Free Republic

One of the most influential Arab journalists in the world, Jamal Khashoggi, went missing after entering the Saudi consulate in Istanbul last week. Turkish authorities have blamed the Saudis, but Riyadh has denied harming the veteran reporter.Jamal Khashoggi, 59, was born in Medina, Saudi Arabia, one of the holiest cities in Islam. Like many Saudis at the time, Khashoggi left to study abroad. He earned a business administration degree in 1983 at Indiana State University in the United States.Career in journalismKhashoggi began his career as a reporter for the English language newspaper Saudi Gazette. He went on to work for...

Britain's late Princess Diana has been posthumously baptised a Mormon. The royal - who was killed in a Paris car crash in August 1997 - was 'baptised' by the church after her death, even though she didn't belong to the religion. Diana - former wife of heir to the throne Prince Charles - was listed by her maiden name, Diana Frances Spencer, with her address as the family seat of Althorp, Northamptonshire. Her file also includes her birth and death date, according to the Daily Mail newspaper. Other late stars to have been 'baptised' posthumously include Charlie Chaplin, Marilyn Monroe...

[Snip] In other words, Mrs. Obama is managing to set herself up, unprecedentedly, as the "people's First Lady." She has carefully studied not only Jackie Kennedy - a comparison obvious from her sheath dresses, boat collars, and page-boy haircut - but also the triumphs and failures of that other glamorous but underestimated stealth radical, Princess Diana.

Last week, a London court began pondering the vexed question of whether Diana, Princess of Wales, was, ahem, murdered. There was so much public suspicion, declared the coroner, Lord Justice Scott Baker, that it was time for the rumors to be either "dispelled or substantiated." So who killed her? On the night of Diana's death in 1997, there were apparently two top agents for MI6, the British secret service, on the loose in Paris, and possibly a third, if you believe that Henri Paul, the chauffeur, was also on the spooks' payroll. That's the theory of Mohammed Fayed, Monsieur Paul's...

Diana Inquiry More Complex Than Expected By DAVID STRINGER Associated Press Writer LONDON An inquiry into the death of Princess Diana is "far more complex than any of us thought," the official leading the investigation said Friday without commenting on the conspiracy theories that persist nearly nine years after her death. Lord Stevens, the former head of London's Metropolitan Police, acknowledged that some of the issues raised by Mohammed al Fayed _ whose son, Dodi, was killed in the 1997 car crash with Diana _ were "right to be raised." He did not elaborate. Mohammed al Fayed, the owner of...

On the eve of the eighth anniversary of Princess Diana's death, she has been honoured with a new sculpture dedicated to both her and her companion Dodi Fayed, who also died in the 1997 Paris car crash. The bronze statue, entitled Innocent Victims, was commissioned by Dodi's father, Harrods owner Mohammed Al Fayed. Created by family friend Bill Mitchell, it is due to occupy a special place inside the legendary London store. The work depicts Diana and Dodi smiling into each other's eyes as they apparently run along a beach together, with a bird poised for flight at the tip...

US to Alter Land Mine Policy By Joshua Kucera, JDW Staff Reporter, Washington, DC The US announced on 27 February that it would continue to use some land mines indefinitely and would not sign an international treaty outlawing the weapons, reversing the position of the previous administration. The Bush administration said it would allow the military to continue to use 'smart' land mines, which can be deactivated when a conflict is over. It also said it would continue to use the more traditional persistent land mines until 2010 on the Korean peninsula, rather than 2006 as was the policy of...

NEW YORK (Reuters) - A U.S. comic book publisher has decided to let Princess Diana rest in peace, dropping plans to reincarnate her as a mutant comic superhero this fall, the company said on Thursday. Marvel Enterprises Inc. said in a statement that "upon reflection" it will remove Diana and all references to the royal family in its upcoming "X-Statix" monthly comics. The about-face follows a recent announcement by Marvel Comics that it planned to introduce Diana as one of a team of super-powered mutants in a five-series storyline called "Di Another Day." Company spokespeople were not immediately available to...