December 13, 2014

Ben Haenow wins X Factor 2014 –
Ben Haenow has been named this year’s UK X Factor winner after going head-to-head with Fleur East in the 2014 final at Wembley Arena. The singer from Croydon, south London, was chosen by a public vote with over 10 million votes cast. Mel B the former Spice Girl and one of the four judges, missed the final due to illness. Tulisa Contostavlos stood in as her replacement.
Mel B

FIFA dismiss complaints over report –
A complaint by US lawyer Michael Garcia who spent two years investigating World Cup corruption claims for Fifa has been dismissed by football’s governing body. Garcia’s findings were released as a 42-page summary by FIFA-appointed independent judge Hans-Joachim Eckert. Garcia said his summary was “incomplete and erroneous”. There have been calls to release the full report in the wake of Garcia’s complaint, but FIFA president Sepp Blater has said it cannot do so for legal reasons.
Sepp Blatter at the 2014 FIFA Tournament Announcement in 2007

Indecent proposal –
A Dutchman’s attempt at a romantic wedding proposal using a mobile crane has resulted in the crane falling over and smashing into a neighbour’s roof. The man had rented a crane in the central town of Ijsselstein to descend in front of his girlfriend’s bedroom window, play her a song and ask her to marry him. Despite the disaster, in which no-one was hurt, his girlfriend accepted his offer.

Video of the Day –

Our Streets –

OUR STREETS from Jared Rosenthal on Vimeo.

CLICK TO SEE MORE STUFF FROM THIS DAY…

January 18, 2015

Top News Stories –

Pope takes Mass with 6 million people –
Pope Francis finishes his tour of the Philippines giving Mass in front of an estimated 6 million people in Rizal Park in the capital Manila. This appears to be a record attendance for a papal event eclipsing the 5 million who saw Pope John Paul II in Manila in 1995.

AB de Villers gets fastest ODI ton –
A new record for the fastest 100 in a one-day international (ODI) by South Africa batsman AB de Villiers who hit a century off 31 balls during an innings of 149 against the West Indies in Johannesburg. Including 8 fours and 10 sixes to beat the previous ODI record of 36 balls by New Zealand all-rounder Corey Anderson against West Indies on January 1st 2015 but doesn’t match Chris Gayle’s 100 from 30 balls in the Indian Premier League on April 23rd 2013. See List of the Day below.

Vonn’s record causes Tiger to lose a tooth –
American skier Lindsey Vonn (@lindseyvonn) has won her 63rd World Cup downhill title with a win in the super-G race in Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy overtaking the record set by Austrian Annemarie Moser-Proell over 35 years ago. Vonn’s boyfriend is golfer Tiger Woods who surprised her by being at the podium after the event. In the media scrum to get pictures of the skier a hand-held camera knocked out one of Wood’s front teeth. She celebrated with this tweet:

Lindsey Vonn

Video of the Day –

Wetness from The Coastal Crew on Vimeo.

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February 23, 2015

February 22, 2015

Top News Stories –

The top winners at the Oscars are Eddie Redmayne (Best Actor in The Theory of Everything), Julianne Moore (Best Actress in Still Alice) and Birdman (Best Picture, Best original screenplay, Best cinematography and Best director).
Eddie Redmayne

Video of the Day –

Birdman Spoof – Fred Armisen and Kristen Bell | 30th Film Independent Spirit Awards

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May 27, 2015

Top News Stories –

Fifa officials corrupted football – US prosecutors –
US prosecutors have accused several officials from football’s governing body Fifa of racketeering, fraud and money laundering involving tens of millions of dollars over 24 years. Prosecutors said they had discovered a dozen schemes, including one awarding the 2010 World Cup to South Africa.
Fourteen people have been indicted, with seven held in Zurich on Wednesday. Those indicted in the US case are accused of accepting bribes and kickbacks estimated at more than $150m (£97m) over a 24-year period beginning in 1991. [BBC] President Sepp Blatter has not been implicated by the US Presecutors. In December 2014 a complaint by US lawyer Michael Garcia who spent two years investigating World Cup corruption claims for Fifa was dismissed by football’s governing body.
Sepp Blatter at the 2014 FIFA Tournament Announcement in 2007

London is getting a cannabis-inspired restaurant –
Grub Club and the chefs at Grub London have teamed up to create ‘Cannabistro’, a two night pop-up event coming to London in June.Diners at London’s first weed-themed restaurant will be treated to a four-course gourmet meal of dishes inspired by “hazy memories of teenage years combined with the clichés of getting high – ‘The Way Up’ – and coming down – ‘The Munchies’.” [Daily Telegraph]

SpaceX cleared for US military launches –
Billionaire Elon Musk’s firm SpaceX has won long-waited approval from the US Air Force to launch military satellites, opening the way to a lucrative market that has been a virtual monopoly for a Boeing and Lockheed Martin joint venture. With the certification, California-based SpaceX can now compete against the United Launch Alliance – the giant Boeing-Lockheed joint venture – for defence contracts valued at about $9.5bn over the next five years. In January 2015 Musk announced that he will build a test track for his “Hyperloop” transport system that could theoretically travel at speeds of up to 700 miles per hour. [news24.com]
Elon Musk

Video of the Day –

A Guy’s Understanding of Women’s Underwear – Robbie Sherrard

Top Twitter Trends –

	Worldwide	USA	UK
1	#CharlieCharlie	Rick Santorum	Point Break
2	FIFA	#TeenChoice	#QueensSpeech
3	#PSYAngPagsinta	#HumpDay	#FIFA
4	#MeTatuariaLaFrase	Sepp Blatter	#5WordWeddingToast
5	La MUD	#ARRAY	Andy King
6	#FelizMiercoles	FIFA	Tony Blair
7	#FIFA	#5WordWeddingToast	#GazaUnderAttack
8	Point Break	Jared Dudley	#StateOpening
9	#MasterChefBR	#Replace1DSongsWithNiallsHat	#JustinGiveUsYourSnapchat
10	Rafael Esquivel	#FIFA	#Replace1DSongsWithNiallsHat

Other News Stories –

Armed conflicts and attacks

Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant
- Islamic State militants have carried out multiple suicide bombings targeting the Iraqi Army in Anbar Province killing at least 17 people. (AP)

Disasters and accidents

At least 12 people, associated with the Kangleyuan Rest Home in the Chinese city of Pingdingshan in Henan province which was destroyed by fire with the loss of 38 lives, are detained for questioning. (AP)
A sixth person is found to have died in this week’s floods in Harris County, Texas, which contains the city of Houston. (Houston Chronicle)
2015 Indian heat wave
- The death toll in the two worst affected states Andhra Pradesh and Telangana passes 800. (Times of India)

International relations

Representatives from the United States, Japan and South Korea meet in Seoul on how to respond to North Korea’s nuclear weapons program.(AP)
Former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom Tony Blair resigns as the peace envoy of the Quartet on the Middle East. (ABC News)

Law and crime

FIFA corruption scandal
- Six FIFA officials are detained in Switzerland for extradition to the United States in relation to allegations of corruption between the 1990s and now. Those arrested include Jeffrey Webb, Jack Warner, Eduardo Li, Eugenio Figueredo and Jose Maria Marin. Fourteen people involved in world soccer. (AP), (BBC), (Washington Post)
- Swiss federal prosecutors open criminal procedures in relation to the awarding of the 2018 and 2022 FIFA World Cups. (AP)
- FIFA suspends eleven people from involvement in football over the scandal. (AP)
The Legislature of the US state of Nebraska votes to outlaw the death penalty, overriding a veto by Governor Pete Ricketts. (Lincoln Journal Star)

Politics

The newly-elected British House of Commons commences its session with the State Opening of Parliament ceremony in which the Queen’s Speech will be delivered. (BBC)
The Prime Minister of Denmark Helle Thorning-Schmidt calls an election for June 18. (Reuters via Straits Times)
Rick Santorum announces he will be seeking the nomination of the Republican Party in the United States presidential election, 2016. (Washington Post)

Science and technology

Elon Musk‘s SpaceX wins U.S. Air Force approval to launch military satellites. (AFP via News24)

Sport

2014–15 UEFA Europa League
- In association football, Sevilla FC of Spain becomes the first club to win the UEFA Europa League four times defeating Dnipro Dnipropetrovskof Ukraine 3-2 with Colombian striker Carlos Bacca scoring twice in the final. (CNN)
- Matheus Leite Nascimento collapses on the field of play during the 2015 UEFA Europa League Final in Warsaw. (SM)
2015 NBA Finals
- In basketball, the Golden State Warriors defeat the Houston Rockets 104-90 to win the Western Conference 104-90 and go to the NBA Finals for the first time since 1975. (Bleacher Report)

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June 14, 2015

Top News Stories –

Philae comet lander wakes up, says European Space Agency –
The European Space Agency (Esa) says its comet lander, Philae, has woken up and contacted Earth. Philae, the first spacecraft to land on a comet, was dropped on to the surface of Comet 67P by its mothership, Rosetta, last November. It worked for 60 hours before its solar-powered battery ran flat. The comet has since moved nearer to the Sun and Philae has enough power to work again, says the BBC’s science correspondent Jonathan Amos. An account linked to the probe tweeted the message, “Hello Earth! Can you hear me?” On its blog, Esa said Philae had contacted Earth, via Rosetta, for 85 seconds on Saturday in the first contact since going into hibernation in November.

Artist’s impression of the Philae lander

Jurassic World takes $511m in record opening weekend –
The fourth instalment in the Jurassic Park series has become the first film to take more than $500m at the box office on its opening weekend. Jurassic World was the most popular screening in all 66 countries where it was released. The film made $204.6m (£131.4m) in the US, according to the firm Exhibitor Relations. It took $100m in China and $29.6m (£19m) in the UK and Ireland as part of the record global total of $511.8m. The Universal Pictures release had the second-highest grossing opening weekend in the US. The record is held by Marvel’s The Avengers, which took $207.4m in 2012. [BBC] See Video of the Day

Video of the Day –

Jurassic World – Official Global Trailer

List of the Day –

Biggest Worldwide film openings since 2002 [from Wikipedia]

Rank	Film	Year	Opening (USD)^[1]
1	Jurassic World	2015	$511,800,000
2	Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2	2011	$483,189,427
3	Furious 7	2015	$397,627,459
4	Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince	2009	$394,022,354
5	Marvel’s The Avengers	2012	$392,538,708
6	Avengers: Age of Ultron	2015	$392,471,109
7	Transformers: Dark of the Moon	2011	$382,425,000
8	Spider-Man 3	2007	$381,660,892
9	Iron Man 3	2013	$372,553,677
10	Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides	2011	$350,653,677
11	Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End	2007	$343,972,864
12	The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn – Part 2	2012	$340,667,634
13	Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix	2007	$332,715,157
14	Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 1	2010	$330,017,372
15	Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith	2005	$303,949,700
16	Transformers: Age of Extinction	2014	$302,138,390
17	The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn – Part 1	2011	$291,022,261
18	The Twilight Saga: New Moon	2009	$274,939,137
19	The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 1	2014	$273,897,634
20	Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull	2008	$272,150,927
21	X-Men: Days of Future Past	2014	$262,866,321
22	The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King	2003	$250,000,534
23	The Dark Knight Rises	2012	$248,887,295
24	Avatar	2009	$241,571,046
25	The Da Vinci Code	2006	$232,074,037
26	2012	2009	$230,470,474
27	The Twilight Saga: Eclipse	2010	$228,893,465
28	The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey	2012	$222,617,303
29	Iron Man 2	2010	$220,766,270
30	Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen	2009	$219,921,171
31	Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs	2009	$218,430,064
32	The Hunger Games	2012	$211,785,747
33	Alice in Wonderland	2010	$210,101,023
34	The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug	2013	$209,845,197
35	Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban	2004	$207,197,367
36	War of the Worlds	2005	$203,061,125
37	Man of Steel	2013	$201,981,486
38	The Matrix Revolutions	2003	$201,390,000
39	Iron Man	2008	$201,174,140

