demands – 4VF News – Daily News Channel

Kidnapped Bikers: Is Lebanon Being Sucked Into Regional Unrest?

The recent abduction of seven Estonian tourists on a cycling holiday has revived memories of darker times and stirred fears that the unrest sweeping the Arab world may be spilling into Lebanon. Neighboring Syria is experiencing its most serious bout of internal unrest in decades, spurring a violent crackdown by the authorities who blame the anti-regime protests on “foreign conspirators.” The abduction of the Estonian tourists has left many Lebanese gloomily predicting that Lebanon cannot avoid being sucked into the vortex of its influential neighbor’s domestic crisis.

Nelson Mandela

In a recent television broadcast BBC commentator Brian Walden argued that Nelson Mandela, “perhaps the most generally admired figure of our age, falls short of the giants of the past.” Mandela himself argues that “I was not a messiah, but an ordinary man who had become a leader because of extraordinary circumstances.” Clearly, a changing world demands redefinition of old concepts.

Winning on and off the tennis court

Elizabeth and Mary Profit will not be taking center court at the U.S. Open women’s doubles final to face Venus and Serena Williams, but they share many of the athletic qualities that have made Venus and Serena the most dominant sisters in tennis history

After a Violent Day in Pakistan, Zardari Backs Down

Even by Pakistan’s standards, where violence has routinely scarred the landscape, the scenes were startling. For several hours on Sunday, the heart of this eastern city was witness to street battles as baton-wielding police mounted a fierce but ultimately failed attempt to crush a gathering of anti-government lawyers and political activists. As the country’s enduring political confrontation entered its decisive phase, President Asif Ali Zardari pressed on with his crackdown on opposition groups in a bid to thwart a “long march” for the reinstatement of deposed Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry