Shadi Fadda brings us today's headlines relating to Palestine and other news from around the internet.
Land Theft and Destruction
Jerusalem mayor to raze 200 Palestinian homes
Jerusalem's mayor threatened last week to demolish 200 homes in Palestinian neighborhoods of the city in an act even he conceded would probably bring long-simmering tensions over housing in East Jerusalem to a boil. His uncompromising stance is the latest stage in a protracted legal battle over a single building towering above the jumble of modest homes of Silwan. Jonathan Cook reports from Jerusalem.
http://electronicintifada.net/
Effort To Retroactively Approve Illegal Jerusalem Settlement Backed By Interior Minister
A seven-story building constructed by right-wing Israeli settlers on Palestinian land, in East Jerusalem in 2004, is moving toward receiving 'retroactive approval,' with the unexpected support of Israel's Interior Minister, Eli Yishai. This support adds an air of legitimacy to the settler's illegal maneuver.
http://www.imemc.org/index.
Netanyahu's government tries to save settler house (AP)
AP - The Israeli government has stepped in to save a house built illegally by Jewish settlers in a volatile Palestinian neighborhood in east Jerusalem, complicating already troubled U.S. efforts to renew Mideast peacemaking.
http://us.rd.yahoo.com/
Activism/Solidarity/Boycott, Sanctions and Divestment
Activist for detainees detained herself
Saed Bannoura and Ghassan Bannoura - IMEMC - The 45-year old Montaha Taweel - an activist who works to defend the rights of the Palestinian detainees, and is the wife of the mayor of al-Bireh - was among 16 Palestinians caught in last night`s army sweep of the Palestinian West Bank communities. In the past week there were 19 invasions, in which 51 civilians are known to have been taken off to detention.
http://www.kibush.co.il/show_
Report to UN on suppression of Palestinian human rights activism
Addameer - (...) those who are charged with offenses in the Israeli military courts face almost certain conviction and imprisonment by a military justice system that is heavily biased against them; those who are not charged are nonetheless often levied with administrative detention.
http://www.kibush.co.il/show_
Shots fired as activists test Gaza 'exclusion zone'
Gaza – Ma'an – A few dozen Palestinian and international protesters approached Gaza's northern-most area on Sunday, drawing fire from Israeli forces operating an "exclusion zone" inside the coastal enclave's borders. Israeli armed forces fired four gunshots when the group approached an area near the Erez crossing, said Saber Az-Za'anin, coordinator of Local Initiative, a Beit Hanoun-based organization seeking to reclaim some 300 meters of privately owned farmland.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/
International activists to accompany Gazan farmers
On Tuesday the 9th February 2010, ISM Gaza volunteers will be accompanying farmers from the village of Khuza’a near Khan Younis to their land near the border with Israel where soldiers fired at the farmers recently on several occasions.
http://palsolidarity.org/2010/
Americans for Peace Now, Arab American Institute, B'Tselem, Churches for Middle East Peace, Foundation for Middle East Peace, J Street, Rabbis for Human Rights, "Mr. President, Help Lift Gaza Closure Now!"
We are aware that Israel links its closure to a cease-fire and release of Gilad Shalit, which Egypt has been pursuing with Hamas. Nevertheless, we urge that, while supporting these efforts, the U.S. should oppose holding Gazans' right to food, shelter, healthcare, education, and travel hostage to these issues. The crisis in Gaza will become even more dire if Egypt completes its plan to shut down the tunnels under its border with Gaza, which are now a life-line for Gazans.
http://mrzine.monthlyreview.
Twelve arrested in U.S. for disrupting Israel ambassador
Police intervene after hecklers scream "killers" during speech by Michael Oren at California university. California reportedly police made 12 arrests on Monday after a speech by Israel's U.S. Ambassador Michael Oren descended into chaos. Hecklers interrupted Oren's lecture at Irving University in Los Angeles over 10 times, shouting "killers" and "how many Palestinians did you kill?" Oren took a 20 minute break after the fourth protest, only to be interrupted again by young men yelling at him every few minutes, local press reported.
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/
Egypt soccer boss: I'd rather starve than coach Israelis
Veteran trainer Hassan Shehata ends speculation over cross-border move in bluntest possible terms.
