Islamists Order Mogadishu Radios to Stop Playing Music
AFP: MOGADISHU — A hardline Somali Islamist group issued a 10-day ultimatum Saturday to Mogadishu-based radio stations to stop playing all kinds of music or face unspecified penalties, an Islamist leader said.

The Hezb al-Islam group, which controls patches of the war-riven Somali capital, said playing music on radio stations was evil.

"We call on the local radio stations to stop broadcasting the songs and all music as well. We give them a 10-day deadline and any radio station found not complying with the orders... will face sharia action," said Moalim Hashi Mohamed Farah, a senior Hezb al-Islam official, referring to Islamic law.

"We also issue orders banning the local media from using the word 'foreigners' to refer to our Muslim brothers coming from outside the country to help us fight against the enemy of Allah," he told reporters. >>> | Saturday, April 03, 2010

John Paul ‘Ignored Abuse of 2,000 Boys’
Cardinal Hans Hermann Groer abused an estimated 2,000 boys for decades without sanction. Photo: The Sunday Times
THE SUNDAY TIMES: When John Paul II died five years ago the crowd that packed St Peter’s Square for his funeral clamoured “Santo subito (Saint now)!” in a spontaneous tribute to the charisma of the Polish pontiff.

As the faithful marked the anniversary of John Paul’s death on Good Friday, however, he was being drawn into the scandal over child abuse in the Catholic church that has confronted his successor, Benedict XVI, with the worst crisis of his reign.

Allegations that the late pontiff blocked an inquiry into a paedophile cardinal, promoted senior church figures despite accusations that they had molested boys and covered up innumerable cases of abuse during his 26-year papacy have cast a cloud over his path to sainthood.

The most serious claims related to Cardinal Hans Hermann Groer, an Austrian friend of John Paul’s who abused an estimated 2,000 boys over decades but never faced any sanction from Rome.

Cardinal Christoph Schönborn, Groer’s successor, criticised the handling of that scandal and other abuse cases last week after holding a special service in St Stephen’s cathedral, Vienna, entitled “Admitting our guilt”.

Schönborn condemned the “sinful structures” within the church and the patterns of “silencing” victims and “looking away”.

Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger — who became Pope Benedict — had tried to investigate the abuses as head of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, according to Schönborn. But his efforts had been blocked by “the Vatican”, an apparent reference to John Paul. >>> Bojan Pancevski in Vienna and John Follain in Rome | Easter Sunday, April 04, 2010

Christians Launch Pre-election 'Declaration of Conscience' on Values
THE TELEGRAPH: A bid to place Christian values at the heart of the general election campaign has been launched with a 'declaration of conscience' endorsed by senior figures from the Church of England, the Catholic Church and other denominations.

Signatories include Lord Carey, the former Archbishop of Canterbury (pictured), Cardinal Keith O'Brien, leader of the Catholic Church in Scotland, and the Rt Rev Michael Nazir-Ali, the former Bishop of Rochester. Photograph: The Sunday Telegraph
Thirty-five prominent individuals have signed a statement of values calling on politicians to "protect the right of Christians" to hold their beliefs and "act according to Christian conscience", The Sunday Telegraph can reveal.

Signatories include Lord Carey, the former Archbishop of Canterbury, Cardinal Keith O'Brien, leader of the Catholic Church in Scotland, and the Rt Rev Michael Nazir-Ali, the former Bishop of Rochester.

It comes after six prominent bishops wrote to this newspaper to complain that Christians in Britain are victims of discrimination and are "treated with disrespect". >>> Alastair Jamieson | Easter Sunday, April 04, 2010

Chris Grayling: Christian B&Bs Should Be Able to Turn Away Gay Couples
THE SUNDAY TELEGRAPH: Bed and breakfasts run by Christians should be allowed to turn away gay couples because of their sexuality, a leading Conservative has said.

Shadow home secretary Chris Grayling said Christian B&Bs should be able to turn away gay couples. Photograph: The Sunday Telegraph
Chris Grayling, the shadow home secretary, said hotels should not be allowed to discriminate against homosexuals, but also suggested individuals should have the right to decide who stays in their home.

The comments to a meeting of the Centre for Policy Studies thinktank sparked anger among gay rights activists and may prove embarrassing to Conservative leader David Cameron, who has made great play of his party's increased openness to homosexuals.

After a recording of his comments was published in The Observer Mr Grayling said he was not opposed to gay rights and would not be pressing for a change in the law, but felt it was important to respect the sensitivities of faith groups.

The row comes shortly after a B&B owner in Cookham, Berkshire, was reported to the police for refusing to take in a gay couple as guests on the grounds it was against her Christian principles.

The recording of the meeting on Wednesday shows Mr Grayling said: "I think we need to allow people to have their own consciences. >>> | Easter Sunday, April 04, 2010

Secret Tape Reveals Tory Backing for Ban on Gays
THE GUARDIAN: B&Bs 'should have right to bar gays' / Exclusion would violate law – Labour

The Tories were embroiled in a furious row over lesbian and gay rightson Saturday after the shadow home secretary, Chris Grayling, was secretly taped suggesting that people who ran bed and breakfasts in their homes should "have the right" to turn away homosexual couples.

The comments, made by Grayling last week to a leading centre-right thinktank, drew an angry response from gay groups and other parties, which said they were evidence that senior figures in David Cameron's party still tolerate prejudice.

In a recording of the meeting of the Centre for Policy Studies, obtained by the Observer, Grayling makes clear he has always believed that those who run B&Bs should be free to turn away guests.

"I think we need to allow people to have their own consciences," he said. "I personally always took the view that, if you look at the case of should a Christian hotel owner have the right to exclude a gay couple from a hotel, I took the view that if it's a question of somebody who's doing a B&B in their own home, that individual should have the right to decide who does and who doesn't come into their own home."

He draws a distinction, however, with hotels, which he says should admit gay couples. "If they are running a hotel on the high street, I really don't think that it is right in this day and age that a gay couple should walk into a hotel and be turned away because they are a gay couple, and I think that is where the dividing line comes."

Ben Summerskill, chief executive of the gay rights group Stonewall, said the comments would be "very alarming to a lot of gay people who may have been thinking of voting Conservative". >>> Toby Helm, political editor | Saturday, April 03, 2010

Iraqi Christians Under Fire
What bloody fools George W Bush and Tony Blair were to create this sad situation; and what even bigger fools we were to listen to them! Tony Blair might well have his riches; but does he have his integrity? – © Mark
THE TELEGRAPH: Half the refugees fleeing Iraq are Christian, dramatically reducing a presence that pre-dates Islam. Edward Stourton reports.

A guard outside the cathedral in Kirkuk. Photograph: The Telegraph
Fr Rayan Paulos Atto showed me an elaborately decorated bronze and glass case mounted on the wall near the altar of his airy modern church in Erbil. It was a reliquary, a showcase for displaying a relic of a saint or martyr – the sort of thing you might find gathering dust in the sacristy of some venerable Italian basilica.

Fr Rayan's reliquary contains a miniature icon of the Virgin which is spattered with tiny droplets of blood – the blood of his closest friend, a priest gunned down on the steps of his church in the name of Islam. For Christians in Iraq today the possibility of martyrdom is an ever present reality, not a historical curiosity.

The campaign of violence against Christians is one of the most under-reported stories of Iraq since the invasion of 2003. And it could change the country's character in a fundamental way; by the time the dust finally settles on the chaotic current chapter of Iraq's history, the Christian community may have disappeared altogether – after 2,000 years as a significant presence. About 200,000 Iraqi Christians have already fled the country; they once made up three per cent of its population, and they now account for half of its refugees.

