Steubenville rape victim’s mother has reportedly forgiven Ma’lik Richmond, one of the boys who violated and degraded her daughter.
The extraordinary act of grace came as Ma’lik Richmond, 16, broke down and wept for his crime as the verdict was delivered to a highly charged courtroom.
Approaching the victim’s mother Ma’lik Richmond said: “I’m so very sorry.”
The mother responded: “I know you are and I forgive you.”
Her words are made more remarkable by the fact that her daughter does not share her feelings and cannot yet forgive Ma’lik Richmond and Trent Mays, 17, for what they did to her.
The victim was not in court to hear the verdict delivered.
Steubenville rape victim’s mother has forgiven Ma’lik Richmond
Bering Sea Gold latest episode, which was aired this weekend on Discovery channel, showed the loss of John Patrick Bunce.
At the start of the episode, fans got to see John Bunce dive down deep to look for gold. He did find some gold, but he also ran into an eel that worried him a bit. He was living his life on the edge and still trying to get the gold around it. He had found the best gold of the season.
John Bunce was out there getting gold for eight hours. This was a long day for him on the water and he decided it was not worth staying out there anymore. They decided it was time to pull out, but Zeke Tenhoff did not agree and they stayed out.
The end of the show was what shocked fans. Zeke Tenhoff went over to John Bunce’s house. They then showed a 911 call to the Nome police department. It is saying that they just witnessed someone committing suicide by shooting themselves in the head. He didn’t want to describe what happened and he was sure they were dead. He then said it was John Bunce.
Bering Sea Gold latest episode showed the loss of John Patrick Bunce
On March 16, Bering Sea Gold went to their Facebook to post their condolences and fans responded.Fans are posting on the status and they have a lot of mixed feelings. Most fans are posting sending prayers and saying they are sad for the loss of John Bunce. A lot of people are shocked that he did this because it did not seem like his character.
Many people are upset that they waited six months to air this episode, but they just simply didn’t change up the order of what happened. They waited to play it when it went actually happened.
John Patrick Bunce died of a self inflicted gunshot wound to the head. He was found at his home on September 1, 2012.
Some are claiming it was accidental.
Bering Sea Gold will air a new episode on Friday, March 22, at 9 p.m. CST.
Doctor Who’s 50th anniversary script is under lock and key, programme’s boss Steven Moffat has said.
“One length I’ve gone to which is a really good security measure – I make sure I don’t get a script, because I will lose it,” said Steven Moffat, the show’s lead writer.
“I forbid people to hand me one. It’s on my computer under lock and key.”
Actor Matt Smith promised fans they “will not be disappointed” by the story.
“I read it and I clapped at the end. I think it’s hilarious, it’s epic and it’s vast,” he said at a Doctor Who series launch last week.
“It manages to pay homage to everything – and look forward.”
The first story of Doctor Who’s 2013 run, The Bells of Saint John, will be screened on Easter Saturday, March 30.
Doctor Who’s 50th anniversary script is under lock and key
Described by Steven Moffat as a “proper London thriller”, it sees the Doctor and new companion Clara (Jenna-Louise Coleman) battling an evil entity in the world’s Wi-Fi networks.Future episodes see the return of the Cybermen and old enemy the Ice Warriors, who last appeared during the Jon Pertwee era in 1974.
“It’s going to be the biggest and best and most inventive and most exciting year for the show,” Matt Smith said.
The 50th anniversary special, due to begin filming in April, will be broadcast in 3D around the show’s birthday in November.
The first ever episode of Doctor Who, An Unearthly Child, with William Hartnell as the Doctor, was broadcast on 23 November 1963.
Jazz band leader Terry Lightfoot has died at the age of 77, after a battle with prostate cancer.
Terry Lightfoot, who was born in Potters Bar but settled in Olney, Buckinghamshire, UK, had been touring for most of the time from the 1950s up until 2012.
He had played alongside greats such as Louis Armstrong and Lonnie Donegan.
Terry Lightfoot’s death comes less than two weeks after that of trumpeter Kenny Ball, who started his career playing in the Terry Lightfoot’s Jazzmen band.
The musician taught himself to play the clarinet so he could join his school’s jazz band in Enfield.
During the 1960s, Terry Lightfoot made frequent television appearances on the Morecambe and Wise Show and his was the resident band on Des O’Connor’s first TV series.
He formed Terry Lightfoot’s Jazzmen in 1955 after finishing National Service with the RAF. The band released their first album in 1957, with a line-up that included drummer Ginger Baker, who went on to be a member of rock band Cream.
The band’s first major concert appearance was at London’s Royal Festival Hall in 1956. The same year he met Louis Armstrong for the first time and was presented to him as the youngest professional band leader in the UK.
Kenny Ball was on trumpet with the Lightfoot band until he left to form his own band in 1958.
After dropping out of music in the mid-60s, Terry Lightfoot quickly returned to play with the Kenny Ball Band, touring the US, New Zealand and Fiji.
Jazz band leader Terry Lightfoot has died at the age of 77, after a battle with prostate cancer
In 1968 he reformed his own band, featuring the late Ian Hunter-Randall on trumpet, an association which lasted almost 25 years.Taking another sabbatical from touring, Terry Lightfoot became pub landlord of the Three Horseshoes in Harpenden, Hertfordshire, in 1978, where he promoted jazz and presented musicians including Humphrey Lyttelton, Chris Barber, and George Melly.
After five years at the pub, Terry Lightfoot left to return to music full-time and developed the Rockin’ in Rhythm show, which charted the history of jazz and played at theatres throughout Europe.
