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By . Kieran Corcoran . The richest people in Britain had a bumper year as their wealth surged to a combined total of £518billion. Between them the thousand richest Britons now have assets worth as much as a third of the entire UK's annual output - up from £450billion this time last year. The huge total is further proof that Britain is the capital of the world for the super-rich, with more billionaires per head than anywhere else on earth. Glamorous figures such as Emma Watson and the Queen rubbed shoulders in the rankings with the business elite and aspirant tech millionaires. Glam: Emma Watson, left, was ranked on the Young Rich List with a £30million fortune, while the Queen ranked 285 with a £330million fortune . Success story: The man behind comparethemarket.com, with its ubiqutious meerkat adverts, featured in the list . Meerkat moolah: Douw Steyn was ranked 170, with a £600million fortune . The identities of the richest men and . women in the country were revealed in today's Sunday Times Rich List, . which ranks the 1,000 richest Britons every year. To qualify this year a . minimum fortune of £85million was necessary. As well stalwart figureheads of affluence including Richard Branson, the Barclay Brothers and the Queen, the list also pointed out a number of internet successes, including the man behind insurance site comparethemarket.com. South African insurance tycoon Douw . Steyn, who funded the ubiquitous Compare the Meerkat adverts, saw his wealth go up by £50 million . to a total of £600 million, ranked 170. He was joined by the creators of the addictive Candy Crush smartphone app, as well as the brother behind the violent Grand Theft Auto videogame series. Four . members of King Digital Entertainment, which publishers Candy Crush, joined the list. They include entrepreneur Mel Morris, who came in at 238 with a £430 million . fortune, and King's chief executive Riccardo Zacconi, ranked 271 with . £354 million. Sam and Dan Houser, whose fortune stems from Rockstar Games, which publishes the wildly popular Grand Theft Auto titles, were new entries at 947 with a . joint fortune of £90 million. Sweet reward: Candy Crush entrepreneur Mel Morris was a new entrant with a £430million fortune . Addictive: Candy Crush has millions of users, many of whom pay to play the game . Nevertheless, the firm's founders are still in line for a monumental windfall. To get into the top 500, the rich need £190 million - double the £80 million required in 2004 and up £30million from the £160million cut off point for last year's list. Philip Beresford, who has compiled the ranking since 1989, said: 'I've never seen such a phenomenal rise in personal wealth as the growth in the fortunes of Britain's 1,000 richest people over the past year. 'The richest people in Britain have had an astonishing year. 'While some may criticise them, many of these people are at the heart of the economy and their success brings more jobs and more wealth for the country.' Most distinguished among the old money names, the Queen had a sterling year as she added £10 million to her personal fortune and is now ranked 285 with £330 million. Name and ranking Worth Source of Wealth . 1 Sri and Gopi Hinduja £11,900m Industry, Finance . 2 Alisher Usmanov £10,650m Mining, Investment . 3 Lakshmi Mittal and family £10,250m Steel . 4 Len Blavatnik £10,000m Investment, Music, Media . 5 Ernesto and Kirsty Bertarelli £9,750m Pharmaceuticals . 6 John Fredriksen and family £9,250m Shipping, Oil services . 7 David and Simon Reuben £9,000m Property, Internet . 8 Kirsten and Jorn Rausing £8,800m Inheritance, Investment . 9 Roman Abramovich £8,520m Industry, Oil . 10 The Duke of Westminster £8,500m Property . Play . it your way: The heist levels perhaps best represent just how far . gameplay has come since its predecessor - allowing you to complete the . objectives in different ways, be that stealth or all-out assault . Aiming high: Rockstar have called it the most ambitious in the series and nearly all of their ideas have paid off . Well-established . Rich List millionaires such as Jamie and wife Jools Oliver saw their . worth go up by £90 million to £240 million, ranking them at 396, as the . celebrity chef's restaurant chain, TV appearances, cookbook sales and . Jool's childrenswear range continued to pay dividends. Former . Tesco boss Sir Terry Leahy, who stepped down at the supermarket chain . in 2011, was among the new entrants with a worth of £100 million, . ranking at 863. Meanwhile, . American film producer Harvey Weinstein and his British former model . turned designer wife Georgina Chapman also made the grade for the first . time with a joint fortune of £115 million, ranked 788. New too: Sir Terry Leahy, former chief executive of Tesco, entered the list at 863 with £1million . Entertainers featured heavily in the 50 Young Rich list for those aged 30 and under. Former . Harry Potter star Emma Watson, 24, is now estimated to be worth £30 . million, up £3 million on last year, as she builds a career for herself . as a Hollywood leading lady. Husband . and wife Marcus Mumford 27, and Carey Mulligan, 28, joined the young . list for the first time with a joint fortune of £13million from their . music and films. Last week it was announced that the list's compilers had found that the number of billionaires living in Britain has risen to more than 100 for the first time. Some 104 billionaires are now based in the UK - more than triple the number from a decade ago - with a combined wealth of more than £301 billion. It means Britain has more billionaires per head of population than any other country, while London's total of 72 sterling billionaires is more than any other city in the world . The 26th annual Sunday Times Rich List will be released tomorrow with profiles of the 1,000 richest individuals and families in the UK and the wealthiest 250 in Ireland. It is based on 'identifiable wealth' - including land, property, other assets such as art and racehorses, or significant shares in publicly quoted companies. It does not include money held in bank accounts.
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Between them the richest Britons got £68billion richer in just one year .
Britain has more billionaires per head than anywhere else in the world .
Details of the super-wealthy appeared in the Sunday Times Rich List .
Glamorous figures like Emma Watson were listed alongside big businessmen .
The Queen featured in the top 300, and tech entrepreneurs shot to wealth .
Candy Crush app, Grand Theft Auto videogames and even adverts for comparethemarket.com emerged as a source of huge revenues for owners .
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Shoplifter Danny from Channel 4 documentary Benefits Street . Channel 4 was facing a police probe last night over a documentary featuring a thief showing how to shoplift. Detectives are considering whether to investigate the criminal activities seen in the programme on welfare claimants. The prolific shoplifter explains how to dodge security alarms and how to remove security tags from designer clothes without causing damage. More than 200 complaints were made to Channel 4 and the broadcasting watchdog Ofcom after Benefits Street aired on Monday night. Residents in a deprived Birmingham road were filmed making false welfare claims and growing cannabis in their homes. John O’Shea, a Labour councillor in the city, said: ‘Channel 4 appear to have aided and abetted shoplifting in Birmingham.’ Superintendent Danny Long, of West Midlands Police, said: ‘We have been inundated with comments from members of the public, many of whom are concerned about elements of the show which showed criminal activity. ‘We are assessing whether the content of the programme can assist us as part of any investigations or indeed whether any new inquiries should be launched in light of the material that has been broadcast.’ The programme explores day-to-day life in James Turner Street, Winson Green, where, it is claimed, as many as 90 per cent of people claim benefits. Shoplifter ‘Danny’ is seen brandishing a cardboard shopping bag which he has lined with a Primark paper bag covered in foil to stop security alarms going off inside stores. Another resident, called ‘Fungi’, is seen going into a Premier Inn hotel where he picks up four magazines and tries to hawk them for £2.50 each, calling them ‘his Big Issue’. Patrol: Police were on James Turner Street in Birmingham today as it emerged that officers will review whether there should be arrests after what was shown on the programme . Inquiries: An officer knocks at a door on 'Benefits Street', where it is believed 90 per cent are unemployed and survive on benefits . In trouble: On last night's show a man called Danny discussed stealing jackets from a shop in the Bullring shopping centre and was later arrested . Cameras follow him making a sale to a . woman in a smart black sports car. Evidently fooled, she gives him £3 . and tells him to keep the change. He makes £12. Danny . later returns from a shopping centre having apparently stolen five . jackets which he claims he can sell for £250. On the bus home, he shows . viewers how to remove the security tags without damaging the clothes. Fungi . beams: ‘This guy is one of the best shoplifters I have ever met in my . life. This is James Turner street, this is how we’ve got to earn our . money.’ After making £200 in an afternoon, Danny then calls a drug dealer to order ‘two bags and a shot’. Another . resident, Dee Roberts, 32, says: ‘If there’s somebody around and . they’re going to sell you a £120 pair of jeans for a tenner you aren’t . going to say no are you, do you know what I mean, it’s like their way of . living.’ Accusations: People on the street say the Channel 4 show has manipulated them and made their area look like a slum . Criticism: Residents say they mistakenly believed the show was about the strength of the community on James Turner Street, but producers say they simply filmed what they saw, which appears to include criminality . Yesterday it . emerged the jobless youth worker was arrested last summer on suspicion . of possessing Class B drugs with intent to supply. She has not been . charged and protests her innocence. Her home was among four James Turner Street properties searched by police on June 14. Police . said a number of bullets were recovered from one property while a haul . of illegal substances, believed to be cocaine and cannabis, and a large . amount of cash were also seized. During . the programme, a man wearing a black tracksuit, gloves and a full face . mask is seen tending a number of cannabis plants. He says: ‘Basically . everyone does something on the side when they’re on benefits, it can be . from selling tobacco to going shoplifting.’ A . young couple who live on the street, Mark and Becky, told the . film-makers they had all their benefits stopped because of fraudulent . claims. Mark said at one point they were picking up £1,500 a month for them and their two young children. ‘Me and Becky, to tell you the truth, we were doing benefit fraud and was picking up easily £1,500 a month,’ he said. Raids: Police say they seized a number of bullets from one property while a 'substantial' haul of substances, believed to be cocaine and cannabis, and a large amount of cash were also seized from the street . ‘They . stopped everything. I can see why people go out robbing and do time . inside, it pays to be inside – there’s nothing out here.’ Upset: People who live on James Turner Street, including Dee Roberts and friend Charlene Wilson (right), are unhappy about how they are being portrayed . Channel 4 said it had received around 100 complaints and Ofcom is thought to have received a similar number. Viewers . were concerned about how crime and benefits claimants were portrayed in . the programme, which had an audience of 4.3million. The . broadcaster said the series, filmed over more than a year, was a ‘fair . reflection of the reality of life on a street where the majority of . households receive benefits’. On . the alleged criminal activity, it said: ‘The production crew were . filming in a purely observational capacity – at no stage was criminal . behaviour encouraged or condoned. ‘All . contributors were briefed that if they carried out criminal activity on . camera this could result in criminal investigations after broadcast.’ Channel 4 insisted the programme-makers were careful not to show viewers how to commit crime. Ofcom said it would assess the complaints it received. Yesterday residents featured in the documentary claimed they had been ‘turned over’ by Channel 4. Polish-born . Anna Korzen, 28, has lived on the street for four years with her two . children. She rakes in £900 a month in tax credits, child benefit and . housing benefit. Miss Korzen said: ‘Everyone on the street is so angry, so am I. We have been made to look like tramps.’ The programme also prompted abusive messages and death threats on Twitter, aimed at the programme’s participants. One person tweeted: ‘Set fire to £Benefits Street.’ The . British Retail Consortium said in a statement: ‘Shoplifting is far from . victimless: it affects shops and staff, impacts directly on communities . and can encourage wider criminal activity.’ Not impressed: Mark Thomas, 23 and Becky Howe, 23, say producers of Channel 4's Benefits Street have made residents look like 'slums' Shoplifter Danny from Channel 4 documentary Benefits Street . 'Danny' – thought to be Danny Smith – was the catalyst for most of the complaints to the police. The qualified gym instructor was shown lining a paper shopping bag with tin foil to stop store alarms from sounding during a shoplifting spree. ‘Fill it up with a £2,000 coat or whatever you ****ing want, you’ll walk out of the shop and you’re coming out with no alarms going off’, he said. Smith, a father of three who admitted being too lazy to work, went shoplifting just days after being released from prison. Although cameras did not record him taking any goods, he was filmed afterwards boasting about his haul of five designer jackets – which he then sold for £200. His criminal record stretches to around 200 offences. He has been convicted 80 times since the age of 12. Subject to an Asbo banning him from Birmingham city centre, he was arrested after venturing back to the shops on another thieving mission. He was also verbally abusive to the police and community support officers who picked him up. The programme ended with Danny vanishing after apparently stealing cannabis plants a neighbour was growing in a spare bedroom. Deirdre Kelly – or ‘White Dee’ – boasted of being the ‘mother of the street’ in the first episode. She was filmed advising neighbour ‘Black Dee’ not to panic when she was served with an eviction notice. And she told an alcoholic neighbour threatened with having his benefits suspended that she ignored a similar letter ‘and they were still paid’. Deirdre Kelly ¿ or 'White Dee' ¿ boasted of being the 'mother of the street¿ in the first episode' Viewers were told the 42-year-old was struggling to bring up two children on benefits and there was no sign of a partner. However, her Facebook page, which is littered with photographs of family holidays and outings to pop concerts, states she is ‘in a relationship’. Although of Irish extraction, Miss Kelly has lived in Birmingham since childhood. She revels in her ‘mother of the street’ image – even using an email address which starts ‘momma_d’. She claimed people were now growing drugs in their spare bedrooms to fund or – as she put it ‘accommodate’ – the bedroom tax. When challenged by the Daily Mail she said her remarks had been made in jest. Dee Roberts, who has not worked for six years, complained that she was duped into appearing in the programme . Dee Roberts, who has not worked for six years, complained that she was duped into appearing in the programme. The 32-year-old – known as ‘Black Dee’ – said residents thought that the show was about a close working class community, but had instead been portrayed as ‘complete scum’. She is on bail in connection with at least two offences. Roberts was arrested on suspicion of possessing Class B drugs with intent to supply following a summer raid. Yesterday police swooped on her home after she failed to answer bail in relation to a ‘racially aggravated incident’ on the road in August. She was filmed turning to Miss Kelly for support after being threatened with eviction for non-payment of rent, addressing her namesake as ‘mother’. Sorry we are not currently accepting comments on this article.
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Benefits Street features the lives of several jobless living in Birmingham .
West Midlands Police admit they are reviewing footage for crimes .
Star Dee Roberts was held after drugs raid on street last year .
'I'm innocent and have not been charged with anything,' she said .
Force founds bullets, cocaine, cannabis and cash in various houses .
90% of those in the 137-house street said to claim one or more benefit .
'Manipulated' residents complain series has made area 'look like slums'
4.3m saw it making it most watched Channel 4 show for more than a year .
Ofcom receives complaints about the portrayal of criminality by show .
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By . Louise Boyle . A woman who is 18 weeks' pregnant was asked to leave a Planet Fitness gym during her workout because her 'belly was hanging out'. Melissa Mantor, 31, was told by a female employee on Monday that her outfit - of a tank top and leggings - violated dress code at the gym in Charleston, South Carolina. The stay-at-home mom, who has been married since 2006 and has a three-year-old daughter, told MailOnline: 'I went to the gym for my usual workout but it was the first day that I was visibly pregnant. 'I . was on the treadmill, when a female employee came up to me and said . ''I'm going to have to ask you to leave, you are in violation of the . dress code.'' Melissa Mantor, from South Carolina, was asked to leave a branch of Planet Fitness, because her 'belly was hanging out' in this tank top. Mrs Mantor is 18 weeks pregnant . 'She then said: ''I'm going to have to send you home to get changed because your belly's hanging out and I need to get it covered up. I told her: ''Of course my belly is hanging out, I am pregnant.''' The employee then handed her a large, black t-shirt to cover up her pregnant bump. The 31-year-old said: 'People around me were shocked. The girl next to me asked ''Is this really happening?''' Mrs Mantor finished her workout, went home and tried to call the manager of the gym who didn't respond. She then went into the West Ashley gym the following day to cancel her membership and was told again that she had 'obviously' violated the dress code policy. She was told that her choice of gym attire 'was not appropriate for our gym members'. The . Planet Fitness dress code does not mention bare midriffs but does say . that customers cannot wear 'string tank tops'. Mrs Mantor said that she has regularly . worn the tank top - and about 20 others like it in different colors - in the three years she has been a gym member and it has never been a problem. She is even wearing the tank top in her gym membership photograph. The 31-year-old married mother said that she has regularly worn the tank top and similar ones in different colors to the West Ashley gym . She . admits that the top does ride up from time to time over her baby bump . but that prior to this incident, no one had a problem with it. Mrs Mantor has now canceled her gym membership. She said that a representative from Planet Fitness called to offer a free month's membership but she refused. 'I can't go to a gym where they would make someone feel bad about themselves when they are trying to stay in shape,' she said. 'It's hard enough to get motivated as it is without being made to feel like my body is offensive and that I'm dressed inappropriately.' Planet Fitness's logo is 'No Gymtimidation'. The mission statement says the company provides a 'diverse, Judgement Free Zone'. MailOnline reached out to the Planet . Fitness branch in Charleston but was told that the manager . was not available for comment. Mrs Mantor was asked to leave the gym in West Ashley (pictured) on Monday by a female employee . McCall Gosselin, Director of Public Relations for Planet Fitness, said in a statement: 'The majority of Planet Fitness clubs are owned and operated by individual franchisees. Our corporate dress code policy, which is enforced at the discretion of club staff, states that jeans, boots, men’s string tank tops, or revealing clothing are prohibited. 'This particular location also had a stated policy that prohibited bare midriffs. In this instance, a staff member approached the member to inform her of the policy and offer her a free t-shirt to complete her workout. She was not asked to leave the gym as a result of her attire. 'The franchise owner has reached out to the member directly to address the situation. At Planet Fitness, we are committed to providing a comfortable and welcoming environment for everyone, and we are working with the franchise owner to clarify the dress code policy moving forward.' The Planet Fitness dress code which is posted on their corporate Facebook page . This is not the first time that Planet Fitness has faced controversy over its heavy-handed tactics on gym-goers' attire. An Albuquerque Planet Fitness refused to let a Muslim woman wear her religious head covering while she tried to work out, according to a lawsuit filed in March. Tarainia McDaniel, 37, recently filed the lawsuit in a New Mexico district court stemming from an October 2011 clash that prevented McDaniel from using the gym - even though court documents said another Planet Fitness had previously let her. The lawsuit said she was turned away at the gym and was told the head covering didn't meet its dress code. Tiffany Austin, from Richmond, California, claimed in March that a branch of Planet Fitness asked her to cover up because her toned physique was intimidating other members.
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Melissa Mantor was asked to leave by a .
female employee on Monday who said that her outfit violated dress code .
at the South Carolina gym .
Mrs Mantor, 31, who has a 3-year-old daughter, said she was deeply embarrassed by the confrontation .
The stay-at-home mom has worn the tank top to the gym countless times over 3 years and is even pictured wearing it in her membership photo .
She told MailOnline: 'I can't go to a gym where they would make someone feel bad about themselves when they are trying to stay in shape'
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f614c1cd5be78910b2d54b26d2f0871c9e3aefb6
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A terrified woman was forced to make a desperate 999 call while locked in a bathroom as neighbours fatally stabbed her cousin to death in the next room. Half-brothers Gavin Harris, 39, an ex-soldier, and Raymond Ball, 33, both of Risca, Caerphilly, stabbed epileptic neighbour Stephen 'Lammy' Lambert with kitchen knives leaving blood 'bubbling' from their victim's chest, a court heard. Today they were jailed for life for hacking their neighbour to death 'like a piece of meat' following the drunken row. Raymond Ball (pictured right) lived on the same street as victim Stephen Lambert - he and his brother Gavin Harris (left) fatally stabbed their epileptic neighbour to death following a row at Mr Lambert's home in Risca . A court heard Mr Lambert had fallen out with the half-brothers and asked them to leave his flat. The pair then grabbed knives, stabbing him five times and leaving him with fatal wound . When police arrived they found Mr Lambert, 36, lying on a settee saturated in his blood. He told them, 'I can't breathe,' as they fought to save his life. Prosecutor Peter Rouch QC told Cardiff Crown Court: 'The blood was bubbling from a stab wound to his chest as they went in.' Cardiff Crown Court heard how the trio had been drinking together and listening to music shortly before the brutal attack. During the attack, on August 27 last year at the victim's home in Risca, Mr Lambert's terrified cousin Louise Whatley told an operator in a harrowing 999 call: 'Two men are stabbing him with knives and I've locked myself in the bathroom.' Stephen Lambert, 36, (pictured) died after being fatally stabbed by the brothers at his home in Risca . She watched the pair 'hacking at Stephen Lambert like a piece of meat' before locking herself in the toilet and phoning 999. Prosecutor Peter Rouch QC said: 'The call was taped and it's a harrowing call . 'Mr Lambert could be heard coughing, groaning and crying out in the background. 'She went back out when the two left and tried to stop the bleeding and comfort him, saying to the operator, "He sounds as if he is really hurting." Mr Lambert was unresponsive and unconscious when he arrived at the Royal Gwent Hospital in Newport with stab wounds to his chest, right arm and thigh. Doctors attempted a major 'clamshell' surgical procedure, used only in extreme emergencies, and opened up his body through skin, muscle, rib cage and diaphragm, but he could not be saved. The fatal chest wound was 10cm deep and had gone through his ribs and an artery while a second 11cm-deep wound in his leg had partially severed a vein, the prosecutor said. Violence started after the group indulged in an evening of drinking from three-litre bottles of cider. Harris and Ball, who told police Mr Lambert had been his best friend, had earlier been seen with knives tucked into their waistbands after a separate incident. They were seen putting the weapons behind cushions when they went to Mr Lambert's home. One witness said Ball was 'drunk, hyper and acting macho'. The court heard Mr Lambert told Ball to leave before a struggle began between Mr Lambert and Ball, as Harris tried pull them apart. Mr Rouch said Ball then ran to the kitchen and searched the drawers before grabbing a blade from the draining board. 'When he returned screaming, 'I'm going to stab you,' Ms Whatley went into shock and froze as she saw the knife 'ramming down' towards her cousin's leg,' said Mr Rouch. 'As he shouted, 'Stop it,' she saw blood on the blade.' Cardiff Crown Court (pictured) heard Mr Lambert was left with blood 'bubbling' from a chest stab wound . Harris was then said to have gone to the cushion where he had hidden his knife and picked it up. 'Both of them, then with knives, were stabbing at him', Mr Rouch said. 'Louise Whatley locked herself in the bathroom and dialled 999.' Ms Whatley told police Mr Lambert was 'like a brother' to her. In a victim impact statement she said: 'It was horrific. I have horrible flashbacks and nightmares.' After the attack the brothers were at another flat where Ball told a man: 'I've just stabbed Lambert.' Harris and Ball both admitted murder. Judge Mrs Justice Nicola Davies DBE said: 'This was a frenzied attack on a defenceless man. 'Nothing Stephen Lambert said or did should have led to this vicious and senseless stabbing. 'The victim was in his own home where he was entitled to feel safe. 'The horrific attack was witnessed by his cousin.' Harris was jailed for 21 years and eight months, Ball was jailed for 22 years and six months.
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Half-brothers Gavin Harris, 25, and Raymond Ball, 33, stabbed neighbour .
Stephen 'Lammy' Lambert was fatally injured by brothers following a row .
Group had been drinking in Mr Lambert's home when he told Ball to leave .
Brothers then turned on Mr Lambert and began stabbing him .
Mr Lambert's terrified cousin locked herself in bathroom to call police .
Ball and Mr Lambert lived on the same street and were 'best friends'
Brothers have been jailed for life for hacking Mr Lambert to death 'like a piece of meat'
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All action: Met Police Commissioner Sir Bernard Hogan-Howe broke off an interview when he saw a taxi driver allegedly being robbed, jumped into the cab and soon afterwards arrested a suspect . It is never a bright idea to commit a crime in front of a policeman, let alone Britain’s most senior officer. Perhaps the brazen yobs who robbed a taxi driver in broad daylight on a busy London street presumed that Scotland Yard boss Sir Bernard Hogan-Howe was too busy giving a radio interview to do anything about it. But they hadn’t reckoned on the steely determination of the Commissioner who broke off mid-sentence to give chase to the gang, leaping in the victim’s minicab to pursue them yesterday. In a scene described by stunned locals as like something out of a film, the 56-year-old Commissioner once dubbed a ‘crime-busting machine’, sprang into action arresting a 19-year-old suspect within minutes, while his bodyguard collared a 17-year-old accomplice. The incident in Tottenham, North London was captured on tape at 11.20am yesterday as the Metropolitan Police boss was taking part in a pre-recorded interview with BBC London 94.9 Drivetime presenter Eddie Nestor. As Sir Bernard was talking about police cuts, a taxi slowed to a halt beside him and four thugs leapt out and ran off to the fury of the driver who called out for help, saying in broken English: ‘I’m a cab driver. ‘I put £20 here (gesturing to the dashboard). Is no pay me and the money is gone.’ Sir Bernard responded: ‘Do you know where they’ve gone?’ adding: ‘I’m going to go with you.’ The Commissioner then leapt into the victim’s minicab to look for the suspects before continuing the pursuit in a squad car, arresting a 19-year-old suspect on suspicion of theft minutes later. A 17-year-old man was also apprehended at nearby Bruce Grove train station on suspicion of theft, handling stolen goods and making off without payment by an accompanying officer who followed him on foot. Afterwards the driver, who gave his name as Mohammed, told the BBC he didn’t know who the Commissioner was, but described him as a ‘very good, very kind’ man who came to his aid after passengers stole £20 from his dashboard before running away without paying the fare. He said: ‘When I see the police, I ask the police ‘please can you stop the guys?’ One local shop worker who witnessed the chase said: ‘I thought they were filming for some sort of TV programme - it looked like it could’ve been staged. ‘There was a cab that had pulled up across the road and I could also see the guys who were filming. ‘I went outside and saw two police men. Another policeman, who was in plain clothes, had grabbed a young guy outside the station and had him pinned up against the wall.’ Another witness, who asked not to be named, recalled: ‘We saw people running and guys with camera - I thought they were making a movie.’ Quick decision: Sir Bernard leaps into the taxi in Tottenham, north London, to help look for the suspects . Yesterday the top policeman whose motto is ‘total policing’ told of his pride at making an arrest in every rank he has held since becoming an officer in 1979, joking that it was a ‘disgrace’ he hadn’t felt a collar in almost three years as the Met boss. He told the BBC: ‘The important thing for today, at least for me, is that I have made an arrest at every rank as a police officer, so as chief constable at Merseyside, but never as commissioner, and I have been here three years - that’s very slack, it’s a disgrace, but today we have put it right.’ Sir Bernard, who has been nicknamed Eliot Ness- the legendary lawman in prohibition America whose team of Untouchables brought down Al Capone- is known as an all action Commissioner who is equally at home patrolling on horseback as behind a desk. In 2006 when he was chief constable of Merseyside Police, he sprinted after a suspected drink-driver in Liverpool after spotting him from his chauffeur-driven car. A Met Police spokesman said: ‘Sir Bernard was in Tottenham High Road at the junction of Bruce Grove recording an interview with BBC London Radio, when a mini cab stopped and the driver called for police help. ‘Four males were seen to jump out of the vehicle and run off, closely followed by an officer who was with the Commissioner. ‘A 17-year old youth was arrested inside Bruce Grove Rail Station on suspicion of theft, handling and making off without payment. ‘Descriptions were circulated and the Commissioner got into a police car which arrived at the scene and went to look for the outstanding suspects. ‘In nearby Napier Road, one of the suspects, a 19-year old man, was seen and arrested on suspicion of theft and making off without payment.’ Last night the two suspects were currently being held in police stations in north London.
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Sir Bernard Hogan-Howe, 56, taking part in pre-recorded interview .
A taxi pulled up alongside him and four men leapt out and ran off .
Driver called for help, and Sir Bernard jumped into cab to look for suspects .
He continued the pursuit in squad car and arrested a 19-year-old suspect .
Driver said Commissioner was a 'very kind man' after incident in Tottenham .
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By . Adam Shergold . PUBLISHED: . 05:55 EST, 7 August 2012 . | . UPDATED: . 10:28 EST, 7 August 2012 . Team GB's 'Invisible Man' made a much-anticipated appearance at the Olympic Stadium today - but crashed out in his qualifying round. Phillips Idowu's fitness and whereabouts had fascinated fans and frustrated coaches since the start of the Games and his early exit will raise questions about his decision to reject Team GB guidance in the build-up. Today he pulled off his headband in disgust as he walked away from the pit, having finished two places outside the top 12. Scroll down for video . Great Britain's Phillips Idowu competing in the qualification round for the men's triple jump today . Idowu reacts with disappointment after failing to qualify for the final of the triple jump this morning . Idowu looks up at the leaderboard in agony as his jump isn't good enough to qualify for the final . The triple jumper had insisted he spent the last few weeks in his home city of London "as planned months ago". But UK Athletics head coach Charles . van Commenee said he was perplexed that Idowu had turned his back on UKA . and his own coach Aston Moore, who had only received a brief text . before Idowu cut off contact. The Beijing silver medallist struggled to make an impact, failing to qualify as he slipped to 14th place. Despite strong support from the home crowd, he looked out of sorts on all three of his jumps. Needing 17.10m to qualify automatically, Idowu could only manage a best of 16.53m from his three attempts . Idowu was nicknamed the 'Invisible Man' after doubts about his fitness led to his absence from Team GB's training camps . Idowu ripped his headband off in frustration after his third jump of 16.53m meant he was out of the competition . He appeared annoyed at his 16.47m first jump - short of the 17.10m needed to qualify automatically for Thursday's final. His second ended in a no jump and he managed only a marginal improvement on his third jump, measuring 16.53m. The 33-year-old world champion has . competed just three times in 2012 but, if fit and on form, had been seen . as a gold medal contender. He missed out on gold in Beijing by 5cm. Idowu spoke afterwards on the uncertainty about his preparation: 'I had been traveling from Birmingham to London to see my coach. After withdrawing from Crystal Palace I was back up in Birmingham and had a problem in my hip going down to my knee. 'I started a couple of training sessions in Birmingham and had to pull up in a running session. I made the decision to come back down to London and with the work over that week was better to stay in the UK. Warming up and training I had to make sue someone was there to work with me. 'I had some great sprint and technical sessions but a full approach is a different kettle of fish. The timing wasn't there. The hop and step was there but I just couldn't get my final phase.' He added: 'To be honest I have been lucky over the last four or five years and have competed at my best at the championships and being able to do that I've been able to come away with at least silver. 'I'm not at my best and I was hoping I would still produce something but it wasn't to be. 'I felt ok. I managed to get out and see my physio before today's competition so went in pain free and I felt that I could have possibly qualified automatically. 'I knew I would be rusty because it's been a while, conditions were difficult because of the wind and I knew that would be a factor but that wasn't me out there today. I've competed for 12 years and I can't remember a time I've performed that badly.' Idowu was cheered loudly by a capacity 80,000 crowd at the Olympic Stadium as he took part in the triple jump . But the pain in his expression betrayed intense disappointment at his efforts . Talking about his injury problems, Idowu said: 'I'm guessing I will need surgery at the end of this season. I'll call it a day and wrap up the season. I wanted to battle for gold but now I'll go home and reassess and go home and try not to be down about my performance. 'It's over and there's nothing I can do. The crowd have been great I'm upset that I let them down. All year I've been tagged as a medal favourite and I haven't got the chance to go out there and do it. 'I'm not sure what. I had a problem with my right leg and I can't say specifically.' He also issued a parting shot, saying he receives no funding from UK Athletics: 'I am not lottery funded. I have not been lottery funded for at least three years. I pay for my own medical, I pay for my own physio and I will pay for my own surgery. 'There is no association between me and UKAA, if you can find a form that I have signed that says I received money from UKAA then hold me accountable but over the last three years I have been out there and won world titles, world silver medals, Olympic silver medals and I have done that out of my own pocket.' VIDEO: Oh no! Idowu fails to reach the final of the Olympic triple jump...
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Beijing silver medallist fails to qualify for the final, finishing two places outside the top 12 .
Best jump of 16.53m a long way short of qualification mark of 17.10m .
Raises more questions about his form and fitness after he rejected Team GB guidance before Games .
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Aachen, Germany (CNN) -- Three men have been sent to prison for the acid attack that nearly blinded Sergei Filin. But the artistic director of the Bolshoi Ballet says that nothing can give him back what he has lost. In an exclusive interview with CNN in Aachen, Germany, on the day his attackers were sentenced in a Moscow court, Filin said the attack had dented his spirit as well as leaving him in agony and partially disfigured. "It's not just a problem with my eyes, it's a problem with my heart," he said. Filin now wears dark glasses much of the time and has undergone numerous surgeries in Germany since the attack in a Moscow street last January. And he bears the pain of knowing that it was one of the dancers in his own world-renowned company who masterminded the attack, star soloist Pavel Dmitrichenko. Dmitrichenko was sent to prison for six years Tuesday, while accomplice Yuri Zarutsky was sentenced to 10 years and driver Andrei Lipatov got four years. Filin said he accepts the court's verdict and sentencing -- but he is not prepared to forgive and forget. "Of course not, I cannot forgive them because there is no sentence nor punishment today that would enable me to recover my eyesight, the eyesight that I once had," he said. "What will happen in the course of my future treatment, nobody knows. Whatever is ahead, it will be a struggle." So far doctors have managed to restore some of Filin's vision, but his sight remains impaired. 'It hurt all over my skin' As a dancer, Sergei Filin was one of Russia's brightest stars. Now 43, he took up the key role of artistic director at the storied Bolshoi Ballet in 2011, after three years directing Moscow's Stanislavsky and Nemirovich-Danchenko Music Theater, amid what was reported to be fierce rivalry. He won the position but his artistic leadership of Russia's most prominent cultural icon has been marred by scandal, not least the horrific attack he suffered outside his Moscow home. Filin recalls what happened on that fateful January day, when a masked assailant tossed sulfuric acid into his face. "What I felt was unbearable agony. It hurt all over my skin and I immediately felt an atrocious pain in my eyes," he said. "There was lots of snow around and I slid and fell several times. But I felt the cold snow was relieving the pain, so I started covering my face with it." He was eventually helped by passersby. But the damage was already done -- and the next time he was seen in public, it was with his head swathed in bandages and third-degree burns to his face and eyes. When it emerged that Dmitrichenko was behind the attack, the dark rivalries and score-settling at the heart of the Bolshoi were laid bare, amid allegations of affairs, corruption and jealousy. Filin does not believe that different actions on his part might have resulted in a different outcome. "Those accusations that we have heard have not been underpinned by any evidence," he said. "They are all lies aimed at lessening the degree of guilt or punishment for this crime." CNN's Matthew Chance reported from Aachen and Laura Smith-Spark wrote in London.
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"It's not just a problem with my eyes, it's a problem with my heart," says Sergei Filin .
Filin says he accepts court's verdict for his attackers but cannot forgive them .
"It hurt all over my skin and I immediately felt an atrocious pain in my eyes," he says of attack .
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Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius told House Ways and Means Committee members on Wednesday that she expects health insurance rates to increase as the Affordable Care Act takes full effect. 'I think premiums are likely to go up,' she conceded under questioning, 'but go up at a slower pace' than they have already under Obamacare. President Obama famously promised in 2008 and 2009 that his health insurance overhaul plan would lower the cost of health care for an average family by $2,500 per year. And as a March 31 deadline approaches, the date when Americans will face fines if they don't have medical insurance, Sebelius told the panel that there will be 'no delay' in enforcing that so-called individual mandate. Scroll down for video . A frustrated Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius fended off tough questions from Republicans who are still eager to cripple President Barack Obama's healthcare law, the Affordable Care Act . 'How is that fair?' demanded Rep. Kevin Brady (R), talking about the administration's Obamacare delays affecting big businesses, but not individuals and families . Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services spokeswoman Julie Bataille said during a conference call on Tuesday that 'we have no plans to extend the open enrollment period' that began amid fits and starts on October 1. 'In fact, we don't actually have the statutory authority to extend the open enrollment period in 2014,' she said. On Wednesday, Republican Ways and Means chairman Dave Camp asked Sebelius if she agreed. 'I haven’t seen their statements,' she replied, despite having been on the conference call, 'but there is no delay beyond March 31.' Republicans in Congress have castigated the Obama administration for failing to delay the individual mandate, even as it has made more than 35 changes to the Affordable Care Act, including some that defy date-specific deadlines in the written in the law's text. One of those changes was a year-long delay in the employer mandate, which requires companies with 50 or more employees to certify that their workers are covered by medical insurance plans that meet Obamacare's strict minimum standards. 'If you delayed this law because it’s not workable for businesses, why aren’t you delaying this law because it’s not workable for our families?' blasted Texas GOP Rep. Kevin Brady during Wednesday's hearing. 'How is that fair?' Georgia Rep. Tom Price demanded to know how many Obamacare enrollees have paid for their insurance plans, but Sebelius insisted 'I don't know that' Sebelius appeared before the House Ways and Means Committee in a hearing about HHS's budget request for 2015 . Nebraska Republican Sen. Deb Fischer lashed out at HHS for its insistence that it is prohibited from delaying for individuals what it has already relayed for large companies. 'It is puzzling that Secretary Sebelius is now concerned with a lack of statutory authority when it comes to delaying the individual mandate,' Fischer said in a statement. 'The administration has already issued nearly two dozen Obamacare delays, including those for big business and the president’s political allies.' Fischer has introduced a bill that would explicitly give the White House the power to delay that individual mandate. In your face: Nebraska GOP Sen. Deb Fischer has crafted a bill that would give HHS the authority to push back the individual mandate deadline as far as it likes . House Republicans are slated to vote this week on a similar bill, but the measure would face a certain veto at the White House. Sebelius also insisted that she doesn't know how many Obamacare enrollees have paid for coverage and are actually insured. 'I can’t tell you because I don’t know that,' she told Georgia Republican Rep. Tom Price. The Obama administration trumpeted new numbers on Tuesday showing that 4.2 million Americans have selected medical insurance policies during the open enrollment period . But a MailOnline analysis showed that in the seven states which have published both enrollment and payment numbers, insurers haven't seen payments from 21 per cent of those who have signed up. If that percentage were to hold true nationally, HHS's boast of 4.2 million enrollments would shrink by 900,000. Camp, a Michigan Republican, said Wednesday that the Affordable Care Act 'is not working as it was promised. And yet, the president’s budget doubles down on this law, requesting another $1.8 billion for its implementation.' Democrats, however – including President Obama – are insisting that the law is performing as well as it was expected to. Rep. Sander Levin, another Michigander who is the Democrats' ranking member on Ways and Means, charged that 'Republicans are so invested in making the Affordable Care Act a failure that they are blinded by the successes staring them in the face.'
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The HHS secretary faced a hostile House Ways and Means panel on Wednesday .
She conceded that health insurance rates will be higher next year, but suggested that they will rise 'at a slower pace' than they have so far .
But despite delaying fines and penalties for businesses, she said there would be 'no delay' for enforcing the Obamacare law against individuals .
Sebelius also insisted that she doesn't know how many enrollees have paid for coverage and are actually insured .
Seven states have managed to publish data showing how many new insurance customers are paying first-month premiums .
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By . Simon Tomlinson . PUBLISHED: . 05:49 EST, 21 May 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 10:41 EST, 21 May 2013 . 'Left in tears': Kayleigh Crawford killed herself just five days after being sexually assaulted on a night out with friends, an inquest heard . A coroner has criticised health experts for the way they treated a sex-assault victim just days before she killed herself. Kayleigh Crawford, 25, was assessed at a counselling centre hours after being groped on a night out. But an inquest heard a support worker failed to check on how she was feeling emotionally, instead focusing just on her physical symptoms. The British Gas worker was found hanged at her home in Llanrumney, Cardiff, five days later. The coroner said she was 'really, really concerned' about her treatment and will be writing to the chief medical officer for Wales and the Chief Coroner for England and Wales to demand changes. Kayleigh was taken out for the night by friends to cheer her up after splitting from her boyfriend. But she was left in tears after being fondled by a man as she left a nightclub. The inquest heard Kayleigh went to police after her night out and was taken to an NHS Sexual Assault Referral Centre called Safe Island. The pioneering centre at Cardiff Royal Infirmary offers advice and emotional support and counselling for sex assault victims. Advocacy support worker Carol Smith told the inquest how she went through a checklist of questions with Kayleigh after she arrived upset in the early hours of the morning. But Ms Smith admitted she could not recall asking Kayleigh if she was feeling low or if she had suicidal thoughts following the assault. Cardiff Coroner Miss Mary Hassell said: 'In that risk assessment she was asked: "How are you feeling?" 'She responded by saying: "I'm feeling sick, I'm not eating" - all physical symptoms. 'That should not have been accepted as the sum total of how she was feeling emotionally. 'It may have been that she misunderstood or evaded it because she felt uncomfortable. But that doesn't mean a follow-up question can't be asked. 'I don't know if it would have made any difference, but I'm really, really concerned about the way that conversation went. I think that something needs to change there.' Criticised: A health team at the sexual assault referral centre at Cardiff Royal Infirmary (above) failed to properly assess Miss Crawford's emotional state before she took her life, an inquest was told . Miss Hassell said she would be sending a report to the Sexual Assault Referral Centre, the chief medical officer for Wales and the Chief Coroner for England and Wales. Kayleigh was described as a 'bubbly and happy' young woman who had been left 'particularly low' at the break-up of her long-term relationship. The inquest heard she had taken an overdose after the break-up in February, was on anti-depressants and was receiving counselling. Her mother Lynn Crawford said after the hearing: 'She was a beautiful, wonderful and caring girl. We all loved her to bits. 'She's our little diamond in the sky now. On her birthday every year, she would insist on having a barbeque, come rain or shine. 'So we'll be doing that now to celebrate her birthday and remember the better times.' Miss Crawford's sister Nadine Carter said: 'The memories we have of her are so lovely. She was an amazing person.' South Wales Police said a 29-year-old man was questioned over the sexual assault, but the investigation ended when Kayleigh died. Verdict: Suicide.
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Kayleigh Crawford, 25, sent to counselling centre hours after being groped .
But health worker didn't ask how she was feeling emotionally, inquest told .
British Gas worker took her own life at her home in Cardiff five days later .
