Gitmo Koran desecration story may have been wrong, say Newsweek editors News
Gitmo Koran desecration story may have been wrong, say Newsweek editors

[JURIST] After days of deadly anti-US rioting in Afghanistan [JURIST report], protests in other Muslim countries, and condemnations [JURIST report] of American actions by civil and judicial leaders around the Muslim world, Newsweek editors have backtracked on their story of Koran abuse by US personnel at Guantanamo Bay [Newsweek report] that ran in the magazine's May 9 issue. Writing in the issue hitting newsstands Monday, Newsweek writers cited Pentagon denials [VOA report] of any evidence backing up the allegation and explained that the anonymous "senior government official" who had apparently been the source of the original report on the basis of what he claimed to have read in a military document "could no longer be sure that these concerns had surfaced in the SouthCom report" he had seen. Newsweek editor Mark Whitaker said "We regret that we got any part of our story wrong" and went on to "extend our sympathies to victims of the violence and to the US soldiers caught in its midst." Newsweek has more. BBC News has additional coverage.

THIS DAY @ LAW

Laws of Burgos put into effect

The Spanish Crown put the Laws of Burgos into effect on December 27, 1512. These laws governed the relationship of Spanish settlers with the indigenous peoples of the Caribbean. The laws established the encomienda system of labor, promoted conversion to Catholicism, and safeguarded the indigenous peoples from physical abuse.  However, historians argue that the laws were ineffective at protecting the rights of the indigenous population. Learn more from the Library of Congress.

Prohibitionist Carrie Nation carried out her first public bar smashing

On December 27, 1900, militant Prohibitionist Carrie Nation carried out her first public smashing of a bar, at the Carey Hotel in Wichita, Kansas. Nation argued that destroying bars was an acceptable means of battling the liquor trade since the Kansas Constitution prohibited alcohol. Learn more about Carrie Nation.

World Bank created

On December 27, 1944, the World Bank was created during the United Nations Monetary and Financial Conference in Bretton Woods, New Hampshire, USA. Learn more about the history of the World Bank.