Tower Block Detonated in One of Europe's Biggest Ever Explosions

Frankfurt University destroys one of its buildings in a controlled detonation, making it one of Europe's tallest buildings ever to be demolished in this way

Arms Exports: Berlin Backs Large Defense Deal with Saudi Arabia

SPIEGEL ONLINE INTERNATIONAL: Berlin has often been criticized in recent years for selling weapons to questionable regimes. Now, the German government is backing a billion-euro deal for 100 patrol boats.

The German government has often drawn serious criticism for supporting defense deals with countries known to have democratic deficiencies. In the latest controversial move, SPIEGEL has learned that the new government in Berlin wants to secure a major defense deal with Saudi Arabia by offering Hermes export credit guarantees.

The information comes from a classified letter from a senior official in the Finance Ministry to the German parliament's budget committee. The letter states that the German government intends to provide guarantees for the planned export of more than 100 patrol and border control boats to the Gulf state with a total value of around €1.4 billion ($1.9 billion). In the letter, official Steffen Kampeter writes of the "high importance in terms of economic and employment" of the deal, which includes contracts for the Bremen-based Lürssen Shipyard. Kampeter, a politician with Chancellor Angela Merkel's conservative Christian Democratic Union, asked for the "confidential handling of the business data" because negotiations are still in progress and competition is expected from other countries. » | dsl/SPIEGEL | Monday, February 03, 2014

Lost Youth: UK Voters Back Away from Ballot Box, Losing Faith in Mainstream Politics

Brits just can't get themselves fired up about voting anymore with turnout on elections in recent years on a downward slide. And it's young people in particular who are backing away from the ballot box, only 10% say they'll definitely take part in next year general election.

Bill O'Reilly Interviews President Obama before the Super Bowl

Bill O'Reilly sits down with President Obama at the White House to discuss the IRS scandal, Benghazi, the Affordable Care Act and the Super Bowl.

Cigarette Plain Packaging ‘Fuelling Black Market’

THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Plain packaging for cigarettes in Australia has not cut smoking and boosted sales of black market products, tobacco industry report claims

Forcing shops to sell cigarettes in plain packaging does not in itself cut smoking levels but boosts sales of smuggled packets, a Government review has been told.

According to a report commissioned by the tobacco industry, initial evidence from Australia – the first country in the world to introduce plain packaging laws – suggests that overall smoking levels are unchanged.

But it estimates that the country has missed out on the equivalent of £530 million of tax as smokers switch to cheaper, illegal varieties – often in packaging which resembles traditional boxes.

The report has been submitted to a government review investigating evidence for introducing a similar policy in the UK. » | John Bingham, Social Affairs Editor | Monday, February 03, 2014

Muslim Cartoon Row – Maajid Nawaz

"A Liberal Democrat candidate who tweeted a cartoon featuring Jesus and Muhammad has received death threats and faces calls to be deselected from contesting the 2015 general election.

Maajid Nawaz, chosen for the London seat of Hampstead and Kilburn and founder of the anti-extremist think-tank Quilliam Foundation, has faced a petition against him, and told the BBC he was advised by police not to appear on TV to debate the issue.

Andrew Neil spoke to Mohammed Shafiq, a member of the Liberal Democrats Ethnic Minority group calling for deselection, and to Kenan Malik, who writes about multi-culturalism and free speech."

Maajid Nawaz Explains the Difference between Islam and Islamism to Bill Maher and Richard Dawkins

Maajid Nawaz is the co-founder and Executive Director of Quilliam, the world's first counter-extremism think tank. He is also the co-founder of Khudi, a counter-extremism social movement working towards the promotion of social democratic change in Pakistan. This clip is from "Overtime" with Bill Maher where he has a discussion about the roots of islamism and the difference between islamism and islam with Maher, Richard Dawkins, Michael Moore, Valerie Plame and Al Sharpton. From "Overtime" with Bill Maher, October 25, 2013.

John Kerry Labelled 'Anti Semite' for Warning of Possible Boycott of Israel

THE SUNDAY TELEGRAPH: US Secretary of State has been labelled an 'anti Semite' for warning of a possible economic boycott if Israel failed to reach a peace accord with the Palestinians

John Kerry, the US secretary of state, triggered an angry backlash from Israeli leaders on Sunday after warning Israel faces economic boycott if it failed to reach a peace accord with the Palestinians.

The uproar came as Mr Kerry held cordial talks with his Iranian counterpart, Mohammad Javad Zarif in Munich at which the pair vowed to intensify nuclear diplomacy.

Ministers in Benjamin Netanyahu's cabinet accused Mr Kerry of effectively endorsing "anti-Semitic" efforts to impose sanctions on Israel by issuing the warning.

"The risks are very high for Israel," Mr Kerry told the conference. "People are talking about boycott. That will intensify in the case of failure.

"Do they want a failure that then begs whatever may come in the form of a response from disappointed Palestinians and the Arab community?"

While the US secretary of state's remarks were made against a backdrop of new EU regulations barring deals with Israeli businesses based in West Bank settlements, they provoked accusations that he was threatening Israel in on-going peace talks with the Palestinians. » | Robert Tait, Jerusalem | Sunday, February 02, 2014

Freedom of Speech: Is It My Right to Offend You?

THE INDEPENDENT: Last week, a political figure tweeting a cartoon about Mohamed prompted death threats. In a civilised society, we need to know how to express views without censorship

Maajid Nawaz is a former Islamist who now campaigns against extremism as the executive director of the Quilliam Foundation. He is also a Liberal Democrat parliamentary candidate. Three weeks ago, he appeared on the BBC's religious debate programme, The Big Questions. On that show, two atheist students wore T-shirts featuring cartoons of the Prophet Mohamed. Nawaz declared that he was not upset by the images. After the show, he tweeted one of the cartoons, declaring that his God was greater than to feel threatened by it. And then everything went mad.

