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A solar eclipse, a vernal and autumnal equinox, and a Supermoon will all occur today. |
A solar eclipse will pass over Britain on Friday, covering the country in darkness as the moon moves in front of the sun. But it’s important to be sure when and how exactly to watch it — getting the wrong time could mean not getting to see the rare celestial phenomenon, but watching it wrongly could damage your eyes permanently.
How partial it is will depend on where in the country you are. The further south and east that the eclipse is viewed from, the more partial it will be. The best view will be at the very top of Scotland, where it will be almost total.
Wherever you are, watching the eclipse safely is absolutely paramount. If you haven’t managed to get hold of any glasses, then you can make a pinhole projector easily at home, using two pieces of paper or card, that will allow you to see the eclipse as it happens.
| New wonders in nature | March 2015 | ['(for those living in the northern hemisphere)', '(for those in the southern hemisphere)', '(The Independent)'] |
Heavy rain from former Tropical Storm Nicole causes flooding the US states of North Carolina and Virginia and delays in airline flights on the east coast. | (CNN) -- Parts of the Eastern Seaboard were battered by rain from a weakening tropical depression on Thursday, with more flood-causing precipitation expected as the storm moves north.
Rain from the tropical depression, which was downgraded from Tropical Storm Nicole on Wednesday, has left city streets under water, stranded vehicles, sent scores of people to shelters and caused major delays at airports along the East Coast.
Wilmington, North Carolina, has received 20.47 inches (520 mm) of rain this week -- a new record for rain in a three-day period for the city -- while flood watches and warnings extend northward into Maine.
In Norfolk and Portsmouth, Virginia, many streets are flooded, as are stretches of Interstate 264, according to CNN Virginia affiliate WAVY 10. Some in the area are without power because of downed lines.
Beaufort County, North Carolina, is under a curfew until 6 a.m. Friday because of the flooding, mostly to keep traffic off roads.
"Every major transportation route in the county suffers a nearly impassable condition at specific locations," said County Manager Paul Spruill, who said the rain there was expected to stop soon.
The county had seen about 11 inches of rain from Sunday till midday Thursday, then got hit with 4 to 6 more inches Thursday afternoon. Fifty people are in a county shelter, Spruill said.
In Onslow County, North Carolina, there have been four water rescues and about 40 people are in a temporary shelter, according to Deputy Director of Emergency Services Norman Bryson.
In Carolina Beach, North Carolina, a lake overflowed and flooded downtown, with video from CNN affiliate WRAL showing one person kayaking through the streets.
The American Red Cross has opened seven shelters in North Carolina for those displaced by floods, the group said Thursday.
The weather caused airport delays in Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern states Thursday evening, with flights to New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport delayed an average of nearly five hours, according to the Federal Aviation Administration.
The FAA said rain, wind, and low visibility were to blame for delays of more than an hour-and-a-half for planes bound for New York's La Guardia Airport, New Jersey's Newark International Airport and Boston, Massachusetts' Logan International Airport.
Flood watches and warnings were in effect for Thursday night into Friday for all or major parts of Maryland, Delaware, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine, according to the National Weather Service.
Wind gusts of up to 50 miles per hour are expected in parts of New Jersey, New York and Connecticut, the National Weather Service said.
The rain will move out of the Mid-Atlantic Thursday night and out of the Northeast throughout Friday, but not before dropping an additional 4-6 inches (100-150 mm), according to CNN Meteorologist Taylor Ward. | Hurricanes_Tornado_Storm_Blizzard | September 2010 | ['(CNN)'] |
Former Prime Minister of Israel, Ariel Sharon, is buried on his ranch in southern Israel following a state funeral at the Knesset attended by foreign dignitaries and Israelis. | Israel is holding the burial service of former Prime Minister Ariel Sharon at his family ranch in the Negev desert.
Earlier, speakers at the state memorial described him as an "indomitable" man devoted to the security of his people.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he was "one of the greatest military commanders the Jewish people have had".
Mr Sharon, regarded by many Israelis as a great statesmen but widely loathed in the Arab world, died on Saturday aged 85 after eight years in a coma.
Thousands of mourners paid their final respects on Sunday, when Mr Sharon's coffin lay in state outside parliament - the Knesset - in Jerusalem.
Amid final prayers, Mr Sharon's coffin was placed in a plot at the Sycamore ranch he owned near Sderot, close to Gaza.
He lies beside his wife Lili, who died in 2000.
Security was tight as a group of eight serving generals carried the coffin on the final stage of the journey.
Chief of Staff Lt-Gen Benny Gantz said in a speech: "Generations of soldiers came to salute you for the last time today... I came to salute you too."
Earlier, some 20 foreign delegates and hundreds of Israeli dignitaries attended the state memorial service.
They included US Vice-President Joe Biden, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, Middle East international envoy Tony Blair, Czech PM Jiri Rusnok and German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier. Delivering the first speech at the memorial, President Shimon Peres said Mr Sharon was a "living military legend" who also always dreamed of peace for Israel.
He said Mr Sharon's shoulders had "borne the weight of the security of our people".
Mr Netanyahu said Mr Sharon's "unique contribution to the security of the state is engraved in our historical writings", adding: "Your memory will be part of this nation forever."
Mr Biden described Mr Sharon as an "indomitable bulldozer... The security of his people was his unwavering mission".
Describing Mr Sharon as "bold, unorthodox and unyielding", but also "warm-hearted, humorous, charming and passionate", Mr Blair called the former PM "a giant of this land" who would "take his place in the history of Israel with pride".
Mr Sharon's body was then taken in a funeral cortege for a brief military ceremony at Latrun, west of Jerusalem, where he was severely wounded in the 1948 war of independence.
An Israeli security source said the Hamas government in Gaza had been warned to prevent any rocket attacks on the burial service.
Because of its proximity to Gaza, three security rings were being placed around the burial site.
The Israeli military said four rockets were launched from Gaza on Monday. The first two rockets did not reach Israel, the second two landed on open ground.
No-one from the Arab world, Africa or Latin America was attending Monday's ceremonies.
Mr Sharon's active role in four wars, from Israel's independence in 1948 until 1973, and later in government as the man who ordered the 1982 invasion of Lebanon, meant he was widely hated across the Arab world.
Palestinians saw him as a war criminal, because of the 1982 massacre by Christian Phalangist militia at the Sabra and Shatila refugee camps. An Israeli inquiry found Mr Sharon responsible for failing to prevent the killings.
But months before the stroke that left him in a coma in January 2006, he guided Israelis through a unilateral withdrawal from the Gaza Strip, with the declared aim of easing tensions with the Palestinians. 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.
Bishops face clash with Biden over abortion
Tokyo Olympics: No fans is 'least risky' option
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Why residents of these paradise islands are furious
The Gurkha veterans fighting for Covid care. VideoThe Gurkha veterans fighting for Covid care
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Le Pen set for regional power with eye on presidency
How the Delta variant took hold in the UK. VideoHow the Delta variant took hold in the UK | Famous Person - Death | January 2014 | ['(BBC)', '(The Times of Israel)'] |
A man wielding a machete attacks the home of Kenya's Deputy President William Ruto, injuring one guard, 10 days before national elections. Ruto and his family were not home at the time. The assailant fled to a farm complex, reportedly hiding in an unfinished building. There are other media reports that gunmen also struck the home. | ELDORET, Kenya (Reuters) - A man armed with a machete attacked the country home of Kenya’s deputy president and injured a guard before holing himself up in an outbuilding, police said on Saturday, 10 days before presidential and legislative elections.
Deputy President William Ruto was out with his family at the time of the attack in the western town of Eldoret. Ruto is the running mate of President Uhuru Kenyatta, who is seeking a second and final term in office in the Aug. 8 elections.
“In circumstances that are yet unclear, he hit an officer on duty ... with a machete and managed to enter a farm complex,” Inspector General of Police Joseph Boinnet said in a statement, adding that officers were still trying to arrest the assailant.
“Other officers were quickly mobilised, and the intruder was forced to hide at a building that is still under construction next to the gate,” Boinnet said.
Local television stations had reported earlier that gunmen were behind the attack on Ruto’s home, with NTV News and KTN News reporting that gunshots were heard at the scene.
Related Coverage
“The injured officer is undergoing treatment and is in a stable condition,” Boinnet said, adding that Ruto’s house was secure.
Typically the deputy president’s residence is guarded by an elite paramilitary police unit.
Kenya will hold legislative and regional county representative elections at the same time as the presidential vote.
Ruto and Kenyatta spent Saturday campaigning in the counties of Kitale, Kericho and Narok, the president’s office said in a statement. Neither commented on the incident.
Officials from Ruto’s office were not available for immediate comment.
Additional reporting by George Obulutsa and Humphrey Malalo in Nairobi; Editing by Hugh Lawson
| Armed Conflict | July 2017 | ['(AP via The Washington Post)', '(Reuters)'] |
In Moscow, Russia, thousands protest against the new benefits plan, which replaces such benefits as free transportation and subsidized drugs with small cash payments. | MOSCOW, Feb. 12 -- An estimated quarter-million Russians took to the streets Saturday in a wave of demonstrations and counter-demonstrations over a controversial retirement benefits plan, which has prompted the first murmurings of serious opposition to the government of President Vladimir Putin.
Dissatisfaction with a new law that replaces benefits such as free transportation and subsidized drugs for millions of pensioners with tiny cash payments has drawn thousands of people onto the streets in the past month. And Saturday, at over 200 rallies in 70 cities, from St. Petersburg to the Far East, the country witnessed the most widespread demonstrations of Putin's presidency.
"People, standing shoulder to shoulder, understood and felt today that they are the real power," Communist Party leader Gennady Zyuganov said at a rally of about 3,000 people at a monument to Vladimir Lenin. "We need to continue our onslaught until a government defending national interests is established."
The rising public anger has rattled the government. It survived a vote of no confidence in parliament Thursday but has been forced to apologize and hike pension payments to compensate the elderly and other recipients of social assistance, including veterans and the disabled. The opposition only mustered 112 votes for its no-confidence motion in the 450-seat parliament, but most members of the normally pro-Kremlin United Russia party abstained, reflecting the disquiet in pro-government circles. Up to 40,000 pro-Putin demonstrators marched through Moscow on Saturday, according to the Interior Ministry, dwarfing the rally organized by the Communist Party. There also were pro- and anti-Putin rallies in St. Petersburg, Putin's home town, where the first protests against the benefit cuts began when they were introduced last month. "We came here today to support our president," said Andrei Metelsky, a deputy in the Moscow city assembly. "We came here today to save our democracy from ruin."
"Maintain stability, support the president," read a large banner being carried at the front of the pro-Putin march in Moscow. Echo Moskvy radio station reported that some people at the Putin rally, including workers and soldiers, said they were forced to attend by their bosses. Putin has reprimanded some members of the government and some regional officials for botching the introduction of cash benefits, but the popular unrest has begun to affect his still-high popularity. | Protest_Online Condemnation | February 2005 | ['(The Washington Post)'] |
An 8.2 magnitude aftershock occurs soon after. | AS IT HAPPENED: A magnitude-8.2 aftershock has followed a massive 8.6 quake that struck off the western coast of the Indonesian island of Sumatra, sparking scenes of panic and triggering a tsunami warning across the Indian Ocean.
ALL TIMES AEDT
INDONESIA-QUAKESource:AFP
tsunamiSource:AP
Jodie SchaferSource:Supplied
banda acehSource:AAP
phuketSource:AAP
SRI LANKA-INDONESIA-QUAKESource:AFP
pakistanSource:AAP
thailand krabiSource:Supplied
People on Twitter said tremors were felt in Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia and India. High-rise apartments and offices on Malaysia's west coast shook for at least a minute.
Sky News reported that evacuations were under way in Sumatra.
An Indian Ocean-wide tsunami watch was put in place immediately following the quake, the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said.
A tsunami watch means there is the potential for a tsunami, not that one is imminent.
According to the Joint Australian Tsunami Warning Centre, the undersea earthquake struck at 6.38pm (AEST). The centre said there was no tsunami threat to the Australian mainland, islands or territories.
Indonesia straddles a series of fault lines that makes the vast island nation prone to volcanic and seismic activity.
A giant 9.1-magnitude quake off the country on December 26, 2004, triggered a tsunami in the Indian Ocean that killed 230,000 people, nearly three-quarters of them in Aceh.
quakeSource:Supplied
Originally published asTsunami warning after massive quake off Indonesia
| Earthquakes | April 2012 | ['(News Limited)'] |
Chinese police investigate claims that a security firm colluded with officials to detain protesters in secret prisons. | Chinese police are investigating claims that a security firm colluded with officials to detain protesters in secret prisons, known as "black jails". State media said police had arrested the chairman and general manager of the company, Anyuanding Security Services. It is alleged they took money from local governments to abduct and imprison people who travelled to the capital, Beijing, to complain about local injustices. The company denies this. Human rights groups say China has hundreds of such jails, and detainees are often subject to abuse - but the Chinese government has repeatedly denied they exist. Anyuanding chairman Zhang Jun, and general manager Zhang Jie, were detained for "illegally detaining people and illegal business operations", reported the official China Daily, quoting other media outlets.
It did not say when the detentions took place.
The firm is accused of assisting the Beijing-based liaison offices for local governments to detain petitioners trying to come to the capital to report local injustices - a practice which dates back to imperial times.
Reports say the company charged local and provincial governments up to 300 yuan ($45; £28) per person per day for apprehending and detaining them, in a business said to have earned the firm some $3.1m in revenue in 2008.
Petitioners claim to have been locked up for weeks or months - stripped of mobile phones and identification - until being sent home. Some say they were physically abused while in detention.
In a report released in November last year, Human Rights Watch interviewed 38 people who said they had been victims of forced detention when attempting to lodge complaints with central authorities. Some said they were beaten.
Local officials are penalised according to the number of grievances lodged from their locality, the report said, thus providing an incentive for them to prevent petitioners pursuing their complaints. Phelim Kine, Asia researcher for Human Rights Watch, told AFP news agency that the police investigation into Anyuanding Security Services was an "encouraging development".
But he said the case was only the tip of the iceberg.
"The fact is that the problem of black jails goes far beyond one company. It involves a web of government officials, security forces, huge numbers of plainclothes thugs and dozens of facilities in Beijing alone.
"Meaningful action against black jails will require the political will to locate and close all of them, freeing their detainees and prosecuting their captors."
China 'running illegal prisons'
UN calls for end of arms sales to Myanmar
In a rare move, the UN condemns the overthrowing of Aung San Suu Kyi and calls for an arms embargo.
The ethnic armies training Myanmar's protesters. VideoThe ethnic armies training Myanmar's protesters
Tokyo Olympics: No fans is 'least risky' option
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Troubled US teens left traumatised by tough love camps
Why doesn't North Korea have enough food?
Le Pen set for regional power with eye on presidency
How the Delta variant took hold in the UK. VideoHow the Delta variant took hold in the UK | Famous Person - Commit Crime - Investigate | September 2010 | ['(BBC)', '(China Economic Observer)', '(AP)'] |
UK deputy prime minister Nick Clegg visits a relief camp in Sukkur to witness the devastation caused by the ongoing floods. | Nick Clegg warned today that flood-hit Pakistan will need aid for years to come as he saw the devastation for himself.
The Deputy Prime Minister said the disaster would have a "long tail", with threats from water-borne disease and opportunistic extremists.
Speaking after being shown aid camps near the southern town of Sukkur - one of the worst affected regions - Mr Clegg said: "I think the sheer scale of this, it is really quite difficult to comprehend.
"The terrible thing is that it has got a long tail. It has got a lot of aftershocks that are going to last for a long time."
He said the international community's response has been too slow, but praised donations from the British Government and public.
"We have to make a huge effort to provide important emergency aid, but really stick with this for the long term," he said.
Mr Clegg stressed that the flood waters have not drained away in many areas, and there is a "real danger of diseases taking hold".
"It's going to take years and years for normality to come back to Pakistan," he added.
He also warned that the influence of extremist groups could be boosted by the disaster.
"The danger always is that you get groups who have an ulterior motive who provide aid to try to curry favour," he went on.
The Deputy Prime Minister toured the Pakistan Air Force flood relief camp at Sukkur, which houses more than 3,000 refugees. He was shown a clinic and chatted with children at a makeshift school, before moving on to the UN World Food Programme distribution base.
At nearby Sukkur airport he received a briefing from aid agencies and met President Asif Ali Zardari, who was also touring the disaster scene.
Mr Clegg discussed the situation with the president, and briefed him on his visit to Afghanistan and talks with President Hamid Karzai yesterday.
More details of how the Government's £33 million of aid will be allocated were released to coincide with Mr Clegg's visit.
About £9 million is going on items to help the millions displaced, including:
:: 2,330 water pumps for safe drinking supplies;
:: Emergency shelter kits for around 30,500 families;
:: Repairing or installing 5,000 toilets;
:: Spades, picks and wheelbarrows to help 1,600 families clear debris from their homes;
:: 650 kits containing essentials for newborn babies.
The money will be given to charities Save The Children, Concern and Oxfam to source and distribute supplies.
The aid will be targeted at the Punjab and Sindh provinces where the floods have had the worst impact.
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Want to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? Start your Independent Premium subscription today. | Diplomatic Visit | September 2010 | ['(BBC)', '(The Times of India)', '(PA via The Independent)', '(Sky News)'] |
At least 8 people are killed and 12 others injured after a 5.6 earthquake strikes Iran's South Khorasan Province. | At least five people have been killed by a moderately powerful earthquake in eastern Iran, say officials.
The 5.5 magnitude quake struck near Zohan in South Khorasan province, close to the Afghan border, in the early evening, said the Fars news agency.
At least 20 people were hurt and many in the provincial capital Birjand fled their homes, the agency said.
Iran is frequently hit by quakes - in 2003 tens of thousands of people were killed in a quake which flattened Bam.
More than 300 people died in two quakes in north-western Iran in August this year.
Tehran University's Seismological Centre said the latest quake hit at 20:38 local time (17:08 GMT), 25km (15 miles) from Zohan.
State TV quoted a local MP, Javad Heravi, as saying it had damaged rural buildings and cut phone and power lines. Twelve villages were affected, the TV added.
Search and rescue teams have been dispatched to the scene, media reports said.
Iran 'to take foreign quake aid'
Iran vows to rebuild quake city
| Earthquakes | December 2012 | ['(BBC)', '(Reuters)'] |
Dheepan, a French film directed by Jacques Audiard, wins the Palme d'Or at the 2015 Cannes Film Festival. | All the awards announced at the 68th Cannes film festival, where the French director of A Prophet and Rust and Bone won the Cannes film festival’s biggest prize for a drama about a group of former Tamil Tigers pretending to be a family in order to gain French asylum Henry Barnes
Sun 24 May 2015 21.54 BST
First published on Sun 24 May 2015 17.05 BST
25 May 2015
21:54
And on that clanging note of stupidity I’ll leave you and this year’s Cannes film festival. It’s been a strange old do. At times a sprint, at others a plod, made all the more painful for wearing the wrong shoes. That’s Cannes for you: a festival of tack and glamour. And compelling, infuriating cinema. We’ll always be back. Thanks for reading. 25 May 2015
21:39
And finally, here’s Jacques Audiard, director of this year’s Palme d’Or winner, Dheepan. The film tells the story of a former Tamil Tiger who flees Sri Lanka and pretends, with two strangers, to be a family in order to gain asylum in France. Audiard speaks about the pleasure in winning the prize and the position of his film in the immigration debate, but his comments are trumped by the most astronomically dim question of the festival. A journalist asks actor Antonythasan Jesuthasan (himself a former child soldier forced to flee his home country) which was better: winning a war or winning the Palme d’Or? Strewth. Updated
at 9.58pm BST
25 May 2015
21:27
Director László Nemes talks about his Grand Prix winner, Son of Saul. The drama, set in the Auschwitz, follows a Jewish man forced to work in the gas chambers who thinks he’s found the body of his son among the victims. “I didn’t want to make a historical drama,” said Nemes. “I wanted to plunge the spectator into an experience. “Europe is still haunted by the destruction of the European Jews. You can feel it in Hungary. It is not just viewed as a page of history. It’s important to talk to this generation: the one that has less and less access to survivors”. The film’s star, Géza Röhrig, is no less outspoken about our responsibility to drag ourselves out of political apathy. He blamed our societal laziness on the distractions of celebrity and consumerism. Does that include Cannes? You bet it does. Updated
at 9.47pm BST
25 May 2015
21:03
Vincent Lindon live and in effect in the press conference where he’s genuinely surprised that he’s won the best actor prize. “One of the Coens said my name and I didn’t realise it was me,” he says. “I thought people were looking at someone behind me.” He says he felt like a kid again. “When you have such a strong emotion it sends you into a childlike state,” he says. He’s been talking for 15 minutes about the power of the emotion he felt following his win. But who are we to begrudge him a bit of self-indulgence in the aftermath of his proudest moment? The Guardian, that’s who. Hurry it up mate. Updated
at 9.18pm BST
25 May 2015
20:55
View from the media room as the press conferences rumble on and on. Faced with long, long minutes of Maiwenn telling us about her shooting style, a bold journo clears a space up front and starts some gentle yoga. Wrap it up Cannes. We’re about ready to join her. Updated
at 9.05pm BST
25 May 2015
20:46
On, on, on to Yorgos Lanthimos, who is up to answer questions about winning the Prix du Jury for The Lobster. Someone asks if he made this film to “prove that Greece is still the cradle of culture in Europe”? Yes, says Lanthimos. This film proves that Greece is the best and everyone else stinks. I think that’s right. That or he said he doesn’t go into film-making with that kind of agenda. It’s all starting to blur to be honest. Updated
at 9.11pm BST
25 May 2015
20:38
Hou Hsiao-hsien, director of The Assassin, addresses the confused and confusing members of the press. He’s talking through a French translator, who’s being translated again into English. The questions are rattling bonkers to start with, so you can’t trust any quotes from this point on I’m afraid. We’re told he’s talking about the universality of human experience and how that relates to the film. He’s not disappointed with not winning the Palme. “You know that only a certain number of films can get a prize,” he says. “If you believe in what you’re doing it really doesn’t matter if you get a prize or not.”
Being totally fine with not winning the Palme d’Or is, it seems, the truly universal experience. Updated
at 9.15pm BST
25 May 2015
20:30
The testimony of Michel Franco and Tim Roth, writer-director and star of Chronic. Franco won the best screenplay award earlier this evening for his story of a late-life care nurse who starts to invest too much in his patients. Yet more grace under fire as Roth talks about the pleasure in winning an award, any award, even if it’s not best actor. He says meeting Franco in Cannes (when Roth was heading the Un Certain Regard jury) led to them working together. “You should always use festivals to get work,” he says. Meanwhile France’s PM has tweeted about Audiard’s Palme d’Or win. Which, using my Year 9 French I can tell you translates as: “Jacques Audiard, Emmanuelle Bercot, Vincent Lindon et Agnès Varda: French cinema crayons its sore in Cannes eat Dan, he mooed”. What a strange response. Updated
at 8.44pm BST
25 May 2015
20:14
Todd Haynes is on the stand. He’s asked if Cate Blanchett should have got more recognition. Haynes points out that Mara has the quieter role “that holds the film together”. He’s also gracious in the face of many, many questions about not winning the Palme d’Or. What a nice guy Todd Haynes is. Meanwhile, Peter Bradshaw’s verdict on the jury’s decision is in and he is baffled. “Cannes 2015 was a vintage year. But the prizes were corked,” he says. “Just as last year [Nuri Bilge Ceylan’s Winter Sleep won], the jury gave its ultimate acclaim to a brilliant director who has accumulated an overwhelmingly deserving reputation but had actually given us something less than his very best work.”
Updated
at 9.13pm BST
25 May 2015
19:57
The photographers are done shouting the winners into a pose that pleases them and have flooded into the press room. They are noisy and clumsy and don’t give a damn about it neither. A step-ladder goes crashing to the floor as they jostle for space at the computers. The mood in here suddenly got tense. Expect a blazing row any time soon. We were doing so well! Updated
at 7.57pm BST
25 May 2015
19:52
Sienna hasn’t seen anything cover the Holocaust as well as Son of Saul. Jake loves the idea of three strangers coming together as a family in Dheepan. Guillermo praises the deft handling of assisted suicide in Chronic. There’s been rumblings among the grumpy ol’ press that this hasn’t been a very good year at Cannes. The jury aren’t having it. Updated
at 8.45pm BST
25 May 2015
19:45
Bit of love from Xavier Dolan for Son of Saul: “We had a long moment of silent reflection after watching that one. We watched it at the beginning of the festival and it stayed with us.”
Joel says that the rule whereby Cannes only allows on prize per film makes the distribution of gongs “a bit of a chess game”. “There were many performances that we wanted to pay more attention to,” he says. Basically there aren’t enough prizes to award all the worthy talent in a one film, one prize world. First too-specific-for-many question is in! “Why didn’t the Italian films (Matteo Garrone’s Tale of Tales and Nanni Moretti’s Mia Madre) win any prizes?”. Zzzzzzzzzzz. Updated
at 8.45pm BST
25 May 2015
19:38
They’re taking questions from Twitter, God help us. But, in actual fact, the first one’s a goodie. @junktokyo asks if both Coens voted the same way and the answer is no. They’re not saying HOW they voted, but Ethan and Joel went their separate ways. We’re guessing Ethan went for Dheepan and Joel went for ... Inside Out, of course. Question from the room: why didn’t The Assassin win? Was it too hard to understand? Nope, says Joel. It just looked like it had the best direction. “This isn’t a jury of film critics, this is a jury of artists,” he says. Updated
at 7.46pm BST
25 May 2015
19:31
So there you have it: predictions are for fools and the Coens have made a mockery of us all. It’s almost as if the Cannes competition jury aren’t constantly checking our Twitter feeds to find out how they should vote. Weird. But don’t just take that from us! Here’s plenty others outraged that the jury didn’t fall into line ... The winners are currently filing out of the Palais to the photographers, where they’ll have to find something interesting to do with the funny box thingie and that weird scroll. Then - for the jury - it’s up the stairs, past us fevered keyboard abusers and into the press conference. We’ll be back in a tick or two to bring you all the goss on how the jury reached their decision / report what the jury says to the bloke who always asks them what they think of Bangladesh. | Awards ceremony | May 2015 | ['(The Guardian)'] |
President of Mauritania Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz is shot. | Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz makes televised appeal for calm after soldiers allegedly open fire on his convoy by mistake.
The Mauritanian president has appeared on state television, assuring his people that he was in good health following what he said was his accidental shooting by soldiers, before flying to Paris for further treatment.
Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz, 55, was shot late on Saturday as he returned to the capital, Nouakchott, from a weekend retreat.
“I want to calm all citizens. The operation last night was a success thanks to the effectiveness of the medical team,” he said in a statement broadcast on the state-owned TVM station on Sunday.
“I want to reassure everyone about my state of health after this incident committed by error by an army unit on an unpaved road near Touela. Thanks to God, I am doing well.”
Following his statement, Abdel Aziz flew to Paris for medical treatment on Sunday, local media reported.
This second operation comes after an operation at a Mauritanian military hospital to remove a “bullet from his body,” a security source told the AFP news agency on condition of anonymity.
Details murky
The government has played down the shooting, saying Abdel Aziz was only “slightly wounded” and that the shooting was an accident as the soldiers didn’t realise that they convoy was his.
“This was an accidental shooting on the presidential convoy as it returned to Nouakchott. The army unit did not recognize the presidential convoy,” Hamdi Mahjoub, communications minister, said in remarks on national television.
A security source had earlier told AFP that the president had been directly targeted.
The source did not specify where the bullet had lodged but said none of his vital organs had been hit and “his life is not in danger.”
Unconfirmed media reports in Nouakchott said variously that Abdel Aziz had been hit in the arm or the abdomen.
Mahjoub had sought to reassure about Abdel Aziz’s health in his televised remarks.
“The Mauritanian people can be reassured, the president is fine… He was slightly wounded, and he got out of the vehicle unassisted upon arrival at the hospital, where he walked in without difficulty,” he said.
Unknown assailant
Earlier, a security source told AFP news agency that Abdel Aziz was hit in the arm by a bullet that an unknownattacker fired at him as he was driving from his weekend retreat in nearby Tweila.
Theassailant in a car “directly targeted” the head of state, he added, without giving any indications as to the identity of the attacker or the motive.
“The president’s life is not in danger. He got out and walked to a military hospital where he received first aid,” the source said.
Analysing the developments, Al Jazeera’s Mohamed Vall said: “Little has so far been revealed about who shot him, regardless of whether or not it was in error.
“The incident certainly challenges the government’s account that he was in a presidential convoy when a security patrol opened fire on him personally and wounded him in particular all by mistake.
“After all, Mauritania is notorious for its history of military coups. It has seen at least half a dozen since 1978.
“Abdel Aziz himself staged two of them; the first against former dictator Mouawyia Ould Taya in 2005, and the second against a democratically elected civilian government in 2008.”
‘Not resigning’
Opposition politicians accuse Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz of despotism and mismanagement and having failed to heed commitments made in the Dakar Accords that led to his election in 2009, a year after he seized power in a coup d’etat.
The opposition wants a transition government to take over from Abdel Aziz and find a way out of the crisis, dealing with issues such as unemployment, slavery and attacks on human rights.
Abdel Aziz has insisted he will not resign, despite a series of opposition protests.
“I have no intention of leaving power because I think that in a democracy, change must be done through the ballot box,” Abdel Aziz said in August.
Abdel Aziz’s mandate expires in 2014.
He has led a military campaign against Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM).
He has been the subject of several failed assassination attempts by AQIM, a north African group loosely associated with al-Qaeda, according to sources.
AQIM, which stems from a group started in the late 1990s by radical Algerian Islamists, formally subscribed to al-Qaeda’s ideology in 2007, but after a string of attacks, the Algerian army managed to severely curtail its operations.
It has since been boosted by the turmoil in neighbouring Mali that followed a coup there in March, with hardline Islamists occupying the country’s vast northern region.
Was the shooting of the president friendly fire, as officials sources say, or something more deliberate?
A former slave, an economist and a general are vying for the top job in Nouakchott. | Armed Conflict | October 2012 | ['(BBC)', '(Al Jazeera)', '(Deutsche Welle)'] |
Zsa Zsa Gabor is hospitalised in serious condition after falling out of bed and breaking her hip and several other bones. , , | Veteran actress Zsa Zsa Gabor has been taken to hospital after falling out of bed and breaking several bones, her publicist has said. John Blanchette is quoted by AP news agency as saying the Hollywood star was watching television in her California home when the accident happened.
Gabor's husband then called an ambulance and she was taken to Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center.
The condition of the Hungarian-born star, who is 93, is not known.
Gabor is partially paralysed and uses a wheelchair following a car accident in 2002. She also suffered a stroke five years ago.
Gabor starred in films such as Moulin Rouge, Lili and Touch of Evil. Zsa Zsa 'loses $7m in US fraud' | Famous Person - Sick | July 2010 | ['(BBC)', '(Daily Mail)', '(KTLA)'] |
Ireland's former foreign minister Micheál Martin is elected leader of the Fianna Fáil party following Brian Cowen's resignation. | The Irish Republic's governing party has announced a new leader, days after Prime Minister Brian Cowen resigned his party post amid a long-running political and economic crisis.
Fianna Fail, long dominant in Ireland, announced the election of ex-Foreign Minister Micheal Martin on Twitter.
The party, which may face a general election next month, has slumped in the polls amid Ireland's financial crisis.
Parliament is soon expected to pass the government's austerity bill.
"Micheal Martin has been elected as the eighth Leader of Fianna Fail," the party said on its Twitter feed.
Mr Martin, 50, was elected a week after he launched a failed leadership challenge against Mr Cowen - a move that helped to fatally destabilise the prime minister.
Mr Cowen quit as party leader on Saturday, but announced he would stay on as prime minister.
Amid wide criticism of his decision, the Green Party pulled out of the governing coalition - meaning Mr Cowen is now in charge of a minority government.
However, the Greens said they would support the austerity measures, introduced into parliament as a finance bill.
Mr Cowen has promised to call an election when the bill passes - expected to be on Saturday.
The beleaguered prime minister had wanted to hold an election in March, but opposition politicians say they expect a vote on 25 February.
The Irish Republic was forced to accept the 85bn euro ($113bn; £72bn) bail-out from the EU and IMF in November last year.
Once known as the Celtic Tiger for its strong economic growth, the Irish economy had ridden high on a property bubble.
But when property prices crashed, the economy tanked, and several banks were left needing huge state handouts.
Analysts expect Fianna Fail to suffer a crushing defeat at the forthcoming election, as voters blame them for mismanaging the economy. | Government Job change - Appoint_Inauguration | January 2011 | ['(The Daily Telegraph)', '(The Wall Stret Journal)', '(BBC)'] |
Abdelmadjid Tebboune is sworn in as President of Algeria, the first after 20 years of Abdelaziz Bouteflika regime. | Abdelmadjid Tebboune, former prime minister who casts himself as a reformer, was elected last week in a vote.
Abdelmadjid Tebboune has been sworn in as the president of Algeria, as the Hirak protest movement debated its response to his offer of dialogue to end a months-long political crisis.
Mounted guards in traditional red tunics, white turbans and hooded cloaks lined the way into the Palais des Nations on Thursday as Tebboune entered, Algeria’s flag fluttering overhead.
Tebboune, a former prime minister who casts himself as a reformer, was elected last week in a vote the opposition regarded as a charade intended to keep the ruling elite in power.
Later on Thursday he named Sabri Boukadoum as interim prime minister, state television reported.
Tebboune also named Kamel Beljoud as interior minister, and instructed the rest of the government ministers to continue ruling in a caretaker capacity.
The army saw the December 12 election as the best way to end 10 months of weekly mass protests that helped remove Tebboune’s predecessor, Abdelaziz Bouteflika, in April, and restore a political order in which it holds sway.
The protesters refer to themselves simply as “Hirak”, or “the movement”.
Official figures showed that 40 percent of voters took part on Thursday as protests and strikes paralysed some cities and towns, with Tebboune winning 58 percent of the votes.
State media presented even that low level of turnout as vindicating the decision to hold the election, though with no outside observers monitoring the vote, many Hirak supporters regarded the figures as suspect.
“Tebboune is not my president. He doesn’t represent Hirak and has no legitimacy. Protests must go on until the people become the decision-makers,” said Slimane Hachoud, 24, who has been protesting since February.
Since the election, the weekly Friday and Tuesday protests have gone ahead as usual, though there were widespread reports of police arresting many demonstrators in the western city of Oran.
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Among the leaderless protest movement, where debate over goals and strategy takes place on social media or during demonstrations, there were mixed reactions to the offer of dialogue and a new constitution that Tebboune made last week.
“We are not against dialogue and negotiations to end the crisis, but we cannot shake Tebboune’s hand if he doesn’t first free the detainees,” said Abdeljabar, a student protester.
Many protesters and opposition figures have been arrested or jailed since the start of the protests in February on charges including “undermining national unity” and “weakening army morale”.
However, some prominent Hirak supporters urged for talks.
“Now that the generals have a civilian representative in the person of Abdelmadjid Tebboune, we must negotiate the transition to a rule of law with him,” said Lahouari Addi, a political science professor.
“Hirak must initiate and offer names with a list of demands,” said Lies Merabet, a labour union leader, on Facebook.
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We understand that your online privacy is very important and consenting to our collection of some personal information takes great trust. We ask for this consent because it allows Al Jazeera to provide an experience that truly gives a voice to the voiceless. | Government Job change - Appoint_Inauguration | December 2019 | ['(Al Jazeera)'] |
American special effects innovator Ray Harryhausen dies at the age of 92. | FILM - In this Saturday, May 15, 2004 file photo Ray Harryhausen visits the Empire State Building in New York. Ray Harryhausen, a special effects master whose sword-fighting skeletons, six-tentacled octopus, and other fantastical creations were adored by film lovers and admired by industry heavyweights, has died. He was 92. Biographer and longtime friend Tony Dalton confirmed that Harryhausen died Tuesday May 7, 2013 at London's Hammersmith Hospital, where the special effects titan had been receiving treatment for about a week. (AP Photo/Mike Appleton, File) Updated: May 8, 2013 2:28AM
LONDON — When Ray Harryhausen was 13, he was so overwhelmed by “King Kong” that he vowed he would create otherworldly creatures on film. He fulfilled his desire as an adult, thrilling audiences with skeletons in a sword fight, a gigantic octopus destroying the Golden Gate Bridge, and a six-armed dancing goddess.