He celebrated 30 years as a bandleader in 1987 with the release of the album As Time Goes By.
Terry Lightfoot took part in a UK tour as a member of the Kenny Baker/Don Lusher All Stars, which also included the bands of Acker Bilk and Kenny Ball.
He later fronted the Acker Bilk Paramount Jazz Band while Acker Bilk was recovering from throat cancer.
Terry Lightfoot continued to perform with his own band, which became something of a family affair when his daughter Melinda joined as singer, later being accompanied by his grandsons, guitarist “Joe Miles” Needham and drummer “Ollie James” Needham.
A new study suggests that Mariana Trench – the deepest place in the ocean – is teeming with microscopic life.
An international team of scientists found that the very bottom of the Mariana Trench, which lies almost 7 miles down in the Pacific Ocean, had high levels of microbial activity.
The research is published in the journal Nature Geoscience.
Mariana Trench was once thought to be too hostile an environment for life to exist.
But this study adds to a growing body of evidence that a range of creatures can cope with the near-freezing temperatures, immense pressures and complete darkness.
Dr. Robert Turnewitsch, one of the authors of the paper from the Scottish Association for Marine Science, said: “The deepest parts of the deep sea are certainly not dead zones.”
In 2010, the scientists sent an unmanned submersible down into the vast underwater canyon, where it collected samples of the murky sediment that cakes the sea floor.
An analysis of the levels of oxygen in the sample revealed the presence of a large number of microbes.
Dr. Robert Turnewitsch explained: “These microbes, they respire as we do. And this oxygen consumption is an indirect measurement of the activity of the community.”
Surprisingly, these primitive, single-celled organisms were twice as active at the bottom of the trench as they were at a nearby 4 mile-deep site.
They were feasting on a plentiful supply of dead plants and creatures that had drifted down from the sea surface, the decomposing matter becoming trapped within the steep walls of the trench.
“The amount of food down there and also the relative freshness of the material is surprisingly high – it seems to be surprisingly nutritious,” said Dr. Robert Turnewitsch.
Mariana Trench was once thought to be too hostile an environment for life to exist
The level of material found at the bottom of the trench was so high that it suggests the Mariana Trench – which is in an area of the ocean known as the Hadal zone – could play a key part in the carbon cycle and therefore in regulating the planet’s climate.Dr. Richard Turnewitsch said: “The fact that large amounts of organic matter that contain the carbon accumulate and are focused in these trenches also means they play an important role in the removal of carbon from the ocean and the overlying atmosphere.
“The Hadal trenches may play a more important role in the global marine carbon cycle than was previously thought.”
Further insight into the Mariana Trench has recently been provided by Hollywood director James Cameron.
In 2012, James Cameron made the dive to the bottom in a one-man-submarine, becoming the first person to have visited this deep spot for 50 years.
He recently released some of the first scientific results of his dive at the 2012 American Geophysical Union Fall meeting.
Working with scientists from the Scripps Institute, the team found giant amoeba and shrimp-like creatures called amphipods.
Footage of his dive will be released as 3D National Geographic documentary.
Indian police in Madhya Pradesh state say they have arrested six people in connection with the gang rape of a Swiss tourist.
The accused will be presented before a magistrate on Monday, a senior police official told Reuters news agency.
The woman was attacked as she camped with her husband in woodland near a village in Datia district on Friday.
The arrests come as cross-party talks on harsher punishments and tougher laws for rape begin in the capital, Delhi.
The latest attack comes three months after the gang rape of a 23-year-old female student on a bus in Delhi.
The rape and the student’s later death in hospital triggered widespread protests against the treatment of women in India and sparked demands for tougher laws.
In Friday’s incident, a group of men overpowered the Swiss woman’s husband before gang-raping her. The couple were also robbed of their valuables, including a laptop, which police say have been recovered.
Police spokesman Dilip Arya said the six men were aged 20-25 and belonged to a local tribe.
Twenty more people were being questioned in connection with the case, said local police official SM Afzal.
Madhya Pradesh police have arrested six people in connection with the gang rape of a Swiss tourist
The woman and her husband have left Madhya Pradesh and have reached the Swiss embassy in Delhi, reports say.“A decision regarding the next steps… in the interest of the two concerned Swiss citizens will be made with them in due course,” a spokesman for the Swiss ministry for foreign affairs said in a statement quoted by Reuters news agency.
On Sunday, a senior police official denied media reports that the suspects had confessed to their involvement in the crime.
The victim, who is reported to be 39 years old, and her husband had been cycling from Orchha to Agra, to see the Taj Mahal, a distance of about 155 miles, when they decided to camp for the night in a forested area.
One report cited the victim’s husband as saying that the group of men had approached them at about 21:30. They then began beating him with wooden sticks before tying him up and assaulting his wife in front of him, he is reported to have said.
The assailants stole the couple’s valuables, including 10,000 rupees ($185) and a laptop computer, before fleeing into the woods.
India’s political parties are also taking part in previously scheduled meetings to discuss harsher punishment for rapists, including the death penalty. They will also consider lowering the age of consent for sex to 16.
Last month, the government introduced new rape laws in an ordinance.
A bill or bills with these laws must be tabled during the current session of parliament. If the bill is not passed, the ordinance will lapse.
European markets follow Asian shares downward on fears that the plan to bailout Cyprus could trigger an escalation of the eurozone debt crisis.
The EU and IMF want all bank customers to pay a levy in return for a bailout worth 10 billion euros ($13 billion).
London’s 100 share index is 1% lower, while France and Italy are down 2%.
