Toulouse : un groupe lié à Aqmi revendique la tuerie de Toulouse
LE POINT: L'organisation Jund al-Khilafah appelle jeudi la France à reconsidérer sa politique "hostile" aux musulmans.

Un groupe lié à al-Qaida au Maghreb islamique (Aqmi) a revendiqué, dans un communiqué mis en ligne jeudi, la tuerie de Toulouse et appelé la France à reconsidérer sa politique "hostile" aux musulmans. Le texte, signé par l'organisation "Jund al-Khilafah" (les soldats du Califat) qui a par le passé revendiqué des attaques en Afghanistan et au Kazakhstan, a été publié sur le site Shamikh, qui diffuse généralement les communiqués d'al-Qaida. » | Source AFP | jeudi 22 mars 2012

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THREAT MATRIX: Jund al Khilafah claims French shooting » | Bill Roggio | Thursday, March 22, 2012

Santorum Criticizes Obama For Daughter Malia’s Mexico Vacation

abc NEWS: Rick Santorum criticized President Obama during a radio interview Tuesday for reportedly allowing his daughter, Malia, to go on a spring break trip to Mexico in an area of the country which Santorum believed had been placed on a warning list for American tourists by the State Department.

“What I would say is that the president’s actions should reflect what his administration is saying,” Santorum told Glen Beck, according to the Blaze. “If the administration is saying that it’s not safe to have people down there, then just because you can send 25 Secret Service agents doesn’t mean you should do it. You should set an example. I think that’s what presidents do. They set an example. And when the government is saying this is not safe, then you don’t set the example by sending your kids down there.” » | Tuesday, March 20, 2012


The Web gets cleansed: Malia Obama in Mexico story scrubbed! »

"Ausländerquote": Schweiz stimmt über Begrenzung der Zuwanderung ab

SPIEGEL ONLINE: Es ist ein Erfolg für die Rechtspopulisten der Schweizer Volkspartei: In einem Referendum werden die Schweizer über die Einführung einer sogenannten "Ausländerquote" abstimmen. Die Initiative richtet sich gegen Asylbewerber - aber auch gegen Arbeitsmigranten aus den Nachbarländern.

Bern - Die Schweiz wird in einem Referendum über die Einführung sogenannter "Ausländerquoten" abstimmen. Eine entsprechende Initiative der nationalistischen Schweizer Volkspartei (SVP) erreichte mit 135.557 gültigen Unterschriften das notwendige Quorum, wie die Schweizer Regierung am Mittwoch mitteilte.

Die Partei will die Zahl der Aufenthaltsbewilligungen limitieren, unter anderem abhängig von Nationalität und finanziellen Stand der Bewerber. Die Obergrenze soll auch für Asylsuchende und Arbeitspendler gelten. In der Schweiz leben etwa 7,8 Millionen Menschen, rund 1,7 Millionen haben nicht die Schweizer Staatsbürgerschaft. » | usp/AP/dpa | Mittwoch, 21. März 2012

Lebanese Islamists Support Syria Uprising
Islamist groups in Lebanon's second city of Tripoli have demonstrated to show support for the uprising in neighbouring Syria.

Assad Stokes Sectarian Divide to Rule Syria
As the violence continues to escalate in Syria, President Bashar al-Assad is sending a clear message that he has no intention of giving up power. So far, international mediation efforts have failed. But it seems Assad's government has tried to exploit the deep sectarian divisions in the country to their advantage by pitting minorities such as Christians and Alawites against the Sunnis. In order to have tight control of the regime, close family members have been placed to positions of power and officials and commanders belong to the Alawite sect. Al Jazeera's Jonah Hull reports.

Iran Celebrates Nowruz
Across Iran people celebrate the beginning of the Persian new year.

Related video: Obama speaks to the Iranian people »

Merah: From Petty Criminal to Killer
Al Jazeera's Khadija Magardie reports on what is known about Mohammed Merah, the primary suspect in a series of shootings killing four Jews and three Muslim soldiers in southwestern France.

