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Saturday, April 20, 2013
Friday, April 19, 2013
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: A senior Ukip politician has said Kosovo should not be allowed to join the European Union because Britain "already has enough" criminals.
Gerard Batten, a Ukip MEP, said people from the "lawless" country should not get an open door to come to Britain.
"We already have plenty of criminals from Kosovo in London, despite the fact it's not yet a member of the EU," he said.
"EU entry would enable yet more to come. We already have enough, thank you very much."
Mr Batten later told The Daily Telegraph: "UKIP opposes the entry of all new states to the EU because it gives their citizens automatic entry to Britiain.
"Kosovo is a particularly bad example because it is a poor, lawless state with rampant criminality. We don't want to give an open door invite to more criminals from Kosovo, we have enough already. Just look at the crime statistics for Romanians in London for example." » | Rowena Mason, Political Correspondent | Friday, April 19, 2013
THE CHRISTIAN POST: President Barack Obama's decision not to attend or dispatch high-ranking members of his administration to the funeral of former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher Wednesday was criticized in the United States as well as the United Kingdom.
Given that the White House sent an official delegation to the funeral of Venezuela's Hugo Chávez, a "tyrannical socialist dictator," Obama's treatment of the funeral of the "Iron Lady" was an "amazing snub," said the website of the Tea Party News Network. » | Anugrah Kumar , Christian Post Contributor | Thursday, April 18, 2013
REUTERS.COM: Boston bombing suspect Dzhokhar Tsarnaev posted links to Islamic websites and others calling for Chechen independence on what appears to be his page on a Russian language social networking site.
Abusive comments in Russian and English were flooding onto Tsarnaev's page on VK, a Russian-language social media site, on Friday after he was identified as a suspect in the bombing of the Boston marathon.
Police launched a massive manhunt for Tsarnaev, 19, after killing his older brother Tamerlan Tsarnaev in a shootout overnight.
On the site, the younger Tsarnaev identifies himself as a 2011 graduate of Cambridge Rindge and Latin School, a public school in Cambridge, Massachusetts.
It says he went to primary school in Makhachkala, capital of Dagestan, a province in Russia that borders Chechnya, and lists his languages as English, Russian and Chechen.
His "World view" is listed as "Islam" and his "Personal priority" is "career and money".
He has posted links to videos of fighters in the Syrian civil war and to Islamic web pages with titles like "Salamworld, my religion is Islam" and "There is no God but Allah, let that ring out in our hearts". » | Reporting by Peter Graff; editing by Philippa Fletcher | Friday, April 19, 2013
AJIB.fr: Sur son compte Twitter, Arnoud Van Doorn, nous apprend qu’il est actuellement en Arabie Saoudite pour effectuer son petit pèlerinage (Omra). L’homme politique néerlandais, ancien membre du PVV, parti d’extrême-droite des Pays-Bas, avait récemment annoncé sa conversion à l’islam. En effet, le 27 février dernier, il avait effectué publiquement sa profession de foi, sur Twitter. [...]
Sur son compte Twitter, Arnoud Van Doorn, nous apprend qu’il est actuellement en Arabie Saoudite pour effectuer son petit pèlerinage (Omra).
L’homme politique néerlandais, ancien membre du PVV, parti d’extrême-droite des Pays-Bas, avait récemment annoncé sa conversion à l’islam. En effet, le 27 février dernier, il avait effectué publiquement sa profession de foi, sur Twitter. Dans une interview par un journaliste d’Al Jazeera sur sa conversion, il nous fait part de sa joie après avoir reçu autant de messages de soutien. Il faut dire que cette conversion a surpris plus d’un, en raison de son ancienne appartenance politique, à un parti nationaliste et islamophobe. » | Par Oum Michket | AJIB.FR | vendredi 19 avril 2013
TIME: (MOSCOW) — Militants from Chechnya and other restive regions in Russia’s volatile North Caucasus have targeted Moscow and other areas with bombings and hostage-takings, but the allegations of involvement in the Boston Marathon explosions would mark the first time they had conducted a terror attack in the West.
The conflict in Chechnya began in 1994 as a separatist war, but quickly morphed into an Islamic insurgency whose adepts vow to carve out an independent Islamic state in the Caucasus.
