Hayat Boumeddiene was the moll of the late Amedy Coulibaly, who committed the kosher supermarket massacre in Paris last month. Ms. Boumeddiene is now the most wanted woman in France. She is reportedly the female mujahid (mujahidess? mujahidette?) featured in the latest propaganda video released by the Islamic State, which calls on French Muslims to decamp from France and take up arms for the Caliphate.

In other news, the suicide rate in Greece has increased by almost 36% since the current “austerity” regime began in 2011.

To see the headlines and the articles, click “Continue reading” below.

Thanks to C. Cantoni, Fjordman, Insubria, JD, Phyllis Chesler, RL, Steen, UB, Vlad Tepes, and all the other tipsters who sent these in.

Notice to tipsters: Please don’t submit extensive excerpts from articles that have been posted behind a subscription firewall, or are otherwise under copyright protection.

Caveat: Articles in the news feed are posted “as is”. Gates of Vienna cannot vouch for the authenticity or accuracy of the contents of any individual item posted here. We check each entry to make sure it is relatively interesting, not patently offensive, and at least superficially plausible. The link to the original is included with each item’s title. Further research and verification are left to the reader.

Dijsselbloem Says No Short-Term Loans for Greece

‘We don’t do bridging loans’ says head of eurogroup

(ANSA) — Rome, February 6 — Jeroen Dijsselbloem, chairman of the eurogroup of countries, said Friday that it would not grant Greece any short-term financing to keep it afloat while the government of Premier Alexis Tsipras tries to renegotiate terms of its debt repayments. “We don’t do bridging loans,” said Dijsselbloem, according to Bloomberg news. The eurogroup represents finance ministers from the eurozone.

— Hat tip: Insubria [Return to headlines]



Global Debt Has Swelled by a Massive $57 Trillion Since 2007: “The Figures Are as Remarkable as They Are Terrifying”

The figures are as remarkable as they are terrifying. Global debt — defined as the liabilities of governments, firms and households — has jumped by $57 trillion, or 17pc of global GDP, since the fourth quarter of 2007, which was supposed to be the peak of the bad old credit-fuelled days. In 2000, total debt was worth 246pc of global GDP; by 2007, this had risen to 269pc of GDP and today we are at 286pc of GDP.

So what, exactly, is going on in the global economy? The one big lesson from the bubble days was that we had too much debt. Yet fresh figures from McKinsey examining 47 of the world’s most important economies show that the situation has become worse rather than better. In net terms, there has been no deleveraging — in fact, economies have levered up further.

— Hat tip: JD [Return to headlines]



Greece: Suicides Increased by 35.7% in Response to Austerity

Study reveals that the cases surged in May and July 2012

(ANSAmed) — ATHENS, FEBRUARY 4 — Suicides in Greece increased by about 1/3 in response to the austerity measures that were implemented in Greece in June of 2011, as daily To Vima online reports citing the results of a research published in British medical journal (BMJ). The study shows that a surge in suicides follows events related to austerity. The June 2011 announcement, regarding the second packages of austerity measures which involved wage cuts in the public sector and the cutting expenses in welfare, seems to have had the greatest impact. In the months that followed the announcement suicides increased by 35.7%. The researchers also noted that suicides amongst men increased by 13.1% after the Greek economy entered a recession in October 2008 and surged by 29.7% in April 2012, after a pensioner dramatically committed suicide on Syntagma Square. The number of suicides peaked in May and July of 2012, 62 and 64 respectively, the most documented in over 30 years. On the contrary, the lowest number of suicides were documented in February 1983 and November 1999 (14 each), which — financially — are considered more prosperous periods than the current one. Charles C. Branas, Professor of Epidemiology of the University of Pennsylvania, estimated that the rate of suicides is not only affected by the financial policies implemented, but the “public messages” that also accompany them. As such, he underlines that the media should be aware how their reports may have a negative impact on public health.

— Hat tip: Insubria [Return to headlines]



Moscovici ‘Italy’s Problems’ High Debt, Low Growth

EC predicts Italian debt at 133% of GDP this year

(ANSA) — Brussels, February 5 — Pierre Moscovici, European Commissioner for Economic Affairs, said Thursday that Italy’s problems are created by “high debt and low growth” which could be solved through reforms and budgetary prudence.

He spoke as the EC released its outlook for economic growth and said that Italy’s debt is on course this year to total 133% of gross domestic product (GDP), down from its forecast last November of debt to GDP reaching 133.8% in 2015.

The decline continues in 2016, when it will drop to 131.9%, said the EC. That will help reduce pressure on the structural deficit this year, which will be 0.6% this year instead of the previously forecast level of 0.8%, the EC said.

— Hat tip: Insubria [Return to headlines]



S&P Cuts Greece Rating to B-

Negative outlook

(ANSA) — Rome, February 6 — Credit ratings agency Standard & Poor’s on Friday cut Greece’s sovereign debt rating from B to B-, with a negative outlook.

