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Hifikepunye Pohamba wins $5 million Mo Ibrahim Prize for African leadership

Diane A. Wade
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Hifikepunye Pohamba wins $5 million Mo Ibrahim Prize for African leadership

Namibia’s President Hifikepunye Pohamba has won the 2014 Mo Ibrahim prize for African leadership.

The Mo Ibrahim prize is the world’s most valuable individual award.

The $5 million award is given each year to an elected leader who governed well, raised living standards and then left office.

The previous award was the fourth in five years to have gone unclaimed.

The outgoing president, a former rebel who fought for Namibia’s independence, has served two terms as the country’s leader.

Hifikepunye Pohamba, now 79, was first elected in 2004, and again in 2009. He is due to be succeeded by President-elect, Hage Geingob.Hifikepunye Pohamba wins $5 million Mo Ibrahim Prize

He was a founding member of the South West Africa People’s Organization (SWAPO), an armed movement that waged a decades-long campaign against South African rule.

Since Namibia won independence in 1990, SWAPO has dominated politics, usually winning huge majorities in elections.

Hifikepunye Pohamba was named recipient of the 2014 Mo Ibrahim Prize for Achievement in African Leadership at a ceremony in Nairobi, Kenya.

Mo Ibrahim is a British-Sudanese mobile communications entrepreneur and philanthropist who made billions from investing in Africa.

He launched the prize to encourage African leaders to leave power peacefully.

The inaugural prize was awarded in 2007 to Joaquim Chissano, Mozambique’s former president, who has since acted as a mediator in several African disputes.

The $5 million prize is spread over 10 years and is followed by $200,000 a year for life.

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MWC 2015: IKEA launches wireless charging furniture Home Smart

Nancy Clayson
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MWC 2015: IKEA launches wireless charging furniture Home Smart

IKEA has unveiled a range of furniture fitted with wireless charging spots for mobile devices at this year’s Mobile World Congress (MWC).

The Home Smart range will initially include lamps, bedside tables and a coffee table as well as individual charging pads for any surface.

IKEA has used the wireless charging standard QI, which is also supported by Samsung in its latest handset, Galaxy S6.

Environmental group Friends of the Earth urged caution over the recyclability of such products.

The Swedish furniture giant will sell charging covers for incompatible iPhone and Samsung models.

There are currently more than 80 QI-compatible handsets and 15 QI-enabled cars on the market according to QI’s backers the Wireless Power Consortium, an industry body whose members includes Belkin, Motorola, Panasonic and Sony.

Photo IKEA
Photo IKEA

However, it is not the only charging standard in development.

Samsung Galaxy S6 will also be compatible with PMA, a rival wireless charger solution provided by the Power Matters Alliance, whose members include Starbucks, Duracell Powermat, Huawei and Lenovo.

At the Consumer Electronics Show in January a company called Energous demonstrated WattUp, a non-inductive system which it claims can charge gadgets that lie in a 30ft radius around the charger.

Environmentalists said they hoped recycling was a priority for designers incorporating wireless charging equipment into their work.

IKEA said in a statement that its wireless charging products are “easy to fraction at end of life”.

“By adding wireless charging to home and office furniture, we minimize the amount of separate chargers needed,” it added.

The IKEA range will go on sale in the US in April 2015, the company said.

Bill Gates tops Forbes’ Richest People In The World List for second year

Clyde K. Valle
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Bill Gates tops Forbes’ Richest People In The World List for second year

Bill Gates has topped Forbes magazine’s list of Richest People In The World for the second year.

The Microsoft founder once again beat Mexican businessman Carlos Slim to the top spot.

Bill Gates’ net worth rose by just over $3 billion in the year to February 13, to $79 billion.

There are a record 1,826 billionaires in the world, Forbes magazine said, an increase of 181 in the past 12 months.

Bill Gates has now been top of the list for 16 of the last 21 years, Forbes added.

Warren Buffett regained third place in the list with a net worth of $72.7 billion, from Amancio Ortega, the founder of Spanish fashion chain Zara.Bill Gates tops Forbes' Richest People In The World List for second year

The funds required to make it into the top 20 in the list have fallen by $2 billion to $29 billion this year.

The founders and chief executives of US technology firms dominated the list again, accounting for six of the top 20 richest men in the world.

The first woman on the rich list is Christy Walton, the widow of John Walton, one of the heirs to the Wal-Mart retail empire.

She has been declared the richest woman in the world for five of the last six years by Forbes.

Mark Zuckerberg moves up five places in the rankings to number 16, with a net worth of $33.4 billion. This is the first time he has been included in the list if the world’s 20 richest people.

The youngest billionaire in the world is 24 year-old Evan Spiegel, the co-founder of messaging app Snapchat, with a fortune of $1.5 billion.

Silicon Valley has produced 23 new billionaires this year including co-founders of car-hailing service Uber, Travis Kalanick and Garrett Camp, and their first employee, Ryan Graves.

Elizabeth Holmes, the founder of blood-testing firm Theranos, has debuted on the global list as the youngest self-made woman at age 31, with a fortune of $4.5 billion.

The US also dominates the top 20 with 15 of the world’s richest people coming from America.

This list includes 290 newcomers, 71 of whom come from China. There is also a new record of 46 billionaires under the age of 40.

One 138 people from 2014 list dropped out of the ranks altogether. Most notable of these is current Ukrainian President and former “chocolate king” Petro Poroshenko.

Meanwhile, Guatemala has a billionaire for the first time in Mario Lopez Estrada, who owns Comcel, which has about half of the mobile phone market in the country. He ranks as 1741 on the list.

