Adele is said to have married in secret, a month away from welcoming her first child.
Adele, 24, is pictured wearing a black maxi dress revealing her baby bump in London last month with fiancé Simon Konecki.
And the glowing mother-to-be was unmistakably sporting a gold band on her ring finger.
Pregnant Adele sporting a gold band on her ring finger
A source told Life&Style: “Adele and Simon managed to keep the baby news a secret for so long that there are rumours they’ve already gotten married, too.
“She’s an old-fashioned girl and can’t wait to be part of a family unit. She just wants to focus on the baby and the man she loves.”
The pictures are the first of the star since announcing her pregnancy in June via her website. There has been no updates to the site since then.
She enjoyed one of her last nights out before giving birth by having a quiet dinner at Eight Over Eight and window-shopping at Fulham Road’s antiques shops and bookstores.
“Adele was relaxed and calm, and she and Simon looked really great together,” an eyewitness tells Life & Style.
“She seemed very, very happy. She absolutely does have a pregnancy glow.”
Newly leaked document reveals that troubled actress Lindsay Lohan was recently banned from Chateau Marmont Hotel over a $46,350.04 unpaid bill.
Lilo stayed in the upscale Chateau Marmont Hotel in West Hollywood during June and July of this year, all the while racking up heavy room service bills.
The star, who was last night spotted leaving the Wolfgang Puck Restaurant in New York, ordered up room service meals, cigarettes and regularly used the mini bar during her stay but failed to pay the hotel for their services, forcing the manager to ban her from the premises.
In a letter to Lindsay Lohan obtained by TMZ, hotel general manager Philip Pavel wrote to the troubled 26-year-old on July 31, reiterating their “repeated attempts to resolve” the bill.
Newly leaked document reveals that troubled actress Lindsay Lohan was recently banned from Chateau Marmont Hotel over a $46,350.04 unpaid bill
Philip Pavel writes: “As you are aware from our previous correspondences starting on July 8, you currently owe the hotel a grand total of $46,350.04 in charges for your stay starting on May 30, 2012.”
The general manager of the hotel also informed Lindsay Lohan that she would no longer be welcome on their premises.
The letter continues: “As we have made repeated attempts to resolve this pressing matter over the last few weeks without any resolution, I regret to inform you that we will no longer be able to extend any further credit for you to remain in the hotel.
“Please have all of your belongings removed from Suite 33 by 12:00PM, Wednesday, August, 1, 2012.”
Not only was Lindsay Lohan told that she would have to leave her suite at the hotel, she was also told that she could no longer use the facilities or eat in the popular restaurant.
“Furthermore, until we get the matter of your outstanding debt paid, know that we will be unable to host you on property or in the restaurant.”
To perhaps coax Lindsay Lohan into paying her colossal bill, manager Philip Pavel even dismissed charges for rental use of a computer that Lindsay had been using.
“In regard to your bill, please note that I have adjusted off the daily $75 charge for computer rental for use of the hotel’s laptop as a gesture of good faith, with the understanding that you will return the computer upon your departure tomorrow.”
Lindsay Lohan was staying in the hotel while she filmed Liz & Dick – where she plays Elizabeth Taylor in the biopic of her life.
In recent years the troubled star has become more famous for her court appearances than her acting work, with Lindsay Lohan reportedly hoping that her performance in Liz & Dick will help save her ailing reputation.
No stranger to scandal, Lindsay Lohan was recently caught up in an alleged jewellery heist after being formally named as a suspect in a robbery – with reports now suggesting that she will not face prosecution after she claimed that she had been framed.
Identical twins Clare and Rachel Wallmeyer, who became famous through their desperate battle with anorexia, have died in a house fire aged 42.
Clare and Rachel Wallmeyer were killed after a fire broke out in their home in Geelong, near Melbourne, Australia, one perishing in the flames, the other succumbing to her severe burns on the way to hospital.
It was a tragic end to two turbulent lives, for the sisters had appeared on Australian TV several times to talk about the anorexia which had turned both into virtual living skeletons and a problem pair for their parents, social workers and the police.
In a poignant review of their lives they said in recent years that they had never been in love, never had a job and they believed that it was only a matter of time before they died – and they would die together.
Their deaths in the fire are believed to have been accidental, according to detectives from the Geelong Crime Investigation Unit who said that initial checks did not reveal any suspicious activity.
Yet there had been reports over the years of the women each trying to kill one another.
Identical twins Clare and Rachel Wallmeyer, who became famous through their desperate battle with anorexia, have died in a house fire aged 42
Rachel Wallmeyer was charged with the attempted murder of Clare after police, who were called to their home, claimed they witnessed Rachel with her hands locked around her sister’s throat.
The charge was later withdrawn.
Their existence, balanced between life and death, had resulted in TV companies searching them out for interviews after authorities considered jailing them in an attempt to stop the women starving themselves to death and “turn their lives around”.
In fact Clare Wallmeyer was later jailed by a Geelong court for a series of thefts – but only after magistrate Ian von Einem said he saw no option but to send her to prison to stop her from self-destructing.
Her sister also presented a headache for the authorities when she was arrested for driving under the influence of drugs and was also accused of pushing a victim on to train tracks.
She received a 21-month suspended jail sentence.
The women, who were compulsive long-distance runners, described themselves as perfectionists in biomedical science and physical education, topics they studied avidly, side by side.
But as they started to waste away over two decades, the weight of each of them dropped to little more than four stone. Doctors said they had the bone structure of women aged between 70 and 100.
The twins developed severe eating disorders in their early teens losing more weight when they became addicted to long-distance running.
They were so obsessed with marathons that they each suffered stress fractures in their feet.
Inseparable to their tragic end, there was the time in 1996 when Rachel Wallmeyer was so ill she was admitted to a psychiatric unit at the Royal Melbourne Hospital – followed by Clare who voluntarily admitted herself too.
Rachel Wallmeyer told Melbourne’s Herald Sun newspaper on one occasion that no-one understood anorexia until they have lived it.
“It’s like the Grim Reaper – a black hole in your soul,” she said.
Their parents, Bob and Moya Wallmeyer admitted that when the twins were teenagers they feared they would find them dead in bed because of their disorder.
In an interview with Australia’s 60 Minutes programme the twins gave a startling insight into their eating habits.
Clare Wallmeyer: “Essentially, we don’t eat anything. We might have a piece of watermelon.”
Rachel Wallmeyer added: “And Diet Coke we have, and coffee.”
They also revealed they took at least 20 laxatives.
Rachel Wallmeyer said that her sister Clare was the only person who remained by her side.
“And at least we’ll die together.”
Clare Wallmeyer said: “Being with Rachel…makes it somewhat easier to die.”
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Bobby Brown has checked out of rehab early after admission for alcohol treatment.
Bobby Brown, 43, has left an undisclosed facility, where he was thought to be receiving treatment for alcohol addiction problems.
It comes less than three weeks after he agreed to be admitted as part of a deal struck following his arrest for driving under the influence (DUI) in March.
Bobby Brown has checked out of rehab early after admission for alcohol treatment
A source close to the family told RadarOnline: “Bobby is no longer in rehab, he decided he’s had enough treatment for his problems.
“When he first checked in, he promised his family and friends, including his New Edition band mates, that this time he was going to stay in rehab for the full treatment. That’s normally a 90-day program.
“However, after fulfilling his duties for his DUI plea deal, Bobby has decided that he doesn’t need treatment anymore.”
Bobby Brown’s family are now said to be “terrified” that he will start drinking again, and some are said to have questioned whether his intentions to give up alcohol are “genuine”.