Top Twitter Trends –

	Worldwide	USA	UK
1	#ARGENTINARMY	Roc Nation	Toke
2	#AskRachel	#zayniscomingback	#GETWELLSOONCALUM
3	#ComoOdioAEsosQue	#FlagDay	Rolf Harris
4	Bolivia	#ICouldUseALittleMore	Snowden
5	Fede Bal	#NWC2015	#zayniscomingback
6	Jurassic World	#RedFlags	#UFC188
7	Dave Grohl	#MITB	#SLOvENG
8	#GoodForYou	Tbilisi	Michael
9	#AssistamTeuOlharFLY	Good Sunday	#HappyBirthdayJesy
10	Vuoso	#GETWELLSOONCALUM	Townsend

Other News Stories –

Armed conflicts and attacks
- War in Afghanistan (2015–present)
  - Fifteen Taliban militants, including the shadow governor for Kunar Province, are killed in a NATO airstrike. (IANS via Business Standard)
- Syrian Civil War
  - Thousands of Syrians flee into Turkey as Kurdish fighters come closer to capturing the border town of Tell Abyad from Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant. (AP)
Disasters and accidents
- 2015 Tbilisi flood
  - Flooding in the Georgian capital, Tbilisi, destroys animal enclosures at a zoo resulting in the release of potentially dangerous animals and the death of three zookeepers and six other people. (AP), (USA Today), (Reuters, DPA via WA Today)
Health
- 2015 Middle East respiratory syndrome outbreak in South Korea
  - A South Korean man is hospitalised in the Slovak capital Bratislava with symptoms of MERS as the death toll in Korea rises to 15. (Sky News Australia), (Al-Jazeera)
International relations
- Save The Children
  - Ministry of Interior, Government of Pakistan has suspended its order against the NGO Save the Children for closure of its working and allowed the international aid agency to resume its operation in Pakistan. (Express Tribune) (ARY Digital )
- A South Korean official claims that North Korea is placing land mines in the Korean Demilitarized Zone to stop soldiers from defecting. The Korean DMZ already contains an estimated 1 million mines. (Yonhap)
Law and crime
- International Criminal Court investigation in Darfur
  - The International Criminal Court asks South Africa to arrest the President of Sudan Omar al-Bashir for alleged war crimes when he arrives at the African Union summit. (AFP via Straits-Times
  - The High Court in Pretoria grants an interim order preventing the President of Sudan Omar al-Bashir from leaving South Africa, and postpones the application for his arrest to Monday 15 June, 2015 to allow the government more time to prepare. (News24) (News24)
Politics and elections
- Thousands of people march in Hong Kong to demand the Legislative Council reject a China backed proposal for the naming of candidates forChief Executive be done by a nominating committee. (Bloomberg)
Science
- The European Space Agency‘s Philae spacecraft wakes up after six months in hibernation as comet 67P/Churyumov–Gerasimenko gets closer to the sun. (BBC)
Sport
- In motor sport, the Porsche 19 team of Earl Bamber, Nick Tandy and Nico Hulkenberg wins the 2015 24 Hours of Le Mans. (Fox Sports)

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July 19, 2015

Top News Stories –

Surfer Mick Fanning escapes shark attack in South Africa –
An Australian surfer has made an incredible escape after encountering two sharks during a major competition in South Africa. Mick Fanning was competing in Jeffreys Bay, on the eastern Cape, when one of the sharks approached his surfboard. The final of the J-Bay Open had only just started when Fanning was knocked off his surfboard and into the sea. Fanning, the defending champion, escaped injury. The tournament was called off soon afterwards. “I was just sitting there and I felt something just get stuck in my leg rope, and I was kicking trying to get it away,” Fanning told Fox Sports. “I just saw fins. I was waiting for the teeth.” Fanning, a three-time world champion, said he was able to “get a punch into its back” and startle it. [BBC] See Video of the Day
Mick Fanning

Little Mix’s Jesy gets engaged to Rixton’s Jake on stage with Ed Sheeran –
Jesy from Little Mix has got engaged to Jake from Rixton. It happened on stage with Ed Sheeran and it seems that Ed helped out as a favour to Jake. Jake tweeted to Ed: “Travelled 5 hours to sing our favourite song on his day off. I will never ever be able to repay you. Love you pal.” It seems that Ed gave up one of his rest days to play an acoustic version of Tenerife Sea at a Little Mix sound check. During the song Jake went down on one knee to pop the question.
Jesy Nelson

Video of the Day –

Shark Attacks Mick Fanning at J-Bay Open

Top Twitter Trends –

	Worldwide	USA	UK
1	#louisappreciationday	#NationalIceCreamDay	#GrowingUpWithSiblings
2	#SophiamIsEngaged	#growingupwithmyname	#LouisAppreciationDay
3	#GrowingUpWithMyName	#MyUnpopularBlackOpinion	#GrowingUpWithMyName
4	#TengoGanasDe	#SophiamIsEngaged	Frampton
5	Mick Fanning	Alex Rocco	James McClean
6	UCAB	Mick Fanning	#SophiamIsEngaged
7	梅雨明け	#BernieSoBlack	Paul Dunne
8	#FeelBetterJustin	#LouisAppreciationDay	mick fanning
9	花火綺麗	#FeelBetterJustin	#bbcsp
10	#GrowingUpWithSiblings	#johnsonmatters	Crolla

Other News Stories –

Disasters and accidents

British police resume the search for four people missing after an explosion at a mill in Cheshire. (BBC)

Arts and culture

Fourteen sufi mausoleums in the city of Timbuktu in northern Mali have been rebuilt, three years after they were destroyed by Islamist militants from Ansar Dine group. (BBC)

International relations

2014–15 India–Pakistan border skirmishes, India–Pakistan relations
- The Pakistan Foreign Office lodges an official report with India over what it calls a series of “unprovoked ceasefire violations” in the disputedHimalayan region of Kashmir. (AP via Asian Correspondent)

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July 27, 2015

Top News Stories –

Vladimir Putin says Sepp Blatter deserves Nobel Prize –
Vladimir Putin has said that Sepp Blatter deserves to win the Nobel Prize and does not believe a word of the corruption allegations against the Fifa president. In an interview with Swiss broadcaster RTS, the Russian president gave his full support to the Fifa president just days after Mr Blatter had assured him that Russia had Fifa’s “complete trust” as hosts of the next World Cup finals in 2018. Mr Putin added that he believed that bribery scandal being investigated by US, Swiss and other law enforcement agencies was as a result of the failure of England and the US to win the rights to host the 2018 and 2022 World Cups. [Daily Telegraph]
Vladimir Putin

Norwegian court orders bank to cover man’s £23k lap-dance and drinks bill –
A Norwegian court has ordered a bank to cover a £23,400 drink and lap-dance bill run up by one man during a night at a Polish strip club. The court made the decision after it concluded he had been drugged and could not be held responsible for his actions. Sparebank 1 will now have to make up for its client’s losses even though an investigation by Polish police into the incident at the club in the up-market seaside town of Sopot has been discontinued. The court rejected Sparebank’s argument that the man was responsible for how he spent his money, saying all the evidence suggested he was doped, and therefore a victim. [Daily Telegraph]

Video of the Day –

The High Voltage Ejector Bed

Top Twitter Trends –

	Worldwide	USA	UK
1	#3YearsOfFifthHarmony	#DirtyWorkMusicVideo	Sergio Romero
2	#OTRAMinneapolis	#WhenTrumpIsElected	#3YearsOfFifthHarmony
3	#LaPeliQueMeHizoLlorar	WWGTM	#mondaymotivation
4	Martinoli	#3YearsOfFifthHarmony	#BobbiKristina
5	Sergio Romero	#BuyBEAToniTunes	Conley Thompson
6	#dirtyworkmusicvideo	#mondaymotivation	Khloe Kardashian
7	Bugs Bunny	#ImStrongestWhen	#OTRAMinneapolis
8	#CiteCoisasQueOdeiaNoFacebook	#IWasSoHighOneDay	#ImHardLeft
9	Gago	Bugs Bunny	#jaiappreciationday
10	#MexicanPartyCopaOro	Google+	Lord Sewel

Other News Stories –

Armed conflicts and attacks

At least 7 people are killed and many injured after gunmen attack an Indian police station in Punjab. (The Hindu)
Syrian Civil War, Battle of Sarrin (June–July 2015)
- YPG led forces capture the town Sarrin from ISIL after a month-long offensive. (The Daily Star)

Business and economy

2015 Chinese stock market crash
- The Shanghai Composite Index drops 8.5%, the largest one-day decline in the index since 2007. (Bloomberg)

Law and crime

The Turkish National Police warns of possible bomb attacks on crowded places in central Istanbul, including metro stations and bus stops, following the escalation of Turkey–ISIL conflict. (Hürriyet Daily News)

Politics and elections

Philippines President Benigno Aquino III holds his final State of the Nation Address before stepping down in 2016. He advocates the passage of the Bangsamoro Basic Law and an anti-dynasty bill. (CNN Philippines), GMA News Online
French farmers protesting low prices within the country turn back hundreds of trucks suspected of carrying foreign agricultural products at the country’s border with Germany. (AP)

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July 28, 2015

Top News Stories –

Cecil the lion’s killer revealed as American dentist –
Cecil the lion – the most famous creature in one of Zimbabwe’s national parks – was killed by an American hunter who has boasted about shooting a menagerie of animals with his bow and arrow. Walter James Palmer, a dentist from Minnesota, is believed to have paid £35,000 to shoot and kill the much-loved lion with a bow and arrow. The animal was shot on July 1 in Hwange National Park. Two independent sources have confirmed the hunter’s identity to the paper, which has also seen a copy of the relevant hunting permit. [Daily Telegraph]

Yahoo launches Livetext messaging app to rival Snapchat and WhatsApp –
Yahoo’s unveiled a messaging app to take on the likes of Snapchat, Facebook Messenger and WhatsApp. Livetext will allow users to exchange live video, text and emoticons, but without audio. The app is available now for Apple and Android devices in the UK, US, Canada, Germany and France. Yahoo says video calls can be better than texts for expressing emotions, but their audio component makes private conversations public. With Livetext, you message friends by typing, just like texting, but you see video of friends without the audio. [BBC Newsbeat]

Clive Rice: Former South Africa and Notts captain dies aged 66 –
Former South Africa and Nottinghamshire captain Clive Rice has died aged 66.
Rice was South Africa’s first skipper in one-day cricket after their readmission in 1991 following their sporting isolation during apartheid. The all-rounder played for Nottinghamshire between 1975 and 1987, winning the County Championship in 1981 and 1987, and was later appointed coach at Trent Bridge. He had been ill with a brain tumour. Rice was 42 when he made his official international debut and played only three ODIs, despite an outstanding first-class record which saw him average 40.95 with the bat and 22.49 with the ball. [BBC] (See List of the Day)

Video of the Day –

Angry Birds 2 – Official Gameplay Trailer

List of the Day –

Clive Rice career statistics

Competition	ODI	FC	LA
Matches	3	482	479
Runs scored	26	26331	13474
Batting average	13.00	40.95	37.32
100s/50s	0/0	48/137	11/79
Top score	14	246	169
Balls bowled	138	48628	17738
Wickets	2	930	517
Bowling average	57.00	22.49	22.63
5 wickets in innings	0	23	6
10 wickets in match	n/a	1	n/a
Best bowling	1/46	7/62	6/18
Catches/stumpings	0/-	401/-	175/-

