Woman knocks down Pope [524 ]

Woman knocks Pope down at Christmas Mass

Advertisement

A woman jumped the barriers and knocked the Pope down

(BBC)A shaken Pope Benedict has said Christmas Eve Mass in St Peter's shortly after being knocked over by a spectator who jumped a barrier.

The woman, said to be mentally unstable, managed to grab him by his vestments near the neck area as a security guard tried to overwhelm her.

The Vatican said she had also tried to jump at the Pope last year.

French Cardinal Roger Etchegaray, 87, was standing a few metres away and fell and broke his leg during the incident.

Proceeding with the Mass, Benedict looked shaken and stumbled over some words.

All of a sudden this person sort of flew over the barricade MaryBeth Burns eyewitness

The service in the Vatican started two hours early because officials did not want the pontiff, 82, to get tired.

As members of the 1.1-billion Catholic community celebrated Christmas around the world, thousands of pilgrims gathered in Bethlehem where Latin Patriarch Foud Twal, the most senior Roman Catholic cleric in the Holy Land, said the region's aspiration of peace remained out of reach.

"The wish that we most want, we most hope for, is not coming," he said after passing into Bethlehem in a traditional holiday procession from nearby Jerusalem.

"We want peace."

Repeat incident

The incident involving the Pope lasted only a few seconds and was caught on camera by at least one eyewitness.

ANALYSIS David Willey, BBC News, Rome The Pope will next year celebrate his 83rd birthday. He is in relatively good health for his age but he was clearly shaken by the incident and stumbled several times over words in his homily. This was undoubtedly the most serious breach of security inside the Vatican in recent years. Although the Pope was physically unharmed by this sudden attack, security arrangements at papal ceremonies will have to be urgently reviewed as there was apparently a similar, but unsuccessful, attempt to hurt the Pope last Christmas.

Dressed in a red hooded sweatshirt, the attacker leaped over the barrier towards the Pope, prompting gasps from the crowd.

"All of a sudden this person sort of flew over the barricade and the Holy Father went down and all of a sudden all the security people were all on top of it, you know the whole pile there, getting her off and pulling him back up," eyewitness MaryBeth Burns, a US tourist, told the Associated Press.

Security officials rushed down the main aisle to detain the woman, who was later arrested by police.

Her name was not immediately known but the Vatican confirmed she was the same person who had tried to jump a barricade to get close to the Pope at the same service last year.

The Pope had to be helped up by the master of ceremonies at his side, the BBC's David Willey in Rome says.

The theme of his homily was selfishness which, he said, "makes us prisoners of our interests and our desires".

The Vatican said earlier that the decision to move the midnight Mass to 2200 (2100 GMT) was "to make Christmas a little less tiring for the Pope, who has many engagements".

The pontiff earlier appeared briefly at nightfall at the window of his studio to light a candle in a sign of peace.

Tourism boom

In Bethlehem, festivities began with a traditional boy scout band and ended with midnight Mass in St Catherine's Church, next to the Church of the Nativity.

Patriarch arrives in Bethlehem

Arriving in Bethlehem, the Latin Patriarch said people in the region wanted freedom of movement.

"We don't want walls, we don't want separation fences."

Addressing worshippers, he added: "[This land's] inhabitants are brothers who see each other as enemies.

"This land will deserve to be called holy when she breathes freedom, justice, love, reconciliation, peace and security."

The Mass was said next to the church built over the stall where Mary is believed to have given birth to Jesus.

Some 300 Christians over the age of 35 from the Gaza Strip were given permission by the Israeli military to leave the territory and come to Bethlehem for 24 hours to celebrate Christmas.

A total of 15,000 tourists are expected in the town during this period, in a year that has seen a record number of visitors - some 1.6 million.

Woman knocks down pope at Mass; Christmas celebrations begin

December 25, 2009 -- Updated 0231 GMT (1031 HKT)

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

• Woman tried to reach pope at start of midnight Mass
• Christmas midnight Mass held at 10 p.m.; some say because of health concerns for pope
• Celebrants in Bethlehem joined the Latin Patriarch Fouad Twal for a midnight Mass
• Outside Church of the Nativity, faithful gathered along with heavily armed Palestinian police

RELATED TOPICS

• Vatican City
• Pope Benedict XVI
• Christmas

(CNN) -- A woman jumped a barrier at the start of Christmas Eve Mass at St. Peter's Basilica and knocked down the pope, briefly disrupting ceremonies.

Screams erupted from onlooking worshippers when the woman ran toward Pope Benedict XVI and grabbed onto his vestments as he walked down the main aisle of the church, video footage showed.

He was quickly helped to his feet by his aides -- prompting cheers from the crowd -- and the service was resumed, Vatican spokesman Federico Lombardi told CNN.

The woman was removed by Vatican guards, Lombardi said.

