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Israel reinforces troops at border...

As in the days 0f Noah...
Israel-Hamas conflict could escalate

* Israel's Defence Ministry signalled it was ready to pursue and widen actions against Hamas in Gaza, including targeting the militant group's leaders, and made clear it was preparing for a potentially long campaign."We face a period that will be neither easy nor short, and will require determination and perseverance until the necessary change is achieved in the situation in the south," Defence Minister Ehud Barak said.
* Hamas quickly vowed revenge, ordering "all fighters to respond to the Israeli slaughter". It did not say what form this action would take but one fighter maddened by the sight of the mangled bodies of his comrades said suicide bombers would blow themselves up in Israeli restaurants, cafes and streets.Hamas leaders left the door open to a strong response, saying their movement was popular and deeply rooted. "All options are open to the Palestinian resistance to strike the Zionist enemy," a statement said. "One leader will be replaced by a hundred leaders."
* Islamist fighters fired a salvo of rockets into Israel, killing one Israeli. The mostly homemade, inaccurate rockets have caused few Israeli casualties in the past two months but militants could fire longer-range rockets which can reach the Israeli coastal city of Ashkelon.
* Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni, who hopes to defeat right-wing hawks to become prime minister in an election in February, has said the rule of Hamas in Gaza must be ended because the Islamists will never make peace with Israel.
* The Israeli air attacks caused widespread anger in the Palestinian territories. Palestinian protesters in East Jerusalem, Ramallah and Hebron staged demonstrations and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas condemned the attack and called for "this aggression to stop immediately".
* The Gaza Strip is the bloodiest arena in a militarily lopsided conflict. Some military analysts see it as a proxy war between moderate Arab regimes such as Egypt and hardline states such as Iran and Syria, which back Hamas.
Saturday's end to six months of relative calm during an Egyptian-brokered truce propels the Islamists into the frontline of the Palestinian struggle.A longer battle could marginalise Abbas's Fatah movement and its Western and Arab peace backers.
As in the days of Noah...
Venezuela rejects Israel's attacks on Gaza

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20081228/ap_on_re_la_am_ca/lt_venezuela_gaza_1
As in the days of Noah...
A year's intel gathering yields 'alpha hits'

AP contributed to this report
By YAAKOV KATZ
http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1230111714969&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull
As in the days of Noah...
Gaza mosque hit in Israeli air strikes

(Reporting by Nidal al-Mughrabi; Writing by Allyn Fisher-Ilan)
As in the days of Noah...
Israel defends Gaza op to UN chief

Elie Leshem contributed to this report
By JONNY PAUL, JERUSALEM POST STAFF AND AP
As in the days of Noah...
REACTION-Israeli attacks on Gaza

