A year after being literally wiped out, a Russian hockey team flourishes

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Wooden hockey sticks smack into rubber pucks as the metal blades of skates slice through the ice. The sounds echo through an empty arena in the Czech capital Prague in late November as a visiting hockey team prepares for another game in the Kontinental Hockey League.
But this is no ordinary squad. This is Lokomotiv Yaroslavl, a Russian team that was literally wiped out last year in an air tragedy that shocked the hockey world.
On Sept. 7, 2011, the team was set to fly to Minsk to play their first game of the new season amid high hopes of adding to its league titles from the 1990s. But the team’s plane, a Yak-42, never gained proper altitude and slammed into a tower. It went down in flames about a mile from Tunoshna Airport in Yaroslavl, Russia.
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Forty-five people on board died, among them some of the greats of the game, including Slovakia’s Pavol Demitra; Ruslan Salei, a hero back home in Belarus; and three Czech players with world championship medals. Only the flight engineer survived.
A government investigation found one of the pilots had literally stepped on the brakes, dragging the plane down when it should have been going up. It later emerged the pilot and co-pilot were not properly trained to fly the Yak-42, and had forged documents to prove otherwise.
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The crash provoked much soul-searching in Russia with then-President Dmitry Medvedev calling for an urgent upgrade of the country’s passenger jets.
More immediately for Lokomotiv, it left the club without its senior players or coaches. Of the entire senior roster, only one coach and one player, both of whom had stayed behind, were left.
REBUILDING
But now, just a year on, Lokomotiv is not only playing, but winning as well, sitting near the top of the Western Conference of the mostly Russian Kontinental Hockey League.
Tim Rowe, their American coach, credits Lokomotiv President Yuri Yakovlev with assembling a squad from scratch that can compete in the KHL, considered by hockey cognoscenti to be the world’s top league currently playing, as the NHL remains mired in a labor dispute between owners and players.
After the crash, Mr. Yakovlev rejected a KHL offer to craft a replacement team assembled with players from other KHL teams, along with some of Lokomotiv’s junior players. Instead, the junior team played last year in Russia’s Major Hockey League – the country’s top minor league, all with the hope of returning to the top flight this season.
And return they did, bouncing back even stronger than management had hoped.
“I knew we would have a good team; Mr. Yakovlev has been active signing good players. But even I’m surprised how quickly this team has gelled,” explains Mr. Rowe.
'A SEASON DEDICATED TO THOSE GUYS'
Rowe cites a form of divine intervention for the team’s success. "I'm not being strange when I say this, I think we're getting some help from up above in the type of season we're having."
They're definitely looking out over us, and it's a good feeling," he says. "There's a calmness over this team every night that I haven't been around too often, and it's an awful lot of fun to be a part of it.”
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Rowe was particularly impacted by the tragedy, being a friend of Brad McCrimmon, the team's Canadian coach who died in the crash. Mr. McCrimmon was set to start his first season with the team.
Russian Viktor Kozlov was playing for another team, Salavat Yulaev, last year when league commissioner Alexander Medvedev interrupted its first game to announce to disbelieving fans and players alike what had happened just a bit earlier in the day in Yaroslavl.
“I was shocked by the news. We all were. We couldn’t believe it,” says Mr. Kozlov, who plied his skills for years in the NHL.
Now, a year later, Kozlov is with Lokomotiv. Kozlov says he joined the team, partly for the chance to be part of the team’s rebirth. He says although life goes on, the former team must not be forgotten.
He points to a charity match played earlier in the year in Zlin, in the Czech Republic. That was the hometown of Karel Rachunek, one of three Czech players to die in the crash. "Yeah, of course, we remember the guys, like Karel Rachunek, with the game with Zlin."
Canadian Mark Flood says the constant reminders – including the ringing of a bell before each home game to honor the fallen players – are all part of what motivates the team.
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Iraq Sunnis block trade routes in protest against PM Maliki

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Tens of thousands of Sunni Muslims blocked Iraq's main trade route to neighboring Syria and Jordan in a fourth day of demonstrations on Wednesday against Shi'ite Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki.
The massive show of force marks an escalation in protests that erupted last week after troops detained the bodyguards of Sunni Finance Minister Rafaie Esawi, threatening to plunge Iraq deeper into political turmoil.
"The people want to bring down the regime," chanted thousands of protesters in the Sunni stronghold of Anbar, echoing the slogan used in popular revolts that ended in the toppling of the leaders of Tunisia, Egypt, Libya and Yemen.
Waving the old flag of Iraq that was changed after Sunni dictator Saddam Hussein was overthrown by the U.S.-led invasion of 2003, protesters sat in the road, choking off the main trade route between Iraq, Jordan and Syria.
Another smaller protest was held in the city of Samarra in the predominantly Sunni province of Salahuddin, next to Anbar.
The move against Esawi's guards came hours after President Jalal Talabani, a Kurd who has mediated among Sunni, Shi'ite and Kurdish factions, left for Germany for treatment for a stroke that could end his steadying influence over Iraqi politics.
The arrest was reminiscent of Maliki's move to arrest Sunni Vice President Tareq al-Hashemi, who he accused of running death squads, just as U.S. troops withdrew in December 2011.
Iraq's fragile power-sharing government has since lurched from crisis to crisis and the conflict in Syria risks reigniting sectarian tensions that brought the country to the brink of all-out civil war in 2005-2007.
Addressing the protesters, Esawi said the detention of his guards was politically motivated and that Maliki was deliberately provoking strife.
"It is enough! The country should not be run by such a mentality," he said, to cries of "God is greatest".
Maliki has sought to play his rivals off against one another to strengthen his alliances in Iraq's complex political landscape before provincial elections next year and a parliamentary vote in 2014.
Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr, another rival of Maliki, offered his support to the protests in a statement, rejecting what he described as Maliki's sectarian policies.
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Syrian moderates fear being edged out of uprising

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Abdul Rahman, a quiet, even-tempered man, leads a collection of moderate Free Syrian Army battalions in Aleppo. He says groups like his are becoming harder to find as the 21-month uprising drags on and more groups lean either secular or Islamist extremist.
At a time when opposition fighters live and die by their ability to get equipment, Mr. Rahman says it’s become more difficult for those in the middle ideologically to get supplies, with most donors choosing to support hardened secularists or Islamists.
Recently, Rahman had to break with some of the battalions he formerly commanded, in part because some were involved in criminal activity and there were disagreements among leaders, but also because of shortages of equipment.
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“The moderates are the majority of people here in Syria, but now they are decreasing without any support,” he says. “If it continues like it is now, extremist groups will have a lot of influence after the Assad government falls.”
'PEOPLE ARE DESPERATE'
Abu Karam, the leader of the opposition’s Abu Bakar al Sadeq battalion, says that a number of well-funded, hardline groups are using their resources to enlarge their base of support. “People are desperate and they will take assistance from whoever is giving it,” he says.
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Many Syrians are worried about what Rahman and other moderates describe as an increasingly polarized political landscape among the Syrian opposition. Hardline groups exist among both the Islamists and secularists, but many Syrians say that conservative Islamist groups are gaining the most ground inside Syria right now. Throughout Aleppo, a number of civilians are also calling for a post-Assad government to be based on sharia, or Islamic law.
Despite moderates' fears, many Syrians, regardless of their affiliations and beliefs, say the trend toward conservative Islam is largely a response to decades of secular rule under the Assad regime and does not necessarily indicate the desire for an ultra-conservative regime in Syria.
“Wherever the extremists go, they try to impose themselves on the population. This is a civilian revolution, and it contains all the elements of our society,” says Abu Karam, the battalion leader.
CONFLICTED FEELINGS
Among the groups that have caused the greatest concern is Jabhat al-Nusra, a conservative Islamist group now fighting among the Syrian opposition. Last week, the US State Department classified the group as a terrorist organization, saying it had ties to Al Qaeda in Iraq, which was a major force within the anti-US Sunni insurgency.
Many Syrians do not agree with the classification of Jabhat al-Nusra as a terrorist organization and harbor conflicted feelings about the group. Its fighters, many of whom are foreign, have experience fighting in Iraq and Libya, among other places, and provide expertise to less experienced fighters. The group is also well equipped. Both aspects make the militant organization critical to the opposition’s ability to effectively challenge the army of President Bashar al-Assad.
Ideologically though, the group represents a marked departure from Syria’s longstanding moderate tradition. Opposition fighter Abu Osama started fighting with Jabhat al-Nusra before the group had fully formed, but decided to leave when they asked him to pledge a loyalty oath that could require him to fight for Jabhat al-Nusra in other countries when the war ended. He’d also grown concerned about some of the group's ultra-conservative practices.
“They’re always accusing people of being infidels,” he says. “They consider [Egyptian President and Muslim Brotherhood member Mohamed] Morsi to be an infidel because he’s not applying the sharia law in Egypt.”
AFTER ASSAD?
A number of opposition fighters now say that they fear an eventual battle with the group if and when Assad is no longer in power. Among those moderates who doubt such an extreme scenario, they still say they worry about the influence such a group could have on a new government in Syria.
“Jabhat al-Nusra is not going to accept someone saying, ‘Thanks for your help, now please go.’” says Abu Mohammad, commander of the opposition’s Dar al Wafa Battalion and a member of the Syrian Muslim Brotherhood. “We’re really betting on the awareness of the young people” to know better than to support Jabhat al-Nusra’s political agenda.
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Berlusconi allies fire barbs at Monti, ending Christmas truce

