Ku Klux Klan Still Thriving against Backdrop of US Racial Tensions

Klansmen and Klanswomen from several US states set fire to a
cross in St Louis, Missouri

THE SUNDAY TELEGRAPH: Documentary shows Klan leader promoting “lethal force” by whites in Ferguson, Missouri scene of days of rioting after unarmed black teenager was shot by police last year

The Ku Klux Klan is flourishing and exploiting racial tension in America, according to a new behind the scenes documentary.

With race relations still on a knife edge in some parts of the country following the deaths of African Americans at police hands, the white supremacist group is unashamedly promoting more hatred. » | David Millward, US Correspondent | Sunday, July 12, 2015

Dan Cruickshank’s : Civilization Under Attack

By Day, at Heart of Counter-terror Policing. And by Night, Preacher of Extremism

Abdullah al Andalusi

THE SUNDAY TELEGRAPH: Government watchdog, which inspects police forces’ readiness for terrorism, employed preacher of extremism

The Government watchdog which inspects police forces’ readiness for terrorism admitted that it employed one of Britain’s most notorious Islamic extremists.

For almost two years Abdullah al Andalusi, led a double life, the Telegraph can reveal.

By night, he taught that the terror group Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (Isil) was “no different to Western armies,” said that “kaffirs,” non-Muslims, would be “punished in hell” and claimed that the British government wanted to destroy Islam.

By day, using a different name, he went to work for the same British government at the London offices of Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary (HMIC), the official regulator of all 44 forces in England, Wales and Northern Ireland.

The disclosures will be intensely embarrassing [sic] to the Prime Minister, David Cameron, who has criticised parts of Britain’s Muslim communities for “quietly condoning” Islamist extremism.

HMIC’s staff, who number less than 150, are given privileged access to highly sensitive and classified police and intelligence information to carry out their inspections. » | Andrew Gilligan | Sunday, July 12, 2015

Greece Nears Euro Exit as Bailout Talks Break Up without Agreement

THE GUARDIAN: Last-ditch negotiations to resume on Sunday after eurozone’s fiscal hawks put up fierce resistance to Alexis Tsipras’s rescue plan

Greece’s final attempt to avoid being kicked out of the euro by securing a new three-year bailout worth up to €80bn ran into a wall of resistance from the eurozone’s fiscal hawks on Saturday.

Finland rejected any more funding for the country and Germany called for Greece to be turfed out of the currency bloc for at least five years.

The last-chance talks between the 19 eurozone finance ministers in Brussels ended at midnight, as they struggled to draft a policy paper for national leaders at yet another emergency summit on Sunday that was billed as the decisive meeting.

With Greece on the edge of financial and social implosion, eurozone finance ministers met to decide on the country’s fate and on what to do about its debt crisis, after experts from the troika of creditors said that new fiscal rigour proposals from Athens were good enough to form “the basis for negotiations”.

But the German finance minister, Wolfgang Schäuble, dismissed that view, supported by a number of northern and eastern European states. “These proposals cannot build the basis for a completely new, three-year [bailout] programme, as requested by Greece,” said a German finance ministry paper. It called for Greece to be expelled from the eurozone for a minimum of five years and demanded that the Greek government transfer €50bn of state assets to an outside agency for sell-off. » | Ian Traynor in Brussels | Saturday, July 11, 2015

24 Hours to Save the Euro: Germany Prepares for a 'Temporary' Greek Exit as Euro Project on the Brink of Collapse

THE TELEGRAPH: Berlin readies humanitarian aid for Greece proposing a five-year expulsion from the euro, after Athens is accused of destroying the trust of its partners

The German government has begun preparations for Greece to be ejected from the eurozone, as the European Union faces 24 hours to rescue the single currency project from the brink of collapse.

Nine hours of acrimonious talks on Saturday night, saw finance ministers fail break the deadlock with Greece over a new bail-out package, accusing Athens of destroying their trust. It leaves the future of the eurozone in tatters only 15 years after its inception.

In a weekend billed as Europe’s last chance to save the monetary union, ministers will now reconvene on Saturday [?] morning ahead of an EU leaders' summit later in the evening, to thrash out an agreement or decide to eject Greece from the eurozone.

Should no deal be forthcoming, the German government has made preparations to negotiate a temporary five-year euro exit, providing Greece with humanitarian aid while it makes the transition.

An incendiary plan drafted by Berlin's finance ministry, with the backing of Angela Merkel, laid out two stark options for Greece: either the government submits to drastic measures such as placing €50bn of its assets in a trust fund to pay off its debts, and have Brussels take over its public administration, or agree to a "time-out" solution where it would be expelled from the eurozone. » | Mehreen Khan | Saturday, July 11, 2015

Omar Sharif: A Muslim Actor in Hollywood

DAILY MAIL: The lonely Lothario »

Replace Queen with a Socialist, Say Scots

DAILY EXPRESS: MORE than 10,000 people have signed a petition to stop Scotland’s newest hospital being named after the Queen.

The £842million facility, formerly known as the South Glasgow University Hospital, was named after the 89-year-old monarch when she officially opened it with Prince Philip, 94, earlier this month.

Now campaigners are calling for the name to be reversed, claiming calling it the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital was “an affront to democracy”.

Instead, they suggest it could be named after Mary Barbour, a firebrand socialist active in the early 20th century and one of the city’s first woman councillors.

The criticism is in contrast to the cheering flag waving crowds that greeted the Queen and the Duke. About 300 guests also attended the official opening on July 3.

The online petition, launched by Glaswegian John Beattie, says: “We call on the Greater Glasgow and Clyde Health Board to change the name of the new South Glasgow hospital.

“Considering the fundamental principle of monarchy is superiority of the monarch and their family over everyone else in society, we feel the naming of a public building after such a person is unacceptable.”

The petition had last night attracted 10,364 signatures, with some calling for the hospital to be named after Mary Barbour who organised a rent strike in 1915.

Mr Beattie, a bioethics student at the University of West Scotland, said: “We are a modern dynamic city, why should we be naming this public building after monarchy when there are more worthy people? Read on and comment » | Camilla Tominey | Saturday, July 11, 2015

Earth Heading for 'Mini Ice Age' within 15 Years

THE TELEGRAPH: River Thames could freeze over in 2030s when Northern Hemisphere faces bitterly cold winters, scientists say

The earth is 15 years from a "mini ice-age" that will cause bitterly cold winters during which rivers such as the Thames freeze over, scientists have predicted.

Solar researchers at the University of Northumbria have created a new model of the sun's activity which they claim produces "unprecedentedly accurate predictions".

They said fluid movements within the sun, which are thought to create 11-year cycles in the weather, will converge in such a way that temperatures will fall dramatically in the 2030s.

Solar activity will fall by 60 per cent as two waves of fluid "effectively cancel each other out", according to Prof Valentina Zharkova.

