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The Turkish Parliament votes to authorize the Turkish government to send troops to the United Nations peacekeeping force in Lebanon. Deputy speaker Nevzat Pakdil said 340 of the 533 lawmakers present in the 550-seat house voted for the deployment; 192 voted against and one abstained. | Deputy speaker Nevzat Pakdil said 340 of the 533 lawmakers present in the 550-seat house voted for the deployment; 192 voted against and one abstained. Under the motion, Turkey will send a naval force to patrol the eastern Mediterranean, deploy troops, help train the Lebanese army and support allied countries in naval and air transport. The motion foresees a one-year deployment, but it is not yet clear how many troops will be deployed, nor when or where. Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul has said the number of soldiers is not likely to exceed 1,000. Details of the deployment were expected to become clearer after talks here Wednesday between Turkish leaders and visiting UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan, who arrived in Ankara hours before the vote. | Sign Agreement | September 2006 | ['(Turkish Press)'] |
The Constitutional Court of Thailand finds that Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra is guilty of abuse of power when she transferred the National Security Council chief in 2011 and that she cannot remain in office. | There are heightened security concerns in Thailand's capital after the popularly-elected prime minister Yingluck Shinawatra was removed from office.
The Consitutional Court dismissed Ms Yingluck and nine ministers yesterday for abuse of power.
Ms Yingluck, who has faced six months of protests aimed at toppling her government, denied wrongdoing. "Throughout my time as prime minister I have given my all to my work for the benefit of my countrymen... I have never committed any unlawful acts as I have been accused of doing," Ms Yingluck said in a televised news conference.
"From now on, no matter what situation I am in, I will walk on the path of democracy. I am sad that I will not be able to serve you after this."
Commerce Minister Niwatthamrong Boonsongphaisan will step into the prime minister's role and says the caretaker government will press ahead with plans for a July 20 election.
"The caretaker government's responsibility now is to organise an election as soon as possible," he said.
"I hope the political situation will not heat up after this."
The country's Constitutional Court found Ms Yingluck violated the constitution when she dismissed the National Security Council chief in 2011.
"The judges unanimously rule that Ms Yingluck abused her prime minister status and interfered in transferring (Thawil Pliensri) for her own benefit," the president of the nine-member court, Charoon Intachan, said in a televised ruling.
"Therefore her prime minister status has ended... Yingluck can no longer stay in her position acting as caretaker prime minister."
Nine cabinet ministers who endorsed the decision to transfer the security chief must also step down from office.
Government supporters are planning a mass rally on the outskirts of Bangkok on the weekend, but smaller factions say they'll move into the capital from today.
Anti-government protestors are also still based in the city and there are fears the two groups could clash.
In addition to Wednesday's court ruling, Ms Yingluck could also face a criminal charge if the anti-graft agency indicts her over the government's controversial rice subsidy program. She is accused of dereliction of duty over the scheme that critics say is riddled with corruption and has run up huge losses.
The National Anti-Corruption Commission is expected to deliver its verdict later this month.
If found guilty on this count, Ms Yingluck could face a five-year ban from politics.
Bangkok has been rocked by months of sometimes violent demonstrations to unseat Ms Yingluck.
The protests, since November, form part of a long-running crisis that broadly pits Bangkok's middle class and royalist establishment against the mainly poor, rural supporters of Ms Yingluck and her brother, ex-premier Thaksin Shinawatra.
Mr Thaksin was ousted by the military in 2006 and now lives in exile to avoid a jail term handed down in 2008 for abuse of power. His opponents accuse him of corruption and nepotism.
Meanwhile, the United States has called for a peaceful and democratic solution to the current crisis, saying this "should include elections and an elected government".
"We continue to urge all sides to resolve Thailand's political tensions in a peaceful and democratic manner so that the Thai people can choose political leadership they deserve," State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said.
| Government Job change - Resignation_Dismissal | May 2014 | ['(ABC News Australia)'] |
Evo Morales accuses opposition politicians of plotting a coup d'etat with foreign powers. | President said in a televised speech the right ‘prepared the coup’ with foreign powers amid growing tensions over the election
Bolivia’s president, Evo Morales, has accused opposition leaders and foreign powers of attempting a “coup” against him amid growing tensions over the result of Sunday’s desperately tight election.
In an angry televised speech on Wednesday, Morales said: “A coup d’etat is under way. The right wing prepared the coup with international support.”
Morales went into elections needing 40% of votes and a 10-point margin of victory to avoid a second-round runner against the main opposition candidate, Carlos Mesa. By Wednesday afternoon 97% of the official results had been processed, giving him 46.49% and a 9.5-point lead.
With most outstanding votes from remote rural areas expected to go in his favour, Morales repeated his declaration of a first-round victory, which he had made prematurely on Sunday night.
But on Wednesday the Organization of American States (OAS) said that a runoff should be held even if Morales breached the 10-point margin.
“In the case that … the margin of difference exceeds 10%, it is statistically reasonable to conclude that it will be by negligible margin,” said Manuel González, the head of the OAS election observation team in Bolivia. “Given the context and the problematic issues in this electoral process the best option continues to be the convening of a second round.”
International observers have expressed concern over an unexplained daylong gap in the reporting of results which was followed by a surge in Morales votes when the count resumed on Monday. “Why did the government shut down the reporting of results?” asked Carlos Trujillo, US ambassador to the OAS, at a special session convened to discuss the Bolivian situation. “The government allowed a somewhat fair election because they did not realise their own popularity and thought they could win under their system. When they realised they could not win in the first round they shut down the results so that they could steal the election.”
The vice-president of Bolivia’s electoral board resigned on Tuesday, saying that the decision of the board’s six-member panel to suspend reporting results had discredited “the entire electoral process, causing unnecessary social convulsion”.
Mesa has accused Morales of trying to conduct “a giant fraud” and vowed that his party “will not recognize a fraudulent result”.
In a video statement on Wednesday, Mesa called for “permanent protests” until a second-round vote was confirmed, and said he would present evidence of electoral fraud.
Allegations of electoral fraud have already sparked street violence, in which anti-government protesters clashed with police, and set fire to electoral offices in eight of Bolivia’s regional capital cities. On Tuesday the OAS said it would conduct an analysis of the election, focusing on the results reporting systems and the chain of custody of ballot boxes. However, the results of such an analysis are unlikely to please either side as the positions become increasingly entrenched.
Civil society groups in eight of the country’s nine departments called for a general strike that could bring the country to a standstill. “Not even an ant will move in Santa Cruz,” declared Luis Fernando Camacho, the leader of the civil society group for Santa Cruz, the country’s largest and richest city.
Morales has overseen relative stability and growth, but angered many by running for a fourth consecutive term despite a 2016 referendum which ruled against lifting term limits.
The results reflect the split between Bolivia’s urban population which broadly backed the opposition and the rural Andean populations that remain loyal to Morales, a former coca farmer.
“I don’t think Evo will accept the OAS’s calls for a second round,” says Jorge Derpic, a Bolivia specialist and assistant professor at the University of Georgia. “This is the first time we have seen protests by the middle classes in all the country’s major cities against Morales. Evo has called to mobilize his base the coca growers, the miners and the campesinos [the rural poor] and we could see further partisan violent clashes between rural and urban areas.” | Famous Person - Commit Crime - Accuse | October 2019 | ['(The Guardian)'] |
Tens of thousands of people protest in Karachi, Pakistan, as a part of a campaign to oust Prime Minister Imran Khan by opposition parties which accuse him of being installed by the military. | KARACHI, Pakistan (Reuters) - Tens of thousands of opposition supporters rallied in Pakistan’s largest city of Karachi on Sunday as part of a campaign to oust Prime Minister Imran Khan, who they accuse of being installed by the military in a rigged election two years ago.
The mass demonstration in Karachi was the second in three days launched by Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM), formed last month by nine major opposition parties to begin a nationwide agitation against the government.
Under Khan, Pakistan has experienced mounting censorship of the media and a crackdown on dissent, critics and opposition. But the campaign against him sought to tap into discontent over his handling of the economy, which was tanking even before the global coronavirus pandemic struck.
“You’ve snatched jobs from people. You have snatched two-time a day food from the people,” Maryam Nawaz, the daughter and political heir of the former three-time premier Nawaz Sharif, told the rally.
In the early hours of Monday, police snatched her husband, arresting Muhammad Safdar following complaints from Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf (PTI) party that he had raised political slogans at the mausoleum of Pakistan’s founder, Muhammad Ali Jinnah, an action deemed illegal.
“Police broke my room door at the hotel I was staying at in Karachi and arrested Capt. Safdar,” Nawaz tweeted on Monday morning. A spokesman of the provincial government said police had not acted on their orders.
During Sunday’s rally she had shared the platform with Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, whose late mother Benazir Bhutto was also prime minister two times.
“Our farmers have hunger in their homes... our youth is disappointed,” said Zardari, whose Pakistan People’s Party governs the southern city of Karachi.
The message struck a chord with their supporters, in a country now suffering double digit inflation and negative economic growth.
“Inflation has broken the back of poor citizens forcing many to beg to feed their children,” said Faqeer Baloch, 63, at the Karachi rally.
“It is high time that this government should go now,” he said as the crowd chanted, “Go Imran go!”
The next general election is scheduled for 2023.
On Friday, the opposition held a mass rally in Gujranwala, a city in the eastern province of Punjab, a stronghold for Sharif’s Pakistan Muslim League (N).
Addressing the rally via video link from London, Nawaz Sharif accused army chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa of rigging the 2018 elections and orchestrating his ouster in 2017, saying the corruption charges brought against him were concocted.
The military, which denies meddling in politics, has yet to respond specifically to Sharif’s accusations. Khan, who denies the army helped him win, has defended the military and on Saturday threatened a fresh crackdown on opposition leaders.
Additional reporting by Asif Shahzad in Islamabad; Writing by Gibran Peshimam and Asif Shahzad; Editing by Frances Kerry, Daniel Wallis & Simon Cameron-Moore
Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
| Protest_Online Condemnation | October 2020 | ['(Reuters)'] |
The Swedish National Veterinary Institute reports a dead duck discovered near Stockholm was infected with an undetermined strain of avian influenza. | As Russia and Sweden report new cases of bird flu, China says it will close its borders if it finds a single case of human-to-human transmission.
The em>South China Morning Post reports that Vice Minister for Health Huang Jiefu says saving lives would be Beijing's top priority in efforts to contain a possible outbreak of bird flu, even if it meant slowing the economy.
The World Bank says while prevention measures would cost a lot, the economic damage from a pandemic would be far worse. Mr Huang has told health officials from China, Hong Kong and Macau that any suspected human case would be quarantined. The World Health Organisation has said the deadly H5N1 strain is endemic in poultry in China and across much of Asia.
It says it may only be a matter of time before it develops the ability to pass easily from human to human. China's sheer size and its attempts to conceal the SARS epidemic in 2003 have prompted fears among some experts that it has had more bird flu cases than officially recorded. Since breaking out in late 2003 in South Korea, the deadly H5N1 strain of influenza has killed more than 60 people in four Asian countries and reached as far west as European Russia, Turkey and Romania, tracking the paths of migratory birds. Russian authorities say they have uncovered more cases of bird flu in the Urals and are investigating a suspected outbreak in the Altai region close to the Kazakh border. Sweden's National Veterinary Institute says a duck found dead east of the capital has tested positive for avian flu but it is too early to say which strain of virus the bird had. "The result of the virus tests which were carried out today on samples from ducks found in Eskilstuna show that one of them was infected with influenza," the institute said in a statement. The institute is carrying out additional tests. On Friday, new cases were reported in Britain, Romania and Croatia, but there was no immediate indication it was H5N1. Croatian authorities started culling on Saturday all poultry around a fish pond where the country's first bird flu case was confirmed and police sealed off the area. The officials said 10,000 birds in about 1,000 rural households will be killed in the next few days. Samples were sent to Britain to determine if it was H5N1 which has been found in Romania, which shares the Danube waterway with Croatia, and in Turkey. Bosnia banned the import of poultry from neighbouring Croatia and also forbade the transport of wild fowl and poultry and the slaughter and sale of poultry in outdoor markets. Italy said it was banning imports of live poultry of any species and all related products from Croatia, Romania and other Balkan countries. Slovenia, also a neighbour of Croatia, prohibited outdoor poultry breeding in one part of the country in line with the EU regulations.
In Britain, the Agriculture Ministry said a parrot that died in quarantine had contracted bird flu. The parrot had been imported from Surinam and held with other birds from Taiwan. Because of the British case, Germany said it would ask the European Union next week to ban all wild bird imports. | Disease Outbreaks | October 2005 | ['(ABC)'] |
The United States Department of Labor says hiring picked up in October, with 171,000 jobs being added, though the unemployment rate rose 0.1% higher to 7.9%. | The economy added 171,000 jobs in October, and unemployment inched up to 7.9%, from 7.8% in September, the Labor Department said Friday. Economists surveyed by CNNMoney had expected employers to add 125,000 positions, so the boost in hiring was mostly seen as a positive surprise. Superstorm Sandy, which devastated the northeastern part of the U.S. this week, had no impact on the report since the survey was taken earlier in the month, the Labor Department said. Another good sign was that job growth in recent months was even stronger than originally reported. The number of positions added in August and September were revised sharply higher, adding a combined 84,000 more jobs than first thought. "We are again seeing a quickening in the rate of hiring," said Heather Boushey, senior economist at the left-leaning Center for American Progress. "It's moving in the right direction." However, the pace of hiring has not regained the force it had in January and February, when more than 250,000 jobs were added each month. The rise in unemployment was expected by economists, and was mainly because more people joined the labor force. Some economists believe that September's drop in unemployment encouraged those out of work to reenter the labor force. Related: Check the unemployment rate in your state The job gains were spread across varying industries, with the entire private sector adding 184,000 people to the payroll. Professional and business services added 51,000 positions, while health care employment rose by 31,000. The construction sector continued to bring on employees, adding 17,000 jobs last month. Retail and leisure and hospitality also boosted payrolls. But government employers took a step back, shedding 13,000 jobs after several strong months of gains. Manufacturing was little changed and mining lost 9,000 jobs. Wages remained essentially flat for all employees. "A few more people are working, but they are not making any more," said Keith Hembre, chief economist at Nuveen Asset Management. Related: Best Jobs in America The report, the last before Tuesday's election, will likely be picked apart by politicians as well as economists. September's report, which showed an unexpected drop in the unemployment rate, prompted an outcry from Republican supporters, including Jack Welch, claiming the figure had been manipulated. The monthly jobs report has taken on increased importance as the nation struggles to recover from the economic downturn. Roughly 12.3 million people remain unemployed, 40.6% of whom have been so for more than six months. And presidential candidates Barack Obama and Mitt Romney are centering much of the campaigns on who can create more jobs. Obama touted the rosy report on the campaign trail Friday, noting that employers have picked up hiring lately. "This morning we learned that companies hired more workers in October than at any time in the last eight months," he said in Ohio. Romney, meanwhile, swiftly issued a statement saying the report was "a sad reminder that the economy is at a virtual standstill." He noted the jobless rate is higher than it was when Obama took office. In January 2009, the unemployment rate was 7.8%. While many industries are adding jobs, the current tepid pace of growth is not enough to climb out of the jobs hole, economists said. Companies remain hesitant to boost payrolls. One of their main worries? How the president and Congress deal with the looming fiscal cliff. "The broader economy is still just limping along," said Bill Dunkelberg, chief economist for the National Federation of Independent Business. "We don't really see any major pickup in job growth." | Financial Crisis | November 2012 | ['(CNN)'] |
Khmer Rouge leader Ta Mok dies in a military hospital while waiting for his trial for crimes against humanity committed in Democratic Kampuchea. | Nicknamed "The Butcher", he was the regime's military commander and linked to many atrocities of the 1970s.
About 1.7 million people died under the Khmer Rouge, through a combination of starvation, disease and execution.
Ta Mok was expected to be one of the first people tried for genocide and crimes against humanity at UN-backed hearings due to start next year.
He was one of only two surviving Khmer Rouge commanders in detention, and with most of the remaining figures from the regime in poor health, some analysts question whether the trials have been left too late to see justice served.
Brutal legacy
"Ta Mok passed away this morning," military doctor Tuoth Nara told reporters. "He was an old man and died of natural causes, given his poor health and respiratory problems." We are saddened by his death
Morm Mol, Ta Mok's nephew
Send your comments
Fresh fears for trials
Ta Mok, who was in his 80s, had been unwell since last month, suffering from high blood pressure and tuberculosis, and slipped into a coma last week.
"We are saddened by his death," said his nephew, 33-year-old Morm Mol, as he announced the news to reporters outside the Phnom Penh hospital.
Of all the Khmer Rouge leaders, Ta Mok was regarded by many as the most brutal, the BBC's Guy Delauney reports from Phnom Penh.
He played a key role in a series of massacres and purges, which started even before the Khmer Rouge took power. Ta Mok was in charge of the forces which destroyed the former royal capital Oudong in 1974, expelling civilians and killing officials and government soldiers. Later he instigated purges as the Khmer Rouge went to war with itself. He eventually became the overall leader of the organisation in 1997, but he was captured two years later and spent the rest of his life in jail. Evading trial
Ta Mok's death leaves a Khmer Rouge prison boss, Kaing Khek Iev, more commonly known as Duch, as the group's only surviving leader in detention.
Key Khmer Rouge figures
Pol Pot died in his jungle hide-out in April 1998 from an apparent heart attack.
Many Cambodians fear they will never get a chance to see justice, because ageing Khmer Rouge defendants are dying before they face trial.
Earlier this month, judges and prosecutors from both Cambodia and other nations were sworn in for the UN-backed tribunal, which is due to start in 2007.
A spokesman for the tribunal, Reach Sambath, said on Friday that a "key resource of information" had passed away.
When he heard of Ta Mok's death, Youk Chhang, the director of the Documentation Center of Cambodia, an independent group researching the atrocities committed by the Khmer Rouge, said: "It's sad news - it's outrageous."
"Some people may be happy with this, but not the victims who have been waiting for justice for a long time," he told the Associated Press. | Famous Person - Death | July 2006 | ['(BBC)'] |
In ice hockey, the United States win 2013 IIHF Women's World Championship defeating Canada 3–2 in the final. | The win is the fifth WW gold for the Americans, who have now won the last pre-Olympics championship for the third straight time.
Amanda Kessel broke the 2-2 tie with a wrist shot early in the third that eluded goalie Shannon Szabados.
"I feel like it’s revenge," Kessel agreed. "We got beat on our home soil last year. To come into Canada and win the gold medal is unbelievable. We used our speed and worked hard. It gives us great confidence heading to Sochi."
"Any time we play Canada and lose, we want to have the chance to prove ourselves," agreed captain Julie Chu. "We knew what they were capable of doing. They put on our heels in that first game, and we wanted to make sure we weren’t tonight. We wanted to force them so they wouldn’t be in our end so much."
The first ten minutes were tentatively and nervously played by both sides, but Brianna Decker had a sensational chance to open the scoring when she was stopped by Szabados on a clear breakaway. Decker led all skaters with nine shots in the game. No Canadian had more than two, and captain Hayley Wickenheiser was held without a single shot.
A short time later Canada’s Brianne Jenner wired a long shot off the post, and that got both teams to open up.
Canada got the only goal of the period on a long shot. Courtney Birchard, a left-hand shot, blasted the puck from the right wing while backing up. The trajectory fooled Vetter, who looked shaky all night, and the puck slipped under her arm. It was definitely the kind of shot she’d save 99 times out of 100.
The rest of the period saw many fine scoring chances both ways. Birchard hit the post later and Meghan Agosta-Marciano also had a great chance in front. Meghan Duggan also was stoned by Szabados, who was rock solid in the opening 20 minutes.
The middle period was nothing short of sensational. The Americans tied the game at 2:43 on a nice off-wing rush from Decker. She cut in on goal and as Szabados fell tucked the puck in. Canada picked up the pace, but the Americans went to another gear and drew several penalties.
The visitors took the lead for the first time at 14:26 on a two-man advantage. Megan Bozek’s slapshot through thraffic found the back of the net and silenced the crowd, and the U.S. picked up the pace, taking it to the Canadians. It was only the fine play of Szabados that kept the score close.
"We used the crowd to our advantage," Kessel said. "When we scored and they went silent, there’s no better feeling."
And then, just like that, Canada got a power play and struck seven seconds later. Caroline Ouellette brought the puck off the right-wing boards and whistled a slapshot past Vetter at 17:50 to tie the game and set up another classic third period between these great rivals.
The Americans took the lead at 3:08 of the final period off a turnover at centre ice. Amanda Kessel carried the puck in on a two-on-one and wristed a high shot over Szabados's shoulder to make it a 3-2 game.
"This week wasn’t easy for us," said gold-medallist Meghan Duggan. "If you look at some of the things that happened. We lost a tough one in overtime in the first game of the tournament, had to battle hard to beat Finland and Switzerland. Today, we came together as a team. I couldn’t be more proud of the girls."
"It wasn’t our best game today," said Canadian Bailey Bram. "It would have been nice to get one early and get a little momentum. Bottom line, they were the better team tonight. We didn’t execute. We ran into penalty trouble and it cost us the game."
In the end, the Americans played at a higher level for 60 minutes and the Canadians took too many penalties. Total power-play time heavily favoured the victors, 10:08 to 2:53.
"It came down to specialty teams," Wickenheiser acknowledged. "They had a lot of power plays, and we didn’t. But we had a lot of chances early on and we didn’t capitalize. I think she was shaky all night but we have to take advantage of that, and we didn’t. | Sports Competition | April 2013 | ['(IIHF)', '(TSN)'] |
Following last month's manslaughter conviction, Israeli soldier Elor Azaria is sentenced to 18 months in prison by a military court for, during a violent incident, his deadly shooting of the wounded, unarmed, prone Palestinian Abdel Fattah al-Sharif, who had stabbed a soldier last March in Hebron. | TEL AVIV, Israel -- An Israeli military court on Tuesday sentenced a soldier to 18 months in prison for his deadly shooting of a Palestinian attacker who lay wounded on the ground, capping a nearly yearlong saga that has deeply divided the country.
The sentence, which included a year’s probation and a demotion in rank, was lighter than expected. Prosecutors had asked for a prison term of three to five years. Palestinians dismissed the sentence as a “joke.” Yet it still triggered disappointment from several hundred protesters who had gathered outside the Tel Aviv court and had hoped to see the soldier walk free. Sgt. Elor Azaria is to start serving his term on March 5, and politicians immediately called for him to be pardoned. “Even if he erred, Elor should not sit in prison. We will all pay the price,” said Education Minister Naftali Bennett, leader of the nationalist Jewish Home Party and an early supporter of the soldier. The Palestinians, meanwhile, said the light sentencing only encouraged Israeli soldiers to use excessive force. “This sentence is a joke, and it shows how much discrimination Israeli courts practice against Palestinians,” said Issa Karaka, the Palestinian government minister for prisoners. Azaria was convicted of manslaughter last month in a rare case of a military court ruling against a combat soldier for lethal action taken in the field.
The verdict marked a victory for commanders who said Azaria had violated the army’s code of ethics. But the soldier himself generated great support among the public, many of whom see him as a scapegoat for a misguided elite that has sought to harshly punish a soldier who they say responded to an armed attacker trying to kill other soldiers. Azaria, an army medic, was caught on a cellphone video last March as he fatally shot the wounded Palestinian, just after the man stabbed a soldier in the West Bank city of Hebron. The Palestinian, Abdel Fattah al-Sharif, was lying on the ground badly wounded and already unarmed when Azaria shot him in the head. The dead Palestinian’s father, Yousri al-Sharif, said the light sentence made a mockery of justice. “If one of us killed an animal they would have put him in jail for God knows how long. They are only making fun of us,” he said. Fathi al-Sharif, an uncle of the slain attacker, said the sentence was too light. “It’s not a punishment,” he said. “This will encourage other soldiers to do the same.”
The shooting occurred at the height of what has become more than a yearlong wave of Israeli-Palestinian violence. Since September 2015, Palestinian attackers have carried out numerous stabbing and shooting attacks that have killing 41 Israelis and two visiting Americans. During the same time, Israeli forces have killed 235 Palestinians, most of them attackers. Palestinians and human rights groups have accused Israeli forces of using excessive force in some of the cases and even harming innocent people mistaken as attackers. But in the absence of concrete evidence, they have been unable to prove these claims. The video of the Azaria shooting, taken by a Palestinian human rights activist, was the strongest evidence to date to support the Palestinian claims. “Sending Elor Azaria to prison for his crime sends an important message about reigning in excessive use of force,” said Sari Bashi, Israel and Palestine Advocacy Director at Human Rights Watch. “But senior Israeli officials should also repudiate the shoot-to-kill rhetoric that too many of them have promoted, even when there is no imminent threat of death. Pardoning Azaria or reducing his punishment would only encourage impunity for unlawfully taking the life of another person.” Azaria’s defenders said he shot the assailant in self-defense, and hard-line politicians have said he should be either cleared or released with a light penalty. “The prosecution was thirsty for Elor’s blood and the sentencing proves that,” Yoram Sheftel, one of the soldier’s lawyers, said outside the court. But his detractors, including senior military commanders, have said his actions violated military procedures. The uproar has put the army in a delicate position. Military service is compulsory for Israel’s Jewish majority, and there is widespread sympathy for soldiers, since virtually every family has a member who is serving or has served in the past.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who initially defended the military, later softened his position and called Azaria’s parents to console them. After the verdict last month, he called for Azaria to be pardoned. The dispute helped fuel the resignation of Defense Minister Moshe Yaalon, a former military chief who sided with the army. His successor, Avigdor Lieberman, visited Azaria in court during the trial. But since taking up the defense post, Lieberman has lined up behind the army. On Tuesday, he asked the public to respect the sentencing and urged “all sides to do what is necessary to put an end to this affair.” Netanyahu was on a trip to Singapore and Australia and did not immediately react to the sentencing. Dozens of the soldier’s supporters outside the court chanted words of encouragement and waved banners reading: “Death to terrorists.” The 20-year-old Azaria entered the court smiling and was greeted by applause from friends and relatives. He then had a long embrace with his mother and other family members. Last month’s verdict was accompanied by angry outbursts in the courtroom and protesters outside who briefly blocked streets and scuffled with police. But reactions were more muted Tuesday as Azaria’s father, Charlie, took a more calming approach, asking supporters ahead of the sentencing not to disrupt the proceedings. “None of us have any expectations, we shall accept the sentence whatever it may be,” he said. The family sang the national anthem at the end of sentencing. Outside the courtroom there was anger, but no major disturbances. “I’m a mother of soldiers, of fighters just like him. How can I send my kids to the army now?” said Sigalit Cohen, an Azaria supporter. “You are a soldier, you have a gun, you are a fighter, that’s your job. He only did his job.” Col. Maya Heller, head of the three-judge panel, noted as mitigating factors in Azaria’s sentencing that the incident took place “in hostile territory” and it was Azaria’s first real operational experience. “We took note of the harm suffered by his family,” she said. However, she said Azaria had not expressed remorse for his actions and ruled that he did not open fire out of danger -- but rather to harm the assailant.
First published on February 21, 2017 / 12:19 PM
© 2017 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. | Famous Person - Commit Crime - Sentence | February 2017 | ['(CBS News)'] |
Ten gunmen storm the five-star Radisson Blu Hotel in the Malian capital Bamako, taking 170 hostages with at least 27 people killed. The grenade-toting assailants free captives who are able to recite the Quran. The hotel is "often used" by Air France staff. | At least 27 people were reported dead on Friday after Malian commandos stormed a luxury hotel in the capital Bamako with at least 170 people inside, many of them foreigners, that had been seized by Islamist gunmen. Deborah Lutterbeck reports.
By Tiemoko Diallo BAMAKO (Reuters) - At least 27 people were reported dead on Friday after Malian commandos stormed a luxury hotel in the capital Bamako with at least 170 people inside, many of them foreigners, that had been seized by Islamist gunmen. The former French colony has been battling Islamist rebels for several years, and the jihadist group Al Mourabitoun, allied to al Qaeda and based in the deserts of northern Mali, claimed responsibility for the attack in a tweet. By late afternoon, ministerial adviser Amadou Sangho told the French television station BFMTV that no more hostages were being held. But a U.N. official said U.N. peacekeepers on the scene had seen 27 bodies in a preliminary count, and that a search of hotel was continuing. It was not clear whether any of the gunmen, who were said to have dug in on the seventh floor of the hotel as special forces advanced on them, were still active. State television showed footage of troops in camouflage fatigues wielding AK47s in the lobby of the Radisson Blu, one of Bamako's smartest hotels and beloved of foreigners. In the background, a body lay under a brown blanket at the bottom of a flight of stairs. The peacekeepers saw 12 dead bodies in the basement of the hotel and another 15 on the second floor, the U.N. official told Reuters on condition of anonymity. He added that the U.N. troops were still helping Malian authorities search the hotel. A man working for a Belgian regional parliament was among the dead, the assembly said. Minister of Internal Security Colonel Salif Traoré said the gunmen had burst through a security barrier at 7 a.m. (0700 GMT), spraying the area with gunfire and shouting "Allahu Akbar", or "God is great" in Arabic. BURSTS OF GUNFIRE Occasional bursts of gunfire were heard as the assailants went through the seven-storey building, room-by-room and floor-by-floor, one senior security source and a witness told Reuters. Some people were freed by the attackers after showing they could recite verses from the Koran, while others were brought out by security forces or managed to escape under their own steam. One of the rescued hostages, celebrated Guinean singer Sékouba 'Bambino' Diabate, said he had overheard two of the assailants speaking in English as they searched the room next to his. "We heard shots coming from the reception area. I didn't dare go out of my room because it felt like this wasn't just simple pistols - these were shots from military weapons," Diabate told Reuters by phone. "The attackers went into the room next to mine. I stayed still, hidden under the bed, not making a noise," he said. "I heard them say in English 'Did you load it?', 'Let's go'." The raid on the hotel, which lies just west of the city centre near government ministries and diplomatic offices, came a week after Islamic State militants killed 129 people in Paris, raising fears that French nationals were being specifically targeted. Twelve Air France flight crew were in the building but all were extracted safely, the French national carrier said. A Turkish official said five of seven Turkish Airlines staff had also managed to flee. The Chinese state news agency Xinhua said three of 10 Chinese tourists caught inside had been rescued. PRESIDENT RETURNS Malian President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita cut short a trip to a regional summit in Chad, his office said. Northern Mali was occupied by Islamist fighters, some with links to al Qaeda, for most of 2012. They were driven out by a French-led military operation, but sporadic violence has continued in Mali's central belt on the southern reaches of the Sahara, and in Bamako. One security source said as many as 10 gunmen had stormed the building, although the company that runs the hotel, Rezidor Group, said it understood that there were only two attackers. Al Mourabitoun has claimed responsibility for a number of attacks in Mali, including an assault on a hotel in the town of Sevare, 600 km (375 miles) northeast of Bamako, in August in which 17 people including five U.N. staff were killed. One of its leaders is Mokhtar Belmokhtar, blamed for a large-scale assault on an Algerian gas field in 2013 and a major figure in insurgencies across North Africa. In the wake of last week's Paris attacks, an Islamic State militant in Syria told Reuters the organisation viewed France's military intervention in Mali as another reason to attack France and French interests. "This is just the beginning. We also haven't forgotten what happened in Mali," said the non-Syrian fighter, who was contacted online by Reuters. "The bitterness from Mali, the arrogance of the French, will not be forgotten at all." (Reporting by Tiemoko Diallo; Writing by Joe Bavier and Ed Cropley; Editing by Kevin Liffey)
.
| Armed Conflict | November 2015 | ['(France 24)', '[permanent dead link]', '(NBC News)', '(The New York Daily News)', '(Reuters via Yahoo! News)'] |
Antonio Tajani has been elected as new President of the European Parliament. | The European Parliament has the power to block or amend EU laws, and will have the final say on whether to approve a Brexit deal with the UK.
Mr Tajani secured 351 votes, against 282 for Mr Pittella, a socialist. The contest ran to the maximum four rounds. Mr Tajani's European People's Party (EPP) group benefited from a new coalition with the parliament's liberals, the ALDE, who hope to curb the influence of anti-EU populists. ALDE leader Guy Verhofstadt withdrew his candidacy at the last minute, paving the way for Mr Tajani's victory.
The EPP candidate dedicated his win to those who died in August's earthquake in central Italy, and all victims of terror attacks.
"We must devote our attention to all those who are in tough living conditions," he said in a short speech.
The election of Mr Tajani puts the centre-right in charge of the three main EU institutions - the European Commission, Council and Parliament.
Europe sees UK set for 'hard' Brexit
How does the European Parliament work?