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 Italian politicians resumed their bickering on Wednesday, with supporters of former Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi taking aim at his successor Mario Monti despite a Christmas call from the Pope for political peace.
Just before midnight at the end of Christmas Day, Monti tweeted: "Together, we saved Italy from disaster. Now we have to renew politics. Complaining won't help anything. Rolling up sleeves will. Let's rise to politics!"
That irked center-right supporters of Berlusconi, who resigned last year to let Monti take over and is now scrapping with center-left and pro-Monti centrist blocs ahead of elections due February 24-25.
"Monti did not save Italy, he merely reaped the merits of four year of work by Berlusconi", said Gianfranco Rotondi, a parliamentarian from Berlusconi's People of Freedom (PDL) party.
Anna Maria Bernini, also of the PDL, accused Monti of spouting "pure propaganda", adding: "It is shocking to see how a man can present himself as a savior after bringing the country to recession, taking all the merit (for successes) and attributing all the disasters to others."
The mud-slinging took place less than a day after Pope Benedict urged Italian politicians in a Christmas address to "favor the spirit of cooperation for the common good".
Monti resigned last week as promised after the budget was passed, and is staying on in a caretaker capacity until the formation of a new government after the elections. Although his exact plans for after the elections are not entirely clear, he is expected to remain influential.
Berlusconi has said it would be "immoral" for Monti to fight the election after governing as an unelected premier with the support of the main parties.
But not all of the center right opposes the prime minister. Italia Libera (A Free Italy), a group of 11 parliamentarians who have defected from Berlusconi's PDL, praised Monti's economic reform plans as "a Copernican revolution for those who are used to something that is as erosive and unproductive as the duel between forces for or against Berlusconi".
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Mental illness, poverty haunted Afghan policewoman who killed American

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The Afghan policewoman suspected of killing a U.S. contractor at police headquarters in Kabul suffered from mental illness and was driven to suicidal despair by poverty, her children told Reuters on Wednesday.
The woman was identified by authorities as Narges Rezaeimomenabad, a 40-year-old grandmother and mother of three who moved here from Iran 10 years ago and married an Afghan man.
On Monday morning, she loaded a pistol in a bathroom at the police compound, hid it in her long scarf and shot an American police trainer, apparently becoming the first Afghan woman to carry out such an attack.
Narges also tried to shoot police officials after killing the American. Luckily for them, her pistol jammed. Her husband is also under investigation.
Her son Sayed, 16, and daughter Fatima, 13, described how they tried to call their parents 100 times after news broke of the shooting, then waited in vain for them to come home.
They recalled Narges's severe mood swings, and how at times she beat them and even pulled out a knife. But the children said she was consistent in bemoaning poverty.
"She was usually complaining about poverty. She was complaining to my father about our conditions. She was saying that my father was poor," Sayid said in an interview in their damp, cold two-room cement house.
On the floor beside him were his mother's prescriptions and a thick plastic bag filled with pills she tried to swallow to end the misery about a month ago. On another occasion, she cut her wrist with a razor, Sayed said.
"My father was usually calm and sometimes would say that she was guilty too because it wasn't a forced marriage. They fell in love and got married."
There was no sign in their neighborhood of the billions of dollars of Western aid that have poured into Afghanistan since the ouster of the Taliban in 2001, or of government investment.
RAW SEWAGE, STAGNANT WATER, DIRT ROADS
The lane outside their home stank of raw sewage.
Dirty, stagnant water filled holes in dirt roads nearby, where children in tattered clothes played and butchers stood by cow's hooves in shops choked by dust.
Afghanistan is one of the world's poorest nations, with a third of its 30 million residents living under the poverty line.
The sole distractions from the daily grind appeared to be a deck of playing cards and a compact disc with songs from Iranian pop singers, scattered on the floor of a room where Narges would lock herself in and weep, or sit in silence.
At times, Narges would try to focus on building her children's confidence, telling them to be guided by the Muslim holy book, the Koran, to tackle life's problems.
Sayed and Fatima said she never spoke badly of the U.S. presence in Afghanistan or of President Hamid Karzai's government.
Neighbor Mohammad Ismail Kohistani was dumbfounded to hear on the radio that Afghan officials were combing Narges' phone records to try to determine whether al Qaeda or the Taliban could have brainwashed her into carrying out a mission.
But he was acutely aware of her mental problems and often heard her scream at her husband, whose low-level job in the crime investigation unit of the police brought home little cash.
Kohistani, who operates a small sewing shop with battered machines, never imagined his neighbor could be accused of a high-profile attack that raised new questions about the direction of an unpopular war.
"I became very depressed and sad," said Kohistani, sitting on the floor few feet from a tiny wood-burning stove in Narges's home, alongside family photographs and a police training manual.
Fatima would often seek refuge in Kohistani's house when her mother's behavior became unbearable. "She did not hate us, but usually she was angry and would not talk to us," said Fatima, her eyes moist with tears.
Nevertheless, she missed her mother. The children were staying with a cousin.
"I ask the government to free my mother, otherwise our future will be destroyed," said Fatima.
Officials described it as another "insider shooting", in which Afghan forces turn on Westerners they are meant to be working with to stabilize the country. There have been over 52 such attacks so far this year.
The shooting at the police headquarters may have alarmed Afghanistan's Western allies. But some Afghans have grown numb to the violence.
Kohistani's 70-year-old father Omara Khan, who sports a white beard, sat twirling prayer beads beneath a photograph of Narges in a black veil beside one of her husband.
Asked what he thought of the attack, he laughed.
"This is common in Afghanistan," said Khan, who lived through decades of upheaval, including the 10-year Soviet occupation and a civil war that destroyed half of Kabul and killed some 50,000 civilians.
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UPDATE 2-Soccer-Turkish championship results and standings

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Dec 23 (Infostrada Sports) - Results and standings from the Turkish championship matches on Sunday
Sunday, December 23
Antalyaspor 2 Eskisehirspor 1
Bursaspor 0 Genclerbirligi 0
Gaziantepspor 2 Mersin Idmanyurdu 1
Sivasspor 3 Elazigspor 1
Trabzonspor 0 Galatasaray 0
Saturday, December 22
Fenerbahce 1 Karabukspor 3
Kasimpasa 0 Buyuksehir Bld. Spor 2
Friday, December 21
Akhisar Belediyespor 0 Orduspor 0
Besiktas 3 Kayserispor 1
Standings P W D L F A Pts
1 Galatasaray 17 9 6 2 34 20 33
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2 Besiktas 17 8 6 3 38 25 30
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3 Antalyaspor 16 9 3 4 28 21 30
4 Fenerbahce 17 7 6 4 25 19 27
5 Eskisehirspor 17 6 6 5 32 23 24
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6 Bursaspor 17 5 9 3 26 20 24
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7 Trabzonspor 17 6 6 5 19 15 24
8 Karabukspor 17 7 3 7 23 26 24
9 Kasimpasa 17 6 5 6 24 20 23
10 Sivasspor 17 6 4 7 21 24 22
11 Genclerbirligi 17 4 9 4 25 26 21
12 Buyuksehir Bld. Spor 17 6 3 8 19 20 21
13 Orduspor 17 4 8 5 19 19 20
14 Gaziantepspor 17 5 5 7 16 24 20
15 Kayserispor 17 5 4 8 22 29 19
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16 Elazigspor 17 3 7 7 11 27 16
17 Mersin Idmanyurdu 17 3 6 8 18 27 15
18 Akhisar Belediyespor 16 2 6 8 11 26 12
1: Champions League / EC I
2: Champions League preliminary round
3-5: Europa League
6: Europa League depending on domestic cup
16-18: Relegation
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Hillsborough disaster tribute tops UK Christmas chart

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A tribute song to the victims of the 1989 Hillsborough football stadium disaster has taken the number one spot on Britain's Christmas pop chart.
"He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother", a version of the ballad that was a worldwide hit for The Hollies, went to the top of the chart in its first week of release.
Money raised by the single will go to the families of the 96 Liverpool soccer fans killed in Britain's worst sporting disaster in Sheffield, northern England.
The song features performances by artists including Paul McCartney, Robbie Williams, the Clash's Mick Jones and Peter Hooton of The Farm. They came together under the name The Justice Collective.
The Official Charts Company, which compiles the weekly rundown, said on Sunday that the song beat a strong challenge from James Arthur, a newcomer who won this year's "The X-Factor", a music talent show. His single "Impossible" was last week's number one.
Relatives of those killed at Hillsborough have campaigned for 23 years to overturn official accounts of what caused the deaths. Police had blamed rowdy, drunken fans for contributing to the crush. Many of the victims were children and teenagers.
A government-backed inquiry concluded in September that police had smeared supporters to cover up their failings, helped by inaccurate media coverage.
Britain's High Court quashed the original "accidental death" inquest verdicts on December 19 and ordered a new investigation. The government also set up a new police inquiry.
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Soccer-Dutch striker Huntelaar extends Schalke contract to 2015

