THE HAGUE (Agence France-Presse) — The Dutch government has summoned the American ambassador here to explain comments by Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates, who criticized NATO forces in southern Afghanistan in a news report published Wednesday.
Republicans challenged him to explain comments in which he had discussed the rationing of health care, praised the British health care system and urged health care providers to reduce the use of ineffective procedures near the end of life.
The issue came up on Wednesday as Ms. Abdul, one of the three judges on "Idol," the Fox talent competition, tried to explain comments she made during Tuesday evening's live broadcast, in which she offered a critique of a performance that had not yet taken place.
News Corp's global boss has been contacted by the committee and told a letter will be sent to him asking him to reappear to explain comments he made to Sun journalists, which were recorded and later revealed by Channel 4 News and the investigative news website Exaro.
David Ornstein: Can you explain comments to David Conn in The Guardian?
The Pope used the first major interview of his papacy to explain comments he made in July about homosexuality.
The Pakistan Cricket Board has asked Shahid Afridi to explain comments about the "differences within the tour management in West Indies".
And Lennon has also been asked by the Scottish Football Association to explain comments made about the appointment of a referee ahead of a Celtic match at St Johnstone.
Ferguson, 71, has been asked to explain comments by the FA before, after claiming referee Alan Wiley was not physically fit enough to referee following United's 2-2 drawithth Sunderland in October 2009.
Shiels has been asked to appear before the Scottish Football Association's disciplinary panel on 10 January to explain comments he made about fourth official Andrew Dallas over a sending-off incident in his team's home game against St Johnstone in November.
"It is a relief that a [disparity in ratios] has been found, since the total absence of difference between Earth and moon would be hard to explain," comments planetary scientist David Stevenson of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, in an e-mail. .