The EPP is the biggest group in parliament, followed by the Socialists and Democrats (S&D) group which fielded Mr Pitella. The ALDE liberals are the fourth-largest group.
Mr Pitella congratulated Mr Tajani in a statement, saying it had been a long time since the European Parliament had elected a president "in a fully transparent and open competition without any pre-arranged deals."
He said the socialists would "constructively oppose" the "new conservative block".
Martin Schulz is leaving the European Parliament to return to German national politics. The role of the president grew in significance during his tenure, and his successor will have to sign off the deal for Britain's EU departure - probably by late 2018 or early 2019.
Mr Tajani has said of the task: "We need to be very balanced - we need to defend the rights of Europe, but we also have to think that in the future the UK will be an important partner for us."
Top MEP Schulz to run in German election
Europe sees UK set for 'hard' Brexit
Italy Eurosceptics snubbed by liberals | Government Job change - Election | January 2017 | ['(BBC)', '(New York Times)'] |
A seventeen–square mile fire continues to burn in Santa Clarita, California, near Los Angeles. | A burned body was found Saturday at the scene of a brushfire north of Los Angeles that has scorched 31 square miles and prompted the evacuation of 1,500 homes, authorities said.
The body was discovered outside a home on Iron Canyon Road in Santa Clarita, and detectives are trying to determine whether the person was killed by the blaze or another cause, Los Angeles County sheriff's Lt. Rob Hahnlein said.
The home also may have burned, he said.
The area was one of several neighborhoods ordered evacuated as the fire raged through bone-dry canyons and ranchlands. The fire burned through the area Saturday evening. Firefighters reported that some buildings had been engulfed, but it was not immediately clear whether they were homes, outbuildings or garages, said Nathan Judy, a spokesman for the U.S. Fire Service.
The area was still unsafe because of smoldering debris and trees that might fall because their roots had burned, Judy said.
The fire was only 10 percent contained Saturday night as it burned on the edge of Santa Clarita and into the Angeles National Forest and showed no sign of calming.
More than 900 firefighters and water-dropping helicopters planned to battle the flames overnight, but they could face several fronts.
"It's not a one-direction type of fire," Judy said. "It's going in different directions depending on which way the wind is blowing. It's doing what it wants."
A Bengal tiger and other exotic animals were evacuated from the Wildlife Waystation, a nonprofit sanctuary for rescued exotic creatures within the national forest.
More than 220 horses, dozens of goats and other animals were taken from the fire area, animal control officials said.
About 300 miles up the coast, California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection firefighters battled a 10-square-mile blaze in rugged mountains north of the majestic Big Sur region.
The blaze 5 miles south of Garrapata State Park posed a threat to about 1,000 homes and the community of Palo Colorado was ordered evacuated, Cal Fire said.
By evening, people living in the Carmel Highlands north of the fire were told to be ready to leave at a moment's notice if an evacuation was called.
Jerri Masten-Hansen and her husband said she and her husband watched the fire creep in. "We felt threatened this morning and decided we needed to go," Masten-Hansen told KSBW-TV .
Her sister also left her home down the road. "I grabbed all the pictures of the kids, and then I took the paintings of my parents that had been done by a local artist," Ellen Masten said. | Fire | July 2016 | ['(ABC News)'] |
Prince William of Wales arrives in New Zealand for a three–day tour, including the opening of its new Supreme Court building, his first official overseas trip representing Elizabeth II. | Prince William arrived in New Zealand to begin his first official overseas trip on behalf of the Queen.
The 27-year-old prince's visit generated strong interest amongst the British media who travelled to the South Pacific islands in large numbers not seen since the foreign tours of Diana, Princess of Wales.
The trip is a major milestone for the second-in-line to the throne who is in New Zealand to open the Commonwealth country's new supreme court on behalf of his grandmother the Queen and carry out other engagements.
His actions during the next three days will be filmed, photographed and written about for newspapers, websites and television outlets in Britain and across the world.
The prince will also visit Australia for an unofficial tour which will last three days.
The royal arrived in Auckland on a scheduled Air New Zealand plane just after 10pm last night (11am Sunday local time) and was greeted by Prime Minister John Key and the Queen's representative Governor General Anand Satyanand.
The prince, dressed in an immaculate suit, looked relaxed after his long-haul flight which he spent in business class and left the aircraft before the other passengers.
He was joined by his private secretary Jamie Lowther-Pinkerton, adviser Sir David Manning, Britain's former ambassador to Washington, and a number of royal protection police officers.
As he shook hands with Mr Key the royal commented on the weather which was overcast with cool temperatures saying: "It's a bit like English weather - confused."
An early indication of the public interest in the visit was demonstrated by around 100 people who waited in the airport's arrivals lounge to get a brief glimpse of the prince before he was driven away.
Mr Lowther-Pinkerton described how the royal is "enormously fond" of New Zealand, a nation he first visited in 1983 and again five years ago.
William will be reintroduced to the country's indigenous culture during his short stay when he is guest of honour at a hangi - a traditional Maori dinner - hosted by the Queen's representative Governor General Anand Satyanand today.
Dishes on the menu - cooked slowly beneath the ground in earth ovens - could include wild pig and vegetables.
Before opening the new multi-million pound Supreme Court in the capital Wellington today (Monday morning local time) the prince will be welcomed by Maori elders with a hongi - the traditional rubbing of noses symbolising the exchange of breath.
The royal is an enthusiastic rugby fan whose last visit to the Pacific Ocean islands five years ago saw him follow most of the matches of the Lions against New Zealand's All Blacks.
William will meet the country's current crop of rugby stars when he visits the redeveloped Eden Park stadium in Auckland today - one of the venues for the 2011 Rugby World Cup being hosted by New Zealand.
Later the prince will take to the waters around Auckland when he joins the crew of a yacht used as an early trial boat for the 1999-2000 America's Cup series won by the Pacific Ocean islands.
During his second day the royal, who is training to become an RAF Search and Rescue helicopter pilot, will lay a wreath at a national war memorial in Wellington and that evening join guests at a barbecue hosted by the New Zealand Prime Minister.
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Want to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? Start your Independent Premium subscription today. | Diplomatic Visit | January 2010 | ['(BBC)', '(The Independent)', '(The Daily Telegraph)'] |
A fire in a low–rent apartment in a suburb of Beijing kills 19 people and injures 8. The Beijing municipal government then launches a fire safety crackdown in which thousands of migrant workers are evicted from their homes within days. | Firefighters work at the site of a fire in Daxing District of Beijing, capital of China, November 19, 2017. Nineteen people were killed and eight others injured according to local authorities. (Xinhua/Luo Xiaoguang)
BEIJING, Nov. 19 (Xinhua) -- Nineteen people were killed and eight others injured in a house fire in Beijing's southern Daxing District Saturday night, local authorities said.
The fire has been extinguished at around 9 p.m.
Those who were rescued have been taken to hospital for treatment.
The accident, which occurred in Xinjian Village, Daxing District, was reported at 6:15 p.m., according to the municipal fire department.
Fire trucks and firemen were immediately sent to the site.
According to local authorities, the city will set up a team to investigate the accident. The suspects are under police control. | Fire | November 2017 | ['(Xinhua net)', '(Caixin)'] |
American judge Kenneth Marra strikes out claims that Virginia Roberts was forced to have sex with Prince Andrew, Duke of York in her claim against Jeffrey Epstein. | Claims that a woman was forced to have sex with Prince Andrew when she was 17 are to be struck from the record of a civil case in the US, a judge has said.
The Duke of York was named in court papers in Florida by a woman alleging financier Jeffrey Epstein forced her to have sex with the duke three times.
But Judge Kenneth Marra said the "lurid" claims were "unnecessary" to decide the civil case.
Buckingham Palace has previously "emphatically" denied the allegations.
BBC royal correspondent Nicholas Witchell said Judge Marra had expressed no opinion as to the "validity or veracity" of the allegations against Prince Andrew.
The duke had been named in documents filed in a Florida court about how prosecutors handled a case against Epstein, a former friend of the royal.
The documents concerned claims by Virginia Roberts, who alleged that Epstein had forced her to have sex with powerful men - including the duke - when she was 17.
Two women - known as Jane Doe #1 and Jane Doe #2 - are suing the US government, saying it failed to protect their rights when it entered into a plea deal with Epstein, who spent time in jail in 2008-9 for a sex offence with a minor.
Ms Roberts - referred to as Jane Doe #3 in the court papers - had been attempting to join the claim against the US government.
But the US judge denied her attempt to join the claim and said her allegations about Prince Andrew were "unnecessary to the determination" of the case.
"The factual details regarding with whom and where the Jane Does engaged in sexual activities are immaterial and impertinent to this central claim," the judge said in a ruling.
by Rajini Vaidyanathan, BBC North America correspondent
Lawyers for Virginia Roberts have told me this isn't the end of their fight.
They issued a short statement on behalf of their client which simply read: "I'm happy to participate in this important case."
But it's unclear how she will, now the judge has dismissed her request to join Jane Doe 1 and 2 in their fight against the US government (and the way it handled the Epstein case).
She could appear as a witness and, if that case is successful, she could benefit in the longer run as one of Epstein's alleged victims.
But for now, the judge's decision does appear to be the end of Prince Andrew's association with the case.
The documents containing the claims he'd had sexual relations with Virginia Roberts have been thrown out, although the judge didn't pass comment on the allegations themselves. The prince has always denied them. Former Harvard law professor Alan Dershowitz - who was also accused of having sex with Ms Roberts in the court papers - told the BBC he felt completely vindicated by the judge's ruling to strike off the "salacious pleadings".
However, Ms Roberts' lawyers said they did not believe this was the end of the case for their client.
In the court papers, Ms Roberts said she had been forced to have sexual relations with the duke in three locations - in London, New York and on a private Caribbean island owned by Epstein - between 1999 and 2002.
Responding to the claims - which surfaced at the start of the year - Buckingham Palace said "any suggestion of impropriety with under-age minors is categorically untrue".
In a further statement, the palace said the claims against Prince Andrew were "categorically untrue" and lacked "any foundation".
Speaking at a world business forum in January, Prince Andrew said he wanted to "reiterate" the denials issued by Buckingham Palace.
| Famous Person - Commit Crime - Accuse | April 2015 | ['(BBC)'] |
Protests and riots against president-elect Donald Trump take place in Portland, Los Angeles, New York City, and Atlanta, leading to the arrests of over 225 people. | Hundreds of people protesting the election of Donald Trump took to the streets in cities across the country for a third straight night on Friday, as police bolstered their forces in the wake of rioting in Portland, Ore., and Los Angeles.
More than 225 people have been arrested across various cities — at least 185 in Los Angeles alone, the Associated Press reported — amid demonstrations that have included highway blockades, angry chants of “not my president” and a rampage through Portland.
Police in New York on Friday erected barricades and placed sand-filled trucks in front of Trump Tower. Protesters illuminated by the flashing red and blue of police car lights chanted, “Hey, hey, ho, ho, Donald Trump has got to go.”
And in Atlanta, protesters marched through the Georgia State University campus and blocked roads. “Tonight appears to be the largest group yet,” tweeted Justin Wilfon, a reporter with Atlanta’s WSB-TV Channel 2.
President Obama, President-elect Trump, and political leaders on both sides of the aisle appealed for unity, even as protests veered into violence.
In Portland, protesters convened for a “heal-in” Friday night at city hall, a day after the protests there had turned violent. Hundreds gathered with signs and were led in a group activity where people divided by neighborhood and discussed their reasons for being at the event.
But the Portland gathering intensified as the night progressed. The group that formed around 5 p.m. splintered, spreading around the city. Police in riot gear stood firm across one downtown street until after 8 p.m. when protesters threw glass bottles at the police.
By 10 p.m., the police had deployed tear gas, flash grenades and rubber bullets, warning protesters that they would be arrested if they remained on scene. An hour later, hundreds of people were still gathered downtown, with police closing in from the east and west to send a clear message: leave or be arrested.
Earlier Friday in Miami, hundreds of demonstrators clogged a major thoroughfare, the MacArthur Causeway, halting traffic for more than an hour shortly after dusk. They eventually moved downtown and by 9 p.m. had blocked northbound lanes on Interstate 95.
Protest organizer David Michael, a 30-year-old community activist who voted for Jill Stein, carried a bullhorn to direct the orders to the Miami demonstrators.
“Once I saw other people protesting white supremacy, I said, ‘You know what? We need to do one in Miami,’” Michael said. “We got the word out on social media like Facebook, all of that.”
The sense of potential crisis in protests across the nation was reinforced by clashes that included the vicious beating, caught on video, of a 49-year-old man, David Wilcox, being viciously beaten by a group of young men and women in Chicago. The attackers screamed phrases such as “You voted Trump” and “Don’t vote Trump.”
“What’s happening to America?” Wilcox asked in a recorded interview with the Chicago Tribune.
At Arlington National Cemetery, Obama used his Veterans Day remarks to try to remind the country of its common bonds — even though Obama himself had derided Trump during the campaign and described him as unfit for the presidency.
“When the election is over, as we search for ways to come together, to reconnect with one another and with the principles that are more enduring than transitory politics, some of our best examples are the men and women we salute on Veterans Day,” Obama said.
For the moment, Portland has emerged as a bellwether for signs of the scope and tone of the protests.
At the peak of Portland’s demonstration late Thursday, about 4,000 people took to the streets, confronting drivers, spray-painting buildings and smashing electrical boxes with baseball bats, Pete Simpson, public information officer for the Portland Police Department, told The Washington Post.
Police used pepper spray and “rubber baton rounds,” among other things, in efforts to disperse protesters.
What began as a peaceful Black Lives Matter protest at about 6 p.m. escalated as the night wore on because of demonstrators not affiliated with the group, said Teressa Raiford, a community organizer in Portland.
“They’re not coming to show solidarity, they’re coming because they know there’s going to be a big crowd,” Raiford said. “They don’t respect our movement.”
Simpson said anarchists “aligned with the Black Bloc groups” infiltrated the peaceful demonstration “covered head-to-toe and carrying weapons.”
“Their tactic is go out and destroy property,” Simpson said. Peaceful protesters tried to stop the more violent individuals, but “they’re not having any luck,” he said.
After protesters began throwing objects at police and refusing orders to disperse, authorities used nonlethal flash grenades to move the crowd. “It’s definitely fair to say we are significantly outnumbered,” Simpson said. Thursday’s protest was “one of the larger marches we’ve seen in the last few years,” he said.
Anger at the outcome of the election and a professed unwillingness to accept it are widespread on the Internet, despite conciliatory words from Hillary Clinton and Obama. Thousands of people have declared on social media that the president-elect is “never my president” or “not my president,” phrases that showed up on signs at protests. But only a relative few sharing that sentiment have actually taken to the streets.
Trump and some of his supporters were heavily criticized during the campaign when they suggested they might not accept the result if Trump lost.
Forget reconciliation. For thousands, it’s #nevermypresident when it comes to Donald Trump.
Protests began early Wednesday in the biggest U.S. cities — New York, Los Angeles and Chicago — and flared in places from Portland and Seattle to Philadelphia and Richmond, along with cities in red states such as Atlanta, Dallas, Omaha and Kansas City, Mo.
On Thursday, about 600 “anti-Trump” protesters marched to downtown Baltimore and blocked streets. Following a rally in downtown Minneapolis, several thousand protesters blocked the heavily traveled Interstate 94 for about an hour Thursday night, causing a major traffic backup in both directions, the Star Tribune reported.
In Oakland, Calif., officials pleaded with demonstrators to remain peaceful Thursday after the previous night’s violence. Several incidents of graffiti — with phrases such as “Kill Trump” — were reported. Protesters set many small street fires and smashed a handful of windows, but the disorder did not appear as widespread as the night before, SF Gate reported. At least a half-dozen arrests were made.
More than 300 people marched through downtown Los Angeles on Thursday night, many yelling, “We reject the president-elect!” Protesters halted traffic, threw bottles at officers, tagged police cars with graffiti and launched fireworks, the Los Angeles Times reported. But the protest was mostly peaceful, and it drew many fewer participants than the crowd of thousands on Wednesday night.
‘Not my president’: Thousands protest Trump in rallies across the U.S.
By 1 a.m., multiple arrests had been made by the Los Angeles Police Department for vandalism or disobeying a lawful order, Los Angeles Times reporter James Queally tweeted.
The protests drew a rebuke from Trump, who met with Obama at the White House on Thursday morning. “Just had a very open and successful presidential election. Now professional protesters, incited by the media, are protesting. Very unfair!” Trump said on Twitter. He did not specify what he meant by “incited by the media.”
It was his first comment about the protests and one of the few statements he has made since claiming victory over Clinton early Wednesday morning.
In 2012, after Obama was elected to a second term, Trump tweeted: “We can’t let this happen. We should march on Washington and stop this travesty. Our nation is totally divided!”
Early Friday morning, Trump took a different tone, tweeting this message: “Love the fact that the small groups of protesters last night have passion for our great country. We will all come together and be proud!”
On Thursday, former New York mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani, a Trump supporter, chimed in, calling the protesters “a bunch of spoiled crybabies” in a Fox News interview.
In Portland, the Oregonian newspaper reported, protesters chanted “Not my president” while carrying signs that read: “Oppression thrives off isolation. Stand united,” “We reject the fascist agenda” and “You’re fired!”
Mike Bivins, a local freelance journalist, said the protest took a noticeable turn as demonstrators passed a Northeast Portland car dealership, where some started breaking car windows. A dumpster and a newsstand were set on fire.
As protesters reached the Pearl District, a wealthy Northwest Portland neighborhood, “it became a free for all” of property damage, Simpson said.
Protesters lit fires and shot flares into the air, and some dragged newspaper boxes into lines across streets. Other demonstrators took photos of themselves — giving the camera a thumbs-up sign — in front of a line of cops wearing riot gear.
| Riot | November 2016 | ['(The Washington Post)'] |
Former Prime Minister of Portugal António Guterres is sworn in as the new United Nations Secretary General. | UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - Former Portuguese Prime Minister Antonio Guterres was sworn in on Monday as the ninth United Nations Secretary-General, pledging to personally help broker peace in various conflicts and reform the 71-year old world body to become more effective.
Guterres swears-in as new UN chief
01:55
Guterres, 67, will replace Ban Ki-moon, 72, of South Korea on Jan. 1. Ban steps down at the end of 2016 after two five-year terms. Guterres was Portugal’s prime minister from 1995 to 2002 and U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees from 2005 to 2015.
“From the acute crises in Syria, Yemen, South Sudan and elsewhere, to long-running disputes including the Israeli/Palestinian conflict, we need mediation, arbitration as well as creative diplomacy,” Guterres said.
“As part of my good offices I am ready to engage personally in conflict resolution where it brings added value,” he told the 193-member General Assembly.
Guterres beat out 12 other candidates, seven of whom were women, amid a push for the first woman to be elected. He said on Monday he aimed to have gender parity among senior U.N. leadership within his five year term.
Diplomats said Guterres is expected to shortly name Nigeria’s environment minister Amina Mohammed as his deputy secretary-general. He is also planning to appoint a woman as his chief of staff before the end of the year, diplomats said.
Before her appointment as environment minister a year ago, Mohammed was U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s special adviser on post-2015 development planning - a role that culminated last year with the adoption by the General Assembly of sustainable development goals for the next 15 years.
Guterres is the first former head of government to be elected to run the world body and that experience will be reflected in how he operates, diplomats said.
“He’s looking for a big shake-up, reshuffle,” said a senior U.N. diplomat, speaking on condition of anonymity. “He’s looking to create ... a different feeling, with the under-secretary-generals much more part of a collective leadership of the U.N.”
“Having what he calls a cabinet, like when he was prime minister, his senior officials would come together every week and collectively they would have responsibility for the totality of the organization,” the diplomat said.
Diplomats were now watching to see who Guterres appoints to senior U.N. positions amid speculation by diplomats and U.N. officials that China would like one of its nationals to head peacekeeping and that Russia is keen to have a senior role.
Reporting by Michelle Nichols; Editing by Franklin Paul and Phil Berlowitz
Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
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All quotes delayed a minimum of 15 minutes. See here for a complete list of exchanges and delays. | Government Job change - Appoint_Inauguration | December 2016 | ['(Reuters)'] |
North Korea and South Korea announce that they are planning to officially end the Korean War by writing a peace agreement. An armistice agreement was reached, ending armed conflict, in 1953. U.S. President Donald Trump called the decision to end the war a blessing. , | President Donald Trump announced Tuesday that North Korea and South Korea will be meeting to end their decades-long war.
"They have my blessing on that," Trump declared.
The president made the remarks with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe by his side.
South Korean President Moon Jae-in and North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un are set to hold a summit on April 27 in a village on the border.
North and South Korean officials are discussing an end to the military conflict that has existed between the two nations for the last 68 years.
An unnamed South Korean official told a local newspaper that a direct line between Moon and Kim could be established by the end of the week and that the two leaders may release a joint statement officially ending the conflict at a summit next week.
It was expected that North Korea would call for a peace treaty during next week's summit.
North Korea and South Korea have been at war since June 1950, when North Korean troops invaded South Korea following a series of border clashes.
| Diplomatic Talks _ Diplomatic_Negotiation_ Summit Meeting | April 2018 | ['(Business Insider)', '(CBN)'] |
The Liberal Democratic Party of Japan, led by Prime Minister Shinzō Abe, wins a clear, but reduced, majority of the seats but falls short on gaining the two-thirds supermajority needed to start the pursued process of amending the constitution. | (Corrects July 22 story inserting “male” in 12th paragraph to show that Taiga Ishikawa became country’s only openly gay male parliamentarian)
TOKYO (Reuters) - Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has avoided lame-duck status after his ruling bloc won a solid victory in Sunday’s upper house election but the poll - with nearly record-low turnout - has dented his hopes of revising the pacifist constitution and left him facing tough diplomatic challenges.
Below are five takeaways from the voting for 124 seats in the 245-member chamber, elections for half of which are held every three years.
U.S. President Donald Trump has made clear he’s unhappy over Japan’s $67.6 billion trade surplus with the United States and said he expected an announcement on a deal after the upper house poll. The two sides are working on an agreement involving agriculture and autos that could be clinched in September, but talks are fluid. Any agreement would likely be just part of a broader deal sought by Trump - who has threatened to put 25% tariffs on imported Japanese cars.
Abe also faces U.S. pressure to join a military coalition to safeguard strategic waters off Iran and Yemen. Trump’s national security adviser John Bolton was in Tokyo on Monday and was expected to raise the issue, debate over which could inflame a divide in public opinion over sending Japanese troops abroad.
Abe is expected to maintain a tough stance - which many voters support - in a bitter feud with South Korea over compensation for South Koreans forced to work for Japanese occupiers during World War Two. The dispute worsened this month when Japan tightened export controls on high-tech materials to South Korea.
The solid showing by Abe’s Liberal Democratic Party-led bloc means Abe has avoided becoming a lame duck in the final two years of his third three-year term as party leader and is on track to become Japan’s longest-serving premier if he stays in his post until November.
Abe, who made a surprise come-back in 2012 after a troubled 2006-2007 term, has now led the LDP to six national election wins and LDP Secretary-General Toshihiro Nikai has suggested Abe for a fourth term as party chief. That would require a change in LDP rules.
Turnout in the election, however, fell below 50% to the lowest level since 1995, media estimates showed, due to a perceived lack of viable alternatives among a fragmented opposition camp and an absence of heated debate on issues.
Abe’s long-held dream of revising the post-war, pacifist constitution was dented when his coalition and other allies failed to keep the two-thirds “super majority” needed to start the controversial process of revising the charter, never amended since it was enacted after Japan’s defeat in World War Two.
Abe said after the victory that the results meant voters accepted the need for debate on the divisive issue, and is expected to try to persuade some opposition lawmakers to back change. The premier wants to enshrine the nation’s military in the constitution, a change that would be hugely symbolic and underscore a shift away from pacifism already underway.
A record 28% percent of candidates were women in the first national election since Japan enacted a law setting a non-binding target for parties to run an equal number of men and women, and a record-tying 28 women were elected.
LGBT candidate Taiga Ishikawa won a seat with support from the opposition Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan - which had made diversity a campaign slogan - to become the country’s only openly gay male member of parliament.
And two severely disabled candidates including Yasuhiko Funago, who has the progressive neurological disease Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), won seats with the backing of a small opposition group.
Abe’s victory assures that a scheduled sales tax rise to 10% from 8% will take place in October and that the government will ramp up fiscal spending if the higher levy, coupled with the pressure on exports from the global economic slowdown, push Japan into recession. The Bank of Japan will remain under pressure to expand monetary stimulus if risks to the economy heighten, though the premier has signalled the central bank has done enough by creating jobs with hits ultra-loose policy.
Additional reporting by Leika Kihara; Editing by Michael Perry | Government Job change - Election | July 2019 | ['(Reuters)'] |
Ukraine sues Russia at the International Court of Justice, accusing the latter of being engaged in acts of "terrorism" and "discrimination" in eastern Ukraine and Crimea. | KYIV -- Ukraine has sued Russia at the UN International Court of Justice (ICJ) in The Hague, accusing Moscow of acts of "terrorism" and "discrimination" related to its backing separatists in eastern Ukraine and its annexation of the Crimean Peninsula
The Foreign Ministry filed the lawsuit late on January 16 at the request of President Petro Poroshenko. It claims that Russia has violated the UN Convention For The Suppression Of The Financing Of Terrorism by supporting separatists fighting government forces in a war that has killed more than 9,750 people since April 2014. It also claims that Russia has oppressed Crimean Tatars, an ethnic minority whose homeland is Crimea.
"For three years, Russia has been committing the illegal annexation of Crimea, illegal occupation of the east of our country in the territory of [the] Donetsk and Luhansk regions, [and] implementing the policy of elimination and discrimination in Crimea," Poroshenko said at a meeting with Crimean Tatar leader Mustafa Dzhemilev and three other top officials. Armed Russians "have committed numerous terrorist attacks affecting hundreds of thousands of innocent people forced to leave their home," he said.
"Russia must pay the price for its aggression," Poroshenko said.
Ukrainian authorities call the nearly three-year-old conflict in eastern Ukraine an "antiterrorist operation," and often refer to those fighting against government forces as "terrorists." Neither Kyiv nor Russia, which denies it has backed the separatists with troops or weapons despite mounting evidence, has formally declared war.
Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mariana Betsa told RFE/RL that the lawsuit was the result of three years of "titanic work" by Ukrainian authorities. It is the first lawsuit filed with the ICJ by Kyiv, which has sent at least four lawsuits against Russia to the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg.
Ukraine is aware that the ICJ may not consider the lawsuit for years, if ever, Betsa said. "But we have hope," she said, adding that it is "inevitable" that Russia will bear responsibility "for crimes it has committed." | Famous Person - Commit Crime - Accuse | January 2017 | ['(Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty)'] |
Taysir Hayb, the Israeli soldier who shot and killed British volunteer Tom Hurndall, is to be released next month after an Army committee headed by Advocate General Avichai Mandelblit decides to shorten his sentence. | IDF committee cuts sentence of former soldier Taysir Heib who was found guilty of manslaughter in the 2003 death of British peace activist Thomas Hurndall in the Gaza Strip.
A former IDF soldier who was found guilty of manslaughter in the 2003 shooting death of British peace activist Thomas Hurndall in the Gaza Strip will be released early from prison next month.
Taysir Heib was sentenced in 2005 to eight years in prison for manslaughter as well as obstruction of justice and giving false testimony. The decision to shorten his sentence was made by an army committee, against the advice of Military Advocate General Brig. Gen. Avichai Mendelblit.
Hurndall, a 22-year-old student, was shot in the head in April 2003 as he was photographing the work of International Solidarity Movement activists. Witnesses said Hurndall had been helping Palestinian children avoid IDF tanks.
In his investigation, Heib initially claimed he had fired on an armed Palestinian, enlisting supporting testimony from another soldier in his unit. A few months later, however, the second soldier told Military Police investigators that he had not witnessed the incident.
In the verdict, the judges upheld all the arguments of the military prosecution, outlining and emphasizing the series of false and contradictory versions of the incident provided by Heib throughout the investigation.
The judges found that Heib had shot Hurndall with a sniper's rifle, using a telescopic sight, and that Heib had given a "confused and pathetic" version of events to the court.
The court also referred to a confession by the defendant in which he said he had wanted to teach Hurndall a lesson for entering a forbidden zone. Heib admitted to aiming 10 centimeters to the left of Hurndall's head to frighten him and inadvertently shooting the activist.
ISM members often place themselves between IDF troops and Palestinians in an effort to prevent military operations.
Sophie Hurndall, Tom's older sister, said the family had not been informed by Israeli authorities about the early release, but rather found out about it when someone from the British foreign office called with the news.
We have not had time to regroup or work out what is going on. We have barely had time to process the news and we all feel angry and shocked, she said, adding that they had long feared such a thing would happen. We have had to deal with cover ups and lies and a total lack of accountability throughout - and this is in line with that. It's symptomatic.
Hurndall said the familys anger is not focused on Heib himself, but rather on the IDF and Israel as a whole.
To be honest, its about the system. Not the man himself. This man who shot Tom was the same age as him. He is both the victim and the killer. He is part of a system that proactively encouraged soldier to target civilian," she said. . As Hunrdall sees it, the early release sends a message from Israeli to its young soldiers, "telling them 'do what you want. We have your back.
Israel, she concluded, simply does not care what people think of it in the international community: So many innocent [people] killed in so many horrific ways. They just dont seem to care about anyone.
Hurndall also criticized her own government, which, under the leadership of then-prime minister Tony Blair, did not come out, she claims, strongly against the killing and now has had a muted response as well. It's incredibly sad. One of the things that happened to me since my brother was killed is that I have lost faith in humanity. I cannot believe that people can do such things, and that my own government can sit by and keep quiet," she said. The British Foreign Office issued an official statement in response, saying "we note the court's decision today to release Taysir Heib and recognize the grief this decision will cause to the Hurndall family. We have the deepest of sympathies for the Hurndall family. Tom's death was a tragedy." | Famous Person - Commit Crime - Release | July 2010 | ['(Haaretz)'] |
Nepalese police open fire on groups, who were protesting the new constitution proposals by blockading a highway. Two protesters were killed and at least 28 were hurt, including 15 police officers. A third protester was killed in Rajbiraj, the headquarters of the Saptari District. | KATHMANDU (Nepal) — Violence flared in southern Nepal when the police open fire on protesters who had been blocking the country’s main highway, an official said yesterday (Nov 22). The shootings threatened to deepen a political crisis over the country’s new Constitution.
Two protesters were killed in the violence that broke out Saturday night in the Bhardaha and Rupani areas of southern Nepal, and at least 28 were hurt, including 15 police officers, said Mr Anil Kumar Thakur, the chief district officer in Saptari, which includes the two areas.
A third protester was killed yesterday evening in Rajbiraj, the headquarters of Saptari District, when the police fired on protesters who had set fire to a police van after the killings the night before, Mr Thakur said.
On Saturday, the police were attempting to clear protesters from the Madhesi group, which opposes the recently passed Constitution, who had been blocking a highway in Saptari District. The protesters attacked the police with firebombs, spears, sticks and stones, Mr Thakur said.
But according to Shambhu Jha, a Madhesi protester who said he was at the clash in Bhardaha, the group fought with the police only after officers used tear gas on the protesters. He said that at least 36 protesters had been injured.
Saturday’s violence was the latest in a series of clashes that began in August when key political parties began to finalise the drafting of a Constitution that would divide the country into provinces. Madhesis, who live largely in the southern plains and have close geographic and historical ties with India, say the provinces were drawn in such a way as to dilute their political voice. More than 40 people have been killed in violent confrontations since.
Some Madhesi protesters have staged a sit-in on a main border post with India for about two months, and one Indian man was killed in a clash with the police there this month.
Trade between India and Nepal has slowed drastically since the passage of the Constitution, causing a fuel crisis in Nepal. Nepalese officials accuse India of imposing an unofficial blockade because of its objections to the process that led to the passage of the Constitution, which India considers not inclusive enough. India has denied ordering a blockade, but maintained that the trade impasse occurred because of security problems in Nepal over the Constitution.
The United Nations secretary general, Ban Ki-moon, expressed “his growing concern over the blocking of essential supplies on the Nepal-India border,” in a statement on Friday. He urged all sides in the dispute to lift restrictions.
Yesterday, the spokesman of India’s Ministry of External Affairs, Vikas Swarup, said on Twitter that India was “distressed at loss of lives in police firing in Saptari” and urged a political solution, which India has been promoting since the protests began.
But talks between the government and Madhesi groups have yielded little progress.
