Au Yémen, la communauté juive lutte pour sa survie
Des Juifs yéménites en route pour célébrer un mariage à Raïda, dans le sud-ouest du pays, en juin 2008. Photo grâce au Figaro
LE FIGARO: REPORTAGE - Ils ne sont plus que 350 à vivre en marge d'une société où les extrémistes musulmans dénoncent leur «alignement» sur Israël.

Un keffieh beige sur la tête pour masquer la kippa, Yéhia Moussa arrive en famille au rendez-vous fixé dans le parc Asser, qui surplombe Sanaa. Il est le rabbin de la minuscule communauté juive de la capitale yéménite : douze familles obligées de vivre recluses dans un «complexe touristique» gardé par la sécurité publique, depuis qu'elles ont été attaquées dans leur village d'al-Salem, au nord du Yémen. C'était en décembre 2004. «On ne voulait plus de nous là-bas», se souvient, amer, Yéhia, 30 ans, père de quatre enfants. Les rebelles de la minorité zaïdite (chiite) leur reprochaient d'être soutenus par l'armée du président, Ali Abdallah Saleh, qu'ils affrontaient alors.

Après des décennies de coexistence relativement harmonieuse avec leurs voisins musulmans, tout a basculé lorsque des hommes masqués adressèrent une lettre de menace au rabbin : «Après surveillance précise des Juifs d'al- Salem, il est clair qu'ils agissent pour servir le sionisme mondial.» Et d'assortir l'avertissement d'un ultimatum de dix jours pour plier bagages. Finalement, les Juifs d'al-Salem furent d'abord évacués vers la ville voisine de Saada et, un mois plus tard, en hélicoptères militaires jusqu'à leur minighetto de Sanaa, face à l'ambassade américaine.

«Ici, au moins, on se sent en sécurité», se félicite Souleiman, le vieux père de Yéhia. Mais depuis, la plupart ont perdu leur travail. Et cinq ans après, leurs biens n'ont toujours pas été restitués. Les 57 Juifs de Sanaa, religieux en majorité, vivent littéralement sous perfusion : tous les mois, la présidence de la République verse l'équivalent de 18 euros à chacun d'eux, et offre un peu de nourriture aux familles. >>> D’envoyé spécial du Fugaro à Sanaa, Georges Malbrunot | Mercredi 27 Mai 2009

Vom Volkskrieg zum Jihad im Nordkaukasus: Das islamistische Gesicht des Widerstands im Süden Russlands
NZZ Online: Die russischen Nordkaukasus-Republiken werden seit Jahren von Gewalt erschüttert. Die Zeit der breit abgestützten Volkserhebung ist vorbei. Der Untergrund besteht heute aus Islamisten, deren Ziel ein «Emirat» ist. Die Politik Moskaus spielt ihnen in die Hände.

Moskau, im Mai

An Karamachi und Tschabanmachi, zwei Dörfer an der dagestanisch-tschetschenischen Grenze, erinnert sich heute kaum jemand mehr. Fundamentalistische islamische Gelehrte hatten hier vor zehn Jahren – sogar mit zeitweiliger Billigung der Moskauer Zentralregierung – ein nach den Regeln des islamischen Rechts (Scharia) organisiertes Gemeinwesen aufgebaut. Zu ihnen stiessen auch die militanten islamistischen Feldkommandanten Schamil Bassajew und Chattab aus dem ersten Tschetschenien-Krieg. Im August 1999 griffen sie im Namen der islamischen Befreiung des Nordkaukasus in benachbarte Regionen Dagestans aus. Doch die Unterstützung der Bevölkerung fanden sie nicht, und der Angriff auf die Ortschaft Botlich geriet zum Fiasko. Er bot der Regierung in Moskau Gelegenheit zur Intervention. Die «antiterroristische Operation» – wie der zweite Tschetschenien-Krieg offiziell genannt wurde – ging erst vor kurzem formell zu Ende. >>> Vom Russland-Korrespondenten der NZZ Markus Ackeret | Mittwoch, 27. Mai 2009

Nordkorea droht Seoul mit Militärschlag: Rückkehr Pjongjangs zur Herstellung von Plutonium?
NZZ Online: Das Regime in Nordkorea hat seine bereits sehr aggressive Rhetorik noch einmal um einen Ton höher geschraubt. Es bezeichnete den Waffenstillstand vom Juli 1953 als nicht mehr bindend.

Am Montag hatte Nordkorea die Welt mit einem unterirdischen Atomtest schockiert und zwei Kurzstreckenraketen getestet. Am Dienstag reagierte Pjongjang mit drei weiteren Raketentests auf die einhellige Verurteilung durch den Uno-Sicherheitsrat. Am Mittwoch hat nun das nordkoreanische Regime verlauten lassen, dass es sich nicht mehr an das Waffenstillstandsabkommen gebunden fühle, mit dem am 27. Juli 1953 der blutige Koreakrieg beendet worden war. Pjongjang drohte Seoul mit Krieg, sollten die Südkoreaner Schiffe auf dem Weg von oder nach nordkoreanischen Häfen aufhalten und durchsuchen. >>> us. Tokio | Mittwoch, 27. Mai 2009

WELT ONLINE: Nach Raketentests: Russland bereitet sich auf Atomkrieg in Korea vor

Bild dank der Welt
Nach dem nordkoreanischen Atomtest hat Russland erste Sicherheitsmaßnahmen ergriffen. Dazu gehören präventive Schritte "für den Fall einer unkontrollierbaren Entwicklung". Ziel ist es, auf den Ausbruch eines Atomkriegs auf der koreanischen Halbinsel vorbereitet zu sein. Gleichzeitig zeigt Russland Verständnis für Diktator Kim Jong-il.

Russland bereitet sich sicherheitshalber schon mal auf einen eventuellen militärischen Konflikt auf der koreanischen Halbinsel vor.

Wie die russische Nachrichtenagentur Interfax unter Berufung auf militärische Kreise mitteilte, werde ein "Komplex präventiver Maßnahmen für den Fall einer unkontrollierbaren Entwicklung" vorbereitet.

Moskaus Militärs reagieren damit auf den jüngsten Atombombenversuch und die Raketentests des nordkoreanischen Regimes, die weltweite Empörung über die eklatante Verletzung internationaler Abkommen hervorgerufen hatten.

Der anonyme Gesprächspartner der russischen Nachrichtenagentur sieht dabei durchaus die Nordkoreaner als Ursache der verschärften Spannungen, sie hätten mit ihren jüngsten Entscheidungen die Lage angeheizt.

Das könne sich auch auf die Sicherheit der Bevölkerung in den fernöstlichen Regionen Russlands auswirken. "Im Zusammenhang damit entstand die Notwendigkeit für entsprechende präventive Maßnahmen", zitierte die Agentur ihren Gesprächspartner.



Dessen Worten zufolge würden die Präventivmaßnahmen von militärischen Institutionen, die für eine verstärkte Kontrolle der Radioaktivität und die Zivilverteidigung zuständig seien. >>> Von Manfred Quiring | Mittwoch, 27. Mai 2009

North Korea Will Pay the Price for Nuclear Tests, Says US
ANGER: American ambassador to the UN Susan Rice said North Korea would be “further debilitated". Photo courtesy of the Daily Express
DAILY EXPRESS: NORTH Korea will “pay a price” for its nuclear missiles tests, the American ambassador to the UN warned last night.

Susan Rice said international pressure on the country would ­increase until it realised the tests had left it “further isolated and further debilitated”.

She told a US television news channel that Pyongyang’s actions were “clearly provocative and destabilising actions which threaten international peace and security”.

She said the international ­community would not “throw up our hands and let them pursue this path”, adding: “North Korea needs to understand that its ­actions have consequences.” >>> By Mark Reynolds | Wednesday, May 27, 2009

The Deranged Dictator
Kim Jong Il – the deranged dictator. Photo courtesy of the Daily Express
DAILY EXPRESS: He is the ultimate renaissance man, superlatively gifted at everything he attempts. He has composed six operas and his genius at staging musicals makes an Andrew Lloyd Webber production look like amateur dramatics in your village hall.

