Libysche Provokation: Gaddafi will die Schweiz auflösen
DIE PRESSE: Der Streit zwischen Libyen und der Schweiz wird immer skurriler: Der "Schurkenstaat" Schweiz solle unter den Nachbarländern aufgeteilt werden, fordert der libysche Revolutionsführer Muammar al-Gaddafi nun.

Der Streit zwischen Libyen und der Schweiz droht zu eskalieren - und nimmt zugleich immer skurrilere Züge an. Trotz der Zusage der libyschen Regierung, zwei seit einem Jahr festgehaltene Schweizer wieder heimreisen zu lassen, sind diese noch immer nicht frei. Und Libyens Staatschef Gaddafi legt noch eines drauf: Er will angeblich bei der UN-Vollversammlung Mitte September formell beantragen, das schweizerische Staatsterritorium auf die Nachbarländer Deutschland, Frankreich und Italien aufzuteilen.

Rein rechtlich hat der Antrag keine Chance, das Völkerrecht schützt die territoriale Unversehrtheit. Doch er zeigt, dass Gaddafi nichts auslässt, um sich an dem "Schurkenstaat" Schweiz (Zitat) für die kurzzeitige Verhaftung seines Sohns in Genf zu rächen. >>> Red. | Donnerstag, 03. September 2009

Un psychiatre français détenu en Tunisie
L’EXPRESS: Le docteur Ahmed Eleuch est incarcéré en Tunisie depuis le 30 juillet. Les autorités locales soupçonnent ce Français d'origine tunisienne de collusion avec les milieux islamistes - ce qu'il nie. En France, sa famille et ses amis s'inquiètent.

"Nous nous attendions à une fête le jour de son arrivée à l'aéroport. Le résultat vous le connaissez..." Alaa-Eddine, l'un des fils d'Ahmed Eleuch, est encore choqué par l'arrestation de son père, le 30 juillet, à Tunis. Interpellé à la douane à sa descente de l'avion en provenance de Paris, ce psychiatre de 53 ans installé depuis des années à Saint-Denis est alors placé en détention au centre pénitentiaire de Mornaguia. Une semaine plus tard, le tribunal de la capitale tunisienne le condamne à quatre ans de prison ferme et trois ans de contrôle administratif pour "atteinte à la sûreté de l'Etat". Depuis, son épouse, Afifa, restée au domicile familial du Val d'Oise avec certains de ses enfants, est rongée par l'inquiétude. "Je savais que c'était dangereux de vouloir rentrer en Tunisie, explique-t-elle, j'ai même essayé de l'empêcher de partir."

"Aucune preuve"

Ahmed Eleuch, qui avait quitté son pays en 1987 pour des raisons politiques, est qualifié par ses proches de "doux, tolérant et ouvert au dialogue". Selon eux, il mène une existence tranquille, partagée entre son cabinet de Saint-Denis et les ateliers d'aide à l'intégration qu'il organise.

De retour en Tunisie, où il voulait voir son père gravement malade, il a été rattrapé par son lointain passé de sympathisant d'un mouvement islamiste. "Le ministre de la justice tunisien a pourtant encouragé les exilés à rentrer au pays, en disant que tout était oublié", se plaint son épouse. >>> Par Benoît Puichaud | publié Mercredi 02 Septembre 2009 / mis à jour 03 Septembre 2009

Ghadhafis Vorstoss in der Uno-Bürokratie: Unsicherheitsfaktor an einer Schlüsselstelle
NZZ ONLINE: Bis es Ghadhafis Antrag zur Aufteilung der Schweiz unter die Nachbarländer bis in die Generalversammlung schafft, muss er etliche Hürden nehmen. Über die endgültige Tagesordnung entscheidet ein 27-köpfiges Komitee. Unter normalen Umständen hätte er keine Chance. Doch in diesem Jahr gibt es eine spezielle Konstellation.

Der Antrag Libyens an die Generalversammlung der Uno widerspricht allen völkerrechtlichen Gepflogenheiten. Die Schweiz, ein Uno-Mitglied auflösen zu wollen, ist per se ein Affront für die Staatengemeinschaft. Trotzdem soll der Vorstoss in der Uno-Bürokratie eingespeist worden sein, wie die Berner Nationalrätin Christa Markwalder, Vizepräsidentin der Aussenpolitischen Kommission des Nationalrates, in der Sendung «10 vor 10» des Schweizer Fernsehen sagte.

Ringen um die Agenda

Was passiert nun mit diesem Schreiben? Der Antrag wird nicht automatisch der Generalversammlung der Uno vorgelegt, die vom 15. bis 30. September in New York tagt. Was in den zwei Generaldebatten besprochen wird, ist Gegenstand eines komplizierten Auswahlprozesses. Die erste Fassung der Agenda ist bereits am 9. Februar erstellt und bis Juli mehrmals angepasst worden. Dazu gibt es noch eine Liste von ergänzenden Traktanden, die bis 20 Tage vor Eröffnung der Session eingereicht werden können.

Auf keiner dieser Listen ist der Antrag Libyens bisher zu finden. Gemäss Regel 15 des Auswahlverfahrens können Angelegenheiten von besonderer Dringlichkeit und Wichtigkeit auch noch später eingereicht werden. Ob der Brief der Ghadhafi-Regierung unter diese Kategorie zu rechnen ist, darf bezweifelt werden. >>> spi. | Donnerstag, 03. September 2009

Libya’s Viewpoint: Celebrate Libya Sees Olympic-scale Success While World Watches On
THE TRIPOLI POST: TRIPOLI, Libya: As Western media continue their unfair, confused, disinforming and deceptive coverage of the release of the innocent Libyan citizen Abdulbaset Al-Megrahi from his eleven-year captivity in European prisons, Libya celebrates the First September Revolution’s 40th Anniversary as never before. A grand celebration sets in motion a week of unprecedented events scheduled to sweep through the country started on 1 September. The celebrations offered at least a glimpse into the country’s rich 14,000 [?] year history.

Dignitaries from around the world gathered in Tripoli’s Green Park last night to witness what has been one of the Africa’s largest, most successful and most spectacular events in history. The celebration marked the 40th Anniversary of the Al Fateh Revolution. Guests joined Muammar Al Gaddafi, Brother Leader and Guide of the Revolution, for a full schedule of activities from a military parade to an exclusive Iftar dinner and opening ceremony designed to bring to life Libya’s rich history and culture.

Al-Megrahi, however, was sentenced to life imprisonment in 2001 after being unjustly convicted of the bombing of Pan Am Flight 103. He served eleven years and five months in prison including more than two years in the infamous Camp Zeist prison in Holland. Legal experts in the US, Britain and the rest of the world have made it clear since the begging of the shame [sic] trial in the Netherlands that the trial was unfair and the prosecutor had no case.

Military Precision

The celebrations launched with a perfectly executed military parade involving troops from countries across the world. African nations such as Senegal and Algeria participated alongside European countries including Italy and Ukraine, marching to music and bearing their national flags. Troops from Greece and the French Foreign legion also participated. The soldiers were followed by full artillery of military vehicles, from trucks to tanks, some carrying an anti-aircraft weaponry while naval vessels passed by offshore. Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, King Abdullah of Jordan, Emir Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani from Qatar, Kuwaiti Emir Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmed al-Sabah, Tunisia’s President Ben Ali, Algeria’s President Abdelaziz Boutaflika, Yemen’s President Ali Abdullah Saleh, Benin’s President Karekou were amongst the VIP audience as the Frecce Tricolori, Italian acrobatic planes, flew in formation over the parade ground and around Tripoli’s beautiful coastline.

VIP Iftar

Close by dignitaries made their way a specially designed dining area, constructed to float atop the water of the Red Castle lake. A lantern-lit path from the bank of the lake to the VIP iftar was created in front of the Red Castle outer wall onto which unique projections were placed. The projections mark the beginning of what is known as ‘Libya by Light’, a week-long schedule of Libya inspired images across six of the country’s key cities. Some of the best international brands were brought in to offer a new dimension to the proceedings; the meal itself was designed and prepared by acclaimed Parisian restaurant Le Notre and guests were given limited edition gold Chopard watches with outline of Africa on the face and a diamond marking Libya within it.