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/
United solidarity with Gaza
Once the Gaza Freedom March arrived in Cairo I repeatedly heard justification that organizers did not want to put Egyptian protesters at risk. Yet, Egyptians regularly protest in Egypt despite the risks. For a group of outsiders to justify the exclusion of our involvement without asking our opinion -- in spite of the good intentions of "protecting" us -- felt paternalistic and demeaning. Philip Rizk comments for The Electronic Intifada.
http://electronicintifada.net/
British academics urge Elton John to cancel Israel concert
A group of British academics have called on singer Elton John to cancel his scheduled performance in Israel this June.
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/
Khudari hails Turkish support for Gaza steadfastness
MP Jamal Al-Khudari on Monday described the Turkish government, institutions and people as an honorable model of unlimited support for the Palestinian people.
http://www.palestine-info.co.
Violence and Aggression
Clashes Continue At Jerusalem Refugee Camp Following Monday's Attacks
Tensions continued, on Tuesday, at the Shu’fat refugee camp, East Jerusalem, following yesterday’s clashes and arrests, Ma’an News Agency reported.
http://www.imemc.org/index.php?obj_id=53&story_id=57909
The Israeli Military Open Fire at Farm Lands Near Gaza City
Israeli tanks stationed at the central boarders with the Gaza Strip opened fire at farm lands on Tuesday, at midday.
http://www.imemc.org/index.Tensions continued, on Tuesday, at the Shu’fat refugee camp, East Jerusalem, following yesterday’s clashes and arrests, Ma’an News Agency reported.
http://www.imemc.org/index.
The Israeli Military Open Fire at Farm Lands Near Gaza City
Israeli tanks stationed at the central boarders with the Gaza Strip opened fire at farm lands on Tuesday, at midday.
IOF troops storm house of Hamas leader in W. Bank
The IOF stormed the house of Palestinian citizen Ismail Abu Tamie, one of the political leaders of Hamas in Jenin city, north of the West Bank, on Monday, local sources revealed.
http://www.palestine-info.co.
Retaliation
Israel army: Pipe bomb tossed at military vehicle
Bethlehem – Ma'an – A Palestinian tossed a pipe bomb at Israeli forces operating in the central West Bank late Monday, the army said. There were no reports of injury. An Israeli military spokesman said forces were operating in the area to track down the attacker. Amid the search, dozens of soldiers along with several military vehicles shut down two key routes from Bethlehem to areas near Hebron.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/
Detainees
The Israeli Military Detained 16 Palestinian Civilians From The West Bank
The Israeli military detained 16 Palestinian civilians during invasions targeting West Bank communities, late Monday night and Tuesday at dawn. The Israeli army radio announced that all those detained today were on its “wanted list.” The radio added that all detainees were moved to military camps for questioning.
http://www.imemc.org/index.
Human rights group: IOA escalating detention of Palestinian women
A Palestinian human rights group has charged the IOA with escalating the targeting of Palestinian women in a bid to spread fear among the Palestinian people and to humiliate them.
http://www.palestine-info.co.
Israeli police disperse prisoner's homecoming rally in Jerusalem
Jerusalem – Ma'an – Israeli police used violent force to disrupt a celebratory rally marking the release of Ahmad Mahmoud Abu Al-Hawa from Israeli prison after serving 10 years in various facilities.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/
Human Rights/Humanitarian Issues/Siege
UN says needs $100 in 2010 for Palestinian refugees (AFP)
AFP - The cash-strapped UN agency for Palestinian refugees said on Tuesday it needs at least 100 million dollars this year to continue its services for millions of refugees in the Middle East.
http://us.rd.yahoo.com/
No Treatment in Gaza, No Security Risk, but Israel Prevents a Seriously ill Man from Getting Treatment
Gisha press release - The State refuses to allow Issam Hamdan out of Gaza based on its claim that he may settle in the West Bank after treatment [Sic!] -- Gisha and Physicians for Human Rights-Israel appealed to the Supreme Court.
http://www.gisha.org/index.
Gaza: Cases of abandoned children on the rise
Don't be surprised if one day you find a crying infant thrown in front of a children's hospital, left by a sidewalk, or a trash can in the streets of Gaza. It is an "infant of unknown parentage." Salim is a young man who works at a dumpsite called Juhr Al Deek in eastern Gaza. He described to Palestine Note how one day he found a piece of cloth in one of the trash bags. When he opened it, he found a "beautiful, angel-like infant." "When I saw the baby, I was shocked and said, 'Praise Be to God,' who wanted for this baby to live. I took him to the police who took him to the hospital," said Salim.
http://palestinenote.com/cs/
Gaza's recycled rubble
Palestinians are finding new ways to rebuild houses destroyed during the war on Gaza a year ago.That's because an Israeli blockade is preventing construction materials from getting into the Strip.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?
