MFS - The Other News

                          Morning Posting.

• The volatile Lybian situation live streams here.

Live Blog Libya - Al Jazeera. here.

• HT:ForeignPolicy.Gadhafi's African mercenaries will not be hauled in front of the International Criminal Court. Over the weekend at the United Nations, the United States sought cover for military action in Libya, to deliver humanitarian aid to the local population and to rescue its own nationals there. It succeeded in part, but at a price: Gadhafi's African mercenaries will not be hauled in front of the International Criminal Court. The U.S. amendment called for authorizing member states, working with the cooperation of the United Nations, to use "all means necessary to protect civilians and key installations." In the diplomatic terminology of U.N. resolutions, the phrase "all means necessary" has traditionally served as a code for military action.The debate over the use of force unfolded behind closed doors last week as the Obama administration began exploring options for ensuring the delivery of humanitarian assistance to Libya. U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon will arrive in Washington on Monday to discuss international plans to address the worsening violence in Libya. Over the weekend, the U.S. held talks with Europe and other countries to explore the possibility of establishing a no-fly zone over Libya, according to a report in the New York Times.One U.S. official, while declining to comment on confidential negotiations over the Security Council resolution, cautioned that the U.S. diplomatic effort in New York was purely humanitarian. "Our intention on any of the language that had to deal with this particular issue was humanitarian in nature. None of this has to do with putting U.S. boots on the ground." The United States had hoped its amendment would be included in the resolution that was eventually unanimously adopted on Saturday by the U.N. Security Council resolution, which imposed a range of financial and military sanctions on the Libyan leader Moammar Qaddafi and his closest associates, and authorized an investigation into crimes against humanity. The U.S. had conditioned its support for the sanctions resolution on the inclusion of another provision that ensured that no foreign nationals inside Libya would be subject to prosecution by the International Criminal Court, according to France's U.N. ambassador, Gerard Araud. The resolution's primarily goal is immunize non-Libyan nationals whose governments, like the United States, are not members of the criminal court in the event that they participate in a U.N. authorized operation in Libya. No such operation has been established, but the resolution suggests that the Western drafters of the resolution are considering it.The decisive provision was included in the final resolution at the insistence of "one country," Araud said Saturday night. "It was absolutely necessary for one country to have that, considering its parliamentary constrains. It was a red line for the United States, it was a deal breaker. This is the reason why we accepted this unanimously."Hmmmm...... WHY would the Obama administration want a free pass for these mercenaries?Read the full story here.

• HT:TheBlaze.‘Burn the Koran’ Pastor Will Lead Shariah Counter-March in D.C. Terry Jones, the small-time pastor known for stirring up big-time controversy, is at it again.Now, as Muslims are invited to demonstrate their support for Shariah law in front of the White House Thursday, Jones is headed to Washington to lead a counter-protest to “radical Islam.”“By no means will we allow our Constitution to be attacked, our Constitution to be changed, our Constitution to be altered,” the counter-protest group’s Facebook page reads. “Let us join together in unity. Let us stand up, stand strong and speak loudly!“Now is the time that we make a very, very clear statement to radical Islam.”As we’ve reported, notorious UK Muslim cleric Anjem Choudary is leading a group of protesters in a march to support Islamic Shariah law for the United States. Choudary’s group plans to rally in front of the White House Thursday afternoon.Jones is joining Stand Up America, a conservative-leaning group in marching from the Lincoln Memorial to the White House.“It is necessary that we set very clear lines for Muslims that are here in America,” Jones says. “They are welcome to be here. They are welcome to worship. They are welcome to build mosques. But we do expect them to honor and obey our Constitution. If they desire to change our Constitution, in other words to institute Sharia, then these Muslims are no longer welcome in our country.”Hmmmmmmm.......Let's see first if Choudary shows up?Read the full story here.

• Related.HT:TundraTabloids.UK : Anjem Choudary's plan to march on Washington to promote Sharia law was a ruse.A Tundra Tabloids’ source says that the UK’s jihadi wannabe bad boy, Anjem Choudary, is on a US no-fly list, so the hype surrounding his stated visit to the US was just a load of rubbish : It appears Choudray is on the no-fly list. So it was all a head-fake, and if Choudray is on a nofly I assume that’s the same for his buddies Izzadeen and Sayful Islam.So stay tuned as the other blogs and media outlets pick up the news on this, just remember that you heard it first on the Tundra Tabloids.Hmmm.....Unless 'someone' took him of the no-fly list?Read the full story here.

