Wednesday, June 01, 2011
Ahmad Vahidi was invited to Bolivia by the country's Defence Ministry and attended a military ceremony in the city of Santa Cruz [de la Sierra] on Tuesday in the presence of Evo Morales, the Bolivian president.
He is on an Interpol wanted list over the bomb attack in the Argentine capital 17 years ago that killed 85 people and injured up to 300, making it the country's worst terrorist attack.
Argentina believes he planned the attack on the seven-storey Argentine Israeli Mutual Association (AIMA) building and gave the final go ahead for the bombing.
Alberto Nisman, the lead prosecutor investigating the attack, contacted Interpol's offices in Bolivia to demand Vahidi's arrest as soon as Argentina became aware that he was in South America.
But Vahidi was travelling on a diplomatic passport granting him immunity from arrest and Bolivia instead told him that he must leave the country.
Jewish groups in Argentina were outraged by Vahidi's visit to a neighbouring country with Guillermo Borger, president of the AIMA describing it as "a provocation" and "a joke".
"It is a mockery and an affront that a friendly country such as Bolivia receives a minister accused of masterminding an attack that left 85 people dead," he said. » | Robin Yapp, São Paulo | Wednesday, June 01, 2011
Mohammed Hasnath, 18, posted stickers warning gays that homosexuality was wrong and that "Allah is severe in punishment".
The stickers showed a rainbow flag with a black line through it stating "Gay free zone".
They caused outrage among the community, with one Jewish resident said it reminded him of Nazi signs his mother had faced in the 30s declaring an area a "Jew free zone".
Others said it made them fearful for their safety.
Hasnath, who is on benefits, admitted putting up a handful of the notes but said he had been given them, and pointed out there were "hundreds" of similar offensive stickers in the area.
Darren Watts, prosecuting, said: "This is in relation to a series of homophobic stickers put up around the East End area in February."
The stickers, which were posted at Bow Church DLR, on the inside of a bus, at a bus stop in Whitechapel and outside the Royal London Hospital, showed a rainbow flag with a black line through it.
Above the flag was printed "Arise and warn" and below it said "And fear Allah: Verily Allah is severe in punishment." Both were followed by references to the English version of the Koran. » | Wednesday, June 01, 2011
Luc Ferry, a French philosopher who was in government from 2002 to 2004, told a TV chat show that an unnamed minister had been "caught" taking part in "an orgy with little boys" in the tourist town of Marrakesh.
"All of us here probably all know who I'm talking about," he told Le Grand Journal on channel Canal Plus on Monday night. Asked if he had any proof, he said: "Of course not. But I have testimony from cabinet members at the highest level, state authorities at the highest level."
He said he received the information from top government sources, "particularly from the prime minister", suggesting that reporting of the affair never reached the public due to strict libel and privacy laws.
Mr Ferry declined to name the former minister, implying that he feared France's notoriously strict libel laws. "If I let his name out now, it's me who will be charged and doubtlessly convicted, even if I know that the story is true."
His comments came amid an emotive national debate over whether journalists had failed to lift the lid on cases of sexual harassment because politicians' private lives have long been deemed off limits. » | Henry Samuel, Paris | Wednesday, June 01, 2011
Hamburg - Die USA wähnen sich im Internet-Krieg - und behalten sich vor, künftig mit konventionellen Mitteln auf Hacker-Angriffe zu reagieren. Setzt ein Land Viren, Würmer und Trojaner in Bewegung, riskiert es eine Vergeltung durch Kampfjets, Panzer und Bodentruppen. "Wer die Stromnetze unseres Landes sabotiert, muss mit Raketen im Schornstein rechnen", sagte ein Pentagon-Sprecher dem "Wall Street Journal". Der Cyberwar soll nicht länger nur virtuell geführt werden.
