A 5.6 magnitude earthquake struck Bulgaria’s capital Sofia early on Tuesday, causing residents to rush into the streets, the civil defense office said.
The quake, which occurred at 3 a.m. local time, shook apartment buildings and rattled windows but caused no casualties or damage, Nikolay Nikolov, an official from the office was quoted as saying by the national radio, citing initial reports.
The U.S. Geological Survey said the temblor was centered about 23 km (14 miles) west of Sofia and occurred at a relatively shallow depth of 9 Km (5.8 miles).
USGS initially reported the magnitude as 5.8.
A 5.6 magnitude earthquake struck Bulgaria's capital Sofia early on Tuesday, causing residents to rush into the streets
The civil defense office said the quake’s epicenter was near the western town of Pernik.
Pernik Mayor Rositsa Yanakieva told the national radio the quake caused chimneys to topple and an old house to collapse. Some 30 people in Pernik have sought medical help, complaining mainly of high blood pressure, she said.
Many people in the Bulgarian capital fled their homes and gathered in the streets.
“I’ve never experienced anything like this,” Ivanka Georgieva, who lives on the eighth floor in a residential block, told Reuters.
“It was very strong and it was frightening.”
The quake was felt across the southwestern part of Bulgaria.
The country of fewer than 8 million people lies in Europe’s earthquake-prone Balkan region.
Lindsay Lohan was snapped sampling various Elizabeth Taylor-inspired costumes for her role in the biopic Liz And Dick – her first leading lady part since the rather abysmal 2009 flop Labor Pains.
However, Lindsay Lohan, 25, didn’t bother to brush her hair for the wardrobe fitting, instead just scraping her messy locks back into scruffy bun.
A source told TMZ that Lindsay Lohan has been granted the “final say on all wardrobe decisions” and she has been relishing the opportunity to “perfect Liz’s looks”.
The website also claims LiLo has been “obsessing” with “getting into the Hollywood legend’s head”.
During the wardrobe fitting, Lindsay Lohan drew attention to her slender frame in a summery aquamarine cocktail dress, selected solely to recreate a famous snapshot from when Elizabeth Taylor was a teenager.
Lindsay Lohan was snapped sampling various Elizabeth Taylor-inspired costumes for her role in the biopic Liz And Dick
LiLo is also captured in a red dress, which is said to be based on a Valentino dress Liz Taylor once wore.
Speaking of her role, Lindsay Lohan revealed in a statement: “I have always admired and had enormous respect for Elizabeth Taylor. She was not only an incredible actress but an amazing woman as well.
“I am very honored to have been asked to play this role.”
The television movie, which will feature on the Lifetime Network, will tell the true tale of Elizabeth Taylor and her romance with actor, and fifth husband, Richard Burton.
Their relationship was considered somewhat of a scandal in the Sixties, with both parties already married as they embarked on their affair.
While a director is yet to be announced for the June shoot, Christopher Monger has been confirmed as the writer (Temple Grandin), and Larry A. Thompson (Amish Grace) will play executive producer.
Anne Taylor’s LOFT line has given its shoppers an obvious and embarrassing Photoshop fail.
In product shots for Ann Taylor’s LOFT line, two models sport extremely bent out of shape and misplaced thumbs.
Advertising the brand’s Linen Twill Shorts, the model appears to have a jarring thumb popping straight out of her wrist, with the rest of her hand in the front pocket.
In a shot for LOFT’s Marisa Cargo Pants in White Cotton Poplin, the model seems to have her whole hand in the pant pocket, with a foreign thumb poking out from her wrist.
Advertising the brand's Linen Twill Shorts, the model appears to have a jarring thumb popping straight out of her wrist, with the rest of her hand in the front pocket
One can only assume the models stuffed their whole hands into the pockets for the shoot – forgetting to place their thumbs naturally outside the fold.
Instead it appears the digital team has added two thumbs in post-production, in an effort to get rid of the “disappearing hand” syndrome often seen in shoots.
This is not Ann Taylor’s first Photoshop fail, however.
The brand’s most famous airbrushing mishap was featured on its website a year ago, when a model’s entire arm was removed.
Anne Taylor eventually pulled the image from its website, replacing it with a variety of T-shirt color options.
A French prosecutor has ordered an initial inquiry into claims that Dominique Strauss-Kahn was involved in “gang rape” in Washington.
The allegations come from a Belgian prostitute who said she was at a hotel sex party in the city in December 2010.
Former IMF head Dominique Strauss-Kahn, 63, is already under investigation with three other men over their alleged roles in a prostitution ring. He denies the allegations.
A charge that he attempted to rape a US hotel maid was dropped last year.
But the case put an end to DSK’s career at the International Monetary Fund and dashed his hopes of running as Socialist candidate for the French presidency.
A French prosecutor has ordered an initial inquiry into claims that Dominique Strauss-Kahn was involved in "gang rape" in Washington
In March, prosecutors in the northern French city of Lille placed him under formal investigation in connection with what has become known as the Carlton affair, after the Lille hotel in which several orgies are alleged to have taken place.
Businessmen Fabrice Paszkowski and David Roquet and policeman Jean-Christophe Lagarde, who were named with DSK as part of the Carlton affair, have also been implicated in the Washington hotel investigation.
It is claimed that the men hired prostitutes for sex parties in France and the United States while DSK was in charge of the IMF.
According to a statement from the Lille prosecutor, the investigation centres on an incident “that could be described as gang rape”.
The allegations are said to have come to light from evidence given by a Belgian prostitute who told Belgian police that she was forced into certain acts of non-consensual sex while in Washington on 16 December 2010. She has not filed a complaint.
“I didn’t scream but I said clearly and loudly that I didn’t want to,” the woman is said to have testified.
But a second Belgian prostitute has called her account of events into question, in an interview with French media.
Police in Washington say they have checked their records for 16 December at the city’s W hotel, named by media as the hotel involved, and have found no reports detailing allegations of such activity.
Earlier this month, the former IMF managing director’s lawyers denied the accusations against him, saying he was the victim of a “lynching campaign”.
The initial charge of “aggravated pimping as part an organized gang” carries a potential prison term of 20 years. A rape conviction can prompt a similar sentence.
Facebook shares have fallen in early trading on Wall Street to below the price at which they were floated.
Despite the wider market in buoyant mood, Facebook slid 12% immediately at the opening bell and were still 11% down at $33.92 more than one hour into the trading day.
Facebook’s flotation on Friday at $38 a share was delayed by technical problems on the NASDAQ stock exchange.
NASDAQ boss Robert Greifeld said he was “humbly embarrassed” by the glitch.
