January 22, 2015

Top News Stories –

Solo hopes for better time –
Hope Solo, The US women’s team goalkeeper is suspended for 30 days by US Soccer following an “incident” during a training camp. The teams head coach Jill Ellis said “Hope made a poor decision that has resulted in a negative impact on US Soccer and her team-mates.” Solo’s husband, former Seattle Seahawks NFL player Jerramy Stevens, was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence in Los Angeles in the early hours of January 19th 2015. Solo who appeared in the 2011 Body Issue of ESPN The Magazine tweeted:

Rick puts dicks on the runway –
Rick Owens the American designer sent four of his models down the catwalk at his Paris fashion show wearing clothes with peepholes that showed full-frontal male nudity underneath. His possibly unique idea earned him the Instagram hashtag: #dickowens.
Rick Owens

Rihanna wins court case over t-shirt-
Rihanna wins her long running legal challenge against Topshop over selling a t-Shirt with a picture from her Talk That Talk album promotional work.
Singer Rihanna has won a legal battle against high street store Topshop over a t-shirt bearing her image. Rihanna sued Topshop’s parent company Arcadia for $5m (£3.3m) back in 2013 and the Court of Appeal in London upheld a ban on the store selling the t-shirt.

A man’s right to pee stands up in court –
A German court has ruled in favour of a man’s right to urinate while standing up after his landlord demanded €1,900 (£1400; $2,200) for damage to the marble bathroom floor caused by urine. But the Duesseldorf judge ruled that the man’s method was within cultural norms, saying “urinating standing up is still common practice” even though some public toilets in Germany have signs forbidding the standing position – but those who choose to sit are often referred to as a “Sitzpinkler”, implying it is not masculine behaviour.

Stars out against Tescos in Haverstock Hill –
Damian Lewis, Old Etonian star of Homeland has joined up with Emma Thompson, James Corden and Tom Conti and other residents of Belsize Park in London to attempt to stop Tesco building an Express branch in Haverstock Hill. This follows Russell Brand campaigning to stop building work in Hackney, London on December 1st 2014.

Video of the Day –

Batman Evolution from ThePianoGuys on Vimeo.

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January 23, 2015

Top News Stories –

King Abdulla dies –
Saudi Arabia’s King Abdullah died today and his brother Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud became king. King Salman has named his half-brother Muqrin as his crown prince and heir in a move designed to reduce fears of a succession crisis.
King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia
The new King of Saudi Arabia, King Salman

Tennis player asked to do the twirl –
Tennis Australia commentator Ian Cohen has asked Canadian tennis player Eugenie Bouchard “to give it a twirl” to show off her outfit after her second-round win over Kiki Bertens in the Australian Open causing upset. Bouchard who lost in the final at Wimbledon in 2014 said “… I’m fine with being asked to twirl if they ask the guys to flex their muscles and stuff.”

It’s teleporting Jim, but not as we know it –
Scientists from the Hasso Plattner Institute in Potsdam, Germany have invented a real-life teleporter system that can scan in an object and “beam it” to another location. Not quite the level of sophistication seen in Star Trek, the system uses destructive scanning, digital transmission and 3D printing.

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January 24, 2015

Top News Stories –

Islamic State terrorists execute Japanese hostage –
Japanese prime minister Shinzō Abe has called the footage of Islamic State hostage Kenji Goto apparently holding a photograph showing the body of fellow captive Haruna Yukawa “outrageous and unacceptable”. On January 20th 2015 Islamic State said it would kill the two men unless Japan paid a ransom of $200m (£130m) within 72 hours.
Japanese prime minister Shinzō Abe

Where are the richest 1% in the world? –
According to Credit Suisse anyone who has assets worth over $798,000 (£530,000) is one of 1% of the richest people in the world. 18 million of the top 47 million richest people are in the US, 3.5m in France, 2.9m in the UK and 2.8m in Germany. Ten percent of Swiss residents, a total of 800,000, are in the top 1%.

50 years since the death of Winston Churchill –
Sir Winston Churchill, prime minister of England through World War II died 50 years ago today. He was Conservative prime minister from 10 May 1940 – 26 July 1945 and again in 26 October 1951 – 6 April 1955.
Winston Churchill

FA Cup upsets return –
In England and Wales the fourth round of the FA Cup sees some of the most surprising results for many years. Premier League leaders Chelsea are beaten on their own ground 4-2 by Bradford City after leading the League One team 2-0. Manchester City who are second in the Premier League also lose at home to Championship side Middlesborough. This followed Cambridge United holding on for a 0-0 draw against Manchester United yesterday.
Jose Mourinho

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January 25, 2015

Top News Stories –

Syriza party wins Greek election –
In the Greece general election Alexis Tsipras’ party wins a clear victory with a projected 149 seats. The Syriza party ran on an anti-austerity ticket and has vowed to reverse many of the austerity measures adopted by Greece since a series of bailouts began in 2010. The party first came to prominence following the 2008 Greek riots.
Alexis Tsipras

Prime Minister, call on line hoax –
A hoax caller pretending to be GCHQ director Robert Hannigan today managed to get through to the British Minister on the phone; David Cameron quickly realised it was not the GCHQ head and ended the call.
GCHQ director Robert Hannigan

Proposal racquet down under –
At the Australian Open tennis tournament a man in the crowd proposed to his girlfriend during Novak Djokovic’s third round match against Fernando Verdasco. When the woman accepted the proposal the crowd and players burst into applause.

Rihanna new single rocks Twitter with #FourFiveSeconds –
Rihanna releases her new single Four Five Seconds, the first release from her new album and it features Kanye West and someone called Paul McCartney who has worked with a few stars before (see List of the day).
Rihanna

Video of the Day –

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January 26, 2015

Top News Stories –

Greek parties form anti-austerity coalition –
The winner of yesterday’s election in Greece, the far-left Syriza party won 149 seats, just two short of an absolute majority. It has formed an anti-austerity coalition right-wing party, the Greek Independents led by Panos Kammenos.
Panos Kammenos, leader of the Greek Independents

Greek F-16 crashes at Spanish airbase –
A Greek F-16 jet “lost power” during take-off at the Los Llanos airbase in Albacete in central Spain and crashed into a number of parked planes and ground crew. Ten people have died including the two pilots of the plane.

Demis Roussos dies –
Demis Roussos, a Greek singer who sold more than 60 million albums worldwide most during the 1970s and 1980s has died aged 68 in Athens. He was best known for solo hits including Forever and Ever, Goodbye and Quand je t’aime as well as writing the soundtrack to the film Abigail’s party.

Video of the Day –

Light Goes On from Darren Pearson on Vimeo.

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January 27, 2015

Top News Stories –

Hit and miss snow fun –
New York “dodged a bullet” according to Mayor Bill de Blasio after the huge expected snowfall skirted the city. All vehicle movement apart from emergency vehicles had been banned and the subway was shut down. However in Massachusetts the Emergency Management Agency (Mema) shut down the Pilgrim nuclear power plant in Plymouth “due to loss of offsite power”.

Auschwitz remembered –
70 years since the day that the Nazi concentration camp Auschwitz in Poland was liberated in 1945 sees ceremonies performed at the camp and around the world.
Birkenau Gate, Auschwitz

Twitter gets video and group DM –
Twitter launch a video function so 30 second mobile video uploads can be played directly in timelines. The platform is also adding a group direct messages function. The video function uses the devices build in camera to produce Vine style clips but longer.

And Snapchat become a “news” outlet –
Snapchat is making content from the news sevices of Vice Media and CNN available to its users and DailyMail.com will offer Snapchat users 10 to 15 of its “highly addictive stories” news, showbiz and lifestyle stories selected by a special editorial team. Each edition will be available for 24 hours.

Video of the Day –

Citizens – “Lighten Up”

Citizens “Lighten Up” Cesare’s remix from Ernest Desumbila on Vimeo.

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January 28, 2015

January 28 2015

Top News Stories –

Luis Figo enters FIFA presidential race –
Luís Figo the former Portuguese football who famously played for both Real Madrid and Barcelona has entered himself to stand for the FIFA presidential election and claims to have the required five nominations from among FIFA’s 209 members. He joins Prince Ali of Jordan, the Dutch FA president Michael van Praag, Jérôme Champagne and David Ginola facing up to current president Sepp Blatter.Luis Figo

Apple now have enough money to own the largest navy in the world –
Apple the tech company reports the biggest quarterly profit of any company in the world ever with revenues of $74.6bn and a net profit of $18bn. It’s cash holdings are now $178bn which according to The Guardian newspaper “is enough to commission 40 Nimitz-class aircraft carriers, giving Apple more force capability than every other navy in the world – combined”.USS Nimitz (planes not included in price)

Cat survives car crash and burial –
A cat in Florida that was buried in a shallow grave after being apparently killed by a car has managed not only to survive but to dig its way out of the grave. Bart the zombie cat as he is now known was found by a neighbour and is now recovering after surgery on a broken jaw and damaged eye.

Video of the Day –

Sommersby Cider – The Somersby Store

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January 29, 2015

Top News Stories –

Russian planes buzz UK airspace –
Britain’s Foreign office have said that two Russian Tu-95 Bear H aircraft came within 25 miles of UK airspace in the last 24 hours. They travelled from the north, past the west coast of Ireland and to the English Channel before turning and going back the way they had come. British typhoon fighters were scrambled after the the bombers did not file a flight plan, did not have their transponders switched on and “weren’t talking to air traffic control”.

Taylor Swift trademarks lyrics –
Taylor Swift has trademarked phrases from her current album, 1989 in the United States. The phrases include “this sick beat” and “we never go out of style”, and the trademark ruling stops the use of the lyrics on merchandise. Rihanna successfully sued Topshop earlier this month for using her image on a t-shirt.

Murray’s girlfriend tells it like it is –
Tennis player Andy Murray’s fiancé Kim Sears is caught on camera apparently swearing about Murray’s semi-final opponent Tomas Berdych’s. Lip readers allege she said “Take that you flash Czech fucker”, when Murray won a crucial point. Murray later defended Sears, saying: “In the heat of the moment, you can say stuff that you regret.”

Video of the Day –

Taylor Swift – Shake it off

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January 30, 2015

Top News Stories –

Suge Knight arrested after fatal car incident –
Marion “Suge” Knight who founded Death Row Records with Dr Dre in 1991, gives himself up for arrest after a fatal hit-and-run incident in Compton, Los Angeles. Police and witnesses said Knight drove his truck over two men in the car park of a restaurant killing one (his friend Terry Carter, a record label owner in Compton) and injuring the other (Cle “Bone” Sloan). Bail is set at $2m. In 1996 Knight was driving a BMW in Las Vegas in 1996 when gunmen in another vehicle shot his passenger, the rapper Tupac Shakur who later died.
Suge Knight

Jay Z takes on Dr Dre in world of streaming –
Rapper and entrepreneur Jay Z who earned over $60 million in 2014 places a $56m bid for Scandinavian company Aspiro, the company behind streaming services WiMP a direct rival to Spotify in Scandinavia. Aspiro also have a higher-resolution version called WiMP HiFi that was rebranded as Tidal when it launched in the UK and US in October 2014. If Jay Z succeeds in the bid he will be competing with Dr Dre’s Beats Music, the streaming service bought by Apple as part of a $3bn acquisition of its parent company Beats Electronics in 2014.
Jay Z

Out of the woods but into a cactus –
Tiger Woods records the worst round of his professional career with an 11-over-par 82 in the second round of the Waste Management Phoenix Open. Woods carded six bogeys, two double bogeys, a triple bogey and two birdies and left the ball in the middle of a cactus.
Tiger Woods

David Ginola pulls out of the Fifa presidential election –
David Ginola fails to secure the backing of five football associations, a requirement for standing in the FIFA presidential election and hpulls out of the challenge. Ginola was paid £250,000 by betting firm Paddy Power, which denied the campaign was a publicity stunt.
David Ginola

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January 31, 2015

Top News Stories –

Whitney Houston’s daughter accident –
Bobbi Kristina Brown, the daughter of late American singer Whitney Houston is found unconscious in a bath in a house in Roswell, Georgia. She was taken to a hospital in Roswell where she was said to be breathing. Her mother was found dead in a bath on February 11th 2012 of accidental drowning due to the effects of cocaine use and heart disease.

Bobbi Kristina Brown and Whitney Houston in 2009

Cumberbatch and Fry sign petition to pardon gays –
Benedict Cumberbatch and Stephen Fry sign an open letter requesting the government to pardon 49,000 men who were prosecuted for being gay. Family members of the World War Two codebreaker Alan Turing who was convicted of gross indecency in 1952 (and later committed suicide in 1954) also signed the petition. Cumberbatch played Turing in the film “The Imitation Game”.

Benedict Cumberbatch

Balloon flight record broken –
Balloon pilots American Troy Bradley and Russian Leonid Tiukhtyaev complete their crossing of the Pacific in a helium filled balloon with a sea landing off Mexico after 6 days flying from Japan. They claim to have beaten the world distance and duration records by flying for more than 137 hours and travelling more than 5,209 miles (8,383km).

Serena Williams wins 19th grand slam title –
Serena Williams beats fellow American Maria Sharapova to win the Australian Open tennis title. Williams’ 6-3, 7-6 (7-5) victory gives here a 19th grand slam crown out of 23 finals – the best percentage performance in either the men’s or women’s game.

