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British nationals have been urged to leave the Libyan city of Benghazi immediately due to a "specific and imminent" threat to Westerners.
The Netherlands and Germany have joined the British government in warning their citizens away from Benghazi.
Last September, Benghazi was the scene of an attack on the US consulate which left dead the US ambassador to Libya.
A Foreign Office spokesman said "We are now aware of a specific and imminent threat to Westerners in Benghazi, and urge any British nationals who remain there against our advice to leave immediately". The statement indicated that the threat was to Westerners and didn't provide details about specific threats.
The warning from the UK Government comes in the aftermath of an attack at an Algerian gas plant that left 37 hostages dead.
Since September 2012, the Foreign Office has warned against all travel to Benghazi.
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Please note that due to our archival policy, we will not alter or update the content of articles that are archived, but will only accept requests to make grammatical and formatting corrections. | 'Imminent threat' as Foreign Office urges Britons to leave Benghazi | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27Imminent_threat%27_as_Foreign_Office_urges_Britons_to_leave_Benghazi |
Police briefly cordoned off Mile-End tube station in East London on Saturday morning. A man has been taken away and the alert has now been lifted. This is the latest of many security alerts in London, which is at a high state of alert. further details awaited.
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Please note that due to our archival policy, we will not alter or update the content of articles that are archived, but will only accept requests to make grammatical and formatting corrections. | 'Incident' at East London tube station | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27Incident%27_at_East_London_tube_station |
London Metropolitan Police commissioner Sir Ian Blair has confirmed that there have been three small explosions on tube trains at Warren Street, Oval and Shepherd's Bush stations, and another small explosion on a No. 26 bus on Hackney Road in Bethnal Green.
The London Ambulance Service has not found any injured people, but one person has reported themselves to a local hospital. It is not yet known if this is connected with the blasts.
All the devices were "conventional" but possibly faulty, and contained no chemical or biological agents. Not all the bombs exploded fully; Bomb Squad officers are working on making them safe. There are no reports of the deaths of suspects who attempted to set the explosives off.
A spokesman for Stagecoach said the driver of the number 26 bus travelling through Shoreditch had heard a bang on upper deck, gone upstairs and seen the windows were blown out. The bus driver was very shaken but is said to be fine. Reports of the windows having been blown out have been denied by a police officer on the scene. "I have seen the bus. There were no windows blown out," the officer told Reuters.
One injury sustained at Warren Street tube station has been confirmed by authorities. There have been no other reports of injuries, and authorities are reporting no casualties.
At around 15:25, a man was arrested by armed police in Whitehall, which is cordoned off. A second man was arrested in the Whitehall area around 16:15, but Police have confirmed that this arrest is unconnected with the explosions.
Armed police were deployed at UCL Hospital, near Warren Street tube station, after reports of a suspect entering the hospital. There was speculation that one of the bombers may have been injured and sought treatment at the hospital. A Scotland Yard spokesman had said "We are dealing with an incident at University College Hospital and we have armed officers deployed there. We cannot go in any further detail at this stage." A UCL spokeswoman confirmed that an email had been sent to staff asking them to be on the lookout for the suspect. At 16:00 a spokesman for the Metropolitan police confirmed that the incident was over, but armed police returned to the hospital 30 minutes later to search the premises. Police have now also confirmed this is unrelated to the explosions.
Prime Minister Tony Blair has cancelled a visit to an east London school and a photocall with visiting Prime Minister John Howard of Australia, instead heading to a COBRA committee emergency meeting. Australian Prime Minister John Howard is in London and is involved in discussions with Tony Blair as this unfolds.
In a public press conference, Blair said that "there appear to have been no casualties", and that he wanted people to "React calmly, and continue with our lives". John Howard also stated that Australia stood by Britain and that people should "beware the minds of terrorists."
Police initially advised against unnecessary travel in London, asking Londoners to keep travel to a minimum and avoid the public transport system. At 15:52 Sir Ian Blair of the Metropolitan Police has asked Londoners to return to their normal activities, including travel. He also stated that some public transport services are not yet functioning.
A release from Scotland Yard stated that there was no chemical agents found after checking the Oval. Investigations at Shepherd's Bush station also confirmed no chemical agents.
The Northern line, the Hammersmith and City Line, the Piccadilly Line, and the Bakerloo Line have been suspended. Victoria Line and the Waterloo and City Line were suspended but reopened shortly after. Whitehall had been sealed off but reopened shortly after, only to be closed again after armed police surrounded and arrested a man outside the Ministry of Defence, however at a press conference at 17:45 Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir Ian Blair said that this arrest was unconnected with the explosions.
Various news sites are reporting a minor explosion in a passenger's backpack. A BBC correspondent, claiming to have sources working in the London Underground, suggested the explosions were only detonators and that the bombs contained no explosives. It is also believed that reports of gunshots being heard at the stations are mistaken, passengers simply mistaking the sound of the detonators for the sound of gunshots.
A spokesman for London Underground has stated the nature of the incidents is unknown.
Eyewitness reports from Warren Street say that something happened towards the front of the train. The passengers all headed towards the back of the train. As the train pulled into the station somebody pulled the emergency alarm and all the passengers got off the train. There are reports of a 'burning rubber' smell from eyewitnesses.
25% of Shepherd's Bush / Uxbridge Road and all of Shepherd's Bush Green is sealed off.
Eyewitness report of "bang" in a carriage at Oval station. No injuries. After being spotted the suspect fled the station, leaving the suspect package unexploded in a carriage. (BBC News 24)
London Police are not regarding this as a major incident yet. (BBC News 24)
British Transport Police report there has been one injury at Warren Street Station. No details as to the cause and nature of this injury are available, although BBC News are speculating that the injury is to the person who set off the device.
There are reports of problems sending text messages or making calls from mobiles phones on some networks. (O2 confirmed, Orange is fine, occasional text service but no calls on Vodafone) O2 provide communications services for emergency teams across the UK and have previously prioritized their network usage for this use.
Note: Please don't call these numbers just because you can't get through - some of the mobile networks are temporarily down or disrupted. At the moment the services are saying there are no mass casualties from these incidents (see below).
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Please note that due to our archival policy, we will not alter or update the content of articles that are archived, but will only accept requests to make grammatical and formatting corrections. | Four small explosions strike London's transport system | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27Incidents%27_spark_Tube_evacuation |
Wikinews has learned that the internet group known only as "Anonymous" has hacked the website of the No Cussing Club (NCC), nocussing.com, for at least two days in a row. On day one, the group hacked into the website, replacing the content with links to images of alleged e-mail conversations. The e-mails appear to be from the founder's e-mail account, accusing organization members of forgery and using the site for their own personal financial gains. The website was also replaced with Anonymous's logo and a message. On January 22, they again attacked the website, by means of a Distributed Denial-of-service attack (DDoS), bringing it offline periodically throughout the day. Anonymous attacked the Scientology website in 2008 with a DDoS attack, taking it off-line for at least two days.
"It has come to our attention that the creators of the no cussing club, McKay and Brent Hatch have done so at great personal gain. Their material promotes the organization as the brainchild of their 14-year-old son, when actually the material is written by his parents, who also manage his profitable career while using his speaking events to plug their own material," said Anonymous on the hacked website. On Encyclopedia Dramatica, a satire Wiki, they claim further responsibility for the hack and exposition saying they managed to break into McKay and Brent Hatch's email accounts. "[the accounts got] haxx0rd and via this astonishing development passwords were got and a certain website got its shit ruined."
According to the NCC's website, it has 20,000 members worldwide, was founded in 2007 by McKay Hatch, a 14-year-old boy, and aims at discouraging swearing in public places such as schools. In 2008, McKay even succeeded in making cussing illegal in his hometown of South Pasadena, California and has appeared on various talk shows such as that of Doctor Phil. However, according to e-mails leaked to Wikinews, allegedly written by the boy's father Brent, a motivational speaker also owning Dawson Publishing, the parents are allegedly using the site and their son's material for their own personal financial gain. Anonymous also claims that the parents have forged some of their son's writings and claim it to be his.
The e-mails allege that Brent along with his publishing company, the name which "nocussing.com" is also registered under, were trying to set up assemblies in the No Cussing Club's name at schools across the United States for US$1,500.00 per show and would then pocket the money, doing the same for postcards they created for churches and schools.
"McKay spoke last night to a group of 40 people, and at the end of his presentation, there wasn't a dry eye in the crowd. I know this is going to work because the message is so important. Thanks for all you do and I hope we can work together for a long time, and of course make money in the process," said Brent in an alleged e-mail conversation on November 25, 2008. Earlier in August 2008, Brent spoke about hoping to reach a "goal" of "2.5 million dollars" by selling thousands of postcards to "schools and churches".
On January 19, 2009, ABC News.com reported that McKay claimed Anonymous was sending him and his family hate e-mail and death threats, nearly 50,000 per day, "almost all of them filled with obscenities" and spam. On the NCC's website, McKay calls himself the "most cyberbullied kid on the planet" because of Anonymous's attacks.
"A lot of people were saying I was taking away their freedom of speech," said McKay to ABC News on January 16. "All I was trying to do was raise awareness." He says he formed the club because his schoolmates were sick of hearing people swear in public. Wikinews contacted the NCC to confirm or deny the reports, but would only say that "the FBI is [working] on it [the case]" including "our attorney and we will press charges" against those who are responsible for the crimes.
Anonymous is known to prank and hack websites and e-mail accounts. In September 2008, the group hacked into BillOreilly.com, the official website of Fox News Channel commentator Bill O'Reilly, exposing personal information of the site's users in a document posted on the internet.
The NCC is located in South Pasadena. According to the California Penal Code §502 part C of the computer hacking laws, depending on the offense if caught, punishments could be a "fine not exceeding ten thousand dollars ($10,000), or by imprisonment in the state prison for 16 months, or two or three years, or by both that fine and imprisonment, or by a fine not exceeding five thousand dollars ($5,000), or by imprisonment in a county jail not exceeding one year, or by both that fine and imprisonment".
On October 20, 2008, Dmitriy Guzner, aged 18 from New Jersey, admitted to the charges related to carrying out the DDoS attack on Scientology's website. He was subsequently charged with computer hacking crimes and faces a maximum sentence of ten years imprisonment.
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| Internet group Anonymous hacks No Cussing Club's website, owner's e-mail account | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27Internet_group_%27Anonymous%27_hacks_%27nocussing.com%27_website;_exposes_possible_fraud |
A number of relatively unknown entrants made the Taiwan 2008 Invitational Games for the Deaf soccer tournament an unpredictable event. Teams from Thailand, Australia, Iran (Silver Medalist in soccer at the 2005 Summer Deaflympics), Uzbekistan, Malaysia, and Japan took part.
On September 6, soccer giants Thailand and Iran defeated Malaysia and Uzbekistan in shutouts of 11-0 and 9-0 respectively. Anothai Sathiyamat, Somsak Thongdee, Nares Numphakdee of Thailand all scored hat-tricks in the game against Uzbekistan.
On the second day of competition, a decisive battle in Group A between Japan and Iran was keenly watched by Thailand, as one of the two teams would be their opponent in the finals. The game was scoreless in the first half, with conservative tactics from both teams.
Iran's Mostafa Heydaribondarabadi scored rapidly after the second half started, but Shun Igasaki of Japan scored a penalty kick after a foul by Iran in the penalty area and tied the score again. The penalty became the key of the match when Tetsuya Kurata scored 5 minutes further in, as the Iranian players became frustrated by the penalty kick. Finally, Japan won with a final score of 2-1, and advanced to the championship match on the final day.
After group standings were mostly stabilized in the third day of competition, Thailand and Japan handled their respective Group matches by replacing several substitutes with frequently lined-up players to defeat their opponents easily. They will face off on the final day for the gold medal of soccer event in the "Invitational Games for the Deaf, Taipei 2008".
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Please note that due to our archival policy, we will not alter or update the content of articles that are archived, but will only accept requests to make grammatical and formatting corrections. | 'Invitational Games for the Deaf, Taipei 2008': Review of soccer preliminaries | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27Invitational_Games_for_the_Deaf,_Taipei_2008%27:_Review_of_soccer_prelimiaries |
A number of relatively unknown entrants made the Taiwan 2008 Invitational Games for the Deaf soccer tournament an unpredictable event. Teams from Thailand, Australia, Iran (Silver Medalist in soccer at the 2005 Summer Deaflympics), Uzbekistan, Malaysia, and Japan took part.
On September 6, soccer giants Thailand and Iran defeated Malaysia and Uzbekistan in shutouts of 11-0 and 9-0 respectively. Anothai Sathiyamat, Somsak Thongdee, Nares Numphakdee of Thailand all scored hat-tricks in the game against Uzbekistan.
On the second day of competition, a decisive battle in Group A between Japan and Iran was keenly watched by Thailand, as one of the two teams would be their opponent in the finals. The game was scoreless in the first half, with conservative tactics from both teams.
Iran's Mostafa Heydaribondarabadi scored rapidly after the second half started, but Shun Igasaki of Japan scored a penalty kick after a foul by Iran in the penalty area and tied the score again. The penalty became the key of the match when Tetsuya Kurata scored 5 minutes further in, as the Iranian players became frustrated by the penalty kick. Finally, Japan won with a final score of 2-1, and advanced to the championship match on the final day.
After group standings were mostly stabilized in the third day of competition, Thailand and Japan handled their respective Group matches by replacing several substitutes with frequently lined-up players to defeat their opponents easily. They will face off on the final day for the gold medal of soccer event in the "Invitational Games for the Deaf, Taipei 2008".
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Please note that due to our archival policy, we will not alter or update the content of articles that are archived, but will only accept requests to make grammatical and formatting corrections. | 'Invitational Games for the Deaf, Taipei 2008': Review of soccer preliminaries | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27Invitational_Games_for_the_Deaf,_Taipei_2008%27:_Review_of_soccer_preliminaries |
A number of relatively unknown entrants made the Taiwan 2008 Invitational Games for the Deaf soccer tournament an unpredictable event. Teams from Thailand, Australia, Iran (Silver Medalist in soccer at the 2005 Summer Deaflympics), Uzbekistan, Malaysia, and Japan took part.
On September 6, soccer giants Thailand and Iran defeated Malaysia and Uzbekistan in shutouts of 11-0 and 9-0 respectively. Anothai Sathiyamat, Somsak Thongdee, Nares Numphakdee of Thailand all scored hat-tricks in the game against Uzbekistan.
On the second day of competition, a decisive battle in Group A between Japan and Iran was keenly watched by Thailand, as one of the two teams would be their opponent in the finals. The game was scoreless in the first half, with conservative tactics from both teams.
Iran's Mostafa Heydaribondarabadi scored rapidly after the second half started, but Shun Igasaki of Japan scored a penalty kick after a foul by Iran in the penalty area and tied the score again. The penalty became the key of the match when Tetsuya Kurata scored 5 minutes further in, as the Iranian players became frustrated by the penalty kick. Finally, Japan won with a final score of 2-1, and advanced to the championship match on the final day.
After group standings were mostly stabilized in the third day of competition, Thailand and Japan handled their respective Group matches by replacing several substitutes with frequently lined-up players to defeat their opponents easily. They will face off on the final day for the gold medal of soccer event in the "Invitational Games for the Deaf, Taipei 2008".
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Please note that due to our archival policy, we will not alter or update the content of articles that are archived, but will only accept requests to make grammatical and formatting corrections. | 'Invitational Games for the Deaf, Taipei 2008': Review of soccer preliminaries | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27Invitational_Games_for_the_Deaf,_Taipei_2008%27:_Unpredictable_soccer_event |
The 'Invitational Games for the Deaf, Taipei 2008' started yesterday in Taipei, Taiwan. After table tennis and soccer, events from martial arts including karate, judo, and taekwondo were featured mainly in the 2 matchday. Unlike the taekwondo event which applied a single elimination rule, events from karate and judo applied round robin rules in their competitions.
Athletes from 7 nations including Argentina, Chinese Taipei (the host), Greece, Hong Kong, Japan, South Korea, Turkey, and the United States were among the main participants this event. As of the most recent lead check, European and American athletes threatened athletes from East Asians with what appeared to be a greater strength.
Guler Muhammed from Turkey accomplished a new record to win his gold medal in Men's 58kg class. But European and American spectators were witnesses to the performance from the host after Bo-cong Lin and Szu-jou Lu won gold medals from "Men's 58kg to 68kg" and "Women's 49kg to 57kg" classes.
The karate event distinguishes classes with different weights, men's are under 65kg, under 75kg, and over 75kg; women's just differed with classes at 60kg.
Juan Matias Diaz from Argentina shone in the battlefield with a 3rd-straight-win, to win his gold medal in Men's under 65kg class; but in Men's under 65kg class, Russian athlete Evgeniy Pavlyuchenko had to give up, and Takahiro Kojima won his gold medal by defeating his teammate Akinobe Miyashita.
In judo, it was the first time ever that two athletes both won bronze medals in the same class since this invitation games began yesterday. In the men's under 60kg (class), Akio Kira made a 4th-straight-win to win the gold medal, his teammate, Tomohiro Higashi won bronze medal with local athlete Wei-lun Hsu having the same scores in this class. Jinsub Byeon from South Korea, Sergey Belyaev from Russia, and Susana Monteggia from Argentina, won their gold medals in men's 60.1kg to 66kg, men's 66.1kg to 73kg, and women's 57.1kg to 70kg classes.
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| 'Invitational Games for the Deaf, Taipei 2008' Day 2 features martial art events | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27Invitational_Games_for_the_Deaf,_Taipei_2008%27_Day_2_features_martial_art_events |
After the table tennis event concluded, medalists from the martial art events (taekwondo, karate and judo) were confirmed on the September 8, third match day of "Invitational Games for the Deaf, Taipei 2008."
Except for steady performances from the host Chinese Taipei team during the karate and taekwondo events, European athletes battled East Asian (Japan and South Korea) athletes. During the third match day, Korea's Sukchan Yun ever defeated Turkey's Kayaci Ibrahim within only 6 seconds in men's 90.1 kg to 100 kg class. It was the shortest match in the judo event.
On the final day, Sept. 10, the top four teams from the soccer event competed for medals, despite bad weather in Taipei.
The gold medal match took place between Japan and Thailand. In the 20 minute, Japan's Hisashi Hosomi scored first. But during the added time of the first half, Thailand's Somsak Thongdee tied the game 1-1. After the start of the second half, Thailand straightened their offense, and in the 60 minute, Thailand captain Anothai Sathiyamat scored a goal, which proved to be the game winner.
In the bronze medal match between Iran and Australia, Iran defeated Australia with a 8-0 shutout. Mostafa Heydaribondarabadi, Hosseinali Mohammadi Firouzjaei, Mazaher Shirzad Sibani, Hamid Reza Khazaei, all scored in for Iran.
—Lung-pin Hau, Mayor of Taipei.After the "Invitational Games for the Deaf, Taipei 2008", Chih-he Chen, President of Asia Pacific Deaf Sports Confederation, presented an honor medal for the soccer tournament during the closing ceremony and hoped the Taipei City Government will show the best service for the 2009 Summer Deaflympics.
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| 'Invitational Games for the Deaf, Taipei 2008' comes to an close | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27Invitational_Games_for_the_Deaf,_Taipei_2008%27_closes_to_an_end |
After the table tennis event concluded, medalists from the martial art events (taekwondo, karate and judo) were confirmed on the September 8, third match day of "Invitational Games for the Deaf, Taipei 2008."
Except for steady performances from the host Chinese Taipei team during the karate and taekwondo events, European athletes battled East Asian (Japan and South Korea) athletes. During the third match day, Korea's Sukchan Yun ever defeated Turkey's Kayaci Ibrahim within only 6 seconds in men's 90.1 kg to 100 kg class. It was the shortest match in the judo event.
On the final day, Sept. 10, the top four teams from the soccer event competed for medals, despite bad weather in Taipei.
The gold medal match took place between Japan and Thailand. In the 20 minute, Japan's Hisashi Hosomi scored first. But during the added time of the first half, Thailand's Somsak Thongdee tied the game 1-1. After the start of the second half, Thailand straightened their offense, and in the 60 minute, Thailand captain Anothai Sathiyamat scored a goal, which proved to be the game winner.
In the bronze medal match between Iran and Australia, Iran defeated Australia with a 8-0 shutout. Mostafa Heydaribondarabadi, Hosseinali Mohammadi Firouzjaei, Mazaher Shirzad Sibani, Hamid Reza Khazaei, all scored in for Iran.
—Lung-pin Hau, Mayor of Taipei.After the "Invitational Games for the Deaf, Taipei 2008", Chih-he Chen, President of Asia Pacific Deaf Sports Confederation, presented an honor medal for the soccer tournament during the closing ceremony and hoped the Taipei City Government will show the best service for the 2009 Summer Deaflympics.
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| 'Invitational Games for the Deaf, Taipei 2008' comes to an close | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27Invitational_Games_for_the_Deaf,_Taipei_2008%27_comes_to_an_close |
"Invitational Games for the Deaf, Taipei 2008", a large sporting event which takes place as part of the build up to the 2009 Summer Deaflympics, was launched today in Taipei, Taiwan.
The invitation games features several sports including table tennis, soccer, judo, karate, and taekwondo. The events took place at the Taipei Arena, the Taipei Nangang Sports Center, the National Taipei University of Education, Taipei Municipal University of Education, and Yinfeng Riverside Park. Approximately 300 participants from 13 countries (including the host, Chinese Taipei) took part in this event.
Before the main competition, the Taipei City Government yesterday unveiled a new slogan - "Power in me!" and started the one-year countdown for the 2009 Summer Deaflympics.
The opening day mainly featured group competitions for table tennis. During the day, Japan and South Korea won in the Women's Team Round Robin. Chinese Taipei, the host team, beat South Korea and Hong Kong in Men's Team Round Robin.
In the evening during two table tennis finals, Japan beat Korea in a 3-1 set in Women's Team Round Robin, the Chinese Taipei continued to win with Chih-hsuan Weng, a gold medalist in the 2005 World Deaf Table Tennis Championship, making a major impact in defeating Japan with a 3-1 set in Men's Team Round Robin. Finally, the Chinese Taipei and Japan won gold medals respectively in Men's and Women's table tennis event.
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| 'Invitational Games for the Deaf, Taipei 2008' starts, new slogan for 2009 Summer Deaflympics unveiled | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27Invitational_Games_for_the_Deaf,_Taipei_2008%27_starts,_new_slogan_for_2009_Summer_Deaflympics_unveiled |
Winter Haven, Florida police chief Paul Goward was tired of seeing fat hanging out over the belts of some of his officers. So he posted a memo to encourage the so-called 'jelly bellies' to get in shape.
The memo, entitled 'Are You A Jelly Belly?' didn't single anyone out, and, apart from the title, didn't call anyone names.
Goward, a former deputy police chief in Wichita, wrote "If you are unfit, do yourself and everyone else a favor. See a professional about a proper diet and a fitness training program, quit smoking, limit alcohol intake...Don't mean to offend, this is just straight talk. I owe it to you."
It provided a list of 10 reasons cops should get fit. Goward said that overweight cops poorly represent the profession, are liable to 'poop out' when chasing suspects, and may have to use a higher degree of force.
In the end, Goward resigned from his position as police chief.
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Please note that due to our archival policy, we will not alter or update the content of articles that are archived, but will only accept requests to make grammatical and formatting corrections. | 'Jelly bellies' memo costs Florida police chief his job | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27Jelly_bellies%27_memo_costs_Florida_police_chief_his_job |
The evangelical Christian summer camp "Kids on Fire " featured in the documentary Jesus Camp will shut down for several years due to negative reactions to the film, negative e-mails, phone calls and letters. Many accuse camp leader Becky Fischer of "brainwashing" the children.
The documentary showed camp leader Becky Fischer acting as a "drill instructor" for young children preparing themselves for spiritual and political warfare. Fischer makes explicit comparisons between her camp and Islamist 'jihad training camps'. It also shows children praying before a photograph of President Bush.
The film included scenes with disgraced preacher Ted Haggard, who resigned his leadership of the National Association of Evangelicals after he was accused of having sex with a male prostitute and using methamphetamine.
Haggard has criticized the film as mocking the evangelical movement and for using his statement that "If the Evangelicals vote, they determine the election." The film makers responded that "Pastor Haggard is the only person in Jesus Camp who has a problem with how he was portrayed" and stated that they had been careful to avoid his more inflammatory and divisive comments.
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Please note that due to our archival policy, we will not alter or update the content of articles that are archived, but will only accept requests to make grammatical and formatting corrections. | 'Jesus Camp' shuts down | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27Jesus_Camp%27_shuts_down |
Computer security experts warn that a malicious computer worm, dubbed "Kama Sutra," is set to wreak havoc this Friday, February 3rd on Microsoft Windows computers worldwide. Kama Sutra is designed to destroy files that end in .doc, .zip and .pdf.
The Kama Sutra worm has been spreading through cyberspace since January 16, packaged in emails with subject headings such as: "give me a kiss" and "crazy illegal sex."
When users click an email attachment, their PCs become infected with destructive, self-replicating software. The worm affects Microsoft Windows operating systems and is programmed to go to work on the third of every month, overwriting or corrupting Microsoft files and others such as Portable Document Format (PDF) files.
"This one can damage your office files, your Microsoft Excel spreadsheets and your PowerPoint presentations," Tino Klironomos, a computer retailer, said. "(The files will be) all gone, history."
Computer security company LURHQ reports that there may be hundreds of thousands of machines already infected with the worm, which also goes by the monikers "BlackWorm," "CME-24," "Blackmal," "Mywife.E" and "Nyxem."
To prevent the worm, Windows users should arm themselves with anti-virus software. People can also protect their PC with up-to-date anti-virus gear and firewall protection. Free anti-virus tools are available from many anti-virus organisations. These tools can detect and remove the Kama Sutra worm from an infected machine.
Experts say: "Make sure your virus definitions are up to date. Besides being careful about opening email messages and attachments, users should back up their most valuable computer files on an external device such as a CD, zip drive or DVD."
Steve Bass at PC World says: "Stop worrying. If you update your virus program signatures regularly, and do a weekly AV scan, I don't think you have much to worry about..."
Other advice is not to open any messages with the subject headers "crazy, illegal sex", "give me a kiss" and "hot movie."
The worm will not affect machines running on non-Windows operating systems such as Mac OS X or GNU/Linux.
Many security systems reported a very small amount of vandalism, even though the threats were very high.
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Please note that due to our archival policy, we will not alter or update the content of articles that are archived, but will only accept requests to make grammatical and formatting corrections. | 'Kama Sutra' worm set to strike | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27Kama_Sutra%27_worm_set_to_strike |
Computer security experts warn that a malicious computer worm, dubbed "Kama Sutra," is set to wreak havoc this Friday, February 3rd on Microsoft Windows computers worldwide. Kama Sutra is designed to destroy files that end in .doc, .zip and .pdf.
The Kama Sutra worm has been spreading through cyberspace since January 16, packaged in emails with subject headings such as: "give me a kiss" and "crazy illegal sex."
When users click an email attachment, their PCs become infected with destructive, self-replicating software. The worm affects Microsoft Windows operating systems and is programmed to go to work on the third of every month, overwriting or corrupting Microsoft files and others such as Portable Document Format (PDF) files.
"This one can damage your office files, your Microsoft Excel spreadsheets and your PowerPoint presentations," Tino Klironomos, a computer retailer, said. "(The files will be) all gone, history."
Computer security company LURHQ reports that there may be hundreds of thousands of machines already infected with the worm, which also goes by the monikers "BlackWorm," "CME-24," "Blackmal," "Mywife.E" and "Nyxem."
To prevent the worm, Windows users should arm themselves with anti-virus software. People can also protect their PC with up-to-date anti-virus gear and firewall protection. Free anti-virus tools are available from many anti-virus organisations. These tools can detect and remove the Kama Sutra worm from an infected machine.
Experts say: "Make sure your virus definitions are up to date. Besides being careful about opening email messages and attachments, users should back up their most valuable computer files on an external device such as a CD, zip drive or DVD."
Steve Bass at PC World says: "Stop worrying. If you update your virus program signatures regularly, and do a weekly AV scan, I don't think you have much to worry about..."
Other advice is not to open any messages with the subject headers "crazy, illegal sex", "give me a kiss" and "hot movie."
The worm will not affect machines running on non-Windows operating systems such as Mac OS X or GNU/Linux.
Many security systems reported a very small amount of vandalism, even though the threats were very high.
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Please note that due to our archival policy, we will not alter or update the content of articles that are archived, but will only accept requests to make grammatical and formatting corrections. | 'Kama Sutra' worm set to strike | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27Kama_Sutra%27_worm_virus_set_to_strike |
Citizen Kane, a 1941 drama film about a power-hungry newspaper magnate, remains the No. 1 movie on the American Film Institute's 100 Years... 100 Movies list, but for the list's 10th anniversary, there have been many changes.
The new list, unveiled in a three-hour broadcast on CBS television in the United States on Wednesday night, contains 23 movies that weren't on the original 1998 list. Of the films that remained on the list, 36 improved their rankings, while 38 fell from their previous ranking.
The No. 2 film, The Godfather, moved up from No. 3 on the 1998 listing, trading places with Casablanca.
Doctor Zhivago, the former No. 39, was the highest-ranking film to be removed from the list. Of the newcomers, the highest debut was Buster Keaton's 1927 silent, The General at No. 18.
Newcomers include Titanic from 1997, The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring from 2001 (the sole 2000s film) and Do the Right Thing from 1989.
Of the films already on the list, the most dramatic leap was by John Ford's 1956 western, The Searchers, which rose 84 places from No. 96 to No. 12. Alfred Hitchcock's 1958 thriller Vertigo jumped from 61st to ninth place. Martin Scorsese's 1980 boxing biography, Raging Bull, rocketed from 24th to fourth place.
The computer-animated Toy Story joined the list at No. 99, while the 1940 Walt Disney musical cartoon, Fantasia, formerly at No. 58, left the list.
Steven Spielberg's 1977 sci-fi drama, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, also left the list, but was replaced by Saving Private Ryan from 1998 at No. 71.
Other films leaving the list included Rebel Without a Cause, My Fair Lady, From Here to Eternity and Patton.
The most dramatic drop was The African Queen, which fell 48 places from No. 17 to No. 65. At the bottom of the list is Ben-Hur, which fell from No. 72.
AFI said it plans revise its list every 10 years in an effort to gauge changing cultural perspectives. The 100 are chosen from a selection of 400 films in a poll of 1,500 Hollywood filmmakers, actors, writers and critics.
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| 'Kane' still tops but many changes underneath on American Film Institute's '100' | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27Kane%27_still_tops_but_many_changes_underneath_on_American_Film_Institute%27s_%27100%27 |
Kaing Guek Eav, better known as Duch, the chief of the Khmer Rouge's infamous S-21 prison, heard charges read against him by judges of the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC) on Monday.
A former maths teacher, Duch, age 66, is one of five Khmer Rouge leaders still living who are expected to be charged for the war crimes of the 1975-1979 regime which may have been responsible for the deaths of two million people. Pol Pot, the leader of the Khmer Rouge uprising, died in 1998 which brought a formal surrender and end to the organization.
Arrested in 1999, Duch claims to be a born-again Christian and has admitted his personal responsibility for events at Tuol Sleng, though he denies personally torturing or executing prisoners. Prisoners at the camp were routinely tortured to admit they were CIA spies, or admit to other crimes, after which they were killed.
It is expected that Duch will participate in the trial, addressing charges that he oversaw the torture and execution of more than 15,000 individuals, both Cambodians and foreigners.
"A confession is a good thing for Duch to do. If Duch pleads guilty, I will be eased in my heart," said former Tuol Sleng prisoner Vann Nath. Nath was spared at the prison for his value as an artist. "We will get a kind of justice — not compensation — but justice that can heal our mind when the court convicts Duch and he receives the punishment."
Some victims wish for more, and more than just these five leaders. Rob Hamill of New Zealand, whose brother Kerry and friends John Dewhurst of the British Isles and Stuart Glass of Canada were arrested, detained, tortured, and killed after their sailboat passed into Cambodian waters, spoke of the pain and grief in his family with ThePress.co.nz. "I often think about how things could have been better. Not that things are terrible, but you know having Kerry in our lives would have [been better]."
The court does not have the ability to impose the death penalty, but it can impose a life sentence on Duch. The defense appears ready to ask for a reduced sentence in exchange for Duch's confession.
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| 'Killing Fields' trial for S-21 chief Duch underway in Cambodia | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27Killing_Fields%27_trial_for_S-21_chief_Duch_underway_in_Cambodia |
Billing their campaign of disruption as the 'King Taksin operation', the Thai anti-government People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD) succeeded yesterday in having the day's parliamentary session cancelled. In moving into the second day of blockades and protests, they have expanded their operations to disrupt government business.
Taksin (not to be confused with the fugitive ex-PM Thaksin Shinawatra) was an 18th century Siamese monarch noted for his prowess in warfare, the unification of Thailand, and expelling Burmese influence. One tale of his exploits details ordering rice bowls to be broken before a battle, the implication being his troops would not eat until victory was achieved. Within Thailand he is known as 'Taksin the Great', and the association the PAD is trying to make is in line with their claim to be pro-monarchy.
PAD protesters had begun massing on Sunday, and yesterday morning they besieged the parliament building, forcing the joint MP and Senate sessions to be cancelled. A call for a parallel strike by public sector workers met with apathy; it had been hoped this would further disrupt the running of the country and help bring down the People's Power Party (PPP) government of Somchai Wongsawat.
With parliament out of action, PAD protesters began targeting additional offices of the government. Key among these is the temporary home of the cabinet, Don Mueang, the old Bangkok international airport. The government has been operating out of some of the mothballed buildings at the airport since the PAD seized the main Government House compound and buildings in late August.
The government asserts that the constitutional changes which the PAD is vehemently opposed to were not on the agenda for Monday's session. Instead Association of South East Asian (ASEAN) related legislation was to be discussed. As the current chair of ASEAN, concern has been expressed that Thailand may lose face if unable to ratify a variety of treaties at the upcoming meeting in Chiang Mai, north Thailand. The protesters have vowed to disrupt parliamentary sessions until it goes into recess, or the government stands down.
In the aftermath of last month's clashes, where two protesters were killed when police used tear gas, the authorities have avoided any confrontation that could turn violent. When protesters massed at parliament, police allowed them to lay siege to the empty building. Similarly, the protest outside the old international airport has been unimpeded. Measures are in place to prevent occupation of the buildings, but no clashes have occurred. Operation of domestic flights from other parts of the airport have continued without disruption although travellers have been warned to allow extra time getting to the airport due to traffic congestion.
Meanwhile, the PAD's arch-nemesis, the deposed ex-premier Thaksin Shinawatra, has stated his intention to return to Thai politics and condemned the UK government for revoking his visa. In an interview with Abu Dhabi's Arabian Business, Thaksin stated, "With me at the helm I can bring confidence quickly back to Thailand. We have to find a mechanism under which I can go back, that is why I must tell you that I will go back into politics." The full interview is due to be published this Sunday.
He bemoaned the decision of the British government to cancel his visa; now in self-imposed exile and facing a two year prison sentence, should he return to Thailand, he is believed to be staying in Dubai. According to The Bangkok Post, the UK decision now makes him a wanted man on the run.
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| 'King Taksin operation' enters second day, Thai government disrupted | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27King_Taksin_operation%27_enters_second_day,_Thai_government_disrupted |
London, England —
For the second time in two days, the sun and the crowds came out to welcome the Tour de France to London.
The all clapping, all cheering public lined the streets to watch David Millar take the lead from Greenwich, only to lose his steam 50km to the end. The winner, Australian Robbie McEwan, claimed the Green jersey while Fabian Cancellara held onto the leaders yellow jersey.
Fellow Briton Mark Cavendish suffered bike troubles throughout the whole stage. Millar did not go without, he was awarded the polka dot jersey for king of the mountains.
Overall standing:
The show got underway as the caravane set off from the Mall at half eight. Dance beats, giant cows, and French tinged words of encouragement, momentarily woke the early birds from their patient wait for the main event. As they waited curious by-passers swapped photography tips, and thoughts on cycling as the youngest members wondered what the fuss was all about. Council workmen commented on how easy it was to get work done, with no car traffic on the roads.
Again the policing was low key and friendly with the Gendarme Nationale cutting a dash amongst their British colleagues. British bobbies rode in French vehicles, and French argents in British ones. Riding well in advance of the Tour, French and British motorcycle policemen swapped tips and compared notes as they passed. The Frenchmen bringing more than a little Gallic charm and swagger to the proceedings.
The crowd behind Jubilee Gardens grew as the start time of twenty-five past ten approached, an event presaged by an ever increasing number of press and support vehicles. As Big Ben chimed the hour in the background a quartet of helicopters in the sky above the River Thames began to jostle for position; a dance mirrored on the ground as anticipation grew. Slowly the dribble that was the vanguard of press and support vehicles became a torrent. A wave of cheers rung out, announcing finally the arrival of the riders. Despite their being almost 190 riders the speeding cyclists had come and gone in a matter of minutes, however the show was not yet over. For a quarter of an hour afterwards tour buses, and still yet more support vehicles followed in the wake of the cyclists. As the police began to remove their restrictions on the crowds and traffic, a final rear guard of race fans emulating their heroes brought up the rear. Despite some not being in the best of condition and some riding rather rickety bikes, these fans still managed to get an enthusiastic cheer of encouragement from the remaining onlookers.
With the Tour continuing on its way and it still not yet 11, some amongst the myriad of spectators began to make their way to the large outside video screens to continue watching the race, others preferring to sample the shops, sights, smells and tastes of the waking City. With some others choosing to sit in the sun, and lie in the park, no doubt making up for an early start.
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Please note that due to our archival policy, we will not alter or update the content of articles that are archived, but will only accept requests to make grammatical and formatting corrections. | Tour de France: The race begins in earnest | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27LE_GRAND_DEPART%27_Departs |
Former Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto was the target of a bombing which killed at least 136 people Thursday night, hours after landing at Karachi Airport.
Bhutto's arrival in the country with more than 100 supporters, breaking eight years of self-imposed exile, was met by more than 20,000 police and military troops. Security was tight, after a warning that militants could attempt to assassinate the former leader.
Bhutto is disliked by many traditionalist Pakistanis who consider her rule to have brought the country too close to the United States. Bhutto had told reporters she was "not scared" and was concentrating on her mission, only hours before the attack.
Bhutto, who was traveling from the airport to a rally atop an armoured truck, was unharmed and taken back to her ancestral home of Bilawal House by police and security forces. At least 20 police were killed in the bombing.
Sources indicate there may have been multiple explosions, with a smaller blast preceding the main one, in what CNN's Dan Rivers described as a "large-scale attack". Two other men were taken into custody following the attacks, one carrying a belt of explosives and another carrying a pistol.
Pakistani Minister of Information Tariq Azim Khan has stated that the attack, which injured another 150 people, was believed to be a suicide bombing. Manzur Mughal, a Karachi police officer, reported that a skull believed to belong to one of the bombers had been found, and taken to a forensics lab.
Bhutto was in the country, having been waived of any corruption charges by President Pervez Musharraf last week, to discuss the possibility of a joint government dedicated to fighting extremism in the volatile country. Bhutto had told reporters that she did not want the country associated with the training of terrorists.
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Please note that due to our archival policy, we will not alter or update the content of articles that are archived, but will only accept requests to make grammatical and formatting corrections. | 'Large-scale attack' against ex-Prime Minister Bhutto leaves more than 100 dead in Pakistan | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27Large-scale_attack%27_against_ex-Prime_Minister_Bhutto_leaves_more_than_100_dead_in_Pakistan |
File:Son-osmanli.jpg
Ertuğrul Osman, the last surviving pretender to the Ottoman throne, died on Wednesday after a renal failure at the age of 97. His wife, who was by his side, when he died, confirmed this was the case. The location of his death is a hospital in Istanbul. He had spent one week in hospital at the time of his death.
Osman was born on August 18, 1912 at Yıldız Palace in Istanbul, Ottoman Empire. He was a former Prince of the Ottoman Empire and the 43rd Head of the dethroned House of Osman from 1994 until his death. If the throne were reconsecrated, he would have assumed the name Sultan Osman V.
He was fourth in line to rule when the monarchy was abolished in 1923, and the modern Republic of Turkey replaced the Imperial Dynasty. He was regarded by Turks as the "last Ottoman".
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Tuesday, United States President Joe Biden, a Democrat, announced he was running for reelection to a second term in 2024.
In a three-minute launch video, released exactly four years after he announced his 2020 campaign, images of the January 6 United States Capitol attack and an abortion rights protest appeared while Biden said: "Freedom. Personal freedom is fundamental to who we are as Americans. There's nothing more important. Nothing more sacred."
"Around the country, MAGA [Make America Great Again] extremists are lining up to take on those bedrock freedoms," Biden said. He continued, "Cutting Social Security that you've paid for your entire life while cutting taxes for the very wealthy. Dictating what healthcare decisions women can make, banning books, and telling people who they can love. All while making it more difficult for you to be able to vote."
Amid a montage of himself, Vice President Kamala Harris, his first term, civilians, and his Republican opponents, among them former President Donald Trump, Ron DeSantis, governor of Florida, and Marjorie Taylor Greene, a US Representative from Georgia, Biden said: "When I ran for president four years ago, I said we are in a battle for the soul of America. And we still are. The question we are facing is whether in the years ahead we have more freedom or less freedom. More rights or fewer."
"This is not a time to be complacent. That's why I'm running for reelection," he said. "This is our moment [to] defend democracy. Stand up for our personal freedoms. Stand up for the right to vote and our civil rights [...] Let's finish this job. I know we can."
In his first event during his 2024 campaign, Biden Tuesday cited job increases of tens of thousands in the construction industry before North America's Building Trades Unions members cheering "Let's Go Joe": "We — you and I — together we're turning things around and we're doing it in a big way [...] It's time to finish the job. Finish the job." Biden previously proclaimed his would be "the most pro-union administration in American history."
In the Democratic primary, among those already running were Marianne Williamson, an author of self-help books and spiritual advisor who sought the nomination in 2020 but did not contest any state primaries, and Kennedy family member Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Trump already began his campaign to retake the presidency after Biden defeated him in 2020.
Former US President Barack Obama, under whom Biden served as vice president, retweeted the launch video and, linking Biden's campaign website, said: "Proud of all that @JoeBiden and his administration have accomplished these last few years. He's delivered for the American people — and he'll continue to do so once he's re-elected. Let's get to work!"
A statement from Republican National Committee (RNC) chair Ronna McDaniel argued: "Biden is so out-of-touch that after creating crisis after crisis, he thinks he deserves another four years.
"If voters let Biden 'finish the job,' inflation will continue to skyrocket, crime rates will rise, more fentanyl will cross our open borders, children will continue to be left behind, and American families will be worse off [...] Republicans are united to beat Biden and Americans are counting down the days until they can send Biden packing."
An RNC ad used artificial intelligence to create clips of what NBC News described as an "apocalyptic future" during a second Biden term.
Pro-Trump super PAC Make America Great Again, Inc.'s CEO, Taylor Budowich, released a statement claiming, "America is on the brink of a deadly nuclear war" and calling Biden's presidency a "failure".
"Americans are struggling to afford groceries and gas. The border has been opened to millions of unknown illegal immigrants and tons of deadly drugs. Joe Biden does not deserve four more years to further destroy America," it continued. "The choice will be clear for voters in 2024 [...] President Trump made America great once and he will do it again."
Harris emphasized abortion rights in a Tuesday rally at her alma mater, Washington, D.C.'s Howard University: "These extremist so-called leaders would dare to tell us what is in our own best interest. Well I say, I trust the women of America. I trust the people of America [...] So don't get in our way because if you do, we're going to stand up, we're going to organize and we're going to speak up and we're going to say we're not having that, we're not playing that!"
The vice president called herself "proud to run for reelection [...] so we can finish the job."
Iowa-based Democratic presidential campaign strategist Jeff Link predicted to NBC News: "The big attack against Biden will be his age and his capability [...] He needs to show that he is engaged and focused and working for working families. And you've got to do that continuously."
"Folks are still concerned about the threat that Trump poses," Link continued. "Having a second Biden term is critical for making sure that Trump doesn't get back in the White House. Biden uses that line 'Don't compare me to the Almighty, compare me to the alternative,' and I think that's going to be very relevant," with anti-Trump voters.
Biden's February State of the Union speech employed the phrase "let's finish the job" over a dozen times and said Republicans "want to take the economy hostage" and wish to see "huge cuts" to "programs that millions of hard-working and middle-class Americans count on."
Gallup, Inc. polling places Biden's approval rating at 40%, with 56% disapproval. When he began his 2020 campaign, the same pollster found he was approved of 53%–35%. Unemployment in the US stood at 3.5%, its lowest in about 50 years. US inflation during Biden's first term reached the highest levels in decades. Inflation later receded to around 5% amid the Federal Reserve's boosts to the interest rate.
An NBC News poll released on Sunday showed 70% of Americans and 51% of Democrats saying they did not think Biden should seek reelection, compared to 60% of Americans and about 33% of Republicans saying the same of Trump. Close to half of Democratic respondents to a recent Reuters-Ipsos poll said they did not think he should launch a reelection campaign, and over 60% of all polled said his age prevented fitness for the office.
Biden, at age 80, is the oldest president in US history. He has declared those objections "totally legitimate", but also said: "Watch me." He has been in federal politics for a half-century and said on the campaign trail in March 2020: "Look, I view myself as a bridge, not as anything else."
Presidential physician Kevin O'Connor concluded from a physical examination in February Biden was "healthy, vigorous", and "fit" for the presidency.
His press secretary, Karine Jean-Pierre, declined Tuesday to say if he would serve out his entire second term if he won it. She later said on Twitter: "I wanted to be sure that I didn't go into 2024 more than is appropriate under the law. But I can confirm that if re-elected, @POTUS would serve all 8 years."
First Lady Jill Biden said in December, she was "all in" for her husband's potential reelection campaign. Joe Biden said his April trip to Ireland "reinforced" his commitment to seek reelection.
Biden selected Julie Chávez Rodriguez, an Executive Office advisor, as his campaign manager, and Quentin Fulks as deputy campaign manager. Fulks managed Georgia US Senator Raphael Warnock's successful reelection bid in 2022.
Biden's 2024 campaign announced its co-chairs as: Lisa Blunt Rochester, Jim Clyburn, and Veronica Escobar — all US Representatives — as well as two US Senators, Chris Coons and Tammy Duckworth. Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer and Jeffrey Katzenberg, an entertainment executive and donor to the Democratic Party, were also appointed co-chairs.
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Cryptome.org, a US-based website, has published a list of 74 individuals[1] claimed to be members of the British "Secret Intelligence Service", MI6. Many are serving members of the UK Foreign Office, including 18 Ambassadors. The leak of a similar list in 1999 led to the prosecution of a former MI6 agent, Richard Tomlinson. The source for this latest leak is referred to only as "A".
Earlier this year New York Times reporter Judith Miller was jailed for refusing to name the US-government source who identified a member of the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), Valerie Plame.
A general statement on the Cryptome.org web site states:
"Cryptome welcomes documents for publication that are prohibited by governments worldwide, in particular material on freedom of expression, privacy, cryptology, dual-use technologies, national security, intelligence, and secret governance — open, secret and classified documents — but not limited to those. Documents are removed from this site only by order served directly by a US court having jurisdiction. No court order has ever been served; any order served will be published here — or elsewhere if gagged by order."
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The alleged mastermind behind the London bombings was reported captured in Cairo, Egypt last week. Police believe that a U.S. trained chemist, Magdi Asdi el-Nashar, 33, helped build the bombs that killed over 50 people.
Mr. el-Nashar, who has a PhD from Leeds University, left England two weeks before the bombings. After the London bombings, British authorities initiated a worldwide manhunt that found him in Cairo. State security officials reported they have begun questioning el-Nashar with British agents in attendance.
Mr. el-Nashar arrived in Britain in October 2000 to study for his doctorate, which he was awarded in May. A university spokesperson said he was doing "environmentally friendly research involving chemically inactive substances."
The Egyptian interior ministry has said "[Mr] el-Nashar denied having any relation with the latest events in London. He pointed out that all his belongings remained in his apartment in Britain."
Friends of Mr. el-Nashar said he “was well-liked and showed no interest in politics.” His friend, Kadhem Al-Rawi, a doctor in Islamic Principles at the European Institute of Human Sciences in Wales said "He had a great personality. You would never ever expect this kind of action from him. Impossible." This is a recurring theme heard from many of the suspected bombers, families and friends. Many believed the suspects had little or no motive to carry out the attacks.
BBC security correspondent, Gordon Corera, said it was believed that Mr. el-Nashar handed over keys to a house in Leeds that was used by the bombers. British police are searching a house in Leeds linked to Mr. el-Nashar, although he is not yet formally named a suspect. He told questioners that he was on holiday in Egypt and left all his belongings in his apartment, but his plans were to return to Britain.
The alleged involvement in the attacks by Mr. el-Nashar is yet unclear. Police said they were hunting financiers, supporters and chemists who assembled the bomb used in the attacks.
A man injured in the bus bombing in Tavistock Square died in hospital on Thursday, bringing the number of confirmed victims to 51. Three of the bombers have also been confirmed dead, with the fourth also thought to have died.
Sources have told the BBC that explosives found in one of the homes is from ingredients available from high-street chemists.
They were the same kind of explosive Richard Reid had in his shoes when he tried to blow up a trans-Atlantic flight in 2001.
Anti-terrorist agencies are worried other "educated amateurs" could try to make more of the explosive, as the risk of accidents in the manufacturing process is very high.
A suspected al-Qaeda member may have entered Britain via a Channel port two weeks before the bombs, but was not kept under surveillance. The man apparently left Britain hours before the blasts.
Speaking on BBC Radio 4's Today programme, Metropolitan Police commissioner Sir Ian Blair said there was nothing connecting the man to the plot, but added that investigators expected to find evidence linking al-Qaeda to the attacks. He said the bombers were only the "foot soldiers" of the operation and the mastermind was still being sought.
"What we've got to find is, who encouraged them, who trained them, and who's the chemist," he said.
He said police would also work with the Muslim community, which he said had been "close to denial" about extremist preachers, to defeat terrorism. "We will break this horror that has descended upon us," he said.
The current suspects for carrying out the London bombings are:
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Mega Millions, a multi-state lottery in the United States is nearing a record high. Friday's August 31 drawing is expected to be at least US$325,000,000. So far, it is the fourth largest jackpot in U.S. history.
Twelve states in the U.S. participate in the lottery and the odds of at least one person winning the jackpot are one in 175,711,536. It costs just one dollar to purchase a ticket and if you win, you can receive the winnings in sums of 36,000 for every million won, each year, or receive it all in one lump sum.
On Tuesday, the jackpot was only at $250 million and reports say that the jackpot could rise even higher than $325 million just before the drawing on Friday.
On March 6, 2007, the Mega Millions jackpot of US$390 million, the highest lottery jackpot ever in the world, was paid out to two individuals who lived in Georgia and New Jersey.
The lottery results will be broadcast on live television at 8:00 p.m. (pacific time), 11:00 p.m. (eastern time).
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An advert by fast food restaurant Burger King has been banned from British television over claims that it is misleading. The campaign for the new TenderCrisp chicken burger received two complaints over the fact that the burger appears significantly larger on the advert than in real life.
The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) investigated the complaints and purchased three burgers from a Burger King restaurant. They reported that both the thickness and the height were "considerably less" than in the advertisement.
The ASA also commented on the actor, stating, "[w]e also examined the size of the burgers in the hands of an average-sized man and considered that they did not fill the hands to the same extent as the burger featured in the advert. We concluded that the visuals in the advert were likely to mislead viewers as to the size and composition of the product."
Burger King responded to the complaints, saying that the advert needed to make all the ingredients in the product clearly visible. Despite the company's defense, it has been ruled that the advert will not be shown again in its current form.
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In the US's Miss America pageant, Miss New York, Kira Kazantsev, was crowned Miss America 2015 yesterday evening at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, New Jersey.
The 22-year-old Kazantsev preformed "Happy" by Pharrell Williams, and her platform was Love Shouldn't Hurt. Kazantsev said she was a victim of domestic violence; "It was something that definitely changed me [...] I'm better now and I’m stronger now. I want to show others they can handle it too."
As part of the prize Kazantsev received a $50,000 scholarship.
The runners-up were Miss Virginia, Courtney Garret; Miss Arkansas, Ashton Campbell; Miss Florida, Victoria Cowen; and Miss Massachusetts, Lauren Kuhn.
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The British Association of Dermatologists (BAD) has released a report saying that an illness they named 'mobile phone dermatitis', in which individuals owning a cell phone have developed a rash on the side of their face, is likely linked to nickel deposits in the metal of some cellular phones. Nickel has been known to cause rashes on those who have a sensitivity to, or are allergic to the metal. Nickel is also mixed with other metals to make jewelry.
The Association says that the condition is likely to affect people who spend too much time talking on the phone. They found that those who spend too much time text messaging or talking for long periods on the phone, were most likely to develop a rash, sometimes severe, on their face and ears, or the tips of their fingers.
Tests in January, performed on 22 cellular phones by scientists at Brown University in Rhode Island located in the United States, had found that just under half, a total of 10, contained nickel while the rest had rubber buttons and a plastic case. Initially the rashes were unexplained, and researchers could not find a reason why so many individuals began to experience the symptoms. In most cases the rashes were untreatable.
"Cell phones intended for rugged use ... often have rubber coating and no surface nickel. Those with more fashionable designs often have metallic accents and are more likely to contain free nickel in their casings," said Lionel Bercovitch MD., one of the researchers, in a report in the journal for the Canadian Medical Association on January 1, 2008.
Researchers also state that although some people may not be allergic to nickel, "prolonged" and continuous exposure to it can cause severe reactions.
"Prolonged or repetitive contact with a nickel-containing phone is more likely to cause a skin reaction in those who are allergic," said BAD dermatologist Dr. Graham Lowe in a press release. In the United Kingdom alone, BAD says nearly 30% of the population suffers from rashes brought on by prolonged exposure to the metal.
The researchers also recommend individuals to buy swab test kits to test for traces of nickel.
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| 'Mobile phone dermatitis' linked to nickel deposits | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27Mobile_phone_dermatitis%27_linked_to_nickel_deposits |
A 70 centimeter (27.6 in) zander on Lake Maggiore, Switzerland was killed by police divers after it attacked several swimmers over the weekend. The fish weighed eight kilograms, or 17.5 pounds.
The fish bit six bathers, two of whom required emergency medical treatment for bite wounds up to 10 centimeters (3.9 in) long. Fish warden Fabio Croci said, "It is quite unusual for Zanders to bite humans". It is suspected the fish's aggression could have been a result of a hormonal imbalance.
After attempts to capture the Zander with a net failed, police divers resorted to harpooning it. Meat from the fish was later served to tourists around the lake.
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Andrew Martinez, a former student at the University of California at Berkeley who was better known as "The Naked Guy" in the early 1990s, committed suicide on Thursday. He was 33.
Guards at the Santa Clara County Jail reportedly found Martinez unconscious in a jail cell, with a plastic bag cinched around his neck, at about 11:19 p.m. Wednesday. Martinez was taken to a local hospital where was pronounced dead early Thursday. He had been incarcerated since January 10 on charges of battery and assault with a deadly weapon.
Martinez is best known for attending his classes in the nude in the fall of 1992. He became an instant celebrity, appearing on national television talk shows where he defended his practice as a form of free speech and a challenge to sexual repression in Western society.
Martinez was eventually expelled from UC Berkeley for violating the school's code of conduct, and Berkeley city officials passed a strict anti-nudity ordinance.
Family and acquaintances report that Martinez had been suffering from undetermined mental illness over the past decade for which he never found comprehensive treatment, and had been in and out of halfway houses, psychiatric institutions, and jail.
Said close acquaintance Bryan Schwartz, a civil rights lawyer in Washington, D.C., "He was a person with tremendous gifts and charisma who could have been a great asset to our society, but instead I feel like society -- me included -- failed him. It's such a waste." | 'Naked Guy' Andrew Martinez dies | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27Naked_Guy%27_Andrew_Martinez_dies |
United States Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist said it is unlikely that a new bill to reform immigration legislation will receive action by the legislative body this year. The bill, introduced yesterday by Jon Kyl (R,AZ) and John Cornyn (R,TX), would require immigrant workers to apply from their native countries for a visa to remain in the states.
The number of illegal immigrants in the U.S. is estimated to be in the range of 10 to 12 million.
The bill is in contrast to a different measure by Ted Kennedy (D-MA) and John McCain (R-AZ) submitted two months ago. That bill would create a visa category where temporary workers are not tied to any job in particular and would allow them to apply for permanent residence regardless of employment. The bill has republican co-sponsorship from Jim Kolbe and Jeff Flake, both from Arizona where the porous US-Mexican border is an issue.
The Kennedy-McCain bill allows illegal aliens already in the U.S. to petition the government to remain. A position that Kyl in effect calls the equivalent of granting "amnesty". Kennedy answered that criticism by saying, "The mass deportation of illegal immigrant persons as contemplated by the Cornyn-Kyl bill is not a realistic solution, and won't solve the security and economic problems we face."
The Kyl-Cornyn bill proposal is an attempt to tie immigrant status to U.S. employment. The legislation would create a guest worker program that would match immigrant workers with jobs mostly not wanted by American citizens. An immigrant worker would be given five years to come into compliance with an employment order. It calls for 10,000 federal agents, at a cost in the range of 2 to 5 billion, to audit employers who hire undocumented workers. Companies that break a proposed new law to monitor undocumented immigrants would be subject to penalties.
The bill drew criticism from immigration groups which include two leading Hispanic organizations because of the "mandatory departure" requirement. Immigrants who wait five years before leaving the U.S. would pay annual fines totaling $5,000 each year. Or, after making a return trip to their native country, they can again apply from there for a temporary job in the U.S. They would work for two years in the U.S., return home for a year, and then reapply for two more two-year work cycle. The maximum would be six years in the United States. In their home country, they could also apply for U.S. immigrant programs, including the "green card" that grants permanent residency.
Kyl said he believes businesses will not object because his plan would make verifying legal workers easier by reducing the documentation required. The basics of the plan include:
The bill also calls for replacing the practice currently in place in the U.S. of issuing paper Social Security cards with the issuance of a tamper-proof cards. The Social Security Administration identification card is treated by most states as no form of personal identification at all. A birth certificate is considered a primary form of identification, along with driver's licenses, passports and other official state or other territory photo-identification cards. The bill proposes that social security cards should be "machine readable" and a primary form of identification.
A terrorism-driven drive to turn driver's licenses into a national ID card faces hurdles. Peter Costello, treasurer of Australia, said he will not support national ID cards unless there is convincing evidence it fights terrorism.
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On Thursday, Congress turned down the "Net Neutrality Amendment" to the Communications Opportunity, Promotion, and Enhancement Act (COPE Act) 269-152.
The COPE Act is designed to make it easier for telecommunications companies to offer cable TV service and strengthen competition. Proponents hope it would lower the price of high-speed Internet for consumer by enabling Internet service providers to bundle phone, data, video and mobile phone services. The act is the first major telecommunications bill to come before Congress in over a decade, and it passed by 321-101 vote on Thursday.
Portions of the "Net Neutrality" amendment to the COPE Act sought to assure that communication companies who provide Internet services treated all data delivery passing through their connections equally. It specified that each broadband provider has the duty "not to block, impair, degrade, discriminate against, or interfere with the ability of any person to use a broadband connection to access, use, send, receive, or offer lawful content, applications, or services over the Internet." The amendment's passage would have prevented AT&T, Verizon, Comcast and other broadband providers from charging content providers like Google, Yahoo, Amazon or eBay for priority access to their networks. Democrats were largely in favour of the legislation with 140 Ayes and 58 Noes, whereas only 11 Republicans voted for the measure, with 211 against.
House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi argued that "The imposition of additional fees for Internet content providers would unduly burden Web-based small businesses and start-ups," and that "They would also hamper communications by noncommercial users, those using religious speech, promoting civic involvement and exercising First Amendment freedoms."
The phone companies and their Congressional allies argued that the restrictions in the amendment would discourage investment in upgrading networks. Chief technology officer for BellSouth William L. Smith told the Washington Post that telephone companies should be able to charge companies for having their content load faster than that of competitors. "If I go to the airport, I can buy a coach standby ticket or a first-class ticket," Smith said. "In the shipping business, I can get two-day air or six-day ground."
The legislation has been subject to intense lobbying by telecommunication companies on one side, and content providers on the other. The bill is due to be discussed next in the Senate, where lobbying efforts from both sides are expected to intensify. The White House said that it supports the current bill.
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File:Lakota Freedom Delegation conference 1.jpg
The Lakota Freedom Delegation, which in December declared that the Lakota people were withdrawing from their treaties with the United States and reasserting their sovereignty as an independent state, is acting without the support of the Treaty Council, the traditional government of the Lakota, Wikinews has learned.
Wikinews spoke with Floyd Looks-For-Buffalo Hand, an Oglala Lakota Treaty Delegate and Elder, also an author and a spiritual leader in the indigenous Lakota religion, and who is also blood uncle to Lakota Freedom Delegation member Canupa Gluha Mani.
The Lakota Freedom Delegation has claimed that, while the BIA-recognized tribal governments of the Lakota have not supported them, the Lakota Freedom Delegation's authority extends from support by the Treaty Council of the Elders of Lakota as well as from the 1974 International Indian Treaty Council.
"There was no treaty withdrawal. It was three people."
"Russell Means and Duane Martin [Canupa Gluha Mani] and that lady [Phyllis Young], they do not speak for the nation. You've got to have consensus" among the eight tribes of the Lakota, he said, which the Lakota Freedom Delegation has not obtained. Mr. Hand stated that he was speaking as a tribal delegate with the consensus of the Oglala Treaty Delegation and his chief, Oliver Red Cloud.
Hand furthermore called the treaty withdrawal event a "publicity stunt" and that furthermore the 1974 meeting was not authorization to act on behalf of the Lakota people. While Means, Canupa Gluha Mani, and the rest of the delegation "have free speech" and can do as they wish, he said, the Elders of Lakota "stated that they should remove themselves from treaty territory," that is, the Reservations inhabited by the Lakota. But "they're still living here" (Canupa Gluha Mani has been residing in Asheville, North Carolina since the treaty withdrawal press conference on December 19).
When asked if the above decisions represented the consensus of the whole Treaty Council, Hand stated, "we all do the same because we're all fullbloods. We all speak our own language."
Hand went on to explain, though, that the Treaty Council was planning to reconsider the Lakota's arrangement with the United States government. The Treaty Council of all eight Lakota tribes, which will meet on 28–30 January 2008, will consider whether to "sit down to negotiate" with the federal government. Members of the Lakota Freedom Delegation are expected to take part in that meeting. European-Americans, Hand said, are "not honoring" the 1851 and 1868 treaties which connected the Lakota to the United States, and noted that the Lakota were the only people to "conquer" the United States during the Indian Wars of the 19th century.
The arrangement with the United States, which he called a "contract", "handcuffs us through the federal programs". On their own, Hand said, "if we rely on a sovereign nation as a nation, relating to other nations with our economic development I think we can survive." Hand noted that one possibility under consideration was asserting the right to negotiate independently of the US government with foreign powers in areas such as airport access rights. The Lakota, he said, would charge foreign airlines half what the United States charges to make use of airports on Lakota soil. "We can be well off," he argued.
In another contradiction of the Lakota Freedom Delegation's program, Hand said that the Treaty Delegations "don't want technology on our reservation". One of his concerns was environmentalism. People of European descent are "taking too much out of Mother Earth", he said, making reference to ongoing environmental effects of uranium mining which has long been a contentious issue on the Lakota reservations. The Treaty Delegation's goal, he said, is "preserving the land and animals and letting the water remain free."
However, one of the plans of the Lakota Freedom Delegation is to install renewable energy technology on tribal land, such as solar and wind farms. This follows projects in the past, whereby wind turbines were erected on the Rosebud Reservation. Such projects would lessen dependence on foreign energy sources, as well as coincide with the Lakota's traditional respect for the environment.
Hand also expressed hope for ethnic solidarity among the non-European peoples of the world. "All the people of color in this world will go for unity and understanding and peace" if they overthrow the Europeans and establish their own governments, he said.
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Please note that due to our archival policy, we will not alter or update the content of articles that are archived, but will only accept requests to make grammatical and formatting corrections. | 'No treaty withdrawal', says Lakota elder | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27No_treaty_withdrawal%27,_says_Lakota_elder |
After two weekends of box office domination, Universal Pictures' Meet the Fockers will be challenged for the top spot by horror film White Noise, also from Universal, which opens in wide release Friday.
To be considered in wide release, a film must open or play in at least 1,000 theatres throughout the U.S. and Canada. With Noise being the only new wide release movie for the weekend, it looks to take advantage of movie goers looking from a change from holiday themed film fare.
Noise is a come-back attempt for Michael Keaton, who hasn't had a hit movie since 1992's Batman Returns. But according to one critic, this film may not be a comeback hit for Keaton.
"White Noise never gives skeptics a chance to enjoy the film. I also suspect even believers will be bored," Jack Garner, film critic for Gannet News Service said. Garner's not alone in panning the film. According to web site RottenTomatoes.com, 87 percent of film critics in its survey have given the film a bad review.
"The nominal thriller White Noise is worthy neither of Michael Keaton's talents nor even a desperate horror fan's attention," Manohla Dargis, film critic for the New York Times, said.
But not all reviews were bad. Hollywood Reporter critic, Kirk Honeycutt said, "Even though logic takes a holiday in White Noise, Geoffrey Sax, a British television director making his theatrical debut, lavishes enough craft on the paranormal thriller to send more than a few chills down the spine."
The movie faces stiff competition as five other films have a wider release, playing in more theatres and reaching a larger potential audience. Universal's Meet the Fockers, the sequel to 2000's Meet the Parents is playing in about 1,000 more theatres than Noise and could dominate the box office for a third weekend.
'Fockers', starring Ben Stiller, Robert De Niro, Dustin Hoffman and Barbra Streisand, has made $186.5 million since its release Dec. 22, according to Box Office Mojo.
The following films will be playing in at least 1,000 U.S. and Canada venues:
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Please note that due to our archival policy, we will not alter or update the content of articles that are archived, but will only accept requests to make grammatical and formatting corrections. | 'Noise' takes on 'Fockers' in weekend box office race | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27Noise%27_takes_on_%27Fockers%27_in_weekend_box_office_race |
After two weekends of box office domination, Universal Pictures' Meet the Fockers will be challenged for the top spot by horror film White Noise, also from Universal, which opens in wide release Friday.
To be considered in wide release, a film must open or play in at least 1,000 theatres throughout the U.S. and Canada. With Noise being the only new wide release movie for the weekend, it looks to take advantage of movie goers looking from a change from holiday themed film fare.
Noise is a come-back attempt for Michael Keaton, who hasn't had a hit movie since 1992's Batman Returns. But according to one critic, this film may not be a comeback hit for Keaton.
"White Noise never gives skeptics a chance to enjoy the film. I also suspect even believers will be bored," Jack Garner, film critic for Gannet News Service said. Garner's not alone in panning the film. According to web site RottenTomatoes.com, 87 percent of film critics in its survey have given the film a bad review.
"The nominal thriller White Noise is worthy neither of Michael Keaton's talents nor even a desperate horror fan's attention," Manohla Dargis, film critic for the New York Times, said.
But not all reviews were bad. Hollywood Reporter critic, Kirk Honeycutt said, "Even though logic takes a holiday in White Noise, Geoffrey Sax, a British television director making his theatrical debut, lavishes enough craft on the paranormal thriller to send more than a few chills down the spine."
The movie faces stiff competition as five other films have a wider release, playing in more theatres and reaching a larger potential audience. Universal's Meet the Fockers, the sequel to 2000's Meet the Parents is playing in about 1,000 more theatres than Noise and could dominate the box office for a third weekend.
'Fockers', starring Ben Stiller, Robert De Niro, Dustin Hoffman and Barbra Streisand, has made $186.5 million since its release Dec. 22, according to Box Office Mojo.
The following films will be playing in at least 1,000 U.S. and Canada venues:
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Please note that due to our archival policy, we will not alter or update the content of articles that are archived, but will only accept requests to make grammatical and formatting corrections. | 'Noise' takes on 'Fockers' in weekend box office race | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27Noise%27_takes_on_%27Fockers%27_in_weekend_box_ofice_race |
The MTR Corporation, the only railway company in Hong Kong since the rail merge in 2007, has loosened their rules. The corporation proposed the new modifications, then transferred the proposal to the Legislative Council, and will be effective from September 2010.
The new set of rules allow 'non-disruptive' use of profanity in private conversations, and the punishment for inflammatory use of expletives is lowered from a fine of HK$5000 to HK$2000. The new set of rules have also excluded the regulation against wandering in MTR premises, as well as the rule against attempting to eat or drink.
Democratic Party member James To has expressed his concerns about a new rule that outlaws the display of promotional material. According to To, the wearing of Tiananmen Square Incident-related T-shirts or acting the Goddess of Democracy may breach the new MTR rules.
He also deems two other regulations, namely the prohibition of distracting MTR staff members and photography and video-recording in the train carriages, 'unreasonable'.
Unionist Li Fung-ying is also confused whether chewing gum was considered food. MTR head of operations Choi Tak-tsan replied that only what is regarded as food counts. They had not yet discussed on this matter, said Choi, and will soon. Li is also concerned about the rule which prohibits the entering of the first-class carriage without buying a ticket. Her main concern is whether the passenger will be allowed to buy the ticket rather than being fined HK$500.
Wong Kwok-hing believes that the MTR corporation should call upon more effort to advertise a more 'civilised' and 'polite' way of taking the train. Jeffrey Lam thinks that the new rules do not do enough to restrict shouting. MTR replied that anyone who shouts in the train can be advised to leave the train or even prosecuted.
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| Hong Kong's only railway company modifies regulations | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27Non-disruptive_swearing%27_allowed_in_MTR_premises |
Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab pleaded 'not guilty' to charges of attempting to blow up Northwest Airlines Flight 253 before a court in the United States today. The charges stem from an attempt to bomb a passenger jet as it neared the city of Detroit.
The charges include 289 counts of attempted murder, attempted use of a weapon of mass destruction, willful attempt to destroy and wreck an aircraft within the special aircraft jurisdiction of the United States, willfully placing a destructive device in, upon and in proximity to an aircraft within the special aircraft jurisdiction of the United States, and two counts of possession of a firearm/destructive in furtherance of a crime of violence. If convicted Abdulmutallab faces life in prison.
US Attorney Barbara L. McQuade, said that "The attempted murder of 289 innocent people merits the most serious charges available, and that's what we have charged in this indictment,".
Northwest Flight 253 departed Schiphol Airport in Amsterdam, the Netherlands on December 25 bound for Metro Airport in Detroit, Michigan. During the flight, Abdulmutallab allegedly attempted to use plastic explosives which consisted of of Pentaerythritol tetranitrate (PETN) and Triacetone triperoxide (TATP) along with other ingredients concealed in his undergarments to bring down the aircraft. The device apparently failed, resulting only in flames coming from his seat and loud popping sounds.
Passenger Jasper Schuringa, along with others, restrained Abdulmutallab for the rest of the flight after which he was taken into custody by federal agents. The incident caused rapid changes in airport security around the world, and also in US intelligence services.
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| 'Not guilty' plea from Abdulmutallab on Detroit jet bombing charges | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27Not_guilty%27_plea_from_Abdulmutallab |
Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab pleaded 'not guilty' to charges of attempting to blow up Northwest Airlines Flight 253 before a court in the United States today. The charges stem from an attempt to bomb a passenger jet as it neared the city of Detroit.
The charges include 289 counts of attempted murder, attempted use of a weapon of mass destruction, willful attempt to destroy and wreck an aircraft within the special aircraft jurisdiction of the United States, willfully placing a destructive device in, upon and in proximity to an aircraft within the special aircraft jurisdiction of the United States, and two counts of possession of a firearm/destructive in furtherance of a crime of violence. If convicted Abdulmutallab faces life in prison.
US Attorney Barbara L. McQuade, said that "The attempted murder of 289 innocent people merits the most serious charges available, and that's what we have charged in this indictment,".
Northwest Flight 253 departed Schiphol Airport in Amsterdam, the Netherlands on December 25 bound for Metro Airport in Detroit, Michigan. During the flight, Abdulmutallab allegedly attempted to use plastic explosives which consisted of of Pentaerythritol tetranitrate (PETN) and Triacetone triperoxide (TATP) along with other ingredients concealed in his undergarments to bring down the aircraft. The device apparently failed, resulting only in flames coming from his seat and loud popping sounds.
Passenger Jasper Schuringa, along with others, restrained Abdulmutallab for the rest of the flight after which he was taken into custody by federal agents. The incident caused rapid changes in airport security around the world, and also in US intelligence services.
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| 'Not guilty' plea from Abdulmutallab on Detroit jet bombing charges | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27Not_guilty%27_plea_from_Abdulmutallab_on_Detroit_jet_bombing_charges |
—Ray LaHood, U.S. transport secretaryUnited States officials have unveiled new plans which require air traffic controllers to have longer rest periods between shifts after a spate of controllers fell asleep while on duty at airports across the country. Announcing the plans, transport secretary Ray LaHood said he was "outraged" by the incidents.
The new plans, which the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), the U.S. government agency responsible for aviation, said would be implemented immediately, come after another controller was suspended this week when they fell asleep while directing aircraft near Miami. The incident was the sixth this year; controllers have fallen asleep in Nevada, Washington D.C., and Tennessee. In one incident, two commercial passenger jets landed without any direction from the control tower because the controller on duty had fallen asleep.
LaHood said controllers would be required to have a minimum of nine hours rest between shifts, an increase of an hour, and more supervisors would be required during night shifts, and they will be restricted in what shifts they can swap with colleagues. "I don't know when I've ever been madder," LaHood said in a television interview on Fox News Sunday. "We're not going to stand by and let that happen."
"We've taken steps, as of this morning, to begin changing schedules for controllers, to change schedules for managers, and to make sure that controllers cannot switch in and out of their schedules in order for the convenience of them if they are not well-rested," LaHood said. He vowed that he would ensure any controllers falling asleep on duty would face consequences. "On my watch, controllers will not be paid to take naps," he said. "We're not going to allow that."
Earlier this week, Hank Krakowski, the head of air traffic organization at the FAA, resigned from his position after LaHood said the crisis in U.S. control towers was "unacceptable", and vowed to resolve the issue. "I am totally outraged by these incidents," LaHood said. "This is absolutely unacceptable. The American public trusts us to run a safe system."
The results of a study on how fatigue affects controllers will soon be published and the FAA may make changes. But LaHood insisted controllers had to "take personal responsibility" for the safety of aircraft over the U.S., and they should not make irresponsible shift changes which will make them tired and put passengers at risk. He said all the controllers involved in the incidents had been suspended, and could ultimately be sacked. The National Air Traffic Controllers Association, a labor union representing controllers in the U.S., said the FAA had their "full support" in implementing the new steps to tackle fatigue.
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Please note that due to our archival policy, we will not alter or update the content of articles that are archived, but will only accept requests to make grammatical and formatting corrections. | 'Outraged' LaHood unveils plans to tackle fatigued U.S. air traffic controllers | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27Outraged%27_LaHood_unveils_plans_to_tackle_fatigue_in_U.S._air_traffic_controllers_after_sixth_incident |
—Ray LaHood, U.S. transport secretaryUnited States officials have unveiled new plans which require air traffic controllers to have longer rest periods between shifts after a spate of controllers fell asleep while on duty at airports across the country. Announcing the plans, transport secretary Ray LaHood said he was "outraged" by the incidents.
The new plans, which the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), the U.S. government agency responsible for aviation, said would be implemented immediately, come after another controller was suspended this week when they fell asleep while directing aircraft near Miami. The incident was the sixth this year; controllers have fallen asleep in Nevada, Washington D.C., and Tennessee. In one incident, two commercial passenger jets landed without any direction from the control tower because the controller on duty had fallen asleep.
LaHood said controllers would be required to have a minimum of nine hours rest between shifts, an increase of an hour, and more supervisors would be required during night shifts, and they will be restricted in what shifts they can swap with colleagues. "I don't know when I've ever been madder," LaHood said in a television interview on Fox News Sunday. "We're not going to stand by and let that happen."
"We've taken steps, as of this morning, to begin changing schedules for controllers, to change schedules for managers, and to make sure that controllers cannot switch in and out of their schedules in order for the convenience of them if they are not well-rested," LaHood said. He vowed that he would ensure any controllers falling asleep on duty would face consequences. "On my watch, controllers will not be paid to take naps," he said. "We're not going to allow that."
Earlier this week, Hank Krakowski, the head of air traffic organization at the FAA, resigned from his position after LaHood said the crisis in U.S. control towers was "unacceptable", and vowed to resolve the issue. "I am totally outraged by these incidents," LaHood said. "This is absolutely unacceptable. The American public trusts us to run a safe system."
The results of a study on how fatigue affects controllers will soon be published and the FAA may make changes. But LaHood insisted controllers had to "take personal responsibility" for the safety of aircraft over the U.S., and they should not make irresponsible shift changes which will make them tired and put passengers at risk. He said all the controllers involved in the incidents had been suspended, and could ultimately be sacked. The National Air Traffic Controllers Association, a labor union representing controllers in the U.S., said the FAA had their "full support" in implementing the new steps to tackle fatigue.
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Please note that due to our archival policy, we will not alter or update the content of articles that are archived, but will only accept requests to make grammatical and formatting corrections. | 'Outraged' LaHood unveils plans to tackle fatigued U.S. air traffic controllers | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27Outraged%27_LaHood_unveils_plans_to_tackle_fatigued_U.S._air_traffic_controllers |
The man known as just the 'Piano Man' has left the hospital where he was staying and has returned home to his native Germany. He has finally spoken after four months of silence.
It turns out, according to British tabloid The Daily Mirror, that the man, aged 20, was from Germany but after losing his job in Paris, traveled to the UK through the Channel Tunnel. He was going to commit suicide when he was found by police on a Kent beach.
He refused to talk to authorities due to his distressed state. It appears that he had formerly worked with mental patients and copied what he saw from them to fool the doctors. Also according to the Mirror, the man was only able to tap the same piano key repeatedly, but hospital officials refute this. However, all of this information came from a single, unidentified source.
The man was found soaking wet on a beach in Kent in an expensive-looking suit from which all the labels had been removed.
Some people believed he was suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder or that he was an autistic savant. Some also believed he was a Canadian eccentric, a French busker, a student from Norway, or Czech concert pianist Tomáš Strnad.
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Please note that due to our archival policy, we will not alter or update the content of articles that are archived, but will only accept requests to make grammatical and formatting corrections. | 'Piano Man' speaks and is identified, returns home to Germany | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27Piano_Man%27_released_from_hospital,_returns_home_to_Germany |
The man known as just the 'Piano Man' has left the hospital where he was staying and has returned home to his native Germany. He has finally spoken after four months of silence.
It turns out, according to British tabloid The Daily Mirror, that the man, aged 20, was from Germany but after losing his job in Paris, traveled to the UK through the Channel Tunnel. He was going to commit suicide when he was found by police on a Kent beach.
He refused to talk to authorities due to his distressed state. It appears that he had formerly worked with mental patients and copied what he saw from them to fool the doctors. Also according to the Mirror, the man was only able to tap the same piano key repeatedly, but hospital officials refute this. However, all of this information came from a single, unidentified source.
The man was found soaking wet on a beach in Kent in an expensive-looking suit from which all the labels had been removed.
Some people believed he was suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder or that he was an autistic savant. Some also believed he was a Canadian eccentric, a French busker, a student from Norway, or Czech concert pianist Tomáš Strnad.
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Please note that due to our archival policy, we will not alter or update the content of articles that are archived, but will only accept requests to make grammatical and formatting corrections. | 'Piano Man' speaks and is identified, returns home to Germany | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27Piano_Man%27_speaks_and_is_identified,_returns_home_to_Germany |
One year and one month after the earthquake that affected most of Chile, and triggered a destructive tsunami throughout its coast, the governor of the Cardenal Caro Province, Julio Ibarra, told El Mercurio Online that the Pichilemu Municipality "did not register, nor conducted inspection visits" to the homes of 107 families affected by the earthquake. Their registration, and the inspection visits are a needed step for those families, in order to request housing subsidies given by the government because of the catastrophe.
"We found a list of persons that had requested inspection visits from the Public Works Department [of the Pichilemu Municipality], and we were surprised to notice that that people were not registered in our system, and that the director of the Public Works Department never visited them. There is a double fault, an absolute abandonment, because the applications for the subsidies are now closed," Julio Ibarra said.
"[...] We have received criticism that we have not advanced in terms of reconstruction, and the responsibility of giving the information [to the government] is the municipality," Ibarra added. The governor gave the detailed information of the families to the General Comptroller of the Republic (Contraloría General de la República), and is requesting special extension of the deadlines for application to the Ministry of Housing.
"We are overdue in the issue of housing reconstruction. [...] The Ministry of Housing did not create a special program for the housing reconstruction, they are using the same programs implemented in 2004, [or] 2005, to try to give a solution to the people," Mayor of Pichilemu, Roberto Córdova, told Wikinews in November 2010.
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Please note that due to our archival policy, we will not alter or update the content of articles that are archived, but will only accept requests to make grammatical and formatting corrections. | Cardenal Caro Province governor: Pichilemu Municipality to leave 107 families homeless | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27Pichilemu_Municipality_to_leave_107_families_homeless,%27_Governor_of_Cardenal_Caro_Province_says |
A researcher at the University of Oxford has found a saucy poem attributed to John Milton, the 17th-century poet who wrote Paradise Lost and other religious verse. "An Extempore Upon a Faggot", discovered in an 18th-century anthology of poetry, is not thought by modern scholars to be by Milton, however, and may in fact have been written by one of his rivals in an attempt to disgrace him.
The poem was found by Dr Jennifer Batt, who said that it "is so out of tune with the rest of his work, that if the attribution is correct, it would prompt a major revision of our ideas about Milton." She discovered the rude verse in the Harding Collection of poetry anthologies held by the Bodleian Library, the main university library at Oxford. "To see the name of John Milton, the great religious and political polemicist, attached to such a bawdy epigram, is extremely surprising to say the least", she added.
The book in question, the Oxford and Cambridge Miscellany from 1708 (over 30 years after Milton's death), was described by another Oxford academic, Dr Abigail Williams, as "a set of poems written by witty young men about town for witty young men about town". Milton wrote in blank verse rather than using rhyme and used differing poetic rhythms, whereas the handwritten poem uses a simple pattern of rhyming couplets as it contrasts the sexual behaviour of young women and more experienced women by comparing them to green wood and dry wood upon a fire.
Have you not in a Chimney seen
A Faggot which is moist and green
How coyly it receives the Heat
And at both ends do's weep and sweat?
So fares it with a tender Maid
When first upon her Back she's laid
But like dry Wood th' experienced Dame
Cracks and rejoices in the Flame
Milton (1608–1674) wrote many influential religious poems, including Paradise Lost, which is described by the Oxford Dictionary of National Biography as "widely and rightly regarded as the supreme poetic achievement in the English language, fit to sit alongside the poems of Homer, Virgil, and Dante." It tells the story of the fall from grace of Adam and Eve in an epic theological poem. He followed it with Paradise Regained, depicting the temptations of Jesus in the wilderness.
Bawdy poetry is not thought by modern academics to be in keeping with Milton's style, with Batt suggesting that it is likely that his name was added to the poem "to bring scandal upon [him], perhaps by a jealous contemporary." She suggests that the culprit might have been Sir John Suckling, a poet who was a supporter of the monarchy, in contrast to the Republican Milton.
The University of Oxford is currently digitising the songbooks and anthologies of the Harding Collection, said to be the world's largest such collection, as part of a project to allow online access. It is named after Walter Harding, a British musician who collected music and poetry in Chicago. The poem had been read before, but without anyone noticing Milton's name at the bottom. Dr Williams, the project's leader, expressed her doubts as to the authenticity of the attribution, commenting that "[y]ou could become very rich and famous – well, famous, anyway – if you could prove the rhyme was really by Milton. I am pretty certain it is not."
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Please note that due to our archival policy, we will not alter or update the content of articles that are archived, but will only accept requests to make grammatical and formatting corrections. | 'Poetry lost': rude rhyme rediscovered, attributed to John Milton | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27Poetry_lost%27:_rude_rhyme_rediscovered,_attributed_to_John_Milton |
A supposed "pregnancy pact" at Gloucester High School in Gloucester, Massachusetts has drawn international attention to the small Massachusetts fishing city which is considered to be one of the oldest settlements (1623) in the American continent.
The story, which was broken by TIME magazine and the Boston Globe, involved the fact that 17 girls, all sixteen years old or younger, got themselves pregnant as part of a "pregnancy pact", so that the teenage mothers could raise their babies together.
According the magazine article, school officials at the 1,162 student school became concerned starting as far back as October when a uncommonly large amount of girls began to enter the school's health clinic to see if they were pregnant.
As of earlier this May, seven girls returned more than once seeking pregnancy tests and upon hearing results, "Some girls seemed more upset when they weren't pregnant than when they were," according to James Sullivan, the principal of the school. Some smiled, others cried, and one declared, "Sweet!", according to the Globe upon hearing their results.
Local officials, including the mayor, are uncertain whether there really was a "pact", however. Mayor Carolyn Kirk called it a "blip" in the pregnancy rate and noted many factors playing into it, such glamorization of teen pregnancy including the announcement around the same time that Britney Spear's sister, Jamie Lynn Spears had given birth to a baby, and last year's critically acclaimed movie, Juno, a comedy about a 16-year-old girl who gets pregnant and other movies, such as Knocked Up.
There is some concern over what might be statutory rape, as it has been reported that most of the men who are the fathers are older, including one report that one of the fathers is a 24-year-old homeless man. In Massachusetts, the age of consent is 16, therefore it is illegal for anyone to have sexual intercourse with anyone under 16.
Other teen mothers however have criticized the new mothers. Two such girls are Alivia Fidler and Meaghan Orlando, childhood friends and sophomore students at the high school, the girls were 16 years old when they became pregnant unexpectedly.
Orlando noted, "If I could go back in time I would want to wait and have the same baby later. You can't do stuff that normal teens do," who is now 17 and has a 3-month-old son named Jayden, "They don't know what they’re getting themselves into."
Meaghan's friend, Alivia, also now 17, said the pact idea is "ridiculous." Noting, "They're not going to be friends very long. You have to take care of your baby. It's frustrating. I don't have a lot of support." Fidler is no longer with the father of the baby, 5 month-old Xavier Fidler-Aguiar and recently lost her job at McDonalds.
One other teen mother, Amanda Ireland, who recently graduated from the school, also gave a warning to the mothers, "Don't try to get pregnant. People say they know what it's like because they have younger siblings, but they really have no idea."
Ireland also noted, "They're so excited to finally have someone to love them unconditionally. I try to explain it's hard to feel loved when an infant is screaming to be fed at 3 a.m."
46 year-old Gloucester resident Lori Mitchell, whose daughter dropped out of high school at 16 to raise a child said there are worse things than being a teenage mother, "They could be junkies or prostitutes. You try to protect them as much as you can, but it's up to them to do the right thing."
Greg Verga, the chairman of the Gloucester School Committee called the pact, "disturbing", as he himself was once a teen father.
"They are going to have a rude awakening. It was no picnic. People don’t realize there’s 3 a.m. feedings ... it’s a lifestyle change. It’s not a possession you can play with and stick on the shelf. That's why I fear for these girls."
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| 'Pregnancy pact' grabs international attention for small Massachusetts town | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27Pregnancy_pact%27_grabs_international_attention_for_small_Massachusetts_town |
Football fans in Spain were rejoicing on Friday after an octopus called Paul predicted their team will win the 2010 FIFA World Cup. Paul the Octopus, who lives in an aquarium in Oberhausen, in western Germany, has so far correctly forecast who will win every World Cup game involving the German side. Paul also predicted that the German team will beat Uruguay in Saturday's match for third place.
The octopus has become something of a celebrity during the World Cup, as all six of his predictions for Germany's World Cup games proved accurate. His final prediction, for Sunday's final between Spain and the Netherlands, was broadcast live on television. The eight-legged sea creature was given two boxes to choose from — one marked with a flag from the Netherlands and another with the flag of Spain. In the end it was the Spanish flag he went for.
Rupert Adams of William Hill, one of Britain's largest bookmakers, said that the octopus's success rate is remarkable.
"If you had had ten pounds on each and every prediction then re-invested your winnings you would currently have over 1,450 pounds," said Adams. "It's an astonishing feat to get six predictions in a row. I am told people are walking into our shops and saying 'I will have what the Octopus predicted.'"
But David Spiegelhalter, Professor of the Public Understanding of Risk at the University of Cambridge, was less convinced of the animal's abilities, pointing out that many other creatures failed to predict the correct outcomes of matches and went unreported.
"It's like seeing footage of a golfer getting a hole-in-one," Spiegelhalter said. "We're not seeing the millions of times the golfer made the shot and it didn't go in."
At least one other animal has weighed in on the World Cup final. Mani, a 13 year old parakeet from Singapore, allegedly correctly predicted the results of the four quarter-final matches, and also Spain's semi-final victory over Germany. The parakeet apparently thinks that the Netherlands will defeat Spain in the final.
Which of the supposed oracles is correct remains to be seen. The final takes place on Sunday in Johannesburg, South Africa.
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| 'Psychic' octopus backs Spain to win World Cup | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27Psychic%27_octopus_backs_Spain_to_win_World_Cup |
Lydia Playfoot, a 16 year old schoolgirl from West Sussex, England, has been faced with expulsion by her school, Millais School of Horsham, for wearing a purity ring that symbolises her dedication to chastity.
Her case, that she should be allowed to wear the ring as it is an "expression of [her] faith and should be exempt from the school's rules on wearing jewelery", was taken to the High Court on Friday. Judgement in the case was reserved for a future date.
This case echoes a decision in a case last year. The Law Lords rejected Shabina Begum's, former pupil of Denbigh High School, in Luton, Bedfordshire, appeal to wear a Muslim Jilbab to school.
Miss Playfoot spoke to BBC Radio regarding the case. She said "Muslims are allowed to wear headscarves and other faiths can wear bangles and other types of jewellery. It feels like Christians are being discriminated against." Her lawyers have argued that her right to wear the ring as a symbol of faith is upheld by the Human Rights Act 1998
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| 'Purity' ring case taken to High Court | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27Purity%27_ring_case_taken_to_High_Court |
With the United States in a recession, more and more people are looking for ways to spend less money and get a better bargain at the same time. In a time where prices are higher, 'recession gardens' are becoming increasingly popular, echoing the victory gardens which were planted during World War I and World War II which helped to reduce the stress and pressure of food shortages.
"There is more interest in vegetable gardens similar to the victory gardens. Because of the economy, they are being called recession gardens," said a master gardener who volunteers at Ohio State University's Extension Service office, Fred Hanacek.
The new fad recently caught on in Iowa where families have began to plant the recession gardens to save money in the produce sections of supermarkets, especially organic fruits and vegetables. Public News Service quotes the National Gardening Association (NGA) as saying that they expect a nearly 20% increase in personal home garden across the U.S.. Some of the increase is also due to people wanting to know what goes onto their vegetables and in their foods.
"I do believe you'll find there's an extra expense in actually producing your own food, but the food quality you get is far better than what you can purchase in a store," said Beverly Bernhard a veteran gardener from Iowa.
The new trend has also gotten the attention of U.S. president Barack Obama who recently stated that he plans to plant a vegetable garden at the White House. It will be the first vegetable garden to be planted at the White House in over 20 years. The last time a garden of this kind was planted at the White House was in World War II when Eleanor Roosevelt planted her Victory Garden. In 1800, former U.S. president John Adams is reported to have planted the first White House garden. Andrew Jackson went a bit further, building a greenhouse.
Michelle Obama, the First Lady of the United States, broke ground on the new garden with the fifth grade class at Bancroft Elementary located in Washington, D.C. on March 20. The garden, which will be 1,100 square feet and an 'L' shape, will be located on the White House's South Lawn and the Obamas plan to grow over 55 varieties of vegetables.
"Let’s hear it for vegetables. Let’s hear it for fruits," yelled Mrs. Obama as they broke ground on the garden. "I’ve been able to have my kids eat so many different things that they would have never touched if we had bought them at a store," she added. Mrs. Obama also said that it will be the entire family's responsibility to maintain the garden, including the U.S. president.
Many vegetables grow easily, without having to do a lot of work to maintain them. Some examples are lettuce and zucchini. The NGA says at least 9 million Americans will grow vegetable gardens for the first time ever in 2009. An estimated 43 million Americans will plant their own personal vegetable gardens this year.
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| 'Recession gardens' replace victory gardens | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27Recession_gardens%27_replace_victory_gardens |
A fast-moving fire engulfed the home of late singer Johnny Cash on Tuesday. The lake-side home, located in Hendersonville, Tennessee, was the home of the late singer and his wife, June Carter, from the late 1960s until their deaths in 2003.
The home was purchased by former Bee Gees singer Barry Gibb in 2006, and was undergoing renovations at the time. The cause of the fire is unknown at this time, but it is believed that a flammable wood preservative that construction workers had applied contributed to the speed in which the flames spread. Firefighters responded within 5 minutes of the fire breaking out. No workers were killed in the fire, but one firefighter suffered minor injuries.
"Maybe it's the good Lord's way to make sure that it was only Johnny's house," said Richard Sterban of The Oak Ridge Boys, who lived down the road from Cash. Neighbor Marty Stewart said "So many prominent things and prominent people in American history took place in that house—everyone from Billy Graham to Bob Dylan went into that house." The home was where Cash wrote many of his hit songs, and appeared in the Cash music video for "Hurt".
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Please note that due to our archival policy, we will not alter or update the content of articles that are archived, but will only accept requests to make grammatical and formatting corrections. | Fire burns home of late singer Johnny Cash | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27Ring_of_Fire%27_burns_home_of_late_Johnny_Cash |
American plus-size model and actress Mia Amber Davis has died at the age of 36 in Los Angeles, California. Davis, who appeared in the film Road Trip, died one day after undergoing routine knee surgery.
Davis was more than 6 feet (1.8 metres) tall and weighed over 300 pounds (136.1 kilogrammes). She was having the surgery after a prolonged basketball injury from her college days. The model returned to the hospital after feeling dizzy and later died there.
Michael Yard, Davis' husband, was in New York at the time of her death. He spoke to TMZ, saying "I want to know what happened to my wife."
Davis was also the editor of Plus Model Magazine. Magazine editor Madeline Jones commented on Davis' death in a blog post, writing "Mia was a super model and industry leader because it was her love for the women she represented that kept pushing her when the industry itself did not embrace her. Anyone else would have given up, but Mia remained steadfast in her career, knowing that she was not just doing it for her own benefit, but for women of all ages."
Davis is best remembered for her appearance in Road Trip. She played a heavyset woman named Rhonda who seduces a geek played by DJ Qualls.
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Please note that due to our archival policy, we will not alter or update the content of articles that are archived, but will only accept requests to make grammatical and formatting corrections. | Actress Mia Amber Davis dies aged 36 | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27Road_Trip%27_actress_Mia_Amber_Davis_dies_at_age_36 |
On Saturday, Italy won its third victory at the Eurovision Song Competition, held this year at the Rotterdam Ahoy arena in Rotterdam, Netherlands. The Italian rock band Måneskin's song Zitti E Buoni won 524 points from public and professional judges. French singer Barbara Pravi's song Voilà received 499 points, and Swiss singer Gjon's Tears Tout l'univers got 432 points; finishing second and third respectively.
Out of 39 countries participating this time, 26 countries including hosts Netherlands and the Big Five — France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom — competed in the finals. The competition began on May 18. Three of the Big Five, and the hosts finished at the very bottom of the vote ranking. Netherlands got 11, Spain got six, Germany bagged three and the UK received zero points. All four received zero points from the audience.
Dutch singer Duncan Laurence won the 2019 edition of Eurovision in Tel Aviv winning 498 points for his song Arcade. That victory meant Netherlands was to host the competition 2020, which was cancelled because of "escalating spread of COVID-19 throughout Europe". This year, 3500 people were in audience, multiple reports stated. They all were tested negative to be eligible for attending the event, Eurovision stated.
Iceland's Daði Freyr could not perform live in both semi-finals and the final, having tested positive of the virus. A pre-recorded performance of Daði og Gagnamagnið was played, which finished fourth, receiving 378 points, 12 more than Ukrainian singer Go_A's song Shum.
Switzerland finished at top, during the jury voting, receiving 267 points. France finished second during the national jury voting with 248 points. During the jury voting, when France and Switzerland were very close to each other, Pravi said, "I think it is crazy that two French songs are on the top, thank you!"
National juries of both Switzerland and the UK awarded 12 points to France. Pravi uttered "Merci!" , clapped and blew a kiss towards the Swiss team, upon receiving 12 points from the Swiss jury.
Italy received 318 points from the audience, putting them on top. That sufficed them to win the competition. Upon winning, Måneskin's lead vocalist Damiano David said, "We just want to say to the whole Europe, to the whole world, rock and roll never dies."
As the winner of this year's competition, Italy is to host next year's Eurovision Song Competition. Italy had previously won Eurovision in 1990. Måneskin is the first band to win the competition since 2006, the BBC noted.
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| 'Rock and roll never dies': Italy wins Eurovision after 30 years | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27Rock_and_roll_never_dies%27:_Italy_wins_Eurovision_after_30_years |
Moviegoers who pushed it to No. 1 with a reported $18.1 million take for the weekend ending April 10 at the U.S. and Canadian box office welcomed the premiere of the movie Sahara, starring Matthew McConaughey and Penélope Cruz. Still, the total was $10 million less than Sin City, the top film of the previous week, made in its debut.
Sahara is described as an adventure movie with plenty of fun. McConaughey plays a tanned and fit traveler searching for a long lost U.S. Civil War battleship, filled with gold coins, and finds love in the process.
Sin City, starring Bruce Willis and Jessica Alba, dropped to second place but was still doing well with a $14.1 million dollar sophomore weekend. Filling out the top shows: Miss Congeniality 2: Armed and Fabulous, which falls from #5 to #7 with more than $4.1 million "The Pacifier," which drops from #6 to #8 with more than $3 million; The Ring Two, from #7 to #9 with $2.9 million; and "The Upside of Anger," from #8 to #10 with $2.6 million.
Ticket sales at all box offices showed a decline from last year for the same weekend.
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| 'Sahara' opens as top film in U.S., Canada | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27Sahara%27_goes_blockbuster_on_first_weekend |
Moviegoers who pushed it to No. 1 with a reported $18.1 million take for the weekend ending April 10 at the U.S. and Canadian box office welcomed the premiere of the movie Sahara, starring Matthew McConaughey and Penélope Cruz. Still, the total was $10 million less than Sin City, the top film of the previous week, made in its debut.
Sahara is described as an adventure movie with plenty of fun. McConaughey plays a tanned and fit traveler searching for a long lost U.S. Civil War battleship, filled with gold coins, and finds love in the process.
Sin City, starring Bruce Willis and Jessica Alba, dropped to second place but was still doing well with a $14.1 million dollar sophomore weekend. Filling out the top shows: Miss Congeniality 2: Armed and Fabulous, which falls from #5 to #7 with more than $4.1 million "The Pacifier," which drops from #6 to #8 with more than $3 million; The Ring Two, from #7 to #9 with $2.9 million; and "The Upside of Anger," from #8 to #10 with $2.6 million.
Ticket sales at all box offices showed a decline from last year for the same weekend.
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| 'Sahara' opens as top film in U.S., Canada | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27Sahara%27_opens_as_top_film_in_U.S.,_Canada |
Wednesday, UK-based non-governmental charity organisation Save the Children announced in an official statement on their website the temporary suspension of all their activities in Afghanistan. The reason for this is an ISIL-claimed attack on a Save the Children office in Jalalabad, Nangarhar, which cost the lives of three staff members of the charity.
A group of militants attacked Save the Children's office after a suicide car explosion Wednesday morning just after 9 AM, local time. Staff member Zabiullah told The Guardian he heard "a very big explosion", after which he and his friends "rushed the basement". According to the latest reports, the attackers killed six people in total and injured more than two dozen people. One eyewitness said the attackers used rocket-propelled grenades to blast the compound gates, according to the BBC.
A spokesperson for Nangarhar's governor said in a statement, six militants were involved in the attack. Later, in an updated statement, he said there were only five and all of them were killed. Afghan security personnel said the attackers killed two soldiers, two guards and two civilians. Sohrab Qaderi, a government member of Nangarhar province, said about four dozen people were rescued from the basement of the building, most of whom were Save the Children employees. They managed to escape through a back exit, one of them told the BBC afterwards. It took about ten hours to stop the attack, Qaderi added.
"We have temporarily suspended our operations across the country following today's events, however we remain fully committed to helping the most deprived children of Afghanistan", stated Save the Children in an official statement published Wednesday. They added, "We remain committed to resuming our operations and lifesaving work as quickly as possible, as soon as we can be assured that it is safe to do so." Furthermore, the organisation confirmed in the statement the death of three of its own staff members, one of whom was one of the two killed civilians. They also said four other staff members, who were injured, were receiving medical aid.
Via Amaq news agency, militant group Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) has claimed the responsibility of the attack, calling British and Swedish foundations, as well as institutes of the Afghan government, the targets of the attack.
Save the Children established operations in Afghanistan in 1976. As of 2018, it was present in sixteen Afghan provinces. In recent years, several attacks on rescue organisations have taken place northern Afghanistan. In February 2017, six people working for the Red Cross were killed in Dasth-e-Leili, Jowzjan Province while delivering humanitarian aid. Nine members of Czech-based organisation People in Need were killed in Balkh in 2015; and in 2013, six staff members of ACTED, a French charity, were shot dead in Faryab.
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The prison sentence of I. Lewis 'Scooter' Libby has been commuted by United States President George W. Bush. Libby is the former chief of staff for U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney, and was at the center of the CIA leak scandal, where the identity of former CIA agent Valerie Plame was allegedly leaked to the media by White House officials.
Bush's intervention ensures that Libby will not serve jail time, however Libby must still pay a US$250,000 fine and undergo two years of probation. In a statement, Bush said, "I respect the jury's verdict. But I have concluded that the prison sentence given to Mr. Libby is excessive. Therefore, I am commuting the portion of Mr. Libby's sentence that required him to spend thirty months in prison."
He continued, "My decision to commute his prison sentence leaves in place a harsh punishment for Mr. Libby. The reputation he gained through his years of public service and professional work in the legal community is forever damaged. His wife and young children have also suffered immensely. He will remain on probation. The significant fines imposed by the judge will remain in effect. The consequences of his felony conviction on his former life as a lawyer, public servant, and private citizen will be long-lasting."
A federal court convicted Libby of perjury and obstruction of justice on March 6, 2007, and sentenced him to 2 1/2 years in prison. Bush issued the order to commute Libby's prison term after a federal appeals court ruled that Libby could not delay his prison term while his case was on appeal.
Article II, Section 2 of the United States Constitution grants the President authority to fully or partially commute the sentences of those convicted in federal courts, however acceptance of a pardon also requires the party to admit guilt in the matter.
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A police official in Mumbai has warned four suspected militants of Pakistani origin have entered the city, the capital of Maharashtra, India, and claims they are plotting attacks in the city. Police are now searching for the four people, thought to be members of Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), the Islamic fundamentalist militant group the Indian government holds responsible for the coordinated attacks which hit Mumbai in 2008. Joint police commissioner Himanshu Roy says intelligence suggests "the threat is serious."
A United States counter-terrorism official said the attacks are likely imminent, and will occur over the Christmas and New Year period. "There's no question LeT remains interested in pulling off another large-scale attack in India," the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity, "and we are alert to the possibility that LeT might again try a holiday attack."
Speaking at a press conference, Roy said "[t]hey have recently arrived in Mumbai. We are not in a position to reveal their nationalities now but they are LeT members."
—US counter-terrorism officialArmed police have been posted around high-profile destinations in the city, and roads around the Taj Mahal Palace hotel—seiged by militants in the 2008 attacks—have been closed. Police have released a sketch of one of the militants believed to be in the city.
"The police [are] on high alert all over the city. We cannot take any of these intelligence inputs lightly in the holiday season," another Mumbai official said. "Since yesterday, we are checking all the possible hideouts, small lodges and guesthouses, railway stations. We are checking all the vehicles that are coming into the city."
166 people died and hundreds more were injured in the 2008 attacks, in which multiple gunmen attacked the Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus railway station, a hospital, a police station, and numerous hotels, amongst other sites. The attacks were dubbed "India's 9/11" by local media. Only one militant survived the attacks, Ajmal Amir Kasab; in May this year he was sentenced to death by hanging, on 86 charges, including murder, terrorism, and waging war against India.
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The aid agency Save the Children says an alarming number of girls in Liberia, as young as eight, were having sex with UN peacekeepers, policemen, teachers and humanitarian aid workers in exchange for money, food or favours.
"People don't really accept it but because of the financial constraints, people just have to do so. Most of them are in households headed by only the mother, catering for children. Their fathers got killed in the war, or some fathers are living but can't afford to care for their children; they have to accept the situation, so there is no way out. "
The report says most people cited lack of economic and livelihood opportunities, as well as chronic poverty, as underlying causes for the ongoing exploitation of children. Parents reported feeling powerless to stop children who were having sex in exchange for goods and services, as they did not have the economic means to provide for their children. In some instances, families cited that transactional sex was a means of supporting the wider family to access things such as food or money to purchase food. In other cases, children identified more personal needs such as clothing or being able to access video clubs to watch films. The widespread nature of the problem meant it affected children in a broad cross section of environments.
The study, conducted by Save the Children, was intended to explore the ways in which children in 'Internally Displaced Person' (IDP) camps are vulnerable to exploitation and abuse as they attempt to meet their basic and other needs. It also explored the roles and responsibilities of humanitarian agencies in providing more protective systems for the delivery of assistance. During the discussions in the field, 315 men, women and children were consulted.
The people of Liberia have experienced ongoing suffering over the past two decades as a result of war and displacement. Children have been drawn into this in many ways, such as recruitment into armed forces, separation from their families, witnessing atrocities, rape and torture. Thousands have been driven from their homes into exile in neighbouring countries or camps for IDPs within Liberia, the report says.
Liberia has been shattered by the 1989-2003 civil war which caused an estimated 250,000 deaths in a country of barely 3 million people. The war forced around 1.3 million people from their homes into camps around the capital Monrovia or abroad.
Elections late last year saw Harvard-trained former World Bank economist Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf elected as the new president. Her government faces a massive task in rebuilding an economy and society torn apart by years of bloodshed. Many Liberians have been, and continue to be, heavily reliant on humanitarian assistance as a means of survival. Those who are able to find work often still live in chronic poverty with the national average wage being only US$50 per month.
The report found that people unanimously agree that attitudes have fundamentally changed since the war.
“It is like the cultural tradition is not holding any more. People have lost the cultural values and the tradition has been broken down. ”
Most people said that children were not involved in prostitution before the war, or to a very small extent, and that this only happened in the cities but not in the villages.
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At the Siggraph 2005 computer graphics convention in Los Angeles, California Tuesday, Star Wars creator George Lucas unveiled plans for a weekly computer-animated series based on the science fiction saga.
The new show, to be called Clone Wars, will be a 3-D animated spinoff of the series and is to be produced in a Lucas facility in Singapore. Lucas already has done limited-run 2-D traditional animated television with Star Wars: Clone Wars shorts on the U.S. cable channel, Cartoon Network.
Lucas said advances in digital technology allow an animated television series to do what otherwise would be too expensive.
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false | 'Star Wars' headed to TV as weekly series | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27Star_Wars%27_headed_to_TV_as_weekly_series |
Two sculptures have been confiscated and thirteen pro-democracy activists arrested in Hong Kong, in what critics have described as "politically motivated" censorship.
The sculptures, a new replica of the "Goddess of Democracy" and a carving called the "Tiananmen Massacre Relief", had been placed in the piazza of Hong Kong's Times Square shopping mall in remembrance of the 21 anniversary of the Tiananmen Square Incident.
Although the Causeway Bay piazza is designated as a public space, its day-to-day operations are run by the shopping mall's management. They made a complaint that the Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements in China, or the "Alliance" for short, had failed to ask permission for their activities.
When police and officials from the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department attempted to remove the sculptures on the grounds for obstructing public access, they were prevented from doing so by activists for two hours. The police made 13 arrests, including that of a legislator for preventing the police from carrying out their duties. The statue was removed and is currently in the custody of the Customs and Excise department (C&ED). The 13 persons arrested were released on bail the same day.
Alliance secretary Albert Ho claimed that as Times Square was a public area, the police had no right to stop them, that similar activities had been held before, and that he had "...never been treated so barbarically and so violently...".
Alliance vice-chairman Lee Cheuk-yan said that C&ED's action was unusual, and that he has contacted the department to find out if the department was trying to censor materials related to the Tiananmen Square incident.
As part of its Basic Law, Hong Kong continues to enjoy western-style liberties within the One country, two systems settlement within China. In the past political activities that are taboo in China proper have been tolerated by the Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (SAR) authorities.
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| 'Statues of Democracy' removed in Hong Kong | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27Statues_of_Democracy%27_removed |
Two sculptures have been confiscated and thirteen pro-democracy activists arrested in Hong Kong, in what critics have described as "politically motivated" censorship.
The sculptures, a new replica of the "Goddess of Democracy" and a carving called the "Tiananmen Massacre Relief", had been placed in the piazza of Hong Kong's Times Square shopping mall in remembrance of the 21 anniversary of the Tiananmen Square Incident.
Although the Causeway Bay piazza is designated as a public space, its day-to-day operations are run by the shopping mall's management. They made a complaint that the Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements in China, or the "Alliance" for short, had failed to ask permission for their activities.