Coroner: 'I'm really, really concerned about the way that conversation went'
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(CNN) -- School administrators in Ohio voted Friday to begin the process of firing a middle school teacher accused of burning a cross into a student's arm and refusing to keep his religious beliefs out of the classroom. The Mount Vernon School Board passed a resolution to terminate the employment of John Freshwater, an eighth-grade science teacher for the past 21 years. Freshwater, according to an independent report, used an electrostatic device to mark a cross on the arm of one of his students, causing pain to the student the night of the incident and leaving a mark that lasted for approximately three weeks. According to the Ohio Department of Education, the student's family has filed a lawsuit. Freshwater was also reprimanded several times for refusing to move his Bible from his classroom desk and teaching creationism alongside evolution, according to the 15-page independent report. The report also cites evidence that Mr. Freshwater told his students that "science is wrong because the Bible states that homosexuality is a sin and so anyone who is gay chooses to be gay and is therefore a sinner." The Board of Education of the Mount Vernon City School District met in special session Friday to address the case. Freshwater has the option to contest the process by requesting a formal hearing before the Board of Education. Neither Freshwater nor his attorney could be reached by CNN for comment.
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Ohio teacher accused of branding cross on student's arm, teaching creationism .
John Freshwater was reprimanded for refusing to move his Bible from his desk .
School board passed resolution to terminate Freshwater's employment .
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By . Jaya Narain . PUBLISHED: . 07:03 EST, 18 November 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 20:50 EST, 18 November 2013 . George Moore died aged just 10 months old after going on his first foreign holiday to Tunisia with his mother Emma, 24 . A baby who fell ill on a flight to his first foreign holiday died hours later from suspected meningitis. Ten-month-old George Moore became poorly after arriving in Tunisia with his mother and grandparents. After appearing hot, lethargic and sleepy on landing, he was seen by the hotel doctor who recommended he go to hospital. But once there his condition deteriorated and despite the best efforts of medical staff he went into cardiac arrest and died. Last night his mother Emma Moore, 24, urged parents to be vigilant and told how the disease struck with shocking speed. She said: ‘We couldn’t believe that such a healthy, advanced, happy, little boy could be gone with hardly any warning. You truly wouldn’t believe it unless you had been unfortunate enough to have experienced a similar situation. ‘George was such a happy little boy who was always laughing and giggling. No one expects to go on holiday and come back without their baby.’ The tragedy occurred last month as Mrs Moore, a bank clerk, waited at Manchester Airport with her parents, Chris and Lesley Wignall, to board their plane. Suddenly George was sick but the family presumed it was down to the change of routine and the fact he had just drunk a whole bottle of milk. He fell asleep on the plane but when he woke he appeared grumpy and soon fell back to sleep again. Mrs Moore of Penwortham, near Preston, said: ‘Once we arrived in Tunisia I fed George another full bottle and he again seemed tired, grumpy and lethargic which we thought was due to the fact that he’d been woken in the night and was still catching up on sleep. Emma had been shopping before the holiday on October 6 and had bought George sunglasses and a hat (left) ‘At the hotel I fed George his baby . food jar which he ate half of before falling asleep again and I began to . think there was something not quite right. ‘I dug out my thermometer and realised . he had a temperature and I ran a cool bath. He was very floppy and . needed holding up in the bath.’ The hotel doctor was called and he recommended they go to hospital. Within half an hour they were in a children’s ward. Emma said her son had been sick and grumpy before boarding the flight at 6am, but she put this down to the change in his usual routine and the fact that he had drunk a bottle of milk . Baby George slept through most of the flight and it was only when Emma arrived at the hotel she began to think that something was wrong when she struggled to wake him up . The hotel doctor recommended George be taken to hospital but said it was 'nothing serious'. However, when George arrived his skin became blotchy and he struggled to breathe before dying shortly after . There are two types of meningitis, bacterial and viral. Bacterial is the most dangerous because it can cause septicemia - or blood poisoning, which can be fatal. Most people know to look out for a rash which doesn't fade when pressed against a glass - but this is a later symptom and doesn't always appear. In babies and very young children, early warning signs include being floppy or unresponsive, vomiting or refusing food, and being very sleepy and reluctant to wake up. The child may also develop a staring expression, pale or blotchy skin, and be irritable and not want to be held. Other symptoms can include having unusually cold hands and feet, blue lips, shivering, and pain in muscles or joints. If you detect any of the above symptoms with a fever, you are advised to call 999 immediately and request an ambulance. Later symptoms are drowsiness, confusion, seizures, sensitivity to bright lights, rapid breathing, and a rash. Viral meningitis can still be serious, but usually has mild flu-like symptoms. George’s hands, feet and ears were . turning slightly blue and were very cold even though he had a high . temperature. He had also developed tiny, blackhead-like spots around his . mouth. He was placed on a drip and a heart monitor but appeared frustrated and began wriggling and getting tangled in the wires. Mrs Moore – whose self-employed . husband, Richard, had stayed at home to work – said: ‘George’s whole . face had turned a purple colour and he had developed big red blotches . all over his head. ‘The nurses immediately began giving . him oxygen via a mask and told us they needed to take him straight to . intensive care. When my dad and I went to see George, his whole body was . red with big white blotches. ‘I stayed alone with George for a . while singing, talking and kissing him before the doctor came to examine . him and told me to leave the room. 'I could hear the machines beeping . and nurses rushing in and out and they informed me it wasn’t good, that . he was unstable and they were massaging his heart. 'Within 15 minutes the . doctor returned to tell us his heart had stopped and he had . unfortunately passed away. I couldn’t believe it.’ A post-mortem examination was carried . out in Tunisia and the results are still unavailable, although British . doctors believe George died of meningococcal septicaemia. The family flew back to the UK three days later and want to raise awareness about the disease by raising funds for charity. The family have set up a fund for Meningitis Now in remembrance of George and want to raise as much money as possible to fight the disease. George was also on holiday with his grandfather Chris Wignall (right). His father, Richard, was unable to come because he is self-employed and struggles to get time off work . The tragedy happened after Emma agreed to join her parents Chris (left) and Lesley Wignall (right) for a Crown Green Bowls tournament . Emma had been looking forward to taking George to Tunisia on his first every holiday abroad (file picture)
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George Moore died aged just 10 months old while on holiday .
Mother Emma, 24, took him to Tunisia with her parents on October 6 .
However within hours the boy was rushed to hospital after becoming ill .
He died later the same day of suspected meningitis .
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By . Ashley Collman . PUBLISHED: . 16:29 EST, 16 January 2014 . | . UPDATED: . 18:57 EST, 16 January 2014 . Charged: Miriam Keren Contreras is facing child endangerment charges after accidentally leaving a child on her bus Tuesday in Houston, Texas . A Houston bus driver was arrested for leaving a child on the bus to while she attended a Zumba class. Miriam Keren Contreras was charged with felony child endangerment following the incident on Tuesday. The child was discovered after school administrators at Fonwood Early Childhood Center called the child's parents to report an absence for the day. The parents, however, had put the child on the bus. The child was soon found in the bus which was parked at a gym where Contreras was taking a Zumba class. She says she dropped off the children at school and thought they had all gotten off the bus. However, she did not check the bus thoroughly to make sure all the children had gotten off and so the child was able to stay on. Contreras works for Garcia Bus Co and not the school district. It was uncertain Thursday afternoon whether she was still employed by the company. Contreras's bail was set at $2,000. MailOnline's calls to Contreras were not returned Thursday. The school has refused to comment. Fired? It was unclear as of Thursday whether Contreras still had her job at Garcia Bus Co .
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Miriam Keren Contreras thought all the children had exited the bus when she drove to a Zumba class .
The child was located in the parked bus at the Zumba facility after the school called the parents to report an absence .
Contreras was charged with felony child endangerment .
It's uncertain where Contreras still has her job at Garcia Bus Co .
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Two miners have made a lot of people's Valentine's Day more bearable by posting a hilarious video online of them singing and dancing to a famous Whitney Houston love song. While they can't believe the global attention they have received, 27-year-old Jamie Byers from Perth and 26-year-old Jason Allen from Cairns told Daily Mail Australia they made the video to give people who are away from their loved ones on Valentine's Day a bit of a laugh. The men, who both work on the same site in Pannawonica, Western Australia, which is 1,400km north of Perth, are astounded that their video, in which they lip-sync to Whitney Houston's 'I Wanna Dance With Somebody', has already been viewed over 470,000 times in the last 23 hours. The video comes just weeks after a lip-syncing US cop became a worldwide phenomenon after a video appeared online of him enthusiastically lip-syncing to Taylor Swift's 'Shake it Off'. Scroll down for video . Jamie Byers (right) and Jason Allen (left) have become internet sensations after posting a video online singing and dancing to Whitney Houston's 'I Wanna Dance With Somebody' Jamie, a plumber who is away from his girlfriend Brooke, missing Valentine's Day, said he never thought there would be such a huge reaction to the funny video, entitled 'Valentine's day in the pilbara [sic]'. 'Yeah it's taken off alright' Jamie told Daily Mail Australia. 'We both knew it was funny and we thought we would get a few likes - not to this extent' In the hilarious video, Jamie and Jason lip-sync to each other, fist pump, sway their heads in unison and appear to have synchronised their dance routine. The men dance in perfect harmony to the music while Jason drives the car, getting into the spirit of Valentine's Day with their feel-good video. The men say they created the video to give people who are away from the loved ones on Valentine's Day a bit of a laugh . The men both work on the same site in Pannawonica, Western Australia, which is 1,400km north of Perth, . Jason, who is single, works as a refrigeration mechanic and is based in the town of Pannawonica. Along with Jamie, they both service two mine sites nearby. Jamie said the video was meant to be a joke to get people's minds off being in the mines and away from their loved ones on the 14th of February. 'It was a joke, mainly just to give people who are working away from their love ones a bit of a laugh on Valentine's Day,' he said. Jamie has worked in the mining town for nearly a year while Jason has been there for two years. While the men's video may be a hit worldwide, they're not sure whether or not they'll will be the next Simon and Garfunkel. Both Jamie and Jason work for two mine sites in Pannawonica, Western Australia . Jamie (right) is a plumber and Jason (left) is a refrigeration mechanic in Pannawonica . 'We can hope but I don't think so, I'm not sure if you can tell but we were only lip syncing.' Jamie posted a similar video to his Facebook page last year on Valentine's Day where he lip-synced to Tina Turner's 'What's Love Got To Do With It'. However the video did not receive the same attention as his current one. The video bares a striking resemblance to a video which appeared online in September of a Delaware police officer enthusiastically lip-syncing to Taylor Swift's 'Shake it Off'. The video, posted to the Dover Police Department's Facebook page, showed Master Cpl. Jeff Davis in uniform driving a patrol car while lip-syncing to the popular pop song - sassy head rolls and finger-pointing included. The video comes only weeks after a cop in the US became a worldwide phenomenon after a video appeared online showing him lip-syncing to Taylor Swift's 'Shake It Off' The video appeared too perfect and internet-ready for the scene to be spontaneous - but that didn't stop it from racking up more than 500,000 views in a matter of days. Department spokesman Cpt. Mark Hoffman said Saturday that he's gotten calls about the video from media outlets in Australia, England, Germany, and throughout the U.S. It has reached more than 470,000 YouTube views. Hoffman says Davis, a 19-year veteran of the department, is 'the class clown' and loved making the video. He says the 48-year-old father of four knows 'Shake it Off' so well because of his 10-year-old daughter.
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Two miners have made a hilarious video lip-syncing to Whitney Houston .
Jamie Byers and Jason Allen work in Pannawonica, Western Australia .
They lip-sync to 'I Wanna Dance With Somebody'
The video has been viewed over 470,000 times in 23 hours .
It comes after a US cop became a worldwide hit lip-syncing to Taylor Swift .
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f617ebbf71217297aa73bafb307a2cc6a6747a72
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By . Sean Poulter . PUBLISHED: . 01:57 EST, 17 April 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 18:11 EST, 17 April 2013 . Profits at Tesco slumped by 51 per cent last year as it wrote off £1.2billion on a failed attempt to conquer the United States. The fall in pretax profits – down by £2billion to £1.96billion – was its first in 20 years. It is to close or sell its Fresh & Easy convenience store chain in the US in what is an ignominious failure for Britain’s biggest retailer. Worrying: Profits at Tesco slumped by 51 per cent last year as it wrote off £1.2billion on a failed attempt to conquer the United States . The supermarket giant is also scrapping more than 100 store developments in the UK as customers switch to shopping online. That move saw the value of its vast land bank, much of it bought during the property boom, written down by £804million. It will now sell many sites that it had earmarked for large hypermarkets for less than it previously believed the land was worth. The figures were outlined yesterday by chief executive Philip Clarke, who is leading a £1billion plan to revamp its stores, improve food lines, hire extra staff and improve customer service. This is part of a shift to concentrate on . building sales through existing UK stores and through its website with . home deliveries and its click and collect service. Tesco is also trying to escape its . reputation as a faceless giant by buying the family friendly restaurant . chain Giraffe, and investments in the coffee shop chain Harris + Hoole . and the bakery business Euphorium. It seems outlets under these banners will be opened in some of its large Extra hypermarkets to make a visit more of a day out than a chore. The exit from the US and the decision to scale back store building suggests Mr Clarke is effectively burning much of the legacy of his predecessor, Sir Terry Leahy, who left in March 2011. Leaving aside the special one-off costs, underlying profits relating to day to day sales still fell by 14.5 per cent to £3.55billion, according to the latest annual accounts published yesterday. The decision to pull out of the US is not the only failure on the international front, for Tesco also revealed problems with trading and expansion in Poland, the Czech Republic and Turkey. Fresh & Easy opened its first outlet in Hemet, California, on November 1, 2007. It was to be the first of 1,000 convenience stores that would bring British supermarket shopping to US consumers. Just as Wal-Mart of the US had bought the Asda chain in the UK, so Tesco . would now challenge the American giant in its own backyard. Three booming states – California, Arizona and Nevada – were picked for . the launch. But within two years, they had become among the worst hit by . the sub-prime mortgage crisis, which led to the financial crash. Tesco hit: The group confirmed plans to pull its Fresh & Easy business in the U.S. and reported its first fall in full-year group profits for two decades . Tesco poured £1billion into the venture, but it has never turned a . profit during more than five years of trading. Only 199 stores were . opened. Americans were put off by the stark aisles, plastic wrapped fruit and . veg, ready meals and self-service check-outs in a country where bagging . up groceries for struggling shoppers is a customer service essential. At . the same time, it was unclear whether the chain was presenting itself . as a budget option or a place for aspiring shoppers to buy high quality . food and drink. In the UK, a growing number of shoppers buy their groceries online or . via smartphone, but in the US very few families shop in this way. Fresh & Easy, which employs some 5,000 people, was the brainchild of . former chief executive Sir Terry Leahy, who sent his most senior . lieutenant, Tim Mason, to run it. Despite Mr Mason’s expertise, the venture failed to take off and he quit . the US business last December with a pay-off reported to be . £5.7million. Now, Tesco has appointed a US firm to try to find a buyer for the whole . business or some of the stores. US rival Trader Joe’s is expected to buy . all the stores in California and Nevada. Phil Dorrell, director of retail consultants Retail Remedy, said: ‘This grim set of numbers shows that even Tesco is mortal. ‘From day one, Fresh & Easy was an . unmitigated disaster for Tesco. Boss: Tesco's Chief Executive Philip Clarke spoke of 'natural consequences of strategic changes' It is retreating from the States with . its tail firmly between its legs. ‘Even without the Fresh & Easy . debacle the supermarket would probably still have seen its profits fall . for the first time in 20 years. Tesco took its eye off the ball in . spectacular fashion and, in its goal to be a world-beater, forgot to . take care of the basics.’ Tesco . said the investment in improving stores and customer service in this . country is already bearing fruit. But the business was among the big . losers from the horse meat scandal after it was forced to remove many . contaminated products from sale. Chief . executive Mr Clarke said: ‘The announcements made today are natural . consequences of the strategic changes we began over a year ago and which . conclude today. ‘Tesco already looks, feels and acts like a different and better business.’
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Tesco group reports first fall in full-year group profits for two decades .
Down 52% to £2bn after property writedowns and slowing sales growth .
But it saw best like-for-like sales growth for three years in final quarter .
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A mother who was looking over photographs of a family day out was left shocked after discovering the face of a 'ghost child' next to her children climbing a tree. Michelle Mason from Stoke-on-Trent, had taken the picture in August of two of her children while on a family outing to Cannock Chase in Staffordshire. While on the trip, the mother-of-three stopped to snap an image of her two children Sophia and Lee, who were climbing a tree. The ghostly figure, circled, which Mrs Michelle Mason discovered after looking over a picture taken on a family day out . But after looking back over the picture she discovered the figure of what appears to be a Victorian child. Mrs Mason, 39, explained: 'We were on a family walk one afternoon and the kids decided to climb a tree. 'I stopped to take a photo but it wasn’t until I got home that I spotted a child’s face looking back at me. 'I couldn’t believe it when I looked closer at the picture and there was a child, standing with a wheel or a hoop in their hand. Michelle Mason, who says she has discovered the face of a 'ghost child' in a family photo . 'It has really freaked me out. I don’t like anything like that. 'I would love to know more about the child in the picture. I am convinced it is a ghost, possibly from the Victorian times. 'When you look closely at the photo you can see the deep dark eyes. It definitely bares a striking resemblance to the black-eyed child that has been spotted around Cannock Chase. 'I don’t think it looks evil though, or like it wants to cause any harm to my children. They were both a bit spooked by it at first, but any child would be.' Now Mrs Mason is keen to find out more about the history of Cannock Chase in a bid to reveal who the 'ghost child' might be. She explained: 'I would love to find out more about the history of that area and if there are any experts who can help me out. It is a fascinating subject. 'I have had a lot of feedback from people, and it is split pretty evenly between people thinking it is a little boy or a little girl. 'Different people have spotted different things, such as a hand holding a hoop or a stick. Everyone sees differently I think depending on what they believe.' The full-time carer, added: 'Some people have said that I must have used Photoshop but I couldn’t tell you the first thing about that, I have no idea how to use anything like that. I just took the photo on our family compact camera. 'But that is most likely just people who are sceptical or don’t believe in the afterlife, that is always the first thing they say.'
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Michelle Mason took a snap of her children climbing a tree on a day out .
Later discovered a 'ghost-child' standing next to children Sophia and Lee .
Says she believes the figure appears to be that of a Victorian child .
Adds that it bares a resemblance to previous ghost sightings in the area .
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New York (CNN) -- On a chilly Saturday afternoon, a man with all the time in the world stands outside the bus he calls home. While he takes in a view of the Brooklyn Bridge, Bob Votruba boasts he lives on 84 square feet of pure luxury. "It's a cherished spot for me," he says, "something that is a little sacred." Votruba, 58, a retired father of three, is in the middle of a 10-year journey to spread kindness across the country. So far he's logged almost 60,000 miles on a school bus he bought and has lived in for four years. His Boston terrier, Bogart, keeps him company. The bus advertises his mission in giant letters painted on one side, "One Million Acts of Kindness." It's a goal, he says, a person under 30 can realistically meet if he or she makes it a point to be kind to someone every day. "It's a constant reminder that I have chosen this path to be as kind as I can in every possible way," he says. The impact of Virginia Tech shootings . Votruba says he felt compelled to champion kindness after learning a gunman had killed 32 people on April 16, 2007, at Virginia Tech. He had begun a period of introspection, realizing he wasn't satisfied with his lifestyle, which he considered "cushy." His construction business had become just a job, and he felt unfulfilled with the direction of his life, especially with his kids headed off to college. "It seemed like there was a higher meaning in going forward with life," he says. "That's when Virginia Tech happened." Votruba drove to Virginia Tech the week of the shootings and talked to people about their experiences dealing with the tragedy. It wasn't just one conversation that affected him but the range of emotions he saw that week, which, he says, motivated him to change his life. He returned to his home near Cleveland, and the single father told his children that he planned to sell all his belongings and drive to university campuses across the country to talk about kindness. Daughter Lizzie, 23, says she and her siblings were taken aback but not surprised. They always said Dad was kind. "It was a different step than most people take in their life," his 25-year-old son, Peter, says. "I was proud that he left and he was going to do something he felt was right and needed to do." Reminders . April 16 -- the date is as familiar to Bob Votruba as it is to anyone the Virginia Tech shootings personally affected. Meeting recently with the Chamber of Commerce in Chesterland, Ohio, he told the group what that day meant, but Votruba says he was saddened to see a crowd of blank faces. "That's how these events end up being lost in the public memory," he says. "The Boston bombings (were) on April 15, and there was so much coverage on April 16, April 17 and April 18. Here was an event that was so big six years ago that hardly got a mention." Votruba says we live in a "Post-it note" society, where people need constant reminders to love and care for one another. He sets at least four alarms each day to remind him to think about others and what he can do to spread kindness. Small gestures can help folks get into the habit of being kind, he says. "If you want to say a prayer, or a moment of silence," he says, that's what you should do. "Whatever you need to do to honor someone." On the road . Votruba made good on his vow to sell his home and belongings, taking an early retirement to embark on his journey of kindness. He funds it with his savings and retirement checks but also accepts small donations. "It's all a buck here, 20 bucks there, that sort of thing," he says. He drives to places where the weather is nice, visiting elementary schools and senior centers to drop off fliers announcing his mission. Those organizations will call him up (sometimes up to a year later) and ask him to come give a talk. A couple of years ago, he added a bike to his travels and has ridden it nearly 18,000 miles to spark up conversations with the people he encounters about issues such as domestic violence and child abuse. He placed two stickers on the back of his bike telling people what they should do: "Be a man. Don't raise a hand. Stop domestic violence," and "Stop childhood sexual abuse now." By the handlebars, a big black-and-white sign reads: "Boys should never hit girls," a message to which the children respond. "These are issues as I'm driving across the country I'm hearing so much," he says. "I'm having firsthand conversations with people losing loved ones because of suicide. I've had adults break down and cry 30 to 40 years later because of something that happened in high school." Votruba likes to hand out "kindness certificates," so people can frame a visual reminder of the mission of his trip. Wake up and smile. Hold the door for someone. Let everybody go through traffic. These are the things Votruba says he does when he's on the road and recommends for others. A living memorial . On this trip to Brooklyn, a dozen people from places as far away as Australia stopped by his bus to read the messages people left behind. "There is a sense of wonder that turns him into a joy," says Sister Claire Young, who lives in Vero Beach, Florida. "You come outside and say hello to him, and he's just so thrilled to see you. What can be better?" There is no heat inside Votruba's bus -- or air conditioning for that matter -- but the walls are filled with more than 400 messages, written by children and adults who stop by and chat. It's a living memorial, he says, of the people who took the time to write on it. But it also speaks to the future, when days are long and he needs a reminder to keep going. He likes the simplicity of one note that a 3-year-old left with the help of his mother: "Just be nice." And the wisdom of a 92-year-old man who was married for 60 years: "Tell your love, you love her every day." Even on a cold day, Votruba says, "it warms the soul."
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Bob Votruba has traveled nearly 60,000 miles across the U.S. to talk about kindness .
After the tragedy of the 2007 Virginia Tech shootings, he decided to change course .
He rides with his Boston terrier, Bogart, as company and sometimes bikes .
He gives himself reminders each day to be kind and gives assignments to others .
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(CNN) -- It's not the most ambitious Kickstarter in history, but maybe that's the secret ingredient that's making one man's pitch on the crowd-funding website so successful. Well, maybe that and a little dill. "Basically I'm just making potato salad. I haven't decided what kind yet," wrote Zack Brown on his campaign's Kickstarter page. In a campaign that went online over the holiday weekend, Brown's goal was to raise only $10. He tempered any expectations -- if there were any. "It might not be that good. It's my first potato salad." Despite his own lukewarm forecast, potential investors were not shaken by Brown's recipe indecisiveness and lack of experience. By Sunday evening, Brown had raised nearly $5,000 by 850 backers. "I never thought it would go this far," Brown of Columbus told a Reddit "Ask Me Anything" session. "$10 seemed like a good, conservative goal. I think the thing people are responding to is the opportunity to come together around something equal parts absurd and mundane." So what do investors -- which Kickstarter calls "backers," get in return? A pledge of $1 -- of which there were more than 300 by Sunday evening -- earns a "thank you" from Brown on the website as well as aloud while the potato salad is made. But for $20, you get a potato-salad themed haiku written by Brown and a signed jar of mayonnaise. As the campaign caught steam over the holiday weekend, a new goal was set: at $3,000 the "whole Internet" would be invited to Columbus to taste the potato salad. That didn't take long. "We're going to need a lot of potato salad!" he wrote when $3,000 came and went. "It could take me weeks to make it." Asked on Reddit why he was doing it, Brown got philosophical. "Potato Salad isn't controversial, but it seems to unite us all."
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Ohio man hoped to raise $10 on Kickstarter to make potato salad for the first time .
By Sunday evening, more than 850 pledged nearly $5,000 to Zach Brown .
"Entire Internet" invited to a party to taste Brown's recipe .
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New Delhi, India (CNN) -- Hours after it snapped power lines, overturned cars and ripped away bamboo homes, the most powerful cyclone to hit India in years weakened Sunday, but not before it left at least 14 dead. Morning light revealed damage from Tropical Cyclone Phailin after it pounded the eastern coast, the strongest storm in India in 14 years. Debris littered wet streets. Buildings had gaping holes where roofs and windows had been. In Odisha state, where the cyclone landed, at least 13 people were killed after trees fell and walls collapsed when the storm hit, Police Chief Prakash Mishra said. Another death was confirmed in Andhra Pradesh state, India's disaster management authority said. Many had feared the death toll would be higher. Massive evacuation efforts helped limit the number of casualties, officials said. "It is a huge, huge relief," Naveen Patnaik, Odisha's chief minister, told CNN sister network CNN-IBN. "Damage has been minimal." But in the hardest hit areas, the storm's impact was clear, with flooded highways, fallen trees and downed power lines. As a precautionary measure, authorities cut the electricity in the affected districts. It could take up to a week to restore power, authorities said. Like a fierce hurricane . Hurricanes are known as cyclones in the Indian Ocean. At 140 mph wind speed, Phailin made landfall as the equivalent of a Category 4 hurricane. The strongest hurricane is a Category 5, which comes with winds greater than 155 mph. By Sunday, some 13 hours later, it was the equivalent of a Category 1 hurricane with winds of about 80 mph. Where have all the hurricanes gone? 'Zero-casualty approach' India evacuated nearly a million people before the storm to avoid a repeat of what happened in 1999, when a cyclone killed 10,000 people. "We have taken a zero-casualty approach," said Kamal Lochan Mishra, Odisha state's disaster manager. "If people do not move, force will be used to evacuate them." Phailin has brought nearly 8 inches of rain to Odisha's capital of Bhubaneswar, about 30 miles from the coast. The city's average rainfall for October is 6.5 inches. The storm will continue to fall apart as it moves over land, but tropical storm-force winds are still possible through early Monday, said CNN meteorologist Judson Jones. Rainfall will also be a problem as Phailin moves up toward the Himalayas in Nepal. Multiple states in the region were under weather warnings for excessive rainfall and thunderstorms. Hundreds of emergency shelters . About 900,000 were evacuated in Odisha alone. Most people in low-lying coastal areas of the state left on foot or by bicycle, Kamal Lochan Mishra said. Relocating evacuees is a major challenge because of property damage and losses caused by the storm, said Patnaik. Most are housed in nearly 250 emergency shelters set up in sturdy buildings like schools and government offices. The India Meteorological Department warned of extensive damage to houses made of flimsy materials like mud and bamboo, as well as damage to old buildings. The storm disrupted power and communication lines. Extensive flooding also affected rail and road traffic, and crops are likely to suffer major damage, the agency said. In Gopalpur, a coastal resort town in Ganjam, restaurants were shuttered and streets deserted. Tourists and local residents left the town. Military deployed . In October 1999, Cyclone 05B, also known as the Odisha Cyclone, made landfall in the same area, killing 10,000 people. It was the strongest tropical cyclone recorded in the Bay of Bengal, with winds of 155 mph at landfall. It caused more than $2 billion in damage. In advance of Phailin, military units and National Disaster Response Force personnel were deployed to coastal areas with relief supplies and medical aid, CNN-IBN said. All flights to Odisha have been canceled and train services in the state are also disrupted, CNN's sister network reported. Officials survey damage . As authorities surveyed the damage Sunday, they said food assistance would be provided to severely impacted villages. Teams from nonprofits were also canvassing the affected areas. Initial surveys indicate the damage was not as bad as many feared it could be, Save the Children said. But strong winds and heavy rains continued to pound some areas. "There may be delays in being able to reach the most vulnerable families with aid," said Devendra Tak, a spokesman for the organization. "This also means it could take some time before the full extent of the damage is known." CNN's Neha Sharma and Harmeet Shah Singh reported from New Delhi, and Faith Karimi wrote and reported from Atlanta. CNN's Mallika Kapur, Bharati Naik, Catherine E. Shoichet, Pedram Javaheri and Radina Gigova contributed to this report.
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NEW: Save the Children: It could take time before the extent of damage is known .
Massive evacuation efforts helped limit the number of casualties .
At least 14 people were killed, authorities say .
To avoid electrocution, authorities cut the electricity in affected districts .
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By . Martin Robinson . Victim: Author Alex Wheatle says a paedophile ring targeted the children's home he was in in the 1980s, but abuse was covered up when it was linked to a Labour MP . An MP in Tony Blair's government was part of a paedophile ring which infiltrated a council children's home where an award winning author was abused in care, it was claimed today. Alex Wheatle, 51, said he was attacked at Shirley Oaks in Surrey, which took youngsters from Lambeth in south London. After moving there as a three-year-old, a doctor abused him during an appointment where he was forced to strip naked, while he said that a swimming instructor, a football coach and even staff groped and even raped boys and girls. Mr Wheatle was also beaten with hair brushes, belts and boots, because 'suffering violence was as much a part of my day as eating toast', he said. The father-of-three said that the abuse was covered up when a Labour MP was named as being an alleged member of a network of child abusers targeting the borough. Mr Wheatle, who was attacked at Shirley Oaks near Croydon in the 1980s, where the politician also visited regularly in the same period. The author, handed an MBE five years ago by the Queen, said paedophiles also targeted the South Vale centre in Lambeth, where children were assessed before being sent to Shirley Oaks. Describing his life there he told the Daily Mirror: 'We would see strange nameless men within the Shirley Oaks grounds. 'I'm convinced there was a paedophile ring operating in both South Vale and Shirley Oaks and that the authorities knew about it at the time but did nothing'. Success story: Mr Wheatle rebuilt his life, became a celebrated author and received an MBE in 2008, but says that many children who were abused could not cope with what happened to them . Mr Wheatle said he and other children feared speaking out in case they were sent 'somewhere worse', and several killed themselves after suffering unspeakable abuse. The south Londoner, who has written bestsellers including Brenton Brown and Brixton Rock, has demanded Theresa May's inquiries are 'thorough' and will go to the police himself. Yesterday it was claimed senior Tory politicians took part in drink and drug-fuelled sex parties with underage boys during seaside conferences. Former activist Anthony Gilberthorpe says he was handed cash and told to ‘fetch entertainment’ - code for young boys – by members of Margaret Thatcher’s government. But the claims were today rejected as ‘tittle-tattle’ by former Conservative minister David Mellor, who insisted those named were dead and unable to defend themselves. Westminster has been gripped by claims of an Establishment cover-up of allegations of child sex abuse over several decades. The government has appointed former High Court judge Baroness Butler-Sloss to lead a wide-ranging panel inquiry into abuse at every level of society. Former activist Anthony Gilberthorpe, left, claims he was asked to find underage boys for sex during Tory party conferences when Margaret Thatcher was leader in the early 1980s . Mr Gilberthorpe says he will give the inquiry the names of former Tory ministers, some of whom are still alive, who he claims he saw with young men at party conferences. He claims he sent a 40-page dossier to Mrs Thatcher in 1989 detailing Cabinet ministers who took part in the sex parties, but says he was warned off by a senior civil servant. He told the Sunday Mirror how boys as young as 15 were plied with alcohol and cocaine at Conservative gatherings in Blackpool and Brighton in the 1980s. He named former former-Education Secretary Keith Joseph, ex-local government minister Rhodes Boyson, and Michael Havers, the former attorney general who is the brother of Baroness Butler-Sloss. All of those Mr Gilberthorpe names are now dead.
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Alex Wheatle says he and others were abused at council children's home .
A high-flying MP in the 1980s is linked to Shirley Oaks in Surrey .
'I'm convinced there was a paedophile ring operating and that the authorities knew about it at the time but did nothing', he said .
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By . Daily Mail Reporter . PUBLISHED: . 11:07 EST, 23 July 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 11:58 EST, 23 July 2013 . A 57-year-old deaf woman heard her baby granddaughter laugh for the very first time with the help of a cochlear implant while cameras rolled on the Today show. As America watched this morning, Sarah Campbell, of Norristown, Pennsylvania had her implant activated for the first time and, as if on cue, her one-year-old granddaughter giggled with excitement. It was a monumental moment for Campbell, who has suffered from hearing problems since childhood and had gone completely deaf in the last five years. Grandmother: 57-year-old Sarah Campbell of Norristown, Pennsylvania got a cochlear implant three weeks ago and it was turned on for the first time on the Today show . Miracle: As if on cue, Campbell's granddaughter giggled just as the implant activated, which was the first time she ever heard the one-year-old laugh . ‘I'm hearing her! Woo! Baby! She was laughing, I think,’ Campbell told her audiologist Michelle Montes as host Matt Lauer stood by with Campbell’s family on Today. Though Campbell correctly identified her granddaughter’s laughter, there was no way to know if the implant would work as cameras rolled. ‘It's noise ... noise,’ is how Campbell described the sounds at first. Then, Montes turned the volume up on her implant. Questions: Cameras were rolling, but as Campbell waited for her implant to activate, she didn't know how well, if at all, it would work . Success: Thankfully, as Today host Matt Lauer and her whole family watched, the implant worked and Campbell heard her granddaughter's giggle . ‘I'm hearing you. It's very low. I'm even hearing me! I'm hearing me talk,’ said the thrilled Campbell. Before getting the implant, life had become a lot less exciting for Campbell. Ever since childhood, she’d had hearing problems. Hearing aids helped her get by in school and even allowed her to become a special education teacher. However, as her hearing become fainter over the last few year, it became harder to work and to interact with other people. Fortunate: Miraculously, her granddaughter's laughter was one of the first things Campbell heard . ‘So, I zone out,’ she said. ‘And go into my own little world.’ In that world, Campbell loved to enjoy nature and watch the birds in her back yard. Though, she could never hear any of it. ‘You know, the creaks in your house, the baby crying,’ Campbell said before the implant was activated. ‘Different sounds that you take for granted, and I've never heard 'em.’ And now she has, thanks to the cochlear implant she received three weeks ago at the University of Pennsylvania. High-tech: Campbell wore hearing aids for years, but they'd stopped working in recent years. Advanced cochlear implants, pictured, are implanted within the ear itself, with a microphone-like device worn outside the head . The microphone and processor worn on the outside are connected to implements that stimulate the bones inside the ear . The implant is made up of a receiver and stimulator implanted on the bones inside the inner ear. They connect to a magnetic transmitter work on the outside of the head which acts as a microphone. As the audiologist turned on the implant, she explained that the technology will continue to improve, even in the minutes following the activation. How good her hearing will become remains unknown, but Campbell will be happy just hearing the birds in her yard. ‘Do I expect miracles? No,’ she told Today. ‘I just want to hear better.’ Small wonder? Campbell says she doesn't expect miracles, she just wants to hear things like the birds and the wind in her back yard and more laughter from her granddaughter .
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Sarah Campbell's grandaughter giggled as cameras rolled and her family and Matt Lauer stood by on Today .
Experts weren't sure how well or quickly the implant would work .
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LONDON, England (CNN) -- The conviction of a terrorist doctor in the UK exposes how any section of society can become radicalized, a top police officer said Tuesday. Bilal Abdulla is shown being arrested after the attack at Glasgow Airport. Bilal Abdulla was well-educated and working as a doctor when he carried out his plot to plant car bombs in London -- rather than unemployed or with feelings of being outside or abandoned by society as has been seen before in the UK. Born in southern England, his family moved to Iraq when he was a child. He grew up in the capital during Saddam Hussein's rule and went to the University of Baghdad before returning to Britain to attend Cambridge University. The Cambridge-educated graduate became a doctor working in the National Health Service where the maxim is to treat anyone regardless of the ability to pay. Deputy Assistant Commissioner John McDowall, who heads the Counter Terrorism Command, said Abdulla and Kafeel Ahmed -- who died from burn injuries after he crashed a jeep into Glasgow International Airport, Scotland -- reveal a new type of terrorist. He told the UK's Press Association: "These individuals were not on our radar and that in itself is very interesting. When you look at the profile of these individuals they are very different from the terrorists we have dealt with in this country before - being professional people. McDowell added they were probably inspired by al Qaeda in Iraq but developed their plan in Britain without help from abroad. "I think this was a group that was largely self-motivated, came up with the ideas themselves, tutored themselves through the Internet. I don't think they received significant training elsewhere, which is unusual from what we have had in the past," he told PA. Abdulla's motive, prosecutors said, was revenge for the bloodshed in Iraq. Prosecutor Jonathan Laidlaw said: 'There is no longer a conventional approach to terrorism. There are no rules to be broken any more, nothing can be taken for granted." Abdulla was found guilty Tuesday of conspiracy to murder and conspiring to cause explosions. He will be sentenced to Woolwich Crown Court, London, on Wednesday. The jury rejected his defense that he had planned only to set fire to cars in central London as a way of highlighting the plight of Iraqis.
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Dr. Bilal Abdulla's professional life is different to radicals seen before in UK .
Anti terror officer tells PA Abdulla was a self-taught, self-starter .
Abdulla planned car bomb attacks in June 2007 on targets in Glasgow and London .
He was found guilty of conspiracy to murder in June 2007 .
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By . Lydia Warren . Jerry Sandusky's adopted son will open up about the years of sexual abuse he endured at the hands of his pedophile father in an exclusive interview with Oprah Winfrey. Matthew Sandusky's interview, which will air on OWN at 9pm on Thursday night, will be his first television since his father was convicted in 2012. 'At bedtime, his ritual began,' he says in a 30-second preview clip for the show. Ahead of the show's airing, OWN explained that Matthew would be sharing 'a deeply personal account of the grooming, methodical control and manipulation he faced as a child'. Scroll down for video . Speaking out: Matthew Sandusky will detail his abuse at the hands of his father in an interview this week . Brave: He will speak to Oprah Winfrey, right, in his first television interview since the trial in 2012 . It adds that Matthew will respond 'to the accusations his adoptive mother, Dottie Sandusky, made on national television accusing him of lying and stealing from the family'. Sandusky, . who retired in June 30, 1999 as Penn State's defensive coordinator, was . convicted in 2012 of molesting 10 boys over 15 years, some in the . football team's showers on campus. The 70-year-old is now serving a 30- to 60-year state prison sentence. Matt Sandusky, one of six children adopted by Jerry and Dottie Sandusky, had been expected to be a defense witness for his father until the trial, when he told investigators that he also had been abused. His story first . became public when a secret tape of a 29-minute interview he did with police . during the middle of his father's trial was leaked to NBC. Pedophile: Jerry Sandusky, pictured in January 2013, was sentenced to 30 to 60 years in prison for his crimes . In the . tape, Matt said his father would enter his bedroom at night and 'blow . raspberries' on his stomach, then move his hand down his body, rubbing . up against his genitals. He said he would sometimes cower 'in a fetal position' in his bed trying to avoid his father. In total, he said he suffered seven years of molestation, between the ages of eight and 15, at the hands of his adoptive father. He initially denied there had been any abuse before speaking out. In an interview for a documentary at the Sundance Film Festival in January, he said that he felt 'betrayed' by the entire Sandusky family after he took the decision to speak out against his father. But he maintains that he refused to be a 'coward' and risked everything to turn against those who had adopted him from a deprived upbringing and brought him up in an affluent household. Last year he reached a settlement with Penn State and petitioned to legally change his . name, and that of his wife and four children. Hurtful: Matthew Sandusky said he felt betrayed by his adopted mother Dottie, right in 2011, after they failed to support him when he came forward with allegations about his father's abuse . The interview comes two weeks after Pennsylvania's attorney general released a review of the prosecution but found no evidence of political interference by then Governor Tom Corbett. The report, however, did reveal three years of 'inexplicable delays' to prosecute the former Penn State football coach on child abuse charges. The pedophile's home was not searched and the report notes that it took a full year, from March 2009 until March 2010, for the office to recommend charging Sandusky when 'Victim 1' came forward. It took more 18 months before Sandusky was arrested because the prosecutor's supervisors believed the testimony of one victim would be 'insufficient against a community icon like Sandusky'. See below for video .
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Matthew Sandusky previously told investigators that he suffered seven years of sexual abuse at the hands of his adopted father .
On Thursday, he will speak out in his first TV interview since Jerry Sandusky was convicted and sentenced to 30-60 years in 2012 .
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(CNN) -- Briton Lewis Hamilton set the pace in Friday practice at the Canadian Grand Prix in Montreal. After lapping the Gilles Villeneuve circuit in one minute 15.564 seconds in the morning to beat Red Bull's Sebastian Vettel, Hamiton went even quicker in the afternoon to edge out Ferrari's Fernando Alonso. Brazilian Felipe Massa, who finished sixth at the Monaco Grand Prix after a sluggish start to the season, continued to show signs of improvement after setting the third fastest time, with Vettel in fourth and Force India's Paul di Resta in fifth, just ahead of Mercedes' Michael Schumacher. Hamilton's McLaren teammate Jenson Button, ended the day in the ninth after both his practice sessions were disrupted by oil leaks. "I'm very happy with my start to the weekend," Hamilton told the Formula One website. "I'm happy that the rain held off for both sessions and happy that we got through a lot of good set-up changes. "This is a great track to drive - it's a place that requires 100% commitment and where the driver can really make a difference. It magnifies the differences between drivers." Button added: "I'm not too worried - the car has been working well and Lewis has been quick all day, so there's a lot of good information for us to look at. "I enjoy driving around this place, so we'll be hoping for a bit more luck." Vettel concurred with both Hamilton and Button on how enjoyable it was to race at the Gilles Villeneuve circuit. "There are a lot of stop and starts, braking, chicanes and quick changes in direction but it's good fun - it's part of this track, there are bumps, so it's wild and rough, but it's fun." Alonso added: "It becomes very important to find the right reference points, especially in terms of braking points and how far one is from the walls, in order to put together both a quick lap and to drive smoothly over a long distance."
