Bayern new signing, Thiago Alacantara emerges world best player of the week.

 

When Bayern Munich boss Pep Guardiola boldly went public with his desire to be reunited with former Barcelona protege Thiago Alcantara, he justified the seemingly superfluous addition to an already stellar midfield cast by declaring: "We have many players, but we need the special quality that he brings."

There were still many sceptics. But probably not anymore; not after Thiago's first two appearances for Bayern in last weekend's Telekom Cup, as the Spain international oozed class during every second of his 98 minutes of action.

Thiago laid the foundations for a quite brilliant goal against Hamburg that even former Barcelona boss Guardiola couldn't help but marvel at, the 22-year-old picking out a clever run from Franck Ribery with a wonderfully-measured ball into the area that the Frenchman deftly cushioned into the path of the supporting Mario Mandzukic, leaving the Croat with a tap-in.

And in the 5-1 demolition of Borussia Monchengladbach in the 'Grand Final', Thiago ingeniously chested home a cross from Jerome Boateng to net his first goal in a Roten shirt.

As Goal Germany's John Brandi underlines, the midfielder has already demonstrated just why Bayern moved so quickly to sign him, and why Manchester United are privately do disappointed at having been beaten to his signature.

"Thiago was the midfield anchor in a very attacking 4-1-4-1 formation against Hamburg," he explained. "He was strong at winning the ball and showed his excellent passing skills.

"It was no surprise that he was one of the few players who were allowed to start again in the final and he capped another very strong performance with his first goal for the club.

"Consequently, the question mark over Thiago's signing has already begun to fade."

Dubai ruler pardons Norwegian woman convicted after she reported rape

This Facebook photo shows Norwegian businesswoman Marte Deborah Dalelv, 24.

Dubai (CNN) -- A Norwegian woman who was sentenced to prison in Dubai after reporting she was raped has been given a pardon and will be heading home soon, she said Monday.

Speaking to reporters in Dubai, Marte Deborah Dalelv seemed relieved and happy as she confirmed the news -- if still slightly bewildered by the swift turn of events.

"They told me that I would be pardoned and that they were going to give me my passport back -- so I got it immediately," she said.

A friend has taken the passport to a government department to get the necessary exit permit, she said.

Asked what happens next, Dalelv paused a moment before replying: "I get to go home."

She added, "We want to make it as soon as possible."

A spokeswoman for Norway's Foreign Ministry, Ragnhild Imerslund, earlier told CNN that Dubai ruler Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum had said Dalelv was free to travel where she wants and can remain in Dubai if she chooses.

The sheikh, who is vice president of the United Arab Emirates, also said the 24-year-old had not been and would not be deported, Imerslund said.

Woman reports Dubai rape, faces prison

Dalelv, a Qatar-based interior designer, was on a work trip to Dubai when she reported to police that she had been raped by a colleague at the hotel where she was staying.

She was herself then detained and charged with having unlawful sex, making a false statement and illegal consumption of alcohol. A court last week sentenced her to 16 months in prison, prompting outrage in Norway.

Dalelv is currently still in Dubai but is expected to travel in a day or two, Imerslund said.

'Contrary to fundamental human rights'

Norwegian Foreign Affairs Minister Espen Barth Eide also welcomed news of the pardon.

"Marte is released! Thanks to everyone who signed up to help #ReleaseMarte," his Twitter feed said.

Imerslund said "very constructive" dialogue between the foreign ministers of Norway and the UAE, along with international pressure and interest, led to this outcome in Dalelv's case.

On Friday, Eide had called his UAE counterpart, Sheikh Abdullah Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, to protest Dalelv's conviction as "contrary to fundamental human rights," a weekend statement from the Norwegian ministry said.

While Dubai has a reputation as a cosmopolitan city that boasts Western influences, where visitors can drink at bars and restaurants and unmarried couples can share hotel rooms, the country adheres to Islamic laws and traditions.

Having sex outside of marriage and public consumption of alcohol are both violations of the law in the United Arab Emirates.

CNN could not immediately confirm what happened to the alleged perpetrator, who was charged with public intoxication and having sex outside of marriage.