Israeli Injustice
Settler teens suspected in West Bank mosque arson freed from custody
The Jerusalem Magistrate's Court on Thursday released from custody three teenaged settlers who were arrested for allegedly torching a West Bank mosque. A disagreement in the State Attorney's Office in the central district has delayed indictments against those suspected in the arson in the Yasuf village last month, Haaretz has learned.
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/
War Criminals and their Enablers
Israel supreme court chief backs inquiry into Gaza war (AFP)
AFP - Israel's supreme court president, Dorit Beinish, on Monday came out in favour of a commission of inquiry into the Gaza war as called for by the United Nations in its Goldstone report.
http://us.rd.yahoo.com/
UK assures Ayalon he won't be arrested
Deputy foreign minister addresses International Institute for Strategic Studies in London on Mideast issues. He attempts to ease tensions with Syria, says Israel will maintain good relations with Turkey, but 'will react to dangerous rhetoric emanating from our neighbors'.
http://www.ynetnews.com/
The Victims
A mother's grief
Nejoud al-Ashqar is a 30-year-old mother from the northern Gaza Strip town of Beit Lahiya. Two of her sons, Bilal, 5, and Mohammad, 6, were killed during Israel's invasion of Gaza last winter. Al-Ashqar also lost her right arm in the assault. EI contributor Rami Almeghari writes from Gaza about the hardships endured by the al-Ashqar family since the Israeli invasion.
http://electronicintifada.net/
Number of cancer patients in Gaza on the rise
The Palestinian health ministry in the Gaza Strip has announced that the number of cancer patients in the beleaguered Strip had increased to 1899 including 770 women and 220 children.
http://www.palestine-info.co.
Arab Collaborators
Haniyeh: Egypt wall won't break our will
Gaza – Ma'an – De facto Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh said on Monday that the blockade and walls surrounding Gaza would not force Palestinians to submit to external control. He was speaking at a reception honoring the Interior Ministry in Gaza City. "Gaza is surrounded on three sides; north, east, and south; to make it raise a white flag," Haniyeh said, insisting that Egypt's underground wall would not have the desired effect.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/
Palestinian force makes gains in West Bank (AP)
AP - The security men brandished their weapons and ordered the suspicious car to halt, forcing the occupants to get out and put their hands in their air. The suspects were quickly handcuffed, frisked and made to kneel on the ground as the vehicle was swept for explosives.
http://us.rd.yahoo.com/
Collaborators Judging Collaborators: Palestinian military court delivers 7 year sentence to collaborator
Hebron – Ma'an – The southern West Bank Military court in the southern convicted a youth of collaborating with Israel last week, but overruled the death penalty in favor of a seven-year sentence because the accused was a minor, court officials said.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/
Will he, won't he, join the dance?
Under the guidance of an American general, Keith Dayton, hundreds of PA security forces have fanned out across Palestinian towns, co-ordinating with Israeli forces to swat Palestinian dissent. Though human-rights groups say the torture of dissidents has dipped, the number of arrests is sharply up.
http://www.economist.com/
Political Developments/Diplomacy
Bardawil: Hamas may allow Fatah to reopen Gaza HQ
Gaza – Ma’an – Hamas leader Salah Al-Bardawil said on Monday that Hamas is "studying the possibility" of allowing Fatah members to move freely, and may reopen the party's headquarters in Gaza. Al-Bardawil told Ma'an that the Islamic movement is "hoping that the security services in the West Bank will take the necessary measures to stop violations against Hamas leaders and supports, particularly in regard to political arrests and the closure of institutions."
http://www.maannews.net/eng/
Palestinians to hold local elections in July (AFP)
AFP - The Western-backed Palestinian Authority said on Monday it would hold local elections in the Israeli-occupied West Bank and the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip on July 17.
http://us.rd.yahoo.com/
Hamas rejects Palestinian Authority call for July elections
The West Bank-based Palestinian government on Monday called local elections for July, in a move the Hamas Islamist group said was illegitimate.
