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Woods ready for PGA Championship
8/6/2014 6:53:51 PM
- Woods declares himself fit to play Thursday's PGA Championship
- Participation had been in doubt after suffering back problems on Sunday
- Former world number one says he can win fifth PGA crown this week
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(CNN) -- Tiger Woods has not only declared himself fit to play at this week's PGA Championship, after playing nine holes of practice at Valhalla on Wednesday, but he's also eying a fifth title.
Since he withdrew from the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational on Sunday after jarring his troublesome back, Woods' participation had dominated the buildup to the final major of the year.
However, the 38-year-old's physiotherapist fixed a problem that had looked set to rule him out, after Woods dislocated his sacrum -- a bone at the base of his spine -- when landing in a bunker.
"I felt good once the bone was put back in," the former number one told reporters on Wednesday evening. "I'm not in any pain."
"Once he put it back in, the spasms went away and from there I started getting some range of motion.
"The inflammation has been down, I have range of motion, my speed and power -- and I just need to keep it up."
Leaderboard: PGA Championship
Woods' participation had been in serious doubt prior to his practice round, after he struggled to tie his shoes on Sunday because of pain.
Yet there was better still for Woods' legion of fans as he responded to the question of whether he could win in Louisville with a resounding 'Yes'.
"(To) try to go out there and win this event, that's all I'm focused on," said Woods, who won the PGA Championship the last time it was held at Valhalla Golf Club in 2000.
Following surgery to treat a trapped nerve in his back in March, a three-month layoff forced the American to miss both the Masters -- for the first time in his career -- and the U.S. Open.
His back problems appeared to have been put behind him until the weekend flare-up in Ohio, only the third PGA Tour event he had contested since the operation.
However, Woods says Sunday's injury was unrelated to the operation earlier this year.
"It was a different pain to what I had been experiencing so I know it was not the site of the surgery," he explained.
Woods' confidence about any potential victory flies in the face of his recent performances in the majors, having failed to win any of the last 19 he has contested.
In his last appearance at July's British Open, he finished 69th -- a performance that would have been unimaginable prior to the decline in his game following the well-documented marital problems he suffered in 2009.
Trailing the all-time record held by Jack Nicklaus, 14-time major winner Woods needs to prove his form and fitness this week to have a hope of making Tom Watson's team for next month's Ryder Cup against Europe in Scotland.
While keeping a close eye on Woods' practice round, the veteran Watson also named Steve Stricker as one his Ryder Cup vice-captains on Wednesday -- with the 47-year-old joining Andy North and Raymond Floyd as an assistant.
Woods' form this season barely reflects the feverish speculation over his fitness, since his best finish from the seven tournaments he has contested worldwide is a lowly 25th.
Should he suffer no further problems, Woods will partner former champions Phil Mickelson and Padraig Harrington when he tees off on Thursday.
He is chasing his fifth title after winning the event in 1999, 2000, 2006 and 2007.
PGA breaks with tradition
In a separate development on Wednesday, PGA Championship organizers announced that the 2016 edition of the competition will be held in July.
The event is traditionally held in August but with golf featuring at that year's Olympics for the first time since 1904, with the Rio Games running between August 5-21, the PGA has been forced into a change.
The tournament scheduled for Baltusrol in New Jersey will now take place on July 28-31.
"It's a condensed schedule," PGA of America chief executive officer Pete Bevacqua told reporters at Valhalla.
"Obviously with the Olympics, it's also a Ryder Cup year, you throw in the (PGA playoffs), so it's a very congested schedule."
Read: Woods pulls out of WGC event
Can we live with ISIS?
8/7/2014 12:24:06 PM
- The West may decide on a "wait and see" approach regarding ISIS, writes Fahad Nazer
- Nazer: Unlike other al Qaeda branches, ISIS doesn't seem eager to attack the West
- Its focus appears to be consolidating and expanding areas under its control, he says
- The declaration of a caliphate last month by ISIS leader signaled a major shift, he writes
Editor's note: Fahad Nazer is a terrorism analyst with JTG Inc, an analysis and intelligence company in Vienna, Virginia, that has government and private clients -- including defense companies in the U.S. and abroad. Nazer is a former political analyst at the Embassy of Saudi Arabia in Washington. His writing has appeared in The New York Times, CNN, Foreign Policy, Yale Global Online and Al Monitor. Follow him on Twitter. The opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the author.
(CNN) -- As the international community contemplates what should be done about the Islamic State, formerly the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) -- the brutal al Qaeda offshoot that now controls a wide swath of territory spread across the Iraqi-Syrian border -- the West, with the United States at its helm, may decide that while ISIS constitutes an imminent threat to the security of the countries in whose midst it has risen, a "wait-and-see" approach, remains a viable option for a simple reason: Unlike other al Qaeda branches, ISIS doesn't seem eager to attack the West. It has too much to lose.
Its nascent, quasi "state" could be destroyed if it sponsors a terrorist attack in the West and it knows it. Its focus instead appears to be consolidating -- and expanding -- the areas that have already come under its control in Iraq and Syria. Its clarion call to Muslims is not so much to attack the West but to "migrate" East, where it claims "Caliphate" has been restored.
The declaration of a caliphate last month by ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, signaled a major shift. The former al Qaeda affiliate has eschewed being just another branch of a secretive, loose, international network that launches small- and occasionally large-scale terrorist attacks against soft targets in the West in an effort to force it to disengage from the Muslim world, and across the Muslim world to destabilize and ultimately supplant the regimes there.
That does not mean that ISIS will abjure the barbaric violence, insidious sectarianism and abhorrent intolerance that have been the hallmarks of al Qaeda. However, there are indications that Baghdadi's declaration may be more than mere delusions of grandeur. The Islamic State is starting to act less like a "base" from which to plan terrorist attacks and more like a very violent "state."
The world grew accustomed to Osama bin Laden's audio and video messages from undisclosed locations in which he railed about Western "crusaders" and their "agents" in the Arab and Muslim worlds and vowed to bring death and destruction to both. Although what appears to be Baghdadi's first audio message after the declaration of the caliphate still hit on those themes, war against the West doesn't seem to be his focus.
Fahad Nazer
His sermon in a mosque in Mosul was startling. The image of Baghdadi preaching in public -- mostly about the implications of the establishment of his caliphate and his responsibility to Muslims and theirs to him -- was a game changer. It was a stark contrast to bin Laden's -- and his successor, Ayman al-Zawahiri's -- messages, which are recorded in makeshift studios with no audience and remain largely reflective of an organization engaged in a covert, asymmetrical war whose aim is to weaken its adversaries and their "patrons" before it can establish its ultimate goal. Baghdadi portrays al-Zawahiri's dream as his current reality.
In addition to controlling more territory than any al Qaeda branch ever has, ISIS has commandeered heavy weaponry from Iraqi security forces that have failed to defend Sunni-majority areas. Its total assets in cash and weapons are estimated at about $2 billion.
Its rapid advances in Iraq also indicate that it has learned from other al Qaeda affiliates' mistakes, as it has forged tentative alliances with some Sunni tribes and ex-Baathists. Its propaganda makes clear that the group is committed to presenting itself as an entity that can actually govern and that can provide the public goods and services -- including security -- that weak or oppressive states fail to provide. In short, it is adopting the Hamas and Hezbollah model.