Related »

US Police Accused of Racial Bias
US civil Rights activists are calling on the federal government to investigate the death of black teenager in southeastern state of Florida. Trayvon Martin was shot in the chest last month, but the man who pulled the trigger was not arrested of because of Florida's unusual interpretation of what it means to act in self-defence. Al Jazeera's Rosiland Jordan explains.

Canadians of African Origin Seek Equality
Canada's oldest black community, based in the eastern province of Nova Scotia, are commemorating the country's black civil rights pioneers. Hundreds of people of African heritage, who lived in the area, were moved out to make way for a new bridge in the 1960s. The reconstruction of a church is the beginning of what many hope is a cultural revival of the community, which some believe has yet to achieve full acceptance and equality. Al Jazeera's Daniel Lak reports North Preston.

Newt Gingrich: State Dept. "Favors Radical Islam over Christianity and Judaism"

Gingrich: Radical Islam Will Not Go Away

A Growing Islamic Identity for Chechnya
USA TODAY: SERZHEN-YURT, Chechnya – Seda Makhagieva, 15, had to fight to wear the hijab, a scarf that some Muslims say must be worn by women and older girls.

"My family didn't allow me to wear it at first," the petite Chechen girl said as she wrapped a pastel-colored scarf around her head and neck, concealing every strand of her long, brown hair.

"They said I was too young. My mom beat my sister and me every day, but I didn't care: I am a Muslim and it is my duty to wear it."

Half of the girls in Seda's ninth-grade class in the Chechen village of Serzhen-Yurt near the Chechen capital, Grozny, now wear the hijab, a sharp break from local tradition. In past generations, married women in Chechnya covered their hair with a small, triangle-shaped scarf as a sign of respect and modesty.

But these girls are part of a new trend in the republic that has seen two wars in the past few decades and a rise in adherence to the kinds of codes promoted by fundamentalist Muslims. Some Muslims are fighting against it.

"I didn't want them to wear the hijab. I argued, yelled and even beat them," said Seda's mother, Rosa Makhagieva, 45, whose three daughters all cover themselves in loose-fitting, modest clothes. "My husband was against me. He said, 'If you don't allow them to wear it, I am going to make you put it on.' "

Though Islam first arrived in the North Caucasus around 500 years ago, decades of religious repression under communism made it difficult to practice. Now mosques are packed with worshipers every day, and the hijab is becoming increasingly popular. » | Diana Markosian, Special for USA TODAY | Thursday, March 22, 2012

Giant 'UFO Fragment' Falls from the Sky in Siberia

THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: A giant "UFO fragment" has fallen from the sky near a remote village in Siberia, Russian media have reported.

The U-shaped object, resembling a silvery dome, is currently under inspection by Russian experts, after being covertly removed under cover of night from the possession of villagers who found it.

After discovering the device on Sunday, locals from the village of Otradnesnky had managed to drag the “UFO fragment” from the thick forest where it had fallen. They attached it onto a trailer and took it through the snow to their village, where local inspectors then examined it before alerting Moscow authorities. (+ video) » | Thursday, March 22, 2012

Toulouse Massacre Suspect Merah Dies after Jumping from Window 'Firing Madly'

BELFAST TELEGRAPH: The man suspected of killing seven people in al Qaida-linked attacks in France is dead, according to France's interior minister.

Claude Gueant [sic] said Mohamed Merah, who claims links to al Qaida, jumped from a window after police entered the apartment in Toulouse and found him holed up in the bathroom.

Police and the suspect exchanged fire before the 24-year-old died.

Two policemen were injured in the shootout with Merah, said Mr Gueant [sic].

The Minister said Merah had died after jumping out of the apartment window "shooting at everybody".

He said the gunman emerged "firing madly". » | Thursday, March 22, 2012

Related »

Toulouse Shooting: 80 French Nationals 'Training with Pakistan Taliban'
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: More than 80 French nationals are training with the Pakistan Taliban in the lawless north-west of the country, according to a senior militant commander, raising fears of a renewed campaign against Western targets.

