Top News Stories –
One Direction to meet Leah Washington after Alton Towers crash –
The stars of One Direction have filmed a video message and offered to meet a teenage girl whose leg was amputated following a rollercoaster crash at Alton Towers. Leah Washington, 17, from Barnsley, South Yorkshire, was one of five people who suffered severe injuries on the Smiler ride on 2 June. A Twitter campaign – #Get1DToLeah – called for the pop band to contact her. Friends said Ms Washington would be “elated” at the news. [BBC]
Naked rambler Stephen Gough appears nude via video link from prison –
A man known as the naked rambler made legal history after appearing nude via prison video link at the Court of Appeal. Stephen Gough lost an appeal against a conviction for the breach of an Asbo. He appeared from Winchester Prison where he is serving a two-and-a-half-year sentence for breaching the order banning him from being naked in public. His counsel Matthew Scott argued Gough should have been allowed to appear naked at the original trial. Lady Justice Rafferty refused Gough’s appeal. Clive Coleman, the BBC’s legal affairs correspondent, said Gough, 56, almost certainly made legal history by appearing in his natural state.
Video of the Day –
The Martian – Official Trailer – 20th Century FOX
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Other News Stories –
- Armed conflicts and attacks
- Naxalite–Maoist insurgency
- Indian police kill at least 12 Naxalite Maoist rebels in a clash in the state of Jharkhand. (AP)
- Syrian Civil War
- The Southern Front of the Free Syrian Army claims to have captured a major Syrian Army base known as Brigade 52 in Daraa Governorate.(BBC)
- Business and economy
- HSBC announces plans to cut 8,000 jobs in the United Kingdom, one-sixth of its U.K. workforce, via “natural attrition” as it restructures its banking business. A total of 25,000 jobs could be axed globally. (BBC)
- Disasters and accidents
- Several firefighters are killed after an explosion at an oil depot near Kiev, Ukraine, with several people missing and hundreds evacuated. (Reuters UK), (AFP via Sydney Morning Herald)
- Law and crime
- At least four people have been killed (including the gunman) and five people injured following a shooting incident in China’s northern Hebeiprovince. (BBC)
- The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit upholds a Texan law providing that abortion clinics meet the same standards as hospital style surgical clinics meaning that many abortion clinics must upgrade or close. (New York Times)
- Politics and elections
- The Turkish cabinet led by current Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu submits its resignation, but is asked to stay on until a new government forms after the election. (AFP via France 24)
- Sports
- 2015 FIFA Women’s World Cup
- Two Brazilians reach historic milestones in the team’s 2–0 win over South Korea in Montreal. Marta sets a new record with her 15th goal inWomen’s World Cup play, and the 37-year-old Formiga becomes the oldest player to score in a Women’s World Cup. (ESPN)
- In Major League Baseball, Chris Heston of the San Francisco Giants becomes the first pitcher to throw a no-hitter in the 2015 season in the Giants’ 5–0 win over the New York Mets. (ESPN)
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