Jay Leno’s final Friday Tonight Show delivered its highest overnight rating in 15 months on Friday night, while Late Night With Jimmy Fallon generated its biggest metered-market household rating in nearly four years.
Jay Leno earned a 3.9 rating/9 share in the 56 metered-market households, the late-night talk show’s top results since Wednesday October 24, 2012, when President Barack Obama guested (4.0/10). It was the actually the highest Friday Tonight Show With Jay Leno rating since July 27, 2012, the night of the London Olympics Opening Ceremony (4.0/13).
Jimmy Fallon received a 2.2/7 in households on Friday, his highest rating in the markets metered by Nielsen since Friday, February 12, 2010, the night of the Vancouver Olympics Opening Ceremony (2.5/9).
Jay Leno welcomed animal expert Dave Salmoni and his lions on Friday night
Tim Allen, animal expert Dave Salmoni and musical guest Sara Bareilles were Jay Leno’s guests Friday night. As for Jimmy Fallon, he welcomed David Beckham, David Steinberg and musical guest Busta Rhymes with his house band The Roots.
Jay Leno’s final Tonight Show will air Thursday, February 6, with special guest Billy Crystal.
Billy Crystal was the very first Tonight Show guest 22 years ago when Jay Leno took over.
Jimmy Fallon’s final Late Night will be the following evening, Friday, February 7, when he will take a bow with pal Andy Samberg and the Muppets.
Jimmy Fallon takes over The Tonight Show on February 17, when his guests will be Will Smith and U2.
Seth Meyers takes over Late Night the following week, debuting with guest Amy Poehler.
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Leonid Kozhara and opposition leader Vitali Klitschko have clashed face to face at this year’s Munich Security Conference.
They appeared in a discussion, during which Vitali Klitschko showed Leonid Kozhara images of injuries he said were inflicted by the police on protesters.
Leonid Kozhara suggested some of the opposition were right-wing extremists.
Ukraine has been in turmoil since November, when it scrapped an EU accord in favor of a Russian bailout.
“The Ukrainian people have shown and have proven that they are able to defend their decision on Europe despite repressive measures being taken,” Vitali Klitschko said, the Associated Press reports.
Vitali Klitschko added that the opposition felt stronger because of the support from western friends of Ukraine.
Earlier, European Council President Herman Van Rompuy had said the “future of Ukraine belongs with the EU” while US Secretary of State John Kerry had said the US backed Ukraine’s “fight for democracy”.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov had accused Western countries of double standards over violent protests.
Foreign Minister Leonid Kozhara and opposition leader Vitali Klitschko have clashed face to face at this year’s Munich Security Conference
After Vitali Klitschko showed Leonid Kozhara the images he said were of the effects of police brutality, Kozhara replied by accusing some of the protesters of belonging to far-right groups.
“Are you with the extremist groups who wear some logos and emblems that looks like Nazi style emblems on them?” he asked Vitali Klitschko.
“Are you with the extremists who are attacking the police with Molotov cocktails?” he added.
On the issue of whether Ukraine should orient itself more towards the EU or Russia, Leonid Kozhara also pointed out that “there are eight million ethnic Russians living in the country”.
“Do you think they are happy when European politicians say: <<You must make a strategic choice, you must take Ukraine away from Russia and put it somewhere else>>?”
The issue of Ukraine protester Dmytro Bulatov was also raised at the conference.
Dmytro Bulatov went missing for eight days and said he had been kidnapped and tortured by captors who spoke with Russian accents.
The activist is now in hospital in Kiev under guard from both police and anti-government demonstrators.
Leonid Kozhara told Al-Jazeera television: “Physically this man is in a good condition. The only thing he has is a scratch on one of his cheeks.”
He went on to say it seemed that Dmytro Bulatov’s claim to have been kidnapped and tortured was “not absolutely true”.
However, the foreign ministry later issued a statement saying his comments “do not reflect the real attitude of Minister Kozhara on this tragic situation”.
“The minister is profoundly sorry for what happened to Dmytro Bulatov and wishes him a speedy recovery.”
The Thai polling has now ended in a general election boycotted by the opposition and blighted by protests.
Anti-government activists forced some polling stations in Bangkok and the south to close but a large majority elsewhere were said to be peaceful.
Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra called the vote to head off weeks of mass protests aimed at forcing her to resign.
Her party is widely expected to win but legal challenges and a lack of a quorum of MPs may create a political limbo.
Yingluck Shinawatra, who won the last election in 2011, voted soon after polls opened on Sunday near her Bangkok home.
Her opponents took to the streets in November after her government tried to pass an amnesty law that would potentially have allowed her brother, Thaksin Shinawatra, to return from exile.
Thaksin Shinawatra, a former prime minister who fled during a court case in 2008, is reviled by the protesters, who say he controls the government from abroad.
Security has been heavy throughout Thailand, with vast areas under a state of emergency because of the protests.
“The situation overall is calm and we haven’t received any reports of violence this morning,” National Security Council chief Paradorn Pattanatabutr told Reuters.
Security officials said about 130,000 personnel had been deployed across Thailand on Sunday, including 12,000 in Bangkok.
Yingluck Shinawatra, who won the last election in 2011, voted soon after polls opened on Sunday near her Bangkok home
There has been little campaigning for the election and it was unclear how many Thais had turned out.
Voting in 13 of Bangkok’s 33 constituencies, and in 37 of 56 constituencies in the south was disrupted.
