Pope Gunman Wants to Convert to Christianity
ASSOCIATED PRESS: ANKARA, Turkey — The gunman who shot Pope John Paul II says he would like to convert to Christianity at a baptism ceremony at the Vatican after his release from prison in January.

In comments relayed by his lawyer on Wednesday, Mehmet Ali Agca also says he wants to visit the grave of Pope John Paul II, meet with Pope Benedict XVI and produce a television documentary on the Vatican. >>> Copyright © 2009 The Associated Press | Wednesday, May 13, 2009

Italian Parliament Criminalizes Illegal Immigration
USA TODAY: ROME — Italy's lower chamber of parliament has passed a hotly debated measure making it a crime to enter or stay in Italy illegally as Premier Silvio Berlusconi's conservative forces continue cracking down on illegal migration.

In a bid to ensure swift passage, Berlusconi's allies put the legislation to a confidence vote, which they easily won 316-258. Confidence votes force lawmakers to close ranks since defeat would force the government's resignation.

The legislation must now be approved by the senate. It would make it a crime to enter or stay in Italy illegally, punishable by a fine of $6,840-$13,670, although no prison penalty would be imposed. In addition, the legislation imposes a prison term of up to three years for anyone who rents an apartment to an illegal immigrant. [Source: USA Today] AP | Wednesday, May 13, 2009

NZZ Online: Italiens Parlament macht illegale Einwanderung strafbar: Geldstrafe bis 10'000 Euro – Abstimmung mit Vertrauensfrage verknüpft

Ein umstrittenes Gesetz des italienischen Ministerpräsidenten zur Strafverfolgung illegaler Einwanderer hat die erste parlamentarische Hürde genommen.

Italiens Regierungschef Silvio Berlusconi macht ernst. Mit gleich drei Vertrauensabstimmungen boxte er im Parlament seine Vorschläge für eine strengere Ausländer- und Flüchtlingspolitik durch.

Wer illegal nach Italien einreist oder sich dort aufhält, muss gemäss dem Gesetzesentwurf künftig 5000 bis 10'000 Euro Geldstrafe zahlen. Eine Haftstrafe ist nicht vorgesehen. Allerdings muss mit bis zu drei Jahren Haft rechnen, wer illegal eingewanderten Personen eine Wohnung vermietet. >>> sda/dpa | Mittwoch, 13. Mai 2009

Rights Group Urges Iran to Release Two Christian Converts
WASHINGTON TV: Christian Solidarity Worldwide [CSW] on Tuesday called on Iran to release two Christian women being held in Tehran’s Evin Prison, following the release of Iranian-American journalist Roxana Saberi.

According to the London-based human rights group, Maryam Rostampour, 27, and Marzieh Amirizadeh, 30, were arrested by Iranian security forces on 5 March, after their apartment was searched and their Bibles and other personal items were confiscated.

CSW advocacy director, Tina Lambert said that the group “remains deeply concerned for the safety” of the two women, who had converted from Islam. >>> © WashingtonTV | Wednesday, May 13, 2009

Notre Dame Students Plan to Boycott Barack Obama's Speech
POLITICO: ND Response, an anti-abortion student group at Notre Dame University, announced that some seniors will boycott their commencement ceremony on May 17 in protest of the university’s decision to award President Barack Obama an honorary law degree. 



In a statement, the group said that students “instead will hold a meditation in the university’s grotto” to protest Obama’s support for abortion and stem cell research. 



“It’s not a political issue; this is an issue of human dignity, and it’s a Catholic issue,” graduating senior Greer Hannan said in the statement. [Source: Politico] Politico Staff | Wednesday, May 13, 2009

Wilders' Right to Speak
NRC HANDELSBLAD INTERNATIONAL – Editorial (February): The United Kingdom does not want to admit anyone to its territory that would threaten “community harmony and therefore public security.” This argument was used to deny member of parliament Geert Wilders of the populist party PVV entry to the country on Tuesday. Too high a barrier to the free movement of people and the freedom of expression has thus been erected. Besides the fact that the law of both the European Union and the Council of Europe seems to be violated by this, the political concept of a free European space has also been damaged.