• Colorado: Saudi Muslim who enslaved housekeeper for 4 years has sentence reduced by TWENTY Years.CENTENNIAL, Colo. - A Saudi linguist convicted of sexually assaulting a housekeeper and keeping her a virtual slave for four years won a 20-year reduction in his prison sentence Friday, and his defence attorneys hope it means he'll be released from prison soon.District Judge J. Mark Hannen sentenced Homaidan al-Turki to between eight years and life in prison during a hearing Friday in Centennial. Hannen cited al-Turki's good behaviour in prison in cutting the sentence from its original 28 years to life."Mr. al-Turki already has been substantially punished for his conduct against the victim," Hannen said in handing down the new sentence."What this means is that he can be eligible for parole very, very soon if not immediately," defence attorney John Richilano said to gasps from some of the more than 100 supporters who crowded the halls of the courthouse.But he warned supporters that al-Turki still must participate in prison rehabilitation programs for sex offenders and his release could be years away.Al-Turki insists he is innocent and a victim of anti-Muslim sentiment. His case has angered Saudi authorities — several of whom attended Friday's hearing — and prompted the U.S. State Department to send Colorado Attorney General John Suthers to Saudi Arabia to meet with King Abdullah, Crown Prince Sultan and al-Turki's family after al-Turki's 2006 conviction.Saudi Ambassador Adel bin Ahmed Al-Jubeir sent a letter to Hannen telling him that al-Turki's incarceration is perceived as unjust in his home country and asked for leniency partly to keep "the long-standing friendship that exists between our two countries."Prosecutors opposed any sentence reduction. Appellate courts have upheld al-Turki's conviction, and the U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear the case last year, but defence attorneys won a new sentence under a 2007 Colorado Supreme Court ruling in an unrelated case that rendered al-Turki's sentence illegal. The high court ruled that minimum sentences being imposed under Colorado's sex offender act were longer than what they should have been in some cases.Chief Deputy District Attorney Ann Tomsic argued that the longer sentence was appropriate because it punishes al-Turki for the years of abuse on the victim, who was in her early 20s and didn't speak English or know the laws and customs of the U.S. It deters similar crimes, Tomsic said."The American justice system is much more capable of mercy that Homaidan al-Turki is," she said after the resentencing, adding that she was disappointed.A state jury convicted him of unlawful sexual contact by use of force, theft and extortion — all felonies — as well as misdemeanour counts of false imprisonment and conspiracy to commit false imprisonment. Similar federal charges were dropped.U.S. attorney spokesman Jeff Dorschner said federal officials had not seen Hannen's decision and could not comment on whether those charges would be refiled.Al-Turki's company holds the copyright to "The Lives of the Prophets," a CD set of Islamic sermons that tell stories about Muslim prophets recorded by the U.S.-born radical cleric Anwar al-Awlaki.Federal law enforcement authorities in Denver have declined to say whether it was al-Turki's relationship with al-Awlaki that brought al-Turki under scrutiny.Al-Turki's brother, Ahmad, who travelled from Saudi Arabia for the hearing, said the family hoped for a far shorter sentence. "Given the length of the sentence he previously had, this is a very good result," he said outside of court.Hmmmm.......Would that be the same Ahmad Al-Turki "Mr. Ahmad Al-Turki, Deputy Minister for Transport"Saudi Arabia?Read the full story here.