These are strongholds of the opposition Democrat Party, which is boycotting the election.
Some voters expressed frustration when they found their local polling stations blocked.
One high-profile politician, independent candidate and anti-corruption campaigner Chuwit Kamolvisit, brawled with anti-election activists.
“They tried to attack me while I was trying to vote,” he said.
Polling in the rural north and east, where Yingluck Shinawatra’s Pheu Thai party has overwhelming support, was largely unaffected.
“Today is an important day,” Yingluck Shinawatra said as she voted.
“I would like to invite Thai people to come out and vote to uphold democracy.”
However, disruption to candidate registration means that even if she wins, there will not be enough MPs in parliament for Yingluck Shinawatra to have full power over government policy, and by-elections will be needed.
The opposition is also likely to mount legal challenges to the election.
Yingluck Shinawatra’s party is already facing a host of challenges in the courts aiming to disband it, as has happened with pro-Thaksin parties in the past.
The Democrat Party, which is allied to the protesters, has been unable to win a majority in parliament for more than two decades.
Many of its members want the government to be replaced by an unelected “people’s council” that would oversee wide reform of the political system.
Trouble broke out in Bangkok on Saturday in a violent clash between pro- and anti-government groups.
A gun battle erupted in the Lak Si constituency as anti-government protesters blockaded a building storing ballot papers. At least seven people were wounded.
The costs of Jodi Arias’ trial have topped $2 million, a tab being footed by Arizona taxpayers that will only continue to climb with a new penalty phase set for March, officials said.
Jodi Arias, 33, was convicted of Travis Alexander murder in May, but the jury couldn’t reach a verdict on her sentence. Prosecutors are now pursuing a second penalty phase with a new jury in an effort to get the death penalty. Trial is set for March 17.
The former waitress has been held in jail in Maricopa County awaiting her fate while her legal bills continue to mount.
As of Monday, the county had paid $2,150,536.42 for Jodi Arias’ court-appointed attorneys, expert witnesses and other costs associated with her case, Maricopa County spokeswoman Cari Gerchick told The Associated Press.
Maricopa County had paid $2,150,536.42 for Jodi Arias’ court-appointed attorneys, expert witnesses and other costs associated with her case
Maricopa County Attorney Bill Montgomery has refused to provide a tally of how much it has cost to prosecute the case, citing a court order that attorneys not discuss Jodi Arias-related matters.
Jodi Arias admitted she killed her boyfriend, Travis Alexander, in 2008 at his suburban Phoenix home but claimed it was self-defense.
Prosecutors argued it was premeditated murder carried out in a jealous rage when Travis Alexander wanted to end their affair.
The case captured headlines worldwide and became a cable television staple while every minute of the trial was broadcast live. This time around, the judge will be limiting media coverage in hopes of avoiding the same publicity. There will be no live video coverage of the second penalty phase, and electronic devices will be banned, meaning reporters won’t be able to provide real-time updates via Twitter as occurred during Jodi Arias’ first trial.
Under Arizona law, while Jodi Arias’ murder conviction stands, prosecutors have the option of putting on a second penalty phase with a new jury.
If the second panel fails to reach a unanimous decision, the death penalty will automatically be removed from consideration, and the judge will sentence Jodi Arias to spend her entire life behind bars or be eligible for release after 25 years.
Michigan State University student Dominique Nolff has died after he and another student were attacked by a gunman in their apartment near the school’s campus.
Dominique Nolff, 20, was pronounced dead at 9:23 a.m. Saturday from multiple gunshot wounds, East Lansing police say.
The second shooting victim, also 20, has been treated and released from a hospital.
Michigan State University student Dominique Nolff has died after he and another student were attacked by a gunman in their apartment near the school’s campus
Officers were called about 8:50 p.m. Friday to a report of a shooting at the Cedar Village apartment complex. Dominique Nolff and the other student were found inside one of the apartments.
Dominique Nolff was from Middleville. The other victim is a Grand Haven resident.
According to East Lansing police, the suspect being sought was believed to be in his 20s and the shooting “does not appear to be a random act”.
A Miami Beach police officer is under investigation for attempting to take a photograph of Justin Bieber while he was in custody on DUI and other charges.
Sgt. Bobby Hernandez confirmed Friday that a female officer is being investigated for possible conduct unbecoming an officer.
Punishments can range from a verbal reprimand to termination. The officer’s name wasn’t released.
A Mimi Beach officer attempted to photograph Justin Bieber while he was in a temporary holding cell
Justin Bieber, 19, was arrested January 23 during what police describe as an illegal street drag race. In addition to DUI, Justin Bieber was charged with resisting arrest and having an invalid driver’s license. The singer has pleaded not guilty.
Police say the officer attempted to photograph Justin Bieber while he was in a temporary holding cell, and a higher-ranking officer intervened to stop the attempt.
Jesse Eisenberg will play villain Lex Luthor in the upcoming Superman vs. Batman film, Warner Brothers has announced.
Jesse Eisenberg, 30, is most famous for his Oscar-nominated performance as Mark Zuckerberg in The Social Network.
Superman vs. Batman, which will also star Henry Cavill and Ben Affleck, is due out in 2016.
The film is being directed by Zac Snyder, who worked on the Superman reboot TheMan Of Steel.
The Man of Steel, released in 2013, took the Superman franchise back to its start.