John Allen, senior Vatican analyst for CNN, said such security breaches aren't uncommon.

"As compared to say, the president of the United States, the security membrane around the pope is pretty thin and fairly permeable," he said, citing similar past incidents, including one that happened last Christmas Eve.

Video: Disruption at Vatican Mass

Video: Christmas Mass at the Vatican

Video: Christmas Mass in Bethlehem

Gallery: Christmas Eve around the world

Allen said that generally, these disruptions are caused by people who aren't seeking real harm, but who want to be close to the pope.

Benedict began what has traditionally been a midnight Mass at the Vatican at 10 p.m. as officials sought to keep the 82-year-old pontiff from a late night.

Celebrants in Bethlehem, the traditional birthplace of Jesus in the West Bank, however, joined the Latin Patriarch Fouad Twal for a midnight Mass attended by Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas and other Palestinian officials.

Outside the Church of the Nativity, erected over the site Christian tradition says was the place of Jesus' birth, the faithful gathered under the watchful eyes of heavily armed Palestinian police.

But Palestinian shopkeeper Nadia Hazboun said the security situation in the West Bank has improved in the time since the militant Hamas group took over Gaza and Abbas' Fatah movement abandoned the narrow strip of land between Israel and the Mediterranean for the West Bank.

"It was bad, now it is good," he told Voice of America radio. "I told you, before anybody take the law in his [own] hands. But now the law [is] with the police. We have security, we have calm, we have now the best situation in Bethlehem."Were you there? Share pictures, video

Christmas Eve in Bethlehem is a popular destination for American Christians, including Iowan Paul Edelman.

"Just the festivities, the idea that this is the birthplace of Christ, and you get to see all the historic places and share it with people from around the world; it's a very nice experience," he told Voice of America radio.

Iran, clashes during ceremony,...[ 523 ]

Clashes at Montazeri ceremony, Iran opposition says

Advertisement

Amateur video said to be of Iranian opposition protesters in Najafabad

BBC 23-12-09, Iranian security forces have clashed with opposition supporters in the city of Isfahan, opposition websites say.

Activists said police used tear gas and batons to disperse people gathering to commemorate Grand Ayatollah Hoseyn Ali Montazeri, who died at the weekend.

Security forces reportedly surrounded the home of an ayatollah who organised the memorial service.

On Monday, tens of thousands of mourners attended Montazeri's funeral in the holy city of Qom.

Many of them shouted anti-government slogans.

Counter-demonstrations

The funeral saw reports of clashes between security forces and mourners - with confrontations continuing in Qom on Tuesday.

DEFIANT CLERIC Born into provincial family in 1922 and educated at a seminary Arrested and tortured for leading protests against Iran monarchy Designated successor to Islamic Republic's founder, Khomeini Fell out with Khomeini in 1989 over Iran's human rights record House arrest in 1997 for criticising current Supreme Leader Issues a fatwa against President Ahmadinejad after 2009's election Obituary: Ayatollah Montazeri Analysis: Government's challenge

State television reported that government supporters staged counter-demonstrations on Tuesday and Wednesday in Qom.

Reformists say there has also been unrest in Montazeri's home city of Najafabad over the past two days.

Footage sent to the BBC from Najafabad shows crowds chanting "Criminals, rapists, death to the leadership" and "We're not afraid, we're not afraid" as security men watch from the rooftops.

The sender says the footage, which has not been independently verified, was shot in the main mosque.

BBC Tehran correspondent Jon Leyne says the confrontations are all part of a build-up to a big series of demonstrations expected at the weekend.

He says that Isfahan and Najafabad are known as quite religiously conservative cities, which shows the breadth of the opposition to the government.

The authorities have not yet confirmed the unrest in Isfahan, but the country's police chief warned on Wednesday that opposition protests.

"We advise this movement to end their activities," the semi-official Fars news agency quoted Esmail Ahmadi Moghaddam as saying.

"Otherwise those who violate the order will be fiercely confronted, based on the law."

However, our correspondent says that these threats do not seem to have much effect, because when people get beaten up it just angers them more and they still come out on the streets.

'Fiercely confronted'

In Isfahan, witnesses told the BBC that people had gathered at the main mosque for the memorial service, but when they arrived the doors were closed and security forces told them to leave.

"Little by little some clashes broke out and security used tear gas and pepper gas," one witness said.

"They took people in the shops and beat them up mostly out of public vision although some beatings happened outside on the streets."

Another witness, who gave his name as Soheil, said security officers "beat people savagely" and did not care if the people were "women, men, old or young".

It had taken about two hours to disperse the crowd, he said.

The Rahesabz website said hundreds of police and plain-clothes security officers were involved.

Another reformist website, Parlemannews, said more than 50 people had been detained.

It said the home of Ayatollah Jalaleddin Taheri, who organised the memorial, had been surrounded by plainclothes security agents.

