Sentenced to more than 6000 years is accused of committing a massacre in Guatemala

 

Court in Guatemala at a soldier accused of committing a massacre of involvement "Iris dos" and killing two hundred people in prison for 6060 years.The U.S. authorities have deported the accused Pedro Pimentel Rios last year at the request of Guatemala.Rios and the soldier is the fifth accused of involvement in the massacre that took place in 1982, is subject to the trial.And the term of imprisonment is primarily symbolic, where the real power is 50 years old.The massacre, "Dos Aires," the most violent in the history of the civil war in Guatemala, which lasted 36 years.The special battalion of the army had raided the village suspected of harboring and assisting left-wing revolutionaries and soldiers killed hundreds of residents of the village for three days and then throwing their bodies into a well.The families of the victims have fought legal battles for a long time to be able to bring the guilty to justice.Rios and lived in California for many years prior to his arrest in 2010 and handed over to the authorities in Guatemala.He denied any connection ex-soldier massacre, was sentenced to 30 years for each person killed in addition to 30 years for crimes against humanity.Four other soldiers involved in the massacre had been tried before.In January a court to provide the former commander of the army, Efraín Ríos Montt, on trial on charges of genocide and crimes against humanity.Monte was the leader of the Army between 1982 and 1983 who have witnessed the most heinous violations, where the population wiped out entire villages of Mayan tribes, and an estimated number of people killed in the civil war which ended in 1996 with 200 thousand people.

Source: BBC Arabic   

Awards ceremony (or. T. In) the European music goes back to Frankfurt in 2012

Said channel (or. T. In) that the TV awards ceremony (or. T. In) Europe will be held on November 11 in Frankfurt and return it to the German city which had hosted the annual ceremony in 2001.

The awards ceremony is described as a meeting place for music from all over the world,although he tends to focus on the highest U.S. artists with the People's International, whoreap the high points of the public who vote for the winners.

And hopes (or. T. In) that builds on the popular reaped in 2011, which ceremony was held in Belfast and attracted 23 million viewers around the world.

The ceremony was a star last year, Justin Bieber and Lady Gaga and a team, "Coldplay" Music to Rock, Pop and "Mfaw" to rap music.

Source: BBC Arabic   

Report: Palestinian children suffering from trauma because of Israel's prisons

 

The Organization of Save the Children (Save the Children) in a report that the vast majority of hundreds of Palestinian children who are placed Israeli jails each year suffer from nightmares, bedwetting and anxiety after their release.
She said the charity in the report published on Monday that the Israeli army arrested more than 8,000 Palestinian children since 2000 in the occupied West Bank and the Governor of children as young as twelve years before military courts, mostly on suspicion of throwing soldiers or Israeli car with stones.
Said Iyad lame head of Amnesty International in the Palestinian territories in the West Bank news conference that 98 percent of the children who were arrested said they were subjected to verbal or physical violence at the hands of Israeli soldiers, leaving the vast majority of psychological wounds of them.
The Gimp said that more than 90 percent of the children suffered from PTSD.
The report is based on the arrest of Israel to the Palestinians under eighteen years of age to a survey of 292 children were detained and then released by Israel.
According to data compiled by the Global Movement for the Defense of Children, an organization that Palestinian rights to the 2301 children were arrested last year compared with 3470 children in 2010. The group said that there are currently 170 Palestinian minors in Israeli jails.
Report said the arrests have a devastating impact on children and their families and their communities.
He added that the children suffer from the effects, including symptoms of post-traumatic stress and fear out of the house as well as psychiatric symptoms such as anxiety attacks and nightmares, while exaggerating the families in the prevention and refuse to let the children out of the house.
The Israeli army says that throwing stones at a serious crime that could lead to injury or death. Said Larry Halitar spokesman for the Israeli army "engaged Palestinian boys sometimes as young as 13 or 14 years in the stone-throwing by hand or catapults on Israeli cars or army vehicles.
"Frequented only that the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) arrested children .. but people do not realize that these children are violent extreme. Instead of soccer practice putting the lives of Israelis in danger."
Sodamena criticized the cache manager program to protect the child Fund United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) told the press conference Israel's use of military tribunals to prosecute Palestinian minors.
"The children can not be tried systematically in any other place in front of military courts and such courts are inadequate to protect their rights."
Ahmed said he Desouki arrested at his home in the camp of Jalazoun refugee camp near Ramallah in the raid late at night last year, where he was at the age of 16 years.
He told Reuters that a large group of armed Israeli soldiers stormed the house and Oikzawh of sleep and dragged him from his bed and handcuffed him, blindfolded him and put him in a jeep.
He said he was beaten during lengthy interrogations and eventually forced to confess that he threw stones at Israeli soldiers.
He said the respondents were leaving him alone for long periods in the interrogation room and handcuffed for long periods of pressure on him to confess.
Sentenced to 18 months in prison Desouki but spent half of it and was released in an exchange of prisoners.
A senior officer in the army that the army was aware of complaints of ill-treatment of the Palestinians and the Palace it was reviewing how to deal with the events of the detainees.
Of Jehan Abdullah
Source: Reuters 