“We may have to quit talks if the government continues to kill the people,” said Laxman Lal Karna, a member of the United Democratic Madhesi Front, an umbrella organisation of Madhesi parties. | Protest_Online Condemnation | November 2015 | ['(AP via WTOP)', '(Singapore Today Online)'] |
Former Prime Minister of Norway Jens Stoltenberg is appointed to succeed Denmark's Anders Fogh Rasmussen as the next Secretary General of NATO. | Norway's ex-PM Jens Stoltenberg has been appointed Nato's next secretary general, replacing Denmark's Anders Fogh Rasmussen
He will take over as leader of the 28-nation military alliance in October, when Mr Rasmussen steps down after a Nato summit in Wales.
Mr Rasmussen has headed Nato for the past five years.
Mr Stoltenberg was prime minister of Norway at the time of Anders Breivik's bomb and gun attacks in 2011.
Breivik killed 77 people when he targeted government buildings in Oslo and young people and officials at a youth camp run by Mr Stoltenberg's Labour party. He served as the country's prime minister twice, for 18 months in 2000-01 and again from 2005 to 2013.
Mr Rasmussen said on Twitter that Mr Stoltenberg was "the right man to build on Nato's record of strength and success".
He added that the Ukraine crisis demonstrated the need for Nato to show strong and determined leadership.
Mr Rasmussen expressed concern on Friday about the "huge military build-up" by Russian forces on Ukraine's borders.
UK Prime Minister David Cameron said Norway's ex-prime minister would "bring a wealth of experience to this role at the helm of the transatlantic alliance and he will take over during a crucial year in the history of the organisation". As well as tackling the crisis in Ukraine, Mr Cameron said he would lead the withdrawal of Nato-led forces in Afghanistan at the end of the year.
In its statement, Nato said: "Mr Stoltenberg will assume his functions as secretary general as from 1 October 2014, when Mr Fogh Rasmussen's term expires after five years and two months at the helm of the alliance."
| Government Job change - Appoint_Inauguration | March 2014 | ['(BBC)'] |
Honduran soldiers break up protests outside the Brazilian embassy in Tegucigalpa in support of deposed President Manuel Zelaya, who is staying inside. | Honduran security forces have broken up protests outside the Brazilian embassy in Tegucigalpa in support of deposed President Manuel Zelaya, reports say.
Police have surrounded the embassy, where Mr Zelaya is staying, and the scene is now said to be calm. Brazil's President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva urged Mr Zelaya not to provoke a confrontation, AP news agency reports. Mr Zelaya made a surprise return on Monday after months of exile. Interim authorities say he must face trial. But the US and other governments have joined Mr Zelaya in calling for a negotiated settlement to the crisis, which began when Mr Zelaya was forced out of the country at gunpoint on 28 June.
Security forces surrounded the embassy and used tear gas to disperse thousands of Mr Zelaya's supporters in an operation that began in the early morning local time on Tuesday. The ambassador is back in Brazil, there is only a charge d'affaires and a very small team, with not much security. Lights, water and telephones were cut off yesterday and the only contact is by mobile phone. However, President Lula has expressed his complete support for Mr Zelaya and the ministry of foreign affairs here says he will not be asked to leave nor will he be handed over to the Honduran authorities. The clear message from Brazil is that there has to be a negotiated solution to this crisis. A protest leader, Juan Barahona, alleged that police had used live rounds, but this was denied by the interim deputy foreign minister, Martha Lorena Alvarado. The demonstrators had defied a curfew imposed after Mr Zelaya made his dramatic appearance in the Brazilian embassy on Monday. The Brazilian president said he spoke to Mr Zelaya, telling him not to provide a pretext for interim authorities to invade his country's embassy, AP reported. Mr Lula reiterated his support for a negotiated end to the stand-off, reports said. But inside the embassy, Mr Zelaya told Venezuelan broadcaster Telesur that interim authorities were cutting off all supplies to the embassy. "I think they are going to employ a strategy of asphyxiating the embassy by surrounding it, cutting off the food supply, asphyxiating the people inside in order to demonstrate their force and power, and to try and humiliate the people in here who are really trying to find a solution, for dialogue at a national level," he said. In an interview with BBC Mundo Ms Alvarado, the interim deputy foreign minister, said the government expected "that in the next few hours Brazil would either hand him [Zelaya] over or grant him political asylum". Despite the international condemnation of the circumstances of Mr Zelaya's removal from office, she said, "that does not permit any embassy to use its diplomatic territory... to urge a civil uprising". "It is fine that they support Zelaya's return but by force is not the way to proceed," she said. "When Mr Zelaya was sent into exile, it was precisely to avoid what you are seeing now, disturbances directed by him," Ms Alvarado told BBC Mundo. In addition to the curfew, airports have been shut and roadblocks set up on highways leading into Tegucigalpa. Calls for calm
Earlier, Brazil's Foreign Minister Celso Amorim warned that any threat to Mr Zelaya or the Brazilian embassy would be a grave breach of international law. The European Union also called for calm following Mr Zelaya's dramatic return to the country. In a statement, it called on Mr Zelaya and the interim government to negotiate an end to the three-month crisis. It added its voice to that of US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, who said Mr Zelaya's return must not lead to violence. | Protest_Online Condemnation | September 2009 | ['(BBC)', '(MercoPress)'] |
Fifteen pro-democracy activists are released on a HK$1000 bail. Notable political figures, including Benny Tai, University of Hong Kong academic and one of the Occupy Central founders; Civil Human Rights Front convener Jimmy Sham; former Democratic Party chairwoman Emily Lau; and others, flock to the court to show support for the activists. | Democratic Party founder Martin Lee Chu-ming, Next Media founder Jimmy Lai Chee-ying and 13 others have been released on HK$1,000 bail each after being charged with organizing, inciting to participate and taking part in illegal assemblies during anti-government protests last year. The group of 15 yesterday appeared at the West Kowloon Magistrates' Courts. Principal Magistrate Peter Law Tak-chuen transferred their cases to the District Court where the next trial will be on June 15.
They were charged for their alleged involvement in three assemblies and arrested in a high-profile police operation on April 18.
When asked if they understood the charges against them, League of Social Democrats chairman Raphael Wong Ho-ming told the court: "I understand, this is a political prosecution."
Outside the court, the defendants made a gesture of "five demands, not one less" - the demands sparked by the anti-fugitive movement last June.
Labour Party vice chairman Lee Cheuk-yan said he will continue to fight for democracy.
Former Democratic Party chairman Yeung Sum said: "Hongkongers won't be deterred. I call for everyone to stand up as a whole to fight for democracy and freedom."
Together with Martin Lee and Lai, Lee Cheuk-yan, fellow party member Cyd Ho Sau-lan, Neighbourhood and Worker's Service Centre lawmaker Leung Yiu-chung, former lawmakers Au Nok-hin and "Long Hair" Leung Kwok-hung as well as barristers Margaret Ng Ngoi-yee and Albert Ho Chun-yan were each charged with one count of organizing an unauthorized assembly and one count of knowingly taking part in an unauthorized assembly during the August 18 rally.
Civil Human Rights Front vice convener Figo Chan Ho-wun, Lee Cheuk-yan, Leung Kwok-hung and Albert Ho were each charged with one count of incitement to knowingly take part in an unauthorized assembly on the eve of the October 1 protest.
Former Democratic Party chairman Sum, the party's former vice chairmen Sin Chung-kai and Richard Tsoi Yiu-cheong and former League of Social Democrats chairman Avery Ng Man-yuen, Chan, Lee Cheuk-yan, Leung Kwok-hung, Albert Ho, Cyd Ho and Lai each faced one count of organizing an unauthorized assembly and one count of knowingly taking part in an authorized assembly for protests on National Day.
As for the third count of protest on October 20, Chan, Leung Kwok-hung, Cyd Ho and Albert Ho each faced one count of incitement to knowingly take part in an unauthorized assembly.
Wong, Chan, Leung Kwok-hung, Cyd Ho, Sum and Avery Ng also each faced a count of organizing an unauthorized assembly and one count of knowingly taking part in an unauthorized assembly on October 20.
Benny Tai Yiu-ting, an associate law professor at the University of Hong Kong and one of the Occupy Central founders, Civil Human Rights Front convener Jimmy Sham Tsz-kit, former Democratic Party chairwoman Emily Lau Wai-hing and hundreds of people flocked to the court to support the group.
Lau said it is outrageous to prosecute the democrats and criticized the government for depriving Hongkongers' of their rights to peaceful assemblies and protests. "One country, two systems is breaking down under the Chinese government's suppression," she said. "We must come out and defend our freedom." | Famous Person - Commit Crime - Release | May 2020 | ['(The Standard Hong Kong)'] |
Curfew is imposed on the Indian city of Lucknow after sectarian violence between Sunni and Shia Muslims. 3 people are dead and 20 injured | Three people died and several were hurt when Shia and Sunni Muslims clashed at a Shia mourning procession in the Husainabad area on Sunday, police said.
Officials said that the curfew had been imposed to prevent further escalation of tension in the area.
Lucknow has a history of clashes between Shias and Sunnis over the mourning processions.
Specific routes
Officials told the Reuters news agency that rival groups threw stones, shot at each other and set vehicles and shops on fire after a dispute over the route of a Shia Muharam festival procession.
"Things are totally under control but we are maintaining a strict vigil in the areas where the clash took place," district administrator Aradhana Shukla said.
After recurrent clashes, Lucknow's Shias and Sunnis reached an agreement in 1998 over the limited number of mourning processions along specific routes. | Armed Conflict | February 2005 | ['(New Kerala)', '(Indian Express)', '(Reuters)', '(BBC)'] |
Egyptian chief prosecutor Nabil Sadek refers 555 ISIL suspects suspected of 63 terror attacks to a military court, while the Giza Criminal Court in Cairo sentences nine terrorists to life imprisonment and two others to five years imprisonment each. | CAIRO (AP) — Egypt’s chief prosecutor on Monday referred 555 terror suspects to a military court on charges of joining a local affiliate of the Islamic State jihadist group.
The suspects set up dozens of small militant cells and carried out a total of 63 attacks against army and police forces in the restive northern part of the Sinai Peninsula, prosecutor Nabil Sadek said in a statement.
The charges against them, he said, include killing and plotting to kill security personnel, attacking military checkpoints in Northern Sinai and sabotaging a gas pipeline between Egypt and Jordan.
Only 216 of the 555 suspects are in custody, the statement said.
Also Monday, a criminal court in Cairo sentenced nine suspects to life in prison on terror-related charges. | Famous Person - Commit Crime - Sentence | May 2018 | ['(The Times of Israel)'] |
In the United States, EchoStar's Dish Network stops carrying channels owned by Viacom (CBS, MTV, Comedy Central, and others) in a dispute over the pricing of those channels. Both companies have used text crawls and other information to influence viewers to call the opposing company to negotiate price. | On days when the markets are down and consumer confidence is, too, it pays to step back a bit for perspective. In the cosmic scheme of things, a 1% sell-off in the Nasdaq, while painful, isn't that big a deal. What is? How about a photo taken by the Hubble telescope looking back more than 13 billion years? That's within a few hundred million years of the Big Bang.
And the work's just beginning. According to astronomers, finding the faintest (farthest) objects in this view of the Hubble Ultra Deep Field will be like "trying to collect the light from a firefly hovering over the moon (really, these guys are poets). They also compared the image to "looking at the sky through an eight-foot soda straw." Finally, something we can relate to -- now what did we do with that eight-foot soda straw.... In today's Motley Fool Take:
By Alyce Lomax (TMF Lomax)
That old tag line "I want my MTV" may be the battle call for customers caught in the middle of a roiling showdown between satellite television provider EchoStar Communications (Nasdaq: DISH) and network owner Viacom (NYSE: VIA). EchoStar yanked off the air all Viacom stations after the two companies couldn't agree on payment hikes, and neither company looks ready to back down.
Channels that EchoStar customers won't get include such well-known TV real estate as BET, Comedy Central, MTV, Nickelodeon, and VH-1, as well as the top-rated CBS network. The markets involved are major ones, including New York, Boston, Dallas-Fort Worth, Los Angeles, and San Francisco; the move affects 1.6 million EchoStar customers who receive CBS local programming, and all 9.5 million customers who receive the national stations.
EchoStar's public statement today contained fightin' words, accusing Viacom of "holding the public airwaves hostage" by asking for 40% rate increases for its channels; it urged its customers to call Viacom and protest. It's offering a reimbursement of $1 for CBS, and $1 for the rest of the national Viacom stations, for impacted customers -- hardly the kind of discount anyone would really feel at all on their monthly statement. (Heck, it's possible many of us are already pretty disgusted with what we're paying regardless -- Rex Moore recently pointed out rate hikes across the industry.)
Viacom, on the other hand, dismisses EchoStar's move to shut down its channels with an "easy" fix for customers. The network provider is suggesting to customers just make the switch to other means of receiving its channels, which include cable providers Comcast (Nasdaq: CMCSA) or Cox Communications (NYSE: COX), satellite archrival DirecTV, owned by Hughes Electronics (NYSE: HS). (Coincidentally, Fool contributor W.D. Crotty wrote about satellite wars yesterday in regard to satellite provider Pegasus Communications (NYSE: PGTV), but who knew this gang was so ready to rumble?)
At last check, EchoStar shares were up about 2%, though they've been sagging over recent weeks as this issue -- and the deadline for negotiations -- loomed. The idea that EchoStar's customers will miss out on major channels that are pretty much ubiquitous on rival cable and satellite providers' basic packages is risky. Regardless of which company's wearing the black hat, I have a funny feeling EchoStar customers aren't feeling too sorry for either party right about now.
Alyce Lomax does not own shares of any of the companies mentioned.
Enough about the housing boom, what about the one you're already paying for? Refinancing can potentially save you hundreds of dollars per month on your mortgage. And who can't handle more cash each month? Our Home Center has all the answers -- except for the one about how they get the peanut butter in a Reese's peanut butter cup. So quit asking!
By Jeff Hwang
Whether it's LeBron or something else entirely, a strong third-quarter profit forecast has Nike (NYSE: NKE) shares hopping.
Nike, which reports results next Thursday, said this morning that third-quarter earnings would jump more than 50% year over year from between $0.71 to $0.74 per share, well ahead of the $0.64 per share analysts estimated. Meanwhile, revenues will gain more than 20%, putting that figure near $2.9 billion.
The company attributes the better-than-expected performance to strength in both the U.S. and Asia Pacific regions, as well as a continued benefit from currency exchange rates in Europe. While year-over-year comparisons were helped by the fact that "prior year revenues were unusually low" due to the timing of shipments, one thing is clear: Nike is in pretty good shape.
One issue awaiting resolution is Nike's soured relationship with Foot Locker (NYSE: FL). However, indications point to warming relations, which investors anticipate could have Nike's high-end shoes back on Foot Locker's shelves in the coming quarters. When that happens, Nike's business in the U.S. could see a further boost.
Great as it sounds, the improving business and smoother relationship with Foot Locker are likely priced into the stock's more than 60%, 52-week run-up. After another 3% pop to $76.59 in early afternoon trading today, Nike, like LeBron, has some big expectations to live up to.
Fool contributor Jeff Hwang owns neither of the companies mentioned above. "Perfection is achieved, not when there is nothing more to add, but when there is nothing left to take away." -- Antoine de Saint Exupery
By Rick Aristotle Munarriz (TMF Edible)
It may seem odd to find consistency in an amusement park operator. Between the ups and downs of the cyclical travel industry and disposable income levels, one might expect a wild ride.
We've all heard Disney (NYSE: DIS) cry "Uncle" and Six Flags (NYSE: PKS) whine about its heavy debt burden when the economy isn't smiling just right. Why then, has fellow operator Cedar Fair (NYSE: FUN) seemed to move forward in good times and bad?
When Cedar Fair sees a wall of worry, it simply builds a thrill ride to scale it. It follows that the company raised its quarterly distribution yesterday, to $0.45 a unit. At yesterday's close, that gives the tax-advantaged limited partnership a yield of 5.2%.
At this rate, Cedar Fair will have raised its distribution for 17 consecutive years. Readers of our Income Investor newsletter know all about the beauty of buying into a company that perpetually hikes its payout. In fact, Cedar Fair has raised its quarterly payout 13 times over the past 10 years. Sure, the hikes appear petty at first glance; however, over that decade, the distributions have grown by 80%. Compare that to fixed income investments with flat payouts or money market funds with their paltry interest in recent years, and stomaching some more risk with income-producing equities seems like an appealing alternative.
Consider paint manufacturer Sherwin-Williams (NYSE: SHW), which has hiked its dividend every year since 1979. Pitney Bowes (NYSE: PBI) has done so for 22 straight years. While investors shouldn't turn their backs on high-growth companies that reinvest their earnings to grow their businesses, there are clearly some notables that have managed to excel on both fronts.
Some can even pack a little octane in the tank. Cedar Fair was one of the earliest recommendations in our newsletter that became Motley Fool Hidden Gems and it has certainly performed well. The units have risen by 40% over the past year, and that's before you tack on the meaty quarterly distributions. Now, that's some ride!
Longtime Fool contributor Rick Munarriz loves his amusement parks. He went to Cedar Fair's Cedar Point last year and will be off to the company's Knott's Berry Farm in California come June. He owns shares of Disney as well as units in Cedar Fair.
| Organization Closed | March 2004 | ['(NYT)', '(Dow Jones)', '(Reuters)', '(Financial Times)', '(Motley Fool)'] |
The Pakistan Air Force conducts airstrikes against 6 Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan positions in North Waziristan, killing 27 militants. | LONDON As a full Pakistani military offensive in the tribal district of North Waziristan took shape on Monday, commanders promised a crushing blow to the jihadi groups that have flourished there in the past decade, spreading chaos in the region and posing a security threat to the West.
Tanks rolled through the streets of Miram Shah, the district’s main town, as jet fighters pounded targets in a nearby valley and tens of thousands of residents fled to safer areas out of fear of an impending ground assault.
| Armed Conflict | June 2014 | ['(New York Times)'] |
Two gunmen attacked the UN Refugee Agency compound in Yei, Sudan, killing a local guard and leaving two others in critical condition. |
Nairobi, Kenya, 03/18 - Two armed gunmen Wednesday night
attacked the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) compound in Yei town
in southern Sudan, killing a local guard and leaving an
expatriate staff of the agency and a local guard in critical
condition.
"This is a shocking event, and our hearts and thoughts are with
the family of the deceased and with critically ill staff members
fighting for their lives," High Commissioner António Guterres
said in a statement received here Thursday.
The UN agency said the international staff member shot in the
abdomen and the local guard shot in the leg, had been airlifted
from Yei to a Juba hospital.
"An emergency medical evacuation to Nairobi (Kenya) is planned as
soon as possible," the UNHCR said, adding that details of the
attack were still sketchy.
Six other international staff in the compound at the time of the
attack were not hurt, the UN agency said, adding that "one of the
intruders to the compound was captured and is now in detention
in Yei."
"This attack just underscores the difficulties UNHCR faces in our
operations in South Sudan where we are trying to create an environment
for thousands of refugees in neighbouring countries to be able to
return home and stay home," Guterres stressed.
The UNHCR established a presence in Yei in 2004 to prepare for the
return of South Sudanese refugees from the Central African Republic,
DR Congo and Uganda.
A planned repatriation from the DR Congo to Yei due to start next
week has now been suspended while UNHCR reviews the situation.
The UN agency estimates there are some 350,000 South Sudanese refugees
in neighbouring countries, while another four million people are
displaced within Sudan. | Armed Conflict | March 2006 | ['(UNHCR)', '(Angola Press)'] |
Four people are shot with one dead and three injured during a shooting on the campus of Seattle Pacific University. , | One person was killed and three other people were shot Thursday afternoon when a gunman with a shotgun entered a building on the campus of Seattle Pacific University and opened fire, police said.
When the gunman began reloading, a student who is a building monitor subdued the shooter with pepper spray, according to Capt. Chris Fowler of the Seattle Police Department. Other students then joined the monitor and held the shooter down, he said.
“They were able to pin the shooter to the ground until police arrived,” Fowler said during a news conference. The gunman was taken into custody a short time after.
The victims weretaken to the hospital with gunshot wounds that ranged “from minor to life threatening,”theSeattle Fire Department said.
Aaron R. Ybarra, 26, was booked into the King County Jail late Thursday for investigation of murder, police said.Assistant Police Chief Paul McDonagh said at a news conference that the suspect was not a student at the school.
One of the victims, a 20-year-old man, was pronounced dead atHarborview Medical Center, according to police. Another victim, a woman, has life-threatening injuries. The other two victims, a man and a woman, are both in stable condition.
“This is a tragic moment for Seattle and a tragic moment for America once again,” Seattle Mayor Ed Murray (D) said in a news conference.
This shooting occurred shortly before 3:30 p.m. in Otto Miller Hall, a science and engineering building on the campus of Seattle Pacific.
Thesmall Christian school, located about 10 minutes away from downtown Seattle, remained locked down for about 90 minutes after the shooting.
Police declared Otto Miller Hall secure at around 5 p.m. and the lockdown ended shortly after that. All evening classes were canceled.
Daniel J. Martin, the university president,held an emotional news conference on the school’s campus on Thursday evening.
His voice breaking, Martin described the feeling of “heartbreak” when he was first told of the shooting.He said the school would be offering grief counseling and holding a prayer service on the campus.
“It’s an opportunity for us to come together as a community and support those who have been affected,” Martin said.
Seattle Pacific University, founded in 1891, has more than 4,200 students.
There was initially some uncertainty from law enforcement officials regarding how many people were injured in the shooting and the number of suspects.
Seattle police had said there was conflicting information, which resulted in confusion over the number of victims. In addition, authorities had said after a gunman was taken into custody that they were looking for an additional suspect, but they said shortly after 4 p.m. that no other suspects were being sought.
| Armed Conflict | June 2014 | ['(CNN)', '(Washington Post)'] |
Hurricane Patricia makes landfall at Playa Perula in Mexico's western Jalisco state . The storm strengthens into a powerful Category 5 hurricane with winds of 200 mph and gusts up to 245 mph. The NHC has called the storm "potentially catastrophic" for Mexico. Patricia is expected to produce total rainfall accumulations of 6 to 12 inches, with isolated maximum amounts of 20 inches, through Saturday. These rains could produce life-threatening flash floods and mud slides. , | Hurricane Patricia strengthened into an "extremely dangerous" Category 4 storm on Thursday as it churned toward Mexico's Pacific coast, the U.S. National Hurricane Center said.
PUERTO VALLARTA, Oct 22 (Reuters) - Hurricane Patricia strengthened into an "extremely dangerous" Category 5 storm late on Thursday as it churned toward Mexico's Pacific coast, the U.S. National Hurricane Center (NHC) said.
The storm, which became a hurricane overnight, had maximum sustained winds of about 160 miles per hour (260 km per hour) as it moved toward the north-northwest at 10 mph (16 kph).
Patricia was last located about 200 miles (320 km) south-southwest of the port of Manzanillo, where a hurricane warning had been issued. A hurricane warning was also in effect for the beach resort of Puerto Vallarta.
The storm, which is a "Category 5", the highest rating possible, is expected to weaken somewhat before making landfall in the hurricane warning area by Friday afternoon or evening, the Miami-based hurricane center said.
The United States government issued an advisory urging its nationals to steer clear of beaches and rough seas, and to take shelter as instructed by Mexican officials.
Some businesses in Puerto Vallarta had begun boarding and taping up windows late on Thursday as a precaution, while several domestic flights had been delayed.
Mexican emergency officials began to prepare shelters and warned people in the states of Colima, Jalisco and Michoacan to get ready for torrential rainfalls.
None of the major installations of Mexican state oil giant Pemex lie in the projected path of the storm.
| Hurricanes_Tornado_Storm_Blizzard | October 2015 | ['(National Hurricane Center)', '(Reuters)', '(AFP via ABC News Australia)'] |
First Lady of Lesotho, Maesiah Thabane, is arrested and charged in connection to the 2017 murder of Lipolelo Thabane, exwife of current Prime Minister Tom Thabane. | Lesotho’s first lady Maesiah Thabane has been charged with murder for her alleged links to the brutal 2017 killing of the prime minister’s previous wife.
Maesiah Thabane, 42, will spend the night in custody after she came out of hiding and turned herself in to the police earlier on Tuesday.
“She has been charged with murder alongside eight others who are in Lesotho and South Africa,” deputy police commissioner Mokete Paseka told reporters, adding that investigations had been “satisfactorily completed”.
He said police had a “strong case” against the first lady, who was unable to appear in court on Tuesday due to logistical reasons.
The eight other accused will also be summoned by the police.
Maesiah Thabane went missing last month after being summoned as part of an investigation into the killing of Lipolelo Thabane prime minister Thomas Thabane’s estranged wife.
Lipolelo and Thomas Thabane were involved in bitter divorce proceedings when she was gunned down outside her home in Lesotho’s capital Maseru in June 2017, two days before her husband’s inauguration.
New evidence surfaced in early January, when a letter from Lesotho’s police chief was made public alleging that communication records from the day of the crime picked up the prime minister’s mobile number.
Thomas Thabane, who is now 80, has since bowed to pressure and offered to resign at a date not yet disclosed. He has also been questioned by the police over the killing.
But his current wife Maesiah vanished when the police called her in to testify last month, prompting the issuing of an arrest warrant.
The prime minister’s press attaché did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the murder charge.
The murder of 58-year-old Lipolelo Thabane sent shock waves through the tiny mountain kingdom, which is ringed by South Africa and has a long history of political turmoil.
Senior members of the ruling All Basotho Convention (ABC) party accused the prime minister of hampering investigations into the killing.
Thabane said last month he would leave office on the grounds of old age, but gave no timeframe for his departure.
Hundreds of opposition supporters marched through the streets of Maseru on the day the prime minister was quizzed by police, demanding he step down with immediate effect.
Maesiah Thabane was picked up on the border with South Africa following an arrangement between her lawyer and the police. | Famous Person - Commit Crime - Accuse | February 2020 | ['(The Guardian)'] |
At least three people are killed and more than 50 hospitalized from a 50–plus–car pileup amid strong winds and a whiteout along, the now closed, I–78 near Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, in the U.S. More than 70 people are in a shelter at Jonestown Fire Station. | Follow NBC News A pileup involving more than 50 cars shut down a Pennsylvania stretch of highway amid strong winds and poor visibility, authorities said. Forty people were taken to local hospitals and there were "multiple" fatalities, an official told NBC News.
The accident outside Harrisburg on Saturday morning closed all lanes on both sides of Interstate 78 in Lebanon County, the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation said.
State police told NBC News "over 50" vehicles were involved in the jam-packed pileup.
Cory Angell, a spokesman for the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency, said there were multiple fatalities, along with more than 40 people transported to area hospitals. He did not say how many people had died.
A spokeswoman at Penn State Hershey Medical Center said 10 adult patients had been sent there, three of whom had critical injuries.
About 70 people took shelter at the Jonestown Fire Department, about eight miles away from the wreckage site on I-78. Most of the cars remained stuck there through Saturday afternoon, the Pennsylvania Emergency Management said.
Among those involved in the crash were members of the Penn State Lehigh Valley men's basketball team.
The team was going to a game in New Kensington, Pennsylvania, when their charter bus was hit by a tractor trailer on I-78 in Lebanon County, the university said.
"There are no serious injuries to anyone who was on the bus. The team is on a warm, dry bus and they are en route to the nearest hospital as a precautionary measure," Penn State said on its website.
Winds of at least 30 mph were blowing at the time of the crash, according to The Weather Channel, and visibility was less than 2 miles.
Earlier Saturday, the National Weather Service issued several alerts about snow squalls in the Philadelphia area. Lebanon County is about 100 miles west of Philadelphia.
Ashley Fisher told NBC News that she was driving toward Allentown with her two daughters when they got caught in a snowstorm and were turned around by law enforcement.
"The snow just started and it was a total whiteout. The car in front of us just disappeared," she later said. "We were able to stop, but a couple cars slid and hit the shoulder."
Once the snow started to dissipate, she said, she noticed the entire westbound side was "just a mess."
Pennsylvania State Police said a detour had been put into place during the interstate's closing.
| Road Crash | February 2016 | ['(NBC News)', '(Philadelphia Inquirer)'] |
Germany allows suspected Israeli spy Uri Brodsky, connected of the murder of Mahmoud al–Mabhouh in Dubai, to go free after his recent extradition from Poland. | Prosecutors accuse Uri Brodsky of illegally helping to procure a German passport used in connection with the slaying of a Hamas commander in Dubai.
Prosecutors say an alleged Mossad spy wanted in connection with the slaying of a Hamas leader in Dubai earlier this year has been set free on bail by a German judge on Friday.
Cologne prosecutors' spokesman Rainer Wolf said after a closed-doors hearing that the suspect known as Uri Brodsky is free to travel wherever he wants to go while judicial proceedings against him in Germany will continue.
| Famous Person - Commit Crime - Release | August 2010 | ['(Aljazeera)', '(BBC)', '(Haaretz)'] |
Big Brown wins the 2008 Kentucky Derby. Eight Belles, the only filly in the field, breaks down after finishing second in the race, and is euthanized. | • May 17 - Preakness StakesBig Brown goes for the second leg of the Triple Crown ... on NBC. Past Preakness replays
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Big Brown was pulling away from the field, accelerating with every powerful stride toward the finish line in the Kentucky Derby.
The crowd of 157,770 was on its feet and cheering as the big, unbeaten, muscular bay crossed the line first, 4¾ lengths ahead of the filly Eight Belles.
Trainer Rick Dutrow Jr. was still celebrating, along with thousands of happy bettors, as Big Brown and the 19 other horses in Saturday’s race galloped out around the first turn at Churchill Downs.
It took a few minutes to sink in, but anyone watching those horses soon realized that one of them had fallen to the track.
“It’s the filly,” someone whispered. She went down about a quarter mile past the finish line.
In just a few minutes, the joy of the Derby and the promise of a new Triple Crown season were upended when Eight Belles was euthanized by injection on the track.
She had broken both front ankles and could not be saved.
“This horse showed you his heart,” winning jockey Kent Desormeaux said, “and Eight Belles showed you her life for our enjoyment today. I’m deeply sympathetic to that team for their loss.”
Big Brown did everything his owner said he would do. An explosive finishing kick put away his rivals for his fourth consecutive victory.
Video Iso-cam on Big BrownMay 3: Follow Kentucky Derby winner Big Brown on an isolated camera through the entire race.NBC SportsEight Belles, meantime, was attempting to become the fourth filly to win the Derby. Her owners chose to keep her out of Friday’s Kentucky Oaks so she could run with the boys in the Derby. And run she did.
NBC Sports
Big Brown’s start from the outside post did little to hamper his charge when the field turned for home. Under the urging of Desormeaux, the 2-1 favorite cruised to an easy victory to become the seventh undefeated Derby winner. The last one was Barbaro in 2006.
That wasn’t the only reason thoughts of Barbaro were hard to ignore on this Derby Day.
The breakdown brought back memories of the 2006 Preakness, where Barbaro shattered his right rear leg just after the start. The colt was euthanized months later, after developing laminitis from the catastrophic injuries.
In two weeks, Big Brown will race in the Preakness as the only 3-year-old with a chance to become the first Triple Crown champion since Affirmed in 1978.
“We’re ready to roll,” Dutrow said.
All week, Dutrow told the world he had the best horse in the field — and the big bay colt justified every accolade tossed his way.
“I can’t describe the feeling that all of us have right now,” he said.
The colt became the first Derby winner since Regret in 1915 to have raced only three times previously. He is only the third in 60 years to win after racing in just two Derby preps — Sunny’s Halo in 1983 and Street Sense last year were the others.
In addition, Big Brown became the second winner to start from the No. 20 post. The gelding Clyde Van Dusen did it in 1929.
Big Brown covered the 1¼ miles in 2:01.82 in front of the second-largest crowd in Derby history. He paid $6.80, $5 and $4.80.
Eight Belles paid $10.60 and $6.40, and Denis of Cork, at odds of 27-1, returned $11.60.
AARP Auto Insurance From The HartfordSave $385 On AARP Auto Insurance If You're Over 49. | Sports Competition | May 2008 | ['(NBC Sports)'] |
A car bomb and shellfire hit Marjeh Square in Damascus, Syria, killing two people and injure 14 others. | Two people were killed and several others wounded in a car bomb and shellfire in Syria’s capital Damascus on Wednesday, state television said.
“Two killed and 14 injured in terrorist attacks on Damascus Tower and Maysat Square,” it reported.
They struck at the tower in the central Marjeh Square district, and the car bomb went off in the northeast of the city.
Images of security forces gathered around a burnt-out skeleton of a car in Maysat Square were broadcast on state television.
