Turban-wearing peer vows to fight prejudice

2011-09-14T05:30:21Z

The country's first turban-wearing Sikh peer has vowed to dispel prejudices about his religion that have increased in the wake of terrorist attacks on the West in the past decade.

Indarjit Singh, whose official title on entering the House of Lords will be Baron Singh of House of Lords will be Baron Singh of Reuters) - Pope Benedict has reaped praise before his visit to his German homeland next month from one of the last people one would expect -- the sharp-tongued leader of the former communists from old East Germany.

Pope Benedict Anti-Gay Marriage Speech Cut Short By Freak Storm

2011-08-22T05:30:12Z

Pope Benedict XVI on Sunday was cut short from delivering a speech on marriage in Madrid, Spain by a freak storm

Pope Benedict XVI on Sunday was cut short from delivering a speech on marriage in Madrid, Spain by a freak storm that delivered strong winds and sheets of rain, the AFP reported.

As many as 1.5...

Pope leaves after youth festival in storm-hit Madrid

2011-08-21T18:30:24Z

Pope Benedict XVI told 1.5 million pilgrims to spread the faith Sunday as he brought to an end lavish Catholic youth festivities in Madrid marked by a violent storm, blistering heat and protests.

After spending a night under the stars, the faithful cheered as the 84-year-old arrived at a vast Madrid airbase, hit by sheets of rain, bolts of lightning and powerful winds the n...

Papal mass ends festivities in storm-hit Madrid

2011-08-21T08:30:14Z

Pope Benedict XVI, emerging into the sun after being lashed by a violent storm, urged 1.5 million pilgrims to share the faith Sunday as he brought lavish festivities in Madrid to a close.

After spending a night under the stars, the faithful cheered as the 84-year-old arrived at a vast Madrid airbase, hit by sheets of rain, bolts of lightning and powerful winds the night bef...

Storm lashes pope, pilgrims at youth festival

2011-08-20T19:30:15Z

A violent storm lashed Pope Benedict XVI and around one million pilgrims at an open-air service in Madrid, forcing him to cut short his speech and drenching the faithful who had waited for hours in blistering heat.

As the heavens opened during World Youth Day celebrations Saturday night, Benedict's skullcap was swept off and an assistant tried to shelter the 84-year-old po...

Pope says priests must live saintly lives

2011-08-20T07:00:23Z

MADRID (Reuters) - Pope Benedict said Saturday Roman Catholic priests must live saintly lives and men should only enter the priesthood if they were convinced they could live by all the Church's rules, including celibacy.

On the third day of a visit that has been marked b...

Pope leads service recalling sins, child abuse

2011-08-19T17:30:17Z

Pope Benedict XVI, seated before a sea of young pilgrims in Madrid, led a service Friday recalling Christ's crucifixion and the world's sins, including rape and crimes against children.

The 84-year-old pontiff presided from a vast white stage in city's Plaza Cibeles square over a Stations of the Cross devotion marking the torments of Spain (Reuters) - Pope Benedict warned on Friday that education was more than training for work and said it ought to also lead the young to "love, reason and faith."

On the second day of his trip to Spain for the

Catholic youths hail pope at world fest in Spain

2011-08-19T01:30:08Z

Hundreds of thousands of young pilgrims have given Pope Benedict XVI a rapturous reception as he presided over a lavish ceremony during Catholic festivities in a sweltering Madrid.

Thursday's adoring welcome was in sharp contrast to scenes nearby, where baton-wielding Spanish anti-riot police dispersed about 150 anti-pope protesters who had gathered in the capital's Puerta ...

Youths from across the world hail 'Benedicto' in Madrid

2011-08-18T20:30:10Z

Hundreds of thousands of young pilgrims gave Pope Benedict XVI a rapturous reception as he presided over a lavish ceremony Thursday during Catholic festivities in a sweltering Madrid.

The adoring welcome was in sharp contrast to scenes nearby, where baton-wielding anti-riot police dispersed about 150 anti-pope protesters who had gathered in a square.

It was the secon...

Hackers attack site of Catholic youth celebrations

2011-08-18T13:30:32Z

Hackers temporarily blocked the official World Youth Day site Thursday just as Pope Benedict XVI arrived in Madrid to preside over the festivities, a spokeswoman for the event said.

The site (www.madrid11.com) was taken down for about an hour at around midday (1000 GMT) and the event's computer experts were trying to determine the source of the attack, the spokeswoman said....