Facebook shares have fallen in early trading on Wall Street to below the price at which they were floated
Trading was delayed by 30 minutes due to late order cancellations, and the shares closed on Friday at $38.23, having hit $45 earlier in the day.
The offer price valued the site at $104 billion.
Analysts said Facebook shares were the most frequently traded on Wall Street, but sentiment had changed since Friday.
“One of the things that we are seeing in Facebook is a lot of emotional trading, in that over the weekend much of the media coverage was negative, and that could be weighing on investors’ decisions to get out of the stock,” said JJ Kinahan from stockbrokers TD Ameritrade.
“This was not our finest hour,” said Robert Greifeld.
As a result of the glitch, a number of investors were unsure whether their buy and sell orders had actually gone through.
However, Robert Greifeld said that once the glitch had been fixed, trading had been “successful”.
More than 566 million shares in the company changed hands, a record volume for US market debuts.
Some analysts suggested the share price would have fallen on Friday had it not been for underwriters stepping in to buy up stock.
Strong demand in the run-up to the flotation had led the company to increase both the price and the number of shares available for sale.
Other internet companies have had mixed experiences recently when they have started selling shares.
Online games maker Zynga’s shares fell 5% on their first day of trading in December 2011. However, shares in business networking site LinkedIn more than doubled on their debut in May last year, while Groupon shares jumped 30% on their debut in November.
Auranofin, a cheap drug, which is already prescribed for arthritis, could fight amoebic dysentery, according to researchers in the US.
They were testing old drugs to see if any killed the dysentery bug.
Tests on animals, published in Nature Medicine, showed that auranofin was 10 times more effective than the best drug currently available.
Further studies will be needed in humans, but researchers say it holds great promise.
Amoebic dysentery is caused by Entamoeba histolytica, which infects the bowels. It results in severe diarrhoea including bloody stools. More than 70,000 people are thought to die from the disease each year – most are in developing countries.
US researchers tested 910 drugs, some of which had already been shown to be safe for human use, on amoebas in the laboratory.
It showed that auranofin was much better than the current treatment, metronidazole, at killing Entamoeba histolytica.
Tests on animals, published in Nature Medicine, showed that auranofin was 10 times more effective than the best drug currently available
Follow-up experiments showed that it was also more effective at treating mice and hamsters which had been infected with the ameoba.
It has been prescribed to patients with rheumatoid arthritis since 1985.
One of the researchers, Prof. James McKerrow, from the Sandler Center for Drug Discovery at the University of California, San Francisco, said: “When we’re looking for new treatments for the developing world, we start with drugs that have already been approved.
“If we can find an approved drug that happens to kill these organisms, we’ve leapfrogged the development process that goes into assessing whether they are safe, which also makes them affordable throughout the world.”
Prof. Sharon Reed, from the University of California, San Diego, said: “Because auranofin has already been approved for use in humans, we can save years of expensive development.
“This new use of an old drug represents a promising therapy for a major health threat.”
Dr. Graham Clark, a reader in molecular parasitology at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, said metronidazole was very effective, but it did have side effects and was not always successful.
He said: “The work presented in this paper is particularly useful as it identifies an existing drug, auranofin, that has already been tested and approved for use in humans, which seems to be at least as effective as metronidazole.
“Although auranofin has to date only been tested in animal models of amoebic disease, this means that there is now a potential alternative treatment for individual cases where metronidazole fails to cure the infection or in the event resistance to metronidazole emerge as a clinical problem in the future.”
Kris Jenner was feeling the pressure tonight in the hotly-anticipated seventh season of Keeping Up With The Kardashians – as a result of the media frenzy concerning Khloe Kardashian’s biological father.
Kris Jenner revealed in her memoir that she had an affair around the time her daughter Khloe Kardashian was conceived.
Regardless of Khloe Kardashian’s feelings on the matter, Kris Jenner looks into paternity testing in order to quash the rumors that she’s not a Kardashian once and for all.
Bruce Jenner doesn’t think Kris needs to prove anything to Khloe Kardashian concerning her biological father but the momanager organizes for DNA samples to be taken from the whole family.
“Khloe has had it with me torturing he over this swab test,” says Kris Jenner, but it seems that in fact she is more worried about vindicating herself and that is why she will not drop the issue.
Meanwhile the sister’s are having a power struggle over the operation of DASH as Kourtney Kardashian has been looking at spaces for a new store and going to buying appointments without telling Kim or Khloe.
“She thinks she’s the president of DASH and that just isn’t the case,” says Kim Kardashian. But Kourtney counters that Kim is always too busy to help so she ends up doing everything by herself.
Kris Jenner steps in and points out to Kourtney Kardashian that she is being a control freak and the business belongs to all three of them.
This spurs Kourtney Kardashian into inviting her sisters to a design meeting for the new store prompting Kim to say: “I’m going to make myself more available.”
Kris Jenner and Khloe Kardashian make up and agree to drop the DNA test and forget about it
Khloe Kardashian also promises to fly in from Texas whenever she’s needed.
“I almost forgot how much fun we have at Dash when the three of us are together,” Kourtney Kardashian admits.
Back at home Kris Jenner is alienating Bruce with her busy schedule and controlling ways causing him to take up Khloe’s offer to move into her empty house.
Scott Disick comes over and hangs out with Bruce Jenner.
“This is an experiment to see if anyone misses me. I don’t think anyone could live with Kris,” Bruce Jenner tells him.
Scott Disick admits that he doesn’t sleep in the same bed as Kourtney Kardashian anymore either leaving them both mulling over what has just happened.
Bruce Jenner goes home and realizes that Kris has not even noticed that he’s been gone for two days.
“No one shows me any respect around here. Either it’s going to change or I’m the hell out of here,” he threatens.
But Kris Jenner is having none of it and replies: “You haven’t been part of the team for a very long time. Speak up once in a while and act like you care about what’s going on here.”
Bruce Jenner realizes that if he is to get some family time with Kylie and Kendall he needs to confiscate their cell phones for the evening and go out for ice cream and Bruce is thrilled that they have really communicated.
Kris Jenner has planned a family dinner at home to try and get the whole family on side to persuade Khloe Kardashian to have a DNA test.
Kim Kardashian thinks she should saying: “Khloe call me crying hysterically looking for answers.”
But Kourtney Kardashian does not think Khloe should be pressured into anything and Rob thinks the whole situation is absurd.
Khloe Kardashian refuses to take a DNA test when she is ambushed by a doctor showing up the dinner.
“It’s not about me. It’s actually about Mom,” Khloe Kardashian reasons.