• 'Drunken' Saudi princess wins fight to hide her identity in court as she's accused of sexually harassing her British bodyguard.A Saudi princess accused of sexually harassing her burly British bodyguard was told yesterday her identity can remain a secret.Her 40-year-old minder, who earned £100,000 a year guarding her family, claims the royal was engaged in drinking, illegal drug-taking and ‘sexually promiscuous’ behaviour.The minder also says that she once kicked him in the groin ‘knowing full well that he was recovering from invasive surgery to that area’, and bit another member of staff in the cheek.But lawyers for the princess successfully persuaded a court that she should be shielded from publicity as her life and that of her family could be put at risk.It is the latest controversial ruling granting privacy to the rich and powerful after allegations about their improper behaviour. The princess’s husband – a ‘successful businessman’ – was also granted anonymity over claims he was a ‘viewer of gay porn websites’.The princess also claimed ‘the allegations could be used to undermine members of her family in high government positions’.Lawyers acting for the Daily Mail and The Times had argued that justice should be done openly and in public – and that it would undermine confidence in the justice system if preferential treatment appeared to be given to a member of a foreign royal family.He claimed the princess would come back late at night ‘excessively drunk’. ‘The princess was sick in A’s accommodation and would fall asleep there. He found it very stressful as it was his job to protect her but it became increasingly difficult to protect her from herself,’ court papers said.On trips abroad, he had to share rooms with other members of staff ‘to protect himself’ from the advances of the princess, it was alleged.At times, the princess would complain to her bodyguard that her husband – a Saudi prince – had been looking at ‘websites with homosexual content’. She would show him the sites – which he found stressful. He also claims she illegally obtained sedative drugs through another member of staff.Gary Self, for the bodyguard, said the princess’s position amounted to, ‘I am very rich and important and my husband is also rich and important and therefore there is another reason why it (open court) shouldn’t apply to me’.Hmmmm........Another example of "Saudi preference" in courts?Read the full story here.

• HT:RightTruth.Obama's Agenda.I quote, you decide : Since entering the White House, Obama has been transparent in promoting his views and policies. In the domestic arena, he favors construction of a large mosque near Ground Zero though a majority of Americans oppose this controversial step; he favored a civilian trial for 9/11 terror planner Khalid Sheikh Mohammad despite popular views to the contrary; and he refused to describe the Fort Hood killing spree of thirteen soldiers by Muslim major Nidal Malik Hasan as a crime inspired by Islam.The elevated status of Islam in America was already announced at Obama’s inaugural address...In world politics, Obama promised that America will never go to war against Islam...An ex-CIA agent and counter-intelligence expert has revealed in a special report that Barack Obama has quietly appointed members of the Muslim Brotherhood to key posts within the Administration. Dr. Clare Lopez, professor at the Centre for Counterintelligence and Security Studies, wrote a policy paper in December of 2009 which details the systematic appointment of Sharia-friendly advocates within the State Department and other government agencies.Another example : Obama appoints Muslim whose son was killed waging jihad against Russians.Read the full story here , more here.

• Born again AGAIN! Chilean miners who spent 69 days underground are baptised in the River Jordan.After they survived underground for 69 days, they emerged to say they felt reborn.But now 25 of the 33 Chilean miners, who made headlines around the world after their amazing rescue from a collapsed mine last October, have come closer to rebirth after being baptised in Israel.The men, dressed in white robes, underwent the religious ceremony at the Yardenit site in the country's River Jordan near the sea of Galilee - where, according to Christian belief, Jesus was also baptised.Hmmmm....Completely different to the Baptism Pres Obama discribes.Read the full story here.