Source: CricketArchive, 18 January 2008

Top Twitter Trends –

	Worldwide	USA	UK
1	#ExcusasCuandoLlegoTarde	#CecilTheLion	Ribena
2	Diego Barisone	#TenThingsNotToSayToAWriter	#TenThingsNotToSayToAWriter
3	#TenThingsNotToSayToAWriter	Reyes	#RuinAWestern
4	#شي_حلو_بحرف_ال…	Tulo	#unexcitingmovies
5	#فريق_متسحيل_ت�…	#RuinAWestern	#CecilTheLion
6	#ruinawestern	#UnexcitingMovies	#GetCalibraskaOniTunes
7	#AmoFuertementeQue	Tom Brady	#AskLydia
8	#nochedeconfesiones	Safaree	#GBBO
9	Safaree	#BatmanDatingProblems	#TechTuesday
10	Hot 97	#CaliforniaMusicVideo	House of Lords

Other News Stories –

Armed conflicts and attacks

Boko Haram attacks in multiple northern Nigerian villages leaves at least 29 dead. (Bloomberg)

Business and economy

Dutch aerospace company Fokker Technologies is acquired by the British multinational GKN. (GKN)

Disasters and accidents

Rescuers find 13 dead migrants in a boat off the Libyan coast. (Al-Arabiyah)
Florida law enforcement and civilians continue the search for two boys, both aged 14, who were intending to travel to the Bahamas by boat. (USA Today)
At least 25 people have been killed and 22 injured at a fire in a furniture factory in Obour City near the Egyptian capital Cairo. (Reuters via Egypt Independent) (BBC)
At least six people have been killed and several are missing following a building collapse in the Indian city of Thane. (CNN)

Law and crime

A Libyan court sentences Saif al-Islam Gaddafi to death in absentia for alleged atrocities in 2011. (AP via Fox News)
Police in Santa Cruz, California, find what they suspect is the body of 8-year-old Madyson Middleton, who was last seen on footage on the afternoon of Sunday, July 27, riding her new scooter. A 15-year-old male minor has been arrested on suspicion of homicide. (MSN)
2015 Clinton Correctional Facility escape
- Joyce Mitchell, who had smuggled hacksaw blades inside frozen meat to Richard Matt and David Sweat in prison, before withdrawing as their getaway driver, pleads guilty to a first-degree felony of promoting prison contraband and to a misdemeanor count of fourth-degree criminal facilitation. She faces up to 7 years in prison when sentenced. (MSN)

Politics and elections

1Malaysia Development Berhad
- Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak fires Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin. (The New York Times)
Barack Obama is the first US president to speak in front of the African Union (AU). He encourages the world to strengthen economic ties with the continent, but also criticises the lack of democracy. (WSJ)

August 19, 2015

Top News Stories –

Oscar Pistorius’ early release blocked by minister –
South Africa’s justice minister has blocked the early release of athlete Oscar Pistorius from prison on Friday. He said the decision by the parole board to free the athlete after serving 10 months of his five-year sentence was premature and without legal basis. It could now take months for the board to review its decision, legal sources told the BBC. Pistorius was convicted of manslaughter last year after shooting dead his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp. The Olympic athlete insists he mistook her for an intruder. [BBC]
Oscar Pistorius competing

Athletics: Sebastian Coe elected IAAF president –
Former Olympic 1500m champion Lord Coe is the new president of the IAAF, the body that governs world athletics. The 58-year-old Briton beat rival Sergey Bubka, a former Olympic pole vault champion, by 115 votes to 92. Following his election, Coe tweeted that, after the birth of his children, this was the most “momentous moment” of his life. The former chairman of London 2012, Coe replaces 82-year-old Senegalese Lamine Diack, who has been in charge for 16 years. [BBC] See List of the Day
Sebastian Coe and Oscar Pistorius in 2011

Video of the Day –

The Martian | Official Trailer [HD] | 20th Century FOX

List of the Day –

Sebastian Coe medal record [Wikipedia]

Olympic Games
	1980 Moscow	1500 m
	1984 Los Angeles	1500 m
	1980 Moscow	800 m
	1984 Los Angeles	800 m
European Athletics Championships
	1986 Stuttgart	800 m
	1982 Athens	800 m
	1986 Stuttgart	1500 m
	1978 Prague	800 m

Top Twitter Trends –

	Worldwide	USA	UK
1	Ashley Madison	Deez Nuts	Ashley Madison
2	援交募集	Yvonne Craig	#WorldHumanitarianDay
3	#WeLoveYouLiam	#WorldPhotographyDay	#WorldPhotographyDay
4	#4YearsOfLittleMix	#4YearsOfLittleMix	#4YearsOfLittleMix
5	#WorldPhotographyDay	#WeLoveYouLiam	#WeLoveYouLiam
6	#SacaLoPeorDeMiCuando	Shaun King	Mane
7	#MasterChefBR	Kelvin Benjamin	#ILookGoodOnYou
8	#Siirtte8ŞehidimizVar	#CollegeIn3Words	#OTRAColumbus
9	Yvonne Craig	#JaredFogle	Shaun King
10	Ramiro	#ashleymadisonhack	Let Charlotte Live

Other News Stories –

Armed conflicts and attacks

Boko Haram insurgency
- At least 151 were killed in a Boko Haram attack last week on a northeastern Nigerian village, Yadin Kukuwa. News of the attack was slow to emerge because the militants destroyed telecom masts around the village. (Independent) (AFP via Times Live)
Destruction of cultural heritage by ISIL, Syrian Civil War
- Islamic State militants behead 82-year-old antiquities scholar Khaled Asaad, who worked for over 50 years as head of antiquities in Palmyra. (Reuters) (BBC)
Iraq War (2014–present)
- A suicide bomber kills at least 20 Iraqi Army troops in the city of Baiji. (Al-Arabiyah)
South Sudanese Civil War
- Fighting resumes in South Sudan after the failure to reach a deal between tribes loyal to the president and tribes loyal to the former vice-president. (AP via Fox News)
Turkey-PKK Conflict
- At least eight soldiers were killed in a bomb detonated by Kurdish militants. (NY Times) (Independent)

Business and economy

Greek government-debt crisis
- The Bundestag votes to approve a third bailout for Greece. (The Guardian)

Disasters and accidents

A brush fire burning near the American town of Twisp, Washington, kills three firefighters, injures as many as four others and forces the evacuation of the towns of Twisp and Winthrop. (KREM), (Seattle Times)

International relation

Estonian-Russian relations
- A court in Russia has sentenced Estonian security official Eston Kohver to 15 years in prison for espionage. (BBC)
South Sudan–United States relations
- United States announces that it is proposing sanctions against those connected to the South Sudan conflict, unless a ceasefire is reached promptly. (Al Jazeera English Online)

Law and crime

Following a July 15 hacking, user data of the infidelity-promoting dating website Ashley Madison is leaked with over 30 million users having their information compromised. (BBC)
Police in the American city of St. Louis, Missouri, make nine arrests and use tear gas to disperse protesters after a killing of an armed man allegedly aiming a gun at police officers earlier in the day. (CNN)

Politics and elections

The United States Navy SEALS announce a plan to allow women to register, the first time in history. (Navy Times)

Sport

The International Association of Athletics Federations elects former British Olympic champion runner Lord Sebastian Coe as its new President, replacing Lamine Diack of Senegal. Ukrainian pole vaultchampion Sergey Bubka was the other contender for the position. (BBC) (Al Jazeera English Online)

News from Wikipedia – please support this valuable resource

September 10, 2015

Top News Stories –

New human-like species discovered in S Africa –

Scientists have discovered a new human-like species in a burial chamber deep in a cave system in South Africa. The discovery of 15 partial skeletons is the largest single discovery of its type in Africa. The researchers claim that the discovery will change ideas about our human ancestors. The studies which have been published in the journal Elife also indicate that these individuals were capable of ritual behaviour. The species, which has been named naledi, has been classified in the grouping, or genus,Homo, to which modern humans belong. [BBC] See List of the Day

Pope Francis emojis launched for US visit –
Pope Francis draws huge crowds wherever he goes and now his fans can share their admiration with papal emojis. A new keyboard app is being released to mark the Pope’s upcoming visit to America. You can have the Pope balancing a basketball or riding a taxi (although we suspect he’d prefer his Popemobile). They’re among 52 emojis and 14 GIFs in the app from Swyft Media, the company which created the first ginger emojis.
Pope emojis by Swyft Media

Giant Lenin ‘head’ unearthed 24 years after burial in Berlin –
The giant head of a statue of Russian revolutionary Lenin has been unearthed, 24 years after it was buried in a German forest. Workers dug up the granite structure from woodland outside Berlin, following a campaign by historians. The head was once part of a 19m (62ft) monument to the communist leader, which towered over the east of the city. It was dismantled in 1991 after the fall of the Berlin Wall and the pieces were buried in a secluded forest. [BBC]

Video of the Day –

iPhone 6s – The Only Thing That’s Changed Is…

List of the Day –

Comparative table of *Homo* species
Species	Temporal range Mya	Habitat	Adult height	Adult mass	Cranial capacity (cm³)	Fossil record	Discovery / publication of name
H. habilis	2.1 – 1.5^[136]	Africa	150 cm (4 ft 11 in)	33–55 kg (73–121 lb)	510–660	Many	1960/1964
H. erectus	1.9 – 0.07^[137]	Africa, Eurasia (Java, China, India, Caucasus)	180 cm (5 ft 11 in)	60 kg (130 lb)	850 (early) – 1,100 (late)	Many^[138]	1891/1892
H. rudolfensis membership in Homo uncertain	1.9	Kenya			700	2 sites	1972/1986
H. gautengensis also classified as H. habilis	1.9 – 0.6	South Africa	100 cm (3 ft 3 in)			3 individuals^[139]	2010/2010
H. ergaster also classified as H. erectus	1.8 – 1.3^[140]	Eastern and Southern Africa			700–850	Many	1975
H. antecessor also classified as H. heidelbergensis	1.2 – 0.8	Spain	175 cm (5 ft 9 in)	90 kg (200 lb)	1,000	2 sites	1997
H. cepranensis a single fossil, possibly H. erectus	0.9 – 0.35	Italy			1,000	1 skull cap	1994/2003
H. heidelbergensis	0.6 – 0.35^[141]	Europe, Africa, China	180 cm (5 ft 11 in)	90 kg (200 lb)	1,100–1,400	Many	1908
H. neanderthalensis possibly a subspecies of H. sapiens	0.35 – 0.04^[142]	Europe, Western Asia	170 cm (5 ft 7 in)	55–70 kg (121–154 lb) (heavily built)	1,200–1,900	Many	(1829)/1864
H. rhodesiensis also classified as H. heidelbergensis	0.3 – 0.12	Zambia			1,300	Very few	1921
H. tsaichangensis possibly H. erectus	0.25 – 0.2	Taiwan				1 individual	pre-2008/2015
H. sapiens (modern humans)	0.2^[143] – present	Worldwide	150 – 190 cm (4 ft 7 in – 6 ft 3 in)	50–100 kg (110–220 lb)	950–1,800	(extant)	—/1758
H. floresiensis classification uncertain	0.10 – 0.012	Indonesia	100 cm (3 ft 3 in)	25 kg (55 lb)	400	7 individuals	2003/2004
Denisova hominin possible H. sapiens subspecies or hybrid	0.04	Russia				1 site	2010
Red Deer Cave people possible H. sapiens subspecies or hybrid	0.0145–0.0115	China				Very few	2012