Rights record criticized

The United Arab Emirates has been heavily criticized by rights groups, which say it condones sexual violence against women. Human Rights Watch has called its record "shameful," saying it must change the way it handles such cases.

In December 2012, a British woman reported being raped by three men in Dubai. She was found guilty of drinking alcohol without a license and fined.

In January 2010, a British woman told authorities she was raped by an employee at a Dubai hotel. She was charged with public intoxication and having sex outside of marriage.

An Australian woman reported in 2008 that she was drugged and gang-raped. She was convicted of having sex outside marriage and drinking alcohol, and she was sentenced to 11 months in prison.

Vilanova exit worries Puyol; confident Cescc Fabregas will stay.

 

The Blaugrana skipper has rued the head coach's departure due to health issues but is confident that Cesc Fabregas will not leave the club

Carles Puyol has lamented Tito Vilanova's decision to step down as Barcelona coach as a big blow for the club.

The 44-year-old announced his resignation last week as he continues his battle against cancer after guiding Barca to La Liga glory in 2012-13.

Puyol admits the news of his departure came as a surprise but has vowed to turn in impressive performances next season as the best way of showing support to the Spaniard.

"What has happened with Tito is a huge blow for us. We did not see this coming and the team suffers a lot," Puyol said at a press conference.

"Tito has already shown us that he is really strong and he is ready to battle. The team will be by his side any time he needs us.

"He has asked us to give our all on the pitch. That would be the best way to support him and we will do do our utmost to give him some joy."

The veteran defender then went on to discuss the potential departure of Cesc Fabregas, who is the subject of a second bid from Manchester United, and backed new signing Neymar to impress next season.

"I do not think that Cesc will leave Barca," Puyol stated.

"Neymar is a superb player. He is still young, yet already has a lot of experience. He is ready to play for Barcelona."

Pro-, anti-Morsi demonstrators plan to hold rival rallies

Supporters of Egypt's ousted president, Mohamed Morsi, wave pictures of the former leader and their national flag during a demonstration in the northern city of Alexandria on July 19, 2013.

Egypt is bracing for fresh protests by supporters and opponents of ousted president, Mohamed Morsi, as political turmoil rages on in the North African country, Press TV reports.

Supporters of Morsi are planning to hold a mass demonstration in Cairo’s Nasr City while his opponents, who back Egypt’s interim government, intend to gather at Cairo’s iconic Liberation Square.

On Sunday, hundreds of female supporters of the toppled president marched to the Egyptian Defense Ministry in the capital to protest the killing of three women at a rally in the Nile Delta city of Mansura on Friday.

The protesters were confronted by soldiers who blocked their way to the ministry.

On the same day, the Muslim Brotherhood issued a statement giving their plans for ending the political crisis in Egypt. The group said the solution lies in Morsi's reinstatement.

The group also called for the military to “respect the will of the people,” by returning “constitutional legitimacy, with the constitution, the president and the parliament.”

The Muslim Brotherhood further stated that once Morsi returns to office, he would carry out “the reform initiative he committed to according to the constitution decided on by the people.”

The Egyptian army overthrew Morsi, suspended the constitution, and dissolved the parliament on July 3 and declared the chief justice of Egypt’s Supreme Constitutional Court, Adly Mansour, as interim president the following day.

Dozens of people have been since killed in the wave of violent clashes between supporters of Morsi, his opponents and security forces.

On July 5, Muslim Brotherhood supreme leader, Mohammed Badie, said the coup against Morsi was illegal and millions would remain on the street until he is reinstated.

Supporters of Egypt's ousted president, Mohamed Morsi, wave pictures of the former leader and their national flag during a demonstration in the northern city of Alexandria on July 19, 2013.

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Egypt is bracing for fresh protests by supporters and opponents of ousted president, Mohamed Morsi, as political turmoil rages on in the North African country, Press TV reports.

Supporters of Morsi are planning to hold a mass demonstration in Cairo’s Nasr City while his opponents, who back Egypt’s interim government, intend to gather at Cairo’s iconic Liberation Square.

On Sunday, hundreds of female supporters of the toppled president marched to the Egyptian Defense Ministry in the capital to protest the killing of three women at a rally in the Nile Delta city of Mansura on Friday.

The protesters were confronted by soldiers who blocked their way to the ministry.

On the same day, the Muslim Brotherhood issued a statement giving their plans for ending the political crisis in Egypt. The group said the solution lies in Morsi's reinstatement.

The group also called for the military to “respect the will of the people,” by returning “constitutional legitimacy, with the constitution, the president and the parliament.”

The Muslim Brotherhood further stated that once Morsi returns to office, he would carry out “the reform initiative he committed to according to the constitution decided on by the people.”

The Egyptian army overthrew Morsi, suspended the constitution, and dissolved the parliament on July 3 and declared the chief justice of Egypt’s Supreme Constitutional Court, Adly Mansour, as interim president the following day.

Dozens of people have been since killed in the wave of violent clashes between supporters of Morsi, his opponents and security forces.

On July 5, Muslim Brotherhood supreme leader, Mohammed Badie, said the coup against Morsi was illegal and millions would remain on the street until he is reinstated.

Eurozone collective debt hits new record high of 92.2%

Official data show the collective debt in the eurozone has hit a new record high of 92.2 percent in first quarter of 2013, as the 17-nation bloc continues to grapple with a worsening financial crisis.

Nigeria’s debt rises to N7.93tn

Nigeria's Finance Minister, Okonjo Iweala
| credits: File copy

The nation’s appetite for borrowing to finance critical development projects has been growing in recent times with both the domestic and foreign indebtedness rising by $13.91bn in the last two years, EVEREST AMAEFULE writes

The country currently owes local and international creditors a total of $50.91bn (about N7.93tn), the Debt Management Office has said.

Statistics obtained from the DMO website showed that as of June 30, 2013, the nation’s external debt stood at $6.92bn (about N1.08tn), while the domestic debt component stood at N6.85tn ($43.99bn).

The external debt component comprises debts owed by both the Federal Government and the 36 states of the federation and the Federal Capital Territory.

However, the domestic debt of $43.99bn is owed by the Federal Government alone. The domestic debt of the states could not be obtained as at press time.

By June 2011, the total debt of the country stood at $37bn. This means that in the last two years, the debt stock had risen by $13.91bn. This shows a growth rate of 37.59 per cent.

In terms of instruments, FGN Bonds accounted for N4.03tn or 58.87 per cent of the Federal Government’s domestic debt stock as of June.

Nigerian Treasury Bills accounted for N2.48tn or 36.25 per cent of the domestic debt component of the Federal Government.

On the other hand, Treasury Bills accounted for N334.56bn or 4.88 per cent of the total domestic debt owed by the Federal Government.

Multilateral sources such as the World Bank and African Development Bank accounted for $5.54bn or 80 per cent of the external debt.

Bilateral debts made up of money borrowed from China and France accounted for $845.4m or 12.22 per cent of the nation’s external debt profile.

Commercial debts, including Eurobond and debts owed to Chinese firms, accounted for $536m or 7.75 per cent of the external debt stock.

The Director-General, DMO, Dr. Abraham Nwankwo, had recently said that compared to the level of foreign debt, the Federal Government had over-borrowed from domestic sources.

While unfolding the details of the nation’s Middle Term Debt Management Strategy, which was approved by the Federal Executive Council, Nwankwo said there was an urgent need to rebalance the structure of the nation’s debt because the interest rate payable on domestic debt was too high.

He said the ratio of the Federal Government’s domestic debt stood at 88, while the ratio of the foreign debt stood at 12.

Nwankwo said the appropriate ratio should be 60 for domestic debt and 40 for foreign debt, adding that the newly approved Medium Term Debt Management Strategy would seek to achieve this ratio.

One of the ways of doing this is through the establishment of a sinking fund for retiring matured local debts. The second is by borrowing more from foreign sources.

Our correspondent had reported that with the assumption of office of former Managing Director of the World Bank, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala as Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, the nation would see a reduction in local debts and an increase in foreign debts.

As managing director of the World Bank, Okonjo-Iweala had criticised Nigeria’s debt structure on the grounds that the Federal Government was crowding out private sector borrowers from the debt market.