The euro was also affected. Against both the pound and the dollar it lost about 1%, leaving it at 85.7 pence and $1.293 repectively.
Earlier, Japan’s Nikkei 225 index fell 2.7%, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng and Australia’s ASX 200 dipped 2%.
Banking shares were among the hardest-hit, with Italy’s UniCredit losing almost 5%, Intesa Sanpaolo down 4%. Banco Popolare, which announced a bigger-than-expected annual loss on Friday after the market closed, down almost 5%.
France’s BNP Paribas and Credit Agricole were both down more than 3%.
In Germany, Deutsche Bank was down 3.5% while Commerzbank was 1.5% lower.
Analysts said that investors were divided about whether the developments in Cyprus would affect other bigger eurozone economies, which may also need bailout funds in the future.
Some fear that, if approved, the plan may set a precedent for those countries.
Asian shares fall on fears that the plan to bailout Cyprus could trigger an escalation of the eurozone debt crisis
“There will certainly be confusion in Cyprus, and investors looking just at headlines may fret about its case becoming a model,” said Yuji Saito, director of foreign exchange at Credit Agricole in Tokyo.Analysts said the fresh concerns over the fate of some of the eurozone weaker members, triggered by the developments in Cyprus, had resulted in investors looking to ditch relatively riskier assets.
This is the first time the 17-nation eurozone has sanctioned dipping into people’s savings to finance a bailout.
The plan is yet to be finalized, but the news of the deal caused a rush to the cash machines in Cyprus as people tried to withdraw money.
Under the levy, bank customers with less than 100,000 euros would have to pay 6.75%, while those with more than 100,000 euros would pay 9.9%.
However, depositors in Cypriot banks outside the country, including in Greece, are unaffected by the levy.
But the plan is yet to be finalized and Cyprus’s leaders have said they want to ensure protection for small investors.
Meanwhile, an emergency session of the Cypriot parliament has been postponed until later on Monday.
Also, Germany must approve the plan, but is not due to vote until next month.
Following eurozone finance ministers’ negotiations last week, Cyprus became the fifth euro-area country to get a bailout to save its banks, which suffered significant losses because of their exposure to Greek debt.
The Supreme Court in India has said Italy’s Ambassador Daniele Mancini does not have legal immunity, in an escalating row over Rome’s refusal to return two marines charged with murdering two Indian fishermen.
India’s Chief Justice Altamas Kabir said the court had “lost trust” in Ambassador Daniele Mancini.
The court reiterated last week’s order for Daniele Mancini not to leave the country.
The marines were allowed to go home to vote in last month’s polls on condition that they return to stand trial.
Daniele Mancini had given his personal assurance that the two marines – Massimilian Latorre and Salvatore Girone – would return within four weeks as ruled by the court.
There has been no comment from the Italian embassy in Delhi or Ambassador Daniele Mancini.
But on Friday, Rome said it was seeking a “friendly agreement” with India to resolve the row.
The office of President Giorgio Napolitano said Italy wanted an agreement based on “international law”.
In its order on Monday, the three-judge Supreme Court bench said Ambassador Daniele Mancini, who had negotiated the marines’ release, had waived his immunity by giving an undertaking to a court that the pair would return.
“A person who comes to court and gives an undertaking has no immunity,” Chief Justice Kabir said.
The court set April 2 as the next date of hearing and restrained the Italian ambassador from leaving India “until further orders”.
The Supreme Court in India has said Italy’s Ambassador Daniele Mancini does not have legal immunity
The marines are accused of shooting the fishermen in Kerala in February 2012. They said they mistook them for pirates.Rome says it wants its nationals to be tried in Italy. As the incident took place in international waters, Italy believes India has no jurisdiction in the case.
India, however, maintains that the fishermen were Indian and on board an Indian fishing boat at the time of the incident.
Last week, the Italian foreign ministry informed India that the marines would not return to India once the Supreme Court deadline expired.
Indian PM Manmohan Singh warned that “there will be consequences” unless Italy returned the marines.
In unusually strong language, PM Manmohan Singh said Italy’s refusal to do so was “unacceptable”
The Next Day, David Bowie’s first album in a decade, has become the fastest-selling of the year in UK, hitting No. 1 spot in its first week.
The Next Day is David Bowie’s first No. 1 since 1993’s Black Tie White Noise.
The album sold 94,000 copies this week, according to the Official Chart Company, outselling No. 2 album What About Now from Bon Jovi two to one.
Justin Timberlake remains at the top of the singles chart with Mirrors.
The announcement that David Bowie was releasing new material came as a surprise to many in the music world, and has had Bowie aficionados picking over the fiercely private star’s back catalogue, comparing his early work with his latest release.
A retrospective of the eclectic performer is being unveiled at London’s V&A Museum on March 23, celebrating David Bowie as a musical innovator and cultural icon.
The Next Day is David Bowie’s first No. 1 since 1993’s Black Tie White Noise
Although David Bowie is not directly involved with curating the exhibition, the David Bowie Archive gave “unprecedented access” to the V&A, which picked out flamboyant costumes, early photographs and other memorabilia to show.The Next Day’s first week sales beat that of the previous fastest-selling UK album, which was Biffy Clyro’s Opposites which sold 71,600 in its debut week in January.
Emeli Sande’s Our Version of Events slipped down one to No. 3, following behind Bon Jovi’s What About Now.
Last week’s No. 1 from chart-toppers Bastille fell to No. 4.
In the singles chart, One Direction saw their Comic Relief effort One Way or Another (Teenage Kicks) rise to No. 2 in the wake of Friday’s Red Nose Day.
