Gates of Vienna News Feed 1/28/2015

The English-language news section of Al Jazeera has banned the use of the words “terrorist”, “Islamist”, and “jihad” in its reporting. No JIM for Al Jaz! Meanwhile, Facebook has censored an image of the prophet Mohammed.

In other news, a White House spokesman said that the Taliban are not a terrorist organization.

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

Thanks to Diana West, Fjordman, Insubria, Nick, Papa Whiskey, Phyllis Chesler, Srdja Trifkovic, Steen, 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.

Financial Crisis
» Crux of the Matter for Greece: Eur 315 Bn of Debt
» Greece Will Not Default — PM Tsipras
» Italy: Yield Drops to 0.16% at 6-Mth Bot Sale
 
USA
» Al Jazeera English Bans Words: ‘Terrorist, ‘ ‘Islamist, ‘ ‘Jihad’ Off-Limits to News Employees
» Choosing Tyranny Over Freedom: The Obama Legacy
» Facebook Censors Images of Prophet Mohammed
» N.Y. Times’ Charles Blow Said Nothing About Cop Who Arrested His Son Being Black
» Taliban Not a Terrorist Group: White House
 
Canada
» Montreal Teen Allegedly Committed Robbery to Help Terrorist Group
 
Europe and the EU
» 53% of French Think Country is ‘At War’
» Belgium: Syrian Held After Taking Photos of a Flemish Church
» Belgium: Flemish to Deal With Radicalisation at School
» Bishop Silences German Priest for Speaking at PEGIDA Rally
» Denmark: ‘We Imams Are Part of the Solution’
» Dutch Would-be Jihadi’s Jail Term Increased on Appeal
» EU Raises Alarm on Bulgaria Corruption
» France Launches Shock Video to ‘Stop Jihadists’
» France Seeks to Sanction Web Companies for Posts Pushing Terror
» France: ‘Blasphemous’ Artwork Removed From Paris Exhibition
» Germany Calls on Greece to Show ‘Fairness’
» Germany: PEGIDA Spokeswoman Quits Group: Report
» Germany: Russia May Declare 1989 Reunification Illegal
» ‘Greece-EU Clash Over Anti-Russia Statement: Others May Follow Athens’ Suit’
» Greece May Veto EU Sanctions on Russia
» Greek Elections: Jail Fails to Deter Far-Right Golden Dawn
» ISIS Cell Members Killed in Belgium Shared Their Jihad Experiences on Facebook
» Italy: ‘Tax Dodge’ Businessman’s Assets Seized
» Italy: First Civil Servants Transferred
» Italy Split Over Pensions Referendum Inadmissibility Ruling
» Italy: Lupi Decree Frees Up 1.2bn in Loans for School Repairs
» Italy: Father Gets 9 Mths for Forcing Diet on Daughters
» Italy: Roman Jews Remember Holocaust With Grandparents’ Diaries
» Italy: Ringleader of 13 Syrians ‘Manufactured Chemical Weapons’
» Italy: Islam Convert Arrested in Anti-Terror Operation
» Kepler Telescope Identifies Ancient Solar System
» Muslim Stabs Pregnant, German Girlfriend in Belly, Then Burns Her Alive. Police Suspects “Honor” Killing
» Netherlands: Cabinet Continues to Defend Saudi Arabia Visit
» PEGIDA Germany: Anti-Islam Group Loses Second Leader in a Week
» Spanish Ice Cream Seller ‘Turns to Jihad’
» Spanish Police Arrest 4 Suspected Members of Jihadi Cell
» UK: ‘I’m Going to Go Jew Bashing’: What Teenage Thug Texted Friend Before Muslim Thugs Beat Up Orthodox Jewish Man ‘In Protest Against Conflict in Palestine’
» UK: Man Who Cut Off Wife’s Head With Knife Jailed
 
Balkans
» Serbia and Algeria to Improve Military Cooperation
 
Mediterranean Union
» UfM and EESC Sign Agreement to Boost Cooperation in the Mediterranean
 
North Africa
» Libya: Tripoli Attack, 1 U.S, 1 French Citizen Among Victims
 
Israel and the Palestinians
» Gaza Protest Held at UNRWA After it Suspends Aid
 
Middle East
» Experts: Women Joining ISIS ‘Cheerleaders, Not Victims’
» Gazprom Says Turkey Pipeline to be Operational by 2016
» ISIS: Demonstrations for Jordanian Pilot, “Free Rishawi”
» Persecuted Christians Join Yazidis in Iraq’s Fight Against ISIS
» The Four Saudi Princesses: Obama Mum on Plight of Muslim Women
 
Russia
» EU Foreign Ministers to Expand Russia Blacklist
» Greece Says No to EU Statement on Russia
 
Far East
» China to Hold Military Parade to ‘Frighten Japan’
» China’s Yuan Now World’s 5th Payments Currency: Swift
» China’s Xi Steps Up Anti-Corruption Drive
» North Korea’s Leader Kim Jong-un ‘To Visit Russia’
 
Australia — Pacific
» Spain Planned to Invade Australia in 1790s
 
Sub-Saharan Africa
» Rifts Between U.S. And Nigeria Impeding Fight Against Boko Haram
» Sudan Rebels Hold Six Bulgarian UN Aid Workers
» Zimbabwe’s White Farmers Face Threats of New Evictions
 
Immigration
» Germany: ‘No More Middle Eastern Immigrants’: AfD
» Half of All Londoners Will be Foreign-Born by 2031 as the Capital’s Population is Set to Reach Ten Million
» Number of Migrants in UK Towns Trebled in Last 10 Years
» Pope Mulls Crossing U.S.-Mexico Border to Show Solidarity With Immigrants
» Record Numbers of Unaccompanied Minors Fleeing to Denmark
» Syrian Refugees Help Boost Asylum Requests up by Two-Thirds Last Year
» Why We Need a North American Passport
 
Culture Wars
» DOJ Hasn’t Determined if Attack on White Veteran by Black Men is a Hate Crime
» English Version of Swedish Genitals Song on the Way
 
General
» Why We Need to Address Population Growth’s Effects on Global Warming
 

Crux of the Matter for Greece: Eur 315 Bn of Debt

A: More than 315 billion euros. The exact figure varies according to the different sources: the EU’s statistics authority Eurostat puts it at 315.5 billion euros at the end of September 2014, while the European Financial Stability Facility (EFSF) estimates it at 324 billion euros.

Depending on which figure you take, the debt represents between 175 percent and 177 percent of Greek gross domestic product (GDP), the highest ever amount in the European Union.

           — Hat tip: Fjordman [Return to headlines]
 

Greece Will Not Default — PM Tsipras

New Greek PM Alexis Tsipras says his country will not default on its debts.

Addressing his first cabinet meeting since Sunday’s victory, Mr Tsipras said he would negotiate with creditors over the €240bn (£179bn; $270bn) bailout.

“We won’t get into a mutually destructive clash, but we will not continue a policy of subjection,” said the left-wing Syriza party leader.

The EU has warned his government to stick to its commitments. A default could force Greece out of the euro.

Greece has endured tough budget cuts in return for its 2010 bailout, negotiated with the so-called troika — the European Union, International Monetary Fund (IMF) and European Central Bank (ECB).

