Free Republic

IT WAS the first night of Ramadan and Abdullah was fast asleep on the soft desert sand by his fuel tanker when he was woken by a cold gun barrel poking into his neck. “Bandits,” he thought with a flash of fear as a pair of knees pinned his chest to the ground. Blinded by panic, he tried to struggle away before the gun could be fired. But to his surprise, his assailant turned him over roughly and tied his hands behind his back before hauling him off behind a nearby sand dune. Then, in the moonlight, he caught his ...

Newly Discovered Risk for Jewish Children at Passover: Paraffin Oil Lamps Apr 3, 2004 By Verena Dobnik/ Associated Press Writer/ NEW YORK (AP) - As Jewish families prepare for Passover, their toddlers face a newly discovered danger: poisoning from the lamp oil that lights up their holy days, according to a study released this month. The risk of paraffin oil poisoning among Orthodox children in New York is 370 times higher than in the general population, according to the study, published in this month's issue of the journal Pediatrics. "The lamps have a metal tube that serves as a wick....