Abu Hamza, a key figure allegedly involved in the planning of the deadly Mumbai attacks of 2008, has been arrested in Delhi, Indian police say.
Abu Hamza, also known as Syed Zabiuddin, has been remanded to police custody, said an Indian senior police official.
He is being described as the “handler” of the 10 gunmen who carried out the deadly assault on targets in Mumbai.
The attacks claimed 165 lives. Nine gunmen were also killed.
Abu Hamza, a key figure allegedly involved in the planning of the deadly Mumbai attacks of 2008, has been arrested in Delhi
The sole surviving gunman from the attacks, Mohammad Ajmal Amir Qasab, was convicted of murder and waging war on India in May 2010 and given a death sentence.
The 60-hour siege of Mumbai began on 26 November 2008, targeting luxury hotels, the main railway station and a Jewish cultural centre.
Relations between India and Pakistan hit rock bottom after India blamed the 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 Qasab was a Pakistani citizen.
A new report by the aid watchdog Data shows that European debt crisis has led to cuts in government development aid to poor countries.
It is the first significant reduction in Europe-wide aid budgets for a decade.
The biggest percentage cuts in the year 2010/11 were made by two of the states worst affected by the debt crisis – Spain and Greece.
But overall European development aid was also down by 1.5%.
The report says the new figures “reveal that those bearing the brunt of Europe’s economic crisis include some of the world’s poorest people”.
“As austerity bites across Europe, we can now see the impact it is having on life-saving aid programmes,” it adds.
In the year 2010-11, Spain cut its aid budget – the sixth largest in Europe – by nearly a third.
Greece cut its much smaller programme by 40%, the Data study says.
A new report by the aid watchdog Data shows that European debt crisis has led to cuts in government development aid to poor countries
The report is published as part of a lobbying campaign by aid agencies as EU leaders begin negotiating the next seven year European budget.
Over the last decade the trend has been for aid cash to rise.
European countries account for just over half of all global official development assistance.
Many of them have been slowly nudging towards a United Nations anti-poverty target of 0.7% of national income spent on aid.
The Netherlands and some Scandinavian countries have exceeded this proportion.
By far the biggest three donors are Germany ($14 billion – 0.39% of national income), UK ($13.5 billion – 0.55%) and France ($12 billion – 0.42%)
One of the authors of the Data report, Adrian Lovett, said the countries that would be worst affected by any prolonged aid cuts were poor African states.
He said: “The countries we’re worried about are mostly in Africa – for example Mozambique, Tanzania and Malawi.
“At the moment they need aid and its saving lives on a daily basis.”
There’s a broad official consensus among aid agencies – and the western governments that often finance them – that development aid works.
But aid is not without its critics.
Some say it is wastefully distributed and can discourage poorly performing developing country governments from accepting their responsibilities.
The argument goes that if Medecins Sans Frontieres run the best hospitals in Haiti, for example, or Oxfam successfully digs the best water wells in Chad, why should the governments there bother?
Such critics would also argue that countries such as China and India – and the many African states which currently have strong economic growth rates – are not getting richer because of aid.
In many of these cases, the aid critics say, infrastructure investment, commodities exports or liberalization have been far more significant than aid.
Adrian Lovett counters these arguments with the example of Ghana.
“Ghana has in the past had a substantial amount of aid. That assistance has been well used through smart leadership at the national level and better coordination by the various donors.
“So Ghana is now on the brink of ending its dependence on development cash. That’s exactly the route we see many African countries potentially taking.”
But Adrian Lovett drew a distinction between emergency aid – for famine victims, for example – and longer term development assistance.
He said aid advocates such as himself wanted, ultimately, to do themselves out of a job.
“There’s always going to be international action around humanitarian crises. That is a natural human impulse.
“But we do want to see a day when we will help some countries and they will also help us in return in a relationship of equals.
“We want that rather than the donor client relationship we have seen in the past.”
Google and Sony have announced a tie-up that will see Google’s interactive TV service made available outside the US for the first time.
The set-top box allows users to browse the internet through their television, as well as access a range of specially designed applications.
The device, which will cost around £200 ($320) when it is released in July, will compete with Apple’s own TV box.
Apple TV is already available in the UK, currently priced at £99 ($155).
In a press release, Sony said their Google TV product, the NSZ-GS7, will also soon be made available in Canada, Australia, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Brazil and Mexico.
Google and Sony have announced a tie-up that will see Google's interactive TV service made available outside the US for the first time
“Entertainment content is available through so many channels and sites, and Google TV helps consumers easily find what they want to watch, listen to or play with the freedom of the internet and using the familiar Chrome search engine technology,” said Gildas Pelliet, Sony’s European head of marketing.
The device will be followed with a Blu-ray version expected to cost around £300 ($480) when it is launched later in the year.
The box will be controlled by a dual-sided remote control with a full QWERTY keyboard.
Like Apple’s offering, Google TV can be controlled via a smartphone.
Google’s foray into television has faced some hiccups since it first launched Google TV in the US in 2010.
Its devices were criticized for being too expensive, and several TV networks blocked the US-only service from accessing their web content.
Rihanna has closed Hackney Weekend, a free two-day festival in east London, on Sunday night, with a performance that included a string of her hits and a surprise (albeit widely expected) guest appearance by her mentor Jay-Z.
Rihanna, 24, opened her headline set with Only Girl In The World, performing in front of a giant sphinx.
“Hackney, you’re crazier than they told me!” the singer shouted, as up to 50,000 fans watched.
Rihanna’s mentor Jay-Z took to the stage for a run of three songs. The pair had also performed together during Jay-Z’s set on Saturday night.
After her third track, S&M, Rihanna ran into the audience to ask for help re-attaching the battery pack for her microphone, which had become loose during a high-energy dance routine.
She closed the set an hour later with We Found Love, her global number one hit from last year.
“You guys are making this such a memorable show for me,” Rihanna said before she left the stage.
Earlier on Sunday, Florence and the Machine performed on the main stage, followed by Dizzee Rascal – a surprise addition to the bill.
Dizzee Rascal, who grew up in Bow, near the Hackney Marshes venue, paid tribute to “my east London crew”.
He recalled his days as a “pirate radio MC” in London before his self-produced single I Luv You landed him a record contract.
The second day’s bill was packed with local artists, including rapper Tinie Tempah, who premiered a new, untitled, song produced by Calvin Harris.
“East London is the epicentre of a lot of cool things at the minute,” he said.
“Radio 1 coming to Hackney Marshes is so incredible. I could wake up and just walk here.”
Rihanna has closed Hackney Weekend with a performance that included a string of her hits and a surprise guest appearance by her mentor Jay-Z
Rapper Plan B – whose set coincided with a sudden rain storm – added that the festival was important for the local area.
“For so long, this part of the city has been deprived. It’s great to see stuff like this happening here, because the people deserve it.”
Other acts who attracted large crowds included US hip-hop artist Azealia Banks, dance duo Chase and Status, and singer-songwriter Ben Howard.
Jessie J was an early favourite on the main stage, particularly with younger members of the audience.
She was joined on stage by US rapper B.o.B for their hit single Price Tag.
“This is only the second time we’ve performed it together,” she told the crowd.
“I really enjoyed myself,” she said afterwards.
“I’m kind of pacing myself a little bit more this year and just making sure that I’m focused on the vocals.
“I just really want people to enjoy the singing element of it all. The crowd were incredible.”
Noir pop artist Lana Del Rey performed an acoustic set backed by a chamber orchestra at the In New Music We Trust tent.
“The crowd were really receptive, really good, so that made it easy,” said the Video Games singer afterwards.
“I didn’t have my drummer with me – so it was stripped back, almost like a jazz set. It’s really all about me and the crowd.”
Authorities treated the festival as a “dry run” for the summer Olympics and, by and large, it proved to be a peaceful weekend.
London’s Metropolitan Police said the atmosphere had been “calm” on Sunday. Saturday saw about 50 arrests outside the arena. Most were for drugs and knife possession.
Mexican police say at least 26 people have died in a bus crash in the state of Guerrero.
More than 20 people were injured.
The bus slid off the road into a ravine in wet conditions while on its way to a rally in the town of Buenavista de Cuellar, state authorities said.
Most of the passengers were wearing T-shirts bearing the logo of the left-wing Labour Party (PT), a Red Cross official told Reuters.
The bus slid off the road into a ravine in wet conditions while on its way to a rally in the town of Buenavista de Cuellar
Several children were also reported to be among the dead.
Police, members of the military and emergency services were dispatched to the scene.
The passengers had been on their way to the closing rally of the PT’s candidate in municipal elections.
Left-wing presidential candidate Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador and front-runner Enrique Pena Nieto both expressed their condolences to the families of the victims.
Mexico will hold presidential elections on 1 July.
Staff at the Galapagos National Park in Ecuador has announced that Lonesome George, a giant tortoise believed to be the last of its subspecies, has died.
Scientists estimate he was about 100 years old.
Park officials said they would carry out a post-mortem to determine the cause of his death.
With no offspring and no known individuals from his subspecies left, Lonesome George became known as the rarest creature in the world.
For decades, environmentalists unsuccessfully tried to get the Pinta Island tortoise to reproduce with females from a similar subspecies on the Galapagos Islands.
Park officials said the tortoise was found dead in his corral by his keeper of 40 years, Fausto Llerena.
Staff at the Galapagos National Park in Ecuador has announced that Lonesome George, a giant tortoise believed to be the last of its subspecies, has died
While his exact age was not known, Lonesome George was estimated to be about 100, which made him a young adult as the subspecies can live up to an age of 200.
Lonesome George was first seen by a Hungarian scientist on the Galapagos island of Pinta in 1972.
Environmentalists had believed his subspecies (Chelonoidis nigra abingdoni) had become extinct.
Lonesome George became part of the Galapagos National Park breeding programme.
After 15 years of living with a female tortoise from the nearby Wolf volcano, Lonesome George did mate, but the eggs were infertile.
He also shared his corral with female tortoises from Espanola island, which are genetically closer to him than those from Wolf volcano, but Lonesome George failed to mate with them.
He became a symbol of the Galapagos Islands, which attract some 180,000 visitors a year.
Galapagos National Park officials said that with George’s death, the Pinta tortoise subspecies has become extinct.
They said his body would probably be embalmed to conserve him for future generations.
Tortoises were plentiful on the Galapagos islands until the late 19th century, but were later hunted for their meat by sailors and fishermen to the point of extinction.
Their habitat furthermore suffered when goats were introduced from the mainland.
The differences in appearance between tortoises from different Galapagos islands were among the features which helped the British naturalist Charles Darwin formulate his theory of evolution.
Some 20,000 giant tortoises of other subspecies still live on the Galapagos.
According to newly-updated “protocols” approved by Queen Elizabeth II, Duchess of Cambridge has been placed firmly down the royal pecking order.
A document is said to have been circulated privately in the Royal Household, clarifying Kate’s status.
Despite being the future Queen herself, as a former commoner, the once Kate Middleton must apparently show reverence to the “blood princesses”.
This means Kate is expected to curtsey to those born royal, such as Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie – both in public and in private.
The rule only applies when her husband, Prince William, is not present.
Royal observers suspect Kate will not mind the new rules as she is keen to please everybody, but Prince William may be less happy.
In his absence, Kate must also curtsey to other blue-blooded women in the Royal Household including Princess Anne and Princess Alexandra, the Queen’s cousin.
In the case of the Countess of Wessex, it is she who will have to curtsey to Kate – even though she is a generation older and is married to the Queen’s son, Edward.
According to new protocols, Kate Middleton is expected to curtsey to those born royal, such as Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie, both in public and in private
The Earl of Wessex’s wife was once the second-highest ranking woman in the Royal Family because neither of the Queen’s other sons, Prince Charles and Prince Andrew, were married.
This is effectively Sophie’s second “demotion”, having been pushed down the list in 2005 after Prince Charles married Camilla, and finding she was expected to curtsey to the Duchess of Cornwall.
The complex new rules come in a little-known edict entitled the Order Of Precedence Of The Royal Family To Be Observed At Court, which the Queen has updated to take into account Prince William’s wife.
When Prince William is with her, Kate does not need to bend the knee to either Beatrice or Eugenie.
But she must always curtsey to the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh, the Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall, whether Prince William is present or not.
The thorny question of how Kate would fit into the UK’s first family has long been a subject of speculation among royal observers.
The Princess Royal, for example, is said to have refused to ever curtsey to Princess Diana or to Camilla, on the basis they were outsiders whereas she had given her whole adult life to royal service.
In an effort to avoid an epic battle of royal egos, the Queen drew up the first Order of Precedence in 2005, after Prince Charles married Camilla.
Its effect was to change the order along “blood lines” so that Princesses Anne, Beatrice, Eugenie and Alexandra – the granddaughter of George V – were all ahead of Camilla.
The etiquette, though arcane to some, is taken very seriously by the royals, who bow and curtsey to each other in public and behind closed doors.
The Order of Precedence affects other aspects of royal protocol too, such as who arrives first at an event. For example, Camilla was forced to wait in the drizzle outside the Guards Chapel, Windsor, for the arrival of Princess Anne at a memorial service in 2006, because Prince Charles had not accompanied her.
Royal historian Brian Hoey, an expert on court protocol, predicted when Prince William married Kate that: “Kate will take the rank of her husband, which means that when she’s at court, Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie should curtsey to her. But I don’t think there’s a chance they will.”
While Prince William feels warmly towards his cousins, Beatrice and Eugenie, he’s conscious of the fact that they are lesser royals.
“As future King, he will wish to see them behaving correctly towards their future Queen – but their attitude is likely to be: <<Why should I? I was born royal – Kate wasn’t>>.”
Elvis Presley’s crypt, in which the artist was first buried, has been withdrawn from a Los Angeles auction after protests it should be kept as a shrine.
More than 10,000 fans signed a petition against the sale of the tomb at Forest Hill Cemetery in Memphis, Tennessee.
Julien’s Auctions said it would not sell the crypt until the cemetery “finds a plan that best suits the interests of the fans while respecting and preserving the memory of Elvis”.
The crypt has been empty since 1977.
Elvis Presley’s crypt, in which the artist was first buried, has been withdrawn from a Los Angeles auction after protests it should be kept as a shrine
Elvis Presley was temporarily interred there alongside his mother, Gladys, for two months after he died before being reburied at his Graceland home.
Fans argued on the Elvis Matters website: “Can you imagine visiting the crypt and spend a few moments of silence, while an unknown is buried there? If the crypt is still accessible for fans, that is.”
With bids starting at $100,000 the lot was to include the crypt itself, the right to open and close the vault for a burial, a memorial inscription and the use of Forest Hill Cemetery’s chapel for a service.
The sale had been due to take place on Sunday.
Fans will still be able to buy other Elvis memorabilia however – the singer’s personal telephone, medallion and X-ray of a karate injury are among other items under the hammer.
Saudi Arabia has decided to allow its women athletes to compete in the Olympic Games for the first time.
A statement from the Saudi Embassy in London says the country’s Olympic Committee will “oversee participation of women athletes who can qualify”.
The decision will end recent speculation as to whether the entire Saudi team could have been disqualified on grounds of gender discrimination.
The public participation of women in sport is still fiercely opposed by many Saudi religious conservatives.
There is almost no public tradition of women participating in sport in the country.
Saudi officials say that with the Games now just a few weeks away, the only female competitor at Olympic standard is showjumper Dalma Rushdi Malhas.
But they added that there may be scope for others to compete and that if successful they would be dressed “to preserve their dignity”.
Saudi Arabia has decided to allow its women athletes to compete in the Olympic Games for the first time
In practice this is likely to mean modest, loose-fitting garments and “a sports hijab”, a scarf covering the hair but not the face.
For the desert kingdom, the decision to allow women to compete in the Olympics is a huge step, overturning deep-rooted opposition from those opposed to any public role for women.
As recently as April, the indications were that Saudi Arabia’s rulers would accede to the sensitivities of the religious conservatives and maintain the ban on allowing women to take part.
But for the past six weeks there have been intense, behind-the-scenes discussions led by King Abdullah, who has long been pushing for women to play a more active role in Saudi society.
In secret meetings in Jeddah, officials say a consensus was reached in mid-June between the king, the crown prince, the foreign minister, the leading religious cleric, the grand mufti and others, to overturn the ban.
An announcement was ready to be made but then had to be delayed as the country marked the sudden death of Crown Prince Nayef.
“It’s very sensitive,” said a senior Saudi official.
“King Abdullah is trying to initiate reform in a subtle way, by finding the right balance between going too fast or too slow.
“For example, he allowed the participation of women in the Shura council [an advisory body] so the Olympic decision is part of an ongoing process, it’s not isolated.”
The official acknowledged that to refuse to let women take part would have looked bad on the international stage.
“Partly because of the mounting criticism we woke up and realized we had to deal with this. We believe Saudi society will accept this,” the official said.
It is not the first time a Saudi monarch has backed a controversial reform against domestic opposition.
King Faisal, who introduced television in the 1960s and was eventually assassinated, insisted on introducing education for girls.
Today, Saudi women graduates outnumber their male counterparts.
