October 6, 2015

Top News Stories –

Kentucky pet store worker nearly crushed to death by python –
A man working at a Kentucky pet store has been seriously hurt after a massive python he was feeding nearly crushed him to death. Police said they were called to Captive Born Reptiles and found the snake wrapped around the man. Terry Wilkens was not breathing when the officers pried the snake off him but he resumed breathing shortly afterwards, officers said. The python weighed about 125lb (56kg) and measured 20ft (6m) long. “It was only by the grace of God that one of the officers knew how to deal with snakes,” Newport Kentucky Police Chief Tom Collins told the Cincinnati Enquirer. Officer Gregory Ripberger grabbed the snake by its head and uncurled the python from Mr Wilkens. [BBC]
Jungle Carpet python

Instagram says @music is just the start for music on the app –
The boss of Instagram has said “it’s just a matter of time before music becomes even more dominant” on the app. Kevin Systrom’s social media site has just turned five. But he told Newsbeat: “We never knew music would take off in the way it did but now 25% of our top [most followed] accounts are music related”. In April, Instagram launched @music, which Kevin explained set out to “feature off-the-beaten path, hard-to-find accounts.” [BBC Newsbeat]

Author jailed for flashing after prostitute disputes small penis claims –
A serial flasher has been jailed after a woman appeared in court and gave a detailed description of his penis. Hinton Sheryn, 68, had denied he would get his penis out in public – because he was embarrassed it was “unusually small”. But officers managed to find a prostitute he used who came to court at the last minute and contested his claims. The female sex worker described his manhood and told Plymouth Crown Court it was a “normal” size. Her late intervention helped convict the successful author, who has now been jailed for 17 years after being convicted of 18 crimes. The former pop promoter was so notorious for exposing himself in the village near Plymouth, Devon, where he lived in the 1970s and 1980s he was known as “the flasher”. [Daily Telegraph]

Video of the Day –

The New Microsoft Band: Live Healthier and Achieve More

Top Twitter Trends –

	Worldwide	USA	UK
1	#NiallsNewGirlfriend	Rachel Dolezal	Theresa May
2	#EnTwitterSiempreEsta	#AllDayBreakfast	#NationalBadgerDay
3	Twilight	#SeeTheMomentWhen	#charitytuesday
4	Theresa May	#NiallsNewGirlfriend	#RAW
5	#MTVFanWars5SOSFam	#NewSpaceFacts	#IoDAC
6	Lolla	Twilight	#MTVFanWars5SOSFam
7	Lions	Victor Cruz	Busted
8	#شي_جميل_بحرف_ا…	#WildCard	#IsBritainRacist
9	#البنات_ايش_يا�…	Chantal Akerman	#IDSMurder
10	#HoyEstaPara	Chris Archer	#TravelTuesday

Other News Stories –

Armed conflicts and attacks

Yemeni Civil War (2015)
- A hotel where Vice President of Yemen and Prime Minister Khaled Bahah was staying in Aden which was also being used as a de-facto military base by Arab coalition forces is hit by multiple explosions killing at least 15 coalition soldiers. Although theHouthis were first suspected and accused of being behind the attack, the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant has since claimed responsibility, marking the first attack on Arab coalition forces in Yemen by the extremist group. (CNN) (Al-Arabiyah News)
- In the Houthi-controlled Yemeni capital, Sanaa, at least seven people are killed following a suicide-bomb attack on the al-Nour mosque. (Reuters)
Syrian Civil War, Russian military intervention in the Syrian Civil War
- NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg says Russia’s pair of violations of Turkish airspace over the weekend do not look like accidents. Russia, which said it’s looking into claims of a second violation, reported the first violation lasted a few seconds and was due to poor weather. (BBC)
- Russian warplanes bomb Islamic State positions in the central Syrian city of Palmyra and in the northern Aleppo province, releasing videos that show them destroying 20 vehicles and 3 weapons depots. (Reuters)
- Turkey says its jets patrolling the Turkish-Syrian border were directly threatened by a Russian MiG-29 and later by an an anti-aircraft missile system which locked-radar on the Turkish jets. (Independent)
Iraqi Civil War (2014–present)
- Russia says it would consider extending its air-strikes against Islamic State militants in Syria to Iraq if it receives such a request from the Iraqi government. Iraqi President, Fuad Masum has recently said he would welcome this assistance. (Reuters)
Boko Haram insurgency
- A Boko Haram attack near Lake Chad kills at least 11 Chadian troops while 17 Boko Haram militants are also reportedly killed in the fighting following the pre-dawn strike on Chadian army positions. (AFP via Yahoo)

Business and economy

The European Court of Justice decides an international agreement, generally known as a Safe Harbor rule, used by thousands of companies for moving people’s digital data between the European Union and the United States is invalid, effective immediately. The decision throws into doubt how global technology giants like Facebook, Amazon and Google can collect, manage, and analyze online information from their millions of users in the 28-member bloc. Decisions by this court, the highest legal authority in the EU, cannot be appealed. (The New York Times) (USA Today) (BBC) (Reuters)

Disasters and accidents

Typhoon Mujigae (2015)
- Sixteen campers are missing in south China‘s Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region following a flash flood in a camping reserve. (Xinhua)
October 2015 nor’easter, Hurricane Joaquin
- Thirteen people are reported to have died during this storm, 11 in South Carolina and two in North Carolina. At least 18 dams have breached or failed since Saturday. Communities downstream face a mass of water working its way toward the low-lying coast. (CNN)
- Hurricane Joaquin missed the East Coast but brought tropical moisture aimed directly at South Carolina. (ABC News)
2015 El Cambray Dos landslide
- The death toll from Thursday’s landslide in the Guatemalan village of El Cambray Dos increased to 152 with more than 300 people missing. No survivors have been found at the site. Search crews have found entire families who died huddled together and buried alive. The Guatemala’s National Disaster Reduction Commission, known as the Conred, declared the area uninhabitable. (BBC) (Reuters) (Press TV)

International relations

Israeli–Palestinian conflict
- Israel destroys the homes of three Palestinian terrorists. Rassen and Udai abu-Jamal who committed the 2014 Jerusalem synagogue attack and Moatez Hijazi who committed the excavator rampage in Jerusalem during the 2014 Israel–Gaza conflict.(Jerusalem Post)

Law and crime

2015 Burkinabe coup d’état
- Associated Press reports that coup leader General Gilbert Diendéré has been formally charged. (AP via ABC News America)
Former President of the United Nations General Assembly John William Ashe is charged with taking US$1.3 million in bribes from Chinese businessmen. (AFP via Channel News Asia)

Science and technology

Takaaki Kajita and Arthur B. McDonald win the 2015 Nobel Prize in Physics for their discovery of neutrino oscillations. (AP via Yahoo! News)

Sport

2015 FIFA corruption case
- South Korean FIFA presidential candidate Chung Mong-joon admits that he is facing charges before FIFA’s ethics committee but denies wrongdoing. (Reuters via Daily Nail)

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October 7, 2015

Top News Stories –

Blatter faces 90-day suspension from FIFA, confidant says –
FIFA president Sepp Blatter faces an imminent 90 day suspension from soccer if the governing body’s ethics judge backs a prosecutor’s recommendation, a close friend and former advisor to Blatter told Reuters on Wednesday. Blatter’s long-term confidant Klaus Stoehlker said the decision by judge Hans-Joachim Eckert on the provisional suspension was expected by Friday. “There is no final decision, this is a recommendation from the lower part of the Ethics Committee to the upper part,” said Stoehlker, who added that Blatter had been informed of the development. [Reuters] In July FIFA turned down a request for Blatter to attend a U.S. Senate Panel Hearing
Sepp Blatter

Twitter launches Moments feature for ‘the day’s biggest and best stories’ –
Twitter’s launched a new feature called Moments to make it easier to see the day’s biggest and best stories. It works by grouping together interesting and important tweets on single subjects – which you can then read, even if you don’t follow the people tweeting them. Moments will appear in a special tab rather than on your timeline. It’s hoped this will appeal to people who find Twitter too confusing to start with. The Moments tab will be divided into sections including news, sports and entertainment. For now, it’s only being rolled out in America but will be heading to Europe soon. [BBC Newsbeat]

The Great British Bake Off 2015: the final – Nadiya crowned winner –
So the smallest baker had the biggest smile. In the final of The Great British Bake-Off (BBC One), 4ft 11in Nadiya Hussain’s face lit up with victory. It would have taken a hard-hearted viewer not to grin at her win too. After 10 weeks of fiendish challenges – popping dough into proving drawers, peering anxiously into ovens and wincing as tough-to-please judges poked at their pastry – just three of the original 12 contenders remained, their eyes on the title of Britain’s best amateur baker. Nadiya became the third consecutive female winner of that glass cake-stand trophy. It was a victory for women, for multicultural Britain and for brilliant baking. [Daily Telegraph] See Top Twitter Trends and List of the Day

Retired wrestler Hiroshi Hase appointed to Japanese cabinet by PM Shinzo Abe –
Shinzo Abe, the Japanese prime minister, has appointed a former television announcer and a retired wrestler who went by the ring name Viet Cong Express #1 to his new cabinet. Mr Abe retained around half his ministers in the first reshuffle of portfolios since he won the general election in December, but also has one eye on elections for the upper house of the Japanese parliament next summer. Hiroshi Hase, 54, was appointed minister of education, culture, sports, science and technology and the challenge of “education rebuilding”.

Video of the Day –

Honest Trailers – Aladdin

List of the Day –

Great British Bake Off Innuendos 2015

“The wobble should be like me backside” – Sandy on her crème brûlée (2015, episode 4)

“Stand away from your hot baps!” – Mel and Sue

“One crack bad, two cracks better” – Mel Giedroyc to Ugne about her Madeira cake (2015, episode 1)

“You have got two hours to pop Mary’s cherry” – Sue (the second half of the quote was “in the oven”)

“The terror of a soggy bottom has been keeping me up all night” – Season four finalist Kimberley

“Go on Mary, give it a good slapping” – Paul Hollywood

“Time to stop fiddling with Charlotte now” – Sue Perkins

“Oh no, you have some irregular-shaped balls” – Mary Berry

“He loves his buns”- Mary Berry, on Paul Hollywood

“It’s all in the wrist action” – Mary Berry

“Get those lady’s fingers soggy!” – Sue Perkins

“Messy top, tidy bottom” – Sue on Tamal

“Right bakers, time to reveal your cracks” – Sue

“I’m pinching my bottom seam” – Flora

Top Twitter Trends –

	Worldwide	USA	UK
1	#QueMeFalteTodoMenos	#WCW	#GBBOFinal
2	#felizmiercoles	Roy Hibbert	Brian Blessed
3	#كم_واحد_يتابع�…	#BadInventions	#CameronSpeech
4	#MTVFANWARSDirectioners	Matt Barnes	#artsdigital
5	Edgar Allan Poe	#NerdUpATVShow	#Leaders15
6	Vin Diesel	Moana	Caspian Sea
7	Aziz Sancar	Victor Cruz	#WeWantOurCountryBack
8	#احترمك_جدا_اذا	#WalkToSchoolDay	#panorama
9	#هل_يحق_للزوجه_…	Draft Biden	Leon Brittan
10	#لو_الجامعه_اخ�…	#MTVFANWARSDirectioners	#ChewingGum

Other News Stories –

Armed conflicts and attacks

Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant
- An FBI investigation has reportedly found that criminal networks specializing in nuclear smuggling in Eastern Europe, particularly in the nation of Moldova, have shipped radioactive material to ‘Middle Eastern extremists’, including the Islamic State (which in the recent past has threatened to unleash a nuclear holocaust to ‘wipe the West off the face of the Earth’). (AP via The Huffington Post)
Russian military intervention in the Syrian Civil War
- Russia launches an intense bombing campaign in the Syrian governorates of Idlib and Hama. The Syrian Army is conducting a ground offensive in the same area. (Jerusalem Post), (Reuters)
- Four Russian warships launch at least 26 cruise missiles at ISIS positions in Syria from the Caspian Sea. (RT)
- Russian airstrikes destroy the main weapons depots of a U.S.-trained rebel group, Liwa Suqour al-Jabal, in Syria’s Aleppo province. Last week, Russian raids hit Liwa sites in western and northern Syria, areas where the Islamic State group has no significant presence. (Reuters)
Boko Haram insurgency
- Boko Haram suicide bombers kill at least 15 people at a mosque in the northeastern Nigerian city of Damaturu. (AP)
War in Afghanistan (2015–present)
- Médecins Sans Frontières (Doctors without Borders) calls for activating the International Humanitarian Fact-Finding Commission – for the first time since its 1991 creation under the Geneva Conventions – to investigate the deadly U.S. bombing of MSF’s hospital in Kunduz, Afghanistan. MSF says it does not trust internal military inquiries into the bombing that killed at least 22 people, which it considers a war crime. (Reuters) (BBC)
- United States President Barack Obama telephoned MSF International President Joanne Liu to apologize for the U.S. bombing of the hospital in Afghanistan, express his condolences for the 22 people killed, commit to provide a transparent, thorough, and objective accounting of the facts and circumstances of the incident, and implement any changes to make tragedies like this one less likely to occur in the future.(Reuters) (Washington Post)
Saudi Arabian-led intervention in Yemen
- Saudi-led airstrikes kill at least 15 civilians and wound 25 others in Yemen at a wedding hosted by a tribal leader known to support the Houthi rebels. (AP via ABC News) (The New York Times)

Health and medicine

The World Health Organization announces that, since the Ebola outbreak began in March 2014, last week marked the first week of no new cases worldwide. (Time)

Law and crime

The High Court of Australia rules that the breast cancer gene BRCA-1 cannot be patented and the patent claimed by Myriad Genetics is invalid. (ABC News Australia)
China’s Central Commission for Discipline Inspection announces their investigation of Fujian governor Su Shulin, the former chairman of China Petroleum and Chemical Corporation, on suspicion of serious disciplinary violations, the “euphemism for corruption.” This follows the massive anti-corruption drive President Xi Jinping launched when he came to power more than three years ago. (Reuters via Daily Mail) (South China Morning Post)
Brazil’s Federal Accounts Court (TCU), in a unanimous 8-0 decision, rules that President Dilma Rousseff’s government manipulated its accounts in 2014 to disguise a widening fiscal deficit. The ruling, while not legally binding, is expected to be used by opposition lawmakers who are calling for impeachment proceedings. (Reuters) (AP)

Science

Tomas Lindahl, Paul L. Modrich and Aziz Sancar win the 2015 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for their work in DNA repair. (BBC)

Sport

2015 FIFA corruption case
- Fédération Internationale de Football Association ethics committee recommends FIFA President Sepp Blatter be suspended, re: the Swiss attorney general’s ongoing criminal investigation. The final decision will be made by Chairman of the Ethics Committee’s adjudication chamber, Hans-Joachim Eckert. (BBC) (Daily Mail)
The Chicago Cubs beat the Pittsburgh Pirates 4-0 in the MLB National League Wild Card Game. (ESPN)

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October 8, 2015

Top News Stories –

Google purchases abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz.com –
Google has purchased the domain name abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz.com in the wake of its restructuring as Alphabet, continuing its domain purchase spree. The company launched conglomerate Alphabet’s site on ABC.xyz back in August, a move which saw the internet giant cleave its core YouTube, search, Android and email business from its ambitious research divisions, including the secretive Google X labs division. Domaininvesting.com noted that abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz.com was originally created in 1999, and that Google is now registered as the owner of the site under Whois records. Alphabet’s home page is abc.xyz, so the company now has one of the longest domain names around as well as one of the shortest. However, the site notes, it’s unlikely that even Google will be able to pursuade BMW to sell them alphabet.com, or news network ABC to give up ABC.com. Google will probably choose to leave the site as an inactive placeholder, rather than populate it with any new Alphabet content, and it’s unknown how much they paid to gain control of the name. [Daily Telegraph]
Structure of Alphabet companies

Daniel Craig: ‘I would rather slash my wrists than do another Bond film’ –
Daniel Craig has said he would rather “slash my wrists” than do another James Bond film. The star, who will reprise his role as the British spy for the fourth time in the forthcoming SPECTRE movie, told Time Out magazine he wanted to “move on” from the franchise. But he added if he were to do another 007 film it would “only be for the money”. When asked whether he could imagine doing another Bond movie, he said: “Now? I’d rather break this glass and slash my wrists. No, not at the moment. Not at all. That’s fine. I’m over it at the moment. We’re done. All I want to do is move on.” [Daily Telegraph] In March 2015 Bond stars Daniel Craig and Roger Moore teamed up for a special 007 sketch for UK’s Comic Relief
Daniel Craig

France Train Hero Stabbed –
Spencer Stone suffered what police described as “significant” injuries during a street brawl while out with friends in Sacramento, California. The US airman is in a stable condition in hospital after reportedly being stabbed four times in the chest.The incident, which took place at 12.45am (local time) on Thursday morning, is not thought to be connected to terrorism. Mr Stone – along with friends Alek Skarlatos and Anthony Sadler – was hailed as a hero in August after subduing a heavily armed gunman on a train heading from Amsterdam to Paris. [Sky News]
Chris Norman, Anthony Sadler, President Hollande, Spencer Stone and Alek Skarlatos after their Legion of Honor ceremony at the Élysée Palace on August 25, 2015

Video of the Day –

The War on Science – ASAP Science

Top Twitter Trends –

	Worldwide	USA	UK
1	#NationalPoetryDay	#NationalPoetryDay	Privy Council
2	아이유	#ScareMeIn3Words	#NationalPoetryDay
3	#WeAreHereForYouSelena	Rupert Murdoch	#MakeSomeNoise
4	#AHSHotel	#MakeBaseballExciting	#ScareMeIn3Words
5	#JustinPauPequeno	#HeyEverybody	#AHSHotel
6	Emma Watson	Paul Ryan	#NXTTakeOver
7	#جده_لايف	Speaker	Svetlana Alexievich
8	#FelizJueves	#NYCC	#FIFA
9	Svetlana Alexievich	#TipsOnBeingSuperCool	#WorldSightDay
10	#Empire	Svetlana Alexievich	#aurora

Other News Stories –

Armed conflicts and attacks

Yemeni Civil War (2015), Saudi Arabian-led intervention in Yemen
- Government forces and their allies, including troops from a Saudi Arabian-led coalition, capture the town of Sirwah, the last outpost of Houthi militants in the key Marib province. (The Australian)
- Yemeni military forces backed by Houthi militants reportedly destroy a Saudi warship off the coast of Yemen in the strategic Bab-el-Mandeb strait. (Press TV) (Fars News) (Independent)
Syrian Civil War, Foreign involvement in the Syrian Civil War
- Saudi Arabia and other Gulf Arab states are reportedly ‘stepping up’ arms supplies to at least three Syrian rebel groups in response to the recent Russian intervention in the civil war. (BBC)

Law and crime

Spencer Stone, one of the individuals involved in stopping the gunman in the August 2015 Thalys train attack, is stabbed in downtown Sacramento. He is in stable condition at a hospital with what are believed to be non-life threatening wounds. (MSN)

Arts and culture

Belarusian author and journalist Svetlana Alexievich wins the 2015 Nobel Prize in Literature. (The Guardian)

Business and economy

Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA) and the United Auto Workers (UAW) reach a new tentative four-year labor agreement, averting a threatened strike of the automaker’s U.S. operations. The agreement must be ratified by a vote of FCA’s 40,000 U.S. union workers, who rejected the previous proposal earlier this month. If ratified, the UAW intends to use the pact as a template for negotiations with General Motors Co. and Ford Motor Company. (Reuters) (Detroit Free Press)

Disasters and accidents

2015 Pacific typhoon season
- Thousands of people are evacuated on the Japanese island of Hokkaido as Typhoon Choi-wan approaches from the east. (AAP via SBS)
2015 Southeast Asian haze
- The President of Indonesia Joko Widodo announces that he will seek help from other nations in putting out illegally lit forest fires that have caused the haze. (Channel News Asia)
Ecuador‘s restive Cotopaxi volcano erupts. (Fox News)

Politics and elections

European migrant crisis
- The German state of Bavaria plans “emergency measures” in response to the migrant crisis, including deporting migrants back to Austria and closing the border. An estimated 225,000 migrants have arrived in the southern German state in less than five weeks. (Yahoo)
U.S. House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy, who had been the favorite to replace outgoing House Speaker John Boehner, withdraws from the race. (Fox News)

Sports

2015 FIFA corruption case: FIFA suspends Sepp Blatter, Michel Platini and Jerome Valcke from all football-related activities for 90 days amid allegations of corruption. (BBC)

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October 9, 2015

Top News Stories –

Justin Bieber’s lawyers demand nude photos are removed from US news website –
Justin Bieber’s legal team is demanding that media websites who have published naked photos of the star remove them immediately. The Hollywood Reporter claims to have seen a lawyer’s letter sent to the New York Daily News, which originally published the pictures of the star on holiday in French Polynesia. The photos of the singer in Bora Bora are still live on the US website. Bieber’s legal team says the publication of the photos represent a breach of the singer’s publicity and privacy rights. The photos also, according to the letter, infringe Bieber’s trademarks. The legal document is demanding action within 12 hours of receipt. [BBC Newsbeat]
Justin Bieber

One Direction announce new single “Perfect” and release date –
One Direction’s next Made in the A.M. single’s accidentally been announced as ‘Perfect’ thanks to a classic tweet-and-delete scenario from those crazy critters at Apple Music. Awkies. Yup – we already knew the Harry Styles and Louis Tomlinson-penned tune had been registered; but now it looks like the track’s gonna be the second proper single off of the fifth album following ‘Drag Me Down.’ And ‘Infinity,’ if you wanna count that. [Sugarscape]

Video of the Day –

PRIDE AND PREJUDICE AND ZOMBIES – Official UK Trailer #1 (2016)

Top Twitter Trends –

	Worldwide	USA	UK
1	#Perfect	#Perfect	#FridayFeeling
2	#MissVenezuela	Raven Symone	#KissMe
3	マーニー	#FridayFeeling	John Lennon
4	Hayırlı Cumalar	#RedneckIn3Words	Pauline Cafferkey
5	#ConfidentMusicVideoTODAY	Northern Arizona University	#WorldEggDay
6	#BuenViernes	#SoundsLiveFeelsLive	#Perfect
7	#TheVoiceBrasil	Google Drive	#bbcqt
8	Raven Symone	John Lennon	#KloppLFC
9	Messi	#HardestPartAboutBreakingUp	Zoe Williams
10	#BuyRevivalOniTunes	#NobelPeacePrize	#firstdates

Other News Stories –

Armed conflicts and attacks

Syrian Civil War
- Battle of Aleppo (2012–present)
  - Iranian state television says Revolutionary Guard brigadier general, Hossein Hamadani, has been killed on the outskirts of Syria’s Aleppo by Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant militants. This is the latest in a string of high-ranking Iranian commanders killed in Iraq and Syria in the last six months. (Independent)
  - Islamic State militants launch an offensive north of Aleppo, seizing several rebel-held villages, as well as the strategic former Syrian Army base known as the ‘Infantry Academy’. (AP via The Washington Times)
  - United Nations condemns the killing of Anadolu Agency Turkish photojournalist Saleh Mahmoud Laila in Thursday’s ISIS suicide attack at a marketplace in Huraytan, north of Aleppo. (Daily Sabah) (Novinite)
- Foreign involvement in the Syrian Civil War
  - United States suspends its 500 million dollar Syrian rebel training program. The new strategy will shift toward supplying military aid “to a select group of vetted leaders and their units so that over time they can make a concerted push into territory still controlled by ISIL,” a U.S. official said. (CNN) (ABC News)
Israeli–Palestinian conflict
- Hamas‘ leader in Gaza, Ismail Haniyeh, declares an “Intifada” against Israel in the West Bank and says, “Gaza will fulfil its role in the Jerusalem intifada and it is more than ready for confrontation” with Israel. Over 20 stabbing attacks have happened in the last 24 hours in Israel. (The Telegraph) (The Guardian)
- An Israeli stabs and injures two Bedouin arabs and two Palestinians in the southern city of Dimona. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu “strongly condemned the harming of innocent Arabs.” (Washington Post)
- Israel Defense Forces kill six Palestinian protesters and wound 60 at the Gaza Strip border, according to Gaza medics. The protesters attempted to destroy the “border” fence between Gaza and Israel and IDF soldiers “responded with fire on the main instigators in order to prevent them progressing and to disperse the riot,” according to the IDF. (Reuters) (CNN)
- Riyad Mansour, Palestinian ambassador to the UN, urges Security Council President Román Oyarzun to hold an emergency meeting on the latest tensions with Israel. (AP via WHDH TV)
Iraqi Civil War (2014–present)
- Iraqi police officials say at least 35 people have been killed following a mortar bombardment of villages near the eastern city of Baqubah, capital of the Diyala Governorate. Officials did not speculate on who may be responsible for the attack, however theIslamic State group has claimed responsibility for several recent attacks in the volatile province. (AP via ABC News)

Disasters and accidents

2015 Mina stampede
- A new tally by the Associated Press places the death count from the Mina stampede at 1,453 killed making it the deadliest disaster ever to occur during the Hajj. (AP via MSN)
2015 Guatemala landslide
- The death toll from the landslides in Guatemala rises to 253 with 374 people still missing. (Reuters via Melbourne Age)

International relations

Libyan Civil War (2014–present)
- The United Nations envoy for Libya, Bernardino León, proposes a government of national unity for Libya led by Fayez Sarraj as Prime Minister. (BBC)
Australia is to send refugees from Nauru and Manus Island to the Philippines. (Sydney Morning Herald)
The Tunisian National Dialogue Quartet wins the 2015 Nobel Peace Prize for its “decisive contribution to the building of a pluralistic democracy in Tunisia in the wake of the Jasmine Revolution of 2011.” The Tunisian General Labour Union (UGTT), theTunisian Confederation of Industry, Trade and Handicrafts (UTICA), the Tunisian Human Rights League (LTDH), and the Tunisian Order of Lawyers comprise the quartet. (BBC) (CNN) (Nobel Peace Prize)
Territorial disputes in the South China Sea
- China says it will “not stand for violations of its territorial waters in the name of freedom of navigation“, following a statement from a Pentagon official, that the U.S. may consider sailing warships close to China’s disputed artificial islands in the South China Sea within the next two weeks. (Reuters)

Law and crime

School shootings
- One student is killed and three others wounded during an early morning shooting in a Northern Arizona University dorm in Flagstaff, Arizona. The suspected shooter was taken into custody. (New York Daily News) (NPR)
- One person is killed and another wounded, with a person in custody, in a shooting at an apartment complex near the Texas Southern University campus in southeast Houston, Texas. This is the second shooting involving TSU this week. A man is in serious, but stable, condition after being shot on the campus’s Tiger Walk on Tuesday. (Houston Chronicle) (Reuters)
WikiLeaks releases the intellectual property section of the finalized Trans-Pacific Partnership intended to be withheld until after October 19. (WikiLeaks) (International Business Times)

Politics and elections

European migrant crisis
- The southern German state of Bavaria threatens to take the Federal German government to court if it fails to take immediate steps to limit the flow of migrants to Germany. Over 200,000 migrants are estimated to have entered Germany since the beginning of September, the vast majority over the Austrian border into Bavaria. (Reuters)

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October 10, 2015

October 11, 2015

Top News Stories –

Shia LaBeouf Arrested For Public Intoxication –
Transformers star Shia LaBeouf has been arrested in Austin, Texas for public intoxication. A video on the TMZ website appears to show the actor in handcuffs as police put him in the back of a patrol car. Witnesses told the site the actor was acting bizarrely, running down the street, jaywalking and ignoring police warnings. The Austin City Limits music festival is currently taking place in the city. Records show the 29-year-old was booked into Travis County Jail on Friday night and later released. [Sky News]
Shia Labeouf

Japan: Citizens clamour for Tokyo disaster manual –
A manual to help people in Tokyo prepare for disasters has proved so popular that local officials have complained that they are being sold on the internet for profit. The 340-page Tokyo Bousai (“Disaster Preparedness Tokyo”) appears in a startling yellow cover, and 7.5m copies are being distributed free of charge to Tokyo residents. It’s currently available to download in Japanese and English from the city government’s website, but for those who still crave a physical copy of the manual, the Tokyo government is considering selling it at cost price. [BBC]
Tokyo Disaster Manual

Video of the Day –

Living Rivers – Surf from Epic Montana on Vimeo.