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/
Hamas sees `no prospects' for Mideast peace (AP)
AP - The leader of Hamas said Monday he sees "no prospects' for a Mideast peace settlement, a stand that could reduce Russia's chances of holding a Middle East peace conference that includes the Palestinian militant group.
http://us.rd.yahoo.com/
Hamas leader says U.S. blocking Palestinian unity
* Shunned by West, Meshaal gets a hearing in Moscow
* Blames outside forces for stalled unity efforts
* Sees no chance of peace under Israel's leadership
http://www.alertnet.org/
Palestinians seeks U.S. clarification on proposal to renew Mideast talks
Palestinian leaders have not set specific terms on which they would accept a U.S. offer to mediate indirect peace talks with Israel, and expect clarification on such talks in a week, President Mahmoud Abbas.
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/
Other News
Gaza journalists win PJS elections
Jerusalem – Ma'an – The results of the controversial Palestinian Journalists Syndicate elections were announced late Sunday evening, revealing that journalists in Gaza received the highest number of votes.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/
How Much Military Aid to Israel......Do You Provide?
Between 2009-2018, the United States is scheduled to give Israel--the largest recipient of U.S. aid--$30 billion in military aid. Through its illegal 42-year military occupation of the Palestinian West Bank, East Jerusalem, and Gaza Strip, Israel misuses U.S. weapons in violation of U.S. law to kill and injure Palestinian civilians, destroy Palestinian civilian infrastructure, blockade the Gaza Strip, and build illegal settlements in West Bank and East Jerusalem. How much of this total will your community provide? Is this a good use of your tax dollars? What else could your taxes be used for in your community? Find out on the interactive map below.
http://www.aidtoisrael.org/
Fabulous Nablus
Look through the Rough Guide to Israel & the Palestinian Territories and you will find barely 20 pages devoted to Palestine. From that the city of Nablus receives just a few skinny paragraphs and a map, reinforcing the popular perception that the 7000 year old city stands for little more than the violence and occupation that has scarred it.
http://www.palestinemonitor.
Bronner Watch
L'affaire Ethan Bronner, As`ad Abukhalil
By the way, this is an exchange between Bronner and me before the Israeli war on Gaza. Now, I have received another tip on Bronner (from another source). And I should say this: I will never reveal my sources who provide me tips (although I am not a journalist), although I only post items from reliable persons whose credibility and reliability can be ascertained. Many are people in mainstream life in the US (or in the Middle East): government officials, journalists, and academics. Some of them supply me with tips and information but ask me to not use it on the blog. I have not revealed identities of people who wrote to me in criticism without obtaining their permission. Yesterday, a very well-known (mainstream) Western reporter in the Middle East (who shall remain unnamed although he/she is known by all of you) sent me this (I cite, of course, with his/her permission): "Comrade as'ad: here is some background on our pal Ethan bronner. After the gaza massacre last year your beloved taghreed al khuddari told me that when bronner finally was allowed into gaza by the israelis he was utterly indifferent to accounts of the hardships endured by the people of gaza during the war. She told me he would turn his back and walk away when people tried to tell what had happened. His only real interest, she said, was how hamas had used them as "human shields". Only then, she said, would he pay attention. I know you have a low opinion of taghreed (which I don't completely share) but she had real problems with bronner. Bronner's predecessor, Steve Erlanger, was a decent chap who didn't feel comfortable with what he was covering. Bronner, on the other hand, always seemed to have no qualms. Now if you are going to use the above please be vague identifying the source." [end]
http://angryarab.blogspot.com/
Defending Bronner’s conflict, the Times has proved too much
The arguments by Keller, Goldberg, Avishai, etc. in defense of retaining Ethan Bronner at his post in spite of the conspicuous conflict of interest, show how hard it is for us to judge Israel by the standard we apply to other countries.The sympathy/kinship/affinity runs too deep. Imagine a Times reporter on the Zapatista rebellion of the 1990s whose son enlisted in the Mexican army that fought to crush the rebellion. Would Keller write a personal defense of the decision to keep that reporter as his leading source of information on Mexico?
http://mondoweiss.net/2010/02/
Analysis/Op-ed/Human Interest
Abunimah: Jews can report on Palestinians, but the other way ’round?, Ali Abunimah
I have been of course following all the absurd defenses and excuse-making from Jeffrey Goldberg, Ron Kampeas, Andrew Sullivan, Joe Klein, etc for Ethan Bronner and the New York Times, as well as your recent comments. They insist that there is no bias in Bronner’s reporting and that his son’s service in the occupation army presents no conflict of interest. Here are the issues they seem to avoid...
http://mondoweiss.net/2010/02/
Goldberg is neo-segregationist, Phillip Weiss
Goldberg seems to want Palestinians covering Palestine, Jews covering Israel. Once again, Zionism drags the Jewish discourse backwards, demanding that the smartest writers rationalize Jim Crow. The whole point of the Bronner case is that Bronner’s coverage is blindered. We need diversity. It’s time to have people from other societies engage with Israel and Palestine. It’s the only way.
http://mondoweiss.net/2010/02/
Raid Khoury – Christian Arabs remain the best situated to combat the demonization of Islam
"Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves…" Matthew 7:15.
