MFS - The Other News

                       Morning Posting.

• Updated !Earthquakes in the last 24 hours in the world seismic activity today.More info here.

• Japan - Latest official Situation Update No. 138.138
  On 30.06.2011 at 11:23 GMT+2
  
  A small amount of radioactive substances was found from urine samples of all of 10 children in Fukushima surveyed by a Japanese civic association and a French nongovernmental organization, the groups said Thursday. David Boilley, president of the Acro radioactivity measuring body, told a news conference in Tokyo that the survey on 10 boys and girls aged between 6 and 16 in Fukushima city suggested there was a high possibility that children in and near the city had been exposed to radiation internally. The highest levels found by the survey were 1.13 becquerels of radioactive cesium-134 per 1 litre of urine from an 8-year-old girl, and 1.30 becquerels of cesium-137 in a 7-year-old boy. The city is located 60 kilometres north-west of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power station, which has been leaking radiaoactive material into the environment since it was hit by the March 11 earthquake and tsunami. The radiation levels detected did not represent an immediate risk to health, but those two isotopes of cesium have half-lives of two and 30 years respectively, raising concerns about the long-term contamination of the environment and locally grown foodstuffs.
  
  The Fukushima Network for Saving Children from Radiation, consisting of local parents, said the group would urge the central and local governments to have all citizens in the prefecture undergo detailed tests soon. Acro previously investigated radiation exposure of children who lived near the site of the 1986 Chernobyl nuclear disaster in Ukraine. Meanwhile, Tokyo Electric Power Co (TEPCO), which runs the plant, started its work Thursday to transfer low-level radiation-tainted water to a large floating container, which has a capacity to collect about 10,000 tons of water. TEPCO said some 8,000 tons of water that the operator has stored at a temporary tank would be moved to the container, which is berthed along the quay near the plant, Kyodo reported. The water came from the turbine buildings of reactors 5 and 6, and most of the water was believed to be seawater left after devastating tsunami waves hit the plant on March 11. TEPCO has struggled to deal with 110,000 tons of contaminated water at the plant while a newly-installed water-treatment system has halted several times due to water leaks and other technical problems.
  Situation Update No. 137 - On 29.06.2011 at 03:40 GMT+2
  
  Tonnes of radioactive water was discovered to have leaked into the ground from the Fukushima nuclear plant, Japan's nuclear watchdog said on Tuesday. About 15 tonnes of water with a low level of radiation leaked from a storage tank at the plant, on the Pacific coast 240 km (150 miles) north of Tokyo, the Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency said. Plant operator Tokyo Electric Power Co said it was still investigating the cause of the leak, which was repaired after being discovered around noon on Tuesday. Vast amounts of water contaminated with varying levels of radiation have accumulated in storage tanks at the plant after being used by the utility to cool reactors damaged when their original cooling systems were knocked out by the March 11 earthquake and tsunami. Tepco is trying to use a decontamination system that cleans radioactive water so it can be recycled to cool the reactors, but has encountered technical glitches.
  Situation Update No. 136  -  On 28.06.2011 at 10:53 GMT+2
  
  Radioactive strontium has been found on the seabed near the crippled Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant, Kyodo reported on Tuesday. Tokyo Electric Power Company said strontium-89 and -90 was discovered in the seabed soil about 3 kilometers off the coast, some 20 kilometers north and south of the nuclear complex. Between 10 and 44 becquerels per kilogram of strontium-90 were detected, which has a half-life of 29 years. Shigeharu Kato, a member of the Nuclear Safety Commission, said further examination was needed to determine if or how the substances can accumulate in marine life, the NHK news agency reported. A 9.0-magnitude quake struck off Japan's northeast coast on March 11, triggering a tsunami and explosions at the Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant, which caused the worst nuclear crisis since Chernobyl in 1986. According to Japanese scientists, the tsunami triggered by the quake washed over 561 square kilometers in 23 prefectures. Huge waves reached 10 kilometers (6 miles) inland destroying everything on their way. The disaster destroyed over 151,000 buildings and killed at least 15,000 people, while 9,893 people still remain unaccounted for. The government has previously said the damage from the disaster could total $184 billion.Source : Here .

