Japan will investigate a report that workers at the stricken Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant were urged to disguise their exposure to radiation. Build-Up, a subcontractor for plant operator Tepco, admitted one of its executives told workers to put lead shields on radiation detection devices. Otherwise, they would have rapidly exceeded the legal limit for… Continue reading Japan’s government to probe Tepco radiation cover-up
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Front Page news
Aurora cinema shooting: suspect gunman James Holmes will appear on court on Monday
US begin to mourn the 12 people killed by a gunman at a showing of the new Batman film, The Dark Knight Rises, and a candlelit vigil has been held in Aurora, Colorado. US President Barack Obama ordered flags flown at half mast. A man in a gas mask and body armour threw tear gas… Continue reading Aurora cinema shooting: suspect gunman James Holmes will appear on court on Monday
Olympics 2012: torch relay strides through London
Triple jumper Phillips Idowu, former gymnast Nadia Comaneci and ex-basketball star John Amaechi will carry the flame on day 64 of the torch relay between Greenwich and Waltham Forest. Nadia Comaneci and John Amaechi will meet on the roof of the North Greenwich Arena. Pop star Dizzee Rascal and footballer Fabrice Muamba, who suffered a… Continue reading Olympics 2012: torch relay strides through London
Vast water source discovered in Namibia
A newly discovered water source in Namibia could have a major impact on development in the driest country in sub-Saharan Africa. Estimates suggest the aquifer could supply the north of the country for 400 years at current rates of consumption. Scientists say the water is up to 10,000 years old but is cleaner to drink… Continue reading Vast water source discovered in Namibia
Hisham Ikhtiar, Syria’s national security chief, dies from wounds
Hisham Ikhtiar, Syria’s national security chief, has died from injuries he received in a bomb attack in Damascus on Wednesday, state TV has announced. Hisham Ikhtiar is the fourth regime insider to die as a result of the attack at the national security bureau. The army has fought off an assault by rebels in the… Continue reading Hisham Ikhtiar, Syria’s national security chief, dies from wounds
Batman premiere shooting: gunman kills 14 people at Denver cinema
At least 14 people have been killed in a shooting at Batman film The Dark Knight Rises premiere in Denver, Colorado, police say. About 50 people have been injured in the incident, police say. Witnesses say a gunman wearing a gas mask opened fire at the cinema complex in Aurora, at a midnight showing of… Continue reading Batman premiere shooting: gunman kills 14 people at Denver cinema
Syrian rebels seize Iraq and Turkey border posts
Syrian rebels have captured a number of positions on the country’s borders with Iraq and Turkey. A senior Iraqi official said all the crossings on Syria’s eastern frontier had been seized. At one point, two Turkish posts were also in rebel hands. The push came a day after a bomb claimed the lives of three… Continue reading Syrian rebels seize Iraq and Turkey border posts
Spain: nationwide anti-austerity protests end in unrest
Police in Spain have fired rubber bullets to clear demonstrators in Madrid as a day of nationwide protests against spending cuts ended in unrest. Protesters set alight rubbish bins as riot police charged them in the city centre, near the parliament building. Seven people were arrested and at least six injured, officials said. Earlier, tens… Continue reading Spain: nationwide anti-austerity protests end in unrest
Olympics 2012: UK border staff to strike ahead of London Games
Thousands of UK border staff (Home Office) will strike the day before London Olympics open, the Public and Commercial Services (PCS) union has said. PCS members will strike for 24 hours next Thursday – when many thousands of visitors are due to arrive in the UK. Home Secretary Theresa May said the action was “shameful”… Continue reading Olympics 2012: UK border staff to strike ahead of London Games
Burgas bomber CCTV footage released by Bulgarian authorities
Bulgarian authorities has released CCTV footage of the man suspected of carrying out the deadly suicide bombing of a bus carrying Israeli tourists at Burgas airport. A white man with long hair and a backpack is seen walking around the terminal and leaving before the blast. The Bulgarian authorities say the man – believed to… Continue reading Burgas bomber CCTV footage released by Bulgarian authorities
Mobile phone is the most common way to connect to the internet in China
A new report from China Internet Network Information Center (CINIC) found that mobile phones are now the most common way for people to connect to the internet in China. For the first time, desktop computers are no longer the leading method for the country’s 538 million connected citizens to get online. The CINIC report said over… Continue reading Mobile phone is the most common way to connect to the internet in China
Spain’s borrowing costs increased with 3 billion Euros
Debt-laden Spain has raised 2.98 billion Euros on the financial markets, but was forced to pay higher interest rates. The average yield on bonds repayable in five years rose to 6.46%, against 6.07% at an auction last month. The average yield on seven-year bonds was 6.7%, up from 4.83% last time. “They [Spain] sold what… Continue reading Spain’s borrowing costs increased with 3 billion Euros
Syria: new clashes follow the deaths of three top regime figures
Fresh fighting in many parts of Syria throughout the night has followed the deaths on Wednesday of three top regime figures in a suspected suicide attack. Syrian government and opposition both said large numbers of people died, in one of the bloodiest days of the conflict. Activists said artillery and helicopters were used in the… Continue reading Syria: new clashes follow the deaths of three top regime figures