• Erdogan Urges Turks Not to Assimilate.'You Are Part of Germany, But Also Part of Our Great Turkey'.Thousands of Turkish immigrants gave Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan a rock star welcome in Germany on Sunday in a show of national pride that remains fervent, even after decades spent in Germany. He told them they remain part of Turkey, and urged them to integrate into German society -- but not to assimilate. The lyric keeps echoing around the hall in Düsseldorf. "The land belongs to us all." The sentence isn't referring to Germany, but to Turkey.Immigrants are waving hundreds of Turkish flags and the chanting and the music are deafening. One woman shouts "Turkey is great!" into a microphone to cheers from the crowd. Everyone in the ISS Dome, a huge sports and concert venue, is fired up, as if they're waiting for a rock star. There's only one show in town this Sunday, and his name is Recep Tayyip Erdogan.The Turkish prime minister has come to Germany. He wants to meet Chancellor Angela Merkel but first he wants to speak to his "compatriots." To people who have been living in Germany for decades, who were born here, and of whom many have German passports.They have come from all over Germany to see him live, some 10,000 people. They say things like: "The Germans will never accept us, but we have Erdogan." Or: "At last someone feels responsible for us, for the first time a Turkish prime minister isn't forgetting his compatriots abroad." One woman says: "Erdogan may get Merkel to see us as part of this society. He is our savior."Some 3 million people of Turkish origin live in Germany, most of them descendants of Turks invited by the government in the 1950s and 1960s as " guest workers" to make up for a shortage of manpower after World War II.The savior arrives almost an hour and a half late. "Turkey is proud of you," the crowd chants in this city in the heart of the Rhineland. "We are proud of you," Erdogan replies.He starts out by appealing straight to people's hearts: "I am here to feel your yearning with you, I am here to enquire about your welfare. I am here to show that you're not alone!"Erdogan wants to give his audience a clear identity. "They call you guest workers, foreigners, or German Turks. It doesn't matter what they all call you: You are my fellow citizens, you are my people, you are my friends, you are my brothers and sisters!""You are part of Germany, but you are also part our great Turkey," says Erdogan. It sounds like a domestic campaign speech ahead of elections in Turkey this summer. Erdogan is wooing for votes among Germany's Turkish population. In previous elections, immigrants with Turkish passports flew to Ankara, Istanbul or Antalya just to cast their ballots at the airport. That is why Erdogan keeps highlighting the successes of his government in his speech, and paints a picture of Turkey as a modern, major power. "We're not a country that draws on help, we provide help too," he says. And: "Now my compatriots are no longer traveling in buses, they go by plane." There are martial-sounding tones too: "Now Turkey will at last start building its own war planes."His message to devout Muslims is similar. "Islamophobia should be seen in the same way as anti-Semitism," he says.And he has brought along a gift for his compatriots -- a kind of light-weight dual citizenship. The so-called "Blue Card," which gives Turks with German citizenship certain rights in Turkey, is to be upgraded. Holders of the card will, in the future, have the same rights as Turkish citizens in dealings with authorities and banks. For minutes, confetti in the red and white Turkish national colors rains onto the stage. Erdogan's speech is over. Hmmmm......Keep turkey out of the European Union and GET TURKEY OUT OF NATO NOW !Read the full story here.

• 12 Jews honored on African stamps as Apartheid fighters.“This stamp issue acknowledges the extraordinary sacrifices made by Jews to the liberation of their African brethren."The postal services of Liberia, Gambia and Sierra Leone will simultaneously issue a set of three commemorative postal sheets on Tuesday in memory of 12 Jews – men and women – who fought Apartheid and racism in Africa.In the struggle against South African Apartheid, according to one of the commemorative sheets, it was estimated that Jews were overrepresented by 2,500 percent in proportion to the governing white population. “This stamp issue acknowledges the extraordinary sacrifices made by Jews to the liberation of their African brethren, and these stamps recognize some of the most significant contributors to global humanity in the 20th century,” reads the text on one of the commemorative sheets.Each sheet presents four black-and-white photos of stamps featuring the Jewish heroes. Details can be found at http://www.legendaryheroesofafrica.com./ . The Liberian issue will show Helen Suzman, Eli Weinberg, Esther Barsel and Hymie Barsel.The issue from Sierra Leone will display Yetta Barenblatt, Ray Alexander Simons, Baruch Hirson and Norma Kitson. The Gambian sheet will present Ruth First, Hilda Bernstein, Lionel “Rusty” Bernstein and Ronald Segal.Suzman (nee Gavronsky), the best known among them, was born in the South African mining town of Germiston in 1917 to Samuel and Frieda Gavronsky, both immigrants from Lithuania who had come to South Africa to escape the restrictions imposed on Jews.She was raised in a financially unstable family and educated at a convent. She later attended the University of the Witwatersrand and eventually became one of South Africa’s most famous white parliamentarians and human rights activists.In 1959, 12 MPs, including Suzman, broke away from the United Party and subsequently formed the Progressive Party, with an openly liberal program of extending rights to all South Africans. As the sole voice of South Africa’s oppressed in parliament, Suzman became known for her strong public criticism of the governing National Party when this was unusual among white people.She was called a “f***ing Jew” on the floor of parliament. She remained in parliament for 36 years and retired in 1989, but remained actively involved in South African politics. Suzman died peacefully in her sleep in 2009 at the age of 91.Hmmmm.......Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter. Martin Luther King, Jr.Read the full story here.

