DIE PRESSE: Roxana Saberi war von einem iranischen Gericht zu acht Jahren Haft verurteilt worden. Mehr als ein Dutzend Mitglieder von "Reporter ohne Grenzen" sind nun wie Saberi selbst in Hungerstreik getreten. >>> Ag | Dienstag, 28. April 2009
Tuesday, April 28, 2009
DIE PRESSE: Roxana Saberi war von einem iranischen Gericht zu acht Jahren Haft verurteilt worden. Mehr als ein Dutzend Mitglieder von "Reporter ohne Grenzen" sind nun wie Saberi selbst in Hungerstreik getreten. >>> Ag | Dienstag, 28. April 2009
THE TELEGRAPH: As a first-time voter in 1979, Simon Heffer recalls the euphoria that greeted a new dawn for Britain.
We are victims of our upbringing. Anyone coming to political consciousness as I did in the 1970s will understand why Mrs Thatcher happened, whether we support what she did or not. I have always struggled to see what there was not to support. The country in which I spent my teens was a catastrophe. Socialists of all stamps – and I mean Heath as well as Callaghan and Wilson – had impoverished it and stunted the ambition of our people. When I hear those in their 20s or early 30s trot out the received line on the person they call "Thatcher", I think: if you were not there, and you have not taken the trouble to explore in depth what life was like for those of us who were, you cannot properly understand.
The six or seven years before she won her revolutionary victory in May 1979 formed a litany of failure and embarrassment. Once Heath lost control of the economy, after he allowed the money supply to grow at 30 per cent in 1972-73 (with the predictable 27 per cent inflation by 1975), only a revolution was going to solve the problem. Heath went out in March 1974 sounding the note that would resound through Britain for the following five years: that elected government, having forced a confrontation with the largely undemocratic forces of trades unionism, would (pending further developments) always take second place to it. It was that even more than the inflation that brought Britain to its knees two-and-a-half years into Labour's rule. >>> By Simon Heffer | Tuesday, April 28, 2009
TIMESONLINE: Democrats today were set to secure a 60-seat super-majority in the US Senate for the first time in a generation after the dramatic defection from Republican ranks of Arlen Specter.
The five-term Pennsylvania Senator announced at lunchtime after a brief conversation with President Obama that he will run for re-election next year as a Democrat because "the Republican Party has moved far to the right".
His decision means that Democrats should now have the votes needed to overcome delaying tactics known as filibusters in the Senate if, as expected, Al Franken overcomes final legal challenges preventing him from taking his seat after a razor-thin election victory in Minnesota.
"I have decided to run for re-election in 2010 in the Democratic primary," said 79-year-old Mr Specter, in a statement. "I am ready, willing and anxious to take on all comers and have my candidacy for re-election determined in a general election."
He added: "Since my election in 1980, as part of the Reagan Big Tent, the Republican Party has moved far to the right. Last year, more than 200,000 Republicans in Pennsylvania changed their registration to become Democrats. I now find my political philosophy more in line with Democrats than Republicans." >>> Tom Baldwin in Washington | Tuesday, April 28, 2009
THE TELEGRAPH: A Muslim-owned jewellery shop has decided to ban customers wearing veils after being targeted by robbers disguised as Islamic women.
Everyone entering ATAA Jewellers in Glasgow must reveal their faces under planned new rules to protect staff from further attacks.
The store owners decided to act after two Asian men wearing traditional Muslim women's clothes – including niqab veils – made away with thousands of pounds worth of jewellery earlier this month.
The pair, who were also carrying handbags, pretended to be interested in buying some items but attacked staff with pepper spray when cabinets were unlocked.
Now the Sadiq family who run the shop are planning to put up a sign informing customers that they cannot wear any headgear that covers the face. >>> By Matthew Moore | Tuesday, April 28, 2009
THE TELEGRAPH: Three men - Mohammed Shakil, Sadeer Saleem and Waheed Ali - have been cleared of helping the July 7 bombers plan their attacks.
The three men, all from Beeston in Leeds, who have been acquitted by a jury, were the only people ever to be charged in relation to the bombings of July 2005.
They had been accused of conducting a "hostile reconnaissance" mission for the bombers seven months before the attacks.
They were joined by two of the bombers as they travelled to King's Cross, along with the London Eye and Natural History Museum, eight days before Christmas in December 2004.
Objects belonging to each of the men were also found in the flat used as a bomb factory in the area of Hyde Park, Leeds.
All three had also been on training camps in Pakistan with Mohammed Sidique Khan, the leader of the bombers, the last just months before the attacks.
Two of the men, Waheed Ali and Mohammed Shakil, were convicted of conspiracy to attend a place used for terrorist training after they were arrested on their way to Manchester airport in 2007.
But Ali, Shakil and Sadeer Saleem were all cleared of conspiracy to cause explosions. >>> By Duncan Gardham, Security Correspondent | Tuesday, April 28, 2009
THE SYDNEY MORNING HERALD: Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas on Monday rejected Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's demand to recognise Israel as a Jewish state.
"A Jewish state, what is that supposed to mean?" Abbas asked in a speech in the West Bank's political capital of Ramallah. "You can call yourselves as you like, but I don't accept it and I say so publicly."
Abbas said the topic was "extensively discussed" and rejected by the Palestinians during a November 2007 international conference in Annapolis, near Washington, at which the two sides relaunched peace negotiations.
Netanyahu has demanded the Palestinians recognise Israel as a Jewish state as part of an eventual peace deal. >>> AFP | Tuesday, April 28, 2009
DAILY EXPRESS: BARACK Obama met a Mexican archaeologist who died less than two weeks later from symptoms similar to swine flu. >>> By Jo Willey, Daily Express Health Correspondent | Tuesday, April 28, 2009
REUTERS: ISLAMABAD - Pakistan warned the Taliban on Tuesday it would expand a military offensive to Buner, a district around 100 km (60 miles) northwest of Islamabad, if the guerrillas did not withdraw from the area.
Interior Minister Rehman Malik said around 450 Taliban were reported to have sneaked into Buner on Monday.
"I warn them to vacate the area. We are not going to spare them," he told reporters.
"Action will be taken if anyone tries to block our efforts to re-establish writ of the government in Buner and other areas," he said. >>> Reporting by Zeeshan Haider; Editing by David Fox | Tuesday, April 28, 2009
WELT ONLINE: In Teheran aufgetauchtes Obst hat eine politische Krise ausgelöst. Der Verdacht: "Skrupellose Händler" haben die Frucht des "kleinen Satans", wie Israel von den Mullahs gerne genannt wird, in den Iran eingeschleust. Nun macht das Wort von der Zitrusfrucht-Verschwörung die Runde.
Eigentlich ist es erstaunlich, dass die Pomelo und ihre kleine Schwester, die „Sweetie“, nicht populärer sind. Schließlich bieten die israelischen Rückkreuzungen von Grapefruit und Pampelmuse entscheidende Vorteile: Man kann die Haut um die einzelnen
Fruchtsegmente entfernen, ohne nasse Hände zu bekommen. Außerdem sind sie süßer, weil sie weniger Bitterstoffe enthalten.
Nun jedoch haben in Teheran aufgetauchte „Sweeties“ eine politische Krise ausgelöst. Der Verdacht: „Skrupellose“ Händler haben die Frucht des „kleinen Satans“, wie Israel von den Mullahs gerne genannt wird, in den Iran eingeschleust. Dort macht das Wort von der Zitrusfruchtverschwörung die Runde, weil auf den Märkten der Hauptstadt Früchte mit dem Aufkleber „Jaffa Sweetie Israel PO“ verkauft wurden. >>> Von Clemens Wergin | Montag, 27. April 2009
So Prince Charles is talking of the possibility of a “new Dark Age”, eh? One can only wonder where he got this idea from!
Prince Charles is referring to the possibility of a “new Dark Age” because of environmental catastrophes. As we all know, he is a dedicated ‘green earth man’, and he is a dedicated ‘lover of Islam’, too!
But still, I am curious that he should have chosen the expression, a “new Dark Age”, since this is the title of my book. – Mark Alexander, author of The Dawning of a New Dark Age.
THE TELEGRAPH: Prince Charles warned that the world risked plunging into a "new Dark Age" unless urgent action was taken on climate change, during his first meeting with Pope Benedict XVI at the Vatican.
The heir to the throne said the global economic crisis was "nothing" compared with the "horror" of global warming.
Flanked by Swiss Guards in ceremonial uniforms, the Prince of Wales met Benedict for a 15 minute reception in the Pontiff's private apartments – his first Papal audience since his divorce from Princess Diana and subsequent remarriage.