• UPDATED ! Radioactive cesium was detected in processed tea that was made from leaves that elementary school children picked in Tokyo as part of their school curriculum, it has been learned. The Itabashi Ward Office announced on June 30 that 2,700 becquerels of radioactive cesium -- in excess of the government's provisional limit -- was detected in processed tea that used leaves picked at a plantation in the ward by some 300 students of local elementary schools. The processed tea is set to be disposed of, while none of the children have suffered any health problems. The tea plantation is dedicated to providing visitors with opportunities to pick leaves and does not ship its harvest to the market. According to the ward office, the tea-picking class took place on May 9, and fourth- and fifth-grade students from three public elementary schools in the ward participated in the event. When the approximately 20 kilograms of processed tea -- made of some 80 kilograms of first-harvest leaves that the students had picked -- was screened, 1,300 becquerels of cesium 134 per kilogram and 1,400 becquerels of cesium 137 per kilogram were detected. Following the revelation, ward officials picked second-harvest tea leaves at the plantation on June 22 and detected 350 becquerels of cesium from raw tea leaves. The ward office will conduct screenings of locally-grown agricultural products but will not regulate the shipment of tea leaves as there is no other tea plantation in the ward. It is the first time that radioactive cesium has been detected in tea leaves grown in Tokyo. The Tokyo Metropolitan Government's survey had previously detected no radioactive substances exceeding the government limit in agricultural products grown in the capital.Source.
  
  
• Japan : For the most accurate info on the nuclear disaster go to : Paul Langley's Nuclear History Blog.Here.

• Venezuelan leader Hugo Chavez treated for cancer.(Al-Jazeera)Video - Hugo Chavez makes his first televised speech after surgery in Cuba and says he will "overcome" health battle.The Venezuelan leader, Hugo Chavez, has admitted in a television address that he had a tumour but had undergone a successful operation in Cuba to extract the cancerous cells and was on the road to full recovery.Chavez, 56, made his first televised speech to the nation on Thursday, weeks after he was hospitalised in the Cuban capital, Havana, sparking widespread speculation he might be seriously ill."They confirmed the existence of a tumourous abscess, with the presence of cancerous cells, which required another operation to extract the tumour completely," he said, standing at a lectern by a Venezuelan flag and a painting of his hero, South American independence leader Simon Bolivar."I deeply appreciate the demonstrations of solidarity by Venezuelans and other brotherly people."Chavez said the medical process was "slow and careful" and that he was determined to "overcome" the health battle.Comparing his health problem to a previous dark moment - a short-lived 2002 coup against him - Chavez promised he would be back in typically grandiose language."I want to talk to you about the rising sun, I think that we have emerged," he said.The Venezuelan government had earlier said he was recovering from an abcess in the pelvis in Cuba, from where Thursday's speech was broadcast.Shortly after the speech, Venezuela's vice-president, Elias Jaua, flanked by government ministers, said on state television that the wide-reaching socialist reforms would be "deepened" despite Chavez's ill health.Nevertheless, there is huge uncertainty about who could replace Chavez, given the fact that Venezuela's political structures are so closely tied to his persona."Chavez is really the man of Venezuela," Al Jazeera's Mariana Sanchez said. "There's really not a figure in the ruling party, or even in the opposition, that will match the charisma that Hugo Chavez has."Analysts said Chavez's prolonged absence could prompt infighting among his allies ahead of the 2012 elections."From the president's speech, it is impossible to deduce if he will or will not be in a physical state and the right mood to go into the 2012 campaign," Luis-Vicente Leon, a local analyst, said.Eva Golinger, a lawyer and writer in the Venezuelan capital, Caracas, told Al Jazeera there was "no sign" Chavez would not be able to continue as president."He gave his speech ... from a very energetic and strong and charismatic position and so it seems as though he's recovering well," she said."He is someone who has faced all kinds of difficulties and obstacles, particularly during his presidency, and so it seems as though he is going to pull through this one just fine."Until Thursday, the official line had been that he was recovering well from an operation to remove a pelvic abscess and would return soon.Hmmmmm.......Prostate cancer?Average lifespan after surgery 5 years.Read the full story here.