Top Twitter Trends –

	Worldwide	USA	UK
1	#WorldSuicidePreventionDay	#WorldSuicidePreventionDay	#WorldSuicidePreventionDay
2	#SameOldLove	Pokemon Go	#RenameAFilmLiterally
3	#FelizJueves	#HumanExperienceIn4Words	#charlotteproudman
4	#ChamuyeCuandoDije	Grace Jones	Pokemon Go
5	#CizreUnderAttack	#pitmad	#RejectedAppleProducts
6	#MeCambiaLaCara	#RejectedAppleProducts	Bonang
7	#ZaynWeAreAlwaysHere	#BieberTODAY	#HomoNaledi
8	#SemiIsBack	Bobby Jindal	Jonathan King
9	Palacio de Justicia	Aladdin	iPhone 6s
10	鬼怒川	#FallonTonight	#HumanExperienceIn4Words

Other News Stories –

Armed conflicts and attacks

Syrian Civil War, Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant
- ISIL attacks a government held air base near the eastern city of Deir ez-Zor with dozens of government loyalists and ISIL militants killed. (Reuters)
Operation Martyr Yalçın
- At least 30 people have been killed in the southeastern Turkish city of Cizre following clashes between Turkish security forces and pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) supporters. Locals say Cizre has been “under siege” since the militaryimposed a curfew. (BBC)
Saudi Arabian-led intervention in Yemen
- Air strikes target Houthi political leaders and military bases in Sana’a, Yemen. (Al Jazeera English Online)

Disasters and accidents

2015 Pacific typhoon season
- In Japan, tens of thousands are forced to evacuate due to flooding and landslides caused by Tropical Storm Etau. So far, one person is reported as missing. (Radio NZ Online), (AP via US News and World Report), (Al Jazeera English Online),(BBC)

International relations

European migrant crisis
- Denmark reopens rail services to Germany after closing rail lines and a motorway in order to stem the flow of migrants on their way to Sweden. (ITV)
- President of the United States Barack Obama directs his administration to accept at least 10,000 Syrian refugees in the next fiscal year from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. (Washington Post)
Russia–United States relations
- The United States expresses concern about alleged Russian military activities in Syria. (Al Jazeera English Online)
Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action
- The United States Senate fails to pass a resolution blocking approval of the nuclear agreement with Iran, meaning it will formally be adopted on October 19. (New York Times)

Law and crime

An indigenous Lumad child dies in an evacuation center while the Philippine Senate investigates the alleged September 1 murders of an indigenous Lumad family and the alleged rape of an indigenous Manobo girl by soldiers and militiamen of the Philippine Army. (Rappler), (Mindanao News), (Philippine Daily Inquirer)
Azerbaijan jails journalist Khadija Ismayilova after a trial that many believe is politically-motivated. (Al Jazeera English Online)
Venezuelan opposition leader Leopoldo Lopez is convicted and sentenced to 14 years imprisonment for allegedly inciting violence at anti-government rallies. (AP)
A U.S. federal jury awards nearly $17.5 million to five former migrant workers at a South Florida farm in their case of sexual harassment and abuse in their work. (Reuters)

Politics and elections

Peter Robinson, the First Minister of Northern Ireland, steps aside after the Democratic Unionist Party fails to get enough support to adjourn the assembly. (BBC)

Science and technology

Homo naledi
- Elife publishes a discovery by scientists at the University of the Witwatersrand announcing a new species of hominid (Homo naledi) in the Rising Star Cave in South Africa. Although the remains have yet to be properly dated, they could be three million years old. (BBC) (Al Jazeera English Online)

News from Wikipedia – please support this valuable resource

September 19, 2015

Top News Stories –

Novelist Jackie Collins dies aged 77 –
The novelist Jackie Collins has died of breast cancer at the age of 77, her family said in a statement. “It is with tremendous sadness that we announce the death of our beautiful, dynamic and one-of-a-kind mother,” the statement said. The British-born writer, sister of actress Joan Collins, died in Los Angeles, her spokeswoman said. Collins’s raunchy novels of the rich and famous sold more than 500 million copies in 40 countries.
In a career spanning four decades, all 32 of her novels appeared in the New York Times bestseller list. [BBC]
Jackie Collins

Japan shocks the rugby world and Twitter erupts –
80-1 outsiders to beat South Africa, Japan’s win over the two-times world champions has sent Twitter into a frenzy. Japan’s utterly well-deserved conquering of the mighty Springboks [32-34] has, unsurprisingly, made Twitter’s rugby community quite excited.The bookmakers usually know a thing or two about these things, yet more than a few people would have thought this morning that even 40-1 for the Brave Blossoms to win against the Boks was rather generous. For those who don’t understand how big a shock this was, @Burgerboxx provided an interesting, and somewhat useful, analogy. [Daily Telegraph]

Guinness World Record judicator hit in head by robot at giant Belfast Meccano bridge opening –
Engineering students have set a new world record with a 100ft footbridge made from Meccano. The temporary structure – weighing in at approximately 1,300lbs – has been built 100 feet long across Belfast’s Clarendon Dock and was unveiled at an event on Saturday. Representatives from Guinness World Records were on site to confirm it had set a record for the world’s largest ever Meccano construction. However the event did not go quite as smoothly as organisers hoped, with a giant Meccano robot believed to have malfunctioned and swiped a Guinness World Record judicator round the head.Dr Danny McPolin from the school of Planning, Architecture and Civil Engineering, who led the project, said: “If you count all the nuts and bolts and washers, there is approximately 70,000. “In terms of the longer pieces, if they’re all laid out end-to-end I think it would be about 3.8kms – approximately 10,000 or 11,000 pieces. [Daily Telegraph]

Video of the Day –

Inferno – Time Slice (Bullet Time) Camera Array from Mitch Martinez on Vimeo.

Top Twitter Trends –

	Worldwide	USA	UK
1	#ALDUBMostAwaitedDate	#TalkLikeAPirateDay	#WhatDidZoeySay
2	#WhatDidZoeySay	#ItDrivesMeCrazyWhen	Brian Sewell
3	#QueenNoMultishow	#THANKYOUZAYNFORCOMINGBACK	#TalkLikeAPirateDay
4	#الشيخ_راشد_بن_…	#iHeartRadio	#iHeartRadio
5	#THANKYOUZAYNFORCOMINGBACK	#GotCastInARealityShow	Japan
6	Diego Costa	#iHeartShawnMendes	#MakeAFilmConfused
7	Granada	Leonard Fournette	Costa
8	#TeGanasMiOdioSi	#2YearsOfWhereverYouAre	West Ham
9	VoteBieberOnEMA	#SGHastaSiempre	#DavisCup
10	貞ちゃん	Diego Costa	Obama is a Muslim

Other News Stories –

Armed conflicts and attacks

Syrian Civil War
- Islamist rebels execute 56 Syrian Army personnel following the capture of the Abu al-Duhur airbase in the Idlib Governorate according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. (Telegraph), (The News Hub)
Turkey–PKK conflict
- At least 55 are killed when Turkish warplanes hit Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) camps in northern Iraq, according Turkey’s security sources. (Reuters)
Saudi Arabian-led intervention in Yemen
- A Saudi-led military coalition bombards government buildings and residential neighborhoods in the Yemeni capital, Sana’a, killing about 30 people, including civilians. Rescuers continue searching for other possible victims buried under the rubble. (AP viaOrange County Register), (Xinhuanet)

Arts and culture

Pope Francis departs from Rome to begin his Apostolic Visit to Cuba, where he will visit Havana, Holguin, and Santiago de Cuba, and meet with Raul Castro. The visit is his first there, and the third to the country by a reigning Pope. Francis will then visit the US, also his first visit there as Pope. In the US, he will address a joint session of Congress (the first by an incumbent Pope), meet with President Obama, canonize Junipero Serra, tour a prison and the World Trade Center site, hold Masses in New York, Washington, and Philadelphia, and preside over the World Meeting of Families in Philadelphia. (Vatican), (USCCB), (The New York Times)
Sábado Gigante, the world’s longest running variety show in television history, ends after 53 years on air. (USA Today)

Disasters and accidents

Heavy rain triggers flash floods killing 10 people in Tehran and southern Iran with eight others missing. (AP via CP24)
Ten Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railroad ethanol tanker cars derail and two catch fire in southeast South Dakota between the towns of Scotland and Lesterville. No injuries are reported and no nearby structures are threatened by the fire. (AP via ABC News)

Health

2015 Dengue fever outbreaks
- Authorities in the Dominican Republic issue an alert as the number of deaths (57 this year) and cases of dengue fever continue to rise. (AP via ABC News)
- The Delhi government defers elective surgery to free up 1000 hospital beds to treat a dengue fever outbreak. (Times of India)

International relations

Japanese Self-Defense Forces
- Japan’s upper chamber of Parliament approves controversial legislation, which the lower chamber passed in July, that expands the role of the Japanese Self-Defense Forces overseas. (CNN), (Mainichi Daily News)
European migrant crisis, Croatia–Hungary relations
- Hungarian security forces confiscate a Croatian train carrying 1000 migrants and disarm 40 Croatian police officers accompanying the migrants. Hungarian authorities repatriate the officers. (Sky News)
- Croatian prime minister Zoran Milanović says Croatia will ‘force’ Hungary to accept migrants by sending them to the Hungarian border. Hungary responded angrily calling Milanović “pathetic” and accused Croatia of human smuggling. (BBC)
- Croatia allows some asylum seekers to move on past its borders into Hungary and Slovenia. (Washington Post)
European migrant crisis
- Italy rescues thousands of refugees in the Mediterranean Sea off the coast of Libya. (Al-Jazeera)
- A five-year-old Syrian girl dies and several other refugees are missing after their boat sinks in the Aegean Sea near the Greek island of Lesbos. The Greek Coast Guard says it rescued 11 people from the boat carrying 26 people. (AFP via Asian Age),(Reuters)
Egypt’s new Cabinet is sworn in before President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, a week after the previous administration resigned following a corruption scandal, and a month before parliamentary elections. The 33-member body has 16 new ministers, including two women. Sherif Ismail, petroleum minister in the last cabinet, is the new prime minister. (Egyptian Streets), (Reuters)

Law and crime

1Malaysia Development Berhad scandal
- The Federal Bureau of Investigation launches an investigation of money laundering associated with the 1Malaysia Development Berhad sovereign wealth fund. (Wall Street Journal)

Sports

2015 Rugby World Cup
- In what media called “the greatest shock in rugby history”, Japan defeat two-time World Cup champion South Africa 34–32 in Brighton. (ESPN (UK))
- In another result viewed as a surprise, Georgia defeat Tonga 17–10 in Gloucester. In the match, Georgia’s 18-year-old Vasil Lobzhanidze becomes the youngest player ever to appear in a Rugby World Cup match. (PA via ESPN (UK))

News from Wikipedia – please support this valuable resource

October 31, 2015

Top News Stories –

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

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

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

Video of the Day –

Adele – Hello

List of the Day –

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

Top Twitter Trends –

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

Other News Stories –

Armed conflicts and attacks

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

Business and economics

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

Disasters and accidents

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

International relations

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

Law and crime

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

Politics and elections

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

Science and technology

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

Sports

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

News from Wikipedia – please support this valuable resource

November 18, 2015

Top News Stories –

Jonah Lomu: New Zealand rugby union great dies aged 40 –
New Zealand rugby union great Jonah Lomu has died aged 40. Lomu, who scored 37 tries in 63 matches for New Zealand between 1994 and 2002, had been diagnosed with a rare and serious kidney condition by 1996. It forced him to quit the game and he had a kidney transplant in 2004, but the organ stopped functioning in 2011. Despite never winning the World Cup, he is the joint top try-scorer in its history – alongside South Africa wing Bryan Habana, scoring 15 tries in 11 games. He was at his best at the 1995 and 1999 World Cups, terrifying defensive lines with his speed and size – 192 cm tall (6 feet 4 inches) and weighing about 119 kilograms (18 stone 10 pounds). [BBC]
Jonah Lomu in 2014

Australian police search for men on park-bench vehicles –
Australian police are looking to identify a group of men filmed riding motorised park benches on public roads in Perth. Footage of the nine men casually rolling through an intersection in Scarborough on Sunday has gone viral. While witnesses said they were amused by the spectacle, police said there were real dangers involved. They said the men could face several charges, including driving an unlicensed and unroadworthy vehicle. “Police are concerned for the safety of those riding on the tables with no protective clothing, especially when on roads alongside motor vehicles,” Western Australian police said in a Facebook post. [BBC]

Video of the Day –

Can You Survive Only Eating Bacon?

