Woman Accused of Witchcraft Axed to Death in Papua New Guinea

Local tribes men from Enga, Papua New Guinea

THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Woman accused of being a sorceress has been hacked to death by a mob

Police in Papua New Guinea vowed to find the men who axed to death a woman accused of using witchcraft to spark a measles outbreak in the country's remote jungle highlands, a missionary said on Wednesday after meeting authorities.

The woman, Mifila, was one of four women accused with 13 of their family members of using sorcery to cause measles deaths last November in the village of Fiyawena, in Enga province, said Lutheran missionary Anton Lutz.

Women are often accused and killed in witch hunts even though laws passed in 2013 make revenge killings over black magic punishable by death. Human Rights Watch earlier this year named Papua New Guinea as one of the most dangerous places in the world to be a woman due to gender based violence. » | Agencies | Wednesday, May 27, 2015

Türkei: Ein Privat-Jet für Chef der Religionsbehörde

DIE WELT: Recep Tayyip Erdogan will dem Leiter der Religionsbehörde private Flugzeuge der Regierung zur Verfügung stellen. Der türkische Präsident begründet seinen Vorschlag mit einem Verweis auf den Vatikan.

Der türkische Staatspräsident Recep Tayyip Erdogan will dem Leiter der Religionsbehörde Flugzeuge für Reisen zur Verfügung stellen. "Unser Präsident der Religionsbehörde soll für seine Auslandsreisen unsere Flugzeuge aus dem aktuellen Bestand nutzen. Wieso sollte er mit einem Linienflugzeug reisen?", sagte Erdogan am Dienstagabend dem Sender NTV in Ankara. » | dpa/dkl | Mittwoch, 27. Mai 2015

SEX and WOMEN: The Reason Islamic State Extremists Want to Kill ALL Westerners

Diarmaid MacCulloch is a Church
of England deacon

DAILY EXPRESS: THE WESTERN world's obsession with sex and the role of women are the reasons Islamic extremists want to kill people, a leading professor has warned.

The "pressing of sexual imagery on to the world" means western culture is hated in the rest of the world and leads to jihadists wanting to "kill people in the name of purifying the world", Diarmaid MacCulloch said.

The gay Oxford theological historian and presenter of the BBC's Sex and the Church said the hatred of western culture reaches far and wide and can be seen in Boko Haram in Africa, in the Middle East and in Vladimir Putin's Russia.

He said: "It seems to me that it is about sex.

"A unique feature of western culture is that it loves talking about sex, it obsesses about sex, it presses sexual imagery on to the world.

"Other cultures think about sex a lot but they do not talk about it and they find it intensely embarrassing and frustrating that the West talks about it."

The enhanced role of women in society is another reason Islamic State comrades hate western culture, the professor added.

He said: "The anger that other cultures feel towards western sexual openness, it is so much of the murderous anger which we are seeing in Boko Haram, Islamic State and other revivalist movements of the 20th century.

"Islam, in particular, is the religion of angry young men who are terrified by the way in which women's roles have changed in the last 50 years." » | Alix Culbertson | Wednesday, May 27, 2015

Magic Merkel: Why German Chancellor Is World's Most Powerful Woman for Fifth Year in a Row

Angela Merkel topped the list for the fifth time in a row.

THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Angela Merkel has been named as the world’s most powerful woman by Forbes magazine for the fifth year running. Here are five reasons Germany’s Chancellor seems unstoppable

1. She’s the one Western leader who knows how to stand up to Putin

In 2007, Vladimir Putin famously ordered his black labrador brought into the room during talks to unsettle Angela Merkel, because she’s known to have a fear of dogs. Her response? “I understand why he has to do this, to prove he’s a man,” she told reporters. “He’s afraid of his own weakness. Russia has nothing, no successful politics or economy. All they have is this.” » | Justin Huggler, Berlin | Wednesday, May 27, 2015

Tony Blair Resigns as Middle East Peace Envoy

THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Former Prime Minister Tony Blair resigns from his position as Middle East peace envoy

Tony Blair has resigned from his position as the Quartet's peace envoy to the Middle East after seven years.

