WOERDEN, Netherlands - Palestinian doctor Ashraf Alhajouj called on Sunday for an investigation into how he and five Bulgarian nurses were tortured to confess that they deliberately infected hundreds of Libyan children with HIV.
I ask the Libyan people to open such a file to help us clear our name, he told reporters in Woerden, a picturesque town 40 minutes from Amsterdam, where his parents and four sisters live after leaving Libya in 2005. It is not the end now that we are free. We must clear our name of this tragedy. We are as much victims as the children, the 38-year-old doctor said.
Alhajouj and the nurses were freed on July 24 after more than eight years in jail, under a cooperation deal between Libya and the European Union. The six, who were sentenced to death on two occasions, have maintained their innocence and said they confessed under torture. Bulgaria and other European governments also said the medics were innocent and paid called for their release.
Alhajouj said international organisations could also push for an investigation into the medics ordeal. He plans to meet with his lawyer on Monday to discuss his options, which may include legal action against his Libyan jailors either on his own or with the nurses.
Alhajouj, who was born in Egypt but grew up in Libya, said he will never go back to Libya. It has destroyed my past, my present and my future.
The Palestinian, who recently received Bulgarian citizenship, plans to shuttle between the Netherlands and Bulgaria in the future. I have two families now, the first in the Netherlands and the second in Bulgaria. I will be proud to be here and there, he said.
And yeah, and 'death to Israel' too.
Posted by: Steve White ||
08/06/2007 00:00 ||
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Mugabe has signed into law an act enabling security agents to monitor phone lines, mail and the internet. In a government notice announcing the measure, chief secretary to the president and cabinet Misheck Sibanda said Mugabe had agreed to the Interception of Communications Act, which was approved by both houses of Zimbabwe's parliament. The law gives police and departments of security, defence, intelligence and revenue powers to order the interception of communications, and provides for the creation of a monitoring centre. Postal, telecommunications and internet service providers will be required to ensure their "systems are technically capable of supporting lawful interceptions at all times".
RIYADH, 6 August 2007 A new convert to Islam, fired with zeal to do a righteous act, had no idea that he would pay a heavy price for helping a sick woman, one that has landed him 50 days and counting behind bars.
The Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice found him guilty for committing a crime: Being in the presence of a woman who is not a relative (a so-called illegal state of seclusion).
Arab News tried several times to contact Ahmed Al-Jardan, spokesman for the commission, but phone calls were not returned. A written fax sent to the commissions main center asking for comment was also ignored.
Ibrahim Mohammed Lawal, a Nigerian student of Islamic studies at Badiya Islamic Center in Riyadh, learned that his neighbor, a 63-year-old woman, was indisposed and needed medical attention. So he took her to various hospitals in Riyadh, including the Riyadh Medical Complex at Shumaisy, all of which refused to treat her. It was only after the intervention of Sheikh Fawaz, director of Badiya Islamic Center, that the Badiya Hospital admitted the case. Despite the charitable act Mohammed ended up in detention, accused of immoral behavior because he was neither married nor related by blood to the elderly woman.
Speaking to Arab News on phone from his cell in the Malaz prison, Mohammed said that after the woman received treatment and after he returned to Riyadh after three days in the Western Region, he was arrested after checking up on the womans health. In the womans apartment were three other women related to her.
I was glad to note that the lady was making steady progress, he said. While we were chatting, there was a knock on the door. When this lady opened the door, four or five Saudis, whom I had seen outside the building before, barged in. They accused me of being alone with the woman unrelated to me and suspected my intention behind this visit to her apartment.
Mohammed said the Saudis identified themselves as members of the commission and took him and the three women into custody and later to Malaz prison. Mohammed says that the commission members also confiscated the money he had in his possession (SR2,750), in addition to his laptop and other personal items.
Mohammed said he tried to contact Shaikh Fawaz to help corroborate his story, but Fawaz is currently hospitalized for a major operation. The judge managed to contact Fawaz in the hospital who backed up the claims by the accused.
The judge asked me what I wanted, said Mohammed. I told him I want to return to Nigeria.
But before Mohammad can go anywhere, he has to figure out why he is in prison and how to get out. Mohammed, who embraced Islam recently, said he was unable to understand the reason behind his continued detention.