• Obama: Still Getting the Hang of Answering Questions.(NationalReview).Has Obama ever given a bravura performance at a press conference? No wonder he goes three months or so without doing them.Today he mentioned a tax break for corporate jets six times. He didn’t mention that he signed legislation preserving the tax code provision into law, or that the grand total of the savings of ending that tax break would be about $3 billion over ten years.The man who flies anywhere he wants, anytime, cost-free, complained at great length that other people’s private jets are insufficiently taxed. yesterday, Obama flew on Air Force One to Philadelphia, Pa., to attend two DNC fundraisers,denouncing the current tax rates on corporate jets, without anyone remarking on the irony.

What I think this reveals is that Barack Obama is not used to being challenged. Most of us have scoffed at his predictable straw men, his off-the-cuff references to tonsil-stealing doctors, his exhausted, “some on the right say we should take this extreme path, some on the left take this extreme path, but I choose this sensible path in the middle” framing of every issue.

As we recall from his attacks upon Paul Ryan at GWU, the Supreme Court justices at the State of the Union, and his jabs at Pete Hoekstra, Obama loves to go after his opponents in national addresses, with his targets in the audience, unable to respond. In the setting of the grandiose national address, there is rarely a rebuttal. Any interruption to dispute the facts — like, say, Rep. Joe Wilson yelling out, “You LIE!” during an address to Congress — comes across as rude to the office of the presidency. The Supreme Court is completely unused to being criticized to their faces; members of Congress are used to the back-and-forth of debates on the floor in which every accusation and assertion can be rebutted and cross-examined.

So even ten questions from the White House press corps can take Obama off his game. Among the highlights of today:

• Asked about whether the War Powers Act was constitutional, he responded, “I’m not going to put my constitutional law professor hat on here.” Er, wait, wasn’t that a reason folks were supposed to vote for you?

• Asked whether marriage was a civil right – a yes or no question that obviously put him on the spot about gay marriage – he began talking about separate issues, like hospital visitations.

• Occasionally Obama’s gaffes would seem strangely honest, like when he said, “I’ll keep on giving you the same answer until I give you a different one,” on gay marriage, or “I don’t even have to get to the Constitutional question,” rather bluntly acknowledging he was ignoring Chuck Todd’s actual question on the War Powers Act.

• The President constantly infuriated by the perception that he hates the private sector responded to a question, “The business community always complains about regulations.” Unlike unions, trial lawyers, public sector employees, apparently.

• Asked about the ATF “Fast and Furious” operation, Obama said that Attorney General Eric Holder made very clear that he would have opposed the operation… you know, the one that occurred on his watch.

• Discussing the DREAM Act, Obama said, “Kids who grow up here and think of themselves as Americans… let’s make sure those kids can stay.” There’s no dispute that many of these children and teens often have heartbreaking stories, and no real emotional or physical connection to their country of legal citizenship. But thinking of yourself as an American is not the same as being an American. Citizenship is not a state of mind.

•“It’s time to stop playing games,” he concluded, and then ended the press conference for the next event on his schedule: welcoming the WNBA Champion Seattle Storm to the White House Rose Garden.

Obama survives difficult questions by avoiding them and waiting for the world to move on. His Republican opponents must challenge him, early and often, and consistently.Hmmmmm........"The Truth Shall Set You Free".Read the full story here.

• Alaska to EPA: Suck It.(ChamberPost).Big energy news was broken at today's press conference at the Chamber. Alaska Gov. Sean Parnell (via teleconference) and Alaska Commissioner of Natural Resources Dan Sullivan announced the state would allow drilling off a strip of state-owned land, expanding energy production: It would allow the state to start allowing drilling in the Beaufort and Chukchi seas, up to three miles off the federally protected regions of ANWR and the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska, bypassing the need for federal permission.