Libya Takes to the Stage

As hundreds of performers prepared themselves for their grand debut on what is considered by organizers to be one of the largest tent-like stages to have ever been constructed, dignitaries arrived in golf kart manufactured by the likes of Hummer and Cadillac. Joined by the Leader’s family, further guests attended the opening ceremony included Turkey first lady, Prime Minister, Amina Erdogan, former Ukrainian Acting Prime Minister Ioulia Tymochenko, French Minister for Co-operation Alain Joyandet and the President of Chad Idriss Déby and the President of Niger Mamadou Tandja. And the show certainly impressed; acrobats, lasers, projections and illuminated sculptures of animals all came together to give the show a sense of style, grandeur and magic. >>> | Tuesday, September 01, 2009

Chopard >>>

Leading Islamist Wins Right to Name Son 'Djehad'
SPIEGEL ONLINE INTERNATIONAL: In Germany, it seems, it's okay to name children "Jihad." A Berlin court has ruled that the name Djehad is neither denigrating nor offensive -- even if the child's father is a man considered by German intelligence agents and the United States to be one of the country's most radical Islamists.

A Berlin court ruled this week that a man suspected of being one of Germany's leading radical Islamists, can name his son "Djehad," an alternative spelling of the Arabic word jihad. A city official had previously rejected the name because of its connotation of Islamic holy war.

A city official said it had rejected listing the name in the city's birth registry because it could endanger the child's welfare. Following the Sept. 11, 2001 terror attacks in the United States, the term "jihad," which in the West is usually regarded as meaning "holy war," has had negative connotations in Germany. The child's father himself, German-Egyptian Reda Seyam, is being monitored by German intelligence agencies and is known to have fought as a jihadist in Bosnia.

But this week a local superior court, following previous rulings in an administrative court and a regional court, said the name was unobjectionable. >>> dsl -- with wires | Wednesday, September 02, 2009

Special Relationship. Passed Away 2009. R.I.P.
TIMES ONLINE: For some time America has regarded this country as Little Britain. The Lockerbie bomber case is seen as the final straw

After Gordon Brown met Colonel Muammar Gaddafi at the G8 summit in Italy earlier this year he joked that he had discovered Michael Jackson alive and well. There is indeed an uncanny resemblance between the Libyan leader and the King of Pop. But it was not, of course, the singer who asked the Prime Minister to release the Lockerbie bomber. Michael Jackson is dead — and so now is the “special relationship” between Britain and the United States.

The row over the decision to allow Abdul Baset Ali al-Megrahi to return to Libya is the final nail in the coffin for the transatlantic bond first identified by Winston Churchill after the Second World War. Even Barack Obama abandoned his normal diplomatic tone to criticise the “highly objectionable” arrival of the bomber in Tripoli. Robert Mueller, the head of the FBI, said that the release of the man convicted of murdering 270 people on Pan Am Flight 103 made a “mockery of justice” and would give “comfort to terrorists around the world”. There was a widespread assumption in Washington all along that the decision was linked to a trade deal.

For the Americans, this is not just about justice it is also about trust — the White House sees the release of al-Megrahi as a blatant breach of an agreement given by the British Government that he would serve out his sentence in Scotland. It is impossible to sustain a relationship, let alone a special one, if one partner can no longer believe what the other one says. In Whitehall there are already nervous mutterings about whether intelligence-sharing and military co-operation will be able to continue in the same way.

This may be a tipping point but in fact the United States has been tilting away from Britain for some time. Ironically, at the very moment when people in this country are rediscovering after years of hostility their love of America — as a result of the election of the first black president — the Americans are tiring of their old European flame.

On holiday on Long Island this summer, I was struck by the anti-British mood. There are T-shirts for sale in New York with the slogan “Britain’s not that great” printed next to pictures of a helmeted policeman and Big Ben. “Your country is just a dipshit little nation,” an influential celebrity agent told me over dinner in the Monkey Bar (the fashionable Manhattan restaurant that is part owned by the British restaurateur Jeremy King). “It’s got no power or influence any more. I bet only 5 per cent of the people in this room have even heard of Gordon Brown.”