Kim Kardashian has revealed that she isn’t finding her pregnancy as easy as she had hoped.
“Being pregnant is not as easy as my sister [Kourtney Kardashian] made it look or as my mom [Kris Jenner] has made it look,” Kim Kardashian told E! News.
“It’s a little painful at times….I’ve gotten sick a couple of times and that puts you out especially when you travel. It’s getting a little more difficult.”
Kim Kardashian, 32, also revealed that her pregnancy cravings are rather healthy: “I’m craving carrots and ranch dressing.
“I used to love sweets, I used to love chocolate, can’t even eat chocolate!”
The reality star, whose first baby with rapper Kanye West is due in July, has continued with her busy filming schedule.
Kim Kardashian has revealed that she isn’t finding her pregnancy as easy as she had hoped
European drivers will save €3,800 over the lifetime of their cars if the EU imposes strict new CO2 standards on manufacturers, according to a recent study.
It says if CO2 emissions from the average car were limited to 95 g per km, fuel use would be cut by a quarter.
The innovations to the vehicle would add about €1,000 to the price of the average car in 2020.
But that extra cost would be offset in less than three years through fuel savings of around €400 per year.
The joint report from consultancies Cambridge Econometrics and Ricardo-AEA says that once all EU cars and vans meet the standard, Europe’s vehicle fleet will be €35 billion cheaper to run each year.
The report is timed to coincide with the first of a series of votes in the European Parliament on car standards.
The 95 g limit is proposed by the Commission. It argues that strict standards are essential to sustain the competitiveness of Europe’s car makers and help the EU meet its targets of reducing transport CO2 emissions 60% by 2050.
The technology is available: cars like the Ford Focus ECOnetic are already achieving the proposed 2020 standard.
The plans may be contentious in the European Parliament, though, with some German MEPs fearing their impact on manufacturers building bigger, heavier cars.
Monday’s report was commissioned by a group of organizations which believe that Europe’s car makers need to ratchet up efficiency to compete with US manufacturers facing President Barack Obama’s demand of 93 g/km in 2025 – a demanding target for US car makers starting from a low base.
The new report estimates that increased spending on vehicle technology will create 350,000-450,000 net additional jobs if the 95 g limit is imposed in Europe. This figure will doubtless be contested.
European drivers will save €3,800 over the lifetime of their cars if the EU imposes strict new CO2 standards on manufacturers
The study was funded by a group including Nissan, the European Association of Automotive Suppliers, GE, the union body IndustriAll and the European Climate Foundation. It focuses only on traditional-engine cars.Improvements are likely to come from many innovations, including building cars from aluminium – much lighter than steel – and installing universal stop-start technology which turns off the engine at traffic lights.
Volkswagen has already committed itself to the 95 g target.
In the run-up to the Geneva Motor Show, Volkswagen’s Martin Winterkorn said the firm intended to become the world’s most environmentally sustainable car maker: “This is a Herculean task calling for the best efforts of all our 40,000 developers. We can do it.”
The European car makers’ association ACEA told me the rules would harm some manufacturers.
A spokesman warned: “Price is the number-one factor motivating a customer’s purchasing decision. In a sector where margins are narrow and consumers have a wide range of choice, even a slight relative price rise can make a manufacturer’s range uncompetitive.”
The authors of Monday’s study point out that this argument underlines the need for new standards to ensure a level playing field for all car makers.
But ACEA continued: “The fact that a car may be cheaper to run once on the road is not relevant if the consumer cannot afford the new technology and instead opts for a used car, with higher emissions – or for keeping his old vehicle, again with higher emissions.”
The campaign group Transport and Environment says this is an old argument from an industry which has been forced by previous standards to improve efficiency and reduce fuel bills. The group argued that the EU needed long-range standards to 2025 to drive further innovation.
It also warns that manufacturers are becoming adept at manipulating tests to make cars appear more efficient than they really are.
The Commission will need to ensure that the move towards diesel vehicles to improve efficiency does not lead to increased local air pollution from particulates.
Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades says he is battling against eurozone demands that all bank customers pay a one-off levy in return for a bailout.
Nicos Anastasiades said he shared people’s unhappiness with the terms, whereby all bank customers would pay a levy of 6.75% or 10% on their bank deposits.
The EU and IMF have demanded the levy in return for a 10 billion-euro ($13 billion) bank bailout.
An emergency session of parliament has been postponed until Monday.
Nicos Anastasiades said it was the worst crisis since Turkey invaded in 1974.
“I fully share the unhappiness caused by a difficult and painful decision,” he said.
“That’s why I continue to fight with the eurogroup to amend their decisions in the coming hours to limit the impact on small depositors.”
The president said Cyprus had had to choose between stabilizing its finances or the eventual collapse of its financial system and exit from the eurozone.
Under the bailout’s terms, people in Cyprus with less than 100,000 euros in their accounts would have to pay a one-time tax of 6.75%. Those with sums over that threshold would pay 9.9% in tax.
Depositors will be compensated with the equivalent amount in shares in their banks, and Nicos Anastasiades promised that those who kept deposits in Cypriot banks for the next two years would be given bonds linked to revenues from natural gas.
Cyprus announced the discovery of a field containing between 5 and 8 trillion cubic feet of natural gas under the Mediterranean Sea in 2011 but Turkey disputes its drilling rights.
It is believed that eurozone leaders, particularly in Germany, insisted on the levy because of the large amount of Russian capital kept in Cypriot banks, amid fears of money-laundering.
The speaker of the European Parliament, Germany’s Martin Schulz, has called for the levy to be revised to protect small-scale bank customers.