The source added: “Bobby’s family and friends are terrified, despite his pleas that he’s sober, that he will fall off the wagon once again.
“They’re not sure if he was ever serious about conquering his demons and have voiced their concerns.
“It’s difficult to believe someone going into rehab for alcohol addiction for such a short time is genuine about giving up drinking.”
Bobby Brown’s wife Alicia Etheridge recently admitted she and his children – three-year-old Cassius from the couple’s relationship, 19-year-old Bobbi Kristina with late ex-wife Whitney Houston, and Landon, 23, La’Princia, 22, and Bobby Jr., 19, with previous partners – were “proud” of the singer for entering rehab.
Movie legend Al Pacino was looking all his 72 years as he stepped out yesterday with leathery, wrinkled skin, lending him a slightly haggard appearance.
Al Pacino was seen on a stroll holding his coffee and wearing a black sports coat over a vest and grey trousers.
The Oscar winner, who is best known for starring in classic gangster dramas like The Godfather and Scarface, has been known for his leading man looks.
Al Pacino was looking all his 72 years as he stepped out yesterday with leathery, wrinkled skin, lending him a slightly haggard appearance
Al Pacino still has an enviable head of salt-and-pepper hair for his age, which looked like he’d just rolled out of bed and he’s grown a matching goatee.
Al is still looking better than many of his over-70 contemporaries Clint Eastwood and Jack Nicholson.
However, the Hollywood icon’s disheveled appearance will only add to his role as the sad-sack salesman Shelley Levene in the Broadway revival staging of Glengarry Glen Ross.
Al Pacino originated the role of slick salesman Ricky Roma in the 1992 film version of David Mamet’s Pulitzer Prize-winning play, but Bobby Canavale will play the part for the revival.
He will be taking on Shelley, the washed-up salesman suffering from a long-running slump and a sick daughter, who was originally portrayed by Jack Lemmon.
Glengarry Glen Ross, staged in honor of the play’s 30th anniversary, will start previews on October 16 and officially open on November 11 at the Gerald Schoenfeld Theatre.
David Mamet also wrote and directed Al Pacino in the Phil Spector biopic for HBO, premiering next year.
Al Pacino will play the notorious music producer who was convicted of killing a model.
The cinematic icon will also provide his vocal talents for Despicable Me 2 and he just wrapped The Standup Guys, a comedy also starring Alan Arkin, Christopher Walken, and Julianna Margulies.
Instead of opting for a private birth, Jersey Shore star Snooki invited MTV cameras into the labor room to film the intimate moment.
And while they were kicked out shortly before little Lorenzo made his first appearance, Snooki’s fiancé Jionni LaValle captured the entire birth on camera for an upcoming episode of Jersey Shore spin-off show Snooki & JWOWW.
A source told RadarOnline: “Viewers will see Snooki in labor and the camera crew was kicked out as she was about to give birth. However, Snooki’s fiance, Jionni LaValle, was using a personal camcorder and he carried on filming.
“Lorenzo was ready for his proud parents to show him off to the world and was filmed hours after the birth. It was done very tastefully and with respect to Snooki and other patients at the New Jersey hospital.”
Snooki, 24, was spotted leaving hospital yesterday – two days after giving birth to her son.
The star, wearing a bright pink spotted dress, was wheeled out of the St. Barnabas Medical Center in Livingston, New Jersey, with her little bundle of joy in her arms.
Snooki was spotted leaving hospital yesterday, two days after giving birth to her son Lorenzo
The sighing came as Snooki today tweeted the first snap of herself since giving birth in the early hours of Sunday morning.
She was snuggled up in a leopard print blanket – and she also shared a picture inside her little man’s nursery, which features his name spelled out over his leopard print changing table, captioning it: “My world.”
Snooki added: “Lorenzo is even cuter today. I’m so lucky.”
It also seems Snooki has had a change of heart about breastfeeding.
After expressing her concerns about it just months before giving birth – she shared today how she loves nursing baby Lorenzo.
The revelation came after one fan asked her on Twitter: “Are you nursing? If so shout it out proud!”
Snooki duly replied: “I love nursing my little man!”
Back in June Snooki told Good Morning America that she was nervous about the idea of breastfeeding.
“I’m just scared. My friend did and she said it was so painful…but I definitely want to pump because it’s the best nutrients for the baby.”
But somewhat apprehensively she added: “It’s kind of like you’re a cow and you’re just milking.”
But since giving birth over the weekend to her son, Snooki, real name Nicole Polizzi, has had a change of heart.
“All the pain and anxiety is so worth it. Xoxo,” she went on.
Earlier Snooki shared a picture of herself on Twitter, writing: “Snuggled up in my leopard print robe. I’m legit an old lady. Rockin the diapers with that old lady gangsta lean.”
Snooki had managed to glue on her huge fake eyelashes, apply eye make-up and brush her hair into her trademark beehive, however.
“Hardly any sleep but SO worth it!” the diminutive Guidette added, although she has also found plenty of time to update her Twitter page since the birth.
She has not yet posted any photos of the newborn as she has probably negotiated a lucrative deal for a first look at the tot with a magazine.
“I am SO IN LOVE with my son Lorenzo Dominic! I had my little man last night, healthy at 6lbs! HE’S MY WORLD!” Snooki said on Sunday
Nicole Polizzi and fiancé Jionni LaValle had their first child shortly before 3:00 a.m. on Sunday at St. Barnabas Medical Center in Livingston, New Jersey.
A Snooki representative told MTV: “The world just got another Guido! Lorenzo Dominic LaValle has entered the world weighing 6 pounds, 5 ounces. Nicole, Jionni and Enzo are doing great!”
Snooki took a break from tweeting during the birth, but was soon back updating her fans saying: “Post birth isn’t so comfy and glamorous. But my son is FABULOUS.”
DJ David Guetta’s long standing relationship has continued to go from strength to strength as he recently celebrated his 20-year marriage in Ibiza, Spain.
David Guetta, 44, and his wife Cathy Guetta renewed their vows in an intimate ceremony in front of close friends and family, on Tuesday.
The star put away his trendy normal gear of trainers, jeans and T-shirts in favor of a smooth looking black tuxedo and bow tie combination.
His beautiful wife looked a vision in a white knee-length dress with a delicate white hair band in her blonde hair.
David Guetta and his wife Cathy renewed their vows in an intimate ceremony in front of close friends and family
Cathy Guetta teamed the pretty outfit with a pair of white gloves, large matching belt and carried a bouquet of pink and white roses.
The couple picked the idyllic surroundings of the party island as David Guetta had been playing there throughout the summer.
David Guetta also had his two children present at the ceremony, Tim and Angie.
Several young little girls were seen wearing bridesmaid dresses as they walked down the aisle at the nuptials followed by David and Cathy.
Cathy Guetta is a socialite and night club manager but also manages some of her husband’s affairs including his brand F*** Me I’m Famous.
David Guetta must have been tired as he played at the Belsonic festival in Belfast, Northern Ireland, on Sunday night and then flew to Ibiza for another gig.
The long haired star is usually hanging out with musicians such as Jessie J, Will.i.am and Usher, but none of them were at the ceremony.
Certain areas of Amsterdam’s Schiphol airport have been closed after a suspected World War II bomb was discovered, a spokeswoman said.
The departure hall serving most European destinations has been evacuated as a precautionary measure.
Delays are now affecting some departures and passengers are advised to check their flights before leaving for the airport.
A bomb disposal team is trying to establish whether the device is live.