— Hat tip: Insubria [Return to headlines]



Calling a Muslim a Muslim

One of my readers, Jim Brewer, said, “I personally believe all rational, unhyphenated Americans have always understood, and do understand our enemies. Those enemies want to destroy our nation…not just economically, spiritually, militarily, but complete annihilation of all of the Christian-Judeo principles, values and traditions that our forefathers and so many of us have fought, bled, and died for.

“There is more than one enemy that we are fighting. Some are blatantly visible…yet many are deeply camouflaged in positions of leadership, albeit local, state or federal offices of trust and leadership.”

Somebody signs the papers that imports millions of Muslims into our country. “That somebody” no longer claims to be an American, but in fact, a hyphenated Muslim intent on growing his tribe in our country. Mr. Obama leads that Muslim tribe with eight Muslim aides advising him in the Oval Office. Remember that a Muslim lives and breathes the Koran. A Muslim is a Muslim first, last and always. They show themselves to be as deadly in the 21st century as when they hacked their way through the 6th century.

[…]

“Then we have the President of our United States stand up and say that this is no longer, a Christian nation…but a nation of people and religions around the world and we must be tolerant of all, because after all… “we are the world.”

— Hat tip: JD [Return to headlines]



Center for Arizona Policy

Dark money that filtered in to Arizona from Virginia to get rid of opponents of Senator John McCain needs to be exposed and stopped, and the same can be said of the winners of our current state government, or any other level of government for that matter.

— Hat tip: JD [Return to headlines]



Obama: Christianity No Different From the Islamic State

by Raymond Ibrahim

Obama-at-2015-National-Prayer-BreakfastAs the world reacts with shock and horror at the increasingly savage deeds of the Islamic State (IS)—in this case, the recent immolation of a captive—U.S. President Obama’s response has been one of nonjudgmental relativism.

Speaking at the National Prayer Breakfast on February 5, Obama counseled Americans to get off their “high horse” and remember that Christians have been equally guilty of such atrocities.

— Hat tip: Fjordman [Return to headlines]



The Emerging Iran Nuclear Deal Raises Major Concerns

By Editorial Board

As the Obama administration pushes to complete a nuclear accord with Iran, numerous members of Congress, former secretaries of state and officials of allied governments are expressing concern about the contours of the emerging deal. Though we have long supported negotiations with Iran as well as the interim agreement the United States and its allies struck with Tehran, we share several of those concerns and believe they deserve more debate now — before negotiators present the world with a fait accompli.

The problems raised by authorities ranging from Henry Kissinger, the country’s most senior former secretary of state, to Sen. Timothy M. Kaine, Virginia’s junior Democratic senator, can be summed up in three points:…

— Hat tip: RL [Return to headlines]



Via Rail Terror Suspect Calls Islam ‘Powerful Weapon’

TORONTO — Two men accused of plotting to derail a train travelling between Canada and the U.S. believed Islam was a “powerful weapon” which had the potential to wreak havoc on the world, their trial heard Thursday.

Raed Jaser and Chiheb Esseghaier, however, were also aware of the need to blend into Canadian society, a jury heard, in order to carry out their alleged plans without coming under suspicion.

Jaser and Esseghaier both face multiple terror-related charges in the alleged plot to attack a passenger train between New York and Toronto. Not guilty pleas have been entered for both men.

Their alleged plans and their radical Islamic beliefs are detailed in numerous conversations they had with an undercover FBI officer, who said he gained their trust.

Secret audio recordings of those conversations are being played at trial while the officer testifies.

“Islam is a monster, is a beast,” Jaser is heard saying on one intercepted conversation. “Islam is a very powerful weapon, OK, and if it’s in the right hands…then you can bulldoze the whole world.”

The conversation between Jaser, Esseghaier and the undercover agent took place at a Toronto park in September 2012 as children played nearby, the court heard.

Agriculture Brought Changes to Farmers’ Jaws

“Our analysis shows that the lower jaws of the world’s earliest farmers in the Levant are not simply smaller versions of those of the predecessor hunter-gatherers, but that the lower jaw underwent a complex series of shape changes commensurate with the transition to agriculture,” Ron Pinhasi of University College Dublin told Phys.org. Hunter-gatherer populations had an “almost perfect state of equilibrium” between their jawbones and dental distances, resulting in straight teeth. But the “harmony” between the jaws and teeth of the semi-sedentary hunter-gatherers and farmers was disrupted, perhaps by the shift in diet from wild, uncooked vegetables and meats to cooked cereals and legumes. Softer foods require less chewing, which in turn lessens the size of the jaw, but not the size of the teeth, resulting in dental crowding.

— Hat tip: Fjordman [Return to headlines]



Assange ‘Frustrating’ For UK and Sweden Officials

Julian Assange’s residence in London’s Ecuadorian embassy is ‘frustrating’, the UK’s Deputy Prime Minister has said, after figures emerged that the Wikileaks founder’s security has cost around 125 million kronor ($15 million) as he fights extradition to Sweden.