It is now clear that negotiators of the bailout in Brussels drastically underestimated the reaction in Cyprus.
Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades says he is battling against eurozone demands that all bank customers pay a one-off levy in return for a bailout
A tiny eurozone economy feels it is being blackmailed by the most powerful, and the growing resentment will do nothing to foster European solidarity.The solution we concluded is not what we wanted but is the least painful under the circumstances,” President Nicos Anastasiades said on TV.
“I bear the political cost for this, in order to limit as much as possible the consequences for the economy and for our fellow Cypriots.”
The vote in parliament has been postponed to Monday afternoon. If the deal is defeated, state media say banks could be closed on Tuesday so as to avoid mass withdrawals.
The Cypriot president’s Democratic Rally party – which has 20 seats in the 56-member assembly – needs support from other factions to ratify the bailout.
Opposition leader George Lillikas, an independent, said the president had “betrayed the people’s vote”.
The speaker of the European Parliament, Martin Schulz, argued in a newspaper interview that there should be an exemption from the levy for savers, for example, who had less than 25,000 euros in their accounts.
“The solution must be socially acceptable,” Martin Schulz, who belongs to Germany’s opposition Social Democrats, told Germany’s Welt am Sonntag newspaper.
The German Chancellor, Angela Merkel, defended the levy, saying: “I think it’s a good step which will certainly make it easier for us to approve the help for Cyprus.”
As with past eurozone bailouts, the deal must be approved by the lower house of parliament in Germany, the EU’s biggest economy.
If the levy goes ahead, it will affect many non-Cypriots with bank accounts.
However, depositors in the overseas arms of Cypriot banks will not be hit.
The levy itself will not take effect until Tuesday, following a public holiday, but action is being taken to control electronic money transfers over the weekend.
The Supreme Court in Somalia has freed journalist Abdiaziz Abdinur Ibrahim, who was imprisoned for interviewing a woman who alleged she had been raped by security forces.
Abdiaziz Abdinur Ibrahim, 27, and his interviewee were jailed in February after being convicted of offending state institutions.
In early March the woman was freed on appeal, but the journalist, who did not report the story, was held in jail.
The Supreme Court said on Sunday that charges against Abdiaziz Abdinur Ibrahim had been dropped.
Leaving court, Abdiaziz Abdinur Ibrahim said: “I’m very happy that I got my freedom back, I thank those who worked in this process that helped my release including my lawyers.”
The case prompted an outcry from human rights groups and journalists, who said it was politically motivated.
UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said he was “deeply disappointed”.
The Supreme Court in Somalia has freed journalist Abdiaziz Abdinur Ibrahim, who was imprisoned for interviewing a woman who alleged she had been raped by security forces
Both the woman and Abdiaziz Abdinur Ibrahim were originally given one-year jail terms.The woman had reported the alleged rape at a police station in Mogadishu and prosecutors alleged she and others had been paid by Abdiaziz Abdinur Ibrahim to lie.
She was convicted after the judge cited disputed medical evidence saying she had not been raped.
Abdiaziz Abdinur Ibrahim, who was detained in January, was accused by police of collecting material for an al-Jazeera media report on rape in camps for displaced people.
He had been working for Somali radio stations and international media but had not been involved in the story in question, the network said.
A new government backed by the UN came to power last September, after eight years of transitional rule.
Somali has seen more than 20 years of conflict which saw clan-based warlords, rival politicians and Islamist militants battle for control of the country.
Steubenville high school football players Trent Mays and Ma’lik Richmond have been found guilty of raping a 16-year-old girl.
Trent Mays, 16, and Ma’lik Richmond, 17, attacked the girl after a drunken party in the town of Steubenville, Ohio. Both wept as the verdict was read out.
The case came to light via text messages, online videos and social media posts made the morning after, attracting nationwide attention.
Trent Mays and Ma’lik Richmond were sentenced to at least a year in juvenile detention.
Trent Mays was sentenced to another year for taking pictures of the victim, and the judge said both might stay in detention until they reach 21.
The case was thrust into the national spotlight after attention by bloggers and the hacker activist group Anonymous.
Some claimed that the community – including local police – had sought to cover up the crime to protect the accused, who were members of a celebrated high school football team.
The case focused attention on teenage alcohol abuse and highlighted the increasing use of social media as evidence in court.
Steubenville high school football players Trent Mays and Ma’lik Richmond have been found guilty of raping a 16-year-old girl
Last August, Trent Mays and Ma’lik Richmond left a party with a 16-year-old girl and abused her, first in a car and then at a friend’s house.The victim was so drunk she had no memory of the attack, but prosecutors said she had been “treated like a toy”.
There was no physical evidence, but details of the evening emerged from text messages, tweets and humiliating photos posted on the internet by the attackers and other party-goers.
The case caused a bitter divide in Steubenville, a small and economically depressed former steel town that had immense pride in its high school football team, known as the “Big Red”.
Some of the witnesses were friends of the accused who gave evidence against them in return for immunity from prosecution.
Kate Middleton’s shoe became stuck when standing on a grate as the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge attend a St Patrick’s Day parade today.
Prince William was on hand to help his pregnant wife – but could not help having a little laugh as she tried to retrieve her shoe.
The amusing scene was completed by the soldier continuing to salute the Royal couple as Kate Middleton had to bend down to force her heel from the grate.
Dressed in the same green Emilia Wickstead dress coat she wore to the event last year, Kate Middleton smiled broadly as she greeted soldiers from the 1st Battalion Irish Guards at Mons Barracks in Aldershot, Hampshire.
