THE TELEGRAPH: Gordon Brown lost for words as father confronts him on education: Gordon Brown appeared lost for words as a father angrily challenged him in the street over Labour’s record on education. >>> Gordon Rayner, Chief Reporter | Thursday, April 08, 2010
Thursday, April 08, 2010
THE TELEGRAPH: Gordon Brown lost for words as father confronts him on education: Gordon Brown appeared lost for words as a father angrily challenged him in the street over Labour’s record on education. >>> Gordon Rayner, Chief Reporter | Thursday, April 08, 2010
THE TELEGRAPH: Kyrgyzstan's new self-proclaimed leader has dissolved the country's parliament as she moved to consolidate power following a bloody revolution on Wednesday that left at least 68 people dead.
Roza Otunbayeva, a former foreign minister turned opposition leader, told a press conference she would rule for six months before calling new elections.
Mrs Otunbayeva promised free and fair elections in half a year and said she would move the country towards genuine democracy.
"Maybe it was a people's revolution, maybe a people's revolt, or maybe it was a people's rebuff," she said of Wednesday's bloody events. "Whatever it was, we want to say no to tyranny and want to build democracy." She blamed the old regime led by President Kurmanbek Bakiyev for the bloodshed.
"It was the authorities' responsibility. It was a response to their repression, tyranny and aggression." According to the latest figures from the country's health ministry, at least 68 people died and more than 500 were wounded when opposition supporters fought pitched battles with riot police in Bishkek, the capital, and in other towns across the Central Asian country on Wednesday. Analysts said people were angered by the ousted government's corruption, increasingly repressive measures and recent price hikes for basic utilities.
Mrs Otunbayeva said that President Bakiyev had fled the capital to the southern region of Jalal-Abad in a desperate attempt to regroup. She complained that Mr Bakiyev was refusing to formally resign and was trying instead to rally support. But she said his political career was finished and that a decree stripping him of his powers had already been published.
"We want to negotiate his resignation," she said. "His business here is over." >>> Andrew Osborn in Moscow | Thursday, April 08, 2010
Related:
THE TELEGRAPH: Street Battles Leave Kyrgyzstan on Brink of Revolution >>> Andrew Osborn in Moscow | Wednesday, April 07, 2010
YAHOO NEWS!: A suspected shoebomber wrestled into submission by air marshalls as fighter jets were scrambled has turned out to be a Qatari diplomat reportedly trying to secretly smoke in the plane's toilet.
The man, who has not been named, was on board United Airlines flight 663 from Washington DC to Denver, Colorado.
Security officials have said he spent a suspicious amount of time in the toilet and other passengers could smell smoke when he emerged.
When the man told US air marshalls he had been trying to set fire to his shoes, jets were scrambled.
The Boeing 757 eventually landed safely at its destination and the suspect has been taken into custody. >>> Sky News | Thursday, April 08, 2010
THE TELEGRAPH: An angry Chinese protestor has attempted to throw ink over the famed giant portrait of Chairman Mao Zedong that hangs in Beijing's Tiananmen Square, police in China have confirmed.
Police wrestled the man to the ground last weekend after he threw a bottle of ink at the portrait, a potent symbol of Communist Party power which hangs on the Tiananmen gate tower where Chairman Mao declared a new republic 60 years ago.
"At around 13:35pm, April 5 2010, a man was put under control after he threw a plastic bottle of ink towards the Tiananmen gate tower," the Beijing Municipal Public Security Bureau confirmed in a statement faxed to The Telegraph.
The audacious attack echoes the 1989 Tiananmen Square protest when three young men threw ink-filled eggs at the portrait in a gesture of defiance against China' Communist ruling party that resonated around the world. >>> Peter Foster in Beijing | Thursday, April 08, 2010
FRANCE 24: The trademark suit sported by North Korean leader Kim Jong-Il is now in fashion worldwide thanks to his greatness, Pyongyang's official website said Wednesday.
Uriminzokkiri, quoting an article in communist party newspaper Rodong Sinmun, said the modest-looking suits have gripped people's imagination and become a global vogue.
"The reason is that the august image of the Great General, who is always wearing the modest suit while working, leaves a deep impression on people's mind in the world," it said.
"To sum it up, that is because his image as a great man is so outstanding."
The article quoted an unidentified French fashion expert as saying world fashion follows Kim Jong-Il's style.