  1. Bill Gates
    Net Worth: $79.2 billion
    Source of wealth: Microsoft
    Carlos Slim Helu & family
    Net Worth: $77.1 billion
    Source of wealth: telecom
    3. Warren Buffett
    Net Worth: $72.7 billion
    Source of wealth: Berkshire Hathaway
    4. Amancio Ortega
    Net Worth: $64.5 billion
    Source of wealth: Zara
    5. Larry Ellison
    Net Worth: $54.3 billion
    Source of wealth: Oracle
    6. Charles Koch
    Net Worth: $42.9 billion
    Source of wealth: diversified
    6. David Koch
    Net Worth: $42.9 billion
    Source of wealth: diversified
    8. Christy Walton & family
    Net Worth: $41.7 billion
    Source of wealth: Wal-Mart
    9. Jim Walton
    Net Worth: $40.6 billion
    Source of wealth: Wal-Mart
    10. Liliane Bettencourt & family
    Net Worth: $40.1 billion
    Source of wealth: L’Oreal

Source Forbes magazine

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Yasar Kemal dies in Istanbul aged 91

Sonia Pantiss
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Yasar Kemal dies in Istanbul aged 91

Turkish literary icon Yasar Kemal has died on February 28 in an Istanbul hospital following respiratory and organ failure at the age of 91.

Yasar Kemal, born Kemal Sadik Gokceli, was Turkey’s first Nobel Prize for literature nominee and his work has been published in numerous languages.

Doctors said the author’s health deteriorated rapidly over the past week.

Yasar Kemal – an ethnic Kurd born in Osmaniye province, south-eastern Turkey – published his first book, Ballads, in 1943. His first short stories followed in 1950.

He won international fame for his first novel, Memed, My Hawk, published in 1955.Yasar Kemal dead at 91

The novel became a worldwide success and was published in 40 languages.

Nine of Yasar Kemal’s novels were made into films, and he is credited for re-establishing Turkish as a literary language.

Turkish PM Ahmet Davutoglu said in a statement he was feeling “sorrow… at the loss of the great writer and artist”.

The prime minister singled out Yasar Kemal’s ability to “maintain his dissident attitude and express the truth without holding back at times when speaking the truth was hard”.

Yasar Kemal, who lived in Sweden for two years in the 1970s, won numerous prizes, including the Cino del Duca World Prize in 1982 and the Legion d’Honneur in 1984.

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Will Smith’s Focus tops North American box office with $19 million

Sonia Pantiss
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Will Smith’s Focus tops North American box office with $19 million

Will Smith’s movie Focus has debuted at No 1 on the North American box office chart, knocking Fifty Shades of Grey off the top spot.

However, it was a relatively modest opening for Will Smith, with Focus earning an estimated $19.1 million between February 28 and March 1.

Fifty Shades of Grey fell to fourth with $10.9 million after spending two weeks at number one.

In second place was Colin Firth’s spy thriller Kingsman: The Secret Service.

Kingsman: The Secret Service took $11.8 million over the weekend, just ahead of The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge Out of Water, which made $11.2 million in its fourth week of release.Will Smith movie Focus

The second highest new entry, horror film The Lazarus Effect, rounded out the top five, taking $10.6 million.

Focus gives Will Smith his first major role since 2013’s After Earth, the Sci-Fi flop that also starred his teenage son Jaden, and went on to win three Razzie awards.

The movie is about a conman who introduces his young lover to the tricks of the trade before breaking off their relationship. Three years later, they meet again in Argentina, where they are both trying to scam the same billionaire.

Some commentators have concluded that Will Smith’s box office pulling power is on the wane given the relatively low takings for a No 1 movie.

However, Warner Bros said Focus, which was made for about $50 million, was only predicted to take about $21 million in its opening weekend.

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North Korea fires two short-range missiles as US-South Korea annual drills begin

Roy Siemens
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North Korea fires two short-range missiles as US-South Korea annual drills begin

The North Korean army fired two short-range missiles into the sea as annual US-South Korea drills got under way, officials in Seoul say.

The two missiles, with a range of 305 miles, were fired from the western city of Nampo into the sea east of the Korean peninsula, the South Korean military said.

The drills, involving tens of thousands of troops, always anger Pyongyang.

It traditionally shows its displeasure with missile tests and louder rhetoric.

Seoul and Washington describe the military exercises as defensive in nature. North Korea calls them a rehearsal for invasion.

Key Resolve, a largely computer-simulated exercise, lasts 12 days and Foal Eagle, which has ground, air and sea components, lasts eight weeks.North Korea missile launch 2015

In a statement, South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said the missiles, fired on March 2, were probably Scud Cs or Scud Ds.

The military remained “vigilant against any additional launches”, it said.

South Korea’s Defense Minister Kim Min-seok vowed a stern response to any provocation.

“If North Korea takes provocative actions, our military will react firmly and strongly so North Korea will regret it in its bones,” he was quoted as saying by Reuters.

Earlier in the day the North Korean military condemned the joint exercises as “undisguised encroachment” on national sovereignty.

Aggression should be dealt with by “merciless strikes”, it said in a statement carried by KCNA news agency.

In 2013 the joint exercises led to a prolonged surge in tensions, with North Korea threatening pre-emptive nuclear strikes and cutting a military hotline with the South.

Drills in 2014 passed off relatively quietly, however.

In January 2015, North Korea said it would offer a moratorium on nuclear testing if the joint exercises were cancelled. The US rejected this suggestion as an “implicit threat”.

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LAPD shooting: Police officers shoot homeless man dead in Skid Row

Nancy Clayson
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LAPD shooting: Police officers shoot homeless man dead in Skid Row

A video has captured the moment LAPD officers shot and killed a homeless man during an altercation at a homeless camp in central Los Angeles.

The footage shows a violent struggle between the man and several officers in the city’s Skid Row area.

Police say that three officers opened fire after the man tried to grab a gun from an officer.

The dead man, known on the street as Africa, had been homeless after treatment for mental illness.

Skid Row has a large homeless population.LAPD shooting Africa homeless

The LAPD said officers had been responding to reports of a robbery and had attempted to use a Taser to subdue the suspect but he had “continued fighting and resisting”.

No other gun was recovered at the scene, LA police commander Andrew Smith said.

Last year, highly publicized killings of black men sparked weeks of protests in the US.

Hours after the latest shooting, the hash tag #LAPDShooting was trending on Twitter in the LA area.

“As if the homeless aren’t victims enough due to economic violence/marginalization, we have cops to shoot them point blank. Ugh,” wrote one tweeter.

Andrew Smith added that at least one of the police officers had been wearing a body camera.

