Rick Santorum was in New Hampshire yesterday, reports Politico, tacking deliberately to the right. “Jihadism is evil,” he told a Republican crowd. “We need to define it and say what it is. And it is evil. Sharia law is incompatible with American jurisprudence and our Constitution.” Further, most Muslims in…
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Four dead and hundreds wounded in Sana’a and Aden as William Hague expresses concern over ongoing violence Yemeni security forces have killed four people and wounded hundreds more in the second day of a harsh crackdown on anti-government protests, witnesses said. One of the dead was a 15-year-old student. The assault with gunfire and tear gas was the toughest yet by the government in a month of protests aimed at unseating the president, Ali Abdullah Saleh, who has been in power for 32 years. An ally in the Obama administration’s fight against al-Qaida, Saleh had appeared to be one of the Arab leaders most threatened by the regional unrest inspired by revolts in Egypt and Tunisia. The violence began with a pre-dawn raid on a central square in the capital, Sana’a, where thousands of pro-democracy protesters have been camped out. Eyewitnesses said security troops surrounded the square with police cars and armoured personnel carriers shortly after midnight and began calling on protesters through loudspeakers to go home. At 5am, security forces attacked, firing bullets and tear gas. One protester died from a bullet to the head, which may have come from a sniper on the rooftop of a nearby building, witnesses said. “We were performing dawn prayers when we were surprised by a sudden hail of bullets and tear gas,” said Walid Hassan, a 25-year-old activist. “The protesters began throwing rocks at security … it was total mayhem, a real battlefield.” A few hours later, another protester was shot dead in a nearby street. In the city of Dar Saad in the southern province of Aden, police used live fire and tear gas to disperse a crowd of several thousand, killing one demonstrator. . Saturday’s raid on the Sana’a square came after Yemen’s largest demonstrations in a month the day before were met by police gunfire that injured at least six protesters. Foreign secretary William Hague described the violence used against protesters in Yemen as unacceptable. In a statement from the Foreign Office, he said “I was shocked by the unacceptable violence seen in Sana’a today. The United Kingdom remains seriously concerned over repeated clashes with protesters and reports of intimidation of journalists in recent days. This is in direct contradiction to the President’s recent announcement on constitutional reform and fresh elections, which we have welcomed. We urge the Yemeni authorities to demonstrate their commitment to an orderly and peaceful transition by respecting the right of peaceful protest and free speech.” The Foreign Office is now advising British nationals to leave Yemen as soon as they can in light of the intensity of the violence. Yemen Middle East Arab and Middle East protests Protest Alan Evans guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …French police have recovered a cache of stolen Harry Winston gems hidden in a rain sewer. The loot, spoils from a brazen 2008 heist, was found in a plastic container set in a cement mold, inside a drain at a house in Seine-Saint-Denis, according to police statements. Nineteen rings—including one valued at $8.3 million—and 3 sets of earrings were found, part of a $111 million lift taken from a Harry Winston boutique two years ago. As many as four armed thieves, some dressed as women in wigs, stormed the luxury jewelry store in December 2008. Police reports say the robbery was carried out near the Champs-Elysee in broad daylight and lasted a mere 15 minutes. Authorities previously recovered some of the stolen valuables when 25 people were detained and questioned in June 2009. Nine people were charged, including the alleged mastermind, who had already been sentenced to 15 years in prison in an unrelated drug trafficking case. Source : Forbes
Continue reading …When you see a completely mismatched couple, you probably think, “What does she see in him?” But chances are, she sees something in him—and new research suggests that very fact might make for a very happy couple indeed. “Seeing a less-than-ideal partner as a reflection of one’s ideals” appears…
Continue reading …After days of dogged shelling, forces loyal to Moammar Gadhafi today drove rebels from the key oil port of Ras Lanouf, a day after they recaptured Zawiya and effectively reclaimed control of the eastern third of the country. Reports out of scarred Zawiya said rebel bodies were being bulldozed away,…
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Alan Gross has been found guilty of crimes against the state and sentenced to 15 years in prison A Cuban court has found U.S. contractor Alan Gross guilty of crimes against the state and sentenced him to 15 years in prison, a verdict that is sure to have sweeping repercussions for already-sour relations between Washington and Havana. The court said prosecutors had proved their case that Gross, 61, was working on a “subversive” program paid for by the United States that aimed to bring down Cuba’s revolutionary system. Prosecutors had sought a 20-year sentence. The U.S. government and Gross’s family say he was working to improve internet access for the island’s Jewish community, and should be released. Cuban officials have called him a mercenary and maintained his motives were more nefarious. The court said the program that Gross worked on – part of a $20 million Washington effort to support democracy on the island – showed that the U.S. government continues to seek the government’s overthrow. Gross’s backers will try to get him released through a court action or executive pardon, possibly on humanitarian grounds. His wife Judy says Gross has lost more than 90 pounds since his arrest, and that his 26-year-old daughter and 88-year-old mother are both suffering from cancer. There was no immediate reaction to the verdict from Washington, or Gross’s family. Cuba United States guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …An explosion at a nuclear power station today destroyed a building housing the reactor amid fears that it was close to a disastrous meltdown after being hit by a powerful earthquake and tsunami. Footage on Japanese TV showed that the walls of the reactor’s building had crumbled, leaving only a…