"Kim Jong-Il mode which is now spreading expeditiously worldwide is something unprecedented in the world's history," the stylist was quoted as saying. N.Korea leader sets world fashion trend: Pyongyang >>> AFP | Wednesday, April 07, 2010
*Sound effect courtesy of People Sound Effects
THE TELEGRAPH: Thousands of protesters fought running battles with police in Kyrgyzstan in an uprising that left the former Soviet republic on the brink of revolution.
Opposition activists seized the parliament building and laid siege to the government headquarters. The country’s deputy prime minister was taken hostage and there were reports from police that the interior minister had been killed. The main state television station was overrun and by early afternoon the president had declared a state of emergency.
Reports suggested about 100 people were killed and 180 wounded, although the death toll is expected to rise with witnesses describing piles of dead bodies in the streets.
Last night a Kyrgyz opposition leader announced on state radio that Prime Minister Daniyar Usenov had signed a letter of resignation. It was also announced that a provisional government had been formed with former foreign minsiter Roza Otunbayeva at its head. President Kurmanbek Bakiyev, who reportedly fled Bishkek, is yet to formally resign himself.
“Power is now in the hands of the people’s government,” Ms Otunbayeva said in an address on state radio.
“Responsible people have been appointed and are already working to normalize the situation.”
Spokesmen for the government and the president were not available for comment.
The United States, which uses an air base at Manas in Kyrgyzstan to supply troops in Afghanistan, called for calm, saying it was “deeply concerned” by events. >>> Andrew Osborn in Moscow | Wednesday, April 07, 2010
RUSSIA TODAY: Unrest allegedly forces Kyrgyz president to flee country: Kyrgyzstan President Kurmanbek Bakiyev has fled the country following clashes between police and anti-government protesters, according to some reports, and the opposition claims to have set up a provisional government. >>> | Publish Wednesday, April 07, 2010; Edited Thursday, April 08, 2010
LE MONDE: Etat d’urgence décrété au Kirghizistan >>> LeMond.fr avec AFP | Mercredi 07 Avril 2010
Wednesday, April 07, 2010
CYBERPRESSE: Le premier ministre Stephen Harper a qualifié de totalement inacceptables des commentaires attribués au président afghan Hamid Karzaï concernant une alliance éventuelle avec les talibans.
M. Harper a rappelé, mercredi, que des Canadiens et Canadiennes risquent leur vie pour aider les Afghans dans leur lutte contre les talibans. Et même s'il admet ne pas connaître le contexte dans lequel le président Karzaï aurait fait ces commentaires, M. Harper estime qu'ils sont totalement inacceptables pour le Canada et ses alliés. >>> La Presse Canadienne, Mississauga, Ontario | Mercredi 07 Avril 2010
TRIBUNE DE GENÈVE: OSLO | Après plusieurs pays ces derniers mois, la Norvège a été à son tour frappée mercredi par un scandale de prêtre catholique pédophile, une affaire qui remonte à près de 20 ans et dont le Vatican avait eu connaissance dès le début de l'année dernière.
Georg Müller, un évêque d'origine allemande de 58 ans, a reconnu sous la pression de ses supérieurs avoir abusé sexuellement d'un enfant de choeur lorsqu'il était simple prêtre à Trondheim, dans le centre de la Norvège, a annoncé l'Eglise catholique du pays scandinave.
Evêque de la troisième ville de Norvège pendant douze ans, il avait subitement quitté ses fonctions en juin dernier, officiellement en raison d'"incompatibilités de travail" avec d'autres religieux.
"Georg Müller a admis être coupable d'abus sexuels sur un mineur et que c'est la raison de son départ de ses fonctions l'an dernier", a déclaré l'actuel évêque de Trondheim et d'Oslo, Bernt Eidsvig, confirmant des informations du quotidien Adresseavisen.
"C'est une affaire très triste, mais je prie pour toutes les personnes impliquées et pour que l'Eglise sorte de tout ceci", a-t-il dit au journal local.
Depuis fin 2009, l'Eglise catholique est secouée par des révélations en série d'abus pédophiles commis par des religieux, souvent couverts par leur hiérarchie, en Europe, notamment en Irlande et Allemagne, et aux Etats-Unis.