Erbil, in northern Iraq, has become a magnet for Christian refugees who are too poor to leave Iraq or do not want to abandon their country. It is the seat of the Kurdish Regional Government, which treats the Christians well; it is safe; and there is an established Christian community to welcome them. Many of them gravitate towards the traditionally Christian suburb of Ainkawa.

Ainkawa is a 15-minute drive from the centre of Erbil, and on the way there, with Fr Rayan at the wheel, we passed the motorway exit to Mosul. Mosul – the biblical city of Nineveh – is only 50 miles from Erbil, but it remains a fearsomely violent place and it was there that Fr Rayan's friend lost his life. >>> Edward Stourton | Saturday, April 03, 2010

Russia and Venezuela Announce Nuclear Union
THE TELEGRAPH: Russia has agreed to help Venezuela draw up plans for a nuclear power plant and space programme, President Hugo Chavez announced.

Putin and Chavez shake hands after signing commercial agreements at Miraflores presidential palace in Caracas. Photograph: The Telegraph
Atomic energy was one of many areas of co-operation discussed as Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin made his first visit to the South American country.

"We're ready to start drawing up the first plan of a nuclear power plant, obviously with peaceful aims," Mr Chavez said.

Mr Chavez had announced plans to turn to Russia for nuclear help in the past.

He did not give details on how much Venezuela is prepared to invest, or how long it might take.

Russia and Venezuela also launched a joint business to tap vast oil deposits in eastern Venezuela and Mr Chavez said Moscow has offered to help Venezuela set up its own space industry including a satellite launch site.

Mr Putin also pledged to keep selling arms to Venezuela. Mr Chavez's government has already bought more than $4 billion (£2.6bn) in Russian weapons since 2005, including helicopters, fighter jets and 100,000 Kalashnikov rifles.

"We will continue supporting and developing Venezuela's defence capabilities," said Mr Putin, who headed back to Moscow after the one-day visit. >>> | Saturday, April 03, 2010

Somebody, Somewhere, Help This Poor Man! Lebanese TV Psychic Could Be Beheaded for Witchcraft
THE TELEGRAPH: The lawyer of a Lebanese TV psychic who was convicted in Saudi Arabia for witchcraft said her client could be beheaded this week and urged Lebanese and Saudi leaders to help spare his life.

Ali Sibat made predictions on an Arab satellite TV channel from his home in Beirut.

He was arrested by the Saudi religious police during his pilgrimage to the holy city of Medina in May 2008 and sentenced to death last November.

Lawyer May al-Khansa said she learned from an unofficial source that Mr Sibat, 49, is to be beheaded on Friday.

She added that she does not have any official confirmation of this.
"Ali is not a criminal. He did not commit a crime or do anything disgraceful," Mrs al-Khansa said.

"The world should help in rescuing a man who has five children, a wife and a seriously ill mother."

She added that Sibat's mother's health has been deteriorating since her son was sentenced to death.

The Saudi justice system, which is based on Islamic law, does not clearly define the charge of witchcraft.

Sibat is one of scores of people reported arrested every year in the kingdom for practicing sorcery, witchcraft, black magic and fortunetelling. >>> | Thursday, April 01, 2010

THE TELEGRAPH: 'Lebanese Derren Brown' Wins Reprieve from Beheading >>> Friday, April 02, 2010

CNN: Videos >>> | Friday, April 02, 2010

Violent Clashes At Mosque Protest
THE TELEGRAPH: Violent clashes have broken out between riot police and members of the English Defence League protesting against a planned mosque in Dudley, West Midlands.

Police officers control protestors of the English Defence League (EDL) on their demonstration through the streets of Dudley, protesting against plans to build a new mosque in the town. Photograph: The Telegraph
About 2,000 members of the EDL descended on Dudley town centre on Saturday afternoon.

Some of the protesters broke out of a pen in a car park, breaking down metal fences and throwing the metal brackets at officers, who were armed with riot shields and batons.

Members of the demonstration started fighting their own stewards who were trying to calm them down as they attacked the fences penning them in.

The EDL had put signs up which read ''Labour forcing mosques on Britain'' and ''No one wants this mosque''.

Some demonstrators held placards reading ''Muslim bombers off our streets'' and ''Say no to the mosque''.

The national anthem was played on a speaker system while demonstrators waved the flag of St George. >>> Alastair Jamieson | Saturday, April 03, 2010

Muslim Aid Charity Under Investigation
THE TELEGRAPH: A charity praised by Gordon Brown and the Prince of Wales has been placed under investigation by the Charity Commission following claims it had channelled hundreds of thousands of pounds to groups linked to a banned terrorist organisation.

Sir Iqbal Sacranie, Chairman of Muslim Aid pictured addressing guests.At a celebratory dinner at the Natural History Museum. Photograph: The Telegraph
According to its own accounts, Muslim Aid paid £325,000 to the Islamic University of Gaza, where leading Hamas figures teach, and £13,998 to the al-Ihsan Charitable Society, designated by the US government as a "sponsor of terrorism" and a front for the Palestinian Islamic Jihad terrorist group.

Security sources also claim that Muslim Aid has helped channel a further £210,600 to six other organisations in the Gaza Strip since July 2009, all of which they say are also linked to Hamas.

Despite repeated approaches for comment over more than a week, Muslim Aid has refused to deny these claims.

In a statement, the Charity Commission said: "We take very seriously allegations of links between charities and terrorist activity, and consider funding of terrorist organisations to be a 'zero tolerance' issue.

The Commission has opened an investigation into Muslim Aid in light of these allegations and is working with the charity to address the issues raised." >>> Andrew Gilligan | Saturday, April 03, 2010

Rowan Williams Apologises for Claiming Catholic Church Has Lost 'All Credibility'
THE TELEGRAPH: The Archbishop of Canterbury Dr Rowan Williams has been forced into a humiliating apology after claiming the Roman Catholic Church in Ireland had lost all credibility over the child abuse scandal.

Following a torrent of criticism, Dr Williams admitted his "deep sorrow and regret" over his earlier comments in a telephone conversation with the Catholic Archbishop of Dublin.

A statement issued last night by the Dublin Archdioces said: "The Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Rowan Williams, this afternoon telephoned Archbishop Diarmuid Martin to express his deep sorrow and regret for difficulties which may have been created by remarks in a BBC interview concerning the credibility of the Catholic Church in Ireland.

"Archbishop Williams affirmed that nothing could have been farther from his intention than to offend or criticise the Irish Church." >>> Robert Mendick | Saturday, April 03, 2010

Rise of Hungary's Far-Right Jobbik Party Stirs Disturbing Echoes of the 1940s
THE TELEGRAPH: As Hungary prepares to vote in a crucial election, the far-Right Jobbik party expects great success - to the consternation of democrats and those old enough to remember the fascist past.

Jobbik Rally Dunakeszi Hungary. Vona Gabor addresses suporters. Photograph: The Telegraph
As the youthful leader of Hungary's far-right Jobbik party arrived for an election rally, his followers gave him a welcome that had disturbing echoes of Europe in the 1940s.

Two ranks of Hungarian Guards, in paramilitary-style uniforms, snapped to attention as Gabor Vona marched past them. Party leaders saluted, and a red and white banner was raised - one that looked suspiciously similar to Hungary's old fascist emblem.

The rally in a school hall in the normally sleepy town of Dunakeszi was packed with hundreds of supporters. They cheered as Mr Vona promised to rid Hungary of corruption and crack down on foreign interests.

He spoke about stopping Roma, the country's biggest ethnic minority, from sponging off the state - forcing anyone claiming benefits to perform public service in return. He promised to "give back Hungary's national pride and identity".

The enthusiasm showed that Mr Vona has come a long way since Jobbik launched seven years ago. Its fierce nationalistic agenda and far-right rhetoric were soundly rejected by the electorate then. In national elections in 2006 it polled a miserable 2.2 per cent, failing to get a single member of parliament elected.