Top Twitter Trends –

	Worldwide	USA	UK
1	Jonah Lomu	#LoveTheatreDay	Jonah Lomu
2	Mega Filmes HD	#IStillFacebookBecause	#OurDay
3	#SaintDenis	#IWouldSleepMoreBut	#LoveTheatreDay
4	#LaMateriaQueMasOdioEs	#SaintDenis	Ken Livingstone
5	#1DonGMA	David Beckham	#housingday
6	#SeVieneElVeranoY	#HungryGames	#BieberOnCapital
7	Kevin McHale	Kevin McHale	#PMQs
8	Hamza Hamzaoğlu	Taye Diggs	#GeordieShore
9	Carmen Lomana	#refugeeswelcome	Red Button
10	#السعاده_في_كل�…	#IKWYDLSoniTunes	#IKWYDLSAtMidnight

Other News Stories –

Armed conflicts and attacks

Moro conflict
- Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak condemns the Phillipine-based Abu Sayyaf’s beheading of a Malaysian man. Businessman Bernard Then and a woman were kidnapped in May from the Malaysia-island Sabah; the woman was released last week. Philippine Colonel Restituto Padilla said the killing followed a “failure of the negotiations about money.” (ABC) (BBC) (AFP via Yahoo) (International Business Times)
November 2015 Paris attacks, Islamic terrorism crisis in France
- At least two suspects die, including a female suicide bomber, and eight are arrested in a raid by French police in the Paris suburb of Saint-Denis. (CNN) (France 24) (AP) (NNC News)
- Abdelhamid Abaaoud, the ringleader of the Paris terrorist attacks, is killed during the Saint-Denis police raid, officials confirm. (Independent) (CNN)
- French prosecutor Bruce Robin says three Islamic State supporters stabbed a 56-year-old French Jew and history teacher in Marseille, France. The attackers were interrupted by a car and fled. The teacher’s wounds are not life-threatening. (International Business Times) (Time)
Boko Haram insurgency
- At least fifteen people are killed in a twin-suicide bombing of a mobile phone market in the northern Nigerian city of Kano. (BBC)
- Associated Press reports that Boko Haram was the world’s deadliest terrorist organisation in 2014 responsible for 6,664 deaths as compared to 6,073 for Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant. (BBC)
Syrian Civil War
- Russian military intervention in the Syrian Civil War
  - The Russian Air Force has destroyed around 500 fuel tanker vehicles used by ISIS and other extremist groups for transporting illegal oil from Syria to Iraq, according to Russian General Staff spokesman Andrey Kartapolov. (RT)
- The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights says a local 15-day ceasefire between Syrian rebels and government forces in the Eastern Ghouta area near Damascus will be announced shortly. (Reuters)
Two Bosnian Army soldiers are shot dead by a gunman inside a betting shop near their army barracks in the Bosnian capital, Sarajevo. The gunman committed suicide after police surrounded his house. (Reuters)
Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant
- The Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant says that it has killed a Chinese hostage and a Norwegian hostage. (AP via ABC News)
- Both the FBI and New York City police say they are aware of a newly released Islamic State video suggesting America’s most populous city is a potential target of attacks. The agencies said there were no specific threats, they will investigate, and will remain at a heightened state of vigilance. (Reuters)
- The United States warns travelers in Italy that St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome, the La Scala opera house in Milan, and the Milan Cathedral, as well as “general venues” like churches, synagogues, restaurants, theaters and hotels, have been identified as “potential targets” for terrorist attacks. The message added the Italian authorities are aware of these threats. (AP)

Art and culture

Ta-Nehisi Coates wins the National Book Award’s top prize for nonfiction for his bestselling depiction of America’s race problem, Between the World and Me. Adam Johnson’s Fortune Smiles took home the National Book Award for fiction. (The Guardian)

Business and economy

An auction for the acquisition of chipmaker PMC-Sierra continues, with a new bid by Microsemi Corp., topping the previous bid from Skyworks Solutions. The latest bid values PMC at $2.3 billion. (Reuters)
Reuters reports the U.S. Treasury Department will clamp down further on corporate income tax-avoiding inversion deals by U.S. companies with foreign rivals. A major inversion deal is in the works between U.S. drug maker Pfizer Inc. and smaller Irishcompetitor Allergan, Plc. (Reuters)
Airport workers at seven of the busiest U.S. hubs plan to strike tonight and Thursday over bad wages and threats against unionizing. The Service Employees International Union (SEIU) says some 2,000 plane cleaners, baggage handlers and other workers will strike at New York City’s Kennedy and LaGuardia airports, as well as Newark Liberty, Chicago O’Hare, Boston, Philadelphia and Fort Lauderdale. (Reuters) (Philly Voice)

Disasters and accidents

2015–16 UK and Ireland windstorm season
- Some 25,000 households in Ireland lose power as a result of Storm Barney. (Independent Ireland)
2015–16 Australian bushfire season
- Four people, including three German backpackers, are confirmed dead in southern Western Australia near the town of Esperance as a result of bushfires burning out of control. (ABC News Australia)
An explosion at a steelworks plant in Cardiff, South Wales leaves two people dead and five injured. (BBC)

International relations

APEC Philippines 2015, Territorial disputes in the South China Sea
- U.S. President Barack Obama calls on China to stop constructing artificial islands in the South China Sea. Obama’s comments to reporters came after a meeting with Philippine President Benigno S. Aquino III. The U.S. president is in Manila for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit where the Trans-Pacific Partnership is the central topic of conversation. China attempts to keep the topic of the islands off the agenda. (New York Times)(The Diplomat)
U.S. and Cuban officials sign an environmental accord in Havana, the first such agreement since the countries renewed diplomatic relations this summer. (UPI)

Law and crime

Sweden‘s terror threat level is raised to ‘high’ for the first time in history, as national security service Säpo says that police are hunting a suspected terrorist. (Local)
Washington College, on the U.S. Delmarva Peninsula, closes until Sunday, November 30, as police search for an upset, potentially armed student who just returned to campus. His Pennsylvania high school is on alert. (WBAL) (Washington Post) (NBC 10)

Politics and elections

Police in the Democratic Republic of the Congo fire teargas at students protesting increases in school fees in the capital Kinshasa, The students had started throwing stones. (ENCA)
Glen Casada, a top Republican Tennessee lawmaker who is the chair of the state’s House Republican Caucus suggests activating the Tennessee National Guard to ’round up’ Syrian refugees and remove them from the southeastern state, saying “Tennessee is a sovereign state, if the federal government is forsaking the obligation to protect our citizens, we need to act”. (The Tennessean)

Sport

2015 FIFA corruption case
- Sergio Jadue resigns as the head of the Football Federation of Chile and travels to the United States to speak with the Federal Bureau of Investigation about corruption at FIFA. (AAP via Yahoo! News)

News from Wikipedia – please support this valuable resource

November 19, 2015

Top News Stories –

World’s second-largest diamond ‘found in Botswana’ –
The world’s second-largest gem quality diamond has been discovered in Botswana, the Lucara Diamond firm says. The 1,111-carat stone was recovered from its Karowe mine, about 500km (300 miles) north of the capital, Gaborone. It is the biggest diamond to be discovered in Botswana and the largest find in more than a century. The 3,106-carat Cullinan diamond was found in South Africa in 1905 and cut into nine separate stones, many of which are in the British Crown Jewels. [BBC]
copyright Lucara Diamond Corp.

Scientists have trained pigeons to diagnose breast cancer –
Doctors train for years in order to be able to correctly diagnose cancer – but could they soon be replaced by pigeons? Well, no. Obviously not. However, scientists have now discovered that pigeons are surprisingly adept when it comes to spotting cancerous cells. In a study led by Professor Richard Levenson of the University of California, pigeons were shown microscope images of breast tissue, and then rewarded with food if if they correctly pecked a coloured button that corresponded to either cancerous or healthy tissue. [Daily Telegraph]

Bangladesh: Government ‘mistakenly’ cuts off internet –
An internet shutdown in Bangladesh which lasted for more than an hour was a “mistake”, according to the authorities. Officials announced on Wednesday that access to Facebook, Viber and WhatsApp had all been blocked in the wake of a Supreme Court ruling upholding death sentences for two men convicted of war crimes. But the country’s Telecommunication Regulatory Commission says it accidentally cut off access to the internet across the whole country. The web blackout started at around 13:00 local time and lasted at least 75 minutes, according to the Bangladeshi newspaper The Daily Star. “We restored the internet as soon as we realised the mistake,” says Shahjahan Mahmood, the commission’s chairman. The messaging services were blocked as originally planned in order to maintain security, he says. [BBC]

Video of the Day –

Zoolander 2 Trailer – Paramount Pictures

Top Twitter Trends –

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1	#TemporaryFixProject	#InternationalMensDay	#InternationalMensDay
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4	#Empire	#SexyHolidays	Richie McCaw
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8	Luis Miguel	#LatinGRAMMY	#juniordoctors
9	#CosasQueTerminanMal	Abdelhamid Abaaoud	Peter Robinson
10	#DiaInternacionalDelHombre	Jimmy Butler	Birms

Other News Stories –

Armed conflicts and attacks

Killing of captives by ISIL
- China vows to “bring to justice” those responsible for executing one of its citizens after the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant said it had killed a Chinese hostage. China’s Foreign Ministry also confirms the hostage’s identity for the first time, naming him as Fan Jinghui. (Channel News Asia)
Metrojet Flight 9268
- According to the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant‘s official propaganda magazine, a “Schweppes bomb” was used to destroy the Russian airliner. (Reuters)
November 2015 Paris attacks
- The French National Assembly approves President François Hollande‘s request to extend the current state of emergency for three months. The Senate must still approve the measure. (NPR)
- U.S. officials say at least four of the Paris attackers were listed in a central counter-terrorism database maintained by the United States Intelligence Community. (Reuters) (UPI)
- United States authorities report dozens of suspected radicals in the U.S. are under “tight surveillance” to preclude a Paris copycat. Federal officials are aware of a possible second ISIL video threatening Washington, D.C. Again, no credible plot has been identified. The U.S. beieves this is a part of a propaganda campaign to scare the American public. (ABC News)
Israeli–Palestinian conflict (2015)
- A Palestinian kills three people, including an American student and another Palestinian, and injures four others, after opening fire at Israeli cars and then ramming his vehicle into a group of pedestrians, injuring several more near Alon Shvut in the West Bank. (The Times of Israel)
- A Palestinian kills two men and wounds another outside an office building synagogue in southern Tel Aviv. (Ynet), (The Times of Israel)
A gunman shoots dead two Saudi Arabian policemen while they are on patrol in their vehicle in Saihat, located in Saudi Arabia’s restive Eastern Province, which is predominantly Shia. (BBC)
U.S. Border Patrol agents apprehend five Pakistani nationals and one Afghan national trying to sneak into Arizona through the Mexico-U.S. border. (Fox 10 Phoenix)