Taliban threatens to cut the throats of American soldiers in retaliation for the incident Kandahar

 

Afghan officials said gunmen opened fire on Tuesday, a delegation from the Afghan government had been investigating the deaths of 16 Afghan civilians at the hands of U.S. troops.
It came hours after the Taliban's threat to cut off the heads of U.S. soldiers in retaliation for the killing of civilians.
Two of the brothers of President Hamid Karzai and are Shah Wali Karzai, Abdul Qayum Karzai, heading with senior defense officials and officials from the intelligence and the Ministry of Interior to the villages and Naguiban Alecozaa in Panjwai district in Kandahar where the soldier was killed civilians.
Was not damaged during the clash Bokhuy Karzai, who broke a gun but a soldier and a civilian were wounded. The area is a stronghold of the Taliban and the supply path of the movement.
He said Zabihullah Mujahid, a Taliban spokesman in an emailed statement using the name you use to describe the Taliban itself the "Islamic Emirate once again warns Americans that the Mujahideen animals take revenge of them .. and God's help we will kill your soldiers and cut off the necks of sadistic serial killers."
With the outbreak of the first protest against the attack by the U.S. soldier at the weekend said the Taliban claim that the Afghan government to hold a public trial of the soldier unit will not reduce civilian hostility to Western forces fighting.
The American soldier who was unnamed defendant to leave his base in the troubled province of Kandahar in the middle of the night and shot dead 16 villagers, mostly women and children.
A U.S. official said on Monday that the U.S. soldier, he had previously treated for severe brain injury after the vehicle coup in Iraq in 2010.
The murders demonstration in which about 2000 students in the eastern city of Jalalabad and the student protesters soldier to stand trial in front of the Afghan authorities in Kandahar.
And U.S. President Barack Obama and Afghan counterpart promised "accounting of any official." Obama said that the incident increases the intention to implement the plans for the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan.
Obama said in a television interview that the incident "makes me more determined to work to ensure the return of our troops home."
But Obama also said he did not believe that there should be a "rush out" and that the withdrawal should be carried out in a responsible manner.
Obama hosts the leaders of NATO countries at a summit in May, will focus on identifying plans to reduce gradually the Western forces and hand over the task of maintaining security to Afghan forces.
He said U.S. Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta that the prosecutor in the case of the attack on Afghan villagers may ask to death but he considered it an isolated incident will not change withdrawal plans.
By Rob Taylor and Mirwais Harouni
Source: Reuters 

Legal or not, New Yorkers happy with police surveillance of Muslims

 

AFP Photo / Emmanuel Dunand

A new poll shows that New Yorkers support an NYPD anti-terror campaign, despite growing concerns over the legality of the surveillance methods involved.