Mohammed Merah, the man believed to have killed seven people in south-western France, was trained by al-Qaeda in Waziristan on the Pakistan-Afghanistan border, according to the French prosecutor.

His visits, thought to be in 2010 and 2011, highlight once again Pakistan’s reputation for Jihadi tourism and raise the chilling prospect of more attacks.

A senior commander with the Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), an al-Qaeda affiliated group, in its stronghold of North Waziristan said militants were following the unfolding events in France.

“There are more than 80 persons belonging to France, mostly in North Waziristan but some in South Waziristan. Five of them left from here in January,” he told The Daily Telegraph on condition of anonymity.

He said he could not disclose their destinations or plans, but that the TTP would claim responsibility when the time came. » | Rob Crilly, and Nazar Ul Islam in Islamabad, and Ben Farmer in Kabul | Wednesday, March 21, 2012

Related »

Budget 2012: Ed Miliband's Response
Labour leader accuses government of unveiling a millionaires' budget and says it marks the end of 'we are all in it together'

Eight-year-old Indonesian Boy Smokes Two Packs of Cigarettes a Day
Eight-year-old Adi Ilham's habit, which has seen him drop out of school, is being used to highlight Indonesia's lax smoking laws.

Read the article here | Wednesday, March 21, 2012

US Election 2012: Jeb Bush Calls on Republicans to Back Mitt Romney

THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Mitt Romney is within touching distance of securing the Republican presidential ticket after an emphatic 12-point victory in Illinois led to fresh calls from senior members of the party, including Jeb Bush, for his rivals to stand aside.

The front-runner was given a further boost yesterday by the endorsement of Jeb Bush, the brother of former President George W Bush.

"Now is the time for Republicans to unite behind Governor Romney and take our message of fiscal conservatism and job creation to all voters this fall," said Mr Bush, a former Florida governor who has himself been touted as a possible future Republican presidential candidate.

His intervention, after months of declining to make an endorsement, was taken as a signal that it was now time to coalesce behind Mr Romney and put an end to a bitterly divisive primary campaign that poll ratings show has damaged both the Republican party and the candidates.

Mr Romney now has 563 delegates, a lead of 300 over Mr Santorum in the race to achieve the "magic number" of 1,144 needed to clinch the nomination outright and face President Barack Obama in November.

"At some point the reality is going to set in that Mitt is the all but certain nominee," Mr Romney's chief spin doctor Eric Fehrnstrom told CNN, adding that no "deus ex machina" was going to come down from heaven and change the outcome of the race. » | Peter Foster | Washington | Wednesday, March 21, 2012

Initiative gegen Vetorecht des Fürsten
Das Volk des Fürstentum Lichtensteins kämpft mit der Initiative «Ja - damit deine Stimme zählt» dafür, dass das Volk das letzte Wort in politischen Entscheiden hat. Das Parlament hat für die hitzig diskutierte Initiative grünes Licht gegeben. Nun müssen die Initianten innert 6 Wochen rund 1500 Unterschriften sammeln.

Opfer von Toulouse in Jerusalem beigesetzt
Die 4 Todesopfer des Mordanschlags von Toulouse wurden auf einem Friedhof in Jerusalem beerdigt. Rund 2000 Trauergäste verabschiedeten die getöteten 3 Kinder und den Vater von zwei der Kinder. Israelische Regierungsvertreter beschrieben den Anschlag als weiteres Beispiel für den Terror gegen Juden in aller Welt.

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Sarkozy: «le terrorisme ne fracturera pas la France»

LA PRESSE (CANADA): Le président Nicolas Sarkozy a déclaré mercredi que le «terrorisme» ne parviendrait pas à «fracturer» le pays et qu'il ne fallait pas céder à la «vengeance» après l'annonce que le tueur présumé de Toulouse était un Français d'origine algérienne se réclamant d'Al-Qaïda.