Top Twitter Trends –

	Worldwide	USA	UK
1	#WorldMentalHealthDay	#WorldMentalHealthDay	#WorldMentalHealthDay
2	#EsViernesY	#WhatIWantOnMyTombstone	#nonleagueday
3	#Ankaradayız	#JusticeOrElse	#25Millionaires
4	과자전	Ankara	#ZaynTaughtUs
5	#ZaynTaughtUs	Shia LaBeouf	Geoffrey Howe
6	タイバニ	#HamOrCheeseMovies	Jim Diamond
7	#TengoGanasDe	#ZaynTaughtUs	#AUSvWAL
8	게살버거	As Told By Ginger	#BBC4
9	#EBDabarkadsPaMore	#IHaveToRemindMyself	#5sosonchattyman
10	#Felices24Lali	#MillionManMarch	#grahamnorton

Other News Stories –

Armed conflicts and attacks

Israeli–Palestinian conflict
- Palestinian militants fire 3 rockets into Israel during the night after several violent riots throughout Israel and the West Bank. (BBC)
- Israeli security forces shoot dead two Palestinians aged 12 and 15 in protests along Gaza’s border fence. (Reuters)
- The death toll from Friday’s violence at the Gaza Strip border is now seven Palestinians. Of the 60 wounded, 10 were seriously injured. Massive riots managed to breach the border fence and enter Israeli territory and were dispersed by live fire. (Ynet News)
2015 Ankara bombings
- Twin bomb blasts in the Turkish capital Ankara near the main train station leave at least 97 people dead and over 400 wounded. The bombing occurred during a peace rally protesting the conflict between Turkey and the militant Kurdish PKK. (BBC),(CNN), (Sky News Australia)
Boko Haram insurgency
- Five suicide bombers target a village in Chad that is home to thousands of Nigerian refugees who have fled Boko Haram, killing at least 36 people. (AP)
War in Afghanistan (2015–present)
- The U.S. Department of Defense will make payments to families of victims of last week’s U.S. airstrike that struck a Médecins Sans Frontières (Doctors Without Borders) hospital in the Afghan city of Kunduz. At least 22 people were killed including 12 staff members and 10 patients, including three children. MSF says 33 people are still missing and presumed to have died in the fire. (Reuters) (NBC News) (AFP via ABC News)
Mali conflict
- Suspected jihadists attack Dioungani, a village in central Mali, killing a local official in front of his family. (AP)

Disasters and accidents

At least eight people have died in a major fire at a halting site for Irish travellers in the south of Dublin. (Irish Times)

International relations

Territorial disputes in the South China Sea
- China completes the construction of two lighthouses on the disputed Spratly Islands in the South China Sea according to Chinese state media. The U.S. and the Philippines have opposed the construction efforts. (The Guardian)
North Korea holds a massive military parade in its capital, Pyongyang, to celebrate the 70th anniversary of Workers’ Party of Korea rule in the country. (BBC)
Egypt–France relations
- During a state visit to Cairo by French prime minister Manuel Valls, Egypt officially signs a deal with France to purchase the two Mistral-class helicopter carriers that were originally destined for Russia but France refused to deliver due to the Ukrainian crisis. Russia will sell Egypt the helicopters originally intended for the ships. (Times of India)

Politics and elections

Over 100,000 people protest in Berlin against the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership accord between the European Union and the United States. (RT), (DW), (CNBC), (France24)

News from Wikipedia – please support this valuable resource

October 11, 2015

Top News Stories –

Vanuatu president’s anger as stand-in pardons himself –
The president of the Pacific island nation of Vanuatu has expressed his anger after his deputy pardoned himself and 13 other convicts while he was out of the country. Speaker Marcellino Pipite was one of 14 MPs – half of the country’s parliament – who were convicted last Friday of giving and receiving corrupt payments over a vote of no confidence in a previous government. With President Baldwin Lonsdale out of the country on Saturday, Pipite used his delegated powers to gazette a pardon for himself and his fellow defendants. Vanuatu’s constitution allows the speaker to assume presidential powers in the absence of the head of the republic, including the power of pardon. [BBC]

Aerosmith To Donald Trump: Stop Using Our Song –
Aerosmith lead singer Steven Tyler has asked Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump to stop using the band’s power ballad Dream On at campaign events. Attorneys for Tyler have sent a second cease-and-desist letter to Mr Trump’s campaign committee, saying he does “not have our client’s permission to use Dream On or any of Tyler’s other songs”. The letter adds that it “gives the false impression that he is connected with or endorses Mr Trump’s presidential bid”. Tyler, a registered Republican, went to the GOP contenders’ first debate in August. Attorney Dina LaPolt said in a statement that the letter is not a “political” or “personal issue with Mr Trump”, but one of permission and copyright. [Sky News]
Steven Tyler

Video of the Day –

INPUT/OUTPUT from Terri Timely on Vimeo.

List of the Day –

Aerosmith Studio Album discography

Aerosmith (1973)
Get Your Wings (1974)
Toys in the Attic (1975)
Rocks (1976)
Draw the Line (1977)
Night in the Ruts (1979)
Rock in a Hard Place (1982)
Done with Mirrors (1985)
Permanent Vacation (1987)
Pump (1989)
Get a Grip (1993)
Nine Lives (1997)
Just Push Play (2001)
Honkin’ On Bobo (2004)
Music from Another Dimension! (2012)

Top Twitter Trends –

	Worldwide	USA	UK
1	#النفسيه_محتاجه	#NationalComingOutDay	#NationalComingOutDay
2	#lilokiss	Utley	#WhatIWantOnMyTombstone
3	Utley	#lilokiss	#royalparkshalf
4	#Yastayız	#SNL	#RussianGP
5	OS WALKERS ESTÃO DE VOLTA	The Hills	Agnes
6	#USAvMEX	#ChicagoMarathon	#USAvMEX
7	#شي_ماتقدر_تقا�…	#CALvsUTAH	Cara and Kendall
8	#NationalComingOutDay	#TheWalkingDead	#6hFuji
9	MATIAS CON VOS SIEMPRE	Julius Thomas	#INDvSA
10	#INDvSA	Charles Woodson	#XFactor

Other News Stories –

Armed conflicts and attacks

Israeli–Palestinian conflict
- Israeli airstrikes targeting Hamas weapons facilities in the Gaza Strip result in an explosion that collapsed a nearby house, killing a 30-year old pregnant Palestinian woman and her two-year old daughter. Four others were wounded, including the woman’s husband and son, the Gaza Health Ministry said. The Israeli military said the airstrike was in response to Saturday’s pair of rocket launches from Gaza at Israel, as well as two large riots that succeeded in breaching the border fence. (Reuters) (AP via New York Times) (AFP via New Indian Express)
- Israeli traffic police stop a Palestinian woman transporting a small car bomb within Israeli territory near Jerusalem. She detonates the bomb, lightly wounding a police officer and critically wounding herself. (AP via Houston Chronicle) (AFP via NDTV)
War in Afghanistan (2015–present)
- A suicide bomber targets a foreign forces convoy in the Joy Shir area of Kabul. Taliban insurgents claim responsibility. A statement from Afghanistan’s Interior Ministry reported at least three civilians were wounded. There are no report of casualties among the foreign forces. (AFP via Times of India) (Reuters)
- Five members of the NATO-led coalition die and five others are injured in a non-combat helicopter crash in Kabul. The Associated Press reported the chopper collided with a monitoring balloon on landing. Nationalities weren’t identified by NATO’sResolute Support; the British said two were Royal Air Force personnel. (BBC) (CNN) (USA Today)
Syrian Civil War
- Following Russian airstrikes, the Syrian army and allied Lebanese Hezbollah militia take control of a highland area in Idlib province close to insurgent-held positions, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. (Reuters) (Malaysian Insider)
Boko Haram insurgency in Cameroon
- At least eight people are killed following a suicide bomb attack in northern Cameroon‘s Sangueleri region near the Nigerian border. Boko Haram have previously carried out attacks in the region. (Business Standard)
Turkey–PKK conflict
- The Turkish Air Force launches a wave of airstrikes against PKK targets in northern Iraq and southeastern Turkey. Turkish security officials have also rejected a PKK ceasefire declared on Saturday shortly after the bombings in Ankara, saying “The PKK ceasefire means nothing for us. The operations will continue without a break”. (Reuters)
- Thousands gather in Ankara to pay their respects to those killed in Saturday’s peace rally bombings. Marches and sit-ins protesting the attack were also held in Istanbul. No group has claimed responsibility. Turkey’s already polarized political parties traded accusations of responsibility for the attack. National elections are still scheduled for November 1, 2015. (Los Angeles Times) (The Guardian) (CNN)
Iraqi Civil War (2014–present)
- Iraq’s military reports bombing a convoy possibly carrying Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant leader, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi. The group was headed to a meeting in the western Al Anbar Governorate, close to the Syrian border. Eight senior ISIS figures were killed, but al-Baghdadi did not appear to be among them according to Iraqi officials. (Reuters) (New York Daily News)
Saudi Arabian-led intervention in Yemen
- An Arab coalition airstrike on a prison in Yemen‘s central Al Bayda Governorate, reportedly kills 20 prisoners. The prison which held more than 100 prisoners was controlled by the Houthis. (Yahoo)

International relations

South Africa plans to leave the International Criminal Court (ICC) as the government faces criticism for, earlier this year, ignoring a court order to arrest Sudan’s president. (Reuters)

Law and crime

Iranian Students News Agency reports an undisclosed verdict has been reached in the espionage case of Washington Post reporter Jason Rezaian, who has been held by Iran for more than 14 months. The final closed door hearing on Rezaian’s case was on August 10, 2015. By not disclosing details, the Post stated that it seems Tehran could be working a political angle. Last month at the UN, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani told journalists he would welcome quicker steps on mutual prisoner releases.(Washington Post) (Christian Science Monitor) (Reuters)
A shooting at a house in Omeath, County Louth in the Republic of Ireland leaves two men dead, including an on-duty police officer. (BBC)
A 15-hour protest about police-related deaths, in Thalang on Thailand’s Phuket Island in the Andaman Sea, turned into a riot when the crowd attacked the Thalang Police Station with rocks and fire bombs. Two young men were killed in a motorcycle crash while being chased by police. Fourteen police were injured, nine cars were torched, 13 others and five motorcycles damaged. While numerous people were inconvenienced by the blockade, a heart attack patient died on his way to Thalang Hospital when the ambulance couldn’t get through the crowd. (AP via Fox News) (Celebcafe.org) (Immortal.org) (PhuketWan Tourism News)

Politics and elections

Belarusian presidential election, 2015
- Belarussian President Alexander Lukashenko won a fifth term by a landslide in today’s election. (Radio Free Europe), (Reuters) (Reuters)
Guinean presidential election, 2015
- Millions of Guineans vote peacefully in the West African country’s second free election since gaining independence from France nearly 60 years ago. Ballot counting started; the provisional outcome is not expected until the end of this week, an official said. Incumbent President Alpha Conde is expected to win reelection. (Deutsche Welle)

Sport

Bathurst 1000
- In motor sport, Australian driver Craig Lowndes wins the 2015 Supercheap Auto Bathurst 1000 for the sixth time. He also appeared on the podium for the 13th time, setting a new record for the event. (NZ Newswire via Yahoo! 7)

News from Wikipedia – please support this valuable resource

October 12, 2015

Top News Stories –

Queen’s advisers strip Jeremy Corbyn of ‘Right Honourable’ title after Privy Council snub –
The Queen’s advisers told Parliament to strip Jeremy Corbyn of his “Right Honourable” status after Number 10 wrongly implied the Labour leader had joined the Privy Council, The Daily Telegraph can disclose. Mr Corbyn was described on Parliament’s website as “Right Honourable”, which denotes membership of the centuries-old Privy Council, until late last week. The Labour leader was also described as a “Right Honourable Gentleman” by Prime Minister David Cameron when they faced each other in the Commons last month, days after he was voted in as Labour leader. However, after Mr Corbyn failed to attend the first meeting of the Privy Council since the summer holidays with the Queen last Thursday, the “Rt Hon” title was removed from Mr Corbyn’s page on Parliament’s website. [Daily Telegraph]

Swedish police called on a beard club because they were mistaken for Isil –
The police in Sweden were shocked to receive a call from a passer-by that alerted them to a possible Isil warrior group, north of the city Jönköping. When they arrived, they “had a good laugh” – the group mistaken for Isil was actually a beard club called the Bearded Villians. They had stopped in the area in order to take a photo together, posing with a sign which, from a distance, could be mistaken for the Isil flag. [Daily Telegraph]

Bearded Villains

Video of the Day –

Apollo Missions from harrisonicus on Vimeo.

Top Twitter Trends –

	Worldwide	USA	UK
1	フォロワーA	#MakeMondayBetterIn3Words	#mondaymotivation
2	#TheWalkingDead	#mondaymotivation	#ChocolateWeek
3	#LeventKırca	#ColumbusDay	#FishUpAMovie
4	#nadaquecelebrar	#IndigenousPeoplesDay	Angus Deaton
5	#كلمه_تختصر_في�…	Happy Thanksgiving	Julian Assange
6	#QuandoEraCriancaEu	Wallace	#NationalCurryWeek
7	#WeArePerfect	#1DImSorryFor	June Sarpong
8	Angus Deaton	Angus Deaton	#1DImSorryFor
9	Viva España	Carlos Correa	#StrongerIn
10	#ConfiesoQue	Jason Rezaian	#TheWalkingDead

Other News Stories –

Armed conflicts and attacks

2015 Ankara bombings
- The Prime Minister of Turkey Ahmet Davutoglu states that Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant is the prime suspect in Saturday’s bombing. (Reuters via Thomson Reuters Foundation)
Israeli-Palestinian Conflict, Palestinian political violence
- Palestinians carried out three stabbing attacks against Israeli citizens and police in Jerusalem today with two of the attackers shot dead as the wave of violence continues, police said. There have been a series of stabbing attacks in Israel and the West Bank in recent days that have wounded several Israelis; nine attackers have been shot dead. Also, at least 16 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces during/after violent demonstrations in the West Bank and Gaza. (AP via Houston Chronicle)(Times of Israel) (Israel National News)
- An Arab attempting to stab pedestrians on a street in Tel Aviv is subdued by bystanders, with no injuries reported. (Israel National News)
- Two Palestinian teenagers stab and critically injure a Jewish teenager and another man in East Jerusalem’s Pisgat Ze’ev neighborhood in the third stabbing attack in the capital in six hours; one attacker is neutralized by a motorist and the second is shot dead by police. (The Jerusalem Post)
Islamist militants kill two Tunisian soldiers and injure four others who were seeking to free a man kidnapped in a mountainous area near the border with Algeria. (Reuters) (Azeri-Press Agency)
Syrian Civil War, American-led intervention in Syria
- U.S. cargo planes airdrop small arms ammunition and other supplies to Syrian rebels, including Kurdish groups such as YPG, in northern Syria. (Reuters)

Business and economics

U.S. computer maker Dell takes over EMC Corporation for $US67 billion. (BBC)

International relations

Syria Civil War, Foreign involvement
- European Union foreign ministers, gathered in Luxembourg to discuss the situation in Syria, release a statement urging Russia to stop its attacks in Syria and direct efforts towards a political solution. (Daily Sabah) (Australian Broadcasting Corporation) (European Council)

Law and crime

Iranian State television reports that court spokesman Gholam-Hossein Mohseni-Eje’i clarified the Iranian-American reporter’s verdict — Washington Post’s Jason Rezaian was convicted in a closed-door espionage trial that ended two months ago. Details remain unknown. Rezaian faced four charges; it’s not clear whether he was convicted of all charges nor what sentence was imposed. Leila Ahsan, Rezaian’s lawyer, also had not received the verdict as of Sunday. Post executive editor Martin Baron says they will appeal. (The Washington Post) (Payvand.com)
London police end their three-year long, round-the-clock guard outside the Ecuadorian Embassy waiting to arrest WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange. Officers have been stationed at this embassy since June 2012. Police said the operation cost 11.1 million pounds (17.6 million dollars) through April 2015. Assange is wanted for jumping bail in England and sexual assault allegations in Sweden. Assange denies the Swedish charges and suspects the real reason is bring him to the U.S. (NBC News) (AP via Newser) (London Metropolitan Police)
Post 2011 Egyptian Revolution trials
- Cairo’s criminal court orders the release of the sons of former Egyptian leader Hosni Mubarak, who are waiting for the Court of Appeal’s decision in a financial corruption case. Each was sentenced to three years. The court ruled Gamal and Alaa Mubarak, who were initially detained in April 2011, had already served the requisite time in prison for the sentence. (New York Daily News) (Reuters)

Politics and elections

Jioji Konrote is elected President of Fiji by the country’s Parliament. Konrote, Fiji’s Minister for Employment, Productivity and Industrial Relations, received 31 votes, defeating Epeli Ganilau, who garnered 14 votes. (Radio New Zealand International)
The Vanuatuan Speaker of the Parliament, Marcellino Pipite, serving as acting President, pardons himself and 13 other MPs who had been found guilty of bribery on 9 October 2015. (ABC News)

Science

Angus Deaton wins the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences for his analysis of consumption, poverty, and welfare, helping redefine the way poverty is measured around the world, notably in India. (Huffington Post) (Washington Post)

News from Wikipedia – please support this valuable resource

October 13, 2015

Top News Stories –

Chess gets ‘sexy’ in million dollar Las Vegas tournament
The cerebral, centuries-old pastime of chess is not something normally associated with the glitz of Las Vegas. But amid the neon lights of the Planet Hollywood casino some of the world’s greatest grandmasters gathered to battle it out for $1 million in prize money at the game’s most lucrative ever tournament. There were tears and tantrums, controversial rulings, and stunning upsets – and that was exactly what the organisers wanted. The competition, called Millionaire Chess, was a concerted effort to “sex up” the favorite hobby of nerdy schoolboys, and ultimately turn it into a money-spinning television sport. To that end a Big Brother-style “confessional” booth was installed where players revealed their inner turmoil to a camera between moves and “trash talked” their opponents. The tournament was eventually won by [World number 2] Hikaru Nakamura. Following the biggest payday of his stellar chess career he said: “I want to thank the organisers. They have tried to make chess sexy and that’s what chess needs. There are so many stereotypes out there about chess. This is very special.” [Daily Telegraph]
Hikaru Nakamura

Playboy Magazine abandons nudity –
Playboy magazine is stopping publishing pictures of totally nude women because the internet has made them outdated, its US owners say. It’s a break with a 62-year format that has had a significant impact on American culture. Every month since 1953, fold-out spreads of fully nude women have filled Playboy. The glossy adult men’s magazine boasts a plethora of celebrity conquests in its portfolio. Madonna, Sharon Stone and Naomi Campbell were photographed at the peak of their fame. Kate Moss posed for its front cover in a bunny outfit. Lindsay Lohan and Pamela Anderson have also graced it. [BBC] Coincidentally today is international “No Bra Day” – See Top Twitter Trends

Facebook Briefly Bans The Phrase ‘Everyone Will Know’ –
Facebook blocked the phrase “everyone will know” for more than a day, but users are now once again able to post the seemingly innocuous three words. “This was a mistake with our spam filter and our engineers have resolved the issue,” Melanie Ensign of Facebook security communications told The Huffington Post. HuffPost also independently confirmed that the phrase can now be posted. “We’re constantly updating the rules used by our spam-fighting engine and this particular phrase erroneously got caught in the mix,” she explained. Ensign didn’t know exactly how long the phrase had been banned. On Friday, someone asked on Question.com, “Why can’t you post ‘everyone will know’ on Facebook?” Another user replied they also were unable to post the phrase as a status. On Sunday, a Reddit thread was filled with people claiming they were unable to post the phrase as a status or in a comment. [Huffington Post]

Video of the Day –

Because he can

Top Twitter Trends –

	Worldwide	USA	UK
1	Martes 13	#GiveTwitterASlogan	#NoBraDay
2	#NoBraDay	#DemDebate	#GiveTwitterASlogan
3	#SabesQueTeQuiereCuando	#NoBraDay	#AdaLovelaceDay
4	Emilia Clarke	#AMAs	#theatreheroesday
5	#WeArePerfectDay2	#BetterDebateQuestions	#RAW
6	Vick	T.I.	Royal Mail
7	#كلمه_اول_ماتع�…	Jennifer Lawrence	#PAKvENG
8	#AMAs	#AdaLovelaceDay	#BritishProblemsNight
9	#Martes13	Nudes Are Old News	Diane Abbott
10	#ZaynWeAreReadyForYourMusic	Pitchfork	Danny Cohen

Other News Stories –

Armed conflicts and attacks

Syrian Civil War, Russian involvement in the Syrian Civil War
- Two shells hit the Russian embassy in Syria‘s capital Damascus, as hundreds of pro-government supporters rallied outside in support of Russian airstrikes. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov described the shelling as “a terrorist act.” (BBC)
Israeli–Palestinian conflict, Palestinian political violence
- Two stabbing attacks take place in Ra’anana: one outside city hall in which one man is injured and the attacker is subdued by civilians; in a second incident, the attacker stabs civilians in front of a cafe, injuring one critically and three lightly until he is subdued by civilians. (The Jerusalem Post)
- In Jerusalem two men attempted to stab passengers on a bus before being shot; one person was killed and another wounded as a driver rammed into a crowd and the attacker reportedly stepped out of the crashed vehicle and attempted to stab the wounded before being subdued by police; in a separate incident two male passengers were killed and three others suffered gunshot wounds in a combined shooting and stabbing attack on a bus in the neighborhood of Armon Hanatziv in southern Jerusalem. (The Times of Israel)

Arts and culture

Jamaican author Marlon James wins the 2015 Man Booker Prize for his novel A Brief History of Seven Killings inspired by the attempted assassination of Bob Marley in the 1970s. (BBC)

Disasters and accidents

The Dutch Safety Board releases their final report into the Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 (MH17) disaster that concludes that the flight from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur was shot-down by a Russian-made Buk missile system on 17 July 2014 killing 298 people.(Sky News) (BBC) (Al Jazeera) (9News)
At least 13 people are killed as a rockslide hits shanties in the Gulistan-i-Jauhar in the Pakistani city of Karachi. (Dawn)

Business and economics

InBev agrees to buy its main rival SABMiller for £68 billion ($104 billion) in biggest beer deal ever. (CNN)

International relations

Relocation of Marine Corps Air Station Futenma
- The Governor of the Japanese prefecture of Okinawa, Takeshi Onaga, revokes permission given by a predecessor for landfill work to replace a United States Marine Corps base. (Japan Times)
Iran‘s Islamic Consultative Assembly approves the deal on its nuclear program agreed with six world powers. (BBC)

Territorial disputes in the South China Sea
- United States and Australia warn China they remain committed to freedom of navigation in the waters of the South China Sea and express strong concerns at China’s construction of artificial islands in the disputed waters. (Channel News Asia) (The New Daily) (Time)

Politics and elections

Burkina Faso‘s presidential and parliamentary elections are deferred to November 29 due to a recent coup. (Yahoo! News)

News from Wikipedia – please support this valuable resource

October 14, 2015

Top News Stories –

‘Muggle’ becomes internet sensation after Democrat debate –
Amid the suited spin doctors and political professionals, one maverick in the Democratic Presidential Debate really stood out. And it wasn’t Bernie Sanders. The internet was abuzz with musings about who the striking white-haired person in the audience could be. Bathed in a blue light from the studio settings, the man was seemingly oblivious to the sensation he was creating. And his identity remains a mystery – for now – and so online jokers have come up with their own answers. [Daily Telegraph]
Muggle at Democrat conference?

Kendrick Lamar and Big Sean both win three BET Hip Hop Awards –
Kendrick Lamar and Big Sean were the big winners at this year’s BET Hip Hop Awards. Both rappers won three prizes followed by Drake, J. Cole and Fetty Wap, who all won two. Lamar, who enjoyed success earlier this year with his third album To Pimp A Butterfly, was named lyricist of the year at the ceremony which took place in Atlanta, Georgia. He also won awards for impact track and hip hop video for his single Alright. [BBC Newsbeat] See List of the Day for full winners list.
Kendrick_Lamar

Video of the Day –

Man cuts ball fired at 160 kmh with samaurai sword

From comments:
Assuming the radar gun reads the highest velocity, and taking drag into consideration, the ball hits the sword after around 211 ms. If he is using the sound for triggering his reaction the sound would take ~3 ms to reach him and using the average audio stimulus reaction time of ~170 ms would leave him ~38 ms to draw the sword and hit the ball. That’s 0.038 seconds.

List of the Day –

BET Hip Hop Awards Winners 2015

Best Hip-Hop Video
Big Sean feat. Chris Brown and Ty Dolla $ign – “Play No Games”
Big Sean feat. Drake and Kanye West – “Blessings”
Fetty Wap – “Trap Queen”
Kendrick Lamar – “Alright” — WINNER
Nicki Minaj feat. Beyoncé – “Feeling Myself”

Best Collabo, Duo or Group
Big Sean feat. Drake and Kanye West – “Blessings” — WINNER
Big Sean feat. E-40 – “IDFWU”
Fetty Wap feat. Monty – “My Way”
Nicki Minaj feat. Beyoncé – “Feeling Myself”
Nicki Minaj feat. Drake and Lil Wayne – “Truffle Butter”

Best Live Performer
Drake
J. Cole — WINNER
Kanye West
Kendrick Lamar
Nicki Minaj

Lyricist of the Year
Big Sean
Drake
J. Cole
Kendrick Lamar — KENDRICK LAMAR
Nicki Minaj

Video Director of the Year
Alan Ferguson
Benny Boom — WINNER
Chris Robinson/Lil Chris
Colin Tilley
Director X

DJ of the Year
DJ Drama
DJ Envy
DJ Esco
DJ Khaled
DJ Mustard — WINNER

Producer of the Year
DJ Mustard — WINNER
J. Cole
Kanye West
Mike Will Made-It
Pharrell Williams
Timbaland

MVP of the Year
Big Sean
Drake — WINNER
Future
J. Cole
Kendrick Lamar
Nicki Minaj

Track of the Year
“Alright” – Produced by Pharrell Williams and Sounwave (Kendrick Lamar)
“Blessings” – Produced by Boi-1da and Vinylz (Big Sean feat. Drake and Kanye West)
“Commas” – Produced by DJ Spinz and Southside (Future)
“IDFWU” – Produced by Dj Dahi, Dj Mustard, Kanye West and Key Wane (Big Sean feat. E-40)
“Trap Queen” – Produced by Tony Fadd (Fetty Wap) – WINNER

Album of the Year
Big Sean – Dark Sky Paradise
Drake – If You’re Reading This It’s Too Late
J. Cole – 2014 Forest Hills Drive — WINNER
Kendrick Lamar – To Pimp A Butterfly
Nicki Minaj – The Pinkprint
Wale – The Album About Nothing

Who Blew Up Award
Bobby Shmurda
DeJ Loaf
Fetty Wap — WINNER
Rae Sremmurd
Tink

Hustler of the Year
Dr. Dre — WINNER
Drake
J. Cole
Jay Z
Nicki Minaj

Made-You-Look Award (Best Hip-Hop Style)
A$AP Rocky
DeJ Loaf — WINNER
Drake
Kanye West
Nicki Minaj

Best Club Banger
Big Sean feat. E-40 – “IDFWU” (Produced by Dj Dahi, Dj Mustard, Kanye West and Key Wane) — WINNER
Dej Loaf – “Try Me” (Produced by Dds)
Fetty Wap – “Trap Queen” (Produced by Tony Fadd)
Future – “Commas” (Produced by DJ Spinz and Southside)
Rich Homie Quan – “Flex (Ooh, Ooh, Ooh)” (Produced by DJ Spinz and Nitti Beatz)

Best Mixtape
Future – 56 Nights – WINNER
Future – Beast Mode
Future – Monster
Lil Wayne – Sorry 4 The Wait 2
Travis Scott – Days Before Rodeo

Sweet 16: Best Featured Verse
Drake – “Blessings” (Big Sean feat. Drake and Kanye West)
Drake – “My Way (Remix)” (Fetty Wap feat. Drake) — WINNER
E-40 – “IDFWU” (Big Sean feat. E-40)
Kendrick Lamar – “Classic Man (Remix)” (Jidenna feat. Kendrick Lamar)
Lil Wayne – “Truffle Butter” (Nicki Minaj feat. Drake and Lil Wayne)

Impact Track
Big Sean feat. Kanye West and John Legend – “One Man Can Change The World”
Common and John Legend – “Glory” (From The Motion Picture “Selma”)
J. Cole – “Apparently”
J. Cole – “Be Free”
Kendrick Lamar – “Alright” — WINNER

People’s Champ Award
Big Sean feat. Drake and Kanye West – “Blessings” — WINNER
Fetty Wap – “Trap Queen”
Future – “Commas”
Kendrick Lamar – “i”
Rae Sremmurd – “No Type”
Rich Homie Quan – “Flex (Ooh, Ooh, Ooh)”

Top Twitter Trends –

	Worldwide	USA	UK
1	#goodbyeMODEST	#NationalDessertDay	#phrasethatmakesyourheartsink
2	#DemDebate	#goodbyeMODEST	#DemDebate
3	Lamar Odom	#CanadianSuperheroes	#WorldMathsDay
4	#AltasGanasDe	Lamar Odom	Stephen Fry
5	#eushippo	#PSAT	#goodbyeMODEST
6	ME AND HARRY	Me and Harry	#PMQs
7	#بماذا_تشتهر_ب�…	#ScaryAdviceIn4Words	Lamar Odom
8	#BETHipHopAwards	#CarterReynolds	#ThankYouTakeThat
9	#NationalDessertDay	PSAT	#NCASC15
10	Yoko Ono	Kardashians	#ExOnTheBeach

