HuffPost's anti-Semitic, pro-Islamist bias: 2011 Naqba riots edition

HuffPost published this story near the top of its front page (note position of scroll bar at right), which claimed

"Israeli Troops Fire On Palestinian Protesters In Deadly Clashes":

Israeli troops fired on mere "Palestinian protesters," HuffPost? Really?

No, they didn't.

How do we know that? The first clue was that even HuffPost's own story page headline tells a very different story: "Israeli Troops Clash With Palestinian Protesters Along Borders With Syria, Lebanon, Gaza Strip":

Wait, do you mean Palestinians were in Syria and Lebanon, peacefully "protesting," and those brutal Israeli soldiers opened fire on them?
NO.
Let's read what HuffPost's own story (sourced from the AP) says:

"Israeli troops clashed with Arab protesters along three hostile borders on Sunday, leaving as many as 12 people dead and dozens wounded in an unprecedented wave of violence marking the anniversary of the mass displacement of Palestinians surrounding Israel's establishment in 1948.

"In the most serious incident,

the Israeli military said thousands of protesters approached Syria's border with the Israeli-controlled Golan Heights. It said hundreds of people burst through the border, and soldiers opened fire to stop them. Dozens were wounded and six were reported killed."

So what's the real story here?

• The "protesters" were mostly Arabs
  

• They attacked Israel on three of its borders

• The only "protesters" that were "fired on" were Syrians, who burst through that nation's border, and began rampaging in Israel

---

But wait, isn't there just a bit more to this story --- to the savagery and apparent coordination of militant Islamists' attacks on, and threats against Israel, today and in the last 48 hours?

Why yes, there is:

• YNet reported that ten Israeli soldiers were wounded by rocks thrown by the "protesters," including their unit commander.
  HuffPost completely ignored this story.

• The Jerusalem Post reported that an Arab driving a dump truck through Tel Aviv began running down everything in sight, shouting "Death To Jews!!!" He killed one and injuring sixteen, including, according to YNet, a woman whom he beat on the head with a broken after he jumped out of his truck.
  HuffPost completely ignored this story.

• Israel National News reported that "Arab rioters attempted on Saturday to burst into several Jewish homes built in the Moscowitz housing project in eastern Jerusalem, hurling rocks and damaging Jewish property."
  HuffPost completely ignored this story.

• YNet reported that the IDF claims the Lebanese military assassinatedopened fire on "protesters" who had knocked down its fence with Israel.
  HuffPost completely ignored this story.
  

• reportedtens of thousands of Egyptians gathered in Tahrir Square to burn Israeli flags, shout "Death to Israel!!! Death to the Jews!!!," urge a new confrontation with the Jewish state, and display how they outfit their toddlers with play-suicide-bomb-vests (right).
  HuffPost completely ignored this story.
  

How could HuffPost's army of "hundreds of editors and reporters" have missed all this, and gotten the original story so terribly wrong? Especially when most of the correct information was right there in its source story, and readily available at the time from (credible) sources around the world (which we found with a few keystrokes)?
Perhaps some day, a journalist with influence will ask HuffPost to explain itself. As for HUFF-WATCH, we maintain our position that this is merely the latest example in HuffPost's long, long, long, history of deliberately, maliciously manipulating news from the Middle East in order to incite hatred of Israel, and shield militant Islamists from being held to public account for their murderous actions, threats and incitement.

via huff-watch.blogspot.com

Liberalism's Rape Corps

The focus of Feminist Academics is in attacking Western Academia. Academia when accused will settle with the female activist in fear of a public relations disaster, even when the campus realizes the accusation is merely a scam. Feminists get away with this repeatedly, often with very little time between their campus haunts. Meanwhile in the third world the real horror show continues and the spotlight is in the wrong place.  It doesn't seem like this will get better any time soon.

Two years ago the left launched a major assault on Haliburton over its mishandling of two sexual assault cases by or against its civilian contractors. Al Franken successfully introduced a bill to bar defense contracts from going to companies who behave likewise. Left wing media boasted that they were the defenders of rape victims, while Republicans support rape.