According to Christian tradition the above quote is attributed to Jesus of Nazareth by Matthew as part of the famous Sermon on the Mount, a compilation of Jesus' sayings epitomizing his moral teachingindus. Speaking in the setting of his time, Jesus was understood to be discussing false prophets, but a more general and timeless understanding of this warning is vigilance against deception and false messages of all types.
http://palestinethinktank.com/
The Middle East No Longer Matters
As the Obama administration gears up for additional commitments to Afghanistan and elsewhere in the Middle East, it is good to remind ourselves that in spite of the overheated rhetoric of the past few years, the region is of very little, if any, strategic value to the United States. Although we have sacrificed our national honor, our fortune, and the lives of our military personnel to bring security and stability from Lebanon to Pakistan, the fact remains that our presence is as ill-conceived as it is unnecessary: ill-conceived because the interjection of American power feeds the anger of those who would harm us, and unnecessary because there is nothing there we need. While it may be the case that portions of the Middle East are of significant humanitarian interest, such is not synonymous with our strategic national interests except in the very broadest terms that humanitarian help implies.
http://original.antiwar.com/
Iraq
Monday: 9 Iraqis Killed, 6 Wounded
Although attacks were light today, the controversial election ban that could spur sectarian violence on continues to dominate the headlines. Overall, at least nine Iraqis were killed and six more were wounded.
http://original.antiwar.com/
Iraq panel reinstates election ban amid Shi'ite ire
An Iraqi appeals panel that angered Shi'ite leaders by suspending a ban on candidates accused of links to Saddam Hussein's Baath party until after an election reversed its decision on Sunday, politicians said.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/
Reopening the old sectarian wounds
IN THE run-up to a general election due on March 7th, Iraq’s authorities seem to be taking a page out of Iran’s illiberal electoral rule book by barring candidates they dislike. One of the competing parties, the Iraqi National Congress, led by Ahmed Chalabi, a longtime Shia exile who helped persuade George Bush to invade Iraq in 2003, has persuaded the election’s overseers to ban some 500 candidates deemed too close in the past to Saddam Hussein’s Baath party. After the invasion the Americans put Mr Chalabi, then their closest Iraqi ally, in charge of “deBaathification”, but he later fell out with them, so he turned for succour to Iran. Now, with a view to winning more votes for himself, he is using his long-dormant post to accuse his foes of having supported the deposed dictator. Though the list contains many Shias, Iraq’s minority Sunnis, who ruled the roost under Mr Hussein, are outraged, seeing a plot to discriminate against them. The episode could badly tarnish the poll.
http://www.economist.com/
I don't mean to say I told you so, but...
Probably the most controversial claim in my work with John Mearsheimer on the Israel lobby is our argument that it played a key role in the decision to invade Iraq in 2003. Even some readers who were generally sympathetic to our overall position found that claim hard to accept, and some left-wing critics accused us of letting Bush and Cheney off the hook or of ignoring the importance of other interests, especially oil. Of course, Israel's defenders in the lobby took issue even more strenuously, usually by mischaracterizing our arguments and ignoring most (if not all) of the evidence we presented.
http://walt.foreignpolicy.com/
Will there be a coup d’état in Iraq? (5)
Iraqis were shocked twice in recent times. The first, the experience they went through under one party system for 35 years – the era of Saddam Hussein’s Baath party.
http://www.azzaman.com/
Lebanon
Hezbollah Statement: Mossad Agents Involved In Massacre On Ashura & Arbaeen
Hezbollah condemned the cowardice acts of terrorism that claimed hundreds of lives of innocent and peaceful mourners in Karachi Pakistan and in Karbala and Baghdad (Iraq).
http://www.abna.ir/data.asp?