But now as Hungary prepares for crucial new elections the tide has turned, and it is flowing strongly Jobbik's way. To the horror of democrats who thought Hungary had shaken itself free of political extremism in 1989 with the fall of communism, Jobbik is on course to become the second biggest party in parliament. >>> Matthew Day in Budapest | Saturday, April 03, 2010

The World Of Tony Blair Inc
Now where do you suppose all this money has come from? And what do you suppose he has had to do to get it? – © Mark
THE TELEGRAPH: A staff of 130, turnover in the tens of millions: Tony Blair has created enormous wealth, but nobody knows quite how.

'His lifestyle involves moving between five-star hotels and mansions'. Photograph: The Telegraph
Tony Blair was merely a prime minister when he made his last major speech at the Trimdon Labour Club in 2007. After being burdened with the inconvenience of running the country for 10 years, he could not stop grinning as he announced that he was quitting not only Downing Street, but Parliament itself, freeing him from the constraints of public service.

On Tuesday, as Mr Blair returned to Trimdon to endorse Gordon Brown, his former constituents got their first close-up view of just how much better life had become for “our Tony” since he began his “journey” (as he would say) into the private sector.

With skin burnished to a dark ochre by unbroken exposure to the world’s sunniest climes and worry lines long faded away, Mr Blair made those around him look anaemic. Gone were the “blokeish” glottal stops in his speech that used to remind us that he was a “pretty straight sort of guy”, replaced by a mid-Atlantic twang that was far more user-friendly to his fee-paying audiences around the world.

But it was not Mr Blair’s physical appearance, nor even his glowing tribute to his sometime friend Mr Brown, that provided the greatest surprise of his visit to Sedgefield. It was the discovery that Mr Blair now employed 130 people in his ever-expanding business and charity empire, with the wage bill for “Blair Incorporated” thought to be £10 million to £20 million.

Incredible as it may seem, it means that all previous estimates of Mr Blair’s personal wealth — usually put at £20 million since he left office — appear to have been more than a little on the conservative side.

Sources close to Mr Blair say his earnings are “several multiples” of the figures that have been quoted in the past, suggesting that £50 million or even £60 million would be closer to the mark, although his spokesman described such a suggestion as “simply ludicrous”.

We will never know the truth, of course, because Mr Blair has set up a mind-boggling web of companies through which he can channel his earnings without having to declare publicly all of his income. The only two Blair companies that filed accounts had a combined income of £11.7 million in 2008-09.

However, a conversation Mr Blair had this week with his former agent, John Burton, provided a telling glimpse of what lay behind his veil of secrecy. >>> Gordon Rayner | Saturday, April 03, 2010

THE TELEGRAPH: Tony Blair ‘has blighted Buckinghamshire village’ >>> Jon Swaine | Saturday, April 03, 2010

Kommentar: Die Kirche muss ohne Ausflüchte bereuen
WELT ONLINE: Schon Jesus schlug sich auf die Seite der Sünder – allerdings verlangte er, dass sie bereuten. Wenn die Kirche sich seines Vorbilds als würdig erweisen will, muss sie die Missbrauchsskandale lückenlos und ohne Ausflüchte aufklären. Zur Reue gehört die schonungslose Selbstbefragung.

Nein, so einfach ist es nicht: Man kann nicht schlankweg erklären, die Osterbotschaft von der Auferstehung sei so begeisternd, dass all die schrecklichen Missbrauchsfälle zumal in der katholischen Kirche die Freude über das Fest nicht trüben könnten.

In der Bibel gehört zur Osterbotschaft, dass sie erzählt wird, dass sie nicht zu haben ist ohne Menschen, die sie weiter tragen. Als Maria Magdalena den Auferstandenen sieht, aber nicht erkennt, als sie begreift und nur ein Wort sagt: „Rabbuni“, Meister – da darf sie ihn nicht berühren, sondern wird von Jesus sofort losgeschickt, damit sie den Jüngern berichte. Am Abend erscheint er selbst den Jüngern und sagt ihnen: „Wie mich der Vater gesandt hat, so sende ich euch.“ Loslaufen, erzählen – das ist Ostern.

Darin zeigt sich einerseits die Menschlichkeit des Christentums. Da geistert nicht ein abstraktes Dogma umher, sondern lebt die Botschaft in und von Menschen, die sie berichten sollen. Andererseits macht dies die Botschaft verletzlich. Weil sie von Menschen lebt, müssen diese sich ihrer würdig erweisen. Sonst wird das Evangelium beschädigt. >>> Von Matthias Kamann | Samstag, 03. April 2010

Archbishop of Canterbury: Irish Catholic Church Has Lost All Credibility
THE GUARDIAN: Rowan Williams's comments on Vatican handling of sex abuse scandal likely to further cloud pope's upcoming UK trip

Dr Rowan Williams at a press conference in Lambeth Palace last month. Photograph: The Guardian
The archbishop of Canterbury has said the Catholic church in Ireland has lost "all credibility" because of its poor handling of the scandal of paedophile priests.

Dr Rowan Williams said the scandal had been a "colossal trauma" for Ireland in particular.

In an interview to be broadcast on Monday, he said: "I was speaking to an Irish friend recently who was saying that it's quite difficult in some parts of Ireland to go down the street wearing a clerical collar now.

"And an institution so deeply bound into the life of a society suddenly becoming, suddenly losing all credibility – that's not just a problem for the church, it is a problem for everybody in Ireland."

The archbishop's remarks are likely to fuel the controversy surrounding the pope's visit to Britain in September, when he is expected to talk about moral standards and renew his attack on Britain's equality laws.

A Protest the Pope petition on the Downing Street website against the £15m cost of the visit, which will be shared by the government and the Catholic church, has already attracted more than 10,000 signatories.

In his interview for BBC Radio 4's Start the Week, to be broadcast on Monday, Williams sounded less than enthused about the pope's visit.

"The pope will be coming here to Lambeth Palace. We'll have the bishops together to meet him. I'm concerned that he has the chance to say what he wants to say in and to British society, that we welcome him as a valued partner and, you know, that's ... that's about it."

He also predicted that few Anglicans would take up the pope's offer of conversion to Catholicism.

The reputation of the Catholic church in Ireland has been severley damaged by revelations that its leaders covered up widespread child sexual abuse by dozens of paedophile priests.

Its leader, the primate of All-Ireland, Cardinal Sean Brady, came under pressure to stand down after he admitted being at a meeting where children abused by the convicted paedophile Father Brendan Smyth were forced to take a vow of silence.

The scandal has also damaged the pope, who has faced accusations that he failed to properly investigate a serial abuser in a children's home for the deaf in Wisconsin, US, in the late 1990s.

Yesterday, the Vatican provoked further controversy after the pope's personal preacher compared criticism of the Catholic hierarchy over cleric sex abuse with persecution of Jews. >>> David Batty | Saturday, April 03, 2010

Pope's Preacher Says Attacks on Catholics Are Like Antisemitism
THE GUARDIAN: Jewish groups react with outrage as Vatican distances itself from 'non-official' remarks

Father Raniero Cantalamessa's remarks were described as 'repulsive' and 'obscene' by Germany’s ­Central Council of Jews. Photograph: The Guardian
Victims' groups and Jewish representatives expressed anger last night after the pope's personal preacher compared criticism of the Catholic hierarchy over cleric sex abuse with persecution of the Jews.

Addressing Pope Benedict and other members of the Vatican leadership at a service in St Peter's, Father Raniero Cantalamessa read a letter he said he had got from a Jewish friend. It said: "The passing from personal responsibility and guilt to a collective guilt remind me of the more shameful aspects of antisemitism."

