Russia Passes 'Gay Propaganda' Ban Bill

By Katie Stallard, Russia Correspondent

Russia's parliament has overwhelmingly backed plans for a new bill banning 'homosexual propaganda', which campaigners say could lead to gay couples being fined for kissing or holding hands in public.

Members of the Duma burst into applause as the heavily pro-Kremlin chamber approved the first reading with 388 votes in favour, one against and one abstention.

At least 20 young people were arrested by riot police after staging a "kiss-in protest" outside the parliament building.

They were pelted with eggs by Orthodox church activists, who strongly support the legislation, claiming it will help to boost Russia's dwindling birth rates.

Witnesses said police seemed to be focusing their efforts on detaining the gay rights campaigners.

The wording of the bill is, perhaps deliberately, vague. In its current form it prohibits "the propaganda of homosexual behaviour among minors" - but it does not define precisely what this means.

Activists fear the legislation could be used to fine same-sex couples for public displays of affection, such as kissing or holding hands, and that there would also be a nationwide ban on gay rights rallies.

A regional version of the law, which is already in force in President Vladimir Putin's native St Petersburg and several other Russian regions, has already been used in an attempt (ultimately dismissed by the courts) to prosecute Madonna for comments made at one of her concerts, and a member of Mr Putin's party is threatening to sue the pop star Lady Gaga over her latest show in the city.

A protester is detained by police outside the Duma

Under the proposals, individuals could be fined 5000 rubles (£105), those deemed 'officials' 50,000 rubles (£1,050) and businesses and schools up to 500,000 rubles (£10,500).

Supporters claim the law will protect children from 'unnecessary confusion'.

Yelena Mizulina, chair of the Duma's family affairs committee, said she backed the legislation that "protected minors from the consequences of homosexuality".

She said: "The unbridled propaganda of homosexuality anywhere you look effectively limits the child's right to free development."

A Stalin-era law criminalising homosexuality - which was punishable by up to five years in prison - was only repealed in Russia in 1993, and various top officials have continued to express openly homophobic views in public.

A poll by the Levada Centre in 2010 found that 43% of Russians thought homosexuality was immoral, while 32% said homosexuals were 'mentally deficient'.

But some have questioned the damage this new law could do to the country's image.

Andrei Babitsky, editor of Esquire Russia, wrote in a recent commentary for the Vedomosti Business Daily newspaper: "The very fact that Russia in 2013 is discussing the possibility of banning the 'propaganda of homosexuality' is in itself the harshest of blows against our own prospects.

"It is hard to imagine a single issue that so clearly distinguishes between modernity and the Middle Ages."

United Russia politician Dmitry Sablin said: "We live in Russia, not Sodom and Gomorrah.

"Russia is a thousands-years-old country founded on its own traditional values - the protection of which is dearer to me than even oil and gas."

Russian state television said members of the country's gay and lesbian community would be invited to attend the crucial second reading of the bill, which is expected to be held within the next few weeks.

23.17 | 0 komentar | Read More

Egypt: Police And Protesters Clash

Four people have been killed in Egypt during clashes betwen police and protesters on the second anniversary of the revolution.

Police fired tear gas to disperse thousands of opponents of President Mohamed Morsi, gathered in Cairo's Tahrir Square.

At least 186 people and 45 security personnel were hurt during protests in various cities, including Cairo, Alexandria and Suez, according to medics. The fatalities were in Suez.

In Ismailia, hundreds of demonstrators broke into local government offices after the headquarters of the Muslim Brotherhood in the city were set ablaze.

On Thursday, clashes erupted after protesters tried to dismantle a wall of concrete blocks closing a street leading to the square.

An anti-Morsi protester tries to escape from a tent sent on fire by police

The secular-leaning opposition has called for mass protests against Mr Morsi and his party, the Muslim Brotherhood, using the same slogan that brought Egypt to its feet in 2011 and ousted Hosni Mubarak: "Bread, freedom, social justice."

Opposition leader and former head of the UN's atomic agency, Mohamed ElBaradei, wrote on his Twitter account: "Go out into the squares to finally achieve the objectives of the revolution."

Tahrir Square is the iconic birthplace of the 2011 revolution, and demonstrators gathered in front of the presidential palace, where anti-Morsi rallies last December erupted into deadly clashes with Islamist supporters.

