French gay couples get right to marry and adopt children

Gay couples in France will be allowed to get married and to adopt children as of 2013, Prime Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault has announced in parliament.

The announcement was part of a keynote speech outlining the new Socialist government's five-year plan.

It confirms an election pledge made by President Francois Hollande.

A number of European nations including Germany, Sweden and Britain already allow gay adoption.

At present only married couples - not civil union partners - can adopt in France.

"In the first half of 2013, the right to marriage and adoption will be open to all couples, without discrimination," Mr Ayrault told parliament.

"Our society is evolving, lifestyles and mentalities are changing. The government will respond to that."

He announced the news during a keynote speech outlining the government's budget and political agenda.

BBC

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Berlin Hospital Suspends Circumcisions

Berlin’s Jewish Hospital has suspended circumcisions in the wake of a court ruling that the procedure is a crime punishable by law.

Approximately 100 religious circumcisions were performed at the hospital last year, in addition to another 200 that were performed for medical reasons.

The court ruling set off an uproar inthe Jewish community, where the Jewish law requiring circumcision of boys dates back the forefather Avraham and is considered one of the most sacred Jewish customs.

German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle said on Twitter Friday, "The ruling on circumcision has provoked annoyance internationally. We have to be clear: religious traditions are protected in Germany.”

Westerwelle is a member of the FDP party, a member of the government coalition and which said it will support a law to make sure that circumcision will continue to be legal.

The European Jewish Press, quoting AFP, said that Jewish Hospital Dr. Kristof Graf stated, “We are suspending circumcisions until the legal position is clear."

“We regularly performed circumcisions before this ruling, but we don't have the legal freedom to do so any more.”

The ruling against circumcision was handed down by a Cologne court, which ruled it causes bodily harm. The case involved a doctor who circumcised a four-year-old boy whose parents later took him to a hospital because of excessive bleeding.

Circumcision is widely observed by Muslims, whose clerics have been joined by some Christians to fight the anti-circumcision ruling.

A senior Muslim cleric said that the Central Council of Muslims in Germany may appeal the ruling to the country’s highest court.

Central Council of Jews in Germany director Dieter Graumann told Focus magazine on Saturday, "Circumcision is absolutely fundamental for the Jewish faith and non-negotiable.”


Israel National News

Iran reports long-range missile launch in exercise

TEHRAN, IRAN (AP) — Iran's powerful Revolutionary Guards test fired several ballistic missiles on Tuesday, including a long-range variety meant to dissuade Israel and the U.S. from attacking theIslamic Republic, local media reported.

The Guards' acting commander told state TV that the tests, aimed at mock enemy bases in a war game exercise, were a response to Israel's and Washington's refusal to rule out military strikes to stop Iran'snuclear program.

"It is a response to the political impoliteness of those who talk about all options being on the table," Gen. Hossein Salami said.

The official IRNA news agency said the surface-to-surface missiles successfully hit their targets, while semi-official Fars said the salvos included the so-called Shahab-3 missile. It quoted a leading officer as saying the missiles travelled distances of up to 1,300 kilometers, or 800 miles.

Iran has tested a variety of missiles in previous war games, including a Shahab-3 variant with a range of 2,000 kilometers that can reach Israel and southern Europe. The launched missiles are also capable of hitting U.S. bases in the region.

Iranian state TV showed footage of several missiles being launched.

"So far, we have launched missiles from 300 to 1,300 kilometers in the maneuver," said Gen. Amir Ali Hajizadeh, who heads the Guards' aerospace division. He hinted that some missiles had an even longer range.

Israel is about 1,000 kilometers away from Iran's western borders, while the U.S. Navy's Fifth Fleet is based in Bahrain, some 200 kilometers from Iranian shores in the Persian Gulf.

The Iranian commander quoted by Fars said Iran used both unmanned and manned bombers in the war games, and was firing a variety of other missiles. Tehran says the drills aim to assess the accuracy and effectiveness of its warheads and weapons systems.

On Sunday, a European Union oil embargo meant to pressure Iran over its nuclear program came into effect.

The West suspects the Islamic Republic wants to build nuclear weapons, and Israel has hinted at an attack if diplomatic efforts and sanctions fail to eliminate what it sees as a direct threat.

Iran insists its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes, such as power generation and cancer treatment.

Yahoo News

Assad Wishes Downed Jet Were Israeli

Syrian President Bashar Assad is sorry that his forces downed a Turkish plane but added, "I might have been happy if this had been an Israeli plane.”

His comment was made in aninterview with the Turkish newspaperCumhuriyet Tuesday. After two weeksof silence, Assad said that the June 22 incident was a result of a mistake.

"We learned that it (the plane) belonged to Turkey after shooting it down. I say 100 percent 'if only we had not shot it down,’” he added.

"The plane was using a corridor which Israeli planes have used three times before. Soldiers shot it down because we did not see it on our radar and because information was not given,” Assad claimed.

The downing of the aircraft sparked outrage in Turkey, which until recently had allied itself closely with Assad. Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan ordered tanks to be deployed along with border with Syria. On Monday, Turkish planes scrambled near the border in the north.

Syria said at the time that it brought down the plane in self-defense and that it was downed in Syrian territory. Turkey said the jet accidently entered Syrian air space but was brought down in international air space.


Israel National News