David Miliband Defies the Prime Minister by Assuring Iceland Its £2.3bn Debt Repayment Vote Will Not Affect EU Bid
MAIL ONLINE: David Miliband has assured Iceland that its president's decision to veto the repayment of billions of pounds owed to Britain will not affect its bid to join the EU.

The comments by the Foreign Secretary directly contradict those of Gordon Brown who has threatened serious consequences if the money does not enter Treasury coffers.

On Tuesday, Iceland's president Olafur Ragnar Grimsson called a referendum on a law to return £2.3billion owed to Britain to cover the bail-out of more than 200,000 savers in the collapsed online bank Icesave.

Icelandic voters are expected to reject the scheme.

Today Iceland's foreign minister said he had been assured by Mr Miliband that a presidential rejection of the so-called Icesave bill would not torpedo Iceland's EU bid. >>> Daniel Martin | Friday, Januar 08, 2010

Obama: "We Are at War"
CBS NEWS: President Obama Thursday afternoon publicly called for the intelligence community to do better in the wake of the Christmas Day bombing attempt. In the process, he offered a response to critics on the right who have complained that he has not used rhetoric indicating the seriousness of the situation.

"While passions and politics can often obscure the hard work before us, let's be clear about what this moment demands," the president said. "We are at war." >>> Brian Montopoli | Thursday, January 07, 2010

Le Vieux Lion Roars Again Among a Generation Hungry for Greatness
TIMES ONLINE: President Sarkozy may have cooled to Gordon Brown, but France has just fallen for the charms of another British leader — Sir Winston Churchill.

“Le Vieux Lion,” as the British leader was known, has found new popularity thanks to two bestselling books — a fresh translation of his Second World War memoirs and a prize-winning biography.

Enthusiasm for Churchill is being fed by new interest in the war era among a generation born since France preferred to forget the trauma of the Nazi occupation. Recent war documentaries, including a spectacular colour series on the France2 channel last autumn, have brought the period closer to modern France, said François Kersaudy, author of the new biography Winston Churchill.

“The younger generation knew very little about Churchill but they are beginning to discover him through the memoirs,” Mr Kersaudy told The Times. His book, which won the Grand Prix for political biography last year, depicts the Prime Minister as a towering figure in European history.

Admiration for Churchill reflected “nostalgia for great leaders when there seem to be so many small ones around,” Mr Kersaudy said. “There is special nostalgia for Churchill with his contempt for the opinion of the man in the street when present leaders are obsessed with opinion polls.” >>> Charles Bremner in Paris | Friday, January 08, 2010

Boris Johnson's Ex-wife, 45, in Secret Marriage to Muslim Aged 23
MAIL ONLINE: The ex-wife of Boris Johnson has shocked her family by secretly marrying a 23-year-old Muslim, she announced on Thursday.

Allegra Mostyn-Owen even implied she would be content to be one of several of his wives. Since she is 45, she said she would be happy for her new husband to have children with a younger woman.

They would then live as an ‘extended family’ as sanctioned by the Prophet Mohammed ‘who said it was OK to marry up to four women’, she declared.

Miss Mostyn-Owen was the London Mayor’s first wife. They met when they were students at Oxford and married in 1987, aged 23, but divorced in 1993. She has no children.

She revealed how she stunned her family on Christmas Day by announcing her marriage to the Muslim man – whom she did not name because his Pakistani family ‘know nothing’ of what he has done.

Miss Mostyn-Owen is the only daughter of Italian writer Gaia Servadio and multimillionaire landowner and art historian William Mostyn-Owen.

Describing the scene at Christmas, she said: ‘My mum accused me of spoiling her Christmas and was sure I am heading for a nervous breakdown.

'My older brother also said he would be there for me when I had a breakdown. My father was very annoyed, saying he’d only tolerated “him” – the Muslim – because our relationship had kept me off the booze.

‘Nobody asked his name, whether we were happy, what our plans are and what his livelihood is.’