Ces dernières semaines, le pape Benoît XVI a lui-même été mis en cause par des médias allemands et américains pour avoir, selon eux, gardé le silence sur des abus quand il était archevêque à Munich puis chef de la Congrégation pour la Doctrine de la foi au Vatican.
Le Vatican a confirmé mercredi avoir été informé l'an dernier du cas en Norvège, qui remonte au début des années 90 et qui est prescrit. >>> AFP | Mercredi 07 Avril 2010
TRIBUNE DE GENÈVE: TROUBLES POLITIQUES | Le premier ministre Abhisit Vejjajiva a déclaré l’état d’urgence dans la capitale, donnant de larges pouvoirs à l’armée pour mettre fin aux manifestations des «Chemises rouges».
M. Abhisit a annoncé la mesure à la télévision après l’irruption d’opposants au Parlement et l’évacuation de responsables du gouvernement par hélicoptère. Certains députés ont escaladé les murs de l’enceinte parlementaire pour s’enfuir.
L’état d’urgence autorise l’intervention de l’armée pour rétablir l’ordre public, la suspension de certaines libertés publiques et l’interdiction de toute rassemblement public de plus de cinq personnes. >>> AFP | Mercredi 07 Avril 2010
THE TELEGRAPH: Balthasar Garzon, the crusading Spanish judge famed for his attempt to extradite Augusto Pinochet from Britain is to be put on trial for abuse of power.
Spain's Supreme Court ruled on Wednesday he "knowingly acting without jurisdiction" when he launched an investigation into crimes perpetrated under Gen Francisco Franco.
Magistrate Luciano Varela ruled he had "consciously ignored" an amnesty decreed in parliament in 1977 designed to draw a line under past abuses and aid Spain's smooth transition to democracy.
The decision marked a devastating fall from grace for Spain's most prominent and controversial judge who gained fame worldwide for using the Spanish doctrine of universal jurisdiction to pursue human rights abuses.
He came to international prominence in the late 1990s with the pursuit of Chilean military ruler Augusto Pinochet for human rights abuses. He has also investigated atrocities by Argentina's former military regime, indicted Osama bin Laden over the September 11 attacks and pursued American authorities over torture allegations in Guantánamo. He has also questioned the legality of war in Iraq and tried unsuccessfully to prosecute Italian premier Silvio Berlusconi for tax fraud.
He now faces immediate suspension from the National Court where he serves as magistrate until the case against him is heard.
The 54-year-old judge polarised Spain when he launched a probe into the country's darkest era more than 70 years after the start of the Civil War and 33 years after the death of the fascist dictator Gen Franco.
He was accused of breaking a pact of silence and reopening old wounds with a criminal investigation into the fate of 114,000 people who "vanished" during the 1936-39 conflict and ensuing dictatorship.
He declared that a "virtual genocide" had been carried out by Franco and his henchmen and that such crimes should be investigated as a form of "institutional rehabilitation to counter the official silence". >>> Fiona Govan in Madrid | Wednesday, April 07, 2010
THE TELEGRAPH: Judge Balthasar Garzon has earned the moniker in Spain of "superjuez" – super-judge – for his crusading zeal in pursing high-profile wrongdoers both at home and abroad.
The charismatic silver haired magistrate, who is married and has three children, is seen as a hero by leftists and international human rights groups but reviled equally by those who accuse him of egotism and pursuing his own grievances.
The son of a petrol-pump attendant, he was born in October 1955 in Torres, Andalucia, and as a committed Roman Catholic began studying for the priesthood before changing to law.
He became a provincial judge aged 23 and was the youngest ever magistrate to join the National Court in Madrid, aged just 32 where he made a name in cases of crimes against humanity, corruption, organised crime and terrorism cases.
Instinctively left-wing having been brought up in the dying days of Franco's regime he briefly gave up the bench to run for parliament as an "independent" socialist candidate but resigned months later complaining that it was impossible to tackle corruption from within. >>> Fiona Govan in Madrid | Wednesday, April 07, 2010
THE TELEGRAPH: Nicolas Sarkozy's campaign to find out who started rumours alleging he and his wife were having affairs threatened to spiral into an affair of state, amid reports claiming that his former justice minister was bugged to see whether she instigated them.
Mr Sarkozy said last month he did not have "half a minute" to spare on "idiotic" rumours over the state of his marriage after they appeared on Twitter and the blog on the website of a respected weekly newspaper.