Serena Williams

Video of the Day –

The Imitation Game trailer

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June 16, 2015

Top News Story –

Donald Trump announces candidacy for president

Billionaire real estate developer Donald Trump announced his candidacy for president on Tuesday. The field has grown increasingly crowded as candidates formally begin campaigning for the 2016 election.

Trump also released on Tuesday a series of financial documents concerning his total assets and a net worth of $8.7 billion.

In a press release he said: “Quite simply, it is time to bring real leadership to Washington. The fact is, the American Dream is dead—but if I win, I will bring it back bigger and better and stronger than ever before. Together we will Make America Great Again!”

After the announcement, NBC released a statement saying: “We will re-evaluate Trump’s role as host of ‘Celebrity Apprentice’ should it become necessary, as we are committed to this franchise.”

[cnbc.com]

Twitter trends [from Trendinalia] – today from USA

1	#ThreeWordsSheWantsToHear
2	#MakeAMovieUnderwhelming
3	#WeCantDateIf
4	Donald Trump
5	Tupac
6	#MyCampaignIn3Words
7	Cardinals
8	Happy Birthday Tupac
9	#HonestyHour
10	#USAvNGA

Other News Stories –

Armed conflicts and attacks

al-Qaeda insurgency in Yemen
- al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula announces that its leader Nasser al-Wuhayshi was killed in a US drone strike last Friday. (BBC)
Syrian Civil War
- Kurdish People’s Protection Units have captured the border town of Tell Abyad from Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant forces. (Al-Jazeera)
Libyan Crisis (2011–present)
- Three of the ten Tunisian consular staff kidnapped last week have been released and negotiation is ongoing about the others. (Reuters via Trust)

Arts and culture

The British Broadcasting Corporation announces that Chris Evans will be the new presenter of the popular Top Gear television series. (BBC)

Business and economy

Airbus announces plans to build 900 satellites on behalf of the OneWeb satellite constellation with the project starting in 2018. (The Guardian)
Rupert Murdoch confirms stepping down as the CEO of 21st Century Fox to be succeeded by his son James on July 1, 2015. Rupert will continue as its executive chairman with his eldest son, Lachlan, as a future executive co-chairman. (USA Today)

Disasters and accidents

2015 Atlantic hurricane season
- Texas braces for the impact of Tropical Storm Bill bringing heavy rainfall and renewed flooding. (Accuweather)
A train crashes with a truck in central Tunisia killing at least 12 people and injuring 70. (Al-Jazeera)
Six people are killed and eight are injured, some with life-threatening injuries, after a balcony collapses in Berkeley, California, near the campus of the University of California, Berkeley; five of the casualties are students. (NBC News), (AP)

Health

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issues a mandate that all artificial trans fatty acids (trans fats) must be eliminated within three years (2018) from all foods grown, imported to, or sold within the United States. It is the strictest and most final type of ruling, even more so than a black-box warning or a warning to list ingredients, that can be given from the federal agency, which has ultimate jurisdiction over the safety of all food and drug products, public or private, in the United States. The substances occur in processed meats and other foods, and have been repeatedly implicated in atherosclerotic coronary heart disease, diabetes, and some cancers. (MSN), (Washington Post),(CNN Money), (FDA’s statement)
2015 Middle East respiratory syndrome outbreak in South Korea
- South Korea reports three more deaths from Middle East Respiratory Syndrome bringing the death toll to 19 with 154 people diagnosed with the disease. (Yonhap)

Law and crime

Bangladesh‘s Supreme Court upholds the death sentence against senior Islamist leader Ali Ahsan Mohammad Mojaheed in an appeal hearing. (AFP via France 24)^{[permanent dead link]}
An Egyptian court sentences former President Mohamed Morsi to life in prison for conspiring with foreign groups and upholds an earlier preliminary death sentence issued for a prison break. Muslim Brotherhood leader Khairat el-Shater and two others are given death sentences. (Al-Jazeera), (AP via Breaking News)

Politics and elections

2016 United States presidential election
- Real estate mogul and reality television host Donald Trump announces that he will be a candidate for the Republican Party nomination. (Bloomberg)

Sport

2015 NBA Finals
- In basketball, the Golden State Warriors defeat the Cleveland Cavaliers 105-97 in Game 6 to secure their first title since 1975. Andre Iguodala is named the series MVP. (Fox Sports), (AL.com)

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August 2, 2015

Top News Stories –

Cilla Black, singer and TV star, dies in Spain aged 72 –
Singer and TV star Cilla Black, who enjoyed a 50-year showbusiness career, has died aged 72, her agent has said. The 1960s singing star became a popular TV celebrity on such shows as Blind Date and Surprise Surprise. Spanish police said a woman named Priscilla White – Black’s real name – had died in Estepona on the Costa del Sol, where the star had a home. The death appeared to be due to natural causes, but this had not yet been confirmed by tests, police said. [BBC]
Cilla Black in 1970

Hitchiking robot ‘killed’ in Philadelphia –
A hitchhiking robot that captured the hearts of fans worldwide has met its demise in the US.
The Canadian researchers who created hitchBOT as a social experiment say someone in Philadelphia damaged the robot beyond repair on Saturday, ending its brief American tour. The robot was trying to travel cross-country after successfully hitchhiking across Canada last year and parts of Europe. It set out from Marblehead, Massachusetts, two weeks ago in July with the goal of reaching San Francisco, but never made it off the East Coast. The creators were sent an image of the vandalised robot but cannot track its location because the battery is dead. [Daily Telegraph]
hitchBOT displayed at an exhibition

Video of the Day –

Zoolander 2 – Official Teaser

List of the Day –

Cilla Black TV credits

Year	Programme	Role
1968–76	Cilla	Presenter
1977	Cilla’s World of Comedy	Actor
1984–01	Surprise Surprise	Presenter
1985–03	Blind Date	Presenter
1998–01	The Moment of Truth	Presenter
2006	Soapstar Superstar	Judge
2006-2010	The Paul O’Grady Show	Guest Presenter and guest
2007	Room 101	Guest
2009	TV’s Greatest Endings	Presenter
2009–14	Loose Women	Regular/Guest Panellist
2011	Never Mind the Buzzcocks	Guest Presenter
2013	Your Face Sounds Familiar	Guest Judge
2013	The One & Only Cilla Black	Special Guest

Top Twitter Trends –

	Worldwide	USA	UK
1	#ZQUAD	#StoryOfMyLifeIn4Words	Roy Keane
2	#UFC190	#ZQUAD	#UFC190
3	#EnormesGanasDe	#SHESKINDAHOTMUSICVIDEO	#RideLondon
4	Brian	#ThingsShorterThanARouseyF…	Cilla Black
5	#ايام_المدرسه_�…	#UFC190	#CommunityShield
6	#EstamosEnAgostoYYo	Bang 3	#GPITP
7	#NationalGirlfriendDay	Chip Kelly	#NationalGirlfriendDay
8	#StoryOfMyLifeIn4Words	#SundayFunday	MY BOYS
9	MY BOYS	Cilla Black	#StoryOfMyLifeIn4Words
10	#كانت_انثي_حتي	American Pharoah	#WhatAreYouBecoming

Other News Stories –

Armed conflicts and attacks

Saudi Arabian-led intervention in Yemen
- A Saudi Arabian citizen is killed in the city of Najran by a projectile fired from Yemen. (Al-Arabiya)
Turkey–PKK conflict
- A suicide attack by the PKK kills two Turkish Army soldiers and injures 24 in the Turkish town of Doğubeyazıt in Ağrı Province near the Iranborder. (BBC)
General Adolphe Nshimirimana, former chief of staff of the Burundi Army, is assassinated in Bujumbura. (RFI original in French)
Boko Haram
- Nigerian Army soldiers rescue 178 people from Boko Haram camps including 101 children. (AP)

Law and crime

A court in Egypt postpones a verdict in the prominent trial of two journalists with Al-Jazeera,who have been charged with aiding the Muslim Brotherhood. (Reuters)

Politics and elections

Bronwyn Bishop resigns as the Speaker of the Australian House of Representatives following an expenses scandal. (The Australian)
Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper confirms he has asked Governor General David Johnston to dissolve the Canadian Parliament and set a general election for October 19th. This will be the longest election campaign for Canada in recent history. (CBC)

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November 21, 2015

Top News Stories –

Ban bathtubs, says Sweden’s ‘green king’ –
The king of Sweden wants to ban all bath-tubs in an effort to save water. King Carl XVI Gustaf, who in recent years has put past scandals relating to his reputation as a lothario behind him to become better known as a dedicated environmentalist, has given a frank interview to describe his determination to turn the royal palace in Stockholm green. He also suggested that having given up taking baths himself his people should follow where he has led. “We should ban all baths, imagine that,” he said when asked about his suggestions for everyday energy saving. The question arose when he confessed he had recently been forced to run himself a bath when staying somewhere that lacked showers. “That’s when it hit me how much water and energy it used,” he said. “I thought ‘I can’t believe I’m having to do this’. I felt quite ashamed.” [Daily Telegraph]
King Carl Gustaf

Video of the Day –

Fire Tornado in Slow Motion – The Slow Mo Guys

Top Twitter Trends –

	Worldwide	USA	UK
1	#2016IsZaynsYear	Justin and Selena	Red Cadeaux
2	#ALDUBSumptuousLunch	#ElClasico	#Blogfest15
3	#DosPalabras	Ohio State	#MakeAFilmWayTooCheery
4	#SeTermina2015YYo	#MakeAFilmWayTooCheery	ITS SNOWING
5	#YoQuieroSobredosisDe	#MSUvsOSU	#Michaela
6	Justin and Selena	#2016IsZaynsYear	#grahamnorton
7	#ElClasico	Bulls	#ElClasico
8	#الهلال_الخليج	#5quad	#2016IsZaynsYear
9	Liverpool	Les Miles	Justin and Selena
10	MAÑANA CAMBIEMOS	#HelloBtchzItsCL	Liverpool

Other News Stories –

Armed conflicts and attacks

2015 Brussels lockdown
- Belgium raises its terror alert level to the highest level in the capital Brussels and deploys soldiers on the streets of major Belgian cities such as Brussels, Antwerp and Ghent. As part of the emergency measures, the Belgian government is advising people in the Brussels area to avoid crowded places, which includes concerts, train stations, airports, public transportation, and busy shopping streets, warning of an “imminent threat”. (France 24) (BNO News)
- The Brussels Metro is closed as part of the state of alert. (Reuters via Daily Mail)
November 2015 Paris attacks
- Recruitment in the French Army increases after the attacks. (Channel News Asia)
- Ahmet Dahmani is detained by Turkish police in the resort of Antalya on suspicion of being an ISIL scout ahead of the Paris attacks. (Sky News)
- French police release seven of the eight people arrested during Wednesday’s raid of a flat where the suspected mastermind of the Paris attacks was hiding. The man who said he was in charge of the property is still being held. (Reuters)
2015 Bamako hotel attack
- Olivier Salgado, a spokesman for the U.N. mission in Mali, says at least 19 people were killed in the attack along with two of the attackers. Earlier reports indicated that 27 people died. (CNN)
Ukrainian crisis
- Crimea is without power after transmission towers in Ukraine‘s Kherson Oblast were blown up by unknown people. The Crimean Emergencies Ministry declares a state of emergency due to the power outage and puts rescue teams on high alert. (RT)
Boko Haram insurgency
- A suicide bomb attack in Fotokol, a town in Cameroon‘s Far North Region near the Nigerian border kills at least nine people. (Daily Mail)

Arts and culture

British singer Adele‘s album 25 is released. (Billboard)
Miss World 2015
- Miss World Canada Anastasia Lin says that she is prevented from competing in China by the Chinese authorities after she spoke up against human rights abuses in the country. (BBC)
Muslim cleric Sheikh Ahmed al-Tayeb, the head of al-Azhar in Egypt, says violence has no link to authentic Islam, terrorism is a life philosophy whose adherents were willing to die and is an intellectual and psychological disease that uses religion as a front.(Reuters)

Disasters and accidents

Seven people, including the pilot, are killed in a helicopter crash on Fox Glacier in New Zealand. (stuff.co.nz)
A fire in a coal mine in China‘s northeast Heilongjiang province results in 21 deaths and one person missing. (AP)
Hpakant jade mine disaster
- A landslide near a jade mine in northern Myanmar kills up to 60 people with more than a hundred missing. (AP via ABC News America)
The U.S. Geological Survey reports a magnitude 5.5 earthquake struck the central Chilean coast, south of the town of Coquimbo, at 6:05 PM EST. No immediate reports of damage or casualties; no tsunami alerts are in effect. (Reuters) (BNO News)(USGS)

Health and medicine

Research conducted by Columbus, Ohio’s Nationwide Children’s Hospital and published in the American Journal of Epidemiology suggests moderate caffeine consumption during pregnancy does not harm a baby’s future intelligence or behavioral health.(UPI)