The society beauty and one-time Tatler cover girl revealed they had married in a mosque and then again in a register office. She said she had not converted to Islam. >>> Sam Greenhill and Tamara Cohen | Thursday, January 07, 2010

Obama im Gestrüpp der US-Geheimdienste: Amerikanischer Präsident will Bericht über Versagen von Detroit vorstellen
NZZ ONLINE: Der Druck auf Präsident Obama hat zugenommen. Nach dem Versagen der Geheimdienste im Fall des versuchten Attentats des Nigerianers Abdulmutallab auf ein amerikanisches Flugzeug wird vom Präsidenten erwartet, dass er Köpfe rollen lässt.

Der für Innere Sicherheit zuständige Berater Präsident Obamas, John Brennan, hat seinem Chef am Donnerstag einen nicht sogleich veröffentlichten Bericht über die Schwächen der amerikanischen Terrorabwehr vorgelegt. Darin ging es um die Frage, warum der Nigerianer Abdulmutallab am Weihnachtstag mit einem Sprengsatz in der Unterhose in Amsterdam ein Flugzeug nach Detroit besteigen konnte, obwohl konkrete Warnungen über den Attentäter sowie Indizien für einen bevorstehenden Anschlag eingetroffen waren. Zuvor war er von Lagos nach Amsterdam geflogen.

Die mehr als ein Dutzend zivilen und militärischen Nachrichten- und Geheimdienste versagten bei der Aufgabe, die diversen bruchstückhaften Informationen – darunter Warnungen aus dem Munde des Vaters des Attentäters – miteinander zu verknüpfen. Dies geschah, obwohl nach den Attacken des 11. Septembers 2001 wegen genau solcher damals ans Licht getretenen Schwächen neue Institutionen geschaffen worden waren. Dazu zählen das Nationale Anti-Terror-Zentrum und ein Direktorat der nationalen Nachrichtendienste. >>> Beat Ammann, Washington | Donnerstag, 07. Januar 2010

Iranische Justiz verschärft Internet-Zensur: Liste mit strafbaren «Vergehen» veröffentlicht
NZZ ONLINE: Die Justiz in Iran hat eine Verschärfung der Zensur im Internet verfügt und dazu eine lange Liste mit strafbaren «Vergehen» veröffentlicht.

Wie iranische Zeitungen berichteten, sind laut der von einem «Expertenaussschuss» zusammengestellten Liste nunmehr alle Websites verboten, deren Inhalte gegen die «soziale Moral», «religiöse Werte» oder «die Sicherheit und den sozialen Frieden» verstossen oder die «regierungsfeindlich» sind.

Unter das Verbot fallen auch Internetseiten, die den Gründer der Islamischen Republik Iran, Ayatollah Khomeiny, oder den obersten Geistlichen Führer, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, beleidigen. Verboten sind ferner Inhalte, die gegen die Verfassung verstossen oder für «feindliche politische Gruppen» werben. >>> sda/afp | Donnerstag, 07. Januar 2010

Small Man, Big Balls! France Plans 'Google Tax' on Internet Searches
THE TELEGRAPH: France is planning a "Google tax" on internet search websites to raise money to plough into creative industries weakened by the digital revolution.

The proposal, outlined in a government-commissioned survey, has set the scene for a new Gallic run-in with Google – fast becoming the global internet behemoth the world loves to hate.

The levy on advertising revenue is the latest plank in France's drive to regulate the internet, which has seen it enact some of the world's toughest antipiracy legislation.

Besides Google, the tax would target other large operators in Europe such as Microsoft and Yahoo! whether or not their offices are in France. Google's European headquarters are in Ireland, but under the proposal, the operator would pay a levy every time a French internet user clicks on an advertising banner or sponsored link on its sites.

Guillaume Cerutti, one of the authors of the report said the tax would put an end to "enrichment without any limit or compensation".

Google – which this week extended its empire with the launch of Nexus One, its first mobile phone – has annual internet advertising revenues in France alone of £720 million, according to the report's authors. They want France's competition watchdog to investigate whether it is respecting monopoly rules on internet advertising.