Pope starts Spain visit with call for economic ethics

2011-08-18T10:00:22Z

MADRID, Aug 18 (Reuters) - Pope Benedict denounced economic structures that put profits ahead of people Thursday at the start of a trip to recession-hit Spain where the costs of the pontiff's visit have sparked violent protests.

...

Spain anti-pope protesters face off with pilgrims

2011-08-17T19:30:35Z

Thousands of protesters angry over a visit by Pope Benedict XVI for a lavish youth festival took to Madrid's streets, to be confronted by Catholic pilgrims and riot police.

The protesters were separated by lines of riot police from the pilgrims who sang "hallelujah" and sat on the ground and prayed, but clashes broke out when the police arrested an anti-pope demonstrator ...

John Paul II musical packs crowd ahead of papal visit

2011-08-17T18:30:15Z

About 1,500 people flocked to a musical about John Paul II's life, including his years as a student under Nazi rule in Poland, on Wednesday in Madrid on the eve of Pope Benedict XVI's arrival in the city.

The show, called "No Tengais Miedo" or "Fear Not", is bustlin...

Anti-pope protesters face off with pilgrims in Madrid

2011-08-17T17:30:20Z

Thousands of protesters angry over a visit by Pope Benedict XVI for a lavish youth festival took to Madrid's streets Wednesday, and were confronted by Catholic pilgrims who sang "hallelujah" and sat on the ground and prayed.

No serious incidents were reported as dozens of riot police kept the two groups apart in and around the central Puerta del Sol square.

"God yes,...

Spanish gays plan 'kiss-in' protest for pope

2011-08-17T08:30:31Z

Spanish gays and lesbians say they will hold a protest "kiss-in" Thursday in front of Pope Benedict XVI when he joins huge Catholic youth festivities in Madrid.

The kiss-in is being organised on Facebook by gay groups including Asamblea Transmaricabollo de Sol, which was set up during popular "indignant"...

French businessman pays Belgian face veil fines

2011-08-17T06:30:57Z

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - A French businessman paid fines Wednesday for two women in Belgium who wore full-face veils in public and said he would take Belgium and France to court over laws banning Muslim niqabs and burqas.

Property dea...

Priests to forgive abortion in Pope youth festival

2011-08-17T05:00:12Z

MADRID (Reuters) - The Vatican has granted priests the right to forgive the sin of abortion when hearing the confessions of hundreds of thousands of young people attending a Roman Catholic youth festival in Spain<...

Pilgrims attend giant Madrid mass, launch party for pope

2011-08-16T18:30:16Z

Hundreds of thousands of sweltering pilgrims crammed into central Madrid for a giant open-air mass Tuesday, launching a million-strong, six-day Catholic youth party for Pope Benedict XVI.

The rock-festival style celebration of World Youth Day has drawn faithful from 193 nations, according to organisers -- but also criticism in the midst of Madrid on Tuesday, launching a lavish six-day youth party for Pope Benedict XVI.

The faithful will pack into the emblematic central Madrid square of Cibeles for an inaugural mass celebrated by Madrid's archbishop, Cardinal Antonio Maria Rouco Varela.

A massive white stage decorated wi...

Dutch sex abuse panel probes 1950s Catholic deaths

2011-08-16T04:00:12Z

AMSTERDAM (Reuters) - A Dutch commission investigating sexual abuse by Roman Catholic priests has found an unusually high number of deaths of minors at a church-run hospital in the early 1950s, the public prosecutor said.

A statement by the prosecutor's office on Tuesday reported "a considerably higher number of deaths ... of minors" at the p...

Catholic pilgrims pour into Madrid for youth festival

2011-08-15T13:30:13Z

Catholic pilgrims from across the world flocked to Madrid Monday for a youth festival expected to draw more than a million faithful, with the highlight an open-air mass celebrated by Pope Benedict XVI.

The World Youth Day festival, which runs from Tuesday to Sunday, has been criticised, however, for the costs involved in welcoming the head of the Europe's biggest producers of household paper products, has launched toilet paper in the colours of the Vatican flag in honour of Pope Benedict XVI's visit to Spain next week.

Each pack contains two perfumed rolls of toilet paper, one ye...

Report shows rise in restrictions on religion

2011-08-09T06:30:11Z

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Nearly a third of the world's population lives in countries where it is becoming more difficult to freely practice religion, a private U.S. research group reported on Tuesday.