Although she had championed the exit of the country from the Paris Club of Creditors during her first tenure as Minister of Finance, she is now insisting that the nation’s ballooning domestic debt is not healthy for the economy.

Okonjo-Iweala had reasoned that the Federal Government could do with more foreign sources than borrowing from the domestic market.

It is this scenario that is now playing out under the new Medium Term Debt Management Strategy.

Nwankwo had said, “The main objective of the medium term debts is to develop a strategy that will meet the financing needs of the government at minimum cost, maintain risk at a prudent level and support the development of the market.

“The exercise reflects and addresses, among other realities, the disproportionate reliance on the domestic bond market to fund government deficits – the ratio of domestic and external debt stock as of the end of 2011 was 88:12, whereas the appropriate ratio will be 60:40.”

Other issues addressed by the strategy, he said, included high rate of domestic debt accumulation; and rising debt service payments occasioned by growing debt stock coupled with upward pressure on the average cost of funds and the risk of crowding out the private sector.

The DMO boss said the time of high borrowing from the domestic had served its purpose, which included developing a market structure and culture for long term savings and investment.

He said the new strategy had the capacity to reduce the rate of public debt in general and domestic debt particular to ensure debt sustainability and make budgetary provisions for the repayment of part of maturing FGN Bond obligations instead of refinancing them by creating a sinking fund.

It will also reduce the amount spent on debt service by achieving an optimal mix between the relatively more expensive domestic debt and less expensive foreign debt.

At present, Nwankwo said the difference between the domestic and external average cost of borrowing was about eight per cent per annum.

Suicide bomber attacks Iraqi army convoy, killing 25

A suicide bomber attacked an Iraqi army convoy in the northern city of Mosul early on Monday, killing at least 22 soldiers and three passers-by, police said.

The bomber drove a vehicle packed with explosives up to a military convoy in the eastern Kokchali district of Mosul, 390 km north of Baghdad, before blowing himself and his car up.

Royal baby: Kate in labour and admitted to hospital

| credits:

Prince William’s wife, Kate, has gone into labour and been admitted in hospital for the birth of the couple’s first child, who will be third in line to the British throne, the prince’s office said on Monday.

After weeks of feverish media speculation over the arrival of the royal baby, Kate, 31, was taken early on Monday to the private wing of St Mary’s Hospital in Paddington, West London, where William was born in 1982

At least 73 dead in twin China quakes

BEIJING (AFP) – Rescuers rushed to find victims buried by twin shallow earthquakes in northwest China Monday after the double tremors killed 73 people and injured more than 400, officials said.
The government of Dingxi city in Gansu province, which was hit by quakes with magnitudes of 5.9 and 5.6, gave the figures on a verified social media account.
“More than 21,000 buildings were severely damaged and more than 1,200 have collapsed,” an official at the provincial earthquake bureau told AFP, adding that 371 aftershocks had been recorded.
The tremor set off landslides which buried often crudely constructed local houses, state broadcaster CCTV reported.
Pictures from the scene showed simple buildings reduced to rubble, with the pieces of corrugated metal scattered over the wreckage.
In one location 12 people were buried, the broadcaster quoted a witness as saying. “The rescue work is tough, because the house has been completely buried,” the man said.
More than 2,000 soldiers, 300 police, 50 medical staff and two helicopters had been sent to the area, the official Xinhua news agency said.
“We are rushing to the scene,” Dingxi’s vice-mayor told CCTV, which showed an orange-suited rescue worker riding on a tractor.
“The damage to houses made from earth bricks has been severe and many are now unusable,” the official said, adding that the number of people buried by the quake was still being estimated.
More than 700 rescue workers had arrived at the scene, CCTV said.
The US Geological Survey said the initial 5.9-magnitude quake hit at 7:45 am (2345 GMT Sunday) at a depth of just 9.8 kilometres.
A second 5.6-magnitude tremor hit the same region at 9:12 am and was 10.1 kilometres deep, USGS said.
A resident of Min county told AFP he was at work at a medicine production plant when the tremor struck and he saw tower blocks shake “ferociously”.
“I was in the workshop. I felt violent shaking and so I ran to the yard of the plant immediately,” said the man, surnamed Ma.
“Our factory is only one floor. When I came to the yard, I saw an 18 storey building, the tallest in our county, shaking ferociously, especially the 18th floor.”
While Gansu is one of China’s more sparsely populated provinces, Dingxi city, which includes the worst-hit counties, has a population of about 2.7 million.
Pictures broadcast on state television showed rural villages with rubble-strewn streets.
A total of 380 buildings collapsed and thousands were damaged in Zhang county, according to an online post by the Dingxi local government. Communications were cut off in 13 towns in the county, the official Xinhua news agency said, and power was off in some areas.
The quake was felt in the provincial capital Lanzhou and as far away as Xian, the capital of the neighbouring province of Shaanxi, Xinhua reported.
People posting on China’s hugely popular microblogs expressed sympathy for the victims. “I hope the dead will rest in peace,” read one typical remark.
Beijing’s own China Earthquake Networks Centre put the magnitude of the larger quake at 6.6, Xinhua added.
The China Earthquake Administration said the same fault zone was linked to a magnitude 8.0 quake on July 21, 1654, it reported.
The USGS rated Monday’s main tremor at seven on its “shakemap”, with shaking perceived to be “very strong” and the potential to cause “moderate” damage.
Weather reports also said rain was expected in the area, which could hamper rescue efforts in the mountainous region.
Much of western China is prone to earthquakes.
A magnitude 6.6 earthquake in neighbouring Sichuan province killed about 200 people earlier this year, five years after almost 90,000 people were killed in a huge tremor in the same province.