International relations

Territorial disputes in the South China Sea
- Japan‘s prime minister Shinzō Abe says he is considering sending Japanese Navy warships to the South China Sea to back-up U.S. naval operations, saying, “With regard to activity by the Self-Defense Forces in the South China Sea, I will consider it while focusing on what effect the situation has on Japan’s security.” In response, China‘s Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson, Hong Lei, told Chinese state media that China will remain on “high alert for intervention by Japan in the South China Sea issue”. (Bloomberg) (The Diplomat)
Reactions to the November 2015 Paris attacks
- Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak denounces the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant as an “evil” terrorist group. He said his Muslim-majority country is ready to join others to defeat it, cautioning that a military solution alone is not enough and that it is also necessary to vanquish the ideology of the group. (AP via Fresno Bee)
Refugee crises
- United States President Barack Obama vows to keep United States borders open to refugees, “as long as I’m president,” as he visited a Malaysian humanitarian center and met migrant children, many of whom escaped violence in homelands that includeMyanmar, Pakistan, and Syria. (UPI)

Law and crime

A student, whose disappearance with a gun caused the precautionary closing of Washington College in Maryland (U.S.) this week, is found dead in Pennsylvania of a self-inflicted gunshot wound. The campus will reopen after Thanksgiving. (Washington Post) (Washington College)

Politics and elections

Elections in the United States; Louisiana gubernatorial election, 2015
- Democratic state Representative John Bel Edwards, the surprise winner of the October 24 open primary, is elected governor of Louisiana over Republican U.S. Senator David Vitter. Edwards’ margin is 140,931 votes (56.11 percent), all 3,945 precincts reporting. Edwards will replace former Republican presidential candidate Bobby Jindall, who was not eligible to seek another term. (NOLA.com) (Washington Post)
- Republican David Vitter says he will not run for reelection to the U.S. Senate in 2016. (AP)

Sport

In motor sport, the team of Timo Bernhard, Brendon Hartley and Mark Webber win the FIA World Endurance Championship. (Reuters via Yahoo News Australia)
In baseball, South Korea defeats the United States in the 2015 WBSC Premier12. (Yahoo Sports)
Boxing
- Anthony Crolla of England wins the World Boxing Association lightweight title defeating Darleys Perez in a title fight in Manchester. (BBC)
- Saúl Álvarez of Mexico defeats Miguel Cotto of Mexico to win the World Boxing Council middleweight championship. (AP)
Ireland beat Australia in the 2015 International Rules Series at Croke Park. (Guardian)
The Athens derby match between Superleague Greece’s top two football teams, Panathinaikos and Olympiakos Piraeus, is called off before play could start. There were scuffles between riot police and fans outside the Apostolos Nikolaidis Stadium. Flares were also tossed onto the pitch. (Reuters)
Guangzhou Evergrande Taobao F.C. win the AFC Champions League for their second time, after defeating Al-Ahli in the final. (Channel News Asia)

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December 17, 2015

Top News Stories –

Jose Mourinho: Chelsea sack boss after Premier League slump –
Chelsea have sacked manager Jose Mourinho seven months after he led them to the Premier League title. The 52-year-old Portuguese had been in his second spell at the club, taking charge in June 2013. Chelsea finished eight points clear last season and won the League Cup, but have lost nine of their 16 league games so far and are 16th in the table, one point above the relegation places. Mourinho’s final match was Monday’s 2-1 defeat at leaders Leicester City. Pep Guardiola, Guus Hiddink, Juande Ramos and Brendan Rodgers have all been touted as possible successors as Blues owner Roman Abramovich begins another managerial search. [BBC]
Jose Mourinho

Pastafarian marriages approved in New Zealand –
Ever wanted to get married while wearing a colander on your head? Move to New Zealand – they just gave the right to the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster to perform marriage ceremonies. Members of the church call themselves Pastafarians and believe that the world was created by an airborne spaghetti and meatballs-based being, although its own website notes that some followers consider it to be a satirical organisation. The registrar-general told stuff.co.nz that the request was valid because the purposes set out by the church were educating and training people, particularly atheists and superstitious people, about Flying Spaghetti principles and practices. He said: “In considering the matter I have referred to the Objects of the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster, reviewed material available online about this organisation and considered other organisations already able to nominate marriage celebrants. “A review of media and the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster’s international website show a consistent presentation of their philosophies. While some claim this is a ‘parody organisation’, members have rebutted this on a number of occasions.” [Daily Telegraph] In November 2016 ‘Pastafarian’ Lindsay Miller won the right to wear colander on head in driving licence photo in Massachusetts.
.

Video of the Day –

More Stuff by Blue Zoo Animation from Blue Zoo on Vimeo.

List of the Day –

Vimeo presents: The Top Videos of 2015
Music:
TAME IMPALA ‘The Less I Know The Better’ from CANADA

Documentary:
“Guerilla Fighters of Kurdistan” from Joey L

Animation:
“Coda” from and maps and plans

Travel:
“Dubai Flow Motion” from Rob Whitworth

Experimental:
“INPUT/OUTPUT” from Terri Timely

Narrative:
“POWER/RANGERS” from Joseph Kahn

Sports:
“Skate Heads” from Flexfit

Top Twitter Trends –

	Worldwide	USA	UK
1	#GoogleDoodle	#StarWarsTheForceAwakens	#GoogleDoodle
2	#DetremuraSemWhatsSdv	#GoogleDoodle	#StarWarsTheForceAwakens
3	#Nessas48HorasEuVou	#DoGreatThings	#SJA2015
4	#StarWarsTheForceAwakens	#WeAreAllMuslim	#OneLetterOffMovies
5	#PSYTaguan	#ThisIsNotTheAlbumTODAY	Dylan Hartley
6	#زد_رصيدك34	#ThisIsNotTheAlbumOutNOW	Muslim Brotherhood
7	#متي_كانت_اخر_ض…	#SomethingSweetTONIGHT	#SportingFuture
8	#らしくないツイー�…	#2015Faves	#TheApprentice
9	#ALDUB22ndWeeksary	Martin Shkreli	Peep Show
10	#17Aralık	#adeletickets	#Cuffs

Other News Stories –

Armed conflicts and attacks

Libyan Civil War (2014–present)
- Delegates from Libya’s warring factions sign a U.N.-brokered agreement to form a national unity government. Some of Libya’s armed brigades are closely allied with political leaders who oppose this agreement. (Reuters) (Al Arabiya)
2015 PKK rebellion
- Turkish security forces have killed 23 suspected members of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party in operations in the Kurdish-majority cities of Cizre and Silopi. (BBC)
- The Turkish Army deploys tanks into civilian areas of Silopi and soldiers are reportedly going house-to-house in search of PKK militants. The pro-Kurdish opposition Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) condemns the Turkish military actions in Silopi. (RT)

Disasters and accidents

A 6.4-magnitude earthquake hits the southern Mexican state of Chiapas. The epicenter was 11 kilometers (7 miles) from the town of Tres Picos, not far from the Pacific coast. There are no immediate reports of major damage or injuries. (Reuters) (USGS)
As many as 36 miners die in a pair of accidents in Northeast China. (AP via ABC News)
- Nineteen workers trapped by Wednesday’s gas explosion and raging fire in a coal mine in Hegang in Heilongjiang privince are not expected to survive because of carbon monoxide and the high temperatures from the fire, according to the rescue and command office’s Zhang Qinxiang. Thirty-three miners escaped. (MINING.com)
- A fire caused by sparks from welding equipment kills 17 workers in the Xingli coal mine in Huludao city in Liaoning province. The State Administration of Work Safety reports 13 miners died at the site while four died at the hospital. Another ten miners are hospitalized. (Xinhua) (AP via The Washington Post)

International relations

China summons Kaye Lee, the U.S. deputy chief of mission in Beijing, to protest Washington’s announcement that it is selling two warships to Taiwan as part of a $1.83 billion arms deal. U.S. state department spokesman John Kirby says the sale is consistent with the 1979 Taiwan Relations Act while Chinese Vice-Foreign Minister Zheng Zequang threatens to impose sanctions on U.S. firms because the proposed sale “severely damaged China’s sovereignty and security interests.” (NBC News) (BBC)
The United Nations Security Council unanimously adopts a resolution aimed at disrupting revenue the Islamic State gets from oil sales, ransom payments, and other criminal activities. (Reuters) (AFP via Yahoo News)
The World Trade Organization approves Afghanistan’s membership at its 10th ministerial conference in Nairobi, Kenya. Afghanistan becomes the 164th WTO member and is the 36th least developed country (LDC) in the global trade body. (Xinhua News Agency via Global Post) (Channel News Asia)

Law and crime

European migrant crisis
- Riots break out in the western Dutch town of Geldermalsen over plans to establish a centre for asylum seekers in the town. Local police say they made several arrests. Including this year’s arrivals, the Dutch government said in November it expected to receive 58,000 asylum seekers by the end of 2016. (BBC)
United States federal prosecutors in New York City arrest Martin Shkreli on securities fraud charges for allegedly plundering for personal gain Retrophin, a biopharmaceutical company he ran as CEO from 2012 to 2014. (Chicago Tribune) (ABC News)

Politics and elections

Russian President Vladimir Putin calls U.S. Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump, “a very colorful person. Talented, without any doubt” as well as an “absolute leader” in the race for the presidency. (ABC News)

Sports

2015–16 Premier League
- José Mourinho is sacked as Chelsea F.C.‘s manager on his second spell after the club lost nine of their 16 league games, placing the club one point above the relegation zone. (BBC) (France24)

News from Wikipedia – please support this valuable resource

March 14, 2016

March 13, 2016

Top News Stories –

Paris St-Germain score 9 as they win French title –
Paris St-Germain were crowned French champions with two months to spare as Zlatan Ibrahimovic scored four in a 9-0 demolition of bottom side Troyes. Edinson Cavani, Javier Pastore and Adrien Rabiot put them 3-0 up inside 19 minutes before Ibrahimovic struck three within 10 minutes in the second half. Matthieu Saunier scored an own goal and Cavani made it 8-0 before Ibrahimovic added his fourth. [BBC]

Paris St-Germain won the league with 62 days and eight games to spare, a record for any of Europe’s ‘big five’ domestic leagues.
In 115 appearances in Ligue 1, Zlatan Ibrahimovic now has 102 goals and 35 assists.
This win was the sixth time this season that PSG have scored four goals or more in a Ligue 1 game.
This title is PSG’s sixth overall and their fourth in a row

Zlatan_Ibrahimovic

Video of the Day –

Jailbreak from HouseSpecial on Vimeo.

List of the Day –

French Ligue 1 title winners

Year	Winner^[2]^[21]^[22]	Runner-up	Third place
2015–16	Paris Saint-Germain
2014–15	Paris Saint-Germain	Lyon	AS Monaco
2013–14	Paris Saint-Germain	AS Monaco	Lille
2012–13	Paris Saint-Germain	Marseille	Lyon
2011–12	Montpellier	Paris Saint-Germain	Lille
2010–11	Lille	Marseille	Lyon
2009–10	Marseille	Lyon	Auxerre
2008–09	Bordeaux	Marseille	Lyon
2007–08	Lyon	Bordeaux	Marseille
2006–07	Lyon	Marseille	Toulouse
2005–06	Lyon	Bordeaux	Lille
2004–05	Lyon	Lille	AS Monaco
2003–04	Lyon	Paris Saint-Germain	AS Monaco
2002–03	Lyon	AS Monaco	Marseille
2001–02	Lyon	Lens	Auxerre
2000–01	Nantes	Lyon	Lille
1999–2000	AS Monaco	Paris Saint-Germain	Lyon
1998–99	Bordeaux	Marseille	Lyon
1997–98	Lens	Metz	AS Monaco
1996–97	AS Monaco	Paris Saint-Germain	Nantes
1995–96	Auxerre	Paris Saint-Germain	AS Monaco
1994–95	Nantes	Lyon	Paris Saint-Germain
1993–94	Paris Saint-Germain	Marseille	Auxerre
1992–93	— ^{[nb 3]}	Paris Saint-Germain	AS Monaco
1991–92	Marseille	AS Monaco	Paris Saint-Germain
1990–91	Marseille	AS Monaco	Auxerre
1989–90	Marseille	Bordeaux	AS Monaco
1988–89	Marseille	Paris Saint-Germain	AS Monaco
1987–88	AS Monaco	Bordeaux	Montpellier
1986–87	Bordeaux	Marseille	Toulouse
1985–86	Paris Saint-Germain	Nantes	Bordeaux
1984–85	Bordeaux	Nantes	AS Monaco
1983–84	Bordeaux	AS Monaco	Auxerre
1982–83	Nantes	Bordeaux	Paris Saint-Germain
1981–82	AS Monaco	Saint-Étienne	Sochaux
1980–81	Saint-Étienne	Nantes	Bordeaux
1979–80	Nantes	Sochaux	Saint-Étienne
1978–79	Strasbourg	Nantes	Saint-Étienne
1977–78	AS Monaco	Nantes	Strasbourg
1976–77	Nantes	Lens	Bastia
1975–76	Saint-Étienne	Nice	Sochaux
1974–75	Saint-Étienne	Marseille	Lyon
1973–74	Saint-Étienne	Nantes	Lyon
1972–73	Nantes	Nice	Marseille
1971–72	Marseille	Nîmes	Sochaux
1970–71	Marseille	Saint-Étienne	Nantes
1969–70	Saint-Étienne	Marseille	Sedan
1968–69	Saint-Étienne	Bordeaux	Metz
1967–68	Saint-Étienne	Nice	Sochaux
1966–67	Saint-Étienne	Nantes	Angers
1965–66	Nantes	Bordeaux	Valenciennes
1964–65	Nantes	Bordeaux	Valenciennes
1963–64	Saint-Étienne	AS Monaco	Lens
1962–63	AS Monaco	Stade Reims	Sedan
1961–62	Stade Reims	RCF Paris	Nîmes
1960–61	AS Monaco	RCF Paris	Stade Reims
1959–60	Stade Reims	Nîmes	RCF Paris
1958–59	Nice	Nîmes	RCF Paris
1957–58	Stade Reims	Nîmes	AS Monaco
1956–57	Saint-Étienne	Lens	Stade Reims
1955–56	Nice	Lens	AS Monaco
1954–55	Stade Reims	Toulouse	Lens
1953–54	Lille	Stade Reims	Bordeaux
1952–53	Stade Reims	Sochaux	Bordeaux
1951–52	Nice	Bordeaux	Lille
1950–51	Nice	Lille	Le Havre
1949–50	Bordeaux	Lille	Stade Reims
1948–49	Stade Reims	Lille	Marseille
1947–48	Marseille	Lille	Stade Reims
1946–47	Roubaix–Tourcoing	Stade Reims	Strasbourg
1945–46	Lille	Saint-Étienne	RC Roubaix
1939–45	Suspended due to World War II
1938–39	Sète	Marseille	RCF Paris
1937–38	Sochaux	Marseille	Sète
1936–37	Marseille	Sochaux	RCF Paris
1935–36	RCF Paris	Lille	Strasbourg
1934–35	Sochaux	Strasbourg	RCF Paris
1933–34	Sète	Fives	Marseille
1932–33	Olympique Lillois	Cannes	—