Peter Iseley of the Survivors' Network of those Abused by Priests said: "To compare the discomfort that Vatican officials are finally feeling because of these decade-long cover-ups to the sufferings of the Jewish people down the centuries, especially during Holy Week, which was one of the most fearful times to be a Jew, is beyond even ridiculous."

The Jewish magazine, Tablet, called Cantalamessa "outrageously wrong". It said the church had "moved to cover up, paper over, and otherwise tacitly sanction paedophilia. Like the church, Jews know what it feels like to be victims of collective persecution. Unlike the church, Jews don't know what it feels like for their victimhood to be deserved."

Stephan Kramer, the general secretary of Germany's Central Council of Jews said: "It is repulsive, obscene and most of all offensive toward all abuse victims as well as to all the victims of the Holocaust.” >>> John Hooper in Rome | Saturday, April 03, 2010

Barack Obama Aims to Drive Gas Guzzlers Off the Road with Greener Laws
The Governator, Arnold Schwarzenegger, popularised the Hummer but now the President is trying to call a halt to the American love affair with giant SUVs. Photograph: Times Online
TIMES ONLINE: For decades they have thundered along America’s highways and choked up parking lots, a symbol of extravagance unchallenged by politicians, emissions standards or common sense.

They are the four-wheel-drive behemoths known to the US Government as “light trucks” and to consumers as SUVs (sport utility vehicles) — but their easy ride as the world’s most conspicuous mobile polluters ended this week.

In a coup that achieves something President Clinton promised but never delivered, President Obama has forced the big three US carmakers, and their unions, to accept tough mileage rules for cars and SUVs. The rules will cut emissions from vehicles by more than a third over the next four years.

Whether the new rules end America’s love affair with huge cars remains to be seen. But they are being introduced at a time when SUV sales are at a fraction of their peak level five years ago. Their demise coincides with the country’s first mass-produced “plug-in” electric car, which finally rolled off a Michigan production line this week.

From 2016, new cars and SUVs will have to deliver an average of 35.5 miles per gallon (42.6 miles per British gallon), comparable for the first time with European and Japanese requirements.

SUV mileage under the new regime is expected to average 28.8mpg (34.5mpg in Britain), or nearly three times that of the Hummer H1 that Arnold Schwarzenegger once drove into Times Square in New York to begin the vehicle’s transition from armoured personnel carrier into celebrity runabout.

The new rules end a notorious loophole in US law by which SUVs were exempt from emissions standards that applied to cars. This made them so much more profitable that at the peak of the sport utility boom, a single Ford plant was generating up to $15 million (£9.8 million) a day in pre-tax profits. >>> Giles Whittell, Washington | Saturday, April 03, 2010

Champagne-socialist Bliar Irritates Neighbours with Plans for His Little Country Pad
THE TELEGRAPH: A historic Buckinghamshire village has been blighted since Tony Blair moved into his £6m stately home, some neighbours claim.

The entrance to Wotton House. Photo: The Telegraph
Residents of Wotton Underwood say Mr Blair lives like a superstar and that they have had to endure helicopter noise and the presence of armed police.

One family has moved out, while others claim their children have been affected.

The picturesque village has been made a designated security area under the Terrorism Act, allowing officers to stop and search passers-by and ban photography.

Mr Blair and his wife, Cherie, are also having building work carried out. One resident claimed that a phone line installed for Mr Blair, who remains in close contact with world leaders, was mistakenly connected to her fax machine.

The complaints came as Mr Blair returned to national politics on Tuesday with a speech in support of Labour’s election campaign.

The Blairs bought South Pavilion, a 17th-century home in the village, for £5.75 million in May 2008.

The Grade I-listed property, once home to Sir John Gielgud, has seven bedrooms, ornamental gardens, a tennis court and swimming pool. It is the most valuable property in the Blairs’ £12 million portfolio. Tony Blair 'has blighted Buckinghamshire village' >>> Jon Swaine | Saturday, April 03, 2010

'Lebanese Derren Brown' Wins Reprieve from Beheading
THE TELEGRAPH: A Lebanese television psychic who is the equivalent of Derren Brown has won a temporary reprieve from a death sentence after being convicted in Saudi Arabia for witchcraft.

Ali Sibat, 49, had made predictions on an Arab satellite TV channel from his home in Beirut. He was arrested by the Saudi religious police during his pilgrimage to the holy city of Medina in May 2008 and sentenced to death last November.

He had been set to be beheaded Friday, the day executions are typically carried out in Saudi Arabia, but according to his attorney May al-Khansa, Lebanon's justice minister told her [that] her client would not be executed. She said it is still unclear whether the beheading had been waved [sic] or only postponed.

"Ali Sibat will stay alive this Friday but we don't know what is going to happen the next day, Saturday, Monday, any other day," she said. "What the (justice) minister told us was not enough for the family, it is not enough for me, because we really need Ali Sibat to be released." >>> | Friday, April 02, 2010

Related:

Beheading for Islamic Pilgrim? >>> | Friday, April 02, 2010

Moyen-Orient – Arabie: Un charlatan décapité?
leJDD.fr: On ne rigole pas avec les "charlatans" en Arabie saoudite. Même quand ils travaillent hors du pays, au Liban en l'occurrence. Ali Sabat devait être décapité vendredi pour avoir effectué des prédictions pour la télévision de Beyrouth. Il a surtout commis l'erreur de se rendre en pèlerinage à Médine. Un périple qui l'a conduit tout droit à la décapitation. La police religieuse en a en effet profité pour l'arrêter. Si son exécution a été reportée vendredi suite à l'intervention de la diplomatie libanaise, le "sorcier" n'est pas tiré d'affaires.

Il ne l'avait certainement pas vu venir. Ali Sabat, qui effectuait des prédictions pour la chaîne libanaise Sheherazade, diffusée par satellite, devait être exécuté vendredi en Arabie saoudite. Si son exécution a été reportée suite à l'intervention de la diplomatie libanaise, son sort reste encore incertain. II avait été arrêté en mai 2008 lors d'un pèlerinage vers Médine pour "sorcellerie et charlatanisme", des activités jugées polythéistes et contraire à la loi islamique.

L'homme n'a pourtant jamais exercé ses activités en Arabie saoudite mais depuis Beyrouth. Qu'importe, il lui a suffi de se rendre en pèlerinage dans la ville sainte de la péninsule arabique pour être appréhendé par la police religieuse saoudienne. Interrogé, il a avoué ses "crimes", en espérant être simplement renvoyé du pays. Le 9 novembre 2008, le verdict est tombé: peine de mort par décapitation. >>> Mathieu Olivier - leJDD.fr | Vendredi 02 Avril 2010

Pilger tragen Kreuze durch die Gassen Jerusalems. Bild: NZZ Online
Feierlichkeiten in einem schwierigen Umfeld: Christen in aller Welt gedenken der Leiden Jesu
NZZ ONLINE: Christen in aller Welt haben am Karfreitag der Leiden Jesu gedacht. Die Feierlichkeiten sind überschattet von den Missbrauchsvorfällen innerhalb der katholischen Kirche. In Jerusalem konnten die Pilgerzüge ohne grössere Zwischenfälle abgehalten werden.

Tausende von Christen in aller Welt haben am Karfreitag der Leiden Jesu Christi gedacht. Papst Benedikt XVI. rief während den Feierlichkeiten im Petersdom in Rom die Priester auf, «in der Gemeinschaft mit Jesus Christus Menschen des Friedens zu sein, der Gewalt entgegenzustehen und der grösseren Macht der Liebe zu vertrauen». Papst übernimmt Kreuz am Schluss >>> sda/dpa/afp | Karfreitag, 02. April 2010

Des fidèles finissent sur la croix
20MINUTES.ch: Des dizaines de personnes se sont flagellées, tandis que d'autres ont été «crucifiées» lors des traditionnelles cérémonies du vendredi saint aux Philippines.