GAZA-Israeli war planes and combat helicopters pounded the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip on Saturday.Here are some of the key comments:
ISRAELI DEFENCE FORCE STATEMENT:
"The IDF will continue its operations against terror in accordance with constant status assessments by the IDF Chief of General Staff. This operation will be continued, expanded and intensified as much as required."
ISRAELI DEFENCE MINISTER EHUD BARAK:
"We face a period that will be neither easy nor short, and will require determination and perseverance until the necessary change is achieved in the situation in the south."
ISLAMIC JIHAD:
"All fighters are ordered to respond to the Israeli slaughter."
HAMAS ARMED WING SPOKESMAN ABU UBAIDA:
The group will "teach the enemy a lesson they will never forget".
NABIL ABU RDAINAH, AIDE TO PALESTINIAN PRESIDENT MAHMOUD ABBAS:
"President Abbas demands that the Israeli government stop this aggression immediately to spare our people its painful effects, and calls on the international community to intervene to stop the aggression."
WHITE HOUSE SPOKESMAN GORDON JOHNDROE:
"Hamas' continued rocket attacks into Israel must cease if the violence is to stop. Hamas must end its terrorist activities if it wishes to play a role in the future of the Palestinian people."The United States urges Israel to avoid civilian casualties as it targets Hamas in Gaza."
SPOKESMAN FOR EU FOREIGN POLICY CHIEF JAVIER SOLANA
"We are very concerned at the events in Gaza. We call for an immediate ceasefire and urge everybody to exert maximum restraint."
ARAB LEAGUE SECRETARY-GENERAL AMR MOUSSA:
"We are facing a continuing spectacle which has been carefully planned. So we have to expect that there will be many casualties. We face a major humanitarian catastrophe".
EGYPTIAN PRESIDENT HOSNI MUBARAK, QUOTED BY MENA:
"Egypt condemns the Israeli military attacks.""Egypt will continue its contacts to prepare an atmosphere conducive to restoring the period of calm and achieving reconciliation between the Palestinian groups."
IRANIAN FOREIGN MINISTRY SPOKESMAN HASAN QASHQAVI QUOTED BY STATE TELEVISION:
"Iran strongly condemns the Zionist regime's (Israel) wide-ranging attacks against the civilians in Gaza.""The raids agains innocent people are unforgiveable and unacceptable."
RUSSIAN FOREIGN MINISTRY STATEMENT:
"Moscow deems it necessary to stop large scale military action against Gaza, which had already led to big casualties and suffering among civilian Palestinian population. At the same time we call on Hamas leadership to stop shelling Israeli territory."
FRENCH PRESIDENCY STATEMENT:
"He (French President Nicolas Sarkozy) demands an immediate stop to the firing of rockets on Israel and to the Israeli bombings in Gaza and calls for all parties to use restraint."
BRITISH FOREIGN OFFICE STATEMENT:
"The only way to achieve lasting peace in Gaza is through peaceful means. Whilst we understand the Israeli government's obligation to protect its population we urge maximum restraint to avoid further civilian casualties""We also call on miltants in the Gaza Strip to immediately cease all rocket attacks on Israel."
ISRAELI DEFENCE FORCE STATEMENT:
"The IDF will continue its operations against terror in accordance with constant status assessments by the IDF Chief of General Staff. This operation will be continued, expanded and intensified as much as required."
ISRAELI DEFENCE MINISTER EHUD BARAK:
"We face a period that will be neither easy nor short, and will require determination and perseverance until the necessary change is achieved in the situation in the south."
ISLAMIC JIHAD:
"All fighters are ordered to respond to the Israeli slaughter."
HAMAS ARMED WING SPOKESMAN ABU UBAIDA:
The group will "teach the enemy a lesson they will never forget".
NABIL ABU RDAINAH, AIDE TO PALESTINIAN PRESIDENT MAHMOUD ABBAS:
"President Abbas demands that the Israeli government stop this aggression immediately to spare our people its painful effects, and calls on the international community to intervene to stop the aggression."
WHITE HOUSE SPOKESMAN GORDON JOHNDROE:
"Hamas' continued rocket attacks into Israel must cease if the violence is to stop. Hamas must end its terrorist activities if it wishes to play a role in the future of the Palestinian people."The United States urges Israel to avoid civilian casualties as it targets Hamas in Gaza."
SPOKESMAN FOR EU FOREIGN POLICY CHIEF JAVIER SOLANA
"We are very concerned at the events in Gaza. We call for an immediate ceasefire and urge everybody to exert maximum restraint."
ARAB LEAGUE SECRETARY-GENERAL AMR MOUSSA:
"We are facing a continuing spectacle which has been carefully planned. So we have to expect that there will be many casualties. We face a major humanitarian catastrophe".
EGYPTIAN PRESIDENT HOSNI MUBARAK, QUOTED BY MENA:
"Egypt condemns the Israeli military attacks.""Egypt will continue its contacts to prepare an atmosphere conducive to restoring the period of calm and achieving reconciliation between the Palestinian groups."
IRANIAN FOREIGN MINISTRY SPOKESMAN HASAN QASHQAVI QUOTED BY STATE TELEVISION:
"Iran strongly condemns the Zionist regime's (Israel) wide-ranging attacks against the civilians in Gaza.""The raids agains innocent people are unforgiveable and unacceptable."
RUSSIAN FOREIGN MINISTRY STATEMENT:
"Moscow deems it necessary to stop large scale military action against Gaza, which had already led to big casualties and suffering among civilian Palestinian population. At the same time we call on Hamas leadership to stop shelling Israeli territory."
FRENCH PRESIDENCY STATEMENT:
"He (French President Nicolas Sarkozy) demands an immediate stop to the firing of rockets on Israel and to the Israeli bombings in Gaza and calls for all parties to use restraint."
BRITISH FOREIGN OFFICE STATEMENT:
"The only way to achieve lasting peace in Gaza is through peaceful means. Whilst we understand the Israeli government's obligation to protect its population we urge maximum restraint to avoid further civilian casualties""We also call on miltants in the Gaza Strip to immediately cease all rocket attacks on Israel."
As in the days of Noah...
Hamas Condemns Gaza 'Massacre'