Top Twitter Trends –

	Worldwide	USA	UK
1	#FelizDomingo	#WeNeedMusicBecause	Bonkaz
2	#13MValencia	#DaylightSavingTime	#WeNeedMusicBecause
3	#GetWeirdTourCardiff	Proud of Obama’s Presidency	#GetWeirdTourCardiff
4	#احب_اشوف_سناب�…	#GetWeirdTourCardiff	#ldconf
5	#VemPraRuaBrasil	#SelectionSunday	#WhyIDidntGetIntoHeaven
6	#나한테_평소에_못��…	Someone Will Die	#ArianaOnSNL
7	#DaylightSavingTime	#GoodSam500	#WWERoadblock
8	#هل_تتزوجين_ولد	#NASPA16	#TheVoiceUK
9	#DomingoDetremuraSdv	#WhyIDidntGetIntoHeaven	#bathhalf
10	#لا_تتزوج_معلمه	#ArianaOnSNL	Lukaku

Other News Stories –

Armed conflicts and attacks

March 2016 Ankara bombing
- An explosion occurs in central Ankara, Turkey, with at least 34 people killed and 125 wounded. (The Independent) (The Telegraph)
Turkey–PKK conflict (2015–present)
- Turkey declares a curfew in the town of Yüksekova on the border with Iran as Turkish forces prepare an offensive against the PKK. (AP)
2016 Grand-Bassam shootings
- Gunmen attack two hotels in the Ivory Coast town of Grand-Bassam. At least 15 people are reportedly killed. Witnesses claim the attackers shouted “Allahu Akbar” (“God is [the] greatest”) during the gunfire. Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) claim responsibility for the attack. (CNN) (The Telegraph) (Daily Nation)
Syrian Civil War
- The al-Nusra Front, an al-Qaeda affiliate, assaults the Free Syrian Army’s 13th Division in Maarrat al-Nu’man, killing seven FSA fighters with 40 captured. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights says Nusra seized anti-tank missiles, armored vehicles, a tank, and other arms from the U.S.-backed division. (AP via ABC News)

Disasters and accidents

Five people are dead after a building collapses in the Indian city of Meerut caused by heavy rain. (India Today)
Heavy rain in Pakistan has led to fifteen deaths in two days including at least eight deaths in a coal mine collapse in the Orakzai Tribal Area. (AP via Fox News)
Six people have been killed in Louisiana, Texas, and Oklahoma, with two Mississippi fishermen missing, in this week’s flooding in the America’s Deep South. More than 24 inches of rain has fallen in some of the hardest-hit areas with more rain today that is expected to lead to additional flooding later this week. (Fox News) (UPI)
A Pacific Northwest windstorm strikes Western Washington, killing at least one person, leaving 300,000 residents without power, and closing several bridges. (KING-TV)
A six-seat Cessna 206 crashes into a market in the Beni Department of northeastern Bolivia, killing all four aboard the plane and injuring three others. (Another report states seven were killed with 15 injured). The plane was flying from Santa Ana del Yacuma to Trinidad, Bolivia. (AP via ABC News) (Reuters via Hindustan Times)

International relations

Malaysia bans the recruitment of foreign workers after protests over plans to recruit 1.5 million people from Bangladesh. (Economic Times)
China–Pakistan relations
- China‘s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) will be deployed in Pakistan to protect the China–Pakistan Economic Corridor that connects the Chinese-operated Gwadar Port in Balochistan, Pakistan to China’sXinjiang region. Neighboring India has voiced concern about the planned move. (NDTV)
United States officials say North Korea has apparently lost contact with one of its submarines. The U.S. was watching the sub off North Korea’s eastern coast when it vanished earlier this week. Officials are unsure whether the missing vessel is adrift or has sunk. (STV) (The Guardian)
Israel–Palestine relations
- The Palestinian Ministry of Foreign Affairs says Israel prevented Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi from entering the West Bank to meet with Palestinian officials. The Israeli spokesman would not comment. Israel and Indonesia do not have formal diplomatic relations. (AP via The Washington Post) (AFP via Business Standard)

Law and crime

Israeli–Palestinian conflict

- Israeli Defence Forces arrest 15 Palestinian suspects overnight. (Jerusalem Post)
Authorities in Belarus detain prominent businessman Yury Chyzh, once a close adviser to Alexander Lukashenko and included in the EU’s sanctions list, on suspicion of large-scale tax evasion. (Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty)

Politics and elections

Elections in Germany
- Regional elections take place in the German states of Baden-Württemberg, Rhineland-Palatinate and Saxony-Anhalt with the governing Christian Democratic Union performing poorly, the centre-left Social Democratic Party of Germany winning in Rhineland-Palatinate, and the anti-immigrant Alternative for Germany performing well in all three states. (BBC), (AP via International Business Times)
Hundreds of thousands in Brazil’s major cities, some estimates say more than 3 million people, protest the weak economy and political corruption, and call for President Dilma Rousseff’s impeachment.(Reuters) (Bloomberg) (Bloomberg Business)

Sports

2016 Six Nations Championship
- Scotland’s win over France gives England the title. (The Guardian)
2015–16 Ligue 1
- Paris Saint-Germain win the title with eight games to spare, after a 9–0 win at Troyes. (BBC Sport)
2015–16 NCAA Division I men’s basketball season
- The field of 68 teams for the NCAA Tournament is announced. Kansas is the top overall seed, with North Carolina, Oregon, and Virginia rounding out the #1 seeds. In a minor controversy, the brackets for the South and West regions are leaked several minutes before being officially announced. (ESPN, overall field) (ESPN, bracket leak)

News from Wikipedia – please support this valuable resource

August 24, 2016

Top News Stories –

Italy earthquake: Death toll rises to at least 159 –
At least 159 people have been killed and 368 injured in an earthquake that hit a mountainous area of central Italy, civil protection officials say. The magnitude-6.2 quake struck at 03:36 (01:36 GMT), 100km (65 miles) north-east of Rome, not far from Perugia. At least 86 of the dead were in the historic town of Amatrice, where the mayor said three-quarters of the town was destroyed, and in nearby Accumoli.
Many people are still believed to be buried under rubble. [BBC]

Video of the Day –

Markus Kayser – Solar Sinter Project from Markus Kayser on Vimeo.

Other News Stories –

Armed conflicts and attacks

Syrian civil war
- The Turkish Armed Forces and US-backed Syrian rebels launch an initially successful campaign to capture the town of Jarabulus from ISIL. The Turkish Land Forces are also shelling YPG positions to prevent them from capturing areas that ISIL will retreat from. (AP via NBC News) (AP) (ABC News)
War in Afghanistan (2015–present)
- The American University of Afghanistan in Kabul is attacked by suspected Taliban militants, resulting in at least 13 deaths and 30 injured. (CNN) (Fox News)

Disasters and accidents

2016 Central Italy earthquake
- A 6.2 magnitude earthquake occurs in central Italy near the city of Perugia. The mayor of the town of Amatrice reports that residents are buried under rubble. (The Telegraph) (USGS) (AP via San Diego Union Tribune)
- At least 159 people have been reported dead. (BBC News), (ANSA)
August 2016 Myanmar earthquake
- A 6.8 magnitude earthquake hits central Myanmar, 25km west of the town of Chauk, and was also felt in Thailand, Bangladesh and India, according to reports. At least three people are killed. (BBC)
The world’s largest aircraft, Hybrid Air Vehicles HAV 304 Airlander 10, crashes at RAF Cardington, Bedfordshire, during its second test flight. (The Guardian)

International relations

Japan–North Korea relations, North Korea and weapons of mass destruction
- North Korea launches a missile from a submarine off the port city of Sinpo in the Sea of Japan, according to U.S. and South Korean officials. This missile, the third sub-based attempt this year, flew about 500 kilometers (311 miles) and landed in waters between the Korean Peninsula and Japan. The first test exploded and the second traveled 30 km (18½ miles). (NBC News) (AP)

Law and crime

2016 Home Hill stabbings
- One British woman is killed and two others are wounded in a stabbing attack on a North Queensland backpacker hostel, Australia. (News.com) (ABC News Australia)

A police officer from Bethel, Alaska, will be sentenced to prison for charges related to police brutality in a 2014 case involving an intoxicated man. The charges followed an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigations civil rights division. The former officer, Andrew Reid, was found to have used excessive force and lying on official police reports. The victim suffered a separated shoulder and other injuries.(Alaska Dispatch News)

Politics and elections

Colombian conflict
- The government of Colombia and FARC finalise a peace deal ending 50 years of conflict. (Xinhua)

Science and technology

Proxima Centauri b is discovered as the closest exoplanet to Earth that may be habitable. (BBC)

News from Wikipedia – please support this valuable resource

January 21, 2017

Top News Story –

Women’s March

Women’s March, demonstrations held throughout the world on January 21, 2017, to support gender equality, civil rights, and other issues that were expected to face challenges under newly inaugurated U.S. Pres. Donald Trump. The march was initially scheduled to be held only in Washington, D.C., but “sister marches” arose throughout the United States and numerous other countries. According to some estimates, as many as 4.6 million people attended the various events in the United States, and it was widely believed to be the largest single-day demonstration in that country’s history.

The demonstrations were held on January 21, 2017, the day after Trump’s inauguration. The turnout far exceeded expectations. According to organizers, more than 670 events were held on seven continents. Although estimates varied, it was believed that between 3.3 million and 4.6 million people attended the marches in the United States, while total worldwide participation was reported to be about 5 million. The central demonstration in Washington, D.C., swelled to approximately 500,000 people, which was thought to be double the attendance of the presidential inaugural celebration.

[Encyclopedia Britannica]

Twitter trends [from Trendinalia] – today from UK

Other News Stories –

Armed conflicts and attacks

War in North-West Pakistan
- 2017 Parachinar bombing
  - At least 22 people are killed and around 90 injured after a bomb explodes at a vegetable market in Parachinar in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas of Pakistan. (Al Jazeera), (AP), (Bernama via AstroAwan), (Radio Pakistan)
  - Lashkar-i-Jhangvi al-Alami and Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan released joint statements claiming responsibility through text messages sent to journalists. (Dawn News), (Reuters)
Syrian Civil War
- A car bomb attack occurs in the Rakban refugee camp near the Jordanian border. Casualty counts are currently unknown and no one has yet taken credit for the attack. (Al Jazeera)
Two suicide bombers detonate their explosives during a firefight with Saudi security forces in Jeddah. (Al Jazeera)
Eight people are killed in Rafah, Egypt, after a shell lands on the home in which they were staying. (Reuters)

Disasters and accidents

Kuneru train derailment
- The Hirakhand express 18448, a scheduled passenger train from Jagdalpur to Bhubaneswar, derails near Kuneru in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. At least 25 are killed and around 200 others are injured. (The Deccan Chronicle)

Law and crime

Brazilian police enter the Alcacuz prison outside the city of Natal, Rio Grande do Norte, after a week of fighting leaves 26 inmates dead. At least 126 people have been killed in Brazil‘s prisons since the beginning of the year. (AP)

Politics and elections

2017 Women’s March and Inauguration of Donald Trump protests
- A crowd of over 500,000 gather in Washington DC, U.S., to advocate for women’s rights and address the inauguration of Donald Trump (The New York Times) (L.A. Times)
- Marches occur across the U.S. and throughout the world, with 408 reported marches in the U.S. and 168 marches reported in other countries. (The New York Times)
2016–2017 Gambian constitutional crisis
- Former President Yahya Jammeh leaves The Gambia on a plane reportedly bound for Guinea. (BBC)

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May 22, 2017

Top News Story –

At least 22 killed, 59 injured in suicide attack at Manchester Arena

At least 22 people, including children, have been killed and 59 injured in a suicide bombing at a crowded pop concert in Manchester, the most deadly attack in Britain in a decade.