The blast came as regime forces battle to flush out ISIS from the southern districts of the capital, including Yarmouk and the adjacent Hajar Al Aswad neighbourhood.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based monitor, says ISIS fighters have previously targeted the capital in recent weeks.
"ISIS in southern Damascus has fired rockets intermittently on the capital" since April 19 when pro-government forces ramped up their fight against the extremists, Observatory chief Rami Abdel Rahman said.
The Damascus regime set its sights on Yarmouk and nearby areas after retaking the former rebel bastion of Eastern Ghouta east of the capital last month.
Meanwhile, at least 15 people were killed in a suspected Israeli attack on Iranian military facilities in south of Damascus on Tuesday, the Observatory said.
“The number increased to at least 15, including at least eight Iranian, killed by the missile strikes,” it said on Wednesday.
The strikes hit an arms depot of Iran’s elite Revolutionary Guards in the Kiswa area late on Tuesday.
On Wednesday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu travelled to Russia to meet with President Vladimir Putin and discuss military co-ordination amid the new strikes.
"The meetings between us are always important and this one is especially so," Mr Netanyahu said ahead of his departure. "In light of what is currently happening in Syria, it is necessary to ensure the continued co-ordination" between the two militaries. He made no mention of the overnight strikes.
Israeli officials have repeatedly said that they were concerned over Iran’s presence in Syria, where, like Moscow, Tehran backs President Bashar Al Assad.
Israel has in the past been accused of carrying out deadly strikes in Syria, with reports of Iranian forces killed but has not acknowledged those strikes. It has, however, admitted to carrying out dozens of raids in Syria to allegedly stop deliveries of arms to the Tehran-backed Hezbollah militia, which is also fighting alongside the Assad forces. | Armed Conflict | May 2018 | ['(The National)'] |
Two explosions occur in the southern Yemeni city of Aden, killing one person and injuring several others. The AlQaeda offshoot in the country also states its intention to establish a "new army" to overthrow the President. | Medical workers in the city of Aden in southern Yemen say two explosions there have killed at least one person and injured eight others. The blasts - within minutes of each other - struck an area of the city near the grounds of a local football team.
It appears the second bomb aimed to strike the emergency services once they had arrived on the scene. Part of next month's the Gulf Football Championships is due to take place there.
Attacks aimed at the Yemeni security forces or Western targets are often blamed on an al-Qaeda offshoot in Yemen.
Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula was formed more than a year ago when Yemeni and Saudi militant groups merged.
Six days ago, twin attacks on Western targets in Yemen's capital, Sanaa, left one person dead and at least four injured.
Militants fired a rocket-propelled grenade at a British embassy car, slightly injuring one staff member as well as bystanders, officials said.
In the other incident, a security guard at an Austrian gas company near Sanaa opened fire killing a French contractor and badly injuring a UK contractor. Yemen has been plagued by decades of poverty and a range of security issues, including a separatist movement and a tribal uprising. Its high numbers of unemployed youths are seen as potential recruits for Islamist militant groups. | Armed Conflict | October 2010 | ['(BBC)', '(Al Jazeera)', '(Voice of Russia)'] |
A man is arrested following a break–in at the home of the Irish minister for Justice, Alan Shatter, in Dublin. | There has been a break-in at the home of the Irish minister for Justice, Alan Shatter, in Dublin.
It is believed a man broke into Mr Shatter's home in south Dublin at about 23:30 GMT on Sunday.
He entered the house from the back but an alarm went off and he fled on foot.
A man in his early 20s was arrested a short distance from the scene.
He is being held at Blackrock Garda Station under Section Four of the Criminal Justice Act and can be questioned for up to 24 hours. | Famous Person - Commit Crime - Arrest | March 2012 | ['(BBC)'] |
Former President of FIFA Sepp Blatter and suspended President of UEFA boss Michel Platini lose their appeals against being banned from all football related activities but the period of the ban is reduced from eight to six years. | Last updated on 24 February 201624 February 2016.From the section Football
Outgoing Fifa president Sepp Blatter and suspended Uefa boss Michel Platini have had bans from all football-related activities upheld.
But the suspensions have been reduced from eight to six years by Fifa's appeals committee.
Both were found guilty of breaches surrounding a £1.3m ($2m) "disloyal payment" to Platini.
They both deny any wrongdoing and have said they will appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
Blatter and Platini said the payment honoured a verbal or gentleman's agreement made in 1998 for work carried out by the Frenchman when he was a technical advisor for Blatter.
Blatter, 79, added in a statement that he was "very disappointed by the appeal committee of Fifa". Platini, 60, said it was "insulting and shameful" and a "political decision".
The bans were reduced by two years after the committee considered the duo's "activities and services rendered to Fifa, Uefa and football".
The election to find Blatter's replacement takes place in Friday.
Fifa boss since 1998, the Swiss had already announced he was quitting after reports emerged he was under investigation in the United States.
Platini had been tipped as a future leader of football's world governing body and is a three-time European Footballer of the Year.
He is also a former captain of France and has been in charge of Uefa - European football's governing body - since 2007.
In a statement released after the announcement, Platini said the accusations were without foundation and completely made up "beyond reality".
He said the communication of the decision was done with "an unbearable arrogance" and that Friday's congress would be remembered in history with the "mark of illegitimacy".
"I am the victim of a system which has only had one goal - to stop me standing for the president of Fifa," the Frenchman added. | Famous Person - Commit Crime - Sentence | February 2016 | ['(BBC)'] |
Oman names Haitham bin Tariq al–Said as its new head of state after the death of Sultan Qaboos. | By Amir Vera, Rob Picheta and Taylor Barnes, CNN
Updated 1159 GMT (1959 HKT) January 11, 2020 (CNN)Oman named a new ruler Saturday, hours after it announced the death of Sultan Qaboos bin Said, state media reported. CNN's Nourhan Moustafa contributed to this report. | Government Job change - Appoint_Inauguration | January 2020 | ['(CNN International)'] |
President of Venezuela Hugo Chávez finishes a two–day visit to Iran, signing agreements on oil, energy and commerce. | Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez ended a two-day visit to Iran on Thursday -- a trip highlighted by widening cooperation between the nations, the official Islamic Republic News Agency reported.
"The two countries' officials signed eleven letters of understanding and cooperation documents in fields of oil, energy, industries and commerce during the visit," IRNA reported.
With its burgeoning nuclear program, Iran has shown interest in uranium deposits in Venezuela.
Chavez's visit to Tehran comes a year after the Iranian leader's November 2009 trip to Venezuela. The two presidents have cultivated warm relations publicly, exchanging hugs and referring to each other as "brother."
In 2009, Chavez welcomed Ahmadinejad with full military honors.
"We are here to welcome you, brother Ahmadinejad. Leader. Brother. Comrade," Chavez said then.
Ahmadinejad, in return, called Chavez "a brother, who is resisting like a mountain the intentions of imperialism and colonialism."
Chavez is among Ahmadinejad's top supporters in Latin America. The leaders find common ground in their opposition to U.S. foreign policy.
Earlier on his international tour, Chavez made stops in Russia and Belarus, where the Venezuelan leader also signed economic cooperation deals, which included an agreement with Moscow to build Venezuela's first nuclear power plant. | Sign Agreement | October 2010 | ['(CNN)'] |
Jill Stein's bid to force a recount of the presidential election results in the state of Pennsylvania is rejected by a federal judge. | A federal judge on Monday issued a stinging rejection of a Green Party-backed request to recount paper ballots in Pennsylvania’s presidential election, won by Republican Donald Trump, and scan some counties’ election systems for signs of hacking.
In his 31-page decision, U.S. District Judge Paul Diamond said there were at least six grounds that required him to reject the Green Party’s lawsuit, which had been opposed by Trump, the Pennsylvania Republican Party and the Pennsylvania attorney general’s office.
Suspicion of a hacked Pennsylvania election “borders on the irrational” while granting the Green Party’s recount bid could “ensure that that no Pennsylvania vote counts” given Tuesday’s federal deadline to certify the vote for the Electoral College, Diamond wrote.
“Most importantly, there is no credible evidence that any ‘hack’ occurred, and compelling evidence that Pennsylvania’s voting system was not in any way compromised,” Diamond wrote. He also said the lawsuit suffered from a lack of standing, potentially the lack of federal jurisdiction and an “unexplained, highly prejudicial” wait before filing last week’s lawsuit.
The decision was the Green Party’s latest roadblock in Pennsylvania after hitting numerous walls in county and state courts. Green Party-backed lawyers argue that it was possible that computer hackers changed the election outcome and that Pennsylvania’s heavy use of paperless machines makes it a prime target. Green Party presidential candidate Jill Stein also contended that Pennsylvania has erected unconstitutional barriers to voters seeking a recount.
It is part of a broader effort by Stein to recount votes in Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin. Trump won all three states narrowly over Democrat Hillary Clinton, while Stein captured about 1 percent of the vote, or less, in all three states.
In Pennsylvania, Trump beat Clinton in Pennsylvania by about 44,000 votes out of 6 million cast.
A federal judge halted Michigan’s recount last week after three days. The Wisconsin recount was expected to conclude Monday. With about 95 percent of the votes recounted as of Sunday, Clinton had gained 25 votes on Trump, but still trailed by about 22,000. | Government Job change - Election | December 2016 | ['(USA Today)'] |
The Legislative Council delays "to a later time" the second reading of the new legislation on extradition as thousands of protesters, who blocked key roads around government buildings, were confronted by police in riot gear using pepper spray. Despite widespread opposition, the government had said it will continue to push for passage. | Police have fired rubber bullets and tear gas in Hong Kong at demonstrators amid anger at a new bill to allow extradition to mainland China.
Protesters blocked key roads around government buildings and threw bricks and projectiles at police.
They are concerned the new laws could target political opponents of Beijing, and fear human rights abuses in China's legal system. Hong Kong's Chief Executive Carrie Lam condemned the "organised riots".
"The rioting actions that damage peaceful society, ignoring law and discipline is unacceptable for any civilised societies," she said in a video statement.
Officials say 72 people aged between 15 and 66 have been injured so far, with two men in a critical condition.
The government is still backing the bill and it is expected to pass its final vote on 20 June. It has promised legally binding human rights safeguards and other measures it says should alleviate concerns.
But Hong Kong's Legislative Council (LegCo) has now delayed its second reading. The rallies against the extradition bill are the biggest since the territory was handed back to China by the British in 1997.
Protests had been largely peaceful ahead of the scheduled debate of the bill - but on Wednesday they escalated as activists tried to storm government buildings.
One young protester wearing a black mask and gloves told news agency AFP that they would not leave until "they scrap the law".
Rights groups including Amnesty have accused police of using excessive force, but Police Commissioner Stephen Lo Wai-chung said police had had "no choice".
As night fell, protesters remained in some streets behind makeshift barricades. Meanwhile a Chinese foreign ministry spokesman has described reports that security forces from the mainland could be sent to Hong Kong as "fake news".
Geng Shuang said such reports were "rumours to fool people so as to create panic". Police said they were also investigating death threats made against Ms Lam.
In a tearful interview with local TV, Ms Lam dismissed accusations that she had "sold out" Hong Kong. "I have grown up here with all the Hong Kong people," she said. "My love for this place has led me to make many personal sacrifices."
By Vincent Ni, BBC reporter
There has been very limited media coverage of events in Hong Kong on the mainland. Search results are either blank or toe the Beijing line.
"This kind of violent demonstration is not supposed to happen in Hong Kong, a developed society," said Global Times Editor Hu Xijin on Twitter, which is blocked in China
"I don't think Westerners that encourage protests in Hong Kong want the best for the city. They would rather see disturbance there."
However Chinese citizens are not completely unaware of what is happening across the border. Some mainlanders were seen protesting in Hong Kong over the weekend, and others have shown their solidarity on the Wechat social media platform.
"Although this is Hong Kongers' fight, the love for freedom and dignity is universal," wrote one user. "I salute their struggle and effort. I just hope that we are not going to see a bloody crackdown."
It allows for extradition requests from authorities in mainland China, Taiwan and Macau for suspects accused of serious criminal wrongdoing such as murder and rape. The requests would then be decided on a case-by-case basis.
The move came after a 19-year-old Hong Kong man allegedly murdered his 20-year-old pregnant girlfriend while they were holidaying in Taiwan together in February last year.
The man fled to Hong Kong and could not be extradited to Taiwan because the two do not have an extradition treaty. Hong Kong officials have said courts in the territory will have the final say over whether to grant extradition requests, and suspects accused of political and religious crimes will not be extradited.
The government has also promised to only hand over fugitives for offences carrying a maximum sentence of at least seven years.
Hong Kong has entered into extradition agreements with 20 countries, including the UK and the US.
China has expressed "firm support" for the bill but many Western nations have criticised it.
A wide range of groups have spoken out against extradition to China, and hundreds of petitions are in circulation.
More than 100 businesses have said they will shut to allow their staff to protest and nearly 4,000 teachers said they would strike.
Powerful business lobbies say they fear the plans will damage Hong Kong's competitiveness as a base of operations. On Sunday organisers said more than a million people took to the streets demanding the government abandon the amendments, though police estimated turnout was 240,000 at its peak.
In 2014 tens of thousands protested against restrictions on who they could vote for as chief executive.
Despite being mostly peaceful, the protests failed to achieve any concessions. Some of the organisers have since been jailed on public nuisance charges.
Hong Kong was a British colony from 1841 until sovereignty was returned to China in 1997.
Under the "one country, two systems" principle, Hong Kong has kept its judicial independence, its own legislature, its economic system and the Hong Kong dollar.
Its residents were also granted protection of certain human rights and freedoms, including freedom of speech and assembly.
Beijing retains control of foreign and defence affairs, and visas or permits are required for travel between Hong Kong and the mainland.
| Protest_Online Condemnation | June 2019 | ['(BBC)'] |
Gunmen kill thirteen people and wound fifteen at a birthday party in the Mexican border city of Ciudad Juárez. | CIUDAD JUAREZ, Mexico (Reuters) - Gunmen sprayed bullets into a family birthday party in the violent Mexican border city of Ciudad Juarez, killing 13 people and wounding 20, authorities said on Saturday.
It was the second massacre at a party this month in Ciudad Juarez, which borders El Paso, Texas, and is one of the world’s most violent cities as drug cartels battle security forces and each other over smuggling routes into the United States.
“I threw myself down on the floor and then a lot of other people piled on top of me,” a young man who survived the shooting late on Friday told Reuters, declining to give his name out of fear of reprisals.
The celebration was for a boy’s 15th birthday, he said.
At least four of the people killed at the house party were teenagers and a 9-year-old boy was among the wounded, officials said.
“A group of heavily armed men arrived in two minivans. At least 10 men burst into the party,” Carlos Gonzalez, a spokesman for state prosecutors, told the Reforma newspaper.
It was not clear whether the shooting was related to Mexico’s drug war, which has killed more than 6,900 people in Ciudad Juarez alone since early 2008.
Mexican President Felipe Calderon condemned the shooting, saying it caused “deep outrage.”
Calderon is under pressure to show the military-led campaign he launched against the powerful drug cartels in December 2006 is working. With the death toll at nearly 30,000 people over the last four years, Washington and foreign investors are on edge as the violence escalates.
On Saturday, a man used buckets of water and a broom to clean the blood-stained patio where the gunmen opened fire.
“I don’t know what happened. I was here with my son, who is a boy,” said the man, who declined to be identified.
Earlier this month in Ciudad Juarez, gunmen raided a party and killed six people. | Armed Conflict | October 2010 | ['(Al Jazeera)', '(Reuters)'] |
Yazidi demonstrators at Calgary City Hall in Calgary, Alberta call for the Canadian government to help with efforts to reunite family members in Canada who fled the genocide perpetrated by ISIL in 2014 with those still living in Iraq. | It was Aug. 3, 2014, when hundreds of thousands of lives changed forever for the Yazidi people living in northern Iraq.
ISIL militants attacked and captured the city of Sinjar and surrounding areas, forcing 50,000 Yazidis to flee to nearby mountains, only to face death by starvation, dehydration and ISIL gunfire.
That month, 7,000 Yazidis were slaughtered in a genocide, while many young women and children were sold into sexual slavery.
Friday afternoon, four years after the genocide began, roughly 100 Yazidi Calgarians who fled the hardship held a demonstration in front of City Hall calling on the Canadian government’s help.
“All these people are ISIL survivors,” said Ghazi Hasso, a member of the Yazidi community who came to Canada after the attacks.
“There’s not a single person here who has not been affected by ISIL. There are many people here that have half of their family missing — their parents, children missing, husband missing, wife missing, all sort of family. These are traumatized people.
“We still have 3,000 or so (Yazidi people) in captivity in the hands of ISIL.”
Demonstrators could be seen carrying photographs of missing loved ones as they marched around City Hall chanting “stop ISIS! Save our women! Stop genocide!”
“You can imagine losing your cat or something. You would worry about it, but people have lost most of their family; you can imagine what they are going through,” Hasso said.
“There’s not a single minute that goes by where we don’t think about the family members lost and our women and children.”
The genocide continues to this day, as hundreds of thousands of Yazidi are displaced in camps and makeshift shelters in northern Iraq.
Shreen Kengo is one of the few lucky enough to escape the war-torn area.
Through a translator, she said her mother, brother and sister were captured. Her mother and sister were recently bought out of the slavery, but they are still uncertain of her brother’s fate.
“ISIS came to our areas and they attacked us because we are Yazidi — either you turn to Islam, or you will die,” she said of the threats the militant group made.
“Many, many people got killed because they refuse to become Muslim. They killed the older women, and any woman not good enough for them to be married or sold into sexual slavery were killed. They sold the young women around nine years old or younger on the market.”
Kengo said she was sold six times over 21/2 years.
“We were sold from one person to another — something you would not do to another human being,” she said.
“You were just considered property. It’s hard for me being alone here — I have no family.”
Hasso urged people who want to help to contact their member of Parliament and request they help in reuniting the Yazidi people with their families.
| Protest_Online Condemnation | August 2018 | ['(Calgary Herald)'] |
Some 25,000 households in Ireland lose power as a result of Storm Barney. |
Storm Barney with its damaging gusts up to 175 kilometres per hour hit Loughrea Lake, County Galway.
Some 25,000 households will be without electricity overnight as Storm Barney sweeps across the country.
The damage "can be predominantly attributable to large trees which have fallen on the overhead lines in the southern half of the country as a result of gale force winds with gusts of up to 125km/h", ESB reported this evening.
The main areas affected are Tullamore, Loughrea, Athlone, Ennis, Tralee, Limerick, Killarney, Newcastlewest, Kilkenny, Clonmel, Roscrea, Bray and Arklow.
ESB Networks have dispatched crews who worked throughout the evening at numerous locations nationwide.
We are experiencing very high call volumes due to #stormbarney ,we have updates on Powercheck.ie and Our Webpage https://t.co/lEYoXEDnEX
Our crews are working to restore power as quickly and safely as possible,Stay Clear of fallen wires or damaged network #staysafestayclear
Fault updates https://t.co/xZe8FmLmxu If you cant see a fault in your area call 1850372999 with your MPRN #staysafe
Gust recorded of 122kmh at Shannon airport, Co.Clare @ShannonAirport #StormBarney pic.twitter.com/6emsOG7XCw
They have already restored electricity to approximately 20,000 homes.
However, approximately 25,000 households will remain without power ovenight.
Estimated restoration times, when available, will be updated on http://www.esbpowercheck.ie
"Unfortunately due to the large number of faults, many customers will remain without power overnight," a spokesperson said.
"So far, our crews have restored power to approximately 20,000 customers since the height of the storm.
"We expect power to be restored to the majority of our customers by tea time tomorrow."
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The forecast is for a windy and stormy evening with a Status Orange weather warning in operation for Munster, Leinster and South Connacht.
Dublin, Wicklow, Galway, Kerry, Clare, and Limerick can expect gust speeds to reach upwards of 100-125 km/hr along the coast.
A status yellow warning has also been issued for Carlow, Kildare, Kilkenny, Laois, Wexford, Offaly, Westmeath, Meath, Cork, Tipperary and Waterford.
Gardaí are advising motorists to drive with care during the stormy conditions, and have asked for anyone spotting "falling or fallen debris" to contact their local garda station.
Speaking to Independent.ie, a Met Eireann spokesperson said the 'Orange Alert' will come into force in the late afternoon and evening for Dublin and Wicklow, and will remain in place for counties Galway, Clare, Limerick and Kerry for the foreseeable future.
“We are getting the front end of Storm Barney and its affecting mostly the southern half of the country.
“The winds will peak in early afternoon with the southern counties definitely feeling it.”A scattering of showers in the west is expected to extend to all parts of the country by midday, the Met said.
Elsewhere, Limerick City and County Council are warning residents to avoid travel where necessary this evening.
Don't use any naked flames for light other than candles. Look after your wheelie bins #StormBarney will attack them. pic.twitter.com/gch5rc9Vnu
#StormBarney is hitting the west Wales coast now. Debris on roads, power cuts. Take care everyone if you have to drive anywhere tonight
At least av emergency lights in house. 3 hours of light during a power cut.Every home should have it. Power is back ... for now #StormBarney
#Barney #StormBarney #storm pic.twitter.com/1WgAum0X8K
Thank god I'm now home, think it's time to batten down the hatches as it's blowing a hooley out there! #StormBarney
Lovely big Christmas tree in Ballymun ready to go. Hope #StormBarney doesn't take it away.. pic.twitter.com/W1zyYDrxp0
A statement from Limerick Council reads: "It is important that members of the public pay attention to Met Éireann's advisory as this weather system has the potential to deliver Storm Force 10 winds to Limerick for a period during the afternoon to early evening.
"Members of the public are advised to remain indoors where possible during the storm and to stay away from rivers and other water bodies."
Paul Moroney, Senior Engineer for Clare County Council added: "County Clare is likely to be affected to a greater extent than most other areas with the impact extending for a considerable distance inland through the afternoon.
"Our advice is to defer any planned road journeys during this period and to take special care in coastal and exposed areas."
AA RoadWatch is also advising motorists to take precautions “normally appropriate during such weather conditions”, asking drivers to be mindful of pedestrians, cyclists and motorcyclists this afternoon.
“Wind blown debris is likely to be a problem on secondary routes in particular.
“High sided vehicles are particularly vulnerable on open or exposed roads.”
Fire crews throughout the country are dealing with fallen trees.
In Dublin, fire crews were dealing with fallen trees in the city centre, Tallaght, Dublin Mountains and the Malahide
Flights
A Ryanair flight aborted two attempted landings at Shannon Airport today before being forced to divert to Liverpool.
The airport reported the highest winds in the country as Storm Barney battered the island with the west coast suffering the brunt of its force.
With winds at Cork and Dublin also too strong for Ryanair flight FR-1183 from London Gatwick, the opted to divert to the nearest suitable airport which in this case was Liverpool.
The flight was due in Shannon at 2.40pm and the crew had commenced an approach when they decided to abort the attempt. The crew performed a ‘go-around’ procedure and entered a holding pattern in the hope the winds would die down.
The pilot confirmed that the maximum wind speed in which they could land was 50 knots (92.6 kmh) and they would not be able to land in anything higher than that.
A short time later, the crew commenced a second approach to the airport however winds were still too strong for a safe landing.
At the time, winds at Shannon Airport were gusting as high as 61 knots (113 kmh) while later, winds reached as high as 69 knots (128 kmh).
Winds in Dublin and Cork were also reported to be gusting over the 50 knot limit so the flight was unable to land at either airport.
A Ryanair spokeswoman said: "This flight from London Gatwick to Shannon performed a routine go-around before diverting to Liverpool due to high winds at Shannon Airport.
"The aircraft landed normally at Liverpool and will depart for Shannon when the weather improves. Ryanair sincerely apologised to all customers affected by this weather diversion which was entirely beyond our control."
Elsewhere in Clare, Shannon Ferries, which operates between Killimer in Clare and Tarbert in Kerry suspended sailings as a result of the winds.
Winds
The fire service and council staff responded to multiple reports of trees that fell on roadways in various parts of the county.
In Ennis, a road-sign buckled under the force of the wind and crashed onto the footpath near the town’s rail and bus station. No one was injured in that incident.
Two motorists escaped serious injury when they lost control of their cars in separate incidents on the M18 motorway. The first happened at around 7.30am in the northbound lane between Barefield and Crusheen.
Shortly before 1.00pm, a car lost control and collided with a crash barrier in the central reservation of the M18 between Newmarket on Fergus and Dromoland.
Units of the fire brigade from Shannon along with Gardaí and an ambulance responded to the incident.
One fire service vehicle created a rolling roadblock and brought traffic to a safe stop before they reached the accident scene. One person has been taken to hospital with minor injuries.
Traffic had been backed up for over a kilometre for about 40 minutes before one lane of the route was reopened. Once the crashed car was removed from the scene, the second land of the motorway was also opened.
As gale-force winds batter large parts of the country, Garda have shared footage of a patrol car's close call with a falling branch during high winds to warned motorists to stay safe this evening.
In a video posted its official Facebook page, a Garda spokesperson shared a near miss incident involving one of its Burglary Response units.
"Be careful out there! Severe weather warning in place!!
| Hurricanes_Tornado_Storm_Blizzard | November 2015 | ['(The Independent Ireland)'] |
Seven–time Prime Minister of Italy Giulio Andreotti dies in Rome at the age of 94 years. | Giulio Andreotti, one of the most prominent political figures of post-war Italy, has died aged 94.
Mr Andreotti was Italian prime minister seven times between 1972 and 1992. He led the Christian Democrat party, which dominated Italian politics for decades.
He was dogged in later years by allegations of corruption and Mafia links.
He died at home in Rome. He was reported to have suffered heart and respiratory problems in recent years.
Rome's Mayor, Gianni Alemanno, called Mr Andreotti "the most representative politician" in recent Italian history.
But others saw him as an arch political manipulator.
Another former Prime Minister, Massimo D'Alema, said he was "a highly disputed figure... for his conception of power".
Mr Andreotti entered the Italian parliament in 1946 and remained there for more than 60 years, before seeing out his days as a senator-for-life.
He had a reputation for cunning. He managed to find and meet the Pope as an eight-year-old after sneaking away from a Vatican tour group.
He later became one of the founding fathers of the post-war Italian republic, says the BBC's David Willey in Rome.
He was a junior minister at the age of 28, and went on to serve as either prime minister or a senior minister in the many frequently changing Christian Democratic coalitions that held power almost continuously between 1946 and 1992.
The party then lost power and collapsed.
He was strongly anti-communist, pro-American and supportive of Nato.
He was known as a pro-European who committed Italy to European integration and helped forge the way forward to a single currency.
He was one of the most prominent figures of the "years of lead" during the 1970s and 1980s, when hundreds of people were killed in political violence.
And he himself faced a string of allegations of links with corrupt financiers and top criminals.
He was accused by a supergrass of sharing a "kiss of honour" with the Mafia's "boss of bosses", Toto Riina, at a secret meeting in 1987.
And he was tried for allegedly ordering the murder of a journalist who had threatened to publish details of his alleged Mafia involvement.
His acquittal was subsequently overturned by an appeals court, which sentenced him to 24 years in prison - before that ruling, too, was overturned. However, in 2004, Italy's top appeals court did uphold a verdict that he had "consciously and deliberately cultivated a stable relationship" with Mafia bosses.
But he was not formally convicted because the offence had lapsed under Italy's statute of limitations.
And he remained a senator and an influential political figure until his final years, not least because of his close ties with the Vatican.
He died at his apartment in Rome, just a stone's throw from Vatican City. Obituary: Giulio Andreotti
Italy profile
Setback for EU in legal fight with AstraZeneca
But the drug-maker faces hefty fines if it fails to supply doses of Covid-19 vaccine over the summer. | Famous Person - Death | May 2013 | ['(BBC)'] |
Russian opposition leader and hopeful presidential candidate Alexei Navalny is sentenced in Moscow to 20 days detention for organizing unauthorized public meetings. This is Navalny's third jail term this year. , |
The decision was announced by a Moscow judge Monday following Navalny’s detention Friday. The activist was detained by police on his way to the city of Nizhny Novgorod where one of his street rallies had been planned.
Through various online sources, Navalny “has called on citizens to participate in an unauthorized event in Nizhny Novgorod” on Friday, the court stated, ruling that the activist had once again violated the laws governing public events.
Navalny told the court he's not guilty of breaking any laws and claimed his prosecution is related to his political activity.
Justice Ministry denies seeking to turn Navalny's conditional sentence into jail term
Organizing a public rally without following certain procedures is a civil offense in Russia and punishable with up to 30 days of administrative detention. Navalny was earlier this year convicted on similar charges. In March, he was fined for violating the rules, and in June, sentenced to 30 days in custody for breaking the law on rallies yet again. His sentence was then shortened to 25 days. | Famous Person - Commit Crime - Sentence | October 2017 | ['(Reuters)', '(RT)'] |
In the United Kingdom, the Labour Party elects Ed Miliband over his older brother David in the tightest leadership election in history, with Ed coming out on top in only the 4th round of voting. | Ed Miliband has won the Labour leadership after narrowly beating brother David in a dramatic run-off vote ahead of the party's conference.
Ed won by just over 1% from former foreign secretary David after second, third and fourth preference votes came into play.
He said a "new generation" had taken charge of Labour and it had to change.
Ed Balls was third, Andy Burnham fourth and Diane Abbott last in the ballot of MPs, members and trade unionists.
Mr Miliband, 40, replaces acting leader Harriet Harman in the contest triggered by the resignation of Gordon Brown.
The former energy secretary appears to have benefited from a last-minute surge of support before voting in the postal ballot closed on Wednesday.
Older brother David won a majority of support from Labour's MPs at Westminster and party members, but Ed was ahead among members of trade unions and affiliated organisations in Labour's electoral college voting system.
BBC political editor Nick Robinson said in the first three rounds of voting David Miliband was ahead - it was only when votes were reallocated as the other candidates were knocked out that his younger brother was pushed over the winning line.
Mr Miliband hugged David after the result was announced. In his victory speech, he vowed to unify the party, telling delegates: "The Labour Party in the future must be a vehicle that doesn't just attract thousands of young people but tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands of young people who see us as their voice in British politics today."
He paid tribute to his predecessors Gordon Brown and Tony Blair, but added: "We lost the election and we lost it badly. My message to the country is this: I know we lost trust, I know we lost touch, I know we need to change.
"Today a new generation has taken charge of Labour, a new generation that understands the call of change."
Mr Miliband received a standing ovation from delegates as he made his way from the hall, with his brother David at his side.
Former minister Tessa Jowell told BBC News David Miliband's defeat will be a "moment of tremendous pain and disappointment" for him.
But the former foreign secretary was doing his best to put a brave face on it, telling BBC News: "This is Ed's day, it's a big day for the Miliband family, not quite the day for the Miliband family that I would have wanted - the Milband D family, rather than the Miliband E - but that's the way things go."
He said the party now had to rally behind his brother and there was a "strong mood" within Labour to do so.
He refused to talk about his own future, amid speculation about whether he would serve under Ed.
Ed's former Treasury colleague Ed Balls paid tribute to his "brilliant campaign" adding: "It's a hugely important moment for the Labour Party, now we have got to come together."
He said Mr Miliband had to be given "the time and space to get this right".
Diane Abbott, the most left wing of the five said Mr Miliband "will make a fantastic leader".
Mr Miliband singled out Ed Balls for praise in his victory speech, leading to instant speculation that the shadow schools secretary could be in line for a top job after next month's shadow cabinet elections.
Conservative Party chairman Baroness Warsi congratulated Mr Miliband on becoming leader of the opposition, but she told BBC News he owed his victory to votes of trade unionists, which she feared would lead to an "abandonment of the centre ground" by Labour. She said it was now time for Mr Miliband to "to tell us how he'd cut the deficit".
Prime Minister David Cameron called Mr Miliband from his Chequers country retreat to congratulate him on his victory. In a three-minute conversation, he told the new leader of the opposition that people would tell him that his was "the worst job in the world" but that it was not that bad and promised to keep him in touch with matters of national security. Ed Miliband responded by saying that he would lead "a responsible opposition" which would work with the government where they could, according to the BBC's Nick Robinson.
Ed Miliband, who has been MP for Doncaster North since 2005 and was energy and climate change secretary until Labour's election defeat in May, is a former aide to Gordon Brown at the Treasury, who joined the Labour Party at the age of 17.
The son of the late Marxist intellectual Ralph Miliband, he is the 20th person to take on the leadership of the Labour Party. He positioned himself to the left of his brother, the former foreign secretary who is five years older and who started the four-month contest as frontrunner. He sold himself to party members as the "change" candidate, securing the backing of three of the four biggest trade unions - Unite, Unison and the GMB.
Under Labour's complex electoral system, voting power is divided equally between three sections: MPs and MEPs, affiliated organisations including trade unions and ordinary party members.