Kris Humphries revealed that he “knew” Kim Kardashian had “cheated” on him with Kanye West when the rapper failed to make their wedding guest list.
According to TMZ, Kris Humphries confided in his former lover Myla Sinanaj following the break day of his marriage after only 72 days.
Kris Humphries, 26, allegedly said that his former mother-in-law Kris Jenner “suspiciously” referred to Kanye West as a “close family friend” and someone Kim Kardashian had known for a long time.
A source close to Myla Sinanaj told TMZ that Kris Humphries asked: “If he was such a close family friend, why wasn’t he invited to the wedding?”
The insider then explained how Kris Humphries told Myla Sinanaj that he “felt played” after Kim Kardashian filed for divorce and started dating Kanye West.
Kris Humphries revealed that he “knew” Kim Kardashian had “cheated” on him with Kanye West when the rapper failed to make their wedding guest list
The site also reported that Kris Humphries was with Myla Sinanaj when he listened to Kanye West’s song Theraflu and was “visibly upset” by the rapper’s claims in the song in which he confesses he fell in love with Kim Kardashian.
Back in January before Kim Kardashian and Kanye West announced to the world that they were indeed an item, Kanye’s former girlfriend Amber Rose accused the pair of cheating when Kim was still with her former beau football ace Reggie Bush.
Kim Kardashian’s stepfather Bruce Jenner recently admitted to Oprah Winfrey that he wishes they could take back Kim Kardashian’s nuptials with NBA player Kris Humphries.
The former Olympic gold medalist confessed to his embarrassment at the whole affair, which came to a premature end when Kim Kardashian filed for divorce after just 72 days last October.
Bruce Jenner, 62, made the admission on the second part of the Oprah’s Next Chapter feature on his family after being asked: “What do you wish you could take back?”
He replied: “The whole wedding thing. We went so overboard on it.”
During the intimate interview Bruce Jenner seemed to make it clear that he was not convinced about the future of the marriage, even at the time, going by his response when Oprah asked him about it.
In a short, but illuminating, response he said: “I was hoping it would work.”
The former decathlete’s comments are the latest twist in the long-running saga of Kim Kardashian’s wedding.
The 39th Annual Daytime Entertainment Emmy Awards showered General Hospital with five trophies, including best drama, while giving Regis Philbin a fond farewell as a departing talk-show host.
NBC’s Today show won as best morning show and the syndicated Jeopardy! was named best game show at the annual ceremony Saturday.
Live with Regis and Kelly was saluted as best entertainment talk show (its first-ever nod in that category) and for best talk-show hosts. Regis Philbin ended his long run as its co-host last November, with a replacement yet to be named to join Kelly Ripa as the syndicated series continues.
The 39th Annual Daytime Entertainment Emmy Awards showered General Hospital with five trophies
Heather Tom, who won as best lead actress for CBS’ The Bold and the Beautiful, made history as the first to win in that category after having previously won as both best younger actress and supporting actress.
Anthony Geary won as lead actor for General Hospital. The ABC soap also won for supporting actress (Nancy Lee Grahn), supporting actor (Jonathan Jackson), and directing team.
The syndicated Dr. Oz was named best informative talk show.
Bill Geddie, longtime associate of Barbara Walters and executive producer of her ABC talk show The View, received the life achievement award.
“There’s not a lot of glamour and glory in daytime,” Bill Geddie told the room in his acceptance remarks.
“But when you think about it, we’re all here with the best of intentions: We just love making TV!”
Held in Beverly Hills, California, the 39th Annual Daytime Emmy Awards was telecast on the HLN channel, having moved to cable for the first time after airing on CBS the past two years. The awards are bestowed by the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences.
The Beverly Hilton, where the presentation originated, was the site only hours earlier of what investigators believe was a murder-suicide. Police responding to a report of a shooting late Friday found a man and a woman dead from gunshot wounds in a guest room. The luxury hotel was also the site of Whitney Houston’s death in February, when the singer drowned in the bathtub of her room.
Turkey has called a NATO meeting to discuss its response to the shooting down of one of its warplanes by Syrian forces on Friday.
Ankara has invoked Article 4 of NATO’s charter, under which consultations can be requested when an ally feels their security is threatened, officials say.
Earlier, Turkey’s foreign minister said the F-4 Phantom was in international airspace when it was shot down.
Syria has insisted the jet was engaged while it was inside its airspace.
It has also said no act of hostility was intended, noting that as soon as the military discovered the “unidentified” aircraft was Turkish its navy joined efforts to rescue the two crew members.
The Turkish foreign ministry said it knew the coordinates of the jet, which was in Syrian territorial waters at a depth of 1,300 m (4,265 ft), but has not yet found it.
The coast guard is still searching for the crew in the Mediterranean Sea, though hopes are fading of them being found alive.
The government has also issued a diplomatic protest note to Syria.
NATO spokeswoman Oana Lungescu said the North Atlantic Council, the principal political decision-making body within the military alliance, would meet in Brussels on Tuesday to discuss the incident.
“Turkey has requested consultations under Article 4 of NATO’s founding Washington Treaty,” she told Reuters.
“Under article 4, any ally can request consultations whenever, in the opinion of any of them, their territorial integrity, political independence or security is threatened.”
Turkey wants to be sure of the strongest backing once it decides its official response.
Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu became the first senior Turkish official to challenge Syria's account of the downing of the jet
The government has promised that it will be strong, decisive and legitimate, and that it will share all the information it has with the public.
Earlier, Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu became the first senior Turkish official to challenge Syria’s account of the downing of the jet.
After lengthy meetings with military chiefs, he told TRT state television that the unarmed jet had “momentarily” entered Syrian airspace by mistake on Friday but had left when it was shot down 15 minutes later.
“According to our conclusions, our plane was shot down in international airspace, 13 nautical miles (24 km) from Syria,” he said.