The next day at lunch Kim Kardashian confronts Kris Jenner about the fact that she is actually worried about preserving her own reputation and she decides to write Khloe a letter to explain how she feels.
After reading the letter Khloe Kardashian sticks by her decision not to take the test saying: “I don’t need someone to tell me who my family is. I have had the blessing of having two phenomenal fathers. I don’t need a DNA test to prove who my father is.”
Mother and daughter make up and agree to drop the matter and forget about it.
Crystal Lagoons at the San Alfonso del Mar resort in Chile is the world’s largest outdoor pool with more than three fifths of a mile in length, that’s 20 Olympic-size swimming pools.
The enormous man-made lagoon is set halfway up the country’s Pacific coast, in the city of Algarrobo, and is filled with 66 million gallons of crystal clear seawater.
It also hold the Guinness record for the world’s deepest – so if you don’t feel like diving 115 ft to the bottom, it might be best to bring some spare goggles.
The pool opened in December 2006 after nearly five years of construction work and is said to have set developers back as much as $1.6 billion.
And on top of that eye-watering initial cost, it takes a further $3.2 million a year to keep it in working order.
Crystal Lagoons at the San Alfonso del Mar resort in Chile is the world's largest outdoor pool with more than three fifths of a mile in length
It uses a computer-controlled suction and filtration system to suck water in from the ocean at one end and pump it out at the other, while the sun warms it to 26C – nine degrees higher than the sea.
The pool’s incredible dimensions leave the next biggest floundering in its wake, with the Orthlieb in Morocco measuring a mere 1,575 ft long.
Crystal Lagoons in numbers:
• Capacity: 66 million gallons
• Length: 3,323 ft
• Area: 20 acres
• Depth: Up to 115 ft
• Temperature: heated to 26C
• Estimated cost of construction: $1.6 billion
• Cost of upkeep: $3.2 million a year
• Construction time: almost 5 years
• Completed: December 2006
• The competition: More than twice the length of the next biggest outdoor pool
Adele was the clear winner at last tonight’s Billboard Music Awards as she scooped a whopping 12 gongs.
Unfortunately, Adele wasn’t present at the Las Vegas event to collect her trophies.
However there were plenty of other winners on hand to celebrate their achievements at the bash, including Justin Bieber, Katy Perry and Taylor Swift.
LMFAO came second top with 6 awards, and opened the show with a medley before hosts and Modern Family stars Ty Burrell and Julie Bowen took to the stage.
The pair poked fun at their wholesome images and even appeared in a couple of videos showing them depicting different music genres.
Justin Bieber scooped the first award, for Social Artist, presented to him by Julianne Hough.
“First if all I just want to say how much of a blessing it’s been the past three or for years growing up in front of everybody,” Justin Bieber said.
He went on: “I just want to thank all my fans because, you know, the internet is where I got my start and all my fans have helped me get to this position.”
Adele was the clear winner at last tonight’s Billboard Music Awards as she scooped a whopping 12 gongs
Justin Bieber then thanked his manager Scooter Braun and Usher, “for not only saying, <<OK, I can sign him and just let him be>>, but instead he takes the time to really care”.
The singer later performed his new single Boyfriend for the excited audience.
Lisa Marie Presley then awarded the special Spotlight gong to Katy Perry, who said: “This is cool! They told me the only other person who’s received this award is Michael Jackson, so I feel incredibly honored to be in that same category – although I don’t compare at all.”
Katy Perry thanked her record label EMI, radio stations for playing her songs, and the “glittering gorgeous community of fans out there”.
She added: “These songs have been kind of like the diary of the last few years for me,” before thanking her 91-year-old grandmother, who accompanied her to the event.
Katy Perry later returned to the stage to perform Wide Awake, which saw her suspended from the ceiling against a sky backdrop.
Robin Thicke introduced his Duets co-star Kelly Clarkson, who gave the first ever performance of her new song Dark Side.
The Wanted were next up to perform after being introduced by Ty Burrell and Julie Bowen, and then Brandy gave an introduction to Chris Brown.
Taylor Swift was honored with a Woman of the Year Award by Zooey Deschanel who described her as “as lovely as everything she stands for”.
Meanwhile Lil Wayne, who was also not present, won Best Rap Artist.
Chris Brown was awarded four gongs, and also performed during the evening.
Miley Cyrus presented the Top New Artist award to Wiz Khalifa, who thanked his “beautiful fiancée” Amber Rose in his acceptance speech.
There were also performances by Carly Rae Jepson, Carrie Underwood, Linkin Park, Cee Lo Green and Nelly Furtado.
And Alicia Keys and Stevie Wonder performed a duet together before she presented the music legend with the Billboard Icon Award.
The awards ceremony also saw tributes to those in the singing world who have died recently, and the audience held a moment of silence for Robin Gibb.
Julie Bowen said: “His voice and the music of the Bee Gees will live on forever.”
Natasha Bedingfield paid tribute to Donna Summer by performing Last Dance, and John Legend and Jordin Sparks performed Whitney Houston tracks.
Whitney Houston’s daughter Bobbi Kristina Brown then delivered a poignant speech when she accepted the Millennium Award on behalf of her late mother.
Bobbi Kristina Brown said: “I just really want to say thank you to everyone who supported us through it all. Not just from when it was good, but when it was bad too.
“Thank you so much for showing that much love, because she deserved it. She did. I’m just blessed to have been in such an incredible woman’s life.
“There will never be another one ever, and I thank you, all of you – the fans, everyone. Thank you so much.”
A picture of France’s First Lady Valerie Trierweiler taken on the beach when she was just 16 year-old reveals the natural elegance that has captivated new French President Francois Hollande.
Dressed in only a swimming costume with a silver chain around her neck and a hand in her chestnut brown hair, Valerie Trierweiler was renowned for her good looks and her ambition even as a school-girl.
Old friends remember Valerie Trierweiler, born Massonneau, as a girl used to turning heads but disinterested in the attention her looks brought her.
Instead she relished being independent and was one of only a few girls at school to own a moped which she enjoyed using to get around.
Valerie Trierweiler appeared to have set her sights firmly on rising from her humble origins and putting her difficult childhood behind her.
Raised in the town of Angers in the Loire Valley, she was brought up in a council house.
Valerie’s father, a clerk, had lost a leg after standing on a Second World War landmine in 1944 when he was 12.
His disability combined with being one of six children meant Valerie Trierweiler’s childhood was not easy and she appears to have adopted a steely manner which has been criticized.