In different areas, antipathy towards Britain is taking hold just as anti-Americanism in this country fades. The debate about health reform in the US has been dominated by distorted accounts of appalling death rates and eugenic policies under the “evil” NHS. Meanwhile, the British Armed Forces are facing increasing criticism for what the Americans see as a failure to pull their weight in Iraq and Afghanistan. The City of London has been decimated by the credit crunch and could end up paying a heavier price than Wall Street as the new financial world order takes shape. Even London Fashion Week is a poor relation to similar events in New York, Paris and Milan.

There is a growing perception in the US that the UK is losing its way — with MPs who have been caught fiddling their expenses, a recession deeper than anywhere else and a leader who has become a lame duck. Newsweek, the magazine that hailed Cool Britannia in the 1990s, recently redefined us as “Little Britain”, a nation struggling to keep a foothold in a rapidly changing world. It used to be said that we punched above our weight — but now we have become the global punch bag as China and India rise. The new dawn is over, replaced by a gloomy dusk. >>> Rachel Sylvester | Tuesday, September 01, 2009

US Senate Asked to Probe Lockerbie 'Oil Deal'
TIMES ONLINE: A veteran United States senator has asked Congress to investigate whether negotiations for a lucrative Libyan oil contract played a role in the release of the Lockerbie bomber.

The call from Frank Lautenberg, a New Jersey Democrat, will add to the pressure on Gordon Brown, who has been accused of damaging - or even killing off - the transatlantic "special relationship" by backing the release of Abdul Baset Ali al-Megrahi.

The Prime Minister insisted yesterday that there had been nothing underhand in the decision by the Scottish Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill to free al-Megrahi. The 57-year-old is dying from prostate cancer.

“There was no conspiracy, no cover-up, no double-dealing, no deal on oil, no attempt to instruct Scottish ministers, no private assurances by me to Colonel Gaddafi,” Mr Brown told an audience in Birmingham.

The former Libyan intelligence office served just eight years of a life sentence for his role in the bombing of Pan Am Flight 103, killing 270 people including 11 on the ground. Two-thirds of the victims were American and their relatives reacted with fury to the news that he was to be freed.

Mr Lautenberg called for a Senate investigation into the decision in a letter to Senator John Kerry, chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and Richard Lugar, the ranking Republican member. He said that the congressional panel “must expose the truth" and “uncover whether justice took a back seat to commercial interests". >>> Philippe Naughton | Thursday, September 03, 2009

Guest List for Libyan Strongman Moammar Khadafy's Party Includes Thugs, Dictators
Photo: New York Daily News
NEW YORK DAILY NEWS: All Col. Moammar Khadafy needs is an extended pinkie.

He certainly has real-life guests to rival the fictional villains assembled by Dr. Evil in the "Austin Powers" movies.

Where Dr. Evil has No. 2 and Frau Farbissina, the Libyan dictator has president-by-terror Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe and president-by-genocide Omar al-Bashir of Sudan, who is under indictment for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Darfur.

To top it off, the guest list at the celebration of Khadafy's 40th year in power includes the man known in Somalia as "the father of piracy," Mohammed Abdi Afweyne.

In attending the four-day extravaganza, Afweyne reportedly took a break from exacting ransom for a ship held hostage off the Somali coast.

In May, the supposedly reformed Khadafy said that such piracy is not piracy at all, but "self-defense" against "greedy Western nations."

"It is defending the Somalia children's food," Khadafy said.

Among the ships that Afweyne's pirates hijacked was a World Food Program freighter carrying 850 tons of rice bound for the starving in Somalia.

As this week's 40th anniversary celebration in Libya neared, Prince Andrew had originally RSVP'd in the affirmative. He bowed out following the furor over the hero's welcome given to freed Lockerbie bomber Abdelbaset al-Megrahi.

Otherwise, the prince might have found himself sitting with a thug, a genocidal psychopath and a pirate kingpin while huge screens flashed photos of a bomber convicted of murdering 270 innocents.

The big photos of Libya's new national hero accompanied a performance by a New Zealand bagpipe band, complete with kilts. The bomber was freed by the Scottish justice secretary.