Russian troops withdrew from Chechnya in 1996 after the first Chechen war, leaving it de-facto independent and largely lawless, but then rolled back three years later following apartment building explosions in Moscow and other cities blamed on the rebels. » | Associated Press | Friday, April 19, 2013
GATESTONE INSTITUTE: Some 1,000 Muslims from across Europe are currently active as Islamic jihadists in Syria, which has replaced Afghanistan, Pakistan and Somalia as the main destination for militant Islamists to obtain immediate combat training with little or no official scrutiny.
Belgian police have carried out dozens of raids and arrested six Islamists -- including the pugnacious ringleader of a Belgian Salafist group called Sharia4Belgium -- suspected of recruiting foreign fighters for the war in Syria.
The crackdown reflects growing concerns in Belgium and elsewhere about the threat posed by Islamic jihadists, or holy warriors, when they return to Europe after obtaining combat experience in Syria.
Some 1,000 Muslims from across Europe are currently active as Islamic jihadists in Syria, which has replaced Afghanistan, Pakistan and Somalia as the main destination for militant Islamists seeking to obtain immediate combat training with little or no official scrutiny. » | Soeren Kern | Friday, April 19, 2013
Thursday, April 18, 2013
WIKI: Thomas Kielinger [D] | [ E ]
Wednesday, April 17, 2013
LE POINT: Les obsèques de la "Dame de Fer" ont fait connaître au monde entier sa petite fille. La presse et Twitter la comparent déjà à Pippa Middleton.
Les circonstances sont bien différentes mais leur destinée pourrait être la même : alors que les Britanniques avaient découvert Pippa Middleton lors du mariage de sa soeur Kate avec le Prince William, les sujets de la reine ont assisté à l'avènement médiatique d'Amanda Thatcher lors des obsèques de sa grand-mère, mercredi 17 avril.
En la cathédrale Saint-Paul à Londres, Amanda Margaret Thatcher a lu un entier un extrait des épitres aux Ephésiens en hommage à son aïeule, au cours d'une cérémonie retransmise par les télévisions du monde entier. Vêtue d'un tailleur noir et d'un collier de perles, coiffée d'un chapeau noir asymétrique, elle est apparue très élégante. Ce que n'ont pas manqué de commenter les journaux britanniques. The Guardian, The Telegraph ou encore The Daily Mail lui on déjà consacré des portraits et des diaporamas. » | Source Sipa Media | mercredi 17 avril 2013
BBC: A letter addressed to US President Barack Obama containing a "suspicious substance" has been intercepted.
Initial tests on the letter, identified at a remote facility, showed the presence of the lethal toxin ricin.
The letter, which arrived at the facility on 16 April, is related to another laced with ricin intended for a US senator, the FBI said.
Meanwhile, US Capitol Police are questioning a suspect in connection with the tainted letters, reports say.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) said the letters addressed to the president and Republican Senator Roger Wicker were both were postmarked Memphis, Tennessee and dated 8 April.
The contents of the letter intended for President Obama are being sent to an accredited laboratory for further analysis, the FBI said, with results expected in 24 to 48 hours. » | Wednesday, April 17, 2013
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Queen Sofia of Spain has won an apology from an online dating agency for adulterers after it used her image in an advertising campaign mocking the King's rumoured indiscretions.
The 74-year old Greek-born spouse of King Juan Carlos took legal action against US-based agency Ashley Madison for "damage to her honour and dignity" after it used a photograph of her in a series of adverts last year.
The company, which specialises in connecting people looking for extra-marital affairs, has issued a personal apology to Queen Sofia and promised never to use her image in its marketing campaigns.
The offending advertisements contained a doctored image of the smiling Queen draped around the bare shoulders of a much younger man, beneath the slogan in Spanish: "You no longer have to spend the night alone".
Published first in February 2012 and then again last October, it apparently refered to widespread allegations that King Juan Carlos had conducted numerous affairs during their 50-year marriage.
An explosive biography of Queen Sofia, written by Pilar Eyre, called "The Solitude of the Queen" was published in January 2012. It detailed her long-standing suffering as the wife of serial womanizer. » | Fiona Govan, Madrid | Wednesday, April 17, 2013
TIME: It’s a good problem to have, but it’s still a problem for three men who have reportedly been deported from Saudi Arabia for being “too handsome.”