While the West has never been comfortable with Hamas in Gaza or Hezbollah in Lebanon, it has largely left it up to the countries of the wider Middle East to deal with these militant, Islamist organizations. Likewise, and despite what has been described by the U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. as the "systematic, industrial-style slaughter and forced starvation killings" being carried out by Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, the West appears unwilling to intervene militarily to stop the catastrophic war in Syria.
Many will argue that al Qaeda has repeatedly attacked the West in the past and has vowed to do so again. However, ISIS is unlike any al Qaeda affiliate. It has accomplished what "al Qaeda central" and other affiliates have failed to do for years. Thanks to al-Assad's brutality, it was able to craft a jihadist narrative that made Syria the favorite destination of thousands of Islamist militants. Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's sectarianism and his inept military that has seceded entire cities to ISIS, lent credibility to the notion that an Islamic "state" actually exists.
The West may find solace in the fact that ISIS has many enemies in the Arab and Muslim worlds. In addition to al-Assad and al-Maliki, Sunni-led Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Turkey and Jordan, see it as a terrorist organization committed to their destruction.
As it has done in Syria, and contrary to its grandiose claims of restoring the dignity of Muslims, ISIS has systematically terrorized anyone who stands in its way, including Shia, Sunnis, Sufis and even Christians. While many will unfortunately suffer from ISIS brutality, its violent ideology and brutality makes its endurance over the long-term unlikely.
As Syria has shown, the West appears resigned to leave it to Arabs and Muslims -- and recently Israelis -- to sort out their conflicts. Unless ISIS makes it so by planning a major terrorist attack in the West, the latter will likely adhere to its new mantra: "It's not our war."
MAPS: Understanding the crisis
READ: Iraqi Yazidi lawmaker: 'Hundreds of my people are being slaughtered'
READ: Facing fines, conversion or death, Christian families flee Mosul
The views expressed in this commentary are solely those of Fahad Nazer.
Which powers support Hamas?
8/7/2014 12:37:28 AM
- Jordan, Egypt, and Saudi Arabia don't support Hamas, analysts say
- Turkey and Qatar do; some question the extent of Qatar's support
- Iran and Syria had a falling out with Hamas
- Popular support may spike, but weapon supply is limited, analysts say
(CNN) -- If the Gaza truce holds and Israel's Operation Protective Edge comes to its conclusion, some things are certain.
Both Israel and Hamas will declare military victory -- Israel pointing to the destruction of militants' tunnels and depletion of Hamas' rocket supply; Hamas pointing to dozens of dead Israeli troops and the survival of Hamas leadership in Gaza.
But unlike in previous conflicts, when Hamas had the support of many Arab nations, things have changed. This time, as CNN has reported, the fighting between Israel and Hamas has been a proxy war for the Mideast.
Key regional players Jordan, Egypt and Saudi Arabia have their own reasons to want to fend off the Muslim Brotherhood, of which Hamas is part, experts say. And Europe, like the United States, lists Hamas as a terrorist organization for its numerous attacks on civilians.
But the group does have the support of some countries.
"It's no longer the Muslims against the Jews," said Danielle Pletka, vice president of foreign and defense policy studies at the American Enterprise Institute. "Now it's the extremists -- the Muslim Brotherhood, Hamas, Hezbollah, and their backers Iran, Qatar and Turkey -- against Israel and the more moderate Muslims including Jordan, Egypt, and Saudi Arabia."
A look at some key Hamas supporters:
Turkey
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan openly supports Hamas.
"Erdogan has tried to use the cause of the Brotherhood to bolster his own Islamist credentials at home," says Eric Trager, of the Washington Institute for Near East Policy.
Turkey also has "more of an ideological sympathy with the Brotherhood," Trager says.
Qatar
Qatar supported the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt -- which was toppled from power in a coup last year. Qatar funds many Muslim Brotherhood figures in exile, including Hamas political leader Khaled Meshaal, who is believed to have orchestrated numerous terrorist attacks.
"Qatar has a long history of providing shelter to Islamist groups, amongst them the Muslim Brotherhood and the Taliban," Shashank Joshi of the Royal United Services Institute tells Time.
Advocating for Hamas is beneficial to Turkey and Qatar in their political objectives because the cause draws popular support at home, says world affairs writer Frida Ghitis in a CNN.com column.
Danielle Pletka, American Enterprise Institute
But some question whether Qatar's support still is for Hamas is still strong. The country's financial support to the group "largely dried up" as Qatar sought "to mend ties with its neighbors, with whom it had fallen out in part for backing the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt," the Council on Foreign Relations said.
While Qatar and Turkey are powerful allies, "Hamas might wish for more support given the breadth of the Arab world," Time reported.
Iran and Syria
In the past, Iran and Syria supported Hamas. Iran supplied the group with weapons; Syria was home to Meshaal.
But Meshaal did not support Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in the country's civil war. In 2012, Meshaal left for Qatar, causing a breakdown in his relationship with both Syria and its ally Iran, says Firas Abi Ali, head of Middle East and North Africa Country Risk and Forecasting at the global information company IHS.
And while Iran still professes to support Hamas, such claims "are more ostentatious, showy, exaggerated and theatrical rather than genuine and practical," writes Majid Rafizadeh, an Iranian-American scholar at Harvard University, in a column for al Arabiya.
Iran, which is a Muslim but not an Arab nation, "uses Hamas (as well as Tehran's support for the Palestinian cause) as a tool to project its power and influence in the Arab world," he argues.
The Council on Foreign Relations says Iran, while cutting its funding to Hamas in recent years, "sought to bolster its ties to other resistance groups in the region, such as Islamic Jihad."
Hezbollah
The Lebanese militant group based in Lebanon is aligned with al-Assad's regime in Syria. During the conflict, Hezbollah reached out to Hamas, praising its "steadfastness."
This does not mean the relationship is repaired to where it stood before Syria's civil war, but "a new realignment might happen," Farwaz Gerges of the London School of Economics told Time.
Popular support
Hamas' greatest support in the wake of the conflict with Israel may be from the public in Gaza and other parts of the Arab world.
"Hamas is not a monolith, nor is it only a terrorist group," Ed Husain of the Council on Foreign Relations writes on CNN.com. "It is a social movement, with a mass membership, a popular message of resistance that resonates across the Muslim world, and a political party with which we must negotiate."
Some analysts believe Hamas will emerge stronger from the fight with Israel. The conflict "will only further radicalize the Palestinian population -- and alienate frustrated friends in the United States," Mark Perry of Foreign Policy argues.
Before Operation Protective Edge, a poll by the Washington Institute for Near East Policy found that most Palestinians in Gaza oppose a two-state solution and want to work toward abolishing Israel -- a goal that is in line with Hamas' charter.
But the poll also found most Palestinians support nonviolent methods of achieving their goals.
Support could affect arms supply
While Hamas' recruitment might soar now, militarily the group "is on the ropes," with tunnels destroyed and much of its rocket supply depleted, writes Rick Francona, retired U.S. Air Force intelligence officer and CNN military analyst.
"After similar conflicts in the past, Hamas has been rearmed and resupplied by its supporters, primarily Iran and to some extent Syria. The most efficient method for the rearming and resupply effort has been via the large number of smuggling tunnels between Gaza and Egypt's Sinai Peninsula.
"That is not likely to be the case this time -- another blow to Hamas, which it must factor in to its assessment of this conflict as well as its future planning."
What is Hamas' endgame in Gaza?
What is Israel's endgame in Gaza?