"The freeing of al-Megrahi was a highlight of the colonel's time in office and he wanted to honor Scotland for it," a Libyan official said. >>> Michael Daly | Thursday, September 03, 2009

Libyan Government Says Lockerbie Bomber Is Not Near Death Yet
NEW YORK DAILY NEWS: The Libyan government on Wednesday denied claims by the Lockerbie bomber's family that he was in intensive care and dying faster than expected.

Abdelbaset al-Megrahi "is not in a dangerous situation" and was merely moved to a VIP room at the Tripoli hospital, said Foreign Ministry spokesman Mohammad Seyala. >>> Helen Kennedy, Daily News Staff Writer | Wednesday, September 02, 2009

Moyen-Orient: Ahmadinejad, un peu plus seul
leJDD.fr: En Iran, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad rencontre des difficultés pour obtenir la confiance de son cabinet. Plusieurs noms pourraient être retoqués par le Parlement.

Après la rue, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad doit affronter le Parlement (le Majlis). Le président de la République islamique, dont la réélection le 12 juin dernier avait jeté une partie de la population dans la rue, a choisi les 21 membres de son cabinet. Mais comme le veut le système iranien, chacun des ministres doit désormais être approuvé par le Parlement. Pour Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, c'est ici que les choses se compliquent. Ici aussi où ressurgissent les tensions à la tête de la République islamique, voire au sein même du clergé chiite. Censée être une formalité – les conservateurs dominent le Majlis - la nomination du cabinet s'éternise. Le Parlement examine mercredi, pour la quatrième journée consécutive, sa composition, notamment les candidats proposés pour les postes sensibles de l'Intérieur et du Pétrole. Le vote de confiance pourrait toutefois intervenir dans la soirée ou jeudi matin. Mais certains candidats pourraient toutefois passé à la trappe. Pour diverses raisons.

Des élus ultraconservateurs voient notamment d'un mauvais œil le choix de trois femmes, une première depuis la révolution islamique de 1979. Et ce, bien que celles-ci ne soient pas connues pour leur ouverture. "L'islam respecte la femme. Mais cela ne veut pas dire qu'on doit leur laisser des positions sociales importantes", a ainsi estimé l'ayatollah Ahmad Khatami. Autre choix contesté, celui de Kamran Daneshjou pour le portefeuille du ministère des Sciences, de la Recherche et des Technologies. Vice-ministre de l'Intérieur sous "Ahmadinejad I", il était en charge de l'organisation de la présidentielle du 12 juin. Or, plusieurs élus estiment que choisir cet homme - alors que le résultat de l'élection est toujours controversé et que l'opposition n'a pas renoncé à se faire entendre - ne participe pas à l'apaisement. D'autres, la frange la plus "libérale" des conservateurs, dénoncent le choix de Heydar Moslehi pour le ministère des Renseignements, soulignant son "passé douteux". L'homme est l'ancien représentant du Guide suprême auprès des bassidjis, le bras armé des Gardiens de la révolution. Ahmadinejad lâché par le Guide? >>> Marianne Enault, leJDD.fr | Mercredi 02 Septembre 2009

Affaire Kadhafi: Kadhafi veut rayer la Suisse de la carte
Mouammar Kadhafi. Crédits photo: Le Temps
LE TEMPS: La Suisse doit être démantelée et ses régions linguistiques réparties entre ses voisins. Mouammar Kadhafi va soumettre cette requête devant l’assemblée générale de l’ONU qui débute le 15 septembre. Il l’avait déjà formulée lors du sommet du G8 en Italie en juillet.

«La Libye a déposé cette requête», a déclaré mercredi soir la vice-présidente de la Commission de politique extérieure du National Christa Markwalder (PLR/BE) dans l’émission «10 vor 10» de la TV alémanique. Le chef d’Etat libyen demande que figure à l’ordre du jour la division du territoire suisse et sa répartition entre les pays voisins, a ajouté Mme Markwalder.

Début juillet lors du G8, Mouammar Kadhafi avait déclaré que la Suisse «est une mafia mondiale et non un Etat». Et d’ajouter qu’elle «est formée d’une communauté italienne qui doit retourner en Italie, d’une autre communauté allemande qui doit retourner en Allemagne et une troisième communauté française qui doit retourner en France».