Kate Middleton’s heel became stuck when standing on a grate as the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge attend a St Patrick’s Day parade
The Duchess’ bump could only occasionally be seen under the coat – which was an appropriate color for the occasion.Under grey skies, pregnant Kate Middleton took her position next to Prince William on a podium which offered them cover from the rain.
Greek football player Giorgos Katidis has been banned for life from playing for the national team after making a Nazi salute.
AEK Athens midfielder Giorgos Katidis, 20, made the gesture to celebrate his winning goal during a Saturday match.
The Greek football federation called it “a severe provocation” that insulted “all the victims of Nazi bestiality”.
Giorgos Katidis denied he gave a Nazi salute.
“I am not a fascist and would not have done it if I had known what it meant,” Giorgos Katidis said on his Twitter account.
Greek football player Giorgos Katidis has been banned for life from playing for the national team after making a Nazi salute
Girgos Katidis – a former captain of Greece’s under-19 team – was fiercely criticized on social media for the salute after scoring the winner in AEK’s 2-1 victory over Veria in the Olympic stadium on Saturday.The player insisted he was simply pointing at a team mate in the stands.
The club have asked him to explain himself at a board meeting next week.
AEK’s German coach Ewald Lienen has backed Giorgos Katidis.
“He is a young kid who does not have any political ideas. He most likely saw such a salute on the internet or somewhere else and did it without knowing what it means,” Ewald Lienen said, according to Reuters news agency.
Pope Francis I has delivered his first Angelus prayer and blessing before a crowd of many thousands gathered in St Peter’s Square in Rome.
The pontiff also delivered off-the-cuff remarks, about God’s power to forgive, instead of reading a written speech.
It was the Pope’s second official appearance before the general public since he was elected on Wednesday.
Earlier, Pope Francis celebrated his first Sunday mass as pontiff in the Vatican’s small and simple parish church.
Before he entered the church, chosen instead of St Peter’s Basilica, Pope Francis greeted well-wishers who had lined up outside a nearby Vatican gate shouting “Francesco” (his name in Italian).
At the end of the Sunday Mass, he waited outside the church and greeted people as they left, like a parish priest, asking many of them to, “pray for me”.
Later, just a few minutes after delivering the Angelus, Pope Francis sent his first Tweet as pontiff, writing: “Dear friends, I thank you from my heart and I ask you to continue to pray for me. Pope Francis.”
Pope Francis I has delivered his first Angelus prayer and blessing before a crowd of many thousands gathered in St Peter’s Square in Rome
First impressions of the new Pope from the faithful on St Peter’s Square have been favorable.“He uses simple words for all people,” said policeman Claudio, who was born in Rome.
“Plus he’s Hispanic and so closer to the Italians.”
The new Pope’s tone is very different to that of Benedict XVI.
Pope Francis’ style is pastoral, he teaches by anecdote and speaks off the cuff with ease, in contrast to the theological sermonizing of Pope Benedict.
Olivier Metzner, one of France’s best-known criminal lawyers, has been found dead.
His body was found floating off his private island in Brittany.
A note was found at Olivier Metzner’s home and an investigation has been opened, with police treating the case as suicide.
Olivier Metzner made his name in a series of high-profile cases, defending the rogue trader Jerome Kerviel, former Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin, and Vivendi chief Jean-Marie Messier.
He was one of a handful of star lawyers in France, who between them have dominated the great court cases of the last two decades.
Olivier Metzner, one of France’s best-known criminal lawyers, has been found dead
Olivier Metzner successfully defended former Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin, when he was accused of a conspiracy to defame President Nicolas Sarkozy, but his client Jerome Kerviel – who caused billions of euros in losses at the bank Societe Generale – was convicted.Other clients included the businessman and former head of Vivendi Jean-Marie Messier, who was convicted of fraud, and Continental Airlines, which was eventually cleared of criminal liability in causing the crash of a Concorde in Paris in 2000.
Rarely seen out of court without a large cigar, Olivier Metzner was renowned for his intricate understanding of the most complex cases, and multinational corporations regular sought his services.
McDonald’s celebrates St. Patrick’s Day each year with their famous minty-green Shamrock Shake, which contains a whopping 820 calories.
Shamrock Shake’s calories are equivalent to one and a half hamburgers at McDonald’s.
Included in those calories are a hefty 23 grams of fat and 115 grams of sugar.
Other menu options with the same nutritional value include 3.6 orders of small fries, a bacon, egg, and cheese biscuit, 4.3 orders of hotcakes, and 8 soft baked chocolate chip cookies, The Huffington Post reports.
McDonald’s celebrates St. Patrick’s Day each year with their famous minty-green Shamrock Shake, which contains a whopping 820 calories
St. Patrick’s Day treat is made up of the company’s Shamrock Shake syrup, an ice cream base, whip cream, and a single cherry.Not only are the calories astonishingly high, but the frosty treat is also filled with a number of additives that have been shown to cause adverse health effects.
The artificial vanilla flavor includes lignin, a byproduct of wood pulp extraction. Lignin has been known to trigger migraine headaches.
Hidden in the whip cream is carrageenan, a thickening agent. Degraded forms of that chemical, non food-grade, are listed as a possible carcinogen in humans by the International Agency for Research on Cancer. Food-grade versions have been linked to colon inflammation, a risk for colon cancer.
Then there’s the combination of Yellow 5 or Red 40 and Sodium Benzoate, which has been linked to hyperactivity in children.
So next time you pull up to the drive-thru, consider what you’re really getting.