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Lewis Hamilton is fastest in Friday's practice at the Canadian Grand Prix .
Hamilton's McLaren teammate Jenson Button is dogged by oil leak proble .
Ferrari drivers Fernando Alonso and Felipe Massa in second and third .
"It's wild and rough, but it's fun," says Sebastian Vettel of the Gilles Villeneuve circuit .
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Rugby union's world governing body has requested 'a full report' from Welsh rugby chiefs after George North suffered two blows to the head during Friday night's RBS 6 Nations opener against England. The juggernaut Wales wing took an accidental boot to the head from England lock Dave Attwood in the first-half, and he was temporarily replaced by Liam Williams while he underwent mandatory concussion assessment. North subsequently returned to the field, but he then clashed heads with team-mate Richard Hibbard during the second-half in what appeared to be a worse incident, and that has now attracted World Rugby's attention. George North (left) is taken off the field by Wales team doctor Geoff Davies before later returning . North (bottom) is inadvertently kicked in the face by England second row Dave Attwood on Friday . The Wales wing appeared to be knocked out twice during his side's 21-16 Six Nations loss against England . North did not go off a second time, playing on as England started their Six Nations season with a 21-16 victory. In a statement, World Rugby, formerly the International Rugby Board, said: 'World Rugby has requested a full report from the Welsh Rugby Union (WRU) following an apparent head impact sustained by Wales wing George North in the second-half of Friday night's RBS 6 Nations match between Wales and England at the Millennium Stadium, Cardiff. 'North, who sustained the impact in the 61st minute of the match, remained on the field. 'And, having undertaken an initial review of the broadcast footage, World Rugby is seeking to establish from the WRU whether all concussion management protocols were appropriately followed. 'Concussion management and education is at the heart of World Rugby's player welfare strategy designed to protect players at all levels of the game and promote the very highest standards of education, coaching and medical care.' For their part, the Wales squad management issued a medical update on Saturday that stated North was 'currently symptom free,' although they have also viewed footage of the second incident. 'In relation to George North, he passed head injury protocol tests that were carried out in the medical room, in addition to an on-pitch assessment,' Wales said. 'He also showed no signs and symptoms when follow-up tests were carried out immediately after the game. North (right) and his captain Sam Warburton look on during Wales' defeat to England . The 22-year-old (left), missing a tackle on Jonathan Joseph, saw his game suffer after the first head injury . 'While George is currently symptom free, retrospective video review of the second incident identified the mechanism of injury which was previously unsighted on the field of play. 'This review has warranted the medical team to manage the player as concussed, although the player currently has no signs and symptoms. 'He will now undertake a graduated return to play protocol with multiple follow-up cognitive and physical tests.' The North episode caused a widespread reaction throughout the rugby community. Former England captain Lewis Moody said on Twitter: 'Why was George North not taken off. Terrible decision by the medics. Out cold .' And ex-England skipper Will Carling tweeted: 'I really don't think George North should still be on the pitch. He looks very dazed....' North puts his hands on his knees and looks on during Wales' loss to England at the Millennium Stadium . The Wales wing (right) tries to tackle England's Anthony Watson during the Six Nations clash . North, meanwhile, missed Wales' victory over South Africa earlier this season after being treated for concussion during the defeat against world champions New Zealand seven days earlier. Wales also said on Saturday that prop Samson Lee was concussed during the England clash. 'He will also be undertaking a graduated return to play protocol, consisting of a number of cognitive and physical tests prior to returning to training,' Wales added, in their statement. 'Dan Biggar sustained a laceration to his forehead following an accidental collision with team-mate Gethin Jenkins. He will be managed accordingly in the build-up to the Scotland fixture. 'Leigh Halfpenny sustained a mild neck injury that will be treated by the medical team this week. This injury is unlikely to keep the player out for the following week's fixture.' Wales resume their Six Nations campaign against Scotland at Murrayfield in eight days' time.
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George North suffered two head injuries in Wales' 21-16 loss to England .
Wales wing appeared to be knocked out twice at Millennium Stadium .
The 22-year-old Northampton winger played the entire 80 minutes though .
World Rugby is seeking to establish from the WRU whether all concussion management protocols were appropriately followed .
Will Carling, Lewis Moody and Brian Moore all questioned the decision .
Moore said on BBC Commentary: 'I think North is definitely concussed'
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By . Zoe Szathmary . The New Jersey couple whose slain daughter became the namesake of a sex offender registry law have spoken about their lives since and advocacy work. Parents Maureen and Richard Kanka gave an exclusive interview to The New York Daily News almost twenty years to the day after their daughter Megan was raped and killed in July 1994. Megan Kanka was 7 years old at the time, the paper said. Victim: Megan Kanka was raped and murdered by neighbor Jesse Timmendequas in 1994 . The Kankas told the paper they sprang to action after they learned neighbor and convicted sex offender Jesse Timmendequas committed the crimes. His two roommates were convicted sex offenders, the Daily News said. 'We were outraged,' Richard Kanka told the newspaper. 'We wanted to know if the police knew about this. Didn’t anybody know that three convicted sex offenders lived across the street? It turned out nobody knew.' Though Maureen Kanka said their work was 'so chaotic, and it was so traumatic' to the Daily News, it helped lead to Megan's Law. Guilty: Jesse Timmendequas, a neighbor of the Kankas, was found guilty of raping and killing their daughter Megan. He is seen in court in this 1997 file photo . The couple also established the Megan Nicole Kanka Foundation, the paper reported. 'Every parent should have the right to know if a dangerous sexual predator moves into their neighborhood,' the foundation's website says. 'That is why Richard and Maureen Kanka made it their lives' mission to see the enactment of Megan's Law in every state.' The couple continued to help others in the wake of their daughter's death, the Daily News reported. 'Whenever somebody asks me, I can’t say no,' Richard Kanka told the newspaper. 'Whenever they ask me, I’ll be there.' Richard Kanka also told the Daily News he thought that Timmenquendas' death sentence being changed to life without parole 'was a real slap in the face.' Maureen Kanka, now a grandmother, told the newspaper 'I know we made an impact.' Richard Kanka expressed a similar sentiment: 'We sacrificed a lot, hopefully to save a lot.' Tireless: Richard and Maureen Kanka, seen in 1994, have worked since their daughter's murder to help establish public sex offender registry laws in other states .
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Maureen and Richard Kanka, parents of slain Megan Kanka, have spoken out nearly twenty years to the day after their daughter was raped and killed at age seven in July 1994 .
The Kankas have said they sprang to action .
after they learned neighbor and convicted sex offender Jesse .
Timmendequas committed the crimes .
Though Maureen Kanka described their .
work as 'so chaotic, and it was so traumatic' to The New York Daily News, it .
helped lead to Megan's Law .
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By . Lucy Crossley . Two families ended up in a violent brawl after their 13-year-old daughters fell out in a playground row over One Direction tickets, a court heard. The families of Lucy Brough and Chloe Warley had previously been close, but after the teenagers argued at their school in Hessle, Hull, East Yorkshire, their parents fell out. The dispute eventually escalated into a street brawl between both sets of parents in which one was badly injured, and the three others later convicted of assault. Spat: Lee and Kerry Warley (left) were convicted of assault after a fight between their daughter Chloe, 13, and her friend Lucy Brough over One Direction tickets escalated and ended up in a brawl involving the couple and Lucy's parents Nicola (right) and Gary . Mrs Brough and her husband Gary (pictured) had decided . to go to Hessle High School for a meeting, hoping to resolve the . dispute between the girls but it didn't go well and the row between the families then escalated . Hull Crown Court was told that Lucy and Chloe had been good friends who attended dance classes together, but had become 'enemies' after a falling out. The court was not told the . origins of the playground squabble, but as it rumbled on insults were . traded and there was a row about tickets to a One Direction concert. Jane Bryan, prosecuting, said: 'Unfortunately, as often happens with 13-year-old girls, they fell out. 'They became enemies and were causing each other trouble at school. 'And because of the deterioration in the girls’ relationship, the families also fell out.' The dispute came to a head on June 5 last year when Lucy called her mother, Nicola Brough, 40, from school in 'immense distress'. Mrs Brough and her husband Gary decided to go to Hessle High School for a meeting, hoping to resolve the dispute, but it did not go well and they decided to take Lucy home. Scuffle: The court was not told the origins of the playground squabble, but as it rumbled on insults were traded and there was a row about tickets to a One Direction concert . However, Lucy wanted to go back to . school later that afternoon for a production of Beauty And The Beast and . as she and her mother arrived at the school gates they saw Chloe, and . the girls began fighting. Mrs Brough said she pushed both of the teenagers into a bush to break it up. However, Chloe then went home to tell her parents Lee and Kerry Warley, and all three got in their car and went to the Broughs’ home in Hessle, the court was told. Mr Brough was in the garden putting up some hanging baskets with a hammer, and 'before he knew it' the girls were fighting in the street, and their mothers fighting in the garden. He said he had tried to intervene, but was prevented from doing so by Mr Warley, who told him: 'Let them have it. It’s been coming for a while.' Action: When Mr and Mrs Warley (pictured) were told how Mrs Brough had pushed Chloe into a bush to break up a fight with Lucy, they rushed to the Broughs' home in Hessle . Assault: Mr Warley, 33, (right) from,west Hull, denied causing grievous bodily harm but admitted a lesser charge of assault occasioning actual bodily harm on the second day of his trial . Mr Warley then took the hammer Mr Brough had been using and threw it over the house. Mr Brough told the court: 'The next thing I knew, I was seeing stars. I’d been punched.' The blow fractured his cheek and eye socket and cost him his job as a plant fitter because of the eight weeks he needed off work. 'I kind of blacked out for a couple of seconds,' he said. 'I’ve never felt pain like it before.' Mr . Warley, 33, from,west Hull, denied causing grievous bodily harm but . admitted a lesser charge of assault occasioning actual bodily harm on . the second day of his trial. He was given a three-month prison sentence, suspended for 18 months, and told to carry out 100 hours of unpaid work. Mrs Warley, 34, was ordered to do 80 hours unpaid work for the assault on Mrs Brough. Mrs Brough was discharged conditionally for 12 months for the assault on Chloe. Sentencing Mr Warley, Judge Michael Mettyear said: 'What a disgraceful day, wasn’t it, with more than one person involved? Sentence: Mr Warley was given a suspended prison sentence and told to carry out community service. His wife was ordered to do 80 hours of unpaid work, and Mrs Brough was given a conditional discharge . 'I very much hope there will now be peace restored, at least on the face of it, between these two families.' Mrs Brough told how she had bought One Direction tickets for her daughter and friends before Lucy and Chloe fell out. Speaking from her home today she said: 'The girls fell out after we'd bought tickets for the 1D concert. 'So we decided we didn't want their daughter to come along with us so we offered to buy their ticket from them. 'In the end we managed to swap some tickets so we didn't have to sit together so we all got to go."I wouldn't mind but the girls don't even like 1D any more. They're into 5 Seconds of Summer now.' She added: 'But I much prefer David Cassidy.' Mrs Brough told how the girls became friends when they were just four years old after they went to the same ballet class together. The parents had also come close over the years and were also good friends, but this came to a head last year when the girls had a huge argument - bringing their parents into the fallout. Mrs Brough said the girls had argued about a number of issues and said they were still not reconciled.
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Lucy Brough and Chloe Warley fell out and argued over concert tickets .
But the deterioration of their relationship spread over to their parents .
Lucy's parents hoped to resolve the displute with a meeting at school in Hull .
But meeting did not go well and later that afternoon the girls rowed again .
Nicola Brough pushed the girls into a bush to break up the scuffle .
Chloe told her parents Lee and Kerry, and they went to the Broughs' home .
Mothers and daughters faught, and Lee Warley punched Gary Brough .
Children fell out after the Broughs bought tickets for One Direction .
Mrs Brough says girls do not like 1D now and 'prefer 5 Seconds Of Summer'
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By . Daily Mail Reporter . PUBLISHED: . 12:58 EST, 6 September 2012 . | . UPDATED: . 18:46 EST, 6 September 2012 . A 29-year-old was the victim of a bomb hoax on Thursday, after a mystery caller, thought to be an angry ex-girlfriend, tipped off police that he had taken explosives on an airplane. The anonymous caller claimed Christopher Shell was carrying 'dangerous substances' on board a US Airways Philadelphia-Dallas flight forcing it to make a u-turn mid-air. At first believed to be a birthday prank, police and the airline took the allegation seriously and re-routed the plane, sending it back to Philadelphia International Airport, half an hour into the journey. Scroll down for video . Victim? Police said Christopher Shell (pictured) is not considered to be a suspect . Emergency u-turn: Christopher Shell was removed from the craft while it was searched . Airport police received the bomb-scare call at around 7.30am claiming Shell was on his way to Texas, carrying a dangerous substance, and contacted the FBI. The plane returned to Philadelphia where it was met by a slew of law enforcement vehicles and personnel. Shell was led from the jet wearing . handcuffs after the craft made its emergency return to Philadelphia . International Airport on Thursday morning. He was put him in the back of a police car and taken off for questioning, apparently very surprised to be caught up in the midst of the emergency. 'He was obviously very alarmed, as I would be if heavily armed police officers entered a plane to take me off,' Philadelphia police Chief Inspector Joseph . Sullivan said. Brag: Christopher Shell quickly recovered from his shock to offer up his story in exchange for cash . Rant: Shell moaned about the flight on Facebook . 'And he was certainly stunned. And that's why this is no joke, this is no laughing matter.' Bomb technicians and specially trained dogs searched the plane but found nothing illegal or hazardous, Sullivan said. Police believe the scare was a practical joke, played on Shell as he celebrated his 29th birthday, NBC reported. Shell did nothing wrong and was the victim of 'a pretty nasty trick,' Sullivan said. He made a swift recovery, however, taking to Facebook to offer up his story in exchange for cash. 'If u have questions or want an interview with me, it will cost u $$$ until then,' he wrote. 'Sry. Message me your offers as I'll go with the most $$$!' Earlier on he had posted: 'Im not going to lie, I'm pretty disappointed in US Airways currently. We just spent a half hour in the air to be notified that the plane, "has technical difficulties" and had to fly back! Flight 1267 CANCELLED. Gay!' Nasty hoax: The US Airways plane was searched after being ordered back to Philadelphia International Airport following a report of explosives onboard . Briefing: Chief Inspector Joseph Sullivan talks about the threat after its investigation by police . Sullivan stressed that Shell is not a suspect but added that police are treating the hoax seriously because it had resulted in a heavy police response and a significant hassle for all those on board, he said. 'It's just an incredibly foolish and irresponsible thing to do and, bottom line, it's criminal,' Sullivan said. Two people have since been taken into custody for questioning, according to NBC. Earlier, an FBI spokesman said the flight was diverted because of a call reporting liquid explosives were on board. Sullivan declined to discuss the content of the call. The airplane had 69 passengers and five crew members on board, airport spokeswoman Victoria Lupica said. Sullivan said the investigation into the phone call had been turned over to the FBI. FBI Special Agent Richard Quinn said it was too early to speculate about what sort of charges could be filed against the caller, but they could be severe.
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Two people, one male and one female, in police custody over prank .
Police say ex-girlfriend was behind hoax .
Philadelphia-Dallas flight forced to do a u-turn after anonymous tipster told police passenger Christopher Shell was carrying explosives .
Shell was removed from the plane in handcuffs and taken off for questioning while the craft was searched .
He had been celebrating his 29th birthday - police first thought it was a bad-taste birthday joke .
Nothing was found on either Shell or the plane .
Later wrote on Facebook: 'If u want an interview with me, it will cost u $$$!'
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By . Darren Boyle . A pair of bogus brides recruited using Skype to take part in sham marriages in the UK have been jailed. Bulgarians Nadya Kamenova, 20, and Tamenuzhka Slavcheva, 21, were paid in total more than £4,000 to ‘marry’ two Pakistani men facing deportation. The young mothers were both flown to Manchester after being contacted online by sham marriage organisers. Tamenuzhka Slavcheva, left, was paid £1,000 to marry Muhammed Saleem, her friend Nadya Kamenova, right, had earlier married the gang's suspected ring-leader Mohammed Shahbaz, who is wanted by authorities . Now both women have been jailed after admitting conspiring to facilitate breach of UK immigration law. The women were locked up alongside fake groom, Muhammed Saleem, 28, who married Slavcheva in a ceremony observed by undercover borders officials, called in by suspicious staff, at Manchester Register Office last February. Saleem, from Rochdale, Lancs, paid Slavcheva £1,000 to marry him after his student visa was rescinded. Four days earlier, Saleem acted as a witness in the fake marriage of Mohammed Shahbaz to Nadya Kamenova. Muhammed Saleem, pictured, had earlier acted as a witness at the wedding of Kamenova and Shabaz . Mr Shahbaz, who has so far escaped arrest, is suspected of organising a number of other sham marriages. Manchester Crown Court heard that his bride Kamenova was recruited by her UK-based aunt, who is suspected of being another of the organisers, via Skype, and paid £3,400 for the job. Once over here, Kamenova helped make arrangements for her cousin Slavcheva’s arrival . David Toal, prosecuting, said: 'Before the accession of countries such as Bulgaria and Romania to the EU, most previous sham marriage cases involved "brides" from affluent countries like Holland, and invariably spent only a few days for the marriage in the UK before returning to their lives in their own country. 'Such transient passage within the UK, gave the marriages the obvious appearance of shams. 'By choosing brides from poor countries such as Bulgaria, the grooms could be confident that their brides would be more willing to remain within the UK for longer periods of time or come to the UK on repeated visits.' Michael Johnson, defending Saleem, 28, said he was an ‘industrious and law-abiding person’ who had not claimed benefits in the UK and ‘very much regrets’ his crime. Simon Nichol, defending Slavcheva, said she was a ‘naive young woman’. Recorder Bernadette Baxter, sentencing, ordered Kamenova and Saleem to serve 20 months behind bars, and Slavcheva to serve 12 months, saying the ‘extremely serious offences fundamentally undermine the legitimate immigration system’. Staff at Manchester Register Office, pictured, became suspicious about the wedding and called in undercover border officials who observed the sham wedding before pouncing .
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Tamenuzhka Slavcheva received £1,000 to marry Muhammed Saleem .
Nadya Kamenova had earlier married the gang's suspected ring-leader .
The deal was arranged over Skype by Kamenova's UK based aunt .
Saleem paid for the bogus wedding after his student visa was rescinded .
Suspicious Manchester Register Office staff tipped-off Border officers .
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No, the richest fight of all time has not been set in paper, let alone stone. Not yet. Yes, the lines on the contract still wait to be dotted, let alone signed upon by Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao. But yes, also, the big businesses needed to help generate the prize-ring’s first £200million bonanza are swinging into action already. The travel industry, especially. Manny Pacquiao (left) and Floyd Mayweather chat at an NBA match last month . Air and accommodation packages have now gone on sale here in Britain for the second half of the week ending Saturday, May 2 in Las Vegas. Cost – anything up to £4,000-a-head for deals based on flights in economy. The MGM Grand – the giant resort and casino on that neon Strip in the desert – has been keeping its Grand Garden Arena on hold for some time now. More significantly it has just raised its basic room rates for the nights of May 1 and 2 – by more than treble to in excess of $500 (£325) for the first time. Other hotels in Vegas are also hiking their prices. All the above are selling like hot cakes. Everyone is gambling that the deal of the century will be done. Packages to watch the potential £200million bout are already on sale with some companies . It is believed that ringside seats will cost $5,000 (£3,250) each, with the pay-per-view subscriptions in the US being priced at $100 (£65) each... if it happens. The only thing which might bring it all crashing down in is a premature announcement that the fight is truly on. One of Mayweather’s stipulations is that he makes the announcement. Pacquiao has publicly conceded that privilege. But wishful media speculation that he has signed a contract, supposedly based on information from unattributed sources close to the Filipino camp, threaten to crush the hopes of the boxing world, the PacMan himself included. Mayweather does not like that. He dismissed the story out of hand when he attended the NBA All-Star game in New York at the weekend, when many expected him to declare the fight on: ‘It’s not true. I’ve not signed yet. He’s not signed yet. It’s all speculation and rumour.’ The Money Man’s Showtime TV paymaster Stephen Espinosa confirmed: ‘There is no contract yet. Sorry to tell the truth.’ Mayweather attends the NBA All-Star match at Madison Square Garden in New York on Sunday . Still, there were sighs of relief all round when Mayweather added: ‘Hopefully we can make it happen.’ Maybe the thought of the fortune to be made softened his stance a little. The most recent estimates suggest that Mayweather stands to bank a minimum of $150m (£97m), Pacquiao at least $100m (£65m). There are suggestions that only two sticking points remain to be unglued, one between Showtime and the HBO television network who deal with Pacquiao, the other involving two rival beer breweries who each sponsor one of the boxers. WBC President Jose Sulaiman is blaming the delay on 'abuse of power'. Although he is not sure by whom. Sulaiman, on a flying visit to London said: 'It could be one or both the fighters, promoters, the managers, or the TV stations but I want to make it clear its not us.' Pacquiao lands a left hook on Chris Algieri on his way to victory in Macau back in November . Mayweather is this organisation's world welterweight champion and Sulaiman adds: 'We are doing everything possible to remove any obstacle from this happening. It's not fair to the fans if they don't make this fight, which everyone wants to see. It will be terrible it it doesn't happen this year because it would be bring so much greater exposure to boxing and transform the sport.' Even so, he raised the prospects of it happening this year rather than next as 'no better than 50-50.' Meanwhile, the long wait goes on. But even as it does so boxing lovers the world over, in their anxiety about missing out, are gambling on advance bookings. In terms of his credibility and his legacy, it may not be wise for Mayweather to disappoint them. George Groves has been promised that if he remains patient he is guaranteed his world super middleweight title shot later this year. Saint George was disappointed when the WBC suddenly granted Anthony Dirrell the right to a voluntary defence of their belt prior to meeting his mandatory challenge of Groves. Dirrell is being allowed to fight an opponent of his choice in April but WBC President Jose Sulaiman assures Groves: 'Dirrell will then have to fight George by the autumn.' George Groves has been told he will have a world super middleweight title fight this year . Martin Murray truly believes he can become the first boxer to defeat the most dangerous fighter on the planet. Gennady Golovkin, the heaviest pound-for-pound puncher in the world, says he will defend his middleweight crown by knock-out when they meet in the ring in Monte Carlo this Saturday night. Murray, who came up only narrowly short in his two previous world title challenges to Felix Sturm in Germany and Sergio Martinez in Argentina, says: ‘I’m not afraid of him.’ In that, at the very least, we can believe him. Martin Murray takes on hard-hitting Gennady Golovkin in Monte Carlo on Saturday night . Golovkin has promised to knock out the Brit and retain his WBO and IBA belts . But it would be a monumental achievement for the impressively reformed convict from St Helens to overcome the unbeaten Kazakh. Golovkin knocks out opponents for fun, as Anglo-Irish warrior Matthew Macklin is one of many to have discovered already. Andy Lee, Ireland’s holder of another version of the middleweight championship, will be among those in attendance/ He is keeping a watching brief in case he overcomes the challenges of, first, Peter Quillin in America, then Hertford’s Billy Joe Saunders and goes on to face Golovkin in a unification battle. *Golovkin-Murray will be televised live on Channel 5 on Saturday night.
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Floyd Mayweather in talks to fight Manny Pacquiao .
Las Vegas fight could be worth a world-record £200million if it goes ahead .
Deal not signed yet but travel companies already offering packages .
George Groves has been promised a world title fight by the end of the year .
Martin Murray believes he can beat Gennady Golovkin on Saturday night .
CLICK HERE for all the latest Mayweather and Pacquiao updates .
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A young athlete who dreamed of playing college basketball will get her chance to start in her first game - even though she has an inoperable brain tumor and just weeks to live. Lauren Hill, 19, of Lawrenceburg, Indiana, was a standout high school player who committed to playing at Mount St. Joseph’s University, also in Indiana, in October of last year. Then, last November, she found out she had an inoperable brain tumor. Scroll down for video . Hoop dreams: Lauren Hill (center in uniform) has an inoperable brain tumor and just weeks to live, but will get to play her first college basketball game at Mount St. Joseph's on November 1 . Inspiration: The teenager, who was a high school standout (left) and prom queen (right) has stayed positive despite her diagnosis . While doctors at first gave the teenager two years to live, a recent MRI showed that her tumor had grown, and she now just has weeks left. Not that even that was enough to stop Hill, who has Diffused Intrinsic Pentene Gleoma, a cancer with roots at the base of her brain stem with growing tentacles weaving through her nerves. 'I never gave up for a second even when I got a terminal diagnosis; never thought about sitting back and not living life anymore,' she told Local 12. And now she will be getting to fulfill her dream of playing college ball, thanks to some help from her school and the NCAA. During her surprise birthday party on October 1, exactly one year from the date she signed to play at Mt. Saint Joseph's, Hill learned that the school contacted the NCAA who agreed to move up their opening game against Hiram College from November 15 to November 1 so she can take the court. It will be her first, and last, time playing college basketball. Hope: Instead of being scared of death, Hill (above with mother Lisa) says she is just excited about getting to play basketball for her team just once . Mount Saint Joe's basketball coach, Dan Benjamin, said, 'She's a special person. This girl is so strong, she's dealing with death and all she's thinking about is everyone else. Her team first her family first, and just to give her that one last wish would be incredible for our program and our players.' As for Hill, those few weeks she has left won't be filled with fear or tears it seems, but rather excitement and hope. Said the teenager, 'I love the roar of the crowd, the squeaking of the shoes. I can't wait to be on this court and wearing #22.'
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Lauren Hill, a college freshman at Mount St. Joseph's, will get to play her first college basketball game on November 1 .
Hill, 19, has just weeks to live as the result of an inoperable brain tumor she learned about last November .
The Lawrenceburg, Indiana, native is getting a chance to take the court after the NCAA agreed to allow her school to move up their home opener .
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By . Katy Winter . Missionary has given way to the cowgirl, meaning British men are now very kindly allowing their partners to do more of the graft . Tradition has it that the British man is no good in bed. Lazy, timid and unadventurous, his most daring sexual exploits are leaving the lights on and the occasional removal of his socks. However, a new survey commissioned exclusively for Esquire magazine’s 'Not Safe For Work' Issue reveals that the British man of today is a decidedly different creature: creative, confident – perhaps even cocky – and always up for a challenge. Esquire asked 500 men across the UK about their thoughts, habits and desires when it came to sex and the results are surprisingly reassuring. More than half of British men (56 per cent) think they’re good – or very good – in bed, with Londoners the most likely to say so (65 per cent). Those who dwell in the capital also masturbated most often. As far as sexual positions go, missionary has been overtaken on popularity by the cowgirl (31 per cent), meaning British men are now very kindly allowing their partners to do more of the graft. One in four British men have even tried bondage for the first time in the last 12 months, reports Esquire, suggesting it’s not only female Kindle owners who are surreptitiously flicking through 50 Shades of Grey. The British man is now also thinking outside the bedroom, with a bold 54 per cent of men having had sex in a public space, while almost of quarter of British men (23 per cent) admitted to Esquire that they’d received oral sex while driving, bringing a whole new meaning to the term hard shoulder. British men have shaken off their former badge of being lazy and unadventurous in bed . And before you consider crashing on a friend’s sofa after a heavy night, bear in mind that 38 per cent of men admitted that the last place they’d had sex other than their bed was on the living room sofa. British men are also very happy to self-service – more than one in five British men (21 per cent) masturbate at least once a day, while half of British men (50 per cent) watch porn at least once a week, the Esquire survey reveals. One in four British men watch it every day. Esquire Editor in Chief Alex Bilmes says, 'It’s great to see British men are no longer sad sacks in the sack, but are full of confidence, enthusiasm and a sense of sexual adventure. Presumably it’s all the invaluable advice they’ve been receiving from the pages of Esquire, available every month from all self-respecting newsagents.'
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Over one in five British men masturbate at least once a day .
One in four have even tried bondage for the first time in last 12 months .
Half have had sex in public and quarter have received oral sex driving .
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By . Alexandra Klausner . PUBLISHED: . 15:22 EST, 15 November 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 17:36 EST, 15 November 2013 . A 9-year-old boy was shot in the face on Friday morning during a drive by shooting past his Miami home. Miami Police were called to the 800 . block of Northwest 55th Terrace at around 3:30 am after the shooting, . reports the Miami Herald. Family members identified the boy as Dontrell Darling. Four other children between the ages of 4 and 11 and three adults were in the home at the time of the shooting, reported NBC. Dontrell Darling, 9, remained brave throughout the whole incidenta nd is being treated at Ryder Trauma Center . Dontrell's aunt, Shauntae, told reporters that Dontrell remained strong and brave throughout the entire event . 'Even though he had a serious injury in . the face, he is considered stable,' Miami Fire Rescue spokesman Ignatius . Carroll said at the scene. According to witness reports, a pale-colored SUV was spotted speeding away from the area after someone in the vehicle shot at the home. Miami police said that the house was hit several times. 'I heard about 30 rapid gunshots, they went bop, bop, bop, bop, real rapid, about 30 of them, said a neighbor to reporters. Gunshot holes remain outside the Miami home and Darling's family members are lucky to be unharmed . A car parked outside of the home was also badly damaged during the drive-by shooting . 'It's a sad situation when a child can't be a child, when at 3:00 in the morning a kid can't sleep comfortably in his bed," said Miami Police spokesman Delrish Moss, reports the Huffington Post. The victim's aunt, Shauntae, was present at the time and told NBC that the bullet went through two walls before hitting Dontrell Darling. 'The door was closed,' she said. 'It went through the door and through the wall and through the other side.' Dontrell Darling remained calm as he was transported to a local hospital where he is currently being treated . Even though the 9-year-old Darling suffered serious injuries, he remained calm throughout the whole thing. 'I don't know if he was doing it to help his mom, but he's a pretty tough kid," Shauntae said. 'Looking at his face, everything it was split open, but he stayed calm,' said Shuantae. The motive for the shooting is still unknown but police are looking for around four suspects seen driving past the scene. Neighbor Albert Doyle told reporters that shootings happen in the neighborhood all the time. 'Sadly to say, weekly,' said Albert Doyle. One neighbor said that sadly, shootings in the neighborhood happen once a week .
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The boy identified as Dontrell Darling is alive in stable condition .
The reason for the drive-by shooting is still unknown and police are looking for suspects .
According to a neighbor, shootings such as these happen 'weekly'
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(CNN) -- Doug Kirchoff doesn't think chance explains why a bottle full of messages washed up on the shore of Horn Island, Mississippi. Kirchoff, the supervisor of a crew doing cleanup after the BP oil spill, was astonished by the content of the four letters found inside the bottle last month. "What we found was it was about a soldier that lost his life in the Afghanistan war and his family had written him a series of letters kind of sharing their thoughts and emotions," Kirchoff said Thursday. In them, family members wrote letters to their beloved son and brother, Pvt. James Prosser, 21, a Welsh soldier who was killed in September 2009. "Each person when we unwound the letters, started opening one letter at a time and reading one letter at a time," Kirchoff said. "As we found out after about two letters the whole occasion turned real somber and we were kind of taken aback and were like, 'Wow! This is a little more than we anticipated at first.'" In January, Prosser's mother, Sarah Adams, her son, her daughter and the latter's boyfriend dropped the bottle in the Atlantic Ocean at Barbados, 1,300 miles from the Mississippi coast, Adams said. It was a bottle of sambuca, his favorite, she said, and each of them sipped sambuca themselves in Prosser's honor when the bottle was launched. Kirchoff said finding the bottle was like something out of a Hollywood movie. He and the cleanup crew managed to find the family through the internet and contacted them, according to news reports. They also signed a T-shirt and sent it to Adams, Kirchoff said. He sees a parallel between Prosser's death and the oil spill disaster. "It seems too good to be true. Both of us fighting different tragedies," Kirchoff said. "One in war and us fighting the battle with the oil spill. It just seems like it was just meant to be." "It does feel like ... our crew was destined to find this bottle." Prosser's mother agrees. She told CNN's Kyra Phillips on Friday: "I think the bottle took the journey it was meant to make. Somehow it was meant to turn up there, and with those guys." Sarah Adams said she and her family had all but forgotten about the bottle they dropped in the ocean when they were on vacation. She said it was more about honoring Prosser, not about someone finding the bottle. Adams related part of its contents: "I am and always will be so proud of you, James. Not only because you were a soldier, but more so because of the wonderful, honorable young man you were. ... Your gorgeous smile will stay with me always." She hopes that someday she will be able to see the place where the bottle washed ashore. In the meantime, she said, she is asking that the workers who found it seal it and keep it. CNN's Jonathan Wald and journalist Christopher Turner contributed to this report.
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Gulf oil cleanup crew finds four letters in a bottle .
The letters were written by relatives of a Welsh soldier slain in Afghanistan .
They put the bottle in the Atlantic Ocean at Barbados .
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A 36st chef who was bombarded with mocking texts about his size from a well-meaning friend has lost a massive 21st in a year - and finally found love. Jamie Brooks, 31, piled on the pounds from the age of 14, when he started a part-time job in a kitchen and began picking at food all day. His weight rapidly spiralled out of control and by his twenties he had ballooned to nearly 36st. Scroll down for video . Jamie's weight dropped from 35st 10lb (left) to 14st 4lb (right), and his waist size halved from 60in to 32in after being convinced to go on a diet by his best friend, who bombarded him with harsh, yet inspirational texts like 'You'll be dead by the time you're 40.' The head chef would cook food all day for pub customers and then gorge on fast food for his own meals because he couldn't face going back into the kitchen at home. To keep up his energy at work, Jamie guzzled sugary drinks from the bar and ate jumbo-sized packs of Galaxy minstrels in one sitting. He had to buy his giant size 7XL tops from a specialist supplier and became resigned to the fact that he would never find love. But with the help of some very harsh words from a well-meaning friend, Jamie started to turn his life around. Jamie's good friend Neil Williamson, 46, started to send him texts labelling him a 'fat f**k' every day for six weeks, which ended with finally deciding to go on a diet. In just 12 months, his weight dropped by almost two thirds, from 35st 10lbs to 14st 4lbs, and his waist size halved from 60in to 32in. Jamie piled on the pounds from age 14, when he started working in a kitchen and picking at food all day . Jamie would gorge on fast food for his own meals because he couldn't face going back into the kitchen at home . Around the same time he started the diet in January 2014, he became friendly Melanie Mulley, his neighbour in Crowcombe, Somerset. Jamie - who admits he was 'terrible' with girls - would go to her house during breaks from work at the Carew Arms in Crowcombe to have his diet milkshake. Confidence issues meant he never found the courage to tell her how he felt until New Year's Eve four weeks ago, after he had completed his astonishing weight loss. But unfortunately for Jamie, it looked like he had left it too late - Melanie, 36, was preparing to move back to West Wickham, Cambs, where she comes from. For a week and a half, she and Jamie had a week of uncertainty about their future - by January 11, she had already packed up her removal van and sent it off on the 200-mile journey to Cambridgeshire. It took his well-intentioned friend's constant reminder of the reality of his size (left, before he lost weight) to spur Jamie into starting his diet (right, pictured after his weight loss holding a pair of his old trousers) But as she was about to follow it, she suddenly decided she couldn't be apart from Jamie and instead moved in with him on the spot - exactly a year to the day after he started his diet. Jamie said: 'It was a confidence issue on my behalf. I had no luck with girls and didn't think she'd like me but my confidence changed when I lost weight. 'I don't know if she would have wanted to be with me when I was fatter but being more secure in myself definitely made me more attractive as a person.' Melanie, who has a three year-old daughter, said: 'His confidence grew as he lost weight and I was really proud of what he'd achieved. 'On New Year's Eve he told me I was beautiful inside and out. 'I really realised how much he meant to me when I was moving. 'We'd loaded the van up that morning and I was sitting in the house, getting the last bits ready to go. 'I just said to my friends, "I don't think I can go" and I said, "I've got to go and tell Jamie." 'I legged it over to the pub and that's when I said "I can't leave."' Most gratifying of all, Jamie has now found love with friend Melanie . Jamie started the Ideal Weight diet on January 11 last year after his friend Neil, a camper van salesman, saw an advert for it in his local GP surgery. He was also spurred on by the texts from Neil which told him: 'You'll be dead by the time you're 40'. Proud Jamie, who used to feel exhausted and lethargic but is now a bundle of energy, says he feels like a 'new man'. He added: 'I just got bigger and bigger as a child, I was never slim. 'I would combat the embarrassment by laughing it off and I'd just be the fat jolly one of the group. 'It took the full six weeks to motivate me to do something but I'm so glad I did. Neil has saved my life, I can't thank him enough. 'I never made plans for the future as I always thought I would be dead at a young age, but now I'm healthy and have an amazing girlfriend - I'm a new man.' Jamie on his way to losing the weight last summer . The one thing Jamie is frustrated by though, is that he has been rejected by the NHS to have excess skin removal surgery. He said: 'I've done the hard work off my own back and the surgery would be a lot cheaper than an gastric band. 'I see people with boob jobs on the NHS and I think it's unfair that I've been rejected. 'However I do understand there are people more in need and I'm just glad I'm healthy.' The Ideal Weight diet took him down to just 640 calories a day with his regular meals replaced with milkshakes, soups and bars. Jamie says the diet allowed his brain to 'switch off' from thinking about food. His one normal meal of the day now consists of a low-fat meat from a specialist local butcher with fresh green salads and vegetables.
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Jamie Brooks, 31, piled on the pounds while working as a pub chef .
But after a friend texted him daily to call him 'fat', he began to diet .
He then dropped from 35st 10lb to 14st 4lb in just twelve months .
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The younger generation is becoming more and more social media savy, some even starting to cash in on the 'selfie' craze. Sydney schoolgirl, Indy Clinton has got the attention of a number of Aussie companies, who are willing to pay the 17 year old big bucks to post on her Instagram account, which has gone global. With over 50,000 followers, the teenager sends out 'selfie' pics of her Palm Beach lifestyle, at the beach with friends, family, food and pictures with her dog, of course all looking very glamorous. Indy Clinton (pictured) has over 50,000 followers on her Instagram account which has attracted the attention of Aussie companies . The Sydney schoolgirl, Indy Clinton (pictured with a friend) post 'pics of her lifestyle at Palm Beach, with friends, food and of her dog . The 17 year old can be offered sometimes up to $750 for a post on her Instagram account which has gone global . Ms Clinton (pictured) started posting photos at the age of 15 and before she knew it her followers started to grow and grow . The Daily Telegraph says the Loreto Kirribilli HSC student can get up to $750 per Instagram post and has been asked to attend photo shoots and even become a charity ambassador. Ms Clinton started posting photos at the age of 15 and before she knew it, her followers started to grow and grow. 'I'm the youngest of five and I know lots of people, so it grew quickly,' she told the Daily Telegraph. It's then she started getting offers from clothing companies who wanted her to wear their products and then post that picture online. Indy Clinton (pictured) has got the attention of a number of Aussie companies who want to pay her to post on her Instagram account . The teenager says healthy, positive posts especially at the beach get a lot of hits . Being beautiful also helps the Sydney Schoolgirl with getting more followers which is now more than 50,000 . 'Dad suggest I charge for posts, so I started asking for $50 per post,' she said . 'Dad suggested I charge for posts, so I started asking for $50 per post,' she said. And eventually the teen reaped the benefits of her Instagram success where she started to charge hundreds of dollars for each posts, including pictures of her in Surf Dive N Ski's wetsuits. As for whether her social media success has come as a surprise to the beach loving schoolgirl, yes it has but she puts down her recent status to be the 'quintessential Aussie girl'. Indy Clinton, 17, says she's the quintessential Aussie girl . The 17 year old posts a lot of playful 'selfies' with friends . Indy Clinton (pictured) has grabbed the attention of Aussie companies who want to pay her to post on her Instagram account . Ms Clinton (pictured) started posting photos at the age of 15 and before she knew it her followers started to grow and grow . With over 50,000 followers, the teenager sends out 'selfie' pics and shots of her Palm Beach lifestyle . Her Instagram account where she posts pictures of her lifestyle at Palm Beach has gone global . The 17 year old has started to cash in from her 'selfies' Indy Clinton (pictured) is reaping the benefits of 'selfies' on Instagram .
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Schoolgirl, Indy Clinton, 17, is being offered up to $750 per post on her Instagram account .
She has more than 50,000 followers and her profile has gone global .
Ms Clinton posts 'selfie' pictures of her lifestyle at Palm Beach .
She describes herself as the quintessential Aussie girl .