Arts and culture

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development reports more than 500,000 people – a quarter of them children – were homeless this year amid scarce affordable housing across much of the nation. Los Angeles, Seattle, Portland, Oregon, andHawaii all recently declared emergencies over the rise of homelessness. (Reuters)
16th Annual Latin Grammy Awards
- The Latin Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences members present the Latin Grammy Awards at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Paradise, Nevada. (newser)
  - “Hasta la Raíz” wins Song of the Year and Record of the Year. (ABC News)
  - Todo Tiene Su Hora performed by Juan Luis Guerra wins Album of the Year. (Miami Herald)

Business and economy

The World Economic Forum in its annual Global Gender Gap Report says that it would take 118 years before women and men have equal pay for similar occupations, such as white collar jobs. (BBC), (The Huffington Post), (The Guardian)
The New York State Department of Financial Services fines Barclays $150m (£98.2m) for the way it treated its foreign exchange customers. (The Guardian)

Health and medicine

In connection with World Toilet Day, the United Nations reports that 2.4 billion people lack adequate sanitation, and nearly one billion have no toilet facilities and are forced to relieve themselves in areas without facilities. (AP)
The U.S. clears genetically-modified salmon for human consumption. (Reuters)
The American Medical Association urges Congress and/or the FDA to ban direct-to-consumer advertising of prescription drugs and medical devices. The AMA says that the ads increase demand for inappropriate, expensive treatments even if cheaper ones have the same potentials. (The Washington Post), (The Science Times)

International relations

APEC Philippines 2015
- Asia-Pacific leaders, in the Philippines for the 2015 Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) meeting, which has been overshadowed by the concurrent Paris attacks, call on governments to urgently increase cooperation in the fight against terrorism.(AP)
- Local labor and farmer groups protest in Manila over talks on inclusive growth during the APEC meeting. (The Economic Times)
A Pew Research Center report finds, from 2009 to 2014, more Mexicans, including unauthorized immigrants, are leaving the United States than entering it. An increasing share of Mexicans says life north of the border is neither better nor worse than life in Mexico. (Reuters)
The United Nations General Assembly humanitarian committee adopts, by a 112-19 vote with 50 abstentions, a resolution that condemns North Korea for gross violations of human rights and supports referring the country and its leaders to the International Criminal Court in The Hague. The resolution will be sent to the full General Assembly, where it is expected to pass, given the committee vote. (Reuters via CBS News) (UPI)
The United States State Department expresses deep frustration over the lack of democratic progress in Thailand after last year’s military coup, saying a new constitution there won’t pass the “smell test” unless civil society helps to draft it. (AP) (US Dept of State)

Law and crime

A court sentences former restaurant spokesperson Jared Fogle to over 15 years imprisonment for sex with minors and the possession of child pornography. (NPR)
Convictions for sex offenses against minors accounts for the largest group of military inmates in U.S. military prisons. (AP via The Star Tribune)
Israeli agent Jonathan Pollard, a former U.S. intelligence analyst convicted to a life sentence for providing top secret classified information to Israel, will be released on parole Friday after serving 30 years in U.S. federal prison. He will be given an ankle monitor while he completes five years of parole in America. (CNN) (AP) (Jerusalem Post)

Politics and elections

2015 United Nations Climate Change Conference
- A mass rally due to be held on November 29, 2015 in Paris on the eve of climate change talks is called off due to the threat of terrorism. (ABC News)
Peter Robinson announces he will step down as Northern Ireland‘s First Minister and as leader of the Democratic Unionist Party, corresponding with recent tensions in the area and a murder linked with the Irish Republican Army. (ITV News)
The U.S. House of Representatives, defying a veto-threat by President Barack Obama, overwhelmingly passes legislation to suspend the Obama administration’s program to admit 10,000 Syrian and Iraqi refugees into the country. The bill will now face a vote in the U.S. Senate. (Reuters)

News from Wikipedia – please support this valuable resource

November 20, 2015

Top News Stories –

Indian Railways holds disabled recruitment drive on top floor – with no lifts –
A bid to recruit more disabled employees to work on India’s railways has ended in farce after test centres were set up on the top floors of buildings with no lifts or ramps. Many candidates who arrived at recruitment offices across India on Thursday either had to be carried or drag themselves up the stairs to their designated computers. Some were forced to abandon their applications entirely. [Daily Telegraph]

Vengeful surfer vows to eat the shark that bit him –
Don’t get on the wrong side of Allen Engelman – he has exacted the ultimate revenge on a shark that bit him. The Florida surfer was bitten by a shark, so the next day went out on a vengeful hunt. He killed a shark which he believes to be the same one that bit him. Not only did he kill it, but he now vows to eat it in order to punish the animal for the bite inflicted upon him. The surfer received 15 stitches, and from then on he was hell-bent on revenge. Him and his five-year-old son went back to the beach the following day and caught a shark with the same markings as the one which bit him. [Daily Telegraph]

New York follows UK in banning ‘hoverboards’ in public places –
New York has become the latest city to ban self-balancing scooters, known as “hoverboards”, warning that anyone caught riding them in public places could face a fine of up to $500. The two-wheeled electric vehicles, which use gyroscope technology to keep the rider upright, have exploded in popularity over the last few months – with celebrities including Justin Bieber, Chris Brown, Lily Allen and Jamie Foxx all spotted riding them. However, according to the the New York City Police Department, hoverboards are prohibited by New York state law since they are considered “motor vehicles that cannot be registered with the Department of Motor Vehicles”. [Daily Telegraph] October 21 2015 was the Back to the Future Day that featured real hoverboards

Video of the Day –

Blue Hue
Blue Hue

Top Twitter Trends –

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8	#Mali	#HappyBirthdayMichael	Eddie Jones
9	Hayırlı Cumalar	#TDOR	Katie Hopkins
10	#DosPalabras	Tyga	Baker Street

Other News Stories –

Armed conflicts and attacks

Military intervention against ISIL
- Cyprus offers France the use of its airbase facilities to bomb the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant in Syria. Cypriot airbases are being used by British and Canadian air forces. (The Guardian)
Russian military intervention in the Syrian Civil War
- Russian warships launch cruise missiles from the Caspian Sea against Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant positions in Syria‘s eastern Deir ez-Zor. Russian Defense Minister, Sergey Shoigu, reported over 600 terrorists were killed in the strikes. Video footage also emerged of Russian ground crew servicemen writing the words “For Paris” on bombs to be dropped on ISIL targets in a show of solidarity with France in the wake of the November 13 terror attacks that left 130 people dead in Paris. (RT)(Sky News)
2015 Bamako hotel attack
- Ten gunmen storm the five-star Radisson Blu Hotel in the Malian capital Bamako, taking 170 hostages with at least 27 people killed. The grenade-toting assailants free captives who are able to recite the Quran. The hotel is “often used” by Air Francestaff. (France 24), (NBC News), (The New York Daily News), (Reuters via Yahoo! News)
- Mali security forces launch an assault on the gunmen and all surviving hostages are freed. (UPI) (BBC)
- Mali declares a 10-day state of emergency following the attack. (i24 News)
- African militant jihadist organization Al-Murabitoun and al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) claim responsibility. (CNN) (Reuters).
Xinjiang conflict
- Chinese security forces have killed 28 members of a supposed terrorist group in the mainly ethnic Uyghur Xinjiang region. (BBC)
November 2015 Paris attacks
- Officials report three people died in the Saint-Denis raid. The body of a second woman is found at the apartment where a woman and Paris attacks ringleader Abdelhamid Abaaoud were killed. (Sky News)
- The French Senate approves President François Hollande’s request to extend the state of emergency until the end of February 2016. The National Assembly passed the three-month extension yesterday. (AP) (Radio France Internationale)
- Fugitive ISIS gunman Salah Abdeslam called three friends saying he is hiding in the Brussels area and is desperately trying to get to ISIS territory in Syria. He said local ISIS members are unhappy with him since he failed to detonate his suicide vest. His brother Mohamed Abdeslam has publicly pleaded with Salah to turn himself in. (ABC News)
A newly released ISIS video threatens attacks on the White House in the U.S., monuments in France, U.S. President Obama, French President François Hollande, and targets in Italy. (Reuters) (CNN)
Yemeni Civil War (2015)
- Two attacks on security checkpoints by ISIS militants in Yemen‘s historic Shibam town and Al Qatn District in the central Hadhramaut Governorate leave at least 15 pro-Hadi government soldiers dead. (The National)

Art and culture

A New York City businesswoman, who wanted to bring a “grander scale” to her yearly charitable giving, bought a toy store’s entire inventory to donate to homeless kids. (UPI)
The world’s second-largest diamond of gem quality, Karowe AK6, is found in the Karowe mine located north of the Botswanan capital Gaborone by the Lucara Diamond Corp. The 1,111-carat diamond is second only to the 3,106-carat Cullinan diamond (Star of Africa) found in South Africa in 1905. (Forbes)

Business and economy

Britain’s National Union of Journalists announces a strike against the Financial Times, protesting the changes in pension arrangements since the acquisition of the FT by a Japanese media group, Nikkei. (BBC)

International relations

European migrant crisis
- Macedonia, Serbia, Croatia, and Slovenia shut their borders to so-called economic migrants, those not coming from war-torn countries such as Syria, Afghanistan, or Iraq, leaving thousands stranded at Balkan border crossings. Around 500 migrants fromIran, Morocco, and Algeria gather on the border between Greece and Macedonia to protest the closure. (The Irish Independent)
- European Union ministers, in light of the attacks in Paris last week, gather in Brussels for an emergency security summit on the need to strengthen border checks on travelers. (AFP via NDTV)
- French Prime Minister Manuel Valls said some of the Paris attackers exploited Europe’s refugee crisis to “slip in” to France unnoticed. Valls warns the passport-free Schengen zone is at risk if Europe fails to “take responsibility” over border controls. (Sky News)
North Korea–South Korea relations
- North Korea and South Korea agree to hold talks next week. (Yonhap)

Law and crime

Sweden‘s national security service Säpo are questioning terrorist suspect Moder Mothama Magid, a 22-year-old Iraqi, who is accused of planning to launch a terror attack on the Swedish capital Stockholm. (Local)
The family of Swedish diplomat Raoul Wallenberg, who saved tens of thousands of Jews from the Holocaust only to languish in a Russian prison, have asked authorities to officially declare him dead. (Times of Israel)
The United States releases on parole convicted Israeli spy Jonathan Pollard, a former U.S. intelligence analyst, who served 30 years in federal prison. His parole, approved on July 28, 2015, is for five years during which time he has to remain in the United States. A supporter said Pollard will have a curfew and will wear a GPS unit. (The Globe and Mail) (The Globe and Mail-2)
- Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Pollard’s lawyers, two Democratic members of Congress from New York, Eliot Engel and Jerrold Nadler, and others have requested Pollard be able to travel immediately to Israel so he can live with his family. The White House has said it has no intention of altering the conditions of Pollard’s parole. (The Globe and Mail)
The U.S. Justice Department files criminal charges against three individuals and three companies–Black Elk, Grand Isle Shipyard and oil field services company Wood Group–in connection with a 2012 oil platform incident in the Gulf of Mexico that left three workers dead. The charges range from manslaughter to violations of the federal Clean Water Act. (UPI)
USPlabs and S.K. Laboratory are indicted following a U.S. Department of Justice investigation finds synthetic ingredients manufactured in China were added to workout boosters and weight-loss products the firms claimed to be natural. Supplements from these companies were previously implicated in consumer illnesses and death. Several other defendants from the companies face additional charges. (Military Times)

