British Muslim groups have written to the Prime Minister calling for "urgent" changes to UK foreign policy. In an open letter they say British policy is putting civilians at increased risk in the UK and abroad. The letter, to appear in press adverts, also points to the "debacle" of Iraq and the failure to secure an immediate end to attacks in the Middle East.

The Bush administration scored a major victory Thursday in its efforts to criminally prosecute journalists and others involved in the leaking and reporting of classified information. A federal district court in Virginia refused to dismiss a criminal indictment brought by the Bush Justice Department under the Espionage Act of 1917 against two former employees of the American-Israeli Political Action Committee (AIPAC), who are alleged to have received classified information from a former Bush defense department official, and then passed it on to a journalist and an Israeli diplomat.

Kofi Annan today highlighted the plight of the people of Gaza requesting that the international community should not be distracted from the situation in Gaza. His spokesman described the killing of civilians and particularly children by Israel – which has been taking place on a day to day basis, as “utterly unjustifiable.” Only today reports emerged of the death of a three year old girl along with two other fighters when Isreal launched rockets at a Citrus Grove in Gaza City.

While Arabs and Muslims have an obligation to become empowered, to strengthen the alternatives to such violence, Americans, Israelis and Britons would be well-advised to push for humane and fair foreign policies. You can't oppress your cake and eat it too. In other words, you want cheap oil, control of the Middle East and to hold on to stolen land. Fine. You can't expect your victims and their allies to like you, too.

"Islamo-fascism," a term that Americans heard George Bush use at an August 7 press conference, is the new term being thrown around among factions of the Christian right, from which he no doubt picked it up. It was much in use last month when the new lobby group, Christians United for Israel (CUFI), held their first "Washington-Israel Summit" at a Washington D.C. hotel.

Sir Rodric mocked Blair for being a "frayed and waxy zombie straight from Madame Tussauds", programmed by the CIA to "spout the language of the White House in an artificial English accent ... Mr Blair has done more damage to British interests in the Middle East than Anthony Eden, who led the UK to disaster in Suez 50 years ago ... Mr Blair's total identification with the White House has destroyed his influence in Washington, Europe and the Middle East itself; who bothers with the monkey if he can go straight to the organ grinder?"

The Fascist British National Party’s’ outrageous suggestion to ban all Muslims from flights in and out of Britain is just another example of their extremist right wing, racist bile. British culture is a rich synthesis of plural religions, ethnicities and identities, yet the extremists ideology of groups such as the BNP are intent on undermining and damaging the fabric of British society by perpetuating racial hatred, intolerance and aggression.

Anti-terrorist police say they have foiled a suspected plot to blow up aircraft leaving UK airports. Currently information is hazy to say the least, but the authorites seem confident that a massive loss of life has been averted. What do you think? Is this another false alert? Is Al-Qaeda involved? Is the timing of this possible plot with the current Israeli aggression in Muslim territory of any significance?