Nawaz has faced an appalling string of death threats. About 22,000 people have signed a petition calling for his deselection. Thousands more have leapt to his defence. Last week, Nick Clegg promised that he would not be deselected. But as various media outlets have reported on the subject, they, too, have faced criticism for their squeamishness: no one has shown uncensored the cartoon at the centre of the storm.

There is so much to unpack here. Where to begin? Well, how about, for the record, a simple declaration: Maajid Nawaz has an absolute right to tweet a picture of the Prophet Mohamed. I would not vote for any political party that dismissed him for doing so. But actually, this is the least interesting, least fruitful aspect of the whole discussion. This is primary school stuff. » | Archie Bland | Sunday, February 02, 2014

Related »

'Jesus and Mo' Debate

After Liberal Democrat prospective candidate Maajid Nawaz pointed out how he is was not offended by the charming satirical comic strip "Jesus and Mo", a mob of fascists and extremists launched a petition to have him deselected, and to (according to the comments from the supporters of the petition) have him executed/beheaded/tortured, etc.

Hollande and Cameron's Pub Lunch Unlikely to Improve Ailing Entente

THE GUARDIAN: The lack of a silver-service banquet may only add insult to president's perceived injuries from 'le French bashing'

As François Hollande arrived to meet David Cameron in London, the entente was threatening – like the weather – to be less than cordial.

The British prime minister had extended an invitation that the French president could have surely easily refused; not a multi[-]course silver-service banquet à la Elysée Palace, but a pub lunch in Oxfordshire. How Hollande's Gallic heart must have sunk as he crossed the point of no return under the Channel: he may style himself as "Monsieur normal", but he is still the president of France and we can only hope Cameron's local could produce a better glass of red than that available at most of Britain's traditional ale-houses.

If this was not reason enough for Hollande to find a more pressing international crisis demanding his attention, there was what the French media coined in defiance of the country's language police, "le French bashing".

There had been rumours that the French were about to cancel the meeting given the level of sniping from the British side of the Channel. The economics they could discuss and agree to disagree, but the idea that an insolent and disrespectful British press was more interested in the Elysée soap opera involving the president and the actor, thus provoking even more "total indignation" from the already indignant Hollande, was almost too much.

But the Elysée was determined to be grown up about it all. "If we cancelled for that, we'd never have a summit," one presidential adviser told Le Figaro newspaper.

Given the amount of flak that Cameron, his Conservative colleagues and the British media have given the president since he was elected in May 2012, Hollande might have been sorely tempted to give the prime minister a punch on the nose and return to Paris. » | Kim Willsher in Paris | Friday, January 31, 2014

Stop Rich Overseas Investors from Buying Up UK Homes, Report Urges

THE OBSERVER: Rightwing thinktank proposes curbs on non-EU residents to open up more of housing market to Britons

Radical plans to stop rich overseas residents who live outside the EU buying British houses – as well as tight restrictions on them acquiring "newbuild" properties as investments – will be published in a report by a leading rightwing thinktank on Monday.

Free-market organisation Civitas castigates government ministers for allowing wealthy foreign investors to stoke a property boom that it says is driving up prices and locking millions of UK citizens out of the housing market.

The plans would prevent the likes of Roman Abramovich, owner of Chelsea football club, or other Russian oligarchs from adding to their multimillion-pound UK portfolios. They also aim to stem a flood of investment from countries such as China, Malaysia and Singapore.

Concerned that many middle and lower earners are being forced to pay high rents in London because they can't afford to buy, Civitas calls on ministers to adopt a scheme similar to one operating in Australia, which ensures that no sale can take place to overseas buyers unless they can show that their investment will add to existing housing stock.

Such a system would mean that no existing home could be sold to a buyer from outside the EU, and that such buyers could acquire newbuild homes only if their investment led to one or more additional properties being built. » | Toby Helm, political editor | Saturday, February 01, 2014

Serbia Snow: Hundreds of Stranded Drivers Rescued

BBC: Hundreds of drivers in Serbia have been rescued after becoming stranded due to heavy winter snow.

Gusts of more than 150km/h (93mph) battered towns across the country, as police and the army helped motorists trapped by snow drifts.

Guy De Launey reports from Belgrade. (+ BBC video) » | Saturday, February 01, 2014

Meltdown: The Men Who Crashed the World

The first of a four-part investigation into the world of greed and recklessness that led to financial collapse.

Kerry: We Stand with the People of Ukraine

US Secretary of State says West backs protesters to have a say on the future of their country, to anger of Russia.

Related »

'Dollar Valueless, About to Crash' - World Bank Whistleblower

Poverty Crime: UK Shoplifting Soaring as Tough Economic Times Bite Deeper

The five-finger discount is no longer the domain of bored kids and petty criminals in Britain. Many are now resorting to shoplifting for their basic needs, as RT's Polly Boiko has been finding out.

Tried & True? Firing Squad, Electric Chair Return in US for Death Penalty

U.S. lawmakers are looking for alternatives to help them kill. The lethal-injection drugs used to execute prisoners on death row are in short supply, and there is concern over how effective they are anyway. But some of the other methods being considered are neither new, or campaigners say, humane. RT's Marina Portnaya reports.

Related »

The Unspeakable Hell of North Korea Concentration Camps

Un Français remporte 88,3 millions de francs

TRIBUNE DE GENÈVE: Un joueur français a remporté ce vendredi le gros lot de l'Euromillions.

Le chanceux empoche 88,32 millions de francs [Suisse]. Il s'agit du septième gain le plus important en France depuis la création de la loterie européennes en février 2004. » | ats/Newsnet | vendredi 31 janvier 2014