Egypt reclaims role with Gaza talks
8/6/2014 8:58:20 PM
- Egypt takes a central role in the cease-fire talks to end the latest Gaza conflict
- Egypt's President is determined to resist the spread of Islamist militancy
- Egyptian mediation is not without risks
- Egyptian diplomacy will be tested reconciling Israel's and the Palestinians' demands
(CNN) -- President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi of Egypt is on a mission -- to return his country to its rightful place as the "indispensable" Arab state after what he saw as the dangerous chaos of Muslim Brotherhood rule under his predecessor, Mohamed Morsy.
He also is determined to resist the spread of Islamist militancy, now entrenched in Sinai and spilling into Egypt from Libya. Since leading the ouster of Morsy a year ago, el-Sisi has hounded the Muslim Brotherhood underground; hundreds of its members have been arrested and many sentenced to death. Morsy himself languishes in jail and is on trial for inciting murder and other offenses.
El-Sisi is not the first Egyptian leader to fear Islamist militancy. In fact all but Morsy have suppressed it and one -- Anwar Sadat -- ultimately was its victim. And not coincidentally all but Morsy-- stretching back to Gamal Abdel Nasser -- were military men before becoming President.
These two imperatives -- a sense of Egypt's historic role and the traditional animosity of the Egyptian military toward Islamist radicalism -- have propelled Egypt to take a central role in the on-off cease-fire talks to end the latest Gaza conflict.
It helps that Egypt's intelligence service has deep experience of dealing with the Palestinian factions and Israel.
Egypt's central role also is dictated by geography. It is the only Arab state to share a border with Gaza. If that border is to be reopened, Egypt will have to agree to any international monitoring mission to prevent banned goods -- the sort that would allow Hamas to re-arm -- from entering Gaza.
But el-Sisi's government does not see itself as an "honest broker" between Israel and Hamas. El-Sisi shares the Israelis' loathing of Hamas, which itself sprang from the Muslim Brotherhood back in 1987 and which was recently labeled a terrorist organization by an Egyptian court.
Egypt and Israel vs. Hamas
The Egyptian government is not directly negotiating with Hamas, but with a Palestinian delegation of which Hamas and Islamic Jihad are a small part. Any concessions won by the Palestinians will be claimed by the Palestinian Authority as much as Hamas.
While Morsy embraced Hamas and warned Israel that it would "pay a heavy price if it continues its aggression," Egypt and Israel are now in lockstep against a shared adversary.
The last thing el-Sisi wants is any sort of Hamas victory, imagined or otherwise, that would appeal to the Arab street. One Israeli minister described the close cooperation with Cairo as "an odd but very welcome moment" after the hostility of the Morsy government.
Who's who in Hamas?
Perhaps that is why the first Egyptian cease-fire proposal was so readily accepted by Israel.
In the words of one diplomat in the region, "The Israelis knew Hamas would reject it, so they could accept it and look good, knowing that in a few hours they'd be able to resume the demilitarization of Gaza."
El-Sisi wants to see Gaza demilitarized as much as Israel does, not just because of Hamas but because of other actors there such as Islamic Jihad.
Egypt faces a host of its own security problems that would only be aggravated by a strong militant presence in Gaza. Jihadist cells -- which Cairo claims have been aided by Hamas -- are now entrenched in the Sinai, a vast area that borders Gaza and whose lawlessness has challenged successive Egyptian governments.
Which Mideast power brokers support Hamas?
Islamist militant groups are also sprouting up along the western border with Libya. Last month, more than 20 Egyptian soldiers were killed when gunmen crossed the desert border and attacked a checkpoint at Wadi el-Gedid.
El-Sisi responded by promising that "terrorism will be uprooted from every part of Egypt."
But the attacks have continued. A gun battle Tuesday between security forces and suspected militants in the region of Matruh on the Mediterranean left nine dead, according to the Egyptian Interior Ministry. El-Sisi blames the Muslim Brotherhood for opening Egypt to an influx of jihadists.
Despite its obvious motivations, Egyptian mediation is not without risk.
CNN Exclusive: Inside the mind of Hamas' political leader
Goal of independent Palestine ingrained
The government's control of local media may have muffled sympathetic coverage of Gaza's plight and Hamas' resistance to Israel. One talk-show host, Mazhar Shahin, declared the Egyptian people were "not ready to sacrifice even a single hair from the eyebrow" in defense of Hamas.
But Egyptians see the pan-Arab news channels, they see the destruction and suffering in Gaza, and even if there are no polls to prove it, they likely expect their government to lead the way in relieving it.
For decades, pursuing the goal of an independent Palestine has been ingrained in Egypt's foreign policy.
El-Sisi himself subscribes to that goal -- but with little urgency. He said last Saturday: "We have a real opportunity to end this conflict for once and for all but we must give the Palestinian people real hope in a Palestinian state and its capital Eastern Jerusalem." Then he added as a caveat: "It might sound too early to talk about this but it must be our final goal."
Even so, Egypt cannot assume that the Palestinian Authority (PA) will be pliable negotiators.
PA President Mahmoud Abbas is all too aware of the support in the West Bank for Hamas, whose flags have been hoisted by the hundreds at recent protests.
The longer the conflict went on, the more the PA tilted toward Hamas' demands -- and especially its insistence on the immediate lifting of the blockade of Gaza as the price for a permanent cease-fire.
What is Hamas' endgame in Gaza?
The only game in town
Egyptian diplomacy will be tested to the full in reconciling Israel's insistence on the demilitarization of Gaza as the first step and the Palestinians' demand that borders -- land and maritime -- be reopened immediately and demilitarization form part of later negotiations.
What is Israel's endgame in Gaza?
But ultimately Hamas knows -- as do the other Palestinian factions -- that Egypt's is the only game in town.
Hamas won't negotiate with the Israelis directly (the feeling is mutual). Nor will the Israelis have anything to do with Hamas' chief backers -- Qatar and Turkey.
Israel wants el-Sisi to succeed. He's the sort of Egyptian leader with whom it can do business. And he's now a critical figure in an alliance that includes the Gulf monarchies (Qatar excepted) and the United States in seeking to stem the tide of Islamist militancy.
But Israeli officials -- and many other observers -- believe there is another reason that el-Sisi aims to make himself the "indispensable" partner: to use that role to win much-needed international aid and credit for an economy on life-support.
El-Sisi inherited a mess, with fuel subsidies alone costing the state nearly $20 billion a year, tourism collapsing and foreign exchange reserves dwindling. In overthrowing the Muslim Brotherhood, he quickly won financial backing from Saudi Arabia and Kuwait, worth $12 billion according to some estimates.
IMF in the future?
If the el-Sisi government can introduce much-needed reforms to cut bureaucracy and begin to reduce subsidies, it may be able to negotiate the $4.8 billion loan from the International Monetary Fund that the Morsy government failed to secure.
But it will need help fast: a sharp reduction in fuel subsidies last month generated scattered street protests. And yet subsidies still eat up one-third of the national budget, while education consumes less than six per cent.
Exactly a year ago, el-Sisi gave an interview to the Washington Post, just after ousting Morsy.
"The pains and suffering of the people are too many. A lot of people don't know about the suffering. I am the most aware of the size of the problems in Egypt," he told the Post's Lally Weymouth.
"That is why I am asking: where is your support? The title of the article should be 'Hey America: Where is your support for Egypt?'"
He may now feel it is more deserved than ever.
