My own health - physically and mentally - has been damaged."She added that her husband's current predicament had slowed the recovery from his recent operation, and that he looked forward to being able to explain to the Chilean people the recent events that had taken place in London.General Pinochet has been granted bail on condition that he remains at his London hospital under police guard. "At the end, a barman came up and said: 'Do you realise that's Pinochet?' My blood went cold I was in tears. Yesterday his wife spoke at a press conference in London, appealing to God and the Virgin Mary to save her husband from facing charges of genocide.Lucia Hirart, whose 82-year-old husband is now in a north London psychiatric hospital, said in Spanish: "I feel great anguish. Cooking is about giving pleasure, and I'd poured my heart into this dictator's risotto." The incident happened four years ago when the general was on an earlier visit to London. RUTH ROGERS, co-owner of The River Cafe, favourite of New Labour and the "canteen'' of the more fashionable government ministers, has revealed the full horror of realising that she had cooked risotto for General Pinochet "I didn't know he was here. We thought it was probably just another royal family with their bodyguards.

They were all chatting away in Spanish while I cooked in the kitchen," she told The Daily Telegraph. His non-attendance at the funeral of the popular Rabbi Gryn, the unofficial leader of Britain's non-orthodox Jewish community, and the subsequent disclosure that he had described Rabbi Gryn as "one of those who destroy the faith", caused bitter divisions within Anglo-Jewry.The Chief Rabbi's time in office as spiritual leader of Britain's 300,000-strong Jewish community has been marked by tensions with the non-orthodox Jewish groups, increasing disenchantment among women and younger Jews, and growing rates of inter-marriage.. "Buckingham Palace has been marvellous in understanding the limitations," he said.Another expert on Anglo-Jewry called the acceptance of the Queen's invitation "a big blunder, considering he wouldn't even go to Hugo Gryn's funeral". "The importance of keeping Shabbat together with the family is fundamental, and we only make an exception ... [for the] expression of Jewish loyalty to the country and its head of state.

As the representative of the Jewish community I have to take into account the importance of His Royal Highness," he told the Independent on Sunday.He would only attend the Palace to "pay his respects" to the Royal Family and then leave to spend the remainder of the Sabbath with his wife. I believe that we are taught to remember the Sabbath day and keep it holy."The Chief Rabbi defended his decision, saying it was an established protocol for holders of his office to accept a direct royal invitation. "Even friends of his, and that includes me, believe he has made a serious misjudgement Some would say it smacks of vanity. I think it will damage him."Sheila Goldsmith, from St John's Wood, London, wrote in the Jewish Chronicle last week: "If the Chief Rabbi finds it possible to attend Prince Charles's birthday party on a Friday night, how can one possibly expect one's children to accept that Friday night as Shabbat [the Sabbath] is sacrosanct?"What chance does a parent have of ensuring that on Fridays the family joins together to sanctify the Sabbath, and that we do not socialise with non-Jewish friends, however important the occasion?" She concluded: "We despair."Another correspondent, Ronald Michaels, from Stanmore, Middlesex, wrote: "I would never contemplate attending a function and leaving my wife on a Friday night. The Chief Rabbi will walk to Buckingham Palace from Marble Arch synagogue, a 30-minute journey on foot.A leading member of the Jewish community said the Chief Rabbi was making "a big error" in going to the reception. THE CHIEF RABBI, Dr Jonathan Sacks, has been accused of debasing the Sabbath and setting a bad example to young Jews by agreeing to attend a party on a Friday night to celebrate the Prince of Wales's 50th birthday. Dr Sacks's acceptance of the Queen's invitation to attend the royal cocktail reception on 13 November has incensed many in the Jewish community.

The Sabbath begins at sunset on Friday evenings and is considered sacrosanct. Traditionally, the Jewish family gathers for prayers and a special meal. Religious law prohibits a Jew from using transport on the Sabbath. Charles wants her by his side on 14 November but I think that it could rebound badly on them. His advisers have misjudged popular opinion and they will come a cropper."If that happens, Mrs Parker Bowles may be forced back under cover, running from the press like one of the foxes she so relentlessly pursues.. I have a strong feeling there is a groundswell of resistance to her and her popularity ratings will never rise above 50 per cent."The public remain suspicious of her and of the behind-the-scenes manoeuvring that is going on. She is escorted by former Royal Protection Squad officers employed privately by the Prince."The problem she faces is that she lives a rarefied existence," said Christopher Wilson "She has no contact with ordinary people.