Jesse Eisenberg will play villain Lex Luthor in the upcoming Superman vs. Batman film
The movie was a financial success, taking more than $660-million at the worldwide box office.
Henry Cavill will reprise his role as Superman, with Ben Affleck starring as Batman.
Speaking about the latest casting news, director Zac Snyder said Jesse Eisenberg allows the film to take Lex Luthor, Superman’s most famous adversary, in “some new and unexpected directions”.
Lex Luthor was previously been played by Gene Hackman and Kevin Spacey.
Jeremy Irons will play Alfred, the butler to Bruce Wayne, Batman’s real identity.
Other stars on board include Laurence Fishburne (Perry White), Gal Gadot (Wonder Woman) and Amy Adams (Lois Lane).
Sinabung volcano has erupted on the Indonesian island of Sumatra, engulfing villages in ash and killing at least 14 people.
Mount Sinabung spewed hot gas, ash and rocks 1.5 miles into the air in a series of eruptions during the morning.
Emergency official Sutopo Purwo Nugroho said three schoolchildren and a teacher were among the dead.
Sinabung volcano has erupted on the Indonesian island of Sumatra, engulfing villages in ash and killing at least 14 people
Thousands of people were evacuated in September when Sinabung erupted after being dormant for three years. Many were allowed back to their homes on Friday.
Officials fear there may have been more casualties, but they cannot get closer because of the heat from the eruption.
Pictures taken at the scene showed rescue workers recovering bodies that were buried in ash.
When Sinabung volcano erupted in 2010, at least two people were killed and 30,000 others were displaced. Before 2010, Sinabung had not erupted in 400 years.
Most probably Italy will ask the US to extradite Amanda Knox and the decision will probably come down to Secretary of State John Kerry.
According to legal experts, it would be difficult for John Kerry to refuse the request.
Amanda Knox, who was convicted for a second time by an Italian court on Thursday in the 2007 murder of her roommate, vowed to “fight this until the very end”. And Italy would probably wait until the appeals process plays out before asking the US to expel her.
Italy and the US have an extradition treaty, and unless American authorities find clear evidence of a miscarriage of justice, legal experts say, it would be difficult for the US to say no.
Amanda Knox, 26, an American citizen, was convicted by an Italian court in 2009 in the murder of Meredith Kercher, a British student who was found dead in a pool of blood in the apartment she shared with Knox.
An appeals court in Italy threw out the conviction in 2011 after independent experts said DNA evidence had been contaminated by the police.
Amanda Knox, who had spent four years in prison, returned to the US.
Amanda Knox was convicted by an Italian court in 2009 in the murder of Meredith Kercher
The highest court in Italy later dismissed the acquittal because of “contradictions and inconsistencies”.
Then, on Thursday, an Italian court convicted Amanda Knox again and sentenced her to 28 years and six months behind bars.
Meredith Kercher’s family is pushing for Amanda Knox to be returned to Italy. Her brother, Lyle, told reporters that it would be “strange” and would set “a difficult precedent” if she were not handed over.
Marie Harf, a State Department spokeswoman, said Friday that the department has followed the case closely, but she declined to address the prospect of extradition for Amanda Knox.
“The case is still working through the Italian legal system, so we don’t want to get ahead of that process,” she said.
An extradition request would go first to the US State Department. It would review whether a treaty exists (it has since 1984), whether the crime is an extraditable offense (murder qualifies), and whether there are “any potential foreign policy problems”.
If the State Department decided that the request was proper, it would go to the Justice Department, which would check to see whether the request established probable cause that the American committed the crime – a relatively low bar to clear.
If the request cleared that hurdle, it would go to a federal judge.
If a judge failed to intervene, the extradition request would go back to the State Department and John Kerry.
Some legal analysts have said that Amanda Knox could cloak herself in the Fifth Amendment’s protection against double jeopardy, being tried again for a crime after an acquittal. However, that protection wouldn’t apply to Amanda Knox.
Because extradition requests mix law and diplomacy, there are cases in which a country looks at the facts and simply declines to turn someone over.
FaceRig is a program that lets you embody awesome characters, with total freedom of face expressions and emotions in real time, by just using a webcam.
Developed by a Romanian team, FaceRig is a Digital Alter-Ego Framework enabling anyone with a webcam to instantly embody any character they want.
FaceRig is a program that lets you embody awesome characters by just using a webcam
According to FaceRig website, the output can be streamed to Skype, Twitch or any service that uses a webcam. It can also be instantly recorded as a movie.
Developers say for now they are focusing on the portrait and the audio, but aiming to do more in the future.
A lawyer for Chris Christie’s former ally David Wildstein said the New Jersey governor knew about the closures of local lanes leading to George Washington Bridge to New York City while they were happening.
David Wildstein said he had evidence to show Chris Christie knew about the lane closures, which caused a huge traffic jam at the George Washington Bridge.
Documents suggest the traffic jam was orchestrated by Chris Christie’s aides.
Chris Christie on Friday reiterated he had “no prior knowledge” of the closures.
The scandal has damaged Chris Christie’s standing as a potential candidate for the 2016 Republican presidential nomination.
In a letter to the general counsel of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, which manages the George Washington Bridge and other bridges and tunnels between the two states, David Wildstein’s lawyer wrote: “Evidence exists… tying Mr. Christie to having knowledge of the lane closures, during the period when the lanes were closed.”
