Herald keeps its Bahasa Malaysia section

KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 9, 2009): The Home Ministry has allowed the publishers of "Herald- The Catholic Weekly" to continue with its Bahasa Malaysia section, overturning an earlier licencing condition that the church had immediately rejected.

In a letter dated Jan 7, the ministry allowed the continued publication of the Catholic Church's weekly newsletter's Bahasa Malaysia section, but prohibited the use of the word "Allah", an issue for judicial review that has yet to be decided.

Herald editor Father Lawrence Andrews told theSun he will continue to use the word "Allah" in future editions.

This week's edition of Herald, dated Jan 11, however, will not have the Bahasa Malaysia section in keeping with the ministry's licensing condition. This is because the removal of the condition came after the edition had been completed.

Last month, the publishers of the Catholic weekly were given the green light by the ministry to publish the newsletter. But the approval letter stated that the Bahasa Malaysia section in the Herald had to be stopped until the court decided on the use of the word "Allah".

The church however wrote to the ministry to reject the condition, on the grounds that it curtailed the constitutional right to freedom of expression and also went against the spirit of the National Language Act. It argued that many Christians, especially the Bumiputras in Sabah and Sarawak, still used Bahasa Malaysia to worship in church.

Herald has a circulation of around 14,000 in Malaysia, and is only sold in churches.

On Andrews's insistence on using the word "Allah" until the matter had been decided by the court, the ministry's head of Publications Control and Quranic Text Control Division, Che Din Yusoh, told theSun: "We’ll wait and see. When they publish the newsletter, we will review it and take the necessary action."

When asked about the change in licensing condition, Che Din said the ministry reviewed the matter. "We don’t want to be seen as rigid and unreasonable. However, we will wait until the court decides," said Che Din.

Liverpool Held By Stoke City At Britannia Stadium

First Half

The first real chance of the game fell to Stoke, as they won a freekick just outside Liverpool's box. Glenn Whelan stepped up for the freekick that would beat the wall, but continue on it's path upwards and over the bar.

Ten minutes in and 'Pool got their first decent attempt, courtesy of a whipped-in cross from Albert Riera. An unfortunate Dirk Kuyt could only nod the ball past the post, much to the relief of the home support.

The Potters were awarded a major confidence boost soon after Kuyt's wide header, as Rory Delap found himself on the end of a botched clearance that was the result of one of his own signature throws. The long-throw luminary could only curse himself, as his short-range attempt rattled off the bar and away from the visitor's goal-mouth.

Things were not looking good for The Reds as the half unfolded. Javier Mascherano was looking more and more frustrated, Jamie Carragher was producing terrible passes and having virtually no first touch, and to put the icing on the cake, the attendees of Britannia Stadium were booing Liverpool's captain, Steven Gerrard.

The league leaders, trying to impose themselves on the game, burst forward in a move that ended in a fantastic piece of play from Kuyt. The Dutch international culminated the attack with a well taken shot at a difficult angle, but Stoke 'keeper, Thomas Sørensen sprawled himself well to force the ball wide.

Stoke were clearly not prepared to let Liverpool dominate the half and met their opponents' enthusiasm with their own. Tony Pulis' side started to enjoy a lot more of the possession, and it is worth noting that a lot of it was not in their own half.

The home side's persistence almost paid off, just as the game reached the half-hour mark. Stoke defender Ryan Shawcross found himself in a very advanced position and managed to head home what could have been the first goal of the game. The referee was quick to notice the linesman's flag and disallow the goal for an offside offence.

The pressure remained on Liverpool as the half drew to a close. Stoke were asking a lot of questions of the visitors, especially in the air and with their long balls. It was evident Rafa Benítez had his work cut out for him at the interval if his side were to leave with three points.


First Half

The first real chance of the game fell to Stoke, as they won a freekick just outside Liverpool's box. Glenn Whelan stepped up for the freekick that would beat the wall, but continue on it's path upwards and over the bar.

Ten minutes in and 'Pool got their first decent attempt, courtesy of a whipped-in cross from Albert Riera. An unfortunate Dirk Kuyt could only nod the ball past the post, much to the relief of the home support.

