Boxing: Usyk stops Dubois to retain world heavyweight titles

WROCLAW, Poland -- Oleksandr Usyk of Ukraine retained his world heavyweight titles with a ninth-round knockout of Britain's Daniel Dubois in Wroclaw, Poland on Saturday.

Victory meant Usyk kept hold of the World Boxing Association, World Boxing Organization and International Boxing Federation belts.

It also extended his perfect professional record to 21 wins from 21 bouts.

Dubois, however, claimed he had been "cheated" out of victory after referee Luis Pabon ruled he had struck Usyk with a low blow in the fifth round, which led to a lengthy delay.

But former World Boxing Council super-middleweight champion Richie Woodhall, commentating at ringside, described his fellow Briton's punch as a "borderline shot".

Usyk recovered to drop Dubois down on one knee in the eighth round after landing with several punches to the head.

Dubois just beat the count before the bell sounded for the end of the round.

But the fight was all over in the next, with Usyk sending Dubois onto the canvas.

This time the challenger was unable to get back to his feet before the referee counted to 10.

"I feel good. I am grateful for my team, my family, my children. I love you," Usyk told TNT Sports.

"I'm grateful for my country and the Ukrainian army. Thank you so much."

Asked about the prospect of a unification bout with Britain's Tyson Fury, the World Boxing Council heavyweight champion, Usyk replied: "I'm ready tomorrow".

Dubois, however, was adamant his punch in the fifth round was legitimate, saying: "I didn't think that was a low blow, I thought it landed and that I've been cheated out of it tonight. I'll come again."

- 'Rematch' -

Veteran promoter Frank Warren added: "It wasn't a low blow. I wish they could put it up on there now and we could all see it. They didn't take any points off him.

"I like Usyk, but that was a complete 'home' decision. He was not fit to go on and they gave him a couple of minutes to recover... The governing bodies will have to look at that and order a rematch."

The 36-year-old Usyk was roared on by a large contingent of Ukrainian fans, with many of his compatriots now living in Poland following Russia's invasion of their country last year.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky appeared on the giant screens before the fight to deliver a patriotic rallying cry amid the ongoing war with Russia.

Usyk had the better of the early exchanges but rank outsider Dubois, a 25-year-old Londoner, defied predictions he'd suffer an early defeat.

Then came Dubois's controversial punch in the fifth, which may have been on the belt line in some eyes.

After the bout resumed, Dubois attacked and traded punches with Usyk.

The ill-feeling between the duo was visible at the end of the round and Dubois continued his attack to the body in the sixth.

But Usyk started to dominate from then on, dropping Dubois in the eighth round before charging in again in the ninth, flooring the challenger once more before Pabon waved the fight off.

Agence France-Presse

‘Beginning of the end’: Upbeat Poland cuts COVID-19 isolation

WARSAW — An end to the COVID-19 pandemic is in sight, the Polish health minister said on Wednesday, as he announced a cut to the isolation period for people infected with the coronavirus and looser quarantine rules.

Poland saw record daily case numbers as recently as two weeks ago, but with infections falling and the effects of Omicron appearing to be milder than previous variants, authorities believe the time is right for a lighter touch.

"We are dealing with the beginning of the end of the pandemic," Adam Niedzielski told a news conference. "In February, declines in infections should be relatively large."

From Feb. 15 the isolation period for people with COVID-19 will be cut to seven days from 10. People in the same household will only be quarantined during the isolation period.

From Feb. 11, people from outside an infected person's household who have come into contact with them will not be quarantined. Quarantine for travelers without a COVID vaccination certificate will also be cut to seven days.

Education Minister Przemyslaw Czarnek said school pupils would return to on-site learning from Feb. 21.

In comments published earlier on Wednesday, Niedzielski said Poland may lift its COVID-19 restrictions in March if daily infection numbers kept falling at the current rate.

"If the tempo at which infections are falling remains the same, there is a realistic prospect of lifting restrictions in March," Niedzielski told the Fakt tabloid.

He said wearing masks in closed spaces would become a recommendation rather than a requirement.Poland currently requires people to wear masks in enclosed public spaces and there are limits on the number of unvaccinated people allowed in restaurants and other venues. The regulations are often not strictly enforced.

The country of around 38 million people has reported 5,271,016 cases of the coronavirus and 107,204 deaths.

-reuters-

Poland to vaccinate 12-year-olds, join EU COVID certificate scheme

WARSAW - Poland will offer COVID-19 vaccinations to children aged 12-15 from June 7 and is also joining an EU certificate scheme to make travel easier, ministers said on Tuesday.

The European Commission on Friday authorized the Pfizer/BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine for use in that age group after the European Medicines Agency (EMA) said the shot was safe and effective for them.

"Due to the decisions of the European Medicines Agency and the recommendation of the Medical Council, we have made a decision that from June 7, vaccinations of children aged 12 to 15 will begin. This is 2.5 million students," Michal Dworczyk, the minister charge of the country's vaccination drive, told a news conference.

Health Minister Adam Niedzielski also said that as of Tuesday Poland was joining the European Union's COVID certificate program, intended to make travelling in the bloc easier.

This makes Poland one of the first seven countries to join the program, which will formally start on July 1, he said.

"Poland is among the leaders who will be able to issue these certificates for the use of their citizens from June 1," Niedzielski said.

-reuters-

Poland announces first coronavirus case

WARSAW - Poland on Wednesday announced its first case of coronavirus while adding that nearly 70 people were being tested for the disease.

The man, who had visited Germany, is "not part of a risk group" and his life is not in danger, Health Minister Lukasz Szumowski told a news conference.

He indicated the man was not elderly, whose lives are at greater risk.

He was hospitalized in the western city of Zielona Gora with a high fever and other symptoms of the disease that has killed more than 3,000 people and infected around 92,000 globally.

Szumowski said the patient had "relatively little contact" with other people.

Another 68 people are undergoing tests in Polish hospitals to determine whether they are suffering from COVID-19, while around 500 are in quarantine, Szumowski said.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Football: Poland, Russia reach Euro 2020

Germany, Netherlands close in

PARIS, France -- Poland and Russia secured their places at Euro 2020 on Sunday with victories over North Macedonia and Cyprus respectively, while Germany and the Netherlands boosted their hopes of reaching the finals.

Russia eased to a 5-0 thrashing of 10-man Cyprus, with Poland joining them, Belgium and Italy in qualifying this week by seeing off North Macedonia 2-0.

Stanislav Cherchesov's Russia, who reached the World Cup quarter-finals on home soil last year, only had to avoid defeat in Nicosia to follow Belgium in qualifying from Group I.

Valencia winger Denis Cheryshev fired in a ninth-minute opener for the visitors, before Magomed Ozdoev, who scored a fabulous long-range strike on Thursday against Scotland, made it two midway through the first half.

Any thoughts of a Cyprus comeback were ended in just the 28th minute when Kostas Laifis was dismissed for a nasty lunge on Russian full-back Sergei Petrov.

Striker Artem Dzyuba scored his third goal in two games in the 79th minute, before Aleksandr Golovin and Cheryshev's second completed the rout late on.

Russia will attempt to overtake Belgium, who beat Kazakhstan 2-0 earlier on Sunday, at the summit when they host the world's number one side on November 16.

The European Championship finals, which start on June 12 next year, are being held at 12 different venues across the continent, including Saint Petersburg in Russia.

Poland went into their game against North Macedonia knowing victory would punch their ticket for the Euros.

They were forced to be patient by the visitors, who could qualify through the playoffs after winning their Nations League group if they fail to do so automatically.

But Przemyslaw Frankowski prodded home less than 60 seconds after coming on as a substitute in the 74th minute, before Akardiusz Milik made the points safe.

Poland remain three points clear of Austria, who won 1-0 in Slovenia, at the top of Group G, with North Macedonia and Slovenia five points further adrift.

- Dutch see off Belarus -

Ronald Koeman's Netherlands remained at the top of Group C ahead of Germany on head-to-head record with a nervy 2-1 win over Belarus in Minsk.

The Dutch lead third-placed Northern Ireland by three points after beating Michael O'Neill's side 3-1 on Thursday.

Georginio Wijnaldum headed the away team in front in the 32nd minute, shortly after Denis Laptev had spurned a golden chance to give Belarus a shock lead.

The Liverpool midfielder doubled the advantage before the break with a wonderful 25-yard strike into the top corner, and although Stanislav Dragun gave Belarus hope early in the second half, the Netherlands held on with relative comfort.

"We have to do better than we did in the second half, although in the end we had things under control," Dutch captain Virgil van Dijk told television channel NOS.

"We are now very close to qualifying for the finals, and ultimately that's what counts."

Victory in Belfast over the Northern Irish next month would secure the Oranje a first appearance at a major tournament since finishing third at the 2014 World Cup.

Germany eased to a 3-0 victory in Estonia despite seeing Emre Can sent off in the 14th minute.

Ilkay Gundogan, who along with Can before kickoff 'unliked' a controversial Instagram post by Turkey forward Cenk Tosun, scored twice, with Timo Werner also finding the net.

Joachim Loew's side host Northern Ireland in their final game, which could decide second place.

"We had to regroup after the red card, the team did well after the break, we did not concede and scored three goals," said Loew.

- Wales hold up Croatia -

Croatia were made to wait to qualify, as Gareth Bale's strike in first-half injury time proved enough to grab a 1-1 draw for Wales in Cardiff.

Nikola Vlasic fired a low ninth-minute shot in off the post to put Croatia on course for qualification, before Bale's fine goal secured Wales a point in a bad-tempered affair.

Last year's World Cup runners-up Croatia will qualify if they avoid defeat against Slovakia in their final match on November 16, while Euro 2016 semi-finalists Wales could join them with two closing wins, as long as Slovakia do not beat the Croatians.

"We've got to win both games and rely on others. But we're in it. I wanted to be in it after these games," Wales manager Ryan Giggs told Sky Sports.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

FIBA World Cup: Poland pulls shocker

Poland are shock quarter-finalists at the World Cup but the team have even grander ambitions -- proving once and for all that theirs is a basketball country.

Under their well-travelled American coach Mike Taylor, the Poles are one of the stories of the tournament in China, or "the new kids on the block" as he put it.

They are back at the World Cup after a 52-year hiatus but are doing much more than merely making up the numbers.

Poland defeated the hosts in overtime in a cauldron-like atmosphere in Beijing in the first round and on Friday made it a scarcely believable four wins in a row with the scalp of old foe Russia.

Argentina's victory over Venezuela hours later confirmed Poland's unlikely place in the last eight.

"It means everything," said Taylor, 47, whose varied coaching career has spanned NBA development teams, posts in Britain and Germany, and a position with the Czech team.

"The country can take self-confidence from the performance of these players. We can compete, we can do it," Taylor said after Poland dismissed Russia 79-74 thanks to a fourth-quarter blast.

"We hope these guys can inspire the next generation."

Name-checking the likes of Serbia, who look easily good enough to topple World Cup holders the United States, Taylor said that there was "tremendous competition" in Europe.

"Other teams have had more achievements and success," he said.

"What we are trying to do is to establish that Poland can do it too."

Taylor's unheralded men are making headlines back home.

News of their win over Russia, coming back from six points behind after the first quarter, even saw a political gathering in Warsaw interrupted by cheers.

Maciej Zielinski, a former player with the national team, called it "an unimaginable event."

"I do not know what I can compare it to -- when we last experienced such a thing," he told Polish media.

Rocky road

In charge since 2014, Taylor may now be greeted with national acclaim when Poland eventually fly home, but it was not long ago that he faced calls for his head.

Two years ago, Poland won only one of five matches at the EuroBasket championship.

Fast forward and he and his men are talking about a potentially pivotal moment for basketball in the country of nearly 40 million people.

"We waited 52 years for this," said Aleksander "Olek" Balcerowski, whose father Marcin stars for Poland's wheelchair basketball team.

The 7ft 1in (215cm) center is the youngest player in the tournament in China at age 18, held up as a symbol of Poland's brighter future.

"We worked so hard to come here to show that Poland can ball," he told the website of governing body FIBA.

"And that's it, we are here to show that Poland is a basketball country."

Poland's last appearance in the Basketball World Cup was in 1967 in Uruguay, where they finished fifth.

The 2019 vintage will end the second group phase against Argentina on Sunday, before taking their already confirmed place in the last eight.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Pride and prejudice: Poland at war over gay rights before vote

WARSAW - Poland's October general election is shaping up to be dominated neither by the economy nor politics as the devout Catholic country goes to war over LGBT rights, denounced by the governing conservatives and an archbishop as a "threat" to their way of life.

Homosexuality became the hottest electoral issue after PiS leader Jaroslaw Kaczynski condemned gay rights as a "threat" in April and put the issue high on his party's campaign agenda.

The leftist opposition has seized recent sparring over LGBT as an opportunity to slam the ruling Law and Justice (PiS) party for its close alliance with the influential Catholic Church.

"For the PiS, it's political fuel. It allows the party to reaffirm its political identity, its attachment to traditional values in the face of the wave of Westernization," political analyst Stanislaw Mocek told AFP.

"But the other side has also found a political weapon there, in the form of defending minority rights."

Poland remains staunchly Catholic and conservatives are increasingly campaigning against LGBT, or gender "ideology" which they believe threatens traditional family values.

In May, a woman put up posters of the Virgin Mary with a rainbow halo, prompting police to detain her for "desecration".

Interior Minister Joachim Brudzinski tweeted: "All that nonsense about freedom and 'tolerance' doesn't give ANYONE the right to insult the faithful's beliefs."

In July, a court ordered news magazine Gazeta Polska to halt the distribution of anti-gay stickers reading "This is an LGBT-free zone".

The caption picked up on a trend at local government level where PiS allies have declared themselves "free of LGBT ideology".

Also last month, weekend violence marred the first gay pride parade in the eastern Polish city of Bialystok where football hooligans, some with far-right sympathies, attacked marchers and police.

The incident sparked a series of protests with Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki condemning the violence but failing to speak out against the anti-LGBT campaign.


'Rainbow plague'

This month, Archbishop Marek Jedraszewski added fuel to the fire when he used a sermon to warn against the LGBT movement.

"The red plague no longer runs on our land," the clergyman said, referring to communism.

"But a new plague has emerged, neo-Marxist, that wants to seize our souls, hearts and spirits. A plague that is not red but rainbow."

The uproar was immediate: Poles took to the streets in Warsaw and the southern city of Krakow, brandishing rainbow flags and shouting "Shame!" and "Resign!".

YouTube initially blocked a recording of the sermon, then reinstated it.

A member of the Dominican religious order, Pawel Guzynski, urged Poles to write letters calling for the archbishop's resignation.

Other faithful took to the airwaves of the conservative Catholic station Radio Maryja to call for letters to be sent to the Vatican defending Jedraszewski.

Another episode in the LGBT battle looks set to take place at Saturday's gay pride parade in the central city of Plock, with members of the far-right planning to protest.

Around 50 residents sent the mayor a letter asking him to withdraw his patronage of the event.


'Ideological campaign'

Conservative Catholics believe Poland is the target of an "ideological campaign" by LGBT circles, backed and financed by international organizations such as the ILGA-Europe rights groups' network.

The argument was notably made by Marcin Przeciszewski, the head of Poland's KAI Catholic information agency.

In support, he cited the anti-discrimination "LGBT+ declaration" adopted by Warsaw city hall in February, as well as the conclusions of a congress that united dozens of activist groups in the Polish capital in March.

Przeciszewski added that legislation has been drafted in favor of civil unions and gay marriage, though such texts have no chance of a green light from the current PiS-controlled parliament.

For Mocek, the debate touches on the nature of democracy.

"According to a traditional definition of democracy, the majority governs and must protect the rights of the minority," he said.

"But for the PiS, since the majority governs, it has the right to impose its will, and that's something that could lead to an attack on minority values."

Campaigning on a platform of generous social spending, PiS appears on track to win a second consecutive term in the election, according to recent opinion polls.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

China's Huawei fires employee detained in Poland

BEIJING - Huawei said Saturday it has fired a Chinese employee who was arrested in Poland on espionage allegations, as China's telecom giant distanced itself from the case amid Western concerns that it could act as a proxy for Chinese security services.

This week's detention of Wang Weijing follows the December arrest of Huawei's chief financial officer in Canada and US efforts to blacklist the company internationally over security concerns.

While China's government has vociferously defended Huawei CFO Meng Wanzhou and demanded her release, the firm swiftly sacked Wang, who works at its representative office in Poland.

"His alleged actions have no relation to the company," Huawei said in a statement to AFP.

"In accordance with the terms and conditions of Huawei's labor contract, we have made this decision because the incident in question has brought Huawei into disrepute," it said.

"Huawei complies with all applicable laws and regulations in the countries where it operates, and we require every employee to abide by the laws and regulations in the countries where they are based."

A Polish man was also arrested for alleged espionage along with Wang on Tuesday. Both men are suspected of having "worked for Chinese services and to the detriment of Poland," said Polish special services spokesman Stanislaw Zaryn.

He said their apartments and workplaces were searched, adding that the Polish suspect had worked "for several state institutions".

The Chinese foreign ministry said Friday it was "highly concerned" about the case and later said it was seeking to arrange a consular visit for Wang as soon as possible.

The Chinese embassy in Poland has also asked Warsaw to "effectively ensure the legitimate rights and interests, and humanitarian and safe treatment of the person involved."

WESTERN FEARS

According to the LinkedIn profile of "Stanislaw Wang" -- Wang's Polish name, according to Polish media TVP -- the detained Huawei employee worked at the Chinese consulate in Gdansk, Poland prior to his tenure at the Chinese tech firm.

At Huawei, Wang worked as a public relations director for more than five years before moving into his current role as sales director in 2017.

He is a graduate of the Beijing University of Foreign Studies.

His case is the latest setback for Huawei.

Its chief financial officer Meng Wanzhou was arrested in Vancouver on December 1 on request from the United States, which has accused her of fraud related to violations of Iran sanctions.

Meng is the daughter of Huawei founder Ren Zhengfei, a former Chinese People's Liberation Army engineer.

Following her arrest two Canadians were detained in China on grounds of endangering national security, in what has largely been seen as retaliation.

Meng's arrest sparked a surge of patriotism in China with companies encouraging staff to buy Huawei smartphones -- and several companies even offering employees subsidies to buy phones from the home-grown company.

'NO EVIDENCE'

Huawei in December said it expects to see a 21 percent rise in revenue for 2018 despite what it called "unfair treatment" around the world, as several countries banned its telecommunications technology.

Last month, Britain's largest mobile provider BT said that it would remove Huawei equipment from its cellular network after the foreign intelligence service called the company a security risk.

Australia and New Zealand have also enacted similar bans, leaving Canada the only country in the "Five Eyes" intelligence network not to take steps against the Chinese firm.

Last month, a senior EU official warned that the bloc should be "worried" about Huawei and other Chinese firms.

Huawei has rejected Western concerns, saying there was "no evidence" that it poses a threat to the national security of any country.

Huawei's business is thriving in many places. Last year the company said it had signed memorandums of understanding for 5G equipment with 45 operators in Asia, Europe and North America.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Catholic church agrees to buy pope statue in Poland row

RENNES, France - French town councilors have agreed to sell the Catholic Church a statue of late pope John Paul II that sparked a diplomatic row with Poland. 

The bronze statue has stood in a car park since a Russian artist gifted it to the small northwestern town of Ploermel in 2006. 

But in October France's highest administrative court ordered town authorities to remove the cross overhanging it, on the grounds that it breaks a 1905 secularism law.

The decision sparked debate over France's tradition of secularism, or "laicite", which tightly restricts the public display of religious symbols and is fiercely defended by many French.

The laws regularly prompt public debate over issues affecting Muslims such as the wearing of the veil, but is also sometimes invoked in debates over Christian symbols, such as Christmas nativity scenes.

Last year, tens of thousands of people signed online petitions protesting the removal of the cross and Poland's then prime minister Beata Szydlo offered to have the statue of the Polish pope shipped there to "save it from censorship".

Local mayor Patrick Le Diffon's solution was to sell the statue, which looms 7.5 meters (25 feet) tall over the car park, to the Catholic Church for 20,000 euros ($24,000).

It will be moved a few dozen meters down the street onto a piece of Church-owned land next to a Catholic school, where it will still be visible to the public.

Secular activists challenged the statue through the courts even before it went up, and have hailed the October court ruling as a victory.

"It's what should have happened from the start," said Andre Le Beherec, head of the local Freedom of Thought association which took town authorities to court.

Even the rightwing former mayor who put the statue up, Paul Anselin, said ahead of the vote that he backed the sale simply as a means of ending the saga.

"We have to move on from this situation," said the 87-year-old former paratrooper.

But he regretted the fact that the town was selling off a statue that had been offered as a gift.

"Selling presents, it just isn't done," he said.

aag/kjl/cb/klm

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Gay Christians to join Catholic World Youth Day in Poland

WARSAW - Gay and transgender Christians will set up a ministry during World Youth Day, when Pope Francis is expected to meet hundreds of thousands of young Catholics in southern Poland later this month.

Leaders of the Warsaw-based "Faith and Rainbow" LGBT organization say they want to minister to the thousands of gay, lesbian and transgender people attending the event by setting up a "LGBT Pilgrim's Haven".

"We want to create a space in which they will feel safe and where they will find answers to issues facing them," organizer Misza Czerniak told the Monday edition of Poland's Rzeczpospolita broadsheet daily.

Organizers however told AFP their initiative is not officially a part of World Youth Day, running June 26-31 in and around Krakow, southern Poland.

The group will set up the "Pilgrim's Haven" in a cafe in Krakow's Kazimierz Jewish quarter.

American Jesuit priest Jim Mulcahy, described on the group's Facebook page as "an experienced pastor and spiritual father of many LGBT believers" in Eastern Europe will be among featured speakers.

Pope Francis will spend five days at the event, arriving on July 27 and concluding his visit on July 31.

Earlier in his papacy, Francis famously remarked "Who am I to judge?" about homosexuality but in April refused to recognize homosexual couples in new Church guidelines on family life.

Francis noted that bishops who reviewed Catholic teaching on same sex couples at synods in 2014 and 2015 had observed that "there are absolutely no grounds for considering homosexual unions to be in any way similar or even remotely analogous to God's plan for marriage and family."

While the guidelines also expressed opposition to "every sign of unjust discrimination" based on sexual orientation, they include no positive language about gay relationships.

Held once every three years, this year's World Youth Day will be the 31st edition of the event, initiated in Rome in 1986 by John Paul II.

The last was held in Rio de Janeiro in 2013, shortly after Francis' election as pope.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

Germany puts two SS men on trial over Auschwitz killings

BERLIN, Germany - Two former SS men will go on trial this month for their alleged complicity in the murder of thousands of people at Auschwitz, as Germany accelerates its bid to prosecute ageing Third Reich criminals.

Reinhold Hanning, 93, faces court in the western town of Detmold from Thursday, charged with at least 170,000 counts of accessory to murder in his role as a former guard at the camp in occupied Poland.

Hubert Zafke, 95, will have to answer at least 3,681 counts of complicity in killings in separate proceedings in the eastern town of Neubrandenburg from February 29.

Zafke was a medical orderly at the camp in a period when 14 trains carrying prisoners -- including the teenage diarist Anne Frank -- arrived at Auschwitz-Birkenau where many would eventually be killed in the gas chambers.

Holocaust survivor Angela Orosz, who will take the witness stand in the Hanning trial, told AFP that all Auschwitz staff "were part of this killing machine."

"Without these people and their active support for the Holocaust, what happened in Auschwitz, the murder of 1.1 million people in just a few years, would not have been possible, and perhaps many of my family members would still be alive," said Orosz, who was born in Auschwitz just over a month before it was liberated on January 27, 1945.

The defendants face between three and 15 years in jail, but in view of their advanced age and the period required for any appeals, they are unlikely to serve time.

'AGE HAS NO BEARING'

Nevertheless, Andreas Brendel, who leads the prosecuting team against Hanning, said Germany "owes it to victims and their relatives" to pursue Third Reich criminals.

"Age has no bearing for me," he said.

Ronald Lauder, president of the World Jewish Congress, agreed.

"If anyone deemed responsible for any aspect of the Holocaust is still able to stand trial, he or she should be prosecuted," he told AFP.

"As long as it's possible to bring any of them to justice, it must be done. There is no statute of limitation for mass murder, and there shouldn’t be."

The two trials come on the heels of last year's high-profile case against Oskar Groening, dubbed the "Bookkeeper of Auschwitz".

Groening was sentenced last July to four years in prison, even though he had previously been cleared by German authorities after lengthy criminal probes dating back to the 1970s.

But the legal foundation for prosecuting ex-Nazis changed in 2011 with the German conviction of former death camp guard John Demjanjuk, solely on the basis of his having worked at the Sobibor camp in occupied Poland.

Separately, a German court announced Friday that another former guard at Auschwitz, 93-year-old Ernst Remmel, would have to stand trial in April.

'FACILITATED KILLINGS'

Hanning, like Demjanjuk, was a camp guard, and stands accused of having watched over the selection of which prisoners were fit for labour, and which should be sent to gas chambers.

He is also deemed to have been aware of the regular mass shooting of inmates at the camp, as well as the systematic starvation of prisoners.

"Through his capacity as a guard, he facilitated... the several thousand killings of inmates by the main perpetrator," prosecutors said.

Hanning has admitted to working in Auschwitz but denies a role in the killings.

Zafke likewise claimed he knew nothing of the mass murder.

Ahead of proceedings, prosecutors said the former medic was "aware of the purpose of the Birkenau camp as an extermination camp" as well as of its structure.

"Given his awareness, the accused lent support to the organisation of the camp and was thereby both involved in and advanced the extermination," said prosecutors, who are meanwhile seeking to have the presiding judges removed for partiality.

The prosecutors claim that the judges are planning to declare Zafke unfit for trial on the opening day, thereby halting the proceedings.

A first court had earlier quashed the trial, finding that Zafke was suffering from dementia.

But an appeals court overturned that decision. It acknowledged that he had "cognitive impairments and low physical capacity" but ordered regular breaks during the hearings, as well as medical care.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

Horse DNA found in burgers at second major Irish plant

DUBLIN - Burgers containing horse DNA have been discovered at a second major plant in Ireland, the country's agriculture department said on Monday, again pointing the finger at Poland as the country of origin for the raw materials.

Food companies such as Tesco and Burger King last month found that beef products supplied by an Irish firm contained horse DNA, a scandal that has hit retailers with a wave of bad publicity and left Ireland's 2 billion euro ($2.7 billion) beef industry reeling.

Results of tests on a Polish meat ingredient at Ireland's Rangeland Foods, a supplier of frozen burgers to restaurants, caterers and pubs including local fast food chain Supermac's, contained 75 percent horse DNA, the agriculture department said in a statement.

"This isn't a huge surprise, it's another depressing saga that has put Irish food in the headlines for all the wrong reasons," Irish Agriculture Minister Simon Coveney told national broadcaster RTE.

"It's not a surprise to me because this is the same product that has been going into Silvercrest," he said, referring to the plant run by Ireland's most powerful beef baron Larry Goodman, the first whose burgers were found to contain horsemeat.

Coveney's department said Rangeland has suspended production pending the outcome of an investigation and the company has indicated that none of the products, which were imported through a meat trader based in Ireland, had entered the food chain.

Rangeland, based in the northern county of Monaghan, exports burgers to Britain, Sweden, Spain, Belgium, the Netherlands, Greece and Cyprus. Coveney said the product containing the horse DNA was destined for the catering industry outside Ireland.

LEGAL ACTION

Initial tests on burgers produced by another Irish company, Liffey Meats, also tested positive for low traces of horse DNA, although further tests came back clear.

The minister said the only two other burger manufacturers in the country had both confirmed they have not used any Polish products, and that their products are 100 percent Irish sourced.

He has also asked the police and the fraud squad to join in the investigation and said the government would take legal action against those responsible if necessary.

Silvercrest - a subsidiary of Europe's largest beef exporter ABP Foods which is based just 6 kilometres (3.7 miles) from Rangeland - has lost its contract to supply both Tesco and Burger King with burgers.

Burger King, one of the most popular fast food chains in Britain and Ireland, said last week its affected burgers never reached any eateries. Tesco withdrew a number of products from its shelves, including one sample where horse meat accounted for about 29 percent of content.

Smaller retail chains Aldi, Lidl and Iceland have also sold beef products found to contain horse DNA.

Poland's veterinary authority found no signs of horse meat in samples from five slaughterhouses that were sending beef to Ireland and is awaiting results from the sixth, state news agency PAP reported on Friday.

Food safety experts say horse DNA poses no added health risks to consumers, but the discovery has raised concerns about the food supply chain and the ability to trace meat ingredients.

source: abs-cbnnews.com

Polish president, wife among dozens dead in jet crash

Source- gmanews.tv



MOSCOW — Polish President Lech Kaczynski and some of the country's highest military and civilian leaders died Saturday along with dozens of others when the presidential plane crashed as it came in for a landing in thick fog in western Russia.

Russian and Polish officials offered conflicting death tolls but agreed there were no survivors on the Soviet-era Tupolev, which was taking the president, his wife and staff to events marking the 70th anniversary of the massacre of thousands of Polish officers by Soviet secret police.

The Army chief of staff, Gen. Franciszek Gagor, National Bank President Slawomir Skrzypek and Deputy Foreign Minister Andrzej Kremer were also on board, the Polish foreign ministry said.

The head of Russia's top investigative body, Sergei Markin, said there were 132 people on the Tu-154. Poland's Foreign Ministry spokesman, Piotr Paszkowski, said there were 89 people on the passenger list but one person had not shown up.

"We still cannot fully understand the scope of this tragedy and what it means for us in the future. Nothing like this has ever happened in Poland," Paszkowski said. "We can assume with great certainty that all persons on board have been killed."

The governor of the Smolensk region, where the crash took place about 11 a.m. (0700 GMT), also said no one survived.

State news channel Rossiya-24 showed footage from the crash site, with pieces of the plane scattered widely amid leafless trees and small fires burning in woods shrouded with fog. A tail fin with the Polish red and white colors stuck up from the debris.

"The Polish presidential plane did not make it to the runway while landing. Tentative findings indicate that it hit the treetops and fell apart," Sergei Anufriev said on Rossiya-24. "Nobody has survived the disaster."

The presidential Tu-154 was at least 20 years old. Polish officials have long discussed replacing the planes that carry the country's leaders but said they lacked the funds. According to the Aviation Safety Network, there have been 66 crashes involving Tu-154s, including six in the past five years. The Russian carrier Aeroflot recently withdrew its Tu-154 fleet from service.

The crash is likely to be a setback in Polish-Russian relations, which had been improving of late after being poisoned for decades over the Katyn massacre.

Russia never has formally apologized for the murders of some 22,000 Polish officers, but Prime Minister Vladimir Putin's decision to attend a memorial ceremony earlier this week in the forest near Katyn was seen as a gesture of goodwill toward reconciliation. Rossiya-24 showed hundreds of people around the Katyn monument, many holding Polish flags, some weeping.

In Warsaw, Prime Minister Donald Tusk called an extraordinary meeting of his Cabinet and the national flag was lowered to half-staff at the presidential palace, where people gathered to lay flowers and light candles.

Black ribbons appeared in some windows in the Polish capital.

Poland's president is commander-in-chief of its armed forces but the position's domestic duties are chiefly symbolic. Kaczynski, 60, became president in December 2005 after defeating Tusk in that year's presidential vote.

The nationalist conservative was the twin brother of Poland's opposition leader, former Prime Minister Jaroslaw Kaczynski. Kaczynski's wife, Maria, was an economist. They had a daughter, Marta, and two granddaughters.

Kaczynski had said he would seek a second term in presidential elections this fall. He was expected to face an uphill struggle against Parliament speaker Bronislaw Komorowski, the candidate of Tusk's governing Civic Platform party.

According to the constitution, Komorowski would take over presidential duties.

Poland, a nation of 38 million people, is by far the largest of the 10 formerly communist countries that have joined the European Union in recent years.

Last year, Poland was the only EU nation to avoid recession and posted economic growth of 1.7 percent.

It has become a firm U.S. ally in the region since the fall of communism — a stance that crosses party lines.

The country sent troops to the U.S.-led war in Iraq and recently boosted its contingent in Afghanistan to some 2,600 soldiers.

U.S. Patriot missiles are expected to be deployed in Poland this year. That was a Polish condition for a 2008 deal — backed by both Kaczynski and Tusk — to host long-range missile defense interceptors.

The deal, which was struck by the Bush administration, angered Russia and was later reconfigured under President Barack Obama's administration.

Under the Obama plan, Poland would host a different type of missile defense interceptors as part of a more mobile system and at a later date, probably not until 2018.

Kaczynski is the first serving Polish leader to die since exiled World War II-era leader Gen. Wladyslaw Sikorski in a plane crash off Gibraltar in 1943.

U.S. State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley said Saturday, "This is a horrible tragedy for Poland and we extend to the people of Poland our deepest condolences."

Neighboring Germany's foreign minister, Guido Westerwelle, said he was "shocked and full of sadness" at Kaczynski's death.

"All the German people are mourning with our Polish neighbors," Westerwelle said during a visit to South Africa. —AP