«Je viens de réunir l'ensemble des représentants de la communauté juive et du culte musulman (...) J'ai tenu à les réunir ensemble pour montrer que le terrorisme ne parviendra pas à fracturer notre communauté nationale», a déclaré le président, lors d'une brève allocution à l'Élysée.

«Je leur ai dit et je le dis à la communauté nationale, à la nation tout entière: nous devons être rassemblés, nous ne devons céder ni à l'amalgame ni à la vengeance», a-t-il poursuivi.

«Face à un tel événement, la France ne peut être grande que dans l'unité nationale. Nous le devons aux victimes froidement assassinées, nous le devons à notre pays», a conclu M. Sarkozy. » | Agence France-Presse | Paris | mercredi 21 mars 2012

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Toulouse Shootings May Force Reassessment of French Islamist Threat
THE GUARDIAN: France has been less obviously affected by Sunni Muslim militancy than many other European nations, for several reasons

Despite ongoing controversies over the veil, halal meat and other issues, France over the last decade has been less obviously affected by the violence of the 9/11 wars and contemporary Sunni Muslim militancy than many other European nations. There have been no mass casualty attacks like those in the UK and Spain, and no high-profile assassination like that of the film-maker Theo van Gogh in the Netherlands.

France was hit by the blowback from the civil war in Algeria in the 1990s, and suffered from its own particular brand of "gangster jihad" prior to 2001. A handful of Frenchmen were present in Afghanistan, with at least one killed in fighting at Tora Bora, and a couple of hundred volunteers went to Iraq between 2003 and 2006. But there has been no equivalent of the flow of young British Pakistanis to Pakistan's tribal regions or, more recently, to Somalia.

One reason for this, beyond issues such as language, is the undoubted expertise of the French security services who, in part due to the experience gained in the 1990s, understood the challenge of diffuse, networked and ideologically driven Islamic extremism much faster than their Anglo-Saxon counterparts.

Another is the origins of the very large French Muslim community. In contrast with the poor, illiterate, deeply conservative communities in Pakistan to which many in the UK trace their origins, many French Muslims have roots in the relatively moderate, relatively prosperous and much better educated Maghreb. French opposition to the war in Iraq also helped. » | Jason Burke | Wednesday, March 21, 2012

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Terroralarm in Paris: Bombe explodiert vor indonesischer Botschaft
STERN.DE: Vor der indonesischen Botschaft in Paris ist am Mittwochmorgen ein Sprengsatz explodiert. Dabei sei niemand verletzt worden. Unklar ist, ob der Anschlag im Zusammenhang mit den Morden von Toulouse steht.

Eine Paketbombe hat am Mittwochmorgen vor der indonesischen Botschaft in Paris schweren Sachschaden angerichtet. Nach ersten Erkenntnissen hatten drei Unbekannte das Paket vor dem Gebäude im 16. Pariser Arrondissement deponiert, berichtete die Nachrichtenagentur AFP unter Berufung auf Polizeikreise. Verletzt wurde niemand. Ein Angestellter der Botschaft hatte demnach das Paket entdeckt und Alarm geschlagen. Da zu der Zeit nur wenig Menschen auf der Straße waren, wurde niemand verletzt. » | kgi/DPA/AFP | Mittwoch, 21. März 2012

Muslim Group Seeks to Educate Houstonians on Islamic Law
HOUSTON CHRONICLE: The way supporters of the conservative group Texas Eagle Forum see it, a growing number of U.S. Muslims are practicing "stealthy jihad," secretly trying to impose their religious doctrine on Americans and form a parallel judicial system, one that could force women to wear burkas or even condone honor killings.

Sharia, the legal, moral and religious underpinning of Islam, is "a threat to America," said the Eagle Forum's former president, Pat Carlson, who is running for state representative in Fort Worth.