Ironically, striving for freedom often entails the prospect of confinement. That has now occurred. The fact that the ban affects a member of parliament makes the decision political, in addition to symbolic. The British are concerned about a well-defined political program that is democratically legitimised in the Netherlands. Voltaire is often credited with pointing out that freedom of expression means defending someone’s right to assert that with which one disagrees. That certainly applies to Wilders, who gives plenty of occasion for disagreement. But his freedom to express such disagreeable sentiments should prevail all the more. As should the duty to defend that freedom. Moreover what is at stake here is political freedom, without which other freedoms are all but unthinkable.

Incidentally Wilders himself falls short as a politician when it comes to defending this freedom. On January 25 he urged in parliamentary questions that religious leaders of “radical mosques” be divested of Dutch nationality and deported. Limiting access to Europe and the Netherlands to all those to whom he objects is a main theme in his platform. The British entry criterion of “harmony in the community” should not sound unfamiliar to him therefore. It is however far removed from the fundamental right to express opinions anywhere in Europe that may “shock, hurt and disturb.” >>> | Wednesday, February 11, 2009

Frank Gaffney on Sharia Law

Memri: Starbucks

Holocaust Denier Faces Jail in Australia for Contempt
THE TELEGRAPH: Frederick Toben, an Australian 'revisionist historian', has been sentenced to three months in jail after publishing offensive material about Jews and the Holocaust on his website.

Toben, 65, had been banned in 2002 from circulating anti-Semitic material on the website of the Adelaide Institute and had promised to abide by the order.

But a civil case brought by Jeremy Jones, former president of the Executive Council of Australian Jewry, found Toben had breached the order 24 out of an alleged 28 times.

The material he had published claimed that the Holocaust never happened and implied that Jewish people who challenged Holocaust deniers were of "limited intelligence". >>> By Bonnie Malkin in Sydney | Wednesday, May 13, 2009

BBC HARDtalk: Richard Dawkins
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Part 2:


Part 3:

Fighter Jets Pound Taliban Strongholds across Swat
DAWN: MINGORA / TIMERGARA: Fighter jets and attack helicopters pounded Taliban hideouts in the northwest on Wednesday. Meanwhile, a parliamentarian from Swat said 700,000 people were stranded in the valley.

Hundreds of thousands of civilians have fled the punishing offensive, now into its 17th day, escaping also out of the reach of Taliban fighters who have terrorised the local population in a bloody campaign to enforce sharia law.

The air attacks targeted Taliban strongholds across the Swat valley, AFP quoted security officials as saying.

Helicopter gunships also swung into action in the neighbouring district of Lower Dir, where the military has been on the offensive since April 26 after Taliban fighters advanced within 60 miles of Islamabad.

Up to 15,000 security forces are taking on about 4,000 well-armed fighters in Swat in what Islamabad calls a battle to ‘eliminate’ militants.

‘All exit roads from Mingora have been closed. Our troops have surrounded the city to deny any exit to militants,’ said a military official, referring to the main town in Swat. >>> Dawn correspondents Hameedulah Khan and Haleem Asad contributed to this report. | Wednesday, May 13, 2009

DAWN: Can the Taliban Be Defeated?

A Pakistani army soldier stands guard on the roof of a mosque in troubled Buner. Photo courtesy of Dawn
THE moment of truth for the federal government and the Pakistan Army to save Pakistan from imploding under the threat of the Taliban insurgency has arrived.

President Zardari in Washington and Gen Kayani in Rawalpindi, with the blessings of the tripartite Af-Pak strategy meetings presided over by President Obama, prompted Prime Minister Gilani in Islamabad to tell the nation near midnight last week about the decision to call out the armed forces ‘to eliminate the militants and terrorists in order to restore the honour and dignity of our homeland, and to protect the people.’ That reassurance was needed since previous army operations were half-hearted and botched and the operation in Buner and Dir was hardly faring any better, notwithstanding the claims of the ISPR.

The broadcast recalled a similar dramatic moment two months ago when the prime minister in the early hours of the morning announced the reinstatement of the chief justice and the end of the siege of Islamabad by the security forces to prevent the lawyers’ long march. The armed forces — whose refusal to support the government action against the long march is believed to have played a role in reinstating the chief justice — overcame their reservations about a full-fledged military action against the Swat Taliban.