— Hat tip: Fjordman [Return to headlines]



British Army Aims to Recruit More Muslims After Worries Over Low Numbers

The British army is exploring ways to recruit more Muslims as the latest figures reveal they make up less than 1% of the total. Resistance is partly down to the UK’s involvement in conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan.

The army is also concerned that black, Asian and other ethnic minorities are not sufficiently represented and a recruitment drive is planned for this year, with 10 events each month across the UK aimed at these groups.

There are 480 Muslims in the army out of an overall strength of 88,500 — 0.54%, an increase from 300 in 2008. Muslims comprise about 4.4% of the UK population according to the 2011 census.

The army has been trying to engage with communities in places such as Bradford and Burnley, where Muslims account for about 25% and 10% of the population respectively.

— Hat tip: Fjordman [Return to headlines]



Decline in Property Prices Continues in Cyprus

(ANSAmed) — NICOSIA, FEBRUARY 5 — Property prices across Cyprus saw a significant decline in the last quarter of 2014, with an annual drop of 5.4% in houses and 5% in apartments as Famagusta Gazette online reports. The latest data by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) in Cyprus showed that prices for both houses and apartments declined by 1.1% and 0.7% respectively, with the largest decrease recorded in Famagusta (3.6% in houses) and in Nicosia (1.1% in apartments). Prices for shops presented an average drop of 1.6%, whereas in offices the average decline was 1.2% and in warehouses 1.9%. Compared with the last quarter of 2013, prices for apartments went down by 5.4%, in houses by 5%, in shops by 8.1%, in offices by 6.1% and in warehouses by 5.3%.

— Hat tip: Insubria [Return to headlines]



Denmark to Target Anti-Radicalization at Kids

Children as young as nine years old will be taught about extremism and radicalization under a local plan in Aarhus, while the government says a similar national plan is also on its way.

Denmark’s second-largest city Aarhus has announced new plans to combat potential radicalization in students as young as nine and ten years old.

Aarhus is home to both a controversial mosque that has produced a high number of foreign fighters and an equally controversial jihadist rehabilitation programme that is being closely watched by other nations.

Now the school curriculum for students in the fourth and fifth grades will include material meant to prevent radicalization before it can take hold.

— Hat tip: Fjordman [Return to headlines]



EC to Allow Poste Italiane to Invest in Alitalia

Rejects complaint post office providing illegal State aid

(ANSA) — Brussels, February 6 — The European Commission has approved the Italian post office’s investment in airline Alitalia after it closed an investigation launched in October 2013, officials said Friday.

Competing airlines had complained the investment was a form of illegal State aid but the EC has ruled the State-owned post office was acting as a private investor.

Poste Italiane had injected 75 million euros in the struggling airline in December 2013 as part of a government-engineered 500-million-euro rescue package.

That helped to keep Alitalia in the area as it completed its tie-up in 2014 with Etihad Airways.

Etihad had demanded cuts of 2,250 jobs in exchange for its life-saving 387.5-million euro investment that gave it a 49% stake in Alitalia.

— Hat tip: Insubria [Return to headlines]



Female French Deli Attacker May Appear in New ISIS Video

by Phyllis Chesler

The most wanted woman in France may be working with ISIS now!

The video, “Blow Up France 2” in French, calls upon French Muslims to “defect from the French Republic and take up arms in the new Caliphate.”

Six masked men in black holding weapons are standing. There is only one armed, masked woman wearing camouflage clothing who is standing with them in the video; she stands in the front row. This suggests that the woman is especially honored and important. Hayat Boumeddiene, the wife of Amedy Coulibaly, who orchestrated an attack on a Kosher deli in Paris in the aftermath of the Charlie Hebdo murders, would meet that requirement.

In addition, when Coulibaly’s name is mentioned as a martyr, for a brief moment, the woman lowers her head and seems to be reacting emotionally.

First Anti-Islam PEGIDA Rally Set for Sweden

As anti-Islam movement Pegida that has made headways in Germany prepares to hold its first public meeting in Sweden, a Malmö vicar has told The Local why he believes it is important to stand up for a multi-religious society.

Malmö parish vicar Anders Ekhem told The Local on Friday: “During the manifestation, the Swedish Church is going to hold a service where we express joy for our city and our muslim friends.” “There is strong support for diverse cultures in Malmö and it is important that the church is there to support that.”

— Hat tip: Fjordman [Return to headlines]



Germany: States Fear Drug Drones Flying Into Jails

Twice authorities have intercepted drones being used to deliver contraband into prisons, leaving German states are planning new ways of keeping criminal activity away from criminals. But is the law behind the curve on this new technology?

— Hat tip: Fjordman [Return to headlines]



Heavy Snow, Biting Winds Grip Much of Italy

Harsh winter weather shaking peninsula

(ANSA) — Rome, February 6 — Heavy snows, biting winds, and low temperatures continued to menace parts of Italy on Friday, closing Bologna’s airport and icing highways in the centre and north while drenching the south with rain.