When playing golf, he regularly shoots a hole-in-one three or four times in a single round and he personally designed his country’s most symbolic monument, the Juche Tower. No wonder his countrymen worship him.

Or he is an irredeemably flawed individual who cannot distinguish between fact and fiction, a tyrant who rules by fear and punishes ruthlessly any hint of dissent. No wonder his countrymen worship him.

If you thought Britain suffered under the manipulative skills of Alastair Campbell, then spare a thought for the poor benighted souls of North Korea living under the rule of the man they are obliged to call their “Dear Leader”: Kim Jong Il.

This is a man who, even when his people were reduced to eating grass because there was nothing else, still managed to convince them there wasn’t a famine raging through the country and that it was an ugly rumour cooked up by pro-Western agitators – or, as we know them, the Red Cross and the United Nations World Programme, the relief agencies who saved more than a fifth of the North Korean population from dying of starvation and disease in the Nineties. Meanwhile, he had his favourite dish, lobster, flown in every day, eating it with silver chopsticks.

For the past five years, Kim Jong Il has even succeeded in keeping the outside world guessing as to whether he is still alive or not; rumours persist that he died in 2003 and that since then foreign leaders have been ­dealing with one of four lookalikes.

It has been all too easy for the West to scorn Kim Jong Il as something of a figure of fun, a vain playboy in built‑up shoes presiding over all those eerily robotic mass rallies before retiring to watch the American action films he adores.

But North Korea’s nuclear tests this week are a sharp reminder of Kim Jong Il’s other side as arguably the most dangerous man in the world at the moment.

“Know thine enemy” is sage advice but when it comes to Kim Jong Il, the West is hamstrung by the paucity of fact and the abundance of fable. >>> By Anna Pukas | Wednesday, May 27, 2009

THE GUARDIAN: Photo Gallery: Kim Jong-il: a life in pictures >>>

The Beat Goes On: California Continues to Bellyache Over Gay Marriage
Activists shouted "shame on you" as the ruling was published. Photo courtesy of the BBC
BBC: California's Supreme Court has upheld a ban on same-sex marriage - the latest twist in a long-running saga.

The judges rejected a challenge from gay-rights activists to overturn the result of a 2008 referendum which restricted marriage to heterosexuals.

Prior to the vote, same-sex marriages were legal for six months, during which 18,000 couples were married.

The judges said their ruling was not retroactive - meaning those couples will remain legally married. California Backs Gay Marriage Ban >>> | Tuesday, May 26, 2009

LOS ANGELES TIMES:
Interactive: Gay marriage chronology >>>

YOUTUBE: California Supreme Court Upholds Gay Marriage Ban



YOUTUBE: Protest Across California After Supreme Court Supports Gay Marriage Ban



YOUTUBE: New York City Rally in Protest of California Marriage Ruling


LE FIGARO: La Californie maintient l'interdiction du mariage gay

Cette décision de la Cour suprême de l'Etat a provoqué mardi un face à face tendu entre police, et défenseurs des unions homosexuelles, et la consternation du tout-Hollywood.

L'annonce a été accueillie par les cris de déception des manifestants rassemblés devant le tribunal de San Francisco. Mardi, la cour suprême de Californie a validé le résultat d'un référendum interdisant le mariage homosexuel. Comme on pouvait s'y attendre, six des sept juges ont estimé que cette consultation était légale et ne devait pas être annulée. (Voir la vidéo ci-dessous)


«Bien que je pense qu'un jour le peuple ou les tribunaux reconnaîtront le mariage gay, en tant que gouverneur de Californie, je respecterai la décision de la Cour suprême», a réagi Arnold Schwarzenegger dans un communiqué.

La plus haute instance juridique californienne a toutefois validé les unions conclues avant l'entrée en vigueur de cette mesure. Quelque 18.000 couples gays restent donc mariés. >>> J.C. (lefigaro.fr) avec AFP et AP | Mercredi 27 Mai 2009

NZZ Online: Homo-Ehen in Kalifornien bleiben verboten: Deutliches Urteil des Obersten Gerichts – bereits geschlossene Ehen bleiben gültig

Das Oberste Gericht in Kalifornien hat das Resultat einer Volksabstimmung vom November für gültig erklärt, in der eine Mehrheit für das Verbot von Homo-Ehen gewesen war. Das Richtergremium fällte einen deutlichen Entscheid.

Die Anhänger der Homo-Ehe in den USA haben vor dem Obersten Gericht Kaliforniens eine Niederlage erlitten. Die Richter erklärten das Ergebnis der Volksabstimmung vom November für gültig, bei der eine Mehrheit für ein Verbot der Ehe zwischen gleichgeschlechtlichen Partnern gestimmt hatte. Die rund 18'000 Homo-Ehen, die vor dem Verbot geschlossen worden waren, sollen aber weiterhin gültig bleiben, hielt das Gericht in dem am Dienstag veröffentlichten Urteil fest.

Eine Verfassungsänderung?

Mehrere hundert Anhänger der Homo-Ehe, die sich vor dem Gericht in San Francisco versammelt hatten, reagierten mit Empörung auf den Richterspruch. Sie skandierten «Schande, Schande!» Schwulen- und Lesbenverbände hatten das Verfahren gemeinsam mit anderen Bürgerrechtsgruppen angestrengt, um das Ergebnis der Volksabstimmung annullieren zu lassen.

Sie hatten argumentiert, dass ein derart schwerer Eingriff in die Rechte von Minderheiten einer Verfassungsänderung gleichkomme und deshalb nur mit einer Zwei-Drittel-Mehrheit im Landesparlament verabschiedet werden dürfte. Die Richter wollten dieser Auffassung aber nicht folgen; sie bestätigten das Verbot im Verhältnis sechs zu eins. >>> sda/afp | Mittwoch, 27. Mai 2009

Sarkozy Plays a Round of Gulf
The United Arab Emirates' President, Sheikh Kalifa bin Zayed al-Nahayan, accompanies THE French President Nicolas Sarkozy after their meeting in Abu Dhabi. Photo courtesy of The Independent
THE INDEPENDENT: France took an ambitious step into the cauldron of Gulf politics yesterday, opening a military base, or "peace camp", in Abu Dhabi.

The naval and air station - the first French military base to be built abroad in half a century - is intended to make France a serious player in the previously "Anglo-Saxon" game of Gulf security and the military containment of Iran.

The base, formally opened by President Nicolas Sarkozy, may also improve France's chances of selling military hardware to the United Arab Emirates, starting with 63 Rafale jet fighters. During his visit, President Sarkozy dug the first spade of sand for the foundations of an Abu Dhabi branch of the Louvre museum, part of a drive to promote French culture, and cultural exports, in the Middle East.

Although the military base has been declared to be part of France's contribution to the fight against Indian Ocean pirates, its real importance is diplomatic and strategic. "France is showing that it is ready to assume its responsibilities in guaranteeing the stability of a region vital to the entire world," M. Sarkozy told the Emirates news agency, Wam. >>> By John Lichfield in Paris | Tuesday, May 26, 2009

Kristallnacht: Still an Unforgettable Nightmare 70 Years On
THE TELEGRAPH: For historians, the night of Nov 9-10, 1938, represents a turning point for Hitler’s Germany, the moment when the persecution of the Jewish population moved from the psychological to the physical, a milestone on the road that led to the murder of six million people. But for me, it is something more: it is the night they took away my father, and destroyed the synagogue that was my second home.

A wrecked Jewish shop in Berlin, the day after the "Kristallnacht" rampage. Photo courtesy of The Telegraph
The campaign against the Jews that began when Hitler took power gathered momentum in 1935 with the promulgation of the Nuremberg Race Laws, which for all intents and purposes made Jews into second-class citizens. But anti-Jewish agitation was still mostly verbal: a hate campaign orchestrated by a propaganda machine that poured poison into young and old, rich and poor, into the university campuses and professions. “Die Juden sind unser Unglück” was the catchphrase – “The Jews are our misfortune.” Hitler screamed it from the rostrum, journalists splashed it across newspapers, party workers scribbled it on public hoardings. Teachers taught it in the classroom, and the children in turn frightened their parents into believing and repeating it.