Alan Zegas’ letter described the lane closure as occurring under “the Christie administration’s order”, and said David Wildstein suggested Chris Christie had not spoken truthfully in a January news conference.
David Wildstein said he had evidence to show Chris Christie knew about the lane closures, which caused a huge traffic jam at the George Washington Bridge
Chris Christie said then that he had been “blindsided” by the revelations his aides were involved in the traffic jam.
“I had no knowledge or involvement in this issue, in its planning or execution,” the governor said.
The four-day September traffic jam in the streets of Fort Lee, New Jersey, which sits at the foot of the bridge, is believed to have been orchestrated by Chris Christie’s aides to punish its Democratic mayor for his refusal to endorse the governor in his 2013 re-election campaign.
The traffic jam was caused when workers closed off two local lanes from Fort Lee onto the bridge, ostensibly to conduct a traffic study.
State legislators and federal prosecutors have launched inquiries into the matter, and Chris Christie has pledged to co-operate.
David Wildstein, a high school friend of Chris Christie, was a senior political appointee on the Port Authority until he resigned in December as the probe into the traffic jam began gathering steam.
In January, Chris Christie sacked Bridget Anne Kelly, his deputy chief of staff.
“Time for some traffic problems in Fort Lee,” Bridget Ann Kelly wrote on August 13 to David Wildstein, according to a copy of the email obtained by the news media in January.
“Got it,” David Wildstein replied.
David Wildstein has refused to testify in legislative inquiries into the matter, citing his constitutional protection against self-incrimination.
In a statement released by his office to the news media on Friday, Chris Christie said David Wildstein’s lawyer “confirms what the governor has said all along – he had absolutely no prior knowledge of the lane closures before they happened”.
According to the statement, Chris Christie believed only that a traffic study was under way until he read “otherwise” on the morning of January 8, when his aides’ involvement was revealed in the news media.
Maximilian Schell has passed away in an Austrian clinic at the age of 83.
The Austrian actor, who won an Oscar for his role in the 1961 film Judgment at Nuremberg, died overnight at a clinic in Innsbruck after “a sudden and serious illness”, his agent said.
Maximilian Schell had been treated for pneumonia earlier this week.
He was one of the most famous German-speaking actors to have gained international fame.
The actor’s wife was reportedly at his bedside when he died.
Maximilian Schell had been in filming in Austria when he fell ill last Saturday.
He was taken to hospital and treated for a lung infection, but discharged on Tuesday.
Born in the Austrian capital, Vienna, in 1930, Maximilian Schell was one of four children of a Swiss author and an Austrian actress.
Maximilian Schell has passed away in an Austrian clinic at the age of 83
His parents emigrated to Switzerland eight years later when Austria was annexed by Nazi Germany.
A stage actor, Maximilian Schell began his Hollywood career in the late 1950s when he starred alongside Marlon Brando in the World War Two film, The Young Lions.
In 1961, Maximilian Schell was awarded an Oscar for best actor for his role as the defense lawyer of a Nazi war criminal.
The cast also included Marlene Dietrich, Burt Lancaster and Spencer Tracy.
Over the next three decades, Maxmilian Schell appeared in numerous big US productions.
His diverse characters ranged from a museum treasure thief in Topkapi (1964), to a mad scientist in sci-fi film The Black Hole (1979), to a Russian KGB colonel in Candles in the Dark (1998).
Maximilian Schell featured in a large number of international TV productions. His part as communist revolutionary Vladimir Lenin in series Stalin earned him a Golden Globe in the early 1990s.
Maximilian Schell also directed several movies, including his 1984 Oscar-nominated documentary Marlene, about Marlene Dietrich.
Justin Bieber was allowed to re-enter the US Friday after a brief detention when customs officials used drug-sniffing dogs to search his private jet.
No illegal drugs were found on the plane and no charges were brought, but Justin Bieber, 19, and his fellow passengers were questioned for several hours.
The search of the plane was undertaken after US customs officials believed they smelled marijuana on some of Justin Bieber’s entourage.
It was not immediately clear who or how many other passengers were on the plane that touched down at New Jersey’s Teterboro Airport.
A Port Authority spokesman said his agency was notified at 8:20 p.m. that Justin Bieber had been released from US Customs, and had no further comment.
Justin Bieber was allowed to re-enter the US Friday after a brief detention when customs officials used drug-sniffing dogs to search his private jet
Earlier Friday, the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s office charged a friend of Justin Bieber’s with drug possession in connection with a raid last month on Justin Bieber’s home in Calabasas, California, about 30 miles northeast of Los Angeles.
Xavier Smith, 20, better known as rapper Lil Za, was charged with possession of MDMA and oxycodone and vandalizing the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s jail where he was held, said Ricardo Santiago, a spokesman for the district attorney.
Justin Bieber was arrested last week in Miami Beach on charges of driving under the influence, resisting arrest and driving with an expired license. He was also charged on Wednesday with assaulting a limousine driver in Toronto.
The ongoing debate over the future of Ukraine has exposed a deep rift between the opposing visions of the EU, US and Russia at the Munich Security Conference in Germany.
European Council President Herman Van Rompuy said the “future of Ukraine belongs with the EU” while US Secretary of State John Kerry said the US backed Ukraine’s “fight for democracy”.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov accused those defending violent protests of double standards.
Ukraine has been in turmoil since November, when it scrapped an EU accord in favor of a Russian bailout.
The security conference is an annual event held to discuss military and political affairs.