Now for the 50th anniversary of the Peace Corps, it's been revealed that over a 1,000 female volunteers have been raped in the last decade. Numbers that are positively 9/11 in scope. And that the idealistic Peace Corps leadership acted like the evil Haliburton leadership, blaming the victims and discouraging them from seeking legal action. There are no cries that Democrats support rape. No bills to defund the Corps, that awkward legacy of New Frontierism. This time it's Republicans like Ileana Ros-Lehtinen stepping up to demand accountability. And it's the Democrats who are standing in the way.
Similar parallel stories involve female activists who head to the Palestinian Authority to combat Zionism, and the assault on Lara Logan in the middle of what was billed as a democracy celebration. Each time the assault was minimized, until the woman in question decided to speak out.
It's an old story about the naivete of Western liberals who imagine that the Third World is somehow better than because it is less materialistic, finding themselves in cultures where the inequality of women is a given, meeting a man's eyes is considered a sexual invitation, and the only justice system that matters is kinship based. Crimes are acted on depending on family influence. And Westerners in Africa or the Middle East have no family there. Which means crimes against them can go unpunished if no pressure is applied.

more via sultanknish.blogspot.com

...Veiled woman describes being raped by Syrian forces

NORWAY IS THE MOST ANTI-SEMITIC COUNTRY IN THE WEST…….

Hanne Nabintu Herland,
Norwegian Academic, Historian of Religions
and bestselling author. Her website is here...

The President of Israel, Mr. Shimon Peres’ critical comments on Norways reluctancy to follow EU, UN and USA in denouncing Hamas as a terrorist movement, are timely remarks. If one adds Harvard professor Alan M. Dershowitz article in the Wall Street Journal 30. March, it all makes me ashamed to be Norwegian. Under the title “Jews are not welcome in Norway,” Mr. Dershowitz told of his encounters with anti-Semitic Norwegian academics who made it clear that he was unwanted as a guest lecturer at Norwegian universities. This is how Norwegian intellectuals treat one the West’s most famous defense lawyers and an internationally renowned Harvard University professor.
I met Dershowitz in March during Oslo Symposium 2011. His description of the obvious anti-semitism and the lack of willingness to be objective that characterizes Norwegian academia, is flat out shocking. During my opening lecture at the same Symposium Conference, I pointed out that the lack of nuances that characterizes the Norwegian understanding of the realities in Israel and the Middle East are not only shameless, but historically inacurate.

Norway, PFLP and the Itamar killings

For culturally we have much more in common with the Jewish people than one would think. Western civilizational values ​​has its cradle in the Greek and Roman contributions, but also, and especially when it comes to values, in the Hebrew-Christian contribution. The European humanistic view of the dignity of human beings regardless of rank, class or ethnicity carries deep impact from Judaism. These values are at the core of what it means to belong to Western Civilization today.

But today, Norwegians  reach far beyond the question of Palestine, and instead of supporting the only real democracy in the Middle East, namely Israel, we blackmail the Israelis in a manner as though we were still in 1939 at the time the socialist Hitler “zieg heil ” was shouted in Norway. For the Nazis were Left Wing, and came out of Germany’s Socialist Labour Party, they were not right-wing. The individuals in the Norwegian politically powerful positions that have pushed for these solely negative attitudes towards Israel for so many years, are responsible for creating a politically-correct hatred towards Jews that has made Norway the most anti-Semitic country in the West.

Norways largest newspaper VG recently showed a survey on what the Norwegian people think of the largest TV station, NRKs chronically negative covering of Israel. The question was whether the people feel that the coverage is done in an objective manner or not. 60% believed that the recent complaint by the Israeli embassy in Oslo is right in that the coverage is constantly negative towards Israel and highly biased.

When the democratic right to free thinking is restricted, and only one part of the story is told, democracy alters shape and turns into a totalitarian system of speech control. This is the situation in Norway. Today many Jews hardly dare walk on the street in Oslo without fear of being spat on, – and not from Muslims but of ethnic Norwegian misguided people who think they do the truth a service by bullying fellow human beings.

Deep injustice lie in the fact that leading opinion makers in the Norwegian system have decided not to contribute to increased knowledge of international relations, but only reflect the politically-correct Left wing dictate. During Soviet times this was called propaganda.

Foreign Minister Jonas Gahr-Store ongoing articles in international newspapers in defense of Hamas, reflects this naiveté which eventually becomes so great that one should be promoting suspicion of deliberate malice. His International Herald Tribune article February 15th is a disgrace. There is good reason to understand why parts of the Labour Party would rather have him as Minister of Health.

Then one could at least have stopped the harm this man is doing when it comes to degrading Norway’s international reputation. For Mr. Store is internationally ridiculing his own country by acting as a self-styled Hamas activist. He was recently caught lying in a live TV2 show, denying his continuous political talks with Hamas leader Khaled Meshaal. He only changed his story when the reporter told him Mr. Meshaal had spoken about his conversations with Mr. Store.