The men were visiting Saudi Arabia from the United Arab Emirates to attend the annual Jenadrivah Heritage & Cultural Festival in Riyadh. They were apparently minding their own business when members of Saudi Arabia’s religion police entered the pavilion and forcibly removed them from the festival. Their offense? They were considered “too handsome” to stay for fear that women would find them irresistible, according to the Arabic-language newspaper Elaph. » | Melissa Locker | Wednesday, April 17, 2013
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: New Zealand has become the first country in the Asia-Pacific region - and 13th in the world - to legalise gay marriage.
Parliament voted 77 to 44 in support of the bill on its third and last reading. Uruguay legalised gay marriage last week and the move will put more pressure on Australia, which rejected the proposal last year, leading to speculation that couples will make the three hour flight to get married in New Zealand.
Spectators in the public gallery and some law makers couldn’t hide their jubilation at the decision, singing the nation’s love song, Pokarekare Ana, in the native Maori language.
In a heartfelt speech, bill sponsor Louisa Wall said: “In our society, the meaning of marriage is universal — it's a declaration of love and commitment to a special person.
“Nothing could make me more proud to be a New Zealander than passing this bill,” she went on to add. » | Romil Patel | Wednesday, April 17, 2013
Tuesday, April 16, 2013
THE GUARDIAN: Barack Obama sends presidential delegation with no serving politicians to London ceremony
The US is to send distinctly low-key official representation to Lady Thatcher's funeral on Wednesday, with a delegation led by George Shultz and James Baker, who both served as US secretary of state while Thatcher was in power.
While Barack Obama was invited, he has opted to send a presidential delegation comprising no serving politicians. Shultz was secretary of state to Ronald Reagan while Baker served the elder George Bush. Also representing Obama will be Barbara Stephenson, chargé d'affaires at the US embassy in London, and Louis Susman, the recently departed ambassador to Britain.
Separately, the Republican party is sending three members of the House of Representatives: Marsha Blackburn, who will lead the delegation, along with Michele Bachmann and George Holding. Blackburn is a leading fiscal conservative, while Bachmann, a member of the hard[-]line conservative Tea Party faction, became internationally known during her spectacular if brief bid for the 2012 presidential nomination. » | Peter Walker | Tuesday, April 16, 2013
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Michael Deacon reports on the chapel service held for the late Baroness Thatcher in the Palace of Westminster, the day before her funeral.
Footsteps on flagstones echoed through the vast hall, breaking the cold, draughty silence. Faint sunlight crept in from the outside world through the stained glass; otherwise, the hall was dim. Darkness spread from the high rafters down the dingy stone walls. Into this echoing gloom, the mourners slowly filed.
The day before her funeral, a chapel service was being held for Baroness Thatcher in the Palace of Westminster. Tucked away in a poky corner of Westminster Hall, up a short flight of steps, and guarded by wrought-iron gates, was a small door headed, “Chapel of St Mary Undercroft”. It was here that, this afternoon at three o’clock, Lady Thatcher’s coffin was brought.
As a television news helicopter thundered overhead, crowds gathered outside Parliament to watch the hearse draw up at Old Palace Yard. Solemnly the bearers hoisted the coffin on to their shoulders. The union flag in which it was draped fluttered in the breeze. Nestled in the wreath was a small white card. It read, simply, “Beloved Mother – always in our hearts.” » | Michael Deacon, Parliamentary Sketchwriter | Tuesday, April 16, 2013
ABC NEWS: More than 2,000 invitations were sent out for the Wednesday funeral of former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher. Among the former U.S. presidents, surviving U.K. prime ministers, world leaders and celebrities who made the cut are some high profile would-be guests who sent regrets: Former First Lady Nancy Reagan — whose husband had a close relationship with the late premier — will not be able to attend; nor will former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev, who shared key moments in history with the Iron Lady. Germany's Angela Merkel is sending her foreign minister, while U.S. power families the Clintons and the Bushes won't be making appearances.
Here's a look at who is — and isn't — attending the funeral Wednesday at St. Paul's Cathedral. » | Associated Press | Tuesday, April 16, 2013
THE GUARDIAN: Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta says it will launch terror campaign 'in defence of Christianity'
Nigeria could face a battle between rival terrorist groups after Christian militants threatened to attack Muslim targets in response to bombings carried out by the Islamist group Boko Haram.
The Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (Mend), the umbrella body of armed groups in Nigeria's oil-rich Niger Delta, said it would launch a new terror campaign "in defence of Christianity".