Herman Van Rompuy’s opening speech referred to the EU’s offer of close association with Ukraine.
“The offer is still there and we know time is on our side. The future of Ukraine belongs with the European Union,” he said.
John Kerry launched a broad attack on “a disturbing trend in too many parts of Central and Eastern Europe and the Balkans”.
He said: “The aspirations of citizens are once again being trampled beneath corrupt, oligarchic interests – interests that use money to stifle political opposition and dissent, to buy politicians and media outlets, and to weaken judicial independence.”
John Kerry added: “Nowhere is the fight for a democratic, European future more important today than in Ukraine. The United States and EU stand with the people of Ukraine in that fight.”
The secretary of state said the “vast majority of Ukrainians want to live freely in a safe and prosperous country – they are fighting for the right to associate with partners who will help them realize their aspirations”.
In an apparent swipe at Moscow, John Kerry added that “their futures do not have to lie with one country alone, and certainly not coerced”.
Sergei Lavrov said that a “choice is being imposed [on Ukraine] and Russia is not going to be engaged in this”.
He asked: “What does incitement of violent street protests have to do with the promotion of democracy? Why do we not hear condemnation of those who seize government buildings and attack police and use racist, anti-Semitic and Nazi slogans?”
Secretary of State John Kerry had harsh words for corruption in Eastern Europe and the Balkans at Munich Security Conference
Sergei Lavrov said: “Why are many prominent European politicians actually encouraging such actions, although back home they are quick to severely punish any violations of the law?”
Interfax also quoted Sergei Lavrov as saying: “When John Kerry… says that Ukraine should choose who it is with – with the whole world or with one country, Kerry – with his experience, good sense – is the last person I would expect such propaganda from.”
On Saturday John Kerry is scheduled to meet Ukraine opposition leaders said to include Arseniy Yatsenyuk, boxer-turned-politician Vitaly Klitschko, legislator Petro Poroshenko and pop star Ruslana Lyzhychko.
The White House has confirmed it is discussing possible sanctions against Ukraine with the US Congress.
It was unclear whether John Kerry will meet Ukrainian Foreign Minister Leonid Kozhara, who is at the summit.
Before arriving in Munich, John Kerry said that concessions from President Viktor Yanukovych had “not yet reached an adequate level of reform”.
Arseniy Yatsenyuk, who heads the Batkivshchyna party, recently refused an offer from President Viktor Yanukovych to become PM, one of the concessions.
President Viktor Yanukovych, who is currently on sick leave, has also tried to ease the crisis by repealing anti-protest laws, signing an amnesty for protesters and accepting the resignation of his cabinet.
However, opposition leaders are calling for his resignation and early elections.
One key issue for John Kerry and the opposition leaders will be the issue of Ukraine protester Dmytro Bulatov.
Activist Dmytro Bulatov went missing for eight days and said he had been kidnapped and tortured by captors who spoke with Russian accents.
He is now in hospital in Kiev under guard from both police and anti-government demonstrators.
Both White House spokesman Jay Carney and EU foreign affairs chief Catherine Ashton said they were “appalled” by the apparent signs of torture.
US ambassador to Ukraine Geoffrey Pyatt went to the hospital on Saturday to try to meet Dmytro Bulatov.
Ukraine’s interior ministry says it wants to interrogate Dmytro Bulatov on suspicion of organizing mass unrest, and to examine his account of torture.
Violent clashes involving anti-government protesters have erupted ahead of Sunday’s elections in Thai capital, Bangkok.
According to local media, several people have been injured by gunfire.
The violence erupted during a stand-off between supporters and opponents of PM Yingluck Shinawatra.
The shots were fired as demonstrators blockaded a building where ballot papers are being stored, in an attempt to prevent their distribution.
Protesters want the government replaced by an unelected “people’s council”.
The opposition has vowed to boycott Sunday’s poll, which is likely to be won by Yingluck Shinawatra.
The incident took place in Bangkok’s Laksi district, a stronghold of the prime minister’s Pheu Thai party.
Thai protesters want Yingluck Shinawatra’s government replaced by an unelected people’s council
A number of people could be seen lying injured on the road, as exchanges of gunfire continued, forcing reporters and passers-by to flee for cover.
It was not immediately clear whether those wounded were government supporters or opponents.
The protest movement has vowed to disrupt the election as much as possible, by preventing ballot papers from reaching polling stations.
The army earlier said it would increase the number of troops deployed in Bangkok for the polls on Sunday. Some 10,000 police will also patrol the streets.
The protests began in November, after the lower house backed a controversial amnesty bill that critics said would allow Yingluck Shinawatra’s brother, Thaksin Shinawatra, to return.
Yingluck Shinawatra called early elections to quell the unrest, but demonstrators have vowed to block the poll from going ahead.
Correspondents say one election commissioner has predicted that 10% of polling stations will not be able to open at all on Sunday.
Because of disruption to candidate registration, the elections will also not deliver enough MPs for a quorum in parliament, meaning that by-elections will be needed before a government can be approved, extending the instability.
Egypt’s former President Mohamed Morsi has arrived in court in the capital, Cairo, for the resumption of one of the four trials against him.
Mohamed Morsi and 14 other figures from the Muslim Brotherhood are charged with inciting the killing of protesters near the presidential palace in 2012.
At a hearing in another trial four days ago, a defiant Mohamed Morsi shouted that he was still the legitimate president.
The ousted was deposed by the army last year after huge crowds rallied against him.
Mohamed Morsi is now facing four separate criminal trials on various charges.
His Islamist supporters say the charges against him are politically motivated, although officials insist the trials are free and fair.
Mohamed Morsi has arrived in court in the capital, Cairo, for the resumption of one of the four trials against him
Mohamed Morsi was flown in by helicopter on Saturday morning from his prison in Alexandria.
Heavy security has been deployed outside the National Police Academy compound where the hearing is taking place.
On Friday, riot police fired tear gas at hundreds of Mohamed Morsi supporters in Cairo and Alexandria and Fayoum, south of the capital.
Islamists have staged regular protests demanding the reinstatement of Mohamed Morsi but have been met with a heavy crackdown in which hundreds have died.
The Muslim Brotherhood has been declared a terrorist organization and authorities have punished any public showing of support for it.
Human rights groups have dismissed some of the allegations against Mohamed Morsi as preposterous.
There were chaotic scenes when he first appeared in court in early November for the trial resuming on Saturday.
Mohamed Morsi chanted slogans against the current government and the court. He also refused to recognize the court’s legitimacy or put on the required prison uniform.
California Department of Water Resoucers (DWR) has announced it may for the first time be unable to deliver water to local agencies, amid a worsening drought.
Two-thirds of state residents and 1 million acres (404,500 hectares) of farmland get part or all of their drinking and irrigation supplies from the agency.
A state-wide drought was declared earlier this month, as the largest reservoirs sank to record low levels.
Forecasters have warned 2014 could be California’s driest year on record.
The extreme conditions have already caused a wildfire that destroyed homes in the Los Angeles area.
California Department of Water Resoucers has announced it may for the first time be unable to deliver water to local agencies
Previous extremely dry years led to catastrophic wildfire seasons in California in 2003 and 2007.
It is the first time in the water agency’s history that it has predicted a so-called “zero allocation”, which will affect around 25 million people.
State governor Jerry Brown said the announcement was a “stark reminder that California’s drought is real”.
Jerry Brown urged residents to conserve water, suggesting they avoid flushing toilets unnecessarily and to turn off the tap while shaving.
Meanwhile a spokesman for the state’s farming federation called the news “a terrible blow”.
The water originates from the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta.
It is delivered to local agencies via a vast network of reservoirs, pipelines, aqueducts and pumping stations.
The 29 agencies that draw from the state’s water-delivery system have other sources, AP reports, although these too have been badly hit.
Benjamin Smith was charged on Friday with threatening to kill former President George W. Bush after professing a romantic interest in his oldest daughter, Barbara, prosecutors said.
The New York man was found sitting in a car with a loaded rifle, machete and a container of gasoline.
Benjamin Smith, 44, was arrested in Manhattan by the Secret Service, according to a criminal complaint filed in federal court.
“Bush will get his,” Benjamin Smith screamed as he was taken into custody, according to the complaint. Later, when asked about his marital status, he told agents he was divorced and “working on a relationship with Barbara Bush”.
At a preliminary hearing, Assistant Attorney Andrea Griswold told Magistrate Judge Henry Pitman the government believes Benjamin Smith was referring to the former president’s daughter and not George W. Bush’s mother, who shares the same name.
It is a crime under federal law to threaten a current or former president.
Benjamin Smith was charged with threatening to kill former President George W. Bush
On Thursday, Benjamin Smith’s mother called police to report she had found a threatening note in the home she shares with her son and that a rifle was also missing, the complaint said.
“I’m going to work for George W. Bush and the Pentagon,” the note said, according to the government.
“I have to slay a dragon and then Barbara Bush is mine.”
The Secret Service tracked Benjamin Smith using his cell phone to Manhattan, where they arrested him early Friday morning.
It was not clear why Benjamin Smith went to New York City or where the former president and his family were at the time.
Benjamin Smith’s defense lawyer, Peggy Cross-Goldenberg, said the note and Smith’s outbursts did not constitute a “true threat”.
The judge also conceded it was “unclear” a jury would find Benjamin Smith guilty.
“Admittedly, there is some inconsistency in the notion that the way to win Barbara Bush’s affections is to kill her father,” Judge Henry Pitman said.
Amanda Knox was the focus of intense media scrutiny from the start of the highly publicized Meredith Kercher’s murder trial in 2009.
Amanda Marie Knox, born on July 9, 1987, was convicted of the murder of Meredith Kercher in Perugia, Italy, in 2009. She served four years of a 26-year sentence before the murder conviction was overturned on October 3, 2011.
However, on March 26, 2013, Amanda Knox’s acquittal was overturned by the Italian Supreme Court, sending the case back to the lower court for reconsideration.
Raffaele Sollecito, Amanda Knox’s boyfriend at the time of the murder, was also found guilty of the murder but had his conviction overturned by an appeal.
Amanda Knox, now 26, whose pretty face maintained its carefree smile throughout her trial, was the ideal female suspect for an Italian murder – “the face of an angel – but the eyes of a killer,”.
From the images of her kissing her co-accused and erstwhile boyfriend Raffaele Sollecito, to her cartwheels in the police station, Amanda Knox’s seemingly innocent insouciance contrasted gratingly with the gory crime and general preconceptions of what a murderer should look like.
One lawyer was reported as accusing Knox of being “dirty inside and out” and described her as “half Maria Goretti and half demon”.
