France: The Cannes Film Festival May 12-23 is in jeopardy from entertainment workers who have been striking since last summer and whose walkouts canceled cultural festivals in Avignon and Aix en Provence, and the premiere of the final "Lord of the Rings" film in December. The workers are protesting government changes that curtailed their benefits, and they have threatened to disrupt the film festival unless a settlement is reached. Also, crews for Air Brit and Regional, two low-cost airlines owned by Air France, began a five-day strike Monday that forced cancellations of some 70 flights in Europe. The strike was called to seek job security for 900 pilots following Air France's agreement to take over Dutch carrier KLM.
England: A radical Muslim cleric based in London told a Portuguese magazine recently that the city almost certainly would be hit by a big terrorist attack because he knew of several Islamic militant groups there that were planning operations. In recent weeks, British authorities have thwarted attacks and arrested many suspects.
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