On Tuesday, Mr. Harryhausen died at London’s Hammersmith Hospital, where he had been receiving treatment for about a week. He was 92.
Biographer and longtime friend Tony Dalton confirmed the special-effects titan’s death, saying it was too soon to tell the exact cause. He described Mr. Harryhausen’s passing as “very gentle and very quiet.”
“Ray did so much and influenced so many people,” Dalton said. He recalled his friend’s “wonderfully funny, brilliant sense of humor” and love of Laurel and Hardy, adding that, “His creatures were extraordinary, and his imagination was boundless.”
Though little known by the general public, Mr. Harryhausen made 17 movies that are cherished by devotees of film fantasy.
George Lucas, who borrowed some of Mr. Harryhausen’s techniques for his “Star Wars” films, commented: “I had seen some other fantasy films before, but none of them had the kind of awe that Ray Harryhausen’s movies had.”
The late science fiction author Ray Bradbury, a longtime friend and admirer, once remarked: “Harryhausen stands alone as a technician, as an artist and as a dreamer. ... He breathed life into mythological creatures he constructed with his own hands.”
Mr. Harryhausen’s method was as old as the motion picture itself: stop motion. He sculpted characters from 3 inches to 15 inches tall and photographed them one frame at a time in continuous poses, thus creating the illusion of motion. In today’s movies, such effects are achieved digitally.
Mr. Harryhausen admired the three-dimensional quality of modern digital effects, but he still preferred the old-fashioned way of creating fantasy.
“I don’t think you want to make it quite real. Stop motion, to me, gives that added value of a dream world,” he said.
Ray Frederick Harryhausen was born in Los Angeles on June 19, 1920. As a boy, he saw the 1925 silent fantasy “The Lost World,” Willis O’Brien’s stop-motion movie about dinosaurs in a South American jungle.
“I always remember the dinosaur falling off the cliff,” he remarked at a Vancouver, Canada, animation and effects convention in 2001. “That stuck in my mind for years.”
His future was assured in 1933 when he saw “King Kong” at Grauman’s Chinese theater in Hollywood.
“I used to make little clay models,” he recalled. “When I saw ‘King Kong,’ I saw a way to make those models move.”
He borrowed a 16 mm camera, cut up his mother’s old fur coat to make a bear model, and made a film about himself and his dog being menaced by a bear. His parents were so impressed that he was spared a spanking for ruining the fur coat.
During World War II, Mr. Harryhausen joined Frank Capra’s film unit, which made the “Why We Fight” propaganda series. After the war, he made stop-motion versions of fairy tales that prompted his idol, O’Brien, to hire him to help create the ape in “Mighty Joe Young,” an achievement that won an Academy Award. Mr. Harryhausen then embarked on a solo career.
In contrast to the millions spent on digital effects today, Mr. Harryhausen made his magic on a shoestring. His first effort, “The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms” (1953), cost $250,000 for the entire film. He commented wryly in 1998: “I find it rather amusing to sit through the on-screen credits today, seeing the names of 200 people doing what I once did by myself.”
He found ways to economize. For “It Came from Beneath the Sea” (1955) he employed an octopus with six tentacles instead of eight. That saved time.
“Jason and the Argonauts” (1963) demonstrated the intricacy of Mr. Harryhausen’s tricks. He had three live actors dueling seven skeletons. It took four months to produce a few minutes on the screen.
Other notable achievements included the film “Earth vs. the Flying Saucers,” where aliens slice through the Washington Monument and crash into the U.S. Capitol. He also was behind “The Golden Voyage of Sinbad,” where a one-eyed centaur battles a part-lion, part-eagle creature known as a griffin.
Mr. Harryhausen’s film “The Clash of the Titans” (1981), did have a big budget and major cast: Laurence Olivier, Maggie Smith, Burgess Meredith, Harry Hamlin and Claire Bloom. Hamlin as Perseus struggled to tame a white-winged Pegasus and to battle the snake-haired Medusa.
After the film, Mr. Harryhausen retired, explaining, “I was tired of spending year after year in a dark room.”
He and his wife, Diana, lived in London, where he fashioned bronze replicas of his movie creations. He often appeared at fantasy conventions and in 1992 received a special award from the Motion Picture Academy.
Darren G. Davis, the publisher of Bluewater Productions, called Mr. Harryhausen’s death the passing of an icon.
“From the first time I saw ‘Jason and the Argonauts’ and ‘Clash of the Titans,’ I was spellbound,” he said of the man whose imprint is found on Bluewater’s “Ray Harryhausen Presents” comic anthology. “I feel so blessed for the opportunity to have worked with him through the years on numerous comic adaptations, graphic novel sequels and other projects based on his visionary work.”
Bradbury, who had met Mr. Harryhausen in 1938 and wrote the story for “The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms,” one said of the film master: “He and I made a pact to grow old but never grow up — to keep the pterodactyl and the tyrannosaurus forever in our hearts.” | Famous Person - Death | May 2013 | ['(Chicago Sun–Times)'] |
Wikileaks founder Julian Assange loses his appeal in the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom against extradition to Sweden on rape charges. | Britain's Supreme Court has endorsed the extradition of WikiLeaks chief Julian Assange to Sweden, an important turning point in the Internet activist's controversial career.
Assange, 40, has spent the better part of two years fighting attempts to send him to the Scandinavian nation, where he is accused of sex crimes. The U.K. end of that struggle appeared to come to a messy conclusion Wednesday, with the nation's highest court ruling five to two that the warrant seeking his arrest was properly issued — and Assange's lawyer arguing that the case should be reopened.
Supreme Court President Nicholas Phillips, speaking for the majority, acknowledged that Assange's case "has not been simple to resolve," but that the court had concluded that "the request for Mr. Assange's extradition has been lawfully made and his appeal against extradition is accordingly dismissed."
Assange won't be extradited immediately no matter what happens. His lawyer, Dinah Rose, stood up after the verdict to say that the decision was based on evidence that was not argued during the appeal and requested time to study the verdict further with an eye toward trying to reopen the case.
Phillips said he would give Rose two weeks to make her move.
Even if the Supreme Court refuses to reopen the case, Assange could appeal to the European Court of Human Rights, although extradition experts have said that route wasn't likely to block his removal to Sweden in the long run.
Assange is best known for revealing hundreds of thousands of secret U.S. documents, including a hard-to-watch video that captured U.S. forces gunning down a crowd of Iraqi civilians and journalists that they'd mistaken for insurgents. His release of a quarter-million classified State Department cables outraged Washington and destabilized American diplomacy worldwide.
But his secret-spilling work came under a cloud after two Swedish women accused him of molestation and rape following a visit to the country in mid-2010. Assange denies wrongdoing, saying the sex was consensual, but has refused to go to Sweden, claiming he doesn't believe he'll get a fair trial there.
Swedish lawyer Claes Borgstrom, who represents the two women who accuse Assange of sex crimes, expressed relief at the Supreme Court's decision, but said the British judicial system should have dealt with the case more quickly.
"I think they should have resolved this earlier," Borgstrom told The Associated Press, adding that the long wait had been stressful for his clients. | Famous Person - Commit Crime - Sentence | May 2012 | ['(BBC)', '(AP via ABC News America)'] |
15 people, including 9 nursing students, are killed while 12 others are injured in an blaze that gobbles up two buildings in Tuguegarao City, Cagayan province in northern Philippines. | A fire at a budget hotel in the northern Philippines has killed 15 people and injured 12, officials say.
The blaze began on the ground floor of the five-floor hotel in in the city of Tuguegarao, in Cagayan province.
It burned for several hours, gutting the building. Most guests were asleep when the fire began but dozens were rescued or managed to escape.
Nine of those killed were reported to be nursing students who had been preparing for a licensing exam. The cause of the fire was not immediately known.
However, investigators believe that it was fuelled by car tires and other combustible materials stored in a room on the ground floor.
Some firefighters wept and prayed as they retrieved the bodies of the dead.
"Their families spent fortunes to send these children to school, only to see them end that way," an official said.
Remains of the victims - some of them burned beyond recognition - were later brought to a local morgue. The students who survived the blaze went on to take the exam later on Sunday, including one who turned up in slippers and sleeping clothes, according to the Associated Press news agency.
Correspondents say hundreds of people die each year in fires in the Philippines, where many buildings are built with inflammable materials, and narrow streets often make access for firefighters difficult.
| Fire | December 2010 | ['(Xinhua)', '(Philippine Inquirer)', '(BBC)'] |
Luis MorenoOcampo, the Prosecutor for the International Criminal Court, accuses Sudanese president Omar alBashir of genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes in Darfur. | Sudan's president has been accused of genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes in Darfur by the prosecutor of the International Criminal Court. Luis Moreno-Ocampo told judges at The Hague that Omar al-Bashir bore criminal responsibility for alleged atrocities committed over the past five years. The three-judge panel must now decide whether there are reasonable grounds for an arrest warrant to be issued. Sudan's foreign ministry said it did not recognise the ICC or its decisions.
"This document is certainly politically motivated," one cabinet minister, al-Samani al-Wasila, told BBC Arabic TV. Accusing Mr Moreno-Ocampo of taking sides, the official recalled that he had previously likened Sudan to a Nazi state. "We shall adopt all measures necessary to ensure the security of our country and people, the head of the state and Sudan's sovereignty," he added. Sudan has refused to hand over two suspects who Mr Moreno-Ocampo charged last year, Humanitarian Affairs Minister Ahmad Harun and militia leader Ali Kushayb. It has also labelled Mr Moreno-Ocampo a criminal, and warned that any indictment could stall peace talks and cause mayhem in Sudan. UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said he expected Sudan to "ensure the safety and security of all United Nations personnel and property" there despite the allegations. The White House urged all parties in Sudan to "remain calm", saying it would "monitor the situation" in The Hague. US National Security Council spokesman Gordon Johndroe stressed that the US was not part of the ICC. UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown urged Khartoum to co-operate with the ICC.
There was no immediate formal reaction from Russia or from China, which is Sudan's biggest arms supplier. Some 300,000 people have died as a result of the conflict in Darfur since 2003 while more than two million people have fled their homes, the UN estimates. Sudan's government denies mobilising Arab Janjaweed militias to attack black African civilians in Darfur since rebels took up arms in 2003. 'Absolute control'
Mr Moreno-Ocampo's report found "reasonable grounds" for believing Mr Bashir bore criminal responsibility on 10 counts of genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes. He had allegedly "masterminded and implemented a plan to destroy in substantial part the Fur, Masalit and Zaghawa groups, on account of their ethnicity" after they rebelled. "His motives were largely political," Mr Moreno-Ocampo said. "His alibi was a 'counterinsurgency'. His intent was genocide." Pro-government militias allegedly followed Mr Bashir's orders to attack and destroy villages from the three groups, pursuing survivors into the desert. Those who reached camps for displaced people faced further violence, Mr Moreno-Ocampo alleged: "In the camps Bashir's forces kill the men and rape the women. I don't have the luxury to look away. I have evidence." Mr Moreno-Ocampo accused the Sudanese president of using his "absolute control" of the state apparatus to conceal the truth and protect his subordinates "in order to secure their willingness to commit genocide". The UN has already raised the security alert level for its staff in Darfur. The joint United Nations-African Union Mission in Darfur (Unamid), which has 9,000 troops, has been struggling to contain the violence. The ICC was set up in 2002 as the world's first permanent war crimes court. Other international courts have previously indicted Serbia's President Slobodan Milosevic and President Charles Taylor of Liberia. | Famous Person - Commit Crime - Accuse | July 2008 | ['(BBC)'] |
Radical British Muslim cleric Abu Hamza alMasri goes on trial in the American state of New York for 11 alleged terrorism offenses. | Jury selection has begun in US federal court in New York in the trial of Abu Hamza al-Masri, the radical cleric extradited from the UK in 2012.
The Egyptian-born preacher denies 11 terrorism charges including providing support to al-Qaeda and trying to set up an al-Qaeda training camp in Oregon.
He was extradited from a UK prison, having been jailed for seven years for inciting murder and race hate.
It was specified that he must be tried in a civilian court in the US.
This stipulation was made by British and European court rulings, after a legal battle which began when the US requested Abu Hamza's extradition in 2004.
Abu Hamza sat in court in New York on Monday as District Judge Katherine Forrest explained the 11 charges against him to potential jurors.
Jury selection is expected to take one day and opening statements are scheduled to begin on Thursday after a two-day court recess.
In February Abu Hamza wrote to the judge saying he planned to testify in his defence and address the 9/11 attacks - even though his lawyers have advised against it.
The charges he faces include conspiring in a 1998 kidnapping of tourists in Yemen that resulted in the deaths of three Britons and an Australian.
As part of their case, prosecutors plan to play jurors a series of recordings of Abu Hamza praising Osama Bin Laden and castigating Jews, Christians and homosexuals.
His lawyers have argued the recordings are irrelevant to the charges against him.
Abu Hamza, who has no hands and one eye, rose to notoriety in the UK for preaching violent messages at Finsbury Park mosque in London after 9/11.
In fighting against the extradition, his lawyers claimed some of the evidence that could be used against him in the US was obtained using torture.
They also claimed he could face inhumane treatment, but courts eventually found that his human rights would not be violated.
| Famous Person - Commit Crime - Accuse | April 2014 | ['(BBC)'] |
The death toll from the earthquake in Hokkaido, Japan rises to 44. There are now no reports of individuals missing and the search operations have been called off. | TOKYO, Sept. 10 (Xinhua) -- The death toll of the powerful earthquake striking Japan's Hokkaido last week rose to 44 on Monday, the government said, with thousands still displaced as aftershocks continued to rumble and powers supply remained unstable.
According to the local police and prefectural officials, the body of a 77-year-old man who was previously unaccounted for was found on Monday morning in the town of Atsuma at the site of a deadly landslide.
Two other bodies were found at the same site on Sunday, officials reported. There are now no reports of individuals missing and the search operations have officially been called off.
Japan's top government spokesperson, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga, told a press briefing Monday that around 40,000 Self-Defense Force (SDF) personnel, police, firefighters continued to work on removing debris and clean-up operations.
He also confirmed that there were no more missing residents.
The majority of the fatalities were in Atsuma, where massive landslides buried and crushed homes, leaving around 36 people dead, public broadcaster NHK said on Monday.
As of Monday morning, around 2,700 people remained in evacuation shelters, with around 70 buildings destroyed, and 8,000 homes were still without water supply, the Hokkaido prefectural government said.
Hokkaido Governor Harumi Takahashi has called on the people and businesses of Hokkaido for their cooperation in using less power, as consumption must be reduced by 20 percent at peak-times to avoid blackouts in Japan's northernmost prefecture.
"It is extremely tough but if rolling blackouts or another power outage occurs, restoring lives and business activities to normal will be severely impacted," Takahashi was quoted as saying.
The electricity shortage could continue for up to a week according to Hokkaido Electric Power Co., as the Tomatoatsuma thermal power plant which was damaged by the quake and produces nearly 50 percent of Hokkaido's power, underwent repairs.
Hokkaido was rocked by an early morning 6.7-magnitude earthquake last Thursday.
Around 700 people have been injured as a result of the quake which was measured the maximum 7 on Japan's seismic intensity scale.
This marked the first time a quake in Hokkaido has registered this intensity level since the seismic scale was revised in 1996, Japan's weather agency said. | Earthquakes | September 2018 | ['(Xinhua)'] |
A fatherandson duo who owned and managed the factory that burnt down with 55 deaths in Casablanca have been arrested over serious safety violations. | CASABLANCA, Morocco (AFP) Moroccan police on Sunday arrested the owner and manager of a mattress factory where at least 55 people perished, locked inside as a fire devoured it, a security official said.
An emergency officer said managers had locked in staff during work hours to stop theft, trapping them in the fire on Saturday.
The blaze quickly turned into an inferno, burning victims alive while others leapt to safety, but many women workers were too scared to jump and were trapped. Thirty-five women died, according to a forensics official.
Speaking on Medil radio, Moustapha Taouil of the Casablanca civil protection service said "the lack of equipment maintenance" -- notably involving an electric saw -- caused the inferno.
"The plant's owner, Adil Moufarreh, and his son Abdelali Moufarreh, who was the manager, have been taken into custody after having been questioned by police," said a security official.
Funerals of some victims took place Sunday afternoon, attended by a king's chamberlain and four ministers.
Forensic experts found another body on Sunday, bringing the death toll to at least 55, said the official news agency MAP. There were 17 injured.
"The people who died were either asphyxiated or burned," said a firefighter.
Civil protection officials said it had become clear that safety norms had not been applied in the Rosamor factory in the southwest of Morocco's biggest city.
"It's a building with a ground floor and three upper floors specialising in making furniture, therefore there were highly inflammable products," said Taouil.
"We confirmed during our examination that the owners of the premises failed to respect legal requirements for this kind of industry including staff training," he said.
More seriously, "the owner, in contravention of the law, locked staff inside the plant apparently to prevent theft of raw material. It was this that prevented them getting out."
Taouil said the fire had been started by a short circuit on the ground floor where power saws were located. "The fire was caused by lack of proper maintenance of certain machines and electrical installations," he charged.
"All the doors were blocked and nobody was able to escape through the exits," said Smail Benhamed, 19, who jumped from the second floor.
Former employee Fadila Khadija, 28, alleged: "There was no emergency exit, the extinguishers were empty and the working conditions were difficult."
One security source said windows had been fitted with iron bars, making escape difficult.
King Mohammed VI ordered authorities "to take all necessary measures to help the victims," including the mobilisation of burns units at hospitals all over Morocco.
Survivor Omar Elaaz, 20, said: "I was working on the first floor as an upholsterer. The smoke came up from the ground floor where the foam rubber, wood and glue are stored."
"I used a gas bottle to break the wire mesh that protects every window." "I jumped from the third floor with four other colleagues while the women, who didn't dare to follow us, perished in the inferno," said 31-year-old upholsterer Hakim Hakki from a hospital bed.
"God saved me but I'll never forget those who died."
The father of Abdelazziz Darif, 19, who died in the blaze, said his son was paid only 250 dirhams (20 euros/31 dollars) a week and had no social insurance. | Armed Conflict | April 2008 | ['(AFP via Google News)'] |
Kentucky Attorney General Andy Beshear announces that he will run for Kentucky Governor in 2019. | In announcing his candidacy for Kentucky governor Monday, Attorney General Andy Beshear said he wants to honor teacher pensions and break away from the current culture of "bullying" in Gov. Matt Bevin's administration.
With educator Jacqueline Coleman as his running mate, Beshear, a Democrat, is the first candidate of either party to announce a bid for governor in 2019. Bevin, a Republican, has not yet said whether he will seek re-election.
"Governors have a moral responsibility to act with decency, to do their best to provide good-paying jobs and to provide justice to all Kentuckians," Beshear said Monday in Louisville. "... We will move forward, and these days of bullying, name calling, and my-way-or-the-highway will be left in the past."
The latest:Bevin says Andy Beshear would be a corrupt governor, just like his dad
Beshear, 40, was elected attorney general in 2016, when he narrowly defeated Republican Whitney Westerfield. His father, Steve Beshear, was governor from 2007 to 2015.
Andy Beshear's choice of Coleman, an educator, as a running mate is notable because it comes just months after teachers flooded the Capitol to protest pension reform legislation and rally for school funding.
"We will make public education a priority," Beshear said. "We will work to fund every single public school and every single public university to give opportunity to every child."
Read this:Kentucky's pension reform law struck down by judge as unconstitutional
Teachers should be "treated with respect," he said.
Coleman, a 36-year-old assistant principal at Nelson County High School, took shots at comments Bevin made calling teachers "selfish" for protesting pension reform and called the state's attempt to take over Jefferson County Public Schools the first step in the "Bevin administration's plan to dismantle" public education.
"We have been insulted, disrespected, devalued and even called names by our current governor,” Coleman said.
Coleman, of Harrodsburg, has previously run for office and is the daughter of a politician. She ran unsuccessfully in 2014 to represent Kentucky's 55th House District, the same district her father, Jack Coleman, represented from 1991 to 2004. The district represents Mercer, Washington and parts of Jessamine County.
Since nearly the beginning of his term as attorney general, Beshear has repeatedly filed lawsuits challenging the legality of Bevin's actions as governor.
In 2016, Beshear won a lawsuit against Bevin over funding cuts to state universities. The Kentucky Supreme Court ruled that the governor violated his executive power by cutting universities' budgets after funding had already been appropriated by the General Assembly.
More:Bevin administration broke law by blocking protesters, Beshear says
Beshear also filed actions challenging Bevin’s reorganizations of the boards of trustees of the University of Louisville and the Kentucky Retirement Systems, but both cases were later dismissed as moot after the General Assembly later made changes that effectively ratified Bevin’s actions.
And last month, a circuit court judge ruled against the Bevin administration in Beshear's lawsuit over the controversial pension reform law. The judge said the rapid manner in which the pension reform bill was passed — Republican legislators substituted language in an unrelated sewage bill to pass it within six hours — was unconstitutional. The judge also ruled the legislation was an appropriations bill that did not get sufficient votes to pass in the House.
Republicans have been quick to say Beshear's time as attorney general has been filled with scandal.
On Monday, Bevin responded to Beshear's bid in a tweet: "For those Kentuckians who did not get enough corruption, self-dealing, embezzlement and bribery during the 8 corrupt years of Governor Steve Beshear, his son, Andy, is now offering a chance for 4 more years of the same..."
The tweet refer to Tim Longmeyer of Louisville, whom Andy Beshear hired as his top deputy when he took office. Longmeyer abruptly resigned from office after less than three months on the job and later pleaded guilty to federal charges of running a political kickback scheme while he served as Personnel Cabinet secretary in Steve Beshear's administration.
Related:Tim Longmeyer: Beshear's chief of staff pressured me in contract case
Both Beshears said they were stunned and felt personally betrayed by Longmeyer at the time. And federal authorities have said they found no evidence that either Andy or Steve Beshear had any knowledge of Longmeyer’s illegal activities.
“I think it’s great that Andy Beshear has declared so early so that we can remind Kentucky voters of the corrupt pay to play, scandal-ridden government they can expect if they return Democrats to power in Frankfort,” Republican Party spokesman Tres Watson said.
Longmeyer is serving a 70-month sentence in federal prison. He has admitted to orchestrating a scheme in which – as personnel secretary – he directed insurance companies that administered the public employee health insurance plan to hire a consulting firm to conduct employee surveys. More than $200,000 of what the firm received from the insurance companies was kicked back to Longmeyer, who used some of it for personal expenses but also for political contributions through straw donors.
Documents filed by federal authorities say some of that money was contributed to Andy Beshear’s 2015 campaign for attorney general.
Beshear has said his 2015 campaign fund will rid itself of any such tarnished contributions by donating its final balance to the government watchdog group Common Cause after the Kentucky Registry of Election Finance completes its audit of the fund.
John Steffen, executive director of the election registry, said the audit of Beshear’s 2015 fund will be completed in October.
"The moment the registry of elections" finishes the audit, "we're going to provide every single dollar," Beshear said. "We responded with accountability and transparency."
Beshear said he appointed a special prosecutor to investigate the charges.
While Beshear is the first Democrat to announce for governor, he is not likely to be the last.
State Rep. Attica Scott, of Louisville, said last week she is considering a bid, and others who have been mentioned as possible candidates are House Minority Leader Rocky Adkins of Sandy Hook; Secretary of State Alison Lundergan Grimes; and former State Auditor Adam Edelen.
| Government Job change - Election | July 2018 | ['(Courier Journal)'] |
India tells China that the Dalai Lama is an "honoured guest" and will not be barred from visiting Arunachal Pradesh despite protests from China. | HUA HIN - INDIA'S Prime Minister Manmohan Singh rebuffed China's wishes that it bar the Dalai Lama from travelling to a disputed border area, telling Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao the Tibetan spiritual leader was an honoured guest.
'I explained to Premier Wen that the Dalai Lama is our honoured guest. He is a religious leader. We do not allow the Tibetan refugees to indulge in political activities,' Mr Singh told reporters on Sunday, a day after he and Wen held bilateral talks.
The Dalai Lama plans to make a week-long visit to the Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh which borders China in early November. Mr Singh visited the region earlier this month, also to China's displeasure.
Asked if the plan had changed for the Dalai Lama to travel there, Mr Singh said he was not aware of his travel arrangements - an apparent indication that he still had the green light.
The Indian newspaper The Hindu (www.hindu.com) reported on Sunday that China's embassy in New Delhi had asked the Ministry of External Affairs to prevent the Dalai Lama from visiting Arunachal Pradesh.
Mr Singh said he and Mr Wen, who met on the sidelines of an Asia-Pacific summit in Thailand, agreed that both China and India had an 'obligation to maintain peace and tranquillity along the border'. -- REUTERS | Famous Person - Give a speech | October 2009 | ['(Associated Press)', '(Times of India)', '(Straits Times)'] |
India and Turkey confirm their first cases of H1N1 influenza. | India and Turkey have recorded their first cases of swine flu, giving further evidence that the disease is spreading.
In both countries the H1N1 virus was detected following the screening of passengers arriving at airports. Meanwhile, health officials in Japan have identified the first domestic case of the disease in a 17-year-old student in the western port city of Kobe. Two others are thought to be infected. None had been overseas recently. Some 39 countries have reported 8,453 cases of the virus, a rise of nearly 1,000 in 24 hours. At least 72 people have died of the virus, the World Health Organization says. In the past week the number of people infected by the virus has risen sharply with the US, followed by Mexico, where the epidemic began, recording the highest number of cases. | Disease Outbreaks | May 2009 | ['(A)', '(BBC)'] |
Serbia arrests Goran Hadi, a Croatian Serb wartime leader, indicted for alleged crimes against humanity during the Croatian War of Independence. | Serbia's last major war crimes fugitive, a Croatian Serb wartime leader indicted for crimes against humanity during the 1991-95 Croatian war, has been arrested, Serbian president Boris Tadic says.
Goran Hadzic was a key figure in the breakaway Krajina Serb republic in Croatia, and after the arrest of wartime general Ratko Mladic earlier this year, he was Serbia's last remaining figure sought by the United Nations war crimes tribunal in the Hague.
Serbia's leader held a press conference to announce the capture shortly after Hadzic's arrest at 8:24am (local time).
"With this, Serbia ends the most difficult chapter in its cooperation with the court," Mr Tadic told the conference.
Hadzic is charged with ordering the killing of hundreds and the deportation of thousands of Croats and other non-Serbs from the area.
Mr Tadic said Hadzic was tracked down in the idyllic mountain region of Fruska Gora, near the northern city of Novi Sad, and arrested near Krusedol village.
The village is home to a famous Serbian Orthodox monastery, a popular tourist destination known for its icons.
The European Union, which hailed Belgrade for finding Mladic in May, has continued to insist on the arrest of Hadzic for Serbia to make progress towards European Union membership.
Hadzic lived openly in the northern Serbian city of Novi Sad until July 13, 2004, when The Hague sent an indictment and arrest warrant to Belgrade.
He fled immediately, tipped off by nationalist hardliners in Serbia's security services.
His escape was kept a secret for days, while relatives said he was at home and police denied having orders to arrest him.
The Hague later made public surveillance pictures showing him leaving his house with a bag on the afternoon of July 13.
At the press conference Mr Tadic dismissed criticism that Serbia had been slow to arrest Hadzic and Mladic.
"I have been explaining everything we have been doing in the past few years that it has been very difficult for us to investigate those kind of people," he said.
"I will confirm once again we did everything possible and I am very proud of everybody who has been working on this issue."
In Serbia, Hadzic gained notoriety in the past for his involvement in murky deals including illegal exports of oak wood, wine as well as crude oil from an oil well which was under Serb control.
He was frequently seen in the company of Zeljko "Arkan" Raznatovic, a paramilitary leader and the head of Belgrade's underworld at the time.
United Nations secretary-general Ban Ki-moon has welcomed the arrest.
Mr Ban's spokesman said the secretary-general "commended" the Serbian president and authorities for their "leadership in ending impunity for those indicted for serious violations of international humanitarian law".
"Mr Hadzic's apprehension sends a powerful message that those who are alleged to have committed such crimes cannot evade justice," the spokesman said, quoting Mr Ban.
Reuters/AFP
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AEST = Australian Eastern Standard Time which is 10 hours ahead of GMT (Greenwich Mean Time) | Famous Person - Commit Crime - Accuse | July 2011 | ['(Reuters via ABC Online)'] |
Italian President Giorgio Napolitano calls on the British government to explain why it did not inform Italy about an attempt to rescue hostages Chris McManus and Franco Lamolinara until after the operation had been carried out. | Italy's foreign minister Giulio Terzi has asked Britain to provide the "utmost clarity" around a failed bid to rescue a Briton and Italian in Nigeria.
He has demanded details "in the next few hours", an Italian news agency said, after accusations the UK did not inform Italy about the planned mission.
Italian President Giorgio Napolitano said it was "inexplicable" that the British government had not told Rome about the rescue attempt until it had begun.
He said the UK needed to explain why it did not inform the Italian authorities ahead of the operation.
"The way the British government has behaved is quite inexplicable. To have failed to inform or consult Italy, with regard to a military action which could have such consequences," he said.
"A clarification is needed on both the political and diplomatic levels."
UK Defence Secretary Philip Hammond said Rome had been told of intelligence behind the rescue attempt and informed "as the decision was taken to act".
Mr Hammond told the BBC News Channel that the attempted rescue had been launched after information was received that Mr McManus and Mr Lamolinara "were about to be moved - possibly executed".
He said what had subsequently happened was "very unfortunate but it's completely explicable". "These hostages were taken, they were held at an unknown location for a very long period of time despite extensive efforts to track them down. And when a window of opportunity became available, a well-trained Nigerian force with British support, went in and tried to rescue them," he said.
"The Italian government was kept informed throughout the operation as the intelligence emerged and then as the decision was taken to act... I don't think they specifically approved it - they were informed of what was happening."
Number 10 said earlier that no official complaint had been received from the Italian government, and the UK had not made an apology.
It said the UK and Italy had been in contact ever since the men were kidnapped on 12 May, 2011.
Prime Minister David Cameron's official spokesman said: "We contacted the Italians yesterday as the operation was getting under way, but this was a very fast-moving situation.
"Our priority was to respond to the situation on the ground and to do everything we could to try and secure the safe release of the hostages."
In a statement announcing the operation and the deaths of Mr McManus and Mr Lamolinara, 48, Mr Cameron earlier said the decision to act had been taken at very short notice.
"A window of opportunity arose to try and secure their release. We also had reason to believe that their lives were under imminent and growing danger."
The BBC's diplomatic correspondent James Robbins said the Italian government tended to be in favour of negotiating in hostage situations, while Britain was absolutely against formal government negotiations.
He said it raised the question of whether Britain feared Italy would withhold its consent for the operation, although no official had conceded that.
News of the operation broke in a statement from the office of Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti.
It used very similar language to that used by the British side but made it clear the Italians were told the military was being used only after the operation had started.
Mr Monti chaired a meeting of a government security committee to discuss the failure of the attempt to rescue the hostages. The meeting ended after two hours without any comment being issued.
Commons Foreign Affairs Select Committee chairman Richard Ottaway said the UK was not duty-bound to tell Italy about the operation in the circumstances.
He told the BBC: "I can understand the concerns and frustrations of Italian politicians but I think they've got to accept and recognise that these are very fast-moving, delicate operations and it's not always possible to keep politicians briefed in advance of what goes on.
Mr Monti's office said he had asked Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan to provide a "detailed reconstruction" of events as soon as possible.
Mr Cameron's spokesman said it was a Nigerian-led operation, with UK support involving the UK's elite Special Boat Service. BBC reporter Haruna Shehu Tangaza, in Sokoto, described several hours of heavy fighting.
The house where the men were being held had been under surveillance for some time.
Mr Cameron and Mr Jonathan said they believed the kidnappers had killed Mr McManus and Mr Lamolinara.
But an unnamed official from the Nigerian state security service quoted in local reports said the hostages died in the crossfire.
The Nigerian president described it as a "deeply sad and regrettable incident".
Mr Jonathan said that the men's captors had been seized and "would be made to face the full wrath of the law".
He said they were from militant Islamist group Boko Haram, which has carried out a number of attacks on police, politicians and clerics who oppose it.
Reports have emerged that a senior member of Boko Haram was captured on Tuesday, and he gave information which led forces to the house where the two construction engineers were being held.
However, on Friday, a spokesman for the group told reporters Boko Haram was not responsible for the deaths.
"We have never taken anyone hostage. We always claim responsibility for our acts," he said. The BBC' security correspondent Gordon Corera said Boko Haram has become more violent and capable in recent years and there is a suspicion this may be a sign of the growing influence of the group al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb.
Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb has a track record of kidnapping Westerners in north Africa and trying to extract ransom payments to fund its violence.
Chief of Defence Staff General Sir David Richards told BBC News that the rescue attempt had sent "a shockwave" through al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb.
"We know that all their leaders are now and disarray and we're now obviously trying to track them down with our Nigerian allies," he said.
Gunmen seized Mr McManus and Mr Lamolinara in the town of Birnin Kebbi in the north of Nigeria on 12 May 2011.
They worked for Italian firm B Stabilini in the construction of a local headquarters for the Central Bank of Nigeria.
Relatives of Mr McManus released a statement saying they were "devastated" by his death but thanked those who had worked to try to free him.
"During this ordeal we have relied heavily on the support of our family and friends which has never waned and has enabled us to get through the most difficult of times," they said.
The Foreign Office advises against all travel to some areas of Nigeria and against all but essential travel to other areas, but these do not include the area where the men were kidnapped. | Famous Person - Give a speech | March 2012 | ['(BBC)'] |
Argentina becomes the first Latin American country to legalise same–sex marriage. | Argentina has become the first country in Latin America to legalise gay marriage after the Senate voted in favour. The country's Chamber of Deputies had already approved the legislation. The vote in the Senate, which backed the bill by just six votes, came after 14 hours of at times heated debate. The law, which also allows same-sex couples to adopt, had met with fierce opposition from the Catholic Church and other religious groups.
The legislation, backed by President Cristina Fernandez's centre-left government, passed by 33 votes to 27 with three abstentions. Outside Congress, as the debate continued into the early hours of Thursday, supporters and opponents of the bill held rival demonstrations. "Nearly every political and social figure has spoken out in favour of marriage equality," said Maria Rachid, president of the Argentine Federation of Lesbians, Gays, Bisexuals and Transsexuals.
"And we hope that the Senate reflects this and that Argentina, from today forward, is a more just country for all families," she told the Associated Press. Ines Frank, from a group called Argentine Families Argentina, said opposition was not discrimination "because the essence of a family is between two people of opposite sexes".
There have been several gay marriages recently in Argentina, some of which were annulled by the Supreme Court, creating a legal controversy.
Civil unions between people of the same sex are legal in Buenos Aires and in some other provinces but there was no law to regulate it on a country-wide level.
Argentina's capital is widely considered to be among the most gay-friendly cities in Latin America. It was the first Latin American city to legalise same-sex unions. Same-sex civil unions are also legal in Uruguay and some states in Brazil and Mexico, while gay marriage is legal in Mexico City. | Government Policy Changes | July 2010 | ['(The Washington Post)', '(The New York Times)', '(BBC)', '(Aljazeera)'] |
The Japan women's national football team returns home to be greeted by thousands of fans after winning the 2011 FIFA Women's World Cup. | NARITA - THOUSANDS of joyous, flag-waving fans greeted the Japan women's football team as the players arrived home on Tuesday morning after beating the United States at the World Cup.
Two fire trucks shot out celebratory arches of water over the team's aircraft as it approached the terminal at Tokyo's Narita Airport.
Throngs of fans wearing the team's dark blue colors greeted the team as they made their way into the terminal. A nation reeling from months of tragedy has been united in joyous celebration after a team nicknamed 'Nadeshiko' - for a pink mountain flower - became the first from Asia to win the biggest prize in women's football.
Goalkeeper Ayumi Kaihori, one of the stars of Sunday's win, was the first to come through the terminal. The rest of the team, wearing their medals, followed as cameras flashed and fans shouted 'Omedeto Gozaimasu' - or congratulations.