The horror unfolded at about 10.30pm on Monday at the end of a concert by the American singer Ariana Grande, whose music is popular with children and teenagers.

The attack, which took place in the foyer, caused hundreds of people to flee in terror, with young people at the concert separated from their parents in the chaos. It left a scene of carnage inside the concert venue, where medics described treating wounds consistent with shrapnel injury.

Greater Manchester police have confirmed that they believe the bombing was the responsibility of one man armed with an improvised explosive device. The man, named as 22-year-old Salman Abedi, is among the dead.

Police raided a number of properties in south Manchester in the wake of the attack, including one address in Fallowfield where a controlled explosion was used to gain entry.

The chief constable, Ian Hopkins, said: “We have been treating this as a terrorist incident and we believe that while the attack last night was conducted by one man, the priority is to establish whether he was acting alone or as part of a network.”

The investigation into the attack involves the police counter-terrorism network and Britain’s domestic security service, MI5.

The death toll would make it the worst event of its kind in Britain since the 7/7 bombing in 2005, which hit London’s transport network, killing 52 people.

[The Guardian]

Floral tributes to the victims of the attack in St Ann’s Square in Manchester city centre

[Tomasz “odder” Kozlowski]

Twitter trends [from Trendinalia] – today from UK

Other News Stories –

Armed conflicts and attacks

2017 Manchester Arena bombing
- Greater Manchester Police (GMP) report deadly explosions at Manchester Arena in Manchester, England, at the end of Ariana Grande’s performance on her Dangerous Woman Tour. (BBC) (The Guardian)
- The GMP confirms at least 19 people have been killed and 50 others injured and is treating the incident as a terrorist attack. Nobody immediately claimed responsibility. (The Northern Echo) (NBC News) (The Washington Post)

Arts and culture

“My Family’s Slave“
- A controversial piece written in The Atlantic magazine about the Filipino servant caste and the Filipino American family involved in it triggers a debate in both the Philippines and the United States. (The Atlantic)

Health and medicine

Because of a nationwide shortage of intravenous sodium bicarbonate (i.e., baking soda solution), United States hospitals are rationing its use in heart surgery, chemotherapy, for patients whose blood is too acidic, and as an antidote to certain poisons. The two primary producers, Amphastar and Pfizer, indicate that supplies will not increase until late June. (The New York Times) (FiercePharma.com)

International relations

North Korea and weapons of mass destruction
- North Korea’s official Korean Central News Agency reports the country’s leader, Kim Jong-un, has approved deployment of the Pukguksong-2 intermediate-range ballistic missile, and ordered mass production of the system. The United Nations Security Council will hold a closed-door session Tuesday to discuss the test. (The New York Times) (USA Today)
The Philippines clarifies a controversial remark about a potential “war” with China amid criticism from Filipinos. (Business Insider)
2017 clashes at the Turkish Embassy in Washington, D.C.
- Turkey summons United States Ambassador John R. Bass to protest alleged “aggressive and unprofessional actions” by American security personnel against Turkish bodyguards, calling for the United States to conduct a full investigation on the May 17 clashes. The American ambassador told Turkey’s government that its guards violated U.S. laws. Last week, the U.S. summoned Turkish Ambassador Serdar Kılıç to discuss about Turkish security officers hitting and kicking peaceful protesters outside the Turkish ambassador’s residence in Washington, D.C. (ABC News) (NPR)
Philippines–Russia relations
- Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte, who later had to cut short his visit to Moscow because of terrorist attacks on the Philippine southern island of Mindanao, tells Russia President Vladimir Putin that the Philippines is looking to Russia for modern arms to fight ISIL. (Reuters)

Law and crime

North Carolina’s congressional districts
- The United States Supreme Court rejects two of North Carolina‘s congressional districts because they violated the Constitution by relying too heavily on race in drawing them. (The New York Times) (The Washington Post)
U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions narrows the scope of the order against so-called sanctuary cities. (NPR)
The temporary protected status of Haitians living in the United States is extended for six months. (Newsweek)

Politics and elections

United Kingdom general election, 2017
- British Prime Minister Theresa May faces backlash after accusations emerge that the Conservatives allegedly planned on reducing social welfare spending. (The Guardian)
- Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn will visit families of victims of the IRA bombings in Hyde Park and Regent’s Park. (The Guardian)
Russian interference in the 2016 United States elections
- According to sources familiar with his decision, former U.S. National Security Advisor Michael Flynn invokes his Fifth Amendment protection against self-incrimination and declines to comply with a subpoena from the Senate Intelligence Committee investigating possible Russian interference in the 2016 U.S. election. (Reuters) (The New York Times)
2017 Venezuelan protests
- The birthplace of late President Hugo Chávez is burned by protesters as violence and looting spreads through Barinas, Venezuela following the death of a protester. (AP via The Chicago Tribune)

Science and technology

Japanese scientists discover that mouse sperm held on the International Space Station for 9 months is able to produce healthy mice. (AP via The New York Times)

News from Wikipedia – please support this valuable resource

April 29, 2019

Top News Story –

R.I.P. to the Top 10 Failed Social Media Sites

There’s no doubt social media has changed so many lives – not just in America, but throughout the entire world.

Communication, no matter how far away someone else may be (as long as they have a decent internet connection 😊), has become easier than ever.

Marketing has evolved in ways few people expected it to, too.

And yet, social media platforms continue to come and go.

Here is a list of the 10 most legendary social media sites to go by the wayside since the web began.

10. DailyBooth

9. FriendFeed

8. iTunes Ping

7. Google Wave & Google Buzz

6. Meerkat

5. Friendster

4. Yik Yak

3. Vine

2. Google Plus

1. MySpace

Full article here

Twitter trends [from Trendinalia] – today from UK

Other News Stories –

Armed conflicts and attacks

A propaganda video featuring Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi is released, in which he references the 2019 Sri Lanka Easter bombings, indicating that he is still alive and that the video was shot very recently. It is the first time he’s been seen on video since July 2014, when he addressed a crowd at the now destroyed Great Mosque of al-Nuri in Mosul. (Al Jazeera)
Syrian Civil War
- Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) militants assault several Syrian Army positions in the northern Aleppo Governorate, killing 17 soldiers and wounding 30 others. HTS say the attacks were in response to recent Syrian government and Russian airstrikes on rebel-held areas. (Al Jazeera)
Terrorism in the United States
- A US Army veteran was planning to bomb a white nationalist rally in retribution for the shooting in New Zealand. He was also planning attacks on Jews. (BBC) (CNN)

Arts and culture

Avengers: Endgame breaks numerous box office records, including the biggest opening weekend in cinematic history, grossing over $1 billion worldwide. (The Guardian)

Disasters and accidents

Cyclone Kenneth
- The death toll in cyclone-hit northern Mozambique has risen to 38, as aid workers struggle to reach the worst-affected areas. Seven people were also killed by the cyclone in Comoros. (BBC) (ReliefWeb)
Floods sparked by torrential rains have killed 31 people in Indonesia while 13 others are missing. (Bangkok Post)
North Carolina authorities have ordered evacuations covering a half-mile radius because of air quality, possibly including harmful sulfuric acid, from a massive fire at a metal recycling plant in Mooresboro. Officials say the blaze has been extinguished, as of 7:15 a.m. (BBC)
A minibus carrying Turkish Süper Lig Alanyaspor football players crashes near Alanya, Turkey, resulting in the death of Czech Republic national football team international Josef Šural, while several other players are seriously injured. (The Guardian)

Politics and elections

Indonesian President Joko Widodo has decided to relocate the nation’s capital from Jakarta, on the northwest coast of Java island. The new location and timing are not yet known. Jakarta, home to over 10 million people, is sinking at one of the fastest rates in the world; almost half of its area is below sea level. (BBC) (NPR)
U.S. Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein announces he will resign, effective May 11. (The Washington Post)

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May 24, 2019

Top News Stories –

Theresa May quits: UK set for new PM by end of July

Theresa May has said she will quit as Conservative leader on 7 June, paving the way for a contest to decide a new prime minister.

In an emotional statement, she said she had done her best to deliver Brexit and it was a matter of “deep regret” that she had been unable to do so.

Mrs May said she would continue to serve as PM while a Conservative leadership contest took place.

The party said it hoped a new leader could be in place by the end of July.

It means Mrs May will still be prime minister when US President Donald Trump makes his state visit to the UK at the start of June.

Asked about the prime minister’s announcement, Mr Trump said: “I feel badly for Theresa. I like her very much. She’s a good woman. She worked very hard. She’s very strong.” [BBC]

By Controller of Her Majesty's Stationery Office - https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/588948/The_United_Kingdoms_exit_from_and_partnership_with_the_EU_Web.pdf, OGL 3, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=73109217

List of the Day –

British Prime Ministers since WW2

The Right Honourable
Neville Chamberlain
FRSMP for Birmingham Edgbaston
(1869–1940)28 May
193710 May
1940—

Conservative National IV^[84]Chamberlain War2 years and 349 days

The Right Honourable
Winston Churchill
CHTDFRSMP for Epping (1940–1945) →
Woodford_[‡] (1945)(1874–1965)10 May
194026 July
1945—

First Lord of the Treasury
Nominal leader of the House of Commons (1940–1942)
Minister of Defence

Conservative Churchill War^[85]Churchill Caretaker
(Con.–L.Nat.)5 years and 78 days

The Right Honourable
Clement Attlee
CHFRSMP for Limehouse (1945–1950) →
Walthamstow West_[‡] (1950–1951)(1883–1967)26 July
194526 October
19511945

First Lord of the Treasury
Minister of Defence (1945–1946)

Labour Attlee I^[86]1950 Attlee II6 years and 93 days

The Right Honourable
Sir Winston Churchill
KGOMCHTDDLFRSRAMP for Woodford
(1874–1965)26 October
19515 April
19551951

First Lord of the Treasury
Minister of Defence (1951–1952)

Conservative Churchill III^[87]3 years and 162 daysElizabeth II

(1952–present)

The Right Honourable
Sir Anthony Eden
KGMCMP for Warwick & Leamington
(1897–1977)6 April
19559 January
19571955

First Lord of the Treasury

Conservative Eden^[88]1 year and 279 days

The Right Honourable
Harold Macmillan
FRSMP for Bromley
(1894–1986)10 January
195718 October
1963—

First Lord of the Treasury

Conservative Macmillan I^[89]1959 Macmillan II6 years and 282 days

The Right Honourable
Sir Alec Douglas-Home
KTMP for Kinross & Western Perthshire^[c]
(1903–1995)19 October
196316 October
1964—

First Lord of the Treasury

Conservative
(Scot.U.)Douglas-Home^[90]364 days

The Right Honourable
Harold Wilson
OBEFRSFSSMP for Huyton
(1916–1995)16 October
196419 June
19701964

First Lord of the Treasury
Minister for the Civil Service(1968–1970)

Labour Wilson I^[91]1966 Wilson II5 years and 247 days

The Right Honourable
Edward Heath
MBEMP for Bexley (1970–1974) →
Sidcup_[‡] (1974)(1916–2005)19 June
19704 March
19741970

Conservative Heath^[92]3 years and 259 days

The Right Honourable
Harold Wilson
OBEFRSFSSMP for Huyton
(1916–1995)4 March
19745 April
1976^Feb.1974

Labour Wilson III^[91]^Oct.1974 Wilson IV2 years and 33 days

The Right Honourable
James CallaghanMP for Cardiff South East
(1912–2005)5 April
19764 May
1979—

Labour Callaghan^[93]3 years and 30 days

The Right Honourable
Margaret Thatcher
FRSHonFRSCMP for Finchley
(1925–2013)See also § Main articles:3

Conservative Thatcher I^[94]4 May
197928 November
19901979 1983 Thatcher II 1987 Thatcher III11 years and 209 days

The Right Honourable
John MajorMP for Huntingdon
(born 1943)28 November
19902 May
1997—

Conservative Major I^[95]1992 Major II6 years and 156 days

The Right Honourable
Tony BlairMP for Sedgefield
(born 1953)See also § Main articles:4

Labour Blair I^[96]2 May
199727 June
20071997 2001 Blair II 2005 Blair III10 years and 57 days

The Right Honourable
Gordon BrownMP for Kirkcaldy & Cowdenbeath
(born 1951)See also § Main articles:5

Labour Brown^[97]27 June
200711 May
2010—2 years and 319 days

The Right Honourable
David CameronMP for Witney
(born 1966)See also § Main articles:6

Conservative Cameron–Clegg
(Con.–L.D.)^[98]11 May
201013 July
20162010 2015 Cameron II6 years and 64 days

The Right Honourable
Theresa MayMP for Maidenhead
(born 1956)See also § Main articles:7