Certain areas of Amsterdam's Schiphol airport have been closed after a suspected World War II bomb was discovered
The bomb was uncovered by workers digging near Pier C, which connects the main plaza with Departure Hall One, serving most destinations within Europe’s 26-country passport-free Schengen zone.
“This will have a big impact. We can park planes somewhere else to some extent but at some point it will lead to cancellations or delays,” the spokeswoman said earlier, according to Reuters news agency.
Schiphol was used as a military airfield by Nazi Germany during the 1939-45 war, and was often attacked by allied bombers, Dutch media said.
It is now one of Europe’s busiest airports, handling some 48 million passengers every year.
Unexploded bombs dating back to the war are still frequently discovered in Europe.
A 550 lb (250 kg) American bomb was detonated by a bomb disposal team in the German city of Munich on Tuesday.
A 1.5-tonne mortar bomb probably fired by Nazi forces was also safely removed from the Polish capital, Warsaw.
India’s Supreme Court has upheld the death sentence of Pakistani national Mohammad Ajmal Amir Qasab, the sole surviving gunman of the 2008 attacks on Mumbai.
The judges also rejected his claim that he had been denied a fair trial.
Mohammad Qasab, 24, was convicted of murder and other crimes in May 2010. His first appeal was rejected by the Mumbai High Court in February 2011.
The November 2008 attacks claimed 166 lives. Nine gunmen were also killed.
“In view of the nature of the gravity of his crime and the fact that he participated in waging war against the country, we have no option but to uphold his death penalty,” Supreme Court Justices Aftab Alam and CK Prasad ruled.
Legal experts say it could still be months or even years before Mohammad Qasab’s sentence can be carried out.
India's Supreme Court has upheld the death sentence of Pakistani national Mohammad Ajmal Amir Qasab, the sole surviving gunman of the 2008 attacks on Mumbai
He has the right to appeal to the same two judges to review his case. If that fails he can take his appeal to other Supreme Court judges. His last hope lies with a plea for clemency to the president.
There will now be huge pressure for the death sentence to be carried out soon.
A spokesman for India’s main opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi, said there should be “no delay” in executing Qasab.
“Those who wage war against the country and kill innocents deserve no mercy,” he said.
Prosecutor Gopal Subramaniam hailed the verdict as “a complete victory of the due processes of law”.
“It was a case argued in a completely professional and dispassionate manner,” Gopal Subramaniam said.
Defence lawyer Raju Ramachandran told reporters outside the court that he had made his arguments and “the court considered them”.
“I bow to the verdict,” he added.
The trial court in Mumbai had found Mohammad Qasab guilty on 3 May 2010 of murder, terrorist acts and waging war on India and sentenced him to death.
In his appeal to the Supreme Court, Mohammad Qasab argued that the prosecution had “failed to prove beyond reasonable doubt” the charges against him.
He said he “may be guilty of killing people and carrying out a terrorist act but I am not guilty of waging war against the state”.
The 60-hour siege of Mumbai began on 26 November 2008, targeting luxury hotels, the main railway station and a Jewish cultural centre.
Mohammad Qasab and an accomplice carried out the assault on the station, killing 52 people.
India blamed Pakistan-based militant group Lashkar-e-Taiba for the attacks.
After initial denials, Pakistan acknowledged that the assault had been partially planned on its territory and that Mohammad Qasab was a Pakistani citizen.
President Bashar al-Assad has said Syrian government needs more time to “win the battle” against rebel forces.
In an interview with pro-government al-Dunya TV, Bashar al-Assad also dismissed as “unrealistic” the idea of creating humanitarian buffer zones within Syria.
Opposition activists say the army has launched offensives across the country to regain control of rebel-held areas.
Heavy shelling was reported on Tuesday in the capital, Damascus, Aleppo, and the north-western province of Idlib.
Bashar al-Assad said the Syrian government was “fighting a battle both regionally and internationally”.
“It definitely needs time to bring it to a decisive end. But I can sum it up in one sentence: we’re heading forward,” he told al-Dunya.
“The situation on the ground is better now, but the conclusion is not there yet. That needs some time.”
President Bashar al-Assad has said Syrian government needs more time to "win the battle" against rebel forces
The security forces were “doing a heroic job in every sense”, he added.
“Everyone is worried about their country – that is normal. But [the rebels] will not be able to spread fear, they never will,” he said.
“I say to Syrians: destiny is in your hands, and not in the hands of others.”
The president mocked senior government and military officials who have defected in recent months, saying their departure amounted to a “self-cleansing of the government firstly, and the country generally”.
Responding to rumors about his whereabouts since a July bombing in Damascus killed four senior officials, he revealed that he was being interviewed from the presidential palace in the capital.
Bashar al-Assad also addressed the proposal by Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu to set up a United Nations-sanctioned “safe zone” inside Syria to shelter refugees and help distribute humanitarian aid.
“Talk of buffer zones firstly is not on the table and secondly it is an unrealistic idea by hostile countries and the enemies of Syria,” he said.
“Do we go back because of the ignorance of some Turkish officials or do we focus on our relationship with the Turkish people, especially those people who have stood by us during the crisis and were not swayed by the media and material propaganda?”
French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius admitted on Wednesday that creating a buffer zone would be impossible without imposing a no-fly zone deploying ground forces.
“We are thinking about this. It is very complicated. We cannot do it without the agreement of the Turks and other countries,” he told France Inter radio.
“But what we want is for things to move forward, to make Bashar fall as quickly as possible and at the same time find humanitarian solutions.”
The UN refugee agency warned on Tuesday that as many as 200,000 refugees could flee to Turkey to escape fighting in Syria – almost double the number Turkey has said it can take.
The UNHCR said 5,000 refugees were now arriving at the Turkish border every day, compared to about 500 earlier this month. There are already more than 74,000 in Turkey, and 128,000 in other countries.
There are also thought to be more than 1.2 million internally displaced people in Syria, and 2.5 million in need of humanitarian assistance.
Ukraine’s high court has rejected the appeal by jailed opposition leader and former PM Yulia Tymoshenko against her conviction for abuse of office.
Yulia Tymoshenko, currently in hospital, was jailed last October for seven years – a term confirmed by Wednesday’s ruling.
The former leader was convicted over a gas deal she signed with Russia’s Vladimir Putin while in power in 2009. She says her trial was politically motivated.
The European Court of Human Rights has begun considering her case.
Ukraine's high court has rejected the appeal by jailed opposition leader and former PM Yulia Tymoshenko against her conviction for abuse of office
Yulia Tymoshenko was accused of betraying the national interest in 2010, after her arch-rival Viktor Yanukovych had defeated her in a presidential election. The deal with Russia that she negotiated was deemed to have saddled Ukraine with enormous costs.
Viktor Yanukovych has forged closer ties with Russia, whereas Yulia Tymoshenko and former President Yushchenko sought to bring Ukraine closer to NATO and the EU.
With her distinctive plaited, blonde hair Yulia Tymoshenko was a key figure in Ukraine’s 2004 Orange Revolution. Since then she has twice served as prime minister.
Many EU politicians have echoed her criticisms of the Ukrainian authorities and in June European leaders boycotted Euro 2012 football matches in Ukraine, to show their displeasure at her detention.
Yulia Tymoshenko argues that her detention was politically motivated and that there has been no judicial review. She also says the authorities neglected her medical needs and kept up round-the-clock surveillance after moving her to a hospital in the eastern city of Kharkiv.
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Thousands of people have been evacuated from New Orleans as Hurricane Isaac makes its slow approach.
Hurricane Isaac will hit the Louisiana city exactly seven years after it was devastated by Hurricane Katrina, but it is a much less powerful storm.