While the state has no control over drilling in ANWR, it does own the three miles of Arctic Ocean just off the coast—after those three miles, the federal government owns the waters. Officials say it stands to reason that that three-mile ribbon likely cuts through the vast oil deposits believed to lie beneath ANWR and the Arctic Ocean. Alaskan officials and oil companies hope that by drilling in that strip, they can tap into up to a dozen giant oil pools that would otherwise be off-limits.Karen Harbert, president and CEO of the U.S. Chamber’s Institute for 21st Century Energy, who was also at the press conference, was happy with the news:

America is in serious need of more domestic energy production, but the federal government has thrown up nothing but roadblocks. According to government estimates, U.S. oil production will be down 90 million barrels in 2012—a direct result of the Obama Administration’s approach. With the release of oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, the Administration has finally acknowledged that there is a need to increase supply. However, the Five Year Plan for oil and natural gas exploration they have proposed takes new areas off the table—which could make us even more reliant on foreign oil in the future.Today, Governor Parnell and Commissioner Sullivan have announced a plan for Alaska that will start to change that equation.Hmmmmm......Reaction from Emperor "WTF"?Read the full story here.

• Congressman Asks IRS to Investigate CAIR.(TIP).Rep. Frank Wolf, R-Va., asked the IRS Monday to investigate whether the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) has illegally received or solicited funds from foreign governments.The letter, sent to IRS Commissioner Douglas Shulman, was written in response to news that CAIR has lost its IRS tax exempt status for failing to properly file annual tax reports, known as form 990s, for three years in a row.The fact that CAIR's donations are no longer tax deductible was exposed last week by the Investigative Project on Terrorism. CAIR's national entities, CAIR-National and the CAIR Foundation, were both included on a list of hundreds of thousands of organizations that had lost their status for failing to file the paperwork.But Rep. Wolf indicated that CAIR differs from those thousands of other organizations because it was listed as an unindicted co-conspirator (UCC) in the case of a U.S. Muslim charity found guilty of funneling millions of dollars to Hamas. When CAIR tried to have its named removed from the UCC list, a U.S. district court judge declined to strike CAIR's name."Given CAIR's status…this failure to comply with federal disclosure laws is all the more troubling," Rep. Wolf wrote.Rep. Wolf expressed concern over CAIR Executive Director Nihad Awad's letter to Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi, which solicited money and praised Gaddafi. Wolf also asked the IRS if it is aware that Awad tried to solicit funds from Sudanese President Omar Hassan Bashir, who has been indicted internationally as a war criminal.CAIR told Fox News that it hopes to appeal to the IRS and gain retroactive tax-exempt status. That would mean that any donations accepted during the interim would be tax deductible upon CAIR's reinstatement."We'll be doing whatever's necessary…to rectify the situation," CAIR Spokesman Ibrahim Hooper said. CAIR has 15 months to turn in papers explaining why the organization failed to file, and to submit the missing or corrected annual forms and a new application for tax exempt status.Hooper said that CAIR filed properly in the past few years, but that the problems come from "questions" over tax filings dating back to 2006 or 2007.State Department records obtained by the Investigative Project on Terrorism show CAIR sent delegations in 2006 to Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates seeking millions of dollars in support. CAIR-National's most recent available tax records are from 2005. A required attachment of donations over $5,000 to that year's filing showed a $600,000 donation from Saudi businessman Adnan Bogary. According to the list, it was the single largest donation to CAIR for that tax year.Hmmmmm.....Any donations to Obama?Read the full story here.