3,300 rockets, 1,900 lives -- but is Mideast peace as far away as ever?
Why are so many civilians dying in Hamas-Israel war?
Has Gaza conflict brought new low in U.S.-Israel relationship?
Is 'Condemn Israel' hypocritical?
8/7/2014 7:48:34 AM
- Abraham Foxman: The world is outraged when Israel is forced to defend itself from terrorism
- At global protests, he says, anti-Semitism is thinly veiled as criticism of Israel
- Foxman: We must remember Hamas intentionally started this conflict
- Foxman: Hamas spent millions on tunnels to attack Israel rather than helping Gazans
Editor's note: Abraham H. Foxman is national director of the Anti-Defamation League.
(CNN) -- When Israel is forced to defend its citizens from Palestinian terrorism originating from Gaza, we've come to expect outrage around the world. Critics are quick to condemn Israel's military actions -- some with such heavy-handed charges as "war crimes," "atrocities" and even "genocide," while remaining silent about the terrorists who started the conflict.
At anti-Israel protests around the world, violent anti-Semitism is on full display, thinly veiled as criticism of Israel. Demonstrators in Turkey have attacked Israeli embassies. In Germany, France, Italy and Spain and other European countries, the protests have led to anti-Semitic attacks on Jewish people, community centers and synagogues.
We've seen violence and incitement against Jews rising in Latin America as well.
It has been lost on no one that this pronounced anti-Semitism has its antecedents in Nazi Germany and the Holocaust. Fortunately, some responsible European leaders are standing up to the hatred and bigotry. But their words may not be enough, as Israel continues to be treated as the international community's whipping boy in the latest conflict.
It is time for moral clarity on Gaza. The facts bear repeating. Hamas intentionally started this conflict. Hamas militants built miles of underground tunnels -- at least 30 tunnels in all -- using about 600,000 tons of cement and other materials that could have built homes or schools for Palestinians. Instead, it went into a sickening subterranean network of tunnels designed to carry out surprise terrorist attacks across the border in Israel.
It has been said that the only real growth industries in Gaza are in rocket-building and tunnel construction. This unconscionable waste of resources has brought about the two crowning "cultural" achievements of Hamas: Thousands of rockets raining down on Israeli towns and cities and terrorists armed to the teeth emerging from holes in the ground, intent on kidnapping more Israeli soldiers and killing Israeli civilians. This culture of death is an essential part of Hamas' identity and ideology and has motivated the Hamas leaders for the more than eight years they have controlled Gaza.
The world knows that Hamas intentionally stores its rockets in homes, mosques, hospitals and schools. No matter how careful Israel tries to be in warning civilians before attacks, no matter how much restraint it exercises, Hamas has guaranteed that civilians will be victims. Children make up nearly half the population of Gaza, and so women and children are among those dying because of Hamas's maximalist strategy against Israel.
Israel did not want this war, and certainly does not want to see civilians killed. But no matter, the calumny continues to rain down on Israel. What hypocrisy this is.
Has anyone condemned Hamas for the death of 160 children during the construction of the Gaza tunnels? The Institute for Palestinian Studies reports Hamas uses child labor to build its terror tunnels and prizes their nimbleness and work ethic.
On the news every day there is the macabre body count of how many civilians have lost their lives in Gaza, invariably accompanied by a comparison with the cost of life for Israeli soldiers and civilians. Counts vary, but most put the numbers of Palestinian deaths around 1,800 and Israeli deaths at 65.
All deaths that come about as a result of this conflict are tragic. But who is taking steps to limit casualties? Israel. Who is apologizing for the loss of life in Gaza? Israel. Hamas, on the other hand, tries at every opportunity to inflict as much pain as possible on Israel, trying to kill more Israeli civilians by firing rockets at large population centers, by sending suicide bombers across the border and sacrificing the lives of their own children. They make no apologies for their culture of death.
Look out at the world, there is no shortage of horrific violence and tragic death. Death by the thousands, by the tens of thousands in Syria; human destruction in Libya, in Afghanistan, in Iraq. Muslims slaughtering Muslims. And in Iraq, Muslims are killing Christians. Why have the voices of outrage in response to the more than 170,000 dead as a result of Syria's civil war gone silent?
There are no cameras out there, there are few editorials, and there are even fewer demonstrations in the streets of Paris, of Rome or London.
Here is where moral myopia verges on moral blindness. It seems the world wakes up only when Jews in their own defense -- defending their men, women and children -- are forced to kill Muslims and Palestinians. That's when the world demonstrates.
This is the true hypocrisy of the "condemn Israel" phenomenon.
And there can be no doubt that the anti-Israel campaign that is unfolding around the world is a function of the anti-Semitism that we know lurks just underneath the surface in some European societies and is all-but rampant across the Middle East.
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ISIS takes Iraq's largest Christian city
8/7/2014 11:17:22 AM
- French government confirms that ISIS has taken over Qaraqosh
- Qaraqosh is Iraq's largest Christian city
- It is located near Mosul, where ISIS already had control
(CNN) -- Iraq's largest Christian town has been overrun by the same militant Islamists who have gained a foothold in parts of eastern Syria and western and northern Iraq.
The latest advance by ISIS (or the Islamic State, formerly known as the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria) has caused thousands of Christians in the city to flee, just as other minority groups targeted by ISIS have done, as well as Shiite Muslims.
The French government confirmed that the Iraqi city of Qaraqosh has fallen into the hands of the militant al Qaeda offshoot.
"France is highly concerned about the latest progress of ISIS in the North of Iraq and by the taking of Qaraqosh, the largest Christian city of Iraq, and the horrible acts of violence that are committed," French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius said in a statement.
France called for an emergency meeting of the U.N. Security Council to discuss the threat in Iraq.
The exodus from Qaraqosh was already under way, as the city and its surroundings have been the target of ISIS attacks for weeks.
Qaraqosh is a historic Assyrian town of 50,000 people, approximately 20 miles southeast of Mosul, Iraq's second-largest city, where ISIS also has control.
When ISIS took over Mosul, many residents from there had fled to Qaraqosh. In Mosul, ISIS issued an ultimatum to Christians living there: Convert to Islam, pay a fine or face "death by the sword."
Three other nearby villages were also attacked overnight and Thursday, local police officials told CNN. Two of the villages -- Bartella and Tall Kayf -- are predominately Christian. Hundreds of Christian families fled to the north, police said.
The third village is Hamadaniya.
Kurdish forces were involved in heavy clashes protecting the area from ISIS.
ISIS seeks to create an Islamic caliphate that stretches from Syria to Iraq. The group has aggressively targeted Iraqi minority religious groups.
Nickolay Mladenov, the special representative of the U.N. secretary-general for Iraq, last month condemned the persecution of Christians, Shia Muslims and Yazidis, as well as the Shabak and Turkmen ethnic minorities.
The Pentagon is considering conducting emergency air drops to the thousands of stranded Yazidis in northern Iraq, a U.S. Defense official told CNN Thursday.
A spokesman for Pope Francis, the Rev. Federico Lombardi, said on Thursday that the pontiff is deeply concerned about the reports coming from northern Iraq.
"Christian communities are particularly affected: a people fleeing from their villages because of the violence that rages in these days, wreaking havoc on the entire region," Lombardi said in a statement.
Lombardi quoted a prayer the Pope offered last month, expressing to the persecuted that "I know how much you suffer, I know that you are deprived of everything."