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BERLIN, Dec 23 (Reuters) - Schalke 04's prolific Netherlands striker Klaas-Jan Huntelaar has extended his contract by two years until 2015, the Bundesliga club said on Sunday.
"I've thought about this decision long and hard and I'm very grateful that the club officials allowed me the time to do so. But now I've made the choice I'm most comfortable with," Huntelaar, 29, said on the club website (www.schalke04.com).
"I've always felt at home at Schalke, with the club and the fans, and I want to send out a positive signal now because I believe in our team and I believe we can still achieve a great deal in the second half of the Bundesliga season.
"And we aren't without a chance against Galatasaray in the last 16 of the Champions League, of course," he added.
The news will be a boost for Schalke manager Jens Keller, who was promoted from youth team coach a week ago to replace the sacked Huub Stevens until the end of the season.
Schalke, who topped their Champions League group, have been struggling domestically with four defeats and no wins in their last six Bundesliga games leaving them in seventh place, trailing 17 points behind leaders Bayern Munich.
They travel to Turkey for the first leg of their Champions League first knockout round clash against Galatasaray on Feb. 20 with the return at their Gelsenkirchen stadium on March 12.
Huntelaar, who joined Schalke from AC Milan in August 2010, was the Bundesliga top scorer with 29 goals last season and has scored 11 times in all competitions so far this term.
He also broke Hermann Eppenhoff's club record, set in 1941, for the most goals in a season with 48 in all competitions in the last campaign.
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UPDATE 3-Soccer-Chelsea hit Villa for eight, leaders United held

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* Chelsea beat Aston Villa 8-0 at Stamford Bridge
* Manchester United held to 1-1 draw at Swansea (Adds quotes)
LONDON, Dec 23 (Reuters) - Chelsea, playing with a swagger missing for much of the season, routed Aston Villa 8-0 on Sunday as Premier League leaders Manchester United wasted the chance to move six points clear after a 1-1 draw at Swansea City.
Chelsea striker Fernando Torres began the goal glut after three minutes at Stamford Bridge and David Luiz and Branislav Ivanovic made it 3-0 at the break.
Frank Lampard marked his 500th Premier League game and first league start since October with a rasping fourth before Ramires (two), Oscar and Eden Hazard joined the fun as Chelsea, who also missed a penalty, secured a first home league win under interim manager Rafael Benitez to move up to third.
United, who led at Swansea through Patrice Evra before being pegged back by league top scorer Michu's 13th goal this season, hold a four-point advantage over Manchester City, who beat Reading 1-0 on Saturday, heading into a busy holiday programme.
They have 43 points from 18 games, followed by City on 39 and Chelsea, with a game in hand, on 32.
"As a team we had the balance we are looking for," Benitez, whose arrival to replace the sacked Roberto Di Matteo last month was opposed by many Chelsea fans, told Sky Sports.
Chelsea have produced a mixed-bag so far under the Spaniard, with a haul of eight points in his five league games in charge.
England midfielder Lampard, the subject of continued media speculation that he will be allowed to leave at the end of the season when his contract expires, said Chelsea were enjoying playing again.
"I think we showed a great appetite. The early goal helped," said the 34-year-old, who became Chelsea's record top-flight league scorer with 130 goals.
The Villa rout took Chelsea's goal tally to 13 in two games after they thrashed Championship (second division) side Leeds United 5-1 to reach the League Cup semi-finals in midweek.
Sunday's victory matched Chelsea's 8-0 demolition of Wigan Athletic at home in 2010. The record Premier League winning margin is Manchester United's 9-0 defeat of Ipswich Town in 1995.
FERGUSON INCENSED
United manager Alex Ferguson was hardly in festive mood after their Wales trip, ruing two points that got away, saying striker Robin van Persie "could have been killed" by Swansea captain Ashley Williams and criticising referee Michael Oliver.
"We absolutely battered them and we are very unlucky," Ferguson said. "It should have been a six-point gap (over Manchester City) today and that is the disappointment."
Ferguson was incensed when a prone Van Persie was struck in the head from point-blank range by a clearance from Williams with the whistle having been blown for a foul on the Dutchman.
The Scot said it was a "deliberate act" and called for Williams, booked along with Van Persie, who escaped injury, in the melee that followed, to receive a long ban.
"Robin van Persie is lucky to be alive. It was a disgraceful act from their player today and he should be banned by the FA. Robin could have had a broken neck," said a seething Ferguson.
United, welcoming back Serbia defender Nemanja Vidic for his first start since September, went ahead when France international Evra met Van Persie's corner with a glancing header.
Swansea levelled when Wayne Routledge played in Jonathan de Guzman and when David de Gea failed to hold his well-struck low shot, Michu was on hand to follow up.
United had the better of the second-half with Van Persie's mishit volley striking the crossbar before keeper Michel Vorm came to Swansea's rescue when he tipped Carrick's glancing header on to the woodwork.
Villa manager Paul Lambert said his side's capitulation at Chelsea was a "wake-up call" with the Midlands team languishing in 16th place, three points above the drop zone.
"We were second best all over the pitch, I am not going to stand here and make excuses," said the Scot. "We were beaten up pretty badly. The lads know that was not acceptable.
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UPDATE 1-Soccer-Belgian championship results and standings

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Dec 23 (Infostrada Sports) - Results and standings from the Belgian championship matches on Sunday
Sunday, December 23
Racing Genk 2 Anderlecht 4
Standard Liege 1 Club Bruges 3
Saturday, December 22
Ghent 1 Charleroi 2
Beerschot 0 Mechelen 2
Cercle Bruges 2 Waasland-Beveren 2
Mons-Bergen 1 Zulte Waregem 1
OH Leuven 2 Lierse 2
Friday, December 21
Kortrijk 2 Lokeren 3
Standings P W D L F A Pts
1 Anderlecht 21 15 4 2 53 19 49
2 Zulte Waregem 21 12 5 4 34 22 41
3 Club Bruges 21 11 5 5 51 34 38
4 Lokeren 21 11 4 6 38 30 37
5 Standard Liege 21 11 2 8 42 28 35
6 Racing Genk 21 9 8 4 42 32 35
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7 Kortrijk 21 8 4 9 24 23 28
8 Mons-Bergen 21 8 4 9 35 41 28
9 OH Leuven 21 6 10 5 38 32 28
10 Mechelen 21 7 5 9 30 31 26
11 Charleroi 21 7 3 11 21 38 24
12 Ghent 21 5 7 9 24 33 22
13 Waasland-Beveren 21 5 6 10 21 36 21
14 Beerschot 21 5 3 13 23 42 18
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15 Lierse 21 3 9 9 22 39 18
16 Cercle Bruges 21 3 5 13 26 44 14
1-6: Championship play-off
7-14: Europa League play-off
15-16: Relegation play-off
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Thousands enjoy merry Christmas in Bethlehem