He was accompanied by his wife Camilla, who wore a black dress and a black lace veil, in keeping with Vatican protocol, and appeared nervous in the presence of the Pope. >>> By Nick Squires in Rome | Monday, April 27, 2009
TIMESONLINE: It was an image New Yorkers never wanted to see again: a jumbo jet trailed by two fighter jets buzzing dangerously close to the city’s most famous landmarks.
On Monday morning a 747 and two military planes circled the Statue of Liberty and flew close to the World Trade Centre site, causing panic among locals in New York. Residents and office workers evacuated buildings and ran onto the streets, fearing a repeat of the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, in which two hijacked airliners smashed into the World Trade Centre, killing almost 3,000 people.
But the flyover was nothing but a photo opportunity involving one of Barack Obama’s official presidential airplanes, apparently one of a series of flights to get pictures of the plane in front of national landmarks.
The flyover – carried out with little warning by the US defence department – was branded as “insensitive” by New York mayor Michael Bloomberg. President Obama, who was not on the plane at the time, was reportedly furious when told of the flight by White House staff. >>> Sophie Tedmanson | Tuesday, April 28, 2009
TIMESONLINE: Compulsory sex and relationships lessons for 11-year-old children are to include classroom discussions on gay unions and civil partnerships. Secondary pupils will learn about contraception and sexually transmitted infections (STIs), while primary school children will learn about their bodies and friendships, a review of sex education has concluded.
The review was ordered in October after ministers announced that sex and relationships education (SRE) lessons should be made compulsory to help primary and secondary pupils to “navigate the complexities of modern life” and to ensure that children learnt their sex education from the classroom, not the playground.
The changes to personal, social, health and economic education (PSHE) classes mark the culmination of decades of campaigning by sexual health organisations, who believe that the patchy nature of sex education in schools is helping to fuel a record level of teenage pregnancy and STIs in England. >>> Alexandra Frean, Education Editor | Tuesday, April 28, 2009
THE GUARDIAN: Faith Schools Free to Preach against Homosexuality
Government plans include sex education for all pupils / Catholic schools welcome clause on teaching 'values'
Sex education is to be made compulsory in all state schools in England but faith schools will also be free to preach against sex outside marriage and homosexuality, under government proposals.
The plans to make personal, social and health education (PSHE) compulsory from the age of five, published yesterday, include a clause allowing schools to apply their "values" to the lessons and another allowing parents to opt their children out on religious grounds.
It means that all state secondaries in England - including faith schools - will for the first time have to teach a core curriculum about sex and contraception in the context of teenagers' relationships, but teachers in religious schools will also be free to tell them that sex outside marriage, homosexuality or using contraception are wrong. Sexual health campaigners warned that such an approach could confuse teenagers, but Catholic schools welcomed the move. >>> Polly Curtis, The Guardian’s education editor | Tuesday, April 28, 2009
THE TELEGRAPH: Pakistan's President Asif Ali Zardari has raised the prospect that Osama bin Laden could be dead after he said that intelligence officials could find "no trace" of the al-Qaeda chief.
He said that neither his own advisers in Pakistan nor US intelligence agencies had detected any trace of the al-Qaeda leader since Al Jazeera television broadcast an audio recording of his voice in March.
But even then, unlike on previous occasions the authenticity of the voice purporting to be bin Laden was not confirmed by the CIA.
There have been regular reports of bin Laden's ill health, notably speculation about his kidneys failing. Mr Zardari said his own advisers believed there was substance to the rumours.
"The question is whether he is alive or dead. There is no trace of him," he said. >>> By Dean Nelson and Emal Khan in Peshawar | Tuesday, April 28, 2009
TIMESONLINE: President Karzai bowed to international pressure yesterday by promising to amend a new law condoning marital rape and child marriage that provoked violent clashes in the Afghan capital.
The Shia Family Law, signed by the Afghan President last month, appeared to reintroduce the draconian policies of the Taleban era, such as a ban on married women leaving their homes without their husbands’ permission. The law applies to the 15 per cent of Afghans who are Shia Muslims.
At a press conference in Kabul yesterday Mr Karzai said: “The law is under review and amendments will take place. I assure you that the laws of Afghanistan will be in complete harmony with the constitution of Afghanistan, and the human rights that we have adhered to in international treaties.” >>> Tom Coghlan in Kabul | Tuesday, April 28, 2009
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