The Pew Research Center's Forum on Religion and Public Life said government restrictio...

German footballers may eat during Ramadan: council

2011-08-03T13:30:50Z

Germany's Central Council of Muslims said it was advising Islamic professional football players that they need not fast during Ramadan, ahead of the regular season resuming Friday.

"The professional player can make up the fasting days during periods when there is no match and in that way show his respect for God and the holy...

Rate your priest on new Website

2011-08-02T09:30:21Z

BERLIN (Reuters) - You can rate your restaurant meal, your make-up, your teacher online and now in Germany your priest.

Hirtenbarometer (http://hirtenbarometer.de) or the "shepherds' barometer" is the first online platform where priests can be rated for their performance...

Rate your priest on new German website

2011-08-02T06:00:09Z

BERLIN (Reuters Life!) - You can rate your restaurant meal, your make-up, your teacher online and now in Germany your priest.

Hirtenbarometer (http://hirtenbarometer.de) or the "shepherds' barometer" is the first online platform where priests can be rated for their perfo...

German priest arrested, accused of child abuse: police

2011-07-17T16:30:10Z

BERLIN (Reuters) - A German Catholic priest has been arrested on suspicion of sexually abusing a child, police said Sunday.

"The accused priest has admitted the allegations made against him in police questioning," police in the city of Braunschweig said on their website.

The news comes days after the

German priest arrested on abuse suspicion: report

2011-07-17T07:30:07Z

BERLIN (Reuters) - German police have arrested a Catholic priest on suspicion of sexually abusing a child, Der Spiegel magazine reported on its website, citing the prosecutor's office.

The news of the arrest comes days after the MADRID (Reuters Life!) - Spanish police are investigating the disappearance of the Codex Calixtinus, a valuable 12th century manuscript, from the Santiago de Compostela cathedral in northwestern region of Galicia, a spokesman said on Thursday.

The manuscript is...

Dutch vote to ban religious slaughter of animals

2011-06-28T09:30:25Z

AMSTERDAM (Reuters) - The Dutch parliament voted on Tuesday to ban ritual slaughter of animals, a move strongly opposed by the country's Muslim and Jewish minorities, but left a loophole that might let religious butchering continue.

The bill by the small Animal Rights Party, the first such group in Britain's Equality Act by updating its rules to permit celibate homosexual men to be promoted.

The paper, entitled "Choosing Bishops - The Equality Act 2010", provides legal guidelines for those cons...

'Growing support' in N. Ireland for staying in UK

2011-06-17T12:30:23Z

Almost three-quarters of people in Northern Ireland, including a majority of Catholics, want the province to remain part of the UK, according to a poll on Friday.

Some 73 percent want to remain part of the United Kingdom either with direct rule from London or with the current devolved administration in Henry VIII and the English civil war, but beautiful examples of early religious art in churches are now under threat from neglect and even heating, experts warned Wednesday.

The painted rood screens -- the stone or wooden structures that divide the public part of a church from the priest's area -- depict saints, prophets and kings and some are viewed as masterpieces of medieval art.

...

Liberal U.S. Catholics say Church not listening

2011-06-12T15:00:09Z

DETROIT (Reuters) - Members of a liberal group of U.S. Roman Catholics on Sunday called on Church leaders to open talks with their members on controversies ranging from the ordination of women to allowing priests to marry.

Members of the American Catholic Council, meeting in Detroit, said they had grown concerned the church's hierarc...

Archbishop launches rare attack on government

2011-06-09T06:30:31Z

The leader of the world's Anglicans, Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams, launched a rare attack on Britain's coalition government on Thursday for introducing radical reforms "for which no one voted."

In the most outspoken political intervention by a Church of England figure for two...

Muslim creationists tour France denouncing Darwin

2011-05-16T06:30:19Z

AUBERVILLIERS, France (Reuters) - Four years after they first frightened France, Muslim creationists are back touring the country preaching against evolution and claiming the Koran predicted many modern scientific discoveries.

Followers of Harun Yahya, a well-financed Turkish publisher of popula...

Belief in a supreme being strong worldwide: Reuters/Ipsos poll

2011-04-25T05:00:09Z

NEW YORK (Reuters Life!) - Belief in a god, or a supreme being, and some sort of afterlife is strong in many countries around the globe, according to a new Ipsos/Reuters poll.