If no single candidate secures 50% or more of the first round vote, the last-placed contender is eliminated and the second preferences of their backers are redistributed.
The elimination process continues until one of the candidates reaches 50% or more, potentially ending, as in this case, as a head-to-head fight between two of them.
After four rounds of voting Ed Miliband won with 175,519 votes, while David Miliband received 147,220 votes. | Government Job change - Election | September 2010 | ['(BBC)', '(The Guardian)', '(Al Jazeera)'] |
A spokesman for Russia's Investigative Committee confirms that Nadiya Savchenko, the female military aviator who was captured by pro-Russian separatists on June 18, is now held in Voronezh, Russia, where she has been charged with killing two Russian journalists. , | A Ukrainian military officer who was captured by pro-Russian separatists in eastern Ukraine in June has been indicted in Russia for her alleged complicity in the killing of two Russian journalists.
A spokesman for Russia's Investigative Committee, Vladimir Markin, confirmed on July 9 that Nadiya Savchenko is currently being held at a detention facility in the Russian city of Voronezh.
Two journalists from Russia's State Television and Radio Company, Igor Kornelyuk and Viktor Denisov, were killed by a mortar shell near Ukraine's eastern city of Luhansk on June 17 while covering the Ukrainian Army's offensive against pro-Russian separatists.
Ukraine's Foreign Ministry issued a statement on July 8 demanding Savchenko's immediate release and calling her transfer to Russia "yet another proof that terrorists" are operating in eastern Ukraine in cooperation with Russia's secret services.
"By kidnapping of Ukrainian citizens in our country," the statement said, "the Russian side violates not only all the norms of the international law, but also the basic rules of decency and morality."
The ministry demanded that Moscow bring to justice all those responsible for Savchenko's "illegal trafficking."
Savchenko, 31, a senior lieutenant in the Air Force, has served in Ukraine's armed forces for 10 years.
| Famous Person - Commit Crime - Accuse | July 2014 | ['(Radio Free Europe)', '(AP)'] |
The UK's Manchester Airport launches an inquiry after an 11–year–old boy boarded a plane to Rome unaccompanied, and without passport, tickets or boarding pass. | An investigation has begun at Manchester airport after an 11-year-old boy boarded a flight to Rome without a passport, boarding card or ticket, by apparently tagging on to another family.
At least five members of Jet2.com staff who work at the airport have been suspended following the incident on Tuesday afternoon at the start of the busy summer getaway as the airport was bustling with thousands of people.
Liam Corcoran had apparently run away from his mother while she was shopping at the Wythenshawe civic centre, close to the airport, on Tuesday and had been reported missing. He made his way to the airport, probably on foot.
When he arrived at terminal one, he followed another family, going unnoticed with thousands of people heading off on their summer holidays. Security staff scanned him but failed to realise he was on his own and had no boarding card, passport, tickets or money.
The boy then arrived in the departure lounge and headed to one of the gates where passengers were boarding Jet2.com flight LS791 to Rome. He managed to bypass a security check at the gate without being asked to show either a passport or a boarding card.
Once on the aircraft, none of the crew realised he did not have a boarding card as he took a seat. A headcount failed to alert them to the discrepancy.
The jet took off as normal and it was only during the journey to Italy that passengers became suspicious of the boy and told the cabin crew. The crew members alerted the captain who radioed back to Manchester.
Police at Manchester airport then called the boy's mother to tell her that her son had been found safe and well – but that he was on a plane travelling to Italy.
The plane landed at Fiumicino airport in Rome where the boy was asked to remain on board while the other passengers left the aircraft. He remained on the plane, accompanied by flight crew, as it took off again to return to Manchester.
Manchester airport and Jet2.com have launched a full-scale investigation into how the boy managed to evade so many checks and end up in Italy. It is understood five members of staff working for Jet2.com have been suspended from duty while the investigation takes place.
The returning plane landed at 10.25pm on Tuesday and it is understood the boy was met by his mother and police officers before being interviewed.
Fellow passengers on the returning plane said they had been told the alarm was raised when Liam told people on the plane he was running away from home.
It is understood the return flight was delayed by 80 minutes while the plane's crew were questioned by Italian border police.
Passenger Sarah Swayne, 26, from Nantwich, told the Manchester Evening News: "He was very talkative and seemed quite unfazed by it all. He was just sat there chatting away about how he'd been trying to run away from home.
"He seemed quite innocent really and I don't think it had sunk in how serious the situation was."
Another passenger, who did not wish to be named, told the newspaper: "When the plane touched down, he clearly didn't want to get off but he was taken down the steps before everyone else and met at the bottom by a group of staff who quickly whisked him away."
A Manchester airport spokesman said: "This extremely serious matter is now being urgently investigated. It is clear that documentation has not been checked correctly at security and the boarding gate.
"The boy went through full security screening so the safety of passengers and the aircraft was never compromised." The airport said his return journey had been handled sensitively to avoid any further distress.
A spokesperson for Jet2.com said: "We are fully investigating the incident as a matter of urgency and the staff involved have been suspended during this investigation."
John Greenway, a spokesman for Manchester airport, said: "We know that people are not very happy about it. The investigation will look at how this has happened. Jet2 will be looking at how this boy got on that aircraft.
"He's evaded checks. He did go through the metal detector and didn't sound any alarms. He wasn't a danger to any of the passengers." | Famous Person - Commit Crime - Investigate | July 2012 | ['(BBC)', '(The Guardian)'] |
The Major Criminal Court in Bahrain sentences four people to jail terms for setting up a terror group with the aim of launching attacks on police, and related crimes. Two are fugitives tried in absentia | Defendants get jail terms ranging from 3 to 7 years for setting up terrorist group Manama: A Bahraini court has convicted four people on terrorism-related charges, the country’s chief prosecutor Ahmad Al Hamadi said in remarks published Thursday.
The Major Criminal Court has sentenced the four to jailing terms ranging from seven to three years, he added, according to Bahraini newspaper Al Balad.
The case dates back to last year.
Two of the four were tried in absentia on charges of setting up a terrorist group to carry out attacks against police in the kingdom.
Both fugitives, also convicted of recruiting members for their group, were handed down seven years in prison each.
The third and the fourth defendants were sentenced to three years in jail each.
When they were arrested, police found in their possession substances used in the manufacture of explosives.
Other charges against the four included financing and propagating terrorist acts.
Two of the defendants were also ordered to pay a total fine of 200,000 Bahraini dinars after they were convicted of transferring money to outlawed groups.
All the rulings can be appealed, according to the chief prosecutor.
In recent years, Bahrain has seen a series of terrorist attacks mainly targeting security forces.
In May, King Hamad Bin Eisa Al Khalifa ratified an anti-terror law that makes punishable offences propagating, glorifying, justifying or encouraging acts that constitute terrorist activities.
According to this law, the violators inside and outside Bahrain face up to five years in prison and a fine ranging from 2,000 to 5,000 dinars.
Get Breaking News Alerts From Gulf News
We’ll send you latest news updates through the day. You can manage them any time by clicking on the notification icon. | Famous Person - Commit Crime - Sentence | September 2019 | ['(Gulf News)'] |
Maria Jepsen, the world's first female Lutheran bishop, resigns due to her handling of an alleged case of sexual abuse. She is the third German bishop to resign in recent months. | The bishop of Hamburg - the world's first female Lutheran bishop - has resigned amid criticism of her handling of a sex abuse case.
Maria Jepsen stepped down saying her credibility had been contested. She denies having known before May this year about a priest in the town of Ahrensburg who reportedly sexually abused boys and girls in the 1980s.
The case has echoes of scandals that have hit the Roman Catholic Church in Germany and elsewhere this year.
Maria Jepsen was elected bishop in 1992, becoming the first woman to become a Lutheran bishop.
"My credibility has been put in question," she said. "Consequently, I feel that I am no longer able to spread the good word, as I vowed to do at my ordination.
"I expect that the... cases in Ahrensburg and elsewhere will be swiftly investigated and that the truth will come to light." | Government Job change - Resignation_Dismissal | July 2010 | ['(BBC)'] |
At least 50 people are killed, including seven civilians, in heavy fighting between Houthi rebels and forces loyal to ousted President Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi near the city of Taiz. | At least seven civilians, more than 50 Houthi rebels and eight pro-government fighters killed in mutliple incidents.
At least seven civilians have been killed and 36 injured when Houthi rebels and forces loyal to former President Ali Abdullah Saleh targeted residential areas in Yemen’s Taiz, medical sources have told Al Jazeera.
Monday also saw more than 50 Houthi rebels and pro-Saleh fighters killed in the southern city during Saudi-led Arab coalition air strikes and a battle with supporters of President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi.
Eight pro-Hadi forces were also killed in the fighting.
The intensifying violence has left Taiz in a desperate situation, with closed hospitals and acute shortages of medicine, food, water and fuel, the Red Cross said this week.
Meanwhile, a suicide bomber killed two pro-Hadi fighters from the southern separatist movement at a checkpoint in Aden on Monday, security and medical officials told the AP news agency.
The bomber, wearing a suicide belt, blew himself up in the Mansoura neighbourhood ofthe southern port city.
The attack followed Sunday’s storming of an Aden supermarket by fighters who fired shots into the air and briefly took hostages, according to security officials and witnesses.
Witnesses said the attackers warned supermarket employees against the mingling of men and women and demanded that female employees cover their faces.
Following a major battle over Aden between Houthi rebels and pro-government forces who pushed the Houthis out of the city in July, al-Qaeda appears to have taken advantage of the local security vacuum as pro-government forces moved on to challenge the Houthis elsewhere in southern Yemen.
Southern separatist Adel Muhasin said al-Qaeda had largely succeeded in penetrating local Salafi groups and now holds several areas, with about 5,000 fighters organised under its command in Aden.
“They have the money and the weapons, so they’ve succeeded in recruiting hundreds of young people, many of them brainwashed or seeking money,” he said.
Armed group hands out flyers in the town of Mayfaa, claiming killing of four men suspected of practising sorcery.
In the midst of a security vacuum, Aden could see a surge of activity by ISIL fighters and supporters. | Armed Conflict | October 2015 | ['(Al-Jazeera)'] |
French police detain two men in connection with the murder of an 85-year-old Holocaust survivor who was found in the burned remains of her apartment. The prosecutor's office is investigating if the killing was "motivated by the real or supposed adherence to a religion". | PARIS (Reuters) - French police are investigating whether the death of an elderly Jewish woman stabbed and burnt to death in her Paris apartment last week was an anti-Semitic murder, a judicial source said on Monday.
Mirelle Knoll, an 85-year-old Holocaust survivor, was found dead on Friday inside the blackened remains of her apartment, which police suspect was set ablaze after she was attacked.
Two suspects have been detained but have not yet been charged.
The investigation by the Paris prosecutor’s office is trying to establish whether it was a killing “motivated by the real or supposed adherence to a religion”, the source said.
France’s chief rabbi described Knoll’s death as a “horror”. Jewish leaders have called for a march in her memory.
French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian, who is visiting Israel, said the theory that Knoll’s death was anti-Semitic was plausible.
“It reminds us of the fundamental and permanent side of this battle (against anti-Semitism),” he said, speaking alongside Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu after visiting the Yad Vashem Holocaust museum.
As a child in Paris, Knoll managed to evade the round-up of Jews during World War Two, Paris lawmaker Meyer Habib said.
Thousands of Jews were brought to the Velodrome d’Hiver cycling track in 1942 and sent on to Nazi death camps.
France is home to western Europe’s biggest Jewish population and many in the 400,000-strong community have complained for years of a rise in anti-Semitic hate crimes.
In 2015, vandals desecrated 250 tombstones in a Jewish cemetery in eastern France days after four Jews were killed in an attack on a kosher grocery in Paris.
Knoll’s killing took place a year to the day after the murder of Sarah Halimi-Attal, a 65-year-old whose death prosecutors believe was anti-Semitic.
“The horror of the crime and the violence of the executioners are identical and reflect the negation of the human face,” Chief Rabbi Haim Korsia said in a tweet.
Reporting by Emmanuel Jarry and John Irish; Writing by Richard Lough; Editing by Luke Baker and
Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
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| Famous Person - Commit Crime - Arrest | March 2018 | ['(Reuters)'] |
Governor Jerry Brown signs legislation to make California a sanctuary state. Next January, this law will prevent police from inquiring about immigration status during routine interactions, and will reduce law enforcement cooperation with U.S. immigration officers. | LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - A bill to make California a sanctuary state, by preventing police from inquiring about immigration status and curtailing law enforcement cooperation with immigration officers, was signed into law by the governor on Thursday.
The signing of the bill by Governor Jerry Brown, a Democrat, enacts on a state-wide level protections for illegal immigrants that exist in several cities, including Chicago and New York. Illinois approved a similar measure earlier this year.
The enhanced protections for illegal immigrants by California, the nation’s most populous state, sets the stage for a political battle with President Donald Trump, who has made a crackdown on illegal immigration one of his main priorities.
Senate Bill 54, which California lawmakers approved last month, bars local governments from forcing undocumented immigrants to spend extra time in jail so that immigration agents can pick them up for deportation.
It also prohibits police from asking about the immigration status of people during routine interactions. “These are uncertain times for undocumented Californians and their families, and this bill strikes a balance that will protect public safety, while bringing a measure of comfort to those families who are now living in fear every day,” Brown said in a statement.
The law will take effect in January.
California leads the nation in its population of illegal immigrants, with more than 2.3 million people lacking legal status, according to Pew Research Center.
The U.S. Department of Justice immediately criticized Brown’s action.
“The state of California has now codified a commitment to returning criminal aliens back onto our streets, which undermines public safety, national security and law enforcement,” Department of Justice spokesman Devin O’Malley said in a statement.
Attorney General Jeff Sessions this year sought to cut off sanctuary cities from certain federal grants, but judges have blocked that effort.
The law will not affect major aspects of U.S. immigration enforcement, Brown noted in his statement. It does not prohibit sheriffs from allowing federal immigration authorities into their jails and does not freeze deportation proceedings for prison inmates, Brown said.
| Government Policy Changes | October 2017 | ['(Reuters)'] |
Twelve people are killed and over 80 injured by two car bombs at a gate outside police headquarters in Kandahar, Afghanistan. | KABUL (Reuters) - Twelve people were killed and more than 80 wounded when Taliban fighters detonated two car bombs at a gate outside police headquarters in the Afghan city of Kandahar on Thursday, police and medical officials and the Taliban said.
After the blasts, militant gunman opened fire from nearby positions and members of the security forces were battling them, said Tadeen Khan, the southern city’s chief of police.
The attackers targeted the police force’s counter-narcotics wing, Khan said.
Eyewitnesses said that following the first explosion, three back-to-back explosions were heard and the gunfight was still going on.
Police cordoned off the area as passers-by fled.
Those killed were both policemen and civilians, said Bahir Ahmadi, a spokesman for the provincial governor, giving the death toll.
A doctor on duty in Kandahar provincial hospital said 83 wounded people had been taken to the hospital, most of them civilians.
The Taliban said in a statement their fighters had detonated car bombs and clashes were continuing as some fighters had entered the police offices.
Kandahar was the former seat of the Taliban when they ruled Afghanistan from 1996 until they were ousted by a U.S.-led coalition in 2001.
The militants have fought on and while U.S. officials and Taliban militants have been discussing a peace deal since late last year to end the war, the violence has not abated.
At least 20 Afghan forces members were killed in a Taliban ambush in Abkamari district in western Badghis province on Wednesday.
The Taliban also killed an Afghan commander on Wednesday in central Afghanistan. Mateen Mujtaba, who headed an army division in Ghazni province, was conducting a security check in Qarabagh district when an Afghan soldier started shooting.
Officials said the soldier was an infiltrator of the hardline Islamist group.
Reporting by Sarwar Amani in Kandhar, Abdul Qadir Sediqi in Kabul, Writing by Rupam Jain,; Editing by Robert Birsel and Frances Kerry
| Armed Conflict | July 2019 | ['(Reuters)'] |
Major League Baseball player Barry Bonds is indicted by a federal grand jury in San Francisco for perjury and obstruction of justice, having allegedly lied under oath about his use of steroids. | An attorney familiar with the investigation told ESPN's T.J. Quinn that the government obtained the results of positive steroids tests for Bonds during a search of BALCO facilities. The source said the positive results did not come from confidential testing conducted by Major League Baseball and the players' association. In approximately 2001, MLB conducted tests to gauge the level of substance problems among players. The government subpoenaed those records.
In August, when the 43-year-old Bonds passed Hank Aaron to
become the career home run leader, he flatly rejected any
suggestion that the milestone was stained by steroids.
"This record is not tainted at all. At all. Period," Bonds
said.
Under "Federal Rules of Criminal Procedures," Bonds does not have to surrender for fingerprinting, mug shots and a bond hearing until his initial arraignment in U.S. District Court in San
Francisco. His arraignment is scheduled for the morning of Dec. 7.
At that point, Bonds will appear before a magistrate judge and then likely be handed over to U.S. Marshals, who will conduct the booking procedures.
But while San Franciscans cheered his every swing and fans
elsewhere scorned every homer, a grand jury quietly worked behind
closed doors to put the finishing touches on the long-rumored
indictment.
Bonds still will be eligible for the Hall of Fame even if he's convicted and goes to prison, said Jack O'Connell, secretary-treasurer of the Baseball Writers Association of America. Hall of Fame voters, however, punished Mark McGwire last year when he appeared on the ballot for the first time; McGwire received 128 votes, far short of the necessary 409 needed for induction.
Bonds is by far the highest-profile figure caught up in the
steroids probe, which also ensnared track star Marion Jones. She
pleaded guilty in October to lying to federal investigators about
using steroids and faces up to six months in prison.
Bonds finished the year with 762 homers, seven more than Aaron,
and is currently a free agent. In 2001, he set the season record
with 73 home runs.
Late in the season, the San Francisco Giants told the seven-time
National League MVP they didn't want him back next year.
One of his
attorneys, John Burris, didn't know of the indictment before being
alerted by The Associated Press and said he would call Bonds to
notify him.
"I'm surprised," Burris said, "but there's been an effort to
get Barry for a long time. I'm curious what evidence they have now
they didn't have before."
Defense attorney Mike Rains said he spoke briefly with Bonds but
did not describe his reaction. At an evening news conference, he
read a statement accusing federal prosecutors of "unethical
misconduct" and declined to take questions.
"Every American should worry about a Justice Department that
doesn't know if waterboarding is torture and can't tell the
difference between prosecution on the one hand and persecution on
the other," Rains said.
He has never been identified by Major League Baseball as testing
positive for steroids.
The Giants, the players' union and even the White House called
it a sad day for baseball.
"This is a very sad day. For many years, Barry Bonds was an
important member of our team and is one of the most talented
baseball players of his era. These are serious charges. Now that
the judicial process has begun, we look forward to this matter
being resolved in a court of law," the Giants said.
Union head Donald Fehr said he was "saddened" to learn of the
indictment, but cautioned that "every defendant, including Barry
Bonds, is entitled to the presumption of innocence unless and until
such time as he is proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt."
In Washington, White House spokesman Tony Fratto said: "The
president is very disappointed to hear this. As this case is now in
the criminal justice system, we will refrain from any further
specific comments about it. But clearly this is a sad day for
baseball."
Commissioner Bud Selig withheld judgment, saying, "I take this
indictment very seriously and will follow its progress closely."
Bush, who once owned the Texas Rangers, called Bonds to
congratulate him in August when the Giants' outfielder broke the
home run mark. "You've always been a great hitter and you broke a
great record," Bush said at the time.
Former Senate Majority Leader George Mitchell, who is
investigating drug use in baseball, declined comment.
The Hall of Fame currently has an exhibit dedicated to Bonds'
record-breaking 756th home run.
"As a historic museum, we have no intention of taking the
exhibit down," Hall vice president Jeff Idelson said.
Bonds joins a parade of defendants tied to the BALCO
investigation, including Anderson, who served three months in
prison and three months of home detention after pleading guilty to
steroid distribution and money laundering.
BALCO founder Victor Conte also served three months in prison
after he pleaded guilty to steroids distribution. But Conte has
long insisted that Bonds didn't get steroids from his lab.
Conte, in an interview with ESPN's Steve Levy, said Thursday night he "doesn't expect to testify" on behalf of Barry Bonds. Earlier Thursday, Conte told ESPN the Magazine's Shaun Assael that he "may" testify on Bonds' behalf that the sample the government claims Bonds tested positive for steroids on, is not what it seems.
Bonds was charged in the indictment with lying when he said he
didn't knowingly take steroids given to him by Anderson. Bonds is
also charged with lying that Anderson never injected him with
steroids.
"Greg wouldn't do that," Bonds testified when asked if
Anderson ever gave him any drugs that needed to be injected. "He
knows I'm against that stuff."
Anderson's attorney, Mark Geragos, said the trainer didn't
cooperate with the grand jury that indicted Bonds.
"This indictment came out of left field," Geragos said.
"Frankly I'm aghast. It looks like the government misled me and
Greg as well, saying this case couldn't go forward without him."
Prosecutors promised Bonds they wouldn't charge him with any
drug-related counts if he testified truthfully. But according to
the indictment, Bonds repeatedly denied taking any steroids or
performance-enhancing drugs despite evidence to the contrary.
According to the indictment, Bonds even denied taking steroids
when prosecutors showed him the results of a test from November
2000 that showed a "Barry B" testing positive for two types of
steroids.
"I've never seen these documents," Bonds said. "I've never
seen these papers."
The indictment does not explain where prosecutors obtained those
results, but they likely were conducted at BALCO. Bonds first visited BALCO in November 2000
and submitted to the series of urine and drug tests conducted by
BALCO founder Victor Conte on every athlete who went through the
lab.
The test results may have been seized when federal agents raided
BALCO in September 2003.
Conte said Thursday the tests were administered to protect
athletes from taking legal supplements contaminated with illegal
steroids. But he said he had no way of knowing Bonds' test results
because the samples were assigned numbers rather than names.
"The reason for the testing wasn't to circumvent the system,"
Conte said. "It was to protect the athletes."
Bonds said that at the end of the 2003 season Anderson rubbed
some cream on his arm that the trainer said would help him recover.
Anderson also gave him something he called "flax seed oil," Bonds
said.
Bonds then testified that prior to the 2003 season, he never
took anything supplied by Anderson -- which the indictment alleges
was a lie because the doping calendars seized from Anderson's house
were dated 2001.
Bonds has long been shadowed by allegations that he used
performance-enhancing drugs. The son of former big league star
Bobby Bonds, Barry broke into the majors with the Pittsburgh
Pirates in 1986 as a lithe, base-stealing outfielder.
By the late 1990s, he had bulked up to more than 240 pounds --
his head, in particular, becoming noticeably bigger. His physical
growth was accompanied by a remarkable power surge.
Speculation of his impending indictment had mounted for more
than a year, but the specter of steroid allegations have shadowed
him for much longer. | Famous Person - Commit Crime - Accuse | November 2007 | ['(AP via ESPN)'] |
An ancient Philistine cemetery has been unearthed in Israel. | Researchers in Israel have made what they say is the first discovery of a Philistine cemetery.
The discovery, made in 2013 and finally revealed on Sunday, may yield answers to an enduring mystery surrounding the origins of the Philistines.
It comes at the end of a 30-year excavation by the Leon Levy Expedition.
Expedition leaders say they discovered 145 sets of remains in several burial rooms, some surrounded by perfume, food, jewellery and weapons.
The remains date to between the 11th and the 8th centuries BC.
"After decades of studying what Philistines left behind, we have finally come face to face with the people," said Daniel M Master, one of the leaders of the excavation.
"With this discovery we are close to unlocking the secrets of their origins."
The discovery was kept secret for three years, until the end of the dig, to avoid drawing the attention of ultra-orthodox Jewish protesters, who had previously demonstrated at excavations.
The protesters took issues with the archaeologists disturbing burial sites. "We had to bite our tongues for a long time," Mr Master said.
Scholars of the period differ as to the geographical origins of the Philistines, with mainland Greece, the islands of Crete or Cyprus, and Anatolia in modern-day Turkey considered.
The expedition team is now performing DNA, radiocarbon and other tests on the remains in an attempt to pinpoint their provenance.
Most of the bodies were not buried with personal items, the expedition leaders said, but next to some were perfume jugs, storage jars and small bowls. A few individuals were buried with bracelets and earrings and some with weapons.
"This is how Philistines treated their dead, and it's the code book to decoding everything," said archaeologist Adam Aja, a participant in the dig.
The Philistines appear in the Bible as the archenemy of the ancient Israelites. They are thought to have migrated to ancient Israel from lands to the West around the 12th century BC.
The best known Philistine now is Goliath, the giant warrior who, according to the Bible, was defeated by the young David before he became king. | New archeological discoveries | July 2016 | ['(BBC)'] |
Israeli jets bomb a building in the Gaza Strip which the military says hides a tunnel that Palestinian militants could use to infiltrate Israel. | Israeli jets have bombed a building in the Gaza Strip which the military says hid a tunnel that Palestinian militants could use to infiltrate Israel.
No-one was hurt in the air strike, to the east of Gaza City. Israel said the attack was retaliation for a rocket fired from Gaza into its territory on Saturday. The rocket caused no casualties or damage. Hamas, which controls the Gaza Strip, described the target of the Israeli air strike as "open ground". However, witnesses said it was a building with two rooms and a courtyard. An Israeli security source said the tunnel had been dug by Palestinian factions other than Hamas, Reuters reported. Earlier, Hamas said unidentified Palestinians had detonated explosives at two of its security compounds in Gaza City. No-one was hurt. Hamas has recently cracked down on possible internal threats from rival Palestinian factions inside Gaza. | Armed Conflict | August 2009 | ['(BBC)', '(Ynet News)'] |
Tens of thousands of people attempt to flee the Thai capital Bangkok as floodwaters rise. | Floodwaters bearing down on the metropolis of nine million people have killed 373 people nationwide since July, caused billions of dollars in damage and shut Bangkok's second largest airport.
The capital has mostly escaped unscathed, but residents are preparing for flooding that seems all but inevitable.
Bangkok Governor Sukhumbhand Paribatra said yesterday residents of two of the city's 50 districts - Don Muang and Bang Phlat, both already partially submerged - should leave for safer city shelters.
"This is the first time I am using the term 'evacuation', the first time I'm really asking you to leave," Mr Sukhumbhand said.
Elsewhere in the city, thousands of people packed Bangkok's Mo Chit bus terminal, trying to leave town on their own.
Many appeared to be taking advantage of a government-declared five-day public holiday to avoid a possible watery siege. The holiday runs from Thursday through to Monday in flood-affected areas, including Bangkok.Some waited for hours on the sidewalk outside Mo Chit because there was no space inside the terminal, the main departure point for buses to Thailand's north.
The mass exodus included thousands of migrants from neighbouring Myanmar, workers dependent on low-paying jobs so desperate to leave they are willing to brave a return to their intensely repressive nation to do so.
Authorities were also forced to move hundreds of inmates from three prisons - many on death row - to facilities in other provinces.
Satellite maps of Bangkok showed a city almost entirely surrounded by water. Most of the vast pools of runoff now submerging a third of the country are flowing from the north toward Bangkok - southward toward the Gulf of Thailand.
"The amount of water is gigantic," Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra said.
"Some water must spread into Bangkok areas but we will try to make it pass through as quickly as possible."In the district of Sai Mai, on the capital's northern outskirts, waist-high water turned roads into virtual rivers and swamped gas stations and homes.
Hundreds of residents clamoured aboard packed military trucks with their belongings, desperate to leave. But help was in short supply."We haven't been able to get on one (military truck) yet, we have been waiting for almost an hour," said 71-year-old Saman Somsuk. "There aren't many trucks."Others got out any way they could - in paddle boats, plastic tubs, inner tubes and rubber rafts. Several men floated down a flooded road in a makeshift boat made of empty oil barrels tied to a rectangular plank.As fears of urban disaster set in, some residents built cement walls to protect their shops and homes.Websites posted instructions on the proper way to stack sandbags. Many residents fortified vulnerable areas of their houses with bricks, gypsum board and plastic sheets. Walls of sandbags or cinderblocks covered the entrances of many buildings.Concern that pumps would fail prompted a run on plastic containers in which to hoard water. Anticipating worse, one woman travelling on Bangkok's Skytrain transit system carried a bag of life vests.On Tuesday, floods breached barriers protecting the capital's Don Muang airport, primarily used for domestic flights, in a major psychological blow to efforts to protect the capital.The country's main international airport is still functioning normally.Panic has gripped parts of the city as more and more of it is affected by the advancing water. Residents stocking up on food and other necessities have emptied supermarket shelves, and stores have posted notices that flooding was disrupting supply chains and leaving them unable to restock certain items.Yingluck warned that the city's fate rested on three key flood barriers."If the three spots ... remain intact, the situation will improve," she said. However, "in the worst case, if we can't protect all three spots, all of Bangkok will be flooded."She has said the floods could range from 10cm to 1.5 metres deep in the capital.
Originally published asLocals flee as 'gigantic' floods threaten Bangkok
| Floods | October 2011 | ['(News Limited)'] |
The Square, a Swedish film directed by Ruben Östlund, wins the Palme d'Or, the top award at the Cannes Film Festival. | CANNES, France (Reuters) - “The Square”, a Swedish movie about the curator of a museum filled with grotesquely pretentious conceptual art, beat stiff competition to win the top prize at the Cannes Film Festival on Sunday.
Critics hailed the movie by writer-director Ruben Ostlund as “high-wire cinema” that veers between comedy and thriller with moments of pure surrealism, though some said it could easily have shed part of its 2 hours and 22 minutes running time.
The film’s highlight is a dinner for the museum’s well-to-do patrons, with a performance artist leaping from table to table impersonating an ape in a bizarre, tense and ultimately violent scene.
Spanish filmmaker Pedro Almodovar, who headed the jury of nine people that included Hollywood stars Will Smith and Jessica Chastain, said the film was about “the dictatorship of being politically correct”.
“Such a serious subject is treated with an incredible imagination. It is very, very, very funny,” he said.
“BPM (Beats Per Minute)”, a French movie about AIDS awareness campaigners in the 1980s, had been favorite for the award but had to settle for second place, taking the Grand Prize of the Jury, something Almodovar seemed to regret.
“This is a very democratic jury and I am the ninth part of this jury,” he said and fought back tears as he talked of the film’s portrayal of “real heroes that saved many lives”.
Sofia Coppola won best director for “The Beguiled”, a remake of the 1971 Clint Eastwood tale of sexual tension between an injured soldier in the American Civil War and the women and girls who take him in.
Although members of the jury said she was the first woman to win that prize, the history books show that Soviet director Yuliya Solntseva won it in 1961.
Nicole Kidman, who starred alongside Colin Farrell in “The Beguiled” and “The Killing of a Sacred Deer” missed out on the best actress trophy but was awarded a special prize, collecting the jury’s 70th Anniversary Award.
Best actress went to Diane Kruger for her performance in German film “In the Fade”, playing a woman trying to put her life back together after her husband and young son are killed in a bomb attack. It was her first role in her native German.
Joaquin Phoenix was named best actor for his portrayal of a psychologically damaged hitman in “You Were Never Really Here” by British director Scottish director Lynne Ramsay, who shared the prize for best screenplay with the writers of “The Killing of a Sacred Deer”, Yorgos Lanthimos and Efthimis Filippou.
Video-streaming company Netflix, which had two acclaimed movies in competition, left empty handed. It’s lack of success should have come as no surprise, given that Almodovar said at the start of the festival that the Palme d’Or should not go a movie that would not be given a theatrical release.
h | Awards ceremony | May 2017 | ['(Reuters)'] |
196 people are indicted in Istanbul for plotting to overthrow the government. (People's Daily) | A Turkish court today indicted 196 people, including four retired military commanders, of conspiring to overthrow the government in 2003, in an alleged plot that highlights tension between the religious leadership and its secular opponents.
The suspects are accused of planning to create chaos and pave the way for a military takeover in an alleged conspiracy dubbed "Sledgehammer", local media reported.
Thirty serving or retired military officers were indicted, including Dogan Cetin, former commander of Turkey's first army, former naval force commander Ozden Ornek, former air force commander Ibrahim Firtina, and former army commander Ergin Saygun, Anatolia said.
The officers face up to 20 years in prison if convicted of attempting to bring down the government and membership in an illegal organisation, according to the Dogan news agency. Most were detained and subsequently released in February after a newspaper, Taraf, published allegedly leaked copies of documents detailing their plans.
No trial date has been set.
Taraf said the suspects allegedly planned to blow up at least two historic Istanbul mosques during Friday prayers, assassinate several Christian and Jewish leaders, and shoot down a Turkish warplane and blame it on Greece.