The economy has shrunk drastically since the 2008 global financial crisis, and increasing unemployment has thrown many Greeks into poverty.

           — Hat tip: Fjordman [Return to headlines]
 

Italy: Yield Drops to 0.16% at 6-Mth Bot Sale

Touch above all-time low of 0.13%

(ANSA) — Rome, January 28 — The yield fell to 0.16% at a six-month BOT Treasury bond sale Wednesday from 0.297% at the last auction in December.

This was a tad above the all-time low of 0.13%.

All seven billion euros of BOTs on offer were easily sold, with the ratio between demand and supply rising from 1.39 to 1.74.

           — Hat tip: Insubria [Return to headlines]
 

Al Jazeera English Bans Words: ‘Terrorist, ‘ ‘Islamist, ‘ ‘Jihad’ Off-Limits to News Employees

Al Jazeera English executive Carlos van Meek banned his news employees from using words like “terrorist,” “Islamist” and “jihad,” explaining that it’s important to realize that some might take offense — that one person’s idea of terrorism is simply another person’s fight for freedom.

           — Hat tip: Fjordman [Return to headlines]
 

Choosing Tyranny Over Freedom: The Obama Legacy

by Newt Gingrich

In deciding to skip the Unity March in Paris for a football game but cut short his trip to India to go to Saudi Arabia, President Obama chose tyranny over freedom.

His comments about the Saudi regime in advance of his trip confirmed the President’s priorities. As the Associated Press reports:…

           — Hat tip: Diana West [Return to headlines]
 

Facebook Censors Images of Prophet Mohammed

The decision comes weeks after Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg gave his support to freedom of speech proclaiming “Je Suis Charlie.”

           — Hat tip: Fjordman [Return to headlines]
 

N.Y. Times’ Charles Blow Said Nothing About Cop Who Arrested His Son Being Black

A Yale campus police officer who detained the son of black New York Times columnist Charles Blow is also black, according to a campus-wide email sent out by Yale officials.

On Saturday, Blow wrote on Twitter that he was “fuming” over a call he received from his son, a third-year student at Yale. He wrote that his son was “accosted” and held up at gunpoint by a Yale policeman because he fit the description of a suspect. Blow’s son, Tahj Blow, is an ecology and evolutionary biology major, according to the Yale Daily News.

[…]

The race of the officer who detained Blow’s son is not mentioned in Blow’s column.

“The officer, who himself is African American, was responding to a specific description relayed by individuals who had reported a crime in progress,” said a Monday email to Yale’s campus community.

[…]

The email is signed by Yale President Steve Salovey, Dean of Yale College Jonathan Halloway and Yale Police Department Chief Ronnell Higgins.

Higgins is also black.

Blow did not return a request for comment on why he omitted the race of the officer in his column…

[LOL! Would you wonder? — PW]

           — Hat tip: Papa Whiskey [Return to headlines]
 

Taliban Not a Terrorist Group: White House

White House deputy press secretary Eric Schultz argued during Wednesday’s briefing that the United States can negotiate prisoner swaps with Taliban members, because the Taliban is not considered a terrorist group.

           — Hat tip: Fjordman [Return to headlines]
 

Montreal Teen Allegedly Committed Robbery to Help Terrorist Group

MONTREAL — A Montreal teenager facing two terrorism-related charges linked to a robbery will have a trial date set next month.

The 15-year-old appeared Wednesday in youth court, where his lawyer was granted a request to postpone proceedings until Feb. 16.

Federal prosecutors allege he committed a robbery for the benefit of an unspecified terrorist organization. Authorities also say the adolescent is charged with planning to leave Canada to participate in the activities of a terrorist group abroad.

Waring grey sweat pants and a black-and-grey hoodie, the accused listened quietly as he sat between two guards. His lawyer said his parents were not present because they knew the postponement was coming.

The adolescent will remain detained until the next court appearance…

           — Hat tip: Vlad Tepes [Return to headlines]
 

53% of French Think Country is ‘At War’

51% hold Islam to be incompatible with French values

(ANSAmed) — PARIS — Some 53% of French citizens believe the country is “at war”, according to a survey carried out by the IPSOS/Sopra Steria institute for the daily Le MOnde and Radio Europe 1 about three weeks after jihadist attacks in Paris. The survey shows that 51% of respondents feel that Islam is “incompatible” with the values of French society (12% fewer than in January 2014 and 23% fewer than in January 2013) and 66% believe that Islam is a “religion that is as peaceful as others” and that Islamic fundamentalism is a “perversion of this religion”.

However, 90% want anti-jihad measures stepped up, while only 9% say that they are against “the publication in the press of satirical caricatures on religion”.

           — Hat tip: Insubria [Return to headlines]
 

Belgium: Syrian Held After Taking Photos of a Flemish Church

Police in the East Flemish village of Laarne detained a Syrian man for nearly 24 hours after he took snapshots at a local church. The police were worried the man could have had terrorist intent.

Prosecutors have meanwhile confirmed that Amar didn’t do anything wrong.

           — Hat tip: Fjordman [Return to headlines]
 

Belgium: Flemish to Deal With Radicalisation at School

The Flemish Prime Minister Geert Bourgeois has indicated that the Flemish authorities can learn from their Walloon counterparts when it comes to dealing with the radicalisation of youngsters at school. Mr Bourgeois was speaking after meeting his Walloon counterpart Rudy Demotte.

Belgium’s two big communities want the federal authorities to ensure that they receive all the information with regard to radicalisation that is available. In addition they believe that they can learn from one another as the problems of radicalisation are the same on both sides of the divide.

Geert Bourgeois: “When all of a sudden a majority of pupils in a class support a terrorist attack, then a crisis situation can emerge. How do you deal with this as a teacher?”

           — Hat tip: Fjordman [Return to headlines]
 

Bishop Silences German Priest for Speaking at PEGIDA Rally

The Bishop of Münster, Felix Genn, has banned Father Paul Spätling from preaching in a Catholic church after Spätling addressed a PEGIDA rally in Duisburg earlier this week. The Bishop said he “cannot and will not tolerate” such talk.

Invoking Canon 764 of Catholic Canon Law, the Bishop has stripped the 67-year-old priest of his preaching authority, forbidding him from speaking inside or outside of houses of worship. The PEGIDA movement—Patriotic Europeans Against the Islamization of the West—was founded in Dresden in October 2014.

           — Hat tip: Fjordman [Return to headlines]
 

Denmark: ‘We Imams Are Part of the Solution’

The imam of one of Copenhagen’s biggest mosques has attacked Tuesday’s decision to cut Islamic leaders out of Denmark’s anti-radicalisation plan, arguing that they alone can give a theological argument against extremism.

“We imams are part of the solution,” Mohammed Ali Blaoo, who runs the large new mosque on Rovsingsgade, told Denmark’s Berlingske newspaper. “Only we imams can give young people a theological argument for getting out of extremism and taking a moderate position.”

The government on Tuesday dropped a plan to provide funding to imams to help them identify and confront extremist Danes, after the Danish People’s Party refused to accept the measure.

