Mainstream News

Deputy pepper sprays, beats man with Down Syndrome

"His eyes stinging with pepper spray, a developmentally disabled 21-year-old man was hit and forced to the ground before being taken into custody by California sheriff's deputies. Antonio Martinez was taken to a hospital and detained for possible obstruction of justice, but there was no citation or charge filed on that or other counts. While trying 'to gain compliance and prevent a possible escape,' the deputy used pepper spray on Antonio Martinez. The deputy began using a baton as an agitated crowd approached. The deputy hit Antonio Martinez with it, forcing him to the ground, then levied 'a couple more strikes to get his hands free'." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingDeputy pepper sprays, beats man with Down Syndrome

Occupy activists sue Los Angeles over harsh treatment from police

"Activists with Occupy Los Angeles have filed suit against the city for what they allege was harsh police treatment as they were swept off City Hall grounds over a year ago. An estimated 1,400 officers drove about 300 demonstrators off the grounds on November 30, 2011; the activists had been camping out for eight weeks to support the Occupy Wall Street movement against economic inequality and wealth disparities. The activists claim they were denied food and water for hours while being detained at the Metropolitan Detention Center, at a jail in Van Nuys or on a bus to the detention center. Others allege they were refused access to bathroom facilities." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingOccupy activists sue Los Angeles over harsh treatment from police

Iran to citizens: avoid U.S. travel due to ‘targeted Iranophobia’

"Iran has issued a travel warning to its citizens against visiting arch-foe the United States, an official said, after the death of an Iranian national reportedly following a grilling by US customs officials. 'Iranian citizens are advised to avoid non-essential travels to the US and, in case of visit, to exercise maximum caution,' foreign ministry spokesman Ramin Mehmanparast said in remarks reported by the ISNA news agency. The US is a 'high risk' destination for Iranian travellers, he said citing a 'targeted Iranophobia trend in the US and repeated incidents in which Iranian citizens are threatened and arrested there.'" Continue reading →

Continue ReadingIran to citizens: avoid U.S. travel due to ‘targeted Iranophobia’

U.K. pays Iraqi torture victims millions in compensation

"The Ministry of Defence has paid out £14m in compensation and costs to hundreds of Iraqis who complained that they were illegally detained and tortured by British forces during the five-year occupation of the south-east of the country. Hundreds more claims are in the pipeline as Iraqis become aware that they are able to bring proceedings against the UK authorities in the London courts. Human rights groups and lawyers representing former prisoners say that the abuse was systemic, with military interrogators and guards responsible for the mistreatment acting in accordance with both their training in the UK and orders issued in Iraq." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingU.K. pays Iraqi torture victims millions in compensation

Egypt approves new constitution with 32.9% voter turnout

"Egypt’s constitution was passed with 63.8 percent voter support in the two-stage referendum that ended last weekend, the national electoral commission said on Tuesday. Turnout was 32.9 percent of Egypt’s total 52 million voters, the president of the commission, Samir Abul Maati, told a news conference in Cairo. The figures confirmed those given by President Mohamed Morsi’s Muslim Brotherhood, which had backed the new charter." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingEgypt approves new constitution with 32.9% voter turnout

Deportations of illegal immigrants in 2012 reach new US record

"The United States deported more than 400,000 illegal immigrants in 2012, the most of any year in the nation’s history, US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) reports. In four years, the Obama administration has deported three-quarters of the number of people that President George W. Bush’s administration did in eight. And unlike Mr. Bush, Obama made no concerted effort to reform the US immigration system – a history that’s not lost on the president’s Latino supporters. Representative Gutierrez said some 90,000 undocumented parents of American-born children continue to be deported each year." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingDeportations of illegal immigrants in 2012 reach new US record

Israeli PM aims to deport tens of thousands of Africans

"Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Monday he aims to repatriate tens of thousands of African illegal migrants and that the inflow into Israel from the Sinai peninsula has been brought to a halt. 'We have reached this result over the past several months, and next month we will have completed the construction of the fence on the border with the Sinai,' facing Egypt, he said. Interior Minister Eli Yishai had warned in August that Sudanese illegals who did not leave the country by October 15 would be detained, held in camps and deported." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingIsraeli PM aims to deport tens of thousands of Africans

Syrian Christians ‘pray for peace’

"In the heart of Damascus, more than 1,000 people attended Christmas mass on Monday, praying for peace to return to Syria, after almost two years of bloodshed. The church entrance was thinly decorated, a far cry from the usually ornate facade that welcomes the faithful. But a donations box at the entrance gives away the sea-change that Syria has suffered ever since the outbreak of an anti-regime revolt in March last year. Many Christians have remained neutral in a conflict estimated to have killed more than 44,000 people. Most church leaders have taken President Bashar al-Assad’s side, for fear of the rise of Islamic extremism." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingSyrian Christians ‘pray for peace’

Christianity ‘close to extinction’ in Middle East

"The report, entitled Christianophobia, highlights a fear among oppressive regimes that Christianity is a 'Western creed' which can be used to undermine them. State hostility towards Christianity is particularly rife in China, where more Christians are imprisoned than in any other country in the world, according to the report. It claims George Bush’s use of the word 'crusade' after the September 11 attacks on New York created the impression for Muslims in the Middle East of a 'Christian assault on the Muslim world'." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingChristianity ‘close to extinction’ in Middle East

8-child family defies China’s one-child policy

"China’s one-child rule has numerous critics, but perhaps none have so emphatically defied the policy as a couple who have accumulated four boys and four girls — some born to two surrogate mothers. Authorities are calculating how high a fine to impose on the family, described as 'rich merchants' in the southern province of Guangdong, estimating that it could reach 10 times their annual income. While the triplets born to the mother via artificial insemination were deemed legal, they were delivered in Hong Kong — a popular option for wealthy Chinese who want to secure residency there for their children and evade the mainland China quota." Continue reading →

Continue Reading8-child family defies China’s one-child policy