Conservative May I^[99]13 July
2016Incumbent—2017 May II2 years and 316 days

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Other News Stories –

Armed conflict and attacks

Iran–United States relations
- U.S. President Donald Trump orders 1,500 troops to the Middle East as tensions remain high with Iran. The military is heading to the Persian Gulf. (CBS)
Multiple people are injured in Lyon, France, by a bomb filled with bolts. (CNN)
A bombing at a mosque in the Pakistani city of Quetta, the capital of the restive province of Balochistan, kills three people, including the prayer leader, and wounds at least 28 worshippers. (Al Jazeera)
Three people, including a senior Muslim preacher, are killed and at least 20 wounded after an explosion in a mosque during Friday prayers in the Afghan capital, Kabul. (Al Jazeera)
2019 Portuguesa, Venezuela prison uprising
- At least 23 prisoners are killed during a prison riot in Acarigua, Portuguesa, Venezuela. (TIME) (Washington Post)

Disasters and accidents

2019 Surat fire
- Twenty children die in a fire in Surat, India. (India Today)
2017–2019 eruptions of Mount Agung
- Mount Agung in Bali, Indonesia, erupts. (ABC)

Law and crime

Shiregreen child deaths
- During a police raid, six children are found unconscious inside a residential property in the Shiregreen suburb of Sheffield, England. The eldest two children, aged 13 and 14, subsequently died at Sheffield Children’s Hospital; the other four children remain hospitalised. (BBC)
- Two people – a 37-year-old man and a 34-year-old woman – have been arrested under suspicion of murder at the property in Sheffield where six children were found. They remain in police custody. A murder investigation has been opened. (Evening Standard)
LGBT rights in Taiwan, Legal status of same-sex marriage
- Same-sex marriage becomes legal in Taiwan, making Taiwan the first nation in Asia to recognize same-sex marriage. (The Telegraph)
LGBT rights in Kenya
- The High Court of Kenya rules against a bid to strike down Section 162 and 165 of the Kenyan Penal Code, a sodomy law. The plaintiffs plan to appeal to the Court of Appeal. (Daily Nation) (The Guardian)
Aftermath of the kidnapping of Jayme Closs
- In the U.S. state of Wisconsin, Jake Thomas Patterson is sentenced to life in prison for the kidnapping of Jayme Closs and the murders of her parents. (NPR)
Human Life Protection Act
- A federal lawsuit is filed to block Alabama’s abortion ban. (ABC News)

Politics and elections

2019 European Parliament election
- Voters in Ireland and the Czech Republic head to the polls to vote for their country’s representatives in the European Parliament. (European Parliament)
2019 UK Conservative Party leadership election
- United Kingdom Prime Minister Theresa May announces her resignation as leader of the Conservative Party, effective June 7. She will remain Prime Minister until a successor is elected. (The Guardian)
The U.S. Supreme Court temporarily blocks the redrawing of Ohio and Michigan electoral maps while it prepares to rule on whether or not partisan gerrymandering is constitutional. Lower federal courtsordered Michigan and Ohio electoral maps to be redrawn before the 2020 United States presidential election. (Reuters) (Los Angeles Times)

Science and technology

Twitter suspensions
- Twitter bans Brian and Ed Krassenstein, two anti-Trump brothers, for allegedly using fake accounts. (The Daily Beast) (The Hill)

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July 1, 2019

Top News Story –

Cori Gauff, 15, beats Venus Williams

Though Cori Gauff is only 15, tennis people in the know have been speaking in hushed tones about her talent for years.

With her precocious blend of power, athleticism, court savvy and competitive drive, Gauff was the youngest United States Open junior girls finalist in history at age 13 and the second youngest French Open junior girls champion at age 14.

But even if potential is abundantly clear, it is never clear how a teenager will handle the moment when she takes the court at the highest level against an established champion.

On Monday, tennis got an emphatic answer as Gauff, displaying remarkable poise, upset Venus Williams, 6-4, 6-4, in the first round of Wimbledon.

It was the first Grand Slam singles match of Gauff’s career, and it made quite an impression on those who watched from near and far, including Williams, a five-time Wimbledon singles champion. Two of those titles came before Gauff was born on March 13, 2004, in Delray Beach, Fla.

“I think the sky’s the limit, it really is,” said Williams, who was unseeded at age 39.

Later, she also thanked the Wimbledon organizers, who offered her a wild card into the qualifying tournament despite her world ranking of 313th at the time. She and her father and coach, Corey, got word of the offer by phone when they were on their way to southern France to train during Wimbledon at the academy near Nice operated by Patrick Mouratoglou, Serena Williams’s coach.

(NY Times)

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Other News Stories –

Armed conflict and attacks

War in Afghanistan; 1 July 2019 Kabul attack
- 40 people are killed and over 100 injured by a car bombing and shooting in Kabul, Afghanistan. The Taliban claims responsibility and loses five gunmen. (New York Times)
- Taliban militants overran the Qush Tepa district of Jowzjan Province, resulting in the deaths of over 50 Afghan soldiers. Many others were captured. (ATNNews)
Iran–Israel conflict during the Syrian Civil War
- Israel strikes multiple Iranian and Syrian military targets outside Damascus and Homs, killing 16 people and wounding 21. (Haaretz)
- A stray Syrian S-200 missile fired in response to the Israeli strikes crashes and explodes on a mountain near Vouno in Northern Cyprus, located 20 km (12 miles) northeast of Nicosia, causing no injuries but starting a fire. (Reuters)
Iranian intervention in Iraq (2014–present), Iran–Iraq relations
- Iraqi Prime Minister Adil Abdul-Mahdi signs a decree ordering all Iranian-backed Shia militias to integrate into the Iraqi Armed Forces by the end of July. The decree will change the names of the militias such as the Popular Mobilization Forces to new divisions and brigades within the military. (Reuters) (Rudaw)
Nine people were injured in a Houthi drone attack on Saudi Abha International Airport. (Haaretz)

Business and economy

Whaling in Japan
- Japan resumes commercial whaling after 30 years following the country’s withdrawal from the International Whaling Commission. At least 227 whales are expected to be killed through to December. (The Guardian)
Phase-out of lightweight plastic bags
- A ban on single-use plastic shopping bags comes into force in New Zealand. Businesses that break the ban will face fines of up to $100,000NZD. (Gulf Today)

Disasters and accidents

At least 16 people are killed and 45 injured when a bus rolls over on a road in Tucumán Province, Argentina. (Clarín)
In Lower Saxony, Germany, a Bundeswehr helicopter crashes, killing one of the pilots. (DW)
In Mexico, a storm drops over a metre of hail over parts of Guadalajara, damaging hundreds of houses. (CBC)

International relations

Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, Nuclear program of Iran
- Iran announces that it has enriched more than 300 kilograms (660 lb) of uranium to 3.67%, contrary to previous agreement. This is still highly insufficient to produce one nuclear weapon. (Deutsche Welle)
Japan–United States relations, Japan–North Korea relations, 2018–19 Korean peace process
- After speaking by phone with U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, Japanese Foreign Minister Tarō Kōno says “he hopes the meeting adds momentum to efforts toward the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula“. Kōno also says that Japanese Prime Minister Shinzō Abe “wants to meet Kim Jong-un to solve the issue of North Korean abductions of Japanese citizens“. (Japan Today)
Libya–Turkey relations
- After political pressure from Turkey, six Turkish sailors are released from detention by the Libyan National Army under general Khalifa Haftar. (The Guardian)

Law and crime

France’s interior minister, Christophe Castaner, has asked the Paris police chief to provide explanations about a video that went viral on social media, where law enforcement officers are seen spraying with pepper spray and dragging protesters from the Extinction Rebellion anti-climate change movement. Although the police needed to evict the protesters, who obstructed a transit route, the mechanisms that they used generated negative reactions. (The Guardian)

Politics and elections

2019 Hong Kong anti-extradition bill protests
- Hong Kong anti-extradition bill protesters briefly break into the Legislative Council Complex, which houses the local parliament. (The Guardian)
LGBT rights in Japan
- Ibaraki Prefecture becomes the first in Japan to recognize same-sex partnerships. (Japan Today)

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July 2, 2019

Top News Story –

Climate change: Heatwave made ‘at least’ five times more likely by warming

Last week’s record breaking heatwave across much of Europe was made “at least five times” more likely to happen by climate change, say scientists.

Their rapid attribution study says that rising temperatures “super-charged” the event, making it more likely to happen than through natural variability alone.

Heatwaves in June are now about 4C hotter than they used to be, the researchers said.

Globally, the average temperature for June was the highest on record.

The immediate cause of the heatwave was the weather, with hot air drawn in from northern Africa, caused by high pressure over central Europe and a storm stalling over the Atlantic.

By lucky coincidence, the authors of this new study happened to be in Toulouse, France, at a conference on climate change and extreme events.

The researchers, members of the World Weather Attribution Group decided to use the opportunity to analyse the link between human-induced climate change and the heatwave.

They defined the heatwave as the highest three-day averaged daily mean temperature in June, arguing that this is a better indicator of health impacts than maximums or minimums.

The researchers compared the observations of temperatures recorded during the month of June with climate models that can show how the world would be without the human influence on the climate.

They found that, over France, the probability of having a heatwave had increased by at least a factor of five. However, the researchers say that this influence could be much higher still, by a factor of 100 or more.

“We are very confident that this lower boundary of factor five is valid – but we are not confident we can say much more than that,” said Dr Geert Jan van Oldenborgh, senior researcher at the Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute.

“The reason we are fairly careful is because we found fairly large discrepancies between the modelled properties of heatwaves and the observed properties of heatwaves. They all show stronger heatwaves but the trend in the observations is much larger than in the trends in the model.”

According to those involved with this study, this trend in heatwaves is likely to get worse.

“We experienced a heatwave whose intensity could become the norm in the middle of the century,” said Dr Robert Vautard, Senior Scientist, CNRS, France.

“The new record of 45.9C set in France last Friday is one more step to confirmation that, without urgent climate mitigation actions, temperatures in France could potentially rise to about 50°C or more in France by the end of the century.”

The researchers believe that if global warming continues to the 2C level envisioned in the Paris climate agreement, heatwaves like the one experienced last week will become the norm in June.

(BBC)

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Armed conflicts and attacks

Islamist militants attack a Niger Armed Forces base in the village of Inates, near the border with Mali, with two car bombs and gunmen, killing 18 soldiers. They also kidnapped four Nigerien soldiers and stole dozens of vehicles. (BBC)
Second Libyan Civil War
- A Libyan National Army airstrike on a suburb of Tripoli hits a detention centre for illegal migrants, killing at least 53 people and injuring 80 people. (Reuters), (CNN)

Disasters and accidents

A fire on the Russian Navy‘s Losharik submarine kills 14 crew members while the vessel conducts tests in Russian territorial waters. (Sky News) (RFERL)
At least 18 people have died and more than a dozen are still missing in devastating floods that swept southeastern Siberia, Russia. (The Japan Times)

International relations

Iran–Saudi Arabia relations, Japan–Saudi Arabia relations
- Saudi Arabia’s minister of state for foreign affairs Adel al-Jubeir says his country will work with Japan and other nations to come up with a plan to ensure that ships can safely transit the Persian Gulfregion. Jubeir also calls for “action” on Iran. (NHK)
China–United Kingdom relations, Hong Kong–United Kingdom relations, 2019 Hong Kong anti-extradition bill protests, Aftermath of the Handover of Hong Kong
- China warns the United Kingdom that “no country has the right to intervene on the issue of mass protests in Hong Kong“, as it considers the problems of this self-governed city an “internal problem”. For China, the agreement by which the United Kingdom returned Hong Kong is nothing more than “a historical document of no practical importance” and “that European country no longer has any responsibility over Hong Kong”. The British chancellery, for its part, dismissed the Chinese opinion, and has said that “it is the right and obligation of the United Kingdom to work to enforce the agreement”, which, in theory, guarantees a high degree of autonomy for Hong Kong for 50 years until 2047 without Chinese interference. (Sky News)

Politics and elections

2020 United States Presidential election
- There has been a shake-up within the campaign organization of former Colorado Governor John Hickenlooper, which includes the departure of the manager of Hickenlooper’s presidential campaign, Bradley Komar. Komar and other departing staffers reportedly believe that Hickenlooper should quit the race as he has no realistic prospect of victory. (Reuters).
Education in Argentina, Argentina–Cuba relations
- Argentine Education Minister Alejandro Finocchiaro, who strongly condemned a school in Chaco Province for displaying a Cuban flag and displaying pictures of Che Guevara, says the school “has no supervision” and that they are “indoctrinating children with communism and totalitarian and populist governments”. He also added in an interview on state TV that the school will be reviewed. (La Nación) (Clarín)
The Fidesz supermajority of Hungary’s National Assembly passes a bill, which takes the entire research network away from the Hungarian Academy of Sciences and hands them to a new government-backed organisation. (Index)
Tax returns of Donald Trump
- The U.S. House Committee on Ways and Means sues U.S. Secretary of the Treasury Steven Mnuchin and Commissioner of Internal Revenue Charles Rettig to obtain six years of U.S. President Donald Trump‘s tax returns. (NPR)
2019 European Parliament election
- The Ninth European Parliament starts its term. (BBC)
- Fugitive Catalan independence leaders Carles Puigdemont and Toni Comín, together with imprisoned Oriol Junqueras, are not allowed to take office as MEPs by the Supreme Court of Spain and Court of Justice of the European Union, while a pro-independence demonstration takes place in Strasbourg. (Reuters)
- The European Council nominates German Defence Minister Ursula von der Leyen to replace Jean-Claude Juncker as President of the European Commission. If confirmed by the European Parliament, she will be the first woman to hold the position. The Council also nominates Charles Michel of Belgium as President of the European Council, Josep Borrell of Spain as High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, and Christine Lagarde of France as President of the European Central Bank. (BBC)
2020 United States Census
- The U.S. Departments of Justice and Commerce announce that the Trump administration will not implement a proposed citizenship question in the 2020 Census, and will perform the census without the question. This follows the U.S. Supreme Court rejecting the administration’s rationale for the question in the case Department of Commerce v. New York. (The Washington Post)
Following the fatal shooting of a young Ethiopian–Israeli man on June 30, countrywide riots in Israel result in more than 80 injuries. (The Jerusalem Post)

Science and technology

Solar eclipse of July 2, 2019
- A total solar eclipse is visible from parts of Chile and Argentina, and a large remote stretch of the southern Pacific.
Ascent Abort-2
- NASA carries out a successful in-flight test of the launch abort system of its new Orion spacecraft, a milestone in the development of the Artemis program to resume human exploration beyond low Earth orbit. (Space.com)

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July 3, 2019

Top News Story –

Jim Beam Warehouse Fire Destroys 45,000 Barrels

A fire in Kentucky destroyed a warehouse containing about 45,000 barrels of Jim Beam bourbon after officials let the blaze run its course to avoid ethanol contamination in a nearby creek that runs into the Kentucky River.

