US Singer and Actress Whitney Houston Dies Aged 48
BBC: American singer and actress Whitney Houston has died in Los Angeles at the age of 48.

Police said she died in her room at the Beverly Hilton Hotel, where she had been staying as a guest.

Houston was one of the most celebrated female singers of all time, with hits including I Will Always Love You and Saving All My Love For You.

But her later career was overshadowed by substance abuse and her turbulent marriage to singer Bobby Brown.

Police spokesman Mark Rosen told reporters Houston was pronounced dead at 15:55 pm (23:55 GMT) in her room on the fourth floor of the Beverly Hilton Hotel.

Fire department personnel and members of hotel security were attempting to resuscitate her when police arrived at the scene, he said, but their efforts were unsuccessful.

"She has been positively identified by friends and family that were with her at the hotel, and next of kin have already been notified," he added.

The cause of her death remains unclear but Mr Rosen said there were "no obvious signs of criminal intent".

'Finest voice'

Houston's background was steeped in soul and gospel music.

Her mother was gospel singer Cissy Houston, she was cousin to singer Dionne Warwick and goddaughter to Aretha Franklin. (+ video + audio) » | Saturday, February 11, 2012

The Rachel Maddow Show: Ron Paul

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

What Kind of People Have We Become?

THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Churchill would be dismayed by modern Britain’s capitulation to jackboot egalitarians, says Jeff Randall.

Between Christmas and New Year, the 70th anniversary of an event, which in no small way helped change the course of history, passed almost unnoticed. On December 26, 1941, less than three weeks after Japan had attacked Pearl Harbor, Winston Churchill addressed both branches of Congress in the United States. The prime minister, who was in Washington to agree military strategy with President Roosevelt, used the invitation from Senators and Representatives to excoriate the Axis powers and pose a simple question: “What kind of people do they think we are?”

This wasn’t Churchill’s finest oratorical effort, but it was clever. As well as denouncing the forces of darkness and the enormity of their aggression, it was an invitation to ordinary Britons, suffering the horrors of war at home, to reflect on the challenge ahead. He was, in effect, asking fellow citizens: “Of what are we made?”

Seven decades later, one wonders how the great man would view the kind of people the British have become. What has happened to the freedoms and independence for which he urged us to fight? It’s hard to imagine our wartime chieftain being anything other than dismayed by the erosion of sovereignty, capitulation to the “equalities industry” and enslavement by debt. We have lost control of domestic borders, ceded legal primacy to Europe and allowed the Storm Troopers of political correctness to stamp their corrosive version of right and wrong on British law.

For evidence of our self-inflicted abasement, look no further than this month’s ruling from Europe’s Court of Human Rights that Abu Qatada, a radical Islamist preacher, regarded as one of al-Qaeda’s main inspirational leaders in Europe, cannot be deported from Britain to his native Jordan because his trial there might have contained evidence obtained by torture. » | Jeff Randall | Monday, January 30, 2012

Argentina Accuses Britain of Sending Nuclear Missiles to Falklands
Argentina has stepped up its sabre-rattling rhetoric over the Falkland Islands by accusing Britain of sending nuclear missiles to the South Atlantic.

Read the article here | Saturday, February 11, 2012

Inside Story: US 2012 - Are US Republicans Abandoning Romney?
A surprise series of primary season setbacks has delivered a wake-up call to Republican presidential frontrunner Mitt Romney. Why isn't the party unifying around him? Guests: Karin Agness, Allan Lichtman and Robert Moran.

Qatar Shakes Up the Art World
Qatar's ruling elite are spending hundreds of millions of dollars in making the country a world-class art destination. Recent investments include the $250m purchase of Paul Cezanne's The Card Players and the bringing of Takashi Murakami's Ego exhibit to Doha, the capital. A leading art paper has called the tiny peninsula the world's biggest buyer of contemporary art, spending about $1bn since 2005. At the heart of the small nation's big art aspirations is Sheikha Al Mayassa, daughter of the country's emir. Al Jazeera's Will Jordan reports from Doha.

Dunkle Zeiten! Message an alle Muslime

Bonner Islamist droht Deutschen mit Racheakt

WELT ONLINE: Mounir Chouka ist deutscher Staatsbürger, zog vor Jahren nach Pakistan in den "Heiligen Krieg". Jetzt droht er Deutschland mit Rache.

Demonstrativ wird sein Personalausweis eingeblendet: Mounir Chouka, geboren 1981 in Bonn Bad Godesberg, Staatsangehörigkeit: Deutsch. Doch mit seinem Heimatland hat der 30-jährige Bonner längst gebrochen. Mounir Chouka ist schon vor Jahren zum Mudschahid "Abu Adam" geworden, einem islamistischen Gotteskrieger, der im pakistanischen Stammesgebiet Waziristan für die Einführung der Scharia kämpft.

In einem neuen Propagandavideo der Terrorgruppe "Islamischen Bewegung Usbekistans" (IBU) vollzieht Mounir Chouka nun demonstrativ den endgültigen Bruch mit Deutschland - und droht den Bürgern der Bundesrepublik mit Terroranschlägen.

Deutschland sei ein Verbündeter der USA, ein Handlanger in den Kriegen Amerikas, so der aus Bonn stammende Dschihadist. Die deutschen Geheimdienste seien in den Kampf gegen Muslime involviert und hätten sich dabei mit Tyrannen und Diktatoren alliiert. Der Friedenseinsatz der Bundeswehr in Afghanistan sei in Wahrheit ein Verbrechen der USA mit umfangreicher deutscher Beteiligung, hetzt Chouka. » | Von Florian Flade | Freitag, 10. Februar 2012

Deutschland gerät in die Finsternis hinein: Islam in Deutschland

George Carey: Time to Say that Christians Have Rights Too

THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: George Carey, former Archbishop of Canterbury, has warned there are 'deep forces at work in Western society' that are degrading the values of Christianity after a High Court ruling banned public prayers from council meetings.

George Carey was not regarded as an outspoken Archbishop of Canterbury by the standards of both his predecessor and his successor.

While Robert Runcie and Rowan Williams generated and still generate headlines and ruffle politicians’ feathers, George Carey was largely overshadowed during his 11 years as head of the Anglican communion by internal church battles, notably over the ordination of women. Some even came to regard him as a wee bit dull and mealy-mouthed. If so, then he has more than made up for it since he stepped down in 2002.

In the past few months alone, he has publicly criticised both the cathedral authorities at St Paul’s over the Occupy protest camp, and the Lords Spiritual for leading the opposition to the Government’s benefit cuts in the Upper Chamber of Parliament, where Lord Carey of Clifton now sits as a life peer. “I have been mildly upset to be told to shut up by my fellow Anglican bishops.” But his usually sober face spreads into a grin as he says it. “I have felt freer to speak my mind as my own man, but I am always conscious of not wanting to get in Rowan’s way”.

This new George Carey has rather abandoned the careful diplomatic language he used as an archbishop to keep different church factions in the same pews, in favour of something more earthy and apocalyptic, reflecting his own evangelical background. “There are deep forces at work in Western society, hollowing out the values of Christianity and driving them to the margins”.

Among these forces, he has the judiciary firmly in his sights following a spate of recent rulings, which, he claims, have allowed equality to “trump” the freedom of the individual in matters of belief. “Judges,” he contends, “say that the law has no obligation to the Christian faith, but I say 'rubbish’ to that. Historically there has been a great interlocking of Christianity with our laws in this country.” » | Peter Stanford | Saturday, February 11, 2012

Related »

America’s Front Lines Clash with Bottom Lines on Obesity

Cuts and Tears: Greek Police Disperse Angry Mob in Athens Clashes
Greek riot police have used tear gas to disperse the crowd of raging rioters throwing petrol bombs and stones. Greece is at a standstill once again, with people venting their anger at more cuts, which the EU is demanding in return for vital funds.

Romney Vows 'New Conservative Era' If Elected

THE WEST AUSTRALIAN: WASHINGTON (AFP) - White House hopeful Mitt Romney has promised to unite Republicans and defeat President Barack Obama in the "battle for the soul of America" as officials in Maine prepared to unveil the results of party caucuses on Saturday.

Romney and his main rivals for the nomination, former House speaker Newt Gingrich and religious conservative Rick Santorum, all made the pilgrimage to the Conservative Political Action Conference here to court the Republican base and lay out their plan to oust Obama in November.

"This country we love is in jeopardy," Romney told a CPAC crowd of thousands Friday.

"I am convinced that if we do our job, if we lead with conviction and integrity, that history will record the Obama presidency as the last gasp of liberalism's great failure and a turning point for a new conservative era."

The upcoming November election, he said, "really is a battle for the soul of America." » | AFP | Saturday, February 11, 2012

Muslim Mother 'Beat Daughter, 19, and Locked Her to a Bed after She Was Seen Speaking to a Boy'

MAIL ONLINE: An Iraqi woman has been accused of beating her teenage daughter and padlocking her to a bed after she was seen speaking to a young man.

After Yusra Farhan was arrested in the Arizona hospital where her daughter was being treated for her injuries, she told police she wanted to punish the girl for violating her 'culture'.

Farhan, 50, faces charges of aggravated assault, unlawful imprisonment and resisting arrest. She was being held in a Maricopa County jail. Police did not identify her daughter by name. Read on and comment » | Daily Mail Reporter | Saturday, February 11, 2012

Iran to Announce 'Major Nuclear Progress'
THE GUARDIAN: Ahmadinejad tells Tehran rally that world will soon hear news of 'very important and very major nuclear achievements'

Iran will soon reveal "very big new achievements" in its controversial nuclear programme, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has announced.

Speaking at a rally in Tehran to mark the 33rd anniversary of the Islamic revolution, Ahmadinejad also said Iran would never give up its uranium enrichment progamme.

"In the coming days the world will witness Iran's announcement of its very important and very major nuclear achievements," Ahmadinejad told a crowd at Tehran's Azadi [Freedom] Square broadcast on state television. » | Staff and agencies | Saturday, February 11, 2012

Uzbek Pleads Guilty to Obama Kill Plot

THE SYDNEY MORNING HERALD: A man from Uzbekistan who pleaded guilty on Friday to plotting to kill US President Barack Obama with an automatic rifle claimed he was acting at the direction of an Islamic terror group in his home country.

Authorities said Ulugbek Kodirov had discussed trying to kill the president as he campaigned for re-election because he would be out in public more often.

Kodirov entered the plea during a hearing in Birmingham, Alabama before US District Judge Abdul K. Kallon, an Obama appointee.