With the help of a neoconservative Washington, D.C., think tank, which spearheaded similar efforts in more than 20 states across the country, the group last year pushed legislation in Texas banning the recognition of foreign law in state courts, with its proponents decrying Sharia's "creeping influence."

It didn't pass, but some lawmakers consider the issue important enough to take up before the Legislature convenes in January. Last week, South Dakota's governor signed a bill aimed at preventing courts from applying Islamic law. » | Lomi Kriel | Tuesday, March 20, 2012

Une ancienne voisine : «Merah, c'était déjà un individu très dangereux»
Malika, une ancienne voisine de la famille Merah dans le quartier des Isards, à Toulouse, raconte que Mohammed avait déjà fait parler de lui dans le quartier où ses dérives islamistes étaient connues.

Liens en relation avec cette vidéo »

Neue deutsche Nazis: Flashmobs gegen die Demokratie
ZEIT ONLINE: Sie ziehen mit Fackeln durch Kleinstädte, machen davon professionelle Videos und stoßen auf großen Zuspruch. Wie Neonazis neue Medien und linke Symbole nutzen.

Es war eine merkwürdige Prozession, die Bautzen in der Nacht zum 1. Mai im vergangenen Jahr erlebt hat. Auf Augenzeugen muss das Ganze etwas lächerlich gewirkt haben, auf andere vielleicht auch etwas gruselig: Aufgemacht wie eine Mischung aus Ku Klux Klan und Anonymous, zogen etwa 200 Neonazis mit brennenden Fackeln und weißen Masken durch die Stadt.

Vorne trugen sie ein Transparent: "Damit die Nachwelt nicht vergisst, dass Du Deutscher bist". Der ganze Spuk dauerte nicht länger als zwanzig Minuten. Noch bevor die Polizei-Verstärkung eingetroffen war, waren die Rechtsextremen schon wieder verschwunden. » | Von Johannes Radke | Mittwoch, 21. März 2012

Attentat in Toulouse: Polizei will Serienmörder lebend festnehmen
FRANKFURTER ALLGEMEINE: Der mutmaßliche Attentäter von Toulouse ist identifiziert. Das sagte Staatspräsident Sarkozy. Der Mann will sich am Nachmittag der Polizei ergeben. Er hält sich noch in einem Haus in Toulouse verschanzt.

Der mutmaßliche Serienmörder von Toulouse ist nach Angaben von Präsident Nicolas Sarkozy identifiziert. Nach einer Unterredung mit Vertretern der jüdischen und muslimischen Glaubens-gemeinschaften sagte Sarkozy, es werde alles getan, damit der Mann sich vor der Justiz verantworte. Sarkozy sagte: „Der Terrorismus wird unsere nationale Gemeinschaft nicht zerbrechen.“ Er warnte vor Rachegedanken und einer Verquickung von Religion und Terrorismus.

Der Mann will sich nach Angaben des französischen Innenministers Claude Guéant am Nachmittag der Polizei ergeben. Guéant sagte im Fernsehsender BFM, der Mann habe einem Polizisten seine Absicht erklärt, nachdem er eine Waffe aus dem Fenster des Hauses geworfen habe, in dem er sich seit der Nacht verschanzt hält. » | Quelle: dpa/AFP | Mittwoch, 21. März 2012

Verwandt / Related »

Imran Khan: Salman Rushdie Has the 'Mindset of a Small Man'

THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Imran Khan has stoked his growing feud with Sir Salman Rushdie, describing the Satanic Verses author as having "the mindset of a small man".

The two have exchanged angry words since Mr Khan, the former Pakistan cricket captain who now heads a political party, refused to share a platform with the writer at a conference in New Delhi at the weekend.

At the time, Mr Khan said he could not appear with a man who had offended the world's Muslims.