Fifty one percent of the 18,829 people across 23 countries who took part in the survey said they were convinced there is an afterlife and a divine entity, while 18 percent said ...

Welcome migrants fleeing strife: Pope

2011-04-24T04:30:06Z

VATICAN CITY (Reuters) - Pope Benedict, in his Easter message to the world, on Sunday lamented that the day's joy was marred by war in Libya and urged VATICAN CITY (Reuters) - Pope Benedict, in his Easter message to the world, on Sunday lamented that the day's joy was marred by war in Libya and urged Europe

French niqab law contradicts freedom: Iraq's Sadr

2011-04-14T08:30:41Z

Niqabs, the full-face veils worn by conservative Muslim women, are not required by Islam but banning them by law is an affront to liberty, radical Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr said Thursday.

His remarks come in response to a draconian new law in France, implemented on Monday, that bars women from wearing the niqab or burka, a head-to-toe body covering, in the stre...

US backs right to wear religious attire

2011-04-12T18:31:02Z

The United States endorsed Tuesday the right of people to "express religious belief through religious attire" after French police fined a woman for wearing a full-face veil.

US State Department spokesman Mark Toner stood up for freedom of religion and expression, but stopped short of criticizing Church of England said on Tuesday it would introduce increased scrutiny of wedding applications in a bid to prevent sham marriages.

Under the new rules, couples will have to apply for a marriage licence if either the bride or the groom is not from a country in the European Economic Area (EEA).

The clergy will also be urged to report any concerns they have that the marriage is only taking place to help illeg...

France bans Muslim full-face veil

2011-04-11T05:30:16Z

France, home to Europe's biggest Muslim population, banned the wearing of full-face veils in public Monday, despite threats of protest from a groups that already feels stigmatised.

The draconian new law, the first of its kind to be enforced in Europe, was immediately broken by a young woman from the southern city of Avignon, who has become the media symbol of France's tiny community of niqab wea...

France starts ban on full-face veil

2011-04-11T01:30:08Z

PARIS (Reuters) - France's ban on full face veils, a first in Europe, went into force on Monday, and anyone wearing the Muslim niqab or burqa in public could now face a fine of 150 euros ($216), or lessons in French citizenship.

The center-right government, which passed the law in October, ha...

France bans the burqa

2011-04-10T20:30:23Z

France -- home to Europe's biggest Muslim population -- on Monday officially banned women from wearing full-face veils in public places.

Other European countries have drawn up bans on the burqa and the niqab but France is the first to risk stirring social tensions by putting one into practice.

The law comes into effect at an already fraught moment in relations between the state and France'...

French full veil ban goes into force

2011-04-10T15:30:40Z

PARIS (Reuters) - France's ban on full face veils, a first in Europe, went into force Monday, exposing anyone who wears the Muslim niqab or burqa in public to fines of 150 euros ($216).

A Muslim property dealer, who is urging women to keep wearing the veil if they want to, has ur...

Berlin opera house reaches out to Turkish minority

2011-03-29T13:30:32Z

Berlin's avant-garde Komische Oper opera house said Tuesday it plans to reach out to the German capital's large Turkish minority with translations of performances on screens at every seat.

In a first for Germany, wracked for months by a debate on the integration of its Muslim community, the...

Catholic church ordains married man

2011-02-22T09:00:19Z

BERLIN (Reuters) - A married father of two was ordained as a priest by the Catholic Church in Germany on Tuesday after receiving an exemption to priestly celibacy from Pope Benedict XVI.

Harm ...

German Catholic church ordains married man

2011-02-22T08:30:07Z

BERLIN (Reuters Life!) - A married father of two was ordained as a priest by the Catholic Church in Germany on Tuesday after receiving an exemption to priestly celibacy from Pope Benedict XVI.

Germany opens first reform synagogue since WW2

2011-02-21T08:30:06Z

BERLIN (Reuters Life!) - Germany opened its first new reform synagogue since the Holocaust on Sunday, marking a major step in the revival of Reform Judaism, which traces its roots to the country.

The synagogue in the northern city of Hameln was built on the foundation of its predeces...

Christian groups reject civil partnerships plan

2011-02-17T08:32:21Z

Plans to allow civil ceremonies to be held in religious buildings were announced on Thursday but the changes have been met with outrage from some church groups.

Same-sex couples, who can currently only hold the ceremony in a secular setting, will be allowed to use religious venues following an amendment to the Equality Act.