I wanted to do a good thing for a woman who was sick, and this is what I get in return, he said. I lost the support of my family in Nigeria, where my wife and children are upset with me and here I am languishing in prison.
#5
I think the key point is that he's Nigerian. Not one of the master (Arab) race.
Posted by: Rob Crawford ||
08/06/2007 12:13 Comments ||
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#6
The Saudi's, what a wonderful ally George W Bush has , it's certainly a great thing that we just sold them our most sophisticated technology in the form of fighter jets. way to go George, good move, that will keep your constituency happy.
PLANS to build one of the biggest mosques in Europe here have Christian leaders and the far-right up in arms over the Muslim communitys bold new assertion of its presence in Germany.
An imposing but elegant new building is to go up in the Ehrenfeld district of Cologne, a city that is 12 percent Muslim but is best known for its spectacular Gothic cathedral. Currently, most Muslims pray in small, often shabby quarters spread throughout the city and often hidden from plain view.
A visit to a typical prayer centre in Cologne reveals a stifling room in a prefabricated beige building where fake crystal chandeliers hang from the ceiling. Two giant posters of Mecca and Medina adorn the thick walls. Frequently more than 1,000 worshippers attend Friday prayers at the building which once housed a pharmaceuticals factory, squeezed between a petrol station and a noisy street.
If the crowd grows too big, prayer mats are laid out outside. Do you really want us to continue to pray in this miserable place? asked Bekir Alboga, the director of intercultural dialogue at the Turkish-Islamic Union for Religious Affairs (DITIB), which runs the centre.
Just as the Christians have their churches and the Jews their synagogues, we want to pray in a mosque. Which is what led DITIB, the biggest Muslim organisation in Germany, to press ahead with plans to build the sprawling new mosque and administrative building. Two 55-metre-tall (180-foot-tall) minarets will frame its 34.5-metre-tall glass cupola, high above a chamber where 2,000 people will be able to worship at once. Construction, financed by private donations and a bank loan, is to begin this year. The conservative mayor of Cologne, Fritz Schramma, called the plans excellent, both aesthetically but also symbolically.
He is joined by local officials from across the political spectrum. Cologne has 120,000 Muslims, the Social Democratic district councilman, Josef Wirges, said. They should be able to pray at a prestigious building, he said. After all we have the beautiful Cologne cathedral. But others in the city on the Rhine nicknamed the Rome of the north which hosted the Catholic Churchs World Youth Day in 2005 are eyeing the plans with suspicion. The Archbishop of Cologne, Joachim Meisner, said he understood why a giant mosque in their midst would make some in the city wary, adding that he too had a negative impression of the plans.
You have to take peoples fears seriously, Schramma added. But these people have never been concerned about the fact that there is already a mosque here, albeit insufficient for the communitys needs.
Posted by: Fred ||
08/06/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
Just as the Christians have their churches and the Jews their synagogues, we want to pray in a mosque.
You can, once there are churches and mosques allowed in KSA and allowed new ones to be built in other places, and when those edifices have no restriction vis-a-vis mosques. Else, go back where you come from, plenty of mosques there.
#10
RobC - probably the same reason so many of our bridges are 'shabby' - more political prestige is gotten for building stuff than maintaining it. Only difference is Muslim 'politicians' are religious or royalty figures.
Turkeys secular military expelled 10 officers for being reactionary - a euphemism for religious activities - along with 13 others accused of lack of discipline, a military official said on Sunday.
The military, which has historically shielded Turkeys secular character, ousted the 10 officers for reactionary activities, the official said speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to media. The phrase reactionary activities, is a common way for many Turks to refer to alleged ties to religious groups or a religious agenda seen as a threat to the nations secularist tradition.
It was the first time the Higher Military Council had disclosed the number of those expelled on this specific allegation. In the past, it only released the total number of dismissed officers and gave no details on the reason for the expulsions, daily Milliyet newspaper said.
Posted by: Fred ||
08/06/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
Seems that AKP and TurkMil are for a head on collision.