According to an ABC News report, the three officers have placed on leave pending the outcome of an investigation into the shooting.

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Ukraine war: John Kerry to meet Sergei Lavrov in Geneva

Diane A. Wade
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Ukraine war: John Kerry to meet Sergei Lavrov in Geneva

Secretary of State John Kerry is meeting Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov for the first time since he accused Russia of lying about its role in Ukraine’s war.

The talks in Geneva coincide with a UN report on human rights violations and the humanitarian crisis in east Ukraine.

The UN says the conflict has claimed at least 6,000 lives, with hundreds killed in the past few weeks alone.

A fragile ceasefire is holding despite some fighting in recent days.

At his meeting in Geneva, John Kerry is also expected to raise the brutal murder of Russian opposition politician Boris Nemtsov in Moscow on February 27.

Boris Nemtsov, who was shot on a bridge near the Kremlin, had been planning an anti-war rally and was said to be working on a report to expose the presence of Russian troops in Ukraine.

His allies accused the Kremlin of involvement but Russian President Vladimir Putin condemned the murder as “vile” and vowed to find the killers.John Kerry to meet Sergei Lavrov in Geneva

John Kerry will press for an investigation that he said should examine not only who pulled the trigger, but who ordered, funded and co-ordinated Boris Nemtsov’s murder.

Separately, John Kerry is also expected to renew negotiations with Iran’s Foreign Minister, Mohammad Javad Zarif, on Tehran’s nuclear program.

There is an end of March deadline to reach agreement on limiting the program, in return for an easing of economic sanctions on Iran.

The talks on Ukraine are expected to be tense after John Kerry last week accused Russian officials of lying to him about Moscow’s support for rebels in eastern Ukraine.

During a visit to London on February 21, John Kerry accused the Kremlin of “craven behavior” in its support for the rebels in east Ukraine, undermining a ceasefire.

Fighting began in Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk and Luhansk regions last April, a month after Russia annexed the Crimea peninsula.

The UN estimates that at least 1.25 million have fled their homes, and believes that the real number of fatalities could be considerably higher than the 6,000 it has given.

In its latest report, released on March 2, it refers to credible accounts of heavy weapons and foreign fighters continuing to flow into eastern Ukraine from Russia.

The Ukrainian government, Western leaders and NATO say there is clear evidence that Russia is helping the rebels with heavy weapons and soldiers.

Independent experts echo that accusation but Moscow denies it, insisting that any Russians serving with the rebels are “volunteers”.

Both sides in the conflict have been pulling back some heavy weaponry from the front line – one of the conditions of the ceasefire agreement signed in the Belarusian capital Minsk last month.

Monitors from the OSCE security group have reported weapons movements on both sides but say it is too early to confirm a full withdrawal. Meanwhile violence continued over the weekend.

Estonia elections 2015: Taavi Roivas’ ruling party wins parliamentary election

Diane A. Wade
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Estonia elections 2015: Taavi Roivas’ ruling party wins parliamentary election

Taavi Roivas’ ruling Reform Party won Estonia’s general elections overshadowed by security concerns sparked by Russia’s role in Ukraine.

PM Taavi Roivas, whose party has 30 seats, is set to form a coalition in the 101-member parliament.

The results are a blow to the Centre Party, which has ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin, who were expected to do well in the poll.

Estonia was once part of the former Soviet Union but is now a NATO member.

“The Reform Party is the 2015 winner of the parliamentary elections,” Taavi Roivas declared on the ETV public television station.

Taavi Roivas’ party claimed 27.7% with most of the votes counted, down from 28.6% at the last parliamentary elections in 2011.Taavi Roivas party wins Estonia elections 2015

The pro-Russian Centre Party took 24.8% of the votes, winning one more seat to take them to 27 in total.

The Social Democrats, who have been Reform’s coalition partner, now hold 15 seats after losing four while the IRL party lost 9 seats to take them to 14.

Analysts said Reform Party could face some difficulty in forming a new coalition, with parliament now split between six parties rather than the previous four.

The two newcomers – a free-market liberal party and an anti-immigration conservative party – won 15 seats between them.

Asked whether he would contemplate forming a coalition with the Centre Party, Taavi Roivas said “definitely not”.

In the run up to the election, Taavi Roivas had called for an “Estonian-minded government”. At 35, he is the youngest prime minister in Europe.

Estonia’s political debate has been dominated by economic issues and fears over defense due to Russia’s actions in Ukraine.

One voter in the capital, Tallinn, told the AFP news agency: “If [the Russians] come in here, Estonia can’t do anything.”

“I’m not sure NATO will help us out, Let’s hope that it will not go that far,” he added.

Estonia has seen a number of airspace violations by Russia, and last year a security official was detained by Russia and accused of spying.

Taavi Roivas has voiced concerns that Russia could seek to destabilize other former Soviet states following the conflict in Ukraine.

The Centre Party leader, Edgar Saavisar, favors a friendlier approach to Moscow, and has previously suggested that Russia’s annexation of Crimea could be legitimate.

About a quarter of Estonia’s 1.3 million population are ethnic Russians, many of whom are Centre Party supporters.

Estonia is a pioneer of electronic voting, with a reported one in five casting their vote online.

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MWC 2015: Samsung unveils Galaxy S6 Edge with curved screen

Nancy Clayson
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MWC 2015: Samsung unveils Galaxy S6 Edge with curved screen

Samsung has unveiled two versions of its next flagship phone Galaxy S6, one of which has a screen that curves round its sides.

The Galaxy S6 Edge uses the feature to provide a quick way to stay in touch with select contacts, and to alert owners to important information.

It will be sold for a higher price than the standard S6, which otherwise has the same specifications.

Samsung lost market share to Apple and others after the S5 sold fewer copies than its predecessor in many countries.

Its replacements were unveiled in Barcelona, ahead of the start of Mobile World Congress.The MWC will take place from March 2 to 5.

The new phones will go on sale on April 10 in 20 countries.

Samsung said it had set out to address past “missteps”, and had codenamed the devices “project zero” to reflect the need for a rethink.