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BETHLEHEM, West Bank (AP) — Thousands of Christians from the world over packed Manger Square in Bethlehem Monday to celebrate the birth of Jesus in the ancient West Bank town where he was born.
For their Palestinian hosts, this holiday season was an especially joyous one, with the hardships of the Israeli occupation that so often clouded previous Christmas Eve celebrations eased by the United Nations' recent recognition of an independent state of Palestine.
Festivities led up to the Midnight Mass at St. Catherine's Church, next to the fourth-century Church of the Nativity, built over the grotto where tradition says Jesus was born.
"From this holy place, I invite politicians and men of good will to work with determination for peace and reconciliation that encompasses Palestine and Israel in the midst of all the suffering in the Middle East," said the top Roman Catholic cleric in the Holy Land, Latin Patriarch Fouad Twal in his annual address. "Please continue to fight for a just cause to achieve peace and security for the people of the Holy Land."
In his pre-Christmas homily, Twal said the road to actual freedom was still long, but this year's festivities were doubly joyful, celebrating "the birth of Christ our Lord and the birth of the state of Palestine."
"The path (to statehood) remains long, and will require a united effort," added Twal, a Palestinian citizen of Jordan, at the patriarchate's headquarters in Jerusalem's Old City.
Then he set off in a procession for the West Bank city of Bethlehem, Jesus' traditional birthplace. There, he was reminded that life on the ground for Palestinians has not changed since the U.N. recognized their state last month in the Israeli-occupied West Bank and east Jerusalem and the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip.
Twal had to enter the biblical town through a massive metal gate in the barrier of towering concrete slabs Israel built between Jerusalem and Bethlehem during a wave of Palestinian suicide bombings in the last decade. The Israeli military, which controls the crossing, said it significantly eased restrictions for the Christmas season.
Israel, backed by the United States, opposed the statehood bid, saying it was a Palestinian ploy to bypass negotiations. Talks stalled four years ago.
Hundreds of people greeted Twal in Manger Square, outside the Church of Nativity. The mood was festive under sunny skies, with children dressed in holiday finery or in Santa costumes, and marching bands playing in the streets.
After nightfall, a packed Manger Square, resplendent with strings of lights, decorations and a 17-meter (55-foot) Christmas tree, took on a festival atmosphere, as pilgrims mixed with locals.
A choral group from the Baptist Church in Jerusalem performed carols on one side of the square, handing out sheets of lyrics and encouraging others to sing along with songs such as "We Wish You A Merry Christmas."
Vendors sold balloons, cotton candy and corn on the cob, bands played Christmas songs and tourists packed cafes that are quiet most of the rest of the year. Pilgrims from around the world wandered the streets, singing Christmas carols and visiting churches.
Devout Christians said it was a moving experience to be so close to the origins of their faith.
"It's a special feeling to be here, it's an encounter with my soul and God," said Joanne Kurczewska, a professor at Warsaw University in Poland, who was visiting Bethlehem for a second time at Christmas.
Pastor Al Mucciarone, 61, from Short Hills, New Jersey, agreed.
"We come here to celebrate Jesus. This is a very important town. Great things come from small events. The son of God was born in this small village. We hope all will follow Jesus," he said.
Audra Kasparian, 45, from Salt Lake City, Utah, called her visit to Bethlehem "a life event to cherish forever. It is one of those events that is great to be a part of."
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas also visited Bethlehem and said "peace will prevail from the birthplace of Jesus, and we wish everyone peace and happiness," according to the official Palestinian Wafa news agency.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu issued a special Christmas greeting too, wishing Christians "a year of security, prosperity and peace."
Christmas is the high point of the year in Bethlehem, which, like the rest of the West Bank, is struggling to recover from the economic hard times that followed the violent Palestinian uprising against Israel that broke out in late 2000.
Tourists and pilgrims who were scared away by the fighting have been returning in larger numbers. Last year's Christmas Eve celebration produced the highest turnout in more than a decade, with some 100,000 visitors, including foreign workers and Arab Christians from Israel.
The Israeli Tourism Ministry predicted a 25 percent drop from that level this year, following last month's clash between Israel and Palestinian militants in Gaza, which put a chill on tourist arrivals. Foreign tourists heading to Bethlehem must pass through Israel or the Israel-controlled border crossing into the West Bank from Jordan.
Outside the town's quaint Manger Square, Bethlehem is a drab, sprawling town with a dwindling Christian base - a far cry from the pastoral village of biblical times.
About 22,000 Palestinians live in Bethlehem, according to the town council, but combined with several surrounding communities has a population of some 50,000 people.
Overall, there are only about 50,000 Christians in the West Bank, less than 3 percent of the population, the result of a lower birthrate and increased emigration. Bethlehem's Christians make up only a third of its residents, down from 75 percent a few decades ago.
Elias Joha, a 44-year-old Christian who runs a souvenir store, said even with the U.N. recognition, this year's celebrations were sad for him. He said most of his family has left, and that if he had the opportunity, he would do the same.
"These celebrations are not even for Christians because there are no Christians. It is going from bad to worse from all sides ... we are not enjoying Christmas as before."
Located on the southeastern outskirts of Jerusalem, Bethlehem has the highest unemployment in the West Bank, but the tourist boom of Christmas offered a brief reprieve. Officials say all 34 hotels in the town are fully booked for the Christmas season, including 13 new ones built this year.
Israel turned Bethlehem over to Palestinian civil control a few days before Christmas in 1995, and since then, residents have been celebrating the holiday regardless of their religion. Many Muslims took part in celebration Monday as well.
Christians across the region marked the holiday.
In Iraq, Christians gathered for services with tight security, including at Baghdad's Our Lady of Salvation church, the scene of a brutal October 2010 attack that killed more than 50 worshippers and wounded scores more.
Earlier this month, Cardinal Leonardo Sandri, who is responsible for the Vatican's outreach to the Middle East's Catholic communities, traveled to Iraq and presided over a Mass to rededicate the church following renovations. In his homily, he remembered those who were killed and expressed hope that "the tears shed in this sacred place become the good seed of communion and witness and bear much fruit," according to an account by Vatican Radio.
The exact number of Christians remaining in Iraq is not known, but it has fallen sharply from as many as 1.4 million before the U.S.-led invasion nearly a decade ago to about 400,000 to 600,000, according community leaders cited by the U.S. State Department.
In the Vatican, Pope Benedict XVI lit a Christmas peace candle set on the windowsill of his private studio.
Pilgrims, tourists and Romans gathered below in St. Peter's Square for the inauguration Monday evening of a Nativity scene and cheered when the flame was lit.
Later, the pope led Christmas Eve Mass in St. Peter's Basilica, prayed that Israelis and Palestinians live in peace and freedom, and asked the faithful to pray for strife-torn Syria as well as Lebanon and Iraq.
The ceremony began at 10 p.m. local time Monday with the blare of trumpets, meant to symbolize Christian joy over the news of Christ's birth in Bethlehem. The basilica's main bell tolled outside, and the sweet voices of the Vatican's boys' choir wafted across the packed venue.
Christmas Eve Mass at the Vatican traditionally began at midnight, but the start time was moved up years ago so as to give the 85-year-old pontiff more time to rest before his Christmas Day speech. That address is to be delivered at midday Tuesday from the basilica's central balcony.
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Jack Klugman Dies at Age 90

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Jack Klugman, one of television's most-loved actors, died today at the age of 90. He died peacefully at his home in Northridge, Calif., with his wife, Peggy, by his side, according to an announcement by his attorney.
In a career that spanned more than 60 years, Klugman epitomized the "everyman," and was best known for two popular television series of the 1970s and early 1980s: "The Odd Couple" and "Quincy, M.E."
In "The Odd Couple," about two divorced men living together -- a neat freak and a slob -- Klugman played Oscar Madison, the slob sportswriter to Tony Randall's overly fussy Felix Unger.
"The Odd Couple," which was based on Neil Simon's play of the same name, brought Klugman two Emmys, not bad for a man whose first drama teacher told him he was better suited to be a truck driver. The show ran for five years, and has lived on for decades in syndication.
PHOTOS: In Memoriam -- People We Lost in 2012
In "Quincy, M.E.," a precursor to "CSI," Klugman became just as iconic playing the relentless Los Angeles medical examiner with a talent for forensics. "We had some wonderful writers," Klugman said in a 1987 Associated Press interview. "Quincy was a muckraker, like Upton Sinclair, who wrote about injustices."
A heavy smoker, Klugman fought throat cancer, and subsequent surgery left him with a raspy voice, which was worked into later movie and TV roles, including "The Odd Couple: Together Again" in 1993 and "Dear God" in 1996.
A year after his "Odd Couple" co-star, Tony Randall, died in 2004, Klugman published "Tony and Me," and told CNN: "A world without Tony Randall is a world that I cannot recognize."
Klugman began his career in 1954 on the soap opera "The Greatest Gift." In the same year he made several appearances on the NBC legal drama "Justice," whose episodes drew from actual cases of the Legal Aid Society of New York.
His major movies included "12 Angry Men" (1957), playing juror No. 5; "Days of Wine and Roses" (1962), starring opposite Jack Lemmon; and "Goodbye Columbus" (1969), based on the novella by Philip Roth, starring Ali MacGraw and Richard Benjamin.
Born Jacob Joachim Klugman on April 22, 1922, in Philadelphia to Russian Jewish immigrants, Klugman studied acting at Carnegie Insitute of Technology (now Carnegie Mellon University). He served in the U.S. Army in World War II, and moved on to summer stock and off-Broadway, rooming with actor Charles Bronson, according to The Associated Press. He made his Broadway debut in 1952 in a revival of "Golden Boy." An early TV high point was appearing with Humphrey Bogart and Henry Fonda in a production of "The Petrified Forest." He also had roles in several "Twilight Zone" episodes.
He was married to actress-comedian Brett Somers, who played his ex-wife Blanche in "The Odd Couple," from 1953 until her death in 2007. His survivors include their two sons, Adam Klugman and David Klugman, and two grandchildren.
He married Peggy Crosby, the ex-wife of Bing Crosby's son, Phillip Crosby, in 2008.
A memorial service has not yet been scheduled.
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3 held without bond in fatal Ind. house explosion