According to international law, a country’s airspace extends 12 nautical miles (22.2 km) from its coastline, corresponding with its territorial waters.
Ahmet Davutoglu also insisted that the jet had not been on a “covert mission related to Syria” but had instead been carrying out a training flight to test Turkey’s radar capabilities.
He said the plane had not “shown any hostility”, been clearly marked as Turkish, and that he did not agree with the Syrian military’s statement that it had not known to whom it belonged.
The Turkish military said it lost radio contact with the F-4 Phantom at 11:58 (08:58 GMT) on Friday while it was flying over Hatay province, about 90 minutes after it took off from Erhac airbase in the province of Malatya, to the north-west.
Later, the Syrian military said an “unidentified air target” had penetrated Syrian airspace from the west at 11:40 local time (08:40 GMT), travelling at very low altitude and at high speed.
It said that in line with the laws prevailing in such cases, Syrian air defences engaged the craft, and scored a direct hit about 1 km (0.5 nautical miles) from its coastline.
It burst into flames, and crashed into the sea at a point 10 km (5 nautical miles) from the village of Om al-Tuyour, off the coast of Latakia province, well within Syrian territorial waters, the statement added.
Relations between NATO-member Turkey and Syria, once close allies, have deteriorated sharply since the uprising against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad began in March 2011. More than 30,000 Syrian refugees have fled the violence across the border into Turkey.
Oscar-winning actress Helen Mirren is to be honored with a star on Hollywood’s Walk of Fame in 2013.
Helen Mirren is among 24 new inductees who will receive the pavement plaque.
Other film stars to receive the honor in 2013 include Ron Howard, Javier Bardem, Jennifer Hudson, James Franco and Viola Davis.
From the music world, recipients include Usher, New Kids on the Block and Backstreet Boys.
There are also posthumous honors for Janis Joplin and Luther Vandross.
While Glee star Jane Lynch, chat show host Ellen DeGeneres and The Mentalist’s Simon Baker are among the TV personalities to receive the plaque.
Oscar-winning actress Helen Mirren is to be honored with a star on Hollywood's Walk of Fame in 2013
The Hollywood Chamber of Commerce meets every June to select around 20 new inductees from hundreds of nominations.
Stars who accept the honor have to pay $30,000 in costs, fees and upkeep of the stars.
Some of the recipients took to Twitter to talk about their new accolades.
Backstreet Boys member Nick Carter wrote: “I feel like Lebron James and we just won the NBA title… finally!! We have been accepted for a star on the Hollywood walk of fame! Amazing.”
And Futurama star Katey Sagal said: “Years ago I was doin’ The Walk of Shame. Look at me now.”
Full list of Hollywood’s Walk of Fame new nominees for 2013:
• Movies: Rick Baker, Javier Bardem, Viola Davis, James Franco, Ron Howard and Helen Mirren
• Television: Simon Baker, Bryan Cranston, Ellen DeGeneres, Jane Lynch, Katey Sagal and Matthew Perry
• Music: The Backstreet Boys, Jennifer Hudson, Jane’s Addiction, Janis Joplin, New Kids on the Block, Usher Raymond IV, Thalia and Luther Vandross
Higher Presidential Election Commission in Egypt has declared the Muslim Brotherhood’s Mohammed Mursi as the winner of presidential election run-off.
Mohammed Mursiwon 51.73% of the vote, beating former PM Ahmed Shafiq, the Higher Presidential Election Commission said.
The head of the panel of judges, Farouq Sultan, said it had upheld some of the 466 complaints by the candidates, but that the election result still stood.
The announcement prompted scenes of jubilation in Cairo’s Tahrir Square, where Mohammed Mursi’s supporters gathered.
They have been maintaining a vigil there for days in protest at the series of decrees by the ruling Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF) which they say are designed to reduce or constrain the power of the president, and entrench the power of the military.
Supporters of Ahmed Shafiq had also been holding a rally in the capital’s northern suburb of Nasser City, home of the headquarters of the election commission.
Judge Farouq Sultan began the news conference by saying the declaration of the result had been “marred by tension and a bad atmosphere”.
“The commission applied the law when it looked into the ballots. There is nothing above the law,” he asserted.
Higher Presidential Election Commission in Egypt has declared the Muslim Brotherhood's Mohammed Mursi as the winner of presidential election run-off
The judge then dismissed what he said had been the two most serious complaints of electoral violations – that some ballots had been printed with the name of one candidate already ticked, and that Christians had been prevented from voting in a village in Minya governorate.
He then spent several minutes announcing minor amendments to the vote tallies before suddenly revealing that Mohammed Mursi had won 13,230,131 votes, compared with Ahmed Shafiq’s total of 12,347,380, or 48.27%.
The turnout in last weekend voting was 51.58%, he added.
As Judge Farouq Sultan announced the victory of Mohammed Mursi, who is chairman of the Muslim Brotherhood’s Freedom and Justice Party (FJP), huge cheers erupted in Tahrir Square.
Tens of thousands of his supporters, as well as those of ultra-conservative Salafist groups, had gathered there to listen to the result on big screens.
Many had camped out overnight to protest against what Islamists, secularists and youth activists have denounced as a military coup.
On 13 June, the justice ministry gave soldiers the right to arrest civilians for trial in military courts until the ratification of a new constitution.
The SCAF then issued a decree on Friday dissolving parliament in line with a Supreme Constitutional Court ruling that the law on elections to the lower house was invalid because party members had been allowed to contest seats reserved for independents.
Two days later, just as the polls were closing in the run-off, the generals issued an interim constitutional declaration that granted them legislative powers and reinforced their role in the drafting of a permanent constitution. The military was also exempted from civilian oversight.
Then on Monday, the head of the SCAF, Field Marshal Mohammed Hussein Tantawi, announced the re-establishment of a National Defence Council, putting the generals in charge of Egypt’s national security policy.