• Mayor Michael Bloomberg Wants to Take Away Your Guns Before Al Qaeda Gets Them.(BigGovernment).Mayor Michael Bloomberg and his little outfit “Mayors Against Illegal Guns” are at it again. Hoping to gain traction for what has heretofore been an absolutely pathetic gun control campaign, Bloomberg is rolling out all the stops by trying to scare us into thinking Al Qaeda agents are buying their guns at U.S. gun shows.I’m not kidding: Bloomberg’s latest television ad contains clips of an American-turned-Islamist advising his comrades to buy their weapons at U.S. gun shows.The ad is very, very sloppy, and full of factual errors. Like when the Islamist says, “You can go down to a gun show and come away with a fully-automatic assault rifle.” I’m sorry, but that’s just not true. Fully automatic weapons are subject to strict federal regulations above and beyond the normal, all too stringent, regulations on semi-automatic firearms in this country. To purchase a fully automatic weapon you have to live in a state that allows them, go through a 3 to 6 month process of federal background checks, pay a significant federal firearms tax, and receive approval by local law enforcement authorities, among other things.To be honest, it’s sick that Bloomberg is so desperate to take away our guns that he’d actually present such an out-and-out lie by an Islamist as justification for limiting our access to firearms.Other problems with Bloomberg’s latest ad campaign deal more with issues the ad raises than the ad itself. For instance, instead of contending that U.S. gun shows are a “national security threat” because members of Al Qaeda can supposedly buy guns there, Bloomberg should be lambasting a Homeland Security Department that’s so inept it allows terrorists to enter the country to buy guns.Moreover, I don’t think Bloomberg realizes it, but he’s made a great case for profiling gun buyers the way we should be profiling airline and train passengers throughout the country. Laws should allow gun sellers to refuse sales to Islamists who dress the way the gentleman in Bloomberg’s ad is dressed. (I mean, seriously folks, it’s not like he’d be hard to spot in a crowd.)The refusal to profile forces our government to treat everyone the same: which means, that in order to keep “terrorists” from buying guns at gun shows Bloomberg is pushing for a law that keeps us all from buying guns at gun shows.What Bloomberg is trying to do to law abiding citizens under the guise of saving us from terrorism is absolutely shameful. The good news is that he has exaggerated the situation considerably. The bad news is that he is not in the least embarrassed to attack our 2nd Amendment rights again and again.Hmmmmm..........“I bring reason to your ears, and, in language as plain as ABC, hold up truth to your eyes.” Thomas Paine.Read the full story here.

• Texas Gov. Rick Perry urges US attorney general Holder to act against pro-Palestinian protesters.(IsraelMatzav).Governor Rick Perry (R-Tx) has urged Attorney General Eric Holder to take legal action against Americans participating in the flotilla of fools. Perry wrote that he had information that American citizens were aboard two U.S.-flagged ships that plan to challenge the blockade on the Gaza Strip. He urged U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder to take legal steps to stop them from taking part, or to prosecute them if they make the attempt.“The state of Israel is a friend and critical ally of the United States, and the only stable democracy in an increasingly unstable and hostile region,” wrote Perry, a vocal supporter of Israel who is considering a run for president in 2012. “These initiatives to breach Israel’s maritime blockade of the Gaza Strip is an unacceptable provocation.”Under federal law, anyone who “prepares a means for, or furnishes the money for, or takes part in, any military or naval expedition” against a friendly country can be fined or jailed for three years. Perry also suggested that Holder prosecute the protesters for providing materials or assistance to a terrorist organization.Hmmmm.....Don't expect anything happening soon.Read the full story here.

• Obama administration puts Israel on list of countries that support terrorism, removes North Korea.(BarracudaBrigade).It is only fair that deluded and self-loathing Jews who continue to support the despot in the White House despite his relentless campaign against the Jews should be the first on the Obama trains. And they are coming.Obama's relentless pounding on the Jews mimics previous dictatorial leaders in recent history who promoted alienation of the Jews in concert with national socialism (another Obama favorite).

Obama's anti-semitism is meticulously documented in my book, The Post American Presidency: The Obama Administration's War on America.

Obama Administration Puts Israel On List Of Countries That Support Terrorism Yid with Lid

Only in the twisted world of the Obama Administration, where allies are trashed, and enemies are embraced, could the tiny nation of Israel, on the front lines of the war on terror for decades, be on a list of 36 nations which “have shown a tendency to promote, produce, or protect terrorist organizations or their members.”

As reported by CNS News

The Department of Homeland Security’s Office of Inspector General published the list of "specially designated countries" as an appendix to an unclassified May 11 report--"Supervision of Aliens Commensurate With Risk"--that was publicly posted on the Internet. (The appendix is on page 18 of the document.)