"I tried six different ways to get to the mosque but they were all blocked," Parlemannews quoted him as saying.

Reports are difficult to verify independently as foreign journalists have been restricted since the unrest that followed June's disputed presidential election.

The grand ayatollah's funeral in Qom was attended by several leading opposition figures, including Mir Hossein Mousavi.

Mr Mousavi, who came second in the presidential election, has been an outspoken critic of the current government and President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

On Tuesday, Mr Mousavi was dismissed as head of the Council for Cultural Revolution, an arts institution affiliated to the president's office.

In recent days, hardliners have urged Iran's judiciary to put Mr Mousavi on trial for instigating unrest.

Bookmark

Hacker's acts ....[ 522 ]

Hacker illegally accesses JR East Web site and alters part of system

A hacker has illegally accessed the Web site of East Japan Railway Co. (JR East) and altered part of the program managing the system, company officials said Wednesday.

Thousands of people who used its search function after the incident may have got their computers infected with a virus. The Tokyo-based railway operator has closed affected pages of its Web site to investigate the details of the problem.

A person who used the site's search function informed the company Monday evening that there was something wrong with the system, prompting the company to examine it.

The company subsequently confirmed that someone had illegally accessed its Web site from overseas on several occasions at around 1:10 a.m. on Sunday, and had altered the program controlling its search function.

Company officials said it has closed some affected pages on the site, including the company profile and information on its carriages and locomotives, while customers can still reserve train seats, buy tickets and confirm whether trains are operating on time on its Web site.

New generation fighter[ 522 ]

Russia could start 5th generation fighter tests by yearend

Related News

• Russia to start 5th generation fighter tests in 2010 - deputy PM
• Su-30MKI fighter jet crashes in western India, pilots survive
• Russia, India to jointly develop 5th-generation fighter
• Russian Su-35 fighter jet prototype destroyed during testing - 2

MOSCOW, December 23 (RIA Novosti)15:40

Multimedia

• Video:

  New Su-35 fighter can attack eight targets simultaneously

• Photo:

  MiG fighter planes: An illustrated history

• Infographics:

  Su-30MKI (Flanker-H) multirole fighter

Russia could start tests of its fifth-generation fighter in late 2009 or early 2010, a deputy prime minister said on Wednesday.

"We are not making any New Year presents, but flight tests will start in the very near future," said Sergei Ivanov, who oversees the defense sectors of industry.

He said on December 8 the trials would begin in 2010.

Deputy Defense Minister Vladimir Popovkin has said the fighter, which has been under development since the 1990s, will enter service with the Air Force in 2015.

Russia's only known fifth-generation project is Sukhoi's PAK FA and the current prototype is the T-50. It is designed to compete with the U.S. F-22 Raptor (so far the world's only fifth-generation fighter aircraft) and F-35 Lightning II, but has yet to take to the skies.

The T-50's maiden flight has been repeatedly postponed since early 2007 for unspecified reasons.

However, in August 2009, Russian Air Force Chief Alexander Zelin said that there were problems with the engines and research was ongoing.

The PAK FA is believed to possess advanced avionics, stealth capability, a ferry range of 4,000 to 5,500 km, and endurance of 3.3 hrs; it is armed with next-generation air-to-air, air-to-surface, and air-to-ship missiles, and has two 30-mm cannons.

East USA, massive snow storm [ 521 ]

Snow Storm Buries the U.S. East Coast

The Mid-Atlantic states were completely white on Sunday, December 20, 2009, in the wake of a record-breaking snow storm. The storm deposited between 12 and 30 inches of snow in Virginia, Maryland, and Washington, D.C. on December 19, according to the National Weather Service. For many locations, the snowfall totals broke records for the most snow to fall in a single December day.

The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA’s Aqua satellite captured this view of the Chesapeake Bay region as the clouds were clearing on December 20. The snow highlights the courses of the Potomac and Susquehanna Rivers from the Appalachian Mountains to the Chesapeake Bay. The ridges and valleys of the Appalachian Mountains are similarly highlighted. The forested peaks are darker than the snow-covered valleys.

The massive snow storm was a Nor’easter, a powerful storm characterized by a strong low-pressure center that forms in the Gulf of Mexico or the Atlantic Ocean and moves northward up the Eastern seaboard. In the Northern Hemisphere, winds flow in toward the center of a low-pressure area in a counter-clockwise spiral, which means that as the storm heads north, the leading winds come in off the ocean from the northeast.

1. References

2. CNN. (2009, December 20). East Coast storm heads north, leaving snowfall records in its wake. Accessed December 21, 2009.
3. National Weather Service Forecast Office. Preliminary totals ending December 19, 2009. Accessed December 21, 2009.

NASA Earth Observatory image created by Jesse Allen, using data provided courtesy of the MODIS Rapid Response team. Caption by Holli Riebeek.