Serbia cleared of genocide

By Mark Oliver, Mark Tran and agencies,
Monday February 26, 2007
Guardian Unlimited.

Serbia was guilty of failing to prevent the genocide of some 8,000 Bosnian Muslims at Srebrenica in 1995, the UN's highest court ruled today.

But the international court of justice cleared Serbia of direct responsibility for genocide and complicity in genocide in Bosnia, in the 1992-1995 war.

The decision took the form of several votes. In the key verdict, the court decided by 13 votes to two that Serbia had "not committed genocide, through its organs or persons whose acts engage its responsibility under customary international law". In another vote, however, the court found by 12 votes to three that Serbia had "violated the obligation to prevent genocide".

Straw branded a 'Christian fascist'

By David Paul, Daily Express

"Muslim demonstrators hurled insults at Jack Straw yesterday, calling him a “Christian fascist” and saying he had “declared war” on the Islamic community.
The Commons leader was jeered by furious protesters as he arrived for a surgery in his Blackburn constituency.
Protected by tight security for his visit to a community centre, Mr Straw, who wants Muslim women to remove the veil in face-to-face contacts, refused to speak to the 70 demonstrators. They included a number of women wearing veils.
Police had earlier banned a planned demonstration by 8,000 Muslims on safety grounds.
The crowd included Tasaddiq Rehman, from the Blackburn Muslim Council, who said: “Jack Straw didn’t really start a debate. He declared war against the Muslim community and then he wants a debate.
“This talk about the veil is another affront to the Muslim community. Jack Straw is a Christian fascist.
“He has actually segregated the community in the name of trying to call for Muslims to integrate.”
A group of women wearing niqab veils chanted: 'The veil is our choice and our liberation. The veil is our freedom.'"