President Nicolas Sarkozy has repeatedly cast himself as a defender of France's cultural heritage from digital predators. Last month, he pledged £700 million to digitise France's national literary treasures and stop them falling into Google's hands. "We are not going to be stripped of our heritage for the benefit of a big company, no matter how friendly, big or American it is," he said. >>> Henry Samuel in Paris | Thursday, January 07, 2010

Roman Polanski Asks to Be Sentenced in Absentia
THE TELEGRAPH: Roman Polanski has asked a judge to sentence him in his absence for having sex with a 13-year-old girl more than three decades ago.

The request came in a letter signed by the film director in Switzerland, where he is under house arrest, and was submitted to a judge in Los Angeles.

It said Polanski understood he had the right to be present at all legal proceedings, but added: "I request that judgment be pronounced against me in my absence."

The request followed a ruling last month by an appeal court in California which suggested Polanski would not serve any additional time in jail of he agreed to being sentenced in his absence.

However, prosecutors who have long sought to bring him back to Los Angeles, said they would oppose any attempt to sentence him until he turns up in court there.

At a hearing in Los Angeles on Wednesday prosecutor David Walgren said Polanski should come back to California and not continue to fight the case "from the comfort of his Swiss chalet in the Alps." >>> Nick Allen in Los Angeles | Thursday, January 07, 2010

Un passager d’un vol Miami-Detroit voulait "tuer tous les juifs"
TRIBUNE DE GENÈVE: ARRESTATION | L’incident s’est produit alors que l’appareil s’apprêtait à décoller. L'individu a été arrêté.

Un homme qui s’apprêtait à effectuer mercredi soir un vol Miami-Detroit à bord d’un avion de la compagnie Northwest a été arrêté et placé en détention pour avoir notamment clamé qu’il voulait "tuer tous les juifs", a-t-on appris jeudi auprès de la police.

Mansor Mohammad Asad, 43 ans, originaire de l’Ohio (nord des Etats-Unis), "est en prison à Miami" et "devrait être inculpé", notamment pour menaces, conduite désordonnée et résistance à son arrestation, a indiqué Veronica Ferguson, porte-parole de la police du comté de Miami-Dade (Floride, sud-est). >>> AFP | Jeudi 07 Janvier 2010

Iran: Sous le voile de la terreur
Crédits photo : Paris Match
PARIS MATCH: A trois jours des manifestations de l'opposition, le régime iranien organise sa contre-manifestation et des milliers de personnes répondent à son appel dans les rues de Téhéran. La pression se fait de plus en plus forte sur les opposants. Chronique de la vie ordinaire à Téhéran par Violet-B, une jeune Iranienne.

Mercredi 30 décembre, je reçois un appel vers 5 heures du matin : « Aujourd’hui, entre 7 et 8 heures, aura lieu une cérémonie pour le neveu de Mir Hossein Moussavi [tué lors d’une manifestation trois jours plus tôt]. Si tu y vas, reste prudente. »

Quand j’arrive au cimetière Behesht Zahra, le plus grand d’Iran avec ses 400 hectares, il est truffé d’agents de sécurité. J’aperçois Moussavi, entouré de parents et d’amis, mais aussi de bassidjis qui photographient tous les gens présents. Tandis que je me voile le visage, un officier de police me glisse : « Si vous n’êtes pas de la famille, il vaut mieux que vous partiez. » Je demande pourquoi. Un homme en chemise noire et complet gris me répond que « la curiosité est un très vilain défaut »... Je m’en vais, troublée par ces étranges funérailles. >>> Violet-B Parsi, Paris Match | Jeudi 07 Janvier 2010

Türkei-Besuch von Westerwelle: Westerwelle fordert Türkei zu weiteren Reformen auf
ZEIT ONLINE: Während seines Türkei-Besuchs hat Außenminister Westerwelle eine EU-Mitgliedschaft des Landes nicht ausgeschlossen. Dafür müsse Ankara aber weitere Reformen umsetzen.