           — Hat tip: Fjordman [Return to headlines]
 

Dutch Would-be Jihadi’s Jail Term Increased on Appeal

A would-be Dutch jihadi known as Omar H has had his one year jail sentence extended to 18 months on appeal. H was found guilty of preparing to launch a terrorist attack and incitement after the court was told he had looked online for bomb-making instructions and was preparing to travel to Syria. Last October H was not convicted of terrorism. The public prosecution department had called for a three year jail term.

           — Hat tip: Fjordman [Return to headlines]
 

EU Raises Alarm on Bulgaria Corruption

Seven years after joining the EU, Bulgaria has done little to curb corruption and organised crime in a threat to its sovereignty and to European unity.

The Balkan country of 7.5 million people, the EU’s poorest, has a “serious” problem with high-level corruption, while preventive measures are still “in their infancy” the European Commission has said in a monitoring report due out on Wednesday (28 January).

It also has a problem with organised crime, with little protection for witnesses and “very low” rates of conviction and asset seizure.

           — Hat tip: Fjordman [Return to headlines]
 

France Launches Shock Video to ‘Stop Jihadists’

The French government has released a shock video campaign in the hope of dissuading young French nationals from heading to the Middle East to fight with Islamic jihadists, by telling them “you’ll find hell on earth and you’ll die alone, far from home”.

           — Hat tip: Fjordman [Return to headlines]
 

France Seeks to Sanction Web Companies for Posts Pushing Terror

The French government is stepping up the pressure on Google Inc. and Facebook Inc. to help in the struggle against terrorist groups.

President Francois Hollande said Tuesday in Paris the government will present a draft law next month that makes Internet operators “accomplices” of hate-speech offenses if they host extremist messages. Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve said he will travel to the U.S. to seek help from the heads of Twitter Inc. and Microsoft Corp. as well as Google and Facebook. Spokesmen for the companies did not immediately return requests for comment.

Since Paris suffered deadly terror attacks earlier this month, the French government has been stiffening laws against incitement to violence and has cracked down on recruitment rings for Islamic radicals. Whereas a decade ago most potential Muslim terrorists emerged from underground mosques, security experts say they are now increasingly being radicalized and recruited online.

           — Hat tip: Fjordman [Return to headlines]
 

France: ‘Blasphemous’ Artwork Removed From Paris Exhibition

An artwork depicting high-heeled shoes on Islamic prayer mats has been removed from an exhibition after a Muslim group warned of possible violence in the wake of the Paris attacks.

The French-Algerian artist, Zoulikha Bouabdellah, withdrew the work from an exhibition in a northern Paris suburb with a large Muslim population after an Islamic group told local authorities it could provoke “uncontrollable, irresponsible incidents”.

It is considered disrespectful to step on Muslim prayer maps with shoes.

Ms Bouabdellah has replaced the artwork, “Silence”, previously exhibited in Paris, New York, Berlin and Madrid, with a video installation showing belly-dancing to the French national anthem, with swirling red, white and blue shawls symbolising the national flag.

           — Hat tip: Fjordman [Return to headlines]
 

Germany Calls on Greece to Show ‘Fairness’

Vice-Chancellor Sigmar Gabriel urged Greece to be “fair” to other EU member states, after the Bundesbank warned that ending the country’s bailout programme would have “fatal consequences”.

           — Hat tip: Fjordman [Return to headlines]
 

Germany: PEGIDA Spokeswoman Quits Group: Report

After the departure of their leader apparent over a photo of him styled as Adolf Hitler, more members of the central core of Germany’s anti-Islamisation movement are leaving the flock, including its most recognisable face.

According to Stern news magazine, the so-called “orga-team” of the Patriotic Europeans Against the Islamisation of the West, better known as Pegida, held a summit on Tuesday evening to discuss Lutz Bachmann’s future involvement.

Bachmann stepped down after Facebook photos emerged showing him styled as Hitler.

           — Hat tip: Fjordman [Return to headlines]
 

Germany: Russia May Declare 1989 Reunification Illegal

More than 25 years after the Berlin Wall’s fall, Russian lawmakers are mulling a proposal to condemn West Germany’s 1990 “annexation” of East Germany as Moscow’s answer to Western denunciation of its seizure of Crimea.

           — Hat tip: Fjordman [Return to headlines]
 

‘Greece-EU Clash Over Anti-Russia Statement: Others May Follow Athens’ Suit’

Greece’s discontent with the EU over this statement may give new momentum to other European countries, and make it easier for them to have courage to say “no” to the dictate from Brussels, foreign affairs analyst Srdja Trifkovic told RT.

RT: How come the EU issued this strong statement without the consent of all the members?

Srdja Trifkovic: Because it is very difficult in the EU to be the first country to break ranks. Now that the Greeks have made the move I confidently expect that, the Hungarians in particular, but perhaps also Slovakia and Cyprus, will find it easier to garner courage and say “no” to the dictate from Brussels. I believe that the move such as announced by the government in Athens can have momentum. Once you have the first voice countering the dictates and faits accomplis from Brussels, then maybe some other countries will follow suit. In particular Budapest, Bratislava and Nicosia are to be watched in this respect.

RT: Is this the first time the Council of the European Union has issued a statement like this without seeking consent?

ST: To my knowledge this is the first such occasion. It reflects above all the ideological commitment of the Polish President of the EU, Donald Tusk, who has been well known during the seven years of his prime ministership of Poland as an enemy of Russia, to impose these sanctions… Obviously in order to do so, because of his deep commitment, he is prepared to cut corners. But I believe that the Greeks and maybe others will now call him to task for that.

RT: Is this the beginning of strained relations between Greece and the rest of the EU?

ST: The real test will come on Thursday, when several countries — including the UK in particular — will be asking for additional sanctions against Russia in the wake of the Mariupol deaths. If the Greeks decidedly act against this then it will herald a crisis, because in March there will be a need for unanimity when the first package of sanctions against Russia comes up for renewal, and then in June and July — the second package. Without the Greeks they simply cannot be renewed because all 28 [EU countries] have to be in favor. Donald Tusk will not be able to pretend yet again that unanimity does exist when it doesn’t.

RT: Some sources suggest that Greece has even tried to remove a line which blames Russia for the Mariupol shelling. Does Moscow have a new friend in Europe?…

           — Hat tip: Srdja Trifkovic [Return to headlines]
 

Greece May Veto EU Sanctions on Russia

Government sources have told the Kathimerini daily that the new Greek government may veto further EU sanctions on Russia. The report comes after Athens declined to join an EU leaders’ statement blaming Russia for a recent rocket attack on Ukrainian civilians which killed 30 people.

           — Hat tip: Fjordman [Return to headlines]
 

Greek Elections: Jail Fails to Deter Far-Right Golden Dawn

Greece’s far-right, anti-immigrant Golden Dawn party came third in the election with 6.3% — even though its leaders are in pre-trial detention.

Their result translates into 17 parliamentary seats, out of 300. But it is not clear if any of the party’s MPs will be allowed into the chamber.

In 2012 they got 18 seats, but the leaders were later accused of criminality and they remain in custody.

Last October party leader Nikolaos Michaloliakos and his fellow MPs were accused of running a criminal organisation. Dozens of other party activists were also accused by state prosecutor Isidoros Doyiakos, who said they should stand trial.