Because of the lack of political will to tell both sides of the story, Norwegians are denied objective information that could have contributed to public knowledge of the situation. The same happened in Iran in 1979 when the Marxists and other supporters of the naive dreams of the effects of armed revolutions “of the people”, hailed Khomeini. The Shah of Persia was overthrown and many Marxists shed tears of joy because the Iranian people now had their revolution. Today many also cry, but for quite other reasons.

The Norwegian medias total and uncritical celebration of the angry young men on Tahrir Square during the recent revolution in Egypt, is a similar example. It was remarkably quickly forgotten that President Mubarak at the last election had more than 80% of the population behind him. During his years in power, he enabled Egypt to become Africa’s fastest growing economy and one of the Middle East’s most expansive, secular and stable country, rated as a middle income country by the UN, with a national income per. capita increased by 40% from 2004 up till today. In recent years, Mubarak succeeded in bringing one million out of poverty and into a middle class, an accomplishment that further pushed economic growth.

Many questions can be asked when it comes to the situation in the Middle East, including Egypt. It is well known that the country has struggled with corruption, poverty and lack of religious freedom. Nevertheless, the conservative philosopher Alexis de Tocqueville observed that when the so-called dictators over time have made conditions better for their people, that is when revolutions come that often makes things worse again.

The lack of will to promote and highlight various aspects of what is really happening in Israel as well as in numerous other international issues, is thus one of the reasons why many Norwegians now stand together and push for a new course in Norwegian politics. We want an end to the propaganda and to the misleading image which is continually portrayed of Israel.

Besides being right on, she's also HOT!

NOTE: The astute Norwegian blogger at Norway Israel and the Jews has more on Hanne Herland, who participated in the March symposium in Oslo regarding Norway’s problem with anti-Semitism. via tundratabloids.com and image via mobil.ba.no

...that should ruffle some Norwegian feathers

New Zealand revokes Greenpeace's Charity status.

(Wellington) Nobody can accuse New Zealand of been a right-wing country. If anything it gravitates to the left of the political spectrum. Even with the National Party currently in power New Zealand can still be deemed left of centre when it comes to politics.

With that in mind it has come as something of a surprise at how the New Zealand government has stripped environmental champions 'Greenpeace' of their charity status in the country. Actually that ruling was made last year and Greenpeace took it to the high court. However and a big however the high court has upheld the Charity commissions verdict which found Greenpeaces promotion of "disarmament and peace" as political rather than educational and while it did not directly advocate illegal acts, Greenpeace members had acted illegally.
Greenpeace say they will appeal.

via eye-on-the-world.blogspot.com

...and there is the precedent for the rest of the NGOs and Activist groups in America and Israel

Coen Brothers: Boycotting Israel is a mistake‏

The successful Hollywood filmmakers arrived in Israel to receive a
million-dollar award from Tel Aviv University.

While on a visit to Israel to collect a million-dollar award from Tel
Aviv University, American filmmakers Joel and Ethan Coen said that they
did not believe that boycotting Israel would solve political problems.
The production-direction team responsible for a string of successful
Hollywood dramas in the last two decades, from The Big Lebowski to
Miller's Crossing, came to the country to receive the Dan David prize
for their creative contribution to filmmaking.
coen - Courtesy - February 22 2011

The Dan David prize committee called the duo a unique example in
cinematic history for their abilities to tell a simple story in a
complex manner.
The prize is named for businessman and philanthropist Dan David and is
administered by a board of directors headed by Tel Aviv University
President Professor Yoseph Klafter. Ten percent of the recipients' prize
money is donated on their behalf to doctorate and post-doctorate student
grants.
Responding to a question about musicians and film makers who boycott the
State of Israel because of its policies and actions, screenwriter and
director Ethan Coen said, "People respond to real problems from the
heart, and they think that's the right thing to do. We don't agree with
that opinion, that that's how to deal with these problems."
The brothers' Jewish heritage is on display in a number of their films,
most obviously in 'A Serious Man' – translated into Hebrew as 'The Good
Jew'. Despite many references to Jewish cultural themes in their movies,
the two deny that their own Jewishness is necessarily connected to their
filmmaking.
"There were Jewish characters, but in regards to whether our background
influences our film making… who knows?" says Joel. "We don't think about
it… There's no doubt that our Jewish heritage affects how we see things."
"We grew up in a Jewish community, but we never thought to make a story
that deals with Israel," Joel continued. "We don’t really know Israel -
we write American stories. That's what we know."
"We've wanted to come here for a long time, but life got in the way,"
Joel explains. "We're very happy for this opportunity. We'll spend a few
days at Tel Aviv University."
The Coen Brothers were nominated for twelve Academy Awards in the last
year alone for their most movie 'True Grit'. The film follows a decade
of successes that include 'No Country for Old Men', 'A Serious Man', and
'O Brother, Where Art Thou?'
The other prize winners for 2011 were University of California at San
Francisco Professor Cynthia Kenyon and Harvard Medical School Professor
Gary Ruvkun for their work in gerontology and Stanford University
Medical School Professor Marcus Feldman for his work in the evolutionary
sciences.