Als Auftakt seiner bislang längsten Auslandsreise äußerte sich Westerwelle als erster deutscher Außenminister in einer Rede vor den Auslandsbotschaftern, die in Ankara zu einer Konferenz zusammengekommen waren. Westerwelle hat die Türkei darin zu weiteren Reformen für eine Vollmitgliedschaft in der EU aufgefordert. "Wir alle wissen, dass Meinungs-, Presse- und Religionsfreiheit tragende Säulen unserer europäischen Wertegemeinschaft sind", sagte er. Das Reformwerk der Türkei auf ihrem Weg nach Europa sei "noch unvollendet". "Ich möchte Sie ermutigen, damit fortzufahren."

Als "Schlüssel" für Fortschritte in den Beitrittsverhandlungen bezeichnete Westerwelle die Zypern-Frage. Die Türkei müsse das sogenannte Ankara-Protokoll auch auf Zypern anwenden. Bisher weigert sich Ankara, die eigenen Häfen und Flughäfen auch für Schiffe und Flugzeuge aus Zypern zu öffnen. Begründet wird dies mit der Weigerung der EU, den seit 1974 von türkischen Truppen besetzten Nordteil der Insel als Staat anzuerkennen. >>> Zeit Online, dpa | Donnerstag, 07. Januar 2010

Signs of Enlightenment! France: Fines for Wearing the Burqah
MAIL ONLINE: Women who wear Islamic veils in public will be liable to a fine of more than £700 under strict new laws being formulated in France.

The amount could be doubled for Muslim men who force their wives or other female members of their family to cover their faces.

Jean-Francois Cope, president of Nicolas Sarkozy's ruling UMP Party in the French parliament, said the new legislation was intended to protect the 'dignity' and 'security' of women.

He is set to file the draft law in the National Assembly after Mr Sarkozy said veils are 'not welcome' as they intimidate and alienate non-Muslims, especially in a secular country like France.

'We want a ban in public areas,' said Mr Cope, making clear that the veil would not be allowed in public buildings, nor on the streets of France, as it encourages extremism.

Mr Cope said: 'The wearing of the burkha will be subject to a fine, probably of the 4th class, which is to say 750 euros.'

He said the fine would apply to 'all people on the public street whose face is entirely covered'. Women who wear burkhas and niqabs on the street in France face fines of more than £700 >>> Peter Allen | Thursday, January 07, 2010

Dark Age Alert! In Darkest Africa: Human Sacrifices on the Rise
THE TELEGRAPH: Witch doctors in Uganda have admitted their part in human sacrifice amid concerns that the practice is spreading in the African country.

One man said he had clients who had captured children and taken their blood and body parts to his shrine, while another confessed to killing at least 70 people including his own son.

The latter has now given up the ritual and is campaigning to stamp it out, according to BBC News.

The African country's government claimed human sacrifice was on the increase.

According to officials trying to tackle it, the crime is directly linked to rising levels of development and prosperity - and an increasing belief that witchcraft can help people get rich quickly. Human sacrifices 'on the rise in Uganda' as witch doctors admit to rituals >>> | Thursday, January 07, 2010

Islamization: Some People Are Too Dumb to Get It, Mr Pitcher!
THE TELEGRAPH – BLOGS: We Christians need to shape up apparently. Enough of this turning the other cheek, lovey-dovey self-sacrifice and expecting the meek to inherit the earth. We need a bit of moral fibre, ideological backbone and standing astride a broken piano sporting ammo belts and singing Rock of Ages would be nice too. We need some lead in the pencil and fire in the belly.

That seems to be the message from a couple of huge figures in the European Church this morning. According to Lord Carey, the former Archbishop of Canterbury, Christians have been “too soft” and have let others “walk over them” to avoid upsetting other faiths. And Miloslav Vlk, Archbishop of Prague, says that “Europeans systematically empty the Christian content of their lives.”