The latter’s proximity to Islamabad had raised the spectre of a Taliban takeover within weeks and led to alarm all over the world, particularly in Washington. The latter seemed more worried about Pakistan’s cache of nuclear weapons falling into the wrong hands than the fate of the country’s 170 million people. No one can possibly doubt the pivotal role of the army in our politics.

While the motivation and the circumstances that led to this announcement will be debated for long, the decision to take the Taliban head-on, if successfully executed, could become a historical landmark, along with the reinstatement of the chief justice, and transform Pakistan’s currently bleak future. >>> By S.M. Naseem | Wednesday, May 13, 2009

Pope Calls for Palestinian State
"The Holy See supports the right of your people to a sovereign Palestinian homeland in the land of your forefathers, secure and at peace with its neighbours, within internationally recognised borders." – Pope Benedict XVI

BBC: Pope Benedict XVI has offered his support for the Palestinians' right to a homeland, as he continues a Middle East tour in the West Bank.

Speaking on his arrival in Bethlehem, the Pope called for a just and lasting peace in the region.

He urged Palestinians not to resort to violence and terrorism.

He is holding a Mass in the town, believed to be the birthplace of Jesus Christ. He will later give a homily in Manger Square and visit a refugee camp.

One of the aims of the pontiff's visit is to preserve a diminishing Christian presence in the Holy Land. >>> | Wednesday, May 13, 2009

Watch BBC video: Pope calls for a Palestinian state >>>

Christians in Mideast Losing Numbers and Influence
Nuns attended a Mass celebrated by Pope Benedict XVI on Tuesday at the foot of the Mount of Olives outside of Jerusalem. Photo courtesy of The New York Times
THE NEW YORK TIMES: JERUSALEM — Christians used to be a vital force in the Middle East. They dominated Lebanon and filled top jobs in the Palestinian movement. In Egypt, they were wealthy beyond their number. In Iraq, they packed the universities and professions. Across the region, their orientation was a vital link to the West, a counterpoint to prevailing trends.

But as Pope Benedict XVI wends his way across the Holy Land this week, he is addressing a dwindling and threatened Christian population driven to emigration by political violence, lack of economic opportunity and the rise of radical Islam. A region that a century ago was 20 percent Christian is about 5 percent today and dropping.

Since it was here that Jesus walked and Christianity was born, the papal visit highlights a prospect many consider deeply troubling for the globe’s largest faith, adhered to by a third of humanity — its most powerful and historic shrines could become museum relics with no connection to those who live among them.

“I fear the extinction of Christianity in Iraq and the Middle East,” the Rev. Jean Benjamin Sleiman, the Catholic archbishop of Baghdad, said in a comment echoed across the region.

The pope, in a Mass on Tuesday at the foot of the Mount of Olives, addressed “the tragic reality” of the “departure of so many members of the Christian community in recent years.”

He said: “While understandable reasons lead many, especially the young, to emigrate, this decision brings in its wake a great cultural and spiritual impoverishment to the city. Today I wish to repeat what I have said on other occasions: in the Holy Land there is room for everyone!” >>> By Ethan Bronner | Tuesday, May 12, 2009

Will Benjamin Netanyahu Fall Out with Barack Obama?
THE TELEGRAPH: On Monday, Benjamin Netanyahu will have his first formal meeting with Barack Obama in the White House. All the signs are that relations between Israel and its superpower ally are not as harmonious as usual, says David Blair.

Before going into politics, Benjamin Netanyahu made his name as a skilled ambassador to the United Nations. But he will need every ounce of diplomatic finesse to deal with the conundrum he faces as Israel's new prime minister.

On Monday, Mr Netanyahu will have his first formal meeting with Barack Obama in the White House. All the signs are that relations between Israel and its superpower ally are not as harmonious as usual.

In the next few weeks, America is expected to publish the outlines of a new Middle East peace plan. The goal will be the creation of a Palestinian state based on the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.

Mr Netanyahu, however, has not accepted the principle of Palestinian statehood, and his coalition is filled with Right-wing politicians who are bitterly opposed to the idea. A public rift between Israel and America over the endgame of a Middle East settlement is a real possibility.

On its own, American support for a Palestinian state is nothing new. George W Bush was the first US president to make this pledge explicitly when he produced his "road map" to peace in 2003. But two factors make the present situation different and more dangerous for Israel's government.