Continue reading …Photos of Eva Braun that have not been previously seen are now displayed on LIFE.com. Braun is the long-term girlfriend and wife for one day of Adolf Hitler. The United States Army confiscated the photos in 1945 but was only revealed recently by Reinhard Schulz, collector and curator. The newly-released photos of Braun showed her flirty and provocative streak especially in front of the camera. The photos were found contained in Braun’s private albums in her home. The death of Hitler’s niece and rumoured lover Geli Raubal in 1931 made Brain the centre of the life of the German dictator. Braun, who became a model at the age of 17, became a favourite but vain companion to the Nazi leader. She used to work at Reich official photographer Heinrich Hoffman’s studio in Munich. She claims to have met a man with “a funny moustache” called “Herr Wolff” through her modelling job. It turned out that she was referring to Adolf Hitler. And as Hitler was getting high up in the Nazi Party ranks, they also became closer as a couple. While hundreds of thousands of people died in the Battle of Berlin as the German and Russian troops sought to get control of Berlin in 1945, it was the death of 55-year old Hitler and 33-year old Braun in April 30, 1945 that ended the Third Reich and in effect the war. The photos, starting with photos of her as a chubby infant, provided an insight into Braun’s life. It also chronicled her life as a teenager and her life with Hitler from the 1930s to the 1940s before they both committed suicide. It also gave a glimpse of Braun’s habits which were loathed by Hitler such as smoking, swimming in the nude and wearing makeup. Source : UK News Online
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Elisabeth Rohm breaks her silence about her IVF treatment and the difference it has made to her life. Ecstatic as ever about her motherhood, the actress gushed, “I never thought I’d come out and talk about my experience with in vitro fertilization (IVF). It’s not that I’m shy or hugely private; it mainly comes from the subject being socially taboo and very personal. As a woman who has had to receive assistance to be able to carry a child and deliver a healthy baby girl, I am grateful that I had the right to make a choice for my family and regarding my own body.” She confesses that it is not easy for women to come out in the open and speak about their struggles of pregnancy, yet she wants her story to be an inspiration to the many who crave for motherhood but are having a difficult time with conception. Elisabeth is happy when she sees her daughter growing up, and owes it all to the support of doctors, family and friends. Elisabeth Rohm Photo’s / Picture’s Gallery Source : Medindia
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Rebels flee Ras Lanuf and call on UN to impose no-fly zone as Gaddafi’s forces recapture strategically important towns Muammar Gaddafi’s army won control of a strategic rebel-held Libyan town and laid siege to another as the revolutionary administration in Benghazi again appealed for foreign military help to prevent what it said would be the deaths of hundreds of thousands of people if the insurgents were to lose. The rebels admitted they had retreated from the oil town of Ras Lanuf – captured a week ago – after two days of intense fighting and that the nearby town of Brega was now threatened. The revolutionary army, in large part made up of inexperienced young volunteers, has been forced back by a sustained artillery, tank and air bombardment about 20 miles along the road to the rebel capital of Benghazi. The head of Libya’s revolutionary council, Mustafa Abdel Jalil, claimed that if Gaddafi’s forces were to reach the country’s second-largest city it would result in “the death of half a million” people. The Arab League, meeting in Cairo, called on the UN security council to impose a no fly-zone on Libya as Gaddafi’s forces also began to move against Misrata, a city of 300,000 people about 125 miles from Tripoli. Misrata is the only town in the west of the country still under the control of the insurgents after their defeat in a vicious battle for Zawiya. The rebels said that Misrata was now surrounded by Gaddafi’s forces, which included tanks. “We are bracing for a massacre,” Mohamad Ahmed, a rebel fighter in the city, said. “We know it will happen and Misrata will be like Zawiya, but we believe in God. We do not have the capabilities to fight Gaddafi and his forces. They have tanks and heavy weapons and we have our belief and trust in God. “The fighters here and the people of Misrata hold the international community responsible for the fall of Zawiya and for all the deaths that happened. Gaddafi is responsible, but they are partners in crime.” Jalil again appealed for the imposition of a no-fly zone to stop the air attacks on rebel forces. “If there is no no-fly zone imposed on Gaddafi’s regime, and if his ships are not checked, then we will have a catastrophe in Libya,” he said. The rebel Libyan leadership is frustrated that the European Union failed to agree to a no-fly zone at a meeting on Friday and US President Barack Obama has so far proved reluctant to apply anything more than sanctions and diplomatic pressure on Gaddafi. “Of course we’re disappointed, because every day that passes civilian people are either killed or injured and Gaddafi is bombing them with all kinds of weaponry,” Jalil said. He also claimed, however, that the rebel army was able to call on far larger numbers of volunteers than those already fighting. He also ruled out negotiations with Gaddafi. The revolutionary council has appealed for European countries to launch air strikes to reverse Gaddafi’s military gains. It also called for an international investigation of what it says are two vessels carrying weapons from an “eastern Arab country with Soviet-era weapons” to Tripoli. That country is believed to be Syria. The Arab League’s call for a no-fly zone gives the regional seal of approval Nato has said is needed before any military action. Egyptian state television also said that the Arab League had decided to open channels of communication with the Libyan rebel council based in Benghazi. The League said the council represented the Libyan people, the channel reported. League officials said they had already been in touch with the rebels about the situation on the ground in Libya. Arab states must intervene in Libya or risk unwanted foreign intervention, Oman’s foreign minister told the meeting. “What is needed now is Arab intervention using mechanisms of the Arab League and at the same time in accordance with international law,” Omani foreign minister Youssef bin Alawi bin Abdullah said in his opening remarks to an Arab League meeting. “We must look at various options that circumstances in Libya need,” he said, giving brief opening remarks during a televised opening session over which he presided. “What is happening now to the Libyan people poses a threat to the security and stability of Arab states. “If the Arab League does not take responsibility to prevent a downward spiral, that could lead to internal fighting or unwanted foreign intervention,” he added. Libya Muammar Gaddafi Middle East Arab and Middle East protests Chris McGreal guardian.co.uk
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