Other News Stories –

Armed conflicts and attacks

The President of Indonesia Joko Widodo calls for calm in the province of Aceh after a person was killed and a church burned down yesterday. (Channel News Asia)
Syrian Civil War
- Iranian involvement in the Syrian Civil War
  - Two officers from the Iranian Revolutionary Guards are reportedly killed in Syria. (Al Arabiya)
  - Thousands of Iranian troops arrive in Syria to reportedly start a new offensive in the battle of Aleppo. (The Telegraph)
- Foreign involvement in the Syrian Civil War
  - The United States and Russia are finalizing a memorandum of understanding that sets out basic air safety procedures in the skies above Syria, according to a U.S. official. (Reuters)
Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, American-led intervention in Iraq (2014–present)
- ISIL confirms that U.S. forces killed its number two leader, Abu Mutaz al-Qurashi, in an airstrike near Mosul back in August. (Israel National News) (Al Arabiya)
Israeli–Palestinian conflict
- Israel’s military deploys new checkpoints in its Arab neighborhoods, as well as thousands of border police soldiers to cities and on roads to assist police forces in response to recent Palestinian stabbing attacks. (USA Today) (AP via Denver Post)(The Guardian) (New York Times)
- A Palestinian man wearing camouflaged clothing is shot dead at Jerusalem‘s Damascus Gate after charging at Israeli police with a knife. (Jerusalem Post)
Taunsa Sharif bombing
- A suicide bomb kills at least seven people and injures 13 others in Pakistan’s Punjab province inside the political office of Pakistan Muslim League MNA Sardar Amjad Farooq Khan Khosa, who was not present. Sardar Khosa, who is attending a meeting in Islamabad, said he did not receive any threat or alert prior to the blast. A Taliban splinter group, Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan Jamaat-ul-Ahrar, claims responsibility for the attack. (The Express Tribune) (India.com)
Boko Haram insurgency
- A triple suicide-bomb attack in the northeast Nigerian city of Maiduguri kills at least 7 people. (Yahoo)
- The U.S. is to deploy 300 troops to Cameroon as part of a stepped-up effort to counter Boko Haram in the region. (AP via Daily Mail)
War in Afghanistan (2015–present)
- Taliban insurgents overrun two security checkpoints near Kandahar in the southern Helmand Province, killing at least 29 border police officers, according to local officials. (Star Tribune)

Arts and culture

At the beginning of today’s weekly general audience, Pope Francis asks for forgiveness for the scandals which have recently hit Rome and the Vatican. He did not offer details. The Church’s Synod on the Family concludes Monday, October 19, 2015. (Voice of America) (Catholic Herald) (Reuters)

Disasters and accidents

A Swiss Boeing F/A-18 military jet crashes in France while on a training mission, injuring the pilot. The Swiss defense ministry has said it did not know what caused the accident. (Reuters)
A temporary footbridge across the M1 motorway in Sandton near Johannesburg, South Africa, collapses, killing two people and injuring 23. Both carriageways of the motorway remain closed as rescue work continues. (News24)
2015 Mina stampede
- An updated count by the Associated Press raises the death toll from the Mina stampede during the Hajj to at least 1,621, with hundreds still missing. (AP via Washington Post) (Dainik Jagran)

Politics and elections

Myanmar general election, 2015
- Myanmar election authorities confirm that landmark polls will go ahead on November 8 after the opposition rejected postponing due to this summer’s widespread flooding. The upcoming election is Myanmar’s first since moving away from half a century of military rule in 2011. (Australian Broadcasting Corporation) (The Guardian)

Sports

2015 WNBA season
- In North American basketball, the Minnesota Lynx win their third Women’s National Basketball Association title in five years defeating the Indiana Fever 3 games to 2 in the finals. (AP)
2015 MLB Postseason
- In North America, the Toronto Blue Jays defeat the Texas Rangers, 6-3, and the Kansas City Royals top the Houston Astros, 7-2, in a pair of American League Division Series (ALDS) deciding game fives. The teams move on to the best-of-seven 2015American League Championship Series (ALCS). The series opens Friday, October 16, 2015, at 7:30 p.m. EDT when defending AL champs Kansas City host the Blue Jays, who are in the ALCS for the first time since 1993. (Game 1 – MLB.com) (Game 2 – MLB.com)

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October 15, 2015

Top News Stories –

Twitter goes down for 10 minutes, everybody panics –
Twitter went down for users in several parts of the world, causing widespread panic and much soul-searching across the UK, Japan and parts of America. The Twitter website, Tweetdeck – its service for power users, and its mobile apps were all down at 14:14 BST on Thursday. Service was restored roughly 10 minutes later. The website Down Detector, which registers reports of outages, registered a huge spike in queries for Twitter being down. Users in the UK, Japan, the US and the Middle East were among those affected. [Daily Telegraph]
Twitter down notice

Russia ‘tried to cut off’ World Wide Web –
Russia has run large scale experiments to test the feasibility of cutting the country off the World Wide Web, a senior industry executive has claimed. The tests, which come amid mounting concern about a Kremlin campaign to clamp down on internet freedoms, have been described by experts as preparations for an information blackout in the event of a domestic political crisis. Andrei Semerikov, general director of a Russian service provider called Er Telecom, said Russia’s ministry of communications and Roskomnadzor, the national internet regulator, ordered communications hubs run by the main Russian internet providers to block traffic to foreign communications channels by using a traffic control system called DPI. The objective was to see whether the Runet – the informal name for the Russian internet – could continue to function in isolation from the global internet. The experiment, which took place in spring this year, failed because thousands of smaller service providers, which Roskomnadzor has little control over, continued to pass information out of the country, Mr Semerikov said. [Daily Telegraph]

Porn during lunch breaks is OK but smoking cannabis can get you sacked, Italy’s highest court rules –
Employees cannot be sacked for watching porn during their lunch breaks if it does not impact upon their ability to do their work, Italy’s highest court has ruled. According to Italian media reports, the Court of Cassation ruled against major car manufacturer Fiat after it sacked a factory worker in Termini Imerese, a town in Sicily. Bosses had caught the man watching adult films at work, but he argued that his viewing was limited to “catching a glimpse of a movie during his lunch break”. But it wasn’t all bad news for Fiat, as in a separate ruling on Wednesday the court found the carmaker was within its rights to sack a man caught smoking cannabis during his lunch break – presumably because its effects continued into his working hours. [The Independent]

Video of the Day –

Back To The Future In ACTUAL 2015 – by College Humor

Top Twitter Trends –

	Worldwide	USA	UK
1	#ImPerfect	#SpiritDay	#SNP15
2	#FelizJueves	#ProblemsTechnologyCantSolve	#EducationDay
3	Primark	Master P	Die Hard
4	#EstariaNecesitando	The Drone Papers	Oscar Pistorius
5	#شخصيه_كويتيه_�…	#OceanCelebs	#kidscompany
6	#5SOSMNL	Oscar Pistorius	Fantastic Four
7	Oscar Pistorius	#IDontMeanToScareYouBut	#GlobalHandwashingDay
8	#Empire	Theranos	Boris Johnson
9	#DiaDoProfessor	Fantastic Four	Danny Ings
10	#曲名に無職だけど�…	Evan Peters	King Kong

Other News Stories –

Armed conflicts and attacks

War in Afghanistan (2015–present)
- President of the United States Barack Obama announces that he will keep 5,500 troops in Afghanistan. (RT)
Internal conflict in Myanmar:
- The government of Myanmar signs a peace treaty with eight ethnic armed groups, although some powerful groups stay away. (AP via Star Tribune)
Yemeni Civil War (2015), Saudi Arabian-led intervention in Yemen
- Yemen‘s Sana’a-controlled forces fire a Scud missile at Saudi Arabia in retaliation to Saudi “war crimes”. A spokesman for Yemen’s military allied with Houthi militants said the missile hit a Saudi airbase and caused “widespread destruction”. There was no immediate comment from the Saudi side. (Reuters)
- Thousands gather in Aden‘s Al Ouroudh Square to thank coalition forces and to celebrate victory three months after pushing Houthi militants out of southern Yemen. (Gulf News)
European migrant crisis
- At least one person is reportedly killed after Bulgarian border guards open fire on a group of illegal migrants after they attempted to cross the border from Turkey. The incident happened near the southeastern town of Sredets. (AFP via Channel News Asia) (Yahoo)
Boko Haram insurgency
- A twin bombing near a mosque kills at least 26 people in the northeast Nigerian city of Maiduguri. (The Washington Post)
Israeli-Palestinian conflict
- An Israeli is stabbed by a fellow Israeli Jew, because he is mistaken for an Arab. (New York Times) (The Guardian)

Business and economy

Volkswagen emissions scandal
- The German automotive watchdog KBA orders Volkswagen to recall 2.4 million cars in that country after the emissions scandal becomes public knowledge. (Reuters via SBS Australia)

International relations

Vietnam says a Chinese vessel rammed into and sank one of its fishing boats near disputed islands in the South China Sea. More than 20 Vietnamese fishing boats have been attacked by Chinese vessels this year causing tensions between both countries.(AP via Yahoo)

Disasters and accidents

Hurricane Joaquin & SS El Faro
- The United States National Transportation Safety Board (NSTB) has asked the U.S. Navy to resume the search ended by the U.S. Coast Guard for the merchant vessel SS EL FARO believed lost on Oct. 7 during Hurricane Joaquin. The loss of the ship – with its crew of 33 hands – is regarded as “the worst U.S. merchant marine disaster of recent memory.” (USNI News)

Law and crime

2015 Parramatta shooting
- Rahan Alou and Talal Alameddine are charged with assisting Farhad Jabar to kill New South Wales Police Force accountant Curtis Cheng in Parramatta, Australia on 2 October 2015. (The Guardian) (ABC News Australia)
A cache of classified intelligence documents published from The Intercept, released by an anonymous whistleblower, highlight details surrounding post-September 11 attacks United States drone strikes in Afghanistan, Somalia, and Yemen, alleging that theUnited States conducts these strikes under extremely unreliable information and faulty pretenses. (Al-Jazeera America) (U.S. News) (Vice News)
Five individuals — four men and a teenage boy — are arrested in connection with the gang-rape of a 16-year-old girl at a Sydney, Australia, house party. (CNN)
Scottish and U.S. prosecutors identify two Libyans as suspects in the Lockerbie bombing. (CNN) (The Guardian)
The Nevada Gaming Control Board rules that daily fantasy sports leagues are a form of gambling that requires a license to operate in the state, including being offered to state residents. Due to Nevada’s status as a major gambling center, the decision is seen as potentially influencing other U.S. states’ stances on the leagues. (CBS News) (ESPN)

Politics and elections

2015 United Nations Security Council election
- Egypt, Senegal, Uruguay, Japan, and Ukraine are elected to two-year, non-permanent seats on the United Nations Security Council for 2016-17, replacing Chad, Chile, Jordan, Lithuania, and Nigeria. (New York Times)

Science

Astronomers say they have observed bizarre light patterns using the Kepler Space Telescope from a star that appears old, but is shrouded in debris like a much younger star, roughly 1,500 light-years away. This has led to speculation that these are an “artificial extraterrestrial mega-structure”, orbiting the star known as KIC 8462852 in the Cygnus constellation. KIC 8462852 lies just above the Milky Way between the constellations Cygnus and Lyra. It first attracted the attention of astronomers in 2009 when the Kepler Space Telescope identified it as a candidate for having orbiting Earth-like planets. (Independent) (Discovery News)

Sports

2015 MLB postseason
- In the U.S., the New York Mets defeat the Los Angeles Dodgers 3–2 in the deciding Game 5 of their National League Division Series. The Mets move on to face the Chicago Cubs in the best-of-seven 2015 National League Championship Series, which opens on October 17 at the Mets’ home of Citi Field. (AP via ESPN)

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October 16, 2015

Top News Stories –

Santa Claus is elected to North Pole City Council in Alaska –
Mr Claus, who is 68 years old, has a white beard and is often seen in his hometown wearing red. Admittedly this North Pole is actually in Alaska, not the one every associates with Christmas. And Mr Claus actually changed his name from Thomas Patrick O’Connor about 10 years ago. “I’m fairly well known. I think people are pleased with it. We’ll see. Time will tell,” he said. “I have three years to make a positive impression so hopefully I will get off on the right foot later this month.” North Pole, Alaska, is home to about 2,200 people. Their new city councillor will take his seat later this month. Mr Claus, who was living in Nevada when he changed his name, says he tries to help at-risk children and improve the lives of young people. [BBC Newsbeat]

China home to more billionaires than the US –
China has eclipsed the United States as home to the world’s highest number of billionaires, according to a new report. Despite China’s economy cooling in recent months, the number of billionaires within its borders rose this year by 242, bringing the total to 596. The US, in contrast, is currently home to 537 billionaires, according to The Hurun Report, which monitors the wealthy in China. The list reflects a power shift in China’s economy, with the surge in the number of super rich fuelled by the growth of the nation’s IT and manufacturing industries. [Daily Telegraph]

Yahoo Mail does away with passwords –
One of the biggest pains of the digital age is having to memorise multiple lengthy and appropriately unguessable passwords. Now, Yahoo has done away with the password altogether in its new Yahoo Mail app, instead asking users to sign in via push notification. The new app uses new sign-in method Yahoo Account Key, which sends a notification to the smartphone you’ve chosen to link to the account asking ‘Are you trying to sign in?’ and the option to select yes or no. Yahoo claims the feature is more secure than a traditional password due to the second step of phone verification, but without the need to input a code. [Daily Telegraph]

Video of the Day –

Tesla’s Autopilot System Is Creepy And Wonderful

Top Twitter Trends –

	Worldwide	USA	UK
1	#ItsPerfectDay	#PreOrderPURPOSE	#FridayFeeling
2	#PreOrderPURPOSE	#ItsPerfectDay	#WorldFoodDay
3	#HeyEverybodyMusicVideo	#HeyEverybodyMusicVideo	#PreOrderPURPOSE
4	Hayırlı Cumalar	Malia Obama	#HeyEverybodyMusicVideo
5	Oscar Wilde	#RememberWhenPeopleActually	#MercuryPrize
6	Falcons	Ann Coulter	#ItsPerfectDay
7	Irene Lozano	#NationalBossDay	Cook
8	BuyPurposeOnITunes	#WorldFoodDay	#bbcqt
9	#BuenViernes	Joseph’s Tomb	Falcons
10	#ادخل_وكتب_دعو�…	#CrapperBooks	Joe Cole

Other News Stories –

Armed conflicts and attacks

Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Palestinian political violence
- Palestinian rioters set fire to the building containing Joseph’s Tomb in the West Bank city of Nablus causing heavy damage to the structure before the fire is put out. Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas condemns the attack. (Times of Israel) (Jerusalem Post)
- An Israeli soldier is stabbed shortly after the fire by a Palestinian posing as a journalist with a camera and a “PRESS” vest; the attacker is shot dead. (Reuters)
Battle of Aleppo (2012–present), Russian involvement in the Syrian Civil War
- Syrian Army forces supported by Russian planes attack insurgents south of the city of Aleppo. (Reuters)
Spillover of the Syrian Civil War
- Turkey says it has shot down a drone near the Syrian border after it failed to leave Turkish airspace. (Today’s Zaman)

Arts and culture

A United States appeals court rules the Google Books Library Project, the scanning of millions of books with snippets searchable online, is legal under copyright law, affirming a 2013 district court decision. (USA Today) (The Register)

Disasters and accidents

2015 Pacific typhoon season
- Koppu strengthens to a typhoon ahead of threatening lives and properties in the Philippines island of Luzon over the weekend. (AccuWeather)
2015 California drought
- Many residents of Los Angeles and Kern Counties in southern drought-stricken California are trapped by flash floods after receiving four to six inches of rain in a short period of time. (CNN)
- Mudslides, with head-high mounds of mud, from yesterday’s flash floods cover major highways in the mountains and desert north of Los Angeles. Interstate 5, one of the state’s major north-south arteries, is closed. The National Weather Service issues aflash flood watch today. (AP via KPHO TV) (Los Angeles Times)
Six construction workers, injured when scaffolding at an unfinished building collapsed in Houston, Texas (US), are rushed to area hospitals with non-life threatening injuries. Firefighters continue to sift through the debris for other potential victims. (Houston Chronicle)

International relations

European migrant crisis
- The European Union and Turkey reach an agreement for Turkey to stem the flow of migrants into Europe in return for a £3bn aid package, easier visa conditions and re-energised talks to join the bloc. (ITV)
- Hungary announces it will close its southern border with Croatia at midnight. (Reuters)
Russia and other ex-Soviet states meeting in Kazakhstan agree to set up a joint task force to tackle instability on their borders, most notably from Afghanistan. (Reuters)
President Park Geun-hye of South Korea is in Washington, D.C. and met with President Barack Obama at The White House. (New York Times)
China hosts the ministers of defense from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). During the meeting a Chinese defense official suggests joint maritime drills between the host and ASEAN. At the same time, it is widely expected that U.S. Navyvessels may soon sail within 12 nautical miles of islands China is constructing upon reefs and atolls in the South China Sea. (New York Times) (BBC)
The United States confirms Iran tested a medium-range missile capable of delivering a nuclear weapon, in “clear violation” of a United Nations Security Council ban on ballistic missile tests. (Reuters) (BBC)

Law and crime

Rafe Esquith, a notable teacher in the Los Angeles, California, public school system files a $1 billion class action lawsuit against the LA Unified School District. Esquith, recently removed from teaching and subsequently fired, alleges on behalf of almost 2,000 individuals, certain age-discrimination tactics by the school system against older teachers. (CNN)
A U.S. federal judge declines plaintiffs request for an emergency order requiring Texas issue birth certificates to U.S.-born children of immigrant families who entered the country illegally. The judge said Matrícula Consular cards issued by Mexican consulates to their citizens in the U.S. aren’t secure. The U.S. Constitution’s 14th Amendment guarantees the right of citizenship to children born in the United States. (Miami Herald) (Washington Times)

Politics and elections

Hawaii Governor David Ige declares a state of emergency to address homelessness as the state has seen an alarming increase in unsheltered individuals and families over the past two years, particularly on O’ahu. Hawaii has the highest per capita rate ofhomelessness among the 50 states at about 465 people per 100,000 citizens. This act “frees up” money for this problem. (UPI) (Reuters) (Hawaii)

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October 17, 2015

Top News Stories –

Apple loses patent lawsuit to University of Wisconsin, faces hefty damages –
Apple Inc could be facing up to $862 million in damages after a U.S. jury on Tuesday found the iPhone maker used technology owned by the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s licensing arm without permission in chips found in many of its most popular devices. The jury in Madison, Wisconsin also said the patent, which improves processor efficiency, was valid. The trial will now move on to determine how much Apple owes in damages. WARF used the patent to sue Intel Corp in 2008, but the case was settled the following year on the eve of trial. Last month, WARF launched a second lawsuit against Apple, this time targeting the company’s newest chips, the A9 and A9X, used in the just-released iPhone 6S and 6S Plus, as well as the iPad Pro. [Reuters]

Volkswagen faces €40bn lawsuit from investors –
Volkswagen is set to be pushed deeper into crisis after it emerged that the carmaker is facing a record-breaking €40bn (£30bn) legal attack spearheaded by one of the world’s top law firms. Quinn Emanuel, which has won almost $50bn (£32bn) for clients and represented Google, Sony and Fifa, has been retained by claim funding group Bentham to prepare a case for VW shareholders over the diesel emissions scandal, The Sunday Telegraph can reveal. Bentham has recently backed an action by Tesco shareholders over the retailer’s overstating of profits. The pair are attempting to assemble a huge class action following what they call “fundamental dishonesty” at the German auto giant, which plunged the carmaker into crisis after it admitted using “defeat devices” to cheat pollution tests. [Daily Telegraph]

Video of the Day –

Jupiter in 4K

Top Twitter Trends –

	Worldwide	USA	UK
1	#ALDUBTheBigSurprise	#1980sIn4Words	#LFC
2	#telethon7	#telethon7	#1980sIn4Words
3	ICFES	#MSUvsMICH	#juniorcontract
4	FlyNoRaulGil	Ole Miss	Howard Kendall
5	Howard Kendall	#FallBakingWithAlly	#RSAvWAL
6	#ShowtimeLovesCebu	#LFC	#BBC4
7	#FPtauromaquia	#MakeAMovieDeadly	#MakeAFilmPrimAndProper
8	#ATodosNosPasoEsoDe	Boise State	Oasis
9	#FindConfidentBR	Howard Kendall	#telethon7
10	#FallBakingWithAlly	#ALDUBTheBigSurprise	Watford

Other News Stories –

Armed conflicts and attacks

Henriette Reker, a candidate in Cologne‘s mayoral race, is stabbed in the neck by a man claiming to be angry over Germany’s refugee policies. Reker is in serious condition, as is an aide. Three others suffered minor injuries. (BBC) (Today)
Syrian Civil War
- A top Al-Qaeda commander is killed in an airstrike in Syria. (USA Today)
- Battle of Aleppo (2012–present), Iranian involvement in the Syrian Civil War
  - The Syrian army, backed by Iranian fighters, captures several villages south of Aleppo. (Reuters)
Terrorism in Saudi Arabia
- A gunman from the Islamic State opens fire on a Shiite meeting hall in Saudi Arabia, killing five people. (Reuters)
2015 PKK rebellion
- Three Turkish troops, including a lieutenant colonel, are killed following clashes with PKK insurgents around Dağlıca vlliage, in the southeastern Hakkâri Province. At least 17 PKK insurgents were also reportedly killed in the fighting. (Today’s Zaman)
Saudi Arabian-led intervention in Yemen, Yemeni Civil War (2015)
- A Saudi-led coalition airstrike targeting Houthis in the southern Taiz Governorate mistakenly hits a Hadi-loyalist position, killing at least 20 fighters. (BBC)
- Hundreds of Sudanese troops arrive in the southern port city of Aden to reinforce coalition forces. (CBC News)
Mexican Drug War
- Fugitive drug kingpin Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán suffered injuries to his leg and face as he escaped Mexican authorities who were closing in on him in the mountains in Sinaloa in northwestern Mexico. (CNN) (Yucatan Times)
Israeli–Palestinian conflict
- Israeli security forces kill four Palestinians and critically wound another who attempted to stab either police officers or a member of the public today. This is the latest in a month of similar attacks where 17 Palestinians, labelled as the attackers, and eight Israelis have been killed. (UPI) (Abu Dhabi National)

Arts and culture

Stephen Glass, author, former journalist and attorney, will repay Harper’s Magazine and other outlets because works he authored were found to have been fabricated. (New York Times)
The Writers’ Revolt: Nayantara Sahgal, is one of the latest authors in India who will return that nation’s highest award from the National Academy of Letters in protest against what Salman Rushdie has characterized as “thuggish violence” creeping into Indian life under the Hindu nationalist government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. (New York Times)

Business and economics

The United States cancels two potential Arctic lease sales off Alaska’s northern coast, and announces Shell and Statoil current leases will not be extended because of “current market conditions and low industry interest.” (NPR) (BBC)
US Airways final flight, Flight 1939 — named for the airline’s founding year, landed at Philadelphia International Airport at 5:54 a.m. Saturday. Future flights will fly under the American Airlines banner, completing the merger announced in 2013. (Christian Science Monitor) (AP via WSAW)

Disasters and accidents

2015 Pacific typhoon season
- Typhoon Koppu (Lando) heads towards the Philippines island of Luzon where it is expected to make landfall as a Category 4 storm, linger and deposit up to 50 inches of rain in some areas. (Mashable)
At least 15 people are killed in a wedding bus crash in Andhra Pradesh state in southern India. (AAP via News Limited)
At least 16 people are killed near Odessa in the Ukraine after a passenger boat sinks in bad weather. (RT)

Law and Crime

Ardit Ferizi, a 20-year-old hacker from Kosovo and computer student in Malaysia, is arrested for hacking into a Phoenix, Arizona computer system and stealing the names and personal information of thousands of U.S. military personnel. Ferizi is accused of giving the information to ISIS. The U.S. is seeking Ferizi’s extradition. (CNN)
A shooting just before midnight at the ninth annual Fort Myers, Florida, Zombicon kills one person and injures four others, none with life threatening injuries, and causes pandemomium on the city’s downtown streets. Police ask attendees to share smartphonevideo from the incident. (USA Today) (Reuters)

International relations

European migrant crisis
- The first migrants reach Slovenia after the border between Hungary and Croatia is closed. (Reuters)
- Turkey‘s Anadolu Agency reports that 12 migrants have drowned in the Aegean Sea while trying to get to Europe. (AP)

Politics and elections

Egyptian parliamentary election, 2015
- Egyptians residing abroad begin casting votes in the country’s first parliamentary election since the 2013 military overthrow of President Mohamed Morsi. Embassies and consulates in 139 countries will be open for two days of voting. (AP via Florence TimesDaily) (Gulf News)
Guinean presidential election, 2015
- The Guinea electoral commission reports that the President of Guinea Alpha Conde has won the election with 58 per cent of the vote. (Reuters)

Science and technology

Researchers from the University of Washington report an unusually large number of methane gas plumes detected off the Washington and Oregon coasts may be due to warming ocean waters a third of a mile below the surface, the exact depth at which frozen pockets of methane “ice” change over from a dormant solid to a greenhouse gas. (The Market Business) (Oregon Coast Beach Connection)

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October 18, 2015

Top News Stories –

Spain to teach bullfighting in schools –
Spain’s education ministry has drawn up plans to create courses in bullfighting as an optional subject in state schools. For the first time, bullfighting, as well as other subjects related to the spectacle, will be available for students aged 16 and older who move into vocational training after finishing their compulsory education. The move appears to represent a final attempt to defend the activity by Spain’s conservative government before elections in December. Students who complete the course will receive a professional training certificate in “Tauromachy – bullfighting – and Auxiliary Livestock Activities” after they have learned the skills of bullfighting, the regulations applied to the event and the rules on breeding Spain’s fighting bulls. The full-time, two-year courses will be offered at a number of high schools around the country. [Daily Telegraph]

Big Ben’s clock ‘needs £40m of work’ to keep bongs sounding –
The taxpayer faces a bill of up to £40 million to keep the famous “bongs” of Big Ben sounding, according to a report. Parliament’s Great Clock is said to be so dilapidated that it could grind to a halt unless drastic repairs are carried out. A report presented to the cross-party Commons Finance Committee has set out a £29.2 million plan for fixing the issues. It would see the mechanism shut down for four months – believed to be the longest stoppage in its 156-year history. The document, seen by the Mail on Sunday and Sunday Times, said: “The clock currently has chronic problems with the bearings behind the hands and the pendulum. “Either could become acute at any time, causing the clock to stop – or worse.” [Daily Telegraph]
Cleaning Big Ben in 2007

Video of the Day –

The new Yahoo mail app.

Top Twitter Trends –

	Worldwide	USA	UK
1	#TodoEsSonrisaHastaQue	#BadActionMovieSequels	#IREvARG
2	PurposeJustinBieber	#DemiOnSNL	#OverAndOverAgain
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4	Michigan	Larry David	#IfDraculaMadeAMovie
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7	#入ったことある委�…	Zombicon	#bbcsp
8	Larry David	#IREvARG	#GGGLemieux
9	#DemiOnSNL	#TheForceAwakens	#NUFC
10	#طبع_مااحبه	#FailedDatingTips	#Marr

Other News Stories –

Armed conflicts and attacks

Israeli–Palestinian conflict (2015)
- The Israeli military evacuated dozens of Jewish worshippers who were surrounded by Palestinians after entering Joseph’s Tomb compound in Nablus, which was recently torched by Palestinians. The area is under full Palestinian control but Jewish prayer is permitted there when coordinated with authorities. The military said Sunday’s visit was not, and the worshippers had no permit. (AP) (New Delhi Television)
- John Kerry, the United States Secretary of State announces Sunday that he will meet in Germany with Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the wake of increased violence between Palestinians and Israelis. (NBC)
Turkey–ISIL conflict
- Turkish police conduct pre-dawn raids on 17 locations in Istanbul and detain some 50 people suspected of being linked to the Islamic State group, according to Turkey’s state-run news agency. (AP)
2015 PKK rebellion
- Two Turkish soldiers are killed after a roadside bomb hit their vehicle in the eastern Tunceli Province. (Reuters)
Syrian Civil War
- Russian involvement in the Syrian Civil War
  - A suspected Russian airstrike is said to have killed dozens of members of one family in Homs, Syria. (Al Jazeera)
- American-led intervention in Syria, War on Terror
  - U.S. Military officials announce that a military airstrike in northwest Syria killed a financial manager and leader of an al Qaeda network. Sanafi al-Nasr, of Saudi Arabia, was said to have been plotting terror attacks against the West. (New York Times)

Arts and culture

As part of the weekend celebration of the 50th anniversary of the Synod of Bishops, during the 3-week-long Ordinary General Synod on the Family, Pope Francis canonizes the parents of the Doctor of the Church, Saint Therese of the Child Jesus of Lisieux, France (Saints Louis Martin and Marie-Azélie Guérin Martin, 1823-1894 and 1831-1877, respectively), the first married Catholic parents to be canonized at the same time. He also canonizes the religious superior general Saint María de la Purísima Salvat Romero (Mary of the Immaculate Conception), 1926-1998, and the diocesan priest and founder of a religious institute, Saint Vincenzo Grossi, 1845-1917. (Vatican) (AP via CTV) (Voice of America)

Business and economics

Tens of thousands of junior doctors rally in London (UK) near Pall Mall to protest contract changes that will reclassify their normal working week to include Saturdays and late evenings, and the government’s threat to impose a new contract. (The Guardian)(The Guardian -blog) (Daily Mail) (iFreePress.com)

Disasters and accidents

2015 Pacific typhoon season
- Typhoon Koppu (Lando) makes landfall in northern Luzon in the Philippines with forecasters warning it could stay in the area for several days. Thousands of people have been evacuated or are stranded. (AFP via Yahoo! News) (Inquirer)
- Slow-moving Koppu weakened after blowing ashore with fierce winds in the northeastern Philippines leaving at least two people dead and at least six missing, displacing 16,000 villagers, and knocking out power in entire provinces, according to authorities. (AP via NBC News) (UPI)
At least four people are killed and a dozen injured after a small plane crashes in a residential area of the Colombian capital Bogota. (AP)
A San Francisco-bound Southwest Airlines flight returned to Los Angeles after an apparent altercation on the plane. Eyewitness accounts indicate that the fracas may have begun after one passenger reclined her seat, and the passenger behind her allegedly “started choking her.” One passenger was removed from the flight. The airline moved the remaining passengers to a different plane to resume their journey to San Francisco. (USA Today) (NBC News)

Politics and elections

Egyptian parliamentary election, 2015
- Voters in Egypt go to the polls for the first round of voting in long delayed parliamentary elections. (BBC)
Swiss federal election, 2015
- Voters in Switzerland go to the polls for a federal election. Results show the anti-immigration Swiss People’s Party, winning the election with at least 29.5% of the vote, a record election result for the nationalist party. (AP) (The Wall Street Journal)

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October 19, 2015

Top News Stories –

Nasa predicts near-miss with asteroid on Halloween –
An asteroid is due to pass by Earth on Halloween and miss us by a whisker, according to Nasa. Well, if whiskers were 499,000km long, at any rate. The asteroid was spotted by Nasa a fortnight ago and is set to fly past the Earth on Halloween at over 78,000mph. It will cross by Earth at the closest it’s been since 2006. The space agency explained why they spotted it at such short notice, despite constantly monitoring the size. They said: “The asteroid is on an extremely eccentric and a high inclination orbit.” We won’t be able to see the asteroid with the naked eye, but anyone with access to a telescope will be able to see it as it passes by. “This is the closest approach by a known object this large until 1999 AN10 approaches within 1 lunar distance in August 2027,” said Nasa. [Daily Telegraph]

Q Awards 2015: Foals beat Ed Sheeran and Blur to win Best Act In the World Today –
The Oxford band Foals confirmed their elevation to music’s biggest stages after being voted Best Act In the World Today at the Q magazine awards. Foals, who combine indie rock with electronic beats and African-inspired rhythms, beat Blur, Noel Gallagher and Ed Sheeran to the award, previously won by the likes of Radiohead and Coldplay. Ed Sheeran beat Kanye West, Taylor Swift and Sam Smith to the Solo Artist award, capping a year in which the strummer sold out three nights at Wembley Stadium, performing with just his guitar and a loops pedal. However Sheeran lost out to the Brighton drums and bass rock duo Royal Blood for the Best Live Act prize. [The Independent] See List of the Day
The Foals

Hundreds Of Apps Banned From App Store For Accessing Users’ Personal Information –
Hundreds of iOS applications have been pulled out of the App Store, following a report from analytics service SourceDNA, which uncovered a group of applications that were extracting users’ personally identifiable information, including email addresses associated with their Apple IDs, devices and peripheral serial numbers, as well as a list of apps installed on their phone. The applications in question had been using an SDK from a Chinese advertising company called Youmi which was accessing this information by way of private APIs, the report found. Nearly all of the developers were located in China so, for now, this appears to be an isolated incident. However, the larger concern here has to do with how long this activity had been taking place – and what that means in terms of Apple’s App Store review process, given that it hadn’t caught this suspect activity until being alerted to it by a third party. [Tech Crunch]

Video of the Day –

DRIVING from Nate Theis on Vimeo.