As a matter of policy, according to the inspector general’s report, citizens of Israel and other “specially designated countries” are subjected to a special security screening called a “Third Agency Check” (TAC) when they are actually detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), the division of the Department of Homeland Security responsible for enforcing the immigration laws.The five countries on the list that do not have majority Muslim populations--Kazakhstan (47 percent Muslim), Eritrea (36.5 percent Muslim), Israel (16.9 percent Muslim), the Philippines (5 percent Muslim) and Thailand (4.6 percent)--have had internal problems with radical Muslim terrorists, as reported by the State Department.

Isn't that kind of blaming the victim?OK lets get this straight. Based on new Department of Homeland Security procedures, illegal immigrants who are caughtbreaking the law will not be deported, but the Inspector General is now recommending that every Israeli that visits the US should be subject to special screening procedures.Wait! It gets crazier:

Even though the adminisration includes Israel among “specially designated countries” that it believes "have shown a tendency to promote, produce, or protect terrorist organizations or their members,” ICE Spokeswoman Gillian Christensen told CNSNews.com that the U.S. also considers Israel, as well as some other countries on the “specially designated countries” list, as partners in the struggle against terrorism.

“The U.S. does not and never has considered Israel to have links to terrorism, but rather they are a partner in our efforts to combat global terrorism,” Christensen said in a written statement. “Countries may have been included on the list because of the backgrounds of arrestees, not because of the country’s government itself.”

OH Israelis will now be subject to extra screening because the country arrests terrorists.

That makes sense?ICE declined to say who put Israel on the list or when Israel was put there. However, in her written statement, ICE spokeswoman Christensen said the “specially designated country” list had been created "at least" seven years ago--which would have been during the presidency of George W. Bush--and that ICE was not responsible for creating it. True but when this final list was proposed in March 2008 Israel was not on the list but North Korea was, today that is reversed.“So many federal agencies have created different lists that U.S. officials contemplated adopting a single one to streamline the process, Stark wrote,” said the McClatchey report. “The proposed list, which officials said had yet to be adopted, includes 35 countries, most with significant Muslim or Arab populations.”“The group of agencies--which included ICE, the National Security Agency and U.S. Customs and Border Protection--not only recommended one list but also suggested an interagency definition of ‘special interest alien,’” said the McClatchey report. “Under the proposal, a special interest alien would be an immigrant with terrorist ties or an immigrant who by nationality, ‘ethnicity or other factors may have ties or sympathies’ with the listed country.”

The 35 countries plus the West Bank and Gaza that were on the proposed list discussed in the ICE memo uncovered by McClatchey in March 2008 almost exactly matches the “specially designated countries” on the list published by the Department of Homeland Security’s Office of Inspector General on May 11, 2011. There are only two differences: North Korea was on the list proposed in 2008; it is not on the May 2011 list. Israel was not on the listproposed in 2008; it is on the May 2011 list.

See how this administration cares about Israel? Even though the list was already set, they made a change to put our ally on this special list. Boy oh boy, just like he is with Great Britain, whose Queen he gave an Ipod full of his speeches and Broadway Show tunes, Barack Obama is a real friend of Israel.Obama always says that despite his constant criticism of Israel, America will always have a special partnership with the Jewish State. Now we understand he means putting Israel on a "special" terrorism watch list.Hmmmmm......As i said before Israel has nothing to fear but Barack HUSSEIN Obama. Read the full story here.

