Mes: septiembre 2019

(AP) JERUSALEM – An Israeli parliamentary committee on Monday denounced a ruling in Germany banning ritual circumcision, saying the decision infringes upon religious freedom and evokes memories of the worst chapter in German history, the Holocaust. A regional court in Cologne recently ruled that circumcising young boys for religious reasons amounts to bodily harm, even if parents agree to it. Circumcision of baby boys is a fundamental Jewish religious ritual. German court rules circumcision goes against “fundamental right of the child to bodily integrity” The ruling was particularly sensitive, given German history and the Holocaust of World War II, when 6 million Jews were killed by German Nazis and their collaborators. Committee chairman Danny Danon invited the German ambassador to Israel to parliament, seeking clarifications to the court ruling. “Circumcision is one of the pillars of Judaism, and the last time it was restricted was in Germany during its darkest hour,” Danon said at the meeting with the ambassador, which was open to reporters. Danon said that Israel would not tolerate restrictions on the practice of Judaism anywhere in the world, “and certainly not in Germany.” The German ambassador, Andreas Michaelis, told the Israeli lawmakers his country was working to resolve the issue and that the ruling doesn’t apply at the national level. “It’s clear that the ruling prohibiting circumcision is more sensitive in Germany because of the Holocaust,”...

The young Sean Penn gave as good as he got with Ray Walston in the 1982 film “Fast Times at Ridgemont High.” These days, Penn is looking beyond the world of movies, as he tells Tracy Smith, on his own home turf… For Sean Penn, Malibu, California, is more than just his current address; it’s home. He lives just two blocks from his 90-year-old mother. Forty-something years ago, he was just another beach-blonde local kid who surfed when he could, and studied (when he had to) at Malibu Park Junior High. He even got himself elected as the boy’s vice president. Smith asked. “Is there anything that you would tell this kid if you could go back and tell this kid something, the young Sean Penn?” “Yeah, there’s a lot of things that I would tell him,” Penn laughed. “Sure. You don’t necessarily change so much, but you do collect a lot of information along the run.” “So, what would you tell him?” “Here are the bad choices that you are going to make. And there’s nothing that’s going to stop you from making them. But check out how funny it is. You know? You’ll get through them, and everything will be all right.” And he’s done okay. Young Sean Penn, of course, went on to create some of the most celebrated roles in cinematic history, with five Oscar...

(AP) LONDON – Residents of a London apartment tower went to court Monday in a bid to stop their rooftop being used as a missile base during the Olympic Games, saying the unprecedented deployment could make the building a terrorist target. The British military plans to deploy surface-to-air missiles at six sites around London as part of a vast security operation for the July 27-Aug. 12 games. But residents of the 17-story Fred Wigg Tower in Leytonstone, east London, say they were not consulted about the decision. The judge’s decision is expected to be announced Tuesday morning. U.K. military shows off missiles to protect OlympicsLondon 2012: Complete Summer Olympics coverage More in London 2012: Summer Olympics Their lawyer, Marc Willers, told the High Court that the residents had “a fully justified fear that installation or deployment of the missile system on the roof of the Fred Wigg Tower gives rise to the additional risk that the tower itself may become the focus of a terrorist attack.” They claim the missiles breach their rights under the European Convention on Human Rights, which protects an individual’s “right to private life and peaceful enjoyment of their home.” Missiles also will be stationed at another apartment building, at a reservoir and farmland in east London and along hillsides in south London. Defense Secretary Philip Hammond has said the missiles — capable of shooting...