List of the Day –

The Q Awards 2015 Winners

Q Best New Act

James Bay

Best Track

The Libertines – Gunga Din (Winner)

Q Best Album

Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds – Chasing Yesterday

Q Best Video

Florence + The Machine – Ship To Wreck

Q Hero

Mark Ronson

Q Best Live Act

Royal Blood

Q Classic Album

Soul II Soul – Club Classics Vol. One

Q Best Solo Artist

Ed Sheeran

Q Innovation in Sound

Gary Numan

Q Best Act In The World

Foals

Gibson Les Paul Award

Tony Iommi

Q Outstanding Contribution to Music

New Order

Q Classic Single

Queen ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’

Q Icon

Duran Duran

Top Twitter Trends –

	Worldwide	USA	UK
1	#DiaContraelCancerdeMama	#mondaymotivation	#FourWordsToLiveBy
2	#FelizLunes	#FourWordsToLiveBy	#mondaymotivation
3	Colts	Anthony Mackie	Foreign Office
4	#ALDUBRoadToForever	#MotivationMonday	#TheOuijaBoardSaid
5	#MeGustaMuchoQue	#MakeLifeBetterInAWord	Jamie Oliver
6	#DemiNoBrasil	#MyResumeDoesntMention	#lufc
7	Boca	#BoycottStarWarsVII	Seahawks
8	LuanetesSupportBeliebers	Weight Watchers	Leeds United
9	#FourWordsToLiveBy	Jay Carney	Colts
10	#MasterChefMX	Barry Zito	Star Wars

Other News Stories –

Armed conflicts and attacks

Israeli–Palestinian conflict (2015)
- 19-year-old soldier Omri Levy was killed and nearly a dozen injured in a shooting and stabbing attack in the central bus station in the southern city of Beersheba carried out by an Israeli Bedouin Arab, 21-year old Mohind al-Okbi, who was killed after a gun battle. (Washington Post) (NBC News)
- Israeli hospital officials announce an Eritrean migrant, Haptom Zerhom, mistakenly shot by an Israeli security guard and then attacked by bystanders who thought he was involved in the Beersheva bus station attack, has died of his wounds. Foreign Ministry spokesman Emmanuel Nahsho said this latest incident seemed to capture the current climate of ratcheted-up tensions. Police are looking to identify and locate members of the crowd who beat and fatally wounded the man; the security officer whose shot incapacitated the victim will not be investigated. (AP) (Yediot Ahronot – Ynet)
War in Afghanistan (2015–present): Kunduz hospital airstrike
- Afghanistan’s acting defense minister has stated that the Médecins Sans Frontières hospital in Kunduz bombed on 3 October by U.S. forces was being used as a safe haven by insurgents. MSF has repeatedly denied the allegation, stating “Every staff member in Kunduz working for MSF has repeatedly reported to us that there were no armed people in the hospital at the time of the bombing”. (AP)

Business and economics

China’s economy expanded 6.9% in third quarter over last year’s growth, just slightly better than forecast. (New York Times)
Shareholders from both companies overwhelmingly approve Aetna’s acquisition of Humana for $37 billion. (Louisville Courier-Journal) (Reuters)

Disasters and accidents

2015 Pacific typhoon season
- Rising floodwaters are causing problems in the northern Philippines as Typhoon Koppu (Lando in the Philippines) is set to linger over the island of Luzon until Wednesday. Eleven people have died so far. (BBC) (AP via Fox News)
Seven hikers are killed by a raging forest fire while climbing Indonesia‘s Mount Lawu. (The Telegraph)

International relations

The United States Navy and the Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force held a triennial fleet review off Tokyo Bay. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe became the first sitting Japanese leader to board a U.S. aircraft carrier when he visited the USS Ronald Reagan.(USA Today) (Japan Times)
Pope Francis encourages bishops from around the world to sign an appeal to world leaders, meeting in Paris next month, for crucial climate change talks. In a major teaching document in June, the encyclical Laudato Si’ (Latin: Praised be), Francis denounced what he called the “structurally perverse” fossil fuel-based world economy that exploits the poor and destroys the habitability of the Earth for humans. (AP via Washington Post)
European migrant crisis
- Croatia reopens its border with Serbia allowing thousands of refugees to cross. (Irish Times)
Elements from the maritime forces of India, Japan, and the United States engage in joint military exercises in the Bay of Bengal. (Military Times)
South Ossetian President Leonid Tibilov announces South Ossetia intends on holding a referendum on joining the Russian Federation. Tibilov said reuniting with Russia “is a century-long dream of the South Ossetian people”. (Radio Free Europe)

Law and crime

Spencer Stone, primarily responsible for thwarting an August terrorist attack on a train en route to Paris from Amsterdam and later stabbed in downtown Sacramento has undergone open heart surgery. The wounds from the most recent altercation were more serious than previously reported. (Air Force Times)
South African athlete Oscar Pistorius is released from prison to serve the rest of his sentence for culpable homicide of Reeva Steenkamp under house arrest. (The Guardian)
Following 21 days of deliberation the deadlocked jury in Manhattan declared a mistrial in the case against three former senior attorneys from the “once large and prominent law firm” Dewey & LeBoeuf. The three had been charged with “plotting to manipulate financial records in an attempt to defraud bank lenders and insurance companies during the financial crisis.” (New York Times)

Politics and elections

Canadian federal election, 2015
- Voters in Canada go to the polls, to elect the 42nd Canadian Parliament. (CBC) (AP) In the United States, C-SPAN 2 aired complete CBC coverage of the event. [1]
- The Liberal Party of Canada performs very strongly in Atlantic Canada achieving over 60% of the vote and leading in all of the 33 seats. (The Guardian)
- Projections show that the Liberal Party of Canada led by Justin Trudeau is poised to form a majority government. (The Star)
- The Canadian Liberal party has won the federal election with 184 seats. (CBC)
The Under Secretary of Veterans Affairs for Benefits, Allison Hickey, at the beleaguered United States Department of Veterans Affairs resigned. She held the post since June 2011. (Military Times)
U.S. Secretary of Transportation Anthony Foxx announced that all unmanned aircraft, i.e. drones, will be required to be registered with the government just as manned aircraft are. DOT is forming a task force of government leaders and diverse stakeholderswho will determine the specifics of which drones will be covered and how the registration process will work. (Forbes) (Reuters) (NBC News) (DOT)
War in Donbass
- Portraits of former dictator Joseph Stalin go up in the city of Donetsk as the Donetsk People’s Republic adopts more Soviet era policies. (The Guardian)
Eric Chu, KMT party chairman, has replaced Hung Hsiu-chu as Taiwan’s ruling party candidate just months ahead of elections. (The Diplomat)

Science and technology

Apple pulls hundreds of iOS mobile applications from its App Store which, the company discovered, includes software that was secretly sending users’ personal information to an advertising firm in China. (NBC News) (TechCrunch)

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October 20, 2015

Top News Stories –

‘Star Wars: The Force Awakens’ Crushes Presale Ticket Records –
Fan demand led to crash of multiple websites like Fandango and MovieTickets.com. “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” broke the record for the highest number of first-day presale tickets for Fandango, AMC and IMAX. According to Fandango, the site has sold eight times as many tickets as it did on the first day for the previous record holder, “The Hunger Games” in 2012 — and that’s even before the 24-hour mark was reached. “The Twilight Saga: Eclipse” in 2010 slipped to third place in first-day advance sales. Traffic on Fandango surged to seven times the site’s typical peak levels, a site spokesperson reported. Similarly, MovieTickets.com reported that the online ticketer saw traffic “three times higher than the highest peak in the company’s 15 plus year history.” Comparably, the advance ticket sales for “The Force Awakens” are already four times greater than advance tickets sold for “Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith.” [The Wrap] See Video of the Day

Fed-up cafe bans money from underwear –
In this tough economic climate, small business owners need every dollar they can get their hands on. Unless said dollar comes from a customer’s undies, apparently. Staff at a Carnarvon cafe were so fed up with patrons paying with money retrieved from undergarments they put the attached sign at the cash register for a six-week period. Fascine Coffee Lounge owner Robin Weeks said the straw that broke the camel’s back was a man who tried to pay his bill with money from his jocks. “My son thought people shouldn’t put money there and he shouldn’t have to touch it,” Weeks said. “We had four or five people that did it. A lot of women think their bra is the best place for their money because they don’t have pockets.” Weeks said while most people approved of the sign, there were some who refused to change their ways. [Western Australian]
Fascine Coffee Lounge sign

Video of the Day –

Star Wars: The Force Awakens Trailer (Official)

Top Twitter Trends –

	Worldwide	USA	UK
1	#ScaryStoryIn5Words	#WhyIWrite	#ScaryStoryIn5Words
2	#FelizMartes	Cha Cha	Hotline Bling
3	#vote5sos	#vote5sos	#vote5sos
4	De Narvaez	Rick Pitino	#canadavotes
5	Drake	#TacoTuesdayAlternatives	Sajid Javid
6	Star Wars	Ryan Kelly	#charitytuesday
7	#الهلال_الاهلي	#PerfectMusicVideo	Canada
8	#صباحات_الهلال	#ScaryStoryIn5Words	#ChinaStateVisit
9	Balón de Oro	#OutInHipHop	Star Wars
10	Harper	#TIDALX1020	Justin Trudeau

Other News Stories –

Armed conflicts and attacks

Iraqi Civil War (2014–present), American-led intervention in Iraq
- The United States Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Marine Corps General Joseph Dunford arrived in Iraq to discuss the ongoing battle against ISIS. (AP)
Israeli–Palestinian conflict (2015)
- U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, during a surprise visit to Jerusalem today, calls for calm ahead of meetings with Israeli and Palestinian leaders in an effort to bring an end to the month-long wave of violence. (CNN) (Time)
Syrian Civil War
- Russian military intervention in the Syrian Civil War
  - Russian airstrikes in Syria’s coastal Latakia province have killed a top FSA commander, Basil Zamo and several other rebel fighters. (Reuters)
  - At least three Russian troops fighting along side the Syrian Army are reportedly killed after a shell hit their position in the coastal province of Latakia. If confirmed, the deaths would be the first Russian military casualties since intervening in the civil war in September. (Reuters)
Libyan Civil War (2014–present)
- Warplanes of unidentified origin carry out airstrikes on ISIS camps in the Libyan city of Sirte. (The Daily Star)
Military intervention against ISIL
- The U.S. deploys around a dozen A-10 ground-attack planes to Turkey‘s southern Incirlik Air Base. A U.S. military official said the deployment had “added capability” to the coalition’s efforts against ISIL in Iraq and Syria. (AFP via Yahoo)
- Canada‘s prime-minister elect Justin Trudeau informs U.S. President Barack Obama that Canada will be withdrawing fighter jets from both Iraq and Syria, effectively ending Canada’s military participation in the war on the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant. (AFP via Yahoo)
War in Afghanistan (2015–present)
- The Taliban kill 22 policemen and kidnap 19 others, including the district’s security chief, during clashes with Afghan troops who kill 12 of the insurgents in the battle in Faryab Province in northern Afghanistan. (New York Times) (Latin American Herald Tribune)
- Taliban forces advance on Lashkar Gah, the capital of Helmand Province in southern Afghanistan, amid fierce fighting with government forces that threatens to cut off a major highway and has prompted many families to flee. (Reuters)

Arts and culture

Former BBC journalist Jacky Sutton is found hanged in a restroom at Istanbul’s Ataturk Airport. Of late, she was the acting director of the Institute for War and Peace Reporting. (BBC)
Oslo’s city council announces plans to ban cars from the Norwegian capital’s city centre by 2019. (Reuters) (Christian Science Monitor)

Disasters and accidents

Hidden Pines Fire
- At least 70 homes have been destroyed by a raging wildfire in Bastrop County, central Texas. The Texas A&M Forest Service reports the blaze in Bastrop County is currently 80 percent contained. (AP via ABC News)

Health and medicine

The American Cancer Society recommends women at average risk of breast cancer should begin annual mammograms at age 45, and women 55 and older scale back screening to every other year. (USA Today) (Reuters)

International relations

Venezuelan parliamentary election, 2015
- Brazil pulls out of an electoral mission to observe crucial legislative elections in Venezuela over what it says are a lack of guarantees by the government of Venezuela and its veto of the choice to head the delegation. (ABC News)
European migrant crisis
- European Union members agree to provide 291 border guards to Greece and Italy to help identify and register migrants. (AP)
Saudi Arabia receives US State Department approval for the purchase of four Multi-Mission Combat Ships for $11.25 billion. (UPI)
Syrian Civil War
- The United States and Russia sign an agreement designed to avoid conflict between both countries’ warplanes in Syria. The Pentagon said the agreement will remain secret; a hotline will enable both countries to directly communicate. (CBS News)(UPI)

Law and crime

The Israeli Defense Force arrests senior Hamas leader Sheikh Hassan Yousef for alleged incitement to commit violence. (Jerusalem Post)
A French public prosecutor said charges against far-right leader Marine Le Pen should be dropped. Le Pen is being tried for comments she made five years ago comparing Muslim street prayers to Nazi occupation. Prosecutor Bernard Reynaud said, “Madame Le Pen in denouncing prayers in public space addressed not the entire Muslim community but a minority and was only exercising her freedom of expression.” (Al Jazeera) (Reuters)

Politics and elections

Democratic Party presidential candidates, 2016
- Former Virginia Senator Jim Webb announces his withdrawal from the race for the Democratic presidential nomination during a press conference at the National Press Club. He added that he would consider his other options in the coming weeks. Webb’s campaign said he is weighing an independent bid. (NBC News) (AP) (Washington Post)

Science

Research from University of California, Los Angeles scientists indicates that life on earth may have started 4.1 billion years ago – 300 million years earlier than previously thought. (Economic Times)
Research by the University of Central Florida indicates a common UV-filtering compound, oxybenzone, found in sunscreen lotion is killing coral, especially among reefs frequented by recreational divers and snorkelers. (UPI) (Time)

Sports

Lamar Odom, who had been hospitalized in grave condition after ingesting, in a binge, herbal Viagra, alcohol, and other substances in a 3-day, $75,000 stay at a legal brothel in Nevada, comes out of his coma, improves, and is able to have conversations, though he is still on dialysis to deal with the renal damage he suffered. He is released from intensive care and Sunrise Hospital, to a hospital closer to his Los Angeles home. (MSN via Sporting News)

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October 21, 2015

Top News Stories –

BACK TO THE FUTURE DAY –
This is the day that Marty McFly and Doc traveled to in the movie Back to the Future II.
© Universal Studios. All Rights Reserved.

Nike Sending First ‘Back to the Future’ Self-Tying Shoes to Michael J. Fox –
Nike says that the future is here. The first person to receive a pair of the company’s “Back to the Future” self-lacing shoes is the franchise’s star Michael J. Fox, according to a Nike designer. Nike shoe designer Tinker Hatfield sent Fox a letter today that stated, “As the first, most celebrated wearer” of the Nike Mag shoes, “we wanted you to be the first to receive a living pair,” according to a tweet from the actor. Earlier today, a spokesman for Nike would only say that a pair of the self-lacing Nike Mag shoes worn by Marty McFly in the 1989 film “Back to the Future II” is in New York City today — but declined to comment further. [ABC News] The Michael J Fox organisation (that raises money for Parkinson’s Disease charities) tweeted a picture of the actor wearing the sneakers.
Michael J Fox Tweet

Toyota celebrates ‘Back to the Future Day’ by building Marty McFly’s dream truck –
Toyota has recreated Marty McFly’s dream truck, just in the nick of time for ‘Back to the Future Day’ on October 21, 2015. The black 2016 Toyota Tacoma pick-up is a copy of the one Marty lusted after in the original film – and spoiler alert, things turned out so that his dream machine eventually made it into the McFly family garage. In total, Toyota has built three of these ‘Back to the Future’ Tacoma pick-up trucks events around the U.S. “The suspension has been beefed up and the truck rides on a special set of Toyota Racing Development [TRD] wheels and tires,” said Proffitt. The truck itself was in a plastic cocoon, looking all the world like a 1:1 scale Hot Wheels car. Note to BTTF fans looking for awesome swag: Toyota is handing out models of the this special-edition Tacoma throughout today in Times Square. [NY Daily News] See Video of the Day

Video of the Day –

Fueled by the Future | Back to the Future | Presented by Toyota Mirai

List of the Day –

Back to the Future 2 credits

Directed by	Robert Zemeckis
Produced by	Neil Canton Bob Gale
Screenplay by	Bob Gale
Story by	Robert Zemeckis Bob Gale
Starring	Michael J. Fox Christopher Lloyd Lea Thompson Thomas F. Wilson
Music by	Alan Silvestri
Cinematography	Dean Cundey
Edited by	Harry Keramidas Arthur Schmidt
Production company	Amblin Entertainment
Distributed by	Universal Pictures
Release dates	November 22, 1989
Running time	108 minutes^[1]
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$40 million (shared withPart III)
Box office	$332 million

Top Twitter Trends –

	Worldwide	USA	UK
1	#BackToTheFuture	#BackToTheFuture	#PerfectMusicVideo
2	#Home	#IfIHadAHoverboard	#BackToTheFuture
3	#PerfectMusicVideo	iOS 9.1	#NationalAppleDay
4	#MaquinaDelTiempoLlevameA	YouTube Red	#TrafalgarDay
5	#MasterChefBR	#TwitterFlight	Michael Meacher
6	流星群	Wale	Arsenal
7	#ضع_ليما_بجمله_…	#HitOnYourMom	#PMQs
8	#RevivalAMAs	Blake Griffin	Holocaust
9	iOS 9.1	Meek	Bellerin
10	Marty McFly	Hump Day	YouTube Red

Other News Stories –

Armed conflicts and attacks

War in Afghanistan (2015–present)
- The Taliban announced it overran Ghoryan in the western Herat province, the second district to fall in three days. (Long War Journal)
Syrian Civil War
- ISIL orders males aged 14 and older in Raqqa, its de facto Syrian capital, to register with the police, an action seen as the first step toward forced conscriptions in this region. (Al Jazeera America)
Yemeni Civil War (2015)
- Rockets fired by Houthi forces reportedly kill 14 people in city of Taiz, southwestern Yemen. (Reuters)
Boko Haram insurgency
- At least 20 people are killed after Boko Haram militants opened fire on cars outside a village in Nigeria‘s restive northeast Borno state. (AFP via Yahoo)

Disasters and accidents

2015 Pacific typhoon season
- The death toll from Tropical Storm Koppu that battered the Phillippines’ main island this weekend climbed to at least 39. Koppu forced more than 100,000 villagers into emergency shelters and destroyed rice fields ready for harvest. (AP) (BBC)
A U.S. F-18 fighter jet crashes into farmland near RAF Lakenheath in Suffolk county, England, killing the pilot. (Sky News)

Health and medicine

The American Academy of Pediatrics calls for pregnant women to abstain completely from alcohol during the entire three trimesters of the pregnancy, saying no amount of any type of alcohol should be considered safe since the risks, to the baby in particular (such as fetal alcohol syndrome, among many others), are too great. This puts the U.S. alongside other Western developed countries- except Italy and the United Kingdom, which still allow occasional small amounts- in urging complete abstinence. TheAmerican College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the two other U.S. agencies that comment most about this issue, already recommend total alcohol abstinence. (CNN)

International relations

Syrian Civil War
- The President of Syria Bashar al-Assad visits Moscow for talks with the President of Russia Vladimir Putin in an unannounced visit. (BBC)
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei approves the nuclear deal between Tehran and world powers, and orders it to be implemented subject to certain conditions. The letter states the United States and European Union should clearly announce the elimination of sanctions against Iran. The imposition of sanctions at any level and under any pretext from any of the negotiating countries would violate the JCPOA. (Reuters) (Mehr News Agency) (Daily Mail)
The Vatican denies an Italian newspaper report that Pope Francis has a benign brain tumour, saying the 78-year-old pontiff is in good health, and denounces the article as utterly reprehensible. (Reuters) (AP via Philly.com)

Law and crime

New York City police officer Randolph Holder, 33, has died from gunshot wounds sustained in the line of duty. An immigrant from Guyana, Holder was on the force for five years. He is the fourth NYPD officer to have been killed in less than a year. (New York Times)
Two Chinese consulate staff are killed and a consul general injured after a gunman opened fire on a restaurant in the city of Cebu, the “second city” of the Philippines. Various reports named the gunman as Chinese national Li Qingliang. (The Telegraph)
St. Louis’ police chief announces officers are stepping up patrols following fires at six predominantly African-American churches in the past two weeks. No one has been injured in any of the fires. The reward for information leading to an arrest is now $4,000; the St. Louis Police Officers’ Association will match the $2,000 reward being offered by the St. Louis Regional Crime Stoppers and the ATF. The American Civil Liberties Union of Missouri and the Anti-Defamation League suggest the fires may be arson sparked by racist motivations. (St. Louis Post-Dispatch) (NBC News)
Wikileaks releases U.S. Central Intelligence Agency director John O. Brennan’s personal information after the top spy’s personal email account was hacked and information sent to Wikileaks. All of the documents predate Brennan’s time in the Obamaadministration and reveal no classified data. Among the information released are Social Security numbers, an incomplete questionnaire for security clearance, and addresses of his family and associates. (BBC) (CNN)
A British lawyer and his wife are found dead by their gardener at their home on the Caribbean island of Tobago. The Trinidad and Tobago Police Service believe the couple were murdered during a suspected robbery. (Independent)

Politics and elections

United States presidential election, 2016
- The Vice President of the United States Joe Biden says that he will not be seeking the Democratic Party nomination. (Los Angeles Times blog) (Washington Post)

Sport

2015 Major League Baseball postseason
- In Major League Baseball, the New York Mets sweep the Chicago Cubs 4-0 to win the 2015 National League Championship Series and advance to the 2015 World Series. (Newsday)

News from Wikipedia – please support this valuable resource

October 22, 2015

Top News Stories –

Wentworth golf club asks for six-figure membership fee –
One of the UK’s most exclusive golf clubs is to start charging £125,000 to new joiners. Wentworth, which was bought by the Beijing-based Reignwood Group in September 2014, has told existing members they must stump up £100,000. Annual fees on top of that are to rise from £8,000 to £16,000. James Wyatt said he and other members faced having to pay “an enormous amount”. The Surrey golf club said membership pricing “is a private club matter”. [BBC]

Working Enigma machine fetches world record price at New York auction –
An extremely rare and fully operational Nazi Enigma machine from Second World War has sold for $365,000 in New York, setting a new record at auction, Bonhams said on Thursday. The M4 machine, which was built between 1943 and 1945, is one of around 150 to have survived from an estimated 1,500 that were built as Nazi Germany fought to fend off the Allies. A spokeswoman for Bonhams said the $365,000 (£237,000) sale price set a new world record for an Enigma machine sold at auction. The purchaser at Wednesday’s sale was identified only as a private collector. [Daily Telegraph]

Rudely-named south-east London coffee shop ordered to remove its sign –
A crudely-named coffee shop in south-east London has been ordered by its landlord to remove the “offensive” sign bearing its name. Fuckoffee tweeted a picture of a letter it received from the landlord’s lawyers:

The letter read: “We are instructed that you have either erected or allowed your sub-tenant to erect an offensive sign on the exterior of the buliding… without the permission or authority from our client to do so and this constitutes a trespass.” According to the letter, the Bermondsey Street coffeeshop could face legal proceedings or the forfeiture of its lease if it does not remove the sign. It will also have to cover the costs of the legal steps taken so far. [Daily Telegraph]

Video of the Day –

One Direction – Perfect

Top Twitter Trends –

	Worldwide	USA	UK
1	johan cruyff	#benghazicommittee	#evel
2	#laurenappreciationday	#whenamericawasgreat	Chip
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4	#felizjueves	#ishouldntbragbut	Wale
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6	#benghazicommittee	don mattingly	Meek Mill
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8	daniel murphy	dior	carlton cole
9	world series	#deathofabachelor	johan cruyff
10	hakeem	angela bassett	uefa

Other News Stories –

Armed conflicts and attacks

Syrian Civil War
- The Associated Press reports that Kurds in Syria established a new administration in the Sunni–Arab town of Tal Abyad, which the Kurds wrestled from ISIS last June. (U.S. News and World Report)
- Russian military intervention in the Syrian Civil War
  - Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reports at least a dozen people, including health-care workers, were killed when Russian aircraft attacked a field hospital in Sarmin, Idlib. (AFP via Yahoo News)
Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, American-led intervention in Iraq (2014–present):
- A joint early-morning raid conducted by Iraqi and US forces on an IS-run prison in Hawija, Kirkuk Province has freed 70 hostages. One U.S. Delta Force soldier was reported killed – the first American combat death since the start of the US-led intervention against IS. (BBC)
War in Afghanistan (2015–present)
- Taliban insurgents assassinate Mohammad Daud Sultanzoy, a district administrator in Afghanistan‘s eastern Ghazni province. (Voice of America)
Sinai insurgency
- Egypt‘s military says it has gained “full control” over the North Sinai areas of Arish, Rafah and Sheikh Zuweid after successful raids on terrorist strongholds and weapons caches. (Ahram Online)
At least 10 people are killed and 12 injured when a suicide-bomber attacks a Pakistani Shia Mosque and Imambargah during prayers in the District Bagh of Kachhi 300 Km from Quetta in Balochistan. (Pakistan Today)

Arts and culture

Robert Mugabe is awarded the Confucius Peace Prize. (CBS News)

Disasters and accidents

2015 Pacific typhoon season
- The death toll for Typhoon Koppu (Lando) in the Philippines rises to 54 with more than 1.2 million affected. (Rappler) (The Guardian)
2015 Pacific hurricane season
- Hurricane Patricia strengthens to Category 4 ahead of making landfall in Mexico. (Washington Post)
European migrant crisis
- Human Rights Watch says unidentified armed men have been disabling boats carrying migrants and asylum seekers in the Aegean Sea traveling from Turkey toward the Greek islands. Witnesses have described eight incidents this month in which masked assailants intercepted and disabled the boats by damaging engines or fuel systems, and in the case of inflatable boats, attempting to puncture hulls. (UPI) (Human Rights Watch)
- In a pair of incidents on Tuesday and Wednesday, two migrants were killed, 16 are missing, and 48 were rescued from boats heading to Greece from Turkey that capsized in the Aegean Sea. (Hürriyet Daily News)

International relations

European migrant crisis
- Authorities in Slovenia say around 2,000 migrants from a refugee camp at the Croatian border are traveling in four trains toward Austria, three to the overloaded crossing at Šentilj and the other to Jesenice. (Washington Post)
- U.N. human rights chief Zeid Ra’ad al-Hussein accuses the Czech Republic of committing systematic human rights violations by detaining refugees for up to 90 days and strip-searching them for money to pay for their own detention. Czech President Miloš Zeman rejected Zeid’s criticism “of his stance against migration and Islam.” (Reuters) (NYSE Post) (The Guardian)
Kuril Islands dispute
- Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu announces Russia plans to build a new military base on the Kuril Islands, a group of Pacific islands it seized from Japan at the end of World War II. (Business Insider)
Israeli–Palestinian conflict (2015)
- U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry met today in Berlin with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu regarding the recent spate of violence between Palestinians and Israelis. Kerry will meet on Saturday with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas andKing Abdullah of Jordan in Amman. (Washington Post)