A picture of Valerie Trierweiler taken on the beach when she was just 16 reveals the natural elegance that has captivated French President Francois Hollande
However old school friends defended the twice-divorced mother-of-three who is the First Lady in the Elysee Palace to be unmarried and have a job – she is a political journalist for Paris Match.
An old classmate from Joachim du Bellay High School recalled: “She was always very attractive and very pleasant with it.
“She had a lot of ambition. She knew where she wanted to go in life. She was one of the few girls at school to own a moped!
“Life was not easy at home, being one of six children but she never complained. She does not have a bad part to her character, she just has a lot of character!
“She has been described as cold but that is not the case she is simply reserved, protective. You could tell she had a promising future,” said Florence Pellé, Valerie Trierweler’s best friend at school.
“And she turned all of the boys’ heads as well! But she wasn’t really interested in the good-looking boys. She was looking for something else, someone more intellectual, deep.
“She always had a lot of charm. And notoriety has not changed her, she has remained the same, straight-forward.”
Old friend Loick Berrou added: “Valerie was fresh and full of life. Her beauty and charm shone through.”
Another old friend added: “She loved being outside. She would ride her bike, swim in the river and help out at a local farm.
“And she also did synchronized swimming!”
Residents in Angers are proud of Valerie Trierweiler’s elevation to the Elyse Palace.
Her face is displayed on the front cover of many of France’s magazines and proudly displayed in news agents across the town.
Her uncle Florent Massonneau said yesterday: “I am proud that that Valerie has become the first lady.
“As a young woman she had it all – beauty and intelligence.”
Florent Massonneau added: “Valerie did not have an easy childhood. Her father loved her very much but he was disabled. He lost a leg in the war.
“And he died young, too young. She was not even 21.”
Florent Massonneau lives around the corner from the council house that was Valerie Trierweiler’s childhood home, in the working class district of Monplaisir.
Her mother Jeanne still lives there.
Valerie’s mother, who worked as a cashier at the local ice-rink to make ends meet after her husband died, continues to play an important role in her daughter’s life.
Valerie Trierweiler has three sons, aged 15, 17 and 19 from her marriage to her second husband Denis Trierweiler, a sub-editor at glossy French magazine Paris Match.
Tomislav Nikolic is the newly-elected president of Serbia, with liberal incumbent Boris Tadic admitting defeat soon after polls closed.
Nationalist Tomislav Nikolic has 50.21% of the vote, against 46.77% for Boris Tadic, with 40% of votes counted.
The contest had been seen as a vote on EU membership and the newly-elected president promised that “Serbia will not stray from its European path”.
Boris Tadic appealed to keep “Serbia’s strategic orientation towards the EU”.
“It would be a tragic mistake if Serbia changes its orientation. It is a matter of peace and economic development,” he said.
Tomislav Nikolic is the newly-elected president of Serbia, with liberal incumbent Boris Tadic admitting defeat soon after polls closed
Speaking of Tomislav Nikolic, he added: “I congratulate him on the victory, it was a fair and well-earned victory and I wish him luck.”
As he confirmed his commitment to Europe, Tomislav Nikolic claimed: “This is a turning point for Serbia… these elections were not about who will take Serbia to the EU, but who will solve the economic problems created by the Democratic Party (of Boris Tadic).”
Serbia is plagued by unemployment of 24% and foreign debt of 24 billion Euros ($31.5 billion).
In the past Tomislav Nikolic served as a deputy prime minister under the former Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic, who was put on trial for genocide at The Hague.
He was in government when NATO bombed Serbia in 1999 and once said he would rather see the country ally itself with Russia than join the EU but he has softened his rhetoric in recent years.
He has tried to rebrand himself, and his Progressive Party has vowed to invest in agriculture and industry and tax the rich to fund a rise in pensions.
The election result is something of a surprise as the incumbent had been expected to win.
Speaking on RTS state television in Serbia political analyst Slobodan Antonic explained “this was an electoral earthquake, a totally unexpected result”.
A low turnout of below 45% is thought to have damaged Boris Tadic’s chances.
The outcome of the vote may affect both Serbia’s EU prospects and the future of Kosovo, the breakaway Serbian province which declared independence in 2008.
A bitter row erupted after the first round of the election on 6 May, when the nationalists accused Boris Tadic’s supporters of rigging the ballot.
Electoral officials found no evidence that 500,000 votes had been falsified, as Tomislav Nikolic alleged, while foreign monitors declared the vote to have been fair.
As president, Boris Tadic oversaw the EU candidacy negotiations and had argued that success for him and his Democratic Party was vital for development and stability in Serbia over the next decade.
Under his leadership, Serbia captured Bosnian Serb war crimes suspects Radovan Karadzic and Gen Ratko Mladic, and handed them over to international prosecutors at The Hague.
Bobbi Kristina Brown last night delivered a touching tribute to Whitney Houston at the Billboard Music Awards 2012.
Bobbi Kristina Brown, 19, accepted the special Millennium Award on behalf of her late mother, after she was escorted onto the stage by her adopted brother Nick Gordon and received a quick kiss from him.
Whitney Houston’s daughter had been reduced to tears while watching an emotional video dedicated to the singer.
But Bobbi Kristina was well-spoken and composed when it came to delivering her poignant speech, with Whitney Houston’s sister-in-law and manager Pat Houston by her side, who also gave an introduction.
Bobbi Kristina was well-spoken and composed when it came to delivering her poignant speech, with Whitney Houston’s sister-in-law and manager Pat Houston by her side, who also gave an introduction
Bobbi Kristina Brown said: “I just really want to say thank you to everyone who supported us through it all. Not just from when it was good, but when it was bad too.
“Thank you so much for showing that much love, because she deserved it. She did. I’m just blessed to have been in such an incredible woman’s life.”
The teenager added: “There will never be another one ever, and I thank you, all of you – the fans, everyone. Thank you so much.”
During the speech, the camera cut to Brandy, the sister of Whitney Houston’s former partner Ray J.
Brandy could be seen mouthing the words “never ever” while Bobbi Kristina spoke about her mother’s uniqueness.
There were also tributes to Whitney Houston, who died aged 48 on February 11, in the form of performances.
After an introduction by Whoopi Goldberg, John Legend sang Greatest Love of All while Jordin Sparks delivered an emotional rendition of I Will Always Love You.
During Jordin Sparks’ performance, cameras followed Bobbi Kristina Brown who was seen sobbing at the tribute.
There is more and more speculation that Greece is about to leave the euro.
Greece has been unable to form a government, and new elections seem set to give power to parties that reject the spending cuts that have been agreed with other eurozone governments and the International Monetary Fund.