Defence lawyer Lance Bell said the 22-year-old Kodirov avoided a potential life sentence by pleading guilty. He faces up to 30 years in prison, though Bell expected Kodirov to be jailed for about half that time.

The judge also told Kodirov that he would face deportation once he was released from prison. » | AP | Saturday, February 11, 2012

Retour sur les grandes étapes de sa vie

GALA.fr: La reine Elizabeth II a 25 ans quand elle accède au trône de Grande-Bretagne et devient chef du Commonwealth, après la mort de son père George VI. Si jeune et pourtant si consciente de ce qu’implique sa fonction, elle saura, dès le début de son règne, opter pour la discrétion et la solennité qu’implique son rôle.

La reine n’exprime jamais son point de vue personnel, n’est d’aucun bord politique, mais reste pourtant le pilier de la société britannique. Chef de l’Eglise anglicane et garante de la stabilité et de l'unité du pays, Elizabeth II a travaillé avec douze Premiers ministres. En soixante ans, elle a rencontré les chefs d’Etat du monde entier – notamment tous les présidents français depuis Vincent Auriol! Elle a vécu la Seconde guerre mondiale, la fin de l’Empire britannique, tout la Guerre froide puis la chute du bloc soviétique. Un témoin majeur de l'Histoire… » | lundi 06 février 2012

Beschwörung ultrakonservativer Werte
Santorum und Romney über Gott, Amerika und die Regierung
NZZ ONLINE: In Washington haben die republikanischen Präsidentschaftsbewerber Romney und Santorum vor Konservativen um Unterstützung geworben. Beide versuchten, sich gegenseitig als Wahrer wahrer sozialkonservativer Werte zu übertru[m]pfen.

Santorum kam am Freitag nach seinem überraschenden Dreifachsieg bei den republikanischen Vorwahlen mit Rückenwind in die Bundeshauptstadt. Die USA seien auf der Idee begründet, «dass alle Rechte von Gott» stammten, sagte der Ex-Senator vor jubelnden Zuhörern. Bei der Präsidentschaftswahl am 6. November gehe es auch um die Freiheit von Religion und die zunehmende Kontrolle der Menschen durch die Regierung. Diese müsse aufhören. » | dpa | Freitag, 10. Februar 2012

Gewaltsame Proteste in Athen: Griechische Rechte beschimpft Merkel

FRANKFURTER ALLGEMEINE ZEITUNG: Während in Athen gewaltsam gegen die neuen Sparpläne demonstriert wird, greift der Parteichef der nationalistischen „Laos“-Partei Kanzlerin Merkel an: Deutschland bluffe nur, sagt er. „Laos“ will am Sonntag im Parlament gegen die Sparmaßnahmen stimmen.

In Athen ist es am Freitag zu Zusammenstößen zwischen Demonstranten und Polizisten gekommen, als Griechen gegen die neuen Sparpläne ihrer Regierung protestierten. Das Sparpaket zählt zu den Vorbedingungen für ein zweites Paket von Hilfskrediten der Euro-Partner und des Internationalen Währungsfonds. Begleitet von einem Generalstreik, fanden unter der Losung „Nein zu Entlassungen, Nein zu Gehaltskürzungen! Nein zu Rentenkürzungen!“ Demonstrationen im Stadtzentrum statt. Gewerkschafter besetzten die Büros der vom Deutschen Horst Reichenbach geleiteten „Arbeitsgruppe Griechenland“ der EU-Kommission. Die Teilnahme an den Protesten fiel wieder deutlich geringer aus als von den Gewerkschaften erhofft. » | Von Michael Martens, Athen | Freitag, 10. Februar 2012

FRANKFURTER ALLGEMEINE ZEITUNG: Athen: Eine versinkende Stadt – Kommunisten, Anarchisten, Spartakisten, Faschisten oder gar Gewerkschafter: In der griechischen Hauptstadt ist vieles in Schieflage, nur auf die beständigen Demonstrationszüge ist Verlass. Szenen aus Athen. » | Von Michael Martens | Dienstag, 07. Februar 2012

Iran et Israël font des affaires, pas la guerre

LE POINT: En dépit des menaces de conflit, des entreprises israéliennes font du business avec la République islamique.

Les meilleurs ennemis du monde cachent parfois de bien curieux secrets. Tandis que l'implication d'Israël dans l'assassinat de scientifiques nucléaires iraniens a été confirmée jeudi par plusieurs responsables américains, Bloomberg News révèle que plusieurs sociétés et hommes d'affaires israéliens commercent indirectement avec la République islamique d'Iran. D'après le site d'information économique, la société israélienne Allot Communications aurait vendu à l'Iran des équipements de surveillance et de filtrage d'Internet pendant cinq ans, par l'intermédiaire d'un distributeur danois. Une révélation embarrassante, les autorités de Téhéran ayant utilisé ces systèmes pour persécuter leurs opposants. » | Par Armin Arefi | vendredi 10 février 2012

L'Égypte face à une grave crise économique

LA PRESSE: La dégradation de l'économie égyptienne constitue, un an après la chute de Hosni Moubarak, une lourde menace pour la transition dans le pays le plus peuplé du monde arabe, estiment des économistes.