Selon des responsables locaux, 30'000 touristes Philippins et étrangers sont attendus dans la ville pour les fêtes pascales.

«C'est la chose la plus douloureuse que j'ai jamais endurée, mais c'est pour le Seigneur et c'est ma pénitence», a déclaré Rommel David qui a entamé les «cérémonies» en se fouettant le dos en compagnie d'une dizaine de camarades dans la ville de San Fernando, au nord de Manille.

Une dizaine de personnes ont été attachées et clouées pendant quelques minutes à des croix à San Juan, près de San Fernando.

Les éphémères «Christ» sont ensuite emmenés dans une tente où des soins leur sont dispensés. >>> ats/afp | Vendredi 02 Avril 2010

Pâques : Le chemin de croix de Benoît XVI
Benoît XVI lors des cérémonies du Jeudi saint, hier à Rome. Photo : Le Temps
LE TEMPS: Les chrétiens célèbrent Pâques, et le pape va présider vendredi soir à Rome le chemin de croix, du Colisée au Palatin, qui rappelle le calvaire du Christ, alors que l’Eglise catholique traverse une crise inédite en se débattant dans les affaires de pédophilie

Depuis 2008, Benoît XVI, qui aura 83 ans le 16 avril, ne participe plus au parcours, qui commémore le martyre et la mort du Christ, ne prenant qu’à la toute fin la croix en bois. Vendredi soir, après la messe de la Passion du Christ à Saint-Pierre, il présidera la cérémonie depuis la terrasse du Mont Palatin, face au Colisée.

Cette année, le chemin de croix a une résonance particulière alors qu’une cascade d’affaires d’abus sexuels sur des mineurs de la part de prêtres et religieux, souvent couverts par leur hiérarchie, secoue l’Europe, notamment l’Allemagne, pays natal du pape, et les Etats-Unis. >>> AFP | Vendredi 02 Avril 2010

Des musulmans expulsés 
de la cathédrale de Cordoue
Une vue de l'intérieur de la cathédrale de Cordoue. Jusqu'en 1236, l'édifice était une mosquée. Une des plus belles au monde. Photo : Le Figaro
LE FIGARO: La police espagnole a dû intervenir après qu'un petit groupe de musulmans autrichiens a entamé une prière au sein de la cathédrale de Cordoue. La pratique du culte musulman y est formellement interdite. Deux jeunes ont été interpellés.

Léger incident pascal dans l'ancienne mosquée de Cordoue, reconvertie depuis le 13e siècle en cathédrale. Six touristes autrichiens musulmans d'un groupe de 118 jeunes se sont mis en tête mercredi d'entamer une prière dans l'édifice. Guidés par l'un d'entre eux, les hommes ont commencé à se prosterner dans l'une des nefs. Mais seul le rite catholique est autorisé en ces lieux. Le personnel de sécurité de la cathédrale a donc rappelé à l'ordre les visiteurs et leur a signifié que le culte musulman était interdit.

Les choses se seraient alors envenimées. Un des visiteurs aurait même sorti un couteau rapporte le site d'information abcdesevilla.es. La police espagnole est finalement intervenue et a interpellé les deux plus récalcitrants d'entre eux. Deux policiers auraient été blessés pendant l'altercation. >>> Par LeFigaro.fr | Vendredi 02 Avril 2010

US to Drop Extra Security Against 'Terror-prone' Muslim Air Travellers
So what exactly is Barack HUSSEIN Obama playing at? Is he compromising the safety of non-Muslims so as not to offend his Muslim brothers? The dropping of extra security against ‘terror-prone’ Muslim air travellers is a measure as stupid as it is dangerous. How long will it take for disaster to happen, I wonder? And who’ll have blood on his hands then? If Muslims are insulted by the extra security needed, then they should stop trying to kill infidels, and if they did that, there would no longer be any need for any extra-ordinary security measures at all. – © Mark

TIMES ONLINE: The Obama Administration, facing protests from allies, announced today that it will stop requiring extra airport security screening for all travellers from "terror-prone" Muslim nations.

The United States will instead institute a "tailored" security system that relies on profiling individual travellers, based on intelligence such as their physical description or travel pattern.

Officials said that the new system would result in fewer passengers being pulled aside when travelling to America.

President Obama announced a crackdown on travellers from 14 "terror-prone" countries — 13 largely Muslim nations plus Cuba — after the failed "underwear bombing" of a Detroit-Amsterdam flight on Christmas Day.

Passport-holders and passengers from those countries were required to undergo full body pat-downs and manual baggage search as part of extra airport screening.

The emergency measures were intended to prevent would-be bombers like the Nigerian suspect from boarding US-bound planes.

Farouk Adbulmutallab has been charged with trying to blow up the Northwestern Airlines Flight 253 after he allegedly tried to detonate explosives hidden in his underwear, suffering severe burns but failing to bring down the plane.

Mr Abdulmutallab, 25, a former student at University College London, is understood to have told investigators that he was trained as a suicide bomber by an al-Qaeda affiliate in Yemen.

Mr Adbulmutallab's name was placed on a 550,000-name list of possible terror suspects, known as the Terrorist Identities Datamart Environment database, or TIDE, after his father tipped off the US embassy in Nigeria about his concerns.

But Mr Adbulmutallab was never put on a 2,500-name "no-fly list" nor a 13,500-long "selectee" list requiring extra airport screening.

The blanket security measures imposed after the failed bombing affected all travellers from Afghanistan, Algeria, Iraq, Iran, Lebanon, Libya, Nigeria, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, Yemen and Cuba.

The list offended allies like Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, Nigeria and Algeria who are partners of the United States in the fight against al-Qaeda. >>> James Bone, New York | Friday, April 02, 2010

Worshippers Revolt in Church as German Catholic Leaders Admit Abuse
Archbishop Robert Zollitsch said that the Church had committed serious mistakes and done too little to help the victims of abuse. Photograph: Times Online
TIMES ONLINE: German Catholic leaders openly admitted for the first time today that the Church betrayed and abused children in its care.

The admission by Archbishop Robert Zollitsch, chairman of the German Bishops' Conference, came as Catholic priests across the country called on their congregations to pray for abused children.

But in many churches worshippers took the unusual step of expressing their unhappiness with the Church's management of the crisis.

Archbishop Zollitsch said that the Church had committed serious mistakes and done too little to help the victims of priestly abuse. “The caring responsibility towards the victims was insufficient in the past because of our own disappointment at the painful failure of the perpetrators, and out of a falsely understood concern for the standing of the church," he said.

It was as close as the Church in Germany has come to admitting that it covered up crimes committed by priests.

That, he said, was the "painful reality that we have to face up to". The Archbishop's words were notably blunter than those used by the Pope the previous day.

On Maundy Thursday he did not refer directly to the child abuse revelations now spreading across continents and confined himself to calling on Christians to respect the law. >>> Roger Boyes in Berlin and Ruth Gledhill | Friday, April 02, 2010

Beheading for Islamic Pilgrim?


Question About Saudi Justice


Related:

Saudis Display Their Barbaric, Dark Age Credentials! >>> | Thursday, April 01, 2010

The stones that were allegedly taken from the Berghof are thought by some to have been re-used in the construction of this roadside chapel. Others think they are not the same stones -- and are hoping the debate dies down soon. Photograph: Spiegel Online International
The Führer’s Flagstones: The Twisted Legacy of Hitler's Mountain Retreat
SPIEGEL ONLINE INTERNATIONAL: They may be simple flagstones, but they were once part of Adolf Hitler's mountain retreat in Obersalzberg. Now, a historian's claim that stones from the dictator's villa were used for the construction of a local chapel has many in the region up in arms.

