La clé des langues - Anglais - News headlines

News headlines - press review

Every monday, tuesday, thursday and friday, this section gives you an overview of the topics that hit the headlines in national newspapers in Britain (the Guardian, The Daily Telegraph and The Independent) and in the United States (the Washington Post, the Chicago Tribune and USA Today). It also provides you with links to other newspaper websites of the English speaking world as well as a selection of 'lighter' readings.

UK latest

Suspect Michael Adebolajo was inspired by cleric banned from UK after urging followers to behead enemies of Islam The Independent, 24 May 2013
Kim Sengupta
One of the suspected killers who attempted to behead and disembowel a young soldier in the horrific Woolwich attack had listened to the preachings of a radical Muslim cleric banned from Britain over extremist activities, including alleged links to al-Qa’ida, The Independent has learnt.

The cleric Omar Bakri Mohammed has been secretly filmed stating that decapitation of the enemies of Islam was permitted. Today, in comments met with outrage, he told The Independent that he could understand the feeling of rage that had motivated the attackers and that what they had done could be justified under certain interpretations of Islam.

Michael Adebolajo, a British-Muslim convert of Nigerian origin who gave a video interview with a meat cleaver in his bloodied hands while the body of 25-year-old Drummer Lee Rigby lay on the street behind him, declared that he was fighting for “Almighty Allah”.

Read on...
Woolwich attack victim named as Lee Rigby The Guardian, 24 May 2013
Nick Hopkins
The soldier who was killed in the knife attack in Woolwich has been named as Drummer Lee Rigby, of the 2nd Battalion The Royal Regiment of Fusiliers.

The Ministry of Defence released his details on Thursday, a day after the stabbing near the barracks in south London where he had been stationed.

The MoD confirmed that Rigby, 25, was the father of a two-year-old boy, Jack. The drummer was born in Manchester and joined the army seven years ago.

Read on...
Woolwich attack: why was suspect Michael Adebolajo free to kill? The Telegraph, 24 May 2013
Tom Whitehead, David Barrett and Steven Swinford
Michael Adebolajo, 28, was the man videoed by witnesses with his hands red with blood following the killing of the soldier, who was named as Drummer Lee Rigby, 25, the father of a two-year-old son.

The second suspect was last night identified by The Times as Michael Adebowale, 22, from Greenwich. His flat was reported to have been raided by police.

David Cameron said there would be a full investigation by the Security and Intelligence Committee after it emerged that both of the attackers were known to the police and MI5, but neither was assessed as a major security risk.

Read on...

USA latest

Boy Scouts vote to lift ban on gay members; gay leadership ban remains The Chicago Tribune, 24 May 2013
Marice Richter
GRAPEVINE, Texas (Reuters) - The Boy Scouts of America voted on Thursday to lift a ban on openly gay scouts that had been in place throughout the organization's 103-year history, capping weeks of intense lobbying on both sides, the group said in a statement.

More than 60 percent of the group's National Council, composed of some 1,400 delegates, voted to end the ban effective January 1, 2014.

A prohibition on openly gay adult leaders remains in place.

Read on...
I-5 bridge collapses north of Seattle The Los Angeles Times, 24 May 2013
Kim Murphy and Rick Rojas
SEATTLE — A large section of a bridge on Interstate 5 north of Seattle collapsed Thursday evening, sending vehicles and people plunging into the swirling, frigid waters of the Skagit River.

Three people were hospitalized in stable condition, officials said. No one was killed.

The bridge failed without warning between the towns of Burlington and Mount Vernon on the major route linking Seattle with the Canadian border, the Washington State Patrol said.

Several witnesses told local TV that a truck carrying an oversize load had crossed the bridge and struck it just before the collapse. Other witnesses saw girders falling. The truck's load was about 12 feet wide by 14 feet high, Dale Ogden, a trucker who was nearby, told Northwest Cable News.

Read on...
Obama: U.S. at ‘crossroads’ in fight against terrorism The Washington Post, 24 May 2013
Karen DeYoung and Greg Miller
President Obama said Thursday that the United States has reached a “crossroads” in its fight against terrorism and that it is time to redefine and recalibrate a war that eventually will end.

Far from repudiating the controversial use of drones against terrorist targets, Obama defended the tactic as effective, legal and life-saving. But he acknowledged that threat levels have fallen to levels not seen since before the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, requiring new criteria for the use of lethal force.

Obama used the first major counterterrorism address of his second term to outline newly narrowed guidelines that call for deploying drones only against targets that pose a “continuing, imminent threat” to the United States and only in cases in which avoiding civilian casualties is a “near-certainty.”

Read on...

News from other parts of the world

Ireland

The Irish Times: A socially liberal and rather left wing newspaper. Founded in 1859, it is one of the major Irish daily information media and offers an excellent online edition.
The Irish Independent: Founded in 1905, it is Ireland's best-selling daily newspaper. Its website offers regular updates on both Irish and world news.

South Africa

The Mail and Guardian: A major investigative newspaper founded in 1985. Although it is a weekly paper, its online version offers daily updates on South African and world news.

Australia

The Daily Telegraph: Founded in 1879 and named after the British upmarket daily newspaper, it is rather conservative and offers a variety of sections ranging from politics to 'wacky' news.
The Australian: Less populist than the telegraph, this newspaper provides its readers with news from all over South-East Asia. It was founded in 1964 and is based in Sydney.

New Zealand

The New Zealand Herald: Founded in 1863, it is the country's best-selling paper and offers an excellent website with regular news updates.

Canada

The Toronto Star: Canada's largest daily newspaper, with a left of centre vantage point. It was founded in 1892.
The Globe and Mail: A result of the 1936 merger between The Globe and The Mail and Empire, it is a widely read conservative newspaper.

India

The Indian Express: Started in 1931, it is one of India's most prominent daily newspapers. It is renowned for its investigative reports and offers a fine website.

On the lighter side

The Daily Mirror: Launched in 1903, the Mirror was intended as a newspaper for women, run by women. It now belongs to the buoyant and colorful British gutter press.
The Sun: Founded in 1964 and sold in the UK and Ireland, it is the pendent of the Mirror on the waiting room table of any good British GP.
People: An American weekly magazine of celebrity and human-interest stories founded in 1974.