Even now, 70 years later, it is hard to forget what it was like growing up in such an environment. In 1936, when I was eight, my parents wanted me to have swimming lessons at the municipal pool in Hanover. When I arrived for my third lesson there was a large notice at the entrance: “Juden sind hier unerwünscht” – “Jews are not welcome here”. We turned back, and out of the corner of my eye I saw my mother wiping the tears from her face.

This was not confined to the cities. I remember accompanying my father, a textile merchant, on a business trip to a small village where he had several regular customers. At the entrance, workmen were busy erecting a huge hoarding, reading: “Juden betreten dieses Dorf auf ihre eigene Gefahr.” (“Jews enter this village at their own risk.”) My father turned back, and I read from his pale face that something was seriously wrong. The same happened in another village. First one, then another, then another of his customers refused to do business: “We have known each other for many years,” said one. “But I beg you, leave right away. I like you, and enjoy dealing with you. But I am afraid of my staff, and of my neighbours – and of my children.”

By 1938, things were getting even worse. In the summer, a law required all Jewish men to adopt the name “Israel” and women the name “Sarah”. The new names were to be inserted in all official documents, such as passports and birth certificates. I remember the debate: was this merely an additional stigma, or a way to identify us for whatever was planned later? Soon after, on the night of Yom Kippur, the Rabbi addressed a crowded congregation, for what would prove to be the last time before the synagogue’s destruction. He exhorted us to take pride in bearing the names of our forebears – but the severe thunderstorm that raged as he was speaking reflected our feelings more accurately than his uplifting words.

And then, on a Friday morning in the middle of October, the word spread like wildfire: all Polish Jews, of whom there were many in our town, had been rounded up – men, women and children, without a moment’s notice. They had been in the middle of preparing food for the coming Sabbath, but instead mothers carrying their babies and men carrying the barest necessities they could gather were bundled into a reception centre. By the evening, it became clear that all over Germany, the Jews of Polish origin had been rounded up with trademark efficiency. They were quickly and unceremoniously deported across the border, never to return and never to be heard of again. >>> By Joe Lobenstein | Monday, November 10, 2008

Die Wahrheit über den Islam

Islamisierung durch Multikulti-Wahn und Zuwanderung (Bischof Mixa)

Obama Introduces Sotomayor as Court Pick
President Barack Obama with Judge Sonia Sotomayor, right, his nominee for the Supreme Court. Photo courtesy of The Wall Street Journal
THE WALL STREET JOURNAL: WASHINGTON – President Barack Obama Tuesday introduced Federal Appeals Court Judge Sonia Sotomayor as his first nominee for the Supreme Court, hailing "an extraordinary woman" who would bring to the nation's highest court "the wisdom accumulated from an inspiring life's journey."

A beaming Judge Sotomayor, 54 years old, called herself "an ordinary person who has been blessed with extraordinary opportunity and experience."

The emotional introduction in the White House's East Room set the stage for a Supreme Court confirmation process that the White House hopes will go smoothly and quickly. As the first Hispanic nominee for the Supreme Court, Ms. Sotomayor's candidacy is historic.

But conservatives are itching for a fight. Wendy E. Long, counsel for the conservative Judicial Confirmation Network, denounced the president's nominee as "a liberal judicial activist of the first order, who thinks her own personal political agenda is more important than the law as written."

The White House introduction was designed to head off that fight, with a moving recitation of Ms. Sotomayor's rise from the housing projects of the Bronx and an assurance from the president that his choice was based on "rigorous intellect" and a "recognition of the limits of the judicial role."

A judge's job, Mr. Obama said, is "to interpret, not make, law."

But Mr. Obama didn't shy from challenging the right on what he called a final ingredient necessary to make a great justice: life experiences overcoming obstacles that would grant his nominee "a common touch and a sense of compassion."

Conservatives have said Mr. Obama's emphasis on a justice with "empathy" would ensure that his nominee would be an activist, seeking judgments that favor underdogs without deference to the facts and law. >>> By Jonathan Weisman | Tuesday, May 26, 2009

TIMES ONLINE: Barack Obama Names Hispanic Sonia Sotomayor as New Supreme Court Judge

President Obama has named Sonia Sotomayor, the federal appeals judge, as America’s first Hispanic Supreme Court justice, a woman with a remarkable personal story that began on a housing project in the south Bronx.

If confirmed by the Senate Judge Sotomayor, 54, whose parents came from Puerto Rico, will also become only the third woman to serve on America’s highest court. Within minutes of the announcement conservatives said that they were preparing to do battle over a judge they accuse of being a liberal activist.

Judge Sotomayor, who was inspired to become a judge after watching the Perry Mason courtroom dramas as a child, had diabetes diagnosed at 8 and lost her father, a factory worker, the following year. She and her brother were raised by their mother, a nurse in a methadone clinic, in the Bronxdale housing project. She graduated from Princeton University summa cum laude in 1976, and from Yale Law School in 1979. She is divorced with no children.

In making the first Supreme Court nomination by a Democratic president in 15 years, Mr Obama has said that the most important quality he was looking for was someone with empathy for ordinary citizens. Announcing his choice in the White House he said: “Even as she has accomplished so much in her life she has never forgotten where she began, never lost touch with the community that supported her. What Sonia will bring to the court is not only the experience acquired over the course of a brilliant legal career but the wisdom accumulated from an inspiring life’s journey.” >>> Tim Reid in Washington | Wednesday, May 27, 2009

Richard Overy – Opinion: We Should Be Afraid of a British Berlusconi
TIMES ONLINE: The lesson of the 1930s is clear: the public must understand the dangers facing democracy and get ready to protest

Is there always a political fallout from the effects of severe economic crises such as Britain is now experiencing? The answer must surely be yes.

In the 1930s the Depression broke the Macdonald Labour Party, divided the Liberals, ushered in an emergency National Government and led to the emergence of Oswald Mosley's British Union of Fascists. Normal party politics was restored only 15 years later, in the campaign of 1945 when Labour rose triumphantly to power to build a New Jerusalem.

Not only did the recession reshape British politics in the 1930s, but the crisis also provoked a growing disillusionment with conventional party politics and the role of Parliament. The political elite that dominated the National Government was seen as self-interested and out of touch. There was little sleaze about in the 1930s - a great many MPs had private means - but there was a strong feeling among the more progressive forces in British society that MPs were a barrier to social change, economic reform and, above all, to a foreign policy that would really reflect the wide enthusiasm for the League of Nations and popular anti-war sentiment.

In 1935 there were two countrywide votes. One was the general election which the National Government won in the absence of a serious opposition. The second was the peace ballot organised by a number of voluntary associations under the direction of the peace campaigner, Lord Robert Cecil. Half a million volunteers tramped the streets knocking on doors to get voters to fill out a voting slip in favour of the league, disarmament, international control of aviation and so on. In the end 11.6 million people voted, almost all in favour. This was a remarkable expression of independent public opinion; the Government took no notice.

Voluntary effort to try to get across alternative, and more progressive, political solutions mushroomed in the 1930s. Above all the view took hold that Parliament no longer really represented what most people thought. Between 1936 and 1939 widespread efforts were made to create a people's front or popular front that would unite progressive opinion, independently of party allegiance. Sir Stafford Cripps, later Chancellor in the 1945 Government, was temporarily kicked out of the Labour Party in 1939 for making one last effort to create a united popular front to challenge Parliament. The National Government survived the people's front pressure but only at the cost of growing rejection of old-fashioned parliamentary politics, most marked among the chattering classes.