It was a pleasant, dignified and very Bavarian celebration. There was a brass band, a group in lederhosen and dirndls, local dignitaries and even a close associate of the pope. All of them were there to attend the dedication of the Wegmacher chapel, a small roadside chapel in Obersalzberg, Adolf Hitler's mountain headquarters in the southeast corner of Germany.

Matthias Ferwagner, head of the building authority in the nearby town of Traunstein, told a touching story about a girl named Sophia who had cancer and placed daisies on the chapel's walls as a way of comforting her parents and how, shortly thereafter, the chapel was able to open its doors and fulfill its purpose of bestowing divine protection on Bavaria's road-construction workers and drivers.

Now, 13 years on, many of the guests who attended the dedication are starting to wish the chapel had never been built. It is difficult to ascertain, of course, whether the building is fulfilling is sacred function of protecting travelers. What is clear, however, is that the chapel is causing nothing but trouble in the secular world.

The red marble flagstones on the chapel's floor are now rumored to have an unpleasant past, and many locals fear that the nearly 10 square meters (108 square feet) of stone used to build it could become a pilgrimage site for neo-Nazis and National Socialist die-hards, thereby creating a problem for the tourist industry serving the surrounding area.

The reason for this apprehension is a belief held by some that these flagstones may once have adorned the terrace of the Berghof, Adolf Hitler's mountainside retreat on the Obersalzberg, towering above the town of Berchtesgaden. Florian Beierl, a historian who has been looking into the history of the Berghof, is one of those who adheres to this idea.

Since Beierl went public with his theory in the International Herald Tribune in February, the chapel has been a major topic of discussion in the region. And now that some people are calling for the chapel to be demolished, local newspapers, Bavarian television stations and the online media have been debating whether Beierl should have just kept his mouth shut. In his defense, Beierl says that sweeping his suspicions under the rug would have gone against the seriousness called for when dealing with Germany's Nazi past. >>> Connie Neumann | Thursday, April 01, 2010

Moscow and St. Petersburg Bombarded by Hundreds of False Terror Alerts
RUSSIA TODAY: Abusing widespread public fear after Monday’s Moscow metro bombings, hooligans have made hundreds of false phone call terror alerts.

Shortly after two deadly blasts rocked Moscow’s underground Monday, an unknown man called the St. Petersburg’s police and said there were bombs on the city’s two central metro stations. Ploshyad Vosstaniya and Gostinny Dvor platforms were immediately closed and guarded by the police. The call later turned out to be a false one. >>> | Friday, April 02, 2010

China’s Backing for Sanctions on Iran Still Unclear

RUSSIA TODAY: China’s backing for sanctions on Iran still unclear: The US announcement that China is willing to discuss new sanctions against Iran is neither being denied nor confirmed by Beijing. >>> | Friday, April 02, 2010

One of the Metro Bombers Could Be Teen Widow – Report

RUSSIA TODAY: One of the Metro bombers could be teen widow – report: A Russian daily has suggested that one of the suicide bombers who carried out attacks in the Moscow Metro on Monday could be a 17-year-old widow of one of Islamic terrorist leaders. >>> | Friday, April 02, 2010

Britain’s Most Senior Catholic Admits 'Evil' Clergy Abuse Has Led to 'Great Public Humiliation' of Church
THE TELEGRAPH: Child abuse committed by priests has led to “a great public humiliation” of the church, according to the most senior Roman Catholic in Britain.

Cardinal Keith O'Brien insists that the faithful must not turn away from the church. Photo: The Telegraph
Cardinal Keith O’Brien, the Archbishop of St Andrews and Edinburgh, will also tell worshippers on Easter Sunday that the cover-up of “evil” paedophilia by senior clergy “brings shame on us all”.

However he insisted that the faithful must not turn away from the church, just as voters disillusioned by the state of politics should still cast their ballots.

His forthright comments on one of the most important days in the Christian calendar highlight the concern felt at the highest levels of the church about the effect of clergy sex abuse scandals unfolding around the world. >>> Martin Beckford, Religious Affairs Correspondent | Good Friday, April 02, 2010

Gordon Brown Issues Easter Greeting
THE TELEGRAPH: Gordon Brown hailed Christians as ''the conscience of our country'' in an Easter greeting posted on the Downing Street website.

Gordon Brown outside Chequers, the Prime Minister's official country residence. Photograph: The Telegraph
The Prime Minister's Good Friday missive hailed the ''redeeming power of faith'' and said the forthcoming official visit of Pope Benedict would make this a special year for the UK.

''Easter is the most important date in the Christian calendar because it is when we reflect on the life, death and resurrection of Jesus,'' he wrote.

''Christians all over Britain and the world will be celebrating in their homes and churches and thinking about the redeeming power of faith. >>> | Good Friday, April 02, 2010

Warmest Wishes for Easter from the PM
NUMBER 10: The Prime Minister has wished those celebrating Easter all over Britain and the world a happy Easter.

Gordon Brown said how “incredibly grateful” he was to Christian churches for all that they do.

The PM said this year was a particular reason to celebrate, as 2010 will see the first official visit of His Holiness the Pope to Britain.

The PM said: >>> | Good Friday, April 02, 2010

The Real Face of Jesus?

La Chine contre des sanctions, assure Téhéran
LE TEMPS: Alors que Barack Obama a de nouveau appelé la Chine à collaborer à des sanctions contre l’Iran lors d’un entretien téléphonique avec le président Hu Jintao la nuit dernière, le négociateur iranien en visite à Pékin affirme ce vendredi que les Chinois sont convaincus que les sanctions sont inefficaces

L’Iran et la Chine sont convenus que l’arme des sanctions dans le dossier nucléaire iranien avait perdu de son efficacité, a assuré vendredi à la presse le négociateur iranien sur le nucléaire, Saïd Jalili, à l’issue de ses entretiens dans la capitale chinoise. «Nous avons souligné ensemble lors de nos discussions que cette arme des sanctions avait perdu de son efficacité», a déclaré M. Jalili lors d’une conférence de presse.

Le négociateur iranien a également appelé les pays occidentaux à changer leurs «méthodes erronées» et à «cesser de menacer l’Iran».

Les Etats-Unis ont affirmé cette semaine que la Chine avait accepté d’engager des «négociations sérieuses» à l’ONU pour l’adoption de nouvelles sanctions. La Chine n’a pas confirmé cette information. >>> AFP | Vendredi 02 Avril 2010

Saudis Display Their Barbaric, Dark Age Credentials! Saudi Move to Execute 'Sorcery Man' Sparks Protest
BBC: Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri has been urged to intervene to stop the execution of a Lebanese national accused of sorcery in Saudi Arabia.

Amnesty International said TV fortune teller Ali Hussain Sabat seemed to have been convicted for "exercising of his right to freedom of expression".

Mr Sabat's lawyer said she had been informed unofficially that he could be beheaded by the end of this week.

But Beirut's envoy to Riyadh said the case was still being heard.

The condemned man hosted a satellite TV show in which he predicted the future.

He was arrested by the Saudi religious police while on pilgrimage to the country in 2008.

Malcolm Smart, head of Amnesty's Middle East and North Africa programme, said it was "high time the Saudi Arabian government joined the international trend towards a worldwide moratorium on executions".

The Lebanese ambassador to Riyadh, Marwan Zein, said on Thursday that he had not been informed that Mr Sabat's execution was imminent, AFP news agency reports.

His case was "still being considered by the court", the ambassador said.