The generals have vowed to hand over power to the new president by 30 June, but their decision to dissolve parliament means he could take office without the oversight of a sitting legislature and without a permanent constitution to define his powers or duties.
Simon Cowell’s entertainment company Syco has confirmed it is taking legal action against US band One Direction.
Earlier this year, One Direction – a Californian pop/punk band – announced they were suing British 1D claiming they had the band name first.
They said they had filed a trademark application for their name in America before the X Factor boy band.
Now Syco has begun a counter-claim suggesting the US band is trying to make money from their success.
Earlier this year Zayn Malik and Harry Styles from the UK group spoke to Radio 1 about the controversy.
They said they would not back down over calls for them to change their name.
Simon Cowell's entertainment company Syco has confirmed it is taking legal action against US band One Direction
The counter-claim is thought to be based on Simon Cowell’s belief that fans of the X Factor runners-up are the ones who are at risk of getting confused over the names.
1D US claim they began selling their album The Light before 1D UK released their debut album Up All Night.
The UK group formed on the ITV1 show in 2010 when the judges put Zayn Malik, Louis Tomlinson, Liam Payne, Harry Styles and Niall Horan together.
They are the first UK group to enter the US Billboard 200 chart at number one with a debut album. The Beatles only managed to reach number two.
Queen Elizabeth II is to give Prince William and his wife one of the cottages on her beloved Sandringham estate to mark his 30th birthday.
The property will be made available to the couple later this year.
Prince William, who reached the milestone last Thursday, is said to be celebrating privately with family and friends this weekend.
It is understood that he is particularly delighted about the house because he and Kate spent their first Christmas as husband and wife at Sandringham last year.
The 20,000-acre Sandringham estate near King’s Lynn in Norfolk has been owned by the Queen since her accession in 1952 and by the Royal Family since 1862.
The Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh stay in the main house, an Edwardian mansion, every Christmas with the rest of the Royal Family.
Although much of the land is open to the public, the paparazzi are no longer allowed to photograph the Royal Family relaxing there.
New laws were introduced after pictures of Prince Philip were published overseas and Prince Edward was photographed apparently striking his two gun dogs with a wooden stick during a pheasant shoot.
Queen Elizabeth II is to give Prince William and his wife one of the cottages on her beloved Sandringham estate to mark his 30th birthday
It is not known which of the 150 residential, commercial and agricultural properties on the estate that the Queen intends to give to the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge.
Among the options are York Cottage, which is currently used as an estate office.
Built by Edward VII soon after he moved to Sandringham, it was the first home of King George V and Queen Mary after their marriage in 1893.
Sandringham was a favorite of George V, who declared it “the place I love better than anywhere in the world” and Prince William’s great-grandfather, King George VI, was born there in 1895.
Kate and William have also previously stayed at Wood Farm Cottage in Wolferton, a modest cottage set in a secluded part of the estate that is often used as an informal weekend retreat by the Royals.
William and Prince Harry regularly host shooting parties at the cottage, while Kate and William have treated friends to a weekend there. Prince Harry also stayed at the cottage with his former girlfriend, Chelsy Davy.
The cottage is often used by the Royals when there is not enough accommodation in the main house.
Previously, Wood Farm was used by the Duke of Edinburgh to host private parties during shooting weekends, and the Duchess of York stayed there following her divorce from Prince Andrew.
Prince William already has several properties across the country. When he was a student at St Andrews University, the Queen handed him a cottage called Tam-na-Ghar on the Balmoral estate in Scotland, where he used to take Kate for romantic weekends.
The Duke and Duchess currently live on Anglesey in Wales, where Prince William works as an RAF search-and-rescue pilot. The Prince has previously spoken of how he and the Duchess, 30, can live “normal lives” on Anglesey. However, he has been told that he must decide by the end of the year whether he wants to continue with his flying career.
Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu has said the fighter jet shot down by Syrian air defense forces on Friday was in international airspace when it was hit.
Ahmet Davutoglu said the unarmed plane was not on a secret mission related to Syria, but had mistakenly entered Syrian airspace before the incident.
Syria maintains that it engaged the aircraft in its airspace “according to the laws that govern such situations”.
The Turkish and Syrian navies are still searching for the two crew members.
Ankara has promised its response will be strong, decisive and legitimate once it has ascertained all the circumstances surrounding the incident.
Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu has said the fighter jet shot down by Syrian air defense forces on Friday was in international airspace when it was hit
1.F-4 Phantom takes off from Erhac airbase, Turkey, at approximately 10:28 local time (07:28 GMT), on 22 June
2. Syria says the jet enters its airspace at 11:40 (08:40 GMT)
3. Turkish military loses contact with the plane at 11:58 (08:58 GMT), while it is over Hatay province
4. Syria says its air defenses engaged aircraft about 1 km (0.6 miles) from the coast and that it crashed into the sea 10 km (6 miles) west of Om al-Tuyour
Egypt is awaiting the delayed results of the presidential run-off election held last weekend.
The results are due in the coming hours, after the election commission heard appeals by the two candidates.
Mohammed Mursi of the Muslim Brotherhood and former Prime Minister Ahmed Shafiq have both claimed victory and vowed to form unity governments.
Thousands of their supporters spent the night in the centre of Cairo amid increasing political polarization.
Correspondents say the atmosphere has been peaceful, but tense.
Many people are still apprehensive about the intentions of the ruling generals, who gave themselves sweeping new powers last week after the Supreme Constitutional Court ruled that the Islamist-dominated parliament should be dissolved.
On Friday, the Supreme Council of Armed Forces (SCAF) called on supporters of both candidates to accept the result when it came.
Results from last weekend’s run-off were originally due out on Thursday.
The Higher Presidential Election Commission (HPEC) has said that it will announce the official results at 15:00 local time (13:00 GMT) on Sunday.