New Orleans has closed its new floodgates in a bid to protect it from the effects of high waters brought by sustained winds of up to 80 mph (130 km/h).
Isaac killed at least 24 people in Haiti and the Dominican Republic.
It has also caused significant flooding and damage across the Caribbean and forced a day’s delay to the start of the Republican party’s congress in Tampa, Florida.
Hurricane Isaac will hit Louisiana exactly seven years after it was devastated by Hurricane Katrina, but it is a much less powerful storm
At 02:00 local time the Category One hurricane was almost stationery about 70 miles (110 km) south of New Orleans, according to the US National Hurricane Centre (NHC).
Tens of thousands of people have been told to leave their homes in low-lying areas of Louisiana and Mississippi, though a mass evacuation has not been ordered. Storm warnings are also in place in parts of Florida, Texas and Alabama.
Officials say Isaac is likely to weaken before it reaches New Orleans.
“We don’t expect a Katrina-like event, but remember there are things about a Category One storm that can kill you,” said New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu.
Of particular concern are storm surges, with peaks of up to 3.7 m (12ft) forecast in parts of Mississippi and southeastern Louisiana. Rainfalls of up to 50 cm (20 inches) are forecast across wide areas, along with a high chance of isolated tornadoes along the coast.
The bowl-shaped city of New Orleans is particularly vulnerable to storms, with the centre of the city the furthest below sea-level.
But Mitch Landrieu said that the 8m-high levee gate which now protects the areas of the city that were badly flooded in 2005 had been closed since Tuesday morning.
Many residents of New Orleans have chosen to secure their homes but stay put, saying they were not too concerned by Isaac.
“I feel safe,” said Pamela Young from her home in the Lower Ninth Ward, a neighborhood devastated by Katrina.
“Everybody’s talking <<going, going>>, but the thing is, when you go, there’s no telling what will happen. The storm isn’t going to just hit here.”
“If the wind isn’t too rough, I can stay right here. If the water comes up, I can go upstairs.”
Nazareth Joseph, who works at a hotel in French Quarter and was in the city during Katrina, said he had a busy week ahead so would stay where he was.
“We made it through Katrina; we can definitely make it through this. It’s going to take a lot more to run me. I know how to survive,” he told the Associated Press news agency.
By Tuesday night, more than 58,000 homes in New Orleans were reported to have lost power. Outages have also been reported across Louisiana and Mississippi, affecting more than 200,000 homes and business.
President Barack Obama has declared an emergency in Louisiana and Mississippi, allowing federal funds to be released to local authorities.
Speaking from the White House, he warned residents along the Gulf Coast to heed warnings, including those to evacuate, saying: “Now is not the time to dismiss official warnings. You need to take this seriously.”
Shortly before Isaac reached hurricane status on Tuesday, Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal said the emergency declaration fell short of the federal help he had asked for.
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Ann Romney, wife of presidential candidate Mitt Romney, has painted a loving portrait of her husband at the Republican convention, on the day he became the party’s White House nominee.
In her prime-time speech, Ann Romney spoke of her “real marriage” to a steadfast partner and father.
Correspondents say the address aimed to show the human side of the Republican, who lags behind President Barack Obama in likeability ratings.
Mitt Romney will challenge the Democratic president in November’s elections.
Opinion polls show Barack Obama neck and neck with Mitt Romney, who will deliver his big speech to the convention on Thursday.
Highlighting Mitt Romney’s image problem, a new opinion poll suggests the former Massachusetts governor’s favorability rating is the lowest of any major party nominee since Ronald Reagan’s presidency.
Ann Romney, 63, told the audience she wanted to “talk to you from my heart about our hearts”, saying of her husband, “you really should get to know him”.
She talked about the way her husband helped her deal with multiple sclerosis and breast cancer.
“I read somewhere that Mitt and I have a <<storybook marriage>>,” she said.
“Well, in the storybooks I read, there were never long, long rainy winter afternoons in a house with five boys screaming at once. And those storybooks never seemed to have chapters on MS [multiple sclerosis] or breast cancer.
“A storybook marriage? No, not at all. What Mitt Romney and I have is a real marriage.”
Ann Romney has painted a loving portrait of her husband Mitt Romney at the Republican convention
She addressed criticism from Democrats over her husband’s successful private equity career.
“Mitt will be the first to tell you that he is the most fortunate man in the world.
“But as his partner on this amazing journey, I can tell you Mitt Romney was not handed success. He built it.”
Ann Romney ended by pledging: “This man will not fail. This man will not let us down.
“He will take us to a better place, just as he took me home safely from that dance.”
Mitt Romney, 65, appeared on stage and kissed his wife as she concluded her remarks, to a standing ovation from the audience.
New Jersey Governor Chris Christie delivered the keynote address after Ann Romney.
“Mitt Romney will tell us the hard truths we need to hear to put us back on the path to growth and create good paying private sector jobs again in America,” he said.
The speeches followed a roll-call of party delegates and a lively voice poll in which state delegates called out their team’s allocation of votes.
Altogether, Mitt Romney secured 2,061 votes, bringing him comfortably over the crucial 1,144 delegates needed to clinch the nomination.
Vice-presidential candidate Paul Ryan was also given the Republican party’s official stamp of approval on Tuesday.
Speakers attacked Barack Obama, with House Speaker John Boehner saying “his record is as shallow as his rhetoric”.
Republican National Committee chairman Reince Priebus said the president has “never run a company. He hasn’t even run a garage sale or seen the inside of a lemonade stand.”
The convention also approved its party platform – a policy agenda that calls for tax cuts to revive the economy, repealing and replacing a healthcare law passed by Barack Obama, and an end to abortion.
Recent opinion polls have indicated that voters view the economy and unemployment, which is stuck at 8.3%, as top priorities.
The platform also calls for the overturning of measures passed to regulate Wall Street in the wake of the 2008 economic collapse.
This is Mitt Romney’s second run for the White House, after an unsuccessful bid in 2008.
President Obama’s re-nomination will be confirmed next week at the Democratic National Convention in Charlotte, North Carolina.
This year’s convention got off to a late start when Monday’s programme was postponed amid concerns that Hurricane Isaac might disrupt the proceedings in Tampa.
But the category one hurricane missed Tampa, instead making landfall in southern Louisiana on Tuesday evening.
It comes almost seven years to the day since Hurricane Katrina devastated New Orleans.
Key convention speeches
Tuesday: Ann Romney, House Speaker John Boehner, South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley, former US senator Rick Santorum, New Jersey Governor Chris Christie
Wednesday: New Mexico Governor Susana Martinez, Arizona Senator John McCain, former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, vice-presidential candidate Paul Ryan
Thursday: Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, former Florida Governor Jeb Bush, Florida Senator Marco Rubio, presidential candidate Mitt Romney
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Paralympic torch has reached outer London as part of a 24-hour relay to herald the start of the 2012 Games.
Four national flames, kindled last week, were united in a cauldron at a ceremony in Stoke Mandeville – the spiritual home of the Paralympics.
A flame lit from that cauldron is being carried 92 miles from Buckinghamshire to London’s Olympic Stadium.
The Queen and the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge are among those attending Wednesday’s opening ceremony.
Crowds gathered in the market square in Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire, to watch the start of the relay on Tuesday night and thousands more turned out overnight to cheer on the torchbearers along the route.
Running about 90 minutes late, the flame, which is being carried by some 580 torchbearers in total, is next due to arrive at Britain’s first traditional Hindu temple, the Shri Swaminarayan Mandir Temple in Brent.
