Muslim leaders in Greece are warning authorities of violent protests in the mainly Christian Orthodox nation after an incident in which a policeman reportedly defaced a Koran. "How can you control enraged 20-year-old Afghans who will hit the streets seeking to die in the name of Allah?" asked Naim al-Ghandour, president of the Muslim Union of Greece. Muslim leaders in Greece have distanced themselves from the violence, but are seeking a formal apology from police while warning that they are on the verge of losing control over their communities.
Riot police forces, who typically battle anarchists on the left and right, have instead been placed on full alert in neighborhoods populated by Greece's estimated 1 million immigrants. "This is creating hate in a country that did not have the reputation in the Arab and Muslim world of being an enemy," Mr. al-Ghandour said. The Greek Orthodox Church, in this devoutly religious country, has also avoided becoming publicly involved. "If this situation continues as it is now, we will probably address it," said a church spokesman, "but at the moment, it is a purely social issue, and we're hoping it will remain at that." Nevertheless, Archbishop Ieronymos, the spiritual leader of Orthodox Christians in Greece, spoke out for freedom of religion in comments that also stressed that "any expression of violence in the name of any religion is absolutely to be condemned because it deeply transgresses the core of religion." The church has donated a large plot of land for the creation of a Muslim cemetery and supports the creation of Greece's first mosque. It offers daily food handouts in central Athens, irrespective of creed.
Serbian Foreign Minister Vuk Jeremic urged members of the Organization of American States, OAS, meeting in Honduras yesterday to refrain from making a decision on the recognition of Kosovo's independence until the international court ruled on the matter. The OAS is made up of 34 nations from North, Central and South America. Of the OAS countries, Peru, Colombia, Costa Rica and Panama have recognized Kosovo's independence. The minister thanked "the vast majority of OAS member countries for their principled position on Kosovo," stressing that their "support for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of a U.N. member state truly deserves praise." The matter of Kosovo's legitimacy will be decided by the International Court of Justice, ICJ, in The Hague, which will assess the February 2008 unilateral declaration of independence based on and in accordance with international law. “Finding a solution that is acceptable to all for Kosovo’s future status, through talks, requires compromise, flexibility and good will,” he concluded. The OAS is made up of 34 nations from North, Central and South America. Of the OAS countries, Peru, Colombia, Costa Rica and Panama have recognized Kosovo's independence.
The 70-year-old queen first used the national airline Iberia to fly from Madrid to London on Thursday to visit her brother Constantine, the former King of Greece, who was to undergo heart surgery. She then used Ryanair to travel from London's Stansted airport to Santander on Saturday, where she attended an armed forces ceremony with her husband, after which she returned to London, also on the Irish budget carrier. "The reason was not the cost or the company but that it was the best option." Constantine, 68, left Greece in 1967 after a military coup and now lives in London with his wife. "It is usual for members of the royal family to use regular airlines for private trips," except for King Juan Carlos who always travels on military flights.
A Canada-U.S. border station on Indian territory that straddles Canada and upstate New York was closed Tuesday by protesting Mohawks. Canadian border guards abandoned their posts at the Seaway International Bridge near Cornwall, Ontario, Monday night after some 400 Mohawks camped out near their buildings. The Indians who live on the Akwesasne First Nation reservation are opposed to a new law that allows Canadian border guards to carry 9 mm handguns as of June 1. The Canwest News Service noted Akwesasne residents have never protested U.S. border agents carrying weapons, but tribal spokesman Brendan White said armed Canadian border guards created the potential for violence. "There is no need for them to be armed," White said. "Within the same border facility are Mohawk security officers and they provide a peaceful and respectful approach to any confrontation that may arise."
The United States and the Republic of Turkey remain steadfast allies and friends in a modern-day relationship that stretches back decades, the U.S. military's top officer said. The U.S. and Turkish governments worked together during the Cold War to surmount "some big, big challenges," Navy Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said during his keynote remarks at the 28th Annual Conference on U.S.-Turkish Relations dinner held at the Gaylord resort and convention center at National Harbor, Md. The annual conference provides a forum for U.S. and Turkish government, military, commerce and academia leaders to discuss issues and opportunities in the two nations' mutual interest. The relationship between the United States and Turkey today is "exceptionally strong" and "vitally important," Mullen said. "We need your friendship," Mullen told the mostly-Turkish audience. "We need your support."
German Vice Chancellor Frank-Walter Steinmeier called on Tuesday for euro zone states to coordinate their economic policies more closely to support the euro currency. Divergent economic developments among euro zone members could jeopardise the stability of the currency. European Union enlargement should continue, he added. Turning to Turkey's ambitions to join the EU, Steinmeier said accession talks must 'be continued in good faith.' The EU opened accession talks with Ankara in late 2005, but they have moved forward at a snail's pace, hobbled by the Cyprus dispute, the slowness of Turkish reforms of freedom of speech and religion, and hostility from France and Germany.
The Day of Pentecost was marked by Christians around the world Sunday except for those who will be celebrating the date this coming Sunday. Because Christians of the Western tradition had marked Easter this year on April 12, they marked Pentecost on May 31 – 7 weeks after Easter. Christians in the Eastern Orthodox Church, meanwhile, had marked Easter on April 19 and therefore will mark Pentecost on June 7. But the hope remains that that one day all Christians will celebrate Easter (and consequently Pentecost) on the same date – aside from the coincidental overlaps between the Julian calendar followed by Orthodox churches and the Gregorian calendar followed by Western churches. The proposal, “seems to be the most reasonable solution so far” to establishing a common date for Easter, takes up what the Orthodox meetings in 1977 and 1982 at Chambésy had proposed, namely “(a) to maintain the Nicene norms, (b) to calculate the astronomical data, (c) using as the basis for reckoning the meridian of Jerusalem.” Among the norms established by the Council of Nicea in the year 325 was the date of Easter as the first Sunday after the full moon following the vernal equinox.