There has been no official confirmation from Saudi Arabia, but executions there are often carried out with little warning. >>> | Thursday, April 01, 2010

Wife of Condemned 'Sorcerer' Pleads for Mercy
CNN: The wife of a Lebanese man facing a death sentence in Saudi Arabia for "sorcery" pleaded for mercy Thursday as Lebanon's justice minister asked the kingdom's rulers to halt his beheading.

Family members have been told that Ali Hussain Sibat, who used to offer predictions and advice to callers on a Lebanese television network, is scheduled to be put to death Friday. His wife made an emotional plea for his release during a CNN interview Thursday.

"All I ask is for the Saudi king and the Saudi government to show him mercy -- let him come back to his country and his family," Samira Rahmoon said.

Sibat was arrested by Saudi Arabia's religious police and charged with sorcery while visiting the country for an Islamic pilgrimage in May 2008, according to May El Khansa, his attorney in Lebanon. Saudi authorities have not disclosed details of the charge for which Sibat has been condemned and have not responded to requests for comment on the case.

"We can't understand how they could arrest him and charge him and sentence him to death," Rahmoon said. "It doesn't make any sense."

El Khansa said Wednesday that she had been told about the upcoming execution by a Saudi source with knowledge of the case and the proceedings. Lebanon's government says it has no confirmation that his execution has been set. But Justice Minister Ibrahim Najjar said he has asked the Saudis to halt any scheduled execution and release Sibat, calling the punishment "disproportionate."

"I have asked them not to implement any execution in this case," he said. "As far as I know, such an act doesn't deserve such a punishment, unless there is something else -- something that I have not had the possibility to study or to examine myself."

Rahmoon said the family has been unable to contact Sibat "for a long time" and has received no official notification that her husband's execution date has been set.

"We don't understand how he could be executed without us getting any notification first," Rahmoon said. "How could they decide to execute him and not inform us?"

A law against witchcraft remains on the books in Lebanon, but is the equivalent of a misdemeanor, Najjar said. >>> Mohammed Jamjoom, CNN | Thursday, April 01, 2010

Lebanese TV Psychic Could Be Beheaded for Witchcraft
THE TELEGRAPH: The lawyer of a Lebanese TV psychic who was convicted in Saudi Arabia for witchcraft said her client could be beheaded this week and urged Lebanese and Saudi leaders to help spare his life.

Ali Sibat made predictions on an Arab satellite TV channel from his home in Beirut.

He was arrested by the Saudi religious police during his pilgrimage to the holy city of Medina in May 2008 and sentenced to death last November.

Lawyer May al-Khansa said she learned from an unofficial source that Mr Sibat, 49, is to be beheaded on Friday.

She added that she does not have any official confirmation of this.

"Ali is not a criminal. He did not commit a crime or do anything disgraceful," Mrs al-Khansa said.

"The world should help in rescuing a man who has five children, a wife and a seriously ill mother."

She added that Sibat's mother's health has been deteriorating since her son was sentenced to death.

The Saudi justice system, which is based on Islamic law, does not clearly define the charge of witchcraft.

Sibat is one of scores of people reported arrested every year in the kingdom for practicing sorcery, witchcraft, black magic and fortunetelling.

These practices are considered polytheism by the government in Saudi Arabia, a deeply religious Muslim country. >>> | Thursday, April 01, 2010

Vatican’s Troubles Grow

Fund Chief’s Funeral


THE TELEGRAPH: Gulf Sheikh Ahmed bin Zayed al-Nahyan Found Dead in Morocco >>> Louise Armitstead, Chief City Correspondent | Tuesday, March 30, 2010

Serbia Issues Apology for Muslim Massacre


Related:

NRC HANDELSBLAD INTERNATIONAL: Serbia Apologises for Srebrenica Massacre >>> AFP, NRC, Reuters | Wednesday, March 31, 2010

Abus sexuels : Un avocat américain demande au pape de témoigner sous serment
Benoît XVI a condamné l’avortement lors d’une messe, mais n’a pas abordé les scandales de pédophilie qui bouleversent l’église catholique. Photo : Le Temps
LE TEMPS: Benoît XVI n’a fait aucune mention en lançant les célébrations pascales ce matin des affaires d’abus sexuels qui ébranlent le monde catholique. Un avocat américain vient de déposer une requête pour obtenir que le pape témoigne sous serment dans le cadre de plusieurs dossiers de prêtres accusés de pédophilie aux Etats-Unis

L’avocat William McMurry estime que le Vatican était au courant depuis longtemps du scandale des enfants violés par des prêtres. Selon sa requête, dont l’AFP s’est procuré copie, Benoît XVI était au courant de ce qu’il se passait aux Etats-Unis alors qu’il était encore cardinal et qu’il présidait la Congrégation de la doctrine de la foi - pendant les 24 ans qui ont précédé son accession à la papauté.

Il a, assure l’avocat, «découragé les procureurs de poursuivre les prêtres mis en cause et a encouragé le silence pour protéger la réputation de l’Eglise catholique». >>> AFP | Jeudi 01 Avril 2010

Lauter dümmes Zeug von Schröder und FDP: Altkanzler Schröder und FDP kritisieren Merkels Türkei-Politik
ZEIT ONLINE: Rüge vom Altkanzler: Deutschland müsse die Türkei auf dem Weg in die EU mehr unterstützen. FDP-Politiker schließen sich an. Sie verweisen auf den Koalitionsvertrag

Bundeskanzlerin Angela Merkel während ihres Besuchs in Istanbul mit Tayyip Erdoğan und seiner Frau Emine Erdoğan. Bild: Zeit ONline
Wenige Stunden nach dem Ende ihres Türkeibesuchs mehrt sich die Kritik an Bundeskanzlerin Angela Merkel. Neben führenden FDP-Politikern äußerte sich auch Merkels Vorgänger im Kanzleramt zur Türkei-Politik der CDU-Vorsitzenden. Gerhard Schröder forderte in einem Gastbeitrag für die Bild-Zeitung, die Bundesregierung müsse Ankara auf dem Weg in die Europäische Union stärker als bisher unterstützen.

"Die Türkei gehört schon jetzt zu den 20 größten Volkswirtschaften der Welt. Und das wirtschaftliche Tempo in der Türkei ist rasant. Diese Chance müssen wir Deutschen nutzen. Deshalb bin ich ein Befürworter der EU-Mitgliedschaft der Türkei", schreibt Schröder. Das Land habe sich unter der Führung von Ministerpräsident Tayyip Erdoğan auf einen mutigen Reformweg begeben. Während der Amtszeit Schröders als Bundeskanzler galt Deutschland als engagierter Förderer des Beitrittsprojekts.

Auch der aktuelle SPD-Vorsitzende Sigmar Gabriel übt scharfe Kritik an der Türkei-Politik Merkels. Gabriel sagte der Berliner Zeitung, Merkel mache aus innenpolitischen Gründen "Ideologie statt Politik" gegenüber der Türkei: "Sie opfert die wirtschaftlichen Interessen Deutschlands in den deutsch-türkischen Beziehungen, nur um innenpolitisch vor der Landtagswahl in Nordrhein-Westfalen von anti-türkischen Ressentiments profitieren zu können." Statt eine Debatte über den EU-Beitritt des Landes zu führen, solle die Kanzlerin konkrete Ziele setzen. >>> ZEIT ONLINE, dpa, Reuters, AFP | Mittwoch, 31. März 2010

“Blasts Carried Out by Chechens, Strategy Courtesy of Al-Qaeda” – Journalist

Medvedev Holds Security Meeting in North Caucasus

Malaysian Woman Escapes Caning Over Drinking Beer in Public
THE TELEGRAPH: A Muslim woman sentenced to be caned for drinking beer has had her punishment commuted, in a surprising turnaround for a high-profile case that raised questions about Malaysia's Islamic laws.