In a presentation to the National Astronomy Meeting in Llandudno, she said the result would be similar to freezing conditions of the late 17th century. Read on and comment » | Dan Hyde | Saturday, July 11, 2015

Islamic State 'Behind Blast' at Italian Consulate in Cairo

The consulate was closed at the time of the attack

BBC AMERICA: Islamic State militants have said they were behind a deadly explosion that severely damaged the Italian consulate in Egypt's capital, Cairo.

At least one person died and several people were injured when a car bomb went off at the building.

A tweet from a Twitter account linked to IS said Muslims should stay away from sites like the consulate, as they are "legitimate targets" for strikes.

Policemen and civilians were among the injured, the health ministry said.

The main entrance of the building was almost totally destroyed, windows were shattered and the building was flooded after water-pipes ruptured.

"Italy will not let itself be intimidated," the country's foreign minister Paolo Gentiloni said in a tweet, adding that there had been no Italian casualties.

Prime Minister Matteo Renzi spoke to Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi after the attack and promised the two countries would stand together "in the fight against terrorism and fanaticism". (+ BBC video) » | Saturday, June 11, 2015

Doctor Zhivago: Lara’s Theme

Prince Philip Swears at Photographer: 'Just Take the F------g Picture!'

THE TELEGRAPH: Prince Philip loses his patience with a photographer as he poses with veterans during a Battle of Britain anniversary reception

Prince Philip's outburst came as he was joined by Prince Edward and Prince William at a reception with Battle of Britain veterans on Friday.

Clearly frustrated while waiting for a photograph to be taken, he was caught on camera ordering the photographer to "just take the f-----g picture!"

The reception marked the 75th anniversary of the start of the Battle of Britain. (+ video) » Telegraph video | Friday, July 10, 2015

Unbridled Capitalism Is the 'Dung of the Devil', Says Pope Francis

Pope Francis makes his speech in Santa Cruz, Bolivia, where
he called for the poor to have the "sacred rights" of labor,
lodging and land. 

THE GUARDIAN: The pontiff condemns the impoverishment of developing countries by the world economic order and apologised for the church’s treatment of native Americans

Pope Francis has urged the downtrodden to change the world economic order, denouncing a “new colonialism” by agencies that impose austerity programs and calling for the poor to have the “sacred rights” of labor, lodging and land.

In one of the longest, most passionate and sweeping speeches of his pontificate, the Argentine-born pope used his visit to Bolivia to ask forgiveness for the sins committed by the Roman Catholic church in its treatment of native Americans during what he called the “so-called conquest of America”.

The pontiff also demanded an immediate end to what he called the “genocide” of Christians taking place in the Middle East and beyond, describing it as a third world war. » | Reuters | Thursday, July 9, 2015

Russland und Iran vereinbaren Atom-Kooperation

DIE PRESSE: Putin hofft auf einen baldigen Kompromiss bei den Wiener Atomgesprächen. Russland wird künftig auch militärisch enger mit dem Iran zusammenarbeiten.

Der russische Präsident Wladimir Putin und sein iranischer Amtskollege Hassan Rohani haben eine engere Zusammenarbeit im Militärbereich vereinbart. So sollen Kriegsschiffe öfter Häfen des jeweils anderen Landes anlaufen, sagte Kremlsprecher Dmitri Peskow am Donnerstag in Ufa. » | APA | Donnerstag, 9. Juli 2015

Former Saudi Foreign Minister Dies

Prince Saud al-Faisal

THE TELEGRAPH: Tributes paid to Prince Saud al-Faisal, once the world's longest-serving, foreign minister

Saudi Arabia's Prince Saud al-Faisal, formerly the world's longest-serving foreign minister who oversaw four decades of turbulent diplomacy for the oil-rich kingdom, died on Thursday.

A statement from the Royal Court said Prince Saud, who was born in 1940, died in the United States.

It did not give the cause of death but said funeral prayers would be held on Saturday night in the Muslim holy city of Mecca.

Prince Saud was one of the highest profile members of the kingdom's ruling elite before stepping down in April for health reasons.

The prince often swapped his traditional Saudi thobe and checkered shemagh headdress for elegant suits when on missions in Western capitals.

He oversaw Saudi Arabia's emergence as a major diplomatic player, facing successive regional crises and maintaining a focus on relations with the West.

"He was a symbol of honesty and hard work," the Royal Court said.

Relatives earlier announced Saud's death on social media. » | AFP | Friday, July 10, 2015

THE GUARDIAN: Former Saudi foreign minister Prince Saud al-Faisal dies: Prince had overseen nation’s emergence as a major diplomatic player, facing successive regional crises and maintaining a focus on relations with the west » | Agence France-Presse in Riyadh | Thursday, July 9, 2015

Le prince saoudien Fayçal est mort »

Le prince saoudien Fayçal est mort

L’EXPRESS: Pendant 40 ans, il a dirigé la diplomatie de l'Arabie Saoudite. Il avait été relevé de ses fonctions en avril.

Le prince Saoud al-Fayçal, qui fut le chef de la diplomatie de l'Arabie saoudite pendant 40 ans avant d'être relevé de ses fonctions en avril, est décédé, ont annoncé jeudi sa famille et une source officielle. Selon des sources saoudiennes concordantes non confirmées dans l'immédiat par les autorités, il est décédé jeudi à l'étranger à la suite d'un malaise cardiaque.

Né en 1940, le prince Fayçal souffrait de divers problèmes de santé. Il éprouvait notamment des difficultés à marcher après avoir subi une opération du dos aux Etats-Unis. "Que Dieu l'accepte au Paradis", a écrit son neveu Saoud Mohammed Al-Abdallah al-Fayçal sur Twitter.

Lorsqu'il a été démis en avril dernier, il était le chef de la diplomatie en poste le plus ancien au monde. Il a occupé cette fonction imminente, homme-clé des relations internationales au Moyen-Orient, sous le règne de quatre rois saoudiens différents. (+ video ) » | Par LEXPRESS.fr avec AFP | jeudi 9 juillet 2015

Britons Told to Leave Tunisia amid Fears of a Fresh Terror Attack

THE TELEGRAPH: Foreign Office has changed its travel advice for Tunisia warning against all but essential travel amid fears gunman Selfeddine Rezgui's cell could be ready to strike again

Britons have been told to leave Tunisia as soon as possible amid fears it is “highly likely” they will be targeted in a fresh terror attack.

The Foreign Office changed its travel advice for the country warning against all but essential travel.

Holiday operators were urgently arranging additional flights to bring Britons currently travelling in the country home, the FCO said.

There are up to 3,000 Britons currently in Tunisia, it is understood, and they have been told to contact their tour operator or airline to plan their return. (+ videos) » | Tom Whitehead, Security Editor, video source UK POOL | Thursday, July 9, 2015

Comment Daesh crée son empire mondial

LE POINT: De l'Algérie à l'Indonésie, une vingtaine d'organisations ont fait allégeance au "califat" de l'organisation État islamique.