What did not happen was a shift to the political extremes, as in Germany when Hitler exploited economic disaster to make his the country's largest party. British fascism and communism remained fringe movements because much progressive opinion wanted liberal values and social progress, not an authoritarian new order. This is familiar ground today. The sense of disillusionment with conventional party politics, where the main parties seem the same and the new political class lines its own nest, opens the way to political extremism. The British National Party is waiting its turn; radical protest at the G20 summit filled the City with campaigners. Real politics, which will engage people's enthusiasm and mobilise their anxiety, may be about to move from Westminster and out on to the street, but it is unlikely to become a mass movement unless conditions deteriorate even more. >>> Richard Overy | Tuesday, May 26, 2009

Britain: The Second World War
THE TELEGRAPH: The Build Up to War


THE TELEGRAPH: The Phoney War


THE TELEGRAPH: The Battle of Britain


THE TELEGRAPH: Britain at War

China’s Yuan: The Next Reserve Currency?
SPIEGELONLINE INTERNATIONAL: Skeptics have dismissed Beijing's talk of de-emphasizing the US dollar, but China is making moves that could soon lead to a convertible yuan.

Are the Chinese finally getting serious about loosening their ties to the dollar -- and even replacing the greenback with the yuan as the global economy's reserve currency? The evidence is mounting that they are.

For the last two months, China's leadership has been complaining about the country's dangerous dependence on the dollar.. Beijing holds $2 trillion (€1.43 trillion) in dollar assets, accumulated through years of exports to America and massive purchases of Treasuries by the Chinese government. If Washington can't rein in its mounting budget deficit, both Treasuries and the greenback could weaken considerably -- and the Chinese could be big losers as a result.

The Chinese began generating attention on the issue in March, when Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao said he was worried that the country's dollar assets could slide. Ten days later Chinese central bank chief Zhou Xiaochuan suggested replacing the dollar as the international reserve currency. One idea, Zhou said, was to replace the dollar with a basket of currencies supervised by the International Monetary Fund. >>> © SPIEGEL ONLINE 2009 | Tuesday, May 26, 2009

LeVine is a correspondent in BusinessWeek's Washington bureau.

French President Sarkozy Opens UAE Base
BBC: President Nicolas Sarkozy has formally opened a French military base in the United Arab Emirates, France's first permanent base in the Gulf.

The flags of France and the UAE were raised at a ceremony at the so-called "Peace Camp" in the Abu Dhabi emirate.

France is a leading military supplier to the Gulf state, and signed a nuclear co-operation agreement last year.

Its new base will host up to 500 French troops and include a navy base, air base, and training camp.

Mr Sarkozy flew to Abu Dhabi on Monday with four ministers and a delegation of businessmen.

In a recent interview with Diplomatie magazine, he said that the military presence underscored France's desire "to participate fully in the stability of this region that is essential for the world's equilibrium".

Analysts say the move positions France - along with the US and UK, which already have bases in the Gulf - in the forefront for lucrative defence contracts and nuclear energy deals. >>> | Tuesday, May 26, 2009

LE FIGARO: Abu Dhabi, base avancée 
de la France en face de l'Iran

Des Rafale de l'armée de l'air française stationnés sur la base aérienne d'al-Dhafra, lundi à Abu Dhabi. Dans l'Émirat, Paris s'est aussi doté d'une base navale et d'une base terrestre spécialisée dans le combat urbain. Photo grâce au Figaro

L'inauguration, mardi par Nicolas Sarkozy, d'une installation militaire dans le Golfe illustre un changement de position stratégique.

Face à l'Iran, sur les rives du détroit d'Ormuz, au bord de l'immense océan Indien, la base navale de la nouvelle implantation militaire française aux Émirats arabes unis est sortie de terre en à peine un an. Sous une chaleur écrasante, 40 degrés à l'ombre, des ouvriers s'attellent aux travaux de finition. Les bâtiments, blanc cassé, sentent encore la peinture. Dans le port, majestueuse malgré ses 7 000 tonnes, la frégate antiaérienne Forbin, dernière-née de la marine nationale, se confond avec le gris des eaux. L'Aconit, une frégate furtive spécialisée dans la lutte contre les pirates, a aussi accosté. Seul le Dupuy de Lôme, un bâtiment de la DRM, la Direction des renseignements militaires, officiellement destiné à «l'expérimentation et à la mesure», a été soustrait à l'œil des journalistes. Il ne sera mis à quai que pour la visite inaugurale de Nicolas Sarkozy, ce matin.

C'est la première fois depuis cinquante ans, depuis les indépendances africaines exactement, que la France ouvre une base militaire permanente hors de son territoire national. C'est aussi la première fois que les Français s'implantent ainsi de manière permanente dans une région d'influence anglo-saxonne. Pour s'imposer dans cette ancienne colonie britannique, les militaires français ont mis le paquet. Une base aérienne destinée à accueillir les Mirage et les Rafale de l'armée de l'air française à al-Dhafra ; une base navale appuyée par 300 mètres de quai, dans le port de Mina Zayed, «pour soutenir les forces déployées dans l'océan Indien et compléter, en lui donnant plus d'autonomie, le dispositif de la marine nationale dans la région», selon les mots du colonel Hervé Cherel, qui commande l'implantation française aux Émirats ; enfin une base terrestre, installée dans le camp émirati de Zayed, en plein désert, spécialisée dans l'entraînement au combat urbain. À terme, environ 500 militaires français stationneront là en permanence. Une présence assez modeste, mais un symbole et des possibilités immenses. >>> Par Isabelle Lasserre | Lundi 25 Mai 2009

Pakistans Taliban blasen zum Rückzug: Rebellen verlassen Mingora – Kampf «bis zum letzten Blutstropfen»
Frauen mit Kindern auf der Flucht im Swattal. Bild dank der Neuen Zürcher Zeitung
NZZ Online: Der Anführer der Taliban im pakistanischen Swattal, Maulana Fazlullah, hat seinen Kämpfern befohlen, sich aus der strategisch wichtigen Stadt Mingora zurückzuziehen. Der «Heilige Krieg» zur Einführung des islamischen Rechts im Swattal werde gleichwohl «bis zum letzten Blutstropfen» fortgesetzt. >>> sda/dpa/afp/Reuters | Montag, 25. Mai 2009

Island auf EU-Kurs: Regierung will Beitrittsgesuch stellen – Entscheid im Parlament
NZZ Online: Islands Ministerpräsidentin Johanna Sigurdardottir hat dem neu gewählten Parlament Antrag gestellt, dass das Land sich um die Mitgliedschaft in der Europäischen Union bewerben soll. Die Zustimmung des Parlaments gilt als gewiss.

Johanna Sigurdardottir, Islands Regierungschefin. Bild dank der Neuen Zürcher Zeitung
Islands Parlament soll bis Anfang Juni über das Beitrittsgesuch entscheiden. Das bestätigte ein Regierungssprecher am Montag in Reykjavik. Nach der als sicher geltenden Zustimmung im Parlament könnte der Antrag im Juli in Brüssel eingereicht werden, hiess es weiter. >>> sda/dpa | Montag, 25. Mai 2009

Iran's Ahmadinejad Reaches Out to Obama
BBC: Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad says if he is re-elected next month he wants to have a face-to-face meeting with US President Barack Obama.

Ahmadinejad says he wants to discuss global issues with world leaders. Photo courtesy of the BBC
Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said he wanted to debate global issues with Barack Obama at the new UN session in September.

But he added that Iran would not discuss its nuclear programme outside the framework of the UN nuclear agency's regulations.

In March, Mr Obama said he was seeking engagement with Iran.

Global issues

Speaking to foreign journalists, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said Iran would never abandon its advances in uranium enrichment in exchange for western offers to ease sanctions or other economic incentives.

The nuclear issue "is closed", he told a press conference in the Iranian capital, Tehran.

So Mr Obama's hopes for a new and constructive dialogue with Iran on the nuclear issue look as far away as ever, says the BBC's Jon Leyne in Tehran. >>> | Monday, May 25, 2009

Muslim Turkey’s Attack on Leaflet “Proof of the Danger of EU’s Expansion” says BNP Leader
BNP: The demand by the Muslim country of Turkey for the withdrawal of British National Party leaflets objecting to that nation’s inclusion into the European Union is proof that the BNP’s position on the matter is correct, Nick Griffin has said.