           — Hat tip: Fjordman [Return to headlines]
 

ISIS Cell Members Killed in Belgium Shared Their Jihad Experiences on Facebook

On January 15, 2015, security forces in Verviers, Belgium raided a cell of Islamic State (ISIS) members who were planning to carry out attacks in the country. The raid resulted in the deaths of two Belgian ISIS operatives, Tarik Jadaoun (aka Abou Hamza Al-Belgiki) and Redwane Hajaoui (aka Abu Khalid Al-Maghribi). A third, believed to be the plot’s mastermind, has been identified as Abdelhamid Abaaoud (aka Abu ‘Omar Al-Belgiki) and as of this writing is still at large. The three, all from Verviers, had spent time in Iraq and Syria, where they underwent indoctrination and received military training, and later fought in the ranks of ISIS.

           — Hat tip: Fjordman [Return to headlines]
 

Italy: ‘Tax Dodge’ Businessman’s Assets Seized

825,000 euros in undeclared taxes say police

(ANSA) — Crotone, January 26 — Italian police on Monday seized 825,000 euros in assets from a Calabrian businessman who allegedly failed to declare his earnings.

Three pieces of property near Crotone were confiscated and several bank accounts frozen, equivalent to the alleged amount he evaded.

           — Hat tip: Insubria [Return to headlines]
 

Italy: First Civil Servants Transferred

Understaffed provincial courts to get 1,071 employees

(ANSA) — Rome, January 21 — Court offices will get 1,071 new civil servants thanks to a recent government reform allowing the transfer of such employees to wherever they are needed most, Civil Service Minister Marianna Madia said Wednesday. “1,071 public employees transferred to understaffed judicial offices. Provincial ones are the priority,” Madia tweeted. Premier Matteo Renzi said earlier this month his government’s reform package will make the work ethic prevail within Italy’s bureaucratic apparatus, which is notoriously resistant to change.

           — Hat tip: Insubria [Return to headlines]
 

Italy Split Over Pensions Referendum Inadmissibility Ruling

Opponents of law urge government to act for change

(ANSA) — Rome, January 20 — Politicians were divided Tuesday on the decision by the Constitutional Court to declare inadmissible a referendum on a December 2011 pensions reform, with proponents of a popular vote saying the ruling amounted to the ‘death of Italian democracy’ and opponents saying parliament was the appropriate place to review the controversial law.

Former Labour Minister Elsa Fornero, who authored the reform, welcomed the ruling as being “positive for the country”.

“Now it is for parliament to examine the law if it wants to, calmly and with farsightedness,” continued the university professor who served as labour minister under the technocrat government led by economist Mario Monti from 2011 to 2013. “Far from me to say the law is perfect, but a passage through parliament is preferable,” she concluded.

Meanwhile Northern League leader Matteo Salvini, whose party proposed the referendum, said that on Tuesday “Italian democracy has died”. “You can hear ‘go to hell’ all over Italy. It doesn’t end here… the judges have screwed a sacrosanct right. This Italy disgusts me and I’ll fight to overhaul it”, said Salvini of the decision not to allow a referendum on article 24 of the December 22, 2011 law. The article raised the pensionable age and requirements for retirement on the basis of the number of years of social security contributions made and created the so-called ‘exiled’ (esodati), namely people finding themselves unemployed and without pension rights for a number of years. The Monti government addressed the problem of the esodati in subsequent provisions but the problem reportedly persists. Further, opponents of the pension reform claim it makes labour market entry for young people more difficult and penalises female workers in particular. Following the Constitutional Court decision Anna Giacobbe of Premier Matteo Renzi’s Democratic Party (PD) and a member of the House Labour Committee called on the government to tackle the issue.

“We have made slight progress on single issues, or parts of issues, in recent months; on others we have hit walls,” Giacobbe said.

“It’s time for the government to put the matter on its agenda,” she concluded. The Monti government pursued the pensions reform as part of EU-mandated austerity measures aimed to combat recession and Italy’s massive public debt amid the crisis in the eurozone.

           — Hat tip: Insubria [Return to headlines]
 

Italy: Lupi Decree Frees Up 1.2bn in Loans for School Repairs

Regions can take out 30-year loans to fix schools

(ANSA) — Rome, January 21 — Transport Minister Maurizio Lupi on Wednesday signed a decree activating 1.2 billion euros in loans to local governments for school repairs and renovations, the ministry said Wednesday.

Regions will be able to take out 30-year loans, with the State taking on the amortization charges, the ministry said.

           — Hat tip: Insubria [Return to headlines]
 

Italy: Father Gets 9 Mths for Forcing Diet on Daughters

Ruling could set precedent in Italian courts

(ANSA) — Turin, January 26 — A Turin man was sentenced to nine months in jail on Monday for causing psychological trauma in his daughters after forcing them to eat a macrobiotic diet and ski at a competitive level for being “too fat”.

The verdict could set a judicial precedent in the Italian courts, where no similar sentences have been handed down before.

Prosecutors had asked for 10 months in the case of the father who was convicted of mistreating and psychologically abusing his daughters with repeated insults and the enforced exercise and diet program.

The man, whom prosecutors described as wealthy, said he was alarmed at how his daughters looked in Facebook photos, and maintained that his concerns represented normal parental worry about his daughters’ health.

Complaints were made in 2011 by the man’s ex-wife, who told prosecutors the former couple’s daughters did not want to visit their father.

           — Hat tip: Insubria [Return to headlines]
 

Italy: Roman Jews Remember Holocaust With Grandparents’ Diaries

Read by family members

(by Virginia Di Marco) (ANSAmed) — ROME, JANUARY 26 — The memories of family members came back to life through the voice of their grandchildren, great-grandchildren and nephews. It happened yesterday, at the Pitigliani center, an important cultural meeting point for Rome’s Jewish community, during the fourth edition of “Memories of family”. Here, in front of a crowded and moved room, a dozen of teens and children read diaries, letters and memories written during racial persecution and the war.

Racial laws, the beginning of the conflict, the armistice, deportations and finally the arrival of allies became pages of collective and family history. Among particularly significant accounts were those regarding the bewilderment of Jews after September 8. The joy following the announcement on the radio of an armistice, when skeptics were derided and then the bitter awareness that the nightmare was far from over.

“Everything becomes chaos, the most senseless and contradictory rumors are circulating”, according to an account.

One thing appears clear: the Germans “have very aggressive intentions”. At this point, the most recurrent question written by hand by the bewildered and scared Roman Jews was “what should be done” — as many wondered whether they should hide in the city or the country.

And then there was the story of the 50 kilos in gold demanded on September 23, 1943 by the German command to Roman Jews, with the threat that otherwise 200 heads of families would be deported. The pages read yesterday revealed all the hopes raised by that request and then the disappointment when it became clear a few days later that the gold handed over would not help save anyone: “the Germans had fooled us”.

From memory to memory, the stories then move on to October 16, 1943, when 1,024 Roman Jews were apprehended and deported.

Many, before the train that would take them to a concentration camp left, threw cards in the hope that someone would take them to the intended recipient. “We are leaving for Germany resigned and serene”, one of the messages read.

Then there was an abstract from a diary of a German woman, wife of a Nazi soldier, who spoke about the Americans advancing in Germany and the defeat of the Reich from her perspective. The family of the author was present. “We are very moved because you have welcomed us among you today: thank you for this great proof of confidence that you are giving us”, said the daughter of the diary’s writer, with a German accent, in a voice broken by emotion.