• Turkey - Gov’t sends mixed signals over proposed media freedom law.The government may finally submit the long-awaited media freedom bill that would make changes to the existing penal code in order to curtail the growing number of cases launched against reporters and editors, who say the thousands of cases are tantamount to media censorship. The issue is far from settled, however, as conflicting signals keep coming from the government and its parliamentary group over when and how the media bill will proceed to becoming a law. Ministry of Justice officials told Today’s Zaman that the bill will be open to signatures from Cabinet members at the next meeting. However, ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party) officials in Parliament said the agenda is simply so packed and congested that they do not think there is enough time to debate and pass this bill before the upcoming election.The issue has grown around the center of the Ergenekon trial, a landmark trial of a clandestine group accused of trying to topple the democratically elected government. For editors in the mainstream media, coverage of the Ergenekon trial has turned out to be a “hot potato” issue as their reporters were summoned to the courthouse for writing articles that inform the public about ongoing proceedings in the case. Trumped-up charges leveled on reporters by overzealous prosecutors are based on the claim that the “articles may impact an ongoing case.” Faced with an increasing number of cases, media professionals have been asking the government to produce a liberal media law that would allow them to cover cases such as that of Ergenekon and others without risking being jailed due to archaic laws that limit freedom of speech and provide ammunition to overreaching prosecutors. The fact that the number of journalists who have been taken to court has already surpassed the 5,000 mark is reason enough to make urgent reforms.Others in the AK Party did not sound optimistic, though. Commenting on the issue for Today’s Zaman, AK Party parliamentary group deputy chairman Bekir Bozdağ said a full agenda at Parliament is making it difficult to pass new legislation before elections. If that is the case, given the parliamentary schedule, passing any such law may not be possible before 2013.Hmmmm......By then 'Sultan' Erdogan would be completely in control of the media.Read the full story here.

• HT:TheAstuteBlogger.Why does Obama fly in a personal trainer once a month from Chicago?Cornell McClellan can boast that he's got about the biggest celebrities you can as clients - the first couple. McClellan, a personal trainer who owns a gym called Naturally Fit in President and Michelle Obamas' hometown of Chicago, is still helping them keep in shape - he flies to Washington about once a week, mostly to work with the first lady, but sometimes Mr. Obama, as well.According to Presidents council on fitness,sports and Nutrician : Cornell McClellan is a Fitness Consultant and Personal Trainer to the First Family of United States of America. He is also the owner of Naturally Fit, a training and wellness facility in Chicago. McClellan is on a mission to illustrate how fitness can be achieved through a holistic approach that enhances the mind, strengthens the body, and nurtures the spirit; he encourages achieving the proper balance in pursuit of a totally fit lifestyle.Mr. McClellan has served on the international board for Earth Save; an organization founded to bring the world closer to a plant-based lifestyle and is a member of Roots of Peace, a Chicago-based vegan group whose mission is to educate the children and community about the benefits of a vegan lifestyle. He is a recipient of the Fit to Serve Service Award, 2002 presented by the African-American Association of Fitness Professionals and Creativity United, Inc.'s 2002 Award of Excellence.

But when you look at the website of Roots for peace you find no sign of Mr McClellan or the "Vegan" Cause?And the webiste states that their goal is : Roots of Peace is a humanitarian organization dedicated to eradicating landmines worldwide and rehabilitating the land to make it productive once more.For the moment they're active in who would have guessed it : Afghanistan ,one of their board members is Mr. M. Ashraf Haidari he assumed duties as Chargé d'Affaires of the Embassy of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan in Washington, D.Ok lets move next to Earth save : The EarthSave Foundation is a California non-profit agency committed to serving individuals and families in need. Through our Meals For Health program, EarthSave drastically improves the health of groups of underprivileged individuals. If you want to visit their Chicago website be carefull according to Norton There's a Troyan threath on their main page  http://earthsavechicago.com/ .But again no trace of Mr McClellan.Hmmm....Makes me wonder how far their 'personal trainer' connection  from Chicago dates back from?It seems they have known each other for the last decade,about one year before Michelle her last pregnancy. Read the full story here.More here.