But without those spending cuts, the Greek government will receive no more bailout loans, it won’t have the money to pay its debts, the Greek banks will probably go bust, and the European Central Bank may be forced to cut Greece loose from the single currency.
What would this mean for Greece and the rest of Europe?
1. Greek meltdown
Greece’s banks would be facing collapse. People’s savings would be frozen. Many businesses would go bankrupt. The cost of imports – which in Greece includes a lot of its food and medicine – could double, triple or even quadruple as the new drachma currency plummets in value. With their banks bust, Greeks would find it impossible to borrow, making it impossible for a while to finance the import of some goods at all. One of Greece’s biggest industries, tourism, could be disrupted by political and social turmoil.
In the longer run, Greece’s economy should benefit from having a much more competitive exchange rate. But its underlying problems, including the government’s chronic overspending, may not go away.
2. Bank runs
Ordinary Greeks may queue up to empty their bank accounts before they get frozen and converted into drachmas that lose half or more of their value. Depositors in other eurozone countries seen as being at risk of leaving the euro – Spain, Italy – may also move their money to the safety of a German bank account, sparking a banking crisis in southern Europe.
Confidence in other banks that have lent heavily to southern Europe- such as the French banks – may also collapse. The banking crisis could spread worldwide, just like in 2008. The European Central Bank may have to provide trillions of Euros in rescue loans to the banks. Some governments may not have enough money to prop up their banks with the extra capital needed to absorb losses and restore confidence; the banks could then go bankrupt.
Greece has been unable to form a government, and new elections seem set to give power to parties that reject the spending cuts that have been agreed with other eurozone governments and the International Monetary Fund
3. Business bankruptcies
Greek businesses face a legal and financial disaster. Some contracts governed by Greek law are converted into drachmas, while other foreign law contracts remain in Euros. Many contracts could end up in litigation over whether they should be converted or not.
Greek companies who still owe big debts in Euros to foreign lenders, but whose main sources of income are converted to devalued drachmas, will be unable to repay their debts. Many businesses will be left insolvent – their debts worth more than the value of everything they own – and will be facing bankruptcy. Foreign lenders and business partners of Greek companies will be looking at big losses.
4. Sovereign debt crisis
Sovereign debt is the money a government borrows from its own citizens or from investors around the world. But if Greece leaves the eurozone, setting a precedent that such a thing can happen, then investors will become very nervous about lending to other struggling eurozone countries.
This could leave the governments of Spain and Italy short of money and in need of a bailout. These two huge countries together account for 28% of the eurozone’s total economy, but the EU’s bailout fund currently doesn’t have enough money to prop both of them up. Even France’s government could get into trouble if it needed to bail out its enormous banking sector.
5. Market turmoil
Nervous investors and lenders around the world may start selling off risky investments and move their money into safe havens. Stock markets may plunge. High-risk borrowers could face sharply higher borrowing costs, if they can borrow at all.
Meanwhile, safe investments such as the dollar, the yen, the Swiss franc, gold and perhaps even the pound would rise, while safe governments such as those of the US, Japan, Germany and even the UK could borrow more cheaply. And it’s not all bad news – the oil price may well fall sharply.
6. Political backlash
As eurozone governments and the European Central Bank face enormous losses on the loans they gave to Greece, public opinion in Germany may turn against providing the even larger bailouts probably now needed by big countries like Italy and Spain. The ECB’s role of quietly providing rescue loans to these countries in recent months would be exposed and could become politically explosive, making it harder for the ECB to continue to prop up their economies.
However, the threat of a meltdown might push Europe’s or the eurozone’s governments to agree a comprehensive solution – either dissolution of the single currency, or more integration, perhaps through a democratically-elected European presidency tasked with overseeing a massive round of bank rescues, government guarantees and growth-stimulating infrastructure investment.
7. Recession
Crisis-stricken eurozone banks may be forced to slash their lending. Businesses, afraid for the euro’s future, may cut investment. Faced with a barrage of bad news in the press, ordinary people may cut back their own spending. All of this could push the eurozone into a deep recession.
The euro would lose value in the currency markets, providing some relief for the eurozone by making its exports more competitive in international trade. But the flipside is that the rest of the world will become less competitive – especially the US, UK and Japan – undermining their own weak economies. Even China, whose economy is already slowing sharply, could be pushed into a recession.
8. Greek debt default
Unable to borrow from anyone (not even other European governments), the Greek government simply runs out of Euros. It has to pay social benefits and civil servants’ wages in IOUs (if it pays them at all) until the new drachma currency can be introduced. The government stops all repayments on its debts, which include 240 billion Euros of bailout loans it has already received from the IMF and EU. The Greek banks – who are big lenders to the government – would go bust.
Meanwhile, the Greek central bank may be unable to repay the 100 billion Euros or more it has borrowed from the European Central Bank to help prop up the Greek banks. Indeed, by the time Greece leaves the euro, the central bank may have borrowed even more from the ECB in a last ditch effort to stop the Greek banks collapsing.
A row has broken out over the sale of a Tyrannosaurus Bataar skeleton at auction in New York.
The rare Tyrannosaurus Bataar, 7-metre long (23 ft), was bought by an anonymous bidder for more than $1 million in New York.
The sale went ahead despite protests from the Mongolian president.
Elbegdorj Tsakhia says the skeleton, unearthed in the Gobi Desert, came from Mongolia and that exporting fossils found in the country is illegal.
The auctioneers, Heritage Auctions, say the specimen was imported legally. A restraining court order in the name of Elbegdorj Tsakhia was put on the sale.
The rare Tyrannosaurus Bataar, 7-metre long (23 ft), was bought by an anonymous bidder for more than $1 million in New York
Tyrannosaurus Bataar is an Asian cousin of the meat-eating Tyrannosaurus Rex.
The skeleton in New York is thought to be one of the most complete and well preserved ever discovered.
“When it comes to dinosaurs, number one, dinosaurs in general are extremely rare. But the rarest of the dinosaurs are the carnivores, the meat eaters – the top of the food chain if you will,” David Herskowitz, director of natural history at Heritage Auctions, told APTV.
“And, of all the meat eaters that are out there, the most famous are the Tyrannosaurids. They are the most desirable, but they are the most elusive. They are the most difficult to find. Even though they are so big, there are not that many of them around.”
Found about seven years ago in the Gobi Desert, the T-Bataar remained in storage in England.
The T-Bataar was slightly smaller and had longer arms than its cousin, David Herskowitz said.
This is the second Tyrannosaurid to be sold at auction, says David Herskowitz. The first was a T-Rex named Sue sold in 1997 for more than $8 million.