Taraf claimed the conspirators hoped the chaos would lead to calls for a military takeover. The paper handed over the documents to prosecutors.
The Turkish military, which has overthrown four governments since 1960, has denied such a plot, insisting the documents were taken from a training seminar in which officers simulated an internal strife scenario. Turkey's military chief of staff, Ilter Basbug, has complained of "asymmetric psychological warfare" to tarnish the institution's image.
More than 400 people, including academics, journalists, politicians and soldiers, are already on trial over separate charges of plotting to bring down the government. | Famous Person - Commit Crime - Accuse | July 2010 | ['(BBC)', '(Reuters)', '(The Guardian)', '(The News international)', '(The Sydney Morning Herald)'] |
Iran announces that it hanged 5 prisoners convicted of the so–called crime of "enmity against God", at least 4 of whom were members of Iran's Kurdish minority. | The Iranian government has announced that it hanged five prisoners inside Evin prison on May 9th. Each of the five was convicted of the so-called crime of "enmity against God." Shirin Alam Hooli, (DOB: June 3, 1981) was arrested in May 20O7. On December 19th 2009 she was sentenced to death for being a “Mohareb” (enemy of God) for her alleged involvement in Free Life Party of Kurdistan (PJAK). She was hanged Sunday, May 9, 2010 at Tehran's Evin prison.
The Iranian government's deteriorating human rights policies affect all Iranians.
The Iranian government has announced that it hanged 5 prisoners inside Evin prison on May 9th. At least 4 of them, including 1 woman, were members of Iran's Kurdish minority. Each of the 5 was convicted of the so-called crime of "enmity against God," for allegedly participating in terrorist acts against the state.Amnesty International condemned the executions, noting that they were carried out without warning, in violation of Iranian law. Malcolm Smart, Amnesty's director for the Middle East and North Africa, said, "The 5 were denied fair trials. Three of the defendants were tortured and two were forced to 'confess' under duress." The New York Times reports that all of the executed prisoners had denied the charges against them in public letters posted on websites.Among those executed was Farzad Kamangar, a teacher and Kurdish cultural rights defender. The other men were Farzad Vakili, Ali Heydarian and Mehdi Eslamian. The woman was Shirin Alam Hooli. Mr. Kamangar's lawyer, Khalil Bahramian, said that his client had been sentenced to death "on zero evidence" in a trial lasting minutes. The Iranian government's deteriorating human rights policies affect all Iranians. But ethnic minorities like the Kurds are, as the U.S. State department noted in its latest human rights report, "disproportionately targeted. . . . .for arbitrary arrest, prolonged detention and physical abuse." The United States government strongly supports all those who peacefully advocate for their universal rights and freedoms. We continue to call on the government of Iran to end the arbitrary imprisonment, torture and abuse of its people, and live up to its international human rights obligations. In particular, we denounce the execution of any person for political beliefs, and urge Iran's leadership to respect the rights of its citizens. | Famous Person - Commit Crime - Sentence | May 2010 | ['(VOA)'] |
The Abortion Legislation Bill 2019 passes its third reading in the New Zealand House of Representatives, legalising abortion in New Zealand. | New Zealand has legalised abortion, removing the practice from the Crimes Act and liberalising access to abortion services.
The final vote on the bill passed 68 to 51, it will now head to the Governor-General for the royal assent before becoming law.
The new law liberalises abortion rules, treating the practice as a health matter rather than a criminal one.
People will now be able to access abortions from a health practitioner in the first 20 weeks of pregnancy.
After 20 weeks, people will still be able to access abortions, but only after proving to one health practitioner that an abortion is "clinically appropriate," with regard to their physical and mental health and wellbeing. That practitioner must then consult a second practitioner before proceeding.
This liberalises the current law.
While abortion currently sits in the Crimes Act, abortions are still carried out by exploiting a loophole.
But critics had argued this didn't reflect best medical practice, delaying the procedure unnecessarily by forcing people to get the approval of two medical practitioners before being allowed an abortion, no matter the length of term.
This point was made by Green MP Jan Logie who argued the biggest change the current law would bring about would be to enable abortions that would probably happen anyway, be conducted according to best medical practice.
"Abortions that happen anyway wil happen earlier," Logie said.
While the law brings abortion laws closer to best clinical practice, it still falls short of the model the Law Commission said was preferred by most health practitioners and professional bodies.
Health practitioners and professional bodies were "almost unanimous" in their support of a law that would have removed any statutory test before getting an abortion.
Politicians nevertheless opted for a compromise option, without a statutory test before 20 weeks.
The bill was in the name of Justice Minister Andrew Little, who said it "confirms the right of a woman to continue with her pregnancy or not".
Although the bill was a Government bill, it was treated as a conscience vote meaning MPs didn't vote along party lines.
It has faced a small but well organised opposition in its journey through Parliament, passing its first reading 94 votes to 23 and its second reading 81 votes to 39.
The margin narrowed between second and third readings when most NZ First MPs switched their votes.
The bill's final reading was marked by several emotional speeches.
Labour's Kieran McAnulty told the House that he had been adopted.
"If I were conceived today, I would probably be aborted," he said, saying that his personal story and Catholic faith meant many would assume him to be against the bill.
But he nevertheless voted in favour.
"Who am I to push my personal views and my circumstances onto a woman?" he said.
National MP Agnes Loheni spoke against the bill, saying that supporters a "radical liberalisation" of the existing abortion regime.
One matter that continued to be a source of contention was the issue of safe areas around abortion clinics. Safe areas would have made it illegal to protest around certain clinics, but they were removed from the bill during the committee of the whole house stage.
Green co-leader Marama Davidson attempted to revisit this part of the bill by sending it back to the committee stage for another vote, but the attempt failed.
National's Amy Adams said she believed in safe areas and described the protests outside abortion clinics as "psychological abuse and torture".
Earlier on Wednesday NZ First MP Darroch Ball had tried to put the law to a referendum, but this also failed.
The party tried a similar tactic on David Seymour's End of Life Choice legislation. NZ First managed to amend that law to include referendum after threatening to pull support if their amendment failed.
It had been assumed that after failing to secure a referendum on abortion law reform, the party would likewise pull its support.
Instead, it split, with MPs Tracey Martin and Jenny Marcroft voting in favour. The party's other seven MPs, all male, voted against the bill.
Martin had been a key figure in the reform process. She had negotiated she shape of the draft will with Little.
The last speech went to National's Amy Adams, who will retire from Parliament at the next election
In what is likely to be one of the last major speeches in her political career, Adams said her conscience would be "absolutely clear" that she had done [her] bit to stand up for the women of New Zealand".
She said the current bill did not work and was outdated — when it was passed "there were only four women members, but there were more men called William in this house than there were women MPs".
"I am very proud that in my last few months in this house that I can put that right for a number of women today," she said. | Government Policy Changes | March 2020 | ['(Stuff)'] |
November 2008 Mumbai attacks: Indian security forces attack a Jewish centre in Mumbai where gunmen are holding an unknown number of hostages. | A helicopter drops commandos into the Nariman Jewish centre in Mumbai
Indian commandos are storming a Jewish centre in the city of Mumbai, where gunmen are holding people hostage.
Troops abseiled from a helicopter into the building, as a ground assault was launched. Gunfire was later heard.
Security forces are still clearing gunmen from two luxury hotels, after Wednesday's attacks that killed more than 130 people and injured 300.
Security forces says they are close to taking control of the Oberoi Trident hotel after freeing 93 people.
Media reports say that the majority of those rescued were foreigners.
Meanwhile, security forces are still moving room to room at the Taj Mahal Palace.
An army commander said nearly all guests and staff had been evacuated and that the security operation would be "wrapped up in a few hours".
At first light helicopters swooped over the Nariman House business and residential complex in south Mumbai, which houses the Jewish outreach group Chabad Lubavitch.
Commandos initially dropped smoke bombs to create confusion, and then several troops abseiled down ropes to secure the roof.
They are said to have been tentatively moving down through the building, trying not to cause casualties among the hostages.
Earlier, a woman and child were seen leaving the building, but it was unclear whether they had managed to escape or were released.
The child was identified as the two-year-old son of Rabbi Gavriel Noach Holzberg, the main representative at the ultra-orthodox outreach centre. There was no word on the rabbi's fate.
In a separate development, the Indian navy has taken control of two Pakistani merchant navy ships and is questioning their crews after witnesses said some of the militants came ashore on small speed boats.
Conflicting clues
Gunmen armed with automatic weapons and grenades targeted at least seven sites in Mumbai late on Wednesday, opening fire indiscriminately on crowds at a major railway station, the two hotels, the Jewish centre, a hospital and a cafe frequented by foreigners.
The attacks are the worst in India's commercial capital since nearly 200 people were killed in a series of bombings in 2006.
On Thursday, Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said the government would "take whatever measures are necessary to ensure the safety and security of our citizens".
Mr Singh said the attackers were based "outside the country" and that India would not tolerate "neighbours" who provide a haven to militants targeting it.
India has complained in the past that attacks on its soil have been carried out by groups based in Pakistan, although relations between the two countries have improved in recent years and Pakistani leaders were swift to condemn the latest attacks.
The Pakistan-based militant group Lashkar-e-Toiba denied any role in the attacks.
A claim of responsibility has been made by a previously unknown group calling itself the Deccan Mujahideen.
Eyewitnesses at the hotels said the attackers were singling out British and American passport holders, which BBC security correspondent Frank Gardner says implies an Islamist motive - attacks inspired or co-ordinated by al-Qaeda.
But as investigators from other countries join the hunt, he says, most intelligence officials are keeping an open mind as the attacks have thrown up conflicting clues.
Co-ordinated, mass casualty attacks that target civilians and undefended buildings are very much in the al-Qaeda mould.
But our correspondent says al-Qaeda and its affiliates in the region tend to favour massive truck bombs driven into buildings by suicidal volunteers - that didn't happen in Mumbai.
He says al-Qaeda are also acutely media-savvy, filming their attacks and in the case of hostages, sometimes murdering them on camera. Again, that does not appear to have happened this time. | Armed Conflict | November 2008 | ['(BBC)'] |
Kenyan foreign minister Moses Wetangula steps aside following a corruption scandal. | Kenya's foreign minister has stepped aside amid a growing scandal involving the alleged misuse of his ministry's funds for several land deals abroad. Moses Wetangula, who maintains his innocence, made his announcement as MPs were set to vote on his suspension.
A parliamentary report recommended his removal until claims over deals for new embassies were fully investigated.
Mr Wetangula is a key cabinet figure and helped to form the coalition in 2008 that ended the post-poll violence.
The scandal is the latest in a series of high-level corruption allegations involving government officials.
Mr Wetangula told reporters in the capital, Nairobi, that he felt he was being hounded from office.
"I have made a personal decision to step aside as minister of foreign affairs to give room and pleasure to those who have been haunting and tormenting me, and to give room for the investigation," he said.
"I can assure you I will be back to the cabinet once the investigations are completed because I know I am innocent."
According to a parliamentary committee report, Kenya lost $14m (£8.8m) during a land deal in Japan.
The foreign ministry is alleged to have refused an offer of land from the Japanese government in central Tokyo for a new embassy, opting instead for a building further away, against the advice of an estate agency.
Money was also allegedly lost on embassy deals in Egypt, Nigeria, Pakistan and Belgium.
Mr Wetangula, who will remain on half salary until the investigation is completed, is the latest high-profile figure to step aside because of corruption allegations.
Last week, Kenya's Higher Education Minister William Ruto was suspended, after a court ruled he must stand trial over corruption allegations.
Speaking at a separate function on Wednesday, President Mwai Kibaki reiterated that his government would not shield corrupt officials. Donors have long criticised Kenya for failing to tackle corruption.
But correspondents say the passing of a new constitution in August has made it easier for the authorities to fight it.
The new law stipulates that anyone facing criminal charges should stand down from public office.
. | Government Job change - Resignation_Dismissal | October 2010 | ['(BBC)', '(AllAfrica.com)', '(Daily Nation)'] |
Manchester United Football Club win the 2008–09 season of the Premier League. | SIR Alex Ferguson has warned Barcelona that Manchester United are "bouncing" into the Champions League final after wrapping up the Premier League title.
From here you can use the Social Web links to save Manchester United buoyant ahead of Champions League final with Barcelona to a social bookmarking site.
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Enda Curran THE Reserve Bank's board didn't see a pressing case to cut interest rates at its June meeting, minutes released today showed.
Karen Dearne A NEW Medicare smartcard is on the agenda, as Canberra grapples with ways to give doctors and nurses secure access to patient data.
FOXTEL'S Kim Williams says the federal Government should allow a fourth free-to-air TV network and start a review of all media regulatio...
Andrew Trounson PROTESTS in the wake of attacks on international students have forced a national quality crackdown on education and training providers.
Martin Fletcher | 10:47am TEHRAN is a tinderbox after government paramilitaries killed at least one protestor rallying against last Friday's disputed elections.
Gary Hughes | 12:45pm WARNINGS issued by the Country Fire Authority on Black Saturday were confusing and badly constructed, the royal commission has heard.
Amir Taheri HOPES for a moderate Iran have been destroyed by the presidential election.
An event in Arthur Upfield's life was as dramatic as anything the crime writer imagined, writes Graeme Blundell DOUR crime writer Arthur W. Upfield would have been amused by Roald Dahl's answer to the question of what makes a perfect murder. | Sports Competition | May 2009 | ['(AFP via The Australian)'] |
In the general election in the Netherlands, Prime Minister Mark Rutte's People's Party for Freedom and Democracy gains 10 seats to win 41 of the 150 in the House of Representatives and Diederik Samsom's Labour Party, gains 8. | Voters in the Netherlands have backed two pro-European centrist parties, while the anti-immigrant Geert Wilders' Eurosceptic party took heavy losses.
Prime Minister Mark Rutte claimed victory for his liberal VVD party. Centre-left Labour came a close second.
Both parties performed better than predicted, seeking a pan-European solution to the eurozone crisis.
Mr Rutte said he was working hard to form a coalition but would not be drawn on whether he would approach Labour.
The two leading parties have enough seats between for a workable coalition - but would have to reconcile very different views on austerity.
The VVD took 41 seats in the 150-member lower house, three more than Labour.
Dutch voters returned to parties of the centre, following recent elections which produced highly fragmented results and multi-party coalitions.
The Freedom Party of Geert Wilders, which is known for being fiercely anti-Islam, and campaigned on a Eurosceptic platform, won 15 seats, well down on its previous 24.
The Socialist Party, which briefly led in opinion polls, came joint third with 15 seats, the same result as at the 2010 election.
German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle said the election outcome strengthened Europe and weakened populists and nationalists. "As leader of the largest party I feel a particular sense of responsibility and therefore I don't want to comment [on coalition deals]," said Mr Rutte after meeting his party's MPs on Thursday. "I'm calling for radio silence."
Formal talks on forming a new government cannot start until next week, after the election result is officially confirmed.
Labour Party leader Diederik Samsom, who has advocated spending on job-creation programmes, indicated he would bargain hard in coalition talks. "Nobody knows exactly what will happen tomorrow, but one thing is certain: the course can be changed," he said.
"The course must be changed because the right-wing policies of the past two years cannot continue."
Mr Samsom's approach has been broadly seen as a nod to the policies of France's recently elected Socialist President, Francois Hollande, who wants to increase spending and raise taxes on the rich.
Mr Rutte's policy echoes German Chancellor Angel Merkel's plans of strictly adhering to austerity measures that are designed to force down the country's deficit.
| Government Job change - Election | September 2012 | ['(The Washington Post)', '(BBC)', '(AP)'] |
The Foreign Minister of Iran Mohammad Javad Zarif says that the country's missile program would not be up for discussion. This comes as United States Secretary of State John Kerry said last Thursday that the United States and its allies would only address Iran's concerns in the region if it makes it clear to all involved that it was prepared to cease provocative ballistic missile launches and tests. | John Kerry says US is prepared to address Iran’s concerns if it halts missile launches, as Iran official suggests US allies are providing arms to Isis
Iran’s foreign minister said on Sunday the country’s missile program was not up for negotiation with the US.
The missile program and “defense capabilities of the Islamic Republic of Iran are not negotiable”, said Mohammad Javad Zarif after meeting his Estonian counterpart, Marina Kaljurand.
He added that if Washington was serious about defensive issues in the Middle East, it should stop supplying arms to Saudi Arabia and Israel.
A Saudi-led coalition has been conducting airstrikes and battling the Iran-backed Shia rebels in Yemen since March 2015. Iran also supports anti-Israeli militant groups.
US secretary of state John Kerry said on Thursday the US and its partners were telling Iran that they were “prepared to work on a new arrangement to find a peaceful solution to these issues”. He said Iran first had to make it clear to all involved that it was prepared to cease provocative ballistic missile launches and tests.
Zarif on Sunday also hinted that regional US allies were among those quietly supporting the extremist Islamic State group.
“The US needs to view regional issues more seriously than raise baseless and threadbare allegations against Iran,” said Zarif. “Mr Kerry should ask US allies where the Islamic State’s arms come from.”
| Famous Person - Give a speech | April 2016 | ['(The Guardian)'] |
Voters in Turkmenistan vote in their first presidential election to select a successor to former President of Turkmenistan Saparmurat Niyazov. Interim leader Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedow is widely expected to win the election. | Voters were choosing between six men, in the gas-rich Central Asian nation's first multi-candidate election. Interim leader Gurbanguly Berdymukhamedov, a former dentist, is seen as the clear favourite.
The government banned exile opposition politicians from standing, drawing international criticism.
Niyazov, who died in December, ruled uninterrupted for 21 years.
The polls closed at 1800 (1300 GMT), with official results expected on Wednesday.
Gurbanguly Berdymukhamedov is seen a clear favourite
All six of Niyazov's potential successors are members of Turkmenistan's only political party - the Democratic Party - that was created by the late leader. But Mr Berdymukhamedov, the former health minister and the late president's personal dentist, is the clear favourite, the BBC's Central Asian correspondent Natalia Antelava reports. Even the head of the country's central election commission has publicly vowed to work to ensure Mr Berdymukhamedov's victory. "We're not voting on the programmes because they are all the same," one Turkmen man told Reuters news agency, as he went to vote.
"Which one promised to pay a pension? That's the one I want to vote for," said an ethnic Russian woman in her 50s. | Government Job change - Election | February 2007 | ['(BBC)'] |
President Barack Obama issues an executive order on Cuba lifting monetary limits on the amount of Cuban products, including cigars and rum, which Americans can bring back for personal use, allowing Cubans and Americans to engage in joint medical research, and allowing Cubans to buy certain U.S. consumer goods online. , , | WASHINGTON — President Obama on Friday moved to cement his administration’s historic opening with Cuba by issuing a sweeping directive that will last beyond his presidency, setting forth a new United States policy to lift the Cold War trade embargo and end a half-century of clandestine plotting against Cuba’s government.
The action formalizes the shift toward normalization that the president unveiled nearly two years ago with the announcement that he and President Raúl Castro of Cuba had secretly agreed to repair their countries’ relationship.
President Obama on Friday signed a new directive regarding United States policy toward Cuba, enshrining his push to normalize relations in a legally binding document.
| Government Policy Changes | October 2016 | ['(The New York Times)', '(The Miami Herald)', '(The Havana Times)'] |
A fire at a hospital kills five patients being treated for COVID–19 in Dhaka, Bangladesh. No cause for the fire has been determined. | DHAKA (Reuters) - Five coronavirus patients died in a hospital fire in the Bangladesh capital Dhaka on Wednesday, a fire service official said.
It was not immediately clear what caused the fire, said Zillur Rahman, a fire service director. Firefighters extinguished the flames in about an hour, Rahman said.
Five bodies were recovered from the makeshift isolation unit of the United Hospital treating COVID-19 patients, Rahman said. The dead included four men and a woman aged between 45 and 75, he said.
Hospitals are struggling to deal with a spike in coronavirus infections in recent weeks in Bangladesh, which has reported 38,292 cases and 544 deaths.
Some health experts are concerned that the real number of cases could be higher in a country of more than 160 million people where many have only limited access to healthcare.
Lax regulations and poor enforcement have often been blamed for large fires in the South Asian nation that have killed hundreds of people in recent years.
At least 25 people were killed in March last year when a fire broke out in a 22-storey commercial building in Dhaka’s upscale area of Banani.
In February last year, an inferno in a centuries-old neighbourhood of Dhaka killed 71 people and injured dozens.
Reporting by Ruma Paul; editing by Grant McCool
| Fire | May 2020 | ['(Reuters)'] |
The board of TransAsia Airways decides to dissolve the company after halting flights on Tuesday. | HONG KONG — TransAsia Airways, the Taiwan-based airline that had two fatal crashes within seven months of each other, said in a stock exchange filing on Tuesday that it was shutting down.
Its shares and flights had been suspended since Monday.
The company has continuously lost money, and its shares have been sliding since the crashes in 2014 and 2015 raised questions about the safety of its planes.
| Organization Closed | November 2016 | ['(Bloomberg)', '(The Wall Street Journal)', '(The New York Times)'] |
The 66th British Academy Film Awards are held in London with Argo winning best film, Ben Affleck winning best director and Daniel Day–Lewis and Emmanuelle Riva winning best actor and actress. | I think that just about covers it. It was a deadly evening for the highly fancied Lincoln (which must be content with a solitary award for Daniel Day-Lewis) and a decent one for Les Miserables, which remains in contention for Oscar glory at the end of the month. But it was a tremendous night for Ben Affleck's Argo, which picked up a crop of statues, including director and film. And if that doesn't make the stars of Les Misérables feel sick, I'm not sure what will (apart from Sally Field, allegedly). That's it from this year's British Academy film awards. Thanks for sticking with me. Now onward to the Oscars. Updated at 10.04pm GMT
9.35pm GMT "When it was first mooted that I might get this award, I thought of what I'd like to say," says Alan Parker. "And then 10 years went by." His speech is warm, funny – and nicely edited. He recalls directing his schoolfriends in the playground as a kid, organising them into opposing camps and overseeing the ensuing melee. "Why Parker?" the headmaster shouted at him. "Why?" Parker grins. "If I'd known I was going to get this one day, I could have answered him." Updated at 9.58pm GMT
9.31pm GMT Please welcome Mr Kevin Spacey. He is here to present this year's Bafta fellowship to Sir Alan Parker; the director of Bugsy Malone and The Commitments, Midnight Express and Fame; the self-styled "hooligan from Islington" who gatecrashed the British film establishment. A clip reel ushers us through Parker's greatest hits ahead of the arrival of the man himself. Updated at 9.38pm GMT
9.27pm GMT First it is the turn of producer George Clooney and then it is the turn of producer Grant Heslov and finally it's Affleck – up on stage to collect his statue. Having won big at the Golden Globes last month, Argo now looks the film to beat at the Oscars at the end of the month. But who can say for sure? Affleck may have cleaned up here. And yet, shockingly, he isn't even nominated for the best director Oscar. Updated at 10.08am GMT
9.23pm GMT Samuel L Jackson, so terrific in Django Unchained, is here to award the best film Bafta. And the nominees are ... It's Argo! Ben Affleck's Argo takes the crowning best film Bafta. Updated at 9.45pm GMT
9.20pm GMT Up comes the great Daniel Day-Lewis, the bonkers method actor par-excellence who gave such a rich, measured performance as Abraham Lincoln. "Just in case I might have to speak at these awards," he purrs. "I've actually stayed in character as myself for the past 55 years." His speech is gracious, witty, dignified and he strolls off with this year's acting Bafta – to no one's great surprise. Updated at 9.37pm GMT
9.17pm GMT Quick, quick, there's no time to lose! Riva isn't here to collect her Bafta, but that's OK, let's pick up the speed, let's kick up sparks. We're running, wildly, all the way to the best actor Bafta, where the nominees are ...
And the winner is ... Daniel Day-Lewis for Lincoln. Updated at 9.18pm GMT
9.14pm GMT As if taking its lead from Affleck, these awards are speeding up, racing themselves to the finish line. And the nominees are ...
And the winner is ... Emmanuelle Riva, the 85-year-old star of Michael Haneke's brilliant Amour. Updated at 9.15pm GMT
9.12pm GMT Ben Affleck grips his statue, talking at a million-miles a minute. He's thanking his cast, he's thanking his crew. He's thanking his wife, he's thanking his kids. "This is a second act," he explains of himself. "And you've given me that, this industry has given me that. So I'd like to dedicate this award to anyone else who is looking for their second act." Argo, at this stage, must fancy its chances to take the crowning best film Bafta. Although Les Mis is still loitering with intent. Updated at 9.17pm GMT
9.08pm GMT We have now reached the business end of tonight's British Academy film awards. Up steps Sir Ian McKellen to announce the winner of this year's directing Bafta where the field looks all but wide open. These are the nominees ...
And the winner is ... Ben Affleck for Argo. Updated at 9.10pm GMT
9.02pm GMT The Bafta for best production design goes to Eve Stewart and Anna Lynch-Robinson for Les Misérables. Slowly, surely, Les Mis looks to be edging out ahead of its rivals at tonight's Bafta awards. And Lincoln, it should be noted, has yet to leave the starting grid. Updated at 9.04pm GMT
8.59pm GMT Director Malik Bendjelloul and producer Simon Chinn step up to collect the documentary Bafta for Searching for Sugar Man, their joyous salute to a forgotten American folk singer who became a talisman for the white liberals in apartheid-era South Africa. The director explains that their star, Rodriguez, can't be at the ceremony because he is playing a concert in South Africa. "It's great that he's finally getting the recognition and the royalties he deserves," adds Chinn. Updated at 9.40pm GMT
8.55pm GMT Affecting the sombre air of a kindly undertaker, Stephen Fry cues up the in-memoriam clip reel, paying tribute to those who went before. And now the dead wash by us in all their fondly remembered glory, from Nora Ephron to Tony Scott, Michael Winner to Herbert Lom to Sylvia Kristel to Ernest Borgnine, still playing Marty and lamenting that "I'm just a fat little man". Say hello and wave goodbye. They're up and off and on their way. Updated at 8.59pm GMT
8.51pm GMT The EE rising star award differs from Bafta's other prizes in that it's voted for by non-Bafta members. It's a democratic award, a rabble-rouser, and in this regard it's a little like the young revolutionaries who climbed on to the carts in Les Misérables, singing about how the people will not be slaves. Those upstarts wanted bread and freedom and liberty and equality. These upstarts want Juno Temple. The 23-year-old British actor takes the rising star prize and promptly thanks her father (director Julian Temple) and her brother Felix who apparently corralled his entire school into voting for her. Every rising star could use a brother like Felix. Updated at 9.01pm GMT
8.46pm GMT Thank heavens for the subtitles that guide the viewer through this year's foreign film nominees: Amour, Headhunters, The Hunt, Untouchable, and Rust and Bone. Because without these subtitles, for some of us, these films might sound as unintelligible – perhaps as purely bestial – as Eddie Redmayne does right this moment, vomiting copiously in the opera house toilets while a pitying janitor stands by with a mop. Happily, back in the auditorium it's all making a lot more sense. The Bafta goes to Michael Haneke's Amour – just as the world and his wife knew it would. Updated at 8.51pm GMT
8.39pm GMT Danny Boyle hands the Michael Balcon award for outstanding contribution to British cinema to Tessa Ross of Film4. Ross, of course, played a role in nudging Boyle towards Oscar glory by backing Slumdog Millionaire. Yet Ross appears to relish her low-profile role in the wings of the British film industry and duly deflects the attention by praising the directors she's worked with, the staff at Film4 and the groundbreaking ethos of the organisation itself. "It's wonderful to be part of building a legacy with Film4," she says "But in truth what matters to me is that it continues to go on to do bigger and better things." Updated at 10.04am GMT
8.33pm GMT "Who do you want to win?" asks Simon Pegg of his co-presenter Jennifer Garner. Both Pegg and Garner are here to hand out the adapted screenplay Bafta. Yet poor Garner looks utterly nonplussed by Pegg's question. Isn't there a code of conduct here? Surely she's sworn to secrecy. She can't say what she really thinks and imagine what would happen if she spoke her mind. "Life of Pi, because the others were shit." The uproar her outburst would provoke. It is perhaps wise that she says nothing instead. Anyway, moving on, the Bafta for best adapted screenplay goes to David O Russell for Silver Linings Playbook. And Garner, ever the professional, appears to swallow this news without a wince. Updated at 8.49pm GMT
8.26pm GMT Anne Hathaway is croaking, croaking; her voice is going, going almost gone. Is she overwhelmed at her victory or is the curse of Sally Field all over again? "I think I'm coming down with laryngitis," she explains and offers a shout out to her Les Misérables co-star, presumably still yodeling miserably into a toilet bowl somewhere inside the Royal Opera House. His glorious night has turned into a hideous stomach-churning nightmare and all because of that damn Sally Field, allegedly. "Hey Eddie, get well soon," she says. "I'd come and hold your hair – but, you know." Updated at 9.58pm GMT
8.21pm GMT Amiable George Clooney hauls himself up to present the Bafta for best supporting actress, graciously thanking Stephen Fry for "making it OK for leading men to have facial hair". Fry, momentarily, looks faintly embarrassed. And the nominees are ...
And the award goes to Anne Hathaway, who dreamed a dream and had her teeth pulled out. In that order. Updated at 8.26pm GMT
8.18pm GMT "Please welcome Chris Tucker ... a damn fine actor," coos Stephen Fry, ushering in the star of Rush Hour, Rush Hour 2 and Rush Hour 3 who recently returned from who knows where (perhaps the little-seen Rush Hour 4) to appear in Silver Linings Playbook. He's here to hand out the Bafta for visual effects – and it travels all the way to the team behind Life of Pi. It's a fitting reward for a film that conjured up a truly beguiling 3D universe, featuring flying fish, undulating waves and all. What remains to be seen is whether Ang Lee's film can break out from the technical categories and challenge the likes of Argo and Les Miserables at the end of the event. Come to think of it, where the hell is Lincoln? Steven Spielberg's heavyweight historical epic has yet to register on the Bafta scoreboard. Updated at 8.21pm GMT
8.09pm GMT Lolloping on stage to present the outstanding British debut award, Billy Connolly prompts what is surely the biggest guffaw of the night. "I'm overwhelmed to be here," he drawls, brandishing the Bafta statuette. "Presenting an unsuspecting stranger with a death mask on a stick." And the death mask goes to director Bart Layton and producer Dimitri Doganis for their ingenious, engrossing documentary The Imposter. "Wow, thanks so much," says Layton. "First a pee next to Samuel L Jackson – and now this." Updated at 8.57pm GMT
8.04pm GMT Christoph Waltz won his first best supporting actor Bafta for his role in Tarantino's Inglourious Basterds. He's just won his second for his silken turn as a bounty hunter in Django Unchained. So it's all down to Tarantino, he says. "You silver-penned devil, you." Updated at 10.04am GMT
8.01pm GMT Jennifer Lawrence is here to read out the names. And the nominees are ...
And the Bafta goes to ... Christoph Waltz for Django Unchained. Updated at 8.19pm GMT
7.57pm GMT Quentin Tarantino swaggers on to the stage. He is here to collect the best original screenplay for Django Unchained and promptly thanks Harvey Weinstein for supporting this "hot potato script" and his actors for making it sound so good. "This is really nice, really cool," he says. Tarantino, it should be noted, is standing right next to Sally Field and he does not seem sick at all. The director is grinning, he looks very happy. And when he leaves, he leaves unhurriedly. He is not bolting to the bathroom, unsure which end he's going to erupt from first, screaming "Sally Field! Sally Field!" | Awards ceremony | February 2013 | ['(The Guardian)', '(Sky News Australia)'] |
Police in Vietnam detain prominent government critic Cu Huy Ha Vu on charges of "propaganda against the state". | On the afternoon of November 6, Deputy Minister of Public Security Lieutenant General, To Lam and Head of the Investigation Agency Lieutenant General, Hoang Kong Tu, held a press briefing to provide details of Cu Huy Ha Vu’s illegal actions against the State of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, under Article 88 of the Criminal Code. Evidence and documents seized by relevant agencies proved that Vu has produced propaganda containing distorted information and libeling the people’s administration, calling for the overthrow of the regime and promoting pluralism, multiple party rule and foreign intervention which runs counter to the nation’s interest. Vu also has ties with anti-State elements and overseas hostile forces to Vietnam. He has granted more than 20 interviews to radio and newspapers belonging to anti-Vietnam reactionary elements overseas and given them his own documents to use in opposing the Vietnamese State.