The March 11 earthquake and tsunami left nearly 23,000 people dead or missing and caused partial meltdowns at a nuclear power plant that added to the tragedy. Japan's players used the disasters as motivation throughout the tournament, viewing images of the devastation from their homeland before some matches.
Before the final, the team unfurled a banner reading 'To our Friends Around the World - Thank You for Your Support'. Everyone from Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan to evacuees in the hardest-hit areas of the tragedy have praised the team for giving Japan inspiration in difficult times. -- AP | Sports Competition | July 2011 | ['(AP via Straits Times)'] |
At least three security officers are killed after riots in north Jakarta, Indonesia, over plans to bulldoze a cemetery containing a memorial to a revered Muslim scholar. | Monday 19 April 2010
Nivell Rayda
An Indonesian protester armed with a wooden plank walks past a burning police water canon truck during a clash in North Jakarta, on Wednesday (AP Photo/Irwin Fedriansyah)
The Jakarta Police dispatched more than 600 officers on Thursday to
secure areas surrounding a cemetery that locals in the Koja subdistrict
of North Jakarta consider as sacred, a police spokesman said.
Sr. Comr. Boy Rafli Amar said that officers were deployed to
several locations at the Jakarta international port adjacent to the
cemetery to prevent the escalation of riots and looting."Officers
from the traffic control unit were deployed to manage the streets near
the port,” Boy said. “Officers from the North Jakarta headquarters are
tasked to secure strategic points in the event of further violence.”
He added that police have yet to conduct an investigation into the
violence to determine who was responsible for the bloody clash. "Our
main concern is to secure the area and prevent further riots," he added.
On Wednesday, the area was the scene of a violent encounter between residents and public orderly officials known as Satpol PP.The | Riot | April 2010 | ['(Antara)', '[permanent dead link]', '(Ninemsn)', '(Jakarta Post)'] |
Following a warning, a bomb explodes outside a maximum security prison in Korydallos, Greece. | People ran out of the courthouse in Thessaloniki as an explosion was heard
A bomb has exploded outside a courthouse in Thessaloniki, hours after an earlier blast at a prison near the Greek capital Athens.
Two people were reported to have been injured - one in each of the blasts. Both bombs came after warning calls to local newspapers. The bomb near Athens caused extensive damage to buildings. There were no immediate claims of responsibility, but police linked the first explosion to left-wing Greek militant groups. Several members of the left-wing groups are being held at the maximum-security prison that was targeted in Korydallos, near Athens, on Thursday evening. In Thessaloniki, Greece's second city, police said most people had been evacuated from the courthouse when the bomb there exploded. One man was reported to have sustained minor injuries. Austerity protests
Greek media reported that the device that exploded near Athens had been hidden in a travel bag. The powerful blast shattered windows of nearby homes and was heard in the centre of Athens several kilometres away. One woman was injured. Police launched an investigation and sealed off a street next to the prison. Athens has seen recent violent protests as the government unveiled tough austerity measures in return for a huge rescue package for its debt-ridden economy. It has also seen a number of bomb attacks blamed on leftist militants. In March a bomb outside a public building in the Patissia area of Athens killed a 15-year-old boy. Earlier attacks targeted banks and government buildings and were attributed to far-left or anarchist groups. | Armed Conflict | May 2010 | ['(BBC)'] |
International Monetary Fund head Dominique Strauss–Kahn is ordered to be held without bail on sexual assault charges in New York City. , | IMF chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn has consented to a medical examination over allegations of serious sexual assault.
Mr Strauss-Kahn, who was arrested in New York, denies charges of attacking and attempting to rape a hotel maid.
His court hearing scheduled for Sunday was postponed until Monday to allow forensic tests to be carried out.
French writer Tristane Banon is considering legal action against Mr Strauss-Kahn for an alleged sexual assault in 2002, her lawyer said. Ms Banon, 31, claimed Mr Strauss-Kahn attacked her when she went to interview him. She chose not to file suit against him at the time.
Mr Strauss-Kahn, a former finance minister, has until now been considered a frontrunner to be the Socialist candidate for president in 2012. He had been scheduled to meet German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Sunday in Berlin and then attend an EU finance ministers' meeting in Brussels on Monday on bailouts for Portugal and Greece.
Correspondents say he has been central to efforts to stabilise the finances of struggling eurozone member states and his detention is likely to complicate the process.
The Euro fell half a cent to $1.4063 when Asian markets opened on Monday - a six-week low against the dollar - reflecting concerns about the impact the arrest could have on bailouts plans for Portugal and Greece.
Mr Strauss-Kahn - often referred to in France simply as DSK - was detained at JFK airport on Saturday night as he prepared to fly to Europe.
He is believed to have been in New York on personal business. He does not have diplomatic immunity, a New York police spokesman said. The 62-year-old was kept overnight in a special unit for sexual harassment in New York's Harlem district. On Sunday he was charged with a "criminal sexual act, unlawful imprisonment, and attempted rape".
Police say the 32-year-old woman who made the allegations has formally identified him in a line-up. Mr Strauss-Kahn's clothing will be tested for DNA traces, the New York Times reported. Speaking outside court in Manhattan, lawyer William Taylor said Mr Strauss-Kahn had "willingly consented to a scientific and forensic examination", adding that he was "tired but fine". A second lawyer, Benjamin Brafman, said his client "intends to vigorously defend these charges and he denies any wrongdoing".
Mr Strauss-Kahn's wife, prominent French journalist Anne Sinclair, has also said she believes he is innocent.
"I do not believe for one second the accusations brought against my husband," she said in a statement sent to the AFP news agency on Sunday.
The BBC's David Chazan, in Paris, says there has been a mixed reaction to the arrest in France, with some people seeing it as a national humiliation but others suggesting that he might have been set up by his political opponents.
Mr Strauss-Kahn was widely expected to announce his intention to run for the French presidency soon, and was seen as having a genuine chance of beating President Nicolas Sarkozy.
Paris regional councillor Michelle Sabban told AFP: "I am convinced it is an international conspiracy... This is a new form of political assassination."
Socialist legislator Jean-Marie Le Guen said: "The facts as they were reported today have nothing to do with the Dominique Strauss-Kahn whom we know."
Meanwhile, a centre-right opponent of Mr Strauss-Kahn's, Dominique Paille, said if the allegations were true, it would be "an historic moment, but in the negative sense, for French political life".
"I hope that everyone respects the presumption of innocence. I cannot manage to believe this affair," he told French TV.
But the leader of the National Front party, Marine Le Pen, said Mr Strauss-Kahn had been "definitively discredited".
Mr Strauss-Kahn has won praise for his stewardship of the IMF, which he has guided through difficult times including the recent world financial crisis.
In 2008, he was criticised by the IMF board for an affair with a subordinate member of staff. The board said the affair had been consensual but reflected a "serious error of judgement".
John Lipsky has been appointed acting managing director of the IMF in his absence.
The fund's director of external relations, Caroline Atkinson, said the organisation remained "fully functioning and operational".
French politics turns upside down
Profile: Dominique Strauss-Kahn
IMF director cleared over affair
IMF statement on Dominique Strauss-Kahn
French Socialist Party statement (in French)
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 - Commit Crime - Arrest | May 2011 | ['(BBC)', '(Bloomberg)'] |
A 6.4–magnitude earthquake hits the southern Mexican state of Chiapas. The epicenter was 11 kilometers from the town of Tres Picos, not far from the Pacific coast. There are no immediate reports of major damage or injuries. | MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - A 6.4-magnitude earthquake shook buildings in the southern Mexican state of Chiapas on Thursday afternoon, but there were no immediate reports of major damage or injuries.
The head of Mexico’s emergency services, Luis Felipe Puente, said via Twitter that there were no immediate reports of any serious damage, but local authorities were checking the area.
“We are still checking for damage, we are checking the coast,” said Luis Manuel Garcia, a local emergency services official. “We cannot rule out any incident in the coastal area.”
The U.S. Geological Survey, which initially reported a 6.6-magnitude quake, revised that down to 6.4. The epicenter was 11 kilometers (7 miles) from the town of Tres Picos, not far from the Pacific coast.
| Earthquakes | December 2015 | ['(7 miles)', '(Reuters)', '(USGS)'] |
A cease fire deal proposed by U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry is rejected by Israel and not commented on by Hamas. Israel agrees to a uni-lateral 12 hour humanitarian ceasefire as negotiations continue. | The Times of Israel livebloggedevents as they unfolded through Friday, the 18th day of Operation Protective Edge. Israel’s government unanimously rejected a ceasefire offer advanced by US Secretary of State John Kerry, with sources saying it was too tilted towards Hamas. However, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reportedly accepted a 12-hour truce to begin 7 a.m. Saturday. West Bank violence continued to escalate, with six Palestinians reported killed in riots. With the Gaza death toll said to reach850, Israeli military sources said several hundred Hamas gunmen had been killed. The IDF death toll rose to35. IDF-Hamas fighting in Gaza remained intensive,and 80 rockets werefired into Israel, but foreign airlines beganreturning to Ben-Gurion airport.Day 18 of Operation Protective Edge begins with heavy rioting in parts of East Jerusalem, with at least 2 Palestinians killed in clashes with Israeli security forces at the Qalandiya checkpoint between Ramallah and the capital. Earlier, 15 or more Gazans were reported killed in a shelling at a UN school in Gaza which, according to the IDF, may have been the result of an errant IDF shell fired during confrontations with Hamas, or a Hamas rocket. The IDF was investigating. The ground offensive is a week old now, and Israeli military sources say approximately 200-500 Hamas gunmen are dead. But the fighting and the rocket fire into Israel continues, and there is no ceasefire in the offing. Just to recap a post from a few minutes ago at the end of Thursday’s liveblog: Israeli journalists report that the violent protest at the Qalandiya checkpoint between Jerusalem and Ramallah is one of the largest seen in over a decade. “Qalandiya, as not seen since the days of the [Second] Intifada,” writes Israel Radio’s Palestinian Affairs correspondent Gal Berger. “The scenes seen tonight at the Qalandiya checkpoint remind [me] of the Intifada. Don’t remember in recent years thousands [of Palestinians] confronting the IDF. Tomorrow, a dramatic day in the West Bank and East Jerusalem,” writes Channel 1’s West Bank reporter. Late Thursday night, ToI’s Mitch Ginsburg posted an analysis asking: Why has the IDF lost 32 soldiers in the Gaza ground offensive? Mourners at the funeral for Max Steinberg in Jerusalem Wednesday, July 23, 2014. (photo credit: Jessica Steinberg/Times of Israel)
As opposed to previous campaigns, he made clear, the army has a concrete goal finding the tunnels which means Hamas knows precisely where to strike. He also quoted a senior intelligence officer saying recently, during a conference call to journalists, that while Hamas tactics haven’t changed much in the recent rounds of fighting, its weaponry has. Writes Ginsburg: “He spoke of advanced, Russian-made antitank missiles, some specifically made for urban fighting such as the RPG-29. Lt. Col. Peter Lerner added that there has been “an antitank missile component” in every Hamas attack on Israeli troops thus far in Gaza.”
Read the full article here. The commander of the 12th Battalion in the Golani Brigade was seriously wounded in Gaza when the wall of a tunnel dug by Hamas collapsed on him, the army says. He is being treated at hospital. Palestinian Authority officialsare calling for a “Day of Rage” across the West Bank later today, in protest at the violent clashes tonight between Palestinians and police at the Qalandiya checkpoint, and in solidarity with Palestinians in theGaza Strip. Israel Radio’s Gal Berger reports that Hamas and Islamic Jihad are calling for marches in Ramallah and Hebron, respectively. President Obama says the Federal Aviation Administration took “prudent action” in temporarily banning US flights in and out of Israel. Obama says decisions on airline safety are not made on the basis of politics or alliances. He notes that the FAA ban came on the heels of last week’s downing of a passenger jet by a missile in eastern Ukraine. The FAA issued the ban Tuesday and lifted the restrictions Wednesday night. Obama says that before lifting the ban, the FAA worked with Israel on a “checklist of concerns and mitigation measures” to ensure the safety of US airlines. The FAA said the ban was imposed out of concern for the risk of planes being hit by Hamas rockets. Obama made his comments in an interview with CNBC. AP
Police say they arrested 39 Palestinians following violent clashes in Jerusalem’s Old City tonight. Thirteen police officers were lightly wounded in the clashes. The Palestinian death toll in the Gaza Strip is said toclimb past 800, according to Gaza’s emergency services. The services also claim that some 5,000 Gazans have been wounded. Hamas officials in the Gaza Strip and abroadare calling on Palestinians in the West Bank to start a Third Intifada. Qatar-based Hamas spokesman Husham Badran, responding to the reports of clashes between thousands of Palestinians and police at the Qalandiya checkpoint, says the timing is right to rise up, Israel Radio reports. “This is your opportunity,” he says to West Bank Palestinians. Hamas official Izat a-Rishk calls, on Twitter, for a revolution against the enemy, adding that the blood of Gazans ignites the West Bank. Hamas spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri says the events at Qalandiya prove that the Palestinians are one people and that Gaza cannot be isolated. Hamas TV airs intifada songs, Israel Radio reports, ahead of the protests planned for later today. Meanwhile, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas calls on Palestinians to donate blood at Palestinians hospitals for those suffering from “Israeli aggression” in the West Bank and Gaza. Israel’s security cabinet is expected to meet to discuss proposals for a Gaza ceasefire later today, Israel Radio reports. “If Hamas accepts the American proposal, it is not impossible that there could be an Israeli decision to accept it also,”an unnamed senior Israeli source is quoted as saying. Exiled Hamas leader Khaled Mashaal told the BBC in an interview Thursday that a truce must include a guaranteed end to Israel’s blockade on the Gaza Strip. “We want a ceasefire as soon as possible, which is parallel with the lifting of the siege of Gaza,” he said. “We want an airport, a (sea)port; we want to open up to the world. We don’t want to be controlled by a border crossing that makes Gaza the biggest prison in the world.”
Haaretz newspaper reports that the Israeli security cabinet meeting is due to start at 1:30 p.m. (10:30 GMT) in Tel Aviv. There was no official confirmation. AFP, Times of Israel staff
It’s been a relatively quiet night for residents of southern Israel tonight, with not one rocket being fired or a siren going off for several hours. Yesterday, some 65 rockets were fired at Israel, including one at Eilat, which was shot down by the Iron Dome anti-missile system. Sirens blare in the Eshkol Regional Council, after a night of relative calm. There were no immediate reports of rocket explosions, damage or injuries. Four IDF soldiers are brought to the hospital for treatment following injuries suffered during overnight fighting in the Gaza Strip. They are being treated at the Soroka Medical Center in Beersheba and the Sheba Medical Center near Tel Aviv. A senior IDF official speaks to Ynet about the clashes near Qalandiya that left two Palestinians dead, saying “the two opened fire at our forces with Kalashnikov rifles from inside the protest.”
Rounding up the events of the past day, a military source tells the news site that the IDF has struck 130 targets in the Gaza Strip in the past day, and 3,540 since Operation Protective Edge began. Of the more than 700 Gazans killed, according to the Hamas Health Ministry, 240 are terrorists taken out by the IDF, they say. The official notes that the terror tunnels the IDF is targeting will take time to eliminate. “It’ll be neither a day, nor an hour, to finish the destruction of the tunnels,” the military official says. “We can’t guarantee another seven or 11 days. Destruction of the tunnels is an operation that takes time.”
Sen. Ted Cruz vows Thursday to continue blocking confirmation of a series of ambassadorial and other diplomatic nominees despite the Federal Aviation Administration lifting a ban on US airline flights to Israel. The State Department criticizes the Republican lawmaker. Cruz says he won’t release the holds until the Obama administration answers his questions about the FAA prohibition, which went into effect Tuesday after a rocket landed about a mile from the Tel Aviv airport. The FAA ended the ban late Wednesday, after Cruz accused President Barack Obama of imposing an economic boycott of Israel while it is fighting the militant group Hamas in Gaza. Texas Senator Ted Cruz (photo credit: US Government/public domain)
“There are still serious questions as to the decision-making that went into the ban on flights and whether it was driven by political consideration at the White House, or by objective expert opinion at the agency,” the Texas senator says Thursday. Obama says in an interview on CNBC Thursday that decisions on airline safety are not made on the basis of politics or alliances. He notes the FAA ban came on the heels of last week’s downing of a passenger jet by a missile in eastern Ukraine. Obama states that before lifting the ban, the FAA worked with Israel on a “checklist of concerns and mitigation measures” to ensure the safety of US airlines. The FAA said the ban was imposed out of concern for the risk of planes being hit by Hamas rockets. AP
Israel Radio Arabic correspondent Gal Berger uploads Hamascartoons circulating on the Internet, caricaturing the current conflict with Israel. Meanwhile, near Jerusalem’s Mahane Yehuda market, a drop-off point for sending goodsto IDF soldiers in Gaza pops up. Drop-off point in Jerusalem’s Nahlaot neighborhood for goods to Israeli soldiers in Gaza (photo credit: Ilan Ben Zion/Times of Israel staff)
At least one rocket is intercepted over the southern city in the latest barrage. Earlier, two rockets exploded in open areas in the Eshkol Region in the first attacks of the day. A Hamas spokesperson reports that an IDF strike in the southern Gaza city of Rafah killed a senior Islamic Jihadofficial and his son, and injured 14 others on Friday morning. According to Hamas Health Ministry, Salah Ahmed Hassanein, an Islamic Jihad spokesperson, and his son Abdulaziz Salah Hassanein died in an Israeli attack on Rafah. The IDF and Shin Bet confirm that Hassanein was targeted, but say he was injured in the strike, Haaretz’s Gili Cohen reports. On the ceasefire front, Palestinian officials tell the al-Hayyat newspaper that Hamas agrees in principle to US Secretary of State John Kerry’s proposal of a five-day humanitarian ceasefire starting on Saturday. Hamas reportedly requests mediation for its other demands, including the release of prisoners and the expansion of the Gaza offshore fishing zone. The Shin Bet confirms that Salah Ahmed Hassanein, an Islamic Jihad spokesperson and member of its military leadership, was killed in Rafah Friday morning in a joint operation with the IDF, Ynet reports. After outgoing president Shimon Peres accused Qatar of being the world’s #1 sponsor of terror, the country’s foreign minister denies the charges, and insinuates that Israel is the real terrorist in the region. “There is absolutely no terror aspect in bringing the Palestinian people’s demands to the international community by Qatar,” says Sheikh Majd bin Abdal Rahman a-Thani, according to Ynet. “Terror is the continued bombing of civilians, of children, and schools. Qatar has no part in this.”
Israeli officials say Friday morning that if the Hamas leadership in Qatar accepts US Secretary of State John Kerry’s five-day ceasefire proposal, Israel will likely reciprocate and evaluate the group’s intention of carrying it out, Israel Radio reports. If it rejects the truce, however, the IDF has been instructed to prepare for a significant expansion of its operations in the Gaza Strip, starting next week. MMA fighter Noad Lahat, who hails from Alfei Menashe, has an Ultimate Fighting Championship martial-arts fight in San Jose, California, Saturday night. After the match, Lahat won’t spend time at home resting and icing his bruises. He’ll hop on a plane to Israel to join his reserve unit fighting in the Gaza Strip. He is clear about the importance of the mission. “The only way we will be a safer, stronger country is for all of us to be united and fight together to protect our country. And so that’s what I’m going to do,” he says. Yahoo Sports has the full story. Iranians rally nationwide on Friday in a show of support for Palestinians and to protest against Israel as it pursued its campaign against the Gaza Strip enclave. Demonstrations were staged in Tehran and more than 700 towns and cities across the country on the last Friday of the Muslim holy fasting month of Ramadan, state television reported. In the capital, footage showed demonstrators carrying placards saying “Death to Israel” and “Death to America” converging from nine different points on Tehran University in the city center. “Quds Day” (Jerusalem Day) is staged annually on the last Friday of Ramadan, but this year’s protest came on the 18th day of Israel’s campaign against rocket-firing militants in the Gaza Strip. Iran does not recognize Israel’s existence, and supports Palestinian Islamist groups that fight it. On Thursday, the speaker of Iran’s parliament, Ali Larijani, told state television’s Arabic service that Tehran had provided Hamas with the technology it has used to rain down rockets on Israel. “Today, the fighters in Gaza have good capabilities and can meet their own needs for weapons,” he said. “But once upon a time, they needed the arms manufacture know-how and we gave it to them.”
Supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Wednesday called on the Palestinians to keep fighting Israel and to expand their resistance from Gaza to the occupied West Bank. During the last major conflict in and around Gaza in November 2012, Larijani said Iran was “proud” to have provided “both financial and military support” to Hamas. Israel accused Iran of supplying Gaza militants with its Fajr-5 missile, which has a range of 75 kilometers (45 miles), for use during that conflict. But the commander of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards, General Mohammad Ali Jafari, said at the time it was not the missiles that had been supplied but their technology. AFP
An Israeli defense official says the security cabinet is meeting to discuss international ceasefire efforts but also the option of expanding its eight-day-old ground operation in Gaza. He spoke on condition of anonymity, because Friday’s deliberations are taking place behind closed doors. The office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had no immediate comment. A Palestinian health official says the Gaza death toll has risen to 808, with 115 Palestinians killed on Thursday, in one of the bloodiest days in more than two weeks of fighting. Thirty-four Israelis, including 32 soldiers, and a Thai worker have also been killed. Israeli police say thousands of security forces have been deployed around Jerusalem’s Old City in preparation for possible Palestinian protests after Friday prayers at a key Muslim holy site. The Associated Press
Israeli security forces are on heightened alert Friday after two Palestinian man were shot dead during a huge protest in the West Bank against Israel’s military offensive in Gaza. Palestinian factions in the West Bank declared a “Day of Rage” after the Thursday night clashes, which took place throughout the West Bank and in some sectors of Israeli-annexed East Jerusalem. Police say that, due to fears of violent protest over the deadly Israeli military campaign in the Gaza Strip, they will bar men under the age of 50 from Jerusalem’s flashpoint al-Aqsa mosque for what are usually packed prayers on the last Friday of the Muslim holy fasting month of Ramadan. “Different units have been mobilized in and around the Old City” of Jerusalem, police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld tells AFP on Friday. “We’re prepared to deal with any disturbances.”
Palestinian security and medical officials named one of the slain men as Mohammed al-Aaraj, 25, and said he was among at least 10,000 people who clashed with soldiers and Border Police in Qalandiya, between Jerusalem and Ramallah. They said 150 people were wounded by Israeli fire, with five of them in critical condition. Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas appealed for blood donors. | Armed Conflict | July 2014 | ['(Times of Israel)'] |
The funeral for murdered Punjab Governor Salmaan Taseer takes place in Lahore, Pakistan. | Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani joined the mourners in the city of Lahore amid tight security.
Mr Taseer, one of Pakistan's most outspoken liberal politicians, was shot on Tuesday by a bodyguard angered by his opposition to blasphemy laws.
Although many have condemned the assassination, some religious leaders have praised the governor's killer.
The governor - a senior member of the governing Pakistan People's Party (PPP) - had recently angered Islamists by appealing for a Christian woman, sentenced to death for blasphemy, to be pardoned.
Mr Gilani has declared three days of national mourning and appealed for calm.
The bodyguard, Malik Mumtaz Hussein Qadri, 26, was showered with rose petals by supporters as he appeared in court in Islamabad on Wednesday.
Mr Gilani and thousands of supporters of the PPP attended funeral prayers at Governor's House in Lahore.
Mr Taseer's coffin was then taken by helicopter to a graveyard in a military zone.
Security was intense and the city virtually shut down.
The assassination has drawn condemnation from around the world.
However, some Pakistani religious leaders have praised the governor's killer and called for a boycott of the ceremonies in Lahore, says the BBC's Orla Guerin in Islamabad.
One small religious party, the Jamaat-e-Ahl-e-Sunnat Pakistan, warned that anyone who expressed grief over the assassination could suffer the same fate. "No Muslim should attend the funeral or even try to pray for Salman Taseer or even express any kind of regret or sympathy over the incident," the party said in a statement. It said anyone who expressed sympathy over the death of a blasphemer was also committing blasphemy.
The Pakistani Taliban - Tehreek Taliban - also said anyone offering prayers for Mr Taseer would be guilty of blasphemy.
Speaking to the BBC, its deputy chief, Ehsanullah Ehsan, also warned religious scholars not to change their stance on blasphemy laws.
The bodyguard Malik Mumtaz Hussein Qadri was detained immediately after the shooting at Kohsar Market in Islamabad. He confessed to the murder, said Pakistan's interior minister, Rehman Malik.
At his first court appearance in Islamabad the guard was showered with rose petals by sympathetic lawyers and hugged by other supporters.
He was remanded in police custody and is due back in court on Thursday on charges of murder and terrorism.
After leaving court he stood next to an armoured police van wearing a garland of flowers given by a supporter and shouted "God is great".
Police are now questioning the rest of Mr Taseer's security detail and are also carrying out an inquiry into the governor's security arrangements. "We will investigate whether it was an individual act or there is some organisation behind it," Mr Malik told a news conference. The BBC's M Ilyas Khan says the questions being asked at the moment are whether the killer acted alone and why other members of Mr Taseer's security team did not try to prevent the assassination. There are few credible explanations as to why the guard was able to empty two magazines of his sub-machine gun at the governor without being shot by his colleagues, our correspondent says. UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, UK Foreign Secretary William Hague and US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton were among those who condemned the killing.
Pakistan's high commissioner to London, Wajid Shamshul Hassan, told the BBC's Newshour programme that Pakistan would not allow itself to "be held hostage by a minority of [radical] religious people".
"We will be tough on them. Unless we get rid of such people in our society... you can't feel that justice will be done."
Mr Taseer had called for a pardon for Pakistani Christian woman, Asia Bibi, who was sentenced to death for insulting the Prophet Muhammad during an argument with other farmhands in a Punjab village in June 2009. She denies the charge.
Critics say the blasphemy law has been used to persecute minority faiths in Pakistan and is exploited by people with personal grudges.
Pakistan's government last week distanced itself from a private member's bill which seeks to amend the law by abolishing its mandatory death sentence.
The death of Mr Taseer - a close associate of President Asif Ali Zardari - is the most high-profile assassination in Pakistan since former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto was killed in December 2007.
The PPP-led government has been under considerable threat in recent times. One of its coalition partners walked out at the weekend.
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is withholding the latest tranche of its $11.3bn loan to Islamabad, while petrol prices have increased sharply and chronic fuel shortages are causing unrest.
Pakistan is also under pressure from the US to move against militants in the tribal areas bordering Afghanistan.
| Famous Person - Death | January 2011 | ['(BBC)'] |
During the 30th Arab League summit held in Tunisia, leaders condemn the United States' claim that the Golan Heights belong to Israel, and stated the establishment of a Palestinian state is essential for stability. | - Arab leaders said on Sunday they would seek a U.N. Security Council resolution against the U.S. decision to recognize Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights and promised to support Palestinians in their bid for statehood.
Arab leaders, long divided by regional rivalries, also ended their annual summit in Tunisia calling for cooperation with non-Arab Iran based on non-interference in each others’ affairs.
Arab leaders who have been grappling with a bitter Gulf Arab dispute, splits over Iran’s regional influence, the war in Yemen and unrest in Algeria and Sudan sought common ground after Washington recognized Israel’s sovereignty over the Golan.
But the abrupt departure from the summit shortly after it began by Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani, who is locked in a row with Saudi Arabia and other Arab states, suggested rivalries were not easily buried. No reason was given for his departure.
“We, the leaders of the Arab countries gathered in Tunisia ... express our rejection and condemnation of the United States decision to recognize Israel’s sovereignty over the Golan,” Arab League Secretary General Ahmed Aboul Gheit said.
He said Arab countries would present a draft resolution to the U.N. Security Council and seek a legal opinion from the International Court of Justice on the U.S. decision. It warned other countries away from following Washington’s lead.
Trump signed a proclamation last week recognizing the Golan Heights as part of Israel, which annexed the area in 1981 after capturing it from Syria in 1967.
Trump’s earlier decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel’s capital also drew Arab condemnation. Palestinians want East Jerusalem as the capital of a future state.
Saudi Arabia’s King Salman bin Abdulaziz told the Arab leaders his country “absolutely rejects” any measures affecting Syria’s sovereignty over the Golan Heights.
Related Coverage
Tunisian President Beji Caid Essebsi said Arab nations needed to ensure the international community understood the centrality of the Palestinian cause to Arab nations.
In their final communique, Arab states renewed support for an Arab peace initiative that offers Israel peace in exchange for withdrawal from all lands occupied in the 1967 war and said they would seek to revive peace talks with the Jewish state.
U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, who also addressed the meeting in Tunis, said any resolution to the Syrian conflict must guarantee the territorial integrity of Syria “including the occupied Golan Heights”.
The Tunis summit brought together the rulers of Saudi Arabia and Qatar for the first time at the same gathering since 2017 when Riyadh and its allies imposed a political and economic boycott on Doha.
But Qatar’s emir left the summit hall shortly after Arab League Secretary-General Ahmed Aboul Gheit praised the way Saudi Arabia handled its rotating Arab League presidency last year, live television footage showed.
Qatar’s state news agency did not say why the Qatari emir left, but Tunisia’s state news agency TAP said the rest of Qatar’s delegation stayed.
Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Egypt accuse Qatar of supporting terrorism and say it has been cozying up to Iran, a charge Doha denies.
The row has defied mediation efforts by Kuwait and the United States, which called on Gulf Arab states to unite in opposition to Iranian influence in the region.
The final communique said Arab states called for ties with Iran to “be based on good neighborliness, non-interference in internal affairs, the non-use of force or threats, and refraining from practices and actions that would undermine confidence and stability in the region.”
Arab states remain divided over other issues, including how to deal with pro-democracy protests that have erupted in the region since 2011. The presidents of Sudan and Algeria, two nations roiled by anti-government protests, did not attend the summit.
Syria’s seat at the summit was vacant. Damascus as been suspended from the League since 2011 over its crackdown on protesters at the start of its civil war. The League has said no consensus has yet been reached to allow Syria’s reinstatement. | Diplomatic Talks _ Diplomatic_Negotiation_ Summit Meeting | March 2019 | ['(Reuters)', '(Al Jazeera)', '(The Washington Post)'] |
The Prime Minister of the United Kingdom Tony Blair announces he will step down on June 27, once the Labour Party has elected a successor. | He made the announcement in a speech to party activists in his Sedgefield constituency, after earlier briefing the Cabinet on his plans.
He acknowledged his government had not always lived up to high expectations but said he had been "very blessed" to lead "the greatest nation on earth". He will stay on in Downing Street until the Labour Party elects a new leader - widely expected to be Gordon Brown.
Mr Brown, who is expected to launch his leadership campaign on Friday, paid tribute to Mr Blair, saying: "I think I spoke for millions when I said at Cabinet today that Tony Blair's achievements are unique, unprecedented and enduring."
I came into office with high hopes for Britain's future, and, you know, I leave it with even higher hopes for Britain's future
Tony Blair
Sketch: Sedgefield send-off
In full: Resignation speech
He said people would remember "how he led the country after 7 July, how he responded for the world after 11 September in America, how he responded to the tragic death of Princess Diana".
He said Mr Blair's legacy would also be better public services and a strong economy adding "Britain's reputation in the world is stronger than ever before. At all times he tried to do the right thing".
US President George W Bush said he would "miss" Mr Blair.
"He is a political figure who is capable of thinking over the horizon. He's a long-term thinker," said Mr Bush. "I have found him to be a man who's kept his word which is sometimes rare in the political circles I run in."
'High expectations'
Earlier, in an emotional speech, Mr Blair said he had been prime minister for 10 years which was "long enough" for the country and himself.
He thanked the British people for their support and apologised for when "I have fallen short".
I think a lot of people will look back on the last 10 years of dashed hopes and big disappointments, of so much promised so little delivered
David Cameron, Conservative leader
Q&A: What happens now?
Analysis: Blair's exit message
It was for others to judge whether he had made mistakes, said Mr Blair, adding: "I have always done what I thought was right."
He said expectations had probably been "too high" in 1997, but he defended his government's record in office.
"There is only one government since 1945 that can say all of the following: more jobs, fewer unemployed, better health and education results, lower crime and economic growth in every quarter. Only one government, this one," he said.
'Right'
On foreign policy, Mr Blair acknowledged the terrorist "blow back" from the "bitterly controversial" invasion of Iraq and Afghanistan and he urged Britain to stay the course in the fight against terror.
"I decided we should stand shoulder to shoulder with our oldest ally, and I did so out of belief," he said of his decision to support America's invasion of Iraq. BLAIR ANNOUNCEMENT
The day in Pictures
"I did what I thought was right for our country," Mr Blair said, summing up his record. "And I came into office with high hopes for Britain's future, and, you know, I leave it with even higher hopes for Britain's future."
In conclusion, he said: "Actually I've been lucky and very blessed. And this country is a blessed nation. "The British are special - the world knows it, in our innermost thoughts we know it. This is the greatest nation on earth."
Brown tribute
Mr Blair was given a standing ovation by around 250 Labour activists and members who had crammed into the tiny bar of Trimdon Labour Club to see him off.
Waving hand-written placards reading "Sedgefield Loves Tony", "10 Great Years", "Thank You" and "Britain is Better", the crowd cheered as Mr Blair embraced his election agent John Burton and wife Cherie.
He has now arrived back in Downing Street after flying back to London.
Labour is later expected to announce a special party conference on 24 June to unveil its next leader.
'Defensive'
Giving his reaction to Mr Blair's speech on his website, Conservative leader David Cameron said: "I think a lot of people will look back on the last 10 years of dashed hopes and big disappointments, of so much promised so little delivered."
Tony Blair would have been remembered as the first British prime minister not to back America if he had not gone to Iraq
Historians' verdicts on Blair
Mr Cameron has said the country faces seven weeks of "paralysis" until Labour chooses a new top team, accusing Mr Blair of running a government of the "living dead".
Lib Dem leader Sir Menzies Campbell said he thought Mr Blair's speech was "defensive, defiant, and even chauvinist at the end talking about Great Britain as being the best country in the world".
Mr Blair's official spokesman insists he will remain "focused" on being prime minister until Labour has chosen his successor - a process expected to last seven weeks.
But with a new prime minister expected to be in place by the beginning of July, attention at Westminster has already shifted to his succession.
Mr Brown is unlikely to face a Cabinet-level challenge for the leadership as all of the likely contenders have ruled themselves out.
Leadership bid
But he could still face a challenge from one of two left wing backbenchers - John McDonnell and Michael Meacher. The pair met on Thursday as planned to see who had the most support, with the idea that the one with the least support stepping aside.
We have grown used to having a leader who is always centre stage
However a press conference after that meeting was cancelled, with the two saying their numbers of backers were "too close to call" and further clarification were needed, with a decision postponed to Monday. Candidates need the signatures of 45 Labour MPs to enter a contest.
Shortly after Mr Blair's announcement, the deputy prime minister and deputy Labour leader John Prescott also announced his intention to stand down.
Six deputy leadership hopefuls are already battling for nominations to enter the race to replace Mr Prescott.
The Liberal Democrats have, meanwhile, tabled a Parliamentary motion urging the Queen to dissolve parliament and call a general election. | Government Job change - Resignation_Dismissal | May 2007 | ['(BBC)'] |
At least 17 army personnel are killed in a fire in an ammunitions depot in the Indian town of Pulgaon, Maharashtra. | Massive fire broke out at an ammunition depot in Maharashtra's Pulgaon last night around 1 am.
Army officer from Kerala killed in the ammunition depot fire.
The injured have been taking to nearby hospital and two of them are said to be in a serious condition. | Fire | May 2016 | ['(The New York Times)', '(NDTV)', '(AFP via ABC News Australia)'] |
In Pakistan, the Sindh High Court orders the release of Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh, initially sentenced to death for the kidnapping and murder of American journalist Daniel Pearl in Karachi in 2002. The government opposes his release on the basis of public safety; both the government and Pearl's family will appeal the decision. | Sheikh was acquitted of murdering Pearl earlier this year, but has been held while Pearl’s family appeals the acquittal.
A provincial court in Pakistan has ordered the release of a British-born Pakistani man charged over the 2002 murder of American journalist Daniel Pearl.
Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh, the key suspect in Pearl’s killing, was acquitted of murder charges earlier this year but has been held while Pearl’s family appeals the acquittal.