Carey’s comments came after an all-party group of parliamentarians warned that failing to limit immigration could put “social harmony” at risk. Vlk is more explicit: “Unless Christians wake up, life may be Islamised.” He blames secularism rather than Muslims and I agree with that, though I believe that the so-called “threat” of Islamification is way over-stated and a knicker-wetting bogeyman invented by not very bright nationalists. How do we put some lead in the Christian pencil? >>> George Pitcher | Thursday, January 07, 2010

Christenverfolgung: Siebenfacher Mord vor ägyptischer Kirche
WELT ONLINE: Aus einem vorbei fahrenden Auto heraus haben mutmaßlich radikale Islamisten in Ägypten das Feuer auf eine Gruppe koptischer Christen eröffnet. Sie kamen aus einer Messe – die Kopten feiern Weihnachten am 7. Januar. Bei dem Anschlag starb auch ein muslimischer Wachmann, neun Menschen wurden verletzt.

Schenouda III., Papst von Alexandrien und Oberhaupt der koptisch-orthodoxen Kirche in Ägypten, beim Gebet in der koptischen Kathedrale in Kairo. Bild: Welt Online
Muslimische Fanatiker haben vor einer Kirche in Oberägypten sechs koptische Christen und einen muslimischen Wachmann erschossen. Neun weitere Menschen wurden verletzt, als drei Männer aus einem vorbeifahrenden Auto heraus das Feuer auf die Gläubigen eröffneten. Es war der folgenschwerste Angriff auf koptische Christen in Ägypten seit zehn Jahren. Die Angreifer hätten wenig später auch noch ein Kloster beschossen.

Bischof Kirollos von der oberägyptischen Diözese Nag Hammadi (Provinz Kena) sagte, er selbst sei vermutlich das eigentliche Ziel der Mörder gewesen. Der Kirchenmann erklärte, er sei am Abend gegen 23 Uhr nach der Messe zum orthodoxen Weihnachtsfest mit seinem Auto von der Kirche weggefahren. Er merkte, dass ihn ein Wagen verfolgte und kehrte um. Als er vor dem Hintereingang des Gotteshauses eintraf, schossen seine Verfolger auf eine Gruppe von Oberschülern, die vor dem Gebäude miteinander plauderten. Der Bischof erklärte, er habe die Messe aus Sicherheitsgründen früher als sonst abgehalten. >>> dpa/AFP/jay | Donnerstag, 07. Januar 2010

Attack on Coptic Christians in Egypt Leaves 7 Dead
Egyptian Coptic Orthodox members perform prayers at the Coptic Cathedral in Cairo, Egypt, 07 Jan 2010. Photograph: Voice of America
VOICE OF AMERICA: At least seven Coptic Christians were killed and another half dozen were wounded - many seriously - after a Thursday morning drive-by shooting after a Christmas midnight mass in Nag Hamadi in Upper Egypt.



Egypt's Coptic Christian community was celebrating midnight mass on Christmas Day, according to the Coptic calendar, when the shooter sprayed a large crowd in front of the church with a hail of gunfire. Many died on the spot. Others were taken to the hospital, in serious condition.



Eyewitnesses indicate the crossroads in front of the Virgin Mary Church in Nag Hamadi was crowded because of the Christmas ceremony. The shooter escaped during the chaos.

Nag Hamadi is 64 kilometers from the famous Temple of Luxor. It has been racked by sectarian violence since the alleged sexual assault of a Muslim girl by a Christian man, in November. 



Muslim residents of the town ransacked, burned and looted Christian homes and shops for five days after the alleged incident.



Said Sadek, professor of political sociology at the American University of Cairo, says that the region of Upper Egypt where Nag Hamadi is located has a tribal culture and that the crime, or violence, or even sex can often take on a sectarian nature. >>> Edward Yeranian, Cairo | Thursday, January 07, 2010

Muslim Group Files Complaint against College
BOSTON HERALD: A Muslim-American advocacy group filed a complaint with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission over a Boston college’s policy that forbids face coverings, including traditional Islamic garb.

The Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences banned face coverings last fall, citing security and the need to be able to match students with their mandatory photo IDs, and a college spokesman says the only two female Muslim students on campus who might be affected had no objection.

But Ibrahim Hooper, spokesman for the Washington-based Council on American Islamic Relations, which filed the complaint, said, “Even though the policy refers to students it will clearly impact the staff and employees as well.” >>> O’Ryan Johnson | Thursday, January 07, 2010

Massachusetts College Bans Face Coverings, Muslims Outraged
DIGITAL JOURNAL: A Massachusetts college has banned students, faculty, and staff from wearing any kind of face covering, outraging some Muslim groups. The ban is believed to be the first of its kind at a U.S. college.

A spokesman for the Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences told the Boston Globe yesterday that the ban was intended to protect the public safety on its three campuses. The prohibition includes such items as ski masks and scarves, and is not specifically aimed at the traditional Islamic burka.

“It’s no surprise that college safety has become a huge issue of importance in the past couple years,” said college spokesman Michael Ratty. “This is another measure that public safety [officials] wanted to implement to keep the campus safer.” >>> Martin Laine | Wednesday, January 06, 2010

Pharmacy School Bars Covering of the Face
THE BOSTON GLOBE: The Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences has banned students, faculty, and staff from covering their faces on its three campuses in an effort to ensure public safety, a college spokesman said yesterday.

But the new policy has drawn flak from a Muslim civil rights and advocacy group, which wants the school to exempt Muslim women who veil their faces for religious reasons.

“It’s a very strange policy,’’ said Ibrahim Hooper, a spokesman for the Washington-based Council on American-Islamic Relations. “I don’t know where it came from. The only thing we can conclude is that it’s designed to specifically target Muslims.’’

Sarah Wunsch, staff attorney at the ACLU of Massachusetts, called the policy “puzzling and possibly illegal.’’ >>> Martin Finucane | Wednesday, January 6, 2010

New Dark Age Alert! Cardinal Says Christian Europe Is to Blame for Islamisation
THE TELEGRAPH: A leading Catholic cardinal has said Europeans only have themselves to blame for allowing Islam to "conquer" the continent.

Czech Cardinal Miloslav Vlk, the Archbishop of Prague. Photograph: The Telegraph
Czech Cardinal Miloslav Vlk, the Archbishop of Prague, said Muslims were well placed to fill the spiritual void "created as Europeans systematically empty the Christian content of their lives".

"Europe will pay dear for having left its spiritual foundations and that this is the last period that will not continue for decades when it may still have a chance to do something about it," he said.

"The Muslims definitely have many reasons to be heading here. They also have a religious one – to bring the spiritual values of faith in God to the pagan environment of Europe, to its atheistic style of life.

"Unless the Christians wake up, life may be Islamised and Christianity will not have the strength to imprint its character on the life of people, not to say society."

The 77-year-old cardinal made his remarks in an interview to mark his retirement after spending 19 years as the leader of the Czech Church.

He said he did not blame Muslims for the crisis as Europeans had brought it upon themselves by exchanging their Christian culture for an aggressive secularism that embraced atheism.

"Europe has denied its Christian roots from which it has risen and which could give it the strength to fend off the danger that it will be conquered by Muslims, which is actually happening gradually," he said. >>> Simon Caldwell | Wednesday, January 06, 2010

Buy Mark Alexander’s book: The Dawning of a New Dark Age >>>

Snow in Britain through the Years
Video: BBC archive film shots >>> | Wednesday, January 06, 2010

"On interdit la burqa, point barre!"
LE FIGARO: Nicolas Dupont-Aignan, président de Debout la République, a estimé aujourd'hui sur Radio Classique qu'il fallait "interdire la burqa, point barre", jugeant que le port du voile intégral était "une coutume barbare, une prison pour les femmes".



"L'affaire de la burqa, ce n'est pas une affaire religieuse. C'est une coutume barbare, une prison pour les femmes", a déclaré le député, en soulignant que la France avait interdit "le lancer de nain". >>> AFP | Mercredi 06 Janvier 2010

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