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f62132b672a854087104e30a7d82b29a5ae051d7
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By . Chris Pleasance . PUBLISHED: . 07:58 EST, 13 October 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 09:27 EST, 13 October 2013 . Wine making is often though of as a fine and delicate art, but as these pictures show it requires a good amount of hard graft and a good head for heights. These workers on the Cruceiro Reixo and Cividade Cellar wine estates are harvesting Mencia grapes from precarious slopes near Monforte de Lemos in northwestern Spain. The only way up or down the dizzying canyons is on foot or riding in a tractor, and the grapes themselves are . transported in baskets suspended on wire down to the river below. These workers are on the Cruceiro Reixo plots harvesting Mencia grapes some of which will be used in the winemaker's Barrica Cruceiro Reixo red wine . The Romans were the first to grow grapes here 2,00 years ago as they marched across Europe, followed by monks . The dizzying slopes are so steep that they can only be accessed on foot by grape pickers who undertake the back-breaking work . Ramon Fernandez helps to harvest grapes on the slopes of land owned by his relative, Ramon Marcos Fernandez . On the banks of the Mino Hector de Leon carries a box of grapes at a Cruceiro Reixo's plot which produces red and white wine . They are then taken by boat back to the Adega Cruceiro Winery where they will be juiced and then fermented by Ramon Marcos Fernandez to make Cruceiro wines. The Mencia grapes are a red variety which produce the tradition wine of the region which has been making the alcoholic tipple for 2,000 years. The slopes were originally carved out by the Romans as they marched across Europe. Monks then took over and carved terraces of vines into the slopes of the rivers Sil, Miño and Bibei. These workers on the Cividade Cellar estate in Spain's Riberia Sacra region have to climb up and down the rocky slopes to reach the river which transports the grapes . As access to the slopes by vehicles is limited wine makers are forced to improvise, using makeshift pulley systems and boats to move their cargo . Jose Ramon (left), is the head winemaker for the Cividade cellar, and is pictured placing boxes of grapes inside a boat in the isolated region . Jose and his son Brais are just two producers in a region which now boasts tens of wineries producing thousands of bottles of wine a year . Jose Ramon (in red) drives a boat with his daughter, friends and boxes of grapes along the Sil River in the region of Amandi in Ribeira Sacra . However, in the 20th century a devastating plague of aphids killed off a lot of the plants before the Spanish civil war rocked the economy, leading to farmers deserting in droves. As a younger generation fled poverty on the slopes for a more prosperous life in the cities, nature moved in to reclaim the land which crumbled into disrepair. As recently as 2009 many of the terraces were abandoned, though producers had started moving back to the region, determined to make it a success once more. As fruit pickers continue their work on the stony banks, a boat speeds away taking grapes back to the Cividade winery for fermentation . The Cruceiro winery has won awards from both Spain and Italy since 1990 to recognise the quality of the wine it produces and its latest was given a distinction in 2011 . The banks around the river Mino need to have ladders fitted on to them so the labourers can climb up to where the grapes are growing . Once the grapes are back at the winery more workers sort through them on a conveyor belt to remove any spoiled or unripe ones before they are juiced . Jose Ramon pushes grapes down inside a barrel where they will sit while they ferment to make some of the region's most famous wines . Attracted by the indigenous grapes, the slate and granite soils and peculiar microclimates of the rivers and terraces, winemakers are now turning out some award-winning bottles. Dotting the old vineyards are lagares, crumbling stone structures that once provided shelter and a place to ferment grapes right in the vineyard. Every family would have a lagar, to which they would carry the grapes at harvest. Sometimes families would sleep there for the duration of harvest season and they are now being restored to use for storage and a place for vineyard workers to eat a meal away from the grueling heat of the sun. Because of the vallies and rivers of the region it has a unique micro-climate similar to Bordeaux, Champagne and Burgundy . In total 13 varieties of grape are grown in the region by more than 100 producers who call the breathtaking countryside home . Ramon Marcos Fernandez, the owner of the Adega Cruceiro wine estate enjoys the relative luxury of driving a tractor on the hills which are usually too steep for vehicles . The terraces have to be cut into the banks of the three rivers in the region because otherwise they would be impossible to work or plant on . Lagares are traditional stone huts built into the hills which are being restored to allow workers a place to relax from the heat or eat lunch with their fellow employees . The conditions found in Ribeira Sacra are similar to those found in some of the world's greatest wine regions such as Bordeaux, Champagne and Burgundy. So far this year 3,720 tonnes of Mencia grapes alone have been produced in the whole of the region, along with another 13 varieties being used to make both red and white wines. The term Ribeira Sacra means 'holy river bank' and harks back to a time when the hills were full of monks brewing wine, instead of the intrepid farmers of today. The hills are still littered with a multitude of medieval monasteries, churches and chapels which overlook the rivers or nestle in gentler terrain nearby.
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Two wine estates in Spain's Riberia Sacra region are carved into the steep hills .
The region has been producing wine for 2,000 years since the Romans first planted vines .
It was taken over by monks and the name Riberia Sacra means 'holy river bank'
It was nearly abandoned because of a plague of aphids which devastated crops .
Today intrepid producers are harvesting thousands of tonnes of grapes from the slopes .
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By . Hugo Duncan . With its white stucco-fronted facade and neatly-trimmed rows of box trees, it is certainly an address that’s easy on the eye. But the properties on Egerton Crescent, SW3, are most definitely not easy on the pocket. In fact the terrace in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea in London has just been named the most expensive street in Britain. Billionaires' row: Despite house values falling across the UK, values in London's most expensive area are at record highs. A report last showed that Egerton Crescent is the most expensive street in the UK with the average property costing over £8million . Distinguished company: Move to Egerton Crescent in Kensington and you'll count oil, shipping, fashion and banking execs among your new neighbours . The average price of a house there is more than £8million - with one four-bedroom family home recently selling for a massive £12million. That’s more than 74 times the price of the average home in the UK, which currently sells for just £160,879. A typical house on Egerton Crescent would cost £8,136,000 to buy, according to a report by Lloyds TSB. Apart from the cachet of living among the super-rich, residents can enjoy being just a stone’s throw away from the Victoria and Albert Museum and the shops of Knightsbridge. The most expensive home cost £12million. The tiny garden doesn't seem so bad when you think that Hyde Park is not too far away . Sightseeing: Tourists sometimes drop by Egerton Crescent simply to see the opulence on display . Value: In 1998, a house in Egerton Crescent could be bought for £430,000 . Period: No garish strip lights here, just charming olde worlde street lamps . Decent-sized gardens are a luxury Egerton Crescent home-owners can’t enjoy though. Fortunately, if they want to sample the great outdoors, there is a communal garden and Hyde Park is not far away. The prices on the road have rocketed over the past decade – one five-bedroom house sold for just £430,000 in 1998, before making £5,130,000 in 2006 and £10,500,000 in 2011. According to the Lloyds TSB report, the most expensive streets outside the capital are in Surrey, Hertfordshire and Kent where average prices top £3million. Exclusive: The private garden in front of Egerton Crescent in Kensington which has become the most sought after area in London . Family time outdoors: Although the kids won't be allowed to kick a ball around - it's prohibited . The North West is home to the most expensive streets outside southern England – with areas south of Manchester, favoured by Premiership footballers, among the most sought-after. The report, coming at a time of hardship for millions of families, underlines the extent of the extraordinary wealth gap in Britain. Nitesh Patel, an economist at Lloyds TSB, said: ‘Kensington and Chelsea has some of the most expensive streets in England and Wales. The Royal Borough has been a highly fashionable area to live in for many decades. A home in Parkside in Wimbledon, London (left) will set you back at least £5.1million and one in Woodlands Road West in Virginia Water, Surrey, will burn a £3.2million hole in your pocket . Premiership row: A home in Macclesfield Road in Alderley Edge, Cheshire, costs £1.3million . ‘In recent years, its prime location in central London and classical architecture has attracted affluent celebrities and ultra-wealthy foreign businessmen, helping to drive up property prices.’ The 20 most expensive streets in the country are all in London, according to the report. The nation’s second most valuable address is Parkside in Merton, close to the All England Club in SW19 which hosts the Wimbledon tennis championships. The average home there is worth £5,161,000. Away from London, the most expensive street is Woodlands Road West in Virginia Water, Surrey, where the typical home costs £3,201,000. There are also a number of exclusive addresses in the North, including Park Lane in Trafford, Greater Manchester, where the average house is worth £2,109,000. Eight of the ten most expensive streets in the North West are in areas south of Manchester such as Macclesfield Road in Alderley Edge, Cheshire, where a typical house costs £1,290,000. Egerton Crescent, Chelsea - £8.13million . Parkside, Wimbledon - £5.16million . Campden Hill Square, Kensington - £4.86million . Blenheim Crescent, Notting Hill- £4.72million . Landsdowne Road, Kensington - £4.69million . Home Park Road, Merton - £4.68million . Drayton Gardens, Kensington - £4.43million . Eaton Square, Westminster - £4.39million . Lancaster Gate, Hyde Park - £4.37million . Duchess of Bedfords Walk - £4.22million . Despite the depressed prices in the rest of the country, the property market in the smartest areas of London shows no sign of slowing down. Estate agents Knight Frank reckon that ‘prime’ central London property prices have soared 50 per cent since the depths of the recession in March 2009. The main buyers have included the super-rich from Russia, India, France and Italy. The average house price in Britain peaked at nearly £200,000 in August 2007 before the boom turned to bust. They plunged to £155,000 in 2009 as the financial crisis raged. It may be the most expensive street in Britain, but it’s not home to many Britons. Residents of Egerton Crescent include a former Italian motorbike racer, the general manager of a Syrian bank and a Middle Eastern oil trader. Other neighbours include the former managing director of a Dutch bank, a Scandinavian shipping family and the Italian president of the Valentino fashion house. These are the fortunate few who can afford to live in Britain’s most expensive street – where the average cost of a terrace is £8million. Fancy a spot of shopping?: The world-famous Harrods department store is just around the corner . Situated a short walk away from the . Victoria and Albert Museum on Exhibition Row and Harrods in . Knightsbridge, it is a street of opulence and grandeur, where the . shameless display of wealth is everywhere. One house, with four bedrooms and three bathrooms, sold for a cool £12million in April. The moon-shaped terrace is lined with grade II-listed buildings and luxury cars while the tiny front gardens are meticulously maintained. Dating back to the 1840s, the Regency-style buildings house collections of antique furniture and enormous paintings. Oliver Zapata, 47, a Filipino driver for a Swiss businessman who lives in the road, said: ‘A lot of tourists come to the area just to look at this road. Art lovers with a spare £8million will be glad to know the Victoria and Albert Museum is just around the corner in Exhibition Row . ‘The Crescent is really unique because of its shape and the beauty of the buildings. They really are very pretty. ‘The houses are very opulent inside. Everyone who lives down here is filthy rich. A lot of them have antique furniture inside and the back gardens are a good size for this area. 'I guess the people down here like it because it’s a quiet road but it’s still in a central area.’ Egerton Crescent was named after the Honourable Lord Francis Egerton, son of the first Earl of Ellesmere. In the centre of the Crescent, a private residents’ garden sits with a heavily-bolted gate and signs warning the public to stay away. Each of the five-storey houses are painted immaculately white, with clipped trees on their balconies and orchids in their window boxes. And in the place of the usual garish orange street lights are charming old-fashioned lanterns lining the street. Many of the five-storey houses are managed by caretakers, with the occupants only staying for part of the year when they are in town on business. Not surprisingly, very few answer their doors, and most homes are protected by an intercom accompanied by one – or several – cameras. And not content with the size of their homes, many are extending them even further – with one basement conversion currently in progress and two conservatories already completed.
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The house in Chelsea, London, is more than 74 times the price of the average UK home .
Prices in the centre of London, driven by foreign investors, have soared in last decade .
20 most expensive streets in the country are all in London, according to report .
Central London prices still rise as rest of UK property market falters .
Most expensive streets outside capital are in Surrey, Hertfordshire and Kent .
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By . Martin Jay In Beirut . PUBLISHED: . 10:52 EST, 18 April 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 11:34 EST, 18 April 2013 . An Egyptian woman has been ordered to pay her former husband £5240 in compensation after he discovered she had lied to him about her virginity. The man accused his wife of deceiving him into believing she had never been married before - and therefore a virgin - and of having surgery to fake her virginity, during a bitter divorce battle which went to the court of appeal in Abu Dhabi. The court upheld a previous ruling that found she had deceived her husband and increased the compensation she must now pay for the emotional damage she caused him. Accused: An Egyptian bride has been ordered to pay more than £5,000 compensation to her husband after he accused her of lying about being a virgin before they married (file picture) The money is also meant to help him overcome the stigma of what is considered in some parts of Arab society to be an embarrassing ordeal for him and his family. The case centred around the original marriage contract made by the couple where the Egyptian bride, the court heard, allegedly faked a number of key points about her background. The court established the woman had been married earlier and had divorced her first husband. It also acknowledged that she had made false statements 'with the help of her father, in the couple’s marriage contract - stating that she had never been married or had sex,' according to press reports. The demise of the couple’s marriage came about following a spiteful sms message sent to the current husband, the court heard. Court records show that after three years of marriage, and the birth of a child, her current husband received an anonymous text message informing him that his wife had been married in the past. Tradition: Divorce is still frowned upon by some parts of Arab society and is seen as an embarrassment for those involved and their families . The text message was later followed up by a copy of the woman’s divorce document which was also sent to the husband as proof, prompting the man to file for divorce against his Egyptian wife for lying to him. He claimed compensation from her for the emotional damage he suffered, claiming that he was 'suffering from depression and had lost trust in the people around him as a result of her deception.' The husband also accused his wife of undergoing surgery to make it seem as though she was a virgin – a simple operation which is becoming increasingly common in some Arab countries. This is far from the first bizarre divorce case in the United Arab Emirates. In July of last year a Dubai court reportedly awarded an Emirati woman about £16,000 in a shocking divorce settlement, after she claimed her husband was 'obsessed' with internet pornography. It was also heard in court that their wedding was doomed from the beginning when the bridegroom allegedly admitted on their honeymoon to having sexually transmitted diseases which were currently being medically treated.
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He accused her of lying to him about her virginity before marriage .
Alleged she had operation to make it look like she was still a virgin .
Court in Abu Dhabi ordered her to compensate him for 'emotional damage'
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By . Helen Lawson . PUBLISHED: . 08:17 EST, 14 March 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 16:48 EST, 14 March 2013 . MSNBC host Ed Schultz has announced he is leaving his weeknight 8pm slot to move to weekends from next month. The talkshow host revealed the move to a 5-7pm weekend slot at the end of his show last night, just after his exclusive interview with Scott Prouty, who secretly filmed Mitt Romney's '47 per cent' video during the election campaign. Schultz, who will present his final 8pm show tonight, told viewers that he had 'a big personal and professional announcement' to make and that the decision to change slots was his. Past and future: Ed Schultz (left) told viewers he 'raised his hand' for the weekend move and now his coveted 8pm time slot is being taken by fellow MSNBC host Chris Hayes (right) But the move comes only months after the New York Times reported that network bosses were planning to replace him with Washington Post columnist Ezra Klein. At the time, Schultz described the report as 'media garbage' and he ended up being correct. On Thursday it was revealed that Schultz will be replaced by Chris Hayes, a 34-year-old presenter who has had his own show on the cable channel's weekend morning schedule since September 2011 called 'Up with Chris Hayes'. Haeys confirmed the report by tweeting: . Last night, Schultz, who has presented the Ed Show in various slots since 2009, told viewers: 'I want you to know that I raised my hand for this assignment for a number of personal and professional reasons. Exclusive: The big announcement about the time swap came after Schultz interviewed Scott Prouty who filmed the infamous 47 percent video of Mitt Romney . Confirmed: Chris Hayes tweeted about the switch on Thursday . 'My fight on The Ed Show has been for the workers and the middle class in this country. 'This new time slot will give me the opportunity to produce and focus on stories that I care about and are important to American families and American workers.' Schultz, who was the second most-watched host on the network at the time of the last ratings, said he would have more time to report from around the country. 'Sitting behind this desk five nights a week just doesn't cut it for me,' he said. 'I want to get out with the people, like I did in Wisconsin. 'I want to get out and tell their stories all over the country. 'This show has been a voice for the voiceless. That really was my mission when I came here and it remains.' The host said he planned to stay with MSNBC for a long time and vowed to carry on with his radio show 'until the good lord takes me'. Schultz has presented The Ed Show on the network since 2009 . As Schultz handed over to 9pm host Rachel Maddow, she told him: 'Knowing that you're going to be putting the flag on the weekends in the way that you are makes me really happy for NBC that we've got you for the long haul.' The move comes just months after Washington Post columnist Ezra Klein was tipped to be taking over the 8pm slot, which Schultz dismissed at the time as 'media garbage' MSNBC president Phil Griffin said he was 'thrilled for Ed and happy to be expanding our weekend programming.' 'It’s an exciting time for MSNBC, and I’m looking forward to having Ed’s powerful voice on our network for a long time.' Schultz is a long-established political commentator, who shifted his views from far right to left of center in the late Nineties. He became a Democrat in 2000 and . his views are now described as 'pro-union,' a large portion of his . radio show is devoted to the 'plight of working Americans.' Schultz . was moved to the 8pm Eastern slot in . October 2011 after stints broadcasting at 10pm and 6pm since joining MSNBC in 2009. Prior to that move, Schultz had been suspended for a week . for calling conservative commentator Laura Ingraham a 'right-wing slut' and a 'talk slut.' In 2010, he threatened to 'torch' the MSNBC building after he felt he wasn’t getting enough promotion. MSNBC . has undergone a highly successful metamorphosis in recent years, which . have seen it emerge as the nation’s liberal TV network of choice, its ratings overtaking CNN. Visit NBCNews.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy .
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Will be replaced by fellow MSNBC host Chris Hayes .
Schultz says move gives him more time to 'tell stories' from around the US .
Host presents final 8pm show tonight and moves to weekends next month .
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(CNN) -- An armed group in strife-torn eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo has kidnapped eight international Red Cross staffers -- seven Congolese and a Swiss delegate -- the aid group said Tuesday. The eight International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) personnel, who had just completed an assessment of displaced people in the Fizi area, have been held since April 9 by Mai Mai Yakutumba, a militia operating in South Kivu province. "We demand that the group holding our personnel release them as quickly as possible," said Franz Rauchenstein, head of the ICRC delegation in the Congo. "We are in contact with our colleagues, and their families have been briefed on the situation." Violent ethnic clashes in the South Kivu, related to the 1994 genocide in neighboring Rwanda, have forced thousands of civilians from their homes in recent months, the ICRC said. "It is in order to protect and assist armed-conflict victims that we have been carrying out our activities in the area," Rauchenstein said. "We continue to insist that the strictly neutral, impartial and humanitarian nature of our work be recognized, and that our colleagues be able to return to their loved ones soon."
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Armed group in Democratic Republic of Congo kidnaps 8 Red Cross staffers .
Aid group says seven Congolese and Swiss delegate among group being held .
Ethnic clashes in South Kivu, related to '94 Rwanda genocide, have displaced civilians .
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By . Kerry Mcqueeney . Door trouble: James Allan's getaway was thwarted when he had trouble distinguishing the difference between push and pull . In the cut and thrust of armed robbery, negotiating a door is likely to be the least of your problems. However, it was a door that led to the undoing of criminal James Allan when he had trouble working out which way it opened. In a scene which could have come straight from the film Snatch, the robber's getaway was thwarted when he failed to distinguish the difference between the door's 'push' and 'pull' mechanism. Described by his own lawyer as 'bumbling and incompetent', Allan spent some time grappling with the complex device before losing his cool. Out of frustration, the 28-year-old took off his balaclava - only to reveal his face to the store's CCTV camera. Allan then kicked a panel near the door, smashing it in two, and knocked over a display before falling to the ground. He then demanded shop manager Amanda Croke let him out. The embarrassing blunder mirrors a scene from the 2000 crime film Snatch, where two robbers make a disastrous attempt at raiding a bookies. As they try to make their escape by pushing a door that won't open, they both collapse, exhausted, on the floor and take off their balaclavas in full view of the CCTV camera. However, the door then opens inwardly into the shop, pushed by a customer on the other side. Allan was jailed for three years at Oxford Crown Court for the raid on the Martin McColl newsagents, in Abingdon, Oxfordshire on March 2. Allan, of no fixed abode, ran off with just £134.98 after holding the shop up with a toy gun and ordering the till to be emptied. He admitted robbing Ms Croke and . possession of an imitation firearm, being jailed for three years for the . robbery and two years for possession of an imitation firearm, to run . concurrently. On screen stupidity: A scene from Snatch where robbers try to escape by pushing a door that opens inwards . Busted: The exhausted pair take off their masks... and realise the game is up when a CCTV camera captures their faces . A customer of the betting shop opens the door from the other side... simply by pushing it . After Ms Croke had to open the door for him, Allan ran off and was found by police in . the same road three hours later with the balaclava in his pocket and having thrown the weapon in a nearby . bin. Nikki . Duncan, prosecuting, told the court: 'When he was put in the back of . the police car he immediately started to cry, told police he needed to . pay the rent, and said: "I’m sorry, it’s not fair on them - are they . alright?".' The court heard that Allan, who had no previous convictions, had developed a Class A drug addiction . three years previously which had left him in debt to drug dealers who . had suggested the robbery. David Rhodes, defending, said his client acted in desperation. He added: 'It was totally unsophisticated, it was bumbling and incompetent. His actions after the robbery demonstrated Mr Allan is pathetic rather . than callous. 'You were only supposed to blow the bl**dy doors off!' The classic scene from the 1969 Michael Caine film The Italian Job . Complex: Allan tried to push the door open, despite it displaying a sign reading 'pull' Jailed: Allan was sentenced after pleading guilty to his crime at Oxford Crown Court (pictured) 'He hit rock bottom, he was sleeping on sofas in crack houses. The . drug dealers threatened him with something metal to his neck and . suggested one way to pay it back would be to rob a shop and they gave . him this imitation plastic toy gun.' Allan had also stolen four cheques from his father, John Allan, two of which he made out to himself in cash, stealing £1,600. He asked for the offence to be taken into account. Sentencing Allan, Judge Gordon Risius said the defendant had expressed genuine remorse. He . said: 'I accept you would not have acted as you did if you and your . family had not been threatened with violence, but it makes no sense . trying to get yourself out of trouble by doing something criminal . yourself.'
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James Allan was seen grappling with a door that opened inwards .
He took off his balaclava and asked the shop manager to let him out .
Crime mirrors a scene from the film Snatch depicting a disastrous robbery .
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Teachers on a school trip to Spain repeatedly got drunk and fought in front of the children, it has been claimed. Scared pupils from Stanley Park High sent frantic text messages to their parents complaining that staff were out of control. Four teachers are alleged to have had regular drunken nights out in Lloret de Mar – one suffering a black eye in a foul-mouthed scrap with a colleague. Teachers from Stanley Park High School (above) in Carshalton allegedly became involved in a drunken brawl wihle they were supposed to be looking after children on a trip to Spain . Another staff member has been accused . of abandoning a sick child, leaving her without medication, to go out . drinking in the resort. Seventy-five . boys and girls aged between 12 and 16 had paid £700 each to take part . in seven-day sports tour, playing a series of football and netball . matches on the Costa Brava during half term last month. The . pupils – from Carshalton in south London – visited the PortAventura . theme park and Barcelona FC’s home ground. News of the teachers’ late-night antics in the resort, known for excessive drinking and bad . behaviour, reached school authorities only after the party arrived home. Now parents have demanded that the school dismiss the teachers alleged to have been involved in the bad behaviour. Claims: At least one teacher reportedly got injured in the fracas on the sports tour to Barcelona (pictured) One, . who asked not to be named, said last night: ‘My child sent me a text . message saying how scared she was to go to sleep because there were . drunk teachers fighting. ‘She . said they were all teachers and were calling each other very rude . words. They hit each other and the students were very scared. One . teacher came away with a black eye. ‘There . was another girl who wasn’t very well on the trip and they couldn’t . find the teacher who had their medication because they had gone . drinking! ‘They should not . be going out and getting drunk when they have 75 children in their care. As for the fighting, you think they would know better.’ Staff . at the Samba Hotel in Lloret de Mar confirmed the teachers had been . badly behaved. One worker told the Daily Mail: ‘The night staff know all . about the goings-on.’ Another . parent said: ‘This has come at a bad time for staff relations at the . school. Teachers took part in the NUT strike recently and that caused a . bit of friction with the head.’ The trip is believed to have been led by . seven members of staff from the school’s performance department, which . specialises in drama, dance, media, music and physical education. Allegations of bad and inappropriate behaviour have been levelled at four of the seven. The head of the department, Paul Stapleton, has declined to comment. Mel . Kermally, business manager at Stanley Park High, said: ‘The school has . taken all matters very seriously and we have been conducting a thorough . and detailed investigation upon the return trip into the allegations . made.’ The school last night refused to confirm whether any members of staff had been suspended or sacked. A state-funded mixed-sex comprehensive, Stanley Park has 1,093 pupils aged 11 to 19. A . damning Ofsted inspection last year found the school ‘requires . improvement’, mainly because pupils had achieved lower than average GCSE . grades year after year. Inspectors highlighted concerns about teachers’ abilities, criticising marking and lesson planning. The report concluded: ‘The progress made by students in English and mathematics in 2011 and 2012 was not good enough.’
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'At least one teacher injured in fracas on sports tour to Barcelona'
Pupils claimed they couldn't get to sleep because of the fighting .
Parent: 'My child sent me a text message saying how scared she was'
Investigation launched after parents demand the teachers are sacked .
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By . Ted Thornhill . Last updated at 3:38 PM on 9th February 2012 . Controversial manufacturing behemoth Foxconn has apparently been hacked by a group calling itself Swagg Security, which says it made public passwords and staff log-in credentials that could be used to make fraudulent orders. The shadowy organisation posted a message to Pastebin last night claiming they’d broken through its security measures for ‘the hilarity that ensues when compromising and destroying an infrastructure’. Foxconn is the biggest exporter in China and makes Apple’s iPod and iPad products. However, it has courted bad press recently over the conditions allegedly endured by its workers, some of whom are reported to have attempted committed suicide as a result. Hard grafters: Workers inside a factory of Foxconn, which has reportedly been hacked by Swagg Security. A New York Times investigation looked at the working . conditions . The New York Times claims that in 2009 a Foxconn employee fell or jumped from an apartment building after losing an iPhone prototype. Over the next two years, at least 18 other Foxconn workers were linked to attempted suicides. Critics point to photographs of one factory that has huge nets on its outside walls that appear to be have been erected to prevent workers jumping to their deaths. Swagg Security managed to steal Foxconn staff email log-ins and intranet credentials and posted them online, explaining that they could be used to place fraudulent orders. However, the group states that it didn’t carry out the attack to make a protest at worker conditions. Unpleasant sight: Nets to prevent workers from jumping to their deaths are pictured outside one of the Foxconn factory buildings in the township of Longhua, in southern Guangdong province . It said: ‘Although we are considerably disappointed of the conditions of Foxconn, we are not hacking a corporation for such a reason. ‘We enjoy exposing governments and corporations, but the more prominent reason, is the hilarity that ensues when compromising and destroying an infrastructure. ‘The act of destruction that does not affect an individual, brings a sense of newfound content, a unique feeling, along with a new chance to start your own venture. ‘This is Swagg Security, we aim to to reshape your perspectives.’ It added: ‘The passwords inside these files could allow individuals to make fraudulent orders under big companies like Microsoft, Apple, IBM, Intel, and Dell. Be careful.’ The Register reported that Foxconn’s Twitter feed acknowledged the hack, explaining that an ‘outdated vulnerability’ in a version of Internet Explorer was exploited.
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Passwords and log-in credentials posted online could be used to make fraudulent orders, says Swagg Security, who claim responsibility .
Several Foxconn workers are linked to suicide attempts .
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Jerusalem (CNN) -- "Lift the siege." "Stop the rockets." The dialogue of the deaf continues after nearly three weeks of conflict and well over 700 deaths. Hamas has rejected one Egyptian proposal to silence the guns. It wants assurances that any deal includes an end to the blockade that has wrecked Gaza's economy and impoverished its people. No, says Israel: stop firing rockets and then we'll talk about it. Hamas is a resilient organization. Fighters of its military wing have put up stiff resistance to the Israeli ground incursion. But it has few friends in the Arab world, and the Arab street has not risen in solidarity. And this time, Israeli leaders are publicly and persistently demanding what they call the 'demilitarization' of Gaza as the price for peace - so that Israel is spared another barrage of rockets like those that fell on its soil in 2008 and 2012 - and are again now. To that end Israel wants to ensure that Hamas can acquire neither the raw materials it needs to make thousands more rockets nor get its hands on more advanced missiles. It is also determined to eradicate the maze of tunnels that Hamas uses to support its infrastructure and infiltrate the border. Israeli military officers say they believe most if not all the tunnels have been identified -- more than 60 access shafts leading to some 31 tunnels as of Thursday. In other words the Israeli aim is a lasting change in the landscape. The U.S. and European Union have warmed to the idea. "One of the results, one would hope, of a cease-fire would be some form of demilitarization, so that again, this doesn't continue," said U.S. Deputy National Security Advisor Tony Blinken. So how do you define 'demilitarization?' What sort of weapons does it include? Who guarantees and polices it? Is it even conceivable Hamas would give up in negotiation an arsenal it has spent years building up? Khaled Mashal -- leader of Hamas political wing -- insisted Tuesday: "Nobody can break the will of the resistance and no one can get rid of its weapons. Only two conditions can get rid of the weapons of the resistance -- firstly the ending of the occupation and second the demilitarization of Israel." Obviously impossible demands, but Nathan Thrall, senior analyst with the Middle East Program of the International Crisis Group, says "there's no way Hamas will ever accept demilitarization in exchange for changes in Gaza." Is there a halfway house which would provide Israel with sufficient security guarantees? Nothing yet on the horizon. The trouble for Hamas is that its main ally, Egypt's former President Mohamed Morsy, is now in jail. And the man who ousted him, President Abdel Fattah al Sisi, has moved to isolate Hamas, economically and militarily, by closing the smuggling tunnels into Gaza. Crudely put, he shares Israel's view that Hamas is ruining the neighborhood. So Egypt is in the driving seat, as U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry has recognized by making Cairo the first port of call in his latest shuttle. His 'phone-bashing' has been intense -- bringing in Israel, the Palestinians, Qatar, France, the Turkish Foreign Minister and more. But one of his predecessors, Madeleine Albright, told CNN that one problem was working out "who has any influence over Hamas in order to get them to accept a cease-fire." For Hamas any deal must include what it calls the "lifting of the siege" -- the blockade of Gaza that has turned it into an open prison for the last eight years. "We will not accept any proposal that does not lift the blockade," said Mashal. A truce in Gaza perhaps, but he would not agree to a lasting cease-fire unless blockade terms had been negotiated. At issue then, how can each side get enough to wave in front of their people as victory? And what's the sequence: truce, then negotiations, and only then a full cease-fire? The whispers and hints suggest so. Hamas is wary of being trapped like it was in 2012, when a truce was agreed but longer-term issues never resolved. Hamas is aware that above all the people of Gaza are gasping for the chance to breathe a more normal life. "We would rather be dead than live this life." CNN correspondents in Gaza have heard that and similar refrains time and again. The detailed terms of any opening of Gaza will probably not be agreed as part of an initial truce. There are too many questions. Who monitors the border crossing with Egypt at Rafah? The U.N.? The Egyptian military? Israeli officials seem ready at least to consider a force from the Palestinian Authority, says Nathan Thrall of the ICG. And he believes that Israel "may be moving -- albeit grudgingly -- towards accepting a reconciliation government among the Palestinians that allows Abbas' Palestinian Authority to regain a foothold in Gaza," not least because Egypt will only talk to Abbas. What sort of goods would be allowed in from Israel into Gaza via the Kerem Shalom crossing, which handles freight? Israel complains that most of the cement smuggled into Gaza in recent years from Egypt (and some allowed in from Israel) has been used for Hamas tunnels -- not houses. What about the port of Gaza? There are other issues -- including the release of Hamas supporters arrested in the West Bank since the abduction and murder of three Israeli teenagers last month and the ability of farmers to tend land along the fringes of Gaza. Fishing rights of Palestinians in Gaza would also likely be discussed. Some in the Israeli Defense Forces have expressed surprise at the scale and intensity of the resistance they have met and the extent of the tunnel network, dubbed by one Israeli official as "Lower Gaza." Rather than prod the Israeli government towards a cease-fire, the resistance may make it more determined to degrade Hamas' capabilities for a while longer. Sisi has no problem with that. But a deeper invasion into Gaza is fraught with peril, says Nathan Thrall. The Israelis, he notes, are just one kilometer inside Gaza and taking much heavier casualties than they did in 2008-09. Hamas is not without friends altogether. The wealthy emirate of Qatar is close to the Muslim Brotherhood, from which Hamas sprang, and has embarked on a diplomatic drive with Turkey to bring peace and reconstruction to Gaza. But Turkey's Prime Minister, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, has made incendiary comparisons between Israel's conduct in Gaza and Hitler -- and described the incursion as "systematic genocide," ruling himself out of any role as the region's 'honest broker.' And Israeli ministers see Qatar as complicit in bankrolling Hamas. One long-term proposal that was floated before the latest conflict involves the international community demilitarizing Gaza in return for massive investment -- 50 billion dollars -- in the territory. It comes from a former Israeli Defense Minister, Shaul Mofaz. "People say demilitarization is unrealistic, but the alternatives of going through this again in a year or two or capturing Gaza are unacceptable," Mofaz told the Jerusalem Post. [Palestinian President Mahmoud] "Abbas would be in a better position if he came into Gaza with $50 billion than if he was brought in on an IDF tank," Mofaz said. He's looking to Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates to lead that process. Few believe the Palestinian Authority has the resources to administer such a Marshall Plan. Such an ambitious vision seems far away right now, almost impossible, some say. American officials say they are focused on the next days, not weeks nor months nor years. "Right now our focus is on stopping the rocket fire so that we can begin a serious negotiation on the key issues. What we're trying to figure out is how do we get to a point where the violence can stop and these bigger, key issues can be addressed over the long term," said a senior U.S. official. Writing in Foreign Policy, Aaron David Miller is deeply pessimistic about the long term. "When it comes to Gaza," he says, "don't dream about demilitarization or economic miracles. In fact, forget the endgame. Right now, summoning the urgency, the right mediator, and a deal to stop the killing will be hard enough." But that's what the people of Gaza most desperately need -- before they can even dream of greater freedoms.
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The Gaza conflict has lasted almost three weeks with over 700 deaths .
Israeli leaders are demanding the 'demilitarization' of Gaza .
Khaled Mashal -- leader of Hamas political wing -- is against this .
Is there a halfway house providing Israel with security guarantees?
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(CNN) -- Police have released more than 60 soccer fans detained Saturday in downtown Moscow riots that injured 29 people, an interior department spokesman said Sunday, according to state-run media. Hundreds of soccer fans clashed with Moscow police as an unsanctioned nationalist-tinged mass memorial for a fellow supporter turned violent, according to state media. The confrontations took place in Manezh Square, outside the Kremlin, and led to the arrests of 65 Spartak Moscow fans for "disobedience," Moscow police spokesman Viktor Biryukov said, according to official Russian news agency Itar-Tass. An undetermined number of people -- including several police -- were hurt in the clashes, news agencies reported. Russian football has been in the spotlight since the country was named as the host of the 2018 World Cup finals earlier this month. The head of the Spartak Moscow fan club told the semi-official news agency RIA Novosti that the showdown had nothing to do with sports but instead was rooted in problems in Russian society. Nationalist group members stirred the clashes, Russian Football Union president Sergei Fursenko told the news agency. Some 5,000 fans of the Moscow soccer club had gathered to remember a fellow fan, Yegor Sviridov, who was killed December 6 in northern Moscow by several men from Russia's Caucasus region. Police blocked their rally, but fans then started a fight with men from Caucasus, reported Itar-Tass. Hundreds of fans chanted nationalist slogans, with some throwing flares and smoke pellets at police. Video on the independent Russia 24 network showed helmeted police officers clubbing protesters and dragging them away. Anti-riot police used batons to try to break up the gathering and help facilitate traffic through the area, according to Itar-Tass. Some fights broke out, and several police officers were injured. Moscow police chief Vladimir Kolokoltsev used a megaphone to urge the crowd to disperse, saying, "You have let (your) steam out. Now you'd better go home," reported Itar-Tass. Kolokoltsev later credited Interior Ministry official Yuri Demidov for giving "exhaustive answers" to fans' questions and calming them down. Still, according to Itar-Tass, about 300 supporters "crushed everything" on their way from the square to the subway, breaking lights on escalators and smashing windows on a train. Kolokoltsev said that he was confident that all those involved in the December 6 confrontation in northern Moscow would be arrested. Itar-Tass reported Friday that two of those suspects had already been detained.
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A confrontation occurs at an unsanctioned mass memorial for a slain soccer fan .
About 5,000 Spartak Moscow supporters clashed with police near the Kremlin .
Report: More than 60 fans who were detained are released .
The head of the team's fan club says the incident has nothing to do with soccer .
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By . Jonny Singer for MailOnline . Follow @@Jonny_Singer . A debut goal from Ipswich loanee Frank Nouble gave Coventry the perfect start to life back at the Ricoh Arena. The Sky Blues were playing their first game at their home stadium since April 2013, following a dispute between the stadium's operators Arena Coventry Limited and the club owners Sisu. The Sky Blues were playing their first game at their home stadium since April 2013, following a dispute between the stadium's operators Arena Coventry Limited and the club owners Sisu. The club have been playing 35 miles away in Northampton, prompting fans to boycott 'home' games, but they flocked back to the stadium as the first team football returned to Coventry. Decisive: Frank Nouble scored after nine and a half minutes on debut to celebrate Coventry's Ricoh return . The first of many: Nouble celebrates his side-footed strike as the loanee made the perfect debut impact . No place like home: Sky Blues fans were delighted to be back playing games in their home city . Coventry: Allsop, Willis, Webster, Johnson, O'Brien, Clarke, Fleck, Thomas, Thomas, Haynes, Tudgay, Tudgay, Nouble, Nouble. Subs: Hines, Burge, Pugh, McQuoid, Coulibaly, Phillips, Finch. Gillingham: Bywater, Davies, Davies, Egan, Hause, Martin, McGlashan, McGlashan, Hessenthaler, Dack, Aaron Morris, Dickenson, Dickenson, McDonald. Subs: Fish, Glenn Morris, German, Linganzi, Pritchard, McKain, Norris. Referee: Keith Stroud (Hampshire) A massive attendance of 27,306 fans flooded the Ricoh Arena, forcing kick-off to be delayed by 15 minutes as the club tried to ensure everyone could get in. And those who were part of the sell-out crowd were rewarded early on, as Steven Pressley's side responded brilliantly to the home support. James O'Brien's acrobatic volley in the sixth minute may have lacked power and accuracy, but the attempt, and the football that preceded it, demonstrated purpose, ambition and quality down the Coventry left, and was a sign of things to come. Four minutes later Nouble put Pressley's side ahead. Again the move came from the left hand side, Ryan Haynes getting in behind before cutting the ball back to the former West Ham forwrard, who sidefooted home from eight yards. At the other end Ryan Allsop was rarely worked in the first 45 minutes, although Haynes almost deflected a cross into his own net on the stroke of half time. Many happy returns: Many fans had refused to attend home games during the club's absence from the city . Good to be back: Scarves celebrating the return from Northampton were sold outside the Ricoh Arena . In control: Conor Thomas holds off Gillingham's Bradley Dack as Coventry dominated the first half . Feeling sky blue: Gillingham were unable to cope with a Coventry side lifted by their huge support . After the break Coventry were again on top, and Nouble almost turned provider for John Fleck on 48 minutes, but the Scot couldn't make a good enough connection from five yards. Gillingham were still on the back foot, but they began to create chances as the game wore on, Kortney Hause heading over from a corner, and Jermaine McGlashan bursting past the Coventry defence into the box, before a poor decision to pass instead of shooting ended the attack. Coventry were still the better side however, and on 65 minutes they almost doubled their advantage, Fleck's audatious attempt from 40 yards out on the touchline kept out by a combination of keeper and crossbar. With fifteen minutes to go Pressley's men were almost made to pay for failing to turn their chances into goals. A free-kick from the left hand side found the head of John Egan but, under no pressure, he headed well wide. Winning ways: Steven Pressley celebrates as Frank Nouble gives Coventry the lead after nine minutes . Proud return: In the end it was over 27,000 fans who packed into the Ricoh Arena to watch Coventry win . Back and good: Steven Pressley salutes the fans after his side secured a 1-0 victory in the League One clash . And, as Pressley and the bumper-crowd, began to show their nerves, Gillingham sensed they might leave Coventry's party with a share of the spoils. Cody McDonald could have earned his side a point, but he fired a difficult volley into the side-netting five minutes from time. Had it gone in, it would have been a strike worthy of a point. Then, in the final seconds Allsop allowed a cross to bobble along the six-yard box, but no-one in a red shirt could turn it home. In the end though, Coventry held on for their victory. Given the pain of the last seventeen months, you couldn't begrudge their happy fans their three precious points. Pressley was clearly proud of the victory and believes the return has finally given the club a platform to progress. He said: 'I said all along I have huge sympathy for the supporters because clubs are built around them. The return in many respects shows their value to a club. They voted with their feet and forced the club to where it truly belonged. 'I hope it's not a false dawn. We have so much work ahead of us. I think we have given people hope and that's vital. 'It was an outstanding night and I was exceptionally proud to be the manager of the club, we showed our true potential. 'I'm pleased with the result because I have seen many of these scripts before, when we turn up in numbers and everyone expects us to win and we end up with egg on our face.'
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Coventry playing at Ricoh Arena for the first time since April 2013 .
Fans flock to the stadium as Steven Pressley's side return .
Kick-off delayed as over 27,000 fans return to support their team .
Frank Nouble scores in tenth minute to put home side ahead .
Debutant, on loan from Ipswich, gives Coventry perfect start .