Avec un taux de croissance estimé autour de 1% à 2%, contre 5 à 7% autrefois, le gouvernement attend du Fonds monétaire international et d'autres bailleurs une aide jugée cruciale pour éviter une explosion sociale dans les prochains mois.

«Un an après la révolution, l'économie est dans un état anarchique, hors de contrôle», estime Salah Goda, directeur du Centre de recherches économiques du Caire.

Les recettes du secteur vital du tourisme ont accusé en 2011 une baisse de 30%, soit un manque à gagner de 4 milliards de dollars, selon des statistiques officielles, jugées par nombre d'opérateurs très en-deçà de la réalité.

Régulièrement dégradée par les agences de notation, l'Égypte ne fait plus rêver les investisseurs qui se bousculaient autrefois dans ce pays au marché intérieur de plus de 82 millions d'habitants.

Au coeur des inquiétudes, la fonte des réserves en devises de la banque centrale, qui ont diminué de plus de moitié, passant de 36 milliards de dollars en janvier 2011 à 16,3 milliards un an plus tard. » | Ibrahim AlSahary | Agence France-Presse | Le Caire, Égypte | vendredi 10 février 2012

Three Jailed Over Gay-hate Leaflet
THE GUARDIAN: Ihjaz Ali, Kabir Ahmed and Razwan Javed were first to be convicted of stirring up hatred on grounds of sexual orientation

Three men have been jailed after becoming the first to be convicted of stirring up hatred on the grounds of sexual orientation for handing out a leaflet calling for gay people to be executed.

Ihjaz Ali, Kabir Ahmed and Razwan Javed gave out the pamphlet, entitled The Death Penalty?, which showed an image of a mannequin hanging from a noose and quoted Islamic texts that said capital punishment was the only way to rid society of homosexuality. » | Press Association | Friday, February 10, 2012

Jamaican Gay Rights Activists Hopeful of Repealing Anti-homosexuality Law

THE GUARDIAN: British peer who helped overturn homophobic law in Northern Ireland joins campaign to do the same in Jamaica

They are one of the world's most beleaguered gay communities, brutalised by violence, hounded by a law that makes homosexual acts a crime and driven into the shadows in a country where four in five people admit they are homophobic. But now gay people in Jamaica are cautiously optimistic that change may be in the air.

A new government has begun making noises about an end to discrimination and repealing an anti-gay law. Portia Simpson Miller, standing for election as prime minister in December, declared that "no one should be discriminated against because of their sexual orientation", and indicated she would be willing to have gay people in her cabinet. "I certainly do not pry or do not have any intention to pry into the private business of anyone," she said. She won by a landslide.

Maurice Tomlinson, a Jamaican law lecturer and legal adviser to the advocacy group Aids-Free World, says he is delighted by the change of mood – although it has yet to lift the sense of insecurity felt by Jamaica's gay community. Tomlinson, a prominent voice for gay rights on the island, has fled his home because of death threats that followed his marriage to his male partner in Canada after a picture was published in the Toronto Star. » | Sarah Boseley, health editor | Friday, February 10, 2012

Santorum: Concerns about "Emotions" If Women On Front Lines
CBS NEWS: After the Pentagon announced Thursday its decision to allow women in the military to serve in critical roles closer to the front lines of combat, Republican presidential candidate Rick Santorum expressed "concerns" about this prospect of women serving in combat roles - due to the "other types of emotions that are involved."

"I want to create every opportunity for women to be able to serve this country" Santorum said in an interview with CNN.

But, he said, "I do have concerns about women in front line combat. I think that could be a very compromising situation where - where people naturally, you know, may do things that may not be in the interests of the mission because of other types of emotions that are involved."

Santorum went on to say that while "probably, you know, it already happens, of course," due to the "camaraderie of men in combat."

But he said that if women were also serving on the front lines, "it would be even more unique."

"And I think that's probably not in the best interests of men, women or the mission." » | Lucy Madison | Friday, February 10, 2012

Marines Stand with Nazi-like Symbol

Breivik kommt unter psychiatrische Beobachtung

DIE PRESSE: Der Attentäter von Oslo soll drei bis vier Wochen lang unter intensive Beobachtung gestellt werden. Darauf aufbauend sollen zwei Psychiater bis April ein neues Gutachten anfertigen.

Die norwegische Justiz hat am Freitag eine intensive psychiatrische Beobachtung für den Attentäter Anders Behring Breivik angeordnet. Die Beobachtung könne "wertvolle Informationen" liefern, die sonst nur schwer zu beschaffen seien, entschied das Gericht in Oslo. Es gab damit dem Ende Jänner [Januar] von zwei neuen Psychiatern gestellten Antrag statt, mit denen der Rechtsextremist Breivik nicht zusammenarbeiten will. » | Ag. | Freitag 10. Februar 2012

Inside Story: US 2012 - Obama's Great Divide
After being called out on his policies and track record, is President Obama taking his political base for granted?

Inside Story: Will Greece Default on Its Debts?
Greece [sic] workers are on strike as negotiations continue to finalise a deal for a new bailout. But time is fast running out. What are the risks of a default, and the possibility of bankruptcy? Guests: Ann Pettifor, George Kapopoulos and Matina Stevis

Christian Guesthouse Owners Lose Appeal over Ban on Gay Guests
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Two Christian guesthouse owners, Peter and Hazelmary Bull, who were ordered to pay damages after refusing to allow a gay couple to stay in a double room lost their appeal today.

The challenge by the Bulls, who run Chymorvah House in Marazion, Cornwall, was rejected by three judges in the Court of Appeal in London.

They had appealed against a conclusion by a judge at Bristol County Court that they acted unlawfully when they turned away Martyn Hall and his civil partner Steven Preddy in September 2008.

Judge Andrew Rutherford ruled in January last year that the Bulls had breached equality legislation and ordered them to pay the couple a total of £3,600 damages.

The appeal judges heard that the Bulls thought any sex outside marriage was a "sin", but denied they had discriminated against Mr Hall and Mr Preddy, from Bristol.

Today's ruling was given by Sir Andrew Morritt, Chancellor of the High Court, Lord Justice Hooper and Lady Justice Rafferty.

Mr Bull, 72, and Mrs Bull, who is in her late 60s, were not in court for the announcement. » | Friday, February 10, 2012

Councils 'Should Have Right to Say Prayers', Says Eric Pickles
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Communities Secretary Eric Pickles has criticised a ruling at the High Court today that having prayers on council meeting agendas is unlawful, saying that the right to worship is a "fundamental and hard-fought British liberty".

A test case bid to outlaw prayers before local council meetings was won by the National Secular Society and an atheist councillor, Clive Bone.

They challenged the practice of Bideford town council, Devon, of having religious prayers on meeting agendas.

Today Mr Justice Ouseley, sitting in London, ruled: ''The saying of prayers as part of the formal meeting of a council is not lawful under section 111 of the Local Government Act 1972, and there is no statutory power permitting the practice to continue.''

Mr Bone later left the council because of its "refusal to adjust" its prayer policy.

Society lawyers argued that council members who were not religious were being "indirectly discriminated against", in breach of human rights laws.

But the case was not won on human rights grounds, but on a point of statutory construction of local government legislation.

Communities Secretary Eric Pickles described today's ruling as "surprising and disappointing".

He said: "While welcoming and respecting fellow British citizens who belong to other faiths, we are a Christian country, with an established Church in England, governed by the Queen.

"Christianity plays an important part in the culture, heritage and fabric of our nation.

"Public authorities - be it Parliament or a parish council - should have the right to say prayers before meetings if they wish.

"The right to worship is a fundamental and hard-fought British liberty. Read on and comment » | Friday, February 10, 2012


THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Religion in modern Britain: ten recent conflicts – A test case bid to outlaw prayers before local council meetings has been won by the National Secular Society and an atheist councillor, Clive Bone. Here are ten recent conflicts over the role of religion in modern life. » | Matthew Holehouse, and Caitlin Morrissey | Friday, February 10, 2012

Ayaan Hirsi Ali: The Global War on Christians in the Muslim World
THE DAILY BEAST: From one end of the muslim world to the other, Christians are being murdered for their faith.

We hear so often about Muslims as victims of abuse in the West and combatants in the Arab Spring’s fight against tyranny. But, in fact, a wholly different kind of war is underway—an unrecognized battle costing thousands of lives. Christians are being killed in the Islamic world because of their religion. It is a rising genocide that ought to provoke global alarm.

The portrayal of Muslims as victims or heroes is at best partially accurate. In recent years the violent oppression of Christian minorities has become the norm in Muslim-majority nations stretching from West Africa and the Middle East to South Asia and Oceania. In some countries it is governments and their agents that have burned churches and imprisoned parishioners. In others, rebel groups and vigilantes have taken matters into their own hands, murdering Christians and driving them from regions where their roots go back centuries.

The media’s reticence on the subject no doubt has several sources. One may be fear of provoking additional violence. Another is most likely the influence of lobbying groups such as the Organization of Islamic Cooperation—a kind of United Nations of Islam centered in Saudi Arabia—and the Council on American-Islamic Relations. Over the past decade, these and similar groups have been remarkably successful in persuading leading public figures and journalists in the West to think of each and every example of perceived anti-Muslim discrimination as an expression of a systematic and sinister derangement called “Islamophobia”—a term that is meant to elicit the same moral disapproval as xenophobia or homophobia.

But a fair-minded assessment of recent events and trends leads to the conclusion that the scale and severity of Islamophobia pales in comparison with the bloody Christophobia currently coursing through Muslim-majority nations from one end of the globe to the other. The conspiracy of silence surrounding this violent expression of religious intolerance has to stop. Nothing less than the fate of Christianity—and ultimately of all religious minorities—in the Islamic world is at stake.

From blasphemy laws to brutal murders to bombings to mutilations and the burning of holy sites, Christians in so many nations live in fear. In Nigeria many have suffered all of these forms of persecution. The nation has the largest Christian minority (40 percent) in proportion to its population (160 million) of any majority-Muslim country. For years, Muslims and Christians in Nigeria have lived on the edge of civil war. Islamist radicals provoke much if not most of the tension. The newest such organization is an outfit that calls itself Boko Haram, which means “Western education is sacrilege.” Its aim is to establish Sharia in Nigeria. To this end it has stated that it will kill all Christians in the country. » | Ayaan Hirsi Ali | Monday, February 06, 2012

Saudi Writer Hamza Kashgari Detained in Malaysia Over Muhammad Tweets

THE DAILY BEAST: A young Saudi blogger whose tweets about the Prophet Muhammad inflamed Islamists—who are calling for his execution—reportedly has been detained in Malaysia. It is not clear if he will be extradited to Saudi Arabia. Mike Giglio exclusively interviews Hamza Kashgari.