Lawyers for the auction house say the sale did not break any US laws – but it will not be confirmed until it has been approved by a US court.
If you want a sunny glow then try the Kate Middle-Tan.
Kate Middle-Tan is what the Duchess of Cambridge has been called since her subtle color became the most requested spray tan shade.
“She takes incredibly good care of her skin, so a light, sheer self-tan on top is all she needs for a polished glow,” says tanning expert James Harknett.
“Instead of over-applying color, which builds up in heavy layers, Kate lets her tan fade naturally,” he adds.
Kate Middle-Tan is what the Duchess of Cambridge has been called since her subtle color became the most requested spray tan shade
The trick is to moisturize generously morning and evening, and use a body brush to exfoliate, letting the color fade completely before having a fresh spray.
“The moment you overdo it, the color looks WAG-ish – exactly the look Kate Middleton wants to avoid.”
An “annular eclipse” has been viewed across a swathe of the Earth stretching across the Pacific from Asia to the western US.
The eclipse occurs when the Moon is at its farthest from the Earth and does not block out the Sun completely.
Millions of people witnessed the resulting “ring of fire” phenomenon.
The eclipse passed almost directly over Tokyo before sweeping just below Alaska’s Aleutian islands and making landfall in the western US.
An "annular eclipse" has been viewed across a swathe of the Earth stretching across the Pacific from Asia to the western US
In Japan “eclipse tours” were held at schools and parks, on pleasure boats and even private airplanes. Similar events were also held in China and Taiwan.
TV in Tokyo broadcast the event live.
Light rain fell on Tokyo as the eclipse began, but the clouds thinned as it reached its peak, providing near perfect conditions.
“It was a very mysterious sight – I’ve never seen anything like it,” said Kaori Sasaki, who joined a crowd in central Tokyo.
Japanese electronics giant Panasonic sent an expedition to the top of Mount Fuji to film the eclipse using solar-powered equipment.
“Our goal is to broadcast the world’s most beautiful annular eclipse from the highest mountain in Japan,” the company said.
However, in Hong Kong skywatchers were not so lucky. Hundreds had gathered along the Kowloon waterfront where the Space Museum had set up solar-filtered telescopes, but heavy clouds obstructed the view.
In the US, viewing parties were reported in Reno, Nevada; Oakland, California, and elsewhere.
Hundreds also travelled to the Petroglyph National Monument in Albuquerque, New Mexico, which was hailed as one of the best vantage points.
“That’s got to be the prettiest thing I’ve ever seen,” said Brent Veltri of Salida, Colorado.
The eclipse was fully visible across a 240 to 300km-wide swathe but partial views could be seen across much of east Asia and North America.
The Slooh series of space telescopes has been covering the event on its website
Robin Gibb of the Bee Gees has died aged 62 after a lengthy battle with cancer, his family said.
The announcement was made, it said, with “great sadness”.
British-born Robin Gibb’s musical career began when he formed the Bee Gees with his brothers Barry and Maurice in 1958.
The group is among the biggest-selling of all time with hits spanning five decades, including Stayin’ Alive, How Deep Is Your Love, Massachusetts and Night Fever.
Robin Gibb’s family said in a statement: “The family of Robin Gibb, of the Bee Gees, announce with great sadness that Robin passed away today following his long battle with cancer and intestinal surgery.
“The family have asked that their privacy is respected at this very difficult time.”
Robin Gibb of the Bee Gees has died aged 62 after a lengthy battle with cancer
Broadcaster Paul Gambaccini described the singer as “one of the major figures in the history of British music”.
The Gibb brothers were born in the Isle of Man but grew up in Manchester, later moving to Australia.
The Bee Gees notched up album sales of more than 200 million worldwide since their first hits in the 1960s.
“Everyone should be aware that the Bee Gees are second only to Lennon and McCartney as the most successful songwriting unit in British popular music,” said Paul Gambaccini.
“Their accomplishments have been monumental.
“Not only have they written their own number one hits, but they wrote huge hit records for Barbra Streisand, Diana Ross, Dionne Warwick, Celine Dion, Destiny’s Child, Dolly Parton and Kenny Rogers, the list goes on and on.
“What must also be said is Robin had one of the best white soul voices ever. He was singing lead on his first number one when he was 17, that was Massachusetts.”
Former BBC Radio 1 DJ Mike Read, who was a family friend of Robin Gibb, said: “Robin had the voice, the pathos, and he was a great writer.
“He had a gift for melody and a gift for lyrics and left a phenomenal legacy, a phenomenal catalogue.”
Referring to the Bee Gees, Mike Read said: “They had every award, every gold disc, every platinum disc, the Grammys the lot and had been doing it so long but were still so good at it.”
A statement from Sony Music on Twitter said: “Rest in peace, Robin Gibb. Thanks for the music.”
He had battled ill health for several years.
In 2010, Robin Gibb cancelled a series of shows after suffering from severe stomach pains while performing in Belgium. He went on to have emergency surgery for a blocked intestine.
His twin brother and band partner Maurice died in 2003 aged 53 following complications from a twisted intestine.
Robin Gibb cancelled a series of shows in Brazil in April 2011, after again suffering from abdominal pains.
Later that year, he was diagnosed with cancer of the colon after having surgery on his bowel for an unrelated condition.
He was later also diagnosed with cancer of the liver, and underwent chemotherapy and surgery.
His increasingly gaunt appearance prompted press speculation that he was close to death.
But in February he said he was making a “spectacular” recovery and he was feeling “fantastic”.
Last month the singer fell into a coma after contracting pneumonia.
After 12 days he regained consciousness and his son Robin-John said his father was “completely compos mentis”.
Robin Gibb had recently undergone intestinal surgery.
Sean Penn didn’t let the prestigious tone of the Haiti: Carnival In Cannes gala stop him from turning the air blue with some carefully chosen words during a speech on behalf of his Haitian Relief Organization.
It was the most lavish party in Cannes, with tickets going for a whopping $7,500 a pop.
Sean Penn, 51, stunned guests including Ewan McGregor, Gerard Butler, Diane Kruger and Jessica Chastain with his expletive-ridden speech, which he confessed was made “under the influence of vodka”.
The actor made a rambling delivery, jokingly questioning why some of the A-list guests were at the charity gala “when you have people to f***” at other parties.
Sean Penn then praised fellow Haiti fund raiser Paul Haggis, “even though he was a Canadian whose parents included a man, a woman and a tree”.
He added: “F*** ’em if people say you’re just writing a cheque, but you’re making a change.”