La Libye assume pour un an la présidence de l’assemblée générale de l’ONU. Mme Markwalder craint qu’elle n’utilise cette fonction pour nuire à l’image et à la réputation de la Suisse. Selon elle, la diplomatie suisse va devoir se retrousser les manches pour éviter un scandale devant l’ONU. >>> ATS | Jeudi 03 Septembre 2009

Qadhafi verlangt von der Uno die Auflösung der Schweiz
BERNER ZEITUNG: Der libysche Staatschef hat bei den Uno einen Antrag gestellt: Sie sollen in der Herbstsession die Schweiz von der Landkarte streichen und unter den Nachbarn aufteilen.

Was Libyens Staatschef Moammar al-Qadhafi bereits im Juli am G8-Gipfel in Italien forderte, hat er nun als formellen Antrag an die Uno-Vollversammlung gestellt. Dies berichtete die Berner Nationalrätin Christa Markwalder, Vizepräsidentin der Aussenpolitischen Kommission (APK) des Nationalrates, heute in der Sendung «10vor10» des Schweizer Fernsehens.

«Libyen hat den Antrag gestellt, dass an der Uno-Vollversammlung, die am 15. September beginnt, auch das Traktandum diskutiert werden soll, dass das schweizerische Staatsterritorium aufgeteilt und an die Nachbarländer verteilt werden soll», sagte Markwalder. «Dem Image der Schweiz abträglich» >>> oku/sda | Donnerstag, 03. September 2009

Brown the Betrayer: Britain’s Sellout Prime Minister Has Broken Faith and Ties with U.S.
NEW YORK DAILY NEWS – Editorial: It was Winston Churchill who asked in the aftermath of Pearl Harbor, "What kind of people do they think we are?" And it is Gordon Brown who has given grounds to believe that today's British are a cowardly, unprincipled, amoral and duplicitous lot. Because he is all of those.

Can he remain in power having been revealed as at least complicit in an atrocious miscarriage of justice and breach of faith? That will be up to the Brits, but on this side of the Atlantic Ocean it is inconceivable that an elected official would have a snowball's chance after sanctioning an oil-for-terrorist deal.

Surely Brown can hardly survive the revelation that his government assured Libya that the prime minister did not want the Lockerbie bomber to die in prison, a message duly passed on to the Scottish official who released Abdelbaset al-Megrahi on "compassionate grounds."

As for the "special relationship" between the U.S. and Britain, the storied alliance built on the resolve of World War II and carried on through Thatcher and Blair, through Iraq and Afghanistan: It is, in a word, gone.

Brown's maneuverings to get into the good graces of Libyan mass murderer Moammar Khadafy broke the bond between America and the Blessed Plot beyond his ability to repair it. That work will fall to someone else, someone who values human life more than commercial expediency, someone who is stalwart rather than a sneak, someone true to his pronouncements.

The U.S. and the U.K. committed to imprisoning Megrahi in Scotland after the Libyan spy was convicted of blowing Pan Am Flight 103 out of the air over that country in 1998. The atrocity was a direct precursor of 9/11, and no one could have imagined that Brown - leader of a nation that, too, has been terror's target - would trash the pledge.

But Brown did trash the pledge, and in the most revolting terms, letting it be known, it bears repeating, that he did not want Megrahi, author of 270 murders, to die in prison.

So, Megrahi has returned to Libya a hero, perhaps dying of prostate cancer, perhaps not. Brown got his way, and he will never outlive the stain. [Source: New York Daily News] | Wednesday, September 02, 2009

MAIL ONLINE:
Brown the betrayer: U.S. fury over British broken promise to keep Lockerbie bomber in jail >>> James Chapman | Wednesday, September 02, 2009

Arabs Charged Over Dutch Cartoon
BBC: An Arab organisation is to be put on trial in the Netherlands over its publication of a cartoon deemed offensive to Jews, prosecutors say.

The cartoon, published by the Arab European League (AEL) on its website, questions the Holocaust.

It said the decision to prosecute illustrated bias against Muslims.

It said the same standards were not applied to the Dutch MP Geert Wilders, who made a film including cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad.