Sir Salman hit back at the event with a series of jibes. He asked the shocked audience if they "noticed a physical resemblance of Imran Khan and Gaddafi" and went on to describe Mr Khan as a dictator-in-waiting. » | Rob Crilly | Islamabad | Wednesday, March 21, 2012

The Day Europe Died

YNET NEWS: Op-ed: Europe’s deeply flawed morality, dying soul, evident in Gaza-Toulouse comparison

Monday, March 19th will be remembered as a dark day for Europe. That day, it crossed the “point of no return,” as long years of political correctness and currying favor with the Arab world prompted the final burial of the continent’s liberal discourse, which has become a twisted, meaningless absurdity.

The events of the day did not come from nowhere. After all, this is the same Europe where a German opposition leader slams “Israeli apartheid,” where officials call for boosting Arab control in Jerusalem and blacklisting settlers, and where Europe’s foreign policy chief expresses concern for a hunger-striking Islamic Jihad man but ignores the same plight of a Saudi human rights activist.

And still, all records were broken Monday, with the slippery slope turning into a deep, dark pit; indeed, the time has come to say goodbye to the Europe we once knew.

At the heart of Europe, in Geneva, Hamas man Ismail al-Ashqar spoke before some members of the UN’s human rights commission. The mere mention of Hamas in the context of human rights is utterly ludicrous: After all, this is the group that took over Gaza violently while hurling foes from rooftops, and ever since has been most preoccupied with arms smuggling, imposing an “Islamic moral code,” and occasionally firing rockets at Israeli kindergartens.

The fact that a member of such group was invited to speak in Geneva, and moreover, that European capitals did not raise a hue and cry over such terrible distortion of the human rights discourse, blatantly attests to the moral abyss which Europeans have fallen into; a dark place where flattery for a murderous terrorist organization crushes any commitment to morality and truth. » | Yigal Walt | Wednesday, March 21, 2012

Related »

Toulouse Shooting: 'Jihadist' in Siege Is Named by Police
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: The man engaged in a stand-off with police in Toulouse after the killing of seven people has been named as it is disclosed he was previously arrested in Afghanistan.


A police source said the man barricaded inside an apartment surrounded by armed police is Mohammed Merah, 24, a Frenchman of Algerian origin.

He has previously been arrested on a matter of common law in the southern Afghan city of Kandahar, cradle of the Taliban, a police source said.

The self-declared al Qaeda jihadist has declared he will surrender later today, Interior Minister Claude Gueant said.

French police are engagaged in a stand-off with Merah, who is suspected of killing three children, a teacher and three soldiers, after swooping on a house in an early morning raid.

Armed police exchanged shots with Merah, who is refusing to surrender, after descending on the house in Toulouse at 3am. His brother was arrested at a separate location. » | Wednesday, March 21, 2012

Yet again, we see that the ‘religion of love and peace’ is neither loving nor peaceful!

For how much longer are the indigenous populations of Western countries going to have to suffer while our politicians continue with the mad, crazy, dangerous experiment of multiculturalism? How many more innocent children are going to have to die before the politicians who have long been in denial refuse to come to terms with the fact that multiculturalism is something which we, the people, don’t want, and is in any case an experiment which is destined to fail, and maybe with ever direr consequences for innocent people?

Stop the mad experiment forthwith! Stop endangering the lives of innocent people! You have no mandate to continue with this dangerous insanity. – © Mark

Mohammed Mera, the jihadist, intended to post the gruesome videos online »

Related »

LE FIGARO: Toulouse : le suspect est un djihadiste français de 24 ans – Le suspect cerné par le Raid s'appelle Mohammed Merah et se revendique d'al-Qaida. Il était sur les fichiers des RG depuis son arrestation en Afghanistan en 2010. » | Par Jean-Marc Leclerc, lefigaro.fr, Marie-Estelle Pech, Cyrille Vanlerberghe | mercredi 21 mars 2012

Thousands Attend Funeral of Coptic Pope Shenouda III
Thousands attended the funeral service of Coptic Pope Shenouda III, paying their final respects to the 88-year-old who died on Saturday after a long battle with illness.