The former Prime Minister has been criticised for his dual role as diplomat and businessman.

He will quit the role - which he took up immediately after leaving Downing Street in 2007 - next month.

Sources said that although Mr Blair will no longer represent the Quartet he plans to remain "active on the issues". » | David Barrett, Home Affairs Correspondent | Wednesday, May 27, 2015

Rouhani Clashes with Iranian Clergy over Women Arrested for 'Bad Hijab'

In a pre-summer ritual, an Iranian policewoman warns a young
woman about her clothing and hair during a crackdown to
enforce the Islamic dress code. 

THE GUARDIAN: With summer approaching, president has provoked a row with senior clerics after criticising police for enforcing a strict interpretation of dress codes

President Hassan Rouhani, who came to office in 2013 partly on the votes of young, middle-class women, knows that in the summer, hundreds or even thousands will be arrested by the morality police for “bad hijab”, a slack interpretation of the official dress code requiring women to cover their hair and figure even as temperatures push 40 degrees.

In his remark last year that “you can’t send people to heaven by the whip”, the president expressed a belief that citizens should not be forced into “good” behaviour, and in two recent speeches he skirted the issue of hijab, provoking a critical response from Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the supreme leader, and from senior members of the clergy.

In late April, the president told an assembly of Iranian police officers the duty of the police was solely to enforce the law. “The police’s job is not to enforce Islam, and furthermore, none among them can claim that their actions are sanctioned by God or the prophet [Mohammad].” » | Tehran Bureau correspondent | Wednesday, May 27, 2015

Qatar Emir's Mother Speaks Out over Treatment of Muslims by the West

Zaha Hadid 9left) and Sheikha Moza.

THE GUARDIAN: Sheikha Moza bint Nasser al-Missned, one of most influential women in the Arab world, attacks ‘double standards’, comparing Charlie Hebdo with Chapel Hill

Muslims face dehumanisation when western countries apply double standards, the wife of the former emir of Qatar has warned in an unusual and critical public intervention from a senior royal in a wealthy Gulf state.

Sheikha Moza bint Nasser al-Missned, one of the most influential and high-profile women in the Arab world, also questioned distinctions between “moderate” or “liberal” and “conservative” Muslims and insisted that it was wrong to say that Islam was “stuck in medieval times”.

“Why is it that world leaders gathered to march in defence of Charlie Hebdo, while the Chapel Hill murders were shrugged off as a parking dispute?” she asked, in a reference to the killing of three Muslim students in North Carolina in February. She was speaking at St Antony’s College, Oxford, on Tuesday.

“At the same time we are confronted with double standards. Why is it that apologies are offered when Europeans are mistakenly killed by drones but only silence follows when innocent Yemeni and Pakistani children and civilians are killed by the same drones? Why do Muslim lives seem to matter less than the lives of others? If they matter at all. I believe this dehumanisation is cultivated through a process of Muslim-phobia.” » | Ian Black Middle East editor | Tuesday, May 26, 2015

Vatican Says Ireland Gay Marriage Vote Is 'Defeat for Humanity'

THE GUARDIAN: Vatican diplomat seen as second only to the Pope insists Saturday’s referendum result shows ‘the church must strengthen its commitment to evangelisation’

A senior Vatican official has attacked the legalisation of gay marriage in Ireland. The referendum that overwhelmingly backed marriage equality last weekend was a “defeat for humanity”, he claimed.

“I was deeply saddened by the result,” Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Vatican’s secretary of state, said at a conference in Rome on Tuesday night. “The church must take account of this reality, but in the sense that it must strengthen its commitment to evangelisation. I think that you cannot just talk of a defeat for Christian principles, but of a defeat for humanity.”