Most Iraqi Christians are Chaldeans, who are Roman Catholic communicants.
READ: Can the West live with 'brutal' al Qaeda offshoot ISIS?
READ: What chance do Yazidis have against group too brutal for al Qaeda?
READ: Official: Kurdish forces fend off ISIS fighters, hold Mosul Dam
CNN's Marion Lory and Ariana Williams contributed to this report.
Faithfull: Ex-lover killed Jim Morrison
8/7/2014 3:56:12 AM
- Faithfull said her former boyfriend was a heroin dealer
- She said everyone connected with the death is dead
- Faithfull said Amy Winehouse was wary of her
(RollingStone.com) -- Marianne Faithfull said in a recent interview that her boyfriend at the time, a heroin dealer named Jean de Breteuil, was responsible for Doors frontman Jim Morrison's death in the summer of 1971.
RS: Watch the Doors first interview in years
The singer recalled a sense of foreboding when Breteuil told her he intended to visit the Doors frontman so she decided to stay at their hotel and take barbiturates. "He went to see Jim Morrison and killed him," Faithfull told Mojo. "I mean, I'm sure it was an accident. Poor bastard. The smack was too strong? Yeah. And he died. And I didn't know anything about this. Anyway, everybody connected to the death of this poor guy is dead now. Except me."
RS: Hear Ex-Kyuss singer John Garcia's duet with the Doors' Robby Krieger
In the same interview, Faithfull also discussed the fate of Amy Winehouse, another singer who died at age 27 of a drug overdose. "Amy was very, very wary of me," Faithfull said. "She knew that I knew and she didn't want me to say anything. There's a level of narcissism which is all mixed up with self-hatred. I know it well.... But I can't think what I could have done apart from take her and shake her! 'You stupid little c**t! Wake up!'" Faithfull said she was "appalled" by the younger singer's death.
RS: Jim Morrison lives: The legacy of the Lizard King
In September, Faithfull will release a new record, "Give My Love to London," which features songwriting collaborations with Roger Waters, Nick Cave, Steve Earle, Anna Calvi, Tom McRae and more. Her backing band on the record features members of Cave's Bad Seeds and Portishead's Adrian Utley. She also plans on publishing a book of photos from throughout her career with autobiographical captions, "Marianne Faithfull: A Life on Record," in October.
See the original story at RollingStone.com.
Copyright © 2011 Rolling Stone.
Prince William goes back to work
8/7/2014 11:00:56 AM
- Prince William, the Duke of Cambridge, has taken on a new role as an air ambulance pilot
- The duke previously worked as as a search and rescue pilot for the Royal Air Force
- Prince William is the first royal in direct line to the British throne to have taken a civilian job
- He will be based near his country home on the Queen's Sandringham Estate
(CNN) -- Britain's Prince William, the Duke of Cambridge, is going back to work, taking on a new role as an air ambulance pilot.
The duke will start training in September, a year after leaving the Royal Air Force, where he flew search and rescue helicopters. He will have his first air ambulance shift in spring 2015.
It's the first time a royal who's in direct line to the throne has taken a civilian job. The East Anglian Air Ambulance is operated by a private company, Bond Air Services, but the Duke will donate his salary to charity.
He'll be based near his country home on the Queen's Sandringham Estate, which should allow him to remain a hands-on dad to his one-year-old heir Prince George.
A palace spokesman said Prince William was "hugely excited and motivated" by his new job.
"The Duke sees this as a true form of public service, helping people in their most difficult times," the spokesman said. "He regards his work with the RAF search and rescue force as having been an exceptional privilege and the Duke wanted to make his own contribution to the outstanding work of the air ambulance service."
The high-profile royal would have had to weigh up the risks of taking on a civilian, as opposed to military, role. Public interest could affect not only his work, but potentially also that of medics and patients on board his aircraft. There is the heightened possibility of phone footage emerging of his rescues which could compromise privacy and security. There's also the risk of additional hoax calls.
These were not a major issues whilst Prince William was a military search and rescue pilot because he was working in a remote part of west Wales and over water. The two air ambulances in East Anglia are the most widely used in the UK and operate in a built-up area. Their usual landing spots include school playing fields; residential gardens; car parks; beaches and any open space deemed possible by the pilot.
William is currently on what officials have described as a "transitional year," focusing on his royal duties and charitable work. He always planned to return to work and was keen that it would involve flying.
Most air ambulance pilots have a military background like the Duke, who joined a squadron based at RAF Valley after qualifying as a search and rescue pilot in 2010. He undertook 156 search and rescue operations, resulting in 149 people being rescued. He is highly skilled.
Andrew Egerton Smith, chairman of the East Anglian Air Ambulance said: "Having the Duke of Cambridge as one of our pilots is marvelous news as he brings much experience to the charity after his successful career as a search and rescue pilot. We have an outstanding track record of attending people in their hour of need which is recognized and generously supported by our local communities."
William will spend the autumn and winter in training with the East Anglian Air Ambulance and, once qualified, will start co-piloting in the spring of next year. He will work from Cambridge and Norwich Airports doing both day and night shifts. The Duke is then expected to progress to the position of helicopter commander.
The palace said the pilot role would be the Duke's "primary occupation." Its statement added: "But his roster will take into account the duties and responsibilities he will continue to undertake on behalf of The Queen, both in the United Kingdom and overseas. The Duke will also continue his work with his patronages and with the Royal Foundation of The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and Prince Harry."
The Duke has always been keen on a role beyond his royal duties whilst he is still second in line to the throne. This job will allow him to balance both positions whilst having his young family close-by.
The Cambridges' country house, Anmer Hall, is being renovated and is set in idyllic rural surroundings which affords the family more privacy than their official residence at Kensington Palace, London, which is constantly monitored by photographers.
Russia extends Snowden visa
8/7/2014 11:00:47 AM
- NEW: "No change in our position," White House says
- Snowden's disclosures in 2013 made him an icon among some
- Edward Snowden is a former government information technology contractor
- U.S. authorities have charged him with espionage and theft of government property
(CNN) -- Edward Snowden, who leaked secret information about U.S. spying programs, has been granted an extension to stay in Russia for three more years, his attorney said in a televised press conference in Moscow Thursday.
Snowden recently formally requested that Russia's government extend his temporary asylum, and Snowden attorney Anatoly Kucherena said the request had been accepted.
"As of August 1, 2014, Snowden has received residency for three years," Kucherena told reporters Thursday.
Snowden's temporary asylum in Russia ended on July 31. He'd been holed up at a Moscow airport for five weeks before the Russian government granted asylum for one year on August 1, 2013.
Snowden has kept busy working for a Russian website and speaking out on the disclosures about the U.S. government's spying programs and processes that he helped make public.
Snowden's disclosures in 2013 made him an icon among those who praised him for risking his future to expose these secrets and a villain among those who accused him of being a lawbreaker who betrayed the United States.
The former government information technology contractor collected information on spy programs -- in which the NSA mined phone and Internet metadata from thousands of people inside and outside of the United States -- and exposed the programs to the media.
U.S. authorities have charged him with espionage and theft of government property.
No change in U.S. stance
The White House says the extension of Snowden's asylum in Russia doesn't change the U.S. government's desire for his return.
"There's been no change in our position: Mr. Snowden faces felony charges here in the United States," said Ned Price, a spokesman for the National Security Council.
"He should return to the U.S. as soon as possible, where he will be accorded full due process and protections."