But just when the buzz over the rumour that Carla Bruni-Sarkozy had an affair with the musician Benjamin Biolay while her husband sought solace in the arms of Chantal Jouanno, his ecology minister, began to fade, the presidents' aides launched a virulent counter-attack this week.
Pierre Charon, Mr Sarkozy's chief communication adviser, promised to wage a campaign of terror against rumour-mongers, apparently pointing the finger at the president's former justice minister, Rachida Dati, and suggesting there may be a concerted plot by foreign "financial" circles to discredit the president because he preaches regulating global capitalism. The name of Dominique de Villepin, Mr Sarkozy's arch-rival, was also thrown into the mix by other Elysée sources.
Yesterday, sources were claiming that French domestic intelligence had bugged the phone calls of Miss Dati, a fallen cabinet star and now the mayor of Paris' 7th arrondissement and an MEP, and surmised that she had either started or spread the rumours.
A government spokesman denied the bugging claims, but Mr Sarkozy's chief adviser yesterday said the president "does not want to see Rachida Dati anymore", apparently confirming he holds her at least in part responsible for the rumours. >>> Henry Samuel in Paris | Wednesday, April 07, 2010
Related / Liens en relation avec l’article:
LE FIGARO: Face aux rumeurs, Dati se dit «scandalisée» >>> Par figaro.fr le | Mercredi 07 Avril 2010
LE POINT: Rumeurs sur la vie privée du couple présidentiel : RÉACTION - Me Herzog, avocat de Sarkozy : "Je ne peux pas exclure que ce soit une machination" >>> Par Cyriel Martin | Mardi 06 Avril 2010
THE TELEGRAPH: Carla Bruni attempts to calm storm over marriage rumours: The scandal surrounding rumours over the state of Nicolas Sarkozy's marriage last night threatened to spiral into an affair of state. >>> Henry Samuel in Paris | Wednesday, April 07, 2010
LE FIGARO: Rumeurs : pour Carla Sarkozy, «il n'y a pas de complot» : «Il n'y a pas de vengeance, ces rumeurs insignifiantes ne nous concernent en rien», assure la première dame, qui dément également l'existence d'une enquête sur l'origine des ragots. Une version contredite par le patron du renseignement intérieur. >>> Par Constance Jamet | Mercredi 07 Avril 2010
TIMES ONLINE: Nicolas Sarkozy pays for not letting rumour die: President Sarkozy’s attempts to quash rumours about problems in his marriage have backfired after his advisers spoke out about an international plot, blamed a glamorous former minister and ordered the state security service to investigate. >>> Charles Bremner, Paris | Thursday, April 08, 2010
LE MONDE: Policiers et membres de l'opposition se sont affrontés, mercredi 7 avril, dans les rues de Bichkek, la capitale du Kirghizistan, après l'arrestation, la veille, de trois chefs de l'opposition kirghize. Entre 3 000 et 5 000 manifestants de l'opposition ont forcé les forces de l'ordre à battre en retraite et se sont ensuite rassemblés devant la présidence kirghize pour réclamer la démission du chef de l'Etat, Kourmanbek Bakiev. Au moins douze personnes auraient trouvé la mort lors des affrontements. Le ministre de l'intérieur a été tué dans la ville de Talas ; le premier ministre a décrété l'état d'urgence dans tout le pays.
La capitale kirghize est en proie à la violence. Selon le ministre de la santé, on dénombre au moins une centaine de blessés. Les policiers ont tiré des grenades assourdissantes et pulvérisé du gaz lacrymogène. En réponse, ceux-ci ont jeté des pierres et endommagé les véhicules des forces de l'ordre à l'aide de bâtons. Selon le correspondant de l'AFP, la police a dû se barricader dans le bâtiment du siège de l'opposition.
Des manifestants ont pris le contrôle du siège de la télévision kirghize, qui n'émet plus, après que des centaines de manifestants sont entrés de force dans l'immeuble. "Des jeunes, la plupart ivres, ont pris le contrôle du bâtiment de la télévision, ils ont tout cassé à l'intérieur et volé les équipements", a raconté un haut responsable de la télévision d'Etat, sous couvert de l'anonymat. L'affrontement se durcit entre opposants et autorités au Kirghizistan >>> LeMond.fr avec AFP | Mercredi 07 Avril 2010
WIKI: Kyrgyzstan >>>
LE FIGARO: «Il faut que ça cesse», a martelé mercredi matin l'ex-garde des Sceaux, qui dément avoir propagé des on-dit sur le couple Sarkozy et réaffirme sa loyauté envers le chef de l'Etat.