The fire started around 11 p.m. in Woodford County on Tuesday and was completely out by noon on Wednesday, fire officials said. No injuries were reported.

“The biggest issue we are dealing with is the environmental aspect,” said Drew Chandler, the Woodford County emergency management director. “If we put the fire out, we are going to dump a lot of water on it and that water will be contaminated.”

He said fire officials did not know what had caused the fire, but a spokeswoman for Jim Beam said she believed lightning had sparked it.

(NY Times)

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Other News Stories –

Armed conflict and attacks

Insurgency in Jammu and Kashmir
- Five Pakistani soldiers are killed and one is injured by a bomb blast in Jammu and Kashmir. (Economic Times)
Syrian Civil War
- A mass grave containing over 200 bodies is discovered in Raqqa, Syria. The victims, who were shackled and shot in the head, are believed to have been killed by ISIL militants. (Al Jazeera)

Disasters and accidents

Over one million people in the Japanese prefectures of Miyazaki and Kagoshima are ordered to evacuate their homes due to torrential rainfall. An elderly woman in Kagoshima city died after a mudslide hit her home. (BBC)
One tourist is killed and several injured when Mt. Stromboli in Italy erupts. (BBC)
At least 26 people have died after a fishing boat capsized off the coast of Honduras. (BBC)
At least six people are killed and 190 injured after a tornado hits the city of Kaiyuan in Liaoning Province, China. (Global News)

Law and crime

Death of Otto Warmbier, North Korea–United States relations
- The parents of Otto Warmbier, an American student who died in North Korean custody after allegedly being tortured, file a claim for a seized North Korean cargo ship in an attempt to collect on a $501 million judgment they received after suing the country. (Associated Press)

Politics and elections

Ninth European Parliament
- David Sassoli of the Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats is elected President of the European Parliament. (DW)

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July 4, 2019

Top News Story –

Tutankhamun: Bust Egypt says was ‘stolen’ sells for £4.7m

A 3,000-year-old Tutankhamun bust that Egypt claims was stolen has fetched £4.7m ($6m) at auction.

Egypt earlier called on auction house Christie’s to cancel the sale of the relic depicting ancient boy-king Tutankhamun.

The country’s foreign ministry says that the bust was probably stolen from an Egyptian temple during the 1970s.

Christie’s says Egypt has not expressed concern about the bust in the past, despite it being exhibited publicly.

The brown quartzite, 28cm (11in) relic comes from a private collection of ancient art that Christie’s last sold for £3m in 2016.

In a statement, Christie’s said: “The object is not, and has not been, the subject of an investigation.” The auction house said it would never auction an object over which there were legitimate concerns.

Christie’s also published a chronology of the relic’s owners for the past 50 years. The bust is understood to have been acquired from German aristocrat Prinz Wilhelm von Thurn between 1973 and 1974.

The auction house also said that the bust’s existence had been known for a considerable time and it had been on display for a number of years.

Egypt’s former antiquities minister Zahi Hawass told AFP news agency: “We think it left Egypt after 1970 because in that time other artefacts were stolen from Karnak Temple.”

Egypt introduced laws in 1983 banning the removal of artefacts from the country.

Tutankhamun died over 3,000 years ago aged 19. His remains were found in 1922.

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Other News Stories –

Armed conflicts and attacks

Sanctions against Iran
- Royal Marines seize control of an oil tanker off the coast of Gibraltar that was en route to Baniyas in Syria, suspected of breaching EU sanctions against Syria, carrying Iranian crude oil. The United Kingdom’s Ambassador to Iran, Robert Macaire, is summoned in Tehran over the incident, which Iran describes as an “illegal seizure”. (BBC)

Art and culture

Salute to America
- A major holiday celebration and military parade is held in Washington, D.C., United States, by President Donald Trump to commemorate the Fourth of July/Independence Day. (CNN) (NBC)

Business and Economics

Lightsource BP, a solar energy developer headquartered in London, has announced that it will acquire utility-scale solar projects in Brazil, 1.9 gigawatts of projects, for an undisclosed sum. This is a major expansion for Lightsource, which is 43% owned by the energy giant BP. (Reuters)

Disasters and accidents

2019 Ridgecrest earthquakes
- An earthquake with a magnitude of 6.4 with scores of foreshocks and aftershocks hits Southern California, 150 miles (240 km) north of Los Angeles near the city of Ridgecrest. No injuries are reported. The earthquake is the largest in Southern California since October 1999. (CNN) (USGS) (USGS)
European migrant crisis
- More than 80 people are missing after a migrant boat capsizes off the coast of Tunisia, according to the International Organization for Migration (IOM). (The Guardian)

International relations

Australia–North Korea relations
- An Australian student who had been detained in North Korea on June 25 is freed thanks to diplomatic talks between Australia and North Korea via Swedish officials. (Reuters)
Kosovo–Serbia relations
- Amid a deterioration in relations, Kosovo bans all Serbian officials from entering the country, in response to “constant propaganda and false news about the country and our citizens” from Belgrade. (RFERL)

Law and crime

Crime in Virginia
- A 20-year-old man is charged with stabbing three in a machete attack in a plasma center in Petersburg, Virginia. (Yahoo News)

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July 5, 2019

Top News Story –

New Melania Trump statue in Slovenia gets mixed reviews

A tongue-in-cheek statue of US First Lady Melania Trump has appeared on the outskirts of her Slovenian hometown.

US artist Brad Downey hired a local chainsaw artisan, Ales Zupevc, to carve the likeness out of a tree trunk outside the town of Sevnica.

The result was a wooden rendering of Mrs Trump dressed in a blue coat with a club-like hand gesturing to the sky.

Some residents described it as “a disgrace”, a “Smurfette”, saying “it doesn’t look anything like Melania”.

Downey told Reuters news agency he wanted to “have a dialogue” with the US political situation.

The artist has an exhibition in Slovenia’s capital Ljubljana until late August. The gallery reportedly suggested the statue “might only be a slapstick prank” in a leaflet.

Downey’s previous works include Wisdom Testicles and Cactus Hand.

Sevnica has become a tourist magnet ever since Donald Trump was elected US president in 2016, and Ms Trump – a famous former resident – became the first lady.

(BBC)

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Armed conflicts and attacks

2019 Reyhanlı car bombing
- A car bomb explodes in the Turkish city of Reyhanlı. The blast kills three Syrian citizens who were inside the car. (Daily Sabah)
War in Afghanistan
- Fourteen civilians are killed and 45 injured in mortar attacks in Faryab Province. Taliban insurgents claim responsibility for the attack. (TOLOnews)
- A bomb hits a mosque in Ghazni, Afghanistan, killing two and wounding over 40. (Tolo News)

Arts and culture

Hijab by country
- Tunisian Prime Minister Youssef Chahed announces that the niqab will be banned in public institutions effective immediately, citing security concerns following a pair of suicide bombings on June 27. (Al-Jazeera)

Disasters and accidents

2019 Ridgecrest earthquakes
- A magnitude 7.1 earthquake hits Southern California just a day after a magnitude 6.4 earthquake in the same area. (USGS)
Seven Americans, including coal billionaire Chris Cline, are found dead in a helicopter crash in the Bahamas. (Los Angeles Times)

Politics and elections

Operation Car Wash
- New text messages between Brazilian judge Sérgio Moro and Operation Car Wash’s prosecutors are leaked by The Intercept Brasil and Veja. In the messages, Judge Moro illegally advises the prosecutors in including pieces of evidence against defendants of cases presided by him and suggests dates for Federal Police operations. The messages also suggest that Moro withheld evidence to prevent cases being transferred out of his jurisdiction to the Supreme Federal Court. (Veja)
Sudanese protests
- The Sudanese military and representatives of civil groups agree on a deal to share power for a transition period. (DW)

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July 6, 2019

Top News Story –

California earthquake: Power ‘restored to most’ after 7.1-magnitude quake

A 7.1 magnitude earthquake has rattled parts of Southern California, the biggest tremor to strike in 20 years.

It struck at the shallow depth of 0.9km (0.6 miles) and its epicentre was near the city of Ridgecrest, about 240km north-east of Los Angeles.

A 6.4-magnitude quake hit the same area on Thursday at a depth of nearly 11km.

Emergency officials say the damage is not as bad as they initially feared, with power restored to most who had lost it and food stores trading again.

All of the roads that were damaged by the quake have also now been reopened, they say, but add that crews are still assessing the aftermath.

It’s thought about 3,000 people in Ridgecrest and the surrounding area were left without power.

California Governor Gavin Newsom offered his “heartfelt support” to all those affected, and requested a Presidential Emergency Declaration and federal aid to help.

He later added that there were a number of “minor to moderate level” injuries, and said there were “no reports of any fatalities, so I think we’re very lucky there”.

(BBC)

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Armed conflicts and attacks

Islamist insurgency in Mozambique
- ISIL claims responsibility for a Wednesday attack in Nangade District in Mozambique, which killed seven people. (Business Standards)
Five soldiers of the Israel Defense Forces are injured in a vehicle-ramming attack in Hizma, Palestine. The suspect is still at large. (The Jerusalem Post)
Syrian Civil War
- The SNHR says at least 544 civilians (including 130 children) have been killed, and another 2,117 people injured since a Russian-led Syrian government assault on the last rebel bastion in northwestern Syria began two months prior. (Al Jazeera) (Reuters)

Disasters and accidents

Plantation explosion
- 23 people are injured in a gas explosion at a shopping mall in Plantation, Florida. (WPLG), (CNN)
Monotaro Imamura explosion
- At least 2 company employees are confirmed killed and two more are critically injured in the explosion at the industrial waste processing plant owned by Monotaro due improper handling of spray cans.(nikkei.com)

Law and crime

American billionaire Jeffrey Epstein is arrested and faces new charges related to alleged sex crimes involving minors. (ABC News)

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July 7, 2019

Top News Story –

U.S. Wins Record Fourth Womens World Cup Soccer Title

Dominating yet another opponent in yet another final, the United States women’s soccer team claimed its fourth Women’s World Cup title on Sunday, beating the Netherlands, 2-0, in Lyon, France, to repeat as world champions.

Megan Rapinoe and Rose Lavelle scored second-half goals for the United States, which needed more than an hour to solve a tenacious Netherlands defense but eventually, rush after rush, found a way through. Rapinoe broke the dam with a penalty kick in the 61st minute, and Lavelle sealed the victory with a driving run up the center in the 69th.

“It’s surreal,” said Rapinoe, who was named the tournament’s outstanding player. “I don’t know how to feel. It’s ridiculous.”

Megan Rapinoe

It was the second straight World Cup title for a dozen of the American players, who claimed their first championship in Canada four years ago. It also cemented their status as the gold standard in women’s soccer, even as Europe — led by teams like the Netherlands — mounts a sustained assault on their crown.

“They put their heart and soul into this journey, and I can’t thank them enough,” United States Coach Jill Ellis, hoarse and on the verge of tears herself, said minutes after the game. Ellis became the first coach to win consecutive Women’s World Cup titles; her team has not lost a game in the event since 2011 (13-0-1), and will be favored to reclaim its Olympic championship next summer in Tokyo.