Mr Bush waited until his third year in office before coming up with the map – and he only did so because he needed diplomatic cover after his invasion of Iraq. Mr Obama, in contrast, seems set to publish his vision for a settlement in the first six months of his presidency, at the apex of his prestige, and without any diplomatic distractions to compare with the Iraq invasion.

Moreover, Israel assumed during the Bush presidency that it could get away with ignoring the map without incurring any serious penalties. So it proved: the path that supposedly led to a Palestinian state turned out to lead nowhere. >>> By David Blair | Tuesday, May 12, 2009

Anti-gay Minister the Rev Ian Watson in ‘Nazi Battle’ Outrage
TIMESONLINE: The Church of Scotland is moving towards a schism after one of its ministers compared an increasingly determined campaign against gay clergymen to the war against the Nazis.

The Rev Ian Watson railed against homosexual lifestyles, declaring that such people would not “inherit the kingdom of God” in a sermon that religious leaders and politicians condemned as deeply disturbing.

Mr Watson is a prominent opponent of Scott Rennie, an openly gay minister whose appointment to a parish church last year has caused divisions. Mr Rennie, a divorced father of one, lives with his partner, David, and has the support of his Aberdeen Presbytery. The Church of Scotland is due to debate his appointment at its General Assembly next week after a petition was signed by almost a third of ministers pushing for all gays to be banned from the pulpit.

A motion has been lodged urging the Church not to “train, ordain, admit, readmit, induct or introduce to any ministry of the church anyone involved in a sexual relationship outside of marriage between a man and woman”. >>> Mike Wade | Wednesday, May 13, 2009

Hitler Youth Past Is Denied by Pope on Trip Hit by Row over Holocaust
TIMESONLINE: The wartime past of Pope Benedict XVI threatened to overwhelm his peace mission to the Holy Land as the Vatican issued a denial that the pontiff had served in the Hitler Youth.

“The Pope has said he never, never was a member of the Hitler Youth, which was a movement of fanatical volunteers,” Federico Lombardi, a Vatican spokesman, said — contradicting statements the Pope has himself made about his involvement with the group. The Vatican denial came as Benedict’s trip sank deeper in controversy and recrimination, eclipsing the message of peace and reconciliation he has been pushing during his pilgrimage

Mr Lombardi said the Pope, as Joseph Ratzinger, a 16-year-old seminarian, served in an auxiliary air defence squadron “that had nothing to do with Nazism or Nazi ideology”. Venting frustration with the relentless focus on the Pope’s war years — a highly sensitive subject on a visit to the Jewish state — Mr Lombardi insisted that the Pope “never was in this movement of young people ideologically linked to Nazism”. The spokesman said that he felt compelled to respond “to the lies written by the media here and internationally”.

However, in a series of interviews in the 1996 book Salt of the Earth, the Pope, then still a cardinal, said that he had been drafted into the Hitler Youth, like so many other young Germans.

“When the compulsory Hitler Youth was introduced in 1941, my brother was obliged to join. I was still too young but later, as a seminarian, I was registered in the HY. As soon as I was out of the seminary, I never went back,” he said at the time. >>> James Hider in Jerusalem | Wednesday, May 13, 2009

US Elected to UN Rights Council as Obama Reverses Bush Policy
THE TELEGRAPH: The United States has joined the United Nations Human Rights Council for the first time, after Barack Obama's administration reversed another Bush-era policy.

Susan Rice, the US ambassador to the UN, said although Washington still believed the body to be flawed, it was "looking forward to working from within with a broad cross-section of member states to strengthen and reform" the council.

The US was one of 18 countries elected to three-year terms on the 47-seat Geneva-based council in a vote by the UN General Assembly, joining 29 others already on the body. A number of nations represented on the council - including China, Cuba and Saudi Arabia - have faced criticism for their own human rights records. >>> By Alex Spillius in Washington | Tuesday, May 12, 2009

Tollé en Italie après une expulsion de clandestins
LEFIGARO: Les propos de Silvio Berlusconi, qui a rejeté l'idée d'une Italie «multiethnique» pour justifier des reconduites en Lybie, suscitent la polémique.