Israeli Defence Minister Ehud Barak said: "The operation will go on and be intensified as long as necessary. It won't be easy and it won't be short. There is a time for calm and a time for fighting, and now the time has come to fight."Mr Barak, a former prime minister and head of the military, told Sky News he could not rule out the use of ground forces against militants in Gaza, which Israeli troops evacuated three years ago.The Israeli military said it had been targeting "terrorist infrastructure".Ismail Haniyeh, leader of the Hamas government of the Gaza Strip, said: "Palestine has never witnesses an uglier massacre."Hamas said the casualties included children walking home from school. Many Hamas compounds are built in residential areas.One police compound was hosting a graduation ceremony for new personnel when it was attacked.The dead include police chief Tawfiq Jabber, Hamas radio reported, while most of Hamas' police buildings have been destroyed.An IDF statement said: "Our aviation intervened massively against Hamas infrastructure in the Gaza Strip to stop the terrorist attacks of the past several weeks against Israeli civilian installations."Our operations will continue and will be expanded if necessary."A spokesman from the Israeli embassy in London told Sky News: "They have enough time to evacuate civilians from those places but they don't do it."They didn't do it on purpose because they want Israel to cause them civilian casualties."Hamas and other Palestinian factions have ordered their troops to avenge the attack.A statement from Islamic Jihad said: "All fighters are ordered to respond to the Israeli slaughter."The Palestinian chief negotiator Hanan Ashwari told Sky News: "There is tremendous public outrage - this is a massive cold-blooded act, it has to stop immediately."Hamas deputy chairman Mousa Abu Marzook told Sky: "We act against Israeli aggression. The Israelis hit some people and we react against them with rockets."The attacks follow the end of a six-month truce between the two sides.Prime Minister Gordon Brown said: "I call on Gazan militants to cease all rocket attacks on Israel immediately."These attacks are designed to cause random destruction and to undermine the prospects of peace talks led by President Abbas."I understand the Israeli government's sense of obligation to its population. Israel needs to meet its humanitarian obligations, act in a way to further the long-term vision of a two-state solution, and do everything in its power to avoid civilian casualties."Conservative foreign affairs spokesman William Hague said: "We deeply regret the loss of civilian life in Gaza today. We call on the Israeli government to show restraint."At the same time we call on Hamas to stop the rocket attacks which are an unacceptable threat to Israel's security, so that the ceasefire, which Hamas failed to renew, can be urgently restored."The United States did not call for the air strikes to stop but said caution was needed.A White House statement said: "Hamas must end its terrorist activities if it wishes to play a role in the future of the Palestinian people."The United States urges Israel to avoid civilian casualties as it targets Hamas in Gaza."In the West Bank city of Hebron Israeli soldiers fired tear gas and rubber bullets at stone-throwing demonstrators protesting against the airstrikes on Gaza.
http://news.sky.com/skynews/Home/World-News/Israeli-Airstrikes-On-Gaza-Hamas-Leader-Ismail-Haniyeh-Condemns-Ugliest-Massacre/Article/200812415194411?lpos=World_News_First_World_News_Article_Teaser_Region_0&lid=ARTICLE_15194411_Israeli_Airstrikes_On_Gaza%3A_Hamas_Leader_Ismail_Haniyeh_Condemns_Ugliest_Massacre
As in the days of Noah...
Arab world condemns Israeli attack on Gaza

Associated Press writers in Amman, Damascus, Beirut, Ankara, Tripoli, Riyadh and Khartoum contributed to this report.
By PAUL SCHEMM, Associated Press Writer
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20081228/ap_on_re_mi_ea/ml_mideast_israel_palestinians
As in the days of Noah...
Israeli assault on Hamas kills more than 200

GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip-Israeli warplanes rained more than 100 tons of bombs on security sites in Hamas-ruled Gaza Saturday and early Sunday, killing at least 230 people in one of the Mideast conflict's bloodiest assaults in decades. The government said the open-ended campaign was aimed at stopping rocket attacks that have traumatized southern Israel.Most of the casualties were security forces, but Palestinian officials said at least 15 civilians were among the dead. More than 400 people were also wounded.The unprecedented assault sparked protests and condemnations throughout the Arab world, and many of Israel's Western allies urged restraint, though the U.S. blamed Hamas for the fighting.But there was no end in sight. The first round of strikes began around noon Saturday followed by successive waves of attacks that continued into the early hours Sunday.Israel warned it might go after Hamas' leaders, and militants kept pelting Israel with rockets - killing at least one Israeli and wounding six.Hundreds of Israeli infantry and armored corps troops headed for the Gaza border in preparation for a possible ground invasion, military officials said, speaking on condition of anonymity under army guidelines.Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said late Saturday that the goal was "to bring about a fundamental improvement in the security situation." He added, "It could take some time."The Israeli airstrikes caused widespread panic and confusion, and black plumes of smoke billowed above the territory, ruled by the Islamic militant Hamas for the past 18 months. Some of the Israeli missiles struck in densely populated areas as students were leaving school, and women rushed into the streets frantically looking for their children."My son is gone, my son is gone," wailed Said Masri, a 57-year-old shopkeeper, as he sat in the middle of a Gaza City street, slapping his face and covering his head with dust from a bombed-out security compound nearby. He said he had sent his 9-year-old son out to purchase cigarettes minutes before the airstrikes began and could not find him. "May I burn like the cigarettes, may Israel burn," Masri moaned.Militants often operate against Israel from civilian areas.Late Saturday, thousands of Gazans received Arabic-language cell-phone messages from the Israeli military, urging them to leave homes where militants might have stashed weapons.The offensive began eight days after a six-month truce between Israel and the militants expired. The Israeli army says Palestinian militants have fired some 300 rockets and mortars at Israeli targets over the past week, and 10 times that number over the past year."There is a time for calm and there is a time for fighting, and now is the time for fighting," said Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak, vowing to expand the operation if necessary.In Gaza City's main security compound, bodies of more than a dozen uniformed Hamas police lay on the ground. Civilians rushed wounded people in cars and vans to hospitals because there weren't enough ambulances to transport all the dead and wounded."There are heads without bodies...There's blood in the corridors. People are weeping, women are crying, doctors are shouting,"said nurse Ahmed Abdel Salaam from Shifa Hospital, Gaza's main treatment center.Military officials said aircraft released more than 100 tons of bombs in the first nine hours of fighting, focusing initially on militant training camps, rocket-manufacturing facilities and weapons warehouses that had been identified in advance.A second wave was directed at squads who fired about 180 rockets and mortars at Israeli border communities. Palestinians said Israeli bombs destroyed a mosque early Sunday. The military called it a "base for terrorist activities."Another target early Sunday was the Al Aqsa TV station used by Hamas. Its studio building was destroyed, but the station remained on the air with a mobile unit. Palestinians counted about 20 airstrikes in the first hours of Sunday.Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni said Hamas' political leaders could soon be targeted."Hamas is a terrorist organization and nobody is immune," she declared. The campaign was launched six weeks before national elections. Livni and Barak hope to succeed Ehud Olmert as prime minister, and the outgoing government has faced pressure to take tough action.Gaza's political leaders, who have been targeted in the past, went into hiding earlier this week. In a speech broadcast on local Gaza television, Hamas' prime minister, Ismail Haniyeh, declared his movement would not be cowed."We are stronger, and more determined, and have more will, and we will hold onto our rights even more than before," Haniyeh said. It was not clear where he spoke.In Damascus, Syria, Hamas' top leader, Khaled Mashaal, called on Palestinians to rekindle their fight against Israel. "This is the time for a third uprising," he said.Israel withdrew its troops and settlers in 2005 after crushing the second Palestinian uprising, but it has maintained control over the territory's border crossings. Despite the overwhelming show of force, it was not clear the offensive would halt the rocket fire. Past operations have never achieved that goal.Late Saturday, Gaza health official Dr. Moaiya Hassanain said 230 Palestinians were killed and more than 400 were wounded.The lone fatality in Israel was in the town of Netivot, where a rocket killed an Israeli man. Six other people were wounded, rescue services said.Netivot only recently become a target, and dozens of stunned residents, some weeping, gathered at the house that took the deadly rocket hit. A hole gaped in one of the walls, which was pocked with shrapnel marks."We need to finish this once and for all and strike back hard," said next-door neighbor Avraham Chen-Chatam, 57.Streets were nearly empty in Sderot, the Israeli border town pummeled hardest by rockets. But dozens of people congregated on a hilltop to watch the Israeli aerial attacks.The TV images of dead and wounded Gazans inflamed Arab public opinion, and protests erupted in Arab Israeli villages, the West Bank and elsewhere in the Arab world. The campaign embarrassed moderate Arab regimes that have encouraged Israeli-Palestinian peacemaking and weakened Hamas' rival, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, who has ruled only the West Bank since Hamas violently seized control of Gaza in June 2007.Abbas condemned the attacks, but fearing violence could spiral out of control, his forces also broke up protests in the West Bank.The offensive also risked opening new fronts, including unrest that could destabilize the West Bank and ignite possible rocket attacks by Lebanese Hezbollah guerrillas on northern Israel.Britain, the EU, the Vatican, the U.N. secretary-general and special Mideast envoy Tony Blair all called for an immediate restoration of calm. The Arab League scheduled an emergency meeting Wednesday to discuss the situation.But the U.S., Israel's closest ally, blamed Hamas. "These people are nothing but thugs, so Israel is going to defend its people against terrorists like Hamas that indiscriminately kill their own people," White House spokesman Gordon Johndroe said.
AP correspondent Aron Heller contributed to this report from Netivot, Israel. Amy Teibel reported from Jerusalem.
AP correspondent Aron Heller contributed to this report from Netivot, Israel. Amy Teibel reported from Jerusalem.
By IBRAHIM BARZAK and AMY TEIBEL
As in the days of Noah...
Pakistani bloggers remember Benazir Bhutto
Web users in Pakistan are paying tribute online to Benazir Bhutto who was murdered one year ago. For most of them she is iconic in their aspirations for a more democratic regime....
Russia braced for unrest; Moscow continues rouble devaluations...