Read the article here | Tuesday, March 20, 2012
Related »

Earthquake Rocks Mexico's Pacific Coast
THE GUARDIAN: Quake near south-western resort of Acapulco shakes buildings and halts traffic in Mexico City

A major earthquake of 7.6 magnitude has struck Mexico's Pacific coast, 120 miles east of the resort of Acapulco.

The US Geological Survey located the epicentre of the quake at 15 miles east of Ometepec, in Guerrero state, at a depth of 10.9 miles.

The quake was felt just after midday in Mexico City, where buildings shook and office workers fled into the street, according to a witnesses. Mobile phones were down and traffic ground to a halt in the capital in the moments after the shock.

Groups of people gathered at the city's Angel of Independence monument after hundreds of workers were evacuated from office buildings. Some said they had never felt such a strong earthquake. » | Agencies | Tuesday, March 20, 2012

Schweiz: Blocher am Pranger
Die Zürcher Oberstaatsanwaltschaft hat die Villa und einen Firmensitz von Christoph Blocher durchsucht. Zudem wird ein Strafverfahren gegen den Zürcher SVP-Nationalrat wegen Verletzung des Bankgeheimnisses eröffnet. Es soll geprüft werden, ob sich Blocher an der Weitergabe von geheimen Bankdaten der Familie Hildebrand beteiligt und sich damit strafbar gemacht hat.


Zum Teil in Schweizerdeutsch (Schwyzertüütsch)

On Nowruz, President Obama Speaks to the Iranian People
In a video message earlier today, President Obama sent his best wishes to all who are celebrating Nowruz.

Read the article here | Ben Rhodes | Tuesday, March 20, 2012

Queen beginnt Reise durch Großbritannien
Mit einem Besuch im britischen Parlament hat Königin Elisabeth II. ihre Reise durch Großbritannien gestartet.

Verwandt »

Amtsausstattung: Wulff fordert Rundumversorgung

STERN.DE: Die Staatsanwaltschaft ermittelt noch, gleichwohl prescht Wulff mit seinen Wünschen vor: Der Ex-Präsident will ein Büro, Mitarbeiter, Wagen und Fahrer. Die Kosten dafür gehen in die Hunderttausende. Von Timo Pache und Thomas Steinmann

Ungeachtet der laufenden Ermittlungen der Staatsanwaltschaft, seiner kurzen Amtszeit und der hitzigen öffentlichen Debatte reklamiert Altbundespräsident Christian Wulff die volle Amtsausstattung für sich. Bei den zuständigen Haushältern ist inzwischen eine entsprechende Anfrage des Bundespräsidialamts eingegangen, erfuhr die "FTD" am Montag aus Koalitionskreisen. Demnach fordert Wulff die für ehemalige Bundespräsidenten übliche Ausstattung auf Steuerzahlerkosten mit einem Büro mit Mitarbeitern sowie einen Dienstwagen mit Fahrer für sich. » | Von Timo Pache und Thomas Steinmann | Dienstag, 20. März 2012

Frankreich: Tausende trauern um die Opfer

Verwandt »

Mort du patriarche de l'Église copte orthodoxe en Égypte

RADIO-CANADA.CA: Chenouda III, le patriarche de l'Église copte orthodoxe qui présida pendant plus de 30 ans aux destinées de la minorité chrétienne d'Égypte, est mort samedi, à l'âge de 88 ans.

Selon l'agence de presse officielle MENA, qui ne précise pas la cause exacte du décès, le patriarche avait des problèmes de santé depuis des années, le foie et les poumons étant atteints.

Baba Chenouda, comme il était appelé, dirigeait l'une des principales et plus anciennes églises chrétiennes d'Orient, remontant à l'époque de Saint-Marc, qui aurait amené le christianisme en Égypte au 1er siècle, du temps de l'empereur romain Néron.