Sheikh Qassem: Israel Knows Hezbollah Fulfills Promises
Hezbollah Deputy Secretary General Sheikh Naim Qassem said on Monday that Hezbollah will vote in favor of the bill to lower the voting age at the Parliament, stressing that the issue would not create a conflict within the opposition, adding that no tension would take place in the case the bill was withdrawn under the request of the Free Patriotic Movement. Speaking to Al-Intiqad website, Sheikh Qassem stressed that the opposition was strong and consistent, stressing that remaining firm was in the interest of the opposition's various constituents. His eminence confirmed that Hezbollah was sparing every possible effort to reduce tension between the opposition members, noting that differences in points of view were normal. "The important is to agree on the majority of issues and causes and to agree on a mechanism to prevent any political conflict," his eminence added.
http://www.almanar.com.lb/
U.S. and Other World News
School bombing exposes Obama’s secret war inside Pakistan
The discovery of the dead US soldiers revealed that America’s shadowy war in Pakistan not only involves drones but also small cadres of special operations soldiers.
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/
Yemen rebels say Saudi strikes killed 2 children
Yemen's Shi'ite rebels said on Monday Saudi rockets had killed two children, while state media reported new clashes between Yemeni forces and northern insurgents.
http://snipurl.com/uayy7
U.S. Senator Lieberman: Impose sanctions on Iran or attack it
Lieberman is the influential chairman of the Senate committee on homeland security. He was speaking a day after Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki said that his country was ready to accept an international swap of uranium, but only under certain conditions.
http://haaretz.com/hasen/
Iran's uranium enrichment push draws fresh sanctions calls
Iran has formally told the United Nation's atomic watchdog it will begin producing higher grade nuclear fuel and it is inviting UN inspectors to monitor the process. In response, the US and France have been leading calls for what would be a fourth round of international sanctions against Iran over its nuclear programme. Tehran says it is frustrated because of what it calls the unwillingness of the US and its allies to consider amendments to a UN backed nuclear fuel proposal. Al Jazeera's Nazanine Moshiri reports from the Iranian capital. (09 Feb 2010)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?
Egypt families protest deserter's torture death
MANSOURA, Egypt, Feb 8 (Reuters) - Around 80 people protested outside a Mansoura hospital on Monday after the authorities released the body of an army deserter, whose family say he was tortured to death in prison. Tamer Mohamed Emara, 20, was eight months into a two year sentence for desertion at Mansoura General Prison when he died.
http://www.alertnet.org/
Rights group: Bahrain has resumed torturing detainees
The Gulf kingdom of Bahrain resumed torturing detainees in 2007 after about a decade of not engaging in the "scourge," US-based Human Rights Watch (HRW) said in a report released Monday.As of late 2007, "torture is back in the repertoire of Bahrain's security services" the international watchdog said in the report.
http://www.dailystar.com.lb/
Expect modest US gains from thaw with Syria: analysts (AFP)
AFP - The Obama team may get modest benefits from ending a five-year chill with Damascus but will find it hard, if not impossible to peel Syria way from hardline ally Iran and break the Arab-Israeli stalemate, analysts said.
http://us.rd.yahoo.com/
Riyadh moves to regulate net news
Internet bloggers fear Saudi's plans to licence online news sites will eventually spread to them too.
http://www.thenational.ae/
Saudi rights commission seeks divorce for child bride
Saudi Arabia's human rights commission has hired a lawyer to help a 12-year-old girl divorce her 80-year-old husband, the lawyer said, a move activists hope will lead to a ban on child marriages.Saudi Arabia, a patriarchal society that applies an austere version of Sunni Islam, has no minimum legal age for marriage.
http://www.dailystar.com.lb/
Turk accused of burying daughter alive faces life
Prosecutors in Turkey are seeking life in jail for the father and grandfather of a girl who was buried alive for befriending boys, local judicial sources said Monday.The pair were arrested after the body of 16-year-old Medine Memi was found in a sitting position with her hands tied, in a hole in a chicken pen outside her house in Kahta town, Adiyaman province, 40 days after she went missing.
http://www.dailystar.com.lb/
Swastikas and racist graffiti smeared on French mosque
Swastikas and racist and anti-Moslem graffiti were discovered Monday on the Great Mosque of the city of Saint-Etienne, French media reported.
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/
Iran cuts ties with British Museum
Iran has cut ties with the British Museum over the loan to the Islamic republic of an ancient Persian treasure. Tehran says officials at the museum failed to meet a final deadline for the transfer of the Cyrus Cylinder and have ruled out further visits by British archaeological teams to Iran. Matthew Moore reports from London. (Feb 07, 2010).
http://www.youtube.com/watch?
www.TheHeadlines.org
0 Have Your Say!:
Post a Comment