Es ist ein Vorgeschmack auf eine neue Strategie der US-Regierung. Das Verteidigungsministerium ist derzeit dabei, formale Regeln zum Umgang mit Internet-Angriffen aufzustellen. Nach jahrelanger Diskussion soll die Cyber-Doktrin jetzt in Kraft treten. 30 Seiten umfasst die Strategie, Teile davon sollen im Juni vorgestellt werden. Kernbestandteil: Sollte ein Cyber-Angriff die Energieversorgung stören, Krankenhäuser ausschalten und somit viele Menschenleben in Gefahr bringen, wird zurückgeschlagen.
Mehr als 100 ausländische Geheimdienste würden versuchen, in amerikanische Rechnernetze einzudringen, warnte ein Pentagon-Sprecher. Einige der Angreifer seien in der Lage, die Kommunikationsnetze zum Erliegen zu bringen - doch bei den meisten Attacken ist das gar nicht die Absicht. Viel öfter geht es um geheime Informationen, um Spionage. Menschenleben sind hier zunächst nur indirekt betroffen. » | Von Ole Reißmann | Mittwoch 01. Juni 2011
Le chef de file de l’extrême droite néerlandaise Geert Wilders ne donnera pas de conférence le 11 juin en Suisse.
Après le refus de la commune de Savièse (VS) de laisser une salle à disposition, Oskar Freysinger, en accord avec le locataire d’une autre salle, «a décidé d’annuler la conférence pour des raisons de sécurité».
Cette décision a été prise «en accord avec Geert Wilders», précise le communiqué de l’UDC Valais romand diffusé mardi soir. Le Néerlandais avait été invité par le conseiller national UDC à donner une conférence sur l’islam à Savièse.
Jeudi passé, les autorités communales avait refusé de louer la halle des fêtes de la localité pour cette conférence, en évoquant des problèmes de sécurité. » | ATS | Mercredi 01 Juin 2011
La présidente du Front national Marine Le Pen a écrit aux 577 députés de l'Assemblée nationale pour leur demander d'abroger la possibilité d'avoir une double nationalité, française et étrangère, qu'elle juge être une "atteinte à la cohésion républicaine". "La multiplicité des appartenances à d'autres nations contribue aujourd'hui, et d'une manière de plus en plus préoccupante, à affaiblir chez nos compatriotes l'acceptation d'une communauté de destin, et par là même à miner les fondements de l'action de l'État", écrit la présidente du parti d'extrême droite, dans ce courrier révélé mercredi par France Soir et dont l'Agence France-Presse a eu une copie. » | Source AFP | Mercredi 01 Juin 2011
Arrestations massives, rafles nocturnes, pillages, exécutions sommaires en pleine rue, consignes de viols données à haut niveau, disparitions en grand nombre, fosses communes: en l'absence de témoins étrangers, c'est un véritable drame humanitaire à huis clos qui serait en train de se jouer à Tripoli.
Confronté à une pression internationale accrue, Mouammar Kadhafi s'est lancé dans une fuite en avant, instaurant dans la capitale et sa région un climat de terreur qui ne cesse de se renforcer, selon diverses sources. Des «informations parcellaires mais concordantes» ont en effet été obtenues en ce sens, notamment auprès de personnes ayant fui le régime, par des organisations des droits de l'homme, des diplomates et des services de renseignements occidentaux. «C'est une politique de la terre brûlée, visant à maintenir l'effroi dans la capitale et à empêcher tout soulèvement dans la capitale», souligne-t-on à Paris, où l'on ne cache pas une «forte inquiétude».
