Man in Turkey Admits To Writing 'Gay Girl in Damascus'

Tom MacMaster" who lives in Turkey has revealed himself to be the real person behind the popular Syrian-American blogger "Gay Girl in Damascus," in a post on the . He wrote that he "never expected this level of attention," and that "while the narrative voce may have been fictional, the facts on ths blog are true and not msleading as to the situation on the ground." He added, "I do not believe that I have harmed anyone."

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The blog 'Gay Girl in Damascus' advertised itself as being written by a Syrian-American woman named Amina Abdallah Araf, and attracted numerous readers and international attention for highlighting issues about being gay during the protest movement in Syria. But the attention intensified one week ago, after a blog post appeared by someone introducing herself as Araf's cousin,that the blogger was seized by three men while on her way to meet with protest organizers. A Facebook page has sprouted up for Araf, including information about how to contact U.S. representatives from Virginia to facilitate her release.

Related: But under the heightened scrutiny, the story began to . First, no one who had actually met Araf in person stepped forward. Further, some strongly doubted whether her anecdotes, whether they involved run-ins with Syrian security forces, kissing in public, and learning Hebrew were fact or fiction, as they struck those familiar with the culture as unrealistic. But the biggest red flag was that a Croatian woman named Jelena Lecicon the BBC to explain that hundreds of pictures purportedly showing Araf on her Facebook page were actually of Lecic.

Related: Still, even those investigating her story, such as NPR's Andy Carvin, were hesitant to call her story fake. Carvel said heAraf is a "real person," perhaps using a pen name. If Araf's story is real, he says, he doesn't want to distract people from the possibility that she is being "brutalized in detention." He did retweet the quote that if Araf's story is fake, "this is truly one of the cruelest jokes I've ever witnessed."

Related: It turns out it is fake. "Tom MacMaster" posted the following on the blog on Sunday, where he said the "facts on this blog are true," although it appears he lives, at least now, in Istanbul. Here is the full text of his post.

I never expected this level of attention. While the narrative voce may have been fictional, the facts on ths blog are true and not msleading as to the situation on the ground. I do not believe that I have harmed anyone -- I feel that I have created an important voice for issues that I feel strongly about. I only hope that people pay as much attention to the people of the Middle East and their struggles in ths year of revolutions. The events there are beng shaped by the people living them on a daily basis. I have only tried to illuminate them for a western audience. This experience has sadly only confirmed my feelings regarding the often superficial coverage of the Middle East and the pervasiveness of new forms of liberal Orientalism. However, I have been deeply touched by the reactions of readers. Best, Tom MacMaster, Istanbul, Turkey July 12, 2011

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All Black great Kelleher joins Stade influx

Former All Black great Byron Kelleher became the latest recruit of ailing French rugby giants Stade Francais on Tuesday after passing his medical.

The 34-year-old - capped 57 times before he retired from the national side after the 2007 World Cup - had been released from a pre-contract with fellow Top 14 side Bayonne on Monday.

Kelleher, who had played for Toulouse since 2007, joins a plethora of new signings as Stade aim to rebound from two disappointing seasons which has seen them first flirt with relegation and then even under highly-regarded coach Michael Cheika last season fail to make the title play-offs.

Aside from Kelleher there have been 12 other new arrivals.

They include veteran French prop Olivier Milloud, American lock Scott LaValla, veteran Argentinian fly-half Felipe Contepomi, who played under Cheika at Irish province Leinster, and former Wallaby centre Morgan Turinui.

Former England wing Paul Sackey, who like Contepomi arrives from Toulon, and Munster's Australian centre Paul Warwick are two of the other headline arrivals.

Flamboyant club president Max Guazzini and new club administrator Bernard Laporte - who as coach brought them from third division obscurity in 1995 to be crowned French champions in 1999 backed by Guazzini's millions made from the sale of his NRJ radio empire - have now all but completed rebuilding the club's squad.

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Kansas City diocese announces sexual misconduct probe

A Catholic bishop is enlisting the help of a former U.S. attorney to investigate alleged sexual improprieties by priests in the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph.

Bishop Robert Finn announced on Thursday that Todd Graves, recently the U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, will look into allegations against the Reverend Shawn F. Ratigan, charged with possessing child pornography. Ratigan has pleaded not guilty.

Graves, former co-chair of the Child Exploitation Working Group for the Department of Justice, will also review the diocese's codes governing ethics and sexual misconduct, Finn said in a news release.

Finn said his goal is to bring clarity to the "shame, anger and confusion" that surrounds Ratigan's arrest May 19.

Finn has come under fire for not heeding warnings about Ratigan and he has apologized repeatedly in recent weeks. Numerous lawsuits have been filed against the diocese in recent years for failing to prevent sexual abuse of minors by priests.

Besides appointing Graves, the diocese has stepped up its review process of any allegations against clergy. It will appoint an independent public liaison and ombudsman to investigate reports of misconduct and it will do a detailed review of personnel training, Finn said.

"These are initial steps," Finn stated. "Other actions are forthcoming."

The Missouri announcement came on the same day the beleaguered Catholic Archdiocese of Philadelphia named a new head of child protection, hiring her away from the prosecutor's office pursuing charges in a spiraling priest sex abuse case.

Leslie Davila will lead the Office of Child and Youth Protection, the archdiocese announced.

Until now, Davila had been victim assistance coordinator for the Philadelphia District Attorney, responsible for protecting young people and overseeing efforts to heal those sexually abused as minors.

The prosecutor's office oversaw a grand jury that earlier this year issued a scathing report on how the church has handled the scandal. The jury had identified 37 cases of abuse and the investigation resulted in criminal charges against four priests and a school church teacher.

(Additional reporting by Dave Warner in Philadelphia; Editing by James B. Kelleher and Jerry Norton)

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