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By . Richard Kay . PUBLISHED: . 18:42 EST, 17 April 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 01:54 EST, 18 April 2013 . Dramatic plans: Heiress Fawn James wants to turn one of her father's lap-dancing clubs into a theatre . Five years ago she inherited a 60-acre property and publishing empire in the heart of London, including, of course, the site of Britain’s first-ever strip club, the Revuebar. But now, as a film starring Steve Coogan as ‘King of Soho’ porn baron Paul Raymond is launched, his gamine granddaughter Fawn James, 27, is turning her back on the girlie shows on which her fortune was based in favour of serious theatre. Fawn, who with her younger sister India Rose inherited a vast chunk of the red-light area, will next month ask Westminster Council for ‘a change of use’ for a table-dancing club she owns above the infamous former Revuebar, which is now the home of the louche Box nightclub, much loved by the young royals. Fawn plans to kick out the lap-dancers and create a new, 120-seat theatre which, I can reveal, she will manage herself. ‘I am really excited about it,’ says Fawn who has ambitions to become an actress. Last year, she took a course at the Lee Strasberg Institute of Film in Los Angeles and has since appeared in a play called Riot Night about the summer riots of 2011. Her grandfather opened the Revuebar in Walkers Court in 1958. The club upstairs was previously the Boulevard Theatre, which launched the careers of many comedians in the Eighties. Fawn tells me: ‘The Boulevard was the platform for the Comic Strip, Eddie Izzard and Steve Coogan. It’s our intention to introduce this space as an off-Broadway style fringe theatre in the heart of the West End.' The table-dancing club above the former Revuebar could be about to undergo a major change of entertainment . Dancers in action at Raymond Revuebar in Soho, central london . She wants her new theatre to showcase up-and-coming young playwrights and directors and I am told: ‘Fawn is going to manage the venue herself, although it may be in partnership with someone else who will be artistic director.’ She has, meanwhile, acquired an agent, Kenneth Earle, to help pursue her acting career and she will be performing in the West End chorus for The Night Of 1,000 Stars at the Royal Albert Hall on May 5. Fawn, who shares her life with Nottingham University graduate Nick Lawson, whom she met backpacking in Thailand, is planning to overhaul Walkers Court, cleaning up the facades of the buildings and improving the lighting and paving. Work will begin as soon as she gets planning permission. Prime time: Paul Raymond with girlfriend Fiona Richmond, left, made a fortune in the porn business . Steve Coogan is set to play the role of Paul Raymond in new film The Look of Love .
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Fawn James, 27, inherited vast chunk of red-light area along with sister .
Will apply to Westminster Council for 'change of use' next month .
Wants to turn table-dancing club into 120-seat theatre .
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A disgusted couple say their romantic evening was ruined after discovering a giant cockroach during their meal. Stu Beevers made the sickening discovery while dining out with girlfriend Natalie Roberts, 27, in Manchester's Curry Mile. The 28-year-old said he had been enjoying his chicken kerala at Mughli Restaurant when he noticed the insect which was the size of a two pound coin. The pair were so disgusted by the grim discovery they left the restaurant without paying in protest. Disgusting: A cockroach was discovered by a couple who had gone for a romantic evening out at a restaurant in Manchester's Curry Mile . The couple, both from Stockport, are now set to report the incident to Manchester Council and say the unwanted ingredient left Stu vomiting all night following the meal on Saturday. Mughli closed immediately after being notified of the cockroach last Saturday for an internal investigation although the restaurant was open for business again last week. Natalie, from Heaton Moor, said: 'It was massive. As soon as we saw it we both just felt sick and wanted to get out of there. 'We pointed it out to the waiter and were asking for an apology but we got nothing. 'It seemed all they were interested in was getting the plate off us and getting rid of the evidence, I made sure I kept hold of it and took a picture. 'It's disgusting. We went because it's meant to be one of the more upmarket restaurants on Curry Mile but this just isn't on - we want to warn people and make sure it doesn't happen to anyone else.' Stu Beevers (pictured) said he was physically ill after making the gross discovery while dining at Mughli Restaurant . After the insect, which was the size of a two pound coin, was found, the restaurant closed and are now carrying out a full investigation . Mughli, which also has a restaurant in Knutsford, Cheshire, was given a four-star 'very good' rating in its last inspection by Manchester council food hygiene officers in October 2012. A spokesman for the restaurant said: 'Immediately that the allegation was received, an apology was made and the restaurant closed with no more food being served to allow us to make a full investigation. 'From initial reports it does not appear that the insect was cooked in the curry dish. 'Allegations such as this are taken very seriously - with no previous history of such incidents it is just as important to us as the customer to establish how this happened. 'We are a family-run restaurant of 23 years and we, our staff, family and friends eat here all the time. 'Every precaution to find out where the cockroach could have come from has been made and we have passed it to our hygiene specialists for further investigation. 'Vermin is a problem in the area but we are very pro-active in managing it. 'We have regular visits from our hygiene specialist and no evidence of any cockroach activity had been found on the visit prior to and immediately after the alleged incident took place. 'We will, of course, continue to look into this matter and find out how this could have happened.'
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Stu Beevers and his girlfriend went for a meal on Manchester's Curry Mile .
But the 28-year-old became ill after finding a huge cockroach in his curry .
Disgusted they both left Mughli Restaurant and refused to pay in protest .
The restaurant closed temporarily as staff launched an investigation .
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The President of Turkey has suggested French security forces are to blame for the deadly terrorist attacks in Paris last week, since the culprits had recently served prison sentences. Recep Tayyip Erdoğan accused the West of 'playing games with the Islamic world', warning fellow Muslims to be 'aware'. Erdogan said Muslims are 'paying the price' for the attacks on satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo and a Jewish kosher supermarket in Paris last week. Scroll down for video . Blame game: Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan suggested French security forces were behind the Paris attacks as they 'track' former prisoners and the culprits in the Charlie Hebdo shootings had served time . 'French citizens carry out such a massacre, and Muslims pay . the price,' Erdogan said yesterday. 'That's very meaningful ... Doesn't their intelligence . organisation track those who leave prison? 'Games are being played with the Islamic world, we need to . be aware of this. 'The West's hypocrisy is obvious. As Muslims, we've never taken part in terrorist massacres. Behind these lie racism, hatespeech and Islamophobia,' Erdogan added. Erdogan also denounced Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin . Netanyahu for attending a solidarity rally in France on Sunday . with other world leaders after the Paris attacks. 'How can a man who has killed 2,500 people in Gaza with . state terrorism wave his hand in Paris, like people are waiting . in excitement for him to do so? How dare he go there?' he said. Erdogan denounced Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for his attendance at the Unity rally in Paris alongside, from left to right, Malian President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita, French President Francois Hollande, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, EU President Donald Tusk and Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas . Erdogan made the comments at a meeting with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in Ankara on Monday . Erdogan did not attend the Sunday march, though Turkish . Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu participated. Erdogan is not the only senior Turkish politicianpublicly voicing conspiracy theories over the Paris attacks. The Mayor of Ankara, Melih Gokcek, said he was convinced the Israeli intelligence service Mossad was behind the attacks, linking them to France's recent move towards recognising Palestine as an independent state. 'Mossad is definitely behind such incidents… it is boosting enmity towards Islam.' Mr Gokcek said, according to Financial Times. In Russia, several pro-Kremlin commentators blamed the United States and the CIA for the attack, the newspaper reported. One, Alexei Martynov, director of the International Institute for New States, said 'I am sure that some American supervisors are responsible for the terror attacks in Paris, or in any case the Islamists who carried them out.' The former Imam and recruiter of jihadists, and the man who helped radicalise the Kouachi brothers has come forward to condemn the Charlie Hebdo murders. Farid Benyettou, revealed as working as an intern in the hospital where many of the dead and dying were taken said: 'It was a cowardly assassination and monstrous.' Farid Benyettou has condemned the Charlie Hebdo murders, despite radicalising one of the brothers involved in the shootings . His face hidden, the 32 year old told i-Tele: 'Whatever was done, whether it be the cowardly and monstrous murder of the journalists, or of the police and members of the Jewish community – it should not be attributed to Islam. 'If you are murderers then that's your business.' Benyettou, who has since been removed from the wards of Pitié-Salpêtrière Hospital to finish his studies in training school, said he had come forward in the name of Islam. He said: 'I am not here to proclaim my innocence but to condemn what has been done. My innocence is not in doubt. 'Some people will say if I don't that 'Farid Beyettou may agree with what has been done' and some people may identify with that. 'No. Farid Benyettou absolutely does not agree with what happened.' Benyettou said that he had mentored Cherif Kouachi, the younger of the terrorist brothers, for around two months. He said: 'He came unexpectedly. He wanted discussion. With him it was always the same topic…. 'It all turned around combat. He was fascinated by that – his knowledge of the religion was limited to that. Having a good relationship with his neighbours, the behaviour of Muslims in every day life, he had no idea about. 'And the relationship with God did not interest him. He was someone very, very stubborn. I told him I could not agree with what he was saying about violence and that it was probably the worst crime a Muslim could commit. 'He seemed to change his stance, accept criticism. Nothing could have seen what was to come.' Then in a passionate defence of France he said: 'Some think that France oppresses Muslims. I am proof to the contrary. Yes I have a criminal record – terrorist written on it. 'I think this is the worst thing to happen yet despite this, doors have been open for me. 'I was given help, never been discriminated against. On the contrary.' Benyettou was radicalised after the arrest of his brother, Youssef Zemmouri in 1998 when security forces dismantled the Parisian Salafist Group. Self taught he became an 'emir' and taught theology courses. He was arrested along with six others in 2005 for helping to send jihadists to Iraq after the US invasion. Three years later, then aged 27, he was sentenced to six years in prison and release in 2011.
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Recep Tayyip Erdoğan suggested French security forces knew of attack .
Turkish President said the West is 'playing games with the Islamic world'
Said: 'French citizens carried out massacre, and Muslims pay the price'
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By . Charles Walford . Last updated at 7:48 PM on 10th January 2012 . Four thugs who were caught laughing as their dogs tore wild animals to pieces have been jailed for their part in ‘barbaric’ and ‘abhorrent’ badger baiting. Scarborough Magistrates’ Court heard how a group of six men and a teenage boy dug out and killed two badgers from a sett on farmland at Howsham, near York, in January last year. Sobia Ahmed, prosecuting, said dogs played tug-of-war with one of the badgers before it was shot in the head and slung into undergrowth, while a pregnant badger was torn to pieces and bled to death. Warning: Graphic content . A wildlife photographer Robert Fuller managed to take this picture showing one of the men snatching at a badger in the dog's mouth . Mr Fuller presented his photos of the gang badger baiting in the hope that they would help convict the men . Alan Alexander, 32, Richard Simpson, 37, and Paul Tindall, 31, all from York, and William Anderson, 26, from Pickering, North Yorkshire, were jailed for 16 weeks at Scarborough Magistrates’ Court after being found guilty of wilfully killing a badger, hunting a mammal with dogs, digging for badgers and interfering with a badger sett. Alexander and Simpson were also convicted of causing unnecessary suffering to a protected animal. Another two men, Christopher Holmes, 28, and Malcolm Warner, 28, both from York, were handed 12-week custodial sentences suspended for 12 months after they pleaded guilty to wilfully killing a badger, digging for badgers and interfering with a badger sett. District Judge Kristina Harrison said she was sending out a clear signal to anybody involved in such activities that they would be sent to prison. 'Barbaric': Richard Simpson, left, and Alan Alexander, right, arrive at Scarborough Magistrates’ Court to hear their sentence . A 17-year-old boy, who cannot be . named for legal reasons, was given a youth rehabilitation order after he . was also found guilty of wilfully killing a badger, hunting a mammal . with dogs, digging for badgers and interfering with a badger sett. Sentencing the men and the teenager, . Ms Harrison said: ‘Badger baiting is regarded as a barbaric sport and . the public feeling is one of revulsion.’ She . continued: ‘The people of Yorkshire will not tolerate badger baiting in . their midst. It’s barbaric, it’s abhorrent and anyone convicted of this . kind of offence will receive a custodial sentence. ‘This is a clear signal to anybody who seeks to commit this kind of behaviour.’ 'Abhorrent': Paul Tindall, pictured left, and William Anderson, right, arriving for sentencing . Ms Ahmed told the court that two . witnesses, including wildlife photographer Robert Fuller, heard the sound of dogs barking excitedly and a badger . squealing in distress and went to investigate. When they reached the scene, they saw two large dogs attacking a badger. Ms Ahmed said: ‘They had hold of it in their mouths and were shaking it violently. They said the dogs were playing tug of war with the badger.’ Mr Fuller today recalled how the men ‘laughingly’ encouraged the beasts before they spotted Mr Fuller and fled the rural scene by the River Derwent, near Howsham in North Yorkshire. After some time, the badger was shot dead by Anderson and the men, who had become aware of the witnesses and tried to cover their tracks by throwing the dead badger into the undergrowth. They then buried a second dead badger . - a pregnant animal which had been torn to pieces by the dogs - back . into the hole from which it had been dug. Ms Ahmed said witnesses called the police and the men and teenager were arrested a short time later. Police . and RSPCA inspectors who visited the scene found animal intestines and . badger foetuses scattered around and areas of congealed blood, believed . to be from where the badger had been shot. When they recovered the two badgers, one was found to have been shot at close range and had a fractured skull and jaw. The group of men stuffed this dead badger back into its sett in attempt by the men to conceal the crime . The other had part of its abdomen missing and injuries consistent with being attacked by a dog. Mr Fuller, 38, later gave his pictures to the police and RSPCA and they were used to convict the gang. When they investigated, the authorities established the men had killed three adult badgers and three unborn cubs. Ms Ahmed said the pregnant badger suffered 'a sustained attack by a number of dogs that had caused the badger to be torn to pieces and eventually it bled to death' while the other had a 'gunshot wound to the head immediately after a severe and sustained attack by a number of dogs'. Wildlife photographer Robert Fuller caught the group in the act and was able to take pictures that helped secure a conviction . Ms Ahmed described the operation as a 'sophisticated enterprise' in which the men used equipment to track down the badgers. Mr Fuller, who lives in Thixendale, North Yorksshire, was praised by the trial judge as ‘brave’ and ‘courageous’. Alexander, Anderson, Simpson and Tindall were told they would serve eight weeks of their sentences before being released on licence. They were each ordered to pay £750 costs and £100 compensation. Each of the four defendants was handcuffed and led out of the crowded courtroom by security guards while members of their families sobbed. Holmes and Warner were told to pay £250 costs and £100 compensation and the 17-year-old was told he would be placed under supervision for 12 months and would have to undertake a number of programmes, including one run by the RSPCA, as part of his youth rehabilitation order. Mr Fuller today recalled of how he encountered the gang while he was out looking for otters with friend Ged Farmer last January. He said: "In all there were 13 dogs, eight men with five guns and, as was later established, three dead badgers and three unborn cubs. 'I asked Ged to go and call the police while I took photographs of what was going on. 'I was scared about being seen but I was so sickened by it that I wanted to get pictures of the men being caught in the act. 'One badger gave up and the men just shot it dead. 'This gang were so brazen about what they were doing, it was almost as though they didn’t care.'I knew that my pictures might be used as evidence in the future and I’m glad they help catch these men.' He added: 'What I saw that day shocked me. Badgers are tough animals. They will fight when under attack, but generally they are not aggressive. 'What turns my stomach about badger baiting is that they were doing it for the sheer thrill. The men I watched were laughing.' Speaking after the sentencing, RSPCA Inspector Geoff Edmond said: ‘This is the highest level of animal cruelty. It’s people who have organised to go into the North Yorkshire countryside, dig out and cruelly bait badgers. He added: 'The significance of what Robert Fuller did cannot be underestimated. It is not often a judge commends a witness and he thoroughly deserved it. 'I’ve been a wildlife officer for 20 years and this is the worst, most horrific and barbaric case I have seen.'
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Alan Alexander, 32, Richard Simpson, 37, .
and Paul Tindall, 31, and William Anderson, 26, were jailed for 16 weeks .
Christopher Holmes, 28, and Malcolm Warner, 28, were handed 12-week custodial sentences suspended for 12 months .
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By . Emma Glanfield . BBC economics editor Robert Peston has received mixed reaction to his debut in the Newsnight presenting seat – after he failed to wear a tie for the appearance. The 54-year-old journalist, who is set to host two more editions of the show this week, chose to go without a tie as he took up the seat formerly occupied by Jeremy Paxman. It has sparked a string of comments on Twitter, with many calling for him to ‘buy a tie’ and smarten up. Others also took to the social media site to point out his ‘uncanny’ resemblance to Doctor Who star David Tennant. BBC economics editor Robert Peston failed to wear a tie as he presented Newsnight for the first time . The 54-year-old journalist drew criticism from viewers for looking 'scruffy' while hosting current affairs show . Viewers took to Twitter to criticise Peston for not wearing a tie with some branding him 'scruffy' Peston, who wore a purple striped shirt with his top button undone and a dark suit jacket, interviewed Isaac Herzog, the leader of Israeli Labor, the country's main opposition party, on his debut. He looked fairly relaxed as he questioned Mr Herzog about the conflict in Gaza, and fiddled distractedly with a pen in one hand. His interview with Andy Burnham on Labour's stance on privatisation and the NHS was fairly more animated – but viewers couldn’t help but notice his ‘scruffy’ appearance. Mr Burnham, in contrast, was wearing a tie. Francis Ingham was one of several viewers to take to Twitter to share his opinion on Peston’s appearance. Mr Ingham wrote: ‘@Peston opens #newsnight Blimey. He looks for an unemployed IT geek. #BuyATie.....’ Meanwhile, Yvonne Johnston said: ‘Where’s your tie, Robert? #newsnight’ And Angela Brownrigg wrote: ‘Are ties banned? Everyone looks so scruffy #newsnight’ Before later adding: ‘You did good, Robert. Now buy a tie. #newsnight’ Peston wore a purple striped shirt with his top button undone and a black suit jacket for the appearance . Newsnight's former long-standing presenter Jeremy Paxman always wore a tie on the daily BBC2 programme . Peston's failure to wear a tie was one of the main talking points among viewers who aired their views online . Unfortunately for Peston both his interviewees looked much smarter than him, with both opting to wear a tie. Comments about Peston's lack of a tie also appeared to be endorsed by Newsnight editor Ian Katz. He posted on his Twitter profile: 'Fortunately Andrew Foxall has brought enough tie to go round #newsnight' He later retweeted a post which made reference to the guest host needing a shirt with a stronger collar. Newsnight editor Ian Katz made reference to Peston's lack of a tie before retweeting a post which suggested he needed a shirt with a stronger collar. He also confirmed Peston would be hosting for the next two nights . The post said: '@Peston coped nicely, but needs a stronger collar stand if to go without a tie, especially if going to me (sic) moving around.' As well as forgoing a tie, Peston also debuted a slightly longer hairstyle for the appearance – which was quickly picked up on by viewers. Mark Pougatch said: ‘The wife & I agree: we both like the new barnet @Peston’ While Katharine SacksJones asked: ‘Has @Peston got new glasses? Is it just me or does he now bear an uncanny resemblance to David Tennant? #newsnight’ Some viewers suggested that Peston (left) looked a lot like Doctor Who star, actor David Tennant (right) Peston also debuted a slightly longer hairstyle on the show – which was quickly picked up on by viewers . Despite comments about his appearance, many applauded him for his debut on the daily BBC2 current affairs programme. Darren Lissaman said: ‘Peston was outstanding. Loved his quirky style & slightly shambolic questioning.’ While Paul Thomas wrote: ‘Best #newsnight for a while. I liked @Peston and his understated approach. He wasn't rubbish!’
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Robert Peston failed to wear a tie for debut appearance hosting Newsnight .
BBC economics editor criticised by viewers for looking 'scruffy' on air .
He is a guest host until Evan Davis starts as replacement for Jeremy Paxman .
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MINGORA, Pakistan (CNN) -- Gen. Nadeem Ahmad swirls the helicopter over Pakistan's ground zero. Below is the Swat Valley of North West Frontier Province. A Pakistani soldier patrols a ruined street in Mingora. From the air, the valley in the foothills of the Hindu Kush looks undisturbed. Green fields amid clusters of drab houses. A closer look at Swat reveals how well the Pakistani Army fared in its military campaign to wipe out the militants. The cost of success: massive destruction that is sure to hamper the lives of already suffering residents just starting to trickle back to the homes they fled. A few months ago, ferocious battles between Pakistan's Army and Taliban fighters erupted here -- in Swat, Buner and Lower Dir districts. War's remnants serve as a constant reminder. A destroyed bridge. Pockmarked houses. Hotels that look like they've been abandoned for years. Nadeem maneuvers the chopper to circle Mingora, the largest city in the Swat Valley. From the hilltop Army sentry posts that come into view, soldiers survey the ground below, hard won from Taliban fighters. The militants, Nadeem says, have fled to nearby mountains. On the ground, he shows off a cache of weapons seized in the fighting. The soldiers are keen to boast their victory. Mingora remains on high alert. A curfew has been lifted for morning hours, although soldiers keep close watch on those who venture out. The city's pain is plainly evident on its scarred, deserted streets. Many shops are shuttered or destroyed. Watch Stan Grant tour the shattered streets of Mingora » . The United Nations estimates that 375,000 Swat Valley residents fled their homes during the fighting. In all, 2.5 million Pakistanis were displaced in what was said to be one of the largest human migrations in recent history. About 260,000 people have been living in 21 refugee camps in neighboring Mardan, Swabi, Nowshera, Peshawar and Charssada districts, but the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees say the "vast majority" of internally displaced Pakistanis have been staying with host families, rented houses or in schools. The government plans to return people first from the camps and then focus on those living elsewhere. But this week, the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) warned that as many as 1 million people could remain displaced until December because of the widespread destruction in their home towns, such as Mingora. Relief agencies have reported dire humanitarian conditions in Mingora: hospitals without electricity that are inundated with patients, an erratic supply of water and natural gas. One resident, who identified himself only as Abdullah, told CNN that returning people are facing shortages in food, water and basic supplies for survival. Some displaced families also expressed concerns about schooling for their children, reported the Integrated Regional Information Networks (IRIN), the U.N. news agency focusing on humanitarian issues. Louis-Georges Arsenault, emergency office director for UNICEF, said 1 million children were at risk of not starting school by September, mainly due to the Taliban's widespread destruction of schools and that 4,000 existing schools continue to shelter displaced people. Businessman Muhammad Khan, 40, who recently returned to Mingora, voiced the despair of returning residents. He told IRIN that "everything is in ruins." "Everything is in ruins," IRIN quoted Khan as saying. "It will take months for life to return to normality." But that normality will no longer include the Taliban, Pakistani soldiers say. The fight was hard, but it was victorious, they say. They point to an area in the city where they say the Taliban displayed the bodies of their victims, some beheaded. It became known as "Slaughter Square." Slaughter Square's name may be outdated for the time being, but residents like Abdullah say it will be a long time before life in Mingora returns to what it once was. "I don't like army. I don't like Taliban," Abdullah says, standing among the ruins of what used to be a thriving market. "I only want peace."
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Pakistani forces in Swat Valley claim victory in fight against Taliban militants .
Refugees trickling back to the region find towns, bridges destroyed .
Up to 2.5 million Pakistanis estimated to have been displaced by conflict .
Local businessman: "Everything is in ruins. It will take months to return to normality"
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Hurricane Gonzalo gathered strength moving over open water away from the eastern end of the Caribbean, and forecasters said it could become a powerful category 4 storm Wednesday as it headed toward Bermuda. Authorities on some of the smaller islands buffeted by Gonzalo said at least one person was dead and two were missing. Dozens of boats were damaged and power was knocked out in the Dutch Caribbean territory of St. Maarten. Gonzalo was blamed for the death of an unidentified elderly man who was aboard a boat in St. Maarten's Simpson Bay Lagoon, which looked like a ship graveyard Tuesday with several masts protruding from the water. Scroll down for video . Surfers ride the waves in the waters at La Pared Beach in Luquillo, Puerto Rico, on Tuesday. Hurricane Gonzalo moved away from the area, but churned up heavy surf across much of the Caribbean . The storm is expected to maintain strength and give Bermuda a direct hit. The rest of island region is experiencing clear skies with isolated areas of fair weather clouds . The storm had top sustained winds of nearly 125 mph (205 kph) and was centered about 705 miles (1,135 kilometers) south of Bermuda late Tuesday, the U.S. National Hurricane Center said. It was moving northwest at 13 mph (20 kph). The center said Gonzalo could become a category 4 hurricane during the day while it takes a path that would take it near Bermuda on Friday. Category 4 storms have sustained winds of at least 130 mph (209 kph) with the potential to cause catastrophic damage. 'Folks in Bermuda are going to need to start paying attention to this thing,' Dennis Feltgen, a National Hurricane Center meteorologist, said by phone. Bermuda's government posted a hurricane watch for the British territory, urging islanders to keep an eye on the storm's progress. Officials said flights departing Bermuda on Thursday, Friday and Saturday were fully booked. Acting Coast Guard Director Wendell Thode said 22 of the 37 boats destroyed by the storm were in the lagoon. 'Most of the boats that are destroyed are completely under water,' he said. Authorities were searching for a man last seen on a dinghy near the French Caribbean territory of St. Martin and another man last seen standing close to a harbor in St. Barts, said Matthieu Doligez, general secretary of the prefecture in St. Martin. Amy Arrindell, vice president of the St. Maarten Zoological and Botanical Foundation, said the St. Maarten Zoo was heavily damaged but no animals escaped or died. She said trees were uprooted, the petting zoo was destroyed and the animals' enclosures were flooded. 'There is major damage to the structure,' she said. 'It is total devastation.' A surfer carries his surfboard as he walks along La Pared Beach. Hurricane Gonzalo moved away from the area, but churned up heavy surf across much of the Caribbean .
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An unidentified elderly man was killed while aboard a boat in St. Maarten's Simpson Bay Lagoon .
The place looked like a ship graveyard Tuesday with several masts protruding from the water .
Hurricane Gonzalo continues to gather strength as it moves over open water away from the eastern end of the Caribbean .
Forecasters say it could become a powerful category 4 storm as it heads to Bermuda .
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WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Americans back Barack Obama's plan to move U.S. troops from Iraq to Afghanistan, a new national poll indicates. U.S. soldiers gather at the "Cross Swords" in Baghdad's secure Green Zone earlier this year. Fifty-five percent of people questioned in a CNN/Opinion Research Corporation survey released Thursday back the president-elect when it comes to reducing the number of American combat troops in Iraq and increasing the number in Afghanistan. "The reason is simple," said CNN Polling Director Keating Holland. "The war in Iraq is very unpopular, while a majority support the war in Afghanistan." Sixty-three percent of those polled oppose the war in Iraq, with 36 percent "favor" it. Fifty-two percent "favor" the war in Afghanistan, with 46 percent in opposition. "In addition, roughly half the public thinks that the U.S. is winning in Iraq, but six in 10 say that America's losing in Afghanistan," adds Holland. That forty-nine percent who now say the U.S. is winning the war in Iraq (with an equal amount saying the U.S. is not winning) is up from 32 percent last year. "To the American public, Afghanistan is the good war, and it's going badly. Iraq is the bad war, and it's going fairly well," CNN Senior Political Analyst Bill Schneider said. The poll suggests that Americans believe that the president-elect will remove all combat troops from Iraq. Obama told reporters Monday in Chicago that he still thinks 16 months is the "right time frame" for removing U.S. combat troops from the country. Sixty-three percent of those questioned in the survey are confident that Obama will do just that, with 36 percent not confident. A vast majority of Americans, 79 percent, also appear to be confident that Obama will improve foreign relations, with 74 percent confident he'll improve economic conditions and 68 percent optimistic about Obama keeping the country safe from terrorism. "In the wake of the recent attacks in Mumbai, India, concerns about terrorism here in the U.S. have grown a bit, but most Americans don't think a terrorist attack is likely in the next few weeks," said Holland. In fact, the 36 percent who say acts of terrorism are likely in the U.S. over the next several weeks is up only slightly from the 30 percent who felt the same way in September, the last time the question was asked. "The dispute between India and Pakistan may be the next big flash point in world affairs, but Americans want this country to stay out of it," Holland added. Eight in 10 think the U.S. should side with neither country, with 15 percent saying side with India and one percent wanting to side with Pakistan. And in a sign that Obama is enjoying a honeymoon with Americans right now, 64 percent of those polled approve of how he handled the terrorist attack in India. That's 15 points higher than President Bush scored in the survey, even though Obama made clear during the crisis that there can be only one American president at a time and that he was deferring to Bush when it came to any American response. The CNN/Opinion Research Corporation poll was conducted Monday and Tuesday, with 1,096 adult Americans questioned by telephone. The survey's sampling error is plus or minus 3 percentage points.
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New CNN/Opinion Research Corp. Poll released Thursday .
Poll: 55 percent support Obama's plan to withdraw troops from Iraq .
A majority of those polled -- 52 percent -- "favor" the war in Afghanistan .
79 percent are confident that Obama will improve foreign relations .
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Fashion designer Lela Rose has unveiled a chic new plus-size collection for clothing retailer Lane Bryant. The collection, which will hit stores in April 2015, offers bold watercolor prints, peekaboo lace and sheer pieces and sleek, tailored silhouettes in sizes 14 to 28. The New York designer told Refinery29 that she wanted the plus-size line, which includes tops, skirts, pants and dresses, to feature the hallmarks that her label is known for. Scroll down for video . New collaboration: Fashion designer Lela Rose has unveiled a chic new plus-size collection for clothing retailer Lane Bryant . 'I felt strongly about taking certain colors and techniques that are signature to the Lela Rose collection and incorporating them into this capsule for Lane Bryant,' she said. 'For example, I love the citrine lace top - citrine is my favorite color!' The entire collection is under $200, and most pieces are in the $40-$90 range. Ms Rose, who previously collaborated with Payless on a budget-friendly shoe collection, said she was eager to make her designs more accessible. 'The most exciting thing for me is the democratization of fashion, and not every designer gets a chance to do that,' she told Fashionista. 'We live in our own price point, in our own world.' Bright idea: The collection, which will hit stores in April 2015, offers bold watercolor prints, peekaboo lace and tailored feminine silhouettes in sizes 14 to 28 . Well tailored: 'I felt strongly about taking certain colors and techniques that are signature to the Lela Rose collection and incorporating them into this capsule for Lane Bryant,' the designer said . 'We've always had customers coming and asking, "Why don't you do this in my size?" and our only answer has been that our retailers don't really service that customer,' she added. This is the first foray into plus-size fashion for Ms Rose, whose designs have been worn by Kate Middleton, Michelle Obama various other celebrities. Ms Rose consulted with the Lane Bryant to find out more about its customers' preferences - which mainly included adding sleeves - but said the experience was similar to designing for her own ready-to-wear line. Accessible: 'The most exciting thing for me is the democratization of fashion, and not every designer gets a chance to do that,' she said . Similar preferences: '[Plus-size] women don't want anything that different,' the designer said . High fashion: 'They want to look feminine and pretty, they want to have great color, texture, and detail, and they want to show off neckline and collarbones,' she added . '[Plus-size] women don't want anything that different,' she said. 'They want to look feminine and pretty, they want to have great color, texture, and detail, and they want to show off neckline and collarbones.' Lane Bryant previously joined forces with designer Isabel Toledo this past spring for a plus-size collection of feminine skirts, printed sheath dresses and elegant evening coats that ranged from $60 to $178. Earlier this year, the retailer also teamed up with French designer Sophie Theallet to launch a sexy lingerie collection. Fit for a duchess: Kate Middleton wore a delicate white Lela Rose dress to a reception in April . The designer: Ms Rose is pictured at a Sloan Kettering benefit in New York City in November .
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This is the first foray into plus-size fashion for Ms Rose, whose designs have been worn by Kate Middleton and Michelle Obama .
The collection features watercolor prints, peekaboo lace and sleek, tailored silhouettes .
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NEW DELHI, India (CNN) -- An Indian woman accused of being a witch was tied to a tree and beaten by a mob, with television footage of the incident aired in India on Friday. Villagers tied the woman to a tree after a man accused her of practicing black magic. Nishant Tiwari, a police official in northeastern India, said a journalist who filmed the beating called him Thursday to report the incident, which took place in the village of Dumaria in central eastern Bihar state. He arrived to find the woman tied to a tree, her hair partially cut and her complexion ruddy from being slapped. She had no serious injuries. "I was appalled at what I saw because people should be more socially responsible than to do this," Tiwari said. Authorities arrested six people, including the man who admitted to hiring her services as a witch. They were due to appear before a magistrate on Friday. Ram Ayodhya, who could face up to seven years in prison for his role in the attack, told police he was justified in beating the woman, Tiwari said. Graphic content warning: Villagers beat woman » . Ayodhya said he paid her to use magic and prayer to improve his wife's health. When his wife's condition deteriorated, Ayodhya accused her of performing black magic, Tiwari said, and a crowd soon gathered and tied her to the tree. The woman seen being attacked is expected to testify when the suspects appear before the magistrate. Tiwari said he was disturbed by the fact that a journalist filmed the incident before contacting authorities. "The media filmed the incident, then called the police -- instead of the police first," Tiwari said. CNN's partner network, CNN-IBN, reported that the incident took place close to the local police station. It reported that there had been other such occurrences of mob justice in the state. In Bhagalpur district in August 2007, a man caught trying to snatch a woman's chain was beaten up, with police looking on, and later tied to a motorcycle and dragged around by a police officer. In September, in Lucknow's Wazirganj area, an angry mob beat a man to death after a 2½-year old girl was allegedly found sexually assaulted and murdered in his house. E-mail to a friend .
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Indian woman accused of being witch is tied to a tree and beaten by a mob .
Journalist filmed incident, aired on Friday, and then called the police .
Police say woman's hair partially cut and she was slapped, but no serious injuries .
Six arrested, including the man who admitted to hiring her services as a witch .
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By . Jill Reilly . PUBLISHED: . 07:41 EST, 6 November 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 10:37 EST, 6 November 2013 . An Iron Man-style suit may soon be created to give US army troops a 'superhuman strength' on the battlefield. U.S. Special Forces Command, Adm. William McRaven has given the go-ahead for the creation of a Tactical Assault Light Operator Suit (TALOS). He is calling on the technology industry, government labs and academia to help build what is being dubbed as the Iron Man suit in reference to the Marvel Comics character Tony Stark, an engineer who builds a rocket-powered suit and becomes a superhero. Vision: An Iron Man-style suit may soon be created to give US army troops a 'superhuman strength' on the battlefield. Pictured: A screenshot from the army video . Creation: U.S. Special Forces Command, Adm. William McRaven has given the go-ahead for the creation of a Tactical Assault Light Operator Suit (TALOS) Specifications: The suit would be designed to enable soldiers to carry large loads as well as having layers of smart materials fitted with sensors . Speaking about the recent death of a special operator in Afghanistan he told a conference: 'I would like that last operator to be the last one we ever lose.' 'One of our folks going through the door was killed by the Taliban on . the other side in an attempt to rescue a hostage,' said McRaven. 'Why haven't we put effort into ensuring particularly that guy . going through the door ... is protected to the maximum capability that . we can provide him, as a nation?' The metal suit would be designed to enable soldiers to carry large loads - relying on tiny motors, the exoskeleton would enable a soldier to run and jump without strain. The US Army said it would also have a wearable computer similar to Google Glass, reported the BBC. The exoskeleton would be able to continuously download and display live video feeds from overhead drones. The suit has drawn comparisons Iron Man, a superhero who appears in comic books published by Marvel Comics . It would have layers of smart materials fitted with sensors and which would transmit the wearer's vital signs back to headquarters. The LA Times reports that in theory it could even staunch minor wounds with inflatable tourniquets as well have a built-in oxygen supply in case of poison gas and a cooling system. Other desired specifications are smart materials fitted with sensors to monitor body temperature, heart rate and hydration levels. Many of the technologies that could be . incorporated into McRaven’s idea of an Iron Man suit already exist. 'But . they still exist separately. So they are taking them all and they are . putting them together,' said former Navy SEAL Chris Heben to CNN. Heben . said if TALOS is completed with the desired specifications it will 'take a group of guys that are . extremely high functioning on the battlefield and make them completely . unstoppable.' An MIT team is currently developing liquid body armour - made from fluids that transform into a solid when a magnetic field or electrical current is applied. 'It sounds exactly like Iron Man,' MIT professor Gareth McKinley told US news site NPR. 'The other kind of things that you see in the movies... would be the kind of external suit that Sigourney Weaver wears in Aliens, where it's a large robot that amplifies the motions and lifting capability of a human.' Jim Geurts, who buys equipment for the Special Operations Command said: 'The hope is that we would have some working full-up prototypes in the two- to three-year time frame.' Contracts have not yet been signed, and the Pentagon has not ventured to make a cost estimate. In May the U.S. Navy decided to order sailors new shipboard coveralls after discovering the flammability of the garment last year. The new version, costing $60-$75 will be made of 100 percent cotton with a fire-resistant coating and are expected to be introduced next month.
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U.S. Special Forces Command has given the go-ahead for the creation .
Suit is called the Tactical .
Assault Light Operator Suit (TALOS)
It would have an in-built computer and smart .
materials fitted with sensors .
Predicted to be ready in a 'two-to-three-year time frame'
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By . Nina Golgowski . PUBLISHED: . 23:17 EST, 22 March 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 07:11 EST, 23 March 2013 . Newly released interviews by witnesses from the Steubenville rape case reveal shocking admissions by those who say they saw the 16-year-old girl getting dangerously drunk and abused but did nothing to help. 'I could tell that she was gradually getting more drunk and worse throughout the night,' Farrah Marcino, a fellow 16-year-old and witness to the horrific scene is heard telling detectives in newly released video to ABC. 'Just like, that she couldn't, like, she didn't walk,' she said. SCROLL DOWN FOR VIDEO . Witnesses: Newly released police interviews by teens, Farrah Marcino pictured, who saw a 16-year-old girl getting blackout drunk reveal how they saw her in trouble but did nothing to help . Morning after: This 16-year-old boy recounts to detectives of coming downstairs the morning after the house party and finding the girl naked on the couch . 'She was a mess … she wasn’t responding,' 18-year-old Anthony Craig also told detectives. Another teen told detectives that he overheard someone offer $3 to anyone who would pee on her while she was lying in a street after vomiting on herself. He said that fortunately no one did. Craig told police he ended up taking two pictures of the girl himself during that night last August before deleting them from his phone. Authorities were later unable to recover them. But other photos and videos capturing the heinous crime weren't deleted. Instead they were posted to YouTube, Twitter and Instagram, showing the young teenaged girl being carried around before spectators at the party while appearing to be unconscious. 'She looks dead lmao,' one teen texted to seeing the photo of her carried around. 'You should've moved her around and got a better angle,' another wrote. Abused: One teen seen here tells detectives that he heard someone offer $3 to anyone who would pee on the girl as she at one point lay in the street after throwing up . Silence: In the end none of the witnesses at the party or teens alleged to be involved in the case, Michael Nodianos seen right, called police over the treatment of the girl though many used their cell phones to take pictures and record video . Evan Westlake, who testified at the trial while under immunity, admitted to filming and posting a . 12-minute video to YouTube showing the incident. Another student, . Michael Nodianos, cruelly joked about the attack himself online. Women's rights groups demanded that Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine . charge Nodianos with failure to report a crime despite the student defending himself as having not been there. 'She was passed out,' Craig told detectives. 'That’s when they picked her up, and they carried her out of the house.' Nude photos taken of her were later found on 17-year-old Trent Mays' cell phone. - Farrah Marcino, 16, to detectives . He and 16-year-old Ma'lik Richmond, both . former football players at their high school, were the two filmed . carrying the girl away. They later were found guilty of raping her . through digital penetration. 'She wanted to go with Trent. Like, we just kept trying to tell her, "You don’t want to do this. You don’t want to go with them,”' Marcino said. 'I just let her do what she want[ed], which I understand was wrong,' she told detectives. Both Marcino and Craig testified in the rape trial. In a later interview with ABC Richmond described the photo showing the teen being carried by her hands and feet as consensual. He explained that the girl 'was willing to get into the picture that way.' 'We asked her and that's when she said yeah that's fine,' he said. But asked why that photo was taken, he said: 'Her ex-boyfriend said that he wanted to get a picture of this drunk B.' The victim described herself waking up the next morning naked and too drunk to remember what happened the night before. Angry: When the victim woke up the next day to find photos and video of her online she texted Mays outraged, asking him what had happened and why she was missing her clothes as seen here . Guilty: Ma'Lik Richmond, 16, left, and Trent Mays, 17, right were . found guilty of rape and other charges in Steubenville, Ohio on Sunday . after the incident last August . Sentenced: Ma'Lik Richmond burst into tears following the trial's verdict that sentenced him and Mays, seen in yellow, to a minimum of one year in a juvenile institution . When . she discovered the slew of photos online the next day, she texted Mays . outraged, asking him what had happened and why her clothes were off. 'You should of protected me. Anyone with a heart would have tried to stop that,' she wrote him according to ABC. Mays tells her he is 'truly sorry,' according to the text message exchange. He adds: 'Like I'm about to get . kicked off my football team.' - Victim's text to Mays . Video and photos taken of the event are what brought the rape case to light. In all 13 cell phones were analyzed for evidence, along with 308,586 photos, 940 videos, 96,270 text messages and 3,188 phone calls. Richmond and Mays were both convicted of rape on Sunday and sentenced to at least one year in a juvenile detention institution with the maximum stay of until they are 21. Mays faced an additional charge of the use and dissemination of nude images of a minor. He received the same sentence for that to run consecutively. Both pleaded not guilty to their crimes. 'Nothing happened that evening that is non-consensual. There is no evidence to suggest that she was unconscious while lying there naked on that basement floor,' Richmond's attorney told ABC News before their verdict. To questions of the girl's impairment he added: 'No witness ever used the word impaired. Substantial impaired where you can't consent is the issue.' 'I realize that I did, I was doing wrong by drinking and partying, you know, after dark,' Richmond told ABC just before he was found guilty. 'But I really did not, I didn’t rape anybody. I didn’t witness a rape going on. And if I would have thought that somebody was being raped or anything like that, I would have stopped it.' WATCH THE VIDEO HERE: . Unfortunately your browser does not support IFrames.
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At least two of the teens heard here later testified in the trial that found Ma'Lik Richmond, 16 and Trent Mays, 17, guilty of rape .
Teens who witnessed the crimes used their phones to snap pictures and photos - never to call 911 .
Witness tells detectives he heard a teen offer $3 for someone to pee on victim while she was lying in the street .