• Israel - Obama regime has no problem with illegal Mosque building in Jerusalem.(ArutzSheva).Construction of a mosque near the grave of late prime minister Menachem Begin and Rabbi Tzvi Yehuda Kook has been under way since October despite court orders to stop. Attendees at the recent President's Conference in Jerusalem were shown pictures of the construction.On Thursday, the Deputy Mayor of Jerusalem (National Unity-NRP), David Hadari, arrived at the illegal building site in person to serve a court order to cease and desist, accompanied by Council Member Elisha Peleg.The action, undertaken to publicize the lax enforcement of the law against massive Arab illegal construction in East Jerusalem, was an object lesson that proved just how unequal enforcement of the law is against those building without permits in the city.According to Hadari, “The last straw was this massive illegal construction on the extension of the Mount of Olives, with a mosque located only a few meters from the gravesites of Eliezer ben Yehuda, the reviver of the Hebrew language, Rav Tzvi Yehuda Kook, head of Merkaz HaRav Yeshiva and of Prime Minister Menachem Begin.”Hadari arrived holding the administrative cease and desist order which he handed to the construction workers.The workers ignored the order. Councilmen who arrived at the mosque said that the police and the government are responsible for not enforcing the order, and that the police are afraid to enforce the law in eastern Jerusalem, particularly against the contruction of a mosque.Elisha Peleg said that the government and law enforcement system should act against Imams and illegal mosques, as they seem to have the courage to do against rabbis.Hadari said that unless work is stopped immediately, there are measures the municipality could employ, including the confiscation of equipment such as tractors and trucks.Hadari ruefully expressed hopes that the government will instruct the police to enforce the law against the illegal mosque as it does elsewhere in Jerusalem.The High Court recently decided to seal the synagogue which was being built by a private donor during the period of the building freeze at the El Matan North Samaria community, ignoring another illegal mosque being built nearby. Hmmmmm..........Answer to building permit problems?Read the full story here.

• Two Ivory Coast Brothers  Crucified on “the example of Christ” by Muslim Loyalists.(VinIenco).Two peasant brothers were brutally crucified on “the example of Christ” as forces loyal to Ivory Coast President Alassane Ouattara continue to target perceived supporters of his ousted Christian predecessor, Laurent Gbagbo.Raphael Aka Kouame died of his injuries; incredibly his younger brother, Kouassi Privat Kacou, survived the ordeal. The pair were badly beaten and tortured before being crudely nailed to cross-shaped planks by their hands and feet with steel spikes on 29 May.The brothers were falsely accused of hiding weapons in their home village of Binkro, which has been targeted by Ouattara supporters as the birthplace of a key enemy. They are looking for Prefect Koko Djei, President of the General Council of Oumé and an official in Gbagbo’s Ivorian Popular Front party, who is accused of distributing weapons to young Oumé men. The brothers repeatedly denied any involvement in a weapons cache, but their pleas were ignored.After crucifying the brothers, Ouattara’s men took them on an extensive search of Binkro, but they found only a store of medical equipment and supplies, which they looted. The seriously wounded pair were then taken to prison in Oumé, where Raphael died in the night.This is just one of the many atrocities that have been committed as fighting between Ouattara and Gbagbo supporters has continued in the wake of the disputed presidential election last November. Christians have been caught up in the conflict as perceived supporters of Gbagbo. Support for the two men is split broadly along geographical and religious lines, with the predominantly Muslim north largely backing Ouattara, a Muslim from that region, while support for Gbagbo, a Christian, comes from the mainly Christian south.Hmmmm......"Interfaith Dialog" in it's natural habitat.Read the full story here.

• Libya: War and rape.(Video).(Al-Jazeera). Muammar Gaddafi, his son Saif and his intelligence chief, Abdullah Senussi, were indicted by the International Criminal Court (ICC) this week charged with crimes against humanity allegedly committed during the Libyan uprising. The ICC said there were "reasonable grounds" to believe that the three men were responsible for the murder and persecution of civilians.The charges are based on an investigation by the court's chief prosecutor, Luis Moreno-Ocampo, launched in February at the behest of the UN Security Council.  So far the indictment relates only to the first weeks of the conflict, but it is likely to expand to cover subsequent events. If so, then the court may also be asked to rule on allegations that Gaddafi's regime has used rape as a weapon against its opponents.  These claims first surfaced in March when a Libyan woman, Eman al-Obeidi, burst into a Tripoli hotel and told journalists she had been raped by security forces. Though she was quickly bundled away, other similar accusations have since emerged.   As Al Jazeera's Sue Turton has been finding out, getting evidence to substantiate the claims is far from easy. Some of the content of this film is disturbing.Read and see the full story here.