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 Residents whose Indianapolis homes were battered by a gas explosion and relatives of a couple who were killed packed a court hearing Monday for the three suspects charged with rigging the blast.
The crowd watched in grim silence as a Marion County judge entered not guilty pleas for Monserrate Shirley, her boyfriend Mark Leonard, and his brother, Bob Leonard. They are charged with murder, arson and other counts in the Nov. 10 blast.
The three, who appeared in court in orange jail jumpsuits and handcuffs, were ordered held without bond. Prosecutors say Shirley and the Leonard brothers deliberately blew up her home so they could collect the insurance payout.
The fiery blast destroyed five homes, including Shirley's, and damaged dozens of others in the Richmond Hill subdivision in the far south side of the city. The explosion killed Shirley's next-door neighbors, John Dion Longworth, a 34-year-old electronics expert, and his 36-year-old wife, second-grade teacher Jennifer Longworth. Shirley and Mark Leonard told investigators they were at a southern Indiana casino at the time of the blast.
John Dion Longworth's aunt, Pam Mosser, a psychiatric nurse who attended the hearing on the back of a 16-hour shift, said it is important for people to know how her family suffered while the suspects apparently gave no thought for their neighbors' lives.
"Dion and Jennifer died suffering and screaming. It is unbelievable to me that someone could be gambling and drinking while their house blows up and people are dying," Mosser told reporters after the hearing.
"I cannot forgive that," she said.
Shirley, 47, was facing mounting financial woes, including $63,000 in credit card debt and bankruptcy proceedings, court documents say. And a friend of Mark Leonard's told investigators that Leonard said he had lost about $10,000 at a casino some three weeks before the explosion. The home's original loan was for $116,000 and a second mortgage was taken out on the home for $65,000, the affidavit says.
Mark Leonard told the judge he couldn't pay for an attorney because all his cash was inside Shirley's house when it blew up, leaving him with about $500 in a checking account.
"All my money, all of it, it's gone," he said. "I had money in the house and it's not there anymore."
The judge appointed public defenders for the Leonards. Those attorneys did not return phone calls seeking comment.
Randall Cable, Shirley's attorney, declined comment when reached by phone after the hearing.
Shirley and the Leonard brothers face two counts of murder as well as 33 counts of arson — one count for each of the homes damaged so badly that officials have ordered their demolition.
Shirley and Mark Leonard, 43, also face two counts of conspiracy to commit arson, while Bob Leonard, 54, faces a single count. The conspiracy charges stem from a failed explosion that prosecutors claim the trio had attempted the weekend before the successful timed blast.
Prosecutor Terry Curry has said he will consider seeking the death penalty. A trial for all three suspects was scheduled for March 4.
"I think they should die a horrible death," Mosser said. "And it's terrible to have these feelings."
Investigators believe the suspects removed a gas fireplace valve and a gas line regulator in Shirley's house that subsequently filled up with gas. They have said a microwave, apparently set to start on a timer, sparked the explosion.
Reporters were positioned in the jury box so that the small courtroom could accommodate the 30 or so members of the public who squeezed in to observe the initial hearing.
Richmond Hills resident Barry Chipman said neighbors remained fearful of loud noises more than a month after the blast. He said he was driving with his teenage daughter recently when he popped the gum he was chewing and it "made her jump." A few minutes later, he said, she did the same, startling him.
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Holiday music stops at Irving Berlin's NY door

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A caroling group that for 35 years has performed the Irving Berlin classic "White Christmas" on Christmas Eve outside the New York City home where he lived has cancelled the tradition.
A group spokesman says the plans were abruptly cancelled last week for lack of space at the Manhattan home, which now serves as the Luxembourg consulate.
The tradition started in the late 1970s with one cabaret singer outside the home. In 1983, Berlin invited the singers inside for cocoa and cookies.
Berlin died in 1989 at age 99.
Luxembourg Consul-General Jean-Claude Knebeler tells the New York Post the ballroom where the group performed is filled with office equipment because the consulate expanded. He says he hopes the tradition resumes in another year in the consulate's library.
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Ore. rescuers find lost snowshoers near Mount Hood

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 Rescue teams have found 3 snowshoers who got lost on a weekend camping trip near Mount Hood.
The trio was reported in good health, having made it through two nights under the leadership of a mountaineer.
The three set out Saturday on snowshoes and called 911 on Sunday to report they were lost. Although the cellphone connection was sketchy, they said they had food and sleeping bags, said Detective Matt English of the Hood River County sheriff's office.
There was no contact after that until searchers found them Monday.
The Oregonian (http://bit.ly/UY5kzr) identified them as Mark Kelsey, 62, a veteran mountain guide and outdoor survival instructor, Margarita Estrada, 49, and Debra Shindler, 58.
Estrada's son, Andy Ozeroff, 18, told the paper, he started contacting families of the other hikers when they didn't return Sunday afternoon as planned. The trio was celebrating Estrada's birthday.
When family members reported the party overdue, they learned the hikers had already called for help.
"We definitely would have been more concerned if the women weren't in the hands of my dad," said Alex Kelsey, 18.
Kelsey is a veteran mountaineer, associates said.
"He continues to guide and teach survival techniques," said Rocky Henderson, team leader with Portland Mountain Rescue. "He is of the utmost competence.
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Investors shed shares of Blackberry maker

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Shares of Blackberry maker Research in Motion slumped more than 16 percent Friday with future revenue coming into question and a declining number of subscribers.
RIM's stock jumped initially Thursday when the Canadian company released better-than-expected third-quarter results and a stronger cash position.
Shares reversed course during a conference call later, when executives said that the company won't generate as much revenue from telecommunications carriers once it releases the new BlackBerry 10.
RIM's stock had been on a three-month rally in which the stock more than doubled from levels not previously seen since 2003.
"Despite a solid quarter, the stock is trading down due to the introduction of a lower enterprise service tier and fears that RIM will not receive monthly services revenues for consumer BB10 subscribers," said Jefferies analyst Peter Misek. He thinks RIM has offered carriers a lower-priced option in exchange for a bigger purchase commitment for the new device. He kept his "Hold" rating.
Sterne Agee analyst Shaw Wu kept maintained a "Neutral" rating on the stock, but lowered his earnings estimates, saying he continued to be concerned about RIM's ability to compete with Apple and Google.
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RIM’s biggest problem: It’s still scrambling to catch yesterday’s hottest mobile app

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The moment I first realized that RIM (RIMM) was truly in enormous trouble was back in 2010 when I heard then co-CEO Jim Balsillie downplay the importance of apps. Yes, you read that correctly. Balsillie actually told attendees at a Web 2.0 summit in 2010 that the Internet itself was the most important “app” for mobile devices and contended that the “Web needs a platform that allows you to use your existing Web content, not apps.” My feelings on this matter were only solidified when I attended the BlackBerry World conference in May 2011 and watched RIM executives proudly announce that the Playbook tablet would soon get its own version of Angry Birds sometime in the near future. In reality, Angry Birds didn’t release for BlackBerry until late December of that year, or two full years after it was originally released for iOS.
[More from BGR: WhatsApp goes free for iPhone for a limited time]
All of which brings me back to RIM’s current state: Despite the great looking hardware and user interface pictures we’ve seen from new BlackBerry 10 smartphones so far, the company still has an app problem. I was reminded of this when I read a post over at CrackBerry titled, “There’s still a chance for WhatsApp on BlackBerry 10.” The issue here isn’t whether RIM eventually does or doesn’t get WhatsApp on its platform — the issue is that RIM always seems to be one step behind when it comes to getting the hottest apps of the day on its devices.
[More from BGR: BlackBerry 10 browser smokes iOS 6 and Windows Phone 8 in comparison test [video]]
The most absurd example of this, of course, is Instagram. Yes, it’s very likely that BlackBerry 10 will support the popular photo-sharing app right out of the gate given the company’s partnership with Instagram owner Facebook (FB). But we still have no official confirmation that Instagram will be a BlackBerry 10 app just over a month before the new platform launches, and this is symbolic of the fact that RIM is always stuck at the back of line when it comes to app developers’ priorities.
Simply put, RIM can’t possibly hope to compete with Android, iOS or even Windows Phone 8 if its users will always wonder if they’ll be able to do all the cool things with their phones that their friends can do. In the unpredictable Wild West of today’s app market, where new apps seemingly go viral overnight to become global powerhouses, platform developers need to make sure they have quick and simple ways for app developers to port over their software. And until RIM figures out a way to get this done, it still has no shot in the long term.
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Apple has achieved its highest ever smartphone share in U.S.