The Muslim Brotherhood has not officially called for its own rallies, instead marking the anniversary by launching a charitable and social initiative called: "Together we will build Egypt."

A man in Cairo works on graffiti representing the Muslim Brotherhood

Mr Morsi urged Egyptians to spend the anniversary in a "peaceful and civilised way" in a speech on Thursday to mark the birthday of the Prophet Mohammed.

The violence broke out ahead of a court verdict due on Saturday in the trial of dozens of defendants over the worst football disaster in Egyptian history.

More than 70 people were killed in Port Said in February last year during clashes in the Suez Canal city between fans of home side Al Masry and diehard supporters Cairo's Al Ahly, known as Ultras.

Al Ahly supporters warned of violent protests and a "new revolution" if Saturday's verdict goes against them.

23.17 | 0 komentar | Read More

Venezuela Prison Riot Kills Dozens Of Inmates

Up to 50 people have been killed and scores more injured in clashes at a prison in Venezuela, according to hospital officials and local media.

Television footage showed National Guard troops surrounding the Uribana prison as inmates in bloody clothes were taken out of the building.

Relatives of the prisoners, most of them women in tears, waited outside.

Iris Varela, the government minister responsible for Venezuela's jails and prisons, said the riot at the Uribana prison in northwest Lara state began after inmates objected to prison authorities planning to confiscate weapons.

She said that inmates fought with troops brought in to calm the situation and with each other as rival gangs battled for control of the prison.

Hospital official Ruy Medina said many of the dozens of casualties had suffered gunshot wounds.

The South American nation's 34 prisons were designed to hold just one-third of the 50,000 inmates now in them, according to local prison advocacy groups.

Many of the prisoners are armed and hundreds are killed each year in riots and gang fights.

In 2011, there was a month-long siege at El Rodeo prison, just outside the capital of Caracas, in which 22 people died before 5,000 soldiers were able to restore order.

23.17 | 0 komentar | Read More

Star Wars Episode VII: New Director Revealed

Star Trek director JJ Abrams is to direct the latest Star Wars film, Episode VII, which begins production in the coming months.

Announcing the news, Star Wars creator George Lucas said: "I've consistently been impressed with JJ as a filmmaker and a storyteller. He's an ideal choice to direct the new Star Wars film and the legacy couldn't be in better hands."

The film will be produced by Kathleen Kennedy through Disney Lucasfilm, after the Walt Disney Company brokered a deal to acquire Lucasfilm Ltd in October 2012.

"It's very exciting to have JJ aboard leading the charge as we set off to make a new Star Wars movie," said Kennedy.

Lucas: 'Abrams is an ideal choice, the legacy couldn't be in better hands'

"JJ is the perfect director to helm this. Beyond having such great instincts as a filmmaker, he has an intuitive understanding of the Star Wars franchise.

"He understands the essence of the Star Wars experience, and will bring that talent to create an unforgettable motion picture."

Through his production company, Bad Robot, 46-year-old Abrams previously directed blockbusters Mission: Impossible III, Star Trek (2009) and Super 8. He also directed and wrote the two-part pilot for Lost.

"To be a part of the next chapter of the Star Wars saga, to collaborate with Kathy Kennedy and this remarkable group of people, is an absolute honour," said Abrams.

The original Star Wars trilogy took $1.7bn (£1.07bn) at the box office

"I may be even more grateful to George Lucas now than I was as a kid," he added.

Fans of the Star Trek and Star Wars films had earlier taken to Twitter to give their reaction to rumours Abrams would have a hand in directing films from both franchises.

@leenewtonsays J.J. Abrams taking on Star Wars!! Lets hope he doesn't put crappy effects, bad writing and horrible actors in it... wait.

@TeamCoco JJ Abrams directing #StarWars is acceptable, IF it's an alternate timeline where Jar-Jar is incinerated 30 seconds into Phantom Menace.

@DeathStarPR Now that J.J. Abrams is directing Star Wars, people will finally learn why Stormtroopers always miss: too much lens flare.

@dorothysnarker Putting the Star Trek guy in charge of Star Wars means the lines for his autograph at conventions will extend beyond a galaxy far far away.

The film is targeted for release in 2015 and is expected to be followed by Star Wars Episodes VIII and IX.