He continued that Haiti should be helped because it was just an hour away from “the richest f***ing country in the world”.
Sean Penn stunned guests at Haitian Relief Organization Gala with his expletive-ridden speech, which he confessed was made “under the influence of vodka”
Sean Penn may have had a tipple or two, or three, but he was impassioned about supporting the people of Haiti although he said people had to “fight the f*** out of politics” to get things done.
The rant continued when he demanded that guests bid for auction items.
“I want you to stay here and listen to the auction and beat the s*** out of each other to purchase them.”
The actor , who wore glasses as he made his speech, continued his blue streak.
He instructed women: “Tell the man next to you, “I’m not going to f*** you tonight unless you pay the f*** up.”
None of the guests appeared offended by the tirade, which had many an A-lister in fits of laughter.
Some felt his spicey language gave the evening some electricity.
The gala’s auctioneer, Christie’s international director Hugh Edmeades, commented with a touch of British understatement: “He’s very passionate about Haiti, isn’t he?”
Sean Penn attended the event with his girlfriend, model Petra Nemcova, who looked stunning in a silver gown. The gala was held in association with Paul Haggis’ Artists For Peace and Justice and Petra’s Happy Hearts Fund.
Giorgio Armani bank-rolled the event which included a performance by Lyle Lovett.
Ben Stiller and Jessica Chastain hot-footed it from their Madagascar 3 film screening to attend the star-studded party.
Despite the luxurious surroundings, most of the A-listers, including Ewan McGregor and Jean-Paul Gaultier were happiest sneaking a cigarette out the back by the portable loos.
“You’re not allowed to smoke inside,” noted Ewan McGregor as he stubbed out his cigarette and made his way back inside.
Sean Penn threw himself into relief efforts in Haiti following the devastating 2010 earthquake.
The Oscar- winning actor has traveled constantly to Haiti and said that 450,000 people were still homeless in Haiti.
“But at least that’s down from 1.8 million homeless. Enormous progress has been made with re-building the country’s infrastructure but people are living in tents on dirt floors , without water and cholera is spiking,” he said Friday.
Sean Penn said Haitians were “full of hope” and that schools were being built and that one of the most exciting sights. Was watching children preparing to head off to school.
Sean Penn called on President Barak Obama to do “whatever he can to help Haiti get back on its feet”.
Hundreds of thousands of dollars were raised by auctioning items such as going backstage to meet Bono, and special sporting packages for the London Olympics.
NATO leaders are meeting in Chicago in a summit dominated by the withdrawal from Afghanistan.
They want to forge a common stance as they prepare to hand over security to Afghan forces by the end of 2014.
Some members have pledged aid to help Afghan forces tackle the Taliban insurgency on their own.
President Barack Obama warned of “hard days ahead”, and Afghan President Hamid Karzai said his country was fully aware of the responsibilities.
Barack Obama urged leaders to “pool resources”, and vowed to stand united to complete the Afghan withdrawal.
A number of NATO leaders have arrived from Washington, where they attended G8 talks that focused on the euro crisis.
The G8 group of leading industrial nations promised to promote growth alongside fiscal responsibility and insisted on the need for Greece to stay in the eurozone.
US President Barack Obama said there was an “emerging consensus” that European countries must now focus on jobs and growth.
The statements represented a shift away from Germany’s pro-austerity stance.
More than 50 leaders are attending the NATO meeting in Chicago.
Among them are heads of state and government from the 28 NATO countries, as well as Afghan President Hamid Karzai and his Pakistani counterpart Asif Ali Zardari.
NATO leaders are meeting in Chicago in a summit dominated by the withdrawal from Afghanistan
As talks began President Obama spoke of a “transformational decade” in Afghanistan and the enormous sacrifices of the American people on the road to peace, stability and development.
The summit comes as several NATO leaders are under domestic pressure to withdraw troops from Afghanistan before 2014.
The new French President, Francois Hollande, has promised to pull out the country’s forces by the end of this year.
However, NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen said such moves were part of the plan.
“We are now in a process of gradually handing over lead responsibility for security to the Afghans and that process will be completed by the end of 2014 and during that process you will see withdrawal of troops, a shift from combat to support,” he said.
“It’s not a contradiction of our strategy, it’s a part of our strategy,” Anders Fogh Rasmussen added.
Some nations – including the US, Australia, Britain, and Germany – have made pledged to an international fund set to help Afghan forces after the NATO pullout.
The US is expected to pay half of an estimated $4 billion needed every year.
More than 10 years after the US toppled the Taliban regime, violence is continuing unabated in Afghanistan. According to UN figures, the number of deaths reached a record 3,031 in 2011 – the great majority caused by militants.
Earlier this month the Taliban announced the start of their annual spring offensive. On Saturday a suicide bomber killed at least 10 people, a number of them children, at a checkpoint in the eastern province of Khost.
The Obama administration is hoping that President Asif Ali Zardari of Pakistan will agree to reopen key NATO supply routes into Afghanistan, which were closed in November after US air strikes killed Pakistani troops.
Pakistan’s co-operation is regarded as key to the success of the international mission in Afghanistan, as 130,000 US-led troops fight a Taliban insurgency.
Also on the agenda at the NATO summit are plans for a US-led missile defense system for Europe, aimed at countering a possible threat from Iran.
The leaders are expected to announce the first phase of the scheme, with the deployment of US warships armed with interceptors in the Mediterranean and a radar system based in Turkey.
Russia has voiced strong opposition to the plan, saying it undermines the value of its nuclear deterrent.
The summit is taking place amid heavy security in Chicago.
Leaders from the Occupy movement have said they will join forces with anti-war demonstrators which have held protests ahead of the NATO meeting.
Thousands of protesters were expected to march in downtown Chicago today to the lakeside McCormick Place convention center where President Barack Obama and dozens of other world leaders will meet for the NATO summit.
Newlyweds Tim and Beth Alberts left the church in the city centre on Saturday after exchanging their vows and found themselves in the middle of a mass demonstration.
With her mouth open aghast at the sight of the anti-capitalist activists, a furious Beth Alberts was caught on video telling the wedding party: “Let’s get out of here.”
Newlyweds Tim and Beth Alberts left the church in the city centre on Saturday after exchanging their vows and found themselves in the middle of a mass demonstration
Both Chicago residents, Tim Alberts is a law clerk at Brady, Connolly & Masuda and Beth Alberts is a medical aesthetician at Cellular Intelligence Med Spa.
Hundreds of protestors paid little heed to the newlyweds on their march through the city. The anti-NATO protests were also aimed at Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s budget cuts.