Victim's text to Mays: 'You should of protected me. Anyone with a heart would have tried to stop that'
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By . Helen Lawson . PUBLISHED: . 07:11 EST, 23 March 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 07:12 EST, 23 March 2013 . These Siberian tigers nuzzled each other contentedly after a hearty lunch at a Chinese sanctuary. The affectionate pair were spotted rubbing their scent against a tree trunk in the Siberian Tiger Park in Harbin, China as they chilled out in the snow this week. They joined some of the park's 800 Siberian tigers, who live in Heilongjiang province in the world's largest breeding centre for the species. This pair of Siberian tigers look content as they rub their scent glands against a tree after dinner time at the Tiger Park in Harbin, China . The tigers chilled out in the snow after the excitement of feeding time . The park in Harbin is the world's largest breeding centre for the Siberian tigers . Food brings out the creatures' competitive sides so no wonder they needed to relax after eating . Outside of captivity the breed, also known as Amur or Manchurian tigers, is mainly found in east Russia, north east China and the northern part of the Korean Peninsula . The calm of the resting animals came after a feeding frenzy as they vied to get to the front of the queue while a park keeper dropped meat joints into the enclosure. One tiger was seen tearing into a pheasant it had bagged in the clamour for food. The park is known for offering visitors a menu of live animals that they can pay for and watch being fed to the tigers. Prices start at 50yuan (£5.30)for a domestic chicken and 100yuan (£10.50) for a duck or pheasant. The ambush of Siberian tigers bared their teeth as they waited for feeding time to start . Earlier, the tigers clashed as they fought to the front of the queue at dinner time . The park lets visitors pay for live animals, including chickens, sheep and cows, to be fed to the tigers while they watch . One tiger rises above the ambush with its snack . Visitors can send a sheep to its death for 600yuan (£63.50) or watch a cow being devoured for 2,000yuan (£211). The Siberian tiger, also known as the Amur tiger, is the largest of the world's big cats. Thanks to conservation efforts, including the Harbin park, it is the only breed of tiger whose numbers are not in decline. This Siberian tiger tore through an animal carcass . Each creature staked out a spot in the snow to enjoy its meal . Another one pulled apart a pheasant at the 250 acre site in Harbin .
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The pair were spotted at the Siberian Tiger Park in Harbin, China .
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Washington (CNN) -- While international sanctions continue to mount against Iran and its nuclear program, the Obama administration acknowledged Tuesday that the steps have done little to change Iran's behavior. National Security Adviser Thomas Donilon said at a conference at the Brookings Institution that Iran is paying a steep price for its intransigence. Growing international sanctions, diplomatic isolation and growing defense alliances in the region continue to ratchet up the pressure on Iran and have helped slow its nuclear efforts. But Donilon also admitted that "the Iranian regime has not fundamentally altered its behavior." This month, the International Atomic Energy Agency questioned whether Iran's nuclear program is for peaceful energy purposes, as Iran maintains. In the most detailed report to date, the IAEA found "credible" information that Tehran has carried out work toward nuclear weapons, including tests of possible bomb components. Despite Iran's failure to change its behavior, Donilon thinks the United States, working in concert with its international partners, will eventually have an impact on the Iranian leadership if they remain persistent and unified. "We think it has an effect when they see that they are thoroughly isolated," Donilon said. But unity has been a problem. China and Russia in particular have been reluctant to support harsher sanctions against Iran and have effectively forced the United States and European nations to settle for less punishing measures. However, Donilon maintained that there is good coordination and cooperation with China and Russia. "They have supported us on each of our sanctions, international sanctions at the U.N.," he said. "They have enforced those efforts faithfully." Donilon said it is important all options remain on the table. "Over time, the goal, of course, would be to raise the price and force the choice," he added.
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National security adviser says Iran is paying for intransigence .
But regime has not altered its behavior, Thomas Donilon says .
U.S. and partners will eventually have an impact, he says .
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(CNN) -- At least 13 people were killed in explosions and shootings in three of Iraq's most strategic cities on Monday, police officials said. The deadliest incident was in the southeastern part of Mosul, where a car bomb exploded by Iraqi army convoy. Five people were killed, including two Iraqi soldiers, in the neighborhood of al-Muharbeen. In the eastern part of Mosul, three people were shot dead by gunmen in two separate shootings. Mosul, which is in Nineveh province, has a largely Sunni population and is about 420 kilometers (about 261 miles) north of Baghdad. And in the capital of Baghdad, a man and his son were shot dead by gunmen in the al-Jaara neighborhood in the southern part of the city. In the oil-rich city of Kirkuk, gunmen attacked a group of men in a shooting area in al-Naser in eastern Kirkuk and killed three people. Four other people were wounded. Kirkuk is an ethnically mixed city of Arabs, Kurds and Turkmen and is about 240 kilometers (about 149 miles) north of Baghdad. Casualties mount at alarming rate in Iraq . Monday's attacks come as Iraqi security forces are conducting a large-scale operation, "The Revenge for the Martyrs," which is attempting to track down al Qaeda members in and around Baghdad. The operation started few days ago, and so far, hundreds of people have been arrested, according to the Baghdad Operation military command website. An al Qaeda group claimed responsibility for coordinated attacks in July on two Iraqi prisons that a lawmaker said freed more than 500 inmates, including some senior members of the militant group. July was the deadliest month in Iraq since the peak of sectarian violence in 2006 and 2007. According to figures released by the U.N. Assistance Mission for Iraq, 1,057 Iraqis were killed and another 2,326 were wounded in acts of terrorism and violence in July. Global Public Square: What Iraq could teach us about Syria .
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Mosul, Kirkuk and the capital of Baghdad are all the scenes of deadly violence on Monday .
A car bomb in Mosul claims the lives of five people, including two soldiers .
Iraqi security forces are conducting a large-scale operation against al Qaeda .
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By . John Stevens . PUBLISHED: . 20:28 EST, 19 February 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 20:28 EST, 19 February 2013 . White people are suffering from an unspoken racism in Britain, according to the mother of murdered black teenager Stephen Lawrence. Doreen Lawrence will this week warn that British society is going ‘backwards’ in terms of equality and that white minority groups are among those facing racism. Despite some progress on race and equality in the 20 years since her son’s murder, in many ways the problems are getting worse as racism is ‘no longer on the political agenda’, she will say. Politics and professions are dominated by an ‘old boys’ network’, according to Mrs Lawrence – who will say that we still live in a country ‘organised and shaped’ by race. Doreen Lawrence, Mother of murdered student Stephen Lawrence, will this week warn that British society is going 'backwards' in terms of equality and that white minority groups are among those facing racism . Mrs Lawrence, 60, will say that racism within the British education system is holding back talented black youngsters. It is more difficult for black students than white people to achieve a first-class degree, she will claim. Those who do obtain qualifications and have so-called ‘good accents’ still suffer from racism, she will say. Mrs Lawrence’s remarks will come in a speech she is to deliver at the opening of a research centre specialising in race and education at Birmingham University later this week. ‘Race matters: it matters to all of us,’ she will say. ‘Crucially, when we talk about race we are not just talking about the experiences of black and minority ethnic groups. ‘We are also talking about the experiences of white groups. Yet this is something that we, as a society, seldom acknowledge or discuss.’ Mrs Lawrence will add: ‘I want – we all want – a society in which we can live safely and freely irrespective of the colour of our skin. ‘We want a society in which success and choice are not merely limited to the few but are available to all. A society where the old boys’ network – in other words a network which is male, wealthy and white –- no longer automatically leads across the professions and our Parliament. ‘Just as we are a society that continues to be organised and shaped by class and by gender, we are a society that – some 20 years after Stephen’s murder – continues to be organised and shaped by race.’ Despite some progress on race and equality in the 20 years since her son¿s murder, in many ways the problems are getting worse as racism is 'no longer on the political agenda', she will say . Professor David Gillborn, director of the new centre, said: ‘Debates about education are almost solely based around class but what we have found is that, despite having a professional education and good income and knowing their way around the education system, black middle-class parents still face an uphill battle against the chronic low expectations that many teachers bring to their interactions with black children.’ Stephen Lawrence, 18, a student who was hoping to become an architect, was stabbed to death by a gang of racist white youths in Eltham, South East London, in April 1993. Last year two men, Gary Dobson and David Norris, were jailed for life for his murder following a campaign to bring them to justice supported by the Daily Mail. Following Stephen’s death, a public inquiry into the police’s handling of the tragedy concluded the Metropolitan Police was institutionally racist. Earlier this year, Mrs Lawrence was awarded an honorary doctorate from the University of York in recognition for her work against racism. At the ceremony on January 25 she was praised for ‘devoting a large part of her life to social justice’. She was also honoured for her ‘tireless campaign against racism and inequality’ as a result of her lengthy wait to see her son’s murderers jailed. Accepting the award, Mrs Lawrence said: ‘I see education as the most precious gift that we can give our children.’ In the years after her son’s death, Mrs Lawrence founded the Stephen Lawrence Charitable Trust to help young people from disadvantaged backgrounds. She also sits on the board of Liberty, the human rights organisation, and is a patron of the hate-crime charity Stop Hate UK. In 2003, she was appointed an OBE for services to community relations. Last summer she was chosen as a flagbearer at the Opening Ceremony for the London 2012 Olympics, alongside boxer Muhammad Ali and UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon. Last year, Mrs Lawrence also received a special prize at the Women of the Year awards, as well as another honorary doctorate from the University of East London. Sorry we are unable to accept comments for legal reasons.
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Mrs Lawrence: 'White minority groups are among those .
facing racism'
'Politics are dominated by an ‘old boys’ network’, she says .
It comes as she prepares to open research centre specialising in race and education at Birmingham University .
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The Colombian women's cycling team were meant to be showing the world what they were made of as they posed in their new kit this week. But they appeared to show a little too much as all eyes were drawn to the bizarre new flesh-coloured design stretching across their lower torso. As the smiling athletes took to the stage, they seemed blissfully unaware of the blunder, which left them looking completely exposed at the groin. Scroll down for video . Strip-tease: Colombian women's cycling team proudly pose in their startling new kit design in Italy this week . The Colombian team, which is sponsored by the country's capital city of Bogota, was wearing the outfit to take part in a cycling competition in Italy. The race is held in honour of former Italian champion, Michela Fanini, whose promising career was cut short when she died in a car crash in 1994 at just 21 years old.. It is difficult to ascertain whether the outrageous new strip was a publicity stunt or a genuine fashion faux-pas but the team may think twice about turning out in it again. The design has caused a stir on social media - with many ranking it among the worst kits ever seen at a sporting event. Some joked on Twitter that they had gone out to buy the kit, while others criticised the stunt for going too far. Comparisons were also made with other sporting fashion mishaps- such as the Scottish team's kit at this summer's Commonwealth Games which involved a strange tartan and blue spotted design. Bare ambition: The six athletes pose for a photo with one of their coaches ahead of this week's race . The Footon Servetto Fuji Tour de France 2010 squad had a similarly embarrassing moment when they revealed their kit - complete with a ridiculous bulging groin . A member of the Footon Servetto Fuji Tour de France 2010 squad shows a little too much to the camera . Equally bad: Several posts on Twitter said the Colombian kit was on a par with the outfit worn by the Scottish team at this summer's Commonwealth Games .
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Six athletes mount podium to reveal their startling new kit design .
Strip features flesh-coloured section covering lower torso and groin .
Bizarre outfit has caused stir on social media ahead of race in Italy this week .
Comparisons have been made to a 2010 Tour de France team with similarly shocking race outifts .
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The Ukrainian parliament has renounced Ukraine's 'non-aligned' status with the aim of . eventually joining NATO - a move angering Moscow which views the Western . alliance's eastward expansion as a threat to its own security. Kiev first announced its intention of seeking the protection . of NATO membership in August following what it deemed the open . participation of Russia's military during the separatist war in its eastern provinces. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov called Ukraine's . renunciation of its neutral military and political status a . 'counterproductive' step that would only boost tensions around . the crisis in the east. Scroll down for video . Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov (pictured left) called Ukraine's shift towards NATO 'counterproductive', while Ukrainian Foreign Minister Pavlo Klimkin (pictured right) said the move underscored his country's determination to pivot towards Europe and the West . An armored personnel carrier rolls through the streets of the rebel-held town of Torez, in eastern Ukraine . The head of the Donetsk People's Republic Alexander Zakharchenko (centre) arrives to welcome a Russian aid convoy arriving in Donetsk, eastern Ukraine . 'It will only escalate the confrontation and creates the . illusion that it is possible to resolve Ukraine's deep internal . crisis by passing such laws,' TASS news agency quoted him as . saying. Addressing deputies in Kiev before the vote, Ukrainian . Foreign Minister Pavlo Klimkin said the move underscored the . country's determination to pivot towards Europe and the West. 'This will lead to integration in the European and the . Euro-Atlantic space,' he said. The amendment passed easily, receiving 303 votes, 77 more . than the minimum required to pass into law. Any accession to the Western military alliance is likely to . take years, but a NATO spokesman in Brussels said: 'Our door is . open and Ukraine will become a member of NATO if it so requests . and fulfils the standards and adheres to the necessary . principles.' Ties between Moscow and Kiev are at an all-time low since . Russia's annexation of the Crimean peninsula from Ukraine in . March and the subsequent outbreak of the pro-Russian rebellion . in the east. The pro-Western authorities in Kiev accuse Russia of . orchestrating and arming the uprising after the overthrow of a . Ukrainian president sympathetic to Moscow. The Kremlin denies . that it is behind the revolt.
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Ukrainian parliament has taken steps towards closer ties with the West .
The decision to begin seeking NATO membership is likely to anger Russia .
Russia said it was 'counterproductive' for stability in Ukraine's east .
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(CNN) -- In light of reports that linked the name "Geronimo" with the operation that took down Osama bin Laden, Native Americans expressed disappointment Thursday and pointed to the sacrifices they have made in the service. "To associate a Native warrior with bin Laden is not an accurate reflection of history and it undermines the military service of Native people," said Jefferson Keel, president of the National Congress of American Indians. "It's critical that military leaders and operational standards honor the service of those who protect our freedom." Initial press reports said that "Geronimo" was used in the raid to refer to bin Laden, but a senior administration official later told CNN that it was code for the act of capturing or killing bin Laden, not for the man himself. Keel said that according to his understanding, the most-wanted terrorist's code name was "Jackpot," and the name of the operation was "Geronimo." Geronimo was an Apache leader in the late 1800s who is revered by many in the Southwest as a hero, the NCAI said. Harlyn Geronimo, a descendant of the warrior, was sharply critical of the use of his great-grandfather's name. "Whether it was intended only to name the military operation to kill or capture Osama bin Laden or to give Osama bin Laden himself the code name Geronimo, either was an outrageous insult and mistake," he said. To use the name is "such a subversion of history that it also defames a great human spirit and Native American leader," he said. Thom Wallace, communications director of NCAI, said that whatever the reason behind the use of the name "Geronimo" and the debate over it, the real conversation was being lost. That conversation, he said, is about the 24,000 American Indian active members of the military. A disproportionately high number of Native Americans serve in the U.S. military, he said. The group pointed out that 61 American Indians and Alaskan Natives have been killed serving in the armed forces in Afghanistan and Iraq, and 445 have been injured. "Let's be very clear about what is important here: The successful removal of Osama bin Laden as a threat to the United States honors the sacrifice these Native warriors made for the United States and their people," said Keel, himself a veteran.
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Tying Geronimo to bin Laden "undermines the military service of Native people," official says .
Dozens of Native Americans have died serving in Afghanistan and Iraq .
Geronimo was an Apache leader in the late 1800s .
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This is the photo of a romantic kiss which got a pair of Moroccan teenagers arrested for being a 'danger to social order'. Police detained the couple, aged 14 and 15, for 'public indecency' after the image they posted on Facebook was picked up and printed by a local paper. But the incident spawned a wide online protest against Morocco’s authoritarian Muslim regime under the hashtag #Nadorkiss. 'Gross indecency': Police arrested these teenagers after this photograph of them kissing outside their school in Nador, Morocco, was posted on Facebook . The . photo - blurred to protect the young couple's identify - was reposted . on a twitter account for a Moroccan-based arm of Anonymous, a global . group of so-called hacktivists which claims to campaign for freedom . from censorship. On their twitter account they mocked authorities for their clampdown, adding: 'THIS is the kiss..THIS is what the Gov feels is destroying the Nat'l order and social harmony of Morocco'. A campaign is now spreading across social . networks to defend the right of public displays of affection which are restricted in the conservative country. Dozens of protesters staged a kiss-in . to show their solidarity with the teenagers and posted pictures of their . own kisses on twitter. Clash: A thug, left, tries to break up a 'kiss-in', organised by Moroccan activists in protest at the arrest and trial of three teenagers for 'violating public decency' One twitter user posted: '#NadorKiss . is not just about the three kids who are facing jail, it is about the . right to freedom online in repressive societies.' Another . wrote: 'Does a simple kiss really impose a threat to the National order . and social harmony to the extent of arresting the kids involved? #NadorKiss' The couple, as well as the boy who took the photo outside their school in the town of Nador, were arrested after a local newspaper printed the image. The . three youngsters are all due in court today for a closed hearing, . followed by a sentencing next week, according to the Agence France-Presse. They are currently being held at a juvenile detention centre for violating public decency. Protest: Dozens of couples staged a kiss-in to protest against the authoritarian Moroccan regime's clampdown on public displays of affection . A sit-in has begun outside the centre to demand their release. Human Rights organisations said the incident has provoked scores of 'copycat' posts - with the BBC reporting a campaign to post a million copycat photos has been launched in protest. Chakib al-Khayari, president of the Rif Association of Human Rights said: '[the incident] involves a teenage boy and his girlfriend. 'They were arrested on Thursday for violating public decency by posting a photo of them kissing.' A local official has confirmed the arrests, but declined to comment.
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Police swooped on couple, 14 and 15, after image was posted on Facebook .
Authoritarian Moroccan regime accused couple of 'gross indecency'
Teens are due in court today for a closed hearing on their case .
Protests and 'kiss-ins' staged to campaign against the clampdown .
Thousands take to social networks to mock authorities over the arrests .
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A two-shot swing on the final hole of the final women's major of the season saw South Korean teenager Hyo-Joo Kim clinch a remarkable victory in the Evian Championship at the expense of Karrie Webb of Australia Sunday. Webb chasing an eighth career major, but first since 2006, was one ahead going into the 18th hole, but took three shots from the edge of the green for a bogey five, missing her final effort from 12 feet. By contrast, the 19-year-old Kim, playing her first major, showed no sign of nerves as he rolled home a 15-foot birdie putt to finish on 11-under 273. It left her a shot clear and the third youngest winner of a major behind U.S. pair Morgan Pressel and Lexi Thompson. Speaking through an interpreter, Kim admitted: "I was flying like a bird." Webb, who would have become the first player to win six different majors, with the Evian Championship a recent addition to the roster, said she had misjudged her first effort from the edge of the green. "It was a rush of adrenaline with the belly wedge and the putt was faster than I thought. It was a very poor putt and I knew I had to make it for a play-off. "I had a lot of good shots and hit every green bar the second hole and it's obviously disappointing, but I gave myself a good chance." Kim, who stunned the golf world with her opening 10-under 61 in France, closed with a final round of 68 to clinch the 350,000-euro first prize ($487,500). She has the added bonus of winning her full playing rights to next season's LPGA Tour without having to qualify. Webb also shot a 68 for 10-under with two more South Koreans, Jang Ha-Na (66) and Hur Mi Jung (68) tied for third on nine-under. To complete its domination, another Korean Choi Na Yeon, was fifth on eight-under after a fine closing 67. Kim first came to attention at the 2012 Evian Masters -- the last event before it became a major -- finishing fourth as an amateur that year. In 2013 she was Rookie of the Year on the Korean Tour and has already won three times this season. U.S. star Michelle Wie had to pull out of the first round with a hand injury, but had some consolation by sealing the inaugural Annika (Sorenstam) Major Award. It is for the player who has won at least one major and has the best overall record. Wie claimed her first major at the U.S.Women's Open champion and was runner-up to Thompson in the Kraft Nabisco Championship.
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Teenager Hyo-Joo Kim wins Evian Championship .
Two-shot swing on final hole of final women's major of the season .
Australia's Karrie Webb bogeys to finish in second .
Kim shot a course record 61 in the first round .
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By . Lucy Waterlow . PUBLISHED: . 19:32 EST, 25 March 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 21:41 EST, 25 March 2013 . Regrets: Amy Roberts committed 30 drunken offences between the ages of 16 and 18 . A young woman who was arrested 30 times for drunken attacks - including punching police officers - has warned against the dangers of binge drinking. Amy Roberts, from Glasgow, told Closer magazine how alcohol transformed her from a shy schoolgirl into a violent criminal. She said: 'Alcohol turned me into a . crazed animal – I once punched a man in the face five times until he . bled and enjoyed it. It disgusts me now. But I became addicted to the . confidence alcohol gave me.' Amy, now aged 21, started drinking when she was 14 blaming 'peer pressure' from her older friends. As . a teenager she would often drink four times a week, taking her weekly . intake to 162 units - the recommended weekly intake for a woman is 14. On a typical night she would down a bottle of Mad Dog 20/20, a bottle of Lambrini and 10 vodka shots. Lacking . in self-esteem as a teenager, she said the alcohol made her feel more . 'confident and chatty' and helped her 'fit in' with her friends. However, it also led to her committing a number of violent offences. The first was when she attacked a police officer who tried to take a bottle off her when she was caught drinking in the street. She recalled: 'I bit her hand – I felt filled with . rage and couldn't stop myself. She handcuffed me and I was kept in a . police cell for the night. 'In the morning, I was horrified – I was a . good girl, doing well at school and from a good family. I'd never been . violent before.' However, the incident was not enough . to make Amy change her ways. In fact she said having a conviction for . attacking a police officer was like 'a badge of honour' as her friends . thought it was 'cool'.hh . Out of control: On an average night she would consume a bottle of Mad Dog 20/20, a bottle of Lambrini and 10 vodka shots . She went on to commit a string of other drunken offences - around one a month - between the ages of 16 to 18 including punching other police officers, security guards and her friends. On one occasion, she viciously attacked a landlord who kicked her out of his pub for being under age. 'I punched him in the face, five times. He was bleeding . from the nose. I was like an animal, shouting and screaming. I was . actually getting a thrill out of it,' she said. Amy admits she was 'out of control' and ignored the pleas from her 'angry and disappointed' mother, Helen, 59, a care worker, to give up alcohol. Peer pressure: Amy said she drank to fit in with her older friends and feel more confident (posed by models) Amy shares her story in this week's Closer magazine . The wake up call she needed only came after a five-and-a-half-month prison sentence she was given for punching another police officer in what was her 30th attack. Upon her release in April 2011, she had counselling and agreed to stop seeing her old friends. She now only drinks occasionally and volunteers in a clothes shop. She left school with six A to C GCSE grades and would love to get a full-time paid job but fears her criminal record will always hold her back. 'My past will haunt me forever,' she said. 'I don't know if I'll ever work – I'll be branded a criminal forever and it makes me feel worthless.' Amy is not alone in her teen addiction to alcohol as recent figures have revealed a surge in the number of girls under 15 consuming 11 units a week. There has also been a 50 per cent rise inthe past five years in fines issued to women under 21 for committing drunken violence. Amy now hopes other girls will learn from her story and change their ways. 'I'm embarrassed and ashamed of my past. Binge-drinking might seem like fun, but it wrecks lives.' Read Amy's full story in this week's Closer magazine .
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Amy Roberts from Glasgow was arrested 30 times .
She bit a police officer and punched a landlord in the face when drunk .
Wake up call came after she was sent to prison .
Now she's warning others how binge drinking 'wrecks lives'
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Jack Wilshere has not suffered a setback in his bid to recover from an ankle injury, insists Arsenal's communications director. Mark Gonnella took to Twitter on Monday to deny that the Gunners and England midfielder would now be out for longer than the originally-diagnosed period of 12 weeks after reports last week had claimed he could be out until May. The 22-year-old damaged ankle ligaments during the 2-1 loss against Manchester United at the Emirates in November and then underwent surgery to repair the injury. Jack Wilshere is still set to return from injury 'on schedule' according to Arsenal's communications director . Arsenal's communications director Mark Gonnella took to Twitter to deny Wilshere had suffered a setback . And he is expected to be out until at least February as a result of the injury - but the club's communications director insists the timeframe for Wilshere's remains the same as it was before. Gonnella took to Twitter to explain: 'Jack Wilshere has not had a setback. 'On schedule for return to squad as per original plan. 12 weeks from injury.' Wilshere is helped off the field by the Arsenal physio after getting injured against Manchester United . The England midfielder holds his leg in agony after suffering the damage in November .
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Jack Wilshere suffered ankle ligament damage in November for Arsenal .
Midfielder was ruled out for 12 weeks after undergoing surgery on ankle .
Communications director Mark Gonnella denied Wilshere suffered setback .
Gonnella said on Twitter: '(Wilshere's) on schedule for return'
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By . Daily Mail Reporter . Different reality: Andrew Firestone married Ivana Bozilovic in 2008. The couple has two children . As he appears to leave reality TV behind him, former Bachelor star Andrew Firestone is now looking to politics - and handing a rose to Mitt Romney. Firestone, 37, of Santa Barbara, has latched on to the California delegation that will formally nominate Romney as the Republican candidate for president on Tuesday. Attending the Republican National Convention in Tampa, Florida, Firestone says that he’s hoping Romney will present solutions for the issues affecting America. He told the Sacramento Bee: ‘I don't think anybody denies that this country is going in the wrong direction and we want a plan. Firestone, now a married father of two, says he has come to Tampa hoping Romney will motivate Republicans. He said: 'We want a direct idea of how it's going to be put into place to get us going in the right direction. Firestone added: 'Politics are participatory and not just by the elected officials but by the private sector as well and being able to have their voice heard and being able to participate in the process.' The winery owner says he likens the rigors of the campaign trail to competing in a dating reality show, but says there is one key difference. He told the Bee: 'I think probably the difference between politics and 'The Bachelor' is the fact that the candidates I think in 'The Bachelor' are a lot better looking.' Backing: Firestone is attending the Republican National Convention in Tampa, where Mitt Romney is expected to be formally nominated on Wednesday . He added: 'But probably just as stressful as well.' Contestant: Firestone took part in the third series of The Bachelor in April 2003, when he courted 25 women . Firestone is not the first of his namesake to enter the Republican fray. His dad, former Assemblyman Brooks Firestone, was an avid supporter of Bob Dole, who ran an unsuccessful campaign to unseat Bill Clinton from the White House in 1996, according to KEYT. Firestone took part in the third series of ABC show The Bachelor in April 2003, when he courted 25 women. He eventually picked Jen Schefft and proposed to her, but they split that December. Firestone went on to marry actress and model Ivana Bozilovic in 2008. The couple has two children. Post-Bachelor, Firestone has also appeared on such TV shows as Iron Chef America, Celebrity Poker Showdown, and Celebrity Paranormal Project. His grandfather, Harvey Firestone, is the founder of the Firestone Tire and Rubber Company.
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Firestone comes to Florida in first appearance as a political delegate .
Son of former Assemblyman Brooks Firestone, an avid supporter of Bob Dole when he ran for president in 1996 .
Grandson of Harvey Firestone, the co-founder of Firestone Tire and Rubber company .
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By . Peter Campbell, City Correspondent . PUBLISHED: . 12:01 EST, 2 August 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 12:45 EST, 2 August 2013 . Overpaid: Moya Greene has to pay back the the £250,000 and any capital gains that was made on the property that she bought with it . A controversial £250,000 payment to help the boss of Royal Mail buy a house will have to be repaid to taxpayers after Vince Cable blocked the move, it has emerged. The business secretary, who has to sign off on any pay increase for the head of the postal service, was kept in the dark for more than a year about the huge sum, documents reveal. ‘I would not have approved it,’ Mr Cable said last night. The debacle is a major embarrassment for the company, which is preparing for a £3billion privatisation later this year. Canadian Moya Greene was brought in by ministers three years ago to help shake up the Royal Mail ahead of the sell-off. Last year her package of pay and perks rose by 33 per cent to almost £1.5million, Royal Mail’s accounts last night showed. This included a one-off £250,000 cash sum to help her get on the UK housing ladder - even though she already receives up to £127,000 a year in ‘relocation payments’ because she moved from Canada. She used the money to help buy a house in London in April 2012, sources close to the company confirmed. But Mr Cable only learned about the money when presented with a draft copy of the company’s annual accounts on July 5 this year - a full 15 months later. He immediately demanded that Ms Greene pay the money back - and that taxpayers were reimbursed for any capital gains made on the property since its purchase. A source close to the business secretary said: ‘He felt very strongly about this when he found out.’ Mr Cable said: ‘I am pleased that this unapproved payment is being returned. The company acted quickly to rectify the situation. ‘A mistake was made in not seeking my approval: I would not have approved it. ‘The chairman is sorry; the payment is being returned. I now regard the matter closed.’ He added: ‘Moya Greene is an exceptionally good chief executive and she and the board have my full support to take the company forward.’ Ms Greene has already paid £130,000 in tax on the payment, and will now have to pay back the remaining £120,000, either when the company floats on the stock market or at the end of the financial year. The company has also agreed to pay back any capital gains made on the property. Although Ms Greene’s basic pay was frozen at £498,000, her £1.5million pacakge included a performance-related bonus of £399,000 and £200,000 in lieu of a pension. Her contractual entitlements include two return trips to her native Canada a year, as well as medical cover and financial advice. Fellow Canadian Mark Carney, the new Bank of England governor, receives £250,000 a year in housing allowance as part of his contract. Embarrassing: Business Secretary Vince Cable (left) said he would not have approved the payment and it was a 'mistake' that he was not asked. Shadow business secretary Chuka Umunna (right) said an apology is not enough . Royal Mail’s pay committee is led by . Orna Ni-Chionna, who is also the senior independent director at . collapsed music retailer HMV. A . statement in the Royal Mail accounts said: ‘In the exceptional . circumstances of the chief executive’s relocation and commitment to the . UK, additional assistance, on the purchase of a home, was offered given . the difference in residential costs between the UK and Canada. ‘The . chief executive was not involved in the decision nor does she engage . with Government about payments made to her by the company.’ Even though the pay committee admitted it should have sought Mr Cable’s approval, it added: ‘The committee considers it made its decision in good faith in exceptional circumstances.’ Mrs Ni-Chionna, who is married to former City regulator Lord Adair Turner, was paid £60,000 last year for sitting on the Royal Mail board, including £10,000 for chairing the group’s pay committee. Fellow Canadian: Governor of the bank of England Mark Carney is given £250,000 a year as a housing allowance . A spokesman for the Royal Mail last night said: ‘The remuneration committee appreciates that executive remuneration is a sensitive subject in the current economic environment. ‘Under Moya Greene’s leadership, . Royal Mail has been transformed.’ Mario Dunn, from campaign group Save . Our Royal Mail, said: ‘Vince Cable was absolutely right to insist this . allowance was repaid. ‘Yet . he also tells us that it is necessary to privatise Royal Mail precisely . so it can undertake this kind of activity without the government . interfering. ‘Mr Cable . cannot have his cake and eat it. By setting Royal Mail free it will be . able to award massive salaries to its Executives without any . accountability.’ Dave . Ward, from the Communication Workers Union, said: ‘Ordinary postal . workers will be appalled at this excessive, inflation-busting increase . in bonuses for Moya Greene. ‘These pay and bonus figures make Royal Mail’s below-inflation pay offer look even more insulting than it was originally.’ Shadow . business secretary Chuka Umunna said: 'This was a shocking decision . that very much calls into question the judgement of the remuneration . committee. 'The chairman needs to account for the decision that was made. 'It is not enough to have the secretary of state intervene and then for Royal Mail to issue an apology. 'We need a full explanation from the remuneration committee chairman if she is to command confidence going forward.'
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Business Secretary Vince Cable has to sign off on any pay increases for Royal Mail boss .
He was kept in the dark about the payments for more than a year .
Embarrassing set of events for executive who earns £1.5million .
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(CNN) -- This year's Forbes Rich List is notable for the absence of Bill Gates at the top. After 13 years as the world's richest man, he has finally been toppled by his friend Warren Buffett who has an estimate fortune of $62bn. The Middle East's richest man: Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Alsaud . The list -- which is a run down of the 1,125 richest people on the planet -- estimates a person's total net worth in US dollars based on the closing stock prices of the stock exchanges on which their company is listed. The Middle East's richest man is Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Alsaud, the 51 year old Saudi who has an estimated net worth of $21bn. He ranks 19th in the list and is considered to be the most active and successful investor in the Middle East. He took his investment vehicle, Kingdom Holding, public on the Saudi stock exchange in July 2007. The company contains investments in well-known global companies such as Citigroup and News Corp. In the early 1990s, Alwaleed made a risky bet on Citigroup that paid off massively and has in recent years accounted for nearly half his fortune. Kuwaiti construction heir Nasser Al-Kharafi is the next richest in 46th place with an inherited fortune of $14bn. He heads M.A. Al-Kharafi & Sons, one of the largest diversified conglomerates in the Arab world. Americana, the company's lucrative food division is extremely successful and has exclusive franchise rights in the region for Pizza Hut, TGI Fridays and other big global brands. Faiza, his sister was the first woman president of Kuwait University. Naguib Sawiris, the eldest son of telecoms billionaire and Orascom Telecom founder Onsi Sawiris ranks next in 60th place with a net worth of $12.7bn. In addition to Orascom Telecom, his assets -- via European holding company Weather Investments -- include Italian phone company, Wind and leading Greek telecom companies Wind Hellas and Tellas. His brother, Nassef is in 68th place, with an estimated worth of $11bn and his father Onsi who serves as chairman of Orascom comes in at 96th place with $9bn. E-mail to a friend .
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The Middle East's richest man is Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Alsaud .
He ranks 19th in the world in the Forbes Rich List .
Seven other billionaires from the Middle East rank in the top 100 .
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f62be26971b480bc1165db29df6007bc9a3e2622
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The trial of a 25-year-old Maine mother who allegedly drugged and smothered her young daughter to death in June 2013 began Monday. Defendant Leanna Norris pleaded not guilty to intentional or knowing murder in 2013, and in September entered a not guilty by reason of insanity plea, Bangor Daily News reported. Martha Harris, who is representing Norris, told the courtroom that her client was depressed and had both anxiety and mood disorders last year, according to the newspaper. Though Harris had also said Norris wasn't at fault, Assistant Attorney General Deb Cashman said Norris knowingly committed the murder. 'She did not want Mike dating other women and did not want them mothering her child,' she reportedly said. Mother: Leanna Norris, seen Monday in court, is accused of killing her 2-year-old daughter Loh Grenada . Testimony: Assistant Attorney General Deb Cashman said Norris knowingly committed the murder and 'did not want Mike dating other women and did not want them mothering her child' Norris' ex-boyfriend Michael Grenda, who was the father to two-year-old Loh Grenda, testified Monday about the parents' estranged relationship, according to the newspaper. His testimony reportedly included that the couple's verbal disputes led to police being dispatched on multiple occasions -- and though Grenda broke up with Norris on June 16, 2013, the two agreed to stay and parent in the same residence. Norris' digital communications with different men stopped a potential reunion, he also said, according to Bangor Daily News. Murder trial: Leanna Norris, left, allegedly killed daughter Loh Grenada (right), in June 2013 before trying to take her own life . Prosecution: Assistant Attorney General Leann Zainea appears Monday in the courtroom . Grenda reportedly recounted his telling Norris on June 23 'that was the end of everything' - and then 'She became very upset. She was crying and smashing her head against the wall.' The 27-year-old's testimony also reportedly revealed that Norris cooled off that morning through his help, he left the home in the afternoon, and found out what happened to Loh Grenda on June 24. Steven Norris, the alleged murderer's father, testified though he and Leana Norris spent Father's Day and her June 18 birthday together, she had been unresponsive with her cell phone for several days before receiving a text message from her, Bangor Daily News reported. According to the newspaper, he recalled Monday that he received a a 2.27am phone call on June 24 from Leanna Norris, in which she admitted to killing her daughter. He also reportedly described how he contacted authorities as Leanna Norris' mother was on the phone with her, and Leanna Norris showed up at her parents' house and her daughter was dead inside the car. Leanna Norris was suicidal at her parent's house and wanted a gun, her father also reportedly testified. Judge: Superior Court Justice Ann Murray is pictured at the bench . The first day of the trial was held at Penobscot Judicial Center . Cowardly act: Norris allegedly gave her daughter Benadryl, duct-taped her mouth and covered her with a blanket so she 'would not have to look at Loh's eyes' Suicidal: Leanna Norris allegedly asked for a gun after her daughter's death . Bangor Daily News earlier reported that Leanna Norris was arrested last year after Loh Grenda's body was found in the front seat of her car in Stetson, Maine, on June 24, 2013. According to the newspaper, her affidavit by Maine State Police Detective Thomas Pickering said she offered 'two or three syringes of Benadryl to make [Loh Grenda] go to sleep.' 'Leanna Norris put black Gorilla [duct] tape on Loh Grenda’s mouth and nose; that Leanna Norris put a blanket over Loh Grenda’s face so she would not have to look at Loh’s eyes,' the affidavit reportedly said. ' Leanna Norris said that she killed Loh Grenda; that Leanna Norris put her hand over Loh Grenda’s face and suffocated her.' Norris said she took the tape off 'so it would not look so horrible', the affidavit is said to reveal. Later at a Stetson cemetery was 'where [Leanna Norris] took pills and put tape on her face in order to kill herself,' the affidavit also reportedly said. But, after vomiting, the 24-year-old allegedly called her father, Steven Norris, and then drove to his house, where he discovered his granddaughter dead under a blanket. Defense: Defense attorney Martha Harris is seen Monday at Penobscot Judicial Center . Tragic: Loh Grenada's small lifeless body was discovered inside her mother's car .
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Leanna Norris, 25, charged with killing her 2-year-old daughter, Loh Grenada, in June 2013 .
Police say she plied the toddler with Benadryl, placed duct-tape on her mouth and smothered her .
Norris initially pleaded not guilty to murder but changed her plea to not guilty by reason of insanity in September 2014 .
The mother also waived her right to a trial by jury .
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(CNN) -- The forthcoming trial in Germany of John Demjanjuk could be the last occasion on which a Nazi war crimes suspect faces prosecution. German officials claim John Demjanjuk was an accessory to 29,000 murders in a Nazi death camp. But the legacy of decades-old efforts to bring the perpetrators of World War II atrocities to justice means that those who commit similar offences in the 21st century will not be able to hide from their past so easily, according to a leading war crimes prosecutor. Many leading Nazis such as Hermann Goering, Rudolf Hess and Albert Speer were prosecuted by the main allies -- the U.S., the Soviet Union and the UK -- shortly after the end of the war at the Nuremberg Trials. South African judge Richard Goldstone, formerly the chief U.N. prosecutor for war crimes in Yugoslavia and Rwanda, told CNN that Nuremberg had been the "first attempt of any importance to hold war criminals accountable" and had laid the foundations for the development of modern humanitarian law. Yet many lower-ranking servants of the Nazi regime and its allies were able to escape punishment for their crimes, assuming new identities, fleeing Europe or even finding employment with Soviet or western security agencies as determination to bring them to justice waned with the advent of the Cold War, according to Rabbi Marvin Hier of the Simon Wiesenthal Center. "These murderers walked into small cities and killed men, women and children and walked away without a trace," Hier told CNN. "The sad thing is that had the world wanted to prosecute Nazi war criminals after Nuremberg, and had (countries) put up the budget and the resources then every one of these elusive criminals would have been brought to justice." But Goldstone said that the creation in 2002 of the International Criminal Court marked a "very important step forward" to ensure that future atrocities would not be so quickly forgotten. While previous tribunals investigating crimes in Rwanda and Yugoslavia were ad hoc creations set up by the U.N. Security Council, the ICC is a permanent institution with a specific remit to investigate and prosecute cases of genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes. Goldstone said that developments in humanitarian law and the evolution of international justice meant that modern institutions were more sophisticated and fairer than Nuremberg had been, recognizing the rights of victims to representation but also ensuring a fair trial for defendants. "Modern international law requires trials that are a lot fairer than the trials that were put on at Nuremberg," he said. The jurisdiction of the ICC is currently recognized by 108 countries -- though not by the U.S., Russia or China. But Goldstone said the court was "moving quickly" towards universal ratification and said U.S. President Barack Obama's new administration was likely to be more cooperative and friendlier to the ICC than predecessor George W. Bush had been in office. "I'd love to see the day when there is universal ratification because when that happens there will be nowhere for war criminals to run to," he said. Demjanjuk, an 89-year-old native Ukrainian deported from the U.S. this week, is alleged to have been a guard at the Sobibor death camp in Nazi-occupied Poland and is accused of being an accessory to the murder of more than 29,000 people. Hier said Demjanjuk's extradition marked the culmination of greater efforts in the U.S. since the late 1970s to send suspected war criminals to face trial. An Office of Special Investigations was established in 1979 to hunt for war criminals on U.S. soil, while legislation allowed even suspects who had acquired U.S. citizenship to be extradited for lying on their naturalization papers about their Nazi pasts. But he said Demjanjuk's trial could be the last of its kind -- and not just because of the age of suspected war criminals still at large. "You can't just have a trial with documents. You have to have living witnesses," Hier said. "Most of those witnesses are very old, most of them are well into their 80s and beyond and they have to be in sufficient good health that they can be questioned and travel to take part in the trial." But Hier said it was very important that former Nazis were pursued to the grave, living out their final years with the fear that their past crimes could still catch up with them. "(Nazi hunter) Simon Wiesenthal talked about two kinds of justice. There is the justice of handcuffs and putting someone on trial. But there is also a psychological fear of a knock on the door," he said. "Every Nazi war criminal should live every night of his life with the possibility that in his case there will yet be a knock on the door."
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Expert: Trial of Nazi war crimes suspect John Demjanjuk could be last of its kind .
Leading Nazis prosecuted at Nuremberg but many lesser Nazis escaped justice .
Struggle to prosecute Nazis influenced creation of International Criminal Court .
ICC has remit to probe war crimes, genocide, crimes against humanity .