Kartika Sari Dewi Shukarno, a mother of two, received a letter from the Pahang state Islamic department informing her that the state's sultan had decided to spare her the caning, her lawyer, Adham Jamalullail, said.

The order is likely to cool down a fiery debate over whether Islamic laws should intrude into people's private lives in the Muslim-majority country. Many people had condemned the punishment, saying it showed conservative Islamists were gaining influence over the justice system.

Mr Adham said that "as a substitution for the caning, the sultan has ordered Kartika to perform community service for three weeks." >>> | Thursday, April 01, 2010

Resignation Is Not an Option for the Pope
TIMES ONLINE: It is Benedict XVI’s duty to implement worldwide the reforms already made by Catholic leaders in Britain

The paedophile abuse cases have become a big crisis for the Roman Catholic Church. A crisis for the laity, a crisis for the clergy, a crisis for the bishops and, increasingly, a crisis for the Pope himself.

It has caused great damage to the victims, who need to be considered first. In some cases the psychological damage will last a lifetime. The crisis has damaged the image that the Church has of itself; it has damaged the authority of the Pope.

Priests see themselves as men of spiritual values, disciplined in their personal lives and requiring considerable personal sacrifices, including the sacrifice involved in a life of celibacy. They usually have the respect of their own communities.

It is still the case that congregations usually trust their own priests; that is true of the Catholic Church and of the Church of England, but it is easy for the Catholic clergy to feel they may be suspected of criminal conduct with children, which they find as outrageous as does everyone else. Like MPs who have never abused their expenses, many priests must feel that they are suffering guilt by association.

Most clergy live relatively austere religious lives. The proportion who have ever had sexual allegations made against them is about one in 200. That proportion has been high enough to cast some degree of suspicion on the priesthood as a whole. The clergy are able to do their work because they are trusted, and that trust has been damaged.

The Catholic Church of previous eras had a policy that sexual offences should be hidden. This policy of “cover-up” has done the greatest possible harm, both to the victims, who were not believed, and to the spread of abuse. Until about ten years ago, most Catholic bishops thought it was their duty to protect the Church from scandal; they mistakenly believed that secrecy would act in the interest of the Church.

They protected paedophile priests from the police; they persuaded the unfortunate victims to sign secrecy agreements; they kept the stories out of the press; they moved the peccant priests from one parish or diocese to another. Families were persuaded that their children, who had suffered abuse, were fantasists or liars. The victims were made to feel that it was they who were guilty. >>> William Rees-Mogg | Monday, March 29, 2010

Iranian Nuclear Scientist Defects to US
THE TELEGRAPH: A leading Iranian nuclear scientist has defected to the United States and is working with the CIA.

Shahram Amiri, a nuclear physicist in his early thirties, disappeared in June 2009 after arriving in Saudi Arabia on a pilgrimage.

An ABC report said that US intelligence agents had described the defection as "an intelligence coup" in US efforts to undermine Iran's nuclear program.

Mr Amiri's disappearance "was part of a long-planned CIA operation to get him to defect," the ABC reported, citing unnamed people briefed on the operation by US intelligence officials.

On October 7, Manouchehr Mottaki, the Iranian foreign minister, charged that there was US involvement in Mr Amiri's disappearance.

"We have obtained documents that show US interference in the disappearance of Shahram Amiri in Saudi Arabia," Mr Mottaki was quoted as saying by Iran's Fars news agency.

He suggested that Mr Amiri had been arrested in Saudi Arabia and the United States was involved.

"We consider Saudi Arabia responsible for the situation of Shahram Amiri and we consider Americans to have been involved in his arrest," Mr Mottaki was quoted as saying by the official IRNA news agency. >>> | Wednesday, March 31, 2010

Moscow Bombing: Chechen Terrorist Claims Responsibility
THE TELEGRAPH: A Chechen terrorist who is Russia’s most wanted man has claimed responsibility for the Moscow metro bombings on Monday and promised to bring all out war to Russia’s streets.

Chechen-born Islamist extremist Doku Umarov. Photograph: The Telegraph
In a chilling video posted on an internet website considered to be a mouthpiece for Russia-based radical Islamists, Doku Umarov, a Chechen-born Islamist extremist, said he had ordered the attack on Moscow in revenge for an alleged massacre of civilians perpetrated by Russian special forces in February.

The alleged massacre occurred on the border between the southern Russian republics of Chechnya and Ingushetia and saw up to twenty-two people killed.

The authorities said it was a counter-terrorism operation and that the victims were Islamist militants but human rights groups claimed the victims were innocent civilians picking garlic in the forest.

“Therefore the war is coming to your streets and you will feel it on your own lives and on your own skins,” Doku Umarov told ordinary Russians in the video broadcast.

You will no longer ”serenely watch the war in the Caucasus unfolding on your TV screens, serenely watching and not reacting to the excesses and crimes of your gangs which are sent to the Caucasus under Putin’s leadership,” he added. >>> Andrew Osborn in Moscow | Wednesday, March 31, 2010

Related / Verbunden:

BLICK.ch: Der «Emir vom Kaukasus» soll der Drahtzieher des Blutbades sein: Russland jagt diesen Grössen-Wahnsinnigen >>> Von Christian Bischoff | Mittwoch. 31. März 2010

RUSSIA TODAY – VIDEO: Authorities Say Chechen Warlord Umarov Top Suspect In Moscow Bombings >>> | Tuesday, March 30, 2010

Chechen Says He Ordered Moscow Subway Attacks

Details of British Muslim Students Could Be Given to CIA
THE TELEGRAPH: Personal details of almost 1,000 British Muslim students could be placed on US terror watch lists because of the police investigation into the Detroit bomb.

Nigerian Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab while on a school trip to London. Photograph: The Telegraph
Names, email and home addresses of members of the Islamic Society at the University College London (UCL) were handed over to detectives investigating the alleged attack on an aircraft by Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab as it landed in Detroit on Christmas Day.

Abdulmutallab studied engineering at university in 2005/08, and was president of the UCL Islamic Society in 2006/07.

Names and email addresses of all members of the UCL Islamic Society and Royal Free and UCL Medical Islamic Society between September 2005 and June 2009 were handed over to police by the university's student union, according to a report in The Independent.

Police were then given telephone numbers and home addresses by the UCL Registry.

The newspaper said the information had been given to the CIA, and that the homes of more than 50 of the students have been visited by police officers, but nobody has been arrested.

Some of the students on the list were not at UCL at the same time as Abdulmutallab and many had never met him.

The newspaper said Mojeed Adams-Mogaji, the current president of the UCL Islamic Society, was told by police the personal details would be kept for seven years and would be shared with other intelligence agencies “if requested”. >>> Alastair Jamieson | Thursday, April 01, 2010

Jose Maria [sic?] Aznar Under Fire Over Attempt to Secure US Congressional Medal
THE TELEGRAPH: The former Spanish prime minister, Jose Maria Aznar, is facing accusations that he used £2 million of public funds in an attempt to "buy" the US Congressional Gold Medal.

The Conservative premier, who held office between 1996 and 2004 during which time he supported the US-led war in Iraq, is under investigation for claims he hired lobbyists to push US lawmakers to award him their highest civilian honour.

Spain's national Court of Auditors announced it would investigate whether payments made to Washington law firm Piper Rudnick during Aznar's term in office constituted wrongdoing.

Mr Aznar authorised 2.3 million euros in payments to the lobbyists ostensibly to "assist the Government of Spain in closer relations with the United States".

But it is alleged that the primary aim was to run a PR campaign that would secure the highest recognition for the Spanish leader with the award of Congressional Gold medal. >>> Fiona Govan in Madrid | Wednesday, March 31, 2010