Un an à peine après la proclamation de son « califat » à cheval sur la Syrie et l’Irak , l’organisation État islamique (EI) multiplie les attaques à l'extérieur de ses « frontières ». Paris, Sousse, Copenhague ou encore Garland (Texas), le groupe djihadiste autoproclamé « État » cible les étrangers « infidèles » en réponse aux bombardements de la coalition internationale contre ses positions depuis septembre 2014. Cette force de frappe djihadiste s'explique tout d'abord par la multitude de « loups solitaires » présents en Occident. Par Skype, ces djihadistes, n'ayant parfois aucun lien avec l'EI ou n'ayant jamais combattu au Moyen-Orient, peuvent faire allégeance à distance avant de commettre leur attaque, revendiquée a posteriori par l'organisation. » | Par Paul Verdeau | lundi 6 juillet 2015

Behind The Scenes Of Syriza's Election Victory

Greece: The End of Austerity - As the Greek crisis threatens to sink the euro, this report looks at the promises that brough Syriza into power.

Greek No Vote: 'The Fightback for a Europe of Dignity Starts Here'

As Syriza supporters flock to Athens' Syntagma square to celebrate, Phoebe Greenwood talks to those who are celebrating a historic referendum outcome. 'They thought they could intimidate us,' one man says. Despite jitters on the financial markets, others happy with the historic oxi (no) vote say they hope it will be the moment that Greeks can come together

Islamic State Jihadists Execute Dozens amid Palmyra Ruins

25 Syrian government soldiers kneel in the ancient amphitheatre
in the city of Palmyra ahead of being executed by children

THE SUNDAY TELEGRAPH: A new Isil video shows teenage executioners using the Unesco heritage site as a theatre for death

The Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (Isil) have released a video purportedly showing the execution of dozens of Syrian government soldiers in the ancient ruins of Palmyra.

The footage shows 25 men kneeling on the stage of the site's historic Roman theatre, their hands tied behind their backs.

With ritualistic precision, the same numbers of executioners then step out in unison, each taking up position behind one of the condemned. A large black Isil flag is draped over the columns behind them.

Wearing matching long brown robes and brown bandannas the executioners appear to be boys or young teenagers – few look old enough to grow a beard.

Footage filmed from cameras trained on the soldiers' faces show that the men have been beaten.

Then the child jihadists transform the world-class tourist attraction into a killing ground.

Simultaneously raising their pistols, they spray bullets into the heads and backs of the men, leaving them lifeless and bloody on the ground.

An apparently unhappy crowd of onlookers, mostly dressed in civilian clothes, are gathered on the seats of the stadium watching the grisly show. » | Ruth Sherlock, Beirut | Sunday, July 5, 2015

China's Sexual Revolution - Documentary

Greek Economy Close to Collapse as Food and Medicine Run Short

Supporters of the yes campaign attend a rally in Athens on Friday.

THE GUARDIAN: Alexis Tsipras urges people to vote no in Sunday’s referendum as capital controls bite and vital tourism industry sees tens of thousands cancel holidays in Greece

Greece’s economy is on the brink of collapse after the capital controls imposed ahead of Sunday’s referendum left the country with shortages of food and drugs, the tourist industry facing a wave of cancellations and banks with barely enough money to survive the weekend.

Banks said they had a €1bn cash buffer to see them through the weekend – equal to just €90 (£64) a head for the 11 million-strong population – and would require immediate help from the European Central Bank on Monday whatever the result of the referendum, in which the two sides are running neck and neck.

Alexis Tsipras, Greece’s prime minister, was fighting for his political life on Friday night, using a rally to say that a no vote would enable him to negotiate a reform-for-debt-relief deal with the country’s creditors.

The survival of the Syriza coalition, formed just over five months ago to repudiate five years of austerity programmes, was in doubt as Greece started to suffer shortages of basic provisions, including the sale of vital drugs in pharmacies nationwide.

Food staples, such as sugar and flour, were also fast running out on Friday as consumers started to feel the effect of the restrictions. » | Helena Smith in Athens and Larry Elliott in London | Friday, July 3, 2015

Iceland Makes Blasphemy Legal

BBC AMERICA: Iceland's parliament has abolished its blasphemy laws, despite opposition from some of the country's churches.

A bill was put forward by the minority Pirate Party, which campaigns for internet and data freedom.

It came after the deadly attack the same month against French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo in Paris.

The bill said it was "essential in a free society that the public can express themselves without fear of punishment". » | Friday, July 3, 2015

Majority of Britons See Islam as Threat, New Poll Reveals

Muslims attend Friday prayers during the second day of
Ramadan, in the courtyard of a housing estate next to the
small BBC community centre and mosque in east London,
Britain June 19, 2015.

NEWSWEEK: A majority of Britons consider Muslims to be a threat to Western democracy, a higher level than after the 7/7 bombings in 2005, a new poll has revealed, with over 75% believing that a large-scale terror attack is inevitable.

The survey, conducted by international research firm YouGov for the Huffington Post, revealed that 56% of those asked believe that Islam is a "major" or "some" threat to Western democracy, showing a marked rise in negative views towards Muslims.

The results represent a 10% rise from the 46% who held the same views in a poll conducted just a day after the 2005 terror attacks, the 10th anniversary of which is next week. The attack saw four coordinated suicide bombs target London's transport network, killing 52 people and injure almost 800 more. » | Jack Moore | Friday, July 3, 3015

UK’s First Female Sharia Judge: ‘We Can’t Ask Muslims Not to Have More Than One Wife’

BREITBART.COM: Britain’s first female sharia law judge has issued a brazen warning that flies in the face of UK law, stating that the “government cannot ask Muslims not to have more than one wife”.

The news comes on the back of a report by the Times newspaper which claims that Britain is experiencing a “surge” in Sharia marriages, as young British Muslims adopt a more hardline religious stance than their parents.

The Times reports:

“As many as 100,000 couples are living in such marriages, which are not valid under UK law, experts said. Ministers have raised fears that women can be left without the right to a fair share of assets if the relationship ends, while others are forced to return to abusive “husbands”.”

A leading Islamic family lawyer warned that the increase in Sharia ceremonies among the 2.7 million-strong Muslim population in Britain was also behind a growth in “secret polygamy”. more | Raheem Kassam | Thursday, July 2, 2015

DAILY EXPRESS: Sham Sharia weddings leave Muslim women exposed to abuse and cheating husbands: AN ESTIMATED 100,000 British Muslim women are being duped into sham Sharia marriage - leaving them exposed to abusive and cheating husbands. » | Rebecca Perring | Friday, July 3, 2015

ISIS Cuts Off Hands and Feet of 'Livestock Thieves' in Latest Sickening Propaganda Video

DAILY EXPRESS: ISLAMIC STATE (ISIS) savages have released their latest sickening propaganda video showing two 'thieves' having their hands and feet chopped off with a foot-long meat cleaver.

**WARNING: GRAPHIC CONTENT BELOW**

The stomach-churning four-minute clip shows the men, who are accused of stealing livestock and cars from a group of herders in the Syrian city of Homs, being brutally punished by ISIS fighters.