Changes include making the TouchWiz user interface simpler to use by cutting the number of pop-up messages and introducing a metal frame and glass back instead of the plastic styling of earlier models.

The redesign has, however, meant some features have had to be jettisoned: the phones are not water-resistant, they do not have a microSD slot for extra storage and their backs cannot be removed to change their batteries.Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge curved screen

The three topics Samsung is focusing on are:

  • Revamped designs, including the premium model’s curved screen
  • Camera upgrades
  • In-built support for wireless charging, with support for two rival standards

The S6 Edge uses its curves to provide a couple of services.

The first is called People Edge, which provides a quick way to bring up calls, texts and other messages from five acquaintances of the owner’s choosing. Each person is assigned a different color, which the phone’s edge flashes when it rings, providing a hint of the caller’s identity even if the device is face down.

The second is Information Stream, which displays the time, weather and selected notifications on the curved part.

It appears Samsung has deliberately kept the functionality more basic than on its Galaxy Note Edge – a larger handset whose screen curves only around one of its sides. The older phone uses the extra space to both run apps of its own and to add controls to other apps.

The S6 phone’s front camera has been upgraded to five megapixels, while the rear one stays at 16MP.

Both gain from a wider aperture, which should improve their ability to take photos and videos in low light conditions.

Samsung has also taken steps to make the camera quicker to use, saying it now takes less than a second to double tap the home key and snap a shot.

The South Korean company is claiming a “world first” by embedding support for both the PMA and WPC’s Qi wireless charging standards.

The Android-powered handsets are also faster to recharge, and should return to 50% battery strength within half an hour of being plugged in.

Samsung said that this was half the time it would take to charge an iPhone 6.

Other improvements over the S5 include:

  • Increased screen resolution – now 577 pixels per inch – and the ability to go 20% brighter
  • A new 14 nanometre processor designed by Samsung, rather than bought from Qualcomm, that should be more energy efficient
  • The addition of Samsung Pay, a smart wallet service that allows the handsets to act as a credit or debit card when tapped against a shop’s NFC chip reader or used to transmit magnetic stripe data. It will initially be limited to the US and South Korea

Samsung also revealed it had developed a new version of its Gear VR virtual reality kit that uses the S6 models as a screen.

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ISIS releases 19 Assyrian Christians kidnapped in Syria

Roy Siemens
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ISIS releases 19 Assyrian Christians kidnapped in Syria

ISIS has released 19 of an estimated 220 members of an Assyrian Christian community kidnapped in north-eastern Syria, activists say.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitoring group said an Assyrian commander had told it of the releases.

Some reports say the releases were made in exchange for a sum of money.

The kidnappings took place shortly before dawn on February 23, when ISIS militants swept into about 12 villages.

Men, women and children from the villages, located on the southern bank of the Khabur River, near the town of Tal Tamr, were taken captive.

Correspondents say that news of the releases will provide some comfort to the Christian Assyrian community – which has been devastated by the abductions – even though there is concern for those still being held.ISIS abducts Assyrian Christians in Syria

Assyrian Christian officials said that the 16 men and three women who were released arrived safely on February 28 at the Church of the Virgin Mary in the city of Hassakeh.

The nineteen – all from the village of Tal Ghoran – had been transported by bus from the IS-held town of Shaddadeh, which is south of Hassakeh.

Some reports say that all those freed were about 50 or older, indicating that age might be a factor.

The Assyrian Human Rights Network said the captives gained their freedom after a Sharia court ordered them to pay an unspecified amount of money levied as a tax on non-Muslims.

Assyrian leaders and Sunni tribal sheikhs are trying to negotiate with ISIS to secure the release of the remaining captives, activists said.

It is estimated that up to 40,000 Assyrians lived in Syria – alongside the overall Christian population of 1.2 million – before the country’s civil war broke out in 2011.

The Assyrians, one of the world’s oldest Christian communities, have been under increasing pressure since ISIS captured large parts of Syria.

Some 1,000 local Assyrian families are believed to have fled their homes in the wake of the abductions.

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Eurovision 2015: Learning disabled punk band PKN to represent Finland

Sonia Pantiss
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Eurovision 2015: Learning disabled punk band PKN to represent Finland

PKN, a Finnish punk band made up of musicians with learning disabilities, is to represent Finland at this year’s Eurovision Song Contest.

The quartet was chosen by Finnish viewers on February 28 and has now been ranked by bookmakers as among the favorites for the contest.

PKN, whose members have Down’s syndrome and autism, will perform their 85-second song Aina Mun Pitaa (I Always Have To) at the event in Vienna in May.

“Every person with a disability ought to be braver,” singer Kari Aalto said.

“He or she should themselves say what they want and do not want,” he told Finnish broadcaster YLE.PKN Finland Eurovision 2015

PKN – full name Pertti Kurikan Nimipaivat (Pertti Kurikka’s Nameday) – will also become the first punk band to compete at Eurovision.

They first got together during a charity workshop and appeared in an award-winning 2012 documentary called The Punk Syndrome.

The song deals with the frustration of the rules of daily life, like having to eat healthily and doing chores like cleaning and washing up.

“We are rebelling against society in different ways, but we are not political,” bassist Sami Helle told The Guardian.

“We are changing attitudes somewhat, a lot of people are coming to our gigs and we have a lot of fans.

“We don’t want people to vote for us to feel sorry for us, we are not that different from everybody else – just normal guys with a mental handicap.”

PKN is 5/1 to win the contest, according to Betfred, making them third favorites behind Italy and Estonia.

Heavy metal band Lordi gave Finland its only Eurovision win to date with Hard Rock Hallelujah in 2006.

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Boris Nemtsov murder: Thousands of mourners to march in Moscow

Diane A. Wade
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Boris Nemtsov murder: Thousands of mourners to march in Moscow

Tens of thousands of people are set to march in Moscow to honor opposition leader Boris Nemtsov, who was shot dead on February 27.

Boris Nemtsov was due to lead an opposition march on March 1 but his supporters will now be marching to mourn his death.

President Vladimir Putin condemned Boris Nemtsov’s murder as “vile and cynical” and vowed to find the killers.