Police rescue kidnapped Briton in Lagos

The Briton who was kidnapped last Tuesday, July 16, few minutes after he landed the Muritala Muhammed International Airport, Ikeja, Lagos, by gunmen has been rescued by policemen attached to the  Lagos State Police Command.
Vanguard gathered that a combined team of operatives from the Special Anti-Robbery Squad, SARS, and their counterpart from the Special Intelligence Bureau, SIB, stormed an uncompleted two storey building at Okota Isolo area of Lagos State, rescuing the British national and arresting a suspect.
Police sources told Vanguard that the kidnappers demanded a ransom of one million dollars before the Briton could be released, but the Commissioner of Police, Lagos State, Umar Manko, ordered a clamp down on the kidnap gang.

Ambush kills 7 U.N. peacekeepers in Sudan

(CNN) -- At least seven U.N. peacekeepers were killed and 17 others were injured in an ambush Saturday morning near their base in Manawashi, north of the South Darfur regional capital of Nyala, a U.N. spokesman said.

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon expressed outrage about the attacks and identified the killed peacekeepers as Tanzanians, a spokesman said.

A group of vehicles manned by troops and police of the African Union-United Nations Hybrid Operation in Darfur (UNAMID) was attacked. It was the third attack on the unit in three weeks, the spokesman said.

The secretary-general "expects that the Government of Sudan will take swift action to bring the perpetrators to justice," the spokesman's statement said. The Darfur region is located in Sudan along the border with the new nation of South Sudan.

The convoy came under heavy gunfire, and fighting continued as peacekeepers were vastly outnumbered, said Chris Cycmanick, acting spokesman for the U.N. Mission in Darfur.

There has not been any claim of responsibility for the attack.

Violence has plagued Darfur for a decade. The United Nations estimates as many as 300,000 people have been killed and almost 3 million people have been displaced from their homes since the Darfur conflict broke out in 2003.

Widespread atrocities have occurred during fighting between Sudan's government forces and militias and other rebel groups. The African Union-U.N. Hybrid Operation was established as peacekeepers in 2007, with the mission's headquarters in El Fasher, North Darfur.

US hacks emails of Bolivian, Argentinean leaders

Bolivia's president Evo Morales

Bolivia's President Evo Morales has said U.S. intelligence services have hacked into the email accounts of top Bolivian officials.

"U.S. intelligence agents have accessed the emails of our most senior authorities in Bolivia,” Morales said in a speech on Saturday. “It was recommended to me that I not use email, and I've followed suit and shut it down," he said.

Morales fears that Washington would use the information obtained from the emails to plan a possible “invasion” of his country in the future.

Last week, several European countries denied a flight carrying President Morales entry to their airspace over alleged suspicion that American whistle blower Edward Snowden was on board the plane.

The aircraft which was flying back home from a Moscow summit was forced to land in Austria and was searched by European authorities.

Snowden, wanted in the U.S. for espionage charges, has been stranded in a transit area at a Moscow airport because his passport has been revoked by the U.S. government. The former National Security Agency contractor had planned to travel via Russia to Latin America, where several counties have offered him asylum.

Bolivia is the second Latin American nation having criticized U.S. spying operations in less than a week.

Earlier last week, Argentina accused Washington of spying on more than a hundred Argentinean officials. Foreign Minister Hector Timerman told the Mercosur regional summit in Montevideo that the officials were under electronic surveillance.

Following the revelations by Snowden, Latin American leaders lashed out at the U.S. for its massive espionage operations.

Bolivia, Ecuador, Venezuela and Nicaragua have publicly vowed to grant Snowden asylum, defying Washington’s extradition request.

Guardian’s Glenn Greenwald has said Snowden still has sensitive information that could become the United States' "worst nightmare" if revealed.

US woman gets 20 years for firing warning shot

 

Marissa Alexander

 Marissa Alexander had never been arrested before she fired a bullet at a wall one day in 2010 to scare off her husband when she felt he was threatening her. Nobody got hurt, but this month a northeast Florida judge was bound by state law to sentence her to 20 years in prison.
Alexander, a 31-year-old mother of a toddler and 11-year-old twins, knew it was coming. She had claimed self-defense, tried to invoke Florida's "stand your ground" law and rejected plea deals that could have gotten her a much shorter sentence. A jury found her guilty as charged: aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. Because she fired a gun while committing a felony, Florida's mandatory-minimum gun law dictated the 20-year sentence.
Her case in Jacksonville has drawn a fresh round of criticism aimed at mandatory-minimum sentencing laws. The local NAACP chapter and the district's African-American congresswoman say blacks more often are incarcerated for long periods because of overzealous prosecutors and judges bound by the wrong-headed statute. Alexander is black.
It also has added fuel to the controversy over Florida's "stand your ground" law, which the judge would not allow Alexander to invoke. State Attorney Angela Corey, who also is overseeing the prosecution of shooter George Zimmerman in the Trayvon Martin case, stands by the handling of Alexander's case. Corey says she believes Alexander aimed the gun at the man and his two sons, and the bullet she fired could have ricocheted and hit any of them.
At the May 11 sentencing, Alexander's relatives begged Circuit Judge James Daniel for leniency but he said the decision was "out of my hands."
"The Legislature has not given me the discretion to do what the family and many others have asked me to do," he said.
The state's "10-20-life" law was implemented in 1999 and credited with helping to lower the violent crime rate. Anyone who shows a gun in the commission of certain felonies gets an automatic 10 years in prison. Fire the gun, and it's an automatic 20 years. Shoot and wound someone, and it's 25 years to life.
Critics say Alexander's case underscores the unfair sentences that can result when laws strip judges of discretion. About two-thirds of the states have mandatory-minimum sentencing laws, mostly for drug crimes, according to a website for the Families Against Mandatory Minimums advocacy group.
"We're not saying she's not guilty of a crime, we're not saying that she doesn't deserve some sort of sanction by the court," said Greg Newburn, Florida director for the group. Rather, he said, the judge should have the authority to decide an appropriate sanction after hearing all the unique circumstances of the case.
U.S. Rep. Corinne Brown, D-Jacksonville, has been an advocate for Alexander. Brown was present at the sentencing, where she and Corey had a brief, terse exchange afterward as sign-toting supporters rallied outside the courthouse.
"The Florida criminal justice system has sent two clear messages today," Brown said afterward. "One is that if women who are victims of domestic violence try to protect themselves, the `Stand Your Ground Law' will not apply to them. ... The second message is that if you are black, the system will treat you differently."
Victor Crist was a Republican state legislator who crafted the "10-20-life" bill enacted in 1999 in Gov. Jeb Bush's first term. He said Alexander's sentence – if she truly did fire a warning shot and wasn't trying to kill her husband – is not what lawmakers wanted.
"We were trying to get at the thug who was robbing a liquor store who had a gun in his possession or pulled out the gun and threatened someone or shot someone during the commission of the crime," said Crist, who served in the state House and Senate for 18 years before being elected Hillsborough County commissioner.
On Aug. 1, 2010, Alexander was working for a payroll software company. She was estranged from her husband, Rico Gray, and had a restraining order against him, even though they'd had a baby together just nine days before. Thinking he was gone, she went to their former home to retrieve the rest of her clothes, family members said.
An argument ensued, and Alexander said she feared for her life when she went out to her vehicle and retrieved the gun she legally owned. She came back inside and ended up firing a shot into the wall, which ricocheted into the ceiling.
Gray testified that he saw Alexander point the gun at him and looked away before she fired the shot. He claims she was the aggressor, and he had begged her to put away the weapon.
A judge threw out Alexander's "stand your ground" self-defense claim, noting that she could have run out of the house to escape her husband but instead got the gun and went back inside. Alexander rejected a plea deal that would have resulted in a three-year prison sentence and chose to go to trial. A jury deliberated 12 minutes before convicting her.
"The irony of the 10-20-life law is the people who actually think they're innocent of the crime, they roll the dice and take their chances, and they get the really harsh prison sentences," Newburn said. "Whereas the people who think they are actually guilty of the crime take the plea deal and get out (of prison) well before. So it certainly isn't working the way it is intended."
Alexander was also charged with domestic battery four months after the shooting in another assault on Gray. She pleaded no contest and was sentenced to time served.
Her family says that doesn't erase the fact that a relatively law-abiding person – a woman with a master's degree – who was making positive contributions to society will endure prison for two decades over a single violation in which no one was hurt.
"She had a restraining order against him. Now Marissa is incarcerated and he's not," said her father, Raoul Jenkins. "I'm wrestling with that in my mind and trying to determine how the system worked that detail out. It's really frustrating."
Newburn says Alexander's case is not an isolated incident, and that people ensnared by mandatory-minimum laws cross racial barriers.
In central Florida, a white man named Orville Lee Wollard is nearly two years into a 20-year sentence for firing his gun inside his house to scare his daughter's boyfriend. Prosecutors contended that Wollard was shooting at the young man and missed.
He rejected a plea deal that offered probation but no prison time. Like Alexander, he took his chances at trial and was convicted of aggravated assault with a firearm. Circuit Judge Donald Jacobsen said he was "duty bound" by the 10-20-life law to impose the harsh sentence.
"I would say that, if it wasn't for the minimum mandatory aspect of this, I would use my discretion and impose some separate sentence, having taken into consideration the circumstances of this event," Jacobsen said