Rupert Murdoch's News Corp is fighting back against Democratic US presidential candidate John Edwards and his criticism of the media empire, pointing out that the 2004 vice-presidential nominee was paid $US500,000 ($A580,000) by one of its companies.
HarperCollins, which is owned by News Corp, paid Edwards that amount as an advance for his book, Home: The Blueprints of Our Lives. The Edwards campaign said the money was donated to charity and that another $US300,000 ($A350,000) for expenses was used to pay researchers and other costs to write the book.
The figures were reported by the Murdoch-owned New York Post today, a day after Edwards challenged his rivals to return political donations from News Corp executives. Edwards said the Fox News Channel, owned by News Corp, has a right-wing bias and "the time has come for Democrats to stop pretending to be friends with the very people who demonise the Democratic Party".
Posted by: Fred ||
08/06/2007 14:53 ||
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#1
Edwards claimed $333,334 in royalties from last year's release of the book, according to media accounts. The campaign said last night that those funds were part of the advance. He says he gave that amount to charity, which would also provide tax benefits for Edwards. "We're more than happy to give even more of Murdoch's money to Habitat for Humanity and other good causes," spokesman Eric Schultz told The Post yesterday.
Murdoch! That rich...evil...bastard! Ya don't see him worried about the Two Americas! No sireeee!
#5
How on earth can you have $300,000 in expenses on what is essentially an autobiography??
No doubt, it's payment to the author. You can't expect someone as wealthy and important as Edwards to spend time actually writing his own autobiography.
PPP Chairwoman Benazir Bhutto indicated on Saturday her willingness to be in the same government as President Gen Pervez Musharraf, as long as their respective powers were balanced. In an interview with CNN recorded in New York, asked if in the right circumstances she could work with President Musharraf in the same government, Ms Bhutto replied, Well, if the people of Pakistan give me a mandate, yes, but there would need to be a balance between the powers of the presidency and the powers of the parliament.
She refused to confirm her meeting with Gen Musharraf but said there have been contacts between her and the government at various levels, including her own. She confirmed that she has met people in the government.
She said there remain many issues to be discussed, including whether Pakistan moves along a democratic track and whether there are free and fair elections open to all parties. The time is running out and I hope we can make the deadline, she added.
She said it would be unrealistic for Gen Musharraf to remain both president and army chief. It is very important for Gen Musharraf to take off his uniform. She was sure that given the present mood of the higher judiciary, Gen Musharrafs bid to hold both offices would be challenged legally, which in turn would embroil Pakistan in another crisis. Asked for her views about the US moving militarily against Pakistan on receipt of actionable intelligence, she replied that it would undermine Pakistans sovereignty. However, she added, the US and Pakistan should work closer together in the tribal badlands against terrorists.
At a press conference in New York on Saturday, Ms Bhutto said that the PPP would not accept Gen Musharraf in uniform as president. A uniformed president is simply unacceptable, she said. Gen Musharrafs re-election from the current assemblies would also open the doors for such options as assembly resignations, litigation and the fielding of an opposition candidate against him, she added.
Ms Bhutto reiterated her commitment to the Charter of Democracy, but argued that it does not forbid negotiations with a military government for its replacement by a democracy. About her return to Pakistan, she said a petition has been filed at the Lahore High Court praying that her freedom of movement in the country be guaranteed.
Posted by: Fred ||
08/06/2007 00:00 ||
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Muslim-dominated Malaysia is neither a secular nor a theocratic state, the prime minister said in an apparent bid to make amends after his deputy upset minorities by describing the country as Islamic.
Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi said late Saturday the country can be best described as a multiracial nation that practices parliamentary democracy with freedom of religion for all. We are not a secular state. We are also not a theocratic state like Iran and Pakistan ... but we are a government that is based on parliamentary democracy, Abdullah told reporters after making a speech in the northern state of Penang. His comments were reported by the national news agency Bernama and all local dailies on Sunday. Abdullahs aides could not be immediately reached to confirm the comments.
The prime ministers attempt to take the middle ground comes amid rising concerns among Malaysias Chinese and Indian minorities that their rights are becoming subordinate to Islam.
Posted by: Fred ||
08/06/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
Neither fish nor fowl.... It's a floor wax, it's a dessert topping, it's...