Update: The Wall Street Journal is reporting that Hamza Kashgari has been detained in Malaysia. He was detained yesterday at the Kuala Lumpur International airport, the Journal reports, citing Malaysia’s state news service.

A friend of Kashgari’s, who asked not to be named, told The Daily Beast on Wednesday that she had accompanied him to the airport and witnessed his detention. “We were just watching him, waiting for him to pass the immigration checkpoint. Once he submitted his passport, they asked him to step away for a few minutes,” the friend said, still noticeably shaken. “And suddenly these two people without uniforms just arrested him.”

It remains unclear why Kashgari is being held or whether he will be extradited to Saudi Arabia.
Last week, just before the anniversary of the Prophet Muhammad’s birth, Hamza Kashgari, a 23-year-old Saudi writer in Jidda, took to his Twitter feed to reflect on the occasion.

“On your birthday, I will say that I have loved the rebel in you, that you’ve always been a source of inspiration to me, and that I do not like the halos of divinity around you. I shall not pray for you,” he wrote in one tweet.

“On your birthday, I find you wherever I turn. I will say that I have loved aspects of you, hated others, and could not understand many more,” he wrote in a second.

“On your birthday, I shall not bow to you. I shall not kiss your hand. Rather, I shall shake it as equals do, and smile at you as you smile at me. I shall speak to you as a friend, no more,” he concluded in a third. » | Mike Giglio | Friday, February 10, 2012


Related »

Malaysia Arrests Saudi Blogger Over Tweets

AL JAZEERA ENGLISH: Hamza Kashgari detained after apparently fleeing kingdom after being accused of insulting Prophet Muhammad on Twitter.

A Saudi blogger who caused outrage in the Gulf kingdom with comments on twitter [sic] deemed insulting to the Prophet Muhammad, has been arrested by Malaysian police after fleeing Saudi Arabia following calls for his execution.

Hamza Kashgari was headed to New Zealand where he hoped to gain political asylum when he was arrested upon arrival at Kuala Lumpur International Airport on Thursday.

A police spokesman confirmed to the Reuters news agency that Malaysian police had detained the 23-year-old columnist.

"This arrest was part of an Interpol operation which the Malaysian police were a part of," said the spokesman.

State news agency Bernama said Kashgari was arrested in the Muslim-majority nation "for allegedly insulting Islam and the Prophet Mohammed."

No further details were provided on whether the writer from the western city of Jeddah would be extradited to Saudi Arabia.

An official with the Malaysian home ministry who asked to remain unidentified told the AFP news agency that though Malaysia and Saudi Arabia have no formal extradition treaties, Kashgari could be extradited under other bilateral security agreements.

Clerics and locals in the kingdom have called for Kashgari's death for three comments he made on the micro-blogging service on the occasion of the Prophet Muhammad's birthday.

"On your birthday, I find you wherever I turn. I will say that I have loved aspects of you, hated others, and could not understand many more," read one tweet posted on Saturday.

All three tweets were later deleted by Kashgari, who received over 30,000 responses within a day of the postings. » | Source: Al Jazeera and agencies | Friday, February 10, 2012


Related »

Al Qaeda's 'Morale Boost' as It Formally Joins with Somalia's Al Shabaab
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: The Somali militant group al Shabaab has formally joined al Qaeda, the terror network's leader Ayman al Zawahiri has announced in a new video.

The move is an apparent bid to boost morale after months of setbacks to al Qaeda - including the loss of founder Osama bin laden.

One analyst said the connection could signal that the insurgents, known as resourceful, determined and increasingly web-savvy, had al Qaeda's approval for attacks against the West.

In a video posted on Islamist forums on Thursday, al Qaeda leader Ayman al Zawahri said: "Today, I have glad tidings for the Muslim ummah (nation) that will please the believers and disturb the disbelievers, which is the joining of the Shabaab al-Mujahideen Movement in Somalia to Qaedat al-Jihad to support the jihadi unity against the Zionist-Crusader campaign and their assistants amongst the treacherous agent rulers.

"I appeal to our people in Somalia not to follow those who teach ill, and the weak leaders who brought the crusader rabble to the land of pure Islam." » | Friday, February 10, 2012

Julia Gillard 'Gags Australian Cabinet'
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard Friday did not deny a report that she has ordered cabinet ministers not to talk to major newspaper editors in a bid to stamp out leadership speculation.

Ms Gillard heads a fragile Labour coalition government after the party failed to win a majority in the August 2010 election and there is mounting speculation that Kevin Rudd, the former prime minister who is now foreign minister, could challenge her for the top job.

The prime minister removed Mr Rudd in a brutal Labour Party showdown in mid-2010 and the Sydney Daily Telegraph said a gagging order was issued at a cabinet meeting last week to try and hose down further leadership speculation.

The newspaper said ministers must now seek permission from the prime minister's office before any meeting or private talks with senior newspaper figures. » | Friday, February 10, 2012

Spain's Leading Human Rights Judge Baltasar Garzon Convicted of Wiretapping
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Spain's Supreme Court convicted judge Baltasar Garzon on Thursday in an illegal wiretapping case, ending the judicial career of a man who won world renown for pursuing human rights abuses and Augusto Pinochet's arrest.