23.17 | 0 komentar | Read More

BlackBerry Crumble? New Phones May Save Brand

BlackBerry's latest smartphones could see it return to glory after several years in decline, according to experts.

Parent company Research In Motion (RIM) plans to launch two handsets, the Z10 and X10 on Wednesday. Pictures leaked online purporting to be the Z10 show a touchscreen phone along similar lines to the iPhone. The X10 is believed to be more of a classic BlackBerry, with a Qwerty keyboard.

A new tablet device is also in the pipeline.

The new BlackBerry 10 (BB10) handsets and software could lead to the firm's "resurrection", one expert says, after it saw its popularity wane in favour of phones like Apple's iPhone and Samsung's Galaxy S3.

Malik Kamal-Saadi, principal analyst with Informa, who has used the device ahead of the launch, says it has high specifications that allowed users to do "good stuff in a couple of clicks", which would appeal to both businesses and consumers.

He said the new operating system (OS) on the two expected handsets was a "trump card" that could see it win back customers lost through the poor performance of the previous BlackBerry 7 phones.

"The 'experience' is very attractive for business users and consumers. BB10 has what is needed to seduce back in both developed markets (Europe and North America). I haven't seen anything like it in terms of the experience," said Mr Kamal-Saadi.

Ernest Doku, technology expert with uSwitch.com, said: "For RIM and BlackBerry, it is very much the resurrection of the BlackBerry brand.

"Consumers have been waiting a long time to see what they were coming up with. They have fallen to the wayside but a lot of signs are pointing to this being their return to relevance in the smartphone market."

But some question whether the latest BlackBerry launch, delayed from last year, is too little too late.

Russell Feldman, associate director for technology and telecoms consulting at YouGov, said: "We know that right now RIM is in a poor situation, and so there is definitely a lot of pressure for the BlackBerry 10 to deliver.

"According to SMIX UK, our consumer smartphone tracker, two-thirds of RIM's current customers do not expect to get a BlackBerry again, with most opting to switch to an iPhone.

"It needs to be a decent system to at least get critics on its side, and it then could have the potential to take share away from others. However, RIM may have left it too late."

BlackBerry was the market leader in 2007, but the launch of the iPhone and Android smartphones has reduced its market share to around 5%.

RIM is also paying for a US Superbowl advert to help promote its new products.

The event attracts one of the biggest TV audiences of the year in America and companies pay millions of dollars for advertising time.

The battle for domination of the mobile and tablet market has become increasingly heated in the past 18 months, with Apple's competitors taking it on with a series of new products.

Samsung's Galaxy smartphones have outsold the iPhone for a fourth consecutive quarter, according to recent figures.

While Nokia and Microsoft have joined forces to launch two new phones which run on the Windows operating system.

23.17 | 0 komentar | Read More

Apple: Kutcher At Steve Jobs Film Premiere

Ashton Kutcher has revealed playing Apple's legendary co-founder Steve Jobs was an honour - but also terrifying - at the film's world premiere.

The biopic covers the 30 years from Jobs' teenage years to his time in charge of one of the most powerful and iconic technology brands across the globe.

jOBS was shown for the first time at the Sundance Festival in Utah, 15 months after the Apple boss died from pancreatic cancer at the age of 56.

At the premiere, 34-year-old Kutcher talked about his preparations to try and master Jobs' posture, hand gestures and eccentricities, saying his "painstaking research" included watching more than 100 hours of footage of the Apple innovator.

"To be playing a guy who so freshly is in people's minds, where everywhere you go you can run into people who met him or knew him or had seen a video of him... that's terrifying because everyone is an appropriate critic," Kutcher said.

"Everyone can tear you apart. Everyone can look at any detail, a piece of clothing or a speech pattern and go 'No, no, this is not what it was,' and that's really scary."

Kutcher is interviewed at the premiere of jOBS

The film received applause from the audience, but it has not gone down as well with one of the people who worked most closely with Jobs.

Hours before the screening, Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak said the movie appeared to misrepresent aspects of his and Jobs' personalities and their early vision for the company.

Wozniak was commenting after seeing a brief clip of an early scene that was released online on Thursday.

"Totally wrong... The ideas of computers affecting society did not come from Jobs," Wozniak, who started Apple with Jobs and Ronald Wayne in a California garage in 1976, told technology blog Gizmodo.com.

Kutcher said he hoped Wozniak would look more kindly on the movie when he had seen the whole two hours.

