Iran ( Banned Ebtekar newspaper allowed to reopen )

 

Wednesday, Apr 30 2014  

The ban on the Ebtekar Daily has been revoked four days after the newspaper was shut down by Iran's press court authorities.

Iranian media report that Mohammad Ali Vakili, the Managing Director of the newspaper, was informed that the newspaper's publication ban had been lifted.

Vakili announced that the newspaper will resume publication starting Wednesday April 30.

The newspaper was shut down after it reported on the removal of Gholamhossein Esmaili as the head of the country's prison organization following the attack on political prisoners in Ward 350 of Evin Prison.

The head of the judiciary has denied that any prisoner rights were violated at Evin and he insists that Esmaili's removal was more of a shuffle, which had been decided upon before any incident at Evin.

Ayatollah Larijani had also cautioned the media about reporting about the incident at Evin Prison in any manner that would indicate wrongdoing on the government's part.

Minister of Culture Ali Jannati had expressed his opposition to the ban on the Ebtekar Newspaper.

Radio Zamaneh

Bahrain ( 8 people sentenced to life in prison for killing policeman )

MANAMA: Bahrain’s Supreme Criminal Court has sentenced eight people to life in prison for their part in the killing of a policeman in a bomb blast in November, the Public Prosecutor’s office said on Sunday.
The Gulf kingdom has struggled with ongoing unrest since mass pro-democracy protests erupted in 2011.
The protests were controlled but since then more sectarian elements have carried out low-level violence against security forces on an almost daily basis. Recent months have seen a rise in the use of homemade bombs.
According to the Public Prosecutor, the eight men planted a homemade bomb close to where police usually erected a checkpoint during protests, before setting tires on fire and blocking the road to lure policemen to the site.
One policeman was killed and four others were injured in the resulting blast, the prosecutor said.
The government says it has taken steps to address security forces’ violations by dismissing those responsible and introducing cameras at police stations to monitor abuses. But activists say this has not helped.

GUATEMALA CITY ( Four Gunned Down at Nightclub in Guatemala)

 
GUATEMALA CITY – An attack by gunmen at a nightclub in the northern city of Coban left four people dead and two others wounded, Guatemala’s PNC national police force said Friday.

Roberto Cabna, 32, and Sergio Adonai Chon, 19, were pronounced dead at the scene of Thursday night’s attack, while Daniel Barrios, 26, and 21-year-old Benjamin de Jesus Medina died later at a hospital, PNC spokesman Pablo Castillo told Efe.

The two wounded survivors, a woman of 43 and a 28-year-old man, are listed in stable condition, Castillo said.

Guatemala, a nation of roughly 14 million people, suffered 6,072 homicides in 2013, or an average of 16 murders a day.

EGYPT ( 682 Muslim Brotherhood sentenced to death )

MINYA, Egypt (Reuters) - An Egyptian court sentenced the leader of the outlawed Muslim Brotherhood and 682 supporters to death on Monday, intensifying a crackdown on the movement that could trigger protests and political violence ahead of an election next month.

The Brotherhood, in a statement issued in London, described the ruling as chilling and said it would "continue to use all peaceful means to end military rule".

In another case signaling growing intolerance of dissent by military-backed authorities, a pro-democracy movement that helped ignite the uprising that toppled autocrat Hosni Mubarak in 2011 was banned by court order, judicial sources said.

The death sentence passed on Mohamed Badie, the Brotherhood's general guide, will infuriate members of the group, which has been the target of raids, arrests and bans since the army forced President Mohamed Mursi from power in July.

The United States and the United Nations expressed alarm over the ruling.

Teacher News ( Teacher gives " lap dance to student " in class)

New Mexico ( Man arrested for " Hate Crime " regarding religion )

Department of Justice

Office of Public Affairs

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Thursday, April 24, 2014

New Mexico Man Charged with Federal Hate Crime for Threats Against Businesswoman

A federal grand jury returned a two-count indictment against John W. Ng, 58, of Albuquerque, New Mexico, charging him with hate crime offenses related to anti-Semitic threats he made against a Jewish woman who owns and operates the Nosh Jewish Delicatessen and Bakery in Albuquerque.  

Ng was arrested by the FBI on March 7, 2014, based on a criminal complaint alleging that he interfered with the victim’s federally protected rights by threatening the victim and interfering with her business because of her religion and because she owned a Jewish restaurant.  According to the indictment, on Jan. 22, 2014, and Feb. 8, 2014, Ng allegedly posted threatening, anti-Semitic notes on the door of the victim’s business.  One of the notes allegedly read, “TO: The [racial slur] who should die.”  Another allegedly read, “FROM:  The one you scarred for life scumbags [;] TO: The [racial slur] who will die like rats.”  

Ng was arrested by the FBI on March 7, 2014.  He remains in federal custody pending completion of a psychiatric competency and dangerousness examination.  

An indictment merely establishes probable cause, and Ng is presumed innocent unless proven guilty.  Each count carries a maximum statutory penalty of one year in prison.

 

This matter was investigated by the Albuquerque Division of the FBI and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Holland S. Kastrin of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Mexico and Trial Attorney Angie Cha of the U.S. Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division.

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Civil Rights Division

WASHINGTON ( Mexico Slams Plans for High tech radar “Virtual Fence” ) Arizona Border

WASHINGTON – The Mexican Consulate in Phoenix, Arizona, strongly criticized plans for a “virtual fence” on the southern border of that state and warned that such state projects “negatively affect” relations between the two countries and “impede” collaboration on migration matters.

“The government of Mexico is watching the funding and implementation process, while recalling similar efforts that never achieved their established goals,” a communique from the Mexican Consulate in Phoenix said Friday.

Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer signed into law (HB 2462) a measure this week authorizing the state to install high-tech radar and cameras on 300 towers along 600 kilometers (375 miles) of the border with Mexico in order to keep a lookout for people- and drug-smuggling.

The original bill specified a funding of $30 million but the final approved text makes no mention of funds for creating a “virtual fence,” it simply authorizes that one be built.

“The government of Mexico insists that local projects of this nature negatively affect bilateral relations and impede effective collaboration between the two countries by planning to create systems of migration control different from those specified by federal legislation,” the consulate note continues.

“Mexico condemns the construction of any kind of border fence, considering that it does not resolve the migration phenomenon, nor is it consistent with a modern, secure border, and in no way contributes to the development and competitiveness of the region that both countries wish to promote,” it said.

For Mexico, the passing of HB 2462 contrasts with the “current of positive initiatives” passed in other states of the U.S. to promote the integration of immigrants as an acknowledgment of the contribution they make