINGTON TIMES: Controversial Muslim cleric Anjem Choudary suggested Thursday that the filmed burning of Jordanian pilot Moaz al-Kasasbeh by Islamic State militants was justified under the Quran.

Speaking with NewsmaxTV host Steve Malzberg, Mr. Choudary said the video showing the pilot burning to death “has several intended affects.”

“One of them, of course, is to terrorize the enemy, and I think it’s had that effect,” he said, the Daily Caller reported. “It’s had a huge propaganda effect all around the world. Now, if you want to look at this from a Islamic perspective, what they are arguing is that it is reciprocation. » | Jessica Chasmar | The Washington Times | Thursday, February 05, 2015

French Far-right Leader Marine Le Pen Mobbed by Oxford Union Protesters

Leader of the French party National Front (FN) Marine Le Pen (C)
arrives to give a speech at the Oxford Union's prestigious
debating society in Oxford

THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Controversial nationalist politician gives a speech at the prestigious Oxford Union, blaming Western society's ills on Islamic ideology

French far-right political leader Marine Le Pen has received a hostile reception at the Oxford Union where she was was [sic] invited to discuss western values.

Crowds of protesters gathered outside the building to denounce the controversial leader of France's far-right Front National.

Her speech to gathered union members was delayed by over one hour as the angry crowd attempted to block entrances.

Union officials have faced criticism for inviting Ms Le Pen to speak uninterrupted for five minutes, rather than insisting on a more traditional debate format where an opponent would have also been heard.

The disruption meant that many of those with tickets for her speech were unable to attend. Similarly the scrum outside the union meant that reporters were unable to get inside.

She is believed to have used her speech to blame Islamic ideology for the issues facing western society. » | Gregory Walton | Thursday, February 05, 2015

President Obama Speaks at the National Prayer Breakfast

On February 5, 2015, President Obama delivered remarks at the National Prayer Breakfast in Washington, D.C.

Saudi King's Ex-Wife Speaks Out

Exclusive: in her first television interview, the former wife of King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia claims her four daughters have suffered years trapped in the royal compound in Jeddah.

The Wonderful Conversion Story Of A Saudi Christian Lady

Interview about why a Saudi woman converted to Christianity and what she found in Jesus that she didn't find in Islam

Obama FINALLY Acknowledges ISIS Is Linked to 'Islam' – Then Compares It to the Crusades, the Spanish Inquisition and American Slavery as He Says: 'No God Condones Terror'

MAIL ONLINE: President appeared at annual prayer event attended by 3,600 people from all 50 states and 130 countries / First head-on presidential attack on ISIS in terms of religion in recent memory / Obama has been criticized for failing to condemn Middle Eastern terrorists as religious radicals while other world leaders decry 'radical Islam' / He followed up aggressive language by comparing ISIS to the medieval Crusades, the Spanich Inquisition and American slavery

The burning alive of a Muslim man by the self-proclaimed Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS) has jolted the president of the United States into acknowledging publicly that the world's chief terror threat comes from people who 'profess to stand up for Islam but instead betray it.'

But that stark conclusion, long missing in the White House, was followed by a litany of other wrongs done in the name of religion.

'Lest we get on our high horse and think this is unique to some other place,' Obama told the National Prayer breakfast on Thursday morning, 'remember that during the Crusades and the Inquisition, people committed terrible deeds in the name of Christ.'

'In our home country, slavery and Jim Crow all too often was justified in the name of Christ.'

But 'no God condones terror,' he insisted. Read on and comment » | David Martosko, US Political Editor for Daily Mail | Thursday, February 05, 2015

Haarkippa: Schützt vor Nässe, Kälte und Antisemitismus

Ein israelischer Coiffeur will den ansteigenden Antisemitismus in Europa bekämpfen. Mit einer unsichtbaren Kopfbedeckung – die erst noch wie eine lässige Hipsterfrisur ausschaut.

Den SRF Artikel hier lesen | fren; meym | Donnerstag, 05. Februar 2015

GB: manif anti-Marine Le Pen à Oxford

LE FIGARO: Plusieurs centaines de personnes manifestaient aujourd'hui en fin d'après-midi contre la participation de la présidente du parti d'extrême droite français Front national (FN) à une conférence-débat organisée par l'association des étudiants de l'université d'Oxford. » | Par LeFigaro.fr avec AFP | jeudi 05 février 2015

Terrorismus: Saudiarabiens späte Notbremse

DIE PRESSE: Jahrelang erhielt die al-Qaida finanzielle Unterstützung aus Riad – jetzt erst geht das Land gegen Spenden an Terrorgruppen vor. Westliche Experten fordern weitere Schritte.