When police and officials from the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department attempted to remove the sculptures on the grounds for obstructing public access, they were prevented from doing so by activists for two hours. The police made 13 arrests, including that of a legislator for preventing the police from carrying out their duties. The statue was removed and is currently in the custody of the Customs and Excise department (C&ED). The 13 persons arrested were released on bail the same day.
Alliance secretary Albert Ho claimed that as Times Square was a public area, the police had no right to stop them, that similar activities had been held before, and that he had "...never been treated so barbarically and so violently...".
Alliance vice-chairman Lee Cheuk-yan said that C&ED's action was unusual, and that he has contacted the department to find out if the department was trying to censor materials related to the Tiananmen Square incident.
As part of its Basic Law, Hong Kong continues to enjoy western-style liberties within the One country, two systems settlement within China. In the past political activities that are taboo in China proper have been tolerated by the Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (SAR) authorities.
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| 'Statues of Democracy' removed in Hong Kong | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27Statues_of_Democracy%27_removed_in_Hong_Kong |
Atheists, secularists, and supporters of free speech rallied in London today to protest what they feel is an "increased confidence of Islamists to censor free expression publicly". Around 200 people gathered on the steps of the memorial to King George V in Old Palace Yard opposite the House of Lords in Westminster.
Anne Marie Waters from the 'One Law for All' group, which protests against sharia law in the United Kingdom, said that freedom of expression was "the greatest freedom we have" and included "the freedom to offend".
Accusations of Islamophobia against those who reposted the Jesus and Mo webcomic was one of a number of incidents highlighted by speakers. Susan Zhuang from the University College London Atheist, Secularist and Humanist society spoke of the reaction to the posting of the cartoon to their Facebook profile: "maybe we were naive but we never thought it would come to this". The university's student union demanded that the group remove the cartoon, but the group declined and launched an Internet petition to "defend freedom of expression".
The blogger and activist Rhys Morgan, who had been previously threatened with libel for saying that a clinic operated in Texas by Stanislaw Burzynski was charging hundreds of thousands of dollars to cancer patients for unproven treatments, also spoke of being threatened by his sixth-form college to remove the Jesus and Mo cartoon from his Facebook account. He said that the staff at his college "implied that [he] would be suspended or expelled", claiming that the image offended Muslims. He also said that he had got threats of violence including someone saying that his house would be burned down, and was called a "God-hater".
The philosophy professor A. C. Grayling and the popular science writer Richard Dawkins both spoke at the rally, with the latter criticising the decision by the organisers of a literary festival in Jaipur, India, to "kowtow to a violent threat" by rescinding an invitation to the author Salman Rushdie based on a demand by "some local Islamic scholar". (Dawkins joked about how, unlike Islamic scholars, "a true 'scholar' studies more than one book".)
Dawkins argued that people should "stop being so damn respectful". Without freedom of speech, Dawkins said, society would be in a "scientific, technological, moral dark age".
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Please note that due to our archival policy, we will not alter or update the content of articles that are archived, but will only accept requests to make grammatical and formatting corrections. | 'Stop being so damn respectful' say free speech supporters in London | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27Stop_being_so_damn_respectful%27_say_free_speech_supporters_in_London |
At approximately 1600 EST (2100 UTC) a suspicious package was found near the baggage claim at Washington Dulles International Airport in Virginia, United States, leading to the closure of around half of the terminal. Police later determined that the package was harmless and reopened the affected areas of the airport. Parts of the airport had been closed for two hours before being reopened.
Officials from the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority said a canine unit was attracted to an unattended piece of baggage near the baggage claim. They did not disclose what the package contained, but an official said the package did not look similar to other suspicious packages sent to Maryland state government buildings earlier today.
Due to the package, four baggage claims and a United Airlines ticket counter were temporarily vacated. Flights continued to operate at the airport during the investigation.
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Please note that due to our archival policy, we will not alter or update the content of articles that are archived, but will only accept requests to make grammatical and formatting corrections. | 'Suspicious' package closes half of Washington Dulles Airport terminal | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27Suspicious%27_package_closes_half_of_Washington_Dulles_Airport_terminal |
Buffalo, New York —
Early Cinco De Mayo celebrations were interrupted after a suspicious package caused the closure of a busy street in Buffalo, New York's Allentown District. For nearly three hours on Monday May 5, 2008 a busy street, popular with bars and hotels, was shut down while authorities examined the package.
According to Buffalo Police spokesman Mike DeGeorge, workers in the offices on the 500 block of Delaware Avenue witnessed a suspicious person placing a suspicious package inside a United Parcel Service (UPS) drop box at around 4:30 p.m. EDT (UTC-4).
"It is my understanding that at about 4:30 this afternoon, a call went out for a suspicious person. Police responded and it appears there may have been a suspicious individual who was acting somewhat suspicious when he threw or tossed a package into a UPS box," DeGeorge stated to reporters.
"The individual had a package under his jacket which tipped off the person as being suspicious. He dropped the package into the [box], and made his way out to Delaware Ave. towards Allen," stated Buffalo Police Lt., K Szyszkowski.
When police arrived on scene, they evacuated the offices at 570 and the New York State Health Department building at 584 Delaware Avenue, while the Erie County Bomb Squad was called in to examine the drop box and the packages. The street between Allen and North was shut down to traffic while police secured the scene. When Wikinews freelance reporter Jason Safoutin arrived on scene, at least 20 people were standing outside the buildings, most of whom appeared to be office employees.
At approximately 6:10 p.m., the bomb squad arrived along with a K-9 unit. The commander of the bomb squad, Daniel Walczak entered the area between the buildings where the drop box was at about 7:15. He then opened the box and examined several packages with an X-ray machine, but found nothing to indicate an explosive device was present. After about 15 minutes, Walczak exited the area with the suspect packages.
"It was a regular envelope, a UPS container about 18 inches by a foot and a half. As of right now, I am not going to get into anything about the package weight until we go through a thorough investigation," stated Walczak to reporters. All of the packages will be sent to a laboratory for further analysis. Police would not say what might have been inside the packages.
Police do not have a suspect, but are reviewing security camera footage from the buildings. Szyszkowski states that witnesses say the suspect is a "white male, about 40-years-old [with a] green jacket and black pants."
The street later reopened just before 8:00 p.m..
Allentown is home to two major hotels and over a dozen bars, but is no stranger to suspicious activity. In November of 2007, at least 12 fire bombs were found inside a building at 15 Allen, just a few blocks away from Monday's incident.
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Please note that due to our archival policy, we will not alter or update the content of articles that are archived, but will only accept requests to make grammatical and formatting corrections. | 'Suspicious package' causes closure of busy street in Buffalo, New York | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27Suspicious_package%27_causes_closure_of_busy_street_in_Buffalo,_New_York |
Buffalo, New York —
Early Cinco De Mayo celebrations were interrupted after a suspicious package caused the closure of a busy street in Buffalo, New York's Allentown District. For nearly three hours on Monday May 5, 2008 a busy street, popular with bars and hotels, was shut down while authorities examined the package.
According to Buffalo Police spokesman Mike DeGeorge, workers in the offices on the 500 block of Delaware Avenue witnessed a suspicious person placing a suspicious package inside a United Parcel Service (UPS) drop box at around 4:30 p.m. EDT (UTC-4).
"It is my understanding that at about 4:30 this afternoon, a call went out for a suspicious person. Police responded and it appears there may have been a suspicious individual who was acting somewhat suspicious when he threw or tossed a package into a UPS box," DeGeorge stated to reporters.
"The individual had a package under his jacket which tipped off the person as being suspicious. He dropped the package into the [box], and made his way out to Delaware Ave. towards Allen," stated Buffalo Police Lt., K Szyszkowski.
When police arrived on scene, they evacuated the offices at 570 and the New York State Health Department building at 584 Delaware Avenue, while the Erie County Bomb Squad was called in to examine the drop box and the packages. The street between Allen and North was shut down to traffic while police secured the scene. When Wikinews freelance reporter Jason Safoutin arrived on scene, at least 20 people were standing outside the buildings, most of whom appeared to be office employees.
At approximately 6:10 p.m., the bomb squad arrived along with a K-9 unit. The commander of the bomb squad, Daniel Walczak entered the area between the buildings where the drop box was at about 7:15. He then opened the box and examined several packages with an X-ray machine, but found nothing to indicate an explosive device was present. After about 15 minutes, Walczak exited the area with the suspect packages.
"It was a regular envelope, a UPS container about 18 inches by a foot and a half. As of right now, I am not going to get into anything about the package weight until we go through a thorough investigation," stated Walczak to reporters. All of the packages will be sent to a laboratory for further analysis. Police would not say what might have been inside the packages.
Police do not have a suspect, but are reviewing security camera footage from the buildings. Szyszkowski states that witnesses say the suspect is a "white male, about 40-years-old [with a] green jacket and black pants."
The street later reopened just before 8:00 p.m..
Allentown is home to two major hotels and over a dozen bars, but is no stranger to suspicious activity. In November of 2007, at least 12 fire bombs were found inside a building at 15 Allen, just a few blocks away from Monday's incident.
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Please note that due to our archival policy, we will not alter or update the content of articles that are archived, but will only accept requests to make grammatical and formatting corrections. | 'Suspicious package' causes closure of busy street in Buffalo, New York | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27Suspicious_package%27_shuts_down_street_in_Buffalo,_New_York |
A gunman yesterday wounded three people on an international train in Belgium, near the French border. Belgian Prime Minister Charles Michel called the shooting a "terrorist attack" and French counterterrorism police are investigating.
Two United States Marines on the train heard a weapon being loaded in a bathroom. When the man exited the toilet, the unarmed Marines tackled him. One Marine was injured. French actor Jean-Hugues Anglade was injured slightly by broken glass.
A man, believed to be a 26-year-old Moroccan, was arrested at the station in Arras, France. Some passengers reportedly leapt from the train as it passed through Henin-Beaumont. The high-speed Thalys service was headed from Amsterdam to Paris.
French Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve travelled to Arras after the incident. He has met with passengers including Anglade. He said the two Marines are "particularly courageous and showed great bravery in very difficult circumstances [...] Without their composure we could have been confronted with a terrible incident." French Prime Minister Manuel Valls also expressed gratitude to the Marines.
The suspect is reported to have been carrying knives, a kalashnikov rifle, and a handgun. Press reports suggest intelligence agencies were aware of him. Rail operator SNCF say over 550 passengers were on board. Reports indicate the shooting was towards the rear.
Local prosecutors said counterterror resources were involved "in view of the weaponry used, the way it happened and the context". French President Francois Hollande promised "Everything is being done to shed light on this tragedy."
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Please note that due to our archival policy, we will not alter or update the content of articles that are archived, but will only accept requests to make grammatical and formatting corrections. | 'Terror' shooting wounds three on international train in Belgium | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27Terror%27_shooting_wounds_three_on_international_train_in_Belgium |
At least ten attackers with knives, dressed in black, attacked a train station in Kunming, China yesterday. At least 28 victims were killed, with 113 more wounded by knives, Chinese state news agency Xinhua reported. The local municipal government accuses "Xinjiang separatist forces" for the attack. Xinhua called the attack "an organized, premeditated violent terrorist attack". One suspect was arrested, while four or five suspects were shot dead.
Yang Haifei, a local resident, told Xinhua the attackers rushed in and began attacking people while he was buying a ticket. "I saw a person come straight at me with a long knife and I ran away with everyone," he said, while people who were slower were attacked and "fell on the ground".
Preparations are underway for an annual legislature meeting, at which president Xi Jinping as well as his government are to deliver their first one-year work report on Wednesday. Xi Jinping states there should be "all out efforts" to apprehend the attackers, while the Ministry of Public Security's Security Management Bureau stated law enforcement will "crack down the crimes in accordance with the law without any tolerance." He calls for severe punishments "in accordance with the law", as well as to "crack down on those who have been swollen with arrogance".
China has also blamed a suicide attack in Tiananmen Square late last year, in Beijing, on the separatists.
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Please note that due to our archival policy, we will not alter or update the content of articles that are archived, but will only accept requests to make grammatical and formatting corrections. | 'Terrorist' attack in Kunming train station kills at least 28 | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27Terrorist%27_attack_in_Kunming_train_station_kills_at_least_28 |
Nominations were declared on Tuesday for South Gippsland Shire's upcoming council elections, to be held by post from October 5-22. A total of 24 people in the Australian council's three wards have put themselves forward to stand as candidates. The shire has been governed by administrators appointed by the Victorian state government since August 2019, when the council was sacked after a state government inquiry found "high levels of tension" within the council.
Wikinews interviewed one of the candidates standing in this election, Lindsay Love, via email. Love is contesting the Tarwin Valley ward, which elects three councillors to the South Gippsland Shire Council, and includes the towns of Leongatha and Mirboo North. In addition to her answers to the questions from Wikinews, Love also provided the following statement in regards to the state of the council:
"I also note that the Council satisfaction rating has been dismal for over ten years. That is a period covering various Council terms and the Administrators. The only constant has been the Administration. That would suggest that to improve the culture the change needs to be in the Administration. That means the Council has to operate like a corporate Board and give the CEO the required directions to effect a change."
((WN)) What do you hope to achieve as a councillor?
((Lindsay Love)) I would like to see a change in the culture of the Administration so that it is open, transparent and has a much better community engagement profile. We need to allow people to have much greater input into the decisions that impact them.
((WN)) Do you think the two-year period that South Gippsland Shire has been governed by administrators since its 2019 sacking has been too long, and why/why not?
((Lindsay Love)) The Administrators were a disaster for the Shire. Perhaps this has been compounded by the arrival of COVID[-19] but we lost the "local" out of local government. However, the performance of the Administration has continued upon its poor path of over 10 years.
((WN)) Since 1993, South Gippsland has not had a passenger railway service, when the V/Line service to Leongatha was closed. Do you think that these services should be brought back, and why/why not?
((Lindsay Love)) The Administrators had an opportunity to keep the railway and establish the rail trail but chose to ignore that option. Now that the line is removed it is most unlikely a train will return given the State are trying to build a line to the airport plus a suburban ring line. They will get much more bang for the buck on those projects.
((WN)) What changes and reforms would you like to see in regards to environmental protection?
((Lindsay Love)) The Environment protection is largely a state area of responsibility. Local government involvement mostly leads to increased costs and administration issues which is counter to running a lean and efficient local government delivering the core remits.
((WN)) What do you think qualifies you to be a local councillor?
((Lindsay Love)) I have a long history of involvement in some of the issues impacting the Shire so a local history can be an assistance. I have a varied life history having been a farmer, business operator and volunteer in the community. I have professional training as a Civil Engineer, planner and building designer and I have also had ten years working in local government.
((WN)) In your local community, are there any specific projects you'd like to highlight and advocate for?
((Lindsay Love)) The Shire has options to tackle a large number of projects. I have recently published a new vision for Coal Creek in the hope that it would lead to some new community engagement on that facility. I have also promoted the idea of a water supply to Yanakie and hence a bike trail from Foster to Yanakie using the water pipeline as a basis for the rail trail. I have promoted further work on the marina concept at Port Welshpool, improved facilities at Wilsons Prom for disabled people so that they can access other areas at the Prom than just Tidal River.
I have pushed the idea of a state Significant Mountain Bike Park for the Reserves around Waratah Bay. I also support building the Agnes Falls viewing platform and supporting the equestrian community to explore the Expo facility concept for Stony Creek. The Council are also supposed to start planning for a Integrated Children's centre at Nyora. I have also been trying to have an Underpass built for the rail trail at Leongatha to facilitate joining the new and old sections of the trail in order to have a safe trail.
((WN)) During the COVID-19 lockdown, how have you reached out to local voters?
((Lindsay Love)) During COVID[-19] I have been involved in monitoring Council activities and writing various press releases to give the community a different viewpoint than the media releases from Council.
((WN)) Have you ever run for a political office prior to your current candidacy for council?
((Lindsay Love)) I have not previously run for Council. I have been secretary for the South Gippsland Action Group Inc who have tried to work for the residents of the Shire. During 2018 and 2019 we assisted in building the case for reduced rates and a better hardship policy. However, that work was undermined by the appointment of Administrators. I am not supported by any group.
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Please note that due to our archival policy, we will not alter or update the content of articles that are archived, but will only accept requests to make grammatical and formatting corrections. | 'The Administrators were a disaster for the Shire': Wikinews interviews Lindsay Love, Tarwin Valley ward candidate in South Gippsland, Australia | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27The_Administrators_were_a_disaster_for_the_Shire%27:_Wikinews_interviews_Lindsay_Love,_Tarwin_Valley_ward_candidate_in_South_Gippsland,_Australia |
Movieforumz.com, a website that allows users to display links to movies you "can watch for free online" has leaked The Assassination of Jesse James, an upcoming movie to be released in theaters on October 10. The movie can be seen in six parts, all of which link to an online video hosting website called Veoh, similar to YouTube. Both websites run on videos uploaded by their users, and do not condone the uploading of copyrighted material.
The movie was recorded by someone attending what appears to be a special screening of the film and can be downloaded free of charge, twelve days before its release into theaters.
Directed by Andrew Dominik, the movie is about an outlaw named Robert Ford, a man who decided to join the James-Younger Gang which was the gang of Jesse James, an American outlaw, in the 1800s. The movie is based on the novel of the same name, written by the novelist Ron Hansen.
Brad Pitt stars as James, and Casey Affleck co-stars as Ford.
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Please note that due to our archival policy, we will not alter or update the content of articles that are archived, but will only accept requests to make grammatical and formatting corrections. | Movie 'The Assassination of Jesse James' leaked on the internet | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27The_Assassination_of_Jesse_James%27_leaked_on_the_internet |
New York, New York —
On February 12, 2005, at 8:30 a.m., New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg dropped the first piece of fabric in The Gates, a land art project by Christo and Jeanne Claude.
The artists installed 7,500 metal "gates" along 23 miles of pathways in New York City's Central Park. Each gate supported a flag-shaped piece of saffron fabric. The project is scheduled to run from Feb. 12, 2005 through Feb. 27, 2005. The project is sometimes referred to as "The Gates, Central Park, New York, 1979-2005" in reference to the time between the artists' initial proposal and the present day.
The installation of the project began on January 3, 2005.
During the week of January 17th, the park was filled with workers using fork lifts to move the rectangular metal plates into position all over Central Park.
There were small signs placed on every walkway in the park with alphanumeric codes that the workers were using to place the metal places onto the designated spots.
As of January 27, most of the plates had been placed in their positions. Many had small orange plastic markers sticking up a foot or two (around half a metre) from each end, possibly intended to help people find the base plates if they were covered with snow. A major snow storm and extreme cold hampered progress in late January.
As of February 7, there were many teams of workers wearing silver grey smocks moving the vertical parts of the gates and attaching them to the base plates. The documentation describes the color as "saffron" but local observers describe it as orange.
When attached, the vertical pieces are about 6 metres high, with a cross bar at the top from which the flag piece hangs. The most common width seems to be 11 feet (3.35 metres), though they vary considerably (depending on the width of the path) from around 6 feet (2 metres) to over 20 feet (6 metres).
Once Bloomberg released the first piece of cloth, the rest of the gates were opened over the course of the next few hours, with large crowds of people watching. Generally, the crews of people who erected the gates were assigned to open them. They simply had to walk underneath, and use a hook at the end of a long stick to pull a loop hanging from the cross bar of each gate. That opened the cloth bag which contained the "flag" part of the gate. The bag fell to the ground, along with a card board tube around which the flag was rolled. The flag then hung majestically from the cross bar.
As of Feb. 13, all of the gates have been opened. The project staff is still deployed in the park, patrolling, and replacing a few of the gates that have become damaged. There are many more people then usual walking around in the park, looking and photographing The Gates.
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Please note that due to our archival policy, we will not alter or update the content of articles that are archived, but will only accept requests to make grammatical and formatting corrections. | 'The Gates' opens in New York City | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27The_Gates%27_opens_in_New_York_City |
Wikinews has learned that a new entity calling itself The Regime used keylogging to gain an administrator password to 711chan.org, a site popular with the open vigilante group "Anonymous" that has recently been attacking Scientology online.
—Message at 711chan.org as of 9:57 p.m. EST on Saturday.At 9:57 p.m. (eastern time) the site 711chan.org, was replaced, allegedly by The Regime by the title Church of Scientology along with a statement on the home page stating "This website has been deleted due to copyright claims from the Church of Scientology." A search performed using Google, on 711chan has returned the number one result of the apparent hack. All that remains of 711chan.org is an apparent message to the members of the site to "run" and "hide."
"711chan is full of fucking fail for siding with Gaia. I'm out of here, faggots. Enjoy your Gaia," said the message, which currently is only available in a cached version.
At 1:45 a.m. on January 27, the site was replaced with "And now a message from our sponsors. YOU SUCK
711chan will be back online shortly. I love you guys for helping me out. <3 plasma," acknowledging the possibility 711chan was back in control of their site. The site's name has been changed to "Church of 711."
The Regime's first attack went along with a message posted to 711chan's website (quoted below) saying that "This site has not been blessed by The Regime and is deemed lame", believing Anonymous to be self-proclaimed hackers (although this title was primarily used by the media). It also refers to Anonymous' attempt to bring down the Church of Scientology (named 'Operation Chanology'), saying that "chanology is lame, scientology is lame". It thereafter declared that the message board where Anonymous had been discussing Operation Chanology had been removed. Minutes later, 711chan stopped responding to queries.
The legitimate administrators of 711chan regained control after only three minutes, but it took nearly six hours to restore the site with recent additions missing. However, The Regime took the site down again twelve hours later, claiming to have removed the backups and stating, "all your db are belong to us" (an allusion to the phrase "all your base are belong to us").
A new video posted to YouTube by someone who claimed to be The Regime shows a logo and uses a computer animated voice to threaten 711chan.org and their affiliates. The Regime, however, denies making the video saying "we are in no way responsible for making, nor are we tied to that video in any way."
The video declares, "Dear 'Anonymous'. We are The Regime. Your attacks on Scientology have not gone unnoticed." The video's text description states that "Your attacks on Scientology have not gone unnoticed, we have the money, resources and tools to put an end to your SP behaviour and so called hacking activities. You have soiled the good name of LRH and now it is you that have *our* attention."
—"Re: Message to Scientology", video posted to YouTube.The acronyms in the text description are Scientology jargon "suppressive person" (a person who criticizes Scientology) and Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard. Both terms were also used recently in a leaked internal Church of Scientology video featuring Tom Cruise promoting his beliefs. The video goes on to state that "Anonymous" has been declared "Fair Game" (another Scientology term).
The title of The Regime video, "Re: Message to Scientology", is a reference to the video "Message to Scientology", which was posted by "Anonymous" to YouTube on Monday. The original "Message to Scientology" video has been viewed over 1,000,000 times since it was posted.
"We have your IP addresses, your documents and secret plans. We own your 711chan, your IRC, and we are taking care of your raid forums. Call off your attacks on our religion immediately, or 4chan YTMND, something awful and your other bases will be brought to ruin. Do not underestimate us. You are out of your league. You have been warned," added the video.
In an exclusive interview with Wikinews, the group is only called The Regime. When asked what their mission was, they stated "we have none."
Wikinews also asked who or what was in charge of their group and they replied, "At one point, this would have been a complicated question as there were many tiers and positions of authority, however now leadership is confined to a single council." They are also not affiliated with any other group and act alone with "no contacts with groups or individuals outside of itself." They also refused to describe their group as a whole. They also stated to "define affiliated" when Wikinews asked if they were part of the Church of Scientology.
Their motivations are still not clear. When asked what motivates their group to do what they do, they replied, "What motivates any human to do anything? Money, Power, Respect? Choose one," but also state that they will continue their attacks "if necessary."
Wikinews also asked if The Regime was in any way affiliated with the Church of Scientology, including working for or against their beliefs or being a 'branch of The Church' The Regime simply replied, "We are not Scientologists, this is all we have to say on the subject."
Sources within the "Anonymous" group have played down the actions of The Regime who - when announced on the IRC channel the group utilizes for communications - were said to be "... a bunch of gloryhunters ridin [sic] on our tails". Another user of the IRC channel, calling himself "Anonz", was quoted as telling other members of the group "... It's funny how they call us scriptbunnies yet use scripts themselves." The general consensus was that "Anonymous is not impressed."
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Please note that due to our archival policy, we will not alter or update the content of articles that are archived, but will only accept requests to make grammatical and formatting corrections. | 'The Regime' hacks 711chan.org in response to 'Anonymous' attack on Scientology; takes web site off line | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27The_Regime%27_hacks_711chan.org_in_response_to_%27Anonymous%27_attack_on_Scientology |
Wikinews has learned that a new entity calling itself The Regime used keylogging to gain an administrator password to 711chan.org, a site popular with the open vigilante group "Anonymous" that has recently been attacking Scientology online.
—Message at 711chan.org as of 9:57 p.m. EST on Saturday.At 9:57 p.m. (eastern time) the site 711chan.org, was replaced, allegedly by The Regime by the title Church of Scientology along with a statement on the home page stating "This website has been deleted due to copyright claims from the Church of Scientology." A search performed using Google, on 711chan has returned the number one result of the apparent hack. All that remains of 711chan.org is an apparent message to the members of the site to "run" and "hide."
"711chan is full of fucking fail for siding with Gaia. I'm out of here, faggots. Enjoy your Gaia," said the message, which currently is only available in a cached version.
At 1:45 a.m. on January 27, the site was replaced with "And now a message from our sponsors. YOU SUCK
711chan will be back online shortly. I love you guys for helping me out. <3 plasma," acknowledging the possibility 711chan was back in control of their site. The site's name has been changed to "Church of 711."
The Regime's first attack went along with a message posted to 711chan's website (quoted below) saying that "This site has not been blessed by The Regime and is deemed lame", believing Anonymous to be self-proclaimed hackers (although this title was primarily used by the media). It also refers to Anonymous' attempt to bring down the Church of Scientology (named 'Operation Chanology'), saying that "chanology is lame, scientology is lame". It thereafter declared that the message board where Anonymous had been discussing Operation Chanology had been removed. Minutes later, 711chan stopped responding to queries.
The legitimate administrators of 711chan regained control after only three minutes, but it took nearly six hours to restore the site with recent additions missing. However, The Regime took the site down again twelve hours later, claiming to have removed the backups and stating, "all your db are belong to us" (an allusion to the phrase "all your base are belong to us").
A new video posted to YouTube by someone who claimed to be The Regime shows a logo and uses a computer animated voice to threaten 711chan.org and their affiliates. The Regime, however, denies making the video saying "we are in no way responsible for making, nor are we tied to that video in any way."
The video declares, "Dear 'Anonymous'. We are The Regime. Your attacks on Scientology have not gone unnoticed." The video's text description states that "Your attacks on Scientology have not gone unnoticed, we have the money, resources and tools to put an end to your SP behaviour and so called hacking activities. You have soiled the good name of LRH and now it is you that have *our* attention."
—"Re: Message to Scientology", video posted to YouTube.The acronyms in the text description are Scientology jargon "suppressive person" (a person who criticizes Scientology) and Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard. Both terms were also used recently in a leaked internal Church of Scientology video featuring Tom Cruise promoting his beliefs. The video goes on to state that "Anonymous" has been declared "Fair Game" (another Scientology term).
The title of The Regime video, "Re: Message to Scientology", is a reference to the video "Message to Scientology", which was posted by "Anonymous" to YouTube on Monday. The original "Message to Scientology" video has been viewed over 1,000,000 times since it was posted.
"We have your IP addresses, your documents and secret plans. We own your 711chan, your IRC, and we are taking care of your raid forums. Call off your attacks on our religion immediately, or 4chan YTMND, something awful and your other bases will be brought to ruin. Do not underestimate us. You are out of your league. You have been warned," added the video.
In an exclusive interview with Wikinews, the group is only called The Regime. When asked what their mission was, they stated "we have none."
Wikinews also asked who or what was in charge of their group and they replied, "At one point, this would have been a complicated question as there were many tiers and positions of authority, however now leadership is confined to a single council." They are also not affiliated with any other group and act alone with "no contacts with groups or individuals outside of itself." They also refused to describe their group as a whole. They also stated to "define affiliated" when Wikinews asked if they were part of the Church of Scientology.
Their motivations are still not clear. When asked what motivates their group to do what they do, they replied, "What motivates any human to do anything? Money, Power, Respect? Choose one," but also state that they will continue their attacks "if necessary."
Wikinews also asked if The Regime was in any way affiliated with the Church of Scientology, including working for or against their beliefs or being a 'branch of The Church' The Regime simply replied, "We are not Scientologists, this is all we have to say on the subject."
Sources within the "Anonymous" group have played down the actions of The Regime who - when announced on the IRC channel the group utilizes for communications - were said to be "... a bunch of gloryhunters ridin [sic] on our tails". Another user of the IRC channel, calling himself "Anonz", was quoted as telling other members of the group "... It's funny how they call us scriptbunnies yet use scripts themselves." The general consensus was that "Anonymous is not impressed."
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Share this:
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Note that some listed sources or external links may no longer be available online due to age.
Got a correction? Add the template {{editprotected}} to the talk page along with your corrections, and it will be brought to the attention of the administrators.
Please note that due to our archival policy, we will not alter or update the content of articles that are archived, but will only accept requests to make grammatical and formatting corrections. | 'The Regime' hacks 711chan.org in response to 'Anonymous' attack on Scientology; takes web site off line | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27The_Regime%27_hacks_711chan.org_in_response_to_%27Anonymous%27_attack_on_Scientology;_takes_web_site_off_line |
Wikinews has learned that a new entity calling itself The Regime used keylogging to gain an administrator password to 711chan.org, a site popular with the open vigilante group "Anonymous" that has recently been attacking Scientology online.
—Message at 711chan.org as of 9:57 p.m. EST on Saturday.At 9:57 p.m. (eastern time) the site 711chan.org, was replaced, allegedly by The Regime by the title Church of Scientology along with a statement on the home page stating "This website has been deleted due to copyright claims from the Church of Scientology." A search performed using Google, on 711chan has returned the number one result of the apparent hack. All that remains of 711chan.org is an apparent message to the members of the site to "run" and "hide."
"711chan is full of fucking fail for siding with Gaia. I'm out of here, faggots. Enjoy your Gaia," said the message, which currently is only available in a cached version.
At 1:45 a.m. on January 27, the site was replaced with "And now a message from our sponsors. YOU SUCK
711chan will be back online shortly. I love you guys for helping me out. <3 plasma," acknowledging the possibility 711chan was back in control of their site. The site's name has been changed to "Church of 711."
The Regime's first attack went along with a message posted to 711chan's website (quoted below) saying that "This site has not been blessed by The Regime and is deemed lame", believing Anonymous to be self-proclaimed hackers (although this title was primarily used by the media). It also refers to Anonymous' attempt to bring down the Church of Scientology (named 'Operation Chanology'), saying that "chanology is lame, scientology is lame". It thereafter declared that the message board where Anonymous had been discussing Operation Chanology had been removed. Minutes later, 711chan stopped responding to queries.
The legitimate administrators of 711chan regained control after only three minutes, but it took nearly six hours to restore the site with recent additions missing. However, The Regime took the site down again twelve hours later, claiming to have removed the backups and stating, "all your db are belong to us" (an allusion to the phrase "all your base are belong to us").
A new video posted to YouTube by someone who claimed to be The Regime shows a logo and uses a computer animated voice to threaten 711chan.org and their affiliates. The Regime, however, denies making the video saying "we are in no way responsible for making, nor are we tied to that video in any way."
The video declares, "Dear 'Anonymous'. We are The Regime. Your attacks on Scientology have not gone unnoticed." The video's text description states that "Your attacks on Scientology have not gone unnoticed, we have the money, resources and tools to put an end to your SP behaviour and so called hacking activities. You have soiled the good name of LRH and now it is you that have *our* attention."
—"Re: Message to Scientology", video posted to YouTube.The acronyms in the text description are Scientology jargon "suppressive person" (a person who criticizes Scientology) and Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard. Both terms were also used recently in a leaked internal Church of Scientology video featuring Tom Cruise promoting his beliefs. The video goes on to state that "Anonymous" has been declared "Fair Game" (another Scientology term).
The title of The Regime video, "Re: Message to Scientology", is a reference to the video "Message to Scientology", which was posted by "Anonymous" to YouTube on Monday. The original "Message to Scientology" video has been viewed over 1,000,000 times since it was posted.
"We have your IP addresses, your documents and secret plans. We own your 711chan, your IRC, and we are taking care of your raid forums. Call off your attacks on our religion immediately, or 4chan YTMND, something awful and your other bases will be brought to ruin. Do not underestimate us. You are out of your league. You have been warned," added the video.
In an exclusive interview with Wikinews, the group is only called The Regime. When asked what their mission was, they stated "we have none."
Wikinews also asked who or what was in charge of their group and they replied, "At one point, this would have been a complicated question as there were many tiers and positions of authority, however now leadership is confined to a single council." They are also not affiliated with any other group and act alone with "no contacts with groups or individuals outside of itself." They also refused to describe their group as a whole. They also stated to "define affiliated" when Wikinews asked if they were part of the Church of Scientology.
Their motivations are still not clear. When asked what motivates their group to do what they do, they replied, "What motivates any human to do anything? Money, Power, Respect? Choose one," but also state that they will continue their attacks "if necessary."
Wikinews also asked if The Regime was in any way affiliated with the Church of Scientology, including working for or against their beliefs or being a 'branch of The Church' The Regime simply replied, "We are not Scientologists, this is all we have to say on the subject."
Sources within the "Anonymous" group have played down the actions of The Regime who - when announced on the IRC channel the group utilizes for communications - were said to be "... a bunch of gloryhunters ridin [sic] on our tails". Another user of the IRC channel, calling himself "Anonz", was quoted as telling other members of the group "... It's funny how they call us scriptbunnies yet use scripts themselves." The general consensus was that "Anonymous is not impressed."
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Share this:
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Please note that due to our archival policy, we will not alter or update the content of articles that are archived, but will only accept requests to make grammatical and formatting corrections.
Note that some listed sources or external links may no longer be available online due to age.
Got a correction? Add the template {{editprotected}} to the talk page along with your corrections, and it will be brought to the attention of the administrators.
Please note that due to our archival policy, we will not alter or update the content of articles that are archived, but will only accept requests to make grammatical and formatting corrections. | 'The Regime' hacks 711chan.org in response to 'Anonymous' attack on Scientology; takes web site off line | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27The_Regime%27_hacks_711chan.org_in_response_to_%27Anonymous%27_attack_on_Scientology;_takes_web_site_offline |
Wikinews has learned that a new entity calling itself The Regime used keylogging to gain an administrator password to 711chan.org, a site popular with the open vigilante group "Anonymous" that has recently been attacking Scientology online.
—Message at 711chan.org as of 9:57 p.m. EST on Saturday.At 9:57 p.m. (eastern time) the site 711chan.org, was replaced, allegedly by The Regime by the title Church of Scientology along with a statement on the home page stating "This website has been deleted due to copyright claims from the Church of Scientology." A search performed using Google, on 711chan has returned the number one result of the apparent hack. All that remains of 711chan.org is an apparent message to the members of the site to "run" and "hide."
"711chan is full of fucking fail for siding with Gaia. I'm out of here, faggots. Enjoy your Gaia," said the message, which currently is only available in a cached version.
At 1:45 a.m. on January 27, the site was replaced with "And now a message from our sponsors. YOU SUCK
711chan will be back online shortly. I love you guys for helping me out. <3 plasma," acknowledging the possibility 711chan was back in control of their site. The site's name has been changed to "Church of 711."
The Regime's first attack went along with a message posted to 711chan's website (quoted below) saying that "This site has not been blessed by The Regime and is deemed lame", believing Anonymous to be self-proclaimed hackers (although this title was primarily used by the media). It also refers to Anonymous' attempt to bring down the Church of Scientology (named 'Operation Chanology'), saying that "chanology is lame, scientology is lame". It thereafter declared that the message board where Anonymous had been discussing Operation Chanology had been removed. Minutes later, 711chan stopped responding to queries.
The legitimate administrators of 711chan regained control after only three minutes, but it took nearly six hours to restore the site with recent additions missing. However, The Regime took the site down again twelve hours later, claiming to have removed the backups and stating, "all your db are belong to us" (an allusion to the phrase "all your base are belong to us").
A new video posted to YouTube by someone who claimed to be The Regime shows a logo and uses a computer animated voice to threaten 711chan.org and their affiliates. The Regime, however, denies making the video saying "we are in no way responsible for making, nor are we tied to that video in any way."
The video declares, "Dear 'Anonymous'. We are The Regime. Your attacks on Scientology have not gone unnoticed." The video's text description states that "Your attacks on Scientology have not gone unnoticed, we have the money, resources and tools to put an end to your SP behaviour and so called hacking activities. You have soiled the good name of LRH and now it is you that have *our* attention."
—"Re: Message to Scientology", video posted to YouTube.The acronyms in the text description are Scientology jargon "suppressive person" (a person who criticizes Scientology) and Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard. Both terms were also used recently in a leaked internal Church of Scientology video featuring Tom Cruise promoting his beliefs. The video goes on to state that "Anonymous" has been declared "Fair Game" (another Scientology term).
The title of The Regime video, "Re: Message to Scientology", is a reference to the video "Message to Scientology", which was posted by "Anonymous" to YouTube on Monday. The original "Message to Scientology" video has been viewed over 1,000,000 times since it was posted.
"We have your IP addresses, your documents and secret plans. We own your 711chan, your IRC, and we are taking care of your raid forums. Call off your attacks on our religion immediately, or 4chan YTMND, something awful and your other bases will be brought to ruin. Do not underestimate us. You are out of your league. You have been warned," added the video.
In an exclusive interview with Wikinews, the group is only called The Regime. When asked what their mission was, they stated "we have none."
Wikinews also asked who or what was in charge of their group and they replied, "At one point, this would have been a complicated question as there were many tiers and positions of authority, however now leadership is confined to a single council." They are also not affiliated with any other group and act alone with "no contacts with groups or individuals outside of itself." They also refused to describe their group as a whole. They also stated to "define affiliated" when Wikinews asked if they were part of the Church of Scientology.
Their motivations are still not clear. When asked what motivates their group to do what they do, they replied, "What motivates any human to do anything? Money, Power, Respect? Choose one," but also state that they will continue their attacks "if necessary."
Wikinews also asked if The Regime was in any way affiliated with the Church of Scientology, including working for or against their beliefs or being a 'branch of The Church' The Regime simply replied, "We are not Scientologists, this is all we have to say on the subject."
Sources within the "Anonymous" group have played down the actions of The Regime who - when announced on the IRC channel the group utilizes for communications - were said to be "... a bunch of gloryhunters ridin [sic] on our tails". Another user of the IRC channel, calling himself "Anonz", was quoted as telling other members of the group "... It's funny how they call us scriptbunnies yet use scripts themselves." The general consensus was that "Anonymous is not impressed."
Have an opinion on this story? Share it!
Share this:
This page is archived, and is no longer publicly editable.
Got a correction? Add the template {{editprotected}} to the talk page along with your corrections, and it will be brought to the attention of the administrators.
Please note that due to our archival policy, we will not alter or update the content of articles that are archived, but will only accept requests to make grammatical and formatting corrections.
Note that some listed sources or external links may no longer be available online due to age.
Got a correction? Add the template {{editprotected}} to the talk page along with your corrections, and it will be brought to the attention of the administrators.
Please note that due to our archival policy, we will not alter or update the content of articles that are archived, but will only accept requests to make grammatical and formatting corrections. | 'The Regime' hacks 711chan.org in response to 'Anonymous' attack on Scientology; takes web site off line | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27The_Regime%27_takes_down_711chan.org_in_response_to_%27Anonymous%27_attack_on_Scientology |
Wikinews has learned that a new entity calling itself The Regime used keylogging to gain an administrator password to 711chan.org, a site popular with the open vigilante group "Anonymous" that has recently been attacking Scientology online.
—Message at 711chan.org as of 9:57 p.m. EST on Saturday.At 9:57 p.m. (eastern time) the site 711chan.org, was replaced, allegedly by The Regime by the title Church of Scientology along with a statement on the home page stating "This website has been deleted due to copyright claims from the Church of Scientology." A search performed using Google, on 711chan has returned the number one result of the apparent hack. All that remains of 711chan.org is an apparent message to the members of the site to "run" and "hide."
"711chan is full of fucking fail for siding with Gaia. I'm out of here, faggots. Enjoy your Gaia," said the message, which currently is only available in a cached version.
At 1:45 a.m. on January 27, the site was replaced with "And now a message from our sponsors. YOU SUCK
711chan will be back online shortly. I love you guys for helping me out. <3 plasma," acknowledging the possibility 711chan was back in control of their site. The site's name has been changed to "Church of 711."
The Regime's first attack went along with a message posted to 711chan's website (quoted below) saying that "This site has not been blessed by The Regime and is deemed lame", believing Anonymous to be self-proclaimed hackers (although this title was primarily used by the media). It also refers to Anonymous' attempt to bring down the Church of Scientology (named 'Operation Chanology'), saying that "chanology is lame, scientology is lame". It thereafter declared that the message board where Anonymous had been discussing Operation Chanology had been removed. Minutes later, 711chan stopped responding to queries.
The legitimate administrators of 711chan regained control after only three minutes, but it took nearly six hours to restore the site with recent additions missing. However, The Regime took the site down again twelve hours later, claiming to have removed the backups and stating, "all your db are belong to us" (an allusion to the phrase "all your base are belong to us").
A new video posted to YouTube by someone who claimed to be The Regime shows a logo and uses a computer animated voice to threaten 711chan.org and their affiliates. The Regime, however, denies making the video saying "we are in no way responsible for making, nor are we tied to that video in any way."
The video declares, "Dear 'Anonymous'. We are The Regime. Your attacks on Scientology have not gone unnoticed." The video's text description states that "Your attacks on Scientology have not gone unnoticed, we have the money, resources and tools to put an end to your SP behaviour and so called hacking activities. You have soiled the good name of LRH and now it is you that have *our* attention."
—"Re: Message to Scientology", video posted to YouTube.The acronyms in the text description are Scientology jargon "suppressive person" (a person who criticizes Scientology) and Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard. Both terms were also used recently in a leaked internal Church of Scientology video featuring Tom Cruise promoting his beliefs. The video goes on to state that "Anonymous" has been declared "Fair Game" (another Scientology term).
The title of The Regime video, "Re: Message to Scientology", is a reference to the video "Message to Scientology", which was posted by "Anonymous" to YouTube on Monday. The original "Message to Scientology" video has been viewed over 1,000,000 times since it was posted.
"We have your IP addresses, your documents and secret plans. We own your 711chan, your IRC, and we are taking care of your raid forums. Call off your attacks on our religion immediately, or 4chan YTMND, something awful and your other bases will be brought to ruin. Do not underestimate us. You are out of your league. You have been warned," added the video.
In an exclusive interview with Wikinews, the group is only called The Regime. When asked what their mission was, they stated "we have none."
Wikinews also asked who or what was in charge of their group and they replied, "At one point, this would have been a complicated question as there were many tiers and positions of authority, however now leadership is confined to a single council." They are also not affiliated with any other group and act alone with "no contacts with groups or individuals outside of itself." They also refused to describe their group as a whole. They also stated to "define affiliated" when Wikinews asked if they were part of the Church of Scientology.
Their motivations are still not clear. When asked what motivates their group to do what they do, they replied, "What motivates any human to do anything? Money, Power, Respect? Choose one," but also state that they will continue their attacks "if necessary."
Wikinews also asked if The Regime was in any way affiliated with the Church of Scientology, including working for or against their beliefs or being a 'branch of The Church' The Regime simply replied, "We are not Scientologists, this is all we have to say on the subject."
Sources within the "Anonymous" group have played down the actions of The Regime who - when announced on the IRC channel the group utilizes for communications - were said to be "... a bunch of gloryhunters ridin [sic] on our tails". Another user of the IRC channel, calling himself "Anonz", was quoted as telling other members of the group "... It's funny how they call us scriptbunnies yet use scripts themselves." The general consensus was that "Anonymous is not impressed."
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Please note that due to our archival policy, we will not alter or update the content of articles that are archived, but will only accept requests to make grammatical and formatting corrections. | 'The Regime' hacks 711chan.org in response to 'Anonymous' attack on Scientology; takes web site off line | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27The_Regimehacks_711chan.org_in_response_to_%27Anonymous%27_attack_on_Scientology |
Matthew Wright, host of British television programme The Wright Stuff, has apologised for remarks he made on the show in relation to the murder of Liam Aitchison.
On the edition of the Channel 5 programme broadcast on Tuesday, the murder of Liam Aitchison was being examined as part of a newspaper review segment. At this point, Wright said the words "there's been another murder" while using a false Scottish accent, as a reference to the UK television crime drama Taggart. Charlie Baker, who appeared on the panel alongside Wright, remarked that the investigation into Aitchison's death would be like "the longest episode of Taggart of all time". The audience can be heard to be laughing at this point. "There's a lot of downtime in between," Baker continued.
In the statement, the family of Liam Aitchison found what they called the "insensitive and offensive nature of the comments made" to be "very upsetting and insulting for, not just the family, but for the whole community of the Western Isles." On the website for The Wright Stuff, Liam Aitchison's father Norman wrote a comment which read: "Would your panel members be making a joke of this if it was one of their own children? My son's death is no joke and I am disgusted with every single one of you on that panel. Let my son rest in peace".
On the edition of The Wright Stuff broadcast yesterday, Wright said he would "like to apologise" if any viewers had been offended by his comments. "Certainly, no intention on my part to belittle the seriousness, or the tragedy of this story, or to offend anyone who knew Liam," Wright clarified. "You know me, I have been touched by death too many times to belittle anything like that." Channel 5 believe that Wright had made his apology "clear", according to a spokeswoman for the channel. However, Wright mentioned that he had "[n]ot [been] helped by people running campaigns 'report Matthew Wright to Ofcom'," a UK media regulator. He advised such people to "grow up".
Channel 5 subsequently revoked access to Tuesday's episode of The Wright Stuff from its on demand service. The comments have also been removed from their website.
Angus MacNeil, the MP for Na h-Eileanan an Iar, described the behaviour of Wright as "beyond belief" and told of his intention to complain to Ofcom. The comments "disgusted everyone," MacNeil said. Comhairle nan Eilean Siar, a local authority within the islands, has complained to Ofcom. A page on the social networking website Facebook, entitled 'Report The Wright Stuff to Ofcom', has attracted in excess of two thousand likes. Ofcom is currently "in the process of assessing those complaints", according to a spokesperson. As of yet, the regulator has not "made any decision to investigate those complaints at this stage", although the concept of an investigation is currently a possibility.
Earlier this month, the Northern Constabulary, which has not made any statement regarding this matter, launched a murder inquiry in the aftermath of Liam Aitchison's death, having considered his death to be as the result of a murder following an autopsy. He was last sighted in the town of Stornoway on November 22 of this year. His remains were found in an abandoned building in Steinish on November 29.
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Please note that due to our archival policy, we will not alter or update the content of articles that are archived, but will only accept requests to make grammatical and formatting corrections. | 'There's been another murder': UK's Wright Stuff presenter apologises for teen murder comments | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27There%27s_been_another_murder%27:_UK%27s_Wright_Stuff_presenter_apologises_for_teen_murder_comments |
Tim Hortons, a popular Canadian express coffee and doughnut chain, has announced that they will be co-branding with another popular chain, Cold Stone Creamery, an American ice cream parlor chain.
The deal includes a total of 100 new stores, at CA$121,690 (US$100,000) each. Each company will have 50 stores that they will build as, or convert into, dual-operation franchises. Each of the 50 stores will offer menus from each company and be located in 7 states, mostly in the Northeastern U.S..
Executives at Tim Hortons believe that mixing the two together is perfect because Tim Hortons makes most of their profit in the morning, while the Creameries are more popular in the evening. The idea proved successful when tested for three months in Rhode Island, in two different stores.
"We're very excited about the complementary daypart piece. It's something unique in what we see from a co-branding perspective," said Tim Hortons chief of operations, David Clanachan. Construction has already started and stores are expected to open in May.
Tim Hortons was founded by Canadian ice hockey player Tim Horton. The first store opened in Hamilton, Ontario in 1964. In July of 2007, there were over 2,700 locations in Canada and 500 in the U.S.. Cold Stone Creamery was founded in 1988 in Scottsdale, Arizona. There are over 1,400 operation, in locations such as Japan, South Korea and the U.S..
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| 'Tim Hortons' coffee shops to go 'Cold Stone' | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27Tim_Hortons%27_coffee_shops_to_go_%27Cold_Stone%27 |
Tom Cruise: An Unauthorized Biography, a biography of actor Tom Cruise written by journalist Andrew Morton, was released in the United States yesterday amidst the potential for a US$100 million lawsuit against its publisher, St. Martin's Press. The book will not be published in Australia, Britain, and New Zealand due to strict libel laws in those countries. Morton had previously written the biography of Diana, Princess of Wales, Diana: Her True Story. The book has reached number nine on Amazon.com's list of top sellers.
The book describes Cruise as the No. 2 leader of the Church of Scientology, blames Scientologists for the breakup of Cruise and actress Nicole Kidman, and states that Cruise's latest mission is to recruit David Beckham and wife Victoria into Scientology. The book also describes how some Scientology followers thought that Cruise's wife Katie Holmes was impregnated with frozen sperm from L. Ron Hubbard, founder of Scientology, and Morton compares the situation to Rosemary's Baby "In her more reflective moments, Katie might have felt as if she were in the middle of a real-life version of the horror movie ‘Rosemary’s Baby,’ in which an unsuspecting young woman is impregnated with the devil’s child."
—Church of ScientologyA 15-page statement released by the Church of Scientology denied Morton's assertions of Cruise's No. 2 standing within the organization. In the statement the Church of Scientology claims that Morton did not respond to requests for an interview "The Church of Scientology requested to be interviewed or be presented with any allegations so we could respond. Morton refused despite our insistence in offering our cooperation." The Church of Scientology also specifically responded to the claims regarding Hubbard's frozen sperm: "Was Katie impregnated by L. Ron Hubbard's frozen sperm? ... As distasteful as it is to have to say it, Mr. Hubbard's sperm was never frozen."
According to the AFP, "the Church of Scientology is reportedly considering legal action against US publishers St Martin's Press." The Church of Scientology's general counsel, Eliot Abelson, discussed the potential for litigation in an interview with the Mail on Sunday "We are seriously considering legal action and will wait to see the public reaction." Cruise's attorney Bertram Fields expressed thanks for the strict libel laws in Britain "It's not being published in England. The American publishers criticised the libel laws in Britain because they require an author to tell the truth. Well, thank God for the British libel laws." New York's Daily News has reported that the Church of Scientology and lawyers for Cruise are planning a US$100 million lawsuit over the book's publication. Rogers & Cowan, the public relations agency that represents Cruise, issued a statement which criticized Morton for not interviewing "one person who has known or worked with Tom" in the past twenty-five years.
The Church of Scientology statement also pointed out that the book is not being published in Australia, Britain and New Zealand due to the countries' strict libel laws. Australia-based companies Pan Macmillan Australia and retailer Dymocks Booksellers decided not to stock copies of the book on their shelves, due to fears of potential defamation actions against them. A spokesperson for Pan Macmillan Australia stated that they had not received threats from Cruise's representatives or from Scientologists, but that their attorneys had advised them not to sell the book. Don Grover, chief executive for Dymocks Group stated after legal advice their company had decided to "play it safe" - though neither their lawyers or publishers had read the book itself. A representative of MacMillan stated that the book would not be published in New Zealand, but would make no further comment on the matter. A Dymocks New Zealand representative explained that it was possible that the book could be published by their company in New Zealand, but would have to look into it further "The US has different legislation than New Zealand and Australia. There are some issues with the book having legal questions asked and we would need those tidied up before we stock it."
—Andrew MortonMorton spent two years doing research for the book, and spoke with individuals who knew Cruise personally, and executives within the Church of Scientology. Morton stated that some of these executives emailed him, confirming the accuracy of material within the book. Morton described the desire for anonymity by some of the sources in the book "Some people, obviously, will not go on the record to talk about Tom Cruise because they’re scared of him."
In an interview on The Today Show with Meredith Vieira, Morton defended his work and responded to the statement from the Church of Scientology. Morton stated that it was unusual for a church to respond in such a way if Cruise is simply an ordinary member, asking "How many churches support one parishioner — a lowly parishioner — that way?" Morton described the response as an attack "Their policy is always to attack the attacker. Their tactic is to denigrate those who seek to talk about it." He told Vieria that he had attempted to contact the head of the Church of Scientology, David Miscavige, but "They refused it. I formally asked for it. I was instructed to ask for it by the publisher’s attorneys, and so what they’re saying is nonsense."
Morton explained his motivation for writing the book "He's no longer just an actor or producer, but a powerful advocate for a cult that's out to expand, especially in Europe." Morton stated that his interest was piqued after Cruise jumped on Oprah's couch during a May 23, 2005 appearance on The Oprah Winfrey Show, and got into a heated debate with Matt Lauer about his beliefs regarding psychiatry during a June 24, 2005 appearance on The Today Show.
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Please note that due to our archival policy, we will not alter or update the content of articles that are archived, but will only accept requests to make grammatical and formatting corrections. | 'Tom Cruise: An Unauthorized Biography' released, $100 million lawsuit in planning stages | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27Tom_Cruise:_An_Unauthorized_Biography%27_released,_$100_million_lawsuit_in_planning_stages |
Since winning the reality television series America's Next Top Model in December 2006, CariDee English, a small-town girl from Fargo, North Dakota, was plucked from relative obscurity to be the new look for CoverGirl Cosmetics, the newest fresh face on the cover of Seventeen, and affiliated with the largest modeling agency in the world, Elite Model Management.
However, she feels her greatest accomplishment is being the spokeswoman for the National Psoriasis Foundation, in which she is a motivational speaker and gives encouragement to psoriasis sufferers. CariDee has even lobbied in Congress for the passage of a bill which would ask the National Institutes of Health, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the Institute of Medicine to increase spending on finding a cure for psoriasis. You can read more about her role with the National Psoriasis Foundation here.
Wikinews reporter Mike Halterman sat down and talked with CariDee earlier in the week to discuss her own issues with psoriasis, how she has helped other sufferers in her role as spokeswoman for the Foundation, as well as what it's like to be a new model in New York City and her thoughts on how the fashion industry operates today.
This is the second in a series of articles with America's Next Top Model contestants. Articles will be published sporadically.
Mike Halterman: Hi! How are you doing today?
CariDee English: Fine! Doing good.
MH: So I heard you went to the Super Bowl last Sunday.
CE: Oh, no, I didn't get to go! I've been in New York for Fashion Week. Did someone tell you I went?
MH: Yeah, Jose [her manager at Elite Model Management] told me you had. Well, did you have a team to root for, anyway?
CE: Of course! I was going for New York! This was the first time that a team won in the state I was living in! I'm from North Dakota, and we don't have any professional teams, so it was pretty cool.
MH: I'd imagine it's a big change moving from small-town North Dakota to New York City. What do you remember thinking in your first weeks in New York City?
CE: I don't know...it was kind of overwhelming! I remember being overwhelmed. There were trash and pigeons everywhere...and an endless amount of walking! But you know, I just love how big it is and how there are just...endless dreams. You have the opportunity to accomplish so much here.
MH: Did you miss home or ever think about just moving back to North Dakota?
CE: No, I could never move back to North Dakota. What would I do?
MH: Well, you were a fashion photographer, you could have went back there for some work...although I don't know how much you'd be in demand there.
CE: Yeah, it wasn't even an option! Not a thought.
MH: So you're currently a spokeswoman for the National Psoriasis Foundation. What have you found, in your interactions with others who have had the disease, are their reactions once the disease manifests itself?
CE: I think a lot of people try to hide away from it, and I want people to be comfortable in their own skin, no pun intended. I just want people to be comfortable with themselves, because I know I hid under clothes for years.
MH: In your experience as ambassador, what story touched you the most?
CE: It really makes me upset because there are a lot of great medications out there and the government won't fund payments for patients. There was a 9-year-old boy who was on a great medicine and then his insurance dropped him from it. It came back and it's now covered 95% of his body. You know, it's just heartbreaking to be able to be treated for it and then not be able to afford it.
MH: Were your reactions to psoriasis and discovering you had it comparable with those of other people?
CE: No, because I understood what it was when I had it. Other people may be scared of it when they discover they have it, because they might not know what it is.
MH: Did relating with others with the condition give you a personal boost?
CE: Oh, yeah, absolutely. Seeing a little boy, healing and still living life, that's an inspiration to me. We're all just trying to be here for each other. No one person is above anyone else, we're just trying to support each other and find a cure together.
MH: As an ambassador for psoriasis awareness, you've become a role model of sorts to young girls and women who are afflicted with the disease. What kind of advice have you given to people coping with the disease?
CE: "I have psoriasis, I don't let psoriasis have me." Don't live your life through your disease.
MH: Do you think that having had obstacles like your psoriasis and depression have helped you enter the industry more grounded than other girls who may not have had such rough experiences?
CE: Yeah, I mean, I only know my own experiences, but I didn't take anything for granted. I was grateful for being able to start in such a difficult industry and having that background to be able to overcome things on my own.
MH: You've worked behind the camera before you stepped in front of it; has this helped you as a model?
CE: It's helped me to understand the relationship and connection you need to have between a model and photographer, and what the photographer wants out of the model, like what art they want to create, and the importance of it.
MH: Would you like to step back behind the camera at some point?
CE: For fun, absolutely. I love doing that for fun, and...recreational, for sure. It'll always be a hobby of mine.
MH: Experiencing both the photography side of the spectrum as well as being in front of the cameras, what do you deem extraordinary in terms of the aesthetic? What is beauty to you?
CE: Beauty is having confidence. If a woman is confident in front of the camera, and exudes that confidence, then there's no room for error. So, confidence, definitely.
MH: Obviously your experience on Top Model was very positive. However, has the experience impacted you negatively at all?
CE: I think the only negative thing about it is that fans seem to think that if you're not on the cover of all these magazines, that you're not getting work. Not everything is covered equally. It's a different age now that a lot of celebrities are on the covers of magazines, and people go "Oh, well, this show hasn't produced a Top Model!" We've been doing a lot of work in a lot of different things and I think people forget that.
MH: I've been following your career, and I've noticed you haven't been doing a lot of runway work as opposed to print modeling, which you've done a lot of. Do you have any fashion shows lined up in the near future?
CE: I've actually done a lot of runway work, but the thing is that the runway work never gets as much press as the print work does, so I've done a lot more shows than what people have seen on the Internet. It's difficult now too, because a lot of girls have to be skinny skinny now, and I think I have a good walk and a good spring/summer look, but you know, I'm a size 0. 0 or a 2. I went in to see a fashion designer for the winter designs and I knew I wouldn't be thin enough for this job, and I'm 125 pounds at 5'10". I'm a grown woman, I'm not prepubescent anymore, so if that means I'm not thin enough and that means I'll lose a job, then you know, I'll take that risk. I'm healthy.
MH: What is more fun to you, photoshoots or runway?
CE: I love photoshoots. Runway is great because you do quick hair, makeup, wardrobe, and you get a huge rush from that, but with photoshoots there's a sense of accomplishment, I can see what I've done and get totally "in my zone."
MH: We know you as wacky and fun-loving on Top Model. Since you've come to New York, what's the wackiest thing you've done?
CE: It's a hard question! I can't think of any...every moment is wacky in New York! I think one good moment was when my brother and I went out to Times Square at maybe 2:30 in the morning. We went to this 24-hour Starbucks and drank all this coffee, and then we had an artist sketch our picture, and then we went on a buggy ride and we didn't end up getting back home until 5 in the morning. It was a lot of fun.
MH: How do you reconcile the demands of a potentially busy modeling day with the need to let loose and be free-spirited?
CE: I'd just jump off the Empire State Building with a parachute. [laughs] No, I like to go out with friends, go dancing, hit the clubs, but if I have a photoshoot the next day, I just want to stay in with my boyfriend.
MH: It's been over a year now since you won Top Model. Was 2007 all you hoped it would be?
CE: Yeah, and more! It was great. It was the best year so far.
MH: What one achievement was your favorite?
CE: Honestly, being the spokesperson for the National Psoriasis Foundation. Not just in the United States, either; I've been to Canada, all over Europe, I loved Switzerland, and then down to Argentina. I'm a global spokesperson for psoriasis, and that's fun to do.
MH: Anything coming up work-wise you want to share with us?
CE: Yep! I'm starting my own show with MTV, where I'll be the executive producer and host.
MH: What's it going to be about?
CE: I can't say anything yet! But it'll be very funny.
MH: And finally, do you have any special words for all the Top Model fans out there?
CE: Oh, Gosh, I have millions of words! [thinks about what to say] I feel like I'm accepting an award! I want to thank all of you for supporting me and I lean on you guys more than you realize.
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Please note that due to our archival policy, we will not alter or update the content of articles that are archived, but will only accept requests to make grammatical and formatting corrections. | 'Top Model' winner CariDee English on her modeling career and her battle with psoriasis | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27Top_Model%27_winner_CariDee_English_on_her_battle_with_psoriasis_and_her_modeling_career |
Since winning the reality television series America's Next Top Model in December 2006, CariDee English, a small-town girl from Fargo, North Dakota, was plucked from relative obscurity to be the new look for CoverGirl Cosmetics, the newest fresh face on the cover of Seventeen, and affiliated with the largest modeling agency in the world, Elite Model Management.
However, she feels her greatest accomplishment is being the spokeswoman for the National Psoriasis Foundation, in which she is a motivational speaker and gives encouragement to psoriasis sufferers. CariDee has even lobbied in Congress for the passage of a bill which would ask the National Institutes of Health, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the Institute of Medicine to increase spending on finding a cure for psoriasis. You can read more about her role with the National Psoriasis Foundation here.
Wikinews reporter Mike Halterman sat down and talked with CariDee earlier in the week to discuss her own issues with psoriasis, how she has helped other sufferers in her role as spokeswoman for the Foundation, as well as what it's like to be a new model in New York City and her thoughts on how the fashion industry operates today.
This is the second in a series of articles with America's Next Top Model contestants. Articles will be published sporadically.
Mike Halterman: Hi! How are you doing today?
CariDee English: Fine! Doing good.
MH: So I heard you went to the Super Bowl last Sunday.
CE: Oh, no, I didn't get to go! I've been in New York for Fashion Week. Did someone tell you I went?
MH: Yeah, Jose [her manager at Elite Model Management] told me you had. Well, did you have a team to root for, anyway?
CE: Of course! I was going for New York! This was the first time that a team won in the state I was living in! I'm from North Dakota, and we don't have any professional teams, so it was pretty cool.
MH: I'd imagine it's a big change moving from small-town North Dakota to New York City. What do you remember thinking in your first weeks in New York City?
CE: I don't know...it was kind of overwhelming! I remember being overwhelmed. There were trash and pigeons everywhere...and an endless amount of walking! But you know, I just love how big it is and how there are just...endless dreams. You have the opportunity to accomplish so much here.
MH: Did you miss home or ever think about just moving back to North Dakota?
CE: No, I could never move back to North Dakota. What would I do?
MH: Well, you were a fashion photographer, you could have went back there for some work...although I don't know how much you'd be in demand there.
CE: Yeah, it wasn't even an option! Not a thought.
MH: So you're currently a spokeswoman for the National Psoriasis Foundation. What have you found, in your interactions with others who have had the disease, are their reactions once the disease manifests itself?
CE: I think a lot of people try to hide away from it, and I want people to be comfortable in their own skin, no pun intended. I just want people to be comfortable with themselves, because I know I hid under clothes for years.
MH: In your experience as ambassador, what story touched you the most?
CE: It really makes me upset because there are a lot of great medications out there and the government won't fund payments for patients. There was a 9-year-old boy who was on a great medicine and then his insurance dropped him from it. It came back and it's now covered 95% of his body. You know, it's just heartbreaking to be able to be treated for it and then not be able to afford it.
MH: Were your reactions to psoriasis and discovering you had it comparable with those of other people?
CE: No, because I understood what it was when I had it. Other people may be scared of it when they discover they have it, because they might not know what it is.
MH: Did relating with others with the condition give you a personal boost?
CE: Oh, yeah, absolutely. Seeing a little boy, healing and still living life, that's an inspiration to me. We're all just trying to be here for each other. No one person is above anyone else, we're just trying to support each other and find a cure together.
MH: As an ambassador for psoriasis awareness, you've become a role model of sorts to young girls and women who are afflicted with the disease. What kind of advice have you given to people coping with the disease?
CE: "I have psoriasis, I don't let psoriasis have me." Don't live your life through your disease.
MH: Do you think that having had obstacles like your psoriasis and depression have helped you enter the industry more grounded than other girls who may not have had such rough experiences?
CE: Yeah, I mean, I only know my own experiences, but I didn't take anything for granted. I was grateful for being able to start in such a difficult industry and having that background to be able to overcome things on my own.
MH: You've worked behind the camera before you stepped in front of it; has this helped you as a model?
CE: It's helped me to understand the relationship and connection you need to have between a model and photographer, and what the photographer wants out of the model, like what art they want to create, and the importance of it.
MH: Would you like to step back behind the camera at some point?
CE: For fun, absolutely. I love doing that for fun, and...recreational, for sure. It'll always be a hobby of mine.
MH: Experiencing both the photography side of the spectrum as well as being in front of the cameras, what do you deem extraordinary in terms of the aesthetic? What is beauty to you?
CE: Beauty is having confidence. If a woman is confident in front of the camera, and exudes that confidence, then there's no room for error. So, confidence, definitely.
MH: Obviously your experience on Top Model was very positive. However, has the experience impacted you negatively at all?
CE: I think the only negative thing about it is that fans seem to think that if you're not on the cover of all these magazines, that you're not getting work. Not everything is covered equally. It's a different age now that a lot of celebrities are on the covers of magazines, and people go "Oh, well, this show hasn't produced a Top Model!" We've been doing a lot of work in a lot of different things and I think people forget that.
MH: I've been following your career, and I've noticed you haven't been doing a lot of runway work as opposed to print modeling, which you've done a lot of. Do you have any fashion shows lined up in the near future?
CE: I've actually done a lot of runway work, but the thing is that the runway work never gets as much press as the print work does, so I've done a lot more shows than what people have seen on the Internet. It's difficult now too, because a lot of girls have to be skinny skinny now, and I think I have a good walk and a good spring/summer look, but you know, I'm a size 0. 0 or a 2. I went in to see a fashion designer for the winter designs and I knew I wouldn't be thin enough for this job, and I'm 125 pounds at 5'10". I'm a grown woman, I'm not prepubescent anymore, so if that means I'm not thin enough and that means I'll lose a job, then you know, I'll take that risk. I'm healthy.
MH: What is more fun to you, photoshoots or runway?
CE: I love photoshoots. Runway is great because you do quick hair, makeup, wardrobe, and you get a huge rush from that, but with photoshoots there's a sense of accomplishment, I can see what I've done and get totally "in my zone."
MH: We know you as wacky and fun-loving on Top Model. Since you've come to New York, what's the wackiest thing you've done?
CE: It's a hard question! I can't think of any...every moment is wacky in New York! I think one good moment was when my brother and I went out to Times Square at maybe 2:30 in the morning. We went to this 24-hour Starbucks and drank all this coffee, and then we had an artist sketch our picture, and then we went on a buggy ride and we didn't end up getting back home until 5 in the morning. It was a lot of fun.
MH: How do you reconcile the demands of a potentially busy modeling day with the need to let loose and be free-spirited?
CE: I'd just jump off the Empire State Building with a parachute. [laughs] No, I like to go out with friends, go dancing, hit the clubs, but if I have a photoshoot the next day, I just want to stay in with my boyfriend.
MH: It's been over a year now since you won Top Model. Was 2007 all you hoped it would be?
CE: Yeah, and more! It was great. It was the best year so far.
MH: What one achievement was your favorite?
CE: Honestly, being the spokesperson for the National Psoriasis Foundation. Not just in the United States, either; I've been to Canada, all over Europe, I loved Switzerland, and then down to Argentina. I'm a global spokesperson for psoriasis, and that's fun to do.
MH: Anything coming up work-wise you want to share with us?
CE: Yep! I'm starting my own show with MTV, where I'll be the executive producer and host.
MH: What's it going to be about?
CE: I can't say anything yet! But it'll be very funny.
MH: And finally, do you have any special words for all the Top Model fans out there?
CE: Oh, Gosh, I have millions of words! [thinks about what to say] I feel like I'm accepting an award! I want to thank all of you for supporting me and I lean on you guys more than you realize.
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Please note that due to our archival policy, we will not alter or update the content of articles that are archived, but will only accept requests to make grammatical and formatting corrections. | 'Top Model' winner CariDee English on her modeling career and her battle with psoriasis | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27Top_Model%27_winner_CariDee_English_on_her_modeling_career_and_her_battle_with_psoriasis |
Jaslene Gonzalez is not your typical model. She rose to fame after winning Cycle 8 of America's Next Top Model, and since then, has been aggressively tapping into the fashion industry. As a result of her Latin background, Gonzalez has been successful at marketing herself both in the English-speaking and Spanish-speaking worlds. However, Gonzalez is much much more – a fighter, a humanitarian, and a good Latin granddaughter.
Born in Chicago to a Latina mother, and a Puerto Rican-born father, Gonzalez had, in many ways, a typical U.S. Latino experience – her tight knit family, grandparents, and spirituality played an intrinsic part in her upbringing.
"I went to an all-girl Catholic school and grew up with tons of family.....My family was very close knit and supportive. They were involved in my life everyday. So there was so much joy in every little occasion.....Every Sunday we would go to my grandmother's house where we [the family] would hang out together....We enjoyed being around each other and being together," states Gonzalez.
Her grandfather was the director of a local dance group, Viva La Gente, which Gonzalez credits with impacting her life positively.
"I was a dancer for 12 years and life revolved around dancing. I was a very active girl, and was always involved with my grandfather's dance studio. The whole family was. My aunts, my cousins – everyone took part in performances and were involved in the group...That's how we spent our summers, and we looked forward to being outside, dancing salsa, hip hop, merengue," states Gonzalez. Through her involvement in the dance studio, Gonzalez's horizon was broadened significantly, and her humanitarian streak began to deepen.
"We were always constantly traveling. We traveled to Mexico to poor villages where we gave performances to give back to the community," said Gonzalez.
Ironically, ANTM gave her the opportunity to overcome her own difficulties and to further help those in need. "I went in there, without knowing that I was in an abusive relationship. They were the ones that brought that up to me...they felt I was emotionally destroyed, they wanted me to get support," commented Gonzalez. While the ANTM staff was supportive, she also credits her life long dream for helping her get out of the abusive relationship.
"Having a dream and having a goal in life, is the most important thing I did in my life. Because of that I maneuvered my way to that dream. I knew I was better than that, I wanted to be happier,” stated Gonzalez.
Soon after winning ANTM, Gonzalez became a spokesperson for Liz Claiborne and the National Domestic Violence Hotline, and began traveling the country reaching out to women.
"We had several meetings, and they asked me to be a spokesperson. I was so happy and blessed to help women, to have that title. It's something I want to do, besides modelling....I enjoy sharing my personal experiences because I can educate them, but I can also save someone's life. It's something precious, it's a gift," stated Gonzalez.
Abuse is not the only obstacle Jaslene has had to face. Growing up Latina had its own set of difficulties. "Being a minority is a challenge no matter what," states Gonzalez.
However, Gonzalez also states that being a Latina has many positive aspects in regards to her profession. "As a Latina, you have the advantage of being a Latina. Not only do you have this corporate job, but you can relate to many groups as a person."
When asked if the fashion industry forces Latina models to change certain aspects about themselves, she remarks that she focuses on always staying true to herself. "Modeling is a difficult job because of what you go through. 80% of the time it's a no...When I go in, I go in like me, I don't have to change anything. Any time I get a chance to show who I am, I do. I am a Spanish girl, trying to pursue my dreams. I try to be the best I can be," remarked Gonzalez.
It is that same confidence and will to succeed that she seems to appreciate in other woman. "I find women beautiful. I find a girl with no makeup, not worrying about her style and appearance, I find that sexy. I find confidence beautiful...Its so simple. It's being natural and confident," said Gonzalez.
As a role model, she has two key pieces advice that she offers women: nurture your mind with positive thoughts, and identify and foster the principles in life you value.
It is not surprising to see why Gonzalez's family is proud of her. "My family is so funny. They are so happy. I've never seen them so full of life. My mom acts like she won. My grandmother screams 'mi flaca' every time she sees me. They are so proud. Especially my grandparents. I was practically raised by them. To see them see you so happy and successful, there couldn't be a better feeling," said Gonzalez.
She adds that her grandparents would be extremely happy if she appeared on Cristina, the Spanish-language talk show whose host is referred to as "the Spanish Oprah Winfrey."
In the coming years, Gonzalez plans to continue on the path she is on. She wants to continue gracing magazine covers, as well as dedicating herself to helping young teens develop self growth and esteem. "Every time I wake up, God gives me the opportunity to be a better me...Life gets better as it goes by."
This is the third in a series of articles with America's Next Top Model contestants.
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Please note that due to our archival policy, we will not alter or update the content of articles that are archived, but will only accept requests to make grammatical and formatting corrections. | 'Top Model' winner Jaslene Gonzalez on her career and being a Latina role model | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27Top_Model%27_winner_Jaslene_Gonzalez_on_her_career_and_being_a_Latina_role_model |
An Alaskan legislative investigation, nicknamed 'Troopergate', concluded Friday that Vice Presidential candidate Sarah Palin had abused her power during her time as Alaskan governor.
The report, released by a bipartisan investigative committee, found that Palin had violated the state Ethics Act when she allowed her husband to pressure former Commissioner of Public Safety Walt Monegan into firing state trooper Mike Wooten; however, she was well within her rights to fire Monegan because of disagreement on budget cuts.
Sarah Palin had "knowingly permitted a situation to continue where impermissible pressure was placed on several subordinates in order to advance a personal agenda," the report went on to say.
Todd Palin, her husband, admitted to trying to forcefully remove Wooten because of alleged actions such as driving under the influence, threatening Palin's father, and using a Taser gun on his son. The pressure came after a hostile divorce between the governor's sister and ex-husband, who was accused of threatening the family.
The governor's explanations of her reasons for firing Monegan had been inconsistent, from denying a "personality conflict" to insubordination and incompetence. She consistently denied, however, the firing being related to Wooten.
"The Palins make no apologies," a statement released by her campaign said, "for wanting to protect their family and wanting to bring attention to the injustice of a violent trooper keeping his badge and abusing the workers' compensation system".
While the investigative committee had agreed unanimously to release the report, a few Republicans on the panel had attempted to halt the investigation, citing political bias. Republican Senator Gary Stevens warned voters to be "cautious" and to "realize there's much more in it than just the one-page findings".
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| 'Troopergate' investigation finds Palin abused her power | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27Troopergate%27_investigation_finds_Palin_abused_her_power |
A warship built with steel from the World Trade Center is set to enter New York and travel up the Hudson River to the site of Ground Zero. 7.5 tons of steel from the buildings have been used in the construction of the USS New York. When the ship reaches Ground Zero it will fire a 21-gun salute. The ceremony will be viewed by relatives of those who lost their life during the September 11 attacks as well as rescuers and the public.
The official commissioning ceremony takes place on Saturday.
The crest of the ship features the images of the Twin Towers and the colours of the departments that first responded to the attacks.
The ship has 361 sailors serving aboard of which around 1 in 7 is from New York. A spokeswoman for the U.S Navy said that there had been many requests to serve on the ship.
The USS New York departed from Mississippi on October 14. This is the sixth ship to be named after the State of New York.
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On Wednesday night people in the Bahçelievler district of Yenibosna in Istanbul, Turkey, claimed that they had seen a UFO flying in the sky, the Turkish newspaper Sabah reports. They said that the UFO was glowing with white lights and that it revolved around itself. Istanbul has had previous UFO incidents in the past, and in 2002, the Istanbul UFO Museum was opened to the public.
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Poland has rejected a Russian investigative report into the air crash that killed Polish President Lech Kaczyński earlier this year. Poland's first couple and other senior officials were among the 96 killed when their aircraft went down near Smolensk, Russia. On Friday, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk called an unreleased draft he has seen "unacceptable" and its conclusions "without foundation".
Tusk's televised remarks to the press did not reveal what the report contains, but claimed it to be in breach of the Chicago Convention, an international regulatory document on air travel. "From the Polish point of view, the draft report from the Russian side as it has been sent is without question unacceptable. This negligence and mistakes or lack of positive reaction to what Poland has been asking for, all these things allow us to say that some of the report's conclusions are without foundation," he said.
Edmund Klich, who heads the Polish air accident investigatory body, has seen the report and blamed elements in both Russia and Poland. Klich said the Polish military pilots had been insufficiently trained and ignored safety, and that Russian air traffic controllers should have diverted the aircraft elsewhere. Visibility had deteriorated at Smolensk's airport prior to the crash, but the Tupolev Tu-154's pilots were determined to get the President through the fog so he could attend a ceremony commemorating the Katyn massacre. Stalin had ordered Polish prisoners there to be killed during the Second World War.
"I believe the Polish side bears more responsibility," Klich commented, "but of course the Russians had their shortcomings." He has previously criticised Russia's failure to provide air traffic control transcripts from the disaster, which left no survivors. Also on Friday, a Russian foreign ministry spokesman told Ekho Moskvy Russia is ready to answer Polish questions. He reiterated a need to co-operate and added it is "important not to politicize the situation." Russian President Dmitry Medvedev also repeated calls for co-operation on a visit to Poland last week.
The comments follow the delivery of the draft to Poland by the Interstate Aviation Committee last month following complaints Russia should speed up the investigation. The crash has caused political controversy in Poland, with the newly-elected President and first lady belonging to Civic Platform, who were Kaczyński's opposition.
The Wall Street Journal suggests Tusk's remarks may damage improving relations between the countries. Conservative elements within Poland already doubted the veracity of improved relations and have formed conspiracy theories around the crash, citing a perception the Polish government will blindly accept whatever Russian investigators say.
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A jury last week cleared four officers from London's Metropolitan Police of assaulting a Muslim arrested on suspicion of al-Qaeda involvement. After trial their lawyer described the charge as "unfounded and unsubstantiated" – but in 2009 the police said Babar Ahmed, 34, had suffered "a serious, gratuitous and prolonged" assault.
Ahmed has been previously paid £60,000 in a civil case, which the jury was unaware of. After one hour of deliberations, they acquited Pc Roderick James-Bowen, 40; Pc Mark Jones, 43; Pc Nigel Cowley, 34; and Detective Constable John Donohue, 37, of assault occasioning actual bodily harm.
The four officers claimed at trial that Ahmed's wounds were either self-inflicted or caused during legal restraint during his December 2003 capture. They said he had fought hard against arrest. The prosecutor contended the four officers, from the specialist Territorial Support Group, "punched and [beat Ahmed] on the floor," calling him a "fucking bastard" and a "fucking cunt."
"On the floor the assault continued as his wife called out for the police to stop," Jonathan Laidlaw, prosecuting, told the jury. This was followed, he claimed, by a visit to Ahmed's prayer room, where he was positioned as if praying and asked "Where is your god now? Pray to him."
The prosecution alleged further abuse against Ahmed in a police van en route to the police station, with Ahmed saying at Charing Cross police station he was attacked again in an area not covered by CCTV surveillance. He was left, in the words of Laidlaw, with "areas of bruising, reddening and grazes to [his] head and neck, bruising to the chest, areas of bruising to [his] back, extensive bruising and grazing of the arms. In effect, there were injuries all over the victim's body."
The defence noted that MI5 bugged Ahmed's house and a recording of the arrest failed to show elements of the alleged attack. James-Bowen told the court of a "ferocious" fight with Ahmed, who used "significant force." Jones told the jury his superiors had informed him Ahmed had been trained in both armed and unarmed fighting.
Less than a year earlier, a similar operation in Manchester resulted in an officer stabbed to death by a suspect now serving life in prison. The four officers dealing with Ahmed had been warned their suspect posed a similar threat.
Speaking outside court, their solicitor, Colin Reynolds said the men were now able to "[get] on with their professional lives" following the dismissal by the jury of "unfounded and unsubstantiated allegations." Local media had been barred during trial from reporting that, between the two of them, Jones and James-Bowen had been accused of a total 40 assaults from 1993 to 2007, all of which have been rejected. Jones was previously tried for assaulting two teens in the back of a police van and yelling racist abuse at them, but was cleared.
Fiona Murphy, who represents Ahmed, was critical of the Independent Police Complaints Commission. "We now call upon the IPCC to put its abject failures in relation to this case to one side and to give proper consideration to the misconduct aspects." Ahmed released a statement, saying, "Today's verdict means that no police officer has been held to account for this abuse. Therefore I urge the Metropolitan police to bring disciplinary proceedings against all officers who were personally involved in the assault – and those who turned a blind eye." His father read it out at a post-trial press conference.
Ahmed was never charged, but was re-arrested in 2004 and has spent the last seven years in custody facing extradition to the US. The US seeks to try him for fundraising for militancy amid claims he is a member of al-Qaeda; though initially a ruling in favour of extradition was reached an appeal is pending.
Judge Geoffrey Rivlin QC, who oversaw the trial, expressed support for Ahmed's position detained without trial: "I express the hope that his ordeal as a man in detention in this country for a number of years without trial is brought to an end as soon as possible, either by his extradition or by his release. It is no concern of this court as to which, but it is a matter of concern and I would have thought should be a matter of concern to the public at large, quite apart from Mr Ahmed, that here is a man who has been in custody for literally years without knowing what his fate is to be."
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| 'Unfounded and unsubstantiated': London policemen cleared of beating Muslim | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27Unfounded_and_unsubstantiated%27:_London_policemen_cleared_of_beating_Muslim |
According to the Syrian government, United States military helicopters attacked a farm on the Syria-Iraq border. Earlier media reports called the helicopters "unidentified" which came into Syria from Iraq. The attack has caused some diplomatic stirs, and the Syrian government has called in a diplomat from the U.S..
The BBC News agency reports, quoting Syrian media, that at least seven people were killed when the helicopters attacked a farm along the Bou Kamal border with Iraq in the Syrian town of Al-Sukkariya. Among the dead were a man, four of his sons, and two farm workers. Other reports say at least nine were killed. At least 14 others were injured. Syrian media says all of those killed were civilians.
One report from Trend News says that Lebanese officials confirm that the raid was carried out by U.S. troops and that they were targeting alleged terrorists preparing to infiltrate Iraq.
The Syrian government state the strike was carried out by the U.S. military. Witnesses near the attack also say the helicopters appeared to be American and involved at least four helicopters, two of which landed. Further witness reports say that at least eight American soldiers proceeded to get off the helicopters. After allegedly attacking their target, all the soldiers returned to the helicopters which took off and left Syria.
According to PRESS TV, Sergeant Brooke Murphy, a spokesman for U.S. forces in Iraq, the military is investigating the incident. Meanwhile, Maura Connelly, a U.S. diplomat to Syria, was called to the country's foreign ministry to discuss the incident.
If the U.S. carried out the attack, it would be the first time any such attack was carried out inside Syria by U.S. forces.
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| Syrian government: U.S. helicopters attack farm on Syria-Iraq border | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27Unidentified%27_helicopters_attack_target_inside_Syria |
Dr. Conrad Murray has been charged with involuntary manslaughter in connection to the death of Michael Jackson, who Murray was doctor to. Dr. Murray was with the singer when he died on June 25 last year.
The doctor is alleged to have acted "unlawfully and without malice". The prosecution's complaint said that when Dr. Murray gave Michael Jackson a powerful sedative to attempt to assist Jackson with his sleeping, he acted "without the caution and circumspection required". During rehearsals for a series of return concerts planned in London, England last year, the entertainer had employed the doctor to be his personal physician for the spring. If convicted of the charges, Dr. Murray could be imprisoned for up to four years.
According to Ed Chernoff, Dr. Murray's lawyer, he will not plead guilty. Speaking on Monday, before the charge was filed, Chernoff stated: "We'll make bail, we'll plead not guilty and we'll fight like hell." The coroner's office in Los Angeles, California, US reported that the death of Michael Jackson was a homicide, with the cause being an overdose of sedatives.
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Dr. Conrad Murray has been charged with involuntary manslaughter in connection to the death of Michael Jackson, who Murray was doctor to. Dr. Murray was with the singer when he died on June 25 last year.
The doctor is alleged to have acted "unlawfully and without malice". The prosecution's complaint said that when Dr. Murray gave Michael Jackson a powerful sedative to attempt to assist Jackson with his sleeping, he acted "without the caution and circumspection required". During rehearsals for a series of return concerts planned in London, England last year, the entertainer had employed the doctor to be his personal physician for the spring. If convicted of the charges, Dr. Murray could be imprisoned for up to four years.
According to Ed Chernoff, Dr. Murray's lawyer, he will not plead guilty. Speaking on Monday, before the charge was filed, Chernoff stated: "We'll make bail, we'll plead not guilty and we'll fight like hell." The coroner's office in Los Angeles, California, US reported that the death of Michael Jackson was a homicide, with the cause being an overdose of sedatives.
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A "very dangerous" inmate whose convictions include rape and murder has escaped from Tembisa Hospital in South Africa. 29-year-old Andries Gamba Msimang, from Mozambique, absconded on Friday.
—Department of CorrectionsJailed in September 2009, Msimang "is serving a life sentence for murder, robbery, rape and house breaking with intent to rob and kidnap," says the Department of Correctional Services. The Department urges the public to summon police help if they see the escapee and not attempt to apprehend him themselves.
The Department further explained the man has been in hospital since Tuesday when he suffered a stroke. Two corrections officers left to guard the prisoner in hospital have been suspended and their employer says they "may face charges of gross negligence and dereliction of responsibility."
Police and the Department of Corrections are working together to try and return the killer to custody.
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Please note that due to our archival policy, we will not alter or update the content of articles that are archived, but will only accept requests to make grammatical and formatting corrections. | 'Very dangerous' killer escapes South African hospital | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27Very_dangerous%27_killer_escapes_South_African_hospital |
A report by the Chinese government states corruption is "very serious". Officials, it says, have investigated over 240,000 cases in the past seven years including bribery and embezzlement.
The document, released by state news agency Xinhua, states although "notable" steps have been made towards fighting corruption, attempts to flush out corrupt citizens need to be more effective. The report further warns of corruption within government, noting new regulations ordering government officials to report investment and income. It also praises the Internet and the media for exposing corruption.
In recent years China has launched several campaigns against corrupt practices, but a Chinese anti-corruption researcher told Xinhua the report indicated the Chinese government now have "a more open and cooperative attitude toward the problem."
—Chinese government reportThere have been several high profile cases of corruption in the country over the past several years; this year the highest ranking justice official in Chongqing, Wen Qiang, was executed for accepting bribes, shielding criminal gangs and rape, and in 2008 a powerful party boss was jailed for 18 years for involvement in a pension fund scandal.
Although the report notes efforts have been taken to stamp down on corruption in China, it adds ridding it completely will be difficult. "Since the relevant mechanisms and systems are still incomplete, corruption persists, with some cases even involving huge sums of money," it states. "The situation in combating corruption is still very serious, and the tasks are still abundant."
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Please note that due to our archival policy, we will not alter or update the content of articles that are archived, but will only accept requests to make grammatical and formatting corrections. | 'Very serious': Chinese government releases corruption report | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27Very_serious%27:_Chinese_government_releases_corruption_report |
The University of Southern California developed a simulation system that provides real effects of battlefield. The simulation is called Virtual Iraq and it is now being put in practice by the University of Reading. Virtual Iraq represents a fully-immersive system created as part of a therapy that aims to help soldiers with post-traumatic stress disorder to handle their psychological issues.
The Director of the Visualization Center at University of Reading, Professor Paul Sharkey, has been developing the system together with two professors from the USC Institute for Creative Technologies, Albert Rizzo and Jarrell Pair. They created a virtual room at the Visualization Center where patients can experience the effects of the battlefield.
Scientists will provide in their Virtual Iraq sounds, sights and smells of the battlefield so soldiers or military staff would experience real combat scenarios but in a low threat context. Thus the therapists are able to add to the virtual world roadside bombs, the smell of burning rubber, as well as the sound of gunfire and buzzing of the helicopter. Till now four patients were treated and they all reported improvement in the symptoms.
Scientists state that the aim of the new system is to re-expose patients to relevant traumatic events and not to re-traumatize them. They look forward to manage people’s emotional responses so to make them more flexible in everyday situations.
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By the decision of the shareholders the "Voxtel" company will be transformed Into "Orange".
The shareholders of "Voxtel" are: France Telecom – 61%, MMT-BIS – 30%, MobilRom – 4%, IFC – 5%.
"Orange" - is one of the world mobile communication leaders and is a daughter enterprise of the "France Telecom" group. The "Orange" group is present in 17 countries, where it has more than 80 million mobile communication subscribers.
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| 'Voxtel' company will be transformed into 'Orange' | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27Voxtel%27_company_will_be_transformed_into_%27Orange%27 |
Four officers from London's Metropolitan Police went on trial today accused of repeatedly beating a Muslim arrested on suspicion of helping "terrorist organisations operating abroad." The men deny assaulting Babar Ahmad, 36, in his home, in a police van and in a police station.
The assault charges stem from the December 2003 arrest in the city's south-west. Less than a year earlier a similar operation in Manchester had seen an officer stabbed to death by a suspect now serving life in prison. Jonathan Laidlaw, prosecuting, told the jury in Southwark Crown Court the officers had likely been informed Ahmad had militant training and involvement in overseas fighting. The police team was from the specialist Territorial Support Group.
—Custody sergeantWhilst acknowledging fears Ahmad, who was released without charge, could pose a threat, Laidlaw rejects this actually being the case upon arrival at his home. Woken from sleeping beside his wife at 05:00 by calls of "police, police", "[d]ressed only in his pyjamas and barefooted, Mr Ahmad raised his arms above his head to indicate that he was not going to fight or to present any sort of danger or threat to the police," claims Laidlaw.
Police Constable Roderick James-Bowen, 40, was first into the room and knocked Ahmad back into a window, breaking it. Laidlaw had "no complaint" about this action but when "entirely submissive" Ahmad was handcuffed "[t]he defendants subjected him to a sustained and very violent assault - in effect they gave him a beating or they beat him up."
The prosecutor contends the four officers — PC James-Bowen alongside PCs Nigel Cowley, 33, and Mark Jones, 43, and Detective Constable John Donohue, 36 — "punched and [beat Ahmad] on the floor". The accused are said to have called Ahmad a "fucking bastard" and a "fucking cunt". "On the floor the assault continued as his wife called out for the police to stop," Laidlaw continued. This was followed, he claims, by a visit to Ahmad's prayer room, where he was positioned as if praying and asked "Where is your god now?"
As part of the investigation into suspicions Ahmad led a group "providing logistical support, financial assistance, recruits and computer expertise" to foreign militant groups, MI5 bugged the house. The jury was played a ten minute recording covering the arrest in which shouts, screams and apparent muffled commands were heard.
There followed a transfer via police van to Charing Cross police station. In the back of the van "[t]he officer sitting nearest to Mr Ahmad's head asked him where he was born and when he replied London, that officer punched him in the back of the head. The same officer then lifted Mr Ahmad's upper body and held him in a headlock with both arms. After releasing him [the officer] said: 'You fucking cunt, you'll remember this day for the rest of your life.' "
—Jonathan Laidlaw, prosecutingAt the police station Ahmad says he was led to an area unviewed by CCTV cameras and punched and kicked. He was presented in "a collapsing state" to the custody sergeant who was told Ahmad had been violent and resisted arrest. However, the custody sergeant was quoted in court as hearing screams at the police station. "I would describe the screaming as what I believed was a man and that he was in prolonged discomfort and pain. It was definitely the sound of pain and not of him shouting out," Laidlaw quoted the sergeant.
The officers are accused by the prosecution of having "lied" about any resistance offered by Ahmad, who was left with "areas of bruising, reddening and grazes to [his] head and neck, bruising to the chest, areas of bruising to [his] back, extensive bruising and grazing of the arms. In effect, there were injuries all over the victim's body."
Ahmad was re-arrested in 2004 and has spent the last seven years in custody facing extradition to the US. The US seeks to try him for fundraising for militancy amid claims he is a member of al-Qaeda; though initially a ruling in favour of extradition was reached an appeal is pending.
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Please note that due to our archival policy, we will not alter or update the content of articles that are archived, but will only accept requests to make grammatical and formatting corrections. | 'Where is your god now?': London policemen on trial accused of beating Muslim | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27Where_is_your_god_now%3F%27:_London_cops_on_trial_accused_of_beating_Muslim |
Four officers from London's Metropolitan Police went on trial today accused of repeatedly beating a Muslim arrested on suspicion of helping "terrorist organisations operating abroad." The men deny assaulting Babar Ahmad, 36, in his home, in a police van and in a police station.
The assault charges stem from the December 2003 arrest in the city's south-west. Less than a year earlier a similar operation in Manchester had seen an officer stabbed to death by a suspect now serving life in prison. Jonathan Laidlaw, prosecuting, told the jury in Southwark Crown Court the officers had likely been informed Ahmad had militant training and involvement in overseas fighting. The police team was from the specialist Territorial Support Group.
—Custody sergeantWhilst acknowledging fears Ahmad, who was released without charge, could pose a threat, Laidlaw rejects this actually being the case upon arrival at his home. Woken from sleeping beside his wife at 05:00 by calls of "police, police", "[d]ressed only in his pyjamas and barefooted, Mr Ahmad raised his arms above his head to indicate that he was not going to fight or to present any sort of danger or threat to the police," claims Laidlaw.
Police Constable Roderick James-Bowen, 40, was first into the room and knocked Ahmad back into a window, breaking it. Laidlaw had "no complaint" about this action but when "entirely submissive" Ahmad was handcuffed "[t]he defendants subjected him to a sustained and very violent assault - in effect they gave him a beating or they beat him up."
The prosecutor contends the four officers — PC James-Bowen alongside PCs Nigel Cowley, 33, and Mark Jones, 43, and Detective Constable John Donohue, 36 — "punched and [beat Ahmad] on the floor". The accused are said to have called Ahmad a "fucking bastard" and a "fucking cunt". "On the floor the assault continued as his wife called out for the police to stop," Laidlaw continued. This was followed, he claims, by a visit to Ahmad's prayer room, where he was positioned as if praying and asked "Where is your god now?"
As part of the investigation into suspicions Ahmad led a group "providing logistical support, financial assistance, recruits and computer expertise" to foreign militant groups, MI5 bugged the house. The jury was played a ten minute recording covering the arrest in which shouts, screams and apparent muffled commands were heard.
There followed a transfer via police van to Charing Cross police station. In the back of the van "[t]he officer sitting nearest to Mr Ahmad's head asked him where he was born and when he replied London, that officer punched him in the back of the head. The same officer then lifted Mr Ahmad's upper body and held him in a headlock with both arms. After releasing him [the officer] said: 'You fucking cunt, you'll remember this day for the rest of your life.' "
—Jonathan Laidlaw, prosecutingAt the police station Ahmad says he was led to an area unviewed by CCTV cameras and punched and kicked. He was presented in "a collapsing state" to the custody sergeant who was told Ahmad had been violent and resisted arrest. However, the custody sergeant was quoted in court as hearing screams at the police station. "I would describe the screaming as what I believed was a man and that he was in prolonged discomfort and pain. It was definitely the sound of pain and not of him shouting out," Laidlaw quoted the sergeant.
The officers are accused by the prosecution of having "lied" about any resistance offered by Ahmad, who was left with "areas of bruising, reddening and grazes to [his] head and neck, bruising to the chest, areas of bruising to [his] back, extensive bruising and grazing of the arms. In effect, there were injuries all over the victim's body."
Ahmad was re-arrested in 2004 and has spent the last seven years in custody facing extradition to the US. The US seeks to try him for fundraising for militancy amid claims he is a member of al-Qaeda; though initially a ruling in favour of extradition was reached an appeal is pending.
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Please note that due to our archival policy, we will not alter or update the content of articles that are archived, but will only accept requests to make grammatical and formatting corrections. | 'Where is your god now?': London policemen on trial accused of beating Muslim | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27Where_is_your_god_now%3F%27:_London_policemen_on_trial_accused_of_beating_Muslim |
The website WikiLeaks.org has been taken off line in many parts of the world. Wikileaks is a website dedicated to leaking documents that are "anonymous, untraceable, uncensorable."
Several factors have taken the site off line including DDoS attacks, which was followed by a fire which took out the main servers hosting the site in Sweden, and a restraining order on the domain name 'WikiLeaks.org' issued in the United States.
According to the website HongPong.com, Wikileaks experienced "a 500Mbps distributed denial of service attack" before the fire, but it is not known if the DDoS attack is connected to it.
After the attack, a fire was reported in the Uninterruptible Power Supply of the servers which host the site.
The third and final factor taking the site off line is a permanent injunction granted in the California Northern District Court in San Francisco, California to Bank Julius Baer, a Swiss Bank, which has caused the domain to be taken off line in the U.S.. Wikileaks previously published hundreds of documents obtained from a whistleblower of the Swiss Bank, "purportedly showing offshore tax evasion and money laundering by extremely wealthy and in some cases, politically sensitive, clients from the US, Europe, China and Peru."
According to a Wikileaks press release received by e-mail, the injunction issued by the court states, "Dynadot [Wikileaks host] shall immediately clear and remove all DNS hosting records for the wikileaks.org domain name and prevent the domain name from resolving to the wikileaks.org website or any other website or server other than a blank park page, until further order of this Court."
"The order was entirely written by Cayman Island's Bank Julius Baer lawyers and was accepted by judge White without amendment, or representations by Wikileaks or amicus. The case is over several Wikileaks articles, public commentary and documents dating prior to 2003. The documents allegedly reveal secret Julius Baer trust structures used for asset hiding, money laundering and tax evasion.
The bank alleges the documents were disclosed to Wikileaks by offshore banking whistleblower and former Vice President of the Cayman Island's operation, Rudolf Elmer. Unable to lawfully attack Wikileaks servers which are based in several countries, the order was served on Wikileaks's California registrar Dynadot ("the power company"). The order also enjoins every person who has heard about the order from even linking to the documents," said Wikileaks in the release.
Despite the injunction, Wikileaks states that they will "keep on publishing, in-fact, given the level of suppression involved in this case, Wikileaks will step up publication of documents pertaining to illegal or unethical banking practices."
Despite the injunction, the site can still be accessed at http://88.80.13.160/wiki/Wikileaks.
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Please note that due to our archival policy, we will not alter or update the content of articles that are archived, but will only accept requests to make grammatical and formatting corrections. | 'Wikileaks.org' taken offline in many areas after fire, court injunction | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27Wikileaks.org%27_off_line_in_many_areas_after_fire,_restraining_order |
The website WikiLeaks.org has been taken off line in many parts of the world. Wikileaks is a website dedicated to leaking documents that are "anonymous, untraceable, uncensorable."
Several factors have taken the site off line including DDoS attacks, which was followed by a fire which took out the main servers hosting the site in Sweden, and a restraining order on the domain name 'WikiLeaks.org' issued in the United States.
According to the website HongPong.com, Wikileaks experienced "a 500Mbps distributed denial of service attack" before the fire, but it is not known if the DDoS attack is connected to it.
After the attack, a fire was reported in the Uninterruptible Power Supply of the servers which host the site.
The third and final factor taking the site off line is a permanent injunction granted in the California Northern District Court in San Francisco, California to Bank Julius Baer, a Swiss Bank, which has caused the domain to be taken off line in the U.S.. Wikileaks previously published hundreds of documents obtained from a whistleblower of the Swiss Bank, "purportedly showing offshore tax evasion and money laundering by extremely wealthy and in some cases, politically sensitive, clients from the US, Europe, China and Peru."
According to a Wikileaks press release received by e-mail, the injunction issued by the court states, "Dynadot [Wikileaks host] shall immediately clear and remove all DNS hosting records for the wikileaks.org domain name and prevent the domain name from resolving to the wikileaks.org website or any other website or server other than a blank park page, until further order of this Court."
"The order was entirely written by Cayman Island's Bank Julius Baer lawyers and was accepted by judge White without amendment, or representations by Wikileaks or amicus. The case is over several Wikileaks articles, public commentary and documents dating prior to 2003. The documents allegedly reveal secret Julius Baer trust structures used for asset hiding, money laundering and tax evasion.
The bank alleges the documents were disclosed to Wikileaks by offshore banking whistleblower and former Vice President of the Cayman Island's operation, Rudolf Elmer. Unable to lawfully attack Wikileaks servers which are based in several countries, the order was served on Wikileaks's California registrar Dynadot ("the power company"). The order also enjoins every person who has heard about the order from even linking to the documents," said Wikileaks in the release.
Despite the injunction, Wikileaks states that they will "keep on publishing, in-fact, given the level of suppression involved in this case, Wikileaks will step up publication of documents pertaining to illegal or unethical banking practices."
Despite the injunction, the site can still be accessed at http://88.80.13.160/wiki/Wikileaks.
Have an opinion on this story? Share it!
Share this:
This page is archived, and is no longer publicly editable.
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Please note that due to our archival policy, we will not alter or update the content of articles that are archived, but will only accept requests to make grammatical and formatting corrections. | 'Wikileaks.org' taken offline in many areas after fire, court injunction | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27Wikileaks.org%27_off_line_service_in_many_areas |
The website WikiLeaks.org has been taken off line in many parts of the world. Wikileaks is a website dedicated to leaking documents that are "anonymous, untraceable, uncensorable."
Several factors have taken the site off line including DDoS attacks, which was followed by a fire which took out the main servers hosting the site in Sweden, and a restraining order on the domain name 'WikiLeaks.org' issued in the United States.
According to the website HongPong.com, Wikileaks experienced "a 500Mbps distributed denial of service attack" before the fire, but it is not known if the DDoS attack is connected to it.
After the attack, a fire was reported in the Uninterruptible Power Supply of the servers which host the site.
The third and final factor taking the site off line is a permanent injunction granted in the California Northern District Court in San Francisco, California to Bank Julius Baer, a Swiss Bank, which has caused the domain to be taken off line in the U.S.. Wikileaks previously published hundreds of documents obtained from a whistleblower of the Swiss Bank, "purportedly showing offshore tax evasion and money laundering by extremely wealthy and in some cases, politically sensitive, clients from the US, Europe, China and Peru."
According to a Wikileaks press release received by e-mail, the injunction issued by the court states, "Dynadot [Wikileaks host] shall immediately clear and remove all DNS hosting records for the wikileaks.org domain name and prevent the domain name from resolving to the wikileaks.org website or any other website or server other than a blank park page, until further order of this Court."
"The order was entirely written by Cayman Island's Bank Julius Baer lawyers and was accepted by judge White without amendment, or representations by Wikileaks or amicus. The case is over several Wikileaks articles, public commentary and documents dating prior to 2003. The documents allegedly reveal secret Julius Baer trust structures used for asset hiding, money laundering and tax evasion.
The bank alleges the documents were disclosed to Wikileaks by offshore banking whistleblower and former Vice President of the Cayman Island's operation, Rudolf Elmer. Unable to lawfully attack Wikileaks servers which are based in several countries, the order was served on Wikileaks's California registrar Dynadot ("the power company"). The order also enjoins every person who has heard about the order from even linking to the documents," said Wikileaks in the release.
Despite the injunction, Wikileaks states that they will "keep on publishing, in-fact, given the level of suppression involved in this case, Wikileaks will step up publication of documents pertaining to illegal or unethical banking practices."
Despite the injunction, the site can still be accessed at http://88.80.13.160/wiki/Wikileaks.
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Share this:
This page is archived, and is no longer publicly editable.
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Please note that due to our archival policy, we will not alter or update the content of articles that are archived, but will only accept requests to make grammatical and formatting corrections. | 'Wikileaks.org' taken offline in many areas after fire, court injunction | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27Wikileaks.org%27_out_of_service_in_many_areas |
The website WikiLeaks.org has been taken off line in many parts of the world. Wikileaks is a website dedicated to leaking documents that are "anonymous, untraceable, uncensorable."
Several factors have taken the site off line including DDoS attacks, which was followed by a fire which took out the main servers hosting the site in Sweden, and a restraining order on the domain name 'WikiLeaks.org' issued in the United States.
According to the website HongPong.com, Wikileaks experienced "a 500Mbps distributed denial of service attack" before the fire, but it is not known if the DDoS attack is connected to it.
After the attack, a fire was reported in the Uninterruptible Power Supply of the servers which host the site.
The third and final factor taking the site off line is a permanent injunction granted in the California Northern District Court in San Francisco, California to Bank Julius Baer, a Swiss Bank, which has caused the domain to be taken off line in the U.S.. Wikileaks previously published hundreds of documents obtained from a whistleblower of the Swiss Bank, "purportedly showing offshore tax evasion and money laundering by extremely wealthy and in some cases, politically sensitive, clients from the US, Europe, China and Peru."
According to a Wikileaks press release received by e-mail, the injunction issued by the court states, "Dynadot [Wikileaks host] shall immediately clear and remove all DNS hosting records for the wikileaks.org domain name and prevent the domain name from resolving to the wikileaks.org website or any other website or server other than a blank park page, until further order of this Court."
"The order was entirely written by Cayman Island's Bank Julius Baer lawyers and was accepted by judge White without amendment, or representations by Wikileaks or amicus. The case is over several Wikileaks articles, public commentary and documents dating prior to 2003. The documents allegedly reveal secret Julius Baer trust structures used for asset hiding, money laundering and tax evasion.
The bank alleges the documents were disclosed to Wikileaks by offshore banking whistleblower and former Vice President of the Cayman Island's operation, Rudolf Elmer. Unable to lawfully attack Wikileaks servers which are based in several countries, the order was served on Wikileaks's California registrar Dynadot ("the power company"). The order also enjoins every person who has heard about the order from even linking to the documents," said Wikileaks in the release.
Despite the injunction, Wikileaks states that they will "keep on publishing, in-fact, given the level of suppression involved in this case, Wikileaks will step up publication of documents pertaining to illegal or unethical banking practices."
Despite the injunction, the site can still be accessed at http://88.80.13.160/wiki/Wikileaks.
Have an opinion on this story? Share it!
Share this:
This page is archived, and is no longer publicly editable.
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Please note that due to our archival policy, we will not alter or update the content of articles that are archived, but will only accept requests to make grammatical and formatting corrections.
Note that some listed sources or external links may no longer be available online due to age.
Got a correction? Add the template {{editprotected}} to the talk page along with your corrections, and it will be brought to the attention of the administrators.
Please note that due to our archival policy, we will not alter or update the content of articles that are archived, but will only accept requests to make grammatical and formatting corrections. | 'Wikileaks.org' taken offline in many areas after fire, court injunction | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27Wikileaks.org%27_taken_off_line_in_many_areas_after_fire,_court_injunction |
The website WikiLeaks.org has been taken off line in many parts of the world. Wikileaks is a website dedicated to leaking documents that are "anonymous, untraceable, uncensorable."
Several factors have taken the site off line including DDoS attacks, which was followed by a fire which took out the main servers hosting the site in Sweden, and a restraining order on the domain name 'WikiLeaks.org' issued in the United States.
According to the website HongPong.com, Wikileaks experienced "a 500Mbps distributed denial of service attack" before the fire, but it is not known if the DDoS attack is connected to it.
After the attack, a fire was reported in the Uninterruptible Power Supply of the servers which host the site.
The third and final factor taking the site off line is a permanent injunction granted in the California Northern District Court in San Francisco, California to Bank Julius Baer, a Swiss Bank, which has caused the domain to be taken off line in the U.S.. Wikileaks previously published hundreds of documents obtained from a whistleblower of the Swiss Bank, "purportedly showing offshore tax evasion and money laundering by extremely wealthy and in some cases, politically sensitive, clients from the US, Europe, China and Peru."
According to a Wikileaks press release received by e-mail, the injunction issued by the court states, "Dynadot [Wikileaks host] shall immediately clear and remove all DNS hosting records for the wikileaks.org domain name and prevent the domain name from resolving to the wikileaks.org website or any other website or server other than a blank park page, until further order of this Court."
"The order was entirely written by Cayman Island's Bank Julius Baer lawyers and was accepted by judge White without amendment, or representations by Wikileaks or amicus. The case is over several Wikileaks articles, public commentary and documents dating prior to 2003. The documents allegedly reveal secret Julius Baer trust structures used for asset hiding, money laundering and tax evasion.
The bank alleges the documents were disclosed to Wikileaks by offshore banking whistleblower and former Vice President of the Cayman Island's operation, Rudolf Elmer. Unable to lawfully attack Wikileaks servers which are based in several countries, the order was served on Wikileaks's California registrar Dynadot ("the power company"). The order also enjoins every person who has heard about the order from even linking to the documents," said Wikileaks in the release.
Despite the injunction, Wikileaks states that they will "keep on publishing, in-fact, given the level of suppression involved in this case, Wikileaks will step up publication of documents pertaining to illegal or unethical banking practices."
Despite the injunction, the site can still be accessed at http://88.80.13.160/wiki/Wikileaks.
Have an opinion on this story? Share it!
Share this:
This page is archived, and is no longer publicly editable.
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Iran's Minister of Justice Gholam-Hossein Elham has requested that Dutch politician Geert Wilders' Qur'an film named Fitna should be prohibited by the Dutch government, Iranian press-agency IRNA reports. Elham wrote a letter to his Dutch colleague Ernst Hirsch Ballin stating that: "you can stop the process of this satanic and conspiracy movement based on the European Convention on Human Rights".
Freedom of speech cannot be the reason to allow this film, they say. "We also respect freedom of speech, but the insult of holy and ethical values is totally unacceptable," Elham writes. "The rights of Muslims all over the world are violated by this blaspheming movie." The Qur'an is the holy book for some 1.5 billion Muslims worldwide.
Wilders announced his "shocking" movie to be ready in March 2008.
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Please note that due to our archival policy, we will not alter or update the content of articles that are archived, but will only accept requests to make grammatical and formatting corrections. | 'Blaspheming' movie should be prohibited says Iran government | https://en.wikinews.org/wiki/%27Wilders_movie_should_be_prohibited%27 |