It will then visit Lord’s Cricket Ground, London Zoo and the Abbey Road crossing made famous by the Beatles among other famous landmarks in the capital.
Paralympic torch has reached outer London as part of a 24-hour relay to herald the start of the 2012 Games
In Trafalgar Square later, former boxer Michael Watson, wheelchair racer Dame Tanni Grey Thompson and Paralympic swimmer Chris Holmes will carry the flame.
About 3,000 invited guests, including Paralympians, representatives from disability groups and local residents, attended Tuesday evening’s ceremony at Stoke Mandeville Stadium.
Some 150 local residents took part in a lantern procession and formed a guard of honor for eight torchbearers who carried flames representing England, Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales.
The children who were invited to take part in the procession, together with their parents, had gathered at Stoke Mandeville last week to make the lanterns out of canes, tissue paper and sticky tape.
One of those involved was 12-year-old William Lansdown from Hazlemere in Buckinghamshire, who has Down’s Syndrome and attends a sports group for disabled children.
“The lanterns looked brilliant,” said William Lansdown’s mother, Lynn.
“It was a great atmosphere, with the emphasis on families taking part and not just disabled people.
“The fact that so many children were involved made it special, given the theme of inspiring a generation to do more sport.”
Earlier, performers entertained the crowds ahead of speeches by International Paralympic Committee (IPC) president Sir Philip Craven, Lord Coe, chairman of Games organizers LOCOG, and Culture Secretary Jeremy Hunt.
Eva Loeffler, the daughter of the founder of the Paralympic Games, Dr. Ludwig Guttman, paid tribute to the role the Stoke Mandeville Games – and her father – had in defining the modern Paralympic movement.
Lord Coe addressed the crowd, saying he was “excited” to be at the home of the Games on the eve of their opening.
Speaking of Dr. Ludwig Guttman, he said: “It is simply not possible to stand here without feeling a mountainous debt of gratitude for one of the world’s great visionaries.”
Carrying the English flame was Katie Piper and Paralympian Tony Griffin.
Katie Piper, who suffered major injuries when her ex-boyfriend attacked her with sulphuric acid, was nominated for setting up the Katie Piper Foundation and raising awareness of burns survivors.
During a 10-year career Tony Griffin won 38 medals and works as Bolton’s Sports Ambassador promoting disabled sport.
The Scottish flame was carried by boxer Jon Jo Look, who has a prosthetic leg and coaches youngsters in the sport, and Noel McShane, who set up the National Wheelchair Tennis Association of Great Britain and the British Open Wheelchair Tennis Championships.
Darren Ferguson, a special constable who talked down a distressed man from a bridge, and Joseph Morris, who saved a girl from drowning in a river, carried the Northern Ireland flame.
Julie Gilbert and Marsha Wiseman carried the Welsh flame.
Shortly after 20:00 BST, the first team of torchbearers – Paralympians chosen by the IPC – left the stadium, signalling the start of the 24-hour torch relay.
Just before midnight the torch was carried through the village of Weston Turville, in Buckinghamshire, where residents lit candles to line the route.
A London 2012 spokeswoman said: “It is great. Each place has got a different way of doing things.
“In Weston Turville the candles along the street were superb, in Tring it was the sheer number of people, and in Berkhamsted there was music while the torch went along the High Street, and when it left the church bells rang out.”
Making up the first team of torchbearers were:
• IPC president Sir Philip Craven took part in five Paralympic Games mainly in wheelchair basketball, and swimming
• Baroness Susan Masham represented GB at the first two Paralympic Games winning medals in swimming and table tennis
• Caz Walton has been involved in every Paralympic Games since 1964 as both an athlete and team manager
• Sally Haynes took part in the first Paralympic Games in Rome in 1960 and went on to compete at a further three Games winning medals in the Epee discipline of wheelchair fencing and table tennis
• Jane Blackburn took part in five Paralympic Games between 1972 and 1992 competing in archery, athletics, lawn bowls, swimming and table tennis. and winning 11 Paralympic medals including five golds
When it arrives at the Olympic Park in Stratford, east London, it will be used to light the cauldron during the opening ceremony of the Games.
The event, called Enlightenment and created by Bradley Hemmings and Jenny Sealey, will showcase the skills of disabled artists with a cast of 3,000 adult volunteers including injured soldiers and past Paralympic athletes.
The four national flames were kindled at the summit of the highest peaks in Scotland, Northern Ireland, England and Wales last week.
They were used to light ceremonial cauldrons in London’s Trafalgar Square on Friday, outside Stormont in Northern Ireland on Saturday, at the Mound in Edinburgh on Sunday and outside City Hall in Cardiff on Monday.
Paralympic torch relay
• Average speed – 3.5mph
• 18 hours of torchbearing
• 15 vehicles in convoy
• Travels through 15 London boroughs
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Apple’s legal motion to have some Samsung mobile phones banned in the US will now be heard in court on December 6th.
A US jury on Friday ordered Samsung to pay Apple more than $1 billion after ruling it had infringed several of the iPhone maker’s patents.
The judge had originally suggested that Apple’s request would be heard next month, but now says that a hearing will take place on 6 December.
Shares in Samsung rose 3% on Tuesday on news of the delay of the hearing.
Apple's legal motion to have some Samsung mobile phones banned in the US will now be heard in court on December 6th
The South Korean firm had $12 billion wiped off its market value on Monday as its shares suffered their biggest drop since October 2008.
Apple wants eight Samsung smartphones banned.
They are the Galaxy S 4G, Galaxy S2 AT&T model, Galaxy S2 Skyrocket, Galaxy S2 T-Mobile model, Galaxy S2 Epic 4G, Galaxy S Showcase, Droid Charge and Galaxy Prevail.
The list does not include Samsung’s current flagship handset, the Galaxy S3, which was not involved in the case.
Former Navy SEAL Matt Bissonnette, writing under the pseudonym Mark Owen in No Easy Day, claims that Osama bin Laden was dead when Navy SEAL’s burst into his bedroom.
The book is to be published next week by Penguin Group (USA)’s Dutton imprint.
Matt Bissonnette says he was directly behind a “point man” going up the stairs in the pitch black hallway.
“Less than five steps” from top of the stairs, he heard “suppressed” gunfire: “BOP. BOP.”
The point man had seen a “man peeking out of the door” on the right side of the hallway.
The author writes that Osama bin Laden ducked back into his bedroom and the SEALs followed, only to find the terrorist crumpled on the floor in a pool of blood with a hole visible on the right side of his head and two women wailing over his body.
Matt Bissonnette says the point man pulled the two women out of the way and shoved them into a corner and he and the other SEALs trained their guns’ laser sites on Osama bin Laden’s still-twitching body, shooting him several times until he lay motionless.
The SEALs later found two weapons stored by the doorway, untouched, the author said.
Former Navy SEAL Matt Bissonnette, writing under the pseudonym Mark Owen in No Easy Day, claims that Osama bin Laden was dead when Navy SEAL’s burst into his bedroom
Osama bin Laden as wearing a white t-shirt, loose-fitting tan pants and a tunic.
In the account related by administration officials after the raid in Pakistan, the SEALs shot Osama bin Laden only after he ducked back into the bedroom because they assumed he might be reaching for a weapon.
White House spokesman Tommy Vietor would not comment on the apparent contradiction late Tuesday. But he said in an email: “As President Obama said on the night that justice was brought to Osama bin Laden, <<We give thanks for the men who carried out this operation, for they exemplify the professionalism, patriotism and unparalleled courage of those who serve our country>>.”