Last month prosecutors said they would not put the far-right MP on trial for distributing the controversial Danish cartoons, which caused a storm of protest after their publication in 2005.

However, he is still being investigated separately for inciting hatred against Muslims by making statements comparing Islam to Nazism.

But Dutch prosecutors said the AEL cartoon was "discriminatory" and "offensive to Jews as a group... because it offends Jews on the basis of their race and/or religion".

The cartoon shows two men standing near a pile of bones at "Auswitch" (sic). One says "I don't think they're Jews".

The other replies: "We have to get to the six million somehow."

A spokeswoman for the prosecuting authority said the group could be fined up to 4,700 euros (£4,100), though in theory a prison sentence was also possible. >>> | Wednesday, September 02, 2009

Brown Says 'No Cover-Up' in Lockerbie Bomber's Release
THE WALL STREET JOURNAL: Addressing controversy over the recent release of the convicted Lockerbie bomber, U.K. Prime Minister Gordon Brown insisted "there was no conspiracy, no cover-up, no double-dealing" by the U.K. leading up to the release.

Meanwhile, Scotland's parliament passed a motion late Wednesday denouncing Kenny MacAskill, the justice minister who made the decision to release Mr. al-Megrahi last month. The harsh rebuke, which was approved in a 73-50-1 vote, condemned Mr. MacAskill for mishandling the decision in a way that damaged Scotland's international reputation. >>> Alistair MacDonald and Paul Sonne| Wednesday, September 02, 2009

Cancer Specialists Fly to Tripoli as Abdul Baset Ali al-Megrahi Fades Fast
TIMES ONLINE: The health of the Lockerbie bomber is deteriorating so fast that European cancer specialists are being flown to Tripoli in a chartered aircraft to treat him, Abdul Baset Ali al-Megrahi's brother has told The Times.

"He's in a bad situation. The last check-up was very, very bad... He's dying," said Mohammed al-Megrahi, who doubted his brother would live another month. "We are really worried about him, but it's the wish of God."

Mr al-Megrahi would not, or could not, say where the specialists were coming from or who was paying for them.

A Libyan government official said that al-Megrahi "has been admitted to the emergency room in the hospital. He is in a bad way. He is unable to speak to anyone."

A hospital spokesman said: "Because of the treatment he is receiving, his immune system is very weak."

Critics of the Scottish Government's decision to release al-Megrahi last month have questioned how ill he really is, but there seems little doubt that he is in his final weeks, or even days. >>> Martin Fletcher in Tripoli | Wednesday, September 02, 2009

Hockey Mom? Sarah Palin Stayed at Home, Says Levi Johnston
TIMES ONLINE: If her estranged potential son-in-law is to be believed, Sarah Palin is not just the vice-presidential candidate who lost and the Governor who quit.

According to Levi Johnston, who nearly married her daughter, Mrs Palin was the supermom who did not cook, the hockey mom who almost never attended her son's hockey matches and the fearless outdoorswoman who had never touched a fishing rod and did not know what sort of gun nestled in a box under her bed.

Exhausted - or just bored - by her duties as head of Alaska’s state government, Mrs Palin would return home most days by 5pm to take long baths and watch her favourite home improvement shows on television, according to Levi Johnston, who fathered her first grandchild and nearly married her daughter.

Mrs Palin argued frequently with her husband about the idea of divorce, insisted that she was going to adopt the baby her daughter was about to have with Mr Johnston and rapidly lost what enthusiasm she had for the Governor’s job on her return to Alaska last November, Mr Johnston claims.

Most woundingly for a woman portrayed by the McCain campaign as a doting supermom, the former high school ice hockey star writes: “There wasn’t much parenting in that house. Sarah doesn’t cook, Todd (her husband) doesn’t cook - the kids would do it all themselves: cook, clean, do the laundry and get ready for school." >>> Giles Whittell in Washington | Wednesday, September 02, 2009

BP Makes "Giant" Oil Find in Gulf of Mexico
REUTERS: LONDON - Oil major BP Plc said it has made an oil discovery in the Gulf of Mexico, which analysts believe could contain over 1 billion barrels of recoverable reserves, reaffirming the Gulf's strategic importance to the industry.