Kairo/Riad. Er habe mit tiefer Trauer von dem Schicksal von Muath al-Kasaesbeh gehört, kabelte der neue saudische König Salman am Mittwoch von Riad nach Amman und nannte den Mord an dem jordanischen Piloten ein „widerliches Verbrechen“, das gegen den Islam verstoße und gegen alle menschlichen Werte. Dabei ist der 78-jährige Monarch offenbar tief verwickelt in die Aufzucht der mordlustigen Jihadisten in der Region.

Jahrzehntelang gehörte er angeblich zu den aktivsten Spendern und Geldsammlern. Erst seit die dritte Generation von Gotteskriegern des Islamischen Staates (IS) nun auch das Haus Saud offen bedroht, geht Saudiarabien entschiedener gegen private Terrorfinanzierer vor. » | “Die Presse”, Print-Ausgabe | Freitag, 06. Februar 2015

Editor at Centre of Mohammed Cartoons Controversy in Denmark Nominated for Nobel Prize

Flemming Rose

THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Flemming Rose, of Jyllands-Posten, nominated over stance for freedom of speech

The Danish newspaper editor who published cartoons of the prophet Mohammed nearly a decade ago has been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize in the wake of the Charlie Hebdo massacre in France.

Flemming Rose, 58, who still lives under police guard because of death threats, was put forward for this year's award by Michael Tetzschner, a Norwegian MP.

The move was a response to the attack by Islamist gunmen on cartoonists at the Charlie Hebdo satirical magazine in Paris last month.

"Giving the prize to a consistent defender of freedom of expression, even at a personal cost, would give a sign that those who try to muzzle that freedom through cowardly attacks against civilians, thus undermining peace between peoples, cannot ever succeed," Mr Tetzschner wrote in his letter to the Nobel committee, according to Norway's NTB news agency.

As cultural editor of Denmark's Jyllands-Posten, Mr Rose he was principally responsible for commissioning a series of drawings of Mohammed that were published in September 2005. Most strands of Islam disapprove of depictions of Mohammed, viewing it as akin to idolatry. » | Colin Freeman, Chief foreign correspondent | Wednesday, February 04, 2015

Saudi Princes 'Supported Al-Qaeda Before 9/11' Claims Twentieth Hijacker

September 11 conspirator Zacarias Moussaoui

THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: As US-Saudi relations enter delicate phase, top former al-Qaeda operative Zacarias Moussaoui alleges high-level Saudi involvement in Osama bin Laden terror network

Senior members of the Saudi royal family were major al-Qaeda donors and were intimately involved with Osama bin Laden's terror network in the 1990s, one of the group's former members has testified to a New York court.

Zacarias Moussaoui, the so-called "twentieth hijacker" who had taken flying lessons but was arrested weeks before the September 11 attacks, made the claims in a long-running lawsuit alleging Saudi Arabian involvement in the plot to bring down the World Trade Centre.

Moussaoui, a 46-year-old French national who was diagnosed with delusional paranoid schizophrenia but declared mentally fit to stand trial in 2006, told lawyers that he had been ordered by bin Laden to compile a database of influential supporters.

"Shaykh Osama wanted to keep a record who give money ... who is to be listened to or who contribute to – to the jihad," he said in broken English, according to the testimony that was first reported by the New York Times and has been seen by The Telegraph.

Among those listed were Prince Turki al-Faisal, then the Saudi intelligence chief; Prince Bandar Bin Sultan, the longtime Saudi ambassador to the United States and Prince al-Waleed bin Talal, a prominent billionaire investor. » | Peter Foster, Washington | Wednesday, February 04, 2015

Nazila Fathi: The Struggle for Modern Iran: A Journalist’s Story

How Iran's Journalists Cope In 'The World's Biggest Prison'

Jordan Must Avenge Pilot's Death, Says Muath al-Kasasbeh's Father

Speaking from his home village of A'y on Tuesday, Safi al-Kasasbeh, the father of murdered pilot Muath al-Kasasbeh, says the Jordanian government must take action against Islamic State (Isis) following the release of a video showing his son being burnt to death. Other Jordanian citizens also respond to the news of the killing. The Jordanian government has executed two Iraqi Islamist militants in response to the pilot's murder

Prince Charles Tired of Being Treated as Arms Dealer

Isil 'Broadcast Video of Pilot Burning on Giant Public Screen to Young Children'

THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Young boy shown in video saying "I wish to capture pilots and burn them", as leaders across the Middle East condemn the death by burning of a captive Jordanian pilot

Isil broadcast the horrific video of a Jordanian pilot being burned to death on giant public screens to crowds that included young children, it has emerged.