No Easy Day was due out September 11, but Dutton announced the book would be available a week early, September 4, because of a surge of orders due to advance publicity that drove the book to the top of the Amazon.com and Barnes & Noble.com best-seller lists.
The Associated Press purchased a copy of the book on Tuesday.
The account is sure to again raise questions as to whether the raid was intended to capture or simply to kill bin Laden. Matt Bissonette writes that during a pre-raid briefing, a lawyer from “either” the White House or Defense Department told them that they were not on an assassination mission.
According to Matt Bissonnette, the lawyer said that if Osama bin Laden was “naked with his hands up”, they should not “engage” him. If Osama bin Laden did not pose a threat, they should “detain him”.
In another possibly uncomfortable revelation for U.S. officials who say Osama bin Laden’s body was treated with dignity before being given a full Muslim burial at sea, the author reveals that in the cramped helicopter flight out of the compound, one of the SEALs called “Walt” – one of the pseudonyms the author used for his fellow SEALs – was sitting on bin Laden’s chest as the body lay at the author’s feet in the middle of the cabin, for the short flight to a refueling stop inside Pakistan where a third helicopter was waiting.
This is common practice, as troops sometimes must sit on their own war dead in packed helicopters. Space was cramped because one of the helicopters had crashed in the initial assault, leaving little space for the roughly two dozen commandos in the two aircraft that remained. When the commandos reached the third aircraft, Osama bin Laden’s body was moved to it.
Matt Bissonnette writes disparagingly that none of the SEALs were fans of President Barack Obama and knew that his administration would take credit for ordering the May 2011 raid. One of the SEALs said after the mission that they had just gotten Obama re-elected by carrying out the raid.
But he says they respected him as commander in chief and for giving the operation the go-ahead.
Matt Bissonnette writes less flatteringly of meeting Vice President Joe Biden along with Barack Obama at the headquarters of the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment after the raid. He says Joe Biden told “lame jokes” no one understood, reminding him of “someone’s drunken uncle at Christmas dinner”.
Beyond such embarrassing observations, U.S. officials fear the book may include classified information, as it did not undergo the formal review required by the Pentagon for works published by former or current Defense Department employees.
Officials from the Pentagon and the CIA, which commanded the mission, are examining the manuscript for possible disclosure of classified information and could take legal action against the author.
In a statement provided to The Associated Press, the author says he did “not disclose confidential or sensitive information that would compromise national security in any way”.
Matt Bissonnette’s real name was first revealed by Fox News and confirmed to The Associated Press.
Jihadists on al-Qaeda websites have posted purported photos of the author, calling for his murder.
Prosecutors in France have opened a murder inquiry into the death of Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat, sources have told the French news agency AFP.
His family launched a case last month over claims that he was poisoned with polonium-210, a radioactive element.
Polonium was apparently found on some of Arafat’s belongings by Swiss scientists.
The medical records of Arafat, who died near Paris in 2004, say he had a stroke resulting from a blood disorder.
However, many Palestinians continue to believe Arafat was poisoned by Israel because he was an obstacle to peace. Israel has denied any involvement.
Others allege that he had Aids.
Yasser Arafat’s family lodged papers with the French authorities asking for an investigation in July.
The French news agency AFP on Tuesday reported that prosecutors had agreed to begin a murder inquiry.
The agency quoted unnamed sources close to the case.
Prosecutors in France have opened a murder inquiry into the death of Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat
Senior Palestinian official Saeb Erakat told AFP that the Palestinian Authority welcomed the inquiry.
He said Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas had officially requested the help of French President Francois Hollande in the investigation.
“We hope there will be a serious investigation to reveal the whole truth, in addition to an international investigation to identify all the parties involved in Arafat’s martyrdom,” he said.
The inquiry stems from an Al-Jazeera TV documentary broadcast early in July.
The channel commissioned Lausanne University’s Institute of Radiation Physics to analyze Yasser Arafat’s belongings.
The scientists told the channel that they had found “significant” traces of polonium-210 present in items including Yasser Arafat’s trademark keffiyeh.
Following the documentary, Yasser Arafat’s widow Suha and daughter Zawra lodged a complaint with French judicial authorities.
Their lawyers have said they want a French investigation to work alongside international inquiries being conducted by the Lausanne scientists.
The French legal system is obliged to take the matter very seriously, given the diplomatic aspect of the affair, but the medical profession is generally skeptical about the claims of radioactive poisoning.
Last week, the Swiss institute said it had received permission from Suha Arafat and the Palestinian authorities to travel to Ramallah to analyze his remains.
Yasser Arafat led the Palestine Liberation Organisation for 35 years and became the first president of the Palestinian Authority in 1996.
He fell violently ill in October 2004 and died two weeks later, at the age of 75, in a French military hospital.
French doctors bound by privacy rules did not release information about Yasser Arafat’s condition.
In 2005, the New York Times obtained a copy of Yasser Arafat’s medical records, which it said showed he died of a massive haemorrhagic stroke that resulted from a bleeding disorder caused by an unknown infection.
Experts who reviewed the records told the paper that it was highly unlikely that he had died of AIDS or had been poisoned.
Tropical Storm Isaac bearing down on the Gulf Coast and New Orleans is now a hurricane, US forecasters say.
Hurricane Isaac boasting winds of at least 75 mph (120 km/h), is likely to make landfall by Tuesday night.
The storm is expected to hit New Orleans seven years after the much stronger Hurricane Katrina.
US President Barack Obama has warned residents in the path of the storm they should not “tempt fate” and should heed evacuation warnings.
In an update at 13:00 CDT the National Hurricane Center said the storm was 135 miles (220 km) south-east of New Orleans, moving north-west at 10 mph (17 km/h).
Barack Obama has declared an emergency in Louisiana, allowing federal funds to be released to local authorities.
“As we prepare for Isaac to hit, I want to encourage all residents of the Gulf Coast to listen to your local officials and follow their directions – including if they tell you to evacuate,” Barack Obama said on Tuesday.
Speaking from the White House, he added: “Now is not the time to tempt fate. Now is not the time to dismiss official warnings. You need to take this seriously.”
Tropical Storm Isaac bearing down on the Gulf Coast and New Orleans is now a hurricane
Shortly after Isaac reached hurricane status, Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal called for the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to make a full emergency declaration for the state.
He told reporters that a declaration made on Monday did not allow for the reimbursement for state’s expenses from the storm.
“We have learned from past experiences that you cannot wait and you have to push the federal bureaucracy,” Bobby Jindal, who cancelled an appearance at the Republican National Convention because of the storm, said.
New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu said his city was “officially in the fight” on Tuesday, as he confirmed its airport was closed and would not serve as a shelter.
Mitch Landrieu said that a 26 ft (8 m) high levee gate that now protects the areas of the city that were badly flooded in 2005 – which he dubbed “the great wall of New Orleans” – was closed on Tuesday morning.
“We will not have a Katrina-like event,” he said, adding there will still be parts of the city that will likely be flooded.
“Do not let this storm lull you into complacency,” he said.
“People may be getting bored. It’s better to be bored than to get hurt.”
Officials have not ordered any evacuations, telling residents to reinforce their homes and stock up on supplies instead.
The bowl-shaped city of New Orleans is particularly vulnerable to storms, with the centre of the city the furthest below sea-level.
Residents are hoping that billions of dollars spent on reinforcing flood defences that failed catastrophically in 2005 will hold this time.
Robert Washington, a New Orleans resident, told the Associated Press he does not trust the levees.