"We condemn the accused, Baltasar Garzon, as the author of the crime of abusing his authority ... to 11 years' suspension from his duty as judge or magistrate," the court's ruling read.

Garzon, 56, who found international fame for trying to extradite Chile's former dictator Augusto Pinochet in 1998, was found guilty of ordering illegal recordings of corruption suspects talking to their lawyers.

The suspension effectively ends Garzon's career as a judge.

He is also awaiting judgment in a second trial for trying to investigate atrocities of the Franco era, in an alleged breach of an amnesty.

Garzon's defenders say both trials are politically motivated bids to stop him prosecuting crimes committed during Spain's 1936-1939 Civil War and the subsequent dictatorship of General Francisco Franco. » | Source: AFP | Thursday, February 09, 2012

Extremist Preachers Now Radicalising Young Muslims in Private Homes, Says Senior Government Security Adviser
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Extremist preachers are turning their backs on mosques and using private homes to radicalise young Muslims into becoming terrorists, according to one of Britain’s top security advisers.

Third world charities set up to raise money to help people in Pakistan and Bangladesh are also being used as front organisations to fund terrorism, according to the Home Office’s top anti-terrorism adviser.

Charles Farr, the Director General of the Office for Security and Counter Terrorism, also said that Al-Qaeda was now at “its weakest state” since the September 11 terrorist attacks.

Mr Farr, who was once tipped as a future head of MI6, added that it was “possible to talk of the demise of parts of Al Qaeda” because the revolutions in the Middle East had weakened support for them.

The news came amid the continuing row over the European Court of Human Rights' refusal to allow Britain to extradite Abu Qatada - once described as “Osama bin Laden’s right-hand man in Europe” - to Jordan to face terror charges.

Mr Farr said extremist Muslim preachers could no longer radicalise young people at mosques and universities because of the increasingly effective activities of the Security Services on mainland Britain.

He said that increasingly "it takes place in private premises, simply because the people who are doing the radicalising are now much more aware of the activities that we are conducting[.]

“There has been a trend towards much greater use of private venues, simply because for obvious reasons they feel that they are much more secure.”

He said that radicalisation often “rapidly migrates into a private house where people are brought together, usually under the excuse of there being a faith-based meeting, and the discussion rapidly develops into something much more about terrorism and the legitimacy of violence.” » | Christopher Hope, Senior Political Correspondent | Thursday, February 09, 2012

My comment:

Until the cancer of Islam is eradicated from our shores, this problem will grow ever worse. That's a fact. Ignore it if you will; but the truth will stand the test of time. – © Mark

This comment appears here, too

Elderly Told: Go Back to Work and Downsize
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Elderly people should be encouraged to go back to work and move into smaller homes, one of David Cameron’s key advisers said last night.

David Halpern, a senior No.10 aide, said loneliness was a “more powerful predictor” of whether a pensioner would be alive for more than a decade than whether they smoked.

He also suggested that elderly people who did not move to smaller homes were contributing to the shortage of housing in England.

On an official visit to Sweden, the Prime Minister and some of his key advisers discussed radical plans on retirement with their Scandinavian counterparts.

Mr Cameron said he supported plans to increase the retirement age in line with life expectancy which could see workers remaining in employment until well into their seventies. » | Tim Ross, Political correspondent | Thursday, February 09, 2012

My comment:

So when is David Cameron going to downsize? And what about Samcam's father? He's got a pile in the country! He surely can't be using all the rooms in that mansion. Perhaps the authorities can relocate him to a council house somewhere. It will be big enough for him, according to Cameron.

Christ, I thought that the Labour governments we had were bad enough, but even that shower didn't have the balls to tell people to downsize.

What kind of a bloody Tory is this guy Cameron anyway? It sounds to me that he would be more at home in the Communist Party! Communists believe in such measures as sharing people's private homes with the less well off.

I never thought I'd live to see the day that a so-called Conservative politician, still less a Conservative prime minister, would suggest something so impertinent.

So, then, Cameron, lead by example, you Tory toff! Don't talk to the plebs as though they deserve less than you SOBs. You, young man, are heading for oblivion in the next election. Roll on the next election! – © Mark

This comment appears here, too.

City Boys' Shame after Rugby Email Goes Viral
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: For four young City high-fliers, the adage "what goes on tour, stays on tour" has unravelled after a private email with their "tour rules" went viral.

In the indiscrete memo, the former public schoolboys - who called their group “G4” - drew up 13 rules for their upcoming trip to the Dubai 7s rugby tournament in March that stated “cheating is allowed” along with compulsory chants about “how rich we are”.

The instructions also included “mentioning parents’ salaries once a day” as well as referring to obscene sexual acts.

The men, who all work for international corporations, included brief profiles about one another in the email that was sent to employees at global companies including Clifford Chance and Barclays Wealth.

Their antics could prove damaging to their careers after they included details of their jobs and employers in a mock “CV”, which made its way around the world.

A source told the Daily Telegraph: “Someone forwarded it on maliciously to so many people. It was just a joke for a holiday.

