Channel 4’s Dispatches programme on Monday said that at least half of the Conservative shadow cabinet are members of the Conservative Friends of Israel (CFI), one of a number of pro-Israel lobby organisations.

The prorgramme, entitled ‘Inside Britain’s Israel Lobby’, said that such organisations make up “one of the most powerful and influential political lobbies in Britain”, but that “little is known” about these groups and their associated individuals.

CFI members and their businesses are alleged to have donated more than $16.8m to the Conservative Party over the past eight years.

The alleged donations include tens of thousands of pounds to William Hague, after he was appointed shadow foreign secretary in 2005.

The documentary alleged that Lord Kalm, a CFI member and significant donor to the Conservatives, threatened to remove Hague’s funding after he said that Israel had used “disproportionate” force during its war in Lebanon in 2006.

David Cameron, the Conservative leader, is alleged to have promised not to repeat the conjecture.

‘Transparent’

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Keith Cowell, 52, his son Matthew, 17, and Tony Dulieu, 33, from Essex, were killed at the Cowells’ Hertfordshire house on 28 August 2007.

Miran Thakrar, 24, of no fixed address, was sentenced at St Albans Crown Court to serve a minimum of 42 years.

Kevan Thakrar, 21, of Lomond Way, Stevenage, will be sentenced later.

The Thakrars were also found guilty of the attempted murders of Christine Jennings, 54, and Matthew Cowell’s girlfriend, Clare Evans, 23, at the house in Bishop’s Stortford, last August, and of possessing a firearm.

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The proposed £10.5 million scheme would aim to provide a new Cabot Primary School with increased capacity for 420 pupils – plus a Children’s Centre to provide care for young children, specialist support for their parents and carers and potentially even a new family doctor’s surgery.

The project is envisaged as part of the Dove Lane regeneration programme, being taken forward by a consortium of two leading developers working with local interest groups.

Cllr Derek Pickup, Executive Member for Children’s Services, said: “This is a very exciting, ambitious and innovative proposal and it’s got my full backing.

“It won’t be an easy scheme to deliver and there are many issues that still need to be resolved. But if we can pull this off we will make a significant difference to the life chances of children in one of our city’s most disadvantaged areas.

“ By giving support in principle to this scheme the Cabinet would be demonstrating its commitment to tackling social and educational disadvantage in an part of our city where many people are from the African and African Caribbean communities.

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The four black poachers wore camouflage clothing and had parked their car by a neighbouring farm. From there they went on foot to the game park. The white owners of the farm weren’t home but were out patrolling another area for poachers.

The four intruders assaulted and tied up a maid on the Imire farm. Two more farm workers were beaten up and forced to show the way to the rhinos’ pen. The poachers then overpowered, disarmed and tied up the guards by the pen.

The poachers fired several shots that killed three adult rhinos. Four baby rhinos that were in another pen survived the attack.

DJ, shot dead by poachers on Imire Safari Ranch. Photo: Imire Safari Ranch

Amber, killed only a week away from giving birth. Photo: Imire Safari Ranch

Amber’s unborn calf did not survive the attack on its mother. Photo: Imire Safari Ranch

Despite the rhinos having been dehorned six weeks earlier and their horns having regrown only a couple of inches, the poachers started hacking away at one of the animals to get at the horn but the sound of an approaching car made them flee to their car where all traces of them disappeared. The police were called for that same evening but didn’t arrive on the scene until the morning after.

A reward fund has been set up by the game park so that a reward can be given to anyone able to supply information that leads to the arrest and conviction of the perpetrators who annihilated the black rhino breeding stock of the Imire Safari Ranch. For further information the owners of the farm can be contacted via e-mail imiregp (at) zol.co.zw

Tatenda, one of the rhino babies who survived but lost her mother DJ and her father Sprinter during the attack on Imire safari Ranch in the beginning of November. In this article’s first picture you can see how the poachers had hacked away at Sprinter despite the rhino having been dehorned. Photo: Imire Safari Ranch

The orphaned Tatenda is being bottle fed by one of Imire’s owners, Judy Travers, who is thanked with a big rhino kiss. Photo: Imire Safari Ranch

The elephants who often walk together with the rhinos on Imire Safari Ranch gathered where the rhinos were shot and just like elephants do when one of their own is killed, they tried to dig a grave. The elephants were visibly upset by the killing of the Imire rhinos. Poto: Imire Safari Ranch

Since the late 1990’s the white-owned farms in Zimbabwe have been fair game to the country’s dictator Mugabe and his hoodlums. Of formerly around 3500 white farmers now only a few hundred remain. Zimbabwe’s economy has capsized in direct correlation to the rate at which its white farmers have been persecuted, murdered and driven out of the country. Its people are facing constant threats of starvation catastrophies. In spite of this, white farmers who continue farming and animal keeping are even being prosecuted and risk being sentenced to prison.

Zimbabwe’s minister of lands, Didymus Mutasa, has said that the remaining white farmers will be forced out, one way or another, wrote British Telegraph in connection with the trials earlier this year of ten white farmers who refused to leave their lands.

“The position is that food shortages or no food shortages, we are going ahead to remove the remaining whites,” commented Mutasa.

Zimbabwians as well as the country’s wild life consequently face further suffering. As recently as in 2005 South African media reported that Mugabe had ordered employees at Zimbabwe’s national parks and nature management areas to kill wild animals to be used for feeding starving peasants in the countryside.

The attack on Imire Safari Ranch and its rhino population is yet another cruel setback for the decades of labour to preserve the unique fauna of Zimbabwe.

Charlotte Thorbjörnsson

The organisation AfricanCrisis have documented the cruelty that’s been perpetuated on the wild as well as domestic animals of Zimbabwe since the black seizure of power.Warning due to upsetting pictures.

Violence against white farmers and their black employees in Zimbabwe.Warning due to upsetting pictures.

Ali Aqeel Salamat (34), of Clifton Avenue, was found guilty at Oldham Magistrates’ Court of failing to notify the council that he worked as a taxi-driver while claiming £295.76 in benefits from July 1, 2004, to January 17, 2005.

Salamat’s case was investigated after he completed a housing and council tax benefit claim form in which he declared that he and his wife, Naveen Akhtar, received working and child-tax credits.

He also said that he earned a gross pay of £91.30 for working 20 hours a week as a shop-floor worker but did not state any other earned income.

The trial heard that on October 10, 2005, Salamat completed another form in which he said he did not work but received £100 every two weeks for taxi rent from June 2, 2005. His case was passed to the council’s benefit fraud unit when it was found he had not declared income received from his position as a Labour councillor.

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The firm, which provides homes for refugees across Britain, is run by former asylum seekers who now live in Birmingham.

It is believed to have received £1 million a month from the Home Office and Birmingham City Council – and last year won a major contract to provide homes for the next five years.

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Kelfkens, who worked at a Catford practice, used Azari’s details to claim from the NHS for precious metal fillings for 168 patients, including gold, when he had only fitted them with cheaper metal filings.

Azari, 41, of Oakwood Avenue, Beckenham, was jailed for a year and struck off the register in January 2005 after admitting four charges of deception.

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Khurshid Ahmed, who represents Werneth, in Oldham, was arrested at the town’s police station yesterday. He had gone there with a solicitor.

Last month another Werneth councillor, Labour’s Fida Hussain, was arrested on suspicion of money laundering. He was bailed until May 8.

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The home of Werneth councillor Fida Hussain was raided by police yesterday as part of a five-month investigation into money laundering.

Councillor Hussain said: “The police have conducted their inquiries, which they quite rightly should, and I’ve given them my full support and co-operation.

“The only thing I can certainly say is I’m absolutely clean and my life is like an open book.

“I absolutely refute any allegations and that will be revealed in forthcoming inquiries.”

He added: “I am innocent.”

Two vans from the Tactical Aid Unit were parked outside the councillor’s Newport Street home for three hours as officers searched the extensive property.

Mr Hussain (45) was arrested on suspicion of money laundering and taken into custody and has since been bailed pending further inquiries.

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