The pair, who seemed not to have been anaesthetised before the medieval sentence was carried out, had their right hands and left feet covered in antiseptic liquid before the cruel amputation.

Wearing rubber gloves, the ISIS barbarians tie the accused's feet and arms to a table before slicing the extremities in two.

After the grotesque incident, one of the victims was bundled into an ambulance with his clearly bandaged foot covered in blood.

The propaganda material was released just a day after another horrific video was circulated of the group's fighters throwing a man to his death from a building in Iraq simply for being gay. Read on and comment » | Tom Batchelor | Thursday, July 2, 2015

Islamic State Takes Sledgehammer to 'Irreplaceable' Ancient Palmyra Ruins

ISIS militants use heavy[-]duty sledgehammers to destroy
the historic statues in front of a large crowd, Palmyra

THE TELEGRAPH: Isil militants have released images showing a civilian being forced to destroy priceless artefacts from the Roman city of Palmyra as the head of Unesco warned of "cultural cleansing" by the extremist group'

Militants from Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (Isil) are feared to have begun destruction of Syria’s Roman city of Palmyra as the head of Unesco warned of "cultural cleansing" by the extremist group.

Maamoun Abdelkarim, Syrian antiquities minister, said on Thursday the militants had destroyed a 15 tonne statue of a lion, known as the Lion of Al-Lat.

"It's the most serious crime they have committed against Palmyra's heritage," Mr Abdelkarim told AFP news agency. Isil seized Palmyra's ruins from Syrian government control in May, prompting widespread fears that the group could destroy the a Unesco World Heritage site as an act of propaganda.

The jihadists have destroyed cultural treasures across the Middle East and North Africa, often describing the sites as idolatrous. » | Louisa Loveluck, Cairo | Thursday, July 2, 2015

Iranian Actor Apologises after Tweeting Support for US Gay Marriage Ruling

Iranian actor Bahram Radan takes a selfie during the photocall
for the film Ice Age at the Fadjr international film festival in Tehran.

THE GUARDIAN: Bahram Radan deleted tweet in support of US supreme court decision after criticism from hardline media and homophobic abuse

A leading Iranian actor has apologised after coming under pressure over a tweet he posted in support of a historic US supreme court ruling on gay marriage.

Bahram Radan, who is known as the Iranian Brad Pitt, created controversy in the country when his tweet hailed a verdict last week which made same-sex marriage a legal right across the entirety of the US. Homosexuality remains a taboo subject inside the Islamic republic and is punishable by death.

“The US supreme court’s ruling that same-sex marriage is legal was historic, perhaps on the scale of the end of slavery ... from Lincoln to Obama,” the award-winning actor tweeted in Persian at the weekend.

But within a few hours, after many users bombarded him with homophobic abuse and hardline media criticised him, Radan deleted the tweet.

The ultra-conservative Keyhan newspaper, whose director is appointed directly by the Iranian supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, called for Radan to be put on a blacklist and said he had been summoned to the ministry of culture and Islamic guidance for questioning, a claim which could not be independently verified. The ministry is in charge of vetting all cultural materials, including films, before they are released.

On Thursday, Keyhan published a letter of apology from Radan, who has more than 900,000 followers on Instagram, in which he said he was clarifying his position on same-sex marriage.

The letter was addressed to the paper’s managing editor, Hossein Shariatmadari, a hardline figure who is notorious for targeting dissidents and opposition figures and orchestrating media campaigns against them.

“What was published on the internet as my opinion about the US supreme court’s ruling on gay marriage was a mistake and does not reflect the dignity of the Iranian people, for which I apologise,” he writes in the letter.

“We’re living in a country which celebrates marriage as a tradition of the prophet [Muhammad]. American laws have no bearing on the Islamic republic and gay marriage is reprehensible under our social and religious laws and according to our social values.” » | Saeed Kamali Dehghan | Thursday, July 2, 2015

BBC Provokes Government Fury after Saying It Has to Be Fair to Isil

Lord Hall, the director general of the BBC, has rejected
calls to stop using the term Islamic State

THE TELEGRAPH: Lord Hall, the director general of the BBC, has provoked a furious response from the Government after saying it has duty of impartiality towards Isil

The BBC has been condemned by the government after claiming that it has to be impartial when reporting on Isil despite the terrorist atrocities in Tunisia.

Lord Hall, the head of the BBC, has rejected calls from a cross-party group of 120 MPs to stop using the name Islamic State and because it "gives the impression of support" for its opponents.

The comments infuriated Chris Grayling, the leader of the Commons, who said that the BBC should treat the terrorist organisation in the same way that it treated Nazi Germany during the Second World War.

Speaking in the Commons, he said: "I have a different view of what impartiality means to the BBC. During the Second World War the BBC was a beacon of fact. It was not expected to be impartial between Britain and Germany.

“Today, it should be a beacon of fact but it’s not expected to be impartial about threats to the security and safety and lives and limbs of people of this nation.” » | Steven Swinford | Thursday, July 2, 2015

Islamic State 'Launches First Coin of Currency'

BBC AMERICA: Pictures are circulating online that are thought to show a currency issued by the so-called Islamic State group.

An anti-IS activist who lives in IS-controlled Syria has shared images of two gold coins social media.

Lucas de Jong reports on at what we know about the so-called "Islamic Dinar". (+ BBC video) » | Wednesday, June 24, 2015

Israeli PM on Islamic State Attacks in Egypt

Israeli prime minister Binyamin Netanyahu offers his condolences to Egypt after a series of deadly attacks by the Islamic State in northern Sinai.

Netanyahu urges all nations to ‘stand up to all the forces of militant Islam’.

Up to 40 Egyptian soldiers were killed in a wave of attacks on multiple military checkpoints in the area.

THE GUARDIAN: Attacks on Egyptian checkpoints signal escalation in Isis capabilities: Jihadi group claims to have ‘total control of many sites’ in northern Sinai after wave of attacks in which up to 40 Egyptian soldiers were killed » | Patrick Kingsley in Cairo | Wednesday, July 1, 2015

Pro-Kremlin Television Host Backs Civil Partnerships

THE TELEGRAPH: Head of Russia's state-owned news agency publicly calls for civil partnerships for gay couples, sparking speculation the Kremlin is rethinking its hardline stance on homosexuality

The head of Russia's state-owned news agency has publicly called for civil partnerships for gay couples, sparking speculation the Kremlin is rethinking its hardline stance on homosexuality.

Dmitry Kiselyov, the head of international news agency Rossia Segodnya and a prominent television host who has a reputation as a pro-Kremlin attack dog, made the comments during his weekly news programme on Sunday.

"In my view, it becomes a subject to discuss from time to time: the existence of the LGBT community is a fact,” he said, before explaining that there should be no discrimination against people who want to make a partnership official.

"You could figure out how to make life easier for adults if they want to take on, and on paper, the obligation to take care of each other. Love works wonders. Who’s against that?” he went on.

Mr Kiselyov pointed to civil-partnership legislation in the Netherlands and France as examples to follow, but made clear that marriage should remain “between one man and one woman,” and added that “we do not need any gay parades". » | Roland Oliphant, Moscow | Wednesday, July 1, 2015

Billionaire Saudi Prince to Give Away $32 Billion Fortune

THE TELEGRAPH: Prince Al-Waleed bin Talal to donate entire $32 billion wealth to his charitable foundation

Prince Al-Waleed bin Talal, the Saudi Arabian billionaire and one of the world's richest people, announced on Wednesday that he will donate all of his wealth of $32 billion (£20.5 billion) to charity over the coming years.

The money will go to the Saudi prince's organisation called Alwaleed Philanthropies to work in the fields of "intercultural understanding" and supporting communities in need, he said in a statement.

Programmes will include promoting health, eradicating disease, bringing electricity to remote villages, building orphanages and schools, as well as "empowering women".

The prince, chairman of investment firm Kingdom Holding Company, said he has already donated $3.5 billion to the charitable organisation. » | Associated Press | Wednesday, July 1, 2015

US Blocks Attempts by Arab Allies to Fly Heavy Weapons Directly to Kurds to Fight Islamic State

THE TELEGRAPH: Middle East allies accuse Barack Obama and David Cameron of failing to show strategic leadership in fight against Islamic State

The United States has blocked attempts by its Middle East allies to fly heavy weapons directly to the Kurds fighting Islamic State jihadists in Iraq, The Telegraph has learnt.

Some of America’s closest allies say President Barack Obama and other Western leaders, including David Cameron, are failing to show strategic leadership over the world’s gravest security crisis for decades.

They now say they are willing to “go it alone” in supplying heavy weapons to the Kurds, even if means defying the Iraqi authorities and their American backers, who demand all weapons be channelled through Baghdad.

High level officials from Gulf and other states have told this newspaper that all attempts to persuade Mr Obama of the need to arm the Kurds directly as part of more vigorous plans to take on Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (Isil) have failed. The Senate voted down one attempt by supporters of the Kurdish cause last month.

The officials say they are looking at new ways to take the fight to Isil without seeking US approval.

“If the Americans and the West are not prepared to do anything serious about defeating Isil, then we will have to find new ways of dealing with the threat,” said a senior Arab government official. “With Isil making ground all the time we simply cannot afford to wait for Washington to wake up to the enormity of the threat we face.” » | Con Coughlin, Defence Editor | Wednesday, July 1, 2015

Russia Sees a Threat in Its Converts to Islam

THE NEW YORK TIMES: ERZURUM, Turkey — As a teenager in St. Petersburg, Maksim Baidak hung out with neo-Nazis and right-wing nationalists, but the Russian security services mostly left him alone.

It was not until he abandoned white-Slavic supremacy and instead found God — as a convert to Islam and leader of a group of ethnic Russian Muslims — that he came under near-constant surveillance and was often forced into cars at gunpoint by security agents.

Then, one morning in 2013, masked commandos from a special counter-extremism unit busted into his apartment and arrested him. For two days, he was interrogated, at times with a black hood over his head — “tortured,” he said, by choking, electric shock and death threats.

“I was arrested like a terrorist,” said Mr. Baidak, 28, who now lives in Erzurum, a university town in northeast Turkey, where he fled after a judge released him for lack of any criminal charges. “Look at me, I am a journalist. I am a blogger,” he said. “I am a political activist, pro-democratic oriented, Sufi-oriented, but I was arrested like — I don’t know — bin Laden.”

While nations across Europe are grappling with the relatively recent peril of homegrown Islamic terrorists, Russia has long lived in fear of a jihadist uprising within its own borders, particularly in the Caucasus, where it fought two brutal wars to suppress Muslim separatists. » | David M. Herszenhorn | Wednesday, July 1, 2015

British PM Warns: ISIS Planning 'Terrible Attacks' in the UK

ARUTZ SHEVA: UK Prime Minister David Cameron says ISIS determined to carry out massacre on British soil, after 30 UK citizens killed in Tunisia attack.

British Prime Minister David Cameron has said that ISIS terrorists are actively planning terrorist atrocities against the UK, and warned the group poses an existential threat to the western world.

Speaking just days after a massacre by an ISIS gunman on a beach in Tunisia which killed 38 people - at least 30 of them British citizens - Cameron warned that until ISIS was defeated in Syria and Iraq, it would continue to pose a deadly threat to the UK and beyond.

"There are people in Iraq and Syria who are plotting to carry out terrible acts in Britain and elsewhere and as long as ISIL (Islamic State) exists in those two countries we are at threat," Cameron told BBC radio, using an alternative acronym for the Islamic State group. » | Ari Soffer | Monday, June 29, 2015

British Groups Plan Mohammed Cartoon Exhibit in London

ARUTZ SHEVA: Two British groups to hold exhibition featuring cartoons of Muslim prophet in central London.

Two British groups have announced plans to hold an exhibition featuring cartoons of the Prophet Mohammed.

Sharia Watch UK and Vive Charlie on Tuesday announced their intention to hold the exhibition in central London in September of 2015, noting the event will feature controversial Dutch politician Geert Wilders, who recently caused a storm in his own country after he announced plans to broadcast cartoons of the founder of Islam on national television.

The event has been organized “in honor of the cartoonists, bloggers, and artists around the world who risk their lives in defense of free expression, and of those who have been murdered in this cause,” the two groups said in a statement.

Anne Marie Waters, Director of Sharia Watch UK, said, "We at Sharia Watch and Vive Charlie are delighted that Mr. Wilders has agreed to attend and speak at our exhibition. It is vital, in this era of censorship and fear, that we stand together in defiance and demand our right to free expression.”

She continued, “We will not, and cannot, succumb to violent threats. The outlook for our democracy depends on the actions we take today. We owe it to future generations to pass on the freedom we have enjoyed.” » | Ben Ariel | Wednesday, July 1, 2015

More Than 42 Million Muslims 'Support ISIS' – As Experts Warn the Figure Will Grow

DAILY EXPRESS: THE Islamic State terror group is supported by more than 42million Muslims, a new report has warned.

The study, based on four recent polls, reveals the shocking level of support for the caliphate around the world.

Ryan Mauro of the Clarion Project, which carried out the research, warned that "ISIS is only a fraction of what it could potentially become".

He said: "If we don't act quickly, this is still going to grow – and what we're looking at today is going to look like the good old days compared to the future."

More than 8.5million people view ISIS positively, and around 42million view them somewhat positively, according to the data. » | Tom Parfitt | Wednesday, July 1, 2015

Islamic State Threatens to Topple Hamas in Gaza Strip in Video Statement

THE GUARDIAN: Video issued from Isis stronghold in Syria is rare public challenge to Hamas, which has been cracking down on jihadis who oppose its truces with Israel

Islamic State insurgents have threatened to turn the Gaza Strip into another of their Middle East fiefdoms, accusing Hamas, the organisation that rules the Palestinian territory, of being insufficiently stringent about religious enforcement.

