In Brief

‘Rastafarian temple’ raided LONDON – British police raided what they described as a Rastafarian temple in south London yesterday and arrested 23 people in an anti-drugs and firearms operation.

The Metropolitan police said the premises, which included a Rastafarian temple once visited by reggae musician Bob Marley, are suspected of being used for ‘high level’ criminality. “This operation is a joint initiative by police and the local authority aimed at protecting the communities in south London from serious criminality,” a statement said.The premises, where a Rastafarian community has lived since at least the early 1970s, have been raided in the past to evict squatters.Police said Thursday’s operation was on-going and provided no further details.* Ritual killings challenged LIBREVILLE – A three-year-old in Gabon was killed after having been kidnapped, raped and burnt with an iron as part of what may have been a ritualistic ceremony, family members and others said on Wednesday.One of the suspects in the killing was attacked by an angry crowd on Tuesday and later died from his wounds, they said.Police have detained the other two.The young boy, named Diamant, disappeared from his home in the capital of Libreville on Sunday afternoon and his body was discovered that night in a car, his grandmother said.There were burns on his feet and back.Police confirmed the incident, but declined to give further details.The head of the Gabonese Association for the Fight Against Ritual Crimes said the murder carried the marks of a ritual, a recurring practice in the country.The rituals often involve kidnapping young people and mutilating them to collect body parts to be used in ceremonies believed to bring health, power and wealth.Jean-Elvis Ebang Ondo, president of the association, said the boy’s fingers and tongue were collected.* Man tattoos ‘unfaithful’ wife SINGAPORE – A man who tied his wife’s arms and legs to the corners of a bed frame and branded her naked body as a loose woman with tattoos was sentenced to three years in prison and ordered to receive six lashes of the cane, news reports said yesterday.Suspecting his spouse of infidelity, the husband enlisted the help of a friend in the incident in August 2006.”Your conduct is extremely humiliating and totally disproportionate to the perceived wrong done to you,” The Straits Times quoted Community Court Judge Eddy Tham as saying on Wednesday.There were civilised options available, such as counselling.The tattooing was not an impulsive act but one carried out with premeditation after deliberate planning, the judge added.The 33-year-old woman’s mouth was stuffed with a towel, the court heard.The husband grabbed her breasts while his accomplice put tattoos on them.The attackers then moved on to her abdomen and forearms, the report said.Nampa-Reuters-AFP-Sapa”This operation is a joint initiative by police and the local authority aimed at protecting the communities in south London from serious criminality,” a statement said.The premises, where a Rastafarian community has lived since at least the early 1970s, have been raided in the past to evict squatters.Police said Thursday’s operation was on-going and provided no further details. * Ritual killings challenged LIBREVILLE – A three-year-old in Gabon was killed after having been kidnapped, raped and burnt with an iron as part of what may have been a ritualistic ceremony, family members and others said on Wednesday.One of the suspects in the killing was attacked by an angry crowd on Tuesday and later died from his wounds, they said.Police have detained the other two.The young boy, named Diamant, disappeared from his home in the capital of Libreville on Sunday afternoon and his body was discovered that night in a car, his grandmother said.There were burns on his feet and back.Police confirmed the incident, but declined to give further details.The head of the Gabonese Association for the Fight Against Ritual Crimes said the murder carried the marks of a ritual, a recurring practice in the country.The rituals often involve kidnapping young people and mutilating them to collect body parts to be used in ceremonies believed to bring health, power and wealth.Jean-Elvis Ebang Ondo, president of the association, said the boy’s fingers and tongue were collected. * Man tattoos ‘unfaithful’ wife SINGAPORE – A man who tied his wife’s arms and legs to the corners of a bed frame and branded her naked body as a loose woman with tattoos was sentenced to three years in prison and ordered to receive six lashes of the cane, news reports said yesterday.Suspecting his spouse of infidelity, the husband enlisted the help of a friend in the incident in August 2006.”Your conduct is extremely humiliating and totally disproportionate to the perceived wrong done to you,” The Straits Times quoted Community Court Judge Eddy Tham as saying on Wednesday.There were civilised options available, such as counselling.The tattooing was not an impulsive act but one carried out with premeditation after deliberate planning, the judge added.The 33-year-old woman’s mouth was stuffed with a towel, the court heard.The husband grabbed her breasts while his accomplice put tattoos on them.The attackers then moved on to her abdomen and forearms, the report said.Nampa-Reuters-AFP-Sapa