• Muslim Mother jailed for starving her seven-year-old daughter to death 'balloons to 18 stone'.A mother who starved her seven-year-old daughter to death has reportedly 'ballooned' to 18 stone while in prison.Angela Gordon, 36, was found guilty of manslaughter and jailed for 15 years following the death of Kyhra Ishaq, who was denied food by both her mother and stepfather.The child weighed just 2st 7lb when she died in May 2008 - despite living in a house with a well-stocked kitchen.A source told The Sun of Gordon's weight gain behind bars and called it an 'insult' to her daughter.'She loves her food and has even moaned at the size of the portions,' a source told the newspaper. 'It's an insult to Khyra's memory.'She's not made many friends inside and her transfer was welcomed by a lot of cons,' the source added.Khyra suffered for months at the hands of Gordon and her schizophrenic boyfriend Junaid Abuhamza - who was given an indefinite sentence for manslaughter - before her death.She was beaten with a bamboo cane, forced to stand outside in her underwear for hours and had lost 40 per cent of her body weight when she died.The seven-year-old had been reduced to scavenging bread from a neighbour's bird table because Gordon and Abuhamza kept their kitchen bolted shut in a 'behavioural code'. She and five other children in the house were fed 'like puppies' from bowls in their upstairs bedroom in Handsworth, Birmingham, the court heard.This was part of a code introduced by Abuhamza, a Muslim convert, to teach them the 'Islamic perspective about being dutiful to your parents'.He cut down portions and then denied them meals altogether when he felt they misbehaved.Khyra died in a 'skeletal condition' in a house with an 'abundance of food', despite being monitored and visited by at least nine social workers, education officers, teachers and police.Hmmmm......Sura 5:45 "And We ordained therein for them: Life for life, eye for eye, nose for nose, ear for ear, tooth for tooth and wounds equal for equal. But if anyone remits the retaliation by way of charity, it shall be for him an expiation. And whosoever does not judge by that which Allah has revealed, such are the Zalimun (polytheists and wrongdoers .)."Would this mean under Islamic law that she should be starved to death?Read the full story here.

• HT:Memri.Egyptian Coptic Pope: Demand Judicial Freedom For Non-Muslims In Egypt.Nagib Gibrail, Coptic activist, human rights attorney, and lawyer for Egypt's Coptic Pope Shenouda, is planning to establish a non-sectarian Egyptian Unity Party. He said that Pope Shenouda sees the demand to eliminate Article II of the Egyptian constitution, which defines Islam as the state religion and shari'a as the main source of legislation, as provocation of Muslim sentiment and that the pope would prefer that this article be expanded to assure judicial freedom for non-Muslims.Hmmmmm......There can be only one? Read the full story here.

• Turkey - Thousands gather for Turkish Islamist leader's funeral.Thousands of mourners chanting "Allahu Akbar" flocked to a mosque in Istanbul on Tuesday for the funeral of the mentor of political Islam in secular Turkey and its first Islamist prime minister.Necmettin Erbakan, who was prime minister for about a year starting in 1996 and a mentor to the country's current crop of Islamist-rooted leaders, died Sunday aged 84.The controversial leader had a tumultuous four-decade career, marred by feuds with the army and marked by anti-Western rhetoric.Erbakan was to buried in an Istanbul cemetery later Tuesday after a ceremony attended by President Abdullah Gül and Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, both former protoges.A former aide to Erbakan had said Monday that the head of Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas, Khaled Meshaal, would attend the funeral, but a Turkish diplomatic source denied that.Meshaal "will not come to Turkey," the source said, and he would instead be represented by an associate.Erbakan became Turkey's first Islamist prime minister in 1996 in a coalition with a center-right partner after his Welfare Party, or RP, won 21 percent of the vote and became the largest parliamentary group.But the RP's moves to raise the profile of Islam in social life and seek closer ties with Islamic states such as Iran and Libya quickly irked the staunchly secularist and then-omnipotent military.A harsh military-led secularist campaign forced Erbakan to step down in 1997, after about a year in power.Hmmmm.....And now the Islamists are reducing the power of the military.Keep Turkey out of Europe and get them out of NATO!Read the full story here.