Selon un diplomate proche du dossier, le bilan de ces exactions s'élève à «plusieurs milliers de morts, peut-être plus de 10.000», en trois mois à Tripoli. Un chiffre moins important que les 20.000 tués annoncés le mois dernier par la rébellion, mais très considérable néanmoins pour une ville de deux millions d'habitants. Quelque 20.000 personnes ont été arrêtées, ajoute-t-on de même source. «Kadhafi étant capable de tout et notamment du pire, on ne peut avoir à l'avenir que de mauvaises surprises», s'alarme-t-on au Quai d'Orsay [en anglais]. » | Par Alain Barluet | Mercredi 01 Juin 2011
Du fond de sa cellule moscovite, Mikhaïl Khodorkovski a reçu, mardi, un maigre coup de pouce de la justice internationale. La Cour européenne des droits de l'homme (CEDH) a reconnu la Russie coupable de huit infractions relatives aux conditions d'interpellation et de détention préventive de 2003 à 2005, de l'ancien oligarque. La haute juridiction de Strasbourg a néanmoins refusé, comme le souhaitait les plaignants, de voir un «motif politique» derrière la décision des autorités judiciaires russes. » | Par Pierre Avril | Mercredi 01 Juin 2011
The former head of one of Egypt's biggest banks has been granted bail after being arrested and charged with sexually assaulting a maid at a luxury hotel in New York.
The arrest of Mahmoud Abdel-Salam Omar on Monday came two weeks after the then International Monetary Fund chief, Dominique Strauss-Kahn, was charged with trying to rape a hotel maid at another Manhattan hotel.
Strauss-Kahn, who is under house arrest in New York, has denied charges of a criminal sexual act, attempted rape, sexual abuse, unlawful imprisonment and forcible touching.
Manhattan criminal court judge Gerald Lebovits granted 72-year-old Omar bail for $25,000 (£15,000) cash and a $50,000 bond. » | Reuters in New York | Wednesday, June 01, 2011
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Arab suburbs in East Jerusalem could be forcibly rebranded with Hebrew names, under plans being considered by Israel's parliament.
The controversial initiative is designed to entrench Israeli "ownership" of East Jerusalem, which was captured by Israel in the Six Day War of 1967 and subsequently annexed – a move that has not been recognised by the international community.
The bill was introduced by Tzippi Hotovely, a prominent hawk in the Likud party of Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister. It is understood to have the support of a majority in the Israeli parliament, the Knesset, which has been accused of passing a series of anti-Palestinian laws in recent years.
Under the bill, Israeli television channels would be instructed to refer to the suburbs only by their new Hebrew names.
"The goal of the initiative is to strengthen the connection with Jerusalem by making it obligatory to give Hebrew names to neighbourhoods in the capital with Jewish residents," Miss Hotovely wrote in her proposal for the bill. "It is important that the neighbourhoods no longer be called by their Arab names." » | Adrian Blomfield, Jerusalem | Tuesday, May 31, 2011
The parliamentarians passed a new law on Tuesday, aimed at distancing the country from its former master Russia.
Ties between Russia and Georgia have soured since President Mikheil Saakashvili ousted post-Soviet leader Eduard Shevardnadze in the 2003 "Rose Revolution" and vowed to move the country out of Moscow's sphere of influence.
"Our people have been waiting for this law to be passed for 20 years and I'm proud that it is passed by this parliament," said Gia Tortladze, an opposition lawmaker who proposed the law.
The so-called Freedom Charter will set up a commission led by the Interior Ministry to identify symbols, monuments, inscriptions, street and park names "that may reflect or contain elements of Soviet or fascist ideology" and consider their removal.
The law will also prevent former KGB agents and senior Communist party officials from occupying high-ranking positions in government. » | Tuesday, May 31, 2011
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Tourists who attempt to stroll bare-chested or in swimwear through the streets of Barcelona will be ordered to cover up or face fines of up to £260 under a ban that came into force this week
The Catalan capital has prohibited beachwear beyond the playa in an attempt to clean up its image and rid the city streets of unsightly flesh.
The by-law has been introduced following a long campaign by residents and local businesses sick of the sight of tourists wandering around the streets, dining in restaurants and visiting shops in various states of undress.
"Some people who live here are bothered by tourists who go about wearing just a bikini in the street, or men with their shirts off," said Assumpta Escarp, a Barcelona councillor who fought for the ban.
"We have to maintain standards." » | Fiona Govan, Madrid | Tuesday, May 31, 2011
Mr Ben Ali ruled Tunisia for 24 years until he was ousted in January by a popular movement which sparked copycat uprisings across the Arab world.