BP said in a statement on Wednesday that it had made the "giant" find at its Tiber Prospect in the Keathley Canyon block 102, by drilling one of the deepest wells ever sunk by the industry.

Further appraisal will be required to ascertain the size of volumes of oil present, but a spokesman said the find should be bigger than its Kaskida discovery which has over 3 billion barrels of oil in place.

Estimates of recoverable reserves range from around 20 percent of oil in place. >>> Tom Bergin | Wednesday, September 02, 2009

Europe Dims Old-style Lightbulbs

Obama: "Islam ist Teil von Amerika"
Ja wirklich! Islam ist Teil von Amerika genau so sehr als Christentum Teil von Saudi Arabien ist!

Offensichtlich, versucht Barack Hussein Obama die Religion seines Vaters an die Amerikaner aufzudrängen.

So eine Art Politik zu treiben, so eine Verfälschung der Geschichte absichtlich zu schildern, so eine Lüge zu verbreiten!

Mit so einem Mann am Steuer des mächtigsten Landes der Welt kann man für die Zukünft nur schwarz sehen! Und zu sagen, daß der Islam bedeutet Gerechtigkeit und Fortschritt ist nichts Anders als lächerlich. – © Mark

DIE PRESSE: US-Präsident Obama würdigt bei einem Abendessen anlässlich des Fastenmonats Ramadan den Beitrag von Muslimen zur US-Gesellschaft. Der Islam stehe für Gerechtigkeit und Fortschritt. Er sei eine "große Religion".

US-Präsident Barack Obama hat den Beitrag von Muslimen zur amerikanischen Gesellschaft gewürdigt. Bei einem Abendessen am Dienstagabend anlässlich des muslimischen Fastenmonats Ramadan bezeichnete er den Islam als "große Religion" und sprach von dessen "Engagement für Gerechtigkeit und Fortschritt".

An dem Dinner nahmen neben Kabinetts- und Kongressmitgliedern auch mehrere Vertreter muslimischer Organisationen der USA teil. Obama sagte, der Islam sei ein "Teil von Amerika", schreibt die "Washington Post". Bereits Obamas Vorgänger George W. Bush hatte ein Iftar veranstaltet, ein Abendessen zum Fastenbrechen. >>> Ag./phu | Mittwoch, 02. September 2009

Obama Hosts Dinner for Islamic Holy Month
THE WASHINGTON POST: WASHINGTON -- President Barack Obama has praised the contributions of American Muslims at a dinner to celebrate the Islamic holy month of Ramadan.

Obama joined Cabinet secretaries, ambassadors and members of Congress to pay tribute to what he called "a great religion and its commitment to justice and progress."

The president also welcomed American Muslim community leaders to the event in the State Dining Room.

Obama said Islam is "part of America." He said the American Muslim community is diverse, like the broader citizenry of the United States. >>> Ann Sanner, The Associated Press | Tuesday, September 01, 2009

USA: Obamas Umfragewerte brechen ein
DIE PRESSE: Der Druck auf US-Präsident Barack Obana steigt. Nach sieben Monaten Regierungszeit bewertete laut einer Umfrage des TV-Senders CNN erstmals eine Mehrheit der politisch unabhängigen US-Bürger seine Politik negativ.

Erstmals seit seinem Amtsantritt im Jänner [Januar] bewerte eine Mehrheit der politisch unabhängigen US-Bürger die Politik von US-Präsident Barack Obama negativ. 53 Prozent der Unabhängigen gaben an, sie seien mit Obamas Arbeit im Weißen Haus nicht zufrieden, 43 Prozent sprachen sich positiv aus. 
Das geht aus einer am Dienstag veröffentlichten Umfrage des Nachrichtensenders CNN hervor. 

Die Mehrheit der unabhängigen Stimmen habe Obama bei den Präsidentschaftswahlen den Weg ins Weiße Haus geebnet, sagte CNN-Meinungsforscher Keating Holland. "Wenn er diese Unterstützung verliert, wird es für Obama schwieriger, aus der Mitte zu regieren." >>> APA, Red. | Mittwoch, 02. September 2009