U.S. intelligence agencies fear Snowden has achieved celebrity as a leaker and could be inspiring others to disclose classified national security information.
Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton recently commented on Snowden's case in an interview with the German magazine Der Spiegel.
"I think he is a poor messenger for the message that he's trying to take credit for," she told the magazine.
"I think he could have provoked the debate in our country without stealing and distributing material that was government property and was of some consequence," Clinton said.
See also: Does Snowden's celebrity breed copycats
New leaker disclosing U.S. secrets, government concludes
CNN's Kevin Liptak contributed to this report
9 babies seized in surrogacy raids
8/7/2014 4:35:20 AM
- Thai authorities raid two properties, seize nine babies
- Several women being questioned about potential links to commercial surrogacy
- Raids follow outrage over case of baby Gammy, left behind by Australian parents
- Gammy was one of twins born to a Thai surrogate in December
Bangkok (CNN) -- Thai authorities have raided two premises and seized nine babies -- allegedly fathered by one Japanese man -- as part of the country's crackdown on suspected illegal surrogacy.
One of the raids was on an IVF clinic involved in the birth of Gammy, a seven-month-old boy with Down Syndrome left in Thailand by his Australian parents.
The case has made international headlines amid accusations from his surrogate mother, Pattaramon Chanbua, that Gammy's parents weren't interested in taking their son, who also has a serious heart condition.
The parents have denied that they wanted to leave him, according to a statement from a friend to the Bunbury Mail, who said they were told their gravely ill baby was going to die.
Japanese man wanted 'a big family'
Along with the raid on the clinic, authorities searched a condominium in the Lad Phrao area of Bangkok after receiving a tip-off about the presence of several women and babies.
Police found nine babies, ranging in age from newborns to one year old, who were being cared for by seven Thai "nannies," said Paveena Hongsakul, chairwoman and founder of the Paveena Foundation.
All of the children appeared to have been well taken care of and had been moved to a government-run orphanage, she said.
Police Colonel Panthana Nujchanart said a Thai lawyer acting for a Japanese man claimed the babies belonged to his client. He wanted to build "a big family," the lawyer said.
"It is very unusual for a father to have nine babies at the same time," said Boonruang Triruangworarat, head of Thailand's Department of Health Service Support, adding that police were continuing to question the nannies.
Code of conduct 'breached'
The raids came amid an international furor over the fate of baby Gammy, who was born via surrogate with his twin sister in December. Their parents took the female twin back to their home in Bunbury, Western Australia, leaving their son with the surrogate mother who was concerned how she'd pay for his care.
At a press conference in Bangkok on Thursday, Boonruang said it was "very clear" that the clinic involved in Gammy's birth had broken the law governing the establishment of medical facilities.
He said the clinic had failed to ensure its doctors followed the Medical Council's Code of Conduct. The code states that surrogacy is allowed only when the surrogate is a blood relative of the parents and doesn't any receive payment.
"It's clear for this case that (Pattaramon) is not a relative and also she has received money to carry the baby," Boonruang Triruangworarat said.
Authorities have previously said they would not pursue legal action against Gammy's mother, a 21-year-old food stall worker who is caring for the baby alongside her own two children, aged six and three.
However, if charged and convicted, the clinic operator faces one year in prison and a fine of 20,000 baht (US$619). The doctor who performed the procedure could also be struck off. The Medical Council is currently reviewing the doctor's medical license, Boonruang said.
Around 20 doctors work at the clinic, which has performed about 100 surrogacies so far, authorities said. It's one of 45 clinics and hospitals that are authorized to perform IVF across the country.
Surrogate mom vows to take care of ill twin 'abandoned' by parents
Police take shine to dazzling drivers
8/7/2014 5:17:52 AM
- Blindingly simple idea sees Chinese police using headlights to punish traffic offenders
- Use of high-beam lights punished in Shenzhen with eye-for-an-eye punishment
- China's netizens split on the subject with some complaining of police overreaching their authority
Hong Kong (CNN) -- How's this for a bright idea? Police in the southern Chinese city of Shenzhen are responding to headlight infractions with an eye-for-an-eye punishment.
If you're caught using your brights in the city, which shares a border with Hong Kong, police will sit you down in the full glare, not of an interrogation room lamp, but of their own full-beams.
A post on the Shenzhen traffic police's Weibo account spells it out.
"Do you dare to use full-beam headlights anymore?" the post asks. "From now on, 'uncle cop' will have you stare at the lights for five minutes if they catch you abusing them."
Weibo user @shenzhenlaocui
The stern warning is offset by an animated laughing emoticon. There is also the addition of a more traditional fine of 300 yuan ($49).
Mixed response
Responses on Chinese social media ranged from the amused and the approving, to those doubting the safety -- and legality -- of the biblical-style punishment.
User @chas125 said: "I wholeheartedly support this. Shanghai traffic police should adopt the measure, too," while another user, whose weibo handle suggests a connecttion with the city, was even more enthusiastic.
"I'm hitting 'likes' with my hands and feet," @shenzhenlaocui posted. "Full-beam headlights are evil. I suggest they extend the stare time to 30 minutes, splitting it into three time periods, and let people take a 60-second break in between."
@Zhengxunlaoshi, however, was a little more phlegmatic. "People hate others who use full-beam headlights too much. I experience that unpleasantness as you do, and it is not safe," the user said.
"But the police 'educate' the violators beyond laws -- remember laws don't authorize them to do so -- illegally enforcing the law is more dangerous than using full-beam headlights."
Indiscriminately using brights can be hazardous and can dazzle oncoming traffic. Given the rapid increase of cars and motor scooters on China's roads as the country's economy expands almost unabated, road awareness is an increasing concern.
CNN's Shen Lu in Beijing contributed to this report
Tennis: Djokovic survives big scare
8/7/2014 7:45:18 AM
- World No. 1 playing in first match since winning Wimbledon
- Djokovic's three-set win sets up meeting with Jo-Wilfried Tsonga
- Serena Williams through to third round at WTA event in Montreal
- Defending champion a straight-sets winner over Sam Stosur
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(CNN) -- Some players might not have wanted too much court time in their first match back after a layoff, but Novak Djokovic didn't appear to mind being pushed to the limits by Gael Monfils at the Rogers Cup in Toronto.
The world No. 1, who was playing for the first time since winning Wimbledon last month, was taken all the way by the Frenchman in their second-round match before eventually prevailing 6-2 6-7 (7-4) 7-6 (7-2) in two hours 41 minutes.
"In a way it was fun, of course, and entertaining to be part of this match," Djokovic said, the ATP Tour official website reported.
"I enjoyed it. I tried to take the positives from this long match, and those are obviously the fact that I stayed over two and a half hours on the court and I have not played an official hard-court match since the Miami final.
"That helps obviously to play a little bit more, to feel the court, to feel the conditions."
Djokovic has now won all 10 of his meetings with Monfils and will face another Frenchman, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in the third round.
Tsonga will be the fresher of the two after seeing off his countryman Jeremy Chardy 7-6(8/6) 6-4 in one hour and 37 minutes.
Djokovic has a 13-5 head-to-head record against Tsonga and has won their last nine meetings, most recently in the fourth round at Wimbledon.
But he is still wary of the threat posed by the 13th seed.
"My next opponent has a very similar game, power game like Gael's," Djokovic said.
"I'm not feeling tired, I'm not exhausted, I haven't played a tournament for four weeks. I of course look forward to compete more."