On Thursday, the Sindh High Court’s release order overturns a decision by the same court with his lawyer, Mehmood Sheikh, calling for his client’s immediate release.
Sheikh was sentenced to death and three others were sentenced to life in prison for their role in the plot. But in April this year, all four were acquitted.
Thursday’s court order, seen by Al Jazeera, noted that “none of the petitioners are ‘enemy aliens’… and as such their detention under this sub Article of the constitution is found to be illegal and without lawful authority”.
The acquittal is now being appealed separately by both the government and Pearl’s family. The government has opposed Sheikh’s release, saying it would endanger the public.
The Supreme Court will resume its hearing on January 5.
“This detention order has been set aside which only means that they are free until their appeals are decided,” Faisal Siddiqi, the Pearl family’s lawyer, told Al Jazeera, before adding that Sheikh will be freed until the appeal is completed but will be returned to prison if the family is successful in overturning the acquittal.
All four were “detained in jail on a Sindh government detention order, not under the Supreme Court order, pending appeals”, he added.
“I don’t expect them to be released from jail. The Sindh government is appealing today’s order. Moreover, their Supreme Court appeals are fixed for January 5. If the appeals go through, they will go to jail permanently.”
The court order added that all four will be placed on the Exit Control List – which would bar them from leaving the country – until the appeals have been decided by the Supreme Court.
Pearl, the 38-year-old Wall Street Journal reporter from Encino, California was abducted on January 23, 2002.
Sheikh was convicted of helping lure Pearl to a meeting in the southern Pakistani port city of Karachi, in which he was kidnapped.
Pearl had been investigating the link between Pakistani fighters and Richard C Reid, dubbed the “Shoe Bomber” after trying to blow up a flight from Paris to Miami with explosives hidden in his shoes.
A gruesome video of Pearl’s beheading was sent to the US consulate.
In Sheikh’s original trial, emails between Sheikh and Pearl presented in court showed Sheikh gained Pearl’s confidence sharing their experiences as both waited for the birth of their first child.
Additional reporting by Hafsa Adil
At least 260 people died in Pakistan’s worst industrial disaster, which struck a ready-made garments factory in Karachi.
Omar Saeed Sheikh was sentenced to death for masterminding the killing of Wall Street Journal journalist in 2002.
Omar Saeed Sheikh and three alleged accomplices in killing of US journalist to remain in detention for three months. | Famous Person - Commit Crime - Release | December 2020 | ['(Al Jazeera)'] |
Gunmen attack Garissa University College in Kenya, killing at least 140 people and wounding 65 others. | At least 147 people, mostly students, have been killed in an assault by al-Shabab militants on a university in north-eastern Kenya.
Heavily armed attackers stormed Garissa University early on Thursday, killing two security guards then firing indiscriminately on students.
Four of the gunman were eventually surrounded in a dormitory, and died when their suicide vests detonated. It is the deadliest attack yet by al-Shabab. The militants singled out Christians and shot them, witnesses said. More than 500 students managed to escape, 79 of whom were injured. A fifth gunman has reportedly been arrested. Eric Wekesa, a student at Garissa, told Reuters he locked himself in his room before eventually fleeing.
"What I managed to hear from them is 'We came to kill or finally be killed.' That's what they said."
"It was horrible, there was shooting everywhere," another student, Augustine Alanga told the BBC's Newsday programme
He said it was "pathetic" that the university was only guarded by two police officers.
Attack as it happened
Nine critically injured students were airlifted to the capital Nairobi for treatment, disaster management officials said.
But each student had been accounted for by the end of the evacuation.
An overnight curfew has been implemented in Garissa and three other counties in Kenya.
How attack unfolded:
1. Militants enter the university grounds, two guards are shot dead
2. Shooting begins within the campus
3. Students attacked in their classrooms while preparing for exams
4. Gunmen believed isolated in the female dormitories
5. Some students make an escape through the fence
Kenya attack: Wanted man
Who are al-Shabab?
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon condemned what he called a "terrorist attack" and said the UN was ready to help Kenya "prevent and counter terrorism and violent extremism".
The United States said it was offering Nairobi assistance to take on al-Shabab and would continue to work with others in the region to take on the group.
The Kenyan government has named Mohamed Kuno, a high-ranking al-Shabab official, as the mastermind of the attack. Mr Kuno was headmaster at an Islamic school in Garissa before he quit in 2007. Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta offered his condolences to families of the victims and ordered "urgent steps" to ensure police recruits could begin training immediately. "We have suffered unnecessarily due to shortage of security personnel," he said.
Al-Shabab says it attacked the university because it is at war with Kenya, BBC Africa analyst Mary Harper reports.
Kenyan troops entered Somalia in October 2011 in an effort to stop the Islamists from crossing the long, porous border between the two countries and kidnapping people - but their presence achieved the opposite effect, provoking al-Shabab to increase its activity in Kenya, our correspondent adds. The group was behind the Westgate shopping mall attack, when 67 people were killed.
Update 16 November 2015: How the Kenya attacks story went viral after events in Paris, six months on
| Armed Conflict | April 2015 | ['(BBC)', '(AP via News24)', '[permanent dead link]'] |
The government of India announces that Tamil will be the first language recognized as a "classical language" in India. Government ministers add that Sanskrit and other languages could be granted the status, depending on their "heritage and legacy". The Indian government plans to create a center for the study of languages so designated. | New Delhi, Sep 17. (PTI): The Centre today decided to declare Tamil a "classical language", the first to be recognised so in the country. The Union Cabinet, which met this morning, decided to create a new category of "classical languages" and put Tamil in this category. Information and Broadcasting Minister S Jaipal Reddy told reporters after the Cabinet meeting that the Government would consider putting Sanskrit and other languages in this category depending on their "heritage and legacy." An Expert Committee of Sahitya Akademi, which had been set up to look into it, has suggested strict criteria for declaration of languages as classical languages, he said. The declaration would be made through Government notification and there was no need for any change in law, Reddy explained.
The Committee applied the norms fixed by it with regard to Tamil and found it fit to be declared as a classical language, Reddy said adding that this was fulfillment of one of the promises made in the National Common Minimum Programme of the United Progressive Alliance (UPA). Future demand for categorisation of languages as classical would be considered by a Committee of Linguistic Experts in accordance with the criteria, he said, rejecting a suggestion that the decision was taken with a political motive. The government has laid down a four-point criteria for inclusion of languages as classical languages which include high antiquity of its early texts and recorded history of at least a thousand years. The other points included are that the language should have a body of ancient literature or texts which is considered a valuable heritage by generations of speakers. Its literary tradition must be original and not borrowed from another speech community and lastly the classical language and literature should be distinct from modern. There may also be a discontinuity between the classical language and its later forms or its offshoots like Latin Vs Roman, Sanskrit-Pali Vs Prakrits and Modern Indo-Aryan. To a question as to what would be the benefits to the language declared classical, Reddy said that two major international awards would be given annually to scholars of eminence in classical Indian languages. A centre of excellence for studies in classical languages would be set up and the University Grants Commission would be requested to establish a number of Professorial Chairs for Classical Languages for scholars of eminence, he added.
Cities
| Government Policy Changes | September 2004 | ['(Times of India)', '(The Hindu)'] |
French sociologist of science and anthropologist Bruno Latour wins the 2013 Holberg Prize. | Chairman of the Ludvig Holberg Memorial Fund, Sigmund Grønmo, announced the winner in Bergen today, 13 March. The Prize winner will receive the prize at an award ceremony in Håkonshallen in Bergen, Norway on 5 June 2013.
Questions the natural sciences' production of knowledge French anthropologist and sociologist Bruno Latour has been described by the Holberg Prize Academic Committee as a creative, humorous and unpredictable researcher. The Academic Committee justifies the award for this year's Holberg Prize by stating that ‘Bruno Latour has undertaken an ambitious analysis and reinterpretation of modernity, and has challenged fundamental concepts such as the distinction between modern and pre-modern, nature and society, human and non-human. (...) The impact of Latour's work is evident internationally and far beyond studies of the history of science, art history, history, philosophy, anthropology, geography, theology, literature and law.’ Latour is currently Professor at Sciences Po in Paris.
Laboratory life (1979), authored with Steven Woolgar, was the first of a number of pioneering publications that have set the standard for ethnographic analyses of the making of scientific facts. In We have never been modern (1991) Latour questions the absolute division between nature and society, a division that several phenomena in our age, such as e.g. biotechnology, climate change and the HIV/AIDS epidemic, make it difficult to maintain. He claims that this is a division that has never existed in an absolute form and proposes radical new ways of facing this reality.
A strong, public voice In the 1980s Latour, together with colleagues Michel Callon and John Law, developed the ‘Actor Network Theory’ (ANT) as a method. The basic premise is that society consists of a network of actors, where all actors influence and are influenced by the network and each other. His involvement in museum science, aesthetics and the use of digital techniques in the humanities led to spectacular museum exhibitions – Iconoclash (2002) and Making Things Public (2005) – which sparked debate and involvement around subjects related to knowledge and freedom of information.
Since the late 1990s Latour has been involved in the discourse on environmental challenges and climate change, which led to the book Politics of Nature (1999). Here he argues that when modernization has progressed so far that nature rebels, it is time to ‘ecologize’ rather than ‘modernize’. In his latest book Inquiry into Modes of Existence – An Anthropology of the Modern (2012) he pursues this debate further and also launches a digital online counterpart, www.modesofexistence.org, where others may contribute to research.
| Awards ceremony | March 2013 | ['(Le Monde)', '(Aftenposten)', '(Holbergprisen)'] |
Washington Governor Jay Inslee announces he will join the Democratic Party primaries in 2020 and cites fighting climate change as a reason. , | Washington state Gov. Jay Inslee jumped into the 2020 Democratic presidential primary Friday with a promise to put climate change front and center in both his campaign and his potential presidency.
Given the serious risks of rising global temperatures, Inslee told TIME in an interview ahead of his announcement that climate change cannot be one item “on a list of things to do.” He pledged to coordinate an unprecedented effort to tackle the issue.
“Beating climate change has to be the first priority of the United States,” he said. “It has to be the paramount duty. It has to be the organizing principle of the next administration throughout all its agencies.”
The two-term governor, who previously served seven terms in the U.S. House of Representatives, enters a crowded field of candidates, many of whom have better name recognition and more buzz, and he hasn’t featured prominently in Democratic primary polling to date.
But Inslee is betting that voters in early states will be drawn to his record and message on climate change. Inslee pointed to a poll from the Center for American Progress, a progressive group, showing that tackling climate change is a key concern for primary voters in five early voting states, an issue equalled only by universal health care.
To be sure, Democrat candidates all have noted the importance of tackling climate change, but so far none have put it as front and center as Inslee promises to do. Most candidates have endorsed a resolution from the progressive wing of the party calling for a Green New Deal that would seek to supply all of the country’s power by zero-emissions sources by 2030, although some do not necessarily endorse all elements of the plan.
And the topic comes up frequently in speeches and campaign messaging, often as a way of hitting President Donald Trump, who announced in 2017 that the U.S. will leave the Paris Agreement on climate change and previously called climate change a hoax.
Still, none of the other candidates in the field have signaled that climate change will be the centerpiece of their campaign the way that Inslee plans. Inslee will host a series of climate change-related events in Iowa next week before heading to Nevada and California.
Inslee referred to his record on a range of policies from the state’s clean energy standard to a program for electrifying the transportation sector and touted his leadership of an alliance for cities and states to commit to the Paris Agreement. And more than a decade before the Green New Deal entered the national lexicon, Inslee authored a 2007 book calling for a massive spike in government funding for research and development and investment in clean energy that would create so-called green jobs.
While endorsing a Green New Deal has emerged as a litmus test for Democratic presidential candidates hoping to win the support of the party’s progressive wing, some say ranking climate change as the top issue may prove more important down the road.
Scientists say meaningful action on global warming cannot wait — whatever solution a future president may choose to pursue, and an incoming president typically faces a narrow window to burn political capital and enact sweeping new legislation. Trump enacted a tax cut early in his administration, but has struggled to notch legislative victories since then. President Barack Obama chose to put his energy behind the Affordable Care Act early in his presidency rather than his party’s major climate change bill, which passed the House but never received a vote in the Senate.
“You have to be willing to spend your political capital on it,” says Inslee. “I would be willing to do that, and that is the only way this is going to get done.”
Inslee declined to lay out the specific planks of a policy platform, but he said he was looking at a combination of direct investment to stimulate clean technologies and regulations to mandate emissions reductions. Carbon pricing mechanisms should not be taken off the table but are not part of his current thinking, he said, adding that his current work in Washington state will accomplish the same emissions reduction goals as the carbon tax that failed to pass a statewide ballot initiative last year would have.
“Our environmental laws have been extremely successful when we’ve applied them,” he says. “We just haven’t applied them to the most dangerous pollutant at the moment, which is carbon dioxide and methane.” | Government Job change - Election | March 2019 | ['(Time)', '(The New York Times)'] |
Two Tunisian soldiers are killed and two wounded by a roadside bomb while hunting AlQaeda militants in a mountainous region near the Algerian border. , | Two Tunisian soldiers have been killed and at least another two wounded in a roadside explosion near the border with Algeria, the army has said. The incident is the latest in a series of attacks on soldiers pursuing militant Islamists along the border. "Two soldiers were killed... in the hunt for terrorists," army spokesman Mokhtar Ben Nasr said.
North African states have been battling to contain militants since secular regimes were ousted in recent years. The militants - many of them linked to al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) - easily cross the region's porous borders.
In January, 48 foreign workers were killed following a siege at the In Amenas plant in Algeria.
The raid was in response to French-led forces intervening to drive out militant Islamists from the main cities in northern Mali, which borders Algeria. Since the end of April, around 20 security force members in Tunisia have been wounded by mine explosions blamed on the militants, AFP news agency reports.
In the latest attack, a device exploded as an army vehicle was travelling in the remote Doghra area of Mount Chaambi, Mr Ben Nasr said. Mount Chaambi is in rugged terrain close to the Algerian border. A security source in Kasserine, the regional capital, told AFP that one of the wounded soldiers could lose his leg.
Tunisia has had an Islamist-led government since the overthrow of long-serving ruler Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali in January 2011. It has repeatedly accused militant Islamists of threatening Tunisia's stability.
| Armed Conflict | June 2013 | ['(ABC)', '(BBC)'] |
Judges at the International Criminal Court rule that Sudan's president Omar alBashir could face charges of genocide over the War in Darfur. | (CNN) -- Judges at the International Criminal Court ruled Wednesday that Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir may be charged with genocide for his role in a five-year campaign of violence in western Sudan's Darfur region.
Al-Bashir, who remains in office, has already been charged with war crimes and crimes against humanity. Prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo had the genocide charge on his original arrest warrant for al-Bashir, but the pre-trial judges left off the charge when they approved the warrant last March.
Moreno-Ocampo appealed in July, saying that the judges' standard for adding the genocide charge was too high. The appellate court agreed with Moreno-Ocampo and ruled in his favor Wednesday.
The appeals judges said the pre-trial chamber had applied an "erroneous standard of proof" to the genocide charge.
The judges said they were not ruling on whether al-Bashir should be charged with genocide -- only whether the charge could be added to the arrest warrant. They said it will be up to the pre-trial chamber to determine whether to add the charge to the warrant, which could take several weeks.
The International Criminal Court at The Hague, Netherlands, is a permanent, treaty-based tribunal dealing with the most serious crimes against humanity.
It is an independent court that is not part of the United Nations. It is funded primarily by nations, but also receives contributions from governments, corporations and individuals.
Even if genocide is added to the arrest warrant, Moreno-Ocampo still faces a challenge in proving the charges at trial, said Mark Ellis, the executive director of the International Bar Association.
"Genocide is a much more complicated legal position to meet (than war crimes and crimes against humanity), because you have to show in proving genocide that there was a specific intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a group based on -- in this case -- ethnicity or race," Ellis told CNN in July. "Obviously, the prosecutor believes he would be able to prove this intent and so he wants the opportunity to prove that in trial."
The warrant for al-Bashir was the first ever issued by the ICC for a sitting head of state. It currently includes five counts of crimes against humanity, including murder, extermination, forcible transfer, torture and rape. It also includes two charges of war crimes for intentionally directing attacks against civilians and for pillaging.
Al-Bashir has traveled to several countries since the warrant was issued, even though any country that is party to the ICC has an obligation to hand him over to The Hague, the court says.
He openly attended the African Union conference in Ethiopia, which ended this week. Ethiopia is not party to the ICC.
Al-Bashir is the front-runner in an election scheduled to take place in April, and a genocide charge is unlikely to harm his prospects.
A genocide charge could further isolate Sudan, but it could also mobilize African nations around Sudan. Leaders from several African countries have said the ICC has been unfair to Africa, and they have threatened to pull out of the court.
The United Nations estimates that 300,000 people have been killed in the conflict in Darfur, and 2.5 million have been forced from their homes. Sudan denies that the death toll is that high.
The violence in Darfur erupted in 2003 after rebels began an uprising against the Sudanese government. To counter the rebels, Sudanese authorities armed and cooperated with Arab militias that went from village to village in Darfur, killing, torturing and raping residents, according to the United Nations, Western governments and human rights organizations. | Famous Person - Commit Crime - Accuse | February 2010 | ['(The Guardian)', '(CNN)'] |
Belarusian security forces arrest 32 members of the private military company Wagner Group at a sanitarium near Minsk in an overnight raid. All those detained are Russian nationals, according to authorities. President Alexander Lukashenko convenes an emergency meeting with his security council, and instructs the Chairman of the State Security Committee to ask Russia for an official explanation. | Authorities were tipped off that militants planned to destabilise country, according to state news Last modified on Wed 29 Jul 2020 18.54 BST
Belarusian authorities said they have detained dozens of Russian private military contractors days before Belarus’s presidential vote, in a sign of escalating tensions between the two neighbours.
Belarus’s authoritarian president, Alexander Lukashenko, 65, who is seeking a sixth term in office in the 9 August vote, has repeatedly accused Russia of trying to force Belarus to abandon its post-Soviet independence. Throughout his 26-year rule, Lukashenko has relied on Russian subsidies and political support but has fiercely resisted Moscow’s efforts to gain control over the country’s economic assets.
The arrest of dozens of Russians accused of planning to destabilise Belarus during the election campaign pushes political tensions between the countries to a new high. Some observers see the move as a campaign stunt by Lukashenko.
The Belarus state news agency, BelTA, said 32 members of Russia’s Wagner private military company had been detained overnight at a sanitarium outside Minsk by a Swat team from the Belarusian state security committee, still known by its Soviet-era name, KGB. Another person was detained in the country’s south, said BelTA, which published a list of the detained Russians.
Yulia Goncharova, the spokeswoman for Belarus’s top investigative agency, the Investigative Committee, confirmed the detentions but did not comment further.
Lukashenko called a meeting of his security council and instructed the KGB chief to ask Russia for an official explanation. “It’s necessary to immediately ask the relevant Russian structures to explain what’s going on,” he said.
The Russian embassy in Belarus had no immediate comment on the report, saying it had not received official information about the detentions from the Belarusian authorities.
BelTA said that Belarusian law enforcement agencies were acting on a tip that more than 200 militants had arrived in Belarus on a mission to destabilise the country during the election campaign.
Alexander Alesin, an independent Minsk-based military expert, said that Belarus had long provided a transit corridor for sensitive Russian operations abroad.
“The Russians have used Belarus to deploy special troops to other countries for many years,” Alesin said. “The Belarusian security agencies knew all about it and until recently they offered help and assistance to the Russians.”
The Wagner company, linked to Yevgeny Prigozhin, a Russian businessman who has been indicted by the US for meddling in the 2016 presidential election, has allegedly deployed hundreds of military contractors to Syria and Libya.
Alesin said the detentions appear to be part of Lukashenko’s efforts to mobilise support before the vote.
“The authorities are using Wagner members to scare people before the vote by inventing a thriller about Russian militants,” Alesin said. “The footage of the detentions looks silly: If the 33 Wagner people were indeed planning to stage riots they wouldn’t have worn combat fatigues and T-shirts with the word ‘Russia’ and stayed all in one place.”
He added that the Belarusian leader may also have wanted to vent his anger with the Kremlin: “With the detentions, Lukashenko also wants to show Russia its place as relations with the Kremlin have worsened after Russia sharply cut its subsidies.”
Lukashenko, the former state farm director, has ruled the ex-Soviet nation of 9.5 million with an iron hand, cracking down on dissent and free media and extending his rule through votes the west has criticised as rigged.
He is expected to easily win re-election on 9 August despite a wave of opposition protests fuelled by public fatigue with his rule and a painful economic fallout from the coronavirus pandemic. | Famous Person - Commit Crime - Accuse | July 2020 | ['(The Guardian)'] |
A sixth person dies in the People's Republic of China from the Influenza A virus subtype H7N9, after the closure of poultry markets in the city of Shanghai and a mass culling of 20,000 birds. | A monitor screen shows a patient suffering from the H7N9 bird flu strain receiving treatment at a hospital in Hangzhou
China confirmed a sixth death from a lesser known H7N9 strain of the bird flu virus, Friday. About 14 people infected with the deadly virus remained critically ill even as the authorities slaughtered over 20,000 birds at the Shanghai?poultry market.
State news agency Xinhua said the Huhuai market for live birds in Shanghai had been shut down after the authorities late Thursday detected the H7N9 virus in live pigeons in the market. Authorities also suspended operations in another two markets in the city as a precautionary measure.
All the reported infections of H7N9 avian influenza virus were in eastern China. The first cases were reported Sunday by the health authorities who announced two deaths from the infection in Shanghai in Jiangsu province. Xinhua said six cases have been confirmed in Shanghai, four in Jiangsu, three in Zhejiang and one in Anhui.
A 64-year-old man in Zhejiang province was the latest victim to the virus that had never been passed to humans before,?Xinhua reported Friday. Most of the infected had direct contact with poultry and were butchers, breeders or transporters of poultry.
Health officials believe the victims contracted the deadly virus strain directly from the live poultry and its ability to spread among humans is yet to be confirmed. However, the scientists are closely monitoring the situation to see if the new flu poses a threat to the public health or could spark a global pandemic, the Associated Press reported.
The virus was found in samples of pigeons that were being sold for meat in the Shanghais market. Chinese authorities Friday culled all the birds in the poultry market to control further infection. Certain species of pigeons are consumed as meat by the Chinese and live pigeons are sold in the markets across the country.
Experts have warned the new virus has the potential to be a greater threat as it can infect birds without causing the disease, making it harder to detect than the familiar H5N1 bird flu virus.
"In the past usually you would see chickens dying before any infections occurred in humans, but this time we've seen that many species of poultry actually have no apparent problems, so that makes it difficult because you lose this natural warning sign," said David Hui, an infectious diseases expert at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, AP reported. ?
Although there is no known vaccine for the new H7N9 virus, preliminary test results suggest the new flu strain responds to treatment with Roche's drug Tamiflu and GSK's Relenza, according to the WHO.
Markets Tumble Over New Bird Flu Concern
Panic over the new strain of virus infections affecting the local economy sent the Hong Kong shares to a four-month-low in early trade Apr.5.
"The bird flu issue is at the top of people's minds now," said Alfred Chan, chief dealer at Cheer Pearl Investment in Hong Kong, Reuters reported.
The news bird flu outbreak is feared to adversely affect the poultry and tourism allied sectors in China. Several consumers told Reuters that they are keeping away from the poultry markets after reports of mounting death toll.
"I'm only getting my groceries at the large supermarkets now because I don't think it is safe to visit the wet markets anymore," 38-year-old homemaker Shao Linxia said, adding that she has also stopped buying poultry since news of the bird flu surfaced. | Disease Outbreaks | April 2013 | ['(International Business Times)'] |
Iain Banks posts an update on his cancer battle for the first time since announcing his impending death. | Iain Banks, who announced his diagnosis with gall bladder cancer in April, has posted another update to fans, in which he ruminates on everything from his new car to the possibility of chemotherapy.
The bestselling Scottish novelist has been the recipient of an outpouring of goodwill and support from his readers since he told them in early April that he was "officially very poorly". In a new message to fans, posted online yesterday, he said that his bilirubin level is continuing to fall, and that he has an appointment for a CT scan at the end of the month.
"If my bilirubin is below 50 – and if the tumours have behaved themselves – then chemotherapy will be an option, with these new CT results forming the base line for measuring the improvements chemo might provide," wrote Banks. "If the scan shows the tumours have been over-enthusiastic during the last couple of months, then – as I understand it – chemo would be pointless. Assuming it is an option I'll probably try chemo and see how I react, but if it wipes me out each time I shan't be persevering."
In the meantime, as well as fitting in a holiday on "(mostly) sunny" Barra, Banks has been letting other writers and artists know what they mean to him, with "what was basically a fan letter" sent to Alasdair Gray, "telling him how much his work has meant to me", and "something very similar" conveyed to M John Harrison.
He has also – after six years car-free to reduce his "carbon hoof-print" – bought a six-year-old BMW M5, "so I am back to scudding round the Highland roads again with a big grin on my fizzog (well, when I can grin, and the acceleration/braking force isn't distorting my face like somebody taking part in an early Nasa rocket sled experiment)".
And he is continuing to read the posts left for him by fans on the site, and is "still knocked out by the love and the depth of feeling coming from so many people". "Thank you, all of you," he said. "A few posts with unlikely-sounding cures get skimmed and an even smaller number skipped, following mention of one or more religious Arooga! terms, but together they account for less than one percent of the total."
Banks said he wished he could reply to everyone individually, but he doesn't have the time, so will only comment if there is something factually wrong mentioned. "So far the only point I can remember is one where an ex-neighbour of ours recalled (in an otherwise entirely kind and welcome comment) me telling him, years ago, that my SF novels effectively subsidised the mainstream works. I think he's just misremembered, as this has never been the case," wrote Banks.
"Until the last few years or so, when the SF novels started to achieve something approaching parity in sales, the mainstream always out-sold the SF – on average, if my memory isn't letting me down, by a ratio of about three or four to one. I think a lot of people have assumed that the SF was the trashy but high-selling stuff I had to churn out in order to keep a roof over my head while I wrote the important, serious, non-genre literary novels. Never been the case, and I can't imagine that I'd have lied about this sort of thing, least of all as some sort of joke. The SF novels have always mattered deeply to me – the Culture series in particular – and while it might not be what people want to hear (academics especially), the mainstream subsidised the SF, not the other way round. And … rant over."
The author's new novel, The Quarry, is out on 20 June and is, according to its publisher, "a virtuoso performance whose soaring riffs on the inexhaustible marvel of human perception and rage against the dying of the light will stand among Iain Banks's greatest work". | Famous Person - Sick | May 2013 | ['(The Guardian)'] |
Thousands of pro-democracy demonstrators clash with police in the Mong Kok district as they try to reclaim their former protest site. | HONG KONG (Reuters) - Thousands of pro-democracy activists clashed with police in running scuffles in Hong Kong’s gritty Mong Kok district early on Saturday in a bid to reclaim part of one of the city’s largest and most volatile protest sites.
After a tense standoff lasting hours, chaos erupted as hundreds of riot police baton-charged demonstrators with shields, pepper spraying and wrestling a string of them to the ground.
The clampdown only stoked more protests, and a three-hour march by hundreds of people calling for “real full democracy” helped put the city’s 28,000-strong police force further on edge.
Bands of roving protesters stalked the streets deep into the night amid a wail of sirens, sometimes pelting police with eggs, bottled water and wooden boards. Police, some bleeding, lashed out liberally with their batons to keep crowds back.
The fresh tensions came as authorities have struggled for months to find a resolution to the most serious governance crisis in the former British colony since it returned to Chinese rule in 1997.
Unrest has simmered for three straight nights since a swift and surprisingly smooth police clearance of Mong Kok’s main protest encampment on Wednesday that resulted in over a hundred arrests including student leaders Joshua Wong and Lester Shum.
Amnesty International on Friday warned the police against the use of excessive force after Wong and Shum both said they were beaten during their arrests. Several reporters were also roughed up, prompting the Hong Kong Journalists Association to lodge a formal complaint and plan a Saturday protest.
“Is there a need to really use so much force to beat us,” said Wong Ching-san, a young protester wearing a black jacket and flip flops. “We’re not trying to cause violence but when they attack us we fight back.”
Medical volunteers manning first aid stations treated scores of injured including those with head injuries, grazes and others who’d been pepper sprayed in the eyes.
A pro-democracy lawmaker who observed the clashes, Leung Yiu-chung, criticized the lack of restraint by some police.
“Some of them were deliberately inciting people,” he said.
It has been two months since police first fired tear gas to disperse demonstrators from the main protest site in the Admiralty district next to government offices in the heart of the Asian financial center.
The protests, which have lasted well beyond many people’s expectations, drew more than 100,000 on to the streets of Hong Kong at the peak. While numbers have dwindled, they have swelled to several thousand at weekends and at key moments given a deep-rooted frustration at China and Hong Kong’s refusal to in any way offer to meet their democratic demands.
A police spokesman said on Friday officers were worried about reports of excessive force and would investigate.
Lined with jewellery and electronics shops, and grimy tenement blocks, bustling Mong Kok has been a key battleground for hardcore protesters and mobs intent on disbanding them.
The protesters, mostly students, are demanding full democracy. They have called on the city’s embattled leader, Leung Chun-ying, to step down after Beijing in August ruled out free elections for Hong Kong’s next leader in 2017, despite constitutional promises made by China to allow eventual universal suffrage in the city of 7.3 million.
China rules Hong Kong under a “one country, two systems” formula that accords the former British colony a degree of autonomy and freedoms not enjoyed in mainland China, with universal suffrage set as an eventual goal.
Editing by Susan Fenton and Tom Brown
| Riot | November 2014 | ['(Reuters)'] |
For failure to deal with the recent wildfires the head of Russia's forestry agency is fired by Vladimir Putin and replaced with his deputy. | Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin has sacked the head of the forestry agency for failing to deal adequately with the recent wildfires.
The fires have destroyed hundreds of thousands of hectares of countryside, and shrouded Moscow in dense smog.
Mr Putin replaced Alexei Savinov with his deputy, Viktor Maslyakov.
However, some Russian critics say Mr Putin should share the blame, having pushed through a law decentralising the protection of Russia's forests.
Russia's forests cover 809 million hectares (two billion acres) - twice the size of the European Union landmass.
Critics say the law rushed through the Russian parliament in 2006 on Mr Putin's orders deprived the forestry agency of important powers to oversee them.
More than 50 people died in the fires triggered by the most severe heat wave ever recorded in Russia.
During the recent crisis Mr Savinov had faced criticism that he kept a low profile and had failed to make efficient use of government funds allocated for fire prevention.
On Friday President Dmitry Medvedev lifted a state of emergency in the regions around Moscow, Nizhny Novgorod and Mordovia.
Heavy rain has brought respite to the capital with temperatures falling from 32C (89.6F) to 9C (48F) in two days.
However, the fires have badly hit Russia grain crops and Moscow's top health official said the acrid smoke doubled the city's normal death rate.
Emergencies Minister Sergei Shoigu said the cost of extinguishing the fires and replacing houses destroyed by the flames had reached 12bn roubles ($394m; £253m). | Government Job change - Resignation_Dismissal | August 2010 | ['(BBC)'] |
About 300 demonstrators attempt to storm the Oregon State Capitol during a special legislative session closed to the public, but they are warded off by the Oregon State Police. The group, which called for reopening Oregon in the wake of COVID-19 mitigation measures, included members of groups such as Proud Boys and Patriot Prayer. | This story was updated at 8:30 p.m.
Monday’s special session at the Oregon Capitol was slightly disrupted as protestors —who appeared to oppose policies closing certain businesses to slow the spread of the coronavirus — tried in vain to get into a largely-empty Capitol.
Throughout the day, organizers broke glass doors on the west side of the Capitol building, tore tarps from the marble reliefs on the front steps, and engaged in a brief standoff with Oregon State Police and Salem Police Department officers. More than 100 protesters joined in the efforts, including members of Patriot Prayer, a far-right, Washington-based group led by Joey Gibson.
State police arrested four organizers during the six-hour rally — and are looking for a man who tried to break in and attacked two reporters, officials said.
"We're standing up for our constitutional rights to be here for this legislative hearing and for our rights to re-open the state of Oregon," said protester Crystal Wagner.
"Why are they having a legislative hearing without the people?" Wagner said. "We are the people, we are the taxpayers. We're here to fight for our democracy."
Aside from dozens of police officers from Salem and OSP, lawmakers, some staff and reporters were the only ones permitted inside the building due to COVID-19 precautions.
Capitol staff set up televisions outside of the building for people to monitor the proceedings inside, state police officials said.
Oregon State Police said at about 8:30 a.m. several protestors entered the building after the door was opened by a person leaving.
As police asked the protesters to leave and tried to keep them from entering the main area of the Capitol, "the altercation became physical," officials said.
A protester sprayed a "chemical irritant" into the vestibule. OSP troopers, dressed in tactical gear, responded with inert pepper balls, though it is unclear how many were fired.
State police declared the protest an unlawful assembly shortly after 9 a.m. and said organizers could be arrested on the grounds of disorderly conduct and criminal trespassing.
Two hours later, state police and Salem police started to push people out of the Capitol. Bear spray was used against police.
Ryan Lyles, 41, was arrested and faces charges of felon in possession of body armor and unlawful use of mace, according to OSP.
During the confrontation, protesters also deployed a device that emitted smoke, state police officials said.
Ronald Vanvlack, 75, and Jerry Dyerson, 53, who remained in the vestibule, were arrested and charged with criminal trespass and disorderly conduct.
Just before 11 a.m., a few protesters unlocked the gated fence surrounding the Capitol steps. Once unlocked, several protesters began to remove the tarp covering the two marble reliefs that were defaced during the first week of protests this summer.
"I'm very proud of everybody that showed up today," protester David Klaus said to the crowd. "We accomplished two very important things ... We put the fear of God in the citizens of our state. They know we're not messing around anymore.
"Number two: We shamed the traitorous law enforcement officers that kept us out of our house," Klaus said. "They made their choice today — what happens next is on them."
At 1:30 p.m. a group of protesters smashed glass doors on the west end of the Capitol, trying to enter the building. Oregon State Police arrested Jeremiah Pruitt, 35, in connection to the vandalism. He was charged with criminal mischief and disorderly conduct.
While protesters were swarming the doors, a Statesman Journal photographer was repeatedly shoved by a group of protesters for capturing the incident. The photographer was capturing organizers ramming into and breaking the glass doors.
State police identified Jeremy Roberts, 40, as the man who allegedly tried to smash the glass doors and attacked two reporters. State troopers are still looking for Roberts.
At one point, a fire alarm was triggered but was later found to be a false alarm.
A short time later, there was a brief standoff between protesters and police department officers in SWAT gear at the intersection of Court and Capitol streets NE.
"Do what's right," one protester said to the officers. "You can stand with us."
Inside the Capitol, State Sen. Shemia Fagan, D-Portland – who will be sworn in as Secretary of State come January – passed through the hallway a short distance away from where protestors were confronting police.
“It’s unnerving,” Fagan said. “It doesn’t feel normal. And it feels really sad."
Court Street NE beginning at 12th Street was closed to traffic in front of the Capitol but was reopened by around 2:30 p.m.
The crowd mostly dispersed when afternoon showers began, with only about 15 people remaining on Capitol grounds by 3:30 p.m. | Riot | December 2020 | ['(The Daily Beast)', '(Statesman Journal)'] |
The Local Coordination Committees of Syria report that the Syrian army has bombed a gas station in the town of Ain Issa in northern Syria, killing at least 30 people and wounding dozens more. | BEIRUT The Syrian military bombed a gas station in the town of Ain Issa in northern Syria on Thursday, killing at least 50 people and wounding dozens more, the opposition Local Coordination Committees network reported. Ain Issa is about 30 miles from a border crossing with Turkey that was overrun by rebel fighters Wednesday. The air raid Thursday could have been carried out by the Syrian military in retaliation for that defeat, activists said. A correspondent with the opposition Shaam News Network (SNN), reporting from the nearby city of Raqqah, said the gas station was attacked because the rebel Free Syrian Army had taken control in the area. “It’s a massacre,” Salar al-Kurdi, the SNN reporter, said in an interview with Dubai-based al-Aan TV. “Their only fault is that the Free Syrian Army dominated this region and liberated it.”
