A Ukrainian opposition activist who went missing last week says he was kidnapped, crucified and had part of his ear cut off in the latest attack on an anti-government protester.
Dmytro Bulatov, 35, a member of Automaidan, a group of car owners that has taken part in the protests against President Viktor Yanukovych, went missing January 22.
He was discovered outside Kiev yesterday and told rescuers that his kidnappers kept him in the dark for more than a week, beat him severely, nailed him to a cross and sliced off a piece of ear, before eventually dumping him in a forest.
Torture: Dmytro Bulatov told rescuers that his kidnappers kept him in the dark for more than a week, beat him severely, nailed him to a cross and sliced off a piece of his ear
Ukrainian opposition leader Vitali Klitschko speaks to Dmytro Bulatov in the Kiev hospital where he is receiving treatment after the alleged kidnapping
Dmytro Bulatov's badly swollen hands appeared to show nail marks from his alleged crucifixion
Opposition leader Petro Poroshenko (right) rushed to the hospital where Bulatov (left) was taken
'They crucified me, they nailed down my hands. They cut off my ear, they cut my face. There isn't a spot on my body that hasn't been beaten...Thank God I am alive,' Bulatov told Ukraine's Channel 5. Footage shows his face and clothes covered in blood and his swollen hands showing nail marks. Opposition leader Petro Poroshenko rushed to the hospital where Bulatov was taken last night.
'Dmytro asked to pass his greetings to everyone and to say that he has not been broken and will not be broken,' Poroshenko told Channel 5. 'That he is full of energy and despite the fact that he body was been beaten, Dmitry's spirit is strong.' Police said they have opened an investigation and said the car he was driving when he disappeared had been found. Bulatov is among three activists whose disappearances have shocked the country, especially after one of them was found dead.
Before and after: Dmytro Bulatov is a member of Automaidan, a group of car owners that has taken part in the protests against President Viktor Yanukovych
The former boxer and now senior Ukrainian opposition figure Vitali Klitschko visits Dmytro Bulakow in hospital
Klitschko visited his fellow opposition leader just hours after Bulatov was discovered badly injured in a forest
Opposition activist Dmytro Bulatov says there isn't a spot on his body that wasn't beaten by his kidnappers
He went missing one day after Igor Lutsenko, another prominent opposition activist, who was discovered after being taken to the woods and beaten severely by unknown attackers. Lutsenko was kidnapped from a hospital, where he had brought a fellow protester, Yuri Verbitsky, to be treated for an eye injury. Verbitsky was also beaten severely and was later discovered dead. The disappearances prompted an outcry from protesters, who accused the government of intimidating the opposition. The protests started after Yanukovych backed out of an agreement to deepen ties with the European Union in November, but quickly came to encompass an array of discontent over corruption, heavy-handed police and dubious courts.
A masked protester poses for pictures on the barricade during ongoing protests in Kiev
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Tense: Riot police stand guard in front of anti-government protesters early this morning
Anti-government protesters warm themselves at a fire on a barricade early this morning
Negotiations between the authorities and the opposition on finding a way out of the crisis appeared to have stalled yesterday, after Yanukovych took an unexpected sick leave and told opposition leaders that it was now up to them to make concessions. This week Yanukovych accepted the resignation of his Prime Minister Mykola Azarov and the parliament, which he controls, rescinded harsh anti-protest legislation that sparked last week's violence. But a bill passed by Yanukovych's allies in parliament offered to grant amnesty to protesters only after they vacate scores of government-buildings they have seized across the country, a demand rejected by the opposition.
US Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr. has authorized federal prosecutors to seek the death penalty for Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, the young man accused in the Boston Marathon terror bombings in April that killed three people, injured more than 260 others, and sent a wave of shock and fear through the region.
“After consideration of the relevant facts, the applicable regulations and the submissions made by the defendant’s counsel, I have determined that the United States will seek the death penalty in this matter. The nature of the conduct at issue and the resultant harm compel this decision,” Holder said in a statement.
Prosecutors notified a federal judge in Boston today of the decision.
“We support this decision and the trial team is prepared to move forward with the prosecution,” Boston US Attorney Carmen M. Ortiz said in a statement.
Miriam Conrad, who is leading Tsarnaev’s defense team, had no comment.
A petition calling for Justin Bieber to be deported back to Canada is now up for consideration by the White House.
By default, any online petitions submitted to the "We the People" website with more than 100,000 signatures in a month, will be reviewed by the White House.
The request asking to "revoke" Bieber's green card reads, "We the people of the United States feel that we are being wrongly represented in the world of pop culture. We would like to see the dangerous, reckless, destructive, and drug abusing, Justin Bieber deported and his green card revoked. He is not only threatening the safety of our people but he is also a terrible influence on our nations youth. We the people would like to remove Justin Bieber from our society."
In the six days since his DUI bust, more than 122,000 people (and counting) have signed to have Bieber kicked out of the 50 states.
The teen is in the country on an O-1 visa allotted to non-immigrants "who possess extraordinary ability" in the sciences, arts (i.e., music), education, business, athletics, or film and television. In order to get kicked out he would have to be convicted of a "serious crime" or booted by immigration officials for causing serious trouble — which likely doesn't apply to throwing parties, racing around his gated community or allegedly egging his neighbour's house.
Currently, Bieber is staying put in the USA, but he is rumored to be moving out of the Calabasas, Calif., neighbourhood he's been accused of terrifying over the last year or so.
The Archbishops of Canterbury and York have written to the presidents of Nigeria and Uganda, after being asked about laws there penalising gay people.
The letter said homosexual people were loved and valued by God and should not be victimised or diminished.
Nigeria and Uganda have both passed legislation targeting people with same-sex attraction.
The letter is also addressed to all primates (heads of national Churches) in the worldwide Anglican Communion.
Archbishops Justin Welby of Canterbury and John Sentamu of York said the letter was a result of "questions about the Church of England's attitude to new legislation in several countries that penalises people with same-sex attraction".
The letter comes as Archbishop Welby starts a five-day tour of Africa.
'Draconian'
In Nigeria this month, President Goodluck Jonathan signed into law a bill which bans same-sex marriages, gay groups and shows of same-sex public affection.
In Uganda - Archbishop Sentamu's native country - a bill allowing for greater punishments for gay people, and those who fail to turn them in to police, has been passed by parliament, but blocked - for now - by President Yoweri Museveni.
The laws have been heavily criticised by gay and human rights groups.
UN human rights chief Navi Pillay described the Nigerian law as "draconian".
She said she had rarely seen a piece of legislation "that in so few paragraphs directly violates so many basic, universal human rights".
In their letter, the archbishops reiterated their support for a document known as the Dromantine Communique, published in 2005 by the primates of the Anglican Communion.
The communique said: "We continue unreservedly to be committed to the pastoral support and care of homosexual people.
"The victimisation or diminishment of human beings whose affections happen to be ordered towards people of the same sex is anathema to us.
"We assure homosexual people that they are children of God, loved and valued by Him and deserving the best we can give - pastoral care and friendship."
'False gospel'
Archbishop Welby's stance on homosexual relationships has created tension with more traditionalist Anglicans.
Last October, he held talks with members of the Global Anglican Future Conference (Gafcon), which condemns those who preach what it calls a "false gospel" claiming God's blessing for same-sex unions.
The primates of seven national Anglican churches in Africa attended October's Gafcon meeting, including Uganda and Nigeria.
Archbishop Welby has said some gay couples have loving, stable and monogamous relationships of "stunning" quality.
But he says he still supports the Church of England's opposition to active homosexuality.
READ LETTER BELOW:
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ
In recent days, questions have been asked about the Church of England's attitude to new legislation in several countries that penalises people with same-sex attraction. In answer to these questions, we have recalled the common mind of the Primates of the Anglican Communion, as expressed in the Dromantine Communiqué of 2005.
The Communiqué said;
'….we wish to make it quite clear that in our discussion and assessment of moral appropriateness of specific human behaviours, we continue unreservedly to be committed to the pastoral support and care of homosexual people.
The victimisation or diminishment of human beings whose affections happen to be ordered towards people of the same sex is anathema to us. We assure homosexual people that they are children of God, loved and valued by Him and deserving the best we can give - pastoral care and friendship.'
We hope that the pastoral care and friendship that the Communiqué described is accepted and acted upon in the name of the Lord Jesus.
We call upon the leaders of churches in such places to demonstrate the love of Christ and the affirmation of which the Dromantine communiqué speaks."
Yours in Christ,
+Justin Cantuar +Sentamu Eboracensis
A nine-year-old boy walked backwards up a wall and ceiling as startled medical staff looked on after his mother claimed he and his two siblings had been possessed by demons, according to official reports.
The unlikely-sounding event was detailed in official documents after a child services case worker and a nurse both said they saw the boy 'glide' backwards on the floor, wall and ceiling.
Haunted: Latoya Ammons, pictured, underwent exorcisms after she was 'possessed by demons'
Both were shocked to see the boy apparently float after their mother had been subject to months of scepticism when she claimed her home in Gary, Indiana, was haunted and all three of her children were possessed by demons.
Latoya Ammons said her 12-year-old daughter also levitated in the home, and all three of her children showed signs of being possessed including 'evil' smiles and unnaturally deep voices, according to the Indianapolis Star.
Miss Ammons' home was officially exorcised by a catholic priest who said the ceremonies were officially authorized by the Diocese of Gary.
Police also observed strange goings on at the house and a captain of the city's force has said he 'is a true believer' that the house is haunted.
After a string of apparent paranormal events at the house hardened police officers - including the local captain - even declared themselves too frightened to stay there after nightfall and numerous city officials refused to go to the property.
Mother-of-three Ms Ammons, 32, said she was only rid of the spirits that haunted her family's home in Gary after she moved away and underwent multiple exorcisms and police dug under the house to check for graves.
The Indianapolis Star obtained hundreds of pages of official documents and carried out more than a dozen interviews with police, the Department of Child Services, psychologists, relatives and a priest to uncover the bizarre details - which seem like something straight out of a horror movie.
Eerie: Cops and child protection workers were also spooked during visits to the home in Gary, Indiana (pictured). In this image, a figure appears in a window, right, although no one was home
What is it? A close-up of the image shows the cloudy white figure in the window of the home
Gary Police Captain Charles Austin told the paper that he had initially be skeptical of the family's claims, but after conducting interviews and visiting the home, he now admits: 'I am a believer.'
The story began when the Ammons family - Latoya, her mother, Rosa Campbell, and three children - moved into the rental house on Carolina Street in November 2011.
Soon after, they began noticing odd incidents, such as flies swarming the house throughout December, footsteps in the basement and wet bootprints across the living room floor, Ammons said.
But the terror stepped up on March 10, 2012 when the family had friends visiting late into the night. Ammons got up to check on her 12-year-old daughter.
Activity: Most of the problems at the home were around the basement stairs, pictured. Police dug a four foot hole under the stairs to look for graves
On hearing Ammons' screams, Campbell ran to the room and saw the girl was levitating above the bed, unconscious, she said.
'I thought, "What's going on?"' Campbell said. "'Why is this happening?"'
The group prayed until the girl eventually moved back down on to the bed - but she could not remember anything about the incident. The visiting friends refused to return to the home.
Ammons said that she was not financially in a position to move so instead had to endure the terror.
The family contacted churches and clairvoyants - and while most would not listen, others gave them advice to wash the children's hands with oil, make an altar in the basement and burn sage and sulfur throughout the house.
The clairvoyants warned that the home was haunted by more than 200 demons, Ammons said.
Despite their efforts, they still felt the demons in the house and the children showed increasing signs of being possessed, Ammons and Campbell said.
The children's eyes bulged, wore evil smiles and deepened when they were taken over by the demons, they said. The youngest boy would sit in a closet and talk to a child no one could see, and on one occasion, he was thrown from the bathroom, Campbell said.
Ammons would also be taken over and said she felt weak and warm, and her body would shake.
Ammons
When Ammons went to their doctor, Dr. Geoffrey Onyeukwu, he went with medical staff and child services personnel to meet the children - who cursed at him in low voices, Campbell said.
During the visit, a DCS report said the youngest child was 'lifted and thrown into the wall with nobody touching him'. The boys were taken to hospital.
Before the incident, someone had called the DCS and asked the agency to investigate Ammons for possible child abuse or neglect, speculating she might have a mental illness.
While in the hospital, a psychiatrist evaluated Ammons and concluded that she was of 'sound mind'.
DCS family case manager Valerie Washington also interviewed the family while they were at the hospital and said the youngest boy began growling and his eyes rolled back in his head.
Washington added in her DCS report - which was corroborated by a nurse - that the nine-year-old boy displayed a 'weird grin' and then walked backward up a wall to the ceiling.
Ritual: Ammons went through 3 exorcisms, as famously depicted by the 1973 movie, The Exorcist, pictured
He then flipped over his grandmother and landed on his feet, while never letting go of his grandmother's hand.
EVICTING THE DEMONS: WHAT DOES AN EXORCISM INVOLVE?
Exorcism is the practice of ridding a person of demons or other spiritual entities that they have been possessed by.
According to the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, signs of demonic possession include superhuman strength, aversion to holy water, being able to speak in unknown languages, spitting and cursing.
Most religions claim that humans can be possessed by demonic spirits and even though it might seem archaic, exorcisms continue to be performed.
In Ammons case, the Catholic exorcism involved prayers, statements and appeals to cast out demons. The priest praised God and condemned the devil and pressed a crucifix against Ammons' head as he spoke. The priest noticed her convulsing and said that was a sign that the demons were strong. After she fell to sleep, he gave a prayer of Thanksgiving.
But exorcisms can have deadly consequences. In 2003, an autistic 8-year-old boy in Milwaukee, was killed during an exorcism by church members who blamed thought a demon was to blame for his disability. In 2005, a nun in Romania died after a priest bound her to a cross during an exorcism, gagged her and left her for days without food or water.
'There's no way he could've done that,' the nurse told the Star.
Washington said in a police report that she believed an 'evil influence' could be affecting the family.
And when asked if the boy had walked up the ceiling in an acrobatic maneuver, she said it was in fact a slow glide that could not have been performed naturally.
The children were taken into custody by child services after workers found Ammons was neglecting their education; she said it was because the ghoulish activity kept them up all night.
But records from clinical psychologists also indicate that the younger boy acted possessed when he was asked questions he didn't like.
Later, Washington went to the home to check on its condition and was joined by three police officers.
During the visit, one of their recorders malfunctioned and another recorded audio in which a voice whispered 'hey', according to police records.
They also took photos of the house and when these were looked at later, it appeared as if cloudy faces were in the images.
The police chief added that, after he left the house, the radio in his car malfunctioned and that his garage later refused to open.
Even more chillingly, Austin said the driver's seat in his other car started moving backward and forward on its own - which could have caused an accident, according to his mechanic.
During a second visit to the home, in May 2012, they were joined by a priest, Reverend Michael Maginot, who had been asked by a hospital chaplain to perform an exorcism on one of the boys.
While at the home, a DCS family case manager said that she touched liquid she saw in the basement and later suffered finger pain and felt as if she was having a panic attack.
Scene: Ammons underwent 3 exorcisms performed by a Catholic priest at St. Stephen Martyr Church in Merrillville, pictured, as police officers stood by. She is no longer haunted by the demons
'We felt like someone was in the room with you, someone breathing down your neck,' she said adding that she later experienced a serious of medical problems, from burns to numerous broke bones.
After the visit, Maginot performed a minor exorcism on Ammons which consisted of prayers, statements and appeals to cast out demons.
But after he says he was given the go-ahead by Bishop Dale Melczeck of the Diocese of Gary, he decided to carry out three more powerful exorcisms on Ammons in his church in Merrillville in June 2012. Police officers were present.
'I was hurting all over from the inside out,' she remembered. 'I'm trying to do my best and be strong.'
Afterwards, Ammons, who had moved homes to Indianapolis, said that the problems subsided. After six months, she regained custody of her children.
The house in Gary now has new tenants, but the landlord said there have been no further problems at the address.
Of the bizarre activity at her former home, Ammons said: 'When you hear something like this, don't assume it's not real because I've lived it. I know it's real.'
NOT ALONE: FOUR FAMOUS CASES OF DEMONIC POSSESSION
Anna Ecklund - 1912-1928 - Earling, Iowa
Anna was just 14 when she was allegedly cursed by her father and aunt - and soon she was unable to be near religious artifacts or churches. She underwent an exorcism in 1912, but her father and aunt then prayed for Satan to visit her again.
In 1928, she asked the church for help and was put in a convent. But when nuns came near her she would hiss at them, speak in foreign languages and levitate. After three more exorcisms, she was declared free of the demons.
Roland Doe - 1940s - Cottage City, Maryland
Doe - known as the inspiration behind the Hollywood film, The Exorcist - was 14 when his aunt encouraged him to use a Ouija board in the 1940s. When she died, he might have tried to contact her this way and it is believed this gave demons the chance to reach him.
When he was possessed, religious artifacts began flying off the walls and people could hear footsteps and dripping inside his home. Scratches also began appearing over his body, which levitated and contorted. His family contacted a Catholic priest and an exorcism was performed more than 30 times, sometimes injuring the priest before they were eventually successful. Doe went on to have a normal life, according to reports.
Anneliese Michel - 1973 - Germany
Anneliese was a 16-year-old Bavarian girl who had suffered with epilepsy and mental illness. In 1973, she began to hear voices, drink her own urine and became intolerant of religious symbols. She begged her family to take her to a priest to rid her of demons. Two local priests secretly agreed and performed nearly 70 exorcisms (each lasting up to four hours) in 10 months - but her parents stopped treating her health issues, and she died from emaciation and starvation. The film The Exorcism of Emily Rose is loosely based on her life.
Michael Taylor - 1974 - Yorkshire, England
Taylor was a married Christian who was accused by his wife, Christine, of having an affair with a prayer group leader. He responded with anger and continued to act erratically, leading some people to think he was possessed by evil.
He eventually underwent an exorcism that last for more than 24 hours and priests believed it to be successful. They warned that a demon may still be inside of him. When he went home, he murdered his wife and was later found wandering the streets. He was found not guilty in her murder by reason of insanity.
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