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According to the latest data from Kantar Worldpanel ComTech, Apple’s (AAPL) smartphone market share in the United States recently reached an all time high. In the past 12 weeks, the company is said to have captured a 53.3% share of the United States smartphone market. Apple’s increased market share comes in the wake of the iPhone 5 launch, although things aren’t quite as good for the company overseas. Google’s (GOOG) Android operating system is seeing unprecedented success in Europe and recently garnered a 61% share of the market, an increase from 51.8% a year ago.
[More from BGR: RIM’s biggest problem: It’s still scrambling to catch yesterday’s hottest mobile app]
Samsung’s (005930) success has continued over the last 12 weeks and the company captured a 44.3% share of the European smartphone market. Apple took second place with a 25.3% share while HTC (2498), Sony (SNE) and Nokia (NOK) are stuck in a battle for third place.
[More from BGR: WhatsApp goes free for iPhone for a limited time]
“Although Windows sales in the U.S. remain subdued, Nokia is managing to claw back some of its share in Great Britain through keenly priced Lumia 800 and 610 prepay deals,” Dominic Sunnebo, global consumer insight director at Kantar Worldpanel ComTech, said. “The next period will prove crucial in revealing initial consumer reactions to the Nokia 920 and HTC Windows 8X devices.”
The number of consumers who own a smartphone in Great Britain also hit a high of 60% in the latest quarter, while smartphones accounted for 83% of all mobile phone sales in the past 12 weeks.
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Nokia, RIM settle old disputes in new patent pact

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 Nokia Corp. and Canadian smartphone rival Research In Motion have agreed on a new patent licensing pact which will end all existing litigation between the two struggling companies, the Finnish firm said Friday.
The agreement includes a "one-time payment and on-going payments, all from RIM to Nokia," Nokia said, but did not disclose "confidential" terms.
Last month, Nokia sued the Blackberry maker for breach of contract in Britain, the United States and Canada over cellular patents they agreed in 2003. RIM claimed the license — which covered patents on "standards-essential" technologies for mobile devices— should also have covered patents for non-essential parts, but the Arbitration Institute of Stockholm Chamber of Commerce ruled against RIM's claims.
Major manufacturers of phones and wireless equipment are increasingly turning to patent litigation as they jockey for an edge to expand their share of the rapidly growing smartphone market.
Nokia is among leading patent holders in the wireless industry. It has already received a $565 million royalty payment from Apple Inc. to settle long-standing patent disputes and filed claims in the United States and Germany alleging that products from HTC Corp. and Viewsonic Corp. infringe a number of its patents.
The company says it has invested €45 billion ($60 billion) during the last 20 years in research and development and has one of the wireless industry's largest IPR portfolios claiming some 10,000 patent families.
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Fan-made tweak gives Apple a blueprint for better multitasking in iOS 7 [video]

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In recent years, Android has continued to get better and better with new and useful features. At the same time, iOS has become rather stagnant and in many ways has fallen behind. iOS 6 did bring new features, but its subsequent updates also introduced a slew of issues. What’s most disappointing about iOS is that it still doesn’t allow users to quickly adjust basic things such as brightness, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, etc. without having to dive into layers of menus. However, a forum member at The Verge recently mocked up a concept for a redesigned app switcher and managed to get a few developers to help out on a project to enhance iOS multitasking. The result is a jailbreak tweak that improves upon iOS’s current multitasking system in such an intelligent (and elegant) way that Apple (AAPL) should just hire the developers and incorporate it into iOS 7. See for yourself in the video below.
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Newtown shooting cranks up Canada's gun-control debate

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Though the massacre in Newtown, Conn., last week has drawn sympathy from all over the world, it has a particular resonance in Canada.
The shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School that left 26 victims dead, including 20 children, comes just a week after the 23rd anniversary of Canada's own "Montreal Massacre," which reshaped the country's gun laws. Moreover, it occurred even as Canadians recently renewed calls for stricter controls on firearms access here amid ongoing efforts by the Conservative government to ease firearms laws.
Prime Minister Stephen Harper offered his condolences to the Newtown victims' families while calling the shootings “senseless.” But critics here accuse Mr. Harper's government of practically standing alone among Western nations in rolling back gun-control protections in recent years – most noticeably by scrapping the "long-gun" registry, which logged all of the country's rifles and shotguns, in 2011.
Think you know the Second Amendment? Take our quiz.
“It has been a useful issue for the Conservative government over the last few years; the registry for a long time was a symbol of government waste,” says Blair Brown, an associate professor of history at Saint Mary’s University in Halifax and the author of “Arming and Disarming: A History of Gun Control in Canada.”
There are an estimated 8 million legally owned guns in Canada, representing about 18 percent of Canadian households. Canada's gun laws are more strict than those of the US. Canadian federal law requires that all restricted and prohibited weapons – including all handguns – be registered with the government. Canada also requires licenses to buy, own, and use firearms.
Canada's strict gun regime, including the now repealed long-gun registry, was introduced by the Liberal government in the mid-1990s, in large part prompted by the Montreal Massacre, in which, on Dec. 6, 1989, Marc Lepine shot and killed 14 women at the Montreal's École Polytechnique before killing himself.
Montreal was also the setting for another school shooting in 2006, at Dawson College, where one student was killed and 19 were wounded before the killer turned his guns on himself. And Toronto has increasingly been the setting in recent years of messy gun battles and shootings in crowded public places, often with guns that have either been smuggled in from the US or stolen from registered gun owners.
HAS GUN-LAW RELAXATION GONE TOO FAR...
Canadian gun-control advocates argue that still more restrictions are needed. They point out that the type of hunting rifle used by Lepine in Montreal is sold by Canadian Tire, an iconic Canadian chain of hardware stores – much as critics of America’s gun culture note that the Bushmaster semi-automatic rifle, used in the Sandy Hook shootings, is readily sold by chains like Wal-Mart.
And Heidi Rathjen, who witnessed the Montreal Massacre in 1989 and is now part of a group of survivors and family members of the tragedy who advocate for stricter gun controls, says that rifles, shotguns, and many assault-style weapons remain easily accessible in Canada.
To Ms. Rathjen, the Harper government has done more to erode gun laws than simply scrap the long-gun registry: “They’ve weakened provisions around licensing. While it remains true that you need a license to purchase a gun, a seller no longer has to check the validity of your permit.”
“The fact that there’s been terrible shootings and gun-related deaths has never made a difference. They’ve been very uncompromising in their position, they’ve done everything they could to please the gun lobby, and they plan to do more,” adds Rathjen.
Still, the government has shown signs that there are limits to how far it'll go. Earlier this month, on the anniversary of the Montreal Massacre, the prime minister distanced himself from several recommendations of the government-appointed Canadian Firearms Advisory Committee – a group comprised almost entirely of gun enthusiasts and advocates – when it was reported that the committee recommended eliminating all together the most restrictive “prohibited” category of firearms – which includes automatic assault rifles.
“The government has absolutely no intention of weakening that category of protection,” Harper was quoted as saying in the Toronto Star.
Another conservative recommendation that would see gun licensing go from five-years to a 10-year renewal term – which opposition critics pointed out would provide less opportunity to do background and mental health checks of registered gun owners – was later dropped. And mental health and gun ownership have gained renewed traction as details of the Sandy Hook killer come out.
... OR NOT FAR ENOUGH?
But to Canada’s gun lobby, the existing licensing and registration regime is restrictive enough. According to Blair Hagen, with Canada’s National Firearms Association, if the government recognized the right of citizens to bear arms, it would make any debate about their safe use and ownership a lot easier.
“All of the emphasis has been put on controlling and limiting the access to the firearms, and in some ways I can understand that,” says Mr. Hagen. “But the effects and failures of that system have to be accounted for now. How can you stop a determined person from getting access to these things? Seems to me if they’re determined, no law is going to stop them.”
Like their southern counterparts, the US National Rifle Association, the NFA is reluctant to talk about gun control in light of the Newtown tragedy. “Is this the time to talk about those things, after a massive tragedy like this? I don’t think so. I think it’s got to be done a lot more rationally, and done with a purpose rather than a reaction,” says Hagen.
But Rathjen questions whether the NFA and others opposed to gun control will ever commit to such a discussion willingly. She points out that Harper took a hard line on an assault-weapons ban – but only after the CFAC’s recommendations came to light after gun-control advocates pressed the matter, and in the midst of Canada marking the anniversary of its saddest chapter of gun violence.
“I don’t know if this makes any difference to them – the human tragedy of the Sandy Hook shootings – because they’ve ignored the evidence, they’ve ignored the opinions of experts that say that the long-gun registry is essential, that say that it saves lives, that it helps reduce gun-related crime,” she says.
To Dr. Brown, it’s not inconceivable that the Harper government may want to further weaken gun regulations in deference to its base, but Sandy Hook may prevent this.
“They wouldn’t dare try and do anything because of the horrific nature of this shooting," he says. "But time will tell.”
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Palestinians begin returning to Yarmouk refugee camp in Syria