Boris Nemtsov’s allies call it a political killing linked to his opposition to Vladimir Putin and the Ukraine conflict.

Opposition supporters are due to gather in central Moscow at 14:00 local time on March 1, before marching to the spot on Great Moskvoretsky Bridge where Boris Nemtsov was killed.

Moscow city authorities had previously approved a march for up to 50,000 people but organizers said more people might now attend following the murder.

Photo Reuters
Photo Reuters

As night fell on February 28, flowers were piled up a meter high and two meters wide on the bridge.

Placards read: “We are all Nemtsov” and “Je Suis Boris” – the latter a reference to the Je Suis Charlie messages of support following the Charlie Hebdo killings in Paris in January.

Russia’s Investigative Committee said it was looking into a number of possible motives, including Boris Nemtsov’s opposition to the Ukraine war, his political and personal life, Islamic extremism or an attempt to destabilize the state.

A number of pro-government figures suggested Boris Nemtsov had been made a sacrificial victim to show the state in a bad light.

Ramzan Kadyrov, the Putin-backed leader of Chechnya, blamed: “Western special services, trying by any means to create internal conflict in Russia.”

Presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Vladimir Putin had noted “that this cruel murder has all the makings of a contract hit and is extremely provocative”.

Others suggested there could have been personal enmity over Boris Nemtsov’s private or business life.

Boris Nemtsov was reportedly preparing documents on Russian military involvement in Ukraine in the weeks before his death.

Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko said: “Boris had declared he would provide clear evidence of Russian armed forces’ participation in [the war] in Ukraine. Somebody was afraid of this… They killed him.”

Boris Nemtsov, 55, had been dining at a restaurant with his girlfriend Anna Duritskaya on Friday night.

They left together to walk to his flat, crossing the bridge, where a white car drew up and Boris Nemtsov was shot four times with a pistol at around 23:40.

Footage on Russian TV showed a white Lada Priora car in the area but there was no confirmation it was the one involved. One shot showed someone running along the road and jumping into the waiting car, which sped off.

Boris Nemtsov served as first deputy prime minister under President Boris Yeltsin in the 1990s but fell out of favor with Vladimir Putin and became an outspoken opponent.

He told the weekly Sobesednik recently that his mother was worried about him.

“She is more worried about Putin than Ukraine. Every time I call her, she gives me a talking-to: <<When will you stop being rude about Putin? He’ll kill you>>.”

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Estonia elections 2015: Vote begins amid Russia fears

Diane A. Wade
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Estonia elections 2015: Vote begins amid Russia fears

Estonia is voting in a general election overshadowed by security concerns sparked by Russia’s involvement in Ukraine.

The Centre Party, which has ties to Russian president Vladimir Putin, is expected to do well.

However, the Centre Party is seen as a pariah by other parties, who are likely to band together to renew the current governing coalition.

Estonia was once part of the former Soviet Union but is now a NATO member.

PM Taavi Roivas has voiced concerns that Russia could seek to destabilize other former Soviet states.

Photo Reuters
Photo Reuters

He has called for an “Estonian-minded government”.

At 35, Taavi Roivas is the youngest prime minister in Europe.

Estonia has seen a number of airspace violations by Russia, and last year a security official was detained by Russia and accused of spying.

The Centre Party leader, Edgar Saavisar, favours a friendlier approach to Moscow, and has suggested that Russia’s annexation of Crimea could be legitimate.

About a quarter of Estonia’s 1.3 million population are ethnic Russians, many of whom are Centre Party supporters.

Estonia is a pioneer of electronic voting, with a reported one in five casting their vote online.

Voting is due to end at 20:00 local time.

Victor Arden Barnard: US sect leader held in Brazil

Diane A. Wade
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Victor Arden Barnard: US sect leader held in Brazil

American self-professed minister Victor Arden Barnard, who was put on a US most-wanted list for allegedly molesting two girls in a “Maidens Group” at his religious fellowship in rural Minnesota, has been arrested in Brazil on February 28.

A statement posted on the website of the Public Security Secretariat for the Rio Grande do Norte state government reported the arrest of 53-year-old Victor Arden Barnard.

The US Marshals Service also confirmed the arrest in a statement.

The Brazilian statement said police captured Victor Arden Barnard in an apartment near a paradisiacal white-sand beach in northeastern Brazil. He was being held in the city of Natal to await extradition.

According to a criminal complaint in the US, two women said they were among about 10 girls and young women who lived apart from their families in a camp that Victor Arden Barnard set up near Finlayson, Minnesota, about 90 miles north of Minneapolis.Victor Arden Barnard US sect leader held in Brazil

One woman alleged Victor Arden Barnard abused her beginning at age 13 and continuing until she was 22. The other said her abuse occurred between ages 12 and 20.

Victor Arden Barnard allegedly kept the girls isolated, and US authorities have said he used religious coercion and intimidation to maintain his control over them, calling it cult-like behavior.

Investigators believe Victor Arden Barnard abused other girls but have been unable to get others to come forward. Most of the criminal counts against him carry maximum sentences of 30 years in prison.

Brazilian authorities said Victor Arden Barnard had been living for at least six months at the apartment where he was arrested near Praia da Pipa beach, about 1,300 miles from Rio de Janeiro.

Taken into custody with him was a 33-year-old Brazilian woman. Police also confiscated computers, cellphones, pen drives and other objects.

Police inspector Paulo Henrique Oliveira told the news portal G1, the website of Brazil’s biggest TV network, that Victor Arden Barnard entered the country legally in 2012.

Valentina Maureira: Chilean girl asks President Michelle Bachelet to be allowed to die

Kathryn R. Bown
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Valentina Maureira: Chilean girl asks President Michelle Bachelet to be allowed to die

In a video posted online, Valentina Maureira, a 14-year-old Chilean girl, is asking President Michelle Bachelet to allow her to die.

The video has been viewed by thousands of people since the girl posted it.

Valentina Maureira suffers from cystic fibrosis, an incurable genetic disorder that attacks the lungs and other organs.

President Michelle Bachelet responded by visiting Valentina in hospital.