Law and crime

Trollhättan school attack
- A teacher and a student are killed, and another student injured, in an attack at a high school in Trollhättan, Sweden. The attacker was shot dead by police. (BBC) (The Guardian)
Chilean officers start to grant civil unions licences to both heterosexual and homosexual couples, marking the first time a same-sex relationship is officially recognized in the country. (BBC) (The Guardian)
A shooting late Thursday on the Tennessee State University campus in Nashville, Tennessee, U.S., injures three people, one critically. The victims were transported to Vanderbilt University Medical Center. (New York Daily News) (NBC News)

Politics and elections

West Lothian question
- The UK House of Commons passes an “English votes for English laws” bill by 312 to 270 votes giving English MPs a greater say over legislation that only applies to England. The bill has been fiercely opposed by the opposition Labour Party and theScottish National Party. (BBC)
U.S. President Barack Obama vetoes the $612 billion annual defense authorization bill because of the way it would sidestep budget limitations for the military and because it would restrict the transfer of detainees being held at Guantanamo Bay. This is the President’s fifth veto since 2009. (Washington Post) (Reuters)
Paul Ryan announces that he will run to succeed outgoing Speaker of the United States House of Representatives John Boehner after receiving the support of a significant majority of members of the Republican Party. (NBC)

Sports

Baruto Kaito, former sumo wrestler who once reached ōzeki, the sport’s second-highest rank, announces he will compete in mixed martial arts and is set to make his debut at Rizin Fighting Federation. (Kyodo News)

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October 23, 2015

Top News Stories –

Cats are terrified of cucumbers and no one knows exactly why –
People on the internet have been playing a charming joke on/causing uncalled-for distress to their cats by placing cucumbers behind them while they eat. It has to be specifically a cucumber. Pet owners have been trying it out for themselves and filming the responses. In order for the trick to work, you apparently have to place a cucumber quietly behind a cat while it is eating. When the cat turns around and notices the cucumber, you get quite an interesting response. They don’t see it first, but when they do, look out. The trend has reached reddit, and there is a dedicated thread called ‘cucumbers scaring cats’. [Daily Telegraph] See Video of the Day

Video of the Day –

Cat gets scared by a sneaky cucumber

Top Twitter Trends –

	Worldwide	USA	UK
1	Adele	#Patricia	#TalkTalk
2	#CanYouRespectNiall	Adele	#FridayFeeling
3	#12hNerds	Anthony Hamilton	#SoundsGoodFeelsGood
4	Amancio Ortega	#CamilaAppreciationDay	#wearitpink
5	#HuracanPatricia	Tennessee State University	#CanYouRespectNiall
6	Hayırlı Cumalar	Baby Hitler	Adele
7	Jessica Jones	#CanYouRespectNiall	Jessica Jones
8	#النصر_الشباب	#SpookyBands	#bbcqt
9	#SoundsGoodFeelsGood	Jessica Jones	#BringBackLukeIsAPenguin
10	BeliebersVoteEMA	#hurricanepatricia	Duppy Riddim

Other News Stories –

Armed conflicts and attacks

Boko Haram
- Two suicide bombings kill at least 55 people and injure over 100 in the northeast Nigerian cities of Yola and Maiduguri. (Premium Times) (Reuters) (Media24) (AFP via Yahoo)
War in North-West Pakistan
- A bomb detonates in a Muharram procession in Jacobabad killing twenty-four people, including 10 children & 6 women and several others injured. (Dawn)(Samaa News)
Syrian Civil War
- Islamic State fighters take control of a section of road running between the towns of Khanaser and Ithriya, southeast of Aleppo, according to a monitoring group. This threatens the Syrian army’s only supply route into the city. (Reuters)
Libyan Civil War (2014–present)
- At least nine people are killed and dozens injured in the eastern Libyan city of Benghazi after several mortar shells hit a protest against a UN proposal for a unity government to end the four-year long crisis in the country. (Reuters)

Arts and culture

Adele returns from a three-year hiatus with the new single “Hello” from the album 25. (Forbes) (BBC)

Business and economics

Lockheed Martin embarks on corporate overhead cost cutting reviews, another initiative following business selloffs and personnel layoffs. In the face of U.S. budget constraints, Lockheed’s actions are in step with those of other major U.S. defense contractors. (Zacks)
Imprimis Pharmaceuticals Inc. announces it will begin selling $1 doses of the antimalarial drug used for HIV patients, pyrimethamine (generic drug name for Daraprim), whose price was recently raised to $750 per pill by Turing Pharmaceuticals followingMartin Shkreli’s purchase of its marketing rights this year. Imprimis also plans to start making inexpensive versions of other generic drugs whose prices have skyrocketed. (Chicago Tribune) (Toronto Star)

Disasters and accidents

2015 Pacific hurricane season
- Hurricane Patricia makes landfall at Playa Perula in Mexico‘s western Jalisco state . The storm strengthens into a powerful Category 5 hurricane with winds of 200 mph and gusts up to 245 mph. The NHC has called the storm “potentially catastrophic” for Mexico. Patricia is expected to produce total rainfall accumulations of 6 to 12 inches, with isolated maximum amounts of 20 inches, through Saturday. These rains could produce life-threatening flash floods and mud slides. (National Hurricane Center)(Reuters), (AFP via ABC News Australia)
- Hurricane Patricia becomes the most intense hurricane ever recorded in the Western Hemisphere with winds of 200 mph (320 km/h). (NBC)
2015 Puisseguin road crash
- At least 43 people die after a bus collides with a truck near the French town of Puisseguin. (The Guardian)

International Relations

Kuwait and France sealed a deal whereby the Gulf nation will upgrade its defense capabilities with $2.8 billion worth of military equipment. Defense experts cite the ongoing conflict in Iraqi Civil War, the June 2015 terror attack claimed by ISIS in Kuwait City, and a reluctance by the U.S. to supply Kuwait as reasons for the deal. (Vice News)
The president of Zimbabwe, Robert Mugabe, is awarded the Confucius Peace Prize, sometimes characterized as a Chinese alternative to the Nobel Peace Prize. (The Guardian)

Law and crime

Trollhättan school attack
- Swedish police claim that the deceased attacker was driven by “racist motives”. (Reuters via Daily Mail)
European migrant crisis
- Police in Bamberg, Germany arrested three people said to be involved in a far-right extremist terror plot to attack refugee shelters, shelter staff and public officials supportive of refugees. (The Telegraph)
School shootings in the United States
- Nineteen-year old Cameron Selmon died during last night’s shooting on the Tennessee State University campus when a fight erupted during a dice game, in which a player pulled out a gun and started firing. One of the three injured 18-year-old female students remains hospitalized. The suspect fled the scene on foot and is still at large. The school is closed today but will re-open with Monday classes. (The Tennessean) (Fox News)

Politics and elections

United States presidential election, 2016
- Democratic Party presidential candidates, 2016,
  - Former Rhode Island Governor Lincoln Chafee announces his decision to end his campaign for the 2016 Democratic Party presidential nomination in Washington, D.C. (NBC News) (Christian Science Monitor)
- Republican Party presidential candidates, 2016
  - Former Florida Governor Jeb Bush, no longer a front-runner for the Republican presidential nomination, reduces the size of his Miami, Florida, presidential campaign operations, cuts staff salaries across the board, and refocuses efforts on the early voting states. The shake-up comes two days before Bush gathers with top political donors in Houston, Texas, and 100 days before the party’s first nominating contest in Iowa. (Bloomberg) (Miami Herald) (Washington Post)
The U.S. Department of Energy cancels a shipment of 100 pounds of spent nuclear fuel (estimated value $200 million per year) to Idaho after failing to agree on terms that required a waiver to their 1995 agreement. (AP)

Sports

2015 Major League Baseball postseason
- The Kansas City Royals win the 2015 American League Championship Series, defeating the Toronto Blue Jays 4-2. (Los Angeles Times)
The first World Indigenous Games begins in the Brazilian city of Palmas, Tocantins with the opening ceremony disrupted by a protest by native Brazilians. (AFP via Daily Mail)

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October 24, 2015

Top News Stories –

Hurricane Patricia hits, spares Mexico of major damage so far –
Hurricane Patricia, the record-breaking category 5 hurricane, rumbled across western Mexico early on Saturday, uprooting trees and triggering some landslides but causing less damage than feared for such a massive storm, officials said. Authorities relocated coastal residents, evacuated tourists from beach hotels and closed sea ports, airports and schools in several states before Patricia made landfall in Jalisco state as a huge category five hurricane. Patricia had grown into the strongest hurricane ever recorded hours before reaching the coast, raising fears that it would bring death and destruction across the country. [Daily Telegraph] Astronaut Scott Kelly tweeted this picture of the storm from the Space Station

Lenin statue given Darth Vader makeover –
A statue of Vladimir Lenin in the Ukrainian city of Odessa has been given a sci-fi twist – by being transformed into Darth Vader. The statue, in the grounds of a factory in the Black Sea port city, had been earmarked for removal under the country’s “de-communisation” law. But instead, it now wears the instantly recognisable shiny black helmet and mask of the Star Wars villain, the local Dumskaya news website reports. “Everything flows and nothing abides,” says warehouse manager Semyon Horbunov, taking inspiration from the Greek philosopher Heraclitus. “New heroes replace old ones, and this is how the world goes round.” But while the monument is Darth Vader on the outside, deep down it’s still Lenin. “The bronze Lenin was left inside, so that the grateful or not-so-grateful descendants could exhume him, if needed,” sculptor Alexander Milov is quoted is saying by Ukraine Today. [BBC]

Video of the Day –

Humans In 1000 Years – ASAP Science

Top Twitter Trends –

	Worldwide	USA	UK
1	#ALDubEBTamangPanahon	#DinahAppreciationDay	#BlameCorbyn
2	#PrayForMexico	#1YearSinceStealMyGirl	#HurricanePatricia
3	VoteNOWBelieber	#HowNotToBePoor	Kirsty Howard
4	#1YearSinceStealMyGirl	Maureen O’Hara	Baby Hitler
5	#Teleton2015	Liam and Sophia	Chelsea
6	#DinahAppreciationDay	#ALDubEBTamangPanahon	#NZLvRSA
7	#WelcomeToBrazilAriana	Al Golden	#BeijingePrix
8	Maureen O’Hara	Stillwater	#HeadlinesForSongs
9	Sophiam	#IAmNotJust	#FIL2015
10	Chelsea	#IDPJJ	Peter Baldwin

Other News Stories –

Armed conflicts and attacks

A series of bomb blasts targeting Shia Muslims in the Bangladeshi capital Dhaka kills at least one person and injures dozens more. Claims of responsibility by ISIS are discounted by Dhaka police who told AFP, “So far we have not found any link to any militant group.” (Reuters) (Christian Science Monitor)
Sinai insurgency, Egyptian parliamentary election, 2015
- A first lieutenant and two soldiers have been killed in an explosion which targeted a police armored vehicle in the northern Sinai city of Al-Arīsh. (NY Times)
- Two suspected militants riding a motorcycle shoot and kill Mostafa Abdelrahman, the ultraconservative Salafi Al-Nour Party secretary, and parliamentary candidate for Al-Arīsh. Arish residents say militants have threatened candidates, accusing them of cooperating with the government. Al‑Nour is the only prominent Islamist party to emerge unscathed after the military’s 2013 crackdown on Islamists. (Reuters) (AFP via Bangkok Post)
Israeli–Palestinian conflict (2015)
- Violence continues while talks persist looking for a peaceful resolution. A 16-year old Palestinian is shot dead after he tried to stab an Israeli security guard at a West Bank border crossing. A 25-year old Palestinian protester died of wounds suffered last week when he was shot by Israeli troops during a border clash near the Gazan town of Khan Yunis. (Reuters) (AP)
Syrian Civil War
- Al-Nusra Front‘s (Al-Qaeda‘s branch in Syria) leader Abu Suleiman al-Masri is reportedly killed in the Aleppo province during clashes with the Syrian Army. (Independent)
Saudi Arabian-led intervention in Yemen
- At least 40 people, including several fishermen, are reportedly killed following Saudi-led coalition airstrikes on two islands off Yemen‘s Red Sea coast. Local fisherman reported coalition aircraft and warships struck the Aqban and Kadman islands targetingHouthi forces but also destroyed several boats killing local fishermen. (Reuters)

Arts and culture

Actress Maureen O’Hara dies in her sleep at her Boise, Idaho, home. “She passed peacefully surrounded by her loving family as they celebrated her life listening to music from her favorite movie, The Quiet Man,” said her family’s statement. (AP) (ABC News)
Close to 300 landmarks in 60 countries, from the Pyramids in Egypt, to the Eiffel Tower in Paris, and the Empire State Building in New York, were lit up in blue — the official color of the United Nations — to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the world body. (New York Times) (UN) (Blue photos UN)
The three-week synod on the family convened by Pope Francis at the Vatican concludes with traditional Catholic orientations toward marriage and the family intact. (New York Times)

Disasters and accidents

A Union Pacific freight train derails in flooded North Texas, near Corsicana, where the tracks washed away. The two crewmen on board swam to safety. (CBS News) (WFAA blog)
2015 Pacific hurricane season
- Hurricane Patricia, which hit the Mexican coast as a Category 5 storm, appeared to leave remarkably little damage as it moved rapidly inland over mountainous western Mexico and is now a tropical depression (35 mph/55 kph). The storm is currently centered northeast of Zacatecas, Mexico, moving northeast at 24 mph/39 kph. While there are no reports of casualties or substantial widespread damage, authorities warn deadly floods and mudslides remain possible. (ABC News) (CTV News)(NHC)
A drunk driver plows into the Oklahoma State Homecoming parade in Stillwater, Oklahoma, killing four people and injuring 34 with eight in critical condition. The homecoming game with Kansas was played at 2:30 p.m. CT as scheduled. (USA Today)(KOCO) (AP via WFLX)
Costa Rica‘s restive Turrialba Volcano erupts. (The Tico Times)

International relations

Israeli–Palestinian conflict (2015), Israel–Jordan relations
- Israel and Jordan agree to take steps to quell violence at the Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem which includes round-the-clock monitoring of new security cameras there. Israel reaffirms Jordan’s historic role as formal custodian of what is known to Jews as the Temple Mount and as Haram al-Sharif to Muslims. Yesterday, Israeli authorities lifted restrictions that had banned men aged under 40 from praying at al-Aqsa. (Reuters) (BBC) (Washington Post)
2015 anti-government protest in Montenegro
- Thousands protest and clash with police in Montenegro‘s capital Podgorica, demanding the immediate resignation of Prime Minister Milo Đukanović. Đukanović has rejected calls to resign and has accused the opposition of trying to prevent the country’sNATO membership, saying he is convinced Russia is behind the unrest. (AFP via Yahoo)

Law and crime

Ahmed Adeeb, the Vice President of the Maldives, is arrested on suspicion of links to an explosion on the boat of President of the Maldives Abdulla Yameen last month. (AP via Washington Post)

Politics and elections

Louisiana gubernatorial election, 2015
- Voters in Louisiana go to the polls to elect the Bayou State’s next governor. The winner will succeed Bobby Jindal, who is in his second and final term, and is a candidate for the Republican nomination in the 2016 presidential election. The race may go to a November 21, 2015, runoff if no candidate gets at least 50 percent of the vote today. (Reuters) (Houma Courier)

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October 25, 2015

Top News Stories –

Lewis Hamilton wins his third F1 World Championship –
Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton won a thrilling United States Grand Prix to seal his third World Championship. Hamilton pressured team-mate Nico Rosberg into a mistake during a frantic last 10 laps after a safety car and swept by to take his 10th win of 2015. It was an exciting climax to a race of fluctuating fortunes, lead changes and superb racing in changing conditions. Hamilton becomes only the second British driver after Sir Jackie Stewart to win three Formula 1 drivers’ titles. [BBC] See List of the Day
Lewis Hamilton

Moto GP: Valentino Rossi penalised for kicking Marc Marquez –
MotoGP championship leader Valentino Rossi will start the final race of the season from the back of the grid after kicking Marc Marquez off his bike during the Malaysian Grand Prix.Rossi finished third but was given three penalty points following a post-race investigation. He later accused Marquez of “making me lose the championship”. Honda’s Dani Pedrosa won the race, with Jorge Lorenzo second. The final race takes place in Spain on 8 November. Rossi now leads Lorenzo by just seven points in the championship. [BBC]
Valentino Rossi

Video of the Day –

Confusion as Turkey clocks defy time-change delay –
Confused Turks are asking “what’s the time?” after automatic clocks defied a government decision to defer a seasonal hour’s change in the time. Along with other countries, Turkey had been due to “fall back” an hour on Saturday at the end of summertime daylight saving. The Turkish government however decided to postpone the change until after upcoming polls. But some clocks have changed the time regardless – causing bewilderment.
The hashtag #saatkac – or “what’s the time?” – is now trending in Turkey as Twitter users express confusion. [BBC]

Our Fractal Brains from Julius Horsthuis on Vimeo.

List of the Day –

Formula One Grand Prix Winners
Rank	Country	Driver	Wins	Seasons active	First win	Last win
1	Germany	Michael Schumacher	91	1991–2006 2010–2012	1992 Belgian Grand Prix	2006 Chinese Grand Prix
2	France	Alain Prost	51	1980–1991 1993	1981 French Grand Prix	1993 German Grand Prix
3	United Kingdom	Lewis Hamilton	43	2007–	2007 Canadian Grand Prix	2015 United States Grand Prix
4	Germany	Sebastian Vettel	42	2007–	2008 Italian Grand Prix	2015 Singapore Grand Prix
5	Brazil	Ayrton Senna	41	1984–1994	1985 Portuguese Grand Prix	1993 Australian Grand Prix
6	Spain	Fernando Alonso	32	2001 2003–	2003 Hungarian Grand Prix	2013 Spanish Grand Prix
7	United Kingdom	Nigel Mansell	31	1980–1992 1994–1995	1985 European Grand Prix	1994 Australian Grand Prix
8	United Kingdom	Jackie Stewart	27	1965–1973	1965 Italian Grand Prix	1973 German Grand Prix
9	United Kingdom	Jim Clark	25	1960–1968	1962 Belgian Grand Prix	1968 South African Grand Prix
9	Austria	Niki Lauda	25	1971–1979 1982–1985	1974 Spanish Grand Prix	1985 Dutch Grand Prix
11	Argentina	Juan Manuel Fangio	24	1950–1951 1953–1958	1950 Monaco Grand Prix	1957 German Grand Prix
12	Brazil	Nelson Piquet	23	1978–1991	1980 United States Grand Prix West	1991 Canadian Grand Prix
13	United Kingdom	Damon Hill	22	1992–1999	1993 Hungarian Grand Prix	1998 Belgian Grand Prix
14	Finland	Mika Häkkinen	20	1991–2001	1997 European Grand Prix	2001 United States Grand Prix
14	Finland	Kimi Räikkönen	20	2001–2009 2012–	2003 Malaysian Grand Prix	2013 Australian Grand Prix
16	United Kingdom	Stirling Moss	16	1950–1962	1955 British Grand Prix	1961 German Grand Prix
17	United Kingdom	Jenson Button	15	2000–	2006 Hungarian Grand Prix	2012 Brazilian Grand Prix
18	Australia	Jack Brabham	14	1955–1970	1959 Monaco Grand Prix	1970 South African Grand Prix
18	United Kingdom	Graham Hill	14	1958–1975	1962 Dutch Grand Prix	1969 Monaco Grand Prix
18	Brazil	Emerson Fittipaldi	14	1970–1980	1970 United States Grand Prix	1975 British Grand Prix
21	Italy	Alberto Ascari	13	1950–1955	1951 German Grand Prix	1953 Swiss Grand Prix
21	United Kingdom	David Coulthard	13	1994–2008	1995 Portuguese Grand Prix	2003 Australian Grand Prix
23	United States	Mario Andretti	12	1968–1972 1974–1982	1971 South African Grand Prix	1978 Dutch Grand Prix
23	Argentina	Carlos Reutemann	12	1972–1982	1974 South African Grand Prix	1981 Belgian Grand Prix
23	Australia	Alan Jones	12	1975–1981 1983 1985–1986	1977 Austrian Grand Prix	1981 Caesars Palace Grand Prix
26	Canada	Jacques Villeneuve	11	1996–2006	1996 European Grand Prix	1997 Luxembourg Grand Prix
26	Brazil	Rubens Barrichello	11	1993–2011	2000 German Grand Prix	2009 Italian Grand Prix
26	Brazil	Felipe Massa	11	2002 2004–	2006 Turkish Grand Prix	2008 Brazilian Grand Prix
26	Germany	Nico Rosberg	11	2006–	2012 Chinese Grand Prix	2015 Austrian Grand Prix
30	Sweden	Ronnie Peterson	10	1970–1978	1973 French Grand Prix	1978 Austrian Grand Prix
30	South Africa	Jody Scheckter	10	1972–1980	1974 Swedish Grand Prix	1979 Italian Grand Prix
30	United Kingdom	James Hunt	10	1973–1979	1975 Dutch Grand Prix	1977 Japanese Grand Prix
30	Austria	Gerhard Berger	10	1984–1997	1986 Mexican Grand Prix	1997 German Grand Prix

List from Wikipedia

Top Twitter Trends –

	Worldwide	USA	UK
1	Rossi	#7MonthsWithoutZayn	#ClocksGoBack
2	SorryBieberIsBack	#MTVEMA	Martin Amis
3	#7MonthsWithoutZayn	Flip Saunders	Iraq War
4	#YaEsTipicoQue	Tony Blair	#XFactor
5	#Elecciones2015	#LifeLessonIn5Words	#DerbyDay
6	#SPSSariSariLaf	Jets	Tony Blair
7	VoteOneDirectionEMA	#5daysTilFocus	#ARGvAUS
8	#HappyBirthdayKatyPerry	#HIAC	#NFLUK
9	#SaatKaç	#5HAppreciationDay	#TimeSongs
10	DAVID WATCH OUT	Cowboys	Chelsea

Other News Stories –

Armed conflicts and attacks

Israeli-Palestinian conflict (2015)
- Israeli border police shoot dead a 17-year-old girl after she allegedly approached them with a knife in the southern West Bank city of Hebron. (The New Daily AU)
- A Palestinian stabs an Israeli settler in Gush Etzion. (Ynet)

Business and economics

The United Parcel Service pilots’ union authorizes its executive board to call a strike at the board’s discretion as contract talks slog into a fifth year. This, in the wake of competitor FedEx pilots’ approval of a new six-year contract. (WSJ)

Disasters and accidents

At least 17 people are killed and 71 injured following a fire in a karaoke bar on the Indonesian island of Sulawesi. (AP via Fox News)
European migrant crisis
- The bodies of 40 migrants wash ashore on the Libyan coast with another 30 people missing. (AAP via SBS)
At least four people are dead and a number missing as a tour boat carrying 27 people sinks off the coast of Tofino on Vancouver Island off the coast of the Canadian province of British Columbia. (CTV), (CNN)

International relations

European migrant crisis
- Thirteen European and Balkan leaders meet about the migrant crisis at an emergency summit in Brussels, Belgium; Turkey did not attend. The Prime Minister of Slovenia says the EU will ‘start falling apart’ within weeks if the migrant crisis continues unchecked. Huge divisions remain among EU states over how to deal with the influx of hundreds of thousands of migrants. (Chicago Tribune) (Radio New Zealand) (Daily Mail)

Law and crime

2015 Oklahoma State University homecoming parade crash
- Police have updated information on the casualties from this crash. Four died and 47 were injured; five remain in critical condition. (Q13 Fox) (Lethbridge Herald)
- The attorney for Adacia Chambers, the woman whose car plowed into homecoming parade crowd, says he doesn’t think his client was intoxicated at the crash. Tony Coleman said, “I don’t believe right now that she was intoxicated. … she’s suffering frommental illness.” (USA Today) (KFOR)
More than 200 bears are killed in a single day in the U.S. state of Florida after state officials allow the hunting of the animals for the first time in 21 years; supporters say the aim is to cut down on the surging population of black bears, but animal rights activists have criticized the hunts as cruel and ineffective. (Sky News)

Politics and elections

Argentine general election, 2015
- Voters in Argentina go to the polls to select a new President and legislature with the presidential election to go to a runoff on November 22 as neither candidate could secure a majoriey. (BBC), (CNN)
Polish parliamentary election, 2015
- Voters in Poland go to the polls for a parliamentary election with the opposition Law and Justice party performing well in exit polls. (BBC)
- Exit polls show Poland’s conservative Law and Justice (PiS) party, led by eurosceptic Jarosław Kaczyński and the new PM Beata Szydło, won an absolute majority in today’s general elections. Kaczyński is the twin brother of the late President Lech Kaczyński, who died in a 2010 jet crash. The PiS picks up 242 out of 460 seats in the Sejm, the lower house of parliament, ousting the governing Christian democratic Civic Platform (PO) party gets 133 seats and becoming the first party to win a majority in its own right since the collapse of communism in 1989. Prime Minister Ewa Kopacz has conceded defeat. (NDTV) (Newstalk)
Tanzanian general election, 2015
- Voters in Tanzania go to the polls for an election with the ruling Chama Cha Mapinduzi facing the greatest challenge to its dominance in over 50 years. (Washington Post)
Ivorian presidential election, 2015
- Voters in the Ivory Coast go to the polls for a presidential election with incumbent Alassane Ouattara favoured to win. (AP via New York Times)
Republic of the Congo constitutional referendum, 2015
- Voters in the Republic of the Congo go to the polls to vote on a constitutional amendment that would allow incumbent President Denis Sassou Nguesso to seek another term. (AP)
Guatemalan general election, 2015
- Voters in Guatemala go to the polls for the second round of voting in a presidential election with former TV comedian Jimmy Morales winning a landslide victory. (Wall Street Journal), (Reuters via ABC News Australia)
Haitian presidential election, 2015, Haitian parliamentary election, 2015
- Most polls in Haiti’s high-stakes presidential, second rounds of legislative, and local elections closed on schedule. Voting was relatively orderly across the nation of some 10 million people. Voters have 54 contenders for president to choose from; a runoff between the top two candidates is scheduled for December 27. (Miami Herald) (NBC News) (SABC)
Ukrainian local elections, 2015
- Voters across Ukraine go to the polls to elect regional leaders amid widespread frustration over a sagging economy and stalled reforms nearly two years after the Ukrainian revolution. (Washington Post) (Global Voices)
Elections in the United States
- Louisiana gubernatorial election, 2015
  - Republican U.S. Senator David Vitter and Democratic state Representative John Bel Edwards top two Republican candidates for spots in the November 21 runoff election. Edwards wins 40 percent and Vitter 23 percent of the primary vote, according to unofficial returns. (AP)

Sports

Lewis Hamilton wins a third World Drivers’ Championship in Formula One, as his team Mercedes secures the Constructors’ Championship. (The Guardian)

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October 26, 2015

Top News Stories –

Dog named Trigger shoots owner in the foot in Indiana –
A dog named Trigger shot his 25-year-old owner in the foot in a bizarre accident that had Indiana officials on Monday reminding hunters to take safety lessons. Allie Carter of Avilla was wounded during a waterfowl hunt on Saturday morning at the Tri-County Fish and Wildlife Area in northern Indiana, according to Indiana Department of Natural Resources. She laid her 12-gauge shotgun on the ground while repositioning herself and her 11-year-old chocolate Labrador stepped on the gun, depressing the trigger, said Indiana Conservation Officer Jonathon Boyd. The safety of the shotgun was not on, so it went off and Carter was shot in the left foot, Boyd said. Carter, who had never completed a hunter education course, was hospitalized. She suffered non-life-threatening injuries from the bird shot pellets and was treated and released, Boyd said. [Reuters]

Saudi prince held after seizure of two tons of amphetamines at Beirut airport –
A Saudi prince has been detained at Beirut airport in Lebanon after two tons of an amphetamine drug popular with Syrian rebels was found on a private jet. Prince Abdel Mohsen Bin Walid Bin Abdulaziz and four other men were held after what was described as the biggest ever drugs bust at the city’s main Rafik Hariri International Airport, according to local media and security sources. They were allegedly “attempting to smuggle about two tons of Captagon pills and some cocaine”, a security source was quoted as saying. Captagon is a brand name for the widely used amphetamine phenethylline. Although this type of amphetamine has been prescribed in the past to treat childhood and other behavioural disorders, it is now used overwhelmingly as a stimulant in the Middle East. [Daily Telegraph]

11-year-old girl sets up business selling secure passwords for $2 –
Weak passwords are still the plague of the cybersecurity industry, with the most popular passwords of 2014 including “123456”, “password” and “qwerty”, making it easy for hackers to break into accounts and steal data. Now an 11-year-old girl from New York is offering a solution. Sixth-grader Mira Modi has started her own business making cryptographically secure passwords and selling them for $2 a pop. She generates the passwords using a system called Diceware to create strings of words that are easy to remember but difficult to crack. The system involves rolling a die to generate random numbers, which are matched to a list of short words from the Diceware dictionary. Those words are then combined into a non-sensical string, such as: alger klm curry blond puck horse. These six-word passphrases contain a lot of “entropy”, or randomness, which means that it would take a powerful computer a very long time to correctly guess them. They are also easier to memorise than strings of individual characters. [Daily Telegraph]

Video of the Day –

OFFF Porto Main Titles from bif on Vimeo.

Top Twitter Trends –

	Worldwide	USA	UK
1	#LouisYouMakeUsFeelLikeHome	The Concealed-Carry Fantasy	#mondaymotivation
2	#FelizLunes	#LouisYouMakeUsFeelLikeHome	#HIAC
3	La OMS	Monster 2	Lisa Jardine
4	#HIAC	#mondaymotivation	#LouisYouMakeUsFeelLikeHome
5	#TheWalkingDead	#MySignificantOtherIn4Words	#earthquake
6	#ALDUBNewBeginnings	#AssaultAtSpringValleyHigh	Glenn
7	#تسجيل_السعيدي…	#TrumpTODAY	#bacon
8	#QueLindoEsoDe	World Health Organization	Artist Of The Year
9	Macri	#earthquake	Lesnar
10	Jimmy Morales	#IHonkedAtYouBecause	#taxcredits

Other News Stories –

Armed conflicts and attacks

Syrian Civil War
- Spillover of the Syrian Civil War, Turkey–ISIL conflict
  - Four Islamic State militants and two Turkish policemen are killed during a raid on a house used by militants in the city of Diyarbakir in southeastern Turkey, according to the state-run Anadolu Agency. Four other police officers were injured. (AP via Fox News) (Reuters)
- United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs reports at least 120,000 people have been displaced in Syria this month because of fighting. These displaced Syrians need tents, basic household items, food, water and sanitation services. The agency’s humanitarian partners are scaling up their response. (AP)
Russian military intervention in the Syrian Civil War
- The Russian Ministry of Defense confirmed it has deployed special forces to Syria over the past weeks supporting its mission to back-up the Bashar al-Assad regime. A Russian official added that the special forces, who are “akin to the Delta Force of theU.S.,” had been operating in pro-Russian rebel held areas of Ukraine before being called off to Syria. (Business Insider) (The Wall Street Journal)
A suicide-bomb attack at a Shia mosque in the Saudi Arabian city of Najran accounts for over a dozen casualties. (BBC)
Yemeni Civil War (2015)
- At least 50 people are killed, including seven civilians, in heavy fighting between Houthi rebels and forces loyal to ousted President Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi near the city of Taiz. (Al-Jazeera)
Iraqi Civil War (2014–present), American-led intervention in Iraq, Syrian Civil War, American-led intervention in Syria
- United States Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter indicates a more robust role ahead for the United States military in bolstering indigenous forces countering ISIS and in response to Russia’s increasing role in Middle East conflicts. (WSJ)
Colombian conflict (1964–present)
- At least 11 Colombian Army soldiers and one policeman have been killed in an ELN attack in northeast Colombia. (Colombia Reports)

Business

MTN Group is fined $5.2 billion dollars by the Nigerian Communications Commission for failing to disconnect non-registered SIM cards. (BBC)
Toyota is once again the world’s largest carmaker with 7.5 million units sold thus far in 2015, compared to Volkswagen‘s 7.43 million and General Motors‘ 7.2 million. (BBC)
Japanese tire manufacturer Bridgestone announced it would buy US auto parts retailer Pep Boys for $835 million. (Reuters)
Duke Energy announced it would buy Piedmont Natural Gas for $4.9 billion. (Reuters)
USAA, one of the largest financial services companies in the U.S., announced the ending of its long-term relationship with MasterCard. The tenth-largest credit card issuer in the U.S. will replace the old credit cards with Visa cards next year. (WSJ)

Disasters and accidents

2015 Hindu Kush earthquake
- An earthquake measuring 7.5 on the Moment magnitude scale (MMS) strikes in the Hindu Kush mountain range in northeastern Afghanistan, 158 miles from Kabul, in the remote province of Badakhshan, one of Afghanistan’s most inaccessible regions. Tremors reached as far as New Delhi, India. At least 263 are dead in Afghanistan and nearby northern Pakistan with more than 1,000 injured. The death toll will likely climb since communications in much of the affected areas are cut, and rescue teams had not yet reached districts closest to the epicenter, including some that are controlled by Taliban insurgents. (BBC) (Financial Express) (USGS) (Dawn) (Reuters) (L.A. Times) (AP)

International relations

Saudi Arabia–United Kingdom relations
- Saudi Arabian ambassador to the United Kingdom Prince Mohammed bin Nawaf bin Abdulaziz, in an op-ed piece in the The Daily Telegraph, warns of “potentially serious repercussions” for the two countries’ relationship unless a more respectful discourse developed. At issue is London’s withdrawal from a £5.9m (US$9.1m) prison deal with Saudi Arabia which has been linked to London’s concerns about a death penalty case and a case involving Karl Andree, a 74-year-old Briton who faces 350 lashes. Today, the Saudi Supreme Court confirmed Sheikh Nimr al-Nimr’s death sentence. (Arab News) (BBC)
The United States is reportedly blocking a $400 million plan by South Korea to sell KAI T-50 Golden Eagle trainer jets, co-developed in 2006 with Lockheed Martin, to Uzbekistan, according to The Korea Times. The aircraft uses Lockheed Martin technologies — including avionics — and as such requires permission under the U.S. Arms Export Control Act for its sale to other countries. (UPI) (The Korea Times)
The U.S. Navy plans to send guided missile destroyer USS Lassen within 12 nautical miles of artificial islands built by China in the South China Sea. This first freedom of navigation challenge to China’s territorial claims in one of the world’s busiest sea lanesmay occur as soon as tomorrow, according to a U.S. defense official. (Reuters) (The Diplomat)

Law and crime

Indian fugitive gangster Chhota Rajan is arrested at Ngurah Rai International Airport in Bali. (BBC)
Saudi Arabia’s Supreme Court upholds the death sentence of Shiite cleric Sheikh Nimr al-Nimr, who was found guilty of sedition and other charges following his involvement in the 2011 Arab Spring Movement. (Jurist)
A member of the Saudi Royal Family and four other people are detained in Lebanon for attempting to smuggle about two tons of Captagon pills and some cocaine on a private jet. This is the largest drug seizure in the history of Beirut’s Rafik Hariri International Airport, according to Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency. (Al Jazeera) (NBC News)

Politics and elections

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu orders a review of the status of certain Palestinian neighborhoods in East Jerusalem. Netanyahu said he’s considering revoking residency status for Palestinians living there, according to Israel’s Channel 2. (AP)(UPI)

Science

A new study by scientists finds that areas of the Persian Gulf could become uninhabitable to humans in less than 100 years due to rising temperatures. (The Telegraph)(New York Times)(Nature)

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October 27, 2015

Top News Stories –

Halle Berry and Olivier Martinez announce divorce after two years of marriage –
Oscar-winning actress Halle Berry and her French actor husband, Olivier Martinez, said on Tuesday they are divorcing after two years of marriage. It is the third divorce for Berry, 49, who has a two-year-old son with Martinez. The couple cited irreconcilable differences, according to celebrity website TMZ.com. Berry in 2002 became the only black actress to win an Academy Award for a lead role, clinching the Oscar for her performance in Monster’s Ball. [Daily Telegraph]
Halle Berry

Darth Vader supporter Chewbacca arrested in Ukraine –
It’s a sentence we never thought we’d write, but here goes: Chewbacca has been arrested in Ukraine after police say they caught him campaigning for Darth Vader. A candidate, using the identity of the Star Wars Sith Lord has been running in local elections in the city of Odessa. It’s claimed the man dressed as Chewbacca had broken election day rules by campaigning on voting day. It’s being reported Chewbacca was fined the equivalent of a fiver. He’d arrived at a polling station along with the candidate when police stepped in. [BBC]

Video of the Day –

Create & Explore 009 – Braden Lee x HWLS from Create & Explore on Vimeo.

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Other News Stories –

Armed conflicts and attacks

Saudi Arabian-led intervention in Yemen
- A Yemeni hospital in Saada run by Médecins Sans Frontières (Doctors Without Borders) is destroyed by several Saudi-led coalition airstrikes overnight. The director of the hospital, Ali Mughli, reported “The air raids resulted in the destruction of the entire hospital with all that was inside – devices and medical supplies – and the moderate wounding of several people”. Another airstrike hit a nearby girls school and damaged several civilian homes according to local media. UNICEF said the Saada hospital was the 39th health center hit in Yemen since March. The Saudi-led coalition denies that its planes had hit the hospital. (Reuters)
Syrian Civil War, Destruction of cultural heritage by ISIL
- The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reports the Islamic State, on Sunday, executed three detainees in the ancient Syrian city of Palmyra by strapping them to pillars and blowing them up with the antiquities. ISIL has yet to tell locals the identities of the three individuals or say why they had been killed. (BBC) (USA Today)
American-led intervention in Iraq (2014–present), American-led intervention in Syria
- United States Defense Secretary Ashton Carter says the U.S. will begin “direct action on the ground” against the ISIL forces in Iraq and Syria, aiming to intensify pressure on the militants as progress against the militants remains elusive. The U.S. has done some special operations raids in Syria, e.g., last week’s rescue operation with Kurdish forces in northern Iraq to free hostages held by ISIL. Carter also said the U.S. would intensify the air campaign against ISIL with heavier airstrikes and will focus on Raqqa, the group’s declared capital in Syria. (NBC News) (Al Jazeera) (AP via Boston Globe)
Libyan Civil War (2014–present)
- A Libyan helicopter carrying cash for a local bank on the way out and returning to Tripoli with passengers is shot down near the coastal Almaya area west of the capital city, killing at least 14 of its 23 passengers including senior officers Hosein Bodaya and Duhain Al-Rammah, officials with Libya’s Dawn militias. (AP via ABC News) (BBC) (UPI)
Israeli-Palestinian conflict (2015)
- Three Palestinians are shot dead after attacking Israeli soldiers with knives in the occupied West Bank. Jerusalem’s Hadassah Hospital reports that 76-year old American-Israeli Richard Lakin, who was critically injured in a bus attack on October 13, 2015, died of his injuries. (Reuters) (Israel Hayom)
War in North-West Pakistan
- Pakistan says seven of its soldiers have been killed in the South Waziristan tribal region by fire from across the border with Afghanistan. The soldiers belonged to the Frontier Corps; the attack targeted a checkpoint northeast of the border village ofAngoor Adda. (UPI) (BBC)

Business and economics

In a plea bargain with U.S. federal prosecutors, Rohit Bansal, a former Goldman Sachs banker accused of using private information leaked by source inside the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, has agreed to plead guilty. The leaked information was said to have given Goldman an undue advantage regarding client advisement. Goldman also faces fines from the New York State’s Department of Financial Services. (New York Times)
Walgreens Boots Alliance agrees to buy Rite Aid for US$9.4 billion in a move which will create a retail pharmaceutical giant with 13,000 stores. (Dow Jones via Fox Business)
Northrop Grumman, the developer of the Air Force’s current bomber, the B-2, beats out the Boeing–Lockheed Martin team and is awarded the Pentagon contract to build a fleet of stealthy planes known as the Long Range Strike Bomber (LRS-B).(Washington Post) (CNN)

Disasters and accidents

2015 Hindu Kush earthquake
- Rescuers continue a search for survivors of the earthquake in Afghanistan and Pakistan including in areas controlled by the Taliban. The death toll from the earthquake is 339 with many thousands injured. (AFP via ABC News) (Himalayan Times)
- The Taliban, which effectively controls some of the worst-affected areas across multiple provinces, urged charity organizations not to hold back in delivering aid to Afghan victims of the quake, saying militants in the affected areas were ordered to provide “complete help.” (Reuters) (Daily Star)
2015 Southeast Asian haze
- Raging Indonesian forest fires have advanced into dense forest on Borneo and now threaten one third of the world’s remaining wild orangutans, say conservationists. (South China Morning Post) (ABC news)

International relations

Territorial disputes in the South China Sea, China–United States relations
- A United States Navy ship, the USS Lassen, sails near the Spratly Islands, challenging Beijing‘s claim that the islands are Chinese territory. China‘s Ministry of Foreign Affairs strongly condemned the actions of the United States in the South China Sea, saying “China will firmly react to this deliberate provocation”. (Wall Street Journal) (NPR) (The New York Times)
- Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Zhang Yesui summons US ambassador Max Baucus to protest a US naval patrol close to Beijing’s man-made islands in the South China Sea. Zhang called the US patrol “extremely irresponsible” and urged Washington to cease actions that harm China’s sovereignty and security. (Hong Kong Standard) (The Guardian)
- Greg Poling, a director at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, says the U.S. operation was aimed at testing control of the seas, not sovereignty over the disputed islands, to force a clarification of China’s claims. Undermaritime law, artificial islands were not usually afforded the 12-mile territorial zone, and that the U.S. Navy deliberately chose to send the destroyer near Subi Reef for this reason. (CNN)
Humanitarian International Services Group, an NGO founded by evangelical Christian Kay Miramine, was part of a secret Pentagon program devised by Lt. Gen. William Boykin used to spy on North Korea, according to an investigation by the online publication The Intercept. The program, which started in 2004, was shut down in 2012 by now-retired Admiral William McRaven, concerned with pushback if this became public. Some current and former American NGO staff with experience in North Korea have expressed doubts about key claims in the report. (The Intercept) (Christian Post) (NK News)
Syrian Civil War
- Iran is invited to attend the next round of talks over Syria’s future, along with the representatives from the United States, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Britain, France, Germany, Jordan, the United Arab Emirates, and the United Nations mediator forSyria, Staffan de Mistura. The next round of the “Vienna II” meeting is expected to start tomorrow and continue Friday in Vienna, Austria. (Irish Examiner) (Reuters) (Sputnik News) (New York Times)
- United Nations humanitarian chief Stephen O’Brien tells the Security Council the worsening conflict in Syria has left 13.5 million people in need of aid and some form of protection, including more than six million children. (AP) (Arab News)
The United Nations General Assembly overwhelmingly condemns the U.S. embargo of Cuba in its first vote on the matter since the start of normalization of relations between the two countries. The largely symbolic tally on the unenforceable resolution was 191 to 2 (U.S., Israel). (UPI) (AP via ABC News)

Law and crime

Guatemala arrests 11 in a public hospital, medicine-buying kickback scheme. Two others remain at large, including Gustavo Alejos Cambara, the former private secretary to ex-President Álvaro Colom. A U.N. commission set up to tackle criminal networks in Guatemala participated in the investigation. (AP)

Politics and elections

Britain is reviewing the powers of the House of Lords after the unelected peers stalled legislation yesterday that would have eliminated some tax allowances for the nation’s poor. Senior Conservatives say the upper chamber of Parliament stepped out of their usual roles as technical overseers of legislation. However, Conservative MP David Davis warned that such a move was “bully politics” that would “disgust” the public. (BBC) (AP via Washington Post)
Ivorian presidential election, 2015
- Partial results from Sunday’s election give Ivory Coast’s President Alassane Ouattara an overwhelming lead (83.18 percent) on the way to a second five-year term. This weekend’s vote was judged to be peaceful and transparent by observers, making it the first in Côte d’Ivoire’s history not to be marred by serious rights violations or irregularities. (Reuters) (Financial Times) (Abidjan.net)

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October 28, 2015

Top News Stories –

Google’s Project Loon internet balloons to circle Earth –
Google believes it is on course to have enough internet-beaming balloons in the stratosphere to form a ring over part of the world next year. It told the BBC the move would let it trial a continuous data service to people living below the balloons’ path. The declaration coincides with the announcement that three of Indonesia’s mobile networks intend to start testing Project Loon’s transmissions next year. One expert said the plan had benefits over other solutions. Sri Lanka previously signed a separate agreement signalling its wish to be another participant in the giant helium balloon-based scheme. [BBC]

Biscuit that survived the Titanic sells for $23,000 –
A cracker that survived the Titanic and lives on, unmunched, today has been sold for $23,000 (£15,034). The biscuit was saved by James Fenwick, a passenger on the Carpathia vessel that saved Titanic passengers at sea, and was kept intact in a Kodak film envelope by Fenwick along with the following notation: “Pilot biscuit from Titanic lifeboat April 1912.” The 103-year-old biscuit was used as part of a survival kit on one of the Titanic lifeboats. [Daily Telegraph]

Apple reports biggest annual profit in history with net income of $53.4bn –
Apple has recorded the biggest annual profit in corporate history, with record sales of the iPhone helping it to make $53.4bn (£35bn) in the last 12 months. The world’s biggest company surpassed the $45.2bn made by ExxonMobil in 2008, after the release of its latest smartphones increased profits by 31pc in its fourth quarter. However, Apple warned that growth is likely to slow down significantly in the crucial Christmas period, and sales of the iPad fell by a fifth to their lowest level since 2011. The company predicted that sales in the current quarter would be between $75.5bn and $77.5bn – as little as 1pc up on the same period last year – partially due to a strong dollar. [Daily Telegraph]

Video of the Day –

HOW I CRASHED THE SPECTRE PREMIERE AND AFTER PARTY JAMES BOND STYLE

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Other News Stories –

Armed conflicts and attacks

War in Afghanistan (2015–present)
- Taliban insurgents seize the Darqad District in the northeast Takhar Province near the border with Tajikistan. At least six Afghan troops are killed in the fighting. (Reuters) (AP via The Daily Mail)
- Michael Fallon, Secretary of State for Defence for the United Kingdom, announces that over 400 troops will remain in Afghanistan through 2016. The military personnel will train Afghan toops and support NATO operations in Kabul. (Military Times)
Boko Haram insurgency
- Suspected Boko Haram militants kill 14 civilians in the southeast Diffa Region of Niger near the Nigerian border. The Nigerien government recently approved a law prolonging a 15-day state of emergency for the Diffa region by three months in a bid to boost security. (Reuters)
2015 Ankara bombings
- Ankara’s Chief Prosecutor’s office says it has “strong evidence” that an Islamic State group — based in Gaziantep, near the Syrian border — is behind the bombings at this month’s Ankara peace rally that killed 102 people, as well as four previous attacks in Turkey since May that have mainly targeted supporters of a pro-Kurdish party. (AP) (AFP via NDTV)

Disasters and accidents

2015 Hindu Kush earthquake
- Aid workers warn that survivors of the earthquake are at risk of dying of exposure as temperatures in Pakistan and Afghanistan fall to near freezing levels. (Time)
- The death toll from Monday’s quake rises to 385. (AP via the Southern Illinoisan)
A military JLENS blimp from the United States Army broke loose from its moorings at the Aberdeen Proving Ground in Maryland, and drifted over 16,000 ft above Pennsylvania. F-16 Fighter jets were scrambled to track the blimp that has since deflated, causing widespread power outages from a long cable it dragged along the ground. (NBC) (Washington Post)
European migrant crisis
- The Greek coastguard says they rescued 242 migrants whose wooden boat sank north of the island of Lesbos, but at least three drowned, including two small boys. (Reuters) (AP via CBS News)

International relations

European migrant crisis
- Slovenia‘s prime minister, Miro Cerar says Slovenia is ready to build a fence on its border with Croatia if an EU plan to stem the flow of migrants across the Balkans fails. (AP via ABC News)
- Austrian Chancellor Werner Faymann, when discussing management of the flow of migrants with the press, talks about “technical security” measures but insists there will be “no fence” at the Slovenian border. This, in contrast to Interior Minister Johanna Mikl-Leitner who earlier spoke of plans for a “fence” on the border to Slovenia. Austria has been one of the more vocal countries criticizing Hungary’s decision to build a fence along its border with Serbia. (AP) (BBC)
Japan’s central government in Tokyo invalidated the governor of Okinawa, Takeshi Onaga’s, decision to halt the expansion of a U.S. military base on the island, a decision Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga termed “illegal.” (Bloomberg Business)

Health and medicine

The World Health Organization reports tuberculosis has surpassed human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), as the leading cause of global death, despite the death rate from tuberculosis having been cut in half over the last 25 years. Most deaths from tuberculosis could be prevented, researchers said, but detection and treatment aren’t happening fast enough. (UPI)

Law and crime

Censorship in Turkey
- Turkish police storm and shut down both Kanaltürk TV and Bugün, TV stations that have been critical of the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) ahead of a general election on November 1. Baris Yarkadas, a lawmaker with the main-oppositionRepublican People’s Party (CHP), said “We are witnessing the police entering news organizations, delivering declarations and taking over journalists’ seats—just like junta periods, this is called a police state”. (The Wall Street Journal) (Today’s Zaman)
In Aberdeen, Scotland, one student has died of injuries, and another has been arrested, after a stabbing at Cults Academy (Independent)
Dennis Hastert, former United States Speaker of the House of Representatives (1999–2007), pleaded guilty to a federal financial crime in a hush money case stemming from sexual misconduct allegations. The sentencing hearing is scheduled for February 29, 2016. The crime carries a sentence of up to five years in prison and $250,000 fine. Prosecutors recommend zero to six months imprisonment. (Reuters) (AP via ABC News)

Politics and elections

Ivorian presidential election, 2015
- Official results from the presidential election held on Sunday show that President of the Ivory Coast Alassane Ouattara has been reelected. (AFP via Daily Mail)
In the Netherlands, the Undersecretary for Infrastructure and Environment Wilma Mansveld resigns following the publication of a damning report about the problems with the international high-speed rail service Fyra. (DutchNews)
Members of the Republican party in the United States House of Representatives nominate Paul Ryan of Wisconsin to replace John Boehner of Ohio as Speaker of the House. There will be a formal vote Thursday on the House floor. (New York Times)
Tanzanian general election, 2015
- Tanzania’s opposition Chadema party presidential candidate Edward Lowassa calls for a recount of Sunday’s election for the presidency before official results are announced tomorrow. Meanwhile, the election commission chief of semi-autonomous Zanzibar nullifies their results, which opposition presidential candidate Seif Sharif Hamad of the Civic United Front announced he won on Monday. The United States said it’s “gravely alarmed” and called for reversal of the annulment. (AP via ABC News) (Reuters) (Mail & Guardian Africa)
Myanmar general election, 2015
- A United Nations rights investigator raises concern whether Myanmar’s election, scheduled for November 8, 2015, could be considered free and fair because dozens of candidates have been disqualified and hundreds of thousands of people denied theright to vote. (Reuters) (Council on Foreign Relations)
Elections in Nepal
- The Nepalese Parliament elects the country’s first female president, Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist–Leninist) vice-chairperson Bidhya Devi Bhandari, by a vote of 327 to 214. (The Guardian)

Science

The Cassini probe makes a close flyby of Saturn’s sixth-largest moon, Enceladus, coming within approximately 49 km (30 mi) of the surface and passing through the icy plume above the south pole. The transit of the plume was the deepest to date. Photographs and other data from the mission are expected within 48 hours. (BBC Online) (JPL Press Release)
An article published in Nature reports high levels of molecular oxygen found by the Rosetta space probe on comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko. This discovery could have implications for theories of the origin of the solar system. (Radio New Zealand Online) (BBC Online) (Nature Press Release) (Nature Article Synopsis)

News from Wikipedia – please support this valuable resource

October 29, 2015

Top News Stories –

Jeremy Clarkson threatened with three years in jail as Argentina reopens Falklands row probe –
Jeremy Clarkson’s hopes of putting the infamous Top Gear Falklands row behind him were dashed last night after a court probe was reopened in Argentina. A judge in the southern city of Ushuaia had thwarted attempts to have the former BBC presenter charged with falsification in April after the controversial number-plate on the Porsche he drove was swapped ahead of a riot. But state prosecutors appealed Maria Cristina Barrionuevo’s decision not to press ahead with a full-scale criminal investigation against Clarkson and his ex-Top Gear team. Last night the probe was back on – and Clarkson and programme chiefs facing a worst case scenario of three years in prison – after three appeal judges sided with prosecutors and ordered Barrionuevo to reactivate the case. [Daily Telegraph] In March 2015 Russia’s army TV channel issued an offer to Jeremy Clarkson to present a motoring show, noting his interest in tanks, aircraft carriers and other hardware.
Jeremy Clarkson

Video of the Day –

Balmain x H&M

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Other News Stories –

Armed conflicts and attacks

Iraqi Civil War (2014–present)
- The death toll from a rocket attack on a camp containing members of an Iranian opposition group next to Baghdad International Airport rises to 23. (Jerusalem Post)

Art and culture

Adele‘s “Hello” beats Miley Cyrus‘s “Wrecking Ball” as the fastest video on Vevo to reach 100 million views and is also certified as the official Vevo Record holder. (The Daily Mail)
Saudi Arabian blogger Raif Badawi, who has been sentenced to 1,000 lashes and 10 years in jail for insulting Islam and for cyber crime, wins the European Union’s prestigious Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought. The Sakharov award ceremony will be held in Strasbourg, France on December 16, 2015 while the laureate remains imprisoned. (Reuters) (Al Jazeera) (EU)

Business and economics

The largest lender in Europe’s most robust economy, Deutsche Bank AG, will cut 35k jobs in an effort to counter falling profits. (WSJ)
Sony announces $278.2 million in net profits for the quarter ending Sept. 30, beating market expectations. (WSJ)
Google announces that Project Loon – to provide wireless access to four billion unconnected people around the globe in rural and remote areas via Internet-beaming helium balloons in the stratosphere – will be tested in Indonesia in 2016. Currently, one in three Indonesians are connected to the web, mostly via slow connections, in this 17,508-island archipelago of over 250 million people (and about 319 million mobile phones). The company, which also tested Loon-delivered internet in Chile, New Mexico(U.S.), and Sri Lanka, hopes to deliver LTE-speed to more than 100 million unconnected Indonesians in five years. (ZDNET) (AFP via Khmer Times) (AP via Chicago Tribune) (Google)

Disasters and accidents

European migrant crisis
- An extensive search is underway in the northeastern Aegean Sea off the Greek island of Lesbos for at least 34 people missing from a boat that sank yesterday. Some 242 people were rescued but eight died, five children, two men and a woman.(Reuters) (AP via Kathimerini)
- Britain’s Ministry of Defence says the Royal Navy has rescued 541 people this week as they scoured the Mediterranean Sea in operations to counter refugee smugglers. The HMS Enterprise, a survey vessel, rescued 439 migrants, and HMS Richmond, aType 23 frigate, rescued 102 migrants. The asylum-seekers were transferred to the Norwegian support ship Fiem Pilote. (AP via Houston Chronicle)
An engine burst into flames on a Dynamic International Airways Boeing 767 passenger jet bound for Caracas, Venezuela, while taxiing for takeoff at Fort Lauderdale–Hollywood International Airport (Florida, U.S.). A Broward Sheriff Fire Rescue spokesman said 15 people were taken to the hospital after the fire. There were 110 people, including crew, on board. (Reuters) (AP via Lompoc Record)

International Relations

Amnesty International accuses Australian border protection officials of illegally paying people smugglers and endangering lives in a bid to prevent boats of asylum seekers from reaching the country via Operation Sovereign Borders. Australia’s governmentrejects Amnesty’s report and denies any wrongdoing.(Sky News via Fox News) (International Business Times)(AI)
Saudi Arabia–United Kingdom relations
- British Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond says 74-year old Karl Andree, who was facing 350 lashes in Saudi Arabia after being caught with homemade wine in his car, will be released within a week. (Sky News) (The Telegraph)
South Sudanese Civil War
- A long-awaited report released by an African Union investigative team led by former Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo describes atrocities and the discovery of mass graves in South Sudan, citing government forces and their allies as responsible parties. (Al Jazeera America)
The European Union narrowly votes (285–281) to recommend that its 28 member nations drop criminal charges against Edward Snowden and protect him from U.S. extradition and to recognize him as a defender of human rights because of his revelations regarding U.S. and British spying. (UPI) (Foreign Policy)
Territorial disputes in the South China Sea, China–United States relations
- As a result of talks between U.S. Chief of Naval Operations Admiral John Richardson and Chinese Commander of the People’s Liberation Army Navy Admiral Wu Shengli about a U.S. warship’s transit with 12 nautical miles of China’s man-made islandsin the South China Sea, the United States and China agree to maintain dialogue and follow Code for Unplanned Encounters at Sea protocols, according to a U.S. official. (Reuters) (The International News)
Lockheed Martin vice president of air and missile defense Mike Trotsky tells the National Press Club in Washington, D.C., that the United States and South Korea are holding both formal and informal discussions on THAAD (Terminal High Altitude Area Defense System deployment. South Korea’s Defense Ministry and the U.S. Department of Defense deny the report. (UPI) (Yonhap News)
The carrier USS Ronald Reagan, during a military exercise with South Korea in the Sea of Japan’s international waters, scrambled four fighter jets to intercept approaching Russian warplanes, according to the U.S. Navy. IHS Jane’s Defence Weekly said encounters such as these were common during the Cold War, subsided with its end but picked up again under current Russian President Vladimir Putin. (Reuters) (CNN)

Law and crime

One-child policy
- China has decided to end its controversial one-child policy after 36 years. It is to be replaced by a new two-child policy. (BBC News) (Al Jazeera English)
The Oklahoma Department of Corrections says a drone carrying mobile phones, drugs, and hacksaw blades crashed at the Oklahoma State Penitentiary in McAlester before inmates could grab the contraband. This is fourth reported drone-attempt in theUnited States; the others were at prisons in Ohio, Maryland, and South Carolina. (Sky News) (UPI)

Politics and elections

The U.S. House of Representatives passes, by a vote of 266 to 167, a two-year federal budget that is both amenable to the White House and expected to pass in the Senate. (Defense News)
Speaker of the United States House of Representatives election, October 2015
- The U.S. House of Representatives elects Paul Ryan of Wisconsin as the 62nd Speaker of the House replacing John Boehner of Ohio. (New York Times)
The Parliament of Moldova passes a no-confidence vote against pro-EU incumbent prime-minister Valeriu Streleț‘s cabinet amidst growing political turmoil in the country. (Seenews)

Science and technology

Astronaut Scott Kelly sets another record; this time for the single-longest spaceflight (216 days) by an American. His ISS year long mission is a scientific research project to study the health effects of long term spaceflight. Astronaut Michael López-Alegríaspent 215 consecutive days as Expedition 14 commander in 2006. Both are nowhere close to Valeri Polyakovs 437 days record. (NBC News) (NASA)
The United Nations‘ World Meteorological Organization (WMO) announces that, earlier this month, the Antarctic ozone hole widened to one of its largest sizes on record. A colder than usual stratosphere widened the hole to a peak of 28.2 million square km (10.9 million square miles). (USA Today via WTSP) (Reuters)

Sports

In artistic gymnastics, Simone Biles of the United States becomes the first female gymnast to win three successive all-around championships at the 2015 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships held in Glasgow. (Reuters) (NBC News)

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October 31, 2015

October 30, 2015

Top News Stories –

China: Guangzhou warns zombies to stay off metro –
Halloween revellers are being urged to avoid the underground system in one southern Chinese city, in case they cause a panic. Transport police in Guangzhou say people in ghoulish fancy dress have been making other passengers nervous in recent days, and officers want travellers to report anyone they spot wearing spooky costumes. “Passengers’ strange behaviour may make some feel uneasy, cause onlookers to panic and could easily lead to security risks,” the force says in a statement posted on its Sina Weibo microblog account. “Therefore the subway does not encourage such acts.” [BBC]

Justin Bieber sorry for storming off stage after one song in Norway –
Justin Bieber’s been living up to the name of his new song Sorry by apologising to his fans for storming off stage in Norway. He said he was “done” and “I’m not doing the show” after performing one track during a TV recording in Oslo. In fan-filmed videos, Justin Bieber can be seen getting annoyed with people at the front of the stage while trying to wipe the floor. The singer later posted an apology on his Instagram account. [BBC]

Video of the Day –

Nike: Snow Day

Top Twitter Trends –

	Worldwide	USA	UK
1	#YaVieneNoviembreY	#HappyHalloween	#BuyFocusOniTunes
2	#HappyHalloween	#FridayFeeling	#FridayFeeling
3	貴サークル	Grantland	#scotlab15
4	#BuyFocusOniTunes	#YouMightBeSingleIn5Words	#HappyHalloween
5	#RespectForJustin	#FashionTipsIn4Words	Shaker Aamer
6	Olivia	#HowDidWeEndUpHere	Bob Ross
7	冬コミ	#BuyFocusOniTunes	Benedict Cumberbatch
8	#الهلال_الاتحاد	Piss On Your Grave	Olivia
9	Hayırlı Cumalar	Bob Ross	#TOPdebate
10	Grantland	Shaker Aamer	#HowDidWeEndUpHere

Other News Stories –

Armed conflicts and attacks

Syrian Civil War
- At least 65 people are killed and 250 injured in Syrian government airstrikes targeting a marketplace in the city of Douma, Syria. (WSJ) (Reuters) (Al Jazeera via Yahoo!)
- American-led intervention in Syria
  - U.S. President Barack Obama is set to send Special Operations forces to regions in northern Syria under Kurdish control to help local forces fight the Islamic State. (New York Times) (Reuters)
Andrew Parker, head of British security agency MI5, states that ISIS terrorists are planning attacks in Great Britain and current terror threat levels are the highest he’s witnessed in his career. (The Telegraph)
Israeli–Palestinian conflict (2015)
- Two assailants are shot dead by Israeli police after knife-wielding Palestinians attacked Israelis in Jerusalem and in the occupied West Bank. Another four people, including a Palestinian assailant, are injured in incidents at an Israeli checkpoint outside the West Bank city of Nablus and at a tram station in East Jerusalem. (Reuters) (Al Jazeera)
Iraqi Civil War (2014–present)
- The Iranian-funded Shi’ite Al-Mukhtar Army claims responsibility for Thursday’s deadly rocket attacks near the Baghdad International Airport that killed 23 members of an exiled Iranian opposition group, the People’s Mujahedin of Iran. (Reuters)

Arts and Culture

Happy Days actor Al Molinaro dies at 96. (Washington Post)

Business and economics

Quebec-based Valeant Pharmaceuticals International cut all ties with Philidor Rx Services. This comes in the wake of recent revelations that Valeant was looking to acquire Philidor, a relationship that raised questions from various quarters. Valeant is the subject of U.S. federal investigations. (New York Times)
- America’s two largest pharmacy benefit managers, CVS Health Corp. and Express Scripts, drop Philidor from their networks after an audit showed the company’s “noncompliance” with its provider agreement. Bloomberg reports Philidor had written instructions to, in some cases, change codes on prescriptions so it would appear physicians required or patients desired Valeant’s brand-name drugs — not less expensive generic versions. (Reuters via Business Insider) (Bloomberg)
Volkswagen emissions scandal
- U.K. transport secretary Patrick McLoughlin says Volkswagen has to start financially addressing this problem by compensating motorists with, the estimated total is £600m (US$925 million). (Sky News) (Bitterwallet)

Disasters and accidents

2015 Bucharest nightclub explosion
- At least 27 people are killed and more than 180 hospitalized with injuries after a fire in a nightclub in the Romanian capital Bucharest. Officials say a heavy metal band’s pyrotechnical show sparked a fire inside the Colectiv nightclub. (Sputnik News),(BBC) (Fox News)
2015 North Indian Ocean cyclone season
- Cyclone Chapala intensifies in the Arabian Sea as it heads towards Yemen and Oman which rarely experience tropical cyclones. The cyclone is expected to dump two years worth of rain on the normally arid Arabian Peninsula in two days. (Sydney Morning Herald via WA Today)
One construction worker dies and at least one more is under the rubble from the collapse of a building being demolished to make way for a Starwood Hotels and Resorts Worldwide luxury boutique hotel in New York City. (AP via ABC News) (Reuters)
European migrant crisis
- Greek prime minister Alexis Tsipras lashes out at European “ineptness” in handling the continent’s massive immigration crisis. The Associated Press reports 31 more people — mostly children — drowned in shipwrecks in the Mediterranean Sea near the islands of Kalymnos and Rhodes. Turkey’s state-run agency says four children drowned and two others are missing after two new accidents with boats headed to Greece’s Lesbos and Samos islands. The death toll in the Aegean Sea over the past three days is at least 50. The Greek coast guard says they rescued 600 people in the past 24 hours, while thousands more made it safely from Turkey to Greece’s southeastern islands. (AP via Huffington Post) (Reuters)
Storms hit the American state of Texas causing at least two deaths with one person reported missing. Rivers overflowed as more than a foot of rain fell in some areas while tornadoes ripped through buildings outside San Antonio. (NBC News) (Reuters)
A building collapse in Henan province in central China leaves 17 workers dead and 23 injured. (Xinhua via iCrossChina
A Virginia (U.S.) school bus overturns after being struck by a van, sending 28 students to local hospitals with five seriously injured. (Inside Edition)

International relations

Shaker Aamer, the last British resident held at the Guantanamo Bay detention camp, is released. Aamer faces no charges in Britain; Scotland Yard detectives questioned him for three days during his detention. (BBC) (AP via Seattle Times)
Territorial disputes in the South China Sea
- The European Union sides with the United States over Tuesday’s U.S.-Chinese patrolling incident in the South China Sea. (Reuters)
Syria peace talks in Vienna, Syrian Civil War
- Representatives from about 20 countries meet in Vienna, Austria, seeking a political solution to Syria’s four-year civil war that has killed more than 250,000 people, including dozens more today. For the first time Iran is at the table, where diplomats seek peace through a ceasefire plan followed by a transitional government. (USA Today) (Payvand.com)

Law and crime

Territorial disputes in the South China Sea
- The Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague rules it has jurisdiction to hear the Philippines‘ case against China over maritime disputes in the South China Sea. (The Diplomat) (BBC News)
U.S. Army judge Col. James Pohl denies Guantanamo detainee Walid bin Attash’s request to drop his legal counsel clearing the way for the trial’s continuation. (Military Times)
Polish Judge Dariusz Mazur rules the law forbids film director Roman Polanski’s extradition to the U.S. where he pleaded guilty nearly four decades ago to having sex with a minor. The prosecutors can appeal the ruling. (Sky News) (BBC)

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October 31, 2015

Top News Stories –

New Zealand hails ‘phenomenal’ All Blacks –
New Zealand media toasted the All Blacks’ victory over Australia in Saturday’s Rugby World Cup final, hailing the achievements of a “phenomenal” team many are calling the best of all time. Directed by the “magic” of flyhalf Dan Carter, the All Blacks fended off a gallant Australia 34-17 at Twickenham, a gripping final deservedly rated the tournament’s best ever. Carter was named man-of-the-match for his 19-point effort, a fitting swansong for one of the game’s finest flyhalves who was sidelined by injury when his team mates edged France to win the 2011 final on home soil. [Reuters] See List of the Day
Dan Carter

One Direction play the final gig of their world tour in Sheffield –
One Direction have played the final gig of their world tour before their self-proclaimed extended break. After more than 80 shows across 20 countries, their On The Road tour came to an end in Sheffield. From this point on, the band only have a few one-off appearances at music awards shows before they go their separate ways in March 2016. But 1D insist they’re not splitting up and instead want to focus on solo projects. [BBC]
One Direction

Adele’s Hello is number one after smashing various chart records –
Adele is back at the top of the Official Singles Chart with her monster comeback single Hello. She’s smashed records all over the place, with other artists basically competing for the scraps left in her wake. So, here are the numbers that put Adele firmly back on top of the music world.
Hello sold a whopping 333,000 in a week – That includes a staggering 259,000 downloads – and makes it the biggest number one single for… well, only three years actually.
But streaming was even more mind-bending – 7.32 million plays – That’s almost double the previous record held by Justin Bieber’s What Do You Mean? which had 3.87 million plays in a week last month.
Her video got 27.7 million views in one day – That worked out as one million views an hour on YouTube in the first two days of it being released.
[BBC] See Video of the Day
Adele

Video of the Day –

Adele – Hello

List of the Day –

Year	Host(s)	Winner	Score	Runner-up	3rd place	Score	4th place	Number of teams
Year	Host(s)	Final			Bronze Final			Number of teams
1987	Australia & New Zealand	New Zealand	29–9	France	Wales	22–21	Australia	16
1991	England, France, Ireland Scotland & Wales	Australia	12–6	England	New Zealand	13–6	Scotland	16
1995	South Africa	South Africa	15–12 (aet)	New Zealand	France	19–9	England	16
1999	Wales, England, France, Ireland Scotland	Australia	35–12	France	South Africa	22–18	New Zealand	20
2003	Australia	England	20–17 (aet)	Australia	New Zealand	40–13	France	20
2007	France	South Africa	15–6	England	Argentina	34–10	France	20
2011	New Zealand	New Zealand	8–7	France	Australia	21–18	Wales	20
2015	England	New Zealand	34–17	Australia	South Africa	24–13	Argentina	20

Top Twitter Trends –

	Worldwide	USA	UK
1	#RememberOTRATour	#RememberOTRATour	#RememberOTRATour
2	#ALDUBBahayNiLOLA	Happy Halloween	Happy Halloween
3	#AKPyeOyVermemÇünkü	#TheNewBrokenScene	#RWC2015final
4	#DemiNoCaldeirao	#OTRASheffield3	Bucharest
5	Sinai	Happy Days	#MakeAQuoteShakespearean
6	Chelsea	Sinai	Dan Wootton
7	Египте	#Worlds	#OTRASheffield2
8	#OTRASheffield3	#ABC2020	Sinai
9	#Worlds	JT Barrett	#iHeartAriana
10	#زد_فرصتك1	#MySuspicionIs	#TheNewBrokenScene

Other News Stories –

Armed conflicts and attacks

Syrian Civil War, American-led intervention in Syria
- A newly formed U.S.-backed Syrian rebel alliance, Democratic Forces of Syria, launches an offensive against Islamic State forces in the northeast province of Hasaka. (Reuters) (International Business Times)

Business and economics

Vodafone Group Plc announces criminals accessed customer account details, including phone numbers and some bank details. The British multinational telecommunications company of over 400 million subscribers says it is contacting about 1,800 affected customers. This is the second recent hacking of a U.K. phone carrier. Last week, TalkTalk Telecom Group Plc said its systems had been attacked. (Bloomberg) (Financial Times)

Disasters and accidents

Fifteen people are killed and 11 injured in a fire at the public markets at Zamboanga City in the Philippines. (CNN)
Kogalymavia Flight 9268
- A Russian Kogalymavia Airbus A-321 airliner crashes in Egypt‘s Sinai Peninsula with 224 passengers on board travelling from Sharm el-Sheikh to St Petersburg. (The News Hub) (BBC)
- The Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant affiliate in the Sinai claims responsibility for shooting down the aircraft, but the claim is disputed. (AFP via Yahoo! News)
- The wife of co-pilot Sergei Trukachev says, in a call with their daughter before the flight, he complained that the technical condition of the aircraft left much to be desired. According to Egyptian officials, while in the air, the pilot told traffic controllers the aircraft was experiencing technical problems and he intended to try and land at the nearest airport. (AP via New Jersey Herald)
A second round of storms and strong winds moves east across Texas in the American Southwest, with three radar-confirmed tornadoes damaging homes and causing injuries in the Houston area that got up to eight inches of rain since Friday night. Six people have been killed. (AP via USA Today) (AP update)
Colectiv nightclub fire
- Romanian Prime Minister Victor Ponta declares three days of national mourning. (Reuters) (CBC)

International relations

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu retracts controversial comments he made about Nazi policies during World War 2, saying he never meant to claim that an Islamic leader persuaded Adolf Hitler to adopt a policy to kill European Jews. (CNN)
Syrian Civil War
- Syria peace talks in Vienna
  - U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon says new talks aimed to help end Syria’s war shouldn’t be held up by wrangling over whether President Bashar Assad stays or goes. (AP)
- American-led intervention in Syria
  - At the International Institute for Strategic Studies Manama Dialogue security conference in Bahrain, Deputy Secretary of State Antony Blinken announces the United States will contribute $100 million (£64.7 million) in fresh aid to support the Syrian opposition. (AP)

Law and crime

The Presidential Palace and the Philippine Senate investigate an extortion scam involving the Ninoy Aquino International Airport. (Manila Bulletin) (BBC)
Attacks on secularists in Bangladesh
- Faisal Abedin Deepan, a publisher of secular books, is hacked to death in Dhaka. (The Guardian)
- In a separate incident, another publisher and two writers are stabbed and shot in Dhaka. (The Guardian)
- A group identifying itself as Ansar al-Islam – Bangladesh chapter of al-Qaeda Indian Subcontinent (AQIS) – claimed responsibility. (The Daily Star)
- The United Nations condemned the attacks expressing deep concerns over these threats to free speech. (Prothom Alo)
A man marching down a street in Colorado Springs, Colorado (U.S.), shot and killed three people before being fatally shot in a gunbattle with police. (AP) (Colorado Springs Gazette)
At least eleven people are killed in Pakistan in fighting between rival parties as voters go to the polls for local elections in Sindh province. (Reuters via Sydney Morning Herald)

Politics and elections

Guinean presidential election, 2015
- Guinea’s constitutional court validates President Alpha Condé’s October 11, 2015, re-election victory. The court dismissed complaints lodged by opposition candidates. (Reuters) (Channel NewsAsia)

Science and technology

A large space rock 2015 TB145, thought to be a dead comet, passes close to the earth. (Time)
According to a new NASA (U.S.) study, ice sheet gains outweigh losses on the continent of Antarctica. An increase in snow accumulation that began 10,000 years ago outweighs increased losses from the continent’s thinning glaciers. In 2013,Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change findings suggested gains were not keeping up with losses. NASA glaciologist Jay Zwally said, “We’re essentially in agreement with other studies … (except) ice gain in East Antarctica and the interior of West Antarctica exceeds losses in the other areas.” (UPI) (NASA)

Sports

2015 Rugby World Cup Final
- In rugby union, New Zealand defeat Australia 34–17 to win the 2015 Rugby World Cup. (BBC)
In baseball, the 2015 Korean Series ends with the Doosan Bears beating the Samsung Lions by 4 games to 1 ending the Lions four straight consecutive Korean Series streak. (Yonhap News)
In horse racing, U.S. Triple Crown winner American Pharoah completes his racing career with a win in the 2015 Breeders’ Cup Classic, becoming the first-ever “grand slam” winner in American horse racing. (New York Times), (ESPN)

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November 1, 2015

Top News Stories –

Taylor Swift sued over Shake It Off lyrics –
Pop star Taylor Swift is being sued for $42m (£27m) for allegedly stealing the lyrics to her hit 2014 song Shake It Off. US R&B singer Jesse Braham has claimed in legal papers Swift stole the words from a song he wrote in 2013 called Haters Gone Hate. As well as the monetary compensation, Mr Braham also wants his name added as a writer on the track. Representatives for Swift have yet to officially comment on the legal case. Shake It Off topped music charts around the world and reached number two in the UK. The video for the song has been watched more than 1.1 billion times on YouTube. [BBC]
Taylor Swift

Australia drops knights and dames from honours system –
Australia will no longer appoint knights and dames under the honours system, PM Malcolm Turnbull has said. Mr Turnbull said the titles were “not appropriate” in modern Australia, and that Queen Elizabeth had accepted the cabinet’s recommendation to drop them. Former PM Tony Abbott reintroduced knighthoods and damehoods in 2014. His controversial decision to grant Prince Philip a knighthood in January was widely seen as one of the factors which ended his term as leader. [BBC] Mr Turnbull became Australia PM in September 2015
Malcolm Turnbull

Four gymnasts share asymmetric bars gold –
Fan Yilin, Viktoriia Komova, Daria Spiridonova and Madison Kocian shared an unprecedented four gold medals at the gymnastics world championships on Saturday when the judges could not decide between their asymmetric bars routines. With the giant television screen confirming that there were indeed four champions from the eight-woman final, the gold medalists stood with their arms around each other in a straight line as the crowd gave them a standing ovation. The Russians were still in shock after a prolonged medals ceremony featured three national anthems being played and the master of ceremonies making four announcements starting with “Winner of the gold medal and the 2015 uneven bars champion is….” Organizers also had to abandon the flag-raising ceremony as there was no room for three flags on the same horizontal pole. While so many gold medals have never been given out in one event before, there was a five-way tie for silver at the 1922 championships on the pommel horse. [Reuters]
Daria Spiridonova

Video of the Day –

Alladin Magic Carpet Prank

Top Twitter Trends –

	Worldwide	USA	UK
1	#NiallTransão	#DaylightSavingTime	1st of November
2	#ProudofOneDirection	#WorldVeganDay	Lambeth
3	#oykullan	#nycmarathon	#WorldVeganDay
4	#هل_الرجل_انسا�…	#ProudofOneDirection	#ProudofOneDirection
5	#MeGustasPero	#CalumGotATonguePiercing	Sonny Bill Williams
6	#secim2015	#ContextIsImperative	#OTRASheffield3
7	#DemiNaEliana	Fred Thompson	Larry
8	ブラ外しゲーム	#IllShowYou	#MostHauntedLive
9	#OTRASheffield3	Wazzu	#6hShanghai
10	#SomosTodosTaisAraujo	#LookingForLove	Arzaylea

Other News Stories –

Armed conflicts and attacks

War in Somalia (2009–present)
- Islamist al-Shabaab militants attack a hotel in Mogadishu resulting in at least 12 deaths. (AFP via Yahoo! News) (Reuters via ABC News Australia)
Syrian Civil War
- Islamic State fighters seize control of Mahin, a town in Syria‘s central Homs province, following clashes with government forces which left about 50 dead. Fighting was also reported to be taking place on the outskirts of Sadad, a nearby town mostly populated by Christians. (Reuters)
Israeli-Palestinian conflict (2015)
- One Palestinian is killed and three Israeli soldiers injured in two attacks in the West Bank. According to the Israeli army, the Palestinian was shot dead after attempting to stab soldiers at a military checkpoint near the Beit Einun village in Hebron. In a second incident in the same area, a driver rammed and injured three Israeli paramilitary border policemen with his car before fleeing the scene. None of the three were injured seriously. (The Daily Star) (Al Jazeera)
- Since the beginning of October, nine Israelis, 67 Palestinians – around half of them alleged attackers – and an Arab Israeli have been killed in this wave of violence. (AFP via Yahoo.)
- The fate of slain Palestinians is fueling a new feud with Israeli authorities. The Israeli defense minister says Israel is refusing to return the bodies of Palestinians killed during this month-old surge of violence unless the Palestinian side agrees to keep theirfunerals “modest.” (Reuters)
- An Israel Defense Forces inquiry concludes the death of a Palestinian woman at a checkpoint in Hebron last month was unnecessary, finding the teenager could have been detained and not killed. (Haaretz)

Disasters

The United States Navy sends a remotely operated underwater craft to investigate a wreck which they believe is the remains of the SS El Faro which disappeared on October 1 near the Bahamas during Hurricane Joaquin with 33 people on board. (CNN)
Kogalymavia Flight 9268
- Airlines including Emirates, Lufthansa and Air France refuse to fly over the Sinai Peninsula until the cause of the crash is known. (AP via ABC News America)
- Russian air transport chief Alexander Neradko says Flight 9268 broke apart at high altitude and scattered plane parts over a wide swath of Egyptian desert. Neradko added it was too soon to determine what caused Saturday’s horrific crash. (USA Today)
- Russia observes a nationwide day of mourning for victims of the plane crash in Egypt. (AP via Fox News)
- The bodies of more than 140 of those killed in the air crash have been flown back to St Petersburg. (BBC)
Colectiv nightclub fire
- Three other victims of the nightclub fire die at hospital, bringing the death toll to 30. (Mediafax)

International relations

China–Japan–South Korea trilateral summit
- The leaders of the People’s Republic of China, South Korea and Japan hold their first summit in three years. (New York Times)
- Japan and China agree to restart mutual visits of their foreign ministers, to hold bilateral high-level economic dialogue early next year, and to work toward early implementation of communication mechanisms between their military forces. (Reuters)

Law and crime

School shootings in the United States
- A campus shooting at around 1:20 AM at Lot W, near Wilson Hall and Gleason-Hairston Terrace, at the Main Campus of Winston-Salem State University, in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, kills at least one person and wounds at least one- the two are believed to be students; the suspected gunman, Jarrett Jerome Moore, is not believed to be a student, and is believed to be still at large. (CNN, via MSN), (University note), (Winston-Salem Journal)

Politics and elections

Turkish general election, November 2015
- Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) wins Sunday’s snap election with more than 49 percent of the vote. AKP, projected to get 316 seats in the 550-seat parliament, regains single-party rule just five months after losing it. (Washington Post) (BBC) (Al Jazeera)
- Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu calls on all of Turkey’s political parties to work together on a new constitution to replace the 1982 constitution written during the military junta of 1980-1983. The document has been amended 17 times revising 113 of the 177 articles. (Reuters) (Kuwait News Agency) (ODATV)tr
- Protesters clashed with police outside the headquarters of the People’s Democratic Party (HDP) in the Kurds‘ main city of Diyarbakır in southeastern Turkey as it became evident President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and the AKP were getting a solid majority and would return to power. The tumult spread to other major cities and towns in the Kurdish heartland. The HDP won 10.7 percent of the vote; the party holds 59 of its 80 seats in the parliament. Al-Ahram (Wall Street Journal)

Azerbaijani parliamentary election, 2015
- Azeri voters go to the polls for a parliamentary election, which Azerbaijan President Ilham Aliyev’s ruling New Azerbaijan Party is widely expected to win since the The Müsavat (Equality) Party and other Azerbaijani mainstream opposition parties are boycotting. The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) is not monitoring the election because the restrictions imposed by the authorities make credible poll monitoring impossible. (TASS) (Reuters)
Attacks on secularists in Bangladesh
- Teachers, writers and students lead a protest rally in Dhaka against the recent killings and attacks on secular authors and publishers in Bangladesh. (AFP via Straits Times)

Science and technology

Smart Sheriff, the most widely used child surveillance mobile app in South Korea, is pulled from the market after specialists raised serious concerns about the program’s safety. Security experts say its programming left the door wide open to hackers and put the personal information of some 380,000 users at risk. The country’s April 2015 law requires all new smartphones sold to those 18 and under have software parents can use to monitor their kids’ social media activity. (AP via U.S. News & World Report)

Sport

In athletics, Stanley Biwott and Mary Jepkosgei Keitany of Kenya win the 2015 New York City Marathon. (Runners World), (ABC7 New York)
2015 World Series
- In Major League Baseball, the Kansas City Royals defeat the New York Mets in the 2015 World Series 4 games to 1. (Fox Sports). (Huffington Post)

News from Wikipedia – please support this valuable resource

November 3, 2015

November 2, 2015

Top News Stories –

Qantas crew don All Blacks jerseys after World Cup defeat –
Australian airline Qantas has settled its wager with Air New Zealand after Australia’s Rugby World Cup defeat. The crew of Monday’s Sydney to Auckland flight wore All Blacks jerseys, honouring a bet born on Twitter. The wager was inspired by some social media sparring – an earlier suggestion was for the losing airline to repaint its fleet in opposition colours. The Kiwis became the first team to defend the Rugby World Cup on Saturday, defeating the Wallabies 34-17. [BBC]
Qantas on Twitter

NASA reveals that Antarctica is actually gaining more ice than it is losing –
NASA scientists have shattered the conventional wisdom that Antarctica’s ice surface is shrinking and revealed that the amount of ice is in fact growing. Though accepting that glaciers are still shrinking because of man-made global warming, the new study published in the Journal of Glaciologysuggests that recent gains more than offset losses elsewhere. The findings challenges previous research including the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s 2013 study, which concluded that the sea is rising by 0.27 millimeters annually because of melting in Antarctica. [Daily Telegraph]

Guinness goes vegan: Stout agrees to stop using animal bladders in brewing process for first time in 256 years –
The famous Irish stout is to become vegan friendly for the first time in its 256-year history, as the company halts the use of fish bladders in its brewing filters. The new system is due to be installed sometime in 2016. A Guinness spokesman said: “While isinglass is a very effective means of clarification and has been used for many years, we expect to stop using it as the new filtration asset is introduced.” The news follows a longstanding campaign and several online petitions from beer-loving vegans, with many highlighting the fact Guinness and other breweries are not required to state the use of isinglass on the bottle. [Daily Telegraph]

Video of the Day –

KINGKILLS from KingKIlls on Vimeo.

Top Twitter Trends –

	Worldwide	USA	UK
1	#IllShowYou	#mondaymotivation	#mondaymotivation
2	松来さん	#JebCanFixIt	PC Dave Phillips
3	#ميول_والدك_في_…	#MusicMonday	Stone Roses
4	Star Trek	Star Trek	#IllShowYou
5	Morgan	#HeadachesIn5Words	Tristram Hunt
6	George Boole	#OpKKK	#TeenageDesperate
7	#BuSeçiminSonucu	Vernon Davis	#equality4mentalhealth
8	#اشياء_تحب_ريح�…	Black Canyon City	#foggy
9	#AntesDeMorirQuisiera	#Royals	#TUBill
10	#ALDUBTheRing	Julius Randle	Remi Garde

Other News Stories –

Armed conflicts and attacks

2015 Nepal fuel crisis
- Nepali police shoot dead an Indian citizen at a border checkpoint as they attempt to clear protesters whose blockade has crippled Nepal’s fuel supplies and badly damaged relations between the neighboring countries. (Reuters)
War in Somalia (2009–present)
- At least 15 Somalia army soldiers are killed in an Al-Shabaab ambush near the town of Wanlaweyn in the Lower Shebelle region. (AP)

Arts and culture

New Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull announces knights and dames will no longer be part of the nation’s honors system. He said Queen Elizabeth signed off on the decision. (Time) (Reuters)
In the United States, the hacking group Anonymous starts releasing names and information about alleged members of the Ku Klux Klan (KKK), a white-supremacist terrorist group originally founded after the Civil War by former Confederate soldiers. Prominent individuals listed deny the allegations. The group says they also infiltrated KKK-affiliated websites, and warned of more action culminating on November 24, the anniversary of the Ferguson, Missouri grand jury’s decision not to indict. (The Hill)(USA Today) (Anonymous)

Business and economics

China‘s government owned Comac launches the Comac C919 as part of its efforts to challenge Boeing and Airbus. (CNN)
American financial services company Visa Inc. buys European franchisee Visa Europe for $US23 billion. (AP via AL.com)
Volkswagen emissions scandal
- The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and California’s CARB are widening the Volkswagen investigation into several more expensive VW, Porsche, and Audi automobiles with 3.0-liter diesel engines in model years 2014 through 2016. Volkswagen says it installed no defeat device software on its 3.0 litre V6 diesel cars and is cooperating with the agency to fully investigate the matter. (Reuters) (Consumer Affairs)
TransCanada Corp asks the United States Department of State to suspend its review of the Keystone XL pipeline while it negotiates with the US state of Nebraska about the route. If granted, the delay (according to Reuters) would almost certainly mean the decision on the project will be made by a future president. (The Globe and Mail) (Reuters)

Disasters and accidents

2015 Southeast Asian haze
- The Indonesian state of Riau extends its haze emergency by another month while four airports in Sumatra and Kalimantan remain shut. (Straits Times)
SS El Faro
- The American National Transportation Safety Board confirms that wreckage found on Saturday east of the Bahamas is the cargo ship SS El Faro that sank during Hurricane Joaquin on October 1. (NBC News)
Planes have been left stranded at airports throughout the United Kingdom as the “Great Fog” descends. Heathrow Airport said around 45 flights had been cancelled there while London City Airport was closed for several hours. Other affected airports includeManchester, Leeds Bradford, Glasgow, Belfast, Southampton and Cardiff. (BBC)
2015 North Indian Ocean cyclone season
- At least one person is killed after Cyclone Chapala hits Yemen‘s Socotra island in the Indian Ocean with flooding reported in Hadibu, the provincial capital. The severe cyclone is expected to cause considerable damage when it makes landfall on Yemeni mainland. (BBC)
Kogalymavia Flight 9268
- U.S. intelligence analysts conclude the Russian plane was not brought down by surface-to-air missile. An American infrared satellite detected a heat flash at the same time and same place over the Sinai as the plane, but no evidence a missile was involved. Analysts believe it could have been some kind of explosion on the aircraft itself, either a fuel tank or a bomb. U.S. officials do not rule out that ISIL could have been responsible for bringing down the flight. (NBC News) (ABC News)
- The Russian Air Transportation Ministry says the flight recorders are recovered with only “minor” damage. The ministry also said charter airline Metrojet’s assertion that technical failure or human errors have been ruled out pointing to “external” reasons for the crash, is “premature and not based on any real facts.” (Voice of America) (Reuters)

International relations

A day after Sunday’s trilateral summit between China, Japan, and South Korea, South Korean President Park Geun-hye and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe are meeting in Seoul. The two countries haven’t met in over three years. Expected topics include trade ties, North Korea’s pursuit of nuclear bombs, and long-running disputes over Japanese wartime aggression and behavior. (AP) (Nikkei Asian Review)
Territorial disputes in the South China Sea, China–United States relations
- Chinese military aircraft conduct training in the South China Sea following the cruise of a U.S. Navy ship in the vicinity of the disputed Spratly Islands. (International Business Times)
- A U.S. defense official says the U.S. Navy plans to conduct patrols within 12 nautical miles of artificial islands in the South China Sea about twice a quarter to remind China and other countries of U.S. rights under international law. “That’s the right amount to make it regular but not a constant poke in the eye,” the official said. (Reuters) (Sydney Morning Herald)

Law and crime

The Vatican police arrest Msgr. Lucio Angel Vallejo Balda and Francesca Chaouqui, members of a former papal commission charged with studying financial operations of the Holy See, for allegedly leaking confidential documents to the media, a crime since 2013. (New York Times)

Science and technology

French national public television broadcaster France Télévisions fires France 2 TV channel’s weatherman Philippe Verdier, who has been suspended since mid-October. Verdier, known as “Monsieur Météo” (Mr Weather), has been promoting his recently published book, Climat Investigation (Climate Investigation), in which he throws doubt on the global warning findings of leading climate scientists and political leaders. France Télévisions said its rules, “prevent anyone using their professional status … to push forward their personal opinions.” (Irish Times) (The Guardian)

Sports

2015 Major League Baseball postseason
- The Kansas City Royals win the 2015 World Series, defeating the New York Mets 7–2 in 12 innings in Game 5 to take the best-of-seven series. (NY Times)

Politics and election

United States presidential election, 2016, Democratic Party presidential candidates, 2016
- Harvard Law School Professor Lawrence Lessig announces his decision, via a four minute YouTube video, to end his campaign for the 2016 Democratic Party presidential nomination. (Politico) (The Atlantic) (YouTube)

News from Wikipedia – please support this valuable resource

November 3, 2015

Top News Stories –

Tin Man injured in Halloween fight with Scarecrow as Cowardly Lion runs off –
A man dressed as the Scarecrow managed to escape the police after allegedly punching his friend Tin Man in a Halloween bust-up. Police officers in Canadian state of Ontario responded to a call about a fight between revellers dressed as the characters from this Wizard of Oz this Halloween weekend. A lady dressed as Dorothy and two other women dressed as witches told the officers what had happened but the Tin Man decided not to press charges, police say. “Sometimes, our officers see things that are hard to believe,” South Simcoe Police said in a statement. “When they arrived on scene, they saw a man in costume as the Tin Man from the Wizard of Oz, being treated by paramedics. “Three ladies, dressed as Dorothy, Glinda the Good Witch, and the Wicked Witch of the East, told the officer that the Tin Man had been punched by his friend the Scarecrow. It added: “The Scarecrow didn’t have the brains to stick around, and ran away with the Cowardly Lion. “Turns out the Tin Man didn’t have the heart to lay charges against his friend, and refused to tell the officers anything. He was treated for minor injuries.” [Daily Telegraph]
The Wizard of Oz

Melbourne Cup 2015: Prince of Penzance the first 100-1 winner since World War II –
It was a historic Melbourne Cup in numerous respects. Not least was the price of the winner – Prince of Penzance – who saluted with Michelle Payne in the saddle at 100-1, making it the equal fourth biggest outsider to win Australia’s most famous horse race. No horse had won at triple-figure odds since World War II. Old Rowley in 1940 was the winner at $101, with Wotan in 1936 and The Pearl in 1871 the only other horses to have provided such value. Michelle Payne became the first ever woman jockey to win the Melbourne Cup. It has taken 155 years, but Payne, one of the youngest of the famous Payne racing family, has galloped into history with a stunning performance aboard the Darren Weir trained gelding. [Melbourne Age]
Michelle Payne

Google ‘smart reply’ will suggest answers for your emails –
Clearing your inbox is about to get a little faster, if you are using Google’s Inbox app. A new feature called Smart Reply will suggest short responses, based on the contents of an email. Google described how the app uses machine learning to “recognise emails that need responses” and suggest some options in natural language. The company also claims the feature will improve over time, learning from a user’s choices of response. Google made its experimental Inbox app available to all users in May 2015. It includes several features designed to make the process of using email more streamlined. [BBC Newsbeat]

Google Project Wing to introduce drone deliveries by 2017 –
Project Wing, the drone delivery service from Google’s parent company Alphabet, will launch commercially in 2017, the executive in charge of the project has announced. David Vos, the leader for Alphabet’s Project Wing, said on Monday that the company is in talks with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) in the US about setting up an air traffic control system for unmanned aerial vehicles. The system will use mobile and internet technology to coordinate the drones at altitudes of up to 500ft (152m), with the aim of having a commercial business up and running in 2017, he told an air traffic control convention near Washington. [Daily Telegraph]

Video of the Day –

Italian Road Trip Honeymoon from Mike Matas on Vimeo.

Top Twitter Trends –

	Worldwide	USA	UK
1	#ThingsToLeakInsteadOfTheA…	#My3WordHappiness	#RedCups
2	Andrew Luck	#NationalSandwichDay	Peter Donaldson
3	Matias Ale	#ElectionDay	#TDCMCR
4	Candy Crush	Candy Crush	His Dark Materials
5	#NuncaVoyAOlvidar	#CelebrityRestaurants	John Terry
6	#ALDUBTheVisitor	#E3Now	Colin Welland
7	#حفرالباطن_الان	Dusty Baker	#NationalSandwichDay
8	#الهلال_القادس…	The Warriors	Candy Crush
9	#CelebrityRestaurants	#ThingsToLeakInsteadOfTheA…	#My3WordHappiness
10	#انسحاب_المنتخ…	Jon Stewart	#sexontrial

Other News Stories –

Armed conflicts and attacks

2014–15 India–Pakistan border skirmishes
- At least two Indian soldiers are killed after Pakistani forces opened fire along the de-facto border that divides Kashmir between the two countries. (BBC)
Russian military intervention in the Syrian Civil War, Syrian Civil War
- The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reports Russia conducted multiple airstrikes on ISIS-held Palmyra. (Air Force Times)
- Russia‘s Defence Ministry says the Russian Air Force has bombed 2,804 “militant targets” in Syria so far since beginning its military intervention in September. (The Daily Star)
Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant
- ISIS claims responsibility for the deaths of two Syrian refugee activists who fled to Sanliurfa, Turkey, raising concerns about the group’s reach in countries outside of Syria and Iraq. Ibrahim Abdel Qader, a founder of Raqqa Is Being Slaughtered Silently, and Fares Hammadi are said to have been killed by an acquaintance posing as a defector from ISIS. (New York Times)
- At least four people are killed and 15 injured in an ISIL attack in the Kurdish section of northern Iraq. (Al-Arabiyah)

Business and economics

British bank Standard Chartered announces that it will axe 15,000 jobs around the world as part of a restructure. (AFP via Manila Bulletin)
Takata Defective airbag recalls (2013-present)
- The U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and the Japanese manufacturer of airbags Takata Corp. agree to a five-year consent decree where the company agrees to pay a civil penalty of $70 million dollars and faces as much as $130 million more in fines if it violates the settlement. Twelve automakers are ordered to speed up recalls that so far have only reached about a quarter of the affected cars. (Bloomberg) (USA Today)
- Honda, Takata’s biggest customer, announces it will not use airbag inflaters made by Takata Corp. for the driver or front passenger side in new Honda and Acura vehicles for any market, world-wide. (USA Today) (NASDAQ)
Volkswagen emissions scandal
- Volkswagen says it found faulty emissions readings for the first time in gasoline-powered vehicles, widening a scandal that so far had centered on diesel engines. (Bloomberg) (BizNews)

Disasters and accidents

At least seven people are dead and 35 others are injured as a bus overturns near Tula, Russia. (RT)
At least 30 people are killed and 35 injured after an overcrowded bus carrying passengers inside and on its roof veered off a mountain road in northwest Nepal. (USA Today)
2015 Southeast Asian haze
- Scientists report fires raging in Indonesia have hit Borneo’s orangutans particularly hard. Borneo is home to about 30 percent of the world’s wild orangutans, an endangered species. Smoke has already displaced many orangutans and caused health problems related to smoke inhalation, according to the Borneo Orangutan Survival Foundation (BOSF). (Live Science)
2015 North Indian Ocean cyclone season
- Cyclone Chapala
  - “Ravaged by months of war, Yemen now gets battered by the first tropical storm on record to make landfall.” Extremely Severe Cyclonic Storm Chapala slams into Yemen’s central coast, with maximum sustained winds of around 140 kph (85 mph) — the equivalent of a Category 1 hurricane. The storm floods coastal areas, brings down electricity lines and destroys houses, with severe threat of mudslides. Chapala is expected to pour over two or three years worth of rain, up to 300 millimeters (12 inches), in a single day. (CNN) (Abu Dhabi Media)

International Relations

China–United States relations
- In a Peking University speech in Beijing, US Pacific Command commander, Admiral Harry Harris, says the U.S. Navy’s freedom-of-navigation patrols in the South China Sea are routine operations intended to demonstrate respect for international law principles. Harris reiterated they should not be construed as a threat to any country while emphasizing America’s common ground with China. (South China Morning Post) (Bloomberg)
Libyan Crisis (2011–present)
- The New General National Congress (Libya Dawn) which controls the capital Tripoli, and much of western Libya, threatens to send ‘hundreds of thousands’ of refugees to Europe unless the European Union recognizes the Islamist-led government. (Daily Mail)
Territorial disputes in the South China Sea, Japan–Vietnam relations
- Japan has delivered two more ships to Vietnam that will be refurbished into patrol boats. The ships, which arrived in the port city of Da Nang, are the second delivery of a 2014 deal in which Tokyo is to provide Vietnam with six used fishing vessels that will be converted into patrol boats for Vietnam’s coast guard in the South China Sea. (Voice of America)
European migrant crisis
- German Chancellor Angela Merkel announces a plan to register and distribute incoming refugees evenly throughout the European Union. Refugees would be stopped at EU borders, have their application processed, and then, if accepted, sent to one of the Union’s 28 member states. (UPI)

Law and crime

Pakistani journalist Zaman Mehsud is shot dead by two motorcycle-riding gunmen in Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, near the country’s northwestern tribal region. According to a 2014 report, at least 56 journalists have been killed in Pakistan since 1992. (UPI) (Xinhua)

Politics and elections

U.S. elections:
- Gubernatorial
  - In Kentucky, Republican Matt Bevin defeats Democrat Jack Conway and independent Drew Curtis with 52 percent of the vote to succeed term-limited Democrat Steve Beshear. (Fox News) (AP)
  - In Mississippi, incumbent Republican Phil Bryant easily wins re-election over Democratic, truck driver Robert Gray. according to the Associated Press. (AP via Huffington Post)
- State, city
  - Former five-term Bridgeport mayor Joe Ganim wins election to a sixth term as mayor of Connecticut’s largest city, topping the six other candidates in the poll. Ganim is, in American parlance, an “ex-con;” i.e., a Conviction on corruption charges|convicted felon. In 2003, He was convicted by a federal jury on 16 felony counts for racketeering, bribery, conspiracy, mail fraud, and tax evasion in an operation that also led to convictions of 10 of his associates. Ganim served seven years in federal prison; he was released from a Hartford halfway house in 2010. (Hartford Courant) (AP via CBSLocal.com)
  - Newcomer, businesswoman, and clinical psychologist Karen Weaver tops incumbent Dayne Walling in the non-partisan, Flint, Michigan, Mayor’s election. Flint, which is dealing with lead in drinking water, has been under State financial managementfor close to four full years, and is in the final stage where control will be returned to city officials. (AP) (Detroit News) (MLive Media)
- Ballot initiatives, referendums
  - In Ohio, a ballot initiative that would have established a legal oligopoly for the sale of recreational and medicinal marijuana is resoundingly defeated by voters, according to AP. (Los Angeles Times)
  - In Texas, the Equal Rights Ordinance that would have established nondiscrimination protections for gay and transgender people in Houston fails to win approval from voters. (AP via Washington Post) (Texas Tribune)
  - Voters in Denver’s suburban Jefferson County recall, by 64 to 36 percent, three conservative school board members who worked to weaken the local teachers union while boosting funding for charter schools and pushing through other market-driven policy changes. In Fall 2014, the conservative-led majority drew national attention when they wanted the AP U.S. history course to focus on citizenship and patriotism, while condemning civil disobedience and strike actions. (Washington Post) (AP via Huffington Post)
The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) issues a two-year investigative report finding the Palatine, Illinois, school district unfairly denied a transgender teenager — who was undergoing hormone therapy but had not undergonegender reassignment surgery — access to school facilities in violation of Title IX, that bars discrimination in federally funded education programs, causing her “isolation,” “ostracism” and at least one “tearful breakdown.” The school district has 30 days to reach an agreement with authorities or risk losing up to $6 million in federal funding and case-referral to the Department of Justice. The Washington Post report called this “The Palatine standoff”. (The Washington Post) (Chicago Tribune) (DOE report)

Sport

In Australian horse racing, Prince of Penzance wins the 2015 Melbourne Cup becoming the first 100-1 winner since World War II; Michelle Payne becomes the first female jockey to ride the winning horse. (Melbourne Age) (Huffington Post)

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November 4, 2015

Top News Stories –

Brazilian prison inmates using a mouse to courier drugs –
As prison guards in one of Brazil’s notoriously overcrowded and chaotic jails, the officers in Barra da Grota prison probably thought they had seen it all. But last week they saw something that shocked even their hardened heads: a mouse, they noticed, was being used by inmates to courier drugs. The animal was seen scurrying along the corridor with tiny bags of drugs tied to its tail, running between the cells. Gean Carlos Gomes, director of the central Brazil prison, 1,100 miles inland from Recife, said the mouse was being used as a “bridge” between cells. “They attached a hook to the mouse’s tail and then used it to carry the drugs and other goods from one cell to another,” he said. “When the animal arrived at its destination, the prisoner took the mouse and removed the hook from its tail.” [Daily Telegraph]

Vladimir Putin is Forbes magazine’s most powerful person in the world –
Vladimir Putin has been named the world’s most powerful person for the second year running by Forbes magazine. Of the 73 listed, 28 are billionaires. Thirty of the individuals are Americans. And only nine are women – the same number as last year. The 63-year-old Russian president has, unsurprisingly, retained his position at the top of the Forbes ranking of the world’s most powerful people. Forbes says the decision is made on the amount of money they control; the number of people they impact; their total spheres of influence; and how actively they wield their power. And in all areas Mr Putin has triumphed; he dominates one of the world’s largest countries, and his actions in Ukraine and Syria are changing the course of history. [Daily Telegraph] See List of the Day
Vladimir Putin

WARNING: Do Not Post Your Winning Ticket On Social Media –
Chantelle from Perth won $900 [Australian] by betting on 100-to-1 shot Prince Of Penzance in the Melbourne Cup yesterday… Like many punters around the country Chantelle celebrated the win by posting a selfie with her victorious ticket on Facebook. Little did Chantelle know, the photo of the barcode could be used at an automated machine to claim the cash – which is exactly what someone did. “To the low life who is obviously my friend on Facebook and used my photo to claim our winnings. You’re a massive dick. You ruined my day,” Chantelle wrote on Facebook. Chantelle told Triple M that police were able to track where the money was claimed and are confident of finding the person responsible. [Triple M]
Chantelle winning ticket Facebook post

Video of the Day –

Emirates: #HelloJetman
Armed with unguarded ambition and the vision to push boundaries beyond the unthinkable, Jetman Dubai and Emirates A380 take to the skies of Dubai for an exceptional formation flight.

List of the Day –

Forbes Most Powerful People Top Ten 2015 [Forbes]

Rank	Name	Organization	Age
#1	Vladimir Putin	Russia	63
#2	Angela Merkel	Germany	61
#3	Barack Obama	United States	54
#4	Pope Francis	Roman Catholic Church	78
#5	Xi Jinping	China	62
#6	Bill Gates	Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation	60
#7	Janet Yellen	Washington, United States	69
#8	David Cameron	United Kingdom	49
#9	Narendra Modi	India	65
#10	Larry Page	Google	42

Top Twitter Trends –

	Worldwide	USA	UK
1	告白の日	#YouHadMeAt	#NationalStressAwarenessDay
2	#9DaysUntilMITAM	#NationalStressAwarenessDay	#GrantsNotDebt
3	#QueVuelvaElFav	#9DaysUntilMITAM	#cipd15
4	#احتجاج_الهلال…	#NerdyCountryMusic	Gerrard
5	Briana	#CMAawards	#PMQs
6	#NationalStressAwarenessDay	UC Merced	Dapper Laughs
7	Benzema	Hump Day	#IPBill
8	#MasterChefBR	McDavid	Ashley Young
9	#felizmiercoles	#MyStonerConfession	#TwitterHeart
10	Valbuena	Bayern	Chris Powell

Other News Stories –

Armed conflicts and attacks

Kogalymavia Flight 9268
- Flights between the United Kingdom and the Egyptian city of Sharm el-Sheikh are suspended due to concerns of the British government that the crash was caused by an “explosive device”. (ITV)
- CNN reports that intelligence sources suggest that the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant or an affiliate organisation planted explosives on the plane. (CNN)
- Egypt’s Sharm el-Sheikh airport chief Abdel-Wahab Ali is replaced; he is now an assistant to Adel Mahgoub, chairman of the country’s air transport service. (AP)
Kunduz hospital airstrike, Afghanistan War
- The United States says that last month’s airstrikes in Kunduz hit three locations, mistakenly including the Médecins Sans Frontières (Doctors Without Borders) (MSF) hospital where at least 30 were killed. Afghan commanders, whose forces were actively engaged with the Taliban, requested the attacks. The Washington Post reports a warehouse and a mansion in two densely populated residential areas were “pulverized” without loss of civilian lives. According to residents, earlier their neighborhoods had been conflict zones, but no militants were there the time of the attacks. “Together, the three attacks raise questions about the quality and reliability of the intelligence that Afghan security forces are providing to their American partners, as well as U.S. decisions to act on that intelligence,” writes the Post. (Washington Post)
- Médecins Sans Frontières held memorials around the globe Tuesday, the one month anniversary of the bombing, to reaffirm their request for an independent investigation. U.S. officials resist an independent probe, pledging that the three investigations underway, by the Pentagon, NATO, and Afghan officials, will be thorough and transparent. Thomas Nierle, head of MSF Switzerland, told AFP that he had little hope the inquiries would ultimately see any wrongdoers punished. (The Hill) (DW Akademie) (AFP via Yahoo News)

Business and economics

Keystone XL Pipeline
- The United States State Department formally denies Calgary-based TransCanada Corporation’s request, made Monday, to pause the review of the proposed Keystone XL oil pipeline. Reuters states this is expected to lead to the project’s rejection by theObama administration. (Reuters) (AP via Chicago Tribune)
Whole Foods, the Texas based food retailer, announces that it will buy back $1 billion of its shares, and increases its dividend. [1]

Disasters and accidents

Ash from Indonesia’s Mount Rinjani volcano closes Bali’s Ngurah Rai International Airport, the country’s third busiest. Nearly 700 flights are cancelled. Officials will re-evaluate the situation tomorrow. Mount Rinjani started spewing ash last weekend.(Reuters) (International Business Times)
2015 Juba plane crash
- A cargo plane crashes shortly after takeoff from Juba International Airport in Juba, South Sudan. 41 people have reportedly died. The five Armenian crew members were killed. (Reuters Africa) (RT) (Al Jazeera English) (AFP via Rappler) (Daily Mail)
2015 Lahore factory disaster
- A building collapses in the Pakistani city of Lahore resulting in at least 18 deaths, at least 75 injured and around 150 people still trapped. (AFP via France24) (Al Jazeera English) (BBC Online)

International relations

Cross-Strait relations, 2015 Ma–Xi Meeting
- The presidents of China and Taiwan are scheduled to meet in Singapore on November 7th, the first such meeting since the Chinese Communist Revolution. (New York Times) (BBC)
An Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) meeting in Malaysia fails to agree on a joint communique following disagreement between China and other nations over the South China Sea. (AP)
South Korea and China agree to establish an emergency navy and military hotline. (UPI)
Territorial disputes in the South China Sea, China–United States relations, Malaysia–United States relations
- U.S. Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter and his counterpart from Malaysia will visit the USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN-71) as it cruises in the South China Sea, this in the wake of China’s dismay over a U.S. Navy ship’s sailing in the vicinity of artificial islands constructed by China in the Spratly Islands. (Stars and Stripes)
European migrant crisis
- European Union president Donald Tusk and Swedish Prime Minister Stefan Löfvén, in a joint news conference, announce Sweden will ask to transfer some migrants to other European countries under an EU relocation plan. Sweden has taken the highest number of asylum-seekers per capita in the 28-member bloc. (AP) (The Local)

Law and crime

UC Merced stabbing spree
- Police, at the University of California, Merced campus, shoot and kill a male student who went on a stabbing rampage that wounded four people. The University closed its campus, except for housing, and cancelled classes for Wednesday and Thursday. The school reported all of the wounded are expected to recover. (KGO) (UC Merced) (Los Angeles Times) (AP via Houston Chronicle)
Police have the gunman in custody and San Diego International Airport flights resume. The airport closed after police encountered a man with a high-powered gun shooting in a Bankers Hill apartment complex, east of the approach path to the airport. Also known as Lindbergh Field, the airport is frequently cited as one of the scariest because of its downtown location. (AP update) (Reuters) (Airfare Watchdog)
The Mexican Supreme Court, in a 4-1 decision, rules that people have the right to grow and distribute marijuana for their personal use. The decision challenges the country’s current substance abuse laws. Fox News Latino and The New York Times point out the ruling only covers the plaintiffs in one case, a group that wants to form a “Pot Club.” A precedent will be established if the court approves five similar petitions. (Fox News Latino) (Reuters)
James Tran of Sacramento County is arrested on suspicion of attempted homicide in the October 8 stabbing of Airman Spencer Stone near a bar in Sacramento California. Stone had helped foil the 2015 Thalys train attack but officials believe it was just a drunken bar fight. (MSN)

Politics and elections

Colectiv nightclub fire
- Romanian Prime Minister Victor Ponta and his government resigns after tens of thousands took to the streets to protest over the Colectiv nightclub fire that killed 32 people. Mircea Dușa has been proposed to be installed as Acting Prime Minister.(Euronews) (BBC News) (The Guardian)
Canadian government
- Justin Trudeau is sworn in as the new Prime Minister of Canada along with his ministry. (Toronto Star)
- Trudeau announces an ethnically diverse cabinet which for the first time is equally balanced between men and women (15 each). (The Guardian)
Belizean general election, 2015
- Voters in Belize go to the polls with the United Democratic Party led by Dean Barrow hoping for a third consecutive term. (Voice of America)

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November 5, 2015

Top News Stories –

Facebook launches music sharing app called Music Stories –
Facebook has announced a new post format which allows people to listen to the first 30 seconds of a song shared on the site. It will be called Music Stories and Facebook says it is aimed at “enabling better music discovery and sharing”. The previews will be streamed from Spotify and Apple Music and fans can link through to buy or save the music. [BBC Newsbeat]
Facebook Music share tweet

Facebook ‘takes on Apple’s News with news app Notify’ –
Facebook will launch its own news aggregator app featuring stories drawn from numerous media partners next week, according to reports. The standalone new app, reported to be called Notify, will act as a direct rival to Apple’s News app, which recently launched in the UK. The social network has partnered with publishers including the BBC, the New York Times and NBC, according to the Financial Times. Users can subscribe to specific news organisations and receive notifications once stories are published. Reports first emerged the social network had been testing the app over the summer. [Daily Telegraph]

Video of the Day –

Le Petit Chef – Bouillabaisse from Skullmapping on Vimeo.

Top Twitter Trends –

	Worldwide	USA	UK
1	#8DaysUntilMITAM	5th of November	#BonfireNight
2	5th of November	#NationalDoughnutDay	#StressIn5Words
3	H&	#YouWereSoHotUntil	#museums2015
4	#CMAawards	#StressIn5Words	H&
5	#شي_جميل_يبداا_…	#8DaysUntilMITAM	#MillionMaskMarch
6	#StressIn5Words	Faisal Mohammad	Lewes
7	Elio Rossi	Martha Ford	Sam Burgess
8	#Empire	Chris Paul	Melissa Mathison
9	#مشكله_الاسكان…	Seth Rollins	Guy Fawkes
10	Rolling Stones	#TheSuperheroWeActuallyNeed	Benzema

Other News Stories –

Armed conflicts and attacks

Syrian Civil War
- Syrian Kurdish–Islamist conflict (2013–present)
  - Canada‘s Department of Foreign Affairs says it’s aware of reports that a Canadian national, John Robert Gallagher, has died while fighting in Syria. According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, John Robert Gallagher was killed while fighting alongside the Syrian Democratic Forces against Islamic State militants in the northeast Al-Hasakah Governorate. (CBC News)
- Syrian rebels seize control of Murak, a town located north of the city of Hama on a strategic highway that is crucial to control of western Syria, following clashes with pro-government forces. Murak was the scene of heavy fighting last year when government forces took control of the town in October 2014. (Reuters)
- Russian military intervention in the Syrian Civil War
  - Russia sends antiaircraft missile systems to Syria, where more than 50 Russian aircraft are stationed and its bombing campaign in support of the Assad regime has been in progress since late September. (Radio Free Europe)
Military intervention against ISIL
- British Prime Minister David Cameron, under pressure from Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn and the Foreign Affairs Committee, will not ask for a vote by Parliament to join the U.S. airstrikes in Syria. (Military.com)
- France announces that it will deploy its aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle to the eastern Mediterranean to boost its efforts against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant in Iraq and Syria. (Independent)

Disasters and accidents

Minas Gerais dam disaster
- An iron ore tailings dam bursts in the Brazilian state of Minas Gerais flooding a valley, causing mudslides in the nearby village of Bento Rodrigues and causing up to 17 deaths and 45 missing. The dam is operated by Samarco Mineração, a joint venture between BHP Billiton and Vale. (Bloomberg), (Reuters via SBS Australia), (AFP via Yahoo! News), (Al Jazeera English)

Law and crime

European migrant crisis
- Greek police say they came under fire on the country’s northeastern border with Turkey during the arrest of two suspected migrant smugglers who had just ferried 22 people across the Evros river that runs along the Greek-Turkish border. (AP via New Europe)
NetCracker and Computer Sciences Corporation agree to pay fines amounting to over $12 million, settling a Justice Department investigation into the firms’ sub-contracting of computer coding work to Russian sources. The programs were subsequently installed on secure U.S. government computer networks. (The Daily Beast)
University of California, Merced stabbing attack
- The Merced County Sheriff identifies the attacker of four students at the University of California, Merced as freshman Faisal Mohammad. (Merced Sun Star)

Politics and elections

Belizean general election, 2015
- Belizean Prime Minister Dean Barrow wins a record third term in Wednesday’s snap general election in the Central American nation as his United Democratic Party (UDP) gains a clear majority in parliament. The UDP won 19 constituencies and Francis Fonseca’s People’s United Party (PUP) took 10, with two constituencies yet to report. Belize is a parliamentary constitutional monarchy with Queen Elizabeth II, the symbolic head of state. (Reuters) (Newsweek)
The President of the Maldives, Abdulla Yameen, declares a state of emergency suspending civil rights and giving sweeping powers to security forces. (The Guardian)
- The United States, Amnesty International, and the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP), the country’s main opposition party, sharply criticize the state of emergency, concerned it might lead to a new crackdown on dissent. MDP had scheduled a protest rally for this Friday, demanding the release of its jailed leader, and former Maldivian President, Mohamed Nasheed. The government order cancels that action. (Washington Post) (AP via U.S. News & World Report)
Myanmar general election, 2015
- Myanmar opposition leader and Nobel Laureate Aung San Suu Kyi says she would be “above the president” if her National League for Democracy party (NLD) gets the expected win in the Sunday, November 8, 2015, election. The 2008 constitution, drafted by the military without NLD participation, bars her from becoming President. (Reuters) (Time)

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