The video statement, issued from an Islamic State stronghold in Syria, was a rare public challenge to Hamas, which has been cracking down on jihadis in Gaza who oppose its truces with Israel and reconciliation with the US-backed rival Palestinian faction Fatah.

“We will uproot the state of the Jews [Israel] and you and Fatah, and all of the secularists are nothing and you will be overrun by our creeping multitudes,” said a masked Islamic State member in the message addressed to the “tyrants of Hamas”.

“The rule of sharia [Islamic law] will be implemented in Gaza, in spite of you. We swear that what is happening in the Levant today, and in particular the Yarmouk camp, will happen in Gaza,” he said, referring to Islamic State advances in Syria, including in a Damascus district founded by Palestinian refugees. » | Reuters in Cairo | Tuesday, June 30, 2015

Turkish Police Use Water Cannon to Disperse Gay Pride Parade

Turkish police disrupt a crowd gathering for Istanbul's annual gay pride parade, using water cannon and rubber pellets to disperse them. Jillian Kitchener reports
Watch the video here

Greek Debt Crisis: In Athens, Scavenging from Bins Has Become a Way to Survive

THE TELEGRAPH: As the country prepares to vote on continuing austerity on Sunday, in the streets of Athens some people have already resorted to searching the rubbish bins for food to eat and scrap metal to sell

Piled high with rubbish congealing in the summer heat, municipal dustbin R21 on Athens' Sofokleous Street does not look or smell like a treasure trove.

But for Greece's growing army of dustbin scavengers, its deposits of rubbish from nearby stores and grocery shops make it a regular point of call.

"Sometimes I'll find scrap metal that I can sell, although if I see something that looks reasonably safe to eat, I'll take it," said Nikos Polonos, 55, as he sifted through R21's contents on Tuesday morning. "Other times you might find paper, cans, and bottles that you can get money for if you take them back to the shops for recycling."

But many of those who now forage in such dustbins each day are simply ordinary working people - or were, at least, until Greece's economic meltdown shot unemployment up to 25 per cent.

Mr Polonos, a quietly spoken man of 55, is typical of the new class of respectably destitute. He lost his job as a construction worker three years ago, when Greece's building boom dried up, and in the current climate, cannot see himself finding paid work in the foreseeable future.

Yet he dresses as smartly as he can in second-hand trousers and shirt, and does not see himself as any kind of vagrant. » | Colin Freeman, and Alastair Good, Athens | Tuesday, June 30, 2015

Islamic State May Threaten Russia's Caucasus

BBC AMERICA: The head of Russia's Security Council has identified Islamic State (IS) as the greatest threat to world peace and security, and it seems the danger could be getting closer to home.

The militant Islamist group has proclaimed the establishment of a wilayaat, or province, in Russia's mainly-Muslim North Caucasus, suggesting it may be gaining the upper hand in a battle for control over radical forces there.

The statement follows an anonymous audio message posted online pledging allegiance to IS on behalf of militants in four regions. » | Sarah Rainsford, BBC News, Moscow | Tuesday, June 30, 2015

Related »

French Beheading Suspect Acted on Islamic State Orders, Says Prosecutor

THE TELEGRAPH: Yassin Salhi is believed to have killed his boss but says his motive was personal not terrorist-related

The French man who beheaded his boss and tried to blow up a chemical plant had a "terrorist motive" and links to Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (Isil) in Syria, despite his claim that he carried out his grisly act for purely personal reasons, a prosecutor said.

"This corresponds very precisely to the orders of Daesh [Isil] which calls regularly for acts of terrorism on French soil and in particular to cut the throats of unbelievers,” said Paris chief prosecutor Francois Molins.

"The decapitation recalls the habitual modus operandi of this terrorist organisation," he told reporters. » | Rory Mulholland, Paris | Tuesday, June 30, 2015

New Dark Age Alert! Islamic State Beheads First Women Civilians

THE TELEGRAPH: Two women and their husbands beheaded for "sorcery" in the eastern Syrian province of Deir Ezzour

Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant jihadists have beheaded two women in Syria for sorcery, an extension of the punishment which is normally reserved for men.

The women and their husbands were all accused of witchcraft, one couple in the town of Mayadeen, in eastern Deir Ezzour province, and one in Deir Ezzour city, according to the Syrian Observatory of Human Rights, which monitors the conflict.

Five people in all in Mayadeen were beheaded, the others on charges of “banditry” and “drugs”, with two of the men then crucified.

The case marks the first time a woman civilian is recorded as having been beheaded, though the punishment has been inflicted on women soldiers from the Kurdish militia, the YPJ, the female version of the YPG.

Women have been stoned to death for adultery. » | Richard Spencer, Middle East Editor | Tuesday, June 30, 2015

Europe's Big Guns Warn Greek Voters That A No Vote Means Euro Exit

THE GUARDIAN: Germany, France and Italy joined the European commission in insisting that Sunday’s poll was about continued eurozone membership

The eurozone’s three biggest countries have raised the stakes in next Sunday’s Greek referendum with an orchestrated warning to voters that a no vote would mean exit from the single currency and the return of the drachma.

As the Greek economy suffered on its first day of stringent capital controls, politicians from Germany, France and Italy joined the European commission in insisting that the poll was not about whether Athens could secure more favourable bailout terms but was about continued euro membership.

The stark assessment was shared by George Osborne, who told MPs that the UK economy would be affected by the chaos that would result from Greece leaving the eurozone. » | Larry Elliott, Graeme Wearden and Nicholas Watt | Monday, June 29, 2015

British Tourists in Greece Told to Carry Cash

THE TELEGRAPH: Holidaymakers must have enough cash to cover all their costs and any potential emergencies, George Osborne warns

British tourists going on holiday to Greece have been told by the Government to travel with thousands of pounds worth of euros in cash, despite the risk of them not being insured if they get robbed.

With 150,000 UK holiday makers travelling to Greece every week, George Osborne said that holidaymakers must have enough cash to cover all their costs and any potential emergencies.

However, insurers warned that most families will only be covered for a maximum of £200 if they are robbed while on holiday.

It came as the Government attempted to contact thousands of expat pensioners living in Greece to encourage them to move their savings into British banks as the country teeters on the brink of economic collapse. » | Peter Dominiczak, and Matthew Holehouse | Monday, June 29, 2015

Life Under Islamic State Is 'Totalitarian Normality'

HARDtalk’s Stephen Sackur speaks to writer and publisher Jurgen [sic] Todenhofer [sic] who embarked on one of the most hazardous journeys imaginable for a western journalist. Last December, the 74-year-old spent 10 days inside the territory controlled by Islamic State.

He was taken to the group's base in Raqqa, Syria, and then to their most highly prized asset in Iraq - the northern city of Mosul.

Mr Todenhofer is no stranger to the risks that come with bearing witness to conflict. From Afghanistan to Iraq and Syria he has consistently visited and written about conflicts which have drawn in the US and its allies. He has become a vocal critic of American foreign policy and military interventions.

His own experience has included years in the legal profession and as a centre right member of the German Parliament. But now he's best known as a peace advocate prepared to talk to anyone with a stake in contemporary conflicts.