"I hope that when he sees the film, he feels that he was portrayed accurately, that the film accurately represents who he was and how he was, and more importantly, inspires people to go and build things," he said.

jOBS is one of two films in production about Steve Jobs.

The other, based on Walter Isaacson's official biography Steve Jobs, is being developed by screen writer Aaron Sorkin of The West Wing and The Social Network fame.

Wozniak is known to be involved with the other film, although no release date or casting has been announced.

23.17 | 0 komentar | Read More

Anti-Doping Chief: Armstrong Lied On Oprah

The head of the US Anti-Doping Agency has claimed shamed cyclist Lance Armstrong lied during a TV interview with Oprah Winfrey.

In an interview with CBS show 60 Minutes, which will air on Sunday, Mr Tygart said Armstrong was not telling the truth when he claimed he was clean of performance enhancing drugs when he made his comeback in 2009.

He said the 41-year-old has until February 6 to "cooperate fully" with USADA if he wants to lessen a lifetime ban from sports.

A report issued by the agency last year - on which it based Armstrong's lifetime ban and the forfeiture of all his cycling results since 1998 - found the variation of his blood values after making his comeback made it a "one to a million chance that it was due to something other than doping", Mr Tygart said.

He added that Armstrong could be motivated to lie about his comeback because under the statute of limitations for criminal fraud he would still be open to prosecution.

It comes after a lawyer for the cyclist told USADA his client will co-operate with their efforts to "clean up cycling".

Armstrong admitted last week in a televised interview with Oprah Winfrey that he took a variety of performance-enhancing drugs as he won seven Tour de France titles.

In letters sent this week between lawyers for Armstrong and the USADA, the agency's attorney William Bock asked that Armstrong testify under oath by February 6.

But Armstrong's attorney, Tim Herman, responded that Armstrong could make that deadline and called for the cycling union and the World Anti-Doping Agency to take up efforts to stamp out doping.

"As you have candidly confirmed, USADA has no authority to investigate, prosecute or otherwise involve itself with the other 95% of cycling competitors," he wrote.

"Thus, in order to achieve the goal of 'cleaning up cycling,' it must be WADA and the UCI who have overall authority to do so."

The letter said the disgraced cyclist was prepared to appear before a "truth and reconciliation" commission to be held by the International Cycling Union.

Armstrong told to Winfrey that he had used a banned "cocktail" of the blood-boosting agent EPO, blood transfusions and testosterone.

He had already been banned from cycling for life, stripped of his Tour titles and lost his Olympic gold medal - won in the 2000 games in Sydney - after USADA found him to be a central figure in "the most sophisticated, professionalised and successful doping programme that sport has ever seen".

It is thought Armstrong's full co-operation could lead to a reduction of his ban, perhaps to eight years.

23.17 | 0 komentar | Read More

Adrian Donohoe Killing Condemned By Irish PM

The Irish leader Enda Kenny has described the fatal shooting of a Garda detective during a botched hold-up as "cold blooded violence".

Adrian Donohoe was with a colleague escorting a cash delivery to a credit union in Dundalk, County Louth, when he was killed.

Several shots were fired during the attack at the Lordship Credit Union, on the Cooley Road in the town at around 9.30pm.

Mr Kenny said: "This was an outrageous act of cold blooded violence that has left a family without a husband and father and the Garda Siochana without a brave and valued member.

"On behalf of the Government and of the people I would like to express my condolences to Adrian's wife and children and to all his extended family at this unbearably sad time."

It is believed the force is hunting four men who fled the scene in a grey Volkswagen Passat.

The shooting happened in Cooley Road, Dundalk

Sky's Ireland correspondent David Blevins said: "The Irish police set up checkpoints on the southern side of the Irish border and the Police Service of Northern Ireland have checkpoints on the northern side of the Irish border."

The officer, who was based at Dundalk Garda station, was shot in the head without warning. He had not drawn his garda-issued weapon.

Garda Commissioner Martin Callinan said: "I am deeply saddened to hear of the death of my colleague Detective Garda Adrian Donohoe.

"Detective Garda Donohoe died as a result of injuries sustained in the course of his duty following a shooting incident in Dundalk.

"At this time my thoughts and prayers and those of the entire force are with the family, friends and close colleagues of Adrian."