NY Times

List of the Day –

FIFA Wome’s World Cup Tournament Hosts and Results

Edition	Year	Hosts		Champions	Score and venue
1	1991	China	United States	2–1 Tianhe Stadium, Guangzhou	Norway
2	1995	Sweden	Norway	2–0 Råsunda Stadium, Solna	Germany
3	1999	United States	United States	0–0 (a.e.t.) (5–4 p) Rose Bowl, Pasadena	China PR
4	2003	United States	Germany	2–1 (a.e.t.) Home Depot Center, Carson	Sweden
5	2007	China	Germany	2–0 Hongkou Stadium, Shanghai	Brazil
6	2011	Germany	Japan	2–2 (a.e.t.) (3–1 p) Commerzbank-Arena,Frankfurt	United States
7	2015	Canada	United States	5–2 BC Place, Vancouver	Japan
8	2019	France	United States	2–0 Parc Olympique Lyonnais,Lyon	Netherlands

(Wikipedia)

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Armed conflicts and attacks

War in Afghanistan, 2019 Ghazni bombing
- Fourteen people are killed and nearly 200 are injured in a suicide car bombing by the Taliban in Ghazni, Afghanistan. (Al Jazeera)

Arts and culture

The Jodrell Bank Observatory in Cheshire, United Kingdom, the ancient ruins of Babylon in Babil Governorate, Iraq, among other sites are designated UNESCO World Heritage Sites. (BBC) (The Independent)

International relations

Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, Nuclear program of Iran
- Iran announces plans to begin enriching uranium beyond the limit set in its 2015 nuclear deal, with world powers pressing Europe to salvage the accord after the United States withdrew from it last year. (Al Jazeera)

Politics and elections

2019 Greek legislative election
- Citizens of Greece go to the polls to vote for the next members of the Hellenic Parliament. (BBC News)
- Leader of the Opposition Kyriakos Mitsotakis, from New Democracy, wins an absolute majority and is expected to be sworn in Prime Minister as incumbent Alexis Tsipras falls to second place. Far-right Golden Dawn loses all the seats they had in the Parliament. (The New York Times)
Operation Car Wash, Foreign relations of Venezuela, Foreign relations of Brazil
- New leaked messages between Brazilian judge Sérgio Moro and prosecutors of Operation Car Wash show that Moro suggested they leak confidential information concerning Odebrecht‘s activities in Venezuela to members of the Venezuelan opposition. Some prosecutors even entertained the possibility of provoking a civil war in Venezuela over the leaks. (The Intercept Brasil)

Sports

2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup
- In the final match of the 2019 Women’s World Cup, the United States wins 2–0 over the Netherlands. Golden Boot winner Megan Rapinoe scored on a penalty kick, followed by Rose Lavelle‘s strike in the 69th minute. (The New York Times)
2019 Copa América
- Hosts Brazil defeat Peru 3–1 in the final match of the Copa América at the Estádio do Maracanã in Rio de Janeiro. It is their ninth title and first since 2007. (The Guardian)
2019 CONCACAF Gold Cup
- Mexico wins their eighth Gold Cup, defeating the United States 1–0 in the final match in Chicago. (The Washington Post)
FIBA Women’s EuroBasket 2019
- Spain wins its fourth title of the Eurobasket competition after defeating France in the final match. (El Mundo)

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July 8, 2019

Top News Story –

Deutsche Bank’s painful self-help plan begins

The troubled German lender unveiled its long-awaited reorganization plan yesterday, which involves eliminating thousands of jobs and severely reducing its global ambitions. But is it too little, too late?

The bank plans to cut 18,000 jobs and shrink its global equities business. Top executives will leave, including its investment banking chief, and $300 billion worth of assets will be hived off in a “bad bank” to be sold off over time. The layoffs have already begun.

The firm will refocus its efforts on serving European companies and retail-banking customers, pulling back from nearly two decades of trying to compete with Wall Street giants. But its C.E.O., Christian Sewing, said this morning that the U.S. remains a core market for the bank.

The plan will cost the lender 7.4 billion euros, or $8.3 billion, in severance payments and other expenses through 2022. Dividends will be suspended for 2019 and 2020.

But experts are unsure whether it will work. Shrinking means reduced revenue, potentially creating a vicious circle of declining income and profits. Mohamed El-Erian of the German insurer Allianz tweeted, “Big question that’s now on the table is whether DB can shrink itself to heightened competitiveness and sustainable profitability without a merger of some sort.”

(NY Times)

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Armed conflicts and attacks

Saudi Arabian-led intervention in Yemen
- The United Arab Emirates announces a partial withdrawal of its forces from Yemen as part of a “strategic redeployment”. (CNN)

Disasters and accidents

Flash flooding in Washington, D.C. delivers a month’s worth of rain on the local area in the span of an hour. The torrential rain leaves commuters stranded on car rooftops, floods several metro stations and causes flooding in the White House. (CNET)

International relations

African Continental Free Trade Agreement
- African leaders agree on a continent-wide free trade zone, which encompasses all African nations except for Eritrea and Somaliland. The various European territories located in Africa are also excluded. It will be the largest free trade zone since the creation of the World Trade Organization. (DW)

Law and crime

The International Criminal Court declares Bosco Ntaganda guilty of having committed war crimes during the Ituri conflict in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. (DW)

Politics and elections

2019 Greek legislative election
- Winner of the general election Kyriakos Mitsotakis is sworn in as the new Prime Minister of Greece, succeeding Alexis Tsipras. (Reuters)
Tax returns of Donald Trump
- New York Governor Andrew Cuomo signs a bill that will allow congressional committees to access President Donald Trump‘s state tax returns. (The New York Times)
Pope Francis names for first time in Vatican history female members of the Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life. (Catholic News Agency)

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July 9, 2019

Top News Story –

Earliest modern human found outside Africa

Researchers have found the earliest example of our species (modern humans) outside Africa.

A skull unearthed in Greece has been dated to 210,000 years ago, at a time when Europe was occupied by the Neanderthals.

The sensational discovery adds to evidence of an earlier migration of people from Africa that left no trace in the DNA of people alive today.

The findings are published in the journal Nature.

Researchers uncovered two significant fossils in Apidima Cave in Greece in the 1970s.

One was very distorted and the other incomplete, however, and it took computed tomography scanning and uranium-series dating to unravel their secrets.

The more complete skull appears to be a Neanderthal. But the other shows clear characteristics, such as a rounded back to the skull, diagnostic of modern humans.

(BBC)

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International relations

Argentina–Lebanon relations
- Argentine President Mauricio Macri issues a decree declaring Hezbollah a “terrorist organization”. (La Nación)

Politics and elections

2020 United States presidential election, 2020 Democratic Party presidential primaries
- U.S. billionaire Tom Steyer announces his run for nomination by the United States Democratic Party in the 2020 United States presidential election. (CNN)

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July 10, 2019

Top News Story –

USWNT, Morgan take home top honors at ESPYS

The U.S. women’s national soccer team’s day started with a parade through New York City’s Canyon of Heroes, included a flight to Los Angeles and then saw Alex Morgan and the USWNT shine as the big winners at The ESPYS on Wednesday at the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles.

Morgan earned the ESPY for best female athlete, beating overall women’s World Cup Alpine skiing champion Mikaela Shiffrin, Breanna Stewart of the WNBA’s Seattle Storm and gymnast Simone Biles.

The USWNT then won best team, topping the World Series champion Boston Red Sox, the College Football Playoff-winning Clemson Tigers, the Super Bowl champion New England Patriots, the NBA champion Toronto Raptors, the NCAA women’s college basketball champion Baylor Bears and the NCAA men’s basketball champion Virginia Cavaliers.

The two ESPYS wins were the latest reasons for the USWNT to celebrate after it captured its second consecutive World Cup title by beating the Netherlands 2-0 on Sunday.

Morgan joked that her ESPY for best female athlete was the second-best trophy she earned this week.

(ESPN)

List of the day –

Winners of Best Female Athlete ESPY Award

Year	Athlete	Nation represented	Sport	Ref(s)
1993	Monica Seles	Yugoslavia	Tennis	^[3]
1994	Julie Krone	United States	Thoroughbred horse racing	^[4]
1995	Bonnie Blair	United States	Speed skating	^[5]
1996	Rebecca Lobo	United States	Basketball	^[6]
1997	Amy Van Dyken	United States	Swimming	^[7]
1998	Mia Hamm	United States	Soccer	^[8]
1999	Chamique Holdsclaw	United States	Basketball	^[9]
2000	Mia Hamm (2)	United States	Soccer	^[10]
2001	Marion Jones	United States	Track and field	^[11]
2002	Venus Williams	United States	Tennis	^[12]
2003	Serena Williams	United States	Tennis	^[13]
2004	Diana Taurasi	United States	Basketball	^[14]
2005	Annika Sörenstam	Sweden	Golf	^[15]
2006	Annika Sörenstam (2)	Sweden	Golf	^[15]
2007	Taryne Mowatt	United States	Softball	^[16]
2008	Candace Parker	United States	Basketball	^[17]
2009	Nastia Liukin	United States	Gymnastics	^[18]
2010	Lindsey Vonn	United States	Alpine skiing	^[19]
2011	Lindsey Vonn (2)	United States	Alpine skiing	^[20]
2012	Brittney Griner	United States	Basketball	^[21]
2013	Serena Williams (2)	United States	Tennis	^[22]
2014	Ronda Rousey	United States	Mixed martial arts	^[23]
2015	Ronda Rousey (2)	United States	Mixed martial arts	^[24]
2016	Breanna Stewart	United States	Basketball	^[25]
2017	Simone Biles	United States	Gymnastics	^[1]
2018	Chloe Kim	United States	Snowboarding	^[26]
2019	Alex Morgan	United States	Soccer	^[27]

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Armed conflicts and attacks

Assailants raid a village in Papua New Guinea‘s Hela province, killing and dismembering 16 women and children, and burning buildings. (The Guardian)
Three or five of Iran‘s IRGC Navy gunboats unsuccessfully attempt to seize control of British oil tanker British Heritage in the Persian Gulf, according to UK’s Ministry of Defense as well as two anonymous U.S. officials. The Royal Navy‘s HMS Montrose reportedly warns the boats to back away from the BP Shipping-owned tanker, which they do. The incident is allegedly captured on a U.S. aircraft’s camera. (CNN)

Business and economy

Three large shipbuilders in the People’s Republic of China announce that they are in talks to merge. This is part of an ongoing shake-up and consolidation of that industry in the face of high operational costs and sluggish new orders. (Caixin Eng.)

Disasters and accidents

An unexpected violent storm hits the Greek region of Halkidiki with heavy rain, hail, and strong winds, killing six foreign tourists. (BBC)

International relations

United Kingdom–United States relations
- Sir Kim Darroch, the United Kingdom’s ambassador to the United States, resigns his appointment amid public disagreements with U.S. President Donald Trump initiated by a series of leaked diplomatic cables in which the ambassador criticized the president, and will leave the post upon the appointment of his successor. (BBC)
Kosovo–Serbia relations
- Serbian Defense Minister Aleksandar Vulin is banned from entering Kosovo. (ABC News)

Law and crime

List of lawsuits involving Donald Trump
- The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit dismisses a lawsuit by the state of Maryland and the District of Columbia against President Donald Trump, citing lack of legal standing in challenging payments to President Trump’s private properties by foreign customers. (CNBC) (Politico)

Science and technology

2019 in archaeology
- Researchers announce, through the Nature journal, that a human skull (Apidima 1) discovered inside a cave in Greece, is dated to 210,000 years ago, making it the oldest known Homo sapiensindividual found outside of Africa. (BBC) (Nature)

Sports

2019 Cricket World Cup
- New Zealand defeats India in the first semi-final of the Cricket World Cup. (The Independent)

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July 11, 2019

Top News Story –

Siberian lake loved by Instagrammers is toxic, power plant says

A turquoise lake in Siberia where people have been taking selfies is actually a power plant’s ash dump.

The lake, nicknamed the “Novosibirsk Maldives” because of how tropical it looks, has provided the perfect backdrop to people’s Instagram posts.

But the reason for its colour is less appealing – calcium salts and other metal oxides from the plant.

Responding to the selfies, the Russian power company that runs the plant urged people not to go near the water.

But its stern warning seems to have only made people even more determined to visit.

(BBC)

https://www.instagram.com/p/BzekxiqFmcy/?utm_source=ig_embed

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Armed conflicts and attacks

Libyan Civil War (2014–present)
- Four people are killed and over 30 injured in a car bomb attack at a funeral for a senior Libyan National Army commander in Benghazi. (Reuters)
Syrian Civil War
- A car bomb detonates in a Turkey-backed rebel city, Afrin, near the entrance, killing 11 and injuring over 30 badly. (Reuters)
- Another car bomb detonates in the city of Qamishli near a church, injuring 11. The Islamic State claimed responsibility. (Rudaw)

Disasters and accidents

Tropical Storm Barry (2019)
- Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards declares a state of emergency as Tropical Storm Barry makes unprecedented levels of rainfall on Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and the western Florida Panhandle. (CNN) (CNN²)
Seven people, including six foreign tourists, are killed and 100 others injured during a violent storm that swept across Thessaloniki, Greece. (BBC)

Law and crime

British right-wing activist Tommy Robinson is sentenced to nine months in prison for contempt of court — minus time served equals about another 10 weeks in prison. Supporters attacked police and journalists following the court proceedings. Police say no new arrests were made. (BBC)
American R&B singer R. Kelly is arrested in Chicago on federal sex crime charges. (NBC News)

Science and technology

JAXA‘s Hayabusa2 space probe makes its second successful and final landing on Apollo asteroid 162173 Ryugu. (The Guardian)

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