Pentagon sources: Civilians likely killed without provocation

Here's an update on the story about the marines that massacred Iraqi civilians. It looks like there may be some accountability on this after all, thank God.

An ongoing military investigation supports allegations that U.S. Marines in November killed 24 innocent Iraqi civilians without being provoked, senior Pentagon sources said Friday.

Charges, including murder, could soon be filed against Marines allegedly involved, the sources said.

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Education Key to Interreligious Understanding

In 2000, the religiously diverse community (in Modesto CA) took a risk and, in an almost unheard-of undertaking for a public school district, offered a required course on world religions and religious liberty for ninth-graders.

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To our surprise, students' respect for rights and liberties increased measurably after taking the course. Perhaps more important, the community has embraced the course as a vehicle for fostering understanding, not indoctrination.

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Mistaken Terror Suspect Sues Ex-CIA Chief

Oops.

German national Khaled al-Masri is suing former CIA Director George Tenet, 10 "John Doe" CIA employees and three private aviation companies, contending he was held illegally in Afghanistan for four months in 2004 and tortured as part of the CIA's "rendition" program for terror suspects.

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He said he was then flown to Afghanistan where he was "dragged off the plane and thrown into the trunk of a car" and beaten by his captors. He was held at a CIA-run facility known as the "Salt Pit," an abandoned brick factory north of the Kabul business district used for detention of high-level terror suspects.

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Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and other State Department officials have declined to address the al-Masri case. However, German Chancellor Angela Merkel has said the United States has acknowledged making a mistake in his arrest.

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NSA has massive database of Americans' phone calls

Y'know...... when I hear about something like this, it makes me wonder on what basis we are imposing sanctions on places like Cuba..

The National Security Agency has been secretly collecting the phone call records of tens of millions of Americans, using data provided by AT&T, Verizon and BellSouth, people with direct knowledge of the arrangement told USA TODAY.

The NSA program reaches into homes and businesses across the nation by amassing information about the calls of ordinary Americans - most of whom aren't suspected of any crime. This program does not involve the NSA listening to or recording conversations. But the spy agency is using the data to analyze calling patterns in an effort to detect terrorist activity, sources said in separate interviews.

BUT... there was one lone holdout

One major telecommunications company declined to participate in the program: Qwest.

According to sources familiar with the events, Qwest's CEO at the time, Joe Nacchio, was deeply troubled by the NSA's assertion that Qwest didn't need a court order - or approval under FISA - to proceed. Adding to the tension, Qwest was unclear about who, exactly, would have access to its customers' information and how that information might be used.

But you can't say they didn't try!

Trying to put pressure on Qwest, NSA representatives pointedly told Qwest that it was the lone holdout among the big telecommunications companies. It also tried appealing to Qwest's patriotic side: In one meeting, an NSA representative suggested that Qwest's refusal to contribute to the database could compromise national security, one person recalled.

In addition, the agency suggested that Qwest's foot-dragging might affect its ability to get future classified work with the government. Like other big telecommunications companies, Qwest already had classified contracts and hoped to get more.

Unable to get comfortable with what NSA was proposing, Qwest's lawyers asked NSA to take its proposal to the FISA court. According to the sources, the agency refused.

The NSA's explanation did little to satisfy Qwest's lawyers. "They told (Qwest) they didn't want to do that because FISA might not agree with them," one person recalled. For similar reasons, this person said, NSA rejected Qwest's suggestion of getting a letter of authorization from the U.S. attorney general's office. A second person confirmed this version of events.

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Saudi Arabia on charm offensive for non-Muslim tourists

HUH?!?

FOR the first time, Saudi Arabia is looking to encourage non-Muslim tourists, touting a unique experience and even nightlife in a country where alcohol and the mixing of the sexes are banned.

“We promise you an experience that will hit your soul, mind and spirit ... (with) lots of nightlife,” Prince Sultan bin Salman, who heads the kingdom’s Supreme Commission for Tourism, told reporters in Dubai at the opening of a tourism promotion expo.

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A Syrian monastery lies at the nexus of Islam, Christianity

The monastery of Deir Mar Musa was first built by Greek monks in the sixth century as a remote retreat from the material and political world. Abandoned in the 19th century, it once again houses a small religious community. But now, under its second founder, Father Dall'Oglio, it is on the forefront of politics with a fresh approach to bridge-building with the Islamic world.

"When I arrived here 25 years ago, Syria was [a] center of the struggle between communism and capitalism," says Dall'Oglio, dressed in a worn gray pullover. "And today it is the crossroads between Islam and Christianity."

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"The big issue is whether there can even be a future without religious harmony," says Paolo. "To build religious harmony is to build a future for humanity. It's not going to be easy but I say let's do it. Bring it on."

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