No religious group will be forced to host civil partnership registrations, which will be "entirely voluntary", the government stressed.

Equalities ...

Ex-priest charged in collection cash theft

2011-02-08T10:00:12Z

BERLIN (Reuters) - A retired German priest has been charged with 50 counts of fraud over the theft of 1 million euros' ($1.4 million) worth of church donations, state prosecutors in Wuerzburg said Tuesday.

The former Roman Catholic priest, aged 77, was detained in May on suspicion of taking donations and collection money from hi...

German Catholics urge reforms as papal visit nears

2011-02-04T07:32:24Z

PARIS (Reuters) - Over 140 Roman Catholic theologians in Germany have urged the church to embrace far-reaching reforms to end priestly celibacy, ordain women, welcome same-sex couples and let lay people help pick their bishops.

The appeal, the second reform call in two weeks, came as the German church is struggling to overcome a wave...

German state mulls burqa ban for civil servants

2011-02-03T14:30:40Z

The German state of Lower Saxony is considering banning the Islamic full-face veil for civil servants, its interior minister said Thursday, after a neighbouring region said it would take similar measures.

"The burqa has no place in public service," Uwe Schuenemann told the Neue Presse regional daily. "Lower Saxony is currently looking at legal regulations for employees and officials."

On Wednesday, the weste...

Govt used £1.85m of aid money for pope's visit

2011-02-03T06:31:17Z

The government used £1.85 million from its foreign aid budget to help pay for the pope's state visit last year, lawmakers revealed Thursday.

A parliamentary committee unveiled the "somewhat surprising" use of the money in a report analysing the annual accounts of the Department for International Development (DfID).

A DfID spokesman defended the move, however, saying that the contribution recognised the Catholic Church's work in development and in any case was taken from ...

Govt used foreign aid money for pope's visit

2011-02-02T16:30:55Z

Britain used £1.85 million from its foreign aid budget to help pay for the pope's state visit last year, lawmakers revealed Thursday.

A parliamentary committee unveiled the "somewhat surprising" use of the money in a report analysing the annual accounts of the Department for International Development (DfID).

A DfID spokesman defended the move, however, saying that the contribution recognised the Catholic Church'...

Baroness Warsi attacks 'acceptable' Islamophobia

2011-01-20T11:30:45Z

The first Muslim woman to sit in the British cabinet warned Thursday that discrimination against Muslims in Britain has become socially acceptable and must be tackled.

"It has seeped into our society in a way where it is acceptable around dinner to have these conversations where anti-Muslim hatred and bigotry is quite openly discussed," minister without portfolio Sayeed...

Anglican bishops ordained as Catholic priests in London

2011-01-15T08:00:08Z

LONDON (Reuters) - Three former Church of England bishops who are opposed to the consecration of women bishops were ordained as Roman Catholic priests on Saturday, the first traditionalist Anglicans to take up an offer by Pope Benedict.

The three bi...

Europe sex ed an 'attack' on religious freedom: pope

2011-01-10T14:30:25Z

Sex and civic education in schools in Europe is an "attack" on religious freedom, Pope Benedict XVI said on Monday, following a Vatican row with Spain over a new course promoting liberal values.

"I cannot remain silent about another attack on the relig...

Iraqi Christians join Christmas worship in France

2010-12-26T14:30:26Z

Iraqi Christians who survived the deadly storming of a Baghdad church attended a special Christmas mass on Sunday in France, where they were evacuated following the attack.

"This mass is held especially for the survivors of the attack of October 31," said Elish Yako, leader of a French association supporting Iraq's Christians, at the mass in...

Pope to give UK Christmas message on British radio

2010-12-23T08:30:42Z

Pope Benedict XVI to give UK Christmas message during broadcast on British radio

Pope Benedict XVI will deliver a message to Britain on Christmas Eve on BBC radio.

The pop...

Ex-Belgian church leader urges more openness

2010-12-21T05:00:24Z

Former Belgian Catholic leader says church abused its powers, neglected its victims

The former leader of the Catholic Church in Belgium is calling for more openness and transparency within the church to make sure that child abuse scandals by priests do not happen again.

Cardinal Godfried Danneels told a p...

Scientist alleges religious discrimination in Ky.

2010-12-17T03:00:15Z

Astronomer says religious beliefs disqualified him from job at Univ. of Kentucky observatory

An astronomer argues that his Christian faith and questions about the theory of evolution kept him from getting a prestigious job as the director of a new student observatory at the University of Kentucky three years ago.