Footage appeared on Wednesday purporting to show a crowd cheering and chanting as the murder was projected onto an outdoor screen at night in Raqqa, the de facto capital of Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant.

The new five-minute film includes interviews with those in attendance at the screening, who appear to be giving their verdict on the murder. While some appear serious in their response, others - including a young boy seemingly no older than eight - smile as they discuss the footage.

"If he was here, I'd burn him by my hand. I wish to capture pilots and burn them”, the child says. » | Andrew Marszal, and AP | Wednesday, February 04, 2015

Jordan to Execute Isil Prisoner Immediately In Response to Pilot Burned Alive by Jihadists

THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Sajida al-Rishawi and other Isil jihadists will be executed at dawn in response to murder of Jordanian hostage pilot Lt Moaz Kasaesbeh


Jordan on Tuesday night announced it would execute a female failed suicide bomber and other jihadists in retaliation for the killing of its hostage pilot, Lt Moaz Kasaesbeh, after pictures were posted of him being burned alive.

Officials reacted furiously to the pictures and film, which went beyond anything yet seen in the "execution videos" of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant.

They were particularly angry as the unusual method of death seemed to confirm reports that he had been killed several weeks ago. There had been rumours in early January that he had been burned, and officials said last night they now believed he died on January 3.

That made a mockery of Isil's demands last week that the woman suicide bomber, Sajida al-Rishawi, be released in return for Lt Kasaesbeh's safety, as well as the release of Kenji Goto, the Japanese journalist.

That deal fell through after the jihadists were unable to provide Jordan with proof of life of the pilot, and Mr Goto's killing was confirmed on Saturday night. » | Richard Spencer, Middle East Editor | Tuesday, February 03, 2015

Isis Video Shows Jordanian Hostage Being Burned to Death

THE GUARDIAN: Jordanian government vows ‘punishment and revenge’ after pilot Muadh al-Kasasbeh was set alight while locked in a cage


The Jordanian government has vowed “punishment and revenge” against Islamic State after the jihadi group released a video showing a Jordanian pilot they were holding hostage being burned to death inside a locked cage.

Displaying a level of brutality shocking even by the standards of the group’s previous killings, the murder of First Lieutenant Muadh al-Kasasbeh is likely to heighten tensions further in Jordan, a key Arab member of US-led coalition against Isis. The kingdom has rounded up scores of jihadist sympathisers since the summer.

Jordan responded immediately by scheduling for Wednesday the executions of five convicted terrorists, including the failed suicide bomber whom the group had wanted to trade. Sajida al-Rishawi, whom Isis had wanted to swap for Japanese journalist, Kenji Goto, was one of five death row inmates moved to a prison where executions are carried out. The group was transferred to Wastaqa prison within hours of the video being uploaded.

In a short televised address, Jordan’s King Abdullah II called Kasasbeh’s killing an act of “cowardly terror by a criminal group that has no relation to Islam ... It’s the duty of all citizens to stand together”. Abdullah cut short a visit to the United States to return home after the video was released, but the White House said he would meet Barack Obama before he left. » | Martin Chulov in Beirut and Shiv Malik in London | Tuesday, February 03, 2015

Jordanian Pilot 'Burned Alive' in New Isil Video

THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Video showing death of Jordanian pilot Moaz al-Kasaesbeh, held prisoner by Islamic State jihadists, released now but he may have been killed a month ago


Isil jihadists have released a video that shows the Jordanian pilot they have been holding hostage being burned alive.

Moaz al-Kasaesbeh, a pilot in the Jordanian air force, was captured by Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant on December 24.

His death, if confirmed, marks the failure of a proposed prisoner exchange for a woman failed suicide bomber being held in Jordan. Known social media feeds of Isil members also posted photographs of the event.

In it, Lt Kasaesbeh is standing in a cage, with a line of armed and masked jihadists looking on.

A trail of flames is then lit around him, and eventually he is burned too.

Throughout, he stands erect and apparently defiant.