The remarks by the Vatican’s top diplomat, who is seen as second only to the pope in the church’s hierarchy, represent the most damning assessment of the Irish vote by a senior church official to date. » | Stephanie Kirchgaessner in Rome | Tuesday, May 26, 2015

Saudi Religious Police Make Gloveless Woman Leave Shopping Mall

Darum bin ich kein Salafist mehr | Aussteiger spricht Klartext

Woman, 20, Burned Alive by Sadistic ISIS after She Refuses to Perform 'Extreme Sex Act'

DAILY EXPRESS: A YOUNG woman was burned alive by Islamic State (ISIS) militants after she refused to perform an ‘extreme sex act’, a senior diplomat has revealed.

The 20-year-old victim is one of thousands of girls subjected to a campaign of sexual violence waged by the fanatical group.

Zainab Bangura, the United Nation’s Special Representative on Sexual Violence in Conflict, said ISIS was responsible for “rape, sexual slavery, forced prostitution and other acts of extreme brutality”.

She described how the jihadi group would rampage through a village, executing the men and boys aged 14 or over.

The women and mothers would be separated from the younger girls, who are then stripped naked and tested to check if they are a virgin.

The vulnerable youngsters would then be examined to check their breast size and ranked on how pretty they are.

The unlucky ones would then be sent to Raqqa, the ISIS stronghold in the north of Syria.

The sickening brutalisation of Iraq and Syria's women – many from the persecuted Yazidi community – is "central" to the group's ideology, Ms Bangura argued.

The youngest, and those considered the ‘prettiest virgins’, fetch the highest prices, she said. » | Tom Batchelor | Tuesday, May 26, 2015

Syrie : Bachar el-Assad bombarde Palmyre

LE POINT: L'aviation syrienne a mené lundi d'intenses raids sur la ville antique. L'EI a exécuté au moins 217 personnes depuis qu'il s'est emparé de la ville.

L'aviation syrienne a mené lundi d'intenses raids sur la ville antique de Palmyre et sa banlieue, prise jeudi par les djihadistes du groupe État islamique (EI), faisant au moins 4 tués civils, selon une ONG. "Depuis ce matin, l'aviation du régime a mené 15 raids sur Palmyre et sa banlieue.

Il s'agit des raids les plus intenses depuis la prise de la ville", a affirmé Rami Abdel Rahmane, directeur de l'Observatoire syrien des droits de l'homme (OSDH). "Il y a au moins quatre morts parmi les civils et des dizaines de blessés et c'est sûr qu'il y a aussi des morts parmi les djihadistes de Daesh (acronyme arabe de l'EI) lors du bombardement du bâtiment de la sécurité militaire, a-t-il ajouté. Les raids ont visé plusieurs endroits de la ville, connue en arabe sous le nom de Tadmor, notamment les secteurs de l'hôpital national et dans celui près du périmètre où se trouvent les antiquités gréco-romaines." » | Source AFP | dimanche 25 mai 2015

Nun wollen auch Deutsche die Homo-Ehe

Die Grünen wollen die gleichgeschlechtliche Ehe auch in
Deutschland. Zwei irische Männer küssen sich nach dem
positiven Abstimmungsergebnis (23. Mai 2015)

TAGES ANZEIGER: Die Grünen wollen dem Beispiel Irlands folgen – und fordern Merkels CDU zum Handeln auf.

Nach dem klaren Ja der Iren zur Homo-Ehe haben die Grünen die schnelle Zulassung gleichgeschlecht-licher Ehen auch in Deutschland gefordert. Die CDU werde die Debatte um die Ehe für alle «nicht einfach aussitzen können», sagte die Fraktionsvorsitzende der Grünen im Bundestag, Katrin Göring-Eckardt, der «Welt». «Es wird Zeit, Frau Merkel», appellierte sie an die Bundeskanzlerin.