By City Mouse Online, Haaretz Service and Amit Kling @ haaretz.com 

via docstalk.blogspot.com and image via dreadcentral.com

Israel approves Fatah-Hamas government

Israeli government agreed to release tax transfers to Palestinians despite Hamas-Fatah unity pact. The Israeli traitors received nominal assurances that the money won’t reach Hamas. Of course, tax transfers finance the Hamas empire in Gaza for the last five years by paying salaries of Hamas’ employees. via samsonblinded.org

Which one of you fellows is the Gate Keeper...
I am the Key Master... like this guy below

There_are_many_severe_and_game-changing security/diplomatic implications for Israel of a Hamas-Fatah unity accord. Prepare for war.  The terms of such an accord would undoubtedly include Egyptian agreement to open its border with Gaza, which has been one of Hamas’ key demands. This has wild implications for the import of Iranian weapons into Gaza, and would put the next Israel-Hamas clash on the fast-track.  via Implications of a Hamas-Fatah Unity Accord by David M. Weinberg and A Citadel Defending Zion via calevbenyefuneh.blogspot.com

"The two sides signed initial letters on an agreement. All points of differences have been overcome," said Taher Al-Nono, the Hamas government spokesman in Gaza. He added that Cairo would shortly invite both sides to a signing ceremony.

Here are some more details
on the deal that they have reached
(Hat Tip: Memeorandum).

"We have agreed to form a government composed of independent figures that would start preparing for presidential and parliamentary elections," said Azzam al-Ahmad, the head of Fatah's negotiating team in Cairo.

"Elections would be held in about eight months from now," he added.

Mahmoud al-Zahar, a senior Hamas leader who participated in the talks, said Wednesday's deal covered five points, including combining security forces and forming a government made up of "nationalist figures".
He said Hamas and Fatah would free respective prisoners.
Implementation of the accord is due to start following an official signing ceremony in Cairo, expected in early May.
Any interim government is unlikely to include Hamas officials in an effort to avoid the sort of international boycott that hit the Palestinians after the 2006 election.

Fatah believes that it's crucial for them to reconcile with Hamas to avoid the argument in September that they're not ready to be a state because half their 'people' are governed by Hamas.
It's true that argument would be used (and it would be correct), but this move does not resolve the issue. Fatah and Hamas governing jointly raises a host of problems.
Earlier, I showed you a video in which Prime Minister Netanyahu said that the 'Palestinian Authority' could have peace with Israel or Hamas but not with both. That's just the tip of the iceberg of the problems that this deal raises. Here's the US reaction:

The United States believes any Palestinian government must renounce violence, respect past peace deals and recognize Israel's right to exist if it is to play a constructive role, a U.S. official said on Wednesday.
...
The United States supports the reconciliation on "terms which promote the cause of peace", the State Department said following the announcement.
"We have seen the press reports and are seeking more information. As we have said before, the United States supports Palestinian reconciliation on terms which promote the cause of peace," the State Department said.
"To play a constructive role, any Palestinian government must accept the Quartet principles by renouncing violence, accepting past agreements, and recognizing Israel’s right to exist."
The White House said it was seeking more information about the reported deal, calling Hamas terrorists.
"The United States supports Palestinian reconciliation on terms which promote the cause of peace. Hamas, however, is a terrorist organization which targets civilians," White House spokesman Tommy Vietor said in a statement.

Under US law, Hamas is considered a terror organization, and the President may be forbidden from providing US aid to a government in which Hamas sits. The European Union also considers Hamas a terror organization, although there is a lot more pressure in Europe to recognize it as a legitimate partner for peace. Europe may continue to fund the 'Palestinian Authority' with Hamas on the inside, and it may also still vote in favor of the unilateral recognition of a 'Palestinian state' at the UN in September.
As to Israel, while some Israelis delude themselves that Fatah and the 'Palestinian Authority' want peace with us, no one here has any such illusions about Hamas. The 'peace process' is over if Hamas is part of the 'Palestinian Authority.'