A Quinnipiac University poll, released on Tuesday, indicates that 58 per cent of New Yorkers approve of the way the NYPD treats Muslims. Sixty-three per cent approved the way the police were doing their job overall, and 82 per cent said the NYPD had been effective in combatting terrorism. Police commissioner Ray Kelly got an approval rating of 64 per cent.  

The results come as somewhat of a surprise amidst growing concerns over the constitutionality of an NYPD anti-terror campaign. A number of activists and legal experts are saying that the NYPD’s surveillance methods violate their own guidelines, state laws, and quite possibly, the US Constitution.

The prominent Human Rights Watch organization also heavily criticized NYPD’s methods of surveillance, saying they were conducted illegally.

Last August, AP reported that the CIA was assisting the NYPD in gathering intelligence from mosques and minority neighborhoods. The NYPD is said to have sent undercover agents into mosques, university campuses and business to monitor and record activities.

Such methods may violate the so-called “Handschu guidelines,” which prohibit NYPD officers from keeping records of their observations at public places unless the data is related to “potentially unlawful activity.”

“There's a very strong suggestion that they are going into the Muslim community, chatting up folks and maintaining records on individuals, which we think runs afoul of the Handschu decree,” said Arthur Eisenberg, legal director of the New York Civil Liberties Union.

In the meantime, police commissioner Ray Kelly defended the surveillance methods.

“Anyone who intimates that it is unlawful for the police department to search online, visit public places, or map neighborhoods has either not read, misunderstood, or intentionally obfuscated the meaning of the Handschu guidelines,” he said during a recent speech at Fordham University.

The Handschu guidelines were established by a Manhattan federal judge in 1985. They were meant to resolve a 1971 class action suit, Handschu vs. Special Services, in which a number of activist groups, led by plaintiff Barbara Handschu, accused the police of compiling information to repress lawful dissent. The 1985 guidelines prohibited indiscriminate police videotaping and photographing of public gatherings unless there was some indication of unlawful activity. Federal judge Charles Haight eased the restrictions established by the Handschu guidelines in the aftermath of the September 11 attacks.

But Haight also sought to keep a check on police powers, and included a clause to force the NYPD to turn over the files related to their public surveillance program. However, the terms of the handover are still being negotiated with city attorneys.

Proving that the police used racial profiling in their anti-terror campaign may be a much more difficult task, however. Legal experts say that it is somewhat difficult to substantiate claims that religion or race were “determinative” factors for the police to take action.

“The reality is that much of what the ordinary person would consider racial profiling is not legally prohibited by the Constitution,” Criminal justice expert Stephen Schulhofer said.

But legal experts also state that if police targeting can be proven to create a “stigma” for Muslims that could violate the equal protection clause of the 14th Amendment.

“We can show that people are not attending prayers because they are afraid,” noted Omar Mohammedi, president of the Association of Muslim American Lawyers.

In one particular case, an Algerian native has been accused of plotting to blow up a synagogue.

Ahmed Ferhani and Mohamed Mamdouh, were arrested on May 11 last year and were indicted on charges of state crime and hate crimes.

On Tuesday, Ferhani’s defense lawyer Elizabeth Fink said the police targeted her client because of his mental instability, drug problem and criminal record. She also accused the district attorney of “bad faith prosecution,” which she says was motivated by the need to justify the NYPD’s extensive surveillance of Muslim communities.

“What's happening in the city of New York is evil, judge. It is wrong, and this case will expose it,” she argued.

According to prosecutors, Ferhani was arrested in a sting operation after purchasing three guns and an inert grenade from an undercover officer. Prosecutor Margaret Gandy argued he acquired the weapons for “the cause” and said his long-term goal was to commit “a violent act against a Jewish synagogue.”

Source: Russia Today 

Shock Swiss bus crash kills 28, most children (PHOTOS)

 

The wreckage of a bus is seen after it crashed inside a motorway tunnel in Sierre, in the Swiss canton of Valais on March 14, 2012. (AFP Photo / Sebastien Feval)

A bus carrying Belgian students crashed into a tunnel wall in Switzerland, killing 28 people, 22 of which were children.