Her spokesman said Valentina Maureira could not be granted her wish but the government would pay for psychiatric treatment.Valentina Maureira President Michelle Bachelet

Valentina Maureira’s message has been viewed thousands of times on social networks, fuelling the debate in Chile over euthanasia, which is forbidden by law.

“I asked to speak urgently with the president, because I am tired of living with this disease,” the girl said.

She also said she had an older brother who died of the same illness when he was six years old so she knew what would happen to her.

Valentina Maureira’s father Fredy is supporting his daughter’s demand.

“This is so tough, but I have to respect her decision because she’s the one who’s suffering this illness,” AP quoted Fredy Maureira as saying.

Cystic fibrosis attacks the lungs and makes it difficult to breathe, among other symptoms.

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Ebola outbreak 2015: Sierra Leone VP Samuel Sam-Sumana in quarantine

Kathryn R. Bown
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Ebola outbreak 2015: Sierra Leone VP Samuel Sam-Sumana in quarantine

Sierra Leone Vice-President Samuel Sam-Sumana has put himself into quarantine after one of his bodyguards died from Ebola.

Samuel Sam-Sumana said he would stay out of contact with others for 21 days as a precaution.

There was optimism the Ebola virus was on the decline in Sierra Leone at the end of 2014 but there has been a recent increase in confirmed cases.

Nearly 10,000 people have died in the outbreak, the vast majority in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone.

Samuel Sam-Sumana said on February 28 that he had chosen to be quarantined to “lead by example” after the death of his bodyguard, John Koroma, last week.

He told Reuters that he was “very well” and showing no signs of the illness, but said he did not want to “take chances”.

The vice-president’s staff has also been placed under observation.Sierra Leone VP Samuel Sam Sumana Ebola quarantine

Samuel Sam-Sumana is Sierra Leone’s first senior government figure to subject himself to a voluntary quarantine.

Officials in Sierra Leone, Guinea and Liberia have pledged to achieve zero Ebola infections within the next two months.

But authorities in Sierra Leone have reinstated some restrictions in the country after a recent spate of news cases.

Of 99 cases recorded in the region in the week beginning February 16, 63 were in Sierra Leone, according to the World Health Organization.

The government in the capital, Freetown, said it was gravely concerned about the new cases.

It said many of them had been connected with maritime activities and checks on ferries and other vessels had been increased in response.

President Ernest Bai Koroma has also ordered public transport operators to reduce capacity by 25% to limit physical contact between passengers.

In all, more than 23,500 cases have been reported in Sierra Leone, Liberia and Guinea since the world’s worst outbreak began in December 2013.

Honey Boo Boo is obese, say The Doctors specialists

Lisa.Felice
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Honey Boo Boo is obese, say The Doctors specialists

Nine-year-old Honey Boo Boo is obese, The Doctors specialists said during a recent appearance of the little reality star in the show.

During the show, the two doctors confronted Mama June about Alana Thompson’s terrible eating habits.

Alana Thompson started her young career in beauty pageants on Toddlers and Tiaras.

Then she moved on to Here Comes Honey Boo Boo fame, where we all learned that she loves not-so-great-for-you treats such as fried Oreos.

“My favorite food? Chicken nuggets, I would have to say,” Honey Boo Boo told Travis Stork, host of The Doctors who stages an “intervention” on the show.

“I like corn dogs.”

Honey Boo Boo also likes “KFC”.Honey Boo Boo The Doctors

But the focus of the show is to give her mother, June Shannon, a wake-up call, a reality check and to try to turn around Honey Boo Boo’s lifestyle.

“I do worry about her health,” said Mama June.

The doctors – Travis Stork and Jennifer Ashton – reveal that Honey Boo Boo’s height and weight (4-foot-6 and 125 pounds) is not good, especially for a 9-year-old.

“She is obese,” said Jennifer Ashton.

Mama June says that a lot of the weight is due to steroids Honey Boo Boo takes for her asthma.

“You’re trying to make a lot of excuses,” said Travis Stork, but he added that her diet of fried, salty and sugary foods is contributing to her health problems, including asthma, which is inflammation of the airways.

After checking out their home fridge, Travis Stork said: “June, I”m sorry, but I didn’t see anything in that fridge that’s either going to improve Alana’s weight or decrease inflammation in her body. And, I’m going to be honest, you need to take some responsibility here. … I want to see a bit of a light bulb, where you say, <<Maybe I can do better, maybe even a heck of a lot better>>.”

June Shannon didn’t like hearing her grocery shopping choices were the culprits and instead blamed Honey Boo Boo’s weight on asthma medication. But the doctor knows best, and he followed up with: “It’s not her steroids that are causing her to be obese. It’s the foods she’s eating.”

The two take a taste test of healthier foods and realize that maybe they can learn to love pizza made with cauliflower crust and oven-fried chicken made with rolled oats.

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Venezuela to limit American diplomatic staff in the country

Diane A. Wade
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Venezuela to limit American diplomatic staff in the country

Venezuela will limit the number of US diplomats working in the country, President Nicolas Maduro has announced.

Nicolas Maduro said he wanted a review and reduction of American diplomatic staff.

American citizens visiting Venezuela would also need visas and there would be a list of politicians who would be banned from entry.

Nicolas Maduro said US meddling had forced him to adopt the new measures.

The president said that the US government had 100 employees working in Venezuela whereas Venezuela had 17 based in the US.

Nicolas Maduro said Venezuela would be charging Americans the same rates for visa as those levied on Venezuelans wishing to visit the United States.Nicolas Maduro imposes visas for Americans

A list of banned politicians would include George W. Bush, Dick Cheney, Bob Menendez and Marco Rubio.

Nicolas Maduro said these were all men who had violated human rights and encouraged terrorism, particularly in Iraq and Syria.

Earlier this month the US imposed visa restrictions on unnamed Venezuelan officials it accused of human rights violations and corruption.

The move builds on sanctions imposed last year on Venezuelan officials alleged to have violated the rights of protesters during demonstrations that shook the country in the first six months of 2014.

The list of officials banned from entering the US was extended to include family members.

Earlier this month President Nicolas Maduro accused the US of working with opposition groups to stage what he said was a coup that involved bombing the presidential palace.