Outrage across US after Zimmerman’s acquittal

A trash fire burns in the middle of Telegraph Avenue near 17th Street during a protest march in Oakland, Calif., early Sunday July 14, 2013.

American protesters came to the streets across the country to express their anger over the acquittal of George Zimmerman, who killed an unarmed African-American teenager.

The demonstrators took to the streets in Los Angeles, New York, Oakland, Chicago and several other cities on Saturday night and the early hours of Sunday.

Angry people also burnt flags, smashed windows and police cars. Protesters held a banner declaring: "We Are All Trayvon Martin."

The rallies came after a six-woman jury in Florida said that Zimmerman’s fatal shooting of Trayvon Martin was justified, acquitting him of second-degree murder and manslaughter.

The controversial verdict was read on Saturday night after three weeks of testimony and 16 hours of deliberation, rejecting the prosecution’s contention that Zimmerman, a former neighborhood watch volunteer, had deliberately followed Martin for suspecting him as a criminal and shot him to death after a fight he started.

Zimmerman said the fatal shooting, which took place on February 26, 2012, in the small city of Sanford, was in self-defense.

"How could you kill somebody and get off? It's a stark felony," one protester asked.

"He racially profiled Trayvon, he stalked him, and he murdered him," another protester said.

Protesters in Chicago shouted: “Who killed Trayvon Martin? The whole damn system?”

Meanwhile, Florida state attorney Angela Corey defended the decision to prosecute Zimmerman for second-degree murder.

"What we want is responsible use when someone feels that they have to use a gun to take a life. They have to be responsible in their use and we believe that this case all along was about boundaries and that George Zimmerman exceeded those boundaries," Corey said.