A video of the aftermath of the attack shows roughly half a dozen mangled and burning cars and trucks at the gas station, with thick black smoke spewing into the air. Another video shows debris and flesh scattered around the gas station along with craters that appear to have been caused by explosions. A third video shows at least four charred corpses wrapped in blankets and sheets at the gas station as a man denounces Syria’s president, shouting, “Bashar al-Assad, the traitor who attacks civilians!”
Government security forces prevented anyone from entering or leaving a hospital in Raqqah where people wounded in the attack had been taken, perhaps a sign that they suspect some of the wounded are rebel fighters, the Local Coordination Committees (LCC) reported. Security was also ramped up in the city, with snipers positioning themselves on the roof of a local police headquarters, the group said.
Earlier in the day, a helicopter crashed on the outskirts of Damascus after clipping the tail of a passenger plane, state television reported. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based opposition group, asserted that the helicopter was shot down by rebel forces. The Syrian military continued Thursday to heavily shell a number of Damascus suburbs, including Hajar al-Aswad, which was the target of an intense government assault Wednesday that left at least 30 people dead, according to the LCC. Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi held talks Wednesday with Assad and told him that an attack on Syria would also be an attack on Iran and Hezbollah, the Lebanese Shiite political party and militant group. Iran and Hezbollah are Syria’s closest allies in the region.
The solution to the conflict can come only from “Syria and within the Syrian family,” Salehi said, according to the official Syrian Arab News Agency.
Ahmed Ramadan contributed to this report.
| Armed Conflict | September 2012 | ['(The Washington Post)', '(USA Today)'] |
In netball, Australia defeats New Zealand 58–55 in the final of the Netball World Cup in Sydney. | AUSTRALIA coach Lisa Alexander has lauded the way her players handled the pressure of a home World Cup after the Diamonds’ thrilling title win on Sunday.
The Diamonds held off arch rivals New Zealand to claim their third consecutive Netball World Cup crown with a 58-55 win in front of a packed Allphones Arena in Sydney.
After a shock loss to the Silver Ferns on day three of the tournament, the Diamonds exacted revenge when it mattered to claim Australia’s 11th world title.
The result gave the Diamonds Commonwealth Games and World Cup victories in consecutive years for the first time in 16 years.
Australia made a statement in a blistering 16-7 opening quarter, but had to fend off a late fightback from the Silver Ferns, who got as close as three goals late in the final quarter.
The Diamonds last year scored a dominant 18-goal win over the Ferns to claim their first Commonwealth Games gold in 12 years. Alexander said this win was a greater achievement.
“There is nothing harder in sport than being able to repeat success. Not only that, at a World Cup that was enormously difficult at home, it actually is harder,’’ she said.
“This World Cup has shown how competitive, particularly the top four are. “I have never wanted to say that before this time, but if I’m completely honest with you, it was much more difficult than Comm Games.”
The Diamonds’ victory, which follows World Cup title wins in 2007 and 2011, delivered Victorian goal defence Julie Corletto the perfect send-off in the final game.
Australia was again spearheaded by goal shooter Caitlin Bassett, who finished with 48 goals from 51 attempts.
Australian captain Laura Geitz said it meant “everything” to lead the Diamonds to a home World Cup title.
“It’s just bloody sensational,” Geitz said in the joyous aftermath of the win.
Geitz, 27, said she would take time to enjoy the win before making a decision on her playing future. “I am just going to enjoy this moment and people say that you know when it’s right ... we’ll go out and enjoy tonight and whatever will be, will be,” she said.
The only change to the Diamonds’ starting line-up that lost to New Zealand seven days earlier was Corletto starting at goal defence instead of Sharni Layton.
By the halfway mark of the first quarter, the Diamonds had opened up a 9-4 lead, prompting an early time-out from the Silver Ferns to regroup, but the tactic didn’t work.
Maria Tutaia (38/53) starred in New Zealand’s earlier win against Australia, but Corletto wore her like a glove early as the Ferns’ ace shot at a shaky 4/8 in the first quarter.
Powerful midcourter Kim Green gave Australia plenty of drive as the Diamonds extended their lead to 12 goals in the second quarter before the Ferns closed the margin to eight goals at halftime.
As they have done throughout the tournament, the Silver Ferns made a change in defence for the start of the second half, bringing on veteran Leana de Bruin at goal defence in place of Katrina Grant.
New Zealand kept coming with midcourt general Laura Langman starting to dominate in the centre and Tutaia lifting her influence. But the Diamonds were resolute, with a big final quarter from Medhurst important. | Sports Competition | August 2015 | ['(Fox Sports Australia)'] |
Cobalt Air suddenly announces its dissolution, cancelling all future operations and leaving many passengers stranded in Cyprus. | Low-cost airline Cobalt has cancelled all flights from midnight Wednesday according to a statement on its website.
The carrier, which has operated flights in and out of Cyprus since 2016 - including flying UK holiday-makers to the island - has suspended operations.
Local media said Cobalt had failed to reach a deal with a potential new investor.
The Cyprus Mail said the airline's main backer is China's Avic Joy Air.
The airline's statement said future flights would not operate due to "indefinite suspension of Cobalt's operations", and advised passengers not to go to the airport.
They should contact their credit card provider or travel agent instead, it added.
It is not yet clear how many passengers have been affected, but nine flights had been scheduled to arrive and nine to depart from Larnaca airport on Thursday. It flew to 23 destinations in Europe - including Heathrow, Stansted, Gatwick and Manchester in the UK - as well as Russia and the Middle East. Passengers reacted with concern on Twitter.
Cypriot Transport Minister Vassiliki Anastassiadou said the government would pay for tickets to help travellers get back to where they started from, but stressed it would only cover return tickets.
She said telephone numbers would be announced soon to help passengers stranded either in Cyprus or overseas.
The fate of Cobalt's 200 staff is unclear. Last year, Cobalt said it had carried 740,000 passengers in its first 16 months of operation. By contrast, Europe's biggest airline Lufthansa carried about 130 million people last year. Before 2016, short-haul flights out of Cyprus were dominated by state-controlled Cyprus Airways. But it collapsed, which left room for the new operator.
Danish budget carrier Primera Air ceased trading earlier this month after 14 years of operation.
Passengers stranded as airline collapses
But the drug-maker faces hefty fines if it fails to supply doses of Covid-19 vaccine over the summer. | Organization Closed | October 2018 | ['(BBC)'] |
At least 3 people are killed in a shooting at the Jewish Museum of Belgium in Brussels, Belgium. | A gunman has shot dead two men and a woman at the Jewish Museum in the Belgian capital Brussels.
A fourth person was seriously wounded, emergency services said.
The attacker arrived by car, got out, fired on people at the museum entrance, and returned to the vehicle which then sped away, Belgian media report.
One person has been arrested and police are hunting a second, officials say. Security has been tightened at Jewish sites across Belgium.
Prime Minister Elio Di Rupo said all Belgians were "united and show solidarity in the face of this odious attack on a Jewish cultural site".
Belgian public prosecutor's spokeswoman Ine Van Wymersch told a news conference that one suspect had been detained at the wheel of his car, although there was no proven connection to the attack. A second suspect was still being sought, who was thought to have fled on foot, she added.
Foreign Minister Didier Reynders, who was one of the first people to arrive at the scene, said he arrived at the scene shortly after the shooting.
"I heard bursts of gunfire, rushed here and saw the bodies on the ground," he said.
The gunman arrived at the museum at around 15:50 (13:50 GMT) carrying a backpack and opened fire before fleeing in an Audi, local media report.
They say one eyewitness may have made a note of the number plate and given it to police.
Brussels Mayor Yvan Mayeur said three men and a woman had been caught up in what he thought was probably a "terrorist act". "It's clearly extremely serious," he was quoted as saying, "and on the Jewish Museum too, which isn't a coincidence".
Eyewitness Alain Sobotik told AFP news agency he had seen two bodies in the lobby of the museum.
One was "a young woman with her head covered in blood", he said. "She was holding a leaflet and looked like a tourist."
Interior Minister Joelle Milquet said everything pointed to an anti-Semitic attack. Belgium has a Jewish population of some 42,000, about half of whom live in the capital.
Jewish community leader Julien Klener agreed the motive was probably anti-Semitic: "The assumption, and it is an assumption, is that it was someone who didn't try to target the museum but the adjective 'Jewish'".
A number of people were treated for shock after the shooting in the central Sablon area of the city.
Mr Di Rupo expressed his condolences and support for the victims' families.
Anti-Semitism 'on rise in Europe'
Belgium country profile | Armed Conflict | May 2014 | ['(BBC)'] |
In football, Real Madrid defeats Juventus 4–1. The Spanish team becomes the first to win back-to-back titles since the competition became known as the Champions League, and to win their 12th title in the competition. | No club had ever won the UEFA Champions League in consecutive seasons since it had been rebranded and revamped from the European Cup in 1992. Indeed, nobody had done it in either incarnation of the competition since AC Milan won it in 1989 and 1990. And no other club had been European champions a dozen times before.
Real Madrid pulled off both on Saturday, beating Juventus 4-1 in a scintillating final in Cardiff, Wales.
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Cristiano Ronaldo scored a pair of goals for Real – his 11th and 12th of the competition, 104th and 105th in Europe all time to extend his own record and the 599th and 600th of his club and international careers. Those goals, a deflected Casemiro shot and a late Marco Asensio tally overwhelmed Mario Mandzukic’s wonder goal for Juventus. And that made it three Real Champions League titles in four years and a dozen overall. No other club has more than seven (AC Milan).
Juventus already held the record for most lost Champions League finals with six. This seventh defeat was also its fifth in a row – 1997, ’98, ’03, ’15, ’17 – and its second in three years. Juve’s iconic 39-year-old goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon has now lost three finals with the club in his storied career.
Going into the game, even casual fans understood that there was every chance that this final would be regressive, cagey and, well, boring. That’s how big finals very often go. That’s how Jose Mourinho’s Manchester United secured the Europa League trophy a week earlier. With a cynical game plan that ruthlessly capitalized on the attacking intent of the opposition. “Poets don’t win many titles,” the Portuguese serial title-winner declared after the game, in his signature blend of brazenness and quotability.
But neither Real manager Zinedine Zidane, one of the finest playmakers in the game’s history, nor his Juve counterpart Max Allegri, who is utterly un-Italian in his aesthetic soccer sensibilities, heeded that received wisdom. If this Juventus is famous for its impregnable defense, it also boasts an attacking machinery rivaled by few clubs in the world. Real Madrid, of course, excels on both fronts.
Juventus made a surprisingly aggressive start, highlighted by a Gonzalo Higuain dribble through the middle. His lashed shot at Keylor Navas’s goal was scrambled up on the second attempt by the Costa Rican goalkeeper.
appears Higuain is in the mood.. pic.twitter.com/HKMAHjd3cF
— amadí ???? (@amadoit__) June 3, 2017
Navas prevented an early Juventus goal a second time in the sixth minute, when an extended Juve attack pinned Real back and eventually presented Miralem Pjanic with a half-volley. Navas got to it in spite of the speed and spin on the ball.
There was a temerity and a joy to Juve’s play that we’ve not historically expected from Italian teams, especially not in big finals. Paulo Dybala backheel-nutmegging an opponent in his own half, for instance, suggested that for its defensive stoutness Allegri’s Juventus side has evolved into something un-Italian. Something post-Italian, perhaps.
OHHHHHH DYBALA ???????????? pic.twitter.com/TkqoH5M80x
— Ramseyologist (@Wayne_Writes) June 3, 2017
But Real wouldn’t be Real if it didn’t capitalize on its vast experience with high-stakes games like this and convert its one early chance. Ronaldo, defended ever so tightly until then, received the ball outside the box in the 20th minute, hit the overlapping Dani Carvajal on his right and got it back in the pocket between Juve’s lines he opened up by slowing his run.
He slotted his low shot into the far corner, past the sprawling Buffon.
WATCH: Cristiano Ronaldo does the honors (again) in a #UCLfinal for Real Madrid (via @FoxSoccer) https://t.co/v0Kl69m1q1
— Planet Fútbol (@si_soccer) June 3, 2017
Real Madrid takes a 1-0 lead in the #UCLfinal: – 16 seconds– 8 passes– 7 players– 1 Ronaldo goal pic.twitter.com/AcxHwDhcbC
— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) June 3, 2017
That made Ronaldo the first player to score in three Champions League finals – after he’d scored five times in the quarterfinals against Bayern Munich and three times against Atletico Madrid in the semis, mind you. It was also only the second goal conceded by Juve in the knockout stage.
For the skill and team choreography in that Real goal, however, there was no competing with Juve’s equalizer seven minutes later, in the 27th. Few such goals were ever scored when a European title was on the line, or indeed any other time.
Alex Sandro volleyed in a cross from deep on the Pjanic long ball. Higuain chested it and kept it in the air for Mandzukic, who chested it as well, and then bicycle kicked it over Navas and into the net just under the upright before it ever touched the ground.
Have you EVER seen a better goal in a #UCLfinal? Take a bow, Juventus. ???????????? https://t.co/FURVvwOHMD
— FOX Soccer (@FOXSoccer) June 3, 2017
here's the buildup to that goal. the ball. never. touches. the. ground. pic.twitter.com/1YDZCALJkd
— amadí ???? (@amadoit__) June 3, 2017
It was a goal of a beauty not seen in the European title game since Zidane himself volleyed Real to the Champions League trophy in the 2002 final. The Frenchman, by the way, won his third European title with the club – one as a player and two in just a season and a half as manager.
Juventus seemed to abandon its attacking intent in the second half, though, initially taking a cagier approach that, for a while, turned the game into a festival of hard tackles. But Real, which had controlled possession in the first half, seized the edge in chances in the second half as well, as the Spaniards lay siege to Buffon’s penalty area.
Just after the hour, Casemiro unleashed a speculative long shot. It took a savage deflection off Sami Khedira’s heel, imparting a tight spin that swirled the ball just out of Buffon’s range.
Casemiro with the blast. Khedira with the deflection. Buffon beaten. #UCLfinal https://t.co/V2k1pDnsyQ
— FOX Soccer (@FOXSoccer) June 3, 2017
And three minutes later, the deed was done as Ronaldo got his second. The outstanding Luka Modric reached the back line and managed to cut the ball back into the Portuguese’s path. He had spotted a seam in Juve’s typically tight three-man back line, met the ball and cleanly redirected it into the net.
Ronaldo's second goal of the game and 12th of this #UCL season gives Real a 2-goal lead! Game over? #UCLfinal https://t.co/pgmczPC7wZ
— FOX Soccer (@FOXSoccer) June 3, 2017
Juve’s re-commitment to pushing forward following the third goal was too long in waiting and ultimately toothless. And whatever venom was left in a side seemingly aware that it was already beaten seeped away when Juan Cuadrado managed to get himself sent off with a second yellow card in the 85th minute, after coming on in the second half.
In the 90th minute, Marco Asensio confirmed this with a fourth Real goal, finishing off a clever bit of play from Marcelo.
Marco Asensio goal – 4-1 Real Madrid #uclfinal2017 pic.twitter.com/5rxpvMYmyG
— Chi-City (@thevvindycity) June 3, 2017
Real, again, was the deserving European champion. And now that it has almost twice as many continental crowns as any other club, there can be no doubt about the identity of the most successful soccer team in the world – as if any remained. Just as Ronaldo confirmed his greatness, should it not have already been established well before Saturday.
Europe has a new soccer champion. Same as the old champion.
Leander Schaerlaeckens is a Yahoo Sports soccer columnist. Follow him on Twitter @LeanderAlphabet.
Jane Curtin and Laraine Newman, stars of Saturday Night Live when the show was in its infancy, appeared on Watch What Happens Live With Andy Cohen Thursday, where they spoke about the fight between Bill Murray and Chevy Chase in 1978. After leaving the show, Chase had returned to host. Murray and Chase exchanged some deeply hurtful words following dress rehearsal, which soon resulted in a physical altercation just minutes before Chase took the stage to deliver the monologue. “I think Jane and I, and Gilda both witnessed it,” Newman said. “But, ya know, it was very sad and painful and awful.” “It was that sad kind of tension that you would get in a family,” Curtin added, “and everybody goes to their corners because they don't want to have to deal with the tension, and it was uncomfortable. You could understand, you know, there were these two bull mooses (sic) going at each other, so the testosterone was surging and stuff happens.”
Sam Presti wins again.
The Warriors need luck in regards to getting the fourth selection, and then they need this player to be available ...
The G.O.A.T. is serving some serious summertime vibes ahead of the Olympics.
In a clip from the series “Covid and the Vaccine: Truth, Lies and Misconceptions Revealed” making the rounds on social media Thursday, the former Utah Jazz guard brags about his supposed expertise on the coronavirus pandemic. Sometimes your hero’s crush your heart…..thank god this mofo meant nothing to me.
As is normally the case when an All-Star is involved, some have started proposing Kemba Walker deals to the Los Angeles Lakers.
Bears quarterback Justin Fields recently praised QB1 (for now) Andy Dalton for taking the rookie under his wing. But one this Fields said raises eyebrows. “I think there was one day after OTAs, I was throwing extra after practice, and he stayed out there specifically just to see maybe what I was doing wrong and [more]
Dallas Mavericks hell week continues; coach Rick Carlisle quits 10 days after saying he wants to return
The Celtics shook up the NBA landscape Friday morning by trading Kemba Walker to the Thunder for old friend Al Horford. Chris Forsberg shares his reaction to the blockbuster transaction.
Here's what fans and analysts are saying about Friday's big trade.
Former Celtics center Kendrick Perkins explains why he loves the Kemba Walker trade for Boston.
From Slovenia, Dallas Mavericks’ Luka Doncic addressed the departure of team president Donnie Nelson.
The Sixers' second star is at the center of fans' frustrations following Game 5, and they're ready to ship him out - but for whom? By Adam Hermann
The former Boston shooting guard could perhaps have his eye on the vacancy with the team he won a title with as a player in 1986.
This is a play you don't see everyday.
Katie Ledecky is used to slaying her competition, winning not by hundredths but by full seconds. Taking notice was Ariarne Titmus. Titmus fired the first shot, clocking a winning time of 3 minutes, 56.90 seconds at the Australian trials.
Here's a look at how young center Moses Brown, who the Celtics acquired in a trade with the Thunder involving Kemba Walker and Al Horford, can help Boston's frontcourt.
Ever seen a scared cottonmouth?
The USA TODAY Network picks the winner of every first-round game and which team will win college baseball's national championship in Omaha, Nebraska.
Al Horford is back in Boston after the Celtics acquired him in a trade with the Thunder, and he seems pretty happy with the move, judging by his Instagram page. | Sports Competition | June 2017 | ['(FC Yahoo)', '(Reuters)'] |
The funeral of Corazon Aquino, the first female President of an Asian country and the Philippines, takes place in the Philippines. | (CNN) -- Former Philippine President Corazon Aquino was remembered as an icon of democracy at a solemn funeral mass on Wednesday, the country's official news agency reported.
Filipinos light candles outside the home of Corazon 'Cory' Aquino in suburban Quezon city.
Aquino, the former housewife propelled to the head of a "People Power" movement that pushed out longtime strongman Ferdinand Marcos after her husband's assassination, died on August 1 at the age of 76.
Current President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo made a brief visit to the cathedral after returning from a trip to the United States, the Philippines News Agency reported.
Other dignitaries and members of government attended the ceremony held at a hall in the president's palace.
Aquino was remembered as a religious women who pushed the country's democratic process forward.
"(Aquino) had a deep faith in God," Friar Cielito Almaz told the news agency. "And it is through faith and prayer that she retained office while president and in the last days of her disease."
Aquino, the first woman to lead the Philippines, had been battling colon cancer since March 2008 and died of cardio-respiratory arrest.
She had not been involved in politics before her husband, opposition leader Benigno "Ninoy" Aquino Jr. was gunned down at Manila's airport in August 1983 as he returned from exile.
The political novice took over the leadership of her husband's movement after his death and challenged Marcos in a 1986 election, making a yellow dress her trademark and bolstered by the support of the country's Roman Catholic churches.
Marcos had been backed by the United States, the former colonial power in the Philippines, for two decades as a stalwart anti-communist. He and his wife Imelda were friends of then-President Ronald Reagan and his wife, Nancy. But widespread allegations of electoral fraud and a mutiny by the country's military led the Reagan administration to withdraw its support, and Marcos went into exile in Hawaii.
Aquino took office in a country with a $28 billion debt, widespread poverty and a persistent Marxist insurgency. She put in place a U.S.-style constitution that limited presidents to a single six-year term and survived seven coup attempts -- including one that was suppressed with American help. All About Philippines | Famous Person - Death | August 2009 | ['(CNN)'] |
The Cook Islands Party wins a majority of seats in the Cook Islands general election, defeating the incumbent Democratic Party. Henry Puna will become the next Prime Minister. | The Democratic Party which has dominated Cook Islands politics for the last decade has lost its grip on power in the Pacific nation.
On Friday, preliminary counts revealed The Cook Islands Party had won a majority of seats in Wednesday's general election, securing 15 of the 24 spots up for grabs.
About 300 postal votes were still to be counted, but it was unlikely these could reverse the preliminary counts, Radio New Zealand International said.
Henry Puna will become the country's new prime minister, with Teina Bishop stepping up as his deputy, according to Friday's count.
Prior to the polls, former prime minister Jim Marurai, who has been in office since 2004, said he planned to stand down whether his party won the elections or not.
However, the decisive performance of Puna's Cook Islands Party silenced speculation that the country might need to form a coalition government, or that independent MPs might hold the balance of power.
On Friday, the Democratic Party had won eight seats, with one seat still in a three-way battle between the two main parties and an independent candidate, Radio New Zealand International said.
Among the unsuccessful candidates was former prime minister, Sir Terepai Maoate, who stood as an independent after 25 years in parliament.
Sir Terepai's son, who was also standing as a candidate on an outlying island, also appeared to have been defeated.
About 10,000 people registered to vote, local officials said.
The result of a binding referendum on whether the number of members of parliament should be reduced from 24 in the Cook Islands was not known on Friday. | Government Job change - Election | November 2010 | ['(Sydney Morning Herald)'] |
Former Bosnian Serb Army general Milomir Savi is indicted for his role in planning the Srebrenica massacre. | SARAJEVO (Reuters) - A Bosnian war crimes prosecutor on Tuesday indicted a Bosnian Serb former army general for taking part in the 1995 massacre of about 8,000 Muslim men and boys in Srebrenica, an atrocity described as genocide by two international courts.
Milomir Savcic, 60, is accused of commanding the Bosnian Serb Army headquarters 65 Protection Motorised Regiment, which included a military police battalion, to capture, kill and bury adult Muslim Bosniaks from the U.N.-protected eastern enclave of Srebrenica in July 1995.
Bosnian Serb forces led by General Ratko Mladic attacked Srebrenica on July 11, 1995, separated men from women and children, and killed about 8,000 Muslims, who were then buried in mass graves.
The Srebrenica massacre is regarded as Europe’s worst atrocity since World War Two.
Savcic consciously helped Mladic and colonel Ljubisa Beara, as well as other commanders of the Drina Corps and Zvornik Brigade, which executed the massacre, to destroy the Muslim men as an ethnic group in the area, the prosecutor said in a statement.
Both Mladic and Beara were jailed for life over the Srebrenica genocide by the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY).
“Savcic is accused of planning, commanding and supervising the activities ... during the capture and detention of several hundred Bosniak men at several locations in the Nova Kasaba area, and their illegal arrest, torture and murder,” the statement said.
“Savcic is accused ... of committing the criminal act of helping in genocide,” the statement added.
Savcic, who is not in detention, is the president of the Bosnian Serb Republic’s war veterans’ organization. He holds Bosnian and Serbian citizenship.
| Famous Person - Commit Crime - Accuse | December 2019 | ['(Reuters)'] |
Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announce an agreement to allow vaccinated travelers to travel between the countries without the need to quarantine in order to restore their countries' tourism industries. | JERUSALEM -- Israel and Cyprus announced a tourism agreement Sunday to allow citizens who have been vaccinated against the coronavirus to travel between the countries without the need to quarantine.
The agreement between the two Mediterranean countries is a step toward restoring their tourism industries, which have been hit hard by the nearly year-long pandemic. Both countries have large tourism sectors.
Last week, Israel reached a similar deal with Greece.
“This opens up the possibility of restarting tourism in the near future,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said. “Cypriot tourists in Israel and Israeli tourists in Cyprus.”
Cyprus President Nicos Anastasiades said he expected the deal to go into effect on April 1.
Anastasiades also said he was “very interested” in getting more details about a possible COVID-19 treatment being developed by Israel's Ichilov hospital and said that Cyprus would participate in upcoming clinical trials. | Sign Agreement | February 2021 | ['(ABC News)'] |
An earthquake measuring 8.1 on the Richter scale occurs at 11:14:19 UTC on the Pacific Ocean seafloor with an epicentre 390 kilometres east of Etorofu island (latitude 46.7 North, longitude 153.5 East). Tsunami warnings and watches are issued by the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center and the East Coast and Alaska Tsunami Warning Center. After expectations of a tsunami at least 2 metres high, the largest wave to hit Hokkaidō measures only 40 centimetres . | It said a 40cm (16 inches) wave hit Nemuro port in Hokkaido island. Another one of 20cm (8 inches) was recorded.
The JMA initially expected a tsunami of at least two metres (6.5 feet) high after an 8.1 magnitude earthquake shook the Kuril Islands, north of Japan.
Tsunami warnings for the area and for Russia's Pacific coast were later called off.
Island threat
The earthquake struck about 390km (240 miles) east of Iturup, known as Etorofu in Japan, at 2015 (1115 GMT), the JMA said.
Tsunami explained There have been no reports of injuries or damage following the earthquake.
The BBC's Chris Hogg in Tokyo says in the past tsunamis have caused extensive damage in Japan but they were of a far greater magnitude than is being predicted.
Japan's precarious geological position makes it one of the world's most earthquake-prone nations.
As such, it has developed a sophisticated tsunami warning service, run by the JMA.
If an earthquake looks as if it has the potential to trigger a tsunami, the | Earthquakes | November 2006 | ['(244 miles)', '(6 feet)', '(16 inches)', '(BBC News)', '(CNN)'] |
The United Nations General Assembly confirms Michelle Bachelet, former President of Chile, to succeed Zeid Raad Al Hussein as the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights. The decision to appoint her for a four-year term, starting September 1, was made by consensus after her nomination by UN Secretary-General António Guterres. | UNITED NATIONS, August 10. /TASS/. The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) has approved former Chilean President Michelle Bachelet’s appointment as UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, the decision was made by consensus without a vote.
Bachelet will take office on September 1 and may be re-elected after her four-year term expires. United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres nominated Bachelet to this position on Wednesday. | Government Job change - Appoint_Inauguration | August 2018 | ['(TASS)'] |
The 450 km-long Turkish March for Justice concludes in Istanbul at a mass rally attended by hundreds of thousands of people. | Hundreds of thousands of people have gathered in Istanbul at the end of a 450km (280-mile) "justice" march against the government of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
Large numbers have joined the march since it began in Ankara on 15 June.
Opposition and protest leader Kemal Kilicdaroglu criticised the wave of arrests and imprisonments that followed last year's failed coup.
President Erdogan has accused the marchers of supporting terrorism. He said the Mr Kilicdaroglu's Republican People's Party (CHP) - which has organised the march - had gone beyond political opposition and was "acting with terrorist organisations and the forces inciting them against our country". The rally was the biggest show of defiance against President Erdogan since the Gezi Park protests four years ago.
Mr Kilicdaroglu accused the government of taking advantage of the coup attempt on 15 July last year to seize the authority of parliament and pass executive, legislative and judicial powers to one man.
He said the rally marked "a new birth".
"Nobody should think this march is the last one. It's the first step!" he said.
He launched the march after one of his MPs, Enis Berberoglu, was arrested for allegedly leaking documents purporting to show that the government was arming jihadists in Syria.
Mr Berberoglu denies the charge. Sunday's rally drew a sea of people to an area close to the jail in which he is being held. More than 50,000 people have been arrested and 140,000 dismissed or suspended during a state of emergency in place since last year's attempted military takeover.
The detentions of human rights activists and leading journalists have drawn international condemnation.
Mr Kilicdaroglu, who has walked around 20km a day for the past three weeks, condemns the coup attempt but says the purges and emergency rule by Mr Erdogan constitute a "second coup". He told crowds at the rally: "We marched for justice, we marched for the rights of the oppressed. We marched for the MPs in jail. We marched for the arrested journalists. "We marched for the university academics dismissed from their jobs. We marched because the judiciary is under a political monopoly."
The failed coup last July saw rogue soldiers bombing government buildings and driving tanks into civilians, killing more than 260. The BBC's Mark Lowen in Istanbul says there is a widespread feeling that the government has seized the chance to crush all opponents, not just alleged coup supporters. | Protest_Online Condemnation | July 2017 | ['(BBC)'] |
British Prime Minister Theresa May appoints Stephen Barclay as Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, and Amber Rudd as Secretary of State for Work and Pensions following yesterday's resignations of Dominic Raab and Esther McVey. | mber Rudd has made a dramatic return to the Cabinet as work and pensions secretary as Theresa May seeks to bolster her position following a backlash to her Brexit deal.
She is set to replace Esther McVey who resigned her position on Thursday in protest at Theresa May's Brexit plans.
Meanwhile, Leave-supporting Stephen Barclay has been promoted to Brexit Secretary from a ministerial role in the Department for Health.
The reshuffle came just hours after Michael Gove offered the Prime Minister a lifeline by staying on in his Cabinet role.
Ms Rudd has been a source of stability to the Prime Minister in the past, stepping in for Mrs May during the live TV debates in the run-up to the General Election last year. The MP for Hastings and Rye had to resign from her post as Home Secretary earlier this year over the Windrush scandal. Ms Rudd tweeted after the announcement, saying she was looking forward to "getting stuck in". She said: "A great honour. Look forward to getting stuck in." In an interview with broadcasters Ms Rudd urged Tory colleagues sending in letters of no confidence in Theresa May to "think again".
She said: "This is not a time for changing our leader.
"This is a time for pulling together, for making sure we remember who we are here to serve, who we are here to help: that's the whole of the country.
"I worry sometimes colleagues are too concerned about the Westminster bubble rather than keeping their eye on what our job is - to serve people."
Ms Rudd added that she was confident Mrs May would survive as Prime Minister, saying: "I think she has demonstrated this week her complete commitment to making sure she serves the people she was elected to so do.
"She has come forward with a really practical response to leaving the European Union. I think it's the right combination."
It comes after senior ministers including Ms McVey and former Brexit Secretary Dominic Raab quit in protest at the EU withdrawal agreement that was passed by Mrs May's Cabinet on Wednesday night. In a further reduction to the Brexit Secretary's duties, it was revealed that Theresa May will in future take sole control of negotiations on EU withdrawal.
She will personally oversee the last 10 days of negotiations with the EU on the future relationship, while Mr Barclay will focus on the "domestic readiness for Brexit and getting Mrs May's draft withdrawal agreement through parliament."
"He will be doing the domestic role," Mrs May's spokesman said. At least 21 Tory MPs are said to have sent no confidence letters to the Tory party's 1922 committee demanding a vote on Mrs May's leadership. Environment Secretary Mr Gove insisted he still has confidence in Mrs May who has suffered a series of setbacks following the publication of her draft Brexit deal with Brussels.
She has suffered the loss of four ministers and faces continued speculation that a vote of no confidence in her leadership could be triggered by Tory MPs within days.
Ms Rudd was a prominent Remain campaigner during the referendum and her return to the Cabinet, in place of Brexiteer Esther McVey who resigned on Thursday, may do little to bridge divides within the Tory ranks.
Ms Rudd resigned earlier this year in May, after she admitted she "inadvertently" misled MPs on immigration targets. In her letter of resignation to the Prime Minister, she admitted she should have been aware of information provided to her office making clear such targets did exist, adding: "I take full responsibility for the fact that I was not".
Mr Barclay qualified as a solicitor before working in financial regulation and then financial crime prevention. He was director of regulatory affairs and then head of anti-money laundering and sanctions at Barclays bank before he became an MP.
His appointment came after Mr Gove reportedly turned down the post after saying he would only take it if he could renegotiate the EU withdrawal agreement.
Speaking outside his departmental office, Environment Secretary Mr Gove was asked if he had confidence in the Prime Minister and replied: "I absolutely do."
He added: "I am looking forward to continuing to work with all colleagues in Government and in Parliament to get the best future for Britain."
A Downing Street spokeswoman said Mrs May was "very pleased" that Mr Gove will stay on and "continue doing the important work he is doing".
Pro-Remain Brexit rebel Stephen Hammond will replace Mr Barclay at the Department of Health and Social Care, Downing Street said.
The Wimbledon MP was sacked as Conservative vice-chairman in December after backing a rebel amendment calling for Parliament to be guaranteed a meaningful vote on the Brexit deal.
Brexiteer Kwasi Kwarteng will move from the Treasury to replace Suella Braverman, who followed Dominic Raab out of the door on Thursday.
And former tourism minister John Penrose has been made a minister in the Northern Ireland office to replace Shailesh Vara, who also resigned on Thursday.
Steve Barclay, the newly-appointed Brexit Secretary, commented on his appointment on Twitter.
"Delighted to accept role at DExEU," he said. "We now need to keep up the momentum to finalise the Withdrawal Agreement & outline political declaration & deliver a Brexit that works for the whole UK.
"Looking forward to working with a talented team of ministers & officials to do just that." | Government Job change - Appoint_Inauguration | November 2018 | ['(Evening Standard)'] |
The United Nations reports that ISIL appears to have captured up to 3,000 fleeing Iraqi villagers from Hawija District headed to Kirkuk city. Militants reportedly executed 12 people. Earlier, the Iraqi Observatory for Human Rights said ISIL is using people for human shields against attacks by Iraqi security forces. | Follow NBC News GENEVA ISIS fighters may have captured up to 3,000 fleeing Iraqi villagers on Thursday and subsequently executed 12 of them, according to the U.N. refugee agency.
The the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugee said it had received reports of the alleged incident.
It followed a statement on Thursday from the Iraqi Observatory for Human Rights, which said about 1,900 civilians had been captured by an estimated 100-120 ISIS fighters. They were said to be using people as shields against attacks by Iraqi security forces.
"UNHCR has received reports that [ISIS] captured on 4 August up to 3,000 IDPs (internally displaced people) from villages in Hawija District in Kirkuk Governorate trying to flee to Kirkuk city. Reportedly, 12 of the IDPs have been killed in captivity," the UNHCR report said.
UNHCR officials in Geneva and Baghdad told The Associated Press on Friday they were still trying to verify the information and wouldn't comment on the source of the reports.
Related: New 'Heat Map' Shows ISIS Branches Spreading Worldwide
When ISIS first overran much of north and western Iraq in 2014, the extremists took thousands of women and children hostage for use as slaves or child soldiers.
Despite a string of defeats in Iraq and Syria, ISIS is still estimated to hold thousands of women and children captive, according to U.N. report earlier this week.
The U.S. is leading a military coalition conducting airstrikes against ISIS in Iraq and Syria, where the group seized broad swathes of territory in 2014. The fighting had displaced 3.4 million people in Iraq by July 2016.
ISIS' grip on some towns has been broken, but it still controls its de facto capitals of Mosul in Iraq and Raqqa in Syria.
Last month the U.N. appealed for $284 million to prepare aid for an assault on Mosul, as well as up to $1.8 billion to deal with the aftermath.
It has so far received nothing in response, according to the U.N. Financial Tracking Service.
UNHCR has begun building a site northeast of Mosul for 6,000 people and is preparing another northwest of the city for 15,000, a fraction of those expected to need shelter. | Armed Conflict | August 2016 | ['(NRT News)', '(NBC News)'] |
Around 2,000 "yellow shirt" protesters in Thailand demonstrate over the government's handling of a border dispute with Cambodia. | Crowds of Thai nationalists, known as "yellow-shirts", have protested in Bangkok over the government's handling of a border dispute with Cambodia.
Some 2,000 members of the People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD) set up camp near Government House.
They are calling on Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva to revoke a pact with Cambodia on settling a land row.