In his reaction to the news that the Turkish embassy in London has formally complained to the British Foreign and Commonwealth Office over the BNP European election material, Mr Griffin said the reaction “showed that the Turkish government had a fundamentally flawed understanding of what democracy was, and that democracy included the right to free speech.

“We would never dream of trying to dictate to Turkey what it should allow and what it should not, even when it for example officially criminalises anyone promoting the 1915 Armenian genocide,” Mr Griffin said, referring to the near extermination of Armenia by the Ottoman Turkish Empire during World War One. That atrocity is officially denied by the present Turkish government, despite worldwide disapproval.

“The point is that Turkey has a very poor track record of democracy and free speech, and its demand for the suppression of a perfectly legitimate political party’s election material in another country shows exactly how dangerous it would be to expand the EU to include this 99 percent Muslim nation,” Mr Griffin said. >>> BNP News Team | Monday, May 25, 2009

Right-wing Outcry After Temple Death
WIENER ZEITUNG: Stadler calls for border checks and more police officers. / Two houses raided by Vienna police.

Vienna. The reaction of Austria’s right-wing parties to the shooting at a Sikh temple in Vienna has caused fury from Social Democrats.

Ewald Stadler, European Parliament (EP) election front-runner for the Alliance for the Future of Austria (BZÖ) said today (Mon) "problem gurus and hate preachers” should not be allowed into the country. Stadler called for the re-introduction of border checks between Austria and Hungary, Slovakia and the Czech Republic respectively, suggesting similar restrictions on the borders to Italy and Germany could also be an option.

Stadler repeated his calls for more police officers and called for an increase in subsidies for institutions who secure interior safety.

FPÖ boss Heinz-Christian Strache claimed the "policy of open doors" of the Social Democrats would "lead into chaos and multicultural crime”.

Vienna SPÖ Integration Councillor Sandra Frauenberger said it was "disgraceful” Strache was now thinking of nothing else than "acting as a hate preacher who incites people against each other”. >>> By Thomas Hochwarter | From Tuesday’s printed edition, May 26, 2009

Far Right Is the Centre of Attention
SCOTSMAN: CLAD in black trousers, waistcoats and caps, the Hungarian Guard stand to attention and pledge to defend their nation.

Then, in scenes reminiscent of Europe's dark past, they march with flags and banners flying, hoping to be the trailblazers of a Hungarian nation reborn.

The guard, the uniformed wing of the small political party Jobbik, are also the vanguard of a resurgent and confident extreme right wing, aiming to make gains across central Europe in next month's European parliament elections.

Jobbik – short for Movement for a Better Hungary – aims to scoop 10 per cent of the national vote as polls across the continent open from 4-7 June.

In the Czech Republic, the National Party shocked the country when it offered a "final solution to the gypsy problem", while its larger counterpart, the Workers' Party, has few qualms about sending its "security brigades" into neighbourhoods dominated by gypsies, or Roma – a group which is often a target.

Ondrej Cakl, an expert on the Czech far right, said a few years ago, Workers' Party meetings attracted only a couple of dozen, but now they attract hundreds.

In Romania, one party urges "Christians and patriots to rid the country of thieves". In Austria, the powerful Freedom Party, led by Heinz-Christian Strache, has high expectations from June's vote: last September, it took 17.5 per cent of the vote in national elections, and experts predict it will make significant gains on the 6 per cent it won in the last European elections.

Across the continent, the far right could well win more than the 25 seats it needs to form a bloc in the European Parliament and secure about £1 million in annual funding. >>> By Matthew Day in Warsaw | Monday, May 25, 2009

Saudi Gay Scene: 'Forbidden, But I Can't Help It'
abcNEWS: Across the Middle East, Many Struggle With the Stigma of Homosexuality

For Samir*, a 34-year-old gay man living in Saudi Arabia, each day is a denial. He lives in Mecca, the holiest city according to Islam, and is acutely aware of the stigma that surrounds his gay lifestyle.

"I'm a Muslim. I know it's forbidden, but I can't help it," he tells ABC News, clearly conflicted.

"I pray to God to help me be straight, just to avoid hell. But I know that I'm gay and I'm living as one, so I can't see a clear vision for the future."

Samir, like many gay men in the Arab world, guards his sexual orientation with a paranoid secrecy. To feel free he takes long vacations to Thailand, where he has a boyfriend, and spends weekends in Lebanon, which he regards as having a more gay-tolerant society.

But at home in Saudi Arabia, he is vigilant. Samir's parents don't know of his lifestyle. He says his mom would kill herself if she found out. They constantly set him up with women they consider potential wives. At work, Samir watches his words, careful not to arouse the suspicion of colleagues. >>> By Lara Setrakian, UAE | Monday, May 25, 2009

*Name changed to protect identity.

Three Cheers for Jason Kenney! Canada Minister Blasts 'Dangerous' Leftist-Islamist Anti-Semitism
Photo: Google Images
HAARETZ: A "new anti-Semitism" that emanates from an alliance of Western leftists and Islamic extremists is more dangerous than the "old European" form of Jew-hatred, Canada's minister of citizenship, immigration and multiculturalism said as he wound up a four-day trip to Israel Sunday.

"The existential threat faced by Israel on a daily basis is ultimately a threat to the broader Western civilization," said Jason Kenney, explaining the staunchly pro-Israel positions of his government, led by Conservative Prime Minister Stephen Harper.

"It's a threat that comes from profoundly undemocratic forces that don't have the same conception of human dignity or freedom, and which abuse Israel as a kind of representative of the broader West and Western liberal-democratic values," said Kenney. "I also very acutely understand the nature of the new anti-Semitism, and I think it's even more dangerous than the old European anti-Semitism."

Kenney said many anti-Israel attacks come from adherents of a form of anti-Semitism that who appear to view a Jewish homeland as illegitimate. >>> By Raphael Ahren | Monday, May 25, 2009

State Department's Love Affair with Islamists
THE JERUSALEM POST: With the United States battling Islamist extremists, making America's case to Muslims around the world has never been more of a priority for policymakers. Unfortunately, the State Department continues to take a counterproductive approach: serving as a veritable infomercial promoting Islamist organizations like the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the Muslim Public Affairs Council (MPAC) and the Islamic Society of North America (ISNA) while giving the back of the hand to the very anti-jihadist Muslims that Washington should be cultivating.

The latest example is a State Department booklet issued in March titled "Being Muslim in America." The 64-page booklet seeks to arm consular officers and diplomats with information they can take to Muslims around the world to rebut slanders about US "persecution" of Muslims. The booklet deluges readers with color pictures, statistical tables and individual profiles in an effort to show the world that American Muslims are a success story, noting that they have become entrepreneurs, professional athletes, entertainers, doctors, soldiers, firefighters, politicians, fashion designers and pianists.

The booklet aims "to disabuse people of wildly false myths of the United States - that 'Muslims are repressed, marginalized,' fill in the blanks," said Michael Friedman, division chief of print publications with the State Department's Bureau of International Information Programs.

The government has not produced similar booklets for any other faith, Friedman said. With limited funding available, the decision to produce a publication on American Muslims came because "the struggle against Islamic terrorism is a struggle for hearts and minds in the Muslim world."

Unfortunately, the booklet perpetuates the mythology that American Muslims are united in the belief that law enforcement and the public are willing to flout innocent Muslims' civil rights post-September 11, describing American Muslim reactions to the attacks as follows: "A new, truly American Islam is emerging, shaped by American freedoms, but also by the aftermath of the September 11, 2001 attacks - planned and executed by non-Americans - [which] raised suspicions among other Americans whose immediate responses, racial profiling among them, triggered in return a measure of Muslim-American alienation." >>> By Steven Emerson | Sunday, May 24, 2009

Turkey in the European Union: A Bridge Too Far

Journeyman Pictures: Pakistan on the Brink

Jews Undercover – Iran
Watch Journeyman Pictures video: Jews undercover in Iran >>>

Russia to Gays: Get Back into the Closet
Police detain Russian gay-rights leader Nikolai Alexeyev during an unsanctioned gay-rights protest in Moscow on May 16, 2009. Photo courtesy of Time
TIME: Being gay is not supposed to be a crime in Russia. Homosexuality was decriminalized in 1993; six years later, the law that sent gays and lesbians to psychiatric wards was annulled. But Russia would still rather have its homosexual citizenry invisible — and silent. Nikolai Alexeyev knows that very well. He's just been released from jail for trying to organize a gay-rights demonstration in Moscow.