           — Hat tip: Insubria [Return to headlines]
 

Italy: Ringleader of 13 Syrians ‘Manufactured Chemical Weapons’

‘Tortured, executed seven Assad soldiers in Syria’

(see related)(ANSA) — Milan, January 28 — Charges against a group of 13 Syrians probed for a series of terror-related offences in Italy and Syria include helping to prepare chemical weapons, sources said Wednesday.

Investigators say ringleader Haisam Sakhanh led a gang that attacked and otherwise intimidated at least six supporters of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad who live in the Milan area. Sakhanh is also accused of taking part in the torture and execution of seven Assad soldiers in Syria.

           — Hat tip: Insubria [Return to headlines]
 

Italy: Islam Convert Arrested in Anti-Terror Operation

Munitions, warfare training manual found in Palermo area home

(ANSA) — Palermo, January 28 — A 43-year-old convert to Islam was arrested in the province of Palermo overnight as part of an anti-terror operation, ANSA sources said Wednesday. War munitions and warfare training manuals were found in the arrested person’s home. Police searched some 40 premises as part of the operation. Italy is on a high state of alert and the authorities have beefed up anti-terror measures after this month’s attacks by Islamist terrorists in France.

           — Hat tip: Insubria [Return to headlines]
 

Kepler Telescope Identifies Ancient Solar System

An ancient solar system similar to our own has been discovered by scientists.

Studying data from the Kepler telescope, the team, led by the University of Birmingham, found a star orbited by five planets similar in size to Earth.

The system, 117 light-years away, is the oldest known of its kind, formed 11.2 billion years ago.

Researchers said the star, named Kepler-444, and its planets were two and a half times older than earth and dated back to the “dawn of the galaxy”.

While the proximity of the planets to the star ruled out the possibility of life, Dr Campante said the discovery showed planets of an Earth-like size, capable of supporting life, could exist around a similarly ancient star.

“There may be civilisations out there with a head-start of a few billion years. Imagine the level of technology,” he said.

           — Hat tip: Fjordman [Return to headlines]
 

Muslim Stabs Pregnant, German Girlfriend in Belly, Then Burns Her Alive. Police Suspects “Honor” Killing

“Police are investigating the possible honor killing of a heavily pregnant 19-year-old woman in Berlin, Germany. After the killing and burning of a 19-year-old pregnant woman in Berlin Köpenick, the police are investigating if one of the perpetrator’s Turkish family instigated the murder. The alleged killers were taken into custody over the weekend.

           — Hat tip: Fjordman [Return to headlines]
 

Netherlands: Cabinet Continues to Defend Saudi Arabia Visit

The visit to Saudi Arabia by king Willem-Alexander following the death of the Saudi king was in the Netherlands’ interests, foreign minister Bert Koeders said on Tuesday. It is because the Netherlands maintains a relationship with the country that ministers can raise questions about human rights abuses, Koenders told parliament. A number of opposition parties had criticised the decision to send both the king and Koenders to pay their respects in Riyad. ‘It is an illusion to think you can defend human rights by being isolated,’ Koenders said, pointing out that Saudi campaigners are not in favour of a boycott. While the Netherlands does have economic interests in Saudia Arabia, the two countries are also working together to combat terrorism and IS, he said.

           — Hat tip: Fjordman [Return to headlines]
 

PEGIDA Germany: Anti-Islam Group Loses Second Leader in a Week

German anti-Islam movement Pegida lost its second leader in a week on Wednesday when Kathrin Oertel, who took over after the founder quit for posing as Hitler, also stepped down, citing media pressure.

The Dresden-based group announced on its Facebook page that Ms Oertel and another board member were resigning. The 37-year-old became Pegida’s national figurehead after founder Lutz Bachmann resigned a week ago after news that he was being investigated.

Pegida said Ms Oertel had quit “due to the massive hostility, threats and career disadvantages”, adding: “Even the strongest of women has to take time out when at night photographers and other strange figures are sneaking around outside her house.”

The group added that its cause remained “good and just”.

           — Hat tip: Fjordman [Return to headlines]
 

Spanish Ice Cream Seller ‘Turns to Jihad’

One of the alleged terrorists arrested in the north-African Spanish enclave of Ceuta on Saturday worked in a local ice-cream parlour for seven years, never raising suspicions among his colleagues.

           — Hat tip: Fjordman [Return to headlines]
 

Spanish Police Arrest 4 Suspected Members of Jihadi Cell

Spanish National Police arrested four suspected jihadis Saturday in the country’s North African enclave of Ceuta who allegedly had formed a terror cell and were ready to carry out an attack, the Interior Ministry said.

           — Hat tip: Fjordman [Return to headlines]
 

UK: ‘I’m Going to Go Jew Bashing’: What Teenage Thug Texted Friend Before Muslim Thugs Beat Up Orthodox Jewish Man ‘In Protest Against Conflict in Palestine’

An Orthodox Jew was beaten up by a gang of teenagers who said the attack was a protest ‘about the Palestinians and the Jewish community’, a court has heard.

Balawal Sultan, 18, Kesa Malik, 19, Hassnain Aliamin, 18, all from Newcastle-upon-Tyne, and a 17-year-old boy have all admitted attacked the 41-year-old victim in nearby Gateshead.

Sultan, who had hours earlier sent a text message saying he was ‘going Jew bashing’, lay in wait with the other three behind a van before pouncing on the victim as he walked home to his family…

           — Hat tip: Steen [Return to headlines]
 

UK: Man Who Cut Off Wife’s Head With Knife Jailed

A man who attacked his disabled wife and cut off her head with a kitchen knife has been jailed for at least 22 years.

The judge described the murder of 38-year-old Tahira Ahmed at the family home in Northolt, west London as “perfect barbarity”.

Naveed Ahmed, 41, was said to have “snapped like a twig” when he carried out the attack on 27 May last year after losing his job as a Lidl supermarket manager.

After the “ferocious and brutal” killing, he fled the house but was picked up nearby by police who spotted he was sweating heavily and had blood stains on his coat.

The Old Bailey heard officers had previously been called to the property in Merton Avenue on a number of occasions following reports of violence by Mrs Ahmed, but no action was taken. […]

In a statement after the hearing, the family said: “On this day, there is no celebration, for we have forever lost a dearly loved daughter, sister, mother and friend.

“Her life was cut short in the most brutal manner by a barbaric man with out-dated and backward ideals.”

           — Hat tip: Nick [Return to headlines]
 

Serbia and Algeria to Improve Military Cooperation

(ANSAmED) — BELGRADE, 26 JANUARY — During a visit to Algeria, a delegation of the Serbian Ministry of Defence has discussed with Algerian colleagues ways to improve cooperation, also coordinating a plan of bilateral military cooperation for this year.

The Ministry of Defence delegation, which took part in the third session of the Serbia-Algeria commission on defence cooperation, was headed by the rector of the University of Defence, Major General Mladen Vuruna, the Serbian Ministry of Defence said on its website.

The two sides agreed that defence cooperation should be intensified, in particular in the military economic, military educational and military medical spheres.

Representatives of the Jugoimport-SDPR public enterprise presented all possibilities and specific offers to expand cooperation and implement joint projects in Algeria.

           — Hat tip: Insubria [Return to headlines]
 

UfM and EESC Sign Agreement to Boost Cooperation in the Mediterranean

The Union for the Mediterranean (UfM) and the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) today signed a Memorandum of Understanding to work closer on areas of common concern, including job creation, women’s socio-economic empowerment, entrepreneurship, social economy, food security and climate change.

UfM Secretary General Fathallah Sijilmassi pledged closer cooperation aimed at promoting regional integration, sustainable development, dialogue and stronger ties across the Mediterranean. EESC President Henri Malosse said now was the time for action: “the Mediterranean region has been neglected by the EU this whole past decade.”

Under the agreement, both parties agree to work more closely together, facilitating the involvement of non-governmental stakeholders — trade unions, professional federations, private sector and civil society organisations — in addressing regional challenges. (EU Neighbourhood Info)

           — Hat tip: Fjordman [Return to headlines]
 

Libya: Tripoli Attack, 1 U.S, 1 French Citizen Among Victims

State Department confirms, ISIS claims assault

(ANSAmed) — NEW YORK — The death of a US citizen in the attack Tuesday on the Corinthia hotel in Tripoli has been confirmed by the US State department, which however did not identify the victim. Cliff Taylor, CEO of security firm Crucible, told CNN that the American victim is Cliff Taylor, a contractor who worked for the company. The FBI will open an investigation into the attack, two sources from the Obama administration told CNN.

According to the online edition of Le Figaro, the five foreign victims of the attack, which killed a total of 12 people, “are an American, a Frenchman, two Filipino women and a South Korean man”. The French paper quoted Issal Al-Naass, spokesman for the local rescue team, as saying the victims died from bullet wounds. The Frenchman worked for Libyan air carrier Buraq, according to Le Figaro.

The foreign ministry in Paris has “condemned the vile attack” and asked that those responsible be held accountable for their action.

Meanwhile, ISIS has claimed responsibility for the attack.

According to the SITE intelligence group, ISIS carried out the attack as retaliation for the death in an American jail, on January 3, of Al Libi, an al Qaida chief who masterminded the attacks on US embassies in Kenya and Tanzania in the 1990s.

It is still unclear how the attack on the Corinthia Hotel was carried out. The hotel hosted the headquarters of the “parallel” government of Omar al Hassi, which is not recognized by the international community.

Three Libyan guards were among the victims of terrorists who started firing as soon as they entered the hallway, while the five foreigners were first seized in the hotel and subsequently killed. The four attackers reportedly died in a shootout with Libyan security, though some sources alleged that the attackers blew themselves up once they were surrounded. Dozens of people were injured.

           — Hat tip: Insubria [Return to headlines]
 

Gaza Protest Held at UNRWA After it Suspends Aid

Demonstrators attack local HQ

(ANSAmed) — GAZA, JANUARY 28 — The day after the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) halted its cash assistance program to Palestinians in the Gaza Strip displaced by last summer’s war with Israel, a heated protest was held in front of the agency’s headquarters in the Tel Al-Hawa area of Gaza City. Local sources say that the protestors set fire to tires and some tried to attack the building, shattering a number of windows. Security services intervened to restore order.

           — Hat tip: Insubria [Return to headlines]
 

Experts: Women Joining ISIS ‘Cheerleaders, Not Victims’

Western women who join Islamic State terrorists are driven by the same ideological passion as many male recruits and should be seen as potentially dangerous cheerleaders, not victims, experts told AFP.

A new study out on Wednesday said the estimated 550 women who have travelled to Iraq and Syria are expected to marry, keep house and bear children.

Despite being banned from fighting, the study found they were active propagandists for the cause.

           — Hat tip: Fjordman [Return to headlines]
 

Gazprom Says Turkey Pipeline to be Operational by 2016

(MOSCOW) — Russian gas giant Gazprom said Tuesday that a planned pipeline to Turkey will be in service by end 2016, piling pressure on the European Union to build a link to it or risk losing gas supplies from Moscow.

Russia had announced the new gas pipeline to Turkey after scrapping the construction of the South Stream link to the European Union as relations with the bloc sank to a post-Cold War low over the bloody insurgency in Ukraine.

           — Hat tip: Fjordman [Return to headlines]
 

ISIS: Demonstrations for Jordanian Pilot, “Free Rishawi”

Japan asks Jordan to cooperate in momentous phase

(ANSAmed) — ROME, JANUARY 28 — Hundreds of people on Tuesday demonstrated in the Jordanian capital Amman raising photos of Muadh al-Kassasbe, the pilot held by ISIS, asking the government to release Sajida al-Rishawi, the would-be suicide bomber whose release has been demanded by the Islamic State in exchange for Japanese hostage Kenji Goto and the air force pilot, Jordanian media report.

A Japanese government spokesman confirmed on Wednesday that Tokyo has asked for the “cooperation of Jordan, at an extremely momentous phase, for the release of Kenji Goto”.

“This policy does not change”, said spokesman Yoshihide Suga, speaking about the 24-hour ultimatum issued by ISIS militants for the release of the reporter, adding that the plan is well-known to Tokyo’s task force in Amman. Officials from both countries are in talks over how to ensure that Goto and Jordanian pilot Muadh al-Kasassbe will be freed.

           — Hat tip: Insubria [Return to headlines]
 

Persecuted Christians Join Yazidis in Iraq’s Fight Against ISIS

by Phyllis Chesler

The savage Muslim persecution of Assyrian Christians and Yazidi (Zoroastrian/Hindus) by Sunni Muslims in the Middle East and in Shiite Iran has reached fever-pitch. ISIS has systematically murdered, tortured, captured, and enslaved Yazidi girls and women. They have done likewise to the Assyrians in Syria and Iraq. Iran has persecuted Assyrians as well.

In terms of ISIS in Syria and Iraq: It is important to note that Western-born and Western-raised fighters have joined these barbaric warriors. This is a dangerous phenomenon because these fighters are choosing barbarism over civilization.

Last week, two Yazidi women managed, miraculously, to recently escape their captors. Their information is very valuable. Through them we learn the following:

Jihadists from Australia, who went to fight for ISIS in Syria, captured and enslaved these two Yazidi women, raped them continually, and threatened them with sale into sex slavery or even death if they did not “marry” their rapists. These Australian-born Jihadists had other wives and children who were being indoctrinated into a barbarian Jihadist culture.

The point here is that these fighters obviously rejected Western Australian values. Khaled Sharrouf, one of the Australian-born terrorists of Lebanese origin, has a long history ofmental illness and criminality. His companion-in-Jihad, Sydney-born Mohamed Elomar, also of Lebanese origin, was a championship boxer, until he became radicalized about 10 years ago when he joined the Global Islamic Youth Centre (GIYC) in Liverpool, Australia, where notorious hate-preacher Sheikh Feiz Mohammad led prayers. Feiz was supposedly an inspiration to one of the Boston Marathon bombers.

           — Hat tip: Phyllis Chesler [Return to headlines]
 

The Four Saudi Princesses: Obama Mum on Plight of Muslim Women

by Phyllis Chesler

President Obama, who chose not to join France’s march for freedom, cut his state visit to democratic, nuclear India short in order to stop in Saudi Arabia Tuesday to pay his respects to the new king, Salman al-Saud, upon the death of King Abdullah.