By Isabel Gorst in Moscow and Anuj Gangahar in New York
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/fb228bfa-d385-11dd-989e-000077b07658.html
As in the days of Noah...
Iran to send aid ship...

http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=081226141017.mdy6nmnj&show_article=1
As in the days of Noah...
Palestinian rocket kills 2 Gaza girls...

(Reporting by Nidal al-Mughrabi; Writing by Allyn Fisher-Ilan)
As in the days of Noah....
Thousands mourn in Pakistan a year after Bhutto's killing

By Asim Tanveer
To read more go to:
As in the days of Noah....
Pakistan troop reports bad news for terror fight

AP Military Writer Anne Gearan covers U.S. national security affairs.
Associated Press writers Lolita C. Baldor, Pamela Hess and Sebastian Abbot contributed to this report.
Associated Press writers Lolita C. Baldor, Pamela Hess and Sebastian Abbot contributed to this report.
To read more go to:
As in the days of Noah...
US urging calm over possible Pakistan troop moves

Associated Press Writer Deb Riechmann contributed to this report.
By LOLITA C. BALDOR, Associated Press Writer
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20081227/ap_on_go_ca_st_pe/us_pakistan_troops
As in the days of Noah...
Pakistan Moves Troops Toward Indian Border
Pakistan has started to redeploy thousands of troops to the Indian border from the tribal areas near Afghanistan, intelligence officials said Friday, raising tensions triggered by the Mumbai terror attacks....
Pakistan redeploying troops to Indian border