In Emilia Romagna, Piedmont and Lombardy snow was reported, forcing the closure of Bologna’s airport, although authorities said they expected that would be temporary.

Rail lines were blocked, causing delays of up to an hour in parts of Italy while traffic was slowed to a crawl around the business capital of Milan.

Schools were closed across the province of Florence amid heavy snow and ice.

Mantua and the surrounding province woke up under a thick blanket of snow and numerous fender-benders were reported in the region where schools were closed in many municipalities. Resident in Senigallia in the Marche region along the Adriatic coast braced for flooding amid high winds and rising tides. Schools there were closed and civil authorities advised residents to move to the highest levels of their homes and park cars as high as possible.

— Hat tip: Insubria [Return to headlines]



Italy: Milan Mayor Says Government Contribution to Expo ‘Shameful’

City requested 110 mn to handle 20 mn tourists, govt gives 60 mn

(ANSA) — Milan, February 6 — The Italian government’s decision to give the city of Milan 60 million euros in funding instead of the requested 110 million euros for managing city services such as transport and cleaning during Expo 2015 is “unacceptable, shameful,” said Milan Mayor Giuliano Pisapia on Friday on the Radio 24 program Mix 24.

Pisapia said he is still hopeful the government might reconsider, because the city on its own isn’t in a position to cover costs for services to handle the influx of 20 million tourists expected during the 6-month world’s fair beginning in May.

“Public transport is at risk. There will need to be new hires, there will need to be increased services. Someone has to pay, and Milan alone isn’t able to,” Pisapia said.

— Hat tip: Insubria [Return to headlines]



Network of 250 Spanish Butchers and Phone Shops Funding Jihadists in Syria

Spain has become a major financing hub for jihadist terrorists in Syria and Iraq through an extensive network of 250 phone call centers, butcher shops and neighborhood grocery stores, where money is transferred through an informal and virtually untraceable system, according to Spanish intelligence agencies.

This network, which uses the so-called hawala system — defined by Interpol as money transfer without money movement — manages the savings of over 150,000 Muslims without any legal oversight, and is also being used to help fund terror groups such as Islamic State (ISIS) and al-Nusra Front, an Al Qaeda affiliate.

The secret network used by hawaladars, or hawala dealers, is also a conduit to pay the salaries of Spanish jihadists for their work in brigades at camps in northern Syria. They receive about $800 if they are single and $1,200 if they are married, according to police sources.

— Hat tip: Fjordman [Return to headlines]



Romania’s Minimum Wage Up to 1,200 Lei (Eur 270) In 2016

PM Ponta announced second raise, after 1050 lei in July

(ANSA) — TRIESTE — Romanian Prime Minister, Victor Ponta, announced a raise of the minimum gross wage to 1,200 lei in 2016 (approximately 270 euros), Agerpress agency reported. The foressen raise would follow the one to be introduced in July (1,050 lei). “Setting an ever higher limit of the minimum income is a measure that can help us concretely change some things”, Ponta said.

— Hat tip: Insubria [Return to headlines]



Spain: Row Rumbles Over Cordoba´s Mezquita

The Spanish city of Cordoba boasts that different faiths have long co-existed there, but locals are now squabbling over its star tourist attraction: a cathedral that was once a mosque.

One of the most famous Islamic monuments in Europe, the grand stone edifice dominates the old centre of the city in the southern Andalucia region.

It is listed by UNESCO as a world heritage site, a jewel of Islamic architecture with later Christian additions, located not far from the old Jewish quarter.

Locals call it the “Mosque-Cathedral” — but critics accuse the Catholic Church which runs the site of covering up the Islamic part of the building’s past.

— Hat tip: Fjordman [Return to headlines]



UK: Ban Upheld on ‘Islamophobic’ Writers Who Planned Greenwich EDL Visit

Two internationally recognised writers who were barred by Home Secretary Theresa May from visiting Greenwich in the aftermath of soldier Lee Rigby’s brutal murder by Islamic extremists have lost a legal bid to challenge her decision.

American nationals Pamela Geller and Robert Spencer — whose views are said to be “regarded by some, perhaps by many, as Islamophobic” — were denied entry to the UK after the minister concluded that their exclusion was “conducive to the public good”.

Iraq: As Jihadists Destroy Mosul’s Church of the Immaculate Virgin, Chaldeans Get Ready for Unity Synod in Baghdad

Attacked back in June, the historic building is now a mound of rubbles. In the capital, the Chaldean Church welcomes two new bishops, but the focus will be on its upcoming Synod and the issue of a rebellious US diocese. In Zakho, a thousand faithful attended the ordination of 5 deacons and 12 sub-deacons. For Mgr Rabban, it was a day of celebration for the community.

Baghdad (AsiaNews) — Islamic State militants blew up the Church of the Immaculate Virgin, one of the largest and oldest Chaldean churches in the old section of Mosul, Iraq’s second largest city, and now a jihadist stronghold.