• Israeli pipeline peril, pipeline may stay offline .Natural gas supplies shuttered by Egypt.An Egyptian pipeline that transports natural gas to Israel and Jordan may not resume shipments after it was shut off by the Egyptian army, experts said. Egypt closed the pipeline that supplies Israel with almost 20 percent of its energy needs following a Feb. 5 attack on part of the pipeline setting off an explosion. While the blast affected the flow of natural gas to Jordan, shipments to Israel were halted as a precaution. The gas flow to Israel was scheduled to resume last week but was delayed until later in the month. "That pipeline may stay offline," said Delphi Global Analysis Group founder David Wurmser, who from 2002 to 2003 was senior adviser to Under Secretary of State John Bolton. "I think the days of that pipeline are numbered."Israel needs the natural gas. Experts said the country has enough energy resources to last only until 2013, including gas shipments from Egypt. Its promising $3 billion Tamar natural gas project is not expected to begin delivering fuel until the end of 2013. "The question is how do you get to 2014?" Wurmser said.Even before the Egypt uprising that put the military in power, the Egyptian Energy Minister faced pressure to shut off the pipeline because Egypt itself is facing an energy shortage. "The military might see closing the pipeline as an easy way to show protesters it is listening to their concerns," Makovsky said.Hmmmm.....Thank you Pres Obama.Read the full story here.

• Saudi - Barber held for alleged witchcraft.Saudi Islamic police arrested an Indian barber for extorting money from customers through witchcraft although he denied the charge, a newspaper in the oil-rich Gulf country said on Tuesday.A 24-year-old Saudi man who had suffered from stomach pains and change in behavior was taken by his family to a Raqi (healer by Koran), who decided that the man was under a magic spell.After treatment sessions of nearly four months, the Saudi was cured and his family reported his case to the feared Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice.The man told Commission members that he had paid SRT200 to the 37-year-old Indian barber in the central town of Makkah in return for “strange juice and herbs” to make him feel better.“One of the Commission members, posing as a customer, went to the barber and told him he was not feeling well,” Sabq daily said.“The barber took him inside a room and tried to give him herbs and talismans…at that moment other members stormed in and arrested the barber for witchcraft…but he told them that he was only applying the Buddhist treatment technique which he had learned in India.”Hmmmmm......In the civilised world it's called "Herbal Medicine".Read the full story here.

• Dummy spit over breast milk ice cream.Local government officials said Monday they have confiscated ice cream made with human breast milk from a London shop amid concerns the dessert is unsafe.A spokeswoman from Westminster City Council said it was responding to two complaints from the public over whether a shop should be selling edibles made from other people's bodily fluids and awaiting guidance from Britain's Food Standards Agency.The official spoke on condition of anonymity in keeping with council policy.The official said the ice cream, marketed as "Baby Gaga" and launched last week, is being tested with the full cooperation of The Icecreamists, the parlor marketing the dessert.Viruses, including hepatitis, can be passed on through breast milk.The company has said that the milk was screened in line with blood donor requirements before being pasteurized and churned together with vanilla pods and lemon zest.The dish comes in a martini glass and sells for 14 pounds ($22.50) each.The company paid women who responded to an online ad to donate their breast milk and said all of its products meet the "highest and safest" of food standards.The company said it has had a "huge response" to its "fresh take" on the world of ice cream.The Icecreamists said at the time that its "Baby Gaga" ice cream sold out as soon as it launched on Friday, but that women had signed up to donate more milk.Hmmmmm........Could aids be transmitted by breastmilk?HIV is transmitted through contact with the blood, semen, vaginal fluid or breast milk of someone already infected with HIV. ... Keep in mind that a person could be infected for as long as six months before an HIV test will show a positive result. Read the full story here.

• And now for something completely different!Time capsule home opens after century in the dark: Dying wish of owner ‘obsessed with the passing of time’.When millionaire bachelor Louis Mantin demanded that nobody touch his lavish mansion for 100 years after his death, even the Nazis listened.The eccentric recluse, who died in 1905, wrote in his will that he wanted Maison Mantin, in Moulins, central France, to be turned into a museum dedicated to himself and his gentleman's lifestyle. His vision was for visitors to experience his world a century on, uncorrupted by the passing of time. Any longer and it would have fallen into the hands of any surviving relatives.And it has lain dormant ever since, its dusty corridors and vast rooms trodden only by curious rats and roving insects. Even the German occupiers of France during the 1940s left it unscathed.Now thanks to a £2.9 million refurbishment funded by local authorities has been returned to its former glory.Maud Leyoudec, assistant curator of Maison Mantin told CNN: 'Mantin was obsessed with the passing of time, and death.Hmmm....Read the full story here.