Suspects admit to and reenacted stoning in capital's Armon Hanatziv neighborhood; set to face remand hearing.
Stone-throwing Palestinian Photo: Reuters
Police arrested five Arab youths from east Jerusalem suspected of carrying out the Thursday stoning attack that injured two-year-old Abigail Ben-Zion in the Armon Hanatziv neighborhood, it was revealed Tuesday after a gag order was lifted.
According to police, the suspects, arrested on Monday, admitted to throwing stones at the vehicle carrying the toddler and reinacted the incident. The suspects told investigators that they were motivated by hatred of Jews, according to Israeli media reports.
CARACAS – The Venezuelan Attorney General’s Office said Monday it has opened an investigation into the kidnapping of three newborn babies from a hospital in the western city of Maracaibo.
Prosecutors ordered an inspection and photos taken of the place where the kidnappings took place, as well as the questioning of witnesses and security personnel at Maracaibo’s Chiquinquira Hospital, the AG’s office said in a statement.
The investigation will also include technical examinations.
The three mothers reported to Zulia state police the loss of their babies this Sunday when they realized they weren’t coming back after being taken for a regular checkup by “a woman dressed in a white coat,” according to media accounts.
The grandmother of one of the three kidnapped babies said that a woman “between ages 30 and 35, with white skin and dark wavy hair,” had taken the babies for supposedly routine examinations and never returned, Panorama newspaper said.
SANLUISPOTOSÍ,December 1-.FederalPoliceseized more than600kilograms of marijuanathatwashiddenin a truck that was moving toward thetown ofSan LuisRio Verde.
TheFederalPolicesaid that theincident occurredintheTampico-Sanchez Romanroadat kilometerstretch152Rio Verde-SantaCatarina,wherefederal agentswere carrying outinspection, securityand surveillancewhen they detecteda typebox truckwithonly one plate, soasked thedriver to stop. In a statement,said thedriverstoppedthe drive andupon inspectionthe vehicle,the truckwas empty, butyou could seethat it had beenmodifiedrecentlyanduponcloser examinationthe drugwas found.
The climate of insecurityand violencethat is perceivedthrough music, television andtheinternet,has meant thatthe dream ofevery child isto behit man,this hasbeen demonstrated instudies andanalysis conducted bythe Center of AttentionandFamily ViolencePrevention(Cepavi)and havethrownthatout of tensmall,both wantto beassassins.
Figures released by the Iranian National Statistics Office indicate that Sigha –temporary partnership – is on the rise, while fewer and fewer people are marrying in the conventional way.
Mohabat News - Figures released by the Iranian National Statistics Office indicate that Sigha –temporary partnership – is on the rise, while fewer and fewer people are marrying in the conventional way.
According to the deputy justice minister, Sigha rose by 28% in 2012 and by a further 10% in the first half of this year. Sociologist Mustafa Aghlima told the ISNA news agency: "The increase in Sigha at the cost of fewer proper marriages means the collapse of family life and its cultural values. Sigha is endemic among wealthy people seeking sexual gratification."
Pre-marital sex is illegal in Iran, and many young men and women resort to temporary marriage as a way of continuing a sexual relationship. University lecturer Dr. Hussein Baher told ISNA: "Getting married is harder now than it ever has been. 90% of the problems experienced by married couples are the result of economic hardship, while in the remaining 10% cultural differences are to blame."
The Iranian authorities however blame foreign satellite television for the increase in family breakdowns, while discounting such problems as the high cost of living, high rates of unemployment and a lack of decent housing./shahrzad
The New York-based group Committee to Protect Journalists cited the case of two kidnapped Swedish journalists.
Syrian opposition fighters drag a rocket launcher near the 80th Brigade base in Aleppo Nov. 13, 2013 Photo: REUTERS
The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) said on Tuesday that the civil war in Syria posed the greatest danger for working reporters in conflict areas.
“Syria remains the most dangerous country in the world for journalists,” CPJ said. “At least 55 journalists have been killed covering the conflict since 2011, with local journalists comprising 90 percent of the fatalities.”
The New York-based group cited the case of two kidnapped Swedish journalists.
According to a statement issued on Tuesday by a spokeswoman for the Swedish Foreign Ministry, the two had been “taken away” on Saturday. It is unclear whether Syria’s regime or rebel forces kidnapped the men.
CPJ said there were at least 30 local and international journalists missing there.
“The number of journalists currently missing in Syria is nothing short of shocking,” said CPJ’s Middle East and North Africa coordinator, Sherif Mansour.
“We call on all players in the conflict to respect journalists’ status as civilians and ensure their safety.”
Many cases of missing journalists have not been publicized because of family wishes and the probability of damaging complex negotiations to secure their release.
According to the Swedish daily Dagens Nyheter, the two journalists were Magnus Falkehed and Niclas Hammarstrom. The Paris-based Falkehed worked for the paper as a freelance reporter, and Hammarstrom as a freelance photographer. The paper said they had not been on assignment for the daily when they disappeared.
The Paris-based Reporters Without Borders issued an extensive report earlier this month titled “Journalism in Syria, impossible job?” According to the report, “more than 110 news providers have been killed in the course of their work in Syria since March 2011 and more than 60 are currently detained, held hostage or missing.”
The difference in statistics between CPJ and Reporters Without Borders is typical in war reporting where civilian deaths and casualty numbers vary according to sources and methods used to track victims.
Reporters Without Borders is an international organization that seeks to expand freedom of information. It released its report to coincide with the six-month date of captivity for Edouard Elias and Didier François, two French TV journalists.
The report noted that Syrian president Bashar Assad’s forces targeted journalists at the outset of the revolt against his regime in 2011. While Assad continues his crackdown on journalists, rebel jihadi groups in northern Syria also aim to kidnap journalists.
Reporters Without Borders placed Assad on its annual list of “Predators of press freedom” in 2011. The Al-Qaida-linked al-Nusra group was added in 2013.
The advocacy organization now seeks to add the al-Qaida-linked ISIS to its list. ISIS controls large swaths of territory in northern Syria and goes to great lengths to target Western and independent journalists working in the country.
Writing for the Daily Beast website on Tuesday, Jamie Dettmer described how Syrian army forces attempted to kidnap him in the Kurdish-controlled region of northeast Syria.
CPJ said Rami al-Razzouk, a journalist for the local news outlet Radio ANA, was abducted by ISIS gunmen in October. In August, Mohamed Nour Matar, a local journalist, disappeared while reporting on a protest against ISIS in the city of Raqqa. He worked for the non-profit media organization Al-Shara, according to CPJ. Benjamin Weinthal reported for The Jerusalem Post on the Turkey-Syria border, where he entered the Syrian-side of the border town of Jarabulus in September. He is a fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies.
GUATEMALA CITY – A member of the municipal council in the eastern Guatemalan city of Jalapa was fatally shot by unknown assailants, first responders said Friday.
Carlos Valdez was slain Thursday night in the capital of Jalapa province, fire rescue spokesman Mario Cruz told reporters.
The shooting took place as the councilman was getting into his vehicle in a parking lot, according to the official report. Valdez, 49, took office in January 2012 after winning election on the ticket of a short-lived coalition of the UNE and GANA parties.
Authorities declined to speculate on the motive of the killers.
With an average of 15 homicides a day, Guatemala is one of the most dangerous nations in Latin America.
CARACAS – The Venezuelan Attorney General’s Office said Monday it has opened an investigation into the kidnapping of three newborn babies from a hospital in the western city of Maracaibo.
GUATEMALA CITY – A member of the municipal council in the eastern Guatemalan city of Jalapa was fatally shot by unknown assailants, first responders said Friday.