The debate has been fuelled by the arrest in Cambodia in December of seven Thais accused of illegal entry. A yellow-shirt activist remains in jail on espionage charges. The PAD is the group that shut down Bangkok's airports in 2008 in a bid to force the previous government of allies of ousted leader Thaksin Shinawatra to step down. It has made nationalism, and in particular border disputes with Cambodia, a key part of its political platform.
The protesters' demands have been rejected by Mr Abhisit, who came to power after the airport protests, but relations have since soured.
"We did not come here on a whim. We have waited for the prime minister to deal with this for two years and the situation is only getting worse, like every other issue," Chamlong Srimuang, a PAD leader, was quoted by Reuters as saying. "This government is proving to be a big disappointment," he said. The border issue has been a long-standing flashpoint for the two neighbours. It was reignited in 2008 when Cambodia applied to Unesco to have a hill-top temple - to which both countries lay claim - declared a World Heritage Site.
The application was backed by the government in power in Bangkok at the time - but was opposed by those who said the move threatened Thailand's sovereignty.
Since then there have been sporadic exchanges of fire in areas around the disputed Preah Vihear temple.
Analysts say the yellow-shirt demonstration appears mainly intended to pressure the government ahead of elections that must be called this year.
The protest comes two days after about 30,000 rival "red-shirts" held their own protest in Bangkok. In April and May last year, more than 90 people died in clashes between red-shirts and government troops in Bangkok, during protests demanding snap elections. | Protest_Online Condemnation | January 2011 | ['(BBC)', '(Thai News Agency)'] |
Police arrest a 78yearold man in London on suspicion of murder after he allegedly killed a burglar during a fight in his home. | A pensioner has been arrested after a suspected burglar was killed during a violent tussle at his home.
The 78-year-old was held on suspicion of murder after the 38-year-old died of his wounds in hospital in the early hours of Wednesday morning.
Police said the struggle broke out after the pensioner, named locally asRichard Osborn-Brooks, found two men inside his home in South Park, Hither Green, south London shortly after midnight.
One of the burglars, who was armed with a screwdriver, forced the homeowner into his kitchen while his accomplice went upstairs.
Detectives believe a struggle then took place between "one of the males and the homeowner" and the 38-year-old intruder was stabbed in the upper body.
He was later found collapsed in nearby Further Green Road by paramedics from London Ambulance Service, who took him to a central London hospital where he died at 3.37am. Police were unable to confirm whether the suspect had been stabbed with the screwdriver.
The second suspect fled the scene before police arrived and is now being hunted by the Met’s Homicide and Major Crime Command.
Gordon Williams, a local resident, said: "I could hear people moaning in the street and just thought it was someone drunk. I saw the body laid in the street and another guy jump in a van and leave.
"I leaned over him and tried to reassure him. There was a lot of blood."
In a statement Scotland Yard said: “At 00:45hrs on Wednesday, 4 April, police were called by a homeowner to reports of a burglary in progress at an address in South Park Crescent, Hither Green SE6, and a man injured.
“The 78-year-old resident found two males inside the address. A struggle ensued between one of the males and the homeowner. The man, aged 37, sustained a stab wound to the upper body.”
The home owner suffered bruising to his arms and his injuries are not life threatening.
Police arrested him on suspicion of grievous bodily harm before then arresting him on suspicion of murder.
He was taken to a south London police station where he remains at this time.
In February alone there were 115 incidents of crime reported to police for the post code area covering South Park Crescent, including a number of burglaries close to the pensioner’s home and a number of cases of criminal damage, vehicle theft and sexual violence.
The incident recalls the case of Tony Martin, a Norfolk farmer who was convicted of manslaughter after shooting a burglar he discovered in his home in 1999.
Mr Martin was initially convicted of murder, but this was later reduced to manslaughter on grounds of diminished responsibility.
Neighbours and victims’ groups sprang to the pensioner’s defence yesterday.
Clem Williams, 58, a martial arts instructor who has lived on the road for 20 years said: "It's a very quiet road, normally we do not get police incidents down this road.
"My personal opinion is why were the men at his house? The man has a right to defend his home. They should let him go."
Sylbourne Sydail, chairman of the local neighborhood watch group, said: "A man should have the right and be able to defend their home. This reminds me of the Tony Martin case.
“We have done good work on the watch including shutting down a brothel house and implementing metal gates to stop people walking down the alley ways. We're trying to make it safer."
Norman Brennan, a former police officer who represents victims’ interests, said police were required to arrest the pensioner in order to investigate whether he had acted in self defence.
But he said he would be “amazed” if he was prosecuted over the death.
“The law says that a person can use reasonable force when defending himself, his family or property. If the intruder is running away the threat has diminished but if that person stays where they are that’s an assault and if they are armed with a weapon then it would be regarded as aggravating circumstances,” said Mr Brennan.
He added: “I cannot see any jury convicting someone in a case where the householder, for example, takes a knife and in a struggle with the burglar injures him.
“There were other factors in the Tony Martin case that led him to be convicted of manslaughter.”
Another resident living in the street where the incident took place said: "I moved here because I thought it was a safe, nice, pleasant area but this is shocking."
A neighbour who has lived in the area for 10 years added: "We've heard of break ins over the years, but nothing like this." | Famous Person - Commit Crime - Accuse | April 2018 | ['(The Telegraph)', '(BBC)'] |
British chocolate maker Thorntons announces it will be permanently closing down all of its stores, with the loss of about 600 jobs, thereby ending its 110-year presence on the high street. The company says it has been massively hit by the pandemic lockdowns and adds that high street conditions are too severe to continue. The company will continue sales online and through supermarkets. | Chocolate maker Thorntons has said none of its stores will reopen after coronavirus lockdowns are lifted.
The decision to close its 61 shops will put more than 600 jobs at risk.
The company said it had been badly hit by the pandemic, which forced its stores to shut their doors during the crucial Christmas and Easter holidays.
"The obstacles we have faced and will continue to face on the High Street are too severe," said Thorntons retail director Adam Goddard.
"Despite our best efforts we have taken the difficult decision to permanently close our retail store estate."
Thorntons has been on the High Street for more than a century but these days history isn't enough to guarantee survival. It was losing its way in the early 2000s with newer players, like Hotel Chocolat, entering the scene. It also embarked on a strategy of selling more chocolates through supermarkets and closing unprofitable shops. Italian food giant Ferrero bought the business in 2015 and has been trying to turn it around ever since. Over the last five years, it's shrunk from 252 to 61 stores. But Ferrero has now thrown in the towel on Thorntons stores altogether, betting that the brand's future is now online and on the supermarket shelves. This pandemic has created brutal trading conditions for so many traditional retailers. And the high street shakeout is still far from over. Thorntons said it had spent £45m transforming the business with changes to the way stores operate and the introduction of new cafes but its plans had been thrown off course by the pandemic.
The company, which was founded in Sheffield in 1911, said it would continue to sell its chocolate online and try to sell more through supermarkets.
Since the beginning of the crisis, sales through its website have increased by more than 70% compared to the previous year, it said. It will also try to expand the range of products made at its factory in Alfreton, Derbyshire and increase international sales.
In 2011, Thorntons announced plans to massively reduce the number of stores it had on the High Street and in shopping centres.
It said it would close up to 180 of the 364 stores it had at the time, following a strategic review.
Since then, the number of stores has dwindled to 61.
In 2015, Italian food giant Ferrero bought the chocolate chain for £112m.
In a statement, the company said: "We remain committed to this iconic British brand and will continue to invest further in the future potential of Thorntons to ensure we evolve with the times."
Thorntons is just the latest well-known name to suffer the impact that rolling lockdowns have had on the High Street as more people take to shopping online.
More than 17,500 chain stores and other venues closed in Great Britain last year, according to figures from the Local Data Company. That is an average rate of 48 closures a day.
Last week, department store chain John Lewis announced plans to close more stores. Other casualties have included PSir Philip Green's retail empire, Arcadia, which included Topshop and Dorothy Perkins.
| Organization Closed | March 2021 | ['(BBC)'] |
John Edwards, former United States presidential candidate and Senator representing North Carolina, is indicted on charges of conspiracy and violating campaign finance laws in connection to his affair with Rielle Hunter; Edwards denies he broke any laws. | “There is no question that I have done wrong,” John Edwards said Friday in front of the North Carolina courtroom where he pleaded not guilty to six counts of violating federal campaign laws. “I take full responsibility for having done wrong.”
But, Edwards said, he did not violate federal law.
“I will regret for the rest of my life the pain and the harm that I have done,” the former Democratic presidential candidate said, “but I did not break the law and I never, ever thought I was breaking the law.”
With that, Edwards, along with his oldest daughter, Cate, departed in a car, with reporters trailing behind.
Appearing in federal court in Winston-Salem, Edwards, 57, was released on his own recognizance, according to CNN. He was ordered to stay away from campaign benefactor Rachel “Bunny” Mellon, whose alleged donations to his 2008 presidential effort lie at the heart of the government’s prosecution of the ex-North Carolina senator. He also surrendered his passport and was ordered to remain in the continental United States.
Edwards is accused of accepting more than $925,000 in campaign donations and then using the money to cover up his affair with ex-campaign aide Rielle Hunter.
The case against Edwards could easily rise or fall on whether the government is reaching too far, and trying to hold Edwards to a higher standard than normal election law provides in part because of the sordid details of his liasion with Hunter while his wife, Elizabeth Edwards, was struggling with terminal cancer.
Even in the first paragraph of the 19-page indictment returned Friday by a North Carolina grand jury, the document took the quite unusual step of stressing that a “centerpiece” of Edwards’ candidacy in 2008 was “his public image as a devoted family man” and that he often stressed to voters that “family comes first.”
Add to that the fact that federal officials in Washington in the Justice Department’s Public Integrity Section worked collaboratively with prosecutors in the U.S. attorney’s office in North Carolina, and a picture emerges to some experts that the government is seeking to severely punish Edwards as much for his marital infidelity as for allegedly violating campaign financing laws.
Indeed, four prosecutors from the Public Integrity Section signed the indictment, including the section’s chief, Jack Smith.
Several experts in election law said they did not know of any similar case in the past where prosecutors brought criminal charges against a candidate for using money from a wealthy contributor to hide a personal matter. Normally such alleged violations are typically handled as civil penalties and often result in fines and requirements for the candidates to repay the money.
That theory also appears to lie at the heart of the defense strategy. Outside the Winston-Salem courtroom Friday, Edwards attorney Gregory Craig called the prosecution “unprecedented” and said Edwards “has broken no law.”
To that end, the defense team brought on board Scott E. Thomas, a former chairman of the Federal Election Commission with 20 years of service on the panel, and he quietly met six weeks ago with prosecutors in an attempt to persuade them not to seek criminal charges.
“I do not believe that there is any prior case that states that the conduct at issue in the Edwards matter, or even conduct substantially similar to it, constituted a violation of the statute,” he said.
Other outside experts agreed.
“This is a real stretch,” said Michael Toner, a former FEC chairman appointed by President George W. Bush. “And I say that as a Republican who is no fan of John Edwards.”
The indictment says that Edwards conspired with two of his wealthy contributors to send checks to his girlfriend, and that the checks were secret campaign contributions. A contribution is defined broadly in the law as “anything of value” given “for the purpose of influencing any election for federal office.”
Prosecutors allege the former senator was in fact accepting “contributions” to his own campaign when he arranged to have money sent to his girlfriend. One charge accuses him of making “false statements” not by lying to the FBI or under oath, but instead by not reporting the secret contributions in the reports his campaign filed with the FEC.
Trevor Potter, a former FEC chairman who represented Sen. John McCain in his presidential campaign, said election laws are complicated and that criminal charges are rare. “By statute, a matter is not criminal unless there is intentevidence of a ‘knowing and willful violation’ of the law,” he said.
These lawyers questioned how Edwards could be charged with a “knowing” violation of this law when it was not clear that the secret payments to a girlfriend qualified as “campaign contributions.” | Famous Person - Commit Crime - Accuse | June 2011 | ['(CNN)', '(USA Today)', '(Los Angeles Times)'] |
Republic of Korea Coast Guard and Navy divers resume the search for 290 missing people from yesterday's ferry capsizing off the coast of the island of Jindo. | By Jungmin Jang and Narae Kim MOKPO/JINDO, South Korea (Reuters) - Rescuers struggled with strong waves and murky waters on Thursday as they searched for hundreds of people, most of them teenagers from the same school, still missing after a South Korean ferry capsized on Wednesday. Coastguard, navy and private divers scoured the site of the accident, about 20 km (12 miles) off the country's southwestern coast. Earlier, rescue teams hammered on the hull of the upturned, mostly submerged vessel, hoping for a response from anyone trapped inside, but they heard nothing, local media reported. The vessel, carrying 475 passengers and crew, capsized during a journey from the port of Incheon to the holiday island of Jeju. Coastguards recovered five more bodies late on Thursday, raising the death toll to 14 people. Another 179 passengers have been rescued, leaving 282 unaccounted for and possibly trapped in the vessel. One parent, Park Yung-suk, told Reuters at the port of Jindo, where rescue efforts are centered, that she had seen the body of her teenage daughter's teacher brought ashore. "If I could teach myself to dive, I would jump in the water and try to find my daughter," she said. Her daughter was one of 340 children and teachers from the Danwon High School in Ansan, a Seoul suburb, on board the vessel. The captain of the ship, Lee Joon-seok, 69, faces a criminal investigation, coastguard officials said, amid unconfirmed reports that he was one of the first to jump to safety from the stricken vessel. One official said authorities were investigating whether the captain had indeed abandoned the vessel early and one of the charges he faced was violating a law that governs the conduct of shipping crew. SHALLOW WATERS, BUT DANGEROUS Many survivors told local media that Lee was one of the first to be rescued, although none actually saw him leave the ship. The coastguard and the ferry operator declined comment. Although the water at the site of the accident is relatively shallow at under 50 meters (165 feet), it is still dangerous for the 150 or so divers working flat out, experts said. Time was running out to find any survivors trapped inside, they said. "The chances of finding people in there (alive) are not zero," said David Jardine-Smith, secretary of the International Maritime Rescue Federation, adding, however, that conditions were extremely difficult. "There is a lot of water current and silt in the water which means visibility is very poor and the divers are basically feeling their way around." U.S. President Barack Obama, who is scheduled to visit South Korea next week, expressed condolences to the victims' families and said U.S. military personnel were helping with the search and rescue operation. "As one of our closest allies, our commitment to South Korea is unwavering, in good times and in bad," he said. The Korean government said it was not giving up on the possibility of finding survivors, while the coastguard also turned its attention to what may have caused the disaster in calm seas. "Today, we began looking into the cause of the submersion and sinking ... focusing on any questions about crew negligence, problems with cargo holding and structural defects of the vessel," senior coast guard official Kim Soo-hyun said. There has been no official explanation for the sinking, although officials denied reports the ship, built in Japan 20 years ago, was sharply off its authorized route. Although the wider area has rock hazards and shallow waters, they were not in the immediate vicinity of its usual path. SAFETY DEFICIENCIES The ferry was found to have three safety deficiencies in 2012, including one related to navigation, but passed subsequent safety checks in 2013 and 2014, according to international and Korean shipping records. The ferry's capacity was increased to more than 900 people from 800 when it was imported from Japan in late 2012, shipping sources said, but the expansion passed all safety tests. The ship, its passengers and cargoes are all under two separate insurances, according to industry sources. State broadcaster YTN quoted investigation officials as saying the ship was off its usual course and had been hit by a veering wind which caused containers stacked on deck to shift. The vessel was listing heavily to one side on Wednesday as passengers wearing life jackets scrambled into the sea and waiting rescue boats. It sank within about two hours and witnesses and media showed that two life rafts from the ship successfully inflated and launched. Earlier reports said just one had inflated. The operator, Chonghaejin Marine Co Ltd, based in Incheon, came under sharp criticism after its officials, for the second day, avoided many questions posed about the conduct of the captain and crew. The unlisted operator, which owns four other vessels, reported an operating loss of 785 million won ($756,000) last year. A company called Web Solus is providing an underwater drone free of charge to examine the interior of the vessel where survivors could be located. "Families and rescuers have been just looking at the surface of the sea. We have to move fast and at least see some of the vessel under the water," Ko Se-jin, the operator, told Reuters. Among those on the ship were two Chinese citizens, according to Chinese media, one Russian and two Filipinos. The Philippines citizens were safe, according to Korean authorities, but the whereabouts of the others were not known. Hope rests on whether passengers inside had been able to find air pockets, Jardine-Smith, the rescue expert, said. "It is not impossible that people have survived, but, tragically, it's very unlikely that many will have done." ($1 = 1037.6500 Korean Won) (Additional reporting by Ju-min Park in MOKPO, South Korea, Jack Kim, Choonsik Yoo, Meeyoung Cho, Kahyun Yang and James Pearson in SEOUL, Jonathan Saul in LONDON and Bill Trott in WASHINGTON; Writing by David Chance and Raju Gopalakrishnan; Editing by Robert Birsel, Mike Collett-White and Marguerita Choy)
The suspect charged with killing Aiden Leos, 6, in a suspected road rage incident told police he shot at the car, according to prosecutors.
For those fortunate enough to own a home in a Bahria Town development, the elite suburb promises to offer a respite from the clamour of life in much of Pakistan. Prospective residents from Karachi are lured with assurances that they can swap the blackouts, floods and rubbish heaps of the port metropolis for a luxury lifestyle in a manicured architectural fantasia. Brochures offer world class amenities, a floodlit golf course and even a replica Parthenon. Yet two weeks ago the haven of Bahria Tow
“It’s just sad that someone would be such a monster and so cruel.”
A shooting on Interstate 75 in Detroit late Thursday night killed a 2-year-old boy and injured a 9-year-old boy who is in serious condition.
Democratic senators are also working on another plan to push infrastructure legislation through using reconciliation.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Thursday released a full list of investigations into crashes involving Tesla Autopilot.
It's rare for Kim to acknowledge a food shortage. The country is expected to be 1.35 million tons short of food this year, a think tank said.
Gold-medalist Simone Manuel stopped training for three weeks due to physical and mental burnout. She didn't qualify for the Olympics on Thursday. | Shipwreck | April 2014 | ['(Reuters via Yahoo)'] |
A Summit Air Let L-410 crashes after hitting a tree while landing at Lukla Airport in Nepal following a cargo flight. Both pilots die. A third crewman survives. | Accident: Summit L410 at Lukla on May 27th 2017, contacted trees and impacted ground before runway
A Summit Air (former Goma Air) Let L-410, registration 9N-AKY performing freight flight 409 from Kathmandu to Lukla (Nepal) with 3 crew and 1,680kg of cargo, was on final approach to Lukla's runway 06 at about 14:04L (08:19Z) when the aircraft contacted a tree short of the runway and subsequently contacted ground about 3 meters/10 feet below the runway level. The aircraft slid down the slope before coming to a rest about 200 meters below the runway level. The captain and the first officer died as result of the accident, another crew member received injuries.Nepali Police reported the aircraft touched branches of a tree, suffered technical problems and impacted ground about 3 meters below the runway level just before 14:00L (08:15Z).The airport reported the aircraft collided with a tree while attempting to land in foggy conditions at 14:04L and subsequently impacted ground. It took rescuers some time to free the crew out of the damaged cockpit area, all three were taken to the Lukla Hospital alive, however, the captain died after arrival in the hospital.The following day the hospital reported the first officer succumbed to his injuries during the night. The third crew member was diagnosed with minor injuries and is stable on the way to recovery.On Jun 7th 2017 a surveillance video by Lukla Airport was released showing the aircraft came out of fog/cloud about 6 seconds prior to impact (about 3-4 seconds after start of video), descended below runway level and impacted ground.On Dec 16th 2017 in a press conference the accident investigation committee reported the final report has been submitted to the Ministry of Transport (editorial note: the final report has not yet been published). The committee reported that nearing the Lukla valley the crew was informed about heavy rain at Lukla and was considering to return to Kathmandu, however, was told Kathmandu was overly busy with many aircraft in the holds. Shortly afterwards the crew was told the weather at Lukla had improved and the rain had stopped. The aircraft entered the Lukla Valley but entered dense fog as soon as it entered the Lukla Valley and remained in that fog for about 4 minutes. 64 seconds before impact the first officer sighted the runway, the aircraft was at 9100 feet MSL at that time (Lukla elevation 8900 feet MSL), the aircraft was about 15 degrees off the extended runway center line. The runway disappeared from view again, the aircraft descended to 8500 feet MSL, the captain attempted to correct the error and began to climb the aircraft, however, with the landing gear out the aircraft slowed, the stall warning activated 13 seconds before impact. The aircraft struck a small tree with its left hand wing before impacting ground about 130 feet short of the runway. The commission stated that even if the crew had attempted to go around, they would not have been aware of their position in the narrow valley due to the dense fog, the captain has no time to carry out a recovery procedure. Both the flight crew as well as the airport authority violated standard operating procedures. The airport authority should have monitored the weather situation and temporarily closed the aerodrome. The crew should not have flown into that weather fluctuating every few minutes. It can not be ruled out that the captain was affected by fatigue. The commission believes the traffic congestion at Kathmandu was a contributing factor into the accident and recommended to review the situation at Kathmandu Airport with respect to traffic congestion. In addition the commission reported the runway in Lukla could be extended by 100 feet and recommended to do so.Goma Air rebranded into Summit Air on Mar 13th 2017.On Apr 13th 2018 Nepal's Accident Investigation Commission (NAIC) released their final report concluding the probable cause of the accident was:The Commission concludes that the probable cause of this accident was aircraft stall as a result of excessive drag created by sudden increase in angle of attack of the aircraft supplemented by low speed (below Vref) in an attempt to initiate immediate climb on a landing configuration (full flap and landing gear down) warranted by the critical situation of the final phase of flight.The contributing factors for the accident are:- Critical terrain and rapidly deteriorating weather condition.- Pilot's loss of situational awareness- Improper pilot response to stall warning including failure to advance power lever to maximum at appropriate time.- Voilation of SOP by the ATS and Pilot as well.The NAIC described the sequence leading to the accident in the abstract: "While continuing approach, both cockpit crew sighted the runway at 9100ft. That was 64 seconds before the impact. While continuing approach the aircraft deviated to the right by almost 15 degrees and erroneously descended too low to 8500ft whereas threshold height is 8900ft. The aircraft was too close to the threshold and in the meantime already 400ft below the threshold. In that situation flight crews had no other alternatives than to climb immediately. So, in an effort to climb and reach threshold in a landing configuration with landing gears down and on full flaps excessive drag was created resulting aircraft to stall. Subsequently its left wing first hit a small tree and then impacted the sloppy terrain 130 feet short of the runway."The NAIC detailed further in the factual presentation: Aircraft reported entering valley at 0816. CVR record showed that First Officer sighted the runway at 0817 (64 seconds before the impact). Instantly PIC acknowledged he had also the runway in sight. Aircraft was at 9100 ft(approx.) when the cockpit crews sighted the runway. It maintained 9000 feet (approx.) for further 21 seconds. At time 0817:12i.e. 48 seconds before the impact Tower gave the latest wind as Westerly 04 knots and runway was clear. PIC was still in doubt and asked whether there was rain. Upon confirmation of having no rain from the Tower the aircraft started to descend further. The PIC, who was also the PF, found to have lost situational awareness deviated to the right with continued descend. At 0817:35 (25 seconds before impact) when the flight was descending through 8650ft First Officer warned PIC that they were too low. PIC did not respond the F/O's call-out and continued descend. On reaching 8500ft. F/O again warned PIC in panic. Then PIC asked in panic where the runway was. F/O directed towards the runway. But it was already too low and too late. There was initially two short stall warning sound. Then a continuous stall warning sounded till the impact, which lasted for 13 seconds. The last words in CVR records was (tranlated: Do not pull too much).Abrupt change in aircraft attitude in an attempt to climb and reach threshold height at 8900ft. (on Kathmandu QNH) in a landing configuration, with landing gears down and on full flaps, created excessive drag resulting the aircraft to stall. Subsequently, its left wing first hit a small tree branch 180ft. short of the threshold. Then impacted the sloppy terrain 100ft. short of the runway.After the crash aircraft engine was reported to be running for about a minute. But there was no postcrash fire. Aircraft was totally damaged by the impact.The captain (48, ATPL, 9,687 hours total, 1,897 hours on type) was pilot flying, the first officer (27, CPL, 1,311 hours total, 1,028 hours on type) was pilot monitoring.The NAIC analysed the FDR data: "Referring to above charts, the aircraft was flying low during final moments of its flight. On the final minute IAS was significantly low which dropped below 50Kt during final few seconds then further down below 20 kt. Pitch attitude was at maximum during final seconds. Magnetic heading was abruptly changed in the last moment. Following comparative chart will further elaborate the final parameters of crashed flight and other two flights previous to the occurrence."The NAIC analysed the last 267 seconds of the flight:They entered Lukla valley at 9,200 ft. which normally should be 10,500 ft. That counted as a violation of SOPs (both GOMA AIR as well as Lukla Airport SOP). The flight crew were not able to see the final glide path for landing to runway 06 and they were informed about the rapidly increasing thick fog towards the left as well as the right base of runway 06. The pilot monitoring had spotted the runway at exactly 64 second before impact and so did the Captain 2 seconds later.The flight crew had configured the airplane with flaps fully extended and landing gear down for landing 35 seconds ahead of the impact. The Pilot monitoring did not lose sight of the runway till impact but the Captain (PF) could not maintain the runway in sight during the last 25 seconds due to several reasons. The reasons might be lack of situational awareness, high workload, low visibility, a fixed mind-set to land due to high severity of risk produced by surrounding terrain, aircraft being lower than the runway threshold and still not being able to sight the runway and Captain's intention to climb to reach threshold height of 8900 ft. from 8500ft. (using KTM, QNH). During the last 10 seconds, both pilots took cross control of the aircraft. In their attempt to climb the aircraft in landing configuration to 8900 ft. from 8500ft. the aircraft lost a substantial amount of speed from 75 knots to 19 knots within the time frame of 13 seconds with continuous stall warning. The stall recovery procedure is to apply maximum engine torque, lower the nose and reconfigure the aircraft stepwise but the Captain only partially applied engine torque to 22%, 42% and 92% in the interval of 4.33 seconds, respectively, and the pitch rose from +6 degrees to +27.6 degrees. The airplane fell “behind the power curve” and then proceeded to stall and impact on the sloppy terrain 130 ft. short of the runway threshold. It came to rest 100 ft. below the runway threshold 06.With respect to the flight attendant (3rd crew member) on the flight the NAIC analysed: "The Cabin Crew has been working with Goma Air for two years (since 18th Oct-2015). She sustained serious injuries during crash and was evacuated to Kathmandu. Her condition is stable, and she is recovering well. The commission met her on 26th June, 2017 (1 month after crash), but she was not in a condition to answer questions at that stage. The commission met her again on 14th July, 2017 (1 and ½ months after crash). She did not remember much about the actual crash but said that weather was not as normal as usual on that flight."The NAIC analysed with respect to CG: "Upon physical inspection of the crashed aircraft, cargo position and latches were found to be properly done. So the commission ruled out the possibility of shift of CG to be the cause of accident." | Air crash | May 2017 | ['(The Aviation Herald)'] |
A 7.1 magnitude earthquake occurs off the north east coast of North Island, New Zealand. A tsunami warning was issued after the earthquake, and waves of 0.3m have been reported near Gisborne. | A wave measuring 30 centimetres was generated near the East Cape around 90 minutes after the quake struck
New Zealand civil defence authorities have ordered the evacuation of several coastal areas over fears that a major 7.1 offshore earthquake could cause a Tsunami.
An initial “potential” warning was raised to a Tsunami after a wave measuring 30cm was generated near the East Cape about 90 minutes after the quake struck on Friday morning.
"The first tsunami activity has arrived. Tsunami activity will continue for several hours," the Civil Defence organisation, responsible for national emergency management, said in a statement, AFP reports.
The warning covers the East Coast of the North Island and the upper South Island.
The quake hit at at 4:37 am, 103 miles northeast of the city of Gisborne and had a depth of 19.1 miles, according to the US Geological Survey (USGS).
Twitter users in North Island reported being woken up by shaking.
Those living in Gisborne, which has a population of around 45,000, have been told to evacuate to higher ground or go as far inland as possible.
Residents in coastal areas of the East Cape region were also being advised to evacuate by local civil defence officials, Radio New Zealand reported.
New Zealand media reported some power outages in the east coast region.
Civil defence public information officer Sheridan Gundry said the emergency management centre has been activatedThe Ministry of Civil Defence and Emergency Management and its scientific advisors were still assessing the severity of the tsunami threat.
The US National Tsunami Warning Centre said the quake did not pose any danger of a tsunami on the Pacific coast of Canada or the United States.
The Chilean Navy also said it did not expect a tsunami on the coast of the South American nation.
The USGS originally reported the quake as a 7.2 magnitude but later downgraded it to 7.1.
New Zealand is located on the Australasian and Pacific tectonic plates boundary, which form part of the “Ring of Fire” and experiences up to 15,000 tremors a year. | Earthquakes | September 2016 | ['(BBC)', '(The Independent)'] |
Mitt Romney says that he won't commit to supporting Donald Trump in the 2020 presidential election. | After high-stakes Biden-Putin summit, what now? China's genocide must be stopped How Biden can get the infrastructure bill through Congress says he is not ready to commit to endorsing President TrumpDonald TrumpChinese apps could face subpoenas, bans under Biden executive order: report Kim says North Korea needs to be 'prepared' for 'confrontation' with US Ex-Colorado GOP chair accused of stealing more than 0K from pro-Trump PAC MORE for reelection in 2020.
"I will make that decision down the road," Romney told CNN at the Utah GOP convention on Saturday. "As a person of political experience, if I endorse someone, I'll want to know what's in it for Utah and what help would he provide for us on key priorities in Utah."
"So I'm not a cheap date," he added.
The 2012 Republican presidential nominee is at the Utah convention to secure the party's nomination for Senate. Romney is running for the seat being vacated by retiring Sen. Orrin HatchOrrin Grant HatchDrug prices are declining amid inflation fears The national action imperative to achieve 30 by 30 Financial market transactions should not be taxed or restricted.
Romney and Trump have a contentious history.
The former Massachusetts governor gave a speech in the waning days of the GOP primary in 2016 urging Republicans not to support Trump, arguing that he lacked the character needed for the presidency.
Still, the two seemed to mend fences after the election when Trump dined with Romney and was reportedly considering him to lead the State Department, a position which was eventually filled by Rex TillersonRex Wayne TillersonHouse passes legislation to elevate cybersecurity at the State Department Biden's is not a leaky ship of state — not yet With salami-slicing and swarming tactics, China's aggression continues MORE.
The relationship soured again though after he was passed up for the job. Romney criticized Trump for his response to the violence in Charlottesville, Va., last year and other actions. Trump also encouraged Hatch repeatedly to run for reelection.
Romney announced his campaign for Senate earlier this year, with Hatch's endorsement.
"I have decided to run for United States Senate because I believe I can help bring Utah's values and Utah's lessons to Washington. Utah is a better model for Washington than Washington is for Utah," he said in a February campaign ad.
"Given all that America faces, we feel that this is the right time to serve our state and our country."
Trump endorsed Romney in February in a tweet, saying that he would make a "great senator." | Government Job change - Election | April 2018 | ['(The Hill)'] |
A double–decker sightseeing bus collides with a car in Hamburg, Germany, leaving eleven injured. |
The Hamburg Fire Department issued a press release concerning the accident on Monday afternoon. They report that the crash occurred when the sightseeing bus packed with tourists collided with the car at high speed, resulting in four serious injuries and leaving the passengers of the car and bus trapped in their vehicles. As of yet, the cause of the accident is unknown.
A large number of personnel from the Hamburg Fire Department, Bundeswehr Rescue Service and the German Red Cross were immediately sent to the scene, where first responders treated the four individuals with severe injuries.
Seven passengers on the tourist bus were also found to have suffered minor injuries, and were also treated within the ambulance of the Hamburg Fire Department at the scene of the crash.
The Hamburg Fire Department said that the four seriously-injured persons, who were all riding in the car involved in the crash, were only able to be freed from the vehicle through the use of a hydraulic cutting machine.
After they were rescued, all four were cared for by emergency attendants on-scene before being transported to the hospital’s emergency room via helicopter. They are currently being treated by local physicians.
Among those brought to the hospital was a pregnant passenger from the sightseeing tour bus, who the Hamburg Fire Department believes was unharmed in the incident, but examined as a precautionary measure.
Hamburg’s Fire Department praised the response of emergency personnel in their press release, saying that “first responders provided and cared for the 11 injured… in an exemplary manner and effectively supported the rescue measures of the Hamburg Fire Brigade.”
Among the first responders present at the crash was a Mönchengladbach Fire Department employee, who was visiting Hamburg for the Easter holiday.
The accident itself required a mass-effort on the part of Hamburg’s emergency response team, and involved more than six ambulances, a fire service crane and a rescue helicopter. | Road Crash | April 2018 | ['(The Local)'] |
Following treatment, a 2–year–old Mississippi girl born with the HIV/AIDS virus is pronounced to be HIV negative. | A baby girl in the US born with HIV appears to have been cured after very early treatment with standard drug therapy, doctors say. The Mississippi child is now two-and-a-half years old and has been off medication for about a year with no signs of infection. More testing needs to be done to see if the treatment - given within hours of birth - would work for others. If the girl stays healthy, it would be the world's second reported 'cure'.
Dr Deborah Persaud, a virologist at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, presented the findings at the Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections in Atlanta.
"This is a proof of concept that HIV can be potentially curable in infants," she said. In 2007, Timothy Ray Brown became the first person in the world believed to have recovered from HIV.
His infection was eradicated through an elaborate treatment for leukaemia that involved the destruction of his immune system and a stem cell transplant from a donor with a rare genetic mutation that resists HIV infection.
In contrast, the case of the Mississippi baby involved a cocktail of widely available drugs, known as antiretroviral therapy, already used to treat HIV infection in infants. It suggests the swift treatment wiped out HIV before it could form hideouts in the body.
These so-called reservoirs of dormant cells usually rapidly reinfect anyone who stops medication, said Dr Persaud.
The baby was born in a rural hospital where the mother had only just tested positive for HIV infection.
Because the mother had not been given any prenatal HIV treatment, doctors knew the baby was at high risk of being infected.
Researchers said the baby was then transferred to the University of Mississippi Medical Center in Jackson.
Once there, paediatric HIV specialist Dr Hannah Gay put the infant on a cocktail of three standard HIV-fighting drugs at just 30 hours old, even before laboratory tests came back confirming the infection. "I just felt like this baby was at higher-than-normal risk and deserved our best shot," Dr Gay said.
The treatment was continued for 18 months, at which point the child disappeared from the medical system. Five months later the mother and child turned up again but had stopped the treatment in this interim. The doctors carried out tests to see if the virus had returned and were astonished to find that it had not.
Dr Rowena Johnston, of the Foundation for Aids Research, said it appeared that the early intervention that started immediately after birth worked.
"I actually do believe this is very exciting. "This certainly is the first documented case that we can truly believe from all the testing that has been done.
"Many doctors in six different laboratories all applied different, very sophisticated tests trying to find HIV in this infant and nobody was able to find any. "And so we really can quite confidently conclude at this point that the child does very much appear to be cured."
A spokeswoman for the HIV/Aids charity the Terrence Higgins Trust said: "This is interesting, but the patient will need careful ongoing follow-up for us to understand the long-term implications for her and any potential for other babies born with HIV."
Analysis: A cure for HIV?
Early HIV drugs 'slow virus down'
Drugs 'reduce' HIV transmission
Cheap colour test picks up HIV
'Starvation tactics' used on HIV
Is HIV still a death sentence in the West?
The Foundation for AIDS Research
Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections
Setback for | Famous Person - Sick | March 2013 | ['(CBS)', '(The Guardian)', '(BBC)', '(CNN)'] |
Juan Antonio Samaranch, the 7th president of the International Olympic Committee , dies at the age of 89. | BARCELONA, Spain -- Juan Antonio Samaranch's final moments of consciousness were spent watching tennis, a fitting end for a person who was once among the most powerful in sports.
The former president of the International Olympic Committee, who died Wednesday from cardiac arrest after being admitted to a hospital three days earlier, had been watching Rafael Nadal win the Monte Carlo Masters on television Sunday when his steady decline took hold.