Martin Gaskell quickly rose to the top of a l...

France 'concerned' at Palestinian jailed for blasphemy blog

2010-12-16T16:30:40Z

France said Thursday it was "concerned" about the arrest of a young Palestinian blogger jailed for posting "blasphemous" remarks online.

"France is concerned by the risks of damage to fundamental freedoms and in particular the freedom of expression, contained in the 'crime of blasphemy'," a foreign ministry spokeswoman said.

"Freedom of religion and of conscience and freedom of expression... guarantee the right to have no religion a...

Embalmed head of France's King Henri IV found

2010-12-15T12:30:37Z

LONDON (Reuters) - A team of scientists say they have positively identified an embalmed head, presumed lost in the chaos of the French Revolution, as that of King Henri IV of France who was assassinated in 1610.

The head was apparently lost after revolutionaries desecrated the graves of French kings in the royal basilica of Saint-Denis near Paris i...

Religion News in Brief

2010-12-15T12:00:51Z

Religion News in Brief

The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Boston is the latest diocese in the U.S. to announce that it must freeze pensions for workers.

The change will hit about 10,000 church secretaries, parochial school teachers and other lay employees in the Boston archdiocese.

Several other dioceses are taking the same step, including

German abuse victims "humiliated" by compensation

2010-12-13T09:00:34Z

BERLIN (Reuters) - German victims of abuse in foster homes said on Monday the 120 million euros proposed as compensation was "humiliatingly" small compared with damages awarded in other countries, and vowed to fight for more.

After a two-year inquiry, a government-appointed panel on Monday recommended 120 million euros be set as...

Pope: Dictatorships can only be destructive

2010-12-12T06:00:30Z

Pope on 'false prophets': Dictators change the world in destructive ways

Pope Benedict XVI, who spent his youth in Hitler's Germany, says dictators boast that they will change the world, but just bring destruction.

The pontiff's reflections on what he calls history's "false prophets" came in off-the-cuff remar...

Dutch public believes Church covered up abuse: poll

2010-12-12T02:31:42Z

AMSTERDAM (Reuters) - A large majority of the Dutch public believes Roman Catholic Church authorities covered up sexual abuse, a poll found Sunday, revealing the extent of the damage to the Church's reputation in THE HAGUE (Reuters) - Almost 2,000 people have declared themselves victims of sexual and physical abuse while they were minors in the care of the Roman Catholic Church in the Netherlands, ...

Germany's angst about Islamists goes mainstream

2010-12-04T21:30:17Z

Even Germany joins in as Europe's cultural clash with radical Islam goes mainstream

The 200 robed and bearded men gathered at dusk on the market square, rolled out their prayer rugs and intoned Allah's praises as dismayed townspeople looked on.

It was Ramadan, the Muslim fasting month, and the group that calls itself "Invitation ...

German Jews celebrate beginning of Hanukkah

2010-12-01T07:00:49Z

Germany's Jewish community sets up menorah in front of iconic Brandenburg Gate

The leaders of Berlin's Jewish community set up a 20-foot (six-meter) tall menorah for Hanukkah on Wednesday aga...

Britain Tuition Tangle

2011-01-04T08:04:09Z

FILE - This is a Thursday, Dec. 9, 2010 file photo of Britain's Prince Charles and Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, as they react as their car is attacked by angry protesters in London. British police released a video Tuesday Jan. 4, 2011 of ...

Germany Partial Solar Eclipse

2011-01-05T08:02:05Z

A partial solar eclipse is pictured through clouds in Albershausen, southwestern Germany, on Tuesday, Jan. 4, 2011. (AP Photo/dapd, Daniel Kopatsch)

...

Australia Flooding

2011-01-05T08:06:21Z

In this photo released by the Northern Territory Police, four German tourists rest on the roof of their vehicle as they wait for their rescue from the flooded Magela Creek, near Jabiru, Australia, Monday, Jan. 3, 2011. Drenching rain that started before Christmas has flooded an area the size of France and Real Madrid's Kaka from Brazil runs with the ball during a Spanish La Liga soccer match against Getafe at the Coliseum Alfonso Perez stadium in Getafe, Spain Monday, Jan. 3, 2011. Memphis Grizzlies center Marc Gasol, right, of Spain and his brother Los Angeles Lakers forward Pau Gasol of Spain tangles under the basket during the first half of their

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