He talks to Stephen about what motivates young Muslims from the West to join Islamic State and what life is like for those who live under IS control.


WIKI: Jürgen Todenhöfer »

Islamic State Marks Gay Marriage Ruling by Throwing 4 Gay Men Off a Roof

JIHAD WATCH: Yet gay activists in the West tend to side with Leftists who consider resistance to jihad terror to be “Islamophobia.” Suicidal short-sightedness.

Apparently the Islamic State was not moved to repentance by photos of gay marriage supporters — which will come as a surprise to the editors of Foreign Policy.

“Horrific moment ISIS kill four gay men by throwing them from a roof,” by Jamie Lewis, Mirror, June 27, 2015: » Robert Spencer | Sunday, June 28, 2015

Israeli Official: Obama’s Got Muslim Daddy Issues

Estranged: This picture shows the only time
Barack Obama met his father, Barack Obama Sr.

WND: Ex-U.S. ambassador suggests childhood 'abandonment' fuels outreach to Islam

During a radio interview Sunday, former Israeli ambassador to the U.S. Michael Oren reinforced his position that President Obama’s relentless outreach to the Muslim world may be motivated by Obama’s being abandoned by two Muslim father figures.

Last week, Oren had speculated Obama’s purported abandonment issues may have caused him to seek acceptance from the Muslim world.

Sunday, Oren maintained “it’s a legitimate question” to ask whether the “abandonment” of Obama’s Kenyan Muslim father and Indonesian Muslim stepfather have been partially driving Obama’s policy toward Islam , the Middle East, the war on terrorism and Iran.

Oren was speaking on “Aaron Klein Investigative Radio” broadcast on New York’s AM 970 The Answer and Philadelphia’s NewsTalk 990 AM.

Oren, a historian and author, served as Israel’s ambassador to the U.S. from May 3, 2009 to 2013. He is now a member of Knesset and has been promoting his latest book, published last week, entitled, “Ally: My Journey Across the American-Israeli Divide.”

As part of the book promotion, Oren penned an opinion piece last week in Foreign Policy Magazine in which he labeled Obama’s Muslim outreach as “naïve” and “detached from a complex and increasingly lethal reality.”

Oren posited Obama’s policies of rapprochement toward the Islamic world “clearly stem from his personal interactions with Muslims” as well as the president’s academic influences. » | Sunday, June 28, 2015

Pope Francis Wants to Chew Coca Leaves in Bolivia, Says Minister

THE SYDNEY MORNING HERALD: La Paz: Pope Francis has told the Bolivian government that he would like to chew coca leaves, the key ingredient in cocaine, when he visits the Andean country next month, a Bolivian minister said on State television and radio on Sunday.

Situated at about 3,650 metres above sea level, La Paz is one of the world's highest capital cities and for centuries local people have chewed coca leaves to ward off the effects of altitude.

Although it is the key ingredient in cocaine, the unprocessed leaf is legal to use and still widely chewed in Bolivia and other Andean countries. Many indigenous people, including Bolivian President Evo Morales, defend its use and consider it a sacred plant. » | Reuters | Monday June 29, 2015

Gulf States Share Shock of Terror Attack on Mosque in Kuwait

THE GUARDIAN: Neighbouring states fear further violence during Ramadan as the holy month is marked with deadly bombings

The aftermath of the attack on a Shia mosque in Kuwait has resonated well beyond its borders into neighbouring Gulf countries, which have long shared both its worldview and its fears that Islamic State is stalking them.

On Saturday, Kuwaiti officials announced arrests linked to the Friday blast at the Imam al-Sadiq mosque, which killed 27 and maimed 200 more, as security at places of worship from Sharjah to Doha was tightened and rhetoric against the group intensified across the region.

Officials in Kuwait had long said an attack of the type carried out during Friday prayers would be very difficult to stop. The fact that it took place in the holy month of Ramadan, when worshippers were likely to be less on their guard than usual, made it even more so.

Isis had made no secret of its intentions to launch attacks during Ramadan, with its spokesman, Abu Mohammed al-Adnani, releasing a speech earlier last week calling for strikes in the remaining three weeks of the fasting month, which would lead to greater blessings in the afterlife. » | Martin Chulov | Saturday, June 27, 2015

Greece 48 hours from Fatal Eurozone Rupture as Creditor Powers Poised to Pull the Plug

THE TELEGRAPH: Stunned lenders vow not to extend Greece's bail-out and say they are prepared to suffer the consequences of "bombshell" referendum decision


Greece stands on the brink of a banking collapse and disorderly exit from the euro after its creditor powers lashed out at Athens' plans to hold a referendum by vowing to pull the plug on the country in just three days.

Eurozone finance ministers last night withdrew tentative plans to release €15bn to the debtor country, after Alexis Tsipras, the Greek prime minister, said he would put the “humiliating” package of austerity demands to a public vote on July 5. Unless the cash-strapped country can scramble together €1.55bn Tuesday, it will become the first developed country in history to default on its International Monetary Fund loan on June 30. On the same day, it's €240bn rescue programme will also formally expire throwing its banking system into turmoil.

Creditors powers, stunned by Mr Tsipras's audacity to call a public vote, rejected his pleas to extend the programme for a few weeks to allow the vote to be held next Saturday.

The voice of Jeroen Dijsselbloem, the head of the Eurogroup, cracked with emotion as he announced that his 18 colleagues had rejected Greece’s demand.

“We must conclude that however regretful, the programme will expire on Tuesday night,” he said. “It will expire.”

A wounded Mr Dijsselbloem added that even in the event of a yes vote by the Greek people, creditors could no longer cooperate with radical Leftist government due to "grave concerns about credibility". Read on and comment » | Matthew Holehouse in Brussels and Mehreen Khan | Saturday, June 27, 2015

Tunisia Attack: Foreign Office Says 15 Britons Killed and Death Toll May Rise

THE GUARDIAN: Prime minister earlier denounced ‘savage’ killings by Islamic State terrorist of at least 39 tourists


Fifteen Britons have died in the Tunisian beach massacre but the toll could rise further, the Foreign Office has said, in what it called “the most significant terrorist attack on the British people” since 7 July 2005.

The number of British holidaymakers confirmed to have been killed by the lone gunman on Friday rose steadily on Saturday.

The prime minister, David Cameron, warned earlier that the UK public needed to be prepared for the total to rise.

A total of 39 people were killed, including one Irish woman, with one Belgian and a German also among the victims.

Planes evacuating holidaymakers began arriving back in the UK on Saturday morning. Speaking in Downing Street, Cameron said a full deployment team of consular staff, police and experts from the Red Cross would arrive in Tunisia on Saturday to help the victims and their families and added that the government was doing all they could to help them. » | Jessica Elgot, Chris Johnston and agencies | Saturday, June 27, 2015


German tourist recounts horror of beach attack

Le scénario barbare de l'attentat de l'Isère

LE FIGARO: Yassin Salhi a décapité son employeur avant de tenter de faire sauter une usine de gaz industriels.