Djokovic was joined in the third round by two-time Rogers Cup winner Andy Murray, who crushed Australian teenager Nick Kyrgios 6-2 6-2 in less than an hour to set up a clash with France's Richard Gasquet.
Wimbledon semifinalist Grigor Dimitrov was taken to three sets by American Donald Young before progressing to a clash with Spanish 17th seed Tommy Robredo.
Last year's losing finalist Milos Raonic kept home hopes alive by overcoming young American Jack Sock 4-6 7-6 (7-2) 7-6 (7-4) after two hours and 24 minutes.
Canada's world No. 6, who won his sixth ATP Tour title in Washington last weekend, will next play French veteran Julien Benneteau.
Fourth seed Tomas Berdych and No. 5 David Ferrer also went through, while Marin Cilic set up a meeting with Wimbledon finalist Roger Federer -- who is seeking to add to his 2004 and 2006 Rogers Cup titles.
Serena eases into third round
Meanwhile in Montreal, world No. 1 Serena Williams was in ominous form in her second-round Rogers Cup match against Sam Stosur.
The defending champion blew away the Australian in straight sets 6-0 6-2 in just under an hour to set up a meeting with Czech Lucie Safarova, who overcame Magdalena Rybarikova 6-4, 6-2.
"It feels great to be here," Williams said, speaking in French, the WTA's official website reported.
"I thought I played well tonight. She's won a Grand Slam title and she's a really good player, so it was important for me to play well.
"I love it here and I want to thank everyone for coming out tonight."
Serena's sister Venus is also safely through to the next round after beating Yulia Putintseva of Kazakhstan 6-3 6-2. She will next play Angelique Kerber, who was beaten by Serena in the Stanford final on Sunday.
Fourth seed Maria Sharapova went through to round three despite losing the first set against 27th-ranked Garbine Muguruza, and the Russian will next play another SPaniard in Carla Suarez-Navarro.
Second seed and 2012 Rogers Cup winner Petra Kvitova also progressed with a 6-3 6-2 win over Casey Dellacqua, and the two-time Wimbledon champion next plays Russia's Ekaterina Makarova.
But No. 9 seed Ana Ivanovic is out after losing 6-7 (9-7) 7-6 (9-7) 6-4 to America's Coco Vandeweghe, who earned a clash with another Serbian, former world No. 1 Jelena Jankovic.
Australian Open finalist Dominika Cibulkova was also knocked out, going down in three sets 2-6 7-6 (7-3) 6-7 (5-7) to Britain's Heather Watson, who will now play two-time grand slam winner Victoria Azarenka.
Read more: Bouchard suffers hometown defeat
ISIS takes Iraq's largest Christian city
8/7/2014 3:34:22 PM
- French government confirms that ISIS has taken over Qaraqosh
- Qaraqosh is Iraq's largest Christian city
- It is located near Mosul, where ISIS already had control
(CNN) -- Iraq's largest Christian town has been overrun by the same militant Islamists who have gained a foothold in parts of eastern Syria and western and northern Iraq.
The latest advance by ISIS (or the Islamic State, formerly known as the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria) has caused thousands of Christians in the city to flee, just as other minority groups targeted by ISIS have done, as well as Shiite Muslims.
The French government confirmed that the Iraqi city of Qaraqosh has fallen into the hands of the militant al Qaeda offshoot.
"France is highly concerned about the latest progress of ISIS in the North of Iraq and by the taking of Qaraqosh, the largest Christian city of Iraq, and the horrible acts of violence that are committed," French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius said in a statement.
France called for an emergency meeting of the U.N. Security Council to discuss the threat in Iraq.
The exodus from Qaraqosh was already under way, as the city and its surroundings have been the target of ISIS attacks for weeks.
Qaraqosh is a historic Assyrian town of 50,000 people, approximately 20 miles southeast of Mosul, Iraq's second-largest city, where ISIS also has control.
When ISIS took over Mosul, many residents from there had fled to Qaraqosh. In Mosul, ISIS issued an ultimatum to Christians living there: Convert to Islam, pay a fine or face "death by the sword."
Three other nearby villages were also attacked overnight and Thursday, local police officials told CNN. Two of the villages -- Bartella and Tall Kayf -- are predominately Christian. Hundreds of Christian families fled to the north, police said.
The third village is Hamadaniya.
Kurdish forces were involved in heavy clashes protecting the area from ISIS.
ISIS seeks to create an Islamic caliphate that stretches from Syria to Iraq. The group has aggressively targeted Iraqi minority religious groups.
Nickolay Mladenov, the special representative of the U.N. secretary-general for Iraq, last month condemned the persecution of Christians, Shia Muslims and Yazidis, as well as the Shabak and Turkmen ethnic minorities.
The Pentagon is considering conducting emergency air drops to the thousands of stranded Yazidis in northern Iraq, a U.S. Defense official told CNN Thursday.
A spokesman for Pope Francis, the Rev. Federico Lombardi, said on Thursday that the pontiff is deeply concerned about the reports coming from northern Iraq.
"Christian communities are particularly affected: a people fleeing from their villages because of the violence that rages in these days, wreaking havoc on the entire region," Lombardi said in a statement.
Lombardi quoted a prayer the Pope offered last month, expressing to the persecuted that "I know how much you suffer, I know that you are deprived of everything."
Most Iraqi Christians are Chaldeans, who are Roman Catholic communicants.
READ: Can the West live with 'brutal' al Qaeda offshoot ISIS?
READ: What chance do Yazidis have against group too brutal for al Qaeda?
READ: Official: Kurdish forces fend off ISIS fighters, hold Mosul Dam
CNN's Hamdi Alkhshali, Marion Lory and Ariana Williams contributed to this report.
How Thai coup saved Phuket
8/7/2014 9:36:21 PM
- The Thai military is cleaning up Phuket's beaches
- A crackdown on taxis is now underway in response to years of alleged illegal practices, abuse and misuse
- "'I told the local authorities to do their jobs. The novel idea appears to be working," says military official
Editor's note: Alan Morison is an award-winning journalist based in Phuket and founder of the regional news and information site, Phuketwan.com. Chutima Sidasathian is a journalist for Phuketwan.com. The views expressed in this commentary are solely those of the authors.
PHUKET, Thailand (CNN) -- Raddled by allegations of corruption and mismanagement by inept authorities, the Thai holiday island of Phuket looked destined within a few years to have its once-beautiful beaches destroyed by the side-effects of mass tourism.
Since the 2004 tsunami made Phuket even more of a household name around the world, tourism boosters have catered to sharply increasing numbers of visitors, with the island's overwhelmed infrastructure deteriorating rapidly.
Bliss for many tourists became a sunbed on the beach where they could alternately loll and dip all day long and be serviced by locals bringing coconut juice or a cocktail, or perhaps even a delicious tiger prawn sandwich.
Such pleasurable indulgence proved exceedingly popular, and some beaches eventually succumbed each tourism high season under a colorful sea of sunbeds.
Along the foreshores at many beaches, illegal businesses sprang up and grew. Beach clubs predominated, but a visitor could spend hours in a beauty salon on the sand or even buy a time-share property.
A constant stream of vendors left tourists little time to snooze. Paradise was evaporating, if it hadn't already.
Then an odd and unexpected event happened.
On May 22, Thailand Army chief General Prayuth Chan-ocha assumed control of the country in a military coup following months of political deadlock between opposing sides.
