Top News Stories –

Vladimir Putin’s ‘girlfriend has given birth’ –
Rumours continued to swirl on Friday over the whereabouts of Vladimir Putin, with one newspaper claiming that the Russian president had fathered a child with his long-term girlfriend. Citing local residents, Switzerland’s Bick tabloid said on Friday that Mr Putin flew to Switzerland to be with Alina Kabaeva, his rumoured lover, as she went into labour at the private Clinic Sant’Anna near Lugano earlier this week. Miss Kabaeva, 31, has been rumoured to be in a relationship with Mr Putin for several years, but the Kremlin has never acknowledged any link between the pair. [Daily Telegraph]
Alina Kabaeva [attribute www.kremlin.ru]

Dermot O’Leary dances for 24 hours straight –
The X-Factor UK presenter Dermot O’Leary has danced for 24 hours straight in aid of Comic Relief, and raised a staggering £643,336. The 41-year-old completed his epic challenge in aid of Red Nose Day, at 7.20pm on Friday after showing off his moves outside BBC Broadcasting House in London for his Day of Dance. The X Factor presenter fought tiredness and pain to boogie his way to the finish life with help from celebrity pals along the way.
[Daily Mail]
Dermot O’Leary

World’s first successful penis transplant carried out in South Africa –
South African scientists have announced the world’s first successful penis transplant, helping a 21-year-old who suffered an amputation following a botched traditional circumcision three years ago. Professor Andre van der Merwe, head of Stellenbosch University’s Division of Urology, announced details of the “ground-breaking” operation at Tygerberg Hospital in Bellville, Cape Town. The nine-hour operation, which involved the attachment of a penis taken from a donor who had died, was carried out in December. The results were announced on Friday after doctors confirmed that the recipient of the donor organ has made a full recovery and is sexually active. [Daily Telegraph]

Mums offer breast milk after formula scare –
Nw Zealand mothers have offered to supply breast milk after letters were sent to a national farming body and the dairy giant Fonterra threatening to contaminate formula with a pesticide. About 30 women in the Northland region, on New Zealand’s North Island, say they’d be happy to contribute, and some women have already started expressing their milk for babies who are ordinarily fed formula. [BBC]

Video of the Day –

Muse – Psycho

Top Twitter Trends –

Other News Stories –

Armed conflicts and attacks

• A Myanmar air raid aimed at rebels on its border with China drops bombs on the Chinese city of Lincang killing four people. (AP via The New York Times)

Business and economy

• Egypt Economic Development Conference
  • Among the over 2,000 delegates from 112 different countries, U.S. Secretary of State, John Kerry, delivers a speech during the investment summit held in the Egyptian resort town of Sharm el-Sheikh. (AP via ABC News)

Disasters and accidents

• Cyclone Pam
  • Cyclone Pam causes severe damage in the South Pacific nation of Vanuatu with unconfirmed reports of over 40 deaths. (ABC News Australia)
• One South Korean Ministry of Public Safety and Security official dies and three are missing after a helicopter crash off the island of Gageodo. (Yonhap News)
• Chile declares a state of emergency and preliminary evacuation of 16,000 as a forest fire threatens the city ofValparaiso. (AFP via Yahoo! News)
• The Aung Takon passenger ferry sinks off the coast of Myanmar with 21 dead and 26 people missing. (Straits Times)
• A Serbian military Russian-made MI-17 transport helicopter crashes near Belgrade‘s international airport in foggy weather while evacuating a sick 5-day-old baby with life-threatening respiratory problems from the south of the country, killing all seven people on board. (AP)

Health

• In regard to an operation that took place on December 11, 2014, today, a Stellenbosch University and Tygerberg Hospital surgical team from Cape Town, South Africa, reports the world’s first successful penis transplant, an operation requiring reconnection of tiny blood vessels and nerves. (BBC)

Law and crime

• Swedish prosecutor Marianne Ny lodges a request to interrogate Julian Assange in his London refuge at the Ecuadorianconsulate, saying that the reason for her change of mind is that the statute of limitations on several of the crimes of which Assange is suspected runs out in August 2015. (The Guardian)
• A malicious computer virus called Teslacrypt targets older games including World of Warcraft stopping their users from playing their favorite titles unless they pay a ransom. (BBC)

News from Wikipedia – please support this valuable resource