Alexeyev, 31, had decided to stage a gay-pride march to take advantage of the spotlight Moscow was enjoying for playing host to the Eurovision finals over the weekend. "We want equal rights. We don't want to be discriminated against," the director of Gayrussia.ru said a couple of days before the parade. "Many Eurovision fans are gay, and they will be watching what happens to us." Wary of the government of Moscow's openly homophobic mayor Yuri Luzhkov (a similar March two years ago had somehow ended in violence as neo-Nazis and religious groups attacked demonstrators), Alexeyev used guerrilla tactics and, at the last minute, moved the parade from Moscow's center, farther north to Sparrow Hills. (Read about the results of the 2009 Eurovision finals.)

At the same time, an anti-gay demonstration sanctioned by Moscow's government was taking place near a metro station in the central part of the Russian capital. Protesters held up signs saying, "Moscow is not Sodom." Vladimir Terechenko, a refrigerator repairman, said he tells his sons repeatedly that if they come out as homosexuals he will kill them.

"Homosexuality is the end of civilization. They are pale, they are sickly, and they smell," he said. He echoes the opinions of Luzhkov, who has said homosexuality is a disease that needs to be treated, has called gays satanic and has vowed that there will never be a gay parade in Moscow. Despite the violent beliefs and the hateful messages of the anti-gay protesters, they were left untouched by Russian riot police, who sat meekly in their vans during the demonstration. (See pictures of Russia celebrating its military might.)

Not so at Alexeyev's march. There, an estimated 30 protesters unwrapped rainbow banners and chanted for less than half a minute before Moscow riot police rounded up and arrested everyone involved. Alexeyev, who came to the parade accompanied by a man in a bride's dress, was swiftly carried off by riot police. One woman, who was surrounded by cameras, was grabbed by riot police as she was giving interviews, her shirt torn on the way to the police bus. Peter Tatchell, a British gay-rights activist, flew to Moscow for the event. He was speaking to reporters before he too was arrested. "This shows Russian people are not free," he told reporters. >>> By Marina Kamenev, Moscow | Monday, May 18, 2009

TIME:
Picture gallery: Fashions of the Russian Czars: The lavish taste and grandeur of Imperial Russia seen through the ceremonial dress and uniforms of Emperors and court officials in a new show at London's Victoria and Albert Museum. >>>

Gay U.S. Diplomats to Receive Equal Benefits
THE GLOBE AND MAIL: Regulations that denied same-sex couples same rights as straight diplomats are ‘unfair and must end,' says Clinton

Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton will soon announce that gay American diplomats will be given benefits similar to those that their heterosexual counterparts enjoy, U.S. officials said Saturday.

In a notice to be sent soon to State Department employees, Ms. Clinton says regulations that denied same-sex couples and their families the same rights and privileges that straight diplomats enjoyed are “unfair and must end,” as they harm U.S. diplomacy.

“Providing training, medical care and other benefits to domestic partners promote the cohesiveness, safety and effectiveness of our posts abroad,” she says in the message, a copy of which was obtained by The Associated Press.

“It will also help the department attract and retain personnel in a competitive environment where domestic partner benefits and allowances are increasingly the norm for world-class employers,” she says.

“At bottom, the department will provide these benefits for both opposite-sex and same-sex domestic partners because it is the right thing to do,” Ms. Clinton says.

Among the benefits that will now be granted gay diplomats: the right of domestic partners to hold diplomatic passports, government-paid travel for their partners and families to and from foreign posts, and the use of U.S. medical facilities abroad.

In addition, gay diplomats' families will now be eligible for U.S. government emergency evacuations and training courses at the Foreign Service Institute, the message says. >>> Matthew Lee, Associated Press | Sunday, May 24, 2009

Israel will israelische Araber zur Loyalität zwingen: Aberkennung der Staatsbürgerschaft bei Eidsverweigerung
NZZ Online: Wie im Wahlkampf angekündigt, will der rechtsgerichtete israelische Aussenminister Avigdor Lieberman den Arabern im Lande einen Loyalitätseid auf den jüdischen Staat abringen. >>> ap | Montag, 25. Mai 2009

Nine Arrested after Masked Mob's March against Muslim Extremists Turns Violent
MAIL Online: Nine people have been arrested after hundreds of anti-Islamist protesters clashed with police yesterday.

The streets of Luton descended into violence after demonstrators, many hiding their faces behind balaclavas, brandished England flags and chanted at officers.

A group called March for England was said to have organised the rally as a peaceful protest against Muslim extremists. They were joined by a local group United People of Luton.

The mob, which included teenagers and women, held banners with slogans such as 'No Sharia Law in the UK' and 'Respect our Troops'.

Some protesters wore masks with the horned face of Sayful Islam, a hardline Muslim activist in Luton who took part in an anti-war rally in March, which disrupted a homecoming parade for troops.

But chaos broke out when a crowd of around 500 ran away from police who had been escorting the protest along its route, and ran down side streets towards the town centre.

Officers on horseback and police dogs were deployed, and policemen drew batons to defend themselves.

Groups of young men in balaclavas and England shirts chanted outside the city centre and one balacava-clad protester held a Rottweiler on a chain, while others clashed with police in riot gear.
One Asian man was hit across the face with a banner and left with a bloody nose.

The nine suspects were in custody today for offences of criminal damage, assault and public order offences, Bedfordshire Police said.

Police said during the disturbance three car windscreens were smashed and a window at a take away restaurant in Chapel Street had been broken. >>> Claire Ellicott | Monday, May 25, 2009

TIMES ONLINE: Trouble Flares as Luton Residents Protest Over Muslim Extremists

Nine people were arrested yesterday after trouble flared during a protest march against supposed Muslim extremists.

The march in Luton was said to be a protest against an earlier demonstration during the Royal Anglian Regiment’s homecoming parade when soldiers were heckled on their return from a tour of duty in Afghanistan.

Yesterday there were about 500 protesters, some carrying banners with slogans such as “No Sharia Law in the UK” and “Respect our Troops”. Several cars were damaged after a small group split off from the march. An Asian-owned business had its windows smashed. In Stuart Street in the town centre, police drew batons. Mounted police and officers in riot gear were used to try to control the mob and stones were thrown. >>> Home staff | Monday, May 25, 2009

La défense au cœur du voyage de Sarkozy à Abu Dhabi
Le ministre français de la Défense, Hervé Morin, et le ministre des Affaires étrangères des Emirats arabes unis, Cheikh Abdullah Bin Zayed al-Nahayan, en janvier 2008, à Abu Dhabi. Photo grâce au Figaro
LE FIGARO: Le chef de l'État arrive lundi soir pour une visite dans la capitale des Émirats arabes unis avec l'espoir de signer prochainement d'importants contrats.

«En 2009, priorité aux pays du Golfe» : la ligne diplomatique précisée il y a quelques mois par Nicolas Sarkozy lors d'une de ses visites dans la région trouvera une concrétisation spectaculaire avec l'inauguration aux Émirats arabes unis (EAU), mardi, de la première base militaire interarmes française à l'étranger depuis cinquante ans.

