Day: February 15, 2017

U.N. warns of catastrophic dam failure in Syria battle

The United Nations is warning of catastrophic flooding in Syria from the Tabqa dam, which is at risk from high water levels, deliberate sabotage by Islamic State and further damage from air strikes by the U.S.-led coalition. The earth-filled dam holds back the Euphrates River 40 km upstream of the IS stronghold of Raqqa and has been controlled by IS since 2014.

Police hunt for two men after attack outside pub

Officers say they want to speak to the pair in connection with an assault outside Airfield Tavern pub in Horley High Street in the early hours of Wednesday January 11. Surrey Police say that the victim, a 38-year-old man, was reportedly walking into the pub at around 1am when he was assaulted and suffered a fractured jaw. PC George Willie from Reigate area Patrol Team said: “I would like to speak to the men in these images as I believe they have information which could assist ongoing enquiries.

Woman arrested in killing of N. Korean leader’s half brother

FILE – In this May 4, 2001, file photo, a man believed to be Kim Jong Nam, the eldest son of then North Korean leader Kim Jong Il, looks at a battery of photographers as he exits a police van to board a plane to Beij… . A police officer controls traffic in front of a hospital’s forensic department in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Wednesday, Feb. 15, 2017.

As Islamic State loses territory, it seeks to survive online

Al-Qaida’s main affiliate in Iraq avoided extinction at the hands of U.S. and Iraqi forces a decade ago by backing away from military engagements and moving the remnants of its network underground until its reemergence as the Islamic State. That successor organization, now confronting its own eventual fall, is devising a modified survival strategy that may involve surrendering control of its “caliphate” in Iraq and Syria but seeks to preserve a virtual version of it online.

Asian confederation imposes life bans for Laos match-fixing

Asian confederation imposes life bans for Laos match-fixing The Asian Football Confederation has banned 15 current or former players for life for match-fixing Check out this story on USATODAY.com: http://usat.ly/2lOWicT KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia – The Asian Football Confederation has banned 15 current or former players for life for match-fixing. They are among 22 people from Laos and Cambodia issued with life bans by the AFC disciplinary committee for manipulating matches involving Laos national teams and club side Lao Toyota.

More questions than answers in assassination of Jim Jong Un’s half brother

It looks like a perfectly staged assassination, straight out of the pages of a spy novel: Kim Jong Nam, the estranged, exiled half brother of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, falls ill at a Malaysian airport, complains of being sprayed with some sort of chemical, and drops dead. A look at what officials are trying to piece together as they work to reconstruct what appears to be one of the most audacious, mysterious assassinations in recent Asian history: Kim Jong Nam, a jovial, overweight gambler and playboy, had embarrassed Pyongyang before – he tried to sneak into Tokyo Disneyland; he criticized his half brother – but he’s been generally seen more as an annoyance than an existential threat to North Korea’s stability.

NATO poised to open new Naples anti-terrorism hub

NATO was set to approve a plan Wednesday for a new anti-terrorism hub in Naples, Italy, which will serve as a focal point for monitoring threats growing along the alliance’s southern doorstep, NATO’s top official said. “This will help us to coordinate information on crisis countries such as Libya and Iraq, and help us address terrorism and other challenges stemming from the region,” Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said at the start of two days talks with NATO defense ministers.

Nervous NATO allies put on brave face for Trump era

Nervous European allies put a brave face on the troubled debut of President Donald Trump’s administration, expressing confidence in U.S. engagement with NATO as they prepared to hear from Trump’s defence chief at talks in Brussels on Wednesday. The meeting at NATO headquarters is seen as an opportunity for Defense Secretary Jim Mattis to reaffirm U.S. commitment to European security after an election campaign in which Trump appeared to question the value of the alliance.

UK Supreme Court rules against royal wedding protesters

Britain’s Supreme Court has ruled against protesters who were arrested and searched by police when Prince William married Kate Middleton more than five years ago. The country’s highest court Wednesday upheld lower court rulings that the Metropolitan Police had acted lawfully when they took some protesters into custody.

The Latest: North Korean’s killing makes few waves in Macau

Kim was assass… KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia – The Latest on the apparent assassination of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un’s half brother, Kim Jong Nam, at a Malaysian airport : The slaying of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un’s half brother, Kim Jong Nam, appears to be making few ripples so far in Macau, where he lived for years. The Chinese gambling hub is home to a small Korean community estimated at 240 people but staff at the city’s handful of Korean restaurants and shops said Wednesday they had never seen him when shown his picture.

Wartsila to maximise availability and secure safe operations of PGSs seismic vessel fleet

WA rtsilA and PGS Geophysical AS have signed a service agreement that makes WA rtsilA the preferred service supplier for engines and other WA rtsilA equipment. According to the agreement, WA rtsilA will take care of the maintenance of engines and propulsion systems on board PGS’s fleet of 8 seismic vessels, securing maximum uptime as well as safe and economic operations.

Paul Nuttall clarified claims attributed to him about the Hillsborough disaster

Ukip leader Paul Nuttall has told a party press officer who took the blame for an inaccurate claim that he lost “close personal friends” in the Hillsborough disaster that she can keep her job. Lynda Roughley offered to resign on Tuesday evening after her boss was forced to admit during a live radio interview that the claim – carried by his official website for six years – was wrong.

Mum’s ‘threatening’ parking fine is cancelled

After contacting the Herald and Gazette about a ‘threatening’ parking fine, an Angmering mum-of-two has been told the fine has been cancelled. Sarah Foster, 42, of Roman Avenue, Angmering, received a A 50 fine after parking in the Montague Centre Car Park in Liverpool Gardens, Worthing, on January 8, when she popped into the town centre to buy a new mobile phone.

Woman held over Kim Jong-un’s half-brother killing

Kim Jong-Nam fell out of favour with the North Korean hierarchy following a botched attempt in 2001 to enter Japan on a forged passport. Photo: AFP Malaysian police probing the killing of the half-brother of North Korea’s leader arrested a woman Wednesday as they tried to unravel a Cold War-style assassination the South said was carried out by Pyongyang’s agents.

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As some cities reaffirm support for sanctuary policies that protect immigrants, Phoenix finds itself in an unusual position to push back against any immigration actions by the new White House. The Phoenix City Council on Wednesday will discuss a petition to adopt the sanctuary label, following the lead of Chicago, Los Angeles, New York and others in a city with one of the nation’s largest populations of immigrants in the country illegally.

Derry/Strabane has greatest level of unemployment in North

The statistics, which were published by the Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency on Wednesday, reveal the total number of people in receipt of unemployment related benefits in Derry and Strabane increased by 0.2 per cent last month. Of the 11 council areas in the North, Derry and Strabane continues to be the one with the greatest level of unemployment .

‘Disappointed’ by IPL snub, Jaggi holds no grudges but proves a point

He has enjoyed prime form in first class cricket this season, but despite being excluded from the IPL auctions list, Jharkhand’s Ishant Jaggi tells Rediff.com ‘s Harish Kotian that he is mentally strong and will continue to perform. He also reckons that the auditions and the simulation tests conducted by the IPL franchises to identify players is not the right way to go about things.

The Latest: Malaysia arrests woman in N. Korean killing

Kim was assass… KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia – The Latest on the apparent assassination of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un’s half brother in Malaysia : Malaysian police say they have arrested a woman in connection with the death of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un’s half brother. Kim Jong Un’s half brother died Monday after suddenly falling ill at the airport.

Slain brother was complicated part of North Korean dynasty

FILE – This combination of file photos shows Kim Jong Nam, left, exiled half-brother of North Korea’s leader Kim Jong Un, in Narita, Japan, on May 4, 2001, and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un on May 9, … SEOUL, South Korea – A failed attempt to sneak into Japan to visit Disneyland in 2001 may have doomed the leadership dreams of North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un’s elder brother, who was assassinated this week in an airport in Malaysia. Banished from his father’s favor, Kim Jong Nam frequented casinos and five-star hotels and traveled around Asia, with little say in North Korean affairs.

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Last season’s Cyprus Coca-Cola Cup finalists Omonia and Apollon Limassol will meet again on Wednesday night to contest their first leg, quarter-final meeting in Nicosia. Both sides have set targets of winning the trophy this season having both fallen behind in the league title race despite a surge in form in the last month or so.

nubia rolls out panic button for users’ safety

New Delhi, Feb 15 – As per the Indian governments directive last year, Chinese smartphone maker nubia has updated its software for the power button to also function like the panic button, the company announced on Wednesday. Pressing the power button thrice will connect the users to the helpline and the GPS in the phone will help authorities to track the location of the person, the company said in a statement.

Intense fighting kicks off between Syrian rebel and regime forces in Daraa

Three fighters, including a Lebanese national were killed in an ambush by Syrian opposition forces in regime-held Kafraya in Idlib province, whilst further fighting took place between opposition and the regime forces in Daraa and the outskirts of Damascus on Tuesday. Opposition forces appear to have encircled a number of militias belonging to Iran and Lebanese group Hizballah in the town of Kafraya.

Sasikala leaves for Bengaluru to surrender, FIR filed

Chennai, Feb 15 – AIADMK General Secretary V.K. Sasikala on Wednesday vowed to return to politics as she left by road to Bengaluru to surrender even as an MLA accused her of abducting him. As supporters flashed the V sign, the beleaguered Sasikala looked pensive as she was driven in a motorcade after a quick visit to the Marina Beach memorial of her mentor, the late J. Jayalalithaa.

UK courts Saudi spenders with new tourism office in Riyadh

The British ambassador to Saudi Arabia , Simon Collis, has expected a rise in joint investment projects between Riyadh and London, hoping the number of Saudi visitors to the United Kingdom would surge after the British Tourism Authority inaugurated its first office in Saudi Arabia. The diplomat told Asharq Al-Awsat that the Gulf countries have always been an important source for the British tourism economy.

Drought drives food price spike in East Africa, UN warns

East Africa’s ongoing drought has sharply curbed harvests and drive up the prices of cereals and other staple foods to unusually high levels, posing a heavy burden to households and special risks for pastoralists in the region, the United Nations Agricultural Agency said today. “Sharply increasing prices are severely constraining food access for large numbers of households with alarming consequences in terms of food insecurity,” said Mario Zappacosta, a senior economist for the UN Food and Agriculture Organization , in a news release.

Black Tie & Tales 02.16.17

Dr. Murray “Murf” Klauber didn’t know what to expect on Feb. 8 when he walked through the doors of Michael’s Wine Cellar, but the look of shock on his face said it all when, after giving his son Michael Klauber a hug, he turned around to find 70 of his loved ones ready to celebrate his 90th birthday with him. Klauber’s closest family and friends gathered to surprise him with the party, which had two themes that are close to his heart: South Africa and the Monkey Bar from his former Colony Beach & Tennis Resort.

Tajikistan: Purge of Ex-Mayor’s Allies Picks Up Steam

In the wake of the mayor of Tajikistan’s capital getting sidelined, his allies are now systematically being cleared out of jobs in and near the government. On February 13, the executive committee of President Emomali Rahmon’s People’s Democratic Party assembled and decided to remove six leading party apparatchiks.