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By . Chris Kitching for MailOnline . More than 200 years after the original was wrecked at sea, a life-sized replica of the Hermione has embarked on a series of sea trials to prepare for its maiden transatlantic voyage. The replica of the French navy frigate that shipped General Lafayette to America in 1780 tested the waters for the first time today after her careful construction lasted 17 years. The three-masted ship departed a harbour in Rochefort, France in a major step toward its voyage to the US, where it will follow in the footsteps of Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de Lafayette in April 2015. C'est magnifique: A life-sized replica of French navy frigate the Hermione has set sail for the first time . Return to glory: The back of the 213ft-long frigate, a replica of the original, is pictured at a harbour in France . Completed in 1779, the original Hermione is famous for ferrying General Lafayette to America to lead rebels fighting British troops in the US War of Independence. The wooden replica was built with 18th century shipbuilding techniques and materials - from the pulley systems to the massive oak hull - and cost a staggering £20million to complete. It was financed by the shipyard’s four million visitors and crowd-funding efforts. Its construction began in 1997 after a group of enthusiasts formed the Hermione-Lafayette Association, attracting artisan craftsmen from across Europe. Benedict Donnelly, the association’s president, the Agence France-Presse: ’It is an important step to sail Hermione at sea, which no one has ever done. ‘There is real pride in the collective force behind this project. There have been tense moments, but we remained united.’ What a sight: The original Hermione carried General Lafayette to America in 1780 . Maiden voyage: The replica will sail to the US in April 2015 once sea trials and final preparations are finished . Labour of love: The wooden replica was built with 18th century shipbuilding techniques at a cost of £20million . After departing Rochefort, the new version will make its way to the Atlantic Ocean, where it will spend several weeks partaking in sea trials while based at Ile-d’Aix. Thousands of people queued along the Charente river to catch a glimpse of the 213ft-long frigate, whose departure was delayed until today due to a build-up of sediment. It was a moment nearly two decades in the making. Towering ship: Thousands of people turned out to get a look at the Hermione in Rochefort, France . Aye aye, captain: Yann Cariou, an ex-naval officer, will captain the frigate for its maiden voyage to the US . Once the sea trials are complete, the Hermione will displayed to the public in Bordeaux for nearly a full week in October before returning to Rochefort to prepare for its journey overseas. The replica will follow the same route that General Lafayette took, with an arrival in Yorktown, Virginia scheduled for June 2015. Yann Cariou, an ex-naval officer, will captain the frigate for its maiden voyage to the US. The original was wrecked at sea in 1793. Marie Joseph Paul Yves Roch Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de Lafayette, better known as General Lafayette . General Lafayette cemented his place in history by having a significant hand in the ousting of monarchies and creation of new regimes in America and France. He became one of the most important figures in the US War of Independence (1775 to 1783) before he played a pivotal role in the French Revolution (1789 to 1799) in his home country. Born into the wealthy Motier family, known by their ancient noble title of La Fayette, he joined the military at a young age and later became a hero in both America and France as he fought alongside the American colonists in key battles against British troops. In April 1780, he arrived aboard the frigate Hermione in command of French forces – marking his second trip to America during the war – and was put in charge of the defence of Virginia with the rank of major general. Lafayette, a close friend of George Washington, the American commander in chief, employed strategies that eventually drew British commander Lord Charles Cornwallis into a trap at Yorktown, Virginia, allowing the united French and American forces to defeat him. Cornwallis’ surrender brought an end to the war, paving the way for American independence. When he returned to France in 1782, Lafayette was celebrated as ‘the hero of two worlds’ and given the rank of brigadier general in the French army. In the following years, he aligned himself with the revolutionary bourgeoisie and became one of the most powerful men in France during the first few years of the French Revolution. With France bordering on political and social upheaval, Lafayette served as a leader of the liberal aristocrats and an advocate of religious toleration and the abolition of the slave trade. He was elected as a representative of the nobility to the States General but supported the bourgeois deputies of the Third Estate in their efforts to gain control and convert the States General into a revolutionary National Assembly. He joined the National Assembly and drafted the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen. He was appointed commander of the newly formed national guard of Paris and his troops saved Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette from a mob that invaded Versailles in 1789. They became hostages of the revolution. Lafayette supported measures that transferred power from the aristocracy to the bourgeoisie while attempting not to protect the constitutional monarchy. But he fell out of favour and was forced to resign when about 50 demonstrators demanding the abdication of the king were killed by his guards in the Champ de Mars massacre in 1791. Lafayette became a commander of the army as France went to war with Austria but after the monarchy was overthrown and he refused to serve the National Convention he was declared a traitor and was forced to defect. He was held captive by Austrian forces until Napoleon Bonaparte secured his release, and he returned to France in 1799. After the monarchy was restored in 1814, Lafayette sat in the Chamber of Deputies during most of King Louis XVIII’s reign and in 1830 he commanded the national guard that helped overthrow King Charles X and install Louis-Phillippe on the throne, although he later became disillusioned with the new king. Lafayette, long regarded as a symbol of friendship between France and America, died in May 1834 following a battle with pneumonia. -Encyclopaedia Britannica .
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Replica of the Hermione embarks on sea trials before transatlantic journey .
Original warship carried General Lafayette to the US War of Independence .
New ship will sail to the US in April 2015 once its sea trials are complete .
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By . Katy Winter . A mother-of-four lost 10st the hard way after being refused gastric surgery when she weighed 22st. Charlotte Green, 39, of Cannock, Staffordshire, was told by her GP that she was not large enough to qualify for a gastric band surgery, despite suffering a uterine prolapse caused by her obesity a year previously. Devastated by the refusal, Mrs Green was inspired by her rugby-playing husband Richard, 37, to hit the gym and she slimmed down to 12st purely through hard graft and changing her diet. Charlotte during her period of weight gain, which saw her weight creep up to 22st . After being refused weight loss surgery on the NHS, Charlotte decided to take control and began exercising and found she loved it, running four times a week. Now (pictured left and right) she weighs a healthy 12st and says she's 'addicted to exercise' She said: 'I was gutted when I was told I couldn’t have the surgery. I really felt as if I deserved it, considering what I’d been through. But Richard picked me up, and convinced me that I’d be able to slim down if I started getting some exercise. 'He persuaded me to join a gym and I quickly became obsessed. I went more than four times a week. I loved running.' Charlotte, who works in children’s services, found it difficult to control her weight gain following the births of her children Elicia, now 21, Olivia, 19, George, 14, and Harrison, 10. She said: 'After each of the births my weight crept up and despite trying diets, I couldn’t seem to do anything about it. Biscuits and chocolate were my downfall. 'I got post-natal depression after each of the births, and I comfort ate. As my weight went up, the depression hit me harder, so it was a bit of a circle.' Charlotte dropped from 22st and size 26 (left) to 12st (right) in just 15 months . In 2005, Mrs Green began experiencing excruciating abdominal pains. She said: 'It was quite scary while I waited for the tests to come back. 'The doctor said my womb had collapsed onto my bowel because I was overweight, and that the only course of action was a hysterectomy. 'I was gutted. Even though I had four beautiful children, I was only 30 years old and I felt I was quite young to be getting a hysterectomy. I hadn’t ruled out the possibility of having more children in the future.' Breakfast: Toast . Lunch: Ham sandwiches . Dinner: Large portion of pasta . Snacks: Numerous bars of chocolate . Breakfast: Grapefruit . Lunch: A tuna salad . Dinner: Grilled chicken and fresh vegetables . Snacks: None . A year later, her weight having reached its maximum of 22st and wearing size 26 clothing, Mrs Green decided to ask her doctor about whether she could have bariatric surgery on the NHS. She said: 'I felt I had no options left. It was very difficult to be told ‘no’. My GP made it quite clear that I didn’t fall within the criteria for surgery. 'I came home very sad, but Richard persuaded me that I could lose weight through exercise if I really wanted to. In 2005, Mrs Green began experiencing excruciating abdominal pains and discovered her womb had collapsed onto her bowel because she was overweight . 'I’d hardly set foot inside a gym before, but once I got in there, it wasn’t so daunting. I found that I loved working out on the treadmill. 'I soon became obsessed with exercise. It was like an addiction.' Mrs Green also completely overhauled her diet. Before beginning her weight loss journey, she typically ate toast for breakfast, followed by ham sandwiches for lunch, followed by an extra-large helping of pasta for dinner. She would snack on chocolate throughout the day. Today, she eats grapefruit for breakfast, followed by tuna salad for lunch, with grilled chicken and fresh vegetables for dinner. After 15 months of hard work, Mrs Green hit her target weight of 12st. Today, despite suffering from damaged joints because of her previous inactivity, Mrs Green maintains her healthy diet and exercise regime. She said: 'It wasn’t my plan to be turned down for surgery but in the end I’m glad I was. It meant I had to change the way I thought. 'I have been left with some excess skin which I’m hoping the NHS will be able to help me get removed. I’ve been told that it might not be possible, which I’m very disappointed about, but I hope they change their minds. 'I’m much fitter and happier now, and I feel all the better knowing that I did it through my own effort.'
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Found it hard to control her weight gain following the births of her children .
In 2005 suffered a uterine prolapse caused by her obesity .
Was refused weight loss surgery on the NHS and decided to take control .
Began exercising and found she loved it, running four times a week .
Also totally overhauled her diet of junk food and comfort eating .
Dropped from 22st and size 26 to 12st in just 15 months .
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By . Beth Stebner . PUBLISHED: . 13:14 EST, 9 December 2012 . | . UPDATED: . 13:19 EST, 9 December 2012 . President Obama and his family will attend this year’s annual ‘Christmas in Washington Concert,’ where Korean rapping sensation PSY is slated to perform, despite controversy surrounding the ‘Gangnam Style’ singer’s anti-American protests several years ago. PSY, born Park Jae-sang, who has enjoyed a meteoric rise to fame following his 'sexy-horse dance,' rapped at a 2004 protest concert to ‘kill those f****** Yankees who have been torturing Iraqi captives…kill them all slowly and painfully.’ The rapper apologized last week for using what he said was 'inflammatory and inappropriate language' during anti-U.S. protests at concerts in 2002 and 2004. Still on: PSY, pictured performing yesterday in Miami, will still perform in tonight's 'Christmas in Washington' concert, slated to air on TNT December 21 . In attendance: The Obamas, pictured at last week's annual tree-lighting ceremony, are still going to this year's 'Christmas in Washington' concert . The song, ‘Dear American,’ was written by South Korean metal band N.E.X.T. Mr Obama traditionally attends the 'Christmas in Washington' concert of carols and songs to benefit Children's National Medical Center. The 31st installment is scheduled for Sunday evening at the National Building Museum, and to be hosted for a second year by comedian Conan O'Brien. Other scheduled performers include Diana Ross, Demi Lovato, ‘American Idol’ alum Scotty McCreery, Chris Mann of 'The Voice' fame, and 'Smash' star Megan Hilty. In a statement, the rapper said Friday: 'While I'm grateful for the freedom to express one's self, I've learned there are limits to what language is appropriate and I'm deeply sorry for how these lyrics could be interpreted. 'I will forever be sorry for any pain I have caused by those words,' he added. In one performance, which PSY said was from eight years ago, the rapper protested the deaths of two teenage South Korean girls who were run over by a U.S. tank stationed in the country. Protesting: PSY, with his face painted gold, posed with a model of an camouflaged tank during the 2002 anti-war demonstrations in Seoul . Outrage: PSY was seen violently smashing the model on stage . In a separate performance, PSY was critical of the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq and its occupation, in which South Korean forces participated. The concert, which films today, is scheduled to air December 21 on TNT. Last week, the president was being urged to boycott the 'Christmas in Washington' show and critics were demanding the 34-year-old South Korean pop star be uninvited after his controversial concerts of the past. But TNT said that despite the furor, PSY will still close the annual event and the Obamas would be in attendance. The rap sensation's graphic 2004 . anti-American song sparked an angry petition on the White House website . urging organizers of the event, which will be pre-recorded this Sunday, . to scratch him from the line up. 'I've learned there are limits to what language is . appropriate and I'm deeply sorry for how these lyrics could be . interpreted. I will forever be sorry for any pain I have caused by those words.' -PSY's statement issued last Friday . The petition rapidly made the rounds on . social media websites as thousands took to Twitter, Facebook and online . message boards to react to the vitriolic lyrics that PSY once sang about . murdering American soldiers 'slowly and painfully'. The hashtag . 'GangnamStyleHatesAmerica' was trending as people unloaded on the artist, even after the pop sensation offered a heartfelt apology for the . lyrics, which he sang during a massive protest. 'Reject PSY's apology, you just don't get away with wishing torture & murder on children' wrote @Onision. @Lizzy3698 wrote: 'Having my father and two brothers in the military I . was deeply hurt by this. PSY is literally f**king psycho.' Another user, @StacyOnTheRight wrote, commented: 'Perhaps Psy would like . to address his ridiculous raps to me directly. I'm a Veteran.' A user commenting on a Daily Mail story wrote: 'As a U.S. Army National . Guard MP, I wish he would think about the sacrifice of U.S. soldiers in . the Korean conflict.' U.N. style: PSY performs his 'Gangnam Style' dance with U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, left. The U.N. leader has described the song as a 'force for good' Tragic deaths: Posters show the faces of Shim Mi-seon and Shin Hyo-sun, the teenage girls crushed by a U.S. army vehicle, during an anti-American rally in 2002 . The event will be taped this weekend for broadcast on TNT the Friday before Christmas. The Obamas and other Washington notables are scheduled to attend the show, hosted by Conan O'Brien. PSY faced considerable anger his actions . during an anti-American protest in Seoul in 2002, in which he smashed a . model American tank live on stage. He first held the tank above his . head, before throwing it to the floor and violently breaking it up with a . microphone stand. The demonstration happened during strong anti-American sentiment in the country after a 50-ton U.S. armored vehicle killed two 14-year-old South Korean girls, Shim Mi-seon and Shin Hyo-sun, on their way to a birthday party. Sergeants . Mark Walker and Fernando Nino were in charge of the vehicle at the time . of the accident and were charged with negligent homicide. Famous friends: PSY, center, appears with comedian Kathy Griffin, left, and singer Miley Cyrus at the 2012 iHeartRadio Music Festival . American . military officials refused requests for the soldiers to be tried in . South Korean courts. When . the two men were found not guilty by a U.S. military court in February . 2002, it ignited massive anti-American protests. The memory of the two . girls is commemorated annually in South Korea. Then, two years later, a protest concert was held in Seoul after the killing of Kim Sun-il, a South Korean missionary and translator. He was beheaded by militants in Iraq after his country sent 3,000 troops to the region. At this 2004 anti-war event, a group of musicians, including PSY, performed Dear American, a protest song written by Korean rock band N.E.X.T. When it came to PSY's turn he rapped about 'killing those f***ing Yankees who have been torturing Iraqi captives. 'Kill their daughters, mothers, daughters-in-law and fathers. Kill them all slowly and painfully.' Infectious: PSY has been teaching his unique dance on talk shows, including 'Extra' host Mario Lopez, far right . Claim to fame: PSY is famous for his patented 'sexy horse' dance and snappy wing tip shoes . PSY's unique 'sexy horse' dance has been performed by celebrities and politicians, including everyone from Madonna to UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon. The U.N. leader described the song as 'force for world peace.' He also performed 'Gangnam Style' at the 2012 MTV Video Music Awards in September. Since then he has appeared on the 'Ellen DeGeneres Show,' twice, the 'Today' show, 'Saturday Night Live' at the iHeartRadio Music Festival, the Formula One Korean Grand Prix, the 2012 MTV Europe Music Awards and the 'Tonight show with Jay Leno.' Watch video: Psy's Gangnam Style, the most popular video of all time on YouTube .
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TNT confirmed Psy will still close the annual 'Christmas in Washington' show .
President Obama and first lady Michelle will attend the concert as per tradition; show airs on December 21 .
South Korean rapper whose song has nearly 1billion views appeared at anti-US protests in 2002 .
Violent language suggested killing American military and their families .
Petition was started urging event organizers to un-invite the rapper .
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By . Daily Mail Reporter . UPDATED: . 07:55 EST, 11 November 2011 . Late night calls: Barack Obama made contact with several European leaders to demand faster action . Barack Obama has read the riot act to the leaders of several European countries - saying more dramatic action is needed to avert a eurozone meltdown. The U.S. President made telephone calls to German Chancellor Angela Merkel, French President Nicolas Sarkozy and Italian President Giorgio Napolitano late last night. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said the president had demanded faster action from Europe. It came as Hong Kong revealed it had plunged into recession. Speaking from the Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation conference, Geithner said: 'The crisis in Europe remains the central challenge to global growth. 'It is crucial that Europe move quickly to put in place a strong plan to restore financial stability.' He said all of the 21 APEC countries were directly affected by the Eurozone crisis, and encouraged them to take steps to 'strengthen growth in the face of these pressures from Europe'. And he revealed that Obama was looking to hitch the U.S. economy to growth opportunities in Asia, where he is embarking on an eight day tour, that he hoped would help power the recovery he needs for re-election. Developments in Europe saw U.S. stocks rise yesterday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average finished up 1 per cent at 11893.79, and the Nasdaq Composite tacked on 0.1 per cent to 2625.13. The warning to Europe comes as Italy's Senate today votes, after months of dithering and delay, on austerity measures demanded by the EU. The Italian upper house is due to vote on a package of cuts. The law should pass easily, as it should in the lower house on Saturday. Midnight chat: German chancellor Angela Merkel (left) and French President Nicolas Sarkozy (right) received calls from the U.S. President last night . Voting for the first time in the upper house will be Mario Monti, the former European Commissioner who has emerged as favourite to replace Silvio Berlusconi as prime minister. Greece: . Appointed Lucas Papademos as new Prime Minister, who hopes to secure . 130bn euro debt deal from the eurozone to keep the country in the single . currency. Italy: . PM Silvio Berlusconi has promised to quit once economic reforms have . been passed, possibly as early on Sunday. Likely to be replaced by . former European Commissioner Mario Monti. Fears . Italy would have to be bailed out after interest on its 10-year bonds . rose past critical 7 per cent figure which saw Ireland, Portugal and . Greece default. Resignation of Berlusconi has calmed the waters, and yields are now down to 6.8 per cent. Britain: Government making contingency plans for if the euro collapses. Worried that it will drag the UK into a double-dip recession. Berlusconi, who lost his majority in a vote on Tuesday, has promised to resign after the financial stability law is passed by both houses of parliament. If the votes pass smoothly, Napolitano may accept Berlusconi's resignation as early as Saturday night and formally mandate Monti to try to form a new government soon afterwards. At first, Berlusconi had insisted that early elections were the only option. But he has since softened his stand and is said by sources to be open to a new government. Markets were calmed at the prospect of an interim government, rather than a three-month vacuum before elections are held. Monti, a highly respected international figure, has been pushed for weeks as the most suitable figure to lead a national unity government to push through painful austerity measures. It also comes as Greece's prime minister designate was set to name a new crisis cabinet today to calm the political turmoil that has threatened to bankrupt the country and force it out of the euro zone. Greece's two main parties agreed yesterday to make Lucas Papademos head of a new unity government. It ended a chaotic search for a leader to save the country from default. He must now fulfill the terms of a 130 billion euro bailout plan agreed with European partners in October. Papademos said: 'The path will not be easy but I am convinced the problems will be resolved faster and at a smaller cost if there is unity, understanding and prudence.' Sources in the two parties - the ruling Socialists and the opposition New Democracy - said Evangelos Venizelos was likely to remain as finance minister when President Karolos Papoulias swears in the new cabinet, scheduled for 12noon GMT. The weak global economy has today pushed Hong Kong into a recession with GDP figures showing a third-quarter contraction, the second straight quarterly decline. The Hong Kong government said exports dropped off sharply towards the end of the quarter 'amid an increasingly austere global economic environment'. The economy grew 4.3 per cent in the third quarter, smaller than the revised 5.1 per cent growth in the second quarter, which was itself less than the 7.5 per cent expansion notched up in the first quarter. Some economists define a recession as two straight quarters of economic contraction while others say it is a significant decline in across-the-board economic activity lasting more than a year.
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U.S. Treasury Secretary: 'The crisis in Europe remains the central challenge to global growth'
Obama embarks on eight day Asia-Pacific tour to 'hitch' U.S. economy to growth opportunities .
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By . Daily Mail Reporter . PUBLISHED: . 12:28 EST, 27 February 2014 . | . UPDATED: . 12:29 EST, 27 February 2014 . This photographer has ignored all warnings about playing with her food, instead creating a set of unusual scenes that bring peanuts to life. Nailia Schwarz, a Russian artist now based in Speyer, Germany, uses nuts to recreate everyday scenes including swimming lessons, walking the dog, avoiding a rain shower, and gardening. The results are stunning, somehow capturing the spirit of each individual nut, with each scene taking several hours to set up and photograph. Ms Schwarz came up with the idea after spotting other works of food art on the internet. She says she chose peanuts 'because they have character; you can see when looking at a peanut if it will be good for a dog, or a man'. To create the scenes she first searches through a bag . of peanuts to find those that have character or look like they have a . certain type of body language. Once she has selected the nuts to use, it . is simply a case of adding props, such as wire for body parts. The . peanuts are snapped using special lighting, before the . photographer makes slight touch-ups using photo editing software. They're nut in love: An angry-looking peanut looks on as his friends engage in a public display of affection. Russian-born photographer Nailia Schwarz created the images . That's nut such a good idea: A peanut carrying a towel looks on disapprovingly as his friend prepares to jump into a large bowl of water . Nut the weather we were hoping for: Two adult peanuts hold umbrellas in the rain while their child appears to be enjoying the puddles . Chilling out: This poor peanut is carrying a load of chillies in a backpack made from the bottle lid. Ms Schwarz said she first came across food art on the internet . Shells of themselves: There's a strange sadness to the peanuts in this picture, as they are seen separated by a large pane of glass . Bunny nuts: These peanuts appear to be dressed as Easter rabbits while dropping off eggs. The peanut on the right looks to be growing impatient with his friend . Nut going far: These peanuts are going to struggle to get the boulder (represented here by an orange) anywhere, as they're pushing in opposite directions . Artist: Nailia Schwarz, a Russian photographer now based in Speyer, Germany, uses nuts to recreate everyday scenes including swimming lessons and walking the dog . Ouch: These peanuts are using a cheese grater as a slide. The pile of nut shell beneath the grater seems to suggest using it for the activity may not be the best idea . Who broke it? This nut looks unimpressed by the broken ornament at its feet. The vase is made from a walnut, but all Ms Schwarz's 'human' figures are peanuts . The results are stunning, somehow capturing the spirit of each individual nut, with each scene taking several hours to set up and photograph . Inspired: Ms Schwarz came up with the idea after spotting other works of food art on the internet. She says she chose peanuts 'because they have character' Festive: These well-dressed peanuts are unwrapping gifts beneath their wire Christmas tree. The small flakes of salt that look like snow give the image a seasonal feel . Elderly: Nailia Schwarz says you can see a personality when looking at a peanut. She says she instantly knows whether it will work best as a dog or a human . To create the scenes, Nailia Schwarz first searches through a bag of peanuts to find those that have character or look like they have a certain type of body language . It was nut me! This adorable peanut dog looks guilty after having an accident on the floor. With his hands on his hips, the owner looks less than impressed . Companionship: This peanut is accompanied by his dog as he takes a watering can to his garden. A small sprout is used to represent a cabbage . Nut going to give up: This peanut has loaded up his suitcase made from a bottle-top and set off on an adventure into the woods with his pet dog .
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Nailia Schwarz, a Russian photographer, created the peanut images at her new home in Speyer, Germany .
She came up with the idea for the photographs after spotting other works of food art on the internet .
Each scene takes several hours to create, and only the most 'expressive' peanuts are allowed to be used .
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(CNN) -- Twelve suspected members of the Zetas drug gang and a member of Mexico's Navy were killed in a shootout on an island in a lake that straddles the U.S.-Mexico border, authorities said Monday. The Mexican Navy said the shootout occurred Sunday on Falcon Lake, located between Texas and the Mexican state of Tamaulipas, after troops patrolling the area spotted a camping area on an island. The suspected drug traffickers used the island for storing marijuana to be transported by boat to the United States, the Navy said in a statement. After the shootout, the Navy said it seized guns, ammunition and bullet-proof vests from the island. Falcon Lake drew the attention of law enforcement authorities on both side of the border last September after an American man on a personal watercraft was reportedly ambushed by attackers and shot in the head. 2010: 'He took a bullet for me,' Falcon Lake victim's wife says . Tiffany Hartley told police that she and her husband were riding water scooters on the lake on September 30 when they were attacked. Her husband's body has not been found, and the case has remained unsolved. "It didn't happen in the United States," said Zapata County, Texas, Sheriff Sigifredo Gonzalez. Suspects in Falcon Lake killing identified . And Mexican authorities, he told CNN last month, have "somewhat of a zero solvency rate, and a zero conviction rate." "So unfortunately, this case may remain open forever, even though the information and the evidence may be there," according to Gonzalez.
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Mexico's Navy says a shootout occurred around an island used to store marijuana .
Twelve suspected members of the Zetas drug gang and one member of Mexico's Navy are killed .
Falcon Lake is between Texas and the Mexican state of Tamaulipas .
It drew attention last year after an American was reportedly shot there .
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(CNN) -- A fire at a refinery in Washington state killed four people and injured three, a spokeswoman for a medical center said Friday. The company that owns the refinery, the Tesoro Corp., earlier had announced three deaths from the fire. A fourth person, a 29-year-old woman, died from her injuries at Harborview Medical Center in Seattle, Washington, said medical center spokeswoman Susan Gregg-Hanson. Three others -- a 36-year-old woman, a 34-year-old man and a 41-year-old man -- remain in critical condition at the medical center with major burns, Gregg-Hanson said. None of the dead were identified. The fire at the Anacortes, Washington, refinery occurred shortly after midnight at the naphtha unit of the refinery while maintenance work was being performed, the Tesoro Corp. said. The fire was contained around 2 a.m. Friday and affected units have been shut down, Tesoro said on its Web site. CNN affiliate KCPQ reported that three workers were missing, and that a search was under way. The cause of the blaze was not immediately known. KCPQ said that people reported feeling an explosion as far as five miles away. "This is a very sad time for our organization," said Bruce Smith, Tesoro's chairman, president and chief executive officer. "Everyone in the Tesoro family appreciates the impact that this will have on the families involved, and we are responding quickly to ensure the safety for our employees, contractors and the neighboring community," he said. Tesoro did not immediately return phone calls requesting further information. Tesoro Corp. is an independent refiner and marketer of petroleum products, according to its Web site. Through its subsidiaries, it operates seven refineries in the Western United States with a combined capacity of approximately 665,000 barrels per day. Anacortes is about 80 miles south of Vancouver, British Columbia.
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Fire injures 3 at the Anacortes, Washington, refinery owned by Tesoro Corporation .
Cause of the blaze not immediately known .
Tesoro Corp. is refiner, marketer of petroleum products, says its Web site .
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By . Suzannah Hills . PUBLISHED: . 04:49 EST, 20 February 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 08:11 EST, 20 February 2013 . A shocking video has emerged showing a young girl being egged on by teenagers to attack another child in a New York park. The footage, which is a little over two minutes and half long, was uploaded to the video sharing website YouTube. The video makes for difficult viewing as two young girls - who appear to be no older than ten - stand off against each other as onlookers encourage them to fight. Scroll down to watch the video . Stand off: Two young girls - who appear to be no older than 10 - are shouted encouragement to fight in a New York park . 'Slap her!' The girl in the white puffa jacket then hits the other after being told to hit her by older girls . One of the girls, who is wearing a white puffa jacket and pink trousers is then told to slap the other child who is wearing a black puffa jacket. The teenagers - who may be older siblings, girls at school or even parents - then accuse the girl in the black puffa jacket of 'not playing fair before' and telling the other girl to 'just slap her'. As the girl in the black puffa jacket stands her ground, the other does as she is told and shoves her twice before slapping her on the face. The older people in the background then scream on more encouragement, shouting: 'Whoop her ass. Just do it. Punch her. Harder'. Shocking: The girl in the white puffa jacket then grabs the other after being told to 'whoop her ass' Egged on: The girl in the white puffa jacket then spins the other around as the onlookers shout: 'yes, yes' The young girl in the white puffa jacket then grabs the other and spins her round as the teenagers cheer and shout: 'Yes, yes, slap her harder'. One then instructs: 'The hair, the hair', and the girl in the white jacket grabs her young opponent's locks. They continue to grapple while being cheered on until the girl in the black puffa escapes the other's grip. Following instructions: The girl in the white jacket grabs hold of the other girl's hair after being told to by the teenagers . Brutal: The girls continue to push and shove each other as the teenagers - who may be older siblings or even parents - shout encouragement . She then appears to be crying as she shouts at the group who are laughing as they film the whole incident: 'I'm not playing. It's not funny'. The girl goes to grab her bag and is surrounded by the group as they continue to taunt her. The video then ends. The footage has been sent to NYC's Administration for Children's Services who are currently reviewing it. The girl in the black puffa jacket eventually manages to get out of the grip of the other girl . Bullying: The girl in the black puffa appears to be crying ad the teenagers continue to taunt her .
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The two minute, 34 seconds long footage was uploaded to YouTube .
It shows two young schoolgirls - no older than 10 - being forced to fight .
Teenagers - perhaps older sisters or even parents - can be heard egging them on, shouting: 'Slap her. Punch her. Harder'
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Jerusalem (CNN) -- Hundreds of protesters from the Gaza Strip and Israel converged on both sides of the main border crossing Thursday in an organized rally to call for the end of the economic blockade of Gaza maintained by Israel and Egypt. In Gaza, approximately 100 international activists were joined by several hundred Palestinians in a march to the border, while some 300 Israeli, international and Palestinian activists demonstrated on the Israeli side of the border. Carrying Palestinian flags and signs calling for an end to "the Gaza siege" and "Israeli aggression," rally participants said they were trying to draw attention to the plight of Palestinians in Gaza. On the Israel side, Knesset member and United Arab Party Chairman Ibrahim Sarsour called the continued blockade of Gaza "an ongoing tragedy for the Palestinian people" and called for it to be lifted to give people "a chance to live in dignity." Among the international protesters in Gaza were three orthodox rabbis from the Neturei Karta movement, a small anti-Zionist Jewish sect that does not believe in the state of Israel. Rabbi Dovid Feldman told a crowd that he was "humiliated by what is being done in our name" and that Israel is "simply using the name of Zionism to perpetrate a crime." The Islamist group Hamas violently took over Gaza in 2007. Since then, the coastal strip of 1.5 million people has been subject to a punishing economic embargo by Israel and Egypt, which has greatly limited goods coming in and out and increased poverty in the war-torn territory. Israel, the United States and the European Union consider Hamas a terrorist organization. Thursday's march coincides with the first anniversary of Israel's 23-day offensive against Hamas, launched in an attempt to stop militant rocket fire into southern Israel. The offensive, called Operation Cast Lead, resulted in the deaths of more than 1,000 Palestinians and 13 Israelis. Dubbed the Gaza Freedom March, Thursday's event attracted the participation of about 1,400 international activists. Organizers said they planned to enter Gaza through Egypt, but only 100 of them were ultimately given permission to enter by the Egyptian government. Some of those who stayed behind in Egypt participated in a Thursday rally in downtown Cairo, according to organizers. In the southern Israeli town of Sderot, a frequent target of militant rocket fire from Gaza, Israelis marked the Gaza war anniversary with a release of balloons with "messages of hope" from Israeli children to children of Gaza, organizers said. "I think that the powerful message carried from children is sometimes better than the cunning negotiations for this or that Palestinian negotiator," said Yuli Edelstein, Israel's minister for public diplomacy. "They are probably talking peace, but at the same time making war."
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Several hundred Palestinians join about 100 international activists in march to border in Gaza .
On Israeli side of border, about 300 Israeli, international and Palestinian activists demonstrate .
Rally participants said they were trying to draw attention to the plight of Palestinians in Gaza .
Since Hamas takeover in 2007, economic embargo by Israel, Egypt has bruised Gaza .
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Tommy Seymour believes Scotland will only become a threat on the global stage once they stop being pleased just to have avoided a hammering against the big guns. Scotland put on a brave display as they held New Zealand for large chunks of Saturday’s Test at Murrayfield before eventually losing 24-16. They even had a chance to put themselves on the brink of victory but saw skipper Greig Laidlaw pull his penalty wide before the all-conquering All Blacks stormed downfield to score the try which put the game out of sight. Tommy Seymour breaches the New Zealand defence to score Scotland's try on Saturday . The defeat means Scotland’s 109-year wait for their first win against the world champions goes on. But there were clear signs of progress in Vern Cotter’s young side. However, Seymour — who scored to put the hosts 7-5 up after 12 minutes — insists if the Scots are happy to just come close, they will never win. ‘We have to be pleased with the consistency levels we have shown over the last two weeks and we have to be pleased with the performance,’ he said. ‘But we have got to stop being a side that allows itself to take positives when you lose to the best team in the world, because if you do that you start drawing lines that you can’t cross. Seymour, leaving the pitch after a 24-16 loss, says coming close to rugby's big guns isn't enough . ‘We can’t keep saying we are pleased with “this much”, because if you come up against a side and your only aim is to come close, it will never be good enough. ‘We want to become a consistent threat and allow ourselves to be disappointed by the narrow margins. ‘Once you do that you can really push on.’ The Scots were 17-16 down with 13 minutes left when Laidlaw missed a kick that could have put them within touching distance of victory. But the All Blacks came back and Jeremy Thrush found a rare gap in the home defence to score the winning try. ‘It was an opportunity for us to make history. Greig Laidlaw had chance to give Scotland the lead with 13 minutes to go but pushed it wide . Jeremy Thrush crosses for a late try that saw the All Blacks' slender one-point lead stretch to eight . That doesn’t come along very often,’ said Seymour. ‘We spoke a lot about that before the game but didn’t let the occasion take over us. We wanted to go out and fight for a win that had never been done before. ‘Unfortunately we came up just shy.’ Scotland face Tonga next on Saturday, but will be without centre Mark Bennett, due to a hamstring injury. Seymour and Laidlaw are among those who require further treatment.
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Scotland pushed New Zealand to lose 24-16 on Saturday .
Try scorer Tommy Seymour said the Scots aren't happy with second best .
Scotland's 109-year wait for a win over the All Blacks continues .
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(CNN)Thailand's military-appointed National Legislative Assembly (NLA) has voted 190-18 in favor of impeaching former Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra for her role in a controversial rice subsidy program that cost the country billions. Though the vote was largely symbolic, as she had already lost her post, it also carries a five-year ban from politics. The news came hours after the attorney General's office announced that Yingluck, who was removed from office in May last year days before the military swept to power in a coup, will face criminal charges over the affair. If found guilty, she could face up to 10 years in prison. The rice subsidy program, introduced in 2011, pledged to pay farmers well above the market rate for their crop. But critics said it wasted large amounts of public funds trying to please rural voters, hurting exports and leaving the government with large stockpiles of rice it couldn't sell without losing money. She was eventually put under investigation by Thailand's National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC). In an address to the NLA Thursday, Yingluck denied any wrongdoing and questioned whether the impeachment vote was valid. "The NACC's legitimacy in sending the impeachment case for the NLA's consideration is questionable since the Constitution of 2007 has been revoked ... with the coup d'etat on May 22, 2014," she said. "I am no longer prime minister since the constitutional court has already removed me, thus there is essentially no 'position' to impeach me from. "The legal grounds claimed by the NACC were also invalid, as the target of impeaching me is to ban me from holding any political positions for five years, which is a clear violation of my fundamental rights and liberties." But the Bangkok Post reported Friday that many NLA members were unconvinced and found she was unable to clear up the accusations against her. They also backed the NACC evidence against her. In a statement translated into English by her office, Yingluck said she would "continue to fight to prove my innocence to the very end, no matter what the outcome will be." She said the rice subsidy scheme was "beneficial for the farmers and the country" and that claims it lost money were wrong and motivated by political bias against her. "I am not sad because I am the victim of this entire ordeal, but I am sad for the rice farmers and all of the disadvantaged Thai citizens whose lives will return to the vicious cycle of being poor, debt ridden, and being taken advantage of, and most important of all, being denied of their basic democratic rights under the rule of law," she said. Two weeks before the military coup last May, a Thai court ordered Yingluck's removal, finding her guilty of violating the country's constitution in her reassignment of a senior security official in 2011. That official was replaced by the then-national police chief, whose role in turn was given to Priewpan Damapong. Damapong is the brother of the ex-wife of Thaksin Shinawatra, Yingluck's brother, who was overthrown as Prime Minister in a military coup in 2006. Thaksin is living in self-imposed exile to avoid a corruption conviction.
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Yingluck Shinawatra says she will "fight to prove my innocence to the very end"
She is being investigated for her role in a failed rice subsidy scheme .
Ex-PM is the sister of Thaksin Shinawatra, who was overthrown as prime minister in a 2006 military coup .
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By . Josh Ilan . Manchester City striker Edin Dzeko found time out on a visit to homeland Bosnia and Herzegovina to visit a fledgling football school. The 28-year-old went out of his way to make a trip to the Walter football school, which is located in his home city of Sarajevo. He is one of a few players who have gone to the place, with this including his nation’s captain and Bayer Leverkusen centre-back Emir Spahic. Surprise: Edin Dzeko returned to his home city Sarajevo, to meet local children at the Walter football school . The foundation was established in March 2011, with their website stating their aim is “to improve team skills, development of tolerance and fairness, as well as social competence.” During his visit, Dzeko posed for photographs with, and signed autographs for, the star-struck youngsters. In return, the institution gave the former Wolfsburg man a Brazuca, the official 2014 World Cup ball, as well as a painting. The forward attributed to his surprise visit there by retweeting a few photographs of him with the football school. Fine form: Scored 26 goals in all competitions for Man City last season as they regained the Premiership . The former Wolfsburg man also mentioned on the social networking site that he returned to watch his first professional club, FK Zeljeznicar Sarajevo, watching them go out on away goals to Metalurg Skopje in the second round of the Europa League after a 2-2 draw at home.Dzeko’s return to Bosnia represented a trip down memory lane, with the forward the only player in his country’s World Cup squad who stayed in Bosnian during its horrific Civil War from 1992 to 1995. He is regarded as a superstar there, with his 36 goals for his country making him their record international goalscorer. Hero: Dzeko became the first Bosnian to score at a World Cup out in Brazil in June, during a 3-1 win over Iran . Proud: The 28-year-old is a superstar in Bosnia, having notched up a record 36 international goals .
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Became first Bosnian to score at a World Cup back in Brazil this summer .
Helped Manchester City regain the Premiership title with 16 league goals .
The record international scorer for Bosnia, with 36 goals for his country .
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By . Helen Pow . Lawsuit: Chris Sevier, 36, pictured, filed a 50-page complaint in federal court last month blaming Apple for letting his access porn . A married Nashville lawyer and amateur model is suing Apple claiming the tech giant should have blocked him from accessing porn when he, apparently by accident, typed 'F***book.com instead of Facebook into Google. Chris Sevier, 36, filed a 50-page complaint in federal court last month claiming the supposedly innocent spelling mistake resulted in him viewing a plethora of pornographic images that 'appealed to his biological sensibilities as a male and lead to an unwanted addiction,' which then 'poisoned his life' and ruined his marriage. Sevier, an army veteran who on a Model Mayhem profile lists his age as 26, states in the suit that Apple should sell all products with an installed porn-filter. He is seeking damages from the company. 'The Plaintiff is a victim of Apple's product that was sold to him without any warning of the damage the pornography causes,' the suit reads. 'In using safari, the Plaintiff accidentally misspelled "facebook.com" which lead him to "f***book.com" and a host of web sites that caused him to see pornographic images that appealed to his biological sensibilities as a male and lead to an unwanted addiction with adverse consequences.' He added: 'But for the Plaintiff's use of the Apple product, the quality of the Plaintiff's life would have been much better and injury would have been avoided.' Servier goes on in the complaint to . allege 'unfair competition' between the porn stars and his wife, brought . about by his use of the Apple product, and thus 'interference of the . marital contract.' Accident? Servier claims he accidentally accessed the porn after mistakenly typing 'F***book.com instead of Facebook into Google . Unfair: Servier, pictured, goes on in the complaint to allege 'unfair competition' between the porn stars and his wife, brought about by his use of the Apple product, and thus 'interference of the marital contract' 'The Plaintiff became totally out of synch (sic) in his romantic relationship with his wife, which was a consequence of his use of his Apple product,' the complaint reads, according to Abovethelaw.com. 'The Plaintiff began desiring, younger more beautiful girls featured in porn videos than his wife, who was no longer 21.' He said his subsequent failed marriage caused him emotional distress to the point of hospitalization. Apple has not yet responded to MailOnline's request for comment. Later in the suit, Sevier goes on to point out that a preset porn-filtering software wouldn't just have saved him from his 'unwanted desires' it would help 'mom and pop' bricks and mortar porn shops because it would be harder for websites to survive. Failed marriage: Servier, pictured left and right, said his subsequent failed marriage caused him emotional distress to the point of hospitalization . 'Unregulated internet porn is hurting brick and mortar or 'mom and pop' porn shops,' he writes. 'This is no different than how illegal downloading of musical content and movie content has caused the collapse of traditional record stores and video rental entities, such as block buster (sic).' The complaint was filed the same month Servier was charged with aggravated stalking for incessantly emailing country music star John Rich. According to The Tennessean, one of the emails included a picture of a scantily clad Sevier draped in an American flag and covered in a substance 'believed to be representing blood.'
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Chris Sevier, 36, claims the supposedly innocent spelling mistake resulted in him viewing a plethora of pornographic images .
He says the images 'appealed to his biological sensibilities as a male and lead to an unwanted addiction' that 'poisoned his life'
Sevier claims all Apple products should have a pre-installed porn filter .
On June 25, he was charged with stalking country music star John Rich .
He allegedly sent singer a picture of himself scantily clad in an American flag covered in a substance 'believed to be representing blood'
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Daisy-Ray Anderson drowned in the bath when her father popped downstairs to get towels and her mother was out visiting a neighbour . A nine month-old girl drowned in the bath after her father went downstairs to get towels and nappies and her mother popped out to visit a neighbour, an inquest heard. Daisy-Ray Anderson was found face-down in the water by her father Dale, who left her briefly to fetch the supplies. The baby was in the bath with her 18-month-old sister Lilly - just metres away from where 12 cannabis plants were growing, a coroner was told. Daisy-Ray was put in the bath with her sister by their mother Emma Oliver, who left the bathroom after Mr Anderson entered the room to take over. When the children were ready to get out, he called to Miss Oliver to bring up the nappies and towels, but she did not answer so he went to grab them himself. Mr Anderson, a market trader, told the coroner: 'I came back up and that's when I saw Daisy. She was face-down in the water. 'I pulled her out and starting doing CPR on the floor. I was screaming and shouting for help. 'I got water and vomit out of her mouth but she wasn't breathing.' Mr Anderson told the inquest that Daisy-Ray was in a baby bath towards the top of the main bath near to the taps, while her sister Lilly was in the main bath. Recalling the tragic day in September 2012, he said he went downstairs to find the front door of their home, in Moston, Greater Manchester, open. 'Emma wasn't there', he said. 'I slammed the door shut and got what I needed and went back upstairs. 'I didn't know Emma was going to leave the house. Then I heard the door go so I ran downstairs and opened the door. 'She looked at me and I was as white as a ghost. She just ran upstairs and picked Daisy up. She started screaming and panicking.' Parents Emma Oliver and Dale Anderson were cleared of child cruelty charges after Daisy-Ray drowned in the bath in 2012 . Mr Anderson went downstairs to fetch towels and nappies after Miss Oliver went out to visit a neighbour . The inquest heard that paramedics took Daisy-Ray to North Manchester General Hospital where she was later pronounced dead. Miss Oliver, a trainee plasterer, told the coroner she had put Daisy in the bath at around 10am because she had been sick. Daisry-Ray (pictured) was in the bath with her 18-month-old sister Lilly when she drowned . She said: 'Lilly came up and said she wanted a bath too so I filled it up for her. 'I wasn't the one who played with the kids in the bath. I washed Daisy first and then got out the toys and then Dale came in. 'I nipped out for five minutes and went to see my neighbour. Lilly was 18 months old and we were talking about getting her name on the list for school. 'I didn't tell Dale I was going out and it was usual for him to play with the kids in the bath. 'I went over to my neighbour's still in my pyjamas so I went home to get dressed. I came back home and realised my door was shut. 'Dale came down and he was as white as a sheet. I just ran upstairs.' Consultant paediatric pathologist Gauri Batra told Manchester Coroners' Court that a post-mortem on Daisy-Ray confirmed her cause of death was drowning. She said: 'This was a clean, well-nourished little girl and there was nothing congenitally wrong with her.' The couple, who are engaged, were charged with child cruelty after the tragic death but were later cleared by a jury. Paramedics took Daisy-Ray to hospital where she was pronounced dead after her father found her face-down in the water . They both admitted cannabis growing offences and Mr Anderson received a community order while she was conditionally discharged. Jean Harkin, assistant coroner for Manchester City, recorded a verdict of accidental death. She said: 'It's very clear that it's very dangerous to leave children for just one minute but no parent would have expected this to happen. 'All I can say to you is that you have to hold on to the memories that you have from when Daisy was alive.'
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Daisy-Ray Anderson drowned in the bath when her father went downstairs .
Nine-month-old was found face-down in the water after father briefly left .
The baby's mother was visiting a neighbour on the tragic day in 2012 .
Her 18-month-old sister was in the bath with Daisy-Ray when she drowned .
Bath was just metres away from 12 cannabis plants growing in the room .
Coroner says there is no way parents would have expected her to drown .
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Editor's note: This story is part of an ongoing series of profiles CNN is doing about economic survival in this time of financial crisis. Married couple Lindsay De Vore and Eliot Kohan on their delayed honeymoon to Orlando, Florida. (CNN) -- At age 23 and fresh out of college, Eliot Kohan was diagnosed with an aggressive form of leukemia. He was told he had four months to live. He survived. But the disease left him and his wife, Lindsay De Vore, who live in St. Paul, Minnesota, saddled with thousands of dollars of medical bills on top of their student loans and daily expenses. But their struggles taught them an important lesson in saving money. "When you have medical issues, it's easy to spiral into some sort of depression," the 26-year-old a technology analyst for a private contracting company in St. Paul said. "My goal was to keep moving forward. I wanted to create some stability for our us." All of that hard work saving for the past few years has paid off. The couple is elated to be closing next month on their first home in St. Paul, thanks to the troubled economy. De Vore and Kohan first told their story on CNN's iReport.com. Share your economic survivor story with CNN. The timing couldn't have been better for the couple to purchase a modest three-bedroom, one-story stucco house. De Vore and Kohan locked into a historically low mortgage rate of 4.9 percent this month. The couple selected a foreclosed home, slashing nearly $20,000 off the final price. "We wouldn't have been able to buy this house if the economy weren't the way it is," said De Vore, 25, who works in the financial aid office at a private college in St. Paul. "We were in the perfect position." There were more than 300,000 foreclosure filings reported nationwide in December, marking a 17 percent increase from the previous month and a 41 percent increase from December 2007, according to RealtyTrac, a foreclosure listing service. Meanwhile, unemployment continues to climb to rates unseen in decades. Yet the rocky economy is having a positive effect on some Americans, who are finding it the ideal time to buy a home. Similar to many married couples, Kohan and De Vore envisioned owning a house perhaps two or three years down the road, they say. Soon the couple says they noticed interest rates and home prices dipping so low that they found themselves nabbing a home as soon as they could afford the down payment. But the couple's ability to afford their first home is a story about fiscal responsibility, patience and determination. De Vore and Kohan, who met in their freshman year at St. Paul's Hamline University in 2002, moved into a two-bedroom apartment during their last year of college. For the past five years, they have remained in the same collegiate apartment, furnished with Craigslist finds and family hand-me-downs. "Money was a reason we've stayed here so long," Kohan said last week, bundled up with his wife because their apartment's heater broke. "But at a certain point, we felt like we were growing out of it in more ways than just physically. We wanted a change of pace." The couple says they've always been tight with money, keeping credit card usage limited to emergencies and being picky about what they spend their money on. But they became more "money-conscious" in June 2006, when Kohan was diagnosed with leukemia. He needed a costly stem cell transplant, and the couple did not have enough money. The sickness was evident in his frail face and bruised body. Luckily, when he went on leave from his job, his employers offered to hold his position until he recovered. Back in his hometown of Fergus Falls, a small city in western Minnesota, Kohan's family and friends threw a benefit, raising $12,000 toward the costly medical bills. He soon recovered, but the experience forced him to refocus his goals in life, including buying a house.. The couple began saving in small ways. They bring their lunch to work and eat out only once or twice a month. They cut extra expenses that many couples in their 20s enjoy, such as nights at bars with friends and date nights to the movie theater. To save on gas money, Kohan takes public transportation, a 45-minute bus ride each way, to downtown Minneapolis for work. "The house was a big motivation," says De Vore, who tracks their expenses meticulously each month. When the couple married a year after his leukemia diagnosis, she opted for a small, intimate wedding. That helped cut costs too, she said. They waited nearly nine months before heading on their honeymoon trip. Instead of a grand trip abroad, they settled for a smaller trip to Orlando, Florida. Knowing that higher education would help her earn more, De Vore is taking night classes to earn her master's degree in student affairs. Her tuition is free because she chose to attend the university where she works. By December, the couple began to realize all the saving had amounted to a down payment on a home. They wanted to invest in a home for at least 10 years, they say, so they can try to build equity. De Vore found the home through a real estate agent on her lunch break one afternoon in early January. It was "nothing fancy," she says, but the 1960s ranch-style house had a spacious kitchen and a small yard with enough space for a dog that they want. She knew instantly that it would be their new home, she says. "We worked hard. We didn't cut corners," she said. "We did everything we did to get here, and it's worth it, to our opinion."
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The couple will close on their first home next month in St. Paul, Minnesota .
They benefited from low mortgage rates and prices on foreclosed homes .
Eliot Kohan's leukemia diagnosis helped him realize they had to start saving early .
"We worked hard. We didn't cut corners," Lindsay De Vore says .
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(CNN) -- Financial crisis-stricken Iceland formally applied for European Union membership on Friday, a day after lawmakers narrowly backed a government plan to take the island nation into the economic and political bloc. Icelandic PM Johanna Sigurdardottir pledged to take Iceland into the EU during April's election campaign. A copy of the application was submitted to the Swedish government, which currently holds the EU's rotating presidency, Iceland's Ministry for Foreign Affairs confirmed in a statement. Iceland's economy was devastated by the collapse of the island's banking system last year, leading to the resignation of the country's government. In elections in April, center left leader Johanna Sigurdardottir was elected prime minister after pledging to take Iceland into the EU. On Thursday, Iceland's parliament, the Althing, voted in favor of the government plan by 33 votes to 28 with two abstentions. "This is a historic day for Iceland," Foreign Minister Ossur Skarphedinsson said in a statement. "As a European nation already deeply integrated into European structures... we now look forward to taking the next logical step, in close cooperation with our European partners." Welcoming Iceland's application, European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso said: "The decision of the Icelandic Parliament is a sign of the vitality of the European project and indicative of the hope that the European Union represents. Iceland is a European country with long and deep democratic roots." Iceland already benefits from a free trade arrangement with European Union member states, latterly as a participating member of the European Economic Area, which was established in 1994, and formerly through a bilateral free trade agreement with the EEC, the EU's predecessor. But Icelanders have traditionally been skeptical of the benefits of full EU membership, fearing that they would lose some of their independence as a small state within a larger political entity. At present three other states in southeastern Europe -- Croatia, FYR Macedonia and Turkey -- are candidate countries for EU membership. "I am pleased that the EU's enlargement agenda may soon extend to Europe's north-western corner as well, with Iceland, a country with deep democratic traditions, in addition to our continued commitment to South East Europe," said Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn.
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Iceland applies for EU membership after lawmakers back government plan .
Island's economy was devastated by collapse of banking system last year .
Iceland already enjoys free trade deal with EU member states .
European Commission President hails Iceland's "long, deep democratic roots"
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Liverpool have been told they can sign Sevilla left-back Alberto Moreno - as long as they meet the club's asking price. The club's president Jose Castro confirmed that Brendan Rogers' side are one of several teams interested in signing the highly-rated 21-year-old, but explained that serious negotiations were yet to begin while emphasising that Sevilla were under no pressure to cash in on the Spain international. 'It's true that there is interest from a number of clubs, above all Liverpool, in him, but we haven't had proper conversations about selling him,' Castro said in an interview with Spanish newspaper ABC. VIDEO Scroll down to watch Moreno celebrate with Spain U21 team-mates in training . Meet the valuation: Liverpool have been told they can sign Sevilla left-back Alberto Moreno (right) 'Signing any player from this club has a price and we will decide that price. If Alberto Moreno has to stay at the club he will stay but if a club pays the amount we think is big enough for him to leave, he will leave. But there is no pressure. 'We haven't reached an agreement, but talks haven't broken down. We'll wait and see what happens. If Liverpool are interested in the player and pay the right amount, he will be sold.' Last summer Sevilla sold four key players in Jesus Navas and Alvaro Negredo, who both joined Manchester City, plus Gary Medel and Geoffrey Kondogbia, who left for Cardiff City and Monaco respectively. Last season's Europa League winners have already sold Ivan Rakitic to Barcelona, and Castro made no effort to hide his disappointment at losing one of his top players. Better cover: Manager Brendan Rodgers is on the hunt for defensive reinforcements ahead of next season . Done deal: Sevilla have already sold midfielder Ivan Rakitic, currently away with Croatia, to Barcelona . The Croatia international moved to the Catalan side for an estimated 18 million euros after failing to agree a new contract with Sevilla. 'Seling Rakitic was tough,' said Castro. 'He's a player of such quality and importance to the club, the captain of the team, and when we meet with him we made a superhuman effort to keep him, offering him a contract that was unusual for a club like this one. 'He decided he wanted to go elsewhere, and it did not go the way we wanted it too, because the negotiations could have been done differently. 'I can assure you that I wasn't happy at all about Rakitic leaving, because I wanted him to stay here so we could enjoy him, but as he had other ideas, there was little we could do.'
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The Reds are looking for defensive reinforcements before the new Premier League season .
Sevilla president Jose Castro says club are under no pressure to sell .
Spanish side have already sold Ivan Rakitic to Barcelona .
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By . Daily Mail Reporter . PUBLISHED: . 10:07 EST, 12 January 2014 . | . UPDATED: . 11:20 EST, 12 January 2014 . Tipping the scales at less than six stone and dangerously thin, Ollie Orchard, now 22, was struggling with anorexia when he first joined a gym at the age of 18. Four years later, Mr Orchard, from Bristol, has turned his life around and is now a fighting fit bodybuilder after using the sport to beat the eating disorder. He now weighs a beefy 18-stone, has dedicated himself to pursuing a career in the sport and happily munches his way through 5,000 calories a day in order to maintain his new physique. Recovery: Ollie weighed less than six stone at the age of 18 but has now recovered to become a bodybuilder . Speaking about his life-saving passion for the sport, Mr Orchard said: 'I shaved my hair off, took out my piercings and started lifting weights, it was a move that saved my life.' His battle against the eating disorder began at the age of 14, when he was a self-described 'Emo kid' and began starving himself to fit in. 'It started when I was about 14 years-old with anorexia and as it progressed it just got uglier,' he explains. 'I was an Emo kid with long hair and piercings and I was going to be as skinny as I could. Not eating was part of the fashion, it's a big thing, it dictates a lifestyle.' Although he often fainted because of his restricted diet, Mr Orchard managed to convince himself that all was well, despite the danger he was putting himself in. 'I was disgusted by food, it repulsed me,' he confesses. 'I picked up on the sound of people eating. If I saw people eating I would wonder how they could do it. Winner: Since overcoming anorexia, Ollie has become an enormously successful bodybuilder . Looking good: Ollie came second in his first competition and says bodybuilding is his new addiction . Emo is a type of rock music characterised by confessional lyrics and pioneered by bands such as Rites of Spring and Embrace. Its popularity peaked in the early noughties, courtesy of platinum selling bands Jimmy Eat World and Dashboard Confessional. Like punk and grunge, emo is also associated with fashion, in this case low-slung, colourful skinny jeans worn with band t-shirts, multiple piercings and rainbow-coloured hair. The genre has been criticised for its angsty outlook and has been linked to a number of teen suicides. 'For me it was all about being as small as I could. It was a form of control. It was an addiction.' He added: 'It was weird. I enjoyed it, I revelled in it. It was about pushing myself as far as I could. I would pass out through lack of eating but I would convince myself it was fine. Nobody could convince me otherwise.' Salvation came in the shape of a visit to the gym at the age of 18 on the advice of his doctor and a former girlfriend. There he met a strength coach who encouraged him to take up the sport, and after gaining some weight, he began lifting weights in earnest. Today he eats 5,000 calories a day six days a week and up to 10,000 calories on a Sunday when he treats himself to fast food. He added: 'You are very alienated with anorexia and although there are people in the gym it is still very much a personal journey. 'I started by barely being able to lift 5kg because I was so small so I had to first work at putting some meat back on my bones. 'I started reading body building mags and based my diet around that so would eat things like oats and egg whites but also started eating food like ice cream. 'It was tough on my stomach because it had been so small but I was determined to put weight on.' During the first year of training, Mr Orchard gained 10 stone and managed to achieve second place in his first bodybuilding competition before going on to compete in the British finals. 'I'm fit and healthy and focussing on doing something to my body that does not put my life at risk,' he added. 'Eating disorders are a bigger problem than people realise and all I would say is try and find something that can give you the same control and satisfaction. 'For me it was bodybuilding because I need the focus of the training and meals but anything that helps you beat it can only be a good thing.'
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Ollie Orchard weighed less than six stone when he took up bodybuilding .
Sport helped him to overcome anorexia and he now weighs 18st .
22-year-old made it to finals of British bodybuilding championships .
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A convicted sex offender has struck it rich playing the Florida lottery. Timothy Poole of Mount Dora, Florida, just won $3million from a scratch-off ticket he purchased at a 7-11 over the weekend. Poole, a driver and dispatcher for his mother's cab company, Triangle Cab, is also a registered sex offender. Scroll down for video . Winner: Timothy Poole, a registered sex offender, who $3million from a scratch-off ticket . In 1999, Poole was arrested following allegations that he sexually abused a 9-year-old boy. According to WKMG, Poole was accused of sleeping in the same bed as the boy and waking him up while he was sleeping to perform sex acts. Poole pleaded guilty to attempted sexual battery in 1999 after a 9-year-old boy claimed he was molested by the man in his bed . He eventually pleaded guilty to attempted sexual battery after accepting a plea bargain and being required to serve ten years of sex offender probation. Four years later, in 2003, he has his probation revoked and was sent to prison for three years after he missed four of his required group sessions. Poole maintains that he is innocent. 'It may be hard for some to believe, but sometimes people are wrongly accused,' he said. Now he is set to collect a one-time, lump-sum payment of $2,219,807.90. 'I've known him for years and I've never seen any inclination of anything like that with him,' said his friend Floyd Snyder. 'He's a very positive person. Very kind. Giving. I think that's why he won. It's Christmastime and the dude deserves a break.' It is not illegal for convicted sex offenders to play or win the lottery in the state of Florida. As for what Poole plans to do with the money, it is being reported that he is looking to help his mother expand her cab company. He has had no legal troubles or arrests of any kind since being released from prison in 2006, .
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Timothy Poole, a convicted sex offender from Mount Dora, Florida, won $3million over the weekend from a scratch-off ticket .
Poole was sent to prison for three years in 2003 after pleading guilty to the attempted sexual assault of a 9-year-old boy back in 1999 .
Poole, who maintains his innocence, initially received probation with his plea, but had it revoked when he started skipping required group sessions .
He is now set to receive a one-time, lump-sum of $2,219,807.90 .
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Clad in white jodhpurs and blinking in the bright Spanish sunshine, Athina Onassis looked every inch the showjumper as the opening round of the Furusiyya FEI Nations Cup Jumping Finals got underway in Barcelona yesterday. Unfortunately, the heiress' bid for the Coca-Cola Trophy came to an early end, after she clocked up 12 faults and was placed 57th out of 63 riders. Onassis, 29, who is the only living descendant of Greek shipping tycoon Aristotle Onassis, was riding grey mare AD Camille Z during the event, which is one of the most prestigious in world showjumping. Excitement: Athina and husband Doda were competing in the Furusiyya FEI Nations Cup Jumping Final . Relaxed: Athina, who is famously reclusive, looked relaxed as she chatted to a friend in the ring . Her husband, the Brazilian rider Álvaro de Miranda Neto, 41, did better and with AD Nouvelle Europe Z, chalked up just two faults and managed a respectable 24th place. The winner of the Coca-Cola Trophy, however, was Canada's Eric Lamaze who managed an almost perfect round on his horse Fine Lady. Veteran Brazilian rider Pedro Veniss took second place with his horse Amemoi O Sandor, while France's Pénélope Leprovost and Sultane Des Ibis came third. While Onassis might not always get what she wants in her riding career, she has long called the shots in her own life, shrugging off her family's fame and living a quiet life in Brazil's largest city São Paulo with her husband instead. Walking the course: Athina, along with the other competitors, spent some time inspecting the course . Top tips: Onassis gets some advice from husband Doda, who eventually managed a 24th place finish . The only child of Christina Onassis, the late shipping tycoon's daughter, she inherited 55 per cent of his fortune - which is believed to be worth billions - on his death. Since then, Onassis has dedicated herself to carving out an equestrian career, although an injury last year proved a serious setback. Onassis, who competes for Greece, is rarely seen in public but has made an unusually large number of appearances in recent months, as her showjumping career hots up. Most recently, she was spotted competing in London at the Longines Global Champions Tour in August, alongside fellow famous riders, Jessica Springsteen and Sofia Abramovich. Although she and her husband, who is affectionately known as Doda, failed to put in an appearance at the launch party, she did manage a clear round in the ring on her bay mare, AD Rose du Valon. Nerves: Athina looked on intently as Doda took to the ring on his horse AD Nouvelle Europe Z . Not so good: Athina eventually took 57th place, with Canada's Eric Lamaze taking the Coca-Cola Trophy .
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The heiress, 29, was hoping to get her hands on the Coca-Cola Trophy .
Unfortunately, she clocked up 12 faults and ended up in 57th place .
The trophy was eventually won by Canada's Eric Lamaze and Fine Lady .
She was competing at the Furusiyya FEI Nations Cup Jumping Finals .
Husband Doda also took part in the competition and came 24th .
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By . Joshua Gardner . PUBLISHED: . 10:41 EST, 29 April 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 12:01 EST, 29 April 2013 . Inquiry: Dan Halloran faces inquiry on charges he slept with an employee as a city councilman . A New York City councilman who was already charged this month in a plot to rig the city’s mayoral race can now say bad has gone to worse after his second young office mistress was exposed Monday. 41-year-old Dan Halloran, a married conservative Republican from Queens and America’s first openly religious pagan elected to office, was led from his home April 2 by FBI agents as a young woman stood by, covering her face. It has now been revealed in a New York Post report that woman is his former intern, 23-year-old Denise Batista. Batista has since given up the gig but still held the position when she and the councilman first began their relationship. ‘The council takes sexual harassment and . discrimination very seriously,’ Council Speaker Christine Quinn’s . spokesman Jamie McShane told the Post. ‘Speaker Quinn will immediately . refer [this] to the council’s Standards and Ethics Committee.’ And Batista isn’t the only young staffer with whom Halloran has been accused of spending extracurricular time. After his corruption charges this . month, the Post reported that between 2010-2011, Halloran had an affair . with his former deputy chief of staff Meaghan Mapes. Princely: Halloran, center, is the country's first openly religious pagan elected to such a high-profile office and serves as 'First Atheling' or prince, of his sect . First affair? The New York Post reported in April on Halloran's (left) alleged affair with former staffer, then 21-year-old Meaghan Mapes (right) in 2010 . While . then 21-year-old Mapes was a student at St. Johns College, her roommate told the Post, Halloran would sneak in through a side door and sleep . over ‘about twice a week.’ ‘He’s not attractive,’ said the . roommate. ‘He was constantly around. It was really annoying. Thank God . he never came out with his shirt off.’ By early 2011, Halloran would be locked in divorce proceedings with wife Cynthia. But philandering might be one of Halloran’s more mundane habits. Born . into a typical Irish Catholic family, it was reported during his . initial run for city council that Halloran had converted to Paganism in . the 1980s. Arrested: Seen here leaving a New York courthouse, Halloran was arrested April 2 by the FBI on charges he tried to bribe election officials . Halloran is prince, or ‘First . Atheling,’ of a group he formed in 2002 with the official name ‘New . Normannii Reik of Theodish Belief’ according to a 2009 Village Voice piece, published after Halloran won the Queens District 19 seat. That’s at least the third of his . Pagan tribal affiliations. Halloran left his previous tribe, itself a . splinter group of his first, to start the ‘Normanii Reik.’ Nick Ritter, an affiliate from Halloran’s first tribe, told the Post April 6 that Halloran once received corporal punishment for an undisclosed act against a female ‘thrall,’ or underling. ‘He was given a choice,’ Ritter said. ‘He was going to leave Theodism or stay and pay the piper.’ Paying . the piper, it turned out, was a public flogging. Halloran was allegedly . stripped, tied to a tree, and struck with a belt 11 times. Powerful: Halloran, 41, front center, converted from Catholicism to Paganism in the 1980s and has risen in the religions ranks since . Halloran’s arrest, along with that of State Senator Malcolm Smith, came after charges the two men were trying to bribe state officials with thousands of dollars to allow Smith, a Democrat, to run for New York City mayor on the Republican ticket. The change of party was likely an attempt to give Smith an advantage in a field of five other democrats. Halloran allegedly told one of his cronies, 'Money is what greases the wheels. Good, bad or indifferent. That's politics. It's all about how much, and that's our politicians in New York. They're all like that. You can't do anything without the f---ing .' Smith and Halloran have both pled not guilty to the bribery charges. Meanwhile, Halloran has yet to deny his affair with Batista and, according to the Post, has even posted pictures of her to Facebook, where he’s changed his relationship from ‘It’s complicated’ to ‘In a relationship.’ As recently as Friday, the two were seen riding together in Halloran’s Jaguar. Halloran has indicated no intention to resign from city council. If convicted on the bribery charge, he could face up to 45 years in prison . Accused: It has been a long month for Halloran, who was charged with helping New York state senator Malcolm Smith rig the mayoral election . .
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Dan Halloran was arrested April 2 on charges he paid off state officials in order to rig the mayoral race in favor of State Senator Malcolm Smith .
23-year-old Denise Batista was Halloran's intern, allegedly while they were already having an affair .
Now embroiled in a divorce, it was reported earlier this month that the Queens conservative also had a relationship with his then 21-year-old deputy chief of staff Meaghan Mapes .
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(CNN) -- At least 10 people were killed and more than 100 wounded following a pair of bombings Saturday in the southern Thai city of Yala, Thai media reported. The two blasts were the result of bombs stashed in stolen trucks, Police Lt. Gen. Paitoon Chuchaiya told CNN affiliate MCOT. Video from the scene showed damage to buildings, cars and motorcycles on the street. The blasts set fires to nearby vehicles, including a van, which itself exploded, leading to initial reports of a third bomb, Chuchaiya said. Thai Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra said she has been informed of the Yala bombings and has instructed national police chief Gen. Prewpan Dhamapong to investigate the crime scene immediately, according to MCOT. Police investigators believe suspected insurgents are behind the attacks, MCOT said. Last month, a series of bombs detonated in Bangkok. No one was killed in those blasts, and an Iranian suspect was arrested in connection with the incident.
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Police: Two apparent car bombs exploded in the city of Yala .
At least 10 people were killed and more than 100 injured .
Bangkok was hit by a series of bombings last month .
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WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Some "Occupy" demonstrators who've clashed with police in New York City have migrated south as the new year begins, joining their colleagues in the nation's capital where authorities continue to allow protest camps at two locations. "We're here because we got pushed out of New York, but we're also here because this is the heart of where all politics happen," said a protester who would not give his name. "Police know me," he explained, as he tried to repair a tarp torn free by high winds early Monday. He said he has been joined by a handful of other Occupy Wall Street demonstrators pushed out by New York police. On New Year's Eve, New York City police arrested 68 Occupy Wall Street demonstrators at their longtime camp in Zuccotti Park. The young man, who said he left the Wall Street location weeks ago after authorities began to pressure protesters to leave, reflected on a strategy for the new year as he spoke Monday at the larger of two encampments in Washington -- at a small downtown park known as McPherson Square, near the White House . "I think (the movement's) most important stage right now is to inform the American people, before we can give any kind of particular answer or one message," he said. "This is still, relatively, in my opinion, a young movement, and I don't think it's so much that it's anybody having the same answers but everybody asking the same questions right now," he told CNN, speaking on camera with most of his face concealed by a heavy winter scarf. Among the questions being asked include those from a ranking U.S. congressman, Rep. Darrell Issa, R-California, demanding to know why protesters have been allowed to make camp in the first place. Issa, in a letter two weeks ago to the U.S. Department of Interior, said he believes the camping is illegal. But the National Park Service, which is in charge of McPherson Square, has applied the most liberal interpretation of rules against overnight camping, and officials instead consider the makeshift tent city a "24-hour vigil. A handwritten bulletin board maintained by the protesters Monday noted it is "Day 93" of the demonstration there. At a second location in Washington, known as Freedom Plaza, the National Park Service in recent days extended a required permit through the end of February, acting just before it was to expire on New Year's Day. The extension may further provoke Issa, who chairs a House panel on government reform. His December 13 letter to Interior Secretary Ken Salazar expressed concern that the tent city in McPherson Square has ruined some of a $400,000 restoration project at the park, paid for with economic stimulus money. Issa said the National Park Service has allowed "the Occupy DC movement to ecologically damage the park significantly over the past two months, by camping and killing the newly planted grass" at the location. Protest organizers and supporters have distributed straw around the tents to deal with mud that followed heavy rains last month. Other areas where grass remains now show signs of damage from the tents and tarps blocking sunlight. National Park Service spokeswoman Carol Johnson told CNN the protesters in McPherson Square do not require a permit because their group contains fewer than 500 people and is considered a 24-hour vigil. Police in the area have said their enforcement so far has been to keep city streets clear of protesters, and to respond to petty crime that may take place around the camps. CNN's Greg Seaby contributed to this report.
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Occupy Wall Street demonstrators migrate south .
Authorities extend permit in Washington, D.C.
Congressman questions continued forbearance .
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By . Alasdair Glennie . PUBLISHED: . 08:45 EST, 10 February 2014 . | . UPDATED: . 17:26 EST, 10 February 2014 . It was a moment she had dreamed of since she was a girl and saw her claim Britain’s first medal in a snow event at the Winter Olympics in 90 years. But for many, Jenny Jones’s bronze in the snowboarding slopestyle final was marred by the BBC commentary. The corporation was forced to apologise after more than 300 viewers complained. Commentators Ed Leigh and Tim Warwood were labelled ‘immature idiots’ for whooping and cheering as Miss Jones competed in Sochi, Russia, on Sunday. Apology: Hundreds of viewers complained that the BBC had spoiled Jenny Jones's Olympic bronze medal success and branded commentators including snowboarder Aimee Fuller 'puerile and hyperactive' Team: BBC Commentators Ed Leigh (left) and Tim Warwood (right) were also in the commentary box . Clowning around: Aimee Fuller, pictured with fellow snowboarder Jamie Nicholls, was invited to join the commentary box after she failed to get through to the event final . The pair, who were joined by Miss . Jones’s friend and fellow snowboarder Aimee Fuller, repeatedly talked . over each other and appeared to celebrate when her Austrian rival Anna . Glasser fell, ensuring 33-year-old Miss Jones a medal. At . one point Miss Fuller yelled ‘Go on the Jones!’, while Warwood said ‘I . can’t look, someone else commentate’ as she was about to start her run. When . Miss Glasser fell, the BBC team erupted into cheers and Miss Fuller . screamed: ‘Jones gets bronze. Can I stand on my chair now?’ The cheering became so loud that Miss Fuller herself remarked: ‘Whoa, are we supposed to do that? Probably not.’ In . one exchange as Miss Jones, from Bristol, waited for her score, Leigh . said: ‘I can feel my pulse in my lower intestine.’ Warwood replied: . ‘That’s not your pulse, Ed.’ Crude: Mr Leigh also referred to Olympic hero Jenny's reaction to winning the bronze - telling viewers she 'had a face that can help bread rise' Shock: Jenny Jones realises her parents, who she believed were at home, were in the crowd as she competed, pictured left. She immediately rushed over to give them a hug, pictured right . A . total of 303 complained to the BBC about the coverage. Writing on the . BBC’s own Points Of View messageboard, one viewer said: ‘Shame, the . Jones medal overshadowed by immature idiots.’ Another criticised the ‘shrieking with joy at the fall of a non-GB athlete’. A . BBC spokesman said: ‘This was a truly historic occasion for Team GB and . the commentary team were understandably very excited. However, we . acknowledge that on occasion this excitement got the better of them.’ American Jamie Anderson took . gold in the event with 95.25, ahead of Finland’s Enni Rukajarvi on 92.50. The three . medal winners shouted their delight and hugged as the final competitor . failed to match their scores. Success: Miss Jones beams as she reaches the foot of the slope . Jones had previously been world champion and had won . three gold medals at the Winter X Games but had never previously . competed at the Olympics as the snowboard slopestyle event was making . its Olympic debut. Miss . Jones was the oldest competitor in the final by six years and had not . even picked up a snowboard until she was 17 when she visited a dry ski . slope. And she had . been forced to put her preparations for the games on hold over Christmas . after she suffered a concussion during training. She . confessed that she has slept with the medal under her pillow and that . the reality of her win was only just 'starting to sink in a little bit.' Tumble: Despite repeatedly telling viewers how sporting snowboarding rivals were, the presenters distastefully cheered when Miss Jones's main competitor Anna Gasser suffered a fall . But her victory has been slightly overshadowed by criticism of the coverage of the event. Fuming viewers took to Twitter to vent their frustration at the commentary team - with some admitting they had been forced to switch the sound off. Paul Morton wrote: 'I thought I’d tuned into CBeebies or “Grange Hill does Val d’ISere” by mistake, turned out to be BBC’s #Slopestyle commentators #myeardrums.' Another twitter user, simply called Helena added: 'Want a refund on the bit of my licence fee paying for the appalling slopestyle commentators. They’re a disgrace.' Nick Blacow wrote: 'Deary me can the @BBCSport slopestyle commentators please get a grip you are working for the BBC for god’s sake!' And user Adam Yates added: 'Never heard such puerile hyperactive guff in my life. BBC should axe those three clowns immediately. Had to mute coverage.' Precious: Miss Jones confessed today that she had slept with the medal under her pillow last night and that the reality of her win was only just 'starting to sink in a little bit' Pumped: Jones poses with her parents who surprised her at the ceremony . Other viewers were offended by the sexual innuendos the commentary team used, including joking about a competitor having 'slugs in her knickers'. Mr Leigh and Mr Warwood also collapsed into fits of infantile giggles when they joked about 'pumping the fist in the commentary box' - slang for a sexual act. Mr Leigh also referred to Olympic hero Miss Jones’s reaction to winning the bronze - telling viewers she 'had a face that can help bread rise'. Mr Leigh, 39, has worked for the BBC presenting flagship snow sports show Ski Sunday since 2007 after previously working for Channel 4, while Mr Warwood presented CBBC show Wild! after a low-key career as a professional snowboarder. One viewer said: 'It was awful, you would not have expected this in the heyday of BBC coverage, could you imagine Ski Sunday commentators reacting like that?' Amir Adhamy added: 'So just popped online to see people’s reactions to the commentary, I cannot believe I’m alone in finding them unbearably annoying. 'They’re like hungover teenagers, talking over each other and yelping. It’s giving me a headache - I came here to zone out and watch people in hyper trendy fluffy clothes do cool stuff in snow. Ugh. Call me a naysayer.' Winners: Enni Rukajarvi, Jamie Anderson and Jenny Jones pose on the podium at their medal ceremony . Apres-ski? British snowboarder Jenny Jones tweeted this, suggesting she might have gone out celebrating after her win. Viewers were frequently told about the sportsmanship among snowboarders . Father-of-one Graham Carr tweeted: 'Just been watching BBC coverage of snowboarding with my 6-yr-old son. He just asked what ‘pumping the fist’ meant. Disgusting BBC.' Another Twitter user Melanie wrote: 'Wish BBC snowboarding commentary team get buried in avalanche. Cringing so much my face hurts. Can’t believe we pay their wages!' However some viewers said they had enjoyed the raucous commentary. Twitter user Becca wrote: 'The BBC commentators on the women’s snowboard slopestyle are my favourite people ever.' The BBC apologised, adding that 3.1million people had tuned in to watch Miss Jones win her Olympic medal, and that 53 people had submitted appreciations about the overall Winter Olympics coverage so far. 1980: Born July 3 in Bristol . 1999: Explodes onto the scene by winning the first of five British Snowboard Championships. 2006: Finishes the year second in the World Snowboard Tour Rankings. 2009: January - Cements her position as one of the world's leading snowboarders by winning a slopestyle gold medal at the prestigious Winter X Games in Aspen, Colorado.February - Earns silver in the slopestyle at the inaugural Winter Dew Tour after second-place finishes in the meetings at Breckenridge Ski Resort in Colorado and Mount Snow Resort in West Dover, Vermont. 2010: January - Wins her second slopestyle gold medal in a row at the Winter X Games 14 in Aspen. February - Runner-up once again in the Winter Dew Tour standings after a third-place finish at Breckenridge was followed up by coming second at Snowbasin Resort in Huntsville, Utah and Mount Snow Resort. March - Follows up her success in the X Games with yet another gold medal at the Winter X Games Europe in Tignes, France. 2011: Fails to claim a hat-trick of Winter X Games gold medals, settling for silver after being pipped by Finland's Enni Rukajarvi. 2013: August - Secures her first World Cup podium with a silver medal in a meeting in New Zealand.December - Suffers a concussion in a training crash in Austria. 2014: January - Named in Team GB's squad for the Winter Olympics in Sochi to compete in the Games' first ever slopestyle event. Sunday, February 9 - marks her Olympic debut at the age of 33 by winning bronze medal for Great Britain in snowboard slopestyle at Sochi 2014 Winter Olympics. Becomes Britain's first medal winner on snow.
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BBC apologises after receiving more than 300 complaints .
Viewers branded Ed Leigh, Tim Warwood and Aimee Fuller 'hyperactive'
Broadcaster says 'excitement got the better' of commentators .
Presenters cheered when Austria's Anna Gasser fell over on the slope .
Jenny Jones, 33, won Great Britain's first ever medal on snow .
Snowboarder said today that she had slept with her medal under her pillow .
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Alexander the Great built a legendary empire before his untimely - and mysterious - death at the age of just 32 in 323 BC. Some historians argued was death was due to natural causes, while others maintained he was secretly murdered at a celebratory banquet. Now, an Otago University scientist may have unraveled the case some 2000 years later. National Poisons Centre toxicologist Dr Leo Schep thinks the culprit could be poisonous wine made from an innocuous-looking plant, according to a report in the New Zealand Herald. Death by wine? New findings, which are ten years in the making, suggest that Alexander the Great died from drinking wine that was tainted with a seemingly innocuous plant called hellebore . Pretty but deadly: Veratrum album, known as white hellebore, is a plant that, once fermented properly, can be lethal . Dr Schep, who has been researching the toxicological evidence for a decade, said some of the poisoning theories - including arsenic and strychnine - were not plausible. Death would have come far too fast, he said. His research, co-authored by Otago University classics expert Dr Pat Wheatley and published in the medical journal Clinical Toxicology, found the most plausible culprit was Veratrum album, known as white hellebore. The white-flowered plant, which can be fermented into a poisonous wine, was well-known to the Greeks as a herbal treatment for inducing vomiting. Crucially, it could have accounted for the 12 torturous days that Alexander took to die, speechless and unable to walk. The new theory behind the death of Alexander the Great started here, at the University of Otago in New Zealand . Other suggested poisons - including hemlock, aconite, wormwood, henbane and autumn crocus - would likely have killed him far more quickly. Dr Schep began looking into the mystery in 2003 when he was approached by a company working on a BBC documentary. 'They asked me to look into it for them and I said, 'Oh yeah, I'll give it a go, I like a challenge' - thinking I wasn't going to find anything,' he said. 'And to my utter surprise, and their surprise, we found something that could fit the bill.' Dr Schep's theory was that Veratrum album could have been fermented as a wine that was given to the leader. Dr Leo Schep, toxicologist at the National Poisons Centre and scientist at the Otago University in New Zealand, thinks a poisonous wine made from a plant may have killed Alexander the Great . It would have tasted 'very bitter' but it could have been sweetened - and Alexander was likely to have been very drunk at the banquet. But whether Alexander was poisoned is still a mystery. We'll never know really,' Dr Schep concluded.
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Alexander the Great died in 323 BC at the age of 32 .
His death has been a point of mystery, with numerous theories as to what caused it .
What is known is that he suffered for 12 days before dying .
A new theory from the University of Otago in New Zealand claims his wine had been spiked with a plant that, when fermented, is incredibly deadly .
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By . Mark Duell . PUBLISHED: . 04:35 EST, 20 August 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 05:28 EST, 20 August 2013 . Couple: Errol Damelin, 43, lives with his wife Julie, 45, and their three children aged four, 12 and 14 . The founder of Wonga is splitting from his wife after 15 years of marriage, it has been revealed. Errol Damelin, 43, who lives with his wife Julie, 45, and their children aged four, 12 and 14, in a six-bedroom house in Hampstead, north-west London, founded the payday lender in 2007. The couple’s lawyer said last night that their split was ‘with sadness’ but added that they were separating ‘amicably’ and ‘remain fully committed to the welfare and happiness of their children’. An expensive legal battle is therefore unlikely, which should ensure South Africa-born Mr Damelin can hold onto his £30million stake of the company, which is based in Camden, north-west London, reported The Sun. A statement from their legal firm Lewis Silkin sent to MailOnline said: 'It is with sadness that Errol and Julie Damelin announce that they are to separate amicably. They remain fully committed to the welfare and happiness of their children.' Mr Damelin - educated at Boston University in Massachusetts and Cape Town University in South Africa - is a keen skier, cyclist and runner, and founded his first company in Israel. He set up Wonga with business partner Jonty Hurwitz - and it now employs 500 people, making 3.5million loans last year totalling £1billion, which was a 40 per cent rise on the previous year. But it has attracted criticism for having a representative APR of 5,853 per cent - although a typical advance of £200 for 14 days would incur fees and interest of around £34. Wonga has come under strong attack this year from the Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby, who has promised to compete it out of existence by setting up a Church of England credit union. Home: Mr Damelin lives in this six-bedroom house in Hampstead, north-west London, with his family . Advert: Wonga has attracted criticism for having a representative APR of 5,853 per cent - although a typical advance of £200 for 14 days would incur fees and interest of around £34 . Controversy: Papiss Cisse of Newcastle United FC eventually agreed to wear the shirt with the club's new sponsor Wonga during a pre-season friendly match against St Mirren in Paisley, Scotland, on July 30 . But Dr Welby later admitted that the rival will not be ready to do business for more than ten years - because setting up credit unions to compete with Wonga will take ‘major skills and much time’. It was a second climbdown after his criticism of the company last month was rapidly followed by the disclosure that the Church’s pension fund had invested money in one of Wonga’s financial backers. Wonga has also come under attack since it was announced as Newcastle United FC’s main kit sponsor last October, prompting a Senegalese player at the club to refuse to wear the branded shirt. Muslim striker Papiss Cisse had originally done this on religious grounds, but following talks with the club, his family and Islamic teachers, the £40,000-a-week player said last month he would wear it.
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Errol Damelin, 43, is married to Julie, 45, with children aged 4, 12 and 14 .
Founded Wonga in 2007 and they live in six-bedroom Hampstead house .
Couple say split is 'with sadness' but they 'remain committed to children'
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