Accompagné du ministre de la Défense, Hervé Morin, le président de la République se rendra d'abord sur la partie navale de la base, située dans l'enceinte du port de Mina Zayed à Abu Dhabi qui disposera notamment d'un quai de 300 mètres de long permettant l'accueil de navires de guerre de fort tonnage. Installées à la demande des autorités locales et financées par elles, les infrastructures de l'Implantation militaire française aux Émirats arabes unis (IMFEAU), nom officiel de la base, incluent également un détachement aérien sur la base aérienne d'al-Dhafra, à 40 kilomètres d'Abu Dhabi, où devraient stationner en permanence jusqu'à six avions de combat. Le dispositif est complété par un groupement terrestre situé dans la base de Zayed Military City et comprend un centre d'entraînement en zone désertique.

Localisée face à l'Iran, dans une zone maritime cruciale, celle du détroit d'Ormuz, où transite 40 % du pétrole, cette implantation militaire française n'a rien de fortuit. Elle marque l'engagement français dans une région hautement stratégique, au cœur d'un «arc de crises» cerné dans le livre blanc sur la défense de 2007. >>> Alain Barluet | Lundi 25 Mai 2009

THE WALL STREET JOURNAL: France to Open Naval Base in Abu Dhabi

ABU DHABI, United Arab Emirates -- French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner said Monday his nation's first military base in the Gulf is an important step in international cooperation to fight piracy and safeguard crucial oil routes.

The naval station is France's first major foothold in the Gulf and is expected to contribute vessels to antipiracy patrols off Somalia and guard vital Persian Gulf shipping lanes. It also raises France's profile in the growing tensions between Iran and Gulf Arab states.

"The world's seas must remain free from threats," Mr. Kouchner told a regional security conference in the United Arab Emirates' capital Abu Dhabi.

Mr. Kouchner is expected to be joined later by French President Nicolas Sarkozy, who is scheduled to inaugurate the naval base in Abu Dhabi on Tuesday.

Mr. Sarkozy also plans to lead a groundbreaking ceremony for a branch of the Louvre in Abu Dhabi and try to push ahead talks for the UAE to purchase French-made Rafale fighter jets. The UAE air force currently has France's Mirage 2000-9 fighters as well as American and British aircraft. >>> Associated Press | Monday, May 25, 2009

Kim Jong Il will Obama herausfordern: Kommentar zum erneuten Atomversuch Nordkoreas
NZZ Online: Nach dem Raketentest nun der Atomtest. Der kränkelnde Diktator Nordkoreas versucht den Druck auf die neue Administration in Washington mit allen Mitteln zu erhöhen. Obama hat unter dem Banner von «Change» das Amt des amerikanischen Präsidenten übernommen. Kim Jong Il möchte diese «Veränderung» nun auf Biegen und Brechen zu seinen Gunsten nutzen. Mit Argusaugen wird er wohl jede geringste Andeutung einer Aufweichung von Washingtons Haltung gegenüber Iran, dem anderen atomaren Sünder, verfolgen und daraus seine Schlüsse für mögliche eigene Vorteile ziehen. Mit einem weicheren Präsidenten in den USA hofft er auf wohl noch leichteres Spiel als bisher. >>> B. W. | Montag, 25. Mai 2009

Colin Powell Condemns Dick Cheney 'Diktats'
THE TELEGRAPH: Colin Powell, the former Secretary of State in the Bush administration, has launched an attack on former Vice President Dick Cheney and radio talk show host Rush Limbaugh, accusing them of issuing "diktats" that will make Republicans unelectable.

Colin Powell has attacked former Vice President Dick Cheney. Photo courtesy of The Telegraph
His stern words threatened to widen a rift within the party that was laid bare last week when Mr Cheney became the most prominent foreign policy critic of President Barack Obama, to the chagrin of moderates and to the delight of the Right.

Mr Powell, a moderate who publicly announced just before last year's presidential election he that would vote for Mr Obama, the Democratic candidate, rather than his old friend John McCain, insisted: "I am still a Republican."

The former Gulf war commander lambasted Mr Cheney for saying that he believed "Colin had already left the party" and Mr Limbaugh for saying that he'd supported Mr Obama "solely based on race" and should become a Democrat.

He told CBS television they were "not members of the membership committee of the Republican Party" arguing that the party needed to build a broad base of support rather than falling back on conservative principles.

"Rush will not get his wish, and Mr. Cheney was misinformed. I am still a Republican", he said. "I would like to point out that in the course of my 50 years of voting for presidents, I have voted for the person I thought was best qualified at that time to lead the nation. >>> By Toby Harnden in Washington | Sunday, May 24, 2009

David Cameron to 'Open Up Candidate List to Everyone'
THE TELEGRAPH: David Cameron has said he will open up the Conservative Party's candidate list to people with no previous involvement in the party, in a reaction to the expenses scandal.

David Cameron, the Tory leader, has pledged to open up the Conservative candidate list. Photo courtesy of The Telegraph
The Conservative leader spoke as Andrew Mackay, the MP for Bracknell, was the latest Tory to announce he will step down at the next general election.

Speaking on the Andrew Marr show on BBC1, Mr Cameron said he wished to attract people who "believe in public service".

"What I'm going to do today is I'm going to reopen the Conservative candidate list to anybody who wants to apply," he said.

"They may not have had anything to do with the party before. But I'm saying, if you believe in public service, if you share our values, if you want to help us clean up politics, come and be a Conservative candidate. We want to open up the talent that is available."

Mr Cameron said he hoped successful headteachers and small business leaders could be among those attracted to running for candidacy.

"We've got to try and find them and persuade them to stand," he added.

"Right now I expect many people are saying 'I'm not going anywhere near this nest of vipers'.

"We've got to work hard at it because our politics really matters and this is an opportunity to do that." >>> By Chris Irvine | Sunday, May 24, 2009

The World at War: Genocide
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Homophobia Alive and Kicking
YNET NEWS: Attack on homosexual couple in Tel Aviv reminder that hate still exists

The attack on the homosexual couple at the heart of Tel Aviv raises concern, anger, and mostly prompts thoughts about the manner in which all of us within Israeli society allow violence to take root.

The couple’s grave sin – a brief kiss on the street – led to violence that could have easily resulted in grave damage. The intolerable ease with which a derogatory “homos” chant progressed into guys armed with bats chasing the couple shows that homophobia is alive and kicking, feeding on hatred and posing true danger.

Tel Aviv justifiably characterizes itself as a liberal, open, and equal city. City hall’s attitude to homosexuals, lesbians, bisexuals and transgendered individuals is among the most progressive and appropriate. However, even a city that over the years adopted the pride flag, we still see cases that remind us of dark periods in dark places. Crimes as result of sexual orientation are being carried out worldwide, yet we still would like to believe that it cannot happen in our home. >>> Yaniv Weizman | Friday, May 22, 2009

Malay Court Hearing 'Allah' Case

A Catholic church in Malaysia which prays to Allah has prompted a court case over who can use the word.

Muslim leaders say Islam should be the only faith to use it, saying its use in other faiths could lead to confusion and conversions.

Robin Brant reports from Kuala Lumpur.

Misery Meets Greece's Migrants (May 22, 2009)

"Ich sage die Wahrheit bis zum Umfallen"
KURIER: Kreuzzug - Heinz-Christian Strache (39) über Kirche und Staat, die Vorfälle in Ebensee und sein gestochen scharfes Weltbild.

Heinz-Christian Strache im KURIER-Gespräch mit Conny Bischofberger. Bild dank dem Kurier
Abendland in Christenhand: Die Kritik am FPÖ-Slogan für die EU-Wahl erreicht diese Woche ihren Höhepunkt. Sowohl die politische als auch die kirchliche Spitze des Staates weist Wortführer HC Strache scharf zurecht. Erst bezeichnet Kanzler Faymann den FPÖ-Chef als "Hassprediger", dann schaltet sich Bundespräsident Heinz Fischer, auch im heutigen KURIER-Interview, mit deutlichen Worten in die Debatte ein. 



Als Strache mit einem Kreuz gegen ein islamisches Kulturzentrum zu Felde zieht, liest sogar Kardinal Christoph Schönborn dem Provokateur die Leviten. "Meine Frage ist nicht, ob das Abendland in Christenhand bleibt, sondern, ob es Christus im Herzen hat. Ein glaubensloses Abendland, das ist zu fürchten", so Schönborn in seiner Predigt zu Christi Himmelfahrt im Wiener Stephansdom.