"He was feeling fine. There was nothing out of the ordinary," Juan Antonio Samaranch Jr. said of his father, who was 89. "He watched Nadal's match -- he loved tennis -- and after the game he wasn't feeling great so we decided to come (to the hospital) around 6 or 7 at night.
"Then he collapsed. They stabilized him but he never came out. And that was the last time he was conscious."
Samaranch was having trouble breathing, so his daughter, Maria Teresa, took him to Quiron Hospital, where he lost consciousness only 20 minutes after arrival.
"He was in good health right up until then. I remember he was happy, having just watched the tennis," Quiron chief of internal medicine Rafael Esteban told The Associated Press. "But things quickly deteriorated from there."
Samaranch was sedated and put on a respirator, but his organs quickly shut down.
"Once that starts, it's hard for anyone to recover," Esteban said.
Although doctors gave him a chance of recovery after he survived for 48 hours, Samaranch's condition worsened through Tuesday night. By Wednesday morning, a turnaround would be a miracle.
"Once you go into irreversible shock, there's no alternate interpretation or way of reading those words -- they are just those," Esteban said. "At that point, any recovery would have left him in a coma. He would not have come out."
Samaranch, who headed the IOC from 1980-2001, had been bothered by health problems in recent years. But even those previous hospital visits didn't make it any easier for Juan Antonio Jr.
"It's the first time I go through this, losing a father, and it's not easy," he said. "If there is a good way to die, I guess it was this way. He had a full life and career."
Spain quickly began mourning Samaranch, who was described as a great innovator and a landmark figure in the world of international sports.
"I sincerely believe we have lost a reference point for world sport," Spanish sports secretary Jaime Lissavetzky said.
Spanish Olympic Committee president Alejandro Blanco called it "a day of sorrow and mourning for Spain."
IOC president Jacques Rogge, Samaranch's successor, is one of the many dignitaries expected to attend Thursday's funeral in Barcelona.
"I cannot find the words to express the distress of the Olympic family," Rogge said. "I am personally deeply saddened by the death of the man who built up the Olympic Games of the modern era, a man who inspired me, and whose knowledge of sport was truly exceptional."
Condolences also poured in from Spanish culture minister Angeles Gonzalez-Sinde, and from soccer clubs like Barcelona and Real Madrid. Samaranch was a member of Madrid since 1940.
Juan Antonio Jr., speaking less than an hour after his father's death, said he left an important mark in the world of sports.
"It's not to me to say how he should be remembered. He will have his place in history," the son said. "I think he's been very recognized in life and that will only grow with his death." | Famous Person - Death | April 2010 | ['(1980 – 2001)', '(BBC)', '(CNN)', '(ESPN)'] |
A Russian–born German man is sentenced to life imprisonment for fatally stabbing Marwa El–Sherbini in a court, an attack that caused uproar in the Muslim world. | BERLIN The German man who stabbed a pregnant Egyptian woman to death in a Dresden courtroom was found guilty on Wednesday and given a life sentence.
The killing of the woman, Marwa al-Sherbini, a 31-year-old pharmacist, attracted worldwide attention and led to demonstrations in Egypt. The man, Alexander Wiens, 28, was convicted of killing Ms. Sherbini on July 1 in front of her 3-year-old son and her husband, whom the killer also stabbed as he tried to defend her.
The Dresden court said that because of the seriousness of the crime, Mr. Wiens would not be eligible for early release, which in most cases is available after 15 years in Germany. Prosecutors accused the defendant of acting out of xenophobia. Mr. Wiens, a German citizen who was born in Russia, admitted to the stabbing but not to a racist motivation.
The dispute that led to the killing began a year earlier, in August 2008, on a Dresden playground when Ms. Sherbini asked Mr. Wiens to let her young son use a swing he was sitting on. Mr. Wiens made racist insults against Ms. Sherbini, who wore a head scarf, calling her a “terrorist” and an “Islamist.”
Ms. Sherbini called the police. It was after she appeared as a witness in the case that Mr. Wiens took a seven-inch knife from his backpack and attacked her and her husband, Elwy Okaz, in the courtroom.
Mr. Wiens stabbed Ms. Sherbini at least 16 times, the police said, and her husband at least 15 times. The police, responding to calls for help, mistakenly shot Mr. Okaz in the leg instead of the attacker.
The shooting of Mr. Okaz, a research scientist, was just one of many details, including the lax security at the courthouse and a week of silence about the case by the German government, that led to an outcry in the Arab and Muslim worlds, where Ms. Sherbini was sometimes known as the “head scarf martyr.” Protesters chanted “Down with Germany” on the streets in Egypt, and President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad of Iran denounced the country’s “brutality.”
“Everybody was shocked,” Ramzy Ezzeldin Ramzy, the Egyptian ambassador to Germany, said in a telephone interview from Dresden, where he went to hear the verdict announced. “Egyptians were shocked because of the circumstances of the murder. Even the government here took a while to understand the implications of such a heinous crime.” Mr. Ramzy praised the judge and the prosecution, both for their conduct and for handing down the maximum sentence possible under German law, but he said that the uproar in the days after the murder was understandable.
“Mistakes may have been made,” Mr. Ramzy said, “but at the end of the day, justice has been served.” | Famous Person - Commit Crime - Sentence | November 2009 | ['(AP)', '(NY Times)', '(Deutsche Welle)'] |
The U.S. House Financial Services Committee approved a measure establishing a Consumer Financial Protection Agency. | A key congressional panel voted Thursday to create a federal agency aimed at protecting Americans from the predatory lending practices and other abuses that hastened the financial crisis.
By a vote of 39 to 29, mostly along party lines, the House Financial Services Committee approved a measure that would create a Consumer Financial Protection Agency to monitor mortgages, credit cards and other consumer financial products. The new regulator is a central piece of President Obama's wide-ranging plan to overhaul the nation's financial regulatory system, and Thursday's vote marks an early step in making that vision a legislative reality.
"This is a very significant advance, and I predict it will only get better going forward," said Rep. Barney Frank (D-Mass.), the committee's chairman. "I believe it is a major breakthrough."
The bill is expected to head to the House floor for consideration in coming weeks. Meanwhile, the proposal faces a tricky path through the Senate Banking Committee, where financial lobbyists and other opponents have said they plan to target a handful of moderate, business-friendly Democrats who have expressed skepticism over the Obama administration's original proposal for the new agency.
The administration proposed the new agency in June as part of a larger package of reforms aimed at closing loopholes and reining in the abusive and risky practices that precipitated last fall's economic meltdown. It soon emerged as the most divisive, partisan element of the administration's plan. Republicans almost uniformly have opposed it. Banks and other financial firms, along with powerful lobbying groups such as the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, flooded Capitol Hill to complain that the new agency would add an unnecessary layer of government regulation, increase costs, stifle financial innovation and curtail choices for consumers.
Frank vowed to produce a bill, and President Obama himself stepped forward earlier this month to scold the financial and business groups that had spoken out against it, saying that they were "fighting to keep every gap and loophole they can find."
Bill far from final
Ultimately, only one Republican on the committee, Rep. Michael N. Castle (Del.), voted Thursday in favor of the new agency. Democratic Reps. Travis Childers (Miss.) and Walt Minnick (Idaho) joined Republicans in voting against the measure.
The final tally brought restrained celebration from those who have fought for the new regulator, many of whom said the bill needs work and faces many challenges ahead as winds through Congress.
"While there is more work ahead, today we are much closer to putting in place strict new rules of the road for the financial industry," Treasury Secretary Timothy F. Geithner said in a statement.
This month, Frank's committee has approved legislation aimed at creating oversight for the largely unregulated derivatives market and is scheduled soon to tackle a bill that would give the federal government authority to wind down large, troubled financial firms.
Thursday's vote came after months of drafting and debate and days of intense discussions. One of the most contentious issues -- and one that threatened to divide Democrats on the committee -- was whether to let state governments protect bank customers by imposing restrictions that go beyond existing federal laws. Large banks and many Republicans fought bitterly against that proposal, known as preemption, saying it would essentially create scores of new regulators and drown firms in a wave of new regulations.
Lawmakers ultimately adopted an amendment by Democratic Reps. Melvin Watt (N.C.) and Dennis Moore (Kan.) that seeks a middle ground. It would dictate that national banks comply with state laws except when a state law has a "discriminatory effect" on national banks relative to state-chartered banks. It also would permit the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency to decide whether a state law interferes with a national bank's business or if it is specifically preempted by federal law.
The committee also granted a major concession to smaller, community banks, agreeing that they would not be directly supervised by a new federal agency, although they would be subject to its rule-making authority.
Public reactions
Consumer groups, who have pushed for the new agency to have broad powers, seemed pleased by Thursday's vote, even as they argued that the current bill should be strengthened to include groups such as auto dealers who extend financing loans.
"We think it's very significant that the first major hurdle has been cleared for this legislation," said Travis Plunkett, legislative director of the Consumer Federation of America. "We are on the brink of a monumental achievement for consumers."
Opponents of the new agency maintained their criticism and were quick to note that plenty of legislative hurdles remain.
"This bill remains a complicated and confusing maze of unclear regulatory standards and ill-defined terms," David Hirschmann, president of the Chamber's Center for Capital Markets Competitiveness, said in a statement. Chris Stinebert, chief executive of the American Financial Services Association, called the vote "a step backward from the goal of improved consumer protection for financial services customers." | Government Policy Changes | October 2009 | ['(Washington Post)'] |
Pakistani authorities hang Mumtaz Qadri for his role in the murder of reformist Punjab governor Salmaan Taseer in 2011. | Pakistan has hanged a man convicted of murdering a provincial governor in 2011 after the official called for reform of the country's strict blasphemy laws.
Mumtaz Qadri’s execution in the city of Rawalpindi on February 29 triggered protests by thousands of the killer's supporters in several cities, including Karachi, Lahore, Rawalpindi, and Islamabad.
The funeral is expected to be held on February 30.
Qadri, who was considered a hero by many Islamists, was a former bodyguard to Punjab Governor Salman Taseer.
He confessed to killing Taseer in response to his calls to reform strict blasphemy laws that carry a death sentence for insulting Islam.
Qadri shot Taseer 28 times at a market in Islamabad in broad daylight.
The judge who oversaw Qadri's trial was forced to flee the country after receiving death threats. | Famous Person - Commit Crime - Sentence | February 2016 | ['(Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty)'] |
#ThisFlag protest leader Pastor Evan Mawarire says the movement, which uses WhatsApp, Facebook, and Twitter, will hold a two-day strike next week if demands, that include sacking corrupt ministers, payment of delayed salaries, lifting of roadblocks that residents say are used by police to extract bribes, etc., are not met. A drought has aggravated the country's situation as have banks that have a daily withdrawal ceiling as low as $50. | Last Updated: Fri, 08 Jul 2016 05:43:20 GMT 0
From tweets to streets, Zimbabwe social media anger erupts into anti-Mugabe protests. PHOTO: Kremlin
Organisers of a general strike against Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe pledged on Thursday to continue action until he falls, as a spontaneous social media movement has coalesced into the biggest uprising against his rule in nearly a decade.
Zimbabweans have been using the Internet in recent weeks to mobilise for street protests against Mugabe's government, bypassing traditional opposition parties as anger grows over his administration's handling of a failing economy.
Mugabe, Africa's oldest leader at 92, has led the former British colony since independence in 1980.
His critics say he has presided over the destruction of a once-promising country with policies such as the seizures of white-owned farms; his government blames foreign powers for sabotaging the economy and stirring unrest.
On Wednesday, much of the country was shut down by a "stay away" general strike, organised by a social media movement that complains of poor public services, 85 percent unemployment, widespread corruption and delays in getting state salaries.
The unlikely protest leader is a pastor, Evan Mawarire, who launched the movement - #ThisFlag - to get Zimbabweans to rally round the national flag and speak out against Mugabe policies.
He told Reuters the movement had found its voice and was planning more action in the wake of the success of Wednesday's strike, which shut down much of the capital Harare.
"We are getting to a place where we are now expressing that we have had enough. What we are doing is about one action, one voice concerning our frustration. Enough is enough," he said.
The government blames Zimbabwe's precarious financial position on Western sanctions and a slump in prices of its export commodities.
Ignatious Chombo, the ruling ZANU-PF party's administration secretary, blamed Western embassies in Harare and opposition parties late on Wednesday for trying to cause anarchy.
A drought has compounded the hardship, while an acute cash shortage means those lucky enough to get paid are unable to get their hands on any money due to daily withdrawal limits at most banks of as little as $50.
Central bank plans to circulate local bank notes later this year have caused further anxiety among a population that lost savings and pensions in 2008 when rampant money-printing pushed hyperinflation to more than 500 billion percent.
Zimbabwe last witnessed protests on this scale in April 2007 when opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai led anti-Mugabe demonstrations.
Mawarire's #ThisFlag movement says it will hold another strike next week lasting two days if demands are not met, including the sacking of corrupt ministers, the payment of delayed salaries and the lifting of roadblocks that residents say are used by police to extract bribes.
Other social media movements have also appeared, such as Tajamuka - 'We refuse' in Zimbabwe's Shona language - which launched spontaneous demonstrations in the last month.
On Monday, an impromptu protest by taxi drivers turned violent, with rock-throwing young men facing off against squads of riot police firing volleys of tear gas - scenes unseen since a government slum clearance campaign in 2005.
Last week, half a dozen protesters stormed a hotel in downtown Harare protesting against Vice President Phelekezela Mphoko's stay there since December 2014, saying this was profligacy by a government which says it has no money.
"Clearly there is a coincidence or intersection of national grievances across the board, economic and political, and the immediate concerns of the public servants," Ibbo Mandaza, a leading academic and political commentator, said.
"That intersection has proved lethal in the last days. We are in a new phase of politics."
DESPERATE FOR MONEY
Mugabe's government is desperate for money and is struggling to finance its $4 billion budget this year. The shortfalls have left soldiers, policemen, doctors and teachers being paid weeks in arrears.
Citizens have taken to Twitter and Facebook to vent their anger against a ruling party they see as detached from their daily struggles, while it is consumed by internal fights over who will eventually take-over from the ageing Mugabe.
Foreign investment and donor support has dried up and the government in April halved its 2016 growth forecast to 1.4 percent. Independent economists see no more than 1 percent growth.
Harare runs a hand-to-mouth budget, spending 82 percent of its revenue on wages. That leaves little for infrastructure, medicines in hospitals or books for schools.
While a majority of Zimbabweans live on less than $2 a day and the government cries poverty, citizens complain of cabinet ministers and senior government officials driving fancy cars and jetting off on foreign trips.
"How does the government say it is broke when it buys expensive cars everyday? Every day we hear that ministers have stolen money, so it means the money is there," said Elen Chaduka, a mother of three, who sells food in central Harare.
Mawarire, the #ThisFlag leader, demanded an end to the lavish lives of party aparatchiks.
"We are saying no to government expenditure which is senseless. They are broke because they have mishandled the economy," he said.
Political analysts say ruling party division over Mugabe's successor have spilled into state security organs and it may become more difficult to rely on the police to quell political unrest when officers themselves are angry at not being paid.
"We have a state which is fatally divided, a security sector which is fatally divided. I can see the government increasingly coming under siege, incapable of responding," Mandaza, the political scientist said. "We are clearly going into a crisis."
| Strike | July 2016 | ['(Reuters via CNBC Africa)', '(Ventures Africa)'] |
The Syrian government offers an amnesty for rebels who surrender within three months. | BEIRUT/MOSCOW, July 28 (Reuters) - Syrian pro-government forces tightened their grip around Aleppo on Thursday, and the governor of the area said they would open corridors for civilians to escape the besieged, rebel-held districts of the city.
A quarter of a million civilians still live in Aleppo’s opposition-controlled eastern neighborhoods, effectively under siege since the army and allied militia cut off the last road into rebel districts in early July.
Syrian state television quoted the governor of Aleppo as saying three humanitarian corridors would be established for civilians to leave the city.
President Bashar al-Assad also offered an amnesty for rebels who surrender within three months.
Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu said a fourth corridor would be set up in the north of the city for militants, near the Castello road which the army recently took over.
“On behalf of the President of the Russian Federation, today, (we will) start a large-scale humanitarian operation together with the Syrian government to help civilians in Aleppo,” Shoigu said in televised comments.
The Syrian army said on Wednesday it had dropped thousands of leaflets over opposition-heldAleppo districts, asking residents to cooperate with the military and calling on fighters to surrender.
A picture of what appeared to be one of the leaflets showed a map of Aleppo, titled “Safe exit points from Aleppo city,” with four crossing points out of the rebel areas marked on the map and described as humanitarian corridors.
Aleppo, Syria’s biggest city before the outbreak of the conflict five years ago, has been divided between government forces and rebels since the summer of 2012. Its recapture would mark Assad’s biggest victory so far in the civil war.
The army, backed by allied militia forces and air strikes from Syrian and Russian jets, has taken more ground on the northern edge of the city, around the Castello road which leads out of Aleppoand north towards Turkey.
Syrian state television said the army had advanced in the Bani Zeid district, on the southern side of the Castello road. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the pro-government forces had taken full control of the district.
A rebel source confirmed that the army had made advances. He said Kurdish forces from the nearby Sheikh Maqsoud district had also taken advantage of the fighting to advance into a housing complex in Bani Zeid.
“There has been a (rebel) withdrawal, but no one has surrendered,” Zakaria Malahifji of theAleppo-based rebel group Fastaqim group told Reuters. | Government Policy Changes | July 2016 | ['(Huffington Post)'] |
An unruly crowd riots on Hollywood Boulevard outside Grauman's Chinese Theatre in Hollywood, California after being refused admission to a documentary on the Electric Daisy Carnival. , | A ruckus at the premiere of a a film about the Electric Daisy Carnival rave disrupts businesses on Hollywood Boulevard.
Hollywood Boulevard has reopened after being shut down by police, who made mutiple arrests while subduing a rowdy crowd.
Police donned riot gear and fired bean bags at unruly partiers hurling rocks and setting fires on Hollywood Boulevard after being turned away from an invitation-only party and screening of a movie about a popular rave festival.
Are you on the scene? Tweet your details to @NBCLA and we'll include them in updates to this story. Local news from across Southern California
The screening of "Electric Daisy Carnival Experience" at Grauman's Chinese Theater was scheduled to coincide with a "block party" promoted by DJ Kaskade, a favorite among fans of eletronic dance music or EDM, who encouraged his fans to join the festivities in a Tweet sent earlier in the day.
The Tweet read: "Today@6pm in Hollywood @Mann's Chinese Theatre. ME+BIG SPEAKERS+MUSIC=BLOCK PARTY!!! RT!"
Chad Anderson, a Kaskade fan, arrived at 6 p.m. for the festivities.
But when a crowd estimated at more than a thousand converged, the gathering near Hollywood and Highland turned violent, with some members of the crowd throwing rocks and bottles and vandalizing patrol cars, according to a spokesman with the Los Angeles Police Department.
"There was so many people down here that we couldn't all fit on the sidewalk, so some people were in the streets," Anderson said. "Then the cops ended up coming, and they were trying to get people out of the streets, but there was really nowhere to go."
Amateur video captured on a cell phone camera showed vandals jumping on top of a police car. At least two people were arrested on suspicion of felony vandalism. No injuries were reported.
"It was really wild. I saw them bringing guns out, and a lot of people were afraid," according to Aryan Rab, who traveled from San Francisco to see the movie, and hear Kaskade, but instead found himself being pushed away by police.
The LAPD shut down Hollywood Boulevard to traffic and essentially forced businesses along the popular tourist and nightlife stretch to bar their doors, keeping shoppers, diners and club-goers penned inside.
About 150 tourists were trapped inside Madame Tussauds when the chaos broke out.
"All of the businesses on the boulevard are closed, which, this is a peak summer trading, said Colin Thomas, general manager of Madame Tussauds. "This is absolutely ridiculous, and also it does nothing for Hollywood Boulevard."
The Metro Red Line station at Hollywood and Highland was shuttered, and buses were re-routed to steer clear of the area.
DJ Kaskade sent out multiple Tweets throughout the night, calling for calm and entreating the crowd to disperse. "EVERYONE NEEDS TO GO HOME NOW! I DON'T WANT THIS TO REFLECT BADLY ON EDM OR WHAT WE ARE ABOUT," he Tweeted. "BE RESPECTFUL AND CHILL OUT!! | Riot | July 2011 | ['(CBS Los Angeles)', '(NBC Los Angeles)'] |
Delegates, among them billionaire businessmen, royalty and elected politicians, arrive in England for the 61st summit of the annual Bilderberg Group at The Grove, Watford. | A security fence surrounds The Grove hotel which is hosting the annual Bilderberg conference in Watford, England. Photograph: Oli Scarff/Getty Images
Delegates of a controversial private conference of top politicians and businesspeople arrived at a luxury country hotel today.
Several cars with blacked-out windows entered the gates of the Grove Hotel, near Watford, in Hertfordshire, this morning for the secretive meeting of the international Bilderberg Group. It is thought billionaire executives from multinational companies such as Amazon and Google, high-ranking political figures including Chancellor George Osborne, and even members of royal families are among the 130 or so attendees.
Amid tight security, members of the press and more than 100 protesters gathered in a fenced-off area just inside the grounds of the hotel, but about half a mile from the redbrick hotel.
As delegates arrived for the four-day meeting from around 10.30am, protesters heckled their cars, shouting “scum”, “pay your taxes” and “shame on you” as they disappeared down the driveway.
The demonstrators, who gathered in the sunshine to wave anti-capitalist placards, play guitars and listen to speeches, were searched for alcohol and drugs as they entered the site.
Labour MP Michael Meacher spoke out against the conference to the press and protesters and called the delegates the “real top brass of Western finance capitalism”. He said he believed Mr Osborne would be attending for the sixth time this year, and named the meeting’s “steering committee” as Henri de Castries, the chairman of Axa, Peter Thiel, “a billionaire venture capitalist”, Thomas Enders from EADS, the defence manufacturing company, and Peter Sutherland, the chairman of Goldman Sachs.
Speaking in the pen near the hotel gates, he said: “They are the leaders of the biggest banks, the biggest multinational companies, people from the UN institutions like the World Bank, World Trade Organisation, several EU commissioners and several politicians from the US, Canada, the UK and the EU.
“These are people who are all in the most dominant positions in the governance of Western capitalism.
“They only meet in order to concert their plans about the future of capitalism over the immediate future period — the next year or two.
“My objection is that it’s being done in utter secrecy with the police keeping everyone else out.”
Mr Meacher said although he has no problem with powerful people meeting in private, the numbers at the Bilderberg meeting means they should be held accountable.
“When 130 of the leaders from all across the West get together, and many of these are billionaires, they are people who are immensely wealthy and immensely powerful,” he said.
“And when they all get together, it’s not just to have a chat about the latest problem, it is to concert plans for the future of capitalism in the West.
“That is on a very different scale.”
Alex Jones, the US television personality and Bilderberg researcher, drew huge crowds when he arrived in the afternoon and whipped up the protesters by speaking through a megaphone. He told the press: “It is very, very sinister.
“Not everybody who goes to Bilderberg, from my research, is a scoundrel or a villain. But there are definitely villains who are there who are basically trying to organise government and business.”
Judd Charlton, a ventriloquist from Camden in north London, said: “We are basically here to bring down the parasites who are drug dealers and bank collapsers who seem to want to destroy this world.”
.
| Diplomatic Talks _ Diplomatic_Negotiation_ Summit Meeting | June 2013 | ['(The Irish Times)', '(The Guardian)', '(RT)'] |
South Korean cloning scientist Hwang Woo–Suk is convicted of fraud over his stem cell research. | A court in South Korea has convicted the disgraced scientist Hwang Woo-suk of fraud in his stem-cell research. He was given a two-year prison suspended for three years.
In 2004, Hwang shot to fame when he published a paper in the US journal "Science", claiming to have created the world's first stem-cell line from a cloned human embryo. The claims raised hopes of new treatments for diseases such as cancer, diabetes and Parkinson's. Seoul showered Hwang and his team with money and honours; he was awarded the title of "Supreme Scientist".
But his reputation was tarnished in 2005 when it was revealed that he had accepted human eggs from his own researchers. In 2006, an investigative team ruled in a report that his findings were fake and that he had produced no stem cells of any kind. By using human eggs, he breached a law on bioethics which bans illegal human egg transactions.
The revelations shocked the South Korean nation and the government stripped him of his license to carry out stem cell research. While on bail during the trial, Hwang focused on animal cloning and his work in creating Snuppy (Seoul National University puppy) has been independently verified.
The prosecution demanded a four-year suspended sentence against the scientist, but the court said Hwang had not misappropriated research funds for personal profit.
. | Famous Person - Commit Crime - Sentence | October 2009 | ['(BBC)', '(Radio Netherlands Worldwide)', '(The New Zealand Herald)', '[permanent dead link]'] |
Several universities and schools shut down as many students join the protests across Iraq. Thousands continue to participate in spite of the violent crackdowns from the previous days. | Nationwide demonstrations continue after scores of Iraqis were killed in clashes with security forces over two days.
Students in Iraq have joined anti-government protests in Baghdad as thousands stood fast in the capital’s central Tahrir Square, defying a bloody crackdown that killed scores over the weekend and an overnight raid by security forces seeking to disperse them.
Several schools and universities decided to shut their doors, activists said on Sunday, with some protesting on campus and others heading towards the main gathering spaces for rallies.
Young men had erected barricades on a bridge leading to the capital’s fortified Green Zone against security forces who continued to lob tear gas canisters towards them.
Medical and security sources said 77 people were wounded.
At least 74 Iraqis were killed on Friday and Saturday and hundreds wounded as demonstrators clashed with security forces and militia groups in the second wave of this month’s protests against Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi’s government.
The protests are a continuation of the economically driven demonstrations that began in early October and turned deadly as security forces began cracking down and using live ammunition.
About 231 people have been killed in October.
The ongoing turmoil has broken nearly two years of relative stability in Iraq, which in recent years has endured an invasion by the United States and protracted fighting, including against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL or ISIS) group.
The demonstrations have posed the biggest challenge yet to the year-old government of Prime Minister Abdul Mahdi, who has pledged to address demonstrators’ grievances by reshuffling his cabinet and delivering a package of reforms.
The moves have done little to quell the demonstrators, however, whose ire is focused not just on Mahdi’s administration but also Iraq’s wider political establishment, which they say has failed to improve the lives of the country’s citizens.
Many view the political elite as subservient to one or other of Iraq’s two main allies, the US and Iran – powers they believe are more concerned with wielding regional influence than ordinary Iraqis’ needs.
“I ask you Abdul Mahdi, it’s been 16 years and you’ve done nothing. We’re going from bad to worse,” Ma’azir Yas, who had wrapped herself in an Iraqi flag, told Reuters news agency. “This protest is peaceful and the young men only ask for their rights: jobs and services.”
Nearly three-fifths of Iraq’s 40 million people live on less than six dollars a day, World Bank figures show, despite the country housing the world’s fifth-largest proven reserves of oil.
Iraq’s elite Counter-Terrorism Service said on Sunday it had deployed in the streets of Baghdad to protect important state buildings “from undisciplined elements”.
Renewed protests also flooded the streets of Najaf, Hilla, Karbala and Diwaniyah in the south.
In the oil-rich port city of Basra, police enforced a strict curfew and said it arrested “saboteurs” who had infiltrated the protesters.
On Sunday, Iraqi President Barham Saleh met the United Nations’ top representative in the country Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert to discuss electoral reform and amendments to the constitution, which dates back to 2005.
Abdel Mahdi has also proposed a laundry list of reforms including hiring drives, increased pensions and promises to root out corruption.
Beyond the street, Abdel Mahdi also faces new pressure from parliament, with four MPs resigning and the largest bloc holding an open-ended sit-in since Saturday night.
Parliament’s only two Communist MPs and two legislators linked to former Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi announced they were stepping down late on Sunday.
“We are resigning because of the protests and the way they were repressed,” Communist legislator Raed Fahmy told AFP news agency.
The Iraqi Communist Party had allied with Moqtada al-Sadr in the 2018 elections to form Saeroon, which on Saturday began a sit-in to back protests.
The move has left Abdel Mahdi more squeezed than ever, as Saeroon was one of the two main sponsors of his government.
Our corrupt political system is beyond reform or repair, but young Iraqis will continue to fight for a new Iraq.
Committee tasked with probing this month’s unrest recommends Baghdad operations commander and other officials be sacked.
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We understand that your online privacy is very important and consenting to our collection of some personal information takes great trust. We ask for this consent because it allows Al Jazeera to provide an experience that truly gives a voice to the voiceless. | Protest_Online Condemnation | October 2019 | ['(Al Jazeera)'] |
A United States Army Combat Aviation Brigade UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter crashes off the coast of Hawaii, with five people on board. A United States Coast Guard-led search for the missing is underway. | A debris field was spotted in the ocean after the Army Black Hawk went down near the island of Oahu.
Wednesday 16 August 2017 16:25, UK
Five people are missing after a US Army helicopter crashed into the sea close to Hawaii.
Officials lost contact with the UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter at around 10pm, during a night-time training exercise off the coast of Oahu island.
The search began immediately, and rescuers later spotted debris in the ocean two miles from the island's westernmost Kaena Point.
A plane, two helicopters and several boats are now being used in the search. No unusual weather conditions were reported.
Night-time training of this kind is commonplace for helicopter crews, according to Lieutenant Colonel Curtis Kellogg, public affairs officer for the Army's 25th Infantry Division.
The loss of the helicopter was reported from the Wheeler Army Airfield near Honolulu, Hawaii's largest city, also on Oahu.
Another helicopter, also a part of the Army's 25th Combat Aviation Brigade, was also taking part in the exercise.
The UH-60 Black Hawk is a four-bladed twin engine utility helicopter, manufactured for the Army since the 1970s, by Silorsky Aircraft. | Air crash | August 2017 | ['(Sky News)'] |
A Mumbai, India court convicts twelve men with one man acquitted for their roles in the bombing which killed 209 people and injured 714. | A court in India's western Mumbai city has found 12 men guilty for their roles in the 2006 bombings of commuter trains.
The 12 men were accused of waging war against the nation, conspiracy and murder. One man was acquitted.
The serial bombings on 11 July 2006 killed 189 people and injured more than 800.
The attack was blamed on Islamic militants backed by Pakistan, an allegation that Pakistan has denied.
Sentencing is expected to be pronounced on Monday after judge Yatin D Shinde hears arguments from the prosecutors and defence lawyers. The guilty face the death penalty or life in prison.
"Justice has been done for the people of Mumbai. I will ask for the strictest punishment when I argue for their sentences," public prosecutor Raja Thakre told reporters.
During the attack, seven blasts ripped through trains in the evening rush hour.
The bombs were packed into seven pressure cookers and put in bags. The co-ordinated explosions were detonated within 15 minutes Convictions in Mumbai train blastsof each other. The blasts took place in the areas of Matunga, Khar, Mahim, Jogeshwari, Borivali and Mira Road, with most on moving trains and two at stations.
The bombs appeared to have targeted first-class compartments, as commuters were returning home from the city's financial district.
More than 200 witnesses were examined during the eight-year-long trial, which concluded in August last year.
Prosecutors say the attack was planned by Pakistan's intelligence agency ISI, and carried out by operatives of Pakistan-based militant group Lashkar-e-Taiba with help from the Students' Islamic Movement of India, a banned Indian group.
Pakistan had rejected the allegations and said India had given no evidence of Pakistani involvement in the attacks.
Mumbai's suburban train system is one of the busiest in the world, carrying more than eight million commuters a day.
Convictions in Mumbai train blasts
Reporting by Menaka Rao
| Famous Person - Commit Crime - Sentence | September 2015 | ['(BBC)', '(Al Jazeera English Online)'] |
Canadian Environment and Climate Change Minister Jonathan Wilkinson announces that Canada will ban plastic bags, drinking straws, cutlery and other single–use items by the end of 2021. | OTTAWA -- Under the newly-unveiled list of single-use plastics being banned in Canada, plastic grocery bags, straws, stir sticks, six-pack rings, cutlery and food containers made from hard-to-recycle plastics will be out of use nationwide by the end of 2021.
Environment and Climate Change Minister Jonathan Wilkinson announced the federal government’s next steps towards its plan to achieve zero plastic waste by 2030.
“When a ban comes into effect, your local stores will be providing you with alternatives to these plastic products,” Wilkinson said, adding that he knows it’s hard to come back from a trip to the grocery store without single-use plastic products, especially food packaging, but that “has to change.”
As first pledged last year, and re-committed in the Liberal’s September throne speech, the government is moving ahead with banning certain “harmful” single-use plastics that are consistently found in the environment and for which there are readily available alternatives, while finding ways to make sure more plastic is recycled.
Citing the need to consult, the government will be soliciting feedback on a “discussion paper” until Dec. 9. The finalized new regulations wouldn’t come into effect until the end of 2021.
In the spring, Wilkinson signalled that the ban on single-use plastics may be delayed because of the pandemic. By the summer, a Canadian report found that public support for a crackdown on certain products was dwindling as the majority of those surveyed said they liked the health and safety protections associated with disposable plastics over reusable alternatives.
Recognizing the ongoing need for single-use plastic personal protective equipment items like face shields, the federal government says the ban will not impact access to PPE, or other plastics used in medical facilities.
However, the government has been discussing the pollution impacts of the increased use of many disposable products during the pandemic and says it’s working with the provinces and territories on plans to properly dispose as much of it as possible.
“We're also investigating solutions to recycle PPE where it is safe to do so, and options to make some of the PPE biodegradable,” Wilkinson said.
However, due to the pandemic and ongoing health restrictions, many restaurants have had to pivot to take-out meals and are providing customers with plastic cutlery, and it remains to be seen what kind of financial impact this looming ban will have on these businesses.
The environment minister said the government selected these items because there are already readily-available and affordable alternatives, and that while many items will have to continue to be single-use, they need to be items that can be recycled.
“In the context of takeout, the focus is really on polystyrene which is a very difficult substance to recycle and it is one that we find quite widely in the environment. Many, many of the restaurants that do takeout have already transitioned away from polystyrene to other forms, whether it's cardboard or different forms of paper, which are recyclable,” Wilkinson said.
“At the end of the day, Canadians expect us as governments to take action on an issue that they know is an important one… and to be honest with you, Canadians are far ahead of their governments on the plastic issue they've been demanding this kind of action for a long time,” he said.
Already, some business groups are voicing concerns about the difference the ban will make and the “significant costs” some small businesses could be facing.
“Canadian businesses recognize the significant benefits of alternatives to single-use plastics and the importance of bolstering Canada’s circular economy. However, Canada’s approach must go beyond surface issues like bans, to address the critical infrastructure required to deliver on the positive benefits for the environment,” Canadian Chamber of Commerce’s Aaron Henry said in a statement.
“At present, it remains unclear how this policy will address the current fragmented approaches to disposing consumer products,” Henry said, adding that, at this time when many businesses are counting every dollar, any extra costs could make the difference between staying open and closing for good.
While environmental groups welcomed the news, they are pushing the Liberals to go further with the ban.
“After three years of promising to tackle plastic waste and pollution, and to create a strategy that moves Canada towards zero plastic waste, the federal government has instead continued to largely rely on the recycling myth and the bare minimum ban list,” said Sarah King, head of the oceans and plastics campaign at Greenpeace Canada.
“The only way to prevent toxic substances from getting into the environment is to ban all of them. The government says it wants to tackle the climate crisis, protect our oceans, and move toward a circular economy, but as long as single-use plastics continue to be produced at current rates, there is no incentive for companies to transition to cleaner and healthier reuse models,” King said.
When the ban on single-use plastics was first announced, the federal government said it would be focusing on holding big companies responsible for their plastic production, requiring them to play a part in collecting and recycling their materials.
Wednesday’s announcement includes a proposal to establish recycled content requirements in products and packaging, which the federal government says will spark investment in recycling infrastructure and innovation in technology to extend the life of plastic materials to keep them in the economy, and out of the environment for longer.
The federal government has a target of at least 50 per cent recycled content in plastic products by 2030.
Under the new regulations the government will require:
Wilkinson also pledged $2 million for a zero plastic waste initiative, to go to 14 Canadian-led projects.
Later this week, the federal government will be publishing a proposed order to add “plastic manufactured items” to the list of regulated products under Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999 (CEPA). Greenhouse gasses is among the items already on that list.