Washington rejected the accusations as ludicrous.

Venezuela and the US have not exchanged ambassadors for the last five years.

Boris Nemtsov murder: Vladimir Putin vows to bring killers to justice

Diane A. Wade
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Boris Nemtsov murder: Vladimir Putin vows to bring killers to justice

Vladimir Putin has said he will do everything possible to bring to justice those who committed the “vile and cynical” murder of Russian opposition leader Boris Nemtsov.

In a telegram to Boris Nemtsov’s mother, published on the Kremlin’s website, the Russian president offered condolences and praised Nemtsov’s openness and honesty.

Boris Nemtsov, 55, was shot four times in the back on a bridge near the Kremlin.

Western leaders demanded a transparent investigation into the killing.

In the telegram to Boris Nemtsov’s 86-year-old mother, Dina Eydman, Vladimir Putin said: “We will do everything to ensure that the perpetrators of this vile and cynical crime and those who stand behind them are properly punished.”Boris Nemtsov murder 2015

He said: “Please accept my deepest condolences in connection with this irreparable loss. I sincerely share your sorrow.

“Boris Nemtsov has left his mark in the history of Russia, in its political and public life. He occupied significant posts in a difficult time of transition in this country. He always openly and honestly voiced and upheld his views.”

Expressing shock at the “cruel and cynical murder”, PM Dmitry Medvedev said Boris Nemtsov was a “principled person” who “acted openly, consistently and never betrayed his views”.

On February 28 there was a steady stream of people leaving flowers at the site of the killing.

Boris Nemtsov served as first deputy prime minister under President Boris Yeltsin in the 1990s but fell out of favor with Vladimir Putin and became an outspoken opponent, particularly on the Ukraine conflict.

During an interview on February 10, Boris Nemtsov had said he feared Vladimir Putin would have him killed because of his opposition to the war.

Boris Nemtsov died hours after appealing for support for a march on March 1 in Moscow against the conflict.

The march, due to be held in a Moscow suburb, has now been cancelled, and the organizers have been given permission to hold a mourning procession in the centre of the city.

According to the Russian state media, the march will begin on Kitaigorodsky Proezd at 15:00 local time and pass the site of the killing. Analysts say it is rare for state media to announce the time and place of opposition rallies.

Amid widespread global outrage, President Barack Obama condemned the killing as a “brutal murder”.

The Russian government must conduct a “prompt, impartial and transparent investigation”, Barack Obama urged.

“I admired Nemtsov’s courageous dedication to the struggle against corruption in Russia and appreciated his willingness to share his candid views with me when we met in Moscow in 2009,” the president said in a statement.

A statement from the office of German Chancellor Angela Merkel spoke of Boris Nemtsov’s “courage” for his frequent criticism of Russian government policy.

Angela Merkel “calls on President Vladimir Putin to ensure that the murder is cleared up and the perpetrators brought to justice”, her spokesman Steffen Seibert said.

UK PM David Cameron echoed the calls for an inquiry, saying he was “shocked and sickened” by the news.

Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko described Boris Nemtsov as a friend of Ukraine.

He said: “Boris had declared he would provide clear evidence of Russian armed forces’ participation in [the war] in Ukraine. Somebody was afraid of this… They killed him.”

Amnesty International demanded a “prompt, impartial and effective” investigation into what it said was “a cold-blooded murder of one of those free voices whom the authorities have so actively sought to silence”.

Boris Nemtsov was shot at around 23:40 on Friday, February 27, while crossing Bolshoy Moskvoretsky Bridge accompanied by a woman, Russia’s interior ministry said.

He was shot with a pistol from a white car which fled the scene, police said.

Russian investigative committee head Vladimir Markin said in a statement that several motives for the killing were being considered including “Islamic extremism” and the victim’s alleged links with Ukraine.

“Mr. Nemtsov may have been sacrificed by those who do not shun anything to reach their political gains,” the statement said.

The statement also said that the attack was meticulously planned and the killers had been tracking Boris Nemtsov’s movements around Moscow.

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Paris heists: Eight men jailed over double heist on Harry Winston jewelry store

Diane A. Wade
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Paris heists: Eight men jailed over double heist on Harry Winston jewelry store

Eight men have been sentenced to different jail terms over a double heist on the Harry Winston store in Paris that netted watches and jewels worth more than $100 million.

The sentences ranged from nine months to the 15-year term given to the man believed to be the mastermind, Douadi Yahiaoui, nicknamed “Doudou”.

Four robbers pretended to be builders in the first heist in October 2007.

In 2008, four thieves again gained access, with three of them this time wearing women’s clothing and wigs.

In March 2011, police found $19 million worth of jewelry from the 2008 heist stuffed in a drain in the Parisian suburb of Seine-Saint-Denis, but much of the loot has never been recovered.

Photo Flickr
Photo Flickr

Prosecutor Sylvie Kachaner said Douadi Yahiaoui, 50, who has already served 23 years for theft and drug trafficking, was the brains behind the outfit.

Sylvie Kachaner said: “He is the one who organized everything, recruited the robbers, gave instructions and was in charge of selling the jewellery.”

One of those convicted was Mouloud Djennad, who provided insider information from his job as a security guard at the store.

He had told the court: “My thoughts are with my former colleagues at Harry Winston. I’m ashamed every day but I cannot undo what I’ve done.”

For the 2007 heist, Mouloud Djennad let in the robbers the evening before. They threatened employees and took items worth about $35 million.

The heist in December 2008 netted about $79 million.

A lawyer for one of the defendants, Eric Dupond-Moretti, told AFP: “It’s an exceptional case with unusual aspects. In television series about heists, they wear bulletproof vests. Here it’s fishnet stockings and high heels.”

The Harry Winston boutique is situated on the fashionable Avenue Montaigne in Paris and attracts a wealthy clientele from around the world, from royalty to movie stars.

Kim Jong-un urges North Korean army to prepare for war with US

Roy Siemens
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Kim Jong-un urges North Korean army to prepare for war with US

Kim Jong-un has urged the North Korean army to prepare for war with the US and its allies, state media said on February 28, ahead of US-South Korea military drills.