Der "Übeltäter" kommt, in dunkelblauem Sakko, Jeans, weißem Hemd und weißem Stecktuch, wie immer streitlustig, in die Pizzeria unter freiem Himmel. "Il Sestante", Wien-Josefstadt. Im Hintergrund ragt die prachtvolle Piaristenkirche Maria Treu in die Abendsonne. Ganz, wie HC Strache es mag. Ein paar Kinder spielen rund um die Pestsäule - mit der Unbefleckten Empfängnis als Siegerin über das Böse - vor der Basilika Fangen.



HC bestellt grünen Tee ("Ich ernähre mich seit 1. März für 100 Tage ausschließlich basisch. Ich hab' schon sieben Kilo abgenommen und komm' mit viel weniger Schlaf aus") und macht es sich mit seiner blauen Mappe bequem, aus der er während unseres Gesprächs immer wieder Textpassagen runterliest. Kurier: Herr Strache, wir sitzen hier vor der barocken Maria-Treu-Kirche. Würden Sie's vor einer Moschee auch so gemütlich finden? >>> Conny Bischofberger | Samstag, 23. Mai 2009

Michael Savage: Obama Tightens Grasp on Socialism; Jacqui Smith Dictates Absurd Hatred (May 19, 2009)

Neonazis Are on the Rise in Germany

Steen: 'People Are Jealous of My House'

Insurgency Takes Toll on Both Buddhists, Muslims
ASSOCIATED PRESS: KO TO, Thailand — The young Muslim man says he watched helplessly as soldiers broke his father's bones and punctured his lungs with vicious kicks. After seven hours of relentless torture, the Muslim religious leader died cradled in his lap.

In a nearby village, a 7-year-old Buddhist girl still dials her father's mobile telephone number every evening. Then she readies his bed. But her father is never coming home. He and his brother were riddled with bullets and their bodies set afire as they motorcycled to a computer class.

A vicious Muslim insurgency in Thailand's deep south has spared few. On the roll call of 3,400 dead are monks and teachers, shopkeepers and rubber tappers, officials and innocents from every background.

Islamic radicals are fighting for a separate state in Buddhist-majority Thailand. And a rift is widening between Buddhists and Muslims — communities that had lived harmoniously for generations and now share equally in the suffering. >>> By Denis D. Gray | Saturday, May 23, 2009

Pakistan's Mystics in Sights of Taliban
ASSOCIATED PRESS: PESHAWAR, Pakistan — Worshippers still flock to the grave of Rahman Baba, a Muslim mystic revered by millions in Pakistan and Afghanistan. But they now pray at a mound of rubble and twisted steel — all that remains of his tomb since militants bombed it.

The blast in March was the most high-profile in a recent spate of attacks against Pakistan's homespun, tolerant brand of Islam by hard-liners trying to replace it with the more austere version espoused by the Taliban, al-Qaida and other Sunni extremist groups.

"This hurts deep in my heart," said Ihasan ul-Haq, as he looked through a rainstorm onto the ruins of the once ornate, whitewashed tomb on the outskirts of Peshawar, a main northwestern town coming under the influence of the extremists. "And to think they do this in the name of Islam." >>> By Chris Brummitt | Saturday, May 23, 2009

Protest Staged over Gay Minister
The protesters are against the appointment of a gay minister. Photo credit: BBC
BBC: About 20 people have staged a demonstration outside the General Assembly meeting which is due to debate the appointment of a gay minister.

The protest, at The Mound in Edinburgh, was led by Pastor Jack Bell of the Zion Baptist Church in Glasgow.

The Reverend Scott Rennie was backed by a majority of the congregation and the local presbytery as the new minister at Queen's Cross Church, Aberdeen.

But some have since said they were unaware of Mr Rennie's sexuality.

The matter was referred to the General Assembly, the church's supreme court and will be debated on Saturday evening.

Mr Rennie, a 36-year-old divorced father-of-one, was previously a minister at Brechin Cathedral.

He has said he was open with the congregation at Queen's Cross about being gay and living with his male partner.

But more than 400 Kirk ministers and almost 5,000 Church of Scotland members are said to have signed an online petition opposing the appointment. >>> | Saturday, May 23, 2009

Listen to BBC audio: Reverends Ewen Gilchrist and David Randall discuss opposition to gay minister Scott Rennie’s appointment: The Church of Scotland is to decide whether gay minister Scott Rennie will be allowed to take up his post following a petition opposing his appointment from evangelical church members. The Reverend Ewen Gilchrist, who has been standing in for Mr Rennie ahead of his appointment, discusses the case with The Reverend David Randall. >>>

ASSOCIATED PRESS: Church of Scotland Votes to Appoint Gay Minister

LONDON — The Church of Scotland has voted in favor of appointing an openly gay minister — the latest case involving sexuality to create a division in the Anglican Communion.

The church's ruling body voted 326 to 267 Saturday to support the appointment of the Rev. Scott Rennie, 37, who was previously married to a woman and is now in a relationship with a man.

Rennie was first appointed as a minister 10 years ago, but has faced opposition from some critics since he moved to a church in Aberdeen, Scotland, last year.

Protesters had lobbied the Kirk — the Church of Scotland's ruling executive — over Rennie's case, saying his appointment was not consistent with the teachings of the Bible.

"We are absolutely opposed to that on the basis of what God has to say about homosexuality in the Bible," one opponent, Pastor Jack Bell of the Zion Baptist Church in Glasgow, Scotland, said.

The case has divided Scottish religious leaders and follows tensions within the worldwide 77 million-member Anglican Communion. About 900 elders and ministers took part in a debate on Rennie's case, but many chose to abstain from casting a vote. >>> Copyright © 2009 The Associated Press | Sunday, May 24, 2009

How the Left Turned to the Right
TIMES ONLINE: Liberal over-sensitivity to the beliefs of others is undermining freedom of speech, so giving reactionaries an easy ride

I attended an academic conference in late 1989 on the collapse of communism in Eastern Europe. Martin Jacques, editor of the now-defunct journal Marxism Today, put a brave face on the rejection of the ideals he espoused. He argued that these revolutions would expand the variety of left-wing views in Western Europe.

I recall arguing with him from the floor that the opposite was true. Of the two principal left-wing traditions in Europe, insurrectionary socialism and pro-Western social democracy, only the second retained credibility.

It is obvious now that we were both wrong. The revolutionary Left has made fitfully fruitful tactical alliances, such as the bleakly comic amalgam of Leninists and Islamists who formed and then rent apart George Galloway’s Respect party. But in its own name it remains a minuscule if variegated sect.

What has happened to the other wing of nominally progressive politics is more surprising. Liberalism, in its broadest sense, has become suspicious of its own ideals.

Notions once considered reactionary, even extreme, have insinuated themselves into the mainstream of right-thinking (that is, left-thinking) social idealism.

When you encountered someone of professed left-of-centre opinions, you used to be able to draw broad but important, and generally reliable, inferences about what these entailed.

They included, at a minimum, commitments to secularism, freedom of expression, individual liberty against collective authority, women’s rights, homosexual equality and the combating of xenophobia. Times have changed. Now these stances are unusual, even heterodox.

The degeneration of progressive idealism has many roots. But among the most important is the instinct that the ideas of Western liberty are specific to time and place — that they are Eurocentric. Almost coincident with the revolutions of 1989, which testified to the power of the human instinct for liberty, was a far more atavistic political movement.

Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, Supreme Leader of Iran, issued in February 1989 his fatwa calling for the murder of Salman Rushdie, a British citizen, for writing a novel that satirised Islam.

Western governments, religious leaders and political figures were more embarrassed than appalled. In effect, they acknowledged the offence and took issue only with the sentence. The chief rabbi in Great Britain, Dr Immanuel Jakobovits, remarked: “Both Mr Rushdie and the Ayatollah have abused freedom of speech.” >>> Oliver Kamm | Saturday, May 23, 2009