Deutschland sei mit dem Lebenspartnerschaftsgesetz von 2001 einst Vorreiter der Gleichstellung, erinnerte Göring-Eckardt. Das Votum der Iren sei «ein grossartiges Signal. Gleiche Liebe verdient gleichen Respekt». Sie sei zuversichtlich, dass das Votum in Irland die Gleichstellung in Deutschland beschleunige, sagte sie. » | Sonntag, 24. Mai 2015

US-Geheimdienst: In Europa tobt ein Krieg zwischen Islam und Christentum

DEUTSCH TÜRKISCHE NACHRICHTEN: Europa befindet sich im Krieg mit dem Islam und diese Auseinandersetzung wird auf dem europäischen Kontinent ausgetragen, so der Chef des US-amerikanischen Privatgeheimdiensts Stratfor, George Friedman. Der Krieg werde sich verschärfen und es werde zu „Deportationen“ kommen. Das Attentat auf Charlie Hebdo sei ein Hinweis auf diesen uralten Konflikt, meint Friedman.

Der Chef des US-amerikanischen Privatgeheimdiensts Stratfor, George Friedman, ist der Ansicht, dass in Europa ein Krieg zwischen dem Islam und dem Christentum tobt. Das schreibt er zumindest in einem Artikel. Der Anschlag auf das Satire-Magazin Charlie Hebdo und Anschläge auf Muslime in Europa seien zwei Seiten derselben Medaille. Über Jahrhunderte habe es diesen Konflikt gegeben und dieser sei nicht zu leugnen. Es finde ein Krieg „zwischen zwei Welten statt“. Dafür gebe es viele Anzeichen.

Friedman führt an, dass die Europäer die Muslime niemals als gleichwertige Bürger akzeptieren werden, weil diese Wahrnehmung historisch gewachsen sei. Das sei ein gut verstecktes Geheimnis der Europäer, der mittlerweile offen artikuliert wird. Europa befinde sich in einer Situation des Selbstbetrugs. Die Muslime hingegen befänden sich in einer Zwickmühle. Das Attentat auf Charlie Hebdo wurde im Namen des Islams durchgeführt. „Nicht alle Muslime – noch nicht einmal die meisten Muslime – sind dafür verantwortlich“, so Friedman. Muslime wüssten, dass die Dschihadisten Terroristen sind, doch ein 25-jähriger Bürger oder ein Polizeibeamter könne dieser Unterscheidung nicht treffen. Für sie seien Muslime alle gleich. » | Deutsch Türkische Nachrichten | Montag, 11. Mai 2015

Dans Palmyre contrôlée par l’EI, « l’épuration a commencé »

LE MONDE: Ce n’est pas aux ruines de Palmyre, mais à ses habitants que l’organisation Etat islamique (EI), le nouveau maître de la ville, a entrepris de s’attaquer en premier. Les djihadistes, qui se sont emparés des lieux mercredi 20 mai, ont épargné pour l’instant les vestiges gréco-romains, qui font de cette oasis du centre de la Syrie l’un des sites archéologiques les plus grandioses du Proche-Orient. En revanche, les soldats du « califat » n’ont pas tardé à se lancer dans une purge de grande ampleur, destinée à cimenter leur emprise sur le terrain. » | Par Benjamin Barthe (Beyrouth correspondant) | lundi 25 mai 2015

Iran Blames US for Ramadi's Fall to Isil

THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: The Islamic republic accuses America of having 'no will to fight' militants

Iran has accused the US of having "no will" to stop the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (Isil), underscoring tensions in the alliance of international powers that has mobilised against the group in Iraq.

General Qassem Soleimani, the head of an elite unit in Iran’s Revolutionary Guard, said the US did not do “a damn thing” to stop Isil seizing the Iraqi city of Ramadi earlier this month.

Published in an Iranian newspaper on Monday, his comments came just a day after US Defence Secretary Ash Carter accused Iraqi forces of lacking the "will to fight", saying they had withdrawn from Ramadi even though they "vastly outnumbered" Isil. » | Louisa Loveluck, Cairo | Monday, May 25, 2015

Is the UK Still a Christian Country?

The number of people calling themselves Christian
is declining in the UK

BBC AMERICA: Are we losing our religion? The answer for the UK seems to be "Yes", while the answer for the developing world is a resounding "No".