He lives in the Lower Ninth Ward, which saw some of the greatest damage after levees broke during Katrina. He planned to evacuate with his family
“I don’t want to take that chance. I saw how it looked after Katrina back here.”
In low-lying Plaquemines Parish, much of which lies outside the New Orleans levee system, a local official told Reuters news agency he was “really worried about the storm surge” – adding that a few more years were needed before flood protections were fully completed.
Isaac has killed at least 24 people in Haiti and the Dominican Republic, and caused significant flooding and damage in the Caribbean.
It largely bypassed the Republican convention in Tampa, Florida, but prompted a day-long delay to proceedings there.
The National Hurricane Center warned that a possible combined “storm surge” and high tide would cause flooding in coastal areas along the Gulf Coast.
Water would potentially reach 6-12 ft (1.8-3.7 m) above ground in south-west Louisiana and Mississippi, 4-8ft in Alabama and 3-6 ft in south-central Louisiana.
Isaac is also threatening heavy rainfall of as much as 20 in (51cm) in isolated spots, and could spark possible tornadoes along the northern Gulf Coast.
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US trade sanctions have led game maker Blizzard to cut off access to World of Warcraft (Wow) in Iran.
Blizzard posted a statement to its player-forum site after hundreds of Iranian players said they had lost access to the game.
Access was lost recently, it said, because it had “tightened up its procedures” to comply with sanctions.
This also meant, said Blizzard, that it could not give refunds to players or transfer their accounts.
The problem for Iranians came to light late last week as hundreds of players in the country posted messages to Blizzard’s European Battle.net forums complaining they could no longer access the game.
US trade sanctions have led game maker Blizzard to cut off access to World of Warcraft (Wow) in Iran
Many of those posting messages said they could not connect directly to World of Warcraft but could get access when they used a proxy server outside Iran.
The outpouring of complaints led Blizzard to post a statement explaining what had happened.
The statement said US economic sanctions and trade restrictions meant it could not do business with people living in certain nations. One of which was Iran.
“This week, Blizzard tightened up its procedures to ensure compliance with these laws, and players connecting from the affected nations are restricted from access to Blizzard games and services,” read the statement.
Unfortunately, said Blizzard, the same sanctions meant it could not give refunds to players in Iran or help them move their account elsewhere.
“We apologize for any inconvenience this causes and will happily lift these restrictions as soon as US law allows,” it added.
Although the block on Wow has been imposed by Blizzard, other reports suggest a wider government ban might have been imposed.
Players of Wow and other games, including Guild Wars, said when they had tried to log in they had been redirected to a page saying the connection had been blocked because the games promoted “superstition and mythology”.
Blizzard said it had no information about Iranian government action against online games.
Bobbi Kristina Brown has been given a spectacular ring by her brother-turned-boyfriend Nick Gordon.
Nick Gordon, 22, tweeted a picture of 19-year-old Bobbi Kristina Brown wearing the giant sapphire stone surrounded by diamonds yesterday, sparking rumors of an engagement.
It was accompanied by the caption: “Just a jewelry/gift for the sweetest thing in the world.”
Bobbi Kristina Brown responded by tweeting: “(: urthee best boo ! I love you, thank youuu (:(: surprise is right , i love it!”
Bobbi Kristina Brown has been given a spectacular ring by her brother-turned-boyfriend Nick Gordon
The spectacular jewellery is almost identical to the one worn by the late Princess Diana and now worn by Duchess Catherine of Cambridge.
Bobbi Kristina Brown and Nick Gordon lived together as brother and sister for more than a decade before Whitney Houston’s death.
Whitney Houston took Nick Gordon into her home at the age of 12 when his father went to prison and his mother was unable to take care of him.
Nick Gordon was the superstar’s unofficially adopted son, and she treated him like family up until her death.
Whitney Houston was found dead in a Beverly Hills hotel room on February 11, 2012.
The six-time Grammy award winning singer, died at the age of 48 due to an accidental drowning complicated by heart disease and cocaine use.
Nick Gordon first fueled rumors about a relationship with Bobbi Kristina Brown in a tweet written in March, shortly after Whitney Houston died.
He wrote: “Yea we got a little closer and what!!!”
The controversial couple have reportedly been sharing her $1.2 million Atlanta home together ever since.
By the age of 30 Bobbi Kristina Brown will have inherited everything that belonged to her iconic mother – mansions, jewellery, cars, and an extraordinary fortune.
She recently did a guest stint on Tyler Perry’s sitcom For Better Or Worse and is currently filming her upcoming reality show, The Houston Family Chronicles, which has been picked up by Lifetime.
Kim Kardashian posed for a steamy photo shoot wearing nothing more than stockings, lingerie and a fur coat.
“Vintage shoot today,” Kim Kardashian tweeted along with the photo of her pouting at the camera in cream suspenders and a push-up bra.
In another, the reality star exposes a bit more in the sexy lingerie, leaning forward to show off her ample cleavage, which she shared with the caption: “Nighty night!”
The photos are sure to spark a reaction from anti-fur campaigners who have protested against Kim Kardashian wearing fur in the past and pelted her with cooking flour as she attended an event to launch her perfume in Los Angeles earlier this year.
Kim Kardashian posed for a steamy photo shoot wearing nothing more than stockings, lingerie and a fur coat
The attack caused Khloe Kardashian, who had previously posed nude to front PETA’s anti-fur campaign, to cut all ties with the organization after finding out they had been involved in the incident.
She’s released a statement saying: “I’ve been a vocal supporter of PETA for a long time but I have also been very vocal about anti-bullying, so this was a huge disappointment for me.”
Kim Kardashian, 31, was having her hair styled by Hollywood hairdresser Chris McMillan, famous for giving Jennifer Aniston the cult “Rachel” haircut while on the series Friends.
“70’s shoot today with @mrchrismcmillan,” she tweeted along with the sultry photos of her having her hair teased.
Kim Kardashian was also made sure to show off her nude manicure that she has been gushing over earlier in the day.
Spanish region of Catalonia has asked for a bailout of 5 billion euros ($6.3 billion) from the central government.
This summer, an 18 billion-euro public fund was set up by Madrid to aid its 17 autonomous regions, which are in deep debt.
Catalonia represents one-fifth of the Spanish economy.
It comes as official figures showed that Spain’s economy contracted further in the second quarter.
The economy shrunk by 0.4% between April and June after a 0.3% drop in the previous three months, the Instituto Nacional de Estadistica said.
Spanish region of Catalonia has asked for a bailout of 5 billion euros from the central government
The nation’s struggling economy has now declined for three straight quarters. On an annual basis, Spain’s economy contracted by 1.3% in the second quarter.
Speculation has persisted that the country will have to request a full financial rescue.
In June, Spain requested 100 billion euros ($122 billion) of loans from the eurozone’s bailout fund to help support its banks, which are struggling with bad debts from loans made in the property sector.
Despite this, the official figures show that Spain grew during 2011 as a whole despite earlier statements that it had shrunk for the year. But the economy contracted in 2010 more than had been stated.
The European Central Bank has said it will come up with ways to help eurozone countries, leading to raised hopes that it will buy Spanish debt to push down the cost of borrowing.
Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy has said he will do “what was best for the Spanish people” and is considering all options regarding a bailout, which has helped calm markets.
On Tuesday, the interest that Spain pays to borrow for three months fell to 0.946%, from 2.434% at a similar auction in July. Six-month debt dropped to 2.026%, from 3.691%, at the sale.
But the rate of interest Spain pays on longer-term borrowing has remained high because of investor concerns, making it difficult for the nation to service its debts.