Do you think they could beat the Road Warriors?

All in all, I'd say this is a poor strategic move by the 'Palestinian Authority.' It makes Israel's case against unilateral recognition of 'Palestine' much easier. It makes it easier for Israel to insist on retaining more of Judea and Samaria. It looks like a declaration of war by the 'Palestinians.'
And indeed that's what just might happen. via israelmatzav.blogspot.com

I just knew these guys would play wrestle tag team sooner or later. 

A Palestinian reconciliation deal signed between rival factions Fatah and Hamas is the result of recent Mideast unrest, Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman said Thursday, adding he feared Hamas would eventually take over the West Bank.

The foreign minister added that he felt Hamas had been placed under pressure by recent unrest in its key ally Syria, saying that Hamas politburo chief Khaled Meshal "sees his patron, Syrian President Bashar Assad, shooting up the mosques and is distressed by the riots." "On the other side, [Palestinian President Mahmoud] Abbas, who has been relying for years on ousted Egyptian President [Hosni] Mubarak is fears that the Muslim Brotherhood, Hamas' parent group, will take power and he would lose his support," Lieberman said. Regarding a possible backlash to the deal, Lieberman said he expected the international community to respond accordingly, saying: "This agreement crosses a red line, Hamas has been defined as a terrorist organization by the Quartet since 2003 in addition to the fact that it has always been known that no talks can be held with groups calling for Israel's destruction.

via haaretz.com

is the photo at the top real? yowsa! 

The mass media portrays unity as a positive step, not when it's between two terrorist groups. - @IFindTerror

NY Times Sinks the Truth

According to a New York Times report, a second flotilla of vessels led by the Turkish Mavi Marmara is due to sail for Gaza within the next few months. Last time, the real motives and agenda of those involved in the flotilla only became clear after Israeli commandos were attacked by extremists brandishing weapons.

Last time, the flotilla organizers were allowed to sell a false narrative of so-called “peace activists” delivering humanitarian aid to Gazans suffering a humanitarian crisis as a result of an Israeli blockade.
This time, there is no excuse for the media not to question the agenda behind a second flotilla and to include the relevant context. The New York Times, however, has published such a shoddy piece of journalism that it is difficult to believe how such an article was allowed in the newspaper of record.

Read the rest by Simon Plosker via honestreporting.com

the truth doesn't matter anymore to the NYTimes

Mickey Mouse Progressive Liberal Media Corporation looks to Trademarks “Seal Team 6″

The home of Christiane Amanpour is looking to own our patriots.... ...... .... .... ...... ....

...note:
Christiane Amanpour hates Jews...

In a perfect example of a big media company looking to capitalize on current events, The Walt Disney Company has trademarked “Seal Team 6,” which also happens to be the name of the elite special forces team that killed Osama Bin Laden.

The trademark applications came on May 3rd, two days after the operation that killed Bin Laden… and two days after “Seal Team 6″  was included in thousands of news articles and TV programs focusing on the operation.
Disney’s trademark applications for “Seal Team 6″ cover clothing, footwear, headwear, toys, games and “entertainment and education services,” among other things.
You can read the actual applications here, here and here.
Of course, for all we know Disney has been working on an animated feature about a team of anthropomorphic seals in search of adventure, but given the timing of the application that seems… unlikely.

via mediabistro.com and image via hiscrivener.wordpress.com

the few are controlling ideas... this is what elitism is all about. They censor your ability to talk about things that are meaningful to you... and they do it legally.

IMF Dominique Strauss-Kahn

...IMF Dominique Strauss-Kahn:
France's Socialist Party,
described news of his arrest as a thunderbolt...

Police say he faces three charges, including attempted rape. His lawyers say he denies the claims.

The married former French finance minister is also considered a possible Socialist candidate for the presidency.The BBC's Hugh Schofield, in Paris, says Mr Strauss-Kahn has been riding high in the polls and was seen as having a genuine chance of beating President Nicolas Sarkozy. 

Martine Aubry, leader of France's Socialist Party
image via en.wikipedia.org

Martine Aubry, leader of France's Socialist Party, described news of his arrest as a "thunderbolt" which left her "astounded".
Mr Strauss-Kahn is expected to appear before a New York state court later on Sunday, Reuters reports.
He had been scheduled to meet German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Sunday, but that meeting has now been cancelled, reports say.
On Monday he had planned to attend a meeting of European Union finance ministers in Brussels on Monday to discuss the bailouts of Portugal and Greece.
Correspondents say his detention is likely to complicate ongoing efforts to stabilise the finances of struggling eurozone member states. via librabunda.blogspot.com

The International Monetary Fund has issued a statement in the wake of the arrest of its boss, Dominique Strauss-Kahn, on sex-assault charges in New York.