Mr Ben Ali's son-in-law Sakher Materi fled to Qatar after the fall of the government.
Other members of the Ben Ali family live in the United Arab Emirates and in Canada.
"Qatar has issued an order to freeze the funds and assets of the deposed president and his wife in response to a letter from the Tunisian minister of justice," said Kathem Zine el Abidine, a ministry spokesman. » | Tuesday, May 31, 2011
Syrian state television said the amnesty covers all crimes committed before May 31.
It could affect 10,000 people who have been rounded up during the protests, according to activists, and includes prisoners belonging to political parties, including the outlawed Muslim Brotherhood.
The arrests were part of the government's harsh repression of a two-month-old popular uprising demanding Mr Assad's resignation. Mr Assad has offered gestures before, like cancelling hated emergency laws in effect for decades, but the demonstrations have grown and spread through much of the country.
Protesters say that in spite of the cancellation of the laws that gave security officers the power to arrest people without formal justification, Mr Assad's forces have rounded up thousands of people for protesting against his government.
Human rights groups say over 1,000 protesters have been killed in harsh response against protests, including live fire and tank shelling. » | Tuesday, May 31, 2011
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Col Muammar Gaddafi is plotting to unleash a wave of retaliatory attacks in the vaccuum of power if he is forced from the presidency.
His regime has handed out thousands of weapons to ordinary civilians, saying they would turn Libya into a "living hell" if Nato ground forces invade.
He is also gathering a coterie of young members of his own tribe around him to make a last stand as his regular forces are depleted by defections and Nato bombing.
Anti-Gaddafi activists fear they could unleash a wave of killings and revenge attacks if Col Gaddafi is forced out whether by western military might or negotiations.
“The reason why people are given guns now is because Gaddafi wants it to be chaos whether he is in power or out of power,” said one activist living in a suburb of southern Tripoli.
The regime is playing up the spectre of a wave of vengeance similar to post-2003 Iraq rather than denying it. Moussa Ibrahim, the chief spokesman, said even if there were a negotiated solution opposition leaders like Mustafa Abdul Jalil, chairman of the Benghazi-based Transitional National Council, would be targeted by loyalists.
“Jalil will never be safe in Libya,” he said. “He would be killed, such is the hatred we have for him. He would have to live with permanent security guards.” » | Richard Spencer, Tripoli | Wednesday, June 01, 2011
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: A teenage Muslim girl has been stoned to death in Ukraine after taking part in a beauty contest, it has been claimed.
The body of 19-year-old Katya Koren was found dumped in a forest on the Crimean peninsula a week after she went missing amid suggestions that she had been 'punished' for flouting Sharia law.
Police said that Miss Koren, a former participant in regional heats of the Miss Ukraine beauty pageant, had suffered multiple blows to the head inflicted by one or more stones or rocks.
There were conflicting reports of how and why she was murdered. Some local newspapers claimed she had been stoned to death by hardline Muslims upset by her participation in the beauty contest and that police had three suspects in their sights.
But the police said her killing had nothing to do with sectarian violence and that the girl had been killed by a psychologically troubled classmate who had given her a lift on his moped and then robbed and possibly raped her before battering her to death with a rock.
"A student did it, killing his classmate. There is no other underlying reason, neither religious nor linked with inter-ethnic conflicts," said Sergei Reznikov, a senior policeman involved in the case. » | Andrew Osborn | Tuesday, May 31, 2011
Tuesday, May 31, 2011
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Iran briefly closed its airspace to Angela Merkel's plane as she flew to India, delaying her arrival and sparking a diplomatic row with Germany.
The German chancellor was held up as she flew overnight for a meeting on Tuesday with Manmohan Singh, the Indian prime minister. Her plane was forced to circle for two hours over Turkey before receiving permission to cross Iran.
The Iranian ambassador in Berlin was summoned by Guido Westerwelle, the foreign minister, who said hindering Mrs Merkel's route was "absolutely unacceptable". » | Tuesday, May 31, 2011
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