Last month, Madrid announced additional spending cuts and tax rises worth 65 billion euros.
Meanwhile, the so-called troika – the International Monetary Fund, the ECB and the European Commission – are in Lisbon to monitor the progress that Portugal is making on its commitments under its bailout.
Last week, official figures indicated that the government would probably miss its target of deficit target unless it found ways to tighten the budget further.
This comes after the troika visited Greece last week.
Greece’s continued access to the bailout packages depends on a favorable report from the troika.
Athens is trying to finalize a package of 11.5 billion euros of spending cuts over the next two years to qualify for the next 33.5 billion-euro installment of its second 130 billion-euro bailout.
Russian opposition activist Taisiya Osipova has been jailed for possession of heroin for eight years – double the sentence requested by the prosecution.
Supporters of Taisiya Osipova, 28, say her trial was politically motivated.
Taisya Osipova said the drugs were planted in revenge for her refusal to testify against her husband, Sergei Fomchenkov, a leader of the Other Russia movement.
Her case was a retrial after ex-President Dmitry Medvedev called her original 10-year sentence “too harsh”.
Russian opposition activist Taisiya Osipova has been jailed for possession of heroin for 8 years, double the sentence requested by the prosecution
Taisiya Osipova was arrested in 2010 when four grams of heroin were allegedly found in her home.
Her 10-year sentence in late 2011 was criticized both inside and outside Russia, not least because she had a young daughter and suffered from diabetes, which led to health complications in prison.
Dmitry Medvedev asked for her case to be reviewed.
At the trial in Smolensk, about 400 km (250 miles) west of Moscow, Taisiya Osipova continued to protest her innocence.
One witness, who passed a lie detector test, testified that he had seen the police plant the drugs during their search.
At the courthouse, one of Russia’s most prominent opposition figures, Sergei Udaltsov, denounced the sentence as “schizophrenic and monstrous”, and “the triumph of lawlessness and cynicism”.
Mikhail Fedotov, head of the Kremlin’s own council on human rights, described the verdict as a “legal mistake”.
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A Haifa court has ruled that the state of Israel was not responsible for the death of US activist Rachel Corrie, who was killed in the Gaza Strip by an Israeli army bulldozer in 2003.
Rachel Corrie’s family had brought a civil claim for negligence against the Israeli ministry of defence.
The judge said the 23-year-old’s death was a “regrettable accident” and that the state was not responsible.
Rachel Corrie had been trying to stop Palestinian homes being pulled down in Gaza.
Judge Oded Gershon, presiding at the court in the town of Haifa, said Rachel Corrie had been protecting terrorists in a designated combat zone.
He said the bulldozer driver had not seen her, adding the soldiers had done their utmost to keep people away from the site.
“She [Corrie] did not distance herself from the area, as any thinking person would have done.”
A Haifa court has ruled that the state of Israel was not responsible for the death of US activist Rachel Corrie
The judge ruled the state of Israel did not have to pay any damages.
The Corries had requested a symbolic $1 in damages and legal expenses.
They had accused Israel of intentionally and unlawfully killing their daughter, and failing to conduct a full and credible investigation.
An Israeli army investigation in 2003 concluded its forces were not to blame for Rachel Corrie’s death.
Cindy and Craig Corrie travelled to Israel from the US to hear the ruling along with a group of friends and activists.
After the ruling, Cindy Corrie told a news conference they wanted to see more accountability from the state of Israel, saying they had been “deeply troubled by what we heard today”.
“From the beginning it was clear to us that there was… a well-heeled system to protect the Israeli military, the soldiers who conduct actions in that military, to provide them with impunity at the cost of all the civilians who are impacted by what they do,” she said.
She said she believed at least one person in the bulldozer had seen their daughter, and that Rachel’s death “could have been and should have been avoided”.
She added: “I believe this is a bad day not only for our family, but a bad day for human rights, for humanity, for the rule of law and also for the country of Israel.”
Israeli government spokesman Mark Regev says that, according to court evidence, the driver did not see Rachel Corrie.
“If you read the seven pages of transcript by the judge after hearing all the evidence for months now, he says that the tractor drivers moved away from the demonstrators on a number of occasions, that the demonstrators took, he says, unreasonable, illogical action, putting themselves in danger.”
“It’s clear by the Corrie family’s own expert – they nominated an expert to come to the court – he himself, their representative, said that it was impossible for the driver to see her.”
The Corrie family’s lawyer has said they will appeal against the ruling to Israel’s supreme court.
Rachel Corrie was a committed peace activist even before her arrival in the Gaza Strip in 2002.
She had arranged peace events in her home town in Washington State and become a volunteer for the pro-Palestinian International Solidarity Movement (ISM).
In 2003, Rachel Corrie was in the town of Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip as part of a group of ISM protesters.
They were acting as human shields to try to stop the Israeli army demolishing Palestinian homes and clearing land around Rafah.
The Israeli army argued the area was being used by militants and that the protesters should not have been in a closed military zone.
The army’s investigation found that Rachel Corrie was not visible and that she was killed by debris falling on her.
But Rachel Corrie’s supporters say it is impossible that the bulldozer driver did not see her.
“The bulldozer had a clear line across open ground while it drove towards her, relatively slowly, 20 or 30 metres or so, and even the estimation of the bulldozer’s line of sight… would clearly suggest that during that time the bulldozer driver must have seen Rachel,” said activist Tom Dale, who was protesting alongside Rachel Corrie on the day she was killed.
Pictures taken on the day Rachel Corrie died show her in an orange high-visibility jacket carrying a megaphone and blocking the path of an Israeli military bulldozer.
A collection of Rachel Corrie’s writings was turned into a play – My Name Is Rachel Corrie – which has toured all over the world, including Israel and the Palestinian territories.
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After a few weeks of heartache on both sides, it has emerged that Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart will meet up after having spoken on the phone for over an hour.
Although Robert Pattinson, 26, has bounced back from the deceit remarkably well and has smartened up his act in the wake of the scandal, he may forgive the woman who broke his heart.
According to a close friend, Robert Pattinson feels sorry for Kristen Stewart and is ready to speak to her face to face about everything that has happened.
The friend told Look magazine: “She begged to meet face to face so they could talk. It was obvious Kristen was getting through to Rob and he has agreed to see her.
“In fact, he admitted that it must be worse for her because she’s not just dealing with heartbreak, but being portrayed as a villain, while he gets all the sympathy.”
Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart will meet up after having spoken on the phone for over an hour
After R-Patz saw T-shirts on sale that read “Kristen Stewart is a Trampire”, he decided that the time was right to speak with her.
The couple spoke for about an hour and during the call an emotional Kristen Stewart begged Robert Pattinson to take her back and pleaded with him trust her again.
The close friend told the magazine: “For the first couple of weeks he was wallowing in his own grief, but being forced to face people during this promo, and seeing how angry everyone is with Kristen, made him feel sad for her.”
Even if R-Patz does take her back, he has some ground rules that he would like her to follow such as spending time together between film projects like Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie do.
He would also expect her to spend more time in his hometown of London instead of Los Angeles.
The exact time of the scheduled meeting has not been decided yet but Robert Pattinson doesn’t want to meet anywhere too public.
The pair have discussed using Resse Witherspoon’s Ojai ranch, where he hid from paparazzi when the affair was first revealed.
One big sign that R-Patz may have forgiven Kristen Stewart is the fact that he has been seen wearing her sunglasses.
A source told heat magazine: “Rob and Kristen always wore each other’s clothes when they lived together, and the fact that they’ve not stopped doing that could be a signal that it’s not over between them.”
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