China’s new President Xi Jinping has said he will fight for “the great renaissance of the Chinese nation,” in his first speech as head of state.
Closing the annual National People’s Congress, Xi Jinping urged delegates to reject extravagance and fight corruption.
At a news conference later, new Premier Li Keqiang said sustainable economic growth would remain the top priority.
The comments come as the Communist government completed a once-in-a-decade leadership transition.
President Xi Jinping’s address was a patriotic speech urging greater national unity.
Its nationalistic tone will reinforce the view that he will pursue a more assertive foreign policy during his decade in power.
President Xi Jinping issued a warning to China’s military, saying it should improve its ability to “win battles and… protect national sovereignty and security”.
He also stressed that continued economic development was essential, urging the nation to achieve what he called “China’s dream”.
China’s new President Xi Jinping has said he will fight for “the great renaissance of the Chinese nation,” in his first speech as head of state
The same themes were taken up at a rare news conference by new premier Li Keqiang, who has taken over the day-to-day running of the country, succeeding Wen Jiabao.Li Keqiang addressed the growing inequality gap and public anger at corruption, promising to reform the central government, cut “extravagance” and shake-up “vested interests”.
Spending on the government payroll, overseas trips and new offices would be cut while funding for social services would increase, he said.
“A clean government should start with oneself,” Li Keqiang asserted.
Li Keqiang was elected for a five-year term but, like his predecessor, would be expected to spend a decade in office.
On foreign policy, Li Keqiang stressed on the importance of further developing relations with the US, saying that “common interests far outweigh our differences”.
He described as “groundless” US accusations that China was behind recent cyber-attacks on American government agencies and companies.
On Saturday, the People’s Congress approved a number of new ministerial appointments, including Foreign Minister Wang Yi and Finance Minister Lou Jiwei.
The four vice-premiers are Zhang Gaoli, Liu Yandong, Wang Yang and Ma Kai – all veteran Communist Party officials.
Cyprus’ President Nicos Anastasiades has said a big bailout, which has provoked mass public anger, was needed to avoid a “disorderly bankruptcy”.
The 10 billion-euro ($13 billion) deal agreed by the EU was “a painful but controlled management of the crisis”, he said.
Many Cypriots, shocked that the bailout imposes a levy on bank deposits of up to 10%, were seen queuing to withdraw cash.
The parliament is due to meet later on Sunday to vote on the measure.
Nicos Anastasiades’ Democratic Rally party – which has 20 seats in the 56-member assembly – needs support from other factions to ratify the bailout.
The deal – reached with eurozone partners and also the IMF in Brussels late on Friday – marks a radical departure from previous international aid packages.
In a statement on Saturday, President Nicos Anastasiades described the deal as choice between the “catastrophic scenario of disorderly bankruptcy or the scenario of a painful but controlled management of the crisis”.
The president said that thousands of small businesses would have gone bankrupt without the agreement.
Nicos Anastasiades, who was elected last month on a promise to tackle the country’s debt crisis, is due to address the nation later on Sunday.
Nicholas Papadopoulos, who heads the parliamentary financial committee, said his initial reaction to the bailout deal was “shock”.
“This decision is much worse than what we expected and contrary to what the government was assuring us, right up until last night [Friday],” Nicholas Papadopoulos told Reuters.
Many Cypriots, shocked that the bailout imposes a levy on bank deposits of up to 10 percent, were seen queuing to withdraw cash
Meanwhile, opposition leader George Lillikas has urged his supporters to stage a protest rally on Tuesday, saying that the president “had betrayed the people’s vote”.People in Cyprus with less than 100,000 euros in their accounts will have to pay a one-time tax of 6.75%, Eurozone officials said after agreeing the deal.
Those with greater sums will pay 9.9% in tax.
Depositors will be compensated with the equivalent amount in shares in their banks.
Reports suggest that depositors will be able to access all of their money except the amount set by the levy.
The levy itself will not take effect until Tuesday, following a public holiday, but action is being taken to control electronic money transfers over the weekend.
Co-operative banks, the only ones which were open in Cyprus on Saturday, closed after people started queuing to withdraw their money.
At one bank in the Limassol district, a frustrated man parked his bulldozer outside and threatened to break in.
According to Reuters news agency, almost half of the depositors in Cyprus are believed to be non-resident Russians.
Russians reacted angrily to the news of the levy on social media.
International lenders are gambling that the risk of a bigger banking crisis elsewhere in the eurozone has receded.
While Cyprus may be one of the eurozone’s tiniest economies – its third-smallest – there could be serious repercussions for other financially over-stretched economies, such as those of Spain and Italy.
The point of the levy is to warn lenders to banks that they should take care where they place their funds, and avoid banks that overstretch themselves – as Cypriot banks did.
Cyprus is the fifth country after Greece, the Republic of Ireland, Portugal and Spain to turn to the eurozone for financial help during the region’s debt crisis.
The country has been in financial difficulties since the collapse of the Greek economy, where Cypriot banks had huge investments.
Lil Wayne spent a day at an aquarium with his 4-old-son Dwayne just three days before he was rushed to hospital in LA while suffering uncontrollable seizures.
According to TMZ, they visited the Georgia Aquarium on March 9 and checked out the Ocean Voyager exhibit.
Lil Wayne, 30, has tweeted to say he is “good” despite it being said he was dying and being read his last rights.
TMZ had reported Lil Wayne was on his death bed with friends and family saying their last goodbyes to the star.
While the rapper was said to be on “life support” and in a critical condition after suffering from uncontrollable seizures he tweeted to fans late Friday saying he was alright.
