Chareidio Global Jewish News

Statistics on poverty in Jerusalem-

According to data published by Israel's Central Bureau of Statistics, over half of the children being raised in Jerusalem live under the poverty line.  66 percent of the city's residents are Jewish, and 30 percent of those, are Haredi.  

Israel's university lecturers return to work-

In an agreement drafted by the Histadrut Labor Federation, striking university professors will finally return to work, bringing to an end the longest closure of the universities in the history of the State of Israel.  Classes have been out for three months.  The current labor accord is valid through the end of 2009.   

IDF airstrikes kill 2 Hamas militants-

Two Hamas militants are dead following IDF airstrikes in Gaza this weekend.  The attacks were in retaliation for the launch of some 40 Qasaam rockets and several mortars into southern Israel on Friday, one landing near a kindergarten in Sderot.

Senior terrorist killed in Nablus-

A senior member of al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades was killed while trying to escape arrest by IDF troops operating in the Balata refugee camp in Nablus.  PA President Mahmoud Abbas has threatened to resign if the raids don't stop.

Authorities in Pakistan make arrest in Bhutto assassination-

Authorities in Pakistan say they've arrested a 15 year old boy suspected of involvement in the assassination of former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto.  The kid, from Pakistan's North West Frontier province reportedly told investigators he was part of a five-man cell dispatched by  Baitullah Mehsud, an Islamist militant leader with strong ties to al-Qaeda and the Taleban.  Apparently the cell had been planning additional attacks as well, including bombing Shiites during the Islamic ceremonies of Ashura that began this week.

Rocket slams into Shiites at gathering in Iraq-

A Katyusha rocket slammed into a Shiite religious gathering this weekend in northern Iraq, killing at least 7 and injuring several others.  Gun fights, roadside bombs, and other various acts of violence ended in at least 75 people being killed during the first of the four days that Muslims mourn the martyrdom of Muhammad's grandson, Husayn ibn Ali at the Battle of Karbala.  

US Court orders $6 billion dollar compensation from Libya-

A US court has ordered the Libyan government and six members of it's intelligence infrastructure to compensate to the tune of $6 billion dollars, victims of UTA 772, a French passenger aircraft that was bombed some 35,000 feet over the Sahara desert in Niger back in 1989.  Libya accepted responsibility for the downed aircraft in 2003 though without admitting complicity.   There were 170 people on board that flight.

Spanish authorities foil Islamist terror plot-

Spanish authorities nabbed at least 14 Islamists, part of a home-grown terror network suspected of planning to perpetrate attacks in or around Barcelona imminently.  Authorities also seized bomb-related material and several computers during the raids.

British Airways plane falls short of runway-

A British Airways Boeing 777 jet arriving in London from Beijing crash landed on the green just short of the runway at London's Heathrow Airport.  Of 152 passengers, eight were wounded.  According to a report issued by the Air Accidents Investigation Branch, the crew could not get a response from the plane's two engines, when they needed increased thrust to make the runway.  The exact cause of the breakdown is still being investigated.

Galeras volcano erupts-

The Galeras volcano in southwestern Colombia erupted Thursday night, prompting the evacuation of about 8000 people.  There were no reports of injuries.

Former US Congressman indicted for money laundering, helping Taleban-

Former Republican congressman Mark Deli Siljander was indicted Wednesday on charges of money laundering, conspiracy and obstructing justice in the case of an American Islamic organization caught raising money for al-Qaeda and the Taleban.  Siljander is accused of receiving money in exchange for lobbying Senators on the group's behalf.  Having received evangelical religious training under Jerry Falwell, in recent years Siljander worked on developing common ground between Christianity and Islam.  Apparently, he was successful.

Leaders of an Orthodox Jewish group arrested on charges of tax fraud-

Leaders of an ultra-Orthodox Jewish group were arrested in the US on charges of grand tax fraud, in a rebate scheme that kicked back charitable contributions to donors using laundered funds.  According to the indictment, certain donors took sizable tax deductions on contributions they made to the 501(c) tax-qualified American charity, while the funds apparently made their way around the world, eventually returning to the original contributor, at least in part.  That's according to the prosecution.  The story, which actually broke late December in New York, got nationwide publicity last week  when it was further disseminated in the secular Jewish press.  A statement issued by the Orthodox Rabbinical Council of one of the Jewish communities affected by the news, reads "The Orthodox community deplores any attempt to defraud the government of the United States, and there's no excuse for it, and there's no rationalizations that are acceptable.  The community should look deeply inside itself to examine it's values, it's commitment to truth, and it's understanding of what G-d really wants us to be and how He wants us to act."  According to American law, the defendants are presumed innocent unless proven guilty.

Study shows drug companies don't always share all the facts-

Analysts reporting in the New England Journal of Medicine say that pharmaceutical companies show bias in the studies they publish in order to win government approval.  Eli Lilly, makers of the antidepressant drug Prozac for example, neglected to report  lackluster studies, skewing composite results that would otherwise have shown performance levels only marginally better than placebo, instead of enhancing the results up to 40 percent by limiting the data.  According to the study, most of the positive outcomes, as much as 94 percent, found their way to publication, compared with only about 14 percent of tests that showed disappointing or uncertain results.

Prozac revolution goes to the dogs-

Eli Lilly, the company that manufacturers Prozac, introduced a new version of the drug, for dogs.  Called by the name 'Reconcile', the one-a-day beef flavored tablet treats canine separation anxiety when the owner goes off to work.  According to the company, Reconcile is "part of a daily treatment plan to help manage separation and restore a happy, healthy relationship between owners and their pets."  Adverse side effects though, can include lethargy, vomiting, diarrhea, excessive vocalization, aggression, and occasional seizures.  According to the healthcare giant, separation anxiety affects 17 percent of dogs in the United States, though veterinarians estimate that nearly 60 percent of cases go undiagnosed.  Reconcile joins the burgeoning repertoire of pet pharmacology, which includes drugs such as 'Slentrol' for dog weight loss, and Novartis' Clomicalm,  a competing elixir for dog anxiety approved by the FDA in 1999.

Scientists create 'darkest man made material ever-

Scientists reporting in the journal Nano Letters say they've created the 'darkest man-made material' ever.  Using rolled up sheets of carbon graphite, researchers found that the nano-tubes almost completely absorb all colors of light, reflecting none.  Practical applications for the new technology include highly efficient solar panels, windows that automatically clean themselves using UV rays from the sun, and motorized vehicle fuel cells with vastly enhanced capacity. A single-walled carbon nano-tube (SWNT),has a thickness of just one atom.