Politics and elections

New Zealand flag referendum
- The first stage of the voting process to potentially select a new flag of New Zealand starts. (BBC)

Science and technology

NASA orders its first commercial crew mission from private company SpaceX. (The Verge)
A jury in a Texas federal court finds for Apple Inc., in a lawsuit brought against Apple by a subsidiary of Pendrell Corporation. Pendrell has charged that Apple infringed patents on techniques that help restrict the use of web content to authorized persons, i.e.anti-piracy software. (Reuters)

Sport

Russian pole vaulter Yelena Isinbayeva, who has two Olympic gold medals and 30 world records, told Sky News she is going to fight for what she believes to be her right to compete at the 2016 Olympics. She calls on the IAAF, at the world governing track and field organization’s annual meeting on 26 November, to rescind their ban on clean Russian athletes. (Sky News)
In association football, Corinthians win their sixth Campeonato Brasileiro Série A title with four games remaining of the season. (Yahoo! via AFP)

News from Wikipedia – please support this valuable resource

February 20, 2016

Top News Stories –

Brendon McCullum: New Zealand captain breaks fastest Test century record –
New Zealand captain Brendon McCullum scored the fastest ever Test century in a majestic display against Australia on the first day of the second Test. The 34-year-old needed just 54 balls to reach his 12th century in his 101st and final Test before retiring. It beat the mark of 56 balls set by West Indies great Sir Viv Richards against England in 1986, and equalled by Pakistan’s Misbah-ul-Haq in 2014. “I was trying to hit every ball for four or six,” said McCullum. “Viv was my idol growing up, he was an incredible cricketer. I’m almost a little bit of embarrassed to go past him, to be honest.” He went on to score 145 off of 79 balls. [BBC] See List of the Day

Video of the Day –

Every Best Visual Effects Winner. Ever. from Burger Fiction on Vimeo.

List of the Day –

Fastest Test Centuries [from Wikipedia]

**Fastest Test centuries**
No. of balls	Player	Opponent	Venue	Season
54	Brendon McCullum†	Australia	Hagley Oval, Christchurch	2015–16
56	Viv Richards	England	Antigua Recreation Ground, St. John’s	1985–86
56	Misbah-ul-Haq	Australia	Sheikh Zayed Cricket Stadium, Abu Dhabi	2014
57	Adam Gilchrist	England	WACA Ground, Perth	2006–07
67	Jack Gregory	South Africa	Old Wanderers, Johannesburg	1921–22
Last updated: 20 February 2016^[

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Armed conflicts and attacks

Libyan Civil War (2014–present)
- Two Serbian embassy staff abducted in Libya in November 2015 are believed to have been among dozens killed in yesterday’s U.S. airstrike on a ISIL camp in Sabratha, according to Serbia’s Foreign Minister Ivica Dačić. (Reuters)
- At least 14 people are killed and 32 wounded in battles in the eastern city of Benghazi, most in the Boatni neighborhood, between the Libyan National Army and Islamist militants. (Reuters)
Yemeni Civil War (2015–present)
- Al-Qaeda militants take control of the southern Yemeni town of Ahwar in the Abyan Governorate. (Reuters)
War in Afghanistan (2015–present)
- A United States Air Force operated MQ-9 Reaper drone crashes at the Kandahar Airfield in southern Afghanistan. (RT)

Arts and culture

Italian refugee documentary Fire at Sea, directed by Gianfranco Rosi, wins the 66th Berlin International Film Festival’s Golden Bear award for best film. (Variety)

Disasters and accidents

2015–16 South Pacific cyclone season
- Cyclone Winston
  - Hundreds of evacuation centres are activated in Fiji as Cyclone Winston makes landfall in Fiji‘s outer islands and heads towards islands with higher population. (ABC News Australia)
  - A curfew of 6pm is introduced with power out in many areas of Fiji. (ABC)
  - A “state of natural disaster” is declared for the next 30 days with Cyclone Winston classified as the strongest storm on record in the Southern Hemisphere. (Slate)

International relations

Syrian Civil War peace process
- The main Syrian opposition group says a temporary truce is possible if the Syrian government’s allies, including Russia, “halt all fighting” in the war-torn country. A pause in Russian bombardments appears unlikely. (Reuters) (Voice of America)

Law and crime

Jat protesters shut down 70% of Delhi‘s water supply meaning the Indian city could run out of water by the end of the weekend. At least nine people are killed in fighting. (The Times of India), (BBX)
Calais migrant crisis
- French authorities give up to 1000 migrants, mostly Syrians and Iraqis, until 8pm local time on 23 February to leave the Calais jungle camp. Those who refuse to leave will be forcibly removed by police.(Sky News)
2016 Kalamazoo shootings
- Seven people are killed and another injured in multiple shooting incidents in Kalamazoo County in the American state of Michigan. A 45-year-old man was later arrested in the city of Kalamazoo (RT),(Press Association via Irish Independent)
A planned refugee shelter is set on fire in Bautzen, eastern Germany. (Deutsche Welle)

Politics and elections

United States presidential election, 2016.
- Voters in the American state of Nevada take part in Democratic Party caucuses, with Hillary Clinton winning against Bernie Sanders. (Fox News) (NBC News)
- Voters in the American state of South Carolina go to the polls for the South Carolina primary for the Republican Party with Donald Trump winning and Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio in a close race for second.(2016 Election Central), (CNN), (AP via Boston Globe)
- Former Governor of Florida Jeb Bush suspends his campaign following a disappointing finish in the South Carolina primary. (NBC News)
China’s State Council announces that Liu Shiyu, who had been chairman of the Agricultural Bank of China Limited, will replace Xiao Gang as head of the China’s Securities Regulatory Commission.(Reuters) (China Daily)
Ugandan general election, 2016
- The President of Uganda Yoweri Museveni is declared the winner of the Presidential election with 60% of the vote. European Union observers state that the election was held in an “intimidating atmosphere”. (NPR)

News from Wikipedia – please support this valuable resource

March 20, 2016

Top News Stories –

Star Wars beats Mad Max at Empire awards –
Sci-fi blockbuster Star Wars: The Force Awakens trumped Mad Max: Fury Road at this year’s Empire Awards, winning five awards to the latter’s four. The Force Awakens was named best sci-fi/fantasy and was also honoured for its visual effects, director JJ Abrams and stars John Boyega and Daisy Ridley. Fury Road was recognised for its make-up, costumes, soundtrack and production design at the central London event. But neither title took home the best film award, which went to The Revenant. Matt Damon was on hand to accept his best actor award for The Martian, while Sweden’s Alicia Vikander won best actress for The Danish Girl. [BBC]
Matt Damon

Eddie Izzard completes Sport Relief marathons challenge –
Comedian Eddie Izzard has completed his challenge in South Africa to run 27 marathons in 27 days for Sport Relief. The 54-year-old needed to run a double marathon on Sunday to complete his challenge beneath a statue of Nelson Mandela, in Pretoria. Izzard attempted a similar feat in South Africa in 2012 but had to pull out for health reasons. The comedian’s endurance feat raised more than £1.35m. The 2016 Sport Relief total stands at £56,984,007. “That was very, very tough,” Izzard told reporters as he swigged from a celebratory bottle of sparkling white wine. The 27 marathons were intended to reflect the 27 years Mr Mandela had spent in prison before becoming South Africa’s first black president. [BBC]
Eddie Izzard

Video of the Day –

If The World Were 100 People | GOOD Data

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Armed conflicts and attacks

March 2016 Istanbul bombing
- Turkish authorities name a Turkish man with alleged ties to the Islamic State responsible for this weekend’s suicide bombing in Istanbul. (The Washington Post)

Business and economics

The United States-based Sherwin-Williams Company agrees to acquire rival U.S. paint company Valspar Corporation in an all-cash deal valued at about $9.3 billion (8.2 billion euros). (Reuters)

Disasters and accidents

Thirteen are killed and 34 others injured after a bus carrying Erasmus exchange students returning from the renowned Falles fireworks festival in Valencia, crashes near Freginals, Spain. The regional government of Catalonia said in a statement that, “… according to the latest data, the ill-fated bus had students from Hungary, Germany, Sweden, Norway, Switzerland, Czech Republic, United Kingdom, Italy,Peru, Bulgaria, Poland, Ireland, Japan, Ukraine, Holland, Belgium, France, Palestine, Turkey, (and) Greece.” (The Independent) (Euronews) (AP via Bloomberg)
A 6.6 magnitude earthquake strikes off the eastern coast of Kamchatka Peninsula in Russia‘s Far East. Shaking was felt throughout large parts of the peninsula, but there were no immediate reports of damage or casualties. (BNO News)
An Indonesian military helicopter crash shortly after takeoff from Poso kills 13 passengers. Their mission was to try to capture Indonesia’s most wanted militant, Abu Wardah Santoso, leader of the Islamic State affiliate East Indonesia Mujahidin network. (AP)

International relations

United States–Cuban Thaw
- U.S. President Barack Obama and the First Family begin their three-day visit to Havana, Cuba, to mark the end of 54 years of tensions in Cuba–United States relations. Obama is the first sitting U.S. president to visit the country since Calvin Coolidge in 1928. (Havana Times) (Jamaica Observer)
- Before the President’s arrival, Cuban authorities arrest more than 50 Ladies in White human rights activists. The group marches after every Sunday Mass at a church in the Miramar suburb of Havana, and usually get arrested and detained for hours or days. They had hoped President Obama’s visit would change that routine. (USA Today) (Havana Times)

Law and crime

A retired Pennsylvania state trooper’s attempted robbery of a fare collection vehicle at the Pennsylvania Turnpike’s Fort Littleton toll plaza, 65 miles west of the capital Harrisburg, results in three deaths — a toll collector, a security guard, and himself. (AP via ABC News)

Politics and elections

Former Prime Minister of Denmark Anker Jørgensen (1972-1973 and 1975-1982) dies at the age of 93. (ABC)

Kazakhstani legislative election, 2016
- Voting is underway in today’s parliamentary election in the former Soviet republic. President Nursultan Nazarbayev’s Nur Otan party is expected to win easily, and retain control of the 107-seat Mazhilis, the lower house of parliament. The recent crackdown on political activists and media dims chances this election will be the first judged free and fair by Western observers. (AP via Sioux City Journal)(Townhall.com)

Laotian parliamentary election, 2016
- An election is held in Laos, with voter turnout expected to be low. The only legal party in Laos is the Lao People’s Revolutionary Party. (Vida Latina)

Republic of the Congo presidential election, 2016
- Voters in the Republic of the Congo go to the polls with current President Denis Sassou Nguesso expected to extend his 32-year rule. Telephone, internet and SMS services have been shut down in what has been called a “media blackout.” (Al Jazeera)

Beninese presidential election, 2016
- Voting for the second round of Benin’s election begins with current President Thomas Boni Yayi stepping down after completing two terms. (Townhall via Reuters)

Philippine presidential election, 2016
- The second leg of the presidential debates was held in Cebu City. AP via The Japan Times
Tanzanian general election, 2015
- A rerun of Zanzibar’s presidential election takes place amid an opposition boycott. The election originally occurred at the same time as Tanzania’s election in 2015 but was annulled because of supposed fraud. (Daily Nation)

Nigerien general election, 2016
- A run-off election begins in Niger with current President Mahamadou Issoufou highly favored to win as his main opponent Hama Amadou, who was earlier jailed, was flown out of the country for medical reasons. (Reuters)

Cape Verdean parliamentary election, 2016
- Voters in Cape Verde go to the polls for an election. (BBC)

