Free Republic

18 September, 2006 ISLAM – VATICAN Pope’s explanations not good enough for radical Islam Threats, demonstrations and calls for protest continue in the Muslim world. Iran’s Khamenei talks about a US-Zionist crusade, a Saudi paper evokes a clash of civilisations, al-Qaeda threatens more defeats and an Indonesian group wants to crucify the Pope. Beirut (AsiaNews) – A day of wrath, breaking off diplomatic relations with the Holy See, burning Benedict XVI in effigy, accusing the Pontiff of complicity with the US and Zionism, explanation given not god enough or of no importance, plus other assorted threats, are but some...

A spokesman for the Australian Muslim community says Pope Benedict XVI should give a full explanation for his comments about Islam. The pontiff has sparked widespread outrage after last week quoting a 14th century Byzantine emperor who said innovations introduced by the Prophet Mohammed were "evil and inhuman". He has since apologised. The head of the Federal Government's Islamic advisory committee, Dr Ameer Ali, says there is disappointment that Pope Benedict has linked Islam to violence. "We expect the Pope to follow the footsteps of his predecessor, who had been a great builder among communities for so many years, and...

The town that voted last year to outlaw spanking voted last night to send President Bush to the woodshed over the Iraq war. Brookline Town Meeting last night voted to impeach the president of the United States in a 104 to 52 vote that was greeted with an eruption of applause and cheers. Jonathan Margolis, who sponsored the article, repeated the embittered claims of the left that Bush lied to the nation and picked and chose which laws his administration would obey. Margolis was forced to defend his proposal against detractors who suggested he was pushing beyond the bounds of...

Palestinians outraged over "humiliating" way in which PA policemen were treated. IDF soldiers guard Palestinian prisoners during the raid on the Jericho Prison. Photo: AP Hamas legislators are demanding a commission of inquiry into Tuesday's IDF raid on the Jericho prison, as many Palestinians expressed outrage over the "humiliating" way in which scores of Palestinian Authority policemen, stripped to their underwear, surrendered. In a separate development, Hamas spokesman Salah Bardawil announced that the new cabinet could be announced on Thursday. He said Fatah would not join the cabinet, which would consist mostly of ministers who were not members of the...

FamilyMediaGuide.com, which tracks incidents of profanity, sex, violence and tobacco use in films, reported Tuesday that "Crash" had 182 expletives, including 99 utterances of the F-word. The movie, about racial tensions in Los Angeles, is nominated for six Oscars, including best picture, best director, best screenplay and best supporting actor. "Brokeback Mountain" ranked second among best picture nominees with 92 curse words, followed by "Munich" with 22, according to FamilyMediaGuide.com. The record for most profanities in a film to win the best picture Oscar is held by the Vietnam War drama "Platoon," with 329. The Vietnam War drama "The Deer...

Japan offers U.S. a loan to pay for troop moves Posted: February 23, 2006 The idea of getting US Marines off Okinawa sooner rather than later has reportedly triggered a Japanese offer to front the costs, but on a loan basis. An agreement last Fall called for 7,000 Marines to relocate from the island to Guam, but the $8 billion price tag has caused Japanese lawmakers to blanche. Now, reports circulating through the Japanese capitol suggest the central government will offer to loan the United States the money necessary to make the moves happen quickly. The United States has steadfastly...

Do Muslim prison inmates have a right to specialized meals that include meat? That's the question being asked repeatedly of federal courts in Washington state in a flurry of inmate lawsuits. One case was filed recently by inmate Ronald Keal, and at least three others have been making their way through the courts. Keal and the others say their religion requires that they eat what's known as "halal" meals, which require slaughter of animals in a tightly proscribed manner. Some of the lawsuits ask for substantial monetary damages, while others ask for a change in the meal plan along with...

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia - Saudi Arabia's top cleric called on the world's Muslims to reject apologies for the "slanderous" caricatures of Islam's Prophet Mohammed and demanded the authors and publishers of the cartoons be tried and punished, Saudi newspapers reported Saturday. Thousands of Muslims, meanwhile, took to the streets in London and several other European cities to protest the drawings that were first published in a Danish newspaper in September and recently reprinted in other European publications. One depicted the prophet with a turban shaped like a bomb with a burning fuse. Denmark also announced it has temporarily withdrawn its...

The Central American Parliament (PARLACEN) issued a resolution of rejection of the recently House-approved US anti-immigrant law that includes building a wall to curb immigrant entry into the US. The document urges the US Senate to remove regulations which consider immigration a criminal act, violate human rights of illegal immigrants, and establish the construction of a wall in four states bordering Mexico. "The House-approved bill even violates the rights of people yet unborn, as it bans their registration and access to education and health," PARLACEN deputy Alvaro Dubon told Prensa Latina. He said another point of concern is the US...

MONTERREY, Mexico- President Vicente Fox on Wednesday criticized the United States' decision to strengthen its border security and complete a wall along the border, calling it "shameful and embarrassing." "This situation we're seeing, a shameful, embarrassing moment where walls are being built, security systems are being reinforced, and human and labor rights are being violated more and more, won't protect the economy of the United States," Fox said. On Monday, a U.S. federal judge lifted the final legal barrier allowing for the completion of a border fence along the Mexico-California border. Plans call for two additional fences running parallel to...

A group of top Muslim clerics have demanded that Orthodox Christian symbols be removed from the Russian coat of arms and have complained about the Russian authorities and power-wielding structures allegedly refusing to abide by the principle of secularity, the Interfax news agency reported. “This is not only a question of the Russian coat of arms. We can say that icons are all but put up on the walls of state offices,” Nafigulla Ashirov, chairman of the Spiritual Board of Muslims of Asian Russia, told journalists. He accused units of the Defense and Interior Ministries and the Federal Security Service...

A MASSIVE mosque that will hold 40,000 worshippers is being proposed beside the Olympic complex in London to be opened in time for the 2012 Games. The project’s backers hope the mosque and its surrounding buildings would hold a total of 70,000 people, only 10,000 fewer than the Olympic stadium. Its futuristic design features wind turbines instead of the traditional minarets, while a translucent latticed roof would replace the domes seen on most mosques. The complex is designed to become the “Muslim quarter” for the Games, acting as a hub for Islamic competitors and spectators. “It will be something never...

Shinnecock Indians In Suit Over Hamptons AP Jun 13, 2005 7:39 am US/Eastern (1010 WINS) SOUTHAMPTON, Long Island The Shinnecock Indians are threatening a lawsuit - claiming they were given title to 36-hundred acres of land in the Hamptons back in 1703 -- and now they want it back. The land includes Southampton College, the Shinnecock Hills Golf Course and some of the most expensive real estate on Long Island's east end. Attorney John Peebles - who represents the Shinnecock Indians - says he will file a lawsuit in U-S District Court in Central Islip this week seeking the land...

Some Pakistanis See U.S. As Symbol of Woes By ERIC TALMADGE, Associated Press Writer Tue May 31,11:16 AM ET ISLAMABAD, Pakistan - A bomb kills worshippers at a Shiite Muslim shrine, and some mourners shout "Down with America!" Days later, a suicide bomber strikes a Shiite mosque and an angry crowd torches a nearby KFC restaurant. Sectarian violence is nothing new in Pakistan, where a small minority of Sunni and Shiite militants keep up a torrid pace of atrocities each year. Now, however, anger over the bloodshed is being vented at a seemingly unrelated target — the United States. Hatred...