Another 24 students were taken to hospital with injuries, local police say.  

The bus was carrying 12-year-olds from two schools back from a ski holiday in the southwestern region of Valais when it crashed on Tuesday evening. The cause of the accident has yet to be determined.

Police reported that the bus veered, hit a curb and then crashed into a concrete wall. The front of the vehicle was heavily damaged by the impact, leaving people trapped in side.  

The highway was closed for traffic as the rescue operation was underway, AP reported. Some eight helicopters and a dozen ambulances took victims to the hospital. Dozens of firefighters and police, 15 doctors and three psychologists were also called to the scene.

According to Belgian media, the children who suffered in the crash came from two towns in Flanders.

 

A helicopter takes off from the entrance of a tunnel into which a foreign coach crashed in Sierre (REUTERS/Denis Balibouse) 

 

The wreckage of a bus that crashed into a motorway tunnel is pulled in Sierre, western Switzerland (REUTERS/Denis Balibouse) 

 

The wreckage of a bus that crashed into a motorway tunnel is pushed into a warehouse in Sierre, western Switzerland (REUTERS/Denis Balibouse) 

Obama considers quicker exit from Afghanistan after Kandahar massacre

 

AFP Photo / Ahmad Al-Rubaye

In the wake of the recent massacre in Afghanistan, the US military is now scrambling for both options and explanations, which in turn has Washington once more considering an even more expedient end to America’s longest war.

An outburst over the weekend that saw a United States Army staff sergeant opening fire and killing 16 civilians could not have come at a worse time in the war for the Obama administration. Sunday’s incident near Kandahar in Afghanistan would be certain to worsen tensions between the two at-odds nations no matter the surrounding circumstances, but not only has the most recent mishap occurred in an operation approaching its eleventh year, but the latest setback also came but weeks since the last smashup.

Addressing how the Kandahar tragedy could change the getaway plan for the troops overseas, US President Barack Obama told reporters this week, "And so, what we try to do is create a responsible pathway for an exit where by the end of 2014 we’ll have all our troops out."

The president had those words for reporters from the White House this week, and echoed those sentiments again on Monday to KDKA in Pittsburgh. “It’s important for us to make sure that we get out in a responsible way, so that we don’t end up having to go back in,” said Obama.

Under original war strategies, the United States expected to stay on the offensive in Afghanistan through at least 2014. Last month, however, the US Department of Defense acknowledged that they would try to largely reduce combat troops earlier than expected. "Our goal is to complete all of that transition in 2013, and hopefully by mid- to the latter part of 2013, we'll be able to make a transition from a combat role to a training, advise and assist role,”explained Defense Secretary Leon Panetta last month discussing the detail change.

Obama’s conservative opponents were quick to attack his administration at the time over ending the operation, with GOP challenger Mitt Romney going as far to say, "[Obama’s] naiveté is putting in jeopardy the mission of the United States of America and our commitments to freedom.” Although top-brass among the US Armed Forces are hesitant to toss in the towel any earlier, others are suggesting that the US get out while it can, especially after the Taliban responded to this weekend’s episode by vowing to seek revenge.

President Obama has already apologized to the Afghan people repeatedly for this weekend’s episode, but his condolences are but déjà vu for many who are still trying to make sense of the previous incident only weeks earlier. Late February, civilians in Bagram discovered that American officers were discarding burned copies of the Muslim holy book, prompting protests that proved deadly for both sides. In a war consistently marred by mistakes and misfortune, the White House is now weighing an even more expedient exit from Afghanistan.

Responding to whether Sunday’s incident is pressuring the president to pursue a faster exit strategy, Obama acknowledged that the administration has discussed that the decade-long debacle may we have already surpassed a point where further perseverance would not prevail for either country’s ideals. “Well, it makes me more to make sure that we’re getting our troops home — it’s time,” the president told reporters this week. “It’s been a decade and frankly, now that we’ve gotten bin Laden, now that we’ve weakened al-Qaeda, we’re in a stronger position to transition than we would have been two or three years ago."