Senegalese constitutional referendum, 2016
- A referendum is underway in Senegal where voters will vote on whether or not to reduce presidential term limits from seven to five years. Senegal’s referendum also calls for a strengthened National Assembly, better representation for Senegalese abroad, greater rights for the opposition and participation of independent candidates in elections among the 15 changes. (The Daily Star)

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June 1, 2016

Top News Stories –

European leaders open world’s longest rail tunnel in Switzerland –
The world’s longest rail tunnel, running for 35 miles (57km) under the Swiss Alps, has officially opened. The Swiss president, Johann Schneider-Ammann, said the tunnel, which it is hoped will ease transit through the heart of the continent, would “join the people and the economies” of Europe at a time of rising nationalism and border closures. He spoke before European leaders made a ceremonial first journey through the Gotthard base tunnel. Passengers included the German chancellor, Angela Merkel, the French president, François Hollande, and the Italian prime minister, Matteo Renzi. While the tunnel was entirely funded by Switzerland, a non-EU member, the bloc’s transport commissioner, Violeta Bulc, hailed it as “a godsend” for the continent. It runs from Erstfeld in the central Swiss canton of Uri, to Bodio in the southern Ticino canton. [The Guardian]

Video of the Day –

Gotthard base tunnel

List of the Day –

World’s longest tunnels (in use) [Wikipedia]

Name	Location	Length	Type	Year	Comment
Delaware Aqueduct	New York state, United States	137,000 m (85.1 mi)	Water supply	1945	4.1 m wide. New York City‘s main water supply tunnel, drilled through solid rock.
Päijänne Water Tunnel	Southern Finland, Finland	120,000 m (74.6 mi)	Water supply	1982	16 m² cross section
Dahuofang Water Tunnel	Liaoning Province, China	85,320 m (53.0 mi)	Water supply	2009	8 m in diameter (50m² cross section)
Orange–Fish River Tunnel	South Africa	82,800 m (51.4 mi)	Water supply	1972	Longest continuous enclosed aqueduct in the southern hemisphere (22.5 m²cross section)
Bolmen Water Tunnel	Kronoberg/Scania, Sweden	82,000 m (51.0 mi)	Water supply	1987	8 m²
Tunel Emisor Oriente	Mexico City, Mexico	62,500 m (38.8 mi)	Waterwaste	2006-2012	Water management in Greater Mexico City. Longest waterwaste tunnel.
Guangzhou Metro Line 3	Guangzhou, China	60,400 m (37.5 mi)Excl. branch	Metro	2005-2010	Guangzhou Metro. Longest metro/rapid transit tunnel; longest railway tunnel
Beijing Subway Line 10	Beijing, China	57,100 m (35.5 mi)	Metro	2008-2012	Beijing Subway
Gotthard Base Tunnel	Lepontine Alps, Switzerland	57,091 m (35.5 mi) or 57,017 m (35.4 mi)	Railway Twin Tube	2016	The longest railway tunnel excluding urban metro lines with intermediate stations. Two tubes (East 57,091 m (35.5 mi), West 57,017 m (35.4 mi)), 8.8–9.5 m (29–31 ft) diameter, (71m² cross section)
Seikan Tunnel	Tsugaru Strait, Japan	53,850 m (33.5 mi)	Railway Single Tube	1988	74 m²

Other News Stories –

Armed conflicts and attacks

Syrian Civil War
- United States-backed Syrian Democratic Forces begin an offensive to regain control of the city of Manbij in the Aleppo Governorate from ISIL. (Reuters via Trust)
Northern Mali conflict
- Four UN peacekeepers are killed in a suspected Al-Qaeda attack in northern Mali. (News Week) (CBC)
War in Somalia (2009–present)
- At least 16 people are killed and 55 injured in an attack on a hotel in Mogadishu, Somalia. Al-Shabaab claims responsibility. (Reuters) (CNN) (VOA News), (Reuters)
- The Pentagon announces the death of Abdullahi Haji Da’ud, a top Al-Shabaab commander, in an airstrike. (Washington Times) (FOX News)
Suspected Neo-Nazis attack people at a vegan cafe with slabs of meat in Tbilisi, Georgia. (Newsweek) (Miami Herald)

Business and economy

A committee of the United States House of Representatives is looking into the way the Federal Reserve Bank of New York investigated the theft of assets it was holding for the central bank of Bangladesh.(Reuters)
The Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund raises $3.5 billion for Uber. It is the largest single investment the company has ever received. (The New York Times)

Disasters and accidents

A gas explosion at a subway construction site near the South Korean capital Seoul kills four workers and injures ten more. (Yonhap)
EgyptAir Flight 804
- A French naval vessel detects a possible signal from the missing black box of EgyptAir Flight 804. (CNN) (The New York Times)
2016 Fort McMurray wildfire
- Residents return to Fort McMurray for the first time since May 1. A couple thousand firefighters, from as far away as South Africa, continue to battle the 5,800 square kilometer (3,603 square mile)Canadian blaze that has crossed the Alberta border into Saskatchewan. (Bloomberg)
Greg Abbott, the Governor of the US state of Texas, declares a disaster in 31 counties due to floods which have claimed several lives in recent days. (KVUE)
The U.S. Geological Survey reports a 6.5 magnitude earthquake 155 km (95 miles) from the West Sumatra port city of Padang in Indonesia at a depth of about 50 km (30 miles). There are no immediate reports of damage or injury. (Bloomberg) (Reuters)

International relations

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan warns Germany against recognizing the Armenian Genocide. (Reuters)
According to the Secretary General of NATO Jens Stoltenberg, defense spending by European member states will grow for the first time in a decade. Stoltenberg went on to say that “we are faced with uncertainty. We are faced with more threats, more security challenges, than in a generation”. (Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty)
Humanitarian aid during the Syrian Civil War
- A convoy carrying much-needed nutritional and medical aid reaches the besieged town Darayya, the first time since 2012. The only food delivered was baby milk. A 48-hour ceasefire for the town came into force today. (Reuters) (NPR) (BBC)
- The United Nations Security Council is exploring humanitarian air drops to besieged areas of Syria. (AP via The New York Times)
- Riad Hijab, coordinator of the opposition High Negotiations Committee, in a letter to United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon proposes a nationwide truce for the month of Ramadan which begins 6 June 2016. (Australian Associated Press via News.com.au)
The United Nations Security Council condemns North Korea’s failed ballistic missile test yesterday, as well as two other unsuccessful ones in April. (Reuters)

Law and crime

2016 UCLA shooting
- Two people are killed in a murder-suicide shooting at the University of California Los Angeles. Police report the campus is now safe. (USA Today) (LA Times) (The New York Times)
A man in Plano, Texas, stabs his girlfriend and posts her dead body to Facebook; the social media website does not remove the photograph for 36 hours. (The New York Times)
Thailand authorities discover the remains of 40 dead tiger cubs in a freezer at the Tiger Temple in the Sai Yok District of Kanchanaburi Province. The Theravada Buddhist temple is being investigated for wildlife trafficking. The Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation is in the process of removing 137 tigers from the monks’ custody. (New York Daily News) (Bangkok Post)
German police are investigating 26 sexual assault reports from this weekend’s Schlossgrabenfest music festival near Darmstadt. In one case, three women reported being groped by groups of men Saturday. Police have detained three Pakistani immigrants, and expect more reports following this announcement. (CNN) (UPI) (The Independent)
Richard Huckle, dubbed “Britain’s worst ever paedophile” after being convicted of 71 cases of rape and other sexual offences against up to 200 children, is being sentenced at The Old Bailey in London in a hearing expected to last 3 days. Huckle is facing up to 22 life sentences once the hearing concludes.(Sky News)

Science and technology

The world’s longest and deepest rail tunnel, the 57 km (35 miles) Gotthard Base Tunnel, opens in Switzerland. (CNN) (The New York Times)

Sport

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) executive board backs host Tokyo’s proposal to include baseball–softball, surfing, karate, sport climbing, and skateboarding in the 2020 Summer Olympics. The full IOC will vote on this in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, in August. (AP)

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August 14, 2016

Top News Stories –

Wayde van Niekerk wins Olympic 400m gold in a new world record! –
The South African produces an absolutely astonishing run to wrestle the Olympic title away from Kirani James, who comes second. Michael Johnson’s 17-year-old world record is finally beaten! He looked to have set out far too quickly but, incredibly, got faster around the top bend and then sustained that top speed down the final stretch. The 2008 Olympic champion, LaShawn Merritt, gets the bronze. To give you an idea of how incredible of an athlete Van Niekerk is; he’s the only athlete in history to run 100m under 10 secs, 200m under 20 secs, and 400m under 44 secs. [CNN] See List of the Day
Wayde van Niekerk

Video of the Day –

Vocabulary 1 from Becky James on Vimeo.

List of the Day –

Time	Athlete	Nationality	Location of race	Date
43.86A	Lee Evans	United States	Mexico City, Mexico	October 18, 1968^[1]
43.29	Butch Reynolds	United States	Zürich, Switzerland	August 17, 1988^[1]
43.18	Michael Johnson	United States	Seville, Spain	August 26, 1999^[1]
43.03	Wayde van Niekerk	South Africa	Rio de Janeiro, Brazil	August 14, 2016^[4]

Other News Stories –

Armed conflicts and attacks

Yemeni Civil War
- About 40 suspected Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula fighters are killed as Yemeni forces, aided by Saudi-led airstrikes, fight their way into Zinjibar and Jaʿār in eastern Yemen. (Reuters) (Daily Mail)
Syrian Civil War
- Russian and Syrian government jets conduct 26 airstrikes across Idlib province, killing 122 civilians. (The Washington Post)

Business and economy

Volkswagen emissions scandal
- Volkswagen gets approval from Germany’s motor vehicle authority for technical fixes on 460,000 cars. (Reuters)

Disasters and accidents

A wedding bus carrying over 50 passengers falls into a ravine in Azad Kashmir, killing at least 25 people and wounding 20 more. Many people are critically injured, with the death toll expected to increase.(Anadolu Agency)
2016 California wildfires
- 100 homes are destroyed and thousands of people are forced to leave due wildfire in Lower Lake, California. (WSJ)

Law and crime

American Olympic swimmers Ryan Lochte, Gunnar Bentz, Jack Conger and Jimmy Feigen are robbed at gunpoint in Rio de Janeiro by men posing as Brazilian police officers. (The New York Times)
HEI Hotels & Resorts, a firm that operates hotels for Hyatt, Intercontinental, Marriott, and Starwood, reports that malware designed to collect payment information was discovered on computers at 20 of their locations across the United States. (Reuters)
Sage, a British accounting software firm, reports a data breach; it is presently unclear what data was viewed or taken. (BBC)

Science and technology

SpaceX successfully launches Japanese communication satellite JCSAT-16 into geostationary orbit from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida. The Falcon 9 Full Thrust rocket used to place the satellite in orbit successfully landed on an autonomous spaceport drone ship in the Atlantic Ocean. (RT)

Sports

2016 Summer Olympics
- Athletics
  - Usain Bolt of Jamaica becomes the first man to win three gold medals in the men’s 100 metres. (CNN)
  - In the men’s 400 metres, Wayde van Niekerk of South Africa breaks the world record set in 1999 by Michael Johnson en route to winning South Africa’s first gold medal in a track event since 1928.(ESPN)
- In golf, England‘s Justin Rose, representing Great Britain, wins the first gold medal in the sport since 1904. (The New York Times)
- In tennis, Scotland‘s Andy Murray, representing Great Britain, defeats Argentine Juan Martín del Potro in the men’s singles final for his second consecutive gold medal in the event. Murray becomes the first male tennis player ever to win two Olympic gold medals, whether consecutively or not. (ESPN)

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The 2010s

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