Rachida Dati contre-attaque. Au cœur de la tourmente depuis que la presse cite son nom dans l'affaire des rumeurs sur la vie privée du couple Sarkozy, l'ex-garde des Sceaux a demandé mercredi matin sur RTL à ce que «ça cesse». «Les rumeurs, les calomnies, les ragots sur la vie personnelle et en général sont absolument inadmissibles et scandaleux. Je suis mise en cause indirectement et donc je trouve ça extrêmement scandaleux», s'est insurgée la députée européenne. >>> Par figaro.fr le | Mercredi 07 Avril 2010
WELT ONLINE: Ein US-Bürger ist wegen illegalen Grenzübertritts nach Nordkorea von einem Gericht in dem kommunistischen Staat zu acht Jahren harter Arbeit verurteilt worden. Der tiefreligiöse frühere Englischlehrer hat sich in allen Anklagepunkten schuldig bekannt. Ihm wurden "feindselige Aktivitäten" zur Last gelegt.
Nordkorea hat einen US-Bürger wegen illegaler Einreise zu acht Jahren Arbeitslager verurteilt. Der 30-jährige Lehrer habe die Vorwürfe gestanden, meldete die amtliche Nachrichtenagentur KCNA.
Der Kirchenaktivist aus Boston war im Januar in das abgeschottete kommunistische Land gereist. Er könnte dies aus Solidarität zu dem US-Missionar Robert Park gemacht haben, sagte ein anderer Aktivist. Park hatte die Grenze an Weihnachten überquert, um auf Menschenrechtsverletzungen aufmerksam zu machen und war danach festgenommen worden. Im Februar wurde er freigelassen.
Aijalon Mahli Gomes wurden „feindselige Aktivitäten“ zur Last gelegt. Gomes hatte in Südkorea als Englischlehrer gearbeitet. Den nordkoreanischen Angaben zufolge überquerte er am 25. Januar von China aus die Grenze nach Nordkorea. >>> AFP/dpa/Reuters/fas | Mittwoch, 07. April 2010
Related:
MAIL ONLINE: Stephen Robinson: Drunken Racist Buffoon Who Bewitched A Blonde Liberal >>> Stephen Robinson | Easter Monday, April 05, 2010
THE NEW YORK TIMES: WASHINGTON — The Obama administration has taken the extraordinary step of authorizing the targeted killing of an American citizen, the radical Muslim cleric Anwar al-Awlaki, who is believed to have shifted from encouraging attacks on the United States to directly participating in them, intelligence and counterterrorism officials said Tuesday.
Mr. Awlaki, who was born in New Mexico and spent years in the United States as an imam, is in hiding in Yemen. He has been the focus of intense scrutiny since he was linked to Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan, the Army psychiatrist accused of killing 13 people at Fort Hood, Tex., in November, and then to Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, the Nigerian man charged with trying to blow up a Detroit-bound airliner on Dec. 25.
American counterterrorism officials say Mr. Awlaki is an operative of Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, the affiliate of the terror network in Yemen and Saudi Arabia. They say they believe that he has become a recruiter for the terrorist network, feeding prospects into plots aimed at the United States and at Americans abroad, the officials said.
It is extremely rare, if not unprecedented, for an American to be approved for targeted killing, officials said. A former senior legal official in the administration of George W. Bush said he did not know of any American who was approved for targeted killing under the former president.
But the director of national intelligence, Dennis C. Blair, told a House hearing in February that such a step was possible. “We take direct actions against terrorists in the intelligence community,” he said. “If we think that direct action will involve killing an American, we get specific permission to do that.” He did not name Mr. Awlaki as a target.
The step taken against Mr. Awlaki, which occurred earlier this year, is a vivid illustration of his rise to prominence in the constellation of terrorist leaders. But his popularity as a cleric, whose lectures on Islamic scripture have a large following among English-speaking Muslims, means any action against him could rebound against the United States in the larger ideological campaign against Al Qaeda.
The possibility that Mr. Awlaki might be added to the target list was reported by The Los Angeles Times in January, and Reuters reported on Tuesday that he was approved for capture or killing. >>> Scott Shane | Tuesday, April 06, 2010
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