Muslim Brotherhood supporters are maintaining a vigil in the capital’s Tahrir Square, where on Friday tens of thousands of protesters gathered to denounce a series of decrees and appointments by the SCAF designed to reduce or constrain the power of the president, and entrench the power of the military.
Egypt is awaiting the delayed results of the presidential run-off election held last weekend
On 13 June, the military-controlled government gave soldiers the right to arrest civilians for trial in military courts until the ratification of a new constitution.
Four days later, just as the polls were closing in the presidential run-off, the generals issued an interim constitutional declaration that granted them all legislative powers and reinforced their role in the drafting of a permanent constitution. The document also exempted the military from civilian oversight.
Then on Monday, the head of the SCAF, Field Marshal Mohammed Hussein Tantawi, announced the re-establishment of a National Defence Council, putting the generals in charge of Egypt’s national security policy.
Islamists, liberals and secularists said the moves amounted to a coup.
“The military must leave its political role and go back to its basic role which is protecting the country, not continuing to ruin the country and people’s affairs – this will not be accepted by the Egyptian people,” Abdel Nasser Hijab, a demonstrator in Tahrir Square, told the Associated Press.
There are fears that in the current atmosphere, the announcement of the presidential election results might only make matters worse.
A pro-Ahmed Shafiq demonstration took place on Saturday in the Nasser City neighborhood of Cairo.
“When we decided to take to the streets, we’re not just one, two or three million, we’re 80 million. The only difference is that we’re waiting for the military council to give its final word,” one Shafiq supporter, Doaa, told the Reuters news agency.
Hundreds of supporters held up pictures of Ahmed Shafiq and Field Marshal Tantawi while chanting slogans in support of the army and against the Brotherhood.
Correspondents say that there was less enthusiasm in the run-off election than there was for previous rounds of voting, and some called for a boycott or spoiled ballots.
On Tuesday, the Brotherhood’s Freedom and Justice Party announced that Mohammed Mursi, its chairman, had won with 51.74% of the vote, citing official figures from the HPEC.
Mohammed Mursi has also secured the support of several leading liberal figures and youth activists in Egypt, including Wael Ghonim, who played a key role in the uprising that forced Hosni Mubarak to step down in February 2011.
Ahmed Shafiq came second to Mohammed Mursi in last month’s first round, in which turnout among the 52 million eligible voters was only 46%.
But the former air force commander, who served briefly as former President Hosni Mubarak’s last prime minister, said on Thursday at his first public appearance since the run-off that he was confident of victory.
Governments in Latin America have reacted angrily to the impeachment of Paraguayan President Fernando Lugo in the wake of a land dispute scandal.
Argentina, Brazil and Uruguay have condemned the move and recalled their ambassadors for consultations.
But Federico Franco, who replaced Fernando Lugo as president, denied that Lugo’s removal from office was a coup.
In his first news conference, Federico Franco said there had been no break with democracy.
A 39-4 vote in the Senate on Friday saw Fernando Lugo impeached, in a case stemming from his handling of clashes between farmers and police last week in which at least 17 people died.
Earlier, Argentine President Cristina Fernandez had said her country “would not validate the coup” in Paraguay.
Governments in Latin America have reacted angrily to the impeachment of Paraguayan President Fernando Lugo in the wake of a land dispute scandal
President Cristina Fernandez also said that the South American trade bloc, Mercosur, would take “appropriate measures” at next week’s summit in Argentina.
Brazilian Foreign Minister Antonio Patriota condemned the impeachment as a “backward step” liable to be sanctioned by regional institutions such as Mercosur, Reuters news agency reports.
Federico Franco, who had been serving as Fernando Lugo’s vice-president, was sworn in as president immediately after the impeachment.
He insisted the proceedings had been conducted in line with Paraguay constitution.
“What was carried out was a political trial in accordance with the constitution and the laws,” he said.
Federico Franco acknowledged the impeachment had caused tensions with Paraguay neighbors.
“I am calm, we are going to organize the house, we are going to contact our neighboring countries in due time and I’m absolutely certain that they are going to understand the situation in Paraguay,” Federico Franco said.
The presidents of Ecuador and Venezuela, Rafael Correa and Hugo Chavez, were also outspoken in their criticism of the move.
“The Ecuadorian government will not recognize any president that isn’t Fernando Lugo,” Rafael Correa said.
“We will not lend ourselves to these tales of alleged legal formalities, which clearly attack democracy,” he added.
Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez displayed a similar sentiment: “In the name of the people of Venezuela and in the name of the Venezuelan government and as commander-in-chief, I’ll say it.
“We, the Venezuelan government, the Venezuelan state, do not recognize this illegitimate and illegal government that has been installed.”
The governments of Colombia, Mexico and Chile have said they regretted the fact that Fernando Lugo had not been “given reasonable time to prepare his defense”.
The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights said Fernando Lugo’s removal from office was an “attack on the legal foundation of the state”.
The United States and Spain have avoided publicly opposing or supporting the move, instead pressing the principle of democracy in Paraguay.
A statement from the Spanish foreign ministry said: “Spain defends full respect for democratic institutions and the state of law and trusts that Paraguay, in respect for its constitution and international commitments, will manage to handle this political crisis and safeguard the peaceful coexistence of the Paraguayan people.”
The United States took a similar stance.
US State Department spokeswoman Darla Jordan was quoted as saying: “We urge all Paraguayans to act peacefully, with calm and responsibility, in the spirit of Paraguay democratic principles.”
China has successfully completed its first ever manual docking of a spacecraft with another space module as astronauts on the Shenzhou-9 spacecraft docked with the Tiangong-1 lab module without relying on an automated system.
State television broadcast images of Jing Haipeng, Liu Wang and China’s first female astronaut, Liu Yang, smiling after completing the exercise.