The lawyer added: “Who is the real Amanda Knox? Is it the one we see before us here, simple water and soap, the angelic St Maria Goretti?”
“Or is she really a she-devil, a diabolical person focused on sex, drugs and alcohol, living life to the extreme and borderline – is this the Amanda Knox of 1 November 2007?”
Maria Goretti was a teenager made a saint by the Roman Catholic Church after she was murdered during an attempted rape.
As the trial unfolded the two Amanda Knox vied for acceptance: the hapless student championed by her family and defense lawyers; and the manipulative hedonist described by the prosecution.
And despite her plea in court – “I’m afraid of having the mask of a murderer forced on to my skin” – the latter always seemed to gain the upper hand.
Amanda Knox was the focus of intense media scrutiny from the start of the highly publicized Meredith Kercher’s murder trial in 2009
Details soon began emerging of Amanda Knox’s private life – her “Foxy Knoxy” nickname, the drug-taking and claims she slept with several men after she arrived in Italy.
In letters from his jail cell, co-defendant Raffaele Sollecito wrote: “The Amanda I know… lives a carefree life.”
“Her only thought is the pursuit of pleasure,” he wrote to his father.
“But, even the thought that she could be a killer is impossible for me.”
Reporters descended on Amanda Knox’s home city of Seattle in search of more details of her private life.
They discovered that the University of Washington student had been fined in 2007 for her role in a drunken party that police were called to.
A picture began to be painted of a “party girl” who abused drink and drugs and had an active s** life.
Tabloid interest intensified after it emerged that Amanda Knox had written a short story on a social networking site about a man who drugs and rapes a young girl.
In it, one character remarks: “A thing you have to know about chicks is that they don’t know what they want.”
This was not the daughter known to Amanda Knox’s family – who term themselves “typically American”.
They helped fund their daughter’s year in Italy in order to further her Italian, German and creative writing studies.
And apart from the story on the social networking site, Amanda Knox’s page also portrays a very different young woman.
On it, she describes herself as a non-drinker and non-smoker. Her favorite pursuits include yoga and “backpacking long distances with people I know”.
Among her favorite films are Shrek and The Full Monty and she likes listening to The Beatles and reading Harry Potter books.
It was partly a desire to emphasize this aspect of their daughter’s character, and counter what they term her “misrepresentation”, that led Amanda Knox’s supporters in Seattle to set up a tribute website.
On it, family and friends write about the “joiner” who excelled at sports and school plays; a “smart, fun, affectionate and loyal” girl who bought sandwiches for homeless people and nursed sick friends.
They had been optimistic that she would be freed by the Italian courts.
According to alleged leaks of her prison diary, Amanda Knox was similarly determined to maintain her innocence – and may have been preparing to blame her ex-boyfriend.
She reportedly wrote: “I think it is possible Raffaele went to Meredith’s house, raped her, then killed her and then when he got home, while I was sleeping, he pressed my fingerprints on the knife.”
But neither of their cases were helped by CCTV evidence that found its way into the Italian press, reportedly showing Amanda Knox and Raffaele Sollecito buying underwear together two days after Meredith Kercher’s death.
The case was media gold from the start: a pretty young victim, brutally murdered in mysterious circumstances, whose murderers were both wealthy and attractive.
France and Italy are on flood alert as heavy rain brings chaos to parts of Europe.
Hundreds of people were forced to evacuate their homes in the Italian city of Pisa as the Arno River threatened to burst its banks on Friday.
High seas are expected to cause widespread flooding along France’s Atlantic coast.
Meanwhile, deep snow drifts left dozens of people stranded in Serbia.
Hundreds of people were forced to evacuate their homes in the Italian city of Pisa as the Arno River threatened to burst its banks
Local officials declared a state of emergency and deployed rescue teams to help travelers trapped in their vehicles. Snow storms and strong winds have been sweeping across Eastern Europe.
Italian media said a stretch of medieval wall measuring about 95ft in the town of Volterra, in the province of Pisa, collapsed as a result of heavy rain.
The French department of Finistere, in the west of the country, was placed on red alert as forecasters warned of huge waves and extensive flooding. Ten other French departments were also on alert for rising water levels.
At least two people died and scores had to be airlifted to safety after floods hit south-eastern France earlier this month.
Severe storms have been battering Europe for much of January.
San Francisco — Yahoo alerted users of its free email service Thursday that hackers slipped into accounts to loot information using stolen passwords.
The California company did not disclose the extent of the breach, but said that it is asking those affected to change their passwords.
“Security attacks are unfortunately becoming a more regular occurrence,” Yahoo senior vice president for platforms and personalization products Jay Rossiter said in a blog post.
“We regret this has happened and want to assure our users that we take the security of their data very seriously.”
A malicious computer program armed with Yahoo Mail passwords and usernames apparently slipped into accounts aiming to glean names and addresses from messages that had been sent, according to Rossiter.
Yahoo recently discovered the invasion and suspected that the passwords were snatched from a third-party database that the company did not disclose.
“We have no evidence that they were obtained directly from Yahoo’s systems,” Rossiter said.
Yahoo said it was working with federal authorities to investigate the breach.
What can the users do?
The company is resetting passwords on accounts that have been affected and is taking steps to allow users to re-secure their accounts. It is sending notification e-mails instructing those users to change their passwords; users may also receive a text message, if they’ve shared their phone number with the company.