Security sources from the Nineveh police district report that the destruction took place last Monday, but given the difficulty in communication with the jihadist-held city, the information leaked out only today.

Using a great quantity of explosives, caliphate militants blew up the historic building, one of the largest and oldest places of worships belonging to the Chaldean community in Iraq.

Local witnesses report that the terrorists “finished wiring the church with explosives this morning and detonated it, leaving widespread destruction in the church and neighbouring buildings.”

Jihadists had already targeted the church Last June when they tore down and decapitate the statue of Our Lady that stood on the clock tower.

The Church of the Immaculate Virgin stood on the foundation of what was the most ancient Christian church in Mosul — which had already been destroyed in past centuries.

Since Iraq’s invasion, it had withstood attacks by Islamic militants, including a car bomb on 17 January 2008 that injured two people. Not far from the church is the old Chaldean Bishop’s Residence, which was itself attacked in 2004.

Meanwhile today in Baghdad, the leaders of the Chaldean Church celebrated the ordination of two new bishops — Mgr Emanuel Hana Shaleta, from the Chaldean Diocese of Saint Addai and Mgr Basel Yaldo, the new patriarchal vicar.

Church Fathers are also getting ready for their Extraordinary Synod, scheduled for tomorrow, an important step in a period of major difficulties for the historic Church of the East.

In addition to the tragic fate of hundreds of thousands of faithful who, in recent months, were forced to flee Mosul and villages in the Nineveh plain to escape the Islamic State group, the Church is also facing some rebellious priests, monks and a bishop.

Since 2013, Patriarch Raphael I Louis Sako and Bishop Sarhad Jammo of the Diocese of St. Peter the Apostle (San Diego, California) have been at loggerheads over several priests and monks who fled Iraq without permission of their bishops or superiors.

On several occasions, the patriarch called on the monks and priests to come back to Iraq, reminding the bishop of his duty of obedience, so far without results. On 17 February, the Vatican is expected to rule on the dispute, which does not seem easy to settle.

For his part, Mar Sako has announced that if his instructions continue to be disregarded, he would resign from the office of patriarch, because it would just be “an honorific title to which I am not attached.”

Although the risk of a small schism within the Chaldean Church remains a real possibility, the Iraqi Church continues to show signs of vitality and hope.

This was best illustrated by the ordination of five deacons, 12 sub-deacons and various readers, of both sexes, some young, on 30 January in the Diocese of Zakho, in Iraqi Kurdistan. The local bishop, Mgr Rabban al Qas, led the solemn ceremony (pictured).

“The church was crowded, with a thousand faithful,” the prelate told AsiaNews, “103 people involved in all” in the ordination ceremony. For the local community, “it was a day of celebration” an opportunity “to get together” and “bear witness to a strong living faith.”

— Hat tip: C. Cantoni [Return to headlines]



ISIS Women’s Guide: ‘Emasculation of Muslim Men… Tearing Society Apart’

by Phyllis Chesler

ISIS has released a Manifesto on women and girls. Titled “Women in the Islamic State,” it is far more extreme than even Hitler’s vision of women as belonging in the nursery (Kinder) the kitchen, (Küche) and the Church (Kirche).

ISIS believes that girls can marry adult men when they are only nine years old; that “pure” girls should be married by the time they are 16 or 17; that motherhood is the sole purpose of female existence. The Manifesto was posted in Arabic last month on a Jihadist forum and crafted by ISIS’s female militia Al-Khanssaa Brigade.

Face and body veiling are mandatory for women—which is just as well since beauty parlors and shops selling fashionable clothes are the “instruments of the devil and must not be tolerated.”

A girl’s education must end when she is fifteen—and that education will mainly focus on religion, Koranic Arabic and science, the Sharia laws about marriage and divorce, as well as knitting and cooking.

There are some puzzling exceptions. “A woman may leave the house if she is going to study theology, if she is a woman doctor or teacher and if it has been ruled by fatwa that she must fight jihad or holy war.”

One marvels at the prospect of women doctors and teachers who are only allowed an eighth or ninth grade education. Or, will all the doctors be men? Will traditional Afghan rules apply— namely, when a woman is ill, her husband would visit the doctor on her behalf and describe her symptoms? Based on that description, the doctor would diagnose and prescribe. Edward Hunter, in his wonderful book, The Past Present: A Year in Afghanistan describes just such customs—and worse. And he was there in 1959, long before the Taliban arose.

Islamic State Selling, Crucifying, Burying Children Alive in Iraq — UN

(Reuters) — Islamic State militants are selling abducted Iraqi children at markets as sex slaves, and killing other youth, including by crucifixion or burying them alive, a United Nations watchdog said on Wednesday.

Iraqi boys aged under 18 are increasingly being used by the militant group as suicide bombers, bomb makers, informants or human shields to protect facilities against U.S.-led air strikes, the U.N. Committee on the Rights of the Child said.

“We are really deeply concerned at torture and murder of those children, especially those belonging to minorities, but not only from minorities,” committee expert Renate Winter told a news briefing. “The scope of the problem is huge.”

Children from the Yazidi sect or Christian communities, but also Shi’ites and Sunnis, have been victims, she said.

— Hat tip: Fjordman [Return to headlines]



Islamic State Ramps Up Child Slavery as Terror-Funding Moneymaker: Report

The Islamic State group hopes to add child slavery to its list of top terror-funding moneymakers, according to a United Nations report. The U.N. report released this week says that putting price tags on children have been a priority for the Sunni radical organization.

— Hat tip: Fjordman [Return to headlines]



Revenge: This is How You Stop the Islamic State

The war in the middle east is real and up until this point there has not been any significant push-back from local populations. But people are now realizing that an extremist theocracy such as that being implemented under Islamic State laws is dangerous and they are starting to fight back.

An Iraqi man has shot and killed seven ISIS militants in an act of revenge for his son who was executed by the terrorist group, local media reports.

Basil Ramadan, said to be in his 60s, used an AK-47 to gun down a group of militants at a checkpoint in Tikrit, a city northwest of Baghdad currently under ISIS control, before he was shot.

Mr Ramadan’ s son, Ahmed Basil, 18, was one of eight men executed by ISIS in January, accused of infiltrating the organisation and spying for the Iraqi government.

— Hat tip: JD [Return to headlines]



Saudis Kick Up Storm Over Spanish Group’s High-Speed Desert Rail Project

Saudi Arabian authorities have issued a stark warning to the Spanish consortium building the €6.7-billion AVE high-speed rail link between Medina and Mecca, which is suffering significant delays.

In December, just weeks after being appointed in a cabinet reshuffle, the kingdom’s new transport minister, Abdullah bin Abdulrahman al-Muqbel, issued a public statement calling on the consortium to speed up work or risk having the contract rescinded.

— Hat tip: Fjordman [Return to headlines]



Turkey: Don’t Get Mad, Take Over a Bank

by Burak Bekdil

“Forgive your enemies, but never forget their names,” John F. Kennedy apparently once said. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan follows a different practice: He neither forgives them, nor forgets their names — not even those of his enemies’ friends.

— Hat tip: Fjordman [Return to headlines]



Yemen: Drone Kills Al Qaida Leader, Claimed Charlie Attack

Al-Nadhari publicly criticized ISIS and Baghdadi

(ANSAmed) — ROME, FEBRUARY 6 — A “US drone” has killed the spiritual leader of the Yemeni-Saudi branch of Al Qaida (AQAP), which on January 9 claimed the deadly attack on the office of Charlie Hebdo in Paris, AQAP said in a statement quoted by international media on Friday.

Harith bin Ghazi al-Nadhari and three other jihadists “were killed on January 31” in Yemen, according to the statement.

Al-Nadhari had also spoken against the ‘caliph’ al Baghdadi, accused of “digging a groove” among jihadist groups.

— Hat tip: Insubria [Return to headlines]



Italian Eurofighters Intercept Russian Warplane in Baltic

Second such interception by Italian jets in a week

(ANSA) Rome, February 3 — Italian Air Force Eurofighter jets intercepted a Russian Ilyushin 76 Candid transport aircraft over the Baltic sea Tuesday as it threatened to enter NATO airspace, military sources said.

The Eurofighters are among four Italian warplanes deployed at Siauliai in Lithuania on a rotating NATO mission to help beef up defence of the Baltic states following the tension caused by Russian-backed separatist rebels’ war with Ukrainian forces.

On Friday two Italian fighters intercepted another Russian military aircraft that threatened to stray into NATO airspace from the Baltic sea.

— Hat tip: Insubria [Return to headlines]



Merkel-Hollande in Moscow to Sue for Peace in Ukraine

(AGI) Rome, Feb 6 — German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Francois Hollande travelled to Moscow on Friday to propose to Vladimir Putin their plan to end the Ukrainian conflict. Little information trickled through to the press regarding their Thursday stopover in Kiev: the scheduled joint declaration by Merkel, Hollande, and Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko was cancelled, though Ukraine’s presidential office revealed that the Franco-German initiative gives hope for a ceasefire. The plan reportedly aims to stop the conflict through the deployment of peace forces, as in the breakaway Moldovan region of Transnistria. Kiev’s authorities insisted that they will not accept any solution that puts Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity at risk. “Russia cannot be allowed to redraw the map of Europe”, the U.S.

Vice-President, Joe Biden, stated on Friday, especially given that Ukraine “is fighting for their very survival right now”.

