"THIS CROWD WAS OUT OF CONTROL," said Nassau Police Det. Lt. Michael Fleming, whose squad is investigating. "NOBODY WAS TRYING TO HELP HIM," said shopper Nakea Augustine, who was in the line. "They were rushing in the store, rushing, rushing, rushing."

During the fracas, first-responders struggled to reach Damour to tend to him, witnesses said. Even the first police officers on the scene were jostled around, police said. "It was chaos," said Kimberly Cribbs of Far Rockaway, who was in line and entered the store as Damour was being attended to.

Witness Kimberly Cribbs said all those people who got in went right on shopping after the worker was run over. "OH YES, THEY'RE SAVAGES," Cribbs said.

Dressed in jeans, T- shirts and trainers, they landed in four boats and carried huge quantities of almonds in their rucksacks - food for a long siege. Witnesses reported that the terrorist attackers in Mumbai were like a 'jihadist infantry', lobbing grenades and using AK-47 assault rifles to mow down terrified bystanders.

India is no stranger to terror attacks. The victims of these atrocities join the 600 killed in the country over the past six years. Most of these outrages have involved coordinated bomb blasts, like those on Mumbai's railways which killed 209 people in July 2006.

Indian prime minister Singh is in no doubt that the attack had a 'foreign' dimension and the Times of India is reporting that the captured terrorists include Pakistanis. But what were the terrorists trying to achieve? The immediate aim is simply to destabilise India's economy, for Mumbai is a major tourist centre and home to a stock exchange and the reserve bank. THE REAL GOAL COULD BE TO START NUCLEAR CONFLICT BETWEEN INDIA AND PAKISTAN.

WILL 2008 BE REMEMBERED AS THE YEAR THAT KILLED THE EURO-SKEPTICS? It certainly didn't begin that way. Back in June, the people of Ireland stunned the world by voting down the Treaty of Lisbon, bringing the project of ever-closer European integration to a screeching halt. Then, in August, the EU got another jolt when war broke out between Russia and Georgia.

These days, though, such bickering seems like ancient history. Between summer's turbulence and today's reality, the New York investment bank Lehman Brothers failed in mid-September, sending the world into a financial tailspin from which it might take years to recover. But instead of sounding the death knell for what was an already flailing EU, THE FINANCIAL CRISIS HAS HAD THE EFFECT OF BREATHING NEW LIFE INTO A BLOC that just a couple months ago looked deflated and defeated.

Now, from Iceland to the Czech Republic, previously wary populations are warming to the EU, heaping praise on the very Brussels-based behemoth they had spent so many years deriding. Since January, Iceland's currency has lost nearly half its value against the euro, plunging the country's economy into chaos. At the same time, opinion polling has registered a large shift in public attitudes toward the EU. According to a poll published on Nov. 24 by the Icelandic newspaper Frettabladid, 68 PERCENT OF ICELANDERS NOW FAVOR JOINING THE EURO.

The Tory leader called the police operation 'EXTRAORDINARY AND FRANKLY RATHER WORRYING', while former Shadow Home Secretary David Davis compared it with the arrest of opposition in Zimbabwe. Mr Green had his home, his Commons and constituency offices searched over claims that he leaked confidential Government documents. The arrest was the culmination of an operation described by Mr Green's colleagues as 'Stalinesque',

Mr Cameron said: 'The police have to answer questions. Frankly, government ministers have got questions to answer as well.' He asked why nine counter-terrorism officers had to enter Mr Green's family home in Kent: 'IF THEY WANTED TO TALK TO DAMIAN GREEN, WHY NOT PICK UP THE TELEPHONE AND ASK TO TALK TO HIM?'

Former shadow home secretary David Davis said: 'Where have the priorities of the Metropolitan Police gone? It would have been perfectly possible for a couple of policeman to have interviewed him in the office. He is an MP - he's not going to flee the country. 'For five years, I have avoided using the term 'police state' because I think it is an over-the-top term, but the kind of things we have seen today are THE KIND OF THING YOU SEE IN A POLICE STATE OR A BANANA REPUBLIC, NOT IN BRITAIN.'

UPDATE:- Speaker Michael Martin faced calls for his resignation last night over claims that he authorised the unprecedented police raid on the House of Commons. MPs from all three main parties were appalled that detectives were given the green light to enter the Palace of Westminster and search Damian Green's private office. IT IS UNHEARD OF FOR AN MP TO BE ARRESTED AND HIS OFFICE RAIDED BY POLICE IN CONNECTION WITH A LEAK INQUIRY.

The bank said the damage caused by the financial excesses of the last quarter century was forcing the world's authorities to take steps that had never been tried before. This gamble was likely to end in one of two extreme ways: with either A RESURGENCE OF INFLATION; OR A DOWNWARD SPIRAL INTO DEPRESSION, CIVIL DISORDER, AND POSSIBLY WARS. Both outcomes will cause a rush for gold.

"THE WORLD IS NOT GOING BACK TO NORMAL AFTER THE MAGNITUDE OF WHAT THEY HAVE DONE. When the dust settles this will either work, and the money they have pushed into the system will feed though into AN INFLATION SHOCK. Or it will not work because too much damage has already been done, and we will see CONTINUED FINANCIAL DETERIORATION, causing further economic deterioration, with the risk of a feedback loop. We don't think this is the more likely outcome, but as each week and month passes, THERE IS A GROWING DANGER OF VICIOUS CIRCLE AS CONFIDENCE ERODES," he said.

"THIS WILL LEAD TO POLITICAL INSTABILITY. We are already seeing countries on the periphery of Europe under severe stress. SOME LEADERS ARE NOW AT RECORD LEVELS OF UNPOPULARITY. There is a risk of DOMESTIC UNREST, STARTING WITH STRIKES because people are feeling disenfranchised. WHAT HAPPENS IF THERE IS A MELTDOWN IN A COUNTRY LIKE PAKISTAN, WHICH IS A NUCLEAR POWER. People react when they have their backs to the wall. We're already seeing doubts emerge about the sovereign debts of developed AAA-rated countries, which is not something you can ignore," he said.

Gold traders are playing close attention to reports from Beijing that China is thinking of boosting its gold reserves from 600 tonnes to nearer 4,000 tonnes to diversify away from paper currencies. "If true, this is a very material change," he said. GOLD HAS TRIPLED IN VALUE OVER THE LAST SEVEN YEARS, vastly outperforming Wall Street and European bourses.

THE ARMY OF MUHAMMAD IS BACK. This was the message buzzing in radical Islamist circles yesterday as the world tried to absorb the shock of the terrorist attacks in Bombay, India's economic capital. While it is not yet clear which group was behind the attacks, it looks as if the perpetrators were trying to imitate the tactic of ghazwa, used by the Prophet against Meccan caravans in his decade-long campaign to seize control of the city.

The tactic consists of surprise no-holds-barred attacks simultaneously launched against a caravan or settlement with the aim of demoralising the enemy and hastening his capitulation. The Bombay attacks differed from previous terror operations in India in a number of ways. In the past, one approach had been to place explosive-packed devices in crowded places with the aim of killing large numbers at random. Another was suicide attacks on specific targets by lone "volunteers for martyrdom".

This time, however, the approach was "symphonic", in the sense that it involved different types of operations blended together. Involved in the operations were men who had placed explosives at selected points. But there were also gunmen operating in classic military style by seizing control of territory at symbolically significant locations along with hostages. Then there were militants prepared to kill, and be killed, in grenade attacks against security forces. Whoever designed the operations had another important Islamic tactic in mind: TABARRA OR EXONERATION.

THIS CONSISTS OF SEPARATING THE "OUTSIDER", IN THIS CASE THE BRITISH AND AMERICAN "INFIDEL", FROM THE COMMUNITY WITH THE INTENT OF BLAMING THEM FOR THE ILLS OF THE WORLD BEFORE SACRIFICING THEM. It was no accident that one of the places attacked was a Jewish centre, where gunmen seized a rabbi and several members of the congregation as hostages. The loud message was that A SMALL GROUP OF INDIVIDUALS COULD TURN A MEGALOPOLIS OF ALMOST 15 MILLION INHABITANTS INTO A BATTLEFIELD FOR AT LEAST A DAY.

The cameras monitor people's movements and then alert the police or security staff to suspicious activity, such as a car thief loitering in one area or small groups coming together for drug deals. Officers or security guards can then confront a suspect before a crime is committed. So far half a dozen cameras have been fitted with the new technology by the local council in Portsmouth.

They are trained on deserted areas like car parks and stairwells to pick up suspicious activity. Portsmouth council has access to up to 1,000 cameras. As many as 600 could be fitted with the new software. Jason Fazackarley, a councillor in Portsmouth, said: "It's the 21st century equivalent of a nightwatchman, but unlike a nightwatchman it never blinks, it never takes a break and it never gets bored. It's an eye in the night. The darkness is no longer a place where criminals can hide."

The cameras will revive memories of the 2002 Tom Cruise film Minority Report in which a police department apprehends people before they commit crimes based on predictions made by psychics. Nick Hewitson, managing director of Smart CCTV, which is behind the software, said it lets security staff stay "ahead of the curve". The software removes the pressure on security guards to monitor dozens of cameras at any one time. It transforms CCTV cameras from being recorders of crime to taking a proactive role in preventing crime. Typically the cameras divide the images into people, vehicles and background. If someone is seen to loiter in an area for too long, it alerts security guards and the police.

Novlet Holness, of Nottingham Rape Crisis Centre, said: "This is not the right message to send to society. It suggests that if someone commits a serious offence they are going to get a caution for it. It must be taken more seriously."

Figures showed some 1,966 cautions were handed out for sex offences last year, including the rapes. Some 809 were for sexual assault on a woman and 299 were for sexual activity with a child under 16. Another 130 were for sexual activity with a child under 13.

Cautions were also handed out to six people who admitted breaking child prostitution or child pornography laws. Cautions are usually given for lesser offences and can only be given out if the offender admits they committed the crime.

They suggest women should keep an emergency pill in their cupboard over the holiday period in case they need it. Campaigners said it was a 'despicable ploy' by the charity, which performs abortions under contract for the NHS, to drum up business and promotes promiscuity.

Girls under the age of 16 will be given the kits if the doctor believes they are capable of making decisions about their health on their own, in line with Government guidelines. The morning after pill can be bought over the counter from a pharmacist without the need to see a GP for £26. The pill does not protect against sexually transmitted diseases.

The number of abortions carried out in January of this year compared with December last year was 25 per cent higher. The emergency contraceptive pill works by preventing the ovaries from releasing an egg and altering the lining of the womb so a fertilised egg already present cannot implant in the womb.

In the Times, he accused the PM of being "irresponsible" and suggested he "doesn't care" how much he borrows. STERLING HAS FALLEN SHARPLY IN RECENT WEEKS AMID FEARS ABOUT A UK RECESSION. Labour has accused Mr Osborne of "talking down" the economy, with the prime minister dismissing the attack on his handling of the crisis. But a former advisor to three Thatcher chancellors said he had been right to raise the issue.

There has been a so-called convention that opposition spokespeople do not say anything that might damage the economy and talk down the pound, said BBC political correspondent David Thompson - and Mr Osborne would appear to have broken that. But the Tories say Mr Osborne is the shadow chancellor and is meant to give a critique.

The trip, which the sources said would most likely take place in the spring, would be Benedict's first to the Holy Land since his election in 2005. Two of his predecessors in modern times, John Paul II and Paul VI, visited the Holy Land. It also would help to ease recent tensions between Catholics and Jews over the role of wartime Pope Pius XII, who some Jews have accused of turning a blind eye to the Holocaust.

The Israeli newspaper Haaretz said the pope had accepted an invitation by Israeli President Shimon Peres to visit in May. A Vatican spokesman said he could not comment on the Haaretz report but Vatican sources said discussions were under way.

THE VATICAN SUPPORTS ISRAEL'S RIGHT TO EXIST WITHIN SECURE BORDERS ALONGSIDE AN INDEPENDENT PALESTINIAN STATE and hopes a papal trip can help political and religious DIALOGUE AIMED AT A COMPREHENSIVE MIDDLE EAST PEACE. Vatican officials repeatedly have condemned Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's denials of the Holocaust and his calls for Israel to be wiped out.

THOSE WRONGLY ACCUSED BY THE CRB FACE HAVING THEIR CAREERS BLIGHTED. They also have to go through an appeals process to clear their names. By the time that has finished, they may have been stigmatised and their chance of obtaining a job or training post dashed - disclosures are sent to the potential employee and the applicant on the same day. The CRB's annual report indicates that only 680 inaccurate disclosures were made last year - fewer than two each day.

But figures seen by the Daily Mail reveal there were 2,785 last year. That is almost eight trainee teachers, nurses or childminders waking up each day to find a letter on their doormat wrongly branding them an offender. SINCE 2003-2004, MORE THAN 12,200 HAVE BEEN WRONGLY STIGMATISED AS CRIMINALS. They contested their cases, and were proved to be right.

The number of vetting checks is being expanded. From next autumn, MORE THAN 11 MILLION ADULTS - one in four of the adult population in England - will have to be vetted and registered on the Independent Safeguarding Authority's database. THEY WILL BE FORCED TO PAY £64 EACH FOR BACKGROUND CHECKING.

His remarks in a speech in Berlin represent the start of a coordinated assault on THE NEED FOR GERMANY TO TAKE A MORE INTERVENTIONIST ROLE IN AFGHANISTAN. He will also warn Germany that it must become one of the biggest contributors to the Nato defence budget and must not use the credit crunch as an excuse to hack back its defence spending commitments.

US president-elect Barack Obama has made Afghanistan his chief diplomatic and military objective, and intends to demand far greater sharing of the burden, especially from Germany. Hutton will warn: "Success in Afghanistan is fast emerging as the test of Nato's relevance in this new post-cold war age, a test that we must pass because the security of all members depends upon it. "If Nato does not adapt to cope with modern conflict, if individual members do not work to make this happen, NATO WILL RISK BEING IRRELEVANT, A TALKING SHOP WHERE PROCESS IS EVERYTHING AND PROGRESS IS AVOIDED."

In a veiled reference to Germany, he will say: "Ad-hoc coalitions of the willing that form outside the Nato structure are a growing reality. But if they become the security vehicle of choice, then Nato will have failed."

Every year on this day, the UN passes a number of pro-Palestinian resolutions that blast Israel, and one diplomatic official said that Jerusalem had concluded it was useless to invest much in fighting those resolutions BECAUSE OF THE BUILT-IN ARAB AND THIRD-WORLD MAJORITY IN THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY.

"We pick our battles, and this is one that, because of the numbers, we simply can't win," one senior diplomatic official said. While Israel is not planning any significant counter action, Anne Bayefsky, editor of a UN monitor site called EYEontheUN.org , said in a statement that the event was "AN ANNUAL REMINDER THAT THE UN'S REAL AGENDA IS TO DELEGITIMIZE THE BIRTH - AND THE PERSEVERANCE - OF THE STATE OF ISRAEL."

According to Bayefsky, "The '60 years of struggle' is telling. It puts a lie to the alleged root cause of the Arab-Israeli conflict as an 'occupation' that began with the 1967 war. THE REAL COMPLAINT IS THE ALLEGED WRONG OF THE CREATION OF THE STATE OF ISRAEL ITSELF."

The decision came after a week packed full of dueling expert testimony over whether any evidence supports the state's contention that children are put at risk when raised by gay parents. The answer, said Miami-Dade Circuit Judge Cindy S. Lederman, is not at all: "THE DEPARTMENT'S POSITION IS THAT HOMOSEXUALITY IS IMMORAL. Yet, homosexuals may be lawful foster parents in Florida and care for our most fragile children who have been abused, neglected and abandoned. As such, THE EXCLUSION FORBIDDING HOMOSEXUALS TO ADOPT CHILDREN DOES NOT FURTHER THE PUBLIC MORALITY INTEREST IT SEEKS TO COMBAT."

Yet, despite the good news for gays contained in the ruling, the decision is hardly the last word on the issue. The state has vowed to appeal, and the issue is likely to end up before the Florida Supreme Court, which upheld the ban once before in 1995. On the federal level, the U.S. Supreme Court has already let stand lower court rulings that upheld Florida's law, the nation's strictest ban on gay adoption.

Meanwhile, conservative activists across the country are working hard to make sure that no court, at any level, has the final word on gay adoption. Like gay marriage before it, conservatives are looking at the issue of who can raise children as one best decided at the ballot box, not in the courthouse. Those efforts received a boost on Election Day in Arkansas, where voters easily passed a law that restricts any unmarried couple living together from adopting children. Arkansas joined Florida, Nebraska, Utah and Mississippi as THE ONLY STATES WITH LAWS THAT EITHER DIRECTLY OR INDIRECTLY BAN ADOPTION BY GAYS.