Associated Press reporters Sebastian Abbot, Asif Shahzad and Zarar Khan in Islamabad, Sam Dolnick in New Delhi and Lolita C. Baldor in Washington contributed to this report.
By CHRIS BRUMMITT, Associated Press Writer
To read more go to:
As in the days of Noah...
Rights group calls for steps to curb abuse of housemaids in Lebanon

Like fixtures
Live-in housemaids are like fixtures for well-off Lebanese families for years. They often do everything from heavy housework to nannying and helping with children's homework.Many get no days off, work for up to 18 hours and are locked indoors. Others leave the house only to shop or walk a dog. Employers, who routinely confiscate their passports to deter them from running away, promise to pay maids $150 (Dh550.5) to $250 a month depending on their nationalities. But many employers don't pay as agreed. Some verbally and physically abuse their workers.
They often deduct the first three month's wages to pay a fee to the agencies that import the maids."We've definitely seen a lot of cases where the employer would beat, slap [a worker] when she makes a 'mistake' - that could be breaking a plate, badly ironing a shirt or burning some food on the stove," added HRW senior researcher Nadim Houry.When domestic workers get into distress, they may ask their embassies to help, but staff are often overwhelmed. The Sri Lankan embassy, for example, has two people to handle some 80,000 Sri Lankan workers in Lebanon.
The issues are laid bare in a recent documentary, Maid in Lebanon II: Voices from Home, directed by Carol Mansour in coordination with the International Labour Organisation (ILO). The 40-minute film, narrated by a Lebanese woman awaiting the arrival of a maid from the Philippines, provides information about the rights and obligations of employers and workers, the full costs of hiring maids and how they should be treated."It's so obvious that there is a problem here," Mansour said at her office in Beirut's Hamra district. The ILO and other groups have helped set up a committee at the Labour Ministry to try to improve conditions for domestic workers.One proposal is to approve a standard contract stipulating the rights and obligations of employers and workers, and to add specific legal provisions to guarantee workers' rights.
Abdullah Razzouk, the head of the committee, said he expected the contract to be approved and the draft law sent to parliament "in the immediate future", provisionally in early 2009.Indrani, a 27-year-old Sri Lankan, lived for 18 months in a shelter run by the Christian charity group Caritas after running away from an abusive employer."I was paid the first year and a half. But then I wasn't paid for the next eight years. When I asked for money, Madam would swear at me, break glasses against the wall. She spoke to me like a donkey," she said recently at the shelter in Beirut. "I was only given some bread and rice to eat. Fruit was forbidden. I woke up at 9am and slept at 4:30 or 5 am. I was not allowed to speak to my parents. They thought I had died," she said, tears welling up.Indrani has since returned home.
As in the days of Noah....
3,000 Santas take out procession in Damascus

By Sami Moubayed, Correspondent
As in the days of Noah....
UAE urges Obama to support Arab initiative to secure stability in Mideast

Backing for Abbas
Shaikh Abdullah pointed out that the Israeli occupation stands as an obstacle to peace efforts. "This is my first visit by land to Palestine where I saw many border crossings and illegal colonies," he said.Shaikh Abdullah added that the initiative will be introduced after the coming Israeli elections to make it clear to the Israeli people that most Arabs and Muslims believe in the setting up of a Palestinian state on the 1967 border and the regaining of all the Palestinian, Syrian and Lebanese occupied territories.Shaikh Abdullah praised the policies of Abbas and reaffirmed the UAE's support for him to continue leading the Palestinian people. Abbas welcomed Shaikh Abdullah and paid tribute to the UAE leadership and people for their ongoing support for the Palestinian people in their struggle to regain their national rights.
PS:(*)Note that the source of this post is Gulf News....Shaikh Abdullah pointed out that the Israeli occupation stands as an obstacle to peace efforts. "This is my first visit by land to Palestine where I saw many border crossings and illegal colonies," he said.Shaikh Abdullah added that the initiative will be introduced after the coming Israeli elections to make it clear to the Israeli people that most Arabs and Muslims believe in the setting up of a Palestinian state on the 1967 border and the regaining of all the Palestinian, Syrian and Lebanese occupied territories.Shaikh Abdullah praised the policies of Abbas and reaffirmed the UAE's support for him to continue leading the Palestinian people. Abbas welcomed Shaikh Abdullah and paid tribute to the UAE leadership and people for their ongoing support for the Palestinian people in their struggle to regain their national rights.
As in the days of Noah....
Saudi court rejects plea to annul 8-year-old girl's marriage to 58-year-old man