Vu has also produced propaganda containing groundless, fabricated and distorted information on the State’s leadership and management to incite the public to rise up against the State and slandered Vietnamese State leaders. Vu’s arrest and the search of his home were conducted in accordance with the law. Further investigation into Vu’s wrongdoings are underway. Vu must also take responsibility for his extra-marital affair on the night of November 4 in Room 101 of Mach Lam Hotel in Ho Chi Minh City. At the press conference, Lt. General Tu affirmed that Cu Huy Ha Vu has a doctorate in law but he is not a lawyer. Chairman Le Van Dinh of the People’s Committee of Ba Dinh District where Vu resides said that Cu Huy Ha Vu was born in 1957 in the central province of Ha Tinh and is a permanent resident at 24, Dien Bien Phu Street , Dien Bien ward, Ba Dinh district in Hanoi. Vu has infringed upon the law many times over the past years, said the chairman, adding that Vu was also prosecuted by Ba Dinh police for assaulting and injuring people in 1986. In 2003, Vu was involved in a case of encroaching on a neighbour’s land to illegally build his house. According to Mr Dinh, Vu had a job at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ Institute of International Relations but he did not go to work so the ministry decided to sack him in 2009. In 2006, Vu nominated himself for the 12thNational Assembly election but his nomination was rejected by local residents. | Famous Person - Commit Crime - Accuse | November 2010 | ['(Zee News)', '(VOV News)'] |
Forces loyal to the Government of National Accord retake Tripoli International Airport from the Libyan National Army. | TRIPOLI Forces loyal to Libya’s UN-backed Government of National Accord (GNA) on Monday recaptured the Tripoli International Airport from military commander Khalifa Haftar, according to a local military source.
Haftar is affiliated with a rival government based in Libya’s eastern city of Al-Bayda.
“GNA brigades managed to reassume control of the airport after it was briefly seized by pro-Haftar forces,” a GNA military source told Anadolu Agency on Monday on condition of anonymity as he was not authorized to speak to the media.
According to Libya's Al-Ahrar television channel, the GNA’s air force, meanwhile, has continued to target the Al-Watiyah Airbase (located 130 kilometers southwest of Tripoli), which pro-Haftar forces have been using to stage attacks on forces loyal to the Tripoli government.
Haftar’s self-styled “Libyan National Army” has yet to comment on the source’s assertions.
Last Thursday, Haftar announced the launch of a military campaign -- dubbed “Flood of Dignity” -- aimed at capturing Tripoli from the UN-backed government.
One day later, he announced that his forces had taken the international airport located on the capital’s outskirts.
At a subsequent press conference, Haftar spokesman Ahmed al-Mismari vowed that the campaign would not stop “until it achieves its objectives”.
Libya has remained beset by turmoil since 2011, when a bloody NATO-backed uprising led to the ouster and death of President Muammar Gaddafi after four decades in power.
Since then, the country’s stark political divisions have yielded two rival seats of power: one in the eastern city of Al-Bayda, with which Haftar is associated, and another in Tripoli, which enjoys the UN’s support. | Armed Conflict | April 2019 | ['(Anadolu Agency)'] |
The uncrewed Soyuz MS–14 mission to resupply the International Space Station commences. Its launch is a successful test of a Soyuz spacecraft atop a Soyuz–2 launch vehicle, which will replace the Soyuz–FG as the carrier rocket for Soyuz spacecraft starting next year. | Call it one giant leap for a robot. Russia has launched a humanoid robot named "Fyodor" to the International Space Station on the first uncrewed Soyuz spacecraft ever to visit the orbiting laboratory.
The Soyuz capsule — which typically carries a crew of three into space — lifted off with food, supplies and the Skybot F-850 robot from Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan late Wednesday (Aug. 21) at 11:38 p.m. EDT (0338 Aug. 22 GMT) It was 8:38 a.m. Thursday local time at the launch site.
The Soyuz capsule launched into orbit atop a Soyuz 2.1a rocket, a variant of Russia's workhorse booster that has only flown uncrewed Progress vehicles until now. Its Soyuz MS-14 spacecraft is carrying 1,450 lbs. (660 kilograms) of supplies for the station's six-person crew.
"A flawless climb to orbit for Soyuz MS-14 in its test flight, the first launch of a Soyuz vehicle on a 2.1a booster," NASA spokesperson Rob Navias said during live launch commentary.
Navias said Russia's Skybot F-850, affectionately nicknamed "Fyodor," appeared to be doing well as it sat in the commander's seat of the Soyuz spacecraft. A television view from inside the Soyuz showed the robot clutching a small Russian flag in its right hand as a toy cosmonaut bobbed around the cabin as a zero-gravity indicator.
"He made it to orbit and is en route to the International Space Station," Navias said of the robot.
According to Navias, this Soyuz launch is a critical shakedown flight to test the performance of the upgraded Soyuz capsule and the Soyuz 2.1a booster before the first crewed flight on the rocket in March 2020.
"The Soyuz 2.1a booster, equipped with a new digital flight control system and upgraded engines, is replacing the Soyuz FG booster that has been used for decades to launch crews into space," NASA officials wrote in a statement. "The Soyuz spacecraft will have an upgraded motion control and navigation system, as well as a revamped descent control system," they added.
The mission will also help Roscosmos develop a cargo version of the Soyuz capsule capable uncrewed reentry to return experiments and other gear to Earth, Navias said. Russia's Progress cargo ships can currently only deliver supplies, and are filled with trash and discarded at the end of their missions.
If all goes well, Soyuz MS-14 will arrive at the International Space Station early Saturday (Aug. 24).
While Fyodor sat in the commander's seat during the launch, it is not piloting the spacecraft to its destination later this week. Rather, the Soyuz's own navigation system (called Kurs) will automatically direct the spacecraft to rendezvous and dock with the space station.
If Kurs fails, the Russian cosmonauts on the space station can send a command to Soyuz to disable Kurs and trigger an abort, sending the spacecraft to a safe distance away, NASA officials told Space.com.
How the Fyodor Skybot fares on this mission will help inform on how comfortable astronauts feel on the Soyuz 2.1a rocket as they rattle through launch, streak through Earth's atmosphere and make an approach to their orbiting home in space. The robot is expected to report on conditions such as the forces it encounters during flight, including the point at which it begins to feel microgravity.
Fyodor is one of the latest versions of Russia's FEDOR robots, a five-year-old line of humanoids that are so versatile they have been used in driving cars or conducting rescue work. As the first of its kind in space, the Fyodor Skybot F-850 includes unique features such as vibration-resistant materials, and algorithms to reduce its movement so that it does not accidentally damage the International Space Station.
But FEDOR's advanced robot hands will be included on Skybot; in past tests on Earth, these have been used for dexterous tasks such as working fire extinguishers or welding gas torches – impressive feats, although both unlikely activities for Skybot in the confined environment of the space station.
Once the Fyodor robot reaches the International Space Stations, cosmonauts will move it into the Russian Poisk module for five days of experiments and tests to see how it performs in microgravity. The robot will then be packed back aboard the Soyuz for a return trip to Earth on Sept. 6.
Fyodor is the latest in a lineup of space robots for station activities.
NASA's Robonaut2 (which has a head and arms, but no legs) performed simple test tasks between 2011 and 2014. Following some difficulties, it was returned to Earth in 2018, and should make another flight to the space station in 2020.
Other space station robots have included a European "social robot" that recognizes faces (also known as Crew Interactive Mobile Companion), the Japanese Kirobo robot who chatted with astronaut Koichi Wakata, and a couple of generations of NASA free-flying robots (SPHERES and the more advanced Astrobee).
Editor's Note: Visit Space.com Saturday for live docking coverage of the Soyuz MS-14 spacecraft carrying the Fyodor Skybot F-850 robot. NASA's live webcast will begin at 12:45 a.m. EDT (0445 GMT), with docking scheduled for 1:30 a.m. EDT (0530 GMT).
| New achievements in aerospace | August 2019 | ['(NASASpaceFlight.com)', '(Space.com)'] |
In Formula One, Germany's Nico Rosberg wins qualifying for the 2013 Bahrain Grand Prix, the fourth stage of the 2013 Formula One season. | Last updated on 20 April 201320 April 2013.From the section Formula 1comments323
Mercedes driver Nico Rosberg took pole position for the Bahrain Grand Prix from Red Bull's Sebastian Vettel and Ferrari's Fernando Alonso.
Rosberg beat Vettel by 0.254 seconds with Alonso a further 0.083secs behind.
Mercedes' Lewis Hamilton and Red Bull's Mark Webber qualified fourth and fifth, but will be demoted five and three places as a result of grid penalties.
That means Ferrari's Felipe Massa will start fourth ahead of Force India's Paul di Resta.
The Scot's team-mate Adrian Sutil qualified seventh and will start sixth, ahead of Webber, Lotus's Kimi Raikkonen, who qualified ninth, Hamilton and McLaren's Jenson Button.
Hamilton earned a five-place penalty after suffering a tyre failure in final practice which damaged his gearbox, requiring it to be changed.
The Englishman, who will start ninth, said he felt it was unfair to be penalised as a result of a problem caused by external factors but added he would try his best to make up.
Webber will start seventh following a three-place penalty as he was blamed for causing a collision with Toro Rosso's Jean-Eric Vergne in China last weekend.
Button scraped through into the top 10 shoot-out in the uncompetitive McLaren and took 10th place having not set a time in the final part of qualifying.
Rosberg's pole was his first since China last season, which he won.
But the Mercedes showed heavy tyre degradation in the race-simulation runs on Friday and is unlikely to be able to hold on to first place in the race.
Rosberg said: "It wasn't clear before it was the quickest car, especially over one lap. I was a bit happier this morning because yesterday we were really struggling. We obviously worked really well overnight. "It's a fantastic result, it will be a tough race for sure especially with tyre degradation."
Vettel added: "Congratulations to Nico, it was all his today. When I saw the gap to Nico I realised that even with a perfect lap we couldn't have beaten [him] today. We managed to save some tyres and tomorrow will all be about tyre degradation."
Alonso aborted his final lap after realising he would not be able to improve on his earlier time. But he said he was confident of a strong race - he is starting from the same position from which he won last weekend's Chinese Grand Prix.
"We tried to complete the second lap," Alonso said. "It was very similar until the last corner and then I saw it was half a tenth slower and we decided to save one lap on the tyres. "The car was very competitive in qualifying so this puts us in a strong position to start tomorrow's race and to fight with the leaders with more of a margin."
Williams's dreadful season continued, with Pastor Maldonado joining the usual suspects of Marussia and Caterham in dropping out after the first session, along with Sauber's Esteban Gutierrez.
Gutierrez will start from the back as a result of a five-place penalty for causing a collision in China last weekend.
The session, and the weekend's race, is taking place against the backdrop of continuing civil unrest in the Gulf state.
There were demonstrations against the ruling family attended by tens of thousands of people on Friday night.
But the race is being held under heavy security and, unlike last year, no F1 personnel have encountered any trouble unless they have gone out to the areas where the demonstrations and occasional riots are taking place.
On Saturday, F1 boss Bernie Ecclestone told BBC Sport the Bahraini government were "stupid" for holding the race, which has become a platform for protests against the regime.
Starting grid:
1. Nico Rosberg (Ger) Mercedes 1min 32.330secs 2. Sebastian Vettel (Ger) Red Bull 1:32.584 3. Fernando Alonso (Spa) Ferrari 1:32.667 4. Felipe Massa (Brz) Ferrari 1:33.207 5. Paul di Resta (GB) Force India 1:33.235 6. Adrian Sutil (Ger) Force India 1:33.246 7. Mark Webber (Aus) Red Bull 1:33.078* Three-place grid penalty
8. Kimi Raikkonen (Fin) Lotus 1:33.327 9. Lewis Hamilton (GB) Mercedes 1:32.762* Five-place grid penalty 10. Jenson Button (GB) McLaren no time - - - - - - - - - -
11. Romain Grosjean (Fra) Lotus 1:33.762 12. Sergio Perez (Mex) McLaren 1:33.914 13. Daniel Ricciardo (Aus) Toro Rosso 1:33.974 14. Nico Hulkenberg (Ger) Sauber 1:33.976 15. Valtteri Bottas (Fin) Williams 1:34.105 16. Jean-Eric Vergne (Fra) Toro Rosso 1:34.284 - - - - - - - - - -
17. Pastor Maldonado (Ven) Williams 1:34.425 18. Charles Pic (Fra) Caterham 1:35.283 19. Jules Bianchi (Fra) Marussia 1:36.178 20. Giedo van der Garde (Ned) Caterham 1:36.304 21. Max Chilton (GB) Marussia 1:36.476 22. Esteban Gutierrez (Mex) Sauber 1:34.730* Five-place grid penalty These comments are now closed. | Sports Competition | April 2013 | ['(BBC)'] |
The delegation of the government of Syria rules out starting any direct talks with the opposition delegation as U.N. sponsored peace talks enter a third day in Geneva. | Syrian government representatives have ruled out starting direct negotiations with the opposition, as UN-backed peace talks entered a third day in Geneva.
On Tuesday, opposition leaders said they were ready to meet face-to-face.
But chief government negotiator Bashar al-Jaafari rejected the idea, calling his opposition counterpart a terrorist.
Meanwhile, Syria's main Kurdish party - which has not been invited to Geneva - plans to declare a federal system of administration in the country's north.
Officials from the Democratic Union Party (PYD), whose YPG militia controls a 400km (250-mile) stretch of contiguous territory along the Turkish border, said the system would include representation for all ethnic groups living there.
Mr Jaafari refused to comment on the plan but warned: "Betting on creating any kind of divisions among the Syrians will be a total failure."
He also explained after his second meeting with UN special envoy Staffan de Mistura that he would refuse to take part in direct talks with the opposition's chief negotiator, Mohammed Alloush, a member of the Jaysh al-Islam rebel group.
Mr Jaafari accused Mr Alloush of belonging to a terrorist organisation that "bombed embassies" and "killed engineering students", and demanded that he "apologises for the statement he made previously and withdraws it", without elaborating.
The so-called "proximity" talks currently involve Mr de Mistura shuttling between the two sides, communicating their different views on how to end the five-year conflict, in which more than 250,000 people have been killed.
Mr Jaafari's refusal to meet the opposition face-to-face shows that despite initial progress these talks will be difficult, reports the BBC's Imogen Foulkes in Geneva.
The Syrian government is clearly smarting over Russia's plan to withdraw most of its forces from Syria, our correspondent says. Although Mr Jaafari insisted this was a decision taken jointly by Moscow and Damascus, she adds, all the signs are that President Bashar al-Assad was taken by surprise.
President Vladimir Putin unexpectedly declared on Monday that Russia's five-and-a-half month air campaign against Mr Assad's opponents had achieved its objectives, which included "radically" turning the tide of the war and creating conditions for peace talks.
Following talks late on Tuesday with representatives of the main opposition umbrella group, the High Negotiations Committee (HNC), Mr de Mistura said he believed the peace process had acquired a new "sense of urgency".
He put that down to three factors - the refugee crisis in neighbouring countries and in Europe; Russia's decision to pull out its forces; and gains made by the jihadist group Islamic State (IS).
Mr de Mistura also said he would try to "metabolise" position papers provided by the opposition and government and see where there was common ground.
The future of President Bashar al-Assad is a major sticking point. The HNC has insisted Mr Assad step down before the start of a transitional period, while the government has ruled out any transfer of power, calling the issue of the presidency a "red line".
| Diplomatic Talks _ Diplomatic_Negotiation_ Summit Meeting | March 2016 | ['(BBC)'] |
Retired USMC General Anthony Zinni resigns as U.S. envoy for the Qatar diplomatic dispute because regional leaders couldn't agree on a "viable mediation effort" to resolve the stalemate. | Updated on: January 8, 2019 / 1:12 PM
/ CBS News
Anthony Zinni, a retired Marine Corps general and former head of U.S. Central Command who has been working as an envoy for the Trump administration to resolve a dispute with Qatar, has resigned from his position with the State Department. He is the latest four-star general to exit the administration.
Zinni resigned after realizing he could not help resolve the Qatar dispute "because of the unwillingness of the regional leaders to agree to a viable mediation effort that we offered to conduct or assist in implementing," he told CBS News. Zinni also felt there was no need for his involvement with the Middle East Strategic Alliance (MESA) concept — a NATO-style security alliance — that he was asked to introduce to regional leaders, since other members of the administration are carrying it forward.
A senior State Department official described Zinni's departure as a "soft resignation."
Zinni had originally agreed to work as a special adviser to the secretary of state on Middle East issues at the request of then-Defense Secretary Jim Mattis and then-Secretary of State Rex Tillerson — both of whom have since left the administration in the wake of significant policy differences with Mr. Trump.
Zinni later coordinated with former national security adviser H.R. McMaster and Trump son-in-law and senior adviser Jared Kushner, then later current national security adviser John Bolton. Zinni described his working relationship with them as "excellent," and the inter-agency cooperation on the issues he worked on "impressive."
Zinni also served as former President George W. Bush's special envoy to the Middle East.
— CBS News' Russell Midori contributed to this report
First published on January 8, 2019 / 9:20 AM
© 2019 CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved.
| Government Job change - Resignation_Dismissal | January 2019 | ['(CNN)', '(CBS News)'] |
Rajoy announces that he will begin the process of stripping Catalonia of its autonomy starting on October 21. This follows a letter Puigdemont wrote before the deadline again asking for dialogue, and blaming Rajoy for escalating the crisis. Rajoy had wanted dialogue after reassurances that the independence bid was dropped. | Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy announced he will set in motion the so-called constitutional “nuclear option” on Saturday, which would strip the region of autonomy.
Spain is bent on stopping a secessionist movement by any means necessary, and made moves Thursday to crush a long-simmering independence bid from Catalan separatists. Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy announced in Madrid on Thursday that the parliament would meet Saturday to begin stripping Catalonia — one of Spain’s wealthiest regions, anchored by Barcelona — of autonomous rule. It is an unprecedented moment for Spain, and the worst political and constitutional crisis the country has seen in four decades. It is also sure to set off a fresh wave of protests and anger in a region already on edge.
Rajoy’s move comes after two and a half weeks of standoff between the two sides. It follows a highly controversial independence referendum in Catalonia held on October 1, despite being ruled illegal by the Spanish Constitutional Court, and a strange half-promised declaration of independence on the part of Catalan regional president Carles Puigdemont. Just nine days after the referendum, on October 10, Puigdemont announced that the region had won the right to declare independence but stopped short of announcing Catalonia would secede. He said he was temporarily suspending the declaration of independence, and instead asked for negotiations with Madrid. Rajoy refused to sit down, and asked for a firm decision. “The cabinet has agreed this morning to formally require the Catalan government to confirm whether it has declared independence after the deliberate confusion created over whether it has come into effect,” Rajoy said during a press conference on October 11.
He then set a deadline of October 19 for the Catalans to formally declare independence or ... not. Instead, on Thursday morning, Puigdemont wrote a letter to Rajoy, asking him, once again, for a dialogue and blaming him for escalating the conflict. “If the government continues to prevent dialogue and maintains the repression,’’ Puigdemont wrote, “the Parliament of Catalonia could go ahead, if it deems it opportune, and vote the formal declaration of independence.”
Rajoy, in turn, announced he would convene a special meeting of ministers on Saturday to trigger the so-called “nuclear option” embedded in the Spanish constitution, Article 155, which gives Spain the right to assume control of a region that tries to dissolve the unity of Spain.
If that sounds confusing, that’s because it is. While 90 percent of those who voted in the October 1 Catalan independence referendum checked off yes for independence, only 43 percent of the eligible voters participated in the ballot. The day was marred by police violence — voters were pulled from polling booths by their hair, and rubber bullets were used on crowds. For days afterward, the streets of Barcelona were clogged with protesters, some insisting on independence, some condemning police brutality, some simply calling for dialogue — and still others demanding to remain in Spain. The region is deeply divided between fervent secessionists and those, increasingly vocal, citizens who prefer to remain in Spain. Secessionists hold a slim majority in the Catalan parliament, but those who want to remain a part of Spain feel the decision to hold a referendum, let alone break away from Spain, is itself an undemocratic move that doesn’t represent the will of the people. Meanwhile, the Spanish central government has held a hard line from the beginning. Rajoy has long threatened to invoke the so-called nuclear option, Article 155 of the Spanish constitution, which allows Madrid to step in and suspend the autonomy of a region, temporarily relieving elected officials of their duties, in order to bring the region back in line. It has never been used before. That’s what’s now poised to begin on Saturday.
As of now, European Union leaders are backing Rajoy. Both German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Emmanuel Macron signaled on Thursday that they stand with Madrid.
| Famous Person - Give a speech | October 2017 | ['(Vox)'] |
Myanmar denies claims by the People's Republic of China that one of its aircraft crossed the Chinese border and dropped a bomb killing four people. | A senior Myanmar official on Sunday denied Chinese accusations that one of his country's warplanes crossed China's border and dropped a bomb that killed four farmers during fighting with Myanmar rebels.
The official, from Myanmar's presidential office, said his government regretted the deaths and suggested it could have been the work of a group seeking to create confusion. He also promised "full cooperation" with Beijing into the incident, which has tested generally good ties that have been strained in recent years by Myanmar's perceived shift toward the U.S.
The farmers' deaths Friday occurred as Myanmar's government stepped up its fight against ethnic Chinese rebels in the country's Kokang region along China's southwestern border.
The official, who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the matter, cited radar and GPS records as proof that Myanmar fighter jets did not stray into Chinese territory. He also said Yangon always informs Beijing of its airstrikes in the border region beforehand.
Beijing strongly protested the bombing and said it had sent fighter jets to warn off further intrusion.
Geng Yansheng, spokesman for China's National Defense Ministry, said Saturday that Myanmar warplanes had intruded "multiple times" and that China would take "decisive measures" should they cross over again.
Fan Changlong, vice chairman of the ruling Chinese Communist Party's Central Military Commission, demanded that Yangon seriously investigate the incident, punish those responsible and apologize to the victims' families, according to a statement on the Defense Ministry's website.
Chinese Premier Li Keqiang called the bombing a "very distressful matter." Speaking at a news conference after the close of China's annual legislature in Beijing, he said China was able to "firmly safeguard stability in the border areas."
The Myanmar official said Yangon would extend "full cooperation" with Beijing and wanted to examine the bomb fragments found in China.
Beijing has disavowed any links with the Kokang rebels in Myanmar, saying it respects Myanmar's sovereignty. Myanmar officials have said former Chinese soldiers have trained the rebels, an allegation the insurgents have denied.
Myanmar officials blame the renewed fighting on a renegade rebel faction led by Phone Kya Shin that attempted to seize Laukkai, the capital of the self-administered Kokang region. | Armed Conflict | March 2015 | ['(AP via ABC News America)'] |
Austan Goolsbee announces plans to leave the position of Chairman of President of the United States Council of Economic Advisers by September. | on his core economic team, plans to leave as chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers by September after a year in the job to return to the University of Chicago.
With the recovery flagging, the White House is eager to name a successor to Mr. Goolsbee this summer and is considering several academic economists, an administration official said on Monday. The job requires Senate
confirmation.
“Since I first ran for the U.S. Senate,
Austan has been a close friend and one of my most trusted advisers,” Mr. Obama said in a statement late Monday. “Over the past several years, he has helped steer our country out of the worst economic
crisis since the Great Depression,
and although there is still much work ahead, his insights and counsel have helped lead us toward an economy that is growing and creating millions of jobs. He is one of America’s great economic thinkers.”
Mr. Goolsbee, a left-of center economist who has advised Mr. Obama since he was a state senator, has been part of the inner circle since the earliest campaign days. He was the chief economic adviser at the Chicago headquarters
and would call on outsiders on occasion for expertise.
When Mr. Obama took office, he named Mr. Goolsbee as one of the three members of the Council of Economic Advisers; when the first chairman, Christina Romer, left last year to return to teaching at the University of California at Berkeley, Mr. Obama promoted Mr. Goolsbee to the top chair. | Government Job change - Resignation_Dismissal | June 2011 | ['(New York Times)'] |
A torture case related to the 1950s Mau Mau uprising is allowed to proceed in a British court. | Three Kenyans who were tortured by British colonial authorities can proceed with their legal claims against the UK government, a court has ruled.
London's High Court ruled the case, relating to the 1950s Mau Mau uprising, could proceed despite the time elapsed.
The ruling means the case will now go to a full trial. Lawyers for the three hailed it as a "historic" judgement.
The government accepts the colonial administration tortured detainees but denies liability and will appeal. Thousands of people were killed during the Mau Mau revolt against British rule in Kenya in the 1950s and 1960s.
The government had initially argued that all liabilities for the torture by colonial authorities were transferred to the Kenyan Republic upon independence in 1963 and that it could not be held liable now.
But in 2011, the High Court ruled the claimants - Paulo Muoka Nzili, Wambuga Wa Nyingi and Jane Muthoni Mara - did have "arguable cases in law".
Their lawyers allege that Mr Nzili was castrated, Mr Nyingi was severely beaten and Mrs Mara was subjected to appalling sexual abuse in detention camps during the rebellion. A fourth claimant, Ndiku Mutwiwa Mutua, died earlier this year.
After the 2011 ruling, the case went back to the High Court in July to consider a claim by the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) that the actions had been brought outside the legal time limit. The FCO said it faced "irredeemable difficulties" in relation to the availability of witnesses and documents.
But on Friday, Mr Justice McCombe ruled the victims had established a proper case for the court to exercise its discretion and allowed their claims to proceed to trial.
In his ruling, the judge said: "A fair trial for the Kenyans on this part of the case does remain possible and the evidence on both sides does remain significantly cogent for the court to complete its task satisfactorily."
A lawyer for the three said the claimants had not been in court because they were in the Kenyan capital Nairobi, but they were "absolutely delighted" when they learned of the result.
Martyn Day said lawyers would be pressing for a trial "as quickly as possible" but they would also be pushing for the government to reach an out-of-court settlement. "This is a historic judgement which will reverberate around the world and will have repercussions for years to come," he said in a separate statement.
"The British government has admitted that these three Kenyans were brutally tortured by the British colony and yet they have been hiding behind technical legal defences for three years in order to avoid any legal responsibility. This was always morally repugnant and today the judge has also rejected these arguments." He added: "Following this judgement we can but hope that our government will at last do the honourable thing and sit down and resolve these claims. There will undoubtedly be victims of colonial torture from Malaya to the Yemen, from Cyprus to Palestine, who will be reading this judgement with great care." Written evidence from the three Kenyans sheds light on their treatment at the hands of colonial forces:
A spokesman for the FCO said the judgement had "potentially significant and far-reaching legal implications". "The normal time limit for bringing a civil action is three to six years. In this case that period has been extended to over 50 years despite the fact that the key decision-makers are dead and unable to give their account of what happened," the spokesman said.
"Since this is an important legal issue, we have taken the decision to appeal. In light of the legal proceedings it would not be appropriate for the government to comment any further on the detail of the case."
The spokesman reiterated that the government did not dispute that each of the claimants suffered torture at the hands of colonial forces.
"We have always said that we understand the pain and grievance felt by those, on all sides, who were involved in the divisive and bloody events of the emergency period in Kenya, and it is right that those who feel they have a case are free to take it to the courts," he said.
Dignity sought in Mau Mau ruling
Ruling is a 'historic judgement'
Bloody uprising of the Mau Mau
UK accepts Mau Mau abuse in court
Mau Mau uprising: Your stories
Kenya country profile
| Famous Person - Commit Crime - Accuse | October 2012 | ['(BBC)'] |
Pakistan officials say that a US drone strike has killed 4 suspected insurgents in a car in Datta Khel in North Waziristan. | PESHAWAR, Pakistan Four people have been killed in northwestern Pakistan in an American drone attack on a vehicle, government officials said on Friday.
The officials said missiles fired late Thursday night from a drone operated by the Central Intelligence Agency hit a moving vehicle in Datta Khel Bazar in the North Waziristan tribal region, which is a redoubt of local and foreign militants. “Four men inside the vehicle were killed,” a tribal official said, speaking on condition of anonymity. The nationality of those killed was not immediately clear. The vehicle exploded after it was hit by two missiles, leaving the bodies charred and beyond recognition.
Salman Masood reported from Islamabad.
| Armed Conflict | March 2013 | ['(The New York Times)', '(PressTV)', '(The Hindu)'] |
At least two people are killed after as many as 17 people are injured during a mass shooting at Club Blu, a nightclub in Fort Myers, Florida, with most of the victims reportedly minors. Two suspects and a person of interest have been detained in connection with the shooting. , | Two people have been killed and up to 16 injured in a shooting at a nightclub in the city of Fort Myers in Florida, police say.
The attack happened at Club Blu, which was hosting a party for teenagers. Police have arrested three people but said the incident was "not an act of terror".
The two killed were identified as 18-year-old Ste'fan Strawder, a leading local high school basketball player and 14-year-old Sean Archilles.
Jean Archilles, Sean's father, said his son loved football and basketball. "He liked to make people laugh. He's a funny kid. He's always joking."
The victims of the attack were between 12 and 27 years old. A hospital spokeswoman said four people remained in hospital with serious injuries. Police are still investigating the motive behind the attack. Shots were fired outside in the club's car park where witnesses described the scene to reporters as a "mad house".
Syreeta Gary, whose daughter was at the club, told the local Fox 4 news channel: "I just thank God that my daughter is OK because she could have been shot," adding that, at one point, her daughter was "dodging bullets and running dropping between cars".
"It's ridiculous that these kids have to go through this, they can't enjoy themselves because you have other people there who have criminalistic minds - they just want to terrorise things. I'm just glad she's OK."
Florida Governor Rick Scott released a statement saying: "I have cancelled my events today to meet with law enforcement and local officials in Fort Myers.
"While we are still learning the details about what happened this morning, we know that some of the victims of this terrible incident were children. We will continue to pray for the victims and their families."
The club hosted a swimsuit party on Sunday night where no ID was required, according to a flyer. Florida state records show the alcohol licence for the club was revoked on 7 June last year. Another official notice was served to the club in 2014 for criminal activity.
Club Blu said the shooting happened as the party ended and parents arrived to pick up their children. The club expressed its deep sorrow over the incident in a statement on Facebook.
Shots were also fired at a nearby home and a vehicle, where one person suffered a minor injury.
Six weeks ago, a gunman attacked a gay nightclub in the Florida city of Orlando, killing 49 people. It was the worst mass shooting in recent US history.
| Riot | July 2016 | ['(BBC)', '(News-Press)'] |
Three Irishmen accused of training Colombian FARC rebels have returned to Ireland. (RTÉ) | RTÉ News has learned that the three Irishmen who were found guilty of training FARC rebels in Colombia have returned to Ireland. Niall Connolly, Martin McCauley and James Monaghan were sentenced to 17 years in prison after an appeal court reversed their earlier acquittal on the charge. The men have been on the run from the authorities in Colombia since December 2004 when they were released on bail awaiting a court of appeal decision. An international arrest warrant was issued for the men who were also found guilty of travelling on false passports. In an exclusive interview with RTÉ News, Jim Monaghan confirmed that the men had returned to Ireland in the past few days.
However, he would not say how they got here. He said that they had got a 'lot of help from a lot of people' and that he would not endanger them. Mr Monaghan said that no deal had been done with either the British or Irish governments for their return and that he did not consider himself to be on the run. He said that he hopes the Irish Government will not place any obstacles in the way of the three staying in this country and that the Government would be 'very remiss' to send anyone back to a country like Colombia. He also stated he would not be hiding from the gardaí.
Mr Monaghan said that he was not prepared to return to Colombia if the men lost their appeal in their case and that the three men will be seeking legal advice about the possibility of extradition back to the country. he does not believe that their return to Ireland will damage the peace process. However, he acknowledged that the United States would not be happy with their reappearance in Ireland. Mr Monaghan denied that the three had gone to Colombia to train FARC rebels. He claimed that they visited the country in good faith to learn about the peace process there, saying that he had no opinion on FARC and that he was not going to get into condemnation.
A Government spokesperson said the issue was not part of discussions with Sinn Féin and that it had no prior knowledge of the men's return to Ireland. The Tánaiste, Mary Harney, who is acting as Justice Minister, said there were 'very serious issues' as to how the three were able to return to this country, particularly on fraudulent passports. The Northern Ireland Office said it had only just become aware of the return of the three men and warned that if they crossed the border into the North they would face extradition.
Kenny demands clarification from Taoiseach
The Fine Gael Leader, Enda Kenny, has demanded an immediate statement from the Taoiseach and the Minister for Justice on the circumstances surrounding the men's return.
He also asked the Taoiseach to clarify whether this issue was part of the negotiations between the Government and Sinn Féin in the run up to the recent IRA statement on its future intentions. | Famous Person - Commit Crime - Release | August 2005 | [] |
Former England cricket captain Andrew Flintoff makes his debut as a professional boxer, and wins his first fight against Richard Dawson. | Last updated on 1 December 20121 December 2012.From the section Boxing
Former England cricket captain Andrew Flintoff climbed off the canvas to win a points decision over American Richard Dawson on his heavyweight boxing debut.