But one day into the aftermath of the Sunday slaying of 16 civilians, the White House says they are looking for a faster way out of Afghanistan, even after already moving up the withdrawal date once in 2012. Prior to the latest episode, the US was expected to send 22,000 troops back to the States by September, leaving around 68,000 to stay until America formally forfeits in 2014. As for those remaining troops, though, Washington is now deciding if they should see an end to their tour as earlier as expected.

The New York Times reports that Washington is now weighing three separate withdraw options, including one backed by National Security Adviser Thomas Donilon, who wants 10,000 extra troops exiting by the end of 2012. Under that plan, an extra toll of as many as 20,000 could then come home in under 2013.

On Monday, General John Allen, the commander of allied forces in Afghanistan, had a different argument for CNN, though. Speaking of the United States’ current strategy, General Allen said, “The campaign is sound.” To Wolf Blitzer, Gen. Allen added, “It is solid. It does not contemplate, at this time, any form of an accelerated drawdown.”

Source: Russia Today 

Playboy playmate-turned-parliamentary

 

Actress-turned-politician Maria Kozhevnikova (Photo from lichnosti.net)

Politicians often reveal themselves as playboys. It’s a rare twist of fate when a siren who poses for Playboy tries her hand in politics. Playmate Maria Kozhevnikova has just done just that and joined the Russian State Duma.

The 27-year-old  star of a popular Russian sitcom has become one of Vladimir Putin’s United Russia Party’s MPs. She describes it as “a big event” in her life.

The big-eyed Russian actress joins a long line of girls who’ve done glamour modelling and then entered government. Olympic champion gymnast Svetlana Khorkina posed for a glossy magazine stripped down to her underwear. United Russia deputy and Olympic champion speed skater Sventala Zhurova posed topless for GQ magazine, and Olympic champion gymnast turned politician Alina Kabaeva, is considered as one of the world’s sexiest members of parliament.  

The newly-elected blond  Kozhevnikova  also has some Olympic roots. She’s the daughter of a Soviet ice hockey player Aleksandr Kozhevnikov who was twice an Olympic champion.

The versatile Maria sang with a band called Love Stories before launching a film career. To boost her popularity and show off her acting potential Kozhevnikova posed nude for Playboy, reportedly after splitting up with her boyfriend.

Kozhevnikova’s promising political career started when she became a member of the Young Guard of United Russia, like the alleged spy Anna Chapman.

Source: Russia Today 

Politics with a twist of porn

 

Italian porn queen Cicciolina (REUTERS/Gregg Newton)

Italians like their politics spiced up. Four Mediterranean porn stars will be vying for votes in municipal elections, including veteran porn actress-turned-politician, Cicciolina.

60-year-old Ilona Staller, aka Cicciolina, has a reputation for delivering political speeches with one breast exposed. The blond bombshell never had to give up her passion for cinema for the love of politics and continued to make hardcore pornographic films even after being elected a Member of Parliament.

The Italian porn diva posed naked for Playboy and was one of the founders of The Party of Love. Cicciolina made waves when she suggested having sex with Saddam Hussein and later with Osama bin Laden.

After five years in the Italian parliament, the retired porn star reportedly receives a yearly pension of 39,000 Euros from the state.

Cicciolina’s porn counterparts running for elections also include Italian beauty Luana Borgia, once a participant in the Miss World pageant, and Milly D'Abbraccio who was a candidate for the Socialist Party in the Rome municipality in 2008. Last year 47-year-old Milly announced her candidacy for mayor of the city of Monza.

Amandha Fox is the youngest porn star among the four. Originally from Poland, the 27 year-old wannabe politician announced her candidacy for Mayor of Taranto, promising that if elected, she would introduce “Taranto Sex” an international festival to be held twice a year.

Source: Russia Today