As in the days of Noah...
ISLAMIC CRAZE WATCH:"Islam's Conquest Of Rome Not Necessarily By The Sword"':Iraqi Cleric
Aired on Baghdad TV (Iraq) -October 31, 2008 - 00:00:57 : Iraqi Cleric Sheik Hareth Al-'Ubeidi:"Islam's Conquest of Rome Will Not Necessarily Be by the Sword"....
INDIA:"Soldier among Three Pakistanis Planning Suicide Attack"

Source:CNN-IBN
As in the days of Noah...
SHARIA'A LAW WATCH:Taliban threaten to kill Pakistani schoolgirls:Officials

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Taliban_threaten_to_kill_Pakistani_schoolgirls/articleshow/3890827.cms?TOI_latestnews
PS:SHARIA'A LAW equals DESTRUCTION of private and public property and what it is most important it robs a person of its dignity and--eventually--of its LIFE....These retrograds have to be stopped...I truly feel for the people living in Swat...
As in the days of Noah...
Festivus pole goes up in Illinois Capitol, gripes begin

Atheists’ gripes over nativity
Illinois’ Festivus tale opened with the atheists’ gripes over Zanoza’s nativity.The Freedom from Religion Foundation won permission to put up a sign after the nativity went up early this month.“There are no gods, no devils, no angels, no heaven or hell,” the sign reads. “There is only our natural world.”The Madison, Wis.-based group has set up similar displays around the nation, including one in Olympia, Wash., that caught the attention of Fox News commentator Bill O’Reilly and led to protests by his viewers.“It doesn’t make sense to have a public forum for religion in December in a state capitol,” Gaylor said. “It just clutters everything up.”The chatter about the issue gave Tennenhouse the idea. The high school senior and member of the American Civil Liberties Union is home in Springfield for a break from his Lake Forest boarding school.His parents reluctantly contributed the aluminum handle from their swimming pool skimmer, and Tennenhouse and his 13-year-old bother, Matt, applied for a permit to put up a Festivus pole in the Capitol.The state, much to Tennenhouse’s surprise, didn’t turn him down.Nathan Maddox, senior legal adviser with the Illinois Secretary of State’s office, says the state couldn’t legally deny Tennenhouse’s right to free expression.So, on Tuesday, up went the pole, along with a printed poster that included an e-mail address, friendsforfestivus@gmail.com, and a message that reads, in part:“Although Festivus is traditionally celebrated Dec. 23, the people of Illinois have had to begin ‘Grievance Airing’ early this year. Hopefully we can conclude Festivus before February.”Tennenhouse’s message is part political, he says, noting the reference to the corruption charges facing Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich. And it’s a little ideological-the teenager says the Capitol is no place for religious symbols.But something else was at work in Tennenhouse’s plan: boredom.“I’m here for three weeks and I really don’t have much else to do.”Zanoza wishes Tennenhouse had found something-just about anything-else to do.“I give more credence to the atheists’ sign,” said the 55-year-old Zanoza, who lives in Lincoln. “At least they represent a position, a belief, or a lack of belief.”Gaylor doesn’t mind the Festivus pole, as long as Illinois insists on allowing holiday symbols into the statehouse. But she counts her blessings that she lives in Madison-Wisconsin’s capital.“The nice thing here is we do not have a nativity,” she said.Tennenhouse and his brother went to the Illinois statehouse Tuesday, just to gauge the response to their blue aluminum pole. There wasn’t much, he said, because it’s tucked away in a corner of the rotunda where few people are likely to see it.Maybe that’s OK, he says. Even a little humorous.“Ours is kind of ridiculous,” he admits. “I think it’s kind of funny that it got up there.”
On the Web:
Friends for Festivus,
http://www.friends4festivus.webs.com/
By David Mercer--Associated Press
http://www.pantagraph.com/articles/2008/12/25/news/doc495287d869c46857489923.txt
As in the days of Noah...
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