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• A daily summary of global reports on security issues.
Refugees have started returning to the Yarmouk Palestinian refugee camp in Syria after fighting between rebels and government-allied forces sent them fleeing, but the status of the Palestinian refugees, along with hundreds of thousands of others displaced by the Syrian conflict, remains a top concern for observers outside the country.
The Associated Press reports that, according to the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, "hundreds of people have returned" to Yarmouk after fighting between rebels and forces loyal to President Bashar al-Assad drove out as many as two-thirds of the camp's 150,000 residents by United Nations estimates.
The battle at Yarmouk, located in southern Damascus, began Dec. 14, as pro-Assad Palestinian fighters attacked anti-Assad Palestinian rebels based in the camp. Al Jazeera English reported yesterday that although Syrian troops did not participate in the fighting within the camp, they provided support to the pro-Assad fighters, cutting off the camp from the outside and launching air strikes into the camp, which reportedly killed at least eight people on Dec. 16.
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Al Jazeera noted that pro-Assad newspaper Al-Watan reported earlier this week that the government was preparing for a major assault on Yarmouk.
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AP adds that while fighting has eased, some rebels still remain in the camp. Damascus-based Palestinian official Khaled Abdul-Majid told the AP that Cairo-based Palestinian leaders are negotiating the rebels' exit. Palestinian refugees in Syria have been divided over which side to ally themselves with in the ongoing civil war.
Hundreds of thousands of refugees have been affected by the conflict. Some 1 million people are expected to have fled Syria by mid-2013, and another 2 million have already been displaced within the country, reports BBC. The UN has issued an appeal for $1.5 billion for relief efforts in Syria.
The UN has registered more than half a million refugees so far, with between 2,000 and 3,000 arriving every day in countries neighboring Syria.
"Unless these funds come quickly, we will not be able to fully respond to the life-saving needs of civilians who flee Syria every hour of the day – many in a truly desperate condition," Panos Moumtzis of the UNHCR said.
"We are constantly shocked by the horrific stories refugees tell us," he added. "Their lives are in turmoil. They have lost their homes and family members. By the time they reach the borders, they are exhausted, traumatised and with little or no resources to rely on.
UN officials said they would need to provide food, shelter, medicines and even schools for them over the next year.
Syria is home to nearly half a million Palestinian refugees living in 12 camps around the country, including Yarmouk, according to the AP. Al Arabiya reports that Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas yesterday called on the UN to help the Palestinian refugees displaced by the fighting in Syria to return to Gaza and the West Bank.
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Lessons from the Maya prophesy – whether the world 'ends' or not

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Through a clearing in the jungle, visitors catch their first glimpse of the ancient Maya ruins of Yaxchilan in Mexico's southern Chiapas state. Stubborn vines have penetrated the walls of the Maya temple of the underworld. Bats hang in the cool vaulted ceiling and spiders scurry around the structure where ancient nobles once meditated and prayed to their gods.
Here, like across the Maya civilization, abandoned cities hidden in the rainforests of Mexico and Central America stand as reminders of the collapse of one of the most sophisticated cultures of its time – one that, a thousand years later, no scholar fully understands.
And if some Maya thinkers and their acolytes are correct, the same fate could be in store for Yaxchilan's nearest town, Frontera Corozal, the rest of Mexico, and even the entire globe: They believe the Mayas predicted that the world would end this December.
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Most serious thinkers dismiss the prophecy as plain wrong, a meme that has spread around the globe – today there are more than 2,000 books on the subject – with the help of New Age thinkers, science fiction writers, and misguided academics.
Despite rigorous attempts at debunking the prophecy, including recent discoveries in an overgrown jungle in Guatemala that reveals the Mayas counted thousands of years into the future beyond the much talked about Dec. 21 "cut off date," a few are still on board with the apocalyptic forecast. Some 10 percent of people surveyed worldwide earlier this year say the Maya calendar could signify the world's end in 2012, according to a poll from Ipsos Global Public Affairs, conducted for Reuters.
Indeed, most of the buzz these days surrounding “demise” is not about what happened 1,000 years ago, so much as the belief in a coming apocalypse just days away. But at least a few residents in Frontera Corozal, a border town separated from Guatemala by the Usumacinta River, are trying to shift attention to the same problems that likely contributed to the Maya collapse – such as environmental damage and greed – to provide lessons to live more sustainably today.
“The same destruction from then is happening now. We are doing it again,” says Yaxchilan tour guide Francisco Centeño, who is part of a cooperative that is running campaigns to teach children to protect the environment. “To want more homes and bigger homes, we ruin our forests, and ourselves. It is the human nature to want more and more.”
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MYSTERY
The Maya civilization dates to the Preclassic period beginning in 2000 BC, and reached its grandeur during the Classic period, from AD 250 to 900, during which the Mayas had developed the written language and became masters at calendars, counting time, and outlining astronomical systems.
Yaxchilan is nowhere near as large or significant as Tikal in today's modern Guatemala or Chichen Itza in Mexico's Yucatan. But it was among one of the most important centers of the Maya world along the Usumacinta.
Deep in the jungle, Yaxchilan is reachable by wooden boats that ply the Usumacinta River, where a crocodile suns on the banks on a recent day.
It's comprised of over some 120 buildings, but only a tenth have been excavated. The rest are buried underneath the dense forest, where visitors can spot spider and howler monkeys and toucans.
It was left abandoned after 900 AD, and like the other major Maya centers spanning Mexico to Central America, no one knows exactly why: warfare, flooding, deforestation, greed, or a combination of all.
Their demise evokes a sense of mystery, which helped the idea germinate that the Mayas held ancient wisdom. They left a highly sophisticated civilization, says University of Kansas Maya scholar John Hoopes, who has spent a decade uncovering the origins of the end-of-the-world prophecy, but very little of Maya writing, for example, could be deciphered until the 1970s.
“It opened up the door to lots of speculation,” Dr. Hoopes says. Even after hieroglyphic writing was deciphered on the four surviving pre-Hispanic codices, as well as carved on stone monuments, incised on jade jewelry, and painted on beautiful ceramic vessels, myths have persisted.
It was not just science fiction writers and New Agers fascinated by the concept of the end of the world. The December 2012 date arose from traditional readings of the Maya “Long Count” calendar of cycles of 13 intervals, or “bak'tuns,” each of which lasted 144,000 days. Recently discovered murals at Xultun, Guatemala by Boston University archeologists and texts at nearby Palenque suggest that the current cycle of bak’tuns may not end with the 13th but the 20th, which is not until AD 4772, more than 2,500 years from now.
And nowhere was it said that the end of the 13th bak'tun meant the end of the world anyway; it simply signified the end of a period of time, perhaps comparable to moving from 1999 to a new century in 2000.
“Since the time of Columbus, there has been talk of the end of the world. However, it is a European introduction based on Christian beliefs, not an ancient, indigenous Maya prophecy,” says Hoopes.
'BUILD BIGGER AND BIGGER'
New research is not the only force that dismisses an “apocalypse.” Mayas in Frontera Corozal say this December might represent an important change of era for their ancestors, but the now deeply-Christian community discounts that they predicted the world's end.
“No one knows when the world is going to end,” says Sandra Lopez Guzman, a waitress.
“Only God knows,” adds Mayra Cortes.
They have been banking, however, on an end-of-the-world craze as a boost in tourism. The Mexican government launched a “Maya World” campaign this year to draw tourists in Mexico and from the US, Europe, and Asia to the five southeastern-most states that hold dozens of Maya ruins.
In Yaxchilan, tour guide Juan Arcos says he hasn't seen a boost either, just a few tourists from Europe insistent about the world's impending doom. Mr. Arcos says he wishes that they, as well as the residents of his own community, were more focused on the past, where there is an environmental lesson to learn, he says. “They ruined their forests to build bigger, and bigger temples,” he says.
Frontera Corozal sits on the edges of the Lacandon Jungle, one of the most biodiverse swaths of rainforest in the region. But only 10 percent of the original forest remains, threatened by clearing and population growth. Mr. Centeño, the tour guide, says residents have little environmental education, and he and Mr. Arcos are trying to instill a sense of consciousness in children.
They work at a micro level, leading garbage collection programs around town or cleaning up natural springs and the banks of the river. They have plans to build a center to promote their language, Ch'ol, and their ancient customs, to help residents become better stewards of their land, especially the community's youths. “Children are easier to mold, they aren't so stubborn in their ways,” says Centeño.
PARALLELS?
Most might not connect the dots between the Maya demise and the mythology surrounding their apocalyptic predictions: They are two separate things. But Hoopes says they are linked by the idea that the "end of the world" is about human struggle. The myth helps humans better understand their motivations and the consequences of actions, he says.
“When we make up myths they are usually to help us accomplish something ourselves, myths always have a purpose,” Hoopes says. “The myths being made up about the Mayas are not about the Mayas, they are about us, helping us to make the right decisions.”
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Syrian rebel infighting could take dangerous turn if Assad falls