Fram est désespéré. Cet adolescent gambien de 17 ans a dépensé toutes les économies que sa tante lui avait données pour gagner l'Angleterre. Vendredi, avec 226 autres clandestins, il a été ramené en Libye par des ­garde-côtes italiens. Leur embarcation avait été arraisonnée en haute mer, sur indication des autorités maritimes libyennes. C'était la première fois que Tripoli acceptait de reprendre des immigrés partis de son territoire. En deux jours, plus d'un demi-millier de clandestins interceptés en mer ont été refoulés vers ce pays.

Ces opérations ont suscité une vive polémique. Le ministre italien de l'Intérieur Roberto Maroni (Ligue du Nord) parle de «décision historique». Pour la première fois, Tripoli applique l'accord bilatéral sur la régulation des flux d'immigration. De Charm el-Cheikh où il se trouvait mardi, Silvio Berlusconi a affirmé que ces arrivages massifs de clandestins par voie maritime en Italie «ne sont pas le fruit du hasard, mais le résultat d'une stratégie délibérée de bandes criminelles planifiant ces transferts de manière scientifique». Il refuse que l'Italie, avec 7 % de population immigrée, ne devienne «multiethnique».

Les critiques pleuvent. Le HCR (Haut-Commissariat des Nations unies pour les réfugiés), le Conseil de l'Europe, le Vatican et jusqu'au grand rabbin dénoncent le geste «unilatéral» de l'Italie. Ils estiment qu'avant de les refouler, il aurait fallu vérifier que ces réfugiés ne bénéficiaient pas du droit d'asile. Le président de la Chambre des députés Gianfranco Fini, pourtant membre de la majorité au pouvoir, est du même avis. >>> Richard Heuzé, à Rome | Mardi 12 Mai 2009

Pakistan: Der beispiellose Exodus aus dem Tal der Taliban
WELT ONLINE: Die Offensive der Armee gegen die Gotteskrieger der Taliban im Swat-Tal drohen das Land in den Abgrund zu stürzen. Der Krieg fordert schwere Opfer unter der Zivilbevölkerung, die noch im Februar hoffte, Leid, Terror und Blutvergießen hätten endlich ein Ende. 360.000 Menschen sind auf der Flucht.

Bild dank der Welt
Pakistans Premierminister Gilani spricht von „einer Schlacht um das Überleben des Landes“. In dem einst so idyllischen Swat-Tal kämpft die Armee gegen ein Heer von Talibankämpfern, eine Horde Gotteskrieger, die die gesamte Region überschwemmt hat.

Ihnen hat die Regierung in Islamabad unter dem starken Druck der USA den Krieg erklärt. – ein Krieg ohne Rücksicht auf Verluste.

Sein Ergebnis ist eine humanitäre Katastrophe. Denn die Opfer sind die Zivilisten. Die Bürger von Swat, die im Februar noch hofften, Leid, Terror und Blutvergießen hätten vielleicht endlich ein Ende.

Doch diese Hoffnung auf eine Rückkehr zum Alltag hat sich zerschlagen. Heute ist die Lage in Swat schlimmer als je zuvor. >>> Von Sophie Mühlmann | Dienstag, 12. Mai 2009

NZZ Online: Massenexodus aus Kampfgebiet in Pakistan: Präsident Zardari fordert internationale Hilfe für Flüchtlinge

Pakistans Präsident Zardari hat die Weltgemeinschaft um Hilfe für Hunderttausende Zivilisten gebeten, die vor den Kämpfen im Nordwesten des Landes flüchten. Nach Angaben des Uno-Flüchtlingshilfswerks (UNHCR) sind gegenwärtig mehr als eine halbe Million Personen auf der Flucht.

In den umkämpften Gebieten im Nordwesten des Landes ereigne sich derzeit eine «humanitäre Katastrophe», sagte Zardari am Dienstag nach Gesprächen mit Uno-Generalsekretär Ban Ki Moon in New York. Die Menschen verlören ihre Ernten, ihr Einkommen, ihre Existenzgrundlage und ihr Zuhause. Deshalb forderten Ban und er die Welt zur Nothilfe auf. >>> sda/afp/ap | Mittwoch, 13. Mai 2009

Sarkozy Talks Turkey

EU Puts Turkey on Notice (April 2008)