Category: News

US ‘said no to Israel bombing Iran’

From correspondents in London: The Advertiser | September 26, 2008

http://www.news.com.au/adelaidenow/story/0,22606,24405383-5005962,00.html

ISRAEL seriously considered bombing Iran’s nuclear sites earlier this year but US President George W Bush refused to support such a strike, a British newspaper reported today.

Quoting senior European diplomatic sources, The Guardian said Israeli prime minister Ehud Olmert raised the issue with Mr Bush in a one-to-one meeting May 14.

Mr Bush said he would not support such a strike because of fears of retaliation, possibly on US targets in Iraq and Afghanistan, and concerns that the Israelis would fail to disable Iran’s nuclear facilities anyway, it …

Cab drivers targeted by thieves

The Advertiser September 26, 2008

http://www.news.com.au/adelaidenow/story/0,22606,24405882-2682,00.html

TWO taxi drivers were assaulted in separate attacks overnight, with one cab stolen by a man and woman.

Police arrested a Christies Beach man, 26, and a Woodcroft man, 27, after they allegedly assaulted a driver and attempted to run off without paying the fare in Hindley St at about 2.30am.

The driver chased the men and one assaulted him leaving the driver with minor injuries to his face and hand.

The men ran through the railway yards before being arrested in the carpark of the Convention Centre, on North Tce. They were charged …

Life in Aboriginal Australia: Girl sexually abused as she lay dying

Nigel Adlam: The Advertiser | September 26, 2008

http://www.news.com.au/adelaidenow/story/0,22606,24405406-911,00.html

A 14-YEAR-old girl who ran away from hospital was beaten with a lump of wood by a younger girl before being dragged into bushes by boys who tried to rape her as she was dying, a coroner has been told.

Observers sat in stunned silence in an Alice Springs court yesterday as a lawyer detailed the girl’s last hours, the Northern Territory News reported.

The inquest was also told that nursing staff failed to follow Health Department rules when the girl discharged herself from hospital.

Police were not alerted until 23 …

Anti-racism academic cheesed off with Coon

David Barbeler: News.com.au | September 26, 2008

http://www.news.com.au/story/0,23599,24405098-421,00.html

AN anti-racism campaigner says Coon cheese is next on his hit-list after the Queensland Government ruled a grandstand being rebuilt in the state’s south would not be renamed after E.S. “Nigger” Brown.

Toowoomba Sports Ground Trust chairman John McDonald said yesterday that while the grandstand bearing Brown’s name was to be demolished in coming days as part of an upgrade, the “N word” would be used on a plaque or statue at the new ground.

But late yesterday, Sports Minister Judy Spence ruled it would be inappropriate to use the racist term …

Men can be domestic violence victims too

Amber Petty: The Advertiser | September 25, 2008

http://www.news.com.au/adelaidenow/story/0,22606,24397363-5017200,00.html

VIOLENT relationships, it turns out, are a two-way street.

I recently commented on how unfairly many women are judged after finding themselves in violent relationships with men.

In the days that followed, I received many emails from victims. Surprisingly, many of them were from men, who seemed to be pleading with the world to understand that it’s not always the women who are the victims. Indeed, there are many men suffering in silence at the hands of their violent girlfriends and wives.

The stories I read were from men all suffering …

Residents oppose plans for Islamic school

Katrina Vella: Southwestern Rural Advertiser | September 24, 2008

http://bringelly.yourguide.com.au/news/local/news/general/residents-oppose-plans-for-school/1280973.aspx

A GROUP of residents who live on and around Gurner Avenue in Austral will fight the council over a new proposal for an Islamic school to be built on the street.

The group says it is opposed to the school for numerous reasons, but the main one is that members don’t believe the rural area is appropriate for such a large development.

The proposed school will accommodate 600 primary and high school students and offer a car park, library, hall and sporting fields.

The residents are concerned about additional traffic …

‘Kick a black’ remark causes uproar in state parliament

Michael Owen, Political Reporter: The Advertiser | September 24, 2008

http://www.news.com.au/adelaidenow/story/0,22606,24390627-5006301,00.html

TREASURER Kevin Foley has accused State Opposition leader Martin Hamilton-Smith of being happy to “kick a black” and engage in “racism politics”.

Mr Foley went on the attack yesterday in State Parlianment after Mr Hamilton-Smith asked a question about the HomeStart Finance “Nunga Loan” scheme – a home loan package designed for Aborigines – and the risks associated with them.

Mr Hamilton-Smith compared the Nunga Loans product to the subprime loans in the U.S. that sparked an economic meltdown.

He said loans above a property’s value were approved to …

‘Secret’ police to use fake IDs

Nigel Hunt: The Advertiser | September 20, 2008

http://www.news.com.au/adelaidenow/story/0,22606,24377910-5006301,00.html

POLICE will have the power to create false identity documents for undercover operatives under new laws to be introduced in South Australia.

And for the first time, the identities of the undercover police officers will remain secret during court processes to prevent reprisals from criminals they help to apprehend.

Attorney-General Michael Atkinson, who will introduce the legislation into Parliament this week, said the new laws would help police fight organised crime “from the inside”.

“These laws will help expose drug trafficking, money laundering, illegal weapons trading and gang violence – including …

Step-by-step al-Qa’ida terror guide used by Benbrika cell

Gary Hughes: The Australian | September 20, 2008

http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,24374066-2702,00.html

IT was a blueprint for terror. Seized by police from the home of one of the alleged ringleaders of the Benbrika Muslim terror ring, it was al-Qa’ida’s chilling step-by-step guide on how to build a terrorist cell, avoid detection, conduct training, obtain weapons, select targets and launch attacks.

It was one of at least two such instruction manuals that, according to authorities, were used by self-proclaimed Melbourne cleric Abdul Nacer Benbrika, 48, to set up and run his secret group.

One, which was also found in the hands of an al-Qa’ida …