Posted by: M. Murcek ||
08/06/2007 10:15 Comments ||
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Iranian police detained more than 200 people and seized alcohol and drugs in a raid on a "satanic" underground rock concert, media in the conservative Islamic state reported on Saturday.
Iran, which has launched an annual summer crackdown on "immoral behavior", bans alcohol, narcotics and parties with unrelated men and women dancing, drinking and mixing. Western popular music is frowned upon.
The police operation took place on Wednesday night in the town of Karaj near the capital Tehran, at an event with local disc jockeys, rock and rap groups performing, the media said. "Most of those arrested are wealthy young people ... who came to this party with the goal of attending a provocative, satanic concert," daily Tehran-e Emrouz quoted a senior police official, Reza Zarei, as saying.
Karaj's public prosecutor, Ali Farhadi, said invitations had been sent out via the Internet and that people from Britain and Sweden were among those held. Zarei suggested they were expatriate Iranians visiting the country. Farhadi said 150 bottles of alcoholic drinks, 800 "obscene" CDs and different kinds of drugs had been confiscated by police, as well as "inappropriate" dresses that those behind the event were giving to female guests as gifts.
"Some 230 people who attended a rock party in Karaj were identified and arrested," Farhadi said on the Web site of Iran's state broadcaster. He said 20 video cameras had also been seized and that the organizers had planned to blackmail girls after filming "inappropriate and obscene" videos of them.
Posted by: Fred ||
08/06/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
So - Great Satan, Little Satan, now Minion?
Everything not being of Shia being Satan?
Time for DirecTV to broadcast freebees to the MidEast 24x7
#2
D ***ng it, so does this mean CARS PLUS commercial and its missing asteroid graphic is off the hook, and that the Cylon Babes from Battlestar Galactica lied when they said heavenly retributions will begin to descend on the world one yarn after the guy from Guam sees explosions in space??? NAKED LLOYD BRIDGES > D *** it, THAT PUTS MY PANTIES IN A WAD!
A multi-volume chronology and reference guide set detailing three years of the Mexican Drug War between 2010 and 2012.
Rantburg.com and borderlandbeat.com correspondent and author Chris Covert presents his first non-fiction work detailing
the drug and gang related violence in Mexico.
Chris gives us Mexican press dispatches of drug and gang war violence
over three years, presented in a multi volume set intended to chronicle the death, violence and mayhem which has
dominated Mexico for six years.
Rantburg was assembled from recycled algorithms in the United States of America. No
trees were destroyed in the production of this weblog. We did hurt some, though. Sorry.
Mugabe has signed into law an act enabling security agents to monitor phone lines, mail and the internet. In a government notice announcing the measure, chief secretary to the president and cabinet Misheck Sibanda said Mugabe had agreed to the Interception of Communications Act, which was approved by both houses of Zimbabwe's parliament. The law gives police and departments of security, defence, intelligence and revenue powers to order the interception of communications, and provides for the creation of a monitoring centre. Postal, telecommunications and internet service providers will be required to ensure their "systems are technically capable of supporting lawful interceptions at all times". 
PLANS to build one of the biggest mosques in Europe here have Christian leaders and the far-right up in arms over the Muslim communitys bold new assertion of its presence in Germany.
Rupert Murdoch's News Corp is fighting back against Democratic US presidential candidate John Edwards and his criticism of the media empire, pointing out that the 2004 vice-presidential nominee was paid $US500,000 ($A580,000) by one of its companies.
PPP Chairwoman Benazir Bhutto indicated on Saturday her willingness to be in the same government as President Gen Pervez Musharraf, as long as their respective powers were balanced. In an interview with CNN recorded in New York, asked if in the right circumstances she could work with President Musharraf in the same government, Ms Bhutto replied, Well, if the people of Pakistan give me a mandate, yes, but there would need to be a balance between the powers of the presidency and the powers of the parliament.
Muslim-dominated Malaysia is neither a secular nor a theocratic state, the prime minister said in an apparent bid to make amends after his deputy upset minorities by describing the country as Islamic. 
Iranian police detained more than 200 people and seized alcohol and drugs in a raid on a "satanic" underground rock concert, media in the conservative Islamic state reported on Saturday.