The North Korean leader’s comments came after South Korea and the US on February 27 conducted a joint naval drill involving 10 South Korean warships and a US Aegis destroyer, ahead of the launch of large-scale military exercises that have enraged the North.

“The prevailing situation where a great war for national reunification is at hand requires all the KPA (Korean People’s Army) units to become (elite) Guard Units fully prepared for war politically and ideologically, in military technique and materially,” Kim Jong-un was quoted by the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) as saying.

North Korea regularly ratchets up hostile rhetoric at times of joint US-South Korea military exercises that spark a sharp surge in tensions on the divided peninsula.Kim Jong un North Korean army

Kim Jong-un called on the military to train hard in order “to tear to pieces the Stars and Stripes”, in comments made while opening a new hall at the Victorious Fatherland Liberation War Museum in Pyongyang, KCNA said.

The drill on February 27 was a prelude to an eight-week exercise, Foal Eagle, involving air, ground and naval field training, with around 200,000 Korean and 3,700 US troops that begins on March 2.

A week-long, largely computer-simulated joint drill, Key Resolve, will also get under way.

Seoul and Washington insist the exercises are defense-based in nature, but they are condemned by Pyongyang as provocative rehearsals for invasion.

The communist country had offered a moratorium on carrying out nuclear tests if this year’s joint drills were cancelled – a proposal rejected by Washington as an “implicit threat” to carry out a fourth atomic drill.

North Korea claims it won the 1950-1953 Korean War, which ended in an armistice instead of a peace treaty, leaving the two Koreas still technically at war.

Missouri shootings: Joseph Jesse Aldridge identified as gunman

Nancy Clayson
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Missouri shootings: Joseph Jesse Aldridge identified as gunman

Joseph Jesse Aldridge has been identified as the gunman who killed seven people in a door-to-door shooting spree in Missouri on February 26 before killing himself, authorities said.

According to police, the rampage may have been triggered by finding his mother dead of apparent natural causes.

Four of the victims are family members of the suspect.

Joseph Jesse Aldridge, 36, was later found dead of an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound inside a car in a neighboring county after the killings in the rural community of Tyrone, located in the southern part of Missouri, about 90 miles east of Springfield, authorities said.

The body of a woman identified by authorities as Joseph Jesse Aldridge’s mother, 74-year-old Alice Aldridge, had been dead for 24 hours before she was found by authorities on February 26, and she is thought to have died of natural causes.

Police first learned of the rampage — which spanned six crime scenes in a three-mile radius in Tyrone — just after 10 p.m. local time on Thursday, February 26, after a juvenile female called 911 and said there were gunshots in her home.

Four of the seven victims were identified as husband and wife Darrell and Julie Aldridge and husband and wife Harold and Janelle Aldridge, Missouri State Highway Patrol Sgt. Jeff Kinder said at a news conference on February 27, adding that some were cousins of the suspect.

The other three victims were not members of the suspect’s family and have not yet been identified.

Texas County Sheriff James Sigman said during a news conference on February 27 that investigators “checked a wide area door-to-door” for additional victims. He added that investigators weren’t looking for any other suspects.

Joseph Jesse Aldridge pleaded guilty to federal charges of possessing a firearm, described as a .22-caliber pistol, while using marijuana in 2008, according to KSDK. Following his 21-month sentence, he was ordered to participate in counseling programs, the station reported. The gun Joseph Jesse Aldridge allegedly used on February 26 was a .45-caliber handgun, Sheriff James Sigman said.

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Anthony Mason died from congestive heart failure aged 48

Clyde K. Valle
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Anthony Mason died from congestive heart failure aged 48

Former NBA All-Star Anthony Mason died from congestive heart failure on February 28 at the age of 48, a Knicks spokesperson confirmed.

Anthony Mason, a 2001 All-Star with the Miami Heat, played for six NBA teams over 13 seasons including five years with the Knicks.

The sportsman was diagnosed with congestive heart failure earlier this month.

Anthony Mason had four surgeries following his heart attack.Anthony Mason dead at 48

His three sons, Anthony Jr., Antoine and Armon, were at his side.

Anthony Mason was the NBA’s Sixth Man of the Year in 1995 while with the Knicks and was selected to the NBA’s All-Defensive team in 1997. The Tennessee State alum was drafted by Portland in 1988, but was cut before the season began.

He played a season in Turkey before joining the New Jersey Nets in 1989. After a year with the Savannah Spirits of the Continental Basketball Association, Anthony Mason played three games with the Denver Nuggets before going to the Knicks in 1991.

Anthony Mason spent his final two NBA seasons in Milwaukee.

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Kelly Osbourne leaves Fashion Police after four years

Lisa.Felice
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Kelly Osbourne leaves Fashion Police after four years

Kelly Osbourne has left Fashion Police on Friday, February 27, E! Entertainment Television has confirmed.

The TV channel said in a statement: “Kelly Osbourne is departing E!s <<Fashion Police>> to pursue other opportunities, and we would like to thank her for her many contributions to the series over the past five years, during which time the show became a hit with viewers.”

Kelly Osbourne has been very vocal about her displeasure with the situation regarding an ill-advised joke made by Fashion Police co-star Giuliana Rancic about Zendaya Coleman’s hairstyle. Ozzy Osbourne’s daughter even hinted on Twitter that she was considering leaving the show, but tweeted that she was contractually handcuffed from saying anything else.

Photo E! Entertainment
Photo E! Entertainment

Neither the joke about her friend Zendaya Coleman, nor the ensuing fallout, had anything to do with her decision, according to the Daily Mail.

According to TMZ, Kelly Osbourne was unhappy with how the show was produced this past season and that producers were “up to here” with her.

“Kelly stayed on the show after the beloved Joan Rivers passed away, but nothing has been the same since,” a source told the Daily Mail.

“The chemistry has not been the same between the hosts since the show came back on air and Kelly knows it’s time to move on.”

“This has nothing to do with Giuliana,” the source continued.

“Zendaya accepted Giuliana’s apology and she’s already moved on to a new hair style.”

Kelly Osbourne has been a fixture on Fashion Police since 2011.

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