Pour les quelque 10 millions de Coptes, Chenouda, chef charismatique et autorité morale, était le protecteur de cette minorité vivant au sein d'une majorité musulmane dans cette Égypte de plus de 80 millions d'habitants. Une cohabitation souvent malaisée dans un contexte de discrimination et d'islamisation croissante de la société. » | Associaated Press | La Presse Canadienne | samedi 17 mars 2012

Liens en relation avec l’article »

Who Allowed Bercow to Hijack the Queen's Address to Parliament?

Gunman Kills Four at French Jewish School
French anti-terrorist prosecutors have linked a shooting at a Jewish school in Toulouse with two deadly attacks on soldiers in the same region last week.

Related »

Muslim Lesbian Couple Fight Deportation
TORONTO SUN: TORONTO - A Muslim lesbian couple who claim they will be killed if deported to their native Israel due to their sexuality is being given a second chance to remain in Canada.

Iman Musa and Majida Mugrabi, of Toronto, arrived in Canada from Tel Aviv in 2007 and filed unsuccessful refugee claims that were appealed to the Federal Court of Canada.

Judge Roger Hughes on March 8 granted the couple another hearing by an Immigration and Refugee Board based on new information that shows one of Mugrabi’s cousin confessed to the “honour killing” of his sister 12-years ago.

The couple in an emotional letter that was presented to court claimed they would be killed if turfed to Israel for being a same-sex Muslim couple.

“We have a same sex relationship, which is forbidden back home,” the couple wrote. “We have dishonoured our families by running away to try and start a life with each other.”

The couple, through their lawyer, Daniel Kingwell, said they were pleased by the court’s decision but still fear for their lives.

“As Muslim women, we don’t have any rights in our families,” the couple wrote. “The fact that we are lesbians does not help.” » | Tom Godfrey | Toronto Sun | Tuesday, March 20, 2012

New Dark Age Alert! Santorum: Restore Don't Ask Don't Tell

Bill O'Reilly: The Decline of American Power Continues

France Investigates Neo-Nazis after School Killings
CNN: Toulouse, France -- Authorities are investigating the possibility that neo-Nazis are behind a shooting spree that left three children and a teacher dead at a Jewish school in France, Interior Minister Claude Gueant said Tuesday.

That is one of several leads authorities are following after the Monday killings -- the third fatal attack on people from minority groups in the south of France in the space of eight days.

The country's southwest region remained on scarlet alert, the highest possible level, after the teacher and three children were gunned down at the Ozar Hatorah school in Toulouse.

The gunman at the Jewish school wore a camera on his chest during the attack, Gueant told Europe 1 in an interview Tuesday. » | Saskya Vandoorne and Diana Magnay | CNN | Tuesday, March 20, 2012

This article is also available in Arabic

Related »

Santorum: Unemployment ‘Doesn’t Matter’

Pat Condell: Tell the Truth about Islam
It isn't pretty, but it's still the truth.

HT: Baron Bodissey @ Gates of Vienna »

Toulouse Shooting: Little Girl Cornered in School and Shot in Head

THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: It was shortly after 8am on a leafy street in a quiet suburb of Toulouse and children were being dropped off at the gates of the Ozar Hatorah Jewish school.

The dark motor scooter pulled up and a man described as "determined and athletic" dismounted. Without removing his helmet or saying a word, he opened fire.

Witnesses described how the gunman aimed at whoever was in his path, first shooting Jonathan Sandler, 30, a rabbi and teacher, along with his two sons, Aryeh, six, and Gavriel, three, as they waited for a minibus to take them to their nursery. All three are dead.

Then, when his 9mm weapon jammed, the killer switched to a .45-calibre gun, entered the school gates and chased children as they fled for cover.

He shot a 17-year-old pupil, who is now fighting for his life in hospital, and then cornered eight-year old Miriam, the daughter of the school principal, Yaacov Monsonego. He put the gun to her head and shot her.

As pupils ran from the large courtyard into salmon pink school buildings, the killer turned, mounted his scooter and sped off, plunging a nation into shock at the worst anti-Semitic atrocity on French soil in decades. » | Fiona Govan | Toulouse | Monday, March 19, 2012

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