The Jordanian authorities, working on the assumption that the photographs were real, informed his family of his death this afternoon. » | Andrew Marszal, and Richard Spencer | Tuesday, February 03, 2015

Muslim Convert 'Stabs Controlling Boyfriend to Death in Row about Western Lifestyle'

Sarah Willis, left in court, told the court she was forced to
comply with Islamic standards of dress

THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Court hears Sarah Willis claimed Bilal Saddique wanted her to comply with Islamic standards of dress and hated her wearing 'tight and short clothing'

A teenage girl who converted to Islam stabbed her Muslim boyfriend to death after they encountered "cultural difficulties" over her Westernised lifestyle, a court heard.

Law firm worker Sarah Willis, 19, claimed BT engineer Bilal Saddique was a "controlling man" who had wanted her to comply with Islamic standards of dress and hated her wearing "tight and short clothing" because "other men looked at her", jurors were told.

Later during a violent row over her friendship with a work colleague, Willis stabbed 29-year old Mr Saddique in the leg at the home they shared in Blackburn, Lancashire, causing a wound that severed an artery, a jury was told.

He was found collapsed on the kitchen floor as she attempted to stem the flow of blood with a towel. He died in hospital an hour later despite attempts to revive him.

Preston Crown Court was told last year's tragedy was the climax of the couple's stormy three year on-off relationship that began after Wills converted to Islam when she was a schoolgirl. » | Agency | Tuesday, February 03, 2015

Secret Halal Slaughterhouse Film Reveals 'Horrific' Animal Abuse

THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Hidden cameras show horrific mistreatment of sheep in Bowood Yorkshire Lamb slaughterhouse in Thirsk, North Yorkshire. WARNING this piece contains graphic video some viewers may find distressing


Disturbing footage showing "routine abuse" of sheep in a halal slaughterhouse has reignited the debate over whether animals should be stunned before they are killed for meat.

Under halal law, animals are supposed to be killed quickly by single cut from a surgically-sharp knife.

Although 80 per cent of halal meat is stunned, the number of sheep killed without stunning is rising due to campaigning by Muslims, figures show.

Secret filming in an halal abattoir in Yorkshire showed "horrifying" treatment of animals killed without stunning.

Workers were shown hacking and sawing at the animals' throats with apparently blunt knives. In one instance the procedure, which according to Islamic law should be instantaneous, took five attempts.

Halal rules also state that animals should never see the knife or witness others being killed, protecting them against unnecessary trauma.

But the footage showed a man wearing a Muslim kufi skullcap at Bowood Lamb abattoir in Thirsk regularly sharpening knives in front of the sheep. Due to the design of the slaughterhouse, in which animals were forced on to conveyor belts, the sheep typically saw another member of the flock having its throat cut, bleeding on the floor and being hoisted and shackled. Read on and comment » | Dan Hyde, Consumer Affairs Editor, video courtesy of Animal Aid | Tuesday, February 03, 2015

Oskar Gröning – German SS-Private at Auschwitz – MSG to Holocaust Deniers

Oskar Gröning was a German SS-Private (Rottenführer) at Auschwitz. Gröning's responsibilities included sorting and counting the multitude of currencies

THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Nazi Auschwitz camp officer, 93, to face trial over 300,000 deaths » | AFP | Monday, February 02, 2015

Anti-Islamist Pegida Group Holds First March in Austria

Only a few hundred people attended Pegida's first rally in
Vienna, observers say.

BBC AMERICA: The anti-Islamisation movement Pegida, which originated in Germany, has held its first march in Austria.

But while rallies in Germany have often attracted more than 20,000 people in recent weeks, only a few hundred took part in Monday's rally in Vienna.

They found themselves outnumbered by police - and even more so by about 5,000 people who had gathered for a counter-demonstration.

Austria is the latest European country to see anti-Islamisation protests.

Supporters of Pegida gathered in a square in central Vienna's shouting "We are the people", the BBC's Bethany Bell reports.

Some gave Nazi salutes while riot police separated them from rival protesters changing "down with Pegida". » | Monday, February 2015

Iceland to Build First Temple to Norse Gods in 1,000 Years

The high priest of the Asatru Association Hilmarsson leads
a procession of Asatru Association at Pingblot

THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Modern version of Norse paganism has been gaining popularity in Iceland

Icelanders will soon be able to publicly worship at a shrine to Thor, Odin and Frigg with construction starting this month on the island's first major temple to the Norse gods since the Viking age.

Worship of the gods in Scandinavia gave way to Christianity around 1,000 years ago but a modern version of Norse paganism has been gaining popularity in Iceland.

"I don't believe anyone believes in a one-eyed man who is riding about on a horse with eight feet," said Hilmar Orn Hilmarsson, high priest of 'Asatruarfelagid', an association that promotes faith in the Norse gods.