The IMF is not exactly standing up for the man:

Statement on IMF Managing Director Dominique Strauss-Kahn

Ms. Caroline Atkinson, Director of External Relations at the International Monetary Fund (IMF), issued the following statement today:

To Control The System
is to Be the System:
IMF Says Palestinians Are Ready
To Make A State?

“IMF Managing Director Strauss-Kahn was arrested in New York City. Mr. Strauss-Kahn has retained legal counsel, and the IMF has no comment on the case; all inquiries will be referred to his personal lawyer and to the local authorities.

“The IMF remains fully functioning and operational.”

The IMF has already had to investigate and apologize for one Strauss-Kahn sex scandal (an affair with a subordinate). Strauss-Kahn survived that one, after apologizing publicly to the IMF and his wife. His surviving this one, at least with his job intact, seems unlikely. via businessinsider.com

Tariq Ramadan Proves Switzerland is NOT Neutral

NOR WERE the Swiss EVER Neutral! Not during the Holocaust... not NOW!

Tariq Tricks: Favorite Islamist Spin

Christiane Amanpour could not get
Tariq Ramadan to condemn stoning of women
for whatever reason

In response to a question about how "the weaker" such as "Palestinians, Muslims and blacks" should resist "oppression," Ramadan recounted how, as he put it, "when Israel was killing innocent people in Gaza," Switzerland chose to break its neutrality and take the side of the Palestinians; not to do so would have been to implicitly support the "oppressor." The implication was that if even neutral Switzerland decided to support the Palestinians, everyone should. He did not bring up Hamas's use of human shields or its deliberate choice to store weapons in hospitals and near U.N. buildings, nor did he mention Richard Goldstone's recent recantation on the entire official narrative of the Gaza War.

Tariq Ramadan Discovers His Inner Flower Child by Jonathan Gelbart - American Thinker - May 15, 2011 via campus-watch.org and image via medialabmanizales.com

Veiled woman describes being raped by Syrian forces

This video is being circulated by Syrian activists. It was uploaded to YouTube on May 12:

The woman in the video calls herself "Mother of Abdullah." She is holding a Koran to emphasize that her words are true. According to the video, she is a widow who went to attend a funeral of her cousin in Syria. She heard gunshots and ran to her house for cover, locking herself and her son in a room.
After a few minutes she heard a door open and she thought it was her parents. Instead, it was five Syrian security officers, dressed in black. They asked if there were any weapons in the home, and searched the house without finding any.
Then, according to the video, they took off her veil and clothes and took turns raping her, threatening to slaughter her son if she screamed.

via elderofziyon.blogspot.com

horrible

Egypt's Pope urges Copts to end protests

The head of Egypt's Coptic Orthodox Church, Pope Shenouda III, urged Christian demonstrators to immediately stop protesting in front of the State TV Building. Copts have been protesting for nine days to object to the recent attacks by conservative Muslims on a church in Imbaba, northwest Cairo. The clashes, which led to 15 deaths and 240 injuries, followed rumors about a female Muslim convert allegedly detained in the church. In a statement delivered to state TV on Sunday, Shenouda said "the situation has exceeded the expression of opinion," warning that the protests have been infiltrated by outsiders, which has led to battles and gun fights. "This will distort your image and Egypt's reputation, this sit-in has to be dispersed immediately", he said to the protesters. "You are the ones to lose should demonstrations proceed - the rulers are growing impatient", he said. Army and police forces regained control of the situation following fire bomb exchanges between unknown attackers and a number of protesting Copts in front of the State TV Building. Gun shots were also heard. The incidents have resulted in 67 injuries and huge financial losses, including the torching of a number of vehicles, according to the Ministry of Health. Translated from the Arabic Edition

What a terrible position to be in.

George Mitchell resigns as U.S. Middle East envoy - Yahoo!

...His Dogged Drive for Mideast Piece...FAIL...

The basic reality is you have a nonexistent peace process," said Aaron Miller, a former Middle East negotiator now at the Wilson Center, a think tank. via online.wsj.com

George Mitchell, Obama's special envoy for Middle East peace, will step down after a frustrating two and a half years seeking to jump-start the stalemated Israeli-Palestinian peace process. via news.yahoo.com