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In recent weeks, a number of opposition fighters in Aleppo have come to see the fall of the Assad government as only a matter of time. But bringing down the unpopular president may be easy in comparison to unifying an opposition that at times seems held together by little more than members' shared hatred of President Bashar al-Assad.
Without him, its often unclear what will hold the disparate armed and civilian rebel groups together.
Last month, that much-needed moment of unity seemed to be on the not-so-distant horizon with the creation of the new Syrian opposition council in Qatar. Inside Syria, a number of Free Syrian Army fighters and civilians living in opposition controlled areas welcomed the news, praising the appointment of coalition leaders with recent time on the ground inside Syria.
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But like many moments of optimism inside wartime Syria, it was short-lived. A week after the announcement of the new coalition, a group of Free Syrian Army commanders in Aleppo came together to announce that they rejected it and had decided to create their own coalition that was now calling for the creation of an Islamic state in Syria.
“The real Islam is based on human rights and justice so what we want in a new state is justice. We want the shariah to be the constitution and apply shariah law, such as cutting off the hand of thieves,” says Mohammad Abdu, a leader of Liwa Towheed, one of the largest FSA units in Aleppo in an interview with The Christian Science Monitor the day after the meeting.
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Civilians working with the opposition inside Syria had not been represented in the meeting, but Mr. Abdu says he was “certain” they would agree. They did not. Muthana al Naser, spokesman for the Free Lawyers of Aleppo called it a “hasty decision” that did not “represent the revolution.”
The moment of unity that many had hoped for seemed to have slipped away before it ever had a chance to take hold. And the fracturing continued.
TODAY'S BRIGADES ARE TOMORROW'S MILITIAS
In the days that followed, the many commanders at the meeting calling for an Islamic state said they’d been duped by Islamists at the meeting into making the statement and did not actually agree with the new announcement.
“It was a meeting to talk about strategy and at the last minute Jabhat al-Nusra asked everyone if they wanted an Islamic state. We had to say yes because we’re Muslims,” says Abu Mohammad, commander of the opposition’s Dar al-Wafa Battalion and a member of the Muslim Brotherhood. “It was a wrong step. Many of the battalions denounced the statement afterward.”
The creation of the Qatar coalition, followed by the reactionary response from the Aleppo commanders and the disagreement among the commanders about the statement, underscores the difficulty of creating a unified leadership capable of outlining a path for the future of Syria.
This is likely to prove exceedingly problematic if the uprising succeeds in removing Assad from power. The country must then create a plan for reintegrating those who fought in the FSA. Many fighters say they will return to civilian life once Assad falls, but with no clear goal for a post-Assad Syria, it remains unclear if that will happen. It’s possible that some fighters could feel disenfranchised in a new state and once again pick up arms.
“We’re very happy to call them brigades and battalions today, but tomorrow they’ll be militias,” says Aram Nerguizian, a Syria expert at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. “When the dust settles they will still have to question what their fortunes will look like and, in some cases, the remaining part of the armed groups in what will be a country filled with warlordism and fiefdoms and new networks of patronage along communal, geographic, and tribal lines.”
TAINTING THE RANKS OF THE FSA
Among civilians in Aleppo, there are already concerns that some FSA units take unilateral actions while claiming to represent a population that has no say in the making of the rebel groups’ plans or policies. This behavior has triggered fears about what will happen after the fall of Assad and whether FSA leaders and their men will be ready to willingly put down their weapons when that time comes.
Regular protests against the Assad regime now also target corrupt elements of the FSA, says activist Wael Abu Mariam.
The group is still widely granted hero status throughout rebel-controlled parts of Syria, but many say ill-intentioned individuals have crept into its ranks since the uprising began.
There is also some concern that FSA groups may start to turn against one another as they gain a larger share of control and are confronted with the challenges of rebuilding the state, causing more squabbles like the recent one over who controls the border. In his neighborhood in Aleppo alone, Mr. Mariam counts at least 11 different FSA groups.
“Each one of them is trying to make itself bigger and bigger without any concern for who they recruit,” he says. “I think they’re getting bigger to fight each other in the future.”
Despite such concerns, most Syrians say its still to early to despair about a post-Assad future. Though a number of ideological disagreements persist without any apparent solution, activists and rebel military leaders stress that at this point they’re still just theoretical disagreements, and ultimately a democratic vote will be what determines the future of a new government in Syria.
“For 40 years the Assad regime has tried to suppress Islam and now we want people to have a choice,” says Abu Ahmad the leader of an FSA unit in Aleppo. “Any person who is honest should lead this country. I want justice and democracy and an election to choose the new leader. Me and the rest of this battalion are okay with whatever democracy brings us, whether it’s a Christian leader, a Kurdish leader, or whoever.”
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Pressure mounts on Obama to change tactics on Iran

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Arguing that further sanctions "are unlikely to stop Iran's nuclear pursuits," a group of Iran experts and senior former officials are calling on the White House to pursue realistic, "serious, sustained negotiations" with Tehran that they say are the best chance to prevent a nuclear-armed Iran.
The letter to President Obama, from 24 signatories whose professional careers have often been marked by dealing firsthand with the thorny Iran issue, suggests that a diplomatic deal can ease the West's greatest fears about Iran's nuclear program – but only if Washington revises its position in nuclear talks that are expected to resume within weeks.
"A diplomacy-centric approach is the only option that can prevent an Iranian nuclear weapon and a war," write the 24 signatories in the Dec. 6 letter only now made public. Success will require "reciprocal" steps and an "appropriate and proportional paring back of international sanctions on Iran," they write.
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The letter proposes a deal that Tehran has signaled repeatedly in the past year it is willing to accept, given the right circumstances: stopping production of 20 percent enriched uranium, which is a few technical steps away from bomb-grade; and allowing a more intrusive inspections regime. In exchange, Tehran wants recognition of its right to enrich for peaceful purposes and a lifting of sanctions.
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But the appeal to Mr. Obama comes as Congress prepares to enact further sanctions against Iran in coming days. And news reports indicate that the US has already decided not to fundamentally change a negotiating stance, rejected by Iran in previous rounds of talks this year, which demands Iran make concessions before the US entertains any prospect of sanctions relief.
US STAYS ITS COURSE
Overall goals for the US and other members of the P5+1 (Russia, China, Britain, France, and German), the letter advises, should be "restricting – not permanently suspending" Iran's enrichment levels to below 5 percent and accounting for past weapons-related work.
"We encourage you to direct your team vigorously to pursue serious, sustained negotiations with the Iranian government on an arrangement that guards against a nuclear-armed Iran," states the letter. "With greater determination, creativity, and persistence, we believe such a deal is within reach."
Among the signatories are ranking former US diplomatic officials Thomas Pickering, James Dobbins, John Limbert, and Chas Freeman. They include Rolf Ekeus, the Swedish former director of UNSCOM in Iraq; former senior British diplomats Sir Richard Dalton and Peter Jenkins, as well as other European ambassadors; and big names from the US military and intelligence, Gen. Joseph Hoar, Brig. Gen. John Johns, Larry Korb, and Paul Pillar.
The letter was organized by Daryl Kimball at the Arms Control Association and Trita Parsi at the National Iranian American Council, both based in Washington.
Nuclear talks between Iran and the P5+1 began last spring in Istanbul, but subsequent rounds in Baghdad and Moscow played out like a game of chicken, with each side demanding that the other act first.
On the P5+1 side, the "offer" put on the table earlier this year – which US and European diplomats say privately they would never accept for themselves, if they were in Iran's position – was widely deemed to have been a necessity of the White House before the Nov. 6, presidential election, so that Obama would not be open to accusations that he was "soft" on Iran by offering concessions.
But the probability of a more flexible P5+1 position after the election appears to be dwindling, at least judging by signals from Washington.
"Following US presidential elections, US officials began mulling a more generous proposal but have settled for a conservative position," wrote Barbara Slavin in Al-Monitor, a Middle East online news publication, yesterday. "Iran will be expected to agree to concessions before knowing exactly what it would get in return."
The "refreshed" proposal would lift a ban on spare parts for Iran's aging jetliners, and include technical assistnce for Iran's civilian nuclear program, "but no specific promise of sanctions relief," reports Al-Monitor.
On Dec. 14, The Washington Post quoted a senior US official saying that Iran might be "ready to make a deal," but that the basic offer had not changed: "The package has the same bone structure, but with some slightly different tattoos."
The Post reported that US officials said the deal held out the eventual possibility of a "grand bargain," in which sanctions could be eased and "permanent limits" set on Iran's nuclear program.
SANCTIONS' DIMINISHING RETURNS
Iran has rejected the offer before, and some Iran analysts suggest that such an "all sticks and no carrot" proposal – as it is seen in Tehran – is unlikely to result in a deal.
In the run-up to the next round of talks, possibly in January, Iran has sent mixed signals. Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi said on Dec. 17, that both sides "have concluded that they have to exit the current impasse," and that Iran wants "its legitimate and legal right [to enrichment] and no more."
The next day, however, the head of Iran's nuclear program said Iran would not give up its 20 percent enrichment.
While that position may be posturing – signals have been plentiful in the past year that Iran plans to "trade" its 20 percent card at the table – it complicates the diplomatic track and gives ammunition to those in Congress who want more sanctions.
A recent report endorsed by 38 eminent Americans, including former diplomats, general and political leaders, examined the cost and benefits of the US-led sanctions regime already levied against Iran, which now target Iran's central bank and its lifeblood oil exports.
Some of the unilateral American measures have been voted on unanimously, and many limit Obama's diplomatic latitude by allowing only Congress to lift them, not the president. The new measures under consideration now would be attached to a much larger defense bill.
"Inflexibly imposed, escalating sanctions begin to lose their value as leverage to elicit change in Iranian policy, including on nuclear issues," the report warned.
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