The docking is seen as a key step in the building of a space station, which China hopes to finish by 2020.
A manual docking procedure would be used in the event of a failure with the automated system.
Astronauts on the Shenzhou-9 spacecraft docked with the Tiangong-1 lab module without relying on an automated system
It is regarded as a difficult manoeuvre, bringing gently together two orbiting vessels travelling at thousands of miles an hour.
Liu Wang had been expected to take charge of the operation, while Liu Yang was to conduct aerospace experiments, according to Agence France-Presse news agency.
Manual docking was mastered by the USSR and US in the 1960s.
The Shenzhou-9 spacecraft was launched on 16 June.
It carried out a successful automatic docking when it reached the Tiangong-1 module on 18 June.
Every move of the mission has been watched with patriotic pride by China’s state media.
Even the astronauts’ first space meal – rice, pickled pork, barbecue sauce and tea – was reported, our correspondent says.
Mugly, an 8-year-old Chinese Crested with a short snout, beady eyes and a large number of unkempt white whiskers, has won the rather unflattering title of Ugliest Dog in a competition held in the United States.
The 2012 winner Mugly is owned by Bev Nicholson of Peterborough, UK.
The 24th annual World’s Ugliest Dog contest, held at the Sonoma-Marin Fair, pitched 29 canines against each other.
Mugly, an 8-year-old Chinese Crested, has won the rather unflattering title of Ugliest Dog in 2012
World’s Ugliest Dog Contest is an annual contest held in Petaluma, California, as part of the Sonoma-Marin Fair, to decide which of the dogs entered in the contest is the ugliest. Along with the title of “The World’s Ugliest Dog”, the winner’s owner receives a check for $1,000, and both dog and owner receive significant publicity for winning the contest, appearing on talk shows and in newspapers around the world.
Dogs come from across the United States generally but are welcome to enter from around the world. In contrast to conformation shows (which are restricted to purebreds), mutts are allowed to participate.
Daniel Shak, a wealthy New York hedge fund manager, has filed a lawsuit against his ex-wife Beth Shak for a portion of her luxury shoe collection, which he claims he knew nothing about at the time of their divorce.
Daniel Shak, 52, claimed that Beth Shak, a well-known professional poker player, never told him about her 1,200 pairs of designer shoes when they parted ways three years ago.
The finance titan, who had shared a $7.5 million apartment on Fifth Avenue with his then-wife, said that she kept her enormous stockpile of shoes hidden from him possibly in a “secret room”, the New York Post reported.
Daniel Shak now wants to get his hands on his ex-wife’s pricey pumps, which he says would entitle him to hundreds of thousands of dollars more in their divorce settlement.
However, Daniel Shak’s claim that his ex-wife had successfully kept him in the dark about her footwear obsession is highly questionable considering the fact that her collection has been featured in numerous TV shows, from MTV’s Cribs to the Today Show.
Beth Shak’s Facebook page is plastered with images of glittering sky-high stilettos by Christian Louboutin – her favorite shoe designer – and in April she launched her own website dedicated to her obsession called Shoes R Forever, where she offers her picks and writes about the hottest trends in footwear.
Daniel Shak has filed a lawsuit against his ex-wife Beth Shak for a portion of her luxury shoe collection, which he claims he knew nothing about at the time of their divorce
Beth Shak, 43, a mother of three, even has an image of a Christian Louboutin stiletto tattooed on a private area of her body, the Post reported.
She renowned shoe aficionado was featured in a recently released documentary called God Save My Shoes about women’s relationship with their heels, and according to a recent post on her Facebook page, Beth Shak plans to start her own shoe line soon.
The World Series of Poker player told the Post that Daniel Shak would have to have been the most unobservant husband in history to be unaware of her passion for shoes that would have made the fictional Sex & the City shoe maven Carrie Bradshaw blush.
“I’m shaking my head over this whole thing,” Beth Shak said.
“He is saying he didn’t know the closet in our master bedroom existed.”
Daniel Shak, however, insists that he discovered his ex-wife’s “secret” only last year, according to his lawsuit.
“Dan trusted his wife and was not inspecting his home to try to find inventory or <<secret rooms>>,” the suit claims.
A source told the Post that Daniel Shak is asking a court near their old family home in suburban Philadelphia for an accounting of his ex-wife’s footwear.
He estimates her collection at $1 million and says he is due at least 35% of that.
Daniel Shak, an avid poker player himself, reportedly lost millions of dollars in the gold market last year.
In 2011, Beth Shak brought a film crew from NBC’s Today Show into her three cavernous closets to put on display her pricey size-seven acquisitions, sheepishly admitting to a reporter that some of her fancy footwear cost her as much as $4,000 a pair.
Beth Shak said her collection includes 700 pairs of Christian Louboutin shoes, which she compared to “fine art” in an interview with the Post last year.
Still, Beth Shak has ways to go if she wants to catch up with the world’s most notorious shoe fiend Imelda Marcos, the wife of former Philippine dictator, who caused worldwide outrage in 1986 when a U.S. diplomat revealed that she owned 3,000 pairs of shoes.
Ann Curry will get her walking papers from the Today Show next week, and NBC will pay $10 million for its blunder.
NBC sources told TMZ that Ann Curry was under a contract that guarantees her $10 million a year.
The sources also said Ann Curry signed a new contract almost a year ago, when she took over as co-anchor of Today Show. Under the deal, Ann Curry gets a cool $10 million, and it’s a long-term contract.
Ann Curry will get her walking papers from the Today Show next week, and NBC will pay $10 million for its blunder
According to TMZ, Ann Curry was guaranteed that amount for 3 years.
The sources said the likely scenario is that Ann Curry will become a foreign correspondent for NBC News.
Ann Curry will be the first foreign correspondent who will rake in an amount equal to the gross national product of some of the countries she will cover.