The 34-year-old, who retired from cricket in September 2010, was floored by a short left early in the second.
Flintoff was the busier fighter in four scrappy two-minute rounds though and ended 39-38 ahead on the scorecard.
"You talk about the Ashes and things but as a personal achievement, this is the best," Flintoff told BoxNation.
"Flintoff always said he'd go about it the right way and he proved a lot of people wrong. Reputations were on the line, not least the McGuigan family in his corner and also the British Boxing Board of Control, whose general secretary Robert Smith had been criticised for giving a 34-year-old cricketer a licence. He looked even more anxious than Freddie's wife Rachael at ringside. Flintoff laughed afterwards that it wasn't one for purists but he boxed on the front foot, took a good punch, and showed incredible bravery just to get in the ring in the first place." Flintoff admitted that his first fight may also be his last however, adding: "We'll see how we go. It's not natural to me, I've had to work so hard.
"The feeling of being in there and winning at the end, I can't believe it but I'm not pretending to be something I'm not."
IBF super-middleweight champion Carl Froch said: "Any attention for boxing is good to a degree. Flintoff did himself proud. He threw a lot of punches. If anything, he was too eager.
"He got in there and had a swing-up and didn't get hurt. Fair play to him.
"If he wants to win a regional title or a British title, it would be a few years away but it's not unfeasible."
BBC Sport's Olly Foster witnessed the fight at the Manchester Arena: "Flintoff always said he'd go about it the right way and he proved a lot of people wrong.
"Reputations were on the line, not least the McGuigan family in his corner and also the British Boxing Board of Control, whose general secretary Robert Smith had been criticised for giving a 34-year-old a licence." Ex-Lancashire all-rounder Flintoff was a key part of the England side that ended an 18-year wait for an Ashes victory with a 2-1 triumph in the 2005 series against Australia.
His last first-class appearance was at the Oval in Australia's return four years later as England regained the urn. He left the Test arena with an average of 32.78 runs and 226 wickets at a rate of 31.77. | Sports Competition | November 2012 | ['(BBC)'] |
Singer Cheryl Cole is diagnosed with malaria after fainting. | The 27-year-old X Factor judge and Girls Aloud star was admitted to hospital after reports she had fainted during a photoshoot at the weekend.
On Monday, it was confirmed Cole had cancelled all of her work commitments this week on the advice of doctors.
Cole recently returned from a break in Tanzania, on the east coast of Africa, with friend and dancer Derek Hough.
Her spokesman confirmed she had been taking anti-malaria tablets while on holiday.
Mosquito bite
The Sun reported Cole collapsed at a photoshoot for her second solo album on Saturday and was diagnosed with exhaustion and gastroenteritis.
The early symptoms of include a headache, aching muscles and weakness or a lack of energy. This means it can be confused for other conditions like exhaustion or flu. Malaria is transmitted by an infected mosquito and it only takes one bite to contract the disease.
Simon Cowell is currently filming the audition stage of ITV talent show The X Factor with Cole.
He told the singer: "Don't rush back. Health is a priority and get some rest to recover properly."
An X Factor spokeswoman said an audition in Manchester would go ahead as planned on Friday with a judging panel of Cowell, Louis Walsh and Pussycat Doll Nicole Scherzinger, who is standing in for a heavily-pregnant Dannii Minogue.
Cole, alongside other celebrities, climbed Mount Kilimanjaro for charity in March last year.
The group raised £3.5 million for Comic Relief for use in Africa and the UK. Some of the money raised is helping to tackle malaria. In Africa, one in every five childhood deaths is due to the effects of the disease.
Comic Relief chief executive Kevin Cahill said it was "deeply unfair" that Cole had caught malaria after the star had "done more than her bit" to help prevent the disease.
He said: "We're very sorry to learn that Cheryl has been diagnosed with malaria and wish her a speedy recovery.
"Cheryl did an amazing thing climbing Kilimanjaro last year and raising millions to buy bed nets for thousands of families and children in Africa - the first step to preventing malaria," he added.
Cole's ill health comes during a turbulent year for the star.
She split from her husband, England footballer Ashley Cole, in February and filed for divorce three months later.
Since then, she has been kept busy touring as a solo act for the first time, supporting hip-hop band Black Eyed Peas, and recording her second album.
The Girls Aloud star is also scheduled to play high-profile shows at the V Festival in August.
Malaria: a major global killer
Profile: Cheryl Cole
Doctors tell Cheryl Cole to rest
Singer Cole starts divorce action
Cheryl Cole announces separation
Cheryl Cole
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How the Delta variant took hold in the UK. VideoHow the Delta variant took hold in the UK | Famous Person - Sick | July 2010 | ['(BBC)', '(The Independent)'] |
A plane crashes shortly after takeoff in a densely populated neighborhood of the city of Goma, Democratic Republic of the Congo, killing all the 19 people on board. About ten other people are killed on the ground. | At least 27 people have died after a passenger plane crashed into houses in the city of Goma in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, local officials say.
The victims included nine people from the same family who were in one of the houses hit in the Mapendo area.
The small aircraft went down shortly after taking off from the city's airport on Sunday morning. The cause of the crash is still unclear.
The plane was carrying 17 passengers and two crew members, officials say. Air accidents are relatively frequent in DR Congo amid lax safety standards and poor maintenance, and all the country's commercial carriers are banned from operating in the European Union.
The Dornier-228 twin-turboprop aircraft - owned by private carrier Busy Bee - crashed about a minute after take-off, a source at Goma airport told the BBC.
The plane had been scheduled to fly to Beni, 350km (220 miles) north of Goma.
A witness, Djemo Medar, said he saw the plane "spinning three times in the air and emitting a lot of smoke". "When the plane crashed many of us rushed there, we know the pilot, his name is Didier; he was shouting 'Help me, help me', but we had no way to get to him because the fire was so powerful," he told Reuters news agency.
Sources said the plane experienced engine failure right after take-off, the BBC's Emery Makumeno reports from the capital, Kinshasa. It was not immediately known how many residents were in their homes when the plane crashed.
North Kivu regional governor Nzanzu Kasivita offered his condolences to the families of survivors.
| Air crash | November 2019 | ['(Reuters)', '(BBC)'] |
Bushfires in Perth, Western Australia continue to burn out of control after having destroyed up to 40 homes. | RAGING bushfires that destroyed 64 homes are contained and under control but residents are still on alert as conditions in Kelmscott and Roleystone remain unpredictable. FESA have downgraded the bushfire after bringing the blaze under control just after 6.30pm but are warning residents that a fire is still burning and that conditions are changing. Click here if you have some photos of the fires
Click here for the latest FESA updates on fire activity or vvvisit the FESA website
In a statement FESA issued a watch and act warning for Roleystone and Kelmscott. "The bushfire is contained and under control, however people need to remain vigilant due to strong easterly winds in the area," the statement said. "There is a possible threat to lives and homes as a fire is burning and conditions are changing." Some residents are being allowed back into the scorched areas to see their homes but it could be at least two more days before some families evacuated from Kelmscott-Roleystone can return, with fire authorities fearing the blaze may flare again. The blaze burned out-of-control for more than 32 hours and has devastated 440 hectares of land. Senior police today warned that anyone who tried to enter the fireground to access their properties may be arrested. Police also announced that once the area was safe enough to be reopened, they would station officers in the fire zone around-the-clock to ensure looters stayed at bay. In a statement FESA issued a watch and act warning for Roleystone and Kelmscott. "The bushfire is contained and under control, however people need to remain vigilant due to strong easterly winds in the area," the statement said. "There is a possible threat to lives and homes as a fire is burning and conditions are changing." Meanwhile a police officer has been reportedly questioned by arson investigators over the start of the bushfire that has destroyed at least 64 homes across Roleystone and Kelmscott. The male police officer was reportedly off duty when he was using an angle grinder, which sparked the terrifying blaze. A Bureau of Meteorology spokesman said last week's devastating Cyclone Yasi was not fanning the fires across Perth, instead they were the result of strong winds up to 80km/h that were "usual at this time of the year". So far, the fire has burnt out 381ha, destroyed 64 homes and damaged another 32 properties. The most seriously affected homes were in the area east of Buckingham St, authorities said. Other homes around Martin St, Clifton St, Ciro Rd, Turner Rd and the lower scarp also affected. Colin Barnett declares fire areas natural disaster zones
At a community meeting at the Armadale Arena recreation centre today, authorities put up maps of the fire zone before splitting the group into three geographical groups where they privately broke the news to residents whose homes had been razed or damaged. About 700 people were at the public meetings at 10.30am and 12pm today, with the second one scheduled after double the number of people expected turned up for the first one. Many emerged with red eyes and tear-stained faces, while others expressed relief their homes had been saved. Counselling was offered to distraught residents. Speaking at the meeting, Armadale Mayor Lynton Reynolds reassured the community they would pull together and would get through the devastation. "Thank you for the way in which you’ve faced this tragedy and thank goodness we’re not here today talking about loved ones that we’ve lost,’’ he said. FESA incident controller Gary Kennedy said the southern section was contained and firefighters were working hard to shore up containment lines. But he said there was still concern about the spot fires, brought on by the strong easterly winds. "The fire is uncontrolled because of the wind…and the ember attack is still a real threat out there,’’ Mr Kennedy said. "Overall, I believe we have the fire in as best position as we can possibly have…But there is a lot of work to be done. Crews will be working extremely hard throughout the day. He said one if the biggest safety threats was trees and power poles, which were literally dropping to the ground without warning. South East Metropolitan District Superintendent Daryl Gaunt said police appreciated that people were keen to return to their homes, but emergency services personnel would not take any safety risks and the fireground was still a hazard with spot fires and unstable trees and power poles. He said police would not hesitate to arrest anyone who put their safety or the safety of others on the line. "You cannot get back in there,’’ Supt Gaunt said. "If you try to get back in there we might have to arrest people or take other legislative action to stop you going in there. "Once the fire zone and the fire is fully suppressed, police will stay there and maintain a 24-hour presence in that area to secure your properties. "Once that happens we will be helping you with your property security to stop looters or anything like that eventuating…We won’t walk away when the fire is over.’’ FESA chief operations officer Craig Hynes said the full damage toll was not yet clear and would emerge in coming days. "I understand the desire for people to get back in there – it’s the pets they’ve left behind, their personal belongings, their lifelong memories. We can understand that,’’ Mr Hynes said. "But really, you’ve got to understand that even after a fire is out, you’ve got very dangerous areas with fallen trees and powerlines. "It’s going to be a long recovery process. We’ve been through this before and we know how much they are hurting. We’re going to give them every support we can.’’
Total fire bans remain in place today. Western Power restoration update
Western Power have said they will try and restore power to houses in the affected area tonight. In a statement they said: "There are currently 1612 customers without power in the Kelmscott/ Roleystone area. "Power was shut off to these areas at the request of FESA, to keep the area safe for firefighters. "FESA will advise when Western Power crews can enter the area and begin assessment and restoration work. "There has been significant damage to the network in some areas and power restoration will progressively occur over the coming days. "It is hoped some restoration work can begin tonight, however it is unlikely Western Power crews will have access to all affected areas until tomorrow. "Western Power is currently in the process of bringing equipment to the area, to help speed up the power restoration work when FESA advises it is safe to proceed. "A Western Power caravan and staff will be dispatched to Roleystone tomorrow morning to provide regular updates to affected residents and explain the process of reconnecting power." Eyes of the world on Perth
PERTH'S bushfires have made headlines around the world with people eager to hear the news of how West Australians are dealing with the disaster. Many people across Britain have used the pages of PerthNow to ask about loved ones they know living in the areas affected, while news organisations including the BBC's World Service have been following the local updates. The devastating bushfires have moved the disaster spotlight on WA just days after rolling news was providing updates on Cyclone Yasi and the overwhelming flooding of Queensland, Victoria and communities across the east coast. The terrifying bushfires have also caught global attention coming two years after the widespread devastation in Victoria which killed 173 people. Premier declares natural disaster
PREMIER Colin Barnett has declared fire-affected regions in the Perth hills a natural disaster area as firefighters continue to battle three separate wildfires across the city. Mr Barnett said residents who had lost homes would be eligible to receive $3000 through the initiative, while $1000 would go to residents who had suffered significant damage to their properties. Residents could also receive funds through the WA Natural Disaster Relief and Recovery Arrangements initiative now the fire was declared a natural disaster. The City of Perth has also launched a Perth Hills Bushfire appeal. Donations can be made at any Bankwest branch. The Department for Child Protection has asked volunteers not to send household items or clothes to relocation centres as there were now sufficient supplies and the centres were being clogged up. Insurance premiums to go up
Prime Minister Julia Gillard urged her colleagues in Parliament to think of residents in Perth suffering from the fires. "There is pressure on today in Western Australia, pressure on those who know their homes are gone and pressure on those who are still battling these bushfires," she told Parliament. Gallery: See breathtaking pictures of the Brigadoon blaze. Initial investigations have determined the cause of a blaze in Kelmscott was accidentally caused by a person using a grinder. This morning, FESA chief operations officer Craig Hynes said firefighters were able to contain the Kelmscott fire from getting any bigger overnight, amid dangerous conditions and strong easterly winds up to 75km/h fanning the blaze. Fires at Red Hill and in Roleystone remain out of control and the greatest concern to authorities. Almost 200 firefighters are battling the Roleystone blaze and crews from as far as Albany were recruited to help the battle. Mr Hynes said latest information indicated 42 houses had been razed and 19 were partially damaged. Initial information showed that some homes lost were those of firefighters and police officers, he said. "That number could increase. We are doing significant surveys at the moment with specialist damage assessment teams here at the Roleystone incident,’’ he said. "We are very concerned about the safety of the fireground and we are doing our best to make sure that there are no injuries. Life is our priority.’’
Firefighters fear up to 60 properties in the City of Armadale region will be devastated by the bushfires. At Red Hill, authorities have allowed some people to return to the area. There have been no reported losses at that fire. Additional resources including an aerial rotary craft and experienced incident management staff have been brought over from Victoria. 200 Kelmscott students relocated
MORE than 200 students and about fifteen staff members from Good Shepherd Catholic Primary School in Kelmscott have been forced to relocate to another school today as a bushfire rages around the town. Unconfirmed reports were made on radio stations yesterday that the Arbuthnot Street school had been damaged by the fire, which has so far claimed more than 40 homes and burnt about 400 hectares. Catholic Education Office director Ron Dullard conceded this morning he simply did not know if the primary school had survived the fire but was hopeful it was not affected. He said parents had been advised to bring students to the Lumen Christi College in Gosnells today. "Some of the parents and their kids haven’t been home, many of them were evacuated yesterday," Mr Dullard said. "They (students and staff) will be here for about two days at this stage, but at the moment we don’t know what has happened to the school. "We believe it has not been affected but we just don't know." Mr Dullard said so far things were running smoothly at Lumen Christi College. “We are just trying to make things as normal as possible for the kids and teach them as normal,” he said. Community support overwhelming
THIS morning, the mass show of community spirit was palpable. A steady stream of community members, some total strangers, stopped at the Armadale Arena evacuation site dropping off food, toiletries and clothes, while dozens of others came asking "What can I do to help?’’. Volunteers Cam Plater and Jen Oxford arrived at the centre at 8pm last night to lend a hand. They say they will stay until they are no longer needed. "We have been helping out with people, pets, anything that needs to be done, we’re just helping out,’’ Mr Plater told PerthNow this morning. "It’s a case of all hands on deck." Mr Plater said he had been astounded at the number of donations. "It’s just amazing what people bring and how quickly it started coming in," he said. Fire sparked by grinder
FESA chief operations officer Craig Hynes said the fire in the City of Armadale was started accidentally by someone using a grinder. The fire in the City of Swan is believed to be started after strong winds snapped a tree branch which then fell on to an electrical unit. The Roleystone blaze that threatened lives has been burning for more than 24 hours and destroyed more than a 1170 hectares. Police have launched an arson investigation due to the size of the bushfire outbreaks throughout Black Sunday. A police spokesperson said: "While it is too early to determine the cause of the fires, I can confirm we have pro-actively deployed Arson Squad detectives due to the size of this incident and the fact homes have been lost." Mr Hynes said the blaze in Roleystone could destroy more homes. "The fire is uncontrolled, it is at risk of running in a highly populated area," he said. "It (the number of homes damaged) could increase anything up to 60." On Sunday evening part of the Buckingham Bridge on Brookton Highway collapsed after it was badly burnt. So far residents have only been reported suffering from smoke inhalation. FESA have confirmed that one volunteer firefighter is now in a stable condition after being seriously injured at one of the fire sites. Mr Hynes said they had prepared for the weekend's weather conditions and were doing everything they could to bring the fires under control. "We have prepared for this weekend. We knew these conditions were going to be bad," he said. "We were prepared, we put extra resources in place and on standby." Mr Hynes said Victorian firefighters had been brought in to help tackle the fires. "We previously briefed the eastern states agencies that we may call upon their resources and in fact we have done that," he said. Residents and staff at the Rivergarden Nursing Home on Clifton Street in Kelmscott were evacuated by Police and St John Ambulance as the fire threatened the facility. Its understood 13 residents at the aged care home had to be stretchered out of the home and were taken to a nearby shopping centre. Hundreds of residents on Perth's bush-fringed eastern rim spent yesterday nervously watching the blaze threatening their homes as gusting winds kept whipping it up. Six helicopter water bombers and 150 firefighters battled the bushfire on Sunday as it raged out of control on the edge of the Darling Range, threatening farms, vineyards and lifestyle properties in the Swan Valley. The fire, which started about 9.15pm (WST) on Saturday, forced more than 100 people to evacuate their homes overnight and had burnt through about 800 hectares by noon on Sunday. Evacuations continued throughout the day as the fire advanced, residents packing up their pets and cherished possessions and loading horses and other livestock into floats and trailers. FESA spokesman Rick Tyers said the fire was in "fairly inhospitable and rocky country'' that was difficult to get vehicles into so the aerial bombers were doing most of the firefighting. "The winds are our worst enemy at the moment. "If it gets very strong, they may have to cease the aerial attacks.'' Mr Tyers said the fire was surrounded but still out of control, unpredictable and threatening homes and it might take firefighters a couple of days to bring it under control. | Fire | February 2011 | ['(Perth Now)', '(WA Today)'] |
Former Polly Peck tycoon Asil Nadir is found guilty on three counts of stealing millions of pounds from his company by a jury at London's Old Bailey. | Former Polly Peck tycoon Asil Nadir has been found guilty of three counts of theft by a jury at the Old Bailey.
Nadir, 71, had been charged with 13 counts of theft of £34m from Polly Peck International between 1987 and 1990. He has been cleared of one count. The jury still has to reach verdicts over nine further allegations of theft, having been directed by the judge that it can come to a majority decision.
It has now been sent home and will resume deliberations on Tuesday.
Polly Peck International (PPI) was a FTSE 100 company when it collapsed after the Serious Fraud Office launched an investigation into Asil Nadir's finances in 1990. The company began as a small fashion company but expanded into the food, leisure and electronics industries under Nadir's ownership, growing into a business empire with more than 200 subsidiaries worldwide. Among them were Del Monte's fresh fruit operation and the large European electronics firm, Sansui Electric Co. Nadir fled the UK for his native northern Cyprus in 1993, but returned voluntarily in 2010 to face trial nearly two decades later.
Northern Cyprus is not recognised as a state and has no extradition treaty with the UK.
The three counts on which Nadir has been found guilty are:
He was found not guilty of stealing £2.5m from PPI in December 1989 to pay tax to the Inland Revenue and for Noble Air Ltd, the ticket agency for the Noble Air airline that Nadir owned. Prosecutors say Nadir stole approximately £150m from PPI between 1987 and 1990. The 13 charges with which he was charged are specimen charges totalling £34m.
These also include an alleged theft of £5.1m to buy shares and share options, £5m to go towards buying a Turkish newspaper group, £2m to go to Nadir's private companies and $2m (£1.27m) allegedly stolen from PPI to buy Boeing aircraft. The money was often stolen to pay debts, the jury was told at the start of the trial.
Prosecutors say money was siphoned from Polly Peck accounts in London and transferred via the Channel Islands, Switzerland and northern Cyprus to fund Nadir's pet projects for his family and associates.
Nadir does not deny that the transfers occurred but has always maintained that he had already made equal and balancing deposits into the northern Cyprus end of his empire. The prosecution told the jury this was implausible. | Famous Person - Commit Crime - Sentence | August 2012 | ['(BBC)'] |
North Korea says that it will expel "unnecessary" South Korean staff from the Kumgangsan resort and threatens military action in an escalation of tension over the shooting of a South Korean tourist. | SEOUL (Reuters) - Pyongyang said on Sunday it would expel “unnecessary” South Korean staff from a mountain resort in the North, escalating tension over the killing of a South Korean tourist last month.
A relative of Park Wang-ja, who was shot and killed at mountain Kumgang resort in North Korea, weeps during a funeral for the deceased at the Seoul Asan Hospital July 15, 2008. Pyongyang said on Sunday it would expel "unnecessary" South Korean staff from a mountain resort in the North and warned of possible military action, escalating tension over the killing of a South Korean tourist last month. REUTERS/Lee Jae-Won
A tourist from the South was shot dead on July 11 when she wandered into a military zone near the scenic Mt. Kumgang resort, a South Korea-run enclave just north of the heavily militarized border.
Relations between the two Koreas have chilled since as Seoul was angered by the North’s refusal to cooperate with an investigation and halted tours to the resort.
A spokesman for the North Korean army unit stationed in the Mt. Kumgang area issued a statement to reiterate an earlier explanation that the tourist had ignored demands to stop, and accused the South of “driving the frozen inter-Korean relations to a catastrophic phase”.
“We will expel all the persons of the South side staying in the Mt. Kumgang area we deem unnecessary,” the spokesman said, according to the North’s official news agency KCNA.
Although tourism has been suspended, tour operator Hyundai Asan has kept staff there for maintenance. Seoul’s Yonhap News said there are about 300 South Koreans staying at Mt. Kumgang.
“We will take strong military counter-actions against even the slightest hostile actions in the tourist resort,” the spokesman said, adding the passage of people and vehicles to Mt. Kumgang through the military demarcation line will be more strictly limited.
Related Coverage
The army was taking those steps to cope with “grave provocation” from South Korea that is trying to pass on the blame to the North, the spokesman added.
South Korea’s Unification Ministry said it regretted the North’s decision and called for Pyongyang’s cooperation.
“Our stance is firm that the both side must conduct an appropriate investigation and take steps to protect tourists and prevent a recurrence in the future,” the ministry said in a statement. “We have to normalize the tourism soon and further the ties between the two Koreas.”
A breakthrough may come this week, as South Korean President Lee Myung-bak will have a chance to talk to Pyongyang’s number two leader during his visit to China from August 8-9, Yonhap News said.
Yonhap reported on Sunday, citing an unnamed source, that the presidential Blue House was preparing for a meeting between Lee and Kim Yong-nam, head of the presidium of the North’s Supreme People’s Assembly, during a luncheon hosted by China in Beijing.
North Korea said Park Wang-ja, 53, strayed deep into a military area and ran away from a soldier, who tried to stop the “intruder” several times before opening fire.
South Korean investigators said on Friday that Park was likely shot at closer range as she was standing or walking slowly, contradicting the North’s explanation.
| Armed Conflict | August 2008 | ['(Reuters)'] |
Syrian rebels take over the border Quneitra crossing between Israel and Syria after heavy fighting. Mortar rounds and rockets were launched into Israel. One IDF soldier is wounded by a bullet just days after rocket attacks from Lebanon. | An Israeli officer in the Golan Heights was moderately injured by apparent stray fire from fighting in Syria Wednesday morning, as an al-Qaeda linked rebel group took control of the only crossing between Israel and Syria.
The officer sustained wounds to the chest. The army was not immediately able to establishwhether the injury was due to a bullet or shrapnel. The officer was evacuated by helicopter to the Rambam hospital in Haifa.
At least six mortars fired from Syria landed in the Golan Heights over the course of the day as rebels and forces loyal to Syrian President Bashar Assad foughtfor control of the Quneitra crossing, near Israel’s northeastern border.
The IDF said it had not completely determined whether the mortars were fired into Israel intentionally or were a spillover from fighting between rival factions on the Syrian side of the border. | Armed Conflict | August 2014 | ['(Times of Israel)'] |
The report of the diplomatic Quartet to the Security Council — the United Nations, Russia, the United States, and the European Union — calls on Israel to end settlement construction and expansion policy, and calls on Palestinians to act decisively to stop incitement to violence and to clearly condemn terrorist acts. Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process Nickolay Mladenov tells the UNSC, “The main objective of this report is not about assigning blame ... it focuses on the major threats to achieving a negotiated peace." | A much-awaited report by the Middle East Quartet contains 10 recommendations for putting the Israeli-Palestinian peace process back on track. Here are the 10 points as outlined in the report.
Area C in point 5 refers to 60 percent of the West Bank and includes the majority of agricultural lands, natural resources and land reserves.
1. Both sides should work to de-escalate tensions by exercising restraint and refraining from provocative actions and rhetoric.
2. Both sides should take all necessary steps to prevent violence and protect the lives and property of all civilians, including through continuing security coordination and strengthening the capacity, capability and authority of the Palestinian Authority Security Forces.
3. The Palestinian Authority should act decisively and take all steps within its capacity to cease incitement to violence and strengthen ongoing efforts to combat terrorism, including by clearly condemning all acts of terrorism. | Government Policy Changes | July 2016 | ['(rather)', '(AP)', '(UN News Centre)', '(The Times of Israel)'] |
Torrential rains worsen the ongoing flood crisis across Pakistan, which has so far affected 14 million people, as rescue helicopters are forced to stay on the ground in the northwest of the country. | More heavy rain in Pakistan is frustrating efforts to help about 14 million people affected by severe flooding in much of the country.
Helicopter missions in the north-west have been grounded and a red alert has been issued for the south.
One dam in Sindh province has been breached and engineers are warning that the huge Tarbela and Mangla dams are close to their maximum levels.
The region's worst floods for 80 years have killed at least 1,600 people.
Pakistan's meteorological office has warned that at least two more days of rain are expected in Sindh, where authorities have declared an "imminent" and "extreme" flood threat.
Further downpours are also forecast in the badly-hit north-western province of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa.
The BBC's Aleem Maqbool says places where floodwaters had receded are now submerged again, and roads that were opened are now closed.
"Things are getting worse. It's raining again. That's hampering our relief work," said UN World Food Programme spokesman Amjad Jamal.
Many helicopter aid flights in the north-west have been grounded by the bad weather.
The helicopters are essential in the region's rugged terrain because the floods damaged or destroyed most of the bridges, cutting off many survivors from relief. In the Swat valley alone, 29 bridges have been swept away.
"The situation is bad, particularly in the Swat valley, and we have advised people in low-lying areas to vacate their homes as river water levels are rising," said Adnan Ahmed, an official with Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa's government.
The deluge has brought the water levels behind the Tarbela and Mangla dams - two of the world's largest - dangerously close to their maximum, engineers warned.
A dam in northern Sindh's Kashmore district has already been breached, inundating large parts of the surrounding area with floodwater and forcing thousands of residents to take shelter on rooftops or in trees. One man told the BBC said his entire village had been destroyed and all its livestock washed away. The floods, brought on by seasonal monsoon rains, began in the north-west, but have now inundated a stretch of Pakistan about 1,000km (600 miles) long, primarily along the Indus river and its tributaries. Heavy rains in Afghanistan are also expected to swell the Kabul river, which flows into northern Pakistan.
With the flood surge heading south, authorities have evacuated more than half a million people living near the Indus as hundreds of villages have been inundated by floodwaters.
Some people, however, refused to leave their crops and homes.
"Let the flood come. We will live and die here," Dur Mohammed, 75, told the Associated Press in the village of Dadli.
Officials say 650,000 homes have so far been destroyed across the country, 1.4m acres (557,000 hectares) of agricultural land have been flooded and 10,000 cows have died.
Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani's appeal for international aid has been answered, with many countries offering assistance.
The US has diverted helicopters and troops from Afghanistan to deliver aid while Nato has said it will co-ordinate supplies from member countries and partners.
A Nato spokeswoman said it was providing food, mosquito nets, tents, generators and medicines.
The UK's first aid flight arrived in Rawalpindi late on Saturday, with 500 tents to join the 2,000 already distributed.
The head of the British development mission in Pakistan, George Turkington, told the BBC that it had a team of engineers in the north-western city of Peshawar "to look at establishing an emergency bridge-building programme so we can contribute to opening up new access routes".
He said the priorities were water, sanitation equipment, food and shelter.
Our correspondent says much more is needed, with the renewed rains submerging new areas every day.
Meanwhile, President Asif Ali Zardari has rejected criticism that he should return from an extended foreign trip. In a BBC interview, Mr Zardari said the cabinet was directing relief efforts, and he was being kept up to date about the situation. "I'm the one who's given all the powers from the presidency to the parliament. The parliament is in session - the Senate is in session. It's the prime minister's responsibility, and he's fulfilling his responsibility."
BBC Urdu
National Disaster Management Authority
UK Disasters Emergency Committee
| Floods | August 2010 | ['(Aljazeera)', '(BBC)'] |
The investment bank Morgan Stanley agrees to an outofcourt settlement with Italian dairy group Parmalat. The new management of the reorganized Italian company sued Morgan Stanley for work it did that may have assisted the old management in looting the company. | The payout "settles all existing and potential actions and claims, including compensation of damages," the two said.
It is the first settlement between the Italian firm and international banks, which it says helped it raise billions despite knowing it was near to failure.
Parmalat collapsed in 2003 when it emerged it had debts of 14.3bn euros.
Similar lawsuits have already been filed against 49 banks as well as former auditors and advisers - companies targeted by the actions include Citigroup, Deloitte & Touche and Grant Thornton.
The case against Morgan Stanley resulted from a 300 million euro bonds issue the bank arranged for Parmalat in 2003.
In February Parmalat's turnaround expert, administrator Enrico Bondi, began legal proceedings against the US firm in an effort to recover 135.7m euros plus interest.
Under the settlement deal Morgan Stanley has agreed to drop any counter claims against the Italian group.
"Morgan Stanley continues to believe that the firm and employees' conduct was proper, and this settlement does not constitute any admission of liability," the bank added in a statement.
Meanwhile, Mr Bondi hailed the deal saying he was pleased "an institution of Morgan Stanley's stature has decided to contribute to the new Parmalat". | Famous Person - Commit Crime - Accuse | June 2005 | ['(BBC)'] |
Morgan Stanley purchases electronic trading firm E–Trade for US$13 billion, in the largest banking deal since the 2008 financial crisis. | Morgan Stanley is to buy the online brokerage E-Trade Financial for $13bn in the largest banking deal since the 2008 financial crisis.
The takeover confirms a shift for Wall Street banks away from an old model of wealth management with brokers charging commissions on trades for a relatively limited pool of high net worth individuals and corporate clients and toward a model based on the needs of millions of individual investors.
E-Trade, with 5.2 million client accounts and over $360bn of retail client assets, will be adding to Morgan Stanley’s 3 million client accounts and $2.7tn of client assets, a press release said.
The investment bank will pay $58.74 a share in stock for E-Trade in a deal that will combine to a total of close to $3.1tn in client assets.
The Wall Street Journal, which broke news of the sale, said it would “combine a Wall Street firm in the late innings of a decade-long turnaround with a discount broker built on the backs of dot-com day traders.”
Morgan Stanley’s CEO, James Gorman, told the paper: “This isn’t about legacy-building; it’s about getting Morgan Stanley ready for prime time.”
Last year, Charles Schwab made a $26bn purchase of TD Ameritrade, signalling consolidation in the discount brokerage industry that is facing pressure from zero commission trading.
For Morgan Stanley, which was founded by John Pierpoint Morgan, an icon of the Gilded Age often credited with saving the US economy from collapse during the Panic of 1907, the purchase adds about $56bn in yearly E-Trade customer deposits that will provide “significant funding benefits” the bank said.
“There’s a longer-term strategic play here around the digital opportunity and acquiring new corporate service customers and getting a higher percentage of their wallet over time,” Devin Ryan, JMP Securities managing director of equity research, said
“E-trade has nearly 2 million corporate stock plan customers and so this strategically widens the potential opportunity for Morgan Stanley to convert those customers,” Ryan added.
But the hook-up still leaves E-Trade smaller than Fidelity, Vanguard and Schwab in terms of assets and likely pressure smaller brokerage firms to partner up as the business of investment management continues to consolidate. | Organization Merge | February 2020 | ['(The Guardian)'] |
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