According to the federal government, Canadians throw away three million tonnes of plastic waste a year, and only nine per cent of that gets recycled, and about one-third of the plastics used in Canada are for single-use or short-lived products and packaging, including up to 15 billion plastic bags used every year and close to 57 million straws used daily.
The federal New Democrats and Greens said they are supportive of the Liberal’s plan to ban plastics and recycle more, citing it’s something they’ve pushed for some time.
“It doesn't make sense for us to be using plastics, as a throwaway, that will remain in our oceans and on our planet… but we want to see the details,” said NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh.
The federal Conservatives characterized the announcement as “desperate” attempts to keep a campaign promise and raised concerns with the costs to replace some commonly used single-use plastics in settings like long-term care homes.
Similarly, the Alberta government was not impressed with the announcement, despite that government’s stated desire to become a recycling hub.
“We know that plastics are the foundation of the modern world,” said Alberta Energy Minister Sonya Savage. “The federal government needs to be working with the provinces, needs to be supporting things like our natural gas vision, and needs to be supporting things like our full lifecycle economy for plastics.”
People leave a grocery store using plastic bags in Mississauga, Ont., | Government Policy Changes | October 2020 | ['(CTV)'] |
Utair Flight 579 overruns the runway and catches fire while landing at Sochi International Airport, injuring 18 people. | A passenger jet skidded off the runway and caught fire while landing in the Russian city of Sochi, injuring 18 people, officials have said.
Flight UT579, a Boeing 737-800 operated by the Utair airline, was carrying 164 passengers and six crew from Moscow.
Video shows fierce flames from the aircraft after it crashed through the airport fence and fell into a riverbed.
Some of the injured suffered burns, others carbon monoxide poisoning, officials said.
A spokesperson at Sochi airport said one airport employee had suffered a fatal heart attack during the rescue operation.
The jet was attempting to land in strong wind and heavy rain early on Saturday, Russian media reported.
Russia's NTV channel carried images and video of the incident.
The plane's undercarriage and a wing were damaged when it left the runway and a left engine then caught fire.
Three of the injured are children.
Russia's Investigative Committee has launched a criminal investigation into the incident "on suspicion of inadequate services with a risk to clients' health".
Last month, a helicopter belonging to Utair crashed in north-western Siberia, killing 18 people.
The fatal crash of a Russian airliner at Moscow's Domodedovo airport in February again raised concern about national air safety.
It was the third major plane crash in the country since 2015.
| Road Crash | September 2018 | ['(BBC)'] |
A Boko Haram attack last week on a northeastern Nigerian village, Yadin Kukuwa killed at least 151 people. News of the attack was slow to emerge because the militants destroyed telecom masts around the village. , | A Boko Haram attack in a northeast Nigerian village left at least 151 people dead last week, with many drowning as they attempted to flee across a river.
About 140 people died in the river near the village of Yadin Kukuwa and 11 were killed after they were shot by the Islamist militants on August 13, said residentg Tasiu Sammani.
News of the attack was delayed as phone masts in the area had been destroyed in previous raids.
"They came in large numbers on motorcycles and cars, raided our town and shot people," said Tanimu Magaji, another resident who had taken refuge in the city of Damaturu.
"Some died from the gun shots and many others drowned in the river as they fled the scene.
"I lost my brother to the attack."
While nobody claimed responsibility for the attack, Boko Haram has killed thousands of people in its six-year campaign to impose its version of Shariah, or Islamic law, in Nigeria. President Muhammadu Buhari has pledged to crush the insurgency.
This week the group's leader leader, Abubakar Shekau denied he had been killed or ousted as chief of the jihadist group in an audio recording released after reports that he had been overthrown.
| Armed Conflict | August 2015 | ['(The Independent)', '(AFP via Times Live)'] |
Iraq conducts a series of air strikes against an ISIL target in Syria. | Updated | Iraq conducted rare airstrikes in neighboring Syria on Thursday, the same day it met with an alliance that may further threaten U.S. interests in the region.
On Thursday, the office of Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi announced in a statement that "our heroic armed forces carried out deadly airstrikes on Thursday against positions of ISIS terrorist gangs in Syria by the Iraqi border." Iraq has mostly defeated the jihadis at home with outside help from a U.S.-led coalition and Iran, and the strikes come after Abadi said last week he may intervene against ISIS in Syria, where the U.S. and Iran were at odds over a seven-year civil war.
"The strikes against ISIS gangs were conducted due to the risk posed by these gangs against Iraqi territory, and demonstrates the increased capabilities of our valiant armed forces in the pursuit and elimination of terrorism," Abadi's office said in a statement sent to Newsweek.
"Our heroic forces and fighters, in their pursuit of terrorist gangs, saved many lives and thwarted ISIS plans, dismantling its terrorist death machine. These strikes will help speed up the elimination of these gangs in the region after we eliminated them in Iraq," it added.
Iraqi F-16 jets target ISIS positions near the eastern Syrian town of Al-Bukamal, located by the Iraqi border on April 19. The operation was reportedly coordinated with the Syrian government, which is opposed by the U.S. and supported by Iran. Media Office of the Prime Minister of Iraq Iraqi Brigadier General Yahya Rasool told Al-Hadath, an affiliate of Saudi Arabia's Al Arabiya station, that the F-16 airstrikes targeted bomb-making factories near the eastern town of Al-Bukamal and were coordinated with the government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, an ally of Russia and Iran.
While the U.S. supports the Iraqi government in its battle against ISIS, it opposes the Syrian government, which has mostly overcome a 2011 uprising sponsored by the West, Turkey and Gulf Arab states thanks to Assad's Russian and Iranian backing. The U.S. has accused Assad of war crimes, including the use of chemical weapons in territories held by rebels and jihadis. The U.S. launched cruise missiles against a Syrian air base last April and conducted an even larger strike coordinated with France and the U.K. against suspected chemical weapons facilities on Friday.
Iraq was one of the few Arab states to oppose the trilateral strikes. Iraqi Foreign Minister Ibrahim al-Jaafari warned his acting U.S. counterpart, John Sullivan, on Sunday that such escalations could disrupt the "security and stability of the region" and give ISIS an opportunity to regain strength after its defeats in both countries. He urged the U.S. to "prioritize finding a political solution" to the conflict.
Iran also came out against the U.S.-led strikes and sent Iranian Defense Minister Amir Hatami to Baghdad Wednesday in a visit he said was geared toward "enhancing defense and military cooperation between Iran and Iraq." On Thursday, less than a week after the attacks in Syria, Hatami was seen meeting not only with his Iraqi counterpart Arfan al-Hayali but representatives of Russia and Syria as well.
The "Quadrilateral Information Exchange Center" was established in Baghdad in 2015 as an anti-ISIS joint operations room between Iraq, Iran, Russia and Syria. While Russia has not conducted military operations in Iraq, it has boosted political and defense ties. Iran has sent troops, including the elite Revolutionary Guard, to both Iraq and Syria, and helped to mobilize a mostly Shiite Muslim army of paramilitary groups, including Hezbollah, to fight ISIS in the neighboring Arab countries. These forces have demanded the departure of the U.S. military from both nations.
Despite its opposition to Assad, the U.S.-led coalition said it provided "intelligence support" for Thursday's operation in Iraq. U.S. Brigadier General Robert B. Sofge, deputy commanding general of operations, said operation highlights the capabilities of Iraq’s armed forces to aggressively pursue Daesh and to maintain their country’s internal security."
Washington gained an ally in Baghdad after the U.S. invaded and overthrew the government of Iraqi President Saddam Hussein in 2003, a move that spurred a Sunni Muslim insurgency against the new Shiite Muslim-dominated government and U.S. troops. Many of these jihadi forces, including Al-Qaeda in Iraq, formed the Islamic State of Iraq, which evolved into ISIS after taking advantage of an uprising against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in Syria.
While fellow Baathist rulers Assad and Hussein were enemies in their day, the post-war Iraqi government grew closer to Syria, as well as to Iran, which fought a bloody war with Iraq under Hussein in the 1980s. When ISIS swarmed both Iraq and Syria in 2013 and 2014, Iraq sought both U.S. and Iranian support. As the Syrian government recovers the insurgent and jihadi rebellion, Assad and his allies have grown closer to Iraq. Iraqi forces have bombed ISIS positions in eastern Syria in the past and have deployed fighters to help the Syrian military and its allies take the last ISIS-held town, Al-Bukamal, in November.
The U.S. too has provided intelligence to the pro-Syrian government campaign, however, via a deconfliction line with Moscow. U.S.-led coalition spokesman Colonel Ryan Dillon told reporters Tuesday that if ISIS elements are spotted west of the Euphrates River, the designated border between the pro-Syrian government and U.S.-backed campaign against ISIS, then "we will tell the Russians, and we certainly hope that they will act on the information that we provided."
Iraqi protestors hold Syrian and Iraqi flags as they burn a U.S. flag during a demonstration opposing the joint Western air strikes against the Syrian government, in Baghdad, on April 15. AHMAD AL-RUBAYE/AFP/Getty Images Dillon also said there has been no "significant gain of territory" for the Syrian Democratic Forces since a number of its Kurdish fighters fled U.S.-led coalition front lines against ISIS and struck a deal with Assad to fight their mutual foe, Turkey. He said the U.S.-led coalition continued to conduct airstrikes designed to target ISIS elements near Hajin, which is north of Al-Bukamal, and Al-Dashisha, which is along the Iraq-Syrian border. He noted modest ISIS gains against pro-Syrian government forces in eastern Syria.
Meanwhile, the Syrian military has gathered the pro-government National Defense Forces to take out the final ISIS pocket near the Yarmouk Camp south of Damascus. After the Syrian government declared the eastern and northern capital outskirts free of rebel control, state-run newspaper Al-Watan reported that Damascus gave ISIS fighters 48 hours to evacuate the area before military operations begin. | Armed Conflict | April 2018 | ['(Yahoo! News)'] |
Qualification starts for UEFA Euro 2012 in European football, with wins for Germany and 2010 FIFA World Cup finalists Spain and the Netherlands. | Miroslav Klose's goal was enough to give Germany a winning start to their Euro 2012 qualifying campaign in Brussels.
The Bayern Munich striker scored six minutes into the second half as Joachim Low's side edged out Belgium 1-0 in Group A.
In a tight game there were chances for both teams early on, but Belgium could not find a way past Germany goalkeeper Manuel Neuer and paid the price.
Germany scored with the first attack of the second half as Thomas Muller's ball found Klose for a simple finish.
Turkey seized early control of the pool by cruising to a 3-0 victory in Kazakhstan.
Two goals in three minutes from Arda Turan and Hamit Altintop had them in command midway through the first half, and Nihat Kahveci made sure of the three points 14 minutes from time as coach Guus Hiddink made a winning start.
Russia and Slovakia both got their Euro 2012 qualifying campaigns off to winning starts in Group B with. Dick Advocaat's Russia indebted to Pavel Pogrebniak after the striker's double secured a 2-0 victory in Andorra.
Filip Holosko's stoppage-time strike earned Slovakia a 1-0 victory over 10-man FYR Macedonia in Bratislava.
Vladimir Weiss's side had the better of the chances but could not make the breakthrough until the 91st minute. By that time they had a man advantage after Vance Sikov had seen red for two bookable offences.
Italy came from behind with two second-half goals to snatch a 2-1 win in Estonia in their opening qualifier.
Antonio Cassano equalised on the hour mark before setting up Leonardo Bonucci three minutes later for the Azzurri's second.
Sergei Zenjov had put Estonia ahead just past the half-hour mark and the home side were unlucky not to add to their advantage when Sander Puri's right-footed strike beat Italy goalkeeper Salvatore Sirigu but hit the crossbar and stayed out.
The result marked Italy's first win in 2010 and gave new coach Cesare Prandelli his maiden victory since replacing Marcello Lippi after the World Cup.
Serbia started their campaign with a routine 3-0 victory over the Faroe Islands in Torshavn.
Danko Lazovic set the Serbians on their way after 13 minutes and when captain Dejan Stankovic doubled their advantage from a free-kick five minutes later it looked like Brian Kerr's hosts could be in for a torrid evening.
But Gunnar Nielsen, on loan at Tranmere from Manchester City, was beaten just once more – by Birmingham City's new signing Nikola Zigic in the 90th minute.
Bosnia-Herzegovina enjoyed a 3-0 win over Luxembourg. All the goals came early, with Senijad Ibricic scoring a sixth-minute opener, Miralem Pjanic adding a second six minutes later and Edin Dzeko making quite sure of the points on the quarter-hour mark.
The other group game surprisingly finished in a draw, with Romania held 1-1 at home by Albania.
Substitute Bogdan Stancu ended Romania's wait for a goal in the 80th minute, only for Gjergj Muzaka, who came off the Albania bench with nine minutes remaining, to grab an 88th-minute equaliser.
World Cup runners-up Holland began their qualifying campaign with a comprehensive 5-0 rout of San Marino.
Klaas-Jan Huntelaar netted a hat-trick and Ruud van Nistelrooy found the net on his international return after Dirk Kuyt had opened the scoring. Kuyt converted a 16th-minute penalty after Huntelaar had been brought down in the box.
Huntelaar, who joined Schalke from Milan last week, added a second after 38 minutes as the Dutch took a 2-0 half-time lead.
Huntelaar netted again after 48 minutes and completed his treble after 67 minutes before substitute Van Nistelrooy struck in stoppage time at the Stadio Olimpico, Serravalle.
It was Van Nistelrooy's 34th goal in his 65th appearance following two years in the international wilderness.
The 34-year-old Hamburg striker was overlooked for South Africa as the Oranje marched to the World Cup final, having come out of international retirement.
Bert van Marwijk's side will play Finland on Tuesday, who suffered a 2-0 loss away to Moldova.
Moldova took full advantage of the dismissal of former Liverpool captain Sami Hyypia to triumph at in Chisinau.
Bayer Leverkusen defender Hyypia was sent off after 36 minutes for a professional foul on Viorel Frunza and Moldova made their visitors pay for their numerical disadvantage in the second half.
Substitute Alexandru Suvorov struck a free-kick opener after 69 minutes before Anatolie Doros added a second after 74 minutes to complete the victory for Moldova, who travel to Budapest to meet Hungary in their second qualifying match on Tuesday.
Hungary will be seeking their first win, after losing 2-0 to Sweden, courtesy of two goals from Pontus Wernbloom.
Wernbloom netted after 51 and 73 minutes to steer Sweden to victory at the in Solna.
Birmingham's Sebastian Larsson set up the opening goal, with Wernbloom heading his cross past Gabor Kiraly to end Hungary's resistance.
Sweden doubled their lead when Wernbloom showed his strength in the air once again as Kim Kallstrom swung over a corner and the 24-year-old AZ Alkmaar forward headed against the bar before converting the rebound.
Sweden will next meet San Marino in Malmo on Tuesday.
Slaven Bilic saw his Croatia side cruise to a comfortable 3-0 win over Latvia as they opened their qualifying campaign in Riga.
Hamburg striker Mladen Petric opened the scoring shortly before half-time and Bayern Munich's Ivica Olic doubled the lead six minutes after the break before Shakhtar Donetsk's Darijo Srna completed the scoring.
Croatia dominated from the off and had several chances before finally taking the lead two minutes before half-time.
Tottenham midfielder Niko Kranjcar had several opportunities before Petric netted just before the break.
Bayern Munich's Olic added the second goal after 51 minutes and Srna also netted with eight minutes remaining to wrap up the three points for the visitors.
Greece drew 1-1 with Georgia after Nikos Spyropoulos earned them a point with a second half equaliser.
Alexander Iashvili had given the visitors the lead after three minutes but Spyropoulos levelled with 18 minutes remaining.
Portugal were held to a thrilling 4-4 draw by Cyprus in Guimaraes as they made a false start to their Group H campaign.
First-half goals from Efstathios Aloneftis and Michael Constantinou for Cyprus were cancelled out by Portugal's Hugo Almeida and Raul Meireles, the new Liverpool midfielder.
The home team then led 3-2 and 4-3 but Andreas Avraam, who scored the eighth goal of the match in the 88th minute, drew Cyprus level and earned them an unexpected point.
In the same group, Norway staged a fine second-half comeback to beat Iceland 2-1.
Egil Olsen's side went behind shortly before half-time in Reykjavik when veteran QPR striker Heidar Helguson scored for Iceland.
But captain Brede Hangeland showed his team the way with a headed equaliser after 58 minutes, and Mohammed Abdellaoue hit the winner 17 minutes later.
The world champions Spain began the defence of their European Championship title with a 4-0 win over Liechtenstein in Vaduz.
Fernando Torres struck twice while David Villa and substitute David Silva were also on the scoresheet.
Vicente del Bosque's side, who have now won 52 of 57 matches since 2006, scored two fine goals in the first half through Torres and Villa but could have had many more after cutting open the home defence time and again.
They added the gloss in the second half to get their Group I campaign off and running in style. | Sports Competition | September 2010 | ['(Toronto Sun)', '(The Guardian)'] |
Hurricane Laura is upgraded to a Category 4 as it nears the Gulf Coast of the United States. | Hurricane Laura, a major Category 4 storm, is set to hit near the Texas-Louisiana border on Thursday morning as local officials scramble to evacuate thousands of residents.
The storm’s rapid intensification shocked scientists and prompted forecasters to issue warnings of “unsurvivable storm surge” in Texas and Louisiana.
“Unsurvivable storm surge with large and destructive waves will cause catastrophic damage from Sea Rim State Park, Texas, to Intracoastal City, Louisiana, including Calcasieu and Sabine Lakes,” the National Hurricane Center said on Wednesday. “This surge could penetrate up to 30 miles inland from the immediate coastline.”
Laura could bring storm surge of nearly 13 feet to the coastline as well as flash flooding and tornadoes on land. The surge will arrive ahead of Laura’s center late on Wednesday, so if people delay evacuating, the roads could already be flooded.
The storm battered the Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico and Haiti over the weekend, knocking out power for more than 1 million people, collapsing some homes and killing at least 23 people.
“I’m running out of words. Hurricane Laura is now one of the fastest-intensifying storms in recorded history in the Gulf of Mexico,” climate scientist Eric Holthaus wrote in a tweet. “Laura now poses a catastrophic, potentially historic threat to coastal Louisiana.”
Rising ocean temperatures driven by climate change are leading to more intense and destructive hurricanes. As hurricanes such as Laura strengthen more rapidly in warmer waters, states have less time to prepare storm mitigation and evacuate people from dangerous areas.
“One thing we’ve seen in particular — with Harvey in 2017, and Florence and Michael in 2018 and now with Laura — is very rapid intensification, wherein the storm strengthens from a tropical storm to major hurricane status in less than a day,” said climate scientist Michael Mann.
“Such rapid intensification happens over very warm waters like we’ve seen in the tropical Atlantic and Gulf in recent years, and right now large parts of the Gulf are bathtub-level hot,” Mann said. | Hurricanes_Tornado_Storm_Blizzard | August 2020 | ['(CNBC)'] |
The Indonesian province of Riau declares a state of emergency due to high levels of smoke haze from forest fires in Riau, Jambi and South Sumatra that have led thousands of people to flee the capital Pekanbaru. | Indonesia has declared a haze emergency in Sumatra's Riau province, as the choking smoke surged way past already hazardous levels and forced thousands to flee Pekanbaru, Riau's capital, which is about 280km away from Singapore.
The deteriorating situation - the result of forest fires in Riau, Jambi and South Sumatra provinces - prompted President Joko Widodo to instruct the police and armed forces chiefs to deploy additional personnel to help combat the haze.
Mr Joko, who is on an official visit to Qatar, also warned in a statement yesterday that the government would take harsh legal action.
"I have also told law enforcers to take stern action against those who are responsible, including confiscating land licences and forestry permits," he said.
In Singapore, the 24-hour Pollutant Standards Index (PSI) readings hovered within the unhealthy range (101-200) throughout yesterday and are expected to worsen. At 9pm, it ranged between 133 and 166. The three-hour PSI was 249.
Mr Chia Aik Song, an associate scientist with the Centre for Remote Imaging, Sensing and Processing at the National University of Singapore, said that while it was difficult to predict how the haze would develop, he noted that a dry spell would worsen the situation. "As long as there is not enough rain to put out the fires, the threat of unfavourable winds bringing smoke from Sumatra across the Strait of Malacca to Singapore will persist."
The 24-hour PSI is predicted to be in the mid to high sections of the unhealthy range but may deteriorate into the low section of the very unhealthy range (201-300) today, said the National Environment Agency (NEA) yesterday evening. Environment and Water Resources Minister Vivian Balakrishnan spoke with Indonesia's Environment and Forestry Minister Siti Nurbaya Bakar yesterday afternoon to further express his concern over the haze situation.
According to the NEA, he also reiterated Singapore's offer of help, which Indonesia has so far declined. Ms Siti said she would consult President Joko again on the offer. She also agreed to share the names of companies suspected of causing the fires when they are confirmed.
Singapore's Ministry of Education has activated haze management measures and will consider closing all schools if the air quality is at the hazardous level, it said on its website.
In Malaysia, the government has ordered schools in Kuala Lumpur, Selangor, Putrajaya, Melaka and Negeri Sembilan to be closed today. Air Pollutant Index readings as of 11pm yesterday showed that air quality in Kuala Selangor had reached a dangerous level of 207, while readings for the rest of Selangor hovered around the 170 range. | Fire | September 2015 | ['(AFP via Straits Times)'] |
U.S. President Donald Trump nominates New York Jets owner Woody Johnson to be the next United States Ambassador to the United Kingdom. | The heir to the Johnson & Johnson pharmaceutical empire originally supported Jeb Bush in the Republican primaries.
Friday 20 January 2017 17:14, UK
Donald Trump has indicated he has chosen billionaire businessman Woody Johnson as US ambassador to the UK.
The US President revealed he had picked the owner of the New York Jets American football team to the prestigious diplomatic posting, known as ambassador to the Court of St James's, in typical unconventional style.
:: Trump hours away from world's most powerful job:: Live updates - Inauguration day for Donald Trump
Speaking at a lunch in Washington DC ahead of his inauguration, Mr Trump introduced a guest as "sitting next to the ambassador Woody Johnson, going to Saint James".
Mr Trump added: "Congratulations, Woody."
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The UK's ambassador to the US, Kim Darroch was among the first to welcome the appointment, tweeting: "Congratulations @WoodyJohnson4 on nomination as US Ambassador to the UK! Surely you can replicate the success of @NYJets in London 2015."
Although not yet formally announced, Mr Johnson, a Republican donor, had been seen as a frontrunner for the plum role.
Congratulations @WoodyJohnson4 on nomination as US Ambassador to the UK! Surely you can replicate the success of @NYJets in London 2015
The philanthropist and heir to the Johnson & Johnson pharmaceutical empire has known Mr Trump for years, but originally supported his rival Jeb Bush in the Republican primaries.
However, after Mr Bush crashed out of the race, Mr Johnson threw his support behind Mr Trump and acted as both an adviser and fundraiser during the election campaign.
The ambassadorial appointment will need to be approved by the US Senate.
| Government Job change - Appoint_Inauguration | January 2017 | ['(Sky News)'] |
In golf, American James Hahn wins the 2015 Northern Trust Open. | LOS ANGELES — Oh, baby, does James Hahn have a flair for the dramatic. In his last start before the impending birth of his first child, and with the minutes ticking down until the start of the Academy Awards a few miles down the rain-soaked freeway, Hahn made a 24-foot birdie putt on the third playoff hole Sunday to wrest the Northern Trust Open title from Dustin Johnson.
Playing the 186-yard, par-3 14th hole, Johnson hit his tee shot to 12 feet. After Hahn made his putt, Johnson missed, giving Hahn his first PGA Tour victory in his 65th start. Hahn closed with a two-under 69 at Riviera Country Club to tie Johnson (69) and the Englishman Paul Casey (68) at six-under 278. Casey was eliminated on the second extra hole when he failed to make birdie. | Sports Competition | February 2015 | ['(The New York Times)'] |
Hundreds of Coptic Christians protest in Alexandria and Cairo and shout slogans against Hosni Mubarak's rule following the church bombing, where some people held mass. Egyptian media warns of civil war and increasing sectarian violence between Christians and Muslims, and Pope Benedict XVI publicly condemns the bombing. | For the first time, Copts in Egypt are venting their anger in full force by protesting in the streets of Cairo since Sunday morning.
Friday night's explosion outside Saints Church in Alexandria during New Year's midnight mass killed 21 and left more than 96 injured and stirred Copts out of their docile "pigeon attitude."
Throughout the day, there have outbreaks of protests and violent demonstrations by angry Copts on the streets of Cairo. Hundreds of Copts demonstrated in front of Nile Towers mall on Kornish el-Nil chanting "With our souls and blood we save the cross." They marched to the Radio and TV headquarters at Maspero, where some protestors tried to storm the building but were prevented by the police.
As the protestors moved along the river towards Imbaba they clashed with security personnel, with reports of rocks being thrown by both groups.
Moreover, around 50 Copts demonstrated in front of the Coptic Cathedral asking for a peaceful life, recognition and fairness.
They addressed President Hosni Mubarak with chants of "the blood of the Copt is not cheap."
The latter demonstration started early in the morning as the head of Al-Azhar, Ahmed El-Tayeb, Grand Mufti Ali Gomaa and Osaman Mohamed Osaman, Minster of Planning and Economic Development came to pay their respect to Coptic Pope Shenouda III. Angry protestors threw stones at the three figures as they didn't want to receive condelences from muslim figures.
A few hours ago, 4,000 Coptic garbage collectors have gone on a violent strike on the Autostrad highway, throwing stones and empty bottles on the street demonstrating against the explosive incident.
The demonstrators have called for firing Abdel Rehim el-Ghol, member of parliament for Nagaa Hamadi, because of the bloody attack that took place on Orthodox Christmas on 7 January last year. Police intervened to stop the demonstration and clashes took place between both until the demonstration ended.
A limited number of Copts have also gone out on to Salah Salem Street chanting in anger against the Coptic Egyptians' loss and sectarian violence in Egypt.
Many other protests are yet expected. Human rights activists and bloggers are organizing a silent stand along the Kornish of Cairo on Friday afternoon according to Gamal Eid, head of the Arabic Network for Human Rights Information. | Protest_Online Condemnation | January 2011 | ['(Agence Presse–France)', '(Ahram Online)', '(Stuff.co.nz)', '(Miami Herald)', '(Ahlul Bayt News Agency)'] |
Jiroemon Kimura, who had been the world's oldest living person and the verified longest lived man ever, dies in the Japanese city of Kyōtango. | Jiroemon Kimura, who was born in 1897, died in hospital early this morning “from old age”, an official in Kyoto’s Kyotango city said in a statement.
Kimura, who was from Kyotango, was hospitalised in early May suffering from pneumonia.
A few days ago doctors noted that his condition was worsening, Kimura was recognised by Guinness World Records as the world’s oldest living person in December 2012, after a woman from the United States died at the age of 115.
That month he also broke another record when he was verified as the oldest man ever to have lived, after reaching the age of 115 years and 253 days.
However, he was well off the all-time record set by French woman Jeanne Calment, who died in 1997 at the age of 122, making her the longest living person in history.
Kimura, who was born the same year as American aviation pioneer Amelia Earhart, celebrated his 116th birthday in April, receiving a pre-recorded video greeting from Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.
The centenarian had seven children, 14 grandchildren, 25 great-grand children and 15 great-great grandchildren, and worked at a post office for about 40 years. After retiring he took up farming which he continued to do until the age of 90.
He did not smoke and only ate until he was 80 percent full, the local official told AFP. Kimura’s motto in life was “to eat light and live long,” the official added.
The mayor of Kyotango will pay his respects at Kimura’s house while the city hall will prepare a place for a book of condolences, the official said.
“I heard a wake will be tomorrow and a funeral the day after tomorrow,” he said. “Mr. Kimura was popular among residents so we expect many people to visit to sign condolences,” he added.
Encouraged by Kimura and 94 other people in Kyotango who will this year be 100 years old or more, the 60,000-strong city, together with 36 other municipalities, is planning to launch a research project to examine their diets and find the secrets of their longevity. -- AFP
In this file photo taken Oct. 15, 2012 and released by Kyotango City, Jiroemon Kimura smiles after he was presented with the certificate of the world's oldest living man from Guinness World Records Editor-in-Chief Craig Glenday at his home in the city, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan. Japanese media report that Kimura died of natural causes at a hospital in Kyotango early Wednesday, June 12, 2013 at the age of 116. | Famous Person - Death | June 2013 | ['(AFP via New Strait Times)', '(The Age)'] |
Canadian singer Justin Bieber surrenders to Toronto Police to face assault charges. | Justin Bieber’s trouble with the law spread to a second country Wednesday when the pop star surrendered to police in Canada charging him with assault shortly after pleading not guilty in a separate drag racing incident in Miami.
He arrived in Toronto on Wednesday evening and was later formally charged with assaulting a limousine driver, CBC reports. Just hours earlier, he had entered his plea in Miami, where he’s accused of driving under the influence, resisting arrest and driving with an expired license, the Associated Press reports.
Toronto Police were called to investigate the assault allegation on Dec. 29, CBC reports. At the time, police told the Canadian press that they did not know whether it was Bieber or a member of his entourage who was the subject of the complaint.
Last week, the 19-year-old was arrested for driving under the influence and drag racing in Miami. Police say the singer admitted to smoking marijuana, drinking and taking prescription medication. He pleaded not guilty to the charges in Miami on Wednesday.
Meanwhile, the White House must issue an official response to an appeal urging President Barack Obama to deport Justin Bieber, now that the petition has surpassed the threshold of 100,000 signatures. | Famous Person - Commit Crime - Accuse | January 2014 | ['(Time)'] |
China orders the closure of the United States Consulate in Chengdu, in retaliation for the United States closure of the Chinese consulate in Houston, Texas. | China has ordered the closure of the US consulate in the south-western city of Chengdu, in a tit-for-tat escalation between the two countries. China said the move was in response to the US closing its consulate in Houston, and accused staff in Chengdu of meddling in its internal affairs.
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said the US decision was taken because China was "stealing" intellectual property.
Tensions have been rising between the US and China over several key issues.
President Donald Trump's administration has clashed repeatedly with Beijing over trade and the coronavirus pandemic, as well as China's imposition of a controversial new security law in Hong Kong.
On Friday, Washington urged China to "cease these malign actions rather than engage in tit-for-tat retaliation". China's move came hours after Mr Pompeo hardened his tone further in a speech on Thursday at the library of former President Richard Nixon, whose 1972 China visit heralded a period of improved relations. "Today, China is increasingly authoritarian at home, and more aggressive in its hostility to freedom everywhere else," Mr Pompeo said. "The free world must triumph over this new tyranny."
On Friday, China's foreign ministry said it was closing the US consulate in Chengdu after staff there "interfered in China's internal affairs, and endangered China's security and interests".
During a news conference, ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin also said the US decision to close the consulate in Houston was based on "a hodgepodge of anti-Chinese lies".
He said Mr Pompeo's announcement on Thursday was "filled with ideological bias and a Cold War mentality."
"Pompeo made a speech in which he made a malicious attack on the Chinese Communist Party," Mr Wang said, adding: "To this, China expresses strong indignation and resolute opposition."
The ministry earlier said that the closure of the US consulate in Chengdu was a "legitimate and necessary response" to the actions taken by the US.
"The current situation between China and the United States is something China does not want to see, and the US bears all responsibility for that."
China has given the US until Monday to close the consulate in Chengdu, according to the editor of China's Global Times.
The mission, established in 1985 and currently having more than 200 staff - 150 hired locally - is seen as strategically important because it allows the US to gather information on the autonomous region of Tibet, where there has been long-running pressure for independence. With its industry and growing services sector, Chengdu also is seen by the US as providing opportunities for exports of agricultural products, cars and machinery. On Tuesday, the US government ordered China to close its consulate in Houston, Texas, by Friday. The move came after unidentified individuals were filmed burning paper in bins in the building's courtyard.
Mr Pompeo accused China of stealing "not just American intellectual property... but European intellectual property too... costing hundreds of thousands of jobs".
"We are setting out clear expectations for how the Chinese Communist Party is going to behave. And when they don't, we're going to take actions," he said. The Chinese consulate in Houston was one of five in the US, along with the embassy in Washington DC. It was not clear why it was singled out.
China's foreign ministry spokeswoman said the reasons given by the US for closing the consulate were "unbelievably ridiculous". Hua Chunying urged the US to reverse its "erroneous decision", or China would "react with firm countermeasures".
In a further US move, four Chinese nationals have been charged with visa fraud for allegedly lying about their membership of China's armed forces. On Friday, US officials told reporters a Chinese student who fled to China's consulate in San Francisco was now in US custody. Three others were arrested earlier.
Separately, a Singaporean man has pleaded guilty at a federal court in Washington to a charge of operating as an illegal agent of the Chinese government, John Demers, assistant attorney general for national security, said on Friday.
Jun Wei Yeo, also known as Dickson Yeo, was charged with using his political consultancy in the US as a front to collect information for Chinese intelligence.
There are a number of things at play. US officials have blamed China for the global spread of Covid-19. More specifically, President Trump has alleged, without evidence, that the virus originated from a Chinese laboratory in Wuhan. And, in unsubstantiated remarks, a Chinese foreign ministry spokesman said in March that the US military might have brought the virus to Wuhan.
The US and China have also been locked in a tariff war since 2018. Mr Trump has long accused China of unfair trading practices and intellectual property theft, but in Beijing there is a perception that the US is trying to curb its rise as a global economic power.
The US has also imposed sanctions on Chinese politicians who it says are responsible for human rights violations against Muslim minorities in Xinjiang. China is accused of mass detentions, religious persecution and forced sterilisation of Uighurs and others. Beijing denies the allegations and has accused the US of "gross interference" in its domestic affairs.
China's imposition of a sweeping security law there is also a source of tension with the US and the UK, which ruled the territory until 1997. In response, the US last week revoked Hong Kong's special trading status, which allowed it to avoid tariffs imposed on Chinese goods by the US. The US and UK see the security law as a threat to the freedoms Hong Kong has enjoyed under a 1984 agreement between China and the UK - before sovereignty reverted to Beijing.
The UK has angered China by outlining a route to UK citizenship for nearly three million Hong Kong residents. China responded by threatening to stop recognising a type of British passport - BNO - held by many of those living in Hong Kong. US orders China to close Houston consulate
| Organization Closed | July 2020 | ['(BBC)'] |
Egyptian Army General Mansour el–Essawy is named as the new Minister of Interior responsible for security replacing Mahmoud Wagdy. | A new Egyptian interior minister took office on Sunday pledging to restore public confidence in the police a day after protesters stormed several state security buildings. In an acceptance statement carried by the state MENA news agency, Mansur al-Issawi said he would take "all necessary measures to restore confidence between citizens and the police." He also promised to make "every effort in the coming period to restore security and stability in the Egyptian street."
Prime Minister Essam Sharaf, who was appointed on Thursday after demonstrations against the presence of associates of Hosni Mubarak in the caretaker government running affairs since the former president's departure, named Issawi late on Saturday, the government's Facebook page said. He replaces Mahmud Wagdi, who was appointed by Mubarak in the dying days of his three-decade rule in a vain bid to appease mass protests demanding he step down. Wagdi in turn replaced Habib al-Adly, the long feared head of Egypt's internal security apparatus who went on trial on Saturday on corruption charges. He pleaded not guilty on all counts. Protesters attacked several state security buildings on Friday and Saturday trying to retrieve files kept on the population by the security police, who have long been accused of human rights abuses. Around 2,500 protesters stormed the state security building in Cairo's Nasr City "grabbing official documents before officials burn or shred them," a security official told AFP. Hundreds more tried to barge their way into another state security building in the Cairo suburb of Sheikh Zayed, where guards inside fired into the air to try to disperse the crowd. In the northwestern city of Mersa Matruh, protesters surged into the state security headquarters, gathering up thousands of documents before setting the building on fire. Residents of the coastal resort then sat at nearby cafes leafing through the documents for evidence of human rights abuses as smoke billowed from the headquarters, a witness told AFP. On Friday, hundreds massed outside the local state security headquarters in Egypt's second city Alexandria, hurling Molotov cocktails and burning police cars. Some managed to get inside the building, and security officials inside fired gunshots before troops intervened. | Government Job change - Appoint_Inauguration | March 2011 | ['(Reuters via Yahoo! Canada)', '(Al Arabiya)'] |
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