“It is getting so out of hand. This could ruin their careers. Someone just forwarded it on because they thought it was funny.” » | Donna Bowater and Anna White | Thursday, February 09, 2012

Railing against the 'Fourth Reich': Anti-German Mood Heats Up in Greece

SPIEGEL ONLINE INTERNATIONAL: Nazi flags are hardly a rarity at Greek demonstrations these days. Anti-German tirades on primetime television have likewise become a staple. In Greece, a consensus has developed as to who is to blame for the country's economic misery. Age old stereotypes are flourishing.

Georgios Trangas had launched into a tirade -- yet again. He seemed to have completely forgotten his four studio guests. Trangas stared into the camera and turned to his favourite subject: the Germans, and how they are cold-bloodedly shoving Greece into the abyss. "Germany doesn't care that 3 million pensioners are dying here," he raged.

The sentence is one of his more harmless utterances on this evening. But such verbal artillery is hardly out of the ordinary on the Athens television broadcaster Extra 33, a channel full of angry broadsides against the "German occupiers."

"Choris Anästhetiko" is the name of the program, and it lives up to its name: "Without Anaesthesia." Politesse is an alien concept on the show as it offers ruthless analysis of the economic and debt crisis gripping Greece. On this evening, the show is set to examine the problems facing taxi drivers in Athens and the suffering shipping industry. But the experts invited to appear on the show serve little more of a purpose than providing the moderator with additional excuses to launch into a diatribe.

"Barbaric measures," Trangas spits, referring to the austerity demands made by the so-called troika of the European Union, the European Central Bank and the International Monetary Fund. Berlin, he posits, is controlling everything anyway. » | Johannes Korge and Ferry Batzoglou | Thursday, February 09, 2012

British Officials: We Will Not Negotiate with Argentina over Falklands

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Read the article here | msnbc.com staff and news services, with Reuters | Wednesday, February 08, 2012
Related »

Was JFK Intern ‘Raped’? Professionals Debate

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Related »

Don't Say 'Holy Quran'
Holy in the arabic language is (transiteration) 'Muqaddas' , And Allaah ta'Alaa has never refered to the Quran as being, Quran-il-Muqaddas, nor will you find in the reliable books of Sunnah Qurana-il-Muqaddas (The Holy Quran). Allaah called the Quran, Quran-il Kareem(Noble Quran), Quran-il Hakeem (The Wise Quran), Quran-il Majid (The Glorious Quran)etc. So in-shaa'Allaah lets refer the Qurran according to the names Allaah had given it, not simply imitating the christians without intending to do so. And Allaah ta'Ala knows best.

Pigs Battered with Metal Pole at Abattoir
NEWS.COM.AU: VIDEO footage from a western Sydney abattoir under investigation for animal cruelty shows pigs being battered over the head with a metal pole.

The NSW Food Authority yesterday halted slaughtering at Hawkesbury Valley Meat Processors at Wilberforce after it received video footage showing "acts of gross animal mistreatment".

The footage, shown on ABC's Lateline program last night, depicted images of a slaughterman at the abattoir bashing one pig seven times over the head with what appeared to be a metal bar.

Another pig was hit 13 times, apparently because it had not been stunned properly and remained conscious ahead of slaughter.

Other images showed sheep still apparently conscious after having their throats cut. » | AAP | Friday, February 10, 2012

Prince Harry in Afghanistan: Use Royal Role to Help People Not Kill Say Taliban
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Prince Harry should be using his royal position to help people rather than kill them the Taliban have said as they condemned his return to the Afghan frontline.

A spokesman for the insurgent movement said its fighters would use all their power to kill or capture the Prince as they continued to resist the British forces in Helmand.

The 27-year-old this week qualified as an Apache attack helicopter pilot and Ministry of Defence sources confirmed he was now expected to serve a four-month combat tour in Afghanistan.

The Prince will fly missions from Camp Bastion in Helmand as a co-pilot gunner in a two-man crew, operating weapons which include Hellfire missiles and a 30mm chain gun.

"A prince should use his position to help people, not to come and kill people around the world,” said Zabiullah Mujahid, a spokesman for the militants. » | Ben Farmer, in Kabul | Thursday, February 09, 2012

Obama Moves Closer to Post-religious Europe
TELEGRAPH BLOGS – JANET DALEY: A quite unexpected hurricane has hit the Obama campaign ship. The President has done what is, on the face of it, a startlingly foolhardy thing. He has provoked outrage in the Catholic Church and thus in that huge US constituency – now larger than ever due to a vast increase in the Hispanic community – which takes its Roman Catholic faith very seriously.

One of the provisions of Obamacare's Affordable Care Act which obliges employers to provide mandatory health insurance, is that such policies must cover the provision of contraceptive services. While churches and specifically religious institutions (such as convents presumably) are exempt, other places of employment run by the Church would not be. So a Roman Catholic school, university or hospital would be obliged to provide contraception for its employees even though this goes against its religious beliefs and teaching. The Obama administration is now facing opposition not only from the Republicans – who see it as a straightforward breach of the First Amendment right to freedom of religious observance - but from Democratic Congressmen and Senators many of whom come from states with large Catholic populations. Read on and comment » | Janet Daley | Thursday, February 09, 2012

My comment:

Would Obama have the gonads to go against the tenets of Islam, I wonder? He picks on the Catholic Church, but would he pick on Sunni or Shia Islam in a similar manner? – © mark

This comment also appears here

Ingraham: Romney Invincibility ‘Dwindled’

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy