11.   However, this argument has provoked criticisms that the president and his lawyers are engaged in tortured legal hair-splitting.

12.   In May, religious nationalists in Yekaterinburg staged a book-burning, an act of intolerance that understandably unnerved many Russians but provoked little criticism from church leaders.

13.   It has already provoked some criticism in conservative quarters, both inside and outside the church.

14.   Most of it is coming from business, provoking criticism that the raising of money for political campaigns has turned into a game of selling access.

15.   Problems in the unit have provoked criticism from two members of the Bancroft family, which controls the company, and other investors.

16.   Serrano, in the meantime, provoked criticism from conservatives with his photographs of a crucifix in urine.

17.   The annual index has provoked criticisms from countries that rank low on the trust scale, among them Cameroon.

18.   The arcane rules provoked strident criticism from Lee and other democratic politicians, who said they would baffle voters and reduce the number of seats gained by pro-democracy parties.

19.   The bank also has shut down several of its fancy dining rooms, which had provoked criticism from Capitol Hill.

20.   The campaign has provoked criticism from human rights advocates, who contend that teenagers are the targets of the police and that excessive force is used.