It’s a song-and-dance that users may be tiring of, but it is important for Yahoo account holders who were swept up in the attack to change their passwords for immediately.
They should also change their log-in credentials for any account that may share their Yahoo password, particularly if they use their Yahoo e-mail as their username. The same is true if you use a similar e-mail address as the username — it’s not a big leap for hackers to think that you may be both [email protected] and [email protected].
Finally, everyone should also be on the lookout for spam, as the attack also appears to have picked up names and e-mail addresses for the most recent contacts from affected accounts, according to the company’s post.
If you get an odd e-mail from the Yahoo account of someone you know, ignore the message, and do not click on any links in the message. (It’s also be nice to let the person whose account has been hacked know about the fraudulent messages, so they can warn others to avoid the e-mails.)
Syria’s government and opposition have traded insults after a week-long peace conference in Geneva ended with no firm agreement.
Foreign Minister Walid Muallem said the opposition representatives were immature, while the opposition’s Louay Safi said the regime had no desire to stop the bloodshed.
However, UN envoy Lakhdar Brahimi said he had seen some “common ground”, and scheduled more talks for February 10.
The opposition has agreed to take part, but Walid Muallem refused to commit.
“We represent the concerns and interests of our people. If we find that [another meeting] is their demand, then we will come back,” he told reporters.
He railed at the opposition, saying they had tried to “implode the conference” by insisting that the government hands power over.
Louay Safi said the opposition would not sit in talks “endlessly”, and urged the government to “talk seriously about transferring power”.
Opposition leader Ahmed Jarba said he and his colleagues had “stood up to the regime, a regime that only knows blood and death”.
Lakhdar Brahimi is optimistic despite slow progress at Geneva talks on Syria
The two sides discussed humanitarian issues and possible ways to end the violence.
They made some agreements on local ceasefires to allow access for humanitarian workers.
UN aid chief Valerie Amos said the deals had allowed some aid to get through to a few thousand families.
But she said that, so far, an agreed ceasefire in the besieged city of Homs had not had any effect, and no aid has got through.
Parts of Homs have been under government siege for more than 18 months. More than 100,000 people have died in Syria since the uprising against President Bashar al-Assad began in March 2011.
Lakhdar Brahimi said: “Progress is very slow indeed, but the sides have engaged in an acceptable manner. This is a very modest beginning, but it is a beginning on which we can build.”
Though the gap between the two sides was “wide”, they had become used to sitting in the same room, he said.
“There have been moments when one side has even acknowledged the concerns and difficulties of the other side,” he said.
The first round of talks between the government and the opposition National Coalition began last week.
But neither side could agree on the focus, with the opposition insisting that political transition was the focus, and the government wanting to talk about terrorism.
Diplomats described the atmosphere between the two sides as extremely tense all the way through the conference.
Michael Bloomberg has been appointed as UN special envoy for cities and climate change.
UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon wants the former New York City mayor to “raise political will and mobilize action” on climate change, a UN spokesman said.
Michael Bloomberg will also work to bring “concrete solutions” to a major climate summit in New York in September.
Michael Bloomberg has been appointed as UN special envoy for cities and climate change
As New York City mayor, Michael Bloomberg accused politicians of a failure of leadership on climate change.
He later hinted at a link between Hurricane Sandy and global warming.
Samantha Power, US ambassador to the UN, welcomed Michael Bloomberg’s appointment, posting on Twitter: “Mayor @MikeBloomberg knows how to get things done. We need more leaders like him here @UN.”
Michael Bloomberg, a former news tycoon, made combating climate change a major focus of his 12 years as mayor of New York City.
Canada’s electronic spy agency, Communications Security Establishment Canada (CSEC), collected data from travelers passing through a major airport, the CBC reports.
The CSEC collected information captured from unsuspecting passengers’ wireless devices by the airport’s free Wi-Fi system over two-weeks, the report says.
The revelations come from documents leaked by Edward Snowden, CBC says.
The CSEC is prohibited by law from targeting Canadians or anyone in Canada without an appropriate warrant.
Its primary mission is to collect foreign intelligence by intercepting overseas phone and internet traffic.
The CSEC, in a statement to CBC, reiterated that it is “mandated to collect foreign signals to protect Canada and Canadians.
“And in order to fulfill that key foreign intelligence role for the country, CSEC is legally authorized to collect and analyze metadata.”
Canada’s electronic spy agency collected data from travelers passing through a major airport
Metadata is the information about a communication – such as the date and location of a call or email – rather than the details of what was actually said or written.
The leaked document indicates the 2012 passenger tracking operation was a trial run of a powerful new software program being developed jointly with the National Security Agency (NSA), CBC reports.
It is now fully operational, CBC News quotes sources as saying.
Experts told the broadcaster that information captured from travelers’ devices would have enabled the agency to track them for a week or more as they showed up in other Wi-Fi “hot spots” around Canada, such as other airports, hotels or restaurants.
Such was the volume of data that CSEC could even track the travelers’ movements back to the days before they arrived at the airport, the experts say.
The document does not specify which airport was targeted or explain how CSEC was able to access the data.
Two airports – Vancouver and Toronto – and Boingo, an independent supplier of Wi-Fi services at other Canadian airports, have denied any involvement in supplying Wi-Fi information.
Former NSA contractor Edward Snowden is currently living in Russia having fled the US in May 2013 after leaking thousands of documents that revealed extensive internet and phone surveillance by the US and other intelligence services.