Petermann Glacier calves off an iceberg twice the size of Manhattan
The Petermann Glacier in northern Greenland has calved an iceberg twice the size of Manhattan, scientists say. Images from a NASA satellite show the island breaking off a tongue of ice that extends at the end of the glacier. In 2010 an ice island measuring 250 square km (100 square miles) broke off the same… Continue reading Petermann Glacier calves off an iceberg twice the size of Manhattan
Bulgaria: bus explosion kills 7 Israeli tourists at Burgas airport
Explosion of a bus carrying Israeli tourists in the eastern Bulgarian city of Burgas has killed at least seven people, Israeli officials say. More than 30 people were also injured when the bus exploded at Burgas airport, by the Black Sea. Witnesses told Israeli TV that someone boarded the bus and a huge explosion immediately… Continue reading Bulgaria: bus explosion kills 7 Israeli tourists at Burgas airport
Ethiopia’s PM Meles Zenawi hospitalized in critical condition
Prime Minister Meles Zenawi has been hospitalized, Ethiopia’s government confirms, but it denies he is critically ill. “He is not in a critical state. He is in good condition,” spokesman Bereket Simon told the AFP news agency. Speculation about his health began when he missed last weekend’s African Union summit in Addis Ababa. There were… Continue reading Ethiopia’s PM Meles Zenawi hospitalized in critical condition
22 NATO fuel tankers destroyed by Taliban bomb in Samangan province
A bomb planted by the Taliban in northern Afghanistan has destroyed 22 NATO fuel tankers carrying supplies to coalition forces, local officials say. The vehicles were hit by a pre-dawn explosion which triggered a huge fire that engulfed them in flames, they say. At the time, the trucks were parked overnight in Samangan province, as… Continue reading 22 NATO fuel tankers destroyed by Taliban bomb in Samangan province
Syrian ministers Daoud Rajiha and Assef Shawkat killed in sucide attack in Damascus
Syria’s defense minister Daoud Rajiha and his deputy Assef Shawkat, President Assad’s brother-in-law, have died in a suspected suicide bombing at security headquarters in Damascus, state TV says. Daoud Rajiha and Assef Shawkat were attending a meeting of senior officials at the time. The national security chief and interior minister are said to be critically… Continue reading Syrian ministers Daoud Rajiha and Assef Shawkat killed in sucide attack in Damascus
South Africa celebrates Nelson Mandela’s 94th birthday
Former South Africa’s President Nelson Mandela is celebrating 94th birthday on Wednesday and some 12 million schoolchildren across the country have sung a specially composed song as part of official celebrations. Nelson Mandela will spend the day quietly with his family in his village home of Qunu in the Eastern Cape, near where he was… Continue reading South Africa celebrates Nelson Mandela’s 94th birthday
Kim Jong-Un appointed as North Korea’s army marshal
Young North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un has been given the title of ”marshal”, state media has announced. The move followed a high-level military reshuffle in which army chief Ri Yong-Ho was removed ”due to illness” and a little-known general promoted. Marshal is the highest military rank and would cement Kim Jong-Un’s control over the army,… Continue reading Kim Jong-Un appointed as North Korea’s army marshal
Nazis planned to conquer Britain by killing Winston Churchill with exploding chocolate
Secret wartime papers exchanged between MI5 officials reveal that the Nazis’ plans to conquer Britain included a deadly assault on Sir Winston Churchill with exploding chocolate. Adolf Hitler’s bomb-makers coated explosive devices with a thin layer of rich dark chocolate, then packaged it in expensive-looking black and gold paper. The Germans planned to use secret… Continue reading Nazis planned to conquer Britain by killing Winston Churchill with exploding chocolate
Shell asked to pay Nigeria $5 billion over Bonga oil spill
Nigeria’s oil regulator has asked industry giant Shell to pay $5 billion for the Bonga oil spill from last December. The disclosure was made during a parliamentary hearing on the matter. A leak at the Bonga field during a transfer of oil to a tanker led to 40,000 barrels spilling into the Atlantic Ocean. A… Continue reading Shell asked to pay Nigeria $5 billion over Bonga oil spill
Turkey: large fire swept through Polat Tower skyscraper in Istanbul
A large fire has swept through the Polat Tower, a 42-storey building, in the centre of the Turkish city of Istanbul. Television footage showed the Polat Tower building engulfed in thick black plumes of smoke, with pieces of debris falling to the ground. There were no immediate reports of any casualties, however Turkey’s Anatolia news… Continue reading Turkey: large fire swept through Polat Tower skyscraper in Istanbul
HSBC allowed drug money laundering, says US Senate report
A US Senate probe has disclosed how lax controls at HSBC, Europe’s largest bank, left it vulnerable to being used to launder dirty money from around the world. The report into HSBC, released ahead of a Senate hearing on Tuesday, says huge sums of Mexican drug money almost certainly passed through the bank. Suspicious funds… Continue reading HSBC allowed drug money laundering, says US Senate report
Olympics 2012: G4S chief Nick Buckles faces MP’s scrutiny of security at London Games
Nick Buckles, the chief executive of security firm G4S, will go before MPs later to explain why his company was unable to provide the Olympics staff it promised. Nick Buckles has already apologized after 3,500 extra troops had to be deployed to meet the firm’s shortfall. Culture Secretary Jeremy Hunt said it was no time… Continue reading Olympics 2012: G4S chief Nick Buckles faces MP’s scrutiny of security at London Games