"We see the stories as poetic metaphors and a manifestation of the forces of nature and human psychology." » | Reuters | Monday, February 02, 2015

Anne Will | Die Glaubensfrage - Gehört der Islam zu Deutschland? | 28.01.2015

Über den Islam in Deutschland diskutieren Manuela Schwesig, Erika Steinbach, Bassam Tibi und Mehmet Gürcan Daimagüler…

Mitten in der aufgeheizten Diskussion um die Pegida-Bewegung hat Kanzlerin Angela Merkel mit der Äußerung, der Islam gehöre zu Deutschland, Kritik aus den eigenen Reihen geerntet.

Pat Condell: Nothing To Do With Islam

The death rattle of a dhimmi society.

Pat Condell: A Special Kind of Hate

Muslim anti-Semitism in Europe.

Brokered It & Broke It: Obama on Kiev Deal That Paved Path to Bloodshed

The Ukrainians' expression of free will didn't come without a nudge from Washington after all - in an interview with CNN’s Fareed Zakaria, Barack Obama acknowledged that the United States had "brokered a deal to transition power in Ukraine.'

Ex-State Dept Executive: US Leadership Is Inept & Incompetent, Including President

America stands in first place among the world’s great powers. But the decisions taken in Washington are seen by many as questionable - even unwise - bringing even more conflict and violence. What governs decision-making in the White House? Who is listened to there? What goal does Washington pursue? Does it even have any particular goal? We ask these questions to a former Chief of Staff to Secretary of State Colin Powell, Colonel Lawrence Wilkerson, on Sophie&Co.

Gorbachev Warns Ukraine Could Ignite World War III

GLOBAL RESEARCH: Mikhail Gorbachev, the last president of the Soviet Union, accused the United States Thursday of initiating a new Cold War with Russia and expressed fears that the conflict could escalate into a nuclear Third World War.

Gorbachev made his comments as fighting escalated in Ukraine between forces directed by the US- and European Union-backed government in Kiev and pro-Russian separatists in the eastern Donbass region.

“Plainly speaking, the US has already dragged us into a new Cold War, trying to openly implement its idea of triumphalism,” the former Soviet leader told Interfax. “What’s next? Unfortunately, I cannot be sure that the Cold War will not bring about a ‘hot’ one. I’m afraid [the United States] might take the risk.”

He criticized the US and the EU for continuing to press for more economic sanctions against Russia. “All we hear from the US and the EU now is sanctions against Russia,” he continued. “Are they completely out of their minds? The US has been totally ‘lost in the jungle’ and is dragging us there as well.” » | Niles Williamson | Saturday, January 31, 2015

Der IS-Terror erreicht Japan

TAGES ANZEIGER: Analyse [–] Lange war das Land der aufgehenden Sonne von Konflikten der Welt weitgehend isoliert – Premier Abe will für Japan eine grössere Rolle, etwa im Kampf gegen die IS-Miliz. Deren Terror holt das Land nun ein.

Die Japaner leben in einem der sichersten Länder der Welt. Doch die mutmassliche Tötung zweier japanischer Geiseln durch die Terrormiliz Islamischer Staat lässt sie nun direkt eine der grössten Bedrohungen weltweit spüren. Die Videonachricht der Extremisten über die mutmassliche Enthauptung des Journalisten Kenji Goto wirkte wie ein Schock.

Eine erste japanische Geisel - Haruna Yukawa - soll vom IS bereits vergangene Woche hingerichtet worden sein. Verhandlungen über ein Lösegeld und einen Gefangenenaustausch, um die Leben der beiden Japaner zu retten, waren ohne Erfolg geblieben. » | Von Ken Moritsugu | AP | Sonntag, 01. Februar 2015

They Can’t Stop Keeping On, Can They? Smokefree Zones Trialled In Bristol

BT: Two city squares will become Britain's first major public outdoor spaces to go smokefree when a voluntary pilot launches today.

Two city squares will become Britain's first major public outdoor spaces to go smokefree when a voluntary pilot launches today.

The initiative will come into effect in Millennium Square and Anchor Square - both popular with families - on Bristol's harbourside.

It follows a major report last year by former health minister Lord Darzi which suggested that London and other UK cities should ban smoking in public spaces and parks.

Cities including New York, Toronto and Hong Kong have already banned smoking in key outdoor locations but Bristol is the UK's first to pilot smokefree zones. » | Press Association | Monday, February 02, 2015