Within 72 hours of taking control, soldiers were on the holiday island, bearing promises to save the beaches and berate the administrators accused of contributing to the island's simultaneous ride and slide towards increased popularity and ruin.
A few months on, and Phuket continues to shake off the effects of decades of corruption that have been plaguing the island since the 1970s, when the first backpackers discovered the brilliance of the island's gleaming west coast beaches and locals discovered a new source of income.
Until recently, tales of mafia-connected taxi drivers ruling Phuket made regular headlines, whether it was for charging ridiculously high fares that were six times those of the capital, Bangkok, or forcing passengers to pay double -- not just for the trip to their destination, but also for the cabbie's ride alone back to his base.
In more extreme cases, drivers threatened violence against those who attempted to use alternative transportation options, as was reported in Phuketwan.
Soldiers on the beach
Today, all that is changing, due to the arrival of khaki and camouflage-clad soldiers.
They tromped Patong, Phuket's main west coast beach, enforcing the message that the hedonistic days of lazing on sunbeds were at an end, along with the vendors' privateering ways.
Sand was making a comeback.
Though many Western countries have condemned Thailand's latest coup, it may just have saved Phuket from further decay -- also producing some useful social outcomes for similarly troubled holiday destinations in other parts of the country.
All beaches in Thailand are public space by law. The prohibition of private business operations on these public beaches is without exception, but has been ignored on Phuket and some other tourism destinations.
Restaurants and beach clubs illegally encroached onto the beaches, right down to the high-water mark in some places, too many deriving private profits by ignoring the law and doing as they pleased.
Because Phuket is 860 kilometers south of Bangkok, administrators posted by the central government seemed reluctant to interfere.
Phuket locals interpreted the concept of public beaches as meaning anyone could use them, so first they added sunbeds, then built thatch and bamboo bars on the shore fronts.
Over the years, entrepreneurs joined in, expanding the venues into large restaurants and beachclubs.
Some businesses grew to the water's edge. There was no enforcement by authorities to force them off the beach.
Once the army took charge, though, local mayor Ma-Ann Samran, of Cherng Talay, says he began receiving daily visits from officers in civilian clothes.
He had no hesitation in admitting he eventually acted to save the beaches in his district out of fear.
''I was genuinely scared,'' Ma-Ann said. ''The Army let me know I had to act.''
After decades of local ''law'' being applied, the Army transformation came at great speed, within days of the May 22 coup.
Graders toppled beach clubs and restaurants, while the sunbeds and umbrellas were carted off in pickup trucks, banned forever.
Tourists on all Phuket beaches now sit on towels.
Taxi clampdown
What happened with the alleged bullying that taxi drivers were accused of, was even more remarkable.
Present-day Phuket police commander Major General Praveen Pongsirin found the army to be perfect allies to conclude his covert months' long investigation of the island's ''mafia.''
In June, more than 100 taxi and tuk-tuk drivers were arrested and charged with alleged intimidation and extortion, according to police.
Local officials who allegedly sponsored the bullies were also arrested, police officials said. These include the Mayor of Karon municipality and his two deputies, plus the chief engineer and the senior officer, who remain on bail facing six charges apiece.
When they appear in court, they'll have the opportunity to enter their pleas. They have denied the charges. No court date has been set.
Anti-money laundering officers have conducted raids and more arrests have been promised. Investigations into illegal activities at Phuket airport have also been launched.
The major general said: ''Phuket wasn't like this 15 years ago. As the power of the taxis grew, so did their greed and arrogance. The only laws they recognized were their own laws.''
Administrators posted by Bangkok came and went on Phuket periodically, perceiving all the problems, but powerless to seriously fix them.
''The administrators were all able to see what ailed Phuket when they first arrived,'' Major General Praveen said.
"But the longer they stayed, the more they integrated with the lawless locals and the more blind they became.''
The army takeover, though, brought to the island the one organization in Thailand that is large enough to confront the taxi drivers and end corruption on, and abuse of, the beaches.
The message from the army's Major General Somchai Ponatong on arrival was blunt but effective: ''I told the local authorities to do their jobs. The novel idea appears to be working.''
Backhanders and corruption were previously considered the most efficient way for anyone to get anything done on Phuket, according to experienced expat investors and some local businesspeople.
Investigations are now underway into resorts suspected of encroaching on national park land, led by the Public-sector Anti-Corruption Commission.
Villas dot the hillsides, well above height restrictions. On Phuket, regulations stipulate constructions can be no higher than 80 meters above sea level.
Now, says Major General Somchai, complaints are being listened to and acted upon, without regard to the degree of influence Thailand's resident ''big people'' have always had under civilian governments.
''Enforce the law,'' the major general tells his officers, ''free from favor."
''By November [start of the tourism high season] we will have made Phuket safe, clean and appealing to everyone,'' he says.
Coup, what a difference it's made here.
MORE ON PHUKET: Phuket's coolest cafes and coffee shops
MORE ON PHUKET: Insider Guide to Phuket
Alan Morison is journalist based in Phuket and founder of the regional news and information site, He is a frequent contributor to CNN and a former CNN employee. He and fellow Phuketwan.com journalist Chutima Sidasathian face a continuing trial over criminal defamation and Computer Crimes Act charges brought by the Royal Thai Navy for re-publishing a 41-word section from a Pulitzer prize-winning report from Reuters on the Rohingya boatpeople. The charges, strongly criticized by rights groups and mentioned in passing in the US State Department's Trafficking in Persons Report, predate the military takeover in Thailand.
Serial stowaway caught... again
8/8/2014 12:40:30 AM
- Marilyn Jean Hartman, 62, is accused of "scouting out multiple passenger terminals"
- Airport police chief: "When we knew she was going to be released ... we were prepared"
- Hartman was arrested Monday after stowing away from San Jose to Los Angeles
(CNN) -- She just can't seem to stay away.
A day after she pleaded no contest to stowing away, Marilyn Jean Hartman was re-arrested at the Los Angeles airport on Thursday.
She was seen earlier in the day arriving at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), where she spent about an hour "scouting out multiple passenger terminals before being arrested.
"Airport Police officers did not observe Hartman attempting to purchase an airline ticket and she did not have a ticket or boarding pass in her possession when arrested," the airport said in a statement.
Airport Police Chief Patrick Gannon said in the statement that flyers were distributed with Hartman's picture on it.
"When we knew she was going to be released from custody, we were prepared," he said.
This week, authorities say Hartman, 62, made it through a screening checkpoint at Mineta San Jose International Airport without a ticket and boarded a Southwest Airlines flight bound for LAX. She was initially arrested there Monday.
She pleaded no contest Wednesday to a misdemeanor count of stowing away, CNN affiliate KTLA reported. She was sentenced to two years probation and three days in jail. She was given credit for time served and released.
Outside the courthouse, Hartman refused to detail to reporters how she got through security.
"I don't think it's wise to say how I got through. I don't want to help the enemy," she said.
"...I want to go with a paid ticket. ... I want to do everything legal," Hartman said then. "It was clearly wrong on my part. ... It was stupid and it is something I don't want to repeat."
Hartman has been described by authorities as a serial stowaway, who has repeatedly tried to board flights to Hawaii at San Francisco International Airport without a ticket.
Earlier this year, she was sentenced to probation and ordered to stay away from the San Francisco airport.
CNN's Chelsea J. Carter and Randi Kaye contributed to this report.
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