Is this an urgent state matter or a matter of Realpolitik? Not necessarily. During a 2009 G-20 conference, Obama shocked people when he bowed down quite low to King Abdullah, 5’11”. On that same visit, Obama didn’t bow to Queen Elizabeth, 5’4”.

Perhaps the president’s visit is better seen as part of what he has said, many times, is his mandate to reach out to the Muslim world.

Obama has refused to call ISIS “Islamic,” or to connect Jihad or terrorism with “Islam.” His administration has been obsessively concerned with the false concept of “Islamophobia.”

And, while our president has frequently spoken out on behalf of African-American and Muslim men, he has been all but silent about African-American and Muslim women.

Now it is urgent that he break this silence. There are Muslim and ex-Muslim dissidents and feminists who are desperate to hear supportive words from the leader of the free world.

Four such women are now in harsh captivity in Saudi Arabia.

           — Hat tip: Phyllis Chesler [Return to headlines]
 

EU Foreign Ministers to Expand Russia Blacklist

EU foreign ministers are keen to quickly add names to the Russia blacklist, according to draft conclusions of Thursday’s (29 January) emergency meeting seen by EUobserver.

The text, circulated by the EU foreign service (EEAS) to capitals on Wednesday, says: “In view of the worsening situation, the (EU) Council agrees to extend the restrictive measures targeting persons and entities for threatening or undermining Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity”.

           — Hat tip: Fjordman [Return to headlines]
 

Greece Says No to EU Statement on Russia

The new far-left government in Greece dropped a bombshell on its first day in office by abjuring an EU statement on Russia.

It said in a press communique on Tuesday (27 January): “the aforementioned statement was released without the prescribed procedure to obtain consent by the member states and particularly without ensuring the consent of Greece”.

“In this context, it is underlined that Greece does not consent to this statement”.

It added that its new PM, Alexis Tsipras, expressed “discontent” in a phone call to EU foreign relations chief Federica Mogherini.

           — Hat tip: Fjordman [Return to headlines]
 

China to Hold Military Parade to ‘Frighten Japan’

China will this year hold its first large-scale military parade since 2009 to mark the 70th anniversary of the end of World War II, reports said Tuesday, with one key goal described as being to “frighten Japan”.

Communist China generally shies away from the vast annual demonstrations of military might that were a hallmark of the Soviet Union.

But it most recently held National Day parades in 1999 and 2009 to mark the 50th and 60th anniversaries of the October 1 establishment of the People’s Republic of China.

Even now the part played by the People’s Liberation Army in China’s earlier resistance against Japanese invasion remains a key element of the Communist Party’s claim to a right to rule.

           — Hat tip: Fjordman [Return to headlines]
 

China’s Yuan Now World’s 5th Payments Currency: Swift

China’s yuan has become the world’s fifth most widely used payments currency, with the value of cross-border deals settled in it more than doubling in 2014, data from transactions organisation SWIFT showed Wednesday.

The data comes as China looks to make the yuan used more internationally in line with its standing as the world’s second-largest economy, while at the same time keeping its value tightly controlled.

The yuan, also known as the renminbi (RMB), overtook the Canadian dollar and the Australian dollar to enter the top five of world payment currencies in November, according to a SWIFT statement.

It has climbed eight spots in fewer than two years, having been in 13th place in January 2013.

           — Hat tip: Fjordman [Return to headlines]
 

China’s Xi Steps Up Anti-Corruption Drive

The anti-corruption campaign in China shows no signs of fatigue. Reports about officials ensnared in graft investigations are being released on a daily basis. But the problem won’t vanish without reforms, experts say.

           — Hat tip: Fjordman [Return to headlines]
 

North Korea’s Leader Kim Jong-un ‘To Visit Russia’

Russia says North Korea’s leader has accepted an invitation to Moscow in May, South Korea’s Yonhap reports.

The news agency cites a written response from the Kremlin, but says it does not mention Kim Jong-un by name.

Yonhap quotes a Unification Ministry official as saying the reference to the leader could be ambiguous, as Kim Yong-nam is the nominal head of state.

Kim Jong-un has not made any overseas visits since taking power in North Korea in late 2011.

His first destination will been keenly watched for what it might indicate about his policies and strategy.

           — Hat tip: Fjordman [Return to headlines]
 

Spain Planned to Invade Australia in 1790s

Spain planned to invade British colonies in Australia in the 1790s with a 100-ship armada, recently unearthed Spanish naval documents reveal.

Spain, at that time a world power with colonies across the Americas and the Philippines, feared that the British colony in Australia would be a threat to Spanish interests along the Pacific.

Spanish naval documents found by Chris Maxworthy, of the Australian Association for Maritime History, reveal the Spanish scheme, thought up by Carlos IV.

“The plan was to attack Sydney from the Spanish colonies in South America with a fleet of 100 medium-sized boats armed with cannons and ‘hot shot’ (a cannon that involved firing heated shots that could set fire to ships or buildings)”, he told The Australian Financial Review.

Historians, however, say that if such an invasion had ever happened, Britain would quickly have retaken the colony, due to its stronger military and vast commercial interests in the area.

           — Hat tip: Fjordman [Return to headlines]
 

Rifts Between U.S. And Nigeria Impeding Fight Against Boko Haram

Relations between American military trainers and specialists advising the Nigerian military in the fight against Boko Haram are so strained that the Pentagon often bypasses the Nigerians altogether, choosing to work instead with security officials in the neighboring countries of Chad, Cameroon and Niger, according to defense officials and diplomats.

Major rifts like these between the Nigerian and American militaries have been hampering the fight against Boko Haram militants as they charge through northern Nigeria, razing villages, abducting children and forcing tens of thousands of people to flee.

           — Hat tip: Fjordman [Return to headlines]
 

Sudan Rebels Hold Six Bulgarian UN Aid Workers

After a helicopter carrying UN World Food Program aid workers was forced to land in a war-torn part of Sudan, rebels captured six of the passengers. Bulgaria’s foreign ministry has said the captives are Bulgarian.

           — Hat tip: Fjordman [Return to headlines]
 

Zimbabwe’s White Farmers Face Threats of New Evictions

Most of Zimbabwe’s white farmers were stripped of their land in often violent evictions that started in 2000. Now the remaining white farmers are on edge because of threats of new evictions linked to the country’s long-running political turmoil.

There are fewer than 300 white farmers out of the original total of 4,500, according to the Commercial Farmers Union. The land eviction program that targeted white farmers starting in 2000 was defended by Mugabe as necessary to correct land imbalances dating from the era of white rule, though the upheaval was blamed for mismanagement of Zimbabwe’s once rich agricultural economy.

           — Hat tip: Fjordman [Return to headlines]
 

Germany: ‘No More Middle Eastern Immigrants’: AfD

The deputy leader of right-wing populist party Alternative for Germany (AfD) said on Wednesday that all migration from Arab countries should be stopped.

           — Hat tip: Fjordman [Return to headlines]
 

Half of All Londoners Will be Foreign-Born by 2031 as the Capital’s Population is Set to Reach Ten Million

The number of foreign-born people living in London will outnumber native Britons by 2031, it was revealed today.