The Franco-German plan aims to “defend peace” in Europe, Merkel stated, while Hollande made clear before departing for Moscow that “everyone is aware that the first step must be the cease-fire, but that it cannot suffice. We must seek a global solution”. However, the diplomatic offensive will not go on endlessly, he warned. Should Russia reject the proposed solution, a number of nations might decide to provide Ukraine with weapons. The U.S. government is reportedly assessing whether to send “defensive” weapons, adding to tensions with Moscow, which has already decried NATO’s growing presence in Eastern Europe and the Baltic area. NATO’s expansion is causing “serious changes in the military-political situation” on Russia’s borders and constitutes a “great risk”, the Russian envoy to the alliance said, affirming that it will lead to “adequate” changes in Russia’s military planning in order to defend its legitimate interests. Amidst these daunting developments, with at least 60 more Ukrainian separatists killed by government forces in the last 24 hours, the only positive news is the creation of a humanitarian corridor in Debaltseve, a strategic railway hub between Donetsk and Lugansk which has been a centre of violence for three weeks. As a result, a convoy of buses was able to evacuate the civilians who had remained trapped in the city.

— Hat tip: C. Cantoni [Return to headlines]



16-Year-Old Hindu Girl Tortured, Raped by a Muslim Clergy in a Christian Home Funded by Church for a Month in West Bengal

Really it’s an all new experience for anybody. Jehadi Muslims adopted Christian names. Running Christian Home with the help of Church aid. And have been victimizing poor Hindu girls in that Home since a month long.

A 16-year-old Hindu girl from Hooghly-based rehabilitation home for Juveniles was allegedly raped and tortured for a month by a fake clergyman named SIMSON ISLAM , police said on Wednesday. The Islam family of Gurap, (a town in Hoggly District in West Bengal), converted to Christianity as told and adopted Christian names with Islamic surname and started this Home some thirty years back. Simon’s father Nur Islam took a Christian name as Simon Nur Islam and started this ‘Bhastara Christian Home’ at Bhastara area of Gurap Town…

— Hat tip: UB [Return to headlines]



Bangladesh: Dinajpur: Catholic Village Attacked. Bishop: End the Violence

Msgr. Sebastian Tudu launches appeal after weeks of tension. Over 300 Muslims attacked the community over issues related to land and property of tribal Catholics. Muslim dies in clashes: the group responds by setting fire to all the houses.

Dinajpur (AsiaNews) — “We want a permanent solution and to live in peace with all communities. The government must help us”: This is the urgent call launched through AsiaNews by Msgr. Sebastian Tudu, bishop of the diocese of Dinajpur, after a series of clashes between Catholics and Muslims in the village of Chirakhota over issues related to land. Tensions peaked on 24 January, when more than 300 Muslims attacked the Catholic community, made up of tribal Santal.

The disputed plots are owned by the Catholic community, which has held regular permits since 1971. At the time, the height of the war of liberation from Pakistan, a Hindu woman sold them the land. Recently, a Muslim attempted to expropriate the plot, but the court ruled in favor of the Santal.

On January 24, over 300 members of the Islamic community descended upon the village. The Catholics defended themselves with bows and arrows, their traditional weapons, and a Muslim was killed. The sparked the Muslims anger and a mob looted rice, food, clothes, money, more than 100 cows, and set fire to all the 60 houses of the settlement.

Police arrested 19 Catholics for the death of a Muslim. Both sides have reported many wounded.

Dipali Tudu, a 22 year-old Catholic, was in the village at the time of the attack. Now he has left the area for security reasons: “The Muslims attacked us and tried to molest some of us. So I fled to another town. We are disappointed, we want to live in peace.”

Last year, the Catholic church in Boldipukur — also in Dinajpur diocese — was targeted in a similar story, over land issues. The assailants stole various objects and documents of land ownership. Three sisters were beaten and suffered an attempted rape.

— Hat tip: C. Cantoni [Return to headlines]



Fear Grips India’s Christians Amid Church Attacks

Christians make up just a small proportion of India’s vast population. But in recent months, they have increasingly been the target of attacks and ‘reconversions,’ fueling fears about religious freedom in the country.

— Hat tip: Fjordman [Return to headlines]



Japan: The Killing of Kenji Goto Unleashes Islamophobia

After the beheading of a Christian reporter, the small Muslim community of the Land of the Rising Sun receive threats and insults. Two mosques in Aichi prefecture targeted. Japanese Muslims have a short history but one characterized by fidelity to the nation and love for the Emperor.

Tokyo (AsiaNews) — The atrocious beheading of Christian Japanese reporter Kenji Goto Jogo at the hands of Islamic State terrorists has unleashed a wave of Islamophobia in Japan. Two mosques in Aichi prefecture have recently been targeted by an avalanche of threatening phone calls and emails, which term Muslims as “garbage” and threaten revenge for the death of the Japanese reporter. The places of worship have not yet filed a complaint against unknown persons, but are asking for solidarity.

Nei mesi scorsi, i fondamentalisti dello Stato islamico in Iraq e Siria hanno catturato due cittadini giapponesi, Kenji Goto Jogo e Haruna Yukawa. Il primo era un giornalista, impegnato nel documentare gli orrori della guerra e nella difesa dei bambini; del secondo non si hanno molte notizie, ma sembra che fosse in Medio Oriente per unirsi alle milizie in campo contro il leader siriano Assad.