Lil Wayne wrote: “I’m good everybody. Thx for the prayers and love.”
Friends still packed the waiting room of the hospital on Friday night including rapper Drake.
Drake was seen leaving the hospital shortly after Wezzy tweeted he was doing fine in spite of TMZ‘s reports.
Lil Wayne spent a day at an aquarium with his 4-old-son Dwayne just three days before he was rushed to hospital in LA while suffering uncontrollable seizures
His friend and president of the rapper’s Young Money record label, Mack Maine refuted TMZ‘s story tweeting just prior to Lil Wayne.“Wayne is alive and well! We watching the Syracuse game…thanks for the prayers and concern..he will update you all soon.”
Mack Maine added: “We will be releasing an official statement shortly but don’t believe the nonsense about comas and tubes to breathe…that’s false!!”
TMZ had reported Lil Wayne was rushed to Cedars Sinai hospital in Los Angeles on Wednesday night.
The website claimed that Lil Wayne – real name is Dwayne Michael Carter – was in critical condition after being placed in an induced coma, reportedly breathing through tubes.
TMZ initially reported Lil Wayne was being given his last rites and his family were at his hospital bedside and saying their goodbyes
However, TMZ later removed any reference Lil Wayne being given his last rites saying instead his mother is flying into Los Angeles to make a decision on whether to continue with life support.
Lil Wayne was meant to have fallen ill after suffering multiple seizures whilst shooting Nicki Minaj’s new single, High School on Tuesday.
The rapper was released the following day.
TMZ reported later that day one of his bodyguards found Lil Wayne in his room, on the floor and unconscious and while he was rushed to Ceders Sinai Hospital doctors were unable to stabilze the rapper.
Larry Hagman’s Santa Monica ocean-front penthouse was put up for sale in January, two months after the star passed away following a yearlong battle with cancer.
After 63 days on the market the home finally sold on February 28, according to property managers Surterre Properties.
The penthouse had been listed at $5.2 million, but no sales price was named in the press release.
As Larry Hagman’s wife of 58 years, Maj Axelsson, is suffering from Alzheimers, their Ojai, California estate was also posted for sale.
As of March, Larry Hagman’s Ojai estate, which he appropriately named “Heaven”, is still available for sale for just under $6.5 million, according real estate brokers Kogevinas, who represent the property.
The spectacular property boasts a 20,000 square-foot home with nine bedrooms, nine bathrooms, and five swimming pools.
The Tuscan-style home also has a man-made babbling creek, 400 rose bushes as well as olive, grapefruit, lime, orange, and avocado trees.
However, the sprawling property’s best feature is the mind-blowing 360-degree view of the mountains and Pacific Ocean.
Larry Hagman’s Santa Monica ocean-front penthouse was put up for sale in January, two months after the star passed away following a yearlong battle with cancer
The condo features floor-to-ceiling windows and a semi-private glass elevator shared with only seven other tenants at the posh 101 Ocean Avenue building.Built into the Santa Monica hillside, the unique property features stunning views of the Pacific Ocean from the top floor of the 10-story building.
Originally built in the 1960s, the building and its units were refurbished in the late 1980s, and Larry Hagman was among the buildings most prestigious owners.
Pictures of the home show Larry Hagman’s love of nature, as the Pacific Ocean could be seen even from a small bathroom window.
In 2011, Larry Hagman returned to Dallas to reprise his role as cunning villain J.R. in the show’s reboot, which started airing in June 2012.
But in October of that year the star was diagnosed with a “treatable” form of throat cancer and announced he would receive treatment while filming Dallas reboot.
Miley Cyrus got a new tattoo on her forearm on Friday – a mini replica of Leonardo da Vinci’s anatomical heart drawing.
Celebrity tattoo artist Kat Von D did the inking, tweeting the results on her Twitter page.
“Just did the RADDEST tattoo on @MileyCyrus,” she wrote.
“A miniature rendition of a da Vinci anatomical heart!”
The star also posted the original black and white illustration next to the photograph.
Miley Cyrus, 20, was clearly proud of the new inking, retweeting Kat Von D’s post.
Miley Cyrus got a new tattoo on her forearm, a mini replica of Leonardo da Vinci’s anatomical heart drawing
The star got her tattoo underneath an existing inking of roman numerals.Miley Cyrus has several tattoos already including the word “love” on the inside of her right ear, a pair of crossed arrows on her back and a cross, heart and peace sign on her fingers.
She also has the phrase “just breathe” on her chest and an equals sign on her finger representing marriage equality.
Miley Cyrus and Liam Hemsworth, 23, even have matching tattoos – different quotes from a speech by Franklin Delano Roosevelt.
Miley Cyrus has been spotted without her engagement ring, fueling rumors her engagement to Liam Hemsworth has been called off.
Jersey Shore’s Snooki and JWoww couldn’t help but get close to cuddly reality rival Mama June of Here Comes Honey Boo Boo fame on Saturday as they attended the GLAAD Media Awards.
Snooki and JWoww posted snaps on their Instagram pages as they met June Shannon backstage at the 24th annual event in New York City, announcing their strong liking for Mama June.
Snooki, real name is Nicole Polizzi, wrote alongside a snap of her straddling the larger lady: “YES. We love Mama June.”
At the same time, Jwoww, real name Jennifer Farley, posted with a similar picture: “Honey boo boo b****es!!! #obsessed #loveher.”
Snooki and JWoww couldn’t help but get close to cuddly reality rival Mama June of Here Comes Honey Boo Boo fame on Saturday as they attended the GLAAD Media Awards