The immigrant population of the capital will reach at least five million in 16 years — having more than doubled from one million in 1971 to three million in 2011, when the last census was carried out.

New research has found the rise of non-British born Londoners will take the city’s total population to more than 10 million in 2031 and 11 million in 2041 — compared with the 8.6 million living there today.

But while the city’s immigrant population will continue to rise sharply in the coming decades, the number of British-born people will continue to slowly decline.

In 1971 this figure was at more than six million but this is likely to sink below five million in the coming decades.

           — Hat tip: Fjordman [Return to headlines]
 

Number of Migrants in UK Towns Trebled in Last 10 Years

THE foreign-born population of some British towns has tripled in just 10 years, a report shows.

The number of migrants in the UK has increased three-fold in the last 10 years.

In Boston, Lincolnshire, immigrant numbers are up 389 per cent and foreigners now account for 15 per cent of the residents — up from just three per cent a decade ago.

In Merthyr Tydfil, the proportion of migrants rose from 1.4 per cent to 4.5 per cent.

Hull, Wrexham and Aberdeen all saw the proportion of migrants in their populations more than double.

The figures were compiled using census figures by Oxford University’s Migration Observatory.

It also found that the share of foreign-born people in the UK’s total population increased by more than 50 per cent between 1993 and 2013, making the population now 12.5 per cent foreign-born.

More than twice as many EU migrants are claiming unemployment benefits in Britain than the number of Britons claiming unemployment benefits elsewhere, figures from 23 EU nations show.

Almost 65,000 EU nationals are getting Jobseeker’s Allowance in the UK, among them 14,880 Poles.

Just two unemployed Britons are living on welfare in Poland.

           — Hat tip: Steen [Return to headlines]
 

Pope Mulls Crossing U.S.-Mexico Border to Show Solidarity With Immigrants

The U.S.-Mexico border may someday see a high-profile crosser — Pope Francis.

The intrepid pontiff raised the possibility that among his future trips could be entering the U.S. border from Mexico.

The pope, who made the comment while flying back recently from the Philippines, said he would do it to show solidarity with immigrants, according to the Latin Post.

“To enter the U.S. from the Mexico border would be a beautiful sign of brotherhood and help for immigrants,” the pope said, according to the Post and other outlets.

There are some logistical factors, however, that the pope indicated he would have to address.

           — Hat tip: Fjordman [Return to headlines]
 

Record Numbers of Unaccompanied Minors Fleeing to Denmark

Provisional figures from last year show that a record 838 children and adolescents under the age of 18 sought asylum in Denmark last year. One in five of those refugees were under 15-years-old.

Mette Lindegaard, the social coordinator at the Red Cross centre in Jaegerspris said that the situation has created the need for an additional temporary reception centre for children and for additional staff.

“We can feel that the children and young people coming from Syria, who have seen war up close, are very traumatised,” Lindegaard told Berlingske.

           — Hat tip: Fjordman [Return to headlines]
 

Syrian Refugees Help Boost Asylum Requests up by Two-Thirds Last Year

In total, 23,935 people applied for asylum in the Netherlands last year, a 66% increase on 2013 and the highest level since 2002, the national statistics office CBS said on Wednesday. The biggest group — 10,000 — were people from Syria and Palestinians who reached the Netherlands via Syria, the CBS said. Eritreans accounted for around 4,000 refugees.

           — Hat tip: Fjordman [Return to headlines]
 

Why We Need a North American Passport

(CNN) The future of the United States lies in North America. This is not a geographic truism, but a strategic imperative. Generations of Americans, distracted by far-flung crises, have long taken our own region for granted. This must change if the 21st century is to be an American century. The United States, Canada and Mexico are bound by a shared economic, environmental, demographic and cultural destiny. How we move forward together is key to our success.

In the North American context, much like within the European Union, our economies and societies are far more integrated than our immigration system recognizes — and a North American passport, much like the EU passport, would align our laws with reality.

           — Hat tip: Fjordman [Return to headlines]
 

DOJ Hasn’t Determined if Attack on White Veteran by Black Men is a Hate Crime

The Department of Justice (DOJ) has yet to determine if the brutal attack on a white Iraq war veteran by a gang of black men that took place last August in Mississippi is a federal hate crime.

At least one witness described the incident as racially motivated. The attack was allegedly carried out in retaliation for the shooting of Missouri teen Michael Brown.

In a statement released in August, the West Point Police said it would investigate the incident as an “aggravated assault,” not “a hate crime.”

           — Hat tip: Fjordman [Return to headlines]
 

English Version of Swedish Genitals Song on the Way

Swedish Television is to make an English version of a children’s song that became a global sensation and that features dancing cartoon penises and vaginas.

The song was created for a children’s television programme about the human body. A video for the song features dancing and singing genitals.

“We thought it would be fun to share it with the world because the video has become so popular and because people don’t have a clue what we’re singing about,” songwriter Johan Holmström tells news agency TT, adding: “I’ve seen some weird translations online that are quite disgusting.”

The Swedish version of the song refers to the penis and vagina as “snopp” and “snippa”, the Swedish equivalents of “willy” and “twinkle”.The original video has been watched some 4.7 million times online.

           — Hat tip: Fjordman [Return to headlines]
 

Why We Need to Address Population Growth’s Effects on Global Warming

Sensitive subject or not, the reality is that unsustainable human population growth is a potential disaster for efforts to cut greenhouse gas emissions. These days, the biggest population growth is occurring in developing nations, which is why any discussion must be sensitive to the perception that well-off, industrialized nations — the biggest climate polluters, often with majority-white populations — might be telling impoverished people of color to reduce their numbers. In fact, person for person, reducing birth rates in industrialized nations has a bigger impact on greenhouse gas emissions because affluent people use more of the Earth’s resources and depend more heavily on fossil fuels.

           — Hat tip: Fjordman [Return to headlines]
 

4 thoughts on “Gates of Vienna News Feed 1/28/2015

  1. Why we need a North American Passport? Yet more treasonous hogwash from CNN.

    Dancing genitals? Only in a libertine world we almost find ourselves in would that be considered normal.

  2. “In other news, a White House spokesman said that the Taliban are not a terrorist organization.”
    We have to align our thinking with those who we we we we weeeeeeeeeeee have elected to rule us, for being the best of creatures.
    So after spending $1000 trillion and losing so many lives, the Taliban are were, have always been, will be, freeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeedom fighters.
    Hurrah every other gov. system has been proven atrocious except the unscrupulous DEMOCRATSIA . You see mature people rule themselves by themselves. And what a wonderful gov’t we get. unmatched, and peerless in history.
    Also Iran is a peaceful country. TV said that Israel killed an Iranian high ranker. BUt it did not say why the Iranian ranker was just 200 meters from Israeli border. And do you think the listeners will go and investigate and consult a map to see where Iran is, where the soldier was, and what was he doing there?

    Does any ask: Iran has no shared border with Israel, then why so much hatred for Israel?
    Iran is licensed to do whatever it desires.

  3. The silent apparently frightened dhimmi majoriy populations very soon will be responding appropriately to what has become real social insecurity. No devout peace loving muslim will be able to whine “why me?”

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