However, Zimmerman's defense team was critical that he was even brought before a court.

"I think the prosecution of George Zimmerman was disgraceful. I am gratified by the jury's verdict, as happy as I am for George Zimmerman, I'm thrilled that this jury kept this tragedy from becoming a travesty," Zimmerman's Defense Attorney Donald West said.

Arab monarchs, US on mission to avert Egypt democracy: Analyst

The body of a supporter of ousted President Mohamed Morsi is seen on the ground after he was shot dead, allegedly by police, during the clashes in Cairo on July 5, 2013.

Massive Arab oil money and US coordination are being used to avert the Egyptian people’s historic struggle for democracy and freedom, an analyst says.

“The Arab oil money is being used to shore up the military regime precisely in order to make sure that the people of Egypt do not realize democratic freedom,” Finian Cunningham wrote in a column for Press TV.

Some Persian Gulf Arab monarchies have pledged to support the new rulers of Egypt with USD 12 billion in cash grants, central bank deposits and oil deals.

Saudi Arabia is to supply USD 5 billion, the United Arab Emirates USD 3 billion and the latest to stump up is Kuwait with a pledge of USD 4 billion.

Meanwhile, the Financial Times reported this week that US President Barack Obama has urged the rulers of Qatar and the United Arab Emirates to emphasize the need for their support to the Egyptian interim regime.

Referring to the massive financial support, the analyst noted that the move “is designed at buying off the country’s pro-democracy movement by sweetening the rule of autocrats”.

“Democracy in Egypt, and its possible contagion across the region, is anathema to the Arab dictatorial monarchs, as it is to Washington and its imperative of maximizing corporate profits,” he added.

Egypt plunged into violence after the country’s powerful military ousted the country’s first democratically-elected president, Mohammad Morsi, suspended the constitution, and dissolved the parliament on July 3.

The army declared chief justice of Egypt’s Supreme Constitutional Court, Adly Mansour, as interim president on July 4.

Since then, the new military-backed administration has intensified its crackdown on the Muslim Brotherhood, Morsi’s political party, issuing arrest warrants for many of the group's members.

On July 10, Egypt’s military-backed interim government stepped up its crackdown on the Muslim Brotherhood, ordering the arrest of its spiritual leader, Mohamed Badie and other senior figures.

Boko Haram denies ceasefire with government

The leader of the Nigerian Islamist militant group Boko Haram denied that it entered into a ceasefire agreement with the government and endorsed an attack last week on a school in northeast Yobe state.

Bloomberg reports that Abubakar Shekau, in a video message sent to reporters on Saturday, denied claims by the Minister of Special Duties Kabiru Turaki this week that a ceasefire was reached on July 8 after talks with the group’s deputy leader, Mohammed Marwan.

“Let me assure you that we will not enter into any truce with these infidels,” Shekau said. “We will not enter into any truce with the Nigerian government.”

Boko Haram, whose name means “western education is a sin” in the Hausa language, has killed thousands of people in gun and bomb attacks since 2009 in the mainly Muslim North and Abuja in its campaign to establish an Islamic state in Africa’s largest oil producer. Nigeria’s more than 160 million people are roughly split between Christians, predominant in the south, and Muslims, mostly in the north.

The purported cease-fire came in effect two days after 20 students and a teacher were killed in an attack on a secondary school in the northeastern state of Yobe. Eli Lazarus, a spokesman for the joint military and police task force in Yobe, said the attack was probably carried out by Boko Haram.

“We believe in the massacre inflicted on the secondary school in Mamudo and Damaturu and other schools; we earlier warned that we are going to burn all schools,” Shekau said. “They are schools purposely built to fight Islam.”

While Boko Haram doesn’t attack “children and young girls or old women,” he said, “Teachers that teach Western education, we are supposed to kill them in the presence of their students.

The military began an air and ground offensive against Boko Haram on May 16, two days after President Goodluck Jonathan imposed emergency rule in the northeastern states of Borno, Yobe and Adamawa to step up the fight against the Islamist militants. The insurgents were taking over parts of Borno state, according to Jonathan.