La nouvelle attaque terroriste qui a frappé la France, six mois après les attentats de janvier, vient de franchir une étape supplémentaire dans l'horreur. Elle témoigne d'une mise en scène effroyable et moyenâgeuse, inédite sur le territoire national et qui porte le sceau de la barbarie islamiste. Ce que redoutaient tant les services de renseignements, à savoir une décapitation perpétrée sur notre sol, est survenu vendredi dans l'Isère. » | Par Christophe Cornevin | vendredi 26 juin 2015

Schwarzer Freitag

SÜDDEUTSCHE ZEITUNG: Kuwait, Frankreich, Tunesien - die Welt erlebt drei Terroranschläge an einem Tag. Die Botschaft der Täter: Wir sind überall.

Ein Massaker in einer Touristenzone am Strand von Tunesien, ein Attentat auf eine schiitische Moschee in Kuwait und ein Anschlag auf eine Gasfabrik in der französischen Provinz - die Botschaft dieses schwarzen Freitags zu Beginn des Ramadan erscheint klar: Der Terror kann überall zuschlagen. Er kann jeden treffen, auch die schärfsten Sicherheitsmaßnahmen reichen nicht aus, die Bürger zu schützen.

Noch ist unklar, ob die Taten orchestriert sind und ein Fanal zum Auftakt des muslimischen Fastenmonats setzen sollten. Wahrscheinlich ist, dass sich verschiedene Gruppen und Einzeltäter von den Hassbotschaften animiert fühlten, die im Internet kursieren. Das Ziel der Extremisten, die sich meist auf die Terrororganisationen Islamischer Staat oder al-Qaida berufen, geht weit über einzelne Staaten hinaus. Ganze Großregionen, darunter Europa, sollen in eine Eskalation der Gewalt getrieben werden. » | Von Stefan Ulrich | Freitag, 26. Juni 2015

President Obama Sings Amazing Grace

President Obama sings Amazing Grace. Watch the complete funeral for South Carolina State Senator Clementa Pinckney here

Univision Dumps Donald Trump Over Mexico Remarks

Donald Trump with Miss Connecticut Erin Brady in 2013

BBC AMERICA: US television network Univision says it is cutting ties with businessman Donald Trump and ending coverage of the Miss USA beauty pageant, which he co-owns.

The network, one of the largest US Spanish-language broadcasters, said it follows the hotel tycoon's disparaging remarks made about Mexicans.

Mr Trump said Mexicans brought drugs and crime to the US, during his announcement last week to seek the Republican presidential nomination.

He is now threatening a lawsuit.

In his speech last week, Mr Trump said of Mexico: "They're bringing drugs, they're bringing crime, they're rapists, and some I assume are good people, but I speak to border guards and they tell us what we are getting."

In announcing the breakup, Univision said that his words were "insulting remarks about Mexican immigrants" and said it would not air the Miss USA pageant on 12 July. The company also said it would be severing all business ties with the celebrity businessman. » | Thursday, June 25, 2015

Tunisia Beach Attack: 80 'Propagandist' Mosques to Be Closed

BBC AMERICA: Tunisia will shut down about 80 mosques accused of inciting violence, Prime Minister Habib Essid has said, after a beach attack that left 39 people dead.

The mosques, which operate outside state control, are spreading "venom" and will close within a week, he said.

On Friday a gunman opened fire on tourists in the resort town of Sousse.

Tunisians, Britons, Germans, Belgians, French and at least one Irish citizen were among those killed in the attack, claimed by Islamic State (IS).

The gunman was shot dead by police. Officials say he was a student not previously known to authorities.

This was the second major attack on tourists in Tunisia since March, when militants killed 22 people, mainly foreigners, at a museum in the capital. (+ BBC videos) » | Friday, June 26, 2015

Queen Visits Site of Bergen-Belsen Concentration Camp

THE GUARDIAN: Chief rabbi says monarch’s first visit to site of a former concentration camp, in Germany, is ‘tremendously significant’


The Queen is visiting the site of the Bergen-Belsen prisoner of war and concentration camps on Friday, the final day of her state visit to Germany.

The chief rabbi, Ephraim Mirvis, who will join the Queen for part of her tour of the site, said the trip would be seen by Jewish communities around the globe as “tremendously significant”.

The camps were liberated by British troops 70 years ago, and the site is now a memorial to those who died at the hands of the Nazis.

It will be the Queen’s first trip to a former concentration camp and a personal reflective visit for the monarch, with a minimum of ceremony. » | Press Association | Friday, June 26, 2015

The DELUDED Mr Cameron: Terror Attacks: ‘We Have to Deal with This Poisonous, Radical Narrative’

Tunisia Attack on Sousse Beach 'Kills 28'

BBC AMERICA: At least 28 people, mostly foreigners, have been killed in an attack on a beach near two tourist hotels in the Tunisian resort town of Sousse, according to the interior ministry.

Officials say one gunman has been shot dead and another is being pursued.

Interior Ministry officials said Tunisians, Britons, Germans and Belgians are among the dead.

In March militants killed 22 people, mainly foreign tourists, in an attack on a museum in the capital Tunis.

Officials say six people have been injured in the attack. » | Friday, June 25, 2015

US Supreme Court Rules Gay Marriage Is Legal Nationwide

Jordan Monaghan told his mum: "Your son can have a husband now."

BBC AMERICA: The US Supreme Court has ruled that same-sex marriage is a legal right across the United States.

It means the 14 states with bans on same-sex marriage will no longer be able to enforce them.

Justice Anthony Kennedy wrote that the plaintiffs asked "for equal dignity in the eyes of the law. The Constitution grants them that right."

The ruling brings to an end more than a decade of bitter legal battles.

Same-sex couples in several affected states including Georgia, Michigan, Ohio and Texas rushed to wed on Friday.

However officials in some states including Mississippi and Louisiana said marriages had to wait until procedural issues were addressed.

President Barack Obama said the ruling was a "victory for America".

"When all Americans are treated as equal, we are all more free " he said. » | Friday, June 25, 2015

The world reacts to gay marriage ruling »

France Attack: Man Decapitated at Factory Near Lyon

BBC AMERICA: A man has been found decapitated at a gas factory near Lyon in France after an attack that police suspect was carried out by one of his employees.

The body was found after a car rammed into the factory causing an explosion that put France on its highest alert amid fears of a terror attack.

Within hours a man was arrested who officials said had been investigated over possible ties to radical Islam.

His boss, the owner of a delivery firm, was the man found beheaded, police say.

The delivery company had made regular trips to the factory, which is owned by the US-based company Air Products, Dauphine Libere newspaper reports.

Few details of the killing have been released, but the businessman's head was reportedly found on a post at the factory, in Saint-Quentin-Fallavier, some 40km (25 miles) from Lyon.

Mr Hollande said the decapitated body had "inscriptions" on it. The French interior minister said: "A flag with Arabic writing on it was found at the scene." » | Friday, June 26, 2015