In recent months, the fundamentalists of the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria captured two Japanese citizens, Kenji Goto Jogo and Haruna Yukawa. The first was a journalist, engaged in documenting the horrors of war and the protection of children; there is scant information regarding the second journalist but it appears he was in the Middle East to join the militia against the Syrian leader Assad on the ground.

After first asking for $ 200 million for the release of the hostages, the Islamic state terrorists then killed the second Japanese prisoner — Haruna Yukawa — before changing their demands. Then they wanted the release of Iraqi terrorist Sajida al-Rishawi: the woman tried to blow herself up in Jordan after contributing the 9 November 2005 attack in Amman, which killed 60 people. At the time of the demand she was held in the prisons of the Kingdom.

Jordanian Air force pilot Muath al-Kaseasbeh was also being held along with Kenji Goto. On February 1, 2015 terrorists released a video with the beheading of the Christian reporter. Two days later they released a movie instead with the terrible death of the Jordanian, burned alive in an iron cage. The next day, Amman responded by executing the Iraqi terrorist and the prisoner Ziad al-Karboli, a member of al Qaeda, convicted in 2007 for killing a Jordanian.

This series of horrors has also provoked a harsh military response by Jordan, which is carrying out a series of raids against IS positions in Syria, and sparked the indignation of the Japanese population. In threatening messages against Muslim communities, unknown authors wrote: “Muslims are garbage”; “Muslims are enemies of Japan”; “We will kill you all.” Abdul Wahab Qureshi, spokesman for the Nagoya mosque, says: “ We are completely different (from the group). I hope people do not misunderstand us.”

There are about 127 million Japanese: 83.9% of these are of the Shinto faith; 71.4% follows Buddhism (the two religions can overlap, both being more a philosophy than a real cult); Christians are about 2%, for most part Protestants. Muslims are roughly about 100 thousand, with a further 70 thousand members of different nationalities. There are about 35mosques, but throughout the territory there are another 100 places of worship in areas where there are no traditional structures.

The historical presence of Muslims in Japan is fairly recent, as it dates back to the eighteenth century, but the community has distinguished itself over time for its loyalty — sometimes deemed excessive — to the Emperor and the country. During the period of the various Japanese occupations in Asia, Japanese Muslims enlisted en masse, offering themselves as “translators and cultural bridges” to the Islamic communities of various countries conquered by Tokyo.

— Hat tip: C. Cantoni [Return to headlines]



Australia’s Abbott Facing Inner-Party Revolt

Dwindling public survey results for Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott have erupted into an open leadership challenge within his Liberal Party. Detractors are seeking a caucus ballot to replace him next Tuesday.

— Hat tip: Fjordman [Return to headlines]



Norwegian Somali Held in Kenya for Twin Attacks

A Norwegian-Somali man has been arrested in Kenya in connection with two bloody massacres carried out by the terrorist group al-Shabaab last year, according to Kenya’s Standard newspaper.

— Hat tip: Fjordman [Return to headlines]



Illegal Border-Crossing by Immigrants in to EU, Schengen Area, More Than Doubled in 2014

Number of detections of illegal border-crossing in 2014 reached about 278 000, in 2013 it was 107 000 and even in 2011 dur­ing the initial stages of the Arab Spring, numbers were 141 000; now it’s worst refugee crisis since Sec­ond World War

— Hat tip: Fjordman [Return to headlines]



The Nonsense of Open Borders

Liberal Republican presidential contender, former Florida governor Jeb Bush stated “I can persuade conservatives on amnesty.” Of course, Bush is referring to the federal government’s refusal to build a viable fence and enact reasonable measures to protect our republic from the vicious hordes of invading illegal immigrants. I find this most infuriating. Here we unfortunately have individuals who voluntarily run for political office. Those fortunate enough to fool us and win election take an oath of office. That oath includes swearing or affirming to defend and uphold the United States Constitution. The Constitution itself instructs office holders to defend the United States from enemies both foreign and domestic.

So when I see, read, or hear about congress and the president or any individual more willing to govern on behalf of illegal immigrants than for example ranch owners killed by illegal immigrants, it is high time to make some logical changes. I am sure that Jeb Bush and every other presidential contender is well aware of the clear and present dangers presented by the teaming masses of illegal immigrants. It does not matter if the majority of them are strolling into our country illegally for better opportunities. The United States is a nation of laws and illegal immigrants are continuously breaking our immigration laws. Thus they are law breakers and should be dealt with accordingly. If the current president, presidential candidates or those in the legislative branch care so much about those living in impoverished conditions in other countries, perhaps setting a better example would be better in the long run.

— Hat tip: JD [Return to headlines]



3-D Measurements Revise Date of Dog Domestication

Biologists Abby Grace Drake of Skidmore College and Michael Coquerelle of the University Rey Juan Carlos have conducted a 3-D analysis of the 30,000-year-old skulls thought to belong to the earliest domesticated dogs. They compared the new skull measurements with those of modern and ancient wolves and dogs from North America and Europe, and found that the animals thought to have been the first dogs were actually wolves.