The Potters were awarded a major confidence boost soon after Kuyt's wide header, as Rory Delap found himself on the end of a botched clearance that was the result of one of his own signature throws. The long-throw luminary could only curse himself, as his short-range attempt rattled off the bar and away from the visitor's goal-mouth.

Things were not looking good for The Reds as the half unfolded. Javier Mascherano was looking more and more frustrated, Jamie Carragher was producing terrible passes and having virtually no first touch, and to put the icing on the cake, the attendees of Britannia Stadium were booing Liverpool's captain, Steven Gerrard.

The league leaders, trying to impose themselves on the game, burst forward in a move that ended in a fantastic piece of play from Kuyt. The Dutch international culminated the attack with a well taken shot at a difficult angle, but Stoke 'keeper, Thomas Sørensen sprawled himself well to force the ball wide.

Stoke were clearly not prepared to let Liverpool dominate the half and met their opponents' enthusiasm with their own. Tony Pulis' side started to enjoy a lot more of the possession, and it is worth noting that a lot of it was not in their own half.

The home side's persistence almost paid off, just as the game reached the half-hour mark. Stoke defender Ryan Shawcross found himself in a very advanced position and managed to head home what could have been the first goal of the game. The referee was quick to notice the linesman's flag and disallow the goal for an offside offence.

The pressure remained on Liverpool as the half drew to a close. Stoke were asking a lot of questions of the visitors, especially in the air and with their long balls. It was evident Rafa Benítez had his work cut out for him at the interval if his side were to leave with three points.


Second Half

As the second half got underway, an awful kick from Pepe Reina fell to Dave Kitson who drove straight towards Reina's goal. The 'keeper made up for his mistake as he forced the carrot-topped forward to belt his shot into the sidenetting. It was at this point Fernando Torres started warming up on the sideline.

Carragher made great use of himself after his previous failings, ten minutes into the half. Liverpool's homegrown defender was positioned beautifully to deny a header from Shawcross at the back post. Still, 'Pool don't look like they are dealing with the aerial balls with any great confidence.

Sixty minutes passed before Fernando Torres was introduced to the game, Rafa sacrificing Albert Riera in an attempt to improve on his side's woeful performance infront of goal.

Gerrard stepped up to take a free kick that he subsequently blasted straight into the wall. Captain Fantastic was awarded a yellow card by the referee who thought it was appropriate, as he hadn't yet signalled that it was okay to proceed. The second attempt was squared to Mascherano, who blasted it into the stands.

Torres hadn't yet had a sniff at goal when Ryan Babel replaced Yossi Benayoun. The visitors were clearly clutching at straws to produce a goal in a game that was still very much there for the taking.

As the game came to an end, the best chances fell to Gerrard who managed to rattle the woodwork twice. Stoke refused to let their guards down and do Liverpool any favours. The performace of the home side earned them a deserved point from the current league leaders.

Stoke City 0 - 0 Liverpool.

Israel and Hamas vow to fight on in Gaza

GAZA, Jan 11 (Reuters) - Israel and Hamas vowed to fight on on Sunday, ignoring international calls to stop the Gaza conflict which entered a 16th day with heavy clashes between Israeli forces and Palestinian militants.

Hamas's leader in exile, Khaled Meshaal, said his Islamist group would not consider a truce until Israel ended its military offensive and lifted a blockade of the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip.

Israel sent tanks deeper into the coastal enclave and threatened to intensify its air and ground assaults against militants who fired more rockets into the Jewish state.

Palestinian witnesses reported heavy fighting east of the city of Gaza where Hamas militants fired anti-tank missiles and mortar bombs at advancing Israeli forces who responded with tank shells and air strikes.

An Israeli air strike targeting a car on a coastal road killed two militants, medical workers said.

Israeli artillery shelling of two villages in the southern Gaza Strip killed a woman and set 15 houses on fire, medical workers and witnesses said. Some 50 people suffered from burns and gas inhalation, they said.

Human Rights Watch has accused Israel of using white-phosphorus munitions and warned of undue suffering to Palestinian civilians through severe burns.

The Israeli military said it uses only weapons permitted under international law. It has accused Hamas of using civilians as human shields.

A total of 846 Palestinians and thirteen Israelis --- three civilians killed by rocket fire and 10 soldiers --- have been killed since the offensive began on Dec. 27.