There were high tensions and frequent clashes between protesters and police today as violence broke out in pockets around the city.
Police in riot gear surrounded the downtown areas of Grant Park and the Loop and also patrolled train stations.
Protesters began arriving at 6.30 a.m. at the park and set up under the trees to shade themselves from the sun.
Following the rally in the park, protesters planned to march to the convention center at McCormick Place. Around the NATO summit, concrete barriers have been set up along with black, anti-scale fencing. Some businesses and homes in the area have taken the precaution of boarding up their windows.
Chris Geovanis of the Chicago and New Media Collective told the thousands gathered in the park that police had interfere with the march and hurt some protesters, according to the Chicago Tribune.
The Reverend Jesse Jackson also appeared and said the protests must remain non-violent.
He said: “We learned from Dr. King in Birmingham. We march in a disciplined, non-violent way. We cannot afford to have our message hijacked by acts of provocation.”
There have been 18 arrested over the past week – not including the five people arrested on suspicion of two separate terrorist plots to use Molotov cocktails during the summit.
Scientists have identified thousands of sites in the Arctic where methane that has been trapped by ice for many millennia is bubbling into the atmosphere.
The methane has been trapped by ice, but is able to escape as the ice melts.
Writing in the journal Nature Geoscience, the researchers say this ancient gas could have a significant impact on climate change.
Methane is the second most important greenhouse gas after CO2 and levels are rising after a few years of stability.
There are many sources of the gas around the world, some natural and some man-made, such as landfill waste disposal sites and farm animals.
Scientists have identified thousands of sites in the Arctic where methane that has been trapped by ice for many millennia is bubbling into the atmosphere
Tracking methane to these various sources is not easy.
But the researchers on the new Arctic project, led by Katey Walter Anthony from the University of Alaska at Fairbanks (UAF), were able to identify long-stored gas by the ratio of different isotopes of carbon in the methane molecules.
Using aerial and ground-based surveys, the team identified about 150,000 methane seeps in Alaska and Greenland in lakes along the margins of ice cover.
Local sampling showed that some of these are releasing the ancient methane, perhaps from natural gas or coal deposits underneath the lakes, whereas others are emitting much younger gas, presumably formed through decay of plant material in the lakes.
“We observed most of these cryosphere-cap seeps in lakes along the boundaries of permafrost thaw and in moraines and fjords of retreating glaciers,” they write, emphasizing the point that warming in the Arctic is releasing this long-stored carbon.
“If this relationship holds true for other regions where sedimentary basins are at present capped by permafrost, glaciers and ice sheets, such as northern West Siberia, rich in natural gas and partially underlain by thin permafrost predicted to degrade substantially by 2100, a very strong increase in methane carbon cycling will result, with potential implications for climate warming feedbacks.”
Quantifying methane release across the Arctic is an active area of research, with several countries dispatching missions to monitor sites on land and sea.
The region stores vast quantities of the gas in different places – in and under permafrost on land, on and under the sea bed, and – as evidenced by the latest research – in geological reservoirs.
“The Arctic is the fastest warming region on the planet, and has many methane sources that will increase as the temperature rises,” commented Prof. Euan Nisbet from Royal Holloway, University of London, who is also involved in Arctic methane research.
“This is yet another serious concern: the warming will feed the warming.”
How serious and how immediate a threat this feedback mechanism presents is a controversial area, with some scientists believing that the impacts will not be seen for many decades, and others pointing out the possibility of a rapid release that could swiftly accelerate global warming.
The 6-magnitude earthquake that hit northern Italy this morning has killed at least six people and caused serious damage to buildings in several towns, local officials say.
The quake struck in the middle of the night, about 35 km (22 miles) north of the city of Bologna.
The tremor caused “significant damage to the cultural heritage” of Emilia Romagna region, the government said.
Later on Sunday, a magnitude-5.1 aftershock hit the region, causing more buildings to collapse.
The 6-magnitude earthquake that hit northern Italy this morning has killed at least six people and caused serious damage to buildings in several towns
The aftershock destroyed a clock tower and made a firefighter fall from a wall in the town of Finale Emilia, near the epicentre of the first tremor.
Sunday’s quake was the worst to hit the country since the L’Aquila tremor killed nearly 300 people in central Italy in 2009.
The earthquake struck at a relatively shallow depth of 10km just after 04:00 a.m. local time.
It was felt across a large swathe of northern Italy, including the cities of Bologna, Ferrara, Verona and Mantua and as far away as Milan and Venice.
The tremor forced many terrified residents into the streets.
Two people were killed in Sant’Agostino when a ceramics factory collapsed.
The mother of one of the victims told local media that “he wasn’t supposed to be there. He changed shifts with a friend”.
Another person – believed to be a Moroccan national – was killed in Ponte Rodoni do Bondeno.
In Tecopress di Dosso, one worker died when the roof of a foundry collapsed, Rai News24 reports.
Local media also say a woman died near Bologna, with reports suggesting that she may have had a heart attack. Another victim was an elderly woman in Sant-Agostino.
About 50 people were injured – but no-one seriously.
More than 3,000 people were later evacuated from their homes amid fears of fresh tremors.
One local resident told Ansa: “I heard a big bang and I ran on the terrace, I was afraid of falling.”
TV footage later showed people inspecting damaged houses, offices and historic buildings. Parts of a castle in Finale Emilia collapsed.
Emergency officials ordered the evacuation of patients from hospitals as a precautionary measure.
Northern Italy is frequently rocked by minor earthquakes, but the country is well-prepared to deal with them.
In January, a magnitude-5.3 quake hit northern Italy but caused no injuries.
Peter Jones, the former drummer of Australian rock band Crowded House, has died at the age of 45.
According to newspaper reports, the Liverpool-born musician, a former schoolteacher, had been suffering from brain cancer.
A statement published on the Antipodean band’s website read: “We are in mourning today for the death of Pete Jones.
“We remember him as a warm-hearted, funny and talented man, who was a valuable member of Crowded House. He played with style and spirit.”
Peter Jones, the former drummer of Australian rock band Crowded House, has died at the age of 45
It continued: “We salute him and send our love and best thoughts to his family and friends.”
Peter Jones replaced the band’s previous drummer, Paul Hester, in 1994.
Paul Hester killed himself after suffering from depression in 2005.
Crowded House, led by New Zealander frontman Neil Finn, were formed in 1985 and went on to have worldwide success with hits such as Weather With You and Don’t Dream Its Over.
They split up in 1996 but reformed in 2007, when former Beck drummer Matt Sherrod took Peter Jones’s place behind the drums.