"The bombings of mosques, hajj camps, Islamic institutions, large congregations in Islamic events and assassinations of clerics that propagate doctrines of hate will form the core mission of this crusade," the Mend spokesman Jomo Gbomo said in an emailed statement. » | Afua Hirsch, west Africa correspondent | Tuesday, April 16, 2013
GATESTONE INSTITUTE: "Our work of information is not oriented against Muslims, but against the political ideology of Islam. Muslims are its first victims, most of all women." — Politically Incorrect
The Bavarian branch of Germany's domestic intelligence agency, the Bundesamt für Verfassungsschutz (BfV), has placed under state surveillance German activists accused of fomenting hate against Muslims due to their opposition to the construction of a mega-mosque in Munich.
The move to silence critics of the mosque for being "unconstitutional" was announced by Bavarian Interior Minister Joachim Herrmann in a press conference on April 12, and represents an unprecedented threat to the exercise of free speech in post-reunification Germany.
Herrmann made the announcement while presenting an annual report about threats to democratic order in Germany. A seven-minute video of the press conference with subtitles in English can be viewed here.
Herrmann singled out a citizen's movement called Die Freiheit Bayern (Freedom Bavaria), as well as the Munich branch of a highly popular free speech blog called Politically Incorrect (PI), which focuses on topics related to immigration, multiculturalism and Islam in Germany. » | Soeren Kern | Tuesday, April 16, 2013
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BBC: Two explosions at the finish line of the Boston Marathon have left at least two people dead and a number of people injured.
The moment of the first explosion was captured by television crews covering the event. Watch BBC video » | Monday, April 15, 2013
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: In an attempt to save the euro at all costs, Europe's technocrats are advocating policies of startling brutality
When the Dutch finance minister suggested that the Cypriot bail-out could become a “model”, the outcry was immediate. It was all very well to treat a minnow such as Cyprus in such a brutal manner, said Jeroen Dijsselbloem’s critics, but no country of real stature would put up with a raid on its savers’ funds. What a difference a few weeks makes. Germany’s council of economic experts has now scrutinised the Cypriot rescue package, and concluded that the critics had a point. Not about the arbitrary confiscation of wealth, but that a levy on bank accounts was an inefficient manner of going about it. They suggest, in future, a tax on property or other assets, paid predominantly by the wealthy, since it is far more difficult to move your home out of reach. » | Telegraph View | Monday, April 15, 2013
SITE MONITORING SERVICE – JIHAD THREAT: Amidst ongoing media reports of two explosions in the American city of Boston, Massachusetts, near the finish line of the marathon race on April 15, 2013, jihadists expressed their joy and hoped the blasts are acts of jihadi terrorism.
One forum member noted that over a week ago, a jihadist announced his desire to plan bombings in the United States, but was chastised by others for revealing such a plot publicly. He is referring to a posting on the Ansar al-Mujahideen forum on April 1 in which a jihadist tried to recruit members for an attack similar in impact to al-Qaeda's 9/11 strikes, but seemed focused on the attack being a suicide bombing. In other posts responding to the explosions, on the Ansar al-Mujahideen, al-Fida' and Shumukh al-Islam forums, jihadists gave pictures circulated in the media of the aftermath, showing injured people and a bloody sidewalk, and some hoped more bombings will follow. » | Monday, April 15, 2013
Monday, April 15, 2013
EXPRESS: GERMAN Chancellor Angela Merkel will not attend tomorrow's funeral for her fellow "Iron Lady", Baroness Thatcher, it was confirmed today.
Germany's government will instead be represented by foreign minister Guido Westerwelle.
Mrs Merkel has been described as the "Iron Lady of Europe" and "Iron Lady Lite" for her tough negotiating stance.
Embassy sources said she rarely attends such funerals overseas and that foreign minister Mr Westerwelle - who was in London last week for a G8 meeting - is the next most senior figure who would usually take up such an invitation to her government.
Former German Chancellor Helmut Kohl might have been a candidate to represent the state as he knew then PM Thatcher personally but he is too infirm to travel.
Downing Street yesterday insisted it was "not at all" concerned that relatively few heads of government from major countries have so far accepted the invitation to join mourners in London's St Paul's Cathedral. » | Alison Little | Monday, April 15, 2013
THE INDEPENDENT: Atheist defends critical focus on Islam: Sam Harris, the prominent atheist, has hit back at charges of Islamophobia levelled by fellow non-believers – insisting that some faiths are more "mistaken" than others. » | Jerome Taylor | Sunday, April 14, 2013
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