That was the conclusion of a recent analysis by the Pew Research Center in the US.

It suggests that in the UK, if current trends continue, the proportion of the population identifying themselves as Christians will fall from 64% in 2010 to 45% by 2050, while the proportion of Muslims will rise from 5% to 11%.

The proportion of the population claiming no religion in the UK - the "unaffiliated" - will also rise significantly, from 28% to 39%.

Pew's research also suggests there are likely to be more Muslims than Christians in the world by 2070, with Islam's share of global population equalling that of Christianity at just above 30% each by 2050.

Equally eye-catching is its conclusion that by 2050, under half of the population will be Christian not just in the UK, but also France, the Netherlands, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Australia and New Zealand, while Muslims will make up about 10% of Europe's population, up from 6% now, thanks to higher birth rates.

However, Christianity globally will continue to grow, with the number of Christians projected to rise significantly in sub-Saharan Africa in particular.

According to demographer Conrad Hackett at Pew, in 1910 some 66% of the world's Christians lived in Europe. Now that has fallen to about 25%. » | Caroline Wyatt, Religious affairs correspondent | Monday, May 25, 2015

DANIEL PIPES: ISIS Attacks on the West

The May 3 assault on a Muhammad cartoon contest in Garland, Texas, prompted much discussion about the assailants' connections to the Islamic State, also known as ISIS, ISIL and Daesh. Did ISIS run them as agents? Are they part of a new network of terror in the West? Clearly, the Garland jihadis had some connections to…

Muslims Who Stop Shopping at Marks & Spencer Could Be Radicals, Warns Top Cop

THE SUNDAY TELEGRAPH: Britain’s most senior Muslim policeman says teenagers who stop drinking and wearing western clothes may also be becoming extremists in stark warning

Muslims who suddenly stop shopping at Marks & Spencer could be victims of radicalisation, Britain’s most senior Muslim policeman has warned.

Scotland Yard commander Mak Chishty said that teenagers who unexpectedly stop drinking, socialising with friends or wearing western clothes could also be becoming extremists.

Mr Chishty said the danger of radicalisation in Britain today is so steep that he fears even his own children could be influenced by propaganda from terror groups.

He said extremist messages posted via social media were becoming so effective that some British children as young as five believe celebrating Christmas is forbidden by Islam.

The stark warning came as the Mr Chishty used a Guardian interview to justify more intrusion into Muslims’s “private space” to counter extremism.

It comes with hundreds of Britain’s having fled to the Middle East to join Isis, also known as Islamic State, amid fears they could return to commit terrorist atrocities in the UK. » | Ben Riley-Smith, Political Correspondent | Sunday, May 24, 2015

'Burqa Not Conducive to Western Liberal Society': We Should Follow Ban Says Ukip

SUNDAY EXPRESS: THE wearing of the full face veil in public should be banned in Britain, said Ukip's acting leader Paul Nuttall last night.

His comments followed an announcement of a new law by the Government in the Netherlands, approved by the cabinet sitting in The Hague, which will ban the wearing of all face coverings including ski-masks and helmets in certain public places.

Mr Nuttall, the party's deputy leader, was recently placed in temporary charge of UKIP while Nigel Farage takes a break.

Last night he described the Dutch proposal as eminently sensible, noting that it echoed a decision by both France and Belgium to issue similar rulings.

Speaking to the Sunday Express, he said: Belgium and France and now the Netherlands have argued that the burqa is not conducive to western liberal society, and that people's faces need to be exposed so they can communicate and integrate.

This all sounds pretty sensible stuff to me. Leading French feminist groups supported the French and Belgian ban, with the International League for Women's Rights saying: The full-face veil, by literally burying the body and the face, constitutes a true deletion of the woman as an individual in public.

Mr Nuttall added: Should we follow this and ban the burqa in this country? Yes. Personally, I think this is about civility, not religion. » | Marco Giannangeli – Exclusive | Sunday, May 24, 2015