Det Donohoe had two children and his wife Caroline was also in the police service. He lived in the Lordship area, half a mile from the credit union where he was killed.

Local councillor Jim Loughran described him as a quiet, decent family man.

"I just spoke to him last week on the street in town. I can't believe this has happened," he said.

The Sinn Fein councillor, who knew the detective through their local GAA (Gaelic Athletic Association) club St Patrick's, also condemned those responsible for the shooting.

"This was not just an attack on a Garda detective, it was an attack on the whole community," he said.

It is believed staff at the credit union were locking up when the shooting occurred.

Gardai have appealed for people in the Belurgan, Jenkinstown and Dundalk areas between 6pm and 9.30pm on Friday night to get in touch. They are also appealing for anyone who may have seen the car driving towards Dundalk or on to the M1.

:: Anyone with information should call police on 042-9388400.

23.17 | 0 komentar | Read More

Egypt: Death Sentences Spark Deadly Riots

Two football players are among 27 people killed in riots in the Egypt city of Port Said following the sentencing to death of 21 fans.

Violence erupted in the city after judge sentenced the 21 people to death over a post-match riot in February last year that killed 74 fans of the Cairo-based Al Ahly team.

All of the people sentenced to death were fans of Port Said's main Al Masry team.

Jubilant: Fans of Al Ahly football club celebrate the verdict in Cairo

The director of hospitals in Port Said, Dr Abdel Raham Farah, said Mahmoud Abdel Halim al Dizawi, a football player in the city's Al Marikh club, was shot three times and died.

He says Tamer al Fahla, a player who used to play for Al Masry team, was also shot dead on his way to Al Marikh club.

Relatives of those sentenced attempted to storm the prison - which is near the Al Marikh club - where the defendants were being held, leading to the fierce clashes with police which left at least 27 people dead, including two policemen.

The military has been deployed to try and restore security.

Al Ahly fans were considered by many to be the victims of the riot

As the sentence was read out in the Cairo court and broadcast live on Egyptian television, families of those who died during the match wailed in relief and shouted "God is great!" from the public gallery.

But residents in Port Said, where the match was played, were also angry that people from their city were held responsible for the deadly riots.

On hearing the verdict many rampaged through the streets and some attempted to storm a police station.

Shops were closed and armoured personnel vehicles deployed as fighting raged in some streets around the prison.

Joy: Families of fans killed shouted 'God is great' after the verdict

In Cairo, there were explosions of jubilation at the verdict. One man who lost his son in the Port Said clashes wept outside court and said he was satisfied with the judges decision.

Another, Hassan Mustafa, had pinned a picture of his dead friend to his chest and said he was pleased with the outcome, adding that he wanted "justice served for those who planned the killing".

Die-hard football fans from both teams hold the police at least partially responsible for the February deaths and criticised Egypt's President Mohamed Morsi for doing little to reform the force.

Doctors treating the victims of the football rioting said some had been stabbed to death. One player caught up in the rioting described it as "a war".

Some of the defendants accused of involvement in the violence

Witnesses said most of the deaths involved people who had been trampled in the crush of panicked crowds, or who fell from terraces.

The riot was the world's deadliest football violence in 15 years.

The judge said in his statement read live on state TV that he would announce the verdict for the remaining 52 defendants on March 9.

Among those on trial are nine security officials.

As is customary in Egypt, the death sentences will be sent to religious authority, the Grand Mufti, for approval.

Executions in Egypt are usually carried out by hanging.

23.17 | 0 komentar | Read More

Afghanistan: Suicide Bomb Kills 10 Policemen

At least 10 policemen have been killed and 19 more people wounded in a suicide attack in a crowded area of the northeast Afghan city of Kunduz.

The head of the provincial counterterrorism department and the traffic police chief were killed in the attack, carried out by a suicide bomber on a motorcycle, police said.

Those wounded include 14 other policemen and five civilians.

There was no claim of responsibility for the bombing, which took place at around 5.20pm (12.50 GMT).

Such attacks have in the past been blamed on Taliban who are leading an insurgency against the US-backed government of President Hamid Karzai.

It was one of two bombings reported in the country in the day.

Earlier, a remote-controlled bomb planted on a